Project Time

As my craft area is becoming increasingly out of control- a serious organization is in order!

Luckily I have the next 4 days off of work while my employers are in Aspen.

Also luckily I had the idea to reuse an empty formula canister from work (I'm a nanny) to aid in my organization :)

Simple project supplies:

*1 empty canister (formula, coffee, etc...)
*scissors
*mod podge
*paint brush
*spray gloss sealer (optional)
*an old magazine, book, etc...

Steps:

*wash and remove canister label
*cut out several images and/or text
*using brush, apply mod podge to back side of images and place
them on the empty canister and canister lid
*after the mod podge has dried apply another coat of mod podge over the images or simply bring
out doors and evenly spray the canister and lid with gloss sealer
*allow to dry and then fill with whatever you please :)

Finished Project:

Stitchy stitch...

I got my sewing machine working weekend before last (I think. Time has sort of been a blur lately!)

(yay!)

And since I have no current knowledge (you may remember me discussing this in a previous entry) and I am going off of some information in various books I am dying to take real lessons. I found out there is a place called Sew L.A literally on the bottom of the hill under my house along Silverlake Blvd. that offers lessons. I need to get that arranged!

                       

Until then I will continue practicing random stitches on random fabrics that I CAN'T STOP buying from Joanns. I am SO in love with textiles. Who knew?

I've pretty much been setting myself up a little factory little by little, ok I don't know if buying crap every other day is really little by little but whatever. I can't wait to really start sewing up some fun stuff!!

                 

And so I dont go through all of my fabric during my practice phase...

I started practicing on a few tissues the other day. It was actually quite fun! (I was playing with my pinking shears which is why the edges are cut that way)

                  

(my craft area becomes wrecked quite quickly)

For any of you readers who have basic sewing tutorials, please feel free to paste a link to them in the comments for me and everyone else ;)

Off to Home Depot

Eeee! About to head off to Home Depot to get materials for my new craft table. I'm going to go with the awesomely cheap alternative of cinder blocks and wood! Stay tuned....

Happy Birthday Matt!

Today is my husband's birthday. Happy Birthday Matt!!! I love you young one. He is finally a mere 26 today. I, however, am approaching 28. Rather quickly. Ahhh.

(haha. this photo is from when he was only a young 23 or maybe 24 yrs of age and had recently moved out to los angeles to live with me)

So we have been on our strict diet for 3 1/2 weeks now. We haven't had sugar or bread. Ahhh. But starting today we can begin eating larger portions as well as a little dairy, nuts, oils, and a few new veggies. I'm SO glad. It was getting soooo boring. However I have lost 18 pounds!! And Matt has lost I believe like 22!! We are now in the "stabilization" phase and are not supposed to lose more than 2 pounds in the next three weeks while our metabolism stabilizes. And then after that we are allowed to slowly add back in sugar and bread. We are so very excited about our new bodies. Woohooo :) (we both put on extra weight after marriage. ugh. we our keeping it off foreverrrrrr)

So I went to the boutique yesterday that I had an appointment for consignment selection with- I get everything prepared, which even distracted me a bit from the 2nd to last episode of Lost everrrrr! I rush over there after work and bam! No one is there and the closed sign as up. I felt sad and stood up. Haha. I'm hoping we can reschedule, I'm sure something came up and they had to close it down early or something. It is called Mila-A Boutique for Little Tots in Atwater Village. It's really cool and gets really good reviews on the internet, so I'm hoping it will work out.

I made a few new pieces over the weekend and Sunday I met with my bf Julie in the park and I demanded to use her as a model for a few shots. Here they are...

                                    

                   

The one above is made with a hand cut felt flower stem and concentric circles of vintage fabric for the flower head, on a layer of burlap and backed with felt.

                   

This is my new favorite one I've been wearing everyday since its creation Friday night. Whether it be in my hair on clipped on the neckline of my shirt or dress. Either way it adds a lot of fun to my wardrobe!! Hand cut felt leaves with a burlap and fabric center.

Spread the love? (or should I say "like"?) -->

Cheers!

clinging to spring

Ahhh the end of spring is nearing. Don't get me wrong, I am looking forward to summer but there is just something so magical about spring. Also I'm not gonna lie...when you live in southern california the beginning of summer is basically a prolonged spring. I've been checking the weather back home (ok actually i have as many cities as allowed in the iphone weather app to check on. i'm a strangely curious person. a few on my list: Alvin, TX (my hometown), Big Sur, New York City, Sleepy Hollow, Athens Greece, San Francisco and more) and the temp has been in the 90's! Gah! I think its hot when it hits 77 here. Pathetic. But hey, you get spoiled and quickly forget how terrible weather can be elsewhere.

So I'm kind of sad because today when I was watering my container plants I noticed they were not doing so well. For example I swear it looks like there is mold growing in my beets. WHYYY. Anyway. I think they may not be getting enough sunlight. Hmm.

OH! I'm so excited and proud of myself. Today when I was stopping to get coffee I parked right in front of a children's boutique, which I have so many times before. I have always wanted to go inside and talk to the owner about selling my hair clips but I just never could quite build up the courage. It just seems so audacious. Like "Hey! Look at this! Sell it please!?" haha. But it was really easy and comfortable. I just kind of asked her about how the process would be to sell things in her shop and then I pulled out some of my business cards from Moo.com that have photos of my products on the back (awesome idea). Her daughter was there too and she LOVED them. So that was good. Anyway so get this....next Wednesday I am bringing in my collection for consignment selction!!!! WOoohoooo. Now I feel confident enough to take my things to other places for consignment consideration. Way cool. Etsy is just way hard. Too many sellers on there to stand out.

I roasted large chunks of red, green, yellow and orange bell peppers for dinner and it was SO yummy. I need to do that more often. Just thought I'd share that piece of information. Not sure why. It may be because of the iced espresso I'm sipping on. Makes me "mouthy" as husband lovingly refers to it.

I will now leave you with a piece of spring. My spring flower patch hair clip to be exact. Enjoy!

So cheery and springish ;)

Buy Spring Flower Patch Hair Clip

Hmmm...

Hellooo.

So this Saturday I got my container gardening all set up and planted and took tons of photos during the process and MUCH to my dismay....

I somehow deleted all of the photos on my camera while trying to change some settings. LAME. I know. BUT good news: most of the seeds are already sprouting!!! So freaking exhilirating. For real. Pictures to follow in my next post.

Well I have photographed the mixed greens that are sprouting so I can show that one.

P.s. Kinda yuck, but I'm growing this particular container in the window sill of my bathroom. It gets the best sunlight! Ha!

I can't wait to use the veggies that I grow. Although who knows if any of them will grow to maturity in these containers. I'm trying to grow beets and carrots in a container, probably not gonna work but fun nonetheless.

So last night I pulled out some of my hair clip craft materials for the first time since being in my new place. I had to declare a spot on the floor as my temporary craft station. I hope to build myself a work table in the near future!

See that cabinet thing in the background, this past weekend I painted and distressed it to make it look older. It was basically the color of the wood floor and I didn't like the way they looked together so I decided to paint it a light sage. Home Depot is fun!!

Umm also, if anyone could tell me, why the hell does Blogger change your font and alignment after adding a photo. Someone help me out here, what am I doing wrong!!!

Anyway. I made one adult clip and one child (or adult) clip. It was a lot of fun to make things again. I'm going to post a picture of the "adult" one showing an example of a different alternative for wearing my clips. I like to just clip them onto my shirts in various places. It's tons of fun!

Fun, yes?

The back layer was made from a piece of a vintage suitcase that finally bit the dust last year. I knew there was a reason I hadn't thrown it away yet! The other layers are felt, fabric and burlap!

And here are a few shots of the "kid" or "adult who isn't afraid of bright colors" clip.

A "packaged" (I've used a lot of these: "" in this post by the way) view.

An intimate encounter. I love how you can see all of the threads in this one.

Being modeled by the lovely Violet (whom I nanny), who is seriously teething these days. Not sure if a teething child is worse for the child or the person taking care of said child ;)

Love it? Purchase it here!

 

What do you think? I have SO many ideas for crafts that I haven't even materialized yet. I hate that, because I know I lose so many of those visions before I get a chance to make them. My creativity flows strongest just before falling asleep. Grrrr.

Anyway. I need to go prepare lunches to take to work tomorrow for my husband and I and make our "apple surprise" night time snack. (Slice an apple, put in a bowl with a little water, and sprinkle stevia and cinnamon for a guilt free yummy treat!!) We are on a strict diet right now as we both have some weight we could stand to lose. I've gained about 20 pounds since we got together almost 3 years ago. OUCH! I'm 27 now, and I can't let that stick with me. Its going AWAY. SOON.

Goodnight blog world.

"Erf" Day 2010

Well good evening fellow earthlings. Hope you all did something nice and earthy today. The weather was pretty terrible here in Los Angeles today but I managed to dedicate about and hour or so enjoying and feeling grateful for our great Mother, Earth.

While I was at work Miles and I (who is responsible for the "Erf" in this blog title) finished some miniature painted earths we started yesterday then cut them out and went around his house taping them next to every light switch and some of the water faucets as a reminder to conserve energy. He was totally into it which is really cool. He is a neat kid like that. (He is 3)

And, we also painted some leaves and rocks....

I also read Miles one of my favorite books from childhood. It had a profound effect on me and my relationship with the planet. I'm so thankful for my mom for discovering this book and sharing it with my siblings and I. The book I'm refering to is Just a Dream by Chris Van Allsburg. 

                              

I'm sure many of you have heard of this book and might share similiar sentiments about it as I. I just can't say enough about its awesomeness. At some point last year I started thinking about volunteering at local schools, reading it to the children to educate them about protecting the planet. I still think this is a good idea. I should do it! I ordered this particular copy last year from Amazon and I love the inscription I found inside.

The imagery in the book is amazing. I think it is why it had such an impact on me at a young age. It came out in 1990 so I guess I was about 7 or 8 when I first read it. 

                                          

After leaving work I drove over to Griffith Park, ordered a soy latte and the most amazing lavender vanilla shortbread cookies from the Trails cafe down at the bottom and then drove up to the top where the observatory is, the view up there is amazing. It was raining lightly but I didn't mind. I was feeling very connected to the earth and the universe. I love that feeling. I didn't have my camera with me so I don't have any pictures of this. Well I had my iphone camera but it just really doesn't do it justice.

Then I made my way over to Home Depot to and picked up some supplies for a little container window sill garden. I'm SO excited to get that set up this weekend. Hopefully the weather will warm up in the next few days. Gosh I can't believe myself, I'm such a Californian these days. Go away rainy coldness, I need me some sunshine ;)

Then I picked up my husband and we can came home and ordered Thai food. Haha.

I'm SO cold right now, our new place actually has gas heating vents throughout which we used a few times when we first moved in so I know they DID work, however I noticed yesterday evening that it stopped working and I have a sneaking suspicion that the hook up of the gas dryer last week has interfered with the heater!! Ahhhh. Need to call the plumber that set it all up and see if he can make it work again, because I have no idea where my space heater is. It gets mighty cold up here on this hill with all of these windows and hardwood floors. Eeeeee.

Anyway. OH yeah, this morning I found some papers in my Just a Dream book that I had stashed in there, I'm thinking like last March or April and one of them contained sketches and ideas for what eventually became Respect Your Mother. Its so cool, I'm so glad I found it. It gives me new inspiration plus makes me feel proud that I did move forward and create an online shop to sell my things and reminded me of ideas that I never materialized before and would like to do so now. Here is a photo of the paper ;)

                                    

I'm a serious list maker and am always jotting down words, lists, ideas, sketches on random paper and I love finding them later, its like a little mini journal of your life that you can look back on think wow, so thats what was going on in my world at that particular time. I usually become nostalgic. This group of papers contained a to do list in preparation of my mother's visit out here last spring. We had such a good time. She helped me create my outdoor garden at the old place. So much fun!

Annnd I will hush now. Happy Earth Day!

A new year, a new blog. Enjoy!

Where do we begin? Well... last spring I started a website and a blog through Yahoo web hosting where I displayed/discussed my crafts. I had just begun to create a batch of my earth inspired items to be sold online, it was certainly an exciting time. I had been making various pieces for myself to wear, mainly clay necklaces, shoe adornments and a shirt- they had captured the attention of strangers and family members who told me I should sell my creations online and well, one thing led to another and I started my website and soon after opened a shop on Etsy. I quickly turned a fourth of our (my husband Matt and I) tiny hillside studio into my "art studio" and have been an obsessed crafter ever since. I'm sure many of you have the same story, I think crafting is just one of those things that eventually takes you over.

Anyhow- one day my website was just gone, as well as my blog, I guess the term I had signed up for had lapsed with no warning email asking if I would like to renew. I'm not super website savvy so I never figured out how to get it back, I hope to one day, but for now I will continue to use Etsy and use this blog as a means to connect and display with other like minded and interested individuals. My posts may be spastic for a while but I assume over time they will find their way and purpose. I hope to talk about life, the planet, share new pieces, other crafter's pieces, demonstrations, and promote.

$1 from each of my sales (whether online or at a craft show) are donated to an environmental organization. Even though its small it makes me feel better about my place in this world, knowing that I am, and that I can in some way, help the planet. I am actually trying to seek out a sponsor who would be interested in meeting me dollar for dollar per each sell to donate that way the impact would be larger. Please let me know if you think you may know a person or company who would be interested. I don't make a ton of sales (as of yet) and my pieces are not expensive so the sponsor wouldn't be shelling out a crap load of money ;)

I like to look at blogs that have photos, so being mindful of that, I will try to keep this interesting with photos whether it be my crafts, another crafter's pieces, or random photos I will take with my new (yay!) camera :)
So tonight, I think I will sign off with a photo of one of my most recent pieces. I actually haven't made anything new in a couple of weeks due to the holidays, etc. I can't wait to start again. Plus, I got a sewing machine for Christmas so my shop should be expanding soon!! Until next time...




(I love this piece, I need to make more- this particular one was sold at my mother in law's booth at a show in Texas. Tree and bird made out of polymer clay.)