Sunday Update

What a great weekend I just had! After a little over a year, I FINALLY was able to get the rest of my craft supplies back from my brother. After my separation, I spent some time living with my brother until I could get on my own two feet. I took all of my craft supplies with me to his house and when I moved out, I took as much as I could load. There has been one last load of supplies sitting in his garage for the last year. Man, is it good to have that stuff back! My brother and his wife are saints for letting me store my stuff there for so long. They never complained… not even one time! I’m not sure I would have had that kind of patience! Ha!

But, it’s amazing to me how much stuff I had left over there. So much of it were things I thought I had lost forever. My husband was laughing at me as I would find new, fun things in the boxes. It took me most of the day today, but i have it all organized and stored in the appropriate places. My husband was so wonderful through it all. He packed and unpacked boxes, lugged stuff out to the garage and moved things around in the house so that I could have all of my stuff easily at hand. How can you not love a man who supports your crafting life in that way?

Needless to say, I didn’t have a whole lot of time for actual crafting this weekend. I did manage to do a couple of things…

As you may know, I have really taken up crocheting lately. It’s such an easy craft to do while watching a movie with my husband, riding in the car, or on my lunch break at work. The projects just travel so easily. One of the things I have always loved is vintage doilies. They are so beautiful, but can be pricey and hard to find. So, I decided that I would just start making my own. The photo above is my first attempt. Let’s just say that it’s not easy… at all! At least not for these big, clumsy hands. Not to mention that I can’t seem to keep my count very well. I think I crocheted each round in this one at least two times, if not three! I also discovered that crocheting with a tiny size 7 needle with thin thread while driving in a car is not easy AT ALL! Being jostled around over all of the bumps and turns certainly does not make for ideal detail crocheting conditions! But, I pulled it off and I absolutely love it! I’m hoping to pick up some speed and pump a few of these babies out to add to my Etsy shop. We’ll see…

I also managed to get this painted…

This started out as a dark wood frame. It still needs another coat of paint, but I’m really loving the direction it’s going in. I plan on making this a beautiful shabby chic frame for one of my wedding layouts. I just ran out of steam to get it finished tonight. I’m hoping to get it finished this week after work, but, again, we’ll see what happens. I tend to be quite wiped out by the time I get home and fed on weeknights!

One last thing… I was looking at my blog stats today. I had no idea that I have made over 300 posts! Woot! But I also noticed that I had over 130 hits on my blog today! My husband was laughing at me because I kept looking at the stats all day. I just couldn’t believe that I got that many hits today. I’m not sure why that happened, but thank you to all who take the time to read my silly stories about crafting and life. I do really enjoy having a blog. I just wish I had a lot more time to dedicate to it! One more thing I’m evaluating in my life right now…

Have a great week!

Is It Snowing?

Ok, it’s not snowing where I live. I think that would be a major news story if that happened, considering I live about 5 miles from the beach in Southern California! But, I am starting to prepare my Christmas crafts. Today’s adventure was finishing up my snowmen from last week.

Aren’t they just the cutest things you’ve ever seen? I got the idea back in 2007 from A BHG Holiday Crafts magazine. I made a whole bunch of them for a Silver Bella swap I was in. Oh my goodness! They were so cute all lined up in the box together! I’ve had that image in my head ever since. Well, since I’m starting over with all of my holiday decorations, I decided that I was going to make a little army of these for myself! Ok, maybe not an entire army, but I definitely will be saving several for my tree. The others that I make will be going into my Etsy store waiting for new homes. The two above will be going in the store, but I need to get better images of them before I can list them. I just couldn’t resist getting them up on my blog today!

Plus, it seems to be becoming a tradition for me to post on Sunday night. I think that’s when I have just about used all of my available energy and free time up, so I’m able to kind of wrap up my week in a blog post. I always wish to do more posting, but I refuse to make myself do it. If did that, I would end up hating it… and ultimately not doing it at all! And that’s no fun at all!!

Not much more to report this week. I purchased a mound of muslin and some burlap today. I have some fun plans for those. I have an apron in the works, but it’s still a little ways off. Hopefully I’ll be able to work on that this week.

Off to waste what’s left of my weekend scrolling through the pages of Pinterest…

Exciting Holiday…

Well, well, well… Halloween was quite the adventure here in the Slater Slums! That’s what we call the neighborhood that we live in. I so didn’t want to believe that it is as bad as it is… that my husband was just being over protective and a little paranoid. But, I have to say, he was right! We definitely are living in the ‘hood!

A couple of days ago, when I was leaving for work at 7:30am, we came out of the apartment to this (my sweet husband walks me to the car every single day):

At first look, it looks like someone tried to start their car and the engine caught on fire. However, after looking closer, and speaking with our neighbors, it turns out that this was most likely a retaliation attack of some kind. I never did get all of the details, mostly because I did not want to know. I think it’s better to just stay blissfully ignorant to this kind of stuff rather then get nosey and possibly get myself into some trouble.

Yesterday started out like any other day, with the exception that I went to work looking like this:

And, of course, I was the ONLY person in my company that dressed up for Halloween! Ha! That was fun! Oh, and I got to meet one of our sales reps for the first time. She must have thought I was completely off my rocker! Anyway, the husband and I made plans for the evening. We were going to carve our pumpkins when I got home from work, pass out candy to the neighbor kids and maybe scare a few of them with our funny costumes. However, that’s not exactly how it went down.

Because there is still an investigation going on about it, I’m not going to share all of the gory details. Suffice to say, it was definitely a hair raising night, a very, very long night, and things have changed quite drastically for me in this little place I’ve called home for the last few months. At about 9:30 last night, we heard gunshots… lots of them. That’s not necessarily strange for where we live, which is sad in and of itself. These gunshots, though, were extremely close. After about 15 minutes, we decided to check out what was going on. Our roommate, whose window faces the street, came out of his room and told us the paramedics were outside.

Not only were the paramedics there, but about 100 policemen and our neighborhood from my complex down was all tied off. No entering and no leaving! It turns out that 2 people were shot. I didn’t hang around long to find out all of the details myself. I just wanted it all to not be true. I saw the two people loaded into the ambulance and off I went to my tiny apartment to try and forget it all.

No such luck! The police canvased the neighborhood, spent most of the night interviewing us and the neighbors for information we didn’t have. They had to call in a CSI unit because major evidence was found outside my front door and under my bedroom window. Talk about a little too close for comfort!

So, my husband and I, after sleeping for most of the day because the police were here until about 4am, spent the rest of the day talking with our landlord trying to find a way out of our lease. Thank GOD we have an incredible landlord who totally understood our situation and agreed to let us out of our lease! Great news, I know, but that also means that I am on the hunt for a new place to live when the holidays are upon us! Not so fun…

Anyway, I ramble on… I really just wanted to post that we are alright. We are coping with the fear and anxiety as well as could be expected. No going out after dark for me for a while. But most importantly, I have just added a new item to my Etsy shop:

If you have been following my blog for the last year or so, you will recognize this banner. I actually made it last year on a Live with Prima show. It’s absolutely amazing. I put it away in a safe place… moved it with me when I had to move, and now I’ve added it back to my Etsy store. To be honest, I really don’t want to part with it. But I have 2 of them and have decided to part with one. So, be sure to check it out. It’s a really great deal. If you know anything about the price of Prima flowers, you will know that there are about $30-$40 worth of flowers alone on this thing! It would be a great Fall addition to any home.

And I will be adding some snowmen to the shop as soon as they are ready! They are taking FOREVER to dry for some reason. Day 3 and they are still a little wet! Got ‘em in a nice warm place now, so hopefully that will speed things up a bit!

Ta…

Starting to look like Christmas…

Ok, I know it’s a little early. Actually, I get really angry when I go into a store in September and see Christmas decorations starting to go out on the shelves. I mean, really? Doesn’t that just seem a bit excessive? Maybe that’s just me…

But back to my photo. If you are a crafter, you know that you have to start early if you plan on having any crafts done for the holidays. When I got divorced, I pretty much left everything behind. I took only what I absolutely needed… which, of course, included ALL of my art supplies! Unfortunately, that means that I lost years and years of Christmas decorations. All of my gorgeous Silver Bella swap ornaments… gone. All of my cute artificial trees in fun colors… gone. All of those really ugly decorations that your kids made for you, but you totally treasure every one of them… gone! Yes, it was really hard for me to leave that stuff behind, but quite frankly, I had to. I really don’t have any place to put any of that stuff now anyway. But, yes, there are many, many things in those decorations that I will miss dearly.

It’s time to move on, though. I’ve got a brand new life with an incredibly supportive new husband. We have memories to start making for ourselves! So, I’m starting from scratch. I’ve decided that I’m going to do it the way I’ve always wanted… totally hand made! There is no way that I will get it all done this year, or even next year, but who cares! Each year I will add what I can, just like I did before. Only this time, everything will be hand made… and mostly by me! I’m really excited about this, to be honest. The house will look very sparse this year, but who cares! I’m going to have so much fun making lots of new, beautiful Christmas treasures!

The picture above is the start of this new crafty adventure. Some of you may recognize these adorable dudes. When I went to Silver Bella one year, I made a whole bunch of these guys for a swap I was in. I just adore these guys and couldn’t resist the opportunity to make some more. I got the idea from an old… 2007 to be exact… Holiday Crafts magazine. They are made from Paper Mache and Styrofoam. Right now, these guys are drying. Once they are dry, I will sand them, paint them, and add some glittered goodies to them. They should be done in a few days. I can hardly wait!

In other news, I FINALLY got a new haircut today!! OMG! I cannot tell you how good it feels to have a little bit of style back!!

Yeah, I know… not the greatest photo ever. My computer wants to blow a flash at me because it’s dark in this room, which, of course, totally washes me out. Oh yeah, and I haven’t fixed my make up all day, and I’ve been crafting for hours. But other than that, what do you think? LOL!

Hope you all have a great week!

Join me Thursday

I’m so excited to announce that I will be on Live with Prima this Thursday, October 27th at 6:30pm. It’s been a while since I’ve been able to host a Live with Prima show. I’ve been so busy at work and with so many other things that I just haven’t been able get one scheduled. But sometimes necessity takes over where my schedule is concerned. It turns out that one of the girls had some of her own scheduling issues and they needed me to fill in in a hurry. No pressure, right? Ha!

Well, thank goodness I came up with a really good idea fairly quickly. I’m still not sure how I’m going to fit the whole project into an hour and a half episode, but it will all work out, right? So, I hope you will be there with me to cheer me on… and to learn some new techniques. I think you are going to love the project. Here are some other photos of it:

It’s a little hard to describe exactly what it is, but basically it’s a ephemera box. It’s a place to file all of those little bits of stuff you want to save for your scrapbook pages, but never know exactly where to keep them. I got the idea from the Stampington website and kind of ran with it. I’m really happy with the way it turned out and will be using mine starting in January!

So be sure to tune in to the live show on Thursday, October 27th at 6:30pm Pacific Time at livewithprima.com. You can also view it on upstream at upstream.com. Just look for PrimaFlowers in the search box and click on the Prima logo to get to the show. If you can make it, be sure to say, “Hi!”

Something New

I’m so excited to have another addition to my Etsy shop!! I started this blanket just a week ago. I can’t believe that it’s already done, but here it sits, waiting for a new home. I absolutely love this blanket, but have decided to make a much larger one for my bed. So, this one will hopefully be going to a new home soon.

Be sure to tell all your friends to check it out. You never know who might want this beautiful, hand made treasure!

I’m also excited to announce that I’ve been asked to host another Live with Prima show! This came as quite a shock and surprise to me for many reasons. But, I am over the moon about it and have already picked my project and my product for it.

I was in Cincinnati over the weekend at a CKC event and didn’t get in until midnight last night, so I’m too exhausted to do anything tonight. However, I will be digging into that box of goodies tomorrow and will hopefully have my project done in no time! The show airs on Ustream on Thursday, October 27th at 6:30pm PST so mark your calendars. I promise, you will love this project!!

Tattered TV This Week!

Check it out! I’ll be hosting an episode of Tattered TV this Wednesday! I’m so excited! I’ll be making a fun Halloween banner. I know that I’ve done them before, but it seems like my house is not complete at Halloween without one! And, of course, I have to use the newest, latest and greatest products each year. Ha!

So, be sure to tune in. I’ll be on Wednesday, October 12th at 6pm Pacific Time! Should be a fun class.

I’ve got lots of other stuff in the works like this:

and this:

and this:

Oh, yeah!! And this:

So excited to have the creative bug back in me!!

Taking the next step

Hey there, friends! Boy, has my life just gotten a bit crazy over the past year! I have been busy, busy, busy and haven’t had a lot of time for crafting or for blogging. So, here’s a quick recap:

Got a full time job
Got divorced
Met someone really special
Moved to an apartment 4 miles from the beach
Got married!
Was asked to join the Tattered Angels Education Team
Traveled all over the US teaching scrapbooking classes

I think that about sums it all up! Nobody can ever say that I don’t live an exciting life! Ha!

Anyway, it’s time for me to take the next step in my life… one I have been wanting to take for a very long time. I have had so many wonderful friends suggest to me that I sell some of my work, but I have never really had the confidence or support that I needed to jump the hurdle. However, my amazing new husband is so very supportive (if not a bit pushy at times LOL). He has been “suggesting” that I sell my stuff ever since I met him. Again, the lack of confidence in myself has always overruled anything positive anyone would say.

But I have decided that enough is enough! I have a new life and new opportunities before me. My husband loves me, loves my work, and encourages me daily with his positive and uplifting words. I don’t have to be that scared little girl anymore. I don’t have to let the inner voice win. I don’t have to allow the things of the past to hold me down any longer!

So, I have taken the plunge and listed my first mixed media painting in my Etsy shop. I’m excited and scared and worried and have butterflies and… and… and… well, you get the point. Here’s a picture of what I have listed:

Some of you may have already seen this on my Facebook page. I posted a picture of it there to get some feedback before I jumped the final hurdle. Thank you to everyone who had such wonderful, positive things to say to me. Never, ever discount the power of encouraging words. Even the smallest encouragement could change a person’s life forever!

And, in case you are curious, I have 2 more paintings in the works – another 16×20 bird painting and a smaller 11×14 one. I will also have some altered aprons in my shop as well as one other goodies that I have in mind. You never know what I might have up my sleeves! So be sure the check out the shop regularly. Christmas is coming soon…

Tattered Angels Education Blog

Be sure to hop on over to the Tattered Angels Educator Blog to check out the layout I made for the Tattered Angels/Prima Blog Hop. I’ve been working on my wedding album. The Prima papers and Patina Glimmer Mist are the perfect combination to document my perfect day!!

Tattered Angels/Prima Blog Hop!

Hey there! I’m so excited to be a part of the Tattered Angels/Prima Blog hop. Both companies have some really cool give aways to go along with the hopping. I will be posting the project above on September 6th, with full instructions as to how I made it. Be sure the stop by both blogs and leave comments for a chance to win these goodies!

Yummy stuff, no??? As usual, I’m a day late and a dollar short in getting my post up. Be sure to leave your comments on their September 1st blog posts!!

Tattered Angels Design Team Blog
Tattered Angels Educator Blog
Prima Blog