Handmade Greetings

Two special friends, two specials events, that calls for two special cards:

The first is for my dear friend Katie. She and her husband welcomed their darling Hannah Grace just 2 short weeks ago. She was difficult because they waited to find out the sex of the baby until birth, so as soon as I knew the gender I had to get Miss Hannah Grace a girlie assemble to add to her wardrobe. I made the simple rattle design with scrapbook paper and the letters were courtesy of my favorite Martha Stewart alphabet stamps.

The second is for our friends Brett and Erin, who will be blissfully wed in October. This was their shower card that I made-an abstracted wedding cake. Erin has chosen an eggplant purple for her color, which I love! The card went along with their adorable salad plates that we purchased from their registry.

Simple, easy cards that give a personal touch for friends. Plus they were free, I used paper scrapes and blank cards that I had stocked up on!

New Projects

Again with my need to feed my artistic bug, I found a fun tutorial to make use of some fabric scraps and fun felt.

So far I have made three of these darlings, two for me and one for the lovely Matilda. I hope to get some more done soon, and maybe a few for others to enjoy? ...

Would you like one?

Commissioned Piece

I am an artist at heart. I love teaching Art and I love making my own pieces for my home and other's. Only I don't always have the time to do it. Often times, laying on the couch and catching some R&R with my hard-working husband overrides my creative urges. But when my sister-in-law's mom wanted a custom piece I was happy to do one!

Lucy wanted a large scale artwork that worked in blues and browns. Here is what I came up with for her...

{ Detail }

This is a 30'x40' piece with gray-greens, slate blues, and warm brown tones. It fit her bedroom decor wonderfully. She already had a great collection of works, so I was happy to join the company.

What's your Style, Summer 2009

The last time I picked a room for Alek's challenge, I went for a bathroom. This time I'm really loving this office.

{ via Design*Sponge }

It has fun prints (my new fav element), organization, and neutral walls with bright accents. I really would love to have the chair in my place too. I call it organization with a Pop!

If you had to chose one picture that defines your style, what would it be?

Visit Alek's page to play along!

Detached and Relaxed

These past two weeks have gotten the best of me. With school starting, the end of summer vacation, and a lot more to do, I have been exhausted. I still have some lingering projects to complete and no time to do them. After a day of cleaning up glue, crying, potty breaks, and silly kids, I just want to prop my feet up and watch some boob tube with the hubs. But I still have the urge to be creative on my own terms. The distractions are endless. Laundry, dinner, grad school, etc. I need a secluded space to have some peace and quiet. These may just do it (if I had a back yard to put one in...)

{ The Mod Pod- a cute little corner

nook. }

{ The Craftsman-clean lines and great windows. }

{ The Industrial- my favorite. }

{ The Minimalist- simple and easy. }

I wouldn't mind it if any of these dropped in my back yard sometime soon.

I need some 'me time' STAT!

Favorite Kind of Clean

Clean is my middle name. It is also the source of my most major ODC. I am good at having my home 'picked up' at all times, but getting the grime out sometimes takes me some time. But when it gets done, I live by these wonderful little helpers:

My Favorites:

1. Method's Glass, Stainless, and Granite cleaning cloths. (They also make one for wood too.)
2. Stainless Steel cleaner
3. All Purpose Cleaner, in Go Naked
4. Best in Windows, Mint glass cleaner
5. Little Bowl Blue, toilet bowl cleaner

I hate to admit that I am still hanging on to my Clorox when it comes to cleaning around the toliet. I just really need the comfort of bleach when faced with all that involves the white throne. And I am trying to finish up my last can of Scrubbing Bubbles for cleaning the shower before I switch to a greenier option there too. I obviously prefer Method, just because they are easy, and they smell great- hello mint glass cleaner! Because I love my hand soap by JR Watkins so much, I can't wait to try their all purpose cleaner too!

As far as tools go, I use the Method clothes for windows, stainless steel, and granite counter tops, and a cheap-o sponge for everything else. But at a recent Target trip I spied these guys:

Again, I can't wait for the current sponge to give way to the green bamboo variety! Natural products are going to take over one day, which means they will hopefully get cheaper. But unfortunately it is still a ways a way... sorry wallet.

What are your favorite grim-busters?

Favorite Combo: Grass + Lantana

Here is our whiskey barrel full of purple fountain grass and white lantana. It is the perfect combo for height, color, and trailing plants. Both of these plants prefer bright, full sun so they are thriving in the back of the house. I'll probably spend the weekend out in the yard dividing MORE lamb's ear. The stuff just won't stop growing!...

Design Star Stunner

I have been DVRing this season of HGTV's Design Star and this past week's white room challenge was both amazing and atrocious. The designers were given a white room with a couch, 2 tables, and one bookcase. They were furnished 2 cans of paint and $1000 to spend at a grocery store. One contestant actually copied a design from a previous season, one didn't even finish and another just when crazy with paint. But When Nathan's gem was put on the screen I was smitten.

{Chandelier- orange slices, wall stripes- milk, floor-oatmeal}

This room is just genius. With only grocery store finds & paint, he created an edgy and beautifully modern-art-esque room. The words written on the couch and the pop of the orange, just amazing... although I would have liked a different shade of blue on the tables. Who thinks of dripping milk down a wall? A design star, that's who! a.m.a.z.i.n.g. Click here to see all the rooms from the challenge.

It makes me think, what is the strangest thing you have put into your home for the love of design?

Image courtesy of HGTV

New Neighbors and Growers

While waiting for the furry one to do his business, I found this guy on a nearby tree.

Don't you just love symmetry?

But I really wanted to give you an update on my Madison Jasmine. I planted these vines a while back and they are growing like crazy! They are taller than I am and are quickly wrapping around the columns that will be their new home. I give them lots of water and I temporarily staple them to train them up the columns. So far, so great!

Even my ivy is thriving around its trellis.

You have any new sprouts or visitors of the insect variety?

I can't believe it!

I will be back at the workplace promptly at 7:30am tomorrow morning for the first Faculty Meeting of the 2009-2010 school year. The past two months have FLOWN by. It began with a pergola, followed by a 4th of July shin-dig, then headed outside for some landscaping, then back inside for a guest room re-do, and finished with Erik and I on the couch watching some TV and relaxing. This summer has been one of the busiest, but a good one.



I'm looking forward to having a schedule again and actually dressing before noon. Don't get me wrong, I love the R & R of the summer, but it can get old, and I think if I come up with one more project to do Erik will flip! So here's to the Back to School Madness! Welcome back traffic, soccer practice, and packing lunches!

{image from here}