The Challenge and The New Book

It's here! It arrived in today's mail.....wow, was that fast! Of course I'm talking about my copy of Postmark:LA. And it is every bit as beautiful as I thought it would be. Those 6 gals are super talented.

Dawn over at 4:53 am blog posted the ABC's of Me Challenge and it looked kind of fun, so I decided to give it a try myself. If you want to join in, leave me a link to your post in the comment section of this post.

Accent: None that I know of.
Breakfast or no breakfast: I love, love, love breakfast….my favorite meal of the day.
Chore I don’t care for: Vacuuming and scrubbing toilets - ick!
Dog or Cat: I have one black cat named Midnight and a "grand-dog" beagle named Shooter.
Essential Electronics: Computer and Printer
Favorite Cologne: Romance by Ralph Lauren
Gold or Silver: Silver
Handbag I carry most often: Vera Bradley “Betsy” bag….it has tons of pockets!
Insomnia: Sometimes – like right now….it’s 2:06 am
Job Title: Artist, mother, wife, bookkeeper, cook, maid, caregiver, etc., etc.
Kids: Only one ~ a lovely daughter.
Living Arrangements: I live in a 3 bedroom house in the suburbs with my DH
Most Admirable Trait: Honesty.
Naughtiest Childhood Behavior: Unscrewing the finales on the lamps and hiding them.
Overnight hospital stays: Four and I hated them all….with the exception of giving birth.
Phobias: Claustrophobia
Quote: “Life is a gift; live each day as a thank you note.” ~ author unknown
Reason to smile: A sunny day, a good book, and a cup of joe.
Siblings: One older brother.
Time I wake up: 6:00 am
Unusual Talent or Skill: I can read coffee grounds ~ like a gypsy reads tea leaves.
Vegetable I Refuse to Eat: Brussels sprouts ~ I was traumatized by them as a child.
Worst Habit: Biting my nails
X-rays: What about them?
Yummy Stuff: Tiramisu....mmmmm!
Zoo Animal I Like Most: Tigers......here kitty-kitty.

Etsy Treasuries

I just discovered Etsy Treasuries and in doing so, found out that I am featured in two of them! How exciting is that? My Wire Bird Nest made the Cottage Style Street Team's Treasury here, and then my NEST Sign is featured on the ABC, 123 Treasury here. You can check out both these treasuries through Saturday evening.

TGIF

The assignment for this art journal page was to incorporate sewing and/or stitching onto the page. I planned to have more sewing than actually is on the page, but the thread on the bobbin ran out and I was too lazy to refill it. Of course if you could see the space surrounding the sewing machine you might know why. It's a miracle that I could even find the on/off switch with all the piles of stuff on my desk. Yep, it's a mess again. So "what else is new" you are probably saying ~ and of course you would be 100% correct. My desktop never stays clean and tidy for long, no matter how hard I try. It actually has turned into a dumping ground and I have recently realized that this is an integral part of my creative process ~ how's that for rationalizing? But it truly is, because I cut out snips of this paper with decorative edged scissors, or cut a picture out of that magazine or text from an old book, or a bit from a roll of wallpaper or a length of ribbon and the unused remnants end up all over my desk and eventually get incorporated into a journal page or another collage. And I love that....it's serendipity at it's finest!
Yesterday I was at Michael's for an artist's date {isn't that what author Julia Cameron calls an outing to the art and craft store?} and I ventured over to the Martha Stewart Craft aisle because they were having a sale on all her tools, glitters and adhesives. As I picked up a bottle of my favorite glittering glue {which never clogs, buy the way}, I saw this border punch hanging from the display and thought how pretty it was. I've seen it there before, but somehow it just called out to me this time in an Alice in Wonderland voice and said, "Buy Me, Buy Me." So of course I obeyed and immediately took it right to the check out counter. But it does make a pretty edge, doesn't it? And it is very easy to line up the paper so you can make {as Martha would say} a perfect continuous line of punches all the way across the edge of the paper. You can see my first attempt at this on the blue post-it note above....it turned out so pretty that now I want to punch all my post-it papers.

I decided that my blog needed a new spring look, so yesterday I played around in Photoshop and created a new banner and while doing that I figured out how to get it to appear bigger across the top of the page. It was so simple, but it took a lot of hit and misses until I got it right. See Donna, you aren't the only one who struggles with her blog.

So does anyone have any plans for the Memorial Day weekend? With gas prices at $4.07 around here, we are staying close to home this year. We're getting together with my DH's side of the family tomorrow and Sunday we'll be with some other family members. I think we'll have a cookout at our house on Monday and let everyone else drive out our house for a change. Have a great weekend and don't forget to fly your flag!

Stampin' and Cookin'

This is another page for my Art Journaling Without Fear group. We were asked to use rubber stamps for this assignment. I used stamps from Stampers Anonymous (scalloped ledger border), Ali Edwards (find beauty everyday), PSX (flower), Hero Arts (zig-zag stitch), JoAnn Fabrics (date stamp), Stamps by Judith (babies breath and scattered dots) and Stampabilities (vintage flourish).

So were you a David Archuleta fan or a David Cook fan? I really liked them both, but felt that David Cook was the most marketable American Idol performer. I think he will go far.

Monday Mosaic

Just a little lovely inspiration for your eyes on a Monday morning......enjoy!!!

1. Untitled, 2. Vintage Linen Tote Bags, 3. vintage wedding toppers, 4. Pink Rose Birthday Cake, 5. new etsy listings, 6. For The Birds Swap, 7. Creamy Buttons, 8. Mothers Day Seedling Cake, 9. maj, 10. Pink Snow, 11. Untitled, 12. Pay It Forward ATC Swap, 13. Pay It Forward ATC Swap, 14. 1800s Dress!, 15. Handmade Card, 16. Demure Fairy

And if all that wasn't enough inspiration for you, just feast your eyes on this little beauty. . .

It's a brand new self-published book, chock-full of all my favorite artist's creations and ideas, called "Postmark:LA." It sounds divine, doesn't it? My copy is already ordered, but you can get one of your very own right here!

Back Home

We're back from the cottage and look what I found in my email-box. . . . .

On Thursday, my Etsy Shop was featured on Laundry and I am tickled pink about that.

Stella, you're such a sweetheart for doing that ~ I am so honored.

As I said, we went up to the cottage for a few days, mainly to put together a storage shed. We don't have a garage (at least not yet) so my DH wanted a space to store our bicycles, lawn furniture, gardening tools and all the other miscellaneous stuff we have. So he designed one after studying the sheds at Home Depot. He built the whole thing here and then took it apart in sections so he could transport it up to the cottage. Isn't that clever? I'm SO lucky to be married to such a handy guy.

Fortunately we had full cooperation of the weather - not too hot and not too cold and most importantly, NO RAIN! And even though we had to come home a day earlier than originally planned to attend a memorial service and we were still able to complete the shed. We still have to put a second coat of paint on it and finish off some of the trimwork, but other than that it is finished!!!

Thursday we took a break and picked up a couple of boxed lunches to eat down by the bay along with our new best friend. . . . .

We also saw a flock of Sandhill Cranes which happened to land right in the farm field next to our property. Sorry, no pictures of those (and I have no idea why not) but they were very cool to see.

Well, it's 1:40 am I finally finished going through all my email, so I think it's time to get some shut-eye. I am hoping tomorrow will continue to be nice, weather-wise, so I can work in the garden. Enjoy the weekend everyone!

Tuesday Tidbits

Wow, I can't believe it! I am all caught up on my Etsy orders and swaps. I don't know what's gotten into me, being so efficient?! LOL!!! Anyway, it feels good to get everything checked off my to-do list. We're planning a short trip up to the cottage to deliver the shed that my DH built to keep our garden tools and bicycles in, so I kind of HAD to get everything taken care of around here.

I had a wonderful Mother's Day on Sunday and I hope all of you Moms out there did too. We went out for brunch and had a relaxing day. I even took a nap in the afternoon....that never happens! Later my DH and I went to see "Ironman." I wasn't exactly thrilled at the movie choice at first, but there really wasn't anything else worth going to see and we haven't been to a movie in ages. I was pleasantly surprised though as it was a pretty good movie. It was the typical superhero plot peppered with humor here and there. I like Robert Downey, Jr. and Gwenyth Paltrow and I hardly recognized Jeff Bridges in the movie.

For Mother's Day my DH gave me one of these (yipee!) and a beautiful flowering pot for the patio. My darling daughter has discovered Etsy and gave me this and these. One additional item she ordered has yet to arrive, so I still have another surprise to look forward to.

I've been working on the Vintage Workshop Birds and Bonnets Swap that Karla and Beth are hosting. The picture above and those below are a few of the collaged panels I created. You can see all eight of them here.

Well, it's time to make dinner....we're having chili and cornbread muffins ~ YUM! And then it's off to watch American Idol.

Happy Mother's Day

Happy Mother's Day and Happy Show & Tell Sunday! It's pouring down rain here today ~ not a very pretty scenario for a lovely Mother's Day. But it's the people we share the day with that's most important and the inclement weather can't put a damper on the celebration. I got up early to write this post and then later my DH, daughter and I are going to a favorite spot for brunch. We celebrated Mother's Day with my Mother-In-Law yesterday because it was her birthday as well. My mom passed away years ago while still in her prime, so for me this holiday is always filled with a bit of sadness and melancholy as well as joy.
This is my grandmother with my mom, when she was a little girl.

This is grandma setting the table for one of her fabulous dinner parties. She was quite the entertainer, as well as a wonderful cook and baker. I used to love helping her in the kitchen.

"God could not be everywhere, so he created mothers." ~Jewish Proverb
"A mother is the truest friend we have, when trials heavy and sudden, fall upon us; when adversity takes the place of prosperity; when friends who rejoice with us in our sunshine desert us; when trouble thickens around us, still will she cling to us, and endeavor by her kind precepts and counsels to dissipate the clouds of darkness, and cause peace to return to our hearts."
~Washington Irving

"I love my mother, as the trees love water and sunshine - she helps me grow, prosper, and reach great heights. " ~Adabella Radici
"When you are a mother, you are never really alone in your thoughts. A mother always has to think twice, once for herself and once for her child." ~Sophia Loren
This is my mother singing songs with my cousins at my grandparent's piano before I was even born! Mom was quite an accomplished pianist. This piano now sits in our livingroom and is filled with happy memories.
This is my Mom.

"I miss thee, my Mother! Thy image is still the deepest impressed on my heart." ~Eliza Cook

"The moment a child is born, the mother is also born." ~Rajneesh


This is my DH's mother. She led a difficult life in her younger days and she worked very hard so her children would have a better life than hers . "There's nothing like a mama-hug." ~Adabella Radici
"The best conversations with mothers always take place in silence, when only the heart speaks." ~Carrie Latet
"A mother is one to whom you hurry when you are troubled." ~Emily Dickinson
"She never quite leaves her children at home, even when she doesn't take them along."
~Margaret Culkin Banning
But of all the Mother's Days in the past, this one truly was the BEST of all ~ the day my beautiful, darling daughter was born. How could anything ever top that? :)


I wish all the mom's out there a wonderful Mother's Day.
Remember to relax and enjoy yourself and most of all, soak in all the love.

Favorite Things - Just a Few

It's funny how things evolve. This journal page started out as a plain sheet of watercolor paper painted with some lavender acrylic paint which happened to be sitting on my desk leftover from another project. I had bought some Glimmer Mist Spray in Patina a while ago and decided to try it for the first time over the lavendar. I gingerly sprayed a few spritzes and the result was a very fine, hardly noticable mist with a fine sparkle to it. Nice! I found some metal mesh paper in my paper scrap drawers and used it as a stencil to add a little more texture to the background. The blank tag I had purchased earlier in the week with the intent of writing some sort of jounaling on it. It seemed to coordinate well with the colors, so I decided I would probably use it on this page. Then the page just sat there for a few days, empty and blank. Yesterday I was going through my basket,of catalogs, purging some old ones and replacing them with the newest issues that had arrived. I began cutting out images that caught my eye and started randomly placing them on top of the journal page. I moved the cut outs around on the page until I was pleased with the composition and then attached them with a glue stick. I added the blue paper lace, which I purchased from Andrea's One Hundred Wishes Shop. (This paper lace is actually at least twice as wide as what I have used on this page. I trimmed it and saved the other half to use on another project.)
I looked for text in the catalogs that described things I like and then glued them onto the tag. The images on the rest of the page also indicate some my favorites ~ a brightly colored comfy chair, polka dots, pink, lime green and aqua colors, birds, flowers, swirly shapes, black & white checks, hearts, all things French, scented candles, and lots of doodling.
As a result, I ended up with a fun and brightly colored journal page which recorded just a few of my current favorite things as well as my present mood. Now that you've seen what I like, I'd love to hear what YOUR favorite things are.

Beautiful Thursday

Not much happening around here today, other than the fact that I have to clean the house as we are having my brother and sister-in-law over for dinner tomorrow. It's a busy weekend with Mother's Day on Sunday and Saturday is my mother-in-law's birthday as well. We will be celebrating non-stop all weekend. The diet will have to wait until Monday to start.

Jessi, Where Are You?????

I'm still waiting for Jessi Nagy to get back to me about winning the giveaway I held last week. I've left comments on her blog twice to let her know. I know she was at an art retreat when I announced the winner and she is probably still trying to catch up on things. Hmmmm...I think I will just sit back and see how long it takes her to realize she has won. LOL!! So if you're reading this Jessi, I need your mailing address. (Just click on my profile at the top right for my email addy)

I've been creating more pages for my art journal. I got some backgrounds completed which are still waiting for me to journal on them. I worked all day at the office yesterday and had to concentrate on boring things instead of arty projects, so now I am trying to make up for it. What projects have you been working on these days?

Catching Up

A while back, Heather asked us to do a RAK for Mel because she was undergoing major surgery to remove a tumor from her brain. Happily, the surgery was a success and once Mel returned home she was presented with a container filled with lots of wonder handmade tags and greetings. You can see pics of Mel receiving the RAK gifts here. Pictured above and below is the tag I made for Mel. It was so much fun to make ~ I hoped she liked it! The little vignette pictured below sits atop a cupboard in my kitchen. I have a teeny-tiny kitchen and not much space to have anything pretty around except for the top of this cupboard. I change it out as the mood hits and right now I have this little grouping soaking up the sun from the lace covered window.
These robin's egg blue spheres I made are another of the Casa Bella projects. These were easy-peasy to make. I have them sitting in an antique milk glass candy dish which once belonged to my aunt. I have a small collection of milk glass which once belonged to either my mother, my aunt or my grandmother. I think of them whenever I see or use these pieces. I remember this dish being used on my aunt and uncle's beautiful covered patio in the summertime.