Just stopping in...

...to say hi!

This is a busy week! Last night I did my first Craft Academy live video chat. There were some technical difficulties at first, but I had a lot of fun! I was really glad some people made it in :) [By the way, the 4th of July Party Packet is on sale! Only $10 for lots of fun stuff :D]

Today's list:

1. Bid for a small freelance project *nervous*
2. Prepare for Craft Academy video tutorials *organized*
3. Interview for graphic design position at a local magazine *anxious*
4. Record with Renée *fun*
5. Make salsa for 4th of July parties *yum*
6. Couch to 5K run *needed*
7. Etsy Austin Stitch 'n' Bitch! *excited*
8. Pack! *prepared*

The hubby and I are driving to visit my parents tomorrow in Fort Worth :) We're planning to stop in Waco (Texas Ranger Museum) and hopefully Dublin (mmm Dublin Dr. Pepper!!) on the way. Then Saturday we'll drive from their house to my sister's in Houston (she's having a party Saturday). And Sunday we'll come home to go to my in-laws' party (and maybe a couple others). *whew* It's gonna be a busy week!!

What are you up to?

Etsy Finds: Letters

You may have read my Sunday post on alphabet furniture. Letters were still on my mind, so I looked around Etsy, and here's what I found :)

Custom wood letters by JCBloomingBoutique:

DRINK by bijoucreek:

A metal ampersand (one of my fav symbols!) by projecteur:

Handmade XO letters by OldNewAgain (love their work!):

Large wood letters by Hindsvik (these are our initials, so I couldn't resist ^_^):

Letterpress block replicas by gfout:

And fun letters by compulsivecollection:

I have so much fun ^_^

What's your favorite letter?

Texas Summer

I don't like the heat. Anything over 78 is really just too hot unless you're in water. However, there are some beautiful things about Texas summer that I just love. This weekend I walked around my neighborhood to photograph some of those things. Do you have any favorites?

Cool grass between my toes

Swimming day or night

Warm stones beneath my feet

The sound of cicadas singing

And of course, the biggest clouds I've ever seen

Ah, Texas summer ♥

You Amaze Me, Alphabet Furniture

For some reason, I'm completely in love with letters. It must be the graphic designer part of me. We have a couple 8" A's in our bookcases (for Alex & AJ), but I would love a whole display. Of course giant letters can be really cheesy (see millions of little girls' rooms), but they can also look quite stunning!

Check out this awesome letter bookcase by Pieter de Leeuw:

Or these great alphabet drawers by Kent and London:

Or this beautiful letterpress wall art by Andy Beers:

The Dharma Lounge - "Stand, Forget, Breathe, Acknowledge & Observe" - by Palette Industries:

LOVE this alphabet furniture by Set26 - comes in all 26 letters!

 

Is it a bench? A lamp? An art piece? It's Futura by Modo Luce:

I think I just need an entire house made out of letters. Don't you think? :)

Thanks for reading, and happy Sunday!

4th of July Party Pack

Coming soon: the first Craft Academy Party Pack! It's packed full of tutorials for the best Independence Day ever! We've made food, decorations, of course these awesome picnic placemats (wait 'til you see it unrolled!), and more :D You should check it out ;) (And tell your friends!)

Excuse the mess!

Sorry if my blog's all wonky right now - I'm trying to redesign a bit so it'll be prettier :D

Thursday Threads #17

I'll be honest, I wasn't completely thrilled about this drawing. It's my favorite outfit right now, so I wanted it to be amazing! However, I tried some new things coloring it digitally and I'm pretty happy with the result :) The bottom texture is a photograph of the actual dress, the top part of the dress I textured digitally (it's a little light). Anyway, hope you like it!

Pink Sunglasses - Red Velvet Art
Wood earrings - Wish
Yellow dress - Wish
White camisole - New York & Company
Braided leather sandals - Mossimo, from Target

Etsy Finds: Watermelon

Summertime to me is watermelon ^_^

Here are a few lovely watermelon-themed products I found on Etsy:

A watermelon red dress by Clothingwholesale:

A cross-stitch pattern by andwabisabi:

Juicy watermelon earrings by sypria:

Flower bobby pins by alovelycreation:

Watermelon yarn by shunklies:

Fluffy vegan soap by dennisanderson:

An original painting by artflat5:

To see more of my watermelon favs, check out my "Sweet Watermelon" treasury!

Summer Projects

Obviously I'm going to be very busy this summer. I'm job hunting, starting Craft Academy, updating my Etsy shop, probably redesigning my blog (time for a facelift, right?), and continuing to work on my portfolio. But aside from all that "work" (hehe), I'd like to throw in some fun, personal projects. Here are a few I have my eye on...

Fruity trivets and potholders via the Purl Bee (aren't these adorable?!)

I'm thinking the lime is my fav, but I may make a new color combo to make apples! Which would you do?

Rainbow cupcakes! (Lemon Drop Rainbow Cupcakes via Bite Size Baker)

I love rainbows and I love cupcakes. So...makes sense, right? :)
 

The Danielle Dress, a free pattern on BurdaStyle

This dress should be pretty easy to modify - neckline, length, sleeves, etc. And it's so simple and cute! I'm excited to make another dress ^_^ (Plus it's on my 2010 goals!)

Or maybe I'll make this Work Dress (it's a wrap style), also on BurdaStyle.

It's pretty nifty, not to mention handy! I looove pockets.

Crocheted Dishcloths via Lion Brand Yarn

 I think my favorite thing might actually be the colors :P

Root beer cookies?! That just sounds awesome! [Recipe here, but via The Dainty Squid] I also found some Dr. Pepper chocolate cake mix, so I may have to try to make my own recipe for that...It's going to be a tasty summer!

I'd also like to knit (or maybe crochet) a small shrug. I haven't found the perfect free pattern yet though. Anyone have one to share? Aside from these, we'll probably also be working on our apartment...I love redecorating :D And Alex and I are thinking of getting me an old Honda motorcycle to rebuild.......but that may be a more distant project. But I can still think about it this summer ;D

What just-for-fun projects are you working on this summer?

Sunday Fun :)

I'm usually the gift-wrapper in our home, but Alex totally amazed us both this weekend! Check out this awesome wrapping job:

Yes, that is silver wrapping paper, duct tape, and wire. We've named it "industrial chic."

Aren't they just perfect for Father's Day?!

It was a fun weekend :) We've been out of town so much that it was nice just to be home! And I might've been a little camera happy...

Please excuse all the dog tweets and photos as of late. I think he's being extra cute because we've been so busy lately - our puppy missed us!

Chase really hates car rides, but he puts up with it if he knows he's going to Alex's parents' house! Grandma give him lots of treats :P

 Love this photo of Alex and his sister!

And of course, the man of the hour, with his new pink shirt (from his bro-in-law :P).

Hopefully we'll go visit my parents soon and we can celebrate with my dad, too!

It was such a lovely weekend...=)

You Amaze Me, Dad

I love my dad :) I think I get a lot of my design ideas from him. He's an architect and has always been a source of inspiration for me. He's level-headed and intelligent, and a designer to boot! We've designed birdhouses and tree houses together. He's also ridiculously active (he started playing soccer at 50, and now runs and plays softball too!). He taught me from a young age to care for the environment, and to do my part in our community. He always listens to my opinions on things from politics to architecture, and I love discussing anything with him. I'm so lucky to have such a wonderful man to look up to!

For all you do, you amaze me, Dad. I love you!

Happy Father's Day

Busy Saturday, Take 6

Today is another busy Saturday! I woke up refreshed and still excited after the Etsy Craft Party last night :) So I immediately got to work. I started off making some sunglasses and iPhone/iPod cases. [I have a few ideas for screenprinting, so I'm trying out some sewing projects to decide what to screenprint :)] I had already cut the fabric for them - gray felt matched with several fun prints - and was ready to sew. Whew, was sewing all that felt tricky! It was mainly problematic because they were small cases and they were lined nicely (meaning all the seams are hidden between the fabrics). But I think they turned out ok:

Hm...I have a lot of sunglasses...well, only one pair wasn't pictured. Hee :D But now they won't get scratched up! Yay! After I finished those up, Alex and I ran errands...it took quite a while. We even went by Central Market and got lots of organic goodness :d AND he bought me these pretties:

Gotta love a husband who'll buy you flowers ;) When we got home I made fruit salad! Yum yum

We're having some friends over later, so it'll be a good snack :D I'm hoping I can go for my run before they get here...We started the Couch to 5K program (with the help of the awesome c25k app). I've only done it twice, but I really like it so far! It'll be so awesome if I can keep it up and actually run a 5K by the end of the summer!!

In other news, Craft Academy starts Tuesday!!! I can't believe it. If you haven't signed up yet, you really should. We're going to be making our favorite crafts all summer long! Plus live chats, giveaways (if I can bear to part with the cuteness, that is!), and special little bonuses here and there ;) I'm just super excited :D:D:D

What are you up to?

Have a happy Saturday!