ewe hooo!

School Bulletin Board Update — Presidents' Day and more

2012-02-17T00:36:00.000-05:00

I've gotten a lot of Pins on my Spring Bulletin Board from last year, so I thought I'd share some of the other bulletin board designs I've done for those of you out there looking for ideas.

President's Day

Drug Free Week

Thanksgiving/Fall

Winter

Beginning of the School Year

School Lobby 2010/11

School Lobby 2011/12

A New Endeavor for Me - Creative Workshops for Adults and Kids

2012-02-12T17:08:00.000-05:00

I'm so excited to announce that I have partnered with my dear friend, Raizza Luzzi, to form Art Design Imagination— Creative Workshops for Adults and Kids. I've hosted several creative workshops on my own over the last two years and love doing it. So now, with Raizza's help, I hope to share my love for all things creative with my local community. Our first official creative workshop was a huge success! In two sold-out sessions we provided all the materials for (30 kids) to make three different types of Valentines for their friends and family from simple materials including: matchboxes, notebook paper and rocks. Here are a few samples of the fun.

You can read more about the workshops here.

Much more creative fun to come!

I'm sharing this post with Made By You Monday

Bring on the Funk! - Skate Party Collection

2012-01-27T01:48:00.000-05:00

One of my repeat customers recently asked me to design an invite for her son's Skating Party. This is my ode to Disco, John Travolta and the 70's afro.

And if your little guy doesn't want to look like an adorable throw-back from the 70's, I designed this more conservative invite.

An Amazing Lego Star Wars Party!

2012-01-25T12:08:00.000-05:00

In a galaxy far, far away... Christine at Pure Joy Events threw a Star Wars Lego party for her little Jedi turning five! Check out all the out-of-this-world details, including the Lego doughnut stands, the cool photo booth and the amazing cardboard "snow speeder" her husband built! Click on the link to see more from Pom Flair, PhoebeCakes, Dough-a-Deer and more! Christine thought of everything for this awesome galactic gathering. Excited to have supported the rebel troops!

CLICK HERE to jump to the Lego Star Wars Party at Pure Joy Events

and here to see HERE feature on my Lego Star Wars Comic Book Invite

and HERE for my Lego Star Wars Comic Book Invites

May the force be with you.

Starting the year off strong...and dirty.

2012-01-25T00:42:00.000-05:00

Yep, that's me— Captain America. My friends talked me into doing the Warrior Dash again this year, and I have to admit, I'm glad I did it. This might just become an annual tradition for me. I dunno, there's something about being amongst friends all caked in mud, toasting cold beers and gynormous turkey legs, that sounds oddly appealing to me.

We dressed as Superheroes, if you didn't notice.

Vegetarians need not register.

"Here's mud in your eye!"

FREE Printable Mustache Valentine Cards!

2012-01-16T00:41:00.000-05:00

I "mustache" you, have you found your perfect Valentines Day cards yet? Well, look no further, they're right under your nose!

I've always been a big fan of the stick-on mustaches. And I'm talkin' before the the whole mustache trend started. Before mustaches on a stick, before chocolate mustaches and mustache cake pops. But alas, I "must" join the crowd and contribute my "stash", if you will. It's simple enough really. I spotted these stick-on mustaches at the Dollar Store the other day and snatched them up. You can download my Mustache Valentine Cards here. Don't worry, if you can't find these furry mustaches at the Dollar Store, I made some for you. Fuzzy or not, they're still fun!

DOWNLOAD THEM HERE.

My resident mustache models.

Believe me, the fuzzy little critters are hours of fun for (you and) the kids! And some of them can even be used as Uni-brows! Who'da thought?

I'm sharing this post with my friends at Skip to My Lou, The Girl Creative, Be Different Act Normal and Sumos Sweet Stuff.

Brrrrrrrr! It's 76 Degrees Outside!

2012-01-10T21:52:00.000-05:00

No snow for us down here in the Sunshine State. This is as close as we'll ever get to building a snowman! Before the holidays, I spotted this idea on Pinterest. I took pictures of my son's first grade class in this Snowman getup. They loved it!

They decorated wood frames (3 for $1.99 at IKEA) with cotton balls (Dollar Store). This was their gift to their parents for the holidays. Too cute! They melt my heart:)

I'm sharing this post with my friends at Sugar and Dots, The Girl Creative, Reasons to Skip Housework, Sumo's Sweet Stuff, Funky Polkadot Girraffe and Mommy by Day Crafter by Night.

Hello New Year!

2012-01-01T00:47:00.001-05:00

My latest chalkboard wall creation to start the new year!

(From left to right: Wesley, cousin Sammy and Jackson)

I raise my plastic cup of sparkling grape juice to a year unlike any other.

A year that has taught me so much about myself and the strength of my family.

A year that was filled with love and heartbreak.

A year that has brought change and new direction.

A year that has helped me to realize what truly matters in life.

As my grandfather once said,

"You can have a lot of things, but a close family with a lot of love is unbeatable."

I bid you adieu 2011.

Here's to a new year of health, happiness and new adventures!

Sharing this post with

The Girl Creative

Lego Star Wars Fans Rejoice!

2011-12-22T16:37:00.000-05:00

INTRODUCING THE LEGO STAR WARS COMIC BOOK BIRTHDAY INVITE: When my friend Christine from Pure Joy Events asked me to design a Lego Star Wars Birthday invitation for her son, I jumped at the opportunity! She's a fantastic party planner. I've been meaning to design a Star Wars Birthday Collection ever since I had a Star Wars party for my son when he turned 5 (that was 4 years ago) so this was finally my chance to do it. Christine emailed me a story draft that her husband wrote and I added a bit of humor. I shot the whole thing using my kids' lego collection. And VIOLA! A Lego Star Wars Comic Book masterpiece! Stay tuned for the rest of the party collection AND to see What Christine dreams up for her son's party!

Would your son love to have a Lego Star Wars Birthday Party? CLICK HERE to get this Invite!

That's Christine's son who's turning 5, in the picture above. I will customize the whole comic book for any birthday boy (or girl) who buys this invite. The story is simple but cute and all leads up to the big reveal— a Star Wars Lego Builders Birthday Party! Woohoo!

FYI, that's my 6 year old's hands holding the comic book in all the images above. Am I biased or could he become a professional hand model? He's a natural! Like George Costanza on Seinfeld. Hmmm. Maybe I should just bag this whole etsy thing and concentrate on breaking my son into the hand modeling business. Food for thought while I wait for my Star Wars Comic Book orders to start pouring in anyway.

The Hand Model Episode.

P.S. This video is from You Tube. I have no idea who Ivan is:)

A Few Custom Painted Homes— Mixed Media

2011-12-22T12:45:00.000-05:00

Just finished this painting the other day for a repeat customer. It's for her in-laws in Tennessee. Now that's a lot of brick! I decided to cut individual bricks out of book pages for the brick trim and placed them with molding paste to create depth. As for the rest of the brick, I painted it. I also used book pages for the tree leaves and cut canvas into little squares for the shingle roof.

A Tennessee Home

12" x 12" Mixed Media Canvas

My Reference.

Close up of the detail.

It was packed with care and shipped just in time for Christmas!

I painted this little bungalow for my friend Sarah. Her sweet husband surprised her with it for her birthday on the 16th (which happens to be the same as mine!).

The Doherty Bungalow

12" x 12" Mixed Media Canvas

My Reference.

Close up of the Book pages and button plants.

I'd love to paint your home too! If you're interested, CLICK HERE

A Holiday Craft Workshop!

2011-12-22T11:49:00.000-05:00

THESE LITTLE ELVES have been busy making a few creative things with me. I hosted a Holiday Craft Workshop last week and I must say, it was a smashing success!

WE MADE A CLAY CHRISTMAS VILLAGE.

WE MADE HOLIDAY GIFT TAGS AND A YUMMY CHRISTMAS COOKIE MIX!

SOME PIECES FROM THE GIRLS' CHRISTMAS VILLAGE!

TO-GO BAGS FOR ALL THEIR GIFTS

Thanks to my sister Reba and niece Kaylee for opening their home and inviting friends.

And a special thanks to my best friends in the whole world for helping me put this workshop together! I love you guys! Cheers to you!

I'm sharing this post with my friends at Blog Birds Party

Pluto Returns!

2011-12-01T00:45:00.001-05:00

I just went upstairs to check on the boys before turning in for the night and look who I found at their window! Well, I'll be! Is it that time of year again already? Welcome back Pluto! Long time no see. I know two boys who will be happy to see you!

Prayers for Taylor B — my nephew

2011-11-29T01:29:00.000-05:00

Wow, it seems I've been out of the blogging loop lately! A lot has happened in the last month for me and my family. Actually, I've been blogging a lot, just not on this blog (ewehooo!). I recently started a blog for my sweet nephew, Taylor.

http://taylorbsroadtorecovery.blogspot.com/

On the morning of October 19th— a Saturday— my husband had just left the house with my 9 year old son to go to his Jr. Pee Wee Football Bowl Game. It was 7:52am and I got a call from my mother saying that my 16 year old nephew was being rushed via ambulance to Orlando Regional Medical Center, which is literally a block down the street from where I live. I woke my six year old up, slapped some clothes on him, gave him a Pop Tart and we dashed off to the hospital. My parents were already on their way there and we met up with Melissa and Brad (my sister and brother in-law) in the waiting room.

Taylor had been rushed in for an MRI. Doctors found a mass on his spine and took him in to emergency exploratory surgery within the hour. Surgeons removed 99% of a (1.6cm) tumor from his lower spine. Days later he was diagnosed with Ewing's Sarcoma, a rare form of pediatric bone cancer. After a PET Scan, Bone Scan and Bone Marrow Aspiration, it was determined that the cancer had not spread— thank goodness. He is currently paralyzed from the waist down and undergoing aggressive chemotherapy (a nine month schedule of 2-5 day sessions every 14 days). He will be heading to Brookes Pediatric Rehab Hospital this week to get some intense Physical and Occupational Therapy for his spinal injury.

Taylor is such a great kid. He just turned 16 last May and got an old truck for his birthday (that I literally need a ladder to climb up into). He loves his family, would do anything for you! He and his brother are in a youth group and both have a ton of great friends. Taylor played on his High School JV football team but had to quit because of a knee injury. His younger brother, Spencer, is on the JV team as well and just got moved up to Varsity. Taylor is, and always will be, Spencer's biggest fan. He lifted weights and has a strong upper body, which will help with his recovery.

Taylor is in good spirits! It's going to be a long road, but he's up for it and we, his family and friends, are all behind him 100% of the way. Hoping you too will keep him in your thoughts and prayers.

Our Neighborhood Boo— Ghosts in need of a home to Haunt!

2011-10-13T23:24:00.002-04:00

We couldn't wait to deliver our neighborhood Boo this year! Our theme was ghoulish ghosts. I made the coolest floating ghost out of muslin and spray starch. Get the complete instructions from Tuesdee over at Everyday is a Crafting Day. So easy! And cheap too! My kids thought I used invisible spray. They were fascinated.

I trimmed the top edges of white paper bags, added googly eyes and filled them with Dollar Store treats. The kids will love them, I'm sure! I'm including the ghost signs and the Boo door hanger as FREE DOWNLOADS, just in case you haven't already prepared the Boo for your neighborhood!

Help Yourself to these!

DOWNLOAD THEM HERE!

Enjoy!

Oh, and please be sure to check out my neighborhood Boos from last year here if you'd like more ideas!

I'm sharing this post with my friends at Fingerprints on the Fridge and Somewhat Simple.

Halloween Costume: Captain Barbosa

2011-10-08T10:40:00.000-04:00

WE ARE COUNTING DOWN THE DAYS TO HALLOWEEN! This is one of my kids' favorite holidays. They love to dress up year round in the elaborate costumes their grandmother makes for them and Halloween is their free ticket for a new handmade costume. This year is no exception. Jackson has decided to be a pirate—again (they were pirates 2 years ago as well). Not just any "random pirate" as Jackson says, but Captain Barbosa from the Pirates of the Caribbean movies. So he submitted his request to my mother-in-law to make his pirate coat.

I took Jackson to Walmart the other night and picked up some cheap black sweat pants, knit gloves for $1 and some rain boots. I decided to make the hat myself because there's nothing cost-effective on the Internet that meets Jackson's stringent criteria. It was surprisingly simple to make, actually!

Here's all you need to do...

Tah-dah!

I assure you, his intentions are strictly honorable.

Addie's Fairy Birthday Party!

2011-10-02T02:35:00.001-04:00

I recently helped my friend Carolyn put together a sweet little Fairy birthday party for her daughter Addie, who was turning eight. Carolyn wanted to keep the party simple, inexpensive and very handmade— which I love! She gathered all the materials to make these adorable little fairies for each of the party guests. And we had plenty of materials left over to make some other fun things for the girls!

We made these precious veils for each of the girls to wear.

The big event was a scavenger hunt to find their Fairies.

You'll notice that the girls are in their bathing suits. It was a Fairy Pool Party. This is Florida, you know. We'll be in the pool until Christmas!

The girls were split into three teams and each were given clues along the way to finding their fairies.

They found feathers...

...and wands...

...and lots of other fun things!

The final clue led the girls to their sweet Fairies

and everyone lived happily ever after.

The End!

I'm sharing this party with my friends at bystephanielynn.com,

SQUAM 2011— Just the Therapy I needed

2011-09-29T12:30:00.000-04:00

My new Squam Friends!

I mentioned in my previous post before I left for SQUAM that I was in a bit of a funk. Whenever I got into a funk growing up, my Mom would say, "Life is tough. Life isn't fair." It always just made me more mad when she'd say that, but she's right. Life IS complicated! And just when I think things are going great, WHAM! Somebody throws me a curve ball and I've got to figure out how to deal with it. That's just life I guess. If we didn't have problems to deal with and challenges to overcome, then we wouldn't really appreciate the good times when they come around.

My latest curve ball was thrown just days before I left for SQUAM. I actually called Elizabeth (the Director of SQUAM) to see if I could cancel my trip. I just didn't think I could go and enjoy myself. But it was too late to cancel, so I packed my little bags (actually it was one oversized bag that cost me $50 to check on Jet Blue) and left for the Great North.

Suffice to say that SQUAM was just the therapy I needed. From the moment I arrived, I felt like I could breath and relax (Ok, I lied. It wasn't until I dragged my honkin' suitcase up the narrow rickety stairs and down the hall to my room and sat down on the bed that I could actually take a deep breath and finally— relax. And think. And just be me. Not a wife, or a mom, or a volunteer, just me. The creative me. That part of me I think I love the most. For three whole days that's who I could be and man, it felt good.

It was a gathering of over 150 extremely talented women. No one knew me, but everyone genuinely wanted to get to know me. And I wanted to get to know them. We were all so different, yet we had the same creative passion. We talked. We laughed. We ate. Boy did we eat! And we created. Together.

We displayed the art we created each day on the mantel in our cabin.

The Squam Art Fair

The view from our Dock

I'm keeping in touch with the uber-talented women I met at SQUAM and I can't wait to go back there again. What an incredible experience! Thank you ladies for getting to know the creative me. I kinda like her.

I'm off to New Hampshire for SQUAM

2011-09-13T22:32:00.001-04:00

I've been waiting all year for this weekend. SQUAM is an artists workshop/retreat held on Squam Lake in New Hampshire twice a year. I'll get to work with top notch illustrators, designers, artists and crafters from all over the country to help me hone and refine my voice and style through the joyful process of creative exploration.

I'm registered for three full-day workshops. And there will be some fabulous guest speakers there too. The person I'm most looking forward to meeting is Kayte Terry, who has built her career at Anthropologie and works at the epicenter of the creative hub (in that oh-so-very creative company) in their flagship Philadelphia office. She will share some insider scoop on just how they come up with those cooloi ideas for photo shoots and store displays, as well as share stories of her personal journey of carving out a thriving professional life steeped in wild creativity.

I can't believe it's finally here and now... I'm having cold feet. It's a long way to go and it has been quite an investment that I probably shouldn't be making right now. Can you tell I'm in a bit of a funk? Well, maybe this is just what I need to get me back on track and in a positive state of mind about myself, my family and my art.

So off I go! Can't wait to share what I've learned when I get back.

Latest Commission— A Chicago Home

2011-09-12T01:36:00.000-04:00

"Chicago Home"

11"x14" Mixed Media Canvas

Commission

My reference

It was a pretty tedious painting that I got myself into this time. It must have been late one night when I started the brick because I decided to paint, cut and then place each brick with tweezers. Yeah, and as if that wasn't enough, I did the same thing with the shingled roof. Yes, I know. I'm insane. It took a lot longer than I thought, but I couldn't help myself.

You can kind of see the 3-D elements from the side. I used old book pages and canvas with molding paste on the house and paper-pulp for the landscape. I think my favorite part of the painting is the house numbers and the shadowing on the garage.

It ships off to the customer tomorrow. Bu-bye my little labor of love!

Labor Day Weekend Project— Chalkboard Wall

2011-09-05T00:27:00.002-04:00

I've been wanting to paint a chalkboard wall for ages, but just haven't had the time or the moxie to do it. I mean, to paint a little chalkboard square on a wall is one thing, but to paint an entire wall black is a huge change—especially in our little house. But I convinced myself that since it's the wall next to my computer desk and where the kids eat breakfast and do homework, it would be a fun and creative outlet for all of us. So the weekend before school started, I bit the bullet and started painting a magnetic chalkboard wall. And this weekend, I finally got a chance to draw on it!

I've been scouring Pinterest for Chalkboard wall ideas and picked some of my favorite quotes to feature for my initial design. Check out my Pinterest Boards here. By the way, I found that oversized ruler on Pinterest and ordered it on Etsy. Love it!

I used an overhead projector for most of the lettering, so I wouldn't end up with a bunch of type on a downslope. Unfortunately, my walls aren't perfectly smooth, so I couldn't be as precise as I wanted to be. A friend told me about Chalk Ink— a very cool product, but it's not recommended for use on chalkboard paint. Boo. I was also tempted to go to the craft store and buy a chalk pencil, but never ended up doing that. It's on my list to get though.

I love this quote. It's so cut-and-dry. Even my first grader gets it.

Ok, so I'm still working on having the "HAPPY KIDS" part, but I'm nailin' the other stuff!

Hoping this little diagram will help my kids understand the logic of true happiness.

It makes me chuckle every time I read it.

PMA stands for Positive Mental Attitude. This drawing is a nod to my grandfather, who was a PMA fanatic and my idol, even more so now that he's gone. He was always giving me giving me things to read from Zig Ziggler, Tony Robins, Dale Carnegie and the list goes on. He would hi-light the heck out of everything and write me notes in the margins. I still have a box full of his stuff! Newsletter, books, cassette tapes, CDs, you name it! When we graduated from college he insisted that each of his grandchildren enroll in the 12 week Dale Carnegie course, "The Quick and Easy Way to Effective Speaking". (The long and the short of that course is to engage your audience and present your information in such a way that it will make them remember you.) Anyway, I thought it would be something positive for Wesley to look at while he's eating his Cheerios in the morning. My grandfather always told me, "If you think positive thoughts, you will be positive."

Jackson couldn't wait to start drawing. (FYI, that thing that looks like the sun under his right elbow is actually a dock for the pirate ship.)

Yep, I think they're gonna like this chalkboard wall.

NEXT CHALK DRAWING THEME: HALLOWEEN!

I'm sharing this post with The Girl Creative, Keeping it Simple, Sumo's Sweet Stuff, c.r.a.f.t., I heart Naptime,

Newest Painting— "A Mother's Love"

2011-08-28T11:32:00.000-04:00

"A Mother's Love"

18"x24" Mixed Media

Commission

Finally, carving out some time to paint again! I just finished this piece for the Seminole County Healthy Start Coalition. The mission of the coalition is to provide a system of care that guarantees all families access to prenatal care ans all infants access to services that promote optimal growth and development. This painting will be auctioned off at their gala in October.

Hope everyone has a great week!

4th Grade Book Report — Summer Assignment

2011-08-21T21:59:00.002-04:00

Well, the new school year is now in session and my 4th Grader had to bring a book report to school on the first day! His class had to read, "The Fabled Fourth Graders of Aesop Elementary". He had to answer a few questions and either make a poster or a comic strip about the moral of a story or fable. Wesley chose one of the stories from the book and re-enacted it with Legos. We had fun working together taking pictures and finding the right Lego angry faces for his comic strip. (Click on the image to zoom in).

Fonts used: Comic Book and Lego Thick.
Comic Strip Templates available here.

Making this comic strip was really fun and easy! I think we'll definitely use this idea again!

I'm sharing this link with these blog friends: Child made, an idea place, The Girl Creative, I Heart Naptime and Skip to My Lou!

This Summer is Sizzlin' and Jigglin'.

2011-08-09T01:42:00.001-04:00

WE LOVE SUMMER!

THE SIZZLE!

AND THE JIGGLE!

Another one of our summer favorites is Jello Jigglers! Just mix equal amounts of Jello and Knox and cut out cool shapes with cookie cutters!

They're a hit with the kids!

Check out these great blogs for more fun summer ideas: Skip to my Lou, Reasons to Skip the Housework, Mad in Crafts and Sumo's Sweet Stuff!

The Herron Home— Mixed Media Painting

2011-07-21T18:28:00.002-04:00

Just finished this mixed media painting while on vacation in North Carolina. I used old book pages for the house and pallet knives for the bulk of the painting. Then went back in and added details. My favorites are the crane sculptures and the address plaque. They didn't want me to include the 4th of July decor and flag.

"The Herron Home"

11x14 Mixed Media Acrylic Canvas

(Commission)

reference: The Herron residence

Work in progress: book pages

Work in progress: just after I finished the staircase

I shipped the painting out today. Hope they like it!

Wine Cork Art

2011-07-13T15:58:00.008-04:00

I've been collecting wine corks for years. Years, I tell you! I've always wanted to do something really creative with them. Anthropologie designed some awesome Earth Day displays this year. My cousin, Wes, did a wine cork backsplash in his kitchen. I started a wine cork bulletin board a couple of years ago and never finished it. Then the other day, my niece came over to visit and we pulled out my wine corks.

It was so quick and easy to make! We just drew the shape we wanted on foam board, cut it outand hot glued the corks to it. I just finished putting the finishing touches on it last night.

I put the corks with memorable dates I had written on them around the outside edges. Brings back memories. Makes me wish I had taken the time to write dates on more of them!

Jessica made this one. She loves Pi (the Math kind). She said that when she was really bored in Geometry class she memorized Pi: 3.1415926535897932384626433832795028841971693993751. Mmhm. Yeah, so just in case you were wondering... Pi is a mathematical constant whose value is the ratio of any circle's circumference to it's diameter. This is the same value as the ratio of a circle's area to the square of its radius. All righty then! I'm stickin' with the pie I can eat. But love the cork Pi!!!

I'm sharing this post with my friends at Sugar and Dots, Polly want a Crafter, I Heart Naptime, Lil' Luna, Yesterday on Tuesday, Seven Thirty Three a Creative Blog, Polka Dots on Parade, Someday Crafts, Laugh, Love and Craft, Sweet Peas and Bumblebees, Homework and Today's Creative Blog.

An illustrated look at my life right now...

2011-07-08T01:53:00.000-04:00

Happy 4th and Happy Birthday Girls!

2011-07-04T01:24:00.000-04:00

Happy 4th everybody! We've had a busy weekend and it's not over yet! Saturday we celebrated my nieces' birthdays— Jessica turned 18 and her little sister Audrey is 4. Audrey loves balloons, so I baked a colorful cake and topped it with a balloon bouquet. (I used water balloons because they're the perfect cake topper size.

Make a wish!

Nothing better than Snow cones in the Summertime!

2011-07-01T15:00:00.000-04:00

No need to go in search of a Carnival to have a snow cone these days! You can buy your own snow cone maker and it will pay for itself after just a few shaves! My trusty friend, Kelley, brought along her Sunbeam Snow Cone Maker to the mountains so we could all enjoy an ice cold treat!

$18 at Target!

Have a great weekend everybody!

Fun at the Lake with Legos.

2011-06-28T15:12:00.002-04:00

At the lake, we swim, we eat and we fish. The kids fished off the dock all week long. Lucky for us, there are tons of Brim chomping at the bit to snag the soggy bread bait off their hooks, so the kids get instant gratification with a catch practically every time they drop their lines. We unhook them, name them and then throw them back with their friends.

I got inspired by a photo hanging in the cabin by Lorri Honeycutt. Her slice of life portraits are so fun, I thought I'd try some myself with Jackson's Legos and enlisted the help of my friend Erich to catch "the big one" for these pictures. Thanks Erich! Great catch!

Jackson built this Pirate ship from scratch and wanted me to put it on my "Bwog". Pretty cool!

I'm sharing this post with my friends at Funky Polka Dot Giraffe.

Lake Staple— Hamburger Cupcakes and Sweet Tomato BBQ Sliders!

2011-06-27T11:29:00.000-04:00

I picked up these cute hamburger cupcakes at Target. They just scream summer!

Got this yummy recipe for Sweet Tomato BBQ Sliders here. They were delish and easy to whip up!

One night at the Lake my friend, Shona and I made about 40 of these cute picnic themed party flags. All you need is some picnic themed fabric or paper, scissors, toothpicks and glue! As you can see from the pics, we used them a lot!

Let's hear it for Summer!

2011-06-27T00:43:00.000-04:00

We've been having lots of fun so far this summer!

First a trip to the mountains.

Balsam, NC

Then a week at the lake.

Ocala National Forest, Ocala, FL

Sweet summer. I love ya!

Can't wait to share our adventures!

Cool Critter Birthday Collection— unveiled!

2011-06-21T15:48:00.000-04:00

Just finished fleshing out my Cool Critter Birthday Collection. I designed the invite for a customer a few weeks ago. You can see it here. Thought I'd share the rest of the Collection with you. If you have any ideas of things I can add to the collection, I'm all ears! And as always, thanks for taking a peek:)

The whole collection is now available at my shop!

11"x17" The Birthday Party Welcome Sign.

2" Party Circles for Cupcake Toppers, Stickers, Thank You Card Stickers, you name it!

Buffet Labels and Stickers for Activities, games, crafts, etc.

Party Favor Bag Tags

4x6 Fill-in-the-Blank Thank You Cards

Well, that's about it for now! I'm heading to the Lake for the rest of the week. Hope to have some time to relax and maybe make a few things. We'll see!

"Here Comes the Bride" — Reusable Banner

2011-06-11T23:07:00.000-04:00

Ok, so maybe I should be packing for our trip to the mountains tomorrow, but I just have to share this one last crafty thing before I go.

One of the teachers at my kids school asked me to make a wedding banner for her just like the one Martha Stewart has on her site. Martha's banner tutorial is here. I followed the sewing directions, but I hate iron-on projects because I inevitably mess it up and have to re-do it. Besides, I wanted to make the banner reusable after the wedding, so the teacher could use it in her class room next year too.

So I ditched the iron-on portion of the tutorial and came up with my own solution. I used PhotoTex adhesive fabric instead. This is the coolest stuff! I used it to make my "Love in a Cup" coffee wraps. The cool ostrich feather trim is also removable! Here's how I made the banner.

WHAT YOU'LL NEED:

Photo-Tex adhesive Ink-Jet fabric
Cool feather trim (I used Ostrich feather trim)
(5) Roach clips (spray painted white optional)
Safety pins (3-4)
your banner message (Download my alphabet template here)
an iron and ironing board (to iron the banner material)
scissors
(2) pieces of 15"x26" woven fabric or linen
straight pins
chalk fabric pencil (I used grey so it shows up on the white material)
19" long wooden dowel (1/4" in diameter)
Sewing machine and sewing supplies

HOW TO:
The reusable Letters— download and print the PDF alphabet on Photo-Tex fabric from your Ink-Jet printer and cut ou your message. Set the letters aside.
The banner— Follow the instructions here EXCEPT for the Iron-on part!
Versatile Trim— To make the banner completely versatile, I made the feather trim removable so the teacher could replace the feathers with any theme she wants down the road. I attached the feather trim to the top of the banner using (3) safety pins. Stick the pin through the back seam and into the feather trim. Then stick the pin back through the banner and secure in the back. Pull the trim tight and pin at each end and in the center. For the trim at the bottom, I painted metal roach clips (from the jewelry making section of the craft store) white and clipped the trim to the bottom of the banner. The feathers hide the clips.
Adhering the letters— Place your message on the banner and align. To help with letter placement and spacing, I placed an 18" ruler horizontally at the base of each line, peeled of the fabric backing and aligned each letter to the top of the ruler, making sure the words were centered on the banner.

Well, we're off to the mountains tomorrow! I'll keep you posted on our adventures.

Sharing this post with bedifferentactnatural.com.

Here's a peek at my newest Birthday Design— A Cool Critter Party

2011-06-11T01:04:00.002-04:00

One of my customers recently emailed me asking if I could design an invitation for her other son's birthday— a Critter Party. She's going to have a company come to her home with all sorts of critters that the kids can hold, touch, play with, etc. Critters like a hedgehog, a snake (Python, actually), and a tarantula (eeks!). The family also has a pet hamster named "Uno"; a pet turtle named, "Frankin"; an ant farm; a love for Ladybugs; and a butterfly garden. Whew! She said all she was finding on Etsy were Bug, Bee and Insect themes— nothing on other animals. So I took a stab at a design and here it is...

5"x7" Cool Critter Birthday Invite

(FRONT)

5"x7" Cool Critter Birthday Invite

(BACK)

I'll be working on the rest of the Critter Collection next week and will share the whole Kit then. Now on to my next project— a Wedding Banner. Stay tuned!

BTW, I'm sharing this post with my friends at whipperberry.com, ffingerprintsonthefridge.com and reasonstoskipthehousework.blogspot.com.

A Day at Disney World

2011-06-04T00:28:00.000-04:00

We spent the day at Disney World today. It was Jackson's first time that he can remember. He's the perfect age now. I remember going to Disney as a kid. Everything was bigger than life, and so real to me. I think he felt the same way. We had so much fun.

After doing all we could at the Magic Kingdom, we went to Hollywood Studios to check out the Star Wars scene. At the very end of the day, I talked my family into doing the one thing I wanted to do— see the Disney Animation Show and go to the Animation Academy. It was 20 minutes of heaven for me. We learned how to draw the Toy Story Alien. As you can see, both my boys weren't very happy with their drawings— especially Jackson!

Poor little guy, I think he did a good job for his first try! He followed along every step of the Animator's directions and he didn't give up. I think it threw them off because there were no erasers on the pencils. I told Jackson to keep practicing and maybe one day HE could be an animator!

I grew up loving Disney and spent my afternoons drawing the characters. Thought I'd share some of my old Disney sketches from when I was a kid...

"Maleficant" The Villain from Sleeping Beauty

(by me, age 13)

101 Dalmatians

(by me, Age 13)

The evil Queen in Snow White

(by me, age 12)

The kids are wiped. Sounds cheesy, but it was a Magical day!

Pixie Stixs Bow

2011-05-26T22:06:00.002-04:00

And the answer to your question is, "yes" I sucked down all the powder in the Pixie Stixs in order to make this bow. And... "no" I did not share any Pixie Stix with my kids. I did cough a bit when one of them came in and startled me. The powder went down the wrong way, but I drank a little water and I was fine. Thanks for asking.

I made this bow to top a birthday gift for a little boy we know who LOVES candy! Any kind of candy. He loves to come over to play and look in our pantry for our sweets stash because his mommy doesn't have one. That's ok kid. I feel for ya! My mom didn't have a candy stash either. I think that's why I have one now.

So if you've got a little friend with a sweet tooth, this might be just the bow for you!

First empty your Pixie Stix (into your mouth, if you so choose).

For the Bottom Row: Take your first Pixie Stix (is it Stix or stick? I don't know.) and loop each end to meet in the middle. Secure with hot glue and repeat with five other pixie stix. Then stack the six looped pixie stix as shown and hot glue each to secure.
For the Top Row: Snip 1/4 off your pixie stix to make smaller loops and secure with hot glue. Repeat with the last three Pixie Stix. Stack the smaller loops on top of the larger set of loops and secure with hot glue.

For the Center: Use the end piece of one of the Pixie Stix from the top row and make a single loop. Secure this to the center of the bow.

Ta-dah!

I'm sharing this tasty craft with some of my blog friends at Somewhat Simple and Great Fun 4 Kids.

Maddie's Mad Science Birthday Party— Customer Feature

2011-05-19T16:34:00.001-04:00

A EWEHOOO! CUSTOMER FEATURE— I just love hearing from my customers about their super fun birthday parties. So much creativity! Maddie, one of my Mad Science Birthday customers, recently turned six and her mom, Luci, threw her an explosive party— that didn't break the bank!

Luci ordered my one-sided Mad Science Party Invite and jazzed it up with some sparkly card stock!

Everyone loved the "Dr. Who?" Game.

Luci decked out the party table with polka dots and bright colored plasticware from the KALAS Collection at IKEA. You can get a whole set of this fun plasticware for about the same price as you'd spend on paper products. Maybe even cheaper! And it's reusable. Very green idea Luci!

Luci found this adorable Mad Science fabric at Spoonflower.com. Love what she did with the chairs!

Homemade Mad Science Cake. Yum!

These adorable Lab Coats were custom made by her friend. You can get your own at Inventive Threads.

Luci had the great idea to give each Mad Science party guest an experiment book to take home, so she asked me to design one for her. This custom printable Mad Science Experiment Book is now available at my shop!

Where to get your Mad Science Materials:

Petri Dishes: Amazon.com
Test Tubes: Steve Spangler Science (empty water bottles work too!)
Colorful Safety Goggles: Amazon.com
Mad Science Party Collection Printable Labels: ewehooo!
Mad Science Party Collection Printable Experiment Book: ewehooo!

Click here to see the whole Mad Science Printable Collection!

Looks to me like the girls had some explosive fun!

Thanks Luci for sharing Maddie's party!

I'm linking up with these fun blogs today seven thirty three, great fun 4 kids, a creative princess, and Kate's nesting spot,

WAY TO GO IRON MAN!

2011-05-15T18:56:00.001-04:00

IRON MAN 70.3 FLORIDA, at Walt Disney World— Today was race day for my other half. He trained long and hard for this day and I'm so proud of him!

While you were sleeping in this morning, he was swimming, and while you were eating your Ego waffles with extra syrup (wait, that was me) he was riding 56 miles. And while you were enjoying this lovely Sunday afternoon, he was finishing up his 13 mile run. Amazing!

The little guy and I had fun tracking Daddy down during the race. In between sightings, we kept busy making signs to cheer him on.

He finished all smiles!

And we celebrated with some yummy homemade IRON MAN Cookies once we got home.

Whew, what a day! I'm beat!

Linking up today at all these fabulous blogs…Sumo's Sweet Stuff - DIY showoff - Skip to my Lou - Be Colorful

Graduation Announcements— It's around the corner!

2011-05-13T20:41:00.000-04:00

A few weeks ago, I took some pictures of my niece and designed this graduation announcement for her.

5x7 Double-sided Graduation Announcement

Jessica wanted to use the version on the left, but I thought the one on the right was better. So we played a round of Rock, Paper, Scissors to see which side we should use and she won.

I was also asked to shoot and design a graduation announcement and Open House invitation for a friend of mine. These were her options. She chose the Vintage Honey version. Nice choice!

Congratulations Ladies! I'm so proud of you!

Doll Tea Party Gloves in a Snip... I mean a Snap!

2011-05-11T08:11:00.002-04:00

These little white knee sock gloves where so easy to make and they were a HUGE hit at my niece's Doll Tea Party last month! Come to think of it, they might not be a bad idea to use when I run in the winter time. I'll have to remember that when we have our next cold snap. Anyway, here's the easy how to...

Now I think I'll go take a nip... I MEAN A NAP! A NAP!!!

BTW, our attic reno is being featured today on DIY Showoff. Check it out HERE!

Scooby Dooby Doooo! - A New Invite in my shop.

2011-05-07T15:19:00.001-04:00

Hi and happy Mother's Day all you Moms out there!

Just wanted to share my newest invite in my shop. One of my favorite cartoons growing up was Scooby Doo. My cousin, Julie's son is turning 4 in June and she asked me to design a Scooby themed invite for her. So I did... for 19 scooby snacks! Such a deal!

Click on over and check it out at my shop here.

5x7 Invite Front

5x7 Invite Back

Matching Address Strips

Well Gang, I guess that wraps up this mystery! Great job Scoob!

Teacher Appreciation Week— A Candle Bouquet!

2011-05-04T10:58:00.000-04:00

TEACHER APPRECIATION WEEK is underway and one of the things our PTA has suggested is that the students bring in a flower for their teacher. So here are the flowers I made.

MATERIALS NEEDED:

A Candle in a cup (My friend Carolyn got these adorable "grow" candles at Pottery Barn a while ago, but you can use any potted candle you like. )
A Flower and Brad (I used some from the scrapbooking section in the Craft store)
Wired Yarn Rope (available at Joann's Fabrics)
Treat Bag
Paper Shreds
Gift Tags

TO MAKE THE LEAVES— I simply wrapped the green Wired Yarn Rope around the treat bag and made two big loops for leaves then twisted the rope together in the back.
ATTACHING THE FLOWER— I placed the Brad through the Flower and poked the BRad through the top of the treat bag to attach.
THE GIFT TAG— I typed and printed a message to the teacher, cut out the words and glued them onto the tag.

Teachers, thanks for helping our kids grow!

Teacher Appreciation Week-Bulletin Board & Door Decorations!

2011-04-29T17:58:00.001-04:00

Where does the time go? We only have a month left of school! Wow! It's Teacher Appreciation Week next week, so in honor of all our teachers at Blankner I made this Star Wars themed movie preview now hanging in the school's Cafeteria. I listed all the teachers and staff in the credits.

Teacher Appreciation

4'x12' School Cafeteria Bulletin Board

2011 Teacher Appreciation 3rd Grade Door Decor

(That's Wesley's teacher with Elastigirl's body.)

2010 Teacher Appreciation Pre-K Door Decor

(from Dr. Seuss' "Are You My Mother?")

2010 Teacher Appreciation 2nd Grade Door Decor

(This is Wes' 2nd Grade Teacher.)

Basically, I designed everything and then printed it out at Fed Ex Office on Their Large Format B/W printer. Then I colored everything with soft pastels, cut it all out and mounted it.

Have a great weekend and remember to make our teachers feel extra special next week!

Happy Easter!

2011-04-24T02:47:00.001-04:00

Peter Cotton Tail

In between coloring eggs with the kids, preparing Easter baskets and a neighborhood Easter Egg hunt, I couldn't resist making this cute little sock bunny. It's a variation of the one found here. I inserted floral wire to make the ears curl. The body is stuffed with batting and the feet are filled with rice so it stands up. I followed this pom-pom tutorial to make the bunny's cotton tail.

Heading to church and then off to my sister's to spend the day with family. Hope you all have a wonderful Easter!

A Delightful Doll Tea Party!

2011-04-18T01:32:00.005-04:00

My niece, Kaylee, just turned 8 and she loves her American Girl doll, Ruthie and her dog, Buster. So, we celebrated her big day with a fancy Doll Tea Party right in her own backyard (and Buster's stomping ground). She invited a few of her friends, and their dolls, of course.

5"x7" Invitaion (FRONT)

5"x7" Invitaion (BACK)

I designed and illustrated this Tea Party invitation with my new Wacom Intuos4 Sketch Pad. I love it!

My Doll Tea Party Invitation is now available at my shop! CLICK HERE!

I'll be posting the rest of the collection this week.

I got an enlarged B&W printout of Kaylee's invitation, hand colored it and featured it at the entrance of the Tea Party.

We set the table with an assortment of china from three generations, plus a few Goodwill finds, my mother's teapot collection and a very generous neighbor who had some fabulous tablecloths. Thanks Debrah! Can you find my tea pot? It's my ewehooo! cameo.

Kaylee, the guest of honor and her doll, Ruthie wearing their matching birthday outfits.

The first thing the guests got to do upon arrival was dress for Tea.

I found these Chipboard purses at the craft store (you can also find them here). I simply spray painted them and added their names. They decorated them with flower stickers and rhinestones. Inside each purse was candy lipstick and a small mirror compact.

The girls decorated hats for themselves and their dolls.

My sister, Reba and I raided my 93 year old grandmother's closet for dress shoes and scarves. She had 88 pairs of shoes the last time she counted. She wears a size 4-1/2, perfect for little 8 year old feet!

I made each of the girls a set of gloves out of white knee socks. Easy tutorial to come.

The dolls were seated at their own special table, where Ruthie was at the head.

Abraham Lincoln(s) were surprise guests. You can imagine all the dolls were tickled pink!

Then is it was Tea Time!

Lots of toothless smiles!

And a toast to Kaylee!

A friend of Reba's baked cupcakes from scratch and each girl got her own delicious treat with personalized mini-bunting, doll sized too!

Make a wish!

The Party Favors were over-sized Tea Bags filled with chocolates. The Pink Polka-dot Tea Bags, Pink striped straws (used for the Cupcake Bunting) and Divine Twine are from Whisker Graphics.

What a delightful day!

Buster won't admit it, but I think he had a great time too!

Madrid Spain— The Perfect Getaway.

2011-04-15T13:38:00.000-04:00

Right: The Communications Palace Building; Old Madrid

The best things in life aren't planned and this trip was definitely one of them. We had no time to map out this vacation— well, vacation for me, business trip for Chandler (too bad so sad for him). I did well to buy a Madrid tour book a few days before we left and spend a small fortune to rush through my passport renewal. But I wasn't going to miss out on this grand opportunity!

Oh, did I mention that my husband had been complaining about a tooth ache for about 3 months and finally went to the dentist the Monday before we left? Yeah, the dentist said he needed to get his wisdom tooth out and that he might want to go ahead and get all four taken out at once. Ummhmm. Yeah. That's right. My frugal husband chose to get all four (count 'em "4") wisdom teeth taken out, even though only one was causing the ache. His logic was that he would save money because he would only have to pay for anestesia once to get them all yanked. Such a deal. However, Chandler chose to overlook the fact that he was traveling to another country at the end of the week and that high altitudes might induce excess bleeding and that if problems occurred overseas, like excruciatingly painful dry socket, we would be spending our precious little time together in a dentist's office in a foreign country. Lovely. He got all four wisdom teeth pulled two days before we left. Popped two Codeines on out 8 hour flight to Madrid and slept like a baby. Maybe he did know what he was doing.

Bourbon Madrid

The park you see in the picture above runs down the center of Old, Madrid with roads running along each side.

Real Jardin Botanico, Bourbon Madrid

The Alcåzar Castle, Segovia
Segovia is about an hour North of Madrid. It's an amazing old town set high on a rocky cliff.

The Maze from the top of the castle.

A view of the town of Segovia from the castle.

The Roman Aqueduct running through the old town.

From Segovia, drove south to Toledo, another picturesque little town.

Our hotel...

...with a view of the Bill Fighting ring. We missed the first fight of the season by a week!

Outdoor Market, Toledo

Looking out from the city.

One of the many churches. Incredible detail.

Bernabéu Stadium, Madrid

Back in Madrid, there was a huge Football (soccer) championship match— Madrid vs. England. Madrid won, 4-zip.

After watching all the football hoopla, took the Metro to the Plaza de Oriente in the Opera district.

We had a lovely dinner at an outdoor bistro.

And then we walked back to our hotel. That's when we realized Chandler had left his iPhone4 on the table at the restaurant. But that's another story. Aside from that, we had a spectacular time!

Leaving for Spain today!

2011-04-01T11:16:00.000-04:00

I'm tagging along with the hub on a business trip to Madrid, Spain for a few days. So excited! So I'll be offline until the 6th or 7th. Don't worry, I'll share all my travel adventures with you when I get back:)

Hasta Luego!
(that's about all the Spanish I know. I think I'm in trouble.)

Jackson's Lego Party— today's CRAFT Magazine Daily Feature!

2011-03-31T14:44:00.001-04:00

Woohoo! Jackson's Lego Builders Birthday Party is featured today on Craftzine.com.

Hope you'll check it out HERE!

Easy Lego Party Crafts

2011-03-30T00:19:00.002-04:00

Wanted to share some easy Lego craft ideas from Jackson's Lego Birthday Party.

Since time was not on my side when planning for this party, I decided not to make the Lego Man soaps myself and instead ordered some from Broken Road Farm HERE. But if you want to make them yourself, you can find detailed instructions at Roots and Wings. And don't forget, you can save time and buy pre-made Lego molds here. I used the time I saved to design the dry-witted packaging that went over the heads of my target audience. But I digress.

I made these Lego frames while sitting in front of the TV one night hot gluing real Legos onto wooden frames from the craft store. My idea was to take a picture of each party goer and their lego creation and put it in the frame to give them at the end of the party. But the kids liked the Lego men I put in the frames so much, I didn't bother and just gave them the frames as-is. The kids really liked being able to put their Lego men on top of the frames. They were a hit!

Here's where you can find all of my Lego Builders Birthday Party details:

Lego Builders Birthday Party Invite here
Lego Builders Birthday Party here
Easy Prep Lego Food "How To's" here.

If you're looking for more crafty Lego ideas, try some of these:

Lego Crayons

Lego Coloring Pages

Lego Star Wars Paper Crafts

Hope these ideas might inspire you to plan a Lego Party for your kids! So fun!

Easy Prep Lego Party Food "How to"

2011-03-29T08:55:00.002-04:00

These tasty treats are super easy to make and created a big WOW factor with the kids. Totally worth it! Be sure to check out my son's LEGO BUILDERS BIRTHDAY PARTY HERE.

Mix food coloring into the icing and ice the Little Debbie treats. Stick the treats in the fridge for about 30 minutes. Then top with M&M's. Delish!

I used a Fondant circle cutter to make the cheese circles. Then dabbed a teensy bit of cheese wiz in six spots on each cracker and placed the cheese circles on top! Yummy!

I used the same Fondant cutter to cut out little pepperonis and placed them on frozen cheese pizza.

I melted the chocolate chips (enough to fill one tray of molds at a time) in the Microwave for 40 seconds at a time on 50% power until the chocolate melted. Take it from me, DO NOT over cook the chocolate. It will burn! I lightly misted some Pam in the molds, then scooped the chocolate in with a spoon. You have to work fast before the chocolate hardens. Since I only had two molds, I put them in the freezer to harden so I could work faster. The chocolates pop right out of the mold in about 10 minutes. Store them in the fridge until party time:)

OTHER LEGO FOOD IDEAS:

Lego Gummies— One other treat I didn't have time to prepare was Lego Gummies. Go HERE for complete instructions. This guy actually teaches you how to make your own sylicone Lego mold, if you have some extra time on your hands. Or you can just order some Lego molds HERE.
Lego Hard Candies— Get them here.
Lego Candles— Available here.

Here's where you can find all of my Lego Builders Birthday Party details:

Lego Builders Birthday Party Invite here
Lego Builders Birthday Party here
Easy Lego Crafts here

Jackson's LEGO Builders Birthday Party!

2011-03-28T21:25:00.001-04:00

There was no school last Friday, so we planned Jackson's Lego party for that day to kick-off our Spring Break! If you didn't see the Lego Party invites I sneak previewed last week, have a look here. Later this week I will also post some "how-to's" for some of the Lego crafts I did for this party. Enjoy!

I made these Lego frames by hot gluing real Legos onto wooden frames from the craft store. My idea was to take a picture of each party goer and their lego creation and put it in the frame to give them at the end of the party. But the kids liked the Lego men I put in the frames so much, I didn't bother and just gave them the frames as-is. The kids really liked being able to put their Lego men on top of the frames. They were a hit!

I went to the Party store and bought the cheapest piñata I could find that was shaped like a box. Then I added red streamers and four Solo Cup tops to make a Lego piñata. Then I strung it up on our trampoline and let each boy come up one at a time and take a couple of swings at it.

I picked up these cute Lego Loot Buckets from the Party store too and added name tags so they wouldn't fight over who got which color. They got to scoop up as many Legos as they could from our Lego stash, plus the candy from the piñata and a few other goodies like the Lego man Soaps below and Lego man Flashlight Key Chains. Everyone's buckets were filled to the rims when the left.

Everyone wanted to take home our coveted Lego men and I did not want to disappoint, since we have enough for a small country. So I put one Lego guy for each guest in little bead jars from the craft store and called them "Lego Freeze Chambers". This got lots of wide eyed oooooo's and ahhhhhhhhhhhhs from the group. They couldn't wait to pick out their very own Lego Freeze Chamber!

The Grand Finale was blowing out the candles on the yummy Lego Cakes. We actually had to light the candles twice because the kids were so excited the first time around they all blew out the all candles while Jackson still had his eyes closed making a wish.

I think everybody went home happy.

Happy 6th Birthday Little Man! I love ya!

Lego Birthday Party Sneak Peek...

2011-03-24T00:40:00.001-04:00

Yes, Jackson's 6th birthday was a few weeks ago, but we've been celebrating all month! And now we're counting down to his Lego Birthday Party— which is, coincidentally, on the same day as his big brother's birthday. Wesley was fine with sharing his birthday with his little brother as long as he gets presents too. Deal!

Well, here's the invite I sent out. Jackson and I spent one Saturday afternoon building his name and finding all the lego men in our Lego stash. This is just a sneak peek into some of the fun we have planned. So stay tuned!

(FRONT OF INVITE)

(BACK OF INVITE)

"If we build it, they will come."

5"x7" Double-sided Invite

Fonts used: Lego Thick, Lego Blocks and Hamburger Menu Marquee

Happy St. Patrick's Day!

2011-03-16T13:17:00.000-04:00

My kids' (half) Irish eyes are smiling because we're celebrating our (50%) Irish heritage in green style!

FREE Download HERE and HERE! Compliments of ewehooo!

It's back and it's got shamrocks on it this time! My versatile bunting is really coming in handy!

Thanks to my super talented and imaginative friend Jeromina over at Paper Plate and Plane, I made these adorable Lucky Leprechaun hats for Wesley's class. They're sure to be a hit! Click HERE for her detailed instructions.

THE LUCKY DETAILS:

Lucky Cupcake Party Circles— I designed the St. Patrick's Day Party Circle cupcake toppers and you can download them FREE HERE.
Lucky Cupcake Wrappers— I also designed the St. Patrick's Day Party cupcake wrappers and you can download them FREE HERE.
Versatile Shamrock Bunting— It's back with felt shamrocks this time. Go to my previous post HERE for complete instructions.
Lucky Leprechaun Hats— Go to my friend Jeromina's blog for complete instructions HERE.
Lucky Yarn Wreath— See my previous post for complete instructions HERE.

Thanks for stopping by! Hope you have a happy St. Patrick's Day!

Iron Craft Challenge #11— Make Something Green (Literally)

2011-03-16T11:10:00.000-04:00

This week on IRON CRAFT— The challenge was to make something green. Not green as in the saving the earth kind (I'm sure that will come in April for Earth Day), but the actual color GREEN.

Well, you know how I love yarn wreaths! And this one is just in time for St. Patrick's Day! I'm part Irish and part...I dunno, something else, so in the spirit of celebrating (a portion of) my family heritage, we are doing up St. Patrick's Day in a pretty big way this year— starting with my "Lucky" wreath.

This was so easy to make. All I needed was a wreath form, some yarn (of which I have gobs), some straight pins to secure the yarn on the wreath, coated copper wire from the hardware store for the lettering and some hot glue to secure the yarn on the lettering. Love it!!

I'll post the rest of our St. Patrick's Day treats later today.

Am I feeling lucky? Yes, actually. I am. I better go buy some lottery tickets before this feeling goes away.

Hope you have a lucky day!

When we learn we grow! — Fun with Flowers at School.

2011-03-14T11:36:00.003-04:00

I decided a few years back that if I'm going to volunteer at my kids' school, I better do something I enjoy! I've been decorating the Cafeteria bulletin board for about two years now. This month I had some fun with flowers for Spring. I was inspired by the current display at Anthro. Love them!!!

Since I was on a budget (the budget being $0), and keeping in mind a younger audience I kept my flowers simple, colorful and inexpensive to create. I just used the school's banner paper and sketched a bunch of flower petals, cut them out and taped floral wire to the back of each petal to create the 3D flowers. The flower centers are just bright colored felt glued onto paper plates and stuffed with a little batting. The flower stems are sticks. Then I just hot glued everything to the board and shaped the flowers.

Viola! Spring time at lunch time for all the students!

If I could wish a wish...

2011-03-10T12:02:00.001-05:00

At the heels of Dr. Seuss's birthday last week, I've been thinking in rhymes ever since. And I can't get this particular one out of my mind!

So we went ahead and celebrated.

Why do they have to get older? Oh well, maybe if I keep on wishing the same wish on my wish dish, it will eventually come true! Or is that just when I get grandchildren?

A "ewe"nique Photostrip Collection.

2011-03-04T17:43:00.004-05:00

I'd like you to meet Erin Vertolli— my very talented friend and fellow Blankner Mom. She is probably the coolest Mom I know. For one, her kids are named London and Vegas. How cool is that? Her house is very West Elm meets CB2 with a dash of IKEA. Plus, she is the talent behind One Lucky Baby— a line of hip baby attire and accessories designed with the modern Mom in mind.

Erin invited me over recently to pour though her fabric scraps. I love using fabrics in my mixed media art. Anyway, when I walked in the door, I saw this collage of Photo booth pictures on her wall. I absolutely loved it and asked her about it. This was her response:

ERIN: I have this ridiculous obsession with photo booths. Not the digital, or the sticker booths but the old school classic B&W or Color booths. You get 4 shots. No retakes. No copies. I started collecting strips about 15 years ago. Most pictures are of friends and family but I've got fantastic photos of strangers too. Am I surprised when I ask random people if they'll squeeze their body into 2x2 feet, take some pics and let me keep them? Always. Not sure if it's the booth or the booze, but people lose their inhibition in these things.

Only a few places in Orlando still have the classic booths including Eye Spy, BBQ Bar and Stardust. And maybe one day, my living room. Until then, I'll keep collecting, framing and dreaming of my own!"

Be sure and check out Erin's shop here:

Well, I think I'm going to round up the hub and kids and go find a Photobooth! Have a great weekend!

A Garden Birthday Party - for Mackenzie!

2011-03-02T14:00:00.002-05:00

INTRODUCING: The Garden Party Collection available now on Etsy!

To see the full collection click HERE .

MY NIECE RECENTLY TURNED FOUR and we celebrated with a Garden Birthday Party designed and illustrated by yours truly! Here's the double-sided invitation that was sent out to friends and family (see above and below).

And here's the Birthday Girl!

Since my house is full of boys, I had so much fun designing this party for Mackenzie.

The tablecloth is made from colorful bandanas. Thanks Mom for sewing it together for me!
Hot Pink Water Jug— is from Joann's found with all their Easter stuff. Same with the flowers.

The yummy homemade white cake was layered with fresh strawberries and homemade icing!
I made clay cake toppers to match the Garden themed invitation. (Thinking about selling these too.)
The little statue of Mackenzie was made using Shrinky Dinks! That was fun to watch it bake!
My friends Shona, Claire and I sewed the Mini-bunting for the cake (and also for the yarn wreath).

I spray painted the clay pots in bright colors and filled them with Jelly Bellies.
The Flowers were made from a template and tongue depressors (template available at my shop)
The Party Circles in the center of the flowers are part of my Garden Party Collection.

The kids loved playing and planting flowers in the sandbox.

Chenille bubble blowers were easier for the kids to dip into the bubbles and the chenille absorbs the bubble mixture and makes bigger bubbles!
The Bubble Wrappers are part of the Garden Party Collection.

I found this adorable Butterfly Catcher jar with "what looked like" a real butterfly! Tap on the top of the jat and the butterfly flutters around. It was a big hit with the kids.

Click here for instructions on how to make these cute balloon flowers!

Guests left with these Garden Party Favors.

Can't wait 'til next year!

President's Day— Something old, something new...

2011-02-21T11:02:00.000-05:00

Something old and something new.

8x10 Graphic Illustration

by me

Something borrowed: Mini President Figurines

(Photo by Every Day's a Holiday: Year-Round Crafting With Kids)

If I had the time this week I would have whipped these little cuties up, I just didn't have a minute to spare. Oh well, there's always next year! Love the cute little top hat on Lincoln— just like the ones I used on my Snowmen!

Something...crafty!

Wind-up Lincoln Hat!

I made this using the wind-up mechanism from another wind-up toy laying around the house, some black construction paper and craft foam. Hilarious!

Have a great Presidents' Day everybody!

Our Attic Renovation is Featured on Remodelaholic!

2011-02-17T10:36:00.000-05:00

Yay!

Please go take a look!

HERE

Valentine's Day rocked this year!

2011-02-14T23:02:00.001-05:00

I decided to leave my red magnolia wreath up until Valentine's Day because I love it so much and hate to pack it away. So I added this cool Love sign I made out of coated copper wire and yarn. L-O-V-E it!

Jackson (my Kindergartener) vetoed the Fruity Valentine idea so we decided to decorate rocks instead. I got this idea here at Red Bird Crafts. Sooo cute! And easy! Jackson came home and didn't mention anything about them, so I'm assuming his classmates liked them and there was no rock throwing going on in class. Guess I would have gotten an email from the teacher if that had happened.

I ran with the chalkboard speech bubble idea from earlier this month and made 18 of them for Wesley's classmates last week. They each wrote a special message to their parents and I took pictures of them. We also made these twisty yarn picture clips. A sweet, sentimental gift for Mom and Dad.

Twisty Yarn Picture Clips How to:

You'll Need:

• yarn

• sturdy coated wire (from the hardware store. The same stuff I used for the LOVE sign)

• some paper clips (clothespins would work great too!)

• twist-on wire connectors (also from the hardware store)

Tape the paper clip to one end of the coated wire. Wrap the yarn tightly through the paper clip and around the wire until it is completely covered. Snip the yarn and twist on a wire connector. Then twist it to your "heart's" desire!

And I'm calling it a day. Sweet!

Happy Valentine's Day!

2011-02-14T15:15:00.000-05:00

Hope everyone is having a very happy Valentine's Day!

I'll do a Valentine's wrap-up later tonight. So little time and so much to do!

Minted Design Challenge — "Marriage Advice" Wedding Shower Invite

2011-02-13T00:29:00.002-05:00

Woohooo! I just entered my first design challenge on minted.com! I'm so nervous and I still have to wait a few weeks to find out the results! Please have a look at my "Marriage Advice" wedding shower invitation and let me know how I stack up to the competition!

To view my entry and more details about my design,

please click here.

shower invitations - Marriage Advice

Fruity Valentines!

2011-02-11T21:24:00.002-05:00

A take-off of the Annoying Orange videos on YouTube that my kids love watching, these fruity treats will be what they hand out to their classmates this year at school. I found the cute little stickers over at Twig and Thistle and added a boyish twist with the googly eyes. You can download the stickers here.

The Annoying Orange

You've got to watch at least one video. They're pretty funny!

Happy Valentines Day!

Girlfriend Time is good for your health—Seriously!

2011-02-06T09:08:00.001-05:00

"A message to my out-of-state friends."

8"x10" Digital Illustration

On that note, I just received this email from my friend Carolyn, who received it from her friend, who received it from her friend, and so on. Read on....

Subject: The University of Stanford Lecture - Stress Relief
Date: Friday, January 28, 2011, 8:05 PM

They Teach It at Stanford
"I just finished taking an evening class at Stanford. The last lecture was on the mind-body connection - the relationship between stress and disease. The speaker (head of psychiatry at Stanford) said, among other things, that one of the best things that a man could do for his health is to be married to a woman, whereas for a woman, one of the best things she could do for her health was to nurture her relationships with her girlfriends.

At first everyone laughed, but he was serious.

Women connect with each other differently and provide support systems that help each other to deal with stress and difficult life experiences. Physically this quality “girlfriend time" helps us to create more serotonin - a neurotransmitter that helps combat depression and can create a general feeling of well being. Women share feelings whereas men often form relationships around activities. They rarely sit down with a buddy and talk about how they feel about certain things or how their personal lives are going. Jobs? Yes. Sports? Yes. Cars? Yes. Fishing, hunting, golf? Yes. But their feelings? Rarely.

Women do it all of the time. We share from our souls with our sisters/mothers, and evidently that is very good for our health. He said that spending time with a friend is just as important to our general health as jogging or working out at a gym.

There's a tendency to think that when we are "exercising" we are doing something good for our bodies, but when we are hanging out with friends, we are wasting our time and should be more productively engaged—not true. In fact, he said that failure to create and maintain quality personal relationships with other women is as dangerous to our physical health as smoking!
So every time you hang out to schmooze with a gal pal, just pat yourself on the back and congratulate yourself for doing something good for your health! We are indeed very, very lucky.

Sooooo let's toast to our friendship with our girlfriends. Evidently it's very good for our health."

Say it with a Chalkboard Valentine!

2011-02-03T01:50:00.003-05:00

THIS WEEK ON IronCraft: Challenge #5 "Be Mine"— The challenge was to make a Valentine's Card. There are some really cute cards posted by my IronCraft friends like Jeromina's Valentine Tic Tac Toe card (she always blows me a way with her cool ideas), and this adorable Heart Tree Embroidery Pattern from The Modern Lady (see her tutorial— you can do it too!).

I chose to go with a chalkboard theme, so I made these chalkboard speech bubbles. They were very easy to make. I just drew the bubble on the foam board, adhered chalkboard contact paper (you can find it here) and then trimmed it out with an exacto knife. Done!

The Valentine's card was easy too. I just mounted the photo to card stock to make it more firm and then adhered chalkboard contact paper to the back. The kids will have fun writing, erasing and re-writing their messages.

I wrote the message for Jackson, but that goofy smile is all his!

Warrior Dash 2011— Crazy Fun!

2011-01-30T22:32:00.001-05:00

THE WARRIOR DASH 2011, Lake Wales, FL— Hands down, the funnest race I've ever run! There was mud and lots of it. The thick, black slimy kind. And the cold, murky, up to your waist, can't see what you're stepping in kind. I crawled under barbed wire and jumped over fire. I AM WARRIOR MOM! HEAR ME ROAR!

NEXT FLORIDA WARRIOR DASH— January 28-29, 2012

I'll be there! Will you?

Burlap Pinboard— for old family pictures

2011-01-30T00:21:00.001-05:00

Since my grandmother turned 93 last October, she's been on a mission to de-clutter her surroundings. Her most recent project has been to take one last look at all her photos (and she has a ton) and then give them away to anyone who wants them. I LOVE old photos so I snagged as many as I could before my sisters could have a chance! Someday I want to do something spectacular with them, but for now, I decided to display them. So yesterday afternoon I made this burlap pinboard for above my computer. Similar pinboards retail for $100 bucks, but I made this one for under $15. And it was so easy!

You'll need:

A piece of cork (from a home improvement store)
Burlap (1 yard)
Twine
Beading Pins (14-7/8" nickel plated steel with large heads worked well for me)
Staple gun
Hammer
Picture Hanger for the back (optional)

How to:

First cut your cork board. I had a big piece so I cut it to the size I wanted (24"x36") with a utility knife. But you can have it cut to size at the home improvement store (free).
Wrap the burlap around the cork, pull it taut and staple it to the back.
Place pins in columns every 4 inches apart and hammer them in so that only 1/4" shows. Tie a knot at one end of your twine and secure it to the pin at one corner of your board. Then wrap the the twine tightly around each pin pulling it up and down each column. Once the columns are finished, back track across to make 4" squares. At the end, secure the twine with a pin and hammer it all the way in.
It's ready for hanging! I just leaned mine on a shelf, but you can easily add a picture hanger to the back.

And now for my pictures...

My grandmother married Arthur Jackson "Bud" Morris just before WWII started. He only saw his daughter once while on a short leave. Bud was Killed In Action just before the war ended. Devastated, my grandmother decided to move to Florida from her hometown in Indiana because that's where her husband always said he wanted to live. Everyone, especially her older sister Evelyn, thought she was crazy, but my grandmother didn't care. She packed up her car and drove my mom (6 months old at the time) and her mother (Reba) to Florida. They decided to settle in Daytona Beach on the advice of a gas station attendant. Uncle Ray, my great grandmother's brother, came down to check on them soon after and then went on to visit his was good friends, the Rockefellers, who had a summer residence in nearby Ormond Beach. Then on to Miami to visit the Hoovers. (I'm name dropping here.) Their first home wasn't far from the beach, which they frequented often.

In October of 1944, my grandmother met C. Wesley Olson, Jr. "Wes" one night at a bar— or a dance hall, as my grandmother calls it. You know how they always say, you'll never meet your significant other in a bar? Well I don't believe that for a second. Heck, that's where I met my husband! Anyway, she walked by him at the bar and he looked at her and said, "I always did love red!". She was wearing a red dress and dashed to the bathroom with her girlfriends who wanted to switch dresses with her because the man was such a dream boat. They were smitten with each other from the start. WIthin three weeks they were engaged. Wes came home from the University of Florida to visit her every weekend and in January 1945, they were married. He adored my mom and adopted her and they had a son, Steve. They were happily married for 56 years.

And there you have it! One courageous (and somewhat rash) decision changed the course of history for my family. And I'm so thankful for it!

P.S. Both of my sons are named after their great grandfathers— Wesley and Jackson.