I Made me a Yo-Yo Pillow

I'm trying to get back into sewing, so I do a little here and there.  I've actually never really gotten into sewing for real.   It's hard to learn on my own.  So for now I'm sticking with simple pillows. I can't mess them up too much :)

Since I wasn't using my yo-yo centerpiece as ... well a centerpiece... I stuck it on a pillow.  I like it much better here! And the colors fit perfectly with my living room too :)

Crochet Bear Hats

I made these little bear hats for my soon-to-be-born nephews....and now that the baby shower is over I can post them :)

The pattern comes from Easy Make Me Happy blog and it's a free one!  Yea! It's actually for monkey hats, but I just changed the location of the ears to make them bears instead... I like them better that way :)

I can't wait to see these on my nephews one day!

Photo of the Week

The Christmas lights at Temple Square are beautiful this year (as always)!  Seeing them always gets me in the mood for Christmas.  That and getting out the Christmas decorations :)  What do you do to get into the Christmas spirit?

Still Painting Bookmarks

I'm really getting into painting bookmarks.  They're so fun!  I love that I can sit in my art room after my son goes to bed, put on some music, and paint whatever comes to mind.  Not all of them turn out, but I'm so happy with the ones that do :)

My last set of bookmarks sold fast (ya, I was super happy about that!), so I decided to list these as well in my shop.  Here they are...

                                               Bookmarks Set 1                                              Bookmarks Set 2

 Bookmarks Set 3

Since I'm staying at home this morning I may as well get some reading done... there's no way I'm going out on Black Friday around here. It's INSANE!

Not Your Average Dried Leaf

I found something else to use sharpies on....

 Pretty sweet, eh?

If you want to try this, you definitely have to use a fresh, pliable leaf. The old dried ones just crumble when you draw on them.  Draw on it first, then dry it.

You don't even have to be an artist to try this. Just trace the natural outlines and shapes on the leaf itself and add a few extra lines here and there to make it more interesting.

So there you go!

Now you can have leaves that are a bit more awesome than the average dried leaf :)

Photo of the Week

I managed to capture a quick shot of the view from my backyard as the sun was just about to go down.... it's been a rough day.  All I can say is that if I ever get to a point where I don't have migraines anymore I will be I will be doing cartwheels and running around like crazy.  I miss being able to be active...sigh.

Art Room Inspiration Wall

We moved into our house over 7 months ago and I'm still trying to organize my art room....

I always have pictures I paint from laying around, so I tried hanging them up on mini clotheslines on the wall.  Looks like it will work! Perfect! Now I have everything I want to paint from in plain view!

I count myself as extremely blessed to have a dedicated room for art and other such craftiness.  Gone are the days when I had to store everything under the bed or the back of my closet.  Hooray!

Mini Paper Plate Diorama

A little something we did before the big snow storm hit us last week...

Our neighbor was making a diorama for school and my little guy was dying to make one too.  So we whipped one out that night.  Nothing too fancy, but still fun!  Clippings from our bushes make perfect mini-trees  :)

Photo of the Week

Snow and ice melting from the amazingly-still-green leaves of my cherry tree... 

The first winter snow is always fun, this time especially because we haven't seen it snow this much in about two years!  But I am always glad when the sun comes out and the ice melts again :)

Bike Prints Are Here!

Well, folks... I finally found a place to make some giclee prints of my bike painting.  Hooray! Only thing is  they are in Canada, so it takes a while to get them.  They just got here this afternoon.. yes! I'm excited.

They are now for sale in my Etsy shop here.  Check it out!

Paper Punching Leaves

Paper punches.....  not just for paper.

A whole new world opens up once you start looking outside.  Thank you Color Me Katie for the idea!

Now I'm drying them for future use... cards maybe?

I Can't Stop Painting

I know I already showed you my photos of my hollyhocks, but it wasn't enough for me to photograph them. I had to paint them!  Painting is an addiction for me. Really.  I have so many things I want to paint and not enough time to paint them.  Oh well.  All things in moderation, right?

They look darling in a little white frame.  If this one doesn't sell, it will hang up in our guest room I think.  So girly and pink.  I love it!

Check it out here, in my shop:  https://www.etsy.com/listing/113339260/pink-hollyhock-flower-original

P.S. Happy Voting Day!

Photo of the Week

Enjoying the nice fall weather while it lasts ......

I am going to miss the warmth and the sunshine when winter hits.   I tend to get cabin fever if I can't get out of the house.  What do you do in winter to keep from going crazy?  I don't ski or snowboard, so I'm kind of limited to short walks and hanging out at libraries and malls.

Get Organized: Plastic Bag Holders

I had a small epiphany this week.  I was at the end of another box of tissues and was about to throw the box away when I remembered my kitchen cupboard full of plastic bags that are continually falling out every time I open it.   The empty box seemed like perfect way to keep those bags contained, yet still accessible... so the the Tissue Box Plastic Bag Holder was born!

Each box doesn't hold too many bags, but it's nice that I can have separate containers... one for upstairs, one for downstairs.   The boxes are pretty too!  I was having fun photographing them even though a certain some one and his teddy kept sneaking into my pictures :)