I'm Getting Stuff Done!!

Okay, so it's been over a year since I've updated my blog.  *Insert a really embarrassed face here!*   I really haven't had too much to share, but I have a few things.

I didn't do much in the way of crafting or artwork the whole of last year.  I was in a kind of creative slump I guess.  Anyway, my New Year's resolution for 2015 is to 'Finish 15 in 2015'.  In other words, to finish 15 un-completed projects that are laying around here (and have been for quite some time). 

I started with a little accordion-fold set of houses that I've had in the works for quite some time now.

Please ignore my messy work area.  I was very anxious to get the photos of my project so I could post them.

My second completion for 2015 was this little shadow box.

I used a box that a brooch had come in as the main part, added the arch and other elements, and used wooden spools for the wheels (no, they don't turn).  All the images used in this project and in the little houses are from Paper Whimsy.

I have several other projects that I've completed so far, but I'll save those for a later post.

Lazy Week

Well it was one lazy weekend around here last weekend.  I don't think I got anything accomplished.  I didn't even get all the laundry done!  It doesn't look like this week is going to be any better either.  I suppose it's to be expected for a 4 day week, though.

I don't have any photos to share today.  I did get some hair clips and bobby pins decorated last week but, no pictures, yet.  I'll try to get them up soon.

I've been trying to come up with a good idea for my Christmas cards for this year.  I've had a few random thoughts about them but, no concrete design concepts.  I do know that I want a non-traditional color scheme.  Last year it was pink.  This year I'm thinking shabby chic with pink and aqua.  They can't have any embellishments that will make them hard to mail which is giving me fits.  I love all the bling and flowers and stuff on cards.  I guess I'll have to stick to glitter and ribbon or lace.

I also want to do another banner for my desk at work.  Of course I want it shabby chic style with lots of glitter and bling and flowers and you get the idea.  I can't seem to get any ideas to gel for me right now.  Hopefully next weekend will be better.

Happy Thanksgiving, everyone!

Crafting and a New Outfit

Well this has been a week!  I took Friday off to get the oil in my car changed, get the safety inspection, and get the car license renewed.  When the techs tried to star my car after the oil change it wouldn't start.  Now it's in the shop and they can get it started but, they can't keep it running.  I had all sorts of plans for Friday and this week, too.  ;_;  This is going to be expensive, too, I bet. ;;;_;;;

So, since I was stuck at home for an extended weekend I got a bit of crafting done.  I saw in the current issue of Somerset Studio magazine an article about spool ornaments by Linda Trenholm and it inspired me to make my own.  I have a bunch of old wooden spools that my mom gave me.  They are all the smaller size that will be perfect to make into ornaments.  Here is the result of my first attempt:

And a little closer look:

I have three more painted and ready to embellish but, realized after I painted them that I didn't have any ribbon to match.  (Yay, shopping for ribbon!!)

I also had seen somewhere (I can't remember exactly where) the spring-type clothespins decorated with Washi tape.  As I have a huge collection of Washi tape and rarely use it I thought this would be a cute idea, too.  I also have all of Mom's old clothespins to use!  I'm pretty pleased with the results.

These are the ones with the Washi tape.  I added a bit of bling, too!

And these are just painted with acrylics after sanding.  Then I added the roses and the bling.  You could put magnets on the backs so they hang on the refrigerator or, thumbtacks and hang them on a bulletin board.  I started a couple of other projects, too, but ran into roadblocks.  Hopefully I'll have a bit more done next week.  I'm really getting some great Shabby Chic inspiration from Pinterest lately.  If you're interested you can follow me there, too.  http://www.pinterest.com/luvloveless/boards/

I have one more photo to share this week.  This is an outfit that I decided could be a bit Mori inspired.  I tend to only wear Mori-style tops.  The skirts and dresses commonly worn in Mori aren't very practical for where I work so, I usually pair my tops with jeans or khakis.  I have found some jeans in Mori colors, though.  I have a pair in taupe and a pair in a fern green.  There's also a pair in brown but, I haven't bought them yet.

Outfit rundown:  button-down shirt-JC Penney (St. John's Bay brand)

Tshirt- thrifted (Cherokee brand)

Jeans-Kmart (Lee brand)

The button-down shirt has pin tucks and lacing down the front so it has a lot of detail to it that doesn't show up in the picture.  It's also very light weight so I have to wear something under it.  The t-shirt has little pink flowers all over it.

Well, I guess that's about it for this week.  I hope I get my car back soon!

Have a great week!!

New Jewelry

Not much to write about this week.  The weather has turned much colder yesterday and today, but it seems that the temps will be heading back up tomorrow and into the weekend.  I spent last weekend working on a set of boxes that I was decorating for my local scrapbook store.  I don't have any photos to put up yet, but I think I can put some up next week.  I did finally get a picture of the rest of the jewelry that I made.

The pendant in the center with the owl on it is a watch!  The front is hinged with a spring hinge (so I can't get it to stay open so I could take a photo).  It's really heavy to wear though so I probably won't wear it often.

I've been trying to get another thrifting day in, but it seems that there's always something else that needs to be done.  Hopefully I'll be able to fit it in on Friday around getting the car seen to.  I need to find some skirts and/or dresses that I can use for layering.  I'd also like a heavy cardigan.  The ones I have are all pretty light.

I bought my first Christmas decorations for this year.  I found a set of the bottle brush style trees in pink with pink and teal ornaments on them.  There were three sizes.  I got the larger one first and then decided that I needed the other two.  So, tonight I went back and got them, too.  I think they're very shabby chic.

They'll go well with all the other shabby chic Christmas stuff that I use.  I was very excited to find them.  I also saw a light teal glitter tree at Target that I may have to go and buy.  I think the color will go well with the rest of the stuff.  I don't want it to be all pink, so I need some accent colors.

I checked a book out of the library called Fa, La, La, La, Felt.  It has several patterns for Christmas ornaments and little decorative items that looked very Mori-style to me.  Little mushroom ornaments and some evergreen trees with woodland animals and some stuffed owls that were really cute.  I'll post some photos of the projects I make when I get them done.

Have a great week!

I am a Mori Girl

I can't believe how long it's been since I updated this!  I really need to do better here.  Maybe if I give myself a concrete goal for posting I could keep up.  Well, this is Tuesday so, how about I update at least once a week on Tuesday.  There, I've put it in writing!  Now I can't back out and I have no excuses for not getting in a regular update.  Perhaps I should put a reminder on my phone, too.  Hmmm...probably not a bad idea since I still have to have an alarm remind me to take my allergy meds.  There!  Now that that's done on to the new blog post!

I have recently been thinking about updating my wardrobe.  It's been basically jeans and t-shirts for several years now and I'm tired of them.  Don't get me wrong I love my jeans and T's it's just that I'm ready to wear something else sometimes.  So, in looking on Pinterest for some ideas I stumbled across the Japanese street fashion movement called Mori kei.

'Mori' means 'forest' in Japanese and that's the feeling that the style tries to evoke, that of someone who lives in a forest-type setting.  Now I'm not sure which forests they're taking their inspiration from, but it certainly isn't the one I live in!  The style consists mainly of loose, flowing layers; soft neutral or pastel colors; and lots of layers.  Floral and fauna images and prints are acceptable and Scandinavian-style patterns are also popular.  The clothes also seem to have more detailing than a lot of other styles that I'm used to.  Pintucks and pleats on blouses, ruffles and lace on skirts, and peter-pan collars all add to the overall look.  However, I would never wear this style out for a ramble in my woods!  All those loose, flowing layers would get hopelessly tangled in the underbrush and briars!

I have a Pin-board of many outfits now for inspiration called 'I'd Wear This'.  I keep adding to it as I find new photos on a daily basis.  I'm trying to incorporate at least a semblance of the style into my everyday wardrobe.  I've found (due to a major closet and dresser drawer clean-out) that I already had several items that were great for the Mori style that I'm going for.  The area thrift stores also yielded a veritable treasure trove of goodies.  The problem I seem to be having is that the weather is not cooperating very well.  We are now into the third week of October (well into the fall season) and the temperatures are still in the 60s.  It's very hard to do much layering in the warmer weather.  Anyway, here is a picture I took of me in my first attempt at wearing a Mori style outfit for work.  (It ended up being way too hot!)

This was also my first time being photo-bombed. :D  I think I did ok for a first attempt.  I'll probably be wearing most all my outfits to work which means skirts are out.  I'll be wearing jeans or kahkis mostly. Shoes are also giving me a hard time.  I have wide feet and a high instep so finding shoes that fit right is becoming more and more of a problem.

Accessorizing my outfits will be a snap, though!  Since I make jewelry I figured I could just make a few things that would work.  Well, I found a line of jewelry components at Hobby Lobby that were perfect for the Mori style, and they were half off!!  WOOT!!  So, I have been crafting jewelry like mad to go with my new look.

Necklaces

Bracelets & Earrings

I've been having too much fun with this style to do much else lately.  I'll try to get some fall photos up soon.

New Windows

I had to have the windows in my studio replaced this fall.  They were rotting from the outside.  When they were removed we found termite damage in the outer wall under both windows, so that had to be replaced, too.  All said I was out of my studio for a little over a week.  Can you say withdrawal??  If I'm not in front of the computer, I'm usually in the studio.  Oh well, it gave me the little push I needed to finish making the curtains and get the blind hung on the east window.  I've had several people asking me for pictures, so here they are. 

This is my work area.  It's actually pretty neat and tidy right now.  I still haven't gotten everything moved back in.

This is the storage corner.  The shelving is build-in, but I've never painted it.  It's stuffed full as you can see.

This shows one of my big south windows.  I usually have a plant stand full of plants in front of it, but that still hasn't been moved back either.  I'd like to move the TV to the living room so I can have more storage space, but I can't find a stand that I like.

This is the other south window, and the closet.  Those paired windows let in a lot of light, so my studio feels so inviting.  They look out onto my rose garden.

This is a straight on shot of my main work area.  It's under an east facing window, so I wanted a blind under the curtain to filter some of the bright light while I work.  Notice the lack of piles on the floor and around!

So, that's where I work!  I'd love to paint the paneling someday (the ceiling, too).  It has a laminate floor that I loooooooove!  It's so smooth and easy to take care of.

I woke up this morning at a ridiculous hour and couldn't go back to sleep, so I got up and did a little work in Photoshop.  I had been meaning to make a watermark for my pictures. I have a friend who has been after me to put some of my stuff on Pinterest.  I haven't done so because I wanted to be able to label my work and photos as mine.  As you can tell from these photos, I got it done this morning.  I hope it's not too distracting.

I need to get back in the studio and work on my Christmas ornaments for the swap I signed up for, so I'll have more to say later.

Have a lovely day!