Fabric Score!!

There is nothing more exciting than finding a thrifty pot of fabric gold - and this was one for sure! Some kind soul took rolled strips of awesome fabrics in all colors and textures to Goodwill just for me! OH! The opportunities! Flowers, accents, and ruffles - oh my! Even building the pyramid for this photo was fun - and all for the bargain price of four bucks!

Pin It

Today's Gratitude

"I never lose sight of the fact that just being is fun."

-Katharine Hepburn

This little girl is one of THE loves of my life! She is a daily reminder to enjoy the gift of the present! Have a great day.

Pin It

Red and Purple: Two of my favorite things!

I loved the body shape of this purse but I wanted to break up the solid block of red. So purple was the obvious choice! It may not be for everyone but I like a little pizazz every now and then.

As I found it.

A fussy cut flower.

Some "back art" so it doesn't matter if you're coming or going!

Pin It

Living The Dream

This beautiful lady is waiting for me every morning when I stumble into my sewing room, sleepy yet grateful for a little quiet time before the day begins at full speed. She is the creation of Kelly Rae Roberts (kellyraeroberts.com), an amazingly successful Portland artist who is living the dream.

We all have those up days where we can do anything, and then there are the moments when doubt reigns supreme. "Why am I kidding myself?" I wonder. Well, I'm not, and neither are you. I don't know where this road will lead exactly and I don't want to know. As they say, the journey is the thing. I just appreciate that someone who has achieved celebrated success is doing so with a mission of positivity for the rest of us. When I find myself struggling I take a moment to look at my lovely lady and she always has the advice I need at that very moment.

And the bottom line comes back to me: even if I never make a million dollars doing what I'm doing it doesn't matter. I do it because I love it and it brings me joy. And what greater gift is there?

Pin It

Summery fun - a purse for day or night

 

This purse is proof that something cute does not need to be complicated or time consuming. I love finding things that speak to me then putting them together in surprising ways.

The "Before" shots. A plain bag with really cute shape and a pair of junker earrings from the cheapo bin at Goodwill. 

Voila! There's nothing a little glue and daring won't accomplish!



Pin It

Today's Gratitude

"Success is not final, failure is not fatal:
it is the courage to continue that counts."
-Winston Churchill

Life has been crazy busy and due to technical difficulties and memory issues (!) I ended up with my latest photos on two cameras! I've been working on some really fun projects (altered purses, anyone??) and I can't wait to share them with you. So until then, please enjoy the beautiful Asiatic Lily my sweet son picked out for me for Mother's Day. Love that boy! Happy Monday.

Pin It

Today's Gratitude

When I stand before God at the end of my life, I would hope that I would not have a single bit of talent left and could say, “I used everything You gave me.”  -Erma Bombeck

Pin It

Scrappy Denim Tea Towels

I needed something blue and white for a raffle basket at my son's school. I ran across these tea towels at Joann's and they were just begging for some embellishment.

I played around with my new fabric markers on an old pair of my husband's jeans. The markers are really fun and I thought the doodle flowers were kinda cute so I kept them for a future project.

Denim flowers meet tea towels. I did a free motion, swirly stitch around the flower borders to attach them. The edges should fray a bit with future washing - wish I could see it but off to the basket they went!

The back side.

I'd love to know what fun ideas you all are up to! Let me know!

Pin It

Today's Gratitude

"Sometimes the smallest things take up the most room in your heart." - A.A. Milne, and/or Winnie the Pooh.

Another journal spread.



A friend put this picture on Facebook. She said it came from Mothering magazine. It made me think about how nice it is to snuggle with my kids so I printed it from Facebook to include in a journal page.



Paint, vintage wallpaper, scraps of paper and a piece of fabric from the Grandma quilt.

Doodling is becoming fun!

Pin It

Gypsy Soul tags

Every product needs a tag and I have been stewing about the tags for Gypsy Soul Designs for some time. I am new at a lot of this and I am constantly learning and finding inspiration. Its hard to put a first effort "out there" but I think its important because maybe my little project will help someone else find the courage to try something new!

I've been reading about art journaling and that inspired me to take the same approach with my product tags. I can have fun and play with the tags and no two need to be alike! All of the materials I use have a story, a gypsy soul, why not my tags too!!

A plain tag soaked in coffee to give it an aged appearance.

I seriously used Crayola brand washable paint! Someday when I understand more about the products I may opt for a more expensive paint but this works just fine.

Swirls always seem to be a logical beginning for me!

I decided to throw some colors together that I think are pretty.

I LOVE Glimmer Mist! It is addictive. This color is Latte. I wish the sparkle came through better in the photo.

Some sparkle and a tiny scrap of vintage wallpaper for fun.

The other side....I am going to go over my blog address in dark pen but you get the idea.

This was a late night quickie but I just wanted something to get my process going. After playing with paints for a few minutes I was inspired to do a little more in my art journal. I love how one thing leads to another! My next project is sewing machine doodles on tags...who needs sleep anyway??!!

Pin It