Phase One And Getting A Head Start On The Holidays

I have been contemplating that I need more work space. My second bedroom that I use for my studio seems to be shrinking each passing week. So, spending some time thinking on this situation, with one thought leading to another thought I had the great idea of making my living room my studio. I know I mentioned it in an earlier post and I have begun the slow transformation. Its going to take time because I need help moving the big stuff, paying for it with cash up front, and working full time. But thats ok. I am good with enjoying the journey these days:) But, I did get a start this weekend. I wanted a sitting area with the TV and my tunes in one area. This was my dining room. But it will do nicely if anyone happens to be over. The kitchen is right there, we can visit and if I want to work on things I can. Because I had to move things out of the dining room, I had to find a place for it, so I had to change my entry way. I tell you, its one thing leading to another and somehow I keep ending up with one extra piece of furniture. I actually put a chair outside my door with a "free" sign on it and it was gone in a matter of minutes. One problem solved! :) I will keep you posted on my progress. I am getting excited for it to all be done. How fun to be able to do it all in one large work area. I think my family thought I was a little crazy at first, but they seem to be getting the idea and think its going to be great.

OK,,, its almost September. I tell myself every year I will not wait to the last minute to do shopping... I end up waiting until the last minute! This year its a goal I am going to work very hard on. I also want to try and make it as much of a handmade holiday as I possibly can. So I have decided to be on the look out for Great Holiday Gifts and share them with you. The first person who came to mind was my friend Marie. (http://www.savonmarie.com/) And its not just because she is my friend. She has been making soap for alot of years and she has it perfected. I use her products and I love them. Her soap is awesome and it makes such a great gift at a wonderful price. Perfect for teachers, co-workers, or even hostess gifts for all the parties during the season. Her presentation is gorgeous as well. I cant wait to see what else I find to share here with you. Have a wonderful week.

Show and Tell Monday

Last week I won a blog contest that Caroline held. I know Caroline as a fellow Make Mine Pink friend:) She lives in Southern England and I love reading her blog posts and talking with her on the forums at Make Mine Pink. It sounds like such a beautiful place to live. Her work is beautiful down to the last detail. This is a rose scented sachet that hangs on a door or a knob. The applique work is amazing. It smells wonderful. I love the tags made me as well. I have been collecting these tags from my friends and I cant seem to part with any of them. The make great bookmarks:) Caroline has many talents and you can visit her blog at http://www.caroleecrafts.blogspot.com/.

I have been pet sitting this weekend and have been away from home, plus the regular 9-5, but I have managed to get a couple things done this week. The cupcake pillow was a house warming gift for a co-worker. They are making her daughters room very special and I thought that this would go nicely in there. The cake pillow is a smaller version, but it is fun. I think the most time consuming part is hand stitching the roses. I can see why people pay good money for them at Joanns!

Well, stay tuned, and I will keep you posted. I am going to be making some changes in my apartment. I spend nearly all of my time in my spare room that I have set up as my studio. Its getting too small and I have come up with the crazy idea of turning my living room/dining room into my workspace. I will have a small sitting area with the TV, but the rest of the space will be all work area. Its not traditional by any means. I live alone and well, why the heck not??? I think I will be much more productive being in the living space of the home. The TV and the kitchen will be there as well as all of my books. I plan on doing this in the middle of September. Until then I will be packing up, organizing and tossing anything I dont want anymore. I am buying some pretty red cabinets and a red three drawer dresser to store my fabric. I will have to have the internet moved and clean the carpeting too. So, I will have my work cut out for me and it will be a huge job, that once in the middle of I will be wishing I never started it. But in the end I think this is a good thing for me and my creativity. I will keep you posted. :)

Show and Tell Mondy

This weekend was near perfect. It was a rainy Saturday morning with a cool breeze. I even opened the windows for a little bit. Now on Sunday afternoon its breezy and getting cloudier. I really hope it rains again. These are very unusual temps for sunny AZ but I will take it. It was a really long week at work last week. So, a nice rainy weekend at home with lots of studio time was great. The cats were happy too:) As you can see, my office mangager, Lucy, has decided to become my model and spokeskitty. Always grateful for free employees. Here is a few of the new things I got done. There was more, but you can see some of whats new. I am slowly getting some fall colors into my shop. I hear that the dusty purples will be big this fall. It seems the earthy tones of rusts and deep greens too. I am working towards expanding my line into a fantasy and magical look. I like the dragonfly necklace, I am calling it Fairy Forest. Things have been far too serious for far too long. I am ready to have some fun and magic in my life. How about you?

I hope you all have a pretty week and happy creating.