I wanted to wait until after a couple has said their “I Do’s” before I share their wedding paper, so without further ado, a beautiful summer wedding with luscious purple invitations. Bernadette and Kyle tied the knot last month – congratulations you two! To see my other wedding invitation designs, click here.
I have been struggling to find a rug for a couple years now. Since I regularly change the artwork hanging in our living room, I felt like keeping it neutral would be best. However, as a family with two boys and a dog I have come to accept that a light beige rug is not the right fit for us. After two failed attempts at trying a light colored rug only to have it destroyed shortly after bringing it home, I decided I needed to change it up and add a pop of color. We checked out a clearance section of the furniture warehouse and ended up with this bold beauty! (Rug modeled by Hudson, he loves how soft it is).
We took it home and right away I knew a DIY project in store for me. Our weathered coffee table was no longer a match and had seen netter days so, it was time for a facelift. (Below Ethan and Hudson are modeling the new rug with our current coffee table, notice Hudson is once again laying on it because it’s so soft and Ethan was told to please remove his shoes right after I snapped the picture, haha)
The sanding begins, and continues, and goes on some more. I had envisioned a natural wood top with white sides and natural drawers. Well this table top was stubborn and the previous two layers of paint just would not fully come off. After about 4-5 hours of sanding in the hot summer heat I threw in the towel and decided to paint the entire table white leaving just the drawers natural.
I was pretty unsure about a white coffee table. But the results turned beautifully! The new white table and bold rug transformed the whole feel of the room. It is now so much brighter, more lively and I love it so much. We keep the lights low and the window blinds barely open so, this room could be quite dark before. On a side note, this table has been in our home for about 14 years! It started out all natural, then blue/green, then white top and green sides and now white! One of the many reasons I love wood furniture is that it can be transformed again and again. I think the simple updates made a huge difference. Total cost for the rug and paint for this transformation was just $120. Now, I’m thinking I need a few more new pillows! So, what do you think?
Artist creations: Silhouette Pillow of my kids made custom by Desert Baby, Dreamcatcher by Rachael Rice Art, Beach art pillow and Fireflies art pillow available in my Etsy shop, Phoenix painting by me.
Tutorial Tuesday is a blog series where I share a do-it-yourself jewelry tutorial.
Since I had another one of these beautiful Swarovski cosmic triangle crystals I had to make a matching necklace to this knit bangle tutorial I shared earlier this month. I just love the richness of the champagne color paired with smokey quartz, gold and red wire.
Materials
Soft Flex .019 Beading Wire Red Coral – 8″
Swarovski 6mm Round Smoked Topaz – 4
Swarovski 20mm Cosmic Triangle Ring Golden Shadow – 1
Gold Spacer Beads – 2
Gold or Brass Colored Chain – 18″
5mm Brass Jump Rings – 4
12mm Antique Brass Lobster Claw Clasp – 1
2x2mm Gold Filled Crimp Tubes -4
Magical Crimping Pliers
Chain Nose Pliers
Cutters
Instructions
1. Cut 54″ length of Soft Flex beading wire in red. Wrap the end of your beading wire around one side of the triangle crystal and back through a crimp tube. Leaving one wire tail long enough to string your beads on, crimp using the magical crimping pliers. Trim excess wire on the shorter tail. Click here for magical crimping instructions.
2. String 1 crystal round, 1 gold spacer, 1 crystal round and 1 crimp tube. Create a loop with your beading wire feeding the end back through the crimp tube. Crimp using the magical crimping pliers. Trim excess wire and push strand to the one corner of the triangle.
3. Repeat steps 1 and 2 on the other corner of the triangle.
4. Using your chain nose pliers, open the jump rings and attach a jump ring to each strand loop and to your chain. At the back of your chain attach 2 more jump rings and your lobster claw clasp.
Tutorial Tuesday is a blog series where I share a do-it-yourself jewelry tutorial.
Check out this beautiful Swarovski cosmic triangle crystal! The richness of the champagne color paired with smokey quartz, gold and red wire gives the design a feeling of bold elegance.
Materials
Soft Flex .019 Beading Wire Red Coral – 10ft spool
Soft Flex Craft Wire 20G in Bronze – 32″
Swarovski 6mm Round Smoked Topaz – 16
Swarovski 20mm Cosmic Triangle Ring Golden Shadow – 1
Gold Spacer Beads – 6
2x2mm Gold Filled Crimp Tubes – 2
5-Pin Knitting Spool
Magical Crimping Pliers
Cutters
Instructions
1. Knit a 5″ length wire cage with Soft Flex beading wire in red and a 5-pin knitting spool. using using Style 1 in the instructions found on Soft Flex company’s website. Click for instructions on how to knit with beading wire. Leave at least a 2″ tail of wire at the beginning and end of your knitted wire cage.
2. Once your knitted wire is approximately 5″ in length, remove the knitted wire from the spool. One by one, drop (12) crystal round beads inside the knitted wire cage unstrung.
3. Weave your wire tail through the knit loops to close it up. I go through the loops a few times to make sure the end is secure. You will now have a closed knit wire cage with a one strand wire tail coming out each end.
4. On one tail end of your knitted cage, string 1 crystal round, 1 gold spacer, 1 crystal round and 1 2x2mm gold filled crimp tube.
5. Wrap the end of your beading wire around one side of the triangle crystal and back through your crimp tube. Crimp using the magical crimping pliers. Click here for magical crimping instructions.
6. Repeat steps 4&5 on the other side of your knitted cage. Since the finished design will stretch, you do not need to attach a clasp.
7. Cut 16″ of craft wire in bronze, thread about 2″ of wire through the knitted cage and wrap around a couple of times to secure. Now, take the longer end and continue to wrap around the cage until you have created a cone that covers up the ends of the knitted cage. Repeat on the opposite side.
My friend Virginia has a passion for baking. She decided to start a baking blog, Isalina Sweet Treats and asked me to design her logo. Virginia is a talented baker and she shares her favorite desert recipes at Isalina Sweet Treats. She has a ton of wonderful free recipes already posted. Don’t they look delicious? I’ve had her cinnamon rolls and they are soooo good! 
Virginia was looking for a elegant, sweet, but serious design in a light color scheme. She also liked the idea of a swirl of ganache on a plate. She pick a couple of color palettes at ColourLovers website and I created the 3 computer sketches above. Virginia ultimately decided on the middle design. After a few options on the lettering style shown below, the middle design is the winner and her logo is born!
Find Virginia’s recipes for delicious deserts at Isalina’s Sweet Treats on Facebook or go straight to her website IsalinaSweetTreats.com.
I added a few new wire wrapped agate necklaces for sale in my shop.
Brazilian agate takes about 80 million years to form and each slice is an original. Brazilian agate balances the four energies: physical, mental, emotional and spiritual. Worn for protection, centering, healing and strength as well as better concentration, more confidence and an overall feeling of composure. Protects you from stress and energy drains.
Still life flowers transformed into lively flower artwork! I began a three canvas journey with these still life’s below a couple months back. The feeling I got creating the still life’s was one of stiffness, restraint, questioning. I knew I needed to free up my process and start again so, I painted over the paintings. I am so much happier with these flower paintings. I know how much joy I poured into painting them and I think it shows.
Shop original paintings in my Etsy shop.
Shop for prints and printed products in my RedBubble shop.
I have been an a bracelet making kick! I have new designs as well as restocked a few favorites in my shop.
First up are these new art deco + bohemian chic macrame bracelets.
I shared this jewelry tutorial on how to make this design and instantly feel in love with it that I had to make a collection of colors. Beautiful when layered together or with other bracelets. Made with high quality beading wire coated in nylon that will never fade, fray or chip.
Next up are these dainty, delicate modern bar bracelets.
Minimalist elegance on your wrist. Beautiful and simple alone and lots of fun when layered. I made a bunch of these to sell at a local shop and they sold out fast! So naturally, I whipped up a few more. This is the last batch for awhile as I need to replenish my supplies.
Last but not least I restocked these one-of-a-kind knitted bangle bracelet designs.
I hand knit the bracelet with high quality flexible beading wire and a knitting spool. These bracelets fit like a bangle and are for those of us who like a piece of jewelry that’s bold, one-of-a-kind and makes a statement. Sizes and styles vary.
Shop Knitted Bangle Bracelets.
I love granola and after watching an American Test Kitchen episode where they made a simple almond dried fruit granola, I decided to give it a try. I love that the ATK recipe is easy to change up with different combinations of nuts, dried fruits and vanilla or almond extract. After trying a few different batches this is my favorite combination.
Coconut Almond Granola
5 cups of old fashioned oats
2 cups of chopped almonds
1/3 cup maple syrup
1/2 cup coconut oil (liquid form)
2 teaspoons almond extract
2 cups raisins
2/3 cups of shredded sweetened coconut
Mix the oats, almonds, maple syrup, coconut oil and almond extract together well. Place on a parchment lined cookie sheet and using a potato masher use a little muscle to tap the mix down on the cookie sheet. Bake in a 325 degree oven for 30-35 minutes. Cool for 30 minutes. While the oats are cooling, toast 2/3 cups of shredded coconut. Once oats are cooled, add coconut and raisins and store in an airtight container. I love this as a breakfast cereal with almond milk. It’s also tasty as a yogurt topping.
I’m answering 3 creative questions today!
1. What have I been working on?
oh, a variety of things!
my sketchbook: I have been trying to work in my sketchbook more. I have had the one shown above since 2010 and it’s still not finished. I know that the practice is good for my soul and my art so, I’m challenging myself to work on it more often. After all these years I finally gave the cover a little art love.
wedding invitations: I wrapped up a luscious purple wedding invitation suite that I had been working on with a sweet couple for a few months.
new flower art: The most exhilarating project has been the process of working on three flower still life’s and then completely painting over them in a style that is more reflective of me and my work. It was an amazingly freeing process and one that reminded me to “paint like you“. I plan to photograph them this weekend.
custom kids art: I am in the beginning stages on a few custom art pieces that will hang in the bedrooms of two little boys.
2. Why do I create what I do?
I started years ago with the desire to share the creative things I was doing in my life with the world and to sell my creations. Though I still do that, my goal has changed. My journey to becoming an artist has had numerous starts and stops. My dream is paint and be a self sufficient artist supporting my family from my creative work. I do this to share myself through art, create custom pieces for important moments in one’s life and to bring joy to the lives and sacred spaces of those that collect my art.
3. How does my creative process work?
I begin by choosing a subject I’d like to work with and gathering bits of inspiration. I may make a vision board and collect things that inspire me, I may sketch ideas, I may take pictures but, many times I just start painting and see where it leads. If I’m working on a custom piece I tend to sketch more and draw on the canvas before starting however, if I’m working on my own art, I’m much freer and enjoy letting the art unfold. I usually start with a general idea and layout in mind but, let myself get lost in creation and explore.
Tutorial Tuesday is a blog series where I share a do-it-yourself jewelry tutorial.
1. Cut two 12″ strands of Econoflex craft beading wire and anchor them into a notch on the top of your mini macrame board.
2. Cut one 50″ strand of Econoflex craft beading wire – this will be your knotting strand.
3.Create 20 knots using the Half Knot Spiral method below.
4. Pick up one silver cube bead, remove the two center wires anchored at the bottom of your macrame board and string the bead them and up to your last knot.
5. Wrap your knotting wire around the bead and continue your Half Knot Spiral pattern below the bead creating another 20 knots.
6. Repeat steps 4 and 5 until you reach your desired bracelet length, keeping your clasp size in mind.
7. Add a 3mm crimp tube and crimp around 1 jump ring using the mighty crimper. Attach one side of the toggle clasp to the jump ring. On the other end of the bracelet, add a 3mm crimp tube and crimp around 1 jump ring using the mighty crimper. Attach the other side of the toggle clasp to the jump ring. Click here for crimping instructions.
When artistic opportunities arise at my kids’ schools I try my best to make the time to help. It’s not always easy but, it is always worth it. It’s a way I can be involved while doing something I love to do – win/win!
Here are two art projects that came up this year that I was happy to help with.
Hudson’s class worked on a collaborative art project to auction off at the school’s annual fundraiser. I was delighted to help the class with their creation. I brought in few options and the class voted on which idea they liked best. Then, I went into class a few times to assist the kids in painting the background and patterns for the piece. We also decided to include their classroom character traits so, you’ll see words like Honest, Respectful, Appreciative sprinkled throughout. Then I took all the painted sticks home, arranged them and framed them. I really love the end result – the kids did an amazing job!
Ethan’s school athletic day was centered around the Greek Olympic games and the P.E. instructor had the idea to create shields for the teams. They traced Greek symbols onto the shields and me and few other parents painted them for the event. I also helped out during field day by scoring the shot put event and got to see the opening and closing ceremonies with all the shields displayed! Such a fun day.
Cracking Creativity Podcast