Studio B (UberArt)

Moving

2011-12-28T20:53:00.000-05:00

December seems to be the time for me to make changes and new resolutions. It was December two years ago that I opened my second Etsy shop. Why wait until January when I can get a head start a month earlier, eh? ;)

My blog has moved to Wordpress, come along! I've named my new blog "My Creative Muse" and will focus primarily on art journaling and the creative process.

Bookbinding topics can be found on my Emerson Bindery blog.

I'll keep the Studio B/UberArt blog around but I just feel like I need a fresh start. I've been rather directionless and without a clear theme here, yammering about whatever comes to mind. The Christmas posts I do here have been very popular but as much as I love Christmas, that isn't my passion--I want my posts to come from my heart. I hope y'all will transition with me and enjoy my new theme!

xxxooo
Beth

Twelve Days of Christmas Trees: Day 12

2011-12-24T22:10:00.001-05:00

The final day of my series!

My own Christmas tree

My theme this year is purple

My Greyhound Pup

In memory of my Cocker Spaniel

Even though he's not purple, I love putting birds throughout my tree.
See the peacock peeking from behind? :)

And thus concludes my Christmas Tree decor series. I hope you enjoyed it. Merry Christmas!

Twelve Days of Christmas Trees: Day 11

2011-12-24T15:00:00.000-05:00

My theme for day 11...well, perhaps it's the economy (I'll blame it on that) but my little Christmas warehouse didn't have enough trees for twelve features. So, today I'm going to show you some of the decorating ideas they had around the store.

A family tree!

I love this footstool. It looks like it belongs in an English library, complete with wooden walls and ceilings, paintings of hunting scenes, and leather bound books on the shelves.

I'm doing a little series featuring a different Christmas tree or holiday decor for a period of 12 days. There's a little holiday shop nearby which is a favorite haunt of mine during this time of year. They have multitudes of fabulous decorator trees, done up in different themes. I brought my camera along to show you all the great ideas. Stay tuned for the next installment, the final day 12, where I will have my own tree featured.

Twelve Days of Christmas Trees: Day 10

2011-12-24T09:00:00.000-05:00

I'm going to stay with the candy theme, as a continuation from Day 9. Here are some cute candy-themed decorations...not exactly a Christmas tree, but Christmas decor, nonetheless!

I had to take this little elf's picture. He reminds me of a boy I knew in elementary school named Kevin!

I'm doing a little series featuring a different Christmas tree or holiday decor for a period of 12 days. There's a little holiday shop nearby which is a favorite haunt of mine during this time of year. They have multitudes of fabulous decorator trees, done up in different themes. I brought my camera along to show you all the great ideas. Stay tuned for the next installment, day 11!

Twelve Days of Christmas Trees: Day 9

2011-12-23T15:30:00.001-05:00

The theme for day 9 is Gumdrops and Jellybeans. Yum!

Twelve Days of Christmas Trees: Day 8

2011-12-23T09:00:00.000-05:00

Today's themed Christmas tree feature is Under the Sea.

I only took two pictures of this designer tree, so I'll show you another tree I saw using the same theme...

This one has a ginormous octopus as the tree topper!

Twelve Days of Christmas Trees: Day 7

2011-12-23T02:30:00.000-05:00

Day 7's featured theme is White Christmas...

Twelve Days of Christmas Trees: Day 6

2011-12-22T22:40:00.000-05:00

The theme for day six is red and white striped Candy Cane.

Such a glitzy little bird nest!

Love these hats!

I'm doing a little series featuring a different Christmas tree or holiday decor for a period of 12 days. There's a little holiday shop nearby which is a favorite haunt of mine during this time of year. They have multitudes of fabulous decorator trees, done up in different themes. I brought my camera along to show you all the great ideas. Stay tuned for the next installment, day 7!

Twelve Days of Christmas Trees: Day 5

2011-12-13T12:08:00.001-05:00

Day five's theme is Peace and Love. This theme would be great for a teen's dorm room! It's very colorful with all the hot pink, purple, turquoise blue, and lime green.

Twelve Days of Christmas Trees: Day 4

2011-12-11T10:02:00.001-05:00

Make it Merry is the theme for day 4 of my Christmas tree series.

I would have never thought to use red, white, and blue for Christmas but it works on this tree!

Twelve Days of Christmas Trees: Day 3

2011-12-09T17:02:00.000-05:00

Some "Diva Decor" for the third day of Christmas trees!

Twelve Days of Christmas Trees: Day 2

2011-12-03T10:48:00.010-05:00

On the second day of Christmas my true love gave to me...

...a Peacock in a Christmas tree! This is one of my favorite color schemes. I love the peacock blue and chartreuse greens together. This was a popular theme last year, too.

The purple is a great accent with the blues and greens!

Isn't this glass and wire wall decoration awesome? It reminds me of the reflectors used to mark rural driveways, but way cooler. So sculptural!

Twelve Days of Christmas Trees: Day 1

2011-12-01T10:32:00.002-05:00

Last year I did twelve blog posts on Christmas trees and holiday decor. It was so well received that I will start a tradition and do it again!

Day 1: Winter Palace

There's a little holiday shop nearby which is a favorite haunt of mine during this time of year. They have bunches of fabulous decorator trees, done up in different themes. This year they actually had a hand painted sign which named most of the displays. This one is "Winter Palace".

I love the crystals hanging from this tree. The gold accents give this tree just the right touch of warmth.

And thus concludes your tour of the Winter Palace. Stay tuned for more themed decorator trees in the next installment of this series!

Caribbean Themed Art Journal

2011-11-22T10:02:00.016-05:00

I haven't had much time to do any art journaling lately, but I can show you some themed books I've done in the past. This one was inspired by a few trips my husband and I have taken to the Caribbean. Now that the weather has turned chilly I'm once again dreaming of sunny beaches to warm my cold toes!

I used a paper sample book and decorated the pages and the covers. I took an old paint sample strip and glued it down to use as a pocket for my three little bird tags.

Hubby and I posing on a rock with the cruise ship behind us.

A scrap of batik fabric and a polymer clay tile I made.

A tribute to some of the people I've had the honor of calling friend
who have since gone on

It was nice to relive moments spent in the Caribbean on this nippy autumn day. Unfortunately my feet are still cold. Time to get out the heating pad!

Some Time to Myself

2011-11-18T21:02:00.001-05:00

It's hard when you're a mom to get some quiet time to yourself. Don't get me wrong--I love every minute of being a mom. It goes by so quickly, if you blink you miss it. But I think it's important to have a little time to oneself, just to recharge and have a fresh appreciation for your kids.

Early morning fog over the lake--so peaceful!

My little guy loves to hang out with me in the studio which is great, except when I'm trying to measure and calculate. I can't tell you how many book covers I've cut too short because I was being yakked to death.

Another difficult thing to do is get in "the zone" while making art when you are bombarded with questions and random thoughts. "Guess what Momma? John Lennon is taller than Paul McCartney. I can't tell about Ringo because he's always sitting down. What happens if the school bus forgets to drop a kid off? Why is it nighttime in Australia?" and so on.

Looking up at the sky at the park, pretending I am out for a tranquil walk!

I used to get a little time to myself while my son napped during the afternoon. When he got older and stopped napping I made a desperate attempt to encourage him to have quiet time. I set the timer for 30 minutes and told him when the timer dings quiet time will be over.

After about 15 minutes I heard a ding. I looked at the clock, wondering how 30 minutes went by so fast.

"MOMMA! Quiet time is over! Timer went ding!" The little bugger forced the timer to zero! Tricky tricky!

Sadly, that was the end of quiet time.

For those of you that are parents, how do you get a little quiet time for yourself?

Art Journal Spooks

2011-11-12T12:12:00.000-05:00

So I'm a few weeks late getting this Halloween book posted, but better late than never, eh? ;)

Here is a Halloween-Gothic-Spooky art journal I made from a paper sample book.

I love working in these books because of the different textures, sizes, and weights of the papers inside.

Unfortunately, these little sample books are hard to come by if you don't know someone in the printing business. I'm working on making some myself and will put them in my shop as soon as I get around to it (and you know how THAT goes!!).

I burned the edges of the "bewitching picture" with a lighter to get a ragged, darkened look. Take care when doing this technique that you don't burn the house down! I keep a fire extinguisher in my studio just in case.

I used a lot of hand carved stamps to decorate this book. The flies, bats, and thorny briers in the photos above are all stamps I carved myself.

I'm not sure what happened to the black cat paper...it bunched up there. It looked fine when I glued it down but it must have shifted when I closed the book. The glue must have still been slightly damp.

Another reason I like these little books is that they're great for themed journals because they're just the right size. If they had too many pages I'd run out of ideas for the theme before I got to the end of the book!

I hope you enjoyed viewing my Spooky Art Journal! It was a lot of fun to make and I can hardly wait to get started on another themed book! I'll let you know when I get some blank paper sample books of my own design listed in my shop.

A Happy Mistake

2011-10-07T14:34:00.000-04:00

I'm putting a positive spin on the fact that I screwed up one of my books! At least it was one I was making for myself and not a customer's order.

I'm not sure how this happened, but the punching holes were off on one of my templates. I didn't discover this until I got ready to sew the book and the holes didn't line up.

I was able to fudge the center holes but the two outermost holes were significantly off and had to be re-punched, leaving me with an extra set of holes.

I sewed the book anyhow, trying to ignore the extra holes but when I was all finished they were screaming at me for attention. I decided to run a thread through them to make it look like I meant to do that! It adds a unique look to the book and you'd never know I screwed up except for the fact that I just told you!

One Unfinished Project Now Finished!

2011-09-10T19:03:00.000-04:00

I have been cleaning out my "art attic" this weekend. It is astounding to see the amount of junk one can accumulate! After filling two trash bags I am down to just two storage tubs and am quite thrilled with myself!

I had four storage tubs of miscellaneous junk such as tins, gift boxes, plastic containers, a valentine chocolate box (empty, of course), cardboard spools, bottles, and so on. I had plans for all of these items but my original intentions are long lost. If I really was going to use it, I would have by now.

There is fifth tub which is full of projects I've been meaning to finish. Here is an example:

This odd little box was a clearance item at Hobby Lobby. I loved the box, but not the "design" on the front. What the heck is it anyhow?? A worm? A skull?? Any ideas?

To cover up the worm-skull-thingy, I pasted this card I made at my monthly stamp club over it and voila! A useful box, which is pretty to look at also.

Yay, I can check this unfinished project off my list! Now...what to put in the box...more junk??

Art Journal Page

2011-03-27T23:11:00.000-04:00

"Even the saddest things can become, once we have made peace with them, a source of wisdom and strength for the journey that still lies ahead."
--Frederick Buechner

You've been warned...this one's a tearjerker, but it does have a happy ending!

I don't usually post many personal stories, but I'm long overdue for an art journal page and this is on my mind.

My little niece would have been nine years old this month. This is the only picture we have of her looking at the camera with her eyes open. Within a few hours she was unconscious, never to open her eyes again.

She was a perfectly healthy baby, full term, but due to a tragedy during delivery (and a good dose of medical negligence) we lost her. The placenta ruptured and the baby lost 75% of her blood volume during the birth.

It's been a long hard road since then, trying to understand why, then trying to understand that I'll never know why, and learning to accept it. Just this year, after nine years, I am finally making peace with it.

Which makes my newest little niece's birth so sweet! I would not have the deep joy of seeing her healthy and strong had I not experienced the bitter contrast of her sister's tragedy. Now I never take life for granted and realize what a miracle life is.

Exciting News

2011-03-06T23:14:00.000-05:00

I have been busy with some behind the scenes work with my blogs. Yes, "blogs", plural! They're blossoming and multiplying!

semi relevant photo here...one of my hydrangeas blossoming last summer...

In truth, I'm just missing warm weather!

I am in the process of separating my blog--One half will be my Emerson Bindery guest books, and this half here will be for my UberArt journals. You'll be seeing some changes in the format here also. Good changes, I hope! ;)

There is some exciting news on my new blog, I'm getting my work published, so go take a peek!!

Books In the Works

2011-02-27T12:54:00.000-05:00

Some of what I'm working on in between orders. I think gray is my new favorite color!

Moss and Porcelain Book on the Front Page!

2011-02-12T10:24:00.001-05:00

...Third row, last item...

I hoped this book would eventually make it to the front page...it's in about a million treasuries. Wouldn't you know it though, the paper has been discontinued so I only have 2 books available! :P

Incidentally, I ordered some hair clips from HotPinkChick, featured just above my book. I'll have to show them to you!

In The Vault

2011-02-11T22:59:00.000-05:00

This was too cool to pass up photographing to show you. A clothing boutique in an old bank building, and they even used the vault for display! I'm sure the clerks thought I was a bit off my rocker photographing their store, but who cares! I got the photos!

Very steampunk! The door itself is a work of art.

From a marketing standpoint, I'm not sure their interior decor is working for them though. I was so busy looking at the vault door that I don't remember anything about their clothing line!

So In Love

2011-01-30T20:28:00.000-05:00

I am totally in love with this new book! I just had to show it to you even though it's still in the works.

Several weeks ago I was unpacking a new paper shipment and these two papers happened to fall together on my work table. I had one of those "Ah-HA!" moments and made a mental note to myself to pair those papers together for a book cover.

What do you think I should call it? I was thinking of something like Chocolate Mint. Yum yum!
Any other thoughts? :)

Soft Sages

2011-01-28T17:33:00.000-05:00

This lovely treasury is the perfect excuse to try out this widget thingy from craftcult.com. My guest books have been featured in some really nice treasuries and I've had a lot of fun discovering new shops featured along with me!

The book featured, Moss and Porcelain Guest Book, is a limited edition of just two books. I'm sad because I love this book, but this moss and gold paper is no longer available. Bummer :(

Silly Cat

2011-01-15T22:04:00.000-05:00

I saw this cat displayed in a corner in a boutique clothing store. It was so outrageous I had to photograph it to show you! Perhaps I should use this cat as a launching point to do an art journal page.

Speaking of...ahem...art journaling...I have been remiss in keeping up with mine. I find little scraps of paper or see things almost everyday and I think, "Oh, that would be a great idea for a page." And that's as far as it goes. I wish I could commit to doing a page a day, or at the very least working in my art journal every day. I thought about making it a New Year's resolution, but I don't like making promises I can't keep, so I didn't.

My life is too busy and I've been giving some serious thought as to what to do about that. The wedding season seems to have started earlier than I expected this year, so making guest books is taking up a lot of my time. I've also been sharing my time with a friend who just had a baby, helping her out so she can get some much needed rest.

And there's my own baby...not such a baby any more...I'm trying to homeschool him in the afternoons after preschool. I say trying because I'm not very good at devoting enough time to planning activities to keep him inspired. I'm going to be homeschooling him full time next year and I'm scared to death! Scared he'll be bored, that I don't know what I'm doing and will screw up his education, and that I won't have enough time to fill orders. I may have to limit the guest book orders. Okay, just thinking out loud here. I'm done now. Thanks for listening (reading).

Wow, this post took on a life of it's own, going off in a direction I hadn't planned, all started by a silly cat!

How do you make time for play? I find I put it off until my work is done and then I'm either too tired or out of time. What do you do to prioritize your time?

The View From My Window

2011-01-04T22:13:00.000-05:00

This was my view from my window last week. I spent a bit of time admiring the snow as it fell. Everything was so peaceful and quiet out there. It's kind of sad to see the street get marred with tire tracks and the pristine white yard littered with footprints.

But the tracks in the snow were well worth it, seeing how much fun the kids had. The furry kid (who is really our resident senior citizen) became a pup again at heart, bounding through the snow like a deer! He was outfitted for the snow, wearing his sweater...we just need some booties for him and he'll be set. (Yeah right, like he'd wear them!!)

Loving the snow (and getting pats, of course!)

Let It Snow, Let It Snow, Let It Snow!

2010-12-26T16:27:00.001-05:00

This is what it looks like outside my studio window right now! A very unusual sight for us in the south. The snowflakes are still falling!

We've got six inches so far. Is there any snow where you are?

Twelve Days of Christmas Trees: Day 12

2010-12-23T09:04:00.008-05:00

Here were are, at the last tree of my Twelve Days series! This tree is my own, with chartreuse green and gold accents, and the occasional kid ornament thrown in here and there.

We started a new tradition for my son. Each year he picks out an ornament at the store. When he's all grown up and has his own tree I'll give them to him. Of course, by that time he'll probably be embarrassed by them--they won't be "cool"!

I still hang some of my childhood ornaments on my tree, mixed in with my "grown-up" ornaments! There's one at the bottom of my tree--the pink styrofoam gingerbread girl.

I like birds. Can you tell? ;P

And there you have it. Twelve decorating ideas for Christmas trees. If you haven't decided on your own, you'd better get to it! Christmas is just a few days away!

Do you have any Christmas ornament traditions? Do you use favorites from your childhood, or new "grown-up" ones?

Twelve Days of Christmas Trees: Day 11

2010-12-21T08:59:00.006-05:00

On the eleventh day of Christmas my true love gave to me...

The next to the last tree is one done in traditional colors of red and green.

I think some crocheted ornaments would look nice on this tree. Hmmm...
Okay, yeah right, like I have time to make them!

I'm doing a little series featuring a different Christmas tree for a period of 12 days. There's a little holiday shop nearby which is a favorite haunt of mine during this time of year. They have multitudes of fabulous decorator trees, done up in different themes. This year I brought my camera along to show you all the great ideas. Stay tuned for the last installment, day 12, which will feature my own tree!

Which one of these decorator trees has been your favorite?

Twelve Days of Christmas Trees: Day 10

2010-12-19T15:53:00.002-05:00

Almost there! We're up to day 10 now!

A chartreuse and white woodland theme, with doves, twigs, and deer.

Just two more to go. (Will I make it? I'm running out of trees to show you!!)

Twelve Days of Christmas Trees: Day 9

2010-12-18T08:46:00.005-05:00

On the ninth day of Christmas my true love gave to me...

A playful Christmas tree loaded with toys!

Can you spot the reindeer, puppy dog, and giraffe?

I love this lion!

One of Santa's elves, hiding in the top!

Twelve Days of Christmas Trees: Day 8

2010-12-16T08:42:00.004-05:00

Here is another pink themed tree, this one has an animal theme with zebra stripes and silver peacock feathers.

They even had a zebra striped table cloth!

Twelve Days of Christmas Trees: Day 7

2010-12-14T08:37:00.004-05:00

Yummy holiday goodness! The seventh day of Christmas is a delicious day!

Such a fun theme with the peppermints, gingerbread, ice cream cones, cakes and candies. *smacking lips*

Twelve Days of Christmas Trees: Day 6

2010-12-12T20:32:00.007-05:00

On the fifth day of Christmas my true love gave to me...

A black and silver themed Christmas tree.

Sorry about the pole. I just couldn't seem to get a good shot of this tree without that durn pole. Cropped it out in the next picture.

Now that we're halfway through this series, do you have a favorite tree so far?

Twelve Days of Christmas Trees: Day 5

2010-12-11T08:28:00.005-05:00

On the fifth day of Christmas, my true love gave to me...a peacock colored Christmas tree!

This one is my personal favorite. I love the blue and green. Last year I did a peacock, blue, and silver theme. I was tempted to buy some of these ornaments, but this year's tree is chartreuse green. Maybe they'll have some left in the after Christmas clearance sale.

I like the blue gift with the purple bow. That purple adds just the right accent amongst all the blue and green!

I love this beaded garland! I had a crazy idea that I could make my own, but you know how that goes...I'll never get around to it!

I'm doing a little series featuring a different Christmas tree for a period of 12 days. There's a little holiday shop nearby which is a favorite haunt of mine during this time of year. They have multitudes of fabulous decorator trees, done up in different themes. This year I brought my camera along to show you all the great ideas. Stay tuned for the next installment, day 6!

Twelve Days of Christmas Trees: Day 4

2010-12-09T19:21:00.004-05:00

On the fourth day of Christmas my true love gave to me...okay, well my true love would never consider giving me a fuchsia pink Christmas tree because it's not his style, but anyway...

See the little red powder compact hanging on the left? How cute is that?!

Very feminine!

Twelve Days of Christmas Trees: Day 3

2010-12-07T08:05:00.005-05:00

On the third day of Christmas my true love gave to me...

A red, purple, and gold Christmas tree!

Look at this brass box they used as a tree topper! I wonder how they got it to stay up there?

Twelve Days of Christmas Trees: Day 2

2010-12-05T20:01:00.004-05:00

On the second day of Christmas my true love gave to me...

A Victorian-themed Christmas tree! Accented with pink, peach, cream, and gold, this one is very romantic.

Twelve Days of Christmas Trees: Day 1

2010-12-04T07:50:00.003-05:00

There's a little holiday shop nearby which is a favorite haunt of mine during this time of year. They have multitudes of fabulous decorator trees, done up in different themes. This year I brought my camera along to show you all the great ideas.

This tree features a more traditional harvest type theme with berries, fruits, cinnamon sticks, and pine cones.

They had a little faux room set up complete with an old leather couch with the brass upholstery tacks and fake fireplace. It looked like a cozy library in a hunting lodge!

Holiday Decor for Mantles

2010-12-03T21:43:00.000-05:00

Every year I try to come up with a new idea for decorating my mantle. The last several years I haven't done garland at all (because I used all my Command hooks for the stockings and didn't have any left to hang the garland from!).

When I saw these twigs with ornaments hanging from them in the December issue of Country Living the light bulb went off. Of course, perhaps it was the announcement on the page "bright idea!" which gave me a clue, heh heh!

My problem though is that I live in new construction where trees are scarce. The few trees I have are twigs themselves! So I raided the neighbor's wax myrtle bushes. Don't tell him. (They were hanging over my fence anyhow.)

The wax myrtles have the prettiest little purplish grey berries on them. (Not the gold ones, those are fake berries from Michaels!)

The leaves were impeding the view of the berries, and besides, it looked like a jungle with the leaves on. So I stripped all the leaves off down to the bare branches.

My family thought I was crazy as I stood in the kitchen with a mound of leaves all over the counter and the floor. I get a lot of, "WHAT are you doing NOW?" questions every time I start a project. You'd think they'd have a little more faith in me, geesh!

New Designs- Name Plates and Monograms

2010-11-30T15:47:00.001-05:00

Okay, so these really aren't new, exactly. I've been doing name plates and monograms for a few years now, but this is the first time I've listed them as an a la carte item!

This monogram I did almost two years ago now. I'll be doing some new samples in the next day or two. Provided my nice natural lighting cooperates with me (it's cloudy right now) I should have new pictures of my monograms to show you.

Note 12/1/10: Here they are, ready and listed on Etsy!

Where Are They Now?

2010-11-29T11:28:00.000-05:00

I thought it would be fun to do a little posting every now and then to showcase the travels my books have made. It's been a while since I did a feature so I thought I'd show you this purple book, which is now in Scotland.

What makes this custom book different is the black pages. The customer wanted to write in silver on black pages which will look simply stunning, in my opinion!

I had never done black pages before and had to special order the paper. I ordered enough to do a few more books also. It won't be a standard offering in my shop but I might do a book here and there with black pages. Or, if anyone requests black pages I am ready!

Background Inspirations

2010-11-23T22:07:00.034-05:00

Someone recently inquired where I find inspiration for my backgrounds I use in my photos, so I thought it might make an interesting "behind the scenes" blog post.

This is the floor of my studio, next to the window where I get some lovely natural light. I was looking for a background that was somewhat neutral to compliment my books. I looked down and voila! I was standing on it!

However, that background didn't work for this book because the book is nearly the same color as the floor. And besides that, I got tired of laying in the floor to get good shots of my books!

You'll never guess what the background in the above shot really is! (Keep reading)

I was having trouble with an orange-yellowish cast reflecting off the floor, and the whitewashed background didn't work with this book, so I took a printer's tray and turned it upside down for this lovely aged wood background!

So here is the inspiration for the whitewashed background I used. I saw it in the Jan 2010 issue of Somerset Life magazine. I wondered what I had around the house to use and my thoughts immediately turned to a little table which recently resurfaced in the garage as my hubby was straightening up.

And here it is! The background for my Tea Stained Guest Book.

My great aunt made this herself, handy lady that she was. She had it in her dining room with a potted fern on it for as long as I can remember. When she died I inherited it. It's a wonderful little shabby chic piece and has been sadly neglected for many years...I never could find a place to put it in my house. Now it has a new home in my studio and gets almost daily use. (The printer's tray I use is behind it.)

Which background is your favorite? If you do much photography, do you have a favorite background you like to use in your photos?

Hunting for Lost Things

2010-11-23T13:19:00.000-05:00

I spend a lot of time hunting for lost things. Sometimes they are lost because I have organized them into oblivion. Some things are lost by my hubby, whose workspace looks like a tornado hit. But most frequently I spend my days hunting for treasured objects lost by my 5 year old.

Today was no exception. I spent the better part of the morning looking for George Washington. "Where did you last see him? What were you doing when you last had him?" and so on.

I'm happy to report he was finally found, under the bed. He slipped between the wall and the mattress. Same thing happened to JFK a few months ago.

Who is most apt to lose things in your family? What kinds of things do you find yourself hunting for?

A Sneak Peak at Some New Books

2010-11-22T11:26:00.000-05:00

Just pulled these out of the book press this morning. I finally found some excellent navy, blue, and turquoise papers! And a new yellow, which is a difficult color to find also. Yay!

Guess what I'll be doing all week? (Besides getting the house ready for holiday guests!)

Housework vs Sofa Forts

2010-11-10T00:03:00.001-05:00

I have been consciously doing a little less in my studio over the last couple of weeks and devoting more time to catching up with the house. Fun stuff like cleaning, laundry, and sorting though cabinets. But it's a good feeling to believe I'm on top of things!

That is, until my son and hubby decide to build a fort in the living room with the sofa cushions!

You're looking at the dog's back end as he invades the fort. He likes to be in the middle of things, literally.

Here's one more thing I've been working on...the framed butterfly picture. I got this lovely print from a little framing shop for $7, and the frame from Hobby Lobby on clearance for $6. It was a custom frame that must have been cut to the wrong size. Anyhow, I cut a mat for the print and it fits perfectly in the frame!

Getting the glass cut was another story. I went to AC Moore and they wanted $32--ridiculous! I don't need conservation glass for a $7 print. I ended up going to a local glass shop and got exactly what I wanted for $8. So the whole thing cost me $21. Am I frugal or what? :)

Bricks Straight From the History Books

2010-11-01T21:05:00.000-04:00

Arched Bridge in Williamsburg

We went to Colonial Williamsburg this weekend. It was a beautiful day, wonderfully sunny, but a touch cool for my liking. However, at least we weren't sweating to death as it would have been just a short month ago!

Bruton Parish Church, Williamsburg

Headstone at the church

Little feet walk along historic sidewalks

The end of the day, walking the path home (or, to the parking lot!)

I didn't have time to walk around with my art journal sketching the sights, so my camera had to make do. Maybe I'll work on a journal page about bricks...or maybe you might be inspired by these ancient bricks to do a journal page!

Autumn Leaves

2010-10-26T14:57:00.001-04:00

the storm blowing in

The leaves have been slow to change this autumn in Eastern NC. Finally the maples and dogwoods, the first to turn, are a bright red. The oaks are still green, but a few other variety of trees are showing hints of yellow.

My son and I went out yesterday before a big storm rolled in to collect leaves to draw in our journals. We found some lovely reds from the crape myrtles and the neighbor's maple tree. Our little magnolia tree dropped a nice green leaf, and we collected two more from my rose of sharon and redbud trees.

This is my journal page. I used colored pencil to sketch the leaves and a rubber stamp of a splatter pattern to make the mottled brown on the maple and yellow rose of sharon leaves. I'll probably paint around them and embellish the page later.

Here is my five-year old's journal page. I think he did pretty good! Last year he was capable only of doing leaf rubbings. My how quickly they progress in just a year!

And finally, I leave you with this...

Our post-storm view! It was actually a double rainbow but the second one didn't show up very well in this shot.

Monthly Stamp Club Cards

2010-10-22T20:53:00.001-04:00

This month's cards are Halloween themed. Trick or treat!

This was just a stamped image of the hat and boots with a couple of ovals punched out and stamped.

The raised background of this card was made by running the paper through the "Big Shot" die cutting machine, using an embossing plate instead of a cutting plate.

Then we lightly sponged green ink over the spider web pattern to make it stand out more.

We then adhered a piece of this crinkly black tissue paper over the card and tied it with a lace ribbon.

The ghost was made from an owl punch turned upside down with the feet cut off. (See owl image below)

Hoot Hoot! This was made entirely from punches by Stampin Up. The card had room for a greeting on the bottom right corner.

All stamps copyright Stampin Up.

Product Review: Making Memories Precision Paper Trimmer

2010-10-17T21:13:00.000-04:00

The product under review today is the "Precision Paper Trimmer, 12x12" by Making Memories. It is a rotary cutter and claims to be self sharpening.

I go through paper trimmers like some people go through...well, I can't think of anything. Point: I wear out paper trimmers!

I bought this at Michaels using my 40% off coupon. The original price was $49.99 USD.

I actually had the opportunity to try out two of these. The first one I bought had been used and paper was jammed up inside the entire length of the track where the blade runs, hindering the movement of the rotary blade. I returned it and got a new one.

The new one started acting up almost immediately. It made a few good cuts (I cut about 8 pieces of paper).

The next time I used it, the trimmer mangled my 80# text paper so, thinking perhaps the paper was too thin for it (which is silly because 80# paper is about 3 times the weight of regular office paper) I tried cutting two sheets at a time. It mangled both sheets.

I tried cutting card stock. It got grease on my paper and also mangled the card stock. It seemed as if the blade was dull. The paper started getting caught in the track...just like the one I returned. Hmmm, perhaps that's why the previous customer returned it!

The only thing I liked about this trimmer is the magnetic ruler that comes with it. The ruler is extremely stable and stays where you put it. A few times I didn't think I was going to get the ruler off!

My rating of this product is a huge thumbs down! I wouldn't buy this product at any price because it did not cut paper in an acceptable manner for me.

Playing with Photos

2010-10-13T21:07:00.001-04:00

Playing with images isn't just for the pages of my art journals. I've been tinkering with my digital photos, discovering what Photoshop Elements can do. I used these templates from flickr, one and two.

Snow Covered Hydrangea

photo by Studio B (UberArt)

I must confess, I spent about an hour trying to erase part of the image down to a transparent canvas. My hubby, who is a computer whiz, strolled in and said, "You're doing it the hard way." One click and he accomplished what it took me an hour to do. Duh.

New Facebook Fan Page

2010-10-07T17:51:00.001-04:00

I have a new Facebook fan page for my UberArt Art Journals!

For those of you who were fans of my old page (UberArt Handmade Journals and Pendants) I will eventually be deleting that one since I couldn't change the title of it. I haven't made pendants in over two years and it seemed silly to keep that page!

My goal is to keep my fan pages updated regularly, but not so much as to be annoying. :D Just a little note here and there to let you know what's going on, or if I have a new blog post on visual art journaling.

So if you'd like to keep up with me on Facebook, please visit my pages.
(Emerson Bindery guest book fan page is here.)

Monthly Stamp Club Cards

2010-09-19T23:14:00.001-04:00

Once a month I attend a stamp club meeting where we make cards. I used to really be into rubber stamping but don't do much of it any more. I go to the meetings mainly to be around other artsy people and get inspired. And it helps when birthdays roll around...I can dig through my stash and pull something out for almost any occasion!

Rarely do I make the card exactly like the sample. I like to change it up and do my own thing. The one on the right is mine (the top of it got cut off in the scanner). The little white flowers have a 3D effect. Lay the flower on a surface with a little give, like a foam mat. Take the eraser end of a pencil and push in the center until the flower begins to buckle.

Here is another sample, the left side is the instructor's card, the right is mine. The flower was made from a punch, with a little black circle and a pearl in the center.

The top one is mine. I wanted to layer the circle with a larger white circle underneath, but that was not available so I did the next best thing I could think of--brush the edges with the white ink pad. The brown kraft paper was ridged to look like wainscoting using a scoring blade of a paper trimmer at 1/2" intervals, then lightly sponged over with brown ink.

I'll try to remember to post next month's cards and make this a series. Hopefully these images will inspire you to make your own cards!

All stamps copyright Stampin Up.

Walkabout

2010-09-16T13:45:00.000-04:00

I think I'll go on a walkabout

And find out what it's all about and that ain't hard

Just me and my own two feet...

A walk could cure

Almost all my blues

Bare feet or in my two shoes...

I think I'll go on a walkabout

And find out what it's all about

--Red Hot Chili Peppers, "Walkabout"

I took my little boy out for a walk with our journals to sketch things that caught our eye. He isn't quite coordinated enough to hold the book and sketch at the same time, so he'd park himself on the curb and draw. I'm sure the neighbors thought we were nuts.

We repeated the exercise while on vacation. It is really cool to look back on now a month later. I can remember everything exactly how it was and where I was standing when I sketched it. I never imagined these pages could capture those memories so well, even better than a photograph would!

I absolutely HAD to show you this though, as my sketch doesn't do this fire hydrant justice. This is the skinniest hydrant I've ever seen!!

Art Journal page: birds

2010-09-01T20:05:00.003-04:00

Just popping in to say a quick hello. I have been busy with lots of last minute orders for Labor Day weddings. It's amazing how many people are getting married over the holiday weekend!

I wanted to show you a before and after shot of an art journal page I did--

Here I actually painted the bird first. I had a library book on painting birds and needed to return it before the fines started racking up, so I grabbed my art journal and started working on blank pages.

Then I added a wash of color using a pigment ink pad and the direct-to-paper (DTP) technique. I chose the ink pad because it was easy to work around the bird without the color running onto him. I used the Colorbox brand Petal Point pads (I also like the Cat's Eye pads too) for this technique. They're wedge shaped and easy to use.

Then the bird just sat there for weeks until I thought of something relevant to write on the page--a story commemorating "Mama Bird" and the sad loss of her one of her little ones.

A happy ending to this story is the babies come by to visit us several times a week. One likes peeping out from under the shed at us and another seems to enjoy sitting by the water hose. They are so sweet!

Wise owls

2010-08-20T15:38:00.000-04:00

I love looking for patterns and shapes in wood and stone. The tricky thing about it is if you don't quickly capture the image on paper, you lose it! Look away and when you look again it becomes something else.

I was sitting on the balcony of a log cabin staring at one of the posts when I saw these owls.

I left a blank page where I'm going to paste the photos below into my journal.

Can you see the owls in the logs? Or do you see something else?

Monkey See Monkey Do

2010-08-11T12:29:00.001-04:00

My little five year old loves to work on his "projects" just like Momma.

Today he comes into my studio, announcing he needs some paint and paper for a new project.

I clear off my table, moving my books in progress far out of splash-range. I set up a placemat on the table, a tarp over my rug, and an apron over his clothes and let him go to town.

Apparently he was inspired by my art journals! This was all him, no prompting from me at all. Children have such a talent for color!

Chinese Fortune Cookies

2010-07-24T23:31:00.000-04:00

Do any of you bloggers have trouble with individuals who leave comments in another language and then a link to a nasty website? It seems they have found my blog and leave comments in abundance. I wish I could block them, but that is not possible with this platform.

This is why I moderate my comments, but apparently they haven't figured that out yet! Or maybe they just don't care and enjoy wasting time, hoping for just one comment to slip through and be published.

I thought it would be interesting to translate some of their posts, minus the x rated material. It turned out to be kind of funny, like getting a fortune cookie via my blog every day. Watch out, I might start looking forward to them!

Here is a good one, "Patience is a bitter plant, but the fruit is very sweet." That one has my name all over it. Patience is not one of my strong points.

And for those of us feeling burnt out, "Persist for a certain purpose or goal, and continuous efforts towards the direction of an established concept."

And now a bit of humor...something must have gone awry in translation--

"Survival but continued fighting in the heart and soul; writing is sitting their trial."

"Unless a tree in spring bloom, otherwise the result is unlikely in the fall."

Uh huh.

I'm certain I will have more great material for you, as they will be attempting to leave numerous comments on this post as well! Tee hee!

More Color Experimentation in Summer Themes

2010-06-25T20:38:00.000-04:00

Things have still been demanding in my guest book shop this season, but I've left you all hanging long enough between posts. My bad. *hangs head and pokes at floor with toe*

Anyhow, I've been trying really hard to get some art journaling time in wherever I can. Even if I don't have time to actually journal I can prepare some pages ahead of time!

This one reminds me of a clear blue swimming pool.

Last year I posted about playing with color using those color-coordinated paint sample strips from the home improvement store. See that post here.

A very tropical feel. Pass the margaritas!

Well, I am at it again. It's fun to just do backgrounds because I don't have to think about it, I just play. At the end of the day my brain is fried from corresponding with customers and writing up listings. And it's better for me than vegging out in front of the TV (which I do as well).

Very beachy...sand dunes, maybe?

The combinations the paint manufacturers come up with aren't necessarily ones I would choose, but it's fun to do something different--it can really inspire fresh creativity to shake it up a bit!

A tall, cool glass of lemonade on a hot summer day!

I like the dots on this page. I could have filled the entire page with dots. It was hard to stop myself after just nine!

More experiments are coming! I had fun making these and sharing them with you, I hope you enjoyed them!

A Diversion Into Marine Life

2010-06-10T16:36:00.000-04:00

This week we visited a marine science museum. It was awesome to see such a variety of marine animals, and most especially, TURTLES! I just love turtles!

Here's an unusual looking turtle with a soft shell.

And the beloved sea turtle, posing for his picture!

It was difficult to get a good picture of these colorful jellyfish. The flash bleached them out but it was too dark otherwise, so they're a little blurry, but you get the idea. The color is more intense than in reality but it does make a cool picture.

Now I'm back to work again...time to make the donuts! :D

A Quick Hello!

2010-06-05T22:20:00.002-04:00

Just popping in to let you know I haven't forgotten you! Things have been so busy in my shop I barely have time to do anything but make books. I feel like the sleepwalking guy in those old Dunkin Donuts commercials..."Time to make the donuts"...only for me it's books!

Serenity now, serenity now...any Seinfeld fans out there?! (This picture is truly vintage, taken by my grandfather back in the 1960's. I think it is somewhere in Canada.)

In the midst of all this busyness my printer decided to act up. After much troubleshooting and calling in the hubby, we decided the problem was an internal part which cannot be replaced. And of course, it's just 2 weeks after the 1 year warranty expired!! So I had to get a new printer, and this time I got the extended warranty!

Signing off for now, over and out! ...Time to make the books...

Before and After

2010-05-19T18:20:00.000-04:00

I've been so busy in my Etsy shop I didn't even notice when this poor little book expired. It has been sitting neglected in my expired items for a month now. I discovered it the other day but had second thoughts about relisting the book without making some changes.

It had 190 views but no hearts. It sat in my shop for 4 months without selling. Hmmm....what's wrong with it? Maybe it just doesn't stand out enough? Too plain? And ironically I called it "The Jane Mini Journal". Plain Jane. This afternoon I took a break from producing and played a little. Here's what I came up with:

How's that for sprucing the little neglected book up?! I took a tag BluebirdLane was so kind to include in a past order, tied a little sprig on it with some seam binding and voila! Not so plain anymore! Hopefully this little book will find a loving home now.

Oh, and by the way, I changed the name too. It's now "Butterfly and Hollyhock Petite Journal". No more plain Jane.

A Closed Door

2010-05-11T22:42:00.000-04:00

When one door in life closes, another opens...

After much thought, I have concluded it is time to leave the Etsy Bloggers team. I have enjoyed the relationships built over the course of the last year and I will still be visiting your blogs. My decision to leave has nothing to do with my team mates; my experience with the leadership was the driving factor in my decision that a change needed to be made.

I wish you all the best and hope to continue seeing you in blogland!

There's No Place Like Home - And a Cool Vintage Pair Of Shoes

2010-04-26T22:41:00.001-04:00

Okay, so I look more like the Wicked Witch than Dorothy in these, but I think they're the coolest shoes (and socks) ever!

These shoes are vintage 40's (?? any shoe experts out there ??) that came out of my grandma's closet. I used to play dress up in them as a kid and was so excited the day I grew into them and they fit! Fortunately for me my foot stopped growing at that point and they still fit.

Sadly they're as uncomfortable as hell because the padding is completely disintegrated but I'm sure I could replace it. I'm just scared to wear them outside...I'd be really mad if they got messed up!

The End Of An Era

2010-04-20T23:41:00.002-04:00

Sorry to have left blogland for a week or so but I was thinking of you all. Things have been uber-busy in my shops and then I had to go out of town due to a death in the family. My last grandparent died this past week. It is the end of an era, no more grandparents are left. Now my parents are the grandparents and life goes on.

I went for a peaceful walk in the cemetery...well, as peaceful as it could be with three boys ages 4, 6, and 13 following behind! I took these photos to share with you.

A black swallowtail butterfly hovers around a red azalea.

And the grand finale...I was very moved by this headstone...Latin for "We had loved, We love, We loved".

Grand ReOpening of UberArt!

2010-04-08T23:01:00.000-04:00

The Etsy Bloggers first blog carnival topic for this month is Spring, new things and growth...tell us about a new item and what inspired you to create it. I have the perfect item and story to go along with it--

Those of you who have followed my saga may remember that I opened a new shop in December and moved all my guest books there, leaving my poor UberArt shop sadly neglected.

Blank 16 Page Art Journal in Crossed Snowshoe Stitching

I didn't want to close UberArt because I had some ideas for that shop floating around in my head but none of them felt "right". I have finally captured one of those ideas and it's a natural fit!

BLANK ART JOURNALS!

Sorry, I don't mean to yell, I just got excited.

Lilac and Periwinkle Blank Art Journal

It's so nice how it has coincided with the change of direction in my art. I've been making blank art journals for myself but then I thought, well, duhh, maybe other people might need blank art journals too!

This one is an accordion-star-flag book, or some such combination of all those techniques! It was fun to make and is even more fun to work in! Since it will stand open, you can paint a bunch of pages at once and let them all dry without worrying about them sticking to each other.

I was trying to wait until I had more inventory in my shop to do a grand opening announcement, but Emerson Bindery has kept me so busy with orders that I haven't had the time I'd hoped for to work on the art journals. My first art journal sold tonight, which forced me to start on a new one since it left only one lonesome book in my shop!

I've got a cool brown paper bag art journal I'm perfecting at the moment so watch for that, coming soon!

In One Hour...

2010-04-01T22:27:00.000-04:00

I did an art journal page from start to finish. No fooling, really! Ok, I'm kind of late on the April Fools puns considering most of the day is now gone.

I actually remembered to take pictures as I progressed....

So here's the story behind the art. Today I went for a bike ride with DH through the woods by a stream. Very poetic sounding, but really it was just a glorified drainage ditch. I wish I brought my camera with me because the woods were beautiful with all their colors and sounds. We tend to think of terra cotta and ruby red as fall colors but I saw a lot of those colors blooming up in the trees.

The birds were calling to each other and the crickets were happily chirping. We stopped for a moment to listen to them and the water rushing by in the "stream". Truth: I was exhausted and had to take a break.

I am happy to report I kept up with DH including a small jump over a dirt hill, but unfortunately I am paying for it now. Time to get out the ice pack and heating pad! ;P

PS- I suppose I should mention DH was traveling with a handicap...our little guy in the child seat attached to DH's bike. Perhaps that is why I kept up so well.

Wordless Wednesday

2010-03-31T17:33:00.001-04:00

My Poor Thumb

2010-03-23T22:38:00.001-04:00

I have been making books for sale for over two years (for myself, much longer) and this is my first major injury. Up until now I have prided myself on being so careful.

Mr. Bump by Roger Hargreaves

One of my favorite stories from childhood, most likely because I can relate to him!

I work with a lot of sharp tools--rotary cutter, utility knife, guillotine style paper trimmer, needles and awls--and aside from the time I stabbed myself in the hand with the awl, I have been limited to paper cuts. Until now.

I was cutting some book board (for no one in particular, just stocking up, lest any of my customers feel guilty!) and one piece in particular was giving me trouble. I tried cutting from a different angle and WHOOPS, got my thumb. Thank God for fingernails or I would have cut the entire tip off!

It feels a bit tingly and is getting in my way something terrible. I can't tie ribbons, I'm having trouble punching holes in my text blocks, and sewing books is quite a challenge. Every night I'm so fed up with the bandages I unwrap it just to get some relief (and air to the wound). And wouldn't you know my shop has been busier since the injury than it's ever been! I like to be busy but prefer the full use of my digits!

Art Journaling

2010-03-19T23:08:00.000-04:00

Several posts ago (wow, has it been that long?!), I was talking about exploring the world of art journaling and promised some photos of my progress. Alas, I either keep forgetting to photograph my work or am too chicken to post it. I think it's some combination of the two!

One of my blogger friends has been posting about her dive headfirst into the world of art journaling and has now shown me for the coward that I am by showing pictures of her work. So...here goes. Forgive the smudged out text, but I'm not THAT brave! :D

I used complementary colors in blue and orange for this spread. One of my biggest revelations (and challenges) was to NOT think too much about the layout. I tend to analyze things to death, so it was really stretching me to just grab pictures and paste them onto the page without thinking.

This one worked so well...the little short guy and the clothing tag. Such irony!

I wrote in different colors of ink to emphasize certain words and to give the page some visual interest since there was so much text. I used Paint Pens by Sharpie for this page and I really like them. The extra fine point worked great for journaling.

I'm still in the process of discovering my own unique style so it's quite possible successive art journal posts will look different than these. I was influenced mainly by Teesha Moore's magazine collage style, though she takes her work to a level far beyond where I am at this point! After I get all my pages completed I will bind them together into a book. I'll show you when I'm finished (no promises as to when that will occur!).

An Experiment With Posies

2010-03-13T19:28:00.002-05:00

If you've been reading my blog for a few weeks now, you might remember a post I did about a month ago on these crocheted posies. I sold out of my first batch and have since added some more in my shop.

I want to show you what I did with the main posy in the above picture...

Ta-dah! What do you think?

I'll be offering this mini book for purchase in my shop. I just love working with these little petite books! They're so much fun.

I was thinking about why I enjoy creating the little books so much better than the large books. The only thing I can figure is that with the large books I feel like I have to be more formal--now who made up that rule, I'd like to know? :). However, with these little books, my goal is to use the scrap papers I have laying around and play with fun embellishments like the posies, so I feel less restricted and able to experiment. Maybe I'll get brave enough to try something fun on a larger book!

Imagining Spring Is Here

2010-03-05T19:55:00.001-05:00

Heavy With Dew by OliviaGirdPhoto

Along with most of the rest of the US, I am so tired of this cold weather! It has been a very rough winter, especially for those of us who aren't used to such cold temperatures. As I write this, I've got a cherry pit heating pad on my back (because I ate ice cream for dessert and now have the shivers).

So, I'm going to pretend spring is here since that is the latest topic for the Etsy Bloggers' Blog Carnival. Melissa of MadeByMelissa is hosting this round and asks what items are in my shop to celebrate spring. I have all sorts of spring guest book designs, since spring is the start of the wedding season.

I thought I'd go with a yellow theme, to coordinate with the daffodil picture. Here is my Mums In Canary Guest Book.

I have one more yellow book in my shop but it's more of a summer theme...but here is one still in the works from my Petite Series--to be listed soon!

Ahhh...I feel warmer already! I hope these bright, cheery yellows warmed you up also!

The Featured Etsy Blogger for March is...

2010-03-04T22:47:00.000-05:00

DizzyDragonflies! DD makes hand dyed yarn and knitted items. Such luscious colors in that lovely yarn basket! Visit her shop to see all her goodies! She also has a blog too.

I See The Light

2010-02-22T09:48:00.000-05:00

Some of my favorites...

Luna Handmade Paper and Twig Art Lamp by Wyldewoodpapers

This lamp is amazing! It looks like something you'd find in a hobbit or a fairy's house. Jan makes the paper herself, cooking the raw fibers of hickory bark and the abaca plant and forming them into sheets which are wrapped around the twig framework. I fell in love with this lamp the moment I saw it!

Spicy Hot Pepper Table Luminary by ZienOnMain

Hot Pepper was inspired by a picture Cindy took in South Korea. Made from terra batik handmade paper and branches, it’s vibrant, fun, and casts a warm glow on a cold winter night. Very sculptural!

And last...

Chandelier with copper accents by SilverCityIron

This chandelier is handforged using traditional blacksmithing techniques and features fish-tail scrolls, copper wire banding and reclaimed copper candle holders. Corry often uses materials which are recycled and salvaged which adds to the character of each piece!

Dreaming of Warmer Weather...

2010-02-20T20:42:00.003-05:00

I'm so tired of this cold weather. Temperatures have been about 20 degrees lower around here than normal for months now. I hyperventilate each month upon opening the utilities bill. When will we get a break?!

Instead of sitting here with cold hands and feet wallowing in my misery, I will relive my days on vacation in the Bahamas...ahh, tropical paradise. Warm sand between my toes. Warm water for snorkeling. Pretty fish and sea shells. Sitting in the shade beneath a palm tree, sipping a drink. I need to get out my "Island Paradise" nature sounds CD and it will *almost* be real...and maybe a heating pad to lie on.

This is for the EtsyBloggers Team Carnival, this round hosted by HandmadeBySandi. Thanks Sandi, for this wonderful theme!

A Place For Everything

2010-02-17T19:34:00.000-05:00

...though not everything is always in its place...!

I'm so delighted with my latest piece of studio furniture! My hubby made a paper organizer for me! No longer is my paper in a box in the floor to be tripped over. I no longer have to fear my preschooler will use my paper storage box for a platform and trample my papers to death. Nor do I fear my dog's toenails piercing the papers walking over them when I've left my box open.

Not only is it an organizer's delight, it also doubles as another work surface, and I surely can't get enough of those!!

See that carved elephant puppet on the table? I love him but cannot for the life of me figure out where to hang him. My ceilings are all angles and I don't have a nice corner for him to hang in. He looks out of place hanging anywhere else. I'm determined to find a spot for him.

Now my papers are literally at the tips of my fingers and I can see what I have. *squeals with delight*

AND...the top opens up for even more storage of smaller sheets of scrap paper! Oh bliss! I'm so fortunate to have a husband who is crafty.

Where Are They Now?

2010-02-15T22:56:00.002-05:00

I thought it would be fun to do a little posting every now and then to showcase the travels my books have made. This book, Honey Indigo, made its first stop in Australia and is now on a European tour! It will showcase memoirs, snapshots, and ticket stubs from the trip. *I'm a bit jealous of this book* Oh well, I'm proud to have something I made traveling around the world, even if I'm not going myself!

Be My Valentine!

2010-02-10T16:10:00.000-05:00

Personalized Cupcake Toppers by thepaperkingdom

It seems Valentine's Day was more special for me when I was a child than it is now. I remember the excitement of making our own mailboxes and taping them to the sides of our desks for the BIG DAY.

Valentine's Day Personalized Cards with Keepsake Mailbox by InkspotWorkshop

When the day came, we'd walk around the room playing mail carrier, delivering Valentines to everyone's mailbox. I think there was a rule that if you participated you had to give everyone a Valentine, not just a special few people. That way no one felt left out.

In Bloom Spring Colors 3 by simplysplendidstamp

I kept my Valentines for many years until at some point when I was a teenager I decided they weren't cool anymore, so I threw them out. I wish I still had them. :/

February's Featured Etsy Blogger

2010-02-10T16:01:00.000-05:00

Congrats to this month's Etsy Blogger, TiLT Creations!! She has a shop full of really neat things like backpacks, totes, purses, clutches and this really cool messenger bag--

Zombie Worker Denim Messenger Bag, hand embroidered by TiLT Creations

I love what she wrote in this description: "Do you feel like a zombie heading out to work? Then this bag is for you." I was just telling my hubby the other night sometimes I feel like the guy in that old Dunkin Donuts commercial, staggering out of bed and mindlessly heading to the kitchen..."Time to make the donuts"...only in my case I'm stumbling to the studio to work on custom books.

More New Things

2010-02-08T17:53:00.000-05:00

I have been so busy and I'm excited to share some new things coming up!

First, I've opened yet another shop on Etsy, UberArtWorks. Actually, this shop has been open since last summer but I never did much with it. I am selling vintage knitting and crochet PDF patterns and a few destash items as I come across them. These patterns belonged to my grandmother and they've just been sitting in a corner for years now. I did some research and to the best of my knowledge, the copyrights have expired on them and the patterns are now public domain.

Next, I'm working on some crocheted posies I will be incorporating into *something* (What, I don't know yet...maybe a journal cover...) and will also be offering them for sale in my shop.

And finally, as if that isn't enough, I've been inspired to start an Art Journal. I started one a while back, but just couldn't seem to make things work. I've been watching Teesha Moore's YouTube video tutorials and that has given me enough direction to be able to run with this. Stay tuned for more on my progress with my art journal! (This keeps me accountable to finish what I've started!)

New Curtains - A Tutorial

2010-02-03T16:34:00.001-05:00

I made some new curtains for my studio. I had some nice curtains already, but got into a big sale in the fabric store. The fabric was $6/yard and the trim was 90% off! How could I resist?? So now I have some curtains to alternate when the mood strikes me.

I am not the best at sewing so when I say this was pretty easy to do, trust me--it was! First you'll want to determine how long to make the curtains. I hung mine about 1 foot over the top window trim and down to the floor, which required almost 6 yards. I used the full width of the fabric (which I think is 54") for each panel. So, I needed 3 yards x 2 (for 2 panels). I always get a little more than I think I'll need, just in case I make a bad cut or miscalculated somewhere. I can always make pillows with the scraps (which will be another tutorial!).

Supplies:
Sewing machine
Decorator fabric (6 yards, in my case)
Trim (6 yards, in my case)
Coordinating thread
Pins
Ruler
Fabric scissors
Tape measure
Clip rings
Curtain rod to fit your window

The first thing I did was try to straighten up the raw ends of my fabric as best I could. I laid the fabric out on the floor and used the grooves in my hardwood floor to guide my cuts. Then I measured my window once again to determine how long to cut each panel. I used 2 1/2-inches for the hem on both the top and bottom, so I added 5 inches to my total. I used my tape measure to mark where to cut.

Then I turned under the selvage on the sides of my curtains and hemmed them on my sewing machine. I used about a 1 inch hem on the sides. You may notice my curtain magically changes color throughout this tutorial. The photos above were taken with a flash and the ones below using natural light. The taffeta fabric I used has a sheen to it, changing from gold to olive depending on how the light hits it.

I use a glass vase as a trash receptacle and also to weight the fabric down so it doesn't slide off the table while I'm trying to sew. I'm challenged enough as it is, I don't need to be fighting the fabric also!

Next I measured 2 1/2-inches for the top hem and marked it with a pin along the entire length of the curtain.

Then I folded the raw edge up to the pin.

Next I gingerly pulled the pin out and folded again on the line where the pin was. Doubling the hem over like this makes a nice clean hem. I've found if you don't tuck the raw edge under (and I'm sure there's a technical term for that...I just can't think what it is...) it may start to unravel in the laundry and then you'll have strings hanging out of your nice curtains. I did that once with a pair of pants. :(

I pinned where to make my final stitches on the hem, measuring to be sure I had it even. My final hem is about 1 1/4-inches.

So here's my finished top hem. Repeat the steps above to make the bottom hem.

I laid my curtain panels out in the floor, making sure they were oriented correctly and pinned the trim on the leading edge (the inside edge where your curtains will meet in the middle when closed). One panel will have the trim on the left edge, the other panel on the right edge. Then I sewed the trim on with a zig zag stitch. (This panel really did change color! It's actually my old curtain, the alternate.)

And now, you have some lovely curtains which will astound and amaze everyone! Just attach them with your clip rings and voila!

I had some guests for a party this past holiday season and one lady asked me who designed my curtains! Ha!!

Fixing Up My Studio

2010-01-28T15:03:00.000-05:00

Since I moved into my new studio space several weeks ago, I've been working on organizing and arranging things. This will be an ongoing process for me, so I will likely have a few follow up posts on this topic.

Here I am in my new space thinking about where to put everything...

I love my bright, sunny window! I had to drive nails in the window trim to keep the fleur de lis finials from bashing me in the head each time I open and close the curtains.

This tall, white cabinet was on the curb for the trash. My hubby picked it up on his way home from work one day, intending to use it in his garage. Heh heh! We see where it ended up, confiscated for my studio. It got a fresh coat of paint, new hardware, and I stamped this ivy design down the front door.

Everyone should have smoke detectors in their home and studio! Not lovely to look at, but a safety must- have. I thought about PhotoShopping it out (is that a verb??) but decided it would be a good reminder about fire safety. I also have a fire extinguisher in my studio. Hopefully I will never need it!

I found this orphaned drawer with the fabulous-cool lion hardware in a thrift shop. I wish I could have found the piece of furniture it originally went to. How does a drawer get separated from its place of origin anyway?? It has a big chip missing out of the front, but I think it just adds to the charm.

Stay tuned for more studio pictures. I have a wonderful new paper sorter to blog about! =)

Shame on 123Print

2010-01-23T13:36:00.009-05:00

This blog seems to be turning into a consumer watchdog site!! Here I go again!

I ordered business cards from 123Print. Here is what I received:

On the left is the proof I approved. On the right is the actual card I received. The card is not centered (there is a white stripe at the bottom, which is difficult to see in this photo), the color is off, and it is extremely grainy.

Call me stupid, but this is actually the second time I've been through this with 123Print. They did the exact same thing (minus the centering issue) on my last set of cards a year ago. I called the company that time, and after jumping through a number of hoops they reprinted my order at no charge and did a great job.

I called them today for this most recent problem and was told they had been receiving complaints all morning. They said the printer is screwing up and no one does quality control--they go straight from the printer into a box for shipment. That explains everything.

I will not order from them again. The odds of this coincidentally happening on a second order a year later are pretty slim. Most likely this is their modus operandi, and they get away with it if the consumer doesn't know any better. Let the buyer beware.

**Update**
They offered to reprint the cards at no extra charge. When they arrived a week later, they were identical to the first set; there was no change in quality! They tried to talk me into having them reprinted a third time (like what good would that do?!). I declined and asked for a refund. They complied and even refunded my shipping costs. And thus ends my relationship with 123Print.

Learn To Save A Life

2010-01-20T19:59:00.003-05:00

Recently I had a very frightening experience when my preschooler choked during lunch. Thanks to CPR training courses I took over 15 years ago I was able to perform the Heimlich Maneuver and saved his life.

The Heimlich performed on a conscious child.

If you had asked me prior to this incident if I knew the Heimlich I would have said no, I don't remember much about it, but it's amazing the information you have stored away that comes up during an emergency.

It all happened so fast and it scares me to think of the times I've walked to another room while he was munching on a snack. The whole incident took less than two minutes, but of course during the episode it felt like hours!

Here's a great website full of step by step resources for performing CPR on infants, children and adults. I encourage you to print out copies of the diagrams for CPR and the Heimlich to leave with your baby sitter and post on your refrigerator. It may just save your child's life (or your own)!
FYI: There's also a new method for adult CPR using hands only, no breaths.

Snowflakes!

2010-01-17T19:20:00.003-05:00

We rarely get snow where I live, so this is the best I can do for snow pictures! Which is fine by me...snow is pretty to look at when it's freshly fallen, but I can do without the cold thank you very much!

1 Snow Queen Bracelet by drakonaria
2 Magical Blue and Silver Snowflake Ornament by tianarutledge
3 Snowflakes photo cards by filigreephotos
4 watercolor stationery by cynthiacallan

January's Etsy Blogger

2010-01-17T18:53:00.003-05:00

This month's featured blogger is Erika of NicoDesigns! Erika does some fabulous things with fabric in her shop including diaper bags, pin cushions, and home decor, but my favorite is her art doll line.
This cute little art doll is Savannah the Horse Lover. Savannah has her own bio written up in the listing. Go check it out!

Broken Tools

2010-01-12T20:42:00.006-05:00

I am not a happy artist today. In the middle of a project this Martha Stewart punch broke while attempting to punch through cardstock. I say attempting because it was doing more chewing than punching. You can see from the photo it's actually a metal piece that has broken.

This is the second Martha Stewart punch I've had that has broken. I also bought her Japanese drill punch and promptly took it back after using it once. I'm not impressed with the quality of her tools. I have no complaints about her bonefolder, but that's just a piece of plastic with no moving parts.

Needless to say, I will NOT be purchasing any more of her tools!

**UPDATE**
I contacted EK Success, the manufacturer of the Martha Stewart punches. EK Success (aka Wilton Industries) is standing behind their product and I am pleased to report they have offered to replace the broken punch since Michaels refused to accept it when I tried to return the punch.

It had been 2 weeks past Michaels 60 day return policy--though their receipt states they will give store credits after 60 days, Michaels did not honor that. I don't like Michaels either, but there is no other craft store in my market so I guess Michaels thinks they have the right to make up their own rules as they please.

New Studio Space

2010-01-07T22:10:00.003-05:00

Ta-da! My new studio is finished and ready for business! The timing couldn't be more perfect since I'm introducing my new shop, Emerson Bindery. New shop - new space! Very cool.

Here is the main reason I wanted to move out of my old studio down the hall--this work table. My old studio (herein referred to as "Studio A", the new one will be "Studio B") was so long and narrow I had to push my work table to the perimeter of the room, which gave me only one side to work from as furniture was crowed on either side and I had the wall on the back side.

I was so thrilled to be able to use the entire table that I ran joyfully around it several times!
Another bonus is the closet, which is yet unfinished. All my stuff is in the floor until I get some shelving in there. I didn't have a closet in studio A and was using the closet from the spare bedroom.

New Beginnings

2010-01-01T09:54:00.004-05:00

I have a momentous announcement to make...After much thought I have decided to open a new shop.

...introducing Emerson Bindery!

My new shop has actually been open for a month now, but I've kept it quiet except for a few friends. I wanted to wait until after Christmas to make my grand annoucement.

I will be transitioning all my books into Emerson Bindery but plan to keep UberArt open for other projects.

Why you might ask, after over 200 sales and the numerous front page features, would you decide to start all over again?!

One of my front page features from June 3, 2009. My book is the first item at the top left.

When I first opened UberArt in November 2007, I chose the name because it would encompass anything I wanted to do. I had no idea what exactly that was though! I tried books, jewelry, note cards, and polymer clay flower pots (!!!) before I stumbled upon the guest book market. In December 2008 the guest books hijacked my store and things took off!

I have thoroughly enjoyed making books and will continue doing so, but I also want to explore other art forms. I didn't feel it was appropriate for me to lump them altogether in one shop, so I considered opening a new shop. But then, what to call it??

UberArt seemed to fit the bill for the new items but wasn't very descriptive of my current line of guest books. Instead of opening the new shop for the art, I decided to move the books instead. Thus, Emerson Bindery was born!

I will let you know when I introduce new items in my UberArt shop. I have big plans there!!

Merry Christmas!

2009-12-24T19:20:00.001-05:00

Usually I'm on top of the game with my Christmas cards, getting them out the first week in December. I'm not sure what happened this year. Lack of motivation combined with global warming and the phases of the moon?

I've been making my own Christmas cards for about ten years now. I'm starting to get a little burnt out on it and envy those people who do boxed cards or photo cards. I know I'll have some disappointed people on my mailing list when I discontinue the handmade cards, but one must consider one's own sanity!

Here it is Christmas Eve and I finally got the last of my cards out.

They'll never arrive in time for Christmas, but so be it!

At least they're done!

I hope you all have a wonderful holiday!

More Sparkles

2009-12-23T21:59:00.004-05:00

A continuation of my previous post...here is my favorite light fixture, no. 2 of 3.
This chandelier was in my Grandmother's living room and I always admired it. When she died and we sold her house I knew I had to have this chandelier!
I have no idea how old it really is...maybe 1960's(??), but it reminds me of the layered fringe designs of the flapper dresses from the 1920's.

Now it hangs in my studio, which is quite appropriate since my Grandmother was one of my biggest fans and very supportive of my art. She would be proud of me that I'm selling my work all over the world!

Sparkles On My Ceiling

2009-12-18T18:40:00.000-05:00

I finally got my lantern hung in the foyer! It's only been two years that it has been sitting in a box in the attic. I just love the patterns the lantern and water glass cast on the walls and ceiling.
When I bought this brass lantern in an antique store, it wasn't wired for electricity and had no glass, but I fell in love with it nonetheless! Lucky for me I have a hubby who was able to wire it up. We had an old chandelier we were replacing so we took the electric candles out and put them in this lantern. I cut the glass myself and managed to avoid serious injury (this is quite noteworthy as I am the world's biggest clutz).
Here it is with the lights off so you can see the detail. It's one of three of my favorite light fixtures. I'll show you the other two in another post!

O Tannenbaum

2009-12-15T16:30:00.000-05:00

Finally I have taken the long-promised pictures of my Christmas tree.
I did a blue and white theme this year, which kind of morphed into a bird/peacock theme. Can you find the peacock hidden in the tree?
I had to get out the tripod to get these pictures. There just wasn't enough light in the room since my chandelier is temporarily out of commission. We're in the process of replacing it but the wire wasn't long enough on the new one, so hubby has to go get a longer wire.

Here is the peacock, in the center of the tree at the bottom of the picture. You might be able to see him better in the picture right above this one.

I'd love to see pictures of your Christmas tree! If you'd like to share, please leave me a comment with the link to your pictures.

Blue and Brown

2009-12-14T21:45:00.000-05:00

The EtsyBloggers Team is featuring a blog carnival with the theme "favorite color combination: what do you make using those colors?"

One of my favorite color combinations is blue and brown. Ironically those are not my personal favorite colors, but I do like the way they look together. (Obviously, given the number of designs I have created using blue and brown!)

Etsy Blogger of the Month

2009-12-13T21:24:00.004-05:00

Is CalKat! I just love this piece of jewelry from Kathy and Carrie's shop, it's so unusual!

Braces? At my age!

2009-12-10T18:06:00.005-05:00

**Please note: my article was "borrowed" by get-a-celebrity-smile.com and appears without my permission on their website, advertising some teeth whitening pens. I DO NOT endorse them, especialy since they used my article without my permission and I cannot find any way to contact them to have it removed!!

I just got Invisalign braces this week for a rouge front tooth that decided after 20 years to revert back to it's former position. (I wore metal braces twice before as a child--blah!).

I am miserable. Of course it would be worse if I had those horrible metal brackets tearing up my cheeks, but my whole face hurts. The tray, as they call it--it snaps over your teeth, has rough spots on it along the gum line that are driving me up the wall. I've already attacked it with a nail file a couple of times.

Brace Face by GottaLotta

And on top of that I've got a sore throat and nausea. At first I thought I was coming down with something, but thought perhaps I would check the intenet for reported side effects of Invisalign. Lo and behold, I found many other people reporting the same thing! I've concluded it's either an allergic reaction to the plastic or caused by a severely dry mouth (another side effect of having Invisalign).

I reported these symptoms to my orthodontist, who is one of those good ole southern boys, and he said he'd never heard of such a thing. Maybe it was anxiety. (WTF??!!!)

So I have taken it upon myself to educate him by emailing him all the links from my afternoon of research on the internet. I'm kind of locked into treatment with him since I've already paid for over half of it, so changing orthos would be a bit of a hassle. Besides, the histrionic female accusation, he's a nice guy otherwise.

I'm definitely going to lose weight too, due to the hassle of taking the durn tray in and out every time I eat. Then I have to brush before putting it back in, otherwise the food will be trapped in the tray and I'll get cavities. Unfortunately, aside from a couple of inches around my belly to get back into my "skinny" jeans, I really don't need to lose weight. So I'll end up looking like a skeleton before this self-imposed ordeal is over.

I've been sipping on water the last few hours and the nausea has gotten better, so maybe it is related to dry mouth. The good news is my treatment will only be 12 weeks long. I put up with morning sickness during my pregnacy with my son longer than that, so I guess I can hang in there!

Wordless Wednesday

2009-12-09T18:01:00.003-05:00

Photograph taken by me yesterday at the library.

Friday Favorites

2009-12-03T23:48:00.003-05:00

1 Burlap Romance... by AlicesLookingGlass
2 Vintage French Book Paper Wreath by SimpleJoysPaperie
3 Elegant True Love Memory Box by FunWallArt
4 Rosa ornament gift set by cardinalhouse

Dishwasher Woes

2009-12-01T22:50:00.004-05:00

I hope everyone had a fabulous Thanksgiving holiday! (for those readers in the US). My holiday was nice, spent with family, and now I am recovering from having a house full of guests.

Today I got a lot done--laundry, putting things back in their places, and dishes--yes, dishes. My dishwasher broke last night. I'm not happy about that. It's a 2 yr old Kenmore provided by the builder of my new home.

Kitchen Scrubbie by Laksaware
I may just need to get this if my dishwasher doesn't get fixed soon!!

Part of me wants to fix it since there will be lots of expenses with the holidays coming up and I don't really want to shell out the money for a new one, but the other part of me wants to replace it. I've never really liked it as it doesn't do a very good job, is extremely noisy, and bowl #4 always comes out dirty. I have bent the tine so many times trying to tweak the position of it I'm afraid it'll pop off if I bend it again!

Crocheted Dish Cloth by Laksaware

I miss my Maytag I bought for my last house. I wish I could have brought it with me! Yes, I'm spoiled, but I didn't always have a dishwasher so I figure I've paid my dues. My parents had one when I was growing up, but it was never hooked up. Isn't that the stupidest thing you've ever heard??--and it's still not hooked up. It's just a vintage kitchen decoration at this point.

Hmmm...I hope mine is not destined to become a vintage kitchen decoration.