random revelations

I love a good rainy day. A pajama wearin’, snuggle up in bed, yummy coffee sippin’, craft at the kitchen table kind of day. The kind of day that feels like time does not exist.

Today we did some crayon rubbings. It’s always fun for the kids to find the hidden shapes underneath the paper. A little treasure hunt. I taped down some chipboard die cuts that I had bought for who knows what reason. They were on clearance for $4 and I couldn’t say no. Yes, it’s a sickness. But hey, they came in handy for this occasion.

We used the dull side of finger painting paper. After taking the wrapper off of the crayons, we went to work on our crayon rubbing collages. Each one came out different and they had tons of fun.

And of course they worked up quite an appetite!!

I can’t believe it’s been so long since my last post. My life has changed so much since then. For starters, I started a quest to quit smoking in mid-January. Well, I’m glad to say that I am still smoke free 3 months later. While I am glad that I finally kicked the habit, it has really knocked the wind out of my sails. I smoked for about 20 years and chalked it up to being a creative. It is what I did in the spontaneous hours of the wee morning. So there has not been much going on around here on the note of creativity. A few things I’ve had to get done and a few experiments that I’ll share at a later time. I’m done mourning the passing of a bad habit and I’m ready to get on with being a happy, productive non-smoker. Easier said than done. Luckily, I am very blessed to have a wonderful support group of my hubby and good friends. I know that these people love me  through it all and are not afraid to let me know when I am deceiving myself. Which, have I mentioned, I am very good at!! So if everybody will raise your mug, whether it be filled with coffee or hot cocoa, I would love to give a little toast. “Here’s to new beginnings, good friends and good health!!”

**I just wanted to clarify a few things before bidding you Happy Weekending. I have never smoked inside my house for those of you wondering about the quality and integrity of my work. And I probably wash my hands more than a surgeon. Kind of weird for such a clean freak to have such a dirty habit. It was a difficult choice to post about this personal struggle for the reason that this is not just a personal journal, but a reflection of revel Designs. It is just in me to be brutally honest with what is going on within me, inspirationally as well as directionally.**

I love different ways to display pictures of the kids. This is not really showing off the photos, but my sweet girls. I really enjoyed this project. It’s just nice to try something new. It was fun and easy, and I can’t wait to do the rest of the family.

First, I printed off a black and white photo of the girls. I would have preferred a darker and more defined copy, but my printer is not cooperating these days. I didn’t let that stop me. I colored some details in with colored pencils: putting color in their hair, blush on the cheeks, exaggerating thier lashes and color on the lips. I also changed their outfits with paint, marker and colored pencils.

After cutting them out, I glued them onto cardboard. I cut it out again, leaving about an inch of cardboard exposed at the bottom. I painted the back to cover the cardboard. When the paint was dry, I covered the front and back with Mod Podge and waited for it to dry. I used 3 springy clothespins attatched to the bottom to stand them up while drying.

For the body, I cut out 2 A-line skirt shapes per girl. I sewed them together leaving the top open. I boxed the corners so they would be able to stand up after being filled. I filled them with rice, folded in the raw edges(and glued the hem), and inserted the pictures of the girls. I closed them both 2 different ways to see which one I liked best. I used a craft glue to glue the fabric directly to the picture, being generous with the glue to ensure no rice would escape. The next one I stapled the fabric to the picture, then put glue around it to seal in the rice. They both ended up with same results, but I have to admit that stapling was easier. And since I added some embellishments, the staples do not show. After letting the glue dry for a bit, I added buttons on one and pom poms on the other with a hot glue gun. Finally, I embellished the faces with buttons and crystals for earrings.

A couple of things that I will do differently with the next ones: More exaggerated details on the face. The Mod Podge washes them out a bit. Of course, a darker print of the photo. Maybe some cute little arms. More rice!! The rice has settled a bit and they are not as firm as I would like them. Other than that, I love them. I know they kind of look like 2 little old ladies heading for a tea party, but I love them anyway. 

The Problem: The girls’ “apartment under the stairs” is in complete disarray. The plastic tubs that everything is stored in is just not working. They can never find what they are looking for. Always wearing a pair of mismatched high heels.

The Solution:  I took the bull by the horns and stitched it into a purse and jewelry organizer and matching shoe rack. Now they can actually see what they have got and accessorize accordingly! And while I was at it, I made my son a little something to store his school work, library books, and such. Now I can’t promise that this room will ever look like this again… but that’s a whole different problem!

For these projects, I used a set of curtains from Ikea that I found in the damaged section for around $7. Nothing at all wrong with them, except they were out of the package. These provided me with about 4 yards of heavy duty fabric!

 This year I want to start looking at the solutions, instead of dramatizing the problems. No matter how big or how small. Not enough time in the day? Turn off Project Runway and get busy! Isn’t that why we have Tivo, anyway? Complaining about the baby weight you put on 10 years ago? Bundle up the kids and go out for a waddle!

The Problem: I can never find anything in the abyss that I call my purse. And the stray diapers and wipes in a baggie don’t help. I haven’t carried a diaper bag for quite some time, but my youngest is still in diapers.

The Solution: A handy diaper and wipes case! This holds a travel size wipes case and 2-3 diapers. It’s great to leave with the nursery, a sitter, or my mom! It definately does its job in style, but let’s be honest… anything beats the plastic baggie!

After frantically sewing so many gifts, I’m feeling a little burnt out. Yes, I love to sew, but with a deadline, it’s starting to feel a little too much like work. So I decided to take the day off from Santa’s workshop and work on something that has been laying on my floor for a month or so.

These are a set of drawers that I picked up from Ikea. I finally got around to putting them together. After painstakingly cutting out paper to go on each drawer, I used Mod Podge to attatch the Amy Butler scrapbook paper to the fronts of the drawers. The first couple didn’t quite go as planned. I used the Mod Podge without diluting it to attatch the paper to the drawer and put Mod Podge on the front without letting it dry first. This created bubbles, even though I ran over the front with a straight edge to get the air bubbles out. So I decided to let the glue dry before I covered the entire fronts. I love the way they turned out. The Mod Podge creates a shiny, but not too glossy, coat over the paper.

And the best thing is that the drawers are completely reversible! My girls are having loads of fun deciding what design they want to create. This was my 1st successful attempt at decoupage, and I can’t wait to try it again. Next time using fabric.

The Christmas season is in full swing and it’s finally chilly outside! It’s been almost 80* around here. The person who wrote “Winter Wonderland” was definately not from Texas.  I have been taking another unexpected blog break. I have been baking, decorating, and enjoying some Christmas crafts with the kids. I have managed to sqeeze some sewing in here and there. Mainly gifts for friends and family. I am doing the best I can to make it a handmade Christmas. I’m about 75-25%. 25 being store bought. Hey, cut me some slack, I’ve got a 10 year old boy on my hands. I didn’t think sewing him a case for the X box would be very practical. If anyone has any suggestions, I would be more than happy to hear them. There’s always next year. These are a few of the maxi and mini patchfolios I have whipped up using Craft Apple’s patterns. Many more to go!

I have just finished packing up my Holiday Tradition Swap box. And on the deadline, no less. I would like to say that last minute is not my style, but these days it seems to be the trend. It was such a fun swap. I sent candles, pajamas for her little one, hot cocoa, and my favorite Christmas cd from Banana Republic a few years back. I also sent some of these yummies, which has always been a family favorite from my Grandma.

These were my handmade gift. Gift card holders. Hopefully, these will continue to be used and passed along. That’s why I didn’t want to make them very “Christmasy”. I used a very nifty felting tool that a friend gave me. I love it! It was so fast and easy to use and the possibilities are endless!

And finally, I have been tagged twice by Creative Kismet and Woodmouse to post 8 things about myself. If you’ve read my meme, there’s not much else to say, but I’ll try.

1.  I created a compilation cd to give as gifts. My favorite playlist, at the moment. If anyone would like one, just email me and pay for postage.

2. I am a bit of a control freak when it comes to holiday decorating. You’ve heard of the “Soup Nazi”, well it’s on that scale. I did get the kids their own 3 ft. tree to hang whatever they want on it. The big one is off limits!

3.  I loathe cooking on a daily basis. I love to cook for entertaining and other special occasions. But when it comes to trying to come up with dinner every night, I am always racking my brain.

4. Speaking of food… I love good ol’ country food. Growing up Vietnamese, I didn’t eat much of that stuff. It wasn’t until I was married that I had my first chicken fried steak. And it’s been a love affair ever since. 

5.  I am really quite shy. I have always been the sort of person who waits to be talked to first. But I’m working on it!

6. I never did like the name Cindy. I don’t feel like a Cindy. I don’t know what name I would pick, but I just know that Cindy doesn’t feel exactly right.

7. I love to do craft shows! It helps with #5.

8. I am a Christian, a wife, a mother, a daughter, a sister, a friend, an artist. In that order. Everything else is just icing on the cake.

My last post was Halloween and now November is half gone. When I found out that next week is Thanksgiving, I almost didn’t believe it. I’m a bit frazzled right now with Christmas around the corner. Someday I’ll start preparing for the holidays at the beginning of the year. I’m beginning to realize that my dreams of grandeur for this season are only that. Reality check! Priority checklist!

This is an advent calendar that I have been working on. I was going for the Scandinavian look. A simple, monochromatic look. I’m pretty pleased with it, but it is definately not what I had envisioned. I was planning to hand embroider the designs on there. After about an hour, I decided that this was not the right project to be practicing on.

Along with the many projects I have in the works, I put my husband to work on my website. I am so impressed by the work that he has done and how he has tranlated my style onto the page. Not to mention using my own graphics! I am so grateful to have this talented and supportive man in my life. So please check it out. I’ve got a few new products on there, but not as many as I’d like after a wonderful show a couple of weeks ago. But hey! I’m definately not complaining. It still needs a little tweeking, but it’s up. At some point I need to rewrite the little tidbit about me. Hubby apparently doesn’t like my “moon goddess” version. What do you think? It’s so hard to pinpoint or describe my genre. I am very mood affected when it comes to creating. I guess I just want to get across the point that “ordinary doesn’t have to be ordinary”. So please have a looksie and don’t be afraid to leave me any feedback.

 We are hosting Thanksgiving Dinner at our house this year. I am so excited, but at the same time I did just realize that Thanksgiving is next week. Figuring out what to cook is never a problem. I have finalized my traditional feast. Found the best of the best! And it has stood the test of time for several years now. I like that. Knowing exactly what to expect and it’s my one time of year that I can take the guess work out. 364 of the other days of the year are spent experimenting. This time of year always brings me to thoughts of tradition and what I want my children to remember and look forward to thru the years. Today I bought an electric hand mixer for my girls. When I have thoughts of baking with my grandmother, using the hand mixer vividly stands out. Well, I didn’t get the response I was hoping for. They were scared to death of it. Spoiled by the whir of the stand mixer. But I didn’t hear any complaints while they were licking the beaters.  Another gadget that I recently purchased is the Vidalia Chop Wizard. One of those “As Seen on TV” items. I saw it dozens of times before I finally broke down and spent the $20 on it. I love it! Now the kids can safely chop veggies for dinner. It is so wonderful to able to share that time together while they are actually helping me, instead of driving me cuckoo!

This jar was full at the beginning of October!

I made the caramel recipe from Randi. It was the best I’ve ever made. I’ve used way too many caramel recipes where the caramel “slips” off of the apple. This one was perfect! We made chocolate dipped caramel apples for Mia’s ballet class. Some dipped in chocolate and walnuts and some dipped in chocolate with chocolate pearls. Yum!!

We topped them off with these cute pumpkin and kitty printouts from My Paper Crane.

After a trip to the pumpkin patch we were ready to carve our pumpkins. A monogramed pumpkin for me, a kitty, Spongebob, Plankton, and a 2 faced pumpkin by Aaron!

And finally, I always knew it was a zoo at our house, but this is proof!

To market, to market to Houston we went;
Home again, home again, jiggety-jent.
To market, to market, both Linda and I;
Home again, home again, jiggety-jye.

 I had the pleasure of going to Quilt Market yesterday in Houston. We were like giddy school girls! It was so exciting to be able to go. By ourselves!! I don’t get many chances to enjoy myself without the whole famoo.(family, in case you don’t know what a famoo is) I had such a great time walking around at my own pace. Here are a few highlights from Market.

We snapped a couple of photos with Heather Bailey.  She is actually crouching down a bit. She is tall! Not to mention stylish and beautiful. She seemed like a really sweet person.

This is our little masked crusader at the Michael Miller booth where her patterns and products were displayed. I felt like such a proud Mama. I was so excited for her.

This was the highlight of the day. We got a new signed copy of Amy Butler’s book and a good photo. Do I look dorkily happy enough? Why is everyone so tall? Is it me?

We met a couple of new designers that really stood out. Tina Givens , who is with Free Spirit, had some really gorgeous and vibrant new fabrics coming out. She was a really lovely lady.

I didn’t catch her name, but we met this cute Japanese Jersey Girl whose line was Hoodie’s. She had some amazing patterns and worked wonders with a collection of really great vintage fabrics.

We also stopped by Leisl’s booth, Oliver + S. Her patterns and packaging are a cut above the rest. I loved the vintage concept with a modern flair. I will definately be testing those patterns out!

I loved looking at people’s booth space. It is amazing to me how they transform nothing into these beautiful spaces. I wish I had some pics, but I was too busy being in awe. Amy Butler’s had a cool lounge feel. Tina Givens’ space was fun and elegant in browns and whites. Oliver + S’ was clean, crisp and fun.

I had an amazing time and I can’t wait to go again. It was worth the trek. Nine hours of driving, but I could have went a few more. There’s no one else I would have rather went with. I guess your prayer worked?!