i can't think of a better way to spend Valentine's day than enjoying a spot of tea with my favorite loved ones. use these "be mine" tags to transform your favorite tea into something a bit more festive this holiday. and if tea is just not your thing, they would certainly be lovely attached to a box of chocolates.
enjoy!
konnichiwa! with CHA on the horizon the BasicGrey blog has been ramping up with exciting sneak peaks of their fabulous upcoming products. i'm thrilled to reveal i'll have 2 lines included in their 2012 winter release! the first line, Konnichiwa, is a product of my obsession with japanese kawaii. i find endless inspiration in the graphic simplicity of this childlike look. it's a good thing T keeps my hoarding in check, otherwise our house would be overflowing with products from the empire of cute, Sanrio! i'm continuously making up for all those teen years spent moping around in black.
The second line is Whats Up! with three toddlers and a full time job my jet setting days are somewhat limited, but a girl can dream of a day when there's time to be whisked away on a hot air balloon adventure. I started this line shortly after the birth of my son, Oliver (affectionately known as Pi), in hopes of creating something a little less girlie than my normal creations... was i succesfull? eh, kinda-sorta-maybe. florals can be found, but it's not quite kawaii! and the theme will be perfect for his 2nd birthday party. fyi, leave a message on the BasicGrey blog before midnight tonight for a chance to win this collection before it's in stores! who wouldn't won't those toothpick flags and mini envelopes?!
cheers.
{imagery courtesy of BasicGrey}
Something about the holidays always fills me with an increased desire to do anonymous acts of kindness. A trait surely inherited from the example of my incredibly generous parents. growing up, there were countless "troubled" kids they took in, sub-for-santa's we worked on together, and families in need we surprised. Even now, my parents only request for Christmas is that my 4 siblings and i participate in some sort of service project or charitable donation. As something i look forward to every year, i hope to instill the same spirit of thoughtfulness in my own children. We never know how much even just one small act can mean to someone, especially those who are lonely or in need. In that spirit, I though this gift tag would be lovely for anyone feeling inspired to anonymously pay it forward in some way, even if it's just a loaf of fresh baked bread or treats for a special neighbor. click on the link below to download and enjoy!
{ pictured above are images of a small token the littles and i created for her first grade class earlier this week. so much fun to see how excited all the kids were as they came running out of school at the end of the day! the paper used is from the "Eskimo Kisses" line i created for BasicGrey. }
Anyone living in arctic temperatures like me and in need of a solution to their barren flower pots? good news, i stole a festive idea from my mom! quick, easy, and most importantly maintenance free. Simply spread a bag of cranberries over the dirt ... and then "put a bird on it", of course.
This sweet little last minute halloween freebie is brought to you by my creative six year old daughter. As i was packing her up for school last week she sketched up a funky little heart and proudly showed me. Checking on her progress a few minutes later, i discovered she had filled the shape with a web, including a bitty spider hanging down in the center.
I loved her concept of combining something sweet with something scary, so i asked if we could collaborate and make the design into a freebie project on my blog. needless to say she was thrilled. after a quick lesson in illustrator, and a bit of guidance to finish up, she re-drew her artwork on the computer, and i adapted it into a design for tiny Halloween treat bags. talk about mother-daughter artistic bonding!
To create the bags pictured, the black & white designs were printed on kraft paper for more of an aged feel. I then stitched the co-ordinating tag onto the bags with black thread (If you're feeling overly ambitious, it's a nice touch that complements the web theme!). enjoy.
I have vivid memories of my mom spending entire afternoons bottling the fresh peaches, apricots, cherries, grapes, & tomatoes from our yard. as a young child i didn't understand the attraction of slaving over a hot stove on a sweltering summer day, but i always enjoyed the results. and now that i'm a mom, with a garden and beautiful fruit trees of my own, i realize how much love went into each and every one of those jars. so last year i started learning the age old art of preserving, and i must say there's nothing more satisfying than the familiar "pop" of a freshly sealed jar.
this week was harvest time for our apricot tree. a late snow (mid june!!) killed off most of the blossoms on our neighborhood trees, but luckily our little fighter was able to make it through with some beautiful fruit. a few days ago the littles and i filled our buckets to the brim, and with the help of nana we whipped up a couple batches of fresh apricot jam. (we particularly liked the pineapple-apricot recipe from the kraft website)
cupcake wrappers or fabric swatches make lovely quick & easy toppers, but the artist in me needed custom labels. so while i set to work on a design, the littles sat down with a bowl of jam and ritz crackers (a favorite treat at our home for sure). while packaging up our goods in preparation to share with loved ones, my 3 & 5 year old daughters took it upon themselves to help with the "dress ups", and surprised me with foam stickers adorning a few of the bottles. such an adorable touch that i never would have thought of, and a fun way to involved the kids in another step of the process. hopefully as adults, when they hear that familiar "pop", they'll be inundated with childhood memories of beautiful summer days spent in the garden (& in the craft room!) with their mother.
to spread the love even further, included below is a free download for the labels we used in our project. enjoy!
lastly, in the interest of full disclosure, i must admit the entire bottling process wasn't all rainbows and unicorns perfect... in a whirlwind of scorching hot pans etc, i ended up melting the side of my precious vitamix!! eep. i won't be forgetting that experience soon enough.
my stylish mother was a fashion illustration major in college, how cool is that? (and the girl can sew like you wouldn't believe, she would be a prime candidate for Project Runway.) though she valiantly chose to raise my four siblings and i rather than join the workforce, her love for the craft lives on via myself and my sister (& frequent collaborator) nica. the above image is artwork we created last fall for Creating Keepsakes Magazine. the fashion influence is obvious, and i thought i would share a few of the many magnificent illustrators i find endlessly inspiring:
the incredible Erté
ruben toledo (a fixture in Nordstrom's branding)
and... too many more to mention. sigh. i hope you feel as enriched by these artists as i do.
Congrats to Lori P., whose comment was randomly selected to receive a free copy of the Creative Spaces Magazine, generously donated by Creating Keepsakes. For everyone else, don't forget they're offering free shipping in the US until 5.27.11! just enter coupon code SPACESBB.
Today marks the official release date of the lovely Megan Hoeppner's latest stroke of genius: Creative Spaces, a new special issue from the good peeps at CK magazine. who wouldn't love to take a peek inside the work spaces of other creative women? talk about inspiration. Not only was i lucky enough to have my space featured in the book, i was also asked to create the design, so today i'm doubly excited. my sister Nica and i even got to collaborate on some illustrations to sprinkle throughout the book, which means my hands were covered in paint and ink, something that doesn't happen nearly as frequently as i would like. (it also means my office looked nothing like the above photo... a little less calm, a little more chaos!)
below is a sneak peak of the actual magazine:
now for the best part, CK is generously donating a free copy of this fantastic new issue to one lucky reader! to enter, just leave a comment (i'd love to hear what you love about your own work spaces!), and a random winner will be chosen one week from today (people, that would be tuesday the 17th of may!). For everyone else they're offering a store coupon for free shipping in the US until 5/27/11, just enter coupon code SPACESBB.
La Bonne Vie (the delightful new patisserie at the Grand America Hotel) needed a custom package for their specialty Valentine's treats, and the good peeps at Struck/Axiom recruited my help. loved getting to work on this project (understatement!). running wild with patterns is absolutely my favorite thing, and it's not everyday a client will spring for luxurious metallic paper & ink. i feel so blessed having the opportunity to work with such immensely talented and inspiring people.
creating beautiful things for appreciative clients :: love.
