je t'aime, blissfulmama

new goodies...

2008-01-22T00:33:00.000-06:00

I've got nine items listed on the etsy shop now. sadly, no new sales to report though.

here's some pics of the new items:

(my favorite)

etsy update...

2008-01-18T23:57:00.000-06:00

all of the original three items I posted sold within 24 hours! i've relisted the mini notecard set and I'm going to spend my two days off working on some more items to list. If I can get a decent stockpile I may purchase some shop pimpin' showcase listings or maybe even a swap-bot ad.

I tinkered around and came up with a banner for the store and a new icon.

I'm pretty happy with them. I may change it again though, just cause I'd really like to incorporate a bird somehow.

blissful's etsy shop has arrived!

2008-01-17T23:13:00.000-06:00

I've been toying around with the idea of opening an etsy shop for a while now. I finally did it!

sursum corda, an etsy shop

I listed three valentines themed items to start with...just to see how it would go. The red & aqua heart from below, along with these:

the three cards were listed as a set and already sold! thank you Cate (a swapping friend) for the order.

I'll have to figure out the pricing. I think I priced things fairly.

love is in the air...

2008-01-17T12:10:00.000-06:00

these are the 3" x 3" valentines I created for the oh so charming itty bitty valentine swap, hosted by Mary Ann on flickr.

I created pieces in four different styles: shabby chic, sophisticated, retro, and vintage. I am really pleased with how they turned out.

I've also made a few valentines stuffies:

and my favorite:

The first two were made with a specific destination. I'm tinkering with posting the third one up on etsy to see if anyone would buy it. I need to make up a cute card that would come with it. Hmmm...perhaps.

white itty bitty book...

2008-01-16T13:34:00.000-06:00

these are my pages for the white itty bitty book swap, hosted by Danielle of The Vintage Dragonfly. there were 26 participants who each created 26 color copies of their original take on the theme, which was simply "white". you then had to embellish each of the 26 copies and send them to the hostess. she is binding the books for us. I cannot wait to see how the book turned out.

I altered a matchbox and decorated it with a dragonfly as a thank you gift for Danielle:

so pretty!

2008-01-13T03:13:00.000-06:00

luvs2sew made these beauties herself! I love them! What a creative idea Beth!

a few favorites

2008-01-09T08:53:00.000-06:00

last year for Christmas I got my dream camera, a Nikon D40. I've been actively asking for a digital SLR for literally 8 years. I am so lucky to have finally received one...thanks to Tim, my parents, and my inlaws!

Towards the middle of this past year I finally had some time to actually take some pictures with it. As you can see, the photos are amazing. I hope to spend more time learning how to utilize the camera fully this year.

the dreaded "r" word...

2008-01-09T00:53:00.000-06:00

well, you know resolutions = failure so much of the time, I think I try to avoid them. but there is such a purpose and power behind them. so I decided to post them publicly for posterity's sake and for my sake. I realized I browse my past blog posts often enough for this post to possibly prove effective of reminding me what I need to do to make me a better & happier me this year!

- be organized and neat
- be on time
- spend more quality time with my babe
- spend more time thinking about how to live life to the fullest and then execute those ideas
- open an etsy store in time for Christmas shoppers
- learn to sew
- make a quilt

If I could actually get it together enough to pull each of those resolutions off, I would be so very pleased. It's a lofty list, but I've got almost a whole year!

whimsy pages...fini!

2008-01-06T10:36:00.000-06:00

"underlying beauty"

"retro sweet"

"vintage play"

"have your cake"

photo notecards...

2008-01-05T17:55:00.000-06:00

I love the way these turned out. My flickr prints came quicker than I anticipated and they look great! Matte prints are so much more pleasing.

chunky book pages

2008-01-03T08:57:00.000-06:00

the theme was anything whimsical...I still have to make two additional sets of two, but these puppies were quite a time consuming undertaking. hope to get at least two more done tonight along with finishing up 2 mini whimsy jars, and my January Coloriffic package.

secret santa fun...

2008-01-01T23:40:00.000-06:00

I was part of the FAA Secret Santa swap this year. My partner's favorite colors are blue, green, and white. She loves birds, birdhouses, and Christmas whimsy...

I found a tutorial for a tree like this from Roxy Craft. I think my interpretation turned out cute!

I wish I'd discovered the tutorial earlier in the season. Oh well...next Christmas I'll have a great project for handmade gifties. I'd really like to have an etsy shop up by next Thanksgiving.

the goodies, all wrapped up.

a peek at the rest of the goodies I sent.

yummm...

2007-12-31T01:18:00.000-06:00

black and tan's enjoyed with good friends...a fine way to spend a chilly day and close out 2007.

I love the way this photo came out. I think it's postcard worthy. If anyone has a phrase or quote that might work well with these beers, please post a comment to share.

melts my heart...

2007-12-27T20:48:00.000-06:00

my girl is really no longer a baby in any way. she's four now! and so sweet and smart and kind and silly and funny. it seems like everyday she does or says something that totally blows me away. I really miss being able to stay home with her. she'll be off to school before I know it.

I gave my parents an 8x10 print of the photo above for christmas and have a 4x6 on my desk at work. she's such a great subject. It's really not hard to take great photos of someone so beautiful

mermaid ornie...

2007-12-22T12:35:00.000-06:00

this was part of a private swap with RoseHips. she loves mermaids. I knew I wanted to do an ornament, and had several ideas on how to pull it off. after several unsuccessful attempts, I came up with this:

I am happy with how it turned out.

current project...

2007-12-21T12:46:00.000-06:00

I'm in the January Coloriffic Swap-O-Rama Swap and the theme is black. It was hard for me to envision what I would include in my package at first. Then after a trip to Hobby Lobby, I had a vision...and a ton of really cool black goodies. It turned out to be sort of a vintage/French feeling going on.

You must include at least one handmade item. I randomly was assigned the same partner that I got in December, so I didn't want to send another felt ornie (my current crafting staple). I had bought some nice heavy & textured blank black notecards and envies on sale at Michael's a while back, so I decided I'd do handmade notecards. I was inspired by the beautiful cards Spiced Coffee sent to me in the November Couleurs De Vie swap:

see bottom right corner

So I decided to take some of my flower photos and convert them to black and white. I added some inspiring quote and placed a print order with flickr. My first one. I opted for the mail service rather than picking up the prints in Target, as you can only get matte prints via mail service. I prefer matte prints enough to wait the ridiculously long 7-10 days for standard delivery.

ATC's...

2007-12-13T03:10:00.000-06:00

...when I dipped back into crafting via 1001 journals, postcardx.net, and swap-bot.com I kept seeing ATC everywhere and I had no clue what it was. I had to google it.

an ATC is an Artist Trading Card. It's 2.5" x 3.5", just like a standard sports trading card. Only difference is they represent you in an artistic sense. They are like a combo of a mini canvas and a business card. They are always supposed to be traded, never sold (although there is another type ACEO or something that people do sell for $3-10 a piece). The concept is to meet other artists and trade cards while networking.

I've only had the chance to trade ATC's through the mail. I've heard of large ATC's meet ups. Maybe I'll do that some day.

I've not really made too many ATC's though. My first few didn't really seem worthy of photographing. I've probably made about 10-15 of them.

Here are the most recent, for an "Anything French" swap:

the 2 on the bottom went to the swap host, and the two on top to another swapper

And the one's before that:

this is one of my all time faves so far. went to Lily Lemon, which is fitting, as I received my first and some of my favorite ATC's from her.

this one went to FerretLady.

so they are getting better. I have a couple of ATC swaps I need to get cracking on. they are nice because I can finish one or maybe two in a few hours.

embroidery project

2007-12-11T20:58:00.000-06:00

so I created my first real embroidery project and sent it off in a swap. well the package went AWOL and was never received. I felt so bad and irritated too. so I created a replacement swap. the funny thing is, this project was obviously more polished. maybe it was a good thing the first one got lost in the mail. lol.

the swap theme was cranberry, cocoa, sage green, and golden yellow. i embroidered a floral design incorporating those colors and used the piece as a sleeve for a blank journal. I incorporated golden yellow beads into the floral design.

I am really pleased with how it came out. I am looking forward to the next embroidery project. My only trouble is the back of my work is so sloppy! I don't have the patience to tie things off as much as I should, so the backsides are anything but pretty. also, embroidering has made me realize I need to get my eyes checked. lol.

another birdie ornie...

2007-12-09T23:16:00.000-06:00

i transformed another of the $0.25 wooden bird cutouts into a pretty little ornament. this one is for my November Couluers de Vie swap. the theme was black, grass green, and bright pink.

the whole swap I sent

beach trip...

2007-11-18T21:43:00.000-06:00

Eden and I escaped town for a few days and went to Port Aransas with my parents. it was really nice to get out of town for a few days. the weather was iffy, but we knew we wouldn't be swimming or anything. we had such a great view of the beach from our room that I never even went down to the beach....just spent a lot of time on the porch.

For The Birds...

2007-11-13T23:09:00.000-06:00

tangledthreads hosted a private bird themed matchbox swap that I couldn't resist. I sent to OrigamiGrace. I really loved how it turned out...one of those projects you hate to send away cause you love it so much. here are a few pics:

birdie ornie...

2007-11-12T11:39:00.000-06:00

I've been bird crazy lately. they are my new obsession. lol.

I made this ornament from a wooden cutout that cost $0.25 at the craft store. it turned out really cute. I wasn't sure who it would go to, since I've got a ton of bird swaps going right now, but I think I've decided it'll be part of my birdie onebie package.

5 things...

2007-11-07T00:22:00.000-06:00

I found a new swapping group that is so much fun! the concept is 6 people create 5 handcrafted items (for example 5 sets of notecards, 5 pincushions, etc.) based on a certain theme, then send them to the host of the swap. Once all the participants items have been received the host created packages that include 1 of each of the items from each of the participants. Then all the participants receive a package that has 5 other crafter's take on the theme.

5 Things Flickr Group

I jumped right in and started hosting two 5 Things swaps of my own:

cherry blossoms!

aqua, red, and buttons

this is the first of the 5 things I'll be making for the red, aqua, buttons swap

lilies

2007-10-24T11:18:00.000-05:00

these are from a bouquet sent to me by the lovely suzanne. they were a lovely surprise! she's a peach, for sure.

floral bliss...

2007-10-19T08:47:00.000-05:00

a few floral shots i've captured recently for your viewing pleasure. some of these will likely be made into postcards. maybe i'll throw them up on etsy. hmmm.

nearly black.

beauty...in raging red

tulip explosion.

pretty in pink

red bud and iron

blissful ISO muse

2007-10-19T08:35:00.000-05:00

muse [myooz] verb, mused, mus·ing.
–verb (used without object)
1. to think or meditate in silence, as on some subject.
2. Archaic. to gaze meditatively or wonderingly.
–verb (used with object)
3. to meditate on.
4. to comment thoughtfully or ruminate upon.

Muse [myooz]
–noun
1. Classical Mythology.
a. any of a number of sister goddesses, originally given as Aoede (song), Melete (meditation), and Mneme (memory), but latterly and more commonly as the nine daughters of Zeus and Mnemosyne who presided over various arts: Calliope (epic poetry), Clio (history), Erato (lyric poetry), Euterpe (music), Melpomene (tragedy), Polyhymnia (religious music), Terpsichore (dance), Thalia (comedy), and Urania (astronomy); identified by the Romans with the Camenae.
b. any goddess presiding over a particular art.
2. (sometimes lowercase) the goddess or the power regarded as inspiring a poet, artist, thinker, or the like.
3. (lowercase) the genius or powers characteristic of a poet.

Muse
n.
A guiding spirit.A source of inspiration.

muse
noun
1. in ancient Greek mythology any of 9 daughters of Zeus and Mnemosyne; protector of an art or science
2. the source of an artist's inspiration

verb1. reflect deeply on a subject

thank you dictionary.com! i love to find a word a love and learn exactly what it mean. i know, i'm weird. lol.

http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/muse#sharethis

beautiful spirituality...

2007-10-05T23:55:00.000-05:00

we ventured out to a Mediterranean festival hosted by a local church. there was great music, sticky and delicious baklava, and some great wine to be had. the church was also open for tours. I cannot remember the exact denomination of the church, but it was gorgeous.

faith aflame

nighttime church

foto fun...

2007-10-02T22:47:00.000-05:00

this one has a vintage feel

silhouettes

tangerine dreams and marmalade skies

silliness in teal

my loves

crafties...

2007-10-01T20:23:00.000-05:00

I've dipped into chunky book pages. they are such fun! the concept of a chunky book is really neat. it's a compilation of pages from different artists based on a theme. they're called chunky books because of embellishments and 3-D elements added to the pages. There are also often embellishments that extend off the edge of the pages. They can be bound professionally at copy stores or hand bound with rings and a hole punch. Here are some examples of chunky books:

chunky book

valentines chunky book

The one's I made are for a circular chunky book in a bird theme. I really love how mine turned out. Here are a few of them:

This swap is for 5 pages, so I'll have to do some more circular page swaps to get enough pages for a book. Can't wait to put them all together into a book.

If anyone is interested in a circular chunky book page swap, feel free to leave a comment!

self portrait

2007-09-20T07:51:00.000-05:00

I was part of a self portrait swap and this in what I sent...

i am definitely not a portrait artist. I think I'll stick to my papercrafting. Lol. It's always noses that give me trouble. I just can't get them to have any depth. They either turn out looking pigish or like they are sinking into the face.

A Pro...

2007-09-19T07:44:00.000-05:00

...fessional that is. Or I feel that way anyhow.

I have been awarded my first sizable bonus! After busting my hump for over a year, making every effort to go above and beyond and working on a special team that dealt with escalation type issues, it's paid off!

Finally getting something for all that extra is really nice. The beauty of the bonus was that it was totally unexpected. Such a lovely surprise! And the kudos that came a long with it were just as sweet as the cash I'll be getting on my next check.

....750....

I'm heading to Ikea with a small chunk of it to purchase a workspace/storage solution for my crafties, which have taken over at the casa. Some sorta solution has been much needed for the past couple of months.

And the rest of it will go into the land/house tax fund. How thrilling and exciting, heh?

Tim got a bonus too. Bigger than mine. He teetered with the idea of getting an HD TV, but that woulda used pretty much all of his $$$ and we've been talking about buying a Mac for a while. It looks like we'll be purchasing a sparkling white MacBook for me! Now that I'm a bonafide Apple employee, I get a 25% discount.

Now the quest for a pretty but functional carrying case for my white beauty begins...

my happy pill...

2007-09-12T23:04:00.000-05:00

My girl's the sweetest. She's most likely made me smile more than any other person, ever. Each day she does or says something that blows my mind. Each day she grows up a little bit. She currently is scared to grow up and move away. She wants to live with her mama and papa forever, even if she gets married. Oh the irony. We're enjoying it while it lasts though.

A while back I finally got a chance to use my camera in a non-rushed setting. We did about a half hour photo shoot at Sacha's. Such lovely landscaping!

My favorite shot from this fun shoot.

She's totally faking...she won't eat tomatoes.

You can see the whole set via a slideshow here.

"Missy", flickr style!

2007-09-12T13:09:00.001-05:00

I found this nifty trick on Heather's (winemakerssister) blog and loved it! You really should try it. You can click each letter and change the style til ya get it perfected. Fun, fun, frivolousness!

TRY ME!

my first altered journal...

2007-09-05T23:18:00.000-05:00

this was created especially for wyld_ivy, as she requested a small altered journal in the swap-bot Crafy PIB tag game. it's not too small, but she loves plants and works at a nursery, and I loved the theme & colors inside. she also loves fairies.

I used fabric, ribbon, silver letter stickers, cardstock, and a metal embellishment. i think it turned out ok and wyld_ivy liked it.

Front Cover:

Side View:

reeling...

2007-09-05T08:00:00.000-05:00

Soft yet strong; and a little bit crazy
It's oh so intriguing
Private stuff, a secret spark
Smiling with pretty eyes, innocent at times
Touching me in the most unexpected ways
Truth is included, obtrusive, elusive
Laughter like throwing your head back and giving into joy
A kiss and then I'm running
Free like the wind…free like a child
What else is pleasure?
A kiss and I give in, but then it's gone again
Irony and tears and an embrace
All the way.
Beautiful thoughts shimmering out loud
It begins in a most pleasant way

(this is a repost of a poem I wrote, which was posted to my myspace blog on 03/23/07. It was the only thing worth bringing over here.)

pay it forward!

2007-09-04T11:51:00.000-05:00

The first three people that leave a comment and pledge to pay it forward to three others will receive just-for-you handmade gift from me within one year of this posting.

This was snagged from cherrythepig's blog (http://notcherrypie.blogspot.com/). This is such a great idea! Whatca waitin' for? Comment & pay it forward on your own blog already!

well...here it is!

2007-09-04T11:43:00.000-05:00

I've been meaning to start a blog for like...ummmm...years.

I should begin by apologizing up front for my addiction to ellipses. I cannot help but use them more than the average user. They just signify what's going on in my brain so well.

dot. dot. dot.

I imagine this will mostly be crafty type stuff here. Perhaps some writing. Ooooh, and of course photos. I can hardly wait!

Thank to cherrythepig for prompting me to finally get off my butt and get one up. See next post for the inspiration...