Friday Style: Valentine Accessory Guide

I love collaborating with my friend Ann on Style Watch layouts! We have a few Valentine themed ones to share with you. I am sooo excited for her up and coming shop debut! She is so talented:)

1) textilemonster.etsy.com , $22

2) misssmiranda.etsy.com , $26

3) & 4) Coming soon to: theartisann.etsy.com 

5) downandoutchic.etsy.com , $14

6) inhonorof.etsy.com , $10

Yay for the weekend! Last day to enter the giveaway! Excited to see who the winner is!

Thursday DIY: Print Your Own Valentines - Pt. 1

My family and I always traded Valentines growing up and we still hand make them for eachother. I wanted to share with you some of the fun printables I am making for them! This is a DIY 4x6 Valentine Envelope that you can fold, fill with surprises, and send in the mail! You can download the full size here!  - .jpg and.pdf files available. All you need is a color printer and cardstock!

Don't feel so crafty? Enter to win loads of fun Valentine items here! 

Happy Almost Weekend!

           

Wednesday Artistry: Lucky Bluebird Art

I immediately fell in love with this artist's work.... simply perfect prints for your home! She uses a beautiful color palate that allows you to mix and match the artwork side by side.

See more of this Louisiana girl's work here:

Lucky Bluebird Art 

P.S. Don't forget to enter the Valentine Paperie Giveaway by Friday!

       

Tuesday News: Valentine Paperie Giveaway!

Prize Package Includes:

1) Mini Owl Valentines - Set of 6 - Made by jackie 

2) Be Mine Vintage Inspired Card - Macaroni and Glue 

3) Edible Hearts for your Cupcakes - 2 oz.- Cupcake Social 

4) Red Heart Cupcake Liners- Set of 45 - Cupcake Social 

5) Valentine Heart Tags - Set of 8 - Snicklefritz & Pj 

6) Butterfly Valentine Greeting Card - Simply Inviting Cards 

7) XOXO Valentine Raffle Ticket Stickers - Set of 20 - Pink Twilight 

2nd Place Prize Includes:

Loves Me Paper Chain - Ormolu 

Love You Handmade Card - ljdesigncards & ljdesignphoto 

 These talented etsy artists have agreed to be a part of this fantastic giveaway! These items are to die for! So show them some love and visit their shops! You will be amazed at the other creations they have. The lucky winner will receive all you need for a fun filled Valentine's Day! You can use these items for your loved ones and have them wondering how you got so crafty:) 

* There will also be a 2nd name drawn for more fun gifts! Once the winner is announced, each of the prizes will be mailed to you by the artist!

To enter:

Leave a comment telling us how you will use these Valentine delights!

Additonal entries (leave a separate comment for each):

-Let me know if you became a new subscriber or follower.

- Share with your friends on twitter or facebook.

-Visit one of these shops and tell me which item is your favorite.

Contest ends Friday at Midnight! Winner will be drawn via Random.org and announced early next week! Good luck!

Monday Inspiration: Product Packaging Part 1

Since I started my etsy shop in September, I have been tweaking my product packaging as I go along. I pretty much have it where I want it to be...just working on labels. Along the way I have found some packaging examples that are inspiring to me for their originality, professionalism, and consistency with their shop design. Have a look! Which do you like best? Don't these want to make you order something from them? :D

1) MafeMaria 

2) OhHelloFriend 

3) EstaSketch 

4 & 5) Nice Package 

Stay tuned this week for an exciting giveaway!!! Happy Monday!

Friday Style: Spool No.72

I have been a fan for a while, so had to share some of my favorite items and what I would pair them with. The clever use of photo props and photography settings really makes SPOOL No. 72 stand out....and check out the originality of names!

1) No. 2 Pencil Sweater 

2.) Umber Ring 

3) Nubby Knit Sweater Vest 

4) Rugged Italian Leather Tote 

5) Bookwork Cardigan 

6) Fork and Knife Ring 

If you have a shop you recently found that you love, please tell me! Would love to feature them!

Have a beautiful weekend!

Thursday DIY: Happy Storage

I needed a few more jars for some odds n' ends in my wall unit. So here is my solution! There are so many ways you can use baby food jars. I am lucky to have them around right now due to my baby boy who loves to eat:) You really only need a few supplies and ten minutes to turn them into all purpose jars that are bright and fun to look at!

                             Baby Food Jars                              Optional Supplies:

                             Double Sided Tape                         Happy Tape 

                             Scissors                                       Round Gift Labels

                             Grosgrain Ribbon

5 Easy Steps:

1.) Clean out your baby jars and take off labels

2.) Pre-Cut your ribbon colors of choice

3.) Use Double-Sided Tape to wrap and secure around jars.

4.) If you are using lids, add labels or spray paint them.*See below*

5) Enjoy these happy storage units for any purpose you can think of!

If you want to embellish a little more, you can add happy tape , which I use all the time for my order packages. Its so functional and fun. Another idea if you want to use the lids for Penny jars for your kids, you can add a circle label on top (I got mine at Whimsy Press for gifts) or just spray paint them! Have fun!

Wednesday Artistry: ChristanP Photography

Happy to show you some beautiful work today from ChristanP photography. The lovely Allegra from from ChristanP & Frenchie&Flea approached me in December to do a little trade. So I ended up with some amazing product photography in exchange for some accessories:) What a difference! You can see more of her work in my etsy store. 

Allegra and her husband Christan make an incredible team, and you can see why:

Find more ChristanP Here:

Blog | Portfolio | Frenchie&Flea 

Tuesday News: Miracle in Haiti

I turn on the news each morning to hear updates about Haiti and it breaks my heart to see the pain and suffering that the survivors are going through. This was a story that brought a little joy to my day and I wanted to share it with you....

This is Michelle. Isn't she beautiful? She is a baby that survived 5 days in the rubble and is relatively unharmed. Doctors don't know how she survived that long, but her father knows. "God's Praises" is all he can say. 

Its been wonderful to see the different ways people are reaching out, pulling together, and making a difference as a nation. I have been discerning which way to give is best. My husband and I's friend from college is part of a Mission group, MWTS , which is receiving orphans and refugees daily. I feel like my hands are bound, and I wish I could be with those orphans and love on them, but my monetary donation will have to do! Thanks to many of you who have inspired me with the ways you are giving. That is what makes America beautiful.

Monday Inspiration: Work Space

I love to see different work spaces. Its cool to see the variation of style and inspiration that can motivate. I have a room in my house where I do my design and creativity work. I knew I would need organization,  photos, and lots of COLOR and light to inspire me and get me to work. So, here are a few pieces of the room I would like to share with you...

1) All in one storage wall unit. I purchased this at Michaels for a crazy deal. Its my dream unit! I have all kinds of space to store the little things I didn't now where else to put!

2) Photos - I have family and spiritual photos in every room to remind me what is most important. These are on top of a desk I bought at an auction and re-finished.

3) This is another item I picked up at an auction and converted it from Spice Rack to Organization Space! I just spray painted the exteriors with White Crackle Spray Paint. You can buy some here. 

4) My wonderful parents gave this cubbie to me for Christmas! I have it on my table for easy access to everything necessary- scissors, tape, markers, paint brushes, etc. Its spins around! Also available at Michaels. The perfect solution for every artist. :)

Would love to hear something about your work space! Have a lovely Monday!

Friday Style: Jessjamesjake Vintage

I am excited to introduce you to one of my new favorite Stylists - Jessjamesjake Vintage. This girl knows what she is doing! Her shop has a wide range of Vintage pieces... from shoes and accessories to dresses and T's! You will have to take a look and see why I have fallen for this fabulous etsy shop!

You can find more JessJamesJake Here:

Blog | Etsy | Twitter 

Thursday DIY: Free Printable To-Do List

If you are anything like me you are always writing To-Do Lists....its my only way of keeping track of what's in my head! I thought it would be nice to share with you a To-Do List I designed that had all the categories I needed and I can print it right at home when I need one! I had to make it look like Spring:) SEE BELOW ON HOW TO DOWNLOAD!

I have made a Two to a Page format for you to print and use! All you need is a printer!

Download the two to a page version HERE.

Download the single version HERE.

Wednesday Artistry: Raw Letter Press

I am loving the work from RAW ART LETTER PRESS . 

Check out there affordable prints!

Tuesday News: West Elm Giveaway + Treasury

Who doesn't love West Elm? You can win a gift card at Decor8!

 

Also, take a look at this beautiful treasury!! Thank you AddieDesigns for featuring my Vintage necklace! I am loving this color combination!

Monday Inspiration: For the Home

One of the places I love to find inspiration for my home is PotteryBarn . Since we are renting until we decide if we want to buy a house here, these are a few things I want to do to freshen up my home and hold me off for spring:) I usually will go to HomeGoods, Target, or Auctions to find similar items. I love having a DIY Challenge too:)

Where do you go for Space Inspiration? Hope you had a fabulous weekend!

Friday Style: Store Crush

I gave LOFT  a try over the break and fell in love....My sister Tricia works here, so she hooked me up with some fabulous deals:) These are just a few of the looks I am loving...

Have a healthy, happy weekend!

  

Thursday DIY: Improving Your Blog

As a new blogger, I had to do my own research on things I wanted to improve on my blog. So, I thought I would share some things that have been great resources for me...

1) Use Fun or Clean Fonts! Some fonts are way over-used. Its always refreshing to see something new. I guess that is the Graphic Designer in me. Its all about the TYPOGRAPHY. Here is a great place you can download free fonts of all kinds.  Like These:

2) Take off the word verification for comments.  There has been many times I have tried to leave comments on blogs and the word verification freezes or comes up after you already left the site, so I give up or miss the boat. If you are like me, you love hearing from your readers! You can remove it easily. Go to your blogger dashboard. Under the Settings Tab, there is a link to Comments.  Here there will be a question whether or not to allow word verification. It looks like this:

3) Design Elements and Webicons - Need a great resource for free webicons, vectors, and textures? I am going to let you in on one of my favorite graphic design resource websites...THINK DESIGN BLOG They are always offering fun FREEBIES.

4) Layout Variation -  A great place to find variations to the blogger.com templates is 3 Column Blogger This is how I found the step by step HTML guide to making my blog three columns. There are lots of other guides and it is EASY.

5) Share the Love- Everyone loves to hear from their readers. Visit your favorite blogs and encourage other bloggers, and the love will come around:)

Hope these tips help you in some way or other! Have any other good ones to share? LET ME KNOW! Have a wonderful Thursday!!