Back in the Shop

Hello!  I'm excited to share that last week's LoLa Art Crawl was a success- I had so much fun, got to hang out with my sister-in-law, and met a ton of new people!

Now that the art crawl is over, I'm working on adding my pieces to my Etsy shop.  Hop on over to check it out.  So far, I have added my pugs and donut bookmarks, but check back often at the shop or the blog because I'll be adding more pieces each week!

Gearing Up for LoLa

Hello!  I have been working like a mad woman to get ready for the LoLa Art Crawl.  I cannot believe it is this weekend!!  My sister-in-law, Sonya, and I will be at Site 43, so if you're in the Twin Cities area, you should definitely come by and take a peek!

Along with my bookmarks, I'll also be selling these hand painted coffee mugs.  I didn't notice it as I was making them, but there is definitely a theme here.  I'm calling them my "Rough Morning" mugs because sometimes, no.... just - no.

DIY Pug Bookmark

I have been crazy busy lately!  Between trying to get ready for the LoLa Art Crawl and the school year starting back up again, I'm feeling really overwhelmed.  Fortunately, my students are awesome, and when I'm working on my crafting I get to stare at puppy faces all day :)

Here's a step by step on how I make the pugs:

It's a little hard to tell in the pictures the amount of detail on the nose- it's my favorite part though.  I roll the clay out thin with pointed ends, then curve it inward at both ends to make the nose.  Then I add a bunch of tiny little dots to add the puppy dog nose texture.  I think they're really cute!

DIY Ladybug Bookmark

Lady bugs are maybe the cutest bugs around.  They've gotten a bit of a bad rep for being biters, but they really aren't.  The biting bugs are Japanese beetles, adorable imposters who are kind of like the lady bug's evil twin.  But the real lady bugs?  Those I love!  And I love making them as bookmarks- it's quick and easy to do.  I even like making them pink instead of red :)  The only thing to be sure of is that you use an all metal paper clip.  If you use one of the colored paper clips, it will melt in the oven.  Yuck!

DIY Teddy Bear Bookmark

I love teddy bears!  When I was younger, I had heaps of stuffed animals, but my favorite were teddy bears.  I even collected them at one point.  So, it was a no brainer that I was going to make some bear bookmarks for the craft show.  Here is a step by step on how to make your own using polymer clay!

I'm back! (with a DIY bookmark)

Hi guys :)  So, I had a bit of an unplanned and unannounced absence from the blogging world.  I began blogging about my crafts and recipes as a way to motivate myself to keep doing something I enjoyed.  But lately, I found myself coming up with things just so I could blog about them - it was backwards!  So, I'm going to be cutting back on my posts, only blogging when I have a good project to share.

Speaking of good projects... I'm going to be participating in the LoLa Art Crawl this year!  My sister-in-law is the one who is really hosting the booth, but she is letting me display some of my pieces (remember this coffee mug?).  I'm also making a bunch of bookmarks, because what is better than a cup of coffee (or tea) and a good book?  One of the bookmarks I'll be selling is this little octopus guy.  Here's how to make your own:

DIY 4th of July Food Flags

This cute little flag has so many uses!  You could use them to top cupcakes (or the delicious dessert that we had on Father's Day), label different types of cheeses or dips, or even place in a flower arrangement.  Depending on the paper you get, this can work for so many different holidays ,too!

I bought several sheets of scrapbook paper in a red, white, and blue color scheme.  Then, I simply cut them into strips and glue them around a tooth pick!  I made sure that the paper had different sizes of patterns and different background colors for variety.  Then, I brought them out to my parent's house and used them in the dessert mousse we had on Father's Day.