a gift...

as i was working in my studio one evening, i had a great idea to make a gift for my friend. (her birthday was in early july.) i wanted to make something she would use...so i pulled out some sketches and measurements from a project i was toying with months prior. i decided on a portfolio - functional, but beautiful.

here are the results of a few hours of labor and love:

i used japanese book cloth in her favorite colors to cover the entire piece. i wanted to have a nameplate of some kind and went with a handstitched spirograph piece with hearts (also her favorite).

the inside left side contains a pocket for various notes & a small strap to hold business cards. the right side has a couple of strips to hold a legal pad (see below).

this project was challenging and fun - i really love how beautifully this piece came out. i think i'll try making a few and putting them out on the market....

baby blankets

here's the pics of the blankets for the baby shower i mentioned last week. my friend is having twins - a boy & a girl! i thought they turned out pretty nice!

this one was made for the girl:

and this one for the boy:

i haven't made anything like this in quite some time. i used to crochet & knit all the time and have gotten so busy that i just haven't. i've missed it - it's kind of a relaxing thing for me to do. hubby just recently had a new nephew added to the family so i might be busting out some more blanket skills soon :)

baby shower

i'm going to a baby shower this weekend - the second one in the past month! and i've been working on a couple of baby blankets for my friend....who is having twins, a boy & girl! i finished the first little blanket last night and really like how it came out; i made it with the little girl in mind. the second one is still in process for the baby boy.

i'll try to post the pics of the both blankets soon.

is it just me, or is there a sudden boom of pregnant women? i know NINE people who are currently pregnant. pretty crazy.

one month

oh SNAP people! it's been a month since hubby & i got married. A MONTH!!! where did the time go?? seriously?

since i'm a freaking awesome wife (still sounds weird), i got hubby a little gift (click on pic for credit):
you're thinking "wooow that's soo coo....wait, what is it?" it's a pig tail food flipper, silly. you use these to nab steaks on the grill and flip them over. much better than tongs. they look weird, but i've seen these babies in action and they are pretty cool.

happy one month hubby! :)

my MOH gift

so i need to talk about my maid of honor jamie...she was AMAZING. seriously, she kept me sane and was SO organized and on top of every little detail. i have a hard time not worrying about...well, everything...so having someone i could depend on was such a relief. and she did so many things to make me feel special throughout the engagement and our wedding trip...i can't thank her enough for everything she's done.

i wanted to design something special for her...so i bounced some ideas off of her husband and decided to make her a jewelry box (for him to fill..heh heh). its the most complicated box i've made yet.

i used teal lokta paper with gold chrysanthemums to cover the box and a butter gold japanese bookcloth for the box hinge as well as lining the lid sides & the monogrammed "J".

the lid opens to a six sectioned, removable tray lined with teal paper, for smaller items like earrings & bracelets.

with the tray removed, the base of the box has four equal sections that are also lined in teal paper. the sides of the box and the walls separating the sections are covered with the teal lokta with gold mums.

i used the butter bookcloth to hand cut a monogram for jamie...i wanted to personalize her jewelry box without overdoing it.

so what do you think? i also tried something new with the photos (the idea inspired from pobke photography). have a wonderful weekend!

gift set!

we had so many people to thank for helping with our wedding and we wanted to give gifts that were personal & heartfelt. and me being so picky probably didn't help the gift choosing process...so, naturally, i decided to make the gifts.

for our parents, i made photo album box sets in our wedding colors - red & aqua! my parents set had aqua bookcloth & blue unryu paper inside the box. the unryu paper was SO amazing to work with - has lots of inclusions of threads & felt like fabric! hubby's parents set had fire engine red bookcloth & tomato red unryu paper inside the box. we gave hubby's parents their set during the rehearsal dinner, so i unfortunately didn't get pictures of it...

box cover

inside of box

box with album inside

box & album covers

the sets turned out beautifully - probably the most difficult sets i've done yet because they were so large (9" x 12") and the materials were much more challenging than past projects. hope you enjoyed the photos!

gift from my penpal!

my dear friend brandi (of not your average ordinary) sent me the coolest gift ever - and it was such a surprise! check out the packaging (YAY japanese masking tape):


this perfectly described my life in the last couple of years...i'm happier than i've ever been in my life. i have a wonderful life filled with lots of joy and love, from my bfff, my puppies, family & friends.

i'm in love with my best friend...and we are getting married in the near future, starting our happily ever after :)

and i'm home - since i left my parents home for college, i never really had that settled feeling of being home...until i moved in with bfff.

thank you brandi for such a sweet thoughtful gift. i can't wait to put it up in my studio :)

pay it forward gift!

i got this in mail a while ago...it's my pay it forward (the posts about pay it forward are here & here) gift from brand-eye!!!! and it is LOVELY. it was such a nice surprise and so gorgeous :)

go check out brand-eye's blog and see her lovely work! thanks so much! you made my day!