New Digs!

I recently moved into a new studio, outside my home. It's in a really neat building that used to be a run down motel. It's been redone with all kinds of cool eco features. There is a lot of natural light which is nice.

I will have an open studio soon and invite everyone by to take a look! In the meantime, here are some pics...

new puppy and closet cleaning

The little puppy has come to stay with us for the weekend to see how all get along. A woman we know found this litter of puppies dumped in the middle of a rural road. She guesses the puppies are a lab/border collie mix. The one who is visiting us is a docile pup with a sweet and curious nature. It stressed Zaphod out a little at first. Now he is feeling a little more relaxed but he is extra needy. Forest took to her immediately and started calling her Molly. They hung out together all day in his room. Tonight James was playing his harmonica and she started howling along. Oh my goodness, it was so cute. I actually got a little video of it.



I cleaned out my closet and drawers today. Feels pretty great. I loaded up about a dozen brown shopping bags with clothes, hats and old purses for Goodwill. I tried to use that rule that if you haven't worn it in the last year, it had to go. I only broke the rule for vintage pieces. I kept a box of vintage dresses I have collected that no longer fit me. Maybe, just maybe, someday.



Going through my dresser drawers was like digging through archaeological layers. Some of the things I found date back 10 or so year! I threw so much stuff away but in keeping with the vintage allowance, I kept all my vintage headscarves. Vintage never goes out of style.

Organization is nice.

I am really looking forward to working creatively in my newly reorganized studio this weekend. I have been working on some new designs this afternoon and it's been nice to be able to find stuff when I need it. What a luxury! I finished out the shelf and got more of the plastic drawers. The drawers really help space everything out. I saw this artist on Flickr who had all these drawers across her studio. I had immediate drawer lust. Drawers are good! The end.

Will someone please come take all the Christmas candy out of my house so I can stop eating it?

Christmas DIY

Christmas day has been awesome so far. We excitedly woke up to open presents only to discover we were completely out of coffee beans and with no grocery stores open. Panic! We got by on hot tea until a starbucks opened at noon. That's a pretty crazy circumstance for me considering I can't really think until I have coffee in the morning.

We were all super happy with our gifts. My favorite gifts from James were a couple of books on vintage jewelry. I have been wanting them for a while now. Forest was happy because he got a new Ipod to replace the last one that was stolen.

I spent the rest of the day hanging new shelves in my studio. I am proud because I installed them all by myself. The guy at the store gave me a tutorial on how to do it. I used the elfa system from container store. The shelf also has a desk part which will come in super handy. I still need to get a few more shelves to finish it out. The original plan didn't fit the room quite right so I had to make a few adjustments. Can't wait to get all my supplies organized after our trip.

Speaking of which, it's time to start packing!

Jewelry Boxes

This weekend I organized my own jewelry. I had purchased a big old jewelry box at a garage sale a while back but it needed a good cleaning out so I was putting it off. Then yesterday I went out for a little thrifting adventure and found another jewelry box. So, I came home and got busy cleaning them both out.

It was pretty fun going through all my jewelry. I found my charm bracelet which I thought was lost forever. I have vintage jewelry pieces that I bought when I was a teenager. My best friend in high school and I used to have so much fun going to garages sales. I am so glad I still have some of that jewelry! I also found a bunch of my early beaded necklaces (circa 1992) as well as some jewelry that was given to me as a gift from James and my mom. I am super sentimental about jewelry. I also have pieces from my grandmother's, both of whom totally inspired my love of jewelry. It was a really fun project and I really like my new jewelry boxes.

No sooner had I written my last whiney blog entry about being a homebody than I got an email from my friend, Sarah, inviting us to join them to go see Metropolis at the Paramount on Saturday night. We had a great time! We ate dinner at a Moroccan restaurant beforehand, barely escaping the evil eye of the belly dancer we didn't know we were supposed to tip. Seriously, I had to come home and look up belly dancing etiquette to find that out.

The movie, Metropolis, was really amazing. The sets in the movie are so ahead of their time. When I fell asleep that night, it inspired good dreams. I was driving around a foreign city by myself and seeing amazing architecture. In the dream I had forgotten to bring my camera and I told myself to just enjoy it and not worry about. I love when you get positive thinking in your dreams. In honor of the movie (made in 1927) I wore my new necklace design that I think sort of has an art deco theme.

Cinco de Mayo Fun

It was a fun weekend! On Friday night we went out to dinner and celebrated Melissa's birthday which actually falls on Cinco de Mayo. She had a full weekend of celebration planned. We had dinner at Habana and got to sit in one of the little thatched huts out front. The food was yummy and they make awesome mojitos! The best part of the evening was when Nel sang a birthday song for her in Spanish. So sweet!

On Saturday night I went to a Cinco de Mayo party at my friend Jennifer Perkin's house. I had a good time. They had the toughest pinata I have ever seen. That thing would not break! Eventually people were just madly whacking at it without the blindfold. It was so funny.

I spent the rest of the weekend sorting through my back stock of old beads, charms and supplies. I have so much stuff! I came to terms with the side of myself that likes to sort. My mom once told me that when she was little they used to enjoy sorting her mother's buttons. (My grandmother was a seamstress and made all her seven kid's clothing, right down to their underwear!) Anyway, I don't know what it is but sorting things is so relaxing and fun. I was going through all my stuff and I just suddenly had this realization of "wow, I am having a blast!" ha!

This week I will be working hard to prepare for a trunk show this weekend at the Blanton Museum. If you are in Austin, please come out and see me. I will be sending out an email invite to everyone on my mailing list from Austin! Here's the lowdown:

Mother's Day Trunk Show
Saturday, May 12th, 10 AM to 5 PM
Sunday, May 13th, 1 PM to 5 PM
The Blanton Museum of Art, MLK at Congress, Austin, TX
For more info: www.blantonmuseum.org

Hope to see you there!