Diaper cake, haircut and other tidbits

I've been working on the diaper cake for Melissa's baby shower for a couple days now and I think I'm going to call it DONE. I tried it with a lot more added to it, but it just looked too busy to me, so I pared it back down to just the minimum with a couple other touches. Added the "It's a Girl" on the top, bows and ribbons to the top and bottom layers and the baby's name with a cute little stroller to the middle layer. It's not perfect, but I like it and it looks less like a wedding cake than the first version. Hope Melissa likes it.


Before and After



Yesterday I finally gave in and called the gal that does my hair...I've been growing it out, but just could NOT stand it anymore! Fortunately she was able to get me in late in the afternoon. As you can see from the "before" picture it was really getting out of control. I've got to confess, most days I would straighten it but yesterday I just decided to let it go natural. (I think I knew that this would drive me crazy and I would finally call for an appointment!)





So at 3:00 I headed into town for my 3:30 appointment and consultation with my stylist. (Doesn't that sound fancy? In reality, it's just Dennise, the gal who has been doing my hair for the last 5 years or so.) Ever since I decided to cut my long hair off in 2007 it has been getting shorter and shorter each time I've had it cut. Yesterday we decided to leave it longer than usual in the back and just let it curl up and cut it shorter in the front and only straighten that part. It feels good to finally get some sort of style back, but I'm not sure I like the back...my hair is soooo thick and curly and I'm not thinking I like the back this long. I've got to say the front looks fine, just not sure about the back. I'm going to live with it for a week and if I still don't like it Dennise said she would cut it some more at no cost to me. So, we will see...but for now, it just feels great to have that "mop" gone again!




WHAT'S FOR DINNER

Tonight is pasta nite so I'm planning on making this:

http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/Penne-with-Shrimp/Detail.aspx

Will add lots of extra spices like basil, garlic, red pepper flakes and then garnish with fresh Italian parsley and shaved parmasan cheese. (The reviews say it needs a little added spice.)

I will serve it with fresh steamed asparagus, Caesar Salad and fresh melon.

A Little Card Magic

Do you ever have something you're making turn out just right...you look at it and know that you wouldn't change a thing? I think the last time that happened for me was when I made this mother's day card for Melissa. It was just going to be something quick, thrown together at the last minute and I loved how it turned out.

I knew the picture I wanted to use, it is a picture of Aiden giving her a big hug at her wedding shower a year ago. They both looked so cute together, Aiden with his sunglasses and Lissa in that cute little hat. I remember Aiden running into the room where the shower was being held and he was so happy to see his mom that he ran straight to her, wrapped his little arms around her and hugged for all he was worth. This picture will always remind me of our little boy's unconditional love for his mommy.

So I picked a patterned paper and cardstock I wanted to use, matted the pic on white since I was using a floral background. It looked okay, but it was lacking something. So I added a couple ribbons behind the picture to "ground" it. Found that lavendar ribbon with the black polka dots, perfect for the fun picture! Then I started building a cluster of flowers, ribbons and a stamped tag on the lower right corner of the picture. This is something I always see on other people's creations, but I never seem to get it "just right." This time it really seemed to all come together perfectly for me. I cut a few more flowers from the scraps I had left from the background paper and added them under the tag I stamped and matted, a great finishing touch to my cluster. To balance out the card I stamped a few black flourishes in opposite corners and added a flower and ribbon under the top of the picture and my card was finished.

It is so much fun to make something special for someone special. I know she appreciates the time and effort I put into making cards for her.

Now I need to get downstairs and work some more on the diaper cake for her baby shower. It is slowly starting to come together...can't wait until it is finished and I can post the final pictures! Hopefully I will be as pleased with it as I am with this card!

What's for dinner?

I've got skinless chicken thighs thawing...thinking some sort of coated, baked chicken with rice and asparagus...I'll have to let you know for sure after I check out http://allrecipes.com/

I was going to use this part of my blog to help track what meals I've been serving but perhaps I might also add some pictures...hmmmmm something to think about, combine my love of cooking, love of photography and my blog.... hmmmmmmmmmmmmm

A Year and Half Later....

I guess I'm going to try blogging again...not happy with my blog title/heading...going to have to do something about that...eventually...

Okay, eventually became today, still not real pleased with my header, but it is better than what I had before. Not so depressing!



Creativewise...here's something I worked on this week...a diaper cake for my daughter's baby shower in a couple weeks. I've never made one before and thought this turned out pretty well. Then, I started looking around online and found a bunch of other ones that were really, really (almost over the top) decorated. Started making mine look a little plain. Guess I'm going to have to do some more work on it. Will post the "after" pictures once I'm done adding more to it, but here it is at this point.

Also I've been working on making a garland decorations for the shower. It's little paper onsies hanging on a clothes line. Got the from a site online and I bookmarked the PDF file, but can't locate the original website, so unfortunately I can't share that, but I want everyone to know that the original idea was not mine. I will share pics of that also, once it is done.

WHAT'S FOR DINNER?

Tonight is our nite for red meat (I'm trying to fix it just once a week) so we will have BBQ'd steaks, potato salad, fresh green beans, a green salad and some fresh melon. So I guess I better go get some marinade on those steaks!

Journal Revolution

The book of the month at BPS book club this month is "Journal Revolution" by Linda Woods and Karen Dinino. It was a good read, if you are into this type stuff like I am, and I found myself really inspired again. Ali Edwards' "Life Artist" and this book have made me start thinking about my art in ways that I haven't thought about before. I've decided to start my Art Journal, to revolutionize my creativity and give myself permission to explore and be free in expressing myself through my art.




Here are the first couple pages from my journal (these are totally separate and different from my scrapping layouts, and that is how it is supposed to be). I will continue to scrap, but the journal is a vehicle for exploring and expressing myself and the artist inside of me.


The first page (Fly Time) is my feelings on turning 50.

Then I had to get my "one word" for 2008 into my journal.

"Dream Unspoken" expresses my long ago wish to be able to create "real" art, my dream of being a traditional artist. During Jr. High art class I realized I just didn't have the talent it takes to really paint masterpieces, but the desire still lives inside of me. Everytime I see the sun set over the ocean I wish I had the ability to capture the colors, the feelings, the power I see with paint on canvas.





Now I know what you are thinking, what is she doing? These pages look so messy and unorganized! But that is the idea of Art Journals, just picking up a paintbrush, a pen, or a piece of "trash" and turning it into your own expression of feelings, thoughts, of your own art.


"When the sound inside you is dissonance, ready-made decorative papers and prescribed layouts won't do. We need "tactical maneuvers" designed for our full range of experiences and emotions, ready to leap tall buildings and scrawl over bridges. If you are used to creating archival scrapbooks or to writing pages a day in journals, take note: This type of art journaling has a different purpose and a different method. When creating journals that are uniquely yours, you are fee to use color, paper and words in ways as unconventional as your thoughts. The media we choose for our creation, from picking ink over paint to adhering with a staple or glue, affects the emothion we convey. Therefore, the most important tactical maneuver is letting go. Let go of convention, let go of expectations, let go of what you think should be. Breathe deeply and feel what your emotion looks like." (Journal Revolution, page 11)

You can view the Journal Revolution Art Army here: http://flickr.com/groups/artarmy/pool/

Shopping

Wow, can't believe it's been so long since I've taken the time to blog. Amazing how time gets away from you.



Last Monday my computer finally died. I'd been getting prepared to get a new one, this event (death) really stepped up the necessity of getting one. Mark went with me to do a little shopping for a new one and I ended up with a really nice HP with a 22" wide screen monitor. I LOVE IT! There is so much I can do now that my old PC just couldn't handle.

Here's a picture of Mark and me that I snapped during checkout at Staples. It was a fun way to spend the afternoon with my brother. First we walked through Ikea for over an hour (got in there and couldn't find our way out! Of course we weren't trying really hard to escape, didn't even look at the map we had!) then ran over to Staples to check out their computers before we headed to Best Buy (where we had planned on shopping). Found the PC I had been looking at, and planning on buying at Best Buy, on clearance at Staples for a great price!

Also picked up some programs I had been promising myself once I had a computer that could handle them, like Photoshop Elements 6. Ended up at Borders a couple days after I got the computer and picked up a book to learn this new (to me) program. I've only started the book (now on chapter 3) and I love the program. It is so great for managing my photos and eventually I hope to know how to do a little more hybrid scrapping! I don't want to become a digi scrapper, I love the feel of paper and glue too much! But it will be great to work more with my photos before printing them. Another program I got, but haven't installed yet because I'm trying to force myself to learn PSE6 first, is Cricut Design Studio. I know I'm going to love this, it will take my little bug to new heights! May reward myself for getting part way through the PSE6 book by giving myself permission to load the Cricut program and playing a little.

Life is good...shopping with my brother is fun...having a brand new PC for the first time in my life is amazing!