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12 Day of Crafting, Embroidery, Mixed Media

12 Days of Crafting: Day 9

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IMG_1448Day 9: Lots & Lots of Ornaments

The other day I briefly mentioned projects that were once started, forgotten, and found to finally be finished… today I would like to revisit that topic.  Over a year ago, I had begun to fashion these adorable little ornaments out of spheres and scraps of fabric.  The idea was to string to them together to make a garland of sorts.  As the glue dried, the thought occurred to me that the fabric I used was bold enough for these little critters to stand alone as individuals, but to do so they needed just a bit of flair.

Unfortunately, they got packed up in boxes when my lease was up, put in storage, moved, unpacked, and then sat waiting for the day to be completed.  This past week, they all had their days.  The combination of the pressure of a craft fair, fumbling through craft books, and an already nagging idea that I had, my vision finally came to life.  They needed dangley bits! (yes, I meant for that to be as ridiculous as it sounded.)

A little bit of embroidery floss, pom poms, and tassels were just want the doctor ordered.  They are a bit over the top but I think that is what makes them so fun!  The little bling bling that your Christmas Tree needs!

 

Embroidery

12 Days of Crafting: Day 8

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Day 8: Embroidered Towels

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Today, I have been an emailing mad woman trying to get all sorts of events and gigs lined up for 2015.  All my coffee started to set in and I got so wrapped up that I completely lost track of time and forgot that I hadn’t posted Day 8!  Yikes!

I will have lots of embroidered hand towels available this coming Saturday at the Bluebonnet Bazaar!  Make sure to click through the slide show!

Again, I apologize for the short post.  I need to get ready for work.  (Yes, work work.  Not quite ready to quite the “day job” and start crafting full time)

12 Day of Crafting, Canning

12 Days of Crafting: Day 7

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Day 7: An Apple & A Brandy A Day

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An apple a day keeps the doctor a way!  I had a relative who lived to be 103 and I asked her, “what’s your secret?” She said, “Go for awalk every morning. Then they say to eat an apple a day, but I don’t really like apples all that much unless they’re in pie.  I make sure to have a couple tablespoons of ground flaxseed in the morning and a glass of wine every afternoon.  If you don’t have wine, a brandy will do.”

Well, in honor of her, I have put together a brandied apple butter that will be available next Saturday at the Bluebonnet Bazaar.

(I apologize that this is such a short post, but I am so into the little crafty creation that I am making right now that I won’t want to be away too long!)

12 Day of Crafting, Garden, Mixed Media

12 Days of Crafting: Day 6

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image4Day 6: Thanks for Helping Me Grow!

I cannot believe I am half way through my 12 days of crafting. I’ve really enjoyed spending time in the kitchen, dreaming up new projects, planning my posts, and the most important part of doing these daily blogs is that they are forcing me to finish a few projects!  I am the queen of having little projects that are almost done and just need the finishing touches.  Thank you to all of you that have put up with my posts, clicked on them, even read them, or liked them.  It’s nice to know I have your support.image3

Now down to todays feature: Succulents in Mason Jars.  I love gardening.  Unfortunately, apartment living is not conducive to having beds beyond beds of billowing blooming beauties.  Despite my green thumb, potted plants don’t always seem to cut it on my tiny balcony.  The one thing that I seem to have the most luck with here in Texas are succulents!  They seem to be resilient and able to roll with the punches of daily temperature swings, a day of missed watering, or my neighbors cat chewing on them.

image2Throw a tiny succulent in a mason jar, you’ve got yourself something pretty alright.  Throw a tiny succulent in a painted mason jar and you’ve got something pretty damn cute! It also makes the perfect gift or centerpiece.  *Hint, hint, wink, wink*

Come on by the Bluebonnet Bazaar next Saturday, December 13th from 10 AM – 3 PM and pick one up! I’m looking forward to seeing you there!

12 Day of Crafting, Canning

12 Days of Crafting: Day 5

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Day 5: Lemon Curd

Out of all the things I put in jars, lemon curd is the one thing that sometimes doesn’t even make it into the jars.  I started making lemon curd for my Mothers Birthday, which happens to be in close proximity to Mothers Day, and after sampling it to make sure taste and consistency was right, I found my new addiction.  Not much has changed since I started making lemon curd a few years ago. I actually started doubling my recipe in order to really nail down the quality control!

My other favorite part of making lemon curd is swirling stirring the mixture until it sets, hence the video above!  Make sure to mark your calendars for the Bluebonnet Bazaar on Saturday, December 13th because the jars are limited!

12 Day of Crafting, Embroidery, Uncategorized

12 Days of Crafting: Day 4

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Day 4: Embroidered Wall Art

I started experimenting with embroidered wall art a few months ago by making simple ones with mason jars on them as a little extra to go with my canned good gift baskets.  After posting a picture on Instagram, I started getting requests for custom pieces like the one in one of my previous posts, Mission: Commission.

 

I have some hanging in my craft area at my apartment.  Of course, I have one of my mason jar ones.  I also am happy to feature a few others as well in this post, although I will certainly have more at the Bluebonnet Bazaar this coming December 13th.  This is just a little teaser to get you through until the big day!

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12 Day of Crafting, Canning, Uncategorized

12 Days of Crafting: Day 3

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Day 3: Drop a Beet, Yo

It is no secret that I love beets.  I love them pickled, roasted, fried, and tattooed on my leg, boiled, you name it. Beyond the delightful taste, the brilliant colors have always been something that has gotten me too.  I don’t even mind my hands being pink for days.  So now that beets are in season, it should be no surprise that I am picking them up at the farmers market like they are going out of style. This past Sunday, I stopped by the Johnson’s Backyard Garden booth and loaded up on about 5 pounds of beets in order to whip up a batch of my Lemon and Clove Pickled Beets!

I find that beets are always on the sweeter side when they are pickled, because of the amount of sugar that is in them naturally.  I like to play off of the sweetness with a little bit of tartness from the lemon and the slightest spice from cloves.  Cloves and lemon can both be tricky because a little bit can go a long way, not to mention, paired with the wrong beet, it can turn into a bitter situation.  I find that this early in the winter season, the beets are perfect: small and sweet.

These pints will be available at the Bluebonnet Bazaar on December 13th!  They are great in salads and sandwiches (think peppery arugula and goat cheese) or just right out of the jar!

For more information on the Bluebonnet Bazaar: Click here!

12 Day of Crafting, Before & After

12 Days of Crafting: Day 2

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IMG_0010Day 2: Lost & Found

I have a vivid memory from my childhood of cobalt blue glass bottles lined up on the sill of my mothers office window at the house I grew up in. I remember how the light looked shining through during every part of the day.  I asked my mother why she had all these bottles with nothing in them.  Her response was simple.  “I love them. I just do.  Look at how blue they are.” I never felt that it ever needed any other explaining.  Twenty plus years later, I am just like my mother, collecting bottles just to see the light twinkle through the blues, greens, and aged clears.

A while back a friend had stumbled across a collection of old, dusty medicine bottles that were stacked along an old mans barn.  I think he got 3 or 4 cases of these bottles. Well, being my mothers daughter I jumped on the chance to get my hands on a few of these these.

These lost bottles have now been found and given a home. I have a few scattered around my living room and bedroom, but admittedly there were a few, particularly the darker brown bottles, that I wanted to give some character and color to, since they didn’t go with anything in my apartment.  I decided like any crafty girl to add some ribbon, I held back on the glitter, and to stick with the old theme, I added some dried babies breath and miniature roses. On the brown bottles, instead of adding ribbon, I tied antique lace that I had acquired from an estate sale. Simple but definitely brightens up these little bottles and adds a feminine touch.  IMG_0016

12 Day of Crafting, Canning

12 Days of Crafting

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It’s December 1st! Bust out the Christmas tree, deck the halls, get ready to roast some chestnuts, and so on.  I can hear the carols playing already. Although, I’m not as gung ho as my dear friend, Lindsey of Sweet Tweats, (you should totally check out her page, by the way), I have been putting a splash of eggnog in my coffee for a couple of weeks now and I am definitely looking forward to seeing my family for a White Christmas in the Northeast.

But what’s got me the most excited about the Christmas season this year? Crafting!   I will be participating in my first craft fair!  This is something I have always wanted to do.  Admittedly, it has always seemed a little far out of reach and intimidating, but I’m doing it! I will be a vendor at the BluebonnetBazaar!IMG_1368

This little market will be taking place on Saturday, December 13th in South Austin.  Everyday leading up to the Bazaar, I will share a post highlighting an item that I have made and will be available at my booth.

IMG_1370This post is dedicated to Day 1 of the 12 Days of Crafting: Blackberry Bourbon Jam! This jam is the perfect blend of tart, caramelized, spiced goodness.  My apartment now smells like a bourbon distillery after cooking the jam down for a few hours.  I even had a neighbor know on my door to let me know how great it smelled!

For more information on the Bluebonnet Bazaar, check out their Facebook Event with updates and other links: Bluebonnet Bazaar Facebook Event

 

Music

Blocks and Blanks to Back in Action

lauraleeimhoff

IMG_1111As an artist, staring at a blank canvas can be very intimidating when you’re in the midst of a creative drought.  For a writer, a blank page can be the equivalent while experiencing a block, but for a songwriter, when you’re unable to make your instrument make the sound you want, even though you’re not entirely sure what it might be, stringing words to go along can become an impossible task.  As any type of creative mind, has experienced this and when it goes on too long you begin to question yourself as an artist, a painter, a musician, etc. We try everything: wine, coffee, falling in love, getting heart broken, structure, complete chaos, workshops, friends, family, solitude, you name it, we’ve done it.

I’ve been in a songwriting drought for about a year now.  I’ve started a little something here and there, but all of them I have completely hated and in disgust for creating something so awful, I toss the scraps to the wind.  Frustrated with my lack of lyrical output, I have created a deadline for myself.  I am planning on writing a song a week for the month of November. Come December I will record at the Brooklyn Outboard in Nashville, TN. There is literally no time or room for putting it off or procrastinating.

I have gone from practicing once or twice a week to playing, doodling on my guitar, singing, and working on lyrics an hour or two every day.  I made this pact on Monday, November 3rd.  It Thursday, the 6th right now, and I’m one instrumental and one chorus in.  I’m hoping to come up with a couple versus the next few days and hoping that I will have a completed Song #1 by Sunday and perhaps ready to share on Monday.

I will still be working on other creative projects such as restoring furniture, but my main focus over the next month will be writing and hosting three fundraising shows.  I don’t want to pursue an Indie GoGo and Fundme campaign, because honestly, sometimes those campaigns can be a bit obnoxious.  (there I said it, I am sorry if you’re upset)  I am hosting two online shows that are donation based.  The first will be held Tuesday, November 18th at 8 PM CST. If you can’t donate, it’s cool!  Just log in, enjoy the show, and if you can, spread the word.

For the Facebook event with frequent updates on the November 18th show: Click here.

For the actual link to the online show: Concert Window.