aaahhhh, leather :)

Before Christmas this year, my mom told me about a gift that she had gotten for me that she was SO excited for me to open! I LOVE getting gifts, and never want the surprise to be ruined. So, I waited anxiously for Christmas day, and would try to guess which gift was "the special one" while I was at her house.

Christmas morning came, and I finally unwrapped the "special" wrapping, which exposed this gorgeous pouch.
After unwrapping the leather wraps and opening the pouch, this gorgeous leather journal was exposed:
Ahhh, breath in. Can you just imagine the smell of this genuine leather book?! It's magical. :) I smell it each time I open it. My Mom had found this this journal and had it hand stamped with "Kel" for her Kel :) The journal that's inside can be replaced, so I will be able to refill and reuse this gorgeous piece!!!

Since I just finished my Sketchbook Project, I have not had a chance to begin my leather journal. Without a theme to guide me, I have been pondering what my use for this book would be. I'm not entirely there yet, but I did have an idea for the inside pages.
So, T-Man and I headed over The Resort for a fun day with Mops and Pops. So, while he slept, Mom and I worked on our journals!
I didn't fully complete each spread, but I will be adding a splash of color to each page. Again, I'm not sure what my use will be , but I really like the pages so far!!!
Let me know if you have any suggestions for the theme of this journal or how I should use it! It's about a 4x6 journal, so it fits nicely in my diaper bag and I can take it on the go!

studio space

When we first bought our home, we had 2 extra bedrooms, one was the guest room, and the other was my studio! I knew that one day my studio would become the nursery when we decided to start our family, and last summer that transformation took place.

I was more than happy to give up my personal studio to accommodate for our little one, and I even enjoy the memory as I sit in his room now. Since I still needed a place to work, we combined the guest room and my studio...and the Exersaucer and Johnny Jumper :) It's more than a bit cramped, but I still love it! :D I know it sounds weird, but it's still one of my favorite rooms!!!
Big A built me this wonderful storage unit for my supplies, which I also use as a work space. You can only see a bit of the cushion in the picture, but he also made up my stool!!! I really enjoy having everything organized, although it seems a bit messy here. I've found that I work well in organized chaos, and that I could find exactly what I was looking for!

I even use the closet space for some more of my storage. It has a window, and since I love natural light, I consider it to be part of the room :)

Now, I do work quite a bit at the dinning room table, as you can see in previous posts, but I like to be able to work downstairs when Big A is home. T-man and I don't like to miss out on the action! :)

Where do you do most of your work?!

old school

Last May, Big A and I traveled to Louisiana for our baby shower for T-Man. The very first gift I opened was from his Aunt Susan, and it brought tears to the WHOLE room!

Big A's mom passed away from breast cancer when he was 15, so I never got to meet her. I wish I had, though, because besides being an extremely godly woman with such joy for life, she was extremely thrifty and crafty! She made costumes, clothes, projects...for her 3 boys, and I think that's why A appreciates my artsty side so much.

Anyways, the gift that I opened was this gorgeous cross stitch.
At the time, all of the pictures were complete, but there were empty boxes for the baby's information. The neatest thing is that she had already put her initials and they year, 1981- the year Big A was born!!! Aunt Susan wasn't sure who she was making this for, or why she never finished, but non-the-less, it was a beautiful piece of work that was later finished with Tucker's stat's. It's now hanging in his nursery, with 2 other cross stitches made by my mom and grandmother, and I am I thrilled by the legacy of art and love brought from both sides of our families!!!

I learned to cross stitch in 2nd grade, but have not kept up the craft since then :/ Do you have any skills that you would like to learn or have learned but don't have the time to complete?!

Modge Podge/Hodge Podge

I love the phrase Mod Podge, and it sometimes seems interchangeable with "Hodge Podge," although they are very different! It probably depends on who you are talking to...
Anyways, I have decided that this summer I will FINALLY be participating in the Fishers Freedom Festival Arts and Crafts Fair! I have been going to the festival since I was young, and it's such a fun weekend! Since I thought I didn't have enough to do with a 6 month old around ;), I figured I would try to get some stuff together for the fair!


Actually, having a 6 month old has been perfect for my artistic flow. It also fits quite nicely into my semi-ADD/multitasking personality! I've made 6 collages this week, and will be working on the pen work and text this weekend! I am having such a great time, and can't wait to keep moving forward!

I've also got some up of my magnets made and all packaged up! They're made from parts of my original pieces, and they were really fun to make in the evenings while we were all hanging out.

In other news, the Brooklyn Art Library is opening The Sketchbook Project 2011 tomorrow! Although we will be traveling to Chicago to see the exhibit this summer, Mom and I still wish we could jump in the car with T-man, and road trip it out there this weekend! :/...maybe in an alternate universe :)

It is Finished!!!

I know it's been a while since I've updated, but I finished my sketchbook!!! Mom and I got them mailed in on time, and I'm so excited to go see it again in July!!! Well, here are some of the last pages!








I've got some other recent projects to upload, and I will get to that soon, but I'm busy working on my pieces for my first art fair this summer!!! This has been a dream of mind for a LONG time, so I'm super excited to get everything together!
Thanks for stopping by!