crafty fanny

my new favorites

Let me just preface this by saying that I do realize that I'm slowly becoming "that girl who always talks about giraffes." I guess it's my thing.

I recently looked them up in a friend's copy of the book Animal-Speak: The Spiritual & Magical Powers of Creatures Great & Small. It's a cool concept -- you can look up different animals you might be drawn to and see what they symbolize in your life as a totem. Turns out that giraffes are all about looking forward and seeing the future and moving toward that future. Fitting, huh?

Anyhoozy, do you remember Horace? 

I LOVE Horace. He's by far my favorite giraffe. But he's not really appropriate for every day wear. And it seems that I'm morphing into that person who'd like to wear giraffes every day (um, y'all? Can I ask a favor? If I become too much the omg-she-is-really-getting-to-be-too-much-with-the-giraffes girl, you'll tell me right? Please do.) so I emailed Jaci from Crave Jewelry on etsy (maker of Horace) and asked if she could do giraffe earrings. You know. For every day wear.

And here's what she came up with:

Right? Awesome. I now wear mine almost every day. But not with Horace, cause that would be too much. And then I'd be "crazy giraffe girl." I'm not quite ready for that...yet.

(Both the earrings and necklace are available in Crave Jewelry Design's etsy shop, along with many other adorable designs.)

PSA

To the person who found my blog by googling the phrase "screwdriver up someone's fanny," here is my official word:

I don't recommend it.

Have a lovely day! Also, really!?!

friday's confession

I have a plan...

And it's all coming together.

Is that cryptic enough? Yeah, I thought so.

Happy weekending everyone. Our weather has been DELICIOUS, so hopefully I'll make it out to the park with Maggie this weekend.

She's still adorable, btw:

I do hope the cute puppy makes up for my mysteriousness. Here's one more, just in case:

I love you because...

In keeping with what I wrote about on Tuesday, I'd like to share this little beauty from Seattle Show Posters.  I think it's such a great way to remind people of all the little reasons you love them.

 

I picked up this poster from San Francisco's Renegade Craft Fair and a friend framed it for me using an IKEA Ribba frame. We have it up in our kitchen, and I use it to write love notes to Tim.

Sorry for the horrible picture. And, yes, pull my finger cracks me up. Cause I'm 7.

how do you love?

 

This past weekend, I learned that a high school friend recently took his own life. He was the person that all the girls had a crush on, the boy that made everyone laugh. He had a light that touched everyone. He was 31; it is just so sad.

Since the news broke, there has been an outpouring of memories and messages of love from old friends. He and I had lost touch through the years following school, but I still carry so many fond memories of spending time with him.

A memorial page has been set up on Facebook, but I cannot help but wonder if things would have turned out differently if only he had known how many people truly cared for him. Would he have felt just a little less alone in this world if more people had let him know that he was special to them?

I am a person who is very guilty of not keeping in touch with people. It's hard to do, especially when jobs, families, time zones, etcetcetc get in the way. But, wow, it is just so important. To take the time, or make the time, to let people know that they are loved. To remind people of how they might have touched your life, even if it was years ago or you think they won't remember. To let people know why they are special.

This is something that I'm going to work on for myself starting now. I'm going to make a conscious effort to make letting people know how I feel about them a priority. To be able to know that no matter what happens, the people who are important in my life will know it. That they won't have to doubt that they are important to someone.

Who's with me on this?

PS. Sorry for the sad post, but I think it's an important thing to talk about. There will be something fun and cheerful tomorrow, I promise! 

(You are loved print by pennywishes)

friday's confession

My life is like slow-cooked pulled pork.

Work with me here, people.

Here's the scene: Monday morning. My kitchen. Maggie's observing from her towel and I am ready to make pulled pork in my new-to-me crock pot (thanks Mom!). I had my recommended seasoning packet and was ready to go.

Classy. This packet contains the secret spice combination you need foramazing pulled pork. I added a mixture of brown sugar, ketchup, and cider vinegar. That's it. I was finished. For reals?!

Seems too easy, right? Then I put my meat (straight from the package) into the crock pot and poured the sauce over. The directions then call for you to cook the meat for 8 hours on low. Just walk away. 

That's when I started to doubt. I thought there was no way this:

could actually become something delicious. I was convinced that I would come home to a yucky, uncooked mess and that we'd have to order pizza. Convinced.

And I was wrong. I came home (the house smelled amazing) and checked the pork immediately, finding this:

And it became this:

And it was superb. A fantastically delicious, easy dinner. Which I doubted the whole time. 

Here's my lesson: I have realized that my journey, my artistic path I'm on requires a certain amount of trust. I have to trust that this is possible, that I can make a living as an artist and creative soul. That I can do work that will inspire others to seek out their own authentic path. That I can find my sparkle and help other people in this world find their sparkle.

And I have to trust it, just like I trusted the pulled pork to work out in time for dinner. I have to know that if I put in the right ingredients, set it up well, and then slowly do the work, it will happen. And, if my pulled pork is any indication, things are going to work out deliciously!

Food metaphors are just the best, aren't they?

Is there anything in your life right now that you are needing to trust?

becoming unstuck

It seems that these days, metaphor is all around me. The other day, I even said to myself, "Life is like a box of chocolate." Seriously? Forrest Gump, y'all. (And, yes, I know that statement is in fact a simile, thankyouverymuch Mr. Joey Hill-AP-English-Teacher-Extraordinaire)

Yesterday Maggie spent the day at the vet getting spayed (she's recovering quite well btw) and I happened to have to day off. An unexpected day off + an empty house with no puppy = time for me to get to work on my new favorite thing: painting. 

About 30 minutes into my work, I realized that the lid to my gel medium was stuck. Like for reals stuck. I tried and tried to open it and nothing I did worked. Hot water didn't work. Grippy lid-remover things didn't work. Nothing y'all. Not even my super-human upper body strength.

I thought about giving up. I thought about stopping. Perhaps this was a sign that it wasn't meant to be? Yes, I thought about quitting. For about a second. But I was so intent on making my patchwork giraffe that I refused to not keep going. So I picked up the container one more time and gave it all I had.

It's as if I don't know my strength, because the jar slipped out of my hands, fell on the floor, the lid fell off, and gel medium (which is a paste-type substance) splattered everywhere.

Oy. So, naturally, the first thing I did was grab my camera so I could blog about it. You're welcome. And then I started to think about becoming unstuck. How I did whatever it took to get past the stuckness. How I tried everything I could to become unstuck and then it just happened. In a way I never expected. In a way I never would have anticipated. In a way that could have just made things worse, could have ruined my good mood. But I kept going, laughed and cleaned up, and knew that I had gotten some insight into becoming unstuck. For myself.

This is a big step, my friends, a really big step. 

And the giraffe is absolutely adorable. Pics soon!

your ideal life?

What does your ideal life look like?

I think one of the first steps on making a change is identifying what you are changing towards, what it is that you want to become. The specifics of the results you will see: how will you feel, what will you wear, how big will your smile be?

As most of you know, I have been on a journey of changing my life for a while now, but I finally feel like this journey is picking up momentum and movement is starting to occur. It's feels good. It feels like it's happening the way it is meant to be. And that is a lovely thing.

In working with my life coach (more on her and her awesomeness later!), one of my assignments was to write a letter to myself a year from now looking back on the last 12 months. In this letter, I got very specific, highlighting all of my goals and accomplishments and how it felt to actually achieve them. (I would highly recommend doing this, btw, it was a fantastic experience.)

As a step further, I've started thinking about where I want to be 5 years from now and doing some meditations to that end. I just try to envision snippets of my life, with the trust that it can happen, that I CAN actually make these changes for myself.

Yes, I know it's totally hippie, but just give it a shot, or not. No pressure :)

Here's what I see for myself in 5 years: I'm an artist, and I am creative every day. I am supported in my art by my family and friends, but also by a greater community, both emotionally and financially. I laugh. All the time. I play. I am at ease with myself and know that I am able to make the best decision for myself -- no second guessing. I have a family. I spend my time surrounded by the people I love and our lives are full of joy. I help other people find their paths and be their creative selves and live their lives with joy. And I know that I am still at the beginning of my journey, that this path will continue along for my lifetime and that each day is another adventure. 

Do you have any thoughts on what you see for yourself in 5 years? I'd love to hear about it in the comments. I think that there's something so very powerful to sharing these things with others (or even just saying them out loud!).

(Print available in The Love Shop)

On getting organized...

I am home from a few days up in the Portland area visiting my VERY pregnant friend and soul sister, Nicole. Now that I'm home and without any trips/retreats/workshops planned in the forseeable future, it's time to get focused and organized on my creative journey to make being creative my full time job! Whoa -- that's right, my job. Won't that be the best job ever?

Step 1 (or really step 1,000, 'cause let's tell the truth: I've been on this journey for a looong time): Get my space organized.

My confession for today (hey! It's Friday!): I am only pretend-good at being organized. I'm the kind of person who works really really hard to get a room put together and then everything looks great...until it's time to actually start a project or do something useful in the space. Then it all falls apart, and I have to start over again. This is a seriously not-fun cycle.

My space is the office/spare bedroom/guest quarters/painting studio in our very small house. This is a space that needs to be easily cleaned and easily used. I know myself and if I have clutter, I won't be able to go, to do, to create. Isn't it interesting how physical clutter can really weigh us down mentally and emotionally?

So, here's my question to you, readers: What do you do with all that stuff that you keep around for "someday?" Specifically: magazines. I have so many back issues of Martha Stewart, beloved Domino and Blueprint, and ReadyMade. I really hate the idea of parting with them, but are they just clutter?

Do you have a method for organizing and storing magazines? Especially when space and storage is at a premium? Any creative ideas for dealing with all the paper?

what's your sign?

How awesome would it be to have these Jonathan Adler Zodiac pillows on my couch (first spotted via I Heart You)? Super awesome, that's how awesome! 

I think I need these on our sofa to ensure that Tim and I are fully represented in our home!

For the record, Tim's the Libra, and I'm the Scorpio. I think we balance each other well. Or, really, he balances me well!