Ahhh....Weekend.

I always love getting together with my family. My sister's low-key home-cooked birthday dinner last night was really nice. At the last minute I decided to make a decoration for the cake. You can see a closer view HERE.

The flower-slash-nature pictures are from my mom & grandmother's yard. It was fun to take pictures of someone else's pretties. We all sat outside & enjoyed the warm evening.

My dad even sported some lovely mock-orange flowers behind his ear. (He's doing so much better since the {3} surgeries he had at the beginning of the year to remove his cancerous esophagus. Still trying to get his throat to stay dilated, but even that is getting better.) And this silly pic of him makes me smile. He's slowly getting back to his usual self.
We've got busy fun planned all weekend----parties & bbq's galore!

Ok, I gotta go: Mr. 'WhiMSy love' is feeding the girls chocolate cake & waffles for breakfast! I better.....go join them.

Hope you're havin' a happy weekend!

♥

{cake}

Mr. WhiMSy love brought home this All American Chocolate Cake from Costco.

It weighs 7 pounds.

It is the most delicious chocolate cake I have ever eaten.

It's for my sister's birthday party this evening.

She's 40. I remember being a kid

& thinking that 40 was soooooo old. Now that I'm not too far from that age myself, I have reassessed my thoughts on that matter.

Happy Birthday Stacie!

(She reads my blog, so you can leave her a birthday message too!)

Organization

I've decided that instead of cleaning, cleaning, cleaning, I need to ORGANIZE. Obviously, if I'm cleaning all the time, the organization I currently have IS NOT WORKING. If everything had a place, a special place, then I am certain I'd be cleaning less & making less messes. Last weekend I did a satisfactory job of sorting our basement, where loads of boxes have been sitting over a year--unopened & housing many a crafty & thrifty thing. I got rid of so much junk. It felt good! I am now tackling my art studio & shipping station. And after seeing THIS whimsical organizing idea, I had to incorporate it into my creative space! The picture above is the BEFORE.

And here is the "AFTER".....
I already had a rope hanging above the window with strips of vintage & new fabric knotted & hanging down. The idea was taken from a display I saw several years ago at an Anthropologie store. (And, oddly enough, this style of "shabby curtain" was one of the first handmade things I sold when I started my little crafty adventure a few years ago.)
Now my spools of ribbon & scissors all hang at an easy-to-find reach.

You can use any number of hanging hardware to loop your scissors or other crafty supplies to. (See first picture in this post.) Another idea, not pictured, are "S" hooks. I chose to use these cafe curtain clips.

Now I'm off to tackle my bin full of random lengths of ribbon. I decided I'd like to SEE my supplies, so I'm opting for more clear jars, see-thru containers, things out in the open. I'm sure it will make for a much more tidy space-- and a much less frustrated crafty chik.

Ostrich Girl

Last February I was lucky enough to be the winner of some goodies from Ostrich Girl. When my package arrived, the girls & I were super excited at all the fun stuff inside! Artist Sheri DeBow's original artwork is really quite whimsical. (Right up our alleys!)

Besides the adorable cupcake stuff, one of my favorite things about the loot we got were the sheets of Sheri's miniature artwork. The girls & I can cut them out, glitter them up & make cute little decorations from them!

This afternoon we sported our favorite Ostrich Girl super soft & comfy cozy t-shirts & had an impromptu photo shoot.

Predominantly a sculpture, Sheri also takes her artwork & applies it to anything from t-shirts, tank tops, jerseys, tote bags, brooches, pendants, paper ornaments, cards, tags, plaques & more!

Sheri currently has a show running at Eclectix in Berkley CA & will be featured in the winter issue of Art Doll Quarterly
She is one talented lady & we're happy to have a piece of the "Ostrich".

Check out the Ostrich Girl ETSY shop & visit Sheri's blog HERE.

And just for fun, you can win some Ostrich Girl loot too! (I'm sharing!) Leave a comment on this post & a winner will be chosen May 31st!

Week in Review.

Having so much fun on this long happy weekend that I almost forgot about my Week in Review!

Summer is coming, for sure. I'm already practicing for it. Sidewalk chalk, s'mores, campfires, pool fun, river stuff & boating! I feel exhausted...but in a GOOD way!

*Click on the picture mosaic for a photo play-by-play.

Close Encounters of the Waspy Kind.

True story.

On Thursday I was watching "The Bee Movie" with my 2 year old nephew. He fell asleep on the couch while I sat near him sewing. All of a sudden a BEE flew in my house! I ran!!!! And then I realized that there was a poor, helpless, snoozing bitty boy that I couldn't just bail on. So I trapped the bee in a jar & let him go free outside.

The NEXT day we watched "The Bee Movie" again. Later on I found a dead wasp on my floor. (I think I will steer clear of bug movies for a while.)

♥

Anyway, being the picture-obsessed gal that I am, I grabbed my camera--& the wasp. The girls & I had lots of fun examining & investigating this little creature. Zoey grabbed her magnifying glass-- & I had an idea!

I started to get an even closer view of our little {dead} friend with the combination of my camera + the magnifying glass. My sweet picture-taker is a little point-n-shoot Kodak Easyshare C663 with 3x optical zoom. (It's been good to me, but I dream of someday owning a big-girl camera.) The magnifying glass gave me a little more "zoom" & it was really fun to take pictures this way!

Silly. Kooky. Random.

Honestly, anything silly, kooky, & random-- I love. I just had to share this funny idea.

I recently received a lily as a gift. Me--not so good with plants. That's why this poor thing is looking not-so-sassy in the photo. Well, it was one of those plants that came all wrapped in foil-ish paper. And for some reason I immediately thought: "Hat!"

My girls love dressing up & it reminded me of a fancy fairy headpiece---made from the petals of some brightly colored purple flower.

Anyway, we had some laughs from it!

And I love this picture. It was totally NOT planned. Zoey was waiting for me to snap her photo & my little nephew stepped in right beside her, eating his frozen Otter Pop (sideways I might add) & the little dying plant happened to be sitting beside him.

Fly away little fairy! And make all your other fairy friends jealous. 'Cause you know they're gonna want a hat too.

Summer Owlies Are Here!!

Visit the I SEW stuff section in my shop to make this owlie yours.

Here's a little WhiMSy love Owlie fun fact for ya...

This is the 6th series of owlies I've made! (Not to mention all the fabulous random custom ones I've created here & there!)

1st--Christmas Green Owlie 2008

2nd--Christmas Brown Owlie 2008
3rd--Winter Cream-colored Owlies 2008/2009

4th--Valentine Owlie 2009

5th--Floral Spring Owlie 2009

6th--Summer Owlie 2009

Sneak Peek!

I started working on some new owlies last weekend. Hope you enjoy a sneaky peeky!

(Just in time for my girl's end-of-school teacher gifties too!)

They're made from the sweet vintage fabric Amber sent me & vintage buttons. This current batch of owlies also feature the cutest little itty bitty red vintage rik-rak!

Doesn't that adorable little felt flower on their ears make you squeal?!

And guess what? I'll have some in the shop tomorrow!

♥

Orange.

Sometimes I make my girl's lunches with a monotone theme. Just because.

♥

Hey, Mr. D.J.!!

From the turntable to your coffee table.

My Rockin' Record Trays are back!

The price will be music to your ears.

(Sorry, I just had to.)

I found 2 boxes of totally random, totally vintage & totally awesome records in my scary basement/dungeon.

I'm purging people. Help me purge.

(Covers not included.)

They're at WhiMSy love now!

{wishin' flowers}

My girls call these "wishin' flowers'.


Adults hate them. Children love them.

HERE'S a link to a virtual dandelion. You can make your very own wish.


"these little earth stars....shimmering on the lawn." -E.P. Roe

HERE is great link for some dandelion fun with kids, featuring poems, recipes, crafts & more!

No time For Flash Cards shares a really cute dandelion craft with Q-tips.

HERE'S the proper way to pull dandelions.

The Crafty Crow shows you how to make a dandelion chain.

5 Orange Potatoes is on a quest to save their sunny yellow friends.

Personalized Pillow

I started organizing my scary basement-slash-dungeon yesterday: cleaning with one hand & bug spray ready in the other hand. I am actually finding many cool things! (While squealing at every spider I see. EEEEEEK!) I thought one item I found was worthy of a crafty mention: This pillow, which became a sofa accessory about 10 years ago as a gift to the hubby. (Somehow in the move last year it ended up in the basement.)
I bought an inexpensive cream colored pillow (but you could make one too!) & a black fabric paint pen marker. And then I went to town writing out the lyrics to a song played at my wedding.
Simple. As. That.
Doodle.

Draw.

Spell your name.

Trace a handprint.

Graffiti anyone?

Write a poem.

Sketch a portrait.

Or a scene.

Have all the grandkids make designs & give it to the grandparents.

A housewarming gift.

Slumber party fun.

Buy 9 pillows & make a tic-tac-toe game out of it!

Spell out a word: one letter per pillow.

The possibilities are really endless!

In fact, I think I'll revisit this craft & have my girls get into the action.

Week in Review

What a grand week! The warmer weather is creeping in & making for many happy days & nights!

This week was the final farewell to my days at MOPS. I'm TOTALLY looking forward to the retreat in June where I can celebrate all the good times had, while the newbies prepare for a new year ahead.

The fam ate outside together for the first time this year! We roasted hotdogs over the firepit. Somehow we managed to warm up our frankfurters.....while trying to keep from suffocating from all the smoke. (I love the hubby & all, but he makes the WORST fires EVER.)

I'm getting some big projects checked off my "to-do" list & am excited to focus on craftin' & makin' more new stuff. I've got some great organizational plans for myself in the works too--to keep focused & on track with my crafty bad self.

Tonight I'll be working with this group of kids (& more!) on a drama for another trip I'll be taking with them in August. The hubby & I will BOTH be helping to chaperone! That should be loads of fun! We've never taken a trip like that together.

This week is my 4 year old's last week in pre-school. Eeek! I am really not ready for wee ones 24/7...

*Click on the picture mosaic for more photo details!

Happy Monday!!

Are You Having a Happy Weekend?

I am.

♥

Unconventional Vases

It was such a beautiful day today I was able to play with some flowers outside. I picked up one inexpensive bouquet of alstroemeria, but if any white daisies would have been available I would have gladly snatched them up!

I'm not saying these designs are genius, but I wanted to give you some inspiration in thinking OUTSIDE the box. Vases are cool & all, but what if I wanted to plunk some flowers in my daughters pink polka-dotted rain goulashes? Or a vintage tin? Or any other odd shaped vessel that wasn't meant to hold water, such as this solo silo--its barn friend long gone.

This is what all these designs have in common: if I filled the containers with water, there would be leaks & drips & a big wet mess.

The solution is simple. Fill an appropriately sized cup with water & place it INSIDE your chosen container. A vase is born!

I even had this cute pink Rachel Ashwell Shabby Chic tissue container in my cupboard. I thought it would make a nice long, low vase.

I turned it upside down. Then, I filled two shallow jars with some water & placed them inside the tissue box.

Fill with flowers & voila! No one would ever guess the container's original purpose!

But this next idea is my absolute FAVORITE!
The supplies you'll need are: wet floral foam (intended for fresh flowers), a knife, a bowl of water, your flowers (of course!) & a sweet little vintage handbag.

First you'll want to cut a piece of foam that will fit inside your purse.

Wet floral foam needs to sit in water & soak up all that liquid so your flowers will have something to drink. Follow the directions on your package for soaking the foam, but it's basically done when it has sunk to the bottom of the bowl.

Place this heavy, wet piece of foam inside a sturdy baggie.

And then carefully place the baggie inside your purse. If you're nervous about damaging your handbag you can double up on the plastic baggies. Of course, don't use your best & most cherished clutches!

Start poking your floral stems into the foam. Just a few stems of the alstroemeria did the trick for me. Random wildflowers, haphazardly arranged in vintage handbags, look the sweetest too!

I used to make & sell these handbag (& vintage shoe) arrangements using artificial flowers, so just use the same concept here, except use dry floral foam--used for dry & artificial flowers.

Oh yeah, I used to be a floral designer by the way. haha! It was pretty frustrating though because no one wanted to hire a newbie fresh out of floral design school without any experience. So, how was I supposed to GET any experience if no one was willing to GIVE me any experience? Though the fresh floral snobs wouldn't have me, I ended up getting a job working with artificial flowers at The Great Indoors in Scottsdale Arizona & it was one of my favorite jobs!