Personal Revelations

Hello there lovelys! Long time, no talk!

Ok, so I feel like I say that in every other post, and I am pretty sure I just need to knock it off! So what if it has been a while? I know there are certain "rules" for blogging and what not, and I definitely agree with most of them, but I am trying to remember that I don't do well when I am "restricted". :)

I am a pretty creative person, and it is hard for me to stick to doing one thing over and over again, which is why I love making my keshis. They are all OOAK, so there is always something new to discover, even if the basic principles are the same each time. This is how I feel about blogging. The same basic principles are there... engaging content, striking photos, good grammar and spelling, etc. But I need my posts to have that "OOAK" feel, or I will get real bored, real fast.

This is not to say that I won't have some sort of continuity and consistency, but I thought that when I started this blog I had to stick to craft-related items since that is what my "business" is all about. However, I have come to realize that I enjoy more of the "lifestyle" vibe. This way, I can write about whatever the heck I want, as long as it is somewhat interesting and can have a nice picture or two to accompany it. :)

I know that I will still want to have some structure, and I will only write about things that I actually like, so there will be a relatively short list of things I blather on about here. But I wanna blather on about more than just craft-related things! We all grow and change and there is nothing wrong with that, so why not create things that reflect those changes?

The whole point of blogging for me has become more than just getting my keshis noticed by a few more people. It has become something that I want to do in order to connect, explore, inspire, and be inspired by.

I do hope that you continue to pop in and enjoy this crazy thing I call life right along with me. We are all just a bunch of friends, sittin' around a table, sipping yummy drinks, eating yummy snacks, and chatting away for longer than any of us realize. And I can't wait to see you next time! Bring along some of those scrumptious chocolate chunk cookies of yours, won't you? ;)

xoxo

A Token of Affection

~Photo edited with Mia, an Elements Action created by A Beautiful Mess~

Just wanted to share some love with y'all! Isn't that little canister so adorable?! I found it a thrift store a while ago and couldn't resist!

Hope you are all having a fantabulous Friday!

xoxo

Thrifty Thursday :: Storage Ideas!

For the past several weekends, I have been FINALLY getting my craft room/studio/moon hut all put together the way I have always wanted it. As part of this project I have finally been able to unwrap and put away all of the gazillions of awesome thrift store storage finds I have collected over the last year or so. (Like I said, I FINALLY accomplished something in there!!) I have a serious procrastination issue... but I digress!

For this edition of Thrifty Thursday, I thought I would highlight some of my fave thrift store-age (ha! see what I did there? teehee!) ideas. This is also a way to ease into a full studio tour... not quite ready for that yet, but oh so close!

 First up, we have the prettiest glitter storage idea ever.... salt and pepper shakers!

I collected tons of these bad boys from every thrift store I could possibly find, and I am so excited to finally see them all displayed. I love seeing all of the different colors of glitter instead of keeping them hidden in a drawer like before. The two displays that the shakers are sitting on are also thrift store finds.

I keep one of the doors open on this little cabinet so I can still see all the shiny bits!

 

Next, we have my new way of storing all of my keshi parts! Ok, if you don't know what I do with these things, that sentence sounds really weird... But stay with me here! I also used to store all of the different wooden pieces used to create my keshis in a drawer, but now I can see exactly what I have at all times! If I am running low on heads, I will know way ahead of time.... or if I need some new body styles, just check the jar! I have them separated by function: bodies, heads, hair, and then miscellaneous embellishments.

 

See that little bit of blue in that big jar? That was my first attempt at the Fire Breather for The Runaway's Circus... I kind of forgot what order the colors of a flame should be in... ha!

More jars! This time, I have used them to store all of my loose ribbon, organized by color of course. :) They are sitting on a lazy susan, also a thrift store find, so I can easily see any of the ribbon I have. I can also spin it around if I get tired of looking at certain colors,

And finally, this awesome little rotating tray organizer dealy (that is the technical name of course). This is sitting on my desk and holds a veritable mish-mash of randomness. It's perfect because I seem to have a lot of random things that don't have a proper home. But they look so cute here! And that glass candy dish is full of various little kokeshis (erasers and cell phone charms) and several Dia de los Muertos skull beads, because, you know, everybody needs a dish of those!

And that hottie in the picture? My mommy! :) Back in her rock star days... one of my fave pictures of her!

I hope you enjoyed a little glimpse into my newly organized little slice of heaven. And hopefully I have provided a little inspiration for you as well! If you have any super cool storage ideas, leave a comment. I would love to hear!

Have a good day!

A Closer Look :: Inspiration Board

 

As mentioned yesterday, I wanted to share with you a little bit about what I have chosen to include on my new inspiration board with a few detail shots. :)

Okie dokie, let's start with the top half of the board. And, just so you know, I am going to skip some things and just tell you about the some of the more special items. Not everything on here has a story worth mentioning! :D

~ The little spider web in the left corner used to be a Christmas ornament. It was always one of my favorites to put on the tree every year, and the whole thing is covered in glitter. The little spider body is a seashell actually. A couple of years ago, my mom gave it to me to put on my own Christmas tree. Little did she know, M and I are usually too lazy to even put up a tree (gotta be honest!) so this little guy has a permanent residency in my office instead. I'm secretly hoping he will keep the REAL spiders away, and so far, so good!

~ Next we have another gift from my mom, a copper plate that says, "Be bold & mighty forces will come to your aid."

~ Carousel Card. A couple of years ago, I became mildly obsessed with carousels.... no idea why, but if I saw something with some sort of carousel image, I had to have it (this is actually still true :D). I also really love the sentiment on this card, "May you be happy always."

~ I am a very firm believer that I am responsible for the direction of my life. I have the power to make any dream come true, and to change anything that doesn't work for me. This is why I love this quote, "Dream your dreams with open eyes and make them come true." I will never be a victim of circumstances.

~ See that adorable little skeleton key? I have had that thing for 20 years, through countless moves and everything! I received it just before starting first grade at The Waldorf School on Whidbey Island, a very weird yet endearing "alternative" school that I attended for about half of the year. I don't remember learning a single academic thing, but I do remember making my own knitting needles and beginning to learn to knit! Oh, and also making little beeswax figures to accompany some local "legend" that a prince buried treasure in the woods behind the school (which we went to go find, and instead found a giant bee's nest.... shiver...). Needless to say, it's probably a good thing that I am naturally pretty intelligent because I lost a few months of my education while I was there. :) I had an incredibly fun time there however, and what little kid doesn't like the idea of a little fantasy?

~ Couple of keshis!! The one on the left is an image of Demetra, printed on the back of one my business cards. She is currently living with my grandmother on Whidbey Island. :) The two on the right are creations from the FABULOUS Brigitte of Zombuki fame. She is my ultimate inspiration for beginning to play around with my very own version of the kokeshi doll and I will forever be a fan of her amazing work!

If you have any other questions about some of the things I didn't mention, feel free to ask! I hope you enjoyed a little glimpse into what keeps me inspired, and stay tuned for a proper "studio tour" coming up soon!

xoxo

DIY :: Inspiration Board

 

Howdy y'all! I have a fun, SUPER easy DIY to share with you today. :) I have been spending the past couple of weeks completely overhauling my studio (or "moon hut" as I like to call it... more on that later!) and in doing so, wanted to make myself a super girly new inspiration board.

My previous board was just a regular, boring thing that I have had for literally as long as I can remember. It even had "Kaeleigh is da bomb" written in black eyeliner on it... oh yes, I was super cool when I was a kid! It didn't take long for me to start covering that little statement with any picture I possibly could. That nerdiness aside, I have to say that I was inspired by something my sister wrote on the side of her dresser when she was younger, so at least the intention was kind of adorable!

Ok, back on topic! Several months ago, during a trip to IKEA, I picked up this ADORBZ scrolly frame and immediately knew it had to be my new inspiration board. Which finally brings me around to the point of this post!

Materials:

1. UNG DRILL frame from IKEA. Ok, can we stop for just a sec and giggle at the epic names of all IKEA products? Love it!

2. Roll of cork. I bought this roll at Michael's, and chose the 2' x 4' roll. You should know, I almost never measure anything (ain't nobody got time for that!) so I totally guessed on the width of what I would need, but this ended up being perfecto!

3. A pen. (note: it turns out, a Sharpie was way more effective, so make sure you use a marker v. ballpoint pen)

4. Scissors.

Step 1:

Take the backing and glass out of the frame, set aside. You will be using the cardboard backing again, and the glass will be used to trace the shape to cut out of the cork. (You can dispose of the glass after, or keep it for a new project!)

 Step 2:

Trace around the glass (being careful of the semi-sharp edges) and cut out your lovely oval piece of cork. I suggest going a little slowly, the cork is kind of thin and tore pretty easily when I wasn't careful.
 

Step 4:

The final assembly step is to adhere the cork to the cardboard backing that came with the frame. I suggest spray adhesive, because it is the easiest and quickest thing to use. Spray directly to the cardboard, and then line up the cork oval and press onto the now-sticky side of the cardboard backing.

 Lastly, place the oval into the frame, bend the clamps down to secure, and voila! You have a brand new, super cute, inspiration board!

This little project took maaaaaaaybe 10 minutes from start to finish. So fun and easy!

Tomorrow I am going to post some close-up shots and give you a little insight into what some of the things are that I have put on my new inspiration board. :)

I hope you are all enjoying your Sunday!

I'm Baaaaaaaaaaack!!!

 

Flora is super excited about it!

 Ok, so I kind of fell of the blogging wagon..... hard..... and it has taken me a year to recover and hop back on!

I really don't have any good excuses or explanations, I haven't been backpacking across Europe or on an African safari. I just, lost it I guess! But, I do feel re-invigorated and would love to give this whole blogging thing another shot. :)

I really do love this kind of outlet to share my life with the world (or whoever is reading), but maybe I just felt my life wasn't "cool" enough to share.... I don't know.... anyhoo, I am going to (attempt to) get over my whole "It has to be PERFECT or don't even try!" thing and just write what I want, when I want! And I hope you will still come along on this ride with me and enjoy it as much as I am planning to!

And, I have to say, I have some super duper exciting things happening over here and I can't wait to tell you all about it!

Let's bookend this post with another ridiculous picture of Flora, shall we??

TTFN my lovelies!

Oh yea!! I totally forgot to ask.... do you like my new look?? :) 

Friday Faves!

I have no theme for this week, just a collection of some of my favorite things! :)

To start with, I wanted to express the joy I find in using Sally Hansen nail polishes. They always have the greatest shades, and for something as commonly found as they are, they are of quite good quality! My FAVORITES at the moment are these:

The silver, Celeb City, was the first one of the three that I bought, and I was instantly smitten. I picked up the gold, Golden-I, around my birthday last year, and the copper one, Coin Flip, just a couple of nights ago. They have a subtle metallic quality, almost glittery. It only takes about 2 coats of any of these colors to be completely solid on my nails. They are definitely glam, but it is easy to keep it classy!

Continuing on this vein of nail care (and no, I swear this is not the theme!), I am anxiously awaiting the time when I can try out this little goodie:

Lemony Flutter by LUSH Cosmetics

I first saw it blogged about over at The Dainty Squid (and you should definitely check out her blog, it is amazing!) and I had to check it out. My cuticles are a hot mess, and I am always wanting to do more for them. The reviews on their site all make it sound fantabulous, so I have bookmarked it for a future purchase!

iPhone 4S cases at zazzle.com

In precisely 23 days, I will be saying, "Sayonara!!" to T-Mobile and my stank myTouch and FINALLY trading up to an iPhone!!! I cannot wait! And to celebrate, I have been drooling over the cases over at Zazzle. There are literally thousands of designs!

My birthday is fast approaching, and for said birthday, I want to get away to this little slice of heaven on the Washington coast:

This unbelievably charming little place is called Seabrook, and it is located between Ocean Shores and Moclips. It was established in 2006 (if I remember correctly) and literally looks like it is a movie set. It feels like time just stops when you are there. I have only had the pleasure of driving through the town, but I am hoping that soon my dream of actually staying here will come true. I am a little obsessed with the idea at the moment, actually! :)

That's all I've got for you today folks, it was a much-too-long day at work today, and I am a little tapped out! :) But I hope I have given you some new things to fall in love with!

As always, I love to hear what some of YOUR favorite things are! Tata-roonie!!

Friday Faves!

TGIF! This will be the first of what I am planning on making a weekly feature. I want to share with you just a few of my favorite things from around the web, and everyone loves a little alliteration! So, Friday Faves it is!

This week, I figured I would stick to a theme.... ORGANIZATION! I ordered this epic planner from a very talented person on Etsy, and it has inspired me to create this week's list.

1. Since it was my source of inspiration, here is my fantabulous planner from LetterCDesign on Etsy:

This baby has two pages for each month in the front of the planner, and then each week spans two pages after that. There is plenty of space to write in the boxes, and it is proving to be invaluable in planning my blog posts. I am "planning" (ha! see what I did there?) on showing you exactly how at a later date! The cherry on top of this sweet thing is that each month has a border of a different simple, charming graphic. It makes me smile every time I open it!

2. Blue Ball Mason Jars (or any cute, glass containers really!). I am borderline obsessed with collecting as many glass vessels as possible right now, and I truly feel the blue Ball mason jars are like the holy grail! I normally have found them for $8 or $9 bucks a pop, but I SERIOUSLY scored the other day and found one, a PERFECT one, for $1!! Yep! Just a buck!! Anyhoo, how seriously sweet are these for keeping track of crafty bits?

This image was found at this blog. I can't wait until my own slice of crafty paradise can look this good!

Swoon!

Found here

3. This book! It may not be a tool of organization, per se, but by George is it inspirational! The images make me practically drool! I highly recommend their quarterly magazine as well.

4. Another quickly growing obsession of mine: using salt and pepper shakers to store and display all of my loose glitter! I originally found this image years ago, and it is what inspired me to start collecting.

Found on Pinterest

5. And last, but certainly not least, the kick-assiest highlighters I have ever used! Another fun fact about me, I am a total office supply nerd! I bought two packs of these babies, one for each office I work in. :)

You can buy your very own here :)

I even go as far as only using certain colors for certain types of notices I have to distribute. I use pink for my "nastygrams" because pink is cheerful and I figure it helps to soften the blow. :) I seem to have run out of pink the quickest.... curious.....

These are just a few of the ideas and tools I have seen or used personally to help make my life just a tad more organized and pretty! :) There are so many things out there to make keeping track of your stuff enjoyable.... now I just need to actually USE them!

What are some of YOUR favorite ways to display and catalogue your items? My own style is always evolving and I love sharing ideas!

Happy Friday lovelies! 

Congratulations! It's a BLOG!

The idea for this blog has been gestating in the womb of my creative for many months. I felt this would be an appropriate title for my intro post! :)

My goal for this adventure is to be able to share the things that make me the most happy with as many people as will pay attention. I want to create a little sanctuary where we can slow down, simplify just a little, and have a quiet moment to ourselves. And I sincerely hope that you will join me!

I am so stinkin' excited to start this project! I love the idea of connecting with a vast collective of like-minded souls and recording every step along the way. I will be rolling out some weekly features, simple tutorials and DIY's I find fascinating, quirky observations about my world, and who even knows what else! The sky is the limit my friends!

I do also want to utilize this platform to introduce you to my creativity in the form of my journals, greeting cards, and, my favorite, Keshis! For those of you who don't know, which I am sure is most (teehee), Keshis are my twist on traditional Japanese Kokeshi dolls. I plan on formally introducing you to them in just a few days. ;)

So, welcome to my cozy little corner of the big wide web. Care to join me for a cup of tea and a bite of inspiration? :)