How Exciting!

This post could get complicated, but the simplest version.. Once upon a time I decorated the home of a wonderful gentleman here in Wichita.. it was my first REAL job that wasn't for family or friends, but a REAL client. As my health would have it, he was my last REAL client. After completing his home, I had to retire from decorating.
But LOOK! His home was featured in Wichita Magazine! http://www.wichitacitymag.com/Wichita/May-2008/Where-a-Blue-Blooded-Scotsman-Calls-Home/

This is what the room looked like when I took the job. He called it a Mary Kay house.
This is during the interum while we waited for the curtains I designed to be sewn. My mother was my assistant and my friend Lori did the faux painting on the columns. Together, Lori and I silver-leafed the ceiling over this beautiful contemporary dining set he purchased. Altogether, we re-purposed, refurnished, re-painted, re-accessorized and updated every room in his home, except the kitchen. The baby grand piano shown in the before picture is now in a study and surrounded by Tony's art.

How exciting. My only real job, and I made it into a magazine (local.. but, I'll take it!). Awesome, fun!

Missing in action..

I've been busy. Crazy. Then busy, then crazy-busy. My computer was ill and did not like the internet for about two weeks. I was forced to read blogs at other people's homes, on strange computers. Then, hubby lent our camera to his brother and I nearly had to be committed. No computer, no camera, no life. I did get creative and made lots of jewelry and trinkets and did lots of knitting and some sewing. This purse is one of the knitting-sewing combo's I worked on last week. It is made by tying together 2" by 10-16" scraps of fabric and then knitting them into a rectangle. I sewed a lining and gussetts for the sides and then added bamboo handles I took off a Goodwill purse I bought just for the handles. One of the many things that I had on my mind during my computer and photography black out was a contest I considered entering. The magazine "Make It Mine" is having a contest which challenges you to make a purse from unusual items. There is a small prize, but mostly I just wanted to see what would happen if I tried it. So, if you go to http://www.makeitminemag.com/ and under "Community" click on "Challenge Gallery", my little purse should be showing up there as a contestant. The last time I entered a contest like this I was in 4th grade and it was a Bake-Off. I won a blue ribbon for the cookies I made.. but this is a whole other kind of ball park. Wish me some luck!

Babies!

The babies are visiting. Some time ago I started calling them Sugar Babies instead of Sugar Gliders..
Elvis is in the building.. and so is Jackson, and Priscilla and Tipsy - Momma needs shoe money! This is my baby, Justin, 8 snuggling with Jackson, the sweet and gentle and fun-loving sugar glider. Guess who's a daddy? Jackson! Priscilla has two little peanut sized squirming babies in her pouch! You can see them practically doing back flips in there when she holds on to the side of her cage. I have no idea when we will see a baby, but could be a few more weeks. My sister had surgery and is doing well, but needed someone to take care some of her babies until she is strong enough to multi-task through life with children, work, pets, pets, pets and housework again. So I am getting lots of time to get to know all the babies one on one.
This is Elvis. We are getting to be pals. He isn't grumpy or sassy like in the past. He is mellowing out. We snuggled on the couch and watched a movie the other day. Last night I let him spend some time in a little toy tent that he is perched on in this picture. He was being adventurous and sneaked out the top and climbed under the blanket on the ottoman and "hid" from me.
This is the little tent and his dish cloth that he sleeps on. The tear on his ear is from Jackson when Priscilla came to live with them. Jackson won the fight and Elvis and Priscilla are a couple.
This is Tipsy. She has had a long stay this time. Eleven days this visit. Here for the entire meltdown I had over the last two weeks or so over my daughter and some "teenage-life-sucks-I-hate-you-I'm-running-away-crap" that moms must go through as part of some secret "life-as-Mom-initiation-torture-session" that can only be slightly less painful than dental surgery sans anesthetic. I have been accepted into the society and recognized as a worthy party member. This photo is from my week long love affair I was having with reality TV and my sofa. Tipsy loves when I am depressed because I loaf and she snuggles. I think this was day three of my establishing my sofa empire, no care for personal hygene, no consideration for wardrobe (note the American "Pride" Tshirt- I'm pretty sure I had NO pride). Tipsy cared not. I cared even less.
Today, I was however dressed, accessorized, lip gloss flawlessly applied and on time for work for Dad - day two. One can only hide for so long and I can only be homely for so long before I snap out of it. I do have a certain admiration for women who can truly not give a hoot - permanently.. but I am far too vain. I do have to finally roll my face in the make-up trough and put on some high heels or I just can't take it.
The discord in our family has been healed for the time being and was properly celebrated by my daughter and I spending the evening shoe shopping. Glory be and thank heavens for a good Payless BOGO sale. Shopping heals many things..priceless.

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Growing

I have been growing. Not really by choice. Growth is painful. It requires introspection, quite reflection, willingness to hear and see criticism of oneself. These are all very difficult ways to spend your time if you are by nature easily distracted and have become too comfortably numbed by the little life you have carved out for yourself that never requires you to challenge your beliefs. Teenagers will if nothing else, challenge the status quo. I have one, and she has rocked my paddle boat the last few months and made me wish I were instead piloting a freighter in the turmoil of her emotional ocean.

I haven't checked in, I haven't posted or taken photographs or replied to congenial emails for quite some time because I have had very little that is perky or inspirational or in any way constructive to communicate. It is as though someone pushed the pause button right in the middle of my all day movie marathon and I just stopped being for a while. I have spent a lot of time in my pajamas, questionable amounts of time in the bathtub reading, bizarre amounts of time watching VH1 reality TV and a little bit of time at the local police department. Mostly I smelled bad, nothing I wore made sense, all foods consumed were of sandwich material and I memorized the various buttons on the remote control so I could navigate the channels in the event someone left me in the living room on the couch with the lights out as they went to bed.
I spent some time in the fetal position. I cursed. I cried. I created a new universe around my spot on the sofa. I was in mommy hell.
We are still working on things. There is more to come. I wish I were stronger and could say I'll never let my life take such a turn again, I'll never let myself get so emotional about something I have so little control over. But it's only Monday, and I just can't make that kind of commitment right now. I know I still have growing pains -a - commin'.
I missed my blog world.. can't wait to get back on track again. I will pray for all the mommies.

Showin' off a little

It's no secret that I love the Goodwill, thrift stores, garage sales- any form of resale shopping.
This week was the mother load. My friend Amy and I went to Burlington Coat Factory for their clearance sale.. usually not my first stop for clothing, but was assured clearance was the bomb.. $0.99 to $9.99 - practically thrift prices. We were shopping for a friend who gave Amy $100.00 to pick out anything Amy thought she could use, wear or needed. HELLO. Love to shop with other people's money. We found lots, this gal is a size 2/Small. But I was also shopping for myself and my daughter. Found a cart full and had good luck with fits. Spent too much, but was worth the money for how much I got! The table above came into my possession on Tuesday when I went to the Goodwill with Mom. She was looking for a shelf. I was not looking for anything. I was poor from shopping at Burlington. BUT, this great table was there and it had four great chairs. Its an oval refractory table that extends to 10 feet. The chairs were in good shape. It was $100.00 with the chairs. UGH. I didn't have $100.00. There was a lady standing nearby watching us wiggle and bounce and tug on everything to see what the condition was. She shared that there was a KFDI customer appreciation 1/2 price coupon that you could use on your entire purchase. Enough said. See my new $50.00 desk? In the kitchen are the "free" chairs.

Busy Body

Buttons! I have been cleaning up the craft room and sorting through goodie piles. I have a button drawer that was originally my mothers. I got to take possession of it since I am the resident sewer/crafter and she has no room at the Hoffice. The L pin was my grandmother, LaVonne's lapel pin. I got that too, because my daughter's name is Lauren. I dug out the buttons the other day to work on a scrapbook project and also to see if there were any jewelry components floating around in there.. I was making a bracelet and the hunting gathering part of it is the most fun for me. I always have ten times the number of trinkets that I could ever put on one piece of jewelry.. but one doesn't want to second guess a creative spurt.
This tray holds the scrapbook piece, it is going into a project book that the girls at JCD get to create for Jackie to show as examples of the notebook cover pattern that is in her new project book, Sweetest Gifts, by Jackie Clark. Jackie and Beverly and I were making one inch i.d. tags for samples from each of her patterns and books that she is sending to be used as a display at market.. a "trunk show". With the tags attached, you can see at a glance what book the pattern came from. The stinkin tags were so cute that I fell in love with the idea of making charms out of them.
Then there was a frenzy of OOHs and OHs and we all dropped what we were doing to discuss how that could be done?? Beverly asked Jackie where her Sally Jean Alexander book was so they could show me her work. WELL.. it was hard to go back to work after that. I was ready to go out and buy a welding tool, some silver tape and a stack of glass so I could make these CHARMS! Thank goodness I remembered I can't take on EVERY craft project.. I have to pace myself as to how much equipment and junk I want drug through the house. I reasoned that I could find a pre-fabbed charm.. and so glad I did. They weren't difficult to use, they were reasonably priced and I loved that they were ready to go! The word charms were fun to add colored beads to and bring out the colors on the pattern covers. They say Faith, Create, Journey, Humble, Inspire, Wish, and Spirit. I couldn't think of better words to describe Jackie or her business or her mission. Beverly and Claudia helped me make decisions and helped me pay for the trinkets and bracelet. We gave it to her as a gift on Thursday last week. I so enjoy when we can surprise her and find something she doesn't already have! Within minutes, you could see the wheels a-turnin'.. Claudia said, she's gonna want to make it a necklace - you watch. And we spent the rest of the day working at the big table watching Jackie dig through beads and building an extension so she could wear it as a bracelet or a necklace. I love it!

Rest

I rested this week. I slowed down just a little. Spring teases me into thinking I am invincible and tireless and I can do it all, right NOW. My body reminds me to be more patient. So I listened.

Pages of Happiness

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Last Christmas, at Jackie Clark Designs, the girls (Jackie, Claudia and Beverly and I) exchanged gifts. I think we exchange gifts weekly, really - someone is always having a birthday, needs cheered along, has something they are tired of and want to pass along.. it's a share-fest the first twenty minutes we are together in the morning! Beverly and I love paper and scrapping and ephemera. She is the queen and I am her jester.. Beverly's collection is marvelous and I have rummaged through it drooling! Her gift to me for Christmas was delightful, there was a business card holder with the Eiffel Tower on it for my new Etsy shop business cards, a decorative box of matches in a lovely green and teal shade.. The match tips were even green! And this lovely notebook. I could hardly bring myself to write in it, it's just pretty. But I had started a memento box of cards and "bits n pieces" that reminded me of friends and I decided I would use the notebook as a place to write about the important people and events that make our lives so full and happy. It was fun to look around the house for things that I could collage the pages with. I added business cards, menus, letters, envelopes and magazine clippings.. just randomly and very relaxed. I wanted no pressure here. I have the notebook on my desk and when I get to feeling sorry for myself or need cheer.. I open my friend book and can hear their voices. I know what each of them would say about my "problem". I have such fun imaginary dialog with my notebook of friends. I'm sure they prefer I talk to the book than dial them up every time I hit a stumbling block in life!

Room with a view

I have been all over this house in the past four years trying to carve out a spot for an office. I think I have already said all this.. it is a constant hitch in my giddy-up. I am fortunate that I have extra space in our home to use for hobbies, crafts and sewing, but the rooms are on the second floor. No matter how inviting I have tried to make them, I am always in alone in my crafting endeavors. Nice, right? Except that I am obsessed with whatever flavor of the month my craft might be and if I am in the zone, I can be gone for evenings at a time and never see my kids or hubby. And, no matter how organized my craft room is, it isn't an office. I have lost many an envelope, bill, important school notice in trying to train myself and family to transport mail to my "office".
Our family room is oddly shaped, basically in an L and has two large arched entrance ways, so there is limited wall space. This little corner between one of the doorways and the fireplace has never had a real purpose, it has housed a table and chairs for gaming, been lined with bookshelves and been a cozy reading nook, been a catch-all for furniture that doesn't fit elsewhere, and been the location of the Christmas tree for many years past. Enough already!
Momma needs an office! So I finally got the nerve to make it more officy and less inviting for oddball decorating schemes I come up with in the middle of the night.

I purchased attractive filing supplies, kept things coordinated, tried not to freak out the husband with the endless odds and ends I love to decorate with in my hobby room. It has taken me four years, and five household locations to carve this little piece of real-estate out for myself and my laptop. If you have the ability to carve out a small office "space", not real office even, I highly recommend it. There is work yet to be done, cords to hide, finishing touches and the like, but I am excited to be doing that instead of still wishing I had an office in the first place. While I still have to do major projets elsewhere, this set up has been such a blessing, the kids draw and play games at my desk (I do share), it's great for homework or writing thank-you cards to Grandma. I have been so much more efficient, on time with my bills and been able to keep a decent calendar, keep track of projects I am working on, even do filing while we watch a movie or favorite TV show. I am productive and can still BE WITH MY FAMILY. I am looking at them now, they look like they might be wondering if I am going to the grocery store anytime soon. Does that laptop bake cookies?