snapshots III & custom place cards

i know you're thinking, "shorty, where have you been?!"

ok, maybe that's NOT what you're thinking, but i am feeling like i haven't been frequenting this space enough and want to be spending more time around here. so before i send off for a long weekend, i want to provide a thursday snapshot!

making: custom placecards (see below)
drinking: chocolate green superfood (omg delicious!)
reading: still life with woodpecker by tom robbins
listening: once soundtrack, it has evolved again
wearing: new seven straight cropped jeans

now my main reason for the post was to share pics of the placecards i've been working on. a dear friend of mine is gifting them to her friends--fabulous twins who are turning 26! their birthday party will be at FIG in Charleston, SC, and as a special gift to their guests, they will send them off with a hand written note inside these beauties! i always have a listing up on etsy for custom placecards---click here for more info. i design & assemble & scribe them myself, and always have a custom card for the guest of honor, in this case, Laura & Victoria. hope you enjoy this pics of the finished product!

very special blossoming placecards for the bday girls!

(side view) these are tent-style placecards with a fabric/french dictionary/honey yellow cardstock flower mounted onto them with a mixed metal brad to hold it all together! the fabric came from a fantastic etsy seller, spice berry cottage

the soldiers, all lined up! (and looking very swanky!)

boys like flowers, too, right?

closeup of the guest of honor card! (sorry for the semi-blurry pic)

well i'm off to get this day started. much love & blossoming! xoxox

be of good courage

{my barnyard girl, showing off her skills. sold.
i still have the original image though,
so there may be more of a similar look!}

have you ever had one of those days when:

• you race out of the house with wet hair, and when you finally get to your destination, sweating of course, you realize there was no need to race at all?
• you look down after 3pm and realize your panties are inside out (but thankfully not backwards)?
• you, despite all odds, do what it takes to plug in, pray with fierce faith, and make your day the very best one you can imagine?

that's been the kind of day i had...but despite all this, i still found the courage to slip into the blink boutique and try on shoshanna bathing suit i've been dying for. afterwards, i threw on my workout clothes and hit up a new class: ZUMBA! have you ever done this?? seriously the MOST fun workout a person can think of. it's so high energy and so right on target for toning, booty shaking, and breaking a good, well-deserved sweat! i loved it...

home now with a smoothie (carrot juice, fresh spinach, frozen blueberries, NF yogurt, 1/2 banana, peanut butter) and a pile of place cards. finishing these up tonight and shipping them to charleston, along with myself and PW on thursday. we are so excited!!! hope you're up to something good tonight, despite what obstacles might cause you to trip a little bit, i seriously and enthusiastically encourage you to keep it going! be of good courage.

snapshots II

hello! wow, whirlwind of a weekend that was wonder-filled and delightful! [despite the {heavy} rain] thanks so much for those of you who stopped by to check out what these hands have been making the past few weeks! i will have lots of shop updates coming soon...

here are a few snapshots of the booth & little miss yours truly:





.


my, o, my was it a fun time. closed up shop a bit early each day because paper+rain=no bueno. but fun was had by all, incredibly gratitude to the new faces who i was fortunate to meet, and the family & friends who rallied to help me make it happen!

some snapshots of this week:

traveling: charleston, sc
eating: giada's thyme pasta frittata
fitness: ZUMBA! (my first time, have you done this?)
making: custom placecard order
listening: regina spektor's far album

i hope you're up to good things this week. keeping busy. staying warm hearted in this july weather. drop me a line & let me know what your week looks like. xoxox

the process

did you know that life is a process?

that you start off with an idea, as your pursue it,
you adjust to the flow, then...off you go!
~
did you know that that your days are blank canvases?
that you choose to paint and play?
~

a long time ago i stripped down my inspiration board (which is just a canvas)
and
i had the intention of creating some totally new, totally different.
i didn't know what that was.
i just started painting and playing.

above: my blank (stripped) canvas. oh wow.



above: brown gesso'ed canvas, as well as the inspiration pallette, tools, etc.



above: the painting.


above: tissue paper overlay---some john derian italian handwritten letter. perfect.


above: paper cutting and letter choosing.
~
and as you play on that blank canvas, something comes to life.
~
the finale: i ended up turning a blank canvas into a sign for my art fair booth.
(which i hadn't known about when i started the project)
it simply became.


above: the finished product.
and a proud cardmaker!
~
let's be honest: i'm not that fancy or anything.
but i'm passionate about paper. glue. beauty.
~
i believe in the process.
how long it takes.
how much it asks of us.
as individuals.
as humans.
~
if you're in or around louisville this weekend,
please stop by and see some of my most recent work.
i'll be at the old fashioned 4th of july in crescent hill at the peterson-dumesnil house
all day saturday and sunday
and
i would love to see some of you!
~
i have 100+ new pieces to sell
handmade cards/journals/canvases, etc
a few peeks of the new work:

hope to see you there!
xoxox stephanie

the very best

when i was a child, i used to think:
things are a little crooked, a little curvy, a little out of control,
but now i know: those are the very best things in the long run...

two dads & two moms. i am one lucky girl.
xoxo

snapshots

i have a tendency to take things way too seriously. for instance: i put off blogging until i feel so inspired or have some lengthy amount of time to sit down & share. well guess what? that's why my blog posts are somewhat scattered & not frequent enough! inspiration is flowing at all times of the day. i wish i had an iphone to capture/share/repeat. since i don't *yet* i am starting a new blog project called SNAPSHOTS. just a peek into my day, whats churning & burning on this fire.

reading: Geninne's Art Blog
listening: Beirut
craving: A Green Monster (via eatliverun.com)
tweeting: esteffi
working on: heart piercing cards

so thankful for saturday & time to get all the goodness packed in without normal work looming over my head. hope you're having a happy day, filled with the lightness & frivolity of summer. perhaps a glass of champalou vouvray, too. happy golden saturday to you. xoxox

gastronomical delights

{louisville, ky, during the ice storm, dinner by camping latern}
(sans flash)

{blackened steak & blue cheese salad with a bold german heffeweisen and blue dog cereal bread}
(with flash)

see more on my flickr...
flickr photo set: gastronomical delights!