still away

hey all. i'm still away for a couple more days, but i wanted to let you know that i am going to have to put shop sales on hold for a few weeks.

you see, i've sold my house!!

and that means that i have lots to do to prepare for a cross-country move, so i'll need to take a break from sewing for a bit. but you'll be the first to know when i've returned to the crafting world!

and don't fret, i'll still be posting in the meantime!

vaca

hey all. i forgot to tell you that i am in arizona again this week for mr. m's birthday. posts will be infrequent to non-existent, as we will be on a road trip to quaint little towns with no cell reception, let alone wireless internet.

have a fabulous week!

photo stolen from here.

ericka bazile

i love love love these bags by ericka bazile. if i weren't saving all my pennies for the upcoming move, i would totally have to have one for my new summer bag.

earth day!

happy happy happy happy happy happy earth day!

was that obnoxious?

sorry for the late-in-the-day post, but i actually had some work to do today.

in honor of earth day, i'm forgoing my usual post to implore you to love the earth!

use cloth shopping bags! change out your lightbulbs! use green household cleaning products! recycle! (reduce and resuse too, of course!) turn off lights! turn down your heat! turn up your air conditioner! buy energy star appliances! buy local! buy organic! buy carbon offsets!

whew, that was a lot of exclaimation points!

those are just some ideas, all of which i'm sure you already knew. for more green tips, click here. and here. and here.

i, for one, when starting over in my new home (hopefully soon), vow to buy only green cleaning products, an organic mattress, to shop locally and organically as much as possible, and to buy carbon offsets for my wedding.

i hope you are going green! it's the cool thing to do.

earth picture stolen from here.

under my umbrella (ella ella eh)

the forecast here calls or rain this week (big surprise, it's spring), and of course i have lost yet another umbrella. i swear i had one in my car.

when i was in college, i could not keep an umbrella for the life of me. nearly every time it rained i ended up buying a new one at the bookstore.

so here is an ode to all the lost umbrellas, and to the new one i may have to buy this week.


a nostalgic print by elle moss photography.



umbrella as art from design commission.

a fantastic pring by laura george.

a fun spring necklace by finderskeeper.



a sweet little card by yaelfran.



a lovely little ring by eggman studios.



a gorgeous photo by eddie o'bryan. love her posture.



now if i could just get that damn rihanna song out of my head...

pretty little things

i am really, really ready to move to phoenix. will someone please just buy my house?

these adorable prickly pear pincushions by lori marie of pretty little things made me long for the desert. so cute!

red ruby rose

love love love these little clutches by red ruby rose.

want one.

ARTDSG

to continue on a home/office thread, ARTDSG makes really cool art, but i especially like his lighting pieces. also very zen.

layer by layer

talk about eco friendly. all of layer by layer's handmade items are crafted from recycled cardboard and beeswax, with a little dirt and moss thrown in for that added natural element.

having one of these on my desk would make me feel very zen.

i think i would pet the moss a lot. perhaps too much.

bangles

i've got bangles on the brain! i think it's because i'm longing for summer. (please don't snow, please don't snow!)

aren't bangles just the best accessory for a hot summer dress?

check these out.


how gorgeous are these handcuff bangles by vanessa amalia?! drool.




gotta love the classic hammered bangle, by tumbleweed bead co.




i like these yarn wrapped recycled bangles by naranja37.




i know you would love this tourmaline bangle by sirenjewels, momma.




this floral ceramic bangle by adina mills is pretty sweet, and definitely unique.

new brooches

i made some brooches this week. wouldn't they be perfect on a jacket or tote bag?

check them out in my shop.

and thanks to the lovely heidi for being my model!

sprout studio

all the adorable cuteness over at sprout studio makes me think SPRING!

even though it is going to be in the 40s this weekend with a chance of snow. boo.

mr. m. is coming to visit, and he will get a taste of what i had to put up with all winter while he was enjoying the arizona sunshine. muaahhh ahh ahh!

lorena barrezueta

"The Gourmet Collection reintroduces the ubiquitous disposable tin food container in fine porcelain."

that's how lorena barrezueta describes her fabulous line. the idea is just fantastic, especially in today's throw-away, take-out, everything's disposable world. and the colors are great!

flavor paper

flavor paper makes the most fantastic (and generally outrageous) wallpapers.

wallpaper is back in style, you know.

all of their paper is hand screened. and, i shit you not, they make scratch & sniff paper. i am totally not kidding.

even better, a portion of proceeds (from the scratch & sniff paper) goes the the human rights campaign.

way cool.

ziazia

don't you just love these lovely goodies by ziazia? they have such a wonderful handmade quality to them.

check out her blog (in spanish, which i vow to be able to read someday) for more of her fabulous work.

i have two houses!

that's right, i am now the proud owner (sort of) of two houses! in two states!

michael gets the keys to our new house in phoenix today, and i have yet to sell my house in nebraska. boo.

if you know someone who is moving to lincoln and wants an adorable house, send them here.

want to see the new house? here you go!


that's a giant palm tree in our front yard!



here's a peek at the living room and kitchen. hello stainless steel!

365 days!

so it's not quite tomorrow yet (two more hours here in the central time zone), but it's close enough.

in 365 days from now, i'll be getting married! i will be on a beach, partying with my loved ones, sipping something tropical, and celebrating my new life with my lovie. i am so excited!

don't worry, this will not become a wedding blog (maybe i'll have to start one...), but i have been thinking about save the date cards lately, although it's still a bit too early to send them out.

that, and i haven't even picked colors yet. oh well. i have a year, right?

here are some lovely ones i found that have helped get the ideas flowing. enjoy!


from cheerup cherup.



from eva paul.



from lucky paperie.



from michelle brusegaard.