Pardon my absence

my new business card design

I apologize for my lack of posts. I am catching up on orders from my old shops online. I am also extremely inspired with a ton of new ideas lately and I am taking advantage of them before they just disappear into thin air like what usually happens to people. I am also taking a lot of photos lately because I have fallen in love with photography yet again. Of course, you will see them posted here very soon.
Example is the photo above. I am thinking of turning it into a business card. What do you think? I love the idea of buttons trying to escape the glass bottle. I think it's so whimsical and it fits the theme I am going for. Please tell me what you think. I would appreciate it so much.

See you again tomorrow.

Our Thanksgiving

Our Thanksgiving Day was awesome! My mom cooked a feast! We had turkey, ribs, beans, potato salad,sweet yams, biscuits, garlic bread, cranberry sauce and we baked cupcakes.

Unfortunately, the memory card got corrupted and these photos were the only ones left.
At least, there was evidence of Mom's first ever turkey.

Then, after dinner, the kids had ice cream! It was very cold but ice cream is perfect for whatever weather, right?

He sure loved it!

Then the whole family played with I-spy books. That was a riot and so much fun.
Then it was Black Friday. And no, I didn't line up for hours like what I did three years ago.
I don't think I ever will again. But I did go around 1 pm the next day. I was a very good girl. I only bought a few things.
Like these santa socks I got for my three girls.

It wasn't on sale but I couldn't pass it up- $5.00 each

Hello kitty dollar items

$1.00 candy gift wrapper, how cute is this!

And I also got a stainless steel Martha Stewart kettle that was originally $69.99 and on sale for $24.99.
Now, we don't have to microwave our hot chocolate or coffee. Awesome!

How was yours? did you line up for Black Friday? how was your Thanksgiving dinner? Please share!

Super pretty gift!

Last week, I posted something on my personal Facebook about a certain something I wanted for Christmas. To my surprise, my childhood friend from the Philippines bought it for me. I was in awe, super thankful and so excited about it. It finally came in the mail yesterday!

CUPCAKE OVEN!!! Seriously! An oven that looks like a giant cupcake! How cute is that?

I love this cupcake oven! I can't stress that enough!

Today for Thanksgiving, we tried it for the first time!

Perfect cupcakes all the time!

Homemade buttercream icing

See how pretty???

I can do this forever!

So pretty right?

For $49.99, not bad at all!

The lights are pretty much useless. Just time it, 10 minutes and 6 cupcakes are all done. So stress free! No over cooked or under cooked cupcakes! My kids love it. I love it.

*All images are by me, please link back to this blog if you use them, thank you!

Pretty Hat

I made this hat headband all by myself. No glues, all sewn. And it's even prettier up close. It's an original design made enitrely by vintage materials, even the thread. Do you like it? It's perfect for the Holidays or New Year's or how about a wedding? Get it here.
By the way, Have a Happy Thanksgiving everyone! My Thanksgiving post coming up later!

Pretty Bows

Pin it on your shirt. Pin it on your purse. Pin it on your hat or anywhere you need to prettify.
Handmade bow pins in many different colors!

Aren't they pretty? Well they are even prettier in real life! So get yours now!

Temporarily, for the Holidays, all my creations can be found here and my website is merely for information and look book.
Please check my website for new photos!

Fancy Coffee

These past few cold mornings, I've been drinking Dulce De Leche coffee. I love Dulce De Leche ice cream and I love coffee so I thought why not combine the two?

Here's how to make one

Dulce De Leche fancy coffee

Make your favorite coffee. I used Nescafe instant coffee and I boiled the water longer than usual. Then I mixed in 3 tablespoons of Dulce De Leche ice cream, you will see it froth on top after you stir it. Then I put 2 more tablespoons of ice cream to sit on top. And that's it! It tastes wonderful!

You can also use Egg Nog ice cream (but add sugar because this ice cream is not sweet enough), pumpkin pie ice cream or Vanilla.

Favorite Space {Besty}

Hi Everyone! I am so excited for this new feature on my blog. I've decided to merge my old blog called Favorite Spaces with this blog. So from time to time, I will be featuring whimsical favorite spaces of Indie artists that I admire! I hope that this new feature will inspire you to create your own magical space.

Here's our first tour. And it's Betsy Dorman's craft studio.

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Chickything:What do you do? 

Betsy:I am a photographer, a bookbinder, a sewer... a general maker of things.  I'm an art educator, a crafter, a collector and (finally!) a shopkeeper.  I just opened up besty in September after years of dreaming.  I sell linocut prints, children's clothing, and linens.  I also offer posters and limited editions of archival digital prints from original animal silhouette drawings based on the letters of the alphabet.   More crafty adventures involving books and stationary and decor are in the works.

Chickything:

What inspired the space?

Besty:THREE things -

* Being tall - I've always been tall. There are certain things I hate about it, mostly leg-room-on-airplanes types of things - but I've learned to love it. I have always liked to move around and do my work both sitting down and standing up at my desk. I've never really been able to comfortably do that because the surface is always too low and I end up looking like a crazy-eyed, hunched creature after about 20 minutes. So a couple of years ago, I went to Ikea and put together these desk/storage pieces and I couldn't be happier.
* Fitting lots into a little space - My studio is always the smallest room in the house or apartment, mostly because I know I will fill whatever space I move into, whether it is big or small. So I try to use this knowledge about myself and create limitations so I don't turn into a craft monster taking over the house. My current studio has this tiny little elf closet that is jam-packed with materials. I love it because it is deceptively large - as if it is the magic-carpet-bag of closets.
* Surrounding myself with my favorite things - I have many photos and quotes and little collections in here. The photos are ones I've taken or found or inherited from my family, the quotes from artists and writers help keep me sane, and the little things scattered about are items I've picked up along the way.

Chickything:

What is your favorite item in your studio? And why? And where or how did you get it?

Betsy:I would have to say my absolute favorite item is a small print of a painting. It is a portrait of a purple and yellow boy. It was painted about 6 years ago by a student in the very first art class I ever taught. He was 10. He had never really done a "grown up painting" before (translation: one you work on for an entire week) and he painted a self-portrait of the way the light hit his face. It was magical to watch him both discover how to see something and surprise himself in the process. He reminded me of what I love about art and it made me want to be a teacher forever. I like the painting for the discovery within it. I like it because it reminds me of important things when I forget them for awhile. It has saved my life once or twice on particularly bad days. 

Chickything: What inspires you the most when you create?   

Betsy:I like to stare at the mountain outside my window.  Some might say it is a hill but I love it. It looks different every day. I know the path of the sun around it and how the clouds like to gather in different places. Plus, having just moved out of Brooklyn, I have to check that it is there in order to actually believe that I live at the foot of it.  Magical.

 Chickything:

What music do you listen to when you create?  

Betsy:I prefer to listen to relaxing music that isn't really lyric driven when I'm working in my studio.  I sometimes find words distracting, but I think this is only because I wasn't allowed to listen to anything but classical music when I was "working" when I was little.   But who knows, sometimes I turn on Pandora or NPR for the whole day and I'm completely happy. Whatever it is, if the music ends and I'm really deep in concentration, I can sometimes go hours before I even realize that the album has ended and I've been working in silence.

 Chickything:

 Where do you get your furniture and home decor?  

Betsy:

Many of the functional pieces in my studio are from Ikea (desk, desk legs, drawers, file cabinets, chair, lamp, shelves, storage boxes, magnet boards.)   I purchased all of them in white, mostly because the consistency makes a nice backdrop against the inevitable chaos.  It kind of makes it feel clean and streamlined and organized in here, even in the midst of a crazy, messy project.   Everything else is a mishmash of my creations, gifts from super-creative friends, inherited things from family, or flea market finds.

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What a magical space! Don't you think? I especially love that little elf door! I wish I have one in my craft studio. Thanks so much Betsy for allowing us a peek into your magical space!

Visit her here:

Her shop

Website

If you are an artist and you have a magical/whimsical space in your home, please, please share it with all of us. 

Please email me at chickything[a!]yahoo.com

Happiness is a choice

 

Did you know that if you talk to children and spend a lot of time with them, you would feel a lot lighter, younger and happier? Forget the undone beds, the messy bedrooms and the unfinished chores. Forgive them for being imperfect because the truth is, we grown ups are imperfect ourselves. Lower our expectations of them for once and just, hang out, bond, spend quality time together and you would realize how good life really is. 

Sometimes we have to see life through a child's eyes and not take things too seriously and we will feel so, so much less stressed about everything that is going on around us.

 

No worries, no fears, no hate, no negative feelings, just love, pure love that these children can teach us and lend us once in a while. 

Why do we hate anyway? Why do we bash on our neighbors or criticize? Why do we have so much expectations from other people and if they don't measure up to it, we crucify them? Why do we tend to look for what's wrong/mistakes rather than what's good and what's right? Why do we keep records of wrongs and not keep records of the good things they have done for us? Why are we so quick to judge and to blame?

Why do we have so much hate in our hearts (even if we don't admit it even to ourselves)? Why can't we forgive? And yet we ask to be forgiven? Why can't we be pure hearted, filled with happiness and love for life like children once in a while? if not everyday? Why can't we just live in joy and peace? Why do we choose the other crooked, bumpy path when there's a smoother path to walk on? I have no answers or explanations to these questions but I do have a suggestion for you (and for myself)...
Choose to be happy. No matter what circumstances you are on. Just be happy. Happiness is a choice, just like forgiveness and love.
Most of the time, we think that we are so much better than children but are we really? Sometimes, we can learn a lot from them too.
Live, love, laugh and be merry.
Happy Thanksgiving week!

Pretty Wednesday

Yesterday was so much fun. I went to Starbucks and tried their Pumpkin Spice Latte for the first time. I don't buy coffee from coffee shops often because I was a former barista and I think I make the best coffee, lol. I am very hard to please when it comes to coffee and I think that coffee sold by cafe giants are way overpriced but sometimes I jump in the wagon and spend some $$ for fancy coffee which I did yesterday then as I was holding the freshly made latte, it slipped through my hands! And spilled all over the shiny floor! Oooops... I was in awe. How could that have happened? Three people came to clean it up. I was so embarrassed. This nice barista who made my coffee was cleaning up the mess and she asked the other guy behind the counter to make me a new one. How sweet! I'll be back today again for their buy one take one special. So hurry and go to your nearest Starbucks today, It's from 2pm to 5.
Then when I got home, I baked some Cinnabon cinnamon rolls. The house smelled so sweet.

 I turned mine into a heart. Pretty right?
Then as you may know, how in love I am with Confetti System's sparkly garland but due to the outrageous price, I tried to make my own version.

First, I made some pom poms out of vintage yarn and tied them on natural hemp twine. Then I bought some purple tinsel table skirts which I then cut in half and folded them on the center and taped them on vintage pearl string which I have tons of.

It turned out so pretty don't you think? I plan to fill my house with this in many different colors!
Oh, and pom pom making is just so addictive!
Here is a pom pom tutorial but the yarn I used was so high quality that they turned out really puffy like real store bought pom poms. So I suggest you buy fluffy soft yarn rather than those that would look like a ball of pointy strings.
Have a grand time creating!

Pretty perfume

All my perfumes,vintage pins and other bath and beauty products will be found on my etsy. And All clothing, kids items, decor etc will be on my official website.

I just listed this beautiful one of a kind perfume

It comes in this beautiful lace covered box

The perfect gift for a loved one or for yourself! You know you deserve it!
Find it here