2birdstone

Trend Watch: Sun Prints

2011-12-17T11:08:00.000-08:00

So a year and a half ago I did a little post on flag bunting as inspiration for wedding stationery. Lo and behold, the bunting craze erupted into a mega-huge trend. You see it EVERYWHERE now so in an effort to find out if my post was prophecy or dumb luck I am throwing an official prediction out there for a future wedding and event trend ... the sun print.

I know that artists have been doing this for ages and that there are a great many souls using the cyanotype method of printing for artistic and education applications, but I am guessing that this easy to use method (you can buy kits for cheap at www.sunprints.org) may catch on as a trendy element of weddings and parties. The possibilities are endless! Everything from place and escort cards, table numbers, photobooth props, custom table linens and more will benefit of that pop of blue.

I LOVE cobalt hues (thanks to my Grandma's legendary "blue bathroom" and the collection of cobalt glass she passed down to me) so I couldn't help but try my hand at a sun print-like save-the-date design for Minted's latest challenge.

save the date cards - Sun Print

Do you think sun printing will be a big trend for the coming wedding season? Or should I go buy a lottery ticket and leave trend prediction to the pros?

Need more sun print ideas? Check out these links:
http://www.marthastewart.com/273140/baby-clothes-sun-prints
http://blog.craftzine.com/archive/2006/09/how_to_make_sunprint_paper_pat.html
http://www.ohdeedoh.com/ohdeedoh/diy/get-inspired-by-sunprints-148995

Castle Howard, England

2011-12-15T08:41:00.000-08:00

We visited Castle Howard this summer with my in-laws. It's an absolutely amazing Baroque mansion in Yorkshire. Here are a few iPhone (thus the quality) pics of the details I found most beautiful there.

(Look at the light coming through that bust!)

This house is worth an entire day's visit and I am in love with the Yorkshire countryside.

Something Old, Something New Wedding Invitation Challenge

2011-11-18T05:11:00.000-08:00

Is open for voting! This challenge focused on designing for different cultures, religions and traditions. There are a ton of great submissions that will allow for brides and grooms around the world to find the perfect invitation for their event. Go now, and let your rating finger do the talking.

wedding invitations - Lucky Horseshoe

wedding invitations - A Comic Book Love Story

wedding invitations - Sales Pitch

wedding invitations - Coral Beach

Imitation or Inspiration?

2011-11-16T07:39:00.001-08:00

Imitation is the sincerest form of flattery ... or so they say.

Bodrum, Turkey

2011-10-31T02:11:00.000-07:00

Head Over Heels Wedding Invitation Challenge

2011-10-31T02:04:00.000-07:00

Is open for voting! There are many brilliant designs to rate, everything from the perfect rustic barn wedding invitation to clean and modern ones perfect for a wedding in a science museum. Go now, and let your opinion be known.

wedding invitations - Seaglass Floral

wedding invitations - Bistro Board
wedding invitations - Graphic Photo
wedding invitations - Certified Wed

2011-10-20T01:24:00.000-07:00

Minted has announced the winners and editor's picks for the Quickfire Children's Stationery challenge. There are many great designs and they'll be for sale just in time for holiday season gift giving! Check them out here.

Two of my designs were selected as editor's picks; "Simple Badge" and "Chic Stripes" have made the cut and will be available for purchase this holiday season.

Quickfire Holiday Minibook and New Year Cards

2011-10-05T02:08:00.000-07:00

The winners of Minted's last holiday challenge of the year have been announced and one of my New Year designs has been selected as an editor's pick. Yacht Club was lots of fun for me and really pushed my comfort zone with a more creative approach to typography. It's nice to be rewarded with an editor's pick and $100! The winners and other editor's picks are all beautiful, so if you never get around to sending that Christmas card don't despair. There are plenty of great designs for ringing in 2012!

Yacht Club was also selected as a runner-up in the special prize category of "Best Bold Typography Design." So I must be doing something right, right? See the rest of the very deserving special prize winners here.

Sending Good Cheer for 2011

2011-10-01T09:49:00.000-07:00

A non-traditional holiday color to be sure but Pantone's 2011 color
of the year, Honeysuckle, makes a joyful statement.

It's that time of year again! While the rest of the world enjoyed their summer drinking ice cold lemonade and thinking of sand and sun, the world's holiday card designers have locked themselves in their offices. Listening to holiday music and drinking hot cocoa (maybe wearing a woolly hat and scarf for added effect) they attempted to get into the holiday spirit to produce the coming season's best Christmas and holiday stationery designs.

I was lucky enough to have one of my designs selected for sale this season. Minted's Sending Good Cheer challenge was a huge one and produced the best holiday card assortment I've seen yet. "Christmas Cafe" was my best work thus far and one of those designs that just "happened" without much work or thought, it just came pouring out of my stylus and onto the screen. I remember the biggest issue I had with it was what kind of edge to use overlapping the photo, not my normal conundrum with typography. I was so excited about this particular design that I forced my poor husband to "come look!" over five times and each time he played along like a good sport.

So with great pride and a big, silly grin, I ask you to "come look!"

"Christmas Cafe" scored in the top 30 designs of nearly 2250 and was also selected as a runner-up in the special prizes categories of "Best Type-Driven Design" and "Best Retro or Vintage Design." See the rest of the very deserving special prize winners here.

The Typography Business Card Challenge

2011-09-22T00:56:00.000-07:00

Minted has finally announced the winners and boy are they well deserving! You can marvel over them here.

Two of my designs were selected as editor's picks; "Ladylike" and "Color Wash" have made the cut and will be available for purchase in the coming months.

"Ladylike" was also selected as a runner-up in the special prizes category of "Best Over-the-Top Pretty Design." Check out the rest of the special prize winners here.

Love Under the Stars

2011-07-26T05:54:00.000-07:00

Is there anything more romantic than a night under the stars with the one you love? I'm not convinced that there is.

When I sat down to create wedding invitations for the Happily Ever After challenge over at Minted, I started thinking of romantic scenes and how those would translate to wedding stationery. Vintage constellation maps fit perfectly and the idea behind Star Map was born.

If you're not sure how to incorporate more celestial beauty into your wedding let this inspiration board be your starting point.

[ 1. Starlette Crown by giant dwarf 2. Starry night sky reception by Preston Bailey 3. Midnight Blue Sunstone Gold Necklace by friedasophie 4. Reading the Stars cross stitch by MiniatureRhino 5. Star Cluster NGC 290 from HubbleSite 6. tent under stars by Lissy Elle via Gypsy Girl Guide 7. liberty star and t-bar ballet flats from ASOS ]

Still want more starry goodness? Check out these great links:

-Decorate with easy DIY paper stars, tutorial from Annekata
-Sign a night-themed print with white ink for a unique guest book and art combo, Yearning Soul print by Andres Kal
-Gold star sparklers for the perfect reception getaway from Tops Malibu
-Line the aisle with glittered paper stars - Martha
-Wish upon a star wedding band set by BethCyrWeddings

Three Year Anniversary: color inspiration

2011-06-28T13:51:00.000-07:00

The fifth of July marks the third year I've been married to my one and only. In order to selfishly relive some of the excitement of wedding planning (without feeling guilty about it) I'll be sharing my inspirations and the details that created my final vision for that awesome day three years ago.

PS: My husband was the best part of that day and continues to brighten my life with his smile, laughter and love ... but that's not what you're here for!

-------------------------------------------------------

The first thing I tackled was a tentative color palette. I knew I wanted bright and bold colors and something that would work with blue because of the uniform my husband would wear. When I discovered the world of inspiration boards I was in heaven!

orange, red and blue color palette
[ Snippet + Ink: board #123 ]

orange and lemon color palette
[ Snippet + Ink: board #109 ]

aqua blue and orange color palette
[ Snippet + Ink: board #157 ]

bright yellow and navy color palette
[ Snippet + Ink: board #315 ]

As you can probably tell, Snippet + Ink was one of my first "wedding blog" discoveries and quickly became my number one site for wedding eye candy. Don't tell but it's still a favorite today.

One Pretty Thing

2011-06-06T00:52:00.001-07:00

Look at the packaging of these pretty sparkling juices by Bottle Green that I spotted in ASDA.

These limited edition bottles are part of the Fashion Targets Breast Cancer campaign
and support the work of Breakthrough Breast Cancer.

One Pretty Thing

2011-05-24T02:27:00.000-07:00

I'm sure most of you are probably aware of Jessica Hische's project the Daily Drop Cap, but have you seen the guest artists' drop caps? One of my favorites comes from Gina & Matt.

Check out the rest of the guest drop caps here, they're all beautiful.

Painted Eggs featured!

2011-05-19T15:03:00.000-07:00

Thanks to Minted via Twitter I was informed that my winning Easter design had been featured on Gabrielle Blair's beautiful blog, Design Mom. She worked with Minted to create a custom Easter party invitation out of the card by adding an area for text to the back. How smart is that?!

I love how they look all laid out like this!
[all photography by Design Mom]

Thanks so much for the write-up Design Mom!

Dublin, Ireland

2011-05-10T12:17:00.000-07:00

We took a quick three day trip to Dublin while Mr's brother was in town. We hopped on a pretty cheap Ryan Air flight and stayed at the Anchor House bed and breakfast. I found it via Trip Advisor and we were thrilled with the location, value and the friendliness of the staff. (Trip Advisor hasn't let me down yet!)

Now for some pictures:

Dover Castle, England

2011-04-25T12:45:00.001-07:00

After two failed attempts, the Mr. and I finally got into Dover Castle. Luckily it was a beautiful day and my brother in law was in town too so we made a day of it! Dover Castle is a definite "must see" attraction in England if you're on the island.

Here are some of my favorite phone pics of the day.

Found in Town

2011-04-07T08:30:00.001-07:00

3+ Holiday Challenge

2011-03-29T04:05:00.000-07:00

Rating is now open for Minted's 3+ Holiday Card Challenge. Designers were asked to submit cards for Easter, Halloween and Thanksgiving, and here are my submissions.

Easter

Painted Eggs

Tissue Papers

Halloween

Sanguine

Spider Ribbon

Thanksgiving

Mustard Groove

One Pretty Thing

2011-03-17T15:55:00.000-07:00

Hello, gorgeous!

Aldo's "Forwood"
found via Honesty...WTF

Black + White

2011-03-15T07:51:00.000-07:00

How about an inspiration board to start off the day? Inspired by my Vintage Ornament wedding invitation (available at Minted) bold black and white graphic elements make for a modern black-tie event full of personality.

[ 1. houndstooth dress photo by Veronika of ticktockvintage.blogspot.com 2. woman in dress, photo by Regina Relang, found via Schupman Collection 3. white bouquet Martha Stewart 4. martini by Martha Stewart via Ritzy Bee 5. lace cake from Real Simple 6. zebra photo by alles-sclumpf on flickr 7. Brandon Flowers for GQ ]

The Trendys

2011-03-08T13:23:00.000-08:00

I'm so shocked, excited and honored to discover that Minted has nominated my Reinpet design for The Trendys! (woot woot)

There are great designs in there so go vote for your favorites!

New Projects!

2011-02-22T04:47:00.000-08:00

I can't wait for spring and summer to come so I can tackle these projects I've been collecting this winter.

PROJECT #1
The first item to tackle is this iron and wood garden bench. It's been living in our garage for who-knows-how-long. I asked our landlord if we could use it and he told me that his wife has forgotten about it and he didn't want her to remember so we could do whatever we wanted with it. Hooray for us!

The whole thing is pretty loose but the screws are all in place and just need to be tightened. My plan is to take it apart, clean up the iron bits with a wire brush and sand the boards a bit to smooth them out again. I'm thinking I'll paint the wood light blue and the spray paint the iron grey or white. However, given my desire for color I might change my mind and paint it white and yellow, all red, or all white. I probably wont know until I've got it taken apart and ready to paint.

PROJECT #2
A friend of mine is moving houses and didn't have room to take this so she was giving it away, for FREE. Obviously, I had to take it. I like the mid-century look and the mirror shape. The wood or veneer looks a little rough and all of the drawer pulls are missing, but I'm excited to see what I can do to restore some of it's natural character. I don't want to paint this whole piece but I might paint the grooves on the right of it and use knobs in the same color on the other drawers. It could be a pretty fun result.

PROJECT #3
Living in England means closets are a luxury. Our house has ONE closet, basically it's the utility room with two poles across it. We hang our winter coats, formal gowns (yes, there is a prom dress or two in there), and off-season stuff in there along with our suitcases and the vacuum. It's a pretty exciting little room.

Given our need for clothing storage I purchased a tall dresser from someone in town for $25. It's a pretty cheap piece so I want to go crazy with it and paint it something bright and cheery. I'm thinking a flame orange or canary yellow and then I may try my hand at some metal spray paint and change the pulls to some complimentary color. Of course, they might look good enough to leave alone when cleaned up with some Brasso, I'll just have to wait and see.

PROJECT #4
This is my giant flat file cabinet that I scored off eBay UK for £12. It's quite massive and (it may not fit up the stairs at our current house) is going to be the perfect home for my prints, paper, and art supplies.

It's natural wood with a thin varnish. I'll be sanding the surfaces and staining the whole piece a warm dark brown, lining the drawers with something fun and replacing the knobs. I'm also planning on adding some label plates to the center of each drawer for that apothecary/library look.

I'm so excited to start, bring on the sunshine and warm, dry weather!

Quilts

2011-01-19T01:11:00.000-08:00

I'm officially on a quilt kick. This has never happened before.

I spent more than a few weekends at auction houses growing up. I remember my parents' main objective was buying antique quilts but I didn't really "get" the appeal. We always had hand-made quilts on our beds and a few hanging around the house. I often enjoyed looking at them up close, examining all the different patterns and colors that were part of each little square and triangle. Then I'd look around the whole quilt to find other pieces of the same fabric. When I got older I began to notice how different the quilt looked up close compared to from across a room.

In 2001 I moved off to college and forgot about quilts all together until my 21st birthday. My dad's gift was a quilt of my own. From then on, every bed I owned until my wedding had that quilt on it. Sadly, it's now relegated to our guest room's twin bed and I miss it. (I can get a photo I'll add it to the post ... )

At Christmas I went home for the first time in a year. Being back in my parent's homes I realized how much I liked the way they had their homes decorated. Interesting antique furniture pieces, unique quilts, lamps and old books mixed with functional modern and non-precious items. Nothing stuff or pretentious or "old lady."

I want to bring quilts back into my life. I miss the weight multiple layers of blankets and quilts have but my husband swears his size 13 arches hurt when he sleeps with too much weight on his feet so we just have a fluffy comforter now. Alas, I am itching to buy one!

Of course, I am much more drawn to quilts that are more graphic in nature but even the most "Granny" of quilts can be beautiful, not to mention the time and amazing craftsmanship it takes to create one. So, without further ado, check out these sweet quilts, old and new!

[Gee's Bend Quilts by Pottery Barn]
Learn more about the Gee's Bend quilters here and here.

[Handmade Patchwork Quilt 84" x 79" Diamond Cubes on eBay]

[modern Triangles Crib Quilt on Etsy]

[quilt-like patterned coverlet Kaleidoscope Patchwork Quilt by Urban Outfitters]

[modern art quilt Blue Progression 9 Patch 61" x 84" by Eleanor McCain]

[a nice limited palette Half to Whole Quilt by Carrie Strine]

You can find all kinds of vintage/antique quilts on eBay in all price ranges and in various states of condition. I'd imagine you can also find some good ones in your local thrift shop if you check often. There are many Etsy sellers with new handmade quilts available too and I'll wager a guess that you can commission them to be made in specific colors and patterns for the right price.

Christmas Procrastination

2011-01-13T12:00:00.000-08:00

I don't have a very good excuse as to why we didn't get a Christmas card out this year. I lost track of time ... so instead we sent out a Happy New Year card featuring a photo from our awesome cruise. You know, 'cause if you have a photo in front of the great pyramids you want everyone to see it.

The past year has been a big one for us with a move to England and some major trips I thought the oh-so-popular bus roll trend would be the perfect way to sum up our year.

(I've blurred out a few locations for personal security reasons and the Mr.'s name, but you get the idea!)

Style I'd Steal

2011-01-03T12:54:00.000-08:00

Have you seen the sneak peek on Design*Sponge today?! I am so delighted to see a home with western touches AND bright colors AND a mix of antique and modern furniture with lots of interesting art mixed in. This is just the kind of style I'd love my own home to have and now that I've seen someone else's version I can see more clearly how to achieve my own vision.

Bedroom: The horizontal stripes on the bedding are reminiscent of striped western shirts and old school mattresses and I am actually digging the natural wood trim with the wall color. The only negative for me is the shotgun propped against the wall (see original post) which makes this scene look over-styled -- even if it is Texas.

Kitchen: I am a huge fan of the blue cabinets combined with the natural wood open shelving. I don't think I'd take subway tile all the way to the ceiling (a little too "easy clean-up/Dexter's kill room" for me) but everything about the structure of this kitchen I like. It certainly doesn't hurt to have the concrete counter tops and floor, plus I actually own a table just like the one in the middle of the room!

Living: Look at that awesome floor lamp! I'm also a big fan of the ram head over the fireplace, the round coffee table and the bright pops of color everywhere.

Bathroom: I love everything in this bathroom from the claw-foot tub to the painted door!

Love, love, love!

Before + After: Side Table

2011-01-02T03:29:00.000-08:00

Say hello to my first painted furniture project.

I picked up this end table for $5 from someone on my local Bookoo.com website when it looked like this:

water stained and boring

To begin, I removed the old pulls and used wood filler on the holes. Once filled and dried I had my first chance to use our electric pad-sander and, in my excitement, failed to don the proper eye protection. You would think I'd not mess this key step up again (I got paint stripper in my eye when I tackled a massive dining room chair project). But I did and I ended up with some particles under my contact lens and by the next morning I couldn't open my eye. Diagnosis? Scratched cornea. While this really has nothing to do with my project I'd just like to impress upon you to PROTECT YOUR EYES!

sanded, primed and ready for paint

I immediately went to the home improvement store and picked out a whole mess of brightly colored paint chips. It took me a few weeks to decide on a color but I settled with Minted Glory 6 by Dulux in high gloss.

first coat

Once painted I scoured local stores, antique shops and the web for the perfect knobs. You wont be surprised to find out I picked some vintage inspired, cut black glass knobs from Anthropologie. Specifically, these.

finished!

Scratched cornea aside, I had a great time working on this project. I have since purchased a tall dresser for my next painting project and discovered a great series on Design*Sponge by Barb of Knack that you absolutely have to check out if you're into refinishing furniture. It's called Before & After Basics and covers everything from lining drawers and stripping paint to cleaning up old hardware. Go forth and tackle that project you've been putting off!

One Pretty Thing

2010-12-15T13:56:00.000-08:00

Since our Mediterranean cruise that stopped in Turkey, our need for a large floor rug has been satisfied. However, I can't kick my Overstock browsing habit and look what I found!!

[do you hear the little voice? "Buy me..."]

Minted Editor's Picks!

2010-12-02T09:33:00.000-08:00

Holy smokes! In the last two challenges I've entered at Minted I've somehow managed to win 4 Editor's Pick awards. Not only am I totally shocked but also super excited! It's nice to feel like my hard work is paying off and for the opportunity to get my name out there and make some dough.

My first Editor's Pick came from my only entry in the minibook card challenge. I wanted to enter something in the challenge and see what it was like to work with the minibook format but I was at a total loss as what to do. Then I got my weekly Etsy email and they featured a ton of items all using triangles. I thought, "Gosh, I like triangles but I've never really done anything with them, I'll see what I come up with and submit it to this challenge." So I did. My design ended up reminding me a lot of all the stained glass windows here in England so that's what I called it.

I submitted it thinking I'd never win with it but was happy to have completed the "assignment" I'd given myself. Low and behold ... I get the results email from voting and my design is listed on there. What? While it didn't score very high (there were so many kick-ass designs!) someone saw some merit in it and I'm not going to argue!

Here's the design I submitted:

The design bones aren't bad but that color palette is all over the place.

Now here is the version for sale on Minted:

A vast improvement in color palette and much more striking with the bold navy blue background.

Reinpet Inspiration Boards

2010-11-25T08:02:00.000-08:00

For Minted's holiday launch they asked the designers to create inspiration boards for their holiday cards. This is the one they chose to feature on the site for Reinpet. I think it looks pretty good for my first try but be sure to look at all the other amazing boards!

[ 1. holding pinecones by PinkStock Photos via Flickr 2. green bows in a row by Stephen Nakatani via Flickr 3. merry christmas sign by Lauren Nelson via Flickr 4. pine bough via Inhabitots 5. entry decorations by Martha Stewart 6. green eyed cat by Jaroslaw Pocztarski via Flickr 7. lights and grass by Mike McCune via Flickr ]

This is the second one I did for Reindog in my initial red colorway (it's since been changed to a beet red).

[ 1. dog in roses by Noel Zia Lee via Flickr 2. candy canes by ShutterBugChef via Flickr 3. red velvet cake by Bakearella 4. arrow marquee by Urban Outfitters 5. dog wearing bow by Mirry via Flickr 6. red candles by Victoria Reay via Flickr 7. bone cookies via doggyinsider.com ]

Indigo Prints

2010-11-18T02:51:00.000-08:00

I've been steadily submitting stationery designs to Indigo Prints for a few months and have been lucky enough to have the designs below selected for sale on their site:

baby

personal stationery

holiday

party invitation

Indigo Prints is set to launch very soon so keep a look out!

Reindog on the Web

2010-11-15T01:53:00.000-08:00

Over the past few weeks I have noticed a marked increase in the sales of my Minted.com design Reindog and it's variations: Reinpet, Reinpet + Family, and the Reindog Minibook. Obviously the approach of the holiday season means more and more people are making their holiday card purchases but in the past week my sales went from an average of 6 to 29!!! Hello, that's almost a 500% increase!

So I turned to my favorite method of investigation: Google. When I entered "reinpet + minted" I found that in the past couple weeks many blogs have been doing giveaways and one in particular, Twig & Thistle, featured the Reinpet design in their giveaway post. (Which you can still enter to win until Nov 16th) Woooot woot!

My search brought me to a blog I've not seen before (but promptly added to my feed reader) called Design Blahg. She also featured Reindog in her holiday card post with this awesome quote:

"The one place I've found where I kind of like these photo cards, IF you're gonna do em is on Minted.com. And also I guess this is mostly a ppl with kids kinda thing to do anyway. ONLY NOT! Check out this one, motherfuckers! [... image of card design ...] NOW THAT'S the kind of holiday card I can totes get behind!. It's a "Reindog Holiday Card!" I mean, I'm a friggin Jewy assed Jew and I still kinda want that thing for Oliver."

Hilarious! Clearly the pet market needed to be tapped and I'm lucky enough to have been the first one via the Minted design competitions.

Now the pressure is on to remain innovative and win more design challenges!

Glitter Dream

2010-10-20T08:29:00.000-07:00

HERE

So pretty!

I'm Back!

2010-10-18T09:03:00.000-07:00

"Braaaiinns!"

Where does the time go? Am I the only one who feels like my life is accelerating and the days are going by faster than ever? It's not like I'm working a high-stress job, it just feels like my life is going by at lightning speed and I can't control it. I digress.

I've sorely neglected my little blog for the past few months and I don't have a good excuse. What matters is that I am back now and I am ready to re-commit myself.

I will start off by saying that my Reindog submission to Minted's latest holiday card design competition has been launched as is now for sale on their website. Not only am I excited to have won a prize, been ranked 14th out of 1357 submissions, and see my design for sale on their site but I am most honored to have my work among the premier independent stationery designs on the web today. It's an absolute honor to be among such fantastic designers, artists and typographers. I have sooooo much to learn but this victory has stoked my fire and drives me to expand my abilities, refine my design sense and learn the pillars of great typography. I have a long way to go but I look forward to the journey!

Without further ado, here is Reindog, launched and for sale:

Reindog with custom backer and wrap-around address label.

You have two pets? I've got you covered!

How about a version with space for pets AND kids

There are other colorways to choose from and even a mini-book version. I have a feeling it's going to be a great holiday season!

Pinterest: the new hotness

2010-10-18T06:05:00.000-07:00

I am in love!

I first discovered Pinterest through some link jumping via Inspired Bride where I ended up on Maddy Hague's Pinterest page. What I love about this site is that I no longer have to save images I like to my computer in order to reference them again. With Pinterest I'll always have them and be able to figure out where they are from!

Whoever created this site is brilliant and deserves a high-five.

You can see my pins here and apply for your own account.

Minted: Coming of Age

2010-08-29T16:18:00.000-07:00

It's rating time again for Minted's "Coming of Age" challenge to create age appropriate 16th birthday, quinceanera, confirmation and bar mitzvah invitations.

The first thing that came to my mind is that horrible show on MTV "My Super Sweet Sixteen." If I had been a spoiled brat I think I would have wanted a dance club themed party, complete with glow sticks, cage dancers and lots of house music. Well, not really, but I do love a good beat and practicing my freestyle dance moves in a dimly lit nightclub.

So this is where I went with the challenge.

Visualizer

Inspired by the music visualizer on older sound systems, stereo decks and computers, the bars move up and down with the music. This is the girly colorway but it can be easily adapted for a guy's party.

We Be Clubbin'

This one came to mind when I thought back to all the club promo fliers that would cover my car after leaving it parked downtown over a weekend.

Neither fit nicely into Minted's established aesthetic but I wanted to be true to my inspiration and create something that said "dance party."

Client Spotlight: Bindu + Michael

2010-07-29T08:24:00.000-07:00

I'm not going to lie, I like to photo-blog stalk my clients. (Is that creepy?)

So imagine my excitement when I discovered that one of my best client's wedding photos were posted! She picked an amazing photography studio to capture her wedding day and I am honored to have been a teeny tiny part of it. (Remember this post?)

Behold the wonders of Lyon, France, 13:13 Boutique Wedding Photography and Bindu's exceptional style!

Go check out the rest of their photos and start dreaming of your own French country-side wedding!

Minted: 2010 Holiday Card Spectacular Pt. 2

2010-06-17T11:46:00.000-07:00

With much rejoicing I am proud to announce that two of my designs for this challenge made it past the first round of voting that narrowed the field from 1300 to 400 designs.

holiday photo cards - Joyous Kwanzaa

and

holiday photo cards - Reindog

So be a dear and rate my designs one last time, would you?

Minted: 2010 Holiday Card Spectacular

2010-06-10T14:18:00.000-07:00

Minted's holiday card challenge is now closed for submissions and they ended up with a whopping 1364 entries!! I have never seen so many design submissions for any of their previous challenges, it's a good thing they'll be doing two rounds of voting.

This means that I will need your votes more than ever!

1. The first round of voting, the "Nomination" period, will begin today at 5pm Pacific Time.

2. The scoring buttons (1 through 5) will appear on the design rating pages, and designers and fans will be encouraged to rate the designs. The Nomination round will close Monday June 14, so please rate quickly.

3. Minted will spend a day or so analyzing the votes, and approximately 25% of the highest scoring designs from this process will be moved into the next round for final voting.

So what are you waiting for?! GO VOTE!

Neon Relish

Cross Stitched Lovers

Joyous Kwanzaa

Clarity

Cast & Crew

Favorite Sweater

My personal favorite: Reindog

(Created but didn't get posted in time for judging: Reincat)

Six to Buy: Lemon Lovers

2010-06-08T12:00:00.000-07:00

A lot sour and a little sweet but always cheery and perfect for summer.

FOR THE WALL
Gregarious Grosbeaks print by Charley Harper from Poster Cabaret

TO WEAR

Hunter Boots in Citrine

to-die-for dress by Adrianna Papell

CRAFTY SUPPLY
rooster tail feathers via Etsy

VINTAGE/ANTIQUE
glass lemon tree ornament via eBay

sweet (or sour) old mug via eBay

FOR THE HOME
wrap chair from West Elm

Lemon dish towel at Mod Cloth

RANDOM AWESOME
Lemonade Crock from Sundance

Moorish-style boxes from Z Gallerie

Six to Buy: Twin Arrows

2010-05-31T14:29:00.000-07:00

This one is for the straight shooters, hardy har har. Nothing beats some old school ballistic implements.

FOR THE WALL

This is the Spot print

TO WEAR
Brass Arrow necklace

CRAFTY SUPPLY
metal buttons

VINTAGE/ANTIQUE
one dozen vintage arrows

FOR THE HOME
arrow hangers by Design House Stockholm

RANDOM AWESOME
aged gold foil t-shirt

There is a shoe God!

2010-05-31T09:32:00.000-07:00

I have just discovered a company that allows you to design you own shoes without an outrageous price tag AND if they don't fit when you get them, the company will repair them free of charge?!

When I get really excited about something I begin to suck at describing it in words. Just go here and see for yourself!

Go from this ...
to this!

Shoes of Prey will be getting money from me very soon!

Six to Buy: Coming up Rose Gold

2010-05-17T12:00:00.000-07:00

I am particularly fond of this subtle yet undeniably feminine shade of pink. It's pretty without beating you over the head with girly-ness. My style indeed.

FOR THE WALL
Rincon Artificial Island and Pipeline, Ventura, California print by Ian Baguskas

TO WEAR
Rose gold plated ring by Monica Vinader

CRAFTY SUPPLY
Rosebud Dupioni Silk Ribbon from Ornamentea

VINTAGE/ANTIQUE
vintage vase on eBay

FOR THE HOME

K Hall Soap in Cypress & Cassis - I bet this smells fantastic!

RANDOM AWESOME

Adriana silk rows tank top from J. Crew in "Paris Pink"

(More than) Six to Buy: Peacock Party

2010-05-10T05:14:00.000-07:00

I love peacock feathers and it appears a rather trendy item these days.

a tank from Alloy

neat finds at ModCloth

some at Forever 21

swimsuit by ViX at Nordstrom

for the home from Next

fancy-pants chair from Horchow (they have more furniture like this too)

and check out this tea set!

Tiffany style lamp at Overstock

vintage tin on Etsy

vintage sweater on Etsy

two vintage wall peacocks on Etsy

100 feathers for creating your own magic on eBay
feather trims and supply from M&J

Free Download: May Desktop

2010-05-04T10:16:00.001-07:00

I did some messing around with halftones. Click the image you like to see it larger, right click and save as desktop.

Dizzy Sea

May Flowers

Happy May!

DIY: Felt Dahlia Flower Brooch

2010-05-04T09:10:00.000-07:00

Check out this sweet DIY tutorial on Holidash, created by Megan of NotMartha. I cannot wait to try it out!

Six to Buy: Pure Crispy, Greasy Gold

2010-05-03T07:00:00.000-07:00

I'm sorry I missed last week's "Six to Buy." My dear husband departed on his first deployment last week and this blog was the last thing on my mind.

I bring you this week's Six to Buy, inspired by a favorite food of mine ... BACON! Drool is hard to get out of a keyboard so prepare your viewing area accordingly. I know you are wondering how this is going to play out for some of the categories, but don't you worry. I got it covered!

FOR THE WALL
"Baconfish" print

TO WEAR (it's a two-fer!)
Oh yes, that tuxedo is bacon patterned. Guess what else? It is also SCENTED!
(I would have liked my sophomore year prom date so much more had he worn this.)

How about a bacon belt to keep those pants up?

CRAFTY SUPPLY
"Bacon of Hate" DIY from the Anti-Craft
(I'd eliminate the string so it looks less tampon-ish)

VINTAGE/ANTIQUE
vintage cast iron bacon press on eBay

FOR THE HOME

Nothing looks better on a table than bacon placemats!
Unless you have this bacon butter dish there too.

RANDOM AWESOME
I have worn one of these before and they really are awesome.

Inspiration: Charley Harper

2010-04-23T00:00:00.000-07:00

[source]

I only wish I the same sensibility for color, shape and composition!

[source]

[source]

He's funny too! (I had that original Nokia cell phone!)
[source]

[source]

[source]

Chair Made of Muscle?

2010-04-20T04:02:00.000-07:00

My creepy is showing but this was too awesome not to share!

Meaty Man-made Objects by artist Simone Racheli

[found via epotpourri]

Six to Buy: Eight Arms to Hold You

2010-04-19T23:00:00.000-07:00

These eight salty arms will hold you tight!

1.) something to hang on the wall
2.) something to wear
3.) a creative supply item
4.) something vintage/antiqued
5.) something for the home
6.) something awesome, random and just my style.

FOR THE WALL
8x10 print on vintage dictionary page by BeatUpCreations

TO WEAR

Sea of Sci-Fi t-shirt at ModCloth

CRAFTY SUPPLY
Heather Ross "Mendocino" fabric, buy here

VINTAGE/ANTIQUE
vintage brass key chain from RetroStash

FOR THE HOME
Octopus outdoor pillow the perfect accessory to your beach-front home.

RANDOM AWESOME

painted octopus coffee table with carved legs by JusttheFish

Add a Little Spice to the Bedroom

2010-04-13T06:26:00.000-07:00

With England's unreliable sunshine and our North-facing bedroom I've been thinking it would be nice to add some more color to our bed. The cool and calming steel blue we've got going on in there right now was perfect for the hot North Carolina days but I'm looking to add some pep and warmth to the rotation. To add some difficulty to the search, it must hide black dog hair and handle a trip through the washing machine.

Enter the Jaipur duvet set by Echo Design™.

Now that's peppy! The only bummer is that the Queen size is sold out across the interwebz. (I could buy those sunny yellow euro shams though.)

While browsing the offerings of Bed Bath & Beyond I came upon the Daintree Duvet Cover Set by Anthology.
The orange and blue birds sold me right away. But wait, there are no duvet sets for a Queen bed AND this is a BB&B exclusive design. Bummer.

CB2 has a nice set, Gion, with a lovely modern floral pattern and cheery bright colors but the large amount of white space is enough to scare me away.

Pottery Barn has this happy Woodland patterned duvet set for sale (because of a major mess-up for whomever signed off on the production -- the pattern contains lettering where it shouldn't) but I fear it may be a touch too feminine for the Mr.

How could I forget the Bella Hothouse quilt from Anthropologie?

It sure is fun without looking too girly, right? I only wish Anthro had more reasonable prices.

What to do, what to do.

Six to Buy: Chevrons

2010-04-12T06:59:00.000-07:00

This week it's all about the chevron pattern ('Cause it's all the rage right now!)

1.) something to hang on the wall

A fantastic DIY project by Make Under My Life via Decor8

2.) something to wear
A bold and peppy print for summer -- Diane Von Furstenberg dress

3.) a creative supply item

This 5/8" Zig Zag Bugle Beaded Trim from M&J Trimming would be perfect to chevron-ify anything!

4.) something vintage/antiqued

Funky, plastic bracelets from eBay

5.) something for the home

Bright and cheery "berry & spice" linen fabric to make curtains, pillows, duvets, etc. by Schumacher

6.) something awesome, random and just my style.
Tasty "citrus" eco-felt pillow made by Miss Mosh

Help Me Pick a Rug!

2010-04-08T07:40:00.000-07:00

I can't get over how awesome the prices are on rugs at Overstock.com AND the fact they ship to APO boxes! Thus I've been going through their fast collection for the last four days trying to find a rug. But alas, here I am unable to make a home decor decision and pick an area rug for our living room. Can you help me?

This is what we've got going on in there right now. Lots of rich, natural colors inspired by the lamp shades.

Here are some rugs I've found that caught my eye:

Garden rug

While I'm not really into the whole Country style, this reminds me of vintage botany prints and I like that about it. But is it too "grandma?"

Swirl Wool Rug

I like the colors on this one but I'm wondering if this vortex will suck my guests into the next dimension ...

Patchwork Wool Rug

This one seems like a good fit seeing as it has every possible color in it. But in picking this am I taking the easy way out? Is that even a bad thing?

Chutni Rug
I LOVE this pattern! Not sure if the two color choices are quite right but I could always put it somewhere else, right?!

Red Stripe
I love the modern feel of this rug. It reminds me of Pantone color books, very designer geek chic.
My worry is that it might be too much with the red sofa. Of course, there is always the yellow stripe ...

Ferns
The graphics on this one are so cute and nature-y but what about the minty green background?

Brown Zebra
I do love a good animal print and since this one isn't starkly black and white black dog hair might not look too bad on it.

What do you think? Can you find something better? Help me!

Free Download: April Desktop

2010-04-05T09:45:00.000-07:00

I'm sorry it's a bit late ... you know how holidays just sneak up on you and BAM, a week has gone by?

Download these free desktops and forgive me!

(Click the image you want so it opens in a new window, then right click and save)

Six to Buy: Knock Knock ...

2010-04-05T08:00:00.000-07:00

... orange you glad I didn't say banana? It's time for Monday's Six to Buy highlights!

FOR THE WALL

2010 Letterpressed Calendar at Studio On Fire

TO WEAR

Fox Necklace at ModCloth

CRAFTY SUPPLY

felted wool balls from Ornamentea

VINTAGE/ANTIQUE

three tupperware trays from eBay

FOR THE HOME

sectional sofa at CB2

RANDOM AWESOME

Heart Bikini from TopShop

Six to Buy: Violets in the Street

2010-03-29T07:00:00.000-07:00

Just to refresh you, every Monday I will be highlighting six beautiful, funny, creative, snazzy, weird, etc. items for purchase from around the world wide web in the following categories:

1.) something to hang on the wall
2.) something to wear
3.) a creative supply item
4.) something vintage/antiqued
5.) something for the home
6.) something awesome, random and just my style.

This week is Violets in the Street ...

FOR THE WALL

half of the things print at Little Paper Planes

TO WEAR

vintage purple leather jacket by audreyrosempls

CRAFTY SUPPLY

velvet ribbon from M&J Trimming

VINTAGE/ANTIQUE

purple vintage typewriter from SarahAnntiques

FOR THE HOME

wool area rug at overstock.com

RANDOM AWESOME

"preston" sofa from Horchow

Etsy: My First Treasury

2010-03-23T10:29:00.000-07:00

Check it out! It's my first one and I'm excited about it!

I've Got the Deep Blues

Awesome Sledding Video

2010-03-23T06:01:00.001-07:00

I haven't been sledding since moving away from Colorado. This kind of thing would totally happen to me!

Six to Buy: The Deep Blues

2010-03-22T12:51:00.000-07:00

This post marks the start of a weekly feature I will be doing where I highlight six beautiful, funny, creative, snazzy, weird, etc. items for purchase from around the world wide web.

I'll give you:
1.) something to hang on the wall
2.) something to wear
3.) a creative supply item
4.) something vintage/antiqued
5.) something for the home
6.) something awesome, random and just my style.

So without further ado, I've got The Deep Blues ...

FOR THE WALL

"the sad little pony" print by Katalyst Photos

TO WEAR

silk rose necklace by shopJoliette

CRAFTY SUPPLY

cotton yarn by WollesYarnCreations

VINTAGE/ANTIQUE

three Turkish pots from sweetshorn

FOR THE HOME

Ornate wallpaper at Graham & Brown

RANDOM AWESOME

bright blue heart pasties by gothfoxdesigns

Client Spotlight: Jen + Jimmy

2010-03-18T13:15:00.000-07:00

Last winter I was approached by a co-worker of my husband's to design and print the invitations for his December wedding. Their wedding took place in a charming chapel in Pensacola, Florida with the reception at a local art museum.

After a bunch of design ideas they decided on a grey damask design with a cobalt blue frame and accents.

I am sorry I don't have pictures of the actual invitations, the job ended up becoming a last minute deal and I mailed them off while they were still hot from the printer.

They actually moved to England when we did and have become great friends. Thanks Jimmy and Jen!

Minted: It's time to VOTE - Breakout Wedding Design challenge

2010-03-12T15:29:00.000-08:00

So click the links and vote (or rate) away!

Obviously I want to get all fives, but I cannot control what you pick. However, if you follow this blog there is a good chance you like how I design so I'm guessing you'll vote in my favor. But if you just like me and pretend to like my work (mom, this better not be you) maybe you can give me sympathy points for the shameless pimping I've been doing for this contest?

Even if it's not mine, please reward hard work and a great aesthetic.

Wedding Invitations - Berry Wreath

Wedding Invitations - Yellow Rosette of Texas

Wedding Invitations - Whale Love

Wedding Re-Do

2010-03-11T03:54:00.000-08:00

Back in November, a friend and I went shopping for evening dresses. We were on a quest for long dresses and I wanted color. After every department store we could find we went to White House Black Market. (Why we didn't go there first. I'm not sure.)

Immediately, my friend found a great slim, long black dress with beautiful painted white flowers along the whole length of the side. While she was trying it on, the sales ladies were unpacking boxes of merchandise that had just arrived that day. One of the sales associates brought this beautiful red rose patterned, satin gown, out to show the other employees. I had to try it on!!

It was gorgeous but well out of my budget for this event. I didn't buy it (it's out of stock online) but I still find myself thinking about it and have a saved search for it in eBay.

Getting to the point ...

While perusing the WH BM website today I stumbled across this beauty!

I wish I could have another wedding. I'd do many things different (but I'd keep the same groom) and one of those things would be to wear this dress! I cannot express how madly in love with it I am.

How about a two-year anniversary vow renewal? Sigh. If any of you wear this for your wedding, can you show me the pictures? I'm happy to live vicariously through someone else!

Inspiration: Dog Food?

2010-03-09T04:36:00.000-08:00

I had to share this great Pedigree ad with you! It makes me happy just to watch it (over and over).

Thanks to Linda & Harriett for pointing it out! (I love my feed reader)

Minted: Breakout Wedding Design

2010-03-08T03:58:00.000-08:00

I have submitted three designs for the Minted Breakout Wedding Challenge and I would love your feedback and critique no matter how harsh!

Berry Wreath

Whale Love

Yellow Rosette of Texas

One Year Pupiversary

2010-03-04T05:00:00.000-08:00

Custom Vintage Image by Hot Digital Dog

Have I told you that I love quirky pet portraits? Well, I do. We've had our mutt pup, Minnie, for nearly a year now and I would love to commission a custom portrait of her.

She's sure got a good mug for portraiture!

Here is a small, quirky collection of my favorite pet artists:

Beautiful Maiden Mutt, Italian Renaissance Court by Pomopets

Embroidered Portrait of Your Pet by Badbird

Custom Commission by Lynn Culp
(She's a homie from Denver to boot!)

Custom Eight Inch Pillow of Your Pet by Handmade by Boni

Custom Pet Portrait by Paint Your Pooch

Paper Collage Portrait by The Paper Pooch

Acrylic and Oil Wash Portrait by Vayda's Pet Shop

Acrylic Painting Portrait by Eddie and Olive

There are soooo many options out there. How will I ever choose?

Inspiration: Gina Triplett

2010-03-03T05:12:00.000-08:00

I absolutely love Gina Triplett's work. I couldn't tell you exactly why, it's just a feeling. Joy in color. Animals. Dynamic composition. Love! I only wish I could do this kind of thing though I would settle for owning it.

I bought this print through Thumbtack Press in an 8"x10" and have it hanging on the wall by the dining room table. I only wish I could afford more in larger sizes!!

Here is a print of hers nicely translated to fleece blanket format for sale through Urban Outfitters for the low price of $32!

Free Download: Happy March

2010-03-02T05:25:00.000-08:00

Good morning, my dear readers!

Now that I've got my computer back and my office mostly set-up, I wanted to give you something for waiting so patiently. I've created these desktop backgrounds for the new month and it's available for free download here or if you click the image you can view it and save it directly to your desktop.

I hope you enjoy and keep a look-out for a new download every month.

(PS: If you know a better way for me to provide downloads to you, please let me know. I'm still trying to figure out the best way.)

Inspiration: Ron von Dongen

2010-02-23T05:04:00.000-08:00

These black and white flower portraits are gorgeous. I adore his sensitivity to subtle texture and his strong compositions.

It doesn't end there! He works in color too!

Love, love, love!

[Photographs by Ron von Dongen, found via Design You Trust]

Shop Update

2010-02-16T05:11:00.000-08:00

Greetings from England!

I want to fill you, my readers, in on what's been going with my move to the UK and the status of re-opening my shop.

The move has gone well, though quite a bit slower than it would in the States. About 80% of our household is unpacked into our new home with the remaining 20% due to arrive any minute. Today we finally got the Internet set up and my work computer is here along with half of my desk. In my oodles of free time waiting for stuff to arrive, I've been working on an identity re-design for 2birdstone as well a comprehensive product and price list and a customer contract.

It may not look like much right now, but there is a lot of action going on behind the scenes and I am very excited to re-launch and can't wait to see what 2010 brings!

On that note, I'll leave you with some "before" photos of our new home.

the living room and fireplace

the kitchen -- this wont change too much

the dining room

my office

master bedroom (it is absolutely HUGE!)

the upstairs bathroom was just renovated before we moved in

Fashion: Violet Flats

2010-02-11T17:44:00.000-08:00

Some women love handbags, some women love jewelry but if you can't already tell, I'm a shoe girl and I've found my new obsession for spring.

Magrit $172
So this is a little more French Court than May flowers, but what a fantastic use of color! I'd wear them with cropped, skinny black trousers, a voluminous orange silk top and lots of black chain jewelry.

Kate Spade $95
Who doesn't want gift bows on their toes?!

How do you feel about violet flats? Would you wear any of these shoes? What would you wear them with?

If I had a million dollars ...

2010-02-04T06:17:00.000-08:00

You know the tune, feel free to sing.

I love eBay. Have I told you that before?

Since we'll be moving into a new place very soon, I've been reading many home design blogs for inspiration. This always leads to hours of searching on eBay. Without boring you further, here are some of the fantastic finds I've got my eye on.

This gorgeous blue milk glass lamp base with it's Greek details and quirky tilt.
Buy it Now for $350

Four milk glass dental tool trays. If the dentist doesn't scare you and you run them through the dishwasher these would be perfect for the bathroom or kitchen sink. I think the six section one in particular would go on my dresser for earring and ring collection at the end of the day.
Bidding starts at $9.99

How cool is this! A nice scientific spin on the neo-classical porcelain bust.
Buy it Now for $49.99

Yes, it's a little creepy, but it's A LOT cool -- screen printed show poster by Jermaine Rogers.
Starting bid $9.99

Southwestern, possibly Navajo, 44"x33" rug. Neutral tones with a nice graphic pattern.
Bidding starts at $49.99

Ernst Haeckel chromolithograph -- my favorite color pallet and I adore his sea life illustrations.
Bidding currently at $15.50 but will end much higher.

The final item of desire:

1970 Mini Classic - I WANT this with every fiber of my being.
Bidding at $12,000 (reserve not met)

Fashion: Boots

2010-01-28T09:58:00.001-08:00

I know this has absolutely nothing to do with my normal vein of posting, BUT I am really excited and figured a fashion post would be a nice change of pace.

I finally (I know, winter is half-way over) broke down and bought some boots that I can tuck leggings and skinny jeans into. I own a few pairs of boots, but none roomy enough for stuffing.

One of my New Year Resolutions was to "keep up with current trends without becoming slave to them." Which means to me, stay adventurous with my clothing and try new things even when I'm highly doubtful they'd work for me.

For example, I've always loved my boot cut jeans but this summer while perusing Express I decided to "just try on" a pair of skinny jeans, thoroughly convinced that my athletic legs and skinny ankles would make me look like a sausage gone wrong. I was pleasantly surprised when even my 5'10" size 10 frame looked damn good in them! So I bought a pair and even tossed in a pair of cropped black leggings as well.

I North Carolina I could get by wearing my skinny jeans with my Target zebra flats, even in December so the high boot trend didn't spark my attention. But spending time in CO and WI over the holidays and arriving in England where it is very damp and chilly my flats just no longer cut it. Thus I began my search.

These are some of the styles I contemplated.

1. Triumph by Wanted 2. Soldier by Restricted 3. Wisker by Blowfish

With my final choice being these boots.

Tripin - Chinese Laundry

I can't wait to try them on and wear them out to the pubs. Normally I'm a high, high heel girl but I figured high, heels and over-the-knee style would throw me into Pretty Woman land and that's not a place I want to go.

Maybe when I get them paired with a good outfit I'll post a photo ...

Alice in Wonderland, Tim Burton Style

2010-01-11T08:18:00.000-08:00

While enjoying a few movies at the theatre this holiday I spotted an Alice in Wonderland poster and could hardly contain my excitement!

Burton films I need to watch again, or for the first time!

9 - If I can find it in the theatres here I'll watch it, otherwise I'll have to wait for the DVD
Beetlejuice - I was too scared to watch it as a kid so now that I'm safely over 25 I think it's time.
Edward Scissorhands - Again, I was too young when it came out.
Batman & Batman Returns - Too young when they came out, again.
Mars Attacks - I saw this as a teen and couldn't tell you anything about it now.
The Nightmare Before Christmas - I should just buy it.
The Corpse Bride - Need to buy this as well.
Charlie and the Chocolate Factory
Big Fish
Planet of the Apes

Who's excited!!!!!

Client Spotlight: B's Wedding Invitations

2010-01-08T07:06:00.000-08:00

Here I am sitting in our TLF (temporary living facility) while hubs is off doing stuff with his new squadron. Upon checking my email I see I've gotten an email from one of my favorite clients, B.

Before the insanity of the holiday season started I finished up an invitation design suite for her. You may recall her save-the-date postcards from earlier in 2009. Well, today she sent pictures of the final printed and assembled invitation! They look FANTASTIC so I just have to share.

To start the design process I asked her to describe the overall feel that she was looking for. Her answer was:

"French tea salon ... lovely chandeliers, wood panels, warm and cozy light, beautiful pastries, macaroons and other yummy things lined up on the shelves and counters, tea and hot chocolate served in wonderfully detailed tea cups."

She added that Ladurée's (of Paris macaroon fame) packaging embodied exactly the kind of look she wanted to go for.

[image source: some like it haute]

[source: beyond the pale]

Umm, how perfect is that for a spring-time French château wedding? I was psyched to get started on designs! After a bunch of concepts and revisions this became the final design.

B used Catprint.com and had them print everything on their 107lb shimmer cardstock. The paper punch she found in Hong Kong on a trip. The pocketfolders and envelopes are from paperandmore.com.

Guest Blogger: My Dad

2010-01-06T09:34:00.001-08:00

The following is written by my Dad. Hubs and I are leaving the US for the UK in less than 12 hours! I don't know how long it will be until I can find suitable internet again so enjoy this bit from my Dad. Maybe mom will weigh in with her side of the story later ...
-----

Ashley, I dare you to put this on your blog!

ADVENTURES IN DOG SITTING
December 30, 2009

Okay, so it’s no secret that my daughter Ashley is moving to England with her wonderful husband Brent. And it is also no secret that her dog Minnie cannot go with them, at least not immediately. I don’t understand this quarantine thing but supposedly Minnie can follow sometime in March. I hope Ashley meant March of 2010, because I am not sure I can last much longer than that! In the interim, Ashley and Brent arrived this year for Christmas; they brought Minnie to my house, and departed on their continuing travels without her.

Yep, Minnie is staying with me for a while. I guess I should be thankful that Ashley is not an unwed mother, but let us just say that Minnie ~~has been~~ is a challenge. But I am taking this adventure in stride. Jeez, where do I start?

Do I start with having to wash the bedspread on my bed because Minnie peed on it? Or cleaning up the carpet where she vomited the horse manure? But wait I am getting ahead of myself, so why not start at the beginning.

Right off, I violated the first rule of dog sitting: DON’T YELL AT THE DOG WHEN IT JUMPS ON THE FURNITURE. And Ms. Minnie can jump! She can clear the couch in a single bound, and from a standing start, she can jump up on my bed. Of course I discovered this, after emerging from the shower and found her sleeping full-out on my bed. I yelled, she peed. Note to self; don’t yell at the dog on the furniture.

Now I have several horses, and I often make the joke, particularly to friends when they bring their dogs to my house, addressing the dog; “Come on, let’s go to the barn where you can get a hot meal.” Often this is lost on the owner until we get to the barn, where their dog discovers a steaming pile of fresh horse manure and begins wolf it down like it was a last meal. Ha ha, the jokes on them, because as soon as their dog gets in the car, or usually more likely, back home on the white carpet, the manure appears again.

Well guess what? This time the joke’s on me; Minnie has not acclimated her system to horse manure yet. And yes, I have white carpet. Well, mostly white now. Note to self; it is OKAY to yell at the dog, while it is eating horse manure!

Ashley has done quite well in training her dog in the proper ways of dog discipline. Sit, heel, roll over, come and stay are all in Minnie’s repertoire. And she also taught her to ring the old sleigh bells hanging on the front door knob, when she wants to go out. But a smart dog will use this to their own amusement. Not only to go out to pee, but also to go out to check the weather, sniff the snow, eat the elk duds scattered around outside the house, and also occasionally just for her own entertainment or to break up the boredom, to see me get up from my desk. Minnie is a smart dog.

Oh, you aren’t familiar with elk duds? That is elk scat, perhaps not as big a favorite as the horse manure, but it must still satisfy some dark and mysterious canine craving imbedded deep down in their DNA, as Minnie and Reba will frequently return to the front door, with elk poop on their breath.

Now my dog Reba is a nine year old Jack Russell Terrorist, and she is set in her ways. She is the Queen of the house and rules with an iron paw. All transgressions from visiting four legged friends and relatives are dealt with swiftly and severely. And to her, size doesn’t matter. A recent visiting German Sheppard, three times her size, incurred her wrath by simply putting his head upon my knee. That simple act garnered him a bite to the neck, where she hung on by her teeth, front feet off the floor until he shook her loose. The message? Don’t mess with the Queen’s Daddy!

But a transformation is occurring. The Queen has accepted her Lady In Waiting, aka Ms. Minnie as her understudy. They now eat together, sleep on the couch together, go out together, play together and even bark in unison. Oh, there is the occasional disciplinary measure, a barring of teeth, a quick nip to the nose, but for the most part, Minnie is toeing the line and falling into Reba’s supreme order of things.

Jack Russell’s come from a line of rat terriers 100 years ago, where once again, that instinct being hardwired deep down in their DNA. Lately Reba has discovered mousing. She sniffs around in the snow or grasses, digs in the dirt, and stalks her prey, and when she pounces, a quick bite and a flip and the mouse or gopher cartwheels through the air above her head. This is swiftly followed by another quick bite and it’s all over. Reba even smiles after she has conquered an unfortunate rodent. Great fun to watch and I suppose even more fun to perform, if you’re a dog.

A few nights ago, while feeding the horses and yelling at Minnie to not eat the manure, I noticed Reba patrolling the perimeter. Shortly thereafter I see the telltale; bite, flip, bite, smile, and Reba trotting off with her new prize. I yell, because I also don’t want mouse innards on the white carpet, and Reba drops the prize. Only now, Minnie picks up the ball and runs with it! New game, new lessons learned and more yelling from the spectator!

So unbeknown to Ashley, I am conducting some training of my own. Minnie now readily begs at the table while you are eating. I like that in a dog, it sort of harkens back to King Arthur and the Round Table, where at the end of a meal, you simply scraped the plates on the floor for the dogs to clean up. And this morning, while making a sandwich, I decided to see which foods Minnie won’t eat. Guess what? Ashley will be surprised to learn that Minnie likes bananas, apples, pistachio nuts, pistachio shells, elk hamburger (that was a given), tomatoes, corn bread, asparagus, and even hot mustard on some wilted iceberg lettuce! The Christmas wrapping paper and the credit card bills from the stack of mail, Minnie discovered all on her own. Hmmmm . . . . . so far I haven’t found ANYTHING she won’t eat!

Ahhhh . . . adventures in dog sitting. Note to self: I can’t wait to be a Grand Pa!

Love, Dad

Can you spot Reba and Minnie ?

Awake for 36 hours.

2009-12-19T19:04:00.000-08:00

Yes, it's true. Let me explain.

We left our rental sparkling clean at 12pm yesterday to pick the pup up from boarding. Upon forking over a large chunk of money to the USDA and the vet in order to send our dog to England, we were on the road North by 12:30pm.

Our trip started off well enough.

A truck full of the future's bacon and Christmas hams.

Hubs had mentioned that there was a winter storm blowing across the Eastern US that was predicted to drop up to ten inches of snow. Driving my trusty Subaru and having grown up in the mountains of Colorado I didn't give it much thought and neither did my snow-hungry husband from Wisconsin.

No problem, right?

That was our first mistake.

To be continued when I have regained consciousness and found the transfer cable for my camera.
----------------
Post continued December 25th after much needed relaxation.

Minnie remained unconvinced.

As the sun began to set and the snow began to stick we made a quick gas and snack stop and I took over driving. All was well as we started passing slow moving two-wheel drives and big rigs. But with each passing mile the snow was thicker and the traffic slower. The next thing I know I'm dodging cars at 45mph as they struggle to get up the increasingly steep rolling hills. Cars begin to appear in the ditches, wheels spinning and back ends fish-tailing. We even passed a Suburban that somehow managed to pop it's front wheels over and high-center its self on the guard rail. Wow!

After an hour or two of very focused driving I was ready for a dinner break. We pulled off I-77 for our second meal at Burger King and snorked down some burgers. While we ate, more and more people began to pour in. I don't know what it is about potential crisies but strangers are always so friendly and willing to talk. Hubs talked to a lady who had come from the direction we were headed and she said traffic was stopped going both North and South. I overheard a few other people discussing whether or not they should try to get a hotel before everything was booked up. A current of nervous energy was building with each snow covered head that passed through the door.

Not ones to let a little snow hold us back from reaching the state line, we returned to the car and drove down the entrance ramp of the interstate.

That was our second mistake.

At 7:30pm we slowly merged into the five mile per hour traffic, naively positive that the pace would increase.

Fast forward two hours. Hubs and I are irritated that we've only traveled a mere quarter of a mile and complaining about the state of the roadways and Virginia's inability to prepare ahead of time fails to cheer us up. With little else to do, I grabbed my camera.

These videos give a good account of how we felt through out the night.

7:30pm

12:03am

5:56am

9:30am

Five Crates

2009-12-17T18:41:00.000-08:00

The day has finally arrived. Our second home together was wrapped in brown paper and cardboard, and stuffed into wooden crates. I was ready this morning at 9am with a dozen Krispy Kreme doughnuts, a gallon of coffee and the dog off to boarding. After a GPS induced detour, our packers/movers arrived about 10:30am and promptly got to work.

Chad, Nate and Dave worked diligently to stuff everything (that we didn't pack in four suitcases) into boxes, the smell of permanent marker filling the air. I really wanted to help but couldn't because of liability so I cleaned.

When lunch rolled around almost everything was packed up. After a quick pizza break I had to take the car to Firestone to get a weird brake noise checked out. A few hours passed and I made some progress in my current read, The Alibi Club. When I get the car back it turns out they had no idea why the break was grinding. However, after taking everything off the wheel and putting it all back on again, the noise stopped. Thankfully, after the $800+ bill for a new clutch yesterday they were kind enough to let me go for free today.

I arrived back at the house to find half of the crates already packed with our stuff. Let me tell you it is weird to see all your stuff stuffed into grungy, plywood, boxes on the back of a truck.

On the plus side, all the moving I've done has kept me from collecting lots of extra crap. The Air Force allows us to move 13,00 lbs of household goods to the UK and we figure we've only hit the 6,000 lb mark. I guess that means I have lots of shopping to do!

Tomorrow is the first of our driving days and I expect an adventure. This will be our first road trip with Minnie, and we face a winter storm in the Appalachians. Wish us luck!

(Photos added 12.25)

DIY: Ribbon Wreath with a Twist

2009-12-03T11:39:00.000-08:00

[thelongthread.com]

I know this tutorial is old news in the blogosphere but upon discovering a bin of $1 ribbon spools at Michael's I decided to try it out. I wanted to create a "holiday-ish" version so I also picked up some gold ball ornaments and glitter gold leaves.

I don't know if I got the right base ring for the wreath but I figured wood would work just as well as wire or foam and it was cheap. I cut 11-ish inch lengths of ribbon and tied them around the ring with double knots, attempting to tie them each the same way. (This was hard as I was also watching an intense movie and had a dog distracting me.)

This is what it looked like with the ribbons finished.

Behold, the final product! I used my hand little hot glue gun to attach the gold balls and foliage. I think the battleship grey ribbon with the gold accents give it a nice non-specific holiday vibe while still feeling festive.

I had so much fun with it I've contemplated making more ... but who knows if that'll happen.

Spotted!

2009-10-19T18:05:00.000-07:00

The lovely Sarah Pease from Brilliant Event Planning in New York contacted me a month ago asking if she could feature my Colored Crinolines on her blog. To which I gave her a resounding "yes!"

Her timing couldn't have been better because I had just gotten some awesome crinoline photos from my clients. She chose to use pictures from my Client Spotlight of Christina, the bride with the incredible Puerto Rico wedding and the pale pink crinoline.

[photo by Shawna Herring]

Check out her post about my shop.
Thank you Sarah!

Client Spotlight: B

2009-10-15T14:19:00.000-07:00

My lovely client B, just sent me photos of her save the dates before they went out to her guests. She will be getting married this spring at the Château verbust in Lyon, France. I'm not gonna lie, I'm a little jealous of her guests! So ...

Dear unmarried friends,
Please have your wedding at a chateau in France.
Thanks,
-Ashley

Postcards and wrap label designed by 2BirdStone
Printed by simple card

Off they go!

Fantastic Floor Coverings ... or Rugs

2009-10-04T18:43:00.000-07:00

The hubs and I are getting ready to move to the UK and are looking forward to living in one location for more than nine months. Given this new sense of security and the possibility of having a house worth decorating I have started to allow myself to look at home decor with the intent of actually buying some of it.

That said, I am absolutely in love with these designers and their rugs!

Amy Butler "Lacework"

Amy Butler "Morning Glory"

Anna Maria Horner "Blue Dancefloor"
Ikea "Hulda Vilse"

Vera Bradley "Yellow Bird Black"

2Modern "Wood Wood Lounge"

DIY: Felt Flower

2009-09-16T10:29:00.000-07:00

My supplies

Some days I find myself spending hours browsing through my Reader subscriptions and by the time I've gotten through all of them I feel like like an under creative, impotent artist. It's like being in middle school again and I'm standing in the high school hallway; un-noticed, small, lack luster and plain uncool.

I've always wanted to try my hand at the beautiful fabric flowers I see all over the net but they always seemed so complicated. So today, with two giant cups of frantic energy (coffee) in my system, I happened upon this tutorial and giveaway at Grosgrain. The only thing I had to do was cut petal shapes out of fabric and use a hot glue gun. With new found confidence I said out loud, to the sleeping dog, "I can do that!"

I immediately rummaged through the "box of coolness," that my husband wonders why I keep, and found some black recycled felt from a 10 min project I did for him a few months ago (see below).

My "office." Underneath the desk to the left is the Box of Coolness.

This is my treasure box of cool sparkly and shinny things I inherited at an old job from the old trashed skating costumes of the Broadmoor Skating Club.

When your husband is a military pilot he'll collect a million patches and pins and want to display them all on his "I love me wall." Covering a cork board with felt is a good way to contain the madness.

Rather than use the printable templates from the tutorial I just made my own. With felt petals in hand and glue gun at the ready I used the glue and fold method in the tutorial to get my flower shape. Found a nice fancy, vintage bead-thing for the center, added some black ribbon and a bobby pin to the back and Viola! My finished hair flower!

It's tough taking pictures of your own head!

This was super easy and I love the result!!

NEW Vintage Style Save the Date Postcards

2009-09-13T12:01:00.000-07:00

One of my favorite classes in college was print making and since then I've always dreamed of someday owning my own letterpress and silk screen studio (not for t-shirts, mind you).

When I heard of this book, The Handy Book of Artistic Printing I ordered it immediately. Upon its arrival I was instantly inspired by its contents: the diverse layouts, the complex and minute details, and the color palettes. I spent days sketching and flagging pages and when I finally sat down to the computer this postcard design came to life.

Front

Back

While directly inspired by a layout within the book, I now feel I have a better grasp of "how" to translate these vintage designs to modern stationery and create designs all my own. So look out for more awesomeness to pop up in the shop!

Client Spotlight: Kate

2009-08-29T08:37:00.000-07:00

Kate asked me to dye her crinoline this sweet lilac color and little did I know she was going to wear it with a pair of awesome lilac Chuck Taylors! (She's a girl after my own heart.) I love how it came out and the color really pops against the green grass.

How adorable are these bride and groom converse WITH their wedding date written on the heel?!

Without a doubt, this is one cute and chill couple!

Client Spotlight: Christina

2009-08-10T07:08:00.000-07:00

I recently dyed a crinoline light pink for Christina. She had a gorgeous wedding on the beautiful island of Puerto Rico and a fantastic photographer, Shawna Herring. Check out more of her fabulous photographs here.

[all photos by Shawna Herring]

Her awesome wedding has been featured on Vintage Glam Weddings, The Wedding Chicks, and Trendsetting Wedding too!

Minted: Personal Stationery

2009-07-10T19:50:00.001-07:00

I have begun to submit entries for this round. It's too early to vote but I'd love critique if you have some to give!

Classy Lassie Personal Stationery

party beads Personal Stationery

Etsy Shop: Color Your Crinoline

2009-06-30T10:20:00.001-07:00

I've begun to update my shop's listing pictures for a classier, cleaner look. I think the crinoline pictures look much more appealing now, almost like a selection of eyeshadow compacts. We'll see how that affects business ...

Minted: Save the Date

2009-06-30T07:31:00.000-07:00

I finally got around to entering something into the Minted.com design challenge this round. I had been entering the contests regularly when we lived in Texas bus since moving here and getting a dog I've been busier and (honestly) forgot all about it.

I've not won yet so don't delay, vote for my design today!!

Client Spotlight: Laya #2

2009-06-26T15:40:00.000-07:00

Holy biscuits, Paula Deen!

Laya's wedding is featured on Style Me Pretty! You MUST check it out! Part 1 , Part 2 , Part 3
She even said:

"Etsy was my main source for stationary and other decorations. ... I also worked with Ashley Bowron, the designer/owner of 2BirdStone to create digital designs for map/direction inserts, table numbers, thank you cards and favor inserts/tags, inspired by my invitations - this gave me the opportunity to shop around for a printing company in my neighborhood to save money."

I love it when a bride is thrifty and her wedding still looks like a million bucks!!

[image via Style Me Pretty]

Minnie and the Crinny

2009-06-26T13:20:00.000-07:00

Pink crinoline + pink tongue = too cute to not post

Item Featured!

2009-06-23T10:03:00.000-07:00

I just found out that Creepy Queen Magazine has featured my Scarlet Flora invitation suite on their site in the "Summer of Alternative Weddings" article.

I have always thought there were not enough punk/goth/rock wedding designs out there, so I've been trying to offer more than pretty pastel and floral designs in my shop. Like this one, geared toward a graphic/printing geek using only CMYK (I guess I should make an RGB version for the web geeks too!).

Now that someone has noticed my stuff, I'm inspired to take it up a notch and add some more!

Thanks for the heads-up uvkitty!

Welcome Minnie!

2009-06-17T06:41:00.000-07:00

We got a dog! She is about 1 yr old now and really sweet. She loves to cuddle as well as run through puddles and chase bugs.

This is when we "met" at an adoption drive and applied to adopt her. She's about 6 months old here.

Long story short ... we got a call a week later saying she'd been adopted to a family who had turned their paperwork in before us but we "have a strong application" and the rescue really wanted us to adopt a dog from them. We were dissapointed but decided to look around more, hoping maybe things wouldn't work out with the family that adopted her. Another week passes and we get another phone call saying the family's old chihuahua doesn't like Minnie and would we still like to adopt her. We said "Yes!"

Here she is on our couch, for good, a few days later.

This is her crate/cave/den

Playing in the back yard.

Inspiration: Bunting Flags

2009-06-15T14:42:00.000-07:00

I occasionally will surf the millions of great wedding blogs out there in the blogosphere for a boost of inspiration. I stumbled upon a cake with tiny little bunting flags draped around it and fell in love. I got so excited to create a design using bunting flags that I forgot to note exactly where I saw the picture. I did find a few more inspiring examples to share with you.

What a sweet way decorate for a garden wedding and reception!

[source]

I had a ton of fun creating this invitation poster design and it's now for sale in my shop. Enjoy!
[source]

[source]

Client Spotlight: Laya

2009-06-15T13:08:00.000-07:00

[Image by Lindsay MacDonald Photography]

Laya contacted me about creating some additional elements for her previously purchased wedding invitation that she could print on her own (lucky girl has a friend with a printshop!). We used Etsy's handy little Alchemy function and I got to work.

The first item was a two-sided card with a map on the font and directions on the backside.
Then I got to work on creating her table numbers.
Once she had them printed she put them into silver frames and posted photos of them to her blog.
Laya decided to give all her guests a pair of photo coasters as favors, so I designed a little insert for them to tie everything together.

I also created a menu, flat note card for thank yous and her ceremony program.

Check out a sneak peek of the beautiful bride and her fantasic wedding here!
Congratulations Laya!!