Love, Joleen Photography Blog

A Little Bit of Happy

I think this blog is due a little bit of happy after my pity party earlier today. There is just no way I'm gonna be a scrooge this year! :) Here are some things making me happy today:

♥ Made a gingerbread house with my favorite 3 year old
♥  Drank Hot Cinnamon Spice tea from Harney & Sons
♥ Watched this movie for the upteenth time & loved it
♥ Went for a nice walk this morning
♥ Found out we don't have to move next week
♥ Received the last of the Christmas gifts in the mail; phew
♥ Browsing flickr and adding tons to my favorites

I just love this color combination and you know I'm lovin' these socks! View outfit breakdown here.

And, since people are starting to receive their gifts.. you get to see.. here is a sneaky peek of a holiday gift I made (more soon!).

This holiday gift is a mini art quilt for this lovely Mama and family.

Gifting: Best Friend

I so enjoyed reading all of your  holiday traditions! I love how special and unique they are. Thank you for sharing and for participating in my little contest. So, without further ado, the winner is Jeanne of Dream, Create, Inspire. Congratulations, Jeanne - I hope you enjoy your gift tags!

I've been trying to figure out how I can show you peeks of some of my holiday gift making since so many recipients read this blog or watch me on flickr. I'm sending gifts out soon so once they're received (and opened!) I can share. :) I can share this gift because I am 99% certain she doesn't read my blog. This is a quilted patchwork pillow that I made for my best friend Candice. This is one of those projects that I started last year and left alone for a year. :) I am glad to have finished it and I hope she likes it!

Piles 'n Shtuff

This morning was slow going. I've had a lot of headaches this week that I am completely attributing to stress. I have spent much of the last couple of days feeling paralyzed by how overwhelmed I am. I'm really trying to use all my coping skills right now to stay on top of my game and not fall into a funk. I keep lists and really do try to focus on one thing at a time but with the holidays and a move the last week of the year (what was I thinking?!) I am a bit panicy. Also, we're dealing with a few teen issues which just doesn't help. She's a good kid but this teen thing is hard!

So, I finally got a jolt of inspiration (thank goodness!) and have been gettin' busy in my craft studio. Yesterday I dug out my pattern, selected fabrics, and cut out four tweets. Today I cut fabric to make eight zip pouches and completed the sewing of four. One of the things I'm trying to do this holiday is use what I have and complete what I've started. Last year I embroidered on muslin- some from patterns, some my own designs. Today I completed a couple of the projects I had intended them to become, which I can't show because they're gifts. ;) I also completed two other gifts and selected materials for similar projects I'm working on. Overall, I was quite pleased with what I accomplished and am hoping to keep it up without getting burnt out.
 

Horse Love

   

As we were driving to Dallas we passed a beautiful bunch of horses (one a baby!) and I asked Alex to turn around and stop. There is a certain special 3 year old in my life that just looooooves horseys and I decided to put together a photo book for her for Christmas. These are just a handful of the images. It was so fun to photograph something other than people and the common pet - I can't wait to finish this project!

Yum!

Today I am putting the finishing touches on everything I'm taking to the holiday boutique this Sunday. I think I have way more than enough but we'll see how it goes. I am so super smitten with the product shown here. These wee pink salt and pepper shakers are hugely adorable and how better filled then with German Glass Glitter? Yum! ;) Now you can shake, shake, shake this goodness onto your next project!

Happy Friday!

Oh, How Charming

I really need to make myself a new fabric board for a background because this one has been used way too much lately. :) At any rate, I've been a busy girl today trying to make more art + goods for this Sunday's holiday boutique (the first of a few this season).

I made two more bird houses today. The one pictured and another here. Also pictured are three soldered necklaces I made. The photo shows the backs and you can view a more detailed image here. All of these projects were fairly time consuming but I am pleased with the results. As a whole I am really excited about the products I'm offering and hope they are well received.

Heather designed this adorable business card for my creative projects. I wanted something pretty and chic and this totally fits the bill. They have rounded corners which is just the right finish for them. They arrived yesterday and I can't wait to start giving them out. Check out the design section of Bluhm Studios for her portfolio of digital design work and more information regarding her services.

I'm off to make more ornaments...

Joli Paquet

Last week Heather told me about a conversation she had with Cerri of Little Pink Studio, about not being able to attend Silver Bella. Not wanting to be left out they concocted a plan to create a way for everyone at home to enjoy making great projects from kits created by a handful of talented artists/crafters online. The first release of these "Joli Paquet" kits will be the weekend of Silver Bella (November 9th) but plan on other special events throughout the new year. I am so thrilled to be a part of this project! Other participants include: Heather of Bluhm Studios, Cerri of Little Pink Studio, Holly of Holly Doodle Designs, Lori of Vintage Flair, Heather of Pretty Petals Boutique, and Cheryl of Rosy Posy Confections.

Here is a little sneak peek of my kit - Henrietta's Hanging Holiday. ;)

Once Upon a Child

One of my favorite things to collect from antique stores and flea markets are old photos. I love how sweet the kids look especially- how dressed up and posed they are and the character of each one. The grumpy kids just crack me up and have me thinkin', "They're kids all right." Last night I created this collage sheet of some of my favorite children's images, tea dyed lace, hand glittered star, and various vintage buttons. I wanted to create one or two of these sheets for purchase to use in your own artwork so these will soon be available at the holiday boutiques and eventually online.

Today was an incredibly busy day but I still managed to get one small art piece completed before having to pick up a bit and pack. I am driving up to Heather's tomorrow and will be there until Friday. I have a few holiday photo sessions and other than that will relax, create, and enjoy good company. I'll be on my computer (a girl's gotta work) ;) so I'm sure I'll have more to share over the next few days.

A Beautiful Little House

This weekend we took the "back way" to get to my sister's house in Orange County. We went over the mountains and ended up making a day of getting there by stopping a lot along the way. At this adorable little antique shop Alex pointed out these wonderful wire hangers. I thought they'd be perfect as part of a mixed media art piece and couldn't wait to create my first one when we got home tonight. The detailed photos are blurry (you know, bad lighting and all) but you get the idea. It's 6" x 12" including the hanger. I really enjoyed adding layers upon layers of paper and stitching it together. I purchased a bag of lace at a thrift store this weekend while looking for parts to Alex's Halloween costume and before I made the lace flower, I hand dyed it in a mug of tea.  Tonight I also created a collage sheet of children's images and pretty sewing notions to use in your own artwork. Great things ahead for Love, Joleen and I can't wait to share! :)

Seriously Productive Week

For a various reasons we decided that I would respectfully decline the offer for the new nanny job and for the indefinite future I am staying home. There is a possibility of really great things in our near future (no, I'm not pregnant ;) ) and we'll revisit our decision at that time. For now I am pursing Love, Joleen Photography full time,   creating for various holiday boutiques with my mom, and 'babysitting' when I can.

My goal for these boutiques was to finish the many projects I've long ago abandoned, and to actually use all the things I bought for "someday". I am really challenging myself to use what I already have and it's feeling really good! Here is a little peek of what I cooked up this week. Ignore the mess as I've taken over my kitchen (the island is the glitter station!) God forbid I use my HUGE studio. Der.

The ornaments have been *really* fun for me. They're a bit tedious and time consuming but I'm having fun picking out papers and pretty tidbits to put inside. I'm sort of embarrassed about showing you the first one because they've improved so much! This is a bit better of a photo but still not like seeing (and holding) them in person because you can point out the pretty beads, pearls, etc.

The next photo is a closeup of a piece called "Be Free" that I created after midnight last night. It's one of those pieces that came out so exactly like I envisioned and I know I'm going to have a hard time parting with it. lol

Lastly, is a little canvas art piece called "Dream". I fell in love with the pink button and created the paper flower around that. There is also the start of a checkbook cover I'm designing with a cupcake stamp I carved a while back and of course glitter. ;) Still wanna see more? Go here.