Maya's Birthday

So part of the reason I was a little tardy in posting lately is because Maya's birthday was on the 12th and I get a little carried away when it comes to birthdays.


I have already mentioned my cake obsession and as you can see from the picture this year was no exception. I think it came out really cute. The leaves were the hardest part, but the effect was amazing. it really looked like leaves. You paint white chocolate onto bay leaves or mint leaves and let it set. Then you peel them off and you get the relief from the leaves. They were really time consuming but very cool. The kids loved them.

Her party was a safari theme complete with straw pit helmets and binoculars for exploring. The decorations included a custom banner and jungle leaves. All the kids had a great time, but I'm happy that Abra's birthday isn't until July.

I also got a very cute item off Etsy for Maya. This adorable Giraffe from FinnFactor Design by Mirka Hokkanen. http://mirkah.etsy.com/

It is amazing and so well made. I have my eye on a monkey for my other daughter.

A busy couple of months

So, I was reminded today that it has been a very long time since I posted to my blog and I wanted to say that I am still around and still working. In fact I have been doing nothing but work lately.

I have been working on Gingerwinks stuff, stuff for my daughters, and my full time job as an architect. For any of you who wonder if I really do have a full time job as an architect, I am featured in a article on a project I worked on.

While I was pregnant with Maya and after I came back from maternity leave and while I was pregnant with Abra.....whew I'm realizing how long this project was.....I worked on an addition to the campus dormitory at the Massachusetts Maritime Academy. It was a great project and it is starting to get some press. There is even a lovely picture of me on page 6. Here's a link to the article.....

http://www.constructionreviews.com/mh2zinebin/ne_cadet.html#/0

I have also been busy with lots of other projects including new stuff for Gingerwinks which I hope to get into the store in the next couple of weeks. Here's a sneak peek at a new print....

And last but not least, I was busy sewing costumes for my daughters for Purim. You might ask what's Purim and I like to call it the Jewish version of Halloween. I always make their costumes and this year I thought they came out extra cute. So here's Tinkerbell and a cute little clown...

Well I promise to try and not make it so long between posts. I have a lot on my plate now and unfortunately this blog has had to take a back seat, but I'm going to try and be better.

A Happy 1/2 B-Day

On Tuesday Abra was officially 6 months old. When Maya was born a friend convinced me that half- birthday's would be a fun tradition to start. I remember when I was a kid it seemed like so long between birthday's. So when Maya turned 6 months I made her a half a cake and gave her one present. As they get older my goal is to at least always go out to dinner as a family as an excuse to do something special.

My favorite part of the 1/2 b-day is making the cake. I secretly love to do it, even though it always takes longer then planned. This year I was inspired by this great book ... "Hello, Cupcake!" It has the cutest designs in it and I have a great idea for Maya's birthday thanks to it. I made up Abra's cake design myself, but this book has some great ideas. And my philosophy is always who doesn't like a cupcake.

I think it came out really cute and Abra seemed to like it. She and Maya ate/played with the one side of the cake.
For a short time Abra also enjoyed her present which was the cutest stuffed bowling set. This is the only time she got to play with it before Maya said she needed it.

Happy B-day Abra!

An Etsy Holiday

This year I looked on Etsy for a lot of the gifts for my family and I found some wonderful items.

Maya and Abra both got a pair of Piddie Slippers.... http://www.piddies.etsy.com/

They loved them and they looked so cute together. They came beautifully packaged and are absolutely adorable. They are the only slippers Maya has ever had that she can keep on her feet.

I also got Maya and a couple of her cousins crayon rolls from Kate Williams Designs.... http://www.katewdesigns.etsy.com/

The fabric is beautiful and they were really well made. It should prove to be a great accessory for car trips.

One of the things Maya likes most is her new super hero costume. She is now "Super Maya" thanks to a new mask and cape from LuLuBird Boutique.... http://www.lulubirdboutique.etsy.com/

Dress up clothes was a theme this holiday and this was perfect. And of course her costume wouldn't be complete without the proper crown. I got this adorable felt crown from Dream Child Studio.... http://www.dreamchildstudio.com/

These were just a few of the great items I found. Maya's birthday is coming in the next couple of months so I am sure there will be more to come soon.

Catching Up

So, I am still alive despite my lack of postings over the last month. Going back to work combined with the holidays really wore me out, but I am looking forward to what I hope will be a great new year.

When I last posted I was preparing for the art show in New Hampshire, but unfortunately New England weather had a different plan and a huge ice storm took out power in parts of New Hampshire for weeks, including the town where the show was going to be. So that is currently on hold and I am waiting to hear when it will get rescheduled for. I hope that it does get rescheduled because it was to benefit a very good cause.

I am also still working my full time job as an architect. I am still working on the elevator replacement, fitness center, and office renovation, but I may soon be doing a renovation at a dining hall and a 9,000 sq.ft retail building in New Hampshire. So, work seems to be keeping me very busy despite the slow economy.

Gingerwinks stuff has also been doing great. I am up to 28 sales and I have been featured in at least three treasuries. One of my banners also made it into a gift guide which I am most proud of since that is selected by the Etsy admin.

My last news could be the most exciting, although I don't want to get my hopes up. In the past two weeks I was contacted by two stores about selling my work wholesale. So, I scrambled to pull together a package outlining all the details and pricing structure. I think it came out well and looked professional, so now I'll keep my fingers crossed that I'll hear back from them. The catalogs and samples got mailed out today.

So, that's my quick update of how I spent my December 2008...now onto 2009.

Preparation for next weeks show

Next Saturday will be my first art/craft show. I will be showing and hopefully selling my work at the "No Place Like Home" open house event to benefit Cross Roads House in Portsmouth, New Hampshire. You can learn more about the event at http://art4crossroads.blogspot.com/


So since this is my first show I am busy trying to figure out what to take, how to display the work, how to take orders, etc... It is all a little overwhelming, but it should be fun and a good experience. Here are some pictures of what I am planning on displaying

These are some of my prints framed. The one with the pink mat is an original ink drawing which I hand colored with Art Markers. I thought it might be fun to bring an original with all the prints.

I am also hoping to take orders for custom banners so i am bringing examples of the different prints to hang. I should have a wireless connection so i may even be able to take credit card orders through Etsy.




As you can see i have a great helper to prep for the show. I don't know yet if she and Abra are going to come , but she gets so excited whenever I do anything with the drawings, so hopefully Zee can bring them for a little while to see it.

Back to Work

So today was my first day back to work at my primary job as an architect. Now I will have to do all my Etsy stuff in the evenings after the girls go to bed. It is going to be a lot harder but hopefully it will be worth it in the long run. So far this has been fun and I hope it continues to be.

Work today went well and I don't have a heavy work load so that should make it a little easier. I don't have the most exciting projects to come back to (but they aren't the hardest either). So far I will be working on an elevator replacement at a state college, a small corporate fitness center, and an office renovation.

On the other side of things the girls seemed to do OK at daycare today. Maya had no problem since she goes almost everyday anyway. Abra is going to have some adjusting to do, but she seemed to do well for her first day. Both girls were very tired after their first day back after the holiday and I must say I am too.

Today also marks the official end of my first month on Etsy and as of today I have 11 sales and a possible 12th. It doesn't seem too bad for my first month and hopefully there will be more to come.