5.31.2011

HOME TOUR - Living Room

Our living room is a very happy place for me.  As I sit and work on my computer here in my open office, I am facing our living room area, where James enjoys most of his time when he is not working.  Some of my all time favorite and most sentimental things are in our living room.  I love love love decorating my spaces with meaningful art.  Honestly I wouldnt have it any other way.  The things I place on my walls to look at everyday must have a feeling of comfort for me, and I get the biggest comfort from things having history.  Family history most importantly.

On our mantel I have placed a large framed photo of one of our engagement shots.  My dad handmade the frame for our wedding, so it is super special.  The white and brown pitcher was my moms and is a very old piece of 'stapleware', which is very rare these days.  She loved the broken and recycled history of stapleware.  The tiny antique bottle collection was also hers with a few of mine mixed in.  We both shared a big love for old bottles, especially little tiny ones.  And the old non working violin was hers too.  She wanted so badly to learn to play the violin and never really got around to it.  Even some of the feathers, like the large turkey feathers are probably about 20 or so years old.  I love them to pieces.


The quilt on the back of our couch was handmade by my aunt, and I just adore it.  She gave it to me to cut up and use in my crafts, but I couldnt bare, its too wonderful.  The red velvet chair I got from my friend Shauna of Poor Pitiful Pearl, love it!  My coffee table was just a boring little table my bestie was getting rid of years ago and I re-painted it and gave it new life. 

My mannequin Moon has been tagging along with my since I was about 14.  She sports a tshirt from Greune Hall.  My mom got it when she waited tables at the Gristmill over 30 years ago.  The restaurant is still alive and kicking, such a cool place.

I did the painting of Claire Danes for James when we were just friends years ago.  And he got the custom skateboard two years ago for xmas.  Two of his favorite things.  My daddy made the bookshelf which I have always admired.

The shelf above our tv has some of the most meaningful stuff on it.  An embroidery of james and i that i have him for xmas a few years back.  Two kaleidescopes, one that my mom made when she was about my age, and one that was a wedding gift.  Marbles from my grandfathers collection.  One of my nanna's sparkly shoes from her dancing days.  My aunt has the other one, her and my mom each took one.  A framed pic of me and my mom.  And other various wedding gifts and knick knacks that I love.

This sun quilt was another piece my mom made before I was born.  I think she was pregnant with my brother when she made it.  This is my most single special thing I have.  If we had a fire, I would be ripping it off the walls as I ran out.

When my mom started making Broken China Jewelry 30 years ago, she was saving all of the hallmarks off the back of the plates.  She made this little wall hanging and Im so glad she did.  Its a nice little reminder of what she did with her life.  And I found just the perfect spot for it!

As you can see, I really do keep alot of my mom around me.  It comforts me so much.  None of this stuff can replace her, but it fills some of the holes in my heart having it around me, if that makes sense. 

PEACE,
Laura

5.30.2011

Post College Survival Kit Giveaway Winner...


Thank you so much to everyone who entered.  You had some very valid fears!  I wish the best for each of you in your endeavors after college.  This is your time to shine, so make the most of it!  And remember, anything you want in life just takes hard work, dedication & love.  Dont give up on your dreams.

(please contact Sarah to get your spot in her e-course)

PEACE,
Laura

5.28.2011

One Happy Day...

Today, I am a happy girl.
  • i did a home decor project i have been wanting to do since we knew we were buying a house!  and... im excited to be sharing it as a DIY in a few days!
  • my boy took me on a mini date today.  as silly as it may seem, it was to Bandera (the town we live in) just to walk around and get coffee.
  • i actually found a super cute dress at the sorry excuse for a craft show our town holds.
  • i had a good hair day
  • which made me feel good enough to put on a girly dress
  • james and i have been so sweet to each other all day
  • i found out my nanna & sabe are coming to my house tomorrow
  • which also means i am making homeade green chicken enchiladas tomorrow, yum!
  • i had an a moment of clarity as a designer today.  in a flash, i dreamt of the pretty jewelry line i have always wanted to create, i sketched out ideas, and i executed 3 pieces.  the feeling i get when that happens is the very reason i love being an artist.  when it strikes, its like a hurricane, and its beautiful!


getting ready to go on our 'date'.

it was sooooo hot today, we gave violet some extra special water with heart ice cubes!

are they not the two cutest things you have ever seen???

the beautiful dress i found.  james loves it as much as i do, which always makes me feel prettier when i know he loves it.

I am going to be working on a body of work with this new line before I launch it.  And as far as I am thinking right now, it deserves its own shop, so I may be opening a new one just for this line.  Im already dreaming of the styling and design behind it all.  It sort of ties into a project I started over a year ago and was never able to make it a reality due to being too busy.  The timing feels just right now.   But dont worry, Violet Bella is not going anywhere.  In fact I have several new pieces already made & photographed just waiting to be uploaded.

And... Im extending my facebook/twitter sale to blog followers as well, get 20% anything in my entire shop through monday, by using the code MEMDAY2011 at checkout.

PEACE,
Laura

5.27.2011

Skyline Fever Butterflies...

Just a quick little outfit post to show one of my favorite Skyline Fever shirts ever...  Sorry girls, its the only one like it.  But I love this style, so if we can afford it later, we may bring it to the shop!  I love its open drapey back.  I paired with jeans, a sheer floral ruffled top and a vintage crochet shawl, which I am planning on making myself something pretty out of.


Today I worked worked worked on Ruche order's and blog design.  Im getting so excited to launch my new blog look on the first!  Its soooo me....

Time for a goodnight sleep.  You know its bad when the first thing that crosses your mind when you wake up in the middle of the night or in the morning is 'scorpion'.  I really dont want to spot another on in my house!  Im so creepy crawlied out!  Tonite James found a grasshopper the size of a walking stick, no joke!  It was insane!

PEACE,
Laura

June Sponsor Spots for Violet Bella...

Last chance to snag a June Ad spot on Violet Bella.  Ad sizes are slightly larger than advertized and I will email you the correct dimensions upon ordering.  June is a happy month for me... it is my birthday month, it's river weather, it is usually filled with friends, & I am getting a new blog makeover!


Here is a sneak peak of the new blog look.  I have spent way too many hours designing it, but Im thrilled with the look.  I know recently I have changed the look a few times, I think I have just been searching for the right elements to make it perfectly 'me'.  And I think I have finally done just that by using all of my own photographs for the backgrounds and such.  It has very personal touches that I will explain once it is up and running.  Im hoping to launch it on the first!


PEACE,
Laura

5.26.2011

Life, Dessert, Kitty Love & Thanks Yous....

First of all, I want to give another shoutout to Leah of Sookie Says for sending me these amazing vintage butterfly squares.  I cant wait to figure out what I want to make with them.  They are so perfectly sweet and me.  Such an amazing gift, thank you Leah.  And a sweet little orange lace and button headband she made, just darling!


Last week I got a random idea to make banana dessert (kind of for dinner, shhhhh)... It was soooo yummy!  

INGREDIENTS:
bananas (slightly fried in a skillet)
peanut butter
nutella
cinnamon
cacoa powder (optional)
a glass of milk (a must)

serve hot!


And, we got our new dining room table in!!!  So we ate our dessert as our first meal together at the table.  And honestly we dont sit at it for dinner.  Its just not our style.  But its really come in handy with company and for drawing ideas out!  As you can see, we dont have chairs for it yet.  I stole the bench from another desk for now.


I just had to leave you with this uber precious photo of Bella.  We bring Violet's outside chair in when it rains so it doesnt get all smelly and Bella just loves it.  She gets on top of it and gets all sorts of frisky.  So cute.
Is she seriously not the cutest kitty in all of the world?

Right before bed last night we found another scorpion inside, in the bedroom!  Everytime I woke up last night the first thing I thought of was scorpion...  And this morning has already been eventful... I went outside to see what Violet was barking at to find her playing with a deer on the other side of the fence.  At least I think they were playing, or getting to know one another.  She was soooo excited.  I had to bring her in though b/c she would not settle down or stop barking.  And the deer scared me just a bit.  It had a bit of drool hanging out of its mouth, and Im not sure if it was just b/c it was excited or if it was sick.  It is still outside waiting for Violet to come back out and play.

As for the rest of the day, work, house cleaning and dentist are on the list.  fun huh?

PEACE,
Laura

5.24.2011

Post College Survival Kit Giveaway...

Time for a fun giveaway from one of my sponsors!  Please just leave a comment below telling me your post college fears to enter...

 College teaches us many things: how to make and support academic arguments, the importance of a room of one's own, that rhyme about beer before liquor.

But college doesn't necessarily teach us how to deal with The Real World.  There are no classes that  cover 401ks, credit card debt, live-in lovers, networking or making friends once you're out of the dorms.  And isn't that a pity?  Four years, fifty thousand dollars and zero courses on how to navigate the next sixty years of your life.

Never fear, friends!  We're here to rectify that.  The Post College Survival Kit is an eight-week ecourse that will teach you the things that college didn't.  Our teachers (Sarah Von, Alex Franzen, Marie Joseph, Sally McGraw and Sarah Storer) are all experts in their fields and bona-fide college survivors.  We're going to talk about loan consolidation and forgiveness, cover letters and internships, grad school, dating, questionable landlords.  We'll cover just about everything you need to know.

The course includes:
* 8 weeks of fresh posts on a private, passworded blog
* 60-page workbook
* 4 Vokle webinars
* a private message board
* 70% less post-college stress (okay, I made that up)"

So the giveaway item would be: a place in the Post College Survival Kit Ecourse (www.thepostcollegesurvivalkit.com)
 

5.23.2011

Our Weekend in Photos...

We had a fun filled weekend with company.  Our friend Katelyn and her hubby and daughter came to stay with us to go to the Renegade Fair in Austin.  Over the weekend we went to Isabel's ballet performance, had a bbq, swam in the river, had lots of giggles and way too much good food.  It was so nice to see them and little miss Leena did not want to go home today.  It was a super fun weekend with all of our friends.  There were a ton more people and events than pictured here, but I didnt get it all captured.  I purposely did not take my camera to the river so I could really enjoy myself.  I think I had a kid in my lap this whole weekend!!!  I loved it.  But I must admit, its kind of fun being like the 'gran-friend' who gets to play with them and then they go home :)  I get the best of them!


Now its hard to get myself back to work, but it must be done!  I have orders to fill & ship, as well as lots of blogging goals, including a giveaway!  Maybe tonite :)

PEACE,
Laura