Candy Land Christmas

My little (well it's really big) candy land theme Christmas display turned out pretty cute. I know it's hard to see but the little lights in the background is really the city lights. Very festive to walk out and see everything lite up. Happy that my landlord is a handy type of guy and makes sure everything is security (high winds blow through the yard) and everything has power.

Giant Christmas Stockings

I deal with a lot of dust and when it rains, a whole lot of mud at my place. The up side is that when I want to work on a big project there is tons of open space. In the process of making three 8 foot Christmas stocking and teaching a 9 year old little girl how to use power tools. Been fun designing and seeing the project coming together!

Quick and Simple Holiday Cards 12/5/13

 I'm doing a quick holiday card class on Thursday December 5th at Cranberry Hill from 5:30 - 6:30 for those who wait until the last minute to get their cards done. I know the crane doesn't look like a Christmas card but I was dying to use the chevron die after I saw a card made with it on Pinterest. Hope you have time to stop by and say hi!

Fab Mo - Cards

Went to the FabMo boutique this past weekend. Some very creative and talented ladies there. I picked up a few cards for my more crafty friends. Since there is sewing involved with these cards, I won't every do them in a class but it would be fun to make a few.

Hand painted on silk, then machine stitched.

Battle lost but not the war.

I lost my zucchini battle to Mr. Gopher. That isn't a shadow, that's the hole he made through the wooden plank I had put under my container. The little sucker went up into my container and chewed up my zucchini! I now what everything on two inch wooden planks and soak the ground with a castor oil mix my landlord gave me. He's buried traps and caught a few but not the one stalking my garden!

Annie and me at the October 2013 ALZ walk.

Mini Crane Card Class - October 2013

Samples of the card class I will be doing down at the senior center. I was given a big bag of mini cranes so that became the theme for my class. :)

Wild Weekend in Portland - 2013

Had a great weekend up in Portland with two of my buddies. The town motto is "Keep Portland Weird" and I have to say everyone lives up to that. It was great to hang out with those friends who like to poke around salvage yards, warehouses of fabric and crafts. The food trucks and little hole in the wall resturants were great too! Now getting some solid sleep is on the agenda. :) 

Quick Dinner

It was a busy weekend but I still didn't get a whole lot done! Cooked up a abalone dinner for some friends who came into work to help move some heavy stuff around for me. Japanese pot lucks are always good!

Annie's favorite guy

Think this photo says it all -  Mr B. our favorite guy!
Barry has made a big impact our both our lives. Annie had a mild fear of men, being raised by only an alpha mom. B is her go to playmate and every night she waits for him at the top of the hill. On the rare days she doesn't see him, she will sit under the big oak tree watching the street until it's time to come in and go to bed.

From my garden

It was a fun weekend. I don't have too many weekend off any more between work and teaching so I like to make the most of it. My garden, even with the crazy gopher is doing great. Since I can't eat regular pizza crust, I make one out of cauliflower which isn't too bad. I planted basil along side my tomatoe plants. Now that the tomatoe are huge, it was time to pick the basil. Mr. B made some homemade pesto which was super! We ate the whole thing!

I have some more classes coming up and other creative projects in the works. Hope to get them posted soon.

Washi Paper Class - August 4, 2013

Finally got my sample board done for the start of the newbie classes.
Many years ago (boy that makes me sound old!) I started doing class for beginner paper crafters. All of the teachers wanted to do the fancy creative stuff, which requires some level of knowledge and skill.
I like to do quick and simple cards so even a beginner can see that it doesn't take long to learn the ropes.
This class will be at Cranberry Hill in Sunnyvale on Sunday August 4th, 2013. Stop by and say Hi!

Card Class on July 21, 2013

Card Class Sample

Will be teaching my first card class (it's been overthree years) this month. It's designed for beginners so they can learn the basics and then move on to the advanced classes. 
It was a busy Sunday for me. I finally got around to getting some cards made. I was given (because nobody else wanted them) the 1,000 cranes made for my Dad's 65th birthday, way back when. They were stored in a box for 30 plus years. Decide to make some simple cards with the ones that will fold back down. I never did learn to fold the cranes so it's nice that they are prefolded. I see a lot of crane cards in my future. :-)

What to do with a 1,000 cranes

Test Model

Annie was a test model today for Mr. B's lighting system. We are getting ready for the Itatani family reunion pictures. Of course to get Annie to sit still, there is a tennis ball being held off camera. 
It will be a busy weekend and looking at my calendar, it will continue to be that way for a long time.  I will be starting my beginning stamping classes next month. It's been a few years since I've taught a class. Looking forward to getting the creative juices flowing. 

Super Simple Easter Card

One of the cards we will be making in class tomorrow. Super simple and a great way to use up all those washi paper scraps!

My office space

My Office Wall

This is one of my walls in my office. I love having handmade art and family photos around me. Helps keep things moving forward.
Mr. B out did himself for my birthday. Thoughtful gifts (XL canvas photo of Annie), silly gifts, surprised gifts, hike on the beach and a wonderful dinner. Really made the day special for me. I'm one lucky woman.

Finally getting little yard work done!

When I moved into my little studio I knew I had to make a little garden space. Well, after 10 months, I finally got my little patio area. I live up in the hills, so everything had to be level, still it only took one day to do. Looking forward to planting some deer proof plants and making a stone bench. Almost ready for a summer!