lindambarrett

even if there are clouds in the sky this weekend i'm still looking forward to some time in the great outdoors this memorial day.

my day will also include sending prayers out to the men and women of the military who give in so many ways to provide for our safety and well being. my meager but heartfelt thanks to those who gave the ultimate sacrifice with their life - blessings to each and every soul and to their families.

god bless our country, land of the free!
xo
lmb

its still daylight!

Ahh, the feeling that you can get home at almost 8pm and still have daylight hanging onto the edge of the sky before night pulls its covers - is simply a beautiful thing.

I received as an added bonus, a soft grey light to capture the amazing (mind blowing) shades of purple-blue hues in my hydrangea, sitting outside my front door.

WOW, is all I can really say about the buds that offer themselves up in a crisp chartruese color - the perefect compliement to the blues - that only nature's brush can get so right.

I also managed a last farewell inhale past the departing lilacs on the bushes alongside the house -

then headed indoors - followed by my trusty girl "wrigs" - who i couldn't resist sanpping a pic of as she soulfully paused to relaxed on the couch - ready for some attention.

Why is it that behind the lens so many things in my life feel EVEN MORE lovely? 

Its true, life is good!

Linda

gentle reminders

Every now an again its nice to receive a gentle reminder from my dad - letting me know he is still around me - sending me love from the other side. Every so often I get little taps from him (in our own special ways we still communicate) but lately - perhaps because either I haven't asked or I haven't been paying attention - I've been missing them.

With mother's day coming up this weekend I'm really hoping I/we get a great sign. Not so much for me, but for my mom. It might sound funny, but my dad always made "mom's day" super special. And, with mother's day coming up I feel his loss pressing upon my heart, knowing that he was my mom's companion, her partner in all things, her champion of family and great moms! And well, his lack of physical presence is something I know my mom misses so very much. 

Dad used to tease my mom because every time they wuold be walking from the car - across any parking lot - after breakfast, to or from church, grocery shopping - my mom would be looking down spying for shiny coins on the ground. 

Well, not long after my dad passed away whenever we asked for a sign from him... we'd spot those shiny coins on the ground. I remember one day (not long after sharing this fact with a close friend) when I was having a particularly stressful time in my life, I recall asking my dad to support me,  and if he could send me a sign that he heard me that would be great.  Well, that next day I remember having to work on the weekend visiting a store in Evanston.  I had gotten out of my car and walked up to the meter only to realize that I didn't have change in my wallet. Bummed, I began to walk back to my car when out of the corner of my eye I spotted something shiny - I looked down and there on the street was a scattering of coins. Not my typical single penny (that by the way would have been enough for a sign) but there were nickles, dimes, quaters, pennies -  I totally laughed out loud and then said "thanks dad".  I got back into my car and immediately called my friend - knowing she'd "get it" and to celebrate the moment.

So this weekend, when we go out for our annual mother's day drive (something dad was big on) I'll be looking for a special sign from him - along the path to breakfast, across the parking lot going to church and wherever we go that day - watching out for the sign that he's had heard my little prayer for a "gentle reminder".

Cheers, and blessings to all those moms out there who could use gentle reminders that they are loved!

Linda ~ love your life & do good!

green favor accents

Nothing is prettier than a table accented with touches of nature's colors - especially when they can take them home and plant them when the are done.

The scent & site of grape hyacinths paired with some stamped favor boxes and matching place cards are the perfect welcome for any guest at the brunch table. I lined these favor boxes with wax paper and used seed starters to set the bulbs in (you can also cover them in light moss to keep them moist) - when the guests leave from your Saturday morning blue berry pancake brunch they can go home and plant their little bulbs. Come next year when they are pushing their green leaves up from the ground, your guests will have instant reminders of your gathering.

Above, I used our  white take out favor boxes from Paper Source - which I stamped in a lime chalk ink (super fast drying) with this versatile branch stamp prior to assembling with brads. I folded the flaps in for more sturdy walls and a clean presentation. Next, I stamped the place cards in the same ink and finished the names using souffle pens, in a complementing purple ink.

While it might be a bit late for grape hyacinths - there are so many another great plants to use - try pansies for a soft sweet aroma combined with a hit of color. They come in so many varieties this time of year and are a bright and cheery accent to any table , or garden!

Cheers and happy brunching!

Linda ~ love your life and do good!

 

rain or shine

Spring provides us with a mix of weather that paints the sky.

Full torrents of rain pause unexpectedly to display inter-mitten dapplings of golden light brushed across the horizon. Just when you think you know what mother nature has in mind she shifts gears and throws down a dialog with thunder booms to punctuate the sky.  

Rain or shine there is nothing quite like her spring display of sky shows. I guess we'll just have to wait to see what she has up her sleeve for tomorrow.

Enjoy the surprises.

cheers, 

linda ~love your life & do good! 

lily of the valley & lilacs - it doesn't get any better!

Every year at this time - bordering between spring showers, cold snaps and intermittent bursts of sunshine - I wait patiently for the tiny green petals to push their way up from the ground.  These little bundles of part elixir, part fairy magic artfully show their tiny bell shaped heads from under the cascade of accumulating petals that falls from my flowering tree in my front yard.

Ever since I can remember, the sight of lily-of-the- valleys little white bells have made me believe that dreams do come true. After all, it takes a wishful gardener with hope in their heart, to plant such a fragile looking specimen with a prayer that their roots take hold.  Low and behold – once they do they are forever growing and spreading with nothing to stop them!  Don’t you love that about those small but hardy plants!

But, just when you think it couldn’t get any better than the shy lily of the valley – there comes the abundant array of purple fragrance packed lilacs! Why their clusters of tiny waxy buds all bundled together creates an unsurpassed bouquet for the senses -  making everyone living west of the Rockies completely jealous of us chilled climate folks – if only for a few weeks!

These two plants are our spring jewels and while a part of me wishes they lasted longer – this fleeting window is what we all know makes them all the more special. Nature always has the best lessons.

Inhale, cut branches, pluck petals and remember to enjoy the moment while it lasts!

Cheers and happy May!

Linda ~love your life & do good.

hard lessons + prayers = grateful heart

okay - sometime no matter what timetable you have laid out to accomplish something - life gets sticky. Sticky like glue, thick like quicksand, with a pinch of mercury in retrogade thrown in to remind me "YOU ARE NOT IN CHARGE."

so here's the story; recently i have been trying to refinance my house and needless to say there are plenty of obstacles that present themselves that are totally beyond my control. 

hard lesson no#1: for the most part things were going a expected...then came several months of setbacks, with waiting as my constant companion.i was finally given my closing date and was elated.  to celebrate, i bought the most yummy donuts (super indulgent) to share with friends at work. 

hard lesson no#2: the call came 2 days later..."ooops sorry there is an issue with some insurance thingy with your condo association - and by the way - we may have to postpose the closing indefinitely...and yes your rate will expire before it might get resolved!"  i was so dissappointed i can't even tell you. I thought maybe God is telling me to shop it around more, or get a better rate so yes, i made phone calls - but no luck with better rates. Next set of calls went to every possible person i could think of in the chain of characters from the bank which only then made me go from frustrated, to angry, to ultimately defeated.

hard lesson no#3: my last call went out with tears to my account mortgage person with a plea that there has to be something or someone in the chain of command that can push us past this silly 8 day miss on an insignificant bullett point  (that someone should have caught during the 3 months).

prayer: i hung up the phone crying.

then a said a prayer - and let it go.

grateful heart:  2 hours later my wonderwoman of a account mortgage person called me back with a "date for my closing" - "we were all set!"  

Wow!

sometimes it takes me awhile to remember i'm not in charge.

sometimes it takes me awhile to remember to be grateful for my lessons.

sometimes it takes me awhile to remember to say a prayer and let it go.

thank you, thank you, is all i can say with a grateful heart.

(the day i moved in - 7 years ago exactly - to the day of my closing this year.) 

linda ~love your life & do good!

 

 

personal stationery

(photo by emma nunn)

i love making stationery, plus i love carving stamps; blending the two together makes this personal stationery class a winning combination. 

if you're not doing anything on May 3rd - we are osting this at all of our Paper Source locations acorss the country from 6-8pm. you don't have to bring a thing - just your imagination and maybe a friend or two to enjoy the evening.

no fears - we'll take you through the steps to create your own coupe of stamps - then let you share eachothers designs too - for a great mix and match collection - compete with a box mailer, envelopes and labels.

the bonus is that you get to keep the stamps you make and then give this set as a great mother's day gift. 

see you next week!

cheers,

linda ~love your life & do good!

"circles" ~ watercolor image & collage prints

"circles"

with a strong cup of coffee in hand - i started the day working on a collection of watercolor pieces that would ultimately become the base for some layered collage editions i'm working on for my Etsy site.

here is one of the finished watercolor pieces: petals

and below is the final image collage:

    "circles No1"

I'll take you through a few of the steps for the process:

first i apply friskett/masking fluid to the water color paper (sorry i can't even remember if this was arches or rives bfk) and allow to dry - about 10-15 mins. 

next, I work in my watercolor to the negative spaces and the outside. the maksing prevents any color or moisture to effect the first wash of colors. i prefer very pale shades - but i'm always experimenting depending on my mood.   as the masking dries it turns more opaque, in this case my mask is a very pale neon yellow so you can see it on the paper (they come in other colors too).

 

once the mask is dry you gently rub it away with your fingers. i've found that when you  impatient and try to remove it while it's still wet it can pull up the paper.  so to prevent this temptation, i usually work on several pieces so that they are at varying degrees of dry for working the paint or peeling the masking - as you can see below when you work on multiples they can reflect the mood of the day.

the little prints look much lighter without the yellow from the masking - so it gives me a chance to go back in with a bit of color to create a bit more depth. 

 

next i begin to work in acetate layers with images i have already created from previous working sessions in the studio. this is the part that take some time as you begin to consider your layers, text, negative space and any story you are hoping to tell with the work. again, i am typically working a few at once until i can "feel" the print find the right ingredients.

 

then i scan the multiple pieces - both inbetween and once finished - allowing me to keep each peice safe for reworking into a collection of prints for a series.  in this case i finished three (below are 2 & 3) that i ultimately then print into 11"x17" prints (images are approximately 8x8) on a warm tone Rives printmaking paper - using my own unique image transfer methods -allowing for editioning my work.

          "circles No2"

   "circles No3"

i'll try to do some better photos in the daylight and add them to etsy for links. in the meanwhile i hope you enjoyed the quick overview of this process and series titled: "circles"

Cheers,

Linda ~love your live & do good!

 

prop styling to inspire

While walking the CHA shows looking at new product each year for Paper Source, I often come across some of the most amazing set styling by the designers to grab our attention, drawing us into their booths. One compelling example from Studio Calico - were these wonderfully simple and elegant foam balls decorated with circle punched patterned papers - secured with pins. 

I fell in love with them and had to made a few of my own using their fun 6x6 pads of patterned papers.  

This is one of those "sit in front of the tv" projects - where it is all about the repetition of the punches that make them so wonderful. Keep a thimble handy - after awhile your finger needs the support!

Cheers,

Linda ~love your life & do good!

vintage photos for personal stationery

Nothing is better than inventing from old family photos for creating the perfect personalized gift. I'm lucky because my Granddad on my Mom's side, was both a Cubs fan and keen on taking loads of pictures - both traits I am grateful to attribute to him from the gene pool. 

So, sometime ago, I gathered a wonderful collection of these vintage images and turned them into the perfect personal stationery gift set for my mom. Working with my Epson color printer I positioned the photos on the scanner bed then printed the images directly onto the card stock.

Not all printers like to take cover weight  (pre-scored card stock), so you should probably do some tests with your machine - for defining both the placement of your images along with feeding paper into the carrier - to create your collection. I used Mohawk superfine white for my mom's folded card collection and paired them with gravel envelopes.

To present them to her as a gift, I added some wonderful labels , which I had purchased awhile ago from work (at Paper Source) - then tied it with a matching ribbon all neatly tucked into an A7 Box Mailer.

She loved this gift so much that she couldn't bear to mail them. In the end I had to print a few extra cards so that she wouldn't feel that they were too precious to send. Once she had these extra in hand she penned a note to her sister with a photograph she knew she'd love seeing after all those years.

With a computer filled with images and boxes more under my bed - no doubt this won't be the last of these stationery collections for gift giving this year!

Cheers,

Linda  ~love your life & do good!

 

 

"c" is for colorful crayons!

this weekend was spent making some baby shower gifts for boss at work.

we are doing an entore wall of letters and this was inspired from ideas on pinterest.

all you need is a large collection of crayolos, a hot glue gun and a something to cut the crayons with - i happened to find using a small plant clipper worked great.

here's the finished letter with all the crayons attached to a wooden backing.

so fun - i know she'll love it - who can't resist COLOR!

cheers,

Linda

murmuration...

what joy!

here is to hoping your Easter weekend is filled with the wonderment that is the reason for the season! That you might have fresh eyes for looking at the world around you.
Perhaps this video will help reinforce this experience...i have watched it now 3 times and each time I am more blown away then the first time.

http://vimeo.com/31158841

Enlarge the frame and then push your chair back a bit to really take in the frame...then just be ready to enjoy the wonderment of this site and the girls reactions. <3, <3, <3!!
cheers,
linda

renew, reuse, recreate projects

Earth Day is on April 22; there are so many things one can do to turn something old into something new. Here, I've created these fun workshop projects the upcoming Crafter's Night Out at Paper Source.

 

(above photo by Emma Nunn)

These photos show how I incorporate recycled Cavallini Calendars for creating handmade envelopes and accented stationery. The envelope templates for making these are so affordable and easy to use - who doesn't love getting something this fun in the mail? Heck, even the mailman wpuld be jealous!

(photo by lindambarrett)

My favorite piece of designing the project had to be making the whimsical folio - cut & folded to fit the depth of your crafty-collection of cards and envelopes  - finished with string & button closure. Who doesn't love string & button closures?!

(photo by lindambarrett)

 If you've never taken one of our Paper Source workshops - we provide all the materials, supplies and tools - you just bring your imagination, some friends and enjoy the evening. People who register get to leave with a full stash of cards, envelopes, the folio, and a 10% coupon for shopping - plus tips and tricks for recreating this again & again! Here's to hoping to see you at a workshop sometime soon.

What do you have at home to renew, reuse, or recreate?

Cheers,

Linda

~love your life & do good!

 

 

april 1st - happy spring

the trees say it all... and if they can do it then so can we, so i'm getting ready for some growth this month - the pushing through the bark to form buds, then sweet abundant blossoms!  

nature is amazing in every way - making the best instructor.

cheers to spring!

~love your live & do good

linda

 

for the love of hand craft: clay & rae dunn

if you love simple lovely handmade things; bowls, plates, objects to hold and admire or adorn - then rea dunn's work will make you swoon.
i've purchased several things from her over the last few years and her work in clay never ceases to inspire me. Below is an image of one style I purchased for my mom one mother's day.

Then there are her little palm egg pieces...these were a must have for a few friends over the years for birthdays.

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Handcrafting is such a lost art. In so many ways we have become the culture of make it fast and cheap. While I understand the importance for both in the market place, when it comes to lovely gifts with the intention of longevity for keepsake value - than handcrafted gifts are what call to me.

I've found so much custom hand-work on the web that I simply adore (which I'll share tomorrow) and eveyone of those gifts holds a special memory of the exchange. With Mother's day coming up I decided to head down to my bindery (in my house) and craft some custom boxes intended for gifting to moms.

These little treasure boxes are intended to hold photos and notes worthy of viewing again and again. A nice friendly touch, as well as to hold the box closed, is this strong flaxen string to match my flax linen bookcloth.

I got the affordable box kits from work - at Paper Source and then used lokta paper printed with my drawings for making it feel one-of-a-kind. I did text with the cover and then did a seperate design for the side walls. I just love how they turned out!

If you visit the Paper Source site - you can see a quick video on how to mix PVA &Methyl-cellulose to make your boxmaking a breeze!

Cheers and let me know what you think.

love your life & do good!

Linda

 

i thought i'd share the image from my past/recent March paper source workshop. i had so much fun creating this personal journal sample for the class.

it allowed me a chance to print out those accumulated app-phone images, wonderful black & white shots of my nephews and niece that i took at the holidays - all worked into a collaged page turner in this wonderful zutter-wire-bound book.

the march thaw is coming on here in the chicagoland area - the sunlight today delivered a much needed swell of warmth and vitamin D replenishment! i enjoyed every last bit bouncing off the paths and filtering through the windows. keep it coming miss spring! cheers LMB

an upcoming baby shower for this next week has had me percolating on some new ideas both for the decor and gift giving. 

this sketch and watercolor of a sweet giraffe spying a little butterfly is what has come out of me this weekend as the final drawing for a t-shirt transfer on little onesies!

i hope she likes them...i never know how long they last after being washed, but know my colleague loves giraffes and this is right up her alley.

cheers, 

linda

my sweetpea wrigs turned 6... i feel so blessed to have that unconditional waggin-tail greet me every day! thank you for your sweet soulful being!

actually missing the snow...what can i say.

prompt: for this weeks http://www.52photosproject.com/
Where I put my
head down.
To rest,
To sleep,
To dream.
Where is your go to spot
to renew your spirit?

i usually go to the woods behind my house to renew, but for sleep, where i rest my head and ask God to take my burdens from me for the night is my cozy bed...even better when my sweet pea goldengirl warms up the space before i peel back the covers and drop myself down.

i stay up too late and often have trouble sleeping, but this is my space to say sweet dreams!

cheers,
linda

is anybody out there?
does anyone know where they are hiding "joy"?

some days it really feels like this in my heart and head...like i am all alone - it's just me and my dog and the drudgery of everyday feeling heavier and heavier - without any JOY.

if you are out there...and you have found where joy is hiding...please come get me, drop me a note, so i can come along for the ride!
linda

snowy boots and a colorful scarf...sometimes this is all you need to smile!

the love of handcrafts: box making

Handcrafting is such a lost art. In so many ways we have become the culture of make it fast and cheap. While I understand the importance for both in the market place, when it comes to lovely gifts with the intention of longevity for keepsake value - than handcrafted gifts are what call to me.

I've found so much custom hand-work on the web that I simply adore (which I'll share tomorrow) and eveyone of those gifts holds a special memory of the exchange. With Mother's day coming up I decided to head down to my bindery (in my house) and craft some custom boxes intended for gifting to moms.

These little treasure boxes are intended to hold photos and notes worthy of viewing again and again. A nice friendly touch, as well as to hold the box closed, is this strong flaxen string to match my flax linen bookcloth.

I got the affordable box kits from work - at Paper Source and then used lokta paper printed with my drawings for making it feel one-of-a-kind. I did text with the cover and then did a seperate design for the side walls. I just love how they turned out!

If you visit the Paper Source site - you can see a quick video on how to mix PVA &Methyl-cellulose to make your boxmaking a breeze!

Cheers and let me know what you think.

love your life & do good!

Linda

 

i thought i'd share the image from my past/recent March paper source workshop. i had so much fun creating this personal journal sample for the class.

it allowed me a chance to print out those accumulated app-phone images, wonderful black & white shots of my nephews and niece that i took at the holidays - all worked into a collaged page turner in this wonderful zutter-wire-bound book.

the march thaw is coming on here in the chicagoland area - the sunlight today delivered a much needed swell of warmth and vitamin D replenishment! i enjoyed every last bit bouncing off the paths and filtering through the windows. keep it coming miss spring! cheers LMB

my giraffe baby t - sketch & watercolor

an upcoming baby shower for this next week has had me percolating on some new ideas both for the decor and gift giving. 

this sketch and watercolor of a sweet giraffe spying a little butterfly is what has come out of me this weekend as the final drawing for a t-shirt transfer on little onesies!

i hope she likes them...i never know how long they last after being washed, but know my colleague loves giraffes and this is right up her alley.

cheers, 

linda

my sweetpea wrigs turned 6... i feel so blessed to have that unconditional waggin-tail greet me every day! thank you for your sweet soulful being!

actually missing the snow...what can i say.

to rest, to sleep

prompt: for this weeks http://www.52photosproject.com/
Where I put my
head down.
To rest,
To sleep,
To dream.
Where is your go to spot
to renew your spirit?

i usually go to the woods behind my house to renew, but for sleep, where i rest my head and ask God to take my burdens from me for the night is my cozy bed...even better when my sweet pea goldengirl warms up the space before i peel back the covers and drop myself down.

i stay up too late and often have trouble sleeping, but this is my space to say sweet dreams!

cheers,
linda

is anybody out there?
does anyone know where they are hiding "joy"?

some days it really feels like this in my heart and head...like i am all alone - it's just me and my dog and the drudgery of everyday feeling heavier and heavier - without any JOY.

if you are out there...and you have found where joy is hiding...please come get me, drop me a note, so i can come along for the ride!
linda

snowy boots and a colorful scarf...sometimes this is all you need to smile!