CREATIVEhew

My etsy shop is FINALLY live!

First of all, here is the link: http://www.etsy.com/shop/CREATIVEhew

my etsy shop - CREATIVEhew

As I said in a previous post, I was inspired to create a shop after I designed an 8×10 print for my sister-in-law’s Christmas gift. I have since created three additional verse prints, as well as a custom verse/quote option.  The digital designs are printed on 8×10 white card stock, and mailed in a stiff photo mailer.

I can also design custom invitations, printables, logos, business cards and more if requested.  I can even send you a jpg or PDF of the finished product and you can print it at your own leisure, either at home, at an online or local print shop, or even walmart or walgreens (depending on the type of project).

I hope to add more variety to my shop soon.  I would love some input – let me know if you have any ideas for my next design project.

This is the lasagna recipe I grew up with, with a few additional twists. As you can see, it makes a HUGE lasagna. Plan to either invite friends over to partake, or freeze for future meals (what I ended up doing since I didn’t realize how huge it would be!).

Turkey Sausage and Veggie Lasagna

click to zoom

I made an adorable stuffed bunny over a weekend not long ago for my niece’s first birthday.  It uses a winter scarf, which I already had, and some small add-ons like buttons and felt.  The entire project cost me a few dollars and is quite possibly the cutest project I have ever made.  She liked it too.  :)

The tutorial: http://www.larkcrafts.com/needlearts/free-project-friday-hoppy-weekend/

You’ll be able to download and print instructions, as well as the template at the link.  You will want to enlarge the template to whatever size you want your finished rabbit to be.  I didn’t enlarge it to 200% as they suggest, I wanted a slightly smaller finished product. I actually hand sewed the entire thing.  I’m sure a machine could do it much faster, but I liked the imperfect look the needle and thread gave.

first stages

creating a face

the cutest bunny ever

the birthday cutie

I made this easy side dish to go along with some pork loin on the grill a few nights ago.  Here is how I threw it together:

Cut up some veggies, place in foil.
Cut a few rosemary stalks and arrange around the veggies.
Drizzle with olive oil and sprinkle a tiny bit of salt over them.
Wrap foil around veggies to make a tight package.
Grill.
Enjoy!

ingredients

pre-grill

served

To kick off our Easter weekend, T and I headed up to the country house that has been in his family for ages.  It is a perfect way to unplug and live like his relatives did 60+ years ago.  I love the details in this quiet cottage.

spring blossoms

teacups

pocket watch

cast iron

My husband is currently obsessed with cast iron.  Coming soon, his version of my brother’s deep dish pizza recipe.  It’s incredible!

Life lately, as recorded by instagram:

Saturday Mornings

Ft. Pickens nature trail

Whitewater Falls, NC

Lunch at Hobnob in Brevard, NC

Reading with Grady Bug in Charlotte, NC

homemade lunch

Easter cupcakes by my talented mother-in-law

early birthday gift 1 of 5 from husband

early birthday dinner with the fam

adore. our beach.

Sorry there has been an extreme lack of posts lately.  I am working on several craft projects, but they all happen to be top-secret birthday gifts for my two nephews and niece…tutorial posts will be available in mid-May, after they have all received them.  T and I have also concocted several delicious recipes, but they need some tweaking before sharing.  What I CAN do, is share some of my favorite blogs.  Here are my top 5 (in no particular order):

A Beautiful Mess

A Beautiful Mess

This blog is written by cutie Elsie Larson.  Even her name is cute.  She writes about outfits, food, beauty, photography, decor, and also creates DIY projects.

Kendi Everyday

Kendi Everyday

Kendi posts creative outfit combinations nearly everyday (thus the name).  They are very inspiring when you are in a “I have no clue what to wear today!!” rut.

How About Orange

How About Orange

I love the color orange.  So does Jessica Jones, the blogger who created How About Orange.  Subjects she writes about include:  DIY tutorials, free downloads, time wasters, and other random things.  She also has designed some very funky fabrics that I would be happy to add to my collection.

Somewhere Splendid

Somewhere Splendid

Somewhere Splendid’s main focus is entertaining.  Party themes, decor, treats and more.  Beautiful pictures showcase parties that I can’t even imagine being invited to.  There are also a decent amount of posts about interesting objects, artwork, and recipes.

Eat Drink Chic

Eat Drink Chic

A very trendy girl named Amy Moss is the author of this blog, which centers around style, DIY, printables, entertaining, weddings, food, and more.  And she’s Australian.  Which is just cool.

That’s it for today, but please feel free to post a comment with any of your favorite blogs.  I’m always looking for more to add to my list.

I used to scrapbook all my photos when I was a teenager using boxes and boxes of crafting supplies.  Now, I don’t seem to have the patience for it.  My design driven mind would spend HOURS putting one page together just to create a decent looking layout.  Last year I decided to simplify things and bought a groupon for a shutterfly photo album.  It was the easiest way for me to get the simple design I wanted without hours of work.  All the process requires is uploading pictures, choosing a layout, and dragging over which pictures you want on the web version of your pages.  Choose the size and cover style of book, and voila!  A complete photo album will arrive on your doorstep a week or so later.

Here are the three books I’ve done so far:

Book #1

holiday memories

Book #1 contains pictures of the first year of T and I’s relationship and engagement photos.

Book #2 (I wish I had put a picture on the front!)

welcome to our wedding.

Book #2 is a compilation of our favorite wedding pictures.  We love looking back at them to see details we might have missed on that blur of a wonderful day.

Book #3

good food.

Sedona, Arizona

The layout style of book #3 is my favorite of them all.  I used a gift certificate my mother in law gave me for Mixbook.  I love the option given to bleed pictures lines over the edge, giving a seamless look.  This book contains pictures of our first year of marriage – from our honeymoon in Sedona, Arizona, up to our one year anniversary trip in Sonoma, California.  So many of our pictures are amazing landscape shots that deserve a little extra space on the page.

I’m so glad I finally took the time to get photo books made with these memories.  Otherwise, who knows how long they would have sat unused on my hard drive…