you & me watercolor valentine print in the shop!

yup, it's time to start thinking about valentines. don't be a scrooge. i love it.  my ideal valentines is a good homemade meal (that we make together) a rented movie and a dessert that we don't typically have very often (cremem brule.. a fruit tarte?) no dressing up! pajamas required. 

in the spirit of the holiday, i made these geometric watercolor prints.... with a simple you & me. nothing fancy. adds a nice little pop of pink to your art wall that you're working on, yes? prints can be purchased in my etsy shop!

 

it's september - i'm outta here. (+ auggie re-cap)

ah. we're at the beach. on plane. climbing a volcano. catching a wave.... living la pura vida. (ok, maybe in 12 hours we'll be there).

thrilled that i'll be spending the first part of september in costa rica.. the middle part of september in the hill country celebrating one of my best friend's bachelorette and bringing in cooler weather as october nears. bring it on! so ready for fall. and ready to run in some cooler weather. (did i mention i signed myself up for a half-marathon?!)

here's what you missed in august:
a very pathetic july re-cap
new couples shower games at charm & fig - good for baby shower or weddings
some custom work & moving announcements at charm & fig
my countdown to costa rica - etsy treasury and a wipe out!
taking time to make some freaking lemonade.
neon & neutral moleskine journals. made with lots o' love & hand-carved stamps.
a very one-of-a-kind shower invite: tex-brit baby!!

some fun instagram photos along the way... (are you following me yet?)

a view of buffalo bayou park from my mothers -- looks like a 1950's architect's rendering of a model park.

working on a FUN project. will reveal the full thing in late september.

jon & i's attempt to recycle some wine glasses.

goodies from the pinpoint method. check 'em out.

mas projects. neon & neutral.

favorite donut. shipley's strawberry sprinkles. donuts are better than muffins in every way. (taste, calories, joy, etc.)

a good running day for me.. 5 miles.

sprinkles cupcakes - houston, texas.

picking out postcards from penguin books collection.

bracelets made from recycled flip-flops. these colors make me happy!

jazzed up my already peeling mint manicure with some color. just in time for costa rica.

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pink & green watercolor sip 'n' see invite

here's some girly sip 'n' see invites i made for a friend, who was throwing a party for her sister-in-law and her new baby niece. we wanted them to match the baby's room, which i was told was all-out pink and green floral.

after visiting the japanese gardens in san antonio last march,  i was inspired to use watercolor to paint these pink and green water color invites.

real watercolor textures with some computer manipulation....the best of both worlds!

 

pastel brights & mother's day

happy mother's day to all the mommies out there! special shout out to all the new moms :) 

here's a photos of us the day before our wedding.. we were turnin' it up to match the azaleas.

had to share some gift wrappings.. my mom LOVES to kick back and relax by spending her free time by the pool & on cruises when time permits. her gift was a little water-related so i made her a card to match. 

it was ART CAR weekend in houston. we've got the oldest, largest art car parade in the world and the enthusiasm behind this event is what makes it so special... many people use their primary vehicle and keep it 'arted-up' year-round. this beach scene was installed on top of a hawaiian-themed car i saw on my way to lunch on friday. loved all the colors!

and i was feeling in the mood for some bright pastels, so i used some tangerine, periwinkle & mint to fancy up my phalanges. i read somewhere that you suggested to paint on scotch tape, cut up the dry tape and use them as nail stickers. then a top coat to seal it down. worked like a charm.

we're off to brunch with my mama right now... i've got to satisfy my lox & bagel craving i've been having all week!!

 

two (neon) pink projects

been inspired by neon pink big time. saw these awesome neon pansies over the weekend... (sidenote: i want a garden so badly. we had chardonnay mojitos with fresh mint at tiny boxwood's and that delicious cocktail really put my garden envy in overdrive).

i tried to transform these worn out flats into something a little more fun. i taped them off, painted them with neon acrylic paint, then sealed them with mod podge. i'm sure they will crack and last less than 10 wears, but i was planning on throwing them away anyway.

 here's the finished product.. and i swear i didn't turn up the saturation on the color, they are very bright.

next up -- my friend andie sent me a project she found on a wedding website. all it was was wrapping jars with rope and tacky glue. we picked neon pink and white. really liked they way they turned out.  

the wider jars will probably be used for citronella candles on summer nights and the bottles will be hold wildflowers.

now i'm infected with neon stripes. everything i see, i'm picturing a neon stripe on it...your dog? stripe. that wooden tray that holds my magazines? stripppppe. baskets, electronics, chairs...stripe. stripe. stripe.

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people who make things: stephanie toppin

i met stephanie this year when the downtown district teamed up with spacetaker to activate storefront windows in houston's historic district with local art. the installation was provided by stephanie toppin - and when she handed me her business card i got pretty excited and immediately thought we could be pals. (learn more about the window project here).

after googling (ahem, researching) her work, i found tons of colorful work that ranges from pretty paintings to plush crocheted sculptures and eclectic baked goods. plus, she’s a total catch when it comes to following her on pinterest. so much eye candy.

i wanted to learn more about her work, and lucky for me, she agreed to be interviewed in my first installment of 'people who make things.'

orange forever

traffic was horrific yesterday, so i headed to the nearest nail salon and enjoyed getting lacquered up in OPI in hot & spicy.

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take two - valentine's inspired nails

can't get enough of the love dovey season. i'm embracing the all the pink that comes my way this year. it's seems to be the one color that is dotting my pinterest boards the most.

for this 'look' i went with really pale pink for all my nails except one - my ring finger (awwwww) on which i used rose gold glitter.

glitter can be such a PAIN to remove. so i love the trend of choosing one finger to give the sparkle treatment. lazy beauty tips at its best.

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happy february ( + january re-cap)

it's feb, you guys. that means celebrating my husband's birthday, my mother and father's birthday and valentine's day. which means LOTS of cards to make. I don't mind.

gone are the days where we decorated a shoe box to receive valentine's from our class mates, but i think it's still a fun tradition to keep among close friends & family.

i've been working on my valentine's this week. if you follow me on instagram, you may have seen a little peek of what i've been working on. i'll share it in due time.

for now, ill leave you with my purple ( + tiny orange heart) nails to brighten up these winter days.



january re-cap
vintage christmas glass to remind me of my grandmother
vintage light-up letters
pretty watercolor banner stationery
serious loot from the cream event in austin
sharing my love for nautical & neon
we made this: industrial coffee table with storage
rah rah! a glimpse of the hypa gala
maui-inspired stationery

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rah rah rah! just a glimpse from the HYPA gala...

last saturday we went to the houston young people for the arts i ♥ HYPA homecoming gala - and holy cow it was so. much. fun. big props to hypa founder heather pray for putting together such an awesome event. everyone was encouraged to dress as a high school stereotype and people really showed up with fun costumes.

i was in charge of decor so we really hit it hard with the homecoming theme, a nod to theatre under the stars' current show bring it: on the musical [now playing at hobby center!].

here are the photos from monsterbooth:






a few photos from my iphone - i wore a gold taffeta dress (borrowed from brandi - thanks!) and jon wore his some grungy clothes from his band days...



there were perforamnces from westsie high school marching band - so much energy.




a few more decor shots...



my big project, building these super-sparkly light up letters. loved how they turned out.


[HYPA letter photo by jordan graber]

i urge everyone who has any interest in the arts to join hypa. it's mission is to promote education of the visual and performing arts; advance cultural awareness of current events in the houston art scene, particularly among young people.

and the best part? it's only $20 a year to join. do it.

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vintage light-up letters

sneak peek of something i've been working on:



to see the full enchilada, purchase tickets to the HYPA Gala supporting houston's vibrant art scene. learn more about the event here.

stay tuned, i'll write a tutorial about how you can make some of these fancy letters for your home decor or next festive event.

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