Neck Buddy

I seem to always have a sore neck. Solution? Neck Buddy! I stitched this out of an old t-shirt and filled it with wheat berries. Now, whenever my neck hurts, I just heat my little buddy up in the microwave for 2 min and voila, neck-ache be gone!

Jewelry made with love

I never have a shortage of jewelry, thanks to Karlee :-) These are earrings she made for me to wear as her maid-of-honor at her wedding in 2006.




More handmade jewelry from Karlee....


Beautiful hand felted bead necklace


Delicate gold hoop chain earrings


Red Jade earrings


Little Ladybug earrings


More earrings!

Marble Photo Magnets

You can never have too many fridge magnets, and that's certainly the case with these teeny 3/4" DIY photo magnets.

I initially made magnets using family photos printed on my ink jet printer. Big mistake because the glue blurred and basically ate my images. The instructions at Not Martha call for silicon sealer, which may be gentler than the Modge Podge I purchased in my absent-mindedness. Printing on laser jet could be another solution.

To satiate my need for immediate gratification, I scoured my stack of magazines (glossy survives the Modge Podge) and found tons of cool images. My faves are the factory drawings lifted from a car ad.

Gardening Apron

I made a garden apron using the pattern in You Grow Girl by Gayla Trail (http://www.yougrowgirl.com/). Super easy to make - the hardest part was probably just cutting my fabric straight. Minus the prep time, the apron took about 15 min on the sewing machine. In the future, I'd pick a sturdier 'outside' fabric and also make the tie a bit more heavy-duty - this one kept slipping down a bit when I had the clippers in the end pocket. I'd also switch up the pocket widths and placement, but overall, I'm pretty satisfied! Hope mom likes it! :-)

Usually the sight of mussels sets off hunger pangs, but this cluster living in a Laguna Beach tidepool inspired me to craft.

Now that I've found my muse(s), what will be the project? Good question. I haven't figured it out, but will be sure to post about it when I do. Ideas are welcome!

Creating Fake Miniature Photography

My friends John and Sarah took a helicopter tour of Los Angeles before they moved home to England last fall. John's photos of the cityscape were fabulous, especially the ones photoshopped to look like miniature models...like what you'd see at a miniature railway exhibit. It was an amazing and whimsical way to see a city that I love.

I recently installed GIMP, an open source graphics program that can do photo retouching similar to Photoshop. Go to CNET to read the review and download the program for free. Following Flickr user shygantic's instructions, I used GIMP to create my own fake minis of the Ponte Vecchio in Florence, the seaside town of Scarborough, England and Piccadilly Circus in London.

Gentlemen's Ties = Ladies' Classic Beads

I'm on the job market and needed an instant wardrobe update without having to spend money on new work clothes. Taking a cue from my husband's closet, I decided the best way to punch up my work wear basics and diversify my outfits was with simple, classic beaded necklaces. Stringing vintage glass and semi-precious (jet, agate, & mother of pearl) beads on silk and waxed cotton cord took no time at all and satisfied my need for an updated look while keeping to my budget.

Felted Bead Jewelry

On a recent visit to the LYS in my old neighborhood of Santa Monica, I came across a colorful mountain of wool roving and knew I had to create something. Lacking the knowledge nor equipment to spin yarn, I surfed the net to find Star Athena's Knitty article about felted beads.

As a knitter and jewelry maker, the idea of crafting beads out of wool seemed a natural, albeit quirky, fit.

So far, I've produced one necklace knotted with silk thread and am in the process of creating a couple more for the other crafty ladies in my family. I'm looking forward to branching out and experimenting with color, composition, and incorporating other materials into a final product.