Art Piece: Bird on a Branch

This bird and I are NOT the best of besties. But I am growing fond of him. I named him Louie.

I don't know why.  I just did.

Louie has been an idea in my head for a long time.  And I do like creating art pieces from time to time.  I like using mixed media but you can always find felt, fabric or maybe yarn on something I make that is geared toward the artistic. But this is more in the category of a craft fail for me. Louie just would not do what I wanted him to do.

But I decided to share it with you to give you can idea of some things that may go in my someday Etsy shop.  I have more sneak peeks to give you but I am discovering I am an AWFUL PERFECTIONIST. I am working on easing up a bit. Really, I am.

I really wanted to use a real stick but the hubs scared me when he told me it could break down over time.   Obviously, I wanted to make something I could sell.  So I decided to venture into paper mache (also a short life span...I think) where my knowledge is limited to childhood school projects designing a volcano with a balloon. But does this have me daunted?  NO!  I press on and continue in an area where I have ZERO knowledge.  But I was pleasantly surprised that the stick actually looked real after painting it.

Seriously, like a branch!

But...I did not account for stability.  And it broke.  Dang. So I glued it back together (it actually gave it a more realistic look...I celebrate the positives here) and decided to keep it for me as a pretty Spring mobile. The glue is holding it together but for how long is the question.  Call me a risk taker. But I will cry if it breaks again.
Louie is made of linen and I blanket stitched him closed and his eye is a pretty, little, green bead. The nest is actually made from cloth covered floral wire that I twisted into a nest.

 

I adore the leaves so much!  I fell in love with the fabric and the happy combination they make together.  Be warned:  You may see it again in the future. :) I sewed them together intentionally leaving the edges frayed for a shabbier look. I did the same when sewing the bird.  I stuffed Louie and the leaves for some dimension but they turned out larger then I hoped.

I would have had a tutorial if I had any idea what I was doing.  But I learned a lot from my mistakes, researched more about paper mache and I am excited to go back to the drawing board on this one.

The branch is strung with fishing line tied to a silver ring for hanging.  I actually tied it while I created the branch so the paper mache would make the fishing line part of the piece. It worked really well and seems invisible.

I wish this had turned out like I had envisioned but that is the fun of creating.  Sometimes you don't know what you will end up with but it is still worth it.

Wow. I just reread this post and it is incredibly boring. Sorry to post a snoozer. Hmmmm...how can I redeem it? Oh, here is something fun!!!!  The editor of the magazine I craft for went on a radio program, WTBN-570 AM radio last week and actually mentioned me with some incredibly nice words about me and this blog!  I was so overwhelmed and flattered.  And as I type these words I realize I never thanked her.  Must go do that right NOW. 

Hugs!

P.S.  Today is last day to enter the giveaway from Mama Jill Designs!

Textured Ball Garland

Love. Completely, totally, in love with this garland. I can, in fact, have this much of an emotional attachment to an inanimate object.  Oh yes.

This is a product of the genesis of me brainstorming ideas for my Etsy shop.  I am struggling with transitioning from being  a crafter who lives with the imperfections that come with handmade things and suddenly making them for someone to buy.  With like, money. It is terrifying to say the least.  But I have wanted to come up with something of my own design, totally me, and exemplifies my type of crafting.

 

This garland began with me experimenting with texture. I am drawn to anything with textures that evoke comfort, casual elegance, and depth. I love the juxtaposition of fine china on a distressed table or silver candlesticks on a rustic mantel. It is so peaceful and calming to my often preoccupied soul.  Looking at things like this and living with them is like a sanctuary of peace for me. So I set out to do just that with my one of my favorite things to make: Garlands.

I made each individual ball shape unique.  I experimented with linen, yarn, and satin creating beautiful rosette spirals, colorful stripes, and shabby textures. It is pure loveliness to me.

 

I wanted this garland to be classy and more grown up without being fussy.  Casual; not too fancy.

As you can see, the amount of photos I took depicts my intense infatuation with this garland.  I may need a garland intervention.

I  decided a rustic twine was the perfect complement to string them together and I am just so happy with the final result.  The garland measures 5 ft long and the balls can slide so you can make it as wide or close together as needed.

I sure hope you like this. I had so many of you in mind when I made it. You have all been more then fabulous spurring me on to do an Etsy shop and you helped me believe it is really possible.  Thank you so much for that. I was so nervous this project would not work out but it exceeded my expectations. Hope you enjoyed the first of many sneek peeks!  

P.S.  I have been manic crafting as I have been on deadline for the magazine; hence the crickets on this little blog.  But I got fun stuff to share coming up soon!

Giveaway: Mama Jill's Blog (CLOSED)

 

What a fabulous giveaway I have for you today!  

Meet Mama Jill, a crafty sweetie pie who makes wearing flowers way fun!  

(And how fun is her blog banner?  Just me. Being crafty. I love that line, don't you?) 

What you see is what you get and you get just lovely things from both her crafty genius and her beautiful Etsy shop, Mama Jill Designs.

And guess what else she did...she is pure sweetness...Jill chose Two Shades of Pink as her favorite blog of the week and surprised me with it!  Jill, I am so honored!  But back to Jill...


Check out a few of my favorite designs of hers...

Look at these cutie patootie earrings! I want these.

And they totally had me at pink. :)

I looooooooove this necklace! And now someone else owns it. :(

But I still love it. 

And she can't seem to keep her necklaces in her shop...they are just that awesome and sell quickly.

I am always drawn to a yummy mustard color so I instantly fell in love with this one too.

Oh this luscious Anthro inspired necklace. Check out her tutorial here.

This one is such a gorgeous shade of Tiffany blue.  It's so summery and sweet.

And I am a sucker for ruffles.

 Now comes the Giveaway Fun Part!

Below are the 4 headbands (great for both adults and kids) our Giveaway Winner will get to choose from.

Lucky you. :)

Rules For Entering this Giveaway: (CLOSED)

You will have 3 chances to win.

(leave a separate comment for each) that you:

1. Become a Follower of Mama Jill's Blog 

2. Leave a comment here of what goody you liked best.

3. Like Mama Jill on FB.

4. Buy me something pretty. :) OK. Just kidding.

 Good Luck! (CLOSED)

I want to give each of you the biggest hug EVER!

 

You have no idea what you all have done to encourage me and motivate me to get going with my shop!

And guess what?  

I was SHOCKED that you all said to keep my name!  

But after reading all your comments I realized...

OF COURSE I SHOULD KEEP IT!

It means so much to me and has so much meaning!

You all are brilliant and I just love you and appreciate you from the bottom of my heart.

What's in an Etsy Shop Name?

I have been agonizing over what to call my future Etsy shop with no product or existence as of yet. 

Baby steps. :)

I am totally inspired by all of these amazing shops and I want one that will exemplify me, my tastes, and my style of crafting. It became hard to narrow down.  And I am pretty all or nothing in every facet of my thinking so I either have an empty shop or want 50 items in it RIGHT AWAY.  

So not practical.

But to give you an idea of what I will be putting in my shop so you can help me...

I love working with felt, fabric, yarn, and paper type crafts.  My hope is to have pretty and useful items for decor, parties, and little accessories like book marks, handmade cards, and even...gulp...canvas artwork for kids rooms.

(so terrified that I deleted the last line like 6 times)

But I have bolstered up my courage and put it out there. Whew.

I have been dragging my feet (and probably will for weeks) because I am so nervous about this.

Are you sick of me telling you my pipe dream of an Etsy Shop every few months?

Forgive me? Thanks.

 Bottom line...

I am OVERWHELMED and I need YOUR advice!!!!

I think I have finally come up with a name I like.  I am not sure if I just want to keep two shades of pink so I am asking your opinion about the other name I have selected. At first I thought of being cutesy with a name like Felty & Fabs but that says absolutely nothing to someone who has no idea what I design or make.

So do I...

...keep the blog name Two Shades of Pink? Or...

 Go with Pinked & Stitched?

Which one do you like best and WHY?

(just curious)

Remember...your girl is pretty vulnerable putting herself out there and I need your awesome input! 

Love you all sweet friends!

XOXOXO

Behavior Chart Freebies

Happy Friday Friends!

You know, I have been doing a lot of introspective thinking regarding my parenting.  I have rained down hard judgment on myself as a mom.  But you will be happy to know that I have come to the conclusion that I don't have all the answers, there is no ONE right way to do things, and my best is the best for my girls. 

And I have to tell you that I have realized little changes make BIG IMPACT. Here are the changes I have made.  Not many since I can't do it all. :)

1.  Do, act, say everything with love. It seems kind of sappy but I have noticed that when I focus on doing everything with love towards my children...I mean, really engage my mind and my choices...I actually convey loving kindness.  I really want my children to know and see that I love them.  Not just hear the words.

2.  Humbly receive wisdom from seasoned mothers.  I have always been afraid to bother people or bore them with my mothering woes.  Now I just ask everyone questions and you know what?  People talk.  People understand with surprising compassion.  And I have found I am not alone with so many things.

3.  Hold to standards that last a lifetime.  I have gotten so slack with my mothering because I wanted peace more than I wanted every moment to be a teaching moment.  And I heard this once and never forgot it.  You either pay now or pay later with that kind of thinking.  My children are a legacy and a heritage. My letting things go says so many bad habits are OK. So I am consciously making an effort to stay consistent.

4. Letting things go.  I am also learning that not every misdeed or negative talk will lead to a lifetime in the pokey or worse...the frightening prospect of teenage deviance. I make mountains out of every molehill and I am trying to lighten up.  It makes me enjoy my kids, offer mercy and grace, and I find I laugh more.

5.  Praise goes a crazy long way to empower my kids. The one thing I did not notice was how my weariness began making everything be negative.  I zeroed in on all the bad things my kids do and then  stopped praising for the good things.  So I started my BEHAVIOR CHARTS again.  These are fun during potty time or when teaching your kids values but when things go bad...well.  Call me a mean ol' mommy but I don't feel much like giving a sticker after a 30 minute scream fest. But my kids need to feel proud of themselves.

So I decided to make 2 charts.  One to encourage my kids while offering a lot of grace and one to remind them that though they are given adequate chances...there will be consequences for repeated issues.

 (Click image to download)

The first chart here is the 3 strikes chart.  I was tending to be too harsh and going right to a consequence without allowing room for improvement.  What an amazing change  I saw with this!  At Cati's school, they use the stoplight method where they all start on green but can go to yellow and then the dreaded RED.  I did not want to simulate the same thing as school since my home is different so I decided to do 3 strikes and then a consequence type of chart. 

I just put an X for each strike and then wrote down the consequence.  That way, when we do the star chart (below) she will know why a star may not have have been earned at some point of the day.

 (Click image to download)

This chart was initially going to be a sticker chart but I decided to put both of these into a page protector (to further reveal the geek I am) so that I could use a dry erase marker and not use up paper over and over. Below are ones I made for myself (they are a little different then the ones you can download).

 It works great!  

I use a different color star for each child and just go down the row.  They have a chance to earn stars 4 times a day.  Morning, afternoon, and evening times with an EXTRA opportunity at the end of the day.  Kind of like one more chance to improve or for going above and beyond what is expected.

You are able to download these for personal use if you wish...cuz I love ya!  I made them kind of light and fun because I wanted this to be an encouragement and an empowering thing for my girls. I figure if I hang up pieces of paper all over my wall I can make it somewhat aesthetically pleasing. And not too loud looking.

Do any of you have some great teaching methods in your home to help encourage and modify behavior?  

I would love to hear about them!!

OH NO!

If I did not love the Lord so much I would seriously be cussing up a storm.

All I wanted to do was change the width of my blog and delete my background so I could make my photos bigger.

I ended up DELETING EVERY CUSTOMIZATION on my blog!!!!!

GRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRR! You know how?  By being the savvy blog girl that I am and clicking...you ready?

Delete all customizations.

It was like a malevolent force drew me like a moth to a flame to make me lose my mind on this fine Thursday morning.

You might think these HTML code thingamabobs come easy to me but I am sooooo the girl doing this for 3 hours at my computer until I can do it right.  So now I have to start all over but whatever.

But my words are remaining holy, people.  Promise. :)