om

Forgive me readers, but I have been busy. It's been a week since my last yoga class. My back is a little rickety & my mind a little full so I used some peaceful down time tonight to search Etsy for things to make me feel grounded.

According to my best on-line friend, Wikipedia, "Om, often Aum, is a sacred syllable of Hinduism, Buddhism, and Jainism. Om is reputed to be the resonant vibrational tone of the non-dualistic universe as a whole. In Buddhism, Om corresponds to the crown chakra and white light."

Now, I'm not a religious person (slight understatement), but chanting "om" for me is just plain healing. You don't even have to chant it really. Just say it slowly out loud. Peaceful, right? Now if you're feeling ambitious try chanting it a few times. For the full effect, make your voice vibrate the room (but don't wake the kids!).

Feeling invigorated & a little more powerful? Cool...keep it up! Then enjoy these links....
Namaste.

1. soldered pendant
2. filigree medallian
3. namaste necklace
4. ceramic mug
5. meditation bowl
6. beach stone
7. breathe bracelet
8. good vibrations ring
9. blue topaz necklace

mad never looked so cute

Meet Vivian. Five year old beach bum, headband addict & huge fan of zuzu girl handmade. I just fell in love with this picture and had to share it with you. Cheer up, Viv. We'll get you some more headbands soon!

happy birthday macy!

Do you remember the birthday party for Macy that I had just finished working on back here? Well, now it's time that you met Macy. Isn't she just adorable? Not mine...but oh so adorable!

We are thrilled that we were able to help design the decorations for Macy's special day and thankful for these fabulous photographs of the little princess with her *birthday blooms* that mom was willing to share with us all. Thanks, Macy & Mommy. Happy 1st Birthday and we hope to see you next year!

look ma! I cleaned my room...

and I even hung a shelf! (with only two extra screw holes!)


the kids go back to school this week & the desk is clear so no excuses!


of course Lucy was there for moral support...

Thought I'd share some of my space with you on this steaming California Saturday. It's truly too hot to go outside so Lucy and I spent the morning tidying up. It's really such a happy space...now only if it were a little bit bigger...

flickr friday

Woo-hoo! It's flickr friday on Paper Cake Finds and guess who's been featured? Um, yeah. That would be zuzu girl handmade and our lovely new heavenly halo. You can find all the sweet shops shown below on Paper Cakes blog. And, if you haven't already done so, come visit zuzu girl on Flickr for more of our favorite photos!

enjoy the ride

This should probably have been a wordless wednesday post cause it's pretty darn explanatory. But it's thursday. And I have to give credit to the fabulous Etsy shop that sold me this 8x10 print tonight. It's called studio mela, it's super sweet & super successful. You can also find Shelli on facebook where she offers lovely little deals to her followers. Now go. And enjoy your moment...

flower fairy lights

Going along with our reduce, recycle and reuse theme from last night, check this out! These lovely little fairy lights are courtesy of esprit cabane and yes, they are made with egg cartons, simple LED lights, a scissor & a hole punch. How sweet is that?

reduce, reuse, recycle

1. I loved the color & styling of this orange enamel tea kettle so much that you will now have to view it in the sold section at Modish Vintage
2. This electric blue metal fan is so hot it's hard to believe it's made to cool
3. How could a piggy possibly be this cute? I just adore the sweet blue cheeks
4. Adoring this unique combination of vintage letters on a plump vase...and, of course, the savvy photograph doesn't hurt
5. Exactly what would you drink from these fabulous melamine tumblers? I'm thinking it's the perfect 3pm diet coke on ice cup. But just which color would I use?
6. Seriously. This pyrex coffee carafe set is way cool. I honestly don't think I'd ever actually use it but who cares? It's that cool.
7. Can you tell I like orange? Now I just need someone who wants to cook for me in this stylish orange pan.
8. Apparently this divided relish tray is a rare piece in a popular collection. To be honest with you, I could care less. I just thought the color was absolutely lovely.

shiny little things

Not mine. Fabulous, but not mine. Remember the talented Lori Marie from *pretty little things* that I talk about over and over again? Well, she's done it again. This time it's called *shiny little things* and it just opened today. I'm loving her new products as well as the beautiful way she photographs them. I mean really, is that an upside down cupcake wrapper? Told you. Fabulous. You can be sure you'll find a steady stream of these lovely little shiny things in my favorites on Etsy...

simply charming

Just in case you've been dying to see what I did with the goodies that arrived yesterday (um, yeah, scroll down four lines in case you haven't been keeping up), here's a lovely little collage for you. I listed three sweet pendants in our shop today...*oh deer me!*, *i heart you* & *cupcake cutie*. We love the addition of bling to our pretty little shop...and we hope you do too!

i've got mail!

Ooh, lah, lah was I excited when the mailman arrived today. Look what he brought me! A fabulous vintage silver plated tray from the moxie sisters and four bags full of pretty little things from delish beads. Bet you can't wait to see what I come up with this weekend. I can't either! Expect some dangling goodness...possibly on silver beaded chains...

orange crush

Did you know that I adore orange?
Did you know that I adore handbags?
Did you know that the perfect orange handbag gets it's own blog post at zuzu girl handmade? Now you do!

This orange petal bag is courtesy of a new company based in South Florida called Zen 3. It was started by a mother/daughter team out of one of their homes. While on vacation last week I spotted a friend carrying a pale yellow version of my bag which she'd picked up at a handbag party. She was on the phone within minutes ordering me one. But in orange, of course.

In my humble opinion however, the website does little to draw you in and the colors are so far off that I probably never would have ordered had I not seen the styling up close and personal. So I guess you just have to trust me, this bag deserves it's own blog post...and a spot on my arm.

miss mosh

1.ruffle me up 2.i heart you 3.summer's bounty 4.lemon cream

I want to sew again, I really do. If only I had the time or energy to unpack the brand new sewing machine I purchased five months ago that is still sitting in the garage. So sad. Maybe when the kids go back to school. Maybe. But until that time I will revel in the handmade sewn goodness of others. Like these fabulously feminine throw pillows from MissMosh. I want them all. Seriously. Maybe I could find a way to redecorate my bedroom to accommodate them. With the time I should be spending unpacking the sewing machine, of course.

friday favorites

Even the most relaxing of vacations couldn't keep me away from my Etsy favs for too long. I hope you adore these Friday finds as much as I do...

1.vintage ruler 2.little birdie locket 3.market spice candle 4.jade filigree ring 5. kitchen sink journal 6.vintage bronze ring 7.milk glass 8.flower gift toppers 9.wool placemat

glam!

It's Friday night. Time for a little shameless self-promotion!
Introducing our new glam party dress wall art collection available now in our Etsy shop. I just adore this little dress design (can you tell?) and I'm absolutely loving the glitter floral paper on the yellow canvas. Really, it's fabulous. I can't wait to dream up what's next...
Which one is your favorite?

modern handmade child

I know I told you it was coming...and then I shared a sneak preview...but now...it's HERE!

From the website itself, "Modern Handmade Child is a seasonal online publication intertwining the skills and values of days gone by with the trends and technologies of today. Our mission is to provide a fun and valuable resource helping families to embrace the handmade way of life."

Take a peek. And be sure not to skip the article beginning on page 16. (no, I won't tell you why, go see for yourself!)

If you love the magazine, which you will, you can follow the handmade adventures through twitter & facebook as well. It's a handmade party!

upcycled

Being a photography addict pretty much all of my life, I was a pretty big fan of picture frames in the early 90's. And, being one that has a hard time saying goodbye to anything, I stumbled upon a basket full of ornate metal frames while preparing for our garage sale last weekend. Now I did myself a disservice by not taking "before" shots but close your eyes and envision these in silver metal. Yikes is right!

I am absolutely loving them in their newly upcycled form. (As is Zuzu. She has already staked claim to the one on the right. Wonder where she got her good taste? tee-hee...)

It's super easy to do. Just a foam paintbrush & 1-2 coats of a brightly colored acrylic paint. I suppose you could spray paint them too but I have yet to find colors I like in a can. If you happen have a good supplier...do share!

top ten list

Yippee! We're so excited that zuzu girl's two little lovebirds were featured in Timothy Adam's top ten list on Twitter this morning. You'll be able to see it here next week. Thanks Timothy!

lemon drop keepsakes

Any one recognize that darling little face? Of course! That's Zuzu, courtesy of my friend, and very talented mama, at Lemon Drop Studio. All you do is send her a portrait photograph of your child (not quite as easy as it sounds actually getting this shot) and then simply choose your colors (also not quite as easy as it sounds because she has a palette of 30 fab colors...see below) and she will provide you with a custom silhouette for your framing pleasure. Can you imagine a better grandparent gift? I think not. Order now...beat the holiday rush!