Atelier

My workspace is a disaster right now and I have been procrastinating the inevitable like a pro...

Not only does it need general tidying up, but it needs reorganization and maybe even some rearranging.

I have discovered that I am really good at out-growing space.

Let's call it a gift, shall we?

Anyway, I have been driving myself nuts and am thinking of doing a total studio overhaul...

I seem to be lacking the motivation at present, however.

I know one of these days though inspiration will strike and by the end of the day (or maybe week) it will be like a whole new room!

Organization is a difficult and ongoing task in a studio or workspace and just when I think the shelf or tote, or another shelf that I add will make all the difference, I realize that I just need more...

And don't even get me started on table space!

*Sigh.*

Do you have a work space? How do you keep it organized?

I like to say that I have "organized chaos". In reality it is just piles of stuff (papers mostly... Paper is an infuriating part of becoming an adult I have found, they just keep coming in the mail and everything you do requires more. 30 is paper-ridden, I have found, and I say enough!). I do so many different things, work in different mediums, and don't plan of changing that- only adding more when inspired- that it is hard to have the required space or to be creative enough to make it all work and be conveniently accessible.

I love working. I love learning. I always want these to go hand in hand.

So space...

...Oy vey!

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Aside from above rant, this past week was my 30th Birthday.

What a strange week it has been. I can't really explain it, but has just been strange.

Last night my mom threw me a surprise party, which was so sweet and fantastic!

I had no idea and was so confused and overwhelmed, it was pure magic!

(Thanks Mom!)

I am trying to take this time and age and really think about what I want, where I want things to go and use it to manifest. Manifest what I want, where I want to be, who I want to be around... I feel like I am a bit late on this, but then again I tend to feel a bit like a late bloomer with things in general anyway.

<<<<<>>>>>

Celebration and a S-A-L-E!!!

Happy Cinco De Mayo!!!

Today is my guy's Birthday and for this we watched him jump out of a plane (yesterday)!

Happy Birthday, Shabadoooo!

.....

Also, I am having a Mother's Day SALE!

I am offering 10% off everything in the shop using the coupon code LUVUMA.

It will run through the end of the day on Mother's Day.

Handmade is always a wonderful and thoughtful gift.

And don't forget that Etsy offers gift cards as well.

So, if you don't know what to get your awesome Mum,

this allows her to choose for herself!

ENJOY YOUR DAY!!!

Part 1: A week on the road starts in China... Maine

Wow! It has been a long week on the road.

But now we are home and super tired but we get a week and a half with the "kids" (a.k.a. dogs and bird) before we are off to the next engagement...

This past week was crazy busy, but overall lots of fun!

We left Tuesday for China, ME. where we were to meet friends and spend a couple of nights at a cabin on China Lake before our school performance the next day.

Of course, we left waaaay later than I wanted to and we also got lost trying to find the place (the first of many wrong turns), but we made it and were so happy we did!

This cabin (that slept 6) was great!

I wish I thought to take pictures of the inside because it was beautiful. All new with wood pannel, a loft and 2 bedrooms!

Andy making some tea.

...

It was our friend, Jenn's, birthday, so her sister came along also.

We got there and they wanted to catch the Celtics game at a sports barn a couple of towns over.

I am not a sports person, but they said there was pinball so I thought, "what the heck?!?" and we decided to join them.

Sadly, there was no pinball and the Celtics lost by the way, booo!

We didn't even finish watching the game, it was that bad...

And of course, we got lost on the way home, too!

...

The next day was our school performance which was a CRAZY mixup from the start...

Our friends we stayed in the cabin with were also performing there as well and it seemed like everyone had a different idea of what was going on.

It was a really busy day, but we all worked together and it all worked out!

That night we really appreciated being in that lovely cabin.

Birthday salad.

(left to right) Vanessa, Jenn Bliss (birthday girl) and her boyf. Jah-Sun (Jason)

Birthday family.

Jenn's Mom came to celebrate her birthday (and brought awesome clothes for us to go through and have, I love her!) and our friend, Jason brought the biggest marshmallows I have ever seen!

MMMM! S'mores!

Oh and sparklers! SOOO FUN!!!

(I am realizing now that I should really have taken more photos!)

...

We really wanted to stay another day and thought we might because the next day it was raining pretty hard and it would have been a nightmare to set up for the festival (which was an hour away) in the rain.

The rain stopped though and that was our sign to get on the move to our next destination.

And that story is for tomorrow!

...

How was your week?

Today is my Birthday and... Guess what?!?

Today is my Birthday, we will be having funfetti cake (mmmmm....) and.... Guess What?!?

What?

WHAT?

...

Well there are two things, actually...

1.

I am going Birthday Glow Bowling!

(I'm not quite sure what that exactly is, but is sounds absolutely marvelous!)

So it will be me and a BUNCH of buddies, hammin' it up on the lanes, in those FANTASTIC (and sanitary) bowling shoes...

WHOOPIEEEEEE!

...and 2.

I am taking the challenge of the utmost kind!

For the next 365 days, I am pledging to buy handmade or second hand.

There will be a few minor loop holes:

...I will not be buying any used under garments needed.

(mostly I think that would be icky)

...also, there may be a time where I need to buy some art supplies.

This will only be as necessary, however.

I will be trying my damndest to be creative with my creativity...

SO,

Any suggestions or advice in this field is greatly appreciated and accepted.

So off I go today to the vintage store down the road and across town to visit with a friend at her textile studio (Parker Brown Textiles in Rockport), where I have a few of my felted beauties on display...

Wish me luck!

(By the way, does anyone know how to get those confounded button/badges on to my blog? I can't figure it out, it seems so easy...)

back from holiday

So, after 4 days of snowboarding with my sister, we are home.

(and of course, I have a cold)

...

It was so nice to go with her since it has been many years since we have gone together.

The first day we went up the sky was amazing and the light was perfect.

We were supposed to go night skiing, but when we got there (thursday night) we found out it started friday. We were quite disappointed, but at least I got so good photos along the way!

...The Church in Sugar Hill...

~~~Setting Sun~~~

These were some of the sunset shots that I got while we were on our way to attempt night skiing on Thursday night...

These pictures are worth the wasted drive!

The light was amazing! I didn't have to do anything, it was hitting everything just right and the white mountains were yellow peach colored!

...

It was like a fantasy world and almost didn't seem real...

So instead we headed into town to get some food and stumbled across a couple of consignment shops!

Let the Thrifting begin!

...

These coats were crazy! We just had to play around...

We are still trying to figure out what kind of fur the coat Amory tried on was...

...

I had a wonderful score, I found a rockin' sweater in blue.

To be accompanied by a cute leaf pin for $2...

And this awesome silver bracelet for $5

(this is what was stamped out on the inside in 2 opposite places, I like the hidden hearts!)

...And lastly, this cool scarf, I love the bold pattern in black in white! And it is SO soft!

So we did actually get some skiing in.

And we did get to go night skiing, which neither of us have ever done and it was SO much fun!!!

We left a little early on sunday because the car we borrowed to go up with had headlight malfunctions and we only had high beams.

It worked out though because it ended up being really windy...

(I mean REALLY windy, it was nuts)

On either side of the mountain was a gigantic cloud swirling and looming devilishly above us.

It looked like a huge tsunami cloud and continued to just churn and churn and blow down the mountain...

....BRRRR....

(you can't see it in this picture, but to the left is completely black and the direction the swirl is coming from, kind incredible and scary)

And that is mostly it...

Maybe I will go again next year, it was fun to do for my birthday!

(good work out for my legs, too!)

Today, tomorrow and next week...

Check it out... I am attempting to "twitter"... Oh, yeah, and...

Next week is my Birthday... YAY!!!

...And for that, I am very excited to say, that starting tomorrow I am taking a break and going skiing/snowboarding with my sistah (thats how its said here in Glawstah, aka Gloucester), whom with which I have not been in oh, say 10 years or more. I am fully celebrating myself this year!

~~~

I always say that I want to, I want to do this for my birthday and I want to do that for my birthday, but it never comes to fruition (thanks to my indecisive personality flaw). So this year, Myself and a bunch of fancy free friends are going LASER BOWLING!!! I think it will be fun, I love bowling even though I am completely terrible, it should still be incredibly fun and I am totally excited!

...Anyhoo...

I am very excited to go and although I am admittedly feeling a bit anxious about being away from my crafting supplies for 4 days...

No worries though! I won't be going empty handed!

I will be fully equipped with crafty entertainment!

...

(not to mention my basket of fibers that are coming for the trip, they are all sprawled out across the floor in the other room at the moment and, so, did not make it into the photo line up)...

I am very excited though, I feel like this trip and the energy of the day of my birth are leading my motivation. And, after all is said and done, I am going to be getting myself organized

(a project which I have already started)

and start posting some new little creatures, some of which would be wonderful for

Valentine's Day

(which is coming faster than I can keep up with!)

~~~

In keeping with the goal of being organized, I will slowly be starting to move my current etsy shop (www.sweetsparrowstudio.etsy.com) to my newly acquired etsy shop:

...

www.littleowlarts.etsy.com

...

(see, organized, all names matching up, easier to remember and to find!)

I thought it was about time that everything was organized and easy to find, so everything relating to me and my artistry will also be connected to little owl arts.

~~~

So YAY! for birthdays and the energy of the Universe which seemingly spins in cycles and for the tides of the moon pulling me this way and that showing me which directions to go.

~~~

And so these two lovely, little owls are totally in love and are also a little SNEAK PEAK of the loving little hoots that will be dawned in my etsy shop next week! Let me know what you think!

Thanks for stopping by!