Engagement Party Banner

Wedding planning has been going quite well. I still manage to stress out about it, but am trying to stay level-headed. We are 8 months away and so far we have: Our Venue, so we also have our Caterer, Bar and Cake included. I have a good friend already doing my make up, and another good friend on as my Day of Coordinator. I also found my dress, which was unexpected and very exciting!  It was the first day shopping, with a Bridesmaid and my mom, at the Brides Against Breast Cancer event.  They tour around the country taking donations from Brides and Bridal Boutiques. I had thought it would be fun, low pressure, and a good cause, so we went, and I found it!  It was a brand new, custom Christina Wu! Completely perfect, we got a great deal and $.78/$1 goes to all forms of cancer, research and support for patents.  It was so much fun and I am so proud I found my Dress there! I also already ordered my Save the Dates! Those should arrive any day.

Didn't mean for this whole blog to be self congratulatory, I am honestly surprised I am so far ahead of the game. I am filming all of September, so it's a huge relief to have most of those tasks checked off. We are behind on a few things, DJ/Band research, we have a registry but it's pretty wimpy and we have more places we want to register. Haven't selected our Honeymoon location, which we need to do soon, and we know who we want to officiate, but haven't asked, for no real reason.  This week the big task is room blocking, lots of people are wanting to make their reservations, and we are talking with the hotel, I just have to estimate the room number.
Then we can get on to fun things, like centerpieces, flowers and dresses. I am looking forward to detail picking!

We had an Engagement party, which was so much fun! If you are or get engaged and don't know if you should have one, I say do it! We were on the fence and some family friends offered to host, so we took them up on it. It really gave us incentive to pick a venue and a date, ask our wedding party, and register for at least a few things. I credit that with us being in such good shape scheduling wise, it's certainly not my expertise at procrastination. It was also great for starting a guest list (we had about 70ppl, invited 100)as well as great practice for planning a party, menu, decorations, desserts and learning what you can and can't do yourself. It also gave my an idea of how fast the Wedding is going to fly by. I talked to lots of people, but not everyone, and I don't really feel like I talked to anyone! I did make a fun banner and some cool cigar boxes for our gift table for Cards etc. Which took up more time that was probably necessary, but was lots of fun!

Merci!

More Chalkboards

Done a few more boards.  I am pretty comfortable with these fonts, looking at perfecting more fonts, and amping up my ability to create graphic designs with words. My main focus is to make the most important information, the easiest to read, and create a flow for the viewer.

Updated the Chaya Events board, I left the main top stuff the same and redid the rest for their new events. Pardon the location I was working in the storage room during business hours.

I also had lots of fun making the welcome sign for Vanessa and John's 4th of July Wedding!

I have been getting more serious about event boards and chalk boards.  I did them here and there for the store and for Gus's BBQ when I hosted there, and always really liked it and got great responses.  An opportunity came up for me to do some regularly, and I am really enjoying it.  I decided I should start to compile some samples here for people to check out.  So here we are. The first one is a mirror board with chalk pens, and the second is actual chalk, which I think I rather prefer

 And here are both of them.

Social Media Etiquette/Demand MORE of Your Status Update

It struck me while engaging in debates on Facebook about why people insist on spoiling a huge TV event (like a Game of Thrones season finale, or any episode for that matter) Personally I think there is something subconscious at work, and if you are someone who does that regularly, I think you should do some sincere soul searching as to why you want to ruin that for others who might be at work, or out of town and had to DVR it and can't watch it. Or if your intent isn't to ruin it, then why do you knowingly do so? To preface, I live on the West Coast but I get the East Coast feed from Direct TV.  So while I don't have that problem, a lot of West Coasters get inadvertently screwed by East Coasters who get the feed first.  Most of us have learned to avoid the internet, but sometimes it's hard, you forget, or as I said, you are on a business trip, or at a wedding and can't watch it but are still on social media for work/posting wedding updates.  Not a crime.

So, we got into a cause and effect debate.  Is the spoiler poster responsible for the negative reaction of the friend to their innocuous post, intended to engage in a discussion about the spoiled event with others who already watched, if the friend happens on social media before watching the event?  ie: Jill watches Walking Dead and makes a blatant spoiler post to get a conversation going with friends.  Eugene is posting some photos of the wedding he is at, and sees Jill's spoilers.  He's recording Walking Dead at Home because his buddy asked him to be best man.  Who's fault is it?  Both in my opinion.  Woops Eugene, you should've known better, and dang it Jill, did you have to say something as obvious as "No, not Dale!! He was my favorite character!! Damn you Walking Dead!"  I say they are both responsible.  It's not all Eugene or Jill's fault.

One might say Jill is entirely blameless, and many have, but here is where I think those people are wrong.  Jill has done this several times on her page and people get really mad every time, and have asked her to not do that.  So, Jill by now is knowingly engaging in behavior she knows pisses people off, not just on her page but everyone she knows who has posted a spoiler has made a hand-full of people mad. 1x fine but more than once and Jill has to have some responsibility here.

I think we have reached a time for establishing some Social Media Etiquette.

~Those who can't watch a show or event when it is on, must accept the consequences of not avoiding social media from 2 hours before the event begins (at least) until they are caught up.  Surf at your own risk.
~Likewise those wishing to engage in conversations about big events should seek out less disruptive ways to do so, or if they insist on doing it on Social Media then find a way to make it more vague.  "I am heartbroken!" perhaps a better option to literally calling out Dale as the one who died, or even that anyone dies at all. " I did not see that coming!  Not sure I will even want to watch this show anymore now" I think also acceptable.
I have tons of friends who can have entire discussions, carefully worded to not ruin it for everyone else.  I actually think that is more fun, like a neat secret code talk. It's certainly more creative than, "Why did they kill JR!!!?"  let's be honest, that is just a boring post, put some effort in.
(Please note, I used old spoilers from shows nobody cares about anymore because it's amusing, and doesn't exclude people who don't know what happened on the season finale of Game of Thrones last night!  I mean seriously, if my above spoilers ruined something for you then this article is a waste of your time)

I get wanting to discuss shows with people, and there are tons of forums that might have better discussions, but private FB groups are an option, or post "PM me if you watched Game of Thrones!"  Personally I usually watch shows like that with other people for just that reason, so we can process our grief, make speculations. A lot of the time I, cautiously, go on forums of people caught up on the books, read theories and speculations.

I just think we need to all accept responsibility for our own negligence in getting things spoiled and for spoiling them.  Perfect example, anyone who has read the books could have spoiled everything for everyone long ago.  They didn't, hats off to them, that is classy in my opinion.  Because they understand a story must be experienced in sequence, they respect that.

(obviously, I think one side has more responsibility than another, but I also see that the other side has total validity and should be respected, feel free to comment and engage in this discussion, but please do so in the spirit of debate and conversation not with the intent to get anyone to abandon their opinion and declare you "right" AND feel free to come up with more Unspoken/maybe need to be spoken Etiquette for Social Media.  I think we really need some)

Ridiculously Overdue Update

Got Engaged last month!  So now I decided I will use this to share what I learn on my journey to planning this thing, which I really have no idea how to do.  
Right now I am in the midst of finding a location.  Everyone wants to know a date, and am I looking for a dress but I have discovered your hands are really tied until you have a venue.  Also, many of the checklists I find, and planning guides tell you to: first - set a date, second - find a venue, then third - make a guest list!  Anyone else find that backwards?  I really can only guess at the size of the guest list, and what kind of venue(s) I need once I know how many people I plan to invite, and I can't set a date until I find said venue and book what they have available.  So, that is where I am at.  I just thought I would put that advice out in the world.  Obviously you want to have a ballpark idea of a time of year/preferred dates if you have specific ones you want, but really you can't set one without knowing your venue will be available.
Anyway, all of that aside, I am very excited and we have some great ideas, many of which will probably be DIY, so I will be brag posting as that stuff gets done, yay!
Thanks for reading.

"Love give me strength, and strength shall help afford."

"They are but beggars that can count their worth

For my true love has grown to such excess

I cannot sum up sum of half my wealth."

                               ~Juliet

This last weekend I had the honor of playing Juliet.  I stepped in for 2 nights with Shakespeare by the Sea for their Juliet, who is wonderful, and had a wedding to go to those nights. (they have 1 more week, check them out if you can, it's a great group!)  I found out about the role from a friend from theater school, who referred me, only to discover I knew 2 people involved in this production, from various other theater jobs I've done.  Very serendipitous!

I have avoided working on Juliet, for years, possibly all of the time I have worked on Shakespeare which would be about 16 years, maybe more.  When I did work on it in class, I would choose lighter stuff, staying away from the "Potion Meltdown" monologue and the overdone "Gallop apace..." speech.  She intimidated the crap out of me!  Yet I knew that the role is dead center of my wheel house as an actress.  When this opportunity arose, I grabbed it, going headlong into fears, but also knowing that I feel I have the tools now to address this role in a way that would keep me from having any end result ideas of the character, and possibly knowing I have the safety net of stepping in for someone else who is already playing it.  If I do what she does I won't be off track.  It also helped that the director, and actress playing Juliet had the same idea of the character, as I do.  She's not a worried, sighing, waifish victim.  She's clever, and pragmatic with a delightful sense of humor and irony.  He doesn't fall in love with just a pretty face or an icon, they are whole, people, adorable and fun people.

I also had the good fortune to work on one of the monologues with Alfred Molina, who occasionally does a Shakespeare intensive with the New American Theatre, where I am a member.  This certainly gave me incredible insight to the character, and how to approach the text in general.  Beside that, I have a helpful and insightful boyfriend who helped me run lines, in fact I think he just liked reading Lord Capulet, Friar Lawrence and Romeo... and the Nurse.  But he also liked keeping me from having "I don't know my lines and never will" meltdowns like I had on our trip to Chicago when I would work on it, any time we were traveling by plane or train.  Thanks to all of this, the support and help of the director and the cast, I felt I had it, and would be fine.

Now I have never really been horribly nervous, or had a bout of stage fright, knock on wood- but Friday I woke up with total nausea and racing heart, which only served to make me more nervous.  I was much better by show time, and other than juxtaposing some things and leaving out a couple chunks of lines, I did great.  By Saturday I was calm, what could go wrong had, and I fixed all my mistakes from the night before, I did bite it pretty good going up some steps in the Friar/Paris scene, which made it hard not to laugh, and hard to concentrate for the whole scene, but anyone would've fallen, and some others did I guess...
All of this is not to fish for more compliments, you all have been generous with those, but to express the surprising journey I went on. I went from dreading every playing her, yet wanting to, and I had a great time, and now I want to play her again and again, the way men want to play Hamlet and Macbeth.  And I think that is exciting.  If I had a bucket list, "Play Juliet at least once while I can" would've been on  it.  I am so grateful for the opportunity, to work with such delightful actors, and for all the amazing support from family and friends who came out those 2 nights to see me!  It was all a very moving experience.

"My Bounty is as boundless as the sea
My Love as deep.  The more I give to thee
The more I have, for both are infinite."
                     ~Juliet

Playing in the Dirt: Part 7 Winter Farming

So no, I haven't given up on the gardens!  They took a beating in the wind, but nature finds a way.  These are from the Boy's garden, the veggies at Mom's are doing well, we have some starter plants too so I will do that update all at once.  So here's the progress on the boy's garden.  The Tomatoes (not pictured) are still going crazy, I seemed to have solved the grasshopper issue, I think, with some insect soap.  I'm still having trouble getting any Artichoke seeds to last, they sprout but don't make it beyond 3 inches tall.  I may have to get a plant in the spring.

Of the 6 sugar snap peas, 3 are really doing well, and one in particular (pictured left) more than the rest.  To the right of it is a pole bean that planted itself from my previous pole bean plant!

 It's been a long road for this eggplant, but it's survivied and now seems really happy, and looks like we might get a few eggplants!

 Of the 12 or so swiss chard seeds I planted this one is the only one that made it, I want to plant more because it's so pretty and delicious.  More of the seeds I planted at home took, but they are 1/4 the size of this one.

 I planted at couple rows of mixed lettuce at both houses and all of them are doing great!

 I planted more Garlic at the boy's, he loves his garlic, as do I and it's coming along well, an exercise in patience garlic is.

Not the most exciting post ever, but I was overdue for an update and I have to say, I had read that the beauty of gardening in California is that we don't have to stop in winter, and it's true!  Looking forward to some weekend rain for my little green friends!

Merci!

~Chelsea

Something Wicked this Way Comes

Here are a couple of my favorite Halloween Projects from last year.  The "It's A Hoot!" owl banner ...

 And " Who Are You?" Alice layout. 

Both were samples for KatScrap Studio, which I'll miss even more at Halloween.  This is inspiring me to get cracking on some Halloween Cards, I do mean to do at least a few every year.  Maybe I'll get going on those, since I can't decide what to be.

Cheers

~Chelsea

Playing in the Dirt: Part 6 End of Summer Goodness

So after everything got fried this summer, at Mom's we put out an umbrella and started watering more often, then the weather did us a favor and got nice and overcast here and there and even had some good days of rain!  Just before the rain I got out there and planted some carrots and beets, and a few weeks ago I planted some swiss chard, and artichokes, as well as a scatter garden and some nasturtiums in the front garden.  So here's a look at what is sprouting.  Since I took these I also got some swiss chard sprouting and carrots.

Some beets sprouting up as well as some birdseed plants (I planted the beets under the birdfeeder, so this should be interesting)

 Here's the first eggplant, already picked and the second one is almost the same size now.

 It's hard to see in this one, but this is my lone cucumber, slowly but surely.

 My 2 butternut squash are coming along great!

 Lovely kale, and new sprouts coming up next to it.

 Onions, green onions and Garlic in the foreground.

Very excited to see how these do, so far so good, excited about the fall crop.  The tomatoes also keep coming, but are winding down and the orange tree is gearing up.  Planted more at the boy's garden, but that's a whole other post.

Playing in the Dirt: Part 5 Resurrection

It's been so long since I updated you on the gardens, I had to go back to see what the last post even said!  Such a slacker.  In all sincerity,with summer vacays and house sitting and all kinds of shenanigans this summer, the poor gardens were left to fend for themselves in the midst of summer heat!  I watered what I could when I could, or mom did, or I texted the boy to water his, they had no stable, consistent person to look after them.  So, by the time the big heat wave hit a few weeks ago, they were in dire straits!  I had decided that was it for the summer crops, cucumbers had gone yellow before I was able to harvest, onions fried in the sun, everything was dried out and brown.
While puppy sitting I was minding a similar garden that was well shaded, in a cooler part of town, and was thriving.  So when I got home I decided this "full sun" indication on the seeds and plant labels was a load of BS!  I grabbed a dilapidated garden umbrella we'd planned to throw out and rolled it over to the veggies in the middle of the yard, they seemed to have the most trouble.  After doing this, off I went to kitty sit for the boy...  Mom was back in town so the watering was not going to be a problem.  I went to work and yoinked out the dry dead stuff in the Boy's garden, the Artichoke kicked the bucket, the second round of onions I planted never emerged (it's a long story) and the pole bean had one more fruitful crop before it croaked. (cooking them was another failed endeavor)  So I was left with ample, happy but kinda crowded tomatoes, garlic, a happy herb garden, and a very sad looking Eggplant, oh and a desperate jalapeno- I suspect the jalapeno knew nobody was that excited about it, and just didn't have the will to make it.
So I watered those, and they seemed grateful, especially the sad sad eggplant, it's doing great now, and whenever it looks droopy I give it a glass of water, it has buds and everything!  By the time I got to Mom's everything was green again!  I couldn't believe it, the weather had bursts of scorching temps and just with some shade and extra evening waterings they really perked up!
So here's some pics of the progress at Mom's.  I wish I had taken photos of what they looked like in the heat wave, but I thought they were done for, and was deciding what to plant next.

Here's the resurrected Veggie Garden, you can see the Butternut Squash is quite pleased with itself, the Strawberries are hanging in there and the Kale finally got bigger

The cucumbers and the eggplants have lots of flowers too, so bring on the bees, lets make some veggies guys!

This is my goofy umbrella but it gives it nice shade in the middle hours of the day, and you can see my critter fence, hope it works.

One of the Yesterday Today and Tomorrow bushes even started getting more flowers this week.

I just think this crazy tangle of Bugambilia, Fig Tree and Grape Vine (from another yard) is so cool!

Compost is going great!  Been throwing peelings, eggshells, coffee grounds, and tons of leaves and clippings in, the bugs and spiders love it, eek!

I've got some beets and red carrot seeds in the ground, and more to plant, I also want to do some swiss chard and sugar snap peas for the boy.  So I'll let ya know how it goes.

Ocean Pendants

I thought it would be fun to do a deep sea theme with these findings.  Here's what I used.

3D Crystal Lacquer

Jewelry Findings Black

Gem Particles

Glass

Bail 

Antique GoldChain

Scrap Paper

Sea Life Stickers

 I arranged smaller sea life stickers inside the Jewelry Findings and placed the large eel sticker on some scrap paper that I liked as a background.

 I sprinkled gem particles inside the Jewelry findings, to mimic see water and put some pink on the Jellyfish to match it's color.  I sprinkled some on top of the scrap of paper with the eel.

 Next I filled the Jewelry Findings with 3D Crystal Lacquer and set them aside to dry overnight.  Then I used small dots of Crystal Lacquer to create a mosaic with the Glass over the eel sticker and Gem Particles.

 Once everything dried overnight, I trimmed the Eel Mosaic around the class, attached a gold Bail to the back of it with Crystal Lacquer and strung the chain through.  Voila!  Summer Jewelry!

I have really enjoyed being on the Design Team for Sakura Craft, so many wonderful products and ideas!  Please keep following me and the other designers as well as the Sakura Blog, for great ideas!

Merci 

~ Chelsea

NY Mini Album

 The Boy and I took a great trip to NY this summer.  So I made him a fun little coffee table type album.  It's an acrylic Arrow album by Rusty Pickle, the rest it s a hodge podge of different stuff I have on hand.  At some point I will get it together and start doing my actual scrapbook pages for these trips, but it's nice to make the boy an album, it's quick-ish and easy to share, just the highlights, and I feel productive and rewarded sooner than doing several full album pages.  

Anyway, enjoy we had fun on the trip and I had fun doing the album.

We went for the Premiere of a film called Starla that Brendan was in so lots of the pictures are from that night.  Great film, wonderful people and the Boy had a huge turn out of family, it really was a great time.

I had to make a flip up page to fit more pictures and an account of what happened the day of the Premiere.

 Pictures from walking around NY and meeting friends for Brunch.  Got to meet Tiff's babies for the first time.




Walked through Central Park, and St Patrick's Cathedral. Saw Jordan do Shakespeare in the park, it was a great trip.  Fast, but fantastic!

Circus Charms (DT Submission)

I have thoroughly enjoyed being a part of the Sakura Design Team, I can't believe our 6 months are almost up!  What a talented bunch of women, they have been inspiring and raised the bar on my creativity.  I have been honored to get to keep up with them every month.  So here I am again, hoping I make the cut.  Hope you guys like my Design Team submission. (Pick me!  Please pick me!)

I hang out at the Santa Monica (The Original) Muscle Beach.  We do acrobatics and all kinds of fun stuff.  There's been a really cool community down there for decades now, and the people are really wonderful. I also just this year, began taking Arial Classes, learning Silks and Trapeze.  Not flying trapeze, but acrobatics in the air.  Needless to say when Graphic 45 came out with their Le Cirque papers, I had to get my hands on them.

Their tiny postage stamp size Circus Poster Images were a perfect pairing with Sakura's Jewelry findings!  I love these little metal wearable frames, I had been looking for something like this for a while, nothing was ever quite right, until I stumbled on these.

This project is fairly simple, but I think it's extremely unique, and for me and my friends, images of things that are dear to our hearts and express our hobbies, or one of them.

MATERIALS

Sakura Jewelry Findings in Brass and Black

3D Clear Crystal Lacquer

Gem Particles

Strip of G45's Le Cirque paper

Scissors

Inspiring music: Caravan Palace (has a fun circus sound) or Cirque du Soleil soundtrack

 The key is trimming the images so they fit inside the frame of the Jewelry Findings and you get the portion of the image that you want.  I found some of the images looked better once trimmed than others.  (ie the elephant on the tricycle did not want to get inside the circle finding, it was probably my trimming skills)

Once the images are the right size, apply a dot of Clear Crystal Lacquer to the back, it isn't necessary to adhere it but it make it easier.  Then sprinkle in a tiny bit, or a lot, up to you, of Gem Particles, fill the whole thing up with Clear Crystal Lacquer and go read a book, perhaps Water for Elephants or something Circus like!

Tada!  I can't decide if I want to pop on some jump rings and colored ribbon as gifts for my acrobatic friends and teachers or put them all on a charm bracelet to keep for myself... thoughts?

For more amazing ideas and uses for Sakura products check out the Design Team Blog!

Glad you stopped by.

Merci

~Chelsea

Journal Tin

For this project I made a blank journal that fits inside a tin.  You could also forgo making the journal and use the tin for discreetly hiding unmentionable items in your purse. 

MATERIALS:

Small flat metal tin

3D Crystal Lacquer

Color Crystal Lacquer and Metallic Color Lacquer

Gem Particles

Rubber Stamps

Stazon Ink

White Cardstock

Tim Holtz Texture Fade

Glimmer Mist in Tiger Lilly

Distrezz It All

Steampunk Debutante Paper Pack cover

 First thing I did was trim the images I wanted off the Steampunk Debutante Paper Pack cover.  Yes the cover.  I use everything!!  I trimmed them and arranged them how I wanted on my tin, then used Clear Crystal Lacquer to adhere the pieces, I then rubber stamped some images on the metal using StazOn stamp ink in black. (some images I stamped before and they are layered with the paper strips.)

Next I filled in portions of the images on the cover of the tin with Clear Crystal Lacquer.  Intending to fill the areas with Gem Particles I chose what I did by color. I did the wings first with Green Gem Particles, then once I had the excess dusted off I filled in the girl's flowers with Lacquer and sprinkled Pink.  To be sure you don't mix you could let each section dry before doing a new color... I am not this patient, and I don't mind if stuff mixes.

 While this dried (see my patience above) I trimmed several sheets of white cardstock to 5"x8.5" and folded them in half to make a booklet of 4 1/4"x 5"  The top sheet I ran through my Sizzix with a Tim Holtz Texture Fade (post card) then spritzed with Glimmer Mist and let that dry (so much drying I better go read a book!)  I reassembled my folded journal, punched 2 holes in the spine with my hole punch, and strung twine through a few times to make the binding.  Finally I ran the page side through my Distrezz It All for a fun, steampunk, antique look.

I colored in the rest of the images I wanted to make pop, and the stamped images with various different Color Lacquers, and Metallic Color Lacquers, then allowed them to dry before going to the next image, otherwise things run together.  Then let the whole thing dry overnight.  The image above is of the back of the tin.

 Front

 Inside and journal fits perfectly!

Voila!  I chique journal you can take with you in your purse, and keep safe in it's own little tin!  For more great ideas check out the Sakura Design Team Blog!

Merci

~Chelsea