post number two :]

as promised, here's another post for the day. i spent the morning making candies and wrapping up brittany's christmas gift. i took a break to go and meet brittany at perkins rowe for a bit of shopping and to exchange christmas gifts. i picked up the CUTEST bag from anthro, along with a french cuisine cookbook and oh-so-cute pot holder to put it in for the christmas gift exchange at grandma and grandpa's...i do believe i will have the lovliest little gift out of everyone! i'm secretly jealous of whoever ends up with it :] i also passed by sur la table (love that place!), z gallery (love that one even more!), and then a quick pass through UO to pick up a couple of new pairs of blue jeans. pit stopped at another store to purchase a few remaining items for the hubs' christmas gift then back home for a second string of candy making.

brit and liz joined me for this particular gift making session, which was great. brit had some packaging to do herself, and liz helped me dip pretzels.

brittany makes the best snowman poop and peppermint bark...mmmm

for some reason, this picture doesn't want to post facing the right direction. i apologize in advance for the crick in your neck for having to look at it sideways. :] these are my little packets of pretzels..."gone nutty", "coocoo for coconut", "peppymint" and more...

yummy...little boxes of homemade chocolates. delicious! and cute! every year for christmas, i make goody bags as gifts for friends and family. it's a more cost efficient way of giving, and i think it means more for them to know that i poured my heart and love into each sweet that's in the bag! hopefully i'll be finishing these goody bags up tomorrow so that i can spend the rest of the week working on the hubs' gift...it's a whopper, and i'm running out of time

so, for the gift exchange, brittany got me this:

it's the diana camera from lomography! i'm super stoked up!

and she got me this, just because:

it's the new keri smith book! i'm soooo excited! however, i know that once i start it, i won't be able to put it down, so i'm not even going to crack the cover until i have completed my christmas gift duties.

the gift i got brittany is still on it's way from the photographer i purchased it from, so i made her this to tie her over...

she was pretty excited, which made me even more excited about it as well!

well anywho, i'm off for the third string of crafting...i've put the candy making and baking away for the night, and now i'm on to painting gift bags and gift tags. i'll share photos when they're done! for now, i'll leave you, but i will return soon.

love love love

emjay

i know i know...

but remember? i said no promises! since it's been almost a month since i've posted, i'll be sure to have a lot of things to share with you today...but they might be split into a few different posts.

this post is probably one of the most exciting ones EVER! just a week ago, the unthinkable happened...it snowed in south louisiana. what's that you say? you don't think you heard me correctly? let me repeat it then...IT SNOWED IN SOUTH LOUSISIANA!!! can you believe it??? last wednesday, my birthday, rumors were floating around that it might snow that night. no one, especially me, took it seriously, because our meteorologists are generally off a bit, especially when they're talking about snow. i mean, our average temperature here during december is 74 degrees! last time i checked, it had to be much colder for it to snow. all the kids at work were getting super stoked at the thought of not having school the next day...but when i left work at 8 that evening, it was still 50 degrees...it wasn't looking promising.

the husband and i spent the evening at his brother's house, and we had fun watching movies and playing with our neice and nephew, and when we left around midnight, it still didn't feel all that cold. i pretty much gave up any hope i had of having a white birthday, and we headed home to curl up and get some shut eye.

around 6 o'clock am, my phone rang, and of course, it's still dark outside, so i'm unsure of the actual time, and i was thinking that something was wrong with someone...especially when i saw that it was my mom. i answered, and she was frantically shouting something i couldn't quite understand (keep in mind, i'd been sleeping very soundly and was quite groggy at this point). i shook my head to clear the fog and said "come again?" and she said "get your butt out of bed and outside! it's snowing! like REALLY snowing! big time!" i immediately threw off the covers, slipped my flip flops in and ran outside in my hoochie mamma sleep shorts and tshirt.

it was amazing.

the husband followed me in his skivvies, marveled for a few minutes and returned to bed. he said he was still tired and that he'd enjoy it after day light. i couldn't fathom how he could sleep at a time like this!

it. was. snowing.

and we've learned down here on the gulf, that in the event snow (or more accurately, an icy snow-like substance) falls here, it doesn't stick around after the sun comes up! the meteorologist had said the night before that even if it did snow, our soil temperature was too high (48 degrees) to allow it to stick more than a few hours. so here is the view i had when i opened my door that morning...




this was the most snow i'd ever seen here before. as i said before, usually what we think is snow fall here, is really just a wintry mix. but this time, it was different. huge, fluffy, fat snow flakes were falling, and they were falling like crazy! the hubs finally rolled out of bed to come enjoy it with me for a little while. we even bundled frank up in his jacket that aunt liz gave him and took him outside to enjoy the fun.






as you might be able to tell, frank didn't enjoy the snow quite as much as we did...brit was out of power so we invited her over to enjoy the snow day with the two of us. eventually, the hubs decided to return to the warmth of our bed, and he fell back asleep. brit an i continued to enjoy our time in the snow!







it truly was a wonderfully magically day...i felt like a little kid again... :) i'll leave you with a few more pics of my house, yard and neighborhood. the pics from my mom's house are muuuuuuch cooler, but i can't seem to locate them at the present. as soon as i do, i'll post those as well. now i'm off to finish making christmas candies and pompoms for my gift wrapping! will share photos of those later!

mmmm truffles

i think i might try and make some truffles today...i found this awesome recipe that i want to try!

other things to do today...

...pay internet bill
...put up christmas tree
...attempt to tackle the rest of the christmas decorations
...refinish entry table
...run errands in town
...wash my hair (it's sad that this has it's own place on the list)

it will be a busy busy day. short list, so hopefully i'll be able to finish it!

oh, and i went shopping earlier this week online at anthro...i got some of the cutest things! i can't wait for everthing to come in!

have a lovely day!
emjay

...

i've been falling way behind on the 365 project...my camera still isn't fixed. but as soon as it is, i'll have to get back on that. and post pics of my new mug! i'm sipping hot chocolate out of it right now...yummm

so here's some great news...my favorite artist, elsie flannigan, is opening up her very own art boutique! it'll be a combination of online store and brick and mortar store (located in springfield, missouri). i'm super excited...it opens feb 1st and is named, what else, but redvelvetart! i'm sooo super stoked and can't wait to see what lovely things her and the other rv girls put in there, as well as the other artists they'll be working with. i love rv!

since my camera is still on the fritz, here is a compilation of my current flickr favorites :] they are all from the lovely lucia holm or as she's better known as in the internet world, miss lulu and the teaspoon shortage. such lovely work!




brit's coming over to hang out while i cook today. :] then, off to work

3/365

there's a horrible glare of the computer screen on my glasses...hopefully my camera will be fixed soon so i can stop using the webcam for these things. i mean, it's fun every now and then, but you know. oh, and as soon as that bad boy is back in working order, i'll share photos of my mug!!! :] and some super cute perler bead animals that the sister and and i spent making last night :]

to do today, all before 3:00

1. hang up all clean laundry (ick)
2. dishes
3. wash at least 2 loads of dirty laundry (more ick)
4. make my way to the bank to pull out rent, and then pay said rent
5. run downtown to pick up sushi surprise for cecily (and maybe a roll or two for myself :] )
6. stop and pick up goodbye cake for cecily
7. make it to work a bit early for cecily's "moving to night shift" impromptu shindig

it doesn't sound like much , but oh...it will be a long day. too bad there's no crafting involved. maybe tonight?

enjoy your day!
emjay

2/365

day two and i'm sick :[ i came home from work and took a two hour nap. yeah. i made shepard's pie for dinner. i feel that i should cook since i have this lovely girl staying with me this week


so now i have curled up in one of the husband's thermal shirts, i'm watching kung fu panda with the sister, and eating some of the yummy pie. so glad i can sleep in tomorrow!

have a lovely evening and i'll see you tomorrow with day three! ooo, and i get my new glasses tomorrow! :]

1/365

i've decided to jump on the photography bandwagon and accept the 365 challenge. if you don't know what that is, it's a challenge to take one self portrait every day for a year. i'm sure i'll miss a few days here and there...it's bound to happen. but i figure that this will be a great way for me to inject a bit of creativity into every day, even if it's just a teeny bit. :] here's day one

oh, and i got the call from the ceramics place! our mugs are ready! i'm going to go pick them both up and bring brit's to her at work...surprise! :]

have a fantastic day!

lovelovelove
emjay

this week...

has been crazy! last friday, the hubs was waiting for me when i got off of work, and we quickly hopped into the car for a trip to the inlaws. we spent halloween night with the neice and nephews, and then on saturday, we headed further north to columbia for the gough family reunion. that was definitely an interesting experience!

i woke up sunday with pink eye...again. that wasn't a very pleasant experience, especially since it was the second time in a month! once monday hit, things went completely beserk...there was work, work and more work! another week of overtime...but i've been having a lot of fun planning the company's holiday party, so that has definitely given me a little break from the day to day.

today i finally had a day off from work, but definitely not a day off from life. :] i had errands to run, an eye doctor appointment (i finally got to order new glasses! soooo excited!) then i met brit for our biweekly creative day. this week, we hit up cocodrie's for caesar salads (yum!) and then we headed to a new pottery shop in watson that just opened. we spent the afternoon painting a pair of giant ceramic mugs. they should be glazed and fired this week, and then i'll get to take mine home...i'll be sure to post pics of them! we had so much fun today that we've vowed to definitely frequent this cute little shop often. we only wish that we could find a place that would allow us to first create our own pottery, and then let us decorate. i took pottery classes as a kid, and i loved it so much...hopefully we'll be able to find such a place locally. :]

tomorrow is another day of gym then work...but i think i'm going to spend the evening at home. i really need to get crackin' on those invites for my holiday bake exchange...they need to be sent out next week! also, that etsy update just keeps getting pushed back further and further...there's just been so many things that have kept me from getting to it. now you know you're dork when you're choosing to spend your friday evenings in front of a craft table!

well, now that i've overloaded you with a ton of text, i'll leave you to your evening. i still have to go get a shower before bed anyway...i'm gross!

lovelovelove!
emjay

brrrrrr

this is me attempting to stay warm. it is a chilly 45 degrees outside right now, and that's really friggin' cold for autumn this far south. it's a beautiful, clear, sunny day, so hopefully it will warm up to the high of 61. :]

today i am bundling up and heading into town for a few things at the local scrap store. i'm planning to work on a mini mini album today. (it's a double mini because it's a mini album with only a few pages in it. :] ) i'm going to try out my new printer and photo paper and throw a few pages together. i'm also planning to finish up those kits today. i've had so much fun making them, and i've already got tons of ideas bouncing around upstairs for a second one! yay for good times.

cecily came over last night after work and helped me organize my studio. it's been halfway done for so long,and now it's actually getting to be 100%! we even went through my boxes from the office that have been sitting in the corner since february. it was great!

hmmm, i'm thinking taco cornbread muffins for lunch... yummy!!

well, that's about it for me for now. i just heard the ding of the dryer which is telling me that my blue jeans are dry so i can get dressed and run to town. mmmmm, i love the feeling of clothes fresh out of the dryer! :] if you're reading this, go do something creative today! i promise you it will warm your soul!

lovelovelove
emjay

saturday loves

ahhhh, saturdays.

there are so many things to love about saturdays. i don't always get to enjoy them off of work, but this week i do and it feels great! there's something about saturdays in fall...crisp cool air, kids in the neighborhood playing in the leaves...a perfect day to open up the windows and do some house cleaning, some organizing, maybe a little crafting, and of course, update your blog :]

last week, i spent all (yes all) of wednesday night with my paints scattered across the living room floor. i have my own space to do this, but my room was a little crowded with things, so i spread out across the living room. plus, pushing daisies was on, and i don't have the tv hooked up in my studio just yet. here are some pics of what i've been working on.





i closed my shop a couple of weeks ago for some belated spring cleaning. i've spent those weeks creating new things to put up, and i'm planning an update for the second part of next week. you can be sure to see some of the original art in the pictures above, as well as some aceo originals, some hand made emjay exclusive tags and a journal kit i've been working on! those are just a few of the good things to come, so keep checking back for more! in the meantime, check out some of these AWESOME etsy shops that i visit regularly...

elsie*cake
pony party
red velvet art

well, it's back to organizing the studio so i can finish up my projects for the etsy update!

love love love!
emjay

last post of the day...or first of the day...depends on how you look at it :]

spent the evening filling many of the blank canvases that have been collecting dust in the corner of my studio. it's been a wonderful night! it's now almost 3 in the morning, so i'm taking a short break to catch some z's. gotta get up at 7. might take me a bit to wind down, but as long as i get those 3-4 hours, i'm good! :]

have a lovely day!

emjay

ps...i love my best friend! [above]

love

have i ever mentioned that i looooooooove this show?






it is, by far, one of the highlights of each week! visit thepiemaker for some fun stuff about the show...they even have some of ned's pie recipes! what fun!

love!
emjay

i love this feeling

inspiration has consumed me.
i am inspired to create beautiful art.
i am inspired to eat healthier.
i am inspired to take better care of myself.
i am inspired to be happier.
i am inspired to step outside of my comfort zone.
i am inspired to try new things.
i am inspired to embrace my differences.
i am inspired to start a new season in life.
i am inspired to live a life with no reservations.
i love this feeling.


[photo by will vastine]

yay!!! a post!!

wow...it's been almost two months. eesh...i seriously havent been keeping up with this thing like i've intended to. :[ in my defense, i haven't had a camera chord to upload any photos, and i figured two months worth of posts with no eye candy would be boring...but i guess it would have been better than nothing! from now on, i won't promise things i can't deliver. so enjoy this post, and maybe (hopefully) i'll start treating this thing a little better and give it the tlc it deserves!

ok, now that that's out of the way, there are many many many many things to talk about! first, the pictures above (unedited) are from when brit and i got together last week and decorated my house for fall! please disregard the bottom half of my kitchen wall...we're in the process of patching and painting over the ghastly 1970's wood paneling. :] i arranged the flowers myself...they are from target. unfortunately, they've already started dying a week later, but then again, that's what real flowers do! the three paintings on the wall are a split canvas project of an abstract landscape i'm working on. it was inspired by the work of david bromstad, and i've had the most fun trying to recreate it...it's still a work in progress, but i love the way it looks on the wall!

the second thing going on is the planning of my first annual holiday bake exchange. this december, i'm gathering all the girlfriends around for a chance to show off their holiday culinary skills and exchange ideas and recipes with others. i can't wait to see what everyone comes up with for their dish, and i can't wait to reveal the super cute recipe books i'm giving them all as gifts! they are very elsie inspired, however, they definitely have an emjay twist.

thirdly, brit is coming over on thursday for a day full of crafting (yay!) and who knows what we'll get our hands into! i won't promise (haha) but i will make an effort to share some of our craftiness with you in near (or maybe distant) future.

peace and love
emjay

blah.

i'm getting tired of not having a car...

fun stuff to come...

lot's of things have been going on with me lately....a car wreck...a road trip...lots and lots of crafting...but unfortunately, the only computer at my disposal this week won't let me load pictures in my blog, so therefore i cannot share with you right now. when i return home, i'll be sure to have some fun stuff up here!!

love!

emjay

sigh

that is a sigh of true contentment. i'm having so much fun with my etsy, it's positively unbelievable! i already have so many new ideas floating around in my head for new things to add...it makes me giddy just thinking about it!

tonight, i'm playing around with a few new things...some do-it-yourself screenprinting, using some unconventional tools :) also, painting fabric and embroidery. much too soon to share these projects now, but soon...very soon.

another thing that is currently making me happy is this:



tonight i purchased a spot in rachel denbow's august online art journaling class. you have no idea how excited i am!!! i can't wait to get my secret password and get started! i've been dabbling with the art journaling thing for a little while, but can't seem to find my style. i'm hoping this tutorial will help push me in the right direction. i'll be sure to post pics of my finished project, which will be sometime in september.

it's finally here!!!

greetings!


so, i kind of have some big news...my etsy shop is finally open for business!!! hooray!!! stop by and take a look!

busy bees...

we had wonderful plans for today....all week the hubs and i have been looking forward to a long and lazy day by the pool, sipping on iced tea and eating left overs from the fourth. so how did it go? well we woke up with the urge to actually be produtive...go figure. we've spent all day painting walls, repainting other walls, refinishing light fixtures, and many other things around our house. i must say, it feels wonderful! i guess it's time to get back to it!

oh yeah, and last night with brittany was oh-so-much-fun!!! once our project is complete, i'll have to post some pictures.

peace.emjay

tonight...

my best friend, brittany, is coming over for some much needed creative time. i haven't been in my studio in weeks, and i can't wait to finally bust out the stuff again and get elbow deep in all that crafty goodness! yay!

emjay

i'm on a roll!

two posts in one week! i'm on a roll! hopefully i can keep this up! :]

i've been in a creative rut recently, which is one of the reasons i haven't posted in so long. i haven't worked on anything artsy in quite some time, and i'm finally beginning to get that itch again. of course, with some great inspiration, it's not hard to get into the creative mood!

speaking of inspiration, here is a group of some of my favorite photos from one of my favorite...ok, probably my absolute favorite...artist to date...elsie flannigan. she is positively lovely.

1. Salvation*Mountain, 2. collection, 3. connect, 4. em's*tattoos, 5. jeremy, 6. happy*halloween!, 7. cup*cake, 8. i*loves!, 9. craziness, 10. passion, 11. kitchen*towels, 12. quirk*2, 13. button*love, 14. closer*look, 15. blow, 16. something*yummy, 17. bubble*pop*electric, 18. ode*to*mary*kate, 19. yum*yum*yum, 20. my*desk*today

i hope you enjoy this lovely eye candy...see you again real soon!

*love*

emjay

design inspiration

ok, so it's been awhile...well, that's an understatement...it's been FOREVER! in my absence, i've been busy with the sick husband (who's better now!), a very close friend's wedding (and all the planning that goes with that), work, and many many other things...

this afternoon i was reading an old diy magazine that i purchased months ago, and just now gotten around to reading it. it stirred in me a desire to get off my lazy but and do some stuff around here! each idea was under $100 and used items that i'm sure i have lying around the house...here are a few photos i came across of some things i'd like to try or have...i'll post some more as i come across them.

some really cool vinyl wall graphics

some awesome enamel plates from a student at the savannah school of art and design

this is just beautiful

this rack is nature inspired, and sturdy enough to hold scarfs, coats and hats as well!

i love home decor, and i love it even more when it's affordable! have a great week and a great independence day! see you on the flip side...

emjay