bloem

My Sassabelle Featured in an Etsy Treasury!

2011-08-24T11:21:00.000-07:00

Doesn't every artist love to see other people love their work?!

Somebody loved my My Sassabelle invitations enough to include them in this Girls Night Out treasury on Etsy!

Check it out!

See more of My Sassabelle on Etsy!

Image Credit: Etsy.com, Treasury by JenniFulton2004

A Half Birthday

2011-06-23T21:30:00.000-07:00

Yesterday, (June 22nd), Rowan turned 6 months old! Can you believe it? He looks a lot older though because he's so fricking tall, and a little beefcake too.

Although we talk about giving Rowan a fun half birthday celebration {since his real birthday is so close to Christmas}, we didn't celebrate this 6 month milestone with anything particularly special. To be honest, we were pretty pooped yesterday.

But.....the day before, was a pretty awesome day for the Bear Cub.

He had his first swim!

omg, he's like a LITTLE FISH.

Just like his daddy :)

My Sassabelle is Here!

2011-06-17T18:44:00.000-07:00

I know, it's been forever since I posted anything. That's because I've been working on something (oh yeah, and raising a baby, and working my day job).

Last year, I talked a lot about focus and trying to find a way to channel my creativity. I think I found some direction and now I am pleased to say that I've finally got something to show for all my hard work.

AND HERE IT IS! (drumroll, please)

I'd like to introduce you to my new line of invitations, now available on Etsy.

My Sassabelle {Invitations for you Girlfriends}

mysassabelle.etsy.com

My new ready-made invitations are supercute and perfect for a variety of "ladies only" events. There are plenty more designs brewing, so keep checking in.

If you have a special event in the making and need something with a little extra pizzazz, shoot me message or convo me on Etsy. I do custom or "Haute Couture" My Sassabelle invitations too!

Hope you love them as much as I do!

~Sarah

On My Workbench ~ More Flower Combs!

2011-03-09T19:14:00.000-08:00

Spring is on it's way!

During nap time, I got to play with more paper/felt flower hair combs. Look for them in my Etsy store soon!

Bloem

Blue is the New Black

2011-03-02T08:34:00.000-08:00

I'm so into the new blues that have hit the nail polish racks! And at least one Macy's cashier feels the same way.

She totally helped me out after noticing that my color was almost identical to hers :p

Have a Smurfy Day!!

In Bloem - Spring Hair Blooms

2011-02-26T09:30:00.000-08:00

I was really excited to get a little time last week to craft. I also got a chance to purge some unnecessary scrapbooking supplies {I really haven't scrapbooked in years}, and even had extra time to painted my nails....blue!

Going through my supplies, I got reinspired to make some flower hair combs. It also helped that I recently sold another pair on Etsy!

Starburst Flower Hair Combs (Set of 2)

Happy Saturday!!

Tax Time

2011-02-09T19:38:00.000-08:00

I'm new at this craft business thing, and haven't really had that much time to invest into it. So I was really proud of myself last year, when I took a leap and got my business license, hoping it would be one of many more steps in the right direction towards my goal.

To be honest, I never did ANYTHING with it! {Aside from ordering some envelopes, which I still have to see if I saved the receipt for}.

Fast forward to a week after my baby boy, Rowan, was born, when I got a call at 7am, from somenone at the County Clerk's Office, letting me know that they needed to audit my home business. I managed to give a sleep deprived response of, "I haven't even done anything with my business." The man replied, "So, you're not renewing your license?" And all I could muster up was, "Not now".

So now, with tax time just around the corner, I have to figure out how to file a business that didn't really produce OR expense any money.

Also, I'm not sure whether I should renew my license. I guess I should have allowed them to audit...*not thinking clearly at the time*

I planned to really get going on it during my maternity leave {in my dreams!}. Rowan had a different plan, mostly revolving around himself.

We moved into a fixer upper house and had a baby last year. I get anxious enough over taxes as it is. I'm really not looking forward to filing this year, even though we should get a lot back. I think it's time to kick TurboTax to the curb and go to a professional, who can sort through it all.

If anyone out there has some tax advice for someone just getting their feet wet, I'd love to hear it!

Happy Tax Filing!

Featuring a Reversible Hooter Hider Tutorial by Made by Lisa G

2011-01-26T09:34:00.000-08:00

I don't have much time for my own arts & crafts right now, but my friend, Lisa G has been sewing all kinds of great gifts for me and other new moms, so I asked her to do a guest blog tutorial for one of her creations.

She one-uped my request, and started a whole new blog, Made by Lisa G, to share her crafting "How To's". Lisa is also a great photographer, so you can bet all of her tutorials are going to have great pics, which makes it SOOO much easier, don't ya think?

Here's a peek at the Reversible Hooter Hider Tutorial by Made by Lisa G

{Go to her blog for all the details}

A Hooter Hider is a must have for modest moms who breastfeed.

I use mine all the time!

Thanks Lisa!

Holiday Baby!

2010-12-30T09:53:00.000-08:00

Our first baby, Rowan Matthijs Balyon, was born on December 22, 2010. He's the most precious thing!

So, forgive me for being slow with the bloem blog updates. I have my hands full right now. You can follow us through life as new parents on our family blog, One Ring Short of a Circus.

Hot Chocolate Mix in a Jar (Easy & Budget Friendly Gift)

2010-12-20T15:57:00.000-08:00

This year, we made Hot Chocolate Mix in a Jar for our neighbors and friends. Just a little gift to warm people up during the holidays, without breaking the bank.

Here's how we did it:

1 Cup Powdered Milk

3 Heaping Tablespoons Dutched Cocoa Powder

3 Level Tablespoons Sugar

1/4 Mini Marshmallows

We mixed 5 batches at a time

2 Cups per Mason Jar.

YUM :)

I decorated the jar top with Christmas-y fabric and a raffia bow.

Make sure to include a card that tells your recipient how to make and enjoy their delicious treat!

"Mix 3 heaping Tablespoons (1/4 to 1/3 cup) cocoa with 8 to 10 oz of hot water.

Makes about 4 servings"

That's all there is to it!

-Sarah

Day 14: Reverb 10 - Appreciate

2010-12-14T21:18:00.000-08:00

December 14 – Appreciate. What’s the one thing you have come to appreciate most in the past year? How do you express gratitude for it? (Author: Victoria Klein)

I'm guilty of taking most things for granted. Who isn't? I was originally going to post about appreciating my family and friends. Although I do thorougly appreciate both, I read my best friend's response to this prompt on her blog, Living a Brighter Life, and since she wrote about friends and family (probably better than I can write it), I figured I should come up with something else. Besides, there are plenty of things to appreciate, right?

In a weird way, this year, I've learned to appreciate my job. I didn't say I learned to enjoy it, or even to like it a little. Just to appreciate the fact that I have a well paying, fairly stable, job that has provided the money for everything we need and lots of things that we want. In a time when the poor economy has left many people in worse situations, we've managed to not only skate through, but also to take advantage of some unique opportunities. All because of my job.

I wouldn't say I really show much of this appreciation. Most of my conversations around my job are a more towards the negative side. Also, I don't always stop to think about how great it is to have a job. Like Nellie, at Wired, Witty, and Well Dressed, I've decided that "lucky" isn't the right term to justify my success. I've earned my paycheck. But I can admit that I'm fortunate.

So, there it is, I appreciate my job. Live it up, because that's probably the last time you will ever hear me say (or write) those words!

Dilbert, by Scott Adams. Courtesy of www.dilbert.com

-Sarah

Day 13: Reverb 10 - Action

2010-12-13T17:59:00.000-08:00

December 13 – Action When it comes to aspirations, it’s not about ideas. It’s about making ideas happen. What’s your next step? (Author: Scott Belsky).

Action is the hard part. I can dream all day about what I could do and would do, but actually doing it is a whole 'nother thing!

In the past, I haven't really held myself accountable for making things happen. Well, that's not exactly true. I used to be very accountable. I did what I needed to do to get where I am. BUT, lately, I've been more complacent about actually achieving my goals.

The best way I've found to keep myself on track is to make a list. I LOVE checking off lists! So much that I will do whatever I have to do just so I can put down another check. Sometimes, I even cheat a little and list things I've already done. That way, I get to check off even more!!

I have a few ACTIONS that I'm currently taking to change my life. They're not huge and they're not abstract, because, really, they are the things on my list. The small, but tangible steps that I have to take.

One action on my list is to build an inventory of handmade, unique-but-general, Baby Shower invitations, Birthday Party invitations, Thank You cards, and more. I'm trying to make enough to host a table at a local farmer's market. I've been able to get a good start already since my time off from work. This will, hopefully, help promote as well as fill the gaps between my custom jobs.

Umbrella - Baby Shower Invitations by bloem

-Sarah

Day 12: Reverb 10 - Body Integration

2010-12-12T17:11:00.000-08:00

December 12 – Body Integration This year, when did you feel the most integrated with your body? Did you have a moment where there wasn’t mind and body, but simply a cohesive YOU, alive and present? (Author: Patrick Reynolds)


Hmmm....all my horse riding pictures seem to be of Rogér.

I usually find that my body and mind are most cohesive during horseback riding. This wasn't immediate. It took some time to learn to ride again (and I'm still learning). Once that balance was found, though, this seems to be the place where my mind and body can connect.

It will be interesting to see how I am able to get back into riding after childbirth.

-Sarah

Day 11 Reverb 10 - 11 Things

2010-12-12T16:58:00.000-08:00

December 11 – 11 Things What are 11 things your life doesn’t need in 2011? How will you go about eliminating them? How will getting rid of these 11 things change your life? (Author: Sam Davidson).

In 20100, I'm actually really going to have to think about this harder from both a mental and materialistic standpoint. We're starting a family. I want to eliminate mental and emotional baggage so that I can be a good example. I would also LOVE to be a stay-at-home mom. I know that my husband would also. We're trying to figure out how to swing that financially, so looking at what we really don't need may become a necessity in itself.

Here are the things I've come up with for myself:

1. Anxiety - I get anxious over just about everything. Even things that I'm excited to do. Anxiety will set in if I'm running a little late. Or if I took a wrong turn driving somewhere. I'm anxious almost every day I come home....'cause who knows what mischief Domino might have gotten into today. I'm always anxious on my way to the ranch, even though once I'm there, it's the most relaxing place in the whole world, besides maybe, the gym. Anxiety is a worthless waste of energy and a form of stress and stress is never good. I probably won't be able to eliminate anxiety, but I'm trying to lessen it by reminding myself that the things I'm worrying about are really not worth it.

2. Left Over Wedding Things - Our wedding was almost two years ago, but we still have leftover favors, candles, napkins, gift bags, invitations, lights, and mason jars, just to name some. These leftovers are hard to part with because I think "oh, we can USE that for SOMETHING", but in two years, we haven't, and we're probably not going to, so I just need to chuck it.

3. Excuses - For why I'm not going to go for a jog this morning. And why I don't have time to work on starting a small business for invitations and announcements. And for why I'm not taking classes to learn Adobe Illustrator, and jewelry making, and some other things I've always been interested in. These are things I enjoy. Isn't it strange to find reasons not to do them??? Why do I do that? I've found that getting started is the hardest part. If I can get a routine going, then I don't make those lame excuses for myself.

4. Socks (and other worn out things) - I already went through a whole bunch and got rid of the solo socks that lost their partner somewhere in the abyss. I need to learn to toss the ones that don't stay up because the stretch in gone, and the ones that my big toe sticks out of because my razor blade toenails cut through them after a couple months. This might seem trivial, but it's actually part of my ADMITTED hoarding tendencies, which I constantly try to quell. Even though I think it's wasteful to buy and toss, I'm not going to fix the holes in my socks like people did back in the day so they need to go.

5. Self Doubt - I've already mentioned this in earlier posts. I sabotage myself with "I'm not as good" statements. I always need someone else to reassure me. I want to rely more on myself and be confident in myself and my abilities. I know I can, because I have before. I'm not sure where I lost my self-esteem, but I'm working on getting it back.

6. My Temper - I have a BAD one. I'm pretty mellow, most of the time. Until I get pushed over the edge, and then, boy, will you pay for giving me that final shove. Surprisingly, my blood pressure is actually on the low side. Maybe that's because I do have blowouts, instead of holding it all inside forever. I'd like to find a better way to let loose my frustration without boiling over, because sometimes, the biggest victims of my frustration are not the ones who caused it.

7. Resentment - Of people who are continuously given chance after chance and still manage to be poor examples of human beings. These people bug the bahjeezes out of me. There's nothing you can do about these people though. And it seems impossible to get others to stop enabling them. In the end, I don't envy them and I don't want to waste my time on them. If I give up resenting them, I can spend that time on people that deserve it.

8. My Grandparents Things - Losing the people that you love is obviously not the most fun part of life. It makes sense that we try to hold on to them by holding onto the worldly possessions they left behind. My grandparents were very inspirational to me. My grandmother was an independent, successful, adventurous woman and my grandfather was a physicist, who sparked and nurtured my interest in the scientific world. I inherited a lot of old (and what I find to be really cool) scientific toys, as well as some things that are probably just old. The fact is, these things take up (coveted) space and I've never found a good use for any of it, but I feel like letting go of it would somehow be letting my grandparents down. I wish I could get rid of these things in a way that I would feel good about, but I haven't found that yet.

9. My Job - I gotta make some money somehow. Eliminating my job is probably not an option. I do want to find a more fulfilling job. If I have to spend 8 hrs a day doing something, I'd like to feel like it's time well spent.

10. Mani/Pedis, Hair Color, a Tan, and the Latest Fashions - It's not at all that I'm currently obsessed with these things. In fact, many would probably say spend enough time and money on me. Although I'm a big advocate of taking time for yourself and taking care of yourself, I'm just going to have remind myself to to keep myself up without shelling out the dough. I can paint my nails at home. I can love my natural brown hair color. I can work with the clothes that I have. And, if I'm pasty, well, O-Well.

11. Dinners Out - Rogér and I have become used to "grabbing dinner somewhere" out of convenience and ability. While this is a nice escape from life chores and it's often time well spent together, I'd like to get us on a healthier (and less expensive) track of home-cooked meals. I think we'll both feel better physically if we're eating fresh foods prepared with less "junk".

-Sarah

Day 10: Reverb - Wisdom

2010-12-10T12:19:00.000-08:00

December 10 –Wisdom. What was the wisest decision you made this year, and how did it play out? (Author: Susannah Conway)

Yeah, I'm behind on this Reverb10 thing. It's hard to keep up! I'm trying!

The wisest decision I've made this year is to focus on the positive people and things in my life. As many of us do, I tend to worry too much about what others think and wonder what's wrong with me that I can't seem to please some of them or that things didn't work out quite like I expected. I tend to think I'm not capable, or not good enough. What terrible things to think about! Especially when there are so many great things about me and my life.

I'm not saying that I've been able to forget those people and things that cause me to doubt myself, my relationships, my abilities, and so on. What I have been able to do is recognize that they really don't matter that much.

-Sarah

Day 9: Reverb 10 - Party

2010-12-10T11:23:00.000-08:00

December 9 – Prompt: Party. What social gathering rocked your socks off in 2010? Describe the people, music, food, drink, clothes, shenanigans. (Author: Shauna Reid)

There is one "party" that sticks out in my mind. It was the reception that Rogér's family in The Netherlands threw for us when we visited them this summer. While it may not have "rocked my socks off", it did blow my mind. Why? Because their incredibly warm welcome was unexpected, (at least by me), after the family drama that rained all over our engagement and wedding last year. Apologies in advance for my word spewage on this one.

It's way too much to explain all the details of the back story, but what it boils down to, is that a couple members of Rogér's immediate family persistently caused trouble over EVERY.LITTLE.THING related to our wedding and specifically, over me. Rogér and I were led to believe that we were also unsupported and severely frowned upon by ALL of his extended family in The Netherlands. The main reasons, (besides the obvious fact that Rogér and I don't really love each other and our 6 years together prior to our engagement had all been some sort of bad phase that they were nobly trying to save him from), being that our wedding was on a Sunday, in a location that was three hours further away than where they wanted it to be, and for us deciding not to make the super-easy, quick trip to visit them during our honeymoon...in Greece, (because it's not so hard for us to travel a little longer, and, honeymoons are the PERFECT time to meet and hang with a whole hoard of foreign-language-speaking extended family, who already don't like you, due partly to the totally legit reasons already given, but mostly for being the demise of Rogér and his family in general).

When we were finally in the financial situation and state of mind to take the trip to The Netherlands, it still came with a LOT of hesitation on my part. I should mention that here were some agreements that we had already made to ensure things wouldn't get too harry. We were ONLY visiting Rogér's dad's side of the family. We had actually planned on seeing his Oma on his mom's side, but when he called her one night to tell her we were going to Holland and would like to see her, she chewed him out for being a disgraceful son and grandson, so we decided not to. Go figure. And Rogér's melodramatic, needy, gossip-mongering sister was going to Holland at the same time, so we had a couple of Plan B's in case we needed to get out of there fast.

It was already hard for me to understand why Rogér's family would be so judgmental and demanding. I mean, don't they have better things to think about than my inadequacies and our relationship? But it became even harder to understand once we met up with the family, because from the moment we set foot on Dutch soil, we were greeted and treated like beloved and welcomed guests. Were they just putting on a show to our faces so they could bash us behind our backs? It didn't seem that way. It didn't seem like they had any reason to.

Rogér's youngest uncle had offered his house as a "home base" for us. He, and his wife and children, made sure that we were taken care of the entire time. He had also planned, with other family members, to throw us a little wedding reception during our visit. This was a sweet idea, but a little daunting, given the history. However, without any prompting from Rogér or I, his uncle and aunt sat with us the night before the reception and had a very-open hearted discussion with us about the wedding, and our relationship with each other and with the family. They talked candidly and honestly, and we went to bed knowing that these people did not, and had never harbored any negative feelings towards us. We suddenly could move forward, with the confirmation that the that the hateful things we had heard were coming from a few bitter mouths making mountains out of mole-hills.

The next evening was the reception. With the weight of judgment off my shoulders, I felt like I could actually enjoy meeting Rogér's family. Did I mention, he has a BIG family? Almost all the aunts and uncles and cousins and cousin's babies and boyfriends and girlfriends were there. We were served delicious Dutch finger foods, and even a cake with a picture of our engagement on it! All the cousins talked my ears off. They LOVED showing off their English! In fact, everyone had kind of given themselves a rule that they would only speak English so that I would not feel left out of any conversations, (which I found to be an incredibly nice gesture, although, I think it made it too easy for me to avoid practicing my Dutch!) His Oma on his Dad's side was also there; probably one of the sweetest ladies in the world, she spent almost the whole evening by my side, making sure that I was doing okay. We enjoyed wonderful food and converstation, and we got to share our wedding photo album with many of his aunts and cousins. I was having a great time, and I could see that Rogér was in Heaven. It had been too long since being in contact with all his family, but they reconnected like it had been no time at all.

It wasn't a big blowout party. But for us, it was HUGE. It was healing. It somehow gave Rogér and me some much needed permission to be who we are and to be happy for ourselves, even if some other people can't be.

-Sarah

French Memo Board - Tutorial

2010-12-09T17:56:00.000-08:00

How to make a French Memo Board

by bloem

I just made a French Memo Board for one of our friends daughters. These are a fun and stylish way to display and stash mementos like pictures, tickets, hair clips, etc.

Here's how I made my French Memo Board.

Materials:

1. Pre-stretched canvas, your choice in size. 2. Fabric of choice, enough to cover canvas with about 1.5" to spare on each side. 3. Batting. 4. Ribbon of choice. 5. Buttons of choice. 6. Scissors. 7. Staple gun. 8. Glue gun or needle & thread (not shown).

Steps:

Click this image to enlarge

1. LAY the canvas face-down on the batting. PULL the batting around the edges and STAPLE the batting to the back. Stretch the batting as you go, just enough to be taught.

2. LAY the batting covered canvas face-down on the fabric and do the same thing with the fabric that you did with the batting.

3. TUCK the fabric to make your corners are neat and STAPLE.

4. LAY the ribbon out in the pattern that you want (Generally criss-crossed). You may want to double check that the ribbon is spaced far enough apart to hold whatever you plan to put in the memo board.

5. & 6. STAPLE the ribbon onto the back. Tip: tape the ribbon in place first to make sure the ribbon is evenly spaced and where you want it to be.

7. SEW buttons on at the ribbon cross sections, or GLUE them with a hot glue gun.

That's it! It's super simple!

-Sarah

Day 8: Reverb 10 - Beautifully Different

2010-12-08T15:29:00.000-08:00

December 8 – Beautifully Different. Think about what makes you different and what you do that lights people up. Reflect on all the things that make you different – you’ll find they’re what make you beautiful. (Author: Karen Walrond)

This post requires a lot of looking inward, and I could probably really benefit from this.

BUT, I just wrote the "About Me" section for my blog, and I really don't feel like writing more about me. So, I'm going to direct you to my "About Me" section for the time being.

My apologies. I'm looking forward to others' posts about how they are beautifully different.

-Sarah

Karla & Christopher S. - Custom Made Wedding Thank You Cards

2010-12-08T14:54:00.000-08:00

I had the pleasure of designing custom wedding invitations for Karla & Christopher S. I was really pleased with the design and they must have been too, since they decided to order coordinating Thank You cards.

bloem - Custom Thank You Cards - Karla & Christopher S.

These cards are what I call "matchbook" folded. They clasp with the little olive branch tab. The matchbox fold can be used to create cards which can be mailed sans envelope, saving trees! However, the cards are designed to fit into a standard 4-bar envelope which, in this case was provided in a shimmering champagne color.

Coordinating Wedding Invitations, designed by bloem, for Karla & Christopher:

Day 7: Reverb 10 - Community

2010-12-07T16:44:00.000-08:00

December 7 – Prompt: Community. Where have you discovered community, online or otherwise, in 2010? What community would you like to join, create or more deeply connect with in 2011? (Author: Cali Harris)

I consider our neighborhood about as "community" as it gets in San Jose. We knew we wanted to buy in this neighborhood because of the sense of community. Our neighbors are the kind of people you could go borrow a cup of sugar from (or a hedge trimmer, or Halloween lights, or a SawzAll...the list goes on). They'll watch over your house if someone accidentally leaves the garage door open, and put your dog back in the yard if, or should I say, when, he uses his Houdini skills to escape.

But that's the obvious answer.

When I think about it a little more, I realize that the community that I've really discovered this year, is the Mommy & Daddy (and those-to-be) Community. When you find out you're expecting, all of a sudden a whole new world of people seem to come out of the wood-work. It's like you're being inducted into a private club, and they're all so excited to welcome you in! This is a community of playdates, nannyshares, mommy walks, school talk, hand-me-downs, stories shared, and some great advice, and some bad advice .

Like joining any club, I think there's a sense of belonging, but also a sense of "do I belong?" There's a great support system to be found here, and there can also be a lot of judgment, and a need to feel accepted by the rest of the gang. Luckily, I believe I've stumbled into a great group of new and experienced parents both within our neighborhood and beyond our neighborhood who will nurture us as a young family.

This is the community that we're entering in 2010, and it's going to be our community, and pseudo-family, for many years to come :)

Brother Sewing Machine - Zigzag Stitch Issue SOLVED!

2010-12-06T16:10:00.000-08:00

I never posted my recent sewing issue, however, I did spend WAY too much time trying to find the answer on the internet. Luckily, I was able to find an answer, but I can't remember where, so I thought I'd share it here in case anyone else has the same problem.

I was trying to make a Christmas stocking, (a major pain in the butt project, as posted earlier), and the zigzag stitch on my Brother CS-6000i sewing machine was not working. Not unusual for this POS machine. Specifically, the right side of the zigzag would not pick up the bobbin thread, so I ended up with a straight line.

I found a few people out there online who had the same issue and the responses were mostly related to changing the needle, changing the bobbin, changing the tension...the usual. Anyway, I happened to find one brilliant response that mentioned that only Schmetz needles seem to work on her Brother. Desperate, I switched out my cheapy-cheap needle for a Schmetz (I can't actually believe I had some) and my zigzag nightmares were over...almost. I still had a lot of problems with the tension. It's always something with that machine! Arrgghhh!

Day 6: Reverb 10 - Make

2010-12-06T15:52:00.000-08:00

December 6 – Make. What was the last thing you made? What materials did you use? Is there something you want to make, but you need to clear some time for it? (Author: Gretchen Rubin)

Well....since you asked....I JUST made a stocking for our baby-on-the-way!

This was hands down the most aggravating project I've ever done! It seemed as if I hit road blocks at every turn. In the end, I had to live with the fact that it's not exactly how I wanted it to turn out. I'm just thankful that I was able to work through the issues...sort of.

Day 5: Reverb 10 - Let Go

2010-12-05T18:16:00.000-08:00

Prompt: December 5 – Let Go. What (or whom) did you let go of this year? Why? (Author: Alice Bradley)

I let go of a lot of junk. Both Rogér and I made it a real goal to get rid of a ton of our EXTRA stuff. Moving into a new house helped prompt this grand release tremendously. It's part of our mission to simplify our lives so that we can enjoy everything we have more.

Did I mention that we're big fans of TLC's Hoarders. Ha ha! It's a good wakeup call for anyone who tends to pack-rat.

DAY 4: Reverb 10 - Wonder

2010-12-05T10:42:00.000-08:00

My computer died last night before I could post, so I guess I'll do two today. Here's my Reverb 10 post from yesterday.

Prompt:

December 4 – Wonder. How did you cultivate a sense of wonder in your life this year? (Author: Jeffrey Davis)

I like to call myself a realist (others say pessimist, but I like realist better). A sense of wonder often escapes me. But for me, I find I see wonder most in my animals. They never cease to amaze me.

Domino, our dog, reminds me what it means to love, and be to be a friend. While he tends to cause a lot of stress in our lives (of which he has no clue), he loves us blindly and unconditionally. His never-ending mischief teaches us to be patient and to laugh.

With Ronin, our horse, I am constantly bewildered by why such a beautiful and powerful creature lets us sit on his back and steer him around with a bit in his mouth.

And Buddy, the parrot, has the biggest personality wrapped up in the smallest package. He's the boss of the house and no man, woman, or dog is going to tell him otherwise.

The animals make me appreciate everything I have and they inspire the wonder in my life about life. I think it's triggered by the fact that they have short lifespans; we will (most likely) out-live them, and, yet, I can't imagine life without them. In this way, they remind me how incredible and precious each little part of life is, and how much I want to soak it up while I have the opportunity.

Day 3: Reverb 10 - Moment

2010-12-03T08:19:00.000-08:00

Today's Reverb 10 prompt is:

December 3 – Moment. Pick one moment during which you felt most alive this year. Describe it in vivid detail (texture, smells, voices, noises, colors). (Author: Ali Edwards)

It's hard to remember one moment in so much detail. I may have to pick two...yep, I'm picking two, because both moments were very empowering for me.

The first moment during which I felt most alive this year was snowboarding in Bear Valley with my husband. I really LOVE to snowboard in the first place, but this particular day was exceptionally memorable. Everything felt right. Bear Valley is currently our favorite ski spot because of the beautiful, tree studded terrain and the limited number of people. It's like you own the mountain. I was in a good groove, so I headed through a patch of trees. The snow was perfect. The air was crisp and chilled, but fresh. I weaved through the trees, landing a couple (small) jumps along the way! My muscles moved all the right ways. I didn't have to think about anything. It was pure freedom.

The second moment happened in the spring. I'd been riding my young thoroughbred horse, Ronin, a lot, and we were really becoming a TEAM. I hadn't tried cantering him yet, well, I take that back....I did try once, about a year before, which started and ended in disaster. Now I was finally ready to try again. The arena was mostly empty. We trotted around for a while, practicing our serpentines and spirals. He was responsive, I was in control. Coming into a short end of the arena, I gave Ronin the queue for more and a big *SMOOCH*. And there we were, cantering! And it felt good; exhilarating and liberating. There's a deep connection when you and your horse both know you've done something well. It's hard to describe but it's one of the best feelings in the world, for me, anyway.

-Sarah

Day 2: Reverb 10 - Writing

2010-12-02T09:26:00.000-08:00

December 2 Writing.
What do you do each day that doesn’t contribute to your writing — and can you eliminate it?
(Author: Leo Babauta)

Hmmm, this one is interesting. I do a lot of things that don't contribute to my writing. However, my goals aren't centered around my blog writing, so I may modify my entry today and make it about what I do each day that doesn't contribute to my life goals.

Here's a short list of the big hitters:

#1. Work - I mean my current day job. I consider this the worst culprit! I don't think it actually contributes to much happiness in my life other than it gives me money to have a few things that I enjoy...like my horse. It also doesn't give me confidence in myself. In fact, since entering the "industry" I've lost much self esteem. I feel like a lackey. Trust me, I'm trying to figure out how to eliminate this one.

#2. Shopping - I shop just to shop. I will only go by myself and I can spend hours. Luckily, I usually don't buy anything, so it doesn't do much damage on my wallet, but it wastes time and I think it's some sort of disease....like hoarding (btw, does anyone watch TLC's Hoarders? WOWZA - if that's not motivation to simplify your life, I don't know what is!). Okay, eliminating it...well, yeah, I've admitted I have a problem, so that's step one, right?

#3. Clutter - A cluttered living space = a cluttered mind. This stresses me out and renders me useless. I am really really trying to be good about putting things in their rightful place so as to get rid of the clutter in my house and free my mind! For instance, I've been doing small loads of laundry to keep the mountain under control. This has done wonders! I don't HATE laundry anymore, because I don't let it pile up.

#4. TV & Video Games - Yes, I'm a victim of trash TV and Mario Bros (or Rock Band). But I'm listing this last on my short list, because I tend to try to do too many things in one day and sometimes I need to relax and enjoy a mindless show or develop my hand/eye coordination on the DS ;) That said, Rogér and I ditched Cable/Satellite and it's been a release. We only watch on Netflix, or streaming from other websites, and local TV. Cuts our monthly costs too!

-Sarah

Day 1: Reverb10 - One Word

2010-12-01T23:00:00.000-08:00

I just read about the Reverb10 challenge on my best friend's blog Living a Brighter Life. It's an opportunity to reflect on the past year and look forward to the coming one, and to share your story along the way. Sounds good to me! You can read more about it and learn how to participate.

Tonight, on our way home from the ranch, I was talking to my husband about what makes some people more capable of accomplishing goals than others. Our conversation was actually related to sports, and the ability to commit without apprehension. My husband pointed out something to me that I know, but never really thought about; when I haven't done something in a while, I'm always scared to try it again, even if my experience was nothing but amazing the first, second, third,...time around. I don't know what about my chemistry, biology, psychology leads me to sabotage myself with worry for no logical reason, and even though I feel like I've been able to overcome enough that I don't feel like my life is hindered, I want to be even better!

I mean, I'm going to be a mom! I want to set a good example for our little boy. I want to be confident in myself and be one of those people who DOES THINGS.

So, I'm going to try this reverb10 thing and see if I can discover my confidence. The first prompt is:

December 1 One Word.
Encapsulate the year 2010 in one word. Explain why you’re choosing that word. Now, imagine it’s one year from today, what would you like the word to be that captures 2011 for you?
(Author: Gwen Bell)

My word for 2010 is Aspire. I chose this word because I had so many (kind-of-fanciful) ideas of what I wanted to do; I wanted to grow my craft business, try a new career, canter my horse, start a family, buy a house and renovate it! I've been fairly successful with many of the things I wanted to do, but I've held back on many as well because I'm scared to move forward.

That's why my word for 2011 is Confidence. During pregnancy (and I'm sure for some time after), I've had to take a break from a many of activities and I've found myself looking to the future as if I'm not going to be able to do those things again, especially the things I loved to do before. This coming year, I'd like to find the confidence to take on my aspirations with less apprehension and less self doubt.

Okay, there's Day 1. We'll see how this goes!

In bloem...

2010-12-01T18:10:00.000-08:00

Holiday Gift Tags!

I just listed a small line of handmade gift tags to add a special touch to your holiday gift giving. These tags are stamped with rustic, charming snowflakes.

Enjoy :)

Gift Tags in bloem

Baby is Almost Here!

2010-11-24T13:31:00.000-08:00

Today is my last day at my REAL job. The job that pays. Which means, it's getting close to time for Baby B to make his grand appearance!

The last few weeks (okay, and months), we've been wondering all the things you wonder when you're waiting for a baby to come; What will he look like? Will he be healthy? Can I do this? Can we do this?

I'm looking forward to the time off, and hoping that I may be able to squeeze in some crafts between napping and last minute to-do's. AND, I'm really looking forward to Baby B's arrival!!!

My Search for the Perfect Brown Boot Continues

2010-11-18T16:19:00.000-08:00

Yes, there's tons on the market, but I'm really picky and on a budget...not a great combo. I thought I found them here. I was soooo excited. They're beautiful! ..When they're not on me...The problem is that they are WAY too big in the calf and also, too tall....I'm short okay. Well, I probably should have returned them, but now I'm past the deadline. I'm terrible at returning things. I just never seem to get around to it. So, my search continues. Here's my main criteria:

1. Brown
2. Zipper must be in back
3. Plain - not too many fancy bits and baubles
4. Real Leather
5. Budget friendly ( I wish I could pay like $400-$600 for REAL equestrian boots, but I can't)
6. Shape - I'm super picky here, I want the to look like what's in parentheses above.

Is that too much to ask for? Damn that zipper on the inside part! So many perfect ones if only I could give a little bit!

In conclusion, I want too many things in one shoe. I've determined that the solution is multiple shoes!! It's a win-win! (except on my wallet)

Winner! - CSNStores.com $20 Gift Code

2010-11-14T08:51:00.000-08:00

Congratulations to Lauren, from Where's My Bread!

Happy spending!

Getting back to business

2010-11-12T10:17:00.000-08:00

It's been hard to keep up with anything related to paper crafts, or any crafts lately. But, I've been inspired to start working on some new invitation projects. I'm trying to channel that inspiration and focus on getting a good inventory up so that I can post more regularly on Bloem on Etsy. I'm also hoping to take my work to some farmers markets and maybe some art and wine festivals next year, when the weather starts to clear up again.

Up until now, I've focused more on custom designs (invitations mostly) for individuals. Now I'm beginning to build a stock of invites and announcements that are generic enough to be bought as is, but also unique and handmade, so you still feel like you're getting something special.

I'm super excited to unveil some of my new designs soon!

-Sarah

$20 Gift Code Giveaway! - CSNStores.com

2010-11-08T09:33:00.000-08:00

bloem has been given the wonderful opportunity to host a $20 gift code giveaway!

This gift code will be good for ALL of the CSN Stores! With 200+ stores, there are thousands of items to fit anybody's taste.

I've been drooling over this pretty white end table like the one below, which I'd love to use in our bedroom. I think they give a country, but clean feeling. I could even use this table as a display table for my work!

Ooooh! I love.

But, you don't have to stick to furniture. I love their office organizing accessories, like the cute little magnetic porcupine below. (I bet this could double as a baby diaper pin holder!)

Whatever your lifestyle, there's bound to be something for you!

Here's how to WIN:

1. (Mandatory) - Browse the CSN stores and leave a comment on bloem, letting me know how you would use the $20 gift code.

2. Become, or be a current Follower of bloem and leave a comment saying that you're a follower. (+1 entry)

3. Post about this giveaway on your blog. Copy/Paste the sentence below into your blog post:

"Looking for great a end table or organization solutions for your home? Check out www.bloemdesigns.blogspot.com for a great $20 giveaway to CSN Stores!"

Don't forget Leave a comment here with a link to your blog post. (+2 entries)

*Make sure to leave a comment for each thing you do*

**This offer is only available in the US and Canada**

Good Luck!

This giveaway will end November 12, 2010 at Midnight.

The winner will be announced November 13, 2010.

Boo!

2010-10-31T14:03:00.000-07:00

Rainy Days

2010-10-30T11:26:00.000-07:00

I'm loving the rainy weather right now! It's such a relief from the scorching hot days we had here in SJ just about a month ago.

The rain is bringing new freshness to everything. It's time for lazy mornings in slippers and pjs, curled up on the couch with a cup of hot chocolate (no coffee for me right now).

The shift in weather has really given me a new burst of creativity, and while I can't wait to showcase what I'm working on, I have to have some patience. So in the meantime, here is an image board that fits my cozy, crafting mood right now.

-Sarah

Klic N Kut vs Pazzles

2010-10-07T11:06:00.000-07:00

I have been dreaming of a personal yet versatile cutting machine for a while now. And, sorry, the Cricut just doesn't cut it! Pardon the pun.

I have BIG ideas and I need a machine that can deliver. These are the two that I'm drooling over right now:

Klic N Kut Maxx 24"

Pazzles Creative Cutter Pro

The Klic N Kut is much more affordable unless I go for the smaller Pazzles model, which doesn't do everything that I want to do. I'm sure they both require quite a bit of learning and trial and error.

The nice thing about both of these is that you can design your own images to cut. You can also (supposedly) emboss, etch, cut fabric, and write with regular pen. And (supposedly again) you can cut thin wood and metal as well! ooooh ahhhhhh.

The bad thing is, the price, for one...yikes! And from what I've read, the software is not that intuitive.

Anyway, I think I'm going to go for it with the Klic N Kut. I'm on the hunt for a lightly used one.

Just Re-Listed in bloempot

2010-10-06T16:07:00.000-07:00

Sweet Treat Cupcake Charm!

A very cute and yummy looking cupcake charm. Go check it out.

Yes, I re-list.

Flickr Photostream

2010-10-06T15:36:00.000-07:00

I posted my Flickr Photostream for bloem a while back, but the link didn't work. Here you can see some of my custom invitation and announcement portfolio. Enjoy :)

bloem Portfolio

My DIY Baby Shower Favors - Take 1

2010-09-30T20:26:00.000-07:00

So I had a mental block for a loooong time over what favors to give at our upcoming baby shower. I even went shopping a couple weeks ago to get inspired and came back empty handed! But today, I gave it a second shot, and came up with an idea that I like.

I wanted to incorporate the mini wooden shoes (Rogér, my husband, is Dutch)that we didn't end up using at our wedding. I bought some "baby" ribbon, as well as some blue and some green ribbon at Michael's. I also bought a Sharpie Paint Pen (it's a pen with oil based paint!!)

Here's the results:

I'm thinking of adding a magnet to each shoe so guests can put them on their fridge. Any opinions or suggestions??

Rejoice! (Plus a Promo Code)

2010-09-23T09:49:00.000-07:00

I'm so glad to say that everything worked out with my Etsy order that I was worried about, here. This totally makes my day!

That, and the new boots I ordered from Shoes.com. I've coveted a great pair of brown "riding" boots for a long time and I think I finally found them! Are they too good to be true? Kinda hard to judge a shoe online, so I'm keeping my fingers crossed. BTW, here's a little 15% off promo code I found for Shoes.com: BTSSHOES10. It expires Sept 30th, so use it while you can!!!

Franco Sarto Women's Rider

In the end though, I spent waaaaay more on the shoes than I earned from my Etsy sale....like I've said before, so much for quitting my day job! I'll think of this as my reward for putting up with work ;)

An Autumn Wedding

2010-09-21T21:22:00.000-07:00

A bloem origninal was just featured in a beautiful Etsy treasury by GrievousAngelDesigns.

Click on the picture to go to the this treasury

Feeling Blue

2010-09-20T11:33:00.000-07:00

Source: http://www.lukechueh.com/index.html

It's always so exciting to get an Etsy buy (especially since I don't get them very often). So you can imagine my disappointment when a recent order came in. But it's a week later and I still haven't received payment on the purchased item (it was via PayPal, so it shouldn't take that long). I feel like I've done everything I can do to politely remind this buyer to complete the payment. This sucks!

So much for quitting my day job, I'm not as savvy at this Etsy thing as I was hoping I would be. Feeling kind of down about the whole thing.

In bloem...

2010-09-20T11:16:00.000-07:00

I just added these flower girl head wreaths to my Etsy store bloem! These are in fall colors, so perfect for anyone with a wedding coming up soon :)

Go check them out!

If you missed the previous post on flower girl head wreaths, you can see more items and photos here

bloem

On My "Workbench"

2010-09-12T15:49:00.000-07:00

Our kitchen cabinets just came in! So exciting, except that they are "Assembly Required", sooOo, they're sitting in boxes piled up in our living room. Hence, my latest flower head wreaths are resting upon the mountains of cabinets. I'll be adding these to my Etsy store soon!

In the bloempot....

2010-09-07T18:37:00.000-07:00

These handmade, pretty little fairies are looking for a home! They would be perfectly happy in your potted plant or adding a little whimsy to your computer desk :)

bloempot

On My Workbench.... Cherry Blossom Paper Tiara

2010-09-01T12:32:00.000-07:00

Working on more paper tiara designs so that your princess can have the perfect crown for her next celebration ;)

In bloem...

2010-08-29T08:00:00.000-07:00

Just listed!

Flower Head Wreaths

On My Workbench...

2010-08-26T10:07:00.000-07:00

For my wedding, I made flower headpieces for the four flower girls.

My little cousin Xian Li in her pillow case dress and flower headpiece

(see MORE wedding pics). They looked so adorable! So I decided to make a couple more from the leftovers, to put in my Etsy store, bloem.

New flower headpiece available in bloem soon!

Custom colors and flowers are available upon request. Just Convo me through my Etsy store!

NEW! Flickr Photostream for bloem!

2010-08-24T21:53:00.000-07:00

Well, as I said, I haven't been making much headway with bloem. However, I did start a Flickr photostream of some of my custom work.

Click here to it out!

Introducing One Ring Short of a Circus

2010-08-21T17:26:00.000-07:00

I created this blog, bloem, to capture my arts, crafts, and adventures in enterpreneurism, but, I've kinda crapped out on all that stuff since um we have waaaay too much going on in our lives right now! I'll need a place to unload our travel reports, house ventures, animal woes, and baby drama. Our new blog is called One Ring Short of a Circus. It's about us. A young couple in suburban San Jose, with a butt-load of animals and a baby on the way.

Enjoy! oh, and bloem is still in the works...just a little slower these days.

~Sarah Nicole

Oh yeah, I have a blog

2010-08-21T17:04:00.000-07:00

Dreadfully sorry to all my devoted followers. I can be not-so-good at keeping up with things, which is why my dirty laundry gets piled so high it blocks out the sun, and why I forgot about my blog for, oh, 4 months or so.

Well, anyway, do you remember the house we bought? This one right here? We moved in this July! Yeah....it's a LOT of WORK! Here's some pics (more to come):

Tearing out the carpet revealed a hardwood floor!

Taking out the wall


And there it is!

In the meantime, we hosted a little painting party, (where a handful of our friends came and helped us paint the interior walls), took a trip to the Netherlands to visit Roger's family, oh yeah, and did you notice anything about my belly in the first pic above? We're PREGNANT!!!

So much to talk about, but I'll save some for later posts. Stay tuned for more !

The biggest check of our lives!

2010-05-05T13:51:00.000-07:00

Today, Rogér wrote the deposit check on our soon-to-be new house! The very same house that I posted about a few weeks ago, here. Man, was it hard to part with that money! But so exciting to start thinking of all the things we can do to our new place to make it scream "US". I already drew up the layout in Visio, (I'm an Engineer), of the "Before" and "After". Pending all inspections, and assuming escrow actually closes on time (let's keep our fingers crossed), we should be moving in by next month!!! I can't wait to post some pics :)

White Rabbit

2010-04-27T12:45:00.000-07:00

Last night, we were on our way home from the ranch where we keep our horse. It's up in the hills in Milpitas, CA. As Rogér was driving the winding road, a white blob in the ditch caught my eye. "Rogér, it's a bunny!" "Oh cute," he said. "No, not like a rabbit bunny, a bunny bunny! Like a pet bunny! We have to stop and see if we can get him!"

Bunz in the moving box

There were two cars behind us, so we had to drive a ways until we could pull over and turn around. We passed 5 more cars on the way back to the little guy. There he was, still chewin on something. I got out and got about this close to grab him and he started hopping away. Here come 2 more cars. I go for him again. Another car, and another. I let up a little cuz I would have DIED if he got hit because of me trying to "save" him!

He laid in my lap the whole way home, while Rogér and I debated how heck he ended up out here?! and what the heck we were going to do with him?! I'm guessing someone dumped him. Could be wrong. But seriously, how long would a little white bunny last out in the hills? We had just given away our dog crate, so we had nothing to put him in. Finally we found a (really small) moving box to make him a home for the night.

Domino (our dog) was going crazy. He thought we brought him home a tasty treat for being such a good boy! Once everyone was settled, (except Domino. He was hyped up all night whining and scratching at the door. We got barely any sleep), we realized that this poor little bunny had lost one of his eyes. :( Who dumps a one-eyed, white, domestic bunny on the side of the road to get picked at alive?!!! Come on people!! There is a great humane society just down the street!

Well, we couldn't keep him. Wouldn't be fair to him or Domino. So I took him to work today and luckily found a kindred spirit who had a place in her home for my little Bunz. I hope he has a long happy life :)

Our Amazing Wedding - May 24th 2009

2010-04-25T13:48:00.000-07:00

I'm finally posting some of the great photos that our photographer and our friends took of our wedding! I am so thrilled to share, as Rogér and I absolutely loved our wedding and we loooove reminiscing about the day we said "I do". Our location was the serene Mattole Camp, halfway between Petrolia (my hometown), CA and Honeydew, CA.

Oh so exciting!

2010-04-24T11:34:00.000-07:00

Today, Rogér and I are freaking out at the prospect of being homeowners! We've been renting in a cute little neighborhood in San Jose for about 2 years. We love, love, love the neighborhood and our awesome neighbors! So I've been watching the house listings in our area for-like-EVER, and finally we found one on our street that fits the bill! EEEEEEEE! (I know the chances of us actually getting it are slim, but hey, a girl can dream, right?) Oh, but all that money that we have to fork over for the down payment....yikes!

Here's our little dream puff: Needs a little love (and probably a new roof), but I think there's some potential here :)

!!!SALE!!!! Reduced Prices by 50%!

2010-04-24T11:24:00.000-07:00

I am clearing out my Etsy store, bloempot! Lots of cute little trinkets and whatnots made entirely by me, out of polymer clay. Go ahead and see what there is to see. You might find something you like :)

Rose Garden Fairy

Mint Chocolate Cupcake Charm

Some new cards

2010-04-19T22:33:00.000-07:00

So, I've been very very busy. I spent last weekend celebrating my girlfriend, Karla's, bachelorette party in Guerneville, CA. Such a cute little town! It's very close to Healdsburg too, so there is plenty of wine tasting. We stayed at the West Sonoma Inn. The place was really great! Plus the bride-to-be got a relaxing spa treatment :)

But anyway, I wanted to share some new cards that I've just put in my Etsy store. Here they are for your viewing pleasure!

Thanks a Bunch! by Bloem

Love Birds, by Bloem

On My Work Bench: "-B-A-B-Y-" Banner

2010-04-10T17:33:00.000-07:00

I'm finishing up my new BABY Banner. It's going to be pretty adorable :)

If you don't like big fluffy pillows....

2010-03-26T22:12:00.000-07:00

Hallelujah! Thank goodness for IKEA and their dirt cheap Gosa Syren (barely there) pillow!

We've had our old, flat, stained, yucky pillows for waaaay to long. The other day, when Rogér was changing the sheets and I realized that our pillows were exactly the same color as our pillow cases, dark beige. It's actually a quite nice color for the sheets, because they're supposed to be that color! But it make my stomach turn thinking about those nasty pillows.

The thing is, we had already made many a failed attempt at splurging on the biggest, cushiest pillows we could find, only to wake up with pain shooting down our necks. I'm more comfortable sleeping with no pillow at all!

Luckily, yesterday, we decided to take a spontaneous romp through IKEA.

So far, so good.

The Bobbin's Nest

2010-03-21T17:14:00.000-07:00

My friend Lisa, gave me a knitting class at The Bobbin's Nest for my birthday. So yesterday, we packed up our knitting hand-me-downs, (Lisa's mom bestowed upon her about 100 knitting needles, crochet hooks, baubles and whatnots, from her late Oma), and headed over. First of all, this studio is so cute! They have really great, high quality fabrics and yarn. Our teacher, Charlotte, walked us through getting the right yarn, casting on, knit and pearl stitches, and she taught me a little fixer trick with a crochet hook! They give you a beginner scarf pattern project, and since it's a two part class, I'll be back next Saturday to finish up mine.

For those who would like to learn to sew, they also have sewing classes. My friend, Maria, took one where she made a beautiful reversible tote!

The Bobbin's Nest Blog

(Photos courtesy of The Bobbin's Nest Website)

In Bloem: Felt & Paper Flower Hair Combs

2010-03-20T08:31:00.000-07:00

A bouquet of flowers made mostly from paper and felt. I've set the flowers on combs so you can wear them in your hair! Check 'em out in my etsy store, Bloem.

Custom Wedding Invitations for Karla

2010-03-19T21:16:00.000-07:00

Custom designed and handcrafted wedding invitations for my friend, Karla. I also designed and made her engagement party invitations, featured here

Invitations by Bloem

Packaged to perfection?

2010-03-19T18:51:00.000-07:00

Still working on ways to package my sales. Here's how I did up my last order from bloempot. What do y'all think? These little guys are off to their new home in Canada!! (I'm always a little nervous shipping my items away)

Wine Charms - Farm Animals from bloempot

Bring on Spring!

2010-03-17T18:27:00.000-07:00

What happened to February and March? I can't believe we're already half way through March! It's crazy how time flies when you're busy. For the last couple months we've been enjoying lots of snowboarding and warming up with wine ;P. Plus, my 28th birthday!!

I'm practically a bear in the winter. Don't bother trying to get me to do ANYTHING. Not even crafts. But thanks to Daylight Saving, and some nice weather, I'm back in business. Oooh, and I am so excited!!

On My Work Bench: Paper Crowns: "Blusher" Mini Tiara

2010-02-13T15:44:00.000-08:00

More tiaras where the first came from! Still need to order some more materials to get the full size tiaras finished. Right now, I'm loving making minis :) This one will be in my etsy store soon!

Mini Tiara - Blusher

Life on Hold

2010-02-10T10:59:00.000-08:00

For once, everything in my life was working smoothly. I can't credit improved time management skills, I think Roger and I had just gotten into a groove that really worked! We were ready to take on a new commitment, volunteering at the new Humane Society of Silicon Valley. Ronin and I were really progressing too. I had just had a great ride, we even cantered. When I got home, I checked my phone messages....it was from the ranch...apparently, five minutes after I left, Ronin kicked and got his legs stuck through the fencing. He was cut up a little. One cut probably could have used stitches, but we decided to take care of it ourselves (ha!).

When all our pets are happy and healthy, we forget how hard things are when they're not. Well, I guess someone thought I needed a reminder.

That was three weeks ago, and since then, our lives have pretty much consisted of going to work, driving home, driving to the ranch, walking Ronin, cleaning, dressing his wound, driving home, and going to bed. The dog isn't getting enough exercise and the bird doesn't get out either. We've canceled dinners with friends, riding lessons, snow trips and just about everything fun. And what about that volunteering we were so excited to do? uh....maybe someday. The good news is, Ronin is getting better, slowly but surely. And that's the most important thing right now :)

Buddy's Day

2010-01-31T16:06:00.000-08:00

Roger and I have been spending so much time taking care of Ronin (our horse cut his leg up pretty bad two weeks ago), that our dog, Domino, and our Myers parrot, Buddy, were getting upset with us.

To make things up to Domino, yesterday we took him to run around for about 1/2 hour with three of his best doggie friends. He was one happy (and tired) dog!!

This morning, Buddy was letting us know loud and clear that it was HIS turn. We brought him outside to enjoy the sunshine and mingle with the neighbors. Good thing we have a perfect tree for him in the front yard, complete with abandoned birds nest! Buddy had a blast.

Did I mention what a gorgeous January day today was?!

Today, I finally said "Goodbye"

2010-01-31T15:46:00.000-08:00

to my Thundercats t-shirt. *sigh* I can't count how many times I've thrown this shirt into our donation box, only to whisk it back out again! Who knows what I thought I should save it for, but it wasn't ready to let it go.

I tend to hold on to a lot of things for way too long. I think "I might use it someday" or "it's so wasteful to throw it away". But keeping everything makes my small house even smaller, leaving me with a cluttered and claustrophobic living space (and mind). I don't work well in clutter. And yet, I'm not very organized...thus, the never ending dilemma of my life.

So, as I try to turn over a new, more put-together leaf, I say "Goodbye Thundercats t-shirt. Hello clear Sterlite storage boxes!"

Sewing Project January Days 1 - 3: Coasters

2010-01-29T19:15:00.000-08:00

I'm working on the first project from my Sewing Calendar (2010)

Coasters!!

I'm not big on following directions......soOoo...I kind of made my own design.

And here are the results!!!

Available now in my Etsy store, bloem

Sewing Calendar 2010

2010-01-27T21:58:00.000-08:00

Sewing: 2010 Day-to-Day Calendar, Megan Smith (Author). Photo courtesy of Amazon

My friend, Kat, got me this Sewing Calendar 2010 for Christmas and it is full of fun sewing projects! I'm pretty sure I don't have enough time to keep up with all the projects (it gives one project for every 3-4 days) but I'm starting up my sewing machine again and slowly getting to them. I'll be sharing my projects here as I go!

In Bloem: Love is in the Air

2010-01-26T17:04:00.000-08:00

Just in time for Valentine's Day!

LOVE

fabric banner, wall decor by bloem

Kiss & Hug

fabric banner, wall decor by bloem

In Bloem: New Tiara

2010-01-16T20:26:00.000-08:00

What's new in Bloem, on Etsy?

M is for....

paper tiara

Lots of Updates to My Etsy Shop!!

2010-01-14T22:52:00.000-08:00

Tonight, I cracked down to do renovating on my Etsy store, bloemdesigns! I put up a pretty new banner (made by moi), gave myself an avatar (also made by me), and uploaded some new goods (of course, made by me also). Here's a peek:

Little Bird Lavender Sachets by bloem

On My Work Bench: Paper Crowns

2010-01-10T16:48:00.000-08:00

I just finished making custom wedding invitations for my friend Karla. They turned out great! I should have kept one for a photo op, but somehow, I forgot. Guess I'll have to wait til I get one in the mail!!

Now I'm on to a new craft fetish: paper crowns. These handmade crowns are super cute and will be perfect for birthday parties, sweet sixteens, bachelorette parties, and bridal showers, as well as plenty of other special occasions. Or, just for decoration. Every glamor girl should have one of these. Look for them in my Etsy store soon!

bloem designs, on Etsy

Winter at the Ranch

2010-01-10T16:37:00.000-08:00

We're trudging through another winter at the ranch. It's muddy, and FREEZING, and it gets dark too early. Now I've found myself in a dilemma over wanting a great snowboarding season and wishing the weather would start warming up. At least while I'm enjoying the snow season, moments like this make dragging my butt up to the ranch worth while.

NOW OPEN! - GunslingerStudios

2009-12-16T10:59:00.000-08:00

Gunslinger Studios is now open for business on Etsy.com! Congratulations to Roger for getting his product online!

Happy Birthday Domino!

2009-11-25T18:22:00.000-08:00

Today Domino is 3 years old! Domino is our Catalhoula, and might I add, pretty much the cutest dog ever (okay I'm a little biased).

Rappy Ruffray Romino!

6 Months & Counting!

2009-11-24T22:24:00.000-08:00

Today was our 6 month anniversary! Wow, that came fast! Roger had a romantic dinner and evening planned, complete with a glass of Carmel Road chardonnay (the white we've enjoyed for years and served at our wedding), and re-reading our vows to each other. It's funny how things work out perfectly. I accidentally left my rings on the bathroom sink this morning. Roger re-proposed with my engagement ring when I walked in the front door! And he tied up our wedding bands in the little nest we used as a ring pillow....awwww, so sweet :) I might argue that I have the best husband ever...swoon.

We also watched our wedding video, which was provided thanks to our friend Craig's mad videography skills ;) AND....I have the wedding photographs (by Lisa Myers-Gonzales)!!! yay!! I can't wait to look at them!

My Best Friend's Wedding

2009-11-24T22:02:00.000-08:00

November 7th 2009

My best friend, Jen, got married to Kris!!! I'm so happy for therm. I couldn't believe how fast their big day came. Jen was glowing and beautiful in her dress and Kris, her new husband, was all smiles.

Their wedding was flawless, thanks to some quick work behind the scenes (good job, Kristen!). It was so much fun that I almost forgot I had to give a speech....and I got almost as emotional as Jen did when she gave one at my wedding.

Weddings are such wonderful events. How much better does it get than celebrating love with all of your close friends?

An Engagement Celebration for Karla & Chris October 24th, 2009

2009-11-18T14:59:00.000-08:00

Our friends Chris and Karla wanted to throw a fun little engagement party get-together with their friends. It was a casual party that was pulled together quickly with the help of Chris and Karla, and the bridesmaids, including moi :) We had hosted the event at the Avalon at Cahill Park Apartments Clubhouse. Relaxed atmosphere, simple dinner & appetizers; a well suited celebration of our friends' happiness.

Invitations by Bloem

Volunteering for Thanksgiving

2009-11-15T15:32:00.000-08:00

Rogér and I thought we'd have fun this Thanksgiving holiday and volunteer our time to help provide others with a wholesome Thanksgiving meal. We didn't expect it to be so hard to find someplace to welcome our free services! We found a few websites that match you with the volunteer service that you'd like to provide. Some of these sites seemed like a great idea, but they didn't have as much as we hoped for. The Salvation Army website points to Volunteermatch.com. Here we found one of the places that we are trying to work with the week before Thanksgiving, the Mayfair Community Center Thanksgiving Dinner, for head injury victims and their families. We also checked with our friend's mom who works for the Chamber of Commerce. She hears about a lot of goings on and turned out to be a great resource! We are really looking forward to some of these events!! I'll keep ya posted on how it goes :)

Hip Buckles from Gunslinger Studio

2009-10-22T09:29:00.000-07:00

Just had to share a couple of Rogér's really cool belt buckles! He etches the copper to get all kinds of intricate designs. Similar buckles made an awesome personalized gift for our groomsmen :) More buckles will be available soon at Gunslingerstudio.etsy.com. You can also order custom!

This tiger was one of three wildlife designs.

Custom buckles for the founder of The Clarity Project

Rogér made these belt buckles for Shane Rogers, founder of The Clarity Project. The Clarity Project designs and fabricates jewelry using only fair trade diamonds and reclaimed precious metals. Profits from The Clarity Project are invested back into mining communities, providing education, mentoring and nutritional support to African mining schools.

Almost a Year Since we Adopted Ronin

2009-10-21T09:56:00.000-07:00

I was helping move my best friend's sister into her dorm room last winter when I got the call about a horse that had been abandoned and was in desperate need of a home. I'd been thinking about getting a horse. It was more like wishful thinking, really. I rent a house in a little suburban neighborhood in San Jose. I have a yard the size of four office cubes, and we were already the proud parents of a 3 year old myers parrot and a 2 year old catahoula (a large, athletic dog that is meant to live on a rural farm and have a real job). We had our hands full. "Well, he probably won't live more than a month if he doesn't find a home." my friend was telling me over the phone, "If you want him, he's yours for free, but we'll have to go up tonight to take a look at him." Tonight?! I rushed home to grab Rogér and my friend who had called about the horse. We drove to Sunol that night and hiked a big hill to find the tall, bedraggled mess of a bay thorouhgbred horse. He was skin and bones, but he was sweet natured.

Rogér with Ronin a couple weeks after we got him

He was supposedly 8 years old. There were no papers. The rules I know about horse trading are: 1) The horse is never as young as the seller says it is, 2) Don't buy a horse before you try riding it, 3) Make sure the seller gets on the horse before you do, 4) Have the horse checked out by a vet before you purchase, and finally 5) there's no such thing as a free horse. Of course, I disregarded pretty much all of these! I made the call the next day that I would take him. Turns out, he was only about 41/2 years old (What?!), which I found out thanks to the helpful people who keep their horses at Indian Hills Ranch in Milpitas.

It took Ronin a long time to put on weight. We did a lot of slow exercise to build up his muscles. For the first few months I didn't even put a saddle on him because I didn't want him to have to carry the extra lbs. Here we are almost a year later and I can't even believe the difference! He looks great and he's doing great! We've also been taking lessons which is really helping me to become a better rider and helping Ronin learn what's expected of him. He's turning out to be an amazingly good horse and he seems to be pretty happy in his new environment :) A very gratifying success!

Rogér with Ronin about a month ago

What's New with Bloem

2009-10-14T11:16:00.000-07:00

Well, I'm working on getting my own business up and running. I'm not the most savvy business woman so I'm basically plowing forward one step at a time. Here's where I'm at with that; Got most of what I need as far as the name, next step...applying for a business and resale license. I'm giving myself until the end of November for all of this. Maybe it's the engineer (my real job) in me that makes me way overthink the entire process, but I get a little confused by what steps come first. That's why I've tried to make use of the Chamber of Commerce (Campbell, CA) nand the County Clerk's Office. Also been to a couple SCORE seminars. All of this is very helpful. I also forget sometimes how helpul a phone call can be, especially when you are feeling overwhelmed by all the information on the internet.

On a more fun note, I took some time the other day to update my invitation portfolio. It was fun to display the invitations that I've worked on :)

I'm in Love

2009-10-14T11:03:00.000-07:00

Last year I discovered what is now my favorite resource for creative materials. It's called the East Bay Depot for Creative Re-Use and it has all kinds of scrap/used/salvaged paper and craft stuff! You can buy paper by the inch (stacked) and find book bindings, fabric, beads & vintage jewelry. It's fantastic and (I'm sorry to say) I don't know of any other place like it. If you do know of other places that are devoted to reuse of craft materials, please post!

Custom Handmade Bachelorette Party Invitation - Jennifer

2009-10-04T18:44:00.000-07:00

This invitation was on my workbench for quite some time and I couldn't wait to post it! (I had to wait until all the invites went out) It's one of my favorites so far. Sophisticated, yet fun. Purple sparkle vinyl paper. Hand-cut girl silhouette with rhinestone and embossing detail. I think it's the perfect "Glamourous Girls' Night Out" design. I never make the same custom invitation design twice, which ensures each of my clients gets something unique and special to them....but....If you like this one, I can always come up with something equally as fabulous for your special event. Convo me through my Etsy store, bloemdesigns.

Bachelorette Party Invitation - Style# Jennifer

Style# Jennifer - Detail

Yay! New Camera!

2009-10-04T18:07:00.000-07:00

I'm so glad we finally got a new small camera! We tried to take our broken Cannon Elph to a repair shop here in San Jose, Kamera Korner. They seemed nice enough and knowledgeable, but the thing is, there's a $30 minimum to start, then you sign a waiver saying you will pay up to $125 in repairs, before you know if it can even be fixed! Sucky. Anyway, we decided the risk was too high and we went a bought this camera at Best Buy for $119!!

Wedding Photographs (A Sneak Peak)

2009-09-24T16:25:00.000-07:00

Friends are awesome! And it's so convenient when their talented too! Rogér and I were so happy to have our friend, Lisa Myers, photograph our wedding and from the looks of this sneak peak, she did a phenomenal job. Can't wait to see the rest! Thanks so much, Lisa! ( and Craig, for doing the videography... and capturing our vows on video so that we can relive them forever and ever ;)

Rings in their Nest - Courtesy of Lisa Myers Photography

Homemade Blackberry Jam Favors - Courtesy of Lisa Myers Photography

Groom & Bridesmaids - Courtesy of Lisa Myers Photography

Missed Photo Opportunities

2009-09-23T09:57:00.000-07:00

Why do things break at the most inopportune times? On the first leg of our honeymoon, in Dublin, Ireland, we lost the use of our little Canon camera. Boo. Sure, we have the giant SLR Nikon D60, (which is fantastic!) but you just can't take that everywhere. It's way harder to take a self shot with one of these things and handing it to someone else to take a photo, well, I would say it's probably comparable to leaving your child in the hands of a babysitter for the first time. Trying to explain how to use it to the poor passerby is a nightmare. I serioulsy need to call around to find a camera repair shop that can fix my camera so that we can continue to capture the smaller moments of life.

Charmed

2009-09-23T09:46:00.000-07:00

Mini cupcake charms inspired by my affinity for cake decorating!

As much as I LOVE to decorate cakes and cupcakes, I decided that the baking part is too much work...hehe. So I'm finding other ways to decorate pastries. The charms above are made from polymer clay and are available at my Etsy store, bloempot. I'm also making paper cards with cupcakes and cakes....I'll post those pictures as soon as I find a memory card for our camera!

Gift Tags - The minimalist in me

2009-09-15T10:38:00.000-07:00

I've been playing around with one sided gift tags. They're a great way to add a little personal note to your gift. They're also a perfect way to sample my work. This way, I get my fix of creating something new on a small scale that's still useful. I make all gift tags out of scrap from previous projects and reused/salvaged materials sooooo...they're earth friendly too!

A Trip Home

2009-09-14T22:30:00.000-07:00

Before the wedding, I wanted to take my girls home to Petrolia with me. Yes, it's true, not even my bestest best friend had ever been to Petrolia. Why? 'Cuz it's just not a convenient place to get to. It is, however, a charming little valley and a very different experience from the city life they're used to.

Up, past the Avenue of the Giants, and through the foggy town of Ferndale, we learned to make butterballs with wooden paddles, and sewed lavender satchels with my grandmothers Singer. We made sliced local apples for applesauce, and tasted yummy homemade jams (my favors) from the Lorensen Farm.

What's in my Etsy store right now

2009-09-14T21:53:00.000-07:00

A little peek at my recently posted, handmade items for sale at www.bloemdesigns.etsy.com.

"Love-Cherish-Joy" Greeting Card

Pink Blossom Thank You Cards - Set of 5

Our Wedding Invitations Continued....

2009-09-14T21:33:00.000-07:00

I was so happy with the look I created for our wedding invitations! However, with all the other to-do's of wedding planning, I put the actual manufacturing of them off until it was much too late for me to make them on my own. That's when I called for reinforcement! There's nothing like a sweatshop of best girlfriends when it comes to getting projects done! Okay, maybe it's not the most efficient way...we did gab a lot, but it made the process 10X more fun and the end result fabulous!

Evelyn & Jen hard at work :)

Making my own wedding invitations

2009-09-14T21:21:00.000-07:00

My favorite part of wedding planning was making our invitations. I started making the paper almost a year in advance! I blended newspapers, dried veggie greens, flower petals, and whatever I could scrounge up into paper pulp slush and dipped my homemade paper screen in one by one. I laid each piece carefully on a sheet of cotton fabric and let them dry in the sun. How relaxing ... just me and my vat of paper pulp, out in the driveway on the warm days of summer. It was pretty time consuming though, and I never got a lot of paper. Oh well.

Since I couldn't make enough paper for the full invitation, I used store bought cardstock for the envelopes and the maps. I was also a little uneasy about printing on my rugged handmade paper, so I chose to print on vellum and fasten it to my paper with a ribbon, and...voilà!

The proposal - a little piece of this past year

2009-09-04T23:45:00.000-07:00

I got the warnings in my email inbox a couple weeks ago; our wedding website www.sarahandroger.weddingwindow.com, has expired! We'll miss you wedding website! Luckily I've salvaged our proposal story (as told by Rogér), here in my blog. To hear all about how he popped the question, read on....

Sarah, I may be able to cover this subject best. Hi everyone, after lots of preparation the day (June 19th, 2008) went really well!

I knew that the weekend after moving into our new place we might both use a break after all the hard work and stress. My plans were to convince Sarah that we could get a great workout in a great environment in Garland Park. I love Garland park and suggest that everyone takes some time to enjoy it if on your next trip to Carmel. The park has a fantastic view of the entire valley and is super dog friendly. Oh yeah, let me get back to the proposal story.

I planned a great little hike to the top of Garland park for Sarah, Domino, and myself (Buddy wanted some alone time and stayed home). For some reason I remember it being an easier hike. Well I didn't expect to sweat as much as I did, but I think that I can chalk some of that up to nerves and carrying a full backpack. I knew that there was a fantastic view at the top, so I wanted a great setup to really set the mood and to make sure that I wouldn't chicken out. I had Dave Perryman, a longtime friend and groomsman, double check the location and, on the day, haul a roll-up wooden table, plus a whole backpack of extras. I really appreciate everything Dave. A stealth text message set Dave on his way. With a ten minute head start he was able to set up without ever being seen.

Typically there are very little people who make the 10 mile hike, especially on days as hot as this day was, so imagine my surprise when on the last few bends I heard voices. I knew I was near the top and practically dragged Sarah speedily past the group of six hoping that I had made enough ground to not have an audience, and not have them ruin the surprise.

At the top there was a fantastic view: a table with flowing white tablecloth, red rose petals, champagne, and my shaking hand holding an amazingly sparkly, HUGE, diamond ring.

I got down on one knee shakely and with a nervous and stuttering voice asked Sarah if she would marry me. She said "Yes!!!" (if she hadn't, it would have been a very long, uncomfortable hike back).

We enjoyed a light lunch of fresh fruit & berries, which in retrospect I probably should have made sure was at the top of the backpack and not at the bottom where I found them, and a wonderfully refreshing glass of bubbly.While cleaning up, Domino and I got stung by some bees; me on my arm and poor Dom on his nose :( Other that that little sidenote the hike and view was fantastic.

The day was not over and neither were my plans...

I had a pretty tight schedule and some great plans ahead. The next stop was the wonderfully relaxing hour and fifteen minute massage at the Esalen Lodge near Big Sur. Wait, I want to note that we did go back to my Dad's house and shower before that. The massage was amazing. We were together in a great little shack right on the edge of the sea cliff. The technique supposedly mimicked the motion of the ocean as if you were being massaged by the whitewash itself. We both really enjoyed ourselves. Did I mention that this place is totally clothing optional? It definitely added to the adventure. Esalen also has great and super relaxing natural hotsprings. The whole experience was very relaxing and rejuvenating.

To end this perfect day I had made a reservation at our most favorite restaurant in Monterey, aptly named Monterey's Fish House. Wow I can't say enough great stuff about this place. Everything they serve there is the best. Every dish is my favorite!

We ordered the crabcake for appetizer. Sarah ordered it to my surprise because she had a bad experience with crab when she was young. She told me that she would absolutely eat anything created at this restaurant. For dinner, Sarah had the Salmon grilled on an oak plank and I had a tomato pesto pasta with shrimp both dishes were complemented with a bottle of Carmel Road chardonnay and we finished the night with a tiramisu with spumoni ice cream.

What a great day!!!

But for all the planning my favorite parts where when I would catch Sarah looking down at her ring, break out in a big smile, and blush.

P.S. Sarah was watching me type the last bit and got a big smile on her face, blushed, and teared up a bit. She is a total sweetheart and I love her.

Awwww....What an amazing day. I have such a great hubby :)

If you are ever in the Carmel Valley area, Garland Park IS a great little hike. Esalen is not for the faint of heart, but a phenominal place of serenty if you are comfortable in your birthday suit. And last, but not least, the Monterey Fish House is de-lish!

Jackpot!

2009-09-04T14:03:00.000-07:00

At some point, we find ourselves knee deep in materials, tools, little pieces we’ve made here and baubles we’ve made there. There are only so many friends available to give handmade earrings and bracelets to so we shove our slaved over creations into containers and stack them away in closets until the next craft fair. As for me, my crafts end up spread out all over the living room and spare bedroom. What to do with this array? My first attempt at displaying my work to the masses was an Ebay store. I found the user interface cumbersome. Too many options, links, and whatnot, I often struggled to find the information I was looking for and if I found it, I could never recall how to get to it again. Not to mention, I wasn’t reaching the right market. One day, I was searching for comparable products to help price my miniature polymer clay figurines, which led me to Red Fenyx’s Etsy shop. Aha! Etsy, a perfect marketplace for all things handcrafted and wonderfully organized & simple. LOVE IT!

I opened an Etsy shop for my mini figurines and charms, bloempot. My new Etsy shop for invitations, announcements, and stationary will be up soon, bloem designs. I'll keep you posted!

Starting from Scratch

2009-09-03T22:28:00.000-07:00

I usually do things the hard way. Like every craft junkie, I ogle the latest cutting, printing, pre-fabricated gadgets which make "homemade" so easy. But something stops me from jumping on board. Okay the price for sure! I mean who has extra cash in their back pocket to throw at template cartridges? That's not the only reason though.

I had a humble upbringing in a small valley town of Northern California. No department stores (barely a store at all), but what I did have was the beauty of nature all around me and a mother who could make anything from nothing. We got our eggs from the chickens in the yard, our apples from the trees, our milk from the goats in the pen. My mom taught me how to ride horses, play the violin, draw & paint, spin wool, crochet, stamp leather, weld, and make paper. This lifestyle instilled in me a sense of responsibility for preservation of the crudely and truely handmade.

I grew up and flew the coup as fast as possible, with my sights set on a faster paced world. In this world, bombarded by gazillions of mass produced designs, cool tools, and Martha Stewart, I couldn't help but dip my toes in a little. So here it is, my somewhere-in-the-middle....bloem. My creations. My inspiration. My journey.

enjoy :)