Uninspired.

Recently I've felt very uninspired.  Or maybe too inspired?  It seems that I have a plethora of ideas at all times and am having a hard time getting them out.....

With fall here, and the cold weather looming waiting to rush in, it seems now is a perfect time to get the ball rolling.

I am going to spend the day sketching and getting as many ideas as I can out on to some paper, but in the mean time, I'll show you a little project I did for my brother for the big three-oh.

Birthday in a Box, Remake.

Since I couldn't be with him in person, I sent him a celebration in a box with some of our favorite movies from our childhood.  I figure since he is getting SO old, I'd better give him some of our childhood to keep him young.  

In all seriousness though, he is the best brother in the world, and I don't think I would be half the person I am today without him.  How'd he turn out so good?  Ask my parents I guess, he is a truly wonderful person and friend.  Happy happy birthday Tommy!  Cheers!

Inside/Outside.

I've been sitting in my backyard with a lovely breeze flowing through the trees and on my face.  Addie is biting and rolling around back here with me, the birds are chirping, and I've realized how nice it is to have a little piece of the outside to call your own.  Especially for those of us who live in a city, we definitely know how important it is to be out with grass & trees & a little bit of wild life.

All this being said, I thought I would post about the brunch Alex & I threw for the mothers in our life a couple of weeks ago.  We had a brief day where both of our moms, and a grandmother, were all in town - and grabbed the opportunity to bring everyone together.

It is always fun to bring the people you love together & bring a little of the inside, outside.

Wine Bottles & Sprouts.

I just finished putting in our little garden fence this afternoon & although I can't take credit for the idea, I love it.

Completed Garden Fence.

The rest of the wood was just rummaged up from our backyard....for some reason there is a plethora of wood laying around.  Lucky for us, our garden fence cost $0.  It probably took me about 4 hours to get all of the labels off of the bottles so I suppose I paid for the fence in time, but I rather like the result.

Cork Veggie Markers.

I also have a bunch of corks laying around from the bottles, and I stuck them into a skewer and wrote on them to mark which veggie is which.  Also cost $0.  I win!   

Hooray for veggie gardens & wine.  

(Don't worry Mom, we didn't drink all this wine-  I took them all from the restaurant, I swear.)

Orvillecopter.

So this really has nothing to do with crafts, making anything, inspiring & is basically irrelevant in every way possible.  BUT it's too weird & hilarious not to note.


This is the headline that peaked my interest;
"Orvillecopter takes flight: Cat run over by car gets extra life...as a remote-controlled helicopter"
(There is a couple videos attached to this article that should definitely get a looksy.)

Nope, this is not an Onion article, this is real life.


An artist in Amsterdam, by the name of Bart Jansen, made his cat who was suddenly hit by a car, into a helicopter.  At first I was appalled & weirded out, but then I thought it was actually pretty funny in a morbid, kind-of-awful way.  


I then heard an interview with him, and he certainly sounds like a nutty artist, but he finds it very silly too, so I guess that's a good thing...?  I don't know but it definitely is a conversation piece.

Remodelista.

Also, I just stumbled upon this blog, and oh boy.... it's goooood.

Remodelista -  You can thank me for this when two hours of your life are gone, and you yank out your door feeling a little-too-ambitious for a DIY remodeling moment.

And I suppose I should wish you good luck with that......

Terrible.

I've been a terrible blogger (once again) & here comes the goods.  Well, here comes....something?  Yeah.

Here's what I've been up to;

*Alex & I planted a veggie garden - & we have baby sprouts!

*Trips to parent's houses, and had parents visit us.

*Went to Florida with my family - & better yet, went to Harry Potter world again!

*Worked lots.

*Hiked to the Eternal Flame.

*Biked around Buffalo.

*Learned to fishtail braid (I'm super pumped about this)!

*Read all of the Hunger Games books - & loved them.

*Saw manatees, dolphins, & turtles in the wild.

*Got a new computer!

*Made a scrap yellow leather bag.

*Threw a Mother's Day Brunch for my Momma, & some other lovely Mommas in my life.

*And last but not least - enjoyed this beautiful early spring weather!

I promise, there will be pictures soon!

(Don't tell anyone, but I actually missed blogging a bit.....)

Happenings, As Of Late.

I've been a terrible blogger recently.  This two job thing is surprisingly taking up a lot of my time, who would've thought?  Well, anyway, just because I suck at posting things on here, doesn't mean I haven't been busy making/doing things!  So here is what I have done recently.

Kitty Cabin!  

Somehow my fat little Brucey bear squeezed his big body in there.  Those kitties of mine love it.  I made it out of cardboard & hot glue, then painted it & covered it with fabric.  Voila.

Leather Tray Holder.

In the sixties everyone used these and I needed one.  I used some strips of left over leather and an old metal ring & sewed it up!  It makes my tray obsession a little more manageable & displays them in our kitchen.  Kills two birds with one stone.  Woo.

Bird Baby Mobile,

I made this for a good friend's baby.  Her theme for her nursery was woodland creatures & I thought it would suit it perfectly.  I hope so, and I hope that the baby loves it.

My Little Tough Ladybird.

I didn't make this, but oh man.  Isn't she the saddest little tough girl?  This is how I spend majority of my days off...

Mini-Risks.

I stumbled upon this blog post about taking mini-risks and becoming more prolific and effective in a work day.  This article came to me through the Etsy Success Team, and I love it!  It inspired me to talk to someone today who I walk past all the time who lives on my street.  Mini-risks make you feel confident, and prolific.  Here's to Mini-Risks!

Artisan Videos.

These videos have popped up on a bunch of blogs that I read, and I love them.  It is such a nice peak into the life of someone who totally dedicates their life to their craft.  I'm in awe of these artists.

Drew McDonald is a Shoemaker.

Del Kathryn Barton is a Painter.

Thanks to Dumbo Feather Magazine for making these wonderful videos.  These people are so inspiring.

Living Room Adjustments.

I finally painted the living room!  Actually, I did it about a month and a half ago, but I forgot to post the pictures..... So here it is!

Before.

After!

I picked a light yellow-orange color, and I finally arranged the photos behind.  I love the way it turned out.  It really lights up the room.  I also made that little green pillow oh the sofa, it suits the couch better than the blue floral number in the before picture.  

On another note, I did some spring cleaning on the blog and rearranged and changed a couple things.  You like?  I also made the NestingDoll logo today too with business cards on the way!  Yay for getting my stuff together (kind of)!

A Good Book.

I recently had my first day working at a library, and all I can say is that it makes you want to read read read.  That, and it being winter in western New York all I want to do is keep warm and snuggle with a good book and my little weasel doggie.  

By April Starr of FlourishCafe

This stuff is too cute, and I've recently had a minor obsession with typography and stationary......so it's an all around win in my book.  

Valentine's Day.

Can you think of any better way to spend Valentine's Day then curled up in a fort with candles all around you, takeout sushi, cake, champagne and a movie?  I can't.  So that is exactly what we did.

This year's love fort;

Our Fort.

Complete with a mix CD from Alex, and a good feel good movie.  Forts have become a little tradition for us, and it couldn't be more perfect.

New Cardigan.

What I'm wearing today;  my new cardigan.

It's nothing special, but it completes this outfit, and goes with this skirt I bought a while ago.

Cardigan: Thrifted
Skirt: Two Hearts
Belt: Vintage Versace

I love my new cardigan.

Magnets and Fur.

My Momma and her pup have been here this week visiting and recovering from a minor surgery.  We've done lots of dog walking, lots of shopping, a good amount of time eating delicious food and just generally spending time together.  It's been really fun.  And our dogs have been crazy and keeping each other very very very busy.

Monsters on the Bed.

Cuddling.  

We've been mostly keeping up with our crazy doggies, but I did have time to make some simple magnets for our fridge.

Just to hold pictures of our animals and our friends.  

These are simple and cute.  They also are better than any magnets that I've bought from the store too.  It's a win win.  I'm gonna go cuddle with those doggers.

Studio Update.

I did some organization yesterday.  It makes my studio feel a little bit more like a reflection of myself.
Here it is;

Looks a little neater.

I used old cereal boxes and some cardstock to make the trays and folder carriers, and then covered them with paper.  I like the result.  Hooray for organization!

Busy Busy.

I have been trying to get our apartment just the way I want it recently.  It's really coming along, and it makes me feel so good to be home in this space that is uniquely ours.

Anyway, here is our new dining room.

Before color was off white, did not match our bright white table.

After color!

It's a lovely light sage green, and it makes it feel a little more like ours.  I know it seems like doing a lot to a place that we won't live forever, but I love feeling like it is completely our space.  It makes a big difference.  In addition, tonight we christened the new dining room by eating a wonderful homemade dinner by candlelight.  What's better to do when it's snowing like crazy outside? 

New Headboard, & Other News.

I picked up this old headboard at a Thrift Store a couple of months ago with the plan to remake it for our guest room.  Of course it sat in my studio for about two months, and being that it is now a new year, I  am trying very hard to get organized.  Basically, I remade this headboard to get it out of the way.  But what a nice way to get it out of the way!

Here is the Before;

Before Retro Vinyl Yellow Headboard.

After!

My New Guest Room Headboard!

A Closer Look.

I love it.  My mom had given me this fabric a while ago, and it works perfectly for this room!  I love it when things work out.

In other news, Alex and I bought a new car!

Our New Baby, Gladys.

We bought a brand new (to us) 2009 Subaru Forester.  And I love it.  As you can see, we did get quite a bit of snow the past few days, but it is nothing Gladys cannot handle.  Bring on the snow Buffalo.

Cutest Smoke Alarm. Ever.

Look at this!

Order here for about 50 Euro.

It's actually a smoke alarm!  I love it.  I'm gonna need one in every room.

Pretty much the sweetest thing ever.

It is based on a chick-a-dee which have various warning calls.  Chick-a-dees used to let miners know when poisonous gases were harmful, so why not put one in your house?

Goodness gracious I love birds.  

Change.

Starting fresh in this new year means some change.

For me, I have a little more free time, I have made a serious commitment to setting up an online shop, and I'm gonna buy my first car (with no parental help, well...not much at least).  Change for my blog of course is natural and I am going to use it as an inspiration tool.  I will post projects whenever they come up along with other whats-its and oddities.  This week amongst a somewhat busy timeline, I made room for a quick makeover.

Along with the makeover we did some Buffalo exploring, we had friends visit for a couple of nights, and we took Addie to her first trip to Niagara Falls!

When I say quick makeover, I mean that very loosely because all and all the project took us about 5 hours...  It did pay off though.  It looks SO much better.  See?

Before Kitchen Window.

Ta- Da.

After Kitchen Window!

  

Pardon the dirty dishes.

We have the luxury in living in an old Buffalo house that I adore, but it certainly looks better with a fresh coat of paint over some of the beat up bits.  Just this whitewash makes the whole kitchen lighter.  Of course we now have to do the cabinets.....ugh.  Painting is so bitter sweet.  

Some other highlights;

Our walk through Delaware Park.

I love this Buffalo mansion.  Lions live here.

Our friends, Alex & Addie getting misted.

Exploring Niagara Falls Park.

Always beautiful.

I'm a happy bear.

Red.

"When you're feeling blue, wear red." - said the american designer Pauline Trigere.

I couldn't agree more.

Being that it is the first cold day we've had in Buffalo, this is the time of year when everyone starts to hibernate and perhaps feel a little blue.  Not that blue isn't just fine, but red is to needless to say, fabulous.

Take it from some of my favorite style icons.

Bridget Bardot - Somehow makes pigtails look sexy - Playful Red.

Jackie O - Somehow makes smoking/balancing/taking a picture look adorable- Casual Red.

Elizabeth Taylor - Loved love, and diamonds - Girl Next Door Red.

Daphne Guinness - Wearing 10 yards of fabric look effortless - Avant-Garde Red.

Grace Kelly - Nothing to say other than beautiful - Classic Red.

Greta Garbo - Just Plain Romantic Red.

Don't these ladies make you wanna wear red?