For the Love of Letters - I AM

A little lettering practice while my son was doing a Bible project for school. I'm getting used to using Crayola markers, but I think I'm ruining the tips with my heavy hand!

For the Love of Letters - Happy Birthday

A little lettering practice on my son's birthday - happy birthday to my 14 yr old guy!

The start of a new year requires reflection and redirection for many. While I'm not a resolution person, I have been thinking long and hard about the direction for my art. What do I really love to do? Where do my strengths lie? What are my favorite pieces from last year? Flipping through my sketchbooks told me a lot. I discovered I really don't do well with watercolor. Acrylics have the strength of color I love. And lettering rose to the surface, no surprise. The designer in me will always love typography!

This year I want to work on my hand lettering, and part of that process includes using new materials. So I bought myself a new box of Crayola markers, the same kind I used decades ago when I was in grade school. I must admit, there was a bit of nostalgia involved while creating this piece!

I love a bit of birthday fun shortly after Christmas - it keeps the party going!

Welcome Snow!

There's a big snowstorm headed for the Southeastern states - which you know is a big deal if you've spent any time in the South. No plows. No salt. No winter driving savvy. Being a Michigan gal, 6" of snow isn't something you really stop life for, but south of the Mason-Dixon it's a different story.


Everyone thinks a snowstorm warrants stocking up on bread and milk. Nope, not me. I'd rather get crafting! How about a new SNOW themed wreath for the front door? All the Christmas decorations are down and the house feels a little bare.

In the classic use-what-you-have spirit, I took our old autumn wreath and gave it a make over.

The old autumn wreath. I'm so over monograms.

Most of the leaves and artificial pumpkins had fallen off over the years, so it was an easy job stripping it down. I still liked the pheasant feathers, so I kept them. Yeah, pheasants live through snowstorms too, so they're seasonally appropriate. :) 

I rummaged around for anything white and wintry - I found some sheer & solid white fabric scraps, a few yarn pom poms I made for another project that never materialized, and leftover ribbon from Christmas. Our front door is black, and the feathers are black and brown, so I wanted to include a black and brown garland to tie it all together. Remember, I'm all about quick and cheap - a paper bag and Sharpie.

Ribbons, pom poms and fabric strips were tied to the center point of the feathers. The sheer fabric reminded me of blowing snow, so I swept that around the top. The SNOW garland was a quick project to assemble. The banners aren't identical and I hand drew the letters. All in all, this wreath came together in about 20 minutes and cost $0. That's a win in my book!

And now that I'm freezing from hanging my wreath outside, I'm off to snuggle and work on some WARM knitting. Currently I'm making the Milk Stout Cardigan by Thea Colman (Ravelry link). It's a cozy cabled cardigan with a shawl collar - perfect for keeping my neck warm! There's a lot of knitting to do before it's finished...

I hope you're inspired to be creative this weekend no matter what the weather! Be safe in the snowstorm, and as Grandma always said, "Wear a hat!"