JuBella.com – Get Your Creative Dose

Oh me! Oh my! Does everyone know about The Makerie Retreat except me? I love the whole concept of creative workshops and to see something as lovely as The Makerie Retreat is pure inspiration. Their upcoming retreat will be hosted in 2012 on April 19th through the 22nd in beautiful Boulder, Colorado; and participants will stay in cozy cottages nestled in Chautauqua National Park. Aaah!

The retreat next year will hold workshops exploring: Intuitive Painting, Crochetology, Food Styling & Food Photography, Letterpress, Painting with Stitches, Shooting Your Craft, Sewing Oliver + S Sleepover Pajamas, Your Life In Pictures, Pretty Pressed Packaging, Sewing Creative Characters, and Sewing a Lisette A-Line Dress! Wow, what a line up heh? You can register and find full descriptions about the retreat along with info about the classes and teachers here.

Here are a few pics from The Makerie 2011 Retreat and a few highlights of the 2012 workshops. This sounds like a perfect creative getaway to go to solo or with a crafty friend….divine!

Happy Tuesday Everybody! I hope you didn’t go thinking that I had gone off and forgot about you again….oh no! I wouldn’t do that to you again, at least not on purpose. I hope you all had a great weekend. I spent most of mine watching documentaries which included: “How to Cook Your Life”, “Kings of Pastry”, and “Food Inc.” There is nothing better than being cuddled up in a warm blanket on rainy day with an endless amount of streaming movies via Netflix!

While I did no actual blogging this weekend I did do a lot of link hopping. There was just something about the illustrations of Artist Nicole Sharp of Cole & Josephine that really inspired me. While attending art school I absolutely hated using watercolor and let’s not even talk about my temperament with gouache. However somewhere down the line while freelancing I fell in love with watercolor. I love how you can change and control the fluidity and how you can layer transparent over opaque. I really like the wittiness of Nicoles pieces (note the humorous text that goes along with her prints in her etsy shop!

Denyse Schmidt is one of my favorite quilters! Her color palettes are fantastic and this video via Pottery Barn is so inspirational! I can picture myself sitting at that lovely Brother machine of hers. A couple of her designs are for sale online and through catalog via Pottery Barn.

Oooh! Don’t we all love Lotta Jansdotter! She’s only one one of my favorite textile designers! Here are a couple of easy and fun tutorials that I found. Yay!

How to Make Patchwork Coasters w/ Lotta Jansdotter from Rowenta USA on Vimeo.

Iron-On Transfers w/ Lotta Jansdotter from Rowenta USA on Vimeo.

I love when you can use very simple and mundane items to perk up a gift or decorative piece. One item in particular that I can’t get enough of is Japanese Washi Tape, also referenced as deco tape! The little gems are adorned with some of the prettiest colors, patterns, and typography which can add a lot of character to something very simple. I am actually quite surprised to see that there were not more photos of DIY projects using this tape. I know that I have tons of ideas swimming in my mind. Maybe that calls for another tape it pretty inspired post! Nevertheless, here are a few ideas that I love and have collected from around the web. Just click the links below the photos for more info and pics!

Here are two of my favorite shops for deco/japanese tape: Happy Tape and Pretty Tape

Oh Happy Tape

Oh Hello Friend

The Beat That My Heart Skipped

To Be Charmed

Cute Kawaii

A Spoon Full of Sugar Girls

Once Wed

Lesson Learned: the importance of recycling, color, scent(if you use a fragrance),temperature, time.

This is a great project for those empty cans from your canned food, that would just otherwise in up in the trash. Try preserving them just a bit longer by turning them into soy candles!

Supplies Needed:
Empty Can, washed and dried
Soy Candle Wax, microwavable
Colored string or any other decorative element you would like to use on the outside of your can
Acrylic paint
Modge Podge or any clear drying sealer
Glue Stick, quality
Candle wick

How To Make It: Take your can and paint/decorate the edges and the bottom your can. If using acrylic paints, you will have to do a few coats to obtain a nice rich & even color. Let dry and seal your painted edges and bottom with modge podge. Once your modge podge/sealer has dried. Grab your glue stick & cover a portion of the side of your can with glue. Starting from the top of your can wrap your string around the sides gradually covering the entire can as you work your way down to the bottom. Trim off ends If you are using a different embellishment, simply use your glue and embellishments to decorate your can. Let sit & dry for about 10 minutes.

Place your wick in the center of your can. You can use a small dab from your glue stick or double sided tape to keep it in place. Melt your wax (once melted you can stir in your fragrance oil) as directed and slowly pour the hot wax into your can. Trim your wick & let your wax dry according to directions.

Light and enjoy!

Psst..Here is a good video on making soy and beeswax candles. They do make lovely gifts!

The work of Artist Stephanie Levy is not only full of color but it reminds me of the days of putting together design boards for my Interior Design classes. I LOVE the concept of making something that is usually not seen as art into something that is very artistic. Here are a few of my favorites but you can find many more of her original pieces by visiting her etsy store! Oh, and be sure to drop by her latest blog “Kitchen Sketches”, where Stephanie share lovely drawings of kitchen scenes and some fabulous recipes to whip up in your own kitchen!

I can totally see myself over indulging in a project such as this. Filled with color and simplicity, these colorful adornments created by quilter and Textile Designer Denyse Schmidt would add character to many different spaces. I can see a bunch of them stacked randomly in a cute dish/bowl. I can also see these as Christmas tree ornaments as well..yes, I am quirky enough to do so! LOL. You can find the how-tos of this project along with a great feature on Denyse in the Summer 2009 issue of Creative Home (psst…i love this issue of Creative Home by the way..it’s filled with lots of color goodness…as usual!)

When the word zakka is mentioned, I immediately fall into a daydream filled with images of a cute and chic home that is filled to the rim with loving touches of care, creativity, and beauty. Creating a zakka filled home for my family is quite a task, but a goal that I find quite worthy of working towards to fulfilled. Lots of money is not needed when it comes to adding character within each and all mundane tasks. Just alittle bit of thought and creativity is all you really need!

I simply fell in love with all the zakka filled goodness of Japan based company Shinzi Katoh. Everything they carry is deliciously sweet in design!

The site is a bit sketchy as far as navigation but there was just too much cuteness not to post it here on JuBella. My absolute favorite of their pieces are these cute little saucer and tea cups, in which the saucer fits more as a lid on top of the cup…how sweet and convenient. Also, as I lover of text meets imagery, I love how most of their pieces have cute and inspiring messages floating upon them! Oh, and the decorative Opp tape (packaging tape) How adorable is this! Who says shipping can’t be pretty!

I recently ran across Wilkintie, an Australian based letterpress company. they have some great designs and these are my favorite. Be sure to remember that the prices are in Australian dollars! Letterpress seems like such a beautiful and classy form of art, but I must say that I find it quite intimidating, yet one day I would love to give it a try..at least once!

“I’m so proud of my beautiful new designs in Softwares,” said Amy Butler. “I love the way this digital collection allows sewers and quilters to customize and completely plan their projects – and better yet, to see the results right before their eyes.” ~Amy Butler

She just never stops the inspiration! Amy Butler has a new quilting software (Amy Butler Softwares) via the Electric Quilt Company that will be available for purchase for just $29.95 on May 15th. The software will be available on both Amy’s site as well as the Electric Quilt Company site. The digital software will include a collection of 22 new home sewing projects and nine bonus projects for sewers of all skill and experience levels who want to add fresh, modern items to their homes. Project instructions are written in a clear, step-by-step style so that first-time as well as experienced sewers can successfully create beautiful new projects for their homes! Yay!

Images by David Butler, © Amy Butler Design for The Electric Quilt Company

I love the color palettes of yarn and fibers that you can find on Mary Janes Attic! The colors are fantastic and their yarn seems reasonably priced, so all of you knitters felters, and crocheters better click on over for some fiber goodness! I am dying to get back into learning the proper way to knit. It has been much too long since I have held a pair of knitting needles!

PS to all of my fiber readers in San Francisco! Visit the storefront for Mary Janes Attic:

Urban Fauna Studio
Fiber Boutique & Craft Studio
1311 16th Avenue
San Francisco, CA 94122
415-664-1267

Psst…Maiwa is hosting a fabulous textile symposium in October, so if you are in the area I would definitely recommend looking more into this, as I know I would love to attend many of their workshops!

I just came across Maiwa, a supplier of natural fabric dyes and textile printing supplies! I heart this site and look forward to trying out their line of natural materials to experiment with. They carry natural materials such as: Black Oak, Henna, Indigo, Marigold, Pomegranate, Safflower, and more; and their prices for the smaller jars start at just $3.95! They also have some great instructions and tips on various textile printing that are free to download as well as a glossary that defines the colors that each of their natural dyes are used for as well as the colors that result from them. So, if you are lucky enough to find yourself in the Vancouver, BC area, then you should most definitely check out their shop Maiwa Handprints!

They have also produced several documentaries. Two of them I would love to own to add to my own textile collection, the first being “In Search of Lost Colour: The Story of Natural Dyes”.

The other film that I would like to own from them is called “Through The Eye of a Needle: Stories from an Indian Desert” (the textiles in the preview below alone are captivating..simply gorgeous!).

The price of these two are about $42 bucks for private use, but I think if you are a serious textile guru or one that just simply loves the art of textiles, then it would be well worth the investment!

So, last night I decided to muster up the courage to go ahead and print one of the fabrics that I will use in the baby blanket for our little girl who is due next month. I really have been putting it off, as I did not want to TOTALLY screw it up as I did not have money in the budget to buy more fabric. Nevertheless, I VERY much consider this a practice run as I am still using the hoop screens and modge podge(which explains the random smudges and pinholes…LOL). I think with my next print I will go ahead and use a true screen, but for this project, I will continue with this print.

I do have one question…How do I prevent my screen from picking up ink if it is laying on top of the print next to it..should I print every other row and let dry and then print in between or do I just wipe after each print..any suggestions?

As I was reading the lovely and might I say very resourceful blog Celestina Carmen, which is a blog about screenprinting, sewing, & crafting; I learned that I should really raise my screen just a bit from direct contact to the fabric to help prevent smudging so I will definitely be experimenting with that soon. Also, I failed to use a fixative in my ink, so I have to be sure to order some to help my color set better. Nevertheless I am pleased with the design and can really see this motif in lots of different things. I call it Berry Ava because our little girls middle name will be Ava!

So, I just wanted to quickly share my progress. I must say that screenprinting while pregnant can be a bit of a challenge!: I will be back some time next week and will post pics of the completed blanket. It really won’t be to complicated…quite simple really. Ok, thanks for listening and I will be back soon! Happy creating!

Don’t you just love the DIY Network? I do and one of my favorite shows within their crafty line up which includes Knitty Gritty, Craft Lab, and Uncommon Threads is a spunky show called Creative Juice! Hosted by Cathie Filian and Steve Piacenza, Creative Juice offers up some of the cutest, kitschy, affordable, easy, and delicious projects to do in your own home. I really do enjoy watching their show so I was elated when Cathie agreed to share a bit of her time to offer up some creative inspiration! As a youngster, Cathie spent most of her time designing elaborate homes for Barbie dolls, sewing her own clothes and baking cookies; and for eight years, Cathie worked in the film business creating costumes for movies like Vanilla Sky, Rushmore, Heartbreakers, Twister and Bottle Rocket.

So, with that said..here’s Cathie…Enjoy & don’t forget to “Make It, Bake It, and Cocktail Shake It”! (ok, you have to watch the show to get it)

JuBella: Why is creativity important to you?

Cathie: Creative is who I am. Long before Creative Juice, I had an old saying… I wake up in the morning creative, I create all day long and I dream what I’ll make next. I doesn’t matter if I am making a dessert, balancing my check book or sewing a new dress – I am always thinking and acting creatively. I look at my day as one big creative journey.

JuBella: How would you describe your most creative spot/atmosphere?

Cathie: It’s a buzz…. I am in a unique situation because I craft at home and at work. At work I am juggling many different hats, Producer, Writer, Crafter and Host. We have a crew of about 35 amazing people on the show and a typical day at work is really a buzz, it is a very creative environment. At home I really get my creative juices going. I can get lost in my projects and the quiet/calm of home.

Jubella: Favorite Craft magazine?

Cathie:Vintage, I love vintage craft magazine and books. I draw inspiration from the color pallets and pattern choices. I also love the old ad’s – they have wonderful fonts in them.

JuBella: How would you describe the character/decor of your studio/design space?Cathie:

Cathie: I call my work space organized chaos. I know where everything is – it really is about being able to reach all my supplies. I am short so a step ladder is my friend. My space has tons of character – I like color and vintage collectables.

JuBella: What have been some of the biggest challenges with being an artist, starting your own business, and promoting your work all at the same time…what advice would you give to others in the same boat?

Cathie: Stay with your ideas and dreams and realize that some people won’t “get you”. The biggest challenge was convincing people that young people were interested in being creative – crafting, sewing, cooking, etc.

JuBella: What is your favorite craft product thus far and what have you enjoyed making with it the most?

Cathie: Hands down – decoupage medium. I use this glue for so many projects…. My favorite project I make with decoupage is the candle luminaries.

JuBella: What crafting tools could you not live without?

Cathie: My scissors, I have a collection of about 100 different pairs. Some of my scissors I’ve had for over 20 years. Round nosed pliers and glue run a close second to scissors.

JuBella: Most unique gift that you have given to someone?
Cathie: I made a quilt for my husband made from all of his old sports tee shorts. He just about flipped out!