A peek into my studio makeover...

Yesterday was the day that we moved over furniture from my parents house for my jewelry studio makeover. Today we got the shelves hung, and I spent close to 12 hours decorating and putting the room back together. Im not 100% finished, but Im pooped and had to stop for the evening. A girl does need to eat and shower, sometimes... It is looking more amazing than I could have imagined in my head.  Everything fit exactly where I wanted it to go.  (I organized it in my mind before we brought everything over).  I have had boxes of my mom's little trinket-y things packed in my garage b/c I did not have the proper place to put them... now every little button and stone has a home.  I think it is going to be magical having a whole wall shelf of her 'special' things in front of me while I work everyday.  The only problem, now that I moved so much other stuff in the room, Im having a hard time getting all of my important jewelry making supplies back in a functioning place.  It is going to be a bit of a challenge to get it just right.  But Ill make it work, I always do!  Here are just a few sneak peeks into the room.  Ill take real photos when it is all done.  

I even started off the morning in the room with my breakfast and the laptop :)
I now have an official shipping station!!!  It is grand!  I did my first shipping from it today and it was the best experience (as much fun as shipping really can be)... Its sort of the dreaded part of the job, but such a major part of it... So Im pleased to have a space designated for it, with plenty of space, and easy storage to put everything away when Im done.
James mom gave me a whole bag of very old little bottles.  I love them, and I was excited to find this little wooden display box among my mom's sewing room, its perfect for them!  I use old tin cupcake tins for some of my jewelry supplies.  I usually have them spread out, but now I have to stack them...
When you finally see this shelf you will understand how truly amazing it is.  My dad built it, and its like a puzzle, a true work of art.  And its filled to the brim with odds and ends from their life.  This little brown cup came back with my mom from France.
I found old photos of my mom, and one of my dad standing next to his brother and sister, and I put those right in front of me on the shelf.  The cute pic of my mom (on the right) she was standing next to their sign on top of the driveway to their property, so Im assuming its one of those 'look its our new road sign' photos of when they first moved out here.
My mom loved the doll Poor Pitiful Pearl.  I remember her telling me about her when I was younger.  My mom had a love for the tattered, broken souls of this world.  She was like a mother (in a good way) to anyone she knew.  Here is also a tin full of her mother of pearl buttons, a stone that she held as she was dying, and a crystal my aunt gave me soon after.  Very special things.
More little trinkets, feathers, old milk glass, wooden nickel, old stamp. 
I love little vintage sewing machine.  And her wine cork collection.  I think she was planning on making something with them someday...
Just a few of my old mason jars filled with beads and buttons.  And the corner of my Roots and Feathers storage board.
A corner of the wall decorated with things that remind me of my mom, including a hand written note from her...
James brought me home the other day these amazing old cigar boxes from the 50's.  I love love love them.  They were in his dad's storage.  Im now using them to store my business cards.
And I got Bella's paw print of approval.  Which is very important around here :)

I cant wait to get some real photos of it all set up!  Its nothing compared to actually being in the room, especially with some good tunes playing in the background...  And I couldnt have done any of this without the amazing help of James and his two friends Joey and Dominic, those guys were life savors through this!

You may have also noticed some changes to the blog over this past week.  Im in the midst of re-vamping it as I can.  I dont have time to sit down and do it all at once, so it will be a slow progression.  And dont be surprised if you see it change several times, Im known for deciding I dont like something a few days later.  Ill eventually get it just right. 

PEACE,
Laura

The perfect dress for a date night with my bestie...

Two nights ago I had a date night with my bestie. We were going to go see a friend play her music, but decided it was too late for us old ladies... So we went to our local wine bar instead. I ate my weight in cheese and prosciutto & drank a tall dunkel. Yum. We laughed alot and just had a pleasant evening. I love that girl to no end. I wish I had gotten photos of us but I didnt. But here is the outfit I wore. I had not had a chance to wear this lovely dress from Ruche since I got it (a while back)... 

 <<< outfit details >>>
dress: ruche
belt: ruche
moccasins: PPP vintage
owl ring: made by me
knuckle ring: forever 21

and just for fun...

I have spent all morning working on my first Roots and Feathers order for Threadsence, which I am super stoked to merge the two.  I think it is going to be a perfect union.  And after my daily date with the post office, and picking up my furrball from the vet, Ill be starting to gut my jewelry studio and prep it for all new furniture.  Im hoping I have the stamina for the rest of the day...  Time for a good lunch break now.  

PEACE,
Laura

The Carpenter...

I found this beautiful saw handle in my daddy's woodshop.  Im almost 100% positive he made it.  I remember it from when I was little.  For those of you who do not know, my dad was a carpenter.  Or really, we called him a master wood crafter.  He could make anything.  Anything.  Not only with wood, but really anything he put his mind to.  If he wanted to do something and he didnt know how, he would get a book and teach himself.  He built our entire house board by board that I grew up in.  When we first moved out here in the country I was 3 years old.  He started building the house when my mom was pregnant with me.  They would drive out to their piece of property in the country every weekend to build the house.  They were pretty broke in the beginning, and the base of the house was built with boards my dad reclaimed from tearing down another old house.  And we would go to the local dump and look for good boards there.  We finally moved out there when it was a livable box.  Then throughout my life, my parents business grew and they were able to financially afford to continue building their dream home out in the woods, and it eventually grew into a magnificent place full of love, and completely one of a kind and handmade.  My dad then learned masonry and built all kinds of rock walls and even a gothic archway (that James and I got married under).  The house is just a work of art, built with love & sweat.  And this sentiment above reminds me of the beginning of that journey they took together.  I am slowly starting to gather items from my parents house, starting with little things like this that have alot of meaning.

Tomorrow will be the first time I am actually going to bring home furniture from there.  I am going to redo my jewelry studio completely with their old furniture.  Im hoping it will create a warm, memory filled space that I can go into and feel comforted with their spirit.  I have an exciting big project Im going to be working on over the next month or so, and this will be my preparation step in making this a magical experience and journey.  Without actually having my parents here by my side to show them on a daily basis what I am creating and doing, the best I can do is surround myself with their things that are left behind.  As Ive said before, I know they are just things, but they feel like a warm blanket to me.  Its what I have left in the physical sense.  So it will be a bittersweet process to make this change, but I think it will be a good and necessary change.  Im looking forward to it.  And this amazing saw handle will be hung on the wall.  Even though I am not building my home like they did, I am in the beginning stages of making this house our home.  Gosh I miss my parents like nothing else in this world.  

PEACE,
Laura

Fabric Wrapped Bangle >>> DIY Tutorial

Here is a super easy and simple DIY on how to make fabric wrapped bangles (like I wore in my previous outfit post).  I have another one I made a long time ago that I wear on a very regular basis.  I was recently gifted these wooden bangles, so I immediately wanted to make more.  Its almost so simple that you dont really need a tutorial, but just in case...

<< Supplies you will need >>
 wooden bangle
fabric strips or ribbon trim (or get creative)
scissors
hot glue gun



<< step one >>
hot glue one end of your fabric strip to the inside of your bangle, preferably at a slight angle in the direction you are going to wrap.

<< step 2 >>
start and then continue to wrap the bangle around the whole bracelet.  as you are wrapping you can re-enforce with little dabs of hot glue on the inside, under your fabric.  You dont need to on each wrap around, just a few here and there.  Also, as you are wrapping make sure to keep it tight, and going at the same angle to create the same space difference in your pattern.  (unless of course you want it to be a bit uneven and unpredictable, which is just as cool).

<< step 3 >>
Cut your fabric to be just long enough to wrap the end part around to the inside of the bangle.  Just like you did when you started, apply hot glue, and then flatten out your fabric on it.  If you miss the corners you can always add a bit more.

And there is your bracelet.  You can play with adding more than one fabric together to create an interesting pattern play.  For my fabric I choose here, I ripped my strips instead of cutting them so that the edges would remain raw like you see.  If you are not sure how to do this, all you need to do is to start a slight cut with your scissors in line of where you want your fabric to be cut, and then hold each side of the fabric in your hands and tear it apart.  You will hear a nice 'rip' sound as you do so. 

I love these wooden bangles b/c they are usually big enough for my to wear high up on my arm.  But I also love this look of adding two contrasting ones together.  Just a fun easy way for you to accessorize your outfits specifically to your personal liking!  Have fun, and send me a photo if you make one!

PEACE,
Laura