inspiration ~ {champagne grapes}

About three years ago I planted two grape vines in my backyard. Each year they've produced more grapes and this year we have the most bunches yet. They are sweet (slightly tart if you pick them early) and so delicious!

More ripening soon!

I decided to paint them to record some of my summer bounty, and that's what started it all.

Watercolor on a greeting card.

As I'd just sent off mail art packages to Toni Rica, Jeannine Saylor and Jessica Gowling, I decided to make a package for someone that was completely not expecting it ~ my sweet mother-in-law. She lives far across the ocean in Italy and I think she has been feeling a little lonely as of late. Once the card was ready, I gathered a number of other surprises to brighten her day.

I hoped to help her feel closer to us by sharing some of the things around us right now. My bunny was hopping about in the back yard, a joyful little creature, so I carved the flat end of a wine cork into a bunny shape and stamped it on a tiny card to fit inside a tiny handmade envelope along with...

... yes, that's a bit of bunny's fur. (She's shedding a lot in the summer time!) 

The back of the card says 'bunny' in Italian.

I am pretty happy with how the bunny stamp came out. You might remember my first cork stamp that I sent to Jessica Gowling long ago ~ a 'Secret Agent Man'. Jeannine Saylor has also been making sets of cork stamps. They are fun to make and fairly easy as long as you keep your fingers shy of the blade!

Anyhoo... a few more things jumped in the envelope to Italia: a literary bison (to remember our recent road trip), some colorful printed and letter pressed items, a nice long letter in the best Italian I could muster, and some photos of the fam are now on their way across the Atlantic.

Hope they make their journey intact and give her a pleasant surprise one day soon.

65

Our road trip has been so exciting as we traveled the northern route across the United States through the desert, the Rockies and the Bighorn mountains, the high plains, the Black Hills, the Badlands and cultivated farmland. At last we reached the Mississippi River and there on the other side we found my aunts and uncle, cousins and all kinds of cousins several times removed, second cousins and other relatives. We'd all gotten together for my aunt and uncle's 65th wedding anniversary. Pretty amazing!

Couldn't find a 65th Anniversary card, so I made this one.
No scanner on the road, though... it actually isn't so antiqued.

My uncle joked that they never had a fight - when she would lay into him after he did something wrong he would say, "Yup! You're right. I did it!" and that would be that. They worked long hours together side by side for many years farming the land and milking cows every day at 4 a.m. and 4 p.m. They had five children and now so many grandchildren and great-grandchildren that I've lost count.

It seems to have been a good recipe for a long marriage. They were still looking very happy together after all these years. Now we're driving west again, taking a more southern route back to California. We're in Nebraska now, a long day's drive away from all my relatives and there's a sadness hanging around me. I'm really sorry to leave them all behind so soon and as some of my aunts and uncles are now in their late 80's I worry a little that I might not see them again.

We brought them a bottle of wine from the Custer State Park that had a picture of the State Game Lodge on it, which is where we stayed in the Black Hills of South Dakota and I put the "card" in a leather frame. Wishing a very Happy 65th Anniversary to my Uncle Marvin and Aunt Anita!

wedding {handmade details}

My sister's wedding was a small and sweet affair in the garden with many people contributing their talents to make it personal, pretty and (in some cases) delicious!

Our friend Cooper took the photos and another friend made the bouquets...

My mum made the vases and several family members and friends helped arrange and hang decorative bouquets ~ these flowers came from another friend's garden...

(The wine cork is the pull handle to open the gate.)

My mum also made 100 cups for guests to drink from and take home as favors. The "P & T heart" stamp was carved by my step-dad.

The sketch I made when they got engaged marked the entrance so guests would know they arrived at the right place. We also put a fancier version in a large photo frame with plenty of mat surrounding where they could sign in ~like a guest book~ with a special message to the couple.

I folded many origami cranes to decorate the tables and pamphlet-stitched the wedding program that I designed for the happy couple. I printed it on a beautiful, slightly metallic paper that doesn't quite show in the photo.

Our friend Terry not only cooked almost all the amazing food, but she also made the cake bites. These are the bride & groom bites that graced the top of the tower.

I don't have any pictures of the handmade washi paper pennants I made that hung about to lend a festive air. But there this shot of some of the photos that we hung about showing the couple in their younger years. These were a nice way to share some history and also sparked some fun conversations.

It was a beautiful and very happy wedding day! It was heartwarming to see all the people that cared so much and gave so much of their time and handmade contributions to make it perfect.

thank you

Thank you, dear readers, for your patience with me while I disappeared into the land of wedding projects. Thank you also for the many good wishes received for my sister's recent marriage! The ceremony and setting were perfect, the weather beautiful (after 3 cm of rain the day before!) and the bride and groom were very, very happy ~ as you can see here!

I took this photo of them and we chose it to be their wedding thank you card. Such a happy couple! ^_^

gathering

I attended the vigil for Japan in San Jose's Japantown, where the Japanese Community Congress raised $30,000 for the Japanese Red Cross Society during the short event! San Jose Taiko played a quiet and peaceful drum-and-flute song to open the ceremony. The leaders of numerous churches spoke to express their support and fund raising efforts amongst their own congregations. Next week there will be a funeral service for all who lost their lives in the earthquake and tsunami.

handmade with love

Not having any cousins around, but having lots of grandparents, aunties and uncles in the area, my boys get a bit spoiled with presents this time of year. They don't earn enough allowance to buy gifts for all the adults they receive from, but I think it's important for them to give and not just receive.

Our solution is to figure out a project each year that they can pour their creativity into and make gifts with their own two hands. In the past we've made jewelry or large paintings. This year, everyone got a five-piece note card and envelope set with a mix of art on the front. They were fairly easy to make and turned out pretty cute. Here's a little sample of some of the art and how we made it:

1}

For this one, you need some brown watercolor paint, various sheets of colored paper, glue, a bird punch and a cat punch. Punch bird shapes out of the colored paper and glue them on to your painted tree. Then punch a little cat at the bottom gazing longingly at the flock. The punch-outs were only $1 each at Michael's - can't beat that.

2}

This worked best with my little one's tiny fingers. He dipped directly into the paint and blobbed on a rainbow of colors with a cheerful result. Entirely his idea; no two are alike!

3}

Straight watercolor here; no special technique.

4}

For this one, we used a doily as a stencil, carefully painting one color in the holes and another color out from the edge. Pretty and easy, too! Someone with nice penmanship can make it into a "thank you" note if desired.

 5}

Paper, glue and ink: taking advantage of my son's passion for drawing chibi manga figures. He drew a bunch of different characters, then we cut around each one and glued it onto the card over a paper oval (cut out from a stencil for evenness). I helped him outline the shadow and he colored it in with black ink. Totally cute!

We tied each set in a bundle with a little ribbon and they made the perfect gift for aunties, grandmas and big sisters ~ although most said they intended to keep them for themselves and never actually use them. :)

As for me... besides the portrait that I shared with you earlier, I was also able to help someone give a special gift to his parents. They needed a new mailbox, but instead of just giving one straight out of the box, this one was sanded, primed, and then handed to me to paint something personal on it. The numbers were obvious, but since the mom and dad are of Irish and Italian descent, the son asked for these flags to be painted as well. After that, it got a spray of clear-coat for protection.

He must be a really good son and know what his parents like, because I'm told that his mom nearly cried when she saw it. She must be very fond of her country and her mail. :)

Or, maybe it's just proof that everyone appreciates a personal touch.

Merry Christmas!

✿♥♡❀ L♡VE ❀♡♥✿

My sister Tami and her boyfriend Paul recently announced their engagement!  I'm so joyful and excited for them! 

But they're not nearby for me to hug and smother with congratulations {as they're enjoying a romantic Engagement Vacation} ~ so I channeled my enthusiasm into a little sketch of them instead.

Congratulations Tami & Paul!!

 

  ✿♥♡❀ L♡VE ❀♡♥✿

I'll fix it up and color it in Photoshop, but this is the first sketch.  

I'm so happy for their happiness!!