Bookmark Adventure and stationery pleasures...

There is a beautiful blue sky which I've been able to see from my bedroom window every day this week, consequently I've not been able to enjoy that same blue sky outdoors much because the heat is just completely unbearable. Being that I've stayed in doors a great deal then I've taken to crafting to pass the time rather than sulking at the fact that I might wilt should I attempt to be outdoors more than a few minutes (my poor herb plants were suffering that very same fate today and they are now in the coolness of my room by my window enjoying the sun but safe from the heat).

Inspired in part by reading Jane Eyre and by watching through Emma, Sense and Sensibility and tonight's Mansfield Park with my parents my crafts have been focused on representing that era somewhat. A couple of weekends ago I saw some really nifty mixed media collaged bookmarks and had the idea that I might make my own bookmarks as well so I did! Here is my first one:

My prototype which I am keeping for myself...
I cannot part with it...sigh!

Also, inspired by all the penpalling I've been doing lately I have printed my own postcards and stationery and there really is nothing more satisfying. Almost two years ago when the BBC broadcast their 2009 version of Emma I played around with some screenshots from the movie and edited them with photoshop. Yesterday I added one of those images and a couple of other stock images to some stationery *for personal use only* and love the way they came out. I think I may buy less stationery and make more of my own...

Jane Austen stationery and Oriental Lily postcards printed by me with my Epson.
the photo on the postcards is my very own from a trip to Venezuela last year.

And lastly, here are the next two bookmarks I have been working on today:

Mixed-media bookmarks in their first stage...
my previous bookmark was covered in scrapbooking paper.

To see more pictures of the progress of my original bookmark you can go to the blog's facebook page and click on the album titled Bookmark Adventure. I can't wait to share some more of the progress with you all! 

Cheers!

Back in the game!

Hello again friends! It's been a long while! I've been working on many projects lately and having moved about a month ago I now finally have a chance to begin sharing more with you. Let me tell you a little bit about what I've been up to lately. I've re-vamped one of my other blogs and refocused it specifically to topics on photography (LatiNadia), I've started two food blogs--one is a recipe blog in Spanish (El Recetario de Nadia), the other is a food diary (Food: A passionate journey), I've been penpalling like crazy and am loving it, and other than that I've been organizing and decorating my room here in Florida (yes, I am back in Florida--go figure!), doing some food-tography, cooking and expanding my creative juices. Here is a photo of what is currently on my desk:

1. Letters I received a couple of days ago to which I need to respond, 2. Home Spa book I bought recently at Tuesday morning, 3. Vintage Art Postcards I acquired some years ago from my Grandfather's collection, 4. Current project: Re-writing recipes on index cards to place in my Mom's box.

Hopefully in these next few days I can bring you a little more on crafting and green living. Have you all checked out My 365 Magazine yet? Please do! Issue number 2 will be out in July! Stay tuned for more updates.
Cheers!

Just a quick post...

Just wanted to let everyone know that My 365 Magazine is now live! Check it out, join the Coffee House club and let us know what you think!

Settling into life back in FL so I will post again soon!

Cheers,

Nadia

Monday Musings: BIG NEWS-- New Magazine, check it out!

Friends have I got news for you! I've mentioned my friend Kiki many times on here before, well she and another friend and I have embarked on the project of a lifetime! We are launching a new magazine called My 365 Magazine. The premier issue will come out in May but we still need contributors and advertisers. Please check out the webpage and also our facebook page.

Please take a look at the information below and check out the mock up of what the magazine will look like on the webpage:

I cannot wait to see how many of you want to contribute and advertise! We really need more advertisers, I cannot emphasize this enough! Thanks for all of your support and look forward to hearing from everyone! 

Cheers,

Nadia Marie

My 365 Magazine

Media Mogul

http://www.my365mag.com

Tuesday Tutorials: 100th Post!!! Whoopie!

It's my 100th post! So excited! I wanted to share with you an idea that works great for party favors or a fun birthday gift and is quick and easy to do! I always like to have hard candies on hand for sucking on if need be and was trying to find a place to put mine and it dawned on me that I had this empty plastic Starbucks cup sitting on my window ledge and I thought, maybe I can use that. While out shopping on Saturday I wandered into a candy shoppe and lo and behold the idea I had had already been taken so I just had to buy one of these gorgeous cups!

Here they are for you to see:

The one on the left is from Bruttles Gourmet Candies and Treats & the one
on the far right is my Starbucks cup I decided to reuse. The tray is also from
Starbucks.

Taffy in the Bruttles cup and Jolly Ranchers in the Starbucks one.

So, this project is a reuse/recycle one. I took my Starbucks cup and washed it well with dish soap (the straw too), rinsed it and dried it completely. Once it was clean I just filled it with the candies as shown and voila! Instant gift or party favor! The tray was from my brother's last trip to Starbucks and I snatched it up thinking I might be able to use it. I think if you have some or even save a few they would make a great way of displaying party favors and people can take them off the trays as they leave and you will have them to use again for another function. So, it's quick, easy and affordable! Hope to see you all create some with your favorite candies!

Cheers!

Monday Musings: Weekend Shopping Trip and more...

I love shopping and this past weekend I got a few things that were right up my alley...

Bird Cage w/hooks from Atticus, Candies from Bruttles Gourmet Treats,
Stationary from Atticus, The Old Man and the Sea by Ernest Hemmingway,
and Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte.

Close up of candies and books (books I bought at Auntie's Bookstore)

More of the candies with stationary...

Flowers from Bloem- Chocolates, Flowers & Paperie
Hanging Mason Jar from the Pottery Barn

London Notebook by Cavallini from the Pottery Barn
Hardcover Journal with my original photo printed at
Snapfish.

4 lotions from Bath & Body Works
A real bargain for $22.50 plus a bag!

Eiffel Tower eraser from the Pottery Barn
(I also saw this in sortingwithstyle.com)

Now my next task is to place all my newly found items in their proper place!

Cheers!

Conscious Shopping Wednesday: Homes and Exteriors

photo of events at the Arts School of Venezuela in Caracas...

by: Nadia Marie Perez

What do shopping and design have in common? Quite a bit, actually. In about a week's time, hopefully, I will be heading over to the Tri-Cities to visit my friend Kiki of the blog Kiki Nakita and to attend the 2011 Regional Home and Garden Show in Pasco. I'm very excited to attend because my dear friend Kiki is a designer and I'll be able to pick her brain about what to look for in home decor and exterior design as well. She's bound to know how to get a bang for your buck or what to particularly splurge on. I don't own a home yet but I love design and think that you can shop for your home and what will go in it both conscientiously and efficiently.

I'm no designer but I have always enjoyed design and home improvement; it is no wonder, growing up with a father who had a subscription to HOME magazine ages ago and then House Beautiful to ELLE Decor I was always surrounded by design and yes...as a child I enjoyed watching This Old House and gardening shows so it should come as no great shock to anyone that I would enjoy design.

Look for a future post on the Home and Garden Show! This weekend it is on to celebrating my little nephew's birthday who just turned one yesterday! I love you, Little Alex!

Cheers!