The Advent Conspiracy Challenge

Surprise, surprise! I am writing two blogs on one day! But it’s coming at a good cause.

Last Sunday at our Christian church, they showed a video about a movement called the Advent Conspiracy. The message was pertaining to the true meaning of Christmas, to “Worship Fully, Spend Less, Give More, and Love All.”

The minister talked about how the true meaning of Christmas went from worshipping the birth of Jesus to shopping lists and buying presents. It made me realize how blind we can be to what is going on in other parts of the world as well as here in America, with families who are less fortunate. People tend to spend countless amounts of money to buy their children and spouses the best presents they could ever have, while there are families with children who don’t even have clean drinking water. He asked truly thought provoking questions which were something along the lines of (and I’m not saying his exact words but you’ll get the idea):

“Does your child really need that extra toy? Are they really going to die without it?”

“And are you just buying the most expensive presents because you are trying to buy your spouse or your child’s love or show off how much money you have when they open the presents in front of people? If so, there’s something wrong with that relationship.”

Then he challenged us to sacrifice and buy one less present this Christmas. With that money, we can donate it to charity. 

The Advent Conspiracy is such a charity who is collecting donations to help build or repair water wells so families in third world countries can have clean drinking water. So that’s my challenge this Christmas. I’m going to hand make all my presents and with the money I would have spent buying mindless gifts, I’m going to give it to charity!  So hope you can join me in this movement too! 

You can see the Advent Conspiracy website here: http://www.adventconspiracy.org/

When your Strategy Fails, make Custom Designed Stamps!

I have just completed my Implementing Strategy class and entered my very last class for my MBA degree! Come January, I’ll be holding that Masters degree in my hand, baby! I’m extremely proud of this announcement and plus it’s a good excuse as to why I only write in this blog once a week. I have papers to hand in every single week which totally blows but considering it’ll make me a Master at something, it’s a fair trade.

My last class is Taxes in Small Business. Unfortunately, I could care less about taxes and the only reason I’m excited for this class is because it’s my last one. I don’t know what it is about the subject of finance that bores me to death. What I learned from finance class is that I’m going to hire a financial manager. What I learned from my accounting class is that I’m going to hire an accountant. But still I’ll accept the fact it’s a smart move to know exactly how your financial department is handling your money and when dhd actually becomes a business entity, I know I’ll be reading my financial chapters again and trying not to let my mind wander to something more cool…like blogging about how taxes totally blows.

Aside from school work, I’ve also been thinking constantly about design.  I really wanted to follow-up on my Thanksgiving ideas but I’m in disbelief that Thanksgiving is less than two days away and by the time I actually post a cool Thanksgiving tutorial, it will already be Christmas. Geez, I’m banging my head against my desk as to what is taking me so long. People have been planning their Thanksgiving décor since, like July. I’m thinking that I better start implementing some sort of strategy here. So you know what this means? I’m going to start planning for Easter. Joking…but wouldn’t that be a good strategy?

So I was about to scrap all my Thanksgiving projects and just start them next year when I thought, what the heck…let me show my dear reader one of my ideas in the works…

A friend of mine showed me a cool way to make some stamps so I decided to see what I can make with the stamp idea on fabric. I took some sketches that I played around with…from my Inspired by Nature photos and thought about how they would look on textile…

 

My Nature Inspiration

A few sketches inspired from the above photo

Pinecones can inspire too!

I then turned these sketches into my very own handmade stamps.  (Tutorial is at the end of this blog). I only had 1 ½” X 1 ½” acrylic blocks on hand, so this limited me to only use some small design sketches. Since this was just a test, I didn’t mind.  (Plus, I don’t want to give away my really awesome designs just yet!) With the stamps, I had an opportunity to brand anything; stationary, walls, cloth, and my first trial run of formal dinner napkins which can also be used as handkerchiefs. 

 

Featured here are designs inspired by pinecones I picked up while hiking…

The plan view

The elevation view

 …and since a turkey would be so cliché for Thanksgiving, thought instead I’d bring some good luck with a wishbone.

They are each 100% cotton cloth, stamped with acrylic fabric ink, and bordered with its own unique décor stitch.  Best of all, they can be thrown in the washer for cleaning! The stamps are not perfect and concise as a stencil, but that’s what I find loveable and quirky about them. I do plan on testing them this Thanksgiving to see how they hold up. And if they pass inspection, I’m moving onto luxury linen for Christmas!

So if you want to get that “stamped” look here’s how you can make a custom-made stamp. There are several ways to make stamps so keep in mind this is just one way of doing it. (And please ignore the fact I need a manicure…I have been very “hands-on” lately!)

How to Make Custom Designed Stamps

You will need:

·         Sketch of your design

·         Clear Acrylic block (should be large enough to fit your design. I bought my blocks at Michael's; they had 1 ½” x 1 ½” blocks for $1 each.)

·         A soft lead pencil (such as a #2 pencil)

·         Scissors (small sharp scissors work best)

·         9” x 12” sheet of adhesive fun foam. (Make sure the sheet is at least 1/16” thick. I also bought this from Michael's.)

·         A bone folder

·         Acrylic ink, fabric ink or a stamp pad (this depends on what you are using the stamp for)

Your tools

1)      Take your sketch and photocopy it on a piece of white paper.

2)     Take the photocopy and turn it over so the photocopied drawing is face down.

3)     Make sure you can see the drawing through the back of the paper. With your pencil trace the drawing onto the back of the paper. If you can’t see the drawing, it helps to place a piece of white paper underneath the photocopy or head to a window and trace the drawing against the glass. Just make sure it’s daylight outside…doesn’t work at night folks!

Trace the design from the back of the photocopy

 

4)     Take the traced drawing and place it face down (meaning traced side down) onto the foam sheet. Take the bone folder and rub the back of the drawing. Make sure to rub hard enough to transfer the lead traced drawing onto the foam sheet.

Rub the drawing with a bone folder to transfer design onto foam.

Check to make sure design transferred onto foam.

5)     Place the acrylic block on top of your photocopy so that you can see the drawing right through the block. You will use it as a template as to where your cut foam pieces will go. This is why you need to use a clear block! Cut the drawing out of the foam sheet, remove the paper backing to expose the adhesive and stick onto the acrylic block in its designated area. Make sure to mark a starting point by coloring in a piece or darkening an outline on your foam drawing so you don't get confused on placement of the pieces.

Cut pieces and adhere pieces onto block.

6)     And there you have it! Your own custom-made and custom-designed stamp. You can use it for ink pads or buy acrylic ink and roll the ink onto the stamp with a brayer. Make sure to use fabric ink if you want to stamp fabric (and you plan to throw it in the washing machine).

And if you do not want to go through the trouble of buying supplies and making a mess, don't you fret my dear reader...yours truly really has been working up a strategy here and my custom designed napkins and handkerchiefs (when perfected) will be up for sale on my website and Etsy shop…coming soon!

Photo Reel: Escape to Big Bear Mountain...

Let’s rewind two blogs back about how I promised a recap on our camping escapade. I finally have the photos uploaded and ready to show. But heed warning: if you are not interested in seeing trees, trees, and more trees, I advise to skip this blog. But if you adore trees (as I do...heehee) and you don't mind seeing a thousand of them, then press play and here it goes:

A few weekends ago we packed our bags and headed out Friday evening pretty much spontaneously (those are the best kind of trips, aren’t they). Up in the mountains by Big Bear Lake, the air was brisk and refreshing with gorgeous clear blue skies …

Tree Canopy

 

Tree Scenery

…and evergreen pine trees. 

Our neighbor's tent amongst the trees

 

My Ansel Adams inspired tree photo...

There were beautiful lake and mountain views during the day and a star studded sky at night...

Big Bear Lake beyond the trees

Big Bear Lake past the trees

  

More Trees across the Lake

  

Trees and bushes along Big Bear Lake

I was surprised to see plenty of other campers around, apparently trying to escape the heat wave as well. We didn’t have a tent or sleeping bags, so instead we slept in the back of our truck and made use of the heaters (and DVD player) when the temperatures dropped to the 30s at night. 

Our bed between two trees

...best of all there were actual bathrooms complete with toilet bowl and showers. We lit campfires, roasted marshmallows, explored the hiking trails…

A fence made out of trees.

Here’s a tip, if you cannot get your hands on a map of the hiking trails, make sure to take a picture of one before you head out on your own.

A hiking map through the trees

This photo helped us out when we encountered a displacement error (as in almost got lost). But come on, these darn trees all look the same!

More trees by the Lake

The tunnel to more trees...

These pine cones fell off the trees

That's D and...you guessed it, a tree!

Big Bear Village had adorable sweet shops, boutiques, and cafes along it’s main street with the option to walk or take a horse and buggy.

Horse and buggy waiting to escort passangers along the tree lined blvd.

When we left Sunday evening we were able to catch the sun setting as we made our long trek down the mountain range.

Tree and lake view reflecting the sky

Tree and lake view reflecting the sky

Trees and mountain view as we make our way home

Trees at Twilight

Trees as the sunsets

Trees at Sunset

Back in LA…no more pine trees, only palm trees. At least we are a little more calmer, our minds (and lungs) clearer, and looking forward to going back again. Thanks for looking at my first photo reel of trees the gorgeous Big Bear Lake...enjoy your day :)

How to Create and Hang a Photomontage or a Framed Photo without Nailing a Million Holes into your Wall

As households prepare for the holiday festivities of the coming season, an important task that will take place will be decorating their homes for guests. What better time to impressively display your collection of photographic memories…so let me ask you a question:

Have you ever had one of those moments when you have a million and one photographs that you want to share with family and friends? So you frame those photographs in fabulous frames and hang them in a cool photomontage (I love that word…montage). Your guests walk into your home and their eyes attract to that photo wall in grand splendor of how you wittingly and wonderfully organized those framed photos. And they’ll ooh and aah and ask for the story behind that black & sepia photograph of someone sitting in a Paris train station positioned so perfectly in the sunlight and mention what a great eye you have.  And you can stand there proud while they gaze at your photos because you, my dear reader, have not mistakenly nailed ugly holes into your nicely painted wall from trying to position a frame correctly…so have you ever had one of those moments?

Well, quite frankly, I never had even the opportunity for that moment until the past few years. When I moved into my apartment I had three photos on the wall, a NYC poster, and a mirror mistakenly hung too high that I had to stand on my tippy-toes to use. I had lots of photos to show off, but I hated the process of trying to create the perfect photo wall as seen in my design magazines due to bad past experiences of hanging pictures. Rather than bear the burden of trying to hang my photos on the wall, my “photomontage” was leaning against the wall on the dining room floor, displayed yes, but my guests would step on them as opposed to oohing and aahing at them. Then one day, I watched one of my architect bosses work on a display of photographs hanging in the office. He did it so easily that I noticed it only took him an hour. Following his example with some few adjustments by yours truly, I have been using this exact way to organize photo walls ever since. And so far its been foolproof!

I had a blank and boring wall in my dining room, so I practiced the steps and achieved the photomontage I was looking for…finally!

 

 

So here’s an easy process on how to create your own photo wall montage or wall photo gallery without banging a million nail holes into your wall. This process can also be used for simply hanging a single framed photo in the perfect position. And please note this is my first written tutorial so if I missed anything or something does not make sense, please message me and then forgive me!

You will need:

·         Your photos (you can frame them or just leave them naked. It’s up to you.)

·         Craft paper or any roll of scrap paper that you can write on and noticeably read on. I used brown craft paper I had laying around.

·         Measuring tape

·         Ruler

·         Scissors

·         A pen, pencil, or marker

·         Masking tape (or a tape that does not adhere permanently. You will be taping to the wall, so make sure that the tape does not peel off the paint when removed.

·         Nails (to hang your photos)

·         Hammer

·         Hand-held or portable level. This is optional but if you want perfection, than I advise you get one. They come in handy!

 

1)      Layout your craft paper or roll of scrap paper in an open area, such as the floor or a large table.

2)     Place framed photos onto the paper and trace the outline of each frame.

As you trace each outline, write a note of what photo each traced outline represents. You can write a small description such as “Paris train station.” Or use numbers and letters. Just be sure that the backs of your frames are also numbered and lettered for easy reference.

Label the outlined boxes with a “P” for portrait layout or “L” for Landscape layout. I also use “V” for vertical and “H” for horizontal. 

Finally and most importantly, measure and mark onto the paper box, the placement of the frames hanger or hook.

           

            

 

 

3)     Decide if you are going to do a photomontage or just align the frames along the wall. For hanging photos in a straight alignment, proceed to step #10 . For a photo montage/collage, proceed to step #4.

4)     Cut out all the boxes and set aside. With your measuring tape, measure the surface area of the wall you plan to hang the photos on. It does not have to be exact, just enough to get the basic idea of the amount of space you are working with. Now since I am not blessed with an area for work space, I cleared a space on my floor that was roughly the same area as my wall space.  I marked the perimeter limits with pens and rulers and taped them onto the carpet. Then I arranged my framed photos on the floor to play around with the collage arrangement, using the hues in the photos to correlate, and see what would work. 

  

5)     When I was pretty sure I had an ideal layout, I went to my wall with my paper boxes, taped the boxes onto the wall with masking tape, and replicated the layout I practiced on my floor. You can peel off and tape on the boxes, arranging them until you are positively happy with your layout. Be sure to step back often to view the wall in its entirety. Make sure you LOVE it. Please note, I lost my actual photo of my taped paper boxes on the wall, so I photoshopped it. It should give you the basic idea of how it would look though. You can also hang up a focal point photo and work around it.

6)     Hammer a nail into the markings you made for where the frame’s hook is positioned right through the paper and into the wall. Make sure nail is secure enough to hold the framed photo. 

        To double check that your layout is what you desire, do one at a time, hanging each frame after nailing into the wall as you go. Check that nail is sticking out of the wall enough to hold frame securely. Step back and look at your wall to ensure you are satisfied.

7)     Remove frames; peel off the paper to reveal the nail neatly hammered into the wall and hang frame back up.

8)     Place the level on top of each frame to make sure photo is straight and not crooked.

9)     After all frames are completed, step back and ooh and aah at your photo wall montage!   Be creative, for example, use one specific color for all your frames and one different color for a photo that means something to you. I used all black frames for my beloved photos, but framed my tiny Twin Towers photo in silver to indicate a memorial significance.

10)  If you are planning to hang your photos along your wall horizontally or vertically such as this layout photographed here…

…than do the following steps:

Take your ruler and measure each side of the outlined box, marking the center of each line. Draw a line from the center mark of one side to its opposite side. Do both vertically and horizontally. When done you should have two lines that intersect in the very center of the box. 

Cut out the boxes and tape them to the wall, arrange the positions of your boxes as you prefer. The intersecting lines will help you with the placement of your photos, such as if you want to align all your photos horizontally and not aligned by the tops or bottoms of the frames, than you can position the photos by aligning their center lines as in this photograph.

Be sure to use the ruler to space out the boxes evenly and your level to ensure your point of alignment (the top edges of the boxes, the bottom edges of the boxes, or your drawn center line) is straight.

When you are satisfied with the layout on your wall, proceed to step #6.