halloween party

my daughter decided it would be fun to have some of her friends over for a halloween party this past weekend. she had so much fun planning the games and food and picking out the decorations and goodies for the goodie bags. her favorite party prep task is putting together the goodie bags! i wish i would've gotten a picture of her with everything lined up on the dining room table, assembly-line style! she is my daughter, that's for sure. we both love to plan parties and organize and make lists and check them twice.

we went with an orange-and-black snack theme. carrots & olives and oranges & grapes (found these super dark black grapes at trader joe's!). we had a candy platter for making candy kabobs (full of gummy spiders, worms, brains...yum!) the kids also made candy (easy candy-making kit from michael's. it was a hit!)

i found these fun drink labels at target. the drinks are mexican sodas (jarritos) and they come in all kinds of bright and wonderful colors!

this year for halloween, she wanted to be a weeping angel from the bbc series, "dr. who." (basically, she is one of those stone angel statues you see in cemeteries, but in the show, they are aliens from another planet who can only move when no one is looking at them. so if you look at them, they seem like normal statues, but if you blink or look away and look back, they get closer and closer....it's super spooky!) i just wanted to share some photos of our fun day and hope you all have a wonderful halloween!

i will be gone this week attending journalfest in port townsend, washington. (yahoo!!!) i will be racing around like mad at the last minute packing supplies and warm clothes and trying to remember everything i'll need. i'll post photos of the fun when i return! :)

Blog Follower Appreciation WINNERS!

sorry, i was supposed to pick the winners and announce on friday but, well, my daughter had a little halloween party with her friends on saturday, so we were running around at the last minute getting all the little details ready!

so without further ado, here are the winners of my follower appreciation giveaway!

(drumroll)...

Jenny

Mandy

Amanda

Bonnie

Christina

CONGRATULATIONS!! and thank you for taking the time to stop by and add your thoughts and comments. i do truly appreciate everyone who comes by (even if it's someone who's never commented, but comes by just to peek into my little world!). thank you for your ongoing support and friendship!

so, winners, please send me your address and i'll send you a little packet of rainbow goodies! contact me at: kinueko@gmail.com

Follower Appreciation Month! Weekly Giveaways!

I started blogging as a way to keep track of little moments in my life as a mom and artist and I never thought I'd ever actually attract any readers! but the more i blogged (and blog-hopped!) the more i realized what a supportive community there is out there. so much encouragement and inspiration. so as a thank you, i'd like to do a weekly giveaway for the month of october as appreciation for anyone out there who is following this blog. i was inspired to do this from a fellow blogger, susie lafonde, who posted about her follower appreciation giveaway here. if you're already a follower, you're in the drawing. if you'd like to join in on the fun, just become a follower of this blog by clicking on "follow" in the right hand column. each friday, i'll choose a winner and send them a sweet bundle of paper, fabric and misc. goodies. (this week i'll pick FOUR winners, since i started the post a little late in the game!) thanks again for your support! :)

we went on a little stroll the other day, when it was NINETY degrees outside (in OCTOBER!!??). stopped at the 7-11 to get some cool treats. i'm remembering to bring my camera with me on these little walks. here's sureya pointing up to the sky. her new saying: "what's that?" she pretty much points at everything and says that! and here's what she was pointing at:

not sure if it was the electric lines, the lights, the sky, or the tree that got her attention. but i thought i'd capture a photo of it. just so i'd remember that moment. isn't that what we do? just capture little moments. savor them. turn them into memories to bring out and share for another time?

and here she is at a little friend's birthday party. looks like she's dancing here. another one of her favorite pastimes. besides climbing on things and freaking me out! her most favorite spot is behind the couch, on the window sill. (not kidding!) that little girl must be part cat. but i love her so! :)

and now, in a flash, it's autumn. finally. good bye 90 degree heatwave. it was washed away with a much-needed rainstorm yesterday. now we're wearing cozy socks around the house. we turned on the heater for the first time since winter. i'm ready for fall!

what i've been working on these days...

i love doing custom work! there is something so special about creating with someone specific in mind. i put these baby shower invitations together for a friend who is expecting her second baby soon.

the colors were inspired by a line of party ware at target that i picked out for the shower with her in mind. these colors are bold and earthy with rust orange, plum, and artichoke green. kind of similar to her wedding palette from a few years ago.

i used the paper i had on hand from when i was a demonstrator with stampin' up. i LOVE their colors. so timeless and they coordinate so well together. i pulled it together with some nature-inspired wrapping paper from paper source. the envelopes and labels are from paper source, too. another paper love affair of mine!

the theme is birds and nests and nature. mama bird tending to her precious eggs, dreaming of the babies they will soon become.

and here is the custom journal i made for sal. she was the lucky winner of my 100th post giveaway a while ago. i didn't want to post photos until she had received it so it wouldn't ruin her surprise.

she told me her favorite colors were lavender, lilac and pinks so i collected all the materials i possessed in that color palette and went with it!

it was a joy to make! here are some close-ups.

above is a close-up of the front cover. i LOVE this shade of purple sari silk ribbon!!

this is the back of the journal (just as lovely as the front!) ;) i used scraps of vintage linens, japanese fabric and an old butterfly print dress of maya's that never quite fit right (but i couldn't bare give it away! i loved the colors and pattern so much!)

and a little place in the front to hold a pen and a pocket to tuck away photos, ephemera, special things for later.

i think i posted this photo before (above) but i had to show it again! i love the collection of old, new, and recycled paper!

here is a two-page spread showing paper pockets holding scraps of lovely paper for journaling notes or adding to the pages. well, that's all for now! also, there is still room in the RAINBOW swap, if you are interested! read all the details HERE. international players are welcome, too!! :)

let's swap a RAINBOW!

i'm loving the idea of swaps these days and i'd love it if you'd join me in a rainbow swap! let's collect fun and funky items from our studios in all different colors of the rainbow. items could include:

*buttons

*beads

*fabric

*paper (vintage, scrapbook, handmade)

*tickets

*tags

*labels

*stickers

*millinery flowers

*paper flowers

*ribbon, fiber, yarn

*vintage trims, ric rac

*scrapbook elements

*glass glitter

*misc ephemera, doodads, bits and bobs!

what to do: everyone will fill a total of 6 sandwich-sized ziplock bags with goodies each with a different color of the rainbow (red, orange, yellow, green, blue and purple). red items go in the red baggie, orange items in the orange baggie, etc. anything goes as far as what to put in the baggies, as long as they are items that YOU would LOVE to receive yourself. no need to buy anything extra for the swap, just use what you have on hand. (if you do want to buy some things for the swap, don't spend more that $5.)

how to sign up: just email me at kinueko @ gmail . com with the following info...

1. name

2. email

3. most favorite color

4. least favorite color

5. willing to swap with an international partner?

6. your website, blog, etsy and/or flickr site(s) (optional--but it helps your partner get to know you better)

i will leave the swap open until monday, october 11 and i will email everyone with the details and their partners next week (tuesday or wednesday). swaps should be postmarked to your partner by november 1.

hope you can join us!

flickr photo credits:

1. Red buttons, 2. Mixed Medium, 3. red fabric, 4. RAEWADOLLY Plastic Red Strawberry Supplies, 5. FAA Lucky Parcel swap :: Orange, 6. 100_6583, 7.Glitter, 8. Orange Vintage Bingo Cards, 9. Orange Squares Postcard, 10. Sewing Buttons in Orange Squash - Set of 5 Handmade Ceramic Buttons, 11.WIP:Yellow Paper Quilt Collage {diagonal-detail}, 12. Vintage Ephemera: floral, 13. Green buttons, 14. Paper Quilt Card Green, 15. Green Stash Yarn, 16.bluechip, 17. Blue Angel Tears, 18. Security Envelope Pendants, 19. Sequins, 20. Handmade co Blues swap -sent, 21. Vintage Button Card, 24 Purple, 22.Purple Feathers, 23. A little bit of Violette, 24. Purple Pattern Tags