JCasa *handmade BLOG

happy 2011

it all seems to have whooshed by with such sparkle that warms my heart and leaves me feeling so very blessed.  thank you, dear friends, for all of your support and kind words this year.  i do this because i love it - i love making things, i love writing, and i love sharing it all with others - and i hope to continue on this path for years to come.

our warmest wishes to you and yours as you celebrate what was in 2011, and ring in all that can be in 2012 and the future.    pink skies at night, my friends.  pink skies.  xoxo

2011 [autumn highlights]

: O K T O B E R :

the girls and i came up with really fun + supercute halloween dog tags for all their friends to make at their fall parties in school.  a huge hit here, there, and once again, all over the internet.  thank you for your support!

: N O V E M B E R :

i finally got back into the swing of making pretty things again, even updated my shop with new designs + handmade goods for the first time in ages.  it is exhilirating to create each day, and i am blessed to have the opportunity to do and pursue what i love.

: D E Z E M B E R :

here we are at the end of this most celebratory month, and as i look back on the past 12 months i am floored, to be quite honest.

it has been an incredibly creative and magical year for me and my family:  writing, crafting with my kids, making music with my husband, sewing, knitting and oh so much cooking.  there have been awesome ups and plenty of downs, as well. but if you ask me, as long as there are more ups than downs, we're good.  really really good.  xoxo

2011 [summer highlights]

: J U L I :

many lunches were spent just as this:  wearing gingham, nibbling a salad in the quiet of the sunroom - a solo respite from work while the girls were off enjoying themselves at day camp.  i was beginning to wrap my head around what it would be like to be home alone all day come the beginning of the school year.

: A U G U S T :

we shared a most amazing week on cape cod with the dearest of friends.  there was lobster and swimming and music and scrabble and rocky shores and cocktail hour and a cruise to p-town and ice cream and lots of sillyness.  best family vacation ever.

: S E P T E M B E R :

mild mannered - my band with the hub and friends - released our new CD and labor of love, believeland.  and we still pinch ourselves everytime we hear a song of ours on the radio.  the little engine that could really can.  and did.  you can, too.

xoxo

2011 [spring highlights]

: A P R I L :

my first book was published this month, bringing with it 75 projects readers can craft with their kids.  it was a whirlwind of an experience to create and write with my daughters, and is filled with memories we'll treasure for a lifetime.  my hope is that it brings about similar joyful experiences and memories for those who read it. 

: M A I :

the sun was shining, so i made a springy wreath.
what can i say, making wreaths is our thing.

: J U N I :

i participated in an online painting class.  and really enjoyed it.  i had no clue what i was doing, so i really tried to focus on the prompts and techniques being introduced, and found great inspiration in the words and experiences of the teachers.  i lost myself in the paintings for a few weeks, and truly enjoyed learning - "just because."

if you've ever been afraid to try something new / creative because you thought you would be a colossol flop, do it anyway.  seriously, what are you waiting for?  this is not a contest.  this is your life.  if you want to try something new, then i say GO FOR IT !

xoxo

2011 [winter highlights]

: J A N U A R :

i absolutely loved working on this little cardi/vest for my girls last january.  i fully intended on self-publishing the pattern for this little number, too - but like so many things, it got away from me.  knitting it provided a brief distraction from working on my 2nd book (a knitting + sewing book that, as it turns out, was not meant to be).  fast forward to the present to find me very much looking forward to leisurely knitting another one of these in january 2012 - already have the yarn and everything.  i will cast on... just as soon as i finish my next book proposal, full of pretty + lovely things, and knock it out of the park.

: F E B R U A R :

i baked a very special eat-your-heart-out cake for my very special people.  the baking and construction of this little number was one part math, one part patchwork, one part obsession, and lots of love.  and ganache.  let's not forget the ganache.

: M Ä R Z :

the girls and i created rainbows filled with gold for all their teachers at school.  a hit here, there and all over the internet apparently - that post has received a bazillion (or something like that) hits.  imagine that.

xoxo