Whenever I have free time, I enjoy sitting down and working on fun embroidery hoop wall art. It gives me the opportunity to experiment with different embroidery stitches, breads, trims, and fabric. I have a wide array of miscellaneous materials, so it’s fun incorporating what I can into my hoop arts.
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This year, I’ve been trying to expand outside of my 9-6 job and do some freelance work/side project fun. One thing that is a “practice what you preach” for me involves sending out emails to people and/or companies and inquire about any sort of freelance or submissions. At the end of the day, what do you have to lose? It never hurts asking even if these people and companies aren’t looking for extra or outside help.
So I came across a “help wanted” Insta post for a pin company and I thought, “hey, yolo”. After some back and forth and some test designs, it ended up being a bust which is a bummer, but these things happen. Companies knows their aesthetic and what their customer wants. I guess I was right at the border but couldn’t fully cross over the line to what they were looking for.
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I’ve been thinking a lot lately about motivation and what drives people to try and be go-getters. I have some friends currently browsing for new jobs; some notice how miserable they are in their current situation and are actively applying for new jobs, and some know they’re miserable but can’t seem to find the motivation to apply to job postings they come across. This makes me wonder what the latter can do to find the will to send their resumes out to change their situation. Not everyone is a go-getter. Hell, I’m not either, but I try my best to change my situation if I find it’s not working for me. Adapting for the better can really make a huge difference in your outlook on life.
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Instagram is a useful source of inspiration if you use it to your advantage. I follow a lot of artists and illustrators, and when I come across their t-shirt designs, I am both in awe and envious of what they can spit out.
I’ve tried to do the “screenprinted t-shirt” thing on Etsy but it’s too much work for what I want to put into it, and really just doesn’t seem worth it. You gotta love it enough to do it because screenprinting can be quite a hassle. This is why I like sites like Redbubble and Society6. They do the work for you and all you have to do is to create the content. I love doing fan art, and people love buying fan art. The down side is that the corporations and top guys think they own the rights to people faces (mostly artists and entertainers), and as a result I’ve had three original pieces taken down.
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Sounds kinda full of myself to assume that I know what it’s like to be a mermaid. BUT if I wanted to live the mermaid life, I would be all about things that revolve around scales, glitter, gold, pastel, and elegance. Keeping that in mind, I compiled a list of things that I felt represent mermaids and captures the elegant feeling we all think of when we think of these classy sea gals.
So if you want to live the modern mermaid life, here are materialistic things for you to consider having!
01. Mermaid Shampoo & Conditioner – From reviews I’ve read all over the ‘net, this company has managed to capture exactly what mermaid hair smell like. I have the Shine Spray and it’s the best thing I could have purchased for my hair to shine while smelling uh-mazing.
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(A few of my favorite bags, which you can find in my shop!)
I find myself living a double life these days. By day, I’m a full time designer at a shoe company. By night, I’m a weaving rookie trying to find time to fit in crafty projects while relaxing and not feeling guilty about taking it easy every so often.
I’ve been trying to treat this year differently than last year. I have clearer set goals, more motivation than I’ve felt in a while, and I’ve been non stop during any spare time I’ve got. Fun fact: I fell asleep just before 10pm last night because I just couldn’t keep my eyes open.
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Where have I been lately? Finishing up crafts and getting ready for this event I’ll be selling a bunch of my goods at on Sunday. Events always stress me out. I want to do so much, but because of unnecessary stressing and poor time management, I rarely get to accomplish all I want to accomplish. That’s why this time around I kept things simple for myself and I mainly had one goal. ↓
I shared how my dad made me a loom? Well, I’ve been using the crap out of it and I turned my weavings into tote bags.
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A few years ago, my brother decided he wanted to tie dye a bunch of his shirts just for the heck of it. No reason at all. He goes through weird phases every so often.
Of course he got tired of having these shirts and offered them to me before he got rid of them. I can’t say no to tie dye so I took them.
Knowing me, I tried to come up with plans to change these up and maybe even put them in my shop. I didn’t have intentions of keeping them for myself as my closet is already filled with clothes.
I kinda winged it, but I had the thought that the first plan was to take the sleeves off and do a swap with other fabric.
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I’ve had quite a bit of built up creative energy since I’ve been out of the country for a while. I’m the kind of person that constantly needs project to fall back on when I have downtime, so being away for three months without any projects to do was kinda painful. Luckily, as I mentioned before, my aunt owns a textile shop, and we were walking distance from some local shops selling sewing supplies (alliteration <3).
When I started this project, I didn’t have an idea of what I wanted the finish product to be. I just gathered all sorts of different red fabric from scraps my aunt gave me. I just thought to embroider roses and that’s what I did. Eventually I came to the idea that I wanted to turn them into a banner. I love pennant banners and thought a different take on it would be a fun idea.
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Reusing, upcycling, diy-ing – all things I like to do. Mix that with pop culture, and BAM – me.
My brother for the longest time has been saving bottle tops for reasons I don’t really know of. Kinda made me question how much beer he used to drink, but whatever, it was more surface area for me to work with. I played with bottle tops first with these Gwen Stefani magnets I made. And then I carried on and made these fun Veruca Salt magnets.
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