Life is a Canvas : Musings on Creativity, Good Food + Mindful Living

Staying on Track in 2012: One Little Word Playlist

noreply@blogger.com (Caiti) — Wed, 22 Feb 2012 11:00:00 +0000

After all of my talk about setting goals and intentions for 2012 last month, I shared a few inspiring products that can help remind you of your yearly goals or intentions. In addition to physical reminders, I'm a huge believer in the power of music to evoke specific emotions and feelings. I love how different music can lift you up, calm you down, make you cry or make you swoon. Music's ability to transform your mood lends itself wonderfully to the One Little Word concept-- whatever your word is, there's a song {or a dozen} to inspire the feeling(s) you'd like to attract into the year ahead.

I've created an IGNITE 2012 playlist that I've shared below. You could create something similar no matter your own word. In my case, I've chosen an energetic mix of pop, electronic and hip-hop songs that never fail to put a pep in my step or make me want to shake my tail feather. Of course, I had to start with the song that inspired my One Little Word-- Katy Perry's Firework. Beyond that song, the rest of the playlist is decidedly less embarrassing, I promise :)

Are there any songs that remind you of your One Little Word or yearly mantra? If so, I'd love to hear about them in the comments!

Snapped Snippet : Granny Square Blanket in Progress

noreply@blogger.com (Caiti) — Tue, 21 Feb 2012 11:00:00 +0000

It's been almost exactly a year since I last talked about my granny square blanket {when it was in its infancy}. Today, it's progressed into the toddler phase-- the terrible two's, if you will. It's gotten far enough along that I can't quit on it now and I can sort of see how it awesome it will be when it all comes together, but there's still 3/4 of the journey ahead of me.

I go through phases where I do a bunch of squares over a few days, and then I get side-tracked and abandon the project for a few weeks. And repeat. But with the quiet evenings I've been having lately {and since the cat hasn't learned how to be a good conversationalist yet, no matter how much I talk to her}, I've decided to pick up my crochet hook again and get crackin'. I'm still in love with these colors, and think that it will be one gorgeous blanket once it's done.

Which hopefully won't take another year.

Snapped Snippets is a blog series in which I share bits and pieces of my creative life that I capture on camera. You can also follow me on Instagram @CaitididDesigns for peeks into my world.

Well Said : Three Kings

noreply@blogger.com (Caiti) — Sun, 19 Feb 2012 11:30:00 +0000

Falling by vina.mae

Archie Gates: You’re scared, right?
Conrad Vig: Maybe.
Archie Gates: The way it works is, you do the thing you’re scared shitless of, and you get the courage AFTER you do it, not before you do it.
Conrad Vig: That’s a dumbass way to work. It should be the other way around.
Archie Gates: I know. That’s the way it works.

{from the movie Three Kings, which I've never seen, but I love this quote.}

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As someone who often tries to psych myself up before doing something, this bit of dialog is a nice kick in the pants. We can't talk, think or research our way into confidence and courage. It comes from just doing the thing we are afraid of, and coming out on the other side to look back and go, "Huh, that wasn't so bad."

Getting Back to the {Image} Source : One Way to Clean Up Pinterest

noreply@blogger.com (Caiti) — Sat, 18 Feb 2012 11:00:00 +0000

The Pinterest Vow via Dawn Sokol

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Note: This post is LONG, so if you want to skip my rant and go straight to my tip about how to track down uncredited/unsourced Pins on Pinterest, please scroll down. But I hope you'll take to heart my reasons in ~~talking~~ ranting about this.

I'm seeing WAY too many bad pins on Pinterest lately. "Uploaded by User" pins. Pins upon pins from Tumblr and WeHeartIt. Pins from Google. Pins that point to a general address/home page {ex: http://www.caitidid-designs.blogspot.com/ or "page 15"} instead of a specific post or permalink {ex: http://caitidid-designs.blogspot.com/2012/02/art-from-heart-travel-art-journal-kit.html}. And I fear it's only going to get worse with the recent explosion of new users.

It is, in a nutshell, frustrating. I want the site to be BETTER. Cleaner, instead of a hot mess of a site like Tumblr and WeHeartIt. Link with Love is a good start, but I don't think it's sinking in, as I still see bloggers who preach proper credits re-pinning images that aren't credited. And I certainly don't see Pinterest responding proactively anytime soon {because they don't have to-- they made sure they're protected by their Terms of Use}. Instead, they're leaving it up to each image owner {photographer, crafter, blogger, etc.} to chase down their images and ask for them to be properly credited or taken down. Which is totally unrealistic and overly anal for most.

But with the rapid influx of new Pinterest users in the past few weeks {seriously, who's NOT on Pinterest now?}, I worry about the acceleration factor of a bad pin. For example, Elise's "Magic is Something You Make" quote was posted by a popular blogger with a hundred thousand Pinterest followers, but it linked to a random image host and didn't credit or link back to Elise at all. By the time I noticed and commented with the correct link, the image had already been repinned by 500+ people-- so each of those 500+ re-pins that occurred before the link was updated still have the wrong link, and those incorrect pins can still be re-pinned going forward. It spreads like wildfire. That makes me sad, because it happens so easily and so rapidly. But it's not only sad; it raises real concerns about copyright that the average user doesn't even begin to realize {read more about Pinterest and copyright issues here and here}.

As a Pinterest user and a content creator, I feel it's important to do my part to maintain the site's integrity and keep it clean. We each must do our part. We must remember that this is a bookmarking site, not just a page full of eye candy. We must remember we are "dealing with copyrighted material that does not belong to [us], and [we're] passing it along to others on a public forum." That demands respect. If Pinterest won't delete "bad" pins themselves, it's up to each one of us to make sure that the images we choose to display on our boards and allow to be re-pinned are from legitimate sources.

Looking forward, this is SO easy-- just promise to only pin/re-pin from sources with proper credits. But I believe it's important to clean up what I may have already posted {because there was certainly a time when I was a new Pinterest user too and didn't think about the implications of what I was re-pinning}. This means deleting pins in some cases, especially if it was just a result of happy fingers and I don't really *want* to save it anymore. But what do you do about the pins you really love that are poorly linked or without sources?

In the process of cleaning up my boards, here's something I come across quite often:

This is one of my pins. Notice where the pin is from at the bottom of the page-- a Tumblr site, and not even a specific post {a.k.a. permalink}. This is a problem. Let's say I wanted more information about the image-- Can I buy those wrist warmers, and who made them? Is this an advertisement for a clothing store? Who was the photographer of this image? I will have a very hard time locating it on the Tumblr site because the link provided does not go to the specific post containing this image. Besides, in my experience, 95% of Tumblrs seem to contain images taken from other sources and don't get you anywhere even if the link was direct.

How do we fix this mess?? Well, I have one quick trick that has been really helping me out in tracking down un-sourced images-- Google Image Search with Image Uploading. Read on for details:

{ http://images.google.com }

Now Google Images searches for images that visually match your uploaded file, as opposed
to just looking for keywords or file names as typical search functions do.

Many times, the first site listed is a good bet. But I'm going to show you how it would be if the first result or two didn't work and you needed to do a bit more searching. Below is the third search result with the image collage:

Hover over the link for our photo, Source 1, and you see that it leads to another blog site. Sometimes, this could lead into a horrific circle of Tumblr and Pinterest images if the bloggers are not good about citing proper sources, but in this case, it seems like it could be legit:

A quick scan of the post shows that our image is part of a blogger's profile of Whitney from Noonday Collection, which happens to be a organization that sells fair-trade handmade goods that helps women in impoverish countries create an income and support their families. What seemed to be just a pretty image at first is actually for a really great cause that deserves to be recognized, even if it's through something as seemingly small as a few pins among millions on Pinterest.

It looks like a bunch of steps, but really, it took me no more than a maximum of 1 or 2 minutes from start to finish. It's much quicker than trying to search page by page of a blog for the right post.

{Side note: This process can also be used to track down your own images that you might suspect are being used without your consent. But this can lead you down a dirty rabbit hole that can make you not want to create anything for public consumption ever again if you take it too personally. So use with caution.}

So this massively long post boils down to a call to action to 1) Only pin and re-pin from linked, credited sources, and 2) Clean up your Pinterest boards by either deleting uncredited pins or by tracking them down, as I've shown here. Let's make Pinterest better, okay?

Favorite Posts // Sponsors

noreply@blogger.com (Caiti) — Fri, 17 Feb 2012 11:30:00 +0000

Last month I started accepting blog sponsors on an ad swap basis. Instead of the common introductory post to welcome my sponsors to this space, I've decided to share my favorite recent posts from my current group of sponsors. I hope you'll all check out each of their blogs and explore their stories. They're a wonderful group of women!

Favorite Posts // Sponsors

Jess at Tenpenny Splendid created the prettiest winter terrarium that would perfectly fill the empty space left by the holiday decor that was reluctantly packed up last month.

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Jadyn at Dutch.British.Love invited her readers over for Tea & A Chat, which I thought was a wonderful and insightful idea for a blog post.

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Doniree from Doniree.com explored the idea of finding sanctuary in the yoga studio, and also within herself. Beautiful. {PS - Doni also has a food blog, Nomadic Foodie, which is certainly worth reading. I enjoyed her recent post on Portland's winter farmer's market.}

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I love hearing the different ways that people tackle their goals, so I'm enjoying following San's 12 Changes in 2012 on her blog, The In Between is Mine. Her goal for January was to drink more water, and February is focused on meal planning.

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Marcia from Dabblings: Art By Marcia Beckett is an art teacher, and her 3rd and 4th grade students recently completed some collaborative circle paintings. This looks like it would have been so much fun to take part in!

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Thank you ladies for your sponsorship and for constantly inspiring me through each of your blogs!

Would you like to be included in the next group of sponsors? Please email me at CaitididDesigns {at} gmail {dot} com for details!

Art from the Heart : Travel Art Journal Kit

noreply@blogger.com (Caiti) — Wed, 15 Feb 2012 11:30:00 +0000

Since I last shared my standard art journal kit, we learned about our travels to Ireland. Along with seven months worth of clothes, I'm thinking about what art and journaling supplies I plan on bringing with me.

I'm taking a completely different approach from my standard kit since I don't want to lug a big journal and paints and a jug of gesso in my suitcase. Plus, the thought of them exploding or leaking in flight? No thanks. With inspiration from Danny Gregory and Anna Denise, I'm planning on an illustrated style with little pops of color, so my kit will be minimalist and compact:

- Windsor & Newton travel watercolor kit
- Water brush or two,
- Moleskine sketchbook
- Small blank book with watercolor paper
- Micron pens

In addition to these journaling supplies, I'll be taking my Canon DSLR with my favorite Tamron 28-75mm f/2.8 lens (essentially a very suitable poor-man's version of this Canon L series), a 50mm f/1.8 lens, a Diana+ lens, and a Panasonic Lumix DMC-ZS3 point-and-shoot for quick shots and video. {If I happen to find the illusive money tree before I leave, I'd add a wide angle lens to the mix.}

Art journalers, what else do I need to pack in my travel kit? A pencil and a gum eraser? A stapler or a glue stick for little bits of ephemera {ticket stubs, receipts, menus, etc.}?
Any other pen recommendations besides Micron that won't bleed?

On a semi-related note, I believe I'm going to put my Art from the Heart series into early retirement. It was created because I wanted a regular creative project to carry me throughout the year that would hopefully invite some reader participation through the prompts. I feel bad killing it before I really have the chance to see if it would be of interest to at least a few of you, but 1) I know my journaling will take on a different form as I travel so the reflective prompt format will feel a little forced, and 2) I get the feeling that most of you readers aren't that interested in art journaling specifically, since it is kind of a niche creative activity.

That said, I hope to write more posts about creativity in a more general and practical sense, and I'll be sure to do some show-and-tell with pages from my travel journal-- provided that I don't find my illustrations to be completely atrocious, of course! :)

Book Report : MWF Seeking BFF

noreply@blogger.com (Caiti) — Tue, 14 Feb 2012 11:30:00 +0000

Image via AmericanWayMag

I finished up MWF Seeking BFF: My Yearlong Search for a New Best Friend last week. It is my book club's February pick, and I couldn't think of a better book for a group of women in the early stages of friendship.

I've mentioned before that friendships are something that I've long wanted to attract more of in my life, as my college friends are spread across the country. An old friend is precious no matter where they're located, but up until recently I had really been missing the casualness that comes with nearby friends-- grabbing a last minute brunch or chatting over coffee. I have friends through my husband, but as much as I enjoy spending time with them, they aren't really my friends, if you know what I mean. The author was in a similar position; she is originally from New York but ended up in Chicago with her significant other, so her closest friends are mostly back in her home state. She finds herself with a husband and a professional job, but a lack of social connections beyond her group of coworkers.

The book progresses a little bit like the Happiness Project {from what I remember}-- Rachel challenges herself to go on 52 new friend dates throughout the course of a year in hopes of finding a local BFF. She progresses from the standard method of finding new friends {having current acquaintances set her up with new connections} all the way to the unusual {using rent-a-friend type websites}. Throughout the book, she weaves research on friendship, communication and social issues from a variety of sources. It sometimes dragged on a bit as she documented each of the 52 dates and details of excursions with her old friends, but it really did make me think about my own approach to seeking out new friendships.

My takeaways:
- You are not a weirdo or a loser for not having a million friends as a post-college, working adult-- lots of people are in the same position. It's a big adjustment to go from the easy friendships of childhood and college {where many friendships bloomed out of proximity and familiarity} to adulthood {where you have to actively seek out new people and get to know them and their stories}.
- Follow through! If you want to spend time with someone, you really have to be the one to pursue it. I can be terrible with follow-ups or assume that a potential friend just isn't that in to me if I don't hear from them, so Rachel's attitude that she has to be the one to pursue get-togethers was inspiring.
- Most people are receptive to new friends but rarely come out and say something, so don't be afraid to make the first move.
- I have a serious fear of awkward silences {I definitely had second-hand embarrassment while reading about a few of Rachel's dates!}
- I need to learn how to be better at small talk {... how does one go about that?}
- It might not be about finding one awesome BFF, but rather about filling your life with a number of fun, inspiring and fulfilling people.

PS - Happy Valentine's Day, friends! I'm sort of pretending today doesn't exist since my Valentine is 3,600 miles away. To make up for it, I'm indulging in a day full of Secret Single Behavior-- magazines, crocheting, eating popcorn for dinner, watching a bad TV show or two. That doesn't sound so bad, does it?

Guest Post // My Husband, the World Traveler!

noreply@blogger.com (Caiti) — Mon, 13 Feb 2012 11:00:00 +0000

Note from Caiti // Today I'm excited to have my husband Mark here with his first official guest post! Since he's getting settled in Ireland and I'm still in the States {*sigh*}, he kindly agreed to share a few stories and photos with us, so we can all live vicariously through him! Hearing about his adventures is getting me more and more excited to join him in a few weeks {fingers crossed!}. Take it away Mark!

Greetings to all of Caiti’s readers! She’s asked me to do a guest blog regarding this current grand adventure to Ireland, and I couldn’t possibly say no! Here’s hoping she gets to join me soon, as she is much more skilled at writing and photography than I am. In the meantime, you’ll have to settle for me.

I have been to Ireland one time previously, down in Cork, Cobh, and Killarney, in the southern half of the country. I was only able to spend 3 days here, but enjoyed the country immensely from what I saw. So naturally when this RIDICULOUS opportunity presented itself, I didn’t even think twice (and didn’t even ask Caiti!) about volunteering. We share the same interest in travel and experiencing culture, and I knew she would be on board.

That said, I’ve made my way across the pond, and have (finally) beaten the jet lag, and settled into the hotel living arrangement for now. Getting here was interesting, to say the least. I was given an unexpected opportunity on my first (sleep-deprived) day as my car-mate and I got pretty hopelessly lost driving around Dublin trying to find the highway. While it was incredibly frustrating,it gave me some time to adjust to the "backwards" driving, and provided a good lesson: never drive through Dublin on a weekday!

So after the first few (somewhat grueling) days of meetings, work, and time adjusting, I was able to get my first proper taste of Dublin this weekend. Typically, I don’t like to subscribe to the “conventional tourist” plan, so my first day on the town consisted of a lot of wandering, getting lost (likely intentionally), and quiet observation.

These first few pictures show “home base,” so to speak. We’ll be living and working in a tiny town called Leixlip (locals pronounce it LEEKS-lup). My hotel is a very nicely run and beautiful hotel called The Courtyard Hotel, which drops me right onto the main drag running through the city. These pictures show the local scenery, which is mainly suburban Dublin. Having lived in the Chicago suburbs all my life, I noticed a very distinct difference, which is hard to describe. It’s almost like the pace of living is almost slower; a bit less rat-racey. Houses are closely packed in, but there is still an open feeling while walking around.

Eventually I found myself at the city limits, walking along the main in-road. From here I caught the 66 bus into Dublin. I brought no map, and had no guidance, but exited the bus when everyone else did. From that point, my “tour” consisted of blind turns, following (or decisively NOT following) the crowds, and various other bits of randomness. I noticed right away that portions of the US followed me here: McDonalds, Subway, and a Papa John’s (!) were all on the first street I walked down! I noticed large crowds, and quickly found as many road-less-traveled streets as I could find.

Now I was fortunate enough to have my cell phone with me, which did have a GPS. After about 2-3 hours of wandering, I had NO idea where I was. So I cheated, flipped on the GPS, which told me I was somewhere in the NE part of Dublin. Not to say that I meant to get lost, but I certainly didn’t mind. Had I not gone that way, I would not have walked through Dublin’s version of Chinatown!

So after a quick let’s-get-back-on-track moment, I meandered back into central Dublin. I stopped for lunch at Kennedy’s pub, and caught half of the Manchester United football game. Walking further near Merrion Square (which happens to be a good place to catch the 66) I happened to see the Irish Natural History Museum, and took a quick stroll. Ever hear of the Giant Irish Deer? That thing was scary huge. After that I found my way towards St. Stephen’s Green, which is one of the main public parks, where I took most of these pictures.

I didn’t do any tours or anything, but I did make my way into Trinity College. One memory I do want to file away is that right as I entered the campus, there was a band inside one of the buildings playing Pink Floyd’s “Comfortably Numb”. They were quite good, and the music was filling the air everywhere. Right as I got to the middle of the giant courtyard, the guitarist started playing the iconic solo, which literally gave me the chills all the way up and down my back.

From there, I meandered some more and ran across the Occupy Ireland protesters. Now I know we don’t do politics in creative blog-land, but I did find this picture quite funny.

To finish out my walk (now running at about 6-7 hours), I strolled through the Temple Bar area, and then along the River Liffey for a while. Temple Bar is a very neat little area which has a ton of pubs, galleries, and cute little shops. It’ll likely be a great place to enjoy the nightlife when we decide to go out late.

So far, so good, I really can’t wait to get Caiti over here so we can explore a bit more of the country!

Thanks for reading!

- Mark

Caiti says // Thank you for the guest post, Marcus! You're the best :)

Corners of My Home

noreply@blogger.com (Caiti) — Thu, 09 Feb 2012 11:00:00 +0000

The abundance of quiet time the last few days has me noticing how much I enjoy my surroundings. It's taken a lot of work (and way too many gallons of paint), but I've finally achieved the calm, natural, artsy feel that I've long pined for. These are some of my favorite "corners" and vignettes from our living room. Maybe someday I'll do a full and proper house tour...

{Artwork details: Framed vintage Chicago map wrapping paper / collaged monogram / wood portrait / prints by Danna Ray: I'm Sorry But You Were Holding Me Back and A Grand Discovery {pictured next to two Crate & Barrel trivets that we hung with nails} / Yeehaw Industries' I Love You Like Biscuits and Gravy. Paint color: Behr Ultra in 400E-2 Turtle Dove - it's much more greenish grey than it appears in photos}

Currently... {February Edition}

noreply@blogger.com (Caiti) — Wed, 08 Feb 2012 15:30:00 +0000

Missing Mark. I dropped him off at the airport yesterday morning. This will be our longest time apart since doing the long-distance schlep between Illinois and Missouri in college, so I've naturally been a bit gloomy and quiet. But I keep trying to focus on the adventures we have ahead of us and enjoying the solitude.

Cuddling that face up there. And, with Mark gone, having extensive conversations with her. Seriously. She chirps {or yowls, depending on her mood} when I ask her questions. That sounded suspiciously "crazy cat lady," Caiti.

Listening to a few new-to-me podcasts, including WTF with Marc Maron and The Accidental Creative with Todd Henry. Ignoring the strong language in the introduction, I'm really impressed by the interviews on WTF; they feature comedians and entertainers, but the questions are much deeper and more interesting than mainstream media interviews-- touching on motivations, challenges, religion, etc. And A.C. is great for any creative person. Next up on my listening schedule is 99% Invisible, Escape from Illustration Island and Making It with Riki Lindhome.

Reading "MWF Seeking BFF" and seeing a lot of myself in it.

Learning how to use iMovie. I bought an '09 copy of iLife for my ancient Macbook, and I'm trying my hand at editing our Costa Rica videos into one vacation compilation. It's a super easy program to use, so I'm having a lot of fun. After being inspired by Olivia Rae's Europe films, I hope to make a few films of our time in Ireland. Although mine will not be as pretty since my current DSLR does not shoot video, boo.

Loving "Parenthood." After catching up on the past seasons on Netflix, I now want to be a Braverman. I will forever miss Lorelai and Rory, but I do love Sarah and Amber's dynamic on the show.

Playing with my new Diana+ lens for my DSLR.

Packing. I haven't even booked my ticket to Ireland yet {since we're waiting for some real-life business to be taken care of before I can go} but I already have piles and piles of clothes on my dresser. I'm not a clothes horse, but determining what to pack for seven months abroad in potentially differing climates is proving to be a daunting task.

Pondering how my goals and creative ambitions will change over the next several months of travel.

{This post was inspired by Elise's and Amy's "Currently" posts}

Dreaming & Scheming 2012: Ignite January

noreply@blogger.com (Caiti) — Fri, 03 Feb 2012 15:00:00 +0000

I am one month into my goal-setting process for the year. Since I set new action steps for each goal at the beginning of every month, I decided I'll also write a monthly reflection post to track my progress throughout the year. The action steps already keep me accountable, but this post will help me reflect on how I'm feeling and what changes I notice as time goes on. I think it's important to celebrate achievements and take time to see how my One Little Word {Ignite} is affecting my day-to-day life.

What I'm celebrating from January:
- Completed 18/27 of my action steps for January, and I'm fairly pleased with that number {the photo above shows a snippet of my action step checklist}
- Wrote an article for publication in a magazine {I'll share more details when I get my contributor's copy!}
- Sold a handful of manifesto/mantra prints to wonderful readers {I'm still offering custom prints for a little while longer if anyone is interested. Just email me for details!}
- Attended a crochet class at a local yarn shop
- Randomly ran into an old Mizzou classmate at said crochet class-- we share the same first name, same college major, same graduation year, currently live on the same block, have had similar career paths/layoffs/issues... total craziness!
- Had lunch with a new local friend
- Got an iPhone {FINALLY!}
- Visited my side of the family twice and Mark's side once
- Celebrated my birthday
- Tried the local vegetarian/vegan restaurant for the first time
- Went to a Blue Man Group show downtown
- Learned that we're moving to Ireland for six months!

The month ahead:
As I head into February, I'm placing an emphasis the connection and health areas of my goal sheet. I have to bid Mark adieu for a month on Tuesday as he heads to Ireland before me. And, UGH, saying goodbye will be not fun. I know that I will need to make an extra effort to connect with friends and family after Mark leaves, since he is normally my main source of support.

At the same time, I want to value the time I have alone, and remember to treat myself well during this month. I have a horrible habit of eating poorly when I'm left to my own devices-- I'm much more likely to prepare healthy food when it's not just me I'm cooking for. Perhaps this is a great time to try out Kris Carr's 21 Day Adventure Cleanse from Crazy Sexy Diet, or a 3-day DIY Blueprint-style cleanse, and I will definitely be utilizing the gym more regularly.

Lastly, I'm taking a second look at the Big Picture made up of my yearly goals. It's funny-- the one year that I outline crazy detailed plans is the year that a major life change is thrown into the mix that makes it almost impossible to stick to said plans. You think there might be a lesson in there?? I still intend to work towards the things I want, but my priorities will likely be shifting. There's a constant give and take-- there's no way I can continue to build the local friendships or be present for my family when I'll be 3,600 miles away, but I will {gladly} be able to experience an entirely different country and make friends and connections while I'm there. A few of my goals will be put on hold out of necessity until we get home, and in some cases, I'll be creating newer goals that fit better with our travels over the next 6 or 7 months. I'm giving myself the permission to change and adapt the goals I had laid out, and repeating to myself, "The only thing constant is change..."

{Art from the Heart} Page Gallery & Prompt #2

noreply@blogger.com (Caiti) — Wed, 01 Feb 2012 18:00:00 +0000

Here is the page I created for the first "Art from the Heart" prompt, featuring one of my favorite quotes by Eleanor Roosevelt. It's funny-- I have written down several quotes in the first few weeks of this year, and almost all of them contain the words "experience" and "adventure." I had even set my iPhone background to this quote from the To Resolve Project. Then we find out we'll be spending the majority of the year in Ireland and will be able to travel extensively through Europe. I'm not much into the law of attraction concept, but I do think our minds are powerful things and that we tend to seek out situations and opportunities that match whatever our minds are focusing on at the time. Pretty amazing.

Here was my general process for creating the page:
1. Gesso the page (as described in my Art Journal Kit post, gesso is a primer that helps prepare your page for paint).
2. Drop three different colors of acrylic paint on the page and blend with your fingers. I like to keep different colors in separate areas of the page, and blend just a little bit so that they don't get too muddled.

3. After the paint dries for a minute or two, rub the page lightly with your fingers or a clean rag. This will rub off sporadic areas of paint and create the white splatter effect that you see above.
4. Use gel matte medium to create an image transfer (the section of pattern that is in the upper left in the photo below). I can go into more details about gel transfers later, but I used the same general process as the wood portrait I made a few months ago.

5. Cut out collage imagery from magazines or print an image from online. I wanted to be able to use this flower from Yoga Journal magazine more than once, so I first scanned it into my computer so I will always have a digital copy of it and then printed it on regular computer paper. Once printed, I cut it out with small scissors.
6. I used India ink to paint the quote on the page, and left blanks for certain words that I wanted to stamp onto the page using my alphabet set. After the India ink was dry, I stamped those words in using a black stamp pad.
7. I added a few dollops of paint and used some old caps and a toilet paper tube as stamps to make circles on the page.
8. To be determined: Since I'm rarely 100% done with my pages, I still might add some small writing at the top of the page, perhaps about our Ireland trip, and perhaps a few more layers of patterns in the top right corner.

Reader Contributions:

Page by Amanda from Got Curls, with lyrics from Home by Edward Sharpe and the Magnetic Zeros

Page by Marcia from Art by Marcia Beckett, with lyrics by The Red Hot Chili Peppers

Thank you for your contributions, ladies! I loved seeing your own interpretations of the prompt :)

Now on to Prompt #2... I again invite anyone who is inspired to send me images of your pages that you create in response to the prompt {email: CaitididDesigns [at] gmail [dot] com}, and I'll feature all submissions on Wednesday, February 15th.

Monthly Faves : January

noreply@blogger.com (Caiti) — Tue, 31 Jan 2012 11:30:00 +0000

Monthly Faves is a series featuring my favorite links and bits around the interwebs.

• I love a classic, homey bakery as much as the next carb-addict, but these modern designer bakeries are pretty stunning.
• Traditional painted portraits, modernized: Artist Sandro Kopp makes portraits during Skype sessions {photo 1 above}.
• To combat girl-on-girl hate and competitiveness, let's spread this message: The "Support Her" Manifesto.
• This is literally The Cutest Ever: Big Brother's Guide to the World.
• E Tells Tales asked readers to leave their anonymous resolutions. It's like Post Secret meets New Year's resolutions-- heartfelt and heart-wrenching.
• I would have never thought to take long-exposure photographs of fireflies. Wow.
• Alan Arkin believes that all life is improvisation {which is something I can get behind!}
• The amazing Shannon and Kristin of {r}evolution apparel wrote about why travelers make great entrepreneurs.
• A visual breakdown of Wes Anderson films.

• A fabulous daily video from hey_rabbit that is a unique and beautifully executed interpretation of a 365 project.
• A beautiful film about letterpress by Danny Cooke that makes me want my own press SO BAD.
• Books and stop-motion animation makes my heart pitter-patter. So gorgeous.
• A look at Lumi Inkodye, a paint that develops and intensifies in the sunlight and can be used with photographic negatives to make prints onto fabric.
• A simple but effective video demonstrating why creativity needs time.
• "I want to go to there" place #3891476: Patagonia

• Newest obsession: We're About To Be Friends, the interview podcast from the amazingsuperfantastic Joy the Baker. I want to be friends with HER, desperately (but that's already common knowledge after my repetitive gushing over the "Joy the Baker" podcast from its inception).
• Blogger Kate Miss put together an album of cover songs with her brother. Could she *be* any more multi-talented? {photo 2 above}.
• First, put on the best pair of headphones you have, and then give this 3D-audio tune a listen. Beware: it's a head trip.
• I love getting new podcast recommendations, especially from other creative, humor-loving types.

• Make: a pretty gold-dipped porcelain bowl or hand-dyed napkins.
• Hack: Here's a stupidly simple way of making a custom case for your iPhone-- I bought a clear case from Overstock.com last week to try this out myself!
• Purchase: Amazing textiles by Nancy Straughan {photo 3 above}.
• Learn: How to make animated GIFs.
• Envy: This super adorable wedding (make sure you click "next" to view all the photos).
• Participate: I'm currently obsessed with the concept of food swaps, which has been heralded as a hot food trend for 2012. They involve a group of participants who gather with the purpose of trading batches of their homemade food-- everything from homemade vanilla extract to loaves of foccacia bread to foraged mushrooms. This is definitely something I'd love to take part in someday!

Do you like my Monthly Faves posts? Then make sure you follow me on Twitter! I've found that I end up with more links than I can possibly share each month, so I'm going to be regularly Tweeting some of the extra finds that don't end up in my Monthly Faves posts.

A Big Announcement {a.k.a., Holy #*@&, is this real life?!}

noreply@blogger.com (Caiti) — Mon, 30 Jan 2012 11:00:00 +0000

Seriously, y'all. Is this my life??

I'm moving to Dublin, Ireland, for six months. I'm moving to Ireland. Holy. Cannoli.

How did this come about, you ask? Well, I can thank my husband for this one. He works for a company that provides professional services to other companies, and it just so happens that a new project is in Ireland. Long story short, Mark volunteered himself to be a part of the team on this project, and off we go!

I'm still trying to wrap my brain around the fact that this is happening {thus the radio silence on the blog for much of last week} but it really is wonderfully exciting. I've had that Disneyland/"I'm too excited to sleep!" feeling for days now. Traveling somewhere for an extended period of time has been on my Life List since its inception, but I had considered "extended time" to be anything more than two weeks-- I certainly wasn't expecting six months! An international trip was also on my goal worksheet for the year in the Adventure category, and-- KABLAM!-- we are getting an adventure for sure. Until now, my international travel experience has been limited to a trip to Costa Rica in 2009 and a 2-week study abroad tour during college through France, Germany, Belgium, and Austria-- and I quickly learned that two weeks for four countries was nowhere near enough time to really satisfy my wanderlust and desire to truly experience a new place.

We'll be set up with an apartment just outside of Dublin, and Mark's company seems to be working very hard to make the transition easy. And by the luck o' the Blarney Stone, the apartment *will* have internet, so get ready for far too many pictures of rolling hills, old buildings and wandering sheep :)

Weekend trips around the emerald isle and to London and Edinburgh are in the schedule. And just putting it out there: It's also on my Life List to see an Olympics game-- c'mon Universe! :) To top that off-- since we'll already be on that side of the pond-- we're planning an extended vacation at the conclusion of Mark's project to at least Spain and Germany {and Scandinavia, if at all possible. Or Italy! Or Amsterdam!}.

There are still a few details to iron out, and I've been spending hours researching extended travel visas, work permits {for Mark} and spousal requirements {for me}. It has all happened so fast-- Mark found out just a week ago and leaves this Saturday, whoa nelly. Hopefully, I'll be able to follow him there within a month. When I first received the news I was a Sad Panda because I thought I'd be at home and husband-less for four months due to 3-month maximum time limits for staying in Ireland, but I believe that will be remedied for me through Mark's Irish work permit. Fingers crossed.

I feel incredibly blessed and grateful that Mark and I get to share this experience. It will be my first time in the country {Mark and both of our parents have been there before}, and I'm excited to see a bit of my heritage. I will have to take a peek at the family tree before I go since I believe we have roots in a town north of Dublin.

Any tips, advice, or must-sees for Ireland? Anything I should remember to pack for a half-year stay in another country?

{Image Credits: Photo - Ireland by k.babineau // Typography - Yours truly}

PS- I fully intended to post the Art from the Heart journal pages and the new prompt today, but I couldn't keep this news a secret any longer! Check back on Wednesday or Thursday for an AFTH gallery post and the next prompt.

Birthday Giveaway Winner!

noreply@blogger.com (Caiti) — Fri, 27 Jan 2012 15:00:00 +0000

Congratulations, Katie Licht! You are the winner of the birthday giveaway package! Expect an email from me soon :)

PS to all my readers - Ms. Katie has a wonderful blog and is a talented paper artist/art journaler/collager {is that a word?} so definitely check it out if you haven't already!

Art from the Heart : My Art Journaling Kit

noreply@blogger.com (Caiti) — Wed, 25 Jan 2012 13:30:00 +0000

Last week I introduced my new art journaling series called Art from the Heart. I've already gotten some awesome submissions to the first prompt, but if you finish up a page this week, please pass it along to me to include in the gallery post!

A few of you might not be as familiar with art journaling, so I thought I'd share some basics. While I plan on discussing some tips and techniques with each of my pages in response to the prompts, here's a peek at my staple supplies. While you *absolutely* don't need more than a piece of paper, a pen and a prompt (and maybe a few scraps or magazine pages for a layered look), I like to use a few extra supplies to help achieve what I consider to be "my style."

1. Gesso: This is essentially white primer for your pages that prepare them to be painted. I think it gives a good surface for you to work on, and although it often makes my pages curl after I put down a layer of gesso, it makes the pages extra sturdy (and I can usually flatten the pages without any issue).
2. Matte gel medium: This stuff is a goopy gel that dries clear, but not shiny (thus the "matte" in the title, versus "gloss"). It is a super awesome adhesive for your bits of collage materials, and also allows you to experiment with fun techniques like image transfers. I think it's worth the extra cost (as opposed to using Mod Podge or regular glue) because it has flexibility of use.
3. Spray bottle: A basic spray bottle filled with water is a tool I use when painting my backgrounds. On the mist setting, the bottle helps make the paint easier to spread.
4. Washi tape: Good sources for this Japanese paper tape include Happy Tape and PrettyTape. I also use plain old masking tape quite often.
5. Vintage stamps and other ephemera: I love the look of old stamps on a page. Other suggestions for ephemera to collect include pages from magazines, old photographs, old book pages, sheet music, ticket stubs, tissue paper, lace/doilies, etc. You can usually find some interesting books and pieces at thrift stores and antique shops.
6. Security envelopes: The lining of many envelopes comes printed with interesting patterns, usually in blue or black ink. I love collecting the different patterns from bills and junk mail to use on my pages. I'll cut them into specific shapes, or I'll cut a 3/4" wide strip that I'll adhere to the page to give the look of washi tape.
7. Blank sketchbook or journal: The size is a personal decision-- some people like myself work in a bigger journal (mine is 9x12"), but others feel that page size is a little overwhelming, so I'd go for a 8x10" in that case. If you're interested in using paint like I do, I recommend trying to get the heaviest page weight you can find. It doesn't need to be as thick as watercolor paper, but a journal with 80 or 90 lb. paper will stand up to the paint better.
8. Fluid acrylic craft paint: I use the cheap craft paints usually found near the wood section of the craft store. Brands include Americana, Delta, Anita's, and Apple Barrel. These little bottles have fluid paint, so it's easy to spread on the page. These craft paints aren't as saturated as the art acrylic paints sold in tubes or tubs (such as Golden brand), but a less-saturated look is more my style and I'm able to buy many more colors since the bottles are so cheap (usually about $0.60-0.99 per bottle).
9. India ink: This is a super saturated black ink (although I believe you can get a few other colors) that is commonly used for calligraphy. It's perfect for titles or "headlines" on your pages, or for bold doodling.
10. Alphabet stamps: I bought a cheap children's set from Amazon recently, and I LOVE it! The one's I have are 3/4" in height, and the stamps are clear so you can see how to line up your letters as you are stamping. A larger version and lowercase sets are also available.
11. Prismacolor or other markers and pens: I also use a set of fine felt-tipped colored markers that I got at an office supply store. Most of my journaling is done with a basic black ink pen.
12. Paintbrushes: I recommend at least three brushes; one large brush (about 1") for using gesso and painting your backgrounds, one small/fine brush for using the India ink, and one medium sized junky/cheap brush to use with the gel medium, since it gets kind of gummy with the gel medium. Some people use a palette knife or something like a popsicle stick to spread their gel medium, but I prefer the flexibility of the brush tip. Note: When it comes to painting backgrounds, I often (usually?) find that my hands are the best paintbrush, especially after using the water bottle to thin out the paint.

Art journaling veterans, what's your favorite supply/tool? Those newer to art journaling, are there any specific questions you have about supplies?

PS - Don't forget to enter my creativity package giveaway! I'll be taking entries until Friday!

A Year of of Kindness (and a Giveaway!)

noreply@blogger.com (Caiti) — Mon, 23 Jan 2012 11:30:00 +0000

Be Kind Large Format Print by thewheatfield, $22

Thank you for the birthday wishes on my last post! I had a lovely weekend full of crafting, good food and family.

The last few birthdays, I've made a "27 Before 28" and a "28 Before 29" list, full of intentions and things I wanted achieve in the year ahead. Since I'm already spending time monthly looking at my goals, I decided to do something different for my birthday this year-- something a little more outwardly focused, rather than centered around myself and what I want. The last several years have shown me that I really do want to find a way to connect with and help other people, whether that be an act of kindness towards a stranger, or making sure I'm present for the needs of my loved ones.

So, my "birthday list" is going to be made up of 29 random acts of kindness I'd like to complete over the course of the next year. I was inspired by a number of other bloggers who have shared stories about kindness, both receiving and spreading it. These stories always give me the warm fuzzies and I'd really like to put that kind of good juju out into the world and see what happens.

While I have a whole bucket full of ideas for my 29 RAOK's, I'm not going to share a list in advance. I want these acts to be random, as intended, so that the right action reaches the right person at the right time. My plan is to share what I'm actually doing throughout the year. Stay tuned for updates, and feel free to follow me on Instagram @CaitididDesigns where I'll be documenting the process with real-time photos {since I've FINALLY upgraded to an iPhone after 5 or so years with the same non-texting, old school flip phone!}.

To get my 29th year off to a good start and get into the spirit of giving for my RAOK project, I thought I'd continue the tradition of doing a giveaway on my birthday! I have an awesome package of creative goodies to give to one of my readers. Note: These are all products that I really enjoy and I have not been sponsored to do this giveaway.

Here's what the package contains:
1. Painted Pages by Sarah Ahearn Bellemare // A book about mixed-media techniques, journaling and collage that will get your creativity flowing.
2. DIY: Design It Yourself by Ellen Lupton // A book by a well-known graphic designer about how to design items for yourself, from zines to stickers to t-shirts.
3. Deer art print by Lee May Foster // This print is mounted on a deep canvas so it is ready to hang.
4. Mixed Paper Journal by Craftside // This 4x6" hard cover journal has all sorts of different recycled paper inside and would be perfect for brainstorming new crafty ideas.
5. Camera Strap by VMJess // This is a double-sided strap with a bright floral print on one side and a mod yellow and green oval pattern on the other.

To enter, please leave a comment sharing something nice-- a link to something inspiring you, a story of something kind you did for someone else (or vise versa), your favorite uplifting quote, etc. That's it! I'll draw a winner at random on Friday, January 27. The giveaway is open to anyone in the US or Canada.

UPDATE: The giveaway is now closed and a winner will be chosen and announced shortly!

Party Like It's My Brithday!

noreply@blogger.com (Caiti) — Fri, 20 Jan 2012 11:30:00 +0000

In honor of my 29th birthday tomorrow, I whipped up this bright and fun collage of my fantasy birthday party.

Pompoms, confetti, multiple cakes, pink champagne, puppies in bow ties? What more could a girl possibly want??

{I'm twenty-nine, going on fourteen, clearly.}

For my fantasy birthday party, I'd invite each one of you dear blog friends, and we'd have an elaborate brunch feast with too many mimosas followed by platters of cake and macarons. Perhaps we'd catch a play or shop our way across Michigan Avenue, and end the day with laughter and delectable nibbles at the Chocolate Bar at the Peninsula Hotel.

Since I don't think I'll be able to invent a time travel/apparition machine before tomorrow morning to round up all my faraway friends and blogger pals, I'll likely be woken up at 4:40 a.m. as my husband gets up to go play hockey with a recreational group, and then I'll spend the day crafting with my mom, grandma and aunts. Much less exciting, but pretty much right up my alley {except for the being woken up before dawn part}. But make no mistake-- there *will* be plenty of chocolate and cake if I can help it.

Cheers to the last year of my twenties! {Aaaand cue freak-out-- but that's a whole blog post for another day!}

Image Sources, found via Pinterest and Etsy: Pink Rainbow Cake - Call Me Cupcake // Invitations - Martha Stewart Weddings // Menu - The Glitter Guide // Cheers - Two Arms Inc. // Raspberry Lemonade - My Baking Addiction // Fabric Flowers - Pretty Swell // Pom Poms - Martha Stewart // Belina Dress - Kate Spade // Confetti Cake - Martha Stewart Weddings // Chalkboard Sign - MisterMustache // Sofia Coppola Champagne - Geekdreams // DIY Pom Poms - Honestly WTF // Striped Paper Straws - domesticcharm // Macarons - Not So Humble Pie // Pink Leather Martini Bow Tie - luxemutt // Black Honeycomb Bow Tie - SillyBuddy

I'm not at ALT. I want to be. So I'm stalking Twitter all day.

noreply@blogger.com (Caiti) — Thu, 19 Jan 2012 18:00:00 +0000

This whole morning, I've had a serious case of The Jealousies towards all the amazing bloggers who get to attend Alt Design Summit in Salt Lake City. The conference, which started today, covers a whole range of topics on blogging, design, small business and social media-- pretty much *everything* I spend 95% of my days thinking about. It is definitely a dream of mine to attend someday. Until then, I tend to mope around this week each year, wistfully reading the tweets and imagining what an amazing time it must be.

Today, I figured that if I was already obsessing over the #altsummit hashtag on Twitter all day, I might as well put my stalker tendencies to good use and share the love and wisdom with you readers who might not be on Twitter {or who aren't as crazy as I am}. I will try and share 2-3 more roundups if I can. The information that attendees are sharing over Twitter really is amazing.

Join me in wishing we were all in Salt Lake City...

{PS - If you're on a Reader, click through to view plugin. I'm using a new-to-me website to create these roundups, and it's been having a few issues this morning. If an error message appears below, just refresh the window to re-load it. Thanks!}

Keeping Focused and On Task : My Time Management Methods

noreply@blogger.com (Caiti) — Thu, 19 Jan 2012 11:30:00 +0000

Grey 2012 Laurel Planner by laureldenise, $35
{Every time I try to use a planner pad, it lasts about 2 months, max.
But this one sure is pretty!}

Time management used to be somewhat illusive to me. As I've mentioned before, my creative nature tends to lead me in a million different directions, starting and dropping projects at whim. While this allows me to cover a lot of ground, I don't always cross that finish line-- at least not without stopping at the pond to feed the ducks, and maybe buying a pretzel from the food cart, and stopping to re-tie my shoes for the fifth time, only to get distracted by a penny on the ground. At other times, I get stuck feeling overwhelmed by the length of the journey ahead of me, leaving me unable take that first step at all.

While I believe some detours can lead to creative breakthroughs--because who wants to travel the same well-trodden path as everyone else?--I've been on the quest for methods to help me keep the momentum going, so that I don't get left behind without a map. A key part of this is my monthly check-ins and action steps to keep my goals in focus. But I've also developed some methods for the day-to-day tasks that work for me.

- My values list and yearly goals sheet: I've said it before, and I'll say it again-- my values list and goal sheet help remind me of the "why" in relation to my daily to-do's. So, when I'm feeling the lure of a Top Chef marathon, I remember my vision of running a race someday, and I'm more likely to get my booty to the gym instead of planting it on the couch {...not always, but it helps}.

Note: These methods I use are almost comically simple. As much as I'd love to try out every new app or software package, I'm pretty much a traditionalist who doesn't need a lot of bells and whistles to get the job done. But I still wanted to talk about my method in case it's of any help to others.

- {For not-yet-set-in-stone items} iCal: iCal on my MacBook is my preferred method of planning in advance for items that require flexibility. I do all my blog post scheduling and meal planning in iCal because these are primarily rough ideas that I can drag and drop onto different dates as my plans change and solidify. I typically look at a whole month when blog planning, but do my meal planning by the week.

- {For lots of little tasks that add up} TeuxDeux: When the big picture is overwhelming, I find it extremely helpful to break down my to-do list into bite-size pieces. A standard to-do list with 50 things on it isn't particularly helpful in reducing my overwhelm, so I turn to TeuxDeux for weekly snapshots. This was super helpful as I tried to plan the dinner party we hosted, since I could note what recipes to make in advance, reminders to clean the bathroom, and other bits spread throughout the week beforehand so that I wasn't scrambling on the day of the party. Yes, you can use Google Calendar's daily and weekly views, but for a look at the week, I much prefer the clean, minimal view of TeuxDeux when I have lots of little tasks to be checked off. I also appreciate how TeuxDeux pushes any unfinished/unchecked items to the next day if you don't finish them.

- {For daily focus & reminders} Google Calendar: Anything that I consider to be an appointment or a deadline goes into Google Calendar-- things like doctor's appointments, lunch dates, or deadlines for freelance projects. The main reason I use Google Calendar is for the alert system that's integrated with my email so I'm reminded of what and when I need to do something. I have one calendar for my personal dates and two shared calendars with my husband-- one with birthdays and one for events/dates that pertain to us both. On occasion, I use Google Calendar's daily view to schedule in "must-do" items-- phone calls I keep putting off, gym workouts, going to the post office. While these can theoretically go on my TeuxDeux list, I sometimes find myself avoiding the particularly annoying items. Somehow-- and this very well could be my own Crazy Brain talking-- I'm more likely to do these annoying tasks if I get an email alert. It's harder to hide from the task when my computer bosses me to do it!

- {For a reality check} Excel "Timesheet": This is particularly useful for freelancers who should keep track of their hourly time on various client projects, even if you charge by the project {perhaps especially if you charge by the project}. It's really important to know how much time goes into a specific project to ensure you are charging enough for your time. Even if you aren't a freelancer or crafter, try this experiment: Record how you spend every minute of time for a specific period, preferably at least a week. Then categorize each bit of time if necessary (client projects, blogging, blog reading, social media, eating, exercising, watching TV, etc). If you are visually motivated, whip up a few pie charts or bar graphs to show you where your time is going. I've done this exercise and it's been quite enlightening... and sort of scary when I look at all the time I spend on blogs/Twitter/email sometimes. But, we all have the same amount of time available to us in a week, 168 hours, and paying attention to how we spend them is an important step towards achieving more.

Do you have a favorite method, software or app for time management? How do you keep yourself on task and motivated?

SOPA/PIPA Strike

noreply@blogger.com (Caiti) — Wed, 18 Jan 2012 01:00:00 +0000

Wordpress.com Goes Black for SOPA Strike

PROTECT IP / SOPA Breaks The Internet from Fight for the Future on Vimeo.

This past week, I have been trying to further educate myself about the SOPA {Stop Online Piracy Act} and PIPA {Protect-IP Act}, two bills that are currently heading through Congress. As a person who loves what the internet has brought to our lives-- the innovation, connection, new ideas, creativity and entrepreneurship-- I think it is important enough of an issue to talk about here and ask that everyone do their part in educating themselves.

My nutshell summary of the issue: these bills use the guise of fighting online piracy to pave the way for online censorship. The vague language makes websites liable for the content on their site-- sites can be shut down, blocked, and their funding/advertising cut off if *any* content is deemed to be suspicious of infringement (even a single link posted by a commenter unaffiliated with the site). User-driven sites like Flickr, YouTube, Etsy, etc. all run the risk of being shut down or having to severely police users to ensure that they won't be liable for content appearing on their site. Either way, the result will be a highly censored internet that will limit the innovation and entrepreneurship we have come to know.

Several sites are taking part in an internet blackout tomorrow to illustrate what it might be like if these bills go through. Here are a few links to assist anyone who may not be up on the issues; the video above gives a great summary as well. PIPA goes to vote on January 24, 2012 and SOPA has essentially been killed by the House and will not be up for a vote.

More information:
"What SOPA means for creatives" via Behance
"The Problem with SOPA (And How To Stop It)" via Copyblogger
"Where's my Wikipedia? SOPA, PIPA blackout coming" via LA Times
"SOPA opponents gaining momentum; Wikipedia, Google join protest" via MSNBC
Congressional SOPA and PIPA Maps

Read up, and then please consider contacting your Congressman or signing an online petition:
Stop American Censorship
Combat Online Piracy While Protecting an Open and Innovative Internet
Veto SOPA

Introducing : Art from the Heart

noreply@blogger.com (Caiti) — Tue, 17 Jan 2012 11:30:00 +0000

I'd like to introduce a new series on the Life is a Canvas blog, and my hopes are that it will become a fun and collaborative project for my creative readers as well!

Many of you know that I love art journaling, and I may have even connected with a handful of you through Elsie and Rachel's "Tell Your Story" e-course in 2010. Despite good intentions, I have fallen out of practice with journaling in the past year for reasons ranging from a lack of space to spread out my supplies to not knowing what to journal about. Both of these reasons seem more like excuses, honestly, and are hardly enough to avoid a fun, creative activity.

In order to get back into the swing of creating regularly, I've decided to start an art journaling series called Art from the Heart. How it works: Twice a month, I will offer up a thoughtful, postitive journal prompt. There will be two weeks to create a page based on the prompt, and then I will share my creation, along with tips and techniques that I've used.

I invite all of you participate as well! If you send me photos of your responses to the prompts, I'd love to showcase in a gallery-style post along with my journal page. Even if you aren't an art journaler, I'd love for you to join in-- I think many prompts could be used by scrapbookers, photographers, artists, Instagrammers, digital collagers, even Project Lifers! I might end up using Mr. Linky/linkshare or a Flickr group if I get feedback that people would prefer to post their work on their own blogs, but for now, I'm going to start with asking you to email me photos of your pages {CaitididDesigns [at] gmail [dot] com}. I hope some {or lots!} of you will participate-- I think it's a great way to try something new and to see how a prompt can be interpreted by different people!

Prompt #2 and a showcase of any contributions I receive will be posted on Monday, January 30th. Happy creating!

Foodie Friday : Food Goals for 2012

noreply@blogger.com (Caiti) — Fri, 13 Jan 2012 11:30:00 +0000

One fun thing that I started last year was my list of food-related resolutions. I mean, a goal of eating, cooking, and trying new restaurants... How could that NOT be enjoyable?? I might as well call this list, "Excuses to stuff my face with deliciousness." Regardless of my motives, last year's food resolutions acted as a guide for trying new things, and I ended up having a year full of new food experiences and awesome memories. Yes, many of my memories are food related-- don't judge. I couldn't tell you what I was wearing on New Year's Eve last year, but I can surely tell you what I ate {gnocchi in a mushroom cream sauce, in case you were wondering}.

Here is my new list of food goals for 2012, followed by a review of my 2011 goals, if you're interested in reading what and how I did. If you don't care to read my extensive blathering about food, you can quietly skip this post and be thankful I don't take pictures of every meal I eat. But believe me, I've considered it.

2012 FOOD GOALS:
- Cook our way through an entire cookbook. This was my husband's idea! I cannot tell you how thrilled I am to be married to someone who enjoys cooking and loves trying new food as much as I do. We picked the One World Vegetarian Cookbook for its built-in variety {with cuisines from all around the globe} and because there are pictures of every recipe.
- Make 8 loaves of bread. I want to put my Kitchenaid to good use and learn more about bread baking.
- Host another dinner party. We're thinking about a tasting party for Chicago deep dish pizza where we compare pies from the various popular Chicago pizzerias. We've pretty much tried them all by now, but we've never compared them side-by-side and thought that would be fun to do with our friends.
- Go to the farmers market weekly. We're going to skip out on a CSA this year in favor of shopping at the farmers market, since we had a little trouble with wasting some of our produce this year (4th through 7th head of cabbage, I'm looking at you!).
- Make homemade tamales. We took a tamale making class this past year, so now we know the process, but we need to schedule a whole tamale-making day.
- Take at least 2 cooking classes at a local recreational cooking school. Luckily, our family knows us pretty well and we ended up with 3 separate gift cards for Christmas to the school!
- Eat at Art Smith's restaurant, Table Fifty-Two. This is a carry-over from last year, but I know it'll happen this year thanks to a generous gift certificate from my parents!
- Create my own cookbook. This might be a simple Blurb cookbook that we give to our families for Christmas next year, or maybe I'll create and publish an ebook full of recipes for the blog.

_______________

LAST YEAR'S GOALS AND THEIR STATUSES:
- Make at least one recipe from every cookbook I own: Nope. I used a lot of cookbooks, but I *know* I didn't cook something from each one of the 30+ I own-- probably because I didn't have a good way of keeping track of which ones I had and hadn't used.
- Subscribe to a CSA again: Done! We went with Angelic Organics this year, and appreciated how organized their whole operation was.
- Make cheese with our cheese-making kit: Nope. Just never got around to it, mainly because we didn't know how to store the cheese properly for the curing/resting period, since it is supposed to be left at 50 degrees.
- Perfect a recipe for (vegetarian) Pad Thai and Tom Yum soup: 50% done. We managed a decent Pad Thai with some tips from a native, but we tried tom yum using a mix and it was *awful,* so I still need to try a homemade version.
- Try Ethiopian food for the first time: Done! Loved it. LOVED IT. Deliciously spicy and complex, and very vegetarian friendly. I'd describe the flavor as similar to the spices used in Indian dishes combined with the citrus flavor from Thai cuisine.
- Experiment with more raw foods recipes in the summer months, and perhaps try dehydrating: 50% done. Tried some raw recipes but not dehydrating.
- Eat at Art Smith's restaurant, Table Fifty-Two and possibly Top Chef winner Stephanie Izard's Girl and the Goat: Not yet, but I got a Table Fifty-Two gift certificate for Christmas so we'll be going in 2012!
- Host a dinner party (a real, adult, sit-down dinner, not an appetizer or grilling party): Done! We threw an Iron Chef dinner party in December.

Other fun food achievements from 2011: Bought a juicer. Got a Kitchenaid mixer. Made my first loaf of bread. Got treated to a delicious meal on the house at the beautiful restaurant owned by Mark's aunt and uncle in New Mexico. Took a tamale-making class. Attended a taste-tripping party with miracle berries {totally legal and non-mind altering, despite how questionable it sounds}. Tried persimmons. Roasted a whole {organic, hormone-free, Amish-raised} chicken for the first time. Made homemade Christmas presents including pear preserves, vanilla extract, barbeque sauce, and peanut-butter dog biscuits. Made oil-free potato chips in the microwave {whaaa? SERIOUSLY}.

Do you have any food-related goals for the new year?

Staying on Track in 2012 : Goal Reminders

noreply@blogger.com (Caiti) — Thu, 12 Jan 2012 11:30:00 +0000

Although my dreaming & scheming is complete for 2012, that hardly means the work is done. Aside from action steps and other progress markers to keep myself on track, I am a big believer in surrounding myself with inspiration and reminders of what I want to achieve. I think our goals need to be all up in our faces so they don't get pushed to the backburner.

Even before I set my specific goals for this year, I have gathered various motivational pieces into an altar area in my yoga studio/art studio/office/closet space {hey, gotta work with what space you have!}. I have a framed print that says, "Believe in yourself," a set of inspiration cards from Louise Hay, a Buddha statue with a candle and a stamp with Gandhi's quote, "Be the change you wish to see in the world." With my focused plans for 2012, I hope to incorporate a few new pieces that reflect my 2012 goals.

Here are a few ideas for physical items to help you remember your intentions throughout the year:

1. A print featuring your One Little Word, personal mission statement or a specific mantra for the year. I designed the print shown above with my personal mission statement, and it hangs above my desk. Note: Interested in having one of your own? For $10 {this includes s/h} I can create a 8x10" typographic print of your mission statement, One Little Word, or mantra with a watercolor or solid color background. Longer manifestos are $22. Just email me at CaitididDesigns {at} gmail {dot} com if you're interested!

2. Custom Stamped Sterling Silver Rings by foxwise, $24.95. I love the idea of putting your One Little Word on a ring because it will always be in plain sight and help you remember what's important to you. It could even be a yearly tradition, and you could wear the rings stacked together with all your mantras/words. Another great option is Lisa Leonard's Word of the Year necklaces.

3. Custom Ceramic Egg from palomasnest, $28. These stamped eggs would look lovely placed somewhere special, perhaps in a nest of its own as a symbol of what you hope to be growing and cultivating this year. {PS: Thanks to Danielle, who shared this idea on her blog as part of her annual tradition.}

4. Practice Gratitude Organic Cotton Shirt from Tees for Change, $34. You have no choice but to be grateful {or mindful, or a change maker, etc.} if it's declared across your chest! I'm also a big fan of QuotableCards and all their products, and The Universe Knows goodies, especially the coffee mugs.

I have some DIY posts planned that feature projects to help you stay on track with your goals, so stay tuned for those in the future. What's your favorite inspirational item? Do you do anything special to memorialize your One Little Word or new year's resolutions?

Seeking Sponsors / Ad Swaps

noreply@blogger.com (Caiti) — Wed, 11 Jan 2012 11:30:00 +0000

One new feature I'm introducing to the Life is a Canvas blog for 2012 is a sponsor section! At this point in time, it will be operating on a swap basis-- meaning if you have a blog or shop that you'd like advertised on my sidebar, all you have to do in exchange is post an ad for my site on your own blog. I'll post your ad in the Sponsor section to the right along with Tenpenny Splendid, my first official sponsor. If you are interested in supporting my blog in this way, please send an email to CaitididDesigns [at] gmail [dot] com. Ads will need to be 200 pixels wide {required} and up to a maximum of 200 pixels in height. If you need help designing an ad, please let me know.

I think this is a great way to ease into blog sponsorships, since I'm not really interested in making this space super sponsor-heavy with tons giveaways and feature posts, as so many blogs are doing now. However, as I put together my Monthly Faves and Loving Lately posts, I will definitely keep my eye out for quality content to include from my sponsors! Depending on how many people seem interested, I might also do a small introductory post at the end of this month.

This is a fun way to support each others' creative blogs, and I'm looking forward to making some new blog friends!