an (almost) wordless week for olive

This is a bittersweet time for my family- we have a funeral for a beloved aunt this week after a short, but challenging illness,...

Upcycled Wall Art Tutorial - getting shredded without any crunches

I shred everything for packing material(I have been known to mistakenly shred unpaid telephone bills and insurance cards - oops)I...

where the path of least resistance might really lead us ...

"the path of least resistance is for losers" - H.G. WellsNow, I have no idea the context of this quote and don't know much about...

Etsy GIVEAWAY - CleverHands Awesome Upcycled Journal BANDOLIER! CLOSED

AND THE WINNER IS : #217 GrayGirlStudiosTrue Random Number GeneratorMin: 1Max: 610Result:217Clever Hands has set up a coupon code...

New Work in My Shops This Month - more cork and magnetic, recycled lockets!

Even though the holiday rush has left me a little burned out I have added a few new pieces to each shop this month - I also have...

this DECIDING thing is a pain in the a--

So, my very first decision this year(well, maybe not my first decision, I guess my first decision was to make more decisions)was...

Upycled Rubberband Valentine Tutorial or when good tutorials go bad ... ah the heartbreak

Sometimes when crafting, the thing you end up with is not exactly the picture you had in your head when you started.(and this is...

Happy MLK Day - wishing everyone the time to slow down and think about his lessons of peace, brotherhood and forgiveness

When his home was bombed as his wife and four young children slept, Dr. King could have held it up to the world as an example of...

why the teacher doesn't always eat apples and carry a ruler ...

when the student is ready, the teacher appears - Buddhist ProverbI love this proverb, but truly always imagined this teacher to have...

creating our own opening ....

My assistant/intern (aka niece) got her driver's license recently(yay for me never having to pick her up or drive her home again)and...

the GIVEAWAY is back with the absolutely fantabulous Old New Again! CLOSED

I am kicking off 2011 with a giveaway from one of my favorite upcycled shops - Old New Again! Old New Again is the amazingly talented...

10 Day WE CAN DO IT Countdown to 2011 # 10 Balance

If 2010 had some of us throwing out balance in favor of inspiration or at least the freedom to be inspired -(which somehow does find...

10 Day (maybe this is a 14 day) WE CAN DO THIS Countdown to 2011 - # 9 Showing Up

"Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate. Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure. It is our light and not...

Why "DECIDING" Means Ditching the Get It While We Can Mentality #8 counting down to 2011, maybe this is a countback

Yes, I realize it is already 2011, somehow these posts got a wee bit behind (sigh) ....

You might know this feeling, too.

The feeling that makes you say yes to work when you really need to say no.

When I had a cart in the mall, I never sold anything in the first 2 hours of any day

and yet everyday during this period I would start to get nervous like I would never sell another thing ever again -

it is the same feeling when you start to sell regularly on Etsy and then you don't for a day or two or maybe a week.

(now sometimes this is a good feeling - well, not a good feeling, but it produces a good outcome - a little kick in the keester that we need to encourage us out of a rut and into something new)

But, it is also the feeling that leads us to take on any work, any opportunity that comes along whether it fits in with our intention for our business and our life or not because this could all end tomorrow - doomsday - get it while we can - thinking.

This mentality can be the death of us in almost a literal sense because we will run ourselves ragged, undervalue our work and make promises that will be impossible to keep -

(although we will beat ourselves up trying)

We have to trust in our process.

Saying no sometimes is about self-love. To quote Dr. Phil -

(yes, I am quoting Dr. Phil now - don't hate me - does anybody else find it really weird the way he grabs his wife's hand and practically races her out at the end of every show - very odd - imagine if Oprah did that to Stedman, people would throw a net over her)

It teaches people how to treat us and more importantly confirms to us how we want to be treated. It tells the universe that we trust it; that stuff will still be there for us later - the right stuff.

(and that little voice in your head that screams - are you crazy, you can't turn this down, you are lucky to get paid for this - you can make 10 scarves in 2 days for $150.00 and ship them to Peoria - may get a little quieter - that voice may even crack open a bottle of champagne and whisper hallelujah)

* magical cupcakes print by raceytay

Happy 1/1/11 Everyone!

I think I am going to pay all my bills today(maybe)just so I can write 1/1/11 over and over - it feels so much like a do-over year...