Paisley Ann Design

A picture is worth a thousand words. Never have I seen such classy, well-made dog attire. WOWZAH!

Ok, so I came across a gigantic package of 15 wreaths at my local thrift store for $7.50. What luck!?!?I have been drooling over the wreaths in Knockknocking’s Etsy shop for forever-and-a-day. So I decided to adopt “wreath-making” as my newest experimental art medium. Especially since I am a sucker for thrift store steals and have tons of felt laying around. So I went about surfing Etsy for some inspiration and was not surprised to find that there are many others who are “copying” her so to speak. She will always be “the man” in my mind, only because I first laid eyes on these fantastic pieces of yummy eye candy in HER Etsy shop. Regardless, there are some other really good ones out there–that give me plenty of ideas for my own. And some of them are totally my style. Capitalism is king!
Cheerio for now! xoxo Ashley

Which ones are your favorites? Happy Crafting!

1. Herringbone and Fuschia Yarn Wreath- by Knockknocking
2. Black Bird Yarn Wreath in Fall Colors- by Littleprints
3. Modern Wreath (Yellow)- by Bananapapers

My Etsy crush of the week.err..month hails from Columbia, SC. And yes, the pic above is of our new baby, Ada Lovelace. Like pecan pie, Ada, and these collars are dripping with sweetness. I’ll admit, they are a bit preppy, not to mention girly…not sure if the boyz in our hood would want to walk their “already too small for their taste”, dog, with one of these collars on. Ok, so before you beg the question I will just say it: “YES! I have gone over the edge” “I might be a pet freak.” Before I get labeled, you should probably wait for a post on dog sweaters. Don’t worry it will happen before Winter arrives. Visit their shop.

Pecan Pie Puppies was started in 2008 as a way to finance our dog rescue work (and as an excuse to spend more time with our dogs). At the PPP headquarters, there are currently five dogs in residence – one of which is available for adoption. By purchasing a Pecan collar, you help us to continue our rescue efforts. Check out their blog for more info.

This Etsy Crush I have comes from Melbourne, Australia. There are some great designers there. I am guessing many more per capita than the U.S.. It’s like Iceland and their rad musicians. I am trying to ponder how that happens?!

My folk lover is awesome! And guess what, these already reasonably priced prints are half off on May 17th and 18th. Seriously….I am eating that ish up. She blends three of the hottest trends right now. The dreamy faces and surreal additions of owls and birds, matched with the pops of color that resemble patchwork quilts. And yet it looks so fresh. Two prints for $20. I mean, seriously?

You can visit her shop here
You can visit her blog here

Have an unbearably awesome weekend. I am off to pretty up our backyard before our chickens come home.

Love and Kisses,
Ashley

Peasant Geek Girl (I hope I have me one of these)

Chevron Striped Dress

Plaid on Plaid

Tuxedo Dress

This week’s Etsy crush is the shop “The Measure.” I tried to find more info on the designer, but all I could drum up was that she is in Boston, Mass–and that she happens to make some of the most inspiring pieces of little girls clothing I have seen. Almost everything is made upon order and she will custom make any of her dresses using one of Dad’s or Grandpa’s shirts. She takes upcycling seriously. And her photos are just darling as well. A lot of sellers have cute clothing, but don’t style their photos well. She does both. I just want to eat these little girls up. I hope someday we have one that looks like the little geeky girl with the trumpet. Unfortunately that little girl looks more like Kyra Sedwick and my husband had a love child.

The problem with lines of clothing that are this inspiring is that they get you all excited about having a little girl. But the thing is, girls never seem to let you dress them. Maybe I will just have to design my own line and live vicariously through other people whose little girls will wear what they give them to wear. In the meantime I am considering having my brother send me one of his dress shirts and turning it into a little dress for my 3 yr.old niece, Baliegh Ann. I will post pics, when I do it. Just don’t hold your breath, it could be months. I have like twenty projects going on right now.

Today’s Etsy crush was inspired by the grey grey March we are having here in Reno. It is grey, cold, and dry–a trifecta of blah. So I decided to get in the mood for spring by digging up the cheeriest wedding invites that I could find. I searched for over an hour, and then, I found this cute little shop. Etsy seller Inkylivie totally delivered today with her bright cheery colors, clean fonts, and folk art inspired drawings colored in deep jewel tones. Now I am pumped and ready to start planting some bulbs (if our new house ever goes through escrow). Ahhh, I digress again. We better get back to the cheery part of this post before I go off the deep end.

Here is a little bio on the woman of the day:
Inky Livie is Asa Montenejo– full-time mom to two munchkins by day, designing/illustrating little piggy by night! Born and raised in the Philippines with a background in Architecture, Asa combines her designer’s eye with her love for art to come up with one of a kind invitations, announcements and stationery for paper goodie freaks drawn to the not-so-conventional (just like herself).

This is a snapshot of Etsy seller Vantiani’s prints. Check her stuff out. Don’t you just love the paper cutting and collage work she has going on here? So vintage re-mix. It’s like when the Postal Service does a re-mix of a Feist song. Booyah! Love it!

She sounds sweet too..here is a peak into her bio on Etsy.

Dear you,

Vantiani.

Cute, isn’t she?!?

Etsy Seller GGiotta picked this set of lovely items out. Ever so often I am wowed by the curation skills of the sellers on Etsy, and I pretty much think this girl clicked on the “you are similar to this user” button on Netflix…so I had to share. The butterfly thingy is rediculously awesome and reminds me of the butterfly tattoos I want on the front of my shin and of the real butterflies we have framed in our kitchen. If only I could be guaranteed to love the butterflies when I am pushing around my walker with tennis balls, I would totally do it. I am still a bit gun-shy.

Anyways…I hope everyone is having a sunny Monday. My morning has been very sunny inspite of the impending doom of a 5 day storm watch. The Chief Geek and I shared a bunch of laughs this morning, which always makes me feel giddy inside. Laughter is my love language, I swear. Oh, and, I almost forgot, last night the fairest child in the house had a friend spend the night. Can I just tell you? That is the most ingenious invention ever. What invention? The “sleepover.” For three reasons: she was entertained, she slept through the night without waking me up four times, and best of all–this morning they were running around in the backyard looking like Soviet-era Russian moms with their babies wrapped in blankets. If you think that sounds depressing, try not to think too hard about that one. There is nothing more joy inducing than seeing a child playing with other kids her age. Their imaginations are so vibrant and it reminds me that Hannah Montana and High School Musical– in reality–is still a few years away. No matter how many times she mentions that it is her favorite movie.

These are a few things that I found out in the world that make me feel cozy and warm inside as a Fall chill begins to set in. Fall marks the start of a string of Holidays. And signals the coming of Mexican Hot Chocolate, decorating windows, raking leaves, and cuddling to stay warm.