Mark & Christina

Right now I am packing up for the beach.

I am SO excited. I can't wait to get away from the city... for a WHOLE WEEK. Not to mention the fact that I get to see my family. My mom & dad, sister & brother-in-law are all coming! It would have been an amazing trip with just my hubby and I... but this is just icing on the cake.

The beach house, sadly, does not have internet. So I am leaving you for a week as well. So, I thought I would leave you with a blog about the last Father's Day plaque, because I sent it off, and it was beautiful.

Christina, my cousin, finally got her marine husband, Mark back. He had been over seas for several months. While Mark was gone Christina continued in her pregnancy with their second son, Gavin (LOVE love that name). Gavin was born in April. Mark came home in June. ....Get it? I can not imagine going through my pregnancy without my husband. Even more than that, I can not imagine going through labor alone. ... I am not half the woman that Christina is. I wasn't even there, and as unfortunate & sad as it is, i haven't even met Mark yet... but I would go as far as to say that time stood still for that moment when this precious family got their Daddy back. I am quite sure it did... how could it not?

So, for this beautiful family. I had the privilege of painting a FATHER'S day gift. Are you kidding?! Painting for a Father who sacrificed so much to defend our freedom... my freedom....It was such an honor. In a way i felt like i was saying, "thank you''


but somehow, there's no words for that. but these are the words Christina chose for the plaque...

walnut plaque. Acrylic paints. Sold.

it still brings tears to my eyes. That is the sweetest.. most honoring thing for a man... ANY man to hear. But for a marine... i can not fathom how those words will weigh on his heart.

Thank you for reading. i hope you all have a wonderful weekend & week. Talk with you soon.

Sunday satisfaction

So, I couldn't resist posting this. I am finally done with all this Father's day madness! And, if I may say so myself, these are friggin cute.

This is for a gal named Connie. She contacted me a while back wanting something for the special man in her life on Daddy's Day. All she asked of me was that it have light blue, "#1" somewhere, and for it say, "world's greatest Dad"... here you are, my dear.

Wooden frame. Latex and Acrylic paints. Sold.

The next is possibly a favorite. Once again, this is for Destiny (she's such a good customer). You remember the corn, well that was for her great-grandfather, the gardener. But, her grandfather likes to fish.

Wooden frame. Larex and Acrylic paints. Sold. And yes, that is a wee wooden fish... and real fishing line. I know, too cute.

Pictures really don't do it justice. Let me put it this way, my husband said, " that's cute"... yes, he did.

Now, I just have to finish up this coffee sign for Marge & I will be able to breathe again.

Sifting

Have I ever told you about my amazing husband? Well, he is mine... and he is amazing. Not only does he spoil me with trips to the hardware store, but he is my own personal carpenter. Last night he helped me out with Marge's kitchen sign for hours. Yes, plural. He used a hand planer to put a chamfer edge around it. Then, as if that was not enough, he sanded the whole thing for me. Oh, dear ...he is so like-able. Even if I wasn't madly in love with him, I'd still like him. All I can say is, "Marge, this is going to be boss".

Today I started priming so that tomorrow -hopefully- I can use my AWESOME pumpernickel paint & begin! Here is a look "behind the scenes" so far... which, I warn you... is not much. But if nothing else, LOOK AT HOW BIG IT IS... it's amazing.

Mainly, I have been spending all my spare time on the other Father's Day plaque. I felt I needed to ask for permission before I used names... so in my last post I referred to a "woman" who wanted a plaque for her husband, the "marine". Which is still true, her husband is a marine, & his name is Mark. And, the woman, Christina... is my cousin. Yep, this story just gets better & better. I haven't met Mark yet, but from what I hear I am missing out because he is truly one amazing man. After all, he is a marine. To add on to that feeling of "missing out", I don't think I have seen Christina since I was a teeny-bopper. I hate that. This will in no way make up for that lost time... but we don't live TERRIBLY far from each other. I am crossing my fingers to meet her beautiful family & see her again sometime in the near future.

But for now, I am using what I do know of Mark & Christina to paint my heart out.

I will admit, I've gotten choked up a few times. Its hard to create something so sentimental, something that reads "Our Father, Our Hero". All the while knowing this family's father & hero have been gone for so long... knowing when he comes home he will be meeting yet another son for the first time ...all because he was doing his duty to fight for our country. For our freedom.

How would you handle that?

I've been thinking about it non-stop ...and I can tell you straight up, I would NOT be handling it with courage, strength & honor. I'd be angry. So angry. & who knows, maybe Mark is angry... I wouldn't know because I'm not him... nor Christina. But, if he is angry, he's still being a man of his word and thats something I am not sure I could do. How pathetic of me.

So, as I have been painting, I've been trying to sift through all these thoughts & emotions. ...& I need some tissues. I thank God for giving me this opportunity. & I hope that as you read this, you take a minute & thank God for what you have & WHO you have in your life.

That's an order, Soldier

Excitement is flowing from my fingertips.... quite literally. I finished the Father's Day plaque for Destiny & blogged it Friday. I was kind of bummed that I still had one plaque, all paint-less & lonely. I don't like painting just to paint. I have to know who I am painting for... why they want that particular thing painted... SOMETHING personal. Otherwise, it just doesnt matter to me... does that make sense? Its like the difference between baking cookies because you have what you need in the pantry and baking cookies for someone sick. Love is the secret ingredient. And I had no love for the second plaque yet. More like resentment towards its wasted potential. Then, thanks to Facebook, a woman contacted me & asked for a plaque for her husband.

I can not really tell you how special this project is going to be. Her husband is a marine. He is currently deployed & when we gets home, he will be meeting his newborn for the first time. Can you take a moment to wrap your head around that for a second?

Now take another moment to wrap your heart around it.

Yeah. Exactly. & I get to have the honor of painting something as special as a FATHER'S DAY gift for this family. Honestly, I am humbled by this opportunity. The best part is she wants it to read: "Our Father, Our Hero". Is this gonna be a tear jerker or what?!

The rest of the day continued to be good to me. It totally makes up for all the lost sleep lately. I continued to make-wait for it-FIVE ORDERS. ...Holy Moses.

I have 3 Father's Day orders, two for $10 and one for $25-30. Destiny's are the $10 orders for her grandfather & great-grandfather. One loves to fish, the other loves to garden. So, the first will say, "What a catch!" with a fishing pole and the other, "You're someone I look up to no matter how tall I grow" with a corn stalk. Super cute... I think. I am still waiting for details on the last order for a gal named Connie. She's finding a good quote & I'm waiting to get my hands on the perfect size wood. Then I have to finish with Marge's yellow pine kitchen painting.... can you feel this whelming me over?! Then, someone snatched up the Mahogany jewelry set (sorry folks, its all gone). Aye-yi-yi. Not to mention, two people contacted me about possible orders. Don't get me wrong, I am so thankful for the business. But, I am a little stressed. Excited to be included on SO many special opportunities, but nervous... for my hands may fall off.

Keep an eye out. Sneak peaks will be coming soon-ish. & thanks for reading.

A Mouthful

Sleep has become my enemy. Why such hatred for me, sleep? We use to be so close. You use to love me. How heartbreaking. We have some friends coming in tonight, and I know I won't be able to sleep very good this weekend. I was counting on being well rested today... story of my life.

I probably won't be updating much this weekend. So I would like to leave you with something delicious to chew on for a few days. The first thing you can take a bite of is the fact that next week I will be working on a huge,HUGE painting for Marge. She would like a "Coffee Shop" sign for her kitchen. Can I just tell you that I am stoked to do this? This will be the biggest project for me yet, both financially as well as physically. We found a 2 foot long 2x12 piece of yellow pine. IT'S GORGEOUS. My generous husband saw my face light up with excitement & decided to "treat me" before I dive in head first & become consumed.

He took me to Lowes.


....I love Lowes.

Oh. how he knows the way to my heart. I thank God I married a man who understands what is really going to make me thrilled. He could have taken me to get ice cream, & I won't lie... I would have been content. But, I would also be fatter. Instead, he bought me brand new primer, sandpaper & a quart of brown paint. QUART. Actually, its called pumpernickel, & its so rich, & there's a whole quart of it. Might not sound like much to you, but it is to me. I usually buy little bitty thangs.Have I mentioned my excitement? I have never painted on a "canvas" this big. I can't wait to see the finish project. & I hope Marge LOVES it. Her kitchen has shades of brown & yellow, with hints of red... just like mine :) Can you feel it? It will be glorious.

Are you still chewing? Here's something else. He also gave me some stain & finish for *drum roll* MAHOGANY. ....WORD. When we got married, my creative man made his groomsmen mahogany boxes. They were so beautiful & I have to admit, I was jealous. Mahogany is so good looking. It is the equivalent of my husband's face... in wood. & I am excited to tell you, I have TWO perfect pieces to stain, finish & paint. JUST FOR YOU. I am making a matching necklace & bracelet rack/holder. If you buy the first one, you can get the second half off.

"How much is the first one?" you ask... why, only 10 dollars, my curious friend, thanks for asking. Don't choke... I know you're excited, but try to compose yourself. If you die, you can't own these beautiful pieces. :)

The last tasty bit of information I would like to leave you with is that the Father's Day plaque is done! Destiny asked that I put some design around the wording & so this is the finished product!


and again.

Walnut plaque. Custom order for Destiny. Sold for $25.

And, ladies & gentlemen, there's still one left... just calling your name. Poor paintless plaque.

It's UH-FISH-UL.

So, after much deliberation, we (the people... being, my sweet husband and I) have decided to chose the name "Scrapped Crafts" to sell my artwork by. Catchy, eh? I like. Love it, actually. it's classic; short, sweet & to the point. Not to mention, self-explanatory. What do you think, readers? Do you love it, Paris?

Anyway, I know I've been talking tons of trash about how awesome I am & about these Father's Day plaques... with not much to show for it. So, here's your sneak peak. I usually don't show things before they are finished as a general rule of thumb, but ... what can I say? I love you. You've earned it, my few faithful followers...

This is for Destiny. She ordered this last week. Very generously, she let me pick the wording & asked that it be done in yellow & blue. Enjoy.


Hope you love it as much as I do. I still have some finishing touches I would like to add. Then I will be happy to send this off in the mail to you, Destiny.

Fans, friends & flames

It was such a great weekend. Friday I officially made my very first order. A friend of mine is buying one of the Father's Day plaques! I am so excited to get started on it. Saturday morning I got a message from a lady who,and I quote, "LOVES [my] work!" & would like me the paint her something for their kitchen. Is it jumping the gun to say I officially have fans? I don't think so... just let me dream. in all seriousness.... what a blessing to get to orders in the same week.. the FIRST week! Then the weekend just got better when some friends of ours came to visit. It was such a sweet time of fellowship & good conversation. Sunday evening we sat around & roasted marshmallows over the fire pit. Um, I love firepits. And, I just so happen to believe I am amazing at roasting marshmallows. Toasty, golden goodness on the outside, warm & soft on the inside. That, my friends, is the picture of the perfect marshmallow. If I could have captured it in a bottle I would have-that was for Jessica Marie.

I am excited to get started on this plaque. I finished it up some over the weekend with the help of my handy dandy husband. We filled in & smoothed out some dents & scuffs. Then I put in three tiny nails to cover up some existing holes. It looks great! Ready for paint. & it's just calling my name....

I will post pictures as soon as it's finished... or maybe I will give you a sneak peak.

Taking Off

I am really excited to share this news. * Drum Roll * I believe there are two people interested in purchasing Father's Day plaques! Can I get a "holla" from anyone ( "holler" for all my whitey tighties). This is like a dream come true... doing this. I have always wanted to take something I enjoy doing and bless others with it, all the while making a little extra money. It has been a lot harder to get started than I thought. I have been gifting people for a while, but I've never attempted to make any cashola before. It would be nice to get paid for the time, energy & thought you put into things. But if it never goes anywhere big, just seeing the joy these specialized gifts bring people is plenty good for me.

It occurred to me last night that I have never shown you any examples. I've been talking about these gifts, painting & what not but never shown you a finished project before. Wanna see?

I think I can make that a reality.

The frame is pine, coated with acrylic paints and finished with crackle.

I made this as a birthday present for my husband this year. The story behind it? When we were dating, I was always too shy to tell him how I felt. One night, before I left for California I quickly said,"You're my favorite" and jetted for the door. Come to find out later, that phrase made his day. He's still my favorite, so I thought it would be appropriate to show him that on a day to celebrate his birth :)

I can't wait to get my hands on these...

I have two of these walnut plaques. My husband SAVED them from the dominion of darkness... the trash can. When he brought them home to me at first I was speechless. I had no idea what I could do with them. I thought to myself, "self, maybe you can make someone a fake MVP award."

Then it hit me.

Father's Day is coming up. How precious would a homemade "Father of the Year" award be! I know, I know... I'm a genius.

All joking aside. I would love to create these for someone. I am looking to sell them at about $10-15 dollars each. The lucky customer can pick their own color scheme, wording & design... whoever they are.