A Gallery of Greeting Cards

Bookstores and greeting card stores. Two of my favorite places to visit, yet they are becoming a rarity. Sigh.

Imagine my surprise when I stepped into a Hallmark Store. They revved up their selection and I must say, they are spectacular!

Here, take a look:

So many cute cards to choose from!

Macarons? Oui! 

What is a party without a pinata? 

 Did anyone say doughnuts?

Who says sprinkles are only for cupcakes?

 Birthday card? Check!

Birthday candles? Check!

I like how the greeting card designer's bio is part of the display.

There's also an international line, featuring work by British artists.

Here's to snail mail! Here's to greeting cards! And here's to the artists who make them. I think it's TADA! 

Have a beautiful week, folks.

Crafty in the Kitchen: Floral cupcakes

I hope you had a beautiful weekend guys! Let me share a little craftiness in the kitchen.

I turned these plain cupcakes from blah to...

TADA!

I need more practice but it's so much fun to play around with frosting colors and piping tips.

May you all have a great week ahead!

A Blooming Collaboration: Rifle Paper Company and Paperless Post

I'm a big fan of Anna Rifle Bond and her beautiful artwork.  I met her not so long ago and just last week, I got to meet her again.

It happened at the Bloom Room, a little pop-up shop in downtown Manhattan. 

It celebrates the collaboration between Rifle Paper Company and Paperless Post. 

A collection of fresh flowers outside the shop reminded me of the sidewalk flower sellers in Paris.

Inside, a backdrop of enormous paper flowers.

It makes for a pretty backdrop for photos.

Some of Anna's work for sale.

These prints are gorgeous!

And lining one wall, samples of the cards available on the website:

Anna was there for a meet-and-greet (I love her fashion choices, too!).

And she even signed this commemorative poster. TADA!

The Coffee Art Project

Howdy everyone! Last week, I told you about The New York Coffee Festival. Of course, I checked out the coffee selections, the food, the talks. But, I could not ignore the art.

Here are a few photos of the works on display:

All inspired by coffee and some made with coffee! They're all part of The Coffee Art Project, a high profile international art competition with participating cities like New York, London, Milan, Amsterdam, Melbourne and Paris. 

Maybe you'd like to participate. Yes?

Artists of all skill levels can enter one piece of artwork that connects to COFFEE and/or a COFFEE SHOP EXPERIENCE. There is no restriction on media used. You may use scuplture, painting, installation, photography, and mixed media. These are all eligible, provided that they have a justifiable link to coffee. Checkout their website for more information.

I hope I'll see your work on display!

The Coffee Cup Artist

Hi there! Over the weekend, I was able to check out the New York Coffee Festival. It was a super fun experience with lots of coffee and tea tastings and getting to learn how to make some latte art.

Part of the event was a coffee-themed art exhibit where I came across an artist I wrote about awhile back.  Her name is Gwyneth Leech and she draws on paper cups! 

I just love her work. I think she brilliantly turns blah to TADA!

Pick Punch

I hope you had a lovely weekend! I certainly did! I was on window-shopping mode and found this:

It's a craft punch that will allow you to make your own guitar picks. I wish I knew how to play the guitar. But I know a few people who do. I could make them a guitar pick with this and recycle old things like expired credit cards and plastic lids. Blah to TADA! indeed.

    

Painting on Denim

I hope you all had a marvelous weekend. Today, I have a little painting in store for you.

I've had these panels for a while now. They are tiny squares (four inches by four inches), and instead of the common canvas material, they're made of denim. I'm pretty sure you can do a little blah to TADA! by using an old pair of jeans and mount this on wood or cardboard.

I tried out a few oil-based pens to draw on the panel but the color blended into the denim. I wanted something that would stand out. 

So I tried acrylic paint, applied with a foam brush.

I chose a palette of pastels in abstract shapes.

 And here it is, my humble artwork. TADA!

It matches this sunshiny mood board. An ode to a season that's about to end.

Happy Monday everyone!

Picnic Monday

Hello there! It's a holiday where I live (Labor Day) and it's the day when we begin to bid the summer goodbye. It's a harsh reality...I really do love the summer! I'll enjoy this day outdoors and leave you with this fun picture of a picnic. It was taken a few weeks ago at Tanglewood in the Berkshires.  I love that the folks have picnic tables with a tablecloth. And a centerpiece. And wine. And a feast. 

Oh, how I would love to do this all year round.

Have a wonderful week everyone!

Birthday Breakfast

I don't know about you, but a lot of my friends are celebrating their birthdays. I always try to do something special like sending them some snail mail if they're far away or giving them a little present when they're close by.

Here's one blah to TADA! idea I'd like to share:

It's breakfast in a bag. Of course, this can be done with any other meal like lunch or coffee break. The card in front is a watercolor I made inspired by chamomile flowers.

Inside: a muffin, fruit and some tea. TADA! 

May you all have a productive week!

One Page at a Time

Happy Monday lovelies! How has your summer reading been like? I'm sad to say I'm doing so poorly. I've always read a lot during the summer but this particular year has been quite busy so I haven't been reading as much as I want to.

But I still like to browse bookstores and check out a new title that I can add to my reading list. I found this one rather cute, I just had to share:

It's called One Page at a Time which and is a creative journal that you'd open daily to let you unplug from all the gadgets that occupy our lives.

 

I found the first page funny. But I secretly have the answers to all these questions already. 

I found this page rather striking. I can think of five persons right now. How about you? 

"Do not let this person go. Tell them what they mean to you". Let's do that, okay?

Have a good week everyone!