living on love

the perfect soap.

(well, at least in my opinion).

the first winter i experienced in central new york was horrific on my skin. it was red, irritated, & ended up cracking pretty bad. especially on my hands. my skin would feel like it was on fire whenever it came in contact with water & the lotion pretty much made it feel the same way. the next winter my sweet mother.in.law sent us a whole batch of soap to use... the difference was incredible. no redness. no irritation. no cracking. no burning. just smooth & soft skin. ah! i was in love.

my mother.in.law & her sister make this soap in small batches using all natural ingredients... olive oil, soybean oil, vegetable oil, coconut oil, & in the exfoliating bar, oatmeal. its incredibly moisturizing, its hypoallergenic, its vegan... its pretty dang great.

i just listed some in my shop. right now there are two different kinds available, the natural beauty bar, & the exfoliating oatmeal beauty bar. i also have 3 packs available in both kinds, but i would be more than happy to make a customized package for anyone who is interested.

hello. hello.

happy monday! 

our week ended on a real emotional note so i am really looking forward to this new week full of possibilities. goals for the week include finishing hanging up frames in my living room... not all the frames, that would just be way to ambitious of a goal, just two. do another shop update... postponed by unexpected events & overcast skies. create an art journal workshop to teach at the lazy hummingbird, a local coffee & tea house. 

this past week our really good friends welcomed an adorable baby boy, with a head full of deliciously soft hair, into the world. so in love with him even though ive only met him via photos. i sent her a box full of handmade goodies for the little one...

a little scrappy owl

bibs & burpclothes made from old t.shirts (a great way to add in the parents taste!), & this burpcloth with ribbons to keep little fingers busy...

an embroidered pacifier holder (i think it loks a little piggish, but i wasnt using a pattern & it was first suger skull i had embroidered).

& some decorated onesies. my favorite being this one where i used one of the papa bears pieces of art as a pattern...

our perfect thursday evening.

coffees, music, john stewart, making art, snuggling with pets, laughing at jokes, baking biscuits, doing taxes, & self portraits.

new items in the shop...

& there is more coming! i spent all yesterday snapping photos, editing photos, drinking plenty of iced cofee, & listing on etsy... trying to have the same things available online & at the farmers market. im still not finished, but here is a peek at what is new...

decorative clothespins in two styles... magnetic & pushpin (the pushpins are perfect for those things you dont want to put a hole in). great for the fridge, office, or studio. there are more of these in different styles (including maps) coming soon.

ran & i love to leave little notes for each other to find... anything from "i think you are cool" to "i love you." inspired by that idea, i made these little love notes. leave them around for the loves of your life to find, add a string & use as a gift tag, or use them for scrapbooking or art journaling.

my new favorite thing to make... felt polaroid frames & they have a magnet attached to them! the picture can be changed out whenever the mood strikes & the wording can be customized... perfect gift for grandparents, newlyweds, or best friends. 

there is also new colors of ruffled crepe paper, red decorative straight pins, a new mustache tie, map gift tags, & map garlands. plus i still have more to list... including soap! the mailman delivered it today & i am really excited about it. im debuting it at the farmers market tomorrow & will have some available online thursday evening.

... remember to "like" high street boutique on facebook & favorite it on etsy.

music for your monday: lil' wayne & adele.

ran & i been listening to this song (& the others from the sorry for the wait mix tape). sooo much recently, but its not the most approprate song to post to my blog... profanity & what not. so im just going to link to it, & if you are so inclined you can click & listen to it. the song is adele's rolling in the deep music & lil' wayne rapping (or singing or whatever it is he does). the first 30 seconds or so are a little eh, but it gets a really nice beat. so if you would like to listen click here.

or you can listen to this adele mash.up that glee did. i really like it... maybe even better than the individual songs.

enjoy...

6 things.

1.

i just discovered button arcade this afternoon & i am loving this adorable felt ornament with little arrows (& pink chevron?!)...

(image found here.)

2.

i think these are coolest wedding invites i have ever seen...

(find the image & invites  here.)

3.

this would be the perfect thing for pictures & keepsakes from our adventures...

(this book available here).

4.

sugar skull style owl... love it so much! 

(cards available here).

5.

im pretty sure this is how kitten little thinks... 

(image found here).

6.

just because its good for my soul...

(image found here). 

a feast for the birds.

we are really happy that the wild parrots are back after their winter get.away... i had missed their crazy squawking. in honor of their return, ran built a bird feeder from sticks we found at the beach & a shell. we just put it up today, in view from our kitchen window. we are keeping our fingers crossed we will get some visitors & some upclose peeks at them.

painting #2 of 12.

when i woke up on wednesday i saw palm trees swaying back & forth against an overcast sky. wind, rain, & paper dont really mix well together, so we decided against selling at the farmers market. very happy we did as sheets of rain blew off the roof & it looked as if a palm tree had been massacred on our front lawn. 

i made some warm spiced cider & pulled out the paint to work on a canvas i started at the beginning of the month. this is totally one of those things were the end is in no way what i imagined when i started, but i still really like the finished painting. its really hard to see in the photos, but the whole canvas was collaged with random bits of magazine so there are sublte bits of textures & prints under the acrylic wash.

you can take a peek at my first collage of the 12 i plan i doing this year, along with others i have done here.

lace + vinyl.

1. find a cool frame you like & 2 pieces of glass that fit the frame. i went to the thrift store & bought 2 frames for every one i was going to make... one frame i would use & the other i would only use the glass.

2. get some lace that you like & cut it to fit the frame. i layed my lace out, put the glass from the frame over the area i liked, & then cut around it.

3. clean the glass really well then layer glass, lace, glass & put in the frame. i used a few drops of glue to glue everything in & then used a staple gun to add a few staples around the edges... just in case.

4. add a vinyl to the front glass, although i think it looks just as pretty without the vinyl.

market love.

happy valentines day! i hope everyone has a wonderful day celebrating the loves in your life. we have no plans. we never do. just another day for us. but thats not say that i dont love making valentines things...

this was my vday display at the local farmers market last week... full of cards, coupon books, little gift boxes, garlands, & more. we were running a little late to the market last week, ran was getting a little hangry (angry because he was hungry... hangry) & it wasnt going to be any fun hanging out with him all evening, so a snack was needed. but it ended up being a really good thing... one of the regular vendors who has been selling there forever cancelled at the last minute so there was an open spot right on the main road... just for me! that meant that everyone walking down the street, even if they werent interested in the arts / crafts area, got to see my table. & again, just like i am every week, i was taken aback by the comments from market go-ers & other vendors. so many great conversations. so much networking. so motivating. 

& another beautiful night in ob...

see those dark lines in the photo to the left of the palm tree? its a new effect my camera came up with. a week or so ago, my camera took a little swim in the sink. after panicking, getting some great advice from facebook, & having a really over.dramatic breakdown about the whole thing, it still works. but now has this awesome new effect.

& one more thing... the food network was filming at the market last week, so be on the look out for some farmers market show or feature & maybe you will see me in the background!