Found It Friday - Stars

It's that time again for some more inspiration! Welcome to Found It Friday, where I take a theme, draw inspiration from it, and show you five results of that inspiration. I hope you can join in this week and show us all some starry goodness.

And that is our theme this week: Stars!

1. The first thing that came to mind with this week's theme was origami stars. These little cuties are super easy to make and can be used for so many things - jewelry, garlands, confetti, etc. I think a glass bowl filled with origami stars in similar colors can be quite beautiful as home decor. You can make your own or even buy origami stars premade by crafters on Etsy. (origami stars by zhoira at smashingapps)

2. I always love to include at least one food inspiration each week. I googled "star cupcake" and found hundreds of starry cupcakes, many of them Fourth of July inspired. My favorite was this sweet swirly pink frosted one with dainty purple stars scattered on top. (cupcake from donuts to delirium)

3. And now, moving on from cupcakes (but not necessarily from sprinkles!), these fun yet chic star hair pins caught my eye. The resin stars contain hundreds of tiny neon sprinkles, perfect for the party girl or the girl who wishes she were at a party. The best part? These flashy pins can be yours for the low price of just $12.00. (bad hair day neon sprinkle pins by high strung beads)

4. Another way to add a touch of the celestial beauties to your home is by bringing in some beautiful star-shaped flowers. There are several kinds, and I found this red star flower to particularly striking. Just one placed in a simple bud vase would brighten a room instantly. (red star flower photo by DLC Flower Photos)

5. I see those metal barn stars displayed everywhere - front doors, porches, even living rooms or entryways. Usually they are painted a dark red, navy blue, or rust color and then distressed on the edges. I love this take on the traditional barn star - cleverly decoupaged with coordinating papers and then distressed at the creases. This Olivia Star would be a great addition to my daughter's green and pink butterfly room! (Olivia Star by 4 guys and a girl)

Well, it's time to see what star-inspired finds you came up with this week. Go ahead and link up below, and I will be sure to check it out!

There will be no Found It! Friday posts for the next two weeks. I will be in Canada visiting my sister and her husband and lavishing a lot of hugs, kisses, and cuddles on my new niece, Delaney Hope. I may still post here and there throughout the weeks, but Found It! Friday will have to wait until I get back. And when I do, the theme will be: Back to School. :) woohoo!

Play Time

Lots of thoughts are swirling around in my head, but those thought-provoking posts will just have to wait! It's a gorgeous day out there, and we don't want to miss it! Time to play!

Please don't forget about Found It! Friday tomorrow! The theme is STARS, and I would love for you to participate. Please please please!

Found It Friday - Water

I cannot believe that it is Friday already! I must confess, I had to do some scrambling to get my Found It Friday post ready, as puppeteering and painting have taken up most of my week.

For those new to Found It Friday, I'd love for you to come in and join in on the fun! Read here on how to get involved and please link up up your Found It Friday post below. (And really, please please please link up! I would like to really get this meme going!)

Our theme for inspiration this week is water, so here goes:

1. Since it's summertime, I thought I would include something showing water in its solid form. You can get ice cube trays in just about any shape. I think this Tetris ice cube tray is genius and would be a perfect party conversation starter! (ice cube tray by ThinkGeek)

2. Even something as simple as water can inspire fantastic works of art. I was captivated by this pixelated street art piece and had to share it! (artwork from WebEcoist)

3. Apparently you can also make art with nothing but water and a smooth surface. Somebody with much more talent and a much steadier hand made these ultra-cute water pictures. (simple water art by dunn of my interesting files)

4. Nutrition experts say we should drink at least eight glasses of water a day. But let's face it - water is boring and not nearly as fun to drink as soda or iced tea! Flavored water can help, but it can get expensive too. I found an interesting article on how to make your own flavored water, even using chocolate syrup, jell-o mix, or coffee flavor syrups. (full article by Kristie Leong at Lifestyle)

5. Just had to include one of my favorite activities with the kiddos. Give them some old paint brushes, a few buckets of water, and let them "paint" away outside. My kiddos have painted sidewalks, driveways, railings, tires, and more with this extremely inexpensive activity. It dries, and then they start all over! I couldn't find a pic of my kiddos painting with water, so I (ahem!) borrowed this one from QuatroMama to illustrate my point. (check out her blog, folks, it's inspiring and a great read!)

So link up folks with your water-themed posts!

and next week's theme will be: stars.

Thanks for participating!

Found It Friday - Detective Shows

Well, as I have mentioned before, it has been a crazy week. Besides all the appointments and meetings, The Nerd was out of town on business all week as well. He got back late last night, thankfully bringing lots of "swag" from his conference for the kiddos. (stuffed animals, balls that light up, nerf rockets, and more!) I say thankfully because today I have the stomach flu. Good times.

But still, I wanted to get the Found It Friday post up, even if it is a bit late in the day.

Found It Friday, in case you're new to the fun, is a weekly event in which participating bloggers take that week's theme and find five things inspired by the theme. Then of course they blog about them, sharing them with the world!

Found it Friday has had a bit of a slow start, with few participating, but I am hoping that with perseverance more will join in soon. :)

This week's theme: detective shows

1. Okay, so this recipe for pineapple fried rice was inspired by the show Psych. If you watch Psych, you will totally get it. If not, you may not get the pineapple reference, but you can certainly enjoy the recipe. Total yum! (recipe by Darlene Schmidt)

2. This set of perfectly aligned vases reminds me of Monk and his obsessive desire to be sure that everything is in its proper place. (ColorBlok Vases from Kichler Lighting)

3. When I think of Columbo, I think "tan trench coat." This charming piece of outerwear is a vintage 80s find. (vintage trench coat by the pudding store vintage)

4. Okay, so this one is not a TV show; but The Shadow is one of my favorite radio dramas ever! There are many "shadow artists" out there, and this shot is one of my favorites. (shadow tricks by ziza)

5. And lastly, here's a well-done digital caricature of the cast of CSI: Miami. I must confess I have never seen the show, but this just cracked me up! (caricature by karikamania)

So link up your detective posts below:

And next week's theme will be: Water!

Found It Friday - Surf and Sand

Ever get just a little bit excited about a great item you find at a thrift store or garage sale? Get giddy over a fabulous one-of-a-kind necklace or purse you find on the internet? Get inspired by a well-written tutorial on making paper cranes or cute stitched felt magnets? This is the place to share our finds and get inspired! Read all about Found It! Friday here and please link up with your post. This week, we are inspired by sand and surf.

1. Wear the blue of the ocean with this stunning sundress. I love the oversized hibiscus flower appliques on the brilliant blue background. (ocean breeze sundress by ishkabibbles designs)

2. Instead of bringing home a baggie of shells and beach rocks, jazz up your beach finds by bringing some Plaster of Paris to the shores and make a souvenir to keep for always. (sandy hand mosaic by Family Fun)

3. Spending a day in the surf and sand makes me hungry! What better treat than something right from the sea - my favorite is shrimp. I am eager to try this recipe for coconut fried shrimp with orange marmalade/honey sauce. (coconut fried shrimp recipe by Taste of Home)

4. Aren't these hand-painted surfboards gorgeous? They are proof that just about anything can be made into art. (surfboard art by Mike Losness)

5. And who can resist a "sandy" cake lavishly covered in creamy frosting, graham cracker crumbs, candy sea shells, and gummy fish? I made this fun cake for the Spud for his first birthday last summer. (instructions)

C'mon, y'all! Link up your beachy posts below and share the inspiration:

And the inspiration for next week's Found It Friday is: detective TV shows (a la Psych, Monk, Columbo, The Pink Panther, CSI, etc.) I can't wait to see what your creative brains cook up for this one!

Hey all you peeps from Follow Me Chickadee! Welcome!

Giveaway! woot! woot!

Exciting news folks! My All Around the Mulberry Bush Wall Initial is being featured at 3 Garnets and 2 Sapphires! After you read all the extremely nice things Karen writes about my work (I am humbled and overwhelmed), you can enter a giveaway to win your own wall initial. If you are not in love with the Mulberry Bush design or have something different in mind, never fear! The winner will be able to choose whatever design they want for their wall initial.

This is an especially fun giveaway for The Framed Frog to participate in. Just a year and a half ago, I opened my Etsy shop with great misgivings and no sales for weeks. Karen kindly offered to host a giveaway on her site, and that giveaway, along with some other factors, helped launch my shop and get the sales going. Karen does a lot of great giveaways and is very candid and thorough in her reviews. Go check her site out!

A couple of other notes: We will be headed out to Davey's appointment with the special education folks soon, and I will update you later on that. Also, please don't forget this week's Found It Friday theme: sand and surf. The Found It Friday posts take a little time to put together, so start gathering your ideas and photos now. Mr. Linky was looking a little lonely last week. :(

Found It Friday - Daisies

It's time again for a breath of fresh inspiration. Welcome to Found It Friday, where I (and other awesome bloggers) share how we were inspired by the simple yet beautiful flower called a daisy. In case you're joining us for the first time, each week I post a theme for inspiration. All participating bloggers come up with five things inspired by the theme. You can read more about how you can join in on the fun with this new meme here.

He loves me, he loves me not. . . let's explore this field of daisies together.

1. I love the cheerful effect that giant Gerber daisies have. I couldn't think of a more appropriate place for my daisies than my big sunny kitchen window. I bought adorable hourglass vases at IKEA, filled the bottoms with white rice, and then inserted the Gerber daisies (which I cut down to the height I wanted.) Instant happiness!

2. Perhaps if you love flowers but have trouble keeping them alive (I have no green thumb whatsoever!), this steel daisy chain may work perfectly in your garden. It is made entirely out of recycled propane tanks by Shining Sun Garden Works. Gorgeous!

3. The Drama Queen and I were so inspired by the shape of daisies that we made our own monogrammed daisy hair clippies. (tutorial)

4. Daisies are just lovely at weddings! Here is a very chic and easy way to make your wedding favors memorable - just add a sweet daisy to the top of a standard wedding bubbles container. (daisy wedding ideas)

5. And speaking of sweet, make edible daisies like these charming beauties to decorate cupcakes for your next garden party or bridal shower. (Puffed-Up Petal Cupcakes by Wilton)

And finally, as a little bonus this week, I made a daisy-inspired treasury at Etsy, highlighting items featuring fresh yellows and clean whites. It's easy (and addicting!) to make your own treasuries at Etsy.com. It's strangely exhilarating to organize a group of your favorite things and make it look beautiful. You can see my entire treasury here.

So, show me your daisy love! Link up with your Found It Friday daisy post below, and be sure to visit everyone else's posts to kick up the creativity this weekend!

Next week's inspiration is: Sand and Surf . Start gathering your wonderful finds now and wow us with a beautiful post next week!

(and if you came visiting through Follow Me, Chickadee Fridays, welcome! I am so glad you dropped by!)

Found It Friday - Summer Picnic

It's time for the second edition of "Found It Friday" - a fun meme in which an inspiration is given and readers participate by sharing five things related to that inspiration. Please join in by writing your own post about this week's inspiration - summer picnics - and then linking up here. I am looking forward to seeing what you think of when you think of summer picnics and hoping to glean some great ideas for the upcoming Fourth of July festivities!

1. Picnicking means planning some activities for the young ones. Mine happen to love sidewalk chalk and bubbles! Above is a photo of homemade sidewalk chalk. (tutorial at Mad Maggie Designs)

2. Be sure to have plenty of drinks at your picnic! We always have lemonade and soda, but my favorite is iced tea. I found this new Cherry Pomegranate black tea at the local grocery store and finished it off in one day! And I love that it is made by a company based in Lancaster County, PA, near my childhood neighborhood. I grew up drinking Turkey Hill teas and lemonades and eating their delicious ice cream. (tea by Turkey Hill)

3. Sometimes it's just way too hot outside to have a picnic. In that case, don't abandon the picnic plans! Just bring your picnic indoors. Spread out a tablecloth on the living room floor, serve up your regular picnic fare, and turn on Animal Planet.

4. You need to have the proper utensils at your picnic, especially if you are serving up baked beans or sizzling steaks from the grill. Why not make your own incredibly cute and useful picnic utensil container? (tutorial at Clearly IStamp)

5. Or, for a fancier picnic, you may want to make some picnic flatware rolls. Especially if you've got sewing skills! Each one rolls up with its own set of flatware so they can be handily stored in the picnic basket. The best part is choosing the fabric - I do love the sunny lemon and verdant greenery fabric used here. (tutorial at make it do)

I am totally ready for some summer picnics now! Go ahead and link up your summer picnic post below and be sure to visit the other posts for summery inspiration!

next week's inspiration is: daisies!

Breakfast with Babies

We are all sitting around the breakfast table munching our cornflakes and drinking our juice (and momma's "grown-up juice"). The Spud sits to my left in his IKEA high chair, eating the fastest. He should probably not be sitting in a high chair any more, since he's practically two years old now, but let's face it. It's the only restraining device for that crazy child I have left! The Beast is also sitting to my left, more obsessed with the decorative bowl of potpourri and candles on the table than his cornflakes. The Drama Queen is to my right, busy rearranging the cornflakes in the bowl until they meet with her satisfaction.

However, this sunny morning more guests have joined us at the breakfast table than usual. Lying on the chair next to the Drama Queen is Mary, a sweet, perpetually happy baby doll dressed in a snug shirt and way-too-big diaper. A few cornflakes nestled on her cheeks indicate that her "mommy" has attempted to feed her breakfast. The Beast's guest of honor is Buzz Lightyear, haphazardly tucked under his elbow. It's a good thing Buzz is so accustomed to space flight, as he has propelled to the ground several times now. By now, the Spud is on his second bowl of cornflakes. He has not forgotten his Leo (of Little Einsteins fame) however; Leo is firmly clutched in the Spud's sticky hands and does not need to worry about unexpected space flights. The Spud will never let him go!

The interesting thing is that Momma has a hard and fast rule: "No toys at the table." It has been rigidly enforced for years now. But when the Drama Queen pleaded, "Momma, Mary's not a toy; she's my baby!" "Yeah, Momma, these are our babies, " the others chimed in.

How could I say no to that? And I must say, they are doing a phenomenal job taking care of their "babies." :)

Enjoy taking care of your babies, little ones, and not so little ones today! And don't forget to join in on the fun tomorrow for "Found It Friday." The inspiration for tomorrow's Found It Friday is "summer picnic." I look forward to seeing all of your lovely finds, especially in time for a 4th of July picnic this weekend! My "Found It Friday" post will be up by midnight PST tonight so you will have plenty of time to create your post and link up. Thanks!

Found It Friday - First Edition

I told you all I had a meme in the works, and here it is! Let me introduce you to:

I am always inspired by the things around me. Sometimes those things inspire my artwork and shop merchandise, and other times they inspire my own home decor or sewing project. I want to share my inspiration with you on my "Found It! Fridays."

Here's how it works: I will give you the source of inspiration before each Friday. It may be a specific item, a photograph, a certain color, a celebrity, etc. Then you come up with 5 things that are inspired by the source. For example, the source of inspiration might be 'magenta." You may come up with a lovely photograph of the petunias growing in your hanging planter, a fantastic dress on sale at The Gap, your current favorite lipstick, and so on.

Each Friday you will be able to come here and link up with your Found It! Friday post.

Since today is the first edition of Found It! Friday, I'll just play all by my lonesome.

The source of inspiration today? This custom set of wall letters that I recently did for a customer:

As I painted all those colorful stripes and polka dots, I was reminded of the vibrant colors of the circus. Wouldn't it be fabulous to do a kids' room in a bright, fun circus theme?

1. These bright polka-dotted branches do look fantastic in a vase, as pictured, but I imagine them fastened all around the mirror of a vanity. (branches from janejoss)

2. I love prints and have several from different artists in my home. This whimsical circus ringmaster would be adorable on the walls of a kids' bedroom or playroom. (print from inventorysupply)

3. Brighten up the room with these bold circus wall graphics! You get to pick the color, but I personally love the glorious red. (wall graphics from ellynelly)

4. I just adore the simple pinwheels and cute elephant on this quilt. It can be hung on the wall, but I would rather see my kiddos snuggled under it reading a book. (quilt from bumblebeequilting)

5. The big finale for the room would definitely be this circus elephant chandelier! The details are amazing, from the tiny painted clowns to the party hats on the elephants. (chandelier from whimsicalcollections)

Hmmm. . . suddenly I'm craving some cotton candy and circus peanuts!

Next week's source of inspiration is: Summer Picnics

Hope to have some of you play along then!