And to all a Goodnight...

It has been a rather crazy month. The usual seasonal plagues descended upon us with gusto and I was blessed with a "random" (bah-loney) right before Christmas business audit.This craptastic combo has taken it's toll on my stamina and tried it's best to dampen my spirits. 
Despite these one two punches, or perhaps because of them, I have been filled with a steely determination to rise above and make a festive season for all - or at least go down swinging trying. Dramatic yes, (I may be on A LOT of flu medication and a bit of bubbly). It is my j.o.b as Mama to instil Holiday traditions and bring the magic for my kids...even when I just feel like adding a bit of eggnog to my rum and pulling the covers over my head till 2013. 

I hope each and every one of you are healthy and warm and surrounded by folks you love and that love you back. Happy Christmas!

XO!

Customize Me!

So as some of you know I earn my actual living by drawing pictures. I draw stuff for other people, companies, musicians, and sometimes for myself. When I had the kids and my free time turned into no time I took a break from advertising and started my own thing.  Thrasher&Wren began about 3 years ago with a few alphabet posters and I now have about 35 different prints available. 
I get asked a lot to do custom work, particularly involving kids names, and while I am always more than happy to oblige, custom work can take more time and money than some people have budgeted for. 

Well, there is now an online option available - Customizable Pirates - woohoo!

I am a bit pirate obsessed and routinely try to convince my daughter that yes, it's fine to pretend to be a princess, but WAY cooler to be a pirate princess (her jury is still out on that one).

I have a boy pirate hanging out with a giant octopus and a girl pirate setting sail with a boat load of cuddly ruffians. There are two colour way options for each, and the name of the ship can be changed to suit each order. 

They are now available in the online shop in time for the Holidays! Yarrrrrrrrrrrrr!

XO!

Not Divorced Yet...

I posted a photograph of an 8ft pink velvet couch a few weeks ago. A pink velvet couch that I bought on the sly. Not lying to anyone exactly, I just didn't call Paul and ask if he thought it was a good idea. I have been married long enough to know the answer to that would have been a loud "Hells-to-the-No"! 
Who needs that kind of dream crushing action? Not this girl.
So, I bought it and arranged to have it delivered mid-week (on a day I knew he would be home late). This gave me a small window of time in which to find a home for this beauty. A home that was not forced, it had to look like it had been here forever or I would not hear the end of it. 
After about an hour of deliberating I just bit the bullet, disassembled the Halloween side board I had decorated the day before, and set about moving three couches and the heaviest Moroccan daybed in existence. I am at my very strongest when I am determined to be right. 
I had posted a picture of the couch online (knowing full well that Paul would eventually see it) and waited. And waited...
He didn't call all day. Now I was fully aware that a divorce was most likely not going to happen. It did however occur to me that I may have set myself up for a lengthy discussion about my compulsive need to change things and my spur of the moment spending habits. Truth be told somedays I would almost take the divorce over that particular interaction. Happily none of that happened. He was just messing with me.
He loves the couch almost as much as I do. And now the kids and I have a place to snuggle and read, or lay down after a particularly large meal. Win!

The dining room before...

And now with reading / napping option...or perhaps one could eat laying down. The possibilities are really quite endless.

The view (which doesn't look like much) but is actually my favourite window in the house.

And introducing the new edition...8ft of awesome. 

Which happily works just as well as it's predecessor, but with much more panache.

xo!

Halloween wrap up...

To me the day after Halloween is a little like boxing day. The glow of the occasion still lingers (along with a vague sense of sadness that another one has come and gone and the less than vague shame spiral that goes hand in hand with too much sugar). 

This was a great one. Awesome crafts, our costumes turned out (even Georgia's 11th hour change of mind), and we only cried a little at bedtime last night after the inevitable sugar crash...sniff.

Glitter played its usual starring role...

Ghosts!

My Frida headpiece...

Georgia butterfly xo

Old Skool Batman. 

Until next year! 

xo

Sparkle quickie...

My daughter decided yesterday to be a butterfly instead of the witch costume I had laboured over. To be fair I had found THE best glitter butterfly wings, and of course bought them (cause you never know right)?!
Well, she saw them...long story short I had two days to pull the rest of the costume together (and two days with no power thanks to Sandy). Today has been a mad rush of glue guns and this stroke of last minute (literally, it took 15 minutes) genius. My son is now short one pair of rubber boots, but who knows he may prefer them this way.

Glitter (butterfly) boots...

Mod Podge + rubber boots + a big bag of turquoise glitter = awesomeness!

xo!

It's Beginning to Look A lot Like Creepy...

Halloween is almost here and the kids and I have spent the past week or so decorating up the house for the occasion. We are basically done, save a few rather ambitious glittered pumpkin projects (that will most likely end in a family wide grounding from sparkles). 
We will of course burn that bridge when we come to it. 

This weekend is all about hot glue and finishing touches to various costumes and headpieces. Trying to convince my husband to rock a unitard...you know, the usual scary All Hallow's activities.

Some shots of our efforts so far...

 Our dining room...

An actual plaster replica of my Peter pointer...totally freaked out the kids.

The easiest wreath ever. Take a king sized sheet (I borrowed one from last years Halloween party) and tear into long strips. Wrap pieces around a wreath form (Michael's is my go to place). Add a snappy bow (hellooooooo Michael's) and a cut out of a printed skull. I got this particular one from The Graphics Fairy clip art site then added my own embellishments and type. Hot glue all loose ends and Voila!

The whole project took about an hour (shopping excluded).

I may leave the crows up year round, perhaps jaunty them up for Christmas. I think they give off just the right amount of ominous...keep the hooligans and politicians away.

Only five more sleeps! 

xo