I LOVE PAPER

Paper is awesome. It's so versatile and extremely cool. For example paper flowers are WAY more cool than silk flowers. So if you think you're hip, and you have silk flowers in your house, you might not be. I'm just sayin'.

Now I feel bad for saying that. . . I once told a roommate that if your jeans rubbed together when you walked you knew you were gaining too much weight. That was a mistake. I have never seen anyone agonize more about the fact that her jeans rubbed together. The fact is, everyone's jeans rub together when they walk and no matter how many times I tried to recant my jean rubbing statement, she would never let it go. She had other issues as well though...

So don't throw out your flowers. If you have silk flowers you can probably pull it off because of your extreme hipness!

Speaking of large hips, these paper wreaths done by Haru are to die for. She has a real skill in putting them together. I love how she has made the bottom a little thicker than the top on some of them. Nice touch.




I might have to try and make some of these.

CHRISTMAS LIGHTS

I've been so busy this year, that I decided to buy a fake tree. Hmmm. The thought of getting a real tree and chopping off the bottom and remembering to water it, was almost overwhelming so, a fake pre-lit tree it was.

I'm not sure if it was easier though. That thing is heavy, and I got the floor model so we had to stuff the whole thing in my car. In the process breaking a wire. So I had to hard wire some lights together. I'm thinking it could be a potential fire hazard. But I'm willing to risk it for the lights. I haven't even bothered to decorate it yet, but I'm enjoying the glow from the many little lights.

So, in remembrance of my real little trees in Christmases past, here is a couple photos of one of them.

POSTAL CALENDAR

It occurs to me I never posted my new Postal Calendar. I love it. I'm waiting for some to be delivered this week to sell, but a lucky girl in New York got my prototype. 

TAKE NOTES

I often teach a woman at work a lot about her computer design programs and she religiously takes notes on scraps of paper that inevitably get lost the next day and I end up going over the instructions again because she says she can't remember. Which is great because it gives me an excuse to talk to her. If you knew her, you would want to talk to her also.

However, over a month ago, I told her I was going to make her a book. No more scraps of paper. And here it is. Orange to match her hair and personality and I only gave her two tabs for computer notes and work ideas. Keep it simple.

I thought other people might like to make this book for themselves or others so I put it in my Etsy shop. The blue one will go up tomorrow.

SO LET IT BE WRITTEN

So let it be done.

Christi Shanks, you are the lucky Glittering Tulip Chandelier in a Box winner! How exciting! I think I use too many exclamation points in life. But sometimes it's just too dang awesome not to.

I'll e-mail you to get your address.

Thanks for participating everyone.

HOLIDAY SHOWCASE

This is the first time I have ever done a showcase. What a crazy amount of work getting everything ready. Then I think of the women getting the beautiful house ready where the Piper and Chloe Holiday Showcase is being held, and how much time they've put in. It's amazing these things get launched.

So, I took a photo of my setup. It's not like I originally planned because they wanted to hang the my mini chandeliers from their real chandeliers. Kind of a fun twist.

Using the ladder was Renae's brilliant idea. She's a genius that one. I think it looks cute, if you can tell through the horrific photo.

Don't forget the Glittering Tulip giveaway tomorrow. You still have time to enter.

CUPCAKE STAND

I saw this beautiful stand on Etsy's front page today. I think it is dreamy. There is not a better word for it. You can find it at Whitney Smith's Etsy site.

Oh and Andrea, it's time for you to go home ; )

HAPPY DECEMBER FIRST

For the first day of December I'm giving away. 

Now I have to say, I consider myself reasonably intelligent and I'm somewhat computer savvy. But truly, I'm an idiot when it comes to figuring out how Technorati works. I don't think it does, it can't be me. There are a lot of you with links out there and I'm so HAPPY for them and I've seen lots of people check out my blog through your links. But they just don't show up in my link searches and I've spent waaaayyy too much time trying to figure it out. (If you know something I don't please tell me)

So, onward and upward I will select from the messages. Which means, if you didn't submit to the Chandelier in a Box giveaway because you don't have a blog, here is your CHANCE!

I've picked my random number from Research Randomizer . 

CATHERINE THIS IS YOU!!!! I love winning stuff. Congratulations. I'm going to try and find your e-mail address right now. If you don't see anything in your e-mail, contact me.

I JUST CAN'T STOP

Hey, I've received some awesome responses. The power of Kristina. Don't you LOVE that she's doing a virtual card club now.

The giveaways are still underway. The PDF one will end tomorrow night and you still have until next Friday for the Glittering Tulip.

To answer some really great questions I've gotten:

I cut the chipboard with a laser cutter. And no, I don't own one, I pay LOTS of money for a really nice company to do it for me. I wish I had a laser cutter. Someone want to loan me 16 thousand dollars?

As for how to make the wreath, it's really simple. I bought a green foam wreath. Used long pins and pushed a pin through each star and into the foam wreath. I tried to layer them, then I filled in the empty spots with the vanilla pearls.

Debbie, I want to see a photo of your paper stars!

Here is some new stuff I posted to my Etsy shop this weekend. It's a busy time, but super fun!

The Shooting Star - Chandelier in a Box



'Tis the Season PDF Tags


The Lengthy Calendar PDF

A BLACK FRIDAY GIVEAWAY

You can never have too many giveaways!

Let me tell you, I am surrounded by some really wonderful people in my life. I get such great encouragement for my Etsy shop. If you don't know who you are, I'm not doing a very good job letting you know.

One of those people is Kristina who is crazy talented and wanted to get her hands on the Sweet Tweet Chandelier in a Box to see what she could make of it. I haven't seen it yet, she's posting it on her blog later today.(Seen in now,  and I love it) I'M SO EXCITED, so I'm doing another giveaway. For Black Friday, I'm going to giveaway the Glittering Tulip Kit. It sells for $45 and is adorable.

To enter, post this link http://talkottown.blogspot.com/2008/11/black-friday-giveaway_28.html into your blog and please comment here as well. Then I'll use Technorati to determine the winner from your links. Seriously though, comment here as well. I want to be able to see if Technorati is actually showing me your posts. If it isn't working, I will randomly select a winner from the comments. Whether you link this site or not : )


The Glittering Tulip Chandelier in a Box giveaway ends December 5th. Check back here to see the winner!

Don't forget to enter the pdf giveaway here.

PAPER STAR WREATH

The PDF giveaway is still going on the next post, so you should enter.

But, here is the paper star wreath I talked about a few posts ago. It definitely took a while and was a great project to do while watching TV.

I'm really happy how it turned out. Just like I imagined in my head, which never happens. I'm considering adding ribbon. I might have to buy that great chocolate felt ribbon that Stampin' Up sells, but I'm kind of liking it without ribbon too.



If you want to make one too here is Christy showing how to make the stars.

I made it mostly out of Stampin' Up's paper Juntos. The mellow moss and always Artichoke colors make a nice base. For good measure I threw in a little saffron colored designer paper which makes it nice and warm. Then the vanilla pearls. I remember Martha Stewart doing a beautiful cranberry wreath all out of glass beads a long time ago and thought these vanilla pearls might give a similar effect.

THE ETSY'S KEEPING ME AWAKE GIVEAWAY

Every time I have a sale I get a little endorphin rush. It's really exciting and it keeps me coming up with new ideas. THE IDEAS NEED TO STOP. I need sleep and lots of it. That's all I'm sayin' people. 

So, new to the shop and lots of fun are these DIY PDF files. Pillow boxes and calendars. Can you ever have enough? No you can't. You need lots. Lots and lots of calendars. And pillow boxes to put them in. OK they won't fit, and I think I'm a little punchy.

In honor of the new photos and a shameless attempt to get my Etsy shop even more exposure, I'm going to have a giveaway! That's right, I said GIVEAWAY. My first. I feel like Oprah. But different than Oprah because there are no crazy screamers, and she gives away cars.

So it's going to go down like this, you have to link back to this post from your blog or website to enter into the giveaway. Just copy the http:// address above into your post. Then I use Technorati to determine the winner. But since I'm not sure Technorati works accurately yet, it would be great if you left a comment here as well. That way I will have a back up. I must test the waters and friends and family should enter, to make me look good. But it doesn't mean you'll win!

The lucky winner will receive all 3 PDF's that I'm showing in this post. The perpetual Bulletin Board Calendar, the Ornament Pillow Box and the Striped Pillow Box.

The give away will be done . . . December 1st. A great way to ring in the Christmas season. 

WILD OLIVE

I came across this Etsy site Wild Olive that has some really clever stuff. I especially love these tiny recycled notebooks she makes.

ORANGYPORANGY

I just found the coolest website on The Scoop. It's a shop called Orangyporangy. She make some very cool clothes and some of them are made from reclaimed fabrics which makes her clever designs even more awesome.

SLEEP TIGHT

I am in full Chandelier in a Box mode trying to get stuff churned out before the end of the month. Today I finished the Sleep Tight Chandelier in a Box. I love it so much I wish I had a baby so I could hang it over their crib. OK, that sounds creepy and kind of sad. So, you should have a baby and hang it over your crib!

THE RED NOSED REINDEER

A long while ago a came across the coolest cardboard taxidermy deer head found at a really great site called Rock Paper Scissors. I've also admired Girl Savage's feltidermy version of animal heads. Feeling their taxidermy inspiration, I wanted to try a more whimsical chipboard version covered in designer paper for Christmas.

So...Meet Rudolph.


I've only made one, but if I happen to hear that people want to make their own Rudolph just let me know and that could probably be arranged. If there are enough people that is.

I also have extra ornaments. Is anyone interested in them? The fit is a bit loose because I cut them wrong, but if you just pack them with glitter like I did with Rudolph, and you'll have a perfect fit.

THINGS TO COME

I have a new friend in my Etsy shop; the Simple Butterfly. I have a coworker who hates butterflies – they scare her. She must have had a run in with a hoard of rabid butterflies. Is that possible?

Anyway, this is actually a sign of things to come in the next couple weeks. A new mobile maybe...I love it. But this larger butterfly didn't make the cut for the mobile and is too cool to sit on my shelf. Think of it as a tiny mobile.

SLEEP OF THE DAMNED

I imagine this might be what hell is like. Street lights beaming through your backyard bedroom window, while cement machines roar and pour slag over the side of the sound wall being built. I'm not sure why they are dumping cement over the wall instead of on the new highway they are building, but what do I know about road construction.

Please tell me it will end soon. I'm tired of creeping around my bedroom hoping no one can see me get dressed. I need to finish that other curtain!


In case you are having trouble recognizing the images in this beautiful pic, there is a fence, trees, the highway with 4 football stadium rated lights, a cement machine pouring cement, AND a bunch of men with a great view of my bedroom. My bedroom is lit up like it's daytime. Actually, it's lit up like I'm having a football game in there.

POMEGRANATE

Kathy, one of my favorite people ever, taught me the coolest thing this week. Peel your pomegranate in a bowl of water and your fingers won't turn red, the juice won't spray you and all the white parts float to top while the seeds sink to the bottom. So, I bought a whole case at Costco.

PAPER STARS

Here is a peek at my weekend. I'm spending my nights folding these paper origami stars for a Christmas wreath. It's going to be awesome! I'll show you how it turns out when when I'm done.


Here is the video of Christy showing how to fold these stars I posted a while ago. Seriously though, your thumb hurts after doing a lot of these.