'tis finished

my little book is busting at the seams. a good 4 inches thick and completely full of paper goodness & love. it's much nicer to be done though :)

and in celebratory fashion... i have some fun fake glasses. i know i've said this before but i super duper wish i used glasses. i take mr.handsome's sometimes and wear them for fun. i had waaay more fun picking his frames than he liked hahaa! oh well, i can only be a nerd with fake glasses. we had a date night out at the movies and saw Tron in 3D. it's aight. i'm sure it's obvious i loved the glasses :)



i wore them while sewing these last few pages. you know, to make everything look better ;P

{ day 17 details }

i scored big time. i love when that happens. it might not look like much but i found a few awesome cobalt blue pieces of china to add to my collection. i can't quite put my finger on why i have to collect pieces in this color. i just do. and it makes me happier. i love it even more when i see mr.handsome use the little pretty plates for his banana bread & coffee. i'm gonna pay for telling you that, but you know, it makes me swoon every time i see him with a cute plate :) 

{ day 18 details }

2 years ago on december 18 mr.handsome and i said forever & always. in a mini pink courthouse chapel...full of dusty artificial flowers, so romantic. ha! i cried. i cried not from regret. but when it was my turn to say our vows... you know in sickness and in health. for rich or for poor. i cried right there. for rich or for..... poor. ha! you know the tears just came and i realized that we really were marrying for love. we are poor but definitely happy in love :)  awwww..... cheeeeeesy. i know. and yet i still cried. and just for the record i manned up at our real wedding and didn't cry at all.  i don't even cry for sad movies man. i'm a tough cookie like that. moving on. 

{ day 19 details }

my belladrummer shop is now closed and is now being transformed into a new little shop full of more inspiring and lovely things. I hope to open back up early January featuring a few extra things i really love. some of the same... i am repackaging and enjoying this entire process. just last week i was putting some twine of the cutest spools you've seen. good times :) i can't wait to share more and hope you will enjoy them too xo.

{ day 20 details }

i like to go to meetings that involve food. one thing i don't miss from my old job were the useless meetings we sat hours in monday after monday. i came to hate mondays for this very reason. now, i tag along with mr. handsome's "meetings" and i'm their honorary co-worker. we laugh, mostly at each other :) i love that. i love these really cool friends. and the nachos are pretty good too. xoxo

day 21 details }

i can waste time like nobody's business. and here's proof :P

day 22 details }

i think i referenced my love for fake glasses already. sorry to keep referencing but i really do 

love glasses. i do i do i really do. lol! what a nerd i know. 

day 23 details }

my sister cindy. she's a proud mama of 2 little boys. here she is with her newest love... baby gavin. he's got her dimple. her smile and her crazy thick hair. i'm sure he smells like baby. i'm sure he makes her happy. and i'm pretty sure they are best buddies :) 

day 24 details }

every time mr.handsome drives, i try to take a picture of him. in turn he gives me the "i'm serious" stare. yes. the one you see in that picture. it makes me laugh ! hahahaa! he's trying to be serious and i'm being very annoying. typical ride with the ruiz's. never a dull moment.

day 25 details }

a picture of a little chocolatey gift we gave our friends on christmas day. in return they gifted us with my most favoritist pie in the whole wide world. Nations banana cream pie. if anyone lives near one, i am SO jealous of you! really. i love this pie more than any cake or cheesecake i've ever known. it's amazing. and our sweet friends brought one down all the way from northern cali for us. it's the little things. like hanging out with them, sharing a good time. mr.handsome and i don't give each other gifts. we reserve christmas as a time to remember the hope that was brought into this world just for us. a little baby. a lot of love. and we spend time with family & loved ones sharing that. don't get me wrong i love gifts... but its these moments i remember most. my cup runs over xoxo 

thank you for bearing with me and letting me share a bit of paper love. i'm not sure if i will do another december daily again. i've never really finished a mini quite like this. but after seeing it all come together and finally finished is such a good feeling. hopefully there is more lovely paper art to come in 2011

happy almost new year! (& feliz ano nuevo :)
xo
-d

the merriest

wishes and love to you from us :)

Inside you would find peanut butter & mint oreo cookies covered in chocolate .extreme love. a sign we must really really love you. *wink*

mister handsome would never share his chocolate love with anyone unless he really loved them. and even then i wonder. i've come home to find all but one chocolate covered oreo left. now he thinks he's quite the gentleman for leaving *one* cookie. i think he's just doing that so he won't look so bad for eating ALL the cookies. no chocolate is safe man. so eat quick :)

in the spirit of sharing ... here are the next set of pages from my december daily. :)


{ day 9 details }
Red ribbon ( Merry & Sweet Mini Kit ), Glittery Snowflake (Michaels), Blue Button ( found), White & red stripe ribbon ( Heidi Swapp), Woodgrain Transparency ( Hambly), Red Journaling Tag ( Belladrummer Etsy ) Glittery Number Stickers ( Making Memories), Green merry tag ( Making Memories), Large white journaling Tag ( Belladrummer etsy shop), Gold sewing thread ( Jo-anns ).


The day i started my december daily. hehee.. ahh. late. as always but definitely got my mojo going. i loved putting all the little things i was going to use in a vintage tin cupcake pan. It was so lovely sorting through everything and seeing it all look so pretty. almost as good as playing with cupcakes :)

{ day 10 details }

Yellow Envelope w/red Snowflake stamp ( Merry & Sweet Mini Kit ), Glittery Number Stickers ( Making Memories), Fabric & Paper Leaves ( found), Red mini sequin snowflake ( found at holiday party :), Mini floral gem ( Heidi Swapp), Mini Red stripe Journaling Tag ( Belladrummer Etsy ), Vintage music butterfly ( Marvy Punch ), Gold sewing thread ( Jo-anns ).

Making paper garlands with a little crochet love is really fun. nena loves it too. xo 

{ day 11 details }

Green foil & Damask Paper ( Merry & Sweet Mini Kit ), Glittery Number Stickers ( Making Memories), Green & White Polka Dot frame ( Making Memories), Red velvet flower ( Maya Road ), Flower Paper punch ( Michaels ), Vintage music sheet circle punches ( thrift find ), Green Journaling Tag ( Belladrummer Etsy ), Gold sewing thread ( Jo-anns ).

our first double date with my sister and her boyfriend. they gave us tickets to see the messiah concert. interesting. hahaa. we had a good time...golden spoon frozen yogurt afterward+ friends = a fun christmas date night.

{ day 12 details}

Red felt Damask Paper ( Merry & Sweet Mini Kit ), Peace & Love Brad( Making Memories), Red Chipboard Polka Dot tag ( Making Memories), green paper leaf ( Making Memories ), Ribbon punch ( Martha Stewart punch ), Mini red Tag ( Belladrummer Etsy ), White mini Journaling Tag ( Belladrummer Etsy ), Red Polka dot fabric piece ( thrift find), Gold sewing thread ( Jo-anns ).

we started going to a different church this year. the best change ever. i feel safe again. i love that it's so big. i know mega churches aren't for everyone, but i love the anonymity. growing up as a pastor/missionary kid you can't get away from the spotlight. i love being here. i love that nobody really knows me or expects me to be anything else but me. and i love that mister handsome and i are growing in our faith together. :)

{ day 13 details }

Pink & Green glittery stripe paper ( Merry & Sweet Mini Kit ), friends chipboard tag ( Making Memories), silver foil star sticker ( Jo-lee's), Mini white star ( Michael's ), Note paper washi tape ( Pink Paislee ), Pink Journaling Tag ( Belladrummer Etsy ), Tiny Alphabet stickers ( Making Memories ), Love definition paper ( found), CLear Star ( Michael's), Starburst ledger paper punch ( Martha Stewart), Gold sewing thread ( Jo-anns ), Floral sequin gems ( found), Paper doily punch ( Spellbinders punch). 

clearly we're not just "friends" :P but you know, the more i think about it i just can't help but want to keep thinking we're bFF's. i think that keeps us more aware of making everyday work. staying in love. giving. loving. putting each other first. and most of all, dating. i want to grow old with mister. i love celebrating that. everyday xo

{ day 14 details }

Green cardstock ( Merry & Sweet Mini Kit ), Gold sparkle die cut paper ( Merry & Sweet Mini Kit), Leaf Paper punch ( Marvy), Green stripe sticker ( Making Memories), Vintage ticket ( found ), Green leaf ( found ), White ribbon lace ( thrift find ), Gold sewing thread ( Jo-anns ).

crunchy leaves. i heart them. living in san diego all of my life makes me crazy for crunchy leaves. i once visited chicago in the fall and i instantly fell for the pretty trees and crunchy leaves everywhere. i go out of my way just to crunch a leaf. it's so satisfying. :)

{ day 15 details }

Red ledger paper ( Merry & Sweet Mini Kit ), Red felt die cut ( Merry & Sweet Mini Kit),  Vintage inspired White carnival ticket ( Belladrummer Etsy), vintage map paper( found ), white  button ( found ), White Journaling Tag ( Belladrummer Etsy ), Tiny Alphabet stickers ( Making Memories ), Mini tree pin ( Making Memories ), Gold sewing thread ( Jo-anns ).

the best day in december! our family welcomed our second little nephew... little baby gavin. here he is with his older brother,baby G. I LOVE that they both look like my sister. it's like she's growing up again before our eyes... scary and cool all at once. lol!  even though we could not be there ( in hawaii) to give him some love i made him this little page to share with them. I am a happy aunt :)

{ day 16 details }

White textured paper ( Merry & Sweet Mini Kit ), Chinese place mat paper ( found),  Silver gem ( MAMBI), Red starburst gem ( found ), Mini grey tag ( Belladrummer Etsy ), Butterfly paper punch ( Martha Stewart), Tiny butterfly punch ( Marvy ), Fortune ( found ), Silver crochet star ( handmade by me :), Gold sewing thread ( Jo-anns ).

so who writes those silly fortunes anyway? i always get a kick out of them. we had some chinese food at our favorite place and i took a apart the paper place mat ( thrifty yes?) and now it's happy sewn onto this page. I also added an extra crochet star I made. i love silvery shimmery crochet stars. xoxo


i know we're a little late in saying this but, 
we wish you the happiest christmas blessings & a heart full of joy & peace


xo
-mr.handsome & d

i'm not even gonna lie

this is what i do when i'm supposed to be doing something really important.
you can find me in the studio.

"working". it's very important to note i'm working here. really hard. or hardly working. whatevs :)

* high on a tall soy white mocha w/whip ( why do they even ask if you want whip? heck to the yes man. put it on there. i love the sweetness :)

* just checking if the photo booth app still works on my mac. good. it still works. *whew. i love technology.

* completely gaga over a little bit of paper scrap i almost threw away. but thankfully, i didn't. i repurposed it as my photo prop. genius. tell me if that paper scrap doesn't look happy. look. it's smiling :)
how the heck do i ever get anything done i hear you ask...

truth is. i don't. not everything. because it's these little things that matter man. it's what keeps me sane. working from home. locked up in my studio. begging for someone to distract me.

- i also call mister handsome randomly at work to see what he's doing. i ask what he's up to. he says working. i say working? really? wow. that's cool. bye. :)
- i watch a bit of divorce court. just to remind me what i shouldn't be doing in my marriage. totally entertaining. where do they get those people?
- i make stuff to send stuff out then make more stuff to send more stuff out. it's a mess. i love it.
- i also go thrifting to score some random vintage love. i found a few new places over the weekend and i scored big time. whenever i tell someone i thrift they give me a dirty face. like eww. i'm totally offended. how dare you not appreciate my thriftiness?

then it's about 5 o'clock and i wonder where all my time went. i guess i'll never know :)

I did manage to finish the following pages in my december daily xoxo. ( i will come back and add all the item details here later. i've got a hot movie and dinner date with mr.handsome so i gotta make this quick)













I'm pretty happy with the little mini so far ... not too busy and not too plain.
i even had my sister come over and we had some fun with nena in the studio. okay. back to work :)
happy almost christmas!
xo
-d

December gathering

I love a red december. I think i was channeling red and christmas mid july when I gathered these items for a mini inspiration lesson for my Inspire Lovely class.  I have been known to sing a few christmas tunes during the hot summer seasons. You know, "Grandma got run over by a reindeer" at the top of my lungs AND with a twang in my voice for added measure, rockin' around the Christmas tree ( a true favorite ) or even mimic the scene sweet Kevin in Home Alone sang "White Christmas ( air comb and everything ). oh yeah. mr.handsome is NEVER bored with me around. i'm like a mini juke box or something. his own DJ if you will. he digs it :)

So back to christmas... it's just around the corner. it's kind of coming up and then it's totally going to be 2011 and i'm kind of ready for it. I've got my calendar hung and everything. This sale also brings the end to my XO 2011 Art calendars sales. I've had so much fun making these and imagining all the new homes they will be hanging in. Every studio deserves a rockin' calendar. Or even in your work space. I think it would take the boring out of the beige walls and add a little umph. So if you'd like one, there are still a few in the shop. ( I relist upon request so please either send me a convo or email if you'd like one ) I can't wait to make a 2012 one. but i'm in no hurry :)

here's to a sweet 2011
xo

ps: thank you so much for all the shared excitement and for your support! I'm clearing things out and they are all shipping later today. I am going to be adding some of the same items back into the new shop... but you know... with a little extra somethin' somethin'. * wink* wink*

;)
-d

the merry rush XoXo

my friend RoRo once called me an entrepreneur and i laughed.

i guess the joke was on me. because ladies, i am my own official boss. I'm delighted to let you know the meeting with my tax lady was promising. Papers were filed. New company name decided upon. New shop ID + domain name + tax collecting and I'm a brand new shop owner. :) i'm totally excited!

My new ETSY name is Inspire Lovely.
yay! I was so happy creating this account today. I am also announcing a sale in order to help clear out all the items in my old shop Belladrummer. My dear loves, i think you might be able to help a sister out if I give you 20% off all items in the shop. I can probably help you cross a few lovelies off your list. Hence my sale name: Merry rush :) The sale goes on until Monday December 20th and then i officially close the shop down forever. the end.  And as I was looking at the number of sales and its pretty close to 500. My 500th customer is gonna get something pretty cool. I'm still pondering it as i have a few days until the sale ends. Maybe a certificate to my Inspire Lovely shop? Maybe some handmade love? oohhh exciting right? :P

I just added these pretty garlands to the shop. They've been my loving friends here in the studio and now wish to bring a little cheer your way too :)






I crocheted those cute stars and doily motif. I LOVE :)

The sale starts at 1PM today and goes on until December 20th at 12 noon. All items are automatically on sale so you don't need a special coupon code. I've got a few goodies to add as extras for each order and I'm a pretty happy elf today. 

thanks for letting me share a little bit of my excitement!

and thank you so very kindly to all of you for your support :)

xo

-d

paper love december style xoxo

{ cover details }  

Vintage music sheet, Foam Snowflake ( a little treasure i picked up at my recent concert night  featuring christmas music & decor. i snuck a few in my purse - scrap happens :), Gold sewing thread ( Jo-anns ), mini white snowflake & red jewel brad ( Making Memories ), Red & White Bakers twine, Red journaling spot, White glittery numbers ( American Crafts ), Mini Wooden star, Vintage Silver leaf, White Blank Carnival Journaling tickets, White Matte Spray Paint ( Home Depot ).

{ day 1 details }  
Green Pattern Paper  ( Making Memories ), Silver foil medallion (  Jolee's ), Red mini gem ( Mambi ), Red scallop trim ( found ), White Pom Pom trim ( found), Gold sewing thread ( Jo-anns ), Silver #1sticker ( Making Memories), Red paper Die-cut ( found ), Red Ledger journaling spot , Red & Silver stripe star ( Jolee's )



{ day 1 details }  
White & Tan stripe Glitter Paper ( Making Memories), White paper doily, Gold sewing thread ( Jo-anns ), Vintage music butterfly ( Marvy Punch ), Mini silver gem ( Jenny Bowlin ), Silver bulb branch ( Jo-anns ), Vintage Silver leaf,  Day 2 Journaling sticker ( Making Memories ), White notebook paper ( found )

finally, proof :)

i have been enjoying the sunny days here in my little clean studio, finally making stuff happen. Finally evidence of paper love. It's been a while since i've really made anything since i'm no longer on a design team... but this, this was worth the wait. Even though I only have a few pages done I wanted to share what I had in hopes of bringing a bit of cheer :)

I also wanted to share 2 favorite items I recently added to the shop:

{ Large Journaling Carnival Tickets }

{ Fluttering Gold Art Tags }

Sending you happy paper love

xo

-d

hello december!

december started off very frustrating. i had a mess all over my studio. and when that's a mess i'm a mess. now both my studio and i are on good terms and in love :)

let's update via photos shall we?
xoxo

December 4:: ROCK OUT. saturday was definitely a HUGE highlight for us. We both love future of forestry and saturday mr.handsome surprised me with tickets to see them rock christmas music. JOY. Complete Joy.












Even in blue he looks hot xoxo. Except when he keeps shoving the coffee cup in his face to block my shot. that. that's just not cool. but whatevs. i got the shot :) i forgot how amazing live music is. it made me want to bang on some drums again. (mental note: crash guitar center sometime soon for a free drum fest :)

December 5:: Organize & package etsy items. I'm sure i don't have to refer back to the previous post for this ;) but i needed my studio to function again in a better way for my little shop. And thankfully the organizing continued. the show must go on right? lol!  Packaging a few orders got my cheer back :)



December 6:: Visual Transformation of my shop complete. Before the studio closet was just for pretty much everything. Now, it's all for my etsy items. Starting 2011 i have some pretty fun plans for my little shop and a very fun meeting with my accountant this friday to plan for it.  Taking a little idea to the next level requires planning and this little studio needs to reflect that.. and now it does. This, this is what a little corner of my shop would look like if i had my own storefront. It had to be visually pleasing.  Because, ya know... what if you come over or something right? gotta look good ;)





All the drawers are filled with items in the shop. Everything is now in one place. I will have to do a complete photo op of all my drawers to show you i really did clean and organize and not just shoved everything in hahaa... but for now, ya just have to trust me. xoxo

December 7:: Add final touches to my little Crochet Garland love. I put the finishing touches on my little festive garland. I crocheted the star and the colorful balls of yarn. The bird I cut from a vintage quilt i scored for $5 on saturday.  Perfect for cutting as it had some damage. but look at the cute vintage fabrics! love!





I had so much fun using up bits and pieces of left over yarn for this project. Although it was a bit time consuming crocheting all the yarn balls, halfway through i just wanted to buy the felt balls  i see everywhere... but i don't need another hobby :) I made do and it saved money so it was all good. good times xo

Thank you love for reading through this :)
I have a few questions to answer from the previous post ...

Emily said...

Wow- just in those pics, you are WAY more organized than me. Seriously. You take such great photographs! Did you take any classes or anything? I really want to graduate from my little point and shoot, but am waiting for a small windfall of moolah:) And... I love me some starbucks, too, for a little motivation.

Thanks Emily! I did take 2 classes while in art school. One on the history of it and the other how to print both B&W and color in the dark room. I later taught Photography + b&w dark room developing at a private high school for about 1 year and a half. That was almost 8 years ago! yikes! I worked my way up from the old slr's to a canon rebel to what i have now canon 40D. I was just talking about this to mr.handsome ( as so many friends are looking to upgrade cameras) that if i hadn't taken those classes on photography i would've never upgraded to an SLR camera. I think the more you know the better your photo's will be no matter what kind of camera you have.  Most of the time if you know technique (and photoshop :), you can score better photos all of the time. Trust me, you can do it :) I wish you all the happiness and success love. ps: definitely get some starbucks for a little motivation :)

Maureen said...

I live by the motto that everything is better with a frappuccino. Pedicures, shopping, just walking around, it just improves the moment. I wish I had a little crafty area like yours. I know though from experience...you spend more time organizing and putting the stuff away than using it. And most importantly, where did you get that sweater? I love it.

Maureen you are SO right! hahaaa! Which reminds me I need to have a sister date soon so I can do all those things :)  Thank you so much for some studio love. The only reason this works for us is because we have no children. I have no clue what we will do when that time comes. no wait. we're getting rid of mr.handsome's man cave to make room for the kids :) hahaa! i'm so not kidding. Also, I bought my sweater at the fabulous Target. It's one of my all time favorites ( i bought it last year in the clearance section!) Maybe it's the buttons? Or maybe the v neck going on makes me look longer. hahaa. whatevs. i love it too. :)

Emakesart said...

Your studio looks amazing! And I need to ask 2 things...

1. Where did you find the white 6 drawer cabinet? (right side in1st photo) I NEED one like that desperately! and..

2. Where did you get that fantastic orange sweater? I LOVE it!

I also want to say that the last photo of you and your hubby is absolutely incredible!! That is one that will end up a keepsake to pass down to your kids and grandkids, etc. Truly breathtaking and magical!!

xoEsther

Hi Esther :)
I bought the 6 drawer cabinet from IKEA. It's called the ALEX drawer unit on coasters and i have 2 of them. They really do hold a lot and are SO nice to have for supplies and crafts :) ps: thank you kindly for the sweet comment about our photo. It definitely turned out the way i wanted and i plan on treasuring it in my little heart. magical indeed :)

As always thank you from the bottom of my heart for sharing yours with me xoxo

I'm off to...

- pick up some starbucks love for my sister. okay. me too :)

- volunteer in her 1st grade class. JOY. lol. kids are funny when they are small. xo

- print these photos and start my december daily....  i'm so behind. i just gotta get it done. plus while cleaning i found tons more stuff to use up. cleaning might not be so overrated as i thought :)

xoxo

- d