Cabin Style - One Fancy Yurt

Over the holidays, our family was up at beautiful Lake Tahoe. I love it up there... been going since I was a baby, got married up there, and now bringing my own family there. There's been quite a revival of "cabin style" over the last decade or two. Many of the dingy 60's condos are getting updated with a the classic log cabin, rustic look. I'm all for it, since I just love the look... not that I don't appreciate an awesome A-frame ski cabin, decked out with an avocado & orange kitchen, shag rug, and paneling. :)

On this trip, I was treated to an afternoon at a plush cabin style yurt. This yurt (a yurt is one step up from a tent...) sits at the bottom of a ski run and is decked out like a millionaires "great room" in Aspen. Check out the details. I just love it.

Nice wood table with board games to play... This shot doesn't give justice to the set up, though. On each chair is the fuzziest, shag fur cushion. What a cushy seat!

Loved the ski lift bench to adjust your snow boots... also the cushion is a handsome Pendleton blanket.

Old time Tahoe photos, a hanging oil lantern, and more Pendelton blankets makes a great place to relax.


Animal activists close your eyes... This skin hanging on the wall added to the look.

Another Pendleton blanket laying on an Adorandok chair on a sunny deck. Now with a beer in hand, you're set!

Now that's one way to relax after hitting the slopes!

Want more of the look? Check out the book, "Cabin Fever" by Rachel Carley. I'm sure I'll post more about cabin style in the future... and more books. I just love it.

King Cake - Three Kings Day or Mardi Gras?

Today is the Feast of the Epiphany, or Three Kings Day... the day the 3 kings arrived to honor baby Jesus on the 12th day of Christmas. It is also the beginning of the King Cake "season." The season runs from the day of the Epiphany through to Mardi Gras.

The King Cake is a pretty cool cake. I mean, what other cake actually has a season? It also is a very cool cake because a trinket is baked inside it, and the person who's piece of cake has the trinket gets to be King or Queen for the day. (She may also have the duty of hosting the following years party, and/or bringing the King Cake the following year... this may or may not be seen as a priviledge!)

There are many traditions surrounding a King Cake. I've done a little research in the past, since a French friend was very certain the cake was only eaten on the Epiphany, while I clearly remembered my friend from Louisiana ranting and raving about King Cakes at Mardi Gras time. Either way, both were right.

So, to honor Three Kings Day, I say, let's make cake! The picture above is from a King Cake I made with my kids. Lots of messy fun.

Below are some url's to sites with king cake recipes and folklore. Enjoy the tradition!
Wikipedia's Definition of King Cake
King Cake Recipe and Short Story

0 to 8 in 2008!

Happy New Year!!

Although I started my business in 2007, I started to create what I hope to be one of the core features of my work this year... a line of Party Kits. I have so much fun creating these kits. I love researching the idea, and thinking through all the details of how this party kit can translate not only to a nice set of invitations and decoration, but also how the idea can carry out to be a party your friends and family will remember for a long time!

It's fun looking back this year, to see the 8 new kits -- all lined up. Now on to 2009... I can't wait to see where it goes. I'm thinking up some fun stuff...

A Victorian Christmas

This weekend, we headed to the Dicken's Christmas Fair to get some more holiday cheer. I was so excited to go and check it out, since it's been many years since I've been. Also, I've been aching to create a Dicken's Christmas Party Kit, but some how this season it just didn't happen... next year, next year! Either way, it was entertaining... loved the costumes, and the make believe shops.... and came home with many ideas for next year.

A horn ornament on vintage music.

Hats festooned with feathers, flowers, birds and more...

Playing Card Garland in a shop window.

Old top hat littered with trade cards and Union Jacks.

Glittery beaded birds perched on a cage.

Punch and Judy puppet theatre.

Hula Girl Party!!

Aloha! I know it's December, and the last thing on people's mind is a sunny, Hawaiian luau, but that's the theme chosen by my daughter, so, of course I said, "Sounds great!" Fortunately, we live in California, and the weather, although it can be rainy, held out nicely for our luau fun.

Putting on a luau is lots of fun. When I started creating this party kit, I quickly realized, that there's no way that I could only have one luau party in my future collection--- so many different ideas and looks were coming to mind when I gathered imagery (think tiki, surfer, etc.)... so, once I reminded myself that this party was definitely geared for a girl, I had a great time concentrating on a truly girly Hula Girl luau theme-- soft colors, lei flowers, raffia (grass skirt), and retro hula girl imagery. Below are some snapshots from the fun.

A detail from the Hula Girl banner.

A detail from the luau invitation.

Leis, leis, and more leis lined our coat rack for all guests to put on.

Leis, fishing net, shells decorate the outdoor fireplace area... and yes, the not so sightly stereo played great hawaiian music.

The girls LOVED all the crafts--- only a handful of boys participated though... they were quite taken by the lawnful of beach balls... many which ended up at the neighbors by the end of the evening!

More Holiday Shows...

It seemed a little insane, to try to pack in one more crafty affair... just as the holidays are ramping up, and my daughters bday party was on the horizon... but ya know, ya just got to do it some time! So, just a little stress, and some table arranging magic, and a pot of coffee and voila, it was holiday coffee/open studio time. All said and done, it was well worth it. Here are some shots from the show.

Santa cards topped with a candy cane.

I need to find more glitter in my house... Ah, there it is.

Cards and Tags galore...

I threw in some baby cards too... just for fun!

ROADTRIP!!!

Our family was in desperate need of a get away this past Thanksgiving weekend! We had our turkey, we had our family gathering, now we needed to get the heck out of dodge and go on a ROADTRIP!!! (you must yell "roadtrip" like a frat boy when you say that word :))


When my husband and I were "courting" we were quite the roadtrippers. Our longest and most debaucherous roadtrip was from San Francisco to N'Orleans via Las Vegas, the Grand Canyon and Austin, TX. It's debatable if I'll ever share all the details of that trip with my kids... but now it was time for our kids to get a taste the adventures of the road!


Ok. I admit, I'm being a bit dramatic. We really were only heading out of town for an overnight... but we left the house with only a small bag, and no hotel reservations for the night. We were really living on the edge. ;)

Our destination... the gold country of California. Why? Because it's beautiful in fall, and it's in range of a good overnight destination from our house! Now, I think everyone in the Bay Area had the same idea as us, or else they just thought that getting in their cars and driving on the freeway was how they would spend their weekend... so the traffic was a nightmare.

In true roadtrip fashion... we got off the main highway, and cut our way up to the Sierra hills through back towns and country roads... with our GPS/traffic maps guiding the way. (Yes, the GPS kindof kills the "adventuresome" aspect of the roadtrip, I know.) We had a great time pointing out to the kids things that you can't see off I-80...

Once up in the hills, we headed to Jackson, CA. It was already evening, but the town was a buzz. Holiday festivites were in the air. Lights lined the streets and the shops were buzzing with people. For dinner we headed into Sutter Creek. Even more lights, even more decorations. It was a great way to kick off the holiday season.

Here's a window from a shop called "Tomorrow's Heirlooms" in Sutter Creek, CA. Very cute place.

This was in the window of the ice cream parlor in Sutter Creek (featured in Sunset Magazine.) What a great place. Not only was the ice cream de-lish, but the owner even headed over to the old fashioned piano and played some tunes for us. Then he plugged in the mechanical Jingle Bells song and away the piano played.

Great memories, and great road trip!