Hi all you lemony lemonheads! I took new pics this week {I am still into Project 365, give or take a few days…}. Take a look-see, won’t you?

This is my favorite from the week. I have been feeling a little uninspired in my photo-taking; I don’t feel like I am moving forward. These sweet little shoots changed my outlook though and made my day. I am ready for spring!

Thursday-Spring is Here!

Monday- Kitchen Shot

See you back here tomorrow!

Hi all you lemony lemonheads! Today I am going to share my favoritist {yes, I know that is not a word, but it is one of my favoritist non-words} photos from last week…

Sunday, February 14th - Valentine's Chocolates from my Sweet Husband

Wednesday, February 10th Foxtail Fern

Saturday, February 13th - Grapefruit

Sunday, February 7th - Yum! Mardi Gras King Cake

Hi lemonheads! Have I got a fabulous Lemony Fresh Etsy Seller for y’all…Her name is Kim and she has the Etsy shop, ClaybyKim. She makes the most wonderfully intricate pieces from polymer clay. They are amazing! She was also kind enough to not only do an interview, but to offer a giveaway for all of you! Fun! Details about the giveaway are below, so keep reading…

Queen of Hearts Pendant | ClaybyKim

Kelly: Can you tell us a little bit about yourself and how you got started creating your intricate clay pieces?

Kim: I am married, for almost 23 years, and I have three fabulous daughters. I have lived in Salt Lake City, Utah, my whole life until just 4 months ago. We moved to New Mexico. Small city, big change!

I have always done some type of artwork. I started out drawing, painting and doing odd art jobs here and there. Painting scenery, murals, faux finishing in homes etc…. I discovered polymer clay about eight years ago just after I had my third child, and started goofing around with it. I thought it was pretty neat, and I loved the versatility of polymer clay. It comes in artist paint colors so it was a good match with my painting background. I especially liked that it took very little overhead and space, so I could work at home and be with my kids.

Flower Art Nouveau Pendant | ClaybyKim

Kelly: How would you describe your design style? Why you are drawn to it?

Kim: I don’t know if I really have a design style; I never thought about it that way. I do know that I get bored easily, so I try one thing until I get bored and then onto the next. I learned techniques from reading and experimenting. You learn a lot from just doing. Some things work and some things don’t, and sometimes I am pleasantly surprised. I do have a gigantic box of “scrap” clay.

Strawberry LOVE earrings | ClaybyKim

Kelly: What are your favorite things about creating your pieces?

Kim: I love the possibilities with polymer clay. It is a very unique medium, and I am drawn to the bright colors. I am inspired by growing things and textures. A lot of my ideas are results of experiments gone wrong that turn into something completely usable. I am trying to come up with functional pieces. Things that can be used or that make someone happy. I have had the most fun creating fairy doors. Some of the sweet stories that people send me after they get one of my doors are just so heartwarming.

Queen of Hearts Pot | Claybykim

Kelly: What made you want to turn your art into a business?

Kim: I have always been fortunate to have my hobbies turn into business. I have painted, designed cd covers, taught dance, sold bead work, and now clay work. I think it is because I don’t know what else to do. I have always leaned toward anything that is art-related. My husband has been very supportive too. He always says,”you don’t know if you don’t try”. So I try and try and try. Sometimes it works!
I feel very lucky to be able to do what I love.

Wasn’t that a wonderful interview? I love her honesty; so refreshing. Aren’t her pieces beautiful? So very unique.

So now for the fun part…the giveaway! Kim has been gracious enough to give one of my lucky lemonheads a chance to win one of her beautiful fairy door pieces.

Fairy Door | Claybykim

Just leave a little love note about which piece you like the best from Kim’s shop, Claybykim. If you want an extra entry or two or three, tweet, blog or post on Facebook about the giveaway or about one of Kim’s pieces. Just make sure to come back here and leave a comment so I will know to add an entry for you. The winner will be randomly picked by random.org. The contest will end Saturday, February 20, 2010 at 5pm CST. Good luck!

Happy Fat Tuesday everyone! If you know anything about Mardi Gras, this is the BIG day. The funnest of them all!

If you are looking for my favorite pictures of the week post, don’t worry {mom}, it will be posted on Thursday of this week.

One of my favorite things is creating custom pieces to fit my client’s needs. My sorority sister, Melissa, messaged me over Facebook a couple of weeks ago with this interesting project…She lives way down south and celebrates Mardi Gras. She wanted some enclosure cards to use for the occasion. She asked if I did anything like that, and I enthusiastically said YES! So in honor of Mardi Gras, take a look at this project:

I designed square enclosure cards for her…Mardi Gras is a fun and crazy time, so I think these cards fit right in. What do you think?

Hi y’all! I thought I would post a little DIY with some inspiration for using custom stamps to personalize your wedding, party or other special occasion.

First, bags of mints are great favors for all types of special occasions. I love these fun mints in such beautiful colors. I think another fun idea would be to get personalized M&Ms to fill your bags. By the way, I used the supplies shown in the last photo in this post to create all of the embellishments you see in the photos.

Brown bags are so classic…You can dress them up with some fun scrapbook paper in colors to match your special day. Of course, the finishing touch is the stamped monogram created especially for you by Purple Lemon Designs.

Fun ribbon and clear bags make a very pretty favor too.

You can find Chinese food takeout boxes at your local craft store. They can be filled with cookies, a specialty soap, or anything else you can think of to gift your party goers.

I think it would be fun to find lots of teacups and fill them with candies or candles. You can find them for next to nothing at flea markets, garage sales and thrift stores. Just drop them in a poly bag and then dress them up with some scrapbook paper. To make this topper, I folded a piece of brown kraft paper over, snipped the edge with a paper punch, and stapled it over the top of the poly bag. Then, I just glued some ribbon around it and finished it off with a punched and stamped paper circle. Cute and easy!

Are you going to offer your party goers bottled water? Then why don’t you add your monogram? A little ribbon and paper make it beautiful. Thinking about the little things will make an impression on each and every guest at your party. They will feel appreciated and special.

Just make sure to keep the tags out of the water if you plan to chill your water!

These are the paper punches, ink pads (my favorite kind for paper!), and of course, the stamp I used to customize the pieces in the post.

Have you created a fun item for a party that you would like to share? I would love to share it in an upcoming post!

Do you have questions about using stamps to customize your party? Please ask them in the comments below.

Thanks for reading!

XOXO, Kelly

Hi all you lovely lemonheads…I hope your week is going well. I have to say, this week’s Lemony Fresh Etsy seller stands out from the rest. She is the real deal, y’all. Her clutches and handbags are beautiful and her photography is absolutely gorgeous! This week’s seller is Jami of eclu.

Check out the interview and the eye candy:

Lipstick by eclu

Kelly: Can you tell us a little bit about yourself and how you got started creating your beautiful handbags?

Jami: I was lucky enough to inherit a ton of vintage fabrics. I was in love. Dreaming up all kinds of wonderful things I could create.
As soon as I could I purchased my first sewing machine without really knowing how to sew. My little ones were my inspiration.
I started sewing them everything! When they started school, I couldn’t find any backpacks for wee little bodies. So I made my first bag……

Sky by eclu

Kelly: How would you describe your design style? Why you are drawn to it?

Jami: I love modern, vintage….soft but edgy. I am most drawn to things in nature, rocks, trees, grass, flowers, old wood, especially things with contrasting textures.

Shimmery by eclu

Kelly: What are your favorite things about creating your pieces?

Jami: I love the moment I turn the bag and get to see how all the fabrics, textures and flowers come together.

Midnight Bloom by eclu

Kelly: What made you want to turn your art into a business?

Jami: My kids were getting older and I had more free time to sew. Everyone always wanted to know, “where did you get that bag”,
so I started making extras. I did some research and found Etsy. I created eclu…named after my girls, Chloe and Emme Lu.
It took a while, but I found my style, a niche and here I am.

Aqua Marine by Eclu

Do you agree with me? Are these bags to die for or what? What about that photography? Do you love it as much as I do?

Make sure to visit Jami’s at eclu. It’s fab!

These are last week’s photos…Enjoy! Stay tuned for some great features this week…A new Lemony Fresh Etsy Seller…A DIY Bride post…Lots of stuff to come!

Wednesday, Feb. 3, 2010 | Shot outside of Tupelo, MS

Saturday, Feb. 6, 2010 | A wide shot of a little photo shoot for the blog

Friday, Feb. 5, 2010 | Self-portrait

Thursday, Feb. 4, 2010 | Heavy rains hinder a road trip

Tuesday, Feb. 2, 2010 | A new view on an everyday item

Monday, Feb. 1, 2010 | Helping a friend

Hi lemonheads! Today I am sharing a little business card that I designed for a local hair salon. The owner, Kelli, wanted to have something that is client-friendly in that it had a removable appointment reminder that could easily be stuck in a date book.




I think it turned out great and the client really liked them. What do you think?

Belinda of Shooting for a $3,000 Wedding! Congrats!

Silver Bow Tie Pendant | limegreenmodern

Belinda said, “I really love the modern silver wire bow tie pendant necklace! =)” I didn’t even show you guys this lovely piece…Isn’t it wonderful?

So congrats to Belinda. Tracy will be contacting you shortly!

Good day all you lovely lemonheads! I wanted to toot my horn a little today (let’s face it, if I’m not going to do it, who is?). My stamp and note card designs have been featured on Invitation Buzz, a new blog/source for stationery and all the lovelies that go with it.

Read all about it on Invitation Buzz’s Buzzworthy Blog. I am super excited about this feature…Thanks so much Invitation Buzz!