Everyday Beauty

There's Still Time to Sign Up!

Week One is underway, but you can still sign up for Creatively Made Home! It is so inspiring, and I am loving it. Jeanne really outdid herself this time!

Click here to sign up for the 5 week e-course.

Riding Creative Waves

I just added 5 new necklaces to the Shopette. It's funny how creativity has a mind of its own. Some days I couldn't piece a necklace together if I tried, and then there are other days. I wake up and just know that I need to create something. And it all flows and works together, for the most part. I wish I knew the answer to this mystery! In any case, I try to take it a day at a time and ride the wave of creativity, as it comes and goes, with all its calm and all its wonderful fury.

A Pair of Bracelets

Just a little post to let you know I made a couple of new pieces that are now in the Shopette. You can find them here.

It's amazing what can get done when I wake up at 1:30 in the morning and can't get back to sleep!

xo Andrea

And the Winners are...

Well hello! I thought I'd better hurry up and announce the winners, since I meant to do so several days ago! Where on Earth do the days go?

Thank you to all of you who left a comment. It's great to see so much excitement and interest in the e-course. It really will be a great course! As promised, I have three spots to give away.  My husband picked three random numbers, and the lucky winners are.......

1. Carrie Sullivan

2. Suzanne Paton    

3. Pam Bankos

Congratulations! I will send your name and email address to Jeanne and get you signed up for the e-course right away!

Hope you all have a beautiful Monday!

xo

Creatively Made Home

Well hello there! I think you will be glad you stopped by today. I know I am glad you stopped by today!

Have you heard about Jeanne Oliver's newest e-course, Creatively Made Home?

Well, you are in for a treat. Jeanne is offering this e-course, starting October 22nd, and it is jam packed with inspiring ideas, photos, videos and so much more.

It is a 5 week course all about creating a beautiful home that is not about perfection. It's about making your home a reflection of your heart. Don't you love that?

There are 5 creative women behind the course, and they will each be sharing pictures of their homes, tips, recipes, videos, printable pdf's and more. I can't wait to see it all!

Jeanne has also asked several other women to share a short video as part of the e-course, speaking about what is most important for them to have in their homes.

 I was honored when she asked me to be one of those women.

Because she's such a sweetheart (if you have ever met her you know how very true it is)......she would like to give 3 of my blog readers free registration to the course!

You will need to leave a comment though, otherwise how will I know you're interested?

Simply leave your name and email address
and I'll put you in the drawing. Easy as pie.

You can read ALL about it HERE on Jeanne's blog.

Here are a few teaser photos of the 5 inspiring women who are hosting the e-course, and the beautiful heartfelt homes they have created.

Jeanne Oliver

 

Tracey Leber

Sara Duckett

Kimberly Taylor

Jennifer Rizzo

Looks like a little slice of heaven, I think! So, leave a comment. I will draw 3 winners on Friday. I hope you win!

xo andrea

HOME

In a few weeks, we will mark the 1-year anniversary of our new home. Last Fall, we excitedly got the keys, walked in the door, and started cleaning. And cleaning. And cleaning. New floors were layed, wallpaper was stripped, light fixtures were hung and every wall in the house got fresh paint. Faucets were replaced, mini blinds came down, and my long-awaited white kitchen got a little face lift. It has been a labor of love in every way. And as you can see from the tube of caulk above, we are not finished! We're enjoying the process so much, watching things trasform before our eyes.

We loved the layout, the flow of the house, the size of the rooms, the tree-lined neighborhood and the feeling we got when we walked in the door, but had a long way to go to make it our own.

Home.

Though we still have many projects to complete, it sure feels like home now. Being the ultimate homebody, my home is very much a reflection of my heart. I'm passionate about it.

My idea of HOME has changed over the years, and I've fine-tuned what is important for me to have present in my home. It is LOVE and coziness, uniqueness and a warm welcoming feeling that surrounds us. I am endlessly rearranging, puttering and decorating. I've learned to let go of some of the ideas of home that I used to think were important. Now, what's most important are the 5 people that dwell here. The 5 people who laugh, cry, sing, read, eat, sleep and hug under this roof.

And speaking of home, I'm excited to be a part of an e-course that a friend of mine is offering.  Stay tuned for the details and a fun giveaway....all related to the topic of HOME.

New Goodies in the Shopette

Hello Friends! Just wanted to let you know I have some new necklaces, bracelets and ear drops in the Shopette now. Click here to take a peek! Thanks, as always, for your support and sweet words about my designs.

xo Andrea

Back to School Baubles

Well hello! It's been awhile. I hope you enjoyed Summer and all it's carefree days and beauty. We had a great time at the beach and hit just about every festival, parade and fair within a 5o mile radius. But, alas, all good things must end eventually. And so it's back to school for the kiddies and a little more "free" time for Mama.

I've been making time to create jewelry these past few weeks, and plan to have these pieces in the shop in the next week or two.

See you soon! Enjoy this day! :-)

Finally

I have been wanting to take guitar lessons for as long as I can remember. George bought me a guitar two years ago...or was it three? I finally called and set up private lessons, and tonight is the first one! I'm excited and a little nervous too. Excited to be taking the first step in fulfilling this little dream. Nervous that I will look or feel like a fool. Sounds silly when I type it, but it's true. But sometimes you have to step outside your comfort zone and really challenge yourself. Put yourself out there.

I'll let you know how it goes!

May Musings

May is wrapping up today and summer is beginning! May, the month of Mother's Day, is also of course the month of Mary for Catholics. This beautiful statue is on my dresser and reminds me daily to try and be the best mother I can be. 

We celebrated Sofia's 2nd birthday last weekend (so hard to believe!) and had a big party with all of our family. She had so much fun being the bella of the ball, playing with her cousins, eating cupcakes and opening gifts. She knew exactly what was going on and that it was all for her. I ordered this dress on etsy from the most adorable shop, Lover Dovers Clothing. I stumbled across the shop by chance and am glad I did. You must go take a peek at all of the adorable designs for children and grown-ups alike!

Isn't this a great time of year as school winds up, and plans are made for the hot days and lazy afternoons of summer? I'm a summer girl and am looking forward to being outside with the kids. We've already broken in the swings at the park.

...and spent many a May day at the baseball field.

I can't wait to head to the beach, the zoo, the amusement park, farmer's markets and flea markets. Naturally, we have to make time to indulge in ice cream cones and frozen treats (with a little help from this book), which I don't think will be a problem.

We've been eating dinners outside under our striped umbrella. Black and cream stripes remind me of Italian cafes, so I close my eyes and pretend I'm there sometimes. It works for a few seconds!

April showers did indeed bring May flowers. These were some of the ones in our yard.

Many a blossom got cut and brought inside.

I think that about sums up the beautiful month of May around here. All of these pictures were taken with my iphone and uploaded to Instagram. It's quick and easy, and I think it's a great way to see what your friends are up to through their photos. I've been using it daily and love it. You can add filters to your photos to make them look old, and quite cool I think. A pile of dirty dishes would probably even look good with Instagram! If you have Instagram and want to follow along with my photo stream, my user name is andreasingarella.

See you in June!