Our Real Castle...the final weeks!

Our home is still under construction but we're in the midst of the fun part now...within the next few weeks, the trim will be completed, cabinetry will be installed, floors will be installed, and the walls will be painted.  

Hopefully we'll be "IN" by Mother's Day when my parents are planning on coming up to visit.

It's been quite the project!  Stressful but fun.

Jessica's Marshmallow Castle

I don't know why, but for some reason, the pic I took of Jessica's castle wasn't coming up on my last post so here it is...

I've neglected my lonely blog for so long that I failed to see the requests for this pic!  

It was so unlike me NOT to take a pic on the night she completed it so I took the opportunity to snap a shot during her 4th Grade Medieval Activity.  All of the 4th Graders have been working for weeks to earn "knighthood".  On Medieval Day, they all got knighted by a "king" and enjoyed Medieval type festivities (including eating food without utensils - Remember Medieval Times??).  She brought the castle home a few days later and it sat on our kitchen table for a few days until I noticed that the marshmallows were disappearing.

Were my kids EATING the crusty hardened chunks of pure sugar?  Of course.  Alas, the castle is in a landfill somewhere in Utah.

Jessica's Marshmallow Castle

February Zoomed By

It's been a while since I updated my blog...February was a BLUR!

I had a great time exhibiting at the Oh Sweet Sadie! Boutique a few weeks ago.  The place was PACKED!  It was a very good turnout.  I am always impressed by the amazing talent that Utah women possess - as evidenced by the unique and beautiful things that were available at the boutique.

While I couldn't be at the boutique myself as we had a family ski trip to Deer Valley that weekend, a lot of people saw my stuff and I received some great feedback.

Since the boutique, I decided to take a break from crafting and obsessing over my business so I concentrated on other things - like getting back to the gym (that was long overdue!), volunteering for the kids' school activities, and keeping busy with our house construction. Since I don't have a dedicated craft space...or any space at all with our tiny duplex rental right now, it's quite a challenge to craft sometimes!  But our new house will have plenty of space and a craft room and craft closet JUST FOR ME! 

And of course...wouldn't ya know it...once I decide to take a break from the business and chill a bit from it, the orders and inquiries started to pour in!  

Thank you to my clients - old  and new - for your support and recommendations.   So much of my business is from word-of-mouth so I really appreciate your kind words and sharing my work with your friends and family!

Marshmallows, Goldfish, and Tissue Paper...OH MY!

Jessica (who is in 4th grade) is currently studying the Medieval Era in school.  She had an assignment this past week to create a castle which was due today.  When I first heard of this project, naturally, my delusions of grandeur brought me to thoughts of an intricately built edifice strewn with "realistic" embellishments and detail.  My competitive nature started to kick in as thoughts of "Jessica's castle has to be the BEST" started to flow through my mind.

Fortunately, my wonderful husband, Jamie saved me from myself.  A few nights ago, he said he would take the lead on the castle project (something that was hard for me to let go of) since I was so swamped preparing for the upcoming boutique next week.  So he went to the store to get the supplies.  Well, instead of coming home with shopping bags from Michael's or JoAnn's or maybe even the Home Depot...he came home with grocery bags filled with....

Marshmallows and Toothpicks

Hmmm...not quite what I had in mind but hey...I was letting go of creative control this time so he and Jessica and Brandon (who had to help!) ran with it.

Now these were the big marshmallows (not the little ones) and after an hour or two of Jamie and the two kids piercing marshmallows with toothpicks (while trying to prevent Melissa from eating them) and arranging them in a castle-like shape, the project was finally done.  Well sort of.  As Jamie left for work the next morning, he said, "Do you think you can do something with that??" as he glanced over the undistinguishable mass of bulging sugar.  I just kind of mumbled, "I'll try."

For the next couple of days, I pleaded with Jessica to at least paint it but she refused...she was just fine with the way it was.  Was this *my* daughter???

To my relief, she came home yesterday saying that she had to put a moat around her castle...yes...finally, we could add a bit of color to it!  So we took some blue tissue paper and glued it around the castle for a moat.  

Brandon had the brilliant idea of adding Goldfish crackers in the moat for a bit of "realism". They finished it off by using one of Brandon's castle flags taken from one of his knight playsets and sticking it in the center.

She was so pleased at the outcome last night that she HAD to have her neighbor friend over just to see it. 

Jessica proudly entered her school this morning beaming at all of the "that's so cool!" comments she received from her friends.

I guess she really *is* my daughter. 

Modesty never looked so Fashionable

Vintage Fashion Print
Originally uploaded by Karmel Design

This vintage image of very fashionable "madames" caught my eye as it reminded me of one of my favorite treasures - a vintage Parisian newspaper I bought in a Paris flea market. The newspaper is filled with similar images of fashionable ladies in Europe and while I will never part with my original newspaper, I created this piece to express my love of that era and their timeless elegance.

Star Cross'd Lovers

Romeo and Juliet Decorative Tile1
Originally uploaded by Karmel Design

With Valentine's Day coming up, my thoughts of love and romance are still bringing me back to Shakespeare.

When Jamie and I were dating, I wrote a personal essay that compared us to Romeo and Juliet as we too were "star-cross'd" at the time due to our religious differences.

Although, fortunately, our religious differences were resolved and Jamie and I didn't commit suicide, the romantic tale of the Montagues and Capulets will still remain in my heart.

This tile features words from the couple:

ROMEO: With love's light wings did I o'erperch these walls; For stony limits cannot hold love out.

JULIET: My bounty is as boundless as the sea, My love as deep; the more I give to thee, the more I have, for both are infinite.