Chucka Stone Designs

Is It Different for Writers?

2012-01-11T11:51:00.000-05:00

For the past four and a half years I’ve owned and operated an Etsy shop called Chucka Stone Designs. The shop was, using television lingo, a spinoff of my larger company of the same name. In the parent company I conceptualized and installed faux finishing techniques in rooms and on furnishings for clients. Over the years the Etsy shop moved in and out of various incarnations – it began as a jewelry shop, moved into tote bags and other sewn fabric items, and now showcases both personal-use sewn accessories and smaller items of home décor with a faux finish applied. However, not too long ago I started putting the feelers of a Writing life out there and added my Zine trilogy, “Random Lunacy”, to the shop.

The Zine was, in my eyes, a complete success as I believe I sold at least one copy of each volume to someone I didn’t already know. As a business owner, most of us can relate to selling our wares to family and friends, not to mention acquaintances, but the thought of that first completely random person not only discovering but appreciating our work enough to buy it is a rush! It was super cool and then like many times in the past I walked away from writing the second I got a teeny taste of what it took to be a Writer.

Well as tempting as it would be to do it again, this time I’m pushing forward full steam ahead! I’ve joined a critique group and those of us in the group right now are sharing novels with each other. I could have taken the easy road and provided my first but I truly feel that book is complete and ready to be published so instead I am charging ahead with my second full length fiction novel.

So right at the end of December I opened Writesy. It felt great to get my Zines out there again and in the spirit of “The Year of No Excuses” in 2012 I also spent some time in December pulling from my poetry pool and assembled a chapbook containing thirteen prose pieces, a dedication page and a color front and back cover. It’s called “Trying for the Moon” and I’ve decided to release 100 copies in the first run. So far 11 people have picked up a copy and I am so grateful!

So what does all this writing stuff have to do with being a business owner? Well two things.
1. There’s no way I can run two companies at once full time – and –
2. I need to follow my heart, gut, passion, and realize that I am the other company

That passion is being a Writer, Author, Novelist. That passion is being a student of life. It’s pushing past my comfort zone into something terrifying and scary but undeniably “me” in its daily work. I love to write and the more I looked deep into the reason for my painting business I realized it was the most difficult easy thing I’ve ever done.

What do I mean there? I mean, I learned a skill of how to install beautiful treatments and I was damn good at it. But then I pretty much stopped doing it once I opened my company because I had no idea how to run the business side. I had wonderful logs and charts set up, I was joining teams and blogging. I was reading newsletters and planning the future of my salary. But I was completely lost at running the business side.

Have I emphasized enough? Okay.

I had no clue how to source business, I had no clue where to advertise, I was flying blind and picking up a random wonderful client here or there but basically as a business owner I sucked. Big time. And you know the funny thing? I didn’t really mind sucking, I had no drive to get it out there in any meaningful way because it wasn’t, for lack of better terms, me. Not really.

But, Is It Different for Writers?

I’d like to think so because although my final product is actually a work of fiction, the business side of it kicks in way before you ever get to the selling part in this industry. And I’m already there doing it every day. You have to be a Writer before you can be a Writer. Know what I mean? No? Okay well let me give you an example.

The 745 words above.

I love blogging and article writing, I seriously need a 12 step program for my social media presence, and there’s something exhilarating about joining a monthly Writer’s Group and Critique Group. The difference in it is that I feel alive when I’m Writing. When I’m painting I am definitely feeling creative but the jolt at knowing I could sit here pecking away for a living while being a student of life well, that’s something that sounds way too awesome to pass up.

So I’m diving in. After twenty five years of standing ankle deep and running away from the waves that weren’t anywhere close to past my knee, I’m running full force into the ocean of words and I’m fucking owning it.

Chucka Stone Designs is unfortunately going to be no more in the end of this splash-fest but that’s okay, paint isn’t exactly good for the flow of the ocean. So if you’re interested in anything in my shop let me know and you may just get it for your birthday. I won’t be taking custom orders any longer and once the items in my shop expire that will be the end for Chucka Stone Designs. The ride was fun for four years but I’m much happier when I float in the boat I’ve been working on my whole life.

So I Bid Adieu

I want to send an insanely huge thank you out to everyone who has given me a hand of support be it physical, financial, mental, spiritual or otherwise, I am truly thankful to have had the encouragement and backing all this time. This is going to be my last post here on this blog but I don’t plan to close it at this time. You can still search back through the archives to find that perfect article or finish, or to read about my journey along the way since 2007.

If you’ve enjoyed my blog here I’d love to ask you to follow me over to Writesy. I don’t plan to get a Facebook account at this time, just the shop and blog, because the premise of the site is me and my work. To friend me on Facebook or follow on twitter use my real name with / - or - @ jennshon.

Shop – http://www.etsy.com/shop/Writesy
Blog – http://Writesy.blogspot.com

And of course I still have Random Lunacy – http://randomnessandlunacy.blogspot.com

I hope to see you over there but if not, thanks for coming on this part of the ride with me, it sure has been a great trip. Who knows, maybe I’ll even develop a character that reminds you of you, after all, as a Writer unlike a finisher, I need to look at the real world. The one in my imagination.

Stay intriguing my friends.

Month Long Challenge to De-Clutter

2012-01-09T12:15:00.000-05:00

The Captain of our EcoEtsy team has posed a challenge for anyone willing to take it on - one month of decluttering and tracking what leaves your house. I am taking the challenge to de-clutter which shouldn't be too much of a stretch for me considering I try to rid myself of non-functional items all the time.

However, since moving to Arizona I haven't done a semi-annual mega-purge yet. It is absolutely time! Plus I was talking last year about getting rid of anything not awesome and clutter, in my world, is so not awesome!

You can check out the challenge over at ecokaren at the challenge to de-clutter link above and feel free to join in the fun! Don't forget to sign the pledge and link back. I'm excited to start MY list of stuff that's leaving my space!

REDUCE • RECYCLE • REFUSE

Extended Hiatus for Great Reasons

2011-12-14T10:23:00.000-05:00

Good morning friends and fans! Wow, what a few weeks it has truly been, I've been basically MIA so I figured an explanation was in order. Welcome to my life where a very close friend once told me I'm the busiest person she knows...

First off my husband and I went back to Boston for over two weeks right around Thanksgiving time. It was crazy to see everyone, crazy fun and crazy busy! I caught a massive cold about 4-5 days after we got there so despite having plans with everyone, curing ills became the priority. It meant that other than school work I got about zilch done on the computer so...

The Writer's Retreat I had intended to take myself on for those two weeks after finding out I wasn't painting turned into NyQuil induced sleepy time instead. But the good news is that while driving to see my sister and attend a lovely fancy pants Christmas party last weekend, Matt came up with the title for the second Manuscript! Hooray for my super-muse! Now I'm raring to go. Which of course means I'll need more time off...

From school and winter break is right around the corner. Thank goodness! With only about 10 classes left until I graduate next year I'm so feeling the itch to be done already! Chapters hover in the 60 page pdf file range, papers vary around 3-4 per week, and of course there is interaction with everyone else that has to happen weekly for attendance. I'm tired just writing about it! But with 2 weeks off and a visit from some family during and right after Christmas I look forward to a technical writing break...

Which brings me to my next update of course! I have started a new blog called Writesy: Online Content Proofreading and Editing Services and it is just in the beginning stages but I plan to amp this hardcore next year as this is the work I absolutely love doing - writing, proofing, editing - it is the passion I have and what I want to be my focus. I'm going to do blog posts, merch listings, job postings, school papers, and more! The entire time I have spent trying to build a successful finishing business all I wanted to do was write about it so...

My Chucka Stone Designs shop will stay open for now and I'll still be semi-active with teams, blogs, promotion, but otherwise I'll be focusing primarily on the things that I do best and that mostly includes writing and custom orders...

Now here is where I give an enormous shout out of THANK YOU to all of my clients who commissioned me to create something custom for them this holiday season. I can not begin to tell you just how much it means to me to have had this opportunity to use my creativity and craft something that you loved. The single reason why I continue to keep on keeping on with paint/faux/sew is all of you so thanks, a million and one times over! But that's not all of course...

We are starting the process to purchase our first home in Arizona and the looking/bidding/projecting has us sleep deprived and anxious to get out of this temporary apartment. Winter sports are in full swing and you know that means I'm all about hockey and football all week long. Meeting new friends here in Arizona has been a blast! One of the places I'm meeting new friends is at the Scottsdale Society of Women Writers group which is an amazingly inspiring group of ladies who all work in the world of words in some capacity (publishers, editors, writers, etc). And none of this even accounts for all that silly life stuff that has to still happen - laundry, groceries, keeping in touch with friends and family, etc.

So you can probably understand the need for the hiatus from the blog and all other stuff associated!

Please continue to contact me about custom orders, I love doing them truly!
Or if you are in need of a second set of eyes be sure to check out my Writesy Proofreading Services and contact me over there.

Thanks for understanding and I'll catch up with all of you in the New Year! Have a super happy holiday season and please enjoy some re-posts during the last couple weeks of the year.

Cyber Monday, EcoEtsy Gift Guide and A Coupon Code for 12% Off

2011-11-28T11:04:00.000-05:00

Happy Cyber Monday to all the shoppers out there! For those of us who are looking for something unique, one of a kind, handmade or from an independent artist running a smaller business who puts time and love into every piece they make I can't begin to recommend the Team EcoEtsy Holiday Gift Guide enough!

Details about the Gift Guide and its various categories of awesomeness can be found right on the Team EcoEtsy blog here.

I'm fortunate enough to have my shop featured in the Under $75 category of the guide this year and, truly, I couldn't be more excited to share the guide with everyone!

Can you tell by all the exclamation points? :-)

The team is just chock full of amazing products that have a strong focus on the planetary impact our businesses can have. Most designers use environmentally sustainable materials and practices while creating, natural ingredients, reused packaging for shipping and as much Green friendly as possible.

Like I said, my shop is included here and as many of you know I primarily create faux finished items with water based paints that look exactly like the real thing but I didn't have to mine the Earth to get the same look! The pieces used in my faux granite items were either purchased directly from another teammate's overstock stash or from local thrift stores here in Phoenix then given brand new life!

The moss colored faux granite coasters featured at the top of this post are a great example of use of a cutoff from a fellow teammate and were just listed in my shop this morning.

I also salvage fabrics and enjoy upcycling to create something that extends the life cycle of a piece of material which could have gone to a landfill to sit for years. Heck, I'll even use the cutoff bits of my sample boards to create durable faux finished bookmarks!

To see all the items in my shop click any of the items below. Those and more await your discerning eco-eye!

And as a special bonus this holiday season just use the coupon code NEWSTUFF2012 at checkout to receive 12% off your entire purchase! Its my way of saying thanks for spreading the eco love this holiday and saying goodbye to 2011 in style.

Now go, shop, be merry and BE GREEN!!!

Happy Thanksgiving!

2011-11-24T06:32:00.006-05:00

For those who celebrate I would just like to extend my biggest hug to you all. I hope that you are able to spend this day with the ones you love, doing what you enjoy, eating what you like and most of all remembering the many things you have to be thankful for this holiday and everyday!

Today I'm thankful for indoor heat and plumbing that runs to the dishwasher, homemade meals, laughter and good times with family and friends, all five senses, football, a glass of wine, hugs, and being fortunate enough to have the means to travel back to my hometown to spend this time with the ones I love!

I wish for the best and most yummy, nap-filled, happy holiday to you all! Gobble, gobble!

DIY Tutorial Series Creating a Lightbox Part III of III

2011-11-23T07:03:00.002-05:00

Sadly we have come to the final part in the amazing tutorial series by my mom, and fearless photog, Judi from Judi FitzPatrick Studio. I hope you've all enjoyed this series as much as I have! I really can't wait to start experimenting with various lamps and light sources with my lightbox so I can get some amazing product photos of my smaller items.

The final part of the series is all about the photos so read on and enjoy and don't forget if you're looking for some unique holiday cards for your friends and family my mom carries lots of options in her shop, the cute snowman up there is available as Snowman Wishes Handmade Holiday Card so read through the tutorial then stop on over to Judi's shop for your holiday cards today!

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Hi Readers,

This is the third and final installment on product lighting. First you learned how to create a simple light box. Next you learned at least one way to light up the box.

Now that you’ve got a well-lit place to shoot your product, it would be best if you could do that without the possible blurry shot that sometimes occurs from hand-holding the camera. But suppose you have no tripod, and don’t want to invest in one for a few product shots. You're about to learn that you don’t necessarily need one.

The bottom line is you just need a flat, level, stable surface on which to place the camera. So, you might think – “why not just put the camera on the table in front of the box and take the shot?” Good idea, except this is probably not the best angle for your product to be captured.

Instead, there are a couple of things that can be done.

First, you could use books, magazines, boxes or something else to raise your camera to a better height. Doing this so that the camera angles downward works really well to get the best shot, just be sure the camera is stable. You don’t want it to go sliding downward while snapping the photo, or worse yet, falling to the floor.

Second, you could angle the light box by raising the back edge from a few millimeters to a couple of inches. Raise the box with magazines, pieces of wood, or anything else that gives a useful angle in relation to the camera. This can be done alternately or in addition to the above suggestion

Place the product in the box, turn on the lights (if CFLs, let them warm up for a few minutes to obtain maximum light), aim and focus the camera, then take the shot. If your camera has a time-delay setting, I’d suggest using that. That is one way to avoid camera shake as you press the shutter. If you are fortunate enough to have a remote shutter release, even better – go ahead and use that.

Now you can take product shots anytime of day or night, whatever the weather, even inside a closet if you’re so inclined!

One more thing – you can use some of these techniques to take vacation or family photos in lower light, such as indoors or early morning / late afternoon. Consider placing the camera on the hood of your car, the top of a cement wall, on a porch railing, or any other place at the right height for the shot you want to take. Using either the time-delay or remote shutter means you can be in the shot with the other people or the scenery! Pretty cool, huh?

I hope you enjoyed this series and find it useful for taking better pictures.

Thanks once again to Jenn for inviting me to be a guest writer on her blog!

Peace to all,
Judi

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Hello awesome! I don't know about all of you but I'll be making these tips work for me in product and people shots this holiday season. Thanks again to my mom for putting together such an informative and easy to follow guide to creating and using a lightbox. You can find Judi's tips and beautiful photography all over the web:

Etsy - http://judifitzpatrick.etsy.com/
Zazzle - http://www.zazzle.com/judifitzpatrick
RedBubble - http://redbubble.com/people/judifitzpatrick
Blog - http://judisjems.blogspot.com/

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To read the entire series...
Part I of III - Creating the Lightbox
Part II of III - Illuminate the Lightbox
Part III of III - Camera Position

Tuesday Tip of the Day Travel Safely

2011-11-22T06:52:00.024-05:00

The busiest travel day of the year will be upon those of us in the United States tomorrow as we dash to and from the homes of loved ones to spend some quality time together on Thanksgiving. All that travel means we have the ability to enjoy each other's company but also that our senses should be heightened to avoid any major issues as we make our way around town.

For those of us on the road, there are some things we can do today to make sure tomorrow's travel goes as smoothly as possible.

Check tire pressure and tread wear - A tire pressure gauge is inexpensive, easy to operate, and can be picked up at most convenience stores or pharmacy type locations. Consult your owner's manual for the correct pressure rating for your car and inflate/deflate as necessary. Use the old penny trick to determine the tread wear - If you can see Lincoln's head then its time to get new tires. Better to buy them today than be waiting for a tow truck tomorrow!

Make sure your fluids are full and fresh - In my Toyota the suggested oil change interval is every 5,000 miles and I'm usually pretty good about sticking to that schedule. Getting the fluids in my car turned over and refilled at that rate means the car will be running at its best. A cur running that well gets better gas mileage and saves money overall.

Keep things squeaky clean - There's nothing more distracting than trying to drive for hours on end with a car full of hungry, screaming family members who can't stop talking about the smell of the apple pie in the back seat. And those are the grownups! Changing lanes with people pining away over cranberry sauce is difficult enough but if those windows and mirrors are grimy it sure won't help matters much. Grab some old newspaper and a spray bottle full of a vinegar and water solution for the cleanest possible glass surfaces inside and out.

Plan in advance - In today's day and age everyone seems to have a GPS device either in the car or on their phone and we rely on these tools to get us to our destinations safely and efficiently. But what if we get rerouted and left to figure it out on our own? Those of us in the northeast understand because it happens more often than not. Best plan of attack is to map out the route and review exactly where you're going before ever getting in the car. Make a mental note of the major roads/freeways along the way and any surprises that come up in route can be handled with no worries.

Fill up - You may be thinking of nothing more than filling your belly on Thursday but make sure to fill up your car's gas tank now just in case there isn't an open station where you thought there might be. Freeways and major interstates are likely to have open service stations along the way (even on Thanksgiving) but lines could be long so why wait if you can get it out of the way beforehand? That's ten minutes sooner you can be eating mashed potatoes and gravy!

And there you have it! Just a few quick things we all can do when traveling by car on our way to celebrate Thanksgiving dinner with family and friends. I hope these tips help you stay safe and secure!

What are your tips for smooth and easy holiday travel?

Friday Feature Finish Mountain and Cactus Mural

2011-11-18T06:13:00.008-05:00

Last summer, before moving to the southwest, I felt inspired by a photo I saw that my mom took of some small hilly mountains in Arizona. The photo was primarily interesting because of the shading and shadows the mountain range displayed as well as the sprinkling of boulders and saguaro cactus. I pulled out one of my Mighty Boards and started sketching.

The picture stayed taped to my studio table and I referred to it to get the sun angle as well as a few examples of saguaro and how their arms jutted out in random shapes and sizes. The landscape was truly beautiful to me and still after being here for almost six months it doesn’t seem like it will ever get old.

Bright blue sky, tall and majestic mountains, bursts of color and a lot of natural inspiration made this mural sample come to life.

I’m considering getting this scanned and making prints for sale as I feel it’s one of my best paintings that I’ve done in a long time. I used to tell people that I couldn’t really do mural, that my creativity came in a different way, but after painting this piece I felt more confident in my abilities and would like to explore doing more acrylic work. Perhaps the next one I’ll do on canvas!

And now, to get inspired again…

DIY Tutorial Series Creating a Lightbox Part II of III

2011-11-16T07:18:00.002-05:00

Morning readers! This morning marks Part II of the DIY Tutorial Series on the beauty and benefits of creating and using a lightbox for product photography. Once again my mom came through with a terrific tutorial that is easy to follow and should really help many of us get our beautifully handmade items out of the shadows and into the spotlight!

Enjoy!

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Happy Wednesday,

Thanks again to Jenn for allowing me to be a guest contributor to her wonderful blog.

Last time I gave you instructions for how to make a simple light box which can be used for photographing small products. But, what good is a light box without light? And who wants to spend a fortune for the lights when the box was almost free?

What you’ll need:

- Two (or three) lamps
- Daylight bulbs appropriate for the lamps
- Table, ironing board, or other level surface

What I Use:

- The lightbox you made last week
- One floor lamp with bendable arm
- One flexible-neck clip-on desk lamp
- Compact fluorescent bulbs for each – labeled Daylight or Cool Natural Light (Do not exceed wattage recommendations of the individual lamp)
- Ironing board

How I Do It:

- I place the box on the ironing board.
- I clip the desk lamp onto the ironing board and adjust the neck so that the light source is close to, but not quite touching, the tissue paper on either the left or right (Depending on my mood or the side of the item which will look best lit. If you have two desk lamps, feel free to use them both.).
- I move the arm of the floor lamp so that the light source is above the center of the top of the box. (You may have to raise the light box using books or other flat, level items in order to have enough light entering the top of the light box.)

How Should You Do It?

You’re going to have to think “outside the (light) box” here. The idea is to get as much light aimed inside the box as possible, while keeping the box level and secure. The beauty of an ironing board is it can be adjusted up or down to fit your needs and reach the light source more effectively!

If you cannot find daylight bulbs, just be sure all of the lamps you use contain the same types of bulbs, then set the white balance on your camera accordingly.

If you must use a table lamp, remove the shade. You might have to put the lamp on a chair and the box on the dining table to get the light source at the right height.

But that's all there is to it, nou’ve now lit up your box and are ready to photograph!

Next time, how to set up your camera to get the best pictures using your new set up.

Peace to all,
Judi from Judi FitzPatrick Studio

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Please visit my mom's shops or blog below in order to see how she uses her lightbox to photograph her smaller products. Then be sure to get back next week as Part III brings this series to a close with some amazing shots you will NOT want to miss!

Etsy Shop - http://judifitzpatrick.etsy.com/
Zazzle Shop - http://www.zazzle.com/judifitzpatrick*
RedBubble Shop - http://redbubble.com/people/judifitzpatrick
Blog - http://judisjems.blogspot.com/

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To read the entire series...
Part I of III - Creating the Lightbox
Part II of III - Illuminate the Lightbox
Part III of III - Camera Position

Tuesday Tip of the Day Protect Yourself Online

2011-11-15T06:08:00.014-05:00

Over the past few weeks I’ve been taking a class in school called Computer Literacy. At first I thought the class was going to be all about how to turn on my computer, as it was a 100 course, but I’m actually learning a lot and enjoying it as well as the surprising challenge it provides!

One of the things I’ll be doing in class is completing a fairly extensive research project for the final which will include charts and a PowerPoint presentation. We were given a list of topics to work on and I decided to go with studying copyright in digital media. My plan was to study things like iTunes, Netflix, and blogs to see just what protections we have in place for our original content. Now I’m rethinking the focus.

A couple days ago I read an article about a few hackers in, I believe, Russia who hacked online click ads with a malware program that allowed them to make millions of dollars that wasn’t theirs. It was quite a scam and although they were caught I can imagine the people who were involved didn’t feel like their "genius" was used in the right way. I agree and it brought up my change of heart on the final for my class.

If we click on ads, if we click on links, if we click on pictures in Facebook how can we really know just what we’re clicking? How can we protect ourselves and our secure information? Is there a way to provide content for the world while still ensuring we keep our privacy intact? These questions and more came up in my own mind and I thought it would be a good reminder to just throw out there to everyone to keep a close eye on your stuff.

Try to stay off of strange sights, don’t click links, ads or pictures from sources you don’t trust and never (read: never, never, NEVER!) give your personal information out to anyone you don’t know. One of the quickest ways to ensure you’re more secure online is to always look for 'https' instead of standard 'http' in the address line of the site you’re on. For example, my blog up there doesn’t have the s because it isn’t a secure socket.

If I were to sell products here I’d have to ensure that s was there so my customers would feel secure in knowing their information was safe. For the simple act of reading a blog it isn’t quite as big a deal.

So the long and short of it is be aware of the dangers that are out there and study up on the latest in ways to avoid falling victim to the theft of your personal information. I’ll be sure to provide additional tips as I finish my project in the next couple weeks, I imagine it will prove quite illuminating!

Have you encountered any weird things online recently that made you question your privacy?

DIY Tutorial Series Creating a Lightbox Part I of III

2011-11-09T05:56:00.059-05:00

Our latest DIY Tutorial is the first of a trilogy on the beauty, benefit and creation of your very own light box for product photography. The series is coming to you direct from Judi FitzPatrick Studio, my favorite Photog! I can't begin to thank my Mom enough for contributing to this series, her shop photos always come out so beautiful and I begged her to do this writeup to share her knowledge! Enjoy :-)

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Good Day Readers,

First I want to thank Jenn for asking me to write a guest post on creating a light box. These can be very useful for photos of small products.

Do you need to photograph small products? Do you want to do this indoors, but can’t find a spot with good light? Or, maybe you need to do your photographing after dark? One solution is a light box.

Rather than spending a lot of money to buy a manufactured one, why not make your own? It’s easy, inexpensive, and fun to do!

What You Need

- One fairly heavy-sided cardboard box – the one I used** was approximately 12 inches (30-35mm) on each side.
- At least 3 sheets of white tissue paper such as used for wrapping gifts
- Scissors
- Box cutter or other sharp bladed knife
- Duct tape or other wide tape
- White and/or black poster board
- Pen or marker
- Tape measure or ruler

How to Create the Box

Be sure that one end of the box is taped shut and the other remains open. On this open end, cut off two of the opposing flaps, but leave the other two in place.

Place the box so that the end with the 2 flaps is facing you, and the flaps are to your left and right. From here on I will call this the front.

Place an X or other mark on the left side, right side, and top. This will complete the orientation of your box.

On the 3 sides with the X marks, draw a border or frame on each, 1 to 1.5 inches from each edge – so you will be drawing a square (or rectangle), just smaller than the size of a side, on each of 3 sides.

With a box cutter or other bladed tool, such as an Xacto Knife, very carefully cut on those lines, leaving the frame around each side. These openings will allow light into the interior of the box.

You will want to diffuse your light source, so this is where the white tissue paper comes in. Cut three pieces of the paper, one for each side, larger than the openings you cut, but smaller than the size of the box side/top. Using the wide tape, attach one piece over each of the openings that were just cut.

Your box should now look something like this:

Position the box with the front facing you, with the two flaps on either side, and the left, top, and right sides those with the tissue paper.

Inside the Box
- Measure the depth of the bottom of the box (front to back).
- Measure the height of the back of the box.
- Add these measurements together.
- Add a few inches for good measure (pun intended) & note it on a piece of the cardboard cut off (scrap)
- Measure the bottom of the box from left to right (width) & subtract about ¼ - ½ inch.
- Mark and cut a piece of poster board to match these two measurements.

FYI, the poster board I had was 28 x 22 inches. I left the 28 for the long measure and used 11 ¾ for the short measurement (left to right.) This allowed an extra 3 or so inches to hang out of the front of the box.

- Slide the poster board into the box and gently curve it upward close to the top – push it in enough to make a large base surface but not so far that it would crease.

That’s it! You now have a DIY light box. Next time, how to inexpensively light it up!

Peace to all, Judi
Judi FitzPatrick Studio Etsy Shop
Judi FitzPatrick Studio Zazzle Shop
Judi FitzPatrick Studio Red Bubble Shop
Judi FitzPatrick Studio Blog
Difficulty rating is 1, but not recommended for young children due to the use of sharp bladed tool.

** Please note: Because Judi had already created her lightbox long before I asked her to contribute this article, the first 3 pictures are of mine so they may look different than the 4th box picture, collaborative effort!

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To read the entire series...
Part I of III - Creating the Lightbox
Part II of III - Illuminate the Lightbox
Part III of III - Camera Position

Tuesday Tip of the Day Make a List

2011-11-08T13:58:00.000-05:00

I'm getting ready to go on a two plus week trip back to Massachusetts to visit family and go to my twenty year high school reunion. Yikes. I know that people older than me will laugh at me for saying I feel old, people younger will shake their heads in disbelief that anyone could be out of high school for twenty years. But all I'm thinking about are the lists of stuff to get done before I leave.

Now it isn't like I'm going to another country where I have no clue where things are located or how to acquire stuff if I need it. Though at times I still feel like my hometown is a foreign country, there are places that I know intimately after three decades of living there. Clearly if I forget to bring something with me I can just pick it up after arriving right?

Well sure, but that doesn't mean I want to forget anything, I try to be Green and that means not buying stuff in duplicate, so I have made a master list of stuff to pack and stuff to do before I hit the road.

My list includes everything from calling my car insurance company to inquire about the discount I can get by being a member of Golden Key, to returning my library book, to taking out the recyclables. All of the things on it are prioritized in a manner of true need. For example, calling on insurance is something I can do when I get there so it isn't a 'Must', but printing boarding passes is kind of vital to getting on the plane in the first place so it is on the 'Must' list.

I separated the list into categories of 'Must', 'Should', and 'Would Like To' do before I take off. Almost everything is crossed off and I'm feeling less stressed about the 2500 mile journey away from my current home back to my old one.

Well, less stressed about the stuff to get done before leaving anyway...

Sadly "work out so I don't look a day over 18" didn't make it to any of these lists and instead I had to settle for "go shopping for an amazing outfit" which I hope to do later this afternoon. Shopping only made it to the 'Should' list seeing as though it isn't exactly vital to be the super me just because I haven't seen most of these people face to face in twenty years. If it gets done then great but maybe I should save it to do with some friends when I return to Boston instead...hmm...

Don't forget to get back over here tomorrow to read the first of a three part series on lightboxes written by the one and only Judi FitzPatrick of Judi FitzPatrick Studio fame! It promises to be a great tutorial and hopefully will help all of you to snap even more gorgeous pictures of your beautiful handmade items.

Tuesday Tip of the Day - Never Stop Learning

2011-11-01T18:17:00.001-04:00

Most of you know that I'm an English student and getting my degree at an online University. When I first signed up I was told the minimum requirements for hardware and software and I either met or exceeded the needs so felt I was in the clear. That was until I started my current class and learned I would have to upgrade my software to the latest version of MS Office.

At first I panicked because I already know how to use Word / Excel / PowerPoint in the version that I have and throwing anything else into the mix while studying and creating a pretty extensive research project seemed overwhelming at first.

But then it hit me, its all about learning more.

Knowing the 2010 version will make me more marketable, better equipped for future releases, and able to better communicate across a modern resource instead of the old and antiquated one I was still toiling away on before. It is actually liberating to think I'll have a new skill in the next five weeks.

Or at least Skill 2.0 :-)

So school may take a little bit of a front seat but I hope that the learned content will be able to work into my daily life either as a business owner or as a writer and student!

What new things are you learning right now?

Herban Luxe Giveaway Winner was Yours Truly!

2011-10-31T16:59:00.000-04:00

What words come together to encompass the following responses – holy crap, OMG, gratitude, surprise, excitement and oh heck yeah! Thank you hardly seems like enough but that’s exactly what I’m saying to Myra of Herban | Luxe this afternoon. A big old, wet sloppy kiss kind of thank you!

I entered her contest after reading about it on Facebook. Not a fan of hers on Facebook yet? You should be! Myra frequently has giveaways and talks about all kinds of super cool business tips, both for her own successful business as well as hints and advice for the readers of the EcoEtsy blog. And you can always find out about the latest trends in makeup.

But not just makeup…handmade, eco-friendly, happy to put it on your face because it will never contain a bunch of nasty carcinogens or crap, makeup!

I was floored to win these amazing full sized Roller Babes eyeshadows – one in Sunset which is perfect on my lids, the other in Oriental which goes right on my brow line and makes my eyes really pop! On top of that I also received her newest item to her collection, the Moscato Lipstick. It goes on great, its smooth and soft, and really lasts. Not to mention it looks perfect with my lighter toned skin and almondy brown/red hair. But it is just one of those colors that kind of works on everybody!

Everything arrived in that reused package ^ there. It was all wrapped up nice and neat so nothing would spill, padded to ensure against breakage, and there was even a little bonus mineral mascara in the bag! Woo hoo!

So thanks again for your enormous generosity with this great giveaway!

Myra you just simply rock and you’ve truly inspired me to start thinking about what kinds of fun items I could give away from my arsenal of eco-friendly accessories...

Maybe iPod cozy cases? A clutch purse? Perhaps a set of faux granite coasters?

What would you love to try to win that Chucka Stone Designs creates? Would you like to see something totally different than the above mentioned items?

Tell me about it in the comments then be sure to get out and follow Herban | Luxe, try the make up and fall in love with Myra's shop!

DIY Tutorial Series Making Cellophane Packaging

2011-10-26T14:30:00.001-04:00

Today’s tutorial comes from Martina at Nature's Art Melbourne and in it she shares how to take those scraps from cellophane that we all come across and turn them into beautiful, custom packaging for your items.

Materials Needed

Leftover cellophane, cleaned and dried

Vacuum sealer machine
Item to package

Description of Materials
Cellophane can come from flower bunch covers - use the top bit which didn't get greased, covers of bought cards, chocolate covers, protective covers from all sorts... or you buy it in a roll and cut it in the right size.

The Vacuum bag sealer is normally for the household and used to seal bag before freezing - it sucks the air out - which we do not need in our case it just makes the noise of sucking it out but the sealing is the beauty of this little thing.

The Process

Gather your items - Cellophane remnants, little book to protect, vacuum bag sealer

Cut cellophane (if necessary) if not flat - in this case two sides are close anyway as it comes from a chocolate box I just cut the bottom off

Seal the bottom / one end closed - slip book in tight to the seal

Seal 3rd side - seal as close to the bookend as possible

Sealing in action - wait until green light turns off on the sealer ( few seconds)

Sealed - remove off the machine, note the extra cellophane above the seal will be removed (save for another small item!)

Cut 4th edge - The open end, leave around 1 inch to have enough to fold under

Bend edge over and close with sticky tape (you could also seal the fourth side closed, but I prefer sticky tape as the customer does not need sciccors to open the bag)

Packed neat, Upcycled, Green and ready to go!

The product I am packing in the tutorial is from my shop, I Am Happy to Be Me Zine

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Martina also notes…

You can seal plastic as well - is a matter of having a try on the plastic (if it is thick enough or too thick)... there is nothing to loose, only to win.
Even bought cellophane covers for cards can be resized - for example I recycle envelopes in funny sizes for handmade cards and I can seal them and they look professional.
Happy cellophane hunting!

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Thanks for sharing your terrific tutorial Martina!

To see Martina’s insanely gorgeous jewelry and other fantastic handmade items please visit her shop – Nature's Art Melbourne

Interested in contributing a tutorial and having your shop linked?
Simply send a brief description of your process, photos of the steps, and captions to describe each step to chuckastonedesigns at yahoo dot com

Tuesday Tip of the Day -- Stay Focused and Stay Fresh

2011-10-25T16:57:00.000-04:00

Post is going up quite late today as I am finally about caught up after being out of town last week. Sorry for that but I won't make you wait another second for the Tuesday Tip of the Day. Today's is "Keep it Fresh"

I was reading quite a bit of stuff lately on how often to update your website or blog for maximum effectiveness. Readers want to know that you are active online, they don't love going to a blog or website in July and seeing the announcement that you're having a lovely winter. Content should be current and relevant and the majority of places say that writing a daily blog is ideal while a website only needs updating every quarter.

The blog thing sounds good, I'm trying to get mine back to 5 days a week right now in fact and that's my ultimate goal so I can pretty much work from anywhere everyday. But the website suggestion seemed a little low where you'd only change the information every three months.

Now I don't get over to my site daily or even weekly but if I create some new items I think its smart to post photos of them. Sometimes the copy needs to get a mini overhaul too. But with so much stuff to keep up with I don't beat myself up if I can only get to one or the other of those tasks each time I'm updating. In my opinion, once a month is a far more realistic time between updates.

So in an effort to stay fresh on my blog, it seemed like high time to get an updated About page over here this morning. Feel free to check it out when you have a second! This information will eventually filter through to the website in the next week or so and I'm excited to have gotten a more realistic picture of who I am and where I started, not to mention how I've gotten here, shared with the online world. The story is personal and I think it better represents me and my brand.

How long has it been since you've updated the copy or photos on your own website or blog?

The Results of the Social Media Poll are in!

2011-10-24T11:16:00.000-04:00

And the winner by an ever so very slight margin was:

Having a blog / website!

So I started thinking about the result over coffee this morning. I have been kicking around integrating my blog and website into one place in November when my hosting expires. Everything filtering into one place is good for reduction of updating requirements.

Because my goal is to ensure my Etsy shop runs smoothly even when I take on additional responsibility of writing (either for my novels or for a couple blogs I want to guest post for, plus this blog and my personal one), the more that can be reduced outside of that stuff the better.

I was pleased to get so much great advice on other locations like Facebook (a very close runner up at 2nd), twitter, LinkedIn, other. Between participation in team forums, posting links, and the like, my social media investment was higher than the time I spent actually creating things. And as far as I'm concerned, that ain't good.

Mary from Herban Lifestyle suggested that I have everything filter into each other. I was already doing this with my blog posts but not everything else. Now everything auto populates but I only have to post things once. Curlymonkey commented that everything is tied to her website and not outside social media because its a place she could still have and approach brick and mortar locations. That's a great point as I consider amping up my interest in consignment. Sonya at Kanelstrand felt it was a good idea to just have something and work it so it works for you, Bee at The Wooden Bee agreed that everything working together was a good call, and Fia at Fianaturals was in the majority voting for blog/website.

Thanks for the votes, comments and encouragement ladies! For everyone else who voted under cover of darkness thanks so much to you as well. This has really helped me to narrow down and prioritize.

Flickr stays but I am not active on there, truly I only have it so I can have a nice Gallery Page here on the blog. I have decided not to join other sites that have no bearing on my creativity but still suck time (Pinterest, Google+, ) and a few other things had to also fall away. Interestingly twitter only got one vote. Updating that is mostly automated now so I'll keep it but likely won't participate very much more than I currently do.

So there it is, I'm just happy to know that what I was doing and how I was narrowing down was in the ballpark of smarter business sense!

Thanks to everyone who participated and now I'm back to regular posting!

New Poll at the Top of the Post Please Read this and Click Quick!

2011-10-17T10:54:00.000-04:00

Good morning my friends and clients! It has been a crazy whirlwind over the past week or so and my head is swimming and spinning with all of the ideas and business related goals I have set out for myself. So here's the thing, I'm very torn on where I need to focus the most attention and am asking for your help to narrow it down.

As you can see I've inserted a little poll at the top of my page. The poll only allows you to choose one response, the question is:

What social media is ESSENTIAL to all businesses regardless of product/service type?

Basically it comes down to this...

Over the weekend I had a little existential artist crisis over on my personal blog. Now I need to SERIOUSLY DISCLAIM the link because Random Lunacy is the place where I get all snarky and bitter sometimes, I curse a lot and a some people might find that unprofessional. So if that person is you, please don't read it. But that site is also an honest portrayal of who I am, not just as an upbeat business owner, and I personally feel that we should all be able to vent and say what's on our minds without fear of repercussions from anyone.

This is the part where you learn about me that I live with no regrets. I'm trying to also live fearlessly lately too, though that is much more challenging to achieve sometimes.

Anyway, that personal post on Saturday was me essentially spinning around trying to make sense of the fact that I have been going to school now with straight A's and loving the fact that I get to write all week for school, but missing the creative side that isn't just essay writing. Something drew me to something else and before I knew it I had found a pretty cool looking agent that I submitted a query to for my completed manuscript.

I began tossing around my business, my dedication level to certain aspects of it, and I came to the conclusion that while I love to paint, I love to write even more so it was time to let some aspects of my business go.

On top of the fact that licensing is very complicated & difficult here in Arizona, I think that it is time to admit my business ventures outside my home have been less than profitable and not functioning the way I've wanted or strived for the past 4 years. It is time to let go of part of the business and solely focus on my smaller items, my home decor line, and upcycled, repurposed, recycled pieces.

In flip-flopping my time, I will free up about 20 hours a week to focus on my writing while still maintaining a shop and my 4.0 GPA. As for family who I've already told I'm going to do projects (for example my step-MIL's niche shelves) that's still happening, but for anything else...

Check out the wares in my shop!

Now, with this in mind and my part time dedication of time to my shop, I feel its important to get the most impact out of what I do while reducing the things I simply do not use at all. The poll asks you to select one social media outlet where time is spent that is truly essential to any business. My question relates to both networking for connections and increased views and sales. I included a spot for 'Other'. If you choose that option I ask if you could toss a comment here in the post as to the where and why.

Anyone who would like to share why the media they click has worked the best for them I'd greatly appreciate it! I still intend to create treasuries and take an active role in the team forums as the people I've met have been vital to my sanity at times (I'm looking at you Karen, thanks!) and I know that networking is crucial to any smart business owner. But in an effort to reduce my consumption of daily drivel that gets me no further ahead I'm looking to just be smarter about it all by nixing things that aren't crucial.

So this long winded post is going to stay at the top until the poll closes next Monday.

Be on the lookout next Wednesday, November 26, for our first DIY Tutorial submission coming in from Martina at NaturesArtMelbourne on how to use those cellophane wrappers everyone throws away as packaging. You will not want to miss it!

Then next Friday its back to Feature Finish and I promise you're going to love that too!

Have a great week and get voting! Thanks :-)

Friday Feature Finish Painted Wood Floors

2011-10-14T13:45:00.001-04:00

Been working on items for the shop like mad and have some last minute weekend wrap-up to do so today's Friday Feature Finish will be short and sweet. Today's finish is Painted wood floors!

The plumbing had burst in this older east coast home and the carpets weren't salvageable. But underneath were semi decent hardwoods. They weren't in good enough shape to sand and restain so my contractor decided painting them would be the way to go.

It was a super simple solution, inexpensive and easy to maintain in the long term. Although this home only made use of one color in a flooring specific paint there are many fun things you can do with painted floors from checkerboard patterns to faux throw rugs, edging stencil to faux polished concrete look. The possibilities are endless!

I completed all painting in the photo above from floor to ceiling and everything in between. This was a whole house renovation and I was totally grateful for the opportunity to work on the entire project floor to ceiling, trim and walls.

Paper Covers Rock Treasury Featured on Etsy Treasury Hunter!

2011-10-13T11:02:00.000-04:00

Just found out this morning that a collection I curated a few days ago has been featured over on the blog Etsy Treasury Hunter. Wowza! I am beaming with excitement right now seriously!

Have you checked out their site yet? I just discovered it when a teammate shot me a message to let me know a treasury she had curated with one of my items in it (thanks again!) was featured. Here's the deal...

There's a tab for Submit a Treasury at the top of the blog. Go there and fill in the information.

Yup, that's all you do! However, the site is busy and has a healthy following so there will be competition for submisions and no guarantee you will be featured. There is a limit to 3 submissions within a 24 hour period per person and that seems reasonable so everyone has a chance to try! The site has over 425 followers noted on the Google widget and who knows how many email subscribers so you'll be sure to get your favorite items in front of a nice number of people.

I'm proudly sporting this button now, hooray!

Reclaimed Supplies from The Wooden Bee Make Beautiful Faux Granite Coasters

2011-10-12T13:23:00.000-04:00

Recently I started doing research into reclaimed building supply houses for lumber or other products that would inspire me to create interesting home decor goodies while working with my faux granite product. I discovered that there are some places around here but the only problem was everything would be sold whole. Since I was looking to create coasters and have nowhere to set up a workshop in my apartment, I needed pieces that were already cut to size. This is how I discovered the awesomeness of The Wooden Bee!

We started communicating about a month ago over on Etsy and I was pleasantly surprised that not only would Bee offer the coolest product (a little more on that later) but that my request for 3" x 3" pre-cut squares could also be satisfied! Hooray!

After a lot of back and forth and some research on my part regarding the product I placed my order and anxiously awaited my box full of goodies. Even though Bee said it could take a couple weeks due to an already existing custom order in line in front of me, I only had to wait about a week and this is what arrived at my doorstep...

When I took the azek squares out of the box I was elated! No matter how much you chat about a product there's something wonderful that happens when you actually get to see it live and in person. Now a lot of you may be asking, 'what the heck is azek?' I did a little research before making my purchase and I discovered:

It is a composite material similar to Trex in its durability factor but it is made from PVC
It is stain resistant
The lifespan of the product is slated for over 25 years
It is recyclable
The company itself is trying to be as Green as possible:

"As a leading provider of green building products, AZEK Building Products actively contributes to the green building movement through education and, more importantly, by offering durable, sustainable building products. Moreover, we are diligently working to develop our own corporate cradle-to-grave building systems that reduce landfill costs, reduce fossil fuel use, and reduce carbon footprint of all our operations and products."

Nice!

The product had a slight tooth on it so I lightly wood filled some of the end cut marks that the blade left behind, but left the top and bottom in their original state and got started priming.

The primer from the Chocolate Brown Giani Granite kit that I picked up earlier in the week at Walmart was working beautifully with the composite material. Once the primer had cured for the designated number of hours I applied faux finished granite paint effect to all six sides (drying in between of course) and once that was fully cured overnight the waterborne resin topcoat went on. Two coats of topcoat later and I was ready for the eco-fi Craft Felts I had precut to adhere on the bottom.

The felt went on smooth with a super tacky adhesive that I paint brushed on to avoid lumps or bumps, then I used a rounded rollable item to firmly plant it in place. The side of one of the Giani cans was the perfect size and weight to do the job. Yes folks, sometimes I have to act like MacGyver on a daily basis inventing the perfect tool for the job on the fly!

After the felt had set up for about 6 hours I flipped them over and voila, instant granite coaster set! The benefits of these coasters of course are:

No stone was quarried to create the pieces
The mineral paints are low odor and low VOC
Just like real stone no two will ever be exactly the same
They are much lighter than real stone (less expensive to ship!)
Speaking of inexpensive...a foot of granite can run $30 - $100 while these are just $15
Custom colors, patterns and designs are only limited to your imagination!

Are you sold yet? Want to check out the awesomeness of this colaborative effort to 1) extend the life-cycle of some building supplies by The Wooden Bee and 2) avoid digging up the ground but still providing an amazingly durable and beautiful finished home decor item by Chucka Stone Designs? Well come on over!

Want a custom color? Email me at the address located on my CONTACT page and we can get started on yours today! Thanks so much to Bee for the amazing communication, fantastic product and unbelievably positive and upbeat attitude! I'll certainly be shopping your supplies section again my friend!

Tuesday Tip of the Day - A Short and Sweet Suggestion

2011-10-11T06:21:00.000-04:00

I love fortune cookies. Not just the cookie itself which has the perfect level of sweet citrusy goodness but also the hidden surprise inside - the fortune! For years I've been collecting these little nuggets of basic, simple truth and today's Tuesday Tip of the Day is one of these fortunes to ponder:

If you continually give, you will continually have.

Not much more real than that advice! I hope everyone finds a way to give anything they can today and when you get in return, just be thankful enough to give again!

Craft Felts are Eco Friendly and Easy to Work With

2011-10-10T06:31:00.021-04:00

Happy Monday to everyone out there in creative crafty land! Coming to you from the sunny studios in Phoenix where the temperatures are starting to go back up again! With the fall actually here though many of us are thinking about craft felts. Felt is a great product to utilize in fall and winter projects as it tends to be durable and comes in an array of great colors, shapes and sizes.

A week or so ago when I was at my local Walmart picking up a Chocolate Brown Giani Granite paint kit I stumbled down the crafting aisle. Without thinking too much about it I spotted the black felt I knew was going to be perfect for the bottom of the coasters I'm making out of reclaimed azek (stay tuned for that feature on Wednesday!) and chocolate faux granite.

It went in the cart, I purchased, brought it home and started going to work on the faux finish. As I was peeling the sticker from the felt to begin measuring for the coaster base I noticed a little "eco-fi" symbol and, once I pulled out my magnifying glass, was able to read the reason for the distinction:

"high-quality polyester fiber made from 100% post-consumer recycled plastic bottles"

Wow, cool! So of course I immediately set out to look up the company, the product specifically, and determine its Greenness as I wanted to include that information in my shop listing for sure. In even teenier letters that I had to yank out a microscope to read, I saw the name of the company was Foss Manufacturing and they had a website.

After a whole lot of reading I learned that they:

Are located in New Hampshire
Are a needle-punch based manufacturer (non-woven)
Have a mantra - "Do it right the first time"
Create fabrics for a multitude of industries like medical, footwear, marine, residential, roofing and more

And then I discovered that eco-fi Craft Felts are produced and distributed by Foss' partner company the Kunin Group. On their website was a link to a pdf on eco-fi Felt. In short there are some really great benefits to this type of material:

10 bottles - 1 pound of fiber. This is huge, consider what a single sheet of craft felt weighs and how many sheets can be made for people just like us who use this material in their everyday products!

For example, they note that a 4'x6' outdoor rug could be created using just 48 bottles; it would only take 90 bottles to upholster the backseat of a car in eco-fi.

It is colorfast and shrink resistant.

Which is fantastic for designers creating washable items as they can ensure a more stable product!

Plastic bottles don't shrink and they never break down completely. They simply flake until they create hazards for wildlife and humans by ending up in waterways or leeching harmful chemicals into the Earth. A product made with eco-fi can help keep some of the 51 billion bottles a year that the US uses from wasting away in a landfill / Pacific Garbage Island for the next 700 years!

Perhaps the processing of the plastic causes emissions, perhaps the overall fact that plastic bottles are still being used is a sad statement on a society that should definitely know better by now. But personally, regardless of the counterarguments (which are reality), I feel great about buying a product that is trying to take all of those sad statements and turn them into happy faces!

When I list my coaster sets in a couple days I'm going to do it with the full knowledge that:

- No stone was quarried to create the granite that I'm offerring
- My product has one of the lowest VOC ratings (as compared to similar products on the market)
- The base substrate (azek) came from a teammate, entrepreneur and reclaimed source
- The 100% post-consumer content the entire piece is resting on will make anyone's drink slide around a little easier!

I'm thinking of naming these sets the Lifecycle Extender Series there is so much awesomeness in them!

I definitely suggest looking into this durable, easy to work with, soft and varied color material for your next project that involves purchasing new Craft Felts!

How to Set Up A Payvment Shop on Facebook and Use Etsy CSV File to Populate it - Tutorials by Herban | Luxe

2011-10-05T04:50:00.019-04:00

A friend of mine in the EcoEtsy team, Herban | Luxe, was kind enough to put together a great tutorial series of how to create a shop on Payvment (new eCommerce site on Facebook), use your Etsy shop's CSV file to populate it, plus a bunch of other awesome tutorial advice that I could never begin to do justice to explaining!

You can come on over to my Chucka Stone Designs Facebook page and click the Shop Now link under my profile picture to see all the goodies I've stocked in my shop.

Want one of your own? Be sure to watch these tutorial videos explaining how you too can have your Etsy shop items on the the Facebook platform Payvment.

Enjoy!

Read my review of Myra's shop Herban | Luxe

Tuesday Tip of the Day -- Five Rules for Effective Time Management

2011-10-04T13:10:00.000-04:00

I will admit it, time has gotten away from me in the past. That's the exact reason I started to develop my Five Rules for Effective Time Management and I'd love to share them with you!

I run a company but because I'm a sole proprietor not only do I get to do the wonderful artwork, but I also have the distinct pleasure of being the marketing manager, social media guru, promotional material presenter, research and development testing facility (I must admit this is one of my favorites!), and a slew of other positions that range from mind numbing financial stuff to just having fun.

Not to mention, I like an added challenge.

For those of you who don't know, I'm a student, currently pursuing a degree in English and taking classes online. My wonderfully glorious husband is awesome and supporting our family while I finish school. Yea! Three cheers for Matt!

But if you've ever met me, know me, have had a brief encounter with me...etc., etc., etc...you know there is no way I could let myself get bored and not contribute to the family. Essentially there's no way I wouldn't do some kind of work. So I've been pursuing my Chucka Stone Designs Shop with full force!

I try to blog a couple times a week, I curate collections and inform the sellers they've been included, I create my own items, list and promote them on my shop, test new products and do write ups, network online and read interesting articles...

Oh yeah, and I'm maintaining a 4.0 GPA at the same time. You know it baby! High five to all the wicked smaht kids out there!

You're probably saying 'Holy crap, I'm tired just thinking of all that, let alone doing it, she couldn't posibly really do all that and have a life, and spend time with family and friends!' For the most part if I tried to tackle all that stuff head on everyday I'd be so lost in a sea of infinity there is no way I wouldn't have drowned by now!

In order to fit it all in and not go stark raving mad I developed my personal list of:

Five Rules for Effective Time Management.

1. Take weekends off.
It may sound impossible but for the past month or so I have insisted to myself that I take my weekends back for me and Matt. If I were at a traditional college or a "regular" job it would be rare I'd have a class or work need on the weekends, so why am I going to run my business or school schedule any differently? I'm not! Matt works very hard to make sure we can live on his salary. I also work very hard to create/study. We both work Monday through Friday. Does this mean that emergency situations will never arise, huge papers with tons of research won't be due or an unforseen circumstance won't persent itself where I simply have to do something on the weekend? No, of course not. Even he sometime has to put in an hour or 2 here or there but in general I turn off the computer and close my day planner to any plans that don't involve family, friends, or sporting events on Saturday and Sunday. This is my recharge time and it lets me jump back in on Monday morning fully rejuvinated!

2. Get a day planner and use it!
Speaking of that nice little accessory that sits in front of me at all times...I'm in love with and obsess over my day planner. Now, I'm old school, I need to hand write it all out so its planted solidly in my brain what I'm doing and when. But no matter what kind of device works for you this should be attached to your person during business hours. It is where I create to do lists and check off accomplished tasks daily. However, don't let it get out of control...which leads me to...

3. Don't list more than 6 to-do items in any one day.
Yup, I mean it. For business needs especially I've found that even though every day in my planner has about 15+ lines to fill, if I go above and beyond 6 things then something is going to get missed or completely abandoned. That could be a vital business need like printing flyers for an upcoming networking mixer, or life stuff like doing laundry. If I ever feel like I need to pile it all on & more than 6 things are running through my brain, I divy the items up across the week then take a sheet of paper from the back of the planner, write a 'to do during the week of' list and place it inside my planner on the following week. That way, anything that I didn't get to accomplish clearly wasn't vital and can be finished the next week.

4. Finish the important stuff first, then feel free to play.
School. That's my personal 'business before pleasure' necessity. To me it is a hugely important to a) graduate b) do it with honors and c) understand the information I ingest every week. I literally plan nothing for business or otherwise before 5:00 PM on Monday or Thursday. Those are the days assignments are due at school and I dedicate the entire day to my studies on both. If I finish early and have extra time, great. Sometime I spend that time doing business stuff, other times I don't, just depends how I feel on any given M/H. But I never get myself into business stuff before finishing my school work or I find myself scrambling to get it done late, stressed out and then quality of my work and quality time outside of my studies will suffer. You pickin' up what I'm puttin' down here? Find your highest priority day by day and, no matter how tedious or unfortunate it seems to have to complete it, do it first. Get it out of the way and you'll be happier that you did!

5. During creation time, create. During marketing time, market. Do not get the two confused.
Another way to put this? Get the heck off the computer! I pour my coffee in the morning and get online. It takes me about an hour and 15 minutes to finish my coffee and granola bar. This gives me time to check my emails, pop into facebook / twitter / Etsy / forums / etc. and see what's up in the online world while I wake my ass up! BUT, if its a creation day, I will not be on the computer after that. Period. Tuesdays are generally my admin day -- I write up blog posts for the week, do a little networking with my Etsy Teams, etc. and sometimes there's plenty of time to create items too. That's always fun because I get a two-fer. But generally Wednesday and Friday are my create/photograph days and I like to keep it that way. Yes it means stuff hangs around a little longer but it also means I have the all important, sometimes elusive but never disliked...

Work / Life Balance

I hope these tips can help you to achieve the same and you can use them as inspiration to establish your own Time Management Rules to keep your life and business firmly on track.

How do you maintain a work / life balance? Have any other tips for Effective Time Management that work for you?

Friday Feature Finish - Something Soft Like Grasscloth

2011-09-30T19:10:00.000-04:00

It is feeling very warm in sunny Arizona still and since fall isn't really going to show itself until at least December, today's Friday Feature Finish is grasscloth. Organic and flowy, soft and light, a linen weave creates a very subtle backdrop to just about any space and keeps it feeling summery!

This finish can be done in panels, stripes, an entire wall in one, or any other number of endless possibilities. I installed this in my mom's house (as shown at the top of the post there) as one of the first finishes I completed when I set out to build my own Faux Finishing company.

The finish is so subtle, from a distance you almost can't even tell its there. But that was exactly what she was looking for. Her bathroom has deep brown tile flooring and light grey accents on the sink top, toilet seat cover and in the ceramic tile tub surround so we worked together to come up with a color that would look nice and work within the muted color palate.

With a white tub, toilet and vanity, plus storage cabinets, we settled on this lovely muted sage green over white. Isn't it so pretty?!

And the possibilities for grasscloth colors are only as endless as your imagination! This photo shows a tone on tone in a khaki shade. Blue on blue in a beach cottage, hot pink on light pink would look really cool in a little girl's room under a chair rail, tan over buttery yellow would look killer on kitchen cabinet door panels...

A couple days and a limited budget can bring a world of difference to your spaces!

Where could you picture a grasscloth effect in your home? What colors would you like to see this finish done in?

Do Artists Undervalue Their Own Work?

2011-09-29T13:23:00.000-04:00

I was posed the question: do artists undervalue their own work by an amazing jewelry designer and friend, Anna of Della Messina, and my initial reaction was to say YES, yes we do!!!

The more I sit here and think about it though the more I have to disagree with myself. I don't believe Artists undervalue their own work, I believe they allow the general public to influence their decision to undervalue their work.

Does that make sense? Let me break this down a little bit.

What Am I Worth...to ME?

I ask myself this question a lot because its really the best way to determine what I should be charging for all my work, be it smaller pieces in my Chucka Stone Etsy Shop or an entire room full of a beautiful faux finish. The toughest part is always how I can justify charging the same hourly/square footage/materials price on my decor items as I can for my room finishes.

The answer, however, is easy.

Because that's what I'm worth. Period.

Here's a little example of what I mean.

Say I'm pricing out a focal wall in a client's home -- a gorgeous brick faux finish like the photo above. The wall is 8' high x 12' wide and there are no windows, doors or other obstructions at all. Let's also pretend in my fantasy scenario that there are no issues with the wall to address before the finish goes on, a perfect wall with perfectness all around (hey, I said it was a fantasy scenario!).

How do I price this finish?

My first objective is to determine exactly what the homeowner wants -- all red, perfectly rectangular; some varied tones on individual bricks; a keystone pattern; traditional stacked pattern; shaded/highlighted bricks; raised relief; etc. -- as this will greatly impact the time it takes me to complete the job
Next, I have to determine the number of rows/columns of brick to account for & all other measurements required for the installation
The next step is to determine the materials and how many passes over the surface this entails (relief for example will raise the passes by at least 1, usually 2, because of the need for plaster then the paint)
My final adjustments determine -- can I install the masking on my own; are there other accommodations to account for such as a sloped ceiling; how far away is the job; are there limitations on days/times the homeowner or I can not be available for; etc.

WHEW!

And that's sometimes not even the half of it! Yes, there is a whole lot of information required for pricing a finish which is why:
1) I never quote without first seeing the space.
2) I never bend on my price once I've quoted it unless the specs of the job change.

A long time ago I was given advice by someone in the industry that it is better to lose a job because someone thinks you're priced too high than to let your work suffer because you cave into the pressure to lower cost just to get the job. That simple act right there will leave you feeling desperate to finish quicker so you can get out to make more money and trust me, the quality of your product will ultimately suffer for it.

So How Does All This Apply to an Etsy Shop?

Simple. I take the basic considerations above and still price my pieces accordingly! Same time, material, labor, etc. adjustments apply in smaller items as they do in larger ones.

On top of all that, for Etsy, I have to figure out if I was able to create multiples at once (cutting out 8 pieces of fabric instead of just 2 for example), if the finish is done in the same manner as a wall (for example, there's no need to snap a chalk line for brick on an 11" x 14" canvas but there will be on that wall I talked about above!), etc.

It may seem like a lot of work and that's because it is. Many business owners find it cumbersome and tedious to try to price their work so they immediately undervalue it in an effort to just get it out there. Business owners who want to make a name for themselves may just price haphazardly or way too low to begin with in order to get a foot in the door.

Sounds great in theory right? Only problem is then you're stuck there forever. Raising prices to what you know in your heart and head you're worth is way tougher once you've established yourself than it is to establish yourself while charging exactly what you're worth from the start.

I'm not the highest priced finisher out there but I'm certainly not the lowest either. I know how labor intensive certain finishes are on my body, how much critical thinking is involved in others and even how quickly I can whip out certain things just because the product allows a faster turn around time. All of that is accounted for in my quote.

It doesn't matter if you're a jewelry designer like Anna, a painter like me, or some other type of artist selling themselves and their wares to the public, the basic principles of how you arrive at your worth apply no matter what you create. My advice -- start charging what you should.

How much are you worth? Are you undervaluing your work? Could your shop or website use an update on listing prices or estimates?

Tuesday Tip of the Day: Mark your mudroom cubbies

2011-09-27T13:57:00.000-04:00

Sometimes things in the mudroom can get a bit dishevled, disorganized and out of control! How about making a statement of organization in a simple way by marking everyone's cubby or hook with their name on a great cubby name sign?

This faux finished wall hanging is an example of a piece in my Chucka Stone Etsy shop that could easily be turned into a cubby name sign. I love to make custom orders special for personalizing your home!

My smaller artwork pieces can have each person's name painted right on the frame, by my trusty brush hand of course, and then we can hang them inside each cubby to mark each individual's spaces.

Let's talk shelving colors too!

A more masculine look would be to do deep navy woodwork, a sapphire blue Giani Granite bench (for taking off shoes of course!) and artwork with a cream frame, or maybe even his favorite team colors! For the more feminine side how about using a butter yellow trim with a deep rose-grey wall background. This frame in lime green would pop right off the wall!

Do you have a mudroom that needs updating? I'd love to discuss your project, shoot me an email today!

Tuesday Tip of the Day - Its Networking, Not Speed Dating for Business

2011-09-20T15:10:00.000-04:00

I came across this wonderful website this morning and I don't even really remember how I found it. Suppose it was likely one of those situations where one link leads to another and so on unti the Gods of fate stop you in your tracks with just the thing you've been looking for all along!

Since moving to Phoenix I've been considering ways to get out and meet people, specifically make some terrific business contacts that could be beneficial to helping me grow my finishing business here in the Northeast Valley and surrounding communities of Phoenix.

Yesterday I happened to run across a list of some seriously amazing Interior Designers in the area. I must have spent three hours scouring websites, reading information and generally feeling out the designer's style to see if it would possibly be a good fit.

Another talented group are the local people using the incredible site NetworkingPhoenix.com. With a calendar of events that shows pretty much ANYthing going on for networking opportunities in the Valley I had no choicebut to sign up! I combed through the calendar and there's this fantastic women's networking group that meets every other week literally on the corner of my street!

But here's the secret...I'm so bad at networking! I completely excel at sharing my business info and yapping on and on about my work when the environment is casual. For instance I was at the dentist yesterday and while she was getting the tools together she and I struck up a super easy breezy conversation abotu my Faux.

But put me in a room where I know the ultimate goal is to talk to as many people as I can about my company while tossing out elevator pitches, painting the picture of my (literal) paint with my words, hooking them in the first five seconds, getting them to follow me, call me, book me for a job...

Well, you can see how exhausting and intimidating that can be right? Like the title suggests its like speed dating for business people.

But I figure the only way to get over the hurdle of figuring out how to do it more effectively is to just do it right? So here's what I've done to network recently:

Joined 3 new teams on Etsy -- they are all local Arizona/Phoenix teams who like to schedule events here and there out in the real world. Additionally these folks enjoy just promoting each other and sharing in the love for art in our local community. Hooray!
Joined the NetworkingPhoenix.com community -- through joining this larger group I have already written to the organizer of a small women's business owner's networking group and hope to attend thier next get together.
Emailed about 4 local Interior Designers who's styles seemed to gel pretty well with mine to introduce myself as a Faux Finisher in the area and request to schedule a time when we could review each other's portfolios.

With slower paced classes coming in the next 20 weeks I feel like there is no better time than right now to start meeting new people and growing my business out here in the Valley of the Sun!

What have you done to network in the past few months? Have you found a terrific group of people you love getting together with and sharing ideas? Have any of you had to get over the fear of the business network meeting?

Featured Member of Team EcoEtsy - joonwalk

2011-09-14T12:46:00.000-04:00

I was first exposed to joonwalk's shop when I was peeking through the EcoEtsy member list and was I ever blown away by her super crafyiness!

She opened up shop in January of 2009 in Austin, TX and since then has been spreading the love of upcycling / repurposing out to the entire Etsy community and more. Joon primarily works with paper and fabric and that photo over there of her Hula Hut is a great example of how she can take seemingly scrappy bits and stitch a collage of loveliness!

While reading up on her shop's profile I discovered that Joon has started her own community project in March of 2010 called PRoJeCT SNoWFLaKe. The purpose and method of the project is to utilize the number 13 as a way to clean up the joint! How does this work you may ask? In Joon's own words:

"For every purchase in any & all of my etsy shops, I will pick up a baker's dozen worth of litter or spend 13 minutes throwing an eye, whichever comes first. I will keep a tally, post it in my shop announcements, and write about my venture on my blog."

Super cool right?

Giving back is such a great way to make the best use of the talent that she has shared and then the cycle of love for the planet continues -- the customer gets an adorable item made from leftover parts that are blended together into something wonderful and then Joon takes that theory and gets back out there to do even more cleanup! Hello awesome!

To get in touch with Joon, to purchase or to read about her adventures as a one woman powerhouse please visit her at the links below.

Joonwalk Etsy Shop
Joonwalk Blog
Joon on twitter

Tuesday Tip of the Day - Remain Professional

2011-09-13T14:54:00.001-04:00

Last night was the season opener of Monday Night Football. I love football, I've always been a fan of the sport and its rough and tumble-ness action. In high school I went to pretty much every home game and grew up with half a family who hung around watching the games every Sunday afternoon.

As a kid I wasn't really into it yet but getting older and learning about the plays, rules and of course the New England Patriots, I was hooked. It took many loyal years for my Pats to start winning games because there were many years they were at the bottom of the barrel in the NFL.

For a kid just starting to watch at the same age as I was when I started, about 12, who still watches today (they'd be in their early 20's now) that might sound ridiculous considering the numerous Super Bowl rings and playoff appearances over the last 10 years but I assure you, its true.

Last night the Pats played the Miami Dolphins and not only did they Squish the Fish, Tom Brady threw for a record 517 yards and one of his receivers, Wes Welker caught a pass at the 1/2 yard line then ran it all the way down the field for a touchdown. It was an awesome game.

For some odd reason though the powers that be decided to force east coasters into exhaustion as they had a MNF double header (correct me if I'm wrong but has this ever happened before? I don't think so???). The second game was a scrappy match up between the Oakland Raiders and Denver Broncos. But before we ever even got to that game...

Both games were televised to millions over the ESPN Network. Both games trucked along just fine until...(Warning -- profanity!!)

Oh yes you heard that right! That was ESPN Announcer Ron Jaworski saying the most casual thing ever, it just happened to include a curse word. I whipped my head around to look at my husband and asked "Did he just say what I think he said?" Matt agreed he heard it too. Ron had just blabbed the S word on national television.

So here's the real kicker, no pun intended, later on in the broadcast he simply apologized for his mistake and went right on announcing, commentating and blabbing as if it never even happened. And why shouldn't he have? I mean we've all been there right? You're at work and something moderately inappropriate slips out of your mouth...but do you cower in a corner and quit your job on the spot? No way!

You apologize for the foible and move on. Just like Ron Jaworski did. Kudos to you Ron for not feeling the need to issue a 16 page manifesto for all the reasons you didn't mean to say the word 'shit' on television. Kudos for apologizing and then getting right back to the job at hand. You remained professional and that's what really matters!

In honor of Ron's mistake I curated a nice little collection of items, as seen in that picture at the top of the post, called Wash Out Your Potty Mouth. Click on it to head over to the page so you can see more. Thanks for the inspiration Ron and don't worry, your mistake won't be talked about for nearly as long as the Justin Timberlake / Janet Jackson costume "malfunction" mishap!

Friday Feature Finish - Mildew Resistant Matte With BM Aura Bath & Spa

2011-09-09T13:43:00.000-04:00

The picture on the left over there is the most recent project I'd done right before leaving Boston. The homeowner hired me to rid their space of an electric toned periwinkle purple (it was awful!) and expressed a desire to have a soft, spa like feeling in the space.

It is a multi use bathroom and acts almost as a hallway from one side of the second floor to the other. Gotta love those old New England houses huh?

Because the space is a general family bath as well as the primary bath for their kids the finish needed to be both beautiful and durable. The homeowner showed me the shower curtain she was considering purchasing for the space and I plucked that beautiful blue out of it for the upper walls.

Now, that blue isn't just any paint...its a beautiful matte finish, mildew resistant paint made specifically for bathrooms - Benjamin Moore Aura Bath and Spa.

With little to no odor, a low VOC rating (<50 g/L) and unmatched durability it is a paint that won't need to be touched up or re-finished for many years to come! I used semi-gloss in white for the wainscotting and radiator covers (4 in the house in total) as well as applied a slight skimcoat of joint compound over some of the worst divots in the walls. Including 3 holes left after the electrician moved the light fixture.

But because of the paint's matte finish, slight dings and imperfections are hidden without having to go for perfection! And that's important in an older house or even a wall with knock-down that you're looking to mask at a quick glance. The paint utilizes a resin in its properties and because of that application is slightly different than your everyday paint. A great brush and correct roller cover are imperative to a perfect finish!

Do you have a bathroom or other wet location you're looking to have professionally painted? Give me a call or shoot me an email and I'd love to discuss your project! Aura Bath and Spa is available in all of the colors available in the Benjamin Moore product line so there is sure to be one that's right for your space!

Featured Member of Team EcoEtsy - Zosimos Botanicals

2011-09-07T11:46:00.000-04:00

Yesterday I curated a treasury over on Etsy, it was a collection of yumminess from only members of the team and it was called Rainbow of Green. Kind of a dorky name but I wanted to do a gradated rainbow of colorful items because everything over there lately has been brown and grey with fall rapidly approaching. I needed a pick me up!

So when I got to yellow-orange in the rainbow I wasn't thinking too much about it until I came across the item above. Oh my goodness, how good does that look right? Let's just say I hadn't had any interraction with Zosimos Botanicals in our team before that moment but as soon as the treasury was posted and promoted I scampered right back to the shop to ogle!

What I found is a company that not only produces beautiful makeup items but they also produce a bath & body line (including the Orange Cinnamon Bath & Shower Gel featured in the photo at the top of the post), as well as deodorant and hair care. The company is comprised of three Artisans who create their products from natural sources and resources only. They have been certified by GreenAmerica and GenGreen, have won various environmental awards and participate in the Compact for Safe Cosmetics.

As their shop announcement states:

"Zosimos Botanicals is an award winning "green" business because we refuse to use known chemical irritants. It is important for your health that everything is formulated WITHOUT: parabens, petroleum products, talc, nanoparticles, lanolin, magnesium stearate, heavy metals, sodium laureth or lauryl sulfide, mineral oil, bismuth oxychloride, silica, synthetic fragrance oils, FD&C colorants, sulfates, synthetic fragrances; synthetic dyes, petro-chemicals or phthalates."

Hello awesome! A huge goal of mine is to reduce the chemicals that I put on and in my body over the course of the next year and it sounds like I might be spending even more time perusing the "aisles" of Zosimos Botanicals!

Zosimos Botanicals Etsy shop
Zosimos Botanicals on Facebook

Tuesday Tip of the Day

2011-09-06T14:31:00.000-04:00

I spend a lot of time climbing up and down ladders and after a while my legs got used to the muscle usage. But for those who maybe don't do this more than once in a while you could end up with sore calves or shin splints depending on how you climb, what kind of shoes you wear and the way you stand on the steps.

For easing the pain of shin splints I've never found a better solution than the crinkling a towel trick.

Lay a towel lengthwise out from the edge of your bathtub.
Sit on the edge of the tub, barefoot, and with your toes just at the ends of the towel.
Begin to pull the towel towards you using only your toes and trying to keep your feet as flat on the floor as possible.
Repeat this about 3-4 times crinkling up the entire towel until you begin to feel slight fatigue in your muscles.
Repeat about once a day for a few days until the pain eases.

Usually I would only have to do this for 1-2 days and my shins felt so much better!

And if all else fails do it with a margarita in your hand, that tends to do the trick every time :-)

Hope everyone had a great holiday weekend and you're enjoying getting back into the grind.

Friday Feature Finish - Granite

2011-09-02T13:07:00.000-04:00

Granite is one of the most popular options for kitchen and bathroom countertops these days. The array of different colors, styles and patterns are all but endless and can be customized to fit anyone's imagination.

In the world of faux finishing stone designs are quite popular but until recently the health risks for the type of materials needed to create these looks far outweighed any benefit of beauty the finish brought to a space. But like I said, that was until recently!

I've written about Giani Granite before but figured it was high time to feature the finish on a Friday post. I'm currently in the process of completing more picture frames like this one.

Cute right? On my studio's table top right now I have 4 frames and a decorative item that is going to be a clever little bit of decorative art. I also completed this jewelry box which my Mother in Law wants to purchase from me but I just can't bring myself to sell it! Well, not yet anyway :-)

All of these items have been completed using the basic Sicilian Sand kit but I've added some veining to the frame and box. But this isn't the only color available! Giani offers 4 more kits -- chocolate, sapphire, emerald and black -- and consider the possibilities for mixing and matching multiple kits together to create a truly one of a kind custom look.

So here's where things get awesome...Giani utilizes a resin based, waterborne, automotive grade topcoat durable enough to withstand daily use. The product is designed to be used on kitchen counters, bathroom counters, desktops like the one at the top of this post, bar tops, furniture items, or even small home decor pieces like the ones referenced above that I'll be listing in my Chucka Stone Etsy shop.

Are you in Phoenix, Arizona or the surrounding area? Or are you in eastern Massachusetts? Want to freshen up your laminate, butcher block, ceramic, etc? I'd love to work on your project! I'm in Phoenix full time, plan to be back on the east coast for almost all of November and would certainly love to chat about your project anytime.

Featured Member of Team EcoEtsy - Beans Things

2011-08-31T11:31:00.001-04:00

For this week's featured member I wanted to select someone on the team who I have never interracted with, who had items that were inspiring, and also someone from my state. Tall order? Not at all!

I was immediately drawn to the colorful and funky prettiness in Beans Things shop and when I saw she was located in Sedona, Arizona I immediately wished I had discovered her before going up there last weekend! My husband and I will most certainly be back though so perhaps I can get in touch and find out if she has a brick and mortar location to peruse or if her funky items are sold in any of the fun shops in town.

Reading the Beans Things profile I learned that most of her items are one of a kind due to the upcycled nature of the papers she uses in her designs. With fun stuff like this I can see why (bears!!!)

She's been open since December 2008 and has had over 1000 sales with just under 800 people leaving 100% positive feedback so I know she's doing something right! And don't forget, those bottle caps and that paper are upcycled so she's saving the planet from new material creation, and extending the lifecycle of the items in question by repurposing into something fun and functional. Yea!

If you like the items here and want to see more check out:

Beans Things Etsy Shop

Beans Things Facebook

Thanks for joining the team EcoEtsy and for keeping it Green!

Tuesday Tip of the Day - Mom Knows Best

2011-08-30T12:52:00.001-04:00

Today's tip of the day comes from my mom:

"Eat your vegetables!"

Sorry its a short and sweet tip today but its totally appropriate on its own don't you think? I'm off to put primer on a bunch of stuff today and running a little behind schedule so have a sunny, warm, happy, lovely day everyone!

What did your mom insist when you were a kid?

The Look of Confusion and What Do You Do?

2011-08-29T11:24:00.001-04:00

Over this past weekend I visited the Grand Canyon and Sedona, Arizona for the first time. Although my sister has been living in Arizona for the better part of two decades we just never made the time to make the trek all the way up there. Now that we only live about four hours away (as opposed to six or seven) it seemed like a great weekend jaunt.

And it was!

The Canyon is allegedly one of the wonders of the world, chosen as the eighth wonder by people who have looked down into its vast expanse of immense beauty. I can't exactly disagree with these people because I was in fact awe-struck at the sight of the thing. And we only drove around about 1/5 of the south rim. Someday I will see the whole thing.

After the Grand Canyon and an overnight at the HoJo's in Flagstaff we wound our way down a few back roads and landed in Sedona, Arizona. Another majestic and almost unbelievable place of beauty. The red rocks and super cool formations they create also blew me away!

While in Sedona we decided to get a little food and walk the shops for a little while. We were all but yanked into the Western Museum by the guys running the place. The museum is definitely a trap by the way, unless you want to hear about the fantastic deal on a time share, just keep walking! But I didn't know until it was too late so in we went and I found myself being asked by the sales dude:

"So what do you do?"

In the past I have answered this question a number of ways but these days, because I'm not a published author and because I don't feel like saying I'm a student, I tend to answer with "I'm a Faux Finisher" when I find myself in mixed company.

Normally I would answer that I'm a decorative painter, an artist, or even simply a painter, but yesterday it seemed appropriate to say Faux Finisher. He looked at me with confusion and asked "What's that?"

Now I can't say I'm totally surprised because it was a man and generally the decorating and embellishing of one's home tends to fall on a woman's shoulders, traditionally I mean. But at the same time, toss out the most well known names in the industry and many of them are men. At the point where someone doesn't understand what I do for a living most of the time they just nod and smile but he followed up the question.

This is where I had trouble. I'd never been confronted by that before and I was slightly flustered with how to respond because, honestly, where do I begin?

Looking back now my tag line is set. I have to thank that timeshare salesman for helping me out because if it wasn't for him I might still be walking around not having come up with:

"I use paint and plaster to mimic the look of stone and other natural materials."

Good eh? Its my new mantra, its my elevator pitch, its my descriptor and hopefully its what will get someone interested enough to ask the followup question "Ooh, how do you do that?" because that I've got well covered!

What's Your elevator pitch? How do you describe what you do to others when they ask face to face?

Friday Feature Finish - Stripes

2011-08-26T12:03:00.000-04:00

Up and down, side to side or angled, a stripe is a completely versatile finish!

A perfectly straight line between each band of color gives a truly crisp look and these stripes are not only funky, the colors are perfect for a man or a woman.

Diagonal like up above can be used to create an argyle pattern of diamonds, or just one focal wall of diagonal stripes.

But why stop there?

Vertical stripes will add height to a room. Done in one color of two similar tones this finish provides drama, sophistication and elegance. Multiple colors and varying sizes is a great way to get customized wainscotting for a nursery or kids room. Looking for a more casual and beachy vibe? I'll do planked wainscotting in a Heavily Weathered Crackle finish with a taupe base and off gray-white top coat. We can then paint the upper wall sea green. A few shells and a little tumbled glass and you're on the coast! If it can be taped off it can have a stripe applied -- Venetian Plaster, tinted glaze, straight up paint -- you name it, I'll apply it to your surface!

But what if you want more contemporary?

Horizontal stripes can add movement and special interest to a space. Want a loft style with uber chic appointments? Let me put up last week's Feature Finish of Plaster Coated Brick on one focal wall then run a couple varied thickness black stripes around the room of white walls. To give it a little punch, one skinny, red stripe to match the brick can be added. Or how about pulling a wood grain through a 3" stripe at the height of a chair rail or picture rail for a more traditional look and feel? Why not add a border to your upper wall?

Colors, styles, designs, materials and opportunities are endless with stripes and they're everywhere! Want to add stripes to your home? Feel free to give me a call so we can discuss your project!

What's your favorite application, orientation and color of stripes?

Photo of stripe sample board courtesy of Judi FitzPatrick Studio

I Love when it says SOLD!

2011-08-25T15:37:00.000-04:00

One of my favorite things to see is the word SOLD next to an item that I included in a treasury I curated over on Etsy.

I don't want to take the credit or anything, after all the artist who designed the piece is really the one who is responsible for getting it out to the public but I can't help it. I simply love to see this:

When I click back over I always say "YESSSSSSS!" when an item has been purchased. But you know what's even cooler? When so many items have sold that just about everything is gone from the original treasury.

So see that pretty lemony yellow treasury picture at the top of this post? Click it and get on over to the Pucker Up collection and buy something so I can do the happy dance today will ya?

KthxBUY ;-)

Featured Member of Team EcoEtsy - Herban | Luxe

2011-08-24T04:53:00.040-04:00

How yummy does that look right? I'm a fan of Herban | Luxe not only because Myra Roldan is a teammate of mine in EcoEtsy but because her products are awesome. Period.

I have bought a few things from her shop of treasures and certainly look forward to getting more in the future!

From personal experience I can offer a big huge high five on her correctors, mascara and my personal favorite, the loose mineral powder. I use the powder sparingly as I'm not much for makeup all over my face most of the time. But there are times when we can all use a little hint of airbrushed radiance if you know what I mean!

The makeup goes on light with a kabuki brush and feels really weighless on my skin. It isn't cakey or chalky, in fact I hardly know I have makeup on at all. Myra was awesome in her willingness to work with my questions and she sent me some small samples to test out last year so we could make sure the shade was going to work for my skin tone. I found the perfect match and couldn't be happier.

But now Myra went and raised the stakes...she has a new product that I just have to try!

I've always been the girl who used blush as lipstick and vice versa depending what was hanging around. I'm getting down to my last bit of lipstick and look forward to testing out the Organic Cheek and Lip Stain from Herban Luxe very soon!

Reasonable prices, a handmade attitude and an eye on global impact through natural based cosmetics has me raving about Myra's shop. Gee, can you tell? :-)

Herban | Luxe on Etsy
Herban | Luxe on Facebook

Tuesday Tip of the Day - Only Take On What You Can Handle

2011-08-23T04:23:00.019-04:00

There is no more accurate advice right now than simply the title at the top of this post!

As most of you know I am a student, run a business, just moved to a new area, am part of a team, operate an online shop, wrote a novel I'd like to see published, etc., etc., etc...

All of those things take time, effort, sometimes money, and certainly mental energy (not to mention physical!). So when I started evaluating what I was going to keep and what I was going to get rid of it all came down to the question -- what can I handle and what really makes me happy?

The short and long answer? I can pretty much handle anything I set my mind to and what makes me happy is every single thing on that list!

Matt tells me not to worry about making money as long as I can get my schooling done and maintain my 4.0 GPA that's the main thing. And although I know he's right I can't help but want to promote my business here in Arizona. Faux finishing is really well embraced here and I know there are areas in it which I excel at.

With that in mind my goals are simple -- create only one new item to list in my shop each week, promote one teammate each week, let school come first but when I'm painting or finishing don't let anything get in the way of my enjoyment of the creativity of it.

Most importantly, write my blog because its fun, create because its fun, and take the weekends off so I can have fun in my personal time!

So with that in mind my blog is going to become a Monday through Friday place where I share and the rest of the time I'll be fitting it all in. But only as much as I can handle and not a speck more.

Faux Finishing Brings New Life to Old Pieces

2011-08-22T11:14:00.000-04:00

Lately I've been looking around my house and gathering different items that I could finish in the Giani Granite. Over the weekend I located a couple more pieces.

One is in process, a picture frame that houses a picture of my husband taken about 11 years ago when we went on a road trip to Maryland. The frame was simple, with rounded corners, but it has been carried around to so many different apartments over the past 11 years that it was really starting to get banged up.

So, of course, because I will reuse as much as possible, it has been primed and awaiting a fine granite finish which should be completed by tomorrow (including top coats!)

The other piece...

You see the chip up there ^ ? That's a sample of African Ivory granite. The kit I currently have is Sicilian Sand, the lightest of the Giani Granite options, but I wanted to do something different than the granite desktop that I shared with you before.

So I started doing my research and discovered a few websites that provide photos and descriptions of various colors of stock granite. Perfect! When I saw the African Ivory I knew that's what I wanted to use as my inspiration. Lo and behold here's what I got...

Gorgeous right? I experimented with a little bit of veining and some speckling to get a totally different look. Also the box had an etchable plate on the top that was beat up so I covered it with copper and it shines like new with the Giani topcoat protecting the final finish!

Giani isn't just for kitchen counters, that's what I discovered through this project. I'm considering creating a whole bunch of different home decor items and plunking them into my shop at Etsy. Why?

Because sometimes doing an entire kitchen, bath, bar top, etc. is out of reach even though it isn't nearly as expensive as real granite -- I'm a prime example, because we live in an apartment I'm not able to coat my countertops (though I'd love to!). This makes faux accessible; on a small scale item it can be given as gifts or kept for yourself.

And just think how much less expensive it will be to ship because its so much lighter than real stone!

Details to follow on my own items but don't hesitate to get in touch with me if you have an item that you'd like to extend the life of and want me to finish in granite (or another finish option). I've shipped back and forth in the past or if you're in the Phoenix area I could pick it up directly.

Let's talk about your favorite granite colors today!

Friday Feature Finish

2011-08-19T11:18:00.000-04:00

Good morning everyone!

Well its just the crackling of dawn here, I know for many of you it is edging up on time for the first snack of the day, maybe even lunch time. Meanwhile I'm still rubbing my eyes and slurping down coffee by the gallon full. But its Friday which means a couple things.

First, its my shortie day -- no school assignments due and nothing pressing for the company. I paint if I want, write if I want, and mostly just get the stuff together for the following week over a couple cheezy movies (Today I'm looking at you Breakfast Club and St. Elmo's Fire!). After all, for self employed people there is no such thing as a weekend so we have to take our breaks where we can get them. Am I right?

Second, its Feature Friday! Today's Feature Finish is:

Plaster Coated Brick

There are so many different options of how to design brick. This sample board was created to show a potential client what fun things could be done with her fireplace bricks that were painted white at the time.Bricks can be whitewashed for an older, aged feel; a faux mural could be painted under the plaster to give the illusion of further depth; random dashes of white or deeper purple can be applied for a more modern, loft style appearance; hand torn tape can be applied to the mortar joints for a more organic, rustic look; thinner or thicker tape can be applied for mortar joints or bricks can grow / shrink depending on the look you're going for. On my sample board, I threw in the aged plaster just for fun!

Speaking of fun...

My fearless Photographer Judi FitzPatrick Studio (who will be here in short order to not only enjoy some southwestern sun and fun but also to snap some pictures of my new items!) recently took photos of my sample boards. They came out great (next week's Friday Feature Finish will include one of her photos, stay tuned!).

She's been experimenting with all kinds of funky techniques and has lately gotten into swirling circles. She used my plaster coated brick sample board to create one:

FUN WITH FAUX

Super funky! She's got some amazing fine art photography as well and having a ginormous sale right now, check out her Heat Wave Sale on Etsy for amazing work at amazing prices. And get in touch if you want fantastic photos of your own work!

What has sparked your creativity lately?

Can I Afford A "Custom" Kitchen Right Now? Yes!

2011-08-18T12:55:00.001-04:00

It is no big secret that the economy is a little, let's just say, wonky. Most of us are pinching a little bit just to make sure all the bills get paid in the same month and to make sure that we can keep locally grown, organic produce on our tables instead of prepackaged processed stuff.

And a lot of us are trying to sell a home, buy a home or just feel more comfortable in our own homes.

We all sit around and watch HGTV, DIY Network and other home improvement shows and drool over the insanely cool, modern and trendy kitchens and baths that everyone else seems to be able to afford but us. We long to be able to buy that cosmetically ugly house and renovate it into something so beautiful. We wish we could update our kitchen to such a gorgeous and modern one so our house will sell at asking price. We wonder how fast we can brush our teeth so we can get out of the bathroom with the chipped countertop that we've been looking at for about three years too long.

Well, instead of full-on renovation, there's an easier, less expensive and durable way to extend the style and life of your cabinets and countertops in these spaces and I'd love to help you make it happen!

Ugly:

Revived!

Basic and boring:

Granite and gorgeous!

Think of the possibilities! The color combinations! The beautiful home you will live in! The way buyers will swoon at your gorgeous house! The SOLD sign on your front lawn! All of these things are possible!

I can coat your cabinetry in pretty much unlimited color choices using a revolutionary product that offers the durability and adhesion properties of oil based paint but the strictest and lowest VOC rating* in the industry for a water-based alkyd. Soap and water cleanup, durable finish and gorgeous!

Then I'll tackle the laminate countertops by giving you a faux granite finish that's so realistic you'll have to leave a note for your buyers not to put hot pans directly on top of the surface!

And why should we stop there? I can help you pick and install the most beautiful, coordinating paint color for the walls, hardware and accessories so your space will be sparkling for under $1500**.

Yes that's right, under $1500. Most kitchens and baths could run you easily into the tens of thousands for a similar look and feel. Not to mention you'd be installing new which greatly impacts the environment.

So do yourself, your buyers, your wallet and your spaces a favor and call me instead! I'll help your place shine like a new penny, for far less of them than you'd otherwise spend!

* Please note this does not necessarily mean low odor, VOC refers to the off-gassing that happens after your paint is dry to the touch and curing. As paint cures it can release gasses into the air. Low/no VOC paints will lessen the time of off-gassing for a healthier environment but at first it may still have that new paint smell so please be aware!

** Prices will vary based on individual spaces. $1500 estimate based on cabinetry remodel shown and 35 sq. ft. countertop refresh with 3 color Giani Granite. Additional cabinetry, larger countertops, additional processes, etc will effect total cost. Initial consultations are free!

A New Discovery - Stardust Building Supplies

2011-08-17T19:49:00.000-04:00

There are a couple projects I have brewing in the back of my mind for cool ways I can incorporate the Giani Granie finish into both my day job and Chucka Stone Designs shop on Etsy. The only problem is I really dislike buying anything new in order to create items. With the current state of the environment, upcycling, recycling and repurposing are my favorite ways to create. Extend the lifecycle I say!

So with these new ideas came a whole bunch of research into the types of stores in my area where I might be able to find second hand or surplus items at a reduced rate.

I was completing a little research today and wouldn't you know it, I stumbled across a company with two locations right here in the central valley! The place is called Stardust Building Supplies and let me tell you, if it wasn't 107 degrees outside right now I'd be in my way over there to stock up on everything I need to complete projects for the next month.

The place is huge, they have two warehouse locations (Phoenix and Mesa) with 40,000 square feet of inventory. And stock changes daily because the way they acquire materials is through donations from contractors with a surplus or from donations.

Their motto is "Don't Waste...DONATE!" and in addition to that, right on the website they reference that they're environmentally and socially conscious:

Stardust Non-Profit Building Supplies, Inc. is a non-profit 501(c)3 organization dedicated to diverting reusable building materials from landfills into the hands of those who need them. The organization was founded in 1997 by a handful of visionaries, and began as a means to help families, other non-profit organizations and our environment.

How cool is that? But the best part of all, the company offers deconstruction services -- they'll demolish the place in question then haul away the goodies back to their warehouse to resell to the public at a savings of 50 - 80% OFF the suggested retail price!

Hello!

I know where I'll be checking first for all my construction needs and when Matt and I buy our house and have plans to renovate we'll make use of not only their deconstruction services but probably their available stock as well. Its like the craigslist of building supply houses (READ: my mothership *insert angelic singing here*)

You know what? They also have volunteer opportunities. I'm really thinking about signing up and lending my skills to helping the community...

What way have you discovered recently that can help lessen your impact on the planet?

Stardust Building Supplies blog

Hard Work Really Can Pay Off!

2011-08-16T14:02:00.000-04:00

My brain is about to explode! I woke up this morning and read an email from my university that I'm being invited to join the Golden Key International Honour Society.

Oh my goodness!

So to give those of you who haven't known me for a long time a little background, to say I was a slacker in high school would be a gross understatement. I think I graduated with a 2.4 and that was literally because I took so many slacker classes my senior year and passed every English class from 9-12th grade with straight A's. Everything else was at best a B- and truthfully I couldn't have cared less back then.

There was more procrastination that perfectionist, more multi-tasking than focus. I had a job, participated in a team sport, spent time with friends and my boyfriend. There was simply very little (read: no) time to study, so if it wasn't a class I was interested in I pretty much did just enough to get by and the rest was a big who cares.

Math was a good example. History too. I generally wrapped up the year with low C's in both. Oh yeah, and then there was Science...let's not even talk about my Chemistry class, it still gives me nightmares thinking about that D-...yeah.

Now if it looks like my percentage might fall below a 96% I'm writing to the Instructor to ask how I can do some extra credit to make sure I won't drop below an A. And that's in week 2 out of 5. Oh, and an A goes all the way to a 90% so...

All the sacrifice in time and fun that I had to make is completely worth it now. I mean, not that it wasn't before knowing I had the 4.0, but to be recognized for hard work and dedication by the Administration of a University never feels bad!

I'm not usually a pat-myself-on-the-back type of person but in this instance I'm planning to shout it from the rooftops!

What have you given your all to lately that has made a difference in your life?

The Misadventures of a Semi Part-time Faux Finisher in Transition

2011-08-10T10:27:00.000-04:00

There truly are days when I feel like that is the title of my life! I am a girl who doesn't love when one single thing is said to define me, so instead of focusing on one solid idea I like to spread it around...like tinted glaze on knocked down plaster.

This theme is not exactly a new and profound revelation for me, I have written about it a number of times over at my other blog. For some reason, no matter how much I try to push it aside, I always tend to come back to the company.

Kind of like Jaws - just when you think its safe to go back in the water...

For me the "water" is all that other stuff I do, but for some reason, even though I'm enjoying school and potentially found an editor for my novel, all I really want to do is start making home decor items with a Giani Granite finish, buy more sample boards and play around with metallic finishes, search online for inspiration, and then do stuff like update my blog and website (plus all associated marketing materials) to my new snazzy feel and promote it all over town.

And of course by "town" I mean to local designers, craigslist, Etsy, Facebook, twitter and LinkedIn.

Geez, could I be using more air quotes today?

Anyway, the point is I'm a casual kind of girl, I like sports and try not to take myself all that seriously most of the time. But I'm very serious about my business, how I treat my clients and the level of quality which I will adhere to on every single installation, regardless if its an entire first floor of their home or one single light switch cover.

So I wanted to remove the heavy formality that was associated with my old blog/website design and try to embody the spirit of 'serious fun' in my new look. Do you think I pulled it off?

What have you changed recently that more accurately represents who you are?

Giani Granite -- The look of slab granite without the cost

2011-08-08T14:15:00.000-04:00

We've all been there. We walk through the home improvement stores and think to ourselves 'geez, I'd love that (insert item of choice here) but its just so darn expensive! Maybe I should just get this mid priced, less attractive model instead." Next comes a forlorn sigh and we walk away feeling defeated. Granite, particularly slab granite, is a good example of this kind of financial reality check.

Well what if I told you that your kitchen countertop could look and feel just like granite for a literal fraction of the cost? You'd probably say that I sound like an infomercial right? Infomercial or not I have recently become acquainted with a product that will do exactly that.

The company is called Giani Granite and their product is pretty cool! I live in an apartment so unfortunately I wasn't able to do my kitchen countertops like the product is designed for but no matter, I had a desk kicking around from after we refurnished our office with more functional pieces and since I was considering getting rid of the desk anyway it seemed the perfect practice piece.

I rolled it out to the living room and set it up on a drop cloth alongside a polystyrene board that I intended to complete as well for my portfolio.

I gathered my materials:

I followed the instructions and prepped the surface by thoroughly cleaning it with a good de-greaser, taping off, and filling/sanding wood patch in the big chips on the laminate.

Next I used the primer on both the board and desktop.

Then came the really fun part -- the application of the minerals! I didn't want a finish that was too light, I wanted more of the black to show through so it would achieve a very speckled granite look. I followed the steps on the board first, all three in the order the directions stated, and used a little creativity to add a bit more light or dark in various places. When I felt it was complete I stopped, rinsed out the sponges and brushes with water and waited overnight for it to dry.

The next morning I was blown away by how awesome it already looked -- it really truly had depth like real granite! Ready to tackle the desk in the same manner (but this time it had edges to be aware of too of course!) I got going. The minerals applied just as nice and I used a slightly different hand in order to garner a somewhat lighter finish overall. Using the same kit and getting two slightly different looks made my imagination start spinning with ideas!

After an overnight dry (not because the directions call for it mind you, because I had to due to my own schedule!) I applied the first topcoat. Another necessary-to-my-schedule overnight dry and the second topcoat went on the following morning. When it was completely dry my jaw about hit the ground. I was blown away with its realistic feel, look and...well, judge for yourself!

Isn't it amazing? The company sells all kinds of different kit colors, this one is Sicilian Sand. All-in I think the desk took about 3 true days to complete including dry time and application/prep.

So what are the drawbacks?

So far the only things I can see as even potential drawbacks are that it can't be submerged in water (no tubs, sink bowls, bird baths, etc) and you can't put a pot right off the stove on top of it. Also, because it is a finish and not a hard surface countertop cutting on top of it is not recommended.

But...

It can go in wet room locations. Laminate sink top in your bathroom to re-finish? Give me a call!
The topcoat is an automotive grade resin so it can be used outside. Want to flank your pool with a couple planters that have that granite look? Give me a call!

What are some other considerations?

It can be used on a variety of surfaces from laminate to butcherblock, ceramic tile to primed wood and a myriad of others. Plus its heat resistant up to 250 degrees so putting a pot on a trivet, cookies on a rack, etc. is not going to be a problem!

The product takes two weeks to fully cure (can be used in 48 hours but small appliances shouldn't be re-installed for a couple weeks) so be aware that -- if you want it to last and perform impeccably well it should be given appropriate time to cure. Also, in more humid or colder climates that time frame can change so that's something to consider when requesting an install from a finisher or trying it yourself. The website has all kinds of additional information and you can always write with questions!

The odor on the primer and minerals is very limited, I almost didn't smell anything at all, but the topcoat is a heavier odor. Be cautious to work in a well ventilated area, open windows, etc.

Great news:

The product is water based
The polymers in the resin resist bacteria
The company carries a streak free, environmentally friendly cleaner made specifically for the Giani Granite system! The Countertop Cleaner is only $4.50 a 22oz. bottle and will last for 2 or more months depending on your cooking/cleaning use.

Overall I'm not only excited to write about this product, but I can not wait to begin offering one of the six color options (or a custom one that I whip up!) to my clients! Thanks Giani Granite for sharing such an innovative product!

Want to try your hand at a granite finish? Click on Products on the Giani website and you can order your own kit.

Want to hire a finisher like me to install it for you? I'd love to discuss your project if you're in the Phoenix, AZ or Boston, MA areas. Leave a comment here or follow on FB or twitter and we can begin discussing your project today!

Manic Monday

2011-07-25T12:09:00.000-04:00

Much like the Bangles back in 1986 I'm running a little late this morning in getting on with the work day. But I guess when you work for yourself from home its not quite as critical when stuff gets started as long as it eventually gets started right? Right!

My schedule has changed quite a bit since moving to the sunny southwest. Anyone who knows me knows my former body clock was that of a vampire -- not to add too many song lyrics to today's post or anything but, yes, I love the nightlife. Once we got here I figured it was the time change and that I'd readjust after a few weeks.

Its been almost a month and, most days, I'm feeling like the song lyrics of today's post title "6 o'clock already I was just in the middle of a dream..."

But rather than lament over the fact I can't keep kissing Valentino in the fantasy world of sleepy haze, I just get up, get coffee, a low sodium veggie juice and get to it.

Right now its almost 9:00 and I'm already done with email, about to post this blog, and in the midst of making my list of the day's to-do's. Its pretty short -- read & study for school and rearrange the office. Now that we have our new desk set up I actually want to work in here but everything else needs to shift around in order to accommodate them because these desks are huge!

With Matt working remotely and me running a business from home its pretty vital we have a super duper functioning office. Huge desks or not!

After the office furniture rearranging (once I finish school work of course!), I have 2 projects I plan to get a jump start on-- first is an old footstool that I plan to breathe new life into with a little paint and fabric re-design, and second is unpacking the box full of minerals, paint and brushes and beginning the learning process of my Giani Granite! Can't wait to get that underway.

So much so of course that I want to skip doing everything else today but "time it goes so fast...(when you're having fun)" so I guess work should come first. Sigh, that's why Sunday is the fun day I guess!

What's on your agenda today? Big plans, little plans, wide plans, skinny plans, lotsa plans, no plans...???

Back In the Game

2011-07-24T11:41:00.000-04:00

Good morning everyone!

What a whirlwind it has been around here. As many of you know the CSD offices moved almost all the way across the country from Boston, Mass to Phoenix, Arizona back at the end of June. Our official reopen date was July 5 but of course the best intentions sometimes don't really matter worth squat :-)

So I'm slowly reintroducing items back into my Etsy shop and materials are beginning to roll in to get me back on track with creating!

However...Here's the Skinny

As many of you may know I fancy myself a writer. As even more of you may know I wrote a novel a couple years ago and would like it to be published and sold to the general reading public. My intention is to flip-flop my business so once my writing takes a publishable turn, I intend to focus on it full time and faux will only be a part time endeavor.

Now you may be saying, 'well geez Jenn, you haven't updated the blog since March so how is this not part time now?' and that's an excellent question. My client installations in-home really took front and center stage before the move and it allowed me little to no flexibility in creating the smaller pieces. Here's an example of a space that was completed before leaving Boston:

Gorgeous right? I completed the paint on the walls (plaster upper [including some skim-coat repair work] & wainscot), ceiling, trim, and radiator cover. Their walls were this pukey periwinkle color before and really didn't go with the house at all. Now it really flows from space to space, feels totally spa like due to the client's new textile selections, and they couldn't have been more pleased with the final product! Me either honestly :-)

In addition to wall installations I also have school taking up a good portion of time still. Going well but there sure is a lot of reading!

So What Now?

Now I can bring the company back to life. Over the next 4-6 months I'm intending to complete some furniture refinishing, an installation or two, perhaps some graphic artwork and a cool new finish option called Giani Granite that I simply can not wait to try out.

The Granite is going to be something that I hope to utilize in commercially accessible art pieces as well as on the counter tops of a lot of client's homes. Stay tuned, especially for my review of the product in general -- I plan to tackle a couple free standing pieces in the next couple weeks.

It feels good to be back!

Big Fat Slacker! Where Writing Blogs is Concerned

2011-03-16T09:17:00.001-04:00

If you follow both this page as well as my personal blog you're going to see the exact same post in both places today. I'd apologize for that but really I'm far too busy to let it bother me haha.

Work has been great lately, I've been painting and meeting with some folks in an effort to kick start a little business again. I love it, love my company and love my job. I only wish it didn't take so darn long to work it because by the time people are ready to hire me, Matt and I will be moving!

(hint, hint -- get me now before we're gone haha)

That's another thing though, the move. We are intending to take almost nothing with us because after years of living like we're still in college (in our mid 30's) we're both ready to upgrade the furniture on the other side. Of course that means we're selling it all and with me being the at home gal, the picture taking, description writing and listing location decision making falls on me. No biggie its just that its a lot of work to research all that stuff and list it!

It will be nice to have a few extra bucks in our pocket to make the journey with though!

Which brings me to school. My college is awesome and they've let me take a 2 week break in order to move. The really cool thing is that a class ends the very day we plan to leave so the schedule barely even has to shift.

So anyway, with school, work, pimpin business and general life living my blogs have really fallen by the wayside. I don't intend to give them up though (never!) so I hope you'll stick around for the times when I do post! And I promise to comment soon, I try to still read all of yours even if I simply lurk around the blogosphere in the background.

Have a great rest of the week and with any luck I'll get a feature faux up on Friday...after I read these 4 chapters and list some more stuff on eBay...

Tuesday Tip of the Day -- Do What You Can!

2011-03-09T09:19:00.000-05:00

And I sincerely mean that from the bottom of my heart because I don't really have an excuse for not writing yesterday (actually on Tuesday) other than I simply didn't!

Little things in life like blogs going out on the day that people expect them can't bog down my mind or else I'm never going to get anywhere now am I? Instead my brain is taking a little vacation from pressure and stress. In my head, I'm the person who just vacated the beach chair in this scene, the one who is going to give surfing a try, if only those waves got a little bigger!

**Thank You Friends and Fans**

So with that in mind and the 'Do What You Can' mentality pumping through my teeny blue veins, I'd love to share some of the positive feedback I got over at Facebook about my Southwest Mountain mural! My family and friends are awesome to give so much support and I really want to thank them bunches for all the positive vibes! I really love my job and it is super gratifying to see that so many people enjoy the work that I do, especially on a piece that is among my favorites in recent history. And one that I thoroughly enjoyed painting from inspiration!

"...at first glance I thought this was a real photo. It's beautiful!!!"

"Where have you been hiding this talent? I never knew you were so artistic - brilliant, yes; but this type of artistic I didn't have a clue!"

"awesome!!"

"Do you do this for money? I would love to have you come paint something in [little girl]'s room."

"...I keep having crazy mural / paint ideas for the boys bedroom/playroom."

"Very nice! Love the shading on this, Jenn. This reminds me of Arizona. I love how the Saguaros look like they're marching up the hills... in this pic and in real life."

"Great work Jenn! :)"

I don't want to share who said what, if you said it you know who you are and I could not thank you more for thinking of me and my talent! Not only the two friends who actually mentioned they would hire me (yippie!) but to everyone for just taking a second out of your day to tell me that you appreciate my work. Even if it was only one second of your time spent clicking that little Facebook Like button. To the additional 20+ of you who did just that, I just wanted to say you rock too!

To all of you I am so very grateful for your encouragement. And to any of you who do choose to hire me to complete something awesome in your spaces, I truly appreciate the support and can not wait to get started on your project!

Feature Faux - Southwest Mountain Mural

2011-03-05T10:33:00.002-05:00

A day late but finished up the board last night and I am in love with this so I figured why not just put it up on Saturday instead. Hey, its early enough right? It almost still qualifies as Friday :-)

To start I called on my favorite Photographer Judi FitzPatrick Studio who I knew would have a wonderful photo that I could use as my inspiration. She scanned in her picture and emailed it to me. Next I flipped it horizontal in Photoshop and printed it out on a plain piece of scrap paper so I could reference the lines and areas of light or dark.

Isn't this photo fantastic? She captures an old time feel with this one, super talented artist. Her work is well worth having hanging in your home! Check her link above to find out how and where to purchase everything from gorgeous greeting cards to large fine art photos.

Back to the board...

I started out on this board the same as my Under the Sea mural but reversed the blended glaze to mimic sky with the darker glaze at the top and lightened as I went down.

Then I put in the clouds, the big puffy ones at the top of the board, the thin ones I finished after getting the mountains in place. Using colored pencils I lightly drew some reference lines for where I wanted my mountains to be placed and then I pulled out a whole bunch of my brand new acrylic paints and got mixing, brushing and shading.

With the mountain's placement complete, the shading from sun angle to show highs and lows came next. Then using those areas as a guide I added in the desert brush / bushes and saguaro cactus randomly until it felt right. A little highlight and depth, plus shadow spots on those areas, and all that was left to do was sign my artwork!

My mom has suggested I start listing my pieces for sale in my Etsy Shop as they shouldn't go to waste just sitting in my portfolio case. I think she may be right but I keep thinking I'd love to get something like this on canvas instead of the plastic mighty boards, then maybe even make prints as well to keep the cost a little lower. Any thoughts?

I'd love to discuss painting a larger scale mural in this or other styles in your home or business. Check out my About tab for contact information and get in touch today so we can work together to create the perfect picture, faux finish or artwork for you!

Tuesday Tip of the Day - Dot the Top

2011-03-01T15:46:00.000-05:00

Wow folks I can't believe an entire week has gone by since my last post over here! I also apologize for not getting the feature faux up last Friday, between work, school, family and simply living my week just whizzed by in the blink of an eye!

Which of course means we've got another fun tip of the day to explore today.

I thought it might be fun, after reading this morning about Mary's organizational tirade (nice work girl!) to talk a little bit about how I organize my own items. Specifically in my case all those paints and tints that come in smaller tubes and bottles.

A couple weekends ago my husband and I happeded to be at Michaels while they were having a 50% off sale on a specific brand of acrylic craft paint. Okay, in all fairness I was at Michaels for the sale, he was only there as he offered to help carry heavy stuff (thanks babe!). And its a good thing he was, with that 50% off sale plus the fact that I was literally at the bottom of almost every single bottle of acrylic paint in my small storage box, I knew it was time to restock.

When doing sample boards, murals, and other things I need to dry quickly I tend to use it for a couple reasons:

It is far less expensive than buying even those small pots of latex paint
It is still a water based product
I sets up great on my Mighty Boards
The variety of colors can't be beat

And that was where I found the problem when I got home, how in the heck was I going to be able to tell which was which once inside the adorable box I picked up to store them all?

Of course first and foremost, since I'm totally OCD with my organization I had to line them all up in rainbow order...

Then as I started using them I had the fantastic idea to take a little dot of the paint color and touch the top of the cover with it...

Now when I access the box and need, say, a tan, I know just where to look to find it! Plus as months go on I'll know which paints get the most use and which (if any) don't ever get opened. That way I'll know what my own trends are in design and paint!

Tuesday Tip of the Day - Walk it In

2011-02-22T17:58:00.001-05:00

Ever wonder why glazed walls sometimes have very obvious places where the sections meet up? That's because the artist didn't walk in their glaze!

First and most important is to start in a corner and always work from the top down. That way any drips or missteps can be adjusted as you go. Pull your glaze out from the corner in a diagonal -- never work in square or rectangular sections with glaze!

Now let's say for example you're doing a simple mottled glaze on a wall. Tools you need would be:

Tape to protect the areas you don't want glazed
A bucket to mix your glaze
A large foam brush to apply the glaze
A pouncer brush to soften out edges of each section and get into corners
A wrap of cheesecloth to push glaze around as well as remove some from the wall

That's it!

I apply the tinted glaze with a foam brush in random, flailing, swirly patterns. This leaves more glaze in some spots than others and will help to distribute correctly when softening. It may sound strange but some areas of the wall should be left without glaze on them. Why? Because the cheesecloth and pouncer brush will help you walk glaze into those areas. Now I'm not talking big sections of wall, I mean within the spot where you're applying with the foam brush, random spots can be blank within your swirly.

So you swirl and splat and flail glaze about the wall and now you've softened and mottled to your liking with cheesecloth and a pouncer. How do you make it meet up without it looking like a big overlap line from glaze hell?

This is where the term walk it in comes into play.

Do not overlap the wet edge of the previous section with your new flailing glaze, just come close to it. Then with the cheesecloth or pouncer pretend the glaze is taking a "walk" into the other glaze through your hand motion. It helps to feather off the thickness and leave you with less visible join lines.

Work all the way across the wall from top to bottom in diagonal sections and voila, a mottled wall with soft join lines that are all but imperceptible!

And just a little side tip regarding cheesecloth -- the first few passes with new cloths will take off a lot of glaze so I usually reserve the newest for the center of each section. But don't over saturate it either or it won't be doing its job! When it looks more the color of your glaze than the white it started out as, its time for new pieces.

Friday's featured #faux finish is going to be so much fun, I'll be showcasing the #mural I completed on top of the blended glaze from last week's Friday feature! Hope to see you back here for that!

Friday Feature Faux - Blended Glaze

2011-02-18T09:52:00.000-05:00

Good morning lovers of all things pretty! I hope this finish inspires you to think up all kinds of fun and cool ideas today -- its a Blended Glaze!

I used three different tones of blue to blend into this softly gradating finish that goes from light blue to dark. This board is going to become a super cute mural of underwater sea life and sand plus probably some bubbles too!

Which of course brings me to the very most important part of all...the attitude adjustment this finish has provided me! Not that I'm typically a grumpy pants or anything but ever since I decided to do this underwater mural theme I can not get The Little Mermaid soundtrack out of my head!

And really, how can anyone ever be unhappy with those fantastically fun lyrics and island beats coursing through their brain? I think as I apply the sand, seaweed, creatures and bubbles to this board later today that I should put on the movie, or at least the soundtrack, as my inspirational backdrop!

But I digress back to that finish...

This board is intended to be water but as soon as I finished it I started thinking how cool it would look as an effect to create a cloudy sky on a bathroom or bedroom ceiling, or if I mixed a little pearl into the glaze and went with tones of white and super light gray I could create a falling snow effect...oh so many options!

This would be perfect in playrooms, pediatricians offices, rec centers, nurseries, preschools, day care centers...and I can't wait to get started installing it!

Tuesday Tip of the Day - Creating Crisp Lines on Stripes

2011-02-15T14:14:00.000-05:00

Stripes are everywhere these days from linens to upholstery and home decor accessories. In faux the way stripes are used can vary wildly depending on the application.

If you want to bring some drama and sophistication to a formal living room for example create a focal wall of tone on tone 6" wide stripes in alternating matte and metallic finishes. When done correctly it will look like wallpaper.

I created these stripes for a nursery:

They are 9" wide and alternate in milk chocolate and baby blue strie. Essentially I rolled the glaze on the wall within the tape lines and then pulled through it with a specific type of brush that leaves some of the glaze while pulling off other areas. It gives a soft pin-stripe effect and it is a finish the homeowner loved because their twin boys could grow into it for years before having to redo the walls.

And that brings me to the tip of the day -- how to make sure that gorgeous paint doesn't bleed under your tape causing the perfectly crisp line to get all wonky.

Because really there is nothing worse than taking the entire day to measure out, mask off and paint or glaze your stripe only to pull the tape and find that the beautiful blue seeped over that rich brown. A wonky line is a finisher's worst nightmare!

So you get your tape up and your stripes are ready to go. Here's what to do. Take your base coat and paint a line right down the inside edge of your stripe, the area where you are going to be putting the finish. Make sure to cover a little bit of the tape itself. Let it dry for about an hour and then complete the finish.

Voila! Any bleed under the tape will be the same color as the wall and you've left with an almost imperceptible ridge that will "catch" the other color (if alternating) which will also help to prevent bleed through of the alternating color.

This handy little trick can be used in all kinds of places:

When painting the wall but not your trim run a line of trim paint along the tape
When doing the exact opposite run a little wall paint instead
If painting everything including ceilings, trim is usually completed last so start at the top and work your way down

It might mean a small bit of extra time to allow the paint to dry on the tape line but it sure will save a whole lot of headaches when you don't have to try to touch up a finish!

Thanks for the Gifties EcoKaren!

2011-02-11T14:29:00.001-05:00

Could all of these items be any cuter or more awesome?

I'm a teammate in the best team in the land -- EcoEtsy -- and just around Christmastime our fearless leader Karen proposed doing a little gift swap with each other. Nothing fancy, just a nice way to connect, promote through giving and all that fun stuff. I don't think she expected the volume of positive response she got for this super fun idea!

The basic gist was if you got a gift for the holidays that was just not your thing, or if you had an item from your shop you wanted to send out to another member, the organizers would take the list of what was available, compare it to the list of wants and "Secret Santa" set up a swap partner.

And by some stroke of luck I was fortunate enough that the gal sending me a super awesome something-something was our fearless leader herself! Hooray!

A handmad heart brooch (so romantical!), hand bound journal (sweet!! this writer will use that all the time!!) and adorable card (that will likely go right to my husband on Valentine's Day!) arrived on my doorstep with a hand written note inside the other card. The one with the palm tree on it. The one that Karen picked especially for me because she knew I needed a little sunshine and warm sandy beaches right now.

And oh how right she is, I'm living vicariously through the card right now :-)

Thanks for running such a great team, for always coming up with super innovative ways for us to connect and for your unbelievably generous gifts that you sent Karen! I love everything and couldn't be more excited to get this package of goodies from you!

A Friend's Giveaway

2011-02-05T10:13:00.000-05:00

Let's take a break from faux talk and chat about all things glass. My friend and EcoEtsy teammate Debby from Debby Arem Designs is having a giveaway on her blog! Check these earrings out...

Aren't they gorgeous? Well I think so and you'll have to fight me for them because I've already entered!

Click on the picture above to go to her blog and enter to win. The giveaway ends TOMORROW (Sunday) so get on over there pronto!

Coming up on the blog...Tuesday Tip of the Day! A new feature where I'll share some super simple tips that might make painting a little easier for everyone.

Feature Faux - This Week: Heavily Weathered

2011-02-03T11:27:00.000-05:00

I've decided to start running a new feature here at the blog called Featured Faux. (Can't guarantee how often it'll go up but hopefully weekly!)

Our first ever Featured finish option is the one in the picture (as well, it can be found on the right under the heading 'In the Studio') and I've named it Heavily Weathered. Now some of you may be familiar with crackle finish where a crackle medium is applied to base paint and then another paint is applied on top of that. When the cracks start to appear and spread out it really is like magic isn't it?

Well this finish option takes your standard crackle a few steps further. I add marks, mars and scars plus an overlay of glazing and scrapes and scratches to give an even more aged appearance. Then I top it off with a finish coat of low VOC, waterborne varnish and give you a high five for making your home look so cool!

I just caught a finisher doing something similar the other night to a desk on HGTV's new show Cash & Cari and I was impressed that its apparently a finish in fashion because I've been doing it for years and love it!

A lot of you are probably looking at my sample board up there at the top of this post and thinking 'But Jenn does walls, I don't want that all over my walls its too much!' and in many instances (not all mind you!) you're probably right. So where do I alternately suggest putting a finish like this?

How about on a smaller, more commercially accessible piece like a headboard, picture frame, bookshelf, stepstool, wall hanging or memory trunk? Or why not let me do the trim in one room of your house where you are trying to get that cottage feel? Even more fun, I'll tape off stripes and paint shadow lines to make this look like individual wainscot planks.

Okay, all that is great but what if you don't like this antique white over brown look and want something softer, or brighter even? What if you're starting to gather concepts for your soon-to-be-here little girl's nursery and want something, well, girlie? Folks, the color options are quite literally endless! I can do a pink on pink using a soft pink overlay on a baby pink base. Or maybe your daughter is older and wants fluorescent popping off fuchsia (like these gorgeous flowers inspire!)? Let's talk about doing up some custom picture frames to house photos of all her best friends.

But finishes aren't just for girls! Maybe you're a sports guy rooting for the Green Bay Packers in this year's Super Bowl and looking to get a one of a kind "mancave". Why not have me apply this to a couple small tables where everyone puts their drinks on game day, only I'll do it in gold over green like any Cheesehead would insist on having!

Endless opportunities exist for the color and location options of this treatment!

Where would you like to see me put this in your house? Feel free to get in touch to discuss custom orders today, all initial consultations are free and I'd be happy to work with shipping needs for any clients out of state!

Business Networking -- My New Favorite Activity!

2011-02-01T10:41:00.000-05:00

A semi quick update today because it is already snowing and I want to try to stay ahead of the storm as much as possible where shoveling is concerned. Not that I have a clue in hell where I'll put it all considering the mounds on our front "lawn" are already above the bottom sill of our front windows but you know, I'm giving it my best shot!

Maybe I could faux it with my new paint sprayer to look like big mounds of sand...That's my husband in the photo tossing a shovel full of the stuff two storms ago. Note the height of the mounds then, we have about another 6" compacted on top of them since. We'll be buried inside pretty soon so I'm getting out while I still can!

Last night my mom, the uber talented owner of Judi FitzPatrick Studio (who by the way created my current company logo/avatar, isn't it awesome?!?) and I attended the Arlington Entrepreneurs meeting to discuss how to expand and / or increase our business lead potential by using LinkedIn. Now I had heard of the popular networking site but didn't create a company profile until I registered for the AE seminar so it was all pretty new to me but with the help of Andy Winig and his engaging presentation we both left a little more knowledgeable about not only LinkedIn but initiating a pitch face to face!

Oh and I'd like to thank Margy from AE for pulling my name as one of the prize winners of the night. The information is just waiting for me to dive into as soon as I'm done with this update! Hooray for winning, i feel like the luckiest girl in the world right now to have won two great prizes in the same week!

So of course because of the meeting I've now joined LinkedIn as Chucka Stone Designs so if you're over there and want to see some more of my work or just connect business to business I'd love that!

I met some truly fantastic people last night and may even end up booking a couple jobs (and vice versa!) from the meeting, I handed out a number of business cards and received as many interesting and unique people's ventures from Life Coaching to Nutritionists and everything in between!

Anyway, that's about the long and short of the night. The cool thing about the AE group is you don't have to be an Arlington resident to join, you just have to run your own business and have an entrepreneurial spirit! So if you're in the area I recommend checking them out. I'd love to run into you at the next meeting!

Benjamin Moore Knows How to Party!

2011-01-28T16:27:00.000-05:00

Not too long ago I professed my love for the 128 year old paint retailer Benjamin Moore. Well after last night's Contractor Expo I think we might have a problem, I've fallen head over heels in love! *swoon*

Last night's event, held at the Peabody Marriott, was my first ever Expo and what a grand way to enter into the world of Contractor networking, I won the grand prize raffle! But that comes later, first let me back up and give a little more of my overall take on the good times we all shared.

I flew solo on this one and considering its just me running and working for my company that was just fine. There were plenty of others who brought associates, friends or maybe even clients so they would have someone to talk to but I've always been comfortable enough in my own skin that I don't need a wingman for this type of stuff. Well not when it comes to business anyway!

At first it was looking like I would be the only girl in the place but in short order a few more women filtered in. Most were with other women so I didn't expect they would sit at my table, that was cool, I was really there for the information not to make life long friends. Although the networking was great! Within five minutes I learned that we got dinner and an opportunity to see the latest and greatest, not to mention a brief history on the company as well as another brief seminar on building our business for profit.

A few people came to sit up front with this shorty, and I spent most of the night talking to a couple north shore contractors and one from a little further west of the city. All great people, and all kind of slow in their business presently. I'm in the same boat but it is winter, traditionally a tough time for painters to source new business. It was just comforting to know I wasn't alone. The presentations were fantastic and we were given a booklet with specs on every type of paint or covering/coating the company offers. THIS will come in very handy (not to mention the pen we got with it and the coupons for free product woo hoo!).

I was excited to learn so many of the paints they offer make use of the Benjamin Moore GENNEX® technology now. As a brief on what this is -- they have patented a formula that allows their paint and tints to claim no or low VOC based on this waterborne colorant. From their newest paint offering, Advance® (a waterborne alkyd -- no that isn't an oxymoron, I'll talk more on this another time) to their Greenest option Natura® (a virtually odorless, zero VOC paint), many of their cans fit the bill of low/no VOC and I could not be more excited!

As a finisher it is really important that the base paint be a high quality but also something that allows for proper adhesion and flow of my glazes, etc. I have never been let down.

When we first got there we all got red tickets for the raffle and owners (like me!) got yellow tickets. The grand prize of the night was a Graco® Airless Electric Paint Sprayer (linked below if you want to check out the specs and value) and holy crow, I WON!! I don't know what I'll do with it but it sure opens up worlds of opportunities for different & new business that I didn't have before.

I was already loving Benny before last night but now that I'm armed with an arsenal of information to offer all kinds of different options to my clients I'm even more enamored. Not to mention they gave us a free tee shirt, baseball cap, paint brush and access to their new painter/contractor referral program online.

Thanks for what proved to be a wonderful evening and a wealth of useful information; watch out Benjamin, I might be forced to stalk you now!

Faux for Real

2011-01-24T17:55:00.000-05:00

Lately this has been a very difficult thing for me to come to grips with -- my lack of direction and/or focus in one true area. There are days when I feel like I should be sewing items for my shop while others I just want to abandon the sewing machine altogether in favor of paint, plaster, stencils and the cabinets full of faux tools I own.

But then I start to wonder, how the heck does the decorative treatment I apply to a whole room translate into not only something small enough to put in my shop but also environmentally responsible enough that my teammates in EcoEtsy won't chase me down the street like an angry mob carrying torches? With LED lights attached, not burning materials of course.

The Real and the Faux

The type of products I use in my paint treatments are all, let me repeat that, all, water based. I have actually turned down work because they desired an oil based finish and although the paycheck would have been nice it would have been hard to justify sleeping at night after releasing that much VOC into the atmosphere.

In case you're not up to speed on what VOC's are feel free to check out this article I wrote up a little less than a week ago:
What the Heck Is With A VOC Anyway?

For the smaller more accesible items I do tend to source materials from stuff I already have on hand and my inspiration comes from just about everywhere! Just the other night my husband and I were doing our evening workout and all of a sudden I noticed the "metal" panels behind the participants in the video.

I had seen them a million times before but it suddenly hit me that they were rusted. Yet the impression was that they were steel. Steel doesn't really rust so I knew it was a finish and all at once I was doing my moves by rote while I tried to envision what paints I already had on hand to mix up a batch and try to recreate the effect.

That's the other thing, if I can help it I don't buy new products when there are perfectly good paints in multiple colors, and low VOC tints, in my back hall cabinets that I can use to mix up whatever shade I need. Not to mention with a house full of random bits and pieces, sometimes its fun to freshen them up with a new and fun finish.

Yeah, But Is It Attractive?

The really great thing about faux, decorative treatments, standard paint is that the beauty is in the eye of the homeowner! I have done some stuff that would never (and I mean never) grace my own home yet I still enjoyed completing the finish because the satisfaction of the client was the single most important thing at the end of the day.

Want an example? Well I thought you'd never ask!

I had a straight up paint job last summer where I worked as a Sub-Contractor for a General Contractor who was renovating a home to rent. He wanted a good solid return on his investment and didn't want to put in more effort or money than the area called for. A reasonable business practice and one that worked out in his favor. Yet I (internally of course) shook my head at him when he asked me to paint the somewhat beat up hardwood floors throughout the house in brown.

Bottom line was I really didn't think it added much to the look and feel of the space but I wasn't living with it! In the end he wasn't either but, since he was the one who hired me, I simply made sure it was a water based paint, grabbed a roller and a tray then got to work.

For Sale: Your Old For Sale Sign

With all of my soul searching I decided on (or, probably more appropriately accepted as truths) a few things:

I really enjoy painting and conceiving of interesting finishes.
Faux kind of comes naturally to me; even if I've never done it before I can probably figure it out.
I am far more apt to get frustrated while sewing than while fauxing items I plan to sell.
The very nature of faux means I never screw up, its just becomes a different finish.
Materials can come from anywhere and they don't need to cost a million dollars.

That last point is really important because I've made some things out of items that people would have never believed. A good example is my small sample boards.

Most finishers use a product called Mighty Boards to work up a sample. They are a heavy weight plastic based material that are waterproof and pretty much indestructable but can be cut to any size or shape with a regular old pair of good weight household scissors. With the correct primer, a finish will stick to them forever without chipping or peeling off.

The real issue is they are expensive as all get out for those of us who only do a few big jobs a year so I started looking for alternatives. Enter the For Sale sign. Made of a similar material (albeit much lighter weight) these signs come in a couple different sizes and I can pick them up at my local hardware store. Which means no cost to ship. And the cost to purchase is reasonable. The smaller signs run me about $0.49. They are great for working up samples that I plan to either cover over or may need to rework to meet a client's needs.

Plus I can find them for free or cheap on sites like craigslist or Freecycle if I spend a little time researching.

The Big Idea

So the other night when I was putting the second coat of primer on a couple of these boards I had a brainstorm. It came to me as a result of having recently started a decorative wall hanging that I intend to put in my shop for sale a little later this week when I get the kinks worked out on how I want to finish the edges.

The wall hanging is a khaki sage green color wash with raised roses that I accented in pearl paint. It is shaping up really nicely and those of you who follow me on Facebook have already seen the sneak peek but for those who haven't:

The roses are made from dragging joint compound through a stencil and it hit me that I could do just about anything in this manner. Some of the items I've considered might be words (like LOVE, CHOCOLATE or PRINCESS). Or perhaps just a few more of these pretty roses or other fun shapes. I have a folder full of stencils and buckets full of joint compound so I might as well put them to good use right?!

In the next few weeks I'll be cutting up my For Sale signs, painting them, finishing them and then scrounging around the basement for some leftover wood shims that I can glue together to act as frames.

Stay tuned for pictures and info on these new items as I complete them. And who knows, maybe some of them will even have a rusted steel background...

No Before, but Here's the After!

2011-01-20T08:45:00.001-05:00

I have this little superstition in me that comes from creating things for a while. It is that every time I decide to take before photos so I can share the transformation of something, I mess up the whole project and don't end up with an after. It has been the case more times than I can count so with this particular project I decided to leave well enough alone and just finish it so I could share the after photos with you.

But there's no harm in telling you what I did...

My husband recently got rid of a lot of old pants that were either completely worn at the ankle, too big, too small or simply no longer his style. Because we both have close to the same waist dimensions I had this great idea that I could make use of all these little treasures and create myself a bunch of pocketed skirts for this upcoming summer! (The one that I pray every day is right around the corner!)

This first little number used to be a pair of shorts. The material is kind of a heavy seersucker type cotton and it fits me great now!

The waist may be a teeny bit too big but I can take that in as the warmer months get closer. What do you think? In life the fabric is baby blue & navy and I already have the perfect white hoodie to create a preppy little sailor outfit.

Now if only it would stop snowing around here!

I hope everyone gets a chance to swing by Harvest Moon By Hand to check out the Mid Week Motivation posts, some fantastic artisans over there! Now I need to think of what next week's motivation will be!

What the Heck Is With A VOC Anyway?

2011-01-16T09:59:00.000-05:00

This morning while perusing one of my favorite blogs, EcoEtsy, I read the most recent posted article by Moonbeads titled “What Is Low Volatile Organic Compound (VOC) Paint”. Of course, as a professional Faux Finisher / Decorative Treatment Installer this subject hit very close to home and I started writing up my comment back.

Suddenly I realized my comment had taken on a life of its own as it grew and grew in length and depth and it became clear that my own blog post was definitely in order!

To fully comprehend what I’m saying below it is important to first read the post over on the EcoEtsy team blog. Its okay, I can wait. I have a good book here. Ooh, or maybe I’ll peruse some of your Facebook pages while I wait…

Okay, now that you’re back, let’s continue that conversation.

I think it’s really important to point out the info in both the No-VOC and Low-VOC bullet points because a very common misconception is that No/Low VOC paint will also not smell bad. This is not always true! Sometimes an odor is still emitted while painting. The VOC itself only comes into play after the drying process has been completed -- it is not the "new paint smell", those are individually different items.

The compounds are released as paint cures. Some paints take up to 90 days to fully cure, some NEVER fully cure and will release the compounds into the air forever (some alkyd paints are this way). The bullet mentions Benjamin Moore Aura as an example of Low-VOC. I use this paint almost exclusively now for that very reason but it does still smell "painty" when rolled on.

Natura is a somewhat more recent addition to the line of environmentally responsible paints that the company offers. I haven’t had a chance to try it yet but am fully intrigued by its properties! Based on the website Natura:

♥ Is washable
♥ Fade resistant
♥ Dries to the touch in 30 minutes, can be recoated in 1 hour
♥ Is virtually odorless
♥ The top coat paints are mildew resistant (flat, eggshell, semi-gloss)
♥ And has zero VOC

Now here’s something very important to remember when it comes to paint -- just because you bought a zero VOC paint doesn’t mean it will be that way when you take it home.

Wait…what?

That’s right. You may grab that can of paint that reads zero VOC on the label and feel great about your purchase but unless you know for absolute certainty that the tint used, to turn it that lovely shade of forest green you desire, is also zero VOC, everything you just did to better your environment with the paint itself is undone in a flash.

This is where Benjamin Moore (and other boutique paint shops like Sherwin Williams, etc. -- check with your local retailers to find out for sure!) win because when tinting Natura, Aura or any of their Low/No VOC paint options the tint is also a Low/No VOC option.

This is a little known fact and something crucial to your health because the pigments and binding agents in latex based tints are excessively stronger than those found in a tube of acrylic craft paint for example. Remember, that teeny little squirt they put into the can of bright white paint has to turn it as dark as the forest green on the paint chip you brought them to match right?

It is always a good idea to ask the person behind the counter who is mixing your paint any questions like this. If they can’t answer or are not sure then chances are there will be VOC in the tinted can of paint you take home with you.

Upcycled, Salvaged, Earth Happy Eye Mask

2011-01-15T08:37:00.000-05:00

Straight from my Etsy shop:

I'm promoting this adorable eye mask today. Aren't the stripes so trendy? It is a sweet little way to pamper yourself or someone you love!

Use my coupon code FRESH50 at checkout and this adorable mask is only $6...wait what was that? Did I say only six dollars? You bet I did!

The whole shop is in need of a turnover right now and everything is 50% off when you use the coupon code above. So shop for you, shop for someone else, just get shopping! Click the photo to be taken directly to the listing or use the link at the bottom of the listing info.

Need some extra shut eye in a bright world? This cute eye mask will help you sleep easy because all the materials are either salvaged, upcycled or repurposed!

From upcycled old projects to bed sheets to poly fill left over from another project, you'll be stylish and a planet lover with this baby on your face at night!

The pattern is my own design.

Mask measures approximately 6" wide x 3" high, elastic will stretch to fit just about any size head.

Feel free to write with questions.

Sweet Dreams!

To purchase this item please visit the Etsy listing page here. Don't forget coupon code FRESH50 at checkout to receive 50% off anything in the shop!

Who Doesn't Love A Good Update?

2011-01-14T12:22:00.000-05:00

I'm baaaaaack...

Well to be fair I never really went anywhere at all, this blog just hasn't been updated in ages, almost four months now! That was because I decided to break off from my company blog and start a new online journal for my writing & rambling called Random Lunacy.

Things are going well over there, feel free to come on over and join the party!

Otherwise I updated my company website yesterday and have been actively getting back into my shop again so it kind of hit me that perhaps revisiting this here blog wouldn't be such a bad idea. I've jazzed it up and added quite a bit of material, links and info that relates solely to my company.

Welcome to the new Chucka Stone Designs blog!

Poke around and scroll all the way to the bottom to follow. I'll be updating more regularly than every four months now I promise!

Trimming the Fat

2010-09-21T15:16:00.000-04:00

It suddenly came to my attention that I am flailing about. That isn’t like me. Generally when I get a new job I throw myself into it whole heartedly and everything else falls by the wayside. I don’t know why I haven’t considered doing that with my writing career until now.

But now I am.

Because this old blog was tied to Chucka Stone Designs I’m moving everything over to a new locale a little more appropriately named. Still the same wonderfully erratic Random Lunacy you’ve all grown to love, but the blogger link finally reads to match.

I’ll be updating the new blog from now on so please come on over and follow me at

http://randomnessandlunacy.blogspot.com/

to keep reading. I’ve imported this blog so far to date -- posts, comments, etc but you will have to re-follow to keep reading.

It will be most appreciated if you do of course! And when you do don't forget to change any links you have to me. I'll be working quickly to get all of your links added over there on my 'Friends' tab.

The other thing is that I’ll be taking everything down from my company website except faux and paint jobs. Etsy is wonderful and I really think its fun to have a shop but I’m not committed to continuing with handbags and stuff like that. Wall art, faux pieces and things that really relate to my business will be the name of the game.

With that said I’ve been really, really, really contemplating taking down Green Leaf Reviewer as well. I love the environment, hell the planet is obviously important to me because it’s my home, but if I’m really going to buckle down and focus on writing novels I think I need a few less things to obsess over not working on.

I will make a final determination soon but for anyone who follows me there, fear not. That kind of stuff will likely streamline right over to Random Lunacy occasionally when something planet awesome strikes my fancy.

There is a craft fair coming up that I committed to and I have still got a boat load of fabric in my repurpose stash so I’ll be making pillows and other fun stuff for that but once that’s over I’ll be dragging out the old sewing machine likely only to make myself some new clothes.

Oh yeah, that's because I’m doing some literal fat trimming too. Matt and I just bought, and are about to start tomorrow, the first 90 day regimen of P90X.

Between working out, writing and hunting down an Agent I think I’ll barely miss all that other stuff that until now has just been weighing me down.

So don’t forget to go to http://randomnessandlunacy.blogspot.com/ and follow me there. Thanks all! ♥love♥

Never Forget

2010-09-11T09:38:00.001-04:00

This is a very difficult day for me. For the past nine years it has become increasingly more so. It is kind of hard to explain why but I think you probably know me well enough to understand to a point. I'm one of those people who absorb the energies of the people around me, take it in, mix it up and do my best to expel happiness in its place (no matter what their original state was).

Nine years ago I was inundated with so much overwhelming sadness and dark sky all at once that I couldn't transform it. I couldn’t mix it into something positive, or beautiful or radiant because there was too much sorrow coming across the wires. My entire body went limp and I felt spent every minute of every day, until the first plane made its way back into the sky again and a small glimmering of hope returned to a few.

The feeling left me very hollow and empty for weeks and I struggled greatly with how to cope with the losses of the world on that day.

I remember what I was wearing (a sleeveless black and white zebra print top in a light weight polyester and black Capri pants with a strappy open toe kitten heel sandal, because it was unseasonably warm, and I had bright red lipstick on, because I was trying to make a statement), who I was with (a co-worker that I shared an office with), who told me (another co-worker who casually sauntered down the hall and said ‘hey did you hear the World Trade Center exploded?’), how fast we discovered that it wasn’t the building in Boston but in NYC and just what it meant.

Boston.com was our first stop and there on the front page was a picture of one of the twin towers in Manhattan with a ring of fire surrounding it and dark black smoke rising out of the blue glass. The reflection of it made it seem that much worse and it honestly took me a full minute to process what I was even viewing.

I’m not a New Yorker. The image of those towers was not something I witnessed on a daily basis and frankly I don’t think I had seen them in front of me, standing tall, with my own eyes ever in my life. But as soon as I figured out what was on my screen my co-worker and I went tearing out of our office to start looking for answers.

Our tiny little space was located in a back corner of the second floor, far removed from most of the people in the know (read: everyone else in our company). The reason we fought to get the space was that we could control the heat. And we both liked to sweat instead of shiver so it was a perfect arrangement.

But on that morning the temperature was the last thing on our mind.

We made it downstairs only to discover another friend was sitting with a female co-worker who was frantically dialing her office phone and getting nothing but a busy signal. Both of her grown kids worked in the towers.

Holy shit.

She thought maybe she would have better luck at home (3 blocks away) so the four of us piled into her car and sped over there. This entire scene probably took as long to unveil as it just took you to read so we immediately turned on the television once we arrived only to discover another plane had hit the second tower.

Holy shit.

Our friend was dialing in her kitchen while the three of us sat in the living room watching the news. And then in a flash, life as we knew it in this country came to a screeching halt. A train wreck of epic proportions that even Peter Jackson couldn’t have scripted.

We watched the first tower fall.

We hugged each other. We cried.

And then, silent, save for our gasping sobs, we watched the second tower fall.

We sat, statue still, with slack jaws and frozen limbs draped over each other’s shoulders.

We found out our friend’s kids were fine.

I immediately thought of my cousins who lived in New York. Then I thought of Matt. He grew up there and had to be freaking out.

As someone who spent little time in that city I had no clue where anyone lived or worked. All I knew was I had to find out.

We raced back to the office where all anyone could really do was watch the television someone had rolled into the first floor conference room. By this time they had discovered that the planes originated from Boston and our city was on high alert.

Back in my office I began the frantic dialing spree, running into mostly busy signals but I finally managed to get through to Matt. Nothing to this day will ever be as comforting to me as the sound of his voice on the other end of the line at that moment. I knew he was in Boston, I knew we had plans that night after I got out of my part time job, I knew he was fine but all rationality dropped by the wayside on that morning.

He tried to contact the people he knew in or around the City and I managed to get my aunt on the line. My cousins were fine. Everyone we knew was fine.

I exhaled for the first time in an hour.

My co-worker and I went out front to have a cigarette and couldn’t even look at each other. All we could do was stare at the top of the John Hancock Tower, perfectly framed by the street our building was on, and pray it would still be standing at the end of the day.

So proximate to Boston, we tended to be in the flight path and traffic patterns of the bustling city. It was eerily quiet outside. Most cars were stopped and with no planes overhead it was like living on a rural farm somewhere, not a major metropolitan area.

Matt and I talked again and I told him there was no way I was going to my part time job that night (I quit very soon after this as I quickly reprioritized my life and what was really important). He said he would pick up some stuff at his sister’s place (where he was still living after moving back from Ohio) and would stay at my place that night. I told him I was going to demand it if he didn’t suggest it first.

As days went on most news channels featured not much else while new revelations about who the hijackers were, their links to terrorist organizations and how they got into our country in the first place began to materialize.

It was all too much for me. My soul was beginning to ache and I felt I may just lose it forever if I kept watching the coverage. So I stopped. Right then and there. In the midst of a tragedy I turned off my television, radio and boston.com subscription and tried to release it.

But it wouldn’t go. Not until a few days later when Matt and I had tickets to go see one of my all time favorite bands, Godsmack, in concert in Manchester, New Hampshire.

I was driving a beat up, falling apart (read: LOVE) Mercury Tracer in those days and she was on one of her last legs. But we made it up to NH with no problems and we were ready to display our hand made patriotism at the show as we made our own flags on our plain white Hanes T-shirts.

We parked in a random lot behind some apartment building and headed for the arena. But it turns out the show was outdoors. There must have been 5,000 people on that field and every single one of them was talking to, hugging or shaking the hand of a stranger.

About five minutes into the set 5,000 people collectively held their breath for about ten seconds as the first plane we had seen in days flew directly over where we were standing. No one was watching the stage, I don’t even remember if the band was playing at the time.

All I remember is the exhale.

Five thousand people had their heads tilted up toward the night sky and erupted into the loudest cheer I have ever been present to witness. We shared that moment together. One people with one common purpose -- to stand strong in our humanity and American spirit. And it was beautiful.

100 Things About Me

2010-08-15T23:24:00.001-04:00

As stolen from Suldog. OK not stolen so much as borrowed. OK not borrowed so much as…well…whatever. As you can probably surmise from the title, this is a list of 100 random bits about me. Probably doesn’t need much explanation past that huh? Other than it is long (very long) there isn’t much more to say. Enjoy!

1. I’m a 37 year old Cancerian with one sister and two parents, plus a bunch of other awesome family members and friends, and one smashing husband.
2. The band I have seen live the most times is Godsmack, next would be Melissa Ferrick. I think. In fact I’m not at all sure they haven’t flip-flopped at this point. Both are local to Boston and used to play here a lot. Well Ferrick still does, Godsmack is pretty big now.
3. The beach at the ocean is my comfort spot.
4. Finally, I decided on what my first 2 tattoos will be. Yes two. One for each of the grandparents I had a special bond with. Now I just need to find the right person to do it. Took suggestions from friends & waiting to hear back from a few places. Also saving money first because tats are freaking expensive.
5. The smells of skunk, dog poo, wet cat and vomit are among the most vile on the planet.
6. One of my favorite feelings in the world is napping in something cozy after a shower after a day at the beach.
7. My birthday is my favorite holiday. For mass appeal holidays though it would probably be a tie between New Year’s and Halloween.
8. I hate walking over those metal grates on the street, it nerves me that I can see (and sometimes can’t see) what’s down below. When I can’t see, I just hope I didn’t wear a skirt that day.
9. My first novel is complete. I want it to be published and seeking representation now.
10. I love food. Just about any kind of food, from fast food to shooshy and everything in between.
11. Is my favorite number. It has been since I was about 7 or 8 years old. When digital clocks came out & there was all this talk about 11:11 having some kind of meaning I was like, ‘well duh!?!’ but that’s only because it always had meaning to me. I look at a clock at exactly 11:11 about 6 times a week.
12. I also seem to look at the VCR clock at 9:11 just about every night that I’m home.
13. Yes I still have a VCR & video tapes.
14. I really don’t like exercising at all but like having a somewhat slim frame. My job is a beautiful way to get fit without realizing it is even happening.
15. I miss my sister every day & wish we lived closer to each other.
16. I’ve been writing for about 22 years in some form or another. Mostly it’s been drivel that fills my brain spewing into a journal, which I only write in pen.
17. It shocks me that Matt has put up with my freak show as long as he has and I couldn’t appreciate him more for it.
18. I love to clean my house. When it is sparkling and shiny I feel accomplished and calm. I almost never clean my car though (the outside anyway, the inside is generally spotless all the time). This is why I prefer silver cars.
19. I make a killer banana bread.
20. Yes, I am still (rather, again) smoking. Oh well. That’s just me right now so if you can’t deal then I guess we don’t need to be.
21. I’ve got a soft spot for mint chocolate anything.
22. I’ve been working on this list for about 2 hours already. I’m jumping around and filling in random numbers which I think I mention in another fact somewhere. I have no idea how many are left to fill in. This is what a lazy Sunday is all about though.
23. Since I was about 14 or 15 I’ve saved every stub from the movies, concerts, shows, museums and sporting events I’ve been to. A lot of them are scrapbooked already but this is a project I want to keep up with as the years go on. It is fun to look back and say ‘oh yeah I forgot about that show!’
24. I use the word ‘wicked’ to add punctuation to adjectives because I’m from Boston and it’s ingrained at birth.
25. I used to be quite the trendy dresser, a fashionista in my own way. Now just about everything I own is made from cotton and has paint on it. All but 4 pairs of high heels were retired.
26. Rock Band 3 is coming out later this year and I can’t wait, there is an optional keyboard so you know what that means. The Doors. Oh yeah!
27. As a teenager I used to use nothing but blue, PaperMate, ball point pens. Now I can’t stand blue ink. When I look back through old journals all the ink has bled outward & the pages yellow that much faster. Only black ink for me now!
28. I just joined a bunch of friends in an online book club. Our first book for August is “Eat Pray Love” and I can’t wait to read it then chat about it with such a smart group of gals. Want to join us? C’mon over!
29. Sean Astin is still my favorite male actor of all time. But Edward Norton…oh Edward Norton…
30. I participated in the sport of gymnastics from age 7 to 18. When I watch it now I have no concept of how the new scoring system works.
31. If there is trash (especially plastic) on the beach or the street in front of my house I will pick it up and recycle it at home.
32. I really, really, REALLY can’t stand: U2, REM, The Rolling Stones, The Beatles and most rap music made after 1994. But there is at least one song from each of the aforementioned bands that I can tolerate: “Sunday, Bloody Sunday”, “It’s the End of the World…”, “Wild Horses” and “In My Life”.
33. I typed out all the numbers 1-100 for this before writing anything. Except this particular one. I didn’t stop at 33 for any real reason, it just seemed like a good time to take a break from counting.
34. The most important elements of a really quality movie to me, in order, are: script, editing, cast, everything else.
35. White noise drives me batty after a while. Sometimes I like to turn off the fan and just sit in the silence that exists afterwards.
36. My favorite animal as a kid was a pig. I guess if I had to pick one now I’d probably go with a bear.
37. Top five Christmas related movies of all time (in no particular order): The Ref, Love Actually, A Christmas Story, Just Friends and The Family Stone
38. I’m one of those annoyingly peppy and optimistic people most of the time but when I get moody I go very dark. I try to channel it into my writing most of the time.
39. I should be painting right now but this seemed like more fun.
40. Bugs and I are not friends. Except lady bugs and dragonflies, they’re relatively harmless and cool.
41. I spent a good year of my early twenties in clubs every Thursday, Friday & Saturday night. On special weeks we went on Sundays too. This is because I love to dance. And I prefer to dance sober. This never went over well with guys who wanted to get me drunk; when they asked what they could get me I told them a bottle of water. Probably why I never went home with club guys.
42. Some random survey generator thingie once told me that my life’s theme song is “Bittersweet Symphony” which, if true, could explain my jaded and cynical side. Of course another one of those things once told me I’d be married and have 2 kids by age 24 so who can believe survey generator thingies anyway.
43. I usually don’t share my drama. Like if Matt & I are fighting only Matt & I will usually know about it. People have enough of their own shit to deal with, I don’t feel right about burdening them with mine.
44. I’ve always wanted to drive a race car.
45. The internet, as a part of my life, is both a blessing and a curse at times.
46. Coffee is like a life-blood for me, but while I used to drink it non-stop now I only have my one cup in the morning. It started to make my stomach ache so I figured it was for the best to cut back.
47. The only genre of movie I really can’t sit through is horror/thriller with gore, with special effects being so realistic I have nightmares for weeks.
48. I left the house for a while and came back so now The Breakfast Club is on. Definitely one of those movies of my youth, know it by heart and still feel 14 every time I watch it.
49. I drink about 60 ounces of water a day.
50. My favorite sport to watch is football and it, along with hot chocolate and baked goods of course, is the only redeeming quality of winter in New England.
51. When drinking alcohol I prefer a Porter (for beer), Pino Noir or Cape Codders.
52. When I was about 16 I used to write letters (yes with a pen & paper) and made a few pen pals. I still keep in touch with one of the first pen pals I ever made. He’s a great guy, married with a child & lives in the Midwest. Matt & I even went to their wedding.
53. Bloggy friends remind me that its possible to get to know someone strictly through their writing and I have got to be honest, the blog friends I’ve made are the best on the planet! Not that I’m biased or anything.
54. Many of my blog friends I met through a Jason Mraz’s blog. I started reading the comments & people who really seemed to read then comment on his posts (they wrote a little more than the standard ‘OMG I love you!!!!!’ type stuff), I started reading too. It is a dream of mine that someday in some secret Pentavirate, at The Meadows, we will all meet so we can finally take over the world. Mwah-hahahahaha!!!
55. I’ve been to Walt Disney World four times but only once as a kid.
56. I love pedicures but only if I do it. Some stranger touching my feet wigs me out.
57. Green is a description I would use to describe myself but a green thumb, not so much.
58. I’ve moved just about once a year since I was 19. That’s about 18 different apartments. Wow, that’s a gypsy soul if there ever was one.
59. I am a visual thinker. For example, if someone tells a story about being T-boned in a car I can actually see the scene playing out inside my head as if I’m watching a movie. This can be good and bad. Good because I think it makes me a better writer, bad because while my mind is progressing with the scene I tend to miss a lot of what the person talking is saying.
60. I start every morning with a cup of coffee, cup of yogurt & cup of blended fruit juice.
61. I filled in the 100 things in completely random order so who knows where certain things will fall. I didn’t want anyone to think that I prioritize number 14 over number 87. Though I might, I don’t know what 87 is yet. OK there are a few in a row that are stream of consciousness, true. But mostly it’s typical of this blog -- random lunacy!
62. I used to be very lazy and a professional procrastinator. Anyone who has met me in the last ten years will not believe this statement but it is indeed fact.
63. Travel is one of my favorite activities. I’ve been to seven countries so far - US, Canada, Mexico, Ireland, Bahamas, Netherlands & Belgium - and I hope to add more some day. Soon.
64. Last year Matt and I filed for bankruptcy. In fact, we’re coming up on our 1 year Broke-No-More-A-Versary! No I am not ashamed or too proud to share this with the world. In fact I want as many people to know as possible so they don’t make similar mistakes in their own lives. To see how it all went terribly wrong, refer to my series Labor of Love.
65. Despite what I share here or other places I’m actually a fairly private person.
66. I used to carry a pair of tweezers around with me everywhere.
67. When I was a kid I dreamed about being discovered by some random Hollywood big shot as we passed on the street.
68. Sometimes when I notice my OCD is getting out of control I force myself to do something different. A good example is inside my kitchen cabinets. Most of the time they look like the husband wanted them to be in that movie Sleeping With the Enemy so when it annoys me that I’ve got everything lined up just so, I’ll shove a few of them to be less particular.
69. Daffodils are my favorite flower.
70. I want to learn how to sew clothes so I can always make my own and never have to worry about that whole being short with a booty thing.
71. I learned to swim about the same time I learned to walk. My Grampa taught me and it was in the ocean.
72. Scrabble is my favorite board game.
73. My favorite movie of all time is The Goonies. You have no idea how badly I wanted to find a buried treasure when I was a kid.
74. So far all the graphics for my company branding have been constructed by my mom and I designed my own logo for Chucka Stone Designs.
75. Next year Matt and I are planning to move to Cape Cod. I can not wait to live at the beach again!
76. This is a lot more difficult than I thought it was going to be at first. Which is really weird because 100 things shouldn’t be that much to come up with, but maybe it’s because I’m trying not to tell the same stories I already told before.
77. I have no credit cards and will keep it that way.
78. Typing is fine to get thoughts out quickly but when I edit I prefer to do it by hand. Reading my edits might make a person’s head spin because I use circled paragraphs & long sinewy arrows to point to the place they are supposed to be inserted, or a circled letter next to a particularly long entry and the corresponding circled letter in the spot where it’s supposed to go. Sometimes it makes my head spin trying to sort it out.
79. If you’re actually still reading this list I love you even more!
80. I think the real reason why I haven’t moved to southern California yet is because I will miss Bianchi’s pizza too much.
81. There are days when I feel like a fish out of water, even doing things I know by heart. I guess that’s how life works sometimes though.
82. I miss blogging regularly, this is kind of cool and might even produce a few gems that I could expand on later. Like that, thanks Jim!
83. I am too afraid of sharks to swim in the ocean now. I won’t start doing it again until I completely stop eating ocean fish. I figure if I don’t eat their food supply then they don’t have to eat me.
84. Originally Matt and I wanted to fly off to Vegas and get married in a pink Cadillac by some Elvis impersonator but we opted to do it at the American Legion where my Gramp had been a member forever instead. It was a blast, probably in the top three days of my life. The eight years since ain’t been too shabby neither.
85. Bad faux makes me cringe. Physically.
86. Sunshine on my shoulders makes me happy.
87. The fact that Katy Perry is now famous solely because she is a sort of attractive girl who sang a song about kissing another girl, makes me sad for the race of humanity. And it made me want to use something other than cherry flavored Chapstick for a while. But I decided screw that, I was using that flavor for decades before her silly song came out so why should I change when she’s the one who sucks?
88. Anyone who loves ‘Michael…Bolton?’ will immediately understand the reference in #87. One of my favorite movies of all time.
89. I am a movie & music quoter. I’m comfortable using legal jargon in everyday life.
90. My mom once told me that I should write a movie script using nothing but quotes from other movies. I think she’s onto something there.
91. I’m thinking about looking for a writer’s group around here somewhere. Maybe something small where we could just write and chat and get inspired by each other.
92. Its kind of freaking me out to think that NaNoWriMo is only 77 days away but I can’t wait to get started on the next one.
93. My favorite color is purple.
94. Yes, I inhaled. No, I’ve never done anything else.
95. I want to start exploring a lot of classic movies and Netflix has so many good ones but now I’m in this major reading phase so this will probably be a good ‘stay inside with hot chocolate this winter’ kind of activity.
96. This number left blank on purpose.
97. I didn’t have any sugar until I was about 2 years old.
98. I love being an Auntie but don’t see my nephews nearly as often as I should.
99. Channels and nothing’s on.
100. Watching (and subsequently picking on) infomercials is one of my all time favorite Sunday morning activities. (Except in the fall/winter, then it’s watching SportsCenter).

Labor of Love

2010-07-27T11:50:00.001-04:00

Race into the Nothingness!

With walls and trim up in the bedroom, it was safe to move the cat in, and safe enough for us, so we packed up the Motel 6 and headed for the house that would become a home of sorts for the next five years.

Once there, the bathroom was more than a necessity because running to Wendy’s every time we had to pee became a liability in fatty food after a while. We got some sheets of mock-tile wall board up over the studs, caulked around the tub, installed the fixtures, laid the cheapest vinyl squares we could find and called it a day.

With our Master Plumber, Matt, hard at work we finally were able to shower on day three in the house. And nothing, before or since, had ever felt so good.

While stripping plaster downstairs we happened upon a covered up doorway which led from the kitchen to the small room that we intended to designate as the dining room. Matt had opened the doorway even wider into a pass through and framed it out to match the opening on the other side, which led to what we intended to make the living room. Jerry installed our working outlet on the front wall of the house in the living room.

Since the dining room was the smallest space with the least number of surfaces to cover and would also be the least utilized, it could be finished last. So we turned it into a makeshift pantry and by running an extension cord from the living room outlet, the dining room suddenly turned into our kitchenette.

We took a piece of unfinished plywood and placed it flat across two saw horses then we loaded it up with everything we could cook without a stove and store that did not require refrigeration.

It occurred to me that perhaps the original owners were onto something with their six thousand outlets per room, they were certainly never going to run out of places to plug in the many devices required to live in the modern day. We needed a coffee maker, refrigerator, toaster and microwave just to get by. And that was only downstairs.

At one point in our early days I remarked that perhaps I should write “The Least Expensive, Quickest, but Highest Sodium Known to Man, Microwave Cookbook”. Matt said it would never sell but I knew there must be other people out there doing kitchen renovations who would drool for Matt’s Ghetto Mac, made from a box of shells and cheese and a can of chili. We drained pasta and washed our plastic plates and cutlery in the bathroom sink.

Tuna melts were a staple of our diet because the ingredients were cheap, and as long as we unplugged the coffee maker we could make them in the toaster. We ate a whole lot of Wendy’s and McDonalds salads and dollar menu items, and we became frequent shoppers at the Big Y grocery store chain.

Things were moving slow but at least they were moving.

About this time we had all but run out of money and we both decided it would be Matt who should go back to a day job as I could continue plastering, sanding and painting out the house before we listed it, sold it and made our capital to go and do it again.

For a while he worked with my dad, doing similar work on an income property he and my step mother had purchased in Fitchburg, but when that project came to a close Matt knew it was time to settle back into a desk job. He set out to find one in the mortgage business and came to land at a company where the rigid structure of the workday was so bad the employees had to ask to go to the bathroom. Seriously.

Matt was in the Processing department and every area of the building had a camera pointed at the cubicles so employees performance could be continuously monitored. You know, like a sweatshop in some foreign land. Guess I never realized before but apparently Connecticut was a third world country at the time.

He was only allowed a half hour lunch and two, fifteen minute breaks everyday. And they were scheduled. If he had to use the bathroom at any other time he actually had to ask a supervisor if it was alright to leave his desk.

Yeah.

That job lasted until he came back a literal 2 minutes late from lunch and was written up. At the time I was about halfway done with mudding and sanding the drywall so I told him to just get out.

So he did. In grand fashion. One day after requesting a bathroom break of the Warden, er, his boss, and denied, Matt went back to his desk, packed up the couple things on it that were his and wrote ‘I Quit’ on a post it note which he proudly displayed in the center of his monitor as he walked out the door with a smile.

Two days later when the Human Resources Manager called him I heard him say something to the effect of ‘What do you mean where am I? Didn’t my note get the point across?’

We were back to no income but with two of us to mud and sand, the pace of construction picked up some. He knew he had to find something though and landed at a Broker in CT doing Processing work.

We had decided that the ceilings should be popcorn texture as it would hide a multitude of sins but after spraying out the living and dining rooms and seeing not only how much of a mess it created but how much product it took to create, we decided to throw caution to the wind and install all manner of different treatments.

Hey, why not right? It wasn’t like we wanted to ever sell the house or anything so why not toss on a little extra work for ourselves!

The first floor bathroom and second bedroom were going to be flat, kitchen would get staple tiles, second floor bath would be a rolled sand texture, our bedroom would be a swirl treatment that Matt picked up while working with my dad, and the third bedroom was going to be pine wainscoting.

We got down to installation just as Matt’s boss was starting to show his true colors. Those being his violent streak. In the space of two days he punched a hole in one of the hallway walls and threw a file right at Matt’s head. We chalked it up to another W2 for our Accountant and he got out of there, quick.

Matt was looking for another job and had his resume out to a number of mortgage companies and head hunters so I knew it was time to find something of my own. I landed a Receptionist position through a temp agency. The job would be answering phones and greeting clients for the premiere construction company in western Massachusetts, Kent Pecoy.

It wasn’t much but the commute was only about fifteen minutes and they let me start out part time which allowed me the flexibility to continue with the house. On top of that I was studying with a correspondence school for a certificate in Interior Decorating as the entire décor side of home construction truly fascinated me.

It was then that Matt finally landed a job. It wasn’t in mortgages. But we really didn’t have a choice as our bills were not getting any smaller. He started working the night shift at Roncari, a Valet parking service located at Bradley International Airport in Connecticut. Those were some of the longest nights of my life as I knew we lived in one of the sketchiest areas of the state. And we didn’t own a firearm.

Each night I would lock the front door, lock our bedroom door and push my bureau across it just so I would feel safe enough to sleep alone. More than twice we had seen the scooter store across the parking lot from us, robbed in the middle of the night.

I sprinkled some lavender in a ring around my home and Matt went off to work. He would come home at about seven o’clock in the morning, just as I was getting up for work. With our financial position precarious at best, we shared a car so Matt would drop me off and then go home to sleep. He would pick me up, we'd have dinner together, and then he was off to work again. Lather. Rinse. Repeat.

The two of us were running on almost nothing, both financially and physically, and every free minute of our time was spent dong work around the house. But as with the bad comes the good and so when Matt landed a well paying, excellent titled position with GMAC Mortgage, and I was hired on full time at KPC, our financial concerns were finally put to rest. At least for a while.

With most of the walls and ceilings done, and our necessary shift in priorities, the work on the house didn’t just slow down, it stopped. Completely.

It’s All in My Head

2010-03-08T09:50:00.002-05:00

For the past few weeks I have been working on a multitude of sample boards and small furniture pieces as a way to kick start my faux finishing business again. Some of the samples are redo’s of past examples that just fell short, while others are brand new and shiny examples of some of the work I can do. I have been devouring shows on HGTV for inspiration and spending a lot of time reading through posts on the faux message boards I belong to.

One might think this has prompted me to be armed and ready to get out there and tackle the world. My business cards are printed, company bio sheets are ready and in full color, the website and Facebook image galleries are updated and I even have some fantastic ideas of who to hit up for business so, truthfully, I should feel empowered.

But I don’t. All I seem to let myself feel lately is that someone knows I’m not as good as the other finishers and that they will quickly discover I am a fraud.

Yes I am fully aware that this fear is partially irrational but bear with me.

For a long time, longer than I can even pinpoint, I’ve been running around saying I want to be a writer. I want to write books. I want to write for a living. That is great because last November I took advantage of the downtime in the painting industry to do just that for the very first time. And it came out awesome. I mean awesome for a rough first draft. Put it this way, I love my characters to death. (And I'm not sure at this moment if that is pun intended or not.)

Now that I have actually written my first book, however, all I have managed to do with it is a first round of edits (on no more than the first half) and then shoved it into a corner somewhere to collect dust while I go and paint for a living.

You get that? Paint for a living, not write.

If it ever gets finished I know this book will be published, I know it will be purchased because I truly believe that the world I have created and the people who live inside it are just real enough to be relatable but just fantastical enough that real people will want to escape their daily life to visit their alternate realm.

But their world is barely constructed and I’m already trying to paint it.

Inside my head my characters are wandering around trapped inside this box and they keep looking for the door but I have gone and applied a faux finish to every corner of it, so it seems they will never find their way to escape. While I went off and made a paycheck, I boxed them inside the inescapable world and now even I can’t seem to find the door back in.

Is this what (hooker/waitress/) actors feel like? They want to act so badly that they promptly push away the grand opportunity that comes their way in order to go and get paid to set plates down in front of hungry directors so they don’t get thrown out of their apartment?

So now I have this fierce battle raging inside me because I know that all my irrational fears that I’m not a good finisher are total and complete crap. I know I am creative and have come up with a whole slew of interesting and funky treatments over the past few weeks that will be a no brainer to install not to mention fun. So here is the real thing I’m afraid of.

If I pursue a career as a decorative artist, strive to make Chucka Stone Designs all that it can be and start taking on clients all over greater Boston, I am afraid that I will somehow sabotage my own success by claiming it “isn’t what I really want to do” and promptly start whining that I really just want to be a writer again. That’s usually when I crawl back inside my own shell and have a pity party for myself that I never let anyone else become privy to. Instead I talk about how I’m ‘getting stuff together” and how I’m “almost ready” to get out there and work it. I lie to the world knowingly but I’m no longer convincing myself that it’s the truth.

So herein lies the real toughie for me. Why can’t I simply do both -- write and faux?

Easier to ask that question than answer it. Well for me at least. The logical answer is that there is no reason not to. Faux all day, come home at night and edit slowly but surely; maybe even work on the book on the weekends. It isn’t like I have a publishing house banging down my door for this manuscript (yet), screaming that they gave me this advance and now I’m over deadline or something. Nope, it’s just me and my red pen, so timing really isn’t at all of the essence.

So what the fuck is my problem?

The short answer? Me. I am my problem; my own worst enemy most of the time.

I’ll sit here taking days to craft this blog post perfectly, and I do love blogging don’t get me wrong but as soon as it is posted the normal person would grab the 190 pieces of white paper, a red pen and their imagination and go edit for the entire day. Not me though, I am bound to notice one tiny little thing that needs to be fixed on my website to make it perfect, the fact that I never added that other picture to some specific photo album, that I only have 20 business cards in my wallet so those should get printed, that I should really practice drums, that I never did update the proposal form, that I’m running low on something, that I really should write 3-4 GLR posts to front load the week, that I’m hungry, or a multitude of other distractions which will ensure I look at the clock at 3:00 and utter the words ‘wow, can’t believe the day is almost over and I’ve done nothing’.

As is plain to see, I also never got out to visit any Interior Designers, Contractors, Architects, Real Estate Agents, Decorators or other industry pros in this scenario either. So instead of even going to make a paycheck from my decorative work as at least a lucrative distraction, I sit here, doing nothing.

Sure I know it isn’t really “nothing” per se. All those things do indeed get done, but I know deep down that my need to have Perfection in my life has taken over again and that bitch is costing me dearly.

I need to figure out how to trick Perfection to get onto the box, then while I distract it with discussing the cost of the beautiful decorative treatment on the walls (ceiling, floor, furniture pieces…) that they will be paying me for I can liberate my characters from being held hostage by Perfection (for what feels like it has been forever). Use Perfection to provide the financing for Ripple the Twine.

Does that seem like an unreachable goal? Honestly, sometimes it does to me. But others likely just see it as good common sense.

So what am I going to do today? That is of course the real question begging to be answered.

Without A Doubt

2010-03-04T11:57:00.008-05:00

My family has definitely been afflicted with various levels of hoarding and my grandparent’s house is the pinnacle of where it began. In my last post I mentioned that my aunt, mom and I took an entire day to clean out one of the rooms in the family house. While completing this task we made two piles -- one for recycling, the other for Goodwill. Since the start (long before last week), it has been a slow and steady process.

We found countless piles of newspapers, magazines, maps from their trips across the country (a future post will give details on the journals we found from their trips that I plan to transcribe and then Matt and I intend to visit every place they traveled), chotchkies, pictures, broken things, you name it and you were likely to find it in my grandparent’s house. In addition to the vast number of items that are boxed up and ready for charity, a few things have made their way out of the house and into our own homes. I have taken a few functional furniture pieces -- the table I mentioned last time plus 2 cabinets for my painting stuff, books, knick knacks, clothing and a few very, very random items.

While in my great Aunt’s bedroom we discovered that not only was she a very religious woman (which most of us already knew) but she also had a thing for astrology, fortune telling, horoscopes and the like. When I came across this little gem it totally blew me away. I turned it upside down, over and sideways trying to figure it out and next thing I knew I was asking ‘what is this, some kind of secret fortune telling device or something?’ only to discover the glass on the bottom fill up with a triangular shaped piece of something with just one word written on it ‘Yes’. It was the original Magic 8 Ball! Cool!

The fortune teller was discovered upon one of the first visits when I also acquired some of my grandmother and grandfather’s hats. My grampa was a fedora man and there were two gorgeous ones -- a grey and dark brown. I only pull them out occasionally but every time I wear any of their hats I feel like a million bucks!

Which is exactly the reason we’ve been sorting through everything before just getting rid of it; there could be cash stashed just about anywhere. Both grandparents suffered from symptoms of Alzheimer’s disease and especially with my gram, as she got older and less mentally functional she hid things. With the number of things in the house that means things could be anywhere, especially in books. It’s a nightmare.

While sorting through some of the books in the reading nook on the third floor I came across this one which my mom convinced me I should at least read before donating seeing as though I’m the Green blogger in the family. This upcoming week I have some time and fully intend to do just that. Of course I have my pick of many.

There were some books as old as the early 1800’s found in the house including some that I should have read years ago but never made the time for, even though some of which I was technically supposed to read for school. A Tale of Two Cities, The House of Seven Gables, The Adventures of Tom Sawyer, The Three Musketeers, 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea, you get the picture. Well they all came home plus the complete ten volume set of the World’s 1000 Best Poems, as published in 1929.

In the den I pulled this out of a basket or a bag or randomly off the floor and just started laughing, I mean when she bought it the name was probably very futuristic sounding. Like back in the 1980’s. In fact this tube of goo might have been one of the only things we found in that house that represented that particular decade. Well that and the jelly belt that was sticky from melting. Oh yeah.

Earlier decades were thoroughly represented as we discovered by the mounds of 1960’s and 1970’s poly print fabrics. This one was in a paper bag with the thread, pattern and zipper, just waiting to be created. Not to mention the receipt for how much all of it cost; just over $10. My mom and I are going to work on this together; Mom rocks, so does the dress on the far right.

This year for Christmas Matt got me a laptop tray. Mine has a lifting, tilting top, a lip to stop the computer from sliding forward and legs that fold underneath for easy storage. Looks familiar… Of course this one is a little beat up and wood not plastic. No one needs it and I immediately thought of my Mother in law. I know she reads so this could be a perfect little giftie for her. I’m going to clean it up, paint and faux it then send it on down just because. But shhh, it’s a surprise so don’t tell!

Overall it may seem like a lot of stuff has come into my home and I’m just perpetuating the cycle of collecting and perhaps that is partially true but for the most part I am only taking what I know will be created, gifted, read, worn or used as a functional item…

In fact I asked the Syco Slate if I should throw away the Stain Master 2000 after taking the picture for this post and it responded not surprisingly:

Week(s) In Review: A Pictorial Adventure

2010-02-28T10:42:00.006-05:00

So where have I been, yes that would be the question considering that, unless we’re connected on Facebook, no one has heard from me in weeks. I don’t call, don’t write. Yeah, ‘dropped off the face of the virtual Earth’ (yet again) is pretty accurate. But I have done some amazing and fun stuff in my electronic absence.

And the train continues to roll so rather than sit here for ages typing out all the details of my recent misadventures in construction, paint, music, old friends and pastry, it occurred to me that a nice array of photos is surely a much lazier way to share the information.

And retain it for that matter. See? Really I’m just thinking of your time. Yeah, that's it.

So without further random babble from me, here is essentially a month in review…

A whole bunch of these got painted, glazed, varnished, etc. over the past couple weeks for Chucka Stone Designs, and more will be done this week (plus I might actually finish the furniture pieces this weekend, amazing!)

I hosted a week long giveaway over here that I enjoyed promoting.

This holiday came and went & Matt and I thankfully didn’t feel pressured to celebrate (because it is a silly tradition started just to make people feel bad who are single and obligated who are together so the card, chocolate, flower and jewelry industries can live on for one more day. OK. Jumping off my soapbox now…) But my mom sent us this card and it was very sweet of her!

The FINAL season (sob) of Tuesday night crack began. (Yeah I know he’s not on the show anymore but he was my favorite character and he did make an appearance in the first episode this season. Plus he’s hot, so there.)

We had a chance to catch this guy’s act live, and solo for the first time, which was so much fun! We were right at the edge of the stage in the Red Room at Café 939.

Then I started doing a whole bunch of this. (Thanks for the video still shots This Old House)

Of course that job is in central Mass so that meant I was in this a lot. Don’t worry, my car wasn’t recalled. Baby drives great.

Even though painting and plaster is a great workout it was good to do a little of this in addition to keep loose. Climbing ladders requires a certain level of already in shape-ness so as not to fall asleep on the sofa every night at 10:00. Oh wait…

I have been helping to clean out the family house which desperately needs to be finished and sold. My Aunt, mom and I spent six hours in this room getting it to look this empty. I wish I were kidding. But it is done now and so we celebrated with subs (hoagies, wraps, whatever you call it in your neck of the woods -- sandwich filling in a long roll). I took this round table home and it is now gracing my back hall under the window; it looks perfect with the bench on the other side, since they are a matching set.

Of course Thursdays have still been all about this. Wouldn’t miss that for anything!

Had a chance to catch one of my mom’s favorite performers, Seth Glier (on piano), this past Friday night. I can see why, wow this kid has talent!! At only 21, he has a long career ahead of him. (He plays SXSW every year so if you’re near Austin, TX go check him out!). Plus he remembered my mom on sight by name, asked her later what she wanted to hear and made a point to come over and apologize that he didn’t have time to play it after the show was over. Now that’s class.

And now this morning I’m finishing coffee and writing. Not to mention eating one of these; purchased after dinner with friends in Davis Square last night. Yum!

The month in review has now commenced. Holy crap, can’t believe it’s just about March already! Bring on the warm weather, yippie!

Thine Hawse is Wicked Retahded

2010-01-31T14:16:00.003-05:00

As Matt and I were on our way back from the grocery store this afternoon we almost got hit while traveling through a rotary. Sometimes referred to as traffic circles or roundabouts, rotaries in the northeast are a special test of any motorist’s skills.

The rules of the road, at least here in Boston, indicate to ‘yield to the traffic in the rotary’ but unfortunately most people take that as a loose term and unless you are smack dab in front of them when they are approaching the circle, it is anyone’s guess as to just what ‘in the rotary’ even means.

I personally take it to mean if a person is more than half way around and on an approach to cross the place I am entering from, then I yield. If someone has just entered the circle from the next counterclockwise approach and not going to impact my entrance, I enter. To me this seems logical and has saved me from multiple accidents over the years.

The problem of course is that logic seems to escape most motorists, so when I am already in the circle I have to be on guard because their definition of yield may be just slightly different than mine. A good example of this is someone who not only does not yield but doesn’t even look to their left as they approach but rather, simply blasts on through because, well, clearly they should always have the right of way.

That is what almost happened today but the SUV came to an almost brake screeching halt just in time and we proceeded to exit the rotary, shaking our heads, with their front bumper mere feet from my door.

After it happened, we sparked up a conversation about how rotaries might have been a little more challenging back in the days of the horse drawn buggy. Picture one horse T-boning another as their carriage careens out of control toward the circle. With so much power the accidentee would never know what hit him. Poor horse.

Of course just like in today’s times -- ‘It wasn’t my fault, the brakes didn’t stop me fast enough’ -- we both imagined that the out of control buggy driver would surely blame the accident on part of the vehicle itself, saying to the guy with the broken wooden wheel and grain spilling from the back of the wagon --

“Yaw hawse is wicked retahded!”

Of course I had to correct Matt and remind him this was back in the old days when people still spoke in proper English here in Boston; I assured him the crazy driver would have more likely said --

“Thine hawse is wicked retahded!”

As we approached home and pulled into the driveway we started to consider some of the other road rage phrases that might be yelled out from the bench of one wagon to another back in the day. Stuff like --

“Stop chiselin’ that lettah ta ya Motha and drive!”
“Hey fuckah, how about puttin’ both hands awn tha reigns!”

One of my personal favorite things that I frequently utter to myself or whoever else happens to be in the car with me when I am behind someone weaving all over the road is “Go back to the baah!” Of course, in the old days they were more likely yelling “Take thyself back to Ye Old Tavehn!”

Thanks for the screen shot Google Maps.