a pretty productive day.

yesterday i got my paint on. and on and on and on.

i spent some time transforming this plain jane:

into a fiery red head:

i am quite pleased with the results. did you hear that toot? oh, it was my own horn. no big deal.

she's going topless for a while until i find and/or re-purpose a shade for her, but we won't focus on that, mmmmkay?

i also spent some time with some porcelain paint pens whipping up a couple of these bad boys:

i'm not crazy about the phrase or the smearyness (it's a word--i teach english) of this one, but i am a wee bit obsessed with the effect.

here's how it went down:

i picked up a bunch of plain, cheap white dishes at a local thrift shop.

i was doubting my penmanship abilities, so i taped a paper stencil to the plate.

using a porcelain paint pen, i traced the stencil, removed it and voila...smudges. eff.

here's the problem. the stencil is made out of paper, so the fibers absorbed the paint and spread to create fuzzy lines. i think it would work well with a plastic stencil, but don't use paper if you choose to recreate this project.

so i abandoned the stencil idea and free-handed the rest.

i'm excited to pick up some more dishes and hand these out throughout the holiday season. plates stacked with cookies. mugs filled with hot chocolate mix. bowls of mixed nuts. there are tons of possibilities and it's a heart-felt, personalized present. not to mention freaking inexpensive and easy peasy.

later that evening i met up with a bunch of friends for "game" night (if you consider eating and crafting games).


fall wreaths and garland were the crafts of choice for the evening, but i was still feeling my painter's high and had to embrace it.

i have absolutely no idea what the original purpose of this set of itty bitty little plates was, so i decided to create some personalized condiment plates for my mom. we rays like our condiments for our sunday dinners.

norah does not require condiments for her breast milk, so i'm thinking she can use hers to lap up milk like a kitten.

omg, speaking of norah...


let's end on that high note.