a double blessing...

So, I had to stop in to share some VERY exciting news....

My sister and brother-in-law have been OFFICIALLY APPROVED by their adoption agency to adopt from Ethiopia. Now, I realize that this sounds like a first-step in the process, but it is actually something that comes further down the line. Like after paperwork, and letters of reference, and fingerprinting and a home-steady and LOTS. OF. WAITING. But it's official. Someone decided that they can be parents.

And here's the even better news -- they are adopting SIBLINGS! Two! They were approved to adopt two under the age of four, but requested two under the age of three. So we'll see. This is a decision that took them some time to make, but what they felt would be best for everyone involved. And I wholeheartedly agree.

So, keep you eyes open in the next week for a special celebration in the Etsy shop in the form of "twos" (and in lieu of cupcakes). Yay!

xo,
Amy

If not so much a blog update...

...At least I've had a bit of a shop update. These three pieces are now available in my amelia mae shop. The first two are mixed media pieces done in shadowboxes.

"Wishes" - the smaller of the two

"Oh, My Dearest"

And this one is a collage on wood. There is also a print available of this one, should you prefer that.

"Courage"

More to come. Hope you are well.

xo,
Amy

what i did on my summer vacation...

Sorry (again) for the lousy job at blogging.  It's been a busy few months.  But I have been working away at several different projects, one of which was designing and making invitations for a friend's wedding.

Luckily (?)  I had already planned on taking this last week off from work in an attempt to start some new, very exciting future projects and to catch up on things around my house.  I didn't get to accomplish any of those, but I did manage to finish the invitations.  It was an intense week, but I am pleased with the result, and hopefully the bride and groom will be as well.


The inspiration for the overall design came from this print.  The bride's favorite flower is the sunflower, so we pulled our colors from that.

Here's what they looked like all packaged up:

Each invitation received two tags--one with the "forever" image and one personalized with the recipient's name or names. Couples and families received tags like those above, and single individuals received tags that looked like this:



For more detailed shots of each card, you can visit my flickr account.   

I hope you are all doing well and staying cool!  Oh, and I have lots of new banners in my paper goods shop, if you'd like to check those out as well.

xo,
Amy

events and such

I am a horrible blogger. Truly. But I hope to get better in the near future. For now, I thought I would share a few upcoming events with you. First:

My sister and brother-in-law are having a second garage sale to raise money for their adoption. It's this Thursday (tomorrow!) through Saturday, I think from 8-6. It was a huge success last time, and we're hoping it will be just as successful this time around. They still have such great things left over, and I know they've received some more donations, so they should have a pretty decent selection. Email me and I'll give you the address, if you'll be in the Edmond area this weekend and what to check it out.

And NEXT weekend, you can find me here:



I will have items from all three shops, so there should be a nice little selection. So come by and say hello, and support other local artists (should OKC be your locale).

And, although this is not an event, my very favorite Mates of State released their latest album this week. And I have to say, that I think it might be my favorite so far. It still has their signature tight harmonies, and sudden rhythm and tempo changes, overlapping lyrics...all the things that make their sound so identifiable. But this album has such a rich sound--stings, horns, more piano and less keyboard. It's just really lovely.

Hope you are all doing well!

xo,
Amy

just a reminder...

Just thought I would pass on a little reminder that tomorrow (Monday) is the last day for my little collaboration with Caroline's blog I am a greedy girl. Just jump over to her blog, and you'll find all the details on how to save 15% at ALL THREE of my etsy shops (project 8256, amelia mae, and amelia mae paper goods). And, if you buy from multiple shops I will glady combine the shipping costs, so you'll save even more.

Hope your weekend was lovely.

xo,
Amy

for all you greedy girls (and boys)

You might, just might, take a look at Caroline's blog "I am a greedy girl", because it is entirely possible that she might give you some tips on how to find a bargian at all three of my etsy shops today through Monday. Just a little hint...

EDIT: If you tried the link before and found, as I did that it wasn't working, you might give it a go now. I fixed it, so it should take you to her blog and not an error message. Hints are always better when they actually work.

shop update

I'm ever so slowly getting back into a more natural (for me, at least) pace of things. Which, basically, means that I've been able to start spending time in the studio once again. My new space is all set up, and has really made such a difference. I was able to create a few new pieces last week, and they're now up in the amelia mae shop:

a few new collages:

"A Simple Song" 

"Still Here" -- this one is also available as a print .

and a few illustrations on wood:

"forever" - also available as a print 

"please don't ever go" - yep, this one is available as a print too.

This week I hope to tinker around a bit with a new idea I have rumbling around. Hopefully it will work out.

Oh, and if you are in the OKC area, my sister and brother-in-law are having a HUGE garage sale to raise some additional (and much needed) funds for their adoption. And by HUGE I mean really, really gigantic. Apparently we know a lot of really generous people who also happen to have lots of things they no longer need. It's this Thursday through Saturday (April 24-26) in Edmond. If you are interested in attending, email me and I'll send you all the info you could possibly want.

xo,
Amy