The patio

And yet another project i've been working on for the past few weeks. After 138 retaining wall blocks, 13 tons of gravel (mainly for xeriscaping the entire back yard), and over 2 tons of sand(we may need more), we're finally ready to lay the flagstone.

We had just over 4100 pounds of flagstone delivered....that's a lot of heavy lifting! We started with leveling stone along the edge and working inward. After way too many hours of this I got bored and decided to start tossing stones into the center to see if i could come up with a more interesting design. Hubby (that's him in the photo checking to see if the sand is level....it's not) and I both started sorting through the pallet of stones and came up with a sunburst pattern.

We hope to be completely finished with the patio within the next 10 days....and after that, well, i'm currently researching how to build a stone water fountain. We should have plenty of stone leftover for the project.

Beaded bird in progress

It's been a while since I've completed any beading projects. I just can't seem to find the time to bead. So I started small. Here is my latest work in progress... a beaded bird. Since it is rather small (about 2x3), I should be able to make time to actually finish it!
I began by stiching the eyes and brick stitch beak to the blank bird form, then began covering it with turquoise and green seed beads (mainly backstitch), and a little fringe plume on top. Halfway done after just a few hours of beading. I think if I can manage to make an entire flock of birds they would look adorable hanging from the rafters on my back deck.

If anyone wants to bead along with me, I now have two bird forms for sale on Etsy... I plan to sew up more of these today in a rainbow of colors!

Old is new again

We've had this dirty old chair and ottoman for about 11 years now...well it wasn't dirty when we first bought it but now it looks like it has seen better days. It was definitely time for a new look. One weekend we drove all over town with it in the back of my truck, from upholsterer to upholsterer, trying to get an estimate of what it might cost to have it recovered. The ball park figure was around $800 for fabric and labor! I was floored to discover that I could go out and buy a new chair for the same price of having my old one recovered. So I decided I would try my hand at doing it myself. and so here's a look at the project I've been working on this past few weeks....


I didn't really get a good BEFORE picture. I had already started ripping it apart when it occured to me that I should probably take pictures so I can remember how it goes back together. But you get the idea. The pink flowery shabby chic fabric no longer fit in with the rest of the living room...plus it had been abused for 11 years by the kids. I bought 10 yards (I think I overestimated by about 2 yards) of black/brown upholstery fabric and got to work.

Putting it back together wasn't even the hard part. the hardest part of the entire project was pulling out all the old staples. It went slowly and I had to be careful not to rip the old fabric since I would be using it as a pattern to cut my new fabric.

And here it is, not quite finished. I still need to put on the side, back and bottom panels, add the feet to the bottom. Reupholstery for beginners is certainly not for the faint of heart. It was very challenging but I enjoyed it so much that I have been pondering the idea of buying thrift store furniture to reupholster in super funky fabrics.

Now it's time for a new table cloth and new curtains! Oh and that green cup on the table is FILLED completely with old staples.

Spring Giveaway winner!

Congratulations to Fern in New York! She is the winner of the Kivett Studio $25 gift certificate....Thanks to everyone that participated.

Fern, your gift certificate has been emailed to you ;-)

Another hungry bunny!

I think my house is in serious need of a Spring cleaning! I keep finding monsters hiding in dark places. I found this one in my closet eating a cupcake. Meet Hungry Bunny and his Carrot Cupcake. He may look vicious but as long as he has some munchies nearby he's perfectly harmless and loves to cuddle. He's up for adoption in my Etsy shop.

Those of you that are on my newsletter list already know about the Kivett Studio Spring Giveaway...but for those of you that have not yet heard, I'm giving away a $25 gift certificate that can be spent in any one of my shops! Today is the last day to enter. Anyone that makes a purchase from Kivett Studio will be entered into the random drawing. The winner will be announced on my birthday, April 16th...Good Luck!

1000 Jewelry Inspirations

Many months ago I contributed beadwork for an upcoming book. I just received word from the author that 1000 Jewelry Inspirations is now available for preorder on Amazon. I've not yet seen inside but from the cover it looks like it's going to be full of eye candy!

Pink Artist Doll

If you haven't already heard, the Pink Artist Doll, appropriately named "Love Squared", is finally finished!

The 182 artists that helped to create this symbolic doll did such a wonderful job coming together to produce such a meaningful piece of art that will touch the hearts of many. But it would not have been possible without all the planning and effort that was put forth by Monica (Girl Gone Thread Wild). She did an AMAZING job bringing us all together and adding the finishing touches. To see of this beautiful doll visit Monica's blog.

And, keep a look out for her to appear in the pages of Art Doll Quarterly in the future ... she should be making the journey as we speak.

Fallen Stars

It's been a loooong time since I've listed any ebay auctions. But who could resist when ebay threw sellers a bone by offering penny listings. I thought it might be fun to offer a couple of auctions with a starting bid of just 99 cents. Pop over and take a peek at my fallen stars ;-)

And since the studio is overflowing with doll forms, I also have them for sale in my shiny new shopping cart (courtesy of CartFly) at my website and in my Etsy Shop... I'm just all over the place these days!