• On May 17, 2013 by

    Before & After: Antique Channel Back

    Hey-o!

    Please do me a favor and look-up to the top right-hand corner of your Lucky Little Mustardseed screen, please.

    See anything different?

    Well, [just in case you don’t] there are two new pages [:D] on my blog: Style Crazed and Homebird Upholstery!

    I’ve been thinking about adding these for a couple months now, because for one, I adore fashion and give a lot of thought to it each day [why not have a page where I can share what I wear?!]. And two, I love nothing more than to rip old furniture apart and make it new [this is after all how I spend most of my days] . . . ANYWAY, there’s two new pages on LLM I think you’ll love. The first “Style Crazed” post won’t be for a few weeks [got some coordinating to-do], but today is the day for some “Homebird Upholstery” action!

    Before & After: Channel Back Chair

    Awe, the channel back – a chair with it’s own unique challenges. I gave this piece a makeover for my dear friend, Ashley [a.k.a. The Design Stylist], for her office/website overhaul and I could not be happier with the transformation. She picked out the fabric and I suggested the two-color double welting and gold trimmings = a wonderful example on how two creative minds can work together as one!

    “Creativity involves breaking out of the established patterns in order to look at things in a different way.” – Edward de Bono

    I hope you enjoyed the before and after [there’s more where that came from]; please feel free to leave your comments below ;) I would love to hear your feedback on the final look.

  • On May 15, 2013 by

    Natural Elements

    Okay, I’m going to do it.

    [Sorry!]

    I’m playing the “I was too busy with my Homebird Upholstery exhibit” card one more time . . .

    Natural-Elements

    As I was diligently laboring towards my May 10th deadline, I gave little to no thought about anything happening after Art After Dark. Anyway, you can start to imagine how [not] exciting it was for me to realize I still needed to write my monthly Her View From Home post. I love writing for my guest spot. I don’t, however, like finishing things last minute [although, that seems to be my current M.O.]. Besides getting on the ball a little too late, I also had writer’s block yesterday [great timing, I know!?], but I worked it out, though, and made it through smiling

    “You fail only if you stop writing.“ – Ray Bradbury

    So, if you want to hear a few of my ways on how to bring the outside in >>> Natural Elements is where you need to click ;) ENJOY!

  • On May 13, 2013 by

    A Lips-tyled Celebration

    I love birthdays – always have and [hopefully] always will.

    The only better thing than commemorating your own day is celebrating someone else’s you love and adore.

    My gal pal, Kim, turned 28 over the weekend.

    Birthday-'Gospel'-Brunch

    So me, along with Kim and some of her/our friends, honored her big day with a world famous Sunday “gospel” brunch at Lips San Diego: the ultimate in Drag Dining and San Diego’s premier party place. The entire time was a blasty-blast. See, I had acknowledged my own 25th birthday [cough] a few years prior and had such a good time, I knew this was THE location for her special day. The brunch was good, the unlimited mimosas were perfect, and the entertainment was hilariously awesome. Kim’s the kind of person every lady wants in her life: funny, hardworking, sarcastic, trustworthy, painless to hangout with . . . the friend you call to help you hide a body ;) what can I say? Kim = the best. I made her this Moscow Mule kit as a gift [yes, I’m that cool], and she, well, loved it [goal accomplished]! It was a lovely morning for my extraordinary confidant.

    “The more you praise and celebrate your life, the more there is in life to celebrate.” – Oprah Winfrey

    I hope you enjoyed your glitzy breakfast as much as we did, friend . . . YOU DESERVED IT!

  • On May 11, 2013 by

    Homebird Upholstery: The Exhibit

    Friday was a little cray-cray.

    I had barely enough time to eat – let alone to blog.

    But I am here now ready to share!

    AAD-HB-Style

    Last night was the big night with my Homebird Upholstery exhibit at the Oceanside Museum of Art’s Art After Dark event.

    It. Was. Simply. Wonderful.

    The entire art party was very well attended. I could not believe how many people wore Steampunk attire, especially [it’s confession time] since I had no clue what this sub-genre of science fiction was until we selected this theme. I received multiple, very kind compliments about my work and, well, for my Steam-POP! costume. And man, with the overflow of love and support I felt from D, my family [back home], and my friends, I am completely overwhelmed with emotions right now [something like exuberant happiness with a side of exhaustion]. I went through soooooo many business cards. I can’t wait to see what clients/opportunities come from this amazing experience.

    “True happiness comes from the joy of deeds well done, the zest of creating things new.” – Antoine de Saint-Exupery

    I think I’m going to take next week off from upholstering to get the house back in order and maybe do some D.I.J.’s while I’m at it ;) MUCHO THANKS to the Oceanside Museum of Art, Tracy Black, and Mitzi Summers for giving me a chance to display my artsy-fartsy-ness. It meant the world to this furniture girl!

  • On May 8, 2013 by

    Happy Birthday Hazel!

    Our fat cupcake turns 4 years old today.

    Happy Birthday Hazel!

    Hazel is THE kindest spirit you will ever meet – loveable, sweet, and almost wiggles in two every time she sees you ;)

    “A dog is the only thing on Earth that loves you more than you love yourself“ – Josh Billings

    I just adore her so much.

  • On May 6, 2013 by

    Kauai

    Aloha!

    Me and D have returned from THE MOST BEAUTIFUL PLACE I have ever seen.

    Kauai = paradise in my book.

    Kauai-Crusted-Toes

    Back in November for D’s work, we attended The Angels Depot Gala on Camp Pendleton and won the live auction bid for Kauai. [Yes, there was wine involved.] We originally thought we would use our winnings for our one-year anniversary, but following some research on the resort where we were going to staying, we quickly decided such a large condo should be used for more than just us. So, we invited our friends, Matt & Leslie, and after much coordinating of our multiple schedules, we landed on the end of April for our trip. And man, the four of us had such a wonderful time. I’m honestly too exhausted to write about all the details at the moment [experiencing a weep bit jet lag]. Plus with my Homebird Upholstery exhibit this Friday, the time to truly give a worthy description of our fantastic voyage might prove to be tricky, but I promise to share all the particulars next week . . . until then, though, use the above picture as a little preview ;) and just know I am one happy [a little less albino looking] lady!

    “When you look at me, when you think of me, I am in paradise.“ – William Makepeace Thackeray

    Mahalo, Kauai – we will definitely be back!

  • On May 3, 2013 by

    One Week From Today!

    You’re Invited!

    Oceanside Museum of Art's Art After Dark 05.10.13 Invite

    Next Friday, May 10th, Homebird Upholstery is going to have its very own lounge exhibit at the Oceanside Museum of Art’s Art After Dark event: Dr. Steampunk’s Art Extravaganza . . . just under seven days away [WOW!].  “May” seemed so far way when I first accepted the gig, but man, it sure did get here fast. I originally wanted to have six pieces for the display, but was only able to finish three. A little disappointing, but I need to remind myself I’m a one-woman shop. I am, however, amazingly happy with how the pieces have turned out.

    “I’m trying to stay as calm as possible and focus one day at a time, but when reality sets in, I feel everything: anxiety, excitement, nerves, pressure, and joy.” – Shawn Johnson

    I cannot wait to see the public’s reactions ;) hope you can make it!

  • On May 1, 2013 by

    Personal Data Entry

    Networking – an inevitable part of life, especially for a small business owner.

    I exchange information after information with people I meet, and pretty soon, every month like clockwork, I have a huge pile of other people’s business cards . . . causing me to come to the conclusion that this IS one of the main problems in regards to my desk. Who has the time to enter all these contacts into an address book? I know I don’t, or at least, I have a hard time finding the energy to actually complete the task. So, while dreading this business chore, I quickly remembered someone mentioning to me at my former job about a scanning app for these darn little profession socialization tools – enter the Business Card Reader.

    Who has the time to enter all these contacts into an address book?

    Overall, I was pleased with my $6.99 purchase as I rarely spend money on these sorts of things, and it definitely sped up the entire process. However, there were some difficulties experienced. I had to rescan many of the business cards, particularly if they had any other background color than white. The app would also sometimes clearly take in the picture, but then, poorly record the contact information into my iPhone. I honestly did not have one card completely transfer perfectly, which is a little frustrating, but I’ll get over it ;)

    No matter the negatives, though, it did help me simplify one of my office issues, so that can ALWAYS be appreciated.

    “One of the challenges in networking is everybody thinks it’s making cold calls to strangers. Actually, it’s the people who already have strong trust relationships with you, who know you’re dedicated, smart, a team player, who can help you.“ – Reid Hoffman

    Now can someone please make an app to clean the rest of my desk?!

  • On April 29, 2013 by

    Video For Thought

    Newness.

    I very much dislike how quickly it fades away; how the excitement is easily lost.

    Video For Thought

    Me and D have been in our place for [let’s see . . . one, two – WOW!] four months now and although, we still very much love the space we inhabit, lately, I have found MYSELF feeling detached from it. I’m guessing it’s due to April and its incredible busy-ness and all, but for whatever reason, the house and I are in a funky funk. And as I’ve said before, I realize I cannot let the perfection ruin the good. However, me getting frustrated with our place of refuge is not an overly common occurrence [if you subtract my constant battle with my desk]. SO, in an attempt to find some solace, I headed over to one of my favorite blogs, Apartment Therapy [remember The January Cure?] and ran across this video called How To Fall In Love With Your Apartment.

    “Passion is the quickest to develop, and the quickest to fade. Intimacy develops more slowly, and commitment more gradually still. – Robert Sternberg

    This video was the answer I was looking for, providing insight to the relationship between me and our home – now my mind is once again whirling with decorating ideas ;) watch out for future D.I.J.’s!

  • On April 24, 2013 by

    Pillow Talk

    This is my current equation: busy = life.

    Between creating my upcoming Homebird Upholstery exhibit, preparing for our ever-approaching vacay, and, well, the daily tasks of life, the past few weeks have honestly been a blur, which isn’t ideal but totally worth it.

    I mean it’s better than the alternative, right?!

    you might have missed my guest post on Her View From Home last Wednesday where I shared [as my grandmother puts it] my free opinion freely given ;) about pillows.

    Anyway, if you’re busy like I am [as I’m sure you are], you might have missed my guest post on Her View From Home last Wednesday where I shared [as my grandmother puts it] my free opinion freely given ;) about pillows – I barely even remember writing the darn thing [HA!], so just in case, click away >>> Pillow Talk.

    “I like to stay busy, I like to stay focused, and I like to stay creative. Without being creative I’d be dead.” – Jeremy Renner

    Here’s to all of us surviving another busy week!

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