NEW BLOG HOME

Hey crafty peeps.

I hope you’ll visit my NEW BLOG HOME! I just moved over my blog from this site, onto my own website. I hope you’ll go there, read my posts, and follow my blog!

Thanks!!

Diana Gonzalez AKA “The Craftaholic”

A Little Photo Album

I just made a cute little photo album. I did this, because I realize I have a plethora of scrapbook papers that I am always thinking, I’ll save for a special project, but the special project never comes.

I used a few items from past kits from the sampler kit.

 I know the pages are not all uniform, but I like it that way. I used my Big Shot, and Tim Holtz die, to cut the edges of the pages as such.

I cut the holes with my Binditall machine, and then decided I didn’t want a spiral binding at all. So I just sewed a simple binding.

I also wanted to remind you about THIS fun event. It should prove to be loads of fun! Me, in front of a camera, yammering on about everything under the sun for a half an hour? Yay!

This web show will go on every week, or every two weeks, as I can muster up the free time to do it.  I hope you can all attend.

Oh, and my webshop is under construction. I’m going to be making/selling my handmade soaps, since I love to make them. So check out my website and see all the fun changes there, and while your at it, buy some soap! In the next few weeks or so, I’ll be adding more scents and varieties, so STAY TUNED!

 

The Craftaholic

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The Calavera & The Owl

 

Today, I just made a couple pairs of really cute earrings.

Cute, right? He is sitting here, playing his guitar for you, singing a lovely tune composed just for you. Want to hear it? CLICK HERE to purchase!

And of course, being an owl fan, how could I not make a pair of owls, right?

And here’s the owl. He’s waiting, to whisper wisdom to your ears, while you make a cool fashion statement. CLICK HERE to purchase.

 

So that is that. I’m off to who knows where today, as my daughter told me she wants pizza, and frankly, so do I. I’m not sure where I want to go, though. But that’s when I call it an adventure. I just get on the train, and figure it out later. I usually end up in SoHo, since it’s close by, and has a lot going on. I like a lot going on. That’s what I love about New York. There is ALWAYS a lot going on.

Meanwhile, I need to make some book marks for my books! But darned if I can’t find any inspiration. So maybe I’ll find some inspiration while I’m out.

Anything else? I had something else I wanted to say, but I’ve already forgotten. I went to another tab on google chrome, and just plain forgot, in between that and giving my daughter a good morning kiss.

 

 

The Craftaholic

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Handmade Oatmeal Soap

Recently, at home, I got really bored. I cleaned up a bit, worked on a few projects and such…still there was sheer and utter boredom. So, I decided to make some handmade soap. We had been running low, and being bored, what else was there to do, right?

So, I got out my essential oils, and made some Lavender Oatmeal Soap.

Nice, right? I gave it a light scent of Lavender, because I love lavender. Making soap reminded me that I LOVE making soap. I do. It’s so much fun. I want to continue making soap, but realistically, there is only so much soap my family can use, right?

So since I’ll be updating my website in the next week or so, I’ll be adding a page for my “Limited Edition” handmade soaps by the Craftaholic. Small batches, of course and only a few of each. I’m not trying to end up in walmart, I just really enjoy making soap.

I’ll probably be making an Sweet Orange/Green Tea Soap next. That is, soap made with Green Tea and Sweet Orange oil. Then after that I really want to make some activated charcoal/tea tree soap for my skin.

So, maybe in a few weeks, if you are nice, and leave me comments, I shall leave a tutorial.

Oh, and I make VEGAN soap. I always have, I always will. Animal products do not belong in soap. That’s just gross. Anyway, vegan soap is cheaper to make, really.

Meh, today is a sort of tiring day, since we went the beach yesterday, and I am really tired. So perhaps I’ll make some earrings, before I go visit my friend. I was going to make cards, but I think I’ll put it off until tomorrow.

 

The Craftaholic

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Puzzle Piece Jewelry

Today, I finished up some puzzle piece jewelry I’d been working on. I love recycling items to make art, and I so love turning mundane things into pieces of art, or functional things.

A lovely shade of blue, that you can purchase by CLICKING HERE.

This pair is so cute, and kind of veers on the rock n’ roll edge, with it’s shades of black, swirled around. You can purchase this pair by CLICKING HERE.

And HERE’s a pair I made for ME! For ME! They are JUST FOR ME!

I wear a lot of brown colors, and brown matches with a lot of things, so that’s why I chose this pair as my own.

A different shade of blue, this pair is a pretty turquoise blue. You can purchase this pair, by CLICKING HERE.

I love recycled things! A friend of mine had given me a whole boat load of polymer clay, but upon doing a bit of research, I realize it is not earth friendly at all. So I think I’m going to switch to paper clay, which if I purchase it at Pearl Paint, on canal street, is much cheaper than at Dick Blick, oddly enough.

Paper clay is eco-friendly, and I’ve worked with it before, so I’m familiar with it. It’s a bit softer also, and more pliable.

Anyway, so that is indeed that.  It’s a rainy looking day today, which means it’s a perfect day for Vegan Lentil soup. It’s SO good. Trust me. I am running low on rice, so maybe I’ll make some bread rolls, eh? Since it’s kind of on the colder side, I mean.

Got to run. Have to wake up my sleepy head daughter.

The Craftaholic

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Inspiration Thursday

 

 

I went in a spiral today, instead of the usual straight lines.

I decided to challenge myself this morning, and so I’m going to challenge you. What can you do in the morning, to make your life a little more happy, and a little more interesting and inspiring?

My normal routine was wake up, make coffee, drink coffee and eat breakfast while I catch up on emails. This morning, I made my coffee, ate my breakfast, while listening to Bob Marley. I wrote in my journal this morning. I did things a little differently.

What can YOU do to do things differently?

The way you start your morning is a good indication of how the rest of the day will turn out. So you can choose to wake up with a smile, and with your faith and inner peace on your side, or you can choose to wake up and think about all the things you have to worry about, about all the things that bother you, and then lead a miserable life and alienate the people around you that love you.

Happiness is a choice. You make the choice in each of your every day actions. Every day, wake up and be happy to have another day of life, it is truly a blessing. Wake up and be happy for things you might not think of, like the place you live in, the car you may drive, the children you have, the spouse who loves you.

No more suffering. Today, I choose to be happy. So I do things differently. I listen to music, I write in my journal, drink my coffee, and am inspired by the tunes of Bob Marley and the writings of Jal Ad-Din Rumi.

How will YOU do things differently?

 

The Craftaholic

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A Miniature Altered Tin

Today I dug up a piece I made a few days ago, and forgot to show off to you. It’s a miniature altoid tin, dressed up and altered.

That’s the inside there. I can’t just send an empty tin. So I filled it with a few little jewelry making doo-dads. The ribbon is from The Sampler Kit (a past kit), the paper is from Colorboc, and the tin is from Target. The flowers are made of porcelain, and are buttons that were sent to me in a swap some time ago.

I added jewels on top, so you can’t see the button holes. I know they don’t match. It still looks cool.

So that’s that. I’ve got to get off, as my daughter REALLY wants to watch a movie.  Oh, and on another note, I want a laminating machine. I’ve got a couple jewelry ideas for it.

Got to run.

The Craftaholic

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A Cheap Altered Notebook

So today, I finished up a journal. This one, is a cheap composition notebook that I painted and added embellishments and doodles to.

The words say, “Poesias Y Pensamientos” which in spanish means, “Poems and Thoughts”, since that is what I normally have in my journals. I had run out of space in my old one, and I do love a lined journal.

I used these pigment ink markers I bought a long time ago, to doodle on the front cover. It’s fun.

Anyway, I decided to go buckwild with the pages inside, and paint them, too.

That’s a poem, called “Happy Times”. It’s a story about a woman who wasted her life being bitter and now works in a shitty motel. I was thinking of a Paul Simon tune when I wrote this one.

Fun, right? I went today, to purchase some supplies. I’ve got a “product line” in mind for my new etsy shop. I’m excited about it. This time, I’m going to put my all into it, dammit! I get so scrambled sometimes. It’s hard being a sagitarius. I tend to have a scrambled up brain most of the time.

Also, I am thinking of moving my blog onto my website. It’ll still be my blog, but you’ll be reading it from my website, and I’ll be publishing it from there. Not sure yet, though.

The Craftaholic

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By the Sea, and By the Mountains

I just made another couple pairs of earrings. What I really wanted to do, was work on my journal idea, but it was too hot outside to do anything, which means I didn’t buy it yet.

Anyway, the first pair:

These here, are called “By the Sea” and are made of genuine Abalone Shell. CLICK HERE to purchase.

And here, is a pair of earrings made with genuine Rose Quartz Crystal, the stone of soul mates. CLICK HERE to purchase them.

So that’s that! I hopefully will be getting the notebooks today. I’ve been listening to Jamiroquai lately, and thinking that I really want to sing with my husband. You might not know, unless you know me very well, that I have got a set of pipes on me. I love to sing. I do. But I gave up pursuing it, since I am, in that sense, kind of private. Art is great, because you can be as private as you want, really. I have never sang in public before. But the other day, I was thinking that I want to.

So maybe I’ll suprise you all one day, eh?

Meanwhile, I hope you are ALL EXCITED about me, and my LIVE Show coming up in a couple weeks! Thirty minutes of me live, how could you resist?

 

 

The Craftaholic

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Maiden of The Sea

This morning I made a simple pair of earrings.

I call them, “Maiden of the Sea” earrings because they remind me of the Sea, and because they are made of genuine shell.

Pretty, right? They measure at about 3.25″ in length, and I plan on making a pair for myself.  But you can CLICK HERE to purchase them!

Oh, and some of you who know me personally know that on I go to an open mic every thursday on the lower east side, in manhattan. I love it, it’s like a family there.

At any rate, I went, and you know….last night was FULL of newbies. That’s fine and dandy, I suppose (as long as they don’t take my seat). One woman who read her poem came up with this FABULOUS journal, I LOVED it! It was a plain spiral notebook that she dressed up.

Inside, she had her poems written down, with stickers and things. It inspired me to do the same! Ribbons, watercolor paints, and all kinds of fun things will be used. I’m so excited, because I need a new proper journal. I have a little teeny tiny notebook that I jot down ideas and poems and things in, but I need a real notebook. And spiral notebooks are cheapo!

So that’s that.

The Craftaholic

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