Jennifer Michie

Tag: creative (page 1 of 5)

November 23, 2014 / 0 Comments

A Photo Shoot

We woke up early this morning and ran out in the rain to get coffee and go grocery shopping. Everyone in the grocery store seemed to be in a bad mood, maybe it was the weather? It has rained all day without ceasing, but I don’t mind it. The candles are lit, we made a fresh loaf of buttermilk banana bread, tried a new recipe for dinner, drank tea, listened to Christmas music and worked on this:

Jennifer Michie Christmas Shoot 2014

Those objects were the beginning ingredients for our photoshoot that will become our Christmas card this year. I still had the watercolour of the evergreens I did last year, so I cut them out and made a stand for them and decided to make them part of the background. I’m going for a 50s/60s look this year.

You can see my previous designs here:

Christmas Card 2013
The Anatomy of a Christmas Card
A New Years Card
The Christmas Angel (our card for 2012)

{These cards are my original designs, please do not use without permission}

March 7, 2012 / 0 Comments

Moonrise Kingdom

I saw this trailer a few months ago and lately (this week) it has been popping up everywhere. So, I thought I would share it with you.

I really like Wes Anderson. His films are delightfully quirky, odd, funny, serious, witty… Whatever he puts his hand to, to me, comes out just right.

In particular and one of my favorites: The Fantastic Mr. Fox. He brought that book to life with a lot of love and humor and a truly eccentric quality which all of his films seem to have, besides a great cast, superb use of language and wonderful fashion.

His newest movie, Moonrise Kingdom, appears to capture all that he is known for and all that I love about his style. I can’t wait to see it! Enjoy!

February 13, 2012 / 0 Comments

The Giant Valentine’s Day Round-Up!

I truly love all Holidays. Christmas more than any other holiday holds a truly special place in my heart. But, the magic of Valentine’s is something special and I don’t think you particularly need a Valentine to spend it with, it can be a bunch of friends, a close family member, even just little old Y-O-U. It is about celebrating love and that can be love in whatever form it comes in.

I also love Valentine’s day, because it is a chance to decorate again, I decorate my house for every holiday you see. After taking down my Christmas decorations (Shh! Mine aren’t all down yet, don’t tell anyone, but I still need my twinkle lights up) and the emptiness that your house feels, it is nice to have a chance to fill it up again with the air of festivities, bustling about in the form of pink and white and red.

Below are some Valentine ideas for you, some from things I have come across on Pinterest, others from some of my favorite blogs. Enjoy! (click on the images to be taken to the relevant site, all images copyright, their respective owners)

Cooking:
 

Serena of the Farm Chicks has created the most adorable cookie flags to decorate your valentine treats. Adorable for classroom party cupcakes!

Jenny has made a lobster mac-n-cheese for a more grown-up Valentine dinner! YUM!

Delicious with a cup of tea, the lovely Susan Branch has made heart shaped orange and chocolate tea biscuits, a lovely way to start the day with your sweetheart over your favorite cuppa.

Sweetopia, shows you how to decorate these adorable Paris inspired cookies! Amour!

 
Making:
 

The Purl Bee does it again with these rose clips. Very sweet for a little Valentine’s hair all dressed up for a party.

Create Valentine Day Crackers with Not Martha! A fun idea to decorate your table with.

Eat Drink Chic created invitations for a Valentine Couch Picnic, an inventive way to spend the evening in, a stack of movies and plenty of delicious snacks to share with your sweetie!

 
Decorating:
 

Hand dye your own ribbon to decorate your Valentine’s gifts with. A romantic touch for the boy or girl in your life.

While looking into each other’s eyes you can sip your Valentine’s Day punch through decorated straws. What is it about pink and red and white that just shouts happiness?

December 27, 2011 / 2 Comments

The Anatomy of a Christmas Card

Last year, due to the general craziness of school, the cottage being painted and other things going on, I never mailed out Christmas cards. Instead I made, “Happy New Year” cards in January and mailed those out. Since we were already being non-traditional, we kept it that way and had our design printed up on postcards with envelopes to mail them in.

I had so much fun doing that, that this year, I decided that I would do it again. I created a design to fit on a postcard and this time I had the help of Mr. Michie, Goose Girl & Foxy.

I gathered up a few of my Christmas items, GiGi & Foxy invited over some gnomes and deer to the party and we got to work.

We set up a green screen, laid down “snow” and set up lighting. It was a regular little photography studio we had going on here.

We posed everyone in different positions, until we found one that would work best, after going through all the proofs, we picked a few images to work with and got going.

Through Photoshop, I extracted out the background, placed in an image we found, that seemed to work in harmony with everything else and adjusted the lighting, placed an overlay on the top, to create a frosty feel and added in a “Merry Christmas” banner, drawn by Mr. Michie.

We designed a back for the postcard as well, with a small Christmas message and a vintage picture of Santa. This was a project I truly enjoyed working on and I can’t wait till next year, I already have ideas like sugarplums dancing in my head!!

(My work is my own, please do not use it for your own purposes! Thank you.)

May 16, 2011 / 2 Comments

Crayola Totem Poles

I was creating a sign today to describe the artwork that was being put on display for a particular class and in searching for a totem pole image, I came across this:

I think these are just amazing, the time that must have gone in to creating these lilliputian sized artifacts. They were sculpted by an artist named, Diem Chau, and I love their rainbow happiness. What a true little piece of art. The personality that they each appear to have for something so minuscule is quite astounding.

The girl reminds me of the soap carving that Boo Radley made of Jem and Scout in “To Kill A Mockingbird”. They have that air of vintageness about them with the styling of the girl’s hair and dress. Maybe these would be the modern version of what Boo would carve?

The smell while carving them had to be heaven. I love the smell of a fresh pack of crayola crayons, that waxy scent that is distinctive to them. It is not the aroma of a candle or of any other crayon brand.

There was nothing better in the world when you were little, then when you got a new pack of crayons and a coloring book and your entire afternoon was spent lying on your belly deciding which color you would pick for the ballerina’s slippers. Oh, to be little again!

(Images found here)

February 12, 2011 / 3 Comments

Valentine’s Round-Up

Valentine’s Day is almost here and I have collected a few last minute ideas, recipes and sweetness from some of my favorite places to share with you. Click on the images below to be taken directly to the featured project:

Jenny B. Harris of Allsorts has done it again, with this cute Valentine’s Paper Angel. A fun project for your little ones to decorate your kitchen table with:

Serena of The Farm Chicks has created adorably wrapped chocolate brownie bites. A cute idea for the little Valentine Love Bugs in your life:

Eat, Drink, Chic has the most wonderful answer to staying in for Valentine’s. Amy Moss, has designed a DIY Valentine’s popcorn bucket to invite your Honey Bunny to spend a night snuggled next to you on the couch. You just have to provide the popcorn and the right movie:

The lovely Bridget, of Bake @ 350 has taken “bark” to a whole new level with her Sweet Heart Conversation Candy Bark. A great idea to hand out to your neighbours or any little Valentine’s fingers that might be around on the day:

The cute girls at One Charming Party have come up with simple yet effective idea. If you are stuck cooking on Valentine’s night, why not bring as many hearts into the mix as you can. These home made heart shaped pepperoni pieces add a cute flair to store bought pizza for your sweetie pie:

And, just in case you forgot to get a card head on over to Eat, Drink, Chic for some DIY printable Valentine’s cards and envelopes. You can never go wrong with polka dots!:

February 1, 2011 / 2 Comments

A New Years Card

I have kept you guessing for the past few days and today I am finally revealing what my secret project was: a New Years postcard. Did you already deduce that? This past year, Christmas arrived in such a whirlwind and with everything that was going on in and around our lives, I had no time to send out my usual Christmas cards.  But, I was not going to feel guilty about that, I had a plan, and that was send out New Year’s cards instead.

Well, New Year’s Eve came and went and I began my mission, I was on the hunt for Happy New Years cards. I had absolutely no luck. What was I going to do, I thought? And, then I realized, I am from a very long line of creative and artistic people, why was I even looking for a pack of cards. I would simply create my own.

I decided, that instead of drawing one, or creating one through a paper or fabric medium, I would design one using Photoshop. I went through a series of ideas, as all creating processes take and I stumbled on one that I liked.

I used images from a vintage children’s book and pieced different parts together to create my card. Using the background of one page, I removed items that I liked from others. Placing a little gnome in the corner and darkening his hat to a more Christmassy red. I put a glowing candle from the Christmas tree into his hand and placed a friendly woodland squirrel next to him.

Next, I placed “Happy New Years” on my card using pink and white as a highlighting color and the front was finished. Then, I moved on to the back, again using the same pink as on the front but with red as a highlighting color. After doing some more nerdy computer work, they were ready to upload. I have used a variety of printing services for different projects along the way, but this time I used MOO. They were a dream to work with!

Since, this was not going to be your normal “Christmas Card”, I decided that I would send out postcards instead. After uploading my design, I got envelopes to put them in and even had the chance to design my own sticker book. Everything arrived in my postbox this past week and this weekend I got down to business and wrote them.

I had so much fun coming up with a design and seeing the final piece printed up and in my hands, I don’t think I will go back, to buying cards again. So, look out, next Christmas I hope to be sending out cards designed by yours truly.

(Copyright, this design was created by Jennifer Michie and is not to be used without permission. All images property of Jennifer Michie)

December 9, 2010 / 0 Comments

Peppermint Twist

I am longing to be crafting. I have a special little project that I need to finish before Christmas.

But with the cottage packed up at the moment, while some work is completed, I can’t get to my sewing machine. In catching up with The Purl Bee,  I came across this:

What a fantastic idea it is! And, no sewing, so I can make it, if only I could get to my felt…

Click on the image below to learn how to make a candy cane garland for yourself.

October 12, 2010 / 1 Comment

Oh My Word!

Last week, in all the craziness that it was and became, in the five minutes peace I had, I went to a blog I love, Oh My Word, by the very wonderful and kind Evelyn. We talk to each other on Twitter and she has the hootiest husband, who along side his brother has turned an old ambulance into a Ohio State University tailgating machine, which I just love.

In all that was happening last week between work and home, I went to read this very lovely blog and Oh My Word, you will never guess what happened? I looked over to her “fabulousness” column and there amongst other women I admire, sat my little button.

I could not believe it! Surrounded by other great bloggers, Jenny Wren’s was there in the “fabulousness” column, well Evelyn, I thank you; you more than made my day, you made my week and I think you are pretty fabulousness too!

If you don’t already read Oh My Word, please make sure you take a look, take my word, it is a blog worth reading!

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