One Little Word 2016

Hello lovelies!  I hope that you had the most amazing Christmas and that your heart {and body} have found a little peace and rest.  I know I am enjoying a little bit of down time with my loved ones!  

I so look forward to this time of year!  While I love the season and Christmas and family and all of the celebrating, I also love the calm after the storm... reflecting on the blessings and also recognizing what I DON'T want to do the next year.  I know this time of year gets hectic for most people. This year seemed extra stressful to me. I hate to even say that out loud because I am just so darn sick of the glorification of BUSY!! 

In case you are new to my blog and business {welcome!!}, each year, for the past 7 years, I choose ONE LITTLE WORD to focus on in the year to come.  FOCUS is not something that comes naturally to me, so I know that I need to be intentional.  My words in the past have seemed very easy to land on and they have been BIG and EXCITING and FULL OF PASSION.  Choosing my word for 2016 has NOT been easy.  I would land on a word and be convinced that I had found it, then a few days later, feel strongly about another powerful word. Some of these words included... JOY, BOLD and CONFIDENCE.  Those are fun, right!? They just weren't meant to be MY word.

There is this verse... it just kept persisting... I wasn't sure why, but it just kept coming back to mind

I was reminded of situations over the past few months that needed attention, situations where there was busy-ness, but no peace.  Situations where I allowed negativity to over-take my thoughts.  Why is it that we can have an overwhelming amount of support, encouragement and praise from most, but when there is one "not-so-kind" word spoken about us or our work, THAT is what we dwell on.  I was not okay that I wasted any amount of time and effort entertaining thoughts that were not life-giving.  I knew that if any of my girlfriends expressed these feelings to me, I would immediately remind them how loved and valued they were and that those hurtful words from one person should hold no merit!  Why would I not have the same standards for myself. I am the daughter of the most high God and His plans for me are TRUTH!  That is when it hit me.  I was not hearing His words because there was too much noise!  Both literal noise and the noise of busy-ness!  

There was a sense of peace as I landed on my one little word for 2016...

While I will also strive to be purposeful and passionate and brave and bold, my primary focus this year will be to just "be" and "have" quiet.  That means eliminating the "noise" that keeps my heart from hearing God's voice.  That means taking the time to do some yoga and meditation. It will mean turning off the TV and Radio sometimes.  It will mean slowing down to really put life in perspective when necessary.

Friend, I pray that this year YOU will be blessed and that new adventures will find you.

I pray that you would be intentional about your life and not take one moment for granted.

You are so loved!

I have created this 14k Gold-filled piece for myself for this years word...

{I will be listing this, along with other new designs throughout the week!}

Urban Farmgirl's Main Street Market

"Today I'm excited about everything!"

{I always see this little quote on pinterest and could't wait for the perfect day to use it!}

As I am fully immersed in painting, sewing, curating and pretty-little-thing-making, I felt like now was a great time to take a break, breathe and share a few words and pics of what I've been up to!

I have been waiting in anxious anticipation for Urban Farmgirl's Main Street Market!  I have never been more excited, worked harder or been more at peace {ironically} for any show!!

If you know Mary {aka, Urban Farmgirl} you know this event will be nothing less than amazing!  She is one of the kindest and most humble creatives that I know with an impeccable eye for styling pretty things!

So here are the details...

Urban Farmgirl's Main Street Market

Saturday, May 10 2014

10:00am-5:00pm

Midway Village

Rockford, Il

Here is a small sampling of the pretty little things you will see from Lis Dunn designs...

{among so many other gorgeous items from over 60 vendors!!}

Have a beautiful day and I will see you at the Market!!

DIY Hand-Stamped Metal and Leather Cuff SNW2

I LOVE words!

{You've probably heard me say this a millions times;}

They have amazing power! 
I'm choosing to focus on the ones that build up and not tear down!

 

 

 

So it only made sense for week 2 to put together a piece of jewelry with beautiful words that inspire!

 

This is one of those projects that is pretty inexpensive and simple if you have or can borrow the tools needed!

This is what you'll need:

 

SUPPLIES

Leather Cuff

Metal Stamping Blanks

Metal Stamps

Stamping Block

Hammer

Eyelets

Eyelet Setter

Crop-a-dile big bite{or other heavy duty hole punch}

Permanent Marker {optional}

Distress Ink {optional}

 

Instructions

I wasn't crazy about the lighter cuff, so I began with distressing the front and sides using Tim Holtz Tea Dye {Note: I did try tea staining first and did not get the results that I wanted} I allowed that to dry overnight.  I chose the stamping blank that was the best fit for this size cuff and using my crop-a-dile big bite, punched holes in the 2 sides then set it on top of the cuff, marked the holes and punched coordinating holes in the cuff.  I then began in the middle of the stamping blank and began stamping {once you figure out your wording, find the center word and begin there} This next step is optional.  If you like the raw stamped look, leave it as is.  If you like a little more pop, color in the letters with a permanent marker then rub over the blank with a magic eraser. It will remove any extra ink left on the blank but the ink in the letters will remain.  Finally, place coordinating eyelets in the holes of the lined up metal and cuff, flip over and using your eyelet setter, hit 3 times to set!  voila! You have a fabulous new, conversation-starter piece of Jewelry!!

 

 

 

Thanks so much for joining me for this tutorial! 

Happy Creating!

DIY Up-cycled Key Necklace ON THE CHEAP

Ok, I admit... I am a little obsessive when it comes to finding a way to make something super fabulous while spending the very least amount of money possible.

I mean, come on, times are tough right now for everyone, but we still want to be gorgeous and wear pretty little things, right?

So, we have this metal candle holder in one of our kitchen cabinets that is filled with old keys.  Keys from previous cars and who knows what else!  So my wheels were turning.  They are such a cool piece of metal, they shouldn't just be quarantined to a key ring {or tin in a cabinet!}.  They should be given some extra attention.  A little pizazz, if you will.  

That's just what I decided to do.  I picked a few of them that I thought had some pretty cool character {and that I knew were no longer functional for us} and I brought them back to life!

Supplies you'll need:

{feel free to be creative and add your own personal touches!}

*Key

*Metal Stamp Set

*Glue 

*Glitter

*Clear Nail Polish {or another sealer}

*Old earring or button

*Wire cutters

*Chain

*Clasp

I loved that this particular key had the perfect blank space for some text, so I started by adding "Be You" with my metal stamp set.  Now if you like simple, this would be a fine place to stop, but I am a girl that loves some sparkle so I really needed to keep going.  I added some glue around the text {I love the Martha Stewart Permanent Glue}, covering the remainder of the key.  Then I added some blush glitter {again, using Martha Stewart }  I waited for that to set and coated it with clear nail polish.  Like I said, I was going with what I had on hand to make it a "no-cost" project, but you could also use another form of sealing medium over the glitter to see that it did not come off on your clothing.  Finally, I added an old spare earring to the corner {use wire cutters to remove the post from the earring first} and Voila!  I simply added some chain with a toggle clasp and I had a brand new sparkling accessory!

Do you have any fun, inexpensive DIY projects that you'd like to share?  

I would love to hear about them!