cool new beads

I really love these fun beads I found. I think this new necklace has a unique, retro feel to it. I thought I'd share it with you. Check it out in my shop STELLA+HODGE. What do you think?

FREE networking guide

Jordan of BusinessMinded.etsy.com has so kindly shared some wonderful info in her new FREE etsy marketing guide. If you are anything like me, all the time that can be spent on marketing your shop can be very overwhelming. This guide lays out a practical system and even gives you a worksheet to keep track of your efforts.

Visit her blog to download this guide handmadesuccess.blogspot.com and visit her shop for other great guides.

my shop has NEW prints!

I have been busy working on new stuff for my shop. I've added some fun new prints and will soon have a lot of new jewelry. I've photographed everything, but it's a process writing descriptions and uploading 12 new necklaces and 16 new pair of earrings. A sneak peek at those will be coming soon!

But now...more about these prints. I really enjoyed working on these and each one is fun for a different reason. Ride Wheelies has a playful nostalgic feel to it, with a message of take chances and I love the polka dots, and Happily Ever After I think would make a super cute wedding gift with the idea that fairy tales do come true. Dream Big is a bold reminder to push ourselves, and Fairest of Them All is a feminine note to remember to love ourselves. Sleep Tight is a super cute illustration of a little owl at bedtime and Fly Me to the Moon is an illustration with Stella, who you should recognize, taking a night time imaginary trip to the moon to play among the stars, inspired by one of my favorites, Frank Sinatra. Let me know what you think of all the new prints, I always appreciate your thoughts.

baby gifts

My best friend recently had a baby boy. Moms love anything that can make their life easier and friends of those moms love giving unique gifts. So I put together a selection of some of my favorite baby stuff I found on etsy. I think the most clever is the sushi for baby, but they all make super sweet gifts.






























Little mouse felted merino baby ankle booties by PrettyLittle
Baby bodysuit with necktie applique by SuperSweetCreations
Pinwheel mobile by mamax2
Rollup changing pad by claireandjanae
Custom hand stamped birthstone necklace by CandaceKane
Cotton stripey tie knot beanie by charliemai
Mod apples pacifer clip by SaritaBaby
Park avenue baby rag quilt by alamodefabric
Deluxe washcloth sushi for baby by SushiForBaby
Bundle custom burpcloth set by littlebowpeep
Modern baby memory book by rubylovesdesigns
Diaper clutch purse by Sweetnsassybaby

new TV season

I'll admit it. I'm kind of a TV junkie. I have my specific shows I love watching. Some have already started and some are starting soon. I'm a big fan of Mad Men, Entourage, The Office, 30 Rock, Project Runway...and the list goes on.

One of my favorites, The Office will be starting its new season and I came across this item on etsy. I love these Ode to the Office prints by Elloh.etsy.com. Ellen is a talented artist/designer from Philadelphia. And I just love how she captures the different expressions we so often see on each hilarious character in The Office.

intervention with myself

I have been in a very unproductive place lately and am not happy with myself. Does everyone have moments where they feel so unmotivated they can barely leave the house? Seriously, I need to snap out of it. I'm still out of work. I'm no longer seeing the guy I was dating. And now live alone, which makes it so easy to just curl up and disappear. I have so much I need to get done, LIKE BLOGGING REGULARLY, working on my shop, finishing my portfolio, working on some new illustrations and patterns, getting art on my walls, etc. But nothing gets done. I have been saying I need to go grocery shopping for like 2 weeks now, nope haven't done that. I feel ridiculous. I'm a single girl, with all the time in the world, yet somehow can't pull it together. I often wonder how people with families stay on top of everything. I was going to spend the long weekend at my family's cabin. But I seriously think I need an intervention with myself. It's not like I'm depressed, at least I don't think I am. I almost just don't know where to start to get my life back in order to start being productive again. So I think I will stay in town this weekend and make a big list of things I need to do. I'm a big fan of lists. They really help me accomplish things. If anyone has any tips on how to get your shit together, let me know. I would greatly appreciate some pointers. For now I'm going to go get ready for happy hour. Isn't exactly the place to accomplish anything on my list other than preventing starvation and dehydration. But at least I'm leaving the house. Stay tuned...

I ❤ 500 Days of Summer

This movie has just been added to my favorite movies list. I LOVED it. First off, can Zooey Deschanel get any damn cuter? She is just so charming. And I really liked Joseph Gordon-Levitt, he was really funny and cute in this movie too. My heart broke for him. I love how they skip around through the 500 days they were together to tell the story.

It was quirky and offbeat and did not have the typical storyline of boy meets girl, they lose each other, and then end up back together in the end to live happily ever after, and I loved that. Because let's face it. More often than not. One person always has more feelings than the other and someone ends up heartbroken. I appreciated the honesty of this movie and thought the story was wonderful. Made me laugh, made my heart hurt for him and loved the way it ended. And I loved his chalkboard wall in his bedroom with the headboard drawn on it. I already want to see this movie again. And did I mention how great the soundtrack is too? I was just as excited to go by the soundtrack as I was when I first saw Garden State.

new etsy purchases

I'm finally getting around to putting up some artwork in my new place. The empty walls are starting to drive me a little crazy. I thought I'd share what I had in mind for one wall. I don't know where I found this image, but I love the look. So I plan on putting up shelves to display some cute illustrations I'm gathering. I'm making some of my own stuff and also bought a few pieces today.

I'm super excited these prints are on their way to my house. The first one is the Studio Mela collage from dazeychic.etsy.com. I've had my eye on her work for quite some time now, but honestly had a really hard time deciding which print to buy. So this one seemed like the best solution. An adorable mix of many of her works.

Then I chose this sweet little collage, Little Bird Consoling Teary Girl from cabin.etsy.com. It's a cute little mixed media piece made from vintage book illustrations and hand illustration on a wood veneer. I loved the illustration style, texture of the wood, and the colors are great.

I also chose these two small prints from timssally.etsy.com. I love her work. The texture, color and expressions she captures are just beautiful. They obviously won't come with the watermark on them, but here is a peek at what they look like. I'm starting to see a theme here, I hope everything doesn't look too juvenile? Like they should be in a little girl's room. I don't think so though. I love how sweet they are and they will be mixed in with other pieces too, so I think I should be fine. What do you think?

new treasury

Check out my new etsy treasury I created. I chose colorful cheery items because summer's not over yet!

charming new etsy shop

I discovered a new shop on etsy. Momochas is a beautiful little shop with the most intricate jewelry. I was amazed at the detail of her pieces. These wonderful creations come from La Coruna, Spain and each piece is one-of-a-kind. The intricate artwork is handmade from polymer clay and inspired by nature. Beautiful tiny flowers, each little petal handmade, form pretty little bouquets of color and detail on her lockets, pendants, earrings, rings, brooches, bracelets and hair accents. So much time and care has gone into making each of her creations. You should definitely visit her wonderful shop, momochas@etsy.com.

necklace celebrating Spain

As I've mentioned before, last summer I visited Spain. I went with my friend Sarah. I saw some of the most beautiful amazing things I have seen so far in my life. I have always seen these cute little Paris necklaces that have an Eiffel Tower charm and other cute things. Her birthday was approaching, so I decided to make a charm necklace to celebrate our trip to Spain.

The necklace was kind of inspired by my purchase of filigree cone beadcaps. They reminded me so much of the cathedral spires. Especially the Sagrada Familia church in Barcelona. Check out this photo.

Then I wanted to find a 2008 Spanish coin from the trip. This was much easier said than done. I had coins left over, but none from 2008. I contacted several friends who had also been to Spain and no coins from 2008. I wanted a worn one and all I seemed to find online were coins that were not in circulation. And to be honest, I didn't want to spend a fortune on a 10 cent coin. I posted in the forums on etsy hoping an international seller could help me out. But I eventually had to give up on the idea. Don't you hate it when you get a creative idea stuck in your head and it just isn't realistic?? Drives me nuts.

In addition to the filigree cone beadcap. I chose a photo from Barcelona for the pendant. It was a picture in Parc Guell looking out over the city with the sea in the distance. And on the back is another photo of the Alcazar castle in Segovia. Then I added a little mosaic bead, because it reminded me of all Gaudi's mosaic work. A little bird charm hangs from the chain, because when we were there, I don't know if its like this all the time, but there were birds everywhere. And they all fly right at you. It made me so paranoid about birds I am shocked none of then flew right into my head. I also chose a little key charm, because when we arrived at our last hotel (which I would not recommend staying at) they gave us one of these keys. I couldn't believe how old school it was. It may have been charming if the place hadn't been super creepy. But it made us giggle none the less, especially when I thought we locked ourselves inside the creepy room. I also added a little map of Spain, including the southern edge of France where we also visited, and stamped a disc with 2008, the year we traveled there.

I'm pretty happy with how it turned out and I gave it to her this weekend and I think she really liked it. I'm also glad I bought two of everything. So now, I can make one for myself too! Check it out, what do you think?

everyone needs art

I just discovered 20x200.com. If you haven't heard of it yet, you must check it out. It's a great website that started as a project because gallery owner, Jen Bekman believed that everyone needs art.

A lot of people want to buy art. And there are a lot of people out there that want to sell their art. This website is a way to bring those groups together. Every week they introduce two new pieces. One photo and one work on paper. And they are available in three sizes, the smallest size is printed in a batch of 200, each for only $20 and when they sell out, they are gone.

I think this is really great. A place where everyone can collect art. I especially love the diptych prints, Handmade Treehomes by Jill Bliss. I think the detail in her work is always amazing. These are a few of my favorites:

Handmade Treehomes #1A and Handmade Treehomes #1B, by Jill Bliss

Boots and Raincoats, San Diego, California by Taj Forer

Birch Forest #7, by Lisa Congdon

Well-being 2, by Valerie Roybal

perfect flavor of summer

Sangria is such a great summer refreshment and always brings me back to my trip to Spain. Sitting at a sidewalk cafe in Spain enjoying a pitcher of sangria with my friend Sarah, people watching and taking in the nightlife. Heaven.

A friend is having a group of old coworkers over tonight for some sun and grilling. Should be a great time. So I decided to mix a batch of Sangria to bring along. It's really hot today and I think it would be the perfect refreshment. I don't remember where I got this recipe, but I changed it up a bit. It tastes amazing. Thought I would share...

Summer Sangria

3 bottle rosé wine

1/4 cup Creme de Cassis

16 oz. strawberries

6 oz. raspberries

1/4 cup sugar

2 liters seltzer water

Wash strawberries. Remove leaves. Cut into quarters vertically. Wash raspberries. Throw all fruit into large pitcher, you can really use any kind of fruit you want. Pour wine and creme de cassis into pitcher. Add sugar and mix. Chill in fridge for 3-6 hours. Before serving add seltzer and mix. Pour into glasses with ice, make sure each glass gets some fruit. Enjoy with friends!

season of frills

I was taking a look at the newest JCrew catalog. Wow, what a beauty. Gorgeous pieces and beautiful photos. It is definitely going to be feminine season of flowers and ruffles. Here is a sneak peek at some of my favorites from their collection rich in color, texture and detail.

In order they are:

Silk Frances cami, Grand corsage top, Silk evening primrose Brynn dress, Velvet Eden blazer, Merino ethereal ruffle cardigan, and Charlie ruffled suede Mary Janes.

Seriously pretty stuff. What do you think? Do you have a favorite?