art sale this weekend

If anyone will be in northern MN this Friday or Saturday, be sure to stop by. STELLA+HODGE is participating in an arts, crafts & antiques sale at my Aunt's house in Sturgeon Lake. Many talented artists & a variety of items in a charming location. Dawn will be hosting monthly sales all summer.

preparing for my next phase

Does anyone else get behind in blogging? I feel so guilty when this happens. And its almost like when you don't call someone back. The more time that goes by, the harder and harder it gets to pick up the phone. I've been terrible at posting lately. But here is what I have been up to...

I've been trying to get things in order before I start my new job in 6 days. This past year has been one of my toughest, and in many ways one of my greatest. Among many others in this terrible economy, I lost my job. A design job I really loved and when you work for a small company, it is very hard not to take it personally. My life felt turned upside down.

But almost always something good comes from something bad. Losing my job, gave me the nudge to open my etsy shop and start this blog. Something I had wanted to do for some time. And it allowed me to freelance and explore the possibility of permanently going that route. But after much soul searching I realized that working full-time for myself is not an option at this point in my life. It's a difficult path in this economy and even harder when you are single and do not have a spouse's income to fall back on. I have been yearning for stability and good benefits and people to interact with on a daily basis.

So I am thrilled to be going back to work. And thrilled to be working for a great company and entering the next phase of my life. I feel lucky. Next Monday I will be starting at Target, working in product design & development. I'm going from working at a 12 person design agency to working in-house for a huge corporation. I think it's going to be a great experience and I'm so excited for the opportunities that await.

In my last few weeks I have been busy tying up loose ends and also preparing for an upcoming out-of-town show, creating many new items. And last weekend I escaped for a few days to my family's cabin. So I'm hoping with more structure in my life I will get back into blogging regularly. And I hope you will still follow and read along :)

Nashville flood relief poster by little riley

My friend Carisa over at Little Riley designed this beautiful poster and is donating all proceeds to support the victims of the Tennessee Flood of 2010. It can be purchased by visiting her etsy shop littleriley.etsy.com.

books on shirts

I love this! What a great idea for book lovers. Out of Print Clothing celebrates the world's greatest stories through fashion. Their hip tees are printed with iconic book cover art. Even better, for each t-shirt sold, they donate one book to a community in need through their partner Books for Africa.

happy mother's day

Dear Mom
Thank you for the bazillion ways you have helped and supported me. There are too many to count. Thank you for ungrounding me when I begged and begged. For standing up for me when my math teacher told you, "girls aren't supposed to be good at math." For buying me a Cabbage Patch Kid when I had to have one because everyone else did. For always being thoughtful and caring. And for always saying I was your favorite :)

❤ Devon

P.S. Happy Mother's Day to the rest of the amazing mothers out there too.

Betty kills it.

At 88 years old, Betty White killed it last night hosting Saturday Night Live. Hands down the best SNL I've seen in a very long time. Maybe ever. Her comic delivery is amazing. She is sassy, vulgar, hip and charming. Which is hard to be good at, period. Not to mention at 88! I swear she just keeps getting better. I'm so glad she lived up to, and surpassed all the hype leading up to the show. If you missed it, definitely look for it online. Go Betty!

happy cinco de mayo!

Circle Fiesta Banner - MakeEnTake
Pet Sombreros - PamperedWhiskers
Lime Margarita Sugar Scrub - CleanQueenSoapCo
Papel Picado Banner - Aymujer
Mexican Tile Earrings - ShrunkenCatHeads
Mexican Sunflower Necklace - HungryKnife

who doesn't love free art?

Feed Your Soul has been around for a while. But I just thought I would give it a shout out for those of you who maybe haven't discovered it yet. Jen Wallace of Indie Fixx created this wonderful project to offer free art during tough economic times as well as to promote artists. New prints are available Mondays for you to download and print. What an uplifting concept! Need something new for your wall. check it out Feed Your Soul. Here are some of my favorites.

oh, susan blue hangtags

I thought I'd share a little design project I've been working on. These hangtags are for a cute little line of gifts for new brand "Oh, Susan Blue." The brand is based on an old nursery rhyme. It had special meaning for the client as a little girl because they shared the same name. I wanted the hangtags to feel vintage with rich textures and also have a playful, childlike quality. I love how they turned out. Working on projects like this makes me want to design all of my materials for STELLA+HODGE. I'll have to hold off for now though.

another cute handbag

Ok. So apparently I'm a little obsessed with handbags lately. I ordered this one and just got it this week. Super cute. MadeByNanna, is a cute etsy shop in the Netherlands. And she has lots of other fabrics to choose form. I'm crazy about polka dots and love the jute handles and trim.

holy cuteness!

Seriously. How cute is this little typewriter necklace. I've seen these charms before, but not with a real little sheet of paper! Totally adorable. And can you imagine if you could customize the message!? The possibilities would be endless. How cute would a little love letter be for your sweetheart. Or a letter to mom. Love this idea. Necklace can be found at ReneeLoughlin.etsy.com.

my new spring clutch

I was super excited to get my new clutch in the mail yesterday! I ordered this adorable pouch from JensBags.etsy.com over the weekend. Cant wait to use it. I love the mix of textures and prints and the color combo is a favorite of mine. Great shop and it arrived unbelievably fast. Which is fab, because the hardest part of ordering online is waiting for it to arrive, right?

DIY shower curtain

How cool is this shower curtain from Target's Red Hot Shop. It comes with a permanent marker so you can sketch your own design. DIY Shower Curtain.

W7 Collective April sale

Its W7 Collective time again. This time they are joining up with MN Fashion Week. STELLA+HODGE is will be there among many talented artists. If you are local, stop by. This Thurs April 15-Sat April 17, 11-5. I was in to help set up yesterday and got a sneak peek of lots of great stuff. Take a look below, plus more jewelry, paper goods, cool shelving, knits, fashion and more!

Laura Nelli's gorgeous NELLE accessories and she will be launching her new line HAROLD on Thurs. 7-9pm.

The super sweet Shanon of My Fine Garden, her photography is stunning.

The uniquely modern jewelry of silvercocoon.

irely, by SaireyG, intimates with a secret side, each pair of panties has a hidden pocket in the small of your back to tuck away your necessities.

Amazing furniture and mod clocks from Pilot Design.

Modern pottery from Me Pottery.