fantasy bloom gift set

This one took much longer than expected. It's been in the making since I translated a hand drawn sketch into a much larger paper cut version. I'd been wanting to get back to it and it just hadn't happened until today.

We're having a spectacularly uneventful holiday weekend because both kids are studying for finals (read: a lot of long faces around here!). So... in between going back and forth asking questions, I got to finish this.

I really like that I stayed very close to my sketch. It gives the piece a little more of an organic feel that translates well in any size.

I hope you enjoy working with this set as much as I had making it!

Have a wonderful weekend!

slow (on purpose) week

Easter is just around the corner so I had to squeeze at least one small project before the holiday is here. I wish square cards where more of a standard format—love them.

Thank you, thank you to all of you that ordered the Lush Garden Gift Set over the weekend! It's always so fun to see that my projects are so well received. I truly hope you'll enjoy it.

This reminds me of a conversation I had with a friend not too long ago. We were talking about how a lot of what we do as artists is taking risks and how scary it can be to show our work after pouring our souls into the process. The work can be well received or not but somehow we always come back with more to show —and let me tell you it can still be a bit nerve wracking. Every single time I press publish I feel a bit of angst — every single time — still. I'm always proud of what I show (there are plenty of bombs that don't make the cut/see the light of day!) but ultimately it is my customers who will tell me whether a design is successful or not.

Yes, I can make art and not care about what people think. But here's the thing I want to love what I do while earning a living with my passion. Since I'm fallible and not everything I make will be a hit, the whole thing feels like I'm rolling the dice with every project. The important thing, like my friend told me is that I do come back, and I do press the publish button.

Last year, after taking on a full-time job, everything at A Little Hut slowed down — way down. It had to. I had to get used to the new routine and to put in plainly, I was burnt out. I feel like I'm back again. Slowly but surely my designing rhythm is here again and it feels great! I'm so glad I gave myself some time off to renew the energy that is needed to fully engage in meaningful work. We'll see where this new chapter takes me.

• • •

I will be quiet for the rest of the week just soaking in some family and reflection time. It'll be nice to slow down for a spell. I'm trying really hard to be more purposeful with my time. It's amazing how quickly it flies by and some days I feel like I'm not focusing on the most important people in my life. So yes, I love my work but I love my peeps even more — as it should be.

For now and a little ahead of time... Happy Easter everyone!




Lush garden tote bag now in my Society6 shop!

lush garden

This week I gave you a tiny preview of the Lush Garden Gift Set in the image for the cover of the quarterly that I have in the works. You can see most of the set in the photo (only the full size images of the card designs are missing). I'm still working along the lines of making projects that can be used for your own decor or to be given as gifts—those are the best.

I'm killing two birds with one stone here because I'm using the framed piece for our own home which is in need of some artwork. I used a 12" square frame for the piece that is cut out of one piece of paper. It's gracing one of our walls now and now I'm thinking that it needs some company. I'll be working on that for the next few projects.

The illustrations are direct copies of sketches that I worked on when I was just doodling one day. Sometimes the work that you start without an end in mind seems more genuine and more joyful. That's why the more I worked on this the more I fell in love with it. The final touch was adding spots of color that don't match up with the outline illustrations. I think that offers a bit of a contemporary edge that seals the deal.

You can now order the Lush Garden Gift Set in the shop. I hope you enjoy it!

spring paper quilt

I really don't have any right to complain (no snow here but a lot of rainy/gray days) but I'm so over the cold and ready for Spring. A little designing and paper quilt making got me distracted for a few days.

Believe it or not one of the hardest parts of this project was picking the colors. These designs can go in so many directions—pinks and greens, blues and lime greens, neutrals (like taupe and brown or even black—not very spring-like but very appropriate for a sophisticated feel). I had all sorts of color trios in my hands until I finally decided to go with this turquoise and red combination. I think it may have been inspired by a flower I made a few weeks back (posted on Instagram).

Just as my other Paper Quilts these boxes can be used individually or as a group. I hope you have a lot fun with them!

You can order this Spring Paper Quilt for free with purchase until March 6th.
The coupon information for this project is on the A Little Hut home page.


Have a great weekend everyone!

spring paper quilt

I really don't have any right to complain (no snow here but a lot of rainy/gray days) but I'm so over the cold and ready for Spring. A little designing and paper quilt making got me distracted for a few days.

Believe it or not one of the hardest parts of this project was picking the colors. These designs can go in so many directions—pinks and greens, blues and lime greens, neutrals (like taupe and brown or even black—not very spring-like but very appropriate for a sophisticated feel). I had all sorts of color trios in my hands until I finally decided to go with this turquoise and red combination. I think it may have been inspired by a flower I made a few weeks back (posted on Instagram).

Just as my other Paper Quilts these boxes can be used individually or as a group. I hope you have a lot fun with them!

You can order this Spring Paper Quilt for free with purchase until March 6th.
The coupon information for this project is on the A Little Hut home page.


Have a great weekend everyone!

joy collection - svgs and printables

The first collection of the year is called Joy. It includes SVG cutting files and printables in two colorways — yellow and red.

I wanted to create a group of patterns and shapes that would coordinate all the way through different product lines. This collection is included in my Society6 products as I showed you the other day and will be coming soon in the manner of fabric and gift wrap on Spoonflower (still waiting for samples).

My ideas for the printables (8 letter-sized sheets of each pattern):
- To wrap small gifts
- Make envelope liners
- To make cards and hangtags
- To decorate scrapbooking layouts (including pocket scrapbooking like Project Life)
- Anything else you can come up with!

I'm pretty proud of this collection and if truth be told it does make me joyful when I look at it.
I hope you enjoy it too!

---

The Joy Collection is free from now until 1/11 with the purchase of $5.98 and above.
Code: thankyou
Important: Make sure to add the code to the GRAY Shopping Cart link at the top of the website home page.

joy collection - svgs and printables

The first collection of the year is called Joy. It includes SVG cutting files and printables in two colorways — yellow and red.

I wanted to create a group of patterns and shapes that would coordinate all the way through different product lines. This collection is included in my Society6 products as I showed you the other day and will be coming soon in the manner of fabric and gift wrap on Spoonflower (still waiting for samples).

My ideas for the printables (8 letter-sized sheets of each pattern):
- To wrap small gifts
- Make envelope liners
- To make cards and hangtags
- To decorate scrapbooking layouts (including pocket scrapbooking like Project Life)
- Anything else you can come up with!

I'm pretty proud of this collection and if truth be told it does make me joyful when I look at it.
I hope you enjoy it too!

---

The Joy Collection is free from now until 1/11 with the purchase of $5.98 and above.
Code: thankyou
Important: Make sure to add the code to the GRAY Shopping Cart link at the top of the website home page.

start your own paper goods business!

I'm thrilled to announce that I will be a guest on Creative Live this Dec. 12th during Kari Chapin's class called Fast Start Your Paper Goods Business. If you watch it live is free. If you don't have time to watch it during the live broadcast you can order it for a very reasonable price during and after the broadcast. Check out all the details and RSVP here.

SALE!
Use the discount code merry (make sure it's all lowercase and input in the gray Shopping Cart link) to get a 20% discount on your entire A Little Hut order until Dec. 14th!

Have a great week and see you Friday!

start your own paper goods business!

I'm thrilled to announce that I will be a guest on Creative Live this Dec. 12th during Kari Chapin's class called Fast Start Your Paper Goods Business. If you watch it live is free. If you don't have time to watch it during the live broadcast you can order it for a very reasonable price during and after the broadcast. Check out all the details and RSVP here.

SALE!
Use the discount code merry (make sure it's all lowercase and input in the gray Shopping Cart link) to get a 20% discount on your entire A Little Hut order until Dec. 14th!

Have a great week and see you Friday!

Advent calendar SVG

 

The Thanksgiving holiday break is over and I hope the merry-go-round of illnesses we've had at home is too! I would've posted this sooner but fever and other 'lovely' symptoms kept me away from any work related activities. 

So here it is... I gave a peek about this about a week ago on Instagram. It's a small token of my appreciation for all your support throughout the year. I hope you enjoy using it with your families and loved ones. 

TIP!

Use the wreath square as a box cover or frame it along as 3D art. ;)

I'm keeping this short and sweet because I'm still in recovery mode.
Have a great week everyone!

Download the SVG files here.

Advent calendar SVG

 

The Thanksgiving holiday break is over and I hope the merry-go-round of illnesses we've had at home is too! I would've posted this sooner but fever and other 'lovely' symptoms kept me away from any work related activities. 

So here it is... I gave a peek about this about a week ago on Instagram. It's a small token of my appreciation for all your support throughout the year. I hope you enjoy using it with your families and loved ones. 

TIP!

Use the wreath square as a box cover or frame it along as 3D art. ;)

I'm keeping this short and sweet because I'm still in recovery mode.
Have a great week everyone!

Download the SVG files here.

all seasons wreaths

 

So here we are. Finally! 

There is a serious virus that is knocking people down all around here. It kicked me pretty good and I had to lay low for several days including a weekend in bed. Yuck. Happily all is well now so I can get back on track.

 

I'm pretty proud of all the projects that I come up with but sometimes there are some designs that are more true to my core design instincts which makes them extra special—this All Seasons Wreaths is definitely one of them (promo code: thankyou -- look on the home page for details). 

I started with the Winter wreath. I didn't want it to become another Wreath Gift Set so I kept thinking I needed something else to make it stand out. That's when the idea of seasons popped into mind. I like adding versatility to my designs whenever possible and that's why I made these easy to use as artwork or as gift boxes. The photos don't show examples but I've also included a file where all four wreaths have the shapes completely cut out (no 3D lifted pieces) which can be used for gift tags, cards or frameable artwork.

Keep in mind that as with all paper projects color is a big deal too. Look at how different an all white design looks with or without color! Big difference, right? I like both—depends on where and how it's going to be used. Keep in mind that the completely white version would look amazing inside a shadow box with a colored background. Do you see it?

 

Last but not least I decided to play around with patterns inspired by the wreath designs themselves. I don't have any immediate plans for these right now—unfortunately. 

I still have unfulfilled dreams of having my own fabric and paper goods collections. Another one is for my box designs to be produced by a manufacturer so that people that don't have cutting machines can enjoy them too. All in good time. For now I'm putting together some pitches and we'll see what happens. No telling what the future will hold!

all seasons wreaths

 

So here we are. Finally! 

There is a serious virus that is knocking people down all around here. It kicked me pretty good and I had to lay low for several days including a weekend in bed. Yuck. Happily all is well now so I can get back on track.

 

I'm pretty proud of all the projects that I come up with but sometimes there are some designs that are more true to my core design instincts which makes them extra special—this All Seasons Wreaths is definitely one of them (promo code: thankyou -- look on the home page for details). 

I started with the Winter wreath. I didn't want it to become another Wreath Gift Set so I kept thinking I needed something else to make it stand out. That's when the idea of seasons popped into mind. I like adding versatility to my designs whenever possible and that's why I made these easy to use as artwork or as gift boxes. The photos don't show examples but I've also included a file where all four wreaths have the shapes completely cut out (no 3D lifted pieces) which can be used for gift tags, cards or frameable artwork.

Keep in mind that as with all paper projects color is a big deal too. Look at how different an all white design looks with or without color! Big difference, right? I like both—depends on where and how it's going to be used. Keep in mind that the completely white version would look amazing inside a shadow box with a colored background. Do you see it?

 

Last but not least I decided to play around with patterns inspired by the wreath designs themselves. I don't have any immediate plans for these right now—unfortunately. 

I still have unfulfilled dreams of having my own fabric and paper goods collections. Another one is for my box designs to be produced by a manufacturer so that people that don't have cutting machines can enjoy them too. All in good time. For now I'm putting together some pitches and we'll see what happens. No telling what the future will hold!

fall paper quilt

I haven't made a paper quilt in quite a long time so I corrected that this week. I confess that this had a lot to do with the fact that I was so sick and tired of the framed piece we have on our mantle. It had been there forever and I needed something new — a paper quilt came to mind. Since it's fall themed it'll force me to make something new for the holiday season too (kind of like 'tricking' myself into doing something - ha!).

And you know I have to show you an all white version. For those of you that know me long enough know that working with white paper is one of my favorite things to do. Picture your wall color showing through each design (a bit brighter though since our gray weather gave me some darkish photos).

Which do you prefer — color or all white? 

I'm always surprised how some of my sketches (messy ones—which is basically why I rarely show them) end up being exactly what I had in mind and others change completely. I never know what I'm going to end up with and that's part of the fun. I like these types of projects because of the challenges — the illustrations need to be simple, can still stand on their own or work with the other images around them.

How do use this set?
- Use it for gift boxes. Some designs can make it past fall and Thanksgiving—like the apples, flower, acorn and leaves.
- Change it up—what about dark frames?
- Frame it! — use the artwork in drop shadow box (I really like the Ikea Ribba frames) or cut out the designs and use as flat designs.
- Make cards and gift tags with the artwork.

You can buy the Fall Paper Quilt in the shop here.
It will be FREE (a super deal since it's a $9.99 value!) until Saturday, Sept. 20th with a $9.98 or higher order (coupon code: thankyou).

Have a great start to the week!

fall paper quilt

I haven't made a paper quilt in quite a long time so I corrected that this week. I confess that this had a lot to do with the fact that I was so sick and tired of the framed piece we have on our mantle. It had been there forever and I needed something new — a paper quilt came to mind. Since it's fall themed it'll force me to make something new for the holiday season too (kind of like 'tricking' myself into doing something - ha!).

And you know I have to show you an all white version. For those of you that know me long enough know that working with white paper is one of my favorite things to do. Picture your wall color showing through each design (a bit brighter though since our gray weather gave me some darkish photos).

Which do you prefer — color or all white? 

I'm always surprised how some of my sketches (messy ones—which is basically why I rarely show them) end up being exactly what I had in mind and others change completely. I never know what I'm going to end up with and that's part of the fun. I like these types of projects because of the challenges — the illustrations need to be simple, can still stand on their own or work with the other images around them.

How do use this set?
- Use it for gift boxes. Some designs can make it past fall and Thanksgiving—like the apples, flower, acorn and leaves.
- Change it up—what about dark frames?
- Frame it! — use the artwork in drop shadow box (I really like the Ikea Ribba frames) or cut out the designs and use as flat designs.
- Make cards and gift tags with the artwork.

You can buy the Fall Paper Quilt in the shop here.
It will be FREE (a super deal since it's a $9.99 value!) until Saturday, Sept. 20th with a $9.98 or higher order (coupon code: thankyou).

Have a great start to the week!

slide lock boxes - the tall version!

I have a new winner for the FB giveaway that many of you participated in yesterday. Thank you for sharing the crafty projects that you're working on. It was very interesting to see what other types of crafts you like to work on. Aside from paper, I'm with the crocheters! It's so peaceful when you get into a rhythm.

The winner of the giveaway is Robin Wyatt! Please get in touch and I'll send you your gift certificate code. Congratulations!

• • •

Speaking of gifts...

I just checked and I can't believe that I designed the first Slide Lock Boxes three years ago. Where has the time gone? These taller versions came about because I needed to wrap something that was a little longer than the square versions would accommodate. Voilá! Out of all the boxes I've ever made the closure on these has always made them special to me.

This time I used flat balsa wood strips as the locking mechanism. But you can use anything that will fit through the slits (just like the different examples I show in the original boxes).

simple monday: thank you!

The daily freebies are done but they were a lot of fun to work on!
46 days
48 freebies
That's what I accomplished since my Feb 14th post.

In all honesty there were some days where my brain was so fried from other work that I had no clue what I'd be posting the following day. Some weeks I had several files ready ahead of time. Other days I was barely squeaking out something in the nick of time. I just didn't want to miss a single day—and I didn't. Some images where easy to illustrate and some others took a lot of tweaking or research (like the hi bubbles!). You'd be surprised to know that sometimes the simplest ones are the ones I'm most picky about—a curve may not be just right, etc.

As many of you Siilhouette users know, I posted most of the files in the Silhouette store. I told you we'd all benefit! By making myself accountable to you I was also creating some work to post there and earn something from it—we all won!

Here they are (photo below)! If you missed any they're in the Single Images section of my shop as well. I think my favorites are the ones that I did during this past week (still uploading them to the shop). My weekly freebies will continue to be posted on Fridays.

Thank you so much for those of you that participated and shared such kind comments on Facebook or sent me emails. I read and enjoyed them all.

I hope you get around to actually using these files. Don't collect them like we collect Pinterest photos and do nothing with them (guilty!). Use them! Have fun—just like I did by finally making something myself.

I cut out the last file—the tulips. I discovered that the negative (the paper left on the cutitng mat) would work too, so I made a tag which I'm thinking of using as a bookmark.

Happy Monday!

house warming

Sometimes my designs start with the simplest of ideas. This one started with the card. I love the idea that the design is created with the union of both the inside and the outside of the card. I like it even more because the insert can be used on its own as a note card (maybe a thank you card if you have your own house warming party?).

The box is very simple to assemble with a two piece design and ribbon closure. You can beat stylish and easy!

The whole House Warming Set is now in the shop.

• • •

Reminder! My daily freebies will be over on Easter (then we'll go back to weekly) so we're in countdown mode. Don't forget to check every morning. Don't miss out!

spring!

As far as weather is concerned you can't beat March—at least in Texas. If it stayed like this forever I'd be in heaven. We had several days with clear skies and just perfect temperatures. Gorgeous! I'll be wistfully thinking of these days once we're in the middle of summer.

I guess all of this is what makes flowers the predominant thing going on around here. Here's a new one for today and for the next 24 hours it's a freebie for you. They are SVG and DXF files for cuting machines only. I believe it's too complicated to cut by hand-sorry! Go get it!

If you see this post at a later date the file will be on sale in my shop here.

Have a great day!

• • •

PS - My blogging will be a bit sporadic from now until Surtex. I'm simply too busy with all that plus other projects. Hopefully it will all pay off in the end!  For those of you that pray, I could certainly use some prayers so that everything goes well and that I stay sane. Thank you so much!

have you smiled today?

I'll admit it. While part of me will always love simple geometric designs on white paper sometimes a splash of cute and lots of color just brightens my day (like the Easter paperclips above!).  They make me smile!

• • •

“A sense of humor... is needed armor. Joy in one's heart and some laughter on one's lips is a sign that the person down deep has a pretty good grasp of life.”

Hugh Sidey (1927-2005) - Journalist