Let Freedom Reign

“At the cross, on the mount,
Where the Savior died.
Grace declared, with a shout,
God is satisfied!
Shame is slain,
Hope is found, in His final breath.
Pain is crushed, what a sound,
Now my soul can finally rest…At the cross.”

This song continues… “let freedom reign in us.”

My friend, and kindred spirit, Melanie Bradley, passed away this weekend. I was soaking my mind in my pain, listening to these lyrics tonight when it struck me, this is exactly the message Mel modeled for me. We became friends rather unexpectedly. She snuck into my life, a friend of a friend, and her intentional pursuit of me, and my culinary skills, endeared her to me.

Mel was like that. She could see pain and potential in other people, and she wanted to be part of the process of both. As we got to know each other, we realized we had had very similar, painful growings up. And that common history gave us great understanding. I could say things to her, things about what I was thinking, how I was feeling, and I didn’t have to explain them – she just got it.

She was generally one step ahead of me…she got married first, had a baby first. But we did so much of our “Figuring out” together. We’d read the same book, and talk for hours on the phone about it. Trying to figure God, our husbands, and ourselves out. And just having a traveling companion to do that…whether in Art Apprec, or in her kitchen, or on the phone, was just a miraculous part of my becoming.

I’m not entirely sure who I’m gonna call when my roast chicken doesn’t turn out, or my husband does something entirely manish and abnormal, or when I find that absolutely perfect cup of coffee. I’ll probably make a mental note, because damn it, in heaven, we’re gonna have a lot of catching up to do.

And true to form, Mel beat me to glory. She's there, singing her heart out to the One who’s pursuit of love she emulated while she was here. And honestly, I had been thinking a lot about that lately… about our process of becoming, and what our life points to. And it seems fitting, with the new year coming, and as a tribute to her, to share some of that here.

Mel and I had been talking recently about feeling “solid” for the first time in our lives. Like we were realizing who God created us to be…letting go of the ties that held us back, of the memories and habits, and voices that determined our reality, and relying on His grace (a place I doubtful would have reached if not for the gift of her friendship). She had this concept of our freedom in Christ…a freedom that was greater than our shame, self or others inflicted, greater than our weakness or pain. A freedom that allowed us to accept ourselves, and love other people. A freedom that inspired ingenuity, and just didn’t accept no for an answer. From herself, or anyone. She knew where her soul could rest, and she pointed towards that place with her life.

It’s a journey that Mel has now completely perfected. She is encapsulated now in the immense glory and grace of our Savior, in complete rest. And as it was on my heart anyway, and seems even more fitting as a tribute to Melanie’s life, I want to make a concerted concentration (note: NOT effort) towards that end myself this year. I don’t think that this side of glory, we ever find complete rest, but I think there is true rest to be found.

My goal for this blog was to search for beauty. Coming out of a painful, dark time, I needed the light that beauty offered. And that idea still compels me. But there is more than just beauty to be sought. I think what my soul craves is REST…and there are so many, many ways that our Abba has provided His children with the opportunity for rest here. In beauty, and in so many other things. So this coming year, here’s my slightly pre-emptive resolution: I want to allow my soul to be aware of beauty and rest around me. I want that freedom that Christ offers, to define my life, and compel my relationships. I want to be the kind of friend that Mel was. Because I am going to miss her like crazy, but in remembering her, and continuing to learn from her example, her death has purpose, and that makes this all a little bit better.

Purse!

This was last weekend's pre-Thanksgiving project. An old garage sale shirt and beads. Thoughts?

Thankfulings

This year there are so many things I'm thankful for. Here are pictures of just a few!

(Dinner at Maribeth's beautiful new house...she set a gorgeous table and even made adorable place cards! This picture of course implies all the great food and wonderful people that sat around it!)

What are you thankful for??

What we've been up to....

So I realized the other day that every free minute lately has been spent sorting, or packing, or cleaning something. I've had a few projects to work on, but other than that, nothing artsy has been done. I had forgotten how much stress relief I get from my art! Yes, I buy glue to avoid drugs.

Anyway, I have all morning tomorrow to devote to pursuing my own artistic ideals, but here are a few pictures of the projects I've been working on. Some of these are surprises, so they'll remain captionless for the moment.....

These also came in the Xmen and Batman variety....

(I did some of these with rainbow seed beads on the base...some stripes, and some covering the rim and the base. Very classy looking, in a rock-star kind of way.)

(By far one of my best ideas lately!)

Okay, so I lied, there were a few captions.....

Moving!

So I haven't posted much lately...but I've been working on three big things.

1. Finishing up invites and centerpieces for a paying party.
2. Working on business cards and plans to make this paying thing a more common occurance.
3. MOVING!

So all projects are on hold unless otherwise needed for holiday gifts...but many pictures to come soon!

Pretty Pictures

Last fall, Paul and I took a walk around our neighborhood, and Paul, who is MUCH better with a a camera than I am, took some pictures. Here are a couple of my favorites!

Autumn is here!

Finally, autumn is here! To celebrated the autumnal equinox (try saying that five times fast!) we had an awesome bonfire, complete with cider, donuts and smores. And of course home made pizza...kilbasa, spinach, French cheese, peppers, onions, lobster...it was awesome.

Of course, in the middle of all this, I caught a cold. And I have all these awesome ideas for things to make -- but the sinus pressure slowed down all brain waves, and I sat on the couch all weekend. But I did find enough brain cells to make a list, so creative crafty things should be coming soon!

Perhaps I should blog about some of these crazy recipes we're trying and inventing. Anyone have any ideas for things to try??

Superheros

I just got my first gig for the fall! I'm doing Superhero decorations for a very special birthday party. Don't want to give too much away, but I'm uber stoked, and of course, pictures will come later!

Peonies....in August?

I love peonies...they just burst forth happiness the first of June. And then the die the second week of June. Well, thanks to Design*Sponge, you can have them all year long!

After seeing this on their website last week, I decided I had to try.http://www.designspongeonline.com/2010/08/diy-project-peaches-coffee-filter-flowers.html

Now, mine are quite as good just yet, but this was my first try! And I'm pretty proud of it!

Now, I used a silk stem cut off some silk flowers I was playing with earlier. And since I was using el cheapo-scotch tape, I stuck a straight pin through the middle for a little stability. I also tucked a bobby pin around the base to keep it pinched. The strength of the masking tape would probably alleviate this need, however. My colors aren't quite as bright since I used food coloring instead of paint, but the pale colors are pretty too.

What do you think of my hypo allergenic posies??

Trash to treasure

Dumpster diving yields all sorts of fun things -- like Alpha bulletin boards. I made it prettier. :)

Opinions, please!

Okay, this is by far one of the projects I'm most proud of this summer. And it all came about quite by accident. Mom and I were discussing "short" knitting projects, since knitting takes so long. And honestly, knitting is a winter activity for me. But I thought, what about napkin rings...that wouldn't take long? So I had to try it, and this blue fuzzy yarn was just too fun. (Paul says it looked like I skinned Cookie Monster....I say, what better skin for a napkin ring?) With just a little white button to "hold" it all together.....what do you think???

Creature Comforts

My muscles are sore from moving ALL of our furniture around this weekend. Thanks to my Uncle we got a gorgeous dining room table as an early Christmas present -- and it wasn't a Kitchen table, mind you, it was a Dining room table. So we had to make a dining room to put it in! There will be pictures to follow, I promise. But for now...a little something I was working on last month.

It was a wooden book, a little decorative piece. And now, it's a pretty decorative piece! It is now sitting on my kitchen counter...until I get the nerve up to redecorate my desk at work! I wasn't sure I liked it at first, but now I'm quite in love with it. Any thoughts?

Summer Favorites

I love summer. Food, sun, schedule...with it's gloriously slow days and busy nights, warm air, and that beautiful, energizing sun that goes missing so quickly come November. So this post is dedicated to enjoying the product of those sun rays -- fruit!

Our neighbors have an apple tree, and they let us a pick some...so we made our first ever, totally from scratch (Crust and all!) fruit pie. Seriously, the best apple pie I've ever had!

I love peaches too. They just taste like August, and they are the best color ever! I had to include this picture 'cause they're just pretty!

And speaking of pretty, I was telling Paul I learned to eat certain food because it was pretty. Take peppers and tomatoes for instance....the color is just phenomenal, and they just make you want to taste them! And I found the pretties vegetables at the farmer's market this week. And look, a purple pepper! I've never seen one before...and I can't wait to try it.

I'm working on strawberry jam, as I type too. There is nothing better, or a prettier ruby red color, than homemade strawberry jam. And as Paul doesn't like it, I have it all to myself!

Blue moon

I'm really not much of a painter, but every now and again, once in a blue moon as my Momma would say, I get the itch to paint. And really, who could resist this color?

I wish I had a before picture of this one....This corner book shelf was brought to my marriage in a state of undoing. It had been white poster board with pink and purple daisies on it...and in an effort to make it less girly, I had painted it a vibrant coral a few months before the wedding. So it sat by the bathroom holding our wash cloths, clashing miserably with the orange carpet. (And on top of that, the paint job was lousy....)

And since posterboard, no matter how many coats of paint it has, still shows it's ugly white finish, I decide to leave this one looking a little rustic. I put two really thick coats of paint on it, and then sanded all the edges, so the white, and coral shows through a little. And I love it!

Of course, Sierra wanted to help paint, but she had to wait it out in the bathroom until the job was finished. She was trying to eat it!

"Moments"

So it's been some time since I've gotten to blog! But I'm finally through weddings, and most of my make up projects that I couldn't get to during wedding season...and now, my camera is armed with plenty of pictures of my last several projects, so here we go again!

I've forever been captured by pictures...something strikes my fancy, normally a color scheme, and it just has to be art-ified. Recently, it was a picture of fruits and veggies from a tupperware catalogue! And my dad has found these little glass ornaments at an auction - so I'm making what I call "moments" -- simple images captured and saved behind these little glass panels. What do you think?

Spring flings and wedding bells

Finally, a breather to update! It's been so long since I posted anything, and I think my new little blog is feeling neglected. I've been working on wedding presents, and will be posting pictures soon, but for now, just a little bit about what I've been doing.

This is my new label design. The picture is really blurry because, well, as many mediums as I dabble in, a photographer I am not. :) Anyway, it says "carlymorales" across the bottom, and "designs" along the side.

These beautiful peonies, the state flower of Indiana, are growing right outside my door. And as this vase has a peony on it, I think it's the perfect home!

While I'm not a photographer, I do like to mess around with photoshop. And with all the weddings happening lately, I had to look up my wedding pictures. My mom and I were looking through them and she pointed out that our bodies sort of make a heart here, so I had to play with this one. Whad'dja y'all think?

Busy busyness!

So wedding season is upon us! Which means I have been sewing dresses, making favors, making presents, and cards, planning parties, and mostly being busy! But I will be taking pictures and giving updates once I get caught up on things! (And it seems poor timing to me that Mother's Day, and the start of wedding season fall in the same week!)

The first one is next Saturday, and I have a present to fix, a present to wrap, a dress to seam....and shoes to shine!

Chasing Forever

“Where the hell is Microsoft Word?”

(Because it up and moved, the little twit. I think the computer hates me.)

And I love you because –while shooting ice crystals at bad guys – you tell me right where it is.

“Where the hell is Microsoft Word”…chuckling to yourself. Cause you know I can’t do computers after 10 pm. And you think it’s cute.

Just like you know that shoes=evil and a hard day needs a good glass of wine.

That’s why I’m chasing forever with you.

Because even when I forget that you have to brush your teeth with your shoes on,

To dry the glasses after I wash them,

(Or, to be kind when the day weighs too much)

The friction between us

Only serves to provide the heat to seal our souls closer together.

‘Cause darlin, we can chase forever ‘till the end of our days,

But unless the two become one,

The two under one roof, are one too many for any

Sort of serenity.

And being knit together

Only happens as I unwind you,

And you unhinge me,

And He does something marvelous

With our single threads.

So baby, I know sometimes my red hair colors my words,

I re-enact July 4^th in our kitchen, staging my own independence day,

And I ignore the miracle that is us.

But I will ever chase forever with you –

Because you said “Will you?”

And I said “Yes.”

And that sealed the deal.

“Let no man sever. Welcome to forever.”

Pretty Lamp

So my dad loves to go to auctions to get bargains, but my mom won't let him bring anything else into her house. So, when I said I needed lamps, he brought me one. A panel or two was broken and well.... it looked like this:

A very bad product of the seventies. But now.....it looks like this:

Which is quite the improvement I think!

Bulletin Boards

In my thrifty attempt to save money, I decided to resuse a bulletin board my little sister was throwing out. It was covered in this sweet navy blue fabric, with tiny white flowers, but it was old and faded, and really needed redone. So, this was one hour's work last Sunday, and I really love it!

The sponge board after I stripped it.

Wrapped, glued, and stapled in brown fabric.

Ribbons nailed in, button tacks added, as well as little silver clips for more hanging space. (Those corner ribbons say "remember" which I thought was a cute touch....)

All finished, and filled with recipe cards!

I had a lot of fun making this, and am considering making more. Would love to do some custom pieces....if someone wanted one in a specific color scheme. What do you think?

Escape

Spring break is still over a week away...and my kids (and me!) need a break! So, here's my newest bottle, inspired by a beautiful blue room I'd like to escape to!

(Thanks Paul for the pictures!)

This bottle was amber to start, so I just textured and added the details.

Weekend recipes

I love cooking on the weekend. Paul and I are both home, and usually rested, so we take a little extra time in the kitchen to make yummy date night dinners. And on Sunday, the whole crew comes over to make scrumptious feasts after church. The kitchen is hands down my favorite room, what with the red cupboards and coffee pot!, and I love having a kitchen full of people cooking.

I somehow inherited a George Forman thingy from my Granny. It's not a grill precisely, but it has a teflon cooking service that is covered to keep steam in, and is rather deep to keep fluid in. Anyway, we decided to do the steak in Saturday night for our date in. I slathered the steak in olive oil and Italian seasoning, yellow peppers, and onion. I then made a simple brushetta with boxed stuffing, Swiss cheese, and tomatoes which we put on top for the last few minutes of cooking time. Served with corn, it was the best steak I've ever had!

Also tried a Redbook Magazine recipe for lunch today, called The Butcher's Sauce. We amended the recipe a little, added some more sauce in place of the wine, and substituted ground beef for the turkey, and it was fabulous!

Any one have any other weekend favorites?

Pretty in Purple

So I actually got something done last night - a pretty purple vase. And thanks to Paul, who's a much better photographer than I am, took these pictures on our patio today, so that you can see it too. :)

This is the bottom, front half of the vase, with the copper charm I attached. I think it looks a little like a treble clef, so maybe I'll call it "Purple Medley"?
This top view allows you to see the ribbon attachments. A wide, white, wired (3Ws!) ribbon, with a thinner purple one overtop.
The inside. :) I put in purple marbles because I think I might use this is candle lantern instead. And, I glazed the glass a light lavender color, and then textured it in a clear glaze, leaving a sort of crackled glass effect, so the purple marbles really catch the light, and bring out the purple color.

The finished product. What do you think?

Weekend wonders

My good friend, Martha, gave me a treasure trove of artsy supplies this week, but it's been so crazy, I just haven't gotten anything done! But never fear, tonight is Make It Night, so I'm off to Miss Martha's with my lethargic self, and peppermint iced tea, in tow to satiate my laziness with creativity. :) However, in cleaning out of my desk and organizing my new stuff, I came across this. It's a little, white plastic snake skin card wallet. Just big enough to hold a driver's license and debit card. I thought it was cute, but a bit boring...so daisies!

The picture is a bit blurry, but I think it shows up okay. I think I shallacked this one, so it's shiny...

Proof that the sun still exists....

...or at least it did when we were in California for Christmas. :) Too tired tonight to do much that is artsy (shocked? I know. But I am dedicating tomorrow afternoon to a few new projects....), so instead, pictures of a warmer place, and brighter colors.

Random, gorgeous red flowers at the top of a HUGE hill we climbed up from the beach. The exact color pallet of my kitchen. :)
The Pacific.
Me, after splashing in the waves like a four year old (which is pretty much all I did that day....)

If that dumb groundhog saw his shadow a few weeks back, how much longer still spring?

Under the Tuscan Sun

I love this movie. As we watched it this weekend, and I reveled in all the outdoor shots of sunshine (will the sun ever come back to Indiana?), I was reminded of the beautiful message of this movie: life moves on, and goodness can be re-found.

A warm, February movie: when Francis' husband leaves her, she buys a villa in Tuscany on a whim, and dedicates herself to making a home of the dilapidated house, making friends, and finding contentment along the way.

I want to live here, by the see...isn't it wonderful??

Her villa, with a basement full of bottles!

It's fixed!

Since my husband is awesome, he changed the comment settings for me! Before, you had to have a certain profile to leave a comment, but now anyone can! When you type your comment, it will have a drop down box asking you how you want to leave it. You can pick Name/URL option, and then just type you name (skip the URL part) and it will let you post! :) Sorry for the confusion!

Man in the Mirror

Okay, I'm taking a break from my bottles, because this song just hits home this week. Paul and I have been watching the artistry of Michael Jackson this week...."This is It" and his 30th anniversary concert. The man was a genius in so many fields. His concerts were an art form onto themselves! And this week seems to have been full of people refusing to take responsibility for their choices (granted, some of those people are only about three feet tall), and I've had about all I can take. I wish there was some way to instill this idea in our world...

I'm Gonna Make A Change
For Once In My Life
It's Gonna Feel Real Good,
Gonna Make A Difference
Gonna Make It Right . . .

As I Turn Up The Collar On

My Favorite Winter Coat
This Wind Is Blowin' My Mind

I See The Kids In The Street,
With Not Enough To Eat
Who Am I To Be Blind?
Pretending Not To See Their Needs

A Summer's Disregard,
A Broken Bottle Top
And A One Man's Soul
They Follow Each Other On

The Wind Ya' Know
'Cause They Got Nowhere To Go
That's Why I Want You To Know

I'm Starting With The Man In The Mirror
I'm Asking Him To Change His Ways
And No Message Could Have Been Any Clearer
If You Wanna Make The World A Better Place
Take A Look At Yourself, And Then Make A Change
(Na Na Na, Na Na Na, Na Na, Na Nah)

I've Been A Victim Of

A Selfish Kind Of Love
It's Time That I Realize
That There Are Some With No Home,

Not A Nickel To Loan
Could It Be Really Me,
Pretending That They're Not Alone?

A Willow Deeply Scarred,
Somebody's Broken Heart
And A Washed-Out Dream

They Follow The Pattern Of The Wind, Ya' See
Cause They Got No Place To Be
That's Why I'm Starting With Me

I'm Starting With The Man In The Mirror
I'm Asking Him To Change His Ways
And No Message Could Have Been Any Clearer
If You Wanna Make The World A Better Place
Take A Look At Yourself, And Then Make A Change

You Gotta Get It Right While You Got The Time

'Cause When You Close Your Heart
Then You Close Your Mind!

Glimpses of Bottles, part one

Okay, so these were my very first attempts at turning bottles into vases. I intend to work on some more this weekend, and I'll be sure to add those pictures too!

This was a sparkling cider bottle. With a little help, I lobbed the top off with a small hammer. I used food coloring to dye the glue and "painted" the bottle blue. Then, it was just a matter of attaching the blue mesh fabric, hemp and buttons.

I think I like this one a little better. Same type of bottle, but the edges are a little sharper. I tried to sand them down, which seemed to work. It's hard to see the detail, but I textured the entire bottle with a little rosebud stamp, and modge-podged the pictures on. To give it a more finished look, I used solder-colored fabric paint to outline the paper details.

The front side. :)

So, what do you think?