3.31.11 ... vintage cookbook image collage magnets

i have made a limited run of magnets from this old discarded cookbook and they have all sold well. so it was time to make some more but i am quickly running out of pieces. the paper circles are going to be a set too, but today i finished up this pair - cinnamon rolls and a toaster. i started them yesterday.

i had fun adding my own colored pencil touches to these two tiny images. i hope they'll make someone happy when they reach their new home. i will list them soon.

we had such a busy day today and i woke up way too early so this is all i can manage this evening. but not before i say --- happy 11th birthday mr. chippy!

isn't he the most adorable beagle? such a sweetheart.

sweet dreams, everyone. thanks for stopping by. until tomorrow. happiness to you. from me. with heart. ox joon

Posted via email from just joon

3.30.11 ... speed record airplanes

i found these in a magazine article that had a time line of and information about the planes through history that broke speed records. i love the images so i made these magnets. i am very happy with them and will list them in my joonbeam shop ... if ev doesn't claim them first.

doesn't this eric carle book cover make a perfect background for them, too?

last night our local station kept airing commercials at the wrong times so that we missed half of craig ferguson and - to add insult to injury - we'd return to the program just in time to hear him announce 'we'll be right back ...' and then we'd see all the same darn commercials again. ugh. let's see what happens this evening. hope yours is pleasant.

sweet dreams, everyone. thanks for stopping by. until tomorrow. happiness to you. from me. with heart. ox joon

Posted via email from just joon

3.29.11 ... mini bran muffins

i did a fair amount of creative activity today, which is gratifying because i must be starting to catch the habit. but this is the one i was able to capture on film. i wish there was film. nothing else sounds as good as that phrase. at any rate, i have been wanting to make these as mini muffins for months so today i found my pans and did just that.

i wonder if they just taste better because they are so darn adorable. i don't know. we all agree they do, though.

so now our freezer is stocked and we're set for a while. there's more batter in the fridge. my muffin recipe is a modification on the well known version. 

these are lighter and just plain divine. did you catch the good wife tonight? love that show and it was extra excellent this evening. now on to regis and dave. 

sweet dreams, everyone. thanks for stopping by. until tomorrow. happiness to you. from me. with heart. ox joon

Posted via email from just joon

3.28.11 ... recycled vintage postcard bookmark

i made some macaroni salad today to go along with ev's wonderful john boy chicken - that's southern marinated grilled chicken. i don't have a photo of it but it was lovely and delicious. i did manage a couple of photos of this bookmark i made. it went out as an order thank you. the sky was quite gray today. these are the best two i snapped.

i love these old postcards. the reverse is as good as the photo. they sure don't make them like this anymore. i used the 'share the road' homemade sticker for the tissue wrapped packet and the car sticker was another little extra i tucked inside. as usual on monday, we were out all afternoon until 8:30 ish so that's all i have time for tonight. jungle jack hanna is on dave tonight. that's always a treat. if i can stay awake.

sweet dreams, everyone. thanks for stopping by. until tomorrow. happiness to you. from me. with heart. ox joon

Posted via email from just joon

3.27.11 ... sketch and coconut cream pie

i've been adding sketches and ideas to my little recycled granny photo album that i shared here on 2.23.11 and 2.24.11. you may recognize it. today i was still organizing my clippings and had saved a page with beautiful fabric. i love the style of these leaves so i made a sketch that i can use as a jumping off point for my own something some day. that's the technical terminology. {i like my created word: termiage}

i recycled a bit of used tissue paper which, actually, happened to come with the little box i recycled and covered yesterday.

i also made a coconut cream pie. these photos were taken this evening and are the best i can manage. here is the crust right before i put it in the oven.

here is the cooled pie shell with the coconut cream filling inside.

... and we have to top it with homemade hand whipped cream. thanks, ev. it was divine. well worth waiting all day and evening for. and just think what's next: breakfast!

sweet dreams, everyone. thanks for stopping by. until tomorrow. happiness to you. from me. with heart. ox joon

Posted via email from just joon

3.26.11 ... dictionary ephemera gift box wrap

i received an order in a recycled gift box and, naturally, i loved that. i want to use it yet again and hope the next people in line will be encouraged to reuse it as well, but it was getting a little worse for the wear so i decided to give it an edge and wallpaper it. i went through my old discarded dictionary looking for something interesting and with the right page placement. i love this hieroglyphics illustration --- i just now noticed it is about a gift!

well, prior to finding that .... this was my favorite aspect of the particular piece - that it had the hieroglyphics bit and that higgledy-piggledy are situated perfectly for the latter to rest exactly on the box top edge.

and i love that flounder is on hand and that the top edge flaw which bows out has the words 'higher and lower' right on the 'hilly' section.

and i love this flourish. how groovy is this?

i am thinking about what i'd like to use for the interior. i'll be back with that one day soon. or later. 

sweet dreams, everyone. thanks for stopping by. until tomorrow. happiness to you. from me. with heart. ox joon

Posted via email from just joon

3.25.11 ... the real way to keep a man

i know the way to a man's heart is through his stomach and that's pretty true, i admit. but if you want to know the secret to the ultimate 100% mate for life guarantee, here it is my friends --- become adept {some might say, genius} at salvaging his favorite clothing items.

and, trust me, you got yourself a man. happy friday, dear readers. i do hope you're enjoying this wonderful day. see you over the weekend with something less profound but much more visually satisfying. no doubt.

sweet dreams, everyone. thanks for stopping by. until tomorrow. happiness to you. from me. with heart. ox joon

Posted via email from just joon

3.24.11 ... brussels sprouts rock

the past few days i've been working on sorting through and organizing my clippings that have been in their temporary folder for many months. and it amazes me that, once again, serendipity rains down on me. look at the perfect pairing of this clipping - and who would ever think it was worth clipping in the first place, no less worthy of filing? - and the brussels sprouts gift. yes, we hang with people who go wild over brussels sprouts, as we all do, right?

so i had this card i'd saved and put these two odd bits together and i love the result. and there is my recycled art project for today. back to sorting and filing for me. minus two. 

sweet dreams, everyone. thanks for stopping by. until tomorrow. happiness to you. from me. with heart. ox joon

Posted via email from just joon

3.23.11 ... design sampler

i was clipping magazine pieces most of the afternoon and ran across something i'd saved with mid century designs for tiles and i decided to make myself a reference card for future projects. i expanded my colors and added my own designs to the small group. i am still thinking over how i will use them but fabrics are swirling through my head at the moment.

not much time for writing tonight so that's it for today's entry.

sweet dreams, everyone. thanks for stopping by. until tomorrow. happiness to you. from me. with heart. ox joon

Posted via email from just joon

3.22.11 ... an ephemeral shelf

we moved earlier this winter and this bedside table's shelf is curiously missing. i've been using a basket on the floor but today i went on a quest for something that i could fashion into a temporary shelf. what i came up with is a double thickness cardboard box - 2 pieces - wrapped in paper. it won't hold much but that works for me. i don't need it to be strong. just there.

i love making temporary fixes and, years later, marveling at how incredibly long they lasted.

and here's something that amused us. it was its last day intact so scout snapped a quick photo.

proof that imperfection matters not a whit. we can be put together all wrong and still turn out delightful. yes indeed.

sweet dreams, everyone. thanks for stopping by. until tomorrow. happiness to you. from me. with heart. ox joon

Posted via email from just joon

3.21.11 ... a bicycle built for two and kitchen towel loops

i made this card for a vintage pin that is going to someone's friend. i hope they'll both enjoy it. i had fun with it. i used a discarded children's book, a scrap of tissue paper that i've been laughing at myself over having saved for so long - and now i am justified - and my favorite discount find mint card stock.

a bicycle built for two --- taking a ride down a make believe lane.

those of you who have been following my 2011 art every day journey have seen my towel loops before. this towel is a recent thrift find. i love it. it's extra large so i put loops on two corners so it won't hang down near mr chippy whose bowl is close to the fridge hook. i decided to cover the loops this time so i rummaged through my clothes tags box and spied, instead, these old mending squares i saved after they'd already saved something else for a while - until that item finally became unrepairable. i save everything. and here's the proof. anyway, i like this look. now i want to add squares to all the previous loops. 

how is your spring shaping up? grand, i do hope.

sweet dreams, everyone. thanks for stopping by. until tomorrow. happiness to you. from me. with heart. ox joon

Posted via email from just joon

3.20.11 ... my butternut soup

today i made my butternut squash soup. hey, we all need to be a hero once in a while. and when i mention this soup, it's instant hero time.

i thought i'd share it with you all.

:: butternut hum ::

1/2 onion, chopped 

3 TBSP. unsalted butter 

{kosher} salt and pepper

3 TBSP. unsalted butter 

one medium butternut squash, peeled and cubed 

one large granny smith or other crisp, tart apple, peeled and chopped

salt and pepper

3 TBSP. flour 

2 heaping tsp. curry powder 

1/8 tsp. nutmeg

4 cups chicken broth

1 1/2 cups milk {whole} 

grated rind of one orange {about 2 TBSP.} 

1/2 cup orange juicesalt and pepper 

1/2 tsp. sugar

chopped fresh parsley and{optional} heavy cream

In a dutch oven, saute the onion, in butter about 5 minutes, until soft. Salt and pepper to taste. Add the 3 TBSP. butter, squash and apple. Saute another 5 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add the flour, curry and nutmeg. Cook 2 minutes.

Add the chicken broth and simmer, uncovered about 20 to 30 minutes or until squash is tender.

Slowly add in the milk, rind, juice, salt and pepper and sugar. Heat through over medium low heat.

Serve topped with parsley and, if feeling fancy, a dollop of heavy cream.

First taste will have you humming. {this is scout's groovy soup bowl. it oozes humming, doesn't it?}

Enjoy. Fantastic on second or third day. A wonderful soup to make ahead.

sweet dreams, everyone. thanks for stopping by. until tomorrow. happiness to you. from me. with heart. ox joon

Posted via email from just joon

3.19.11 ... scribbler folder

do you remember these? i had forgotten all about them until i spied this second one of two that i found the other day at the thrift store. i loved the first one i spotted, which has musical instrument outlines. it is underneath this folder in this next photo...

i just loved the instrument images and i thought there was something familiar about the folder but it wasn't until i saw this one with the houses that i became more curious. i opened it up and saw the scribbler logo inside and it all came back to me. i loved these things.

so i got to work on this one this afternoon. before we had to run to the store i had gotten this far. when we returned i continued during tea time...

i love the paper. i'm using pentel markers and my colored pencils. it's much more of a challenge for my eyes now than it was in the 1970s. go figure.

i am going to enjoy keeping my project ideas in these folders. once i finish coloring them in.

oh --- and look what scout made for everyone for breakfast...

it's ham, sauteed fresh mushroom and onions, and monterrey jack, mozzarella and swiss cheeses. lovely, no?

sweet dreams, everyone. thanks for stopping by. until tomorrow. happiness to you. from me. with heart. ox joon

Posted via email from just joon

3.18.11 ... upcycled little star booklet

happy friday boys and girls. i hope you had a beautiful day. i made a simple book today. it wasn't planned. i do have this idea for making little books out of discarded books, which i did here, but my original plan is different. i'll make one soon and you'll see what i mean.

this one is made from a discarded eric carle book. we love him. have you ever been to the eric carle museum? it is one of our favorite places on the planet. not to be missed. look it up. and go.

i do have to confess that evan helped me with this project. we like to work together --- most of the time. :)

i think this book turned out so sweet.

i also used some definitions from this fabulous 1957 french text book. i wanted to add the word star but it is not in the dictionary. no matter. it is still as cute as the darn dickens. what do you have on your mind for this weekend? do tell. i hope you're inspired by something and driven to be creative.

sweet dreams, everyone. thanks for stopping by. until tomorrow. happiness to you. from me. with heart. ox joon

Posted via email from just joon