Narcissus Print For Purchase At INPRNT

Hello, Creative Friends!

Thankfully we are at the end of January. With the darker days of winter here, we might be bundled up in a warm blanket, sipping a cozy cup of tea and longing for any sign of springtime. If you are a bit like me, you are dreaming of anything other than a stark snowy landscape. That’s why it’s a great time to…

Make Your House Bloom Beautiful This Winter With These 3 Creative Ideas.

1. Paperwhite Wonder: It’s always magical to bring garden life inside. By forcing blubs we can create the miracle of nature right in our own homes. Here is a great article from The Spruce on “How To Force Paperwhite Narcissus Indoors” or purchase this Narcissus print from INPRNT to make any wall bloom.

2. Sketch Up A Bouquet: Picking up the habit of sketching flowers can make creativity bloom! Here is a great tutorial for “Twelve Easy Flower Doodles You Need To Know.” Taking Time to sketch up a few doodles can help make the long winter days beautiful.

3. Edible Beauty: Did you know some flowers are edible and make lovely decorations for cakes, puddings, and more? Try baking up something beautiful by using this handy guide from King Arthur Baking Company “Creative Ways To Use Edible Flowers” for a creative way to make your house bloom this winter.

Drop me a message and let me know what you are working on and how you will make your house bloom beautifully this winter.

Also, thanks for reading along. This newsletter takes some time to pull together. Consider showing your support by forwarding it to someone who might need some inspiration or buying some of my artwork at INPRNT or Society 6.

If you are seeing this newsletter/blog for the first time and want to keep seeing content subscribe here.

Keep going, creative friends!

xoxo,

Andra

“A Party Without A Cake Is Just A Meeting.” - Julia Child

Hi, Creative Friends,

Happy Birthday to all the readers who fall into the astrological sign of Taurus!

Birthdays are sneaky. One day, we glance at our calendar only to realize someone we love has taken one more trip around the sun!

This week, make a birthday joyful, with these 3 simple creative ideas.

1. Let Them Eat Cake!: Molly J. Wilk’s French Pastry Class: I just finished one of Molly’s Virtual Pastry classes. First, they are as good as they sound and I now have an Ultimate Chocolate Tart birthday cake sitting in my refrigerator. If you need an extra special birthday gift, Molly offers accessible french pastry classes virtually from her kitchen in Versailles, France which can be found here on her website Molly J. Wilk Virtual Pastry Classes. All classes are held on Zoom and she provides recipes and the ability to access a private Facebook group to interact with other bakers. Molly also has a cookbook coming out in June called “French Pastry Made Simple” which can be pre-ordered! Either or both the pastry class and her book would be a great way to say happy birthday to anyone!

2. Olive A Good Party. Olive & June is a women-owned company that has transformed the art of the at-home manicure. They have some of the most modern polish colors around such as AW & CV. However, it’s Olive & June’s Nail Tutorials that will inspire and help create an at-home self-care, birthday bash! Pair some polish with these cozy and plush slippers, hop on a Zoom call with the gals and paint anyone’s birthday happy.

3. Homemade Happy Birthday. Create a lovely thank you card with these Strathmore Watercolor Cards & Kuretake Gansai Tambi Watercolor Palette to create and say happy birthday in the sweetest way possible. Try your hand at making a calorie-free birthday cake with this Beautiful Birthday Box video tutorial or purchase a special piece of art from Society 6 like one of these Zodiac Art Prints: Taurus Art Print or Taurus Quote Art Print.

Drop me a message and let me know what you are working on or a creative idea on how you will say happy birthday!

Also, thanks for reading. This newsletter takes some time to pull together. Consider showing your support by forwarding it to someone who might need some inspiration or buying some of my artwork at INPRNT.

If you are seeing this newsletter/blog for the first time and want to keep seeing content subscribe here.

Keep going, creative friends!

xoxo,

Andra

We travel around the sun once a year and the trip ends with only one day celebrate. However, the stars in the sky say something different.

The stars say we can celebrate forever and through the Zodiac, we never need to stop celebrating what makes each of us unique. 

My birthday month is over, but these two Taurus prints from Society 6  are going up on my office wall. They will remind me that we come from the stars and we should shoot for the stars. 

Check back soon as more Zodiac prints are coming to Society 6 including two-sided Gemini!

Until soon friends and birthday buddies.

Hey everyone. I'm late posting today. It was a whirlwind day full of balloons, tarts, arts and cake! There was so much to plan and so much to do. It was great to create all day. There, however, were some lessons along the way, one of which was frosting the cake. Yes, cake is the darling at any birthday party, well, besides the birthday girl of course. Usually, I prep the cake ahead of time and bake it a day in advance. I, however, rolled the dice and learned this morning not to roll the dice when it comes to cake.

Baking cake is a science. Assembling and frosting a cake is an art form. Today, I was in a hurry and forgot all the tips and tricks that make a good cake a great cake. Here is a video where I point out all the failures or rather learnings on how to frost cake for the next cake project.

Today's project is to create a list of learnings within a project so next time the project can go quickly from good to great. I need to get back to party clean up and post party meltdowns. Let me know what you have been creating lately and your failures. See you tomorrow cupcake!

Morning! I'm going to keep this post quick today as there is never enough time in the day! Speaking of time, my daughter turns a big birthday in just a few weeks. I have mentioned that birthday's are big at our house and this one will be no exception. When I, however, sat down to think about the theme for her birthday, I came up with nothing. Nada. No ideas. My mind was a blank page. That's when I realized I had a creative block. "Well, now what?" I said to myself. How do I get the creative juices flowing?

First, I asked the birthday girl what kind of party she wanted. She wanted a movie party, slip 'n slide party and a candy party. Great! The birthday girl solved my problem. I sat down to create a party that incorporated all three ideas together. Only to realize, together they would create a kid storm so epic, no one would ever attend one of our birthday parties ever again.

Back to the drawing board. I again was drawing a blank. I realized I was having serious creative block. Creative ideas usually work themselves out when I walk, with two kids in tow, we went for an urban hike. When I returned home, the creative juices were flowing and I had ideas! The birthday girl loved the idea of bringing her love of baking and art together or "Tarts & Arts." Whew. 

Today's project is to think of a time when you had a block in creativity. How did you unblock it? How did you solve the problem that needed solving? Create a plan to get your creative juices flowing to solve any idea. Will it be a walk? A trip to see an old friend? Or long drive? What will unblock the right side of the brain?

Well, I have a party to plan but let me know what makes your creativity come alive. See you tomorrow Art Tarts!

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Day 156 - Hello Saturday! Who rolled out of bed this morning to greet Saturday with a big "Hey there?" Me! I love Saturdays. Anything is possible on a Saturday and often times I reserve Saturday for fun. When I think of fun, I think of birthday parties. When I think of birthday parties, I often think of balloon animals and well, clowns. For the sake of keeping Saturday fun, I'm going to leave clowns out of this conversation. No offense to clowns but they give me the shakes. Ok, back to the balloon animals. There is something magical and creative about a balloon animal. It's a simple balloon but it's more. It's a sculpture waiting in the imagination.

I'm not the first person to ever think balloon animals are something interesting. Check out famous artist Jeff Koons and his balloon inspired sculptures for more inspiration.

Today's project is to create a balloon animal. Go with a simple dog or sculpt something from your creative brain. You can find a balloon animal kit on Amazon {affiliate link} or Daiso Japan. However you just need the balloon animal balloons {affiliate link} and a hand pump. I used a exercise ball pump to inflate my balloon animals. Here is a great quick video tutorial to get you started: How to Make a Balloon Dog.

Dog.

I need to stop clowning around and get back to twisting up more balloon sculptures to enjoy my Saturday. Have fun today and see you tomorrow!

Day 136 - Hey everybody. What goes better with Sundays than sundaes? Birthday parties and champagne of course! Today is my birthday. Yes, I will be forever twenty-one. Yes, I am from Generation X. Yes, I know it isn't possible to be twenty-one and Generation X. I consider twenty-one my Hollywood age. Ok, I digressed. Let's get back to talking about champagne. Champagne and I go together like vinegar and baking soda. My friends call it "flipping the switch." What can I say? It brings out the crazy in me. So let's talk about getting crazy and celebrating. 

Today's project is to grab a bottle of champagne or sparkling wine, some grenadine and create a celebration with me. Pour about 6oz of champagne and 2oz of grenadine in glass and enjoy. Drink a glass or four. Kick back and enjoy today! Bottoms Up. That's all I have today. I am going to go back to celebrating. I'll see you tomorrow!