Jellyfish

Quite a while back I came across Stephanie's blog All about Ami. Until digging deeper into her blog I had no idea what Amigurami [the Japanese art of knitted/crocheted stuffed animals] was. She does an incredible job, and I admire how well made her pieces are. I was definitely impressed with each of her pieces, but when I came across her more recent post about her crocheted jellyfish I was in love. I just think it is the cutest thing ever! I was determined to get better at crochet and learn to make this, but I assumed it was way over my head...then I realized there was no pattern available. Being my normally impatient self I learned how to read a pattern, looked up some basics online, and my first project was [and is ongoing] a slouchy hat from a free online pattern. Once I got to the point of creating the same stitch over and over I needed something new. I wanted to make that jellyfish so badly so I looked at her photos of the construction and started googling. I found a pattern for a ball and adjusted the pattern after the top half was complete, searched how to make a scalloped edge, and then found a video for how to do the curly pieces for the tentacles. I started after work on Friday and couldn't stop! She complete by Saturday morning, and...here she is! 

Right now she is hanging beside my desk, and I don't think she will be going anywhere soon. I may even have to make her some friends!

Be happy! 

-Katie

Family session: The Gurneys

Sunday I was lucky enough to get to photography this super fun family. It was a little humid, but much better than the 100+ temperatures I have shot in lately! I hope they had as much fun as I did! 

Be happy! 

-Katie

Mousepad makeover

One would think with this project that I have absolutely nothing else to do, but that is actually the opposite of the truth. I am writing this between editing photos before I go take more photos this afternoon. My house is a disaster DISASTER...so much that I am excited to clean it tomorrow. But today I must get through photos, party supplies, wedding bunting, and maybe some dirty dishes. It is bad ya'll, really bad. So why am I wasting time making over my old, nasty mousepad when I could just buy a new one? Because sometimes a girl just needs to craft something! As you can see the before was totally disgusting. How did that thing not get thrown out when I moved?!?...twice! It has clearly been my doodle pad, and I don't know how I ignored how gross and dirty it is. Yuck. Plus, it was ugly when I brought it home [for free] from the clinic where I worked. Lots of questionable actions led up to it looking like a total nasty wreck. 

Gross. I was ashamed when I finally looked down and noticed it so I had to take action. With a little bit of bargain fabric, some mod podge, and clear coat it is now bright and cute, just as it should be. Phew. I feel better! 

Be happy!

-Katie

Behind much?

Holy guacamole! I just realized how long it had been since I had posted anything. I know I am always talking about how busy I am, so I won't even go into details. I have just been trying my hardest to be productive when I am home while still finding time to make a tiny bit of "me" time. I have actually been failing miserably at this until last night. I would come home from work and sit at my computer trying to work on editing photos but getting distracted, and as a result feeling totally unproductive and unaccomplished when I went to bed exhausted. Not a good thing...so yesterday after a loooong day at the bakery I decided that I could not stand to stay in the house beating myself up for not working on things. The mother-in-law and I went out for a little Chik-fil-a, 5 minutes of Hobby Lobby [we got a late start, and they closed], a quick round in Micheal's, and two different Wal-Marts. We totally wasted time looking at things we don't need, and it was just what I needed. Plus, it wasn't totally unproductive. I found some great fabric for $1.50 a yard, my Freeze It hairspray that is hard to come by these days, a Christmas stocking stuffer for the mr, and a clearance item that was just what I needed! I came home feeling refreshed and ready to take on today. 

 

Actually, today is just what I needed too.

1. Polaroid [free!]
2. Pumpkin Spice
3. Awesome fabric deals are my fave
4. Antlers in my house? I know...believe it.

 

It is not quite 70 degrees in my house, and that is just perfect for wearing yoga pants and a sweatshirt, burning my pumpkin spice candle, and drinking white hot chocolate. I plan on getting these photos edited as well as some other commissioned projects, so that I can paint my nails and start a crochet project...hey, a girl can dream, right?

Be happy! 

-Katie

Baby Hayes

A while back I posted photos of my gorgeous friend and Mommy-to-be, Lindsey. Two weeks ago she gave birth to a precious baby boy, and I was lucky enough to get to photograph him in all his newborn glory this week. More words are not necessary with this sweet face...

The only bad thing is that I was so busy snapping photos that I didn't get to snuggle him at all! 

Be happy! 

-Katie

Good morning

I had this image in my head for a while before I finally sat down to sketch it out. Then it took me a while to remember to buy a frame and even longer to get the frame painted, but FINALLY the image in my head is complete! 

I will be out of town the rest of the week spending time with my family and getting back to photo sessions like crazy. Hopefully I will get a chance to share some from those sessions soon! 

Be happy! 

-Katie

Girls Weekend

"Girls weekend" probably has different meanings to different people. To me it meant spending the entire weekend with my nieces while the mr was away on a scuba excursion...in Arkansas believe it or not! We had a "nail party", ate pizza, watched a lot of Disney movies, worked at the bakery on Saturday [they helped], ate McDonalds, a mini photo shoot, attended the church pool party, did "rock star" makeup, went to church, had hamburgers, and did a little batting practice. It was quite a weekend! 

This was kind of an out take from the shoot, but it is just so totally them. 

Love these girls. 

I am glad they were able and willing to keep me company over the weekend. 

Now I have to try to put my house back together...

Be happy! 

-Katie

Extreme Home Makeover: Lockhart Edition

So I FINALLY finished the photobook that I had started months ago with photos of our house renovations. I am not that far behind. We only finished the house nearly TWO YEARS AGO! Photo books just take a lot of time and dedication on my part, and I am not a fan of making them. However, I am a fan of having my memories compiled into books with images, embellishments, and text so I press on. Now I just have to make my 2009 book [yes, you read that correctly] and hopefully get a jump start on a 2012 book. 

Click here to view this photo book larger

Click here to create your own Shutterfly photo book.

                         Be happy! 

                        -Katie 

Epiphany anyone?

So this week I have had a major breakthrough in my realization of "what I want to be when I grow up." It involves some major focus, some big improvements, organization, new equipment, and pouring my self completely into something instead of being crazy-all-over-the-place like I have been until now.

I am pretty excited about it. 

I just felt like I needed to make an announcement. 

I will share more later when I have actually accomplished some of these improvements. 

Just know, that I AM PUMPED. 

And my family is visiting tomorrow, so I am pumped about that too. I get to see this sweet face. 

 

Be happy...and pumped. 

-Katie

Summertime

So I am not the biggest fan of Summer. I love Spring and things blooming and changing and wearing sandals, but I do not like my dead grass, crunchy brown flowers, and pitiful garden that come with Summer...not to mention my face melting off every time I get in my car. Despite all that I tried to embrace it yesterday and soak up a little sun on these pasty legs of mine. I went out with my book and a snack, and wasn't this photo just screaming to be taken!?

I could not have planned those colors any better...just sayin'. 

Be happy...and embrace the now. 

-Katie

We have shelves, people!

So a few weeks ago I mentioned that I was getting shelves put up in the living room. Well, that project turned out to be a much longer project than anticipated. We got the boards painted, and some of them warped...blah, blah, blah...several days later we had replacement boards, I painted them, and the mr got them up for me before they even had a chance to warp. Finally I was able to go through all the stuff piled in my dining room, and I found a place for almost everything!

This was my poor dining room table: 

This was my blah wall in the living room: 

And this is my fabulously cluttered shelving with all my junk treasures!

That brown suitcase on the bottom left is going to have a graphic image painted on it soon, and I have to figure out what to do with the birdcage area because that is an air vent in the floor. Even though I am not totally satisfied with all of the arrangements I came up with, I am very happy with how the shelves turned out...and I am pretty sure it doesn't look as junky in person as it does in this photo. Yes...I am positive it doesn't.

And I even incorporated all of the mr's books...including Batman and the Pearls Before Swine treasuries.

Be happy! 

-Katie

Happenings lately

It has been a productive day around here. I got really stressed over my camera not working properly so I dove into some projects that weren't even on today's to-do list. I did some cleaning in the basement, put the first coat of paint on my piano bench project, and painted and reupholstered my vanity bench. I continued to be stressed and stress-ate a bunch of chips and dip. Then I called Canon, and the super nice, helpful guy helped me fix the problem...I think. So then I got on the treadmill and kicked my personal best's booty [good thing after all those chips and dip...and the hot dog], tested out my camera some more, and put my bench back together. One large photo order and some important emails later, and I am feeling pretty good about this Saturday...and it isn't over yet!

While testing my camera I thought these shoes deserved a photo. They are awesomeness. They make my jog so much easier...okay that is bologna, but they do make my feet feel better while jogging than any other shoes ever.

This is the kinda ugly piano bench that my mother-in-law came across and gave to me. She knows I love ugly junk...it is like a challenge and very exciting to me. I especially love hate the nice gold strip just below the seat.

It has had one coat of paint, but needs another coat and some detail work. It is also super tall, and I plan to cut the legs off a little bit. 

My other bench project started out like this.

I bought this years ago at Hobby Lobby, and I remember being so proud of it. It went perfectly in my horrendous gold and black bedroom. Truth is I paid way to much for it, it is pretty tacky, and I have just grown so used to it that I didn't even notice until recently how much I hated that "Cafe" cushion. Not to mention I noticed it looked like this! 

But after some remnant upholstery fabric and a coat of dark walnut spray paint it looks like this. 

Tada! Yeah, so it is nothing amazing or anything, but I think it is an improvement. And it was free so I would say it is a success. 

What does the rest of the day look like? 

Dishes. Shower. Movie. Yarn pom poms. Accordion Wheels. Waiting hopefully for a certain email. 

Be happy! 

-Katie

It's been a hot one!

It has been really busy [and sweaty] during the last week. We were busy at the bakery, had a HOT 4th of July softball game, and went to the antique stores at the West Bottoms on Saturday where I came very close to spontaneous combustion. Things cooled down a tiny bit today, and I was very thankful since I had a photo session tonight. Runae's story brought me to tears when she first emailed me, and I was honored to capture these images for her family. 

A few bugs and some itchy grass, but overall a successful shoot...even Miss Averi [cousin] got in on the fun too! How cute is she?!

I am looking forward to some cooler weather and busy fall sessions!

Be happy!

-Katie

hello

I am still going...

Be happy! 

-Katie 

i love prints

I have been doing a lot of sketching ideas for prints lately. I really enjoyed making the "pour your heart out", "i love my glue gun", and "let's spoon" prints, so I have decided to pursue that medium further. I want to "get myself out there", and while I am not exactly sure how to do that [since my etsy thing has been a bust thus far] I am not going to stop creating and doing what I love.

I am thinking this might get blown up and hang over the couch...but who knows...

Be happy! 

-Katie

handyman

I love this guy. 

After an 11 hour workday he went to Home Depot to get screws. Now he is hanging up my shelves in the living room. And he is cute too. Bonus! 

Be happy! 

-Katie

Me: 1 Ruffled Curtain: 0

It was probably 3 months ago that I started working on a ruffled curtain for our back door. I am a freak about my windows being covered at night, but I had yet to get anything for that door. I knew I didn't want some store-bought valance, but I am not the greatest seamstress. I think they could sense my lack of confidence, and those ruffles kicked my bottom...until yesterday. I was feeling a little overconfident after my successful ruffled shorts [image below], painted camera, and crazy colored shorts projects. 

So after a lot of frustration, lots of straight pins, and a lot of seam ripping I finally finished! And my dear, sweet husband got them up for me tonight [and I finally started practicing with my $1 garage sale Wacom tablet].

Crazy what a girl can do with four tons of determination and a $3 sheet from Walmart. So now you can't stand on my back deck and see all the way through my house. How nice!...okay, okay, so that is an exaggeration, but I really am a freak about having my windows covered. Now I can go into the kitchen and laundry room after dark even when the mr isn't home! 

Be happy! 

-Katie

Roundup

It has been a busy week with work, catching up on photo editing, and getting some things settled here at home. Wednesday I did some major [much needed] cleaning. It felt great to get that done! 

I have spent a lot of time wishing the mr was home with me, so I am pretty excited to have him home tonight...I am also pretty excited to start working on some more shelving for the living room because this is what my dining room table looks like right now. 

All this is stuff that was just stuck in random places like my living room closet or in the piles of stuff in the office. I did some major cleaning in both places, and I decided if it doesn't have a place it must go!...so I have a great husband who is going to make a place because none of it is stuff I want to part with right now. Soon I will have two shelves on both sides of the fireplace that will hopefully look like built-ins without blocking the air vent in the floor or interfering with the window trim.

Last night I got to visit with some friends and take photos of some cute kiddos. Look at these sweet cheeks! 

And you know I love a good puppy photo.

And today I am going to do some creating [red bow for my camera strap, lampshade embroidery, and try to finally finish the curtain for the back door], but first I am going to get on the treadmill. It may break me because it has been a while, but I finally feel like I don't have a million other things I must do first. It always [easily] gets pushed to the back burner. I do well for a few weeks, but then I fall off track again. I want to make it a part of my routine, but that would require some sort of a routine to begin with I think. Today I am being inspired instead of intimidated by all those I see working out. Here I go...wish me luck.

Be happy! 

-Katie Beth