TIME FLIES...

So how did two months just pass by with not one entry to my blog?????? Shameful, I must say. It certainly isn't for lack of interest because I think about it daily. Could be the many things going on in life - daughter starting pre-school, baby son turning one, major basement renovations, establishing EllaBella Design Studios as primary business, twice weekly markets on the waterfront in downtown Nanaimo...
Anyhow, I am still coming up with new ideas for pretty things to embellish life. My current focus is the upcoming Kris Kringle Fair in Qualicum Beach. I think until then I will concentrate on creating beautiful Christmas products and resume this blog in December. It will also include musings and more personal elements then EllaBella.
Look forward to chatting in the near future
Karen

LABOUR DAY WEEKENED

Can you believe September is already upon us!!! The newsmakers coined this summer "The summer that never was". Somewhat appropriate, however, even through the rain and clouds we had a speckling of the most beautiful, pristine sunshine coupled with light windy days which made outdoor activities all the more enjoyable.

Many thanks to our loyal customers at both the Nanaimo Farmer's and Craig Street Markets. It was a real pleasure meeting you all and I look forward to recontecting later this fall.

It's funny how inspiration strikes - a chance overheard conversation, a glance at a bookcover in the library, a beautiful piece of fabric, the pattern on the skin of a canteloupe (yes, I even tried inking it to make a print!!). It is these wonderful times that fuel the brain and creations spurn forth.

Currently I am torn with creating beautiful pieces for the baby nursery and children's rooms keeping in mind the changing seasons and upcoming holidays. Sometimes everything is dropped to go on a photo shoot for upcoming projects. Alas the beauty of art...

Look for the above sweet image in future mixed media canvases for rooms with small children. They remind me of old fashioned stories, Beatrix Potter style. They were fun to create and they will be fun to view.

Stay tuned and happy long weekend :D

NEW WEB SITE!!

Hello All,

Once again it has been busy at KEWDESIGNS! I am continuing to source out unique items to transform into beautiful pieces for the home. My clocks have met rave reviews and I will be busy this weekend creating more for the upcoming markets.

Please visit http://www.ellabelladesignstudios.com/ for the latest market schedules and product displays. Also look out in the following months for original scrapbook products such as rub-ons and felt embellishments for sale. It is our desire to create wonderful pieces to enhance your scrapbook projects. Our first shipment of ribbon has arrived too. It can be purchased both at markets and the above website.

Thanks to all of our great customers - it's been a treat meeting you and look forward to more feedback in the future.

NEW PROJECTS

Good Day!

Well, I have been very busy these past few weeks at KEWDESIGNS. We are currently renovating our basement with an additional bathroom which will facilitate not only our family but future clients to the studio which is coming in the near future. Exciting!!

These "Nursery Clocks" are my latest creation. They are 8"by8" and absolutely gorgeous in a baby's room. It is my hope to continue with this line and will incorporate both girl and boy styles.

Market day on July 27th was our most successful to date. We were blessed with having the most wonderful corner location on the main level looking over the sea and coastal mountains. It was a pristine summer day and we really enjoy chatting with all of the out of town guests to Nanaimo. I am very grateful for their business and sincerely hope they all enjoy their beautiful new albums and wall art.

Both Ann and I have finalised a company name in which we will market our own line of scrapbook embellishments, ribbon and eclectic altered paper art - EllaBella Design Studios!! We are proud to be Canadian owned and operated and it is our intention to forge a place for our wonderful creations in the ever-growing scrapbook industry. Exciting days ahead...

Remember to enjoy your day.

MARKET DAY

Once again it was the Friday Nanaimo Farmer's Market located on the beautiful waterfront of Nanaimo, BC. All of the marketers were out in full force selling wares from plants to jewellery and of course our PaperArts. We are, Karen (right) of KEWDESIGNS and Ann of Ann Chapman Designs. We are generally located on the lower level of the market alongside a dozen other stalls.

We offer an assortment of altered paper items including journals, picture frames, paper mini albums, cards, magnets, bookmarks, buddha canvas's and more.

Ann has produced some beautiful cards for all occasions that would be so very special to give a loved one. The journals also feature different themes, such as travel, gardening, dreams and secrets. Although I am a tad biased, I get extra pleasure from using a handmade item. I can almost feel the good intentions of its creator and the pleasure that went into making said item.

We are continuing to get more display items daily and are enjoying the process of arranging our merchandise. Our market "space" changes weekly so we must adapt to our new location. We must also take precautions against natures forces being excessive wind and rain. Altogether it is a very satisfying experience. We meet all kinds of wonderful people from around the globe and it is our hope to decorate their lives with our beautifully handcrafted selection of paper-arts.

IS THIS CANADA??

So here I am by the beautiful Nanaimo waterfront taking in the family activites with my family when I caught a glimpse of myself in this marvously polished

boat propeller. Perfect for a self-portrait I thought.

Anyway, the kids were dressed ever so sweetly and I wanted to get some great Canada Day shots -waving flags etc. Most patriotic I thought. Alas it was not my day for photography. Everything was too dark and shadowy and my almost 9 month old kept eating the flag (showing his own form of patriotism?). So I pondered as to what I could do with these shots.

I came up with the following question? What makes our landscape uniquely Canadian. Sure there are the new "Seven Wonders of Canada" but there are also tiny pockets (micro-climates, if you will) that one would never think of as being in Canada such as this tiny frog. He could very well be in the lush understudy of a tropical forest or in a native plant of Bermuda. But no. We discovered this tiny creature in the backyard of my parents house, right here in Nanaimo.

Hope everyone had a smile and a happy Canada Day :D

Musings and More...

So we did the unthinkable today.................

We not only took our family "to eat" lunch at McDonalds but we gave our sweet, pure, almost 9 month old son a french fry!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I felt like all of those parents that I had previously judged (not a good practice, I know realise) were staring at us tut-tutting in disgust. It was shameful of us, however, Quinn was staring with those baby pleading eyes that no human being could say no to. So we let one cool down, rubbed as much salt off as we could and let him have it.

Part of us felt we were giving our young children a rite of passage experience into the world of fast food and the other part felt we should eat only fruit and veg. (organic even better) for the next fornight.

Pretty Things...

Our lives should always be filled with pretty things - Elizabeth and I have been picking "posies" of flowers from our garden and they instantly pretty up the rooms they are in. After 6 seasons my pale pink paeony produced one luscious, perfect flower. The debate was to cut or not to cut...well you can see from prior photos that cutting won, and I am pleased. The rain would have washed the petals away anyway (so I reason with myself).

Another pretty thing that has entered my life is my Rhembein bag that my husband bought for me at last Saturdays Salt Spring Island Market. I absolutely love the fabrics and it, well, just makes me feel good. I even had to go and purchase some new tops to accompany the brilliant colours of this new fave pretty thing.

I've included http://www.rhembein/ in my list of sites I like and everyone should check it out. Gyl's children's dress designs are absolutely stunning - THAT is what little girls should be wearing!!!

Her site is so inspiring to me since I also love pretty fabrics and sewing, photography and tales of the everyday.

(I am quite chuffed that you can see my bag amoungst the other beautiful creations shown - I rather feel like I should be in "Hello" Mag (Canadian edition, of course) as a who's who sporting Canadian originals!!!!)

Hope you all enjoyed your days.

KEW

A Few Creations...

Hello, Here are a few pics of some latest work. I am really ejoying the "Dream" Series and they are flowing into existence quite well. Can you tell that I am rather taken with paper arts - I am envisioning an entire clothing line for my wooden model friend!!!

Monday, June 25th

So....Did you smile today?? I did. Several times actually. This morning Elizabeth and I were gardening and I dug up some old white bulbs. She collected them in an old pot and declared them to be her dinosaur bones...now that's creativity at work.
Secondly was while watching that Ikea summer sale commercial where the odd looking women gets into her car and tells her husband to drive all the while yelling "Woooooooooooooooo...!!!!"
Now we've all had that feeling before leaving a store getting a sweet deal. Their advertising worked - it made me smile.

EVERYDAY MOMENTS

Greetings Everyone!

Welcome to Everyday Moments at KEWDESIGNS. My intention is to share musings, thoughts, stories and ideas along with photos of current and past works of arts, paper arts, garden creations and laughter of my two most sweet and wonderfully lovely children - Elizabeth & Quinn.

I am very excited about sharing everyday moments in this "new to me" medium. It is my hope to stay current and be connected to family, friends, colleagues and clients.

Even on the most ordinary and uneventful day we should find something to smile about - a memory, a joke, a glance out the window revealing a flower, a dog or a bird, an interaction with a loved one or just a classic episode of Seinfeld!!!

These special quiet (or not so quiet) moments are what makes life....well, life. I intend to take a moment (or several) to smile, reflect, give thanks and most importantly play. ENJOY!!!