Crocheting is a hobby of mine. I’m not very good at it and my stuff always come out wonky, but I find it relaxing.

Most of my stuff ends up becoming cat blankets whether it was intended or not!

You can see some of the ideas that crochet inspired at the following sites:

Zazzle:

Gifts for Crocheters
by ValeriesGallery

Redbubble:

Teepublic:

http://tee.pub/lic/UDcv38bttLY

And my Etsy shop:

https://beautifulcuteness.etsy.com

Do you crochet? Any tips?

For everyone, what is your favorite hobby? Let us know in the comments!

  Cookie, from my children’s’ book series, Cookie and Olivia, is based on my cat, Oreo.

  Oreo and her sister, Olivia came into our lives in June 2009.  My husband and I were enjoying a walk around our neighborhood when one of our neighbors stopped and asked if we wanted to see some kittens.  She also asked if we would be interested or if we knew anybody that would be interested in adopting them.  She had found a momma cat and her kittens in a box.

  I said no because I never pictured myself as a cat owner.  (Don’t tell my cats, but I wanted dogs.  Ha, ha.  Jokes on me because the cat are now my very spoiled fur babies. ) We also had plans to travel to New York to see our families and then we were off to Europe to visit my brother in law.

  However, at the same time my husband enthusiastically said yes.  He was so excited, and he rarely gets excited about anything, that there was no way I could say no!

  So, we followed my neighbor to her house and out on her back porch was a long haired brown and black cat just relaxing.  In different areas of the porch, were four kittens playing.  Two black and white ones and two tabbies.  (I still remember Olivia playing with a sparkly ball when I first saw her.)

  Our neighbor had a ten year old son at the time who had already named the kittens.  Oreo was originally named Black and Whitey.  However, I had decided long ago if I ever had a black and white animal, I was going to name it Oreo.

  Olivia was originally named Hidey, because we were told, she liked to hide.  However, a few days before, my husband had joked that if we ever got a cat, they were going to give it a regal sounding name.  Olivia’s full name is Olivia Fluffybottom the III.

  Since we had been talking about getting pets, we decided to adopt two of them.  It’s a coincidence that we ended up with two girl cats.  Our neighbor asked us which ones we wanted.  I chose Olivia because she was adorable playing with her sparkly ball and Oreo got chosen because se was closest to us.

  Don’t worry though.  Their brothers and mom are living their best kitty life with a nice lady in South Florida.  It’s weird to think there is another Oreo and Olivia out there, but boys.

Some fun facts:

• Cookie and the Frowny Face Day came about from a time I was going through a bought of depression.  I decided instead of wallowing in my misery, I was going to make something positive come of it.
• Oreo’s name got changed to Cookie in the books because I didn’t want to worry about trademark issues with Oreo cookies.
• Oreo loves to cuddle!  She also enjoys lounging in boxes, paper piles and the sun.

• She loves soft food and tuna! (Which she only gets as a treat.)
• Oreo has several nicknames. They are: Cuddle kitty, the black and white one and Sunshine Kitty.
• Not only has Oreo been the inspiration for Cookie, she’s also been the inspiration for various art pieces such as Cat Rave Dance Party, Here’s Looking At You Cat and I Can See You Cat to name just a few!
• Cookie and Olivia also have their own store! You can check it out on Zazzle.

Do you have any pets?  How did they come into your life?

  In the beginning of 2013, for a variety of reasons, I was feeling very uninspired and in a rut.  Knowing I needed to do something about it, I decided it would be a good idea to take a picture of the socks I wore everyday for one month and do a design based on them.

    The original plan was that I would do the design on the same day I wore the socks.  Needles to say, that’s not how it worked out, considering its now 2021 and I still haven’t finished the project.  Oops.)

  On the bright side, even though I haven’t fully finished the project yet, my idea seemed to work!  I got pulled out of my rut and ended up with some cool designs that I wouldn’t have thought of otherwise.  Some examples are: Grim Reaper with Flower, Bokeh Inspired Colorful Hearts and Bears Flying Planes.

  Due the pandemic and Florida summers being a little to hot for me, I figured it was as good a time as any to continue the sock picture project from 2013. 

  When I looked where I happen to leave off it was a pair of white socks.

  I had originally picked February because it was the shortest month, thinking that would make it the easiest. One thing that I forgot to factor in was due to my birthday, anniversary, and a bunch of other reasons, I had a bunch of weekend getaways planned.

  When I travel, despite all the fun socks I own, to make life easier, I pack black and/or white socks.  This way, my socks always match my outfit no matter what clothes I pack.

  Luckily, I can still come up with designs based on plain white socks without just doing a blank page.

 After thinking about it for a while, I realized I had a design with red circles on a white background, so why not white circles on a black background?

 

White Circles Black Background Classic Pattern Satin Ribbon

by ValeriesGallery

  Voila!  White circles on a black background was born!

  This design can be found in my shops on Zazzle, Redbubble, Society6 and Spoonflower.

  I’m hoping to wrap up the socks project sooner than later!  Seven years is a long time, but sometimes life gets in the way.

  What’s the longest it’s taken you to complete a project?

Please Note: This post contains affiliate links.  All that means is that if someone purchases something through one of the links, I do make some money at no extra cost to you! Thank you for your support!

In last month’s post, I wrote about Zazzle Notebooks.  You can find that blog post here.

This post will be about notebooks from Red Bubble.  (On a side note, they also sell hard covered journal notebooks.) Hopefully you find this post helpful in getting an idea about what the spiral notebooks from Red Bubble are like.

The two spiral notebooks I bought from Red Bubble were Monster Bear and Orange Slice Fruit.

Here are the backs of the notebooks:

The nice thing about the Redbubble spiral notebooks is that there is a folder towards the back of the notebook.  This is super helpful for people like me who make notes for various reasons on loose paper and then shove it into the notebook, only to have the paper constantly fall out!

Redbubble also included a sticker.  The art work is by Sophie Corrigan.

Another bonus is that the Red Bubble spiral notebooks seem super durable.  I’m very hard on my notebooks.  Whenever I go somewhere where I know I’ll be sitting around for along time, I always bring a bag full of stuff to keep me entertained.  I’ve been known to accidentally rip the cover off of a notebook.

Luckily, I was able to bring the Red Bubble notebook back and forth in an over stuffed bag and it looks just like new! Yeah!

For those of you that are interested, here is how Red Bubble packages their notebooks:

I like the fact that each notebook comes in its own protective bag.  The box that Red Bubble uses is also very sturdy.  This  seems to help in protecting the notebooks during the delivery journey.

I’m note going to lie.  I also like the fact that Red Bubble includes a fun surprise sticker. It feels like I’m getting a bonus!

Just a heads up, if you’re frugal like me, but still love cute notebooks, Red Bubble does have good sales.  You can sign up for their emails or check their website.

Hopefully this post gives you some insight into what the spiral notebooks from Red Bubble are like.

Do you have a place where you like to buy notebooks from?  Do you have any questions about Red Bubble notebooks?  Let us know in the comments!

Craft stores are one of my favorite places!  They’re a great place for inspiration. One of my favorite things to do is mosey around them.  (And yes, I rarely leave a craft store without buying something.  Ha ha!)  I’m lucky enough to live in an area that has multiple craft stores to choose from.

One of these craft stores also has a huge home décor section.  Apparently, farm house décor is very trendy at the moment.  This place had a lot of items that said farm to table.  This particular craft store also had a lot of items featuring cows, pigs and horses.  For some reason, “farm to table” made me think of farm animals showing up at a farmer’s kitchen table.  This struck me as funny and thus, Farm at Table was born!

Did you know:

• If I was going to make this picture again, I think I’d make the pig a little smaller. I don’t think I’ve ever seen a pig as big as a cow!
• Farm at Table is available at Zazzle, Red Bubble and Imagekind
• This picture has hints of kawaii style. (ex. The thick black lines)
• I’m considering doing some more versions of this picture with different farm animals

Where do you go for inspiration?  Let us know in the comments!

The DJ black and white cat in Cat Rave Dance Party Paws Up is based on my cat Oreo. She is definitely the most nocturnal of my two cats.

Our cats are not allowed in the bedroom. The idea for this design came about because Oreo lately has gotten into the habit of meowing outside our bedroom door at about five o’clock in the morning. When she does this, either my husband or I will say, “Shushi, Oreo.” Or “Oreo too early. Go sleepy.” Being the good cat that she is, she usually obeys.

When we get up a little while later, the black and white cat will be all tuckered out and fast asleep in one of her favorite sleeping spots, while her sister, a tabby, is up and running around the house.

In reality, my cats are strictly indoor cats. I am too much of a worrier for them to be out door cats. Though, that didn’t stop me from joking with my husband that Oreo had a secret life as a club DJ or something and she was just letting us know when she was home. And thus, Cat Rave Dance Party Paws Up was born!

Did you know:

• The gray and white cat paws are based on Oreo’s sister, Olivia.

• Oreo is also the basis for Cookie the Cat in the Cookie and Olivia book series.

• Cookie and Olivia have their own store on Zazzle

• This is the second design I’ve made where an animal is DJing. The other one is DJ Piggy Pig.

• Oreo is also in a few of my other designs. These include Sleeping Black and White Cat, Here’s Looking at You Cat, and Cat Eyes (Black and White), to name just a few.

Cat Rave Dance Party Paws Up is available for sale on:

• Zazzle

• Red Bubble

• Imagekind

• Skreened

Do you have a pet? Do they have any interesting habits? Has your pet inspired you in any way? Let us know in the comments!

Since I went to college in New England, I ended up driving past this church quite a bit during those four years. I always thought it was a beautiful building. My husband and I occasionally visit my parents in the fall and take some trips to Vermont. After one of our last autumn trip a few years ago and seeing how gorgeous this church looked among the autumn landscape, I was bound and determine to get a photograph! Even if it wasn’t in the fall!

Old First Church in Snow Bennington Vermont Poster

by ValeriesGallery

Some fun facts:

• Although I use to drive by this church on my way to and from college, I had no idea how much history was associate with it! It’s the oldest church in Vermont. You can read about it on their website.

• Robert Frost is buried at this church.

• The Bennington Museum is located right behind the church. I’d recommend a visit, it’s awesome. They have a large selection of work by Grandma Moses among other things.

• Speaking of Grandma Moses, one of my great aunts use to be friends with one of her sisters.

• I had actually planned on getting a photograph of this church in the fall after a trip to Woodstock, Vermont a few years ago. My husband and I drove past it, (since we had visited my parents first) and saw how beautiful it was with the fall scenery! However, we really wanted to get to where we were going and decide to stop on the way back. Sadly, it poured the day we were going back to my parents’ house. Opportunity lost.

• For sale on Zazzle, RedBubble, Imagekind and Skreened.

Was there something you wanted to take a picture of for a while? Were you finally able to capture it?

These deals were accurate when I pressed the publish.  Some may contain affiliate links.

Valerie’s Gallery at Zazzle

• 60% off pillows and 30% off everything else with the code: ZAZCYBERSALE
  • Good until November 28, 2016 11:59PM PT

Cookie and Olivia at Zazzle

• 30% off everything else with the code: ZAZCYBERSALE
  • Good until November 28, 2016 11:59PM PT

Valerie’s Gallery at RedBubble

• 20% off with code: CYBERMON
  • Good until November 28, 2016 at 11:59pm PT

Valerie’s Gallery at Skreened

• 30% off sitewide!  No code needed!
  • Good until November 28, 2016 at Midnight

Valerie’s Gallery at Imagekind

• 50% off with code: CYBMON50
  • Good until November 28, 2016 at Midnight

Beautiful Cuteness on Society6

• 20% Off + Free Shipping on Everything
  • Good until November 28, 2016 at 11:59pm PT

Rockin Panda Mug
by ValeriesGallery

However, unlike motorcycle biker cat, I did manage to sell at least three tshirts (granted two of them I bought myself for two of my nieces) and an ipad case.

Some fun facts about Rocking Panda:

• I came up with this design after seeing a drawing of a “club cat” (basically a cat at a dance club wearing novelty glasses) at the Vero Beach Museum of Art.

• This is one of my favorite designs

• I did a sketch for this piece while watching the TV show Clean House. That show combines two things I love, home shows and organization.

• The original title was Rockin’ Panda

• Since I haven’t sold as many of this design as I would like I’ve been testing out some other titles. Some of these are Cute Dancing Rocking Panda, Dancing Panda, Dancing Panda Bear and Rocking Panda Bear.

• Rocking Panda is available on Rocking Panda on Zazzle, Red Bubble and Skreened.

The good news is I have five nieces in total, so I know what three of them are now getting for Christmas. Ha ha. What do you think would be a good title for this art work?

Since art is subjective and Motorcycle Biker Cat may not be to your taste, as part of the Holiday Exchange on Zazzle, I’m going to introduce you to some other talented artist!  Don’t worry!  The following designs are ones that I really like and will have something to do with the topic of this blog post!

Please note:  All links in this post are affiliate links. Thanks in advance for your support of independent artist!

How adorable is this Smiling Bear Cub Thank You Card from Diamond W Photography? Like the cute bear cub, how can you not be smiling when you look at it?

Smiling Bear Cub Thank You Note Cards
by DiamondW_Photography

You're Invited To A Music Recital Postcard
by JustParties

Black Bear Autumn Earth Brown Pouf
by ForestWildlifeArt

For those of you that don’t know, The Gherkin is the nickname for 30 St. Mary Axe located in London, England.  From my understanding, the nickname came about because of the building’s unique shape.

The Gherkin T-shirt by ValeriesGallery
Check out other The gerkin T-Shirts at zazzle.com

This photograph was taken when my husband and I visited London a few years ago.  My brother in law was transferred there for a little while and we went to visit him. (This was also the start of my obsession with all things British!) We noticed this building while walking around the Southwark district.  (The building itself is located in the district known as The City of London.)

I’ve also been told that there is a building somewhere else in England called The Dalek.  As a Dr. Who fan, I totally want to see it!

Do you know of any other unique buildings?  Where?  Share in the comment section!

My Gherkin photograph can be found on a variety of products in Valerie’s Gallery on Zazzle, RedBubble, Skreened and Imagekind.

Here’s some London, travel and architecture from various other artist you may enjoy!

I Love London England Fridge Magnet by cdandc	Love under the rainy sky of London. card by Silvina De Vita	Big Ben London Tote Bags by VintagePosterDesigns
Walrus vacations, [on vacation …] postcards by greendeer	Bon Voyage! Funny French Painter Squirrel card by ©Doreen Erhardt	Got The World At My Feet (Fine Art Print) by HoMeArts
Vector Cityscape & Sky Blue Background Cases For iPhone 4 by designsfromscratch	Retirement – Relax – Alphabet Art card by ABC by Sue	Grunge Union Jack – classic – vintage look Tee Shirts by hutsul