ljlh*designs: Composing Creativity. My brain, in words.

Wisdom Wednesday - Humor

2010-05-19T17:56:00.000-04:00

"Humor has been analyzed with great success by any number of people who haven't written any". -Henry Morgan

Tasty Tuesday - Eating Raw Oats

2010-05-18T17:03:00.000-04:00

I am not sure how I discovered that I like eating raw oats, but I do. Weird right? Maybe I was really desperate one day and just decided to try it. I really don't know. I don't get the instant oats, I get the old fashioned ones. I've never tried the instant raw, but I somehow figure the old fashioned is better. Plus, if I want to cook them, which I do sometimes, they really don't take that much longer to cook than instant.

I also like to add the oats to my yogurt. In fact, I just finished a cup of fat free or low fat (can't remember) coconut cream yogurt with raw oats. TASTY! I think I really like the raw oats because of the texture. They do dry your mouth out a bit raw, so have a glass of something to drink on hand. Or just throw them in your yogurt. While it might seem odd to eat these raw, they are really good for me. Nothing but oats baby! Now you couldn't get me to eat steel cut oats raw. They are a bit tough uncooked. Got to go with the rolled if eating them raw. And no, I haven't tried eating the steel cut raw. I just KNOW they wouldn't be good. lol Plain ole oats, float my boat!

Movie Monday - The Art of the Steal

2010-05-17T11:11:00.000-04:00

"Appreciation of works of art requires organized effort and systematic study. Art appreciation can no more be absorbed by aimless wandering in galleries than can surgery be learned by casual visits to a hospital." -Dr. Albert C. Barnes (that's him and his cute doggie on the left)

Art. Who owns it? When a person dies, do their wishes really matter? If they were eccentric, does it make it "ok" to ignore their wishes?

Not many movies stay on mind days after I have seen them, but "The Art of the Steal" has stuck with me. I suppose it is still lingering because I am an artist. The movie concerns the relocation of The Barnes Foundation , which is located in Merion, PA. It is located about 5 miles outside of Philadelphia and does sit in a residential neighborhood. It has the worlds greatest collection of nineteenth and twentieth century French paintings. Henri Matisse even came to the foundation in 1933 and painted a mural right on the walls of the building.

Dr. Barnes didn't create a museum. He created an educational institution. He never called the mansion that houses his collection a museum. It was always a place for education, first and foremost. And there are still classes. The collection is displayed in such a way to give you an experience. Paintings are not grouped by style or artist. They are grouped to give you a feeling. They claim they are going to preserve the layout of the paintings and over all aesthetic of the collection in the new building. I somehow don't think it will be the same.

Even though Dr. Barnes was wealthy, he hated Philadelphia society types and was a very independent soul. Some say he was a mean old man, but I just think he was a million mega watts smarter than anyone and was resented for it. Shocker! He started collecting this artwork before it became famous. A monetary estimation of the collection has been said to be 25-30 billion dollars. Yes, billion. But it isn't about the monetary worth. I would seriously say, it is priceless.

Oh, but wait! The people who pushed for this move are all politically connected and/or are politicians. AND they all have access to LOTS of money. OH, and it's all about driving tourists to downtown Philadelphia so they can make more money. About the art? Yeah.............NO! It would be long to explain to you how this deal went down, but let just say it was SHAY-DEEE. While people are mad about it moving, I think the real anger comes from in how the deal went down.

Now, many people say the film is one sided. I don't disagree with this. It is sided to the side of resentment about moving the collection. Many of the people involved in moving the collection refused to be interviewed for the documentary. They had their chance to tell their side and didn't. And the people who did interview who were involved with the move, ended up looking like asses. Too bad the others refused to look like asses. lol

My fiance and I are making plans to see the collection before it moves in 2012. We hope to see it this summer. No, I have never been. I hadn't even heard of this collection before I saw the trailer for the film. I kind of feel like a bone head for never of hearing about the collection before. But now that I know about it, I feel passionate about it. I'm trying to imagine what it will be like to see the collection. I have yet to be successful.

GO SEE THIS MOVIE if you can still find it playing. If it isn't playing, the dvd comes out July 27th. Please visit the Friends of the Barnes.

GIVEAWAY!!!

2010-05-14T15:38:00.000-04:00

I reached 200 fans on my fan page! So I am doing a giveaway! You can enter to win a $15 gift certificate to my etsy shop. Snap! All you have to do is leave me a joke on my FB fan page . I love humor! Yes, I am going to make you work for it. ;) Scroll down the fan page and you will find the post about the giveaway. Make sure you leave your joke in the comment section of the giveaway post. Please don't post it here on the blog. Thanks! And Good Luck all!

Foreign Friday - Ritter Sport

2010-05-14T13:55:00.000-04:00

I am completely and utterly fascinated by European candy. When I lived in San Francisco I discovered something called Ritter Sport . It is a German company the makes different types of chocolate with various goodies mixed in. And is it ever AWESOME! My personal favorite is the white chocolate with whole hazelnuts .
And they do not skimp on the hazelnuts. They pack all of the their chocolate with tons of goodies! I have not tried that many flavors. But their chocolate with corn flakes is really good too. I know, sounds weird, but it is excellent! They only carry certain flavors in the US. But you can find the foreign flavors on Amazon. They also have a new 10,000 sq. foot retail shop in Berlin. OMG! HEAVEN! I'll take a one way ticket please! I have a feeling no matter which flavor combo you pick, you won't be disappointed. I have been able to find this in the international isle of grocery stores and at Walgreens. And I am sure European specialty shops carry it too. Enjoy!

Wisdom Wednesday - Rain

2010-05-12T13:38:00.000-04:00

Since it is a cloudy/rainy day here in Ann Arbor, I thought a little quote about rain would be nice. Enjoy!

The rains that nourish the optimist's flowers make the pessimist's weeds grow.

Tasty Tuesday - Julia Child Inspires

2010-05-11T12:03:00.000-04:00

2 weeks ago I finally watched the movie "Julie and Julia". And after watching it, I really want to cook the beef bourguignon. It just sounds and looks divine! That said, it is labor intensive to make and takes forever to cook. From start to finish it will take about 4-5 hours, depending on how fast you are. But I somehow I feel the reward would be worth the effort. How can you go wrong with beef, red wine, bacon, mushrooms, and fresh herbs? UH, you can't! Remember, bacon makes everything better. And of course there is butter involved. It certainly isn't health food, and I wouldn't recommend eating it everyday. But it would make for a lovely main course for a special occasion. It would be even more divine served with garlic and butter mashed potatoes. Well, that is my opinion. Before I can make this I must get the original book the recipe came from, "Mastering the Art of French Cooking". I found the two volume set on Amazon for $50.

Which after some research, is a great deal. I haven't quite figured out why anyone would want to only buy the first volume. That's just me though. I found the recipe for beef bourguignon on Oprah's magazine website. Not my first choice of mags, but it shows the recipe. I could just use that recipe, but I am still going to get the set from Amazon, at some point. I somehow feel the experience of making it from the exact words of Julia would be better and more satisfying. Now, if you are by no means a cook, this book is not for you. From my understanding this isn't the easiest cook book on the planet. You should probably have some experience cooking and enjoy doing it. I do! And I wouldn't say these recipes are for everyday eating. You would never leave the kitchen and probably gain 100 pounds. I like to think of it as a great book for parties, special occasions, and a special meal for two once a month. The only reason I see this book being a challenge for me is that I don't like to follow recipes when I cook. lol But this one may convert me. We'll see.

Movie & Music Monday

2010-05-10T15:38:00.000-04:00

Last night the man and I went and saw Iron Man 2. Yes, I did see the first one. And I was the one who was all gung-ho about seeing it, not him. I watched all the trailers and clips that came out before the movie too. I don't think they could have cast a better person to play Iron Man than Downey Jr. And I had my doubts about Don Cheadle's character, but came around. I absolutely love when director's put themselves in their movies too. Jon Favreau wasn't in it much, but I enjoyed his character when he did appear. Sydney Pollack also had a tendency to do this, and did both very well. And of course Stan Lee has a very brief moment in Iron Man. It's lovely how they include him in some way in the Marvel based movies. I was watching Spider Man 3 on tv the other night and he was in that too. It's so cute to me! I'm not a mega Paltrow fan, but I do like her as Pepper Potts. And I think she looks better with her hair slightly red, than total blond. Special effects were plentiful in the movie, but not to the point where they just seemed excessive or stupid. And after sitting through the credits, it just amazes me how many special effects people work on a movie like this. Crazy!!! OH, and if you stay for the credits, there is a little nibbler at the end. :) Mickey Rourke makes the most perfect villian too.

His Russian accent is totally convincing. He really doesn't speak that much though. Even though it is an action movie, there is a plot and emotional moments. It's a nice blend of elements. I would say if you are looking for a good movie to see, Iron Man 2 is a great choice!

Now that I work from home, I am ALWAYS listening to music. iTunes radio is the most fab thing! There is every kind of music and a ton of stations in each category to listen to. When I lived in San Francisco, while attending college, I was introduced to techno/electronica/dance music. I ended up liking it. What I enjoy the most is when Pop songs are remixed to faster beats with more bass. The more bass the merrier! If the wall isn't shaking, it ain't baking. Anyway, I fairly recently started surfing channels under the Electronica category on iTunes and after much previewing of stations, found one I

really like. It is Energy 98. They have some remixes, but mostly it is original dance music. Dance/techno/electronica is mostly popluar in Europe. Most artists in this music category are from Europe. But this station is actually based in the U.S. Oh, and there are NO commercials! yay! They have Dj's, but they hardly ever talk. One dj's is from Australia and has a fantastic accent. :) I love to listen to this station while working out on the Wii too. Keeps you pumped!! I admit it can all start to sound the same after a while though. It is just a great way to keep you motivated. :)

Getting Serious About Blogging

2010-04-30T13:56:00.000-04:00

I went to a lovely meeting this past Tuesday at Blue House Ann Arbor . A fellow Ann Arborite, Nicole Ray of Sloe Gin Fizz , has a wonderful blog, which I have always been jealous of, and she talked about blogging at the meeting.

I like to write and share things with people, but never could find my stride. She got me thinking about taking my blog seriously, but keeping it real and fun too. And while my business is a huge part of my life, there is more to me than just my business.

So I sat down and thought about what else I like in life. I decided a good thing for me to do to keep on track with my blog was to have a theme each day of the week. Cheesy maybe, but I am quite sure it will work for me. My goal is to share things I have an interest in and educate/inform you. And yes, humor will absolutely be involved!

Here are the themes for each day of the week.

Movie & Music Monday - anything about music and movies. I love movie trailers, so you will see links posted to those for sure!

Tasty Tuesday - anything having to do with food. Because food rules!

Wisdom Wednesday - I love quotes and quips.

Thirsty Thursday - anything about drinks and drinking. :)

Foreign Friday - anything about anything going on outside the U.S. Because culture is good!

I hope you will tune in each day to see what I find!

Artist or Other?

2010-03-18T23:57:00.000-04:00

Do you see yourself as an "artist" or something else? And why do you see yourself as this?

Please leave your comments. I would love to hear your thoughts.

Giveaway Winner!

2010-03-15T12:09:00.004-04:00

Thank you to everyone who entered! Much appreciated!

Susan from PursesBagsAndSewMuch is the winner!

Give her some love and check out her shop. :)

I have added some new shapes to the acrylic earring section on Etsy too.
Check it out here.

And I will post again when I have another giveaway.

Thank you again my lovelies! *mouah*

-Libby

Acrylic Earring Giveaway!!!

2010-03-03T16:19:00.004-05:00

For my birthday, March 16th, my fiance is going to laser cut more acrylic shapes for me. I already have some in mind. But I want to know what YOUR favorite shapes or designs are? The possibilities are infinite with a laser cutter! And please don't be offended if I don't end up using your idea(s). I still love you! :)

As a thank you for your input, I will be giving away a pair of acrylic earrings! yay! I will randomly choose a winner and the winner can choose any pair of acrylic earrings from my Etsy shop.

I don't have many pairs right now, but once I get the shapes cut, I will. The giveaway will run til March 12th at 11:59pm. Please leave your email address in the comments so I can contact you if you are the winner. I know it's short notice. I just thought of it today. lol

Here is a link to the earrings I do have so far, just in case you are curious little buggers.
http://www.etsy.com/shop/ljlhdesigns?section_id=6724398

Thanks everyone! I look forward to your comments!

-Libby

My DIY Jewelry Display

2010-03-01T13:31:00.007-05:00

I'm so happy to be a part of this new handmade studio here in Ann Arbor! The house looks fabulous and I have a space with some of my jewelry. Here are pics of my setup. The earring tower was designed and made by me and my fiance. We made a total of 5. The other 4 are for shows. I made the earring tent cards, the paper cones, and the box my business cards are in too. I'm the Jane of all trades!

A Poem

2010-02-25T17:39:00.002-05:00

The best poem I've written so far. Enjoy!

To the friend I thought I had.
To the person I thought I knew.
To everything I wanted to have, but
Found I couldn’t.
To something I believed in and it didn’t believe back.
To you for replacing me.
Replacing me with something I couldn’t give you.
And maybe wouldn’t give you.
Is anyone to blame?
Are we both to blame?
Can it go back to the way it was?
It can, but it won’t.
Do I really want it to go back?
Sometimes.
The times when I feel like nobody is there to listen.
Times when I want to be needed.
Times when I need to be needed.
I don’t want to go back.
It is the little things that drive me crazy.
The qualities we don’t share.
Is it better this way?
Did I set myself up for something knowing it would fail me?
Was it an initial friendship?
A friendship to get us started?
I must learn to move on.
Knowing things will never be the same
I suppose is the hardest part.
I can say it can go back, but I know it won’t.
We both do.
Maybe neither of us wanted it to work.
Did setting ourselves up to succeed help us fail?
Was what we had to comfortable?
To familiar?
Maybe we were bored.
Could it just be that we are too different for it to work?
Me the worker bee, you the queen bee.
That won’t work.
In the end the queen gets bored with the worker bee
And she moves onto another worker until she is never
Completely satisfied with what she has.

Copyright by Libby Hampel (if you would like to share this poem, please link to this blog post. thanks!)

Easter Egg Earrings

2010-02-24T20:31:00.005-05:00

My mom keeps sending me wood pieces in different shapes and sizes. She sent me 6 egg halves. I have made 4 of them into earrings so far. I can't decide how to decorate the last two. Here is what I've done for now. Enjoy!

First Show of the Season!

2010-02-21T21:26:00.005-05:00

A new handmade studio is opening March 1st here in Ann Arbor. I'm so excited to be a part of it!! I will have some of my jewelry on sale there and may also teach classes. We'll see about that. :)

There is going to be a handmade show there on March 20th and it is the first for me this year. I think it is going to be so much fun. The woman who runs/owns this studio is so awesome and she has had the inside of the house completely redone and it looks super great! Posted below is the info about the show. If you happen to live nearby and see this, you so need to be there! Awesomeness you will find!!!

Now on Facebook!

2010-01-28T14:08:00.003-05:00

Yeah, I decided to do it. I really like it actually. I have my personal/business page and I also have a fan page for my business. You will see the fans for the fan page on the right column of this blog. Send me a friend request to! You can find me under Libby Hampel for the person/business page and ljlhdesigns for the fan page. Let's get together, yeah yeah yeah!

-Libby

Featured on Blog!

2010-01-25T22:47:00.002-05:00

I was featured today on a lovely blog called "all things paper" that is authored by Ann Martin. She did a small interview with me and posted a nice variety of paper jewelry. Woo Hoo!

http://allthingspaper-annmartin.blogspot.com/2010/01/ljlhdesigns.html

Lots Going On!

2010-01-18T11:30:00.006-05:00

Everybody and their mother has been coming out of the woodwork lately. Not seeking money, but my jewelry. Which is good, because I have lots of jewelry and very little money. ;) I have two blog features coming up, I was contacted by a store in WI about selling my jewelry there, and there is a handmade studio that is opening in my area soon and they contacted me on Etsy. I'm very excited about the handmade studio! I am meeting with them tomorrow to took at the studio and ask some questions.

I've also been making things of course. I've ventured into making paper covered wood bangle. So far it has been fun and quite successful. I always like a challenge and figuring out how to cover the bangles with the paper proves to be just that. I'm trying to come up with new ways to cover the wood with something other than strips of paper and achieve a non striped look.

Also, I have made more paper earrings and brooches. Starting making some V-day stuff too. I'm not big into holiday themed items, but I thought "why not". Other people like it.

I also made my first pair of post earrings. I found some paper pulp at a craft store and have been molding it into different shapes. I keep thinking of other ways to shape the stuff and have some great ideas for it. It's fun to work with, but takes at least a day to dry. The drying time depends on how large and/or dense the molded piece is, but most of mine have been pretty small.

I also bought some new beads and crystals yesterday, so got some cool new stuff on the way. I found some wood circles that are going to turn into something really fantastic at some point.

Here are some pics. Thanks for reading! Enjoy the eye candy now. ;)

Now Making Pins

2009-12-21T20:47:00.006-05:00

I bought some purple Swarovski crystals that did not have any holes in them and could not figure out what to make with them. After some thought, I decided they would make nice centers for pins. I had never made a pin, so it was a complete experiment. I didn't think I would like doing or be good at it. I proved myself wrong. It is fun and new creative endeavors are always good. The pics are in the order in which I have made the pins. The most recent one, I f-ed up at first, but ended up turning out better. YAY for happy accidents. Let me know your thoughts! Enjoy!

First Custom Box Order

2009-12-15T11:34:00.007-05:00

A few months ago I had an Etsy buyer contact me about a custom box to keep memories of her daughter in. She didn't respond for about 1.5 months. I was so excited about doing a custom box, but I thought after such a long period of time it wasn't going to be. Then a few weeks ago she got back to me!! I was so excited. After talking about different options, I went to work. The box is 10" x 10" x 6.5". Those are the closed dimensions. The main walls of the box are 5" high. The walls of the lid are 1.5" high. Making a lid for boxes is always the hardest part. This lid came out very nicely though. It was a lot of fun to make and I just love the overall look of it. Knowing it will be used to store lovely memories of her daughter's life is also a lovely thought. Here are the pics of the box! It's hard to photograph the larger boxes. The black strip right under the lid is a piece of ribbon. It added such a nice touch. OH, and the pink papers are die cut!! They are so cool. Enjoy! :)

My First Show!!

2009-12-07T13:34:00.007-05:00

I only had a total of 5 sales for the day, but I learned a lot and got to meet a lot of nice people! People were interested in buying online, so I gave out a good amount of business cards. People loved my cone display and my business cards. I need to work on a different earring display and have some good ideas already. It was great to see all the MICE signs around too and talk to some MICE members, new and familiar. The people from FlintHandmade were super nice and helpful! Here are some pics.

My fiance was the driver and held things down when I walked around. He is the BEST! He looks a bit tired here. We got up at 6a that day. That part wasn't fun. :)

My First Custom Jewelry Order!

2009-11-16T19:47:00.004-05:00

Another seller on etsy contacted me last week and wanted a custom pair of paper bead earrings. She was such a pleasure to work with and loves her earrings. I've heard horror stories about custom orders in the forums on Etsy. I'm glad to say mine was the opposite! I think it helped that she is also an Etsy seller. More understanding. Here are the earrings!

What a Great Week!

2009-11-15T21:08:00.003-05:00

This week has been just great! I was in a few treasuries. One of them made it to the front page too. My first time on the fp! I got super dorky excited. I still am come to think of it. Got my first custom jewelry request. It is for a pair of paper bead earrings. Got the perfect paper for them today! Sold some stationery and thank you stickers on Zazzle. And today I sold my first pair of paper bead earrings. They were sold to someone in the UK. My first international sale.

My fiance also got an offer to build a tree house that he designed for a competition in 2001. He was one of the winners and his design got published in a book. Here is the book. People who own a resort in Bali want to build it for themselves at the resort. It is not a typical tree house. It is really a full on house. It has bedrooms, a kitchen, bathrooms, etc. We will have to see what happens with this. I'm hoping for the best.

Hope you all had a great week too! I'm hoping for more to come.

Life is Crazy!

2009-11-10T12:08:00.004-05:00

Life has been busy lately. I got accepted to my first craft show and I am super excited! I am already preparing for it. It is Dec. 5. Me and other members of the MICE team on Etsy are in the show. I'm actually right beside another team member. That should be fun!

So far I have made earring cards and the bracelet display. I am also making earring trees and little merchandise bags. I was going to buy the bags, but the quantities I have to buy are crazy. So I am making little bags out of all the scrapbook paper I have. I haven't made any new jewelry in two weeks because I've been busy with getting ready for the show and making all the Christmas gifts my mom has ordered from me. And I got my rubber stamp with my logo and website yesterday and need to stamp the earring cards. I am also stamping the bags once they are done.

If anyone needs a rubber stamp, I highly recommend lovetocreatstamps on Etsy. They are quick in answering convos, you can send your own artwork, it arrived fast, and it looks and works really great!

OH! I also am retaking all my photos for Etsy. I started almost two weeks ago and I am still not done. I was all over it, and then I got accepted to the craft show, and that has taken over my life. People always talk about getting ready for these is a lot of prep, but I didn't realize everything you had to do until I actually had to do it. I hope it will all be worth it though. I love people and love what I do, so I am sure it will be fun!

I will post pics of my craft show table at some point too!

-Libby