Book Report:The Richest Man in Babylon

It's time for another book report!

Each week (right now it's scheduled for Saturdays) I will post about a book that I've recently read, embellishing with a summary (without giving away the enjoyment of reading the book) and my point of view on it (good or bad). I'm not a publisher, an editor, or a writer (besides on this blog), just a reader, so take my opinion how you like and definitely form your own as well. But who knows, maybe you'll want to read these books too!

The Richest Man in Babylon
Author: George S. Clason


Summary:
This book is a collection of Babylonian parables that explains tips and money management knowledge through different events that the characters experience through their lives and how they handle them.


My Take:
I actually had to read this book for work (my day job). After reading it, I really understood the value. It's a difficult read at first, but once you get into it, you'll learn a lot about money managing. It's the type of book that tells you the money tips you should know, but maybe don't actually perform. It also gives you different perspectives on how money management can help you attain the life you desire. If you're interested in learning more about success and money, this is would be a good read for you-but you'll have to get used to the language used, it's written "in language as simple as the Bible" which seems like a huge oxymoron to me.

Enjoy!

Rachel May

You've Got Mail

I'm getting excited for fall to come around again. I love summer, but the changing leaves, the fun clothes and the memories of school and change that fall brings make it all it's own (and I don't have a/c, so I'm biased as far as temperature goes). With that, one of my all time favorite movies, You've Got Mail. This gets watched A LOT around here-mostly at my computer, since we're not the type of people to have a tv in our living room (you can see our living room in this post).






If you haven't seen it, you should-it'll take you back to those lovely days of dial-up internet connection, those days where waiting twenty minutes for a page to load was a-okay.



Don't you love how much technology has progressed? I do miss snail mail though. We need more of that.




Rachel May

Craft File: White Afghan

I started to crochet this afghan a while ago, then ran out of yarn and it fell by the wayside. Hopefully posting it will encourage me to buy more yarn and finish crocheting. It's actually not too difficult and the bulky yarn allows you to see a lot of progress rather quickly. I wanted to stay away from making it look like a typical grandma's afghan and to sort of modernize the look, so I'm using all cream-colored yarn and a stitch that add a lot of texture.




Details: Yarn: Lion Grand Wool-Ease, Color 099 Fisherman and a size N hook.



Tips/Tricks: I use a huge hook and a bulky yarn to help the afghan grow faster and to make the project seem less daunting.



Enjoy!



Rachel May

rachelmaydesigns featured on Etsy Treasury!

My Yellow EcoBook Journal was featured on a treasury today! You can check it out here.





Or check out my shop for other awesome items!


Enjoy!



Rachel May

Sketchmania!

Just a quick post to share that I'm a designer on the sketchmania team! It's a great group of amazing designers led by Miss Dee Dee. Each week she comes up with an amazing sketch for a card or scrapbook page. If you enter through August, you'll be eligible for a prize! Check it out!







To see the inspiration sketch and other designer's interpretations , check it out here.



Enjoy!



Rachel May

Design File: Paint Chips

The Boyfriend and I like to go on walks a lot. Well, I should say that boyfriend likes to take me on walks and I like to say "but I have so much to do!" or "that's not productive."

All whining aside, there's a house near ours that has the most beautiful dusty faded blue paint. The paint is also completely peeling off of their concrete retaining walls right next to the sidewalk...which may have been how we scored a piece, I'll never tell.


I think I'll keep this color swatch in my interior design file to use in on a future project somewhere. It's amazing how much inspiration you can pull from your surroundings (or other people's). Either way, that walk sure was productive!

Enjoy!

Rachel May

Bedroom Sketch

Once upon a time, I went to art school. Just recently I was looking through my old school work and missing the creativity and enjoyment I got out of my work. Then I started sketching.

Inspiration:
I thought I should start out simple, so here's a bedroom image from Dwell Studio that I've seen floating around the internet. Don't you just love the colors of that bedding?





My work:
Once I started drawing the inspiration image, I realized just how much I wanted to slide the lamp a little to the right so that picture frame wasn't hanging over the edge-does that bother you too?

My sketch is even simpler than the actual image. I think I'll go in later and add some texture and stripes, maybe even render it. Right now it's a decent line work drawing for rendering (do you know what rendering is? It's like realistic coloring), just a little plain.

Mediums used: Pencil (mechanical) and eraser (a lot of eraser), pen (micron in .3 and .7)

What do you think? Do you like sketching? If so, I'd love to see your work! Send me a link or comment below.

Please don't steal my sketches for your blog or other use without permission. Thanks!

Enjoy!

Rachel May

Card Challenge 7 Requirements

We've made it through challenge 6, great work!

Next Challenge: For the next to weeks, your challenge is to create a birthday card for a child. It must include an animal in some form or another (it doesn't have to be the main focus) and you must stamp one thing on a patterned paper somewhere on the card. I expect you all to kill me with cuteness, and I can't wait to see what you come up with!



Due Date: August 8, 2010
Designer for next challenge: SkyleRae
Other Designers: Dee Dee

Post a link to your completed cards in the comments below, I'd love to see them!

Enjoy!

Rachel May

rachelmaydesigns Featured on Etsy Treasury

My brown and blue EcoBook Listmaker was featured on a treasury today! You can check it out here:
http://www.etsy.com/treasury/4c4b931bea126d914f9f1400/recycled-reduce-reuse-regift-all-about

Enjoy!

Rachel May

Card Challenge 6 Results!

Results from Card Club Challenge #6! In this group, we create a card challenge every two weeks. The person that decides the challenge requirements then tags the next person. If you want to see other's challenge cards, check Dee Dee and Skyler Rae's blogs.

Here is what I came up with:


The challenge was:
Theme: "Remember When"
Requirements: any type of nostalgic idea/feeling/sense you have, and at least 7 embellishments (for a collage feel).

I think of this card as a "remember when" for a couple in love. For the first time they said "I love you" to one another.

The embellishments I used were handmade paper and sewing, stamps, marker, brads of all sorts, prima flowers, raffia bow, and a funky paper clip.

Later today I will announce the next challenge and tag the next designer! Stay tuned!

Rachel May

Book Report: The Friday Night Knitting Club

My book reading habit has become more like an addiction than anything else lately, and let me just say that living within 5 blocks of two AMAZING used book stores doesn't help! Reading is a great way to expand your horizons, learn something new, and a great escape when you just need to go somewhere else.

Each week (right now it's scheduled for Saturdays) I will post about a book that I've recently read, embellishing with a summary (without giving away the enjoyment of reading the book) and my point of view on it (good or bad). I'm not a publisher, an editor, or a writer (besides on this blog), just a reader, so take my opinion how you like and definitely form your own as well. But who knows, maybe you'll want to read the books too!

First up: The Friday Night Knitting Club
Author: Kate Jacobs

Summary:

This is a story about a single mother and her daughter. The mom, Georgia Walker, runs a yarn shop where a small knitting group starts to develop between a range of different individuals, all at interesting turning points in their lives. It explores how each person finds similarities in another and eventually help each other through the tough stuff.

My Take:

This book is a roller coaster of emotions and a total page turner. You'll fall in love with each one of the characters-there's something you can relate with in all of them. There's also a bit of knitting lingo mixed into the writing, so it feeds your crafty appetite as well. Warning: I'm not gonna lie, I cried when I read this.

Enjoy!

Rachel May

Craft File: Striped Dishtowels

This was a great quick project to get me back into sewing. I was only going to make one towel, but it seemed silly to not have a set, so I made two!


If you would like to make them, all you have to do is take two different kinds of ribbon, pin them to a tea towel however you want them (I chose stripes, you could do something more wild if you like) and sew the edges of the ribbon down using your sewing machine.


I then hemmed the two sides that contained the ribbon ends, so there wouldn't be any raw edgs, and voila! Not sure if I'm going to keep them or give them away...hmm.


Supplies: Tea towels, ribbon, sewing machine, thread

Tips/Tricks: pin the ribbon first if you want a streamlined look. If you want to make it a little more wild, don't pin the ribbon and do free motion sewing over the ribbon. It's important to sew down both edges of the ribbon so it doesn't curl when washed.

Enjoy!
Rachel May

Craft File: "I Like You a Latte" Card

I've been thinking about friends a lot lately, how it's so great to have that support. I thought I'd tell a couple of my friends that live oh-so-far-away that I was missing them and that they're special to me, so I sent out a few cards. Now that the cards have been received, I thought I'd show you this one. It's one of my favorites, so it was hard to send out (it's hard not to have a favorite when you make the card just the way you like it!).

Details: stamped and embossed image colored with prismacolor markers, background is kraft cardstock, and patterned paper is from the Green Stack 70% recycled cardstock collection by DCMV and the circles embellishments are brads I purchased at Archivers a while back.

Tips/Tricks: Double stick tape glue runners. Don't leave home without them!

Enjoy!
Rachel May

Card Challenge #5

Here's my card challenge results! The challenge was to use black white and one other color. I chose yellow, since it's my favorite:)

Supplies: Black, white, yellow and patterned cardstock, button brads, Forever Friends stamp, ink, marker, colored pencil and a touch of handmade paper made by me!

Dee Dee is next for the challenge-check her blog for more info!

Enjoy!

Rachel May

Happy Birthday!

Today is the birthday of two very important people in my life, my sister and The Boyfriend.

So Happy Birthday to both of you-I love you both oh so much! And to prove that, old pictures:)


Sister and I at her bridal shower.


The Boyfriend and I posing for a friend's film festival project.

Love you!

Rachel May

Craft File: Purple Socks

I could've sworn I've blogged about these socks, because I started knitting them forever-ago, but I couldn't find it in the archives! Anyways, sometime soon (hahahaha) these will be my purple socks. You may remember that I made socks for The Boyfriend on Valentine's day of last year...well now I want some. Hopefully they turn out better this time. I'm slowly churning away on them, it's my nighttime knitting project.


Details: yarn is merino sock yarn, don't know much else, but I bought it here, needles size 2.5, aluminium dpns (4), knit in the round using the Yarn Harlot's Basic Sock Recipe from this book.

Tips/Tricks: Try to focus on your tension. I didn't do that when I knit my first pair of socks and the first sock fits perfect but the second sock is HUGE!

Enjoy!
Rachel May

Craft File: Handspun Yarn

Last Thursday, my sister and I took a class at Fancy Tiger for spinning yarn on a drop spindle. It.Was.Awesome. Our instructor was Jamie, she was so nice and very skilled at spinning. I left the class with a new knowledge and a ton of roving, excited about the craft. By the next night, I had spun up all of the roving, washed the yarn, dried it (Saturday I made cute tags) . I can't wait to spin some more, I'm totally hooked!

If you haven't already tried spinning on a drop spindle, I highly recommend it-it's fun, you can spin while watching a movie or hanging out with friends, and it's a no-waste craft (which eases my eco-loving heart).

Tips/Tricks: Jamie suggested that once you finish spinning your yarn, you make sure to label it. It's much easier to remember the yardage right after you make the yarn. I couldn't agree more.

Details: Merino roving, Shetland roving, and another kind I can't remember, drop spindle (it's a basic one-only costs like $10)

Enjoy!
Rachel May