Good Evening

Hello!  I hope everyone's weeks are going well.  We finally had some cold weather in Texas.  It was terrible.  I'm a southern girl...any time it gets 60 and above, I hate it.  I spent my nights wrapped in blankets with a personal heater next to my feet every time I sewed.  I know, I'm a winter wuss!

So here in the near future, I am planning on adding prints to my shop.  They will be a playoff of my sewing/quilting pieces and I think they're looking pretty sweet, if I do say so.  Here's a little sneak peek.

I'll have about 4-5 different print options and I cannot wait to show them.  They'll be debuting in mid-March!

I've also been doing some freelance graphic design work for a friend and also my first "real" client!  It's been a crazy learning process but I am loving every minute of it.  Here are their logos that I've designed for them!

This is for my "real" client and friend, Rebecca.  She makes these amazing pacifier pouches!  I wish I had a baby so I could buy one or twenty!

This logo is for my dear friend, Brandy.  She has an amazing health and wellness blog that is rooted in Christ.  Her health testimony is an amazing one.  Everything I know about health and wellness, I learned from her.  I'm working on her blog design and hope to soon be done so I can reveal it to everyone!

That's all I have for now.  I just finished that beautiful patchwork quilt and I'll be showing it off later this week.  Hope everyone has a great night!

xo,
Anna

Mags

I don't show much of my graphic design work as much as I show my sewing/quilting but today I decided to show off what I've been doing at school.

We are designing magazine covers in class.  Naturally, I wanted to do a decor magazine because that's about the only type of magazine I like to read.  And of course, who do I think has the most beautiful decor in all of house history?  This lady.

Thanks, Ashley, for allowing me to use your house for my project.





If you are interested in graphic design work, let me know.  I charge the student price since, you know, I'm still a student.  From logos to stationary, let me know and I can do it!  You can view my design portfolio here.

And a sewing picture for good measure.  Working on a pretty patchwork for a sweet client.



Happy weekend!

xo,
Anna

Free Valentine's Day Tag

Hello all!  I created these Valentine's Day tags for Gavin for his class party next week.  I thought I would share it with ya'll too.

For a long time, I didn't like Valentine's Day.  I know it's all part of the corporate greed to try to get us to buy their products.  So how do I take part in this holiday without giving my money to these companies?  DIY, I say!  DIY! (or buy handmade!)

I printed my tags out on off-white paper that I got from the scrapbooking section in the craft store and then cut the tags out with my exacto knife and hole punched them.  Scissors will be fine too.  I will be using these tags to tie around small brown bags that has a sugar cookie inside that I've baked.  I think they'll be pretty cute!  G will give them out to his friends and to his teachers.

Hope you guys like them!

Click here to download a "friend" tag.
Click here to download a "teacher" tag.

xo,
Anna Joy

God Carpe Diems

*Disclaimer: This article has nothing to do with sewing or quilting.  Eek!*

I read this article awhile back.  I understood what the writer was trying to express.  Motherhood is hard.  There are those times where you do not want to enjoy the moments with your little ones because they ran away from you at Target or they are back talking to you in front of strangers.  I totally get that.  But I don't agree.

I felt out of the loop because a lot of people felt enlightened by her article but I was not.  Nothing against the writer because I find that I do like a lot of her articles.  I think she is a great example of a Godly woman.  But at the end of the day, it all came down to my "Life Verse":

Be joyful always, pray continually, and give thanks in all circumstances for this is God's will for you in Christ Jesus.

-1 Thessalonians 5:16-18

In my hard times, which when we think about it are not really that hard in comparison to what others are going through in their lives, I am always reminded that I need to be joyful ALWAYS.  Not sometimes.  Not when it suits me.  Not when things are going really good.  ALWAYS.

Even when G trashes his room right after I cleaned it for him?  ALWAYS.  Why?  Thank you, Jesus, he has a room to call his own and toys that I put up after he was able to play with them.

Even when I find out that we are about to spend $1000 on our truck?  ALWAYS.  Thank you, Jesus, we even have a truck and that he has provided us the money to cover our expenses.

Even when I am 27 years old and still have another year in school and I just want to rip my hair out over it?  ALWAYS.  Thank you, Jesus, for my education.  For allowing me to learn about the things that I am passionate about and to meet amazing designers who also know and love you.  Thank you that I am never too old to go to school.

And no, I'm not perfect.  I'm not good at remembering to be joyful always.  I lose my temper and act just like my three old does when things don't go my way.  But thank you for God's grace that he's already forgiven me and in my anger, he reminds me, "Be joyful always."  And I will choose, even while grinding my teeth, to be do just that.

I read this article this morning that sparked this topic again for me.  Ann Voskamp summed up every feeling I had over the first article.  I encourage all mommies, daddies, girls, and boys to read it.

xoxo,

Anna Joy

"Instragram"

I have an Android smartphone.  They don't have Hipstamatic or Instagram for us yet.  Will this ever change?  They say it will.  But I've yet to see the app.  Hmph.

But there is an app called FxCamera which has the retro-feelish type pics that I like to use.  And I guess my "Instagram" for now will just be emailing the pictures to myself to post it for all to see.  Here's what happened to me last week.

We are drinking Green Smoothies.  They are delish.  We are doing a Green Smoothie Cleanse  this week.  More on that later.

My sweet friend, Brit, baked me cupcakes for my birthday and put them in a pretty striped box that she painted.  I love her.

I found this pretty book with Katie Daisy illustrations all over it!  

Making laundry soap.  G was demonstrating for me so I could take a picture. 

Our Dixie cat.

Play time.

Even G loves a Green Smoothie.

At G's school, the kids told their teachers who they loved.  G picked me. :)  Sorry, Papa!  (Although G loves him very much too.)

And a special gift from my bbff (blogger best friend), Lesley.  I love it.  And guess what?  Lesley is selling them in her new etsy shop!  Hooray!

Have a great day everyone!

xo,
Anna

So...Blogging...

If you can't tell, I've become really bad at blogging.  Like...really bad.  One reason being I'm busy and putting blogging behind seems to help me stay on task with everything.  Another reason is I am really lazy about getting my pictures off my camera, into my computer, editing them, and then uploading them.  The other reason being is well, I don't know what to talk about.

I'm going to sit down this weekend and think about the different things I want to blog about.  I'm going to be better at taking my pictures and immediately uploading them on my computer.  And I'm going to be more consistent about posting every week.  If not everyday, then at least every other day.  I can and I will!

Ok, enough of my pep talk.  Here are the things I made this week.

A full size quilt.  This is my first time to stipple a quilt this big and it was not that bad.  I love the fresh white all over with the pops of color.  There's a bunting pattern on the back but I didn't get to take a good picture of it.  I love the pillows that match.







Beautiful name pillows.





And I finished the Memory Quilt.









I hope next week I can show you a couple of graphic designs I've been working on for my clients and my school project.  Also have been working on some prints that I want to add to the shop.  Yes, prints, finally!!!

Happy weekend!

xo,
Anna Joy

The Shop Is Open!

Good morning.  Today is my birthday.  I am 27.  It feels really old.  I'm not sure why.  I think it's because I am technically in my late 20's and that just sounds weird cause I still feel like a kid.  So far, I've been having the best birthday week and I'm excited to open up the shop again this morning!

I added two new items.

Custom Half Square Triangle Pillow.  

And Custom State Pillows.

I have two more custom pillows to list in the shop later this week so I'll show them off then!

Help me celebrate my birthday with a 27% off coupon TODAY ONLY.  Enter "IAM27" in the coupon code box while checking out.

Have a great day everyone!

xo,
Anna