Frogs!!!! (or Post-Tadpole Distraction)

I ask you this:





How is it possible for me to get any work done today when these adorable baby frogs are hopping all over my rainy back patio??






So cute it hurts!

Support Local Grow Together (or High Fives For Houston Small Business!)

A few months ago, I became aware of an awesome new... well, I guess the only word for it is a new "movement" here in Houston:

Support Local, Grow Together



The idea began in 2009, when JR Cohen looked around and noticed the effects of the recession. Here's a quote from Cohen in the SLGT Blog:

Other coffee shops and businesses were suffering and going out of business; other people working for corporations were losing their jobs. I was watching tweets from people I know who were foreclosing on their houses; people I hadn't seen in awhile because they couldn't afford to come in for a cup of coffee. People were withdrawing and not being as social. So I decided to use social media and the number of QUALITY followers I have, and see what I could do for them.

SLGT encourages Houston consumers to support local artists, restaurants, and other businesses with "their dollars, their attention, and their referrals." They also ask that local businesses work together so we all can grow and become self-sufficient and thrive locally!

How great is that??


An offshoot of SLGT in Houston is the SLGT Photo Project...
Very talented local photographer and successful blogger, Christine Tremoulet, has created the SLGT Photo Project blog to showcase local businesses and let them either simply get their names out there, or announce specific upcoming events in the area. She travels around, takes pictures of stuff and blogs about it - it's beautiful in its simplicity!

Last month, she came to visit me at the Artisan Market and take lovely pictures of my wares...







There are tons more businesses featured in the SLGT Photo Project, so go there and read to your heart's content - but, more importantly, go out there and support those businesses!!!

Side Project (or My Ridiculous Art)

So, I'm not totally done with this project, but I can't wait to share it with you...

This past week, my husband, Josh, and I have totally redone our apartment. We deep cleaned, donated boxes and boxes of things that we no longer need, and got ourselves organized. We also rearranged some furniture which (to me) warrants new artwork on the wall! (Any excuse, right?)

My goal was "ridiculous Victorian" and I opted to paint precious portraits of ridiculous things...

I started with some wooden ovals,




penciled in some rough sketches,




mustered all of my rudimentary Bob Ross painting technique and applied it to portraiture!




Taa-daa!







This is my new favorite thing I've ever made for the house, and these little vignettes are going to hang on the wall behind our tv.

In the interest of full disclosure, Josh drew the Ninja Turtle (Donatello, our favorite! He "does machines"...)



All of Josh's 5th grade practice had led up to this momentous tour de force... I'm absolutely blown away by it! Doesn't it look authentic??

Also, we still have one more large oval to do, but we can't decide on what it should be... Any ideas?

Facebook Fans Giveaway #2 (or The 222 Giveaway!)

Hello, robot minions!

Currently, the Robot In Bloom Facebook Page has 175 fans, and I've decided it's high time for another giveaway!



Photo by Monkey Tree Photography


This time, once we reach 222 "likes" (formerly known as "fans") on the Facebook page, I will choose one fan at random (using a random number generator) to receive a bouquet of three hand-painted parchment roses (example pictured above) and at least five tissue carnations (example pictured below) in any color or color combination you choose!


Photo by me.

(I promise at least five carnations, but possibly more if I find that my artistic muses demand more than five that day!)


Just like the first time, there is no deadline and I'll draw the winner's name as soon as the page reaches 222 fans, and I'll post the results on the page and in the blog. And, again like last time, I shall remove myself and my sister from the list of 222, as well as the winner of the first giveaway, Erica Clements. (So I'll really be drawing from a pool of 219.)

Super easy, eh?

So, keep recommending Robot In Bloom to your friends and keep checking back to see if you've won!

Main Site Currently Down (or AAAACK!)

Apparently the main site for Robot In Bloom is down and I'm scrambling to find out why.

In the meantime, you can feast your eyes on my paper flowers on the RIB Facebook Page! And, hey, while you're there, be my friend!



Photo by Monkey Tree Photography


**UPDATE: The site has been fully restored to all its previous glory. Disaster averted significantly faster than anything BP has tried!**

Wearable Blooms (or Experiments In Epoxy)

I've had a lot of folks ask me if they can wear my paper flowers as jewelry and I usually say that it's not a great idea, but you can certainly try. If you're anything like me, a big glob of mustard is going to make it onto your orchid brooch by the end of the night, and no one wants that.

Well, I went down to my local Texas Art Supply for some answers and found this:




After reading the very dangerous-sounding instructions (blindness??),




I (bravely) set up my stuff.




Step 1:
Pour one bottle of the stuff into another bottle of the stuff and make these cool-looking crystal snakes!





Step 2:
Stir!





Step 3:
Get tired of stirring just as instructions say to stop. Try dipping a crepe paper flower into the mix. Pull it out and fail at snapping in-focus pictures as the epoxy drips down your hand.



Easy as pie!

Now, as I'm sure you noticed, a very interesting thing happened that I wasn't expecting - the papers turned translucent! The parchment, the crepe, and the tissue papers all became nearly see-through upon dipping.



Parchment rose



Crepe flower and parchment hydrangea



Parchment rose


At first I was a tad disappointed, but as they cured, I started to appreciate the near-clear possibilities.

What do you guys think? Would you wear these sweet little gems as jewelry?
Leave a comment!

Tweaks And Shiners (or ... Cheeky!)

I've spent the past few days tweaking the Robot In Bloom website - adding lots of new pics by Kasey Marsh of Monkey Tree Photography

Check out the new pics on RobotInBloom.com!

It's not 100% done, so I'm gonna take a break. It's time to kick back and enjoy a nice, tall Shiner!
I'll keep yours cold 'til you get back!