Coffee & Donuts...and Kale!

It's always so hard to find time to paint new artwork. We have a ton of would-be new designs sitting on our drawing board, just waiting to be painted and made...when we finally get the time. 

But this past weekend we just had to get this one done. Coffee has maybe been the most requested subject for us to paint. And we really can't believe we took so long to finally make a coffee diecut. Aaron and I both love coffee, and although we've got very similar tastes in most areas, we're sorta opposites when it comes to how we take our coffee. Aaron likes his black, and he always has it hot, even during the summer. He'll do iced in the afternoon sometimes when he's outside cutting wood, but for the most part he drinks 2-3 hot black cups very early in the morning.

Me...I like it iced, and I like a little bit of soy creamer, and a tiny bit of agave. I like iced so much better than hot that I'll barely drink coffee in the colder months and opt for tea instead. And oh yeah, unlike Aaron, my coffee is ALWAYS DECAF. If I get within 10 feet of caffeine the heart palpitations will start.   

So yeah...we finally painted coffee. And of course we just had to give it a donut sidekick.

In our shop we already have a chocolate frosted donut, but this time around we had to add some sprinkles. 

Probably both mine and Aaron's favorite detail is the tiny coffee bubbles! So fun to paint! 

Here's how it looks hanging! And oh yeah...we highly recommend using a Chemex. We've tried machines and French Presses, but by far the Chemex is the best when it comes to flavor and ease of use. And we use cloth filters. They're perfect because they're reusable and better for the environment, and also they're sturdy and easy to just flip inside out into our garden without making a mess.

And we love that the Chemex had a little cameo appearance in the classic 1968 horror film Rosemary's Baby. 

The design has never ever changed. It's the same as it was when it was invented in 1941. 

The new piece is such a fun size! We plan to add more coffee designs to the shop soon! 

And I almost forgot to mention that to kick this new one off we're having a sale in our shop. Use code COFFEE25 to get 25% off anything in the shop...now through Friday, June 17th.

Ok, now for this amazing piece of jewelry I just got from Rock That Gem! Yes, that's a Kale charm. And yes, it's an actual piece of Kale electroplated in 24K gold! I simply had to have it. You should see the amount of Kale me and Aaron bring home from the grocery store every single trip. I'm a big fan of the stuff and this necklace is more than fitting. 

Rock That Gem has so much good stuff...all of it handmade by a sweet gal named Molly. You have to visit her Etsy shop.

Ok, just wanted to pop in, say hi, and talk a little bit about coffee, donuts, and kale. Which is sorta a weird trio...but also maybe not.

We hope you're week is going great. We'll be back soon!

Love from the Jersey Shore!

xo Jenny...and Aaron

Around here...

Hello everyone! Just wanted to pop in on this fantastic Saturday to kinda sum up the week over here. Tomorrow is Easter Sunday and we're possibly going to head to the boardwalk. We've got more warm weather in store for the next couple days so we're definitely gonna try to get outside. A highlight of this past week was the arrival of my new favorite shirt, seen above. If it looks familiar , it was a Friday Favorite a few weeks ago. When I said I needed it...I really meant it. It most certainly is a fitting phrase for myself. And its super comfy. A few gals told me they'd love to get one for themselves. Word to the wise...it runs a bit big and is a loose fit. So make sure to check the sizing guide before ordering. 

So this has been the scene over here the past few days. Lots of orders have gone out to happy new homes. All sorts of things! prints, stickers, plaques, signs, diecuts... nothing makes us happier! This stage of progress that you see above is the moment right before we start to fill the boxes. This is our time to double check everything all at once.

Wrapping orders up is seriously a favorite thing. Everything gets wrapped in pink and tied with baker's twine. We had to do the wrapping on the kitchen table due to every other surface in the house being taken. We had signs and diecuts drying on any flat space we could find.

I snapped this pic of Aaron to show just how big our larger prints are. We offer our prints in a few sizes, the 8x10 within an 11x14 mat is the most popular, but these large prints are great as a statement piece. A perfect way to really establish a theme for a room, or a bakery, or for a kid's room. The large print is 11 x 14 and fits a 16 x 20 frame. And definitely, the vintage pink mixer you see above is a customer fave! 

And guess what!?  Our "The Sweet Life" order arrived the other day and everything is now listed in the shop! Quantities are limited and we've already sold a bunch, so if you've been waiting...grab some goodies now! The resin pieces are so great! So fun seeing our paintings in this form! So many possibilities! And the 6 x 6 paper pads are too cute for words! And don't get me started on the treat bags or journaling cards! ha! I love it all I guess!

The windows were actually open today. Which is such a welcomed change form the past few cold days. Today the sun was shining bright and it made the workday way more pleasant. I like to be able to bounce around from project to project. So while orders dried I worked on a few personal projects. Including these collaged stacking stools that I started about 4 years ago! ha! I just set them aside for some reason and only now have I decided to get them finished up. Better late than never right?  I'll share pics of them when I finish them completely. Hopefully it wont take another few years.

And due to the sunshine outside Aaron got to do lots of cutting out on the deck. This is our trusty scroll saw which is responsible for the precision cutting of our diecuts.

Here we have an ice cream cone, an extract bottle, a cupcake, and a plate of cupcakes. We love working with wood! I grew up in my father's wood shop, so sawdust is in my blood.

We took a break from working to make one of our favorite meals. We call it the Harissa bowl. We got the idea from Sarah over at House in the Hills. It is so incredibly delicious. In this bowl are roasted sweet potatoes, carrots, and cauliflower that get tossed in Harissa spices before roasting. The roasted veggies are then served over coconut basmati rice with currants. Add a side of sautéed lime spinach, top with avocado, and yummmmmm. The balance of flavors and texture is so comforting. You won't believe that something so tasty can be so good for you. 

And finally...a pic of these two little nuts just for the heck of it. Jack's little "hand" get's raised if he's asking you for something. And I think Carlos has a perpetually blurred tail! ha! 

I hope you are enjoying your weekend so far! We may pop in tomorrow to say hi, but if not...Happy Easter friends!

xo Jenny...& Aaron says hi!