I’ve been compiling a  list lately of sites that are great tools for artsy business people and stumbled onto Just Made My Day. It’s not exclusive to artists but Creativitae is a positive outlook/inspiration/art and design blog so I find it relevant. Just Made My day is a microblog platform, like twitter, only it’s all about telling people who or what just made your day. I love this concept. You fill in the blanks (100 characters max) – you don’t need to include the “Just Made My Day” or the “by” parts, as I quickly learned when my first entry was not quite right . After you fill in the blanks you can sign in with your twitter or facebook (how convenient). Or you could remain anonymous, you little lurker you. Share some good news today!

[image from justmademyday.com]

I accomplished most of my chores today. It is so nice outside! Spring finally arrived. Despite my allergies, I love flowers. The large tree in my backyard is in full bloom, as are the azaleas in the front. Pending a full makeover, I thought my living/dining room could use some pretty.

I clipped a branch, and some azaleas and brought them inside. The branch, I tucked in with my ever present pussy willows and the azaleas went into the cutouts along the stairs. I will be planting some rosemary and lavender soon, I don’t have much of a green thumb but I’m going to try. I won’t be adding any flowers to the front or backyard until I know for sure our cold spell is over. Every spring I get excited too early and the weather turns on me.

Another plus, I didn’t need the heat or air conditioning today. I was able to open up the house and let the breeze in. Bailey lounged in the front yard, the neighbor’s little dachshund got loose twice and I promptly put her back in her yard. The little bugger. Kitty had a fight with a lime green lizard, and lost. He is so fired.

I’m going to get my craft on this weekend, I’ll share my projects with you this week. Have you downloaded your FREE printable yet for the Post project? The PDF is customizable! You can change the text to whatever you like, mine say “hello beautiful” but you could put your name in there or anything else that fits. There will be a new printable available each month. I’ve got mine printed and I’m sending them on their way. Have you signed up with me yet to receive yours? For more info check out this post.

[image and artwork © Aimee Elizabeth McEwen]

It’s almost the weekend! Do you have plans? I’m going to try to head over to the arts market tomorrow afternoon and then it’s chores, chores, chores. The weather is rainy and gloomy today so I clicked over to cuteoverload.com for some cheering up. I hope everyone has an awesome weekend!

[image from cuteoverload.com]

the Post project is something I’ve been planning for about 3 months. The short version: I love mail; the cards and letters I receive from friends and family. “The Post” in this project means “Postal”. Each month there will be a new addition to the Post project here on Creativitae by way of a FREE printable that can be mailed “the old fashion way” to a loved one; write a thoughtful letter or your favorite inspirational quote. Hey, you could even toss a lottery ticket in there, give someone a thrill! Remember when you got your very first letter or postcard in the mail? Mine was from Mrs. Moulton (my babysitter) I was four, there was a dolphin on the front of the postcard. Maybe you were lucky enough to have pen pal? My hope is to bring a little bit of that magic back into our lives.

The first printable in this series is a note card: fleur by fleur. It’s sized to fit an A2 envelope and can be personalized. Open the file into Acrobat Reader and select the type tool. Then click on the “personalize here” field, highlighting the text (it currently says “hello beautiful”). You can put your name in there or any phrase that suits your recipient: Thank You, I Love You, Miss You…anything.

Now, the second part of this project is all about Y-O-U. Do you want to receive a little something special from me in your mailbox? You won’t know when it’s coming, but one day…maybe when you’ve had a bad day (or week!) you’ll come home to find a little something special from the Post project in your mailbox telling you how truly wonderful you are (because you are!). I’ve got 100 openings for 2010. Please email me at hello(at)creativitaeblog.com and let me know if you’d like to sign yourself and/or a friend up (I solemnly promise NOT to stalk you and I will NEVER share your info). If you have a blog and want to promote the Post project, feel free to link to this post. If you send or receive something from the Post project, let me know, I’d love to hear about it! Your printable is below. Right click to download (or option click for mac). You’ll find the Post project badge in the sidebar with the Creativitae badge soon. Now go to the post office and buy some cute stamps!!!

fleur by fleur notecard

[artwork © Aimee Elizabeth McEwen]

[FREE printables are for personal use only. Not for commercial use.]

(shamrocks + hearts)

It was such a hectic day that I almost did not post this, but I got into busy mode and here we are with this month’s FREE desktop wallpaper.

I’ve got two sizes for you this month. Your choice: 1680 x 1050 or 1280 x 768. Enjoy!

[artwork © Aimee Elizabeth McEwen]

I love papernstitch. I subscribe to their e-newsletter and this was what I found (among other lovely things) in my inbox this morning. I have a friend that says this to me all the time…or at least every time I spazz out (ok – once a week). You can get this print from Please Be Still Printshop. You may recognize the artwork, it’s by  illustrator Jen Renninger. Please Be Still is Jen’s online printshop. Be sure to also check out her blog, this post made me laugh really hard.

[image from Please Be Still Printshop]

You all have won a Creativitae CD Desk Calendar for commenting on the I heart design awards giveaway post. I’ll be emailing each of you for your shipping deets.

[winners chosen randomly using Random.org]

[images link to source on flickr]

This was my view over the weekend as I spent most of my time in bed, dizzy since Friday from what is probably an ear/sinus infection. The cat was thrilled at his power to keep me captive. I watched one (very boring) movie, a bunch of cartoons and managed a slow zig zaggy walk around the neighborhood. Then I decided to wash the dog (poor Bean) and tidy up the house. After that I planted myself on the bed and started to knit a new scarf. Again, the cat was thrilled, he attacked me and the yarn and was subsequently banished to the foot of the bed. I received death stares from him for the remainder of the evening. Somehow, I managed to finish the entire scarf while I perused a Pottery Barn book on living room ideas and inspiration (which I sorely need).

I’m completely in love with yarn, and strangely drawn to the cream, wheat, tan, and oatmeal colors. I can’t imagine knitting with anything but super soft, super chunky yarn. I made the scarf wider and longer than usual so it would be super cozy. And it is! This was my first attempt at a Moss stitch, I was not sure I had the attention span for it but I did alright. Since I live in Florida, I doubt this scarf will get much wear, but it was a great stress reliever and I feel like I accomplished something even though I was not able to be out and about due to the spins.

I had also planned on some bloggy projects this weekend but after a few attempts I realized it would take my dizzy brain forever to get the posts done. Even this post has taken me a while, please forgive any typos. Not to worry though I’ll be better soon. I’ll have a new Etsy love feature, a new Goodness post and the announcement it’s taken me all year (haha) to tell you about. Before we know it, it will be March! March 1st the CD desk calendar winners from the i heart design awards post will be announced. Did you vote? Did you leave a comment to enter to win a desk calendar? Click here to find out more.

It’s back to the bed for me now (sigh). There is a grilled cheese calling my name.

[images by Aimee Elizabeth McEwen]

I am having a love affair with all three of these sites. Teresa Robinson is the amazing talent behind smallthings,  Stone&Honey and the Stone&Honey blog A Magical Geometry. I love the simple, fresh, and thoughtful layout of each space. The jewelry is beautiful, and I’m ecstatic to see that a store in Jacksonville carries Ms. Robinson’s collection. I’m currently drueling over the Stone & Honey  gold honey comb necklace called “Emil”.

Have a glorious weekend everyone, did you enter to win a desk calendar yet? If not click here to leave a comment on the i heart design post.

[images link to their source]