patterns & shapes : new york city

all images by me: kristal davis / rikrak 2012

 {or my supercute hubby!}

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well we're back from a fabulous little triparoo to one of my fave cities: nyc. mesmerizing shapes captivated me most of all this time around. 

wow. 

what a linear lovers dream.

(& a weekend away with my darlin', seeing dear friends, cafe hopping, gallery wandering, park playing, & holdin' hands just strolling sure made it absolutely fantastic, too! ) 

there's bliss in those polygon shadows.

{ps: this is my 1st foray into the crazy world of instagram. no SLR? eek! okay - i'll admit it  = so fun! are you an instagram fan, nicies?} 

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all images by me: kristal davis / rikrak 2012 

{or my supercute hubby!}

lucky....

lucky horseshoe sign by AVelvetLeaf

..............

did you watch the oscars, nicies? fingers crossed for your fave stars?

how stunning you all looked on the red carpet, cuties!

well we have our own happiness to dole out here today: congrats to the winner of the beautiful vadjutka necklace giveaway - random.org's #177 - Gorgeous Heart {such a beautiful blog - check it out!)

i'm feeling oh-so-fortunate about things of late: including a fabulous fabulous trip we're just back from - more on that tomorrow, cuties!

how about you? feeling lucky?

the friday checklist

love checklists?

good golly i SURE do!
(but i haven't been able to move to electronic lists, yet. pen & paper for me. how about you? 

here's a fun one for you today, sweeties ....

1. be sure to ENTER to win the superFUN *i love my sponsors* $25 gift certificate giveaway 

&

2. enter to WIN this gorgeous vadjutka textile necklace

&

3. the handmade olympics are coming soon, nicies!

so sign up to be a fun blog sponsor

&

4. sign on to be a handmade olympics sponsor, too! 

{lots of fabulous new exposure for your beautiful shops and teams!}

have a great weekend, sweeties! {and be sure to pat yourself on the back for a great week of getting stuff on your to-do lists DONE!}

YOUR academy awards looks REVEALED!

mrunmayee delights in ...

amulet boutique + magdamagdaFashion

...............

ariza looks gorgeous in...

wonderxue + ldiamonds

...............

the shimmer story shines in...

nature look + zoe chen

...............

moira charms in ... 

concettas closet +   rare earth

...............

mrunmayee delights in ...

river of romansk +  bagatellesAndCo

...............

good heavens ... you beauties look gorgeous!

so move over hollywood starlets!

zillion-dollar designer outfits have nothing on our amazing handmaking community!

last week i challenged you to show me your 2-piece handmade & vintage ensembles that you'll be wearing to the academy awards sunday - and i just LOVE that you came up with. your responses were overwhelmingly fabulous!

stunning, aren't they?
gosh i love that handmade can do.

and check out other fun party outfit challenges here like:

 your royal wedding guest looks

your 2011 red carpet TIFF looks

from the year before

and from the year before

your oscar looks revealed: part 1
part 2

  your lovely springtime teaparty looks.

your beach party looks

your winter gala looks

see you on the red carpet, sweeties!

and have a glamorous, megawatt-smile weekend, nicies, whether your strutting your stuff on the red carpet or dancing in your kitchen doing dishes!

have any faves at the OSCARS this year?  

...............

hope wows in ... 

 denisebrain + boudoir barbie

...............

isn't erin gorgeous in... 

 

christintina +  AdiYesod

...............

kourtney r. amazes in ... 

  romepure + mettlle

...............

do not faint sparkles in...

old europe jewelry + timeless vixen vintage

  ...............

the 2012 handmade olympics: call for PRIZES!

blue ribbon award by vanessaaboer

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hot-diggity-dog!  

it's that time of year again at the rikrak studio + i'm looking for a few fun folks who might like to join the FUN!


the 2012 EDITION of the 3rd ANNUAL  rikrak studio handmade olympics launches soon, and  i'm putting together some FABULOUS prize packs. i'm looking for a few more folks who are willing to:

---> offer ONE $50.00 gift certificate to their handmade OR vintage OR supply shop (or handmade blog) as a prize. <--- 

i already have quite a few lined up and would love to have a couple more.

the inaugural handmade olympics (and last year's chart-topping 2011 edition) was, i'm thrilled to say, a supergreat success, with 1000s of nominations of amazing handmade works, AND over 27000 individual votes cast in the final rounds of the fun! yay to great exposure for your lovely shop!

:: THE DETAILS! ::

 

:: if you're interested :: please apply via email as soon as possible at rikrakmail@yahoo.com with the email title: 

---> 2012 sponsor for the handmade olympics - so i can finalize the prize packs and launch the FUN FUN event in march!  


please include a link to your shop (or blog) in the email.

the application deadline is tuesday, february 28th.

 

---> *PLEASE NOTE* : event sponsors, once chosen, will receive:
:: a 150 x 150 promo spot FREE with all event-related promotion.

:: mention in all event-related sponsorship

:: this prize-sponsorship IS NOT an ad-spot on the rikrak studio blog sponsors column. this is a separate entity! (info on monthly sponsorship for march here.) 

:: PLUS: becoming a sponsor for this SPECIAL event + donating your prize of a $50.00 shopping spree in your shop WILL NOT COST YOU any other monies. you must just be willing to let the winner redeem the prize in your shop once won! + i'm happily including you in all of the promotion, for FREE as a thanks!

:: don't worry - you can still WIN if you're a sponsor: prize sponsors are eligible for nomination/ are eligible to win in any category except the one they are sponsoring!

:: the event will run for approx. 5 weeks! yay!

.........

so hey - it's a winwin situation! great promotion for your lovely handmade shop + then just let a happy winner have a little shopping spree in your lovely shop!

fan-tastic!

i will notify all successful applicants on wednesday, february 29th (or sooner!)
thanks so much!
and get ready for something funFUNfun, lovelies!

woowee!

come advertise with the rikrak studio blog in march!

i just love my sponsors! i'm so thankful for their kind and artistic support each month! and i'm just delighted with how things are going, growing here on the blog with you lovelies. thank you!

so i'm very happy to be offering a few new ad spots as of today for MARCH.

with march comes  a great time to continue building your wonderful indie business! AND... the 3rd annual Handmade Olympics will be starting in march! (i.e. lotsa great traffic to the blog!) woohoo!  i hope it might be the perfect opportunity to showcase your beautiful shops & blogs for all of those handmade-loving shoppers & bloggers & media out there! it's  such a great time for fresh starts, and i'm offering a few new ad spots, all at GREAT prices!

if you feel that your shop, group, Etsy Team,  or blog would be a good fit with the rikrak studio blog feel & focus, and are interested in rates, please email me at 
---> rikrakmail @ yahoo.com <---

there's lots of continued fun coming up on the blog: funfun guests, little inspirations, more fabulous giveaways you're not going to want to miss, great games, fantastic features,  and, as always, a few extra fun surprises, too. being part of the fun is a great way to boost sales, increase exposure and build your little business in the handmade community, too!

i'm a handmaker & mommy and know it's a challenging economic time out there... so i try to keep the rates nice & reasonable and promote your wonderful businesses as best i can all month!

i also love designing ads for folks that need them, too.
so just let me know if i can help!

so come & be part of the fun!
thanks so much, lovelies!
k.

family day: DIY + handmade family tree ideas

DIY + handmade family tree ideas 

{ clockwise from top left }

custom family tree print in teal

custom family tree

4 generation photo family tree

custom family silhouette portraits

custom illustrated family tree

DIY flower family tree

genealogy descendant chart

 .............. 

happy family day, wonderful ones.

here in ontario we're celebrating family.

in honour - here are some of my fave DIY & handmade family tree projects from last year (thought they might inspire again today!) 

so cheers to family: the ones we begin with & the ones we surround ourselves with as we grow; the ones we are given & the ones we seek out and gather.

hugs cuties.

 ..............

DIY + handmade family tree ideas 

{ clockwise from top left }

DIY birds of a feather family tree

circle of love custom family tree

personalized family tree in almond

blank family tree print in orange

DIY family fan chart pdf