Re-Usable Glass Calendar

For a long time I've wanted to make a glass calendar that could be re-used. I didn't buy any paper calendars for 2012. So, I decided it's time to make a re-useable one!

This is a very small calendar, (8" x 10"), and is for the work desk where I keep my files and organize my goals and lists. Unfortunately, the dry erase marker I dug out of my pen stash is nearly dead. So, I wrote some small notes on post-it's, cut them down a bit smaller and stuck them onto the right dates.

It's nice to be able to move my notes and plans around to different days whenever I need to. As an artist, my schedules and daily activities are incredibly flexible, and being able to change plans on a whim is a necessity.

Calendars are always a double-edge sword for me. I enjoy buying a paper calendar to bring in the new year, and at the end of the year, it can be used for collage fodder. On the other hand, it's nice to have a calendar that can be used again and again. At this point, I like to keep at least one paper calendar, and a couple re-usable ones to satisfy all of my plan and date-keeping habits.

peace & love,

kaylee

DIY Collection #009

1. Boho Feather Hair Clip by Sincerely, Kinsey

2. Copper Coil Sculptures by Design Sponge

3. Veneer Tree Mobile by You Are My Fave (via Poppytalk)

4. Lace Jersey Vest by Sincerely, Kinsey

5. Gypsy Crown by Sincerely, Kinsey

6. Blue Ombre Chair by Design Sponge

7. Song Lyric Photo Book by A Beautiful Mess

8. Marbled Glassware by Honestly, WTF

9. Resist Dying by Lune Vintage (via A Beautiful Mess)

Putting together DIY Collections is one of my favorite activities. I love collecting and finding the best projects to share each month. There is such an abundance of fun, simple projects to try out and experiment with, it difficult to choose the best ones sometimes! This month is no different. I adore each of these projects and I can't wait to play around with some new crafts.

peace & love,

kaylee

Birch & Bees: Fresh Look

Birch & Bees - New Design, Spring 2012

The past couple days I've been working on a fresh new design for Birch & Bees. And this is the result thus far! I'm going to continue tweaking, updating, and messing around with a few things. But I wanted to share a few of the new parts of this design & update.

Black, White, & Gold. One of my biggest problems with the last design was that it created competition with all of my colorful photos. The major goal of the re-design was to give the entire layout a monochrome color scheme. Black & white with pops of gold. I'm so pleased to have a design which gives more attention to the art, writing, and photos.

Simple and Clean. I'm also feeling a strong need to simplify in all areas of my life, but the blog is the first area to tackle. I've attempted slimming down the design to something more manageable. I'm still devising ways to make the blog more simple, yet visually interesting, and easy to read/browse.

The Header. I spent hours and hours drafting ideas for headers. I created dozens in photoshop, and deleted nearly all of them. I knew I needed a black and white photograph of something which is close to my passion for art, craft, and creating. I eventually settled on a close-up of a watercolor painting I created. (I'm already planning to continue evolving the design of the header. Hopefully one day I'll arrive at something which I love. But for now, this will do well.)

New Posting Styles & Content. One of the reasons I decided to update the design again is because of my burning desire for change. A change I've been wanting to make for a long time is opening up this space to more of my artistic/personal thoughts and reflections. And a new design is the physical representation of those changes. Along with more personal style posts, I hope to share more of the artists, creations, music, and stories which inspire me.

As I've mentioned before, I'm a very indecisive person. I swing from project to project. Idea to idea. And in a few months, the design of this blog will inevitably be updated once again. But for now, I'm going to enjoy it.

peace & love,

kaylee

These Days

(top to bottom, left to right)

Watercolor painting. Painting a peacock,

Making art with Daniel, Crafting with paint chips,

Baking sugar cookies, Finding treasures outside,

My paint chip painting, Pretty artwork,

My Buddha statue, Pretty green leaves,

Flower vase of branches, Handmade tassles,

Woven wall art piece, Triangle Mobile,

Early Morning Light, Pretty wall art

As I haven't been working on the newest collection of goods for the shop, I've decided to start working on other projects. There are a large number of projects I want to make, and I'm having a lot of fun working my way through the lists and crossing them off. (I shared a few sneak peaks of those projects above). Surprisingly enough, the crafts I've been making lately are turning out excellent.

(I share sneak peaks of what I'm making and doing on instagram days before they end up on this blog. If you want to see more photos, you can follow me on instagram at kayleebee.)

peace & love, 

kaylee

Four Wall Art Sculptures

(Giant Dreamer, By Kaylee Hinrichs. April 2012. Steel, Fabric, Hemp String, Copper Wire, Feathers, Glass Beads.)


(Triangle Mobile (Yellow & Blue), By Kaylee Hinrichs. April 2012. Steel, Fabric, Embroidery Thread, Thread Tassles, Tribal Beads.)






(Woven Checkerboard, By Kaylee Hinrichs. April 2012. Twigs, Hemp Thread, Fabric, Glass Beads.)


(Dark Dreamer, By Kaylee Hinrichs. April 2012. Twigs/Branches, Hemp Thread, Fabric.)



I am incredibly proud to present these four wall art sculptures. I'm so pleased with how they have turned out. I adore them and their uniqueness. The best part is that they can be displayed together as a collection and still look great!

Out of all the projects, the "Triangle Mobile" was the most time consuming. Cutting all the paint swatches apart, then into different sized triangles, punching the holes, stringing them together. Not to mention the nine tassels handmade with embroidery thread.

After making these, I'm so inspired to create more and more of these abstract-style sculptures for wall decoration. I'm just not sure if I have enough room for all of them!

peace & love,

kaylee

Studio Days

I made my first paint chip swatch painting.

Imagining new ways to display my cherished feather collection.

Early morning light & pretty dreadlocks.

Making tiny handmade tassels for a mobile.

Attempting to sew some cotton dresses and having so many problems.

A shot of one of my studio tables. Bamboo plant, tiny decorations, pretty fabric ribbon.

The main wall of my studio. Pretty dreamcatchers, pictures, garlands. 

Playing with watercolor paint again. I've missed this medium so much. 

About a week ago, I stopped working on things to make for the shop and decided to take my vacation early. I've been having awful strings of bad luck whenever I try to work on creations for the shop. Anomalies within the sewing machine, dream-catcher bases falling apart, and nothing is turning out how I imagined. With all that terrible luck, I decided to just stop working on it. Put it all to the side for a while and do something else. It's just silly to continue pushing myself to work on something that isn't coming out how I want. So, I've turned my focus somewhere else for a couple weeks.

Instead I'm working on 18 Projects, my Photo 365, and another list of things I've wanted to make for a long time. I've already finished six projects since starting, and I have more in the the works. I'll be sharing all the things I make and what I work on. So, hopefully in a couple weeks, I'll be refreshed and ready to work seriously on improving and updating the shop.

On another note, I love taking pictures with my new camera. It's so consistently awesome. I love it.

peace & love,

kaylee

The Solar System, Part One

Last month, I shared twelve illustrations of The Zodiac symbols I created. (You can see Part One, Part Two, and The Wrap Up of the project.) I hinted at a new drawing project already underway. Well, after completing The Zodiac series, I wanted to continue with the space-related theme. So, I decided to illustrate the symbols of our solar system, including the sun, our moon, and the nine planets that make up our star system. I have the first half of the drawings to share today, I hope you enjoy them!

(The Sun. The Solar System Series. By Kaylee Hinrichs. March 2012.)

(Mercury. The Solar System Series. By Kaylee Hinrichs. March 2012.)

(Venus. The Solar System Series. By Kaylee Hinrichs. March 2012.)

(The Earth. The Solar System Series. By Kaylee Hinrichs. March 2012.)

(The Moon. The Solar System Series. By Kaylee Hinrichs. March 2012.)

(The Mars. The Solar System Series. By Kaylee Hinrichs. March 2012.)

I managed to finish all five of these drawings last month, and I'm already making great progress on the second half. I'll be sharing them soon!

peace & love,

kaylee

Hello April

It has certainly begun to feel like Spring around these parts. Awakening to early morning showers on the rooftops, flowers blooming, and the birds chirping. For me, Spring is a time of renewal and rejuvenation. I enjoy taking a little vacation around this time of year so that I can develop some new perspectives and ideas. There's just something about Spring that puts me in a mood to re-direct, re-align, and let go of all the things in that past that are no longer serving me. There's nothing like letting go of the old, to bring in the new.

My Spring & Summer Collection 2012. I've been working on this collection for months and months now. I've been designing, sewing, making, and working almost non-stop on this collection. I hope that it comes together the way I've imagined in my mind.

A Little Vacation. Once I release my newest collection for the shop, I'm planning to take a little vacation. While I'm not going to be going anywhere, I am hoping to spend some time offline. I'm hoping to simply un-plug, un-wind and look carefully at my goals, hopes, projects, and plans. I'm looking forward to getting many things done so that I can turn my attention to new ideas and opportunities.

Snail Mail. Writing letters to faraway friends has reminded me of my oldest and dearest passion: art journaling. I have a strong obsession with making and filling up art journals. From documentary-style books, to full out personal expression, and experimental work. This month I'm hoping to spend a lot of my free time playing with collage and paper craft again.

Look-Book Planning. Since last year, I've had the strong desire to create a look-book for Birch & Bees. I've been keeping a list of all the different ideas I have for making this dream into a reality. And now that I have the photo equipment that I need, I can have a blast planning and making a look book! I'm hoping to have it completed by July/August of 2012.

My Latest Venture. I've been playing with the idea of creating some art and design related online courses. I adore to teach people new things, which is why I share a ton of different DIY's by myself and other talented artists on this blog. I've found that I have a strong desire to share my knowledge with others and teaching classes would be the best way to do that. I imagine that I'll have more news to share about this by the end of this year.

Here's to a beautiful April!
What are your plans for this month?

peace & love,

kaylee

DIY Collection: #008

1. Chevron Wood Planter by The 91204 Blog

2. Instagram ScrapBook by A Beautiful Mess

3. Fringe Sandals by Sincerely, Kinsey

4. Bleach Painting on Textiles by Lune Vintage (via A Beautiful Mess)

5. Dip-Dye Drapes by Michael Penney Style

6. Mod Clay Planter by Pinecone (Via Poppytalk)

7. Popsicle Stick Necklace by Sincerely, Kinsey

8. Painted Mandala Pebbles by Maga Merlina

9. Spring Art Journal by A Beautiful Mess

This DIY Collection is perfectly curated for spring. Whether you're looking to document this Spring, get your hands in the garden, or perhaps just freshen up your home-decor, then these projects will have you covered. I'm hoping to carve out some time in my busy schedule to just make some of these pretty crafts and enjoy the Springtime! I'm really excited to work on some Mandala Pebbles and Popsicle Stick Necklaces!

peace & love,

kaylee