Cha-Cha-Changes

Life is so weird, isn't it?


In case you can't squint hard enough to read those tiny letters, the masthead reads Jaimielee Velasquez under ART DIRECTOR. I tweeted about the good news the day I got the promotion and it's going on three whole weeks now! I've been awfully busy and it totally shows on my blog. I miss crafting and sewing and all of the nerdy things I used to write about but I actually live at my office now. I'm not even kidding.

Definatalie is Definitely Awesome

Yup. If you don't know who Natalie Perkins is, well, you're missing out. She's a fat activist, graphic designer, illustrator and all-around fancy lady who blogs over at Definatalie.com. Last month she held a giveaway featuring some of the fabulous items she sells in her shop Fancy Lady Industries. I immediately entered and guess what? I actually won! I never win things!

Fancy Item no.01: Gocco Postcard
Fancy Item no.02: No Diet Talk Brooch
Fancy Item no.03: Holographic Fat Necklace
Fancy Item no.04: Digital Illustration of Me & Muscles
I can't wait to print it out and find the prefect frame and hanging place for it. It's so great! I also never want to take my new necklace and brooch off, like ever. Vacation time away and the pressure of the holidays delayed this post a bit, but I wanted to show off my new fancy things. Thanks for sticking around, you guys. You're the best!

Surprise Balls: A Tutorial

Have you ever heard of the glory that is a surprise ball? I hadn't until I happened upon the blog Oh Happy Day. You could literally spend hours mesmerized by all of the lovely things on that blog, I know I have... But these balls are just magical! My family is quite large so we choose to focus on the kids during the holidays, and I immediately knew surprise balls would be perfect.

I had such a great time getting all these goodies at Party City and Uncle Fun (which happens to be one of my favorite stores of ALL time), I totally felt like a little kid. I figured I'd write up a simple tutorial so you can get in on the fun, too!

Stickers! Chocolate! Dinosaur Masks! Nail Polish! Bug Pins! Bird Pins! Bouncy Balls! Moustaches! Finger Puppets! Tops! Erasers! Bubbles! Temporary Tattoos! Candy!

After gathering all of your small treasures, prepare your crêpe paper. I found that cutting strips in different lengths then folding them in half worked best. Otherwise the paper is too wide and it looks a bit wonky. A plus side to the wider strips is more coverage, so choose whatever works best for you.



Begin with the largest, roundest, or most obscure-shaped object and get wrapping.



My first one started out a bit rough and ended up more egg shaped than circular. It's good to remember the balls will be unraveled so no need to be a perfectionist!

Don't forget your life fuel :P


They really are super easy to make, just be sure to round out your ball by layering strategically placed goodies.



Confetti and glitter are nice little fillers to add in between the bigger items. Smaller items like stickers and temporary tattoos, too!



To finish these babies up you can use tape or a small sticker on the edge of your last strip of crêpe paper. Then decorate it to your heart's content! I used red and white pipe cleaners and holographic ribbon from the dollar store.



Shipping these to New York was a nightmare but they made it! The obscene amount of bubble wrap I used cushioned them well enough but their ribbons and ornaments fell off. You know, the only way I knew which ball belonged to which kid! Everything ended well, though, thankfully, and each kid got their ball. Next year I plan to make mini piñatas because I love crêpe and tissue paper so much! Gahh!