I'm Teaching A Tie-Dye Scarf Class!

For those of you who know me or have followed Camp Smartypants since the beginning, you know how much I love tie-dye. It's been my dream to be able to offer tie-dye classes for years and I'm finally able to do it with the help of Molly Muriel Apothecary in Milwaukie, Oregon!

Below is the class description and details on how to register. I hope you can join me!

TIE-DYE SCARF CLASS:

Discover the fun of tie-dye and make your own scarf for fall! Each student will be provided one white jersey scarf to dye. Rachel will demonstrate a variety of different tying methods and walk you through the steps of tie-dye. Lots of dye colors will be available to choose from, so you’re sure to make a scarf you will love!

Note: Because tie-dye is a 24 hour process, you will take your dyed scarf home in a plastic bag with simple washing instructions.

CLASS REQUIREMENTS:
Tie-dye can be a messy process, so please come wearing clothes/shoes you wouldn’t mind getting permanent dye on. Plastic aprons and gloves will be available for student use.

When: Thursday, November 13th from 6-8pm
Where: Molly Muriel Apothecary, 11049 SE 21st Ave, Milwaukie, Oregon
Ages: 12+
Cost: $30.00 per student

*Pre-payment is required. Email info@mollymuriel.com with your class request and we will email you back an invoice which you can pay through Paypal. Once your payment is received your spot in the workshop will be held.

Botanical Collages

I finally got around to scanning in some new art I've been working on recently. I had fun making these little botanical collages while house-sitting in Issaquah a few weeks ago. I'd been collecting vintage flowers and seashells from old books and magazines and I love how they compliment each other so well. I played with different arrangements and watercolor doodles...

Protection + Creativity

Sharing a new painting today! This one is all about the hand of protection, creativity and intuition. Inspired by the Hamsa, a protective amulet popular throughout the Middle East and North Africa. I've been seeking new ways to protect and nurture my creative self and this is a reflection of that.

Paint Your Art Out

Hi! Just dropping in to let you know that I will be participating in the upcoming Paint Your Art Out - Art Show & Sell. I'll have four original paintings for sale. Including these two brand new watercolors.

Come to the show opening this Saturday, September 6th, 6-8pm

Olympic Mills, 107 SE Washington Street, Portland, OR

New! Summer Greeting Cards

Hey there! I just got back from a relaxing mini vacation. I spent yesterday with Lindsay (from A Wooden Nest) at her Dad's house in Mill City, OR. We ate delicious pizza, swam in an ice cold river, and relaxed in the sun. It was the perfect day!

Today I'm back home and back to work. I've just finished two new greeting card designs inspired by summer. The first is "Let's Luau!" – perfect for birthdays, anniversaries or any other summer celebration...

Let's Luau - $4.00 each

These pink flamingos are true "Love Birds." A fun, unique card for weddings, anniversaries or Valentines!

Love Birds - $4.00 each

Visit my Etsy shop to snatch up your favorite.

New! Spiral-Bound Journals

Happy Monday! I'm excited to share two new spiral-bound journals I've just added to my Etsy shop! They are designed and handmade by me (with the help of my friend Alison).

First is the Animal Playground Journal- I originally created the art for this while taking MATS. I'm so excited to see it now used in real life! It's 5x7 in size and has 60 blank white pages inside.

Next up is the new Adventure Journal. It's 6x8 in size and comes with 60 blank white pages inside. What's special about this journal is that you can write your name on the cover AND it comes with a full page of art to cut and paste into your journal pages as you go.

Visit my Etsy shop to have your very own!

Father's Day is coming soon!

Camp Smartypants Shop

Hi- I just wanted to post a reminder that Father's Day is coming up soon! The last day to order cards in time to give to deal ol' Dad is June 10th, so be sure to place your order soon. XO, Rachel

Adventures In Making

I'm excited to announce a brand new collaboration I've started with my friend Alison, of So There. Adventures In Making is our new blog devoted to crafters, designers and artistic types of all sorts. We post about DIY projects, recipes, creative business advice, our favorite tools and techniques and more! Be sure to check out our brand new website.

I also invite you to like us on Facebook and follow us on Twitter.

Weekend Snapshots

 Hi! I just wanted to share some fun snapshots from this weekend. I spent some time arranging my growing collection of stones and collected shells from the beach around my favorite drip candle. Sometimes all it takes is the simplest activity to brighten my spirits.

In need of some art therapy, I spent Sunday afternoon working in my art journal. It's a very intuitive process for me, and I try not to question or judge myself as I work in the pages. This is the place I feel truly free to experiment and explore parts of myself that are usually left in the shadows of my subconscious.

What did you do for fun over the weekend?

Father's Day Cards + Happy Weekend!

It's hard to believe that June is almost here! I've been super busy with ongoing projects (I'll have a big announcement to make soon!) Before James and I headed to the beach for Memorial Day weekend, I wanted to share my new Father's Day card design. I'm super happy with how it turned out and had a lot of fun brainstorming the different illustration elements for it. What do you think?

Happy Father's Day - Plaid ($4.00 each)

Happy Father's Day - Mustache ($4.00 each)

Hope you all have a wonderful, relaxing weekend!

Peace, Rachel

May Day Celebrations

Last night James and I celebrated May Day, the midpoint between spring and summer. We sipped on may wine and munched on oatmeal cake and passion cookies. I had fun decorating our living room and preparing a space for our day together.

Hope you all are having a lovely, relaxing spring season! Cheers to the coming summer...

Peace, Rachel

Recipe: Passion Cookies for May Day

To celebrate the beautiful weather we are having here in Portland and to welcome the coming May, I decided to whip up a batch of Passion Cookies. These cookies are the perfect spring treat. Sweet, spicy and crunchy. I plan to treat myself to some May Wine and cookies tomorrow evening to welcome in the warm weather and the May.


Passion Cookies:
• ¾ cup unsalted butter
• 1 cup brown sugar
• 1 egg
• ¼ cup molasses
• 1¾ cups whole grain flour
• ½ tsp. salt
• 3 tsp. ground cinnamon
• 1½ tsp. ground cloves
• 5 tsp. powdered ginger
• 2 tsp. baking soda
• ½ cup crystallized ginger, coarsely chopped (optional)
• Red sugar sprinkles

Preheat the oven to 350°. Line a cookie sheet with parchment paper. Using a hand mixer, cream together the butter and sugar then beat in the egg and molasses.

Sift the dry ingredients into a medium bowl, then stir into the wet batter. Add crystallized ginger and mix until combined. Place dough in the refrigerator to chill at least 20 minutes.

Using a rolling pin and a floured surface, roll out the dough to about 1/4" thick. Cut out with a cookie cutter. Press one side of the cookie into a plate of red sprinkles then place sugar side up onto the baking sheet, about 3 inches apart. Bake 9-11 minutes. Cool on wire rack.

Carrot Cupcakes with Vanilla Cream Cheese Frosting

I shared a new favorite recipe on the Evermine blog yesterday. These Carrot Cupcakes with Vanilla Cream Cheese Frosting are the perfect treat for Easter! To see the full recipe and a cute gift packaging idea, click here.

New! Mother's Day Card

Happy Mother's Day - Quilt Design

I've just added a brand new Mother's Day card to my Etsy shop! This sweet vintage quilt inspired design will bring joy and love to your mom this Mother's Day. 

DIY: Easter Gift Bags

I made these cute DIY Easter Gift Bags for Evermine recently and wanted to share them here as well. I used Tulip brand fabric markers to decorate muslin bags with Easter doodles. This is a super fun and easy craft you can do with your kids or at your next craft club!

See full tutorial at: Evermine Blog

Pretzel Treat Favors & Baby Shower Games

Before I get too wrapped up in preparing for a second baby shower for my brother and his girlfriend (they are having twin girls), I wanted to share some detail photos of the favors and games I designed for the rainbow unicorn theme shower I hosted for them a few weeks ago.

For favors, my mom and I made pretzel treats! They were super easy and fun to make. Plus I love the sweet and salty combination. 

Pretzel Treats:

• Pretzel sticks

• White chocolate chips

• Sprinkles

Simply melt the white chocolate using a double broiler. Dip the pretzel stick in. I used a spatula to help evenly coat the pretzel. Give it a good shake to allow extra chocolate to drip off. Next, dust your choice of sprinkles over the chocolate coated pretzel until evenly covered. It's best to do this over a pan or plate to catch falling sprinkles. Place pretzel treat on a pan lined with parchment paper to harden and dry.

Allow to dry completely. You can pop it into the refrigerator to speed up the process. The chocolate needs to be completely hardened before packaging. Stored in an air tight container, these treats will stay fresh for up to one week.

I also had a lot of fun designing the games and other details for the party including diaper raffle tickets, baby scramble & twin trivia game sheets, thank you cards, and more...

The party was a great success! We made food and punch and everyone had fun playing games, watching Rachelle open gifts, and eating cake.

Mellow Jello

I wanted to share my most recent project created for Lilla Rogers' Assignment Bootcamp course! The theme for March was Jello and we had to design a pattern for bolt fabric. The jello theme was definitely a challenge for me. I've been busy with like 5 other ongoing projects this month and it was hard to make myself sit down and focus on jello! haha

Well the week before the assignment was due, I finally sat down and got to work. Here is my final piece. I created a main pattern plus 2 coordinate patterns as well. I ended up having a lot of fun making these and love how they turned out.

Twin Baby Shower Invitations

My younger brother Dan and his girlfriend are pregnant with twin girls! And this very-excited-auntie (that's me) has been having a blast designing baby shower invitations. This is the first of two sets of invitations I've been working on (because when you have two babies, you need two showers!).

For this shower I chose a unicorn theme with the saying "Two Girls, Twice The Magic." I designed an invitation, diaper raffle card, matching favor tag and thank you card.

I have lots more things in the works I'll be sharing with you soon including custom shower games, favors, and decorations.