Wednesday, February 29, 2012

Fresh Fruit Juices: Juice it yourself!

The first time I tasted Odwalla fresh juices I was hooked. I think it was their Mango Tango that swept me off my feet on a warm spring day in San Diego. Sigh.

Flash forward to present day. Enter: Our own personal Juicer. And I don't just mean my husband, although he often does the juicing so I guess that kind of does make him my own personal juicer. Thanks, sweetie.


If you've never tried juicing your own fruit? You have got to try it.
The flavor is delicate and rich. It's as sweet as can be and goes down smooth. Like it's right off the tree.  It makes frozen cans of "fruit juice" taste like they juiced a big bowl of plastic fruit! Take that!

My husband bought this juicer a few weeks ago. I think it's called the Healthy Juicer. It uses pressure to push out the juice so there are no blades to worry about.


First you peel your oranges. Come on, it doesn't do everything for you. hahaha


Then you press down on the fruit as you turn the juicer handle.



It pushes the flesh of the fruit through one side while dripping the juice and pulp through the other.



You can either choose to keep out the pulp that has collected in the green tray, or just add it back in your juice like I did. Bring on the fresh pulp!


It's so good you might just cry a little. I did.



And the great thing about the Juicer is that you can juice almost any kind of fruit. So far we've tried pear, apple, orange, grapefruit and stawberries. I am over the moon for Pear juice. It's like putting a straw right into a fresh pear. Unfortunately, soft fruits like strawberries don't work. They only smoosh, they don't juice.

My husband juices veggies, but I can't quite stomach broccoli/celery/radish green/carrot/cauliflower juice. It's a little too "green" for me. I'm partial to the sweet stuff.♥


***************************************
DON'T FORGET!
Today is the last day (2/29/12) to 

Win it for yourself or for someone you know!
Sorry, this giveaway has ended.

***************************************

Happy Juicing!


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Monday, February 27, 2012

A trip to the Oregon Coast

Ever just need to get away for a few days?
Me too. My husband and I decided to jump in the car and head down to the coast of Oregon for a few days.
Forecast? Rain.
Did that stop us? No.

We did get a few sun breaks here and there, which was nice for snapping some pictures, but overall we got rain, hail, wind and snow. Bring it on!


View just over the Lewis and Clark Bridge (from Washington into Oregon)


First stop. Welcome to Astoria. The home of Kindergarten Cop & Goonies. Yes, I did make us swing by the hollywood hot spots (school where K Cop was filmed, Goonies House, etc.).

We were greeted by a bunch of honking Sea lions. It was pretty hysterical. You could hear them from the main street. We went down to the docks and watched them swim, honk and play.


Astoria waterfront


Back over to the Washington side on the Olympic Peninsula to Cape Disappointment.
Lighthouse #1
The wind was blowing like crazy and it was freezing so we weren't outside very long.


A walk out on the verrrry windy beach, all bundled up as tight as can be.
View of lighthouse #2.


Up to lightouse #2 at Cape Disappointment.
Disappointing?
No.
I LOVE lighthouses.


After stopping at this lighthouse, we traveled on to another beach on the WA Olympic Peninsula, Long Beach. Due to the windy/rainy conditions we only peeked at the beach but went in a few stores before heading back over the bridge to Oregon.

Cannon Beach, OR
Hard to tell from the pictures, but it was frigid. So cold. And the wind just slapped your face pink. With gusts up to 60 mph. Quite a day to be at the beach.

View of Haystack rock

I love the collection of sea foam along the shore line.



Enter Hail.
Here's proof.
A giant front rolled through as we were walking back from Haystack rock. It hailed like crazy, then poured rain. Our pants were soaked and suctioned to our legs, but what a memory it made. hahaha


The next day we ventured out to Tillamook, the home of the Tillamook Cheese Factory.


Mmmmm. Cheese.
Thanks for the samples.


Up Hwy 6 to Porland, enter: snow storm. Luckily the snow only lasted along Hwy 6, and turned to rain as we got closer to the city.

Portland down by the Willamette River. Too wet to walk around for long. 



Portland is the place of a million bridges! I tell you. I didn't realize it, but there are actually 10 bridges that cross the Willamette River at various places through the city, including the double decker variety.



There's a cool shopping area called Nob Hill, with cute little shops tucked in among Queen Anne style architecture. It was really crowded and rainy so we only drove through. Next time we'll walk and shop.


{credit: nobhillbiz.com}
And of course, our trip to Portland wouldn't have been complete without stopping at The Cullen House in Portland (for all you Twilight fans). hahaha I know, I'm pathetic, but couldn't pass it up. At least I didn't go to all the Twilight stops - that would have taken us a couple hours out of our way.




And the final Twilight stop, on our route back to Seattle, was Kalama, WA. The school where the outside scenes were filmed (where Edward saves Bella from being struck by the sliding van). Oh yah. I'll spare you the photo of me faking like I was Bella almost getting hit by the van. 

Well that's all folks!
Hope you all enjoyed your weekend too!



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Monday, February 20, 2012

Unique baby gift: Decorated Onesies: Ink blot style

More {Wearable Psychology} as I like to call it. 

I couldn't resist making a few more Ink blot Onesies after I found another fabric paint that I just love. It's called So Soft, from DecoArt. It's non-toxic, with a flexible, soft feel. Perfect for decorating t-shirts or onesies! (FolkArt fabric paint from Plaid is my other fave)





Check out these smart, new designs! 
And {watch} as each one is created. I post videos showing the design come to life, to make it a little more personal.


This one reminds me of Atlas holding up the world.
What do you see?






{WATCH} this ink blot design come to life







In this ink blot design I see a princess dress, complete with slippers.
What do you see?





{WATCH} this ink blot design come to life







I see Frankenstein in this one, mainly because of his square head, although truly doesn't look anything like him.
What do you see?







{WATCH} this ink blot design come to life




And lastly, I call this one the clown. Reminds me of a clown jumping out of a jack-in-the-box. I think it might be my favorite out of the four, but since they're all unique in their own way, it's kind of a toss up.
What do you see?








{WATCH} this ink blot design come to life






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Tip Junkie handmade projects

Tuesday, February 14, 2012

Product Commercials: Walmart's On the Shelf Contest

Do you know about the Get on the Shelf Walmart Product Competition?
[I mentioned it Saturday in my Ink Blot T-shirt Design Kit post.]

It's an entrepreneur's dream, of sorts. Walmart is allowing anyone to submit videos showcasing their personal products, in hopes of getting their product on Walmart's shelf, based on public votes.

I had one product in mind to submit, but then I realized, why stop there? If there's even a remote chance at getting a product on Walmart shelves? Why not go for it?

Want to watch my commercials for the 
3 products I submitted?
{WATCH} Shaving Cream Cozy

I'll be asking for your votes soon (starts March 7th). I can't do it without you!

If you have a product you want to submit, you need to do it by Feb. 22nd.
It's exciting! Good luck to all!



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Saturday, February 11, 2012

Design Your Own T-Shirt: Ink Blot T-Shirt Guide for One-of-a-Kind Designs

Three white t-shirts with unique ink blot paint designs in red and black, showing symmetrical abstract patterns created with a DIY ink blot technique

Updated for 2026: I’ve updated this post to include my step-by-step Ink Blot T-Shirt Guide (with bonus activity pages) to make it even easier to create your own designs at home.

Would you believe these t-shirts all started with random paint blobs?

It sounds a little crazy… but it’s completely true.

What starts as a few drips and splatters turns into something totally unexpected—and that’s the magic of ink blot design.



How to Design Your Own Ink Blot T-Shirt

  • Pick your paint colors
  • Imagine what you think your design will look like
  • Then be ready to be surprised (because it probably won’t turn out that way… and that’s the best part)

The truth is—this process requires:

✔ Very little planning
✔ Absolutely no artistic skill

(Seriously… anyone can do this.)

Every design ends up completely one of a kind. Once you choose your colors, the rest is up to chance—and no two shirts will ever be the same.

That’s what makes it so fun… and honestly, a little addictive.


Make Your Own Ink Blot Designs

I created a simple step-by-step guide so you can try this at home:

👉 Ink Blot T-Shirt DIY Guide
Includes easy instructions + bonus kids activity pages

It walks you through exactly what you need and how to do it—whether you’re making one shirt or turning it into a full-on activity.

Perfect for:

  • Rainy day projects
  • Creative afternoons
  • Kids and adults (yes… adults get hooked too 😄)

Ready to try it for yourself?

👉 Grab your guide and start creating your own one-of-a-kind ink blot designs today.


 [See more ink blot t-shirt designs here]




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Wednesday, February 8, 2012

Ink Blot Designed T-Shirts: One-of-a-Kind Wearable Art

Updated for 2026: I’ve refreshed this post with an updated Ink Blot T-Shirt Guide to make it even easier to create your own one-of-a-kind designs at home.


Making ink blot designed onesies has been so much fun…
but I can’t keep all the fun just for the babies, now can I?

So I decided to try my hand at creating some “Wearable Psychology” ink blot t-shirts—made for actual humans to wear out in the world (not just admire at home 😄).


Three white t-shirts hanging on a line with red and black ink blot paint designs, showing unique symmetrical DIY t-shirt patterns created with an ink blot technique

These are adult (unisex) XL, and every single one turned out completely different.


And the designs that I “created”?

😂 It gets me every time.

You truly never know what those little plops and swirls of paint are going to reveal. I go in with an idea… and it almost never turns out the way I imagined.

But honestly—that’s half the fun.






❤️ Ink Blot Valentine T-Shirt

White t-shirt hanging on a line with a red and pink symmetrical ink blot design, creating a heart-like pattern from a DIY paint technique
I call this one the Ink Blot Valentine T-Shirt because if you look closely… you can see little hearts.

And I didn’t plan it at all.

The red and pink combination ended up being perfect for Valentine’s Day—completely by chance.


{WATCH} to see how this t-shirt was made



Close-up of red and pink ink blot design on a white t-shirt showing detailed symmetrical paint patterns created with an easy DIY method

White t-shirt with red and pink ink blot paint design hanging on a clothesline, showing a unique abstract pattern made with a simple DIY technique


☔ The “Seattle” Ink Blot

This one made me laugh.

What is it about blobs of paint turning into something recognizable?

To me, it looks like a biker dude holding umbrellas… which somehow feels very Seattle appropriate.



White t-shirt hanging on a line with a bold black symmetrical ink blot design, creating an abstract mirrored pattern using a DIY paint technique


Close-up of black ink blot design on white fabric showing detailed symmetrical shapes from a folded paint DIY t-shirt technique

White t-shirt with black ink blot paint design hanging on a clothesline, showing a one-of-a-kind abstract pattern created with an easy DIY method

{WATCH} to see how the "Seattle" Ink Blot t-shirt was made.




👽 The “Alien Ant Farm” Ink Blot

When my husband saw this one, he immediately said:

“Looks like Alien Ant Farm.”

(Yes… that’s a real band. I had to double check too.)


White t-shirt hanging on a line with a red and black symmetrical ink blot design, showing a bold abstract pattern created with a DIY t-shirt painting technique

Close-up of red and black ink blot paint design on white fabric showing layered symmetrical lines and abstract shapes from a folded paint technique

White t-shirt with red and black ink blot paint design hanging on a clothesline, featuring a one-of-a-kind symmetrical abstract pattern made with an easy DIY method


Red + black paint blobs = something I never could have planned.

{WATCH} to see how this 'Alien Ant Farm" Ink blot t-shirt design was made




🎨 Why Ink Blot Designs Are So Addicting

I love that every design is completely up to chance.

No pressure.
No perfection.
No artistic skill required.

Just paint… fold… and see what appears.

It’s a little bit like gambling (in the safest, most creative way possible 😄).


✨ Make Your Own Ink Blot T-Shirt

DIY ink blot t-shirt guide with step-by-step instructions and bonus activity pages, showing how to create unique one-of-a-kind t-shirt designs at home

Want to try it yourself?

👉 Grab the Ink Blot T-Shirt Guide
Includes step-by-step instructions + bonus activity pages

It’s simple, fun, and perfect for:

  • Creative afternoons
  • Kids activities
  • Totally unique DIY gifts




👉 Start making your own one-of-a-kind ink blot designs today.





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