Snack Bag Giveaway Winner!

The winner for the Becoming Paye Snack Bag Giveaway chosen by random.org is... thatinvisiblegirl. Congratulations! :)



Please contact me at becomingpaye@gmail.com to collect your winnings.

Thanks to everyone for their entries and fabulous ideas on how to use these very versatile bags!

Back 2 School Contest

Want to win these 4 super-awesome Eco-Friendly Snack Bags?

It's EASY!

Comment here with what YOU would put in these bags (besides snacks, of course!).  Be sure to leave your email address as well so we can contact you if you've won.

Then, if you haven't already - head on over and "LIKE" Becoming Paye on Facebook!

Contest ends Sunday September 2nd 2012,  Winner will be chosen by random.org

In the mood for a lightSnack

I have a lot of hobbies. Which is a good thing because I tend to get distracted easily. So, when whatever I am doing gets 'old', I have many other things that I can divert my attention to.

But there is one thing that will never get old for me.. making my little guy smile! Last night Kevin and I took Alex to see the band called Lights. He was so beyond jacked! The show was fantastic, all three of us enjoyed it :)

Lights singing her heart out last night

And there it is! One happy boy :)

I have also been busy down in my studio the last few weeks, filling orders and playing around with new ideas. If you are at all like me, you cringe every time you reach for a 'disposable' resealable plastic bag to put lunch snacks or sandwiches in. So when I came across this pattern from Maubys.net for Eco-Friendly Snack bags, I knew I had to make them. I scaled down the pattern to make a smaller snack size as well, and am now selling them by the bag or by the set in my Etsy shop :)

Eco Friendly Snack Bags - becomingpaye.etsy.com

thegraphicbin

Good morning!!

I have something completely different to share with you today! Several years ago I discovered my love for digital design when my kiddos introduced me to a cute site called Neopets. I strongly recommend this site to anyone who has children looking for a fun and safe place to play online :) I discovered that I could customize my profile pages, and after doing so received requests from other players to make one for them as well. I was more than happy to comply :)

Eventually I had made so many layouts that I decided to open a website where anyone who wanted one of my creations could easily access them. And so thegraphicbin (TGB) was born! It became an instant hit in the land of Neo ;)

Years have passed since then. I still maintain the website and, once in awhile, add a new layout or two.

This morning I wanted to make some Easter themed timeline covers to share with my TGB followers, and thought I would share the here as well! Click on the preview to view it in actual cover size. You will need to save it on your computer in order to upload the image to Facebook.











I hope you like them!

Ok, computer time is over, now off I go to my studio to finish up an adorable little bonnet that I have been working on. Have a wonderful Friday! =)

In the Studio

About one week ago my beloved craft studio had a wee bit of a leak. Err.. well it was a pretty big leak actually.. like the tap for the garden hose had a pipe burst and sent all of the water down into the basement. Not funny.
But it's dry now! Well.. mostly. And for the first time in over week I was finally able to create again! I was having withdrawals. Seriously.

A lovely bride-to-be had contacted me in February and asked me to create a one of a kind hair piece for her wedding day. Naturally, I was honored, and set to work shopping for what I needed. Initially I tried to shop locally, but after scouring the few resources I have, I had to turn to online shopping. I'm more of an online browser than an online shopper. I do love to sift through pages of beautiful merchandise that I will most likely never own, even create a faux shopping cart sometimes, as though I'm really going to go through with it! But alas! The realities of exchanges rates, taxes, shipping charges and the inability to touch or closely inspect will end my little charade in a quick hurry!

However, in this case it was a necessity, and I wasn't going to let my girl down! Weeks later I was finally able to sit down and create a flower fit for a bride 0n her wedding day :)


Happily, she loves it! And so did another Becoming Paye FB fan who viewed it, because I now have another bride who has asked me to create a special flower for her wedding day.

Online shopping, here I come!

Spring!

Spring came early this year.. until today! Temperatures soared into the upper 20's earlier this month giving us a little taste of what the summer will bring. This morning we were reminded that it is indeed still March in Ontario, my Weather Eye says it feels like -18C. Flippin-brrr! Thank goodness for the sunshine, that should take the edge off a bit!

Inside we are cozy and warm in our beautiful country home. There are signs of spring in our dining room in the form of old Mason jars filled with moss, wood, feathers and robin eggs, and a centerpiece on our harvest table filled with what the season has to offer!


We worked diligently this weekend collecting firewood around our yard in preparation for next winter. Fallen trees will be our main heat source during the cold months once we purchase and install a wood stove, replacing the energy greedy electric baseboards scattered throughout our home.



A great big pile of warmth sitting right there!

a new chapter

Hello! Allow me to introduce myself, my name is Paye. Ok.. well that isn't my real name. Truth be told I actually love my name that my parents chose for me thirty-some-odd years ago; Paulette :). But the name Paye was a childhood nickname, it's what my parents, siblings and very close friends call me.

Once I left my childhood home and started my journey as an adult, the name Paye sort of vanished from my day to day life, aside from calls back home and the occasional greeting card. As a result, the fun-loving, creative, positive and adventurous soul that was called Paye started to fade away as well.
One day I woke up and realized that I really missed the person who I had once been, and decided to try to revive that girl inside of me. I have come to understand that being an adult doesn't have to be all about responsibilities, worries and seriousness. Living each day with laughter, love and the willingness to let my inner dreams come to life has allowed me to reconnect with the innocence and creativity inside of me.

And that is why I am once again Becoming Paye.

I have created this blog to keep myself centered and focused on my goal to stay true to myself. I also want to share my journey with others, and maybe even inspire those who need it.. and if nothing else simply be a form of entertainment :)

My Etsy shop becomingpaye@etsy.com is where you can find the fruits of my labor, items that I hand made in my cozy craft studio located in my charming country home.. so please take a little looksy whenever you have a chance!