“I love working in this amazing neighborhood. It’s like living in a little time bubble.”

– Patti Peck of Beachwood Café

Image Credit: Luis Mota and (me!) Bethany Michaels

What does it take to “make it” in the restaurant industry, and how do you know when you’ve arrived? To find the answer, I set off with my Stampington sidekick Luis Mota to Beachwood Café, a local hot spot featured in the newest Where Women Cook. Not only did we find the answer, but we learned how family, community, and raw, authentic food are the key ingredients that transformed this old mom and pop shop into a treasured local favorite.

Perched in a historic neighborhood underneath the distinguished Hollywood sign, Beachwood Café beckons all walks of life and makes you feel right at home.

When we opened the doors of the café, we were greeted by none other than the gregarious owner Patti Peck. She sometimes works twelve hour days — a true labor of love — so it’s no surprise to see her behind the counter or mingling with customers at all hours.

Humble Beginnings & Building Community:

Patti is a firm believer in embracing and building connections with people. Having grown up in a densely Czech-populated farming community in Iowa, Patti incorporates traditions of the old at Beachwood, while putting a fresh spin on it. For example, she’s invented a pastime called “Pickin’ Kitchen” that’s just as fun as it sounds. It’s an activity  that includes all her employees at Beachwood and the surrounding neighborhood, and embraces the community-building importance of her roots.

“We gather up to fifty people, map out the neighborhood’s fruit trees, and pick for hours, sometimes gathering up to 1500 lbs of citrus! As our way of saying thanks, we make delicious jars of Loquat halves from the collection of fruit and leave it on the neighbor’s doorstep.” — Patti Peck 

She also uses the organic, fresh-picked fruit in many of her seasonal dishes at the café.

Other community-building events that Beachwood Café hosts are the Family Bingo Night and Beer Tasting, a perfect atmosphere for families and friends to connect.

What Sets this Community-Driven Business Apart?

• Patti’s welcoming heart and wonderful sense of humor
• Local, farm-to-table ingredients
• Recipes that combine tradition with modern twists
• History and location – the circa 1933 neighborhood is charming and welcoming
• The tasteful and fun interior restaurant design – Patti incorporated vintage décor from the adorable antique shop next door
• The amiable employees and satisfied customers, many of which Patti now considers family

The Art of Presentation:

Just like Stampington, Patti thinks that “packaging is everything.” This adorable blue mason jar cup, white Beachwood beverage sleeve, and sip top would look so perfect packaged up to send to one of our blog readers, wouldn’t you agree?

Giveaway:

[This giveaway has ended.]

To share a taste of Beachwood Café with you, we’re specially wrapping and giving away this cup package to one lucky person, selected at random.

Enter for your chance to have it delivered to your doorstep by describing what most intrigued you about Beachwood Café in the comments section below!

Click here to browse images and read excerpts from Where Women Cook Autumn 2013, the issue that dives deeper into the heart of Beachwood Café.

Deadline to enter: Thursday, October 26th (U.S. only) 

Image Credit: Kellene Giloff, President and Publisher of Stampington

Self portraits, otherwise known as “selfies” are making a splash and raising the creative bar in the photography industry. Wildly popular on Instagram, Facebook, Flickr, and other social media platforms, our publisher Kellene Giloff (also a talented and artistic photographer) has her own take on this hip trend. Unlike other selfies, Kellene has left much to the imagination in her soft and romantic, faceless image above.

Somerset Life Selfie Challenge:

One of Stampington’s most loved titles, Somerset Life, spotlights artists who find beauty in everyday living through their raw and organic photographs. Our challenge to you is to capture a thoughtfully provoking selfie image without including an actual shot of your face – a photograph that portrays what it means to live authentically.

Guidelines:

• Be creative! Your photo must include a shot of yourself from the chin down. Feel free to incorporate props like flowers, pearls, ribbon, paint, or other artful embellishments that best represent you.

• Send your high resolution digital images (300 dpi) to blog@stampington.com.

Prizes:

Qualifying candidates will have a chance to:

• Be published in an upcoming issue of Somerset Life or Artful Blogging
• Receive a free gift of their choice of Somerset Life or Artful Blogging
• Be featured in our Instagram gallery with artist credit

Good luck and have fun with this challenge! We can’t wait to see what you submit.

For more inspiration, browse through Kellene’s stunning photo gallery here.

*Please note: Winners will be notified by email. Deadline is Monday, October 28th. 

Please join me in welcoming the brilliantly talented Debi Beard to our blog. An avid upcycler and lover of creating hand-made treasures, Debi is here to share a quick and easy DIY to appeal to your sweet tooth.  Learn how to add a sprinkle of fun to your day with birthday cake dipped soles that look good enough to eat!

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Hello Somerset Place!

I’ve always had a love for sweets, especially frosting – pink frosting to be exact. I’d rather lick the frosting off three cupcakes than eat just one.

For most of my childhood sugar had to be eaten in secret. One day, I came home from school to find my mom had suddenly become a health fanatic, and had thrown away just about everything in our kitchen even the Catsup because there was sugar on the label! Overnight our family went from eating boxed macaroni and cheese to whole wheat pasta with wheat germ sprinkled on top.

My grandmother, shared my love of goodies, and would slip me a piece of candy when my mom wasn’t looking. Some of my favorite memories are the Sunday afternoons  I spent with her after church, baking sugar cookies with frosting and sprinkles.

I’m an adult now and for reasons that I won’t get into, I’ve become a health extremist just like my mother.

Even though I rarely eat sugar these days, I still love to daydream while gazing at pretty pastel confections on Pinterest.

A few days before my birthday, the inspiration for these birthday cake shoes came to me, in my wild imagination. I’d like to think it’s my grandma sprinkling creativity on me from heaven.

All you need for this project are a pair of ballet flats, polymer clay and puffy paint.

Watch my step-by-step video tutorial below.

Now you’re ready step out in sweet style. Thanks so much for letting me share my project with you! Please comment below if you have any questions.

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Thanks again for joining us today Debi! If you’d like to see more of her crafty tutorials, you can find Debi at http://debisdesigndiary.com

If you’re inspired by recycling and eco-friendly ideas, pre-order GreenCraft Magazine now for FREE shipping!

Artist Credit (Top to Bottom, Left to Right): 1- Soraya Nullah, Art Journaling Winter 2013; 2- Loretta Rathert, 400 More Ideas 2013; 3- Mindy Lacefield, Somerset Studio May/June 2010; 4- Julie Valentine, Art Journaling Spring 2013; 5- Amy Melious, Somerset Digital Studio Autumn 2013; 6 – Pam Carriker,  Artists’ Café Vol. 6;  7- Wendy Brightbill, Somerset Studio Gallery Winter 2013; 8- Joy Northrop, Stampers’ Sampler February/March 2012; 9- Colette Copeland, Somerset Studio Gallery Winter 2013; 10-  Bridgette Guerzon Mills, Artists’ Café Vol. 6; 11- Pam Carriker, Somerset Apprentice Spring 2013;12- Thespoena McLaughlin, Somerset Studio Gallery Winter 2013

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Since last month’s themed blog post on Whimsical Silhouetted Women was such a hit, I wanted to ensure that this month’s trending theme was just as (if not more) enticing to artists and readers alike! And what’s more to love than this simple yet symbolic staple: the classic image of a bird, which represents freedom and flight –  a reflection of our creative release in art.

We’ve compiled a collection of some of our most treasured paintings, projects, cards, and creations spotlighting different portrayals of our flighty and feathered friends. Enjoy an excerpted quote or artsy tip below, and if you want to read more, click on the image or link for full project details:

“Journals are what you make them. To me, they are precious records of my life that will get passed down to future generations.” – Soraya Nulliah, Art Journaling

Tip: Add pearl and ribbon to any card for instant interest and texture.

– 400 More Ideas 

“For me, painting is a nostalgic descent into my childhood where playtime, dolls, and drawing took me into worlds of limitless creativity and mind wanderings.”

– Mindy Lacefield, Somerset Studio 

“The big trick to my journaling process is that I journal in 5-10 minute spurts at a time…I don’t do any of my pages in one sitting; instead they evolve bit by bit over time.” – Julie Valentine, Art Journaling

“Life is inspiring. Inspiration calls for expression. Expression, in the form of what we create, holds the power to ripple out indefinitely.”

– Amy Melious, Somerset Digital Studio

“I think sometimes the best pages are created when we work intuitively, without over-thinking things.” – Pam Carriker, Artists’ Café

Mixed-media tip: “Cut out words from a vintage book, stitch onto a piece of muslin, and adhere to your piece with mod podge.”

– Wendy Brightbill, Somerset Studio Gallery

Stamp dots and adhere torn colored tissue papers to a card for a bright mixed-media effect. – Stampers’ Sampler

“Birds have been constant in my artwork. I’ve drawn them, painted them, stitched them, collaged with them, taken a long break from them, and lately I’ve been taking huge artistic license and dreaming them up.”

– Colette Copeland, Somerset Studio Gallery

“The first time I picked up a brush and began painting in encaustics, I felt like I had arrived home. There is a definite seductive lure to working in wax, perhaps because it is so sensory – from the warm smell of the melting wax to the organic textures created in the wax.”

– Bridgette Guerzon Mills, Artists’ Café

Art journaling tip: “Use mutiple stamped images layered over each other for an interesting look.” – Pam Carriker, Somerset Apprentice

“This flying swallow is meant to represent freedom – freedom to be yourself and to dream. – Thespoena McLaughlin, Somerset Studio Gallery

FREE Magazine Giveaway

[This giveaway has ended.]

To Enter: From the grid of images above, pick your favorite bird image and explain why by commenting below!

We will pick 3 lucky winners to receive your choice of our favorite titles: Somerset Digital Studio, the digital version of Somerset Studio, or Somerset Studio Gallery.

 Deadline to enter: Monday, Oct. 21st

*Winners will be contacted via e mail

Prepare for a wickedly fun time this Halloween when you try your hand at Vanessa Spencer’s clever chalkboard pumpkin project. With only several supplies and tons of creativity, discover how to recreate your own set to charm your guests and display alongside your traditional décor items this fall season.

Directions:

1) Paint the paper mache pumpkins with two coats of chalkboard paint and allow to dry.

2) Prime the pumpkin: Rub real chalk on the surface and then wipe off the remaining chalk dust.

3) Pick your favorite colored chalkboard marker, and write Halloween-inspired musings onto the pumpkins. Use your imagination to come up with inventive words like charmed, wicked, and haunted. Markers are best to use because the writing won’t rub off nearly as easily as regular chalk.

*Hint: To add more textures, you can create festive leaves using washi tape and wire. Just layer the tape onto the wire (overlapping the pieces and layering) and then cut into a leaf shape. Create multiple leaves and then attach them by wrapping the wires around the top of the pumpkins. If you have guests over, you can write their names on the leaves to use as place cards.

Now you’re ready to celebrate this Halloween by stacking these interesting, decorative pieces on your dinner table as a centerpiece, or in a window to surprise visitors.

Discover even more inspiring do-it-yourself projects when you check out The Studio.

Special Sale: Get 10% off brand-new mini paper mache pumpkins for one week only!

*Reminder: Don’t forget to jump on board our first ever blog hop! If you liked this pumpkin paper-mache project, you’ll be floored when you see art journal tutorials by talented artists like:

• Seth Apter
• Jen Cushman
• Dina Wakley
• Traci Bautista

CLICK HERE to explore how each artist used Pam Carriker’s sublime, new stamp line.