Sebastian Goes to Alaska!

Last week, we headed North for our very first trip to Alaska.  We stayed in a cozy little cabin at the Chena Hot Springs Resort in Fairbanks.  As usual, Sebastian poses to tell the story of our trip in photos.

The steam from the hot springs is obvious all over the resort.

And the humans aren't the only ones who enjoy it!

That's our cozy little cabin in the background, which gladly allows up to two pets.  We highly recommend it for all our dog moms and dads out there.  You can check it out here.

As tiny as Sebastian is, he looooooves the snow.

Snow trails and several layers of clothes - for everyone!

Here he is outside the Ice Museum on site at the resort.

Mini frozen lakes on the side of the highway are plentiful.

We pulled over to catch some sun rays too.

Unexpectedly, we found out we were just one hour from the "North Pole."  We ended up at the Santa Claus House where we went crazy at the fudge bar.

And apparently Santa is not on the clock.  

Sebastian feelin' sexy in his new buffalo plaid hoodie handmade by his momma. He fit right in with the locals, I'd say.

But of course nothing beats the view of a sleeping pup.

XOXOXOXO,

Erika and Sebastian

Rattlesnake Lake and Rattlesnake Ledge Hike

We went on a little hike just 45 minutes outside of Seattle.  We couldn't help but notice how odd this place looked with hundreds of tree stumps covering the ground.

Turns out, the drought has caused this lake to drop 29 feet revealing old-growth tree stumps from a forest cleared long ago.  

Here's Sebastian smiling at the top of Rattlesnake Ledge, only 1100 feet above the lake!  We passed a ridiculous amount of dogs on this trail and we highly recommend this adventure for dogs of all sizes.

Here you can see just how much the lake has shrunk down below.  And we are happy to report we did not see any rattlesnakes!  Read up on the very interesting history of this area here.

XOXOXOXO,

Erika and Sebastian

DIY Treat Jar from a Coffee Tin

Super easy and affordable treat jar from a recycled coffee tin!  

What you'll need:

We found this cool paw print paper at Dollar Tree as gift wrap.  Get yourself a whole roll and make treat jars for your friends!

What do you guys think?!  

XOXOXOXOXO,

Erika and Sebastian

4th Annual National Craft for your Local Shelters Day - The results are in!

HUGE shout out to Quality Sewing &Vacuum in Seattle for letting me host this special event in their store and use their sewing machines!

We completed: 31 beds, 28 dog toys, and 49 bandanas

We had volunteers of all ages stop by to donate their time and talent.

All of our fabric and materials were donated by volunteers and customers. 

We made quite the mess, but everything turned out beautiful and I can't wait to see the shelter animals using our hand-crafted items!

All items are being donated to Seattle Animal Shelter.  Check out a few of the shelter models below available for adoption!

Until next year, furiends!

XOXOXOXOXO,

Erika and Sebastian

4th Annual National Craft for your Local Shelters Day!

The official day of National Craft for your local Shelters Day is July 21st.  It was started in 2012.  Help us keep it going and growing!  Read below for all the details and plan your own Craft for Shelters event!

What is National Craft for your Local Shelters Day?

It is a day set aside to recognize that we can give back to our local shelters in a crafty way.  This includes making beds, toys, vests and bandanas that say "adopt me," leashes, and sew much more.  What better way to give back to a shelter than the best way you know how - and for us, it's crafting.

Sebastian and Winston posing with a pile of handmade rope toys

How can you join the force?

We've come up with a list of things to think about to help everyone interested

1.  Decide on a shelter to donate to - contact them and make sure they want to receive your donation.

2.  If you are not sure what to make, ask your shelter of choice what it is they could use the most - besides money and food of course.

3.  Decide what materials you are going to need.  Utilize what you know you are great at and make sure your "game plan" is realistic.  Do you need a pattern?  How long does it take to make one of your items?  Etc.  If you decide on "adopt me" items like vests or bandanas, make them bright and eye-catching.

4.  Set a date to craft and also think about organizing a craft night with your crafty friends just for this project.  How fun would that be?!

5.  Don't forget the cats and other animals in shelters.  Cats could use bandanas for adoptable pictures and to help attract attention.

Winston on top of the crate beds volunteers made in just a few hours!

Huge thank you to iheartdogs.com for this wonderful write up.  

Inspiration and Links to Tutorials

1.  Crate Beds

2.  Braided Dog Rope Toys - it does not get any easier than this! 

3.  Pet Bed

4.  Collar and Leash

5.  "Adopt Me" leash sleeves

6.  Sturdy Dog Rope Toy

7.  "Adopt Me" Bandana

Shelters around the Nation in Need of Crafted Items:

Women's Humane Society in Pennsylvania

Dogs By Debin in Kansas City, MO

Seattle, WA pet lovers:  Come join us at Quality Sewing and Vacuum in Ballard on July 25th!  We'll be making items for the Seattle shelters all day.  Call (206) 782-9400 for more details.

XOXOXOXOXOXOXOXO,

Erika and Sebastian

Sawdust Art Project

My grandpa used to create artwork with the sawdust left over from his wooden projects.  How cool is that?  I decided I wanted to make my own piece of art using his same technique with a pet portrait.  Winston was the perfect choice because his face has so much color and character.

To give you some background, my grandpa was an amazing wood turner and made beautiful wooden bowls and vases.  He would then save the sawdust and create art on canvas with the different colors.  He passed away a few years ago, but still had shelves full of "organized" sawdust.  I knew right away I wanted to do something special with what was left.

My grandpa created mountains and interesting shapes with the sawdust, as shown below.

For my own piece, I started out with a simple sketch of Winston's face on canvas.  I made shapes for each "color" area so I would know where to apply what shade of sawdust where.

I used Aleene's Matte Decoupage glue because it's super easy to apply and holds the sawdust well.  I applied glue to one section at a time sprinkling on the sawdust as I went.

But then I decided the sawdust looked better blended and I started overlapping a lot of the colors.  After it dried, I used Tulip black and white puffy paints to add features to the eyes and nose area.  

I'm so happy with how this project turned out!  It's sentimental and unique.  I love that I was able to use sawdust from my grandpa's collection.

And here's Sebastian posing with my masterpiece.

XOXOXO,

Erika and Sebastian

Celebrating our First 6 Months in Seattle

A collection of our photos taken from Kerry Park throughout the past 6 months.  Enjoy!

Our first day in our new city - November 2014.

As scary as it was to move away from everything I thought I knew, Seattle felt like home instantly.

Sebastian and I walked for miles the first few weeks thinking each day was the last day we would see the sun for a while.  But the sun never stopped coming out.  Turns out Seattle is anything BUT dark and gloomy.

Then it snowed.  What?!  I remember waking up to it and running down to Kerry Park to grab this photo.  The snow froze and lasted for 4 days on the Queen Anne hill where we live.  The entire city practically shut down.  Thankfully, the snow never returned.

  

Sebastian and I have become sunrise and sunset chasers.  And we aren't the only ones.  Photographers fill up Kerry Park every morning and night hoping to catch a once-in-a-lifetime view.

Then came December - our first Christmas in the city.  Sebastian rocked his sweater almost the entire month and allowed total strangers to take his picture everywhere he went.

Sebastian in the nude!  We pass Kerry Park every time we take a walk, which is a lot.

Not sure what we were doing here.  Many of our late night potty walks end up here too, because, why not?

Then came Superbowl preparation.  We became crazy Seahawks fanatics as part of our Seattle experience.  Plus, you kinda stuck out like a sore thumb if you weren't dressed in lime green.

And here we are the day before the Superbowl making a scene in our matching fur vests.  If I'm sure of anything - life is better with dogs.

Mother Nature is always up to something worth capturing.  Here, the fog rolls in as the sun disappears.  I've never paid so much attention to the ever-changing horizon.

And of course Sebastian is always there by my side to witness the beauty of it all.  My little heartbeat at my feet.  

Mt. Rainier standing in all its glory at the butt-crack of dawn.

Ok, we may have had a few dark and gloomy days (ha!), but the sun always finds places to seep through.

That sky.  

As the clouds come and go, our love for Seattle continues to grow.  

Still just a girl and her dog rediscovering the city each day as if we've never seen it before.

And here's our latest, taken today at the end of our 6 month wrap.  Reflecting and feeling grateful for everything we've experienced here thus far.

XOXOXOXO,

Erika and Sebastian