Life, I love you

Preoccupied

2011-07-12T14:51:00.000-06:00

I haven’t been posting for a while as I have beenpreoccupied with the following:

1. Buying roller derby skates and gear

2. Learning howto skate in my roller derby skates and gear

3. Trying out for roller derby

4. Being accepted on my local roller derby league (!)

5. Practice, practice, practice (aka: making mydreams come true)

Currently, going to a standing position from a sittingposition hurts a lot on account of my bruised tailbone but I sort of love it….SOworth it.

Bread Crumbs : On the Cellie at the Alley

2011-03-14T10:14:00.000-06:00

I bet you can't guess what we did over the weekend...
(besides roller derby of course).

Inspired by Posen Collab

2011-03-09T16:51:00.003-07:00

A few months back my (event planner) friend Melanie and I collaboratedto design and craft a wedding party scene for Nonpareil Magazine. Our look wasphotographed by Sarah Faubus and the result of our effort was published thismonth.

Our party theme was inspired by Zac Posen’s Spring 2011 collection. Hence the bold floral fabrics....

pleating...

(This paper mobile by Haru became our seating chart)

and bows...

(These hair clips and bow ties by Peter and Wendy became our favors )

I really can’t express how much I love artistic collaborations. Combining forces with someone who has a talent I respect and admire makes me feel a little like a super-hero—even if just temporarily.

Check out this months Nonpariel Mag for more photos, party details and forinstructions on how to create your own felt bow pins and how to make your ownpleated, fabric invitations (designed by yours truly).

Bread Crumbs : Continental Breakfast

2011-02-28T23:07:00.011-07:00

Happiness is Going Back to the Future

2011-02-18T11:35:00.001-07:00

I've been hiding out lately, blowing my nose every 5 minutes for the second week in a row. Being sick is the worst. I've also been trying to wrap up a few projects on the computer which necessitates ~~procrastination-breaks~~ sanity-breaks every now and then. Browsing blogs has become my virtual break-room and lucky for you, I came across this gem of a project that I simply had to share.

Photographer Irina Werning has been a busy gal, inviting various groups of people to go Back to the Future by recreating a photo from their childhood-past.

Have you seen this genius? It's pretty amazing. This kind of stuff makes me really, really happy. To have a good day, check out more pics on her site HERE.

Bread Crumbs: Bird is the Word

2011-01-27T11:36:00.002-07:00

Hendrix taught himself to draw birds....lots and lots and lots of birds.

Apparently the card with 2 birds on it are ducks—to be specific—the one with a long neck is actually a swan and some birds are sitting in nests. There's PU-LENTY more where this came from...plenty.

*art installation courtesy of Hendrix himself.

Hendrix and the Purple Crayon: Birthday Invite Year 5

2011-01-21T10:45:00.003-07:00

I didn’t design any invites for Hendrix’sbirthday last year since we had had a private family party so I'm going to move right along to this year’s invitations which were designed with the theme; ~~Harold~~ Hendrix and the Purple Crayon (after the book by Crockett Johnson).

As you might remember, Harold—thelittle boy in the story—creates a world of adventure for himself with hisimagination and the use of his magical purple crayon. I wanted to tie this ideainto the design of the invitation and yet I wanted the message to be comprehended should the receiver be unfamiliar with the old tale. I did this by blatantly informing the reader the theme for the party right in the text of the invite (click photo to enlarge). I also included a notebook and purple crayon for the receiver to draw their ownadventures.

For the notebooks I adheredvarious patterned washi paper to a thick cover stock for the covers and for sketchingpaper I just used a plain white 20# stock. I bound each 5” square book togetherwith a thick needle and purple embroidery thread.

Formatting the information forthe invitation was the quickest part of this project, (binding the books tookthe bulk of my time). The party info was printed on a linen paper and thenwrapped around the notebook as a belly band. The band held the notebook niceand flat as well as housed a purple crayon which was slipped right underneathto complete the look. I had originally planned to attach the crayon another waybut after much experimentation, this simple solution was the most aestheticallypleasing.

Well, that covers it a week of birthday invitations, we should really do this again sometime. And in case you missed it, check out year one's Buggy invites, year two's Car Cruising invites, and year three's Messy Party invites.

P.S. As a piece of unsolicited advise; I highly recommended you hand deliver your 4 year old's birthday invites to their friends parents rather than have him hand deliver them himself to his friends. This will prevent an eager child from tearing off and discarding the important details to an upcoming party before their parents ever set eyes on the information and then you won't feel the need to email all the parents later on to make sure their coloring pad came with an invitation attached—this after you find a small stack of belly bands abandoned on the floor as a crumpled memory (run-on sentence to elicit drama). Obviously I am only speaking hypothetically!

Mr. Messy: Birthday Invite Year 3

2011-01-19T11:22:00.002-07:00

When Hendrix turned 3 we had amessy party. I’m totally cheating on this one because I had very little to dowith the design process here. In fact, my only contribution involved formattingthe party details on the back of the postcard invitations; not very exciting (andyes, I am a big fan of postcard correspondence. I once designed a postcardwedding invitation—at the bride’s request, can’t beat the cheap-o postage).

Hendrix designed the rest of the invitations himself by painting a unique imageon the font of each card.

After all the invitations weredry, I helped Hendrix stick white Avery labels to the font of each card thatsaid, “Let’s get messy.”

This party was Hendrix’s favorite to date—with certainly the best designed invitations to date. I loved each and every one of his creations.

By the way, if you ever host a messyparty for your child you absolutely must have a kiddie pool full of wet spaghettinoodles, your kids will think you’re the coolest parent in the world and allthe neighborhood children will agree.

Car Cruising: Birthday Invite Year 2

2011-01-18T08:00:00.006-07:00

Hendrix’s second year birthdayparty was more like a second year get-together. At this event, Hendrix had 3friends over for cupcakes and a craft; Flintstone style ride-in cars made fromcardboard boxes, construction paper and paint.

Since the only item scheduled onthe party agenda was to make cars to cruise around in, I thought a car that traveled alongside acountryside scene would be most appropriate.

To make the car move this invitationhad to have three parts. The first part of the invite displays a computerillustrated outdoor nature scene and road. This portion of the invitation is actuallya folded pocket that the second part of the invitation slips into.

Pulling the sidetab on second piece reveals all the party information. While the tab is pulledthe car moves across the page. The car is the third portion of the invitationwhich completes the design.

My favorite thing about the endresult is that the invitation is truly intended for the enjoyment of the invitedchild rather than for the child’s parent—although the design includes all the crucialevent details that a parent should know.

Getting Buggy: Birthday Invite Year 1

2011-01-17T14:44:00.003-07:00

We are still full swing in holiday season around here because besidescelebrating the birth of a new year we have so many family birthdays to honor this month. In fact, today my oldest's is five! His 5^th year party invitations were hand delivered yesterday morning and the festivities will take place this Saturday. In tribute to birthday month, I decided to use this week of bloggingto share some of the other b-day invitations I have designed for Hendrix inyears past. Shall we?

His first birthday party was bug themed. I createdthis invitation using a felt-like Astroturf, plastic bugs and tiny driedflowers found at a yard sale. I also used a nice cover stock for theinformation portion of the invite.

The invite itself was postcard size and in postcard formatso all the information was on the left panel of the card and the right side wasleft blank which would eventually be filled with the recipients mailinginformation—just like a standard postcard.

Next I cut rectangles from the Astroturf to match the sizeof the postcards. With glue I applied the turf to the front of the card andfrom there I added the other nature-like elements.

Each postcard was then inserted into clear cellophane bagsin effort to protect the add-ons, labeled and then off to the post. There youhave it, the great outdoors in a bag—or at least the appearance of such.

Happy (belated) Christmas

2011-01-12T23:25:00.008-07:00

Lookie what I found; cellie photos of the third annual company holiday greeting card I designed for a company called CSI. Since the assembly of these cards required a couple all-nighters, I decided to dust these images off (not really because they were on my computer and I just clicked the upload button) and share them with you today for a little (belated) Christmas cheer.

Because the good folks at CSI like me so much, they pretty much let me have free rein when it comes to the design of their seasonal greeting card. The only thing they asked was that this year's message have an emphasis on the Christmas holiday. I knew these greeting cards would be hand delivered with a box of chocolates so beyond coming up with a Christmas-appropriate copy, I decided these cards should double as Christmas tree ornaments.

The inspiration for this project came from some beautiful paper mobiles a friend and I had used on a collaboration project a couple months previous to this assignment (but more on that later). For my paper stock I choose a gold patterned one from French Paper's Mod-Tone line and after much cutting, paper punching, scoring, folding and gluing, I assembled three different sized medallions together using thin jewelry wire. The greeting itself is inscribed on a flag that is attached to a gold cording from which the mini mobile hangs. As a final detail, I attached a greenish-gold bead to the top of the threading.

I liked the look of all the greeting cards hanging on a hook in one big bunch like a bouquet of flowers (don't mind the low quality phone photos). Now that I have had plenty of time to recooperate from this project I might have to pull out the paper cutter and repeat this craft for a little home decor, or maybe I'll just sit at the computer and look at these pictures instead which wouldn't require nearly as much effort...yeah, I choose that.

Check out past holiday greetings HERE and HERE

Bread Crumbs: Another Decade

2011-01-05T18:29:00.000-07:00

That is indeed a chocolate chip rainbow pancake-cake and crayoned birthday greeting you see, a little breakfast surprise from my sis and the boys. Getting old is the best.

Bread Crumbs: New View Part Two

2010-12-06T13:40:00.001-07:00

We moved...again. The view out the living room window helps me forget

we're still living out of boxes even though we've been here for over a month.

Guesting

2010-12-03T11:07:00.002-07:00

(letterpress 2011 fox calendar)

I almost forgot to tell you that the Jorgensen's of Sycamore Street Press have had me over at their place for the last two days as a guest. Yesterday I shared 5 random things I have been into as of late and today I am sharing a marshmallow making how-to.

(letterpress fortune teller)

Remember last year when I was showing off my own homemade squishy treats? Well this year you can show off too by following these 5 simple steps!

(Letterpress whiskers poster)

By the way, I have taken the liberty of including a few images of lovely letterpressed goods you can add to your holiday wish lists. Actually maybe you want to work on being a little less greedy as we are entering the new year and start shopping for others instead of yourself...you should knock out everyone on your list in a one stop shopping spree at SSP. Hmmm, I can't choose a favorite...just surprise me.

Mustard and Blue

2010-12-01T13:55:00.003-07:00

Just thought I'd share a wedding invitation suite for your Wednesday afternoon. The theme for this wedding was mustard and blue and so I responded accordingly.

The invitation contained 3 main pieces; a reception invitation, a map and a ceremony invite insert. The reception invitation and map were stacked together and bound with bakers twine while the ceremony invite was enclosed in a transparent 4bar envelope and then tucked under the twine to complete the package.

This was my very first wedding invitation that was almost entirely hand illustrated and hand lettered (The grey text on the invites were computer rendered).

I'm posting this work about 10 months after it was completed but that is probably because I have been SUPER busy working on tons of projects, nurturing my children, darning socks (if people still do that), cleaning my house spotless on a daily basis, baking homemade bread every night, cooking gourmet meals, sewing stuff slash being domestic in every way and making the world a better place. Certainly my lack of postings have had nothing to do with failure to charge the camera for photo documentation, sleeping in, catching up on TV with my friend HULU, painting nails in animal print patterns like zebras and tigers, or any other acts that might fall under the category of being lazy—most certainly not.

My neck is begging for you, Diamond in the Sky

2010-11-17T11:18:00.001-07:00

I spotted this while browsing the internet in effort to ~~lengthen my wish list~~ Christmas shop for friends and family. It's being sold for a mere $300. If someone buys this for me I promise Iwon’t wear it bare breasted with a patent leather jacket draping off my shoulders like the model on thewebsite.

Sister

2010-11-08T11:23:00.001-07:00

She is not a song writer, singer or guitar player bytrade/training but that doesn’t stop her from writing songs, singing andplaying the guitar. My well of inspiration and the most beautiful canvas I haveever seen.

Happy Halloweenie!

2010-10-29T11:27:00.004-06:00

Let the weekend of homemade donut making, pumpkin carving, decorating one's self in the perfect disguise, and running amok begin! How can Halloween not be everyone's favorite holiday?

P.S. The costumes above were designed, made and worn by my bother Chase (aka: The most brilliant crafter I know) and his friend Emily, Halloween of '09. I'm so lucky to have a Wild Thing as a brother.

Now I know my ABC's

2010-10-15T17:45:00.002-06:00

You may (or may not) have noticed that I took an indefinite blogging break. Multi-tasking is so not my thing these days. We’ve been livingone day/experience/moment at a time, nothing more nothing less. I have, however, beenposting a handmade alphabet letter a day on my kid friendly craft blog so if you have children who are into paper, glitter and glue or if you could usea letter refresher before belting out a performance of the A-B-C song, youshould really stop by. (The letter M might be my current favorite, what's yours?) I've also been sharing picture book recommendations thatyou simply can’t miss. I can hear you biting your nails over anticipation atthis very moment so I won’t take more of your time. Don’t forget to say hey.

Oh yes, and I just might have a few goodies up my sleeve inthe nearby weeks to come so stay tuned.

Bread Crumbs : New View

2010-05-10T14:35:00.002-06:00

Looking and liking.

Bread Crumbs : Still Unpacking

2010-05-03T13:27:00.001-06:00

...and no end in sight

Bread Crumbs : Goodnight Denver

2010-04-19T14:33:00.001-06:00

There years.
Come and Gone.
Goodnight Denver.

Bread Crumbs : Spring, I Love You

2010-04-12T13:42:00.006-06:00

Our friends came over to play.
Some big, some little small, all lovely.

We celebrated the warmth of the day with a yummy brunch, a ladybug release (2,000 little ladies to be exact) and each other’s company.

Hello Spring, I love you.

Photos by Katie Murihead and Trent Covington

Bread Crumbs : Eggy

2010-04-05T13:38:00.001-06:00

Bread Crumbs : Two

2010-03-29T10:56:00.002-06:00

Bread Crumbs : Gentleman Whale

2010-03-22T10:34:00.007-06:00

My hubs Frankensteined this whale mask. Is this not the most dapper whale you ever did see?

I've been around

2010-03-02T17:01:00.005-07:00

Besides the recent Bread Crumb series, I haven’t been spending much time updating the blog with current post but I have been around…on other blogs. If you’re interested:

The gals over at Fave Crafts asked me to submit a valentine how-to for their readers. I shared how to make your very own Love Mitts right HERE.

I also shared 5 of my current favorite blogs on the Fave Crafts blog HERE (you’ll have to scroll down to my name)

I helped my friend Melanie spice up the look of her blog by designing for her, a new stripey blog header and pinwheel background. Check it out on, You are my Fave. (image of Melanie above, found on her blog).

Also, on my kiddie-projects blog; Make Monthly, I have posted a few ideas/tutorials for parents and their children to do together.

In the month of Love we made Conversation Hearts from scratch with custom love messages.

We also created some Very Lite ral Love Notes which were meant as Valentines but could actually be sent to a certain sweetie anytime of the year!

Finally, to celebrate the birthday of Dr. Seuss today, (and because we had some Dr. Seuss book covers lying around from another project) we constructed our own Dr. Seuss Sketch books.

TTFN…until tomorrow…or next week…or next month…only time will tell.

Bread Crumbs : Decision Made

2010-02-22T11:58:00.004-07:00

I need to buy skates tomorrow

Bread Crumbs : I'm Stickin' with You

2010-02-08T22:06:00.001-07:00

He brings me sugar that loves me back.

Bread Crumbs : Moonbeaming

2010-02-01T16:23:00.013-07:00

I decided to begin a weekly series called Bread Crumbs. Once a week, (every Monday perhaps…but I’m not holding myself to that) I will post an image or images from somewhere I have been—physically or mentally— from the previous week. This is my attempt to loosely catalog some of the simpler, unplanned moments in my life that don’t seem to be momentous enough for its own blog post or journal entry yet, ironically, are the things that add the most richness to my experience as a human being, for one reason or another. {FINE PRINT} Keep in mind that I am not a photographer nor do I calim to be so, although these posts will most often be image focused, the idea is to center-in on the story the image tells. This therefore gives me the license to produce and post blurry, grainy, uncropped, out of focus, unedited images and/or anything of the like as desired or as laziness permits at time of post. You have been cautioned.

{MOONBEAMING}

I was convinced we should take a picture of this year’s [official] biggest and brightest full moon.

On the porch at 2 am in a pea coat as an attempt to cover the undies...

feet swimming in a pool of empty shoe space—credit to the hubbsy’s sneakers...

I didn’t notice the 3 gentleman chatting only one house down until about 5 shots later…

giggles kept me awake for another hour.

twenty-ten

2010-01-07T11:39:00.008-07:00

Well, well, well, if it isn't the year 2010!

So I have high hopes for this New Year. The good old chalkboard is chock-full (pun intended) of to-do options for '10. Unfortunately, I'm still working out the kinks—first resolution: make resolutions. At this rate, I'm thinking my redesigned life will start sometime in February. I have a lot of the usual goals in mind, things dealing with health, finances and organization but I thought I'd share a few things that I am thinking of implementing in my new life that I am REALLY looking forward to.

#1- Sleeping more

#2- Less multi-tasking

#3- Getting dressed EVERY morning (the real reason I'm putting the resolution task off until February)

What do you think? I threw an ambitious one in there for you with #3. Another ambitious—although unrealistic—goal I have for this year is to become a roller derby doll...I should probably invest in some skates first though. Happy Twenty Ten!

Merry and Bright...Round 2

2009-12-16T22:45:00.010-07:00

Last year I had the opportunity to create a holiday greeting card for an electrical company and this year they invited me back for a second round. I used the same "Merry and Bright" slogan that I used on last years greeting but unlike last years card, there was a bit more emphasis on the "Merry" rather than the "Bright."

The card pulls out to reveal three strands of holiday lights with the text "Peace and Light..." At closer inspection the receiver will see the light bulbs are actually just holes in the paper which revel the color from the page below.

Opening the card entirely, reveals the classic merry message.

I couldn't figure out why my right arm was so sore the day after completing these cards then Jon suggested that it might have something to do with die cutting over 1,000 little circles by hand...oh yeah, that might have something to do with it.

Marshy Mallows

2009-12-15T12:08:00.005-07:00

December, day 8, we made homemade marshmallows as part of our 2009 activity advent. We haven't really stopped making them since.

For activity advent day 13, we gifted some of these goodies to our neighbors.

We've made vanilla, peppermint and almond flavors...i diggin' on the almond. If your holiday agenda simply won't tolerate another to-do, consider this project your new year's resolution.

winter wonderland

2009-12-14T08:28:00.003-07:00

Over the weekend I had the opportunity to create a Christmas dinner table center piece. I decided to do winter terrariums because I do love terrariums so!

I made some season appropriate woodsy scenes using dirt, rocks, moss and a couple different woodland creatures like bears and moose and of course a bit of authentic fake snow!

Sometimes, when it comes to crafty projects, I get these, (what I think are) really fantastic ideas but then when it comes to executing those ideas I end up with something that looks like my 3 year old son created. This time I got lucky and ended up with something I actually like the look of.

Now these winter wonderlands adorn my home and will be here all season long!

In your brain did it stay, that it's Boston's birthday?!

2009-11-17T15:30:00.017-07:00

I recently had the opportunity to design some invitations for a soon-to-be 4 year old's Dr. Seuss themed birthday bash.
After a little brainstorming session I decided to hit up the local thrift store to swipe their Dr. Seuss selection. I went for the oldest and most authentic books I could find, meaning, books that were written by Dr. Seuss himself and with the pages actually sewn into the spine (none of that glued in stuff).
Once home, I quickly went to work coming up with some Dr. Seuss inspired copy for the invitation itself (click on pic above to zoom in). Then I promptly went to work disassembling the books I had purchases earlier.

I would be using the pages as a backing to the vertical invitation as well as for handmade envelopes which would later be mailed out to guests.

I really felt adding the backing to the freshly printed invitations really finished them off but I think the envelopes were my favorite part of the whole package. Looking closely you can see little holes where the threading use to be which indicated the envelope was just a portion of a real and classic book.

I think the hardest thing about designing themed birthday invitations is that there are almost too many possibilities. I love designing my own kids party invitations although, I don't recall ever posting any samples here...sad. Maybe I'll have to play a little catch up before their next celebration of birth.

UPDATE: I now have this package for purchase in digital form. The package includes files of invitation, envelope template and step-by-step instructions on how to create your own handmade Dr. Seuss birthday invitations as shown above. To purchase check out the shop HERE.

Just call me grandpa

2009-11-16T11:32:00.002-07:00

What is it about all things mini? When I was little I had a decent collection of matchbook cars and my favorite one was the ambulance because the back doors opened up to reveal permanently installed plastic benches on both sides of the vehicle. The front door also opened to reveal a drivers seat and a baby-blue colored dashboard. I loved looking at all the tiny details, like the odometer and radio buttons. I wished so much that I could shrink down to fit right inside and take a spin. It wasn't because I wanted to drive the car—I knew that day would come—it was because I wanted to temporarily be a part of a miniature world (this is probably why the book The Mouse and the Motorcycle was so appealing to me as a kid).

*(image)

A few months ago I was in a train hobby shop where I found myself surrounded in a world of minis (aka heaven); tiny people riding bicycles, a little boy in an inter tube prepping for some outdoor water adventure, tiny cars, even tiny pets. The other costumers also seemed to be lost in this very literal "small world." The difference between them and me however was most apparent in appearances. I was sporting bleach blond and they were sporting grey and balding. I had on a thrifted leather belt adorned with debosed mushrooms and butterflies, they had on thrifted suspenders. I was enjoying a break from the kids and they were enjoying their retirement. Alas, they accepted me with friendly nods, smiles and how-do-you-do's, and therefore allowed me to fit right in.

Unfortunately, also unlike the lovely men around me, I don't have a basement full of train paraphernalia, just my love for small. Sure I had a handful of plastic treasures but how could i really justify buying them? That's when I remembered some very special dioramas I had seen by photographer Lori Nix (see samples throughout post). So I allowed myself to pick out a few things to support my newly proposed hobby. After all, my kids really don't keep me very busy and I think I really do have too much money and am in need of something to spend it on.

About 3 months later I haven't made any miniature scenes to photograph or even purchased more material for that matter. At least we live not too far from a town with all things tiny...

(mini letterpress)

(mini greenhouse)

I have discovered that minis make great gift toppers if nothing else...

and so, the obsession continues.

*pic jon took of a scale model he helped create at school with his group; Eric, Rachael and Kathryn.

What in the Slap Chop Rap?

2009-10-21T10:11:00.004-06:00

Last night I was minding my own business working on a wedding invitation when this little ditty came blaring from the TV speakers. At first I thought it was a hoax or that I was experiencing lack-of-sleep induced hallucination. Then I realized it was all too real, my friends, which qualifies the ‘slap chopper’ as the best infomercial-intro I have ever seen. The clip I originally saw had dancers that were not quite as cool as these ones but you will get the idea. You have to watch the whole 3:16 minutes; it’s SO worth your time and it just get's better and better.

Today I Love Mary

2009-10-12T11:26:00.003-06:00

I’ve been watching clips of Mary Travers from Peter, Paul and Mary. I think this, If I had a Hammer, clip is my favorite. I love watching her emotions become increasingly intense as the song nears its end and how this is displayed physically as she lets her hair flip though the air…so inspiring!

This makes me SO happy! Song is such a beautiful thing to touch people’s lives with. Rest in Peace Mary.

Lovely Package Exchange

2009-09-18T21:47:00.018-06:00

Is it me or is getting some sort of personalized correspondence in your mailbox one of the best things in the world? The other day one of my sisters sent me a homemade card with words I actually read on paper. It was so sweet and pen pal-ish. I have also gotten two wedding invitations in the mail recently—which I was probably way too giddy over. Then my mom sent me a package of goodies from Ikea, with the cutest platter ever I might add and just when I thought I couldn’t love the post person any more, I received a parcel from a new blogging buddy I was introduced and assigned to as part of a “lovely package exchange” I participated via the Oh, Hello Friend blog.

My partner and I not only had the opportunity to send objects we thought the other would enjoy, we were also able to take part in something we both love; creating lovely packaging—which was sort of the idea of the exchange.

So today when I pulled the lid off the box that the lovely Catherine Hart from Austin Texas sent me, I was overwhelmed by the charm and vintage goodness that was cushioned inside. Although we only met a few short weeks ago in the blogsphere, I felt as though each little object said something about my character in some way and yet, at the same time, each item told me something about Catherine’s character as well. It was actually quite inspiring to connect with an almost stranger that way.

There were so many things to love like vintage "twist sticks" (aka mini pipecleaners), bingo sheets and yo-yo...

an awesome game of "endless landscape"...

tiny gift bag art...

and so much more. But one item I will particularly treasure is the best piece of handmade jewelery (made by Catherine of course).

Thank you so much Catherine. I love.

As stated above, this was a package swap so below is a sampling of some of the goodies I sent off to Catherine.

All wrapped and ready to go. The gift bow doubled as a hair accessory...

Inside the main package were smaller packages. Postcards packed in a homemade alligator envelope, little tug balls that revealed some prizes when the string was pulled and a few other delights…

When I found this mini kissing couple at a train collector shop, I knew it had to be used to accessorize the gift box full of miniatures.To see it from Catherins perspective you can check out here blog HERE.

Gifting is the greatest invention ever!

A Very Merry UN-Birthday to You!

2009-09-15T00:28:00.009-06:00

Summer has been good to me this year and to say thank you to the sunny season I thought an official goodbye was in order. What better way to say so-long than to throw a party?

Lucky for me my friend Melanie is a born party planner and is always up for sharing her merrymaking skills when it comes to festivity coordinating. So we teamed up to have an end of summer UN-Birthday Party Bash.

Due to limited space I knew we would have to have a limited guest list which is the hardest part, who do we invite—or worse—who do we not invite? Jon had a great solution to this problem which was to perform a “pass-it-on” invitation-giving system. Melanie and I each choose a couple at random to invite. Both of those couples were given two invites to pass along to a friend of theirs and that friend was to pass the last invite to a friend of theirs. Make sense? I was super stoked about this plan but I have to admit, as the party date drew near I was feeling a little apprehensive as the adolescence in me began to take over, ‘What if the guests hate the theme? What if they don’t like me?’ were among the juvenile thoughts that entered my mind. Perhaps I am not as social as I’d like to think I am? Thankfully we ended up having an awesome guest list and they didn’t even seem to mind when the pouring rain threw us out of our own outdoor party forcing us to finish the celebrating in a somewhat squishy, not perfectly clean, basement.

Fortunately we had gotten in a good game of musical chairs and pin-the-tail-on-the-donkey in a more spacious outdoor space. Once inside we had a couple more games, a white elephant gift exchange being one of them, (you can’t have an Un-Birthday party without gifts)! And of course we had UN-birthday cake made from rice kipsie treats.

As usual, one of my favorite parts of the party was designing and prepping the invitations beforehand. When it comes to birthdays, I couldn’t think of something more iconic than the pin-the-tail game so I rolled with that.

Each invite was hand assembled into a gift card tin which contained 3 pieces; the invitation, a felt donkey tail and a blindfold. (thanks for your help Melanie!)

The donkey tail had a magnetic back which enabled it to stick the tailless donkey image on the front of lid tin.

The blindfold was also made from felt with an elastic attached for wearing.

Once all the parts were in place we tied it off with a simple ribbon bow to make it look like a present (UN-birthday party, remember?)

The same donkey image was used to create party gift bags which the guest filled with candy on their way out at the end of the party.

All-in-all I was quite pleased with the way things turned out. Even though the before and after shots of what the rain did to the outdoor photo op secction was pretty sad looking, the spontaneity kept things silly and carefree.

Well, I guess it’s on to fall season party preparations…my favorite!

Happy Birthday Pearly

2009-09-14T10:34:00.006-06:00

(photo above by Charissa Spendlove)

Last week a friend of ours—a much younger friend of ours—turned one year old! This made me realize that for a whole year I have had the intention of posting a little project that I had created for her parents to announce her arrival. I think I was waiting to take some better photos before posting but again, it’s been a year so I think I’ll go ahead and stick with the original shots for a much over-due show-and-tell.

Pearls parents and I brainstormed the possibility of incorporating the alphabet and/or Pearls name as a subtle theme for the announcement so I came up with the “P is for Pearl” concept, integrating strands of “alphabet peals” in the background.

The announcment opened vertically to reveal Pearl's birth stats and the photo you see above which was taken by another friend of mine; Charissa Spendlove. The folding was designed so this card could either be sent in a small invitation size envelope or sent as a postcard if sealed at the opening (mimicked after the Avi Jude announcement).

So there you go, only one year late. Happy birthday pearly and congrats on your first year of life!

Georgie Porgie

2009-08-07T16:31:00.002-06:00

I have been spending a lot of time with George Washington lately and that is because a dollar store just opened up within walking distance of my house! I screamed a little when I walked inside for the first time—yep I’ve been twice this week. As usual when stepping foot into an unexplored all-a-dollar store such as this, I knew I would be going down each isle twice; the first go-round was a power browse. This is where I do a sort of speed walk as I allow my eyes to swiftly dart across the shelving while maintaining a calm and collected demeanor because if I go too crazy, I know I will forget to look up and down and only stay at eye level—what a disaster that would be. This is the stage where my internal shopping list is being etched into my brain and I don’t want to miss something I probably need.

Once I have made my acquaintance with each and every isle I feel confident enough to reintroduce myself to the sectors of the store which I believe will produce the most boast worthy results. In this second phase, I begin to add the goods to my cart as I silently congratulate myself for getting such a great deal on this “thing” that would be really hard to live without. I could quit here but I usually treat myself to one more modest gander around the locale.

In this third run through I actually don’t run at all but instead wander somewhat leisurely, I know I am approaching the reflection period. Much of the high has worn off at this point and I am able to think with a clear head, resulting in a much more selective and budget-conscious decision about what is currently positioned in my cart. There are always a few give-backs or a short swapping performance, particularly of those things that may in fact be less than a dollar in a non everything’s-a-dollar store (obviously selected in an interlude of over-enthused delusion). Then it’s off to the register—and thanks to step three—I have stayed well within my $10 budget.

Top three favorite items purchased are as follows: lenticular zoo animal stickers (the ones that change images when you slant them up or down—in other words, 2-in-1 stickers), fill-in-the-blank game spinners (I have attempted to home-make these to no avail…can’t beat 4 for $1) and wrapping paper; brown with white lace print overlay and as a bonus, a fatty smile on my face.

Nesting Baby Shower Invite

2009-07-12T12:08:00.007-06:00

I haven't posted any work in quite some time. I am not the best when it comes to documentation of a finished job. Besides that, I'm not sure any one would find the glamour in every brochure or direct mailer that come off the press. Today however, I'd like to share a little piece I came up with for a baby shower invitation (the fun stuff) given for a friend of mine.

The hosts of the shower decided to use "nesting" as an underlying theme for the party but rather than your standard baby-chick-decor they decided to go with the beautiful paper crane as somewhat of an icon. I thought this was a fun way to also symbolize marital bliss, happiness, good fortune and peace for a mom-to-be. The colors for the party were pink, orange and yellow.

All of the above inspired me to come up with the following 3 part invite.

The first page in the set is the actual invitation to the party. The second page is a how-to diagram on folding paper cranes. Since this job was gifted (for non-profit) I decided to use a beautiful instruction sheet created by My Trinh Ha I found on papercrane.org then I just added my own elements to form a cohesive look. This second page was printed on vellum paper for a variation in texture as well as opacity.

Through the vellum you could see the third page which was a piece of decorative rice paper in which the prospective party goer would be able to fold their own crane using the provided instructions. A strand of colored crafting floss accompanied the invite for displaying the crane after folding.

Everything was clipped together, stuffed into a square and labeled envelope, then sent off to the post.

The end.

Michael

2009-07-07T21:19:00.005-06:00

(image via lucky pony)

As a preschooler, I really did have a thing for Michael. I even had a poster of him on the back of my bedroom door. I laid on my bed facing the closed door making him the last person I would see before going to bed each night and the first person I would see when waking up each morning. Thriller was of course my favorite music video. Although this may have been partly due to the fact that I knew I was getting away with watching something I probably shouldn't—at least not at that age. I was super brave for the entire (lengthy) video until the very end when his eyes turned yellow again; I had to cover my face for that part.

I also remember red leather jackets and a glove on one of two hands being very fashionable among people I was actually related to, not to mention Beat It karaoke sessions during family get-togethers. My mom would try to teach me how to moonwalk, she can still do it and I still can't. I've also seen old videos of my mom and her sisters dancing to Rock with You but that was witnessed later in life.

It seems a little incredible that a fairly good portion of my memories as a three and four year old are accompanied by memories of the late "king of pop." I know its dramatic, but loosing Michael feels like some of those childhood memories don't really exist anymore and I guess that's a little sad for me. Thankfully there is the music to authenticate the past.

Work like a beaver be an achiever

2009-06-02T16:09:00.008-06:00

(this post is for you Valerie)

As you may or may not have noticed, it’s been quite a while since I have posted. It’s not because I don’t want to it’s just that I got super busy all of the sudden and I haven’t yet figured out how to work blogging in the midst of new projects, new jobs, play groups, church responsibilities, birthday parties, everyday mommy tasks, and cleaning. (Okay, I lied about that last one, our house is a disaster, but I had to let go of something and it certainly wasn’t going to be family rock band which we have been squeezing in here and there!)

Don’t get me wrong, I am not complaining or anything, actually, as busy as it’s been, I am loving it. Sometimes our family is super busy and other times it seems we don’t have much going on—I like the variety and I think I’m lucky to get both.

Anyway, today I thought I would take a quick break to share the “akward family photo” blog I came across. The images below are a couple from the site and let me tell you, I had trouble narrowing down the posting possibilities. I hope it makes you laugh your BUNSIES off like it did me. So enjoy, and your welcome!

P.S. I started another blog called ...and i like you, yep, I’m officially crazy (especially after THIS post)! This one is different though, I promise—it’s an image/video only blog of random things that I like or that I am being inspired by. The best part about this blog is that I have set it up to post automatically which means after spending 10 minutes a week uploading a handful of loveable links from the thousands of items in my “favorites” folder all I have to do is sit back and watch the magic happen. My blog is set to post twice a day. Now my various sources of inspiration are not hidden in a folder on my desktop! If you at all intrigued by this, you can check it out by clicking on the link in the sidebar under…"I also…like.”

Something I like = seeing my artwork featured on a blog that I didn’t create

2009-05-04T17:59:00.011-06:00

One of my most favorite things about throwing parties is designing the invitations (as you may have guessed). This year for Jon’s b-day I designed a poster sized invite that I had every intention of screen printing on newsprint. I bought the screen, built the frames (thank you Paul and Caroline, my helpers), purchased a new fatty jar of photo emulsion and got the perfect shade a blue paint. The only thing I didn’t consider was the how-to’s in hiding a giant silkscreening project from Jon—which was a must considering it was a SURPRISE party! In the end I sent the invite out via email.

Also, just for fun, I sent the invitation artwork (aka doodle) to the Underground Art School in a sketchbook style, open-call-for-submissions request and guess what?...They featured it today HERE, hooray! If you want to see the invite in its whole, you can check it out on my friend Melanie’s blog HERE or on Joanna Goddard's Glamour Magazine blog HERE.

Now I just have to come up with some sweet printing projects sometime within the next few weeks before all that photo emulsion goes to waste. Anyone want to come over for a silk-screening party?

(top photo from Lena Corwin's book, Printing By Hand)

3 Loves

2009-04-13T08:40:00.002-06:00

I was browsing around Mookal Loves You, an online boutique based out of Portland, when I remembered 3 of my loves:

The word "underpinnings" for undies
The word “Knickers” for panties (I think the “june knickers” are more than charming)
And thigh-high socks (be careful, you might see some bare bunsies by clicking on that link; American Apparel—you know how they do!

Oh and here’s 3 more:

madylin top

buttercup gillard

barquentine skirt....or is it the skirt/bicycle combo?

Life Lyrics

2009-04-07T12:40:00.010-06:00

I know, I know, this blog has had a heavy hit in the random category lately. That is why I thought I would post a little project that I actually created a few months back but just barely did anything with.

At the end of the summer last year my grandma (aka “little grandma”) had given me a bunch of her olds games that I use to play with at her house when I was little. As I stared at all the miscellaneous game parts I became enticed to create something from some of them. Because I loved the look of the worn, wooden pieces from a very old game of Jenga, I decided to use the rectangular blocks as my main ingredient. The other ingredient was my much neglected wood burning tool which I used as an inscribing instrument. What resulted is the first piece to a series I am calling the “life lyrics project.”

In it’s entirety the message reads: “How very special are we, just for a moment to be, part of life’s eternal rhyme.”

If that sounds familiar to you it may because you have seen the 1973 animated version of Charlotte’s Web. The lyrics are from, Mother Earth and Father Time which is a song written by the Sherman Brothers for the movie. The line I used for the project just really inspires me.

I am glad I finally took a whole five minutes to get this on the wall, now I just have to fill up all the empty space around it. Stays tuned for more about the “life lyrics project” and guess what else? There is another giveaway in the works—I bet you can’t wait…mom…dad…anyone?

On the October agenda...

2009-03-26T15:04:00.005-06:00

I'm collecting a collection

2009-03-23T22:55:00.019-06:00

I have a new favorite blog and it’s all about a new collection that I am collecting; sticky tape.

(WARNING: all useful information ends here).

When I was young I use to be somewhat of a packrat. I kept everything and collected everything. I really liked to stockpile little knickknacks, especially tiny ones like an itty bitty little wooden mouse and mouse trap my mom got at a craft store for me at a 9-cent-sale. Although I had an abundance of tchotchkes and never threw a shred of paper away, I was strangely organized. I have been binning, filing and labeling since I was in kindergarten—ask my mom if you don’t believe me.

Overtime, as I grew into adulthood, I found less value for the many ornaments in my life. In fact, I began to feel somewhat beleaguered by the things that surrounded me. I began to rid myself of almost everything that didn’t provide me with a useful purpose. Overall this process has been liberating but unfortunately, there are a few things I have let go that I completely regret (my childhood keychain and eraser collection for instance). As much as I think things are just things, there is something magical about having personal meaning to belongings that might be useless to the average Joe or Josephine.

I have a few “adult” collections; postcards, notebooks and journals, note cards and stationary, charming vintage serving platters/dishes and photos of people I don’t know, (there is a project in the works with this one) old fashion magazines and childrens books—raggety ones to cut up for the lovely photos and illustrations, and empty Altiod tins (also for a project) but because I quite like the idea of a little magic from my childhood accompanying me through my adulthood I have decided to resurrect a few (meaningless) childhood collections and maybe even begin some new ones.

Let the insignificant-significant begin with:

Antique buttons, (I started this with my friend Amanda in grade school. We became obsessed with a little antique store near her home, buttons were probably the only thing we could afford)

possibly wooded spools, vintage ribbon and fabric—(I hardly sew but I am oh so inspired when I see of these things at a craft/fabric store I love; Fancy Tiger)

mini erasers...especially ones that look like food

collection of random minis, basically little things that fit into a matchbox like the image above

and decorative tape …obviously inspired by the site above. Luckily I still have two precious rolls that I got at the sanrio store long ago. Naturally they have hello kitty characters on them, they have been stored with my sticker collection…oh look at that, another collection. Perhaps I have more collections than I am accounting for. If you are still reading I am curious to know; What you are collecting?

(I told you this blog would be random)

By the way, the top image is from the movie Everything is Illuminated—which I loved, great soundtrack too.

Image links: (buttons), (spools), (erasers), (minis)

I can’t keep up with me

2009-03-18T23:28:00.003-06:00

I just joined Twitter because Jimmy Fallon told me to. I also have a MySpace profile (which I doubt I have logged in to more than 3 times in the last couple years), and a facebook profile (which I joined in 2007 but used for the first time recently when I discovered half of the people in my email address book have a page). Other digital “mes” exist on goodreads, youtube, and two other blogs besides this one; a private family blog and a blog to catalog monthly art project that Hendrix and I participate in with a few toddlers and preschoolers we’re lucky to know. I even have a digital clone of myself on the Wii we got as a Christmas gift this year!

Well, I'd love to chat but I have to go now so I can go to my twitter page to see what I have been up to and my facebook page to find out what’s been on my mind. Jon suggested I create a few profiles to keep up with my profiles...hmmm...not a bad idea.

We've Gone Green...as in food coloring

2009-03-09T19:25:00.009-06:00

So, when Jon and I had our first little bundle of joy we just couldn’t wait for him to turn three because all the cool toys said 3 years +. Now that Hendrix has hit that lucky number we realize we failed to account for the crazy that comes with the age of “toddler.” It is fun though to see him get really revved up about things like Leprechauns.

Our March issue of Family Fun magazine is pretty much torn to shreds from Hendrix’s obsession with all the St. Patty’s Day paraphernalia featured, including THESE leprechaun traps which you can bet we will be making before the “BIG DAY.”

Because Hendrix was so bonkers over the mini mischief-makers, I thought I’d add some subtle leprechaun sightings to the mix. After a little sticky-back craft foam, a baby jar lid and a green washable marker, a leprechaun shoe print stamp was born.

We have been stamping tiny little green cobbler feet on every washable surface in the house while leaving behind a few chocolate gold coins for Hendrix to go crazy over, not to mention a little green in all of the liquids in the house such as the toilet water. We’ve just about milked our green food coloring dry.

Originally, the only thing I had planned to do for Saint Patrick’s Day this year was to make green eggs and ham like my mom did when I was a kid. It surprisingly takes a lot of work to be community of leprechauns in addition to being a mom. This has been a fun little adventure but I'm not sure I will have the energy to do this every year; seriously, I might just throw up a rainbow.

Ira

2009-03-06T11:44:00.009-07:00

Did you know it was Ira Glass’s birthday a few days ago? (That’s when I first began drafting this post but I was distracted by a toddler and baby until now). Anyway, as I was telepathically sending Ira good birthday vibes, I was remembering something I really love which is when I just happen to be in the car on a Friday night in perfect timing to catch NPR’s This American Life. Of course we subscribe to This American Life podcasts but we don’t always make the time to play catch up. Besides, sometimes hearing a story that makes you either laugh your butt off or cry your eyes out is a bit better when it’s unplanned.

For my church "job" I have the privilege of writing up articles from personal interviews I conduct with other church members. This little calling is amazing on many levels; mostly for the fact that people I often hardly know are willing to share their incredible lives without reservation but also because I like to pretend I have an inner Ira Glass I can summon during interviews. Perhaps THIS kit created by Frank Chimero would help. I pretty much can’t get enough of Mr. Glass.

In fact, on an obsessive note, Jon and I considered naming our second son Ira—you can’t deny it is a great name. Considering our last name though, we ended up naming him Avi and then we just subscribed to Showtime for a while to watch the This American Life television series.

Ira Glass Kit via Something’s Hiding In Here.

Having cool friends who ask me to guest post on their awesome blog is my fave!

2009-02-26T10:43:00.008-07:00

My friend Melanie runs the sweet blog known as, You Are My Fave so you can imagine my excitement when she asked me to be a guest poster for a couple days while she is on a mini vay-cay. Although my posts could never live up to her daily dose of awesomeness, I made a humble attempt by sharing THIS tutorial on picture transfers and THIS post about something that inspires me.

After you subscribe to Melanie’s lovely blog, if you haven’t already, you are going to wonder how you went through life without it! Yep, I totally know this girl in real life—(I am hoping telling you that will up me on the coolness scale).

Charming Evan

2009-02-24T16:01:00.006-07:00

Rather than splurging on individual gifts for one another on our wedding anniversary, Jon and I like to purchase a piece of artwork for our home—the pressure of individual gift giving is reserved for birthdays. We have a lot of fun searching for pieces we like and then narrowing down.

The only stipulations we have set for ourselves is that we both have to like the piece and that we can afford it. Actually most of our acquisitions have been very affordable since we often buy prints or artwork from local, upcoming artist.

So when I stumbled across the artist, Evan B. Harris on the Charmingwall website last year, we both felt pretty sure what our 2009 anniversary would bring. I love Evan’s 20th century style and that he uses things like plastic resin and melted wax as mediums in his original art. We ended up ordering two prints and they arrived in two days. What do you think?

As a bonus to this purchase we were finally able to clean the dust of the never-before-used IKEA frames I bought at least 3 years ago, hooray!

V-Day Love Garlands

2009-02-13T15:10:00.004-07:00

We had a few special valentines to send this year so we decided to make some love garlands out of felt, ribbon and buttons. Considering we have a three year old little Hendrix and because it is insanely affordable, felt is the craft-drug of choice around here.

Garlands contained special love phrases such as, “Loving You,” “I Love You,” and “Hello Lovely.”

We actually made an extra one to hang in our own home. It’s sort of nice having a little love reminder every time I go through the entryway in which it hangs. In fact, I think I may just leave it up year round.

If you like tv, I like you

2009-01-26T12:01:00.007-07:00

Okay, here’s my thing with TV, I like it. True that it can be a good point scorer on the lazy meter but on the other hand, my brain was really working overtime with that DVR’d Law and Order episode I watched the other night—it was SVU after all—talk about push-ups for the brain. Occasionally I run into people who seem to be ashamed to watch TV and feel more comfortable talking about all the books they have read. Not that I have anything wrong with books, I am a collector myself and would love to have my own little words published one of these days but I have decided to consider myself well-rounded by liking both.

Sometimes I hear people say, “I don’t have time to watch TV” or worse, “I WISH I had the time to watch TV.” Both of these statements confuse me; I was under the impression that everyone has the same amount of literal time in each day. However, when I hear either of these statements I no longer wonder if the individual is actually trying to make clear of that fact that they are living a much more Gandhi/Mother Theresa-inspired lifestyle—reconstructing the world for a brighter future for our children rather than sitting on his or her couch wasting away what little brain cells remains after television overexposure, no-no, instead I have decided to interpret the statements as, “I waste my time on something else besides TV.”

Not owning a TV is different than not liking TV and is perfectly acceptable if one has internet access to view a missed mini flick or attends their neighborhood Lost party. To be perfectly honest, I have also considered giving up the flat screen to save a little on the green. And I’ll admit, I have done my fair share of time wasting in front of the old tube but that is the beauty of DVR, which unlike any other devise, seems to actually add minutes on to your day. It’s like a time machine for TV! And DVR, my friends, is why we will be doing no television dismounting anytime soon.

This is probably sounding like all I do is watch TV which is simply not true. In fact, some days we don’t turn it on at all and when we do it’s usually not until after dinner, (with the exception of Hendrix’s morning Yo Gabba Gabba and Charlie and Lola.) Skipping nights really allows us to indulge in our moving picture faves. So you see, we are hardly a family of couch potatoes, more like couch potato chips, which is fine with me. Besides, who doesn’t like potatoes?

And one more thing, if you haven’t seen 30 Rock yet, you should really consider it.

Thank You Dr. Martin

2009-01-19T16:31:00.005-07:00

"I Have A Dream"

(image)

Is it just me?

2009-01-06T10:46:00.010-07:00

I certainly don’t mean to offend, but am I really the only one who thinks “breast and nipple” when I see these cupcakes?

I saw Sprinkles Cupcakes featured on Martha Stewart one day and since then I have seen them featured here and there on various blogs but I have yet to see someone point out what I thought was the obvious.

Don’t get me wrong, using little candy disk on the top of a cupcake to indicate the flavor is completely genius not to mention charming. And with flavors like chocolate marshmallow and lemon coconut, I’d love to taste one of these mini cakes in real life. I’m just not sure I could bite into one without blushing.

I don’t know…maybe I have just been nursing the babe too long.

Happy Birthday to Me!

2009-01-05T11:33:00.013-07:00

Sometimes periodic library rentals no longer suffice when it comes to a book you can’t get enough of. This is why I decided to not spend my birthday money on something like groceries this year and buy two books that inspire me: Hand Job: A catalog of Type by Mike Perry
A beautiful collection of all handmade text by various artist.

and Whatcha Mean, What’s a Zine? by Esther Pearl Watson/illustrated by Mark Todd—a book about the art of zine making.
The computer is lovely but there is just something magical about creating work with tools you can feel and smell.

(image)

Merry and Bright

2008-12-19T12:12:00.007-07:00

This year I had the assignment of creating a holiday greeting card for an electrical company. I knew the greeting card would be hand delivered as an insert in a box of See’s Candies® so I decided to eliminate the option of an envelope allowing for something a little more unique, like a light up reindeer nose. One of the requirements for a holiday light up greeting card is adding text such as, “May your holiday season be merry and bright”

My inspiration for this job came from the Throwies campaign which my husband introduced me to a while back. After a little computer graphics and printing work, each greeting was assembled by hand using 3mm red LED lights and 3 volt batteries.

I hope your holiday season is as merry and bright as a LED reindeer noses!

For the Nerds Like Me

2008-12-10T12:51:00.006-07:00

In one of my typography classes in school I had to purchase a little book called, The Mac is not a Typewriter and it pretty much changed my life. Well, maybe not, but it did change the way I type. Even though I am old enough to have actually had to use a typewriter, I am convinced that even those who have never used a typewriter are following outdated typewriter rules like I was, (and sometimes still do.)

Did you know that you should NEVER double space after a period? Now that we are no longer using mono-spaced, mono-sized type like we once did on the typewriter the double space just becomes an unattractive giant gap. Okay, you probably knew that one but I didn’t when I first read this book which was not all that long ago!

Re-reading this book again reminded me why it is one of my faves even up against a few pricey deign books I own. This book also includes things like using the right type of dashes in the right places, widows, orphans, proper quotation marks, the no-nos of underlining and a bunch of other exciting stuff for a nerd like me.

I am now realizing that I probably just totally turned you off from ever reading this book but seriously, you should at least check it out from the library. I wish I had the cash to purchase a copy for everyone I know!

P.S. The PC is not a typewriter either so this book applies to all computer owners.
P.S.S. I am exempting myself from having to follow every rule of type on this blog. So, if you do read it, please don’t consider me a hypocrite.

Ms. Julia Pott

2008-12-08T15:31:00.004-07:00

The "My First Crush" animation was my introduction to artist and animator Julia Pott. Much later I saw these awesome temp tattoos in her etsy shop and then in October she released her animation for the Casiotone for the Painfully Alone-White Corolla video and I was more than pleased. Considering I have watched it a hundred times, I just can’t get enough of Julia Pott.

Faux Forest

2008-11-15T08:41:00.009-07:00

Sometimes, when my to-do-list is lengthy, I become suddenly enticed to go on a cleaning spree. When I have downtime, I am much too exhausted to do any house tidying! I also have a talent for becoming magically motivated to create meaningless projects when I have a million important things to get done. This is why I was able to fabricate a little homemade wallpaper project that I have been meaning to put together for the last few months.

My inspiration came from a birch tree wallpaper by Cole and Son that I saw in a kitchen of my dreams a couple years ago. As a temporary alternative to being the owner of the imaginary forest, known as "Woods Wallpaper", I substituted wallpaper with wood-grained pattern contact paper. Not quite the same but an improvement nonetheless. I am thinking about adding a little woodland creature peeking out of the branches, perhaps an owl, what do you think?

And the winner is...

2008-10-29T17:14:00.002-06:00

Congrats to the Kindred Family and Conor for winning the "squishy heart" giveaway! You will be recieving your postcards in the mail shortly!

Listening is an Act of Love

2008-10-28T10:26:00.008-06:00

As you may know I am a huge fan of the StoryCorps project which is why I really wish I could go to this book tour which will be in Bolder tonight. Maybe if I get a million things done today I can reward myself by attending! Anyone want to come with?

Baby Shower Invites + Thank You Cards + Feel-Good Tunes + Giveaway!

2008-10-23T17:15:00.010-06:00

This little baby shower invite was inspired by the mother-to-bes’ love and talent for origami (see origami paper background) and baby room colors of lavender and light green.

Being quite fond of origami myself, I decided to create a thank you card mimicked after the invitation. This is what brings me to my first GIVEAWAY of what I hope will be the first of many! TWO little lucky ducks will win a set of 5 "thank-you from the bottom of my squishy heart" postcards and as a bonus I will also include 5 envelopes just in case you'd like to convert postcard to note card.

All you have to do to compete is to name your favorite feel-good song as a comment. Any ol’ song that gets you going and pumps you up. For instance, my feel good song is Billy Idols “Dancing with Myself” I love to blast this little number when I am cleaning the house, going for a run, and of coarse dancing.

You will have until 1pm MST on Wednesday the 29th of October to post your song. I will then randomly select the two winners and the prize will be all yours. Good luckie!

I Just Can't Get Enough: Fancy Window Displays

2008-10-03T21:44:00.004-06:00

One of my favorite things to be inspired by is a smart and fancy window display. I suppose any display really, with or without the window. The fun thing about a window display though is that it is like the package design for something you can open and then actually walk into. In fact, one of the things that I anticipate most about opening my own real life, three-dimensional little boutique, (paper boutique most likely), is that I will get to create my own store displays on a regular basis. Because the only thing I like more than being inspired by the perfect display is to create one myself with the hope of inspiring someone else.

(portfolio show display-when I discovered my love for displays was not just a crush.)

Blog Lazy

2008-09-29T10:58:00.006-06:00

I looked in my reader the other day only to discover that I am 1,000 plus posts behind in being caught up with all my blog subscriptions. This really depicts my blog laziness as I barley have more blog subscriptions than I do fingers and toes. I apparently have a lot of catching up to do which will most likely mean hitting the “mark all as read” button. Actually I think being blog lazy is an understatement as my own blog probably doesn’t recognize me anymore! Sometimes I think of things that might make a nice post but then I just let the thought breeze right on by-along with summer.

Sorry blog for neglecting you. I will try to be better.

Beautiful Jared: Inspiration Pages

2008-09-03T15:31:00.014-06:00

Jon and I met Jared a little over 5 years ago as he stood across the counter from us as an Aaron Brothers employee. We eagerly watched Jared’s careful hands remove the brown kraft paper from a newly custom framed “cloudscape theory”, an art piece Jon and I had purchased on our honeymoon. At the reveal, Jared complemented us on our purchase.

When chit chat over the surfy landscape became sparse our conversation shifted topics to that of an object sitting on the table-top near the three of us; a red fabric covered journal which had been personalized with large black-sharpie colored stars. As the owner of the book, Jared described the journal as an on going personal project that he took with him everywhere. In reaction, Jon boldly asked if we could look through the “project book”. I was a bit taken back by Jons audacious inquiry and would have interjected halt to the idea to relieve Jared of a response but my curiosity kept me quiet.

Jared allowed us to take a closer look at the journal and what I saw next changed me and inspired me. The book was alive with images and words that represented Jared’s current journey in life. Each page was adorned with notes, doodles, intricately cut images from magazines, secret doors and pockets for prized objects. Items that had been abandoned and trashed by their original owners had become treasures in this magical book from the moment they were pasted to one of the pages. This unexpected treat swelled with significance as Jared told the story behind each clipping and photo. Receipts and old clothing tags became momentous as they no longer represented a purchase but a human life. The book was indeed an extension of the man that was standing before us.

In the midst of repeatedly trying to find the right expressions of gratitude to Jared for letting us experience this great book, he respond plainly, “You guys can have it.” Confused, we initially declined his offer as it was too great a gift to give to perfect strangers. Knowing we were puzzled by his donation he explained, “if you guys really appreciate my book as much as you have expressed and aren’t just spewing words to please me, mock me, pass the time or to make me feel good then I would want you to have it” At that, although still feeling undeserving of such a personal treasure, the beautiful book became ours. It was at that moment that Jared became a hero and role model to us as he was as inspiring a person as were the pages of the book he created.

Introducing Avi Jude

2008-08-19T15:40:00.013-06:00

Only 4 months behind schedule I decided to put forth the effort to make Avis' birth announcement and send them off to long-distance loved ones. The upside to waiting until a babys four month birthday to send announcements is that they can really grin it up for a photo. To be perfectly honest I didn’t really care how late these were as long as they got done at all so somewhere down the road Avi isn’t looking at his older brother’s announcement of arrival, wondering what happened to his.

For quite some time I have had a little crush on the Matryoshka or Russian nesting doll for their nostalgia-meets-kitsch image. It was because of this crush I thought it would be fun to hand illustrate our family in nesting doll form for Avis’ announcement.

From the illustration I was able to hand print each card using a gocco printer causing no one card to be exactly alike. It is two-color, double sided and although it folds like a card, by sealing the open end with a clear mailing seal I was able to avoid envelopes and send it like a postcard.

Hope you enjoy!

Just can't get enough...

2008-07-24T21:41:00.007-06:00

I just can’t get enough Across the Universe movie and soundtrack, (not to mention Jim Sturgess). Listening to the soundtrack makes me want to watch the movie and watching the movie makes me want to listen to the soundtrack.

However, today I have exhausted the soundtrack and I don’t actually own the movie so I have to result in watching youtube video clips and trailers to get a visual fix.

Obvious Advice:

2008-07-21T19:52:00.002-06:00

If you are like me and like to lollygag when you are visiting the library, my advice to you is not to forget your car is in metered parking. The poopiest part of this scenario is realizing you could own at least one of the books you checked out with the amount of money you now owe for a parking ticket!

Story Corps in Denver

2008-07-17T15:19:00.007-06:00

If you don’t already know, Story Corps is a project dedicated to celebrating human life through story sharing and listening. This project enables willing participates to step into a Story Corps booth to record memories from their life. The participant is then given one of two copies of their recoded accounts. The other copy is archived in the Library of Congress for future generations.

Lucky for me and every other Denver resident, the Story Corps mobile booth is here today and accepting reservation for recording sessions tomorrow at 10 am. I am so excited for this experience, I can’t wait.

I love the fact that everyone has a history that matters and everyone is important. You can participate even if there is not a Story Corps near you, just go to their website to find out how.

Goober

2008-07-14T15:28:00.005-06:00

I was a kid when I first saw Smuckers, “Goober” in the peanut butter isle at the grocery store. I remember thinking that the combination of peanut butter and jelly in a jar was a genius idea and secondly, that I really, really wanted to own one for my sack-lunch sandwiches, (which I don’t recall ever happening). When I saw this same product as an adult I thought, “That’s actually a little disgusting” and it was then promptly scratched off the list of “things I will buy when I am a grown-up” list. Now that I myself am a parent that occasionally takes 12 hours road trips with my husband, toddler and baby to visit family, the convince factor of this product magically turns grossness into not so bad and even maybe a little bit pleasant. So congratulations Smuckers from a fan once again…even if just on road trips.

Lee/Orndoff Invite

2008-06-29T18:19:00.011-06:00

This project was a wedding announcement and invitation to an evening reception. Kaisa and Kyle, the couple, wanted their invitation to be unique and appealing without being over the top funky. They wanted their guest to expect a fun and inviting celebration come wedding day.

Beyond trying to integrate this feeling in the design, I incorporated their wedding colors which were berry red, a slate/charcoal color, white and a hint of teal. The main inspiration for this invite though, was from the brides’ modern-meets-vintage wedding dress which had a beautiful lacey overlay, (hence the doily-like graphics), on a contemporary cut gown.

The printing process was 4-color off-set and also involved a custom dye-cut in the finishing process. The dye-cut was needed to create a rounded corner fold out panel with two slits in the flap which was the housing for an insert and/or a wallet size photo.

Sharing = Caring

2008-06-27T22:00:00.015-06:00

Fantastic design in any form makes me giddy but sometimes I find it easier to really experience design when I am touching it. This is why I usually prefer reading an old journal entry or an idea from smeared maker on paper rather than through typed words on a monitor. Words just seem to have a smidge more personality that way. Don't get me wrong, writing and creating in any form is better than not at all and keeping record of it is even better. This is why blogging is so lovely.

Another loveliness to blogging is that it promotes sharing life with people you love and, if you’d like, people you don’t yet love. I will admit that I am sometimes not that generous when it comes to sharing. For instance, giving up the last bite of ice cream from my own bowl is a bit of a challenge for me at times. So here is my non-private blog in an attempt to be a better sharer/carer, even if just in my mind. Besides that, I really have a fondness for organizing, especially with bins and labels, and blogging is just that only in digital form.

And here begins a record of my insignificant-important things, what I love and what I don’t love, a collection of random morsels with perhaps a few projects sprinkled about here and there, an assortment of “giant bits” if you will.