Paper & Pins

merry christmas!!

2009-12-21T21:30:00.008-06:00

i'm wishing all of you the excitement & magic that you felt as a child....happy holidays!

• 1962 •

• 1964 •

• 1964 •

• 1964 •

• 1968 •

all photos by my dad.

craving.....

2009-10-08T14:34:00.007-05:00

caramel apples...

corn dogs...

& the thrill of the state fair...

i remember from my childhood.

one year they let us out of school early so we could go...

that was heaven for a kid!

what rhymes with eyelash?

2009-10-01T12:46:00.006-05:00

• found here •

• stephanie simek •

• found here •

• found here •

• found here •

• found here •

• found here •

• found here •

• more here & here •

i think i might need that necklace!!

a sure sign fall is on the way....

2009-09-14T13:59:00.012-05:00

when the weather finally cools i open the windows next to my desk & bask in the sounds of the season. breaking up the constant whirring of the last cicadas of the summer is the periodic ping of falling acorns hitting our metal lawn furniture. in a few weeks or so it will be an almost constant din and my little dogs will be coming in with improvised tap shoes...the little hulls fit their tiny paw pads perfectly.

(they hate that!)

so while we wait here are some fun little acorn things to get you in the mood for fall too!

"the acorn queen"

marisol spoon

rock love

craftapalooza

eternal autumn

shining egg

nora aoyagi

botanical bird

and for more check out etsy!!

new blog love...

2009-09-05T11:35:00.009-05:00

i may be behind the times & the last one to find this blog (thanks erin!), but i think it'll be my new favorite place to hang out.

i appreciate a well told story & significant objects doesn't disappoint.

objects collected at garage sales & flea markets are sold on ebay but only after they are paired with clever stories about their origins. added value if you will!

one of my favorites is the story accompanying a ziggy paperweight written by Todd Levin...

an excerpt...

"On her desk Mary Eileen kept a clear glass bowl filled with M&Ms. The bowl had a lid, held in place with a heart-shaped Ziggy paperweight. It was an elaborate contraption — really, more of a trap. The time required to get at that candy — removing and replacing both the paperweight and lid — guaranteed you would be held captive for at least a fleeting social interaction."

the success of the site...$1,478.54 sold to date on items costing $60.50...is an ode to the power of a good story to sell us things we probably never even needed!

rainy days here...

2009-08-27T10:08:00.008-05:00

but you know if i were in paris i wouldn't care either!

• photo by elliot erwitt •

back from a long break...

2009-08-21T13:01:00.013-05:00

it's tough coming home to the real world after an extended vacation. the bills, work, grocery shopping, housekeeping & even "dogkeeping"...you know, everyday life maintenance...is all so much less interesting than porch sitting & visiting with family & beloved friends.

but we are back & i had the diana shots developed....here are my favorites from tennessee & from california.

sadly, i never got to the beach, but i got close! we spent a week in watsonville, ca. where my husband grew up. it's a sleepy little farm town on the coast between santa cruz & monterey. i love that place...we had beautiful strawberries, blackberries & raspberries fresh off the vine & still warm from the sun. it was heavenly!

• the tiny pool at our
rental house in tennessee •

• flea market bike •

• cade's cove •

• cade's cove steeple •

• gatlinburg pool •

• taylor's hot dogs in watsonville, ca •

• moss landing gingerbread •

she's here!

2009-08-03T09:38:00.006-05:00

& i love her.

my diana camera came in the mail just before we left for the smoky mountains & boy did i have fun with her on our trip. yes, my camera is a she & so easy to use. the funny looks i got from people when she loudly clicked as i advanced her film to the next frame tickled me as well.

she came in the most beautiful & inspiring of packages. one i think i will be keeping. & not only did she come with a beautiful box, but a book of photos taken by lomo owners as well. this was a great surprise to me & oh so inspiring...i couldn't wait to take it out & start shooting. so now i have to wait for the 9 rolls i took to be processed. i'm hoping to be pleasantly surprised but you never know with these things & that, for me, is a big part of it's charm.

in the mean time she will be traveling with me to the beach...i'll be sure to post the best of these photos (fingers crossed) when i return!

diana...

2009-07-17T10:12:00.005-05:00

my creative slump is in full force. i attribute it in part to not being able to channel all the ideas i have floating around in my head into a specific direction. i don't know where to start first. i do have a project going that i'm excited about, but i'm not ready to share yet...soon though!

the real point of this post...i've long admired the photos that my friends have taken with their holga & diana cameras & then a few days ago my lovely sister-in-law, tina of english muse, posted shots of her garden.

so lovely & ethereal.

i finally broke down & bought my own camera. we are vacationing in the smoky mountains soon & i plan to take it along & see what i get. in this case, if not in my career, flying by the seat of the pants can be a good thing!

a 4th in the country....

2009-07-07T10:32:00.007-05:00

grilled burgers....fresh tomatoes....home made ice cream....little girls with sparklers....

& cows watching it all at the fence.

i had a nice & relaxing holiday. did you?

the crossing....

2009-06-22T11:13:00.005-05:00

a favorite swimming hole down a shaded road near my grandparent's house....

i remember the anticipation of cool mud between the toes & murky green water...

no swim suits required...only an inflatable creature...

sadly, this place no longer exists. someone dammed it up & reduced it to a trickle.

still, i have the memories.

photos by my dad 1958 & 1966

my kind of chemistry....

2009-06-20T15:40:00.008-05:00

growing up the daughter of a science professor, i spent a lot of time at the college where he taught. thus my fascination with the unusual shaped beakers & bottles used in the chemistry labs. i even chose black soapstone for my kitchen because it reminded me of those labs.

so now i find this....i must have it. peter is really the mixologist at our house but this is just the coolest thing & i think if i had this to play with that i might mix up a few drinks as well! i also love this phrase from the sell copy....

Constitutional isomers of dimethyl ether, when blended with a combination of citric acids and disaccharides are damned tasty.

i'll say! i think it's mojito time! buy it here.

crafty happy hour....

2009-06-13T14:40:00.007-05:00

9 silly friends...

in house bartender...

good food...

2 kinds of sangria plus mojitos...

little "helper" dogs...

a few arts & craft supplies...

makes for lots of fun & laughter...

if not much crafting!

laura...

2009-06-10T11:22:00.004-05:00

my most talented & lovely friend, laura huliska-beith, has completed her website & i want to share her awesomeness with my internet friends.

she's a busy children's book illustrator & writer & i think you'll agree with me that her work is just charming. you can find her books here!

it's amazing what a computer novice (she would agree with me on this!) can put together....just the kick in the pants i need to get my site up!

porch dreaming...

2009-06-07T13:09:00.016-05:00

sorry i've been "out" all week. i just had a job that was very short notice & quick turn around.

i have a flickr favorite to share with you. rikki nyman's american vintage home has some great images of home interiors & exteriors with most of them being from the 20's & 30's.

i'm not sure why i'm so fascinated by them except that i've always had a love of vintage. we live in a neighborhood of homes built between 1920 & 1960. the styles are varied...from tudor, to story book cottages with their sweeping roof lines, to spanish styles with red tile roofs, to cape cod, to mid century modern. i love them all & enjoy imagining what it was like living here then.

i also love that most of the older images in rikki's collection are not photos but illustrations. the 10's 20's & 30's were truly the golden age of the illustrator...check them out...the color palettes are wonderful!

she has a collection under the heading sun rooms that i'm always looking at for inspiration. we have a sun porch on the back of the house that we want to redo. this photo i love...

the metal furniture would be so appropriate to our 1951 house but finding such a thing would involve lots of estate sale-ing. i've also become enamored of the colorful wicker at maine cottage furniture...it would be fabulous in red!

what do you think? the styles are so different but i love them both!

oh well....i'm going to have to just keep day dreaming about it because money is a bit tight.

for more vintage inspiration...especially color palettes...be sure to visit the web site antique home style too.

it's a great way to spend a sunday afternoon!

diapers & a garden hose...

2009-06-02T09:37:00.009-05:00

summer has begun & my memories turn to the simple pleasure of a garden hose in the yard.

i look at these pictures & marvel at how busy my mom must have been....2 of us in diapers & all of the laundry on the line.

in the photo of her & my youngest brother you can see the diaper pail being used as a doorstop.

she is still a busy woman, but thankfully her laundry duties no longer include diapers!

photos by my dad...1964

i know....

2009-05-23T10:45:00.004-05:00

...i said i was taking a blogging break, but the peonies are in bloom & that makes me very happy!

have a great memorial day, everyone!

anniversary giveaway....

2009-05-11T14:05:00.010-05:00

UPDATE: using random.org (a cool little gadget) the winner of the giveaway was chosen...congratulations go to katrina of pugly feet! girl, email me an address & it'll be on it's way to you. thank you, too, to all of you who cared to read this past year...i think i'll keep it up!

xox

i'm always amazed at the speed with which time flies. a week ago i realized that today is the first anniversary of this blog...i never really expected to stick with it & the blog has evolved into something more personal than i had intended but it's been a fun experience.

in celebration & appreciation of those few of you who actually read it, i'm doing a giveaway. if you are interested, leave me a comment & i'll draw the winning name on thursday morning. thanks & good luck!

this is one of my little bags i've been making. it's a large coin purse size & fashioned out of a vintage, red & white woven hand towel...possibly linen. the interior is red & white gingham. the overall size of the purse is 5" X 7" with the nickle plated metal frame itself measuring 4" wide...sorry the ipod is not included!

good news...

2009-05-08T15:42:00.010-05:00

...on the printer front. my canon i9900 pooped out earlier this week. do you know what a logic board is? neither do i, but it seems they burned out on just about every i9900 they manufactured. so for a little more than the price of fixing it, canon will give me a new pro9000 printer. i only have to pay what amounts to about half of it's retail price. i hope it lasts a while...seems in the world of wide format printers the choices & happy customers are few!

{photo here}

i've been in a creative slump recently & feel like i need to get away from the computer for a while. so this month i want to work with my hands again & do some sewing & maybe some gocco printing. that means it'll be sparse posting here until early june. BUT monday, may 11th will be my one year blogging anniversary & i want to do a little giveaway for you few friends who actually read this thing.

it'll be something i've yet to make for i'm one of those people who needs a tight deadline to get anything accomplished...(that's why i have parties~if i didn't, we would be living in squalor to rival grey gardens)...anyway, enjoy your weekend & check in on monday to sign up!

UPDATE: uh...you might want to make it later in the day before you check in....so much for self imposed deadlines...

crap...

2009-05-06T12:45:00.006-05:00

is it bad when the printer starts grinding & smelling like burnt plastic? yeah...thought so.

i can be pretty sure that i will spend more to fix it than i will on a new printer.

so...printer recommendations, anyone? large format & 6 to 8 pigment based colors...go!

goodbye...

2009-05-04T13:25:00.004-05:00

...sweet cotton. you were a good little dog & like peter says a beloved member of our pack. you were so spirited on our outings & made us laugh with your bouncy wind-up toy walk. we'll forever wish we had had you longer. rest easy my little friend. xoxo

mom...

2009-04-30T09:40:00.005-05:00

...happy birthday, today! you've been more than a mother to me...you've been my best friend. maybe because after having me at such a young age we pretty much grew up together. i don't know how you did it having babies so close together, going to nursing school with 3 little kids at home, working hard....& now keeping dad "alive" (according to him!). you're an amazing woman & i look forward to celebrating many, many more birthdays with you.

have a great day & remember that i love you!

xoxo

g.

speaking of weddings...

2009-04-29T17:49:00.005-05:00

...{yesterday}...how about a bit of my work? here is another hallmark instant scrapbook. 20 pages of tiffany blue, grey & ivory with some pearl ink & flitter thrown in. this, along with some other formats like a photo album & guest book, are available at your local gold crown store.

{click on the images to get a better view}

white wedding...

2009-04-28T10:27:00.007-05:00

spring cleaning has been on my mind. more specifically, one closet full of clothes i will never wear again but that have fond memories for me. i need to do something though...we need the storage space for other things!

one item taking up way more space than it should is my wedding dress...11 years since i've worn it & it's still in it's bag & as dirty as it was when i finally took it off that day. talk about procrastination. i had all kinds of plans for this dress when we married. we expected to have children & i was going to cut it up to make a christening gown. that didn't happen & now i have this big poof in the closet & i'm too sentimental to discard it. maybe i'll leave it for the estate sale people to deal with when we finally move into assisted living!

my friend, liz, told me one time that she tried dyeing her cocktail length dress for the first easter following her wedding back in the 50's because she couldn't afford a new dress. she said it was a horrid mess & she had to throw it away!

the point of this post is that while i've been pondering what to do with my dress & wondering what other women do with theirs, i ran across a project underway at the victoria & albert museum. they are preparing an exhibit of wedding dresses for 2011 & in advance are creating a database of wedding clothes photographs from all cultures & worn between 1840 & the present. it's been fun perusing the photos...i especially like the overblown edwardian hats worn in the early 20th century & the barefoot & crochet era of the 70's.

i was thinking i should submit this photo of my slavic great grandparents. katharina was hungarian & franz was yugoslavian. both very recent immigrants to the states when they met & married in iowa on january 27th, 1914. heh, they look uncomfortable don't they? they had a long marriage with many children & granny lived into her 90's. i wonder what she did with her dress?

what did you do with yours? any recycling tips? maybe i should suggest the topic to readymade magazine!

happy monday...

2009-04-27T11:57:00.002-05:00

a rainy morning, NPR on the radio, coffee & a muffin & facebook are all making for a relaxing monday morning.

i have no assignments scheduled for this week so i'm looking forward to getting to those projects that have been on the back burner for a while....mostly some sewing! if i make much headway this week i'll share what i've been working on....in the meantime i hope your monday is a pleasant one!

daydreaming...

2009-04-22T10:56:00.007-05:00

so busy with work, but as i sit at my computer moving christmas motifs around a gift wrap design i daydream of spain. we are going next year, but don't have definite plans yet beyond wanting to rent a small apartment in barcelona. have you been? where should we go?

{poster design by kate & liz pope available here}

gardening with turtles...

2009-04-17T23:44:00.006-05:00

i so enjoy my friend maria's blog. besides being an excellent artist she's a dang funny writer & she has lots to write about. she lives with two 20 pound turtles, 3 birds, a cat & various feline & raccoon visitors to her back door...all looking for a handout.

one of her latest posts is horrifyingly funny...check out the video. could you live with that? not me...the sad thing is that the bird was probably still crying like that long after the baby grew up.

check her out...i guarantee you'll want to follow her too!

sweet girl...

2009-04-17T11:24:00.012-05:00

we miss you dearly....

cady jordan

4.17.89~12.4.04

Care about your passengers (they are your responsibility)
Always wear your seat belts (this means everyone in the car)
Drive responsibly (there are people counting on you)
You are loved! (so make sure you get home safely)

grey gardens...

2009-04-15T09:21:00.020-05:00

drew barrymore has surprised me. i was skeptical that she could pull off the role of little edie, but from what i've seen in the previews she's got the accent & manner down pat. & the makeup artists have turned her so convincingly into our favorite fashion plate you forget you're not watching the documentary.

albert and david maysles filmed their famous profile of jackie kennedy's eccentric cousins, edith “little edie” bouvier beale and her mother, edith “big edie” ewing bouvier beale, in the mid 70's. it's fascinating. the women live in the squalor of a once beautiful hamptons estate & spend their days rehashing old grudges & regrets. i think they were both pretty much nuts...my gosh, they could barely buy food for themselves yet fed whole loaves of bread to scores of cats & the raccoons living in the attic !

if you have time to see the documentary before the film, which premiers this saturday on HBO, do it. like i said, it's fascinating & i'm looking forward to seeing the rest of the beale's story.

before & after...

2009-04-13T10:45:00.007-05:00

my friend, steve, out in san diego has started a kitchen remodel & it reminds me that he had asked to see what we did with our kitchen a few years ago.

the before shots show you just how dreary this house was when i bought it. inside it was dark, paneled, wallpapered & carpeted. outside it was dark & weedy & just as dreary as the inside. heck, the front door was black! but the house was laid out very nicely & in good shape so i bought it. it's amazing what you can live with until you can afford to change things. here are some before & after shots of the kitchen!

happy easter!

2009-04-11T19:16:00.006-05:00

may your new easter clothes be comfortable!!

me in 1967.
i loved that dress. it had a tulle petticoat!

my cousin, candy, 1970

my cousin, tony, 1970

a little dose of the truth...

2009-04-07T10:39:00.013-05:00

love the book....

these look easy...
i'll make some great gifts!

the reality sinks in....

heh, i think i'll stick to sewing...

for the love of fabric...

2009-04-01T09:35:00.003-05:00

i keep coming back to look at all of the crazy fun upholstery & accessories that they make at squint ltd. i don't know...i love the humor of stuffy, traditional furniture covered in colorful patchwork! it just makes me smile.

i don't think i could ever get away with a whole sofa in my house but maybe a chair? if i could only figure out a cost effective way to get it here from london...

the cure...

2009-03-31T10:09:00.007-05:00

"A hot bath! I cry, as I sit down in it! Again as I lie flat, a hot bath! How exquisite a pleasure, how luxurious, fervid and flagrant a consolation for the rigors, the austerities, the renunciation of the day."
Rose Macaulay

"There must be quite a few things a hot bath won't cure, but I don't know many of them."
Sylvia Plath

the place i go when i'm stressed, am out of ideas for work (for some reason they come freely to my mind as i relax in a tub) & to read....book club is tonight & i've still got a chapter or two to go...so i have an appointment scheduled in the "library" this afternoon.

am i the only one out there who reads in the bath?? i kind of doubt it...

a midwest spring...

2009-03-30T10:43:00.006-05:00

so typical of kansas city...we got a heavy snow this weekend. & today all that is left of that snow are droopy daffodils & leaning snowmen sitting on bright green lawns....*sigh*

my heart is really here...

Banyan Tree Madivaru Resort

instant relations...

2009-03-26T09:36:00.008-05:00

i'm swamped with work right now & the blogging fun has fallen off in favor of PAYING work, but i did want to share something i ran across the other day.

i was looking at the website of a local auctioneer to see what was coming up for sale this spring & in one catalog i saw this painting. isn't it lovely?

i love the direct gaze of the german shepherd. i look at her & imagine all sorts of things about who she was & what her life was like. i want this painting...& i want to tell everyone she's my great gatsby aunt!

catherine...

2009-03-20T09:07:00.009-05:00

one of my favorite places to spend time on the web is the KC public library. i didn't grow up in KC, but i'm fascinated by old images of the city & the library has been working hard to digitize their archives.

i recently ran across a collection of old photos that were in a scrapbook left to the library by the former owner of a dance studio. imagine my surprise when i recognized someone!

catherine & her husband, vernon, were dear friends of mine. peter & i, along with our friend molly, would visit them weekly & let them spoil our dogs with treats & hugs. they were dog lovers, but felt they were too old to have one of their own so we shared ours. mine loved going...they would start squealing & barking as soon as we turned off state line road into their neighborhood!

i knew catherine had loved to dance as a young girl. she would tell me stories of having a very good friend from class who went on to new york & became a rockette. catherine wanted nothing more than to be a rockett too, but she was an only child & probably overprotected & her parents wouldn't let her go. she was forever disappointed by that!

i was so pleasantly surprised to see these photos of her in the library database. she had given me a copy of the second one, but i've never seen the first. i think it's even lovelier & i may have to order a print of it.

we miss catherine & vernon. they both passed away a couple of years ago after very long lives of doting on each other. catherine went first & vernon not long after...i know he missed her deeply. i like to think they are together again & hopefully with the little dogs (their's & mine) they loved so much & that have passed on too.

happy st. pat's!

2009-03-17T13:42:00.006-05:00

we are working today instead of going to the big KC parade in midtown, but on saturday we put a little green scarf on toby & wandered on over to our neighborhood parade in brookside. we had fun...lots of little dogs in hats (& some dyed green!) & kids & friends & homemade floats!

rethinking wallpaper...

2009-03-11T16:49:00.012-05:00

when i bought this house we live in back in 1992, every room was papered or paneled. i've spent years getting the walls back to plaster. they've been patched & painted until they are as smooth as fondant. that old wallpaper was hideous & multi layered. 70's & 80's paper on top of 50's & 60's paper...i was happy to see it go! remind me to post before & after photos sometime.

now, though, designers are revisiting wallpaper & i have to say there are some fun patterns happening that i can imagine putting up in a room or two. here are just a few that i love....

• a kelly wearstler pattern available here •

• linda barker pattern available here •

• julien macdonald pattern available here •

• a graham & brown branded paper available here •

this one reminds me of the mexican cut paper banners called papel picado...i love it!
it's available at schumacher.

• mark shanks pattern available here •

wallpaper sites to bookmark:
schumacher
mod green pod
design public
studio nommo-they will also turn your own designs or photos into wallpaper!
2modern
graham & brown
anna french

& if you still love vintage paper like these...

visit rosie's vintage wallpaper. an added bonus are the packs of 12"X18" papers for crafting that they sell. i was thinking it might be fun to buy some & do some gocco printing over them...in my "spare" time!

happy hanging!

someday...

2009-03-08T13:43:00.004-05:00

i will own a house like this...

aren't the renderings beautiful?

Name: A Climate-Wise House for the Missouri Valley - Stuart Williams Residence
Architect: David Benton Runnells
Year Designed: 1948
Builder: Unknown
Year Built: 1950
Size: Unknown
Location: South Kansas City, Missouri
Type: Residential
Style: Modern, Passive solar heating and cooling
Status: Good
Photographer: N/A
Illustrator: Unknown

via KC MODERN on flickr. check it out to see more wonderful homes & vintage KC architecture!

brilliant!

2009-03-06T10:00:00.001-06:00

i'm still dealing with my magazine problem, but i may have stumbled upon the perfect solution...

thank you, design crisis!

75 degrees today...

2009-03-05T22:22:00.005-06:00

& i think it might be time to break out the sandals & the red polish...you have no idea how happy that makes me!

• photo via we heart it •

why you should need a license to buy photoshop...

2009-02-27T15:57:00.012-06:00

i have a favorite blog that amuses me so much i had to share it. it's lovely! i'll take it! brings together all of those horrifying real estate photos in one place. you know the ones...they are supposed to entice you with beautiful photos showing the property in it's best light. you would think that before these photos are taken, people would maybe...

clean up the yard,

or paint a bit,

or tidy up some,

or make the bed,

or even clean up what looks like a crime scene!

but you would be wrong!

what really cracks me up, though, are these photos.

i guess someone felt the shots were a little lacking & decided to spruce the place up a bit. i just can't...stop...laughing....

art o' the day...

2009-02-24T11:16:00.012-06:00

the metropolitan museum of art posts a daily piece of art on it's site. check it out...i think it must be the next best thing to being there! you can also subscribe to the artwork of the day feed so you never miss a day of inspiration.

today it's this piece by fernando botero called

dancing in Columbia (1980)

i've posted it along with it's color palette for those other color collectors out there.

from the site:

Botero's art often depicts scenes of leisure in which people are shown drinking or dancing. Though his satirical renderings may seem humorous at first, they are often laden with social and political commentary. "Dancing in Colombia" depicts a lively café scene. The room seems overcrowded with seven musicians, two dancers, and a jukebox. Details such as the floor littered with cigarettes and fruit and the exposed light bulbs on the ceiling suggest that this particular café is rather seedy, attracting clients of a decadent and perhaps immoral nature. One can almost imagine the odors of sweat, tobacco, liquor, and cheap cologne that fill the space or the rooms upstairs that can be rented by the hour, although none of this is explicitly communicated. Curiously, there is a vast difference in demeanor between the two groups of figures. The musicians stare blankly and seem to be part of an inanimate still life arrangement. They are the backdrop for the inexplicably smaller couple who dance before them with wild abandon, hair and legs flying. Like other works from this period, the surface of this painting is extremely smooth, with few traces of brushwork; color is muted, although small areas of red, yellow, and green appear garishly bright.

drawing with stones...

2009-02-21T12:46:00.010-06:00

world beach project ~ devised by artist in residence, sue lawty & sponsored by the victoria & albert museum.

just lovely.
sigh....i wish i lived near a beach.....

color matters...

2009-02-19T13:16:00.014-06:00

one christmas i was looking over my sister-in-law, tina's, shoulder as she was flipping thru a stack of magazines. she was making notes as she did this & told me that she collected words. she writes for a living & is always looking for fresh ways to phrase her ideas. i totally understood what she was doing because i'm a collector too...but of color palettes.

i thought i would share a few of the places i go to get these color combinations besides the obvious magazines & catalogs. all are helpful when you are just stuck for ideas.

my favorite is an adobe site called KULER. it's a community of collectors like me who post their latest palettes. there is also a widget available for your macintosh desktop!

another community of designers is colourlovers.com. i find the blog posts & discussions interesting.

as for books on palettes, there are many. for a large selection of good ones you might check out the HOW magazine bookstore. two that i own that have come in handy are these....they pull colors from fine art & vintage graphic design. i just love that.

so where do you all go for color inspiration??

vintage photos...

2009-02-17T17:14:00.007-06:00

i love looking at old photos & one site i visit often, shorpy, has inspired me to periodically post some vintage family photos.

i grew up in arkansas. where everyone, at some point, learns to shoot a pistol.

usually at what my brothers call the hillbilly shooting range...old cans, abandoned cars & other trash thrown in ravines & creeks.

& sometimes even while dressed in heels... & with your eyes closed.

vintage valentines...

2009-02-12T10:07:00.006-06:00

i have a drawer full of vintage valentines picked up at an estate sale in a small town in rural arkansas. the woman whose estate it was apparently saved every piece of paper she ever got. lucky for me!

here are 2 of my favorites. their little faces & bobbed haircuts are just so charming. but i have to say i'm not sure about the caption & sentiment on the wooden tub one...it might be a bit racy. what do you think?

accessories can make the oufit...

2009-02-07T21:14:00.008-06:00

i'm not sure what these are all about, but it makes me wonder why barbie clothes never came with guns...it would have made life in the dream house much more interesting!

from peppermint kiss kiss on flicker...

alexander girard...

2009-02-05T18:48:00.015-06:00

when i wrote yesterday about how classic, mid century textile designs are being reissued i didn't mention that it's not just textiles. alexander girard's work is everywhere these days & if you weren't aware that he died in 1993, you might think that he was an up & coming young designer!

• ply prints @ velocity •

• vitra wooden dolls @ stardust.com •

• carpet tiles @ flor •

• toys, puzzels & fonts @ house industries •

the charm & whimsy i see in these designs makes me think that he must have been a happy man!

timeless design...

2009-02-03T11:29:00.014-06:00

i have this fantasy of owning a vintage palm springs house full of mid century modern furniture & fabrics. i know it's unreasonable, but i told peter that our next house...if it's not assisted living...will be a vintage ranch & i want to start all over with the furnishings. he just laughs. a girl can dream, can't she??

i'm so in love with a few of the designers from that era & i've been thrilled to see their work being reissued. maharam textiles has come out with a large line of twentieth century designs by anni albers, charles & rae eames, alexander girard, george nelson, verner panton & others. if you look at their site click on the visual library link to see the entire line.

george nelson, 1950 | gio ponti, 1930

charles & rae eames, 1947 | george nelson, 1950

gunnar aagaard andersen, 1955 |
alexander girard, 1952

both alexander girard, 1954

a few years ago we were remodeling our kitchen & i was able to squeeze in a bit of charles & rae eames' dot pattern fabric. i put it on just the backs (that's all i could afford!) of a couple of booth seats i picked up at retro inferno here in town. when i bought them they were covered in orange & black vinyl...happy halloween!

steve, at kansas city upholstery, said that they turned out so nicely that when they put them in the front window he could have sold them many times over. though our house is a 1951 cape cod & has traditional elements like the kitchen bead board, i think the benches fit in just fine.

if i can't have a whole house full of mid century modern i think a few pieces here & there can add a little something special & i can be satisfied with that!

love hurts...

2009-02-02T10:07:00.005-06:00

• poor little cherub - deb always finds the best photos •

just a little update for those of you in kc who might not be on her mailing list, curious sofa is having a valentine event in her store this weekend. i'm excited to see my friend, tammy smith of homemade circus, exhibit her charming little sculptures. maybe i'll see you there!!

time warp...

2009-01-30T22:58:00.005-06:00

i had to post this because it's just so crazy. my friend, deb, is a realtor here in missouri & ran across this listing for a house in st. louis that is as pristine & unchanged as the year it was built...1955.

for some reason it's one owner chose to live in the basement...for 53 years!

check it out....mint condition, mid century furniture, appliances, bathrooms! isn't this the weirdest thing ever? for anyone like myself who ever dreamed of being able to time travel this might be the house for you!

• small but tidy •

• love the blonde wood...but no signs of life •

• the cutest kitchen ever! •

modern seed....

2009-01-29T11:07:00.012-06:00

with all of the ice & snow we've had lately my thoughts have turned to my neighborhood birds. i enjoy watching them at the feeders & have been kept busy keeping them filled. i think word spreads quickly around here because before you know it there's all kinds of squabbling going on out there!

i'm particularly attracted to these mid century style feeders & houses. while not squirrel proof, they are so colorful & whimsical that i envision them hanging in mutiples from the tree branches in my yard. kind of pricey...but still...aren't they cool?

• ceramic orb feeder & house
are both at olive barn •

• peanut feeder at design within reach •
• egg shaped feeder at grounded •

• white bisque shelter at architectural pottery •
• oval shaped feeder at perch! •

& while these aren't ceramic or colorful, i do love their shapes...they remind me of vintage vacuum coffee pots!

• both by eva solo & available at grounded •

year of the mustache?

2009-01-27T14:16:00.021-06:00

you know how as you go about your daily business you'll start to see the same motif everywhere you look? on all kinds of products? textiles, apparel, stationery...how does this happen? it's like everyone had the same idea all at the same time. there has to be a study on this phenomena somewhere.

the past couple of years it's been all about the owl & the forecasting experts say the next motif we'll all be seeing is the octopus. seems that it's always something that's not so cute in real life. remember the mushroom of the 70's? the sight of an orange & brown polka-dotted mushroom will always take me back to junior high art class...we all drew them.

so it seems all of the sudden i've started seeing the mustache everywhere. i admit there are some fun products in the mix but why do most of the shapes have to remind me of these guys??

i do have to say, though, i like a thin, latin, pencil style 'stache...as long as the latin man comes with it.

1. tote • supermarket
2. t-shirt • red bubble
3. pendant • ach ach liebling • via etsy
4. 4 coffee cups • the junk yard • via etsy.
5. pencils • atypyk
6. tom selleck cocktail • plan b bar in chicago
7. postcard • kate is great 80 • via etsy
8. "beard full of love" print • laura george • via etsy
9. etched glass • bread and badger
10. pendants • chiaras hand painted • via etsy

and for more product, mustaches have their own category on etsy... who knew?

photoshop disaster...

2009-01-25T11:07:00.006-06:00

oh my....images like this give me hope that if i ever needed another job, i wouldn't have any problem measuring up. i guarantee you it all went down like this...."my assistant/nephew/best friend's brother has photoshop....we can save some money!"

if you're feeling at all inadequate as a designer check out this site. trust me, you'll feel better.

new books!!

2009-01-24T15:14:00.040-06:00

i know people love me when they give me books. this christmas i hit the mother load! ok...i did buy lots of them myself but that money mom & dad gave me was burning a hole in my pocket so i gave it all to amazon.com.

from peter...

my friend, julie, reviews this book on her blog. it's just lovely.

from mom...knit knit profiles knitters who don't follow the rules...much less patterns. it's inspired me to maybe try taking some chances with my own knitting.

how about this guy? this is inspired (or just craziness) knitting at it's best! yes those are real cranes knitting with telephone poles!

from maja...

i can't get enough of these little amigurumi pattern books. i like to make these little animals for my niece who has a passion (problem??) for collecting stuffed animals. plus it's a great way to use up left over yarn in your stash.

from leighs books. a cute little book store in sunnyvale california we went to after dinner with peter's sister & her family. i could have spent hours in there & bought more but didn't want to hold up the outing...or look greedy! i love memoirs & biographies...these should be interesting!

from the japanese bookstore, kinokuniya, in san jose. wish we had one in kc.

ISBN 978-4-579-11209-8

ISBN 978-4-8347-2764-7

ISBN 978-4-277-17231-8

i can't read any of these books but the projects are so nicely photographed & all of the designs are charted (a good thing for us visual folks) that they won't be any trouble to crochet. crafting japanese has info if you want to try ordering these types of books online...

& books i bought for myself with christmas money...i couldn't think of anything i needed more!

i really liked two of his other books i've read:

rain of gold & burro genius

like i said, i like memoirs & biographies.

and because i'll NEVER own enough craft books...

both well written! funny & great projects to boot!

i told you i hit the mother load!

feasibility study...

2009-01-17T09:36:00.011-06:00

back in the summertime when gasoline was almost $4 a gallon i was rummaging thru the glove box in my old 95 cherokee. i found its sales lot window sticker & discovered it got 12 miles to the gallon....yes 12. i had no idea. & being me, i started to consider what we could buy ('cause i love to buy) that would be more economical.

this is what came to mind...

never one to consider practicalities first, all i saw was how cute & stylish it was. the fantasies soon started. of driving it to the market. in a little town. by the beach. in france.

then it snowed & peter is relieved.

inspiration...

2009-01-16T09:00:00.005-06:00

i love everything about this little print...

it's not too gruesome is it? who knew marshmallow men could bleed.

you should buy it here!

it pays the bills...

2009-01-15T14:54:00.006-06:00

i haven't posted any of my work before now. i suppose it's because the lead times on what i do are long & i'm not allowed to show it until it's printed & out in the stores. by that time i've moved on to other things & forgotten all about it.

this, though, is finally out. hallmark has a huge line of what they call "instant scrapbooks" for those time & talent challenged folks out there. i've done quite a few of them & this is one of my favorites. here are a few of it's 20 pages & it's sticker sheets. like i said it's out in the hallmark stores now if you feel the need to have one....happy scrapping!

p.s. you'll have to click on it to get a better view....

good intentions...

2009-01-14T12:04:00.025-06:00

when the new year was just around the corner i resolved to pick up the blogging pace. maybe do a new post every other day....it's already the 14th & this is my first post of 2009...sigh.

i have been busy with travel & work, but it's other stuff too. i couldn't really figure out what it was until my friend, maria, posted about it on her blog. she calls it stinkin' thinkin'. and just because i was curious, i googled the phrase to see what would pop up. that's it up there at the top. check out the other images on his site...i don't know, i'm thinking he might have issues. his titles are certainly amusing.

anyway...stinkin' thinkin'. maria says it comes from those little voices in our heads that keep us from doing what we desire. i have one. in fact, i think i have more than one. it's like a little dysfunctional family of voices telling me:

"you're not good enough"

"your ideas stink"

"you really think anyone will buy that if you go to surtex? better not, it'll be embarrassing"

"really, it's ok...have another cookie! you'll feel better!"

& my favorite?

"all those people that give you work? boy, do you have them fooled!"

so, little voice? i'm not listening this year.
you can just sit down & shut up already.

merry christmas, internet!

2008-12-25T11:44:00.005-06:00

one of my favorite things i get to pull out every year... a nativity peter brought back for me from oaxaca, mexico.

sugar coma...

2008-12-23T10:38:00.024-06:00

my family tells me that as a toddler i would spend hours squatting at a fence that separated our yard from the neighbors & watch their chickens. i'm not sure what the fascination was for me, but i do appreciate a pretty brown egg & the thought of a happy bird. that's why i love to buy these local eggs from the campo lindo farms near KC. the other perk? the little note they put inside every single carton that updates us on the "ladies" & what is happening in the coop. they are so charming & clever that i can't wait to pop the carton open as soon as i get home & catch up on all the latest news. it's a sad day when i go to the deli case to buy the eggs & they've all been sold out.

"Hello from Campo Lindo Farms. As December zooms by, we'd like to take this opportunity to wish you a very Merry Christmas. We all tend to get so busy that we think of this time as hectic, tiring, and stressful. I think I will take my cue from the ladies who continue to do their own little thing (thank you ladies!) and aren't stressed at all. So enjoy the real season and thanks for choosing eggs from unstressed, local hens."

i managed to score some eggs for a little holiday baking. my aunt elaine posted this pecan bar recipe on our family site & i thought i would make them for a recent party.

they were really easy until it came to combining the hot sugar mixture with the raw eggs. i ended up with something that looked like egg drop soup. oy...luckily i had enough sugar, syrup & eggs to make a second batch.

really, if you can get the hang of that little cooking 101 skill you'll love these bars. you can feel virtuous about only having a little hand held piece of pie instead of a whole slice....until you find you've eaten the whole tray. enjoy!

Pecan Pie Bars

Ingredients:
2 c. all purpose flour
1/2 c sugar
1/8 tsp. salt
3/4 cup butter, cut up
1 c. firmly packed dark brown sugar
1 cup light corn syrup
1/2 c. butter
4 large eggs, beaten lightly
2-1/2 c finely chopped pecans
1 tsp. vanilla

Crust: Combine flour, sugar and salt in large bowl.
Cut in 3/4 cup butter thoroughly with a pastry blender until resembles very fine crumbs.
Press mixture into a greased 13” x 9” pan, using a piece of plastic wrap to press crumb mixture firmly in pan.
Bake at 350 degrees for 17 to 20 minutes or until lightly browned.

Filling:
Combine brown sugar, corn syrup and 1/2 c. butter in a saucepan;
bring to a boil over medium heat, stirring gently. Remove from heat.
Stir one-fourth of hot mixture into beaten eggs; add to remaining hot mixture and stir.
Stir in pecans and vanilla. Pour filling over partially baked crust.
Bake at 350 for 34 to 35 minutes or until set.
Cool completely in pan on a wire rack. Cut into bars. Refrigerate.

brrrr....

2008-12-22T18:46:00.006-06:00

it's been cold around here....

it figures the smallest one would hog the coziest scarves....

the best spot in front of the fireplace....

& park himself nose first in front of the space heater in my office.

our little prince runs this house....

suck it, charlie brown...

2008-12-10T14:45:00.007-06:00

• tree from urban outfitters •

from dooce yesterday....

"....Jon twisted a section of the artificial tree into place (he's allergic to real ones) he suggested I turn on some festive holiday music. And as I walked back to my computer to sift through our music collection I realized we don't have much to choose from. In fact, in the years that Jon and I have been together we've purchased only one album of Christmas music, A Charlie Brown Christmas, which has to be the most depressing Christmas music of all time. If you weren't on Prozac before you listened to that album, you'll be begging your therapist for a prescription by song two."

thank you!!

when i told peter i just couldn't sit thru another "charlie brown christmas" because i've always found the music to be the most depressing ever, he looked at me like i was out of my mind.
i now have validation!

diversions....

2008-12-09T10:18:00.006-06:00

i'm having a really hard time getting into the christmas spirit. i have so much design work to do & the thought of going out shopping & decorating the house overwhelms me. all i really want to do is read!

i got completely sucked into "true blood" on HBO. it's not the type of thing i usually go for, but now i'm having vampire withdrawal so i decided to buy the sookie stackhouse series of books thinking that would satisfy until the new season. plus, i might get an idea of where the story line is headed.

i hate to say this because this never happens, but i like the tv show better. i believe credit for this all goes to it's creator alan ball because the books seem to be a simplistic, watered down version of the show.

for one thing, the books (actually just the first book since it's the only one i've read so far) center on sookie's experience only. i miss the storylines of the other characters. tara, her best friend in the show, is non existent in the first book. i hope she shows up later.

my other problem is that i've been denied the opportunity to imagine these characters for myself...now i have to visualize them as the actors & i've never thought the actor they hired to play bill was very good casting.

even so, i'm gonna keep procrastinating until i've read them all...you guys on my christmas shopping list might just get drugstore cologne purchased at 5pm christmas eve!

thanksgiving...

2008-11-30T11:20:00.005-06:00

it doesn't change much from year to year...same dressing, same turkey.....

too many desserts.....

and as always i'm thankful for my family, my husband,

my work & my friends who have blessed my life!

british advice....

2008-11-10T18:28:00.007-06:00

...for my republican family members.

if you need your own...

This is a reproduction of the original Keep Calm and Carry On poster produced by the Ministry of Information 1939. It has been screen-printed by hand upon extremely high quality 170gm fine paper with an eggshell finish.

thanks TINA!

a life too short....

2008-11-03T22:08:00.018-06:00

my aunt mary ellen 1944-2008

you were loved & will be sorely missed....

corporate perks?

2008-10-16T12:51:00.017-05:00

i don't often miss that hallmark job i used to have...except for days like today.

it's "word week" & one of my favorite bloggers, dooce, is speaking to all the writers.

i've been reading her for years & it's strange how i feel like i know her. i really think she would be my new best friend if i could only meet her & have peter mix her a cocktail or two to grease the wheels. we would share great new design finds, commiserate over the challenges of living in a multi dog household & share stories about how growing up in the south gave us a sheltered & twisted view of the world.

i guess my favorite part of her blog is her photo features. especially the daily ones of her dogs. after seeing years of photos of chuck balancing things on his head i can't figure out if my dogs are either really smart or just plain stupid....i wouldn't really want to balance a squash on my head either....not even for food.

i love this....

2008-10-14T23:21:00.008-05:00

the music...the graphics...the message...the man.

i just pray he wins because if he doesn't, i have no hope for this country.

a friend & chicks....

2008-10-10T10:00:00.012-05:00

it's been a few years since i was able to attend the annual crafty chicks show, but i'm really excited to go this year & purchase some things.

my very talented friend, julie, has been a member of this group for some time & i so admire her talent & skill with the crochet & knitting needles! she recently gave me a sneak peek at a new stitch she's working on. it's just gorgeous & feels very vintage. i can't wait to actually buy one of her new brooches made with it. all of her brooches are beautiful & would look great on a coat or purse. if you can't make it to the chicks show, please check out her etsy store for a sampling of the pins as well as some beautiful scarves.

& if you love collecting you might enjoy her blog, bricolage, as well because this girl knows how to work a flea market!

october already??

2008-10-09T11:25:00.010-05:00

october is always a crazy busy month for me. don't know why. it just always means i have to squeeze together an annual family camping trip, visits from family & friends, our anniversary & my christmas design work. to top it off, the assignments are usually already running late when i get them. these days, though, i'm not complaining...i feel lucky to have work!

we had a great summer with lots of traveling & i'll be posting about those soon....but for now here's a shot from a trip we took to santa cruz in august with peter's family.

it was fun to finally see the boardwalk in all of it's summer glory. i had only ever been there at christmas time when it's eerily abandoned & it's only visitors were the sea lions lounging under the wharf.

such talented friends...

2008-10-01T11:10:00.007-05:00

my lovely friend, tammy, has been a busy bee. she's a very talented art director at her day job but in the evening she creates some really wonderful whimsical sculptures.

she recently started a blog to showcase her creations & has joined an artists collective to sell them. i'm really very jealous because i wish i could get off my ass & do the same thing!

first i need to pull enough money together to buy my favorite one.....this one! isn't it lovely??

check out her blog, home made circus, & the artists collective, glitter and grunge. you can also see tammy's work in person at the next crafty chicks show coming up in november!

projects....

2008-09-06T12:20:00.016-05:00

i've been busy around here....working on little freelance jobs here & there, lunching with friends but mostly trying to "keep the grass seed moist!!" it's like a swamp out there.

3 stacks of magazines gone!! one of the upsides to this mess is that i've realized i need to keep up the regular researching because i've come up with some great ideas for surface designs i plan to do in preparation for surtex next year....yes i really think i'm going to bite the bullet & just do it...as intimidated as i am. it's like putting yourself on display...what if no body likes my stuff....what if i don't have enough to show??? it's worse than the first day at a new school.

i got back into the knitting game too. i hate to post too much because this will be a gift but maybe the mother-to-be won't read this. i've made this dale of norway sweater before but the color palette was pretty gender neutral...mostly black & white. i thought it might look cute in pink & ivory.

here's the color palette. i love making these little sweaters...they look like they were difficult, but really, the only thing that's hard is figuring out how to hold multiple strands of yarn and not get them all twisted around each other. i'll post a photo when i finish it.

the only other thing going on around here is that my new glasses confirm i'm old. i got bifocals & now i need lessons in how to walk the dogs without tripping on the curbs. if anybody has tips on how to get used to holding your head funny to see out of different parts of the lenses let me know.

they are still there....

2008-08-27T12:54:00.004-05:00

mocking me while i find more fun things to do....

he's no lumberjack....

2008-08-22T13:27:00.016-05:00

despite peter's interest in cutting down our dead pine tree himself, i thought it better to hire it out. who knew one guy with a cherry picker could do it all by himself....and not end up on america's funniest home videos?

these guys had quite a time getting the new tree upright in it's hole. i'm sure that root ball weighed a ton. i didn't have the heart to go out & tell them i thought the tree would look better moved 2 feet to the right.

my shame....

2008-08-20T11:33:00.006-05:00

i just finished a big album/journal assignment for that giant card company so that means i have a few weeks before the next assignment arrives.

i always have big plans to organize my life when i get big chunks of time to myself like this. on the back burner for a while now has been my portfolio website as well as organizing files both paper & digital. the biggest project hanging over my head is this.....

it may not look like much in the photo but trust me in person it's mighty overwhelming. i don't know how i've let it get this way. i swear there are never opened magazines in that pile that are 5 years old!!

i realize any research i find in them will probably be out dated now, but i am physically unable to pitch them without skimming & clipping them first. mostly i move them from closet to closet pulling them out every few months thinking i will buckle down & just do it then we'll have company so i hide them back in the closet & forget about them until the next chunk of free time pops up. in the mean time several more months of magazines...& don't forget catalogs!...have arrived in the mail.

arrrgh!! is there a support group out there for this????

testing the wind...

2008-08-03T00:34:00.010-05:00

this is toby...our recent adoption from our local animal shelter. our vet thinks he's about 10 years old...which may explain why he has hardly any teeth to keep his little tongue in his head.

i like to think he's just testing the breezes...deciding which way he's going to go on our walks. cause, you know...i'm just along to pick up the poo.

being his helpful self...

2008-08-02T10:00:00.003-05:00

g: it’ll probably cost a thousand bucks to get that tree cut down...

P: i can do that for ya....

g: really?

P: yeah...i’ve seen them do it on americas funniest videos...first thing we need to do is park a car under it....

portland eats...

2008-08-01T10:39:00.011-05:00

last week, peter & i went to the heaven that is portland oregon. if you live in the midwest you’ll know what i’m talking about...those people out there don’t know what it’s like to live in summer time air so thick you can cut it & spread it on your bread.

we were meeting friends and since we were the first to arrive & the last to leave we had some free time to ourselves. we love ethnic food so when we travel we look for what we don’t have here...foods beyond the typical chinese-indian-thai fare that is available in KC. i don’t know why this town can’t support anything that is the least bit different... it seemed our favorite ethiopian place over on 39th was only open a few months. we were pretty bummed when it closed.

so, anyway, after studying the travel books & getting recommendations from various people who’ve been to portland we picked out a couple of cool looking places. the first was called POK POK....& i have to say that was some of the best food we’ve had in a looooong time. ok, i realize it’s thai/vietnamese, but i’ve never had anything like it in KC!

the restaurant is in a little converted bungalow on a neighborhood street. we figured all the people waiting outside was a good sign & so was the smell from their outdoor grill. when the hostess told us it would be a 45 minute wait we asked if they had a bar where we could get a drink. she said “no, but if you go to the bar on the corner we’ll call the bartender when your table is ready.”

ok! it was a funky hole in the wall with very fun silkscreen concert posters on the walls & the best mojito martini i have ever had. woo hoo! what a way to start off the evening & i only got a few little green things caught in my teeth!

they let us know our table was ready back at POK POK so when we got there we were seated at the bar for dinner...ok with peter...he’s all about mixology & is thinking that could be his back up career when the big H finally realizes he’s a fraud & fires him. silly man

we took the advice of the bartender & ordered 4 dishes....

Ike's Vietnamese Fish Sauce Wings ~ Fresh natural chicken wings marinated in fish sauce and palm sugar, deep fried, tossed in caramelized Phu Quoc fish sauce and garlic and served with Vietnamese table salad. Our daytime grill cook Ich Truong’s recipe from his home in Vietnam.

Kuung Op Wun Sen ~ Wild caught gulf prawns baked in a clay pot over charcoal with pork belly, whiskey, soy, ginger, cilantro root, black pepper, Chinese celery and bean thread noodles. Chinese influence on Thai food in full evidence.

Neua Naam Tok ~ Spicy and sour Isaan style grilled Cascade Natural flank steak salad with ground roasted dry chilies, lemongrass, fresh shallots, toasted rice powder, fish sauce, lime juice and mint.

Cha Ca La Vong ~ Catfish marinated in turmeric and sour sticky rice, fried in turmeric oil with scallions and dill, served on rice vermicelli with peanuts, mint and nouc cham. Our stab at the famous dish from La Vong Restaurant in Hanoi, Vietnam.

all excellent....who knew we would liked pork bellies?!

monday night we were on our own again so we went to a cuban joint called Pambiche. also located in a small neighborhood of bungalows so you can’t miss this brightly painted building. the food was as festive as the environment was colorful! one tip though....when you arrive & assume you’ll get seated if you stand by the “please wait to be seated” sign, guess again. the waitresses smiled at us but kept on walking past us....we didnt’ notice the sign-in list on a clip board pinned to the door jamb! doh! the weather outside was beautiful but we ended up inside at a table for 2.

the food, as expected, was excellent!

i had the Pollo Criollo ~ Tender chicken braised in a tangy traditional creole sauce, fragrant with fresh herbs, tomatoes and sour orange. Served with your choice of Cuban beans & rice. Dinner served with tostones.

peter had the Plato Cubano ~ The typical Cuban plate. Adobo marinated roast pork, served with your choiceof Cuban beans & rice. Dinner served with yuca con mojo.

the tostones (flattened & fried plantains) were yummy!

so if you are ever in portland check these places out!! you won’t be disappointed!

domino jones...

2008-07-30T10:00:00.007-05:00

domino is our oldest dog & at 14 she must look really good for her age because it never fails that someone will point to her when we are out for a walk & ask "is that a puppy?"

i don't know what it is about her...maybe her small size or her youthful demeanor but if you look closely her gray fur & cracked nose give her away....kind of like her "mom"!

first gocco project....

2008-07-18T13:20:00.027-05:00

my grandmother...known in my family as mamaw...was born in 1918. what an amazing woman she is & such a pistol!

besides living alone out in the country, she drives herself to her favorite store (the wal*mart), the beauty salon & her church. she gardens most everyday though her plot has shrunk some over the years. in spite of the aches & pains i know she suffers she really enjoys her life & tells me her most favorite thing in the world is a weekly scrabble game with her kids & grandkids. she says it's the only thing standing between her & the "home." she is sharp, that one.

{ yes...this is what 90 looks like! }

when she had her 90th birthday this past february she insisted she wanted no gifts. i guess she felt like it was a little late to acquire more stuff & she just didn't want anything. but peter & i wanted to give her something...this is such an important birthday after all. her little country church has a sparsely furnished library so we thought she might like a donation for books. she was thrilled & so were we to be able to give her something that meant so much to her. i also thought it would be a good first gocco project to design some personalized bookplates for them.

my first thoughts were to do something garden like since that is her passion. i like to sketch out my ideas on 3X5 cards...i'm not one of those designers that carries around a sketchbook...trust me i've tried, but it's just not how i end up working. i collect these 3X5's instead....i have file folders full!

so i scanned in a loose little sketch & drew some linework over it in illustrator. i also discovered illustrator's amazing brushes. who knew they were so cool? i've only ever used the program for graphic drawings...i never knew it could give me something that would look like hand rendered brushwork. i'm hooked...i'll be using that feature a lot!

i tried several layout ideas but the ones that had the cross were nixed pretty quickly by peter. he thought they looked like funeral cards & i had to agree. i just didn't see it until he mentioned it. so i went with my original scrollie vine drawing.

when it was time to do the printing, i found the best gocco tutorial on flickr. i pulled it up on my screen & followed it step by step running back & forth from work table to computer. i set up the art as a 2-up on a card that was 5X7 & cut them in half after they dried. then i ran them thru the new xyron (another nifty little gadget!) to add the sticky stuff. i'm happy with the way they turned out but i had about a 50% error rate...i obviously need more practice. i'm thinking i put the foam tape too close to some of the elements so i could never get enough pressure on the ink to push it thru the screen to the paper. now i know i'll have to watch that on future projects.

woo hoo! i had fun & mamaw loved the stickers!

4th of jooolyyy....

2008-07-10T19:03:00.018-05:00

peter went camping the weekend before the 4th leaving me to care for & walk 4 dogs....yes, all at the same time. i thought it was only fair to let him have the same experience...i went to arkansas for the 4th.

my aunt & uncle hosted on their property out in the country. it was so peaceful & beautiful & we enjoyed their new porch/pavilion they built onto the back of their house. both sides of the addition are sets of glass doors on tracks that open up completely so we had quite a breeze blowing thru....it was lovely. i look forward to going back when it's cooler & sitting by the fireplace they also thought to build inside. it's like camping but with a kitchen & bath several yards away!

i guess i changed my mind...

2008-07-09T16:50:00.002-05:00

i played around with typepad today. ugh...it's just as hard to work with....more so even than blogger. sure you can post larger photos, but man, they don't make it easy.

ok...after dissing blogger i figured out the photo issues i was having. yes...i'm an idiot....

yippeeeee!!!!

2008-07-02T16:46:00.015-05:00

i'm finally finished with that huge project....i sent off the files for the calendar today!!

so now that i'm free...for a couple of days at least....i have some stuff to do around here.

• i think i'm going to move this blog somewhere else....simply because i'm not that crazy about how blogger handles photos. there seems to be a limit on the length of the photo so that larger ones get shrunk down...don't like that. plus there is the wonky leading issue...i just can't figure that one out.

• i'm working on my first Gocco project...i'll be sure to post the process & the outcome. it's going to be personalized book plates for some books my grandmother is donating to her church. i went to paper source to look for stickers that i could print. of course i ended up not buying stickers but packets of cards & one of those xyron machines to add the sticky backing. i'm such a sucker for crafty gadgets...but really i've already spent $$$ on the gocco...what's 50 more dollars??

• we had company recently...our niece & her family from california. what a fun time we had with the little kids...i want to post photos of that.

so i have plans...not so much time, but i'll get to it.

y'all have a happy fourth of july!!! yes peter,

i said joooo-ly...that's how we say it in the south...

{ photo • shorpy }

too busy to post!!

2008-06-18T11:32:00.015-05:00

45 gift wrap concepts

70 page journal

24 page calendar

all to be designed by friday!

{ photo • shorpy }

back soon!

i got the GOCCO!

2008-06-11T10:23:00.011-05:00

well it came in the mail & the box is HUGE!

i'm swamped with work right now & won't have time to play with it for the next couple of weeks, but i have plans!

if you don't know what a GOCCO is, the best way i can describe it is that it's a small japanese silkscreen press. just big enough to print cards & small images. i guess it's been around for years in japan & was a household staple...everyone owned one. sales were down & the company decided to quit making them until the "save the GOCCO" people got them to reconsider.

i can't wait to play with it!

if you want to see some things printed with the GOCCO, here is the category on ETSY....enjoy!

auction loot....

2008-06-09T10:20:00.014-05:00

i love, love, love when someone in my family comes up with stuff for our family reunion auction that appeals to me because it doesn't happen very often.

my cousin, aimee, has figured me out! she made up this cute little gift basket out of a vintage ice bucket. it contained some fun little things....a vintage apron, a funky recipe box & some milk glass salt & pepper shakers, among other things.

i think i was born in the wrong era...i was meant to be a 40's or 50's housewife spending my days collecting kitchen gadgets & dishes & cooking for dinner parties!

speaking of which, anyone watch MAD MEN?? the new season starts this summer & i can't wait!

someone pass the martinis....

family reunion...

2008-06-03T12:57:00.007-05:00

we just returned from the annual reunion of my dad's family. it's always at tenkiller lake in oklahoma...a beautiful setting. it wasn't as uneventful as it usually is...some arguing & bad weather, but what can you do? the cousins just stay out of the fray, open a beer & contemplate having their own reunion!

my office staff...

2008-05-28T14:54:00.021-05:00

i thought it might be a good time to introduce my office staff....all this creativity doesn't just happen, you know. i need all the help i can get.

NAME: Domino

AKA: Domino Jones, Domination Jones

TITLE: Head of Security

DUTIES: Spend all day watching front door. Let head designer know when postman & other visitors arrive or leave deliveries. Keep other employees informed of said visitors.

Also, periodically pester head designer (especially when she's under tight deadline) to let you outside...even if the back door is standing wide open.

NAME: Mighty Boy
AKA: Mighty Boy Jones, Midgy Boy, Mikey

TITLE: Head of Disaster Planning

DUTIES: Use heightened senses to let head designer know when approaching storm is 50 miles out. Lay under her desk or bury your head in her armpit...which ever is more available. Sometimes assist head of security in alerting rest of the studio to visitors at the door.

NAME: Toby

AKA: Toblerone, Toby Tobe

TITLE: Head of Human Resources

DUTIES: Basically hang out all day asleep until services are needed. If head designer needs cheering up let her hold you like a baby & rub your belly.

NAME: Cotton
AKA: Cotton Top, Weirdo, Coddon

TITLE: Fun Monitor

DUTIES: Make sure no one in the studio has too much fun. Nip all play amongst the rest of staff in the bud before it gets out of hand. Be sure to follow head designer where ever she may go & make sure she doesn't lavish too much attention on any of the other staff members. Try to stay under foot or lay behind her chair at all times.

don't you wish you had a staff like this???

the scarf....

2008-05-24T14:06:00.007-05:00

after lots of false starts i finished the scarf i wanted to make out of that hand dyed rick rack.

the knitted idea didn't end up working for me. it seemed a little bulky & i was doubtful i would have enough for a scarf with fringe.... & it had to have fringe. so i decided to knot it. that worked out ok. i like the look but even though i pulled really long strands off the skein it still came out too short i think. maybe "knot"...ha!

anyway, my first idea was to use foam core spacers for the knots...good idea in theory...it just made the knots all wonky. i then remembered my cutting mat has grid markings so i taped the scarf to it & used those to space the knots. it worked great & was much faster than trying to use a spacer.

i'm happy with the way it turned out except for the length issue. but it's really meant to be a decorative accent & not functional...maybe someone will bid on it.

new books!

2008-05-19T14:37:00.006-05:00

got some new books this week! the gocco handbook is in preparation for the big purchase. i've been wanting a gocco printer for a while but thought i would get this book first & see if it's something i really want to do & to understand more about the process. so it's a go....all i need to do now is pull the $$$ together for it!

& because you can never have enough craft & pattern books....

whimsical housewares...

2008-05-16T12:24:00.007-05:00

take a look at these fun table cloths! i love the idea of using stitches as a drawing medium....i've been wanting to try it myself but i don't think anything i'm contemplating is as clever as this!

check out the site they came from....AZE DESIGN.

& a cool bedspread!

pink!!

2008-05-14T11:55:00.014-05:00

i was worried that the azaleas in our front yard

would never recover from the bad freeze

we got last year right before they were to flower.

surprise!

they look really pretty despite some holes

where i had to cut out dead branches

caused by that april '07 freeze.

i'll be moving these shrubs to another part of the

yard soon because the pine tree

they are planted around is dead & needs to be cut down.

i have the perfect place for them

next to the driveway....i hope they survive the transplant.

knitting...

2008-05-13T14:07:00.013-05:00

my dad's family has a reunion every year. he has 10 brothers & sisters so there are lots of us...& lots of expenses in putting on this shindig. i don't know whose idea it was to have an auction every year, but it was genius. it raises enough money to pay for food & cabin rentals & i love it because it gives me a chance to make stuff to sell. i like to try things i might not make otherwise....like the one year i bought "patsy" dolls & made little suitcases full of vintage style clothes for them. that was a fun project & fetched some big $$.

as usual, i've waited until the last minute to start this year's projects. i was thinking some knitted scarves would be quick to do so i pulled out my yarn stash to see what i had to work with. i had forgotten i had this ball of "yarn." it's not really yarn but a rick rack. i bought it because it's just so pretty....i love the varigated colors! it came from one of my favorite stores, florilegium, in parkville. i'm pretty sure she hand dyed it & that's why it cost $34 & why i could only afford one skein!

i think the best way to knit it so it's color & texture can be appreciated is on large needles & by wrapping it around the needle in between stitches & dropping the wraps on the next row.

my only concern is i won't have enough to make the scarf a decent length...i may have to unravel what i've done & make it a narrower width....i'll post the finished project when i'm done.

the studio...

2008-05-13T12:16:00.030-05:00

at the time i decided to leave my job & pursue a freelance gig i worked out of the smaller guest room downstairs. it soon became apparent that i needed more room & peter was kind enough to help me lug everything upstairs to a larger bedroom...we don't have guests that often anyway.

i had collected a bit of office furniture...some new & some hand me downs. all of it was very heavy melamine laminate from our local home organization store. it was good stuff, not cheap, but kind of cold. so this past year i decided to upgrade to something warmer....wood!

karen-the-painter came in & helped me with my makeover. she stripped all of the old painted over wall paper & skim coated the cracks in the plaster & the ceiling. she also gave all the woodwork a fresh coat of oil paint. it all looks so clean now.

i then replaced the metal mini blinds a previous owner installed with some striped roman shades from smith and noble. they were a bit pricey & i had considered making my own, but really, who has the time?

up next was finding that "warm" furniture i wanted. storage was also an issue for me & i was going to need lots of file drawers. i found the perfect combination of file drawers & shelving in a ballard design catalog. lots of their stuff i don't care for but their office collections are cool & i wanted shelves that didn't need to be hung on the wall. i've had that before & it wasn't easy hanging them on undulating plaster & i didn't want to put more holes in my fresh new walls!

the large work table & cabinet with glass doors were purchased at an unfinished furniture store so i could paint them myself. i chose a butcher block style top for the table because i liked it's heavy & substantial profile. i left it natural with a few coats of poly & stole some of the paint karen used on the trim to paint the legs. the cabinet i painted in black & the inside with a citrus green that matches the new striped blinds.

i do have a tiny, little problem with magazine accumulation...lots of subscriptions & not enough time to read them. yet, i can't throw them away with out looking thru them & clipping out interesting things i might use for research. my goal was to have a rack where i could display the new ones & promptly clip the old ones when they were replaced. that has yet to happen but i did find the best rack....from pottery barn teen. in the mean time my magazine stash just keeps growing!

for the desk i decided that i wanted something solid too....nothing new...nothing laminated from office depot. it had to be unique....something like a teachers desk. i found it at the first place i looked...the river market antique mall! the best thing was that the dealer was closing his booth & i got it for a little over $100! the only problem was the desk is oak...not a big fan of the oak. so i painted it black like the cabinet. i love it even though the dust shows like crazy & my chair has chipped the paint in places. it has lots of drawers & most of its dividers...yeah! plenty of room for files i use daily & a pencil drawer & a place to hold pantone fan swatch books & my lable maker & all the other odds & ends i "need."

despite the large size of the desk it was pretty clear i wasn't going to be able to get both my monitor & the cpu on the desk top & still have room for papers & the phone & a lamp. i didn't want the cpu on the floor either. with 4(!!) dogs hair is an issue & i have to vacuum out its fan screen often enough already. i needed a cart of some kind. something that would also hold my scanner. CB2 (the younger, hipper brother of crate & barrel) had just what i needed. it's grey metal & i think a nice contrast to all the wood in the studio. it fits perfectly in the space between the desk & the wall & it has wheels so i can pull it out easily if i need to unplug things or clean behind it...yeah right.

finally, my most favorite feature of the studio is my ironing cupboard. i sew a lot (we also like wearing cotton) & having an ironing board set up all the time is inconvenient. i had seen one in the pottery barn catalog i liked, but i wasn't about to pay $200+ for painted MDF. i looked around the internet some & found the same thing from jc penney for much, much less $$. who knew, right?

i just love my studio...it's pleasant, sunny, has lots of places to stash supplies & paper (because i can't work if the space is untidy), room for all the dog beds & it inspires me to create.

hello!

2008-05-11T15:43:00.005-05:00

this could be a painful thing or a good thing...don't know yet.

i've never been a journal keeper & don't consider myself any good at writing, but i wanted a way to organize & share what i've been working on.

i've been a designer & illustrator for a whole bunch of years. 17 of them were in that big local greeting card company where i designed cards & gift wrap & party. now i work independently still designing those things but trying to branch out into other industries as well. i'm always trying to bring my love of sewing & fabrics into my product design.

so i'm really hoping that if i keep up this blog maybe it will be a little kick in the pants to get me to not spend so much time on the paying work & spend a little more time making things for fun & seeing what happens!