my little corner of the world

vito's 3 year anniversary

2012-01-19T20:41:00.002+09:00

today is the anniversary of vito's third year with us! he's calmed down a bit (kinda) and is quite a bit bigger than when we first picked him up.

as you can see, some things haven't changed :)

john cusack

2011-12-16T22:20:00.000+09:00

the day before i left the great state of alaska, i had an opportunity to help out with a movie. well, not really. my dad and i were security escorts for some of the filming of the frozen ground (look it up here). nicholas cage is in it...along with *girly sigh* john cusack! JOHN freaking CUSACK in anchorage. i just about passed out when my dad told me i could (possibly) meet him.

and for those of you who don't know, i adore john cusack. love his movies.
say anything? a classic - lloyd dobler, you're the key master to my heart. just kidding.
grosse pointe blank - who couldn't love the hit man with a heart of gold?
high fidelity - he has top 10 lists....i always make lists. coincidence? no.
serendipity - who doesn't like the idea of fate?
and let's not forget one crazy summer & better off dead...

long story short, two big name actors were going to need escorts....and neither of them was john cusack. sadness. heart breaking, soul crushing sadness.

however, the day was not lost...i got to hang out ALL DAY with my dad :) which was super fun. and i'm certain that memory will last in my heart much longer than if i had met a movie star.

hooray internet!

2011-12-15T17:50:00.000+09:00

hello blogland! we made it to okinawa, safe and sound. after a long and trying month, we have a home and a few adventures under our belts. we just had our internet installed (thank goodness!) and are slowly getting unpacked and organized. since i just found all seven seasons of the gilmore girls, the house organizing is now coming along at a snail's pace. but that's okay with me.

after staying a night in seattle, we started a 26 hour trip to this little island. while the flights were long, we were primarily concerned with our pups welfare. this airplane ride was their first experience flying...and they made it through with flying colors. they are much more resilient than i gave them credit for and am so relieved that they are alright. i'm pretty sure mia and vito have adjusted to okinawan life easier than i have.

we decided to live off base and found a wonderful 3 bedroom home. its so different from homes in the states, partially due to the fact that pretty much every building is made from concrete. one of these days, i'll take some pictures - but it's far too cluttered now :)

i'm 24 weeks into my pregnancy today and things are going well. i have nice bump growing and the baby is kicking quite often. seems to kick more when i eat chocolate....maybe a girl? :) we still haven't found out whether the baby is a boy or a girl and don't plan to unless the doc slips up.

hopefully i'll have some new posts coming up shortly...i do have a few stories to share. i can't wait to catch up on your blogs too!

hi there!

2011-11-02T15:14:00.000+09:00

hello friends! it's been quite a while since my last post and i've recently been feeling the urge to blog again. i'll probably be inching my way back into the blog-o-sphere in the near future and have a bunch of catching up on your posts too.

the big move to japan is still on - we have about another week here in snowy alaska and then we start our adventure to the other side of the dateline. two sets of movers have packed up all of our belongings and sent them on their way, not to be seen for another month or two. i finished up my day job in mid september and have been surprisingly busy since then. i honestly thought i would be getting bored, but there's been so much to do day to day that i feel like i haven't had a chance to slow down. i have spent time working on books and printing cards (especially since my big press is going into storage, sadly) - creating all of these items has had a somewhat calming effect on me. i've realized that as things get more and more stressful, i'm going back to doing things that are familiar and comforting - making art and knitting/crocheting.

while the impending move has kept us busy, we've had another surprise come up:

that's right....i've been eating a lot :) hubby & i are expecting our first bipedal kiddo!! i'm at 17 weeks now and finally have a bit of a pooch. it's pretty amazing to see how my body is changing and adjusting to growing a mini-me. i was a bit hesitant on how and when to announce the big news on my blog, but i figured that this community has been incredibly supportive and kind in the past and i'm sure sharing this announcement won't be any different.

i'll do my best to post a few things here and there - i would like to write and share more about my pregnancy, but i don't want this blog to become a journal for baby stuff galore. i want to make sure i maintain my own personality...that being said, if i get a little baby crazy from time to time, try to be understanding :) that's all for tonight....take care friends!

new store!

2011-08-05T05:38:00.000+09:00

well, it's official! tama press now has books and cards at the incredibly popular sevigny studio in downtown anchorage! if you are out and about tomorrow for first friday, drop on by and check out the goods. sevigny studio is located at 608 w 4th ave, next to cake studio & the 4th avenue theater.

i met with katie a couple weeks ago to show her some of my products. i was nervous...this is KATIE SEVIGNY - a very well known artist in alaska. i've always admired her work and have wanted to approach her about my products for years...and i finally decided to go for it. and i'm so glad i did...

sorry that posts have been extremely infrequent...things have been so busy around here and there isn't any sign that it'll slow down anytime soon. i will post when i can but i'm not gonna make any promises. i'll try to catch up on your blogs too. i just don't like feeling guilty for not posting when things are so crazy. do you know what i mean? thanks for understanding...

a gift...

2011-07-22T07:01:00.000+09:00

as i was working in my studio one evening, i had a great idea to make a gift for my friend. (her birthday was in early july.) i wanted to make something she would use...so i pulled out some sketches and measurements from a project i was toying with months prior. i decided on a portfolio - functional, but beautiful.

here are the results of a few hours of labor and love:

i used japanese book cloth in her favorite colors to cover the entire piece. i wanted to have a nameplate of some kind and went with a handstitched spirograph piece with hearts (also her favorite).

the inside left side contains a pocket for various notes & a small strap to hold business cards. the right side has a couple of strips to hold a legal pad (see below).

this project was challenging and fun - i really love how beautifully this piece came out. i think i'll try making a few and putting them out on the market....

home

2011-07-20T06:39:00.000+09:00

i haven't fallen off the face of the earth...but i have been extremely busy. the clock is ticking on the move to okinawa and my to do list is growing a mile a minute.

we met with a realtor for the first time last week. she did a walk through of our home and discussed some things we need to do to spruce up the house. paint, clean, declutter...

one thing stayed with me after that meeting:
as we start making these changes, our home will be less ours...it'll turn into another house on the market. and that fact just breaks my heart.

this place is our first home, from when we were dating to becoming a married couple. this is where we brought home our puppies, where they grew up. there is a height chart on the wall for vito - starting when he was just 10 weeks old.

i know i should be excited about the adventure approaching. but right now, my heart aches as i mourn for the loss of our home.

"home is where the heart is" - i don't know...

new project...

2011-07-01T01:56:00.000+09:00

i signed up for the sketchbook project again...but this time i'm actually going to get it done! i just received my sketchbook yesterday and t-shirt the day before. for more information about the sketchbook project (and to sign up! DO IT!!), go here.

image from here

so to recap, last year's project: fail. this year's project: its on like donkey kong.

lost dog update

2011-06-30T02:33:00.000+09:00

as of last night, the pups i found were no longer listed on the animal control website....which means their owners must have picked them up! YAY!!

wedding set

2011-06-30T02:17:00.000+09:00

this wonderful couple contacted a few months ago for their wedding guest book...and then ended up ordering a ton of other things too! i just finished up the whole set over the weekend. here's the final pieces:

the guest book is about 12"x9.5" inches - probably the biggest one i've made! they chose a sturdy belgian binding, giving their guests plenty of room to doodle.

they also purchased a cake cutting utensil set from a local artist in town that does amazing work with polymer clay - and they wanted a box to display the utensils at the wedding.

here's the outside:

and the inside:

they asked me to print recipe cards, which they mailed with their invitations and asked their guests to bring them to the wedding filled out with their favorite recipes. so, i made a box to house their recipe cards and a matching box for their wedding photos:

here's the whole set:

i love how everything turned out! it was such a pleasure to work with them :)

lost (& hopefully found soon) dogs

2011-06-29T01:44:00.000+09:00

i had a different post planned for today...but this happened yesterday....

it's been a couple of months since any lost pups have crossed my path...but fate decided yesterday was the day. i had actually stayed at work a few minutes later than normal, which was a good thing. otherwise, i don't think i would have come across these guys.

they were trotting alongside a very busy street and no one was even slowing down. i pulled over ahead of them, popped on my hazards, and got out. my plan was to get a look at their collars & call the number on the tags. the second i was standing next to my car, they ran up and said hi, happily wagging. so i opened the back door and they immediately jumped in and sat down.

i kept thinking "well that was easy." then i noticed they had collars, but no tags. so i called animal control to see if anyone called in for them (nope) and they suggested bringing them to the shelter. they would be scanned for a microchip and cared for until the owners were found.

the one in the front is probably a pit bull and the other is maybe a shepherd mix. both were SO sweet, obviously someone's pets.

this guy practically curled up in my lap

as of this morning, they are still on the animal control's website. i hope their owners find them soon. i think they only have 3 days before they are adopted out.

this week...

2011-06-28T07:38:00.000+09:00

check back this week for:

....a beautiful wedding set i finished over the weekend!
....a new project on the horizon
....new equipment in the works
....a birthday gift for my dear friend

and, let's face it, there will probably be puppy pics. because they are so darn cute.

puppy owiee

2011-06-21T02:43:00.000+09:00

thursday afternoon, we took the pups to the park - they ran around like crazy and had a blast! then, as we were walking back up to the car, we noticed vito had blood from is upper pad to his paw. he had a pretty good cut on his leg (not that it slowed him down at all), so we cleaned him up and bandaged his owiee as best we could.

friday afternoon, i checked on him & mia and took one look at his paw and immediately called the vet.

i took him in and they looked his cut, cleaned it and redressed the wound. they gave him a sedative that made him seem drunk so they could really check his cut. and seeing vito that way, SO helpless and sad, just broke my heart. especially since he's such a happy, vibrant pup.

i had to help vito into the car and he laid down the entire ride home - which he's never done is his 2.5 years of being alive. he whimpered quite a bit and barely managed to get up the stairs. i'm pretty sure that trip to the vet was harder on me (emotionally) than it was on him.

thankfully, he's back to normal now. i'm pretty sure he's trying to make up for his afternoon of sleeping because he's become extra crazy vito.

guest book

2011-06-10T00:30:00.000+09:00

i just finished a custom guest book for a lovely bride getting married in july. she chose hiking as their wedding theme and wanted a guest book to reflect her & her fiance's love of the alaskan outdoors.

i chose an olive green japanese bookcloth for the spine & bound the book with chocolate waxed linen thread. the birch trees were drawn then emphasized with sewing - this cover certainly took some time! i'm so happy with how the finished book looks. happy wedding to jen & her fiance!

memorial weekend

2011-06-09T03:56:00.000+09:00

i know i'm a bit late on this, but that's okay. hubby, dad & i went for a hike up north over memorial weekend with the pups. the weather was gorgeous and i actually managed to get a sunburn. here's a couple pics of our little outing:

crazy mia

2011-06-08T05:58:00.000+09:00

she is so entertaining....

phone blog attempt 2

2011-06-04T03:43:00.000+09:00

i'm trying out a new photo app & blogging from my phone... let's see if this works!

below are some pics of one of the projects i'm currently working on. i handset some type to print a name plate for a guest book:

ink! thank goodness for my pantone chart...

handset lead type in 16pt century gothic

ta - da!

* it sorta worked. i can't format the posts from my phone, but that's okay. it is a much easier way to get photos uploaded without the hassle of e-mailing, downloading, then uploading...

grandpa

2011-05-26T08:36:00.000+09:00

i debated on whether or not to post this...

today is the 3rd anniversary of my grandpa's passing. i can't believe 3 years has gone by already. so much has changed in 3 short years. i still miss him dearly and think of him often.

guest book cover

2011-05-26T08:29:00.000+09:00

i'm currently working on a guest book for a client. her wedding has a hiking theme and her colors are brown & a light olive green. last night, i focused on the cover. it's a sketch i did of some trees on cream paper. i'm in the process of hand stitching a couple of the trees so that they pop out a bit more:

i've really missed sewing on paper.

indesign logo

2011-05-21T07:49:00.000+09:00

my most recent class is focused on indesign - a program i've never used before. i'm getting the hang of it, slowly. my last assignment was to create a logo for myself or my business. i gave it a try, but i tell you what, creating your own logo is so much harder (for me) than making one for someone else. here's my latest attempt:

what do you think? kinda fun, no? i, of course, incorporated shades of blue into it and tried to make something fun that would look good printed by letterpress.

wanna win an iPad 2?

2011-05-19T07:23:00.000+09:00

ok, so i don't have an iPad 2 to giveaway, however, the lovely erin at design for mankind does!! the contest is offered by MeridaHome. you can enter a few ways...

- leave a comment on erin's post here
- tweet the contest using the link on erin's post for an additional entry
- or post the contest on your own blog for 10 extra entries!!!

it's funny because my hubby has been bugging me about an iPad for ages...maybe i will win it...and then taunt him with it. no, i'm kidding, i would actually give it to him :)

if you don't feel like winning an iPad 2, you should still check out design for mankind. erin posts all kinds of rad stuff and on top of that, she usually writes back when i comment on her posts. which is truly awesome in my book.

wanna help?

2011-05-18T08:19:00.000+09:00

on saturday, i received news that my friend's house had caught fire. she lives in condo with a handful of other residents that share the building. all people got out safely, but one kitty didn't make it :( a couple of the units were incinerated and the other were damaged by smoke. go here to read her first blog post about it, and here to read the newspaper article on it.

this wonderful friend is named annie and she's a local jewelry artist & owner of bella boutique. she's freaking awesome. she was the first person to approach me about selling my work in her shop and has had a big impact on my artwork. she's super supportive of local artists and has been a great friend to me.

due to the fire, there are quite a few unexpected expenses that she & the other residents of the building have had to deal with. if you would like to help, here's some options:

1) are you a local resident? drop by bella boutique and drop some dough in the donation jar!

2) you can send a check, made payable to:
Bella Boutique
2601 Spenard Rd
Anchorage AK 99503
Memo: Fire Donation
(checks will be immediately turned to cash and given to the residents)


3) donate through paypal to

shop.bella@hotmail.com

if you can help, please do - even if it's just by spreading the word on your own blog. every little bit will help.

weekend & moving

2011-05-17T07:49:00.000+09:00

how was everyone's weekend? mine was good - hubby & i went to a friend's house for a beer tasting. i found out that i don't like pilsners. ugh. and i tried a new recipe: lasagna cupcakes - mini lasagnas made in a cupcake tin & they were SO GOOD. i also made strawberry brown butter bettys for the first time, which were also delicious. i think i'll just start cooking everything in my cupcake pan.

i cleaned up my studio a bit and worked on a box for a client that is housing their custom made cake cutting set for their wedding. it turned out pretty darn nice. it's drying right now but once it's done i'll take some pictures. i'm also making a guest book & a couple of recipe boxes for them. pretty cool!

with the impending move approaching (which is still months & months away), i can't help but think of how much i will miss everything here. waves of sadness hit me as i try to file away detailed memories of mundane things, like the sights i see on my way to work or the changing of the seasons here in alaska. spring is here and the trees are just now getting ready to shift from fuzzy green on their limbs to a burst of green leaves. i'm not even gone yet & am already getting sad!! what's with that?? while i'm excited about the new possibilities that okinawa holds, i'm still allowing myself to be sad.

catching up...

2011-05-14T02:18:00.000+09:00

is it me or does anyone else get overwhelmed when they don't check up on the blog world for a while and there are literally hundreds of posts in google reader?

lots happened this week -

mother's day was great. hubby & i had my parents over for brunch. we made blueberry pancakes (i actually cooked these - i can do breakfast pretty well), bacon, maple sausage, and these little appetizers that were caprese salads on a stick...SO yummy. i have to say, my fur babies were very well behaved too.

wednesday was hubby's birthday. we went out to eat at a restaurant called ginger, which was SO good. then...we went to BLUE MAN GROUP! i hadn't seen the show before and it was amazing. SO entertaining and creative. interactive and (good) weird. if you ever get a chance to see them, GO!

after the show, i set up a little treasure hunt for hubby's gifts. i hid the gifts with the clues to the next hiding spot all around the house. i even managed to use metallica lyrics in the final clue :) hubby got a pasta machine as his big gift, and i am fully anticipating crazy fresh pasta dinners from here on out.

i have a ton of homework to do and custom art work too...those two things are heavily weighing on my shoulders. i really wish i didn't need to sleep. i'd have so much more time to get things done.

i will try to visit you all in blog world. hope you are well!

p.s. have you heard the new decemberists album "the king is dead"? if not, go listen to it! i've been hooked on a few songs...i can't get enough of them.

easter

2011-05-03T08:31:00.000+09:00

i know this is a bit late, but i had to share. our easter was a bit different this year - we celebrated at my parents house instead of ours. it was SO nice and the food was amazing. after the meal & visiting, we were heading home and our friends sent us a text & said they found a puppy. so we turned around to see if we could lend a hand.

they had checked the houses around where he was found and no one knew who his owners could be. he had a collar, but no tags and was quite friendly. we estimated he was about 4 - 5 months old, since he was in the process of losing his baby teeth. this puppy had to be about 60 pounds and his paws were huge!

hubby and i volunteered to take him to animal control to see if they could scan him for a microchip. after we arrived, they scanned him and nothing came up. SO disappointing. they gave us a couple of options - we could take him home & foster him, while actively looking for his owners or animal control would hold him for 3 days, then try to adopt him out. we wanted SO badly to take him home & take care of him, along with our other fur babies...but ultimately decided he would be better with animal control.

i checked their website for lost dogs for a couple of days & finally called them to see if he was picked up. they said he wasn't listed in his system so his owners must have taken him home.

i joked with hubby that going to animal control on easter was becoming a tradition...if you don't remember why, read here, here, and here to find out :)

this dog is the fourth lost pup this year that i've come across. i can't believe it. i hope this never happens to my pups....i would be heartbroken. hopefully i've built up some good doggie karma.

tournament

2011-04-26T07:54:00.000+09:00

hello there! it's been a while!

my martial arts school is hosting a tournament this weekend and since i'm on the committee, most of my time has been taken up with meetings and planning. we've been working on this project since january, so i'm looking forward to it being completed.

in addition to gathering all of the competitor information and creating the divisions for each category, i also made the t-shirt design:

i had a chance to practice my illustrator skills, which was challenging, but fun!

i'll be taking a break from blogging until the beginning of may, since i just can't seem to keep up with everything else that's been going on. looking forward to talking to you then!

the big news....

2011-04-16T01:39:00.000+09:00

thanks everyone for the well wishes regarding the accident. it's nice to know that you all care :)

remember when i said i had some big news? well, i didn't forget about it. drumroll please..........

we are moving to:

OKINAWA!! map source

after the initial shock of the news wore off, i starting thinking of a gazillion questions.
from big ones: "where are we going to live?"
to little ones: "do we need power converters for our stuff?" "can we drink tap water?"

there were some sad realizations: "family & friends will be so far away"
and some happy ones: "i can learn Japanese" "cool Japanese paper everywhere!!"

and then i thought of all the stuff that needs to get done between now & the move...cleaning out & packing the house, figuring out what goes into storage, how to manage tama press....

have any of you experienced a big move? do you have suggestions on how to make this less overwhelming?

car "accident"

2011-04-13T02:18:00.000+09:00

why do people call them "accidents" anyway? usually the crash is due to someone being careless.

last week, hubby & i were minding our own business in our SUV, stopped at a stop light behind a line of other cars. then, CRUNCH. an old rusted car slammed into the back of our car - we estimate he was going 30mph. no warning, no screeching brakes, just a hard hit.

hubby checks to see if i'm okay, then gets out to talk to the guy, telling him we are going to call the police. through the back window, i could see steam rising from the hood of his vehicle. hubby snaps a bunch of pictures then gets back into our car & tells me that the guy "preferred if we didn't call the police." hmm. i'm pretty shaken up, trying not to cry, while fumbling with my phone to call 911. the operator answers and i explain the situation & our location.

we move out of the way of traffic and make sure the guy follows us into a parking lot as we wait. then he approaches our car and is fumbling with his pockets....and we wonder for a split second, does he have a weapon? so hubby tells him to go back to his car & wait for the police (a couple of times). so he does...and then he starts driving away!!!

back on the phone with the operator, we follow him for a bit, give the operator all of the info we can, then pull over and wait for the police. they also send an ambulance because at this point, my neck is hurting pretty good along with hubby's back.

the ambulance arrives in 2 minutes and they check hubby & i out....then put a neck collar on me, slide me onto a board, & whisk me away. the paramedic told me it may seem like overkill, but better to be safe than sorry when possible neck injuries are involved. so i went on my first ambulance ride. when we arrived at the hospital, i was taken to a room...i felt like i was on grey's anatomy or something. so weird. the doc had me get a couple of x-rays and everything was okay.

hubby & my parents met us there and hubby got checked out & was okay too. the doc said we would feel like we had played rugby for a couple of days. a week later, i'm not quite normal, but much much better. i'm amazed that i was that sore.

as for the other driver, the police caught up with him & he was arrested for a number of charges. he had filed a false report saying that someone had stolen his car - fortunately, the pictures taken at the scene proved otherwise. his criminal past is quite lengthy and includes a number of things, including a DUI & assault convictions.

i know things could be so much worse right now. i'm so thankful that we are okay, that we were in a big car, that our pups weren't in the car with us, that our insurance is handling everything, that my family came to the hospital to make sure we were okay. i keep replaying the whole thing over & over in my head. i'm jumpy when i'm driving, but also much more aware of my surroundings.

be careful out there...

dog update

2011-04-06T02:37:00.000+09:00

last week i found this dog and took her to animal control - so her owners would find her. and it took all week. i checked the animal control website everyday to see if she had been picked up. finally, friday night, her listing was gone.

then the dog that lives behind us started barking like crazy - an annoyance that has persisted for over a year.

coincidence? i think not.

i didn't know what the dog behind looked like, other than it was small & fluffy & loud. so i tried to get a better view from the upstairs window...and i'm 90% sure that the pup i found is one & the same. kind of ironic, don't you think?

this time when i heard the barking though, i didn't get pissed. i was relieved. and glad that she got home safely. because she was pretty sweet for the short amount of time i cared for her.

lost dog of the month

2011-03-31T05:16:00.000+09:00

so far this year, i've found one dog per month. go here to read about january's pick and here to read about february's.

this pup was shivering out in the cold and was pretty dirty & wet. and scared. without a collar. i, of course, got out of my car and trying to convince it to come over to me, without much luck. i think it had been outside for a while because it was pretty finicky.

i called animal control and wasn't impressed with the "help" they offered. pretty much "we'll send someone out when we can." well that's great. since i was right around the corner from my house, i zoomed back and grabbed dog treats and a leash. i made a little trail of treats towards me and the pup would eat and walk, eat and walk, until it was close enough that i could loop the leash over it. i picked it up gently with a towel and set it in my car.

i thought it might have been the same dog i found in february, but tried ringing the doorbell at that house and no one was home. i should have taken a picture of the february pup.

so i drove to animal control and by the time we got there, the pup was nice and warm and super friendly. i dropped her (as i found out) off and am keeping my fingers crossed that she was picked up. keep your fingers crossed too. she's a sweetheart.

baby blankets

2011-03-30T00:00:00.000+09:00

here's the pics of the blankets for the baby shower i mentioned last week. my friend is having twins - a boy & a girl! i thought they turned out pretty nice!

this one was made for the girl:

and this one for the boy:

i haven't made anything like this in quite some time. i used to crochet & knit all the time and have gotten so busy that i just haven't. i've missed it - it's kind of a relaxing thing for me to do. hubby just recently had a new nephew added to the family so i might be busting out some more blanket skills soon :)

haircut!

2011-03-29T00:00:00.001+09:00

i feel SO much lighter now! here's the before:

and the after:

what do you think? i haven't had it this short in years & years so i'm still getting used to it. but it's pretty spunky :)

studio toys

2011-03-26T04:31:00.000+09:00

i decided it was finally time to order a couple of things for tama press....

pic from hollanders

sewing frame: i did a restoration of a giant book a few months back and didn't have a sewing frame. so i constructed one out of cardboard boxes and other stuff i had laying around. no good. so i decided it was time to get a real frame. plus, i've been itching to try some new bindings.

pic from talas

awl guide: i punch a lot of holes in paper by hand. and sometimes, they aren't straight. and boy, does that irritate me. this awl guide takes care of that frustration. plus, it'll beat using an old phone book as my guide.

pic from talas

book press: i've been making books for a few years now, and haven't had the luxury of a book press. instead, i've been using old yearbooks as my weights (at least i'm using them for something). this press is pretty multi-functional and only weights 10 pounds. i'm pretty excited about using it.

pic from talas

corner rounder: i'm going to round the corners of every piece of paper i come into contact with. seriously. paper corners too pointy for you? i'll round them. i have wanted one of these little guys for YEARS. i got the lightweight model, since i think it'll cover my current needs.

hopefully i'll receive everything next week. then i will play with my new toys and definitely not get any homework done.

cooking

2011-03-26T04:13:00.000+09:00

you guys, you should be so proud of me. i cooked dinner last night...

let me preface this: between hubby & i, he's the one that cooks a lot. i can cook...but i mainly stick to vegetarian dishes because cooking meat kinda freaks me out. beef, not so much, but chicken or pork? ewwww. oh, and whenever i cook, he always asks "is there meat in this?" he's a carnivore at heart.

so, hubby got back from a trip yesterday and i wanted to cook him dinner. i bought a couple of steaks, called my mom for a simple recipe, and went to work: sliced the steaks into thin strips, marinated for a few minutes & cooked the strips up on a hot pan. i taste tested a piece and was pleasantly surprised at out it came out!

in the meantime, i made a parmesan risotto with a twist....we had fresh red beets from our full circle farm order. so i chopped those up and threw them into the risotto. this risotto cooks in the oven for 45 minutes, so when i took it out, the beets had stained the rice, transforming it into a deep vivid magenta red. SO pretty & yummy.

i also made a salad with some mixed green, diced tomato & strawberries. dinner was GOOD. and i actually managed to cook MEAT. very proud of myself. one day, i might graduate to chicken.

baby shower

2011-03-25T05:08:00.001+09:00

i'm going to a baby shower this weekend - the second one in the past month! and i've been working on a couple of baby blankets for my friend....who is having twins, a boy & girl! i finished the first little blanket last night and really like how it came out; i made it with the little girl in mind. the second one is still in process for the baby boy.

i'll try to post the pics of the both blankets soon.

is it just me, or is there a sudden boom of pregnant women? i know NINE people who are currently pregnant. pretty crazy.

appointment is made...

2011-03-23T03:55:00.000+09:00

the big haircut appointment is made for this weekend....i keep pulling my hair back and trying to envision it super short again. and i'm waivering a bit.

so i look at more pics of this pixie cut...

pic from the fashionable foodie

channel my inner audrey hepburn (my grandpa said i looked like her when i had my hair cropped years ago)...

and make a plan to not wuss out at my appointment.

Japan help

2011-03-23T03:17:00.000+09:00

last week, i posted about "for Japan with love"....and when i decided to participate in the shelter box donation, the fundraising goal was set at $5500. at the time, about $3500 was raised. well, i checked back today at the fundraising site and the amount of money raised is now at $56,303. that isn't a typo, guys. FIFTY SIX THOUSAND DOLLARS. amazing! giving a little bit from a lot of people CAN make a huge difference. if you want to check out shelter box and their program, go here. and if you want to see that number keep rising, go here!

another blog i follow, called SWOON is hosting a giveaway from PalmerCash vintage t-shirts. PalmerCash developed these shirts to support Japan at this time of tragedy. All the profits from these t-shirts go towards the relief efforts in Japan. Here's a couple of my favorites:

pic from PalmerCash

i have a close friend who has a ton of family in Sendai. she still hasn't heard from many of her family members with whom she's been trying to get in touch. please keep them in your prayers.

reading...

2011-03-22T07:14:00.001+09:00

i've been doing quite a bit of reading lately, in between schoolwork and lots of other more pressing things.

i finally finished the twilight series...full of teenage angst? yes. overly dramatic? yes. call it a guilty pleasure read. lots of people were all for team jacob....but i have a thing for vampires :) go team edward! besides, my father-in-law's name is edward, so i'm biased.

i also received a book for my birthday called "the art of racing in the rain" by garth stein. i sped through (haha) this in just under a week. it's written from the perspective of a dog named enzo as he tells the story of his life and his family. i really enjoyed it, although i did cry a few times. made me think of my own pups...

pic from amazon

anyhow, if you're looking for a new book to read, you might want to try it. if you're a dog person, you'll get a kick out of enzo...and will probably start talking to your dog a lot more.

for Japan with love

2011-03-16T06:26:00.000+09:00

like pretty much everyone else, i've been reading of the awful news coming from Japan. the amount of destruction is unimaginable. and from what i've read, Japan was one of the most prepared places for a disaster like this. i have friends & some family there too...thankfully they are okay. my heart goes out to the survivors of this tragedy.

i read about For Japan With Love:

if you want to help, here are a couple of ways:

(information below from ever ours post)

fundraising:

For Japan With Love has a direct link on the website to our fundraising page for ShelterBox.

ShelterBox was one of THE first organizations asked by Japan to help and were on hand on the Saturday after the quake. Each large, green ShelterBox is tailored to a disaster but typically contains a disaster relief tent for an extended family, blankets, water storage and purification equipment, cooking utensils, a stove, a basic tool kit, a children’s activity pack and other vital items. Please check it out and whatever you can contribute will be so appreciated.

bloggers day of silence:

Anyone that has a blog can help out with this one. The aim is just raise awareness and respect and acknowledge the devastation going on in Japan.

take care and stay safe out there friends.

it must be spring fever...

2011-03-11T07:46:00.001+09:00

it's warm (low 30's) and sunny (the sun actually FEELS warm for the first time in months) and suddenly my hair decides to be ridiculous and wants to get chopped off. check out my previous hair escapades here.

its been many years...but i'm thinking of making a big change.

my current do (or lack thereof...since i've basically given up trying to fix it in the morning):

isn't mia a cutie? :)

and the potential new 'do:

pic

thoughts?

p.s. that's not the BIG news

i'm in love....

2011-03-11T07:46:00.000+09:00

i was perusing some letterpress sites and came across this:

the adana 8x5 platen press
photo from caslon

and fell HARD. i want, no, NEED this press. it's only 33 pounds and full of awesome.

i sent an email to the company, inquiring about price. keep your fingers crossed for me.

a short break

2011-03-09T09:41:00.000+09:00

wow it's already been a week since i've posted. oops!

i have some big news but am not quite ready to share it yet. i'm still mentally processing the huge changes that coming up. emotions are coming in waves and there is a to do list forming that is miles upon miles long.

"the news" is why i've been absent. i'm still reading blogs when i have time here & there and will post when i can.

closet? check.

2011-03-02T08:50:00.000+09:00

hello! i know i'm a bit late coming back from the weekend...but i did manage to get quite a bit done! i tackled a major project - cleaning out the walk in closet. i cannot believe how much stuff we crammed in there. five bags of clothes & i don't know how many bags of trash later...it's a clean, organized space.

i'm hoping to work my way through our house & get things cleaned up. all of the clutter has really been bothering me, kind of stressing me out. it's hard for me to relax when there are piles of stuff everywhere.

my plan is to check one thing at a time off my cleaning list....even if it's a drawer at a time. splitting the chores into small pieces made the process less intimidating.

i would have shown some before & after pictures, but frankly, it was pretty awful before.

illustrator cd covers

2011-02-26T03:50:00.000+09:00

i've moved on to my next class & this one is on adobe illustrator basics. so far, it's pretty difficult. but i'm learning quite a bit and am having fun trying out new things.

i thought i'd share my last assignment with you. i made two cd covers that are part of a series. so here's what i did:

cover 1:

cover 2:

i used my wacom tablet a ton for this project. my eye/hand coordination is improving (slightly). what do you think?

it's raining....dogs?

2011-02-26T02:59:00.000+09:00

as i was leaving on my lunch break yesterday, i realized i had left my glasses on my desk. awesome. so i went all the way back up to get them. and as i was walking out to my car a second time, i thought, maybe that happened for a reason....maybe i just avoided a car accident or something. weird. anyway....

i was on my way back to work when i saw this black & white little fluffy dog wandering around. after watching it for a few minutes and seeing that she didn't have a person nearby & didn't seem to know where she was going...i pulled over.

she had a collar, but no tag, and let me approach her. i pet her for a few minutes and the poor thing was shivering and lifting her front paws up one at a time, like the ground was too cold to touch. definitely not built for the alaskan winter.

i debated on picking her up, but didn't want to get my face bitten off in case she freaked out so instead, i led her to my car by her collar. she hopped onto the back seat and sat there staring at me. i looked up the number for animal control and starting driving around our little neighborhood.

lucky for me, this guy was cleaning snow off of his car, and i stopped and asked if he knew the dog. and it was his next door neighbors!! thankfully she was home and fluffy was reunited with her owner.

apparently things happen for a reason. good thing i forgot my glasses.

caught a bug

2011-02-24T02:47:00.000+09:00

pic

i finally came down with a cold, one that i've been fighting for a bit. it's progressed to the works: sore throat, stuffy nose, slight headache, & low fever. hopefully tomorrow will be the day that i start getting better. ugh.

hopefully i'll be back in a couple of days....but in the meantime, check out these fun links:

going to a baby shower? a good gift idea
i love these books
received some of her jewelry for my birthday!
creative? check. handmade? check. awesome? double check.

birthday weekend

2011-02-23T02:56:00.000+09:00

as i've mentioned, my birthday was this past week. it was pretty mellow and according to hubby, i was a bit bummed all week. saturday rolls around and hubby went over to our friend's house to help with some home improvement project, so i ran errands. my friend jamie had made an appointment to get our nails done in the late afternoon, then we would meet up with the husbands and order in some food. i stopped by the art store and picked up some goodies, then visited bella boutique and caught up with my friend annie. i dropped of my art stuff at home and jamie sent me a text to come over & pick her up.

i walked into the house, turned the corner, and.....

SURPRISE!!!!!!!!!!!!

i was SHOCKED!
i had no clue they were planning something!

we ate yummy moose's tooth pizza....

and had some awesome chocolate cake. there were hello kitty decorations galore (even hello kitty confetti!) and even the puppies were there.

i couldn't ask for more thoughtful family & friends. it was such a wonderful night :) 29 is gonna be a big year...

*all photos by steve wysong

bamboo

2011-02-18T08:07:00.000+09:00

it's not quite what you think... {and i meant to post this a long time ago}

for christmas, hubby bought me an awesome gift - a wacom bamboo pen & touch tablet:

i finally set it up (which took way less time than i anticipated) and have been tinkering with it often. it is SO AWESOME!! especially since i just started a class on adobe illustrator. the tablet can be used as a track pad or with the pen as a drawing tool - it's so sensitive, it adjusts to pressure as i write, just like a pen/pencil would.

it will take some getting used to....you would think years of playing video games would have helped my eye/hand coordination.

birthday

2011-02-17T06:29:00.000+09:00

today is my birthday. and i've reached the last year of my 20's. AAAHH. where did the time go?? this morning my mom asked me if i felt older....and now that i've been thinking about it for a few hours, i do feel older. WAYYY OLDER. ancient, even. okay, maybe not.

here's a little story about cake by hyperbole and a half:

enjoy!

books

2011-02-16T09:38:00.000+09:00

hubby and i switched offices a couple of weeks ago so he could get some peace & quiet downstairs and since i've been working upstairs anyway. he bought me a bookshelf (and put it together) and i moved a bunch of books up into it. as i went through the books, i realized there were quite a few that i haven't read in years; some from college, from high school and even elementary school. i'm now trying to decide if i should keep them or sell/donate them. i've had the itch to clean house lately...

some questions popping up in my head: will i ever read them again? are they good reference material? i already have them, so why get rid of them?

i LIKE my books, even though they haven't had much face time lately. some remind me of the time i spent on guam, others of the friends that gave them to me. kind of the same way a song plays on the radio and you're taken back to some event, big or small, that's stuck with you for years.

so, you bookworms out there, do you keep all of your books? or pass them on? how do you decide what to keep?

hearts galore

2011-02-15T06:21:00.001+09:00

in case you don't know, i love hearts. it's my shape of choice. when i was growing up, my best friend & i signed notes with a heart (me) or a sun (her). we collected things with our "signs". she even got a sun tattoo (don't worry mom, i'm still tattoo free.)

to this day, i still love hearts. (and hello kitty, but that's for another post.) i was perusing etsy and found a few cute cards & prints by letterpress printers. enjoy:

#1 jack russell puppy valentine's card by drenculture

#2 heart strings art print by sweetharvey

#3 robot heart card by twinravenspress

#4 heart of wheels card by tellapress

#5 robot love letter card by sweetharvey

#6 love notes by aripress

happy valentine's day!!

2011-02-15T06:01:00.000+09:00

i know it's a little corny, but i always get a bit excited about valentine's day. even as a little kid...the prospect of a happy surprise or two was on the horizon as the day approached. i remember my first "big" valentine's...i was in 4th grade and a boy named kevin gave me a heart shaped box of chocolates and a poem. i was ecstatic!! as i got older (and full of teenage angst), i went through a "wear black on valentine's day because the holiday is dumb" faze. i crack up just thinking about it.

and now that i'm happily married, i think more about how thankful and lucky i am to have such a great husband. i know that regardless of where we go or what we do, it's always more fun to have him by my side.

photo by pobke photography

a friend asked me the other day "what's the point of valentine's day?" (he wasn't in the greatest mood, either) and i got to thinking about it...it's not so much a day for huge, over the top demonstrations of undying love or a promotion for greeting card companies everywhere...it's about appreciating the people you love: family and friends. hope everyone has a happy valentine's day!

photoshop filters!

2011-02-04T04:30:00.000+09:00

since i've been spending lots of time in photoshop, i thought i would share some of my assignments with you. this last assignment involved creating a visitors guide cover for my hometown. i created one for alaska, since most of my pictures weren't specific to anchorage.

after choosing a number of photos, i had to edit them - adjust brightness, sharpen certain areas, smooth other areas, etc - then apply appropriate artistic filters that would showcase the images without going over the top.

bear pic - i wanted it to have a painting type look to it, but still keeping the detail.

bear combo

rooster pic - i accentuated the edges and made the colors a tad more vibrant, in addition to removing the little signs.

rooster combo

trout pic - i used the cutout filter - which i really love - but toned it down to still show off the color & spots on the trout.

trout combo

click on the link below the picture (or open in a new tab), then click to zoom in to see a larger version - i couldn't get blogger to upload a larger pic.

what do you think?

custom heart cards

2011-02-01T09:59:00.000+09:00

i had a customer approach me about some small (4 Bar) cards with a heart design during the fall shows and in january, she contacted me about getting some printed.

i had to resize the design she wanted, transfer the design...

and carve a new linoleum block.

i printed a bunch of cards in red. this was the first time i tried printing a linoleum block and letterpress at the same time. i thought it worked out well!

heres an up close pic of the final card:

i'm so glad it's february...it's my favorite month!

lost pups

2011-01-27T09:45:00.000+09:00

i was on my way back to work after lunch and as i was driving, i saw a couple of dogs trotting along the road. they looked like they were having fun, stopping here & there to sniff stuff. and there was no owner in sight.

since we are owners of two very loved dogs and would be horrified if they went missing, i made the decision to turn around & park on a side street. i got out of my car, wished that i had dog treats with me, and knelt down to say hi to the pups headed my direction. they ran right up to me and gave me a very happy, friendly greeting! they looked well fed & had collars with tags, quite obviously someone's pets.

i called (and called and called) the numbers on their tags, and decided to put them in the car so they wouldn't run out into traffic. after a few minutes, the owner called. apparently the dynamic duo had dug a hole under the fence & snuck out of the yard. their owner gave me directions to the house & i drove them home.

i didn't manage to snap a pic of both dogs, but i did get this one (with a little photoshop improvements):

i believe her name is abby & she is an 11 month old silver lab. she was so sweet. yay for happy endings!

weekend

2011-01-26T06:11:00.000+09:00

this past weekend, we actually managed to get a few things accomplished AND be social. usually it's one or the other. we had dinner with friends and both times were able to bring our pups along - which we appreciate a ton. because even when we aren't home for a bit, we still worry about them. plus, they had a couple opportunities to get out & meet new people & pups - always a ton of fun for them.

custom order: i carved up a linoleum block, making a smaller version of one of my heart card designs, and printed it over the weekend. i did a very small run, so i hand inked everything - but it did give me an opportunity to print letterpress & a lino block at the same time, which turned out well. i'll post some pics soon.

sunday night, vito snuck into the dining room and ate a pound of raw bread dough. he's eaten a lot of things over the past two years, so i didn't think much of it. but (thankfully) hubby looked up the consequences of eating raw bread dough and two major ones kept popping up: the dough will still rise in vito's tummy, causing bad pain (or worse) & a major possibility of alcohol poisoning. OMG. so we had him at pet emergency about 15 minutes after he ate the dough and they gave him something to make him throw up all the bad stuff. poor pup was a wreck for the next couple of days - he couldn't get comfortable all night & his tummy was making some awful noises. vito is back to normal now - playful & perky! we had a couple of scary days and are glad to have our sweet mischievous puppy back in action.

photoshop practice with vito

2011-01-22T09:00:00.000+09:00

here's another photoshop attempt.

the original (phone picture):

the edited version:

on the edit, i tried to adjust the exposure & take out some of the yellow lighting. i also cleaned up the carpet (i wish cleaning carpet was that easy). i selected vito and brightened him up separately from the background. again the pic quality was poor...i wonder how i would fix that graininess, if it's even possible.

vito lays like this all the time. he's such a goof.

photoshop practice

2011-01-22T08:47:00.000+09:00

i've been working a lot on my photoshop and decided that i needed to start practicing with some of my photos. ideally, i would like to post them once a week or so, but we'll see.

the image quality of this picture was poor to begin with, since it came from my phone. but i figured i'd give it a go anyway.

here's the original:

and here's the photoshopped version:

mia is pretty grainy and i'm not thrilled about that, but at least now you can see her face. keep in mind i only just got through my 3rd photoshop lesson. what i learned from this attempted edit: good picture quality is a must! and editing an all black dog is hard.

i'm guessing you'll be seeing a lot of photos of the dogs being adjusted in photoshop since i have about a million pictures of them :)

vito

2011-01-20T08:47:00.001+09:00

today is vito's 2nd anniversary with us! i can't believe it's already been two years since we picked him up from his foster home.

he was SO tiny

and cute (a terror too)

now he's all grown up!

we couldn't imagine our lives without him :)

goal list

2011-01-20T06:21:00.001+09:00

hubby & i were talking the other day & he pointed out how incredibly busy we both are.

i was thinking about everything i do already, as i worked on a list of goals for this year, and had a hard time thinking of achievable goals to fit into my already jam packed schedule. here's some of the stuff i do:

- work at a full time job
- work part time at my friend's shop
- maintain & am trying to grow my side business, tama press
- am taking online courses in graphic design

in addition to regular house chores (laundry, dishes, etc), hubby & i have a huge responsibility to take care of our pups and spend time with each other!

i created an "everything" list that contains everything i want to accomplish this year, ranging from cleaning out the closet to setting up a facebook page for tama press. there are a zillion things on the list & it keeps growing...but it felt like a bit of the weight was lifted off my shoulders as i wrote things down. i tried to break projects up into smaller, manageable pieces too, which will help me feel like i'm getting something done, even if it's a little part of the whole project. now that we are almost 3 weeks into the new year, is everyone working towards your goals? or have you already crossed a couple off your list?

charlotte

2011-01-19T05:41:00.000+09:00

we met this 6 month old cutie over the weekend.

she's a riot - banging into tables, wagging a mile a minute...she's ALL puppy. can't wait for ours to meet her!

weekend & boots!

2011-01-18T02:50:00.000+09:00

hello! hope everyone had a nice weekend...i was a busy bee...worked out, went to a meeting, worked at my friend's shop for a few hours, had dinner with friends & met their super cute puppy.

on friday afternoon, i received a phone call from a older gentleman who heard through the grapevine that i rebind books. i met with him later that evening to inspect the book and see if it was something i could fix. the book is an old Bible given to him by a friend that he's used for decades & the covers had fallen off. i took the job :) it was a pleasant surprise to hear that my book binding skills are making it out into the world by word of mouth.

on saturday, while waiting for our table to open up for dinner, hubby & i browsed in a few stores. and i found these:

source

i've been on the search for new dressy boots, since my old ones finally died. i had found some gift money that i had stored away a long time ago (when i was switching my stuff to a new wallet) and decided i had better get the boots! they're comfortable and make me about 3 inches taller which is awesome.

sunday was great - hubby & i relaxed all day together. even though we had a ton of stuff to do, we've been so busy lately that we needed to spend some time together. i wonder sometimes how we are able to add more activities to our already crazy schedules. how was your weekend?

custom wedding order meeting

2011-01-15T08:38:00.000+09:00

i had the pleasure of meeting a very nice couple last night. they are getting married this year & wanted some custom pieces by yours truly. the groom to be saw my work in town at a shop that picked up tama press in december...and as it turns out, the shop is owned by his mom! and, he was friends with my brother in elementary school...and i was friends with his sister! such a small world.

the couple were so pleasant to work with - it sure makes a difference to have sweet clients. i'm looking forward to starting on their package. they requested a custom guest book, recipe cards (to send with their wedding invitations), a recipe card box, a photo box, and a larger clamshell box to house their custom made cake cutting utensil set! lots of stuff - it will be made from indigo chiyogami, printed with a bamboo design & chocolate bookcloth. i can't wait to start on it!

so hungry!

2011-01-14T04:44:00.000+09:00

i've been doing this workout program (at 5am) for about a week and a half. while it's too early to notice physical appearance changes (i'm not doing it for that reason; it's more to get into better shape), i have noticed that i'm hungry. CONSTANTLY. in fact, i'm eating right now.

in addition to working out, i'm trying to improve what i eat a bit - cutting some of the sweets that i adore and replacing those with more nutritious snacks. hubby found some nut/seed/fruit bars that are surprisingly tasty. and i've been eating cottage cheese & peaches. omg cottage cheese has never tasted so good.

does anyone have some suggestions for quick, healthy snacks? eating baby carrots & celery sticks as a snack doesn't really excite me.

new year funk

2011-01-11T04:41:00.000+09:00

it's the new year and i disappeared from blog world for a week longer than i anticipated. i think of how i felt at this time last year...my mind was teeming with goals and plans. and this year...well, i feel blah. i haven't been in the greatest mood and i've been getting overly frustrated with small things.

some words to better describe this "mood":
anxious
overwhelmed
pessimistic
annoyed

i'm feeling unappreciated & taken advantage of, to a certain extent (not by husband though - he's been supportive & positive & is really doing a lot to help me out with stuff).

so is it just me? maybe i am in a funk. i'm working on narrowing down specifically what the source of the problem is and wading through all of the symptoms is a slow process. this year will bring forth a lot of changes and the unknown...

on a positive note, hubby & i have started a workout program in the mornings together (at 5am!!) while the workouts are HARD, i've actually enjoyed the additional time in the morning to myself. my typical morning is workout from 5-5:45ish, clean up & make coffee (until 6:40ish), then work on homework until it's time to go to work. being productive in the morning is pretty awesome. the downside is that i can barely keep my eyes open after 9pm.

hope everyone's year started off well! i'll be catching up on your blogs in the next few days...

christmas 2010!

2010-12-29T08:00:00.000+09:00

i hope everyone had a wonderful christmas! we really enjoyed our first christmas together. everything felt just right. i thought i would post a few pictures of some of the decorating we did around the house:

i'll be taking the rest of the week off from blogging to spend some time with my brother and catch up on my classes. hope everyone has a safe & happy new year! thanks for reading and i'll see you on the flip side...

morning frustration

2010-12-24T03:09:00.000+09:00

so this morning, i get in my car to head to work and look around - there is stuff everywhere. the glove box was open, cubby between the seats open, papers strewn about. i call my hubby and ask if he had gone through my car - i was kinda hoping he'd say yes, but he didn't. frustration washed over me as i looked at the mess.

apparently in the middle of the night, some jerk decided to dig through my belongings. and my car must have been unlocked, even though i'm religious about locking it. i never leave anything out on the seats other than towels for the dogs & an ice scraper.

fortunately, nothing was damaged. no windows busted. pretty sure nothing was stolen - not that i had anything in there to steal.

but i'm upset. pissed. angry even. how dare someone invade my privacy like that? it leaves a nasty feeling in the pit of my stomach. i think a big part of what's bothering me is the potential for a number of awful situations that could have happened. and that scares me a bit.

it could have been so much worse. thankfully it wasn't. but i still feel unsettled.

shakespeare book rebinding

2010-12-23T07:25:00.001+09:00

finally! i finished the enormous project of restoring & rebinding the shakespeare book. here's the story: my neighbor's family friend purchased "the complete works of shakespeare" many years ago at a garage sale. the 900+ page book was printed in 1890 and was a bit of a wreck. he wanted to have it rebound as a christmas gift for his niece, an english teacher. even though i had a single book rebinding under my belt, i decided to go for it - so i did my research and did the best i could to get this ancient book back into a readable state. below is the process from being to end:

as you can see, the covers were literally falling off. when i first examined the book, i was horrified at the fact that the binding consisted of rusty staples & cracked old glue. i thought it would have at least been sewn together.

i started deconstructing the book, carefully scraping off old chunks of glue and taking out staples. i made sure to keep each signature (section of pages) in order. as i made my way through the book, i found this weird flattened thing:

i used a special thin, but strong, japanese paper to repair the fold of the signatures & other sections & tears throughout the book. i hand cut the pieces into 3/4 inch wide pieces...

applied wheat paste to the japanese paper & then placed it on the fold of the broken signatures. i put the repaired sections under weight to dry and trimmed the edges once they were dry.

from there i made a guide for the sewing holes & used an awl to punch the holes through each signature. and WOW there were a lot of signatures!! i also made some end sheet sections, since the original piece didn't have them.

i rigged a makeshift sewing frame from cardboard boxes, packing tape, & a wooden loom piece (my nickname is macgyver) and started sewing the sections together.

more sewing....and the final height of the spine was 4 1/2 inches! i put a thin layer of glue on the spine and let that dry overnight.

after the book was dry, i measured (& double & triple checked the measurements) and proceeded to cut the board & bookcloth for the covers. glued everything down...put on headbands, strengthened the binding a bit more, made a hollow tube for the spine, then cased in the book - the hardest & most nerve wracking part. i glue the end pages into the covers & hope (pray) i don't get glue somewhere it shouldn't be, or place the pages crooked/backwards/upside down and hope that i measured everything correctly so the book will close how it's supposed to. and it did :)

the final piece - i put a little title plate on the front & used some sweet marbled paper that complimented the japanese bookcloth.

as with all new projects, i learned a TON of new stuff and am inspired to try making a few books this way. i also decided i need this sewing frame and book press for future books. hope you enjoyed the post :)

santa?

2010-12-22T08:23:00.000+09:00

dear santa,
i would like to bring this bag to your attention, even though it is so close to christmas.

source

and i don't own a big camera. but the bag is blue and awesome.
sincerely,
me

cuteness

2010-12-21T11:25:00.000+09:00

oh my goodness, look at this puppy!

source

new 'do

2010-12-21T09:59:00.001+09:00

i started my weekend with a new hairdo:

before

after

*yay!*

museum show 2010

2010-12-16T09:27:00.000+09:00

wow i didn't realize this until just now, but yesterday's post was number 300! and i bet about half of the posts have to do with my pups :)

here's some pics from the museum show over thanksgiving weekend. every year i've been chosen to participate in this show, my space & products line has increased. (and every year i also freak out and worry like crazy that i didn't make enough stuff - ask hubby, he will confirm it.)

this year, i was lucky enough to have a 6' table & 8' table to display my work:

i had books on the left....

and cards & boxes on the right.

i made a couple of photo album box sets....i really love how this one came out.

the black & red piece is a box set as well...on the bottom left are post photo albums, bottom right are secret belgian binding books.

i also introduced new letterpress note cards & recipe cards, as well as some hand built jewelry boxes & recipe card boxes.

like every past year (this is my 4th year!), this show was a pleasure and honor to participate in.

now i just need to get my etsy store up and running....

recipe cards

2010-12-15T09:31:00.000+09:00

i'm finally getting around to posting some pictures of the recipe cards i printed for the museum show - i apologize for the quality of the photos. there really isn't any time i can take pictures in daylight, since we are only getting a few hours of sun right now.

i created two designs: baking & utensils, and printed on four colors (per set) of french paper. the results were wonderful & quite popular at the show!

i also custom made the boxes and sold the cards & box as a set.

printing the cards ended up being great timing on my part since i ended up using extras for some recipes i came across for the holidays.

i won!

2010-12-14T09:49:00.000+09:00

i'm back! i kept thinking that after my shows things would calm down...but they haven't! the holidays always whiz by so quickly...and since this is hubby's & my first holiday together, i really want to slow down and enjoy every moment. but before i do that, i have a few projects to finish up, such as the rebinding of the giant shakespeare book. it's still in process & i've been snapping photos for a post.

one of the things i checked off my to do list today was sending in measurements for my eshakti prize!! a couple weeks ago, i was informed that i won *yay* an eshakti giveaway hosted by brandi of not your average ordinary. eshakti is an online clothing & accessories store that gives you the option to customize the look & fit of the pieces you order. a fantastic idea, don't you think?

for my giveaway prize, i chose the asymmetric collar felted pea coat - since the temperatures have been dipping into the single digits in the currently dark frigid north and my go-to jacket's zipper is broken.

i can't wait to wear my new coat! thank you brandi & eshakti for hosting a wonderful giveaway!

weekend

2010-12-07T09:56:00.000+09:00

our weekend was good - we did some christmas shopping & had fun picking out decorations for our first christmas together! we even bought our first tree! i'll post some pics once we are done decorating...

friday night, we ate dinner at a new(ish) restaurant called spenard roadhouse. i'm pretty safe when it comes to picking out new meals...i tend to choose the same thing all the time. i decided to branch out a little and have a risotto with beets & squash, drizzled in pesto...and OMG it was the most incredible thing i've ever eaten. the thought of eating beets used to make me cringe, but now, not so much. plus the meal was a pleasant pink color :)

after that we headed downtown to check out a new shop that my artwork is in, called grape expectations. they have a huge selection of wine & specialty beers. there was an art space towards the back of the store with products from a number of local artists, with a variety of different styles.

we were going to go see black swan (i even got my hubby to agree to see it)...and it isn't out in theaters in anchorage yet. of course. LAME. so we went home & spent quality time with the puppies. how was your weekend?

online classes

2010-12-04T08:58:00.000+09:00

my online courses started officially on december 1st and i'm so excited about them! the first few days are an orientation period focused on how to upload assignments & use the whole system. one of the things i had to do was create a student profile to explain what my learning goals are for the program & some other little tidbits of information. i also had to list a quotation...and since i don't have a ton of quippy remarks just laying around, i did some searching and found this:

source

so true, chuck, sooo true.

i'm planning to stop by some shops downtown for the first friday art walk & see if i can talk hubby into going to a movie (i want to see black swan). what are you up to? have a great weekend!

sketchbook project update

2010-12-03T08:11:00.000+09:00

so i've been embarrassingly lax on working on my sketchbook for the sketchbook project. as in, i've worked on about one page. eek. so to remedy that, i decided that i will draw at least once a day during the month of december - and not be too hard on myself if the drawing doesn't come out perfectly. i think i need to get back into the habit of drawing more often, rather than just for print designs...to sketch just for the heck of it.

here's what i drew last night:

miss mia was curled up on my side of the bed - and her head was on my pillow. i tried to move her but ended up rolling her over since she weighs a ton when she's snoozing. it was SO cute.

vito's 2nd birthday!

2010-12-02T03:01:00.000+09:00

our puppy is all grown up....vito turned 2 on november 22nd. (as you can see i'm a bit late with this one.) we've noticed so many changes in him as he's gotten older; he's more gentle, calms down faster, a bit more mellow. and he's retained his sweet disposition. i can't imagine what our lives would have been like without him for the last couple of years.

here he is opening a birthday present:

we've been letting the pups have the run of the house for the past few weeks and they've done a great job! none of our things were destroyed & it doesn't look like there was any counter surfing either. then one day, hubby came home to this:

RIP pig

i figure that they were playing with something they were supposed to play with, plus they didn't eat any of the stuffing & it would have happened regardless of whether or not we were home - so it's okay. too bad the piggy didn't last longer though.

busy busy!

2010-12-01T09:55:00.000+09:00

whew what a weekend! i was up late last night finishing up a custom order and didn't get a chance to post. i'll be catching up on everyone's blogs, planning quite a few of my own posts and starting some custom orders that need to get done before Christmas! AH! also on the Tama Press list:

- figuring out some of wholesale pricing
- calling new shops about consignment orders
- printing some more cards
- posting items in the etsy shop

oh...and i get to start my graphic design classes tomorrow!

more to come....thanks for being patient :)

museum show prep

2010-11-24T09:32:00.000+09:00

sorry for the lack of posting...i will try to get a couple things up, but if not, i'll be back next week. between preparing for the show (lots of goodies to show you!) and thanksgiving, it's been overwhelmingly crazy.

for the show...it's crafts weekend at the museum from friday to sunday at the anchorage museum of history and art! go here to read more about the show. hope to see you there!

so much to do...

2010-11-20T09:11:00.000+09:00

last weekend before the museum show and have a ton to do!

i printed the first round of recipe cards & will print the backs of the cards tomorrow (since they have to dry in between runs) - they look SO great!

also made a couple of photo album box sets that turned out quite beautifully!

i have many more boxes & books to make before the big show next weekend...wish me luck!

hyperbole and a half dogs

2010-11-19T07:40:00.000+09:00

i was reading hyperbole and a half today and practically fell out of my chair from laughing so hard. so i thought i would share, since i'm sure you need a good laugh too.

this is what it's like when we drive mia & vito around too (source)

tiny showcase of awesome

2010-11-18T08:51:00.000+09:00

thanks to designlovefest, i was introduced to tiny showcase - the creators wanted a venue for artists to make some money with smaller works of art & for customers to purchase affordable pieces. each week, they pick a new tiny piece of art & have a limited edition of prints made.

cool things about tiny showcase:
1) there's a letterpress section!!
2) a percentage of each sale goes towards the artist's favorite charity

check out some of the gorgeous work:

"Tiny Boat on a Tiny Bottle" by sol linero

"August Migration" by tyler stout

"Inside Trip" by the little friends of printmaking

and my favorite piece (seen on designlovefest too):
"Homage to the Stamp" by Gavin Potenza

be sure to click on each image to see the additional shots of the prints - the pics really capture the beauty & depth of letterpress printing.

and since i received my 60+ pounds of french paper & my letterpress plates yesterday, i'll be cranking out some prints myself tonight! pictures to come...

the oatmeal

2010-11-17T09:15:00.000+09:00

a college friend of mine posted something from the oatmeal and i checked it out...and am now hooked. it is HILARIOUS. somewhat dark humor and some *$@! language. the creator of the oatmeal, matthew inman, draws, writes & codes the entire site. extremely talented guy...

but check these out:

things bears love (source)

part of 8 ways to prepare your pets for war (source)

from 7 reasons to keep your tyrannosaur OFF crack cocaine (source)

pups

2010-11-16T09:01:00.000+09:00

sooo over the weekend, we got another puppy!!

just kidding :) we're not quite that crazy.....yet.

for no apparent reason, the puppies turned up the cuteness this weekend. the majority of the weekend consisted of them looking like this:

hubby was cutting mia's nails (the thought of cutting their nails freaks me out) and accidentally cut one too short - and since her nails are black, it's really hard to see where the quick is - so it started bleeding & we didn't have any of that powder that's supposed to stop it quickly. i have to say, mia was a champ - she didn't cry & was really patient while we fixed her up. for as crazy as she can be sometimes, she is very tolerant when it comes to letting us check her out. we sat with her & bandaged it up, then put a little bootie on her foot so she wouldn't bite the dressing.

have you ever seen a dog walk with a bootie on? it's HILARIOUS! she adjusted quickly and was playing in no time. here's her looking pathetic:

puppy test

2010-11-13T04:33:00.000+09:00

during the last week or so, hubby & i have been experimenting with leaving the pups out of their kennels while we aren't home.

we've learned a bit from our previous experiences: "the death of the baby gate", "the death of the blinds", and of course, "the death of the carbon monoxide detector".

instead of leaving them down where there is NOTHING (toys didn't count apparently) to do...we've left them with lots of toys, their beds, and the window so they can head up neighborhood security.

let's hope they passed this test with flying colors! i would much rather see their little floppy eared heads pop up at the window when i got home...unless they are holding a piece of dismembered couch in their mouths at the same time.

postcards

2010-11-12T01:00:00.000+09:00

so my friend annie of annie's arts & follies mentioned this cool postcard site called postcrossing. if you decide to participate, you send out some cards & receive cards from all over the world. basically, its way better than getting a ton of bills in your mailbox.

since i read about this project, annie inspired me to work on my first postcard design:

i haven't decided what color paper to print on or what color ink to use yet...i am LOVING designing for letterpress!

baking recipe cards

2010-11-11T01:00:00.000+09:00

i finished up the files for the next recipe cards! i would love to get one more thing done before i send the files off to the polymer plate makers. here's the french paper colors i ordered:

the recipe cards will come in packs of 8, with 2 cards in each color.

here's the front:

and here's the back:

and once again, the blue border is not part of the design, just to make the card stand out :) what do you think?

learning curve...

2010-11-10T05:45:00.000+09:00

i've been working on a few new projects...an additional recipe card design, a postcard design, and a custom gift card for an alaskan store. all three will hopefully be finished in the next couple of days so i can order some letterpress plates.

the custom gift card request was from a lovely lady who was at the bad girls of the north show. she really liked the kitchen cards & wanted me to create some cards for her shop to be used as gift certificates for the upcoming holidays. i drew a design for her shop with pots, pans, tea pots & some tea accessories. i'm just waiting on her shop logo to get it finished up. she also wanted the cards printed on bright paper (my favorite!) so i place an order for some cheerful colors.

i've found that i've become much more comfortable with offering custom work to customers at shows. i used to be worried..."what if i can't do it? what if they don't like it? what if...." but i've learned a couple of things:

1) get as many details & specifics about the project as possible. a lot of people have told me "do whatever you want"....but i hesitate because i know our tastes aren't the same. so if i can at least get a direction, a color scheme, even dislikes, that helps
2) i've always gotten a project done. even when i'm stressed to the max. and am feeling unsure of my abilities. and am trying something new. i've been able to find a way, find resources, & create some pretty cool things.

once i have the designs for the cards done, i'll show you :)

Bad Girls of the North show!

2010-11-09T01:00:00.000+09:00

what a crazy busy weekend! the bad girls of the north show was a major success :) it was a lot of fun. i had the chance to see many familiar faces, artists & customers. friday night was packed - it looked like everyone really enjoyed themselves. one of the coolest things about this particular show is that on friday night, drinks & appetizers are offered to customers.

and here's what you've been waiting for - pics of the show!

my table

linoleum block printed cards

new pamphlet books - featuring vito :)

letterpress printed kitchen cards

letterpress kitchen & snowman cards

address books & japanese stab binding books

i always learn so much from every show and this one was no exception. i have a lot of new ideas for projects in addition to some things i'm planning to debut at the museum show in a few weeks. i took sunday off to relax and catch up on some much needed sleep, but i'll be hitting the ground running to have everything ready for the next show.

show day!!!

2010-11-06T02:56:00.000+09:00

ok so i miscalculated the amount of time i would have to get things done...and didn't have a chance to take pictures of the boxes. sorry :( but i'll take lots of pictures of the show - i'm going to go set up for bad girls of the north in a couple of hours!!!!!

wish me luck!

show countdown!

2010-11-05T05:09:00.000+09:00

source

i've been up late the past few nights, pushing to get everything done in time for the show. there is never enough time in the day! most of the books are packaged...i couldn't keep my eyes open to finish up the last few. i worked my buns off and made three new jewelry boxes, which i'm pretty happy with! i will take some pictures later & hopefully will post them tonight or tomorrow.

here's my list of what i have left to do:
- cut & package kitchen cards
- package snowman card singles
- finish 4 photo albums
- bind a couple more blanket stitch books
- package rest of the books
- gather supplies for the show
- get rid of this annoyingly persistent headache i have

and if i'm really ambitious....i'll make a photo album box set. but we'll see. perhaps i'll save that for the next show. wish me luck - it's crunch time!

mia's first birthday!

2010-11-04T06:00:00.000+09:00

our sweet puppy turned one on halloween! so of course, we got her presents and special cookies :) here's some pictures:

presents!

did someone say "treats"?!

yup

fleecy ball!

and here's a video:

snow!

2010-11-03T03:47:00.000+09:00

we had our first big snowfall last night & this morning...the first snow that stuck. winter is here! i wish i could say that it's bright & white & pretty outside, but this is what it looks like:

kinda of blah and gray...at 11am.

mia was funny this morning - i don't think she really remembered what snow is. when i took her out to go potty, she was unsure of the white stuff and was very cautious about stepping anywhere. so cute!

kitchen cards!

2010-11-03T00:00:00.000+09:00

there was a bit of a setback last week - i ordered paper to print this new set of cards & ups accidentally sent my order to canada. once the error was figured out, it had to clear customs to get back into the US. i contacted french paper and received an immediate response - they sent out a new box to me next day air. i am SO impressed with their customer service. and because they responded so quickly, i was able to print my cards for the show this weekend!

here's some pics of the printing:

there are five different designs on five different colors of paper

i used a mixture of silver & black ink - so there is a bit of sheen in the prints. the darkness of the ink really shows off the detail of the drawings.

my shop puppy :)

saved the best color for last

helper puppies - they were quality assurance for the day

this was a marathon printing day - 550 cards in over 5 hours. my arm is still a little sore...but its a huge relief to have them printed. i'm thrilled with the results and will post more once they are cut down and ready to sell!

halloween 2010

2010-11-02T02:57:00.000+09:00

husband and i attended a halloween party saturday night...so saturday morning, we headed off to the store to search for costumes. and here's what we found:

hubby as hannibal lector

me as alice in wonderland

i have decided that blond hair really isn't great on me....but i did get to wear my blue wedding shoes again, so that was awesome. actually that was a huge deciding factor in choosing my costume...haha!

our friends throwing the party - poison ivy & hong kong phooey

lots of people showed up - in costume! there was a flower, doctor, & fire (sitting on top of his grandma, who was a cinder)

little red riding hood & wolf

cindy lou who & the grinch (who took his mask off because 3 year old fire was a little scared of it)

skier & a skunk

there was a pumpkin carving contest - partners were randomly draw from a hat:

me & my partner's pumpkin

hubby & his partner's pumpkin

other pumpkins

and the winner of the contest!

we also had bobbing for apples:

the party was tons of fun and by the end of the night, we were exhausted :) hope everyone had a happy halloween!

randomness

2010-10-30T05:27:00.000+09:00

guess what? i actually downloaded some music from itunes for the first time ever. aren't you proud? haha. ludo's broken bride ep & regina spektor's begin to hope album will be keeping me company this weekend as i push my way through the printing & binding madness.

oh, and it was trying to snow last night. more of a spitting from the sky type thing was happening, but the white stuff is coming. soon. i really need to get my snow tires on.

i was getting ready for bed the other night, and when i checked on the pups after my shower, i was treated to this lovely sight:

this is a big weekend - in addition to art, this will be the first year hubby & i will be handing out candy to the little hoodlums in our neighborhood! and...halloween is also our mia's 1st birthday!!!

this is not the most cohesive post ever. scattered, a lot like the way my mind's been the last few days. lots to do, so i better get to it...have a safe & fun weekend :)