catching up...

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.

museum show 2010

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....

museum show prep

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...

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!

Bad Girls of the North show!

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!!!

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!

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!

finding clarity

good morning all! yesterday i ran a couple of errands to drop off my new business cards at some of the shops that carry my stuff around town. i had a chance to catch up with annie (owner of bella boutique & jewelry artist extraordinaire). you know how there are certain people you talk to or spend time with & they make you feel better? rejuvenated? positive? well, that's how i felt after talking with annie.

i've suddenly been hit with the stress of the upcoming shows & haven't handled it well for the last couple of days (ask my ever patient husband). and a lot of little annoying things have been building up...you know how that is. for example, i took our dogs to the park yesterday and they weren't listening well. then they saw a dog they've played with many times before....and ended up getting into a spat over a stick. no one was hurt (fortunately) & i got so frustrated trying to wrangle 130 lbs of excited dog (while the other owner was in shock that her dog would get so possessive over a stick...she wasn't very helpful while the incident was happening). it's situations like that, that i've been allowing to ruin my whole day (or week in some instances).

so i decided to make a couple of small adjustments...
1) get up earlier - so i can start my day more relaxed. this is a big one for me since i'm definitely not a morning person.
2) go to bed earlier (duh) - i try to stay up and do as much as possible...but am amazed at how much better i feel when i actually get a decent nights sleep.
3) adjust my attitude - if i stay in the mindset that everything sucks, well, it will. so i'm going to stay focused on what is in my control, try not to let the little things bother me, and keep in mind that i've always succeeded in whatever i've worked hard for (in this case, preparing for shows)

as a daily (constant) attitude reminder, i also bought some bling:


clarity: "clearness or lucidity as to perception or understanding, freedom of indistinctness or ambiguity" (from dictionary.com)

how do you handle things when you are stressed? any good tips on managing stress?

office

things around here have been crazy (hence the lack of a post yesterday). i received my plates for the snowman cards & kitchen cards and they look fantastic! i also got my first order of french paper yesterday...and cannot wait to print. i love paper...*sigh*

my photographer friend christine pobke also contacted me about printing some flat cards for her, so i ordered the plates & paper for that project too.

oh, and i'm researching & preparing to restore an antique book - a collection of shakespeare, publishing in the 1890's.

and preparing for art shows. did i mention i've been busy? :)

the nice thing about all of this busyness is that the more i'd doing, the more ideas i'm having - for prints, card designs, etc. and i'm feeling like i'm accomplishing stuff. that feeling alone is totally worth the lack of sleep.

here's a couple of pics of my recently cleaned office (i cleaned in preparation of my mac arrival...i know, i'm a nerd).

the office was actually a LOT worse than the before pic shows...it turned into a cardboard pig sty/storage area for a ton of random crap.

the center print is a linocut i did for a print exchange & the other four were picked from a number of print exchanges i've participated in over the years.

okay, time to get back to work!

G Street Artist Fair

*sorry for the lapse of posts...between the wedding planning and show preparations over the weekend, i've been having difficulty finding time to sleep, much less do anything else. i have posts lined up for the rest of this week, then i will take some time off until the beginning of august. thanks for your understanding and patience!*

over the weekend, i had my first outdoor show - G Street Artist Fair! it was held in downtown anchorage. the downtown partnership blocked off a chunk of G street and over 40 artists & vendors were selling their wares. the fair lasted for just one day and was something i wanted to try, it was a totally different venue than the other shows i've done & with different customers (tourists). unfortunately, the weather wasn't terribly cooperative - it was pretty chilly and sprinkled quite a bit. but at least there wasn't a total downpour & it wasn't raining sideways.

the downtown partnership (the group that organized the show) put up a tent for me. here's a couple pictures of my little booth:



i made quite a few new books (which i'll do a post on later) as well as a gun print that i made a small edition of as gifts. i wanted to see if there would be any interest in a print like this - it did get many looks. :)

it was good to get exposure...i made some new friends and my work will be in a new gallery (in august): Dos Manos!! the owners, stephanie & kara, had a booth behind me at the artist fair and we hit it off! go here to check out their website.

art shows

its official: i made it into all 3 art shows that i applied for this year!!!!!!!!!!!!! WOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!!!!

i will be at the following shows:
- G Street Artist Gathering on Saturday July 10th - my first outdoor show (pray for good weather!)
- Bad Girls of the North on Friday November 5th & Saturday November 6th
- Crafts Weekend at the Museum on Thanksgiving weekend

now if you will excuse, i have to go start working in my studio until the end of time.

made in alaska

i've finally gotten around to looking at the application process to become an official "made in alaska" artist. the application is for a permit to use the official made in alaska seal, which is a mother bear and cub - see it at the official site here. the symbol is well known in alaska. many of my artist friends have said they've seen a significant difference in their sales after getting their permit. since i applied for a new show in the summer and the primary customer will be tourists, i thought it would be a good idea to submit this application. so wish me luck!

artique show

this past saturday was the artique gallery feature - i was lucky enough to be featured with bryon birdsall! if you are unfamiliar with his work, go here. he has a lot of originals up at artique right now and WOW...they are amazing! the show is named: "McKinley Japonisme II" his work looks like it's very influenced by japanese ukiyo-e wood block artists such as Hokusai & Hasui. such vivid color! he was very kind & open to talking with me about his work. it was such an honor & a pleasure to meet him.

a handful of my books sold, and the address books flew off the shelf! here's a couple of pictures of my displays:



and here's a picture of me with byron. he's personalizing a print for me. very cool!

all of this art work reminds me of when i did wood block prints so many years ago. i think i might need to place an order for some supplies and work on a series of prints. i'm getting excited at the prospect of printing something different, besides note cards & business cards.

crafts weekend at the museum, part 2

for once, i actually remembered to bring bff's real camera to the show (with a full battery). here are some photos of my space:

from left to right...all 14 feet of table

from right to left (there was a wall a few yards in front of the tables so i couldn't get a straight on shot)

card stand (thanks to mom's garden) and linoleum block printed card sets - created from my drawings

2 box sets with matching photo albums, lined journals, small handmade boxes

guest books, address books, secret belgian binding books

secret belgian binding books, post bound photo albums, blanket stitch books

japanese stab binding books in 3 different sizes

it's pleasant to look back at these show pictures & realize "WOW i made a lot of stuff!" the two big treasures from this show were the box sets i made. i honestly thought that people would look at them and go "ooooh" and then i'd take them home at the end of the show. to my surprise & delight, they both sold! in addition to that, i had a custom order for another set! i'll post some photos of those sets soon.

december first friday & hair trauma

sorry for the sporadic posting lately. with all of the shows coming to an end, i think i'll be able to get back into the swing of things & actually post on a regular basis. i'll have new photos to share from the show, updates for the website, and custom order pics, in addition to lots of other things...

i dropped off my inventory at artique yesterday and felt like a huge weight was lifted off my shoulders. what a relief! the ladies who work at the gallery were oohing & aahing over the books - it made my day :) check out artique's website - i'm listed in the right hand column under byron birdsall for saturday, december 5th! i'm looking forward to stopping by friday night for their first friday reception too & checking out some other things downtown - such as....

- the lovely ladies of one world designs & annie's arts & follies will be showing their gorgeous jewelry at kaladis downtown. go here for details.
- and i'm going to visit upstairs studio to pick up a bracelet i ordered that matches my belt and to check out the venue. i've had a lot of requests for bookmaking classes and this working studio might be a great place to hold a class or two.

on a completely unrelated side note, i was shopping at tar-jay (target) for a few things and bought these weird bendy hair rollers. since i'm getting irritated with my hair (& am getting the urge to cut it off), i thought i'd try something new. i tried them out and got crazy hair, although you probably can't see it too well in my quality camera phone picture:
let me just say, i've developed a new found respect for all of you people out there with naturally curly/wavy hair. i don't know how you get unruly hair to co-operate, but i applaud you. my hair is actually looking better now that it's starting to relax a bit. i'll probably try this out a few more times & see if i can make it work. or just get a haircut.

crafts weekend at the museum, part 1

what a busy long weekend! i hope everyone had a happy thanksgiving & enjoyed spending time with those you care about. we had lots of good food (bff made yummy stuffing & i made the pies) and relaxed with family & friends. overall, a great day.

after eating way too much, bff and i took all of my artwork to the museum and set up for the big weekend show. we were going to set up wednesday night but it snowed a ton and the roads weren't plowed...figured it would be a safer option to wait a little bit. i'll get some pictures of the table up soon!

(sorry this is so short - getting sales numbers done from the weekend & am doing some prep for the big artique weekend!)

boxes

as the time crunch shrinks before this next big show, i find that i am thinking "oh if this doesn't get done, it won't be the end of the world." i am in pretty decent shape - which is good since show set-up is one day away. i have all of my cards packaged and ready to go. books are coming along...and boxes are too. here's a peek at the set of small boxes i made :

lids closed

lids open!

i'm testing a small number of boxes to see if customers like them. i really enjoy making them - much like books, i get a lot of satisfaction from making these boxes from book board & paper. and with the number of jewelry artists at these shows, they would be great for jewelry boxes. i think i mentioned this before, but the idea for paper/book board jewelry boxes came from a winnie-the-pooh jewelry box (that i still use to this day) that my mom gave me. i thought it was the COOLEST thing to have a box that wasn't made from plastic or wood, but was still sturdy.

will probably be burning the midnight oil again tonight. wish me luck!

its official!

i am thrilled to announce that my books will be shown (and on sale) for the month of december at the incredible gallery, Artique, Ltd! i am ecstatic & honored to be asked to show my work as such a prestigious gallery. i will be at the gallery on december 5th, from 1 - 3pm to meet & greet customers, along with the very well known & well respected artist Byron Birdsall.

things are falling into place! more later....

so much work to do....

so i'm a little stressed. i have about 2 weeks until the next big show - crafts weekend at the museum - and i have so much to do, it's ridiculous. while i have been a bit better about preparing for fall art shows this year, i'm still behind. what happened to getting everything done before november? EPIC FAIL.

i have 113 books left to make (geez that's it? ha), 14 boxes, and about 300 cards to print. and t-minus 2 weeks to do it in. seriously. *deep breath*

my attitude went from "how am i possibly going to get this done?!" to "i'll get it done, i have no choice." thanks to sarah von of the awesome blog "yes and yes", i now have a few tips to aid me in my productive whirlwind. if you get a chance, drop by her blog - it's highly entertaining and funny. sarah comes across as one of those warm, inviting people that would be a great friend & confidant.

wish me luck this weekend!

stuff i bought myself at the bad girls show part 3

finally, i bought myself a new belt at the bad girls show. i have been oogling the belts by Julie Patchin of JP Designs for a good couple of years. her work is just amazing & eye catching, not to mention that she is extremely nice (this show was the first time i met her in person). i've seen her products at bella boutique - the fine accessories shop that also carries my books. she makes belts, watches, bracelets, wallets & much more. she will also customize things to your size or will take measurements & make something specific just for you. i also have a bracelet on order to match my sweet belt. i can't wait to wear it!

my new belt, in all of its colorful glory

and of course i was attracted to the circles. it reminded me of one of the first sets of cards i printed - my dots cards.

love Julie's work? want to contact her? try her e-mail: jp.designs@hotmail.com