Couch - Version 2

We upgraded our one couch to two couches, so I have adjusted and transferred the old cushions... Ah... A new level of happiness.

A matter of taste

I grew up in a home with ultra-modern design. My dad loves clean lines and mid-century modern and Italian designers. Though my parents' love for the whimsical and ecletic definitely was passed down to me, it makes me laugh to think of how much I love old quilts, mismatched wood furniture, glass doorknobs, and many forms of recycled "junk"... Another thing of beauty to me...

I have the coolest friends

I love gifts in general- giving as much as getting - maybe more- but I
really do love receiving handmade gifts from the Blue Sky Girls,
(Tori, Holly, and Michele - and a few others - Nichole, Jill, and Monica - we've picked up along the way...)
- who are my friends, old coworkers, mentor - and generally the most inspirational group of women artists I know.
I received this hanging "ornament" from Holly this year.
I still hold out hope that we will all someday live in the same city...

This piece makes me quiet my heart just a little more when I look at it.
There is not much "sublime" about the 1.5 year old singing "small world"
at the top of his lungs as I write this, but I'm thinking it is somehow a
little good to have the ends of the spectrum represented.

A wise woman never reveals her sources

That's why I won't tell you which dollar store I found these fabulous
birdhouses at...

Favorite Colors

For years, I declined to have a favorite color. (or maybe I was denying the color that was indeed, my favorite) ... it's weird to think about favorite colors.
In planning my wedding, I chose bridesmaid dresses that defied a color name, I still can't decide, years later, if they were more of a "shimmery bark" or a "gun metal" - and though my florist in his description of the flowers for my wedding, said I loved purple (I don't, I can't stand it!) - I knew that with my dresses and the green and brown foliage of the ranch that purple was the right color for the flowers to complement the many greens we were using.
I think the weirdest thing of it all is that I was totally in denial that I love RED. and I do. I love almost every shade of red: brick, orange, sienna, clay, scarlet, tomato, fire-engine - you name it - even most pinks... but I was in my "designer" phase then - and I had to love black and only black.
And now, with a preschooler and a toddler, I can't avoid having a favorite - because I get asked, oh, at least 12 times a day which is my favorite color - because this is an important thing to a little person.
Do you remember, as a kid, thinking about people in terms of what their favorite colors were? ("Can I be friends with her if her favorite color is brown?") And as adults, we never ask each other which colors we prefer, unless we're buying something for the person... It's pretty funny to ask a friend. I even asked my hubby recently and totally guessed wrong. Even after seven years of marriage.

Oh, and in case you wonder... (as if you do)
I also LOVE acidic greens. not EVERY green... just the hot ones.
I guess it IS important, after all.

Why Do I love Vistaprints so much?

no seriously - here I am, an indie designer - trying to make it in the big world - always in support of the little artists and designers out there... and yet, I have this obsession with vistaprint.com

I think it is because deep down, I love getting my own artwork back on glossy postcards... but don't we all? And I love anyplace where I can get one-offs of my own artwork or projects - but I haven't quite been able to let go of the nagging voice that says, "You are totally an addict..."

That's why I also have loved www.cafepress.com (here's the shop I did with hubby's grandfather's farm logo) , www.tshirts.com, and others.
Deep down, it feels like another medium to play with... one more way to make a little drawing on the big wide world.

Here's to the little guys. (and a few big guys, too)

Mad Props for my friend

Okay, so it isn't enough that she's an incredible stationery designer... Tori Higa is a great artist (she's done some great work for us!), a mommy, a friend, and now a published author!

Hooray for my design buddy - I've watched her work through getting this book made, been with her while she schmoozed with candidates for her book at trade shows (she's not really a schmoozer, but we did meet some of them in person...) and I am so proud to see that this book is available for pre-order. (I'm so the first in line...)

Tori Higa...
I'm your biggest fan!

AllyZabba

Ally Zabba...
possibly some of the snuggliest blankies you can get... these things are my baby gift of choice these days. Check out their thoughtful gift baskets and their cute website...

What's really fun is a new contest that our friends over at Allyzabba.com are doing. They've got videos of their adorable munchkin saying babytalk and are asking contestants to venture a guess as to what she's saying.
My personal favorite, however are Little Zabba's hot dance moves.
I'm serious, they've already got the cutest blankets around, who would think that the blankies led to serious coordination?
My guy is close to the same age and can't hold a candle to her moves.

They've got tons of prizes, so see if you can win. You might even get something from yours truly!