I wish blogger had an Iphone app. Flickr too please! I have my Facebook, Twitter, a Journal and a fantastic diet log.
I'm totally addicted to apps on my new Iphone so these are some serious holes. Oh well, at least GoogleReader has a streamlined page for the Iphone so I can keep up reading. More like catch up! I miss my blogging and blog reading days. Just time isn't what it used to be for me.
Showing posts with label blogging. Show all posts
Showing posts with label blogging. Show all posts
Sunday, June 28, 2009
Sunday, February 24, 2008
Happy Late Birthday Indeed!
I won the paper fetishist lotto tonight.
This incredible gift of washi and other beautiful papers that I recieved tonight has pulled me out of my hole to blog a bit. It is just spectacular and I haven't even gone through it yet. I need to find a good place to store all these pretties. I have some pretty wonderful, thoughtful and generous friends.
Speaking of friends, we took a little drive down to RI to see HeatherJeany, meet her husband and her precious new baby boy. Packed up all our gender neutral clothing along with the much loved but sadly outwiggled Moby Wrap and we took to the road Saturday morning after a sudden warmup after a bad storm. We had a great time. She's the best, her husband is very sweet and her baby is adorable and so tiny!
I actually have a lot of new work that I haven't blogged about yet, new work that I even love but something is holding me back. I keep waiting for the perfect words to talk about them, but I don't have time to come up with the perfect words these days so I end up here writing about paper, friends and cute babies.
One might say I am at a weird point in my art where I am trying to figure out what to do next. I've been going on a bit of a different path these last few months and it is continuing and it is exciting but sometimes very difficult.
I miss you guys. I miss the morning routine of tea, oatmeal and blog writing and blog reading.
March will be different. Can't February be over already?
This incredible gift of washi and other beautiful papers that I recieved tonight has pulled me out of my hole to blog a bit. It is just spectacular and I haven't even gone through it yet. I need to find a good place to store all these pretties. I have some pretty wonderful, thoughtful and generous friends.
Speaking of friends, we took a little drive down to RI to see HeatherJeany, meet her husband and her precious new baby boy. Packed up all our gender neutral clothing along with the much loved but sadly outwiggled Moby Wrap and we took to the road Saturday morning after a sudden warmup after a bad storm. We had a great time. She's the best, her husband is very sweet and her baby is adorable and so tiny!
I actually have a lot of new work that I haven't blogged about yet, new work that I even love but something is holding me back. I keep waiting for the perfect words to talk about them, but I don't have time to come up with the perfect words these days so I end up here writing about paper, friends and cute babies.
One might say I am at a weird point in my art where I am trying to figure out what to do next. I've been going on a bit of a different path these last few months and it is continuing and it is exciting but sometimes very difficult.
I miss you guys. I miss the morning routine of tea, oatmeal and blog writing and blog reading.
March will be different. Can't February be over already?
Friday, July 20, 2007
Apparently I am Trendy!
Squeee! My Russian Nesting Dolls were featured on Modish yesterday! This is my second time on them and the first in a number of months and it is always a thrill and an honor since it is such a nice blog that features such awesome indie items! Apparently I am part of a new trend with these spontaneously created Russian dolls! I did them on a total whim when I was pulling myself out of a productive and create drought and started doodling and I came up with these simple forms rather quickly. I wanted something simple, graphic and fun and I knew just from the doodles that it was time to start. Unfortunately I decided that since I was doing an image that was a bit different I would use wood that was too. Some of the hard solid woods that were given to me many months ago. This was carved in cherry wood, a gorgeous wood that is so much harder than shina! It was a hot day and I was not feeling the push of energy that I am feeling now so this simple carving took four times as long as it would have on shina and once it was done I was sweating and exhausted. People used to hardwoods like this complain about getting detail with a wood as soft as shina but I am so used to it that I am very good at bending it to my will. I had a very hard time bending this wood to my will! But I have this piece to show for it and am not featured on a blog. Hopefully there will be more Russian doll pieces except I have to change the elevation of my press to print it since it is twice as thick as shina and that is a hassle that makes me less likely to use it.
Yesterday was pretty cool. First the UPS fairy came with the Pack n Play and after some struggling and getting some help from some Etsy gals I managed to get it set up except for the bassinet part which has me a bit puzzled. But I am loving how it looks in that corner. Sharing such a bright and creatively inviting space with a young one makes me happy. Especially since she is my young one!
Following that shortly the UPS fairy came with my Dick Blick order. I now have some cool papers. A nifty large archival flat box for storing paper including the super cool paper I ordered. Some methyl cellulose for finally giving hanga a go and a small portfolio that matches my large one to help me not lose stuff ever again! That portfolio was my original reason for ordering but I just kept going!
Exhaustion and soreness soon followed but I was too emotionally up to sleep so I did some cleaning and opened up a profile on this promising looking site I found though a friend. I am fairly impressed with the design and overall ease of use so far.
This feature on Modish has me considering getting a holiday ad spot on the site. It isn't cheap but for Modish it could be worth it. The big question for me is if it does work will I be able to keep up? I don't know what blee is going to do to my life. Jon wants me to keep doing what I have been doing as much as I can since it is going so well and plans on helping out. But Christmas was crazy last year and this year it could easily be bigger especially if I buy a two month ad and feature. Where is my minion? Blee is gonna be way too small to be a minion for a long time and the animals are useless.
After just nearly having a heart attack searching for a sold piece (yes, the one that I just uncovered after a year of being tucked in a piece of discarded cardboard) and nearly having a freakout heart attack before finding it I realize that I have three things to focus on today and for the weekend. First, I must be a sticker making fiend. Second packing and shipping orders (including said stickers) and last but not least my artwork needs to be just as organized, nay more organized, than my studio. I have my pieces scattered about in too many random places and pieces get stuck together and I can do better. I have a plan!
Hope everybody has a great Friday and a great weekend. Saturday we spend all day at a baby birth class! Time to be terrified by learning exactly what is going to happen to me in a month.
Yesterday was pretty cool. First the UPS fairy came with the Pack n Play and after some struggling and getting some help from some Etsy gals I managed to get it set up except for the bassinet part which has me a bit puzzled. But I am loving how it looks in that corner. Sharing such a bright and creatively inviting space with a young one makes me happy. Especially since she is my young one!
Following that shortly the UPS fairy came with my Dick Blick order. I now have some cool papers. A nifty large archival flat box for storing paper including the super cool paper I ordered. Some methyl cellulose for finally giving hanga a go and a small portfolio that matches my large one to help me not lose stuff ever again! That portfolio was my original reason for ordering but I just kept going!
Exhaustion and soreness soon followed but I was too emotionally up to sleep so I did some cleaning and opened up a profile on this promising looking site I found though a friend. I am fairly impressed with the design and overall ease of use so far.
This feature on Modish has me considering getting a holiday ad spot on the site. It isn't cheap but for Modish it could be worth it. The big question for me is if it does work will I be able to keep up? I don't know what blee is going to do to my life. Jon wants me to keep doing what I have been doing as much as I can since it is going so well and plans on helping out. But Christmas was crazy last year and this year it could easily be bigger especially if I buy a two month ad and feature. Where is my minion? Blee is gonna be way too small to be a minion for a long time and the animals are useless.
After just nearly having a heart attack searching for a sold piece (yes, the one that I just uncovered after a year of being tucked in a piece of discarded cardboard) and nearly having a freakout heart attack before finding it I realize that I have three things to focus on today and for the weekend. First, I must be a sticker making fiend. Second packing and shipping orders (including said stickers) and last but not least my artwork needs to be just as organized, nay more organized, than my studio. I have my pieces scattered about in too many random places and pieces get stuck together and I can do better. I have a plan!
Hope everybody has a great Friday and a great weekend. Saturday we spend all day at a baby birth class! Time to be terrified by learning exactly what is going to happen to me in a month.
Monday, July 09, 2007
The Great Reorganization Project Begins
Good morning! I hope everybody had a lovely weekend. Mine was pretty good actually.
I'm finally cleaning and organizing my studio. Starting by putting away blocks in newly purchased drawers. Oh how I adore the Container Store! Finally all my small and midsized blocks of carved wood have been safely put away instead of lying around here and there in my studio like they were before. I mean really is that how I should treat my beloved woodblocks? The blocks that I haven't carved are safely stored on a shelf on my pegboard. The only problem I see with this drawer solution is that I don't seem to have much room left for future blocks!
Though if my Gocco experiments keep going like this then that top drawer that I have currently used for Gocco goodies may find itself free for more woodblocks! I haven't given up on Gocco completely but I am not a happy camper. After producing such worthless cards I had half a mind to take some of the blank cards I have left and make beautiful woodblock prints on them! If I had the energy I would have too! Maybe I will do that today. They could be really pretty but selling them at a price that is fair to me yet might be tricky. People will only pay so much for a card I think.
Bad news from studio cleanup is that I can't find one of my favorite newly carved stamps. It is a simple enough design that I should be able to duplicate without much of a problem, but I would rather not!
I'm still playing around with my lightbox and photoshop skills after getting tons of advice from people! Some wonderful souls even took my flawed images and fixing them for me! Having contacts that are photographers is certainly helpful. As tempting as having them fix my images in the future is I really need to learn how to do this myself! But maybe a few could be fixed while I am learning! For example this one that I put up on Etsy yesterday is certainly looking rather washed out compared to how it looks in reality. It could use some TLC but I struggled with it so much in Photoshop yesterday and wanted to list a mirror so badly that I put it up even with the flaws. I figure I can always change the photos later!
Pregnancy is sucking me dry again. Getting stuff done is hard, I am shocked that I was able to clean yesterday after the horrible night I had before including puking up acid at 2am! But I may have discovered a surprising cure for the horrible acid. It was suggested to me months ago but I ignored the suggestion because at the time Xantac was working great and it sounds weird and gross. But a swig of apple cider vinegar seems to help more than anything at this point! I was able to sleep through the night last night and that is a small but important victory for me.
Soon I need to go to the doctor to have a nurse look at the shot my midwife gave my on Friday testing for TB. This is so pointless and stupid because unless the sign of TB is having no sign at all I don't have it. The nurse is going to check the puncture area for any discoloration but there is nothing. I may not be a nurse but there is nothing there! But since I am not a nurse my eyes don't count. Can't even see that I had a shot at all! Imagine that, I don't have TB!
I'm finally cleaning and organizing my studio. Starting by putting away blocks in newly purchased drawers. Oh how I adore the Container Store! Finally all my small and midsized blocks of carved wood have been safely put away instead of lying around here and there in my studio like they were before. I mean really is that how I should treat my beloved woodblocks? The blocks that I haven't carved are safely stored on a shelf on my pegboard. The only problem I see with this drawer solution is that I don't seem to have much room left for future blocks!
Though if my Gocco experiments keep going like this then that top drawer that I have currently used for Gocco goodies may find itself free for more woodblocks! I haven't given up on Gocco completely but I am not a happy camper. After producing such worthless cards I had half a mind to take some of the blank cards I have left and make beautiful woodblock prints on them! If I had the energy I would have too! Maybe I will do that today. They could be really pretty but selling them at a price that is fair to me yet might be tricky. People will only pay so much for a card I think.
Bad news from studio cleanup is that I can't find one of my favorite newly carved stamps. It is a simple enough design that I should be able to duplicate without much of a problem, but I would rather not!
I'm still playing around with my lightbox and photoshop skills after getting tons of advice from people! Some wonderful souls even took my flawed images and fixing them for me! Having contacts that are photographers is certainly helpful. As tempting as having them fix my images in the future is I really need to learn how to do this myself! But maybe a few could be fixed while I am learning! For example this one that I put up on Etsy yesterday is certainly looking rather washed out compared to how it looks in reality. It could use some TLC but I struggled with it so much in Photoshop yesterday and wanted to list a mirror so badly that I put it up even with the flaws. I figure I can always change the photos later!
Pregnancy is sucking me dry again. Getting stuff done is hard, I am shocked that I was able to clean yesterday after the horrible night I had before including puking up acid at 2am! But I may have discovered a surprising cure for the horrible acid. It was suggested to me months ago but I ignored the suggestion because at the time Xantac was working great and it sounds weird and gross. But a swig of apple cider vinegar seems to help more than anything at this point! I was able to sleep through the night last night and that is a small but important victory for me.
Soon I need to go to the doctor to have a nurse look at the shot my midwife gave my on Friday testing for TB. This is so pointless and stupid because unless the sign of TB is having no sign at all I don't have it. The nurse is going to check the puncture area for any discoloration but there is nothing. I may not be a nurse but there is nothing there! But since I am not a nurse my eyes don't count. Can't even see that I had a shot at all! Imagine that, I don't have TB!
Saturday, July 07, 2007
Lightbox - Help!
Hi guys! Unexpectedly I am back today. I was planning on taking the day off blogging but I need your help. You see I got a lightbox yesterday and I used it for the first time today and I am getting mixed results with it.
First off I have no idea how to get the pure white background that some sellers manage to get. I have been using sunlight as my light source so maybe I need some sort of heavy duty lamp? I don't know. I don't think the photos look bad at all, but having that pure white would be nice.
My second dilemma is that I kind of miss the old background. Here is a revised listing with lightbox photographed images. The original photos were the worst I had so I made sure to update this one first. Now here is a listing that didn't use a no lightbox and has a block of wood as a backdrop. As much as I am drawn to getting the pure white background I do think the woodgrain pattern is beautiful and appropriate for my mirrors. Maybe I should try taking some shots tomorrow with the woodblock placed in the lightbox?
My final question has to do with what type of shot the first shot should be in the listing. Head on or at an interesting angle. Most mirrors on Etsy are shown head on for the first shot. The photos Kate took for me are head on. So I am leaning towards head on first with angle shots following.
Thanks for letting me unload these questions. At the very least the lightbox helps me get good shots easier. But boy did getting the top shots hurt because I had to stand on the sofa and that hurt my poor hips, knees and ankles bad. I took as many as I could before I had to stop and hobble away. Ouchie!
Have a great weekend everybody.
First off I have no idea how to get the pure white background that some sellers manage to get. I have been using sunlight as my light source so maybe I need some sort of heavy duty lamp? I don't know. I don't think the photos look bad at all, but having that pure white would be nice.
My second dilemma is that I kind of miss the old background. Here is a revised listing with lightbox photographed images. The original photos were the worst I had so I made sure to update this one first. Now here is a listing that didn't use a no lightbox and has a block of wood as a backdrop. As much as I am drawn to getting the pure white background I do think the woodgrain pattern is beautiful and appropriate for my mirrors. Maybe I should try taking some shots tomorrow with the woodblock placed in the lightbox?
My final question has to do with what type of shot the first shot should be in the listing. Head on or at an interesting angle. Most mirrors on Etsy are shown head on for the first shot. The photos Kate took for me are head on. So I am leaning towards head on first with angle shots following.
Thanks for letting me unload these questions. At the very least the lightbox helps me get good shots easier. But boy did getting the top shots hurt because I had to stand on the sofa and that hurt my poor hips, knees and ankles bad. I took as many as I could before I had to stop and hobble away. Ouchie!
Have a great weekend everybody.
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