open for buisness

i just finished posting my first items for sale on etsy! take a look at the badge on the right. i'm going to be selling fabric, vintage objects and items i make. i'm hoping to support my thrift shopping addiction with my profits:) will you help and addict?

blue rooster

i purchased this lovely painting from Handmaid etsy shop. i got it in the mail all they way from Israel last week and we are so enjoying it. i hung it in the kitchen and placed my new blue stool (thriftylicous)underneath it. The photos don't really do the perspective justice but take my word the combination is fabulous.

the painting is on a really beautiful piece of wood and the painting it's self is full of detail. i'm not sure what my attraction to chickens and roosters is but i like them. can you spot the other rooster in these photos?


thanks julie!

fingerprint wedding bands

awesome.

thanks {frolic!}

don't buy 10 baby chickens because they are so cute!

went to a UX event last night hosted by Zaaz. pretty fun. among the speakers was the guy who is responsible for the above site (check it out, it's really fun) as was the man behind Common Craft (there is fun to be had here too) and Emma Rose a research at Design for Digital Inclusion (just the name gets my mind going) and Jason Carmel who works a Zaaz in site optimization (his talk was titled "Effective Use of Kittens: Site Optimization and User Experience" i'll just let you think about that. his side project is Wish Radar)

ryan has a great wrap up of the night here so i'll just let you read that if you're interested (couldn't say it better than him) but i will shamelessly take credit for this:

"Some great conversation followed in the panel q & a. In particular folks wondered whether social networks would adapt over time as their constituents aged or whether age segments would migrate from one demographic-focused social network to another. Obviously, today's 80 year old is different from the 80 year old of 20 years from now--how will social networks evolve as today's heavy users age and new generations emerge?" - ryan turner

this was my question! yeah for me. ha. just kidding but i did think the discussion was pretty good. i left wondering if the lines between all demographics are just becoming to muddy to really put money on particularly where age is concerned. jason also made the point that the future lies in portable profiles so your investment in one site becomes so much less that you can leave online communities as you move through demographics.

lots to think about. thanks Zaaz!

more cake

this is the first cake to grace my new cake pedestal. it is a zucchini cake with lemon curd in the middle and cream cheese/lime juice frosting and it was delicious. the recipe is from How to be a Domestic Goddess by Nigella Lawson. isn't that the most wonderful title for a book. check out the first photo on her home page, seems as though i might be on my way to domestic goddessness!

moment: tropical seattle?

we've been having a pretty mild summer here in Seattle. but you'd never know it from this photo. i took this yesterday at the beach near my house.
oh, and this is Rudi by super cute, love dog.

kites

my friend recently posted a this lovely piece of graffiti on her site and I was inspired.

kites are a lovely piece of imagery and i had forgotten all about them. I'm going to work on something with a kite on this this week. who knows maybe kites are the new birds or deer heads.

a quick search of Etsy brought me to this lovely pendant that I had to buy.
from: Paraphernalia

Look at some of the other designs they have. I haven't really seen this type of thing before and I really like it.

custom tees + neat website = super cool fun

been working on a deadline today so no time to write and post, but I would like to share this awesome local shop with you.

through a super fun, simple to use interface you can design your own t-shirt. i haven't ordered this way yet but I have had shirts printed here before. they have nice quality, good cut shirts.

even if you don't need a new shirt go play with the site.

dandelion

i love the image of a dandelion. i even used it in part of the graphic imagery for my wedding. I think this duvet cover from Nicole Chiala and Kristina de Corpo of amenity is just wonderful. This room actually looks like a wonderful guest room.

It's on sale at Public Design


I also really like this one its a bit more inline with my tastes lately.


How can you not like the beauty of this plant? And it is so good for you. That reminds me that I need to make a new dandelion tincture while the plants are still big and healthy.

is this a journey?

you know that saying "It's the journey not the destination"? My college used it, "Education is a journey not a destination". I've been thinking a bit about it. What does that mean for an average person who goes to work everyday.

I have about a half hour each way commute to my workplace, and everyday I take the same route there and the same route back. Exhibiting such routine behavior isn't normally part of my nature but with this trip there is no way around it. It is just faster and safer to take these routes.

So a big part of my personal physical journey for the past 2 1/2 years has been this drive and I really really don't like it. I listen to music, NPR, podcasts. I think. I don't talk on the phone if I can help it. I space off. I think about my work. I drink coffee. But none of this keeps me happy for very long. This journey is more like standing still, going backwards or spending time in prison.

I've got to change something and find some bit of the "Journey" in this commute. I started by taking the below photos while driving to work yesterday. It's interesting to really look at the places I zoom by in my little silver bug.

























here's what I see:

Bumbershoot billboard. I worked on that festival for 5 years and I am so happy with how far I've come since then.
Space Needle. Living in Seattle is super cool. Good to remember. I friend of mine worked on some really cool interactive exhibits here.
Viaduct. A rickety old elevated highway that has earthquake damage and should be torn down. I'm thankful when I can drive over without being stopped by traffic. It also reminds me that I am happy I didn't go into politics or city planning which were both on my list.
Baseball Stadium. I have great friends who love baseball. going to a baseball game at the old stadium was the first time I came to Seattle. I was 12.
The streets are clean. That is nice. There are lot's of lovely respectful people that live here. I had a great time meeting a number of them at the neighborhood bbq on Tuesday night.
Cargo Containers. A lot of people are doing art and building structures with these. I might want to do that someday.
The Bug dashboard. This is a great car to spend time in. And how cool that I can afford a nice car.
Clouds. Is moving to Northern California ever going to be an option for us? There are lot's of nice things about winter and fall here.