Sorry for the radio-silence folks. I've been busy here working on my site overhaul! I'm knee-deep in Wordpress, Headway and Simpleviewer Pro at the moment, but the finish line (of this stage anyways,) is now a glimmer and I'm getting excited.
Do you have something fun planned for tonight or this weekend? G and I are headed out for a belated birthday dinner. I can't wait...
Aren't these fun? Click on the images to get more info. Also remember these portraits from forever ago? About that time again...
Images: 1Canoe2, Jason Wates, Iotacons
Remember when I used to do Illustration Friday all the time? Yeah, me either. It was a long time ago. I thought I'd give it another whirl using it as a little drawing exercise each week. "I'll just keep it loose and finish it in under an hour." Uh that did not happen this week.
I couldn't resist the mermaid pull. Which will probably be one of many in the IF pool this week, but it was new to me. I hear mermaids are the new zombie/werewolf/vampire in the YA world. And I say bring it on.
I wanted to make her a bit fish-like, and other-worldly, while still keeping it for a middle grade audience age-- as opposed to the sexy-siren mermaid version. What do you think? Hmm maybe topless mermaids too scandalous for that age?
I'm still going to do a bit more with the lighting and a couple of other niggling things (eg I'm not loving the rough oval edge.) But there she is.
Have you guys read "The Happiness Project", by Gretchen Rubin? (No, I haven't been living under a rock. Yes, it was everywhere for a while. I just never got around to reading it. And honestly, I didn't think it would live up to the hype.) What did you think?
In the past year, or so, I've found myself randomly researching happiness and learning more about it. I find the topic fascinating and I think this would have been a great book to start with. I've been nodding and taking notes (--seriously, notes.) I'm tempted to buy used copies and hand them out to everyone I know.
I say this knowing I tend to get obsessed with books while I'm immersed in them. It will be interesting to see if the glow wears off after I'm done. Or if I'll have a dog-eared copy forever.
Curious to hear what other people think of it. Thumbs up?
Hey check it out!-- Our wedding was featured in the Providence Journal (also known as the Projo around these parts,) in a section about DIY Weddings. We got interviewed and everything. Was not expecting a full page in color though. Sweet!
And, as always, special thanks to Li Ward from Fat Orange Cat Studios, for the gorgeous wedding photos!
Happy Valentine's Day everybody!
Do you have fun plans for tonight? As G's birthday is on the 12th and we usually go out for that, we skip the restaurant Valentine's craziness and stay in. And make meatballs. I'm not totally sure why, but that's our V-Day tradition.
Unfortunately, I'm totally sick, which is kind of sad. G made surprised me with a sweet breakfast though, and I'm hoping to rally for board games and meatball-making later. Wish me luck.
Hope everyone has fun!
Remember when Whitney Houston made your fourth grade heart swell? You and your best friend fought over who sang her ballads best. For years you wanted to be in a band that pretty much exclusively sang Whitney Houston and Gloria Estefan covers.
[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eH3giaIzONA]
Rest in Peace Whitney.
Happy birthday to my favorite.
One way to deal with distractions:
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=Yc57X0j_UwM]
How do you deal with distractions during your working hours?
So I thought I'd do an update on our Buy Nothing New Project.
We've definitely saved a bunch of money mostly by watching costs on our road trips, and by cutting out unnecessary purchase, aka "impulse buys" in general.
We visit G's folks, almost two hours away, pretty frequently. Besides gas, we almost always buy snacks at the gas station. And/or stop at 5 Guys for burgers. By making snacks and bringing water with us we save $20 to $30+ round trip. So far, homemade tortilla chips, and kale chips are our go-to nibbles.
Cheats:
The most interesting part of this project has been how much it's made me pause when I reach to buy something. Do I really need that XYZ? Many times the answer is no, and so I put it back. I'm surprised how often this happens. I didn't think of myself as an impulse buyer before.
It's also made me consider what I can make, or repurpose, instead of purchase. Though for us, that can be a fine line. Sometimes it's actually cheaper and smarter to buy said item, than to make it from scratch. --The two of us can get a bit carried away with our craft projects. But still, I'm definitely more on the lookout for items that can be repurposed.
It's also interesting how many things we're getting rid of. Not buying stuff we don't need, + purging stuff we own and don't need, seem to be closely tied to each other.
Things we've edited:
One thing I've found helpful, at least for now in this beginning stage, is to stick to your "rules" even if monetarily it might not be that big of deal. Case in point: We've been cutting costs on our movie/tv watching. Redbox ($1 rentals,) the library, Hulu, and Netflix streaming are allowed. Going to movie theaters, or renting online from iTunes or Amazon, is not. The other day we wanted to watch 50/50 (which, by the way, I think is my favorite movie of 2011. Go see it if you haven't.) I forgot to pick it up from Redbox (--the library didn't have it.) We almost rented it through Amazon for $3, but decided not to. We ended up watching it the next night.
Now, $2 is not such a big deal-- especially compared to actually going out to the movies (an easy $20+ for both of us.) But waiting the extra night, helped reinforce our new habits of planning ahead. $3 once in a while isn't a big deal, but $3 every other night is ridiculous when there are cheaper options available. I think this is probably "new habits 101" right?
Anyone have some money-saving tips that work for you? Please share- I'd love to hear!
[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N4t3-__3MA0]
I found this video through LinkedIn and thought it was interesting (and maybe kind of terrifying?)
Cincinnati, Ohio-based identity designer Adam Ladd asked his 5-year-old daughter her impressions on some popular logos...
More than her impressions of each logo, which are often adorable, (eg "Parade Elephant",) I found it fascinating which logos she recognized. You've got your basics like 'Disney', and 'McDonald's', but a couple I found surprising. 'GE' for one. Yes, her grandfather works there, and they own basically everything, but you don't actually see their logo that much. The other one was 'Xbox', which she recognized, not because she's playing video games all day, but because it "controls" the tv at her friend's house. Maybe it's more a sign of my naivete about video games and tv watching in general, but I was surprised a five-year old would notice something so small.
Did any of these take you by surprise?
Anyways, hats off to the marketers of the world. Well done, Sirs and Madams. Excuse me while I unplug my family and run off to the hills to become hermits.
I say it doesn't matter if it took less than fifteen seconds:
My Oscar Cookie portraits for Eleni's Bakery were on the Today Show with Hoda & Kathie Lee a few days ago!
Holla.
Have you ever been to the RISD nature lab? If not, you're in for a treat:
Live Animal Study: A Children's Book Illustrator's Workshop Date: Sunday, February 26, 2012 Time: 1:00 p.m. to 3:00 p.m. Place: The Edna Lawrence Nature Lab, 13 Waterman Street, Providence, RI 02903 Admission: FREE
Bring your sketchbooks, pencils, and light painting supplies and enjoy a rare opportunity to study a handful of live exotic (and some not-so-exotic) animals up close and personal!
RISPCA Humane Educator Laurelin Sitterly will present on each creature's basic anatomy, movement, and habits that will be sure to inspire you and provide a wealth of knowledge for your animal-themed book projects. Taxidermy and skeletal models will also be available to examine, courtesy of RISD's Edna Lawrence Nature Lab.
This is an event to gather inspiration from the animal world, practice your craft amidst an active environment, meet your fellow SCBWI illustrators, and benefit from a critique of your day's efforts by your peers.
RSVP by February 17, 2012 : complete the registration form and send it back as an e-mail attachment.
Coordinated by the talented (and fellow crit group member) Christina Rodriguez. Thanks for putting this together Christina! (and for using my animal sketches on the flyer!)
I hear spots are filling up fast, so register asap!
G and I discovered Veronica Mars late in the game--two years ago, actually. But once we did, we devoured that series and both fell head over heels in love with Kristen Bell. But then she betrayed us with this. And it was over. (Yes, it was way worse than all those other forgive-ably bad movies. And Party Down did not make up for it.)
I hear she's in a new tv show, but I just can't be burned again. (Well, that and we don't have cable.)
But then I saw this today:
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t5jw3T3Jy70]
(A bit much? Maybe. But after seeing this I can relate.) You gotta love a girl who would show an up-the-nose video of herself on a syndicated talk show. Kristen, it's on.
Have you seen this interview from the Colbert Report? (Part one here.)
[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OK6UtU-NzZE]
[edit: oops that clip got taken down. You can watch it here on hulu.]
Maurice Sendak is hilarious, as expected. I love his whole sassy, frank attitude. He's awesome.
And sort of random, but go with it: Did you ever read "How Does It Feel To Be Old?" by Norma Farber, and illustrated by my favorite, Trina Schart Hyman? Written in prose, an old woman tells her granddaughter the benefits and tribulations of being old. I read it a lot growing up and one of my favorite parts was about not caring what other people thought of her. How she was old and so could pretty much say anything, about whatever, to anybody. (I'm pretty sure the illustration is of her yelling at a grocery store clerk about the price of bananas. If I can find it I'll post here. It's amazing.) Anyways, those interviews reminded me so much of that book.
I just ordered it, but maybe I'll ask my mom if she still has it. I'm so curious to read it as an adult.
We got our first real snow all winter the other night.
I took some photos on our morning walk and romp in the dog park.
What a happy girl.
Other members of our household enjoy snow days a whole other way:
I was so sad to hear this morning that Etta James passed away due to complications from leukemia at the age of 73. She will be missed.
In lieu of G's shifting work status we've decided to tamp down on our finances at least until the end of February. And after having dinner with some inspirational friends, and then having some similar conversations with other friends about consumerism in general, I'm motivated to make this "official." So let's call it the "Buy Nothing New" project! (Alternatively, G suggested, "No Thrills; Just Bills and Pills." ha.)
This means
A friend was telling me recently about how almost everything she reads online is about buying something. Pretty, stylish, somethings. But still--acquiring more things. I didn't realize, until she mentioned it, how similar my online reading was as well. Which, as a visual person who is genuinely interested in what others are making and excited about, is natural. But I've realized that underneath the creative swell, is a push to buy the next cool whatever. So I'm hoping this project will free me from that a bit. Maybe it will enable me to look at things and appreciate them, but let go of actually owning them.
Clearly many of these steps will take some planning ahead. Often we pay extra for convenience, rather than real necessity-- ie road trip snacks, etc. But I think we can handle a bit of extra thinking for a month and a half. I assume an added benefit will be cutting down on our trash output-- convenient things are often short-lived purchases that also always seem to be packaged intensely, don't they? (More on "no trash living" here.)
We'll let you know how it goes! And feel free to join us, if you're feeling so inclined.
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fAtsAwGreyE]
On March 28, 1965, Martin Luther King, Jr. appeared on NBC's Meet The Press.
One week after leading his historic five-day march from Selma to Montgomery, Alabama, King said that the demonstration was necessary not just to help push the Voting Rights Bill through, but to draw attention to the humiliating conditions in Alabama such as police brutality and racially-motivated murder.
