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list update!

1 - Kristy gave me a heads-up about a dog park near her home that has an area for the pint-size pups.
2 - We got three solar lights in the back area and plan to get more.
3 - Some photos (below) from our successful trip to Tacoma, WA (that's me on the Chihuly Bridge of Glass!)
5 - Still working on my pillow... (see below)
6 - Mad Men is fantastic!  I was craving another awesome HBO show.
9 - Popular Mechanics was a HUGE hit.  Now we're getting Popular Science as well.
10 - I love Crepes!!  I made savory cheese and spinach with rum banana crepes for dessert.
11 - We're taking the Coast Starlight Train to Portland.  Should be fun, with a scenic route, old parlour cars and wine and cheese tastings.

sunny time to-do list

I'm going to post this publicly, so that I have to follow through!  We'll see how this goes...

1. Find a small-dog park for Dexter (anyone aware of any in or near Eugene?)
2. Set up these solar lights around the backyard area
3. Visit my brother in Tacoma, WA and see Dale Chihuly's glass installations and the Chihuly Bridge of Glass
4. Pick up Origins Ginger Souffle and Quick Hide Concealer (the best under-eye concealer I've found!)
5. Make a blue/gray pillow cover with decorative stitching like This or This or This or This.  Ack - too many.  I guess I'll make four.
6. Start watching the HBO show everyone references - Mad Men
7. Put together a picnic bag like This.
8. Rediscover Silverton, my hometown, voted #9 of America's top ten coolest small towns in the US in this poll by Budget Travel.  This blog inspired me.  And check out the CBS News.
9. Get a subscription to Popular Mechanics for my husband.  And myself.
10. Try making Crepes for the first time.
11. Take the train somewhere.
12. Read up on five topics: knitting, gardening, typepad blogging, small dog care and card games.

Number #13 includes stupid useful things like getting to work on time, taking our rugs and winter coats to be cleaned, figuring out what to do about a slug in the garden, remembering to always bring reusable tote bags to the grocery store, cleaning out the car.  Un-fun stuff like that.

 

scuba cat

I realize that this is freakishly nerdy, but I'm making my way through the twohundred-plus Stuff You Should Know podcasts, and I just came across this one. I thought it was cute and entertaining.  It's just a little story and lasts only 13 minutes, so if you feel like an odd little pick-me-up, give it a listen:

How could a cat scuba dive_

Someone else did a quick little video, too.

things i...

I first saw this in a magazine many years ago and it's still my favorite way to get to know someone (by bothering them until they fill out my chart).

Just make lists in each box and have your friends/coworkers/date make lists.  It's a chance to be witty...channel that somewhat secret NERD inside yourself that loves things you know you shouldn't.

The "supposed to" just comes from someplace deep inside - you'll know...

You obviously don't need a downloadable printout to pull this off, but here's one anyway:

Download Things I..

Anyone with me on the fake nacho cheese?

This is the commercial which first made me want a dog and we've been working on it since. Then this weekend, we ran into a nice lady in the park with two little Westies - she gave us all kinds of encouragement about their breed. They were darling - John even thought so. So exciting!

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lauren alane's felted birds

Impossibly cute - I couldn't help but share...

Her Flickr page:
Lauren Alane

busy month!

Busy! Two T-shirt designs, brochures for Chemeketa Community College, business cards for Henna Creations, setting up my Dad's blog, some pet cards, wedding invites, temporary tattoo designs for a L.A. band and a few freebies for the blog...all on top of my 8-5 REAL job...whew!

Coming soon!  Now I'm working on postcards for the Blue Room and freebie flip-books to accompany some new animation on my blog.  I plan on using the funny waddling character from the "kiddie creature bookmarks" in these cartoons and flipbooks.  I'm wonderfully happy that so many people liked those bookmarks - thank you! 

Love to my Dad, who is traveling to cover the World Track & Field Championships in Berlin.  He spent some time there 34 years ago, in 1975, when the situation was very different.  He was teaching for the US army and studying at the University.  Here's an excerpt, some memories from his travel blog:

"The history of Berlin, even the recent past, was hidden at that time, submerged under the intensity and weight of the Cold War. One could say Berlin was the epicenter of the Cold War. Where else did Communist and Capitalist society exist side by side, so close they could watch each other through the barbed wire?

I spent most of my time there walking the streets, trying to feel what it was like to live in an island city like West Berlin, surrounded on all sides by a hostile country. My second day in the city I went through Checkpoint Charlie to East Berlin, completely amazed at how easy it was for me as a tourist to move through the heavily-fortified gate. I felt like someone in a John LeCarre novel. It was totally exhilarating."     SteveRitchieOnTrack

communication arts

Anyone out there who is even a little bit interested in illustration or design should pick up a copy of Communication Arts Illustration Annual.  It comes out each year in July/August and I look forward to it for months and then pour over it for months.  The designs featured are inspiring and provocative.  I often use images for art around the apartment.  It's $24, but everyone I show it to agrees that it's worth the price!

new tote

Just worked out my first printed tote.  It's sturdy and great for hauling around craft supplies!