Friday, July 30, 2010


The Black Hole of Laundry Day

So I lost a sock to the dryer this week. I HATE when that happens – AND I refuse to trash the widowed sock whose worth is now absolutely nothing.


Luckily(!) I have this book: Lost Sock! by Cynthia Copeland. From it I learn that sock monkeys date back to the early 1900s (for instructions on how to make your own sock monkey visit www.supersockmonkey.com or contact ME for your own custom-designed monkey!) and that the Sock Lady of South Strafford, Vermont recycles old socks into one-of-a-kind rugs.

It is also full of ideas for how to repurpose single socks. I don't need have any golf clubs in need of covers and my bra doesn't need instant enhancement. I also don't have any naked Barbies lying around. BUT, I do have (strike that, make that did have) a rather nude troll, in desperate need of a sweater.

VOILA! — Warm troll, and no sock left behind!

Wednesday, July 28, 2010


The Cupcake Comeback


Monkey Cupcakes I made for the final week of Weekminds Year 1

Cupcakes have always been a delicious snack, but until recently they were just another dessert consumed primarily by children.

In the past few years, the cupcake craze has exploded. Cupcakeries are succeeding in Los Angeles and New York (the birth of the craze is credited to New York's Magnolia Bakery, immortalized by Carrie Bradshaw in Sex and the City*), and also in Texas, Arizona, and Washington DC. Their success is based on a product that is simple and affordable. Cupcakes are cute and personal—each person can have their own, and they only cost about 3 dollars**.



Whether or not the cupcake's popularity has staying power depends on who you ask. CNN's Sara Bonisteel says its more than a trend, "the nostalgic cupcake craze is prepared for a long stay". But others disagree, and believe the unsophisticated cupcake has had its moment and will soon be replaced by macarons, which have more aesthetic possibilities.

Regardless—macarons. cupcakes.—I'm ok with any craze that involves the mass marketing of frosting and baked goods.

*"These are just cupcakes"
**The World's Most Expensive Cupcake is $30,003.

Friday, July 23, 2010


Carving Couch Potato

I was watching a movie this evening (
Valentines Day, which I give a reluctant 3 stars), and since I'm completely incapable of sitting, I used the down time to do a little block carving.

This is something I haven't done in a long while, but I used Speedball carving rubber adhered to a scrap piece of linoleum. It was easier than I remembered, and it was great to step away from the glow of my computer (and into the glow of my television) and do something hands-on.

By the end of the movie, I had a custom stamp that I can use to make custom labels for my mother's canned goods. And I even got a mani/pedi done as well!

If you're interested in trying your own block prints, starter kits can be purchased at most hobby stores.


Thursday, July 22, 2010

"Letters you'd write yourself...if you had the time"

Saturday is my birthday. (yes, this is a subtle hint to those of you who haven't already sent them, that you owe me a card, or at the very least, a funny voicemail.) Today I received an absolute stellar letter from my friend Kelly. My first thought when reading it was, "What's wrong with Kelly's handwriting today?", me second thought was "I think Kelly's on the Weed."

Halfway through I was confused enough that I flipped the paper over to discover this wasn't a letter, it was a card. A brilliantly penned card from
Quidplip's Yours Truly Handwritten Letters.

It was an admirable "Gotcha" and a funny card to boot!
(click image to enlarge letter to read)

Tuesday, July 20, 2010

Save the Animals! Send Paper Burgers!

I haven't had red meat in several months now, which may explain why I went a little nuts over these Hamburger invitations from the Paper-Source blog. If you're planning a summer BBQ, I think this is the perfect way to announce it.

Also, as someone who used to plan her week around where her next Hamburger would come from, I'm sort of obsessed with the perfect burger-layering-combination. Check out some of these winners I found online. Apparently I'm not the only one that's obsessed.

Friday, July 16, 2010


A Blurb about Blurb (and another Weekminds plug!)


I sincerely attribute my design enthusiasm to scrapbooking as a
child. I loved to cut and paste. And when scissors were replaced with
control "X", Kodak prints were replaced with Blurb.

Have you met Blurb? Digital scrapbooks for every occasion. They're so efficient and sleek, which is why I marked the completion of Weekminds Year 1 with a 7" x 7" Softcover Blurb book. It arrived in the mail yesterday—the perfect compliment to the posting of Task #1 for Weekminds Year 2!

Thursday, July 15, 2010

Feel Creative on Thursdays?

A few weeks back, I wrote about Noah Scalin, his skull project and the Weekminds challenge that followed.

The first year has ended, and I've shelved my monkeys (though they can still be seen here). But today marks the first day of a new challenge, 52 challenges actually, and you're invited to participate. See all the details on the Weekminds website, but in short, a new challenge will be posted every Thursday, and you have till the following Wednesday to submit a jpg. There's no commitment this year, just whenever you need a creative outlet. Check it out Task #1 here! (send jpgs to weekminds@gmail.com)

Tuesday, July 13, 2010

It's still June in the USA.

Graphic Design USA FINALLY updated their current issue online from May to June this week. Which I've been waiting for because I love the June cover and I wanted to share it with you (though now I realize I could have taken a picture weeks ago...)

Anyhow, check out this great paper work using those paint chip strips from the hardware stores. 1). I love the paint aisle at the hardware store, and 2). I love ice cream. So this is pretty win-win for me.
(click the image to see it enlarged)


BUT, it gets better: a little googling led me here. Apparently this is part of the new "Color Chips" campaign for Sherwin-Williams. Love, love, love it! Don't miss the video at the very bottom.

Friday, July 9, 2010


Colors that Grow on You


Paint is the cheapest and boldest statement you can make within a home. I'm not entirely sure what my house is saying, but whatever it is, it's loud. This past month, I painted my basement what Menards dubbed "Highlighter". It's yellow. Fantastically bright yellow.

I realized in the midst of this project that a perk to making bold paint choices is that you end up with a collection of beautiful rollers and stir-sticks. Over the course of the 3.5 years that I've now lived in my home, I've made some bold color choices. And I can confidently say, that I've had no regrets.


I think my most daring move, in regards to paint, was in the apartment I lived in prior to this house; where I painted one wall "Jazz", a hot shade of fuchsia. Across from it, over the length of the mocha wall, I applied a 6-inch wide stripe of shiny, gold paint. I wasn't in that apartment long, but leaving that fuchsia wall was the saddest part of moving.


So I encourage you, next time your perusing paint chips at your favorite hardware store, step away from the taupe, the tan, the eggshell, and pick up the chips that would make your mother shudder. My mother certainly cringed the when I announced my bedroom was going to be "Carrot Cake".

Tuesday, July 6, 2010


Pining for Pyrex

I love wandering through antique stores. But I've found that wandering is enhanced when you're also hunting.

I've always been drawn to Pyrex®* dishes. No surprise there—bright colors, patterns that blatantly reveal their generation, and shapes that are extraordinarily similar, but just different enough that you want them all.

The idea for Pyrex Glassware came in 1915 from the industrious wife of a Corning Glass Works scientist who was frustrated with her unreliable casserole dishes. Knowing the strength of the railroad signal lantern glass her husband worked with, she begged him to bring home something she could use in the kitchen. The Pyrex baking dish was born. Two years later, it was being sold in department stores. The Pyrex line grew to includes durable products for the entire kitchen in all sorts of colors and patterns.**


White daisy casserole dishes atop one of my greatest antique store scores of all time: a 104-drawer card catalog from Grand Rapids' Community College Library, found at Victoria's Antique Warehouse.

White daisy, more commonly referred to as pink daisy, is the pattern I've decided to prey upon. The design debuted in 1957 and appeared on less than a dozen pieces (though it has been paired with different accessories and re-released as different promotions). It's not an entirely common pattern, which only adds to its charm and appeal.

Now, it's easy to find Pyrex collections online, but I consider that cheating. For me, antiquing is more about the process; about wandering through antique malls and the time spent being inspired by the treasures you find there.


Here's a few of my favorite antique malls in West Michigan:
  • Century Antiques:
    445 Century Ave. SW | Grand Rapids, MI 49503 | 616.233.4000
  • Victoria's Antique Warehouse:
    449 Century Ave. SW | Grand Rapids, MI 49503 | 616.235.9292
  • Sheri's Antiques:
    3270 Chicago Drive | Grandville, MI 49418 | 616.249.8066
  • Somewhere in Thyme:
    4165 Chicago Drive SW | Grandville, MI 49418 | 616.534.7948
  • Blue Star Antique Pavilion:
    2948 Blue Star Hwy | Douglas, MI 49406 | 269.857.6041
  • Lake Odessa Antique Mall:
    1014 4th Avenue
    | Lake Odessa, MI 48849 | 616.374.3089

*Please note, I am not a licensed collector or expert on Pyrex. These thought are merely based on my experience and observations.
**History from the Pyrex
® website.

Saturday, July 3, 2010

Il Bel Far Niente*

Chihuly at Frederick Meijer Gardens.

As I sat by the pool today, I realized that we here in Grand Rapids, have had five or six days now of flawless blue skies. Zero clouds. Accompanied by brilliant, green blades of grass. This blue-green combination is not something I would typically choose were I actually designing something versus lounging at the pool, but when it happens naturally, I find it absolutely stunning.

Of all the wonders in the world, Nature's palette is the one that continues to impress me the most.

*This, I learned while reading Eat Pray Love poolside, means "the beauty of doing nothing" in Italian. Which I enjoy just slightly more than l'arte d'arrangiarsi or "the art of making something out of nothing".

Thursday, July 1, 2010

It's like Scrabble. But Funner*.

So I just saw a man dressed in head to toe yellow walking his dog in the park—and it wasn't rain gear. I tried to take a picture, but in my urgent rush, I muddled the camera settings and ended up with a picture of my window screen. (Yes, I am that creepy girl leaning out her window with a camera). Anyhow—I saw yellow and I was suddenly hit with the urge to play Bananagrams.

If you haven't discovered this game yet, well, it's my pleasure to make the introduction. It's basically speed scrabble but comes in a banana bag. (See? Packaging is everything). I suggest you check it out; it's available online of course, but I've seen at it many bookstores as well. Shop Local!

*Funner is a legal word in the Scrabble Dictionary, and it's worth 9 points.