Energy is Energy.

Nothing can begin without the ending of something else. As an old, musty year's kinetic energy gives way to the new one's potential energy, I question this premise.
Perhaps a better way of seeing the world is as a series of beautifully stitched together moments that neither end nor begin anything. As someone who tries to live in full color, it occurs to me that seeing endings as giving way to beginnings leave us with a colorless, static life. Then again, what do I know?
But, either way, I won't wish you anything tonight but a Happy Next Moment...it is, after all, all there is!
Luckily, my next moment involves a lovely glass of champagne!
Cheer, Friends! Thanks you for all the lovely moments!
(Photo by: Ramsey Bakhoum)

Back to the business of design

It must be the holidays. The last few posts have been of a much more personal nature.
But, alas, a new year is upon us and it's back to the business of design. So, what is this business of design anyway? On most days it's me at a sewing machine or a drafting table. But on the really good days it's a process that happens primarily in my thoughts.
Someone said to me once that it seems to them that design thinking is in everything I do. Yes, in fact it must be. I had never thought about this before, naively assuming that of course this was the case with everyone. Turns out it's not, but as a designer I have never know any other way of seeing the world. Everything is a study in proportion, scale, color, light, line, placement, and all those thing's relationship to each other. The list goes on and on and it's as automatic to me (and all designers I assume) as breathing.
So...a new year means a new calendar and an opportunity to add something beautiful to my work space and keep the design brain designing.
Here are a few of my favorites; none short on design. Which is your favorite?

The Chair Calendar by this lovely lady. There is a nice sweet story behind it's existence.

Who doesn't love letter press!!! This is a pretty, pretty one.

Simple and perfect! Find it here.

Oh, I'm in love! Find this one here.

Not entirely sure how this one works...but I'm intrigued!

Typography lovers, this one is for you!

My "new" corner of the world.

In anticipation of the arrival of my beloved cousin Juliana, I have been reorganizing the 1200 sq. ft that I call home. Working, living and sleeping have been thrown up in the air and landed in new places; all good.

But, humor aside, let me tell you a little about my cousin... Juliana is one of the beautiful people. She's not just beautiful on the outside, but much more importantly, beautiful on the inside.
She is genuine, kind, loving, smart, and a pediatrician which (obviously) means she cares for all the little beings that, to so many of us, remain a mystery.
Juliana is an angel; a woman I have known my whole life and never once felt anything but kindness from and toward.  I feel lucky to have the opportunity to have her in my home for the next three months... my hope is that we will learn from each other. As children we concocted dances and languages only known to us, but as adults, we have had few opportunities to spend much time together. Well...this is our chance. Prima, I can't wait!

...and we both have awesome (giant) front teeth!!!!

My Dad

Last year my dad retired. He was a sea captain his whole life, going off for weeks and months at a time to sail the seas. It's just how it was. We'd see him off at the dock or the airport, kiss his cheek, hug him tightly and know that for the foreseeable future he would be where he loved to be, on the sea. 

Time would go by and he would return home. We were so happy to see him and have him around to play with for a time. And then, inevitable, the cycle would begin all over again.

Until recently it never occurred to me that this is not how most kids grow up. I suppose it is because I never felt like I had less of a dad than anyone else. In truth, I always felt like I had the best dad in the world...I still do.

This past weekend my dad turned 67.  We took him to lunch to celebrate, and to our surprise hear stories about his youth. Somewhere between the appetizers and the main course, my dad started telling us stories about his teenage years. He told us how he would skip his violin lessons to run off to the beach to hang out with his friends. He relived the days when he was a young man with a guitar slung over his shoulder serenading the girls. And then he told us of how he fell in love with my mom, his best friend's sister, the first time they danced.

We took in every word with fascination. You see, we have always know there is this whole other side to my dad that none of us really knows. Not just the youthful man part, but also the part that lived his whole live floating on a vast ocean under a broad sky with all the stars in the world to keep him company.  I can only imagine what that may have been like, but knowing my dad confirms that it makes you a thoughtful, loving, caring, wonderfully soulful human being...and a great father; not measured by amount of time spent with his children, but by the quality of every moment.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY DAD! Now that we have you around all the time, we can't wait to hear ALL your stories.

Girl Evolving

I believe you can tell a lot about a girl by what she does with her hair.

This belief may come from my own lifelong fascination and experimentation with hair styles. I'm the type who never holds on to a particular style, or color for that matter, for very long. I get bored. What does that say about me? Hmmm, years of therapy and I still don't really know. 

But let's speculate, shall we.

1.  I get bored. (I think I just said that)

2.  My hair is the outward expression of where I am in life

3. My hair in no way defines me, it's more like an accessory, changes with my mood.

4. I'm an undercover agent and always need to be evolving my look as to not get "made" (this one is not likely, by the way :)

5. I like to annoy my mom.

6. I have multiple personality disorder (my therapist has ruled this one out)

7. I'm incredibly impulsive

8. I'm a dedicated fashionista. (,or I like using the word fashionista as often as possible)

9. I long to be someone else (hmmm....therapist input here _____________________)

10. "Why the hell not, it's only hair, it will grow back!" (that's the one I tell my girlfriends when they are considering a drastic change)

Anyway, those of you out there who know me may have your own thoughts on why I'm always changing my hair...I'd love to hear them!!! After all, it is only hair, right?
OH, and if any of you have photos of some of my more drastic styles...please share! 

A girl, some bags, a camera, and her dog.

Good morning dear readers.  If you have been wondering where I have been, wonder no longer. I'm back!
It has been a hectic couple of weeks with Holiday Markets to attend, student work to grade and a giant pile of laundry to wash...oops, that one still needs work, but it's on the list for this afternoon. But, first things, first. Blogging!
I had planned to blog about all the markets from these past weeks and showing you yet another photo of my lovely, ever evolving booth. But I decided you may have had enough of that.
So instead, as the title suggests, I'm taking you behind the scenes to my latest photo shoot.
After all the selling was done this past weekend at SOWA Holiday Market I had a few lovely bags still hanging on the rack. A photo shoot was in order.
Now, understand, during daylight hours on most days it's just me and the dog working away in my little home studio. So when I decide it's a good day to shoot some photos of bags, I have an instant problem on my hands. Who will model? Well, the dog isn't much help in that category, nor is she particularly agile with a camera. No opposable thumbs, you know. So, it's all me. I'm the photographer, the stylist, the model, the editor, the lighting director, wardrobe coordinator, the caterer, and yes even the one in charge of lint brushing the bags so they don't appear all speckled in the photos.
You are starting to get the picture. (Pun intended).
You will find the refined fruit of my labor on my updated website and online shop. But, I thought I would share a few of the more humorous moments of the day. Enjoy!

 I'm not entirely sure what happened in the shot above, but I suspect the next two shots may explain something...

 This one was getting close...

And, finally, this sums up the day. Lot's of shots where the timer went off before I was able to reach the designated location. Ugh, models, they just don't move fast enough.

Color and Line

Yesterday, as I scrambled around trying to find some good quality drawing paper for a project I was midway thorough, I stumbled across long forgotten drawings and paintings. They were neatly tucked away precisely where I had stored them a while back. I pulled them out, one by one, and to my surprise, time and distance has somehow made them better.
I had painted them two summers ago at a class I took at Mass College of Art. It reviewed the technique of layering drawing and painting to achieve a hybrid image that was neither drawing nor painting, but something in between. I recalled the professor, Patrick, a sandy haired older gentleman that never sat down, walking energetically from easel to easel passionately talking about how the line and the paint work together to build the drawing. He would pick up one of my pencils and show me how it was done, but in a way that never made me feel inadequate or that I was doing it wrong. The nude model stood silently, lit by the sun as our eyes and minds learned the line of her figure and the tone of her skin.
It was an electrifying week! For five days, 8 hours a day we drew and we painted, and we listened to Patrick knowing that if we were distracted only for a moment we would miss it.
Yesterday, when I pulled out those drawings, it all came back to me. I remembered the way it felt to just draw all day and think of nothing else, to be immersed in line and color for so long that when I went to sleep that night I sill saw the image imprinted in my mind.
I also don't remember thinking my drawings has turned out great. But, yesterday as I scanned them with my eyes and my memory I felt differently. Regardless of their technical merit, they are so honest and free. I see them now and know they are exactly what they should be.

See all the color and line drawings here.

Napkins everywhere!

The title of this post says it all. There are, literally, napkins all over the studio. They make great christmas gifts, so I'm making as many as I can to have at the SOWA Holiday Market in a couple of weeks. Thought I would try some new bold colors to brighten up the collection a bit. They still need the finishing touches, but do you have a favorite?