stuff about artstuff.

Spring Flies By...

Usually this time of year I can be found under my pre-SURTEX rock.  Busy designing booth displays, creating new art, organizing travel and exhibiting logistics, worrying about details, and in general, freaking out and way too busy.

And with or without me, spring comes and goes.

I've been trying harder to make this happen with me, to be present and enjoy the season, although the underside of that rock always manages to beckon me back.

But there's magic to spring, the scents and sounds that stir emotions that have been lying dormant through the cold, dark winter like seeds - sprouting unexpected and uncontrollable smiles.

I've been soaking this stuff in every chance I get, and trying to document little bits and pieces of happy-making moments with my iPhone.

Walking the dog through the cherry blossom lined streets in my neighborhood

The perfect camelia bloom in an otherwise dark alley

Time with loved ones

Even that one morning when I finally mastered the new espresso machine and had a perfect latte.

The best so far - two warm, sunny days in a row where I was able to take my studio outside and work in the backyard.  Birds singing, spring scents wafting on the breeze, birds of all sizes fluttering so closely around my head I felt like a Disney princess.

Days where I actually get to draw all day are pretty rare, considering I supposedly draw pictures for a living.  That's the price I pay for being too stubborn for an agent, but then that's another subject for another day.  Days like this remind me that I am the luckiest girl in the world, with the best job in the world, and I couldn't be more grateful for that.  Even a couple weeks before SURTEX.

It may be cloudy again today, and I am here inside, organizing, worrying, and in general, freaking out and way too busy, but it's spring.  Yesterday I smelled my first lilac bloom, and we ate our first salad from the garden.  Spring is magic, and it just gets better every day.

"Meet the Designer" Interview

Hey everyone!

Have you checked out the Henry Glass blog yet?  It's a fun place for everything fabric-related, featuring neato projects and quilts and goodies and giveaways.  If you haven't, today would be a great day to hop on over to see for yourself.

Why today?

Well, today there is a "Meet the Designer" interview with me!  That's pretty cool, right?  And while you're enjoying all the fun stuff on their blog, go on back a page or two where you'll also see a "Meet the Designer" interview from January with my good friend Shelly!

In addition to the blog, be sure to check out Henry Glass on Facebook, where you'll find even more goodies, giveaways, and fun stuff. 

And finally - I have been waiting to share this with you but will give you a super double top-secret uber-sneaky sneak peek of my new softie flannel fabric coming out later this month, called "Buttercup Babies". . . I can't wait to show you the rest of it!

Stay tuned for more details, here and on the Henry Glass blog, website, and Facebook Page!

Rock, Paper, Scissors and Pins.

Pretty pictures make me happy.

That about sums it up.

We visually oriented folks do love our eye-candy. Inspiration. Stimulation. Comfort.

The other day, I finally gave in and joined several friends who all claim to be dangerously addicted to Pinterest.  That in itself frightened me, the fear of addiction.  But it looked so fun.  Aren't those always the last words before plunging into the abyss?

I realized, not very far into the process of pinning and organizing, that it all felt very familiar - and I suppose this may be the case, although maybe not to the extent it is for me, with many other creative friends.
I have always collected pretty pictures.  Books, magazines, catalogs.  From the latter two, I've cut out things I found useful, inspirational, or just pretty enough to want to look at another day. Recipes. Decorating ideas. Garden tips and inspiration. Things I might want to remember how to draw someday.
Before Google Image Search, there was the free magazine exchange in the lobby of my local public library branch. Every subject matter I could ever possibly need to know how to draw was covered in my neighbors' wildly varying collections of donated periodicals. I would entertain myself in the evenings happily cutting out and filing reference pictures and weird goodies.
These images fill the oversized file-drawer in my big, old oak desk.  There was a time, long ago and far away, when I intended for each and every clipped item to someday go into a beautifully organized scrapbook or cookbook, but there's also something satisfying about the hunt when flipping through a folder. I know, I'm weird that way.
Some might see this as an unnecessary conglomeration of paper clutter taking up space. Especially now that with Pinterest, I can do same thing, only better - because each picture links back to its original source, opening up worlds of information and the possibility of finding more of the same. 

I am trying to be more efficient and resource-thrifty in this digital age, and am already dealing with the emotional and practical push-and-tug surrounding the slow-but-sure transition from my Big Black Book (really, the thing that has kept me upright and able to function for decades now) to the many amazing scheduling and organizing apps integrating my iPad, iPhone, and real world. 

I'm sure I will not stop finding snip-worthy pictures and goodies in paper form, and I'm not about to send my file collection to the recycling bin.  But I can't help being a little bit excited about finally discovering this time-sucking plaything I mean valuable resource for visual inspiration and networking.

Join me, will you?