Looking back over 2011
Bryony gave me the idea of doing a year-in-review post, looking back over everything that happened in 2011.
Ready? Ok, here are some of my highlights!
- My website got a bit of brushing up.
- I went to the winter New York SCBWI Conference.
- I can't deal with the word "fiance."
- G's last surgery on his ear!
- I participated in the Work/Life 2 Illustration Directory. (I got super lucky and am sandwiched between two of my favorite illustrators ever: Lisa Congdon and Gemma Correll. Good job, last name.)
- Suicidal books.
- I got diagnosed with Crohn's.
- I started the Video Mondays and Working Wednesdays series on this ol' blog here
- Co-Birthday/Bachelorette Weekend in NYC
- G and I got married! (Thanks to our wonderful friends and family who helped us pull it off!)
- Honeymoon in Joshua Tree where our dear friends got married!
- Our wedding, with photos by Li from Fat Orange Cat Studios, was featured on Ruffled.
- Clamming on Martha's Vineyard with G's family!
- I contributed a post to Oh My! Handmade Goodness! about our kid-friendly wedding.
- Our dog bit another dog another dog. ( Ok, not a highlight, but...a learning experience for sure.)
- One last We Are Wizards screening at the Nevada City Film Festival in a whirlwind trip to CA, NY, and CT!
- I got personal about Health Insurance.
- New Winter promo postcard.
- Falling Leaves conference was amazing.
- Cake-In-A-Mug recipe perfected.
- G, our dog, and I completed our 6 months of (self imposed) one-on-one doggy training with Christina. --Who is amazing, btw.
- I started a line of t-shirts, called Nerdbaby! (More on that in 2012.)
- My prints are for sale online through Society6.
Phew! I know I'm missing some, but that's a pretty good list.
Tonight we begin another round of road trips--CT, VT, NJ, and NY. Looking forward to spending Christmas time with family and friends. It will be a little quiet around here until next year(!) but I'll be chattering away on twitter. Come say hello!
Merry Christmas and Happy New Year everybody!
Working Wednesday: Studio Mind Castle's Creative Process...
Enjoy this little video the design studio production company Mindcastle made of creating their holiday card a few years ago.
[vimeo http://vimeo.com/8362481]
Impressive, right?
Does your business send out holiday cards? I know that's something everyone is supposed to do. But unfortunately, I never seem to get it together with all the other craziness going on.
I'm thinking Valentines Day cards instead...
'Yeah Yeah Yeahs' by Sam Cornwall
The Yeah Yeah Yeahs played a surprise benefit show in Brooklyn the other day--complete with Karen O dressed as Santa Claus himself-- and my brother Sam was there to capture it for work.
Have you ever seen them live? They put on a fantastic show.
Click here for the rest of the pics.
Video Monday: Marcel The Shell w/ Shoes On
Have you met "Marcel The Shell With Shoes On"? (By Dean Fleischer-Camp and Jenny Slate.) Somehow I missed him the first go round, you know, when he became an internet sensation. But once I stumbled on the latest video I jumped on board:
[vimeo http://vimeo.com/14190306]
Gah! So good.
He has a book now too!
Happy Birthday Mum!
Happy Birthday Mummy!
We can't wait to have you all over for the celebration dinner tonight...!
Isn't that a cute photo? It's from Thanksgiving...
Working Wednesdays: Choose your own adventure Video!
Have you guys seen Madewell's genius online video campaign? It's basically a "choose your own adventure" video.
I haven't seen anyone else use this yet and I think it's just brilliant. Usually advertising gives me this icky feeling in the pit of my stomach, but campaigns like this--perfectly styled and executed-- make me so excited.
vintage shop for little ones
The Littlest is vintage clothing shop for kids and it's just darling.
Run by art director, Elizabeth Antonia, visit the sweet the littlest blog to see what else is going on.
Fun Fact: her husband dj'd our dear friends' wedding party last August...
Video Monday: The Goodwin Project
[vimeo http://vimeo.com/26454176]
Have you heard of The Goodwin Project?
A young family leaves their home on Kauai...It is what they will learn, what they bring others, what they will pass on to their children in the hyper-expanded classroom, the lab of direct being; a legacy passed from a father to his family.
...Together with a small film crew the Goodwins will document how they are changed by their travels, and the effect they have on their acquaintances, hosts, friends and ticket agents as they circumnavigate our planet, through 18 countries and four seasons. This is the story of their encounters with the world.
They step into the current faithfully, inquisitively, boldly and with good will.
I'm fairly certain I couldn't live like this. Which is a little bit sad to me. I love traveling, but I'm pretty sure my little homebody-self would have a hard time being so untethered. But I love that other people can embrace a life of adventure. It seems like a magical way to raise a family.
Who knows? Maybe some day I'll get to prove myself wrong...
Happy Birthday Rob!
Happy Birthday Brother- in-Law! Thirty is the best!
(That's us--ignore me being silly-- back in June.)
New Biz for the New Year GIVEAWAY!
Oh my gosh, have you heard about the ultimate business giveaway, A new Biz for the New Year, over on Oh My Handmade Goodness?! If you have a creative business that needs a branding overhaul, get yourself over there! They're giving away prizes worth over $6500!
And I'm donating a custom logo! I'm SO happy to be a part of this, but honestly, I'm more than a little jealous I can't enter!
Crazy, awesome: ULTIMATE.
Prints & Tees for Kids!! + its ALL on SALE!
YAY I'm so happy to finally announce I'm offering PRINTS of my work, as well as, TEES & ONESIES for kids!
I've partnered with two wonderful companies: Society 6 and Skreened to do my printing and fufillment. I was originally postponing offering anything until I had my own shop up and running, but then I decided it was just better to get the ball rolling. Baby steps, right? Someday I'll have my own online space for merchandise, but for now this will work fantastically!
The prints are offered in a variety of sizes, as well as framed, or on stretched canvases ready for hanging.
The tees come in a bunch of kid sizes, as well as onesies, and are all printed on American Apparel, 100% cotton.
And everything is on sale--with free shipping!-- through today: Cyber Monday!
Hooray!
Hope everybody had fun Thanksgivings...!
Happy Thanksgiving!
We're off to my parent's house, salted turkey and assorted goodies in tow! I've recovered from my cold that's knocked me off my feet for the last few days, and in the nick of time, managed to get a good chunk of work done anyway. Relatives from my mom's side of the family, G's parents and brother, and my brothers will be joining us soon. I hope you all have a wonderful, snuggly, yummy, day.
Happy Thanksgiving!
PS. I took that photo in the Adirondacks, at the Falling Leaves picture book workshop I went to a few weekends ago. Gorgeous, right?
Microwaved Gluten-Free Cake in a Mug: It worked.
Have you heard about 5 minute cake? It sounds pretend, and/or maybe a little gross when you hear it's "baked" in a microwave. We don't actually use our microwave that much. I tried it a few weeks ago and it was awful. It was super dry and flavorless and parts of it were actually burnt. However, it a fit of desperation last week, (yes: cake desperation,) I tried again. I adapted Babble's recipe, "5 Minute Nutella Mug Cake."
Instead of Nutella*, which I didn't have, I used chocolate syrup. And instead of flour, I used gluten-free cake mix. I substituted almond milk, for milk. All the same measurements.
Ingredients
4 tablespoons self rising flour 4 tablespoons white granulated sugar 1 egg 3 tablespoons cocoa powder 3 tablespoons Nutella 3 tablespoons milk 3 tablespoons olive or vegetable oil
Method
1. Combine all ingredients in a large coffee mug. Whisk well with a fork until smooth. Microwave on high for 1 1/2 – 3 minutes. (Time depends on microwave wattage. Mine took 1 1 /2 minutes.) Top with whipped cream and a little chocolate sauce if desired.
2. Top with whipped cream and chocolate syrup. Enjoy!
Note: Depending on the wattage of your microwave, you may have to increase cooking time.
Makes 1 very large serving.
My only regret is that I couldn't get a more flattering picture of it. You don't photo well, Mug-Cake. Anyways, G and I agreed it was pretty awesome for practically no effort. And I think you could split the above into two coffee cups, for two servings. Have you tried recipes like this?
*Has anyone else seen the latest commercials for Nutella, pitching it as a breakfast food? Wha??
1st, Nutella has commercials?
2nd "...a hazlenut spread...with a hint of cocoa!"? C'mon guys.
Oh that's right, you have us figured out.
Plic, Ploc, Wiz App
Have you seen the Plic, Ploc, Wiz app from Pepillo? You can use it on your iPhone, iTouch, or iPad. 
When I dream about making apps, this is what I want them to look, and feel, like. Simple, but beautiful. Gush...
Shawn Gilheeney
Check out this limited edition print,--each one hand painted-- by my friend Shawn, now available through Tiny Showcase.
Edition of 30 screen prints with hand finished watercolor.
Hand printed, painted, signed and numbered by the artist. Measures roughly 30" by 22" on an archival watercolor paper.
...As each piece was individually painted by the artist, no two are exactly the same.
There are only 16 left, so run over there to get yours!
Video Monday: Shawn Gilheeney*
[vimeo http://vimeo.com/27591181]
Have you seen Shawn Gilheeney's work? He does huge painted installations of predominantly urban ruins, that are just beautiful.
His work explores the “theory of entropy, [and how] things are constantly de-evolving.” You can see more here.
*Is it Tuesday already? Oops, yes this post is late. But for history's sake I'm backdating this to yesterday.
Veterans Day: Operation Warrior Wellness
I just heard that the VA estimates that about 18 veterans commit suicide every day. A tragic and stunning number. I also came across this program sponsored by the David Lynch foundation:
“Operation Warrior Wellness” aims to teach 10,000 veterans and their families a simple meditation practice for preventing and treating post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD).
Kind of amazing, right?
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JeCxgU93LHs&feature=player_embedded]
image: War Machines by Anthony Mayer available here.
Project Cozy: beating the winter blues
It's happening. Again. It's getting darker and darker.
G and I are sort of dreading winter in our drafty apartment. So this year I'm determined to lighten things up and make our home feel cozy. Besides boring stuff, like buying space heaters and covering our windows, this is the plan:
Twinkle lights! They always seem to make everything better!
We don't have a fireplace, but it seems like I might be able to fake it with groups of candles on trays:
House plants! We'll bring the green in!
Sadly, this is actually a bit tricky for us as, ahem-- TMI alert-- one of our cats likes to use plant pots as a litter box. It's awful. So all hanging? Clever pot idea? A LOT of rocks to cover up the inviting soil? All cacti? Just kidding. Sort of.
Moving on. Mirrors, the better to bounce the light around!
And last, but certainly not least, slippers. I'm an all-year-round-slipper-wearing kind of a gal, so it was tragic when I left my slippers at a friends house a few months ago. Mysteriously I have not replaced them yet. This will be remedied this weekend:
What are your decorating tips to beat the winter blues? Do tell!
Click on images for sources.
Working Wednesday: Proclamation!
