pardee + do not disturb + halloween

my parents sent me and 3 friends [one, two, three] to the pardee house for a belated birthday tour and tea.

if you are local [or planning to visit], like victorian houses, cabinets of curiosities and strange collections then you should definitely go. the docents and tea-makers are all volunteers - they go ALL out . the tea was really amazing [see image 10 below for JUST the sweets - they even made me a birthday cake with chocolate leaves]. it's $5 for a tour [they have scheduled ones on wednesdays and saturdays, but you can schedule one for a group almost anytime]. a light tea + tour is $15 and a high tea + tour is $25.

the house is frozen in time as the pardee family lived there from generation to generation from the day it was built until the 1980's. they have left almost everything untouched - it can be a bit creepy [like seeing the calendar page of when they died] but also rather cool.

here's a slideshow of some of my photos [you may have to click out of a reader to view this]:


Created with Admarket's flickrSLiDR.



sometimes i do really like a task. husband wanted a do not disturb sign for his office door. he works at an animal hospital. sleeping dogs it is ! i used a free font - santo domingo - for the text.




so - costume is done for halloween !
in an old house in paris that was covered in vines
lived 12 little girls in 2 straight lines
in 2 straight lines they broke their bread
and brushed their teeth
and went to bed
the left the house at half past nine
in 2 straight lines
in rain or shine
the smallest one was madeline

the little decided this is who she wanted to be for halloween [from only a question if that's who she might want to me]
we have little black shoes too [which she loves wearing and is calling her madeline shoes]
i wanted to do the all yellow madeline because my favorite pages of the books are the ones in all yellow black and white.

i pulled the pattern from a coat of hers, and just altered it a bit - which having never pulled a pattern before i think i did OK !
here's where i was cutting it out.
felt like i was going back to my costume design roots as an undergrad.

can't wait to go trick-or-treating with her... even if she only wears the hat for 2 seconds.

morran love + silly drawings

i made a tote for camilla . i had to send her something back and so i thought she should get a little gift too. and inspired by the fact that she's making a book of morran, for which i am part of the jury, i thought i should do something with her likeness.

morran is a superstar dog. in fact so much so that an envelope i sent camilla one christmas went missing



we think it's because morran was on the envelope ;)

anyway - i can't wait to see what people come up with for the morran book. keep an eye out on the blog



lately i feel like there is just something in the air. i keep having these crazy ideas. things i want to do and try out. with out the time to do any of it. the big creative tease.




i was stuck in traffic and 3 ideas hit. i had to grab a scrap of paper and scribble notes on it. of course these ideas may seem moronic upon second thought .... but in the heat of the moment i think ooooohhhhh

it got me thinking about how i'm tying to develop a new body of work for a show and how in the beginning the idea is SO BIG. and then i have to work through all the research and then i have to sketch. and then invariably i have to fail, and then re-configure.



and how sometimes i want to just go back to do what i already know how to do. the familiar. which sometimes is new again after a break, or has a new twist on it in my head, but that's not what i'm talking about. i'm talking about the ease of just doing what comes natural and "easy".  and how that really isn't the point, is it? that the fear is really essential in a weird way. but my accident/play/figure it out time is running out. and i'm getting really nervous about if i can pull a new body of work off.... especially with a wall/installational element. and then these new ideas tease me with their potential and possibility, and i wonder if i should just run with one of them. or if they should be the NEXT thing. [and in what order?]

above is just me playing. i donated a drawing for the kearny street workshop's one size fits all  sale - because i love them and what they do.

i've always loved architectural templates. and the bathroom ones really crack me up. you can get this drawing:



here. it's using a garden template.

back to my second guessing.... [and grading]. 

around town

a few weeks ago tracy [of shutterbean fame] met up with our kiddos at fairyland


it is seriously a throw back. and i'm really glad it's still around. 


the first time i went i wished i had brought the polaroid camera. this time i did, but it's still hard to shoot them when there's a little one running around yelling "come mama come mama !! "

i got 3 though. [and i think we rode the train 4 times? maybe five. tracy's kid and my little were stuck on it for sure !]


we also went to the merry-go-round in tilden park with auntie connie
 
it's really a beautiful merry-go-round - the little is part terrified part fascinated. can't blame her really. and man is it just me or have they shortened the ride time on these things?



my favorite shot. the ceiling in there is this amazing teal-ish blue.

i posted on poppytalk - yuken teruya....

it's midterms in school-land. feeling it. i'm missing my studio in the darndest way. for some reason i'm having this flurry of ideas and projects i want to do. and am a bit bitter about my lack of time to even try them out. i want to make a little book for the little, i had this crazy daily practice art idea i want to explore... and i have a show to plan. oy. but i am working on a very important halloween costume.




if i can pull it off - well- i'll do a little dance in my muno shoes. promise.

oh hello

right. hi.
it's been awhile. um.
just busy over here.

sent off a big email today with a HUGE project.... it's getting there.... i'll talk about it for reals soon [i did let a hint of it slip out the other day].

i'm a year older. [flowers from hubby]



with some really nice folks remembering my birthday. whimsy & spice cookies from paper monkey press .

pretty gosh darn amazing cookies. really. not too sweet. amazingly packaged. super rich brownies. yum. i really want to try their marshmallows .

and um gorgeous website and photos? yes. indeed.

and a great sushi/sukiyaki dinner at my parents. 




it's hard to imagine now [it's raining and really cold as i type this] - but last week we actually had our indian summer. shorter than usual, but lovely. and the little and i caught up with skylite snowballs 

 

i'd been stalking them all summer. trying to find them. not. hoping they'd be out during the day when i could take the little [lots of evening appearances. doesn't work when she's in bed by 7pm]

they make their own syrups.

the little wanted grape. she insisted i have lemon. but if you get a classic you can have 2 flavors so i also sampled watermelon lime.





and adorable truck. of course. i mean i know there is a food cart craze and all, but really when someone does it right - it should be acknowledged.




yum.

i have plans. and things and news of all kinds to share.... i just don't feel like i can yet. these chickens are not quite ready to hatch. in the meantime i'll return to my stack of grading.