Tuesday Tunes: SXSW

This week's playlist is a playlist I got off of iTunes for free. It is some of the artists playing at SXSW this year. I wish I was there.

If you don't know what South by Southwest is it is "a private company dedicated to building and delivering conference and festival events for entertainment and related media industry professionals." Grabbed that from their Facebook page. Each year they have this huge festival/conference and this year's is going on right now. Check out their website for tons more information. One day I will make it to it.

Some songs that weren't on Groove Shark, or at least I couldn't find them, are: 

"So Low" Talib Kweli

"Marrymake It With Me" The Republic Tigers

"When Darkness Falls" Strong Arm Steady"

"A picture of something you wish you were better at."

The piano.

My Ma taught me when I was younger but I didn't continue. I could play the keys on my right hand pretty well but always had a difficult tim reading the bass clef. I kind of miss playing. I bet my hand-eye coordination would be better. 

I wish I could have kept up learning the guitar. I was attempting to teach myself with the help from somebody way back in my freshman year of college. But that fizzled pretty quickly...Oh well. 

And somewhere in here, I goofed and when from number 14 to 16 and miss a subject somewhere. So if you noticed I missed 15 I'll have to go back and fix that. I think I need to learn how to count again...

:)

Pretty Rings and Other Things: Pt. II

More rings that I've recently made.

"Sunshine, Daisies, Butter Mellow"

"Pretty in Pink"

"Simply Sublime"

"The Colourful Trio"

The pencil/box was a gift from Elixir Design in San Francisco, CA. It arrived at my Ma's house around the New Year. I really like the quote, "Luck favors the prepared." It was a sweet gift. 

Today the weather was nice and sunny. A bit windy, but enjoyable nonetheless. Tomorrow...Tomorrow it is supposed to frizzle (freezing drizzle) and I am not looking forward to it. I am sick of snow, ice, and wind. I want some spring. So because of the weather, my Cities trip for photos is being postponed. Driving and ice don't mix. I'm super bummed. I was looking forward to it and getting out of TRF again. It's been awhile since I've been to the Cities. Since I've been working through my lunches my weekend will start around 2.30 instead of 5, that will be nice. 

Weekend's To Do List:

-Portfolio site (of some kind)

-Etsy shop (well...to start setting it up)

-Design, design, design (as always)

-Bake (although I'm not sure what yet)

-Afghan/blanket (hopefully hash out quite a bit more of it)

"A photo of something you wish you could forget."

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High school

I don't necessarily wish to forget high school per say. I don't think forgetting about things fixes them. But I don't really choose to remember high school or consider it a prime time in my life. They were rough years, not some of my favorite. But, without them, I wouldn't be who I am. I learned a lot about life and about myself. 

:)

Tuesday Tunes

It's been a good music week so far! I have 3 bands/artists I would like to share with ya.

First off, the fantastic Mr. Jay Nash just released his album Diamonds and Blood today. It's only available on iTunes or at his shows. But you can stream the album from his website too. Great acoustic and chill tunes with a hint of country. I wish I was in L.A. tonight because he is playing a show at Hotel Cafe with Caitlin Crosby.

"Us Against the World" 

Girl Talk also has a new album out, All Day. It was my entertainment for the day at work. If you haven't ever heard of Girl Talk, basically he mixes a crap ton of songs together to make one massive song. It's good for the music ADD days when you can't decide what you want to listen to. It's a mix of old, new, a bit of this, and a bit of that. 

"Oh No" 

All the tracks on Girl Talk's albums are meant to be listened to as a whole rather than individual songs.

Lastly, my pop/punk guilty pleasure band, Forever the Sickest Kids released a new album on the 1st. They are my bounce in my seat/dance because nobody is watching band. Marlon introduced them (and Girl Talk) to me a few years ago and I've been hooked since. 

"Good Life"

"A picture of somewhere you'd love to travel."

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Italy is on high priority on my "To Travel To" list. Definitely cannot wait to explore there.

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But, on my more immediate list, Seattle, here I come (in August.) Michelle and I are meeting up in April to make our hotel reservations and do a bit more planning. CAN. NOT. WAIT.

It's also looking like I will be heading down Friday. Let's hope the weather agrees and that the location isn't too muddy and nasty. This work week has been a long one so far. I've been working through my lunches and staying after for a bit trying to make up some of that time.

:)

Inspire Me: The Furnace

I found some rad hand painted graphics and typography on Seamless Creative's inspiration blog, DesignWorkLife. They are from the design firm, The Furnace in Australia.

I'm in love with that reception desk.

How sweet is that clock? 

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I like how clean everything looks still. The interior design isn't over done and the focus is definitely on the creativity plastered all over the walls and floor. I think I like this just as much as I like chalkboard walls. 

I started a blanket/afghan this weekend. It is fushia, bright yellow, and a softer aqua/teal-ish blue. I'm pretty excited. The colors match the ones of the comforter covering my futon. 

This week has converted into a long work week again. The weather is supposed to be snowy and rainy this weekend. Not good weather for engagement photos. I may drive down Sunday...We shall see. It's a long drive with iffy location conditions. 

"A picture and a letter."

Etsy Shop

Etsy Shop

A photo and a letter. I went literal. But how gorgeous is the Eiffel Tower in that photo? Normally I'm not a huge fan of sepia tones, but for that one, it just works. And the ampersand is my favorite piece of type. Yes, I have a favorite piece of type...

:)

Onto a Short Week

Well, it's one busy weekend down, another heading my way. Except, it will be a kind of short week. I have an engagement photo session down in the MPLS area on Friday. It will be a 4 day work week and about 5 hours of driving. Hopefully though, I can see some other people while I'm down there too since it's Spring Break. I am super jealous. I wish the real world had Spring Break...

This weekend was a pretty good, successful one. As always, I spent WAY too much money, but got to spend some decent time with the folks. I got my taxes completed, the bridesmaid dress is being altered (after a pin gave me a good stabbing in the side), and I got to eat at a few of my favorite restaurants.

A couple of photos from this past weekend:

(click image for better view, there's text in there)

And a couple of sweet finds:

I must collect bags or something. I pretty much have a closet full of them. Got this one at Target. The pins are from C.S.A Design in Minneapolis. 

I stopped by the Unglued: Craft Fest too. There were TONS of people there when I made it there around 10:30. It was difficult to see everybody booths so I just kind of wandered around and snuck a peek at what I could. I wish I could have gotten a screenprinted poster from Who Made Who.

Got this awesome sketchbook from a fellow BSU alumni, Cody Bartz, who hopefully soon will have a website or something up so you all can see his fantastic work. I got to chat with him for a bit which was nice. It was good to see a familiar face in the area. 

I've got more things to share throughout the week. My Ma dug out a great old 1964 Women's Day magazine. The ads in there are great, so interesting to see how advertising worked back then. Speaking of the 60's I have lots of catching up to do on Mad Men. 

"A photo of your biggest insecurity."

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My height is one of my biggest insecurities (I'm 5'10"). BUT I try not to think about my insecurities (there's a fair few) and I'm working on just seeing them as being a part of me rather than defining who I am. The more I focus on the negative the more I bring myself down. I've got enough problems on my plate ;) And I figure, for the ones I can change, if I don't change them, I just have to continue living with it until I do something about it.

:)

I Heart:

I heart organizations that help change the world we live in. I would like to share a few with you that are among my favorites. The first two, I was extremely fortunate enough to use them in college for a couple of projects creating advertising campaigns.

TO WRITE LOVE ON HER ARMS http://twloha.com
To Write Love on Her Arms is a non-profit organization based out of Florida. They're goal is to help people through depression, drug addictions, suicide, and life. It started out by friends wanting to help out somebody who was denied treatment at a center because they thought she was too much of a risk with drugs in her system and fresh wounds from self-abusement. Her friends helped her through her detox in order for them to accept her into the program. So TWLOHA was founded to help those in need know that help is out there and they can survive. TWLOHA is very close to my heart and my life.

PROJECT 7 http://project7.com

Project 7 is a for profit organization that uses the profits to aid seven different areas of need in the world. To: Heal the Sick, Save the Earth, House the Homeless, Feed the Hungry, Quench the Thirsty, Teach Them Well, and Hope for Peace. They sell every day things like bottled water, mints, t-shirts, coffee, and gum. At the end of the year, the profits are split into 7th's and a chunk is given to each area of need. They determine which non-profit from the categories gets the money by a vote from the community. This year some of the non-profits that are funded are: A Child's Right, Blood: Water Mission, Plant with Purpose, and Invisible Children. 

THE GIVING KEYS http://thegivingkeys.com

I posted about The Giving Keys a little while back. (Check that out here.) But I found this video Caitlin Crosby posted yesterday I think that I really wanted to share. The Giving Keys is a non-profit organization where you Pay It Forward by purchasing a key that has a word (of your choice) engraved on it and you pass it along to somebody at some point who you think is in need of that message. I think it's a great way to the faith that things will get better going. 

The One Club http://oneclub.org

The One Club is a non-profit organization in the world of advertising and design. They work to help educate about the business. It is a organization that also helps seasoned advertisers and designers keep the ideas flowing and encourages them to take risks. This one is still a little new to me and I don't know a whole lot about it yet.

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"A picture of something that has had a huge impact on your life recently."

My blog...

I'm not really sure it's had a HUGE impact...But it's an addition to my life. I haven't had anything too life altering happen recently. My job? I think I'm in a lull while the next big thing is still a-brewing. I think one day soon something is going to have an impact, just that day isn't quite here yet. But I'm waiting for it...patiently. 

Now, off to clean, and off to start packing for my trip home. I'm planning on getting some space cluttering stuff out of the apartment (just to make room for more junk I'm sure.) I am also going to make this pie to bring home with me. Pa likes choco creme pie so I think we're going to give this a try. I also want to make these, homemade marshmallows at some point soon. Even more so I want to try my hand at French Macarons, but I'm a bit scared...(yet they look so delicious!)

:)

A Yarn-ful Update

First I would like to start out by saying, I have been addicted to Cut Copy today.

This past weekend I finished up a lot of my random, half done projects I had lying around. Kind of wanted to clean stuff up before my hectic March.

Reusable bags.

My favorite pair of mittens I've made so far.

I finally learned how to properly make these kind of fabric flowers. Boy, are they a mess to make. But I love them anyways.

These are a couple of older projects I hadn't photographed yet.

I love the chunky yarn to make hats. Plus, they are super warm.

These brimmed hats are a little funky...The brim kind of goes down over the eyes rather than out. But I found a different pattern in more of the style I was trying to achieve. I'm going to have to try that one next.

My plan is to, in the middle of March, after I get back from shooting a friend's engagement photos, I am going to open an Etsy shop. I know I've been saying I'm going to for awhile now...

I made some wonderful gluten-free cookies yesterday with this mix:

Hodgson Mill

I mixed in peanut butter and choco chips. They are FANTASTIC. Love them a lot. 

"A picture of someone who inspires you."

Okay, so you may be wondering why I posted that piece of typography rather than a portrait of somebody. I have several answers to your wondering. One, because there are SO many people who inspire me it would be an extremely long post because there's no way I could choose just one. The people that inspire me the most are people who want to make a difference and believe that they can make a difference. I get inspired by people who go out an make their dreams come true, who want to make this world a better place.

My second reason is going to sound really backwards from the objective of this particular day, but one person that has inspired me most was the person that told me I wouldn't be doing anything with my life. That I would be back at my high school job after college, which wasn't a glamorous job by any means (are high school jobs ever?) So I take challenges like that and run with them. Now, granted, I may not be doing my absolute dream job right now, but I am working my way there. I guess, I get a kick out of people who tell me I can't. I'm out to prove you wrong. 

:)

A Lil' Somethin' in Graphic Design

So last week on the ever fantastic podcast that keep me entertained at work, Stuff You Missed in History Class, I learned about the Saint Valentine's Day Massacre. I won't give you a history lesson or anything. But it involves some great mobsters such as Al Capone. If you know my love for The Roaring 20's and Prohibition, you'll know that this podcast fascinated me so I had to listen to it more than once.

The source for my illustration.

Last night before I went to bed I had an idea for a Saint Valentine's Day Massacre poster. I felt the urge to work on it tonight :) Plus, I haven't posted anything I've designed for a little while. I figured it was about time. Now to just work on the dozen other design things I have ideas for.

This weekends To Do List:
-Finish my bag(s)
-Work on portfolio site and/or Flower Girl
-Make homemade tortilla shells
-Start new hat and headbands
-Make a pattern for the totes
-DON'T SPEND MONEY

That last one could be difficult. There is a craft fair next weekend I'm going home for, Unglued Craft Fest. One of my classmates from BSU, Cody, is going to be selling his screen prints there and I really want to get one. He is an amazing artist. Watch out for him one day. He'll be famous.

I also have to get my bridesmaid dress altered, my taxes done, my oil changed...It will be an expensive trip so I am going to use all the self-control I have to NOT spend money this weekend. Which is why I've overloaded myself with craft-iness and creativeness to be productive with. This usually only sometimes works. Must. Practice. Self. Control.

"A picture of something you want to do before you die."

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and/or

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I am not the biggest fan of heights. They scare me. But...I want do kind of conquer that by being ridiculously high up in the air either free falling for floating. Perhaps both. I figure if I can be talked into jumping off a little cliff into water (which combines two fears in one), I could probably be talked into jumping out of a plane also. The hot air balloon wouldn't take as much convincing if any at all. Think of the photographs you could get in a hot air balloon! 

:)

Foods: Simple Simple Cinnamon Rolls

Last week for a co-worker's birthday we had a mini food day. Somebody brought in these amazing mini cinnamon rolls. They were absolutely divine. I decided I wanted to try making my own.

I am a lover of a good cream cheese frosting. Yummmm. 

"A picture of somebody you could never imagine your life without."

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My Ma and Pa. They don't like photographs taken of them. I guess it runs in the family, haha. Love them Couldn't live without them. Even with life happening they are always supportive and let me live my life. I'm very appreciative of that. I've been able to make my own mistakes and have to fix them. It has taught me a lot. I like that they don't hold my hand through life. But, they are always there if I do need something. Sometimes we don't always get along but hey, that's family. 

My apartment floor is currently littered with projects I am working on. Still plugging away at my bag. I should probably dig out the first one I started and finish that too. Chunky headbands. Patterns for the totes. My computer is also packed with projects. Hopefully I can hash out quite a bit on my business set and flash website for my portfolio site this weekend. I want to start designing the product tags for the Flower Girl stuff I started ages ago in hopes that maybe I can get another idea for the business set.  I've just got tons of stuff going on and not a whole lot of motivation at the moment.

Ooooooofta. Much to do. But that's okay. I like to be busy and working on stuff. Thank goodness huh? 

:)