Tuesday, April 22, 2008

collecting


Aren't these great? I got them at the Postcard and Ephemera show I went to on Sunday. They were little cards that came in Red Rose Tea in 1960. They are very small. The colors are so great. I love the colors in the old printed stuff. See more of my haul over here. Some items will end up on The Cedar Chest soon.

Thursday, April 17, 2008

craft and design blog rant

I am sort of obsessed with craft and design blogs. I go through stages with them, some I will love for a while and then I am no longer interested. Some I love, but then they stop posting as much, so I lose interest and some I actually don't love, in fact they get on my nerves, but for some reason I need to keep checking in. It's a sickness.

Here are some things that get on my nerves about craft and design blogs:

1. When all they do is post things to buy and these things to buy are ridiculously expensive. It makes me think that the blog is just a marketing tool and they are getting some money for each post. And if I know this isn't true, it bothers me just as much, because the relentless "wants posts" are just feeding into this idea that we all "deserve" to be rich and get these things (which is why so many people are in deep debt). I would love it if some people posted what they really buy, instead of what they are wishing for. I can appreciate design and beauty for just the sake of it, too, but sometimes it gets to be too much of just plain consumerism.

2. The well-off unemployed crafty woman with the beautiful and perfectly clean house and a great view. Okay, yes, I admit it, I am jealous. Absolutely. But, still, it seems a little easier to be able to bake elaborate desserts and sew beautiful things when you are doing so for fun and not to make a living. I admit that if I lived in some of these house with some of these views I would be struck by the beauty everyday and want to post it as well. In fact, I live in a place not so much like that and I still am. However, as I have said before I would really like to see some blogs by women who work full time and still find some time to craft. I want to see messy craft rooms and resourceful/reused craft supplies instead of a stack of new imported fabrics.

3. When craft blogs become blogs filled with pics of their kids. Yeah, kids are cute, and I like seeing them with things the blogger crafted, but sometimes the blog becomes pics of the kids constantly or it becomes a pregnancy blog. That is when I take it off the list

So, I know this may seem harsh. And I know people can do whatever they want with their blog. And I am also aware that I have never seen a post like this on any blog, but I decided to write it all down today because I wanted to let you know about the blogs that I always love.

I keep a list on the side bar of this blog of the most recent sites I have bookmarked. But, I don't have a list of the ones I always look at and consistently like, mainly because they are listed on so many other blogs. I figure I don't need to repeat them. But, here are some of my all time favorites. I would say most of these are my favorites because they are consistent, beautiful and they often provide me with really good information/links.

1. Cozy Little Whimsy Nook
2. Happy Mundane
3. How about Orange
4. Knick Knacks and Ric Rac
5. Thimble
6. Cathy of California


How about you? What is your favorite? What makes you take a blog off your list?

Sunday, April 13, 2008

working

The plans I had for this afternoon were canceled, so I took the chance to work on my new issue of current resident. I want to get it done before the end of the month. Because, once May hits I really need to get to work on the new issue of Figure 8. The zine symposium continues to always be my deadline (and thank god for it, otherwise, I don't know if I would finish anything!), and this year it is August 23rd and 24th.

So, this is a shot of my space when I am working on my zine; coaxing stories from houses, inspecting photographs, reading stories outloud, making little edits. I don't really question the story that comes to me too much. Some are better than others, but they don't really feel like something I can abandon. Once they come to me, once I hear the voice and the first couple of lines it all spills out and there it is. I make little edits, clarifying things, fixing punctuation, but most of it is exactly how it came to me.

Saturday, April 5, 2008

notions



I spent some time this evening going through my sewing basket. I found a few things to put in The Cedar Chest while I organized it.

I love these old button packages and needle cases. The needle case at top is from a savings and loan. I found it in my grandmother's stuff many years ago and I still use them. I don't remember where I got the rest, maybe also from my grandma. There is something so beautiful about that one in the middle, the clear buttons barely hanging on and the title at the top says simply "Latest Style"

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