Down the Rabbit Hole.

Inspired by a project I'm doing for class, but bored by the restrictions of the assignment, I created something just for fun tonight:

Now Available: Your Very Own Pink Elephant.

It's official:



My sister's painting from yesterday's preview post is now available for purchase on Etsy. Buy it here.

Pink elephants not your thing? More paintings will be available soon. And if you have any subject ideas, she also takes requests.

A Preview.

And now for this week's surprise:

I have an amazingly talented sister. As a former art history minor and a current art enthusiast, I envy her. She's very talented. And she's also gearing up to sell her fabulous paint work on Etsy. Her seller profile is not up and running quite yet, but here's a preview of the amazing artwork that will soon be available:



Adorable, no?
Look for this painting and more from seller WhitneyElyse coming soon to Etsy.com.

Fabulous Finds and Worthy Causes.

Ok, dear readers, I still have an upcoming surprise to show you later on this week, but until that's ready, here are a few sites that I have to share.

The first is a webzine created and run by one of the most original girls I've ever met. Miseducated.net is a great place to read up on a bit of whimsy and build community with creative chicas from around the globe. Be sure to check out the penpal cafe where you can post a personal ad for your very own snail mail pal.

Next up, a fabulous find and worthy cause combined into one. Found thru MadebyGirl's blog, Improv Everywhere is a group dedicated to spreading joy thru random and massive acts of hilarity. Spend some time browsing their many 'missions' including the Look Up More dance sequence. In the meantime, here's a taste:


[FYI: I plan on participating in this one next year since I'll be in Chicago and actually have access to a subway.]

And finally, the sexiest of the worthy causes, a commercial deemed too scandalous for the Superbowl:


I'm seriously contemplating going full veggie [and not just for better sex], I've been slowly making the transition for years and I'm thinking of kicking it into high gear soon.

I'll keep you posted.

sweet like sugar, salty like soy.

First, another adorable Etsy find: CozyMoments bath goodies.
My favorite? The buttercream scented cupcake soap.


I haven't tried it yet, but it just might be my next Etsy order.

Up next: two design projects.

The first is a mock up for a GoVeg.com infographic ad.
[Can you tell I got to pick the subject matter?] I'm actually pretty proud of my little concept. And pretty impressed with my pen tool progress as well.



And, of course, there's Apple #5, or rather 'Apple: submerged'.


I included pink in the design in honor of it being due on Valentine's Day.

And speaking of Valentine's Day, mine was spent with sushi, sweets, and sugary cinema.




Lauren and I spent the evening watching chick flicks in front of a platter of delicious sushi rolls and followed it up with wine, cupcakes and spiked hot cocoa [though not in that order].

Stay tuned later this week for one of the best Etsy finds yet...it's a surprise that's very near and dear to my ♥. ;)

Le Love

Two things:

1. I made my first official Etsy purchase yesterday. I've been raving about this craftier alternative to ebay for about a year now, but had yet to actually create a profile or make a purchase, but I fell in love this this T-shirt by EveryLittleCounts and simply had to have it.



The quote is inspired by Dr. Zhivago and hand printed on soft cotton. A very special thanks to designer Amy, who has been patiently waiting for me to sort out some paypal/debit card issues in order to get her the payment.

2. In searching thru EveryLittleCounts blog site, I stumbled upon another love at first sight, Le Love. A romantic's dream, this blog is dedicated to found and donated photos of lovers as well as romantic quotes and graphics. So sexy. ♥

Sofa's Choice

Today's journey involved a trip to the fabric store in search of velvet heaven for my sofa. This proves to be a rather difficult task since I have very specific tastes and no idea what I want. I need something that will match both my green velvet chairs as well as my swivel armchair. This armchair is the bane of my fabric shopper existence in that my mother and I simply cannot agree upon what color it actually is. It's a faded velvet fabric that looks so amazingly interesting with darker shades around the seams and lighter hues toward the center. I swear that it's a faded maroon color [aka somewhat pink], my mother on the other hand swears it's a burnt orange color. I have a problem with any of my furniture being orange. Why? Because I plan to continue my collection of pink decor as I collect more home items and pink and orange simply do not work. A safe compromise would be to call the color 'peach' [think NARS blush in orgasm]. Pictures do not do this color justice so I cannot post for an opinion poll, but please, if you've been lucky enough to witness this mystery color chair [otherwise known as 'the conversation chair'] feel free to weigh in with your opinion.

As for the new sofa fabric, I believe I've decided to go with a multi-pattern approach like this:



Granted, my couch has no back cushions so that area would be the same fabric as the bottom, but you get the idea. These are my preliminary fabric choices:


The second swatch, much like the armchair, does not come across the same in person as it does in photos. It's really more of a shiny, golden peach. But, as I said, these are just preliminary choices, more research must be done.

valentine's veal.

I'm actually quite into Valentine's Day this year. Yes, I'm solo for the first time in years, but I think that's actually increased my pleasure. With no strain on my wallet, I'm free to enjoy the cutesy cards and pink packaging of Hallmark's favorite holiday without actually having to purchase gifts [unless, of course, they're for myself].

Tonight, I googled 'vintage valentines' in attempt to find ideas for an e-card design.

Among the rows of colorful cartoon cuddles, I found this:

Does this disturb anyone else? Perhaps it's the [almost] pescetarian in me, but I don't exactly find references to the slaughter of cute baby calves to be endearing for my valentines wishes. At first, the poet in me was frustrated that 'veal' doesn't even kind of sound like 'be,' but then realized that they were going for a rhyme for 'feel' which still makes the connection rather weak.
[Note: I do realize this image was probably created for humor, but it's just such a waste of an adorable little picture.]

These cards, however, use their cuteness to the max:

Frankly, I want this first one for my personal calling card.


And I find the extremely elaborate puns in this one both hilarious and adorable.

[Check out more like this last one here on Etsy.
Unfortunately, this particular card has been sold.]

daisies, tea, and fancy free.

This weekend involved tea for four at The Ruby Pear.
Highlights:

I ♥ daisies...


...and tea...


...and chandeliers.


And of course, this weekend also involved the creation of apple #4:

[Not one of my favorites, but at least I'm learning new things.]

Merci pour vous.

Overnight, my blog has become much more international [see the traffic feed for what I mean]. This is due to a thank you post on MadeByGirl's blog.

Two things:

1. Jen, I thank you for the publicity.

and

2. For those of you stopping in, I hope you find something worthy of your return. Please feel free to leave comments and check out any links located in the sidebar. :)

Pretty in Pink [cupcakes]

Today, I passed my server test. [insert happy dance here.]

So tonight, I treated myself by purchasing Pretty in Pink on DVD.

I have a love/hate relationship with this movie. I, like most children of the 80's, am a huge fan of the Molly Ringwald/John Hughes movies [i.e. Pretty in Pink, The Breakfast Club, Sixteen Candles] and I love this movie for the quirky characters and vintage fashion. BUT I hate the way the plot pans out. It's like a how-to for not picking the right guy.

Let's examine:

Molly's character, Andie, is caught in a love triangle between popular rich boy, Blane, and quirky best friend, Duckie. Throughout the course of the movie Blane does his share of wooing: not trying to get into her pants too soon, kissing under the stars, blah, blah, blah...but he also spends the whole central part of the film ignoring her because his friends are teasing him. He bails as her prom date and lies about his reasons all for the sake of his high school reputation. Granted, these are typical teenage boy mistakes and Blane clearly is a nice guy simply making bad decisions, but he's still an ASS.

Meanwhile, adorably awkward Duckie is COMPLETELY in love with Andie and utterly devoted [almost to the point of stalking, but still, that's devotion] and at the conclusion of the film, when Andie arrives at the prom dateless and almost chickens out on going in, he's RIGHT THERE to hold her hand, even if she did ruin that gorgeous 60's prom dress to make her shapeless burlap sack of a gown [ok, the collar and sleeves are pretty cute, but the rest is just a lost cause]. In my mind I like to imagine that the movie continues past the credits and Andie spends the next few years finding herself and then eventually returns to Duckie to live out their friendship forever in holy matrimony.
The End.*

But still, I love this movie.

And someday I'll find a Duckie of my very own.



In other news, Ms. Capps sent me a few cupcake shots via snail mail that arrived today:

I ♥ the skirt in this shot.
Ashley made it herself the night before the shoot.
[She's an absolute Superwoman.]
I'm still trying to convince her to let me have it.
And yes, I'd wear it out in public. Often.

But this last shot is actually my favorite of the three:



It looks like a scene out of a silent film so I feel like I look totally in my element. ♥

*As I wrote this blog, watching the special features on my Pretty in Pink DVD, I found a feature that explains that, in the original ending of the movie, Andie and Duckie DO end up together. However, the chemistry between Molly and Jon Cryer simply didn't leave the audience feeling sparks so the ending was re-shot. Clearly, I should have played Andie.

Poetry in Pictures

Two quick updates:

1. Server Certification: noun.

:the immensely stressful final process of training with the Cheesecake Factory in which a trainer stalks the trainee for a day of critiquing their every move.

Ok, perhaps the above definition is a bit dramatized, but it was still a stressful morning. But I passed! One more hurdle to jump tomorrow by passing the written final and I'll officially be a Factory employee [and finally able to keep my tips].

2. Design Project: I've been hesitant to post this next design simply because it was done during the craze of training last week [and therefore not as impressive as I would have hoped]. However, it involves both my poetry and my illustrations so I feel it should at least be noted.

The assignment: three spot illustrations for a body of text. I chose my own poem.



For those of you unfamiliar with this poem, these are three stanzas taken completely out of the larger context. I hesitate to post the full version online just yet [I'm hoping to publish it as an illustrated book eventually], but if I have any requests I'll either post it or mail it to you directly.

Sofas and Chandeliers

I've been on an interior decorating kick lately. [I'm not quite sure why since I have no money and it seems a bit pointless to try to decorate this apartment into perfection when that just means I'll have more stuff to move come June.] Regardless, in my searching I've found that there are three items that are like decor porn to me: velvet sofas, chandelier lighting, and bookshelves.

The first is actually my mother's fault. Over the past year she's accumulated for me several beautiful vintage arm chairs, all velvet upholstery. Meanwhile, the other day I mentioned something to her about perhaps wanting a different couch. The one that I currently own is a hand me down from my parents and the upholstery is tan with hunter green stripes. My apartment on the other hand is decorated in colors closer to Marie Antoinette: pinks, sage greens, baby blues, etc. In short, the couch simply doesn't fit; but, much as I enjoy beautiful decor, I'm also a practical kind of girl that feels if something's serving it's purpose, there's no need to spend money on something new. However, when I mentioned my mismatched conundrum to my mother she started asking what type of couch I would prefer [she has connections for cheap vintage, hence the armchairs]. "Would you want a velvet one to match the chairs?" she asked...and with that one question an obsession was born. I believe the decision has been made to simply re-upholster my current couch into velvety goodness, but there have been a few google finds that I've fallen for in the process of searching for ideas:



One of my favorite things about the velvet is the way it ages, fading more in some areas and less in others. Two of my four chairs are like that and I adore the multi-shade effect it creates.



This sofa's called 'The Garbo.' Love the name, love the shape, love the color as well, but it wouldn't go with anything I own. However, the site does allow for color changes.

The chandelier obsession started a few years ago. Miss Kiley and I took a trip up to Toronto for a week and stumbled upon an adorable little boutique packed to the brim in vintage furniture and knick knacks, including a ceiling full of chandeliers. Unfortunately, this discovery also resulted in the realization that I won't likely be buying a chandelier in the near future since even the smallest and cheapest ones start at around $150. There was a time when I considered purchasing this Target knock off,



but I think I'd rather wait for the real thing.

Like this:



Or like the one in Victory Ford's apartment on Lipstick Jungle:



[Frankly, I wouldn't object to simply living on this entire set. Click on the image to see what I'm talking about.]

And now for the most erotic of the decor porn: bookshelves. Words cannot express how obsessed I am with bookshelves. My dream in life is to live in a place where there is an entire wall of built-in shelves, ceiling to floor. Part of this desire comes from an obsession with books, I think the other half comes from my obsessive compulsive need to have a place for everything. This is why this next image is absolutely orgasmic to me, these shelves not only allow for maximum storage of CD's, books, magazines, and movies, but they do so in a visually stimulating design. My only complaint is that the sides are open ended, I need a boxed-in frame to fulfill my desire for structure.



♥ ♥ ♥

A is for Adorable. C is for Cards.

Another adorable find in article research.

This one actually made it into the final list, but I just had to post it here as well. Made by Girl is an artist-owned company that I just happened to stumble upon [it reminds me of something one of my creative college friends could come up with, entrepreneur-style]. Adorable and quirky, Girl's designs are right up my alley [and printed on recycled paper, of course].

My favorite: the 'you're my peanut butter, i'm your jelly' valentine.



A is also for Apple. As in Apple #3 for my design class.
I went for a children's book theme:



This one was actually harder than it looks since I had to teach myself how to change the gradient tool from grayscale to red [which took me about a half an hour...I'm not proud of that, but at least I got it].

Last Note: Be sure to check out my article on WUNT that resulted in this fabulous find.