New Skills and Busy Etsy Bee - September 30, 2010

First, can you believe that October starts tomorrow? Really? REALLY? That also means it's almost my birthday (in November) so start shopping!

Since I am officially unemployed (I'm working on getting a few freelance writing gigs up and going, but my full-time job is still being a mom, yet I have a few hours off from said job each day) I decided I should learn some new skills. I've always wanted to learn Illustrator but, well, that program is pricey. Then I found Inkscape, which is a free, open source vector graphics editor. Yes! Finally! And so I've thrown myself into learning how to do vector drawings via Inkscape's forums and various tutorials (video and text) around the web.

Now I have a few new designs that I'm pretty proud of, even if they are stick figures when compared to actual graphic designers and their work. There's an owl, a pumpkin, a ghost, and a girly skull - all on buttons headed to a local shop in a few days. (Pictures coming to a blog post soon.) And then I made my very own customizable cupcake, which I've added to my etsy store as a necklace set and a single necklace.

Set of six custom cupcake necklaces - great party favors!

Customized cupcake necklace - just pick your initial!

Meanwhile, something is up with Blogger's image uploader, but I'm just uploading images directly to my Picasa account for the time being. I hope the bugs get worked out soon though - or that my computer stops making me think there are bugs...

The Friday Five (plus new Etsy listings) - September 10, 2010

Courtesy of Friday5.org.

1. What is the field nearest your home like?

There's a playground/field that's down the road a bit. It's newly renovated but the renovations took almost two years and nobody is entirely sure why.  There are giant tennis courts, a lot of swings, and speed bumps that are too tall and that scrape the bottom of your car.

2. How did you get into the professional field you’re in? If you’re not working, what field are you most likely to find yourself in some day?

When I was in fourth grade, Mrs. Bean told us to write poems. I thought, I really like this writing gig. And I never looked back.

3. What’s the most interesting sight within your current field of vision?

My cat Mikko is curled up on the floor in front of me but he's not fully relaxed. A dog was barking just outside our door and so his ears are perked up and he's looking in that direction trying to decide if it's worth getting upset over or not. He's a very laid-back cat so I think he's decided he doesn't care.

4. Where were you the last time you fielded questions from several people in turn?

Today. There was a parent social at my kid's school, with coffee and bagels, and I wound up talking to a few other moms and dads and answering questions like "What's your child's name?" and "Which class is s/he in?" (I had planned on making a smoothie this morning but the coffee/bagels replaced it.)

5. How are you feeling right now?

Antsy. It's the Friday before a long no-preschool week. I'm looking forward to the weekend though - plans include half-price day at a consignment sale, an in-store with a local band (Oryx + Crake) I've become friendly with via Twitter, and the King of Pops. Of course my plans never really work out the way I want them to - I have what I call the calendar curse. If I write it on the calendar, odds are good it won't happen. But cross your fingers!

New listings in the Etsy store:

Interchangeable magnet necklace with flowers

Pocket mirror with vintage bluebird art

Also, not my Etsy listing, but my friend Marissa's - one of the best zines I've read in YEARS (and seriously, I'm not just saying that because she's my friend - go grab one ASAP!). It's an old school cut&paste look at her trip to San Francisco - visually adorable and wonderful with a fabulously written travelogue:



Marissa's zine Miss Sequential #3

Breakfast of the day (slow-moving sleepy day plus new Etsy listings) - September 7, 2010

Breakfast of champions or something

The three-day weekend threw our schedule out of wack. My daughter is back at preschool for the week (next week is the first of several week-long breaks...oy...but you'll hear more about that when it happens) and I'm dragging myself around this morning. So no smoothie, just some coffee (french vanilla! lots of milk and sugar!) and a 100-calorie bread round with Laughing Cow Swiss spread on it.

Last night I watched the Time Traveler's Wife - Tivoed from our free HBO (well, free in that it's paid for within our rent/condo fee). It wasn't as awful as I was expecting, but it really did not do that gorgeous, epic book justice. Seriously, TTTW is one of my favorite books of all time, and when you love a book as passionately as that, no movie is ever going to work. I thought Eric Bana was acceptable as Henry at some ages, but he was just too clean cut at other points. Henry is gritty and raw and haunted, but not so much in the movie. Rachel McAdams was OK as Clare when she was younger, I thought, but she just didn't click for me as older Clare. Ron Livingston was NOT Gomez, no way, no how. And then, well, of course the entire plot was smooshed into a neat two-hour story, with lots of things missing, lots of subtlety lost, and probably a lot of confusing scenes for someone who had never read the book. And the ending? THE ENDING WAS SO WRONG. Because it came so close to being right - the book's ending would make a beautiful scene as far as I'm concerned - and then it just didn't do it. On the upside, the movie didn't make me throw things at the screen nor did it make me feel weird about the book. It just...didn't do it for me.

I actually have been productive this morning. I listed a bunch of pocket mirrors, a new mix-and-match crunchy mama button set, and a new necklace in my Etsy store. Want to see?

Brown birds-on-a-wire pocket mirror

Little red bird in an autumn tree pocket mirror

Interchangeable magnet necklace with birdcage charms

Crunchy mama mix-and-match four button pack

I really need to work on my photography technique with my Etsy listings, I know...