Does that sound irreverent? I hope Kazuo Ishiguro won't mind my stealing (somewhat) the title of his lovely book. Actually I really liked the movie too, a rare occurrence if I have read and enjoyed the book. In fact I will usually avoid watching the screen version of a book I really liked, but who can pass up Anthony Hopkins and Emma Thompson enacting an Ishiguro story?
But I totally digress.
DaddyBoy very kindly went to rock the Baby Chipmunk to sleep, and dozed off himself, thus completely dashing my plan to watch Clint Eastwood's classic A Fistful of Dollars with him. Too tired to think up plan B, I ended up at my computer. And checked my email. And found this.
It's past 11 p.m., but who cares what remains of the day; it's ending wonderfully!
Friday, October 31, 2008
Thursday, October 30, 2008
The Daily Grind
Hee hee. Don't know why I called this post The Daily Grind. What does it mean, anyway? This is my day:
Wake up next to the SnuggleBug being snugglebugged and curled and squirmy and all sorts of cute bugsy things that SnuggleBugs do. Spend entire day playing, drawing, reading, signing, crawling around with her or being there when she plays by herself. Fit in the cooking, cleaning, doing dishes, feeding and nursing and eating and maybe some painting and some work on this modern addiction called the computer. Stop and pause several times in astonishment that SnuggleBugs exist and that you have one!!!! Laugh a lot. Hope the SnuggleBug will fall asleep before you fall down. Hope DaddyBoy and you can watch maybe a 1/500th part of some kung fu movie before you DO fall down.
Oh, and wash diapers.
And love it all.
This is my daily grind. I've never been happier!
Ok, yeah, my back does hurt. And don't ask about my hands.
The SnuggleBug perched on my lap while I doodled this cup. I love tea!
Wake up next to the SnuggleBug being snugglebugged and curled and squirmy and all sorts of cute bugsy things that SnuggleBugs do. Spend entire day playing, drawing, reading, signing, crawling around with her or being there when she plays by herself. Fit in the cooking, cleaning, doing dishes, feeding and nursing and eating and maybe some painting and some work on this modern addiction called the computer. Stop and pause several times in astonishment that SnuggleBugs exist and that you have one!!!! Laugh a lot. Hope the SnuggleBug will fall asleep before you fall down. Hope DaddyBoy and you can watch maybe a 1/500th part of some kung fu movie before you DO fall down.
Oh, and wash diapers.
And love it all.
This is my daily grind. I've never been happier!
Ok, yeah, my back does hurt. And don't ask about my hands.
The SnuggleBug perched on my lap while I doodled this cup. I love tea!
Tuesday, October 28, 2008
RGB/CMYK
I figured out why my chairs wouldn't show up on Blogger in the right colors - they were in CMYK mode!
I changed the mode to RGB and voila!
Now if they will only upload on Etsy as well...
I changed the mode to RGB and voila!
Now if they will only upload on Etsy as well...
Monday, October 27, 2008
Two more chairs, I think
I'm not sure what's going on, but for the last three days (THREE) I've been trying to put up a couple of new paintings and I JUST CAN'T!
First, something kept going wrong with the scan, so I had to scan them mutiple times, one by one. Then Photoshop kept screwing up. Somehow the image size was always ending up wrong. If I use 1000 pixels my image size goes up to 14 inches, making the file too big. If I reduce the resolution, I lose the pixels. I am just not getting the right balance with these two. And If I leave it at a reasonable compromise. it's too big to upload on Etsy. It's not too big to upload on Blogger, apparently, but when it does, it's reversing my colors. I'm not even sure how it's managing that, since I checked and double checked, and Photoshop shows them normally.
I just cleared my cache coz it wasn't even letting me sign in to Blogger initially.
Oh, and after many adjustments, when it did upload on Etsy, the image is coming up blank with a red x in the corner, but it's not failing the upload. And Blogger is uploading other images just fine, but these two chairs are still coming up with weird colors.
I've never had so much trouble with any other pictures, and I'm not doing anything different.
Maybe I should restart the laptop and see if that helps...
First, something kept going wrong with the scan, so I had to scan them mutiple times, one by one. Then Photoshop kept screwing up. Somehow the image size was always ending up wrong. If I use 1000 pixels my image size goes up to 14 inches, making the file too big. If I reduce the resolution, I lose the pixels. I am just not getting the right balance with these two. And If I leave it at a reasonable compromise. it's too big to upload on Etsy. It's not too big to upload on Blogger, apparently, but when it does, it's reversing my colors. I'm not even sure how it's managing that, since I checked and double checked, and Photoshop shows them normally.
I just cleared my cache coz it wasn't even letting me sign in to Blogger initially.
Oh, and after many adjustments, when it did upload on Etsy, the image is coming up blank with a red x in the corner, but it's not failing the upload. And Blogger is uploading other images just fine, but these two chairs are still coming up with weird colors.
I've never had so much trouble with any other pictures, and I'm not doing anything different.
Maybe I should restart the laptop and see if that helps...
Saturday, October 25, 2008
Whoa! Where did Friday go?
I logged on to write another post thinking I'm doing good lately - a post a day. Got a shock when I realized we have transitioned to October 25. Where the heck did October 24 go???
I'm in so much shock I don't even remember what I was going to write about!
Now I have to go hide my head under a pillow.
BRB.
No, not really :)
I'm in so much shock I don't even remember what I was going to write about!
Now I have to go hide my head under a pillow.
BRB.
No, not really :)
Thursday, October 23, 2008
Laugh - but it's mostly true!
WHY GOD MADE MOMS
Answers given by 2nd grade school children to the following questions:
Why did God make mothers?
1. She's the only one who knows where the scotch tape is.
2. Mostly to clean the house.
3. To help us out of there when we were getting born.
How did God make mothers?
1. He used dirt, just like for the rest of us.
2. Magic plus super powers and a lot of stirring.
3. God made my Mom just the same like he made me. He just used bigger parts.
What ingredients are mothers made of ?
1. God makes mothers out of clouds and angel hair and everything nice
in the world and one dab of mean.
2. They had to get their start from men's bones. Then they mostly use
string, I think.
Why did God give you your mother and not some other mom?
1. We're related.
2. she likes me a lot more than other people's moms like me.
What kind of little girl was your mom?
1. My Mom has always been my mom and none of that other stuff.
2. I don't know because I wasn't there, but my guess would be pretty bossy.
3. They say she used to be nice.
What did mom need to know about dad before she married him?
1. His last name.
2. She had to know his background. Like is he a crook? Does he get
drunk on beer?
3. Does he make at least $800 a year? Did he say NO to drugs and YES to chores?
Why did your mom marry your dad?
1. My dad makes the best spaghetti in the world. And my Mom eats a lot.
2. She got too old to do anything else with him.
3. My grandma says that Mom didn't have her thinking cap on.
Who's the boss at your house?
1. Mom doesn't want to be boss, but she has to because dad's such a goof ball.
2. Mom. You can tell by room inspection. She sees the stuff under the bed.
3. I guess Mom is, but only because she has a lot more to do than dad.
What's the difference between moms & dads?
1. Moms work at work and work at home and dads just go to work at work.
2. Moms know how to talk to teachers without scaring them.
3. Dads are taller & stronger, but moms have all the real power
'cause that's who you got to ask if you want to sleep over at your
friend's.
4. Moms have magic, they make you feel better without medicine.
What does your mom do in her spare time?
1. Mothers don't do spare time.
2. To hear her tell it, she pays bills all day long.
What would it take to make your mom perfect?
1. On the inside she's already perfect. Outside, I think some kind of
plastic surgery.
2. Diet. You know, her hair. I'd dye it, maybe blue.
If you could change one thing about your mom, what would it be?
1. She has this weird thing about me keeping my room clean. I'd get
rid of that.
2. I'd make my mom smarter. Then she would know it was my sister who
did it and not me.
3. I would like for her to get rid of those invisible eyes on the
back of her head.
Answers given by 2nd grade school children to the following questions:
Why did God make mothers?
1. She's the only one who knows where the scotch tape is.
2. Mostly to clean the house.
3. To help us out of there when we were getting born.
How did God make mothers?
1. He used dirt, just like for the rest of us.
2. Magic plus super powers and a lot of stirring.
3. God made my Mom just the same like he made me. He just used bigger parts.
What ingredients are mothers made of ?
1. God makes mothers out of clouds and angel hair and everything nice
in the world and one dab of mean.
2. They had to get their start from men's bones. Then they mostly use
string, I think.
Why did God give you your mother and not some other mom?
1. We're related.
2. she likes me a lot more than other people's moms like me.
What kind of little girl was your mom?
1. My Mom has always been my mom and none of that other stuff.
2. I don't know because I wasn't there, but my guess would be pretty bossy.
3. They say she used to be nice.
What did mom need to know about dad before she married him?
1. His last name.
2. She had to know his background. Like is he a crook? Does he get
drunk on beer?
3. Does he make at least $800 a year? Did he say NO to drugs and YES to chores?
Why did your mom marry your dad?
1. My dad makes the best spaghetti in the world. And my Mom eats a lot.
2. She got too old to do anything else with him.
3. My grandma says that Mom didn't have her thinking cap on.
Who's the boss at your house?
1. Mom doesn't want to be boss, but she has to because dad's such a goof ball.
2. Mom. You can tell by room inspection. She sees the stuff under the bed.
3. I guess Mom is, but only because she has a lot more to do than dad.
What's the difference between moms & dads?
1. Moms work at work and work at home and dads just go to work at work.
2. Moms know how to talk to teachers without scaring them.
3. Dads are taller & stronger, but moms have all the real power
'cause that's who you got to ask if you want to sleep over at your
friend's.
4. Moms have magic, they make you feel better without medicine.
What does your mom do in her spare time?
1. Mothers don't do spare time.
2. To hear her tell it, she pays bills all day long.
What would it take to make your mom perfect?
1. On the inside she's already perfect. Outside, I think some kind of
plastic surgery.
2. Diet. You know, her hair. I'd dye it, maybe blue.
If you could change one thing about your mom, what would it be?
1. She has this weird thing about me keeping my room clean. I'd get
rid of that.
2. I'd make my mom smarter. Then she would know it was my sister who
did it and not me.
3. I would like for her to get rid of those invisible eyes on the
back of her head.
It's in you!
I'm so proud of DaddyBoy. Yesterday after work he went and did what we've been talking about for so long - donate blood. They took a pint, which can save up to three lives. I really hope it does. How wonderful that something that's good for yourself can also be a huge benefit to others.
Some facts from the Canadian Blood Services website:
Who Needs Blood?
Approximately every minute of every day, someone in Canada needs blood. In fact, according to a recent poll, 52 per cent of Canadians say they, or a family member, have needed blood or blood products for surgery or for medical treatment.
The good news is that one blood donation - in just one hour - can save up to three lives.
(One unit of blood is the equivalent to one donation)
And, as their ad says, It's in you to give!
DaddyBoy's my shining star!
Some facts from the Canadian Blood Services website:
Who Needs Blood?
Approximately every minute of every day, someone in Canada needs blood. In fact, according to a recent poll, 52 per cent of Canadians say they, or a family member, have needed blood or blood products for surgery or for medical treatment.
The good news is that one blood donation - in just one hour - can save up to three lives.
(One unit of blood is the equivalent to one donation)
And, as their ad says, It's in you to give!
DaddyBoy's my shining star!
Wednesday, October 22, 2008
Hungry Fish
Sooo cute - the litlle BabyBubble went crazy when I showed her!
Click on the 'water' and watch them gobble up their 'food'!
Monday, October 20, 2008
Fall-ing Chair featured on ShopHandmade!
I just checked ShopHandmade and saw Fall-ing Chair right there on the front page!!!
My shop is brand new there with only two items, so this is really cool.
Here's a screenshot:
Willie Nelson sings the Blues
I don't think I've ever heard Willie Nelson play anything. I'ver heard of HIM, just never listened to him, but then I hardly ever listen to music, let alone country.
Couple of nights ago I had the very rare event of watching 15 minutes of TV happen to me, and the listings channel said something about Wynton Marsalis. I like Jazz a lot, even though I know nothing about it really, but if I happen to catch some strains of music and go "Oh, that's lovely," it's usually Jazz or Classical notes wafting through the air. So when I saw Marsalis' name I made a bee-line for that channel. The program was over in 15 minutes, but it was SWEET.
Willie Nelson was singing, and Marsalis accompanied him on his trumpet. It was amazing. Marsalis sang a little himself too, but it more like bitter-sweet banter between the two icons. It was just lovely.
When I first started watching I almost wished Sting had somehow been part of the equation, but by the end of the 15 minutes I realized what I had just seen was perfect.
It really made my day.
Couple of nights ago I had the very rare event of watching 15 minutes of TV happen to me, and the listings channel said something about Wynton Marsalis. I like Jazz a lot, even though I know nothing about it really, but if I happen to catch some strains of music and go "Oh, that's lovely," it's usually Jazz or Classical notes wafting through the air. So when I saw Marsalis' name I made a bee-line for that channel. The program was over in 15 minutes, but it was SWEET.
Willie Nelson was singing, and Marsalis accompanied him on his trumpet. It was amazing. Marsalis sang a little himself too, but it more like bitter-sweet banter between the two icons. It was just lovely.
When I first started watching I almost wished Sting had somehow been part of the equation, but by the end of the 15 minutes I realized what I had just seen was perfect.
It really made my day.
Friday, October 17, 2008
My new store on ShopHandmade
No chance to be on the Etsy forums, but I did manage to find the the time to put up a store on ShopHandmade.Com. It's a brand new site and already looks pretty good and I hope it only gets better. I have just two listings up so far, but will add more as soon as I can. Meanwhile, I really like how they are concerned about the environment and are putting money towards it. I opted to donate 25 cents from each sale, which apparently mitigates driving your car for a month. Not sure how so little money can do that, but I'm all for it!
I'm also excited about two new contacts I made for putting some of my work on coasters and pillows and totes. Can't wait to get started on that!
Tonight, or over the weekend, I hope to put some info on my Page on Facebook, and publish it. I went to look at my account there last night and realised the Page is invisible until published. Seeing as how there's nothing in it at the moment, that's a good thing!
I'm also excited about two new contacts I made for putting some of my work on coasters and pillows and totes. Can't wait to get started on that!
Tonight, or over the weekend, I hope to put some info on my Page on Facebook, and publish it. I went to look at my account there last night and realised the Page is invisible until published. Seeing as how there's nothing in it at the moment, that's a good thing!
Treasury again!
I forgot to do mention this on the 11th, but Fall-ing Chair was featured in an Etsy Treasury!
My new work there has almost no views though, which is very weird, and people on the Etsy forums keep talking about how they're not getting any views either, and a few are getting too many and are just as nonplussed! System glitch? I don't know. I've barely had the the time recently to glance through the forums.
My new work there has almost no views though, which is very weird, and people on the Etsy forums keep talking about how they're not getting any views either, and a few are getting too many and are just as nonplussed! System glitch? I don't know. I've barely had the the time recently to glance through the forums.
Wednesday, October 15, 2008
Getting out there
This blog is beginning to look all mish-mashy. I'll really have to clean it up soon. There's more links coming though! Here's what I did recently:
Joined Indiepublic yesterday.
Added a couple more details to my Facebook account (generously set up for me by DaddyBoy coz I'm still so wary of Facebook and I've always avoided joining it and when I did try it looked a lot more complicated than I thought, but now I have a Page AND a Profile!)
Signed up with The Hand Made Product Directory to be included in their listings.
Created an account with Project Wonderful, and got an ad ready there if ever I start bidding.
And I joined LinkdIn.
Did I paint at all? Nope!
I don't know how people post things everywhere, and blog and reply to blogs and in general keep track of what they are doing where on line. I want to put all this in place and then concentrate on making art. But I have a feeling joining groups and websites is not going to be enough. I'll have to be out there actively participating, when really I just want to be perfecting my craft.
I hope I'll learn how to juggle it all, but right now I just want to grab a brush and get all messy with paint!
Joined Indiepublic yesterday.
Added a couple more details to my Facebook account (generously set up for me by DaddyBoy coz I'm still so wary of Facebook and I've always avoided joining it and when I did try it looked a lot more complicated than I thought, but now I have a Page AND a Profile!)
Signed up with The Hand Made Product Directory to be included in their listings.
Created an account with Project Wonderful, and got an ad ready there if ever I start bidding.
And I joined LinkdIn.
Did I paint at all? Nope!
I don't know how people post things everywhere, and blog and reply to blogs and in general keep track of what they are doing where on line. I want to put all this in place and then concentrate on making art. But I have a feeling joining groups and websites is not going to be enough. I'll have to be out there actively participating, when really I just want to be perfecting my craft.
I hope I'll learn how to juggle it all, but right now I just want to grab a brush and get all messy with paint!
Saturday, October 11, 2008
Break from creating
The past couple of days I've not made anything, except food, heehee. Actually one or two things came out really well and I wish I had jotted down what I did so I could share the 'recipe'. They were made in my usual way of cooking - reach out into the fridge, pull out whatever comes out, then figure out what to do with it. I can tell you, all manner of interesting things happen this way, and the food is always, well, unique! But no, really, a couple of really cool dishes were precipitated this way yesterday. Now if only I could remember them!
So I haven't painted or done anything similar. But I did do some net surfing. I want to explore printing my art on things like coasters and mirrors and bags etc. Not sure if this a good idea to begin with, but I guess I'll only know if I find out more about the process. Who to go to, what they charge, shopping costs, end price.
Meanwhile, the digital doodles I posted here I'm really happy with. Of course, there's huge room for improvement, like in my other art, but as a learning process it's pleasing me. I like the idea of not using any of the cool effects and filters in Photoshop, and just keeping it only down to the brush, ersaer, and fill tool. They'd look pretty good in a contemporary, minimalist home with white decor and solid rugs in saturated colors. The kind of house that has Barcelona chairs in white leather. Yum! Or an office?
Anyway, here's to learning and exploring and having fun!
So I haven't painted or done anything similar. But I did do some net surfing. I want to explore printing my art on things like coasters and mirrors and bags etc. Not sure if this a good idea to begin with, but I guess I'll only know if I find out more about the process. Who to go to, what they charge, shopping costs, end price.
Meanwhile, the digital doodles I posted here I'm really happy with. Of course, there's huge room for improvement, like in my other art, but as a learning process it's pleasing me. I like the idea of not using any of the cool effects and filters in Photoshop, and just keeping it only down to the brush, ersaer, and fill tool. They'd look pretty good in a contemporary, minimalist home with white decor and solid rugs in saturated colors. The kind of house that has Barcelona chairs in white leather. Yum! Or an office?
Anyway, here's to learning and exploring and having fun!
Thursday, October 9, 2008
Wednesday, October 8, 2008
Digital Doodles - Roses
I wanted to do something with the most basic tools, so all I used was the fill bucket, the brush and the eraser.
I think I can make a whole series of this. Yum!
I think I can make a whole series of this. Yum!
Monday, October 6, 2008
More chairs!
I had the baby on my shoulder for some of the time I was painting these! Talk about extreme conditions...but can you tell I still had fun?
The ChunkyMonkey seemed to like them too, so it was all worth it for me.
And here are some detailed images; more on Etsy:
The ChunkyMonkey seemed to like them too, so it was all worth it for me.
And here are some detailed images; more on Etsy:
Saturday, October 4, 2008
Friday, October 3, 2008
Yellow Chair with Lamp and Window
It started with me wanting to paint an orchid. I've done a few orchid watercolors in the past, and they've always been very popular. But it's been a long time since I did them, so I thought it would be a nice change to exercise my 'flower' muscle.
So I drew an orchid on one of my chunky canvases, even started to paint it in, and then who knows what happened. Next thing I knew, I was painting yet another chair. "What's with all the chairs?", a friend asked me a few days ago. Heck, I don't know.
I LIKE DOING THEM!!!
I like painting little imaginary spaces, with happy-colored walls and sweet-looking chairs. It's like creating tiny worlds where only good things can happen.
In any case, they are fun to do. Reason enough, right?
Psst - it's on my Etsy store, if you want to buy it!
So I drew an orchid on one of my chunky canvases, even started to paint it in, and then who knows what happened. Next thing I knew, I was painting yet another chair. "What's with all the chairs?", a friend asked me a few days ago. Heck, I don't know.
I LIKE DOING THEM!!!
I like painting little imaginary spaces, with happy-colored walls and sweet-looking chairs. It's like creating tiny worlds where only good things can happen.
In any case, they are fun to do. Reason enough, right?
Psst - it's on my Etsy store, if you want to buy it!
Wednesday, October 1, 2008
Sharing Etsy Minis
The very talented Kim, from Glassmenagerie1, very kindly offered other Etsyians space on her blog for their Etsy Minis. An Etsy Mini is the mini showcase you see on the right hand side of my blog. It takes you to my Etsy store and is a cool way to give someone a glimpse into a shop.
Anyway, Kim, who works as a legal assistant by day, and somehow still manages to create lovely bead jewelry, now has a bunch of Etsy artists on her blog. This is so kind of her, really.
She says, "My passion is beadweaving jewelry and the pieces created are made for many years of enjoyment. All pieces are handcrafted by using materials such as Japanese seed beeds, Swarovski crystals, and sterling silver."
I hope some day soon I can start featuring Etsy artists myself, since there are SO many talented people out there who make fascinating things and would be great to write about.
Until then, please check out Kim's lovely creations! I have her Mini on this blog too, but her shop has a lot more juicy jewels!
Thank you, Kim!
Anyway, Kim, who works as a legal assistant by day, and somehow still manages to create lovely bead jewelry, now has a bunch of Etsy artists on her blog. This is so kind of her, really.
She says, "My passion is beadweaving jewelry and the pieces created are made for many years of enjoyment. All pieces are handcrafted by using materials such as Japanese seed beeds, Swarovski crystals, and sterling silver."
I hope some day soon I can start featuring Etsy artists myself, since there are SO many talented people out there who make fascinating things and would be great to write about.
Until then, please check out Kim's lovely creations! I have her Mini on this blog too, but her shop has a lot more juicy jewels!
Thank you, Kim!
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