Illustration Friday - Flawed

When the results of the home hair color kit just don't come out like you'd expected...

Ring, Ring, Ring

I'm not sure what's what, but lately I've been getting a lot of telemarketers calling, which is a first for me. Said telemarketers are so prevalent they are now infiltrating my sketchbook apparently.



I am not going to look out the windows at the blizzard in progress. But I am going to look at these flowers. A much better alternative.

Patti at Circle Everything gave me a blog award last week; thank you much! Now it's my turn to pass along the award to ten other bloggers and I'm throughly stumped as there's so many wonderful sites out there. So, because I can't pick just one, I'd recommend taking a gander at any of the blogs on the sidebar there > I can say without quibble they're all delightful reads.

Leaping

Saturday + Sunday you go so crazy fast. Today? Took a break to watch "Jeeves & Wooster" and work on a sweater. I forgot how hilarious that show was (Hugh Laurie being of the 1001+ facial expressions).* I did some sketching too. And ate a muffin. Not a bad end of the weekend all in all.



I'm not much for tchotchke. The less small objects I have to attack with endust, the happier I am. But I make exceptions for pink dinosaurs, of course.

*I blame that series (and "Poirot") for furthering my teenage anglophile tendencies.

Illustration Friday - Pale

Yee Gads

Sketchbook doodling at the coffeeshop, powered by high octane espresso.

Blogging about weather patterns is boring. An ultra-cranky back is annoying. I'm ready to move south of the equator. You probably don't care to read about any of that. So instead, here's a list of happy things:

1) Quinoa. Thought it would taste like cardboard. Pleasant surprise otherwise.

2) "Rebecca" - I read this in high school and pulled it out the other night. I usually don't reread books, which I'm beginning to think is a foolhardy plan of action. My logic has always been that there's stacks more I want to get through, so why spend time with already completed stories. Buuuuuut, this one is so good. Ghostly dead wives. English manors. Intrigue. It really doesn't get any better than this.

3) Discovering that a 10+ year old tube of gold gouache is still useable, thus saving me $. More for coffee.

4) D. Blumchen & Company: Sorry, I'm too lazy to add the umlaut. Fantastic vintage trims and paper goods.

5) The Coctails: Makes me grin. And tap my foot. Sometimes at the same time.

6) One of these days I will get around to writing a list of my favorite Etsy shops/sellers I've bought from/all that good stuff. In the meantime though, I really think you should look at Paper Bones shop. The bookcase print is really tempting me. For reals.

7) Adding peppermint flavoring to generic, no-name cocoa packets is tasty. Just get the right beverage to peppermint ratio or else it is some kind of overwhelming.

8) Bowling is swell, particularly Candlepin bowling.

And I think that's that.

Three

Whoa, I just realized that this week marks three years of me blogging about excessive coffee consumption, illustrative pursuits and various crafty projects. Time flies when you're having fun!

But time does not fly in January, au contraire. I know this is New England, but oh for the love it's really, really, really cold at the moment. So here's where this comes in handy:



I started this quilt back in the fall and finally finished up, just in the nick of time I'd say. It's not super big, more to use on the couch, but was a good way to use up some of my vintage sheet collection. Lots of oranges, lots of lime green; I think Laurie Partridge would approve. And it's really toasty.

*****

Pleeeease, if you haven't already, go visit The Handmade Toy Alliance and check out its efforts to protect independent crafters/toy-makers from the impact of the CPSIA!

Wintry Mix

A pre-holiday piece that I am posting in lieu of anything more current. Between lots of windshield scraping and an impending cold, I think I just want to curl up on the couch with a book. Which is just what I might do come to think of it...



Speaking of books, this one is swell. I found it at the library the other week; it's pretty old school. And speaking of design stuff, Helvetica is running on PBS. You can take a "What font are you?" quiz over there if you're so inclined; apparently I'm Courier. Hmm...

Starts and Stops

Lately: a new sketchbook, fresh guacamole, hot jazz, mountains of snow, thriller movies, and reading about dogs that fly.

Sweater reinvention continues. I realized I just don't like pullovers. Cardigans are another story. Basically I slice them up the front, then go to town. I had vintage trim from a yard sale a summer or two ago that I added as well, so glad to have used that up. Take that landfill.

Illustration Friday - Resolve

With Illustration Friday prompts I usually think, "Hey Abbie, half hour tops" because if I don't, meals will burn and clothes won't put themselves in the dryer. But, alas, this was one of those that went way past the alloted time. However, no vegetables were torched in the process.

Pen drawing, digital color, old calendar texture.

Marion County

Looking at old photos, digging through genealogy sites, attempting to piece together assorted individuals with minimal luck.

I think I had nomads for great-grandparents.

*****

*If you're motoring through New Hampshire, Adelle's makes some darn good coffee. I had one of the best espresso drinks I've had in a month of Sundays there (and this coming from a very picky former barista).

Back to the Drawing Board

My drawing table currently - 'till recently, I'd been using the kitchen table. Some shifting around though allowed me to setup near a window that gets the last bits of light every day (and looks out on the bird feeder). This means the room turns buttery yellow mid-day and I can see to bang on the window when the cat comes prowling around.

A New Start

Nice to make your acquaintance 2009.

Today was appropriately lazy and quiet. Staying inside seemed the preferable option (given the Arctic temps). Add hot chocolate, some sewing and a "Twilight Zone" marathon to the mix, and you have the makings of a swell day.



So what's ahead in the next 364? I'm not sure I've quite wrapped my head around that presently. I'm planning to keep illustrating. Freelance designing. Maybe re-learn to parallel park. Sky's the limit I'd say. And that's why I like New Year's; that irrevocable sense of countless possibilities and innumerable adventures (armed with coffee, of course).

Happy January 1st!