Pennies and Pearls

{wishlisting}

2010-11-26T19:01:00.000-08:00

Doing some more dreaming about cozy booties and rough and tumble boots. And of course the essentials to go with: leggings and knee socks.

Quoddy Ring Boot from Mr. Mudd And Mr. Gold

Shearling MacAlister Boots from J. Crew (Crew Cuts)

Cold Comfort High-Tops from Anthropologie

Riding Boots from Need Supply Co.

Gallop Boot from Need Supply Co.

Daft Bird Leggings from Need Supply Co.

The O Chevron socks from Sock Dreams

{How to Create}

2010-11-13T12:32:00.000-08:00

Do something.
Do something to it.
Do something else to it.
~Jasper Johns

{rules & regulations}

2010-11-11T20:00:00.001-08:00

I've already posted Keri Smith's Rebel's Manifesto, but it bears repeating:

And Keri Smith posted this gem on her blog:

And also directed me to these rules from Milton Glaser's website:

Ten Things I Have Learned
Part of AIGA Talk in London
November 22, 2001

1
YOU CAN ONLY WORK FOR PEOPLE THAT YOU LIKE.
This is a curious rule and it took me a long time to learn because in fact at the beginning of my practice I felt the opposite. Professionalism required that you didn’t particularly like the people that you worked for or at least maintained an arms length relationship to them, which meant that I never had lunch with a client or saw them socially. Then some years ago I realised that the opposite was true. I discovered that all the work I had done that was meaningful and significant came out of an affectionate relationship with a client. And I am not talking about professionalism; I am talking about affection. I am talking about a client and you sharing some common ground. That in fact your view of life is someway congruent with the client, otherwise it is a bitter and hopeless struggle.

2
IF YOU HAVE A CHOICE NEVER HAVE A JOB.
One night I was sitting in my car outside Columbia University where my wife Shirley was studying Anthropology. While I was waiting I was listening to the radio and heard an interviewer ask ‘Now that you have reached 75 have you any advice for our audience about how to prepare for your old age?’ An irritated voice said ‘Why is everyone asking me about old age these days?’ I recognised the voice as John Cage. I am sure that many of you know who he was – the composer and philosopher who influenced people like Jasper Johns and Merce Cunningham as well as the music world in general. I knew him slightly and admired his contribution to our times. ‘You know, I do know how to prepare for old age’ he said. ‘Never have a job, because if you have a job someday someone will take it away from you and then you will be unprepared for your old age. For me, it has always been the same every since the age of 12. I wake up in the morning and I try to figure out how am I going to put bread on the table today? It is the same at 75, I wake up every morning and I think how am I going to put bread on the table today? I am exceedingly well prepared for my old age’ he said.

3
SOME PEOPLE ARE TOXIC AVOID THEM.
This is a subtext of number one. There was in the sixties a man named Fritz Perls who was a gestalt therapist. Gestalt therapy derives from art history, it proposes you must understand the ‘whole’ before you can understand the details. What you have to look at is the entire culture, the entire family and community and so on. Perls proposed that in all relationships people could be either toxic or nourishing towards one another. It is not necessarily true that the same person will be toxic or nourishing in every relationship, but the combination of any two people in a relationship produces toxic or nourishing consequences. And the important thing that I can tell you is that there is a test to determine whether someone is toxic or nourishing in your relationship with them. Here is the test: You have spent some time with this person, either you have a drink or go for dinner or you go to a ball game. It doesn’t matter very much but at the end of that time you observe whether you are more energised or less energised. Whether you are tired or whether you are exhilarated. If you are more tired then you have been poisoned. If you have more energy you have been nourished. The test is almost infallible and I suggest that you use it for the rest of your life.

4
PROFESSIONALISM IS NOT ENOUGH or THE GOOD IS THE ENEMY OF THE GREAT.
Early in my career I wanted to be professional, that was my complete aspiration in my early life because professionals seemed to know everything - not to mention they got paid for it. Later I discovered after working for a while that professionalism itself was a limitation. After all, what professionalism means in most cases is diminishing risks. So if you want to get your car fixed you go to a mechanic who knows how to deal with transmission problems in the same way each time. I suppose if you needed brain surgery you wouldn’t want the doctor to fool around and invent a new way of connecting your nerve endings. Please do it in the way that has worked in the past.
Unfortunately in our field, in the so-called creative – I hate that word because it is misused so often. I also hate the fact that it is used as a noun. Can you imagine calling someone a creative? Anyhow, when you are doing something in a recurring way to diminish risk or doing it in the same way as you have done it before, it is clear why professionalism is not enough. After all, what is required in our field, more than anything else, is the continuous transgression. Professionalism does not allow for that because transgression has to encompass the possibility of failure and if you are professional your instinct is not to fail, it is to repeat success. So professionalism as a lifetime aspiration is a limited goal.

5
LESS IS NOT NECESSARILY MORE.
Being a child of modernism I have heard this mantra all my life. Less is more. One morning upon awakening I realised that it was total nonsense, it is an absurd proposition and also fairly meaningless. But it sounds great because it contains within it a paradox that is resistant to understanding. But it simply does not obtain when you think about the visual of the history of the world. If you look at a Persian rug, you cannot say that less is more because you realise that every part of that rug, every change of colour, every shift in form is absolutely essential for its aesthetic success. You cannot prove to me that a solid blue rug is in any way superior. That also goes for the work of Gaudi, Persian miniatures, art nouveau and everything else. However, I have an alternative to the proposition that I believe is more appropriate. ‘Just enough is more.’

6
STYLE IS NOT TO BE TRUSTED.
I think this idea first occurred to me when I was looking at a marvellous etching of a bull by Picasso. It was an illustration for a story by Balzac called The Hidden Masterpiece. I am sure that you all know it. It is a bull that is expressed in 12 different styles going from very naturalistic version of a bull to an absolutely reductive single line abstraction and everything else along the way. What is clear just from looking at this single print is that style is irrelevant. In every one of these cases, from extreme abstraction to acute naturalism they are extraordinary regardless of the style. It’s absurd to be loyal to a style. It does not deserve your loyalty. I must say that for old design professionals it is a problem because the field is driven by economic consideration more than anything else. Style change is usually linked to economic factors, as all of you know who have read Marx. Also fatigue occurs when people see too much of the same thing too often. So every ten years or so there is a stylistic shift and things are made to look different. Typefaces go in and out of style and the visual system shifts a little bit. If you are around for a long time as a designer, you have an essential problem of what to do. I mean, after all, you have developed a vocabulary, a form that is your own. It is one of the ways that you distinguish yourself from your peers, and establish your identity in the field. How you maintain your own belief system and preferences becomes a real balancing act. The question of whether you pursue change or whether you maintain your own distinct form becomes difficult. We have all seen the work of illustrious practitioners that suddenly look old-fashioned or, more precisely, belonging to another moment in time. And there are sad stories such as the one about Cassandre, arguably the greatest graphic designer of the twentieth century, who couldn’t make a living at the end of his life and committed suicide.
But the point is that anybody who is in this for the long haul has to decide how to respond to change in the zeitgeist. What is it that people now expect that they formerly didn’t want? And how to respond to that desire in a way that doesn’t change your sense of integrity and purpose.

7
HOW YOU LIVE CHANGES YOUR BRAIN.
The brain is the most responsive organ of the body. Actually it is the organ that is most susceptible to change and regeneration of all the organs in the body. I have a friend named Gerald Edelman who was a great scholar of brain studies and he says that the analogy of the brain to a computer is pathetic. The brain is actually more like an overgrown garden that is constantly growing and throwing off seeds, regenerating and so on. And he believes that the brain is susceptible, in a way that we are not fully conscious of, to almost every experience of our life and every encounter we have. I was fascinated by a story in a newspaper a few years ago about the search for perfect pitch. A group of scientists decided that they were going to find out why certain people have perfect pitch. You know certain people hear a note precisely and are able to replicate it at exactly the right pitch. Some people have relevant pitch; perfect pitch is rare even among musicians. The scientists discovered – I don’t know how - that among people with perfect pitch the brain was different. Certain lobes of the brain had undergone some change or deformation that was always present with those who had perfect pitch. This was interesting enough in itself. But then they discovered something even more fascinating. If you took a bunch of kids and taught them to play the violin at the age of 4 or 5 after a couple of years some of them developed perfect pitch, and in all of those cases their brain structure had changed. Well what could that mean for the rest of us? We tend to believe that the mind affects the body and the body affects the mind, although we do not generally believe that everything we do affects the brain. I am convinced that if someone was to yell at me from across the street my brain could be affected and my life might changed. That is why your mother always said, ‘Don’t hang out with those bad kids.’ Mama was right. Thought changes our life and our behaviour. I also believe that drawing works in the same way. I am a great advocate of drawing, not in order to become an illustrator, but because I believe drawing changes the brain in the same way as the search to create the right note changes the brain of a violinist. Drawing also makes you attentive. It makes you pay attention to what you are looking at, which is not so easy.

8
DOUBT IS BETTER THAN CERTAINTY.
Everyone always talks about confidence in believing what you do. I remember once going to a class in yoga where the teacher said that, spirituality speaking, if you believed that you had achieved enlightenment you have merely arrived at your limitation. I think that is also true in a practical sense. Deeply held beliefs of any kind prevent you from being open to experience, which is why I find all firmly held ideological positions questionable. It makes me nervous when someone believes too deeply or too much. I think that being sceptical and questioning all deeply held beliefs is essential. Of course we must know the difference between scepticism and cynicism because cynicism is as much a restriction of one’s openness to the world as passionate belief is. They are sort of twins. And then in a very real way, solving any problem is more important than being right. There is a significant sense of self-righteousness in both the art and design world. Perhaps it begins at school. Art school often begins with the Ayn Rand model of the single personality resisting the ideas of the surrounding culture. The theory of the avant garde is that as an individual you can transform the world, which is true up to a point. One of the signs of a damaged ego is absolute certainty.
Schools encourage the idea of not compromising and defending your work at all costs. Well, the issue at work is usually all about the nature of compromise. You just have to know what to compromise. Blind pursuit of your own ends which excludes the possibility that others may be right does not allow for the fact that in design we are always dealing with a triad – the client, the audience and you.
Ideally, making everyone win through acts of accommodation is desirable. But self-righteousness is often the enemy. Self-righteousness and narcissism generally come out of some sort of childhood trauma, which we do not have to go into. It is a consistently difficult thing in human affairs. Some years ago I read a most remarkable thing about love, that also applies to the nature of co-existing with others. It was a quotation from Iris Murdoch in her obituary. It read ‘ Love is the extremely difficult realisation that something other than oneself is real.’ Isn’t that fantastic! The best insight on the subject of love that one can imagine.

9
ON AGING.
Last year someone gave me a charming book by Roger Rosenblatt called ‘Ageing Gracefully’ I got it on my birthday. I did not appreciate the title at the time but it contains a series of rules for ageing gracefully. The first rule is the best. Rule number one is that ‘it doesn’t matter.’ ‘It doesn’t matter that what you think. Follow this rule and it will add decades to your life. It does not matter if you are late or early, if you are here or there, if you said it or didn’t say it, if you are clever or if you were stupid. If you were having a bad hair day or a no hair day or if your boss looks at you cockeyed or your boyfriend or girlfriend looks at you cockeyed, if you are cockeyed. If you don’t get that promotion or prize or house or if you do – it doesn’t matter.’ Wisdom at last. Then I heard a marvellous joke that seemed related to rule number 10. A butcher was opening his market one morning and as he did a rabbit popped his head through the door. The butcher was surprised when the rabbit inquired ‘Got any cabbage?’ The butcher said ‘This is a meat market – we sell meat, not vegetables.’ The rabbit hopped off. The next day the butcher is opening the shop and sure enough the rabbit pops his head round and says ‘You got any cabbage?’ The butcher now irritated says ‘Listen you little rodent I told you yesterday we sell meat, we do not sell vegetables and the next time you come here I am going to grab you by the throat and nail those floppy ears to the floor.’ The rabbit disappeared hastily and nothing happened for a week. Then one morning the rabbit popped his head around the corner and said ‘Got any nails?’ The butcher said ‘No.’ The rabbit said ‘Ok. Got any cabbage?’

10
TELL THE TRUTH.
The rabbit joke is relevant because it occurred to me that looking for a cabbage in a butcher’s shop might be like looking for ethics in the design field. It may not be the most obvious place to find either. It’s interesting to observe that in the new AIGA’s code of ethics there is a significant amount of useful information about appropriate behaviour towards clients and other designers, but not a word about a designer’s relationship to the public. We expect a butcher to sell us eatable meat and that he doesn’t misrepresent his wares. I remember reading that during the Stalin years in Russia that everything labelled veal was actually chicken. I can’t imagine what everything labelled chicken was. We can accept certain kinds of misrepresentation, such as fudging about the amount of fat in his hamburger but once a butcher knowingly sells us spoiled meat we go elsewhere. As a designer, do we have less responsibility to our public than a butcher? Everyone interested in licensing our field might note that the reason licensing has been invented is to protect the public not designers or clients. ‘Do no harm’ is an admonition to doctors concerning their relationship to their patients, not to their fellow practitioners or the drug companies. If we were licensed, telling the truth might become more central to what we do.

{tea party}

2010-11-11T18:16:00.000-08:00

For those of you that don't know, my obsessions have moved from notebooks to vintage dishes. I have a massive collection that I have been selling at flea markets and craft fairs and some that live in my cupboard because I just can't bear to part with them (think Fire King iridescent milk glass stackable mugs). I even hosted a tea party for my partner-in-crime's birthday with my beauties:

So imagine my delight--nay, my mirth! My envy! My butterflies-in-the-tummy!--when I read Bargain Bex's post today featuring these resplendent gems:

If it were a perfect world, I'd have the whole set, and I'd wear them around my wrist on a daily basis. Thank you Bex for the eye candy! And everyone, make sure to bookmark her blog. It's one of my favorites.

{droooool}

2010-09-30T14:18:00.000-07:00

Staub La Cocotte Mini

Anthropologie, you're killing me.

{two things}

2010-08-08T21:49:00.001-07:00

First, this is about as romantic as tangible objects get. Luke Jerram's Portrait Projecting Ring:

Second, I must have one of these, but at over $200 a pop, I think I'll have to use my own cunning to make one. We'll see.

{timely}

2010-06-21T10:08:00.000-07:00

Stella Faux Tortoise Glitz Watch

Twist Mother Of Pearl Watch

Twist MOP Dial Watch

Just the other day, I was thinking that I need a watch--one that I can wear everyday, whether I'm wearing a tshirt and jeans or a dress. I started drooling when I found these three beauties on the Fossil website. And lucky me! One of my favorite blogs, Creature Comforts, is giving one away! Perhaps the shopping gods are smiling upon me?

{religion}

2010-05-21T10:26:00.000-07:00

After drinking my Honest Tea Organic Peach White Tea (my favorite!) I noticed some writing on the inside of the label:

When I do good, I feel good. When I do bad, I feel bad. That is my religion.
-Abraham Lincoln

Simple and profound.

{Hymn}

2010-05-20T12:04:00.000-07:00

I just found this graceful cover of the Fleet Foxes song "Tiger Mountain Peasant Song" by First Aid Kit via It's Simple Love.

I hate Matthew Barney everyday!

2010-05-19T18:28:00.001-07:00

The Joy of Loathing.
Originally uploaded by David Fullarton

{ rebellion }

2010-05-05T20:55:00.000-07:00

I have fallen hard for Keri Smith. I own How To Be An Explorer of the World and today purchased Wreck This Journal. The way she sees the world is how I want to see the world. Take, for instance, this manifesto, which I want to read every morning:

{ inspiré }

2010-03-02T01:25:00.000-08:00

This film is so inspiring! Coco is such a character. So strong willed and rebellious, but emotional and vulnerable too.

And remember a couple of weeks ago when I said I wanted to live in 1967? Well, I must be awfully indecisive because really now all I'm wanting is tweed and white button down shirts with peter pan collars and ties and nautical tees and straw hats. And, um, how RAD is Audrey's hair at the premier?

{ Thanks, Boss }

2010-02-28T00:59:00.000-08:00

This is.... I just... I haven't been so in love with a song in a long time. And it's thanks to my brilliant brother.

{envy}

2010-02-22T19:58:00.001-08:00

I want this entire outfit. Head to toe. From Love at First Shop.

{high seas}

2010-02-18T16:00:00.000-08:00

I promise this isn't a blog only devoted to Lisa Congdon, but seriously, people. How can you not love this Everything Is Ok ship?

{ gray wool }

2010-02-15T22:54:00.000-08:00

Check out this amazing coat at Lady Danburry Tailoring:

This jacket is made with vintage wool from Omaha, Nebraska. The vintage buttons came from Ms. Herrin of Orem, Utah, and it is fully lined from the living room curtains of Mrs. Harmon of Stansbury Park, Utah.

AND it gets better! You can win it! Click here to learn how to enter.

And because I'm an art nerd, being wrapped in the beautiful gray wool reminds me of Joseph Beuys:

{1967}

2010-02-15T18:10:00.000-08:00

I watched The Graduate last night and was struck by the beauty of it. It makes me yearn to live in 1967--the hair, the eyeliner, the leopard print, the fitted suits and skinny ties, the nylon thigh-highs, that wedding dress! Inspiring.

{ here comes the sun }

2010-01-02T00:17:00.000-08:00

So I'm about to make y'all jealous. Just a warning. In 17 days, I will be boarding a plane that will, 10 hours and two layovers later, land in Turks & Caicos. As in a beautiful little island in the Caribbean. I'm traveling to this Lost-like land to attend a wedding where I will be the photographer for one of my favorite couples:

I will be leaving smoggy and freezing Salt Lake City for this:

I'll be sitting here:

Drinking something like this:

And if I had my way, I'd be wearing one of these charming handmade swimming suits:

Absinthe One-Piece from Drama Queen

Red Retro Halter Swimsuit from The Red Dolly

Thanks to some awesome Christmas gifters, I can take these along with me:

The best flip flops of all time: Reef Sandy Thong

Kimchi Blue Pinstripe Dress

And I'll be accompanied by my ever-loyal sidekick:
Canon Elan 7E

And lots of this:
(Yes, I shoot the old-fashioned way)

So, go ahead and be envious. I don't blame you. I'd be jealous of me too.

{ look here }

2010-01-01T01:31:00.000-08:00

So I pretty much want to be Hedvig B. from Stockholm. I found this lovely lady on Lookbook. Check it out. It's a website where real people post photos of themselves in their most inspired outfits. Besides being a great source of fashion inspiration, Lookbookers post some beautiful photos:

{nishe}

{carlos g.}

{Elle-May L.}

{Hanan T.}

{ resolution }

2010-01-01T00:12:00.000-08:00

I'd love to do some sort of clever post that summarizes my 2009, but I'm kind of holding a grudge against it. Maybe one day, we'll kiss and make up and remember the good times. Until then, let's think of the future. And what better way to make a better tomorrow than to reorganize your studio (or in my case, the crafty half of the living room)?

I adore everything Amanda Hawkins does: her website, her blog, and especially her planner pages. So it's no surprise that her work station is pretty much the realization of my crafting dreams. No doubt her 2010 will get off to a good start with this newly organized space:

The photos are even beautiful! Gah!

{ cheer }

2009-12-12T22:05:00.001-08:00

Snow and Stars
Originally uploaded by windy smile

{ represent! }

2009-12-08T11:11:00.001-08:00

Some turquoise love from Pantone! How can 2010 be anything but fabulous with my favorite color leading the way?

{ star-crossed }

2009-12-08T10:27:00.000-08:00

I love this post over at Design Sponge. I love their whole "Living In" series, and I have a fondness in my heart for Romeo & Juliet. The old Zeffirelli version was my favorite when I was a kid, and when the Baz Luhrmann version came out, I was obsessed in a way only teenage girls can get obsessed.

{ wishing well }

2009-12-03T16:59:00.001-08:00

Here are a few things I've been drooling over for the past couple of months:
My StumbleUpon Wishlist

And some gift ideas for the man in your life:
*Warning: if you are married to me, please ignore this link*
For Him

Also check out my Etsy Favorites list to my right ---->

{ Urban Bird }

2009-12-03T16:29:00.000-08:00

Lisa Congdon at Urban Outfitters! Blowing Triangles and Bison.

You can also find the lovely Lisa at Poketo. I'm loving this wallet:

{ button, button }

2009-12-01T20:58:00.001-08:00

How gorgeous are these button necklaces from Land and Laboratory?

{ A letter of note }

2009-11-04T02:13:00.001-08:00

From Letters of Note, via good ole PEVZ.

{ Chai Latte }

2009-10-21T11:23:00.000-07:00

Love this Chai Latte dress from Mod Cloth. Unfortunately, it's out of stock. I guess I'm not the only one who loves it.

{ if you love something, give it away }

2009-09-11T23:35:00.001-07:00

Check out this kickin' giveaway over at Zoetropa's blog. And check out the adorable Zoetropa Etsy store.

{ original }

2009-09-05T15:37:00.001-07:00

Originally uploaded by 9 0 0 0

{ boot lust }

2009-09-02T14:29:00.000-07:00

I'm loving these riding boots from Alloy, and at $39.90 a pop, they're pretty darn affordable.
I'm also loving these southwesty Natasha Boots from Delia's for $89.50.

And while we're at it, let's throw these in:
Dr. Martens Floral 1460 from Urban Outfitters, $128.00.

Tawny Acres Boots from Anthropologie, at a whopping $248.00.

{ more stampeding horses }

2009-08-20T09:21:00.001-07:00

I'm loving loving these mixed media pieces by David Fullerton.
David Fullerton's Flickr (which includes titles and awesome captions)
David Fullerton's website

(again, found via my love for you)

{ be true }

2009-08-20T08:38:00.001-07:00

Loving these paintings by Lisa Condgdon found via my love for you is a stampede of horses.

{ i hardly know her }

2009-08-20T08:15:00.000-07:00

I love my new streamlined version of my flickr page from ihardlyknowher.com found via My Sloppy Heart (a really great blog!) --->

I Hardly Know Her
is a minimalist Flickr viewer.

If your Flickr URL is flickr.com/photos/yourname
…find yourself at ihardlyknowher.com/yourname
…and your sets at ihardlyknowher.com/yourname/sets

{ yes please }

2009-08-18T15:29:00.000-07:00

I love this idea from Storage & Glee.

{ on creativity and education }

2009-08-18T13:08:00.000-07:00

This video is brilliant and totally worth 20 minutes of your time.

{ someone should write me a letter. seriously }

2009-08-18T12:59:00.000-07:00

I love this post at Design Sponge. People need to write more letters. Plus I love the idea of a community dialogue using a system like the postal service.

{ summer social }

2009-08-01T08:34:00.001-07:00

This is a great place to buy some really awesome stuff. It's the kind of thing that makes paychecks magically disappear...

{ brat pack mash-up }

2009-07-06T15:21:00.000-07:00

So! Phoenix! So good. I know this video has been posted on a handful of other blogs, but I'm obsessed, and want to share it with everyone, especially those of us who love John Hughes movies from the 80s.

Interesting fact: this video isn't the official video for the song Lisztomania, but the band claims they like it better than the one they made!

{ Dear Mr. Darger }

2009-06-24T21:39:00.000-07:00

I recently saw the film In the Realms of the Unreal, a documentary about Henry Darger.
From IMDB:

Henry Darger worked all his life in menial jobs in Chicago. Living alone and in poverty, he had no friends or close family. Spending all his off hours alone, he whiled away the hours working on a 15,000 page illustrated novel called The Realms of the Unreal. A stunning amalgam of religious imagery, fantasy, and heroic drama, the work was only discovered after Darger was moved to a hospital during the last days of his life. Darger also wrote journals and an autobiography. The documentary uses interviews with Darger's neighbors and narration of passages from his works, along with his illustrations, to explore the mind and work of Henry Darger.

His work is breathtaking (and way ahead of his time).
He collected clippings of photographs and illustrations from newspapers and advertisements and pasted them in old phone books. He made his own canvases out of layered newsprint. He taught himself how to draw and paint. He created collages and photomontages. He's such an intriguing character.

Oh, and this tattoo is awesome:

{ hair tut }

2009-05-24T22:29:00.000-07:00

I want this hair (from Lookbook). I just hate the short to long awkward growing out stage (once I inevitably get sick of short hair).

{ finally }

2009-05-04T19:33:00.000-07:00

So, for my art history class called Technology of Vision (yes it was an awesome class), we had an unusual final project. We were to mine YouTube and create a playlist of at least three videos that adhere to a theme of our choosing, then write a 300-500 word introductory essay. HERE is my playlist. (Thank you PEVZ for making my project 1,000x easier and making my life 1,000,000x better...)

{ announcement }

2009-05-03T15:27:00.000-07:00

So, graduation. I made this announcement for anyone who's interested.

{ on grajuation }

2009-04-21T21:11:00.000-07:00

(Graduation Day Pin from A Resin Revival)

So. I am graduating on May 8th with the rest of the College of Fine Arts at the University of Utah. My degree will be in Art History. Which is wonderful, right? Wrong. I love school. I love learning. I'm good at it. It adds meaning and purpose to my life. I found the thing I'm passionate about and I get to talk about it, study it, read about it, write about, argue about it every Monday through Thursday with other people that love art. So why on EARTH is it a good thing that I'm leaving that behind? I'm trying to prepare myself for what I know will be a huge void when I wake up on May 9th, but I just can't seem to figure out how.

But here's what I've come up with:
~ I will go to graduate school eventually ($$$$$)
~ I will have time to work on BEING creative myself, not just studying other people's creations
~ I have about 2.3 bazillion books I want to read
~ I need to subscribe to podcasts, magazines, and blogs about art

Plus, I'm grateful. I know that 95% of students don't enjoy their education like I have.

And (obviously) I'm not leaving empty-handed. I feel like a convert to modernism, to postmodernism, to the language of images, to the history of visual culture, to looking, to seeing. Maybe that's a bit melodramatic, but it's honest.

Wish me luck as I reluctantly enter the world of working adults.

{ free art is the best idea ever. }

2009-04-21T14:31:00.000-07:00

Feed Your Soul is such a brilliant thing. There is a whole post about it here on Creature Comforts (one of my favorite blogs).

From the Feed Your Soul website:

Feed Your Soul is a free art project. Each month artists are invited to participate and to contribute a print which is totally free and available for download.

This project is coordinated by Jen Wallace of Indie Fixx to help art lovers feed their souls with art in these recessionary times and to help artists promote their work.

If you are an artist and would like to submit your work for consideration, just send an email with your url or 1-2 images of your work.

Remember, art can free your soul!

Peace, love, art and happiness...

{ burgundy district }

2009-04-11T14:33:00.000-07:00

I just discovered Burgundy District on etsy. And I love this journal in a big way.

{ hel looks }

2009-03-04T00:05:00.001-08:00

I love these two girls, from hel looks:
"We've had similar clothes since we met in the first grade. We like colourful and comfortable clothes and Japan. Now we're wearing jackets from MicMac and jeans from H&M. Most of our jewellery is from Blippo store. Next we're going to make kigurumi outfits."

{ math }

2009-03-03T23:21:00.000-08:00

I have an equation for you:

Jimmy Fallon + The Roots + Current Events = So good.

{ sushi }

2009-03-03T22:54:00.000-08:00

{Care of Positive Energy Vibe Zone}

This is so delightful. Seriously worth the ~7 minutes. Especially when you pair it with my Special Sushi Conveyor Cam Soundtrack {disclaimer: nothing new or fresh, but sunny sorts of songs}:

	Architecture in Helsinki - Heart It Races

	Found at skreemr.com

	The Blow - Parentheses

	Found at skreemr.com

	Michael Cera And Ellen Page - Anyone Else But You

	Found at skreemr.com

And on a side note, Heart it Races covered by Dr. Dog {awesome}:

	Dr. Dog - Heart It Races (Architecture in Helsinki)

	Found at skreemr.com

{ polyvore }

2008-12-16T16:43:00.000-08:00

Dorothy Gale by windy smile

Inspired by the little red shoes from my previous post, I went to Polyvore and created this set! A look for a modern Dorothy Gale.

{ over the rainbow }

2008-12-16T13:14:00.000-08:00

Love love love these little red shoes from Toast. A modern ruby slipper, to be sure.

{ scrap book }

2008-12-16T12:51:00.000-08:00

This book, Scrapbooks: An American History, looks pretty amazing. From Amazon:

The scrapbook has long been a popular and vital form of self-expression embraced by a cross-section of American society. "To read another person's scrapbook" observes Jessica Helfand in Scrapbooks: An American History, "is to acquire a body of knowledge about an entirely different time and place." Helfand--a prominent graphic designer, art critic, and author--has combined her considerable talents to create one of the most interesting and category-defying books on American culture this year. Through some 200 albums dating from the Victorian era through the present day--albums that Helfand personally curated and researched--Scrapbooks tells the story of ordinary and extraordinary lives, innovative visual ideas, and social change within the larger context of American history. The perfectly presented color photographs of album pages and schematic renderings draw readers right in. And, Helfand's detailed, yet evocative interpretations will keep them glued to the page. Scrapbooks is a special book that engages readers with a palpable sense of the material qualities of historic scrapbooks, and provides a stimulating presentation of the complex social and cultural worlds out of which they emerged. Like any first-rate scrapbook, Scrapbooks is a treasure-trove worth poring over for hours and hours. --Lauren Nemroff

(I'm an art history student, so learning about a time and place through images is pretty much how I roll. Also, anyone that knows about my Hannah Hoch debacle knows my head is in photomontage mode. )

{ christmas cheer }

2008-12-14T20:16:00.000-08:00

I ADORE these tags from Inside a Black Apple (the blog version of the etsy shop The Black Apple). Thanks, Black Apple for these gems!

(To print the tags, click here and click on the pdf link)

{ a good sweater }

2008-12-10T16:00:00.001-08:00

This 70s vintage sweater from the etsy shop Decades Vintage is pretty much the coolest. Firstly, I love the moose. Secondly, it looks adorable paired with skinny jeans.

{ buy handmade }

2008-11-27T19:18:00.000-08:00

This post over at Poppytalk is great, and timely. So this holiday season, instead of rushing out to your nearest BuyMore or LargeMart, log on to Etsy or Poppytalk Handmade from the comfort of your own home, and get something way awesomer. That's right, awesomer.

{ Yes, I live in Utah }

2008-11-10T23:04:00.000-08:00

This is totally unrelated to what my blog is about, but I love it and want every Mormon to hear this:

It boils the issue down to what matters. Kindness. Humanity. LOVE.

{ ::more::more::more:: }

2008-10-28T21:42:00.000-07:00

1. IMG_4464, 2. IMG_4465, 3. IMG_4466, 4. IMG_4467, 5. IMG_4468, 6. IMG_4469, 7. IMG_4470, 8. IMG_4471, 9. IMG_4472, 10. IMG_4473

MORE! I custom made these for alma's professor. The photomosaic kind of cut off the photos, but you can click on the links to see bigger pics.

2008-10-28T21:29:00.000-07:00

This is my little French notebook! I made it forever ago, but have been struggling to take good pictures. Even these aren't very good, but at least you can get the gist of what it looks like. Let me know what you think. I'ma post more soon.

{ oh hey, my hoodie is a work of art }

2008-10-02T21:51:00.000-07:00

Holy smokes. I need one of these in my life: Beauty, Grace, and Charm Screenprinted Hoodie from angeldamico.

{ MmOoSsAaIiCc }

2008-09-28T22:52:00.000-07:00

I haven't posted in a while, I know. But I've been trying to take some decent photographs of my notebooks, so maybe I'll get to posting those soon. But in the meantime, here's this:

1) Julia's Arm Plays Pool Music 2) mini tofu salad 3) Sunrise under the Cottonwood 4) Jen Duncan's super cute kitchen! 5) James McAvoy 6) HBW! 7) 5 to 1 8) Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookies 9) curator 10) Duck Family Portrait 11) R-G-B 12) Me

1. What is your first name? julia

2. What is your favorite food? tofu

3. What high school did you attend? cottonwood

4. What is your favorite color? turquoise

5. Who is your celebrity crush? james mcavoy

6. Favorite drink? diet coke with lime

7. Dream vacation? paris

8. Favorite dessert? pumpkin chocolate chip cookies

9. What do you want to be when you grow up? curator

10. What do you love most in life? family

11. One word to describe you? creative

12. Your Flickr name? windy smile

Mosaic Maker

{ Legos + anything = awesome }

2008-06-11T14:58:00.000-07:00

Henri Cartier-Bresson has long been one of my favorite photographers. And everyone knows there is nothing cooler than Legos.

Courtesy of my awesome brother:

Genius. Another awesome combination: Lego Star Wars. Best video game ever.

{ this bird had flown }

2008-06-05T17:44:00.001-07:00

...isn't it good, Norwegian Wood...

{ birch bark beauty }

2008-05-21T14:36:00.000-07:00

Birch Bark Ring from ES Designs.

I know birch is pretty trendy right now, but I just adore it. I love its color, texture, shape... My love for birch is deep-rooted (no pun intended). My great-great granfather, Bert Wood (prepare for another pun), built the most picturesque cottage in Southern Alberta that my family still enjoys visiting. It's aptly named the Bertch Wood cabin, and its yard is decorated with the tall, slender beauties. I'll have to dig up a photo of my beloved cabin and post it.

{ bailey doesn't bark }

2008-05-19T15:06:00.001-07:00

Such cute dishes from bailey doesn't bark.

{ boygirlparty }

2008-05-18T23:16:00.001-07:00

Check out these adorable recipe cards from boygirlparty.
And the cuteness doesn't end with paper goods. They also have an adorable collection of tshirts and bags.

{ your cape }

2008-05-08T16:51:00.000-07:00

from *Cinnamon.

Also, this song by Breathe Owl Breathe.

I skinned my knee,
and it started bleeding.
There's a war out on the playground
that the parents don't see;
Children taking sides,
and it's you I need to see.
You're the one with the cape on that's billowing.

{ there you are }

2008-05-08T11:11:00.000-07:00

New print from studio mela.

{ rain, rain, don't go away, the sun can come back another day }

2008-05-07T13:02:00.001-07:00

Make It Rain from Betsy Walton.

It's raining today.

	Priscilla Ahn - Rain

	Found at skreemr.com

{ weather update }

2008-05-02T15:24:00.000-07:00

Ok, so this is the third post today. It seems I'm on a roll. But, just so you know, the weather is back to this today:

The Queen from Alicia Bock.

{ reduce, reuse, recycle }

2008-05-02T15:16:00.000-07:00

I love these earrings from Etsy's Frucci Design. A little pricey, but very creative. Her beads are all made from discarded/recycled paper! Read about it here.

{ h o t p o t a t o }

2008-05-02T14:58:00.000-07:00

These milk bottles from Three Potato Four would make the perfect gift. Especially with a simple bouquet of flowers tucked inside.

{ snowy, creative thursday }

2008-05-01T11:05:00.000-07:00

So I was just kidding about the spring weather. I think Photo Opp from Creative Thursday better describes the conditions outside today. How was it nearly 80 degrees two days ago, and now this?

{ finally! }

2008-04-30T14:46:00.000-07:00

It's finally starting to feel like Spring. So in celebration, Spring Cherries from Lauri:

{ pineapple seeds and endless knots }

2008-04-08T14:17:00.001-07:00

I have long been coveting this Endless Knot Necklace from Pineapple Seed Jewelry.

The endless knot is one of my favorite symbols. From Wikipedia:

The Endless knot has been described as "an ancient symbol representing the interweaving of the Spiritual Path, the flowing of Time and Movement within That Which is Eternal. All existence, it says, is bound by time and change, yet ultimately rests serenely within the Divine and the Eternal."

{ g r a c e }

2008-03-12T15:39:00.001-07:00

I've mentioned Purple Petunia before, but I couldn't help but mention these Doves for Grace.

From PP: "I molded these delicate doves from a high-fire porcelain that is particularly vitreous (which means it's quite glassy & tinkles beautifully!). Each is strung on a silk cord and stamped with 'grace': Marian's middle name & our wish for the help needed for a smooth journey for her this spring.
You will receive one dove strung on gray or blue silk cord. Hang it to support Marian or to remind yourself of the need for grace for you or yours.
All proceeds donated to Project Superstar."

PP's daughter Marian is having a bone marrow transplant this spring and is raising money for art/craft supplies for herself and other kids in hospitals through Project Superstar (as seen in my post here).

true love

2008-03-05T16:31:00.001-08:00

Could I love this skirt from Antoni & Alison more? I think not.

>> B O O K B I N D I N G <<

2008-03-05T16:13:00.000-08:00

I made these books!

{ Coral }

2008-03-05T12:09:00.000-08:00

I know coral is kind of trendy, but I can't get enough of it lately. I love the shape, texture, and most of all color. I love it paired with bright yellow or turquoise. It's bright and cheerful, the perfect mix of red, orange, and pink.

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1. Coral Necklace from Kanibal
2. Triple Coral Earrings from Mary and Jane
3. Red Dreams earrings from Daughter of Luxury
4. Japanese Peony Bedspread from Urban Outfitters
5. Coral Knobs from Anthropologie
6. Avery Ruffle Cardigan from J. Crew

And, Spring

2008-03-04T11:28:00.000-08:00

I am totally taken with And, Spring. I love the simple, vintage-inspired design, coupled with practicality.

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1. Jug (Living: Garden)
2. Scheduler (Stationery: Scheduler)
3. Letter Paper: Travel (Stationery: Letter Paper)
4. Yellow Bird Tape (Stationery: Stickers)
5. String Spool Set (Stationery: Wrapping)
6. Note Gift Set (Stationery: Note)

Sublet Clothing

2008-02-28T13:13:00.001-08:00

I am desperately in love with Sublet Clothing. Their clothes are so simple and so beautiful, and they are totally eco-friendly. Can't beat that.

Invisible Ink

2008-02-28T13:06:00.000-08:00

I totally want this Secret Message Writing Set from Urban Outfitters.

. . . building ourselves a desert . . .

2008-02-27T20:26:00.000-08:00

A cover of one of my favorite bands by one of my favorite musicians, Joshua James.

+++ BARK if you love Bostons +++

2008-02-13T14:46:00.000-08:00

I just discovered this wonderful website: ALL-MIGHTY.

Some stuff I love

2008-02-11T15:36:00.000-08:00

The Alice in Wonderland Dream Journal from Urban Outfitters

Lace tape from the Boiler Design store

The I Love Winter scarf from lulette

DIY Planner

2008-02-07T16:40:00.001-08:00

I just discovered DIY Planner. I can't believe I've never been to this website! I am sure it is going to prove to be a useful resource. My next project is going to be a planner for my husband using either this template or this one. I'm going to have a hard time choosing. Maybe a little bit of both. I can't wait!

30 Rock and Free Goodies

2008-02-07T16:02:00.000-08:00

And for free Valentime's stuff:
click
click
click and
click.

Thanks, Creature Comforts!

I want

2008-02-07T13:31:00.001-08:00

this planner from One Good Bumblebee.

Fish Roundup

2008-02-06T15:30:00.000-08:00

All things fish, inspired by my brother who had a birthday yesterday and who is a true fisherman.

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1. Notecard from MintyPrint
2. Vase from Circa Ceramics
3. Necklace from Paraphernalia
4. Notecard from ignafruit
5. Lamp from West Elm

YES WE CAN

2008-02-04T22:31:00.001-08:00

Okay more

2008-02-04T16:08:00.000-08:00

More scrapbooking. This time from the Two Peas Designer Garden.

Also, check out Two Peas designer Jamie Waters.

Another Logo

2008-02-01T11:04:00.000-08:00

I made this logo the other night. I think it's pretty cute, but I don't know if it's me, necessarily. I dunno. I guess finding your own style is tricky, and time consuming. I'm still working on a logo for my tags, that will print clearly. I downloaded about a million fonts last night from dafont including pointy, amandine, sketch rockwell, and paquita.

Scrapbooking

2008-01-30T10:55:00.000-08:00

I don't scrapbook, but I use tons of scrapbooking supplies for my notebooks. And while looking to buy some bampop products from Two Peas, I got sidetracked by their member gallery. Scrapbooking in my brain is labeled as pretty cheesy, but these pages blew me away. They look more like pieces of art, collages, than a family photo album. Take a look:

Superstar!

2008-01-24T14:55:00.000-08:00

Check out Project Superstar and buy a tshirt. I just did.

Some of you etsy fans and fellow crafters might recognize Marian's mom as Purple Petunia. Right now she's selling snow globe necklace kits, using Marian's left over medical supplies.

12 Months

2008-01-17T13:07:00.000-08:00

I LOVE this 12 month Books-in-a-Box from one of my favorite Etsy shops, Orange Beautiful. My husband wants me to make him a planner/several planners with each day charted out hourly. I'm thinking something like this (but smaller) would be perfect for him.

What a year for a new year.

2008-01-03T14:18:00.001-08:00

My resolutions (re: craftiness)
1) Get a business license ASAP.
2) Open an etsy shop
3) Post something new every other day, every day when possible
4) Participate in another boutique
5) Stay on top of P&P finances
6) Never stop loving it
6a) If I do stop loving it, find something else I love to make.
7) Always foster creativity/Never lose creative focus

That's it. 7 seems like a good number to end on.
Also, CLICK HERE for a beautiful FREE 2008 calendar. Oh and the SCOOP is a blog you have to check out.

Christmas Joy

2007-12-27T12:51:00.000-08:00

I had a notebooky Christmas this year. I really hit the jackpot. My mom and dad gave me a binding machine (sionara Kinko's!) complete with coils. And Alma gave me all the supplies a girl could want, including one of those infomercial paper cutters with all the different blades. He got me a bunch of vintage ephemera, like old used envelopes, report cards, and math homework. And he got me these!

(from One Good Bumblebee)
I can't wait to make some vintagey notebooks with my new stuff. I may even have to keep one for myself!

Over it.

2007-12-19T11:06:00.002-08:00

I'm already sick of my graphics. They just don't pop and they print pretty poorly (how's that for alliteration). The following is a list of graphics, websites and banners, that I adore (that might provide me with some inspiration):

I tried to get the pictures to be links to the websites, but I guess that didn't work out. So here are the links, just in cases you need them:
Design Sponge
Alicia Bock
Belle and Boo
One Good Bumblebee
The Paper Princess

Stuck on you

2007-12-14T16:01:00.000-08:00

Rule of thumb for anyone using spray adhesive: NEVER buy anything but 3M Super 77. If you do, you will end up spending $15 on glue that doesn't stick.

Fill out my form!

2007-12-12T16:01:00.000-08:00

Hooray for custom orders!
my special form
Email completed forms to penniesandpearls@gmail.com.

And also, I've been loving the holiday vibe that's been floating around. I've been trying to think of ways to package my notebooks to be cute and fun and festive. Any ideas?

Boutique!

2007-12-10T12:24:00.000-08:00

I must say, the artists boutique on Saturday was amazing. I was running on 3 hours of sleep and lots of caffeine, and I still managed to have an absolutely wonderful time. Selling the notebooks that I've been slaving over was a little bit weird. I spent so much time thinking about them, putting them together, perfecting them, binding them, displaying them, that to see them disappear is... odd. But it's exhilarating and very fulfilling to sell something I made. I can't wait to do it again. I think I'm going to try this week to get an *official* business license, so that I can open an etsy shop and maybe a little website. I have 5 custom orders to finish before Christmas, and I'm so excited.

Another bonus from this whole experience has been proving something to myself. Proving I can be ambitious and motivated. Proving that I can work really hard. Proving that the crafty things I make are worth spending money on. Proving that my creations are something worth having a little bit of pride in. Sorry that got a little mushy at the end.

I am so grateful to everyone who helped plan this, to everyone who came, and to everyone that bought something! And lots and lots of thanks to Mikey Mike who, despite my poor planning, still showed up with camera in hand to take some beautiful pictures of my table.

Click here!