10.31.11 ... a lovely day for a stroll around the capitol grounds

this afternoon we went to the capitol grounds so scout could do some life sketching. we spent most of the hour walking about but she did get a page of art in. here she is working and here is ev, her subject for one sketch...

... and here is the sketch....

i love it. i took more photos of the grounds and will share them tomorrow. and here's a little project i did this morning, too. side b ...

and side a ...

i chose this image to go along with a book on electricity. 

sweet dreams, everyone. thanks for stopping by. until tomorrow. happiness to you. from me. with heart. ox joon

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10.30.11 ... sugar tale

our recent brown sugar purchase was quite unusual. i took photos before i threw it away so i could write to domino. i did that on their website, expecting to be able to attach these images - or at least one. other company websites have that option. lacking my photo accompaniment, i was left with the description that this was the strangest thing (brown sugar wise) i have seen. i ended with the true statement 'love your products'. other sugar is not as good. end of story. i am not about to jump the sugar ship. these things happen. today i received a response that left me feeling miffed. in short, it referred to the refined process of many, many years that results in uniformly excellent products. that was followed by two paragraphs on proper storage of sugar. in the last line i was told that as a token of appreciation for my patronage they are sending me coupons for my next purchase. to which i responded with a letter that included the topics of both my advanced age and consumer history and knowledge of proper sugar storage. and these photos.

i received another response that agreed with my strangest thing descriptor. now i feel better. i have dealt with grocery stores and written to companies a number of times when we've been unfortunate enough to start preparing a meal only to find an ingredient is not fit for consumption. and it is always interesting to observe the various responses. some could take lessons from others. i always wonder how many other people experience these oddities. because my list is growing. and i have some funny (in retrospect) tales to go along with the reimbursement process. i might write a book. 

sweet dreams, everyone. thanks for stopping by. until tomorrow. happiness to you. from me. with heart. ox joon

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10.29.11 ... recycled cards

i made a set of four cards today using my handmade chibi stamp scout made of me and two cover pages from an old music textbook that i was deconstructing.  you can see the age spots on the paper.  i am beyond tired so that's it for tonight.  it's been a very full day.

so cute, huh?

sweet dreams, everyone.  thanks for stopping by.   until tomorrow.  happiness to you. from me. with heart.   ox joon

10.28.11 ... muffins and hearts

hello darlings. how was your friday? mine was pretty damn good. this morning i made a batch of my bran muffins but decided to try something different. added a chopped pecan/brown sugar/cinnamon topping from my applesauce bread recipe. oh my gravy. genius idea.

we all loved them.

shortly before dinner fixin' time, we took a stroll. we take mr. chippy with us around one or two blocks and then drop him off (he is 11 and 3 legged). then we go a little farther. and look what i spied. this heart shaped new cactus growth. how fabby is that? scout used her new (thanks, dusty) iphone which is dustin's old iphone but newer than her original iphone. what i am getting to is that the camera in this one is quite lovely. great photos, eh?

and, lastly, i have been working on my newest button haul. sorting, cleaning, organizing for storage. i was messing around and thought it would be fun to arrange the buttons into a mosaic before putting them away. so, as i clipped off staples or threads, i placed the readied buttons side by side. i had just gotten started when scout dropped by and said 'oh i love your heart .' i was surprised to look down and see this heart shape. i didn't even notice i had done that. it's a sign.

by the way, isn't that little floral locket or pendant adorable?

sweet dreams, everyone. thanks for stopping by. until tomorrow. happiness to you. from me. with heart. ox joon

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10.27.11 ... fish recycled corner bookmark

i made this bookmark from a salvaged vintage elementary reader. the book is a fishing and game book so i loved that i spied this fish image.

this is the reverse. originally it bothered my sensibilities that the fish were vertical on the back but once it was formed, i decided it's pretty cool. i like it. speaking of things i like, it has FINALLY cooled down here. sigh. heavenly.

sweet dreams, everyone. thanks for stopping by. until tomorrow. happiness to you. from me. with heart. ox joon

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10.26.11 ... the good old days of coca cola in bottles

i am without photos of my creative energies once again today and i haven't had the chance to share this photo I took from the car while we were in traffic in san francisco. i like this a lot. a long time ago i collected coca cola things. that was way long before eBay took all the joy out of it. i only have a few favorites left but this sign reminded me of the good old days when coke was in a bottle and it tasted like heaven on bubbles. why would you change perfection? better question: why do millions of people not notice? mediocrity. a shame, isn't it? here's hoping your evening and bright new day ahead are a cut above. 

sweet dreams, everyone. thanks for stopping by. until tomorrow. happiness to you. from me. with heart. ox joon

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10.25.11 ... a gift wrap

hello friends. today's creation left the building un-photographed but i have this one from a while ago i've been saving . i don't want to spoil any surprises by sharing before things reach their destination. this is something different (the stickers name design) for me and i enjoyed it. the envelope is a recycled gift bag. the letter stickers are from a fred jaunt. speaking of fred, today we went for a bit. haven't been in a while. scout and i found some groovy vintage buttons and later, she found vintage peanuts gang pillowcase and a sesame street pillowcase and flat sheet. they are all so pretty. then i found a vintage white 'hollywood long' fitted sheet. they are so hard to come by and this one is in beautiful condition. i can't believe i found it. as usual, these were all spied on our winding down walk to the check out. happens every time. ev found a groovy old cabinetmaking woodwork book. he is happy with that.

i hope the gift was happily received.

sweet dreams, everyone. thanks for stopping by. until tomorrow. happiness to you. from me. with heart. ox joon

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10.24.11 ... brown paper packages thinking green

today i designed a new package wrap and i like it. i used a salvaged brown bag.

this afternoon we ran into the dollar store to get some scotch tape and i spied a roll of brown kraft paper - made in the u. s. a. people! that's what i'm talkin' about. so my next brown paper packages will be tidier and i am looking forward to messing around with different design elements. recycled, naturally.

sweet dreams, everyone. thanks for stopping by. until tomorrow. happiness to you. from me. with heart. ox joon

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10.23.11 ... playing card bookmarks

this afternoon i made this batch of upcycled bookmarks. the first trial batch was well received and i have a number of packages to mail out this week. i remembered i had depleted my stash. these will be on their way soon.

sweet dreams, everyone. thanks for stopping by. until tomorrow. happiness to you. from me. with heart. ox joon

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10.22.11 ... discarded scout spud art upcycled into ...

... today i continued my journey back in time. i completed my teaching years sorting and organizing and worked a bit on this project, too. these are pieces of scout art doodles from her early years. we have to let go of some of the massive amounts of art she has produced and it is so hard. i went through these and cut the small images into assorted size papers. they will become address labels, calling cards, bookmarks, note papers and more.

i hope they will brighten up people's day as they have added so much sunshine to ours.

trust me, we have boxes full of drawings similar to these and even cuter. the girl produced dozens of drawings a day even as a toddler.

looks just like besos, right? 

sweet dreams, everyone. thanks for stopping by. until tomorrow. happiness to you. from me. with heart. ox joon

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10.21.11 ... a lovely blue breeze of a treasury

i've been wanting to make a treasury for a while now. i was going to use the shmetsy app but both scout and i tried it and it didn't work properly so that was frustrating. however, i have accomplished my goal and i enjoyed myself. all day today i've been busy sorting through stuff. i needed a nice, sit down creative activity and this fit the bill. hope you enjoy it. 

here's the link to see the real thing and access these pretty finds. 

powder blue

sweet dreams, everyone. thanks for stopping by. until tomorrow. happiness to you. from me. with heart. ox joon

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10.20.11 ... our piano

we're thinking it is time to part with our beloved piano. we looked a long time before we found this one second hand in 1996. we've lovingly lugged it along through nine moves. we need this next one to be severely light. here's one of the photos i took while preparing to offer it for sale. our hope is that it will find a wonderful home and that we'll be lucky enough to find a family as reluctant to pass theirs along as we are and everyone will wind up happy. a home needs a piano.

sweet dreams, everyone. thanks for stopping by. until tomorrow. happiness to you. from me. with heart. ox joon

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10.19.11 ... little card wallet - recycled, naturally

here is my prototype credit card wallet. i used fabric scraps and modeled it after one scout got at an event last year. that one was made out of different materials.

there are two pockets inside for cards.

mine needs some minor adjustments and i want to mess around with the style some more.

in general, i think it is a good start and i am pleased with the result. i hope to find time to make another one soon. stay tuned.

sweet dreams, everyone. thanks for stopping by. until tomorrow. happiness to you. from me. with heart. ox joon

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10.18.11 ... paper stuff

here is a project i've been working on over a period of time recently. some of the clippings are years in the saving. i save them for one of these days and one of these days arrives every so often. i matched them up with card stock pieces i have floating about here and there. some are greeting card and envelope pieces. some are paint sample strips.

i am not sure where i will go from here with all of them, but i do have plans for some of them. a few will become covers of miniature accordian books. i really love all of these images.

and i love the variety. and matching the pieces with the card stock.

this one is a favorite. here is what it looks like during the perusing and production phase...

and below is the set. i also made those tazo tea bag paper pockets (an earlier post). you may spot some of the parts here.

when i take these pieces one step further i'll post the results. today i worked on another - new - sewing project. those photos will be here tomorrow night. see you then.

sweet dreams, everyone. thanks for stopping by. until tomorrow. happiness to you. from me. with heart. ox joon

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10.17.11 ... an owl takes flight to australia and besos finds a way to keep a close watch on mom

today i made this cute corner bookmark for someone who purchased an owl laden vintage item from joonE. it will be on its way to australia tomorrow. i have a project to share with you but i am going to wait until tomorrow night because there would be too many photos for tonight. here is the reverse of the bookmark...

this one is made from a discarded vintage children's book. it has seen a lot of love but i can find some life in it here and there. and so it lives on. and travels across the world. one last photo for this evening. here is besos trying to make herself invisible so she can stay right near me as i work. she had jumped up on my table and i scolded her and she smooshed herself into the window casing and made herself very comfortable. she's a tricky old bird.

but so adorable. 

sweet dreams, everyone. thanks for stopping by. until tomorrow. happiness to you. from me. with heart. ox joon

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10.16.11 ... memory art

i continued my sorting this afternoon and came upon these get well wishes and bill clinton. i know. these things really go together, right? plus, there are bon bons and ghosts involved. so pay attention and give yourself a chance to smile. i taught second grade many moons ago. for just four short years. during my second year, i was engaged to evan and this was a topic of great interest to the class. in the spring, i was ill and missed school for a stretch of time and the substitute was kind enough to allow the children a few minutes of time to compose a get well book. but first, you should know that i referred to an alternate universe quite often. as in: if you all knew everything already there'd be no need for me. i'd be sittin' on the beach eatin' bon bons and watching soap operas. now what kind of life is that? hence, the bon bon art above. and now for a page from the well wishes book...

yes, there i am in bed miserable as all get out while evan waits on me hand and foot. i am sure at some point he might have indeed uttered: hurry up and get rid of that cold. I am tired of taking care of you and i want to get wed! (that was in 1993 and i still marvel that he went ahead with the wedding after that unfortunate period of time in our history.) at any rate, this is the first time i have looked through these and i did not recall the ghosts or bon bons but this page came back to me like a flash. i loved it then and i love it now. and i realize that bill clinton has nothing to do with the get well book. yes, this is random, but scout got such a kick out of the fact that a second grader was drawing bill clinton that i had to include it.

who knows what i will come across tomorrow. sending you all wishes for a beautiful monday and a heavenly week ahead. i love fall.

sweet dreams, everyone. thanks for stopping by. until tomorrow. happiness to you. from me. with heart. ox joon

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10.15.11 ... an evan day

this morning evan made this gorgeous crumb cake. it is the first one we've ever tried. scout found the handwritten recipe card during one of our fred outings. the cake is unreal and ev says it was easy. a piece of cake. then this afternoon, i began going through my stored teaching memories and one of the many special keepsakes i found is this one, seen below. it is a sweet example of evan's dedication to me and my class.

one year we decided to go across the road and up a ways to a small park and have a barbecue lunch. and evan generously came as the chef because, let's face it, there is no way any of it was happening with me running that show. and this adorable handmade hot dog card demonstrates how the children felt about him. it is the only one like it so is an original idea by this one student. the front of the hot dog on the bun, followed by the back of the hot dog on the bun .....

with a very creative mechanism piece that emulates how a real bun opens and closes. and, of course, the message.

it reads: dear evan, thank you for getting off of work just to fix hot dogs. it's the simple things in life. 

sweet dreams, everyone. thanks for stopping by. until tomorrow. happiness to you. from me. with heart. ox joon

Posted via email from just joon