Have a Happy New Year!

This Christmas

I had such a wonderful time in Cottonwood with Eric's family! Here are some pictures from the holiday:

Happy Birthday to Me

Yesterday was my birthday, and I had a great time with some of my closest friends and family. Thanks to everyone who made it such a special day!

I'm signing off until next week when we get back from visiting Eric's family. Hope you all have a wonderful holiday!

Cool Beans

I found these pretty beans for sale at the local market, and I love their subtle colors.

Book of Love

Well, it's official: Pie Bird Press has been published! I just received my copies of "Today's Top Stationery Artists," edited by the fabulous Tori Higa and published by Schiffer Books. The book is filled with beautiful photos of the designs of so many of my wonderful colleagues: Hello Lucky, Binth, Herman Yu, Egg Press, Snow and Graham, Hammerpress, Pancake and Franks, Seltzer, Good on Paper, and Saturate, to name a few.


If you're interested in obtaining a copy, please email me at piebird@wetfootpublications.com .

Secret Crush

Alright, this is a pretty shameful confession, but I've always secretly wanted a resin toilet seat filled with shiny pennies. It all started with the resin countertops at the Lucky Penny coffee shop in San Francisco that have pennies embedded in them against a red background. And yes, I know that a toilet seat is much more weird. And tacky. But Second Hand Rose in New York (the vintage wallpaper store) has one in their bathroom, and it is surprisingly pretty. I am quite sure that Eric would veto such a purchase, so I guess it will have to wait until we have a house with an extra half-bath in the basement or something. Still, it's good to know that they are available on Ebay...

Virtual Gifts

I've been tagged by Leah at More Ways to Waste Time for a virtual gift exchange. I've chosen a few of my favorite bloggers to send gifts to, the idea being that they will do the same for some of their faves.

For Leah, because I can't receive without giving, here is a beautiful amethyst glass pitcher to go with her transferware collection (and possibly be used in the future Art Deco bathroom?).

For Rebekka from Maple Sugar and the Cake Parlour, a vintage milk glass cake stand for her lovely confections.

For Pam at House Martin, this charming hanging terrarium from Tend Living.


For Robyn at the Dancing Designer and Sugar Coated Designs, this cute vintage cupcake sign.

For Fred at Fred's World, here is an enamelware bowl that would fit right into his collection.

And last but not least, for Lisa at Lisa's Musings, this collection of antique doilies for inspiration.

Happy Holidays!

Christmas Presents!

This will be my first year celebrating Christmas, and I'm pretty excited. It looks like Eric's family celebrates all the best parts of the holiday: food, family, gingerbread houses, gifts for the kids under the tree... Here are the presents we'll be bringing with us. I hope everyone likes them as much as I do!

Bazaar Bizarre

Thank you to everyone who stopped by our booth yesterday at Bazaar Bizarre SF! I thought it was a great show, and there were some really cute products represented there. Special thanks to Marina for manning the booth with me all day, Jenn for taking these photos when my camera died, and the lovely ladies at Dutch Door Press for the trade.

Tomorrow!

Just a reminder that tomorrow is the Bazaar Bizarre SF holiday sale, at which I will be selling my cards! There will be so many amazing vendors there, so be sure to check it out if you're in the area.

Winter Sky

Latkes and Donuts, Oh My!

Chanuka is, in essence, a celebration of oil. Well, really the miracle that made oil last longer than it should have. But we celebrate it with a festival full of fried foods, including potato pancakes, fritters, and donuts. Last night, my parents held their annual latke party, and I decided to try my hand at donut-making. I made both cake donuts and yeast donuts to follow my dad's famous potato pancakes, and everyone went home stuffed! Check out the recipes at my food blog.

Hibernate

Bath Before and After

In spite of all our improvements, the bathroom is still extremely small, so it's pretty hard to take pictures, but here are some before and afters to give you an idea... We are still waiting for our new light, so I'll post more pics when it arrives.

Happy Chanuka!

Tonight is the first night of Chanuka! Have a happy holiday!

I Love My Kitchen

... just another pic to show the new paint color...

Let There Be...

I just bought this new shade for the ceiling lamp in our bedroom, and I love it! The one we had before was very Art Deco, and too small for the room. This one is a little larger, and I really like the roses on it. I'm so glad that Eric can handle a pink and green bedroom!

Kitchen Reveal!

Eric's brother-in-law, Marc, was here painting our newly-remodeled kitchen and bathroom last week, and I LOVE the colors! I'll post some bathroom before and afters tomorrow, but here's a little peek at the transformation in the kitchen over the past two months.


Click on the image to enlarge!

Seattle Uprising

I had a lovely weekend in Seattle with my friend Shawn at the Urban Craft Uprising. Thank you to everyone who came out! We had a really great time, and there were lots of nice people there. I also had the priveledge of visiting some of Seattle's finest establishments (in spite of sleet and snow!), including Top Pot Doughnuts, where we tried this assortment (Chocolate Sandcastle, Peppermint Snowstorm, Pumpkin Old Fashioned, Feather Boa, Raspberry Old Fashioned, and Double Trouble)- yum!!

We also spent a cozy evening playing Scrabble at the Bottleneck Lounge, where they have game night on Sundays. Shawn and his partner Chris were fantastic hosts and it was such a pleasure staying with them and their pup Sophie. Thanks, guys!

Represent

Well it's Holiday Craft Show season again, and I'll be selling my cards in Seattle, Providence, and San Francisco. If you live in the Seattle area, please come see me this weekend (the 1st and 2nd) at Urban Craft Uprising at the Seattle Center Exhibition Hall. The show will run from 11:00 am to 5:00 pm both days, and I'll be sharing a booth with the very talented Shawn Parks.


If you live in the Providence area, you should make a beeline to Craftland, which is opening December 1st and will run until the 22nd. The hours are Wednesday through Sunday, 11:00 am to 6:00 pm, and Thursdays until 8:00 pm! There will be over a hundred amazing craftspeople represented, and it's a great place to shop for your holiday needs. Craftland is a non-profit organization that will give a portion of the proceeds to The Steel Yard this year. This year the show will be located in the old Lupo's building at 235 Westminster.


Finally, for all you Bay Area folks, I'll be at Bazaar Bizarre SF on Sunday the 15th, so please come by and say hello! I'm thrilled to be amongst so many amazing SF artists this year. The show will be at the County Fair Building in Golden Gate Park, and we'll be there from 11:00 am to 6:00 pm.

Thanksgiving

Here are some pictures from last night's dinner. We had a wonderful evening with our family and friends, and all our guests went home with a jar of cranberry sauce and a box of pistachio brittle.

Thanksgiving Flowers

I'm going to have to try and get better pictures of these arrangements- I think the colors are so beautiful, but you can't really see them here.

Turkey Day...

I thought I'd post some of my Thanksgiving recipes on the recipe blog in case anybody is looking for something to try next week. Of course, I won't have any pictures to post until I make the food myself, but I promise that all the recipes are tried and true. Just click on "Thanksgiving" in the category list on the right-hand side, and you'll find all sorts of recipes to try with your family.

Autumn Bounty

Look what I bought at the market today for just $30!


Clockwise from top left: Yukon Gold potatoes, purple potatoes, garnet yams, Satsuma yams, carrots, ruby turnips, leeks, fennel, garlic, parsnips, onions, ginger, Arkansas Black apples, butternut squash.