Handmade notebooks that I made by hand! Neat-o, eh? They are made with sweat and gallons of affection from all sorts of cards and old papers.
While I procrastinate writing or simply want to take a mental vacation, I make stuff. The notebooks have been my favorite project over the past several months because almost everything can be made into one. I’m really conscious to save scraps from everywhere now so that I can incorporate them into new books—the Figaro ones (above, bottom right) were check booklets from one of my most favorite French restaurants.
Once I select the right cover, then I use fresh grid paper and colored embroidery yarn and bind it all together.
Originally, I thought I might sell them on Etsy. I created a shop and everything but then never placed them up for sale. It’s been much more fun to give them away as surprise gifts. It makes me happy to know they’re one-of-a-kind, each with its own individual perfections and flaws.
Cool! Ian Dingman sent me a new illustration this week.
Hopefully you already know: All of the artwork and illustrations on this site are original works by Ian, and each piece in my stories section has been inspired by one of his paintings. He’s been a great friend to me. I’m honored to continue to work with him and feature his stuff.
My biggest struggle with my own photography seems to be lighting. Granted, I’ve never set up a real “photo shoot” and readily admit I have no concept of this seemingly basic fundamental. Rats! I’ll leave the tricky stuff to photographer Noah Kalina instead.
Noah’s use of light along with cold and surreal subjects is at once creepy and magical. Please visit his portfolio site for a glimpse at more of his work. The series taken in California really grabbed my attention; instead of capturing the expected sunshine and palm trees, it’s all deeply foreboding skies, jaded-looking models and shadowy interiors. Truth and beauty.
Two of my most favorite web-geniuses, Tony Delgrosso and Angela Black, have teamed to create Low Resolution Theatre. Every weekday they produce a new comic, pairing Tony’s witty bits with Angela’s irreverent drawings. I’ve gotten into the habit of checking LRT each morning when I wake up. It puts a smile on my face—from their slightly bent pop culture references to characterizations of their own lives, the sky seems the limit as to what might appear.
As you take your daily stroll throughout the world wide interwebs, I urge you to bookmark them for attention. And while you’re at it, take a look at my birthday cameo. It’s below the fold!
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The computer desktop is a canvas. That’s why I’m always surprised when people decorate theirs with absolutely hideous, staid, uninspired stock photos, or, worse, nothing at all. It is a given that we would hang great-looking art on our walls…why overlook your desktop workspace? When I get new interns in the office, this is one of the first things I make them do.
I have two computers—a PC laptop that I work on at my day job and a MacBook that I prefer use at all other times. I thought I’d start occasionally sharing the desktop backgrounds that I’m running on those and where I found them. Dig into the cut for the details!
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