A primer post

to get you ready for the one I hope to put up later today...


With luck and focus I'll be posting the second part of my book binding tutorial this morning.

Also on the agenda: laundry (of course) and perhaps a painting festival on the kitchen table.

Library, Laundry (like I'd not have any to do) and starting something new

As the title suggests I've got a library trip planned today, laundry and plans to start a new project.

What is this project you ask? Well it's one that I had on my list from last year and hopefully it's something that I can get done before the Bean makes her debut. Also it's going to allow me to brush up on my book binding since what I'm planning is to make a bedtime book for the Peanut of the Poem Wynken Blynken and Nod by Eugene Field.

It's a poem that my Dad used to recite to me when I was small and something that I want to pass on to the Peanut and the Bean. I've already done a painting for the Peanut's room but I wanted to also have a picture book that we could read and keep.

First on the list of things to get the book done is to decide the size of the book and decide how many pages so that I can cut the paper down to size. Not as simple as measuring and cutting since paper has a grain that makes folding along one side easier than the other, so I'll have to make sure that I keep that in mind when I pull out my paper. To decide on the number of pages for the book I'll be taking a copy of the poem and breaking it up into bite sized chunks, which will also break the poem up into illustrations for each page.

I'm excited about getting started on this in the new space and I'll be posting on my progress too.

What are you working on today?

Clearing things out

We were up and out late last night so today is going to be a take it easy day. It's snowing so the Peanut will want to go outside at some point and I'll be headed out to exchange one of my gifts from the husband for something that will fit me and get those slippers that I didn't get around to picking up yesterday.

Yesterday we got a step closer to a streamlined working space. I emptied out the armoire that we've used for the last ten years to store my art supplies, sketchbooks and photo equipment. It's an Ikea product, but we customized it by adding a few extra shelves.

The next step is to get it out of the house. I'll be taking some pictures of it so that we can post it on craigslist this week. Well, that and a few other items that we just don't have the space for.

That's what we're working on today, what do you have going on?

Laundry is still on the list

but so is a little painting. I've carved a few new stamps and I'm itching to get them impressed into some glass paint. I did some tests on the weekend and want to see what else I can get out of them. I'm also planning a few rounds of card games with the Peanut. She's recently discovered the joys of Go Fish, Snap and War.

Somewhere in there I'm hoping to get our end of the year letters out to family and friends. I'd call them holiday letters but they are so not going to be delivered until the year 2011. I'm hoping to get gift wrapping done tonight but that may have to wait until tomorrow. Dinner for the next few days is left over chili so that at least is off the list...

How are your holiday plans going? Have your festivities come to an end? Are you just gearing up? What's on your to do list?

Work in Progress

I splurged a little bit on my shopping trip last weekend and picked up a few new colours of glass paint. The plan today is to pull them out and give them a test drive.

With the holidays closing in and holiday shopping winding down I'm looking at changing my marketing strategy for our ornaments. I'll be spending some time researching for photo shoots and and working on a change in item descriptions.

Some where in there I'll be putting the Peanut on gingerbread man duty. Since I'm not really supposed to be eating all those yummy cookies that I usually like to bake this time of year I've narrowed my baking list down to one type of cookie ant gingerbread men it is. Also on the list is filling out our holiday/ new year cards.

And of course there will also be laundry (because I have to do at least one load) What do you have on your list today?

Work in Progress Wednesday

We have a busy day today. I'm getting ready for January in the shop, going through and making some changes in my tags to reflect the merchandising themes that suit PeanutButterPie and planning what I can add to the mix as well.

That means a little fun for me, since I'll get to carve a few new blocks and start some paintings again. The image to the right is a block I'm working on right now. I'm a little excited about the texture in the block and already planning how make sure it stays a part of the image once I transfer it onto glass. It's going to have to come down to a mix of timing and pigment/paint mix. If you can't tell I'm rubbing my hands together in mad scientist like glee.

Also on the agenda? Laundry of course. I don't think I've posted a single work in progress that hasn't included laundry. It's a never ending job. A trip to the bank and then the mall for the Peanut to play and and early dinner out before we hit the hospital for the Prenatal tour. We're taking the Peanut so that when it's time for her sister to come out and join us the whole experience will be a little less scary for her. If she knows where it is that Momma's going to be and where she'll be coming to meet the Bean perhaps she'll feel a little less stress about all of the big changes that come with becoming the big sister.

What's on your list for today? Are you already looking ahead for the new year? Any big plans?

Lots to do

today. I'm in the midst of laundry the folding and the washing kind. Beds need to be changed and chocolate needs to be acquired for the advent calendar which needs to be hung.

Other than that today I am focusing on setting up a listing for personalizing options for the ornaments which means that I'll be personalizing some ornaments and photographing so I've got fingers crossed for good light today. On my mind will be the next steps to take in the holiday push. This weekend was a good start but I want to keep it going.

Also on the to do list; a 5 question feature post for the Friday. I received my second Etsy Baby Shower gift the other day and I'll be photographing that as well for the feature.

What are you doing today?

Works in Progress

Yesterday I spent some time working on a line sheet for our ornaments. I'm pretty happy with what I had put together after a few hours work. Today is more of the same. If all goes well, I have plans to start making snowflakes for the windows with the Peanut.

I also have the tail end of laundry to do from yesterday and it's bed changing time. Add into the equation the re-introduction of the daily glucose blood tests (up from every three days) and the need to make sure that all meals are carbohydrate low and protein high with a good walk or three to control the sugars and I've got a full day.

What do you have on your plate today?

Work in progress

There's been lots of stuff going on over here. Yesterday was a little on the crap-tastic side and I'm hoping that today makes up for it.

On my to do list today:

Ornaments, we'll be soldering some of the newest tonight. Yesterday (before things got all wahoonie shaped) I used my newest hand carved stamp on a new batch of ornaments. As with all creative projects the brain starts working overtime and new project ideas have popped into my head. I've talked to the husband about one or two and we'll be working on some prototypes soonish. We've also been in contact with one of our favourite gift shops about possibly carrying our ornaments during the holiday season. It's a wholesale deal and I'll be working on packaging and display for that over the weekend; something that has the shop name attached...

Attacking the mess that is the Peanuts' arts and crafts corner; or you know, leaving it for another day. It's an avalanche waiting to happen and is in dire dire dire need of purging.

Laundry, or rewashing some of the laundry. One of our sheets blew up over the clothes line and collected a little extra dirt the other day.

What are you working in today?

Works in progress

I have hopes today to get out the camera and shoot more ornaments.













In the meantime I have leaves to rake,
















and laundry,













and a promise to go outside and play to the Peanut. What's on your to do list today?

As promised

I'm offering you a sneak peek of the new line of holiday ornaments going into PeanutButterPie this coming Monday.

The husband touched on his part in the operation a few posts ago. The starting point for an ornament is the design and cutting of a rubber stamp made from a soft rubber print making block. Before photography I was a printmaking major. Using relief printmaking as a part of the process has been an awesome way to reintroduce that old love back into my creative process. The image I carve into the block is pressed into glass paint. I love how the image looks in the initial impression and I adore the second and third impressions that I get from the blocks, each ornament has it's own look and feel.



I have to say that I am just tickled by how well the photo shoot went on Monday. The reason I'm so pleased is how well the props worked with the ornaments. The combination of the lights and the wire tree that I used for display was so much fun putting up.

Come back tomorrow for this week's installment of a Thousand Words.

Work in Progress Wednesday

I'm sure that I've mentioned here and there that I'm working collaboratively with the Husband on a new project that I'm hoping to list in PeanutButterPie. To be honest, it's been in the works since last fall when I finally went out and visited the local stained glass supply store. So what is this collaboration you ask? Sun catcher/ornaments made from sandwiching painted glass microscope slides.

Last Thursday I gave you a sneak peek at part of the process with the photo of one of the stamps I've been making as part of the process.

We've been working off and on over the months, perfecting our techniques and learning about what works and what doesn't work. For me it's been about figuring out how to create the look that I want, for the Husband it's been about solder techniques for glass (he has been doing solder work for bass and guitar stomp boxes for years now and offered to wield the iron for me with this project) So here's some of the work we've been doing together