It doesn’t feel like Monday because it doesn’t feel like I had a weekend, but I’ll spare you that rant and skip to the good stuff. On Saturday, we took a family outing to Michael’s. My son had to build a model of Wrigley Field (due today), so we planned to run in, pick up some modeling clay, and run out. I made it ten feet into the store and spotted a display chock full of Martha Stewart’s magazines and books, and next to it, a good long row of craft supplies. It’s at this point that I should tell you that I do not scrapbook – I’m a Shutterfly photo album kind of girl – but there I was, contemplating the merits of stickers. Which should I buy? (My purchase is pictured above. Yes, my son is 9, and no, I don’t scrapbook, but the cute kids stickers still called my name.) As I continued to shop, I spotted kids’ crafts, baker’s twine, cupcake flags, ribbon boxes, the cutest ever boxes and bags for packaging baked goods, storage boxes, rulers, glitter glue, etc etec etc and I was delirious with happiness. It reminded me of the days when the Martha by Mail catalog would arrive. (Please bring it back, Martha!!) Get to your local Michael’s and check it out. I defy you to leave without buying something.
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Happy Friday! I’ve been surprisingly non-consumerist lately, so in anticipation of the Stationery Show, let’s have a letterpress/stationery Five:
- Our card
- Custom baby business cards (so cute + the kid is already one step ahead of me!)
- Coasters Package
- Baltimore Side 2
- letterpress printed wood rsvp cards
The photo above wa taken by my husband on one of our South Carolina jaunts. It’s our anniversary today, so Happy Anniversary, D!
See you Monday.
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One of my new year’s resolutions is to learn Spencerian script. I bought some lesson books and started the practice, and promptly found other ways to occupy my time, like accumulating tear-sheets. Since many tear-sheets are taken from Martha Stewart Weddings, eventually I come full circle to wishing that my handwriting were better.
A favorite calligrapher of mine is Rebecca Trawick of Bluebird Studios. What I admire about her style is its uniqueness. She just has really cool handwriting! Check out her styles here, and if you’d like to see more from Rebecca, visit her blog. (Her cursive-style lettering sample is superb!) I’m going to have to get back to my lesson books, or at least spend some time developing my very own handwriting style.
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I adored the “A Very Young” series of books by Jill Kremenz when I was young – especially the Dancer and Gymnast versions. The photos were superb, and I envisioned myself living Stephanie and Torrance’s lives. Oh how I wished that I could live in New York City and attend the School of American Ballet like Stephanie. I could sit in the hallway, stretch and watch the older dancers, and then I would audition for a role in The Nutcracker, and (of course) would win the child’s lead, selected for my unassuming grace. Or perhaps I’d become noticed for my gymnastic talent and train as an elite gymnast like Torrance. I’d go to camps, workout for hours each day and dedicate myself to the sport. Seriously, I spendt hours poring over the books and debating which path to choose. Neither happened, of course, but I still have those books. They remind me about the importance of dreams, and believing that the impossible can happen.
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I must confess: I am a world-class perfectionist. So much so that I put off a lot of things that I don’t do well enough, and thus cannot be judged on them. One of those things is cooking. If you could see the piles of recipe tear-sheets, you would think that I were a caterer, or at least a proficient home cook. Not so, but I’m resolving to improve by baby steps. Last night, I made raspberry muffins from an August 2005 issue of Real Simple. Elapsed time from tear-sheet to baking? Around 20 months. They turned out well. My son would prefer blueberry, but I didn’t make any substitutions for the trial run. It felt good to actually follow through on the plan – it didn’t have to be perfect; it just had to be good enough. (Perfection would have entailed rising early, making the muffins for breakfast and serving them warm from the oven.) I still have a huge fear of throwing parties: the food, the house, the guest list, not to mention, you need to serve more than one dish a parties, and I have not mastered timing. How do you get over that fear? What are the baby steps: a muffins only party? Kidding.
