the lil' book

alright, some pics to check the libretto that is somewhere hopefully in america. it will be found. IT WILL! you can see more pics on my flickr, there's a link down below: i miei fotos.

penlandia

beach blanket exodus

wow, imagine picnicing at your fave sandy spot and an army of these monsters show up...i know the can sense water and dunes...what about other life forms? theo jansen is a dutch artist creating these huge kinetic beach creatures. check out videos!

poke your eyes out

shanna leino makes these amazing tools, both steel and bone. frank was kind enough to introduce them to me and boy was i grateful. i love her dots, check the double ended awls. those puppies be SHARP!

dioramania

so i know d*s just posted on erin tyner, but i ran into these prints and loved 'em. the trees look like deer gambes. makes me want to make all sorts of scenes in boxes. in other diorama news, i get to make more trees! these'll be headed to new orleans and hopefully i can help put them in their places. next week i'll be working at the steinhart and i'm excited to peek my head around!

food glorious food

so there, some pics from the ole' confederacy. what an adventure, bama was filled with towns that seemed trapped in their civil rights shackles and didn't know how to move forward. selma, montgomery, rural central bama was filled with empty storefronts, water towers, and hardly any pedestrians. the peeps we met were super nice, we even holed up in a mexican restaurant that had folk singing country songs on their karaoke setup. it was quite the hit establishment in greensboro. we heard a lecture at rural studios by michael berk that was pretty neat. he is working on housing alternatives for post katrina folk that's cheap, fast, and green. that was the night before the storm. rain was colliding down, wind was whipping. i was half expecting the car to be on the other side of the field with the cows that morning. luckily we were all safe in newbern. allora, the pics are there, lots of eats, cuz you know i can't have an empty stomach or mama gets crazy!

the dirty dirty nc, sc, atl, bama

alba

the view from my desk at penland. ohh mountains...

so i'm back in the bay and happy to have completed a lot of work. sfortunatamente most of it was lost...airline error, poopsicles. i am crossing my stumps that they'll be back in my arms soon. pics to follow.

ahh, penlandia. so quiet there this winter, so many stars, luxurious studio! pretty much everyday save a sickly day or two writhing on me bed and a day when ethel dropped in (replete with cerveza) and we managed some asian food were spent in the new letterpress studio. my teacher frank brannon helped me realize some of the floating ideas in me noggin. i'm pretty darn pleased with my book and i'll be darn ecstatic when my bag is found...

to the blue ridge mountains i go!

what a month! i found out i was accepted to a letterpress residency at the penland school of crafts for the month of january! i'm super amped to work on a couple projects i've been contemplating. one is a book of tools the other will be altars to bacteria. talking with folk about bacteria to consider, bookbinding, and doing research has been awesome.

in other news, a few friends and i launched a design + build business called studio 247b. we're out in point richmond and looking to take your money! right now we've got a couple gigs for the lindsey wildlife museum in walnut creek and we finished up a reception desk for maru salon. some pics from our lil shopwarming.

danish anyone?

who wouldn't want to fall into bed with these gorgeous bedclothes!!! dorte agergaard jensen designed these fabrics with slouchy comforters, chairs, and furries. mmmm

hugging wood

ok, so that doo, who was featured with amanda hughen down there...his name's michael meyers. he has these paper cutouts that hug wood like carnivorous plants and caterpillars. i love those hairy beasts. hmmm, i guess the paper isn't so hairy, but i think you get the picture.

exploding nebula

can nebula explode? i don't really know, but Amanda Hughen's "Disparate Classification " sure seems about to go there. i was down at the johansson projects and saw these beautes along with some wooden sculptures evoking tubas, starbursts and futuristic barbells. alas, the geometry along with the freehand painting really makes me want to dive into this bacteria project i've been pondering. big, multi-layered microscopic level buggas. or on cloth or leather and sewn up into 3d objets. perhaps a hand...or tree stump...more pondering.

holy crapola

crikey jim, i donno what this girl is smoking, but it is hot sniff glue!!!!!! tiffany bozic i love you! fellow oaktowner, frickin' amazing paintings. making me sick sick sick, barf. blech.

reduce, reuse, red hott...err green cuddly

popping into atomic garden today was a godsend. too bad their websito isn't up yet. these bags by jack & marjorie are amazing. army canvas, tapestries, lace, leather, hell yes! boy peter is mine, MINE...soon i hope. anypoops, this new store is all about sustainable, organic bloopity and i love it. white painted antique floors, retro velo, old wooden dry cleaner hangers, peruvian hats knitted by papas para sus ninos, former indian prostitute turned entrepreneur pajama princess, south african community crafts. yeah, i'm buying into the green industrial wave, as much as i might want to be a rebel, how can you deny the hottness of these bags? waka!

cookie monster

the cooks are having a baby! so their lil' pet human will thus forth be called cookie monster. was planning on making a smock, but it turned into a dress. c'est la vie, non?

tede design

me so green. envy...tetsushi and kristina have started their own design studio/cafe/gallery. ummm, where was i when they started construction? eeps, eeps, i gotta go!!!

row row row

ok, row your boat with your dutchtub in tow. weirdos. why not just row your tub? well, anypoo, this is fun entertainment, you can bbq your steaks while soaking up the night skies and managing your own dutch oven (snickerdoodles). so i suppose you don't have to row this with you, but the marketing on this jam is pretty funny. imagine corporate events with these boppers all around...

spikes and library fantasies

mr. chayablahblahsillupsin forwarded me this link to truck furniture, a japanese enterprise. i love these iron nails. iron nails are making a comeback. i found some awesome old railroad tie nails numbered and everthang that i want to incorporate into some sort of drawer unit. truck also has some library inspired pieces that are swaying my stiff librarian hips. maybe the next deco move is to make my space a biblioteca. replete with card catalog. spot gave my dorky bum a library card set to keep track of my minimal stash. i can't wait to geek out, toss my spectacles to the sky and rip my prim cardigan to shreds. oh my!

furry feet

finally got back to kinokuniya bookstore. after that layover in narita last month, i've been fiending for more japanese printed goods. this little find is a bit sugary, but the layout just makes you want to scoop everythang up and hug the felted goodness.

nihon elle deco

japanese magazines, kawai-ya! (i don't even know if that makes sense) the dot wall reminds me of the box game, you know, the one where you connect 2 dots and then it's your opponent's turn and the goal is to close as many boxes as possible. why does this sound like the ole' notches on the belt paradigm...

allora, greenhouse living room, what!?! i didn't capture the cloches over irish moss, but i'm a bit obsessed with mosses. they're so fun to pet like wee chillun's heads. slight bounce, soft tufts, moisturizing.

and that bird down there...desire it i do.