Good Things!

Hello! Hello! I hope things are going well in your little corner of the world! It's been a very challenging summer. Last week, as if we didn't have enough excitement around here with health issues, mother nature decided to have a go. We got a major storm here on the west coast with 80km winds and rain. Trees went down all over the place-two went down across the street at the neighbour's and took out his fence and the rear window of a car parked across the street. In a matter of minutes, surrounding neighbours came with their chainsaws and handsaws to help. The trees were blocking the road (and the bus route) but they were able to dismantle the downed trees enough to clear the roadway. I live in an awesome neighbourhood!

We also lost power at noon on Saturday and it wasn't restored until late Monday night. We lost the contents of our fridge and deep freeze. It took us 3 hours to clean that up-you can't just put everything in a garbage bag and toss it out. Because of environmental measures here, you have to separate food from packaging. The packaging has to be rinsed and recycled and the food goes into the green recycling bins. Let's just say dealing with dead spoiled fish is not fun. YUCK! It was challenging restocking our fridge too-many of the local stores were also without power for days, so they lost all their perishables too. My fridge is still pretty empty, but I'm working on it. The good news is we got much needed rain and we are okay. We played alot of cribbage, burned candles and when it got dark, made our way around with flashlights. We were completely off the grid at home-no power, no lights, no hot water, no Internet. It was like indoor camping for 3 days.

Now that things are back to normal, I wanted to share that I've finally got copies of my latest zine, Manual Dexterity #4 available in my Etsy shop. I also had a few people ask me about Manual Dexterity #3, the Hallowe'en/Autumn issue I did a couple years ago. I managed to scare up a few copies (see what I did there?) so they are also available. I have limited copies, so if you want one, I suggest you act fast!

                  

I also really excited that my new advocacy business cards from MOO have arrived! For some time now I have been wanting to make some specific to the work I do as an advocate for NMO and MS. I finally got around to it. I've ordered business cards from Moo for years and have had nothing but exceptional service. Seriously, they exceed my expectations each and every time. I decided to order the rounded corners on my cards and to go with the standard business size this time, instead of the mini cards which I love so much. (And can't stop ordering!) They were in my mailbox this morning and they are GORGEOUS! I am going to be so proud to hand them out!

If you'd like to order some for your very own, you can do so here. By clicking the link, you will receive 10% off your first order. Can't beat that!

So..that's the latest news. I am looking forward to Autumn which will be here soon-I'm counting the days!

Catching Up!

Hello again! I know it's been some time since I posted. Life has been hectic and intense the last while. Sometimes, you just have to go with it.

I ordered more Moo cards. This time I decided that I wanted to use some of my photography of graffiti to make them. All but the pink "face" were taken in various locations in Whistler. The pink "face" was taken a few years ago of a set of doors on a building in Vancouver that was one of my favourites, but  sadly, is no more. The rest of my Moo cards from this latest set are piece of my art that I like and that I've had printed as Moo cards before. 

I was completely out of cards and wanted to make sure I had some for my trip to LA in two weeks. Moo always has excellent customer service and they were made and shipped lickity split. I LOVE Moo!

If you've never ordered from Moo before and would like to, you can get 10% off your order by following this link.

Here's a gratuitous photo of Indy getting dried off after being out in the rain. He cracks me up. I've never known a dog to love being towelled off as much as he does. He'd stand there all day and let you do it, if you were so inclined. I love his smile. It's too bad it was late at night and so dark when I took this.

If I've been kind of quite the last while, it's because I am dealing a number of things right now. One of those things is an eye issue. I am having significant pain and blurriness in my right eye. I've had my neuro opthamologist look at it and it's not optic neuritis. I trialed a drug and we know if the drug worked that it's exactly what he thinks it is. Well, the new drug did work for the eye pain, but it also created persistent intense headaches as a side effect.  I am unable to stay on this particular drug long term because of that, so I ended up getting off it. It was pretty miserable.

Then, because dealing with my eye wasn't enough, I had an accident last weekend. I got my foot caught getting out of the car and hit the dirt hard. I scared my husband-all he could see was my legs and I wasn't moving. He came flying around to my side of the car in a panic until I said "I am okay." Only it turns out, I wasn't okay-I have badly injured my ribs and am now on morphine while it heals. It hurts to breath, to lie down, to move...fun times! So, I am a bit broken at the moment.

I did my yearly interview with a UBC med student two weeks ago. It's always interesting to meet new medical students, tell them my story and then hear what questions they have. I just realised that I've been with this particular program now for 7 years. How time flies! My next meeting with my Health Mentor students is to prepare for the annual symposium which takes place at the end of April. 

I am flying off to Los Angeles tomorrow morning to attend the annual NMO Patient Day put on by the Guthy-Jackson Foundation. I will be speaking about my advocacy work as a Community Rep for the MS Society of Canada and as a UBC Health Mentor. I am looking forward to hearing what's going on in the world of NMO research. I am also looking forward to poking around LA before I have to fly back. I had plans with a good friend, but she had to cancel due to a death in the family, so I'll be adventuring on my own. 

Okay, I'd better go throw some stuff into a suitcase! Catcha on the flip side!

New Moo!

Mid-April, I ordered some new Moo cards, made with some of my digital photography images. I intended to have them in time for Seth's book signing, but they were a day late. (They showed up this morning.) Not to disparage the good people at Moo-their customer service is excellent-so much so that this is the 4th order I've done with them. I am positive my order was delayed going through customs. (Don't even get me started about customs!)

Anyway, as I said, they showed up this morning and I am *so* pleased with how they look. Opening a box of Moo Cards is like opening a box of happy for me! I love these 2 3/4 x 1 1/8 little pieces of artsy goodness so much, a few years ago, I wrote an article about using Moo cards to make 3rd generation art for Somerset Studio.

I've been collecting them for about 4 1/2 years and at last count I had about 130 cards. Here are a few of my personal favourites:

(The blue one next to the sunflower is Seth's-I just got it last night.)

As you can see, anything goes when you make Moo cards. The interface for making them is very user friendly, so you can upload a bunch of images and see what works best. While not all your images are going to work, the ones that do look spectacular in this format. (Small scale images tend to work better than large scale images.)

Since I started making Moo cards, the company has come out with tons more affordable products to print your images on, including stickers in various shapes, labels, full sized business cards, greeting cards, postcards and more! They will even send you a sample pack of their products for FREE-you don't even have to pay the shipping! 

Anyway, I have fallen in love with Moo all over again. It's an obsession, really. At some point, I'd like to frame my collection in little groupings. I think that would be so charming. Don't you?

Do YOU Moo?! I'd love to see yours. Send me a link!

The Bessie Series For Girls

So this week, I've been dealing with this. And by "this" I mean 3 days of IV steroids, which has not been fun. It never is. I've been pretty wiped out. On the good news front though, I had something amazing show up in the magic mailbox, which lifted my spirits.

Back in January, I posted a little Flip video I made of an ROD journal I sewed for Mandy Fariello, for a private swap. I just received the journal she made me and it was *so* worth the wait!

Her journal came in this cool jacket, which reminds me so much of a black Persian lamb coat my grandmother had hanging in her closet for years. This cover is not made from Persian Lamb, but it is fabulous!

The base of her journal was made from an old book, which I've instantly fallen in love with. I love daisies. I see them growing on the roadside in completely random places throughout BC. My Gramps hated them-he'd always be mowing them down, so it amuses me when I see them-it makes me think of him and his little quirks. For someone who planted so many gardens all his life, it's always amused me that he had such a hate on for daisies!

I have no idea how Mandy cut this cover down to size so cleanly, but she did a fabulous job. Isn't it pretty?

Inside the jacket, was a small strap to hold the journal in. The interior is wool.

The journal slides out of the jacket easily, when I want to work inside.

See how chunky it is? Love it!

Mandy filled it with all sorts of odds and ends. This page with architecture is wonderful. I have a "thing" for architecture. If I were a math whiz, there's a good chance this is what I may have chosen to to do with my life.

I love ephemera of all sorts. See? She even included a map piece of BC!

And old bank deposit slips from days gone by. I like how they punched number shaped holes in them.

Mandy makes these great post box stickers. I am pleased she put one in my journal. She has them available for sale in her Etsy.

More fun! One of the best things about these types of journals is that nothing goes to waste. I love putting disparate things together to create something new. It's so relaxing to make do with what you have. I can spend hours sewing paper. It's like a Zen meditation and really doesn't require much thought. Even on a day when I'm not feeling up to snuff, I can usually manage to make a few pages.

She also included one of her Moo cards. I have quite a collection and one of these days I want to frame some of them and hang them in my studio. I started collecting them when they first came out and wrote an article for Somerset about making 3rd generation art from Moo Cards. I've been addicted to them ever since. I now make "faux" Moos-moos from scratch that I print and assemble myself. Not that I don't still order real Moos, but sometimes when I need them in a hurry, the faux method does the trick!

Anyway, I wanted to share all of Mandy's hard work and to say THANK YOU to her for such a wonderful swap. It's great making new artist friends and being able to share our art with one another. This is a journal I will really enjoy using and treasure always. Thank you Mandy, for making my week!



This N' That

Yes, I am still breathing. I've been offline a fair bit the last while due to brutal migraines. Tomorrow I'm off to the hospital for three days of IV steroids, though thankfully, on an outpatient basis. I hate hospitals-I spend far too much of my life there. (However, I am deeply grateful for having access to universal health care.) Just for the record, MS sucks.

Anyway, enough about that. Let's talk about something else, shall we? See that tin up top? Well I ordered it from Etsy and it arrived late last week. I love red and I love old tins and this one was calling my name. It has wonderful raised embossed details and the bits of aqua in the design. Who doesn't love red and aqua?

 It measures 3 inches in diameter and is an inch deep. It's sitting on my desk till I decide what I will use it for. Maybe I will store my favourite old mother of pearl buttons in it...maybe I will fill it with small candies. Who knows? It doesn't really matter-I bought it "just because".

Awhile ago, I came across this local artist who made a bunch of ceramic heart magnets and hid them in plain sight all over Granville Island. I go there fairly often with my husband and Indy for lunch and to meander and shop. It's a favourite destination for locals and tourists alike.

Knowing that there were hearts stashed in unusual places, like Easter eggs, I kept my eyes peeled while we were there. It wasn't till we were leaving and sitting in traffic on the one road that leads in and out of the area, that I spotted something red out of the corner of my eye.

Across the street, on a pole, above a bench, I saw a red heart. I pointed it out to my husband and he jumped out of the car and dashed across the street to get it for me. He had to hop up on the bench to reach it and then run back to the car before traffic started moving again. (See? Sometimes it pays to be patient when you tied up in traffic! It also pays to have a husband who humours his crazy artist wife. *wink*)

It was so much fun that I decided that I should put some of my art out there in the world too. To that end, I've took some of my handmade (faux) Moo cards, mounted them on magnet sheets and cut them out.

I added a label on the back with my blog addy and indicated it is a free gift because my friend Carol found one of the ceramic hearts in the market and her husband was a bit concerned that she might inadvertently be shoplifting. She had to reassure him that it was a freebie left for anyone clever enough to find it. I don't want there to be any doubt, so thus the label. Here's a link to Carol's adventure finding her heart.

So I will take my magnets the next time I go to Granville Island and set them free. It will be fun to see if anyone emails me about finding them. I'll post here when they've been dispersed so that if you're local, you can join in the hunt. I have 10 made, so chances are good that you'll find one!

In other news, I also wanted to mention that there's this fabulous ezine called Inspired Ideas by Amy Powers that I've been meaning to post about. It's artsy/craftsy and incredibly inexpensive. If you need an infusion of delightful inspiration to shake off the long winter doldrums, I recommend getting yourself a copy. It's a mere $3.30! Can you believe it? That's 170 pages worth of good stuff for a pittance! You can subscribe to the spring issue here. 

You can also check out TWENTY past issues for free. You'll find them here. (Just click on the cover image and then click on the small arrow at the bottom right on the next screen to page through the zine.) I promise you, this is a wonderful ezine!

And if you'd like artsy zines to have and to hold, be sure to visit my Etsy shop
 (link on the sidebar--->)
where there are limited edition zines of all kinds for sale!

Canada Day & A Moo Exchange

Copyright Tattered Edge 2008

First of all, HAPPY CANADA DAY to my fellow Canadians! I hope wherever you are you are spending the day with those you love, doing something fun and celebrating how blessed we are to call this beautiful and free country our home. I know I'm feelin' the love for my homeland today.

Okay, now that that's out of the way, I want to let everyone know that in honour of my Moo article being published, I have decided to host a Moo Card exchange. I love getting to know people's art this way and decided you can never have enough of a good thing!

Here's the deal:

This exchange will be of real printed Moo Cards only*.

Send 11, get 10 back. (The extra card is for your humble hostess, however I will also be trading 10 of mine in the exchange.)

US, Canadian and International folks are all welcome!

I have set up a Yahoo Group to administer the exchange. If you would like to participate, please click here to join.

This group is only for this project so please join only if you are participating in this exchange.

I will take sign ups until July 11th.

More details will be found on the group site when you sign up.

*If you don't currently have any Moo Cards, you can make and order them by going to Moo. They ship pretty quickly so you should get them in time.

This is a great way to meet new folks, collect some cool mini artwork and have something in your mailbox other than bills!

Okay, off to get the BBQ fired up. We have friends coming to celebrate this afternoon.

Bonne Fete Canada!

Mad for Moo!

I have some exciting news to share: if you pick up the July/August issue of Somerset Studio, you will find an article I wrote nestled between the pages! Yes, it's true! See the mention of the article on the cover?!

The article is about making 3rd generation art from Moo cards. Moo cards have become one of my little obsessions. I love making them and I love trading them. I also love writing about them!

Copyright Tattered Edge 2008

This is one of the pieces I made for the article. I want to say a heartfelt THANK YOU to Deb, Liz, Deryn and Kathy for their participation in the article. Your work looks amazing!

This is a great way to kick off the summer. So what are you waiting for? GO READ!! And if this inspires you to make art from your Moos, please show me what you've made!

Moo, Edition Two

Copyright Tattered Edge 2007

So remember those handmade Moos I was making for a swap? Well I got kind of attached to them so I scanned them before I sent them off and made some real Moos out of them. They arrived today and I love them!! I can't wait to hand some out at the conference!

Copyright Alana Holmberg 2007

I also traded one of my first edition Moos a couple weeks ago for this one by Alana Holmberg. She took this photo in Pienza, Italy. When I saw it, I had to trade for it-I have a soft spot for old guys. She does beuatiful photography. Once I get unpacked, perhaps I will share my Moo collection with you. I have some great cards.

I spotted this at the check out the other day and snatched it up. Always one who wants to see how people decorate, I thought this would be interesting. Notice it says "instant art" on the cover. It has some really cool ideas.

I have been mulling over what colour I want to paint my studio and I think I have settled on sage/basil green. I want it to be a calm and soothing place so that when you walk into the room, you exhale and think "Ahhh...." I want my new studio to be an oasis of tranquility where my mind can relax and the ideas and creativity will just present themselves.

Some people like bright colours and lots of visual stimulation in their workspace. I don't. I prefer to have my things organized and tidy and have the things that are meaningful (gifts of art from my friends and my favourite pieces of my own work) around me. I guess my space is kind of nest of sorts. I think sage/basil green will lend itself perfectly to the feeling I want to create.

I have been playing around with the Behr paint workbook to see how the colours might look on the walls. What fun! I have to say, choosing paint colours is the only fun part of moving.

Lil Bit O'Art

Copyright Tattered Edge 2007

I managed to find a smidgen of time yesterday to finish up some more handmade Moo Cards for the swap I am in. I want to get them in the mail today before I forget, since this month is going to be sheer insanity! (By the way, Happy October everyone!)

I find that I am rather attached to some of the first cards I made and having a hard time parting with them. I found a solution though-I just scanned them and made them into real Moo Cards! There is a brand new box of 100 being printed right this very moment which will soon be on it's way. I can't wait! I freely confess that I am addicted to these little beauties-I prefer to work small and working on the pieces for this swap was really relaxing. I ended up making a dozen. It will be interesting to see the returns.

I have decided when it comes to moving, I hate packing. Really, after two weeks of doing it and getting this wicked cold right in the middle, I have had my fill. I don't mind unpacking though-I am super quick at that and the organizer in me enjoys finding a place for everything. I just wish it weren't right now. It makes it hard to enjoy preparing for Thanksgiving this weekend, which is one of my favourite holidays. (Hallowe'en being the other.) At least there will be homemade turkey soup at the end of it all!

I'd better run-there are boxes to be packed and papers to be shredded! It's been storming here the last 48 hours, so I am just as happy to have something to do inside today.

New Moos!

Copyright Tattered Edge 2007

Ahhh Sunday! I love Sundays. It's the one day of the week I have the pleasure of sharing breakfast with my husband. Usually he cooks for me but if we decide to have pancakes then I cook. It was blueberry pancakes and bacon this morning! MMM! Sundays are usually pretty low key around here so often I just putter in my workspace.

This morning's puttering was finishing up my original Moo cards for the swap. I needed to make six, so these were the last three.

Copyright Tattered Edge 2007

Here's the whole set. I just need to sign them on the back and then I can put them in the mail. I love working small. I did learn one thing though-sewing machine needles do not like double sided tape. When I sewed the button Moo card, everything was fine. I tried to sew the next one and the needle had become all gummed up with the tape it passed through so the thread ended up getting snagged on the sticky needle. I actually ruined two cards trying to sew them. Lesson learned-in the future, I will either not stick the image onto the card stock and just simply sew it together or I will try using UHU glue stick to glue it and see what happens. (My thought being that the glue stick should dry completely if I give it some time.) I sure have made my share of art "mistakes". Sometimes the things that bungle can be salvaged in some way and sometimes they hit the bin with a resounding thud. Live and learn!

Happy beginning of September everyone! Autumn is on its way!

Small Wonders

Copyright Tattered Edge 2007

These are a few of the Moo originals I have been making for a swap. It's been fun creating collages this small. I had a few more made, but they had an unfortunate accident and had to be relegated to the garbage can, regrettably. I am planning to make more and I am going to scan them at 300 dpi so I make some real printed Moo cards from them as well.

I wanted to show you this piece of gorgeous jewellery made by the amazingly talented Jane Wynn. I bought this two years ago at Artfest because I had been watching Jane's progress on it on her blog prior to Artfest. The patinas she achieves are simply beautiful. I chose this one for its colour. Every time I wear it, it gets alot of compliments. I even had a girl at Starbucks ask if she could see it in her hand so she could admire the detail!

At first I was a little taken aback at the word "saviour", but when I checked it in the dictionary for alternate definitions to the obvious religious one, it said "a person who rescues you from harm or danger". This was kind of interesting, given that the image is of a young girl. I decided that perhaps she didn't know her destiny was to rescue someone from harm or danger and how she might do that, whether in a physical or emotional capacity is anyone's guess. This piece remind me that we are all born to greatness and have a destiny to fulfil. One thing I love about art is that it makes you think.

In any case, I am taking the long and winding road to get to the main point of sharing this piece with you. The reason I posted it is because yesterday Jane posted some new pieces for sale on her blog. Again, I have been following her progress on them and when I saw the Pale Green Bee, (the first one shown) I simply had to have it. I am giddy with delight to say that this little piece of artistic wonder will soon find its way into my hands. I cannot wait to see it in person!

I love wearing handmade jewellery. It is always wonderfully unique, but also it means alot to know the pieces I own come from the heart and hands of a fellow artist. It makes the wearing and sharing of it that much more meaningful. I would rather have a handmade piece then store bought any day! Jane, thank you for creating pieces that speak to my heart. I treasure them more than you will ever know.

For those of you who didn't know, Jane has a new book coming out in mid-September called "Altered Curiosities" and you must check it out. You can either order it from Amazon OR pre-order on the sidebar of Jane's blog to receive a signed copy of her book, along with a delightful bookplate on the inside cover and a signed giclee of an illustration she has created especially for this project, called: "The Surreptitious Cicada".