House Beautiful Online

House Beautiful online featuring Etsy artists. Here I am and here's my Jet Set Journal.

Be sure to check out all the other fabulous artists! HB really did a wonderful job with the magazine and online version. It was great exposure not only for the artists featured but also for Etsy.

Thanks HB!

A couple things.

Happy Wednesday! I can't believe we're already in the middle of the week. Where did Monday go? Well, it's actually fine that Monday is gone, it was a terribly dreary day. Today the sun is shining and spirits are lifted!

Yesterday was a fun day, as I officially opened up yet another Etsy shop. (I know, I must be crazy.) This one focuses on photography, and more specifically, my husband's and mine. We call ourselves PhotoG Squared (like a photog but also G is the first letter of our last name and squared, well you get that). I listed six pictures...three groups of two photos that compliment each other (or at least I hope they do). I've been wanting to sell our photos for a while, but have not been happy with the quality of the prints until now. I recently purchased a high end inkjet printer which uses archival inks and combined with some beautiful paper makes a lovely product. So, we're off and running. I feel like such a newbie...0 sales and only a few hearts. But we have to start somewhere!

One last bit. Linda Woods from the Rev It Up List blog did such a nice post about my Etsy shops yesterday. It's always interesting to hear how other people describe you and what you do. I love this quote: "She expresses her love for life and travel through her paper arts in a variety of journals, note cards, prints, and more." I think she is spot on! Thanks Linda!

House Beautiful Magazine

I am honored to be included in the April 2009 issue of House Beautiful magazine. My PIT Jet Set Journal was among 22 Etsy items in their "Get Cozy with Etsy.com" section...a whole spread! There are so many talented Etsians in the bunch including one of my favorite potters, Whitney Smith. (I proudly own two of her pieces). You can see the whole lot of us on pages 108 & 109.

I can't wait to read it cover-to-cover as it is all about getting cozy, which I am totally down with, especially since there is still a chill in the air.

Daffodil love.

We are starting to see signs of Spring here in Western PA. It's not much yet, but it gives us all hope! It's been an awful winter, very cold and dreary. So, to continue with my Spring flower theme, I have created some simple daffodil cards. They are perfect for a thank you, hello or even a sympathy card. They come with 100% recycled kraft envelopes.

From my boards.

I have a bunch of cork and magnetic boards all around my studio which prominently display bits and pieces of memories and things I love. There are photos of my family, notes, artwork, ripped out magazine pages, postcards, buttons, etc. They give me inspiration, smiles and support.

This is a photo of my brother and nephew taken back in 2004. I adore it. The whole famdamily (I say that with sincere love) was in Bar Harbor, Maine for my mom's birthday. She'd always wanted to go there, so we all traveled a long distance to surprise her. It was a fun and very memorable week.

More faves.

I'm having so much fun with the "Favorite Things" topic, that I thought I would post one last photo. They have no monetary value, but such sentimental ones. I feel as though they are a unique snapshot of my adult life. The earliest one is from a 1987 Dodgers/Expos baseball game, when I was 17, and they go right up to today. The last one being from a Pittsburgh Penguins hockey game a few weeks ago. And there is so much else in between!

Favorite things.

This week's Unravelling assignment is to photograph your favorite things...those inanimate objects in your life that have meaning or evoke emotion. The meaning can be as little as it just simply makes you smile or as big as it was a prized possession of your late grandmother. It's about taking a closer look at what you surround yourself with...the small and large mementos of your life and their stories.

It's been an interesting assignment for me as, lately, I have been grappling with the whole concept of "stuff." My husband and I have been amassing "stuff" for many years, and no matter how we try to weed through it all, it still seems to multiply. I'm finally to the point in my life where I no longer need to hold on to things unless they are truly special or have some practical function (like measuring cups). I've given myself permission to let go of things even if they were my grandmother's or a dear friend had given it to me. If it no longer appeals to me or serves a purpose, it's time to give someone else the opportunity to enjoy it. It's been quite freeing and makes those meaningful objects in my life that much more important.

Hittin' the Gocco.

New month, new Gocco print! (Hmm, maybe this is a new thing...)

This is a limited edition of 30 and is new in my Etsy shop. I don't work a lot with black, but I'm loving it. I think this would be a cool edition to a sewing room, office or studio. It's shown here in a simple black IKEA frame. It's available here.