a new look

As you can see, I finally updated my blog to a custom look, instead of the basic blogger standard template! Woo hoo! To tell you the truth, I've been wanting to do this for some time, but have put it off, thinking that it would be difficult to figure out, since I don't know HTML. Surprise, surprise, it was pretty easy.

Blogger has made some wonderful changes since I first signed up and the custom templates are very user friendly. The only thing that I wish is that they gave basic pixel dimensions for the custom headers. It took me a little while to figure out what size to make mine, but compared to what I thought it was going to be like, it was simple! If I can do it, anyone can!

Now that I know how easy it is, I'll eventually do a header just for my blog. This one borrows elements from my illustration website. Not knowing what I needed size wise, I started with something I already had. I saw a really cute owl on Jenn Shurkus's blog header, so I might have to do one with owls. It will be a HOOT! (sorry...couldn't resist writing that)

10 essentials to style

My daughter, an aspiring fashion stylist, was watching Tim Gunn's new reality TV show, Tim Gunn's Guide to Style, the other day and yelled at me to come and "check it out". "It's you", she said.

For those of you who don't know, Tim Gunn is the fashion guru from Project Runway, who loves to say "Make it work" and uses a lot of big words, which nobody knows what they mean. Anyway, on his new show, he goes to women's houses and "makes them over" by throwing out all their clothes and sending them off to shop for his 10 essential pieces.

On the episode we watched, the woman was a mom of two kids (I'm a mom of 2 kids). She was 5'3" (I'm 5' 4"). She only wore T-shirts and capris and jeans when it was winter (I only wear T-shirts, capris and jeans) She basically only wore solid colors (I usually only wear solid colors) Well, Tim Gunn made her throw out all of her clothes! He was horrified at all her capris (especially the cargo style, which are my favorites!) and said tsk, tsk tsk. He said they made her look shorter and heavier.

He proceeded to tell her to go shopping for his 10 essentials. Here's his list with my comments:

1. The black dress (mine would be covered in cat hair)

2. The trench coat (I'd feel like a private eye in one of those!)

3. Classic dress pants (of course these would be worn with heels, so I'm not going to do that)

4. White blouse (who will iron this for me?)

5. Jeans (I'm OK with this one!)

6. Cashmere sweater (I don't really like sweaters, too itchy!)

7. Skirt (can you see me mopping the floor and cleaning the bathroom in a skirt?)

8. Blazer (too constricting!)

9. Day dress (perfect for a soccer game? I don't think so)

10. Sweat suit alternative (I don't really wear sweat suits, so my alternative would be...you guessed it - CAPRIS!)

IF - juggle

The Illustration Friday theme this week is - juggle. I had a little time over the last few days to do an illo for it, so this is what I came up with. Kinda fun, with a bit of a retro feel.

My daughter is a little afraid of clowns...have you ever seen the movie "IT"? She watched it with a group of girls at a sleepover, when they were about 10, and that did it. That was one scary clown. I think I'll print this out and leave it on her pillow, so she can see it before she goes to bed. Hee hee.

a nice surprise

Every month I get a little check from the seattle art museum gallery, fees for the rental of the artwork that I show there. This month I got a nice surprise with the sale of one of my pieces! I never know if I have sold or rented anything until the check comes, so it's fun to see what activity has been going on over there, when I open up the check. I love surprises like this one!

funny cat

Our cat Scout isn't a very affectionate cat. He likes to be with us...at a distance, but hates being held and won't sit in our laps. To make up for his lack of affection, he entertains us with his crazy antics. I thought I'd share a few photos of him for all you cat lovers out there. (Sorry to bore you if you are a DOG person!) I personally LOVE cats and have always had them as pets, since I was a little girl. The 1st two cats I can remeber having, looked a lot like Scout. They were brothers. We had just seen the play, The King and I, and wanted to name the cats after the play. We decided on King for one of them, but thought 'I' wouldn't be a good name, so the other cat became Tiny, because he was smaller. I'm sure it made lots of sense at the time! Now, I'm not so sure.

A Muse window - sneek peek

We are a little behind schedule, but the Halloween window at the A Muse retail store is going in tomorrow! Here's a sneek peek of some of the elements that will be in it. A large version of our Boris the mad scientist stamp and eyeballs, spiders and salamanders that will be put into jars to recreate our Ingredients stamp. It's going to be so much fun! Spooky and creepy, but in a fun way, so little kids can enjoy it, too.

happy birthday to me!

That's right! Today is my birthday! I thought I would share a photo of myself on my one year birthday. Looks pretty vintage, huh? If you look real close at the date across the top you'll see Sept 1958. OK, so if I was one in 1958...that would make me...ummm, Yikes! 50! How did that happen? I don't feel 50. I hope I don't look 50. But, it's true, today I am 50.

I'm OK with it, though. It's amazing to look back on my life and remember all the different lives within a life that I have had. Here are some of the things I've been - a baby, a kid, a student, a rebellious teenager, an art college hippie chick, a display trimmer, a corporate visual manager, a wife, a mom (including the soccer part - but I don't drive a mini van!), an artist, illustrator and a business owner.

What else will I be? The possibilites are endless. We never know what path our lives will take and what decisions we may make that will change our lives in profound ways. It's an amazing journey and I've had a lot of fun in mine. Here's to many more birthdays. Today, I am going to treat myself to a mini spa day and a little pampering. Cheers!

to do list

I don't have much time to blog this week. I don't have time to do the Illustration Friday challenge either, which makes me sad!
Here's what's on my to do list this week!

* Finish inking the designs for a NEW A Muse stamp release (think Valentine's Day!)
* Finish the custom holiday design I'm doing for a local non-profit group
* Paint our walkway and steps (I starting prepping them over the weekend and didn't get it finished!)
* Decorate the window at the A Muse retail store with a Halloween theme
* Begin some custom coffee designs for the Starbucks Partner store in the Starbucks Center
* Take my son in to the Dr. for some blood work (this will not be fun!)
* Pamper myself on Thursday, because it's my birthday! (more on this later)
* Make up orders for my greeting cards that came in last week
* and of course my usual wife and mom duties that I do every week!

Phew! I better go start on some of this stuff!

IF - alphabets

With alphabets as the word to illustrate over on IF this week, I'd thought I would post this alpha set that I designed recently for A Muse. It's a set of clear stamps for use in scrapbooking, card making and other kinds of crafty projects. This set is called Broadway and is available right here. I designed a couple of other sets as well - a stitched set and a paisley set, but this one is my favorite. It's just really fun!