Pictorial Webster's

I've been pining over the Pictorial Webster's for months, but haven't been able to justify purchasing it. Chronicle Books also held a drawing for a copy of the Fine Press edition (featured in the video below), but didn't win. Alas. This video shows a bunch of different printmaking and book binding techniques, definitely interesting if you geek out about that sort of thing.

Pictorial Webster's: Inspiration to Completion from John Carrera on Vimeo.

Or if you've ever had someone question why handbound or handprinted books are so expensive. Because that is some serious (and seriously beautiful) work right there.

via Uppercase.

Gingerbread House

My brain's been on what to make for the ornament swap lately, and this is one idea I was toying with.



A little gingerbread house made from folded paper. So I put together one for you to cut out and fold out if you'd like. Punch a hole in the top for a loop of ribbon and hang it on the tree.



Or fill the house with treats and set one at each place at your Christmas table.



I'm thinking of folding up a bunch of these next year to use as an advent calendar. The door's the perfect size to write in a number.

Want to play? It's easy.
1. Cut out along the solid lines.

2. Fold along the dotted lines.

3. Glue. Attach a ribbon to the rooftop or set up a little tabletop village.

To begin, just save this image to your computer:


Want to color your own? Here's a blank version. If you make your own, I'd love to see what you come up with!


Merry merry!

Ben DiNino

I wish that artist Ben DiNino had a website.



Because then I could look at more of his work, and tell you more about him, than what can be gleaned from this post over at design*sponge.

Anyway, Ben, if you're out there: I think your stuff looks great. And I want to see more of it. And I'm glad you see something worth celebrating in old books. I'd like to think we have that in common.

Olympia Le-Tan

Oof. This stuff punched me in the stomach.



Great book covers that have been re-created using cloth and embroidery. I found them atWe Love You So and i want to hold them. Very badly.



Like. By Olympia Le-Tan.

Ornament Swap

Hey guys,

In case you didn't see it over at my other home, I'm hosting my third annual ornament swap!

I hope you will join in. It's fun.

Sign up over at Two Loose Teeth before November 28th.

Home Decor

Suddenly, my jar of Sharpie markers is calling to me.



Must. Not. Vandalize. Rented. Home.

This, and many more walls, were drawn on by artist Charlotte Mann. I found her on mirror mirror, which I found on another site that I now can't remember.

Uncle Envelope

Uncle Envelope would make a great Christmas gift for a friend that loves all things paper. For $36, you get a year of paper objects or crafts: one per month. I like it.

via Angry Chicken.

Slash

Dear Dave and Angie,

When I come to visit you in New York City, can we consider going to see Slash: Paper Under the Knife at the Museum of Arts and Design? I think it'd be cool.

See you soon (I hope),

Sarah

Chalkbot

Robots!



I think I might be a big ole softy.

Paper Lanterns (My 25th Birthday, Part 1)

Last summer, I decided that I wanted a simple, low-key celebration for my 25th birthday in July. One of my New Years resolutions was to have magic in my life, so when I saw Maria's video, I couldn't get the vision of paper lanterns carrying wishes out into the universe out of my mind.

A little bit of searching around the inter-webs and I found pictures like this:





I was smitten. They must be mine. So I bought some here.

I set a time at dusk for people to meet me in a park. I handed out lanterns and lighters, kicked off my shoes and ran into an open grassy area. I was so excited that I barely got any photos on my crappy camera phone. My apologies.



The lanterns took two or more people to light, especially since the location I'd picked was at the mouth of a windy canyon (oops).



Everyone laughed at the wind, cheered when the first successful lantern rose into the sky, and sat in the grass.



Strangers came over to ask what we were doing, some of them excited, some wondering if they should notify the police of the giant arson bombs we were letting loose on the city.



Then, as quickly as we came, we packed into cars and went our separate ways.



We heard from an acquaintance the next day that she and her fiance saw the lanterns from across the valley and wondered what they were (UFOs?). This was precisely what I wanted: for other people to have a little bit of the magic in their lives that I want in mine.

Oh, and? I was glad that I purchased my pretty white lanterns before I found out about these classy options:

(Hint: Not Classy)

Cardboard Camera

Mallory: this one is for you. A camera made entirely out of cardboard, tape, and glue.

Kiel Johnson's Cardboard Twin Lens Reflex Camera Time Lapse from Theo Jemison on Vimeo.

I like it.

via swissmiss

3D

I love things that are 3D. I love holograms. I love 3D movies. I love 3D glasses.



That's the look of pure excitement, right there.

So of course I liked these wedding save-the-dates over at Brooklyn Bride.



I like when invitations are interactive and give the recipients something to play with or puzzle out or keep. These are fun and creative.

This 3D goodness found via paper crave.

Honesty Stamps

I think these honesty stamps are really cute. I first thought that I wanted them, I needed them, I needed to stamp sincere love notes everywhere for my nonexistent boyfriend.



Then I wondered, is your sincerity somewhat lessened if you say something so often and in such the same way that you can have a stamp made up? Do I really want to rubber stamp love?

eBay Addiction

I've told myself I have to stop placing bids on eBay, because I have a little bit of an addiction of late. But one thing that I'm very excited to have arrive on my doorstop is this little guy:



Owning a letterpress has been on my mind for a while. I once started building a press, but had a few too many hiccups to end up with something that works. Last week I went to look at a press that I loved, but I don't have space currently for a machine that is 5 feet wide, 6 feet long, and weighs over a half ton. Unfortunately. So for now, this will be a great compromise. More functional than the homemade press but more apartment-sized for my current stage in life. Now I just have to be patient while it ships. I'm crossing my fingers that it arrives safely.

Oh, and you know what else is great? The included manual:

I love that illustration.

Moving Announcement

After moving to my new place, I had to tell my loved ones where they could find me. I threw together some moving announcements and sent them out to family members. The process went something like this:


Printing out my new address on brown paper. And no, that's not my real address.


I cut out the corners. While I'm thinking of it, please let me know in the comments if you'd like me to send you my new address. I only sent these to my immediate family.


Then I used a ruler to steady my legendarily shaky hands and made a few lines with a bone folder. Are you in the market for a bone folder? You should be. I recommend this one, from Martha.


Can you seen the pleasing line that it makes in this nice, sturdy paper? Yum.


And that line makes it easy to make a clean fold. I made four of them.

Then I closed up the card and secured it with string.

See? All done.



Now, I promise to stay in this new place for a while. And I hope you come visit.

Working for something you care about

Lauren Smith and Derek Fagerstrom are living my dream life. They gave up their day jobs to own a store. They've published two books. They're cool, they're in love, and they are doing something they care about.



Read an interview with them over at Design Glut.

(photo courtesy of design*sponge)

Typewriter Cake

I saw this cake over at design*sponge and couldn't resist showing it again here:



Happy 4th Birthday, Regional Assembly of Text.
I knew there was a reason (okay, many reasons) that I liked those guys.

Housekeeping

I'm testing out a little widget below each entry. I'm not sure I love it yet, but I'm interested to hear your feedback. Hate it? Like it? Want something similar but not quite the same?

Update: I took it off, at least for the time being. Thanks for your patience as I work to make this little house a home.

Surplus Sale Map Cabinet

Most of my friends have already endured my long and enthusiastic monologues about the virtues of the Salt Lake County surplus sale. Lisa and I discovered it while she was a librarian for the county and were hooked. In the past, I've purchased many typewriters, but I wasn't looking for anything in particular when we went to the latest sale. But I was excited.

Not many things at the surplus sale are in pristine condition, but it's all bargain priced. I once almost won an auction for a pallet of plastic "Vote Here" signs for $0.25. Luckily, someone outbid me and took them home for $0.50. See what I'm talking about here?

Anyway. I've been eyeing these IKEA drawers for a while:

I love long, skinny drawers that are waiting for stacks of paper. But I couldn't really justify the $120 price tag for something I didn't technically need. Lucky for me, the surplus sale knew my heart's desire.



I got a big 10 drawer map cabinet for $25, you guys. It has a few scratches from years of use, but it's sturdy and has tons of space. I was even a little charmed at first by the smudges around the handles. (But then I got over it and cleaned them off. There's nostalgia, and then there's dirt, right?)



I like imagining who used this cabinet before me.



And what exactly got stored in "Sub Limbo" or "Subs with Problems".



The key to finding a treasure at a surplus sale is that you don't go with plans to buy anything specific. Then you're sure to be pleasantly surprised by something like the perfect map cabinet. Even if you did have a slight meltdown when trying to visualize where it would fit in your home.

Since taking these photos, I've added new labels to the drawers I'm using. If you peek behind my paper labels, though, you'll see the labels that someone somewhere in a county office added. It seems right this way.

Nothing But Bonfires

Today I'm completely inspired by Nothing But Bonfire's wedding invitations.



Her details are lovely and I love the maps, of course. Yum.

A Print A Day

While I'm not a scrapbooker, much less a digi-scrapper (I lack the patience and the skills. My buddy Marci is a pretty great scrapbooker when she wants to be, though), I do think that A Print A Day has some pretty adorable patterns and pictures. You could make some irresistible stationary or iron-on patches or something with her images. Some of my favorites:






(All images courtesy of A Print A Day)

You can buy her files here.

Chalk it up

Some good stuff is in the works. While I get my act together, you should check out this video. I like the dust and ghost lines left behind by this chalk animation.

Firekites - AUTUMN STORY - chalk animation from Lucinda Schreiber on Vimeo.

via UPPERCASE

Cardboard Boxes

I'm a little embarrassed to admit this, because I feel like I haven't lived in my current apartment for long at all (a little over a year), but I'm moving. Again. Which means that, though I want to talk to you about the huge map filing cabinet that I bought for $25, about scrapbooking tools, about quilling, about papercutting, about everything that I love or love to hate, I have to pack. I have to clean, move, reconstruct furniture, and organize. And then un-pack. So I have to say see you next week. I'll be back, with better pictures taken in my better lit apartment, with pictures of my new home while it's still clean, and pictures from my papery birthday, when I turned 25.

Thank you for your patience, for your reading, and for your comments. You're really pretty, and I'm glad you're here.

Frank Chimero (and a few other thoughts)

Paper crave told me about Frank Chimero, a graphic designer who first intrigued me with his clever take on the states.





Then he charmed me with his "Nerdfest" print.



And then, because I was feeling a little fragile, my breath caught in my throat when I saw a few of his inspirational posters.



I knew it was a joke, but this is something I've thought about lately. That I can't just wait for my life to start, but it's time to live each day what I want my life to be. And the work I want to do, my dream job, is something small and quiet and special. I'm still figuring out how I'll live my dream, and it's important to remember that it takes time to do something different.



And doing something small, special, simple? That takes courage. I'm trying to be brave.