cuppa

Much to be done today, but first a cup of tea in my new (old) Ora Kiely-esque vintage mug. We went thrifting on Saturday, and found a ton of great stuff.

More photos later...

dorking out

Like a dorky mom sending her first-born off to school, I couldn't resist taking photos of this stack of pillows, headed off to General 54 later today.

In a stroke of luck, I managed to get my new business cards back from the printer just in time to send them along with the pillows. I'm really happy with how they turned out - they're printed with a mat finish, which I think reflects the look of screenprinted ink on paper better than a glossy finish would.

I was handing out moo cards previously - perfect for the indecisive and non-commital. I would definitely consider getting them again, because people were definitely attracted to the unique size, but I felt like I needed a bit more of a "branded" look.

Business card front (and upside down):



And back:



Hooray!

puppies can be terrifying

I was in Ottawa a couple of weekends ago for a friend's wedding, and happened to pick up a copy of Upfront as I exited a local pub/brunch place (the name escapes me, it was quite good though).

The photos of Genevieve Thauvette from the October issue (one graced the cover of the magazine) were so compelling that I promptly set about researching the Dionne Quintuplets upon my return.

Until now, I had never really spent much time reading about them or their history. I had definitely heard about them, but that's as far as it went. For sake of keeping this short, I won't get into their history here, or try to dissect their lives, as I think it's pretty apparent that what happened to them is pretty inconceivable and shocking (although obvious comparisons have been made to the Gosselins). Wow, I can't believe I just linked to that page...I guess this was reality TV before there was reality TV?

I spent a good afternoon pouring over old photos and articles about them, but my favorite by far is the clip of them being shown a PUPPY as children and running away in horror. You can watch the clip here, just scroll down a bit.

Pretty shocking. If you're interested in checking out more articles and photos about them, the Dionne Quintuplets Digitization Project has a ton of stuff, including the slightly creepy photo, above.

shut up and look happy

My New Yorker friend Laurel and her man Greg are two of the good ones. Always up for a drink, always down for a chat and if that weren't enough, they're both just really freaking adorable.

Greg happens to be in a little band called Swimclub, and luckily for all of us, I happen to love their music.

Whenever I have one of those days where I wake up only to remember that I don't speak French, that the bills need to be paid, and that I still miss New York, Swimclub has a way of reminding me to just shut up and be happy.

They're playing the CMJ festival in New York tomorrow (October 20) at 8 p.m., at The Rose in Williamsburg , and I wish I could be there. If you live in the area, go and show them some well-deserved love.

And if you don't live in the area, listen to this and tell me you don't love it.

soup and snowsuits

I've been busy cooking up some new designs. I'll be printing up some of these little guys next week and adding them to the shop in time for holiday fun.

And speaking of cooking, I attended a soup cook-off held by some friends last night, which marked my first foray into the world of soup making. I whipped up (read: chopped, ground, minced, boiled and toiled for about 3 hours) an African Yam soup, to rave reviews.

It's no secret that I'm not a fan of cooking, so soup making is a bit over-the-top for me, to say the least. However, despite the involved process, it did make a ton of tasty soup, and was pretty fool-proof. I may just have to try it again a few times this fall and winter.

The winning soup was some amazing and crazy concoction involving homemade french fries, a butter chicken-like broth and mussels. I feel very fortunate to have such a talented and culinary savvy group of friends. I wish they would cook for me more often.

Puces Pop Recap

Pop Montreal!

I cannot say enough of the good words for Pop Montreal. I love riding my bike around to check out different shows. I love not getting into the bands I wanted to see, forcing me to check out other amazing bands. I love that it supports so many local artists, in so many different capacities (including my friends in Satellite Maps - check 'em out). And Fever Ray live was AMAZING.

It was a fun, crazy weekend, with a lot of really late nights. And Puces Pop was just the cherry on top.

I managed to make a few small loops of the sale, but still feel like I missed a lot of the stuff that was there. There's just so much amazing local talent! Some of my favorites from this year's sale:


Ring from Nervous System. They use awesome 3D digital printing as part of their process, which fascinates me to no end. This is the future, people.


Burlesque Legs wallet, from Bespoke Uprising. Roisin hand-dyes, prints and sews all of her wares. They are so beautiful, and I love their rustic feel. Plus, she's super sweet.


Stephen Harper = Hamster Face card, by Kirsten McCrea. I feel as though its awesomeness can speak for itself.

I walked away with so much inspiration and positive feedback, and I'm already hoping to do it again next year. Can't wait.

whirlwind

Sorry for the lack of posts lately - things have been a little hectic around these parts!

I was busying myself these past few weeks getting ready for the Puces Pop craft sale, which was this past weekend.

The sale was a blast, and I met some really amazing people. I also managed to walk away with some fantastic purchases - I'll post some photos later this week!

Thanks to everyone who came to the sale - I hope you had as much fun as I did.

New designs will be listed in the shop later this week!