Mai Autumn

big leaps

when i set out to write this blog post early on in the week, i realized, what better day than leap day to stop by to tell you all about the big leaps i've been making lately! lots of great new things have been happening, and i'm just bursting with excitement to tell you all about it! (i also wanted to have a little sale to celebrate, and you can find all the details about how to save 25% off the whole shop, today only, at the end of this post...)

i can't even believe i'm about to type this next piece of news, but, here it is - mai autumn is in a book! the new book i ♥ stationery came out last week. i just about died when my copy showed up, and there were my stationery designs on page 20! i've known about it for over a year, but it just didn't feel real until the actual book was in my hands.

the book was put together by the lovely charlotte rivers, and it features lots of beautiful stationery designers. i am so honored to be amongst all these talented artists! you can pick up a copy of i heart stationery here. (i still can't even believe it!)

in other news, i finally found a new place to live! i am moving back to the adorable town of ocean grove, nj, at the end of next month. i lived there a few years ago, and i've missed it so much, that i decided to move back. if you aren't familiar with the area, it is a tiny little town that looks as though time has stopped. all of the buildings are historically preserved, and there are adorable gardens, porches, and quirky details on most of the houses. i was already mentally moved in the minute i laid eyes on the wee little garden and quiet porch out front of my new place. i can't wait to share photos of it all once i'm moved in! it is full of so much character and i am just thrilled i'll soon be calling this little hideaway home :)

in the mean time, i've been enjoying having my family around while waiting for spring to finally arrive. the days when it's a tiny bit warmer are like little morsels of happiness when i can sit on the back deck and draw or write. it's just perfection!

(the above photos are from my project365 attempt - i'm doing okay so far! i haven't missed too many days this year! i hope to share more photo soon :)

i didn't forget what i said earlier about the sale! don't worry! in honor of leap day, you can enjoy 25% off the whole shop, for today only, with code LEAP - simply enter it at checkout to apply the discount. the code will expire at midnight tonight and cannot be combined with any other offers. 

(ocean grove image credits here + here)

the earth knows my name

i have a busy, busy day ahead of me, but i wanted to say hello on this gray monday morning! i hope you all had a fabulous weekend! i started to read a book on saturday - something i haven't gotten to do in quite some time (at least not a non-business type book!) and i have fallen in love. i saw Patricia Klindienst read at my alma mater when i was still in my junior year, and i knew The Earth Knows My Name would be one of those books that had the potential to change me. four years later, i find that my assumptions were correct. i have only broken into the first section of this beautiful depiction of culture, heritage and nature, but i already feel its effects - an awareness about my own heritage, the land, and the natural progression of time, that i have rarely sensed in myself. 

reading the first few pages, i also realized i was in the middle of my favorite moment of the year - the first warmth of the spring sunshine in my parents' backyard. my boyfriend and i took our saturday afternoon relaxing to their house, so i could watch their pets while they were visiting my aunt overnight. the change in scenery was well worth it and i can't wait to see what this year's spring is going to bring me. i am so excited for the season ahead! :) :)

you can pick up a copy of the book i'm reading on amazon.com: 

The Earth Knows My Name: Food, Culture, and Sustainability in the Gardens of Ethnic America

(and yes, that little buggy was trying to read my book haha)

lofty goals

i'm a big fan of lists, guidelines and goals. if i give myself something to achieve, i go out and give it my all. so, every year, i *attempt* to change my life for the better through somewhat ridiculous aspirations and ways of measuring my "success" at changing my life. usually, that takes the form of Project 365 - a fun thing i found out about on photojojo a few years ago, where one takes at least one photo every day for an entire year. i have tried to do this for 4 or 5 years now, maybe? and i always get to about february or march and it stops happening for some reason. i'm still gonna give it a go this year (i'm doing well so far!)(not so hard to do though, considering we're only 9 days in haha) but i like to keep that to myself, since some of my days, i like to be a little more private (don't we all?). i just feel like my life still needs to belong to me and if 'everyone' could see my days, it'd be strange and a bit embarrassing...

ok, i'm rambling here. the point is, i want something that i can do every day that i can share. there are lots and lots of ideas over at 365: Make Something Everyday and i just ordered my copy of his book - 365: A Daily Creativity Journal: Make Something Every Day and Change Your Life! - so i feel like i'm on the right track. i kinda wanna figure it out before i dive into something that i completely won't be able to finish, but i'm mulling over the idea of just doing a painting/illustration of some sort, every day. if i decide to go that route, or any route, i'll be starting a new blog about it! woohoo! i wouldn't want to clog up this blog with all those paintings i may do and i would rather be able to see my progress in a sort of separate medium. so if that goes down, i'll let you know. and you can then wander over there whenever you feel like seeing my random visual musings. :)

besides all that, i also really want to try to draw in my sketchbook every day, (i succeeded at doing that for a whole semester while i was in college!) but this is more of a hope than an actual concrete project. sketching is good for artists to do. so i've heard ;) 

all these plans and i betcha i won't even make it to april! i've read that if you share it with others, that it's harder to slack, so that's why you guys get this rambling post (haha). but really, my goal in all of these efforts, is to become a better artist and designer. if this is my career, (and it sure seems to be by now) then i really don't think it's so much to ask of myself. 

ok, now that that's said and done - in other news - today, i made bagels! pictures coming soon! so proud of my lil breakfast creation!

back to brainstorming and procrastinating on the jewelry designs i said i was going to get to today!