amarettosmoke's Xanga

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Tue, 06 May 2008 00:25:36 GMT

Huzzah! Come by and visit—bluebirdcards.com is officially up and running. (We even have a free hi-res image library! It's small, but growing.) So fun . . . and all thanks to Austin. :)

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Tue, 29 Apr 2008 00:56:08 GMT

Today, Lucy assigned me to work on a new cover for Sketches of Home by Suzanne Clark. I really like doing book covers, honestly. But just as honestly, they don't come naturally to me. Rachel Hoffmann can whip them out like you wouldn't imagine, and David Dalbey has got concepts that won't stop, but . . . I'm a little more scatter-brained. I find it wickedly difficult to make the cover tell a story. Torn between illustrating a tiny, close-up "character sketch" of some chapter or an elephant-boned, broad brush "plot" view, I get confused, press all the wrong buttons, and ultimately have to use the ejection seat. Still, like I said, I really enjoy it.

And, as promised posts ago, a tattered quilt of Miniatures and Morals covers, attempting to explore different aspects of the book, all in various stages of undress and rejection. I couldn't find all of them, but enough is enough.

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Wed, 23 Apr 2008 00:19:25 GMT

Cards, cards, cards! I have cards on the brain.
At present, it seems to work best if we order eight designs at a time (free shipping!). We've got the first half of the next order done--these four are from a book by Charles Kingsley called The Water Babies. Has anyone read it? Personally, I think it's a little exasperating, like a Lewis Carroll minus the wit:

    "I can't learn my lesson; do come and help me!" And one cried, "Can you show me how to extract this square root?"
    And another, "Can you tell me the distance between a Lyrae and B Camelopardalis?"
    And another, "What is the latitude and longitude of Snooksville, in Noman's County, Oregon, U.S.?"
    And another, "What was the name of Mutius Scaevola's thirteenth cousins' grandmother's maid's cat?"

Zuff. But the illustrations by Mabel Lucie Attwell save the book. At least for me.

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Sun, 20 Apr 2008 05:20:53 GMT

Oh boy . . . a new look! I'm hoping maybe it will inspire me to keep in touch a lil more.

Besides falling off the internet, I also fell off the making-cards wagon when Farmer's Market ended last year. But! Things are back on track, thanks to Austin's motivating powers, and we're working on all sorts of new cards. Bluebird Cards (that's us) has a cute little under-construction website at bluebirdcards.com, and—joy of joys—as of today, the Co-op is carrying our cards! Woohoo!

Fairytale cards, illustrated by Jessie Willcox Smith:

And the three little pigs, by Leslie Brooke:

That's all for now! Goodnight and have a grand Sabbath. :)

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Thu, 15 Nov 2007 18:35:10 GMT

Evangelical Theological Society. San Diego, California.

Lucy and I are hanging out in this big exhibit hall on Day 2 of the conference. We knew we were in the deep end of the pool when somebody asked, "So, what's your corporate identity?" Toss me the arm floaties, please.

Everyone (those who stop and look that is) seems intrigued by our "literature for a life less petty" line, so that's encouraging. I'm guessing at least half of these people have never heard of Canon before, so it's good just to be seen. I'm trying to give away all these catalogs, Audio Dept, I promise.

The funniest thing is being at a conference where you're not seeing familiar faces all day long. We're with the body, but at the same time, there's nothing like home sweet arm (or whatever part of the body you happen to hail from).

San Diego has been fun so far--last night Lucy and I ate REAL Chinese food and went to Sephora. Ah, the little joys. I think we're getting real carne asada burritos tonight and might just have to shamble back to the mall. Did I mention there's an IKEA too? Yipee! (Christa, I already bought you a Christmas present.)

Well, that's all for now. Next time (when, 4 months from now?), a little Miniatures & Morals cover art amusement.

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Sun, 02 Sep 2007 02:40:54 GMT

It seems almost pathetic that this could've roused me from internet silence, but I don't care. Horton Hears a Who.

Today at the thrift store I found:

Yay!

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Thu, 26 Jul 2007 04:10:42 GMT

So Harry Potter . . . done? page? waiting to borrow?

I think I've only made it to 175. I'm savoring it. That's what I tell myself.
Secretly, I'm in love with sleep.
And ice cream sandwiches. Can't stop.

Soon . . . pics of the new apartement.
And for those of you in town, I'm having you over. It's nearly there.

A recent favorite book cover.
Has anyone read this?

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Thu, 19 Jul 2007 03:33:29 GMT

Christa and I roadtripped down to San Francisco on Friday—Christa behind the wheel all 16 hours, there and back. Joel and Mary are the new Dowers, and all is right with the world.

Hoo boy, the Cohen brothers have another one rattling around.

The dogs just found the biggest, crankiest pincher beetle in the grass.
He's over an inch long, probably 1/2" wide, and growls when poked.

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Fri, 06 Jul 2007 03:32:01 GMT

Mary GrandPre', sans Harry Potter. I quite like. Of course, I'm beside myself for HP7.

The apartment is really starting to come together.
Does anyone know how to hang pictures from concrete walls (that deform nails with their firmness)?

I'm an aunt again.
Beck is so teeny and bursting with cuteness.

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Mon, 18 Jun 2007 23:35:13 GMT

Off to Atlanta on Wednesday for the ol' ACCS Conference. It's fun, but I don't think I'm ever as tired as when I'm doing a conference. Vitamins!

I leave you with the latest trailer from Jerry Seinfeld's Bee Movie. I can hardly wait.