and then she saved - anna newell jones

Here's another item I've been hanging onto for too long. Anna Newell Jones and I met through Etsy. She's a super talented photographer that was kind enough to buy something from my shop (thank you again!). Now seems like the perfect time to introduce her with all this consumption talk. Anna started a blog/project this year called "And Then She Saved". In her own words:

My idea is to go on a spending fast for a year - spending money on necessities only- to see what happens, how much debt I can get out of and how much I can get into savings.

When I mentioned to a good friend that I was thinking about going on a spending fast for 2010 she sighed and said "Well, that doesn't sound very fun." Then, I told my husband what I was thinking about doing and he wasn't very excited about it either. He said "Great. No more fun. No more eating out. This is gonna suck."

I have to tell you, I feel the same way. Who would want to not get want they want? I'm the type that buys what she wants when she wants because I work hard and I feel like I deserve it. I know plenty of people that have the same feelings as I do about work and money and spending and not spending.

Inside my head I hear this loudly: "YOU DESERVE IT DARLING!" and truly, I believe that I do. I mean, I woke up early for goodness-sake! I did what was asked of me and I was even nice while doing it! I DESERVE that super cute trinket or hat or whatever from Etsy dammit! Besides, I work a full-time day job AND I run a full-time wedding photography business AND what else can I think of? I do a lot and my spending is justified... until it isn't anymore.

And.. that's where I am today... starting January 1st 2010 I'm gonna spend money on necessities only and I'm fully prepared for this to suck.

As a fellow wanter and I can totally identify with her; spending habits are hard to change. Take a look at her blog and really dig in. I'll bet you can relate to a lot of it too. And maybe say hello... I bet she'd like that. Oh, and maybe ask her about What Not to Wear.

LINKS:
[ And Then She Saved ]
[ Etsy ]
[ Newell Jones and Jones Photography ]
[ 1 comments

obsessive consumption

This is sort of oldish news and has made the blog rounds already but I love Kate Bingaman-Burt and her work so will go forth with this dusty (in internet years) announcement. I have written about her before but odds are most folks are already no stranger to her Obsessive Consumption work.

For those in the dark Bingaman-Burt has set aside time in each day (over the last FIVE years) to illustrate something she has purchased. This can be anything from a magazine to a haircut to a plane ticket. Up to now her drawings have been made into a regular zine but this month her hard work has paid off in the form of a published book. Yay her! And somehow she also finds the time to teach at Portland University as well as provide her talents to clients like ReadyMade Magazine, Newsweek, Microsoft, Handmade Nation, Photojojo, Poketo, Uppercase Magazine, Pinball Publishing (to name a few). She's kinda my hero.

LINKS:
[ Flickr ]
[ Obsessive Consumption ]
[ Kate Bingaman-Burt ]
[ Buy the Book ]

BONUS:

This is designer Frank Chimero's version of the book cover.

and more baltimore...

moxie

I have some news... I'm excited to say that I will be selling some of my stuff at a new local shop in Austin called Moxie. It will be on E 11th St and host several local artists' work as well as vintage goodies. The store officially opens on May 1st but I believe it will be open tonight for East End 4th Friday, so you can get a sneak peek. I will not have anything there yet; in fact I'm feeling the time crunch trying to get everything together. Ah, hopefully it will all work out. I encourage any of you Austinites to go check it out. And for updates find Moxie on Facebook.

more baltimore, less talking

need to want less: foundation

How do I explain this? In brief, sometimes I want to jump to the good stuff... do everything I want AND get paid for it (yes, my ongoing pipe dream) but sometimes you have to make sacrifices or abandon a stubborn/unrealistic agenda. AND sometimes that's what it takes to eventually have everything you want (maybe). I guess if not, butter on it's own may not even be so bad. I don't know.... once again probably makes more sense in my brain. At any rate I'm hungry for some toast now (why do half of these little posters revolve around food?).

patrick joust

And now for the real star of the show...

When I was looking up stuff on Baltimore I found citizen of "Charm City", photographer Patrick Joust's Flickr stream. How I avoided his photography all this time I have no idea, but I'm so glad to have stumbled upon it. He is amazing (and tireless). His photos truly tell a real story that honors the city while documenting its quirks, community, failings, and glory.

The number of fabulous photos is really never ending (and are not just comprised of Baltimore shots). Set aside a good chunk of time and go look at some amazingness.

a little bit of baltimore

As I mentioned recently, I went to Baltimore, Maryland. I should say WE. My boyfriend had to go for work and was nice enough to let me get a free ride out of it. Yeah, I know... VERY nice. Now I can't say that Baltimore is one of the first cities that would pop into my mind to go to if faced with multiple options BUT I'm so glad I went.

I love traveling and especially enjoy going somewhere new. There is always a lot of eye candy that makes me happy but more importantly I am exposed to culture, skylines, architecture, sites... even sandwiches that do not exist here in Austin. I like where I live but let's face it, Austin lacks a certain history and diversity that older parts of the country/world have.

About all I knew of Baltimore I learned on The Wire, which although one of the best shows ever, a bit of a narrow (and fictional) guide to the city. Without making this post a mile long I'll try to wrap this up (my ADD is kicking in)...

In my 5 day stay I was able to explore a good portion of the city. I like that it's just that easy; you can see so much in a short time and I found the city surprisingly (seemingly?) small. And from block to block you never knew what kind of neighborhood you were going to get. Transition is one word I would use to describe the landscape. Things were falling apart, but things were patching up, and back and forth. Stuff was dirty, but stuff was just gorgeous. The tulips, greenery, cobble stones, and statues were beautiful, not to mention the old buildings. The buildings... this was most fascinating to me. Some areas were like ghosts of eras past, so much so if you squinted you could see everything in its heyday. One thing in particular I liked were the clocks embedded in many of the buildings (maybe a standard to some of you, but not the norm here).

I have no cold hard facts about Baltimore's economy and crime rate. I can guess. And I have eyes; my inner scaredy cat said "turn around" a few times. I do hope that any numbers you look up do not deter you from going. And I hope the future is looking brighter for the city. Really, there a richness and vibrancy even among some of the less obvious spots. Nice people, good food, and at the time fabulous weather. And somewhere, if you're lucky, maybe you'll see a herd of guys on motorcycles that will ride down the streets doing tricks. That made a great trip amazing. The only thing that would have made it better... two words, John Waters.

A few photos below. After, a quick run-down of some good stuff to see/do/eat.





Crab cakes, broiled crab, crab omelet, Museum of Dentistry (a fewmost may debate this), Natty Boh beer (the secret/not so secret twin to Lone Star), Little Italy, the inner harbor, The Brewer's Art, Edgar Allen Poe's grave, the Washington Monument, cherry blossoms, the Bromo-Seltzer Tower, Lexington Market, Cafe Hon, Geppi's Entertainment Museum, the Shot Tower, Charles St., Vaccaro's, Federal Hill... and probably a bunch of other things I'm forgetting.

polgaroid

It all started with the above photo. I was cruising Flickr and found that image by Polgaroid. I'm pretty sure it is my new favorite; can't you just imagine seeing a giant bull in the middle of nothing. Seeing other work by him/her(?) I am just as blown over. I want to be everywhere these photos take place. Please let me borrow your eyes.






LINKS:
[ Flickr ]
[ Website ]
[ Tumblr ]

wiener time

You know I can't resist a good wiener related post. This is from the awesome Flickr group Signs in Motion.

[ via Little Verses ]

1 minute photoshop: protection

I am not good with criticism, which has been noted here before. I have always been this way, and I suppose it's not that abnormal however I don't like the cycle of emotions I personally experience when faced with unfavorable feedback. I get sad, then angry, then defensive, all in a matter of seconds. It's pretty gross, especially if you're on the receiving end of it (hello parents, teachers, bosses, boyfriend).

I am 100% aware that not all news is good news. I also know that choosing to put my opinions or personal creations out there is my choice and opposing views are inevitable. Common sense does not always communicate with my less rational side though. If for example I intend to keep making things like my Need to Want Less series (which for some reason I feel compelled to defend with this statement... "I'm making fun of MYSELF dumbasses") I'm going to have to deal with intelligent critiques like "awful, preachy puns masquerading as insightful. fuck off" and "wow, that sucked". Please... don't hold back.

It's probably hypocritical of me to be confused by such venom, but I never claimed to be some sage of the design world. I fully admit I barely know what I'm doing sometimes, so how I could be so offensive is unclear. And this is when living in a bubble seems like a nice alternative. Seeing as that is not too feasible I guess I will have to learn to read selectively and care more about the positive. That said, if you have CONSTRUCTIVE criticism, I'm all ears. Thanks for listening to my rant about ranters. Now I'm going to go remind myself how to not take myself so seriously.

unwelcome guest

I probably shouldn't reveal this, but as is my way when at my wits' end, I unload... and now I confess to having a mouse/rat that has decided my home is his. My critter loving side has grappled with the methods I should use to get rid of himthem, but I simply can not share my space so they're out of here. I wish we could be friends but there are a few simple rules that are being ignored. Before I get into some sort of Willard showdown anyone got any tips?



[ image link ]

goodbye baltimore

I have just returned home from a relaxing trip to Baltimore with my boyfriend. It was full of walking, site seeing, Natty Boh, people watching, photo taking, crab delights and more. I plan on sharing a few of the interesting highlights, but now it's time for rest (from my resting), laundry, and work.

[ image credit amhpics ]

1 minute photoshop: suggestion

Couldn't hurt.

Talents include typing, talking, obeying orders, fetching coffee, making things, giving compliments.

new work from old favorites

Hollis Brown Thornton


Keith Davis Young


Brandi Strickland


Mark Weaver

happy birthday!

Happy birthday to the man I love. Don't hate me for posting this...

pink pictures

I grew up not very fond of pink. I look bad in pink. I hate my rosy cheeks. And the only splash of pink I have in my house is an old lamp. But lately I seem to gravitate to shooting pinkish pictures. And I kind of like it.

need to want less: housekeeping

The great clean of '10 has hit a roadblock... me. I have to ride those spurts of energy and interest and I clearly did stay on the wave long enough. Taking a match to the whole house seems faster. Extreme, maybe. I just want this mess to clean itself or go away.

photo contests

Click the name of the contest for more details. Deadlines are listed to the right of each.

•Pinhole Photo Contest -- April 9, 2010
•Daylight Magazine -- May 15, 2010
•Inspired by Henri Cartier-Bresson /Win a trip to NYC -- Deadline ???
•Blurb Photo Book Contest -- July 15, 2010

well chop me up and call me suey

My vocabulary is sorely lacking some pizazz. Maybe with a look to the past and a handy edition of "The Slanguage Dictionary" I can remedy that. I can already imagine how I will weave in "dig me drip?", "now you're flying with Doolittle", and "you melt me" into daily conversation. Watch out world, everything old is new again. Thanks to the allows amazing Boat Lullabies/Square America for the find.

michael gillette

I believe the title of this illustration is "Ego Stroke". Ha. This is weird and wonderful. For more of Michael Gillette's work check out his portfolio.

[ link via Begin Being ]

new photo: eat in a glass box

I'm not sure why but I really love this building. Formally a Chinese(?) food restaurant, it's now undergoing a makeover to become a taco place. I'm hoping they leave it pretty much as is... which may not be aesthetically pleasing to most, but I'm liking the glass box look. You can view a larger version here.

austin kleon

Austin Kleon is awesome. So awesome that I'm not sure why it has taken me so long to write about him. He is an Austin based artist/web designer that writes poetry by blacking out words in New York Time's articles, leaving only select phrases/prose. Lately I have been seeing his work everywhere... yay him! Seems like a really nice guy... poems about his wife AND he has a dachshund (which is not the sole criteria for being deemed nice, but it don't hurt). He also just came out with a book that you can purchase here.

ALL AUSTIN LINKS:
[ Flickr ]
[ Official Site ]
[ Twitter ]
[ Newspaper Blackout Book ]

need to want less: music

I'm going to sound old here... but I can't keep up with technology. Where I'm getting left behind is the $$$. Thanks Apple for coming out with something better, stronger, every, say 6 months (I'm not keeping track anymore), however my tapes and CD's and records, and even 1st generation mini iPod still play. That said, if I had the money I'm not sure I could resist your twinkling lights and 1,000,000,000G's. Sometimes it's good to be broke...

OLD SCHOOL AUDIO:
Audio cassette tape nostalgia [ Tape Deck ]
9 Ways to kill an iPod [ YouTube ]
Make an 8 Track Walkman [ Instructables ]
World's greatest record collection [ Vimeo ]
Analog bandages [ Incredible Things ]

julien berthier

I really like this series from Julien Berthier, how he's playing with scale and... well, a giant fun prop. He is A LOT of other work that you can check out on his site.

[ link via boooooom ]

http://www.julienberthier.org/

taste the rainbow

I don't know specifically what these are, but the title of the photo is "treats" so works for me... I will eat it. They are almost too pretty to consume though.

[ photo credit straup via Hunson is Groovy ]

desktop wallpaper: nice spread

For some reason I have felt like making some desktop wallpapers. As much as I love my Science of Sleep images, I think they are a bit... dated, or have at least served their purpose at this point. So I came up with a new one. It's a first effort so whatever. But as with everything I still feel compelled to share what I make. And if for some reason you want it I have made it in several sizes which you can download below. More nonsense to come.

NICE SPREAD:
1920x1200
1680x1050
1440x900
1280x1024
1280x800
1024x768
iphone

ask a nana

I LOVE this project which is featured in Frankie Magazine. Grandmothers are asked what advice they would give their 20 year old selves and it's added to a Polaroid photo of their current self. Oh, Betty... you look like a lot of fun!

[ link via Miss Moss ]