double happiness

I'm off...

2009-12-15T14:53:00.002-06:00

In a couple of hours, I will be jetting off to Vienna for my holidays! I probably won't have time to post, so I want to wish you all happy holidays! I'll be back in the New Year with posts about my trip, and my One of a Kind wrap up (better late than never!).

Bye for now!

Trudi

One of a Kind Show Recap

2009-12-04T12:34:00.005-06:00

We arrived back from the One of a Kind Show on Tuesday night, after doing the 5 day section of the show. It was an amazing - and exhausting - experience. The show opened on Thursday, November 26th and we arrived on Tuesday, November 24th to set up. We spent the day on

Tuesday running around - going to Ikea to get our shelving, picking up our books, all that fun stuff.

So, it took all of Tuesday and most of Wednesday to get our booth together, and I was fairly happy with the results. Not too bad considering it was put together on the spot! We were really busy for the duration of the show and met many wonderful customers and fellow vendors. I plan to do a whole post on the things I bought, and things that I wanted to buy!

This is me in the booth (cringe - messy hair and zits). Like I said, it was pretty exhausting - 11 hour days on my feet. The seams in my boots even split from all the strain! I learned so much, which I will also share in a future post. But for now, I've got my aching feet up for the first time in ages. I'll be back on Monday with more to share. I also hope to have an etsy shop update soon - I am just awaiting the return of some leftover stock from the show. Until then - ciao!

Hello from T.O.

2009-11-25T20:45:00.002-06:00

Wow - it's been a while since I did a post! I've been so busy getting ready for the One of a Kind Show that the last month has just flown by. We're in Toronto now, and the show is opening tomorrow! It's been a hectic couple of days - getting up at 4 am to catch our flight, driving to IKEA to get the stuff for our booth and unpacking all those boxes - more details and photos later...

Anyhow, I'm so looking forward to the show tomorrow, and to meeting all my Toronto readers. If you stop by the booth (N36) make sure to say "hi." Also - it's not too late to get a voucher for $3 off your admission when you buy your ticket online. Just comment with your email address and I will send one out to you. It may take me a few hours to reply though because (hopefully!) I will be too busy to get to my computer.

Happy Crappy Canadian Thanksgiving!

2009-10-11T09:19:00.001-06:00

Vienna

2009-10-07T16:08:00.002-06:00

I'm excited to announce that we are going to spend Christmas in Vienna this year! We are going to see Martin's brother, and stay with him in this great city. This photo is one I took on our last (very brief) trip there in 2004. It's an understatement to say that I'm excited about it - we've been working really hard this year, and this trip is exactly what we need. Spending time with family, walking around the beautiful streets, eating pastries, hanging out at the cafes, amazing art...we have been to Vienna a few times now and never tire of it. It's a bit like another home for us with lots of good memories. Only about 9 weeks to go and we'll be there!

Ocean Dog Rescue

2009-09-30T18:51:00.003-06:00

Ocean Dog Rescue is a dog adoption program based in Vancouver that brings abandoned dogs to find families in Canada from Taiwan. It's an amazing organization - everytime I look at their website, I feel both happy and sad. The stories of these dogs are heartbreaking - the sad part, but next to their photos, I often see the caption "adoption pending" - happy!

And look at these faces!

Hair Inspiration

2009-09-29T16:50:00.003-06:00

I've got an appointment to get a haircut next week and I want to do something a bit different, maybe radically different. I've been looking online for inspiration, and - after pages and pages of Katie Holmes and Posh Spice celebrity 'dos - stumbled across wip hairport's flickr stream. A very cool salon located in Lisbon, Portugal, wip hairport offers original, flattering cuts. I love the photos they take of their clients on the cobbled streets of Lisbon too, like the one above.

I am not sure what I'll do with my hair - I had it shoulder length for years, got it cut into a bob about a year ago and loved that it was lower maintenance, thinking that going super short would be the lowest maintenance ever, very appealing...but, I will probably chicken out at the last minute and walk out with a bob again. I'll let you know...

Anyhow - if you are looking for hair inspiration and want something a bit different from the celebrity options, check out wip hairport. If you're in Lisbon - you could actually go get your hair cut there - how cool is that?

One of a Kind Gift Guide

2009-09-26T07:45:00.004-06:00

I am pleased to announce that my books are being featured in this year's Toronto One of a Kind Show Christmas gift guide! I am so happy to see them there amongst lots of other great items - I think that the show is going to be full of temptations for me - I will have to set aside a budget to go shopping!
I also love the styling of the gift guide - it's divided into sections and each has a kind of "lifestyle" shot. If you look closely, you'll see my books on the dressing table in this one. Credits for all the other amazing items (I love everything in this photo, by the way) can be found in the gift guide. I'd like to thank the organizers of the One of a Kind Show for featuring me in the guide, and I'd also like to thank all my readers in the Toronto area - just comment on this post with your email address, and I will send you a coupon to get $3 off your show admission! Look forward to seeing you there!

I'm ready for my closeup....

2009-08-14T06:38:00.003-06:00

A couple was vacationing in Banff and had set their camera on a self timer to take a photo when this curious squirrel wandered into the shot. THE.CUTEST.THING.EVER. Read more here.

Julie & Julia

2009-08-11T16:35:00.002-06:00

I saw Julie & Julia the other night, and I thought it was just fantastic. It seems that everyone who saw the movie is saying this, but Meryl Streep's performance as Julia Child is just amazing and, as much as I love Amy Adams, I couldn't wait until the Meryl/Julia storyline was back on screen. I have also read Julia Child's "My Life in France" and found her story very inspiring. I just like the fact that at around the same age as me - 37 - she discovered her passion for cooking and turned it into a career. Late bloomers rule!

Mini Break

2009-08-10T18:55:00.003-06:00

We are back from our "mini break" in the Annapolis Valley. We had a truly wonderful time. We were only there for two days, but each day was glorious and sunny - which is pretty special in a summer that's been 90% rain so far! We went back to the same cottage we've stayed in for the past three years - it's a cute little place right on Evangeline Beach with views of Cape Split in the background. The little fellow above is an Inukshuk made by some previous tenants.

We visited many of our old Valley haunts, including the Port Pub (twice!), the farmer's market and some new favorites - a photo above is from the Gaspereau Vineyards, where we did a fun tour. We also went blueberry picking, but only lasted about 15 minutes in the hot sun - farmers we ain't. The blueberries were tasty and plentiful though, and we managed to pick quite a few in that time.

Evenings were spent walking along the beach and cooking dinners made from our farmer's market bounty. The Bay of Fundy has amazing tides - in the afternoon the water came right up to the edge of the backyard but by early evening it had receded so far we could walk along the mud flats.

When the sun set, we had a fire in the backyard chiminea and played crazy eights. My idea of a perfect mini break. We are thinking of staying for a whole week next year.

Stompin' Tom

2009-08-04T18:27:00.002-06:00

I can't believe it's been so long since I last posted! I have spent the last few weeks of this rainy summer knee deep in paper and ribbon. But - I'm taking a bit of a break this week and spending a night on the South Shore and a couple of days in the Valley. And - tomorrow night my Nan is visiting and we are going to see Stompin' Tom, who is a bit of a Canadian Icon, especially for us here on the East Coast. He sings about all the things that we hold dear - getting drunk on Saturday night, pick up trucks, hockey and...potatoes. Enjoy the video, and I'll be back next week with photos of my trip.

babycakes

2009-07-19T08:22:00.005-06:00

I have recently decided to make a committment to eating healthier food - less wheat, yeast and sugar - but cakes are still very important to me. So, I am thrilled to be the owner of this babycakes nyc cookbook. Their cupcakes were voted the best in New York -not best vegan cupcake, but best cupcake - period. I'm looking forward to trying some of the recipes in this book, but will need to make a special trip to the health food store to find all the ingredients. I will let you know how things turn out.

Lunchtime Walk...

2009-07-13T16:37:00.001-06:00

...on a sunny summer's day.

Head Shot, Take 2

2009-07-13T06:39:00.000-06:00

This is our new profile photo for the OOAK site. It's a bit difficult juggling a squirming dog whilst holding the camera in my other hand to do a self portrait. I think he had just seen a cat in this photo...

Peonies

2009-07-12T06:31:00.002-06:00

My most favorite flower of all time, growing in my garden right now.

The Best Bread Evah!

2009-07-05T18:51:00.002-06:00

Today was Martin's birthday, and although we had the official celebration at the Port Pub yesterday, I decided to make a bit of a decadent dinner tonight as well. A part of the dinner was this bread from Delia Smith's "How to Cook." It was absolutely amazing! It was a bit more like a large scone or Australian "damper" than a yeast risen bread - but so yummy. I actually really love all the recipes I've made from Delia's "How to Cook" series of books. They always turn out, and are just simple and good. I also noticed this variation with cheddar and caremelized onions on her website. And now, if you'll please excuse me - there is one final piece of this bread calling my name!

I was on the Front Page of Etsy!

2009-07-01T10:56:00.006-06:00

I have always wanted to make it to the front page of Etsy, and - unbeknowst to me - I did it last Friday! I was checking out my google analytics last night, and noticed a huge jump in my Etsy traffic one day. Turns out that my Blue Daisies Organizer had been on the Front Page!

Although I saw the jump in my stats, it was a bit hard to figure out what had caused it, so I will share my findings with you. They all came from this great Etsy Forum Post, written by one of the founders of Craft Cult. By the way, Craft Cult is a great site, and the Heartomatic is a wonderful tool - although I use Google Analytics to check my stats - Heartomatic is much more user friendly and tells you things that an Etsy seller would want to know without getting too technical.

Also - I just want to note that I think that changing up my photography style in my shop really contributed to me making it on to the front page. After reading an article in the Etsy Shop Makeover Series - I cropped and changed my photos, so that the main photo showing in my shop is a "teaser" shot of the item - something taken close up that doesn't show the whole product. This was suggested in the series, and I think it really works. It's kind of a tantalizing way to get people to click through and see more. Also - if you look at the front page and the treasuries, they all feature these types of shots. My photos still need a lot of work - but I always keep these "teaser" shots in mind when I photograph my products now.

Hot or Not: Cute Skulls

2009-06-30T14:17:00.003-06:00

I was out today, and picked up this little punch that I thought was cute, and made some notebooks. Now, my question is - does anyone else think this is cute? Am I alone in loving "cute" skulls. I just love the juxtaposition of the dark imagery of the skull with floral pinks and reds. Let me know what you think!

Head Shot

2009-06-29T18:09:00.004-06:00

I've spent the evening creating my artisan profile on the One of a Kind Show site (it's not live yet - but I'll let you know when it's up). The most difficult part was choosing a profile photo. I hate having my photo taken, so there weren't many to choose from. Anyhow, this is the best I could come up with - but it's really old! I look totally different now - new glasses, new hair. Even Milo has a more stylish haircut these days. My mission this week is to try to come up with a better, more current photo of me and my little sidekick!

Nurtured

2009-06-22T16:55:00.002-06:00

My neighbor April recently expanded her online business Nurtured into a brick and mortar retail shop. I popped in today to buy some baby gifts, and it's a beautiful light and bright space, with touches of weathered wood - I really love the interior design. The products are pretty great too, and April is really knowledgeable and helpful. I would highly recommend the shop to parents - or those who shop for them!

Puff Daddy

2009-06-19T07:07:00.003-06:00

After all the craft show madness is over, I want to make this for my living room. I want it to be bright pink! It seems like a fairly simple pattern - just a garter stitch rectangle that's then sewn together. Pickles (found via More Ways to Waste Time) has lots of other great patterns on their site, including a baby version of this puff.

My Milk Toof

2009-06-11T06:13:00.003-06:00

I have been feeling a bit sick the last couple of days, so Martin sent me this link - My Milk Toof - to cheer me up. It is the cutest, funniest thing that I've seen in a long time. Click on the link, you won't be sorry....

Around the Web

2009-06-08T17:43:00.003-06:00

It's been a while since I posted, but that doesn't mean I've been away from the internet. Quite the contrary. I'm always reading blogs and discovering things. Here are a few things I like -

Black Cab Sessions - musicians play while driven around London in the back of a black cab. I like the Martha Wainwright one. (via Loobylu)

Grizzly Bear - after reading about this band in a couple of magazines, I decided to check out their music on the web. I like it.

Speaking of music, CBC Radio Three has a great collection of music by Canadian Artists. The New Music section has lots of great music sorted by artist - Arcade Fire, the Weakerthans...I am partial to Julie Doiron. Just go to the Radio Three site and type in the names to hear more.

Fubiz is a great blog. Lots of visual inspiration.

I want classic French garden furniture from Fermob, but cheaper please.

Love this cartoon by Lucy Knisley which sums up the whole Twilight series in 16 panels. (Warning - spoiler alert) Her experience reading the books is similar to mine. Addictive! (also via Loobylu)

2009-06-03T07:50:00.003-06:00

Danni over at oh, hello friend has organized a giveaway on her blog, and asked me to participate. 16 Etsy shops have donated some amazing items, and my little and big noteboooks are the prize that will be offered to two runners up. Head on over to oh, hello friend to find out how to enter. The prizes are so fantastic, if I wasn't involved, I would enter myself! Good Luck!