Grey Moggie Press

flashback

I drove through Charlottesville on a work trip earlier this week and on my way back I knew I had to stop for lunch at Revolutionary Soup, a great lunch place I tried for the first time in January. They've got tons of tasty soups, sandwiches, and salads sourced from local farms. The experience is a warm, no-frills deliciousness.

Before getting back in the car for the rest of the drive, I popped in to Blue Whale Books and stumbled upon a small treasure. In the back of the store near the printing and book arts books, I found an old issue of Print magazine. From 1989. One article, The Women Who Saved New York, featured Paula Scher and Louise Fili. How wonderful to see their now iconic work as it was covered when it was new.

I am so glad I made that stop in Charlottesville yesterday. For one, that Spicy Senegalese Peanut Tofu soup really hit the spot. And now I'm eager to look back on current issues of Print in 20 years; perhaps I'll be this delighted all over again.

Thirty things to do while I'm Thirty

Birthday weekend (yes, it was a whole weekend) was amazing! It started off with a sweet lunch and cake and flowers with my office on Friday. Then Eric created the most beautiful spread of wine, cheese, and desserts for a party on Saturday night. I chose a dense, flourless chocolate cake with peanut butter icing; he baked it perfectly. You’d think a cake like that would be the centerpiece, but there was a whole display of bread and butter radishes. Three different varieties. With bread. And butter. And four different kinds of salt. I could eat radishes all day and all night, they make me so happy!

Sunday was for coffee, farmers market, dumplings and bubble tea for lunch, and then a drive to an adorable old schoolhouse where we spent the night. When I say “old” I mean 150 years old. That’s way old! Eric cooked up what we had found at the farmers market that morning while I cozied up in front of the fireplace with a glass of champagne and The New Yorker. Is there a better way to spend a rainy birthday? No, no there's not. 

We spent Monday exploring Charlottesville, VA. Two coffee shops, two vintage stores, one yarn store, three used book stores, and a delicious sushi dinner later, and I can confidently say that this was one of the best weekends and best birthdays ever. 

What a perfect way to kick off a year in which I want to accomplish so so so much!

Thirty Things to do While I’m Thirty

1:: Take one photo every day 2::Crochet pretty cowls 3::Alpahbet swap 4::Eat breakfast with Eric on weekdays 5::sew pretty headbands 6:: read 50 books more 7::Cherry Blossom 10-miler 8::Put stuff in my etsy shop 9::Sell at at least one craft fair 10::Photo shoot at Palace of Wonders 11::New Yorker covers project 12::Sew a skirt 13::NYC inspiration trip 14::Paint recipe art 15::(Re-)Learn calligraphy 16::Become more comfortable with Illustrator 17::Make at least one batch of macarons 18::Attend some combination of 5 yoga and/or dance classes 19::Send a letter or card once a week 20::Find vintage typewriter, suitcases, record player, polaroid, and/or sewing machine 21::Print & frame 4 photos each month 22::Make 6 mix CDs 23::Blog at least 10 times per month 24::Learn 5 new bookbinding methods 25::Seriously consider a new tattoo 26::Read and use The Printmaker’s Bible 27::Learn how to roast a chicken the way Eric does it 28::Collect printing blocks and type 29::Make notecards to keep on hand 30::Send holiday cards

a few of my favorite things

At one of the shops we visited in Aix, there were beautiful dresses and skirts that were all designed by the same artist. I bought a gorgeous yellow skirt with handpainted detailing, and a one-of-a-kind printed dress with bright ribbons that Mr. Moggie chose. In the corner of the shop I spotted a shelf with some sweet handmade books. I got a simple cahier, with beautiful natural flecked pages and this amazing stitched book with a musical note cut out of the front cover. When I picked it up I noticed that under the stitching, the book artist had slipped a piece of sheet music so that the binding of the book is littered with musical notes. My face lit up and I looked over at the shopkeeper, who had the biggest knowing grin on her face, like she had been waiting and waiting for someone to notice that detail.

Later in Paris my friend, Amber, pointed me to a fun little shop near her apartment. She thought I would love it, and she was right. I found a couple more little cahiers there. One featured an illustrated map of Paris with the major sights collaged in, and one with adorable animal characters for each letter of the alphabet.

And while we’re on the topic of cute alphabet drawings, here’s a sheet of paper I picked up in Aix. And have you seen Emily Martin’s Black Apple alphabet poster? I snagged one a few weeks ago and it’s tucked away safely to be hung on the wall at our next apartment.  

What kinds of books inspire you to make books of your own?  

***I've decided to run a series on books over the next few days (weeks? until I run out, I guess). I'll share some of my favorite books to carry around, what supplies I bring with me on trips, some easy book-binding techniques, and what inspires my favorite pages.

Feel free to use any tip or technique I share on the blog in your own work. If you find a way to make it profitable, by all means, use it. If you really like an idea that I've shared, I'd love a link back to my blog or the post where I shared it; if you like lots of my ideas, consider adding me to your blogroll. If I share something that I didn't come up with myself, I will point you to the source; if I point you to another website or blog, please be considerate about how others want their work attributed.If you make something super neat using an idea from my blog, I'd love to see a photo of it! Thanks and enjoy.***

Mini-book tip: Planning page

It’s a good idea to jot down thoughts every day while traveling. You might remember all the activities from a specific day and record them later, but it’s harder to capture emotion and fleeting thoughts more than a few hours later. When I make a mini-book, I always leave spaces for journaling. You can use labels on scrapbook paper or insert a few blank pages. On our last trip to New York, we wanted to fit a lot of stuff into our last full day there. If we were going to fit in coffee at Abraco, noodles at Momofuku, hat shopping, pie shopping, the Brooklyn Flea, and dinner with friends, we were going to need a plan. Along with our hosts, we came up with a schedule for the day while we were at dinner the night before. I jotted it in my Something to Keep You Distracted journal, on a page with the prompt “present dreams.” Jenny added illustrations, and also all of our initials with checkboxes to the bottom of the page so that we could sign on to show our approval of the plan. We made a rough go of the plan that Sunday morning and while the weekends’ previous late nights made us pretty slow, we fit almost everything into the day.

A couple weeks later in France, I used the same concept on a page I had left blank for journaling. It was a fun way to practice a new way of lettering I had seen during our time in NYC. As the day went on, I added notes about each of the day’s planned events, and whether or not we stuck to the plan. It’s one of my favorite pages from that album.

Can you make your daily to-do list visually appealing? Try it!

***I've decided to run a series on books over the next few days (weeks? until I run out, I guess). I'll share some of my favorite books to carry around, what supplies I bring with me on trips, some easy book-binding techniques, and what inspires my favorite pages.

Feel free to use any tip or technique I share on the blog in your own work. If you find a way to make it profitable, by all means, use it. If you really like an idea that I've shared, I'd love a link back to my blog or the post where I shared it; if you like lots of my ideas, consider adding me to your blogroll. If I share something that I didn't come up with myself, I will point you to the source; if I point you to another website or blog, please be considerate about how others want their work attributed.If you make something super neat using an idea from my blog, I'd love to see a photo of it! Thanks and enjoy.***

What to bring on an adventure

I always intend to put my photos and scraps together after a trip. Intentions, however, give way to unpacking, laundry, loving my cat, getting back into the every day routine, and recovery from the trip. So the last few times I traveled, I made a mini-book before we departed and packed it in my bag along with a few good supplies. My supply stash grew with each trip, and in France I found a cute little bag to hold them all. Here’s a list of the things I will likely carry on future trips. Take some ideas from my list and then let me know if I’m missing something.

Mini scissors: If the blades are less than 4 inches, you can pass through airport security.

Adhesives: I brought a glue stick, tape runner, and glue pen. The glue pen can be used as a permanent or repositionable adhesive. When at home, i use Zots, but they come in a bulky roll.

Mini stapler & extra staples: Once I picked up my mini stapler I didn’t know how I ever survived without it.

Mini hole punch: So you can add extra pages while you travel (especially cool if you have a Polaroid and want to add photos as you go)

Pens: My favorite pens are Paper Mate Flair pens. I typically bring black and red with me. I also like the AC Slick Writers since they write on masking tape, photos, & glossy postcards.

Labels: I always stock up when Paper Source has a sale on labels, or you can find lots of free templates online and add your own adhesive.

Decorative tape: I carry 3-4 rolls of happy tape on a trip – whichever rolls best match the theme of the book. 

Ribbon: The ribbons in the photo are those I picked up during our trips and tried to incorporate into the books. We visited an art store in Aix-en-Provence and a scrapbooking store in Bar Harbor and I found lots of fun items that I don't typically have access to. 

Bone folder: If you have it, you will use it. I used mine to smooth down wine labels that I added to my pages in France.

 

See how nicely they fit into my little pack? I picked the bag up at a gift shop in Aix. It's a Quo Vadis bag featuring Benjamin Vautier insignia. And voila. All zipped up and ready to go in my day trip bag.

What do you bring when you want to craft on the go, and how do you carry it all?

***I've decided to run a series on books over the next few days (weeks? until I run out, I guess). I'll share some of my favorite books to carry around, what supplies I bring with me on trips, some easy book-binding techniques, and what inspires my favorite pages.

Feel free to use any tip or technique I share on the blog in your own work. If you find a way to make it profitable, by all means, use it. If you really like an idea that I've shared, I'd love a link back to my blog or the post where I shared it; if you like lots of my ideas, consider adding me to your blogroll. If I share something that I didn't come up with myself, I will point you to the source; if I point you to another website or blog, please be considerate about how others want their work attributed.If you make something super neat using an idea from my blog, I'd love to see a photo of it! Thanks and enjoy.***

France Mini Book

Have you ever gone on a really amazing trip? You had high expectations and they were exceeded? That was our recent trip to France. And it is so difficult to adjust to real life after a trip that takes you so far from reality. Making this mini-book helped the recovery a bit, but we're definitely still adjusting.

We spent the first part of the week in Aix-en-Provence. What a beautiful, charming city! The pace was relaxed, but not slow. Everyone was gorgeous and I loved how well they wore even the simplest clothes. The shopping in Aix was an indie girl's dream. So many of the shops and market vendors sold beautiful handmade hats, dresses, and tops in which you couldn't miss the marriage between fashion and art. And I found beautiful handmade books in several shops, too. The food was ridiculous. We took advantage of the food markets and Provencal restaurants, and on a day trip to Marseille we hit up a bouillabaisse joint. Provence does rose wine really well and we drank lots of it at every meal and sometimes while we sat and watched the beautiful crowds stroll by our cafe table.

Next we ventured up to Paris to spend some time with my college roommate. She and her husband were such gracious hosts and introduced us to many of their friends. I think part of the reason it's been so hard to adjust to real life again is because it was so wonderful to reconnect with such a dear friend. That, and the macarons at Laduree.

 

This mini-book is a beast. I used a bunch of photo postcards we picked up along the way, and had included some soft paper in muted colors before the trip. I added wine labels, business cards, train tickets, the map we carried around every day, our printed itinerary, and lots of other random paper pieces, even the wrapper from the duck sausage we picked up from the market. For the photos I took, I printed them out in 4x6 blocks, three blocks to an 8.5x11 sheet of photo paper. I started out with tiny book rings, but had to upgrade to giant rings, of course. I've never used the big ones before - I'm glad I still had them lying around! Lots of photos of the "mini"-book below:

Maine Mini Book

 

After a few days in NYC, we headed directly to Northern Maine. We spent the rest of the week at my parents' house, all the way at the tippy top of the state. One morning I got up to pack a picnic lunch for the whole family and we canoed all day long. Until it was time for ice cream. We spent a few hours on the lake with my aunt and uncle - they even let Mr. Moggie captain the boat for a while. And we always seem to be in town for the annual Muskie Derby and Ploye Festival. Seriously. We ended our time in the north by attending a 55th wedding anniversary party for my dad's aunt and uncle. So. Ridiculously. Cute. 

The rest of our stay in Maine we were in Bar Harbor. We had a few relaxing days, dining out with my parents, reading on the lawn while the waves crashed below, and devouring lobsters. It was wonderful!

Here's the mini-book that captures it all:

I'm back

Whew. We've landed. I spent the last week getting through piles of laundry leftover after our trips to New York, Maine, and then France. More importantly, I spent lots of time printing and clipping photos to add to the mini-books I built up while we were traveling.

We started out in New York so I'll share my NYC mini-book today. We spent the weekend with friends in Greenpoint and tagged along their normal weekend routines. Like tamales at Beaner Bar on Saturday morning. And coffee at Abraco on Sunday morning. We wandered around Brooklyn all day on Saturday, in the company of Jenny, Walter, the fabulous Jen of McFlashpants. In the evening we had an earth shattering meal at the new Graffiti. On Sunday we shopped in lower Manhattan, went to the Brooklyn Flea, and shared a lovely dinner with friends hosted by the lovely Sarah (& JT). The trip was a perfect way to start our summer travels. 

Jen, Eric, Jenny, & Walter walkingin Brooklyn

Photos of my NYC mini book below:

 

 

 

Bon Voyage

me & Kara celebrating at Galaxy Hut

I survived the bar. I won't know if I passed until November so for now, I'm imagining not ever having to take it again.

me, Eric, Jessie, & Gregg in New York

I've been celebrating for most of the time since the exam was over. We had a couple fun nights out with friends before heading to New York for a fabulous weekend, followed by a week in Maine. We returned to DC and celebrated our three-year anniversary and both worked like crazy for the last five days. And now the real celebration begins. 

Jen, Eric, Jenny, and Walt walking in Brooklyn

Today, we depart for a week in France. I promise more coffee shop reviews and greeting cards and invitations and cd mixes when I return. For now, bon voyage!!

Eric and me eating ice cream after spending a day on the river

xoxo

scanned polaroid from a  party last spring

I've been inspired by love lately. Perhaps it's because the people I adore keep coupling off with other people I adore. Maybe it's printing all these wedding invitations, or maybe it's because we just saw Away We Go. Possibly, it's because we've been planning and scheming about a trip to a very romantic place (tickets purchased today; France in August!).

karaoke at sing sing in nyc last summer

Whatever, the reason, I've been scouring my iTunes library for beautiful music about love. Here's the current playlist to document how I'm feeling about love these days:

All My Days...Alexi Murdoch
I Adore You...Melpo Mene
Everytime...Lincoln Hawk (yes, from Gossip Girl)
Papa Was a Rodeo...The Magnetic Fields
For Real...Okkervil River
Love You 'Till the End...The Pogues
Skinny Love...Bon Iver
Question...Old 97s
Us...Regina Spektor
Falling in Love at a Coffee Shop...Landon Pigg

Seriously, check out All My Days in the video below. Or hear it in the Away We Go trailer, linked above.

Friday Favorites: Butterflies (and lemonade)

Back in September, two crazy kids had the most fabulous New York wedding. Before their nuptials, the happy couple asked Mr. Moggie to make lemonade to serve during the garden wedding.  We knew a few things about the wedding: the ceremony would be held in an East Village community garden, there would be butterflies and bowties, and the colors would be warm. But we also knew some things about the couple to guide us in the lemonade project: they care deeply about the earth and treating it well, they are thoughtful about the food they eat and where it comes from, they appreciate tasty food and drinks, and plain just doesn't describe them.
 
A few weeks later, Mr. Moggie scoured the local farmers' markets and our herb garden to come up with possible lemonade flavors. We gathered up some tiny jars, lots of sugar, a juicer, and many, many lemons. Hours later we had 12 different kinds of simple syrup: plain, raspberry, spearmint, chocolate mint, basil, rosemary, peach, blueberry, cantaloupe, yellow watermelon, plum, and jalapeno. We had a delicious taste testing session and discovered that jalapeno lemonade is remarkably refreshing. Then, we packaged samples of each of the syrups for the bride and groom, along with a scoresheet, so that they could make their own lemonade and choose their favorite flavors.

For my part, I found some eco-friendly disposable cups. They were made of a (otherwise destroyed) byproduct of sugar refining and were biodegradable. I used a butterfly cutout, some biodegradable lotka paper, and wheatstarch to decorate the cups to match the wedding's theme. On the big day, we filled the earth friendly cups with plain lemonade for guests who prefer the traditional, rosemary lemonade for those with discerning taste, and jalapeno lemonade for those who were truly adventurous. The wedding was beautiful, the lemonade stand was a hit, and butterflies were everywhere!

And they continue to infiltrate my days. Somehow, I've collected all of this butterfly paper and butterfly project material. That paper in the background is the serenity paper I mentioned a few posts back. The 12'x12' sheets, the chipboard butterflies, and the pink felt butterflies were from recent scrapbook kits (maybe moshposh, maybe the sadly extinct cupcake scrapshop). I picked up the orange monarchs at Paper Source this summer; they're made of feathers and I wore one in my hair at the wedding.

I used some of my butterfly supplies to scrap a page for my song lyric mini-book. From the Ben Kweller song In Other Words, I pulled the line: "The butterflies are passive agressive and put their problems on the shelf but they're beautiful." Also, I noticed that even Pottery Barn has butterfly tree ornaments this year, but I'm really into cut paper right now so let me suggest this etsy shop instead.

Girls' Day Out

I've already written about my wonderful summer, but I want to hone in on one weekend in particular that was just super-fun-awesome-amazing-excellent!  We spent the Independence Day weekend in New York City visiting friends, checking out Coney Island while it still hosts Nathan's Hot Dog Eating Contest, singing karaoke, shopping, and eating.  It was a perfect weekend.
 
There were many highlights to the weekend, but one of those highlights was getting to pose for this photo with Crazy Legs Conti. It guess it helped that my buddy, Tim, used to live with Crazy Legs many years ago, but I think he might have posed with anyone.
  
Another spectacular part of the weekend was the day spent with these lovely ladies. The beautiful Jenny hosted a day completely filled with the exploration of the best bakeries and paper stores in lower Manhattan. I could not have asked for a more perfect day. It's always refreshing to have a girls' day, and I was so inspired by everything we saw, tasted, and did that day. I tried to capture it in a card the next time I was in the studio and this is what happened:

The flower stamp on the front of the card, and the kitty stamp on the inside were both treasures found during that adventurous day.

Awesome tunes will help you through it

Mr. Moggie and I had a spectacular summer! We got to visit NYC (our favorite place) three times. Two close friends had incredible weddings in beautiful Vermont. I got to show Mr. Moggie around another of my favorite cities: Burlington. Then we spent a weekend in Chicago for my first time in the Windy City. I spent several fun days with girlfriends in Baltimore, DC, and New York. We got back to our favorite lobster shack and spent some time with my family in Maine and Mr. Moggie's family in Virginia Beach. We celebrated wedding anniversary number two. I learned how to use the letterpress. I had a summer job I liked.

And then, all of a sudden, I was back in school. I had to leave the job because there was no time left for it. And we had to devise the New! Improved! Tighter! budget to make up for all the summer fun. At least I never got around to getting sun-kissed during the summer months, so I don't have mourn the fading tan. One thing that I can hold on to from the summer, however, is all the great music I played, downloaded (legally), danced to, and shared.

And I'm still sharing it. A couple weeks ago, I made several copies of this year's Fall in DC mix.* It is alternately titled: Summer's Over and I have to go Back to School, but it's ok because I have these Awesome Tunes. I think it might be my favorite ever mix cd. My friend, Catherine, the original recipient of Fall in DC (back in 2002) convinced the staff at her climbing gym to play the mix for everyone to hear during their Saturday night climb. The cover art is a collage I made using tidbits (still can't bring myself to say "ephemera") from the summer's adventures. I made a color copy of the 8'' x 8" collage, shrinking it down to cd case size using my awesome new printer (thanks DailyCandy!).

If you need to find me anytime between now and the end of July, I'll be in a coffee shop or the library, reading casebooks and studying for the bar, with my headphones securely in place, tapping my foot to Fall in DC 2008.

* Each September since 2002, I've been gathering up my best music finds from the previous few months, and compiling them in a mix called Fall in DC [year]. I started off sharing this annual mix with my friend, Catherine, every year and it's been a great way of keeping in touch with her as she bounces around the globe. This year I expanded the reach and shared it with a few more friends. If you use iTunes and want your own copy, most of the songs are available here. Or find them elsewhere...the playlist is below:

Death to Los Campesinos!.....Los Campesinos!
Keep Your Head...The Ting Tings
School Uniforms...The Wombats
Love Always Remains...MGMT
For the Actor...Mates of State
My Revenge...Julie Ocean
Shake It...Metro Station
Spinning Compass...Longhorne Slim
After Hours...We Are Scientists
Parentheses...The Blow
Don't Know Why (You Stay)...The Essex Green
Lady Lawyers...Oxford Collapse
You, Me and the Bourgeoisie...The Submarines
Ca Plane pour Moi...Plastic Bertrand
Hit the Heartbrakes...Black Kids
Paper Planes...M.I.A.
Lines to Follow...Secret Pop
Tales of Girls, Boys and Marsupials...The Wombats

More on gratitude

We've just returned from a weekend trip in Chicago, marking my first time in the Windy City. Mr. Moggie and I visited some friends of his whom I'd only met once before. They were rumored to be the sweetest people in the world, and my first encounter with them did not dispel that opinion. I'm happy to say that after spending a whole weekend them, I believe the rumor was an understatement.

Upon our return to Virginia, I'm reminded that we have so much to be thankful for. In particular, friends who opened their home, who urged Mr. Moggie and I to tell the story of how we met over dinner, who showed us around the cool neighborhoods and indulged my desire to visit several paper stores, who let Mr. Moggie run around the Green City Market filling his shopping bag with elk, lamb, and micro-greens. We're grateful for friends who celebrated academic and career milestones with us in the form of a delicious meal at Frontera Grill, who pointed out Rick Bayless when he chatted it up with nearby diners, who let us enjoy the company of their sweet dog. Thankful for our lovely friend who drove from the other side of the city to share an evening of wine, grilling, and pie with us.

I was so inspired during our trip. I can't wait to get my new ideas down on paper! For now, I've finally added the finishing touches to some thank you cards I pressed in the studio last week. Enjoy!