happy weekend!

Wow, I can't believe its Friday already!  I've been meaning to post these pics of my peonies all week, but it just hasn't happened until today.  This week was the first week of the summer class I'm teaching, and between prepping, commuting, and other odds and ends, this week has just flown by.  But I'm so happy its the weekend!

I have a little confession - I may love flowers, but when it comes to gardening I have a black thumb.  Luckily, these peonies were planted by our home's previous owner and come back strong every year.  And they were so pretty I couldn't resist cutting a few to bring into the house.

triathlon + summer mode

Yesterday, I completed the Got the Nerve Triathlon for the second year in a row!  My time was 1 hour and 44 minutes, a four minute improvement over last year.  I'm really happy about this because the bike course was actually .6 mile longer than the year before.  

I'd really like to do a few more triathlons this year.  I'm thinking about one in York at the end of June, and I'd really like to do a fall one in September or October.  Any suggestions?

This past week, I've moved into full on summer mode.  We put the soft-top on my car (something I haven't done in 5 years), I put some blonde highlights in my hair, and I've been dreaming about trips to the beach.  All I want to do is lay in the sun and read books, unfortunately I've got some orders to go out, and I'm teaching a summer class that starts on Tuesday.  So the rest of this weekend will be a working weekend for me.  How about you?

Enjoy the long weekend!

ernesto neto

On Thursday, Margaux and I also stopped by the Ernesto Neto installation at the Park Avenue Armory.  (That's Margaux holding the strange, bulbous thing.)  It was a really great exhibition - sensory and interactive, fun for adults and children.  If you're planning on being in New York City, I recommend stopping by.

(You can see more images of the installation on my flickr site or on the Armory website.)

christien meindertsma

After visiting the Cooper-Hewitt today with Margaux, I now officially have a serious design crush on Christien Meindertsma. I blogged about her urchin poufs before, one of which was part of the exhibition Fashioning Felt, but it was Christien's contribution to the Design for a Living World exhibition that turned me into a super-fan.

For Design for a Living World, the Nature Conservancy took 10 designers and matched them with a sustainable material from around the world. The exhibition features sketches and prototypes, as well as finished products. Not only are the finished products impressive, but the progress shots and accompanying video really help tell the story. (I wish you could watch the videos online!)

After browsing the book (which of course I bought), exhibition website, and Christien's website, I'm totally ready to move to a sheep farm in Idaho and become best friend's with Christien. How fantastic are all those process shots? And how adorable is she? At the very least, I want to decorate my living room with these knit rugs and poufs.

If you have a chance, I highly recommend a trip to the Cooper-Hewitt to see Fashioning Felt and Design for a Living World.

student work

After taking the fall off, I once again taught Intro to Jewelry and Metalsmithing at Towson University.  My class just wrapped up this week, and I finally posted some images of student work online.

I really liked my class this semester - I really challenged them and I think they rose to the occasion.  I even tried a new project this semester, a two layer pendant where one layer was laser cut at Ponoko.  Above is one of the examples - made from copper and wool felt.  

Click here to see more of my student work from this semester on flickr.  

icff

On Monday, I took a bus to New York with some of the other faculty where I teach to check out ICFF.  It was a double duty trip for me, not only was I scoping out ideas to bring back to my students, I was also doing recon to see if this was a show I want to do in the future.

I feel like I've barely had time to process all the great stuff I saw, and I'm headed back to New York tomorrow to museum hop with Margaux.  Then, I've got the triathlon on Saturday - but hopefully later in the weekend I'll be able to process and share all the amazing stuff I've seen over the last week.

Until then, two highlights from the show - finally meeting Traci of filzfelt in person, and the Hero-365 booth.

bike to work day!

Happy Bike to Work day!  Get out there and ride!

And if you must drive, please be careful and watch for all those cyclists.  We're everywhere!

image via barking bird art

envelopes

Gocco'd the cozy/cuff image on some envelopes to send out to potential retailers - now its time to work on compiling my mailing list.

what I'm reading: a homemade life

Contrary to popular belief, I do occasionally read for pleasure.  I came across A Homemade Life: Stories and Recipes from my Kitchen Table while browsing Amazon, and knew it would make the perfect airplane read.  Written by Molly Wizenberg, author of the blog Orangette, A Homemade life is part memoir, part recipe book.

Its a really lovely and enjoyable read, and it didn't even make it to the flight home.  (I couldn't resist reading it while laying by the pool at my hotel.)  The most frustrating part about reading the book while traveling is that you want to run into the kitchen and try the recipes.  Looks like I've got a lot of cooking and baking to do when I get home!

the desert

I've never considered myself a desert girl (I prefer the beach) but its starting to grow on me.  Especially because this is what I'm leaving:

And this is what I'm coming home to:

Makes me sad just thinking about it.

day 2 at the MSA Expo

Well, I'll say this about day 2 at the MSA Expo - at least I had fun neighbors.  On one side of me were Steve and Rob, a couple from Cincinnati (actually, northern Kentucky where they do "missionary work" if you catch my drift - I almost died laughing).  They are veterans of this show, which was really helpful.  On the other side I had Sandra, who was also doing the show alone.  She was so sweet - she helped me carry my boxes to UPS, and I helped her take her suitcases to a cab.  We might even ride together to the next New York Gift - Sandra lives in West Virginia and drives within 5 miles of my house to get to the show!

If it weren't for my neighbors, I would have been bored out of my mind.  I didn't write a single order today!  (Unless you count the 2 reorders I took by phone this morning before the show started.)  Apparently, that's not uncommon for this show.  Steve and Rob said that they get most of their orders after the show, so I'm keeping my fingers crossed.

I don't have another show until the New York Gift Fair in August!  Wow, 3 whole months without a show.  Its a good thing I've got my four week marketing plan to keep me motivated and focused.

day 1 at the MSA Expo

Today was the first day at the Museum Store Association Expo.  I only wrote a few orders, but according to my neighbors, Steve and Rob, that's pretty normal.  It seems most of their orders come after the show is over.

There are so many ups and downs when doing a trade show.  I had one buyer stare at me in shock when I told her the price of the cozy/cuff, then I had another buyer order 25 without batting an eye!  

Hopefully I write a few more quality orders tomorrow, and then on Tuesday its back home to continue the cozy/cuff marketing.

online catalog

Today is the first day of the Museum Store Association Expo, and other than the cozy/cuff catalog, I didn't get a print catalog finished of all my work.  I'm a little disappointed, but I just didn't feel settled enough with my images to spend the money on something that felt as final as a print catalog.  Instead, I completely redid my online catalog.  Now, all my current work is available to view in one place.  And its helping me move closer to the full redesign of my current website.