road kindness

A couple of days ago, I was sitting in the turn lane at a red light with my little family in the car, and the guy in front of me got out of his car and started signaling to me. I didn't understand him, so he walked back toward us and said, "Your rear door is ajar. Would you like me to close it for you?" Then he opened my daughter's door and shut it firmly. I hollered a "thank you" as he hopped back in his car and drove away.
My husband and I looked at each other in surprise, and I said, "I think that was the opposite of road rage!"
It seems like our society should have a word to describe that kind of thing and should practice it more frequently.

new pantry

The Spring Cleaning Continues!

This used to be the game closet.

As we reorganize all the storage areas 

in and around our house, we've turned this

into a pantry, freeing up some good space in 

the kitchen and making all our rarely used 

cooking items a little more accessible.

fun with sharpies

 

on a mini kraft moleskine cover

i heart knitted caps

After many months of knitting in the round,

here's the hat to match the fingerless mittens.

The orange is actually a more muted, earthy

hue than it appears in the photo. The hat fits and

doesn't have any huge holes in it, so Yipee!

God speaks

the judge

jury duty

This was the line headed into the courthouse yesterday.

I was chosen to hear a case; fortunately, it looks to be a short one!

index tab tutorial

As promised yesterday, here's a tutorial

for making your own index tabs!!

Step 1: Select Paper.

I prefer cardstock, because it's weighty

enough to not get all bent up. However,

be careful to choose a color that's not

too dark to write on (unless you have a

white pen handy) and that's not so busy

that you can't see what you've written.

Step 2: Choose Width.

I prefer 2 inch wide labels, because

they're big enough to write a couple

of words on. However, tiny tabs (1/2")

work, as do mediumish ones (1 inch).

Once the tabs get below an inch, it gets

hard to curve the corners. So plan on

sticking with square corners if you go

for tiny tabs. You could even measure
the height of your book and divide it
by the number of tabs you need. Use the
answer as the width of the tabs. Then
you can have them neatly lined up from
top to bottom!

Step 3: Cut Strips.

As I mentioned, 2 inches wide is

recommended. These are very forgiving

little guys, though. Most anything will do.

Here are my strips, in 2 inch widths,

1 inch, and 1/2 an inch (from left to right).

Step 4: Cut Rectangles From Strips.

The height of the rectangles should be

1.5 inches. This allows enough room to

write on the tabs and attach them.

Step 5: Fold Rectangles In Half.

Make sure you fold them horizontally

rather than vertically, so that they come

out 3/4" high when folded. Otherwise

you end up with very tall index tabs!

Step 6: Curve Corners.

I like to use a little corner punch.

It cuts easily through two layers of

standard cardstock. You want

to cut the corners along the fold.

Here are some little index tabs, all

ready to go. Notice that some are

curved around the corners and others

are square. Notice the little brown

tab off to the side -- remember how

yesterday I mentioned that these could

be manly? I think that one would do

nicely. Also a little more on the elegant side.

Step 7: Write On Label.

Take care to write on the upper

half (near the fold), as this is the

portion which will show once the

tab is attached to your journal.

Step 8: Apply Adhesive.

I prefer UHU Gluestick.

Any kind of glue, paste, gel medium,

or double-sided tape would work,

however. Apply to the entire interior.

Step 9: Attach To Page.

Here you want to put the front and

back of the index tab on either side

of a page and press firmly to attach.

Make sure the lower half of the tab

is on the paper, while the upper half

sticks up for easy viewing.

Step 10: Make A Bunch!

Here I have a collection of

index tabs in varying sizes so

I can easily grab one and use

it whenever the need arises!

Voila!

perfect system: journal

Hey, Everybody! It's time for another Perfect System!

This time it's all about the journal. Lately, I've been really

enjoying the tiny Picadilly journals. They're basically a

Moleskine replica but cost half as much. I've found them

sporadically at Borders, usually in the clearance section

with other cheap journals. For $3.99!! These function for

me as an easy carry-along because of their size. And while

I don't do any painting in them (the paper's thin), they

make for a good place to pre-journal ideas, jot down

inspirations, take notes on art techniques, etc.

This time last year, I came across some prefab cardstock

index tabs that were made out of beautiful paper, and I

decided to put them to use in one of these Picadillys.

At the time, I was reading and taking notes on a variety

of books about collage, so I tabbed the first page of each

"section" and labeled it. I also labeled single pages that

had important ideas or passages from the Bible, so I could

find them easily later. Since then, I've gone back to this

journal several times to access information, and it was so

easy to find!! I have many other journals that I've gone back

to in order to pull out some piece of data and either been

unable to find what I was looking for or it just took forever.

So I've been experimenting with making my own index tabs,

and I plan to index the journal I'm currently using.

Who knows? Maybe when my kids are grown, I'll go back

and index all my old journals as well, so that when they toss

them out after I die, the trash will be well organized. Heh heh.

Anyway, I'm preparing a tutorial so that you, to, can index

your journals with adorable (or manly, if you prefer) tabs.

So stay tuned; I should have it up tomorrow.

door of inspiration, all cleaned up now

This is the freshly cleared Door of Inspiration.

As you can see, Eric and I are thinking through new

paint colors for our room. Very inspiring!

Before I cleared the mess, I had fallen into using

my door as a catch-all for organizational items,

fun visual ideas, and a magnetic way of not losing

the Things-That-Must-Not-Be-Lost, such as jury duty

summons, doctor appointment referrals, etc.

This was very effective, and I may need a new

Perfect System so that I can replicate its usefulness

and not start losing the Things-That-Must-Not-Be-Lost.

Otherwise, what will become of me? I will be Very Frustrated.

The Door of Inspiration, also shown here,

was one of my responses to reading The Artist's Way

by Julia Cameron a few years ago. It's where I supposedly

post visual scraps of inspiring paraphernalia so that I

can keep them in view and in mind as I go about my days.

door of desperation

As you can see, my door of inspiration has

turned into a door of desperation.

I hope to remedy this soon. More tomorrow!

blog adjustments

Hiya, peeps! You may have noticed that I've been having trouble
with my bloggy background. I'm attempting some adjustments
and hope to eventually develop a really snazzy background of
my own with a super nifty banner across the top.
In the meantime, I'm going with the basic "minima stretch." Sounds

exciting, doesn't it? Now if I can just learn everything about computers,

html, and photoshop that I've been putting off all this time....

it's official

Christmas is over.

cheesecake

I was so happy to find yet another application for the

flowers I've been doodling when I decorated this

chocolate cheesecake! And they tasted great!

green

This one's a birthday gift for a friend. I really don't prefer to take

this particular Scripture out of context, because what it's saying

is the result of what comes before it:

Remove the heavy yoke of oppression.

Stop pointing your finger and spreading vicious rumors!

Feed the hungry, and help those in trouble.

Then your light will shine out from the darkness,

and the darkness around you will be bright as noon.

The Lord will guide you continually,

giving you water when you are dry

and restoring your strength.

You will be like a well-watered garden,

like an ever-flowing spring.

Some of you will rebuild the deserted ruins of your cities.

Then you will be known as a rebuilder of walls

and a restorer of homes.

(Isaiah 58:9-12)

I just love this whole picture of the restoration of a society.

Anyway, the idea I wanted to communicate in this little painting was

about how this friend has a home and a family and other people

she tends to -- her little garden. So there it is.
Oh - and you may have noticed that this was inspired by
this journal entry from last week.

three canvases

These three little (4"x6") canvases are happily peering at me from the bookshelf lately.

What will they become?

new year's cleaning

My friend Tamaki is from Japan, and she says that before the
Japanese New Year, people undertake a cleaning process
around their homes which is similar to spring cleaning.
I really like this idea of getting the old cleared and the new
prepared at the beginning of the year. Also, it's 60 degrees here,
which makes it much better cleaning weather than the 85-90
we get when it's time for spring cleaning. So we've been
doing some good scrubbing lately, including this refrigerator wash down
that got us back to where we were pre-Thanksgiving.
And ready to fill up again. Hello, Costco!

long walk

ashton's ornament

Happy New Year!