Redo

I have an agreement with all of the shop owners who carry sulu-designs regarding those few pieces that end up lingering in the stores for a while without finding an owner to go home with. I'm more than happy to trade those pieces for new designs to keep a shop's selection fresh. In the past month or so, I've sent orders out to pretty much all of the shops that carry sulu-design (they're listed over there to the right in the sidebar) and have gotten a few pieces back from several shops, too. I'm always curious to see what doesn't sell at each particular location, as some pieces that are really popular in one spot don't go over well in another, and vice versa. I also love getting the unsold earrings back because it often means getting my hands on beads that I no longer have in my stash. I usually end us disassembling the older pieces and making new designs from the parts. All of these are undergoing a remake:


Speaking of redoing things, I did a little housekeeping in the sulu-design shop yesterday. Everything is on sale from now until the end of April. In a little over a week, I'm going out of town for a while, and the sale is my way of encouraging anyone who's thinking about making a purchase from the sulu-design shop to do so before April 6th to avoid having to wait two weeks for pieces to ship.

Spring cleaning, spring vacation, spring sales...
I'm all about the redo theme this time of year.

Sara Blohme - Swapped!

The swap strikes again. Illustrations by Sara, one of my favorite bloggers in Sweden (remember my love of Swedish blogs?), now grace several corners of our little apartment.


Check out Sara's blog, happy silly, and samples of her work at Lula. And click these images to see Sara's goodness a bit bigger. You won't be able to stop smiling.

Three Sisters Ink - Swapped!

Oh, friends, I am loving these prints from another recent swap. They'll be hung in our kitchen soon, but I couldn't wait to show them to you, so propped up on the floor will have to do for now. Click on the image to get a better look. I should have photographed the prints before putting them under glass, but I just couldn't wait to see them in framed glory. Apparently "not being able to wait" is running a close second to "swapping" for my theme of 2009.

You really ought to visit the Three Sisters Ink shop and check out the beautiful prints that Hannah offers there. Her designs are lovely and the quality of her prints is excellent. Swap on!

Philigry - Swapped!

Katie at Philigry is a master of those crafts that I wish I was good at: sewing, quilting, knitting. So when she suggested a swap (my new mantra is swapping is fine in 2009), I jumped at the chance to become the owner of one of her creations. Thanks to Amandajean and her Red Cross pillow, and to my sister-in-law Jennifer and her 2008 Christmas present, I already own several beautiful handmade pillows. These two ladies started my pillow addiction. Now Katie can add her name to my list of enablers:

Cute, huh? Thanks, Katie.

You Don't Write, You Don't Call

I'm kind of a jerk. My dear mother has finally retired so she's got some free time on her hands. And my parents finally have a home computer. Those of you who click over to my comments know that my mom loves keeping in touch with me through my blog (a three hour time zone difference can make phone calls home more difficult than you'd think). But as soon as my mom got the time to check in here with regularity, I went and took a week off from posting. And honestly, I foresee quiet days ahead here, too. I'm not insanely busy, but I'm enjoying the computer less and less these days. But I gotta give my momma a little something. So, Mom, for you, a photo of a sight I see daily. And since I can't talk to you without mentioning food (I can't talk to anyone without mentioning food), check out this polenta pizza recipe that Barry made for dinner Sunday night. I promise, I'll stop back here soon.

Spring Intervenes

I've been needing a little kick in the pants recently. Spring came last week and delivered it to me. I finally left for work early enough to stop at Jefferson High School and take a shot of a sunlit scene I drive past every day. What has Spring got you up to?

Post Race Day

Thanks so much for all of your encouragement yesterday. I'd say the race was a success considering that I crossed the finish line in one piece and am that I'm already looking forward to signing up for another one (although truth be told, that wasn't quite what I was thinking halfway through the race when I was being pelted by the wind and rain that we had in Portland yesterday). Today I'm resting my legs, catching up on recently neglected errands, and adding a bit to the shop:

images above are links to listings in the sulu-design shop

I hope your week is off to a great start, friends.

Wish Me Luck...

I'm going to need it this morning.
And then I'm going to need a burger and a beer.

Thank You, Abby

You probably know by now - I had a wonderful visit with Abby last week. She does amazing things with a camera, that girl. Thanks, Abby, for bringing your camera along, for both of your generous posts this week, and for the gorgeous print that you had in hand when you stopped by for breakfast. It's making me anxious for Spring.

Thanks, too, to Emily of Paper Turtle, whose post about baked eggs provided the inspiration for our meal. I can't believe I'd never baked eggs before (and I can't believe how many times I've done it since - how many eggs in one week is too many?).

Mr. Sun

I babysat my way through my teens. Back then, one of my favorite families introduced me to the music of Raffi, and I'm not embarrassed to admit (okay... I'm a little embarrassed) that I loved it when the kids asked to listen to one of his tapes. I used to sing along with Raffi louder than the kids would. Singable Songs for the Very Young rocks, people. Any album that proclaims to be "great with a peanut butter sandwich" on its cover is cool with me. One of Raffi's songs has been going through my head recently, every time the sun peeks out. So in honor of Raffi and his hit "Mr. Sun" (it doesn't start until 1:03 in and goes to 2:23 in this link- the Raffi selections on youtube are limited... who would have guessed?) I've been working with yellow:

a few sun-inspired earrings (images are links to listings)
and a newly stocked sulu-design sale section, too

Come on Spring, I know you're there.

Original Intent (Revisited): Day One Hundred Forty-Three

wet barrels in the pearl, portland

inspired earrings found here

Multiple Personalitied Weather

In the matter of one weekend, we went from a bright Spring-like day (on which I wore open-toed shoes to work - I'm one of those annoying people who just can't wait), to a day of angry skies and pouring rain, to heavy dollops of snow this morning. I've finally learned that to live with the weather, one should get get out in the weather. (Which, unfortunately, is leading me down the slippery slope of accepting - dare I type it? - "technical" apparel into my wardrobe. But that's another post entirely, right Ambika?) So getting out into the weather is exactly what my camera and I have been doing.

post-posting edit:
thanks so much to the uber-talented Abby
for this sweetness
*blush*

Swap Your Way through this Economy or How I Came to be the Owner of this Cute Bowl

Our keys have a new home in which they snuggle. Lisa makes adorable felted bowls. Her hats are cute, too. I got one of each in a trade. Swapping is good.

Shona and the Seeds of Change Print

Shona recently made a letterpress print illustrating a line of text in which I truly believe. I told her so. And she sent me one. Thank you, Shona.

If you're a believer, you can get your own right here, in her etsy shop.

Last Week...

Painting happened. Carving and printing didn't (not enough supplies - oops). Earring-making was a good substitute. Moxie got a fresh selection of sulu-design earrings and necklaces. New pieces were sent to SITE and Liebling, too. I restocked the sulu-design etsy shop:

And best of all, Barry won his mountain bike race.

Yep, that's right, first place.
I'm obnoxiously proud.