And Now For the Necklaces

I promised a few readers that some non-earring updates were slated for the sulu-design shop, so...





these babies are all available now. A couple are a little more romantic than my usual designs, but Valentine's Day is approaching so I figured hey, what the heck. Until the 31st of January, half of all profits from the shop will be donated to Mercy Corps and their efforts to help in the aftermath of the earthquake in Haiti.

Thanks to those of you who voted in the Poppytalk virtual awards for favorite handmade jewelry category. The polls will be open until midnight on January 30th. I am so appreciative of your encouragement. Thanks, friends. And have a great weekend.

Red as a Poppy

I've been pretty consumed with getting things comfortable at our new place. So consumed, in fact, that I've only worked on jewelry once in the past month. Once. Prior to the move, I was working on jewelry several times a week. But I've been happily busy with other things recently, so I let the jewelry-making slide a bit. This morning, though, I saw something that lit a jewelry-making match under my behind. While reading a blog by a jewelry designer I admire, I clicked a link over to Poppytalk. I read Poppytalk regularly, and I've stopped by the blog recently to cast my votes for my favorite artists, photographers, crafters, etc. in the Poppies. But it wasn't until this morning that I realized some sweet person nominated sulu-design as a favorite in the handmade jewelry category (that hyperlink is a shameless attempt to get you to click over there and... ahem... cast your vote). Sheesh. I was floored. Totally flattered and floored. After I wiped the stunned look off my face, it dawned on me that I need to get back in jewelry-making gear. And with Valentine's Day just around the corner, I figured that getting some red and romantic pieces in the sulu-design shop would be a good place to start:








These pieces are all in the shop now. Click images above to take you there. Remember that for the rest of the month, half of all profits from sulu-design shop sales will be donated to Portland's Mercy Corps and their effort to help victims of the earthquake in Haiti.

Thanks to whomever out there nominated me for the handmade jewelry category, and thanks to all of you for sticking around here. Your visits and comments mean so much to me.

Collective Sale at The Ace Hotel

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I'll be at Tumbleweed's booth at The Cleaners at The Ace Hotel on Saturday from 11-5 (the sale also runs Sunday, 11-5) with lots of sale-priced sulu-design earrings and necklaces alongside pretty kara-line dresses and other lovely things from the shop. Some of my favorite Portland boutiques will be represented, too. Hope to see you there.

House Warming

Amanda Jean (who sadly blogs no more) and I agreed to a swap several months ago. It was perfect timing that the gorgeous quilt she sent arrived days after we moved into our new home - I love what a literal house warming gift it is. We've only turned on the heat twice since we moved in. Now that we're on the paying end of a heat bill, I know why my mother kept telling us kids to bundle up in the house before she'd consider turning the heat up. Amanda Jean's quilt has kept me cozy even when it's a little chilly in here. And like everything she does, it's amazingly well-made, full of great details (did you see the quilting on this one?), and is a great blend of traditional and contemporary qualities. Thank you, Amanda Jean.

Shop News: Help Haiti

Fifty percent of the profits from all of my sulu-design etsy shop sales from January 16th to January 31st will be donated to the Portland-based Mercy Corps effort to help victims of the earthquake in Haiti. A list of other shops making donations of sales can be found here.

Be Careful What You Wish For

I guess I asked for it. I said I wanted to spend more time strolling with my camera. I would have preferred to choose the time and place of my photo walks, but our car decided it needed a little unscheduled trip to the mechanic, so I've been doing a little sight seeing on my walk to and from the bus. Maybe missing my usual mode of transportation to work inspired the shots above.

We Got By with a Little Help From Our Friends

It's over. Moving day is finally over. I hate moving day. Doesn't everyone? I was little ball of stress through it all, worried about getting everything done in one day, worried about parking a big old truck on city streets, worried about keeping all of the up arrows up and the fragile boxes safe. The move actually went extremely smoothly, thanks to the help of several of our friends. So here's a thank-you-shout-out to:

Our neighbor Matt, an amazing photo realist painter, who moved a ton of heavy boxes and furniture.

Our pals Holly and Mike who lent us dollies. I will never move without dollies again - what ease!

The super nice owners of Fit Right Northwest who lent us a truck and hand trucks. I'm telling you, having the right equipment makes moving so much less of a headache.

And I've got to mention our friend Cliff who recently opened up The People's Pig, a fantastic food cart in downtown Portland. We swung by for a lunch break of porchetta sandwiches with arugula and peppers. Damn. So good. And they provided the energy needed to go all afternoon and evening long.

Thanks for the well-wishes on the move - they did us good. Now the unpacking starts. I love the unpacking. Photos will follow someday...

Remember Me, Camera?

We've been bringing things bit by bit into our new place, but tomorrow is the official big day. We've got a truck lined up and will finally make this move complete, and I can't wait. It seems like all we've been doing for over a month now is packing. So yesterday, Barry and I decided to take a day off from it all and head downtown with our cameras.





Our long picture-taking walk yesterday made me realize that I've fallen out of use with the camera. While I'm not one for new year's resolutions, I do plan on getting back into the photo groove once we're feeling a bit more settled. Back soon, friends.

Oh... Happy New Year.