I love mail

it's true...not much makes me happier then when fun things arrive in the mail...take the other day, for instance...I got three of my magazines, delivered on the same day! now if only I could find the time to read them...

Featured EtsyBloggers Team Member - September

This month, our Featured Etsy Blogger is......................Joey & Aleethea

Not only a fantastic Etsy'er, blogger, and crafter extraordinare, Joey & Aleethea is the fabulous, fearless leader of the Etsy Bloggers Street Team! When not keeping the group motivated and running smoothly, she's designing adorable, handmade outfits for the little ones...





A mom of two cuties, these goodies come straight from Orlando, Florida...so head on over to her shop and pick up some new outfits for the kiddies in your life :)


















I mean, it doesn't get any cuter then that...seriously :)

THE dress

we found the dress for Bonnie's wedding!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!


I won't spoil the surprise...but this is definitely the face you make when you find THE dress...

The One With Two Parts, part 2

Episode 17 - Season 1

Ross: I had a dream last night where I was playing football with my kid.
Chandler & Joey: That's nice.
Ross: No, no. With him. I'm on this field, and they... they hike me the baby. And I know I've gotta do something 'cause the Tampa Bay defense is coming right at me.
Joey: Tampa Bay's got a terrible team.
Ross: Right, but it is just me and the baby, so I'm thinkin' they can take us.


Phoebe: Is he all right?
Ross: Yeah. The doctor got the "k" out. He also found an "m" and an "o".
Chandler: We think he was trying to spell out "monkey".

The One With Two Parts, part 1

Episode 16 - Season 1

Rachel: Are you seeing her again tonight?
Joey: Yep--Ice Capades.
Chandler: Wow, this is serious. I've never known you to pay money for any kind of capade.


Nina: For the past couple of days, people have been avoiding me and giving me these really strange looks.
Chandler: Oh, well, uh, maybe that's because they're, uh, jealous of us.
Nina: Maybe. But that doesn't explain why they keep taking my scissors.

Pigtown Festival!!

coming up on September 6th is the Annual Pigtown Festival...Kelley and I will be out supporting our community and our businesses with a booth...

this excerpt is from the Festival Website

Saturday, September 6th
11 am to 5 pm
700 — 800 Blocks
of Washington Boulevard

Come see what the other festivals are squealing about. Pigtown Festival is downtown Baltimore’s only community festival wild enough to bring you the “RUNNING of the PIGS!” With on stage entertainment ranging from Reggae, Southern Rock, Jazz, Blues, Folk, and Electro Fusion grooves...we aren’t fakin’ on the bacon.

Unique local artisans and a huge selection of food as well as local beer and Orange Crushes will keep you busy as you wander historic Washington Boulevard. Tired from beating the streets, get a chair massage from Massage Envy. Even your kids will be happy with two performances of the Three Not So Little Pigs by Blue Sky Puppet Theatre at 12:30 and 2:30. Although we are pigs at heart, your dog will love you if they win one of three prizes from Doggie Style in the Pooch Pageant. So come out and see what you've been missing or for the pig saavy, carry on local tradition with great company. This is the Pigtown Festival. This is Baltimore!



so come out and say hi to us!! watch the running of the pigs, the dogs dressed like pigs costume contest and see the Charm City Roller Girls!

the Storque loves BEST

Another exciting Etsy Storque today...BEST is featured!!

I can't brag too much since I just joined...but I am so proud of my fellow Baltimore Etsians for being just so super fabulous!

in between the moving madness

so I've already done the 'moving' of the moving...but cleaning, organizing and getting the old house staged is definitely the most time consuming activity of this process...thankfully I've had help from my family...and they know how to help me unwind a little too...my cousins graciously agreed to go to the Orioles-Yankees game with me on Saturday night when I could clean/pack/organize no more



oh and the Yanks won...so of course that made us all happy

Save the Date

Bonnie & Andy picked a wedding date! So I could hardly contain my excitement, and of course had to play around with some ideas for Save the Date Cards :)

workin in Illustrator

my new class, Graphic Illustration is already really cool...yes, 4 days in, and I love it! Our assignment this week was to create a black and white image from a photograph using Live Trace...so here is what I came up with using a picture from Mike & Bean's wedding last July...


then I kept going...this is a picture from Becka & Tripp's rehearsal dinner...



and another from the party bus, post ceremony...

more Electronic Design

I just realized I hadn't put up any of the other work from this course...here are some other assignments from Electronic Design...definitely one of my favorite classes so far!

this was a newsprint ad:this is a magazine ad:
and a package design for a piece of direct mail:

up next, Graphic Illustration...to say I'm excited for this course is an EXTREME understatement :) :)

Electronic Design- Final Project

for our last project for Electronic Design, we had to create a 4 page website for the company we chose- it didn't have to actually work, but it was just the design...here was my assignment...which I got 100% on :)

the Storque!!

one of the teams I am a member of...Etsy Bloggers...had our teams 1 year anniversary! and to celebrate, there's an article on the Storque about us!!

hooray for bloggy goodness :)



here we are on the FRONT page!!!!!!

foster mom?

ahh, the cats of Mangold Street...some days I feel like I have 6 or 7 instead of just the three that live inside the house...but now when I come home, I've got friends waiting for me to put out some food for them...it makes me so sad, but I guess I feel better at least knowing they are well fed...

It's a BOY!!

A super wonderful congratulations to my co-worker Kelly and her husband Mike on the arrival of their new little one, Cullen James, born Tuesday, August 19th at 12:44 pm...10 lbs, 3 oz, 22 1/4 inches

The One With The Stoned Guy

Episode 15 - Season 1

Chandler: I just don't want to be one of those guys that's in his office until twelve o'clock at night worrying about the WENUS.
Rachel: The... the WENUS?
Chandler: Weekly Estimated Net Usage Systems. It's a processing term.
Rachel: Oh, that WENUS.

Steve: Well, smack my ass and call me Judy! These are fantastic!
Monica: Oh, gosh, I'm so glad you liked them!
Steve: Like 'em? I could eat a hundred of them!
Monica: Oh, well, um, that's all there is of these. But in about eight and a half minutes, we'll be serving some delicious onion tartlets.
Steve: Tartlets? Tartlets? Tartlets? The word has lost all meaning.

Steve: Oh! Oh! Bears overboard! They're... they're drowning! Hey fellows! Grab on a Sugar-O! Save yourselves! Help! Help! I'm drowning! Help! Help!

good gold

now I haven't lived in Maryland for all that long, but long enough to feel an overwhelming sense of pride when phenomenal athletes like Michael Phelps win gold medals in the Olympics! I have watched more of the Olympics this year then I ever have I think...but it's pretty cool to see a 'hometown' guy kick butt :P

Blog Carnival...September 1st

This week's blog carnival topic is: Something You Did When You Were A Child That You Will Always Remember

Not to brag, but I had a pretty awesome childhood...there are only a very few moments I remember as being unpleasant...most of the time it was my fault I'm sure :P...but if I could, I know I'd go back and do it all again in a heart beat...I love the saying, "I'd like to go back, not to do anything different, but just to do it all over again"...that is the best way to sum up my life :)

My favorite time of year starts around football season, and ends after my birthday- I could never pick a favorite season, or month, but its a good 4 months out of the year that I enjoy the most...fall, cooler weather, football games, then halloween, thanksgiving, christmas, new years eve and my birthday...what's not to love :)

but the thing that I will always remember from growing up, is going to pick out our christmas tree...we'd get bundled up, and go to the same tree farm every year...the best years there was already some snow on the ground, and we'd find the biggest and most beautiful tree there was...of course the older I got, the more I realized it wasn't that the tree was huge, but I was small :) then we'd get our hot cocoa and wait for the tree to be tied to the roof...

we'd usually go the weekend after thanksgiving, and wait about a week to put it up and decorate it...that was the longest two weeks of my life when I was young :)

we have so many christmas traditions...I could go into them...but no one has a week to read this post :P so I'll stop now...once we get into september, I'll reminisce some more!

Gena's Wedding Jewerly

my first real jewelry commissioned job...for my co-worker's daughter, Gena...one of the most fun people to work with, we designed bracelets and earrings for herself, the bridesmaids, and the two adorable flower girls for her wedding in December :)



made with beautiful swarovski crystals and pearls...I wish she could get married over and over so we can keep designing together!! Of course to the same guy ;) an early congratulations to her and Roger!!

Busy Weekends...

This weekend was another one for the books...busy but tons of fun :)

we started off the day at bonnie and andys to warm their new house :P I always thought house-warming was an odd term, but it was pretty warm out, so I guess it works :P

then it was over to Nissan Pavillion for the Counting Crows, Maroon 5 and Sara Barielles concert with Amanda and her girlies...and we got to see other fun friends, Shawn & Ashley and Rob & Andrea...









then it was back to the housewarming until much much too late...but all in all, a great day :)