i shouldn't be surprised, but...

...I am.

I went to use my long dormant, and never used Flickr account (I was feeling WAY behind the times), and discovered that it had been used. By my 13-year-old brother. He had uploaded a few photos somewhere along the way, and I don't know when, and I don't know how. But there they were. I shouldn't be surprised, but...

As if that wasn't enough, tonight I learned something about my 20-year-old sister. You see we like jazzy lounge music...I mean, who doesn't like Dean Martin? But imagine my surprise when I found out that my hip, music loving sister had loaded an entire Perry Como album into iTunes! Perry Como? And yet, I liked it...

a new hope...

I've been wanting to show off these books since I got them, but haven't gotten around to it. Until now. These delightful Japanese craft books were purchased on etsy.com, from SaucyLouise, and I love them. (The price was reasonable, and they came fast!)





My sister wants to know who has time to actually make all these little things, and right now, it's not me. But I have hope that I'll find some time, here and there, to sit down and create. I mean, who can resist making little felt shrimps?





These are from the book with the hedgehog bag on the front, and the whole thing is filled with patterns to make bags, pouches, etc., as well as all of the decorations. Even my sister got excited about this book. I see Christmas gifts in the future...



And finally, some sweet little animals to make. Absolute cuteness!

dancing fingers...

Where do the days go? Hmm..?

Anyway, I was looking at Metafilter tonight, which I haven't done in a while, and I found a fun new online game/toy/opportunity for personal improvement. Fingerjig is a typing game that doesn't take long, is a challenge, and will hopefully get me back to the typing speed and accuracy I once had. My first shot gave me a score of around 300,000, and high score is currently over 4,000,000. I guess that gives me something to aspire to. Give it a try!

(Meanwhile, I've made so many typing errors while writing this, I feel like giving up hope now!)

i heart Ingvar Kamprad...

Creator of IKEA, Ingvar Kamprad has blessed my family with many a bookshelf (among other things) at a fair price. But on my latest IKEA visit, yesterday, I decided to look through the "as-is" section, and found the best deal yet.

I needed a desk top, because I had already purchased these great shelves/desk legs. The plan had been to use a sheet of plywood, cut to size, then finished in some way. Instead, I noticed part of a headboard (similar to a hollow door) lined up along a wall. The size was just a 1/2 in longer than I wanted, but that wouldn't be a problem.

And so, I bought a desk top for $1.

Thank you, Ingvar, because now I sit at a desk, in my little office. That makes me happy...

berries and cream...

Recently I was talking with some some people at my part-time job, and they told me about the Starburst Berries and Cream commercial. Not being someone who watches much television (other than on DVD), I had not seen this, or even heard about it. So, being curious, I went home and did a little searching.

YouTube not only had the commercial, but also hundreds of versions, parodies, etc. Prepare yourself, then go watch one of the freakiest, and somewhat addicting, funny commercials for Starburst.

duck [tape] hunt...

A few years back I heard about a contest where you make your prom clothes out of duct tape, and have a chance at winning a scholarship. Then, not too long ago, I read on a craft blog (Craft Magazine, maybe?) that this contest was still going! It's the Stuck at Prom contest sponsored by Duck Tape brand duct tape. The pictures are amazing!

But this also led me to discover other fun ideas for things to do with their tape. There's a wallet (reminiscent of the comic wallet I made), flip flops, and this tie, which I think I'll be making dad for Father's Day. Nothing says dad more than duct tape!

a little inspiration...

I recently came across an inspired little book called, Inspirability: 40 top designers speak out about what inspires. It includes some great pieces of advice from Chip Kidd, Milton Glaser and more. Funny how just hearing about how others get their inspiration can encourage and get ideas going. (And I gotta admit, I really like the green flocking on the book!)

To get your creative juices flowing, check out Coca-Cola Creator, where you can design a little Coke poster, of sorts. It's just the thing for a Friday.