five feet small

The List

2012-01-19T09:59:00.000-08:00

image from here. details below.

Just a list of things I just can't seem to get enough of right now.

These songs:
Merry Happy, by Kate Nash (see below)
The Weight of Us, by Sanders Bohlke
Emmylou, by First Aid Kit (and their whole album on First Listen this week)
Alabama Pines, by Jason Isbell
Ghosts, by Laura Marling

These pressers:

These tastes:

Oiled, salted marcona almonds from V.Richards

Bannoffee Pie

These shows (I know, I know, I'm behind the times):

These e-reads:

These words (Maybe, just maybe, you'll see some letterpressness from their inspiration)

• The time has come/let us be brave/shake off all of your sins, the time has come, let us be brave Sanders Bohlke, The Weight of Us

• So much I know, that things don't grow/If you don't bless them with your patience First Aid Kit

• Everything in Cold Tangerines, Bittersweet by Shauna Niequist

We Can Grow Flowers From Where Dirt Used to Be

2012-01-17T08:17:00.001-08:00

A Good Read

2012-01-13T15:25:00.000-08:00

image from here

It was four years ago that I was just about eight months out of college. I was beginning my “career,” if that’s what we want to call it. With my internship about to expire, I was anxious and searching for NEXT. I was worried that I wouldn’t find the adventure I sought, the beautiful colored version of life from my dreams.

I distinctly remember writing in my journal that if my life was to be a recorded as a storybook, observed by someone else, that I sure as hell wanted it to be a good read. I wanted each chapter to represent something new, something lovely, something profound.

I wanted a heroine to emerge from the pages, a kind and brave soul – someone readers would admire for her grace and faith-filled easy trust.

If I flip through the pages of my recent times, I’m honest to say that I’m not her. I’ve been deflated, easily intimidated, pessimistic and scared. I am not the protagonist I set out to be.

I spend a lot of time these days reading blogs of gorgeous people living beautiful lives, and remembering the girl with blank pages. Maybe these story-writers have indeed found the secret of living always in a bubble of happiness and glitter. Or, maybe –more realistically- they, too have been let down. Maybe, they, too, have to choose to celebrate life with bright balloons and colored crepe.

Maybe what makes the story sing are the plot twists and the struggles that lead to the turning points.

Fight to Believe

2012-01-04T05:51:00.000-08:00

Disclaimer: Yesterday, I said that this blog would now be a bit more personal, and that I would reserve fourhatspress.com to highlight my art. (If you haven't seen it yet, go on over and poke around. In the coming weeks and months, I hope to fill it out with lots of letterpressness.) That said, sometimes, the lines between personal and professional life blur together. Sometimes art comes from a deeply personal place. That is the case here. Allow me to explain.

Way back in October, this was the very first print to come off of my Vandercook printing press. After months of hoping for one of my own, after the joy of finally finding and moving one in, after months of scrubbing and waiting... my dreams came to fruition with the collaborative effort to produce the print you see pictured above. I'd be tempted to say that its content proved to be ironic if I didn't have a faith that believes (ever so feebly, now) that it all happened just the way God ordained for it to happen.

The quote originated from a note that "my valentine" received from the tooth fairy as a little boy. After loosing a tooth one day, he snuck it under his pillow without telling his parents only to wake up to a tooth under his pillow. He was disappointed, and challenged his parents about the myth of the money-awarding fairy. They encouraged him to try again. The next night, he did, and woke to find his reward along with a note (scribbled in his dad's handwriting).

Always believe in the mystery and magic of life and love.

You see, the reason I didn't show this print until now is that it was a Christmas gift for his dad. The story has always meant a lot to the two of them -- a reminder that there is reason to believe despite circumstance. There can be hope in the unseen even when we have cause to doubt. Just days after my old valentine and I printed this together for his dad, we broke up.

It has been a heart wrenching few months. I've tossed, turned, and cried more tears than I thought possible. I've questioned God; I'll venture to say I've even been a tad self-destructive, putting myself in hurt-inflicting situations that I've been too weak to handle. I've shaken fists at the sky and then picked myself up and tried to fix things on my own. I've tried. I've failed. I've felt hopeless and helpless. I've resisted the advice of friends, I've prayed against all odds for the wrong things. My first experience with heartbreak has been nothing short of completely devastating.

But, in the end, I know it was only because my first experience with love was rich. The last two years were some of the most joyous of my life. Because of him, I travelled to London and Paris. With his support, I gained the confidence to move forward with the dreams for four hats. I learned patience, and invested in my interests while I waited anxiously for his return to American soil. When he did, I had a best friend to share life with, to eat dinner with, to laugh uncontrollably with. And it was wonderful. I'm thankful for him and prayerful for his success as he moves on from here to follow a calling towards new adventures.

But, I am broken.

And it's going to take time and supernatural strength to heal me.

I don't feel like believing in love right now. But, I have to tell myself the truth. I have to push past unbelief. I have to trust in a God that doesn't open doors just to harshly shut them in my face. He wants to illuminate something about Himself to me. And against what I feel, I have to believe that even now.

Fresh Face

2012-01-03T14:46:00.001-08:00

**NOTE for the RSS feeds**

I will henceforth be moving my business blogging on over to fourhatspress.com. It will be home for news, pictures, pricing and my etsy store. It's in the works, but go on and over and poke around if you like.

Here on five feet small, I'll keep things a little more personal. My thoughts, prayers, and stories. These are the kind of posts I do more for myself than any one else. If you're at all encouraged by reading them, by all means, do so. If you're more interested in what's going on with me artistically, just hop on over to the new site.

Here's hoping for a happy new year!

Take it Personally

2012-01-02T10:27:00.000-08:00

I've been working on some personal stationery lines. So far, I've got these images, with possibility for personalization (available in flat or folded cards). Email me if you wanna talk.

(This is a card, but if you make passes at glasses, picture it transformed into a name notecard)

Automatic for the People

2011-12-20T15:53:00.000-08:00

More special-for-you letterpressness.

Birthday Party Calling Cards for the kiddos

From the Desk of Stationery

Hand Illustrations by the talented Sara Logan Wilson turned personal notecards

And some specs just for funsies.

Off the Hat Rack

2011-12-20T07:15:00.000-08:00

The holidays have been busy in my basement studio. Below are a few of the things I've done. I'd love to start doing more personal stationery and custom design work. If you need some, give me a holler!

NOTE: Since taking this picture, I fixed the typo and omitted space. Geesh.

Custom 5 X 7 Print.

Personal stationery

A note of thanks

A triumvirate of gratitude

(Some of these are for sale at fourhatspress.com)

She Came, She Saw

2011-12-20T06:53:00.000-08:00

Check out Kyle's write-up from her trip through Sweet Home Alabama.

Anticipation: It Does a Body Good

2011-12-09T10:13:00.000-08:00

photo from here

Work, play, shower, sleep, eat. Life tends to get repetitious, even banal. Sprinkle friends and creative projects in the mix. Add a dash of laughter and a smattering of beauty and refreshment. These are sweet spots – reprieve from the toil, toil under the sun.

What a gift it is to eat and drink, merry make and find joy in smallness. But, I still taste the hopelessness of those Ecclesiastes words. I echo with my own fist shaking. I ask the same questions.

I wonder why it is that I need so desperately for something to look forward to beyond my current address. There is always something to want. Always something to strive for in the greener pastures I think I see beyond my horizon.

Thoughts of a new adventure overcame me this morning. I have been travelling down a path of wondering, and to be quite honest, I’ve felt better today than I have in quite some time. And all it took was thinking about something TO COME.

There is something so deep set in our hearts that is nourished by anticipation. The Sunday school answer here is to say that I know it’s because we all hope for heaven, for Jesus’ doubling-back to earth. And, I know it’s true.

But I still kid myself into believing hope sometimes means believing that life will get better when x,y, and z happen. I am soothed by the thought of a quicker fix to my longing.

This advent season, I desperately want for my heart to soak in the truth that what I wait for can be found in the manger.

Bright Spot

2011-12-09T08:33:00.000-08:00

images from the Birmingham News. Read full article here.

Brooke Fleming's go-after-it attitude and desire to gather creative people around the (craft) table has lead her to open up this light-filled space on the corner of 55th Place in Woodlawn. It truly is a bright spot (and not simply because it's exterior has been painted with a fresh coat of BRIGHT blue). City Arts Boutique is home to works by local artists (ahem, including fourhatspress). Brooke hopes it will become a hub for creating. Come on out to the grand opening tomorrow night from 5-8!

Turning Corners: How reading food magazines has made me a more ambitious cook

2011-12-06T14:25:00.000-08:00

image from here

I feel quite at home in the kitchen, but by no means am I a magnificent cook. Trust me. I’ve made my fair share of mistakes. (I’m still reeling over the most recent deli turkey debacle – a result of my complete and utter misinterpretation of this recipe from Apples for Jam. Oh, it was bad. Really, really bad).

So, I’m the first to admit I don’t always have the instincts of a natural-born chef. While I do possess the occasional ability to improvise with what’s in the pantry, more often than not, I’m a fastidious grocery list maker, a recipe follower.

Be it for their voyeuristic quality (as we call them at work: “armchair reads”), or otherwise, I’m a huge fan of cooking magazines. I devour the pages of my monthly Bon Appetit. I turn corners down in hopes that I’ll have the courage and occasion to test my culinary capacities out on willing subjects.

The truth is not revolutionary. I love to feed people. I love to create. I love to make something and watch someone enjoy it. And cooking is one of the most tangible ways I can think to do it.

So, if you’re hungry, come on over. I’d love nothing more than another excuse to be daring in the kitchen.

On my list to try:

Gingerbread Cake

Chocolate Macaroons with Orange Ganache

Honey-Bourbon Toddy (with Apple Bourbon)

Spicy Fruit-Stuffed Pork Loin with Roasted Pears and Onions

Conscience

2011-12-05T09:00:00.001-08:00

The previous print was inspired by this poem by Henry David Thoreau entitled "Conscience."

Conscience is instinct bred in the house,

Feeling and Thinking propogate the sin

By an unnatural breeding in and in.

I say, Turn it out doors,

Into the moors.

I love a life whose plot is simple,

and does not thicken with every pimple,

A soul so sound no sickly conscience binds it,

That makes the universe no worse than it finds it.

I love an earnest soul,

Whose might joy and sorrow

Are not drowned in a bowl,

And brought to life tomorrow;

That lives one tragedy,

And not seventy;

A conscience worth keeping;

Laughing not weeping;

A conscience wise and steady,

And forever ready;

Not changing with events,

Dealing in compliements;

A conscience exercised about

Large things, where one may doubt

I love a soul not all of wood,

Predestinated to be good,

But true to the backbone

Unto itself alone,

And false to none;

Born to its own affairs,

Its own joys and own cares;

By whom the work which God begun

Is finished, and not undone;

Taken up where he left off,

Whether to worship or to scoff;

If not good, why then evil,

If not good god, good devil.

Goodness! You hypocrite, come out of that,

Live your life, do your work, then take your hat.

I have no patience towards

Such conscientious cowards.

Give me simple laboring folk,

Who love their work,

Whose virtue is song

To cheer God along.

Just My Type

2011-12-04T13:56:00.000-08:00

I've been having quite a bit of fun with the small bit of type I have. Sans serif and bold. It's just so no-nonsense. Just my type. Find these Thoreau prints for sales at fourhatspress.com.

Spread some joy and cheer

2011-12-04T06:40:00.001-08:00

Send a warm Christmas wish on the latest card from Four Hats Press!

Fine Print

2011-12-02T08:10:00.001-08:00

Yesterday was an amazing day with Kyle of Power and Light Press. Between a workshop at Woodlawn High School and a four-hour open print event at Railroad Park, we caught up about her travels, her art, and her letterpress business back in Portland. Kyle's been on the road since June of this year, and her journey will continue through April of 2012. Her warm spirit and easy smile makes her an easy one to welcome in. It's not difficult to imagine why her experience has been so rosy thus far. Please join me in wishing her continued happy trails by following her adventures here and buying her cute cards here.

Truly Delve in 2012

2011-11-30T10:57:00.001-08:00

buy this here

So this is Christmas/And what have you done/Another year over/A new one’s just begun. – John Lennon, “War is Over”

This post may be a bit premature, but as 2011 winds down, I think it’s fitting to take a looking at the aims I set out for myself at the year’s start. Back in January, I declared it a year to Let It Leaven. This theme included spending more time in the kitchen, hands deep in the dough, practicing the art of bread-making. I did, in fact, bake quite a few loaves this year, stumbling some, but making small improvements with each attempt. No matter how much my waistline suffers, I will continue to explore this book that inspired my goal.

On the other hand, the second tier of my resolution was to give my letterpress interests room to rise and grow. At the start of last year, I was still working at a local coffee shop. I was baking, loving my co-workers, and enjoying the freedom that my schedule afforded. I was printing when and if possible, but somewhat inconsistently. My simple life was fun, but I was beginning to grow desperate to see some progress personally, professionally, and artistically.

Come last spring, I was almost at my breaking point when new opportunities came barreling at me full speed. I began a new job and I finally bought my own printing press, moving it into the basement of my house. Things began happening, and I am still in awe at how abundantly I am blessed to have these opportunities.

For several subsequent months, as I adjusted to life back in an office, the repair on the press was slow, slow going. As of this fall, however, the press is up and running, and pumping out designs here and there.

I’m still learning; I’m still failing. I want to see this little hobby of mine turn into something more substantial, and at times, my impatience has lead me to try and rush the process. I’ll be the first to admit I’ve let some people down in my attempts to expedite the success of my little business.

As I face the year ahead, the truth I have to admit to myself is that I don’t know what is going to happen tomorrow. I have a hope, and maybe even some tentative plan, but life tends to throw me for loops.

Many are the plans in a man’s heart, but it is the Lord’s purpose that prevails.

My hopes for 2012 are that I will use it as a year to delve deeply into the things I fill my time with. In printing, may I continue to learn the quirks of my press, may I thrive to improve on my precision, my quality. I don’t know what kind of momentum I’ll have with it, but I’ll take it one step at a time. More than that, though, I hope for depth in friendships, I pray for strengthened faith. I’ve made the mistake of going too wide before.

May this year be about going DEEP.

Give Thanks and Keep Your Fork

2011-11-22T12:28:00.001-08:00

image from here

“Jesus counts thanksgiving as integral in a faith that saves.” Ann Voskamp, 1000 Gifts

I’ve read words like these. I’ve probably even said something similar in a finer moment. I’ve intellectually grasped that if I have open hands, if I will blindly follow where I’m taken and trust…then sure, I can truly live. But, how do I operate out of a heart that is truly thankful for the good, the bad, and the ugly? How do I turn it all into praise?

That seems like a mighty big mountain to climb.

It probably starts with a concise, “hey, thanks.” It snowballs from a few minutes spent reflecting on prayers answered. It grows. Eyes are opened; lips more quickly offer gratitude for joys both big and small.

So, in this season, I’m practicing thanks. Like the single leper that went back to Jesus to acknowledge His healing, I will try and lift my head, turn back to Him, put one foot in front of the other, and try and cultivate a spirit that chokes out the words I’m trying to believe even as I say them. “I am undeserving. Come what may, I am thankful.”

Though the fig tree does not bud, and there are no grapes on the vines, though the olive crop fails and the fields produce no food, there are no sheep in the pen and no cattle in the stalls, yet I will rejoice in the Lord, I will be joyful in God my Savior.

I heard the story once of a child sitting down to dinner at his grandma’s house. He struggled through his green beans, his salad. He poked and pushed the lovingly-prepared meal around his plate. As his grandmother came to collect his dish at dinner’s end, she looked at him, winked and whispered, “Keep your fork.”

In that instant, he perked up. Dessert was coming! And not just any old dessert. Not pudding or jello or anything of the like. This confection was sure to be substantial, requiring the strength of a fork to deliver each bite to his mouth. Now, that was something to look forward to.

I am the kid, you are him, too. We sit at the table. We sometimes turn our noses up at what we’ve been served. But, before this meal has concluded, we are told we can hang on to our forks. We can look forward to the sweetness that follows.

Listen, listen to me, and you will eat what is good, and your soul will delight in the finest of fare.

Praise the Lord. He is good. His love endures forever.

Book It

2011-11-13T09:43:00.000-08:00

Book artists, look away. You will not be impressed by this, my first-ever attempt at coptic book making. But, oh what a victory it was for me. Using vintage postcards (a frozen waterfall in Cathedral Caverns, Alabama!?), graph paper, wax linen thread, and a curved needle, I made myself a pocket notebook with six signatures of eight pages each, inspired by Esther K. Smith's resource guide and this helpful video. After meeting Ms. Smith during my visit to New York this year, I was inspired (yet hesitant) to jump into the art. But the first completion has whet my whistle. Can't wait to try the cake box book.

A conscious heart

2011-11-11T07:21:00.001-08:00

from here

This is a good reminder today. It’s been a tough month for me. I’ve been focused on what hasn’t been going my way, turning a blind eye to endless ways in which I’ve been taken care of. If He sees to the birds of the air, how much more will He see to me. My prayer in this moment is that I would see the beauty in the quotidian, that I would believe in the mystery and magic of life and of love, that I would trust in a God who’s sufficiency is sometimes disguised in heartbreak, in suffering, in a fog of confusion so thick that it demands ruthless trust.

A Prayer

2011-11-06T11:55:00.000-08:00

image from here

And there will come a time, you'll see, with no more tears.

And love will not break your heart, but dismiss your fears.

Get over your hill and see what you find there,

with grace in your heart and flowers in your hair.

-Mumford and Sons, "After the Storm"

Just A Note

2011-11-06T11:45:00.001-08:00

Just some personal cards for scribbling business notes. Clean black text on soft-as-butta crane paper. Three projects, one weekend. Man, having Andy the Vandy in my basement rocks.

Great Scott

2011-11-06T11:37:00.000-08:00

Another card from Four Hats Press? Great Scott!

Making Pies

2011-11-06T07:21:00.000-08:00

I've been making my own pies these days. Here are some of the fruits (cherry pies, rather) of my labor. They'll soon be up on my etsy page! More from fourhatspress to come very soon.

Pulling Prints in Birmingham

2011-11-01T13:57:00.001-07:00

image from here

One month from today (on December 1, 2011), I will help to welcome Kyle Durrie of Power and Light Press all the way from Portland, Oregon to Birmingham, sweet home, Alabama. Durrie has done like many dreamers before and used Kickstarter to fund a bad A personal project. Last year, she raised the money to transform the above vintage Chevy van into a mobile letterpress print workshop. When the funds were in place, she set forth on the most epic of road trips, making stops across the great states our nation to share her love for printed matter. You can read about her travel on her blog, and then actually take part in the fun when she makes her stop here at Railroad Park between the hours of 3 and 7 pm. Roll on over and print your own holiday card to-go-sies.

5th Annual Day of Fall Fun

2011-10-17T12:09:00.000-07:00

There was plaid, there was fall fare, pumpkin carving and a warm fire.

Most of all, there was the delightful company of friends.

5th Annual DOFF was a success. Fall fun was had by all.

Sweet Melodies

2011-10-13T15:35:00.000-07:00

I have an insatiable appetite for new music right now, which is, quite frankly, something I haven't felt in quite some time. These songs and artists have been soothing me with their sounds. I'm in a receiving mood here lately. "Sing me brave from your mouth."

Gregory Alan Isakov, In Tall buildings from before the winter fires on Vimeo.

My Brightest Diamond - ALL THINGS WILL UNWIND: Visuals from Asthmatic Kitty on Vimeo.

Listen to more here

Ryan Adams, Ashes and Fire

Remember You Used to Love Me from War Jacket on Vimeo. Caleb Chancey, War Jacket

Four Hats On!

2011-10-02T16:40:00.000-07:00

Check this guy out!

Below are the results of the first week of printing action in my basement studio. Rolling the cylinder back and forth in a repetitive motion gave me a chance to reflect on how faithful the Lord has been to answer prayers and get this little dream off the ground. I loved having visitors in the studio this week, and have really enjoyed having the chance to explain the process to others. There's one more print to share, and I will do so later (as it's a gift that needs first to be given). Here are the other two works:

Another wedding invite!

And business cards for a talented friend and fashion designer,

Heather Williams. Check her out here!

p.s. i love my new corner rounder!

** for the printers out there, if you're wondering why i'm doing extra inking on my way back from each revolution, it's because the inking is not quite enough with just one trip back to the feedboard. Any tips?

Let's roll!

2011-09-27T12:06:00.000-07:00

image from rob culpepper

The press is in action. With the first color of a three color print done, I'm jazzed to know that this thing works! I can't wait to finish up this first at-home fourhatspress creation. Look out for the full story and photos later this week!

2011-09-15T05:17:00.000-07:00

image from here

At risk of sounding dramatic, I've been waiting for this day for over two years. Ever since I started clicking around on the internet looking at pictures of printed matter, I've been head-over-heals with the process of letterpress. The trail that love has set me down has been quite unpredictable. It's lead me to many a printer, and many a friend. I've relied on their expertise for so long, and learned immeasurable lessons. I've reached a part of my journey that I must walk alone. I've got my tools, I just need to try. Today (pending the arrival of my last supply), I will troubleshoot and turn the crank on the finally-repaired-after-years-in-waiting Vandercook in my very own home studio. Oh happy day!

*stay tuned for more stories, pictures, and hopefully, if all goes as planned, prints!

A Sunday Rest

2011-08-28T08:01:00.000-07:00

image from here

It's 10:00 in the morning, and I'm still in my pajamas. Heck, I'm still in bed, nestled under my t-shirt sheets as the mid-morning sun pours in over my shoulder. This usually doesn't happen. By this point, I've typically been awake for a couple of hours at least. Several cups of coffee down, I might be on my way to the grocery, to breakfast with friends, to run ragged around this town.

And, today, instead of succumbing to the quiet nagging whisper that prizes productivity over all else, I am here, listening to sweet fall-ish music and poems and basking in the slowness of Sunday mornings I used to know. And, I 'm recognizing that I've somehow forgotten the value of Sabbath.

In The Rest of God, Mark Buchanan suggests that busyness may be the culprit of indifference. If I'm honest, I know that I've been selfish (especially so) lately. I've been too wrapped up in my own schedule, goals, comfort, that I've not bothered to notice anyone else. Perhaps it's true that "busyness makes us stop caring about the thing we care about."

And Sabbath-- the repose that allows puts into perspective who we are in light of who God is--sets that thinking right. My prayers is that I slow long enough to hear a truth that will sustain me through a new week, and open my eyes to the buzzingly busy people with their own lives, hearts and hurts.

Eli came!

2011-08-24T15:17:00.001-07:00

Click to enlarge

(from left to right: Meet Eli, George and Megan, Nanna Lou, "The Man," Aunt Cory, Eli Davis: 7 lb. 2 oz.)

The song had been on everyone's mind for the last months as my sister and her husband prepared to welcome little Eli Davis into the world. Then, yesterday, around 9:30 p.m., he came! Every baby looks the same until you have family in your arms. I look forward to knowing this little fella.

Passersby

2011-07-28T11:55:00.000-07:00

If you share a city with millions of other people, I imagine it'd be easy to live a life unnoticed. It might be frustrating to feel so small, so insignificant, so one-of-many. I got a small bite of the anonymity of big city obscurity this past go-round in New York. Passing someone on the street or making prolonged eye contact on the subway can mean very little when you do it all day, every day, in silence. Faces buzz past. Coats brush each other. Feet tread the same paths, possibly never to cross again. In a sea of people, sometimes meaningfully interacting isn't easy at all.

So, that's why these Craiglist listings "New York City Missed Connections" are so intriguing. They are all about people grasping for straws to kindle something more from their daily sparks with strangers. Like this one, posted today just before lunchtime:

Busy busy busy red head on L train last night - m4w (Chelsea)

It looked like you might be experiencing your vin-dit. You had beautiful hair, dress and shoes. Me in the purple shoes and yellow socks. Do you like to dance?

or this one, from yesterday:

We passed each other. Briefly. - m4w - 26 (Upper West Side)

So it was transient. But I felt as if you were carrying the world's troubles on your shoulders and wanted to just speak with someone about it. Don't know why, but when we locked eyes, we both realized (?) how empty our lives were. You were beautiful beyond description. Me, probably looked like an ape staring at you with wonder. I think you were wearing something green. Went really well with the color of your iris.

I could get lost clicking around through these moments of captured mystery. I'm not alone. Sophie Blackall, a New York based illustrator and hopeful romantic, has turned the Craigslist entries into lovely pictures, bound up in a beautiful book, due out next month. Missed Connections, Lost, Love, Lost & Found is a pictorial depiction of those fleeting instants. She says, "for all the hopelessness in writing and posting a Missed Connection, for all the 'you probably won't read this,' and the 'this is a shot in the dark,' there's a 15-watt bulb of hope dimly glowing in each message."

I, too, feel what she does when she says that "the enormous amount of tenderness in these messages makes me feel all swoony about my fellow human beings."

Take a look at the listings, her site, and the book. I think you just may feel something, too.

Deliver the Letter

2011-07-27T11:38:00.001-07:00

image from here

It's no secret that I'm a fan of the hand-written note. I have an endless appreciation for the lost art of tangible thoughtfulness. So, as soon as I get my press up and ready, I plan on continuing to deliver sweet somethings in letterpress. Until then, here's a guide to great letter-writing.

1. Secure some sweet stationery. The paper-licious options on etsy abound. I love the typography and deep impression on these. And I can never say no to what comes out of Rifle Paper Company.

get em here

2. Brush up on your technique. While you want your notes to be heartfelt and not at all formulaic sounding, there are some sweet tips on getting your message across, care of the one and only, Emily Post. Read her tips here. I also love Ready Made magazine's diagram of a good love letter (as written by Mark Twain to his wife, Livy). See the cute treatment they gave it below.

Insert Comments Here

2011-07-22T05:59:00.000-07:00

click to enlarge

Because I get in editor-mode at work, and wrestle around with words (as Phillip Yancey says, toying with them, listening for their overtones, and cracking them open), I've taken the above screen shot to document just how I'm processing Isaiah 30. I realize that not every passage referring to the Israelites can be turned around and related directly to my life today. But, I often reside in the way that they handled their freedom. This week especially has had me looking to many other things and people for the leadership that only the Lord can bring over my life. The text says that He LONGS to be gracious to me, even still.

*Irrelevant side note: If you want some free Cath Kidston desktop wallpapers like the one you see here, click this.

Slow and Steady

2011-07-10T08:56:00.000-07:00

Thanks to the help of a master machinist, I've been making steady progress on the repair of Andy the Vandy (the name I think I've settled upon for my 320 Vandercook Proof Press). It's been great to have the help of someone more mechanically minded for repairs to the grippers, to get the carriage on in the right place, to get it scrubbed clean, and to get it all leveled up. This fella is just another one in a long list of people who have been generous with their time and knowledge to help me along on the way. My meager thanks are not enough.

I'm quite perplexed by a couple remaining issues with rollers and with packing the cylinder, but with the help of the worldwideweb and the printerly experience of others, I hope to be up and cranking in no time at all.

It's all been happening so slowly, I haven't been reporting much about how exciting this all been. This dream that began over two years ago is making serious progress, and let it be known that I am overjoyed, overwhelmed with thanksgiving to a God who knew, who knows.

Andy, I'm thrilled to have you in my life. Oh, the places we'll go!

I'm behind the times

2011-06-29T12:21:00.001-07:00

Image borrowed

I'm always a bit behind the curve, which is why I haven't yet gotten around to watching the two latest episodes of Jamie Oliver's Food Revolution on hulu. I was poking around on the web when I ran across this spoiler-alert article about his efforts. The guy is doing some really wonderful things to educate people about what we eat blindly. Jamie's spiel on candy coatings (Season 2, episode 3) even prevented me from buying theatre snacks a couple of weeks ago (much to the disappointment of my movie buddy).*

All this to say, I'm sad for the close mindedness of a community (or the leadership over it) that was not open to letting Jamie revolutionize their diets. They're the ones losing out. There is a lot of good to be gained if we endure the growing pains of facing the facts.

*In an effort to steer clear of some of the nauseating things he reported are on the ingredient lists of some beloved sweeties, I'm going to try and opt for choices from places like Indie Candy, if at all possible.

Calling All Blog-Lovers

2011-06-27T13:49:00.001-07:00

image from Roost

I'm looking for links.

If you enjoy reading food, craft, entertaining-centric blogs, please post links to your favorite sites here. I'd be much obliged. Click the image credit below to have a look around my most recent favorite. Thanks for your help!

Slam Dunk

2011-06-07T14:48:00.000-07:00

image from here

Oh, I meant to tell you about this long ago, and was just reminded of it as I sat at my desk enjoying an afternoon pick-me-up. You see, I was introduced to this delicacy during my last visit to NYC (thanks to my hospitable hostess). This wafery-chocolatey cookie is called a Tim Tam and it comes from heaven above (or, to select American cities by way of Australia). New York is of course one of these premier locations. Birmingham, Alabama....not yet. Maybe like most fashion trends, they'll make their way down South, and then west, and then west....in a few years. I was delighted beyond delighted when my savvy Upper West sider friend smuggled some home for me last week.

So, what's the big deal about this cookie? Well, not only is this a stand-alone delicious choice, it is unparalleled in its excellence when combined with a cold glass of milk or a warm cup of joe. And alas! You may reach the pinnacle of enjoyment when you consume it with the "tim tam slam" method. For its utmost indulgence, you must bite off opposite corners of the cookie, inserting one into a hot cup of coffee. (The next step requires finesse and speed, and is not for the Emily Post devotee, as it will cause you to behave less than lady-like for a moment's time.) Wasting not another minute, you must then inhale your coffee as it rushes through the crispy layers of the cookie. When you get your first taste of coffee, time waits for no man. You must shove the entire cookie into your mouth, where it explodes into a chocolate pyrotechnic and you succumb to a coffee-soaked oblivion.

I googled this phenomenon, and, was not surprised to find that it's a thing. I even found google images of people slamming. And the great news, I found a site where you can order these goodies, and get them delivered to your doorstep. Thank goodness that the Aussies are so generous as to share with us.

Hats On

2011-06-05T16:58:00.000-07:00

It's been pretty quite around here at Four Hats Press...

While I've been adjusting to a new 9-to-5 and catching my breath after moving the beast of a press into its new home, I've neglected to do much designing or printing. But, with repairs now under way, and impending occasions to celebrate, I made the trek to APS this weekend (for what I hope will turn out to be one of the last times) to print a couple of things for family/friends.

Here's the baby announcement that will tell the world about my nephew-to-come. I can't wait to meet this little fella. The remainder of the cards will go up for sale in my etsy shop. Look for little girl versions soon, too!

And here are some more wedding invites, this time around for my roommate. It's been fun to be a part of her special day in this way.

And the RSVP card. I love the oak tree design, as it mirrors the very site of their nuptial ceremony. Look at that deep impression. H Yeah.

2011-06-02T06:16:00.000-07:00

For years, I've dreamed of the romantic notion of setting up banquet-style in a field or farm for a dinner with friends. The image has always evoked memory of the scripture that mentions being taken to the great banqueting hall, His banner over us being LOVE. This Saturday, I had the pleasure of being part of a wedding celebration that brought life to the dream with the beautiful setup at Jones Valley Urban Farm that you see above. At dusk, with help from the strung-up globe lights and paper lanterns, it was a lovely scene like I've only before imagined.

In other news, the traveling dream dinner party, Outstanding in the Field makes it's way South this fall. Check it out here.

Disturb Me

2011-05-24T08:41:00.000-07:00

image from here

Disturb us, Lord, when

We are too well pleased with ourselves,

When our dreams have come true

Because we have dreamed too little,

When we arrived safely

Because we sailed too close to the shore.

Disturb us, Lord, when
With the abundance of things we possess
We have lost our thirst
For the waters of life;
Having fallen in love with life,
We have ceased to dream of eternity
And in our efforts to build a new earth,
We have allowed our vision
Of the new Heaven to dim.

Disturb us, Lord, to dare more boldly,
To venture on wider seas
Where storms will show your mastery;
Where losing sight of land,
We shall find the stars.

We ask You to push back
The horizons of our hopes;
And to push into the future
In strength, courage, hope, and love.

attributed - sir francis drake -1577

Share the Care

2011-05-05T09:42:00.001-07:00

These two girls are doing a great job of gathering information and mobilizing support for the folks impacted by last week's terrible storms. Check the website or facebook page for information about local efforts -- however small or big.

It was a BIG day for Four Hats Press

2011-05-02T20:19:00.001-07:00

With the help of some brawn, some brains and a heavy-duty engine lift, my Vandy made its trek from one basement to another this weekend. No small amount of hours or energy were spent to ensure the move was a smooth one. I'm so grateful to have a community of people who were willing to take on this hefty task. See below a few pictures of the process.

The fellas used a lift to extract the 2000 pound beast from one garage and up into the bed of a truck for transport. First, they removed the carriage (which I was later told is not the best idea as it's a bear to put back on),* to make the transport a bit easier.

There was a precarious moment during which the lift dropped the press down onto the concrete in a quick and heart-wrenching thud. No one was hurt in the process, and

the press survived the beating, too.

Here she is sitting atop the bed of the F350 truck. What a haus.

The trickiest part may have been getting the truck up my driveway and into the garage to be lowered to the ground.

The guys handled it with class and (from my angle, what looked like) ease.

The BIG move from Cory Bordonaro on Vimeo.

Here are the last few moments of the ordeal, the shuffling steps that put the press in it's resting place in my little studio. I love the sound of the feet on the concrete floor as they divided the weight among many hands, taking the small steps necessary to get it into the right place.

Without over-romanticizing, I actually think this moment illustrates a picture of what the last couple of years have been for me. When it came to knowing where my interest in the art of letterpress would take me, there were a lot of starts and stops. At times, the task of maneuvering my way into a world that I knew nothing of seemed entirely too big. I felt ill-equipped to find my place: a self-proclaimed crafter among real artisans. But it was -- it is-- a continual shuffle of small steps towards goals. It is a group effort, as I think on and thank the countless people who have carried my weight through their sharing, their teaching, their support.

I simply can't believe that I am now the proud owner of a Vandercook. I've woken up the past two mornings to sneak downstairs into the basement to have a look at it -- the proof that the working and waiting was not in vain. I now have cold hard proof that this adventure is real.

Thank God that though I felt like He may have had writer's block for a while, He's still writing my story.

* If you're a printer and have advice for me as I clean and replace the carriage, please do share! Any tips and/or resources are welcome.

Easter Feast

2011-04-26T11:54:00.000-07:00

Coupled with the satisfying truth of the resurrection, it was so good to eat and be filled by this Sunday meal of:

Croque Madame c/o Cozy Kitchen

French Macaroons with Chocolate Ganache c/o Martha

And this amazing view from the front porch of my parents new home, c/o the Creator

Hope it was a Happy Easter for you and yours!

320 G-Unit

2011-04-22T06:10:00.000-07:00

Let it be known, that in T-minus 8 days, my press makes its way into this space that I've prepared for it to live and (hopefully soon) make beautiful things!

Revolving Doors

2011-04-22T05:28:00.001-07:00

image borrowed

I'm home with my parent's this weekend for the big move -- a departure from the only house I've ever called home. This is the house that welcomed me home from the hospital and housed me for 25 restless Christmas Eve night sleeps. It now holds a million things that require decision: give away, donate, keep, move. More than the material, this house is a reminder of the friends that filled it, the misadventures that occurred in the backyard and cul-de-sac and the meals enjoyed around the kitchen table. Nonetheless, I will help my parents and together we will leave it behind... just another cog in the wheel that keeps bringing change.

And this transition is well-timed with my personal upheaval. I, too, am on the brink of new things. As one chapter of my little life closes, I move on from a job and an existence I've known for nearly two years. One marked by leisurely mornings spent walking my neighborhood streets, Ira's voice drumming softly in my ear. One that allowed time for cooking and reading and crafting. One that afforded me the time and freedom to travel and discover new things about the art that I'm learning.

With this season ending, come a thousand little goodbyes. Not only am I seeing the end of my actual previous existence, but the hope of several that I imagined in the future for myself. For now, with pain and heartache, I realize, New York is a no-go. The same for the plan B idea I had to return to Georgia and re-carve out life there. Also extinguished is the short-lived but so-fun idea of moving to North Carolina to find work in the printing industry. The last several months have been filled with sparks of interest in every direction. Without realizing it, I put stock in every new one, and now, slowly, I have to let the idea of each fade. I have to re-acclimate to the idea of staying where I am, letting the adventure exist partly in the streets, people, and culture I already know. I pray to find the joy of that without succumbing to the ease, comfort and complacency that sometimes accompany lingering.

When Moses led the Israelites away from Egypt, he knew where he was taking them. They were not just leaving from an old way of life, they were going to a new one. And, I'm certain the Lord has used the last two years of my life to prepare me for where He intends for me to tread, even on familiar streets.

Girls Making Passes

2011-04-18T21:12:00.001-07:00

I've spent hours digitally trying-on, at-home trial ordering, and posing in front of the mirror with new glasses from Warby Parker. The company provides free try-before-buy trials of five frames and offers feedback for the best fit. Plus they donate a pair of glasses for each one purchased. The cherry on top? All frames with Rx lenses cost a grand total of $95. Go on and have a looksy for yerself.

I know this sounds like an advertisement, but I assure you, I am not receiving a lick of payment for this endorsement.

Savouring the Material

2011-04-16T07:48:00.000-07:00

As Lenten season comes to a close over the next week, a revisit to this morsel of wisdom seems appropriate. I devoured the book last year, and feel the urge to go back to its pages for a reminder of how our God dwelt in our humanity, enjoyed the fruits of the Earth, ate good meals and saw the hand of the Creator on Creation. I am hungry for a portion truth that speaks to God's presence in the things of my day-to-day. If this book's author can wax poetic about how slicing an onions speaks volumes about theology, then I too can look to find the mystery in the mundane, the "cross in the clothespin."

I don't intend to make small a God whom the universe cannot even contain. But, I do hope to, over the next few days, really wrestle with the humility it took for a God so expansive, so wise, so all-knowing, so endlessly patient, to:

fit himself into a body like mine

share meals around a table

speak a true message both lovingly and boldly

be a physical, actual friend to people

It is boggling tho think that His feet walked our planet, that He tasted the things I taste, that He was who He is and where I am.

HOT OFF THE PRESS!

2011-04-01T16:16:00.000-07:00

Look at this beautiful hunk of metal!

I can't believe it, but I just bought a Vandercook 320 Printing Press... my first ever (and most terrifying) ebay purchase to date. It's a 1750 pound piece of metal that will need to be heaved and hoed, moved up a steep driveway, repaired, rust-rubbed, tended to, worked on.... eventually printed on, and most definitely loved. I truly wasn't sure this day would actually come, but doggone it, it's here. Now's the time to take on courage, to proceed and be bold.

I declared 2011 a year to let the interests I've dabbled have room to rise and grow. Back in December, I said:

I'm hoping that 2011 is a year during which my letterpress hopes and dreams will have room to rise. For the last year or so, I've planted seeds, watered them and waited. Now, it's time to let the yeast do it's natural thing, and aerate. It's time to watch things grow. While I don't make any promises, nor do I set too high expectations for myself, I do want to see change happen this year.

And what do you know? Three months, a hearty portion of disappointment and disillusionment, some unexpected opportunities, and a leap of faith later, I've found my way into a new adventure.

I was reminded earlier this year that the Lord doesn't show us our destinations. He promises just to be a light unto our feet, and a lamp unto our path. That means I've just got enough of a candle to keep me from stumbling on my very next step. And though that's somewhat frightening, it's also perfect.

Let it Rain

2011-03-31T08:01:00.001-07:00

I've dusted off the ole April Valentines at fourhatspress.com.

An opportunity

2011-03-27T06:25:00.000-07:00

I've not had much reason to write here lately. A whole lot of contemplation, but without the fruits that have made it all that worthy to share. But, I'm feeling reflective this morning, remembering the ways that this blog has helped me to grab a hold of some truths that I've been fearful to look in the face. There's something about wrestling to put words to things that makes them confront-able.

The reality is that this summer will mark the two year anniversary of when (what I sometimes consider) my "real job" came to an end. My college education and the beginning of my "career' were halted and for almost two whole years since then, I've been working a silly, but fun job while learning letterpress, printing and trying to figure out my next step. It's been an adventure, and at most times, thrilling. In moments of forgotten trust in Providence, it's also been frustrating, stressful and terrifying.

I've encountered financial setbacks, and lost opportunities. I've applied to jobs, internships, residencies closeby and far away. I've teeter-tottered back and forth about moving to learn the art of letterpress from others versus staying put, getting higher paying-work and saving up towards the end of getting my own equipment to be able to learn the hard way. I've wondered what it is I really want to do, and if I have the courage to actually swallow the fear of my inadequacies and just do it.

The truth is I'm a quarter of a century old, and I have no idea what I'm doing with my life.

I come again to a cross roads where I have the choice to either cower at the unknown or rise up to challenge and beauty of the Great Perhaps. I pray for the sunny outlook I once had, the "everything to look forward to, and nothing to dread days."

I'm in a position to see the Lord not only change my external circumstances, but to see Him do something dynamic within my heart. I'm asking for wisdom, for courage, for clarity. I'm wanting to see the adventure in whatever befalls.

I remember seeing an advertisement years ago in a magazine. It was for a paint company of some sort, and pictured a couple standing in an empty white-walled room. The girl looked bright-eyed, the fella a little overwhelmed. The ad stated that when some people find themselves with a blank slate, it's daunting. For others, it's unlimited opportunity.

With supernatural assistance, I choose to see possibility in this present uncertainty.

Sitting in a Tree

2011-03-13T13:18:00.000-07:00

Another wedding invite off the press. Check out these Pacific Northwest-inspired lovelies: my first attempt at printing on a colored paper. The orange color of the sun was slightly browned by the blue tint underneath. The impression/inking was a bit of a challenge, as there were varying stroke sizes and large areas to fill in with black ink, but overall, I'm pleased with the outcome. A fun project to work on, and a happy occasion to celebrate.

Prayers and blessings for the upcoming marriage of two more friends!

Don't let your words fall flat

2011-03-10T16:04:00.000-08:00

Send a kind note on one of two new flat cards from four hats press!

Get em here or here.

March on Over

2011-02-28T17:05:00.000-08:00

If you didn't get on the Calendartine train last March, it may be time to fall lucky in love with the idea that every day is Valentine-worthy. Check out March cards from four hats press here and here. Or, get them in person on over here.

Charm your body

2011-02-23T20:57:00.000-08:00

I ran across this little book, entitled 1000 Things To Do, while sifting through an exhibit at the New York Center for the Book Arts a few weeks ago during my foray in the Big City.* For twenty or thirty pages, the book goes on with these non-related one-liners, suggestions of commendable, fun or purposeless things to do. I think I liked this page for the challenge to "Charm your body into thinking all things are possible." I can't say why this struck me. I have no idea what charming your body entails. But, for unspeakable reasons, I find it an inspiring dare. I want to figure out what it means and do it. I want to be randomly kind, brave and encouraging. I want to believe again that --though I am in my mid-twenties, that though I will soon have been out of college as long as I was in it, that though I am still floundering to figure out my life and its goal-- anything is attainable.

*By the way, I have had this song in my head off and on since I've been home. What gives?

Mulling It Over

2011-02-10T19:52:00.001-08:00

Jumping off a giant snowball in Brooklyn's beautiful Prospect Park

I've been home from my Big Apple Adventure for just about two weeks now. I'm in partial disbelief that the whole thing ever happened. I was there for an entire week, experiencing the city under 19" + of fresh glorious snowfall. I had the chance to meet with wonderful printers, designers, bookmakers, business people and artists. I even got a peek at the craft dreamworld that is the Etsy headquarters in DUMBO. I traversed the city by foot, by bus, by subway. I ate cheaply. I sought out free cultural experiences. I went to the YMCA and to church. I took walks through the park. And when I wasn't bundled up and hustling through the gridlock, I was sitting in coffee shops, sipping and reading. And I was praying prayers and crunching actual numbers. I dreamed and then thought realistically.

It was a week filled with note-taking and observing. I asked probing questions of everyone I crossed. Where do you get your health insurance? What are some of the biggest annoyances of city living? Is the rent too damn high here?

For a week, I was caught up in the pace. And I loved it. I relished moments of silence on the subway, where I could sit and read, making great use of my travel time. I loved emerging from each underground tunnel to a new street corner, lively and with a distinct personality of its own. I loved finding people who share my love for paper goods, for printed matter. The city air, however chilly, however polluted, was intoxicating.

But here I am... home on Southern soil, warm in my cozy kitchen. The roads of this town are familiar and the days are busy. I've not had much time for the kind of thought that my week in the big city afforded me. I've thought enough to know that a move there would be hard. It would require sacrifice. It would mean distance from those I love. And these are real weights on a decision scale that swings back and forth with every minute.

I'm still praying for guidance, for direction, for more faith.

Pressing On

2011-01-31T17:37:00.001-08:00

I've much to say, but for now, let my two latest creations from

Four Hats Press do the talking...

A wedding announcement for a tandem-riding twosome.

And another sassy, sweet Valentine card

available for purchase here and here!

I Lie Like a Rug

2011-01-28T08:00:00.000-08:00

I'm sorry. I set a misleading precedent, saying that New York was inspiring the heck out of me and that I'd be reporting like a fiend during my week here. It's not that I haven't had the inspiration, it's just that I haven't had the time. My FMO* is heightened this week. If I'm not out in the city's living room, I feel like I'm not carpe diem-ing. I even feel like I'm wasting my time with sleep. There's so much that I want to be doing, seeing. So many talented creatively-spurring people that I want to talk to. There are so many rich patterns, textures and colors to this city. So, while I could write a diatribe about all I've been observing, for now, let the following brief recap suffice. I'll surely fill in the details later. Because, as I read about in a book of blog excerpts at the Center for the Book Arts' current exhibit,

"As Henri LeFebrve pointed out, without considering the quotidian one loses sight of the actual process of historical becoming. Events become imbued with a false sense of springing from a solitary moment rather than as results of accumulated minor actions. At a micro level, it's in the there and now that individuals exist, and it's through the recounting of these events that people mold their experiences into memories they can live with and knowledge they can build upon."

A Lunch enjoyed watching the Bryant Park skaters

A stroll through Brooklyn Bridge Park

A quilt from an exhibit at the American Folk Art Museum

The Center for the Book Arts

Art at the Center for the Books Arts

Central Park after the big snow.

An installation of antique sewing machines I really liked at a Soho boutique.

Me and my bud after an exquisite Restaurant Week meal.

*Fear of missing out.

Both/And

2011-01-24T07:47:00.001-08:00

(image from here)

"New York will bestow the gift of loneliness and the gift of privacy."

-E.B. White

I've been here before. The path to the door was a familiar one, as I crossed through the regal gates and scuffled across the red brick pathway. The black leather chairs sit facing each other the way they did when I left them last, inviting conversation, signaling rest. And, today, I take a few minutes repose after having travelled no short distance to be here. It feels good to be where I've been before.

This time, the lobby in the Columbia University International Affairs Building is teeming with life. People come in from the frigid (8 degree) outdoors, lungs still puffing out personal fogs of breath half-frozen. Last time I was here, I was helping to move a friend , settling her to begin a graduate program at this grand university.

Now, I'm here to see about a potential life for me. Now, I'm here to see the colder, more ordinary version of daily existence in the concrete jungle of New York City.

On the plane ride up, I devoured E.B. White's simple essay, "Here is New York." The essay, first penned in 1949, is now prefaced with a more recent advisory explaining that the city is not how it was. As is the case with most transitory places, people have come and gone, businesses have replaced each other, things have changed.

But, there are things that have remained. There are, as White observes, three separate New Yorks. There is the one for natives who see the city lights as old hat. There is another altogether for those who traverse to Manhattan each day of the week only to turn around and leave it at day's end. The third city is for dreamers like myself. It's for people who come looking for something. It's the city that is a destination, a goal, an invitation to discovery.

Later in the essay, White goes on to describe both the inescapable community and the possible anonymity of being here. At one point, he sips coffee in a cafe, noting the eighteen inches between him and the neighboring patron. The foot and a half were "both the connection and the separation that New York provides for it's inhabitants."

This week, I hope to be both known and unknown as I spend time on my knees and on my feet. Ironic as it may sound, I'm taking a retreat. I'm seeking a haven in these busy, noisy streets. And in the midst of crowds, I'll find the solitude I seek. And in the buzzing chatter, I hope to hear the quiet voice of wisdom.

I imagine I'll be writing a good deal this week, as all this stimulation stirs up what's been dormant for a long while. I feel as though I could already write a novel from the things I observed on the bus ride, of the fashions, of the texture of the sidewalk. If I bore you with my goings on, just don't mind me. This is helping me to see with eyes wide open, the bright and wonderful world around me.

At our Fingertips

2011-01-21T08:22:00.000-08:00

image from here

"Hands are so vital to creativity that I can' t understand why we value the more useless parts of our anatomy more highly." -Jane Brocket, The Gentle Arts of Domesticity

In the passage from which the above quotation was extracted, Brocket goes on to detail the many things of which her hands are capable of doing:

I like the way they knead dough, create stitches, hold yarn, thread needles, sort beads and buttons and deal with fiddly sewing machine parts. Sometimes I watch them as if they don't quite belong to me and am secretly delighted when they seem to know what to do.

Her musings are much akin to my own. For that reason, I was drawn to her words that bring more attention our hands - these so-called more "useful" but under-recognized parts of ourselves.

It echoes what I've recently read in 1 Corinthians, what Paul says about placing more value on some parts of the body than on others. "Those parts of the body that seem to be weaker are indispensable," he says (v. 23). Or, (in one of my favorite Message interpretations), Eugene says:

You can live without an eye, for instance, but not without a stomach. When's it's a part ofyour own body you are concerned with, it makes no difference whether the part is visible or clothed, higher or lower. You give it dignity and honor just as it is, without comparisons. If anything, you have more concern for the lower parts than the higher. If you had to choose, wouldn't you prefer good digestion to full-bodied hair?

You better believe I would prefer a digestive tract that can handle what I feed my mouth over a Farrah Fawcet 'do. But, as true as this all rings to me, I still struggle with comparing myself to others in the body of Christ. If I can appreciate the less glorified parts of my own anatomy, recognizing that though they aren't highly visible, they are important, then why do I size myself up to other people who seem to be fulfilling a more necessary role in what Scriptures describe as being a figurative "body" of believers?

As I muddle my way through figuring out just what part I play, I hope that I will not fall into the temptation to see the body as anything but a whole made up of vitally different, moving, visible and invisible parts.

Stay little valentine, stay

2011-01-20T15:10:00.000-08:00

Frank may have been on to something. If you want your little valentine to stick around, say it any day with one of these letterpressed Calendartines from Four Hats Press. Get them at www.fourhatspress.com, and in a few days, here, here or here.

Look for a few new things to come off the press within the next few days!

A Bigger Bite

2011-01-13T16:01:00.000-08:00

image from here

Later this month, I'll venture back to the Big Apple, this time with the intent of living a week in the life of a New York resident. No big splurge shopping sprees, no high-dollar restaurant tickets on my agenda. Just meetings with letterpress printers and trips to the grocery store and gym. Yes, I'm going to try and transplant my quotidian life up North for one week. Sure, I'm going to take full advantage of the buzzing culture that abounds in the city that never sleeps. But, I'm also going to try and really see the city without my rose-colored glasses. Riding on the subway, walking through the cold. I'll carry my belongings on my person, all day, up and down the city streets. These are the sometimes harsh and frustrating realities of living in an expansive city and sharing space with millions of other people.

While moving and beginning again in a new place (any place) is altogether uncomfortable for me to even conceive of doing, I want to believe that I could do all over again what I did when I began a life in the unknown place that is now my home in Birmingham. I am still young, despite how settled I sometimes feel.

So, I'm going to try it for a trial run, hoping that a week will grant me the discernment about this that I've been seeking. Who knows... It could all lead to a grand realization that life where I am is all that I want it to be. Or, I could have to face the frightening possibility of picking up and trying something different. I teeter on the idea that this could quite possibly be the most selfish thing I ever do. But, unless I step out for a moment, giving space to my questions, I wonder if I'll ever hear an answer to the innumerable prayers I've prayed, simply asking God for a call to something, anything.

I pray for the courage to be faithful, whatever that means.

***********************************************************

Some fun things on my to-do list:

Let my imagination take off at Spacecraft.

Get crafty with the folks at Etsy.

Get in a bind at the Center for Book Arts.

Read between the lines at the Purgatory Pie Press.

Get a kick out of the Upright Citizens Brigade.

Thumb through the pages at Printed Matter.

2011-01-06T13:57:00.000-08:00

Let it Leaven in 2011: afterthought

In the midst of my edible bread-making this year, I hope and pray to, like a most admirable woman, also "[watch] over the affairs of [my] household and ... [be watchful, be active with my freedom and rest so as to ensure that I do] not eat the bread of idleness (Proverbs 31:27)."

With My Own Two Hands

2011-01-06T09:00:00.000-08:00

I've got two hands. Movable, bendable, agile hands. Hands that can sweetly scratch a back or offer a firm handshake. Hands that can ice a cupcake or affix a letterpress plate to a boxcar base. I've got two hands that can stretch out over the keyboard to put letters, words, sentences to my thoughts.

I've got one mind. One fantastically complex, perplexing, twisted, sometimes slow-to-process, sometimes million-mile-an-hour mind. One mind that I don't feel has been put to great use as of late.

This realization has initiated some interesting thought about how to use my mental faculties in my work, whatever it is, whatever it ends up being. I love being at work with my hands. It's been a sensational liberation to find satisfaction in this kind active, tactile productivity. But, I do wonder when/if/how I can combine trade skills with white collar work. How can I put my education, my analytical thought, my creativity to good use?

My prayer is to find a way to marry the two. Lord, let it be so.

They Fit Like a Mitten

2010-12-29T12:12:00.000-08:00

January Valentines!

Get these Four Hats letterpress cards here, here, here or at www.fourhatspress.com!

A personal advent

2010-12-17T15:37:00.000-08:00

advent stockings for purchase here

This really struck a chord with me. I can relate heavily to being in the waiting place known to many simply as the mid-twenties. Though I love and have been greatly blessed by my current job, it cannot sustain. I am in search of what's next. I've held up my end of this bargain. I've put irons in the fire, and watched them burn. I've acted and waited with no bites to date.

This is not new. I sat in this seat last year. Again, I am reminded that my praying and waiting points to a greater Advent. For four weeks leading up to Christmas, children across the globe take it day by day. A piece of chocolate, a charm, a decoration. One at a time, each signals to them the truth that He is coming, but we cannot rush His timing.

As I look ahead this season, may I be reminded once more that He does not intend to exasperate me with the longing. May the days in waiting only cause me to seek Him more, knowing He answers the door to those who knock.

A Year in Calendartines

2010-12-13T10:07:00.000-08:00

Be a sweetie all the year through, sending kind wishes your valentine's way. Get the whole year in Calendartines at fourhatspress.com!

A Hauliday

2010-12-09T18:10:00.000-08:00

If you're anything like me, one look at a Chronicle book leads to near obsession with their entire line. That's why, in the spirit of wishful thinking, I'm entering their contest to WIN! oodles of books this holiday, simply by making a list of some of their sought-after titles.

I choose:

1. Paper + Craft

2. Craft Inc. Business Planner

3. Silhouette Art

4. Creative Inc.

5. Hot Type

6. Reprodepot Pattern Book: Folk

7. The Printmaking Bible

13. 52 Adventures in New York City

14. Thinking with Type

15. One Line a Day: A Five Year Memory Book

And hey, if you comment here, you might win too!

While I Wait

2010-12-07T15:42:00.000-08:00

God spoke again to Ahaz. This time he said, "Ask for a sign from your God. Ask anything. Be extravagant. Ask for the moon!"

But Ahaz said, "I'd never do that. I'd never make demands like that on God!"

So Isaiah told him, "Then listen to this, government of David! It's bad enough that you make people tire with your pious, timid hypocrisies, but now you're making God tired. So the master is going to give you a sign anyway. Watch for this: A girl who is presently a virgin will get pregnant. She'll bear a son and name him Immanuel (God-With-Us)." Isaiah 7:10-14, msg

I haven't been very watchful of God lately. I haven't travelled God-consciously on my journey. I have had ingrown eyeballs. And strangely enough, I haven't even been asking God for much of anything. No, this doesn't prove me pious or selfless. It proves me so self-consumed that I haven't even stopped to recognize the giver of good gifts.

In the passage above, King Ahaz (descendant of David) was likewise drowning in self-thought. A threat of foreign invasion had him and his people shaking in their boots. When God asked him what he wanted, Ahaz sloughed him off. I don't need anything from God, he thought. Because he was certain that he could take care of himself. He feigned confidence in the strength of his own army. He was satisfied with what he was doing to make things right.

But, God wasn't having it. I'm going to give you a sign anyway, He says. Ahaz didn't deserve it. He wasn't asking. And YET, God showed him the greatest sign of hope. He told him about a hope he wasn't even waiting for. Years and years down the road, a teenage virgin would carry the Savior of the World in her flesh. Her humanity would make it possible for God to dwell with man. But, Ahaz couldn't see past his present troubles. He couldn't see that not only could God conquer a neighboring foreign army, He could conquer sin.

I, too, often neglect to come to the Lord in asking. I, too, am caught up in hypocrisy, too concerned with my own acts to realize that God is not short-sighted. But, the good news this Christmas, this Advent season, is that it doesn't matter. No matter how ready, how needy, how cognizant we are of our gracious God, He gives. He speaks. He acts.

Thanks be to our God who comes near.

Let It Leaven

2010-12-07T15:35:00.000-08:00

It's that time of year again... time to sigh and take a look at the months past, time to gear up for those ahead. It's about time to be resolute about something in the new year. For a few years now, I've been known to make rhyming claims about the time before me. Two years ago, my hope was to get back to craft, last year to begin again with a new outlook on life and career. For 2011, I'm thinking both specifically and vaguely.

I do declare that I want to "Let it Leaven in 2011."

That said, quite literally, I commit to learning the art of bread making. I hope to dirty the pages of this book, to get some face time with legit artisan bakers and to sink my hands into the dough of tens of varieties of loaves. I've made a few starter loaves, but I'd like to amp it up this next year, and get better at bread.

On the other side of the coin, I'm hoping that 2011 is a year during which my letterpress hopes and dreams will have room to rise. For the last year or so, I've planted seeds, watered them and waited. Now, it's time to let the yeast do it's natural thing, and aerate. It's time to watch things grow. While I don't make any promises, nor do I set too high expectations for myself, I do want to see change happen this year. I'd like to stash away more and more capitol to someday soon be able to buy a press and open the studio of my dreams.

I'm willing to work, and I'm willing to wait. I just pray that given some room to grow, these plans will make some headway this year.

What are you scheming for the year ahead?

More Wedding Bells are Ringing

2010-12-06T11:24:00.000-08:00

This was my first-ever full wedding suite. The job was two color and printed on Crane Lettra's cottony 100 pound paper. The beautiful design was done by the bride.

My sincerest congratulations on the union!

No Sloppy Seconds

2010-12-06T11:03:00.000-08:00

my booth!

I've got lots of leftover letterpressed goodies from the holiday craft bazaar this weekend, and will be soon updating my etsy shop with all of them! Look out for full sets of Calendartines, Sweet Something Cards, Thank Yous, Banners and more! Get crafty for Christmas at www.fourhatspress.com.

Come See Me

2010-12-02T14:59:00.000-08:00

At Four Hats' first ever appearance at a craft show -- a Holiday Craft Bazaar to be more precise. Come on out Friday, Saturday or Sunday. I'll be there with bells on.

And in honor...

Giving Thanks and Gearing Up

2010-11-24T19:42:00.000-08:00

Allow me to present Four Hats Press' December Valentines. Send warm wishes someone's way with one of these three cards, now available at www.fourhatspress.com, at Urban Standard,Charm or Zoe's Consignment. Happy Holidays!

Maybe it is so

2010-11-21T19:30:00.000-08:00

(from here)

The below stanza of "It Came Upon a Midnight Clear" is kicking my sorry-for-myself-life's-so-hard behind. I'll bet, on the first Christmas night, all worries and chatter ceased when an army of angels broke through the pristine winter night to put sound to glory. No matter how burdensome life was, Christ's first breath signaled hope for glad and golden hours. He is coming, He is here. Maybe it is true that God puts truth in the mouths of men. Maybe He does look for various ways to remind us when we've forgotten.

O ye beneath life's crushing load,

Whose forms are bending low,
Who toil along the climbing way
With painful steps and slow;
Look now, for glad and golden hours
Come swiftly on the wing;
Oh rest beside the weary road
And hear the angels sing.

This version of the song is my choice this season. And yes, I'm listening to it now -- five whole days before Thanksgiving.

A Joy Ride

2010-11-18T16:00:00.000-08:00

It was a real treat to create this two-color letterpressed wedding invite for two friends after a sunrise bike ride culminated in their engagement. My sincerest congratulations

and best wishes for a happy marriage ahead.

Out of the Quiet

2010-11-10T06:39:00.000-08:00

image from here

I know I haven't been very vocal in this space lately. If I'm quite honest, it's not that I've been too busy to put ink to my thoughts. Neither has it been that I've been processing my life in alternate ways. The plain truth is that I just haven't had much to say. I've been gliding through a life that's become my normal, complete with its joys and frustrations.

That was until I was recently challenged by a friend to think about God's goodness. How can I know if He is good if it only appears as though He is good to some?

Soon after our discussion, I prayed to the Lord to help me to see Him as not just good-to-me, but as GOOD. I don't think I even know what that means, if I've only ever perceived it as material blessing, financial security, relational comfort. If I count God's kindness to me as the good things I've gotten from him, I've bought into a small-minded theology.

As sure as He lives, He's begun to answer my prayers to see and know Him apart from His gifts. In a real, in-my-face way, I'm being called to trust again in a God I cannot see. I'm being asked to believe in a God that provides, a God called El Shaddai, All Sufficient. I cling to the wisdom of Proverbs that asserts:

Those who trust in their riches wll fall,

but the righteous will thrive like a green leaf.

Proverbs 11:28

Going to the Chapel

2010-11-03T17:39:00.001-07:00

(photo by this guy)

I recently had the pleasure of printing a wedding invite and thank-you card set for the above-pictured maritally blissful couple. It was a treat to do the work for friends, to work with them to create an image particular to their story and to take a small part in the continuation of their beautiful lives together. Below are some images of the final products.

I've taken on a couple more wedding suite jobs, and am immensely enjoying the start-to-finish process of creating something for such a special day in two people's journey together. While my studio access is limited, I work when and how I can to print, print, print. I love the work and hope and pray that I am taking the right steps towards making it my business to be hip to hip with my own hunk of metal soon. Stick with me. Four hats press is on the move.

Fall Feast Your Eyes

2010-11-01T09:56:00.000-07:00

...on these letterpressed November Valentines from fourhatspress.

Send a sweet note to one who seasons your life with bright color and flavor.

Find them here, at Urban Standard, Zoe's Consignment or Charm.

More Days of Fall Fun

2010-11-01T08:25:00.000-07:00

It's my favorite time of year. When greens fade and turn to gold and orange, shining their brightest before they gracefully fall again to earth to die and begin again. The sky blue deepens; the air smells cleaner. The crisp air begs for fires and warm cups. Oh, I love the autumn.

This weekend marked my 4th Annual Day of Fall Fun, complete with many of the above things together with fun friends, tasty seasonal foods, and pumpkins.

Then, last night, it was a Halloween party, to which I donned

the below handmade (by Jacob) costume.

A french kiss, just like on my latest Sweet Something card!

Hey Pumpkin

2010-10-26T18:51:00.001-07:00

Not only is he our favorite NPR radio voice,

Ira Glass looks pretty durn good on our pumpkin this year.*

*Engineered and carved by my valentine and I. Alright, honestly, mostly my valentine.

Another Sweet Something

2010-10-19T17:20:00.001-07:00

Bonjour, madames and miseurs. Presenting another candy-inspired "Sweet Something" from fourhatspress... with a french twist. Get em at Urban Standard or here!

Falling for Flavors

2010-10-10T11:43:00.000-07:00

(Image from Smitten Kitchen)

As alluded to previously, I've been bobbing for pumpkins and apples in the kitchen. The results have produced some satisfying seasonal deliciousness. Some of the recipes I've most enjoyed include:

These Whole Wheat Apple Muffins (pictured above)

This Pumpkin Apple Soup

This Nutmeg Maple Cream Pie

This Bourbon Pumpkin Cheesecake

These Sweet Potato Biscuits (most especially with buttered brown sugared ham)

Next, I think I'll try Martha's Pumpkin Ravioli with Brown Sage Sauce.

What are some of your favorite fall-ish recipes?

A Retrospective

2010-10-03T14:38:00.000-07:00

It wasn't that long ago that I woke up to this every morning. This time last year, each new sunrise would find me in the spot right behind this camera lens angle. Coffee cup in hand, I would sit on the front porch of the Craft House at Penland, taking in these sights, breathing in pristine mountain air. I would read, I would pray, I would journal and prepare for another day in the studio;

another day of creating.

This was the view from the expansive windows of our studio. It was settled right into the mountain below the colorful blanket of autumn-kissed trees where the season unfolded over each slow and full day. Inside its walls, the sound of presses cranking and metal cylinders rolling woke me up from a creative slumber. I was renewed to the possibility of engaging both my hands and my mind in my work.

I'm more than a little nostalgic for this beautiful season in my life, but the memories of this momentary pasture live as I'm shifted to another bright vision.*

* reference to Mary Oliver's, "The Fall Song"

A Bite of Fall

2010-09-30T16:24:00.000-07:00

(image from smitten kitchen)

I've been experimenting with some autumn-flavored confections. For results, stay tuned.

Clad in Plaid for October

2010-09-23T08:08:00.000-07:00

Autumn is around the bend, bringing with it vivid colors, warm plaids, aromatic seasonal flavors, and.... October valentines!

Falling for someone this October? Nothing like a Calendartine from fourhatspress to let them know! As always, find them at fourhatspress.com and soon (by the first of the month) at Urban Standard, Zoe's and Charm. Get 'em while it's cooling off!

Alive and Awake In the Silence

2010-09-18T09:11:00.000-07:00

(Blossoming Almond Tree by Vincent Van Gogh)

I've been thinking a great deal on the following passage from trappist monk and deep thinker, Thomas Merton. The following is part of No Man Is An Island's chapter on silence. The excerpt may be a bit lengthier than your attention span, but I urge you: take a few minutes, read it slowly, read it again. You won't be sorry.

Those who love their own noise are impatient of everything else. They constantly defile the silence of the forests and the mountains of the sea. They bore through silent nature in every direction with their machines, for fear that the calm world might accuse them of their own emptiness. The urgency of their swift movements seems to ignore the tranquility of nature by pretending to have a purpose. The loud plane seems for a moment to deny the reality of the clouds and of the sky, by its direction, its noise, and its pretended strength. The silence of the sky remains when the plane has gone. The tranquility of the clouds will remain when the plane has fallen apart. It is the silence of the world that is real. Our noise, our business, our purposes, and all our fatuous statements about our purposes, our business, and our noise: these are the illusion.

God is present, and His though is alive and awake in the fullness and depth and breadth of all the silences of the world. The Lord is watching in the almond trees, over the fulfillment of His words (Jeremiah 1:11).

Whether the plane pass by tonight of tomorrow, whether there be cars on the winding road or no cars, whether men speak in the field, whether there be a radio in the house or not, the tree brings forth her blossoms in silence.

Whether the house be empty or full of children, whether the men go off to town or work with tractors in the fields, whether the liner enters the harbor full of tourists or full of soldiers, the almond tree brings forth her fruit in silence.

The slightly-accusatory tone of Merton's words leads me to confess that I am often self-importantly busy, loving to fill my Moleskine with names and appointments and errands. It makes me feel like a real person to have things on the to-do list. I'll be quite honest when I say that lately I've felt mounting pressure to establish myself as a more real participant in the professional world. But, what for? Is it just so that I have a title to spout out when someone asks me what I do? Is it so that I no longer have to feel slightly sheepish when I tell people I am a blue collar worker, that I scrounge to piece together my income?

For whatever reason, I stay occupied. I flit here and there to keep up the appearance of adult life. But, the busyness is the illusion. I find myself understanding the Ecclesiastes' "it's all smoke" spiel more and more every day. My work will not last. My legacy will surely not be remembered for long.

It's just chasing after the wind.

Of course, none of this is an excuse to check out and fail to see the long-lasting effects of relationships in the midst of my work and life. I am deeply aware that God's hope for Christians is that they will be active participants in the redemption of this earth. And that lasts forever.

But in the din of my noise-making, my failure to quiet enough to listen are the patient silences of the world, the underlying calm voice of a Sovereign-over-all-God.

Greater Than Our Worried Hearts

2010-09-12T14:12:00.000-07:00

My dear children, let's not just talk about love; let's practice real love. This is the only way we'll know we're living truly, living in God's reality. It's also the way to shut down debilitating self-criticism, even when there is something to it. For God is greater than our worried hearts and knows more about us than we do ourselves. 1 John 3:18 (the msg)

How Bazaar

2010-09-08T18:56:00.000-07:00

It's a ways away, but go on and mark your calendars for this year's Holiday Craft Bazaar, set to take place at Avondale Park during the first weekend in December. I'll be there with my wares: full sets of Calendartines, special thank you cards, sweet somethings, and maybe even some special edition prints. I'm busy preparing now, looking forward to the artistic push I'll likely get from some of the talents of Birmingham's Art Walk this weekend.

Lots to look forward to.

A jolly hurrah for local art.

Take Note

2010-08-26T15:36:00.001-07:00

Take note of someone special this month with a September valentine.

As always, find them at fourhatspress.com (here, or soon here or here)!

Waking Up with Leah

2010-08-24T21:03:00.000-07:00

I feel like I've been through the ringer during the last few days. The pressure to make a quick decision about my financial and artistic future had me scurrying to procure wisdom from every direction. Thank goodness, the hefty choice was one I did not end up having to make. Coupled with a little disappointment was relief. I'm out of control once again, but in the best way possible. A needed reminder.

I recently listened to an old Tim Keller sermon* about the story of Jacob, Laban, Leah and Rachel (found in Genesis 29). Generally speaking, it's a story of a deceptive son who runs away from home in search of solace from himself. Jacob ends up working for his uncle, Laban, and falling in love with Laban's beautiful youngest daughter, Rachel. Jacob asks Laban for her hand in marriage, and devotes seven years of his life in labor for her. After his last day of work, he receives who he thinks is his bride in a drawn out wedding ceremony. Throughout the wedding day and into the night, she is veiled, as per custom. It isn't until the morning after that Jacob realizes he's been duped when he wakes up beside Leah, Rachel's older (less-attractive) sister.

I, too, try to escape the messes I've made to search for an evasive happiness in something that cannot bring it. I toil for what I think I want to be my dream-come-true. But, no picture-perfect job, no full-of-life-culture-art city, no other wonderful-beyond-words human being can bring the fulfillment I seek. As Keller says, in running to these things for my answers, I go to sleep with Rachel, and wake up with Leah.

And I always will if I hold to a conscious or subconscious belief that a, b or c will make my life complete. I walk around in circles of my twenty-something search for life meaning. I wait for it all to make sense. Maybe once I do this, get there, achieve that. But Rachel is just a gorgeous idea. And she always seems just beyond my reach.

Perhaps it's just because she was never meant to be my prize.

*audio here, entitled "The Struggle for Love."

End Results

2010-08-20T14:59:00.001-07:00

(image borrowed from Chronicle Books)

I have a tendency to be results-driven, sometimes enjoying finished products more than the process it takes to make them. Nothing beats admiring a stack of multi-colored, scored, folded, sleeved priced letterpress cards. Likewise, I've been getting quite a thrill from watching my quilt come together row, by finished row. And naturally, I enjoy having a table set with a meal that my hands have labored to create. But, I wonder if I'm sometimes too bent on the finishing that I'm not enjoying the joys and hardships of the step-by-step. If I'm too concentrated on the end, I'm sure to miss out on the scenery. Lord, help me to see both the trees and the forrest, even be able to stop and meander off the path for a spell, wide-eyed and willing.

Small Bite, Big Apple

2010-08-15T06:19:00.000-07:00

(image from here)

I just returned from a tour de l'East Coast, dropping off a dear friend in the Big Apple for her new beginning. Our road tripping took us north to DC and through various New England states before we put the brakes on in NYC.

(Hint: click on the city names for links to some of the songs that soundtracked our journey)

The Capitol City is lovely.

The White House's backyard is just a vision (I thought I was seeing the front, and was thus underwhelmed. It took a drive around the corner to realize we'd been at the back door).

A kiss for FDR.

Then, it was on to New York, New York.

Our first real stop was in Brooklyn's Williamsburg. I loved this neighborhood, full with it's hipsters, artists and trust fund babies. (Apparently this part of town has the highest unemployment rate for folks who still pay rent.) We made a stop to visit and talk shop with the friendly folks of Couer Noir. They do some fine work.

Then, it was on to The Arm Studios to see a rent-a-press space in action. What do you know, I ran into my Penland teacher, Bryan Baker. It was wonderful to see him and a real treat to be able to see that such a resource exists in the city for hobbyist printers.

Terribly exciting for a press-less printer like myself.

I found the perfect lunch spot (Radish) filled with vintagey apron-clad girls serving seasonally freshly prepared foods. I had this grilled zucchini, pesto and gruyere sandwich on raisin nut bread with a peach rosemary spritzer to drink. Oh heavens, it was good.

Then it was back to Manhattan, where I stopped into Strand, and became obsessed with these pattern books.

We took a stroll through Central Park.

And wound up in Soho's Kate's Paperie, where I found some Night Owl Paper Goods cards, made right here in Homewood, Owlabama.

I also located the home to Soho Letterpress, but was way too much of a wuss to actually press the call button and go in. Apparently, the woman who started this company was one of the first to use polymer plates for printing.

The Brooklyn Flea was another fun find. I had visions of decking my tiny city apartment with all the full-o-character things I found.

Other things to note:

Rooftop Films. We went and saw Last Train Home, a documentary about a Chinese working force family split up by the parent's need to provide. It was a heartbreaking tale, not only of the terrible conditions of factory worker lives, but of the strain on family relations. (Beautiful music that evening was provided by Mountain Man.)

Spoonbill and Sugartown was a pretty great bookshop in Williamsburg.

Spice was a deelicious Indian-esque restaurant in the Union Square area.

Gimme Coffee's latte was a small taste of home.

Dean and Deluca: not only home to fine fare, but also the workplace of and inspiration for the set of Felicity.

New York. Gosh, do I want to be a part of it. I was singing a similar song when I visited the city two years ago. I want to wake up in the city that never sleeps....New York, New York!

Squint to Believe

2010-08-08T11:55:00.000-07:00

(image of my quilt in-the-making)

In the process of creating my patchwork quilt, I was advised to lay out my squares, take a step back, and squint at the layout to check for color distribution. You don't want too many of the same color schemes sidled up next to each other. Neither is it advisable to have blocks of overwhelming patterns concentrated in the same area. "You can't see where you're cluttered when you're too close to it," I was told.

And, if this principle isn't also true in regards to my busy life. Sometimes it takes me climbing to an aerial view to get needed perspective. Though I don't believe my humble earthly position will ever allow for full understanding of my experiences, I'm so thankful for small stair step climbs that show me, however briefly, that my swatches are being sewn into the whole of something larger.

Contemplata Aliis Tradere

2010-08-05T07:31:00.000-07:00

(image from here)

I told you about a week ago, that I was chew-ing on the idea of living in community. Despite the fact that an official discussion of the topic has been postponed, my thoughts surrounding it have not ceased. I've been thinking much on Eugene Peterson's translation of 1 Corinthians 12:20, that "no matter how significant you are, it's only because of what you are a part of."

It's been a twenty-something temptation of mine to hone in too much on what I am good at, what gifts I posses, what career path I should take...failing altogether to see that I am only a part of the whole. Maybe, just maybe, I exist to do something for the larger scope of humanity outside of finding satisfaction in my own work and life. I have this hunch that in my discovery of which role I play, I am being pointed to see how those things might serve to meet the needs of others, to serve in a more selfless capacity. Oh, let it be so.

I've thought also on this, St. Thomas' idea of contemplata aliis tradere, and what it is "to share with others the fruit of contemplation." There is worth in sitting silently. Meditation on scriptures has great merit. But, perhaps Bonhoeffer is on to something when he purports that God has put His Word in the mouths of men. Or that there's something to the thought that the Church exists, in part, to simply remind each other of the Truth.

Piecing it Together

2010-08-02T07:36:00.000-07:00

(image from whipup.net)

I've decided to undertake a quilting project. My fabric swatches are piling up, as is my antsy-ness to get going. I know so very little about the process. I am thumbing through a few books to get some step by step instruction. But! If you are reading this, have made a quilt, and have some handmade homespun advice, give me a holler.

A Year of Taking In

2010-07-30T05:54:00.000-07:00

If Christmas can be in July, then gosh darn, New Year's can be in August. For me, it's a time to look forward and look back. As you may well know, I'm a proponent of the rhyming yearly motto. This year's mantra was/is: Begin again in 2010. Before it began, I declared this a year of trying new things, of learning, of being okay with the untraditional turns by which my life path has lead me. I've tripped up plenty of times on this walk, believe you me. I've forgotten gratitude for the freedom that this year has provided for me to invest and wait. But, it's not over yet. I've still got five months of this year to make good on my self-promise. Let the learning, the patience from henceforth abound.

In one of my favorite stories, two young lovebirds speak fondly about their time studying at Oxford. Their home was lovingly termed "The Studio," and was a place were tens of friends gathered on a daily basis for spirited conversation. It was a lively time, filled with mind-broadening new ideas and joy in the diverse company they kept. It was, as they said, "a time of taking in." I do believe this is the phase I'm now in. Surely, there will be a time of giving out, of passing onto others what has been taught to me. But for now, I am a pupil. God, open my eyes and mind for the taking in.

As of late, I've been inspired by: this blog where you can sign up to swap crafts with others and this book that details the history and work of some contemporary letterpress printers.

I Do Like You

2010-07-21T10:22:00.001-07:00

This book about Amy's kitschy hospitality is a barrel of laughs and a recommended read!

five feet small

The List

We Can Grow Flowers From Where Dirt Used to Be

A Good Read

Fight to Believe

Fresh Face

Take it Personally

Automatic for the People

Off the Hat Rack

She Came, She Saw

Anticipation: It Does a Body Good

Bright Spot

Turning Corners: How reading food magazines has made me a more ambitious cook

Conscience

Just My Type

Spread some joy and cheer

Fine Print

Truly Delve in 2012

Give Thanks and Keep Your Fork

Book It

A conscious heart

A Prayer

Just A Note

Great Scott

Making Pies

Pulling Prints in Birmingham

5th Annual Day of Fall Fun

Sweet Melodies

You Are Here

Four Hats On!

Let's roll!

A Sunday Rest

Eli came!

Passersby

Deliver the Letter

Insert Comments Here

Slow and Steady

I'm behind the times

Calling All Blog-Lovers

Slam Dunk

Hats On

Disturb Me

Share the Care

It was a BIG day for Four Hats Press

Easter Feast

320 G-Unit

Revolving Doors

Girls Making Passes

Savouring the Material

HOT OFF THE PRESS!

Let it Rain

An opportunity

Sitting in a Tree

Don't let your words fall flat

March on Over

Charm your body

Mulling It Over

Pressing On

I Lie Like a Rug

Both/And

At our Fingertips

Stay little valentine, stay

A Bigger Bite

With My Own Two Hands

They Fit Like a Mitten

A personal advent

A Year in Calendartines

A Hauliday

While I Wait

Let It Leaven

More Wedding Bells are Ringing

No Sloppy Seconds

Come See Me

Giving Thanks and Gearing Up

Maybe it is so

A Joy Ride

Out of the Quiet

Going to the Chapel

Fall Feast Your Eyes

More Days of Fall Fun