Wintery greetings! It is so so so cold here. But next week, the low temps should be higher than this week’s high temps. Oh, and happy Valentine’s Day. And our 5th wedding anniversary! That we both forgot so we have no plans or gifts.
I am getting ready for ECCC in a few weeks! Gotta make some more defined travel plans for days of. But one thing I have done is some printing tests for tote bags. And I am loving it! The totes arrived (blank) yesterday and I did a lot of test printing last weekend. So this weekend I will be printing up something along the lines of this little guy I’ve started calling a blobberry. This is just a test so it is over the selvage of loose fabric.
As part of a similar project, I tested watercolor on fabric with markers. First I drew the lines and wrote the name of each marker (at least so I could identify it). Then I brushed some plain water on the left side of the line to see if it would bleed. Some you can see bled a ton and some not at all. I tested a second block with some Prussian blue paint. Just as a double check. The circles are mixed color tests. The squares are where I tested layering the watercolor. But you have to wait so much longer between layers than on paper! I’m talking 24 hours instead of 10 minutes.
I have this tiny “craft” iron and now, with my “ironing mat” I can iron my craft projects on my lap! I am so lazy sometimes. But it really works.
Don’t get too excited and rush out to get these. I worked on these but don’t get royalties or anything. I just liked them and want to share them.
Celestial Garden by Jane Hawley Stevens (Chelsea Green, Dec 2023). Proofread. This was an interesting read. I am not super into astrology and all that stuff but I do find it interesting/fun. Turns out I am a Sun Taurus, Moon Capricorn, Ascendent Taurus. To which, people who know what that means, say, “Oh yeah. Exactly.”
Homicide, Part 1 and Homicide, Part 2 by David Simon and Philippe Squarzoni (First Second, June and Dec 2023). Since I worked on the first one, I also got to work on the second because I already knew a bit of what’s what.
Lean Micro Farm by Ben Hartman (Chelsea Green, Nov 2023). Proofreader. The problem with these is that we now live on 5 acres, and it makes me want to try farming. But when would I have time amid all my other projects?!
Ruined by Sara Vaughn (First Second, Nov 2023).
Clash of Clans, Book 2 by Gene Yang and Les McClaine (First Second, Nov 2023). I am currently working on book 7!
Birding under the Influence by Dorian Anderson (Chelsea Green, Nov 23). Proofreader. Good read! This isn’t all giggles, but it was fascinating.
Look on the Bright Side by Lily Williams and Karen Schneemann (First Second, Oct 2023)
Raising Resilient Bees by Eric and Joy McEwen (Chelsea Green, July 2023). Proofreader. And of course, this one would have made me want to get into bees, but my mom already has bees on the property and it looks like a pain. And I am geeked out by bugs…
He-Man Effect by Box Brown (First Second, July 2023). This hit hilariously close to home. We are about the same age.
My kids’ comic class has started and is going well! My next new class at the J in Lynden, Curious about Curios: Making Gaff Bones, is on March 1. There are two other versions, too, but come for the bones. It will be very, very fun. And it is only briefly before ECCC. So scary.
I’ve fallen behind on my usual reading regime. These days I just play Cozy Grove. And I love it dearly. I suppose my soft recommendation is Murdoch Mysteries. It is fun enough but I can only watch it while doing other things. It ranges so hard from slapstick to grief drama. I do enjoy Crabtree though. If you’ve read the book, he is nothing like that Crabtree. Maybe the opposite. I am in season 17 and am enjoying the relationship between the Powerful Women. They giggle a lot.
I hope your day gets better from here!
-Angela
P.S. Wally wants you to play in the snow with him! What a happy face. He loves snow. He just wants to sit in it and run in it and be outside all the time.
