Hercules's Craft Bazaar Day 2

You know you're doing something right when customers return the day after for more. It's also amazing when you realize you have a following, & not in the google buzz or twitter sense, or amongst your friends because that only partially counts. I don't know... It's all very encouraging and reaffirming that I'm gold pursuing this art thing.

I think the most heartwarming sale of the day was to a woman who purchased a print of Literary Fort. She told me it reminded her of her kids when they were little because they loved to read all the time. She said she'd frame it over her sewing machine to inspire her & remind her of her kids :) . I packaged the print & as she walked away, I asked her how old her kids are now. "21 & 26... one's graduating from UCLA this year..." There was a tinge of sadness & nostalgia in her voice, and I felt so... I don't know... privileged? appreciative? that something I painted in a way penetrated a very intimate memory for her.

Overall, the day was slow, which only meant I worked while I worked :)

Yep. That's Mr. & Mrs. Claus making the rounds, handing out candy canes. Yum! My first one of the season.

It was a great two days of vending, and a good way of quietly testing the waters before the big weekend in SF. I have a lot of Bazaar Bizarre preparation to do so.... BYE! :)

Hercules's Craft Bazaar Day 1

Wow. Just wow. A shockingly positive experience. I am SO pumped for tomorrow.

I was suffering from lack of enthusiasm in the days leading up to this fair. I felt calm, but a little too calm (yeah... a little too ralph). I was a little weary about the potential rain, setting up a tent for the first time, arranging the lights, a new space, etc. Even during the set up I felt moody. Then BAM! I started talking to the visitors & shoppers, the mayor of Hercules announced the arrival of Santa Claus (you could take pictures with him in the photobooth haha), my mom brought me a free cookie... all was well in the world. It never rained. When I didn't make a sale, I made a friend. I was interviewed by the city's newspaper. Even an old friend from USC visited! Hollerrrrrrr!

The only reason why I put eyes on some of my elephants is so kids can dig around and find the ones that do. It's amazing how much fun they have. One little girl immediately started searching, flipping the ears over and tossing aside the eyeless. When she found her first one, she jumped up and showed her mom. She was half giggling, half asking for it. She wouldn't let it go. Eeeeee! Her mom helped her put it in the paperbag & once it was inside, she hugged the bag and skipped away with it still pressed against her chest. That kind of stuff just makes me fuzzy & happy.

Drawing these sign up sheets are my favorite :)

I really can't get over how nice everyone was. Hooray for small town hospitality!

Okay, time to get to work. As pooped as I am, most of the little elephants are now in the arms of a small child. It would be wrong for le petit elefant to have no petit elefants tomorrow. It's definitely a good problem to have :)

Holiday Craft Bazaar at Hercules's Market Hall

it's craft fair time! i'm excited about the tree lighting ceremony & not so excited about the potential rain. either way, i'll be there with a smile!

outfit picked!

supplies packed!

& plush neatly tucked away! let's do this!

The Books & Near Death Experiences

armed with my usual pot of genmaicha tea, i sewed like whoa at casbah cafe, my sliverlake coffee shop of choice. boo on you intelligentsia!

i sewed an H, a mustached S, a whale & an elephant in one afternoon! my reward: toffee + candied pecan & madagascar vanilla gelato with a sampling of sea salt caramel gelato at pazzo. yum!

then it was off to the books for the ultimate reward :) this song is one of my favorites to see live.

them playing the song live!

and this one was kevin's favorite:

mmmm... covering nick drake's cello song. so good.

on my last day, i started matt's custom order as rachel drew plans for a fancy garden. then, kevin treated me to a fancy dinner. whuttaguy!

this is the dish that nearly killed him later that night. maybe. booo on you chestnuts.

cherry 'bread pudding' & i duno... some bittersweet chocolate tart deliciousness with hazelnut ice cream

such handsome grays

The Creative Process

I noticed while chatting with my traveling little sister that I have for some time now stopped reading & writing about the creative process. I mostly write about my gratitude for friends, adventures in LA, marketing strategies, goals, and custom orders. I've stopped caring about what other people have to say about how to spend your time, how to be a successful freelancer, how to stay focused, etc. I think in the years spent gathering all the information in the world regarding the creative process, I noticed it was same information over and over again. And I realized that reading analytical text about a very gutteral experience is just pointless. Sure, it warns you of what you're getting in to, but like anything, no amount of preparation can help you if you're really going to dive in head first. I'm glad I didn't read stuff like the 40 hour work week because I now find I didn't need to, because I lived it by doing and making mistakes. **Oh, I forgot to add that I didn't have to read it because my friend quoted it at least every other time we spoke hehe.

From an interview with David Horvath:

Did you ever go out and actively ask people

for help and advice?

I realized when I was much younger, after calling

up Gary Baseman for some very good advice,

that I was getting great advice on how to do

things a way they had already been done.

The best advice I can give is to get as much input

as you can, and then don’t follow any of it.

Dear Michelle Obama,

I am Isayas, and I wanted to tell you that English is a good language because it’s easier to learn. And I want to ask you why do people make up weird names like hot dog or runny nose, or even smelly feet? Because a hot dog should be a dog that’s hot and a runny nose should be a nose running, and a smelly foot should be a foot that has a nose on it. Do you get these? And do you have a nose on your foot?

Here is a joke: What is a hissing cockroach’s favorite subject in school? Hissssssstory. What should you do to a blue elephant? Cheer it up! Why do brooms and vacuum cleaners think people are mean? Because they keep on pushing them. So, were they funny? Great!

— ISAYAS BIKILA, age 9, Seattle

Just had to share. So darn cute! Read more here.

So So Thankful

it's a sea of FOOD!

the dessert portion of the meal. Yes, that is BUTTER.

we had two trunk shows after dinner... Le Petit Elefant & my aunt's jewelry :)

my to go plate

a few snaps of the HARO! custom order before I send it on its 'Mary' way

(ohhh ha ha ha :)

Rachel at the CSA pick-up

black friday dinner...

chard & bacon, truffle french fries, parsnip fries, and tangerine, persimmon, sesame salad. Thank you CSA & friends!