life is a highway

y'all, i had my first real deal driving lesson at nathan's driving school. my instructor, rufus, was one cool dude and we went on two different highways!!!!!! he thinks i could pass the test after one more lesson, and that i was a pleasure to teach-ha!

i feel super cool. i guess teaching a 26 year-old who has been practicing is infinitely more assuring than a wet-behind-the-ears sixteen year-old. anyway, sorry for being bragadocious. i'm just so happy to be chipping away at my biggest phobia. take that irrational fear of driving!

you're a star...

last little shoppe update for the weekend. i've got a smattering of 1960s office/ back-to-school supplies listed. for the nerdy, organized, type lover in us all. or for anyone who wants to get their mad men on. aesthetically of course, not in a smutty, tawdry, cheap way... unless that's your thing. no judgement here.

playing dress up: back to school

polyvore

all that is on my mind is fall. and back-to-school. at this point i would welcome homework. so i will kick into gear my summer reading; practice my handwriting; and maybe take a class or two. i am hoping to maybe even teach a little. fashion illustration, anyone? intro to styling? either way i have mapped out my pretend clothes. and my pretend fall weather. and my pretend curriculum. no harm in make-believe, right?

how to do it...

a new obsession has begun...

vintage cigarette cards and silks. it all began when i was browsing through the history of quilts, and i stumbled upon this. it caught me. hook. line. and sinker.

now i am on the hunt for old cigar ribbons, cigarette silks, and cigarette cards. a bit odd for me, since i have never smoked anything. but man, this kind of advertising is way more alluring than a dopey looking camel. no offense joe.

these "how to do it" series offer charming helpful household hints. love. i love learning new things, especially with school right around the corner. august always kicks my inner-student into overdrive.

i have a feeling these are going to be difficult to track down in the U.S. what do y'all think? i've never seen these at a flea market/ antique store before. maybe at something like brimfield?

the "how to draw series" on nypl digital library is pretty fantastic. i might have to do a follow-up post on those bad boys later! ok, i'm gonna do a little ebay stalking now. let me know if y'all have any leads!

campfire girls...

on a recent trip to one of my favorite haunts, i found this bound book of goodness buried under layers of dust bunnies. the yummy weathered paper was like a tractor beam, sucking me in.

little did i know, that it was going to be a camp fire girls scrapbook. holy awesome deliciousness!

truth be told, i had never even heard of camp fire girls until a few years ago, and i grew up a mediocre girl scout at best.

but flipping through this book conjures up all sorts of wonderful summertime ideas-campfires, bird-watching, story-telling, flower-identification, hiking, handicrafts. you name it.

the symbols and colors are really beautiful too. i could easily design a whole collection of fabric patterns inspired by this book.

health is something not to be taken lightly!

i love the ideals upheld by the camp fire law. words to live by, and certainly lots of areas where i have room to improve. thank goodness the summer is long.

like riding a bike...

oh pen and pencil, how i have missed and neglected you! i am taking a fashion illustration class with the mind-boggling-ly talented neil gilks. it is too much fun! he plays ridiculously good music while we drink beer and slap paint on cheap newsprint. half-hearted, playful insults are hurled across the room in his thick, charming british accent. he is both cheeky and naughty and i love him so. every line he draws tells a story. with one stroke on the page he has all the girls swooning over their easels. for realz.

tonight a few of us drew a half-naked, zeffirelli-esque man wearing a red loincloth in the dark basement of a restaurant. sheets of newsprint flying, smudged sharpies, thick slabs of oil crayon, and powdery, crumbly chalk. various partygoers stopping to ask why we were there, drawing in the middle of the club floor. it felt both awkward and thrilling. which is kind of what drawing feels like in general to me. i don't typically erase once i've committed a line to paper. if it is awful or horrible, which it generally is, i try and make a joke of it.

it feels real good to draw. and it feels real good to be in a class with neil. he taught for a hot minute at savannah college of art and design. i've been a fan of his since 2007. so all you new yorkers who like to draw, i highly recommend taking a class with him. but i warn you, his classes are extremely addictive... be prepared to fall in love and never look back. for this interested, inquire within...

****p.s my husband had an idea. he suggested i ask you lovely ladies(and boys, if you're there) in blogland to email me a photo of yourself in a cute outfit and i can draw you a picture of yourself and mail it to you. it would be excellent practice for me, and then you could get a present in the mail! and who doesn't like receiving treats in the mail? if this sounds like something you would like, leave a comment/ email me at ginnybranch(at)gmail(dot)com.

love letters...

calligraphy is neat, neat, neat. i love learning technique and form, and the genuine art behind fine lettering. our teacher is wonderful and it is a class full of good girls (and one very nice man). and i got to meet miss macon, another lovely georgia peach!

the materials we are working with are delicious. we line our own paper and build our own pens. who knew so much was put into just creating the instruments? burning nibs and attaching reservoirs, and such. unfortunately, i'm abysmal at lining paper. it involves, me, a ruler, and 3/8" marks. it brings me back to sewing and pattern drafting... shudder.

i can't wait to improve and hopefully be able to letter folks' wedding invitations. and make sweet little samplers with beautiful letters. maybe one day, complete an embroidered family tree? right now i am practicing my penmanship by writing little love letters to ed. baby steps, y'all...

tied up with string...

since embroidering my wedding quilt, i have been re-discovering my hefty stock of embroidery floss. oodles. also, since i am a crazy saver, i realized i have an abundance of random loose threads and bits. i was this close to tossing them, since they weren't really long enough to do much with... but then i thought of something.

maybe i could make my own baker's twine! i don't have any, and i remembered a super easy technique we learned in a fibers class at SCAD.

mmm yummy valentine's colors.

1. take two pieces of embroidery floss( about 3 feet or longer) and tie two knots, one at each end.

2. tie one end to a doorknob, or a table leg, or anything secure.

3. twist the two strands together and watch the candy cane swirl appear.

4. i twist mine extra tight, so that the twine starts to curl up on itself. i find once i untie the final piece that some of the tension unwinds. if the strand has extra twist, it will settle once untied.

5. once you've untied your baker's twine, wrap around a piece of cardboard or an old bobbin- et voila!

*i've had a hard time making especially long twine. i can only make a strand suitable for tying on tags or small parcels or treats.

i also googled some alternative methods, and other gals who have made their own. try here and here, for some more inspiration!

cross your t's and dot your i's...

i am doing a happy dance right now because today i found a little match box for a $1.

and when i slid the little top off, i found a little surprise... pen nibs! i LOVE happy surprises. love 'em, can't get enough of 'em.

and just in time for my calligraphy class this saturday! i am now an official member of the society of scribes. it makes me giggle. i wonder if we have a secret handshake or special secret password. i keep picturing a class full of jessica tandys and maggie smiths. and then me. perfect.

what's in a name...

recently, i have hopped back on the make-up wagon. i love a good healthy amount of rouge and a bright lip, at the very least. i feel healthier and more kempt with a little color on my face. that being said, i have also recently depleted my supply of benefit benetint. since there is no sephora anywhere to be seen in these here parts of brooklyn, i decided to concoct my own at home.

so simple and so easy. all you need is a bottle of glycerin, natural red food coloring, rose water(the kind with a spray nozzle-trust me), an eyedropper, and a tiny bottle. depending on the size of your vessel, the recipe can be altered. i find the ratio to be as such, based on an inkwell sized bottle.

* 3/4 rose water

* 2 drops vegetable glycerin

* 1-3 drops of red food coloring. i personally like 2 drops, which gives me a really healthy, rosy cheek.

gently shake the bottle to mix the ingredients and ta da! your very own lip/cheek stain! i've also found smoothing a dab of vitamin e oil over the lips and cheeks, followed with a generous spritz of the rosewater revives my oh so tired, oh so neglected winter skin.

and, what's especially nice about making this at home, other than being ridiculously easy, it that this is so much cheaper than its lovely, fancy pants version bought at a store. because really, what's in a name?

always be prepared...

today i am grateful for...

back to school supplies

sources: various dennison gummed labels and paper clips, nesting thumb tacks and paper fasteners, pilot stapler, and moore push signals from chelsea antiques garage, Red Chair, @ Home, Paris Market...

pretending it is the first day of school. yesterday my boss lady and i went flea marketing to pick out props for our shop, and i got a wee bit side tracked. one of my favorite vendors had proudly displayed all of her notebooks, rulers, composition books, writing samples, and all the trappings to be a good lil' student.

one of my many school slates. one day i hope to have a large wall-sized school chalkboard re-purposed as a kitchen table top. (in the style of sweet laraine papa montgomery).

my sweet haylie bird is the queen of collecting ledgers (and all yummy school supplies for that matter), and passed down this love to me. they make for the perfect sketchbook/ scrapbook. i alternate between these and moleskine's kraft notebooks, which were my art school staple through out SCAD.

and this is my favorite knap sack. it was my sister's when she was studying in paris, and she gifted it to me, many many moons ago. it is my favorite shade of leather... almost georgia clay brown. come to think of it, all my gal pals have a brown leather knap sack. it is 'specially helpful to be hands-free when you live in a big city. and to hide all your treasures...

i have to go now, don't want to be late on my first day... just teasing.