This past weekend was packed full of fun stuff. I don't know how I managed, but I got up at 5:00 in the morning, met Jim at 6am and then we drove to Syracuse for the Salt City Craft Market and set up our tables. The fair was really well attended and after eight hours of standing and talking and meeting super nice people we had dinner with some of my best friends. The organizers did a great job and it was nice to be on the vendor end of things and not have to worry about any set up other than my own!
Then on Sunday we got up and headed out to be in a zombie horde for a friend's movie. It was so awesome, I can't even tell you! The camera man shot from a helicopter for about an hour of the shoot and the rest of the time we drudged through the woods and made lots of hungry zombie noises. I'm looking forward to doing it again this weekend :)
And as the last note for this post, many thanks to everyone who pre-ordered a calendar! They are ready to be shipped and will go out this week. I'll be ending the free-shipping on all pre-orders on Friday, October 30th.
Seriously, it's Thursday? And it's almost the end of October? That's crazy! I almost forgot to tell you that I'll be participating in the Salt City Urban Art and Craft Market this weekend in Syracuse. I'm really looking forward to it, and hoping to pick up some awesome holiday presents :) I hope some of you can stop by and say hi.
Things have been pretty good this week. Printing is going great and I really think I'm going to be able to bring the calendars with me to the Salt City Market. The bug situation is close to being resolved. On Monday Jim cleaned up almost 200 of them, but I think this was their last stand. There are much fewer today and the exterminator is coming with a new product this afternoon. And, our awesome carpenter is almost finished repairing out dining room ceiling (which was damaged by a broken overflow valve in our upstairs bathtub). It looks amazing and he even repaired a few things we were never going to have time for - like when you get 90% finished with a project and then it stays exactly the same way for three years.
I'm not sure if I ever showed you my calendar wall in my office. It makes me so happy to flip the page on each calendar at the beginning of the month - fresh art the entire year! It was also so much fun to shop for (and trade for) calendars last year, and I'm looking forward to doing the same thing this year.
On that note, printing is going great! With the help of my new intern I was able to finish printing the tear-away calendar this weekend. These calendars are $10 each and can be trimmed to 5"x7" prints at the end of the year. I'll keep you updated on the full 12-month calendar, which I hope to finish printing this week. Happy Monday!
More pictures from this weekend. We went to The Apple Farm with a big group for Kelly's birthday and it was so much fun. It was a bit of a drive for us, but the view and the apples were amazing. Afterward we ate apple cider donuts, apple turnovers, mini apple pies, and hot apple cider...yum!
Oh, blogger, I've missed you. I told you I had some stories coming, but I figured that it might be better to just make a descriptive list of my last week. I will preface this by saying that I have been deprived of exercise for three weeks and I am terrified of worms...total phobia.
Last Monday: I hadn't been to the gym in two weeks, trying to fight off a cold, heal my tender knee and massive amount of work. Imagine how good (and sleepy) I felt to get out of bed, put on my gym cloths and head out for a morning Zumba class. I shut the door and realized immediately that I had locked myself out. It was chilly and I had to wait on the porch for my friend to drive across town with the spare key.
I had a problem with some paper mites (at least I think this is what they were) over the summer, but thought I had eradicated them after some vigorous cleaning and throwing out lots of old prints that had been sitting in my flat files. I found two this afternoon and called the exterminator. This set the tone for the week, no Zumba + bugs = uggg!
Tuesday: Right before the exterminator came I pulled a piece of making tape off my large collating table and there was a maggot stuck to it. Screeeeeeeeeeeeaaammmmmmmmmm! The tape stuck to my hand. OMG I almost died right then. Sara calmed me down and assured me there was no way there could be more. The exterminator came and said the same thing. Then he sprayed some bug killer and I felt better. Until...maggots started falling out of the table, dying. Complete panic, I'm the only one in the studio and I can barely breathe. I call the exterminator back and he says not to worry, they'll be dead by morning and life will be beack to normal....perhaps a dead mouse was in the table...who the hell knows!
Then, the bookbinder for the big book project comes up and tells me the leather for the book is too small. The book was supposed to be bound by tomorrow. More panic and skin is still crawling, I order new leather and have it overnighted.
Wednesday: FedEx is late. I call and they say the package will be there shortly. Another hour goes by, still no leather for the book. I call again, then three more times. The local facility can't reach the driver, they've tried twice. Finally I get a call that the packae will be delivered in 15 minutes. The driver comes, I try to be as nice as possible then race over to the binder and the book is officially out of my hands.
But....I go into the studio and there are more larva and they have crawled away from the table toward my press. Ok, now I'm almost hysterical...who knew these things could travel so far?! I have to leave to teach and I can't stop crying and I don't know how on earth I can clean up the studio. So my wonderful friend comes to the rescue and removes the table from my studio and vaccuums up all of the bugs (which is how I will refer to them from here on out). I am so relieved that I start crying again. Then I get to have Marni's mac & cheese, which is declicous.
Thursday: I go to the studio to meet with some clients and find more bugs. They have reappeared, or come out of their hiding spots in the floorboards. I have to meet with my very understanding clients near the door because I can barely walk into the space and as soon as that's done I call the extemrinator to spray the whole floor. I gather up all of my ink and plates and get ready to print elsewhere until I can walk in the studio again.
Saturday: The exterminator comes, sprays the whole floor. We still can't figure out where the problem is coming from. But, I hope that this will solve it. I have to stand near the hall the whole time and Jake moves things so the floor can be sprayed.
Now, I'm tired of being overwhelmed and just want to relax a bit. We go apple picking for a friend's birthday and it's perfect weather. We get lunch with friends. We get to see the finished book project at the unveiling, which turned out beautifully. And then I look at travel books at the book store with a friend.
Sunday: We drive to Letchworth Park with the dogs and meet with Jen and Jim and my dad for breakfast. Then we hike for about four hours under perfect blue skies and falling leaves. I grade papers in the car, both ways. Then a double feature of Julie and Julia and District 9. More grading papers and Jake goes into work for an all-nighter.
Today: Jim calls me from the studio and says there are lots of dead bugs. He cleans them up...total life saver! Now we have to wait and see if they just came out to die or if there are more tomorrow. But, I have to wait for someone else to go in the studio before I do or I might just pass out. I ran a ton of errands and then I teach for the rest of the day.
So, now you've gotten to live vicariously through me for a whole week. I promise things aren't ususally this crazy. I've stopped crying and I laughed a lot this weekend. And I took a ton of great pictures and ate lots of apples. Tomorrow is going to be packed, but Wednesday I will be able to breathe again. I'm looking forward to a good week and a full night of sleep.
ps-I love this video (the first words out of my mouth are "oh shit") and I love that Jen says "what thumb?"
This is an incredible feat of letterpress work, so meticulously organized, printed and bound. I am in awe of John Carerra's Pictorial Webster's! It is so easy to take for granted the skill and craftsmanship that went into books and publications produced before the age of computers and offset printing. In addition to the letterpress printed copies in this edition, Chronicle Books has published a $35 hardcover version.
I am so excited to finally share the designs for the calendar with you! I have always admired my grandmother’s delicate collection of china. The designs in this calendar were inspired by patterns found on vintage teacups and saucers.
I am still in the process of printing it, but the designs have been finalized and I am currently taking pre-orders in the shop. All domestic pre-orders will receive free shipping (all other locations receive a discounted rate) and a complimentary letterpress printed greeting card. They will be ready to ship mid-late October.
There are seven different ink colors throughout and a very sweet notes section at the bottom of each month for birthdays and important reminders. The size of the calendar is 4" wide by 11" tall and it is punched through the top and bound with ribbon. At the end of the year (or before) each month may be trimmed to 4” x 6” and framed.
I have some crazy stories for you in the next few days, we'll call them mishaps in the life of a printer. I'm too tired to write about them now, but trust me, they're coming. Have a great night!
