Star Crafty

Preliminary drawings of robot stationery and notecards for my class project. :D

These are other drawings, colored in Photoshop, not sure the colors look allthat great.

Now I have to decide what to do with all these paths. Graduation is less than a year away and it's a good idea to start making decisions. Sure, we all have the power to do whatever we want in out lives. But, doing it all at once? Perhaps not such a great idea. So without further ado, I present to you Amy's What Will I Do With My Life top ten list (in an imaginary order):

01) Graduate. That's a given.
02) Move to New York City (#1 dream since 1995.. yes, blame Friends)
03) Find a job as an assitant to a fashion photographer (see why I need to move to NYC and not stay in SAV)
04) Or as a lowly waitress. Whatever comes, man.
05) Expand Star Magnolia. Set up consignment deals in the City.
06) After a year of living and working in the state of New York, apply for the textile/surface design one-year associate degree program at FIT with the in-state student tuition fee ($1500-something per sem).
07) By this point I'd have garnered enough awesome and juicy contacts for my Magnie (hehe) and its name is feared allthroughout the Northeastern coast. More products are made and Bob is probably sniffing coke (because of the fame and what not)
08) And I really shouldn't be listening to Boricua en la Luna. It only serves to remind me how frail and hopeless I am without Her.
09) My fashion (or whatevertheheckimdoingbythen) photography is spreading thru several pages of the top national magazines.
10) How old am I by now? Late 20s? Oh right, this is the spot where I get married or something.
11) Along with, oh I dunno, awesome Tamara and hey maybe cool Jacie, a trendy store is opened in NYC, featuring all things handmade and awesome. All the great talented designers I visit everyday via their blogs will have their wares in our store. Custom fabric will be produced in the little bright studio (isn't that a cool name, actually?) behind the shop, and Jacie's open mic area will be beeming with hot Friday Night poets.
12) I buy an Escalade... because well, I gots to pimp it, X1b1t!!11!
13) For a couple of years I do a variety of things with the shop and my photography. I travel to different countries as part of National Geographic Magazine. Star Magnolia is made National.
14) I have baby Dylan. Awwww.
15) Assuming I'm in my early thirties is time to have a pre-mid life crisis and do a 180 twist....
16) Agmar and I take the 2017 Oscars (yes, featuring a gorilla with Jack Nicholson's DNA) by storm with the Best Movie in the World, Best Actress, Best Original Screenplay, Best Costume Design. Steven Spielberg hands me my Best Director Oscar. I make out with Ewan McGregor backstage.
17) After this exciting event things get sorta fuzzy. I think I see some serious drug addiction, a couple divorces here and there, some horrible movies and ...oh dear god... a teaching job at lowly community college??
18) Nooooooooooo!!!11one!!!

Well.. there you have it folks. I really do hope there are flying cars and self-drying jackets involved in this future of mine. Oh and hoverboards. It ain't the future till there's a hoverboard.

(notice how the mood in my posts shift as I near the end...)

How cute are these?!

For those of you awesome people who already have established online shops, how much merchandise did you open it with? What products did you emphasize more on? How have you been able to replenish your stock after most of those first items are sold? And how often do you add products?

I think one of my problems is the speed I do my crafts with, and pretty much everything else. I sincerely believe I carry a "Slow Gene". I eat slow, I draw slow, I blog slow, I carry myself slowly. I don't walk or think slow, funnily enough though. Actually, yes I do think slow hehe. I'm sure most of us either have a full time job, or go to school, or are busy with family. But I can't seem to create fast enough. Maybe I unknowingly waste too much time. I have been trying to cut down my internet time. I finished my SW novel, so that's out of the way (Jacen, you're still in big bantha poodoo). I just come back home so tired and slow. Thankfully the temperature's cooling down, so the heat won't tire me even more (I ride a bike).

What do y'all do in terms of time management when it comes to your crafts? Any tips and/or suggestions?

The other Daisy was used for this silly ad/product shot here for my Commercial Studio II class. I think the image was successful and it has that sorta glossy magazine feel. I've been wanting to do some serious fashion shots but haven't been able to contact boutiques. Can;t use my own clothing because, well... have you seen the atrocities I wear on a daily basis? I wished somebody nominated me for What not To Wear. I would be sooo happy! Plus Clinton is such a swanky guy!

Am in the middle of drawing out the designs for my Stationery and Notecard Extravaganza, which will consume every fiber and light from my body for the next 3.5 weeks, w00t! Once ready, they'll be uploaded here and I will ask you lovely people for input on which are your favorites. And what not. :)

Yes, poor Bob tragically lost yet another tentacle, this time via my own stupid hands. Okay so I'm no expert at sculpey at all. For one, I can't get the surface to be smooth and nice, not be an CSI investigator's fantasy with all my fingerprints oh so clearly visible, come on! And the head needed to be fatter. Still, not too shabby for my first try! Hehe he looks cute! *giggles*

Last night I (sorta) started to draw a mini-book featuring Bob's story so that I can include in every order. I always have to explain the story behind the character to people at the fairs, this way I'll just hand them the little bookie.

AAAANNDDDd my crazy/awesome Room*e and I joined forces to create a series of funny sea characters, all friends of Bob...but I musn't disclose too much, for we are still in the early stages of pre-production. I can only say one thing: The Seaweed Sushies. And that is all for today. :D

I also whored Star Magnolia that night and Dan let me set up a little table with whatever I had to sell, mostly leftovers from Mutation. I sold one Retro Stationery set and basically all of my buttons and stickers! Everybody was in love with my Bobs.

All in all, it was avery fun night. Mingled about with lots of people I hadn't seen in a while, exchanged business cards, ate about five cinnamon rolls, and even almost got kissed by this idiot five minutes after I met him. yuck.

Thanks Dan! We'll be waiting for the next 30:60:90!

For this picture I dusted off my old Delorean and went back in time when Bob was just a googley eye wee baby, then traveled back into the present (after saving the world and burning a certain sports almanac*) and took the exact same picture but with a grown and more mature (but still angry, apparently) Bob. How adorable!

Thanks Marilyn and Donielle, you gals are t3h aw3som3! Visit Marylin's blog for more wonderful plushies (and check out her current octopi, they're too funny!)

Apparently so.

So could somebody be so kind and willingly give me about $150? I have a boyfriend to visit in New York but I ain't got no money. And school expenses keep risin' and risin'.

Also, how many songs are there named Sunday Morning? At the top of my head I can think of No Doubt's Sunday Morning, Maroon 5's Sunday Morning, Kris Kristofferson's Sunday Morning Comin' Down (also covered by Johnny Cash and in 1998 by Shawn Mullins). Mighty Google yielded these results: Velvet Underground, Olsen Brothers, Earth Wind and Fire, Hooverphonic, Sham 69 ( Sunday Morning Nightmare), Oasis (Sunday Morning Call), Harry Chapin (Sunday Morning Sunshine)...etc, etc.

That's a lot of Sunday Mornings. Is anybody ever awake on a Sunday morning? I sure as heck am not, I can tell you that much. What's the fascination? Is it the sense of tranquility and spirituality attributed to that one specific time of the week? Is the sunlight different, would it be what people call "unearthly glow"? Is it the calm before the storm (the week ahead)?

Oh man, to quote little Ben Skywalker, Jacen is in sooooo much trouble!

At close to 10:30 am we finally make our way to Mutation, with a quick stop at Kroger for some yummy Krispy Kremes and change. At Starland, there were already about three or four vendors setting up, and I started to believe that this day might just turn out okay.

Dan helped me with my display and I proceeded to clean the really dirty tables, while more and more vendores rolled in. I thought, "Oh wow, they're really early!"...when I realized, "Oh right... I was the one who came in late. Gotcha." Finally met many of awesome designers whose blogs and websites I visit daily, such a delight! I felt like hugging them for all the crafty awesomeness they kindly display everyday for us to see. But then I thought that would be too weird, seeing as I felt those urges seconds before I even got the chance to tell them my name.

Even before the "doors" officially opened at 1pm, people were already coming in and even buying! Let me tell you, it took me a loooong time to set up my table (close to 1pm). Not because there were a plethora of errands and requests to attend. Oh no. More like me oogling at all the amazing products my little Mutants had created! I cannot begin to explain how amazing the quality and awesome-factor present at this fair. We had great stuff last time, but this was a sight to see! We had pottery, jewelry, screen-printed t-shirts, stationery, felt plushies, folk art, lots of buttons, comic books, zines, candles, dolls, furniture, felted animals, handbags, paintings, plants, etc, etc, etc.

Kickass Gary is workin' the Raffle and Freebie Station (where all the Bust magazines and CERF information were at). Meghan is runnin' around like a crazy little ... wingnut? And I'm trying to snatch one of my Krispy Kreme donuts while a possible customer inquires about that weird looking octopus on my table. Luckily, my ever so great Room*e took in the role of sidekick during the remainder of the event (even made a couple sales while I was away strolling around the other tables!).

By 2pm, the gallery was full! Definitely the small but cool article published by the Savannah Morning News the day before helped in reaching a wider audience. Last May most of the attendants were students, and while they were also present this time, you could also see families with their children and even cute elder people stopped by! I was so excited I wanted to jump around like crazy! But again, I needed to uphold an image of sanity and control (it's strictly an image, for sure).

The audience winded down around a quarter past 5, and some of the out-of-towners began to break their tables down and prepare for the long drive ahead. It was such a nice feeling to hear your vendors tell you how happy they were with the event, and how much fun they had, and congratulating us on pulling this together, and how we should totally do this again. Not to sound selfish or anything, but it feels... great to know you're doing something that others are enjoying and that it just might mean something to them. And quite frankly, it means the world to me. Despite the stress and reduced sleeping hours, Mutation provided me with a immense sense of joy and fullfillment that I seldom find anywhere else. And I looove it.

So, a BIG THANK YOU to Meghan Shannon for igniting the quirky and fun spark that is Mutation; thank you to all the vendors who were so kind, patient and energetic; to the sponsors who supported us indie girls; and to all who attended and walked away with probably the greatest gift they'll ever buy.... I thank you from the bottom of my heart. :)

Now, on to pictures!

1) Beautiful potted plants and pottery by Greenware Designs
2) Funny iPod cozies and plushies from i cum sunshine
3) Mini comic books (and excellent display) from Little House Comics
4) Yummy stationery and tape cassettes earrings from Britta Barrett
5) Adorable plushies from Amanda Finn

Silly me didn't take a wide picture of my whole table, instead I snapped little snippets. I didn't even photograph the small wristlets! sheesh! Anyways... isn't my little Bob diorama adorable! (thank you Room*e for the suggestion!)

And these are all the lovely goodies I bought. I believe I spent about half of my earnings that day, hehe. :D

These are only a fraction of the pictures. For the full shebang please go to the Flickr page!

+ If and when I graduate from SCAD and if and when I move to New York City, there is something about this city I will forever cherish and perhaps never experience again. And that is its silence and tranquility. There is nothing quite like riding your bike or walking around Savannah, Georgia on a Sunday morning or afternoon, when the tourists are whispering, the streets are resting, the Savannah river seems like floating in midair, and the slightly overcast sky lets a very soft ray of sunshine peek through, enough to warm and soothe you before the chaos of the school week rolls again.

I will miss this, dearly. Very much so.

+ The Room*e and I had another Star Wars night a few days ago. This time it was Phantom Menace and Attack of the Clones' turn. These are the things that just now, I realized, after 6 years of viewing Ep. 1:

a) What in the world happened to Yoda? I had completely forgotten a muppet was used for this installment. It is just HORRIBLE! IT doesn't even resemble Yoda! What happened! The muppet used for the Original films was so perfect and precise, you would forget it wasn't an actual real living creature. What a shame.

b) I am mad at the people who trashed poor Jake Lloyd's performance. Looking at the movie now, his acting was actually very good. I have seen some completely untalented kid actors who are appearing onscreen based solely on their cuteness factor. Don't hate on little Jake. Hate on Lucas.

c) Bearded Ewan is 10000^10 sexier and hotter and yummier than Shaved Ewan. *siiiiiiigghh*

d) Again, hate on Lucas. I also feel very bad for (cute, but not quite as HAWT as Ewan) Hayden Christensen (or Christen Haydensen as my roommate involuntarily calls him). The kid had the WORST lines in the whole saga. "I don't like sand.. blah blah, it gets you everywhere", "I wish I could just wish all these feelings away", "why did she have to diiiie", "Im haunted by the kiss you never should've given me" and my all time favorite.... "No.. it's because I'm SO in love with you" WTF, Lucas!!! Do you really believe couples in love speak like this?? NO! Why, WHY, did you allow this. Quite frankly, that is my biggest complaint about the Prequels. The ridiculous, awkward "love" secenes and dialog. Horrible, just horrible.

+ To make matters worse, Room*e and I just watched the ending (again) of Finding Neverland, which was anti-climactically (is that a word?) ruined when little Peter asks James Barrie, "Why did she have to die?" and we both burst out laughing because it reminds us of certain cringe-inducing line uttered by a certain Sith-Lord-to-be in a certain second movie installment. Totally ruined the little boy's fine performance. Please forgive us Johnny Depp and co.

+ Okay, I really need that SW book NOW. See all the Star Wars crap I've been talking lately?!?! It's called bloody withdrawal!!

On to business, now that all the chaos and drama is gone, I can finally work on Star Magnolia. As many indie shops do, I want to include promo packs on every order to further spread the word of all our lovely handmade creations. It can be business cards, postcards, stickers, buttons, anything that promotes your indie business. Preferrably, they would have to be in multiples so that I can include them in various sent packages. In return, you'll receive some promo goodies from me as well.

Tomorrow I shall spend three hours trying to achieve proper color registration on my letterpress project! Grrr, two more colors and then the type. Oh man, so grueling. Still, it is fun. I think I will do my graduation invitations + thank you notes on the Vandercook. Of course, that's if I ace the registration dilemma.

I can only hope all my stationery and bags can be finished tomorrow.

So on Friday I recieved my awesome order from Paper Source. BEAUTIFUL envelopes for my stationeries! The quality is superb and the colors are even richer in person. If you want some good-lookin' envelopes, notecards, and etc, y'all definitely need to stop by Paper Source. Their prices are even better (plus they packaged my box with these foamies that resemble cheesy puffs! Too funny!)

Because I was ultimately bored today...actually, I shouldn't be, I have bags to sew and homework to neglect... anyways, I decided to decorate some hair pins for my now-short hair. I started doing these funnies way back in high school. But those have kinda already rusted and rotted into oblivion, so I thought it would be a good idea (and healthy!) to make new ones. So here they are!

+ So apparently my computer works properly now. What the heck happened to her, I will never know. Freakin biatch.

+ Crazy Music Request of the day: Do any of you remember this reggae mix that was really hot back in 1996, that started (at least the radio cut) with Shinehead's Jamaican in New York? I REALLY want that mix! I heard it on the radio a few days ago, and I couldn't believe my ears! That shiat was da shizzle. In da hizzouse. Bam.