Hi Ho Canada!

So this summer my significant other hounded me to go to Canada with him and his parents as this would be the only vacation I would have this year =( . We drove straight from South Jersey to Niagara Falls which was about 8 hour drive and boy was my butt as flat as a pancake during the trip. We arrived at about 5pm and went to exchange some currency. I must say compared to the rather drab US money the Canadian currency was so colorful and fun. Our hotel was about a couple blocks away from the waterfalls and even though I've been to Niagara Falls before, it still takes my breath away. You can hear the roar of the gushing water and the amount of force the water falls over the cliffs makes this huge geyser like plume. The above picture taken by me is the Horseshoe Falls. See that tiny boat? That's the boat: The Maid of the Mist and for about $15 bucks brings you up close and personal to all the roaring action.
The waterfalls was sooo loud when we approached them and it sprayed constant mist of water at us and the wind sent many people's plastic raincoats flying upwards. We must have stayed at the foot of the falls for 10 - 15 minutes taking in this wonder of nature. It is unbelievable to think thousands of gallons of water is constantly streaming over these cliffs and oh the rainbows that float far above us in the mist is always there. Next up we went to Toronto a good hour or two ride from Niagara and we went up the CN Tower which is the tallest tower in the world until the tower in Burj Dubai is finished. The view was AMAZING, you could literally see the whole city and even though I'm rather afraid of heights this was one of those gloriously clear blue summer days you just had to peer out. There was also a part of the floor taht's made out of glass so you can look straight some hundred meters down. Not for someone whose afraid of heights but heck I went all the way here and who knows when I'll be back. It took some nerves but I was sitting on top of the glass floor and took pictures of the dizzying height we were at. Can't say my bf was so brave >_
The days were there the weather was wonderful and Canada was definitely fun... I'd love to come back for more then just 3 days and 2 nights. Travel further into the county. =D !

Until next time... au revoir!

Pin o This

This August is turning out to be a great month for my little shop which is surprising to me since people say summer is the slowest sale time. I had a great buyer that wanted my art on 2.25 inch pin back buttons. Although I've always wanted to make them I was too lazy to justify the work and cost that went into them... until recently. I ordered 25 just for a start from the wonderful Ali at Buttonhead.etsy. She is my go-to for mirrors, buttons and other knick knacks. I highly recommend her. When they arrived I was thrilled with how they look! I especially like this one because it really rings a chord with me and I think this one will go on my school bag. =)

I'm pondering the idea of doing a craft show during the fall. This year I have school, work and volunteer work at the hospital planned. It's going to be a jammed pack year. There is one cosponsored by the NewNewTeam (proud member of) on October 17th in Manhattan close to where I live called Crafts in Chelsea. What's great is that part of the vendor fee goes to the PTA of the local public school and growing up within the great public school system of NYC they're always cutting the school budget. It was though the PTA and fund-raising that so many programs and clubs have been maintained.

I recently learned my own elementary school P.S. 130 held a fundraiser and now has several music, art, sports and literary programs that were not available to us when I was young. Though these programs I hope kids foster interests outside the school curriculum and promote creativity. Personally I feel kids have been growing up too fast and pressured to focus solely on education. I think about that when I'm on my tablet in Photoshop and my little 9 year old brother is sitting next me as I draw that dragon he loves so much from Yu-Gi-Oh. I love the questions and glitter in his eyes as he listens intently when I teach him a bit about Photoshop and art.

Until next time.. cherish and relish childhood for it's far to short sometimes.

Posting Promoting?

On the spur of the moment I made the little card above about THE RED SOCK that always ends up with my whites and making everything pink! I thought it was funny but did other people get it? One thing about humor is once you explain it the humor is gone! To get some feedback In went to Critiques forum of Etsy to ask for opinions. I got an overwhelming response of how funny and quirky it was and people did get it. See I do have a sense of humor people get! (sometimes). That really made me happy! But then it got sold! Someone who commented on the post brought it! Now I was floored as this has never happened to me ...

I'm not saying go and post like a madman or madwoman on the forums but when you honestly need help, have a question or want to respond to something... you never know someone is looking at your shop and go gee whiz I got to get that! I've had a few sales from people whose seen me post because well I'm always interested in what other people say and I like to give advice and receive it. I've also brought from other sellers who post on the forums too! Don't be afraid people are generally very very nice there.

Here are some other useful links =)
http://www.craftopolis.com/ super site to see if you got featured in treasuries
http://www.craftcult.com/heartomatic.php site to check out hearts in your shop
http://www.indiecraftfairguide.com/ great site with craft fair articles and also local craft fairs
http://artmind-etcetera.blogspot.com/ fabulous and creative ideas

Back to School!

Yeps it's almost that time again where school supplies are cheap and summer is winding down (cries) For me I'm heading back in about three weeks. I made two new prints dedicated to back to school! I also have a Back to School Sale with free shipping on my Mix and Match Three. You get a price break on three prints of your choice and free shipping! =D . It's so darn hot here I feel like I'm melting... hope it's not going to be like this for the first few weeks of school... it is a far far walk from the subway to the campus o_o! How's everyone summer going on?

This weekend I went down to the Jersey Shore and went crabbing! Basically get some traps and toss them out onto the ocean/water channels wait and hope you get some crabbies! I'll have some pictures up when I get the chance. My significant other and his two friends were out by a quiet channel... well not so quiet as people sail up and down the channel. Our traps were metal cages that had doors that swung up. It's like fishing in many ways. You throw it out and hope you get crabs when you reel them in. Though depending on who you ask people use squid or chicken or fish as bait in the cage.
We were out there for four hours with six traps. It was fun until a family in a medium sized motor boat took a sling shot and unsuccessfully launched a water balloon at us. That got me seriously PO (Pissed Off) as we were just enjoying ourselves and this was my bf's first time crabbing. It was appalling as I can clearly see the parents were there laughing with their teenage kids (3). So ... I flipped the bird at them and instantly regretted it as I should not slip down to their level... my bf's friend said I was "aggressive". Heck if I was I would've thrown a crab at them. ARG! Anyways we had a good haul and all the tiny crabs and those with eggs we released back to the water.

Until next time... no shaking but I'm baking...

N is for Neko!

So I just started on my new line of simple cards inspired by my love of Japan and kawaii-ness! My newest one is this one N is for Neko! I do love cats and animals in general but my parents never allowed us to keep pets besides goldfish. Though I for a few times sneaked in a snake, lizard, cockatoo and some white mice. The reason was at my elementary school the science room kept many animals like hamsters and guinea pigs for the students to see. In mornings a small group of us "animal monitors" would clean the cages and feed the animals. Trust me there were over thirty cages to clean!

Looking back it was a great and fun way to instill responsibility of taking care of another life. Yes you had to clean the poopie, make sure every animal has it's specific diet, make sure food and water was there. The warm rocks were on in the reptile cage were on etc. We also got to show the little kids the animals and teach them a bit of them like "what is a reptile?" ... "What does it mean to be warm blooded and cold blooded?" etc.

I know the first thing I'll do when I have my own living space is to get one of these guys!
Until next time.. meow meow!