My little problem

Whenever I have a jones for my particular vice, it's like this: suddenly I have to see/buy/feel some fabric and only then will I feel better. Before I run wildly out onto the streets and either down to P&S or up to Mood or B&J fabrics, I click over to Reprodepot Fabrics (I am a confessed fabric addict. Sadly there is no Fabrics Anonymous...yet). I could almost say they're responsible for my addiction but then I wouldn't be taking full responsibility blah blah blah yak yak yak. (No I am not ready to face this issue! Just step off! Damn!)

One of the first fabrics that transfixed me was something from this line, which I now have several yards of and no idea what to do with.



Cats and dogs and little penguins promising a special show with a Nice & Beautiful hat! Or look at this one. Wouldn't you like to visit this farm, with ducks, swans, sheep, bears, pigs, and a monkey all there to welcome you?

I'm also a fan of Heather Ross, an illustrator and fabric designer. I love the idea that if you saw this from far away you'd think it was a random pattern, until you got closer and realized they're actually swimming pools with people diving into them...



And no, fabric hasn't completely infantilized me. I don't always need cute little pictures of things. I also start drooling and walk like a zombie toward things like this:



So moderne! But I guess there are pictures of things in that one, too. Whatever. Please do not judge me. Just give me some cash money so I can go buy some more fabric.

The shrug bug

I had to make one last shrug for Hazy while she's still a little shrug lovin' girlie girl, but who knows if she'll wear it or not? The older she gets, the stronger and more specific her fashionista decision-making process becomes. So I made this one out of terry cloth, figuring at the very least, maybe she'll rock it at the lake this summer. Here it is about to boxed up and sent away with Hazy's birthday presents.



And here's a detail of the cute elephant ribbon. Patterns always say to face it out, but I think it's nicer to face it up, so the wearer can see it better.



And here's the kid on her birthday. Yay, it fits! (For now.)

Cat lady art

You might remember this post, wherein an awe-inspiring soapdish was encountered at a cocktail party. Well, P secretly did some research and went out and found the woman who made that crazy soapdish and bought a piece of her nutty crockery for me for a recent special occasion that has been mentioned much too much already. (Yes, P is a prince among men, and I am reminded of that fact daily. I should probably send his parents a bouquet of their favorite exotic lillies or somesuch every week just for putting him on this planet. Hmmm, that's an idea.) Should I put colored pencils in it (see background) or sip yummy coffee and tea from it? For now, I can't do anything but stare at it in wonderment.





That's one absorbing cat lady objet d'art, if you ask me.

Lucky lady

I had the great fortune, first of all, to grow up with the children's book Who Needs Donuts? a book that was miraculously republished. Stop what you're doing right now and buy a copy, it's brilliant and you won't regret it. I've been reading it over and over ever since I learned how to read (a helluva long time ago, my people!) and I still find things to crack up and marvel over in it. It's THAT amazing.

When it was ever so sadly and absurdly out of print back in the 90s, I was feeling guilty for sneaking off with the one copy we had as kids, and decided to track down a copy for my brother for his birthday. This hopeless and ultimately desperate search led me finally to the Village Voice, where the author of Donuts, Mark Alan Stamaty, was still doing his brilliant weekly cartoon Washingtoon. I left a note for him begging for one of his copies, thinking he must have a huge personal stash and perhaps he might feel sorry for me and sell me a copy. One day soon after I was sitting around at home and the phone rang — it was the dude himself, and we had a great conversation, but he told me to fuhgeddaboudit, he only had one box and no, he wouldn't part with any of the remaining copies, and yes, he got calls like this frequently from Donuts fanatics like me, but hey, that's life!

Soon after that, I received a copy of his new book of Washingtoon cartoons and an amazing personalized doodle in the mail (which I framed and have loved ever since). He was an exceptionally nice guy, in other words.

Then, this past summer, I went to a wedding where I met the awesome illustrator Nina Frenkel, whose mentor was none other than MARK ALAN STAMATY. "Do you want to go out to dinner with him? I'll set it up!" she asked me. "Well Hells Bells YES," was my answer.

So this past Monday night I had the incredible experience of being able to break bread with one of my favorite writer/illustrators in the whole world. I know! That's why I felt lucky this week. I knew I was pushing my crazy psycho fan luck by bringing a bunch of books for him to sign, but I couldn't help it. But check it out: Mark (I call him "Mark" now, ha ha), sat back and doodled away after dinner while Nina and I yapped over coffee. And when I mean doodled...will you look at the output from this doodler extraordinaire?

Here's my copy of the republished 2001 Who Needs Donuts? Check out the train on the nose and the fishbowl in his muscle and the bearded sun and...I'm in heaven.



Here's the original Who Needs Donuts? from the 70s. A horse having coffee and a donut!



And here's my brother Wolf's book: he finally has his own copy. (I bought him one for his birthday a few years ago, so that's my inscription you see partially in the bottom corner.)



Here's the front cover of another awesome strip of Mark's called MacDoodle St.



And now here's the inside cover.



That bow-tied rhino makes me so happy. Thank you, Mark! Thank you, Nina!

Street life

Sonya told me about a local art show and this is my favorite piece by this particular artist. This guy apparently dresses up shelter cats and places them in scenarios, but this one is just so...damn! I've walked by this type of scene at some point in my neighborhood, you know?