Artwork of the Week: Telmo

An illustration by Patricia Metola from Telmo

I thought I'd post this sweet illustration in honor of Mother's Day yesterday. I had a great time with my two guys; a deliciously greasy breakfast at The Waffle House following by a walk around the neighborhood with surprise gifts from Ash that "fell" out of the stroller canopy when the sun was getting too bright. I also did some solo shopping for new patio chair cushions. That part was sort of thrilling, not having to buckle a kid in and out of the car over and over again. All in all, it was a really wonderful day. 

You can see more drawings from Telmo, a children's book by Carlo Frabetti and Patricia Metola, here.  

And more examples of the illustrator's work on her blog: 

patriciametola.blogspot.com

- Cathleen 

First Communion Issues

Tomorrow is Alissa's daughter's First Communion and Alissa and I have spent the last YEAR agonizing over finding the perfect dress for her daughter. This might seem weird since it's Alissa'a daughter making her First Communion and not mine BUT Clementine makes her First Communion next year and I like to be prepared. Anyway let me just put it this way, there are NO good First Communion dress options on the market. They're all either too shiny, or too pedestrian. I brought up my problem to a mom at the school I teach at who has impeccable taste and she recommended looking at Oscar de la Renta's Special Occasion line for girls. HOLY MOLY! Finally a little inspiration on the First Communion dress front. Check out the two I found that Alissa and I both love:

Snowflake Flower Girl Dress
Oscar de la Renta
$790

Yep, that's right, $790. OUCH! I just heard my wallet scream.

Swiss Dot Dress with Lace Trim
Oscar de la Renta
$690

My wallet is still screaming. This picture doesn't do the second dress justice. It's swiss dot and has a delicate lace trim. Check out Oscar de la Renta's website for close ups. 

Hear me out though! When I made my First Communion in 1989 my mom borrowed a dress from a friend that I HATED and I felt ugly. And even though my mom died 20 years ago I am still a little resentful of that dress. I think it would be worth spending the money on a dress this special. Also, I could sell the dress on Ebay right after and make at least half of my money back so say I spent $800, after I sold it I'd really have only spent $400.... are you with me people? 

Great! It's settled then!

And even though I'm not much of a Throwback Thursday kinda gal I had to post them gems from my youth:

Me, May 1989 at home after my First Communion. Thanks mom, still pissed 25 years later. 

And even better! My sister after her First Communion. This wasn't her actual First Communion this was like the weekend after. My mom made us get dressed up again to take photos. My sister had an ear ache and this picture is just too perfect. The rest of the series are actually better because my sister looks even more pissed. And yes, I'm the one with the huge mop of brown hair on the left. 

Happy Friday!

-Grace

Happy Birthday, Colonel Tapioca!

My dear ol dad is turning the big 7-0 today (I hope he doesn't mind me outing him on national internet like this) so I wanted to wish him a very happy birthday on the ol blog!

Unfortunately, I won't be able to celebrate with him in person this year, as much as I would have really loved to make that happen. And what do you get the man who could pretty much get anything he wants for himself anyway? Well, after thinking HARD for quite awhile, I decided to have a sentimental photo framed (that was delayed at the framers...GRRR!) and I sent him a card with the promise of an experience: we have pledged to take him to the Lantern, a local multi-award-winning restaurant in Chapel Hill, NC, the next time he gets down to our neck of the woods. We're going to get a babysitter for the occasion and everything! He's mentioned wanting to try it before, and I once read somewhere that experiences are the best gifts because they enrich your life and your memories more than any physical thing usually does. I wanted to make this birthday especially special because of it's nice round number significance, but also because he has always been so generous with me---with everyone I know---and he deserves to be treated for a change. I hope he likes it. And doesn't sneakily try to pay the bill before the end of dinner. And doesn't think that the "gift of spending time with me" is actually really lame. 

Happy Birthday, Colonel Tapioca! 

You are the best father I could have ever asked for, and an even greater man who means so much to so many people. I look forward to reminding you of that fact (because you forget it way too often) and celebrating your life with you for many more years to come. 

Love, 

Cathleen

Movie Posters

Metropolis

I have slowly been ripping my dvd collection onto an external hard drive and converting all other movie files into .mp4s so I can assemble everything onto my iTunes.  From there I have been able to home share the computer with my Apple TV then search and watch anything from my collection easily.  Because it is now through my Apple TV, it almost looks like Netflix or the iTunes store.  This means each movie or show has "album artwork" that goes along with it.  Sometimes ripping the DVD would save the original artwork as well and other times I would have to download new images for certain movies.  Through this process I have been finding a lot of cool movie posters...classic ones and newly designed ones for both old and new movies, so I thought I would share some cool ones with you.

It is definitely an art most people don't even think about, but we see it everywhere.  Some movies have iconic shots and that's all it needs, but other times someone has come up with a very creative way to capture the feel of a film and attract the viewer just in this one still image.

Here are some of the ones I have found.

Then, of course, you have all of Wes Anderson's movies.  They are perfect for interesting and unique posters since his films have such bold cinematography and purposeful, unrealistic sets.

And if you want to read about how many movie posters look essentially the same, here is an interesting story: http://www.thewrap.com/movies/blog-post/why-movie-posters-all-look-same-75846+

Oh yeah... And always avoid movies with the Bold Red Uppercase Fonts:

-Brian

Artwork of the Week: My Library

My Library by Carine Brancowitz

Nothing makes you step back and assess your lot in life quite like a move. (Or an episode of Hoarders.) And by "lot" I mean "possessions" --- as in, we've got quite a lot of them. And by "them" I mean specifically "books" --- as in, why do we keep books at all? After you've read them, even if you absolutely loved the narrative, are you ever really going to read through it a second time? I know some people do, but I am not one of them. And yet! I'm saving (and moving) all of these books. For what? To pass onto my future literate children who will probably only skim stories on screens by then?

These are the thoughts that roll over me when I sit here walled in by heavy cartons. With, if I'm being honest here, no deep intention of changing my pack ratting ways. But I'm thinking about thinking about it. 

This drawing by French illustrator Carine Brancowitz made me think about it some more. She does very detailed and finely patterned work in ballpoint pen mostly. You can see more of her art on her website: www.carinebrancowitz.com

- Cathleen 

[Image via bibliolectors.tumblr.com]

Finally...

Ok, my dears, are you ready? "The Plan" this morning was to do a couple little "touch ups" on my mobile before I hung it up and posted about the finished project. The "touch ups" and "hanging process" ended up taking about "four hours". (I hope you're all imagining me pronouncing the air quotes in an irritated Will Ferrell voice. Because that's how I mean them.)

Anyway, the moral of the story is this: Martha Stewart's DIY instructions are a craft version of her recipes- simple on the surface but desperately complicated once you're in too deep to turn back. Not to mention infuriating when it turns out not half as perfect/delicious as you hoped. 

But I'm still pretty happy about the result if I squint and don't really look at the hanging apparatus. I'd appreciate it if all our readers would employ the same method when viewing the following picture:

Ah ha! I cropped the hanger out of the picture so you can't judge me! I knew you wouldn't honor my wishes and squint so I removed the temptation for you. 

Anyway, it looks nice, right? FYI, Uranus does have rings but it's turned perfectly sideways so you can't see and I'm sure as heck not going to go retake that photo. I'm going to take a nap instead.

Happy Weekend, Friends!

-Alissa

Easter Fashion Face-Off

Fashion Face-Off ended in a tie.

So I completely dropped the ball and haven't posted any photos of from Alissa and I's Easter Fashion Face-Off.... but wait, behold! A photo! Here we are in our Easter finest! My face looks like a beat up Sex in the City cast member. Can anyone else agree that as you age your ability to take a good photo drops dramatically? When I was younger every photo was a slam dunk, now everytime I see a photo I cry for days past.

Thanks Alissa for spending Easter with us again this year! I don't know what I'd do without our friendship!