cover photo

I haven’t decided whether or not I like the facebook timeline but I added a cover photo of my office space. This is when the room is at its best. In reality, there are boxes, papers, jars, and a whole lot of stuff taking over. I do aspire (maybe dream is the better word) to having it look this spotless on a daily basis.

Posts on the go?

Could this be?
While I enjoy the ease of posting on Facebook, I would prefer to have things centrally located on my blog page. Unfortunately, I am not often in front of my computer. When I am, there are usually bills to pay, orders to invoice, and designs to illustrate (okay, there’s also a lot of time reading articles because I am easily distracted and get sucked into the Internet void). Secondly, I have a difficult time taking pictures with a regular camera and then add the extra step to upload it to my computer means nothing ever gets posted.
Well, I hope this WordPress app works because it will mean that I can post while I am out and about and insert pictures from my iPhone (which seems to be the only way I can preserve memories of any event).
Fingers crossed that this will work and you’ll be hearing more from me.

when it rains, it makes a whole heaping mess of things

It’s been a bit quiet on the blog because I haven’t had a chance to sit and spend a whole lot of time writing. Checking-in in under 140 characters, on the other hand, is doable so you can always follow the madness, mayhem, and musings on Twitter.

Okay, back to my week.

‘When it rains, it pours’ only goes so far to say that a lot of things can go wrong at the same time. There should be a way to say that things not only went wrong, but that the pouring was a catalyst to the utter collapse of things. For instance, let’s say we get a little rain (and in So Cal, we grumble about a light shower), which makes the road slick, that leads to a 10 car pile up on the 405 N, which you just happen to be stuck on, thus makes you unable to get to something really important.

Point is, things sure collapsed this week.

It started off terrific enough. Orders were shipped, new orders came in, vendors and supplies ordered, printed jobs picked up. I was on a roll for the start of the year. Woohoo! But then the printer died, my supplies were back-ordered, kids got sick.

No problem. I can handle those little obstacles. That’s just a slow crawl on the freeway.

The big collision came at 2am when my wall shelving began to peel away from the anchors and the boxes of stock started to slide off. Wide eyed panic and gaping mouth set in as I rushed on top of a nearby stool and hopped onto my table to hold the rail and bottom corner of the falling shelf. Whew… I caught them just in the nick of time and commenced transferring each box with one hand while the other held up the offending shelf.

Now that the rails were weakened, my whole shelf system had to be removed. I decided to get standing shelves in its place which meant my production table, couch, boxes hiding under those areas, and supply bins had to relocate. I was left with a mess.

While the rain can bring its share of problems, there’s always an upside. The sky is always bluer after a nice downpour.

Remember the saga on the war with my office and reclaiming the walls? Well, this disaster forced me to overhaul my work space. There are a lot of boxes to sort through and supplies to purge yet, but the office has a nice makeover. Well, at least half of it.

Yeah. Cue the rainbows.

* * *

workspace saga : stop designing from behind

In my never ending saga with my workspace, I’ve set up a wall to display current projects. It helps to have a space where I can step back and take a look at the designs that I am currently working on.

New designs are typically laid out on my desk or on the production table. At some point, they’re buried under other paper or stacked in a corner while another project starts, patiently waiting for my attention once again. This process was not only inefficient, but creatively disruptive. Each time I was ready to work on another card, I would pull out each sample to reorient myself. What limited time I have is wasted on setting up my space and getting my mind back on track.

My new system eliminates the need for me to start from square one each time I sit down to create. Designs are displayed neatly across the magnetic board and they can be easily moved or replaced.

The space is functional and I have a starting point that doesn’t actually come from behind.

It looks like I’ll need more space though. Next time, I’m getting a pretty board. I’ve got my eye on one from Shugabee Lane.

{image via ShugabeeLane on etsy}

these walls are bare

My office is not the most visually appealing space. Shelves line the walls and boxes are stacked up to the ceiling. Storage bins and a large filing cabinet fill up another wall. I even have a red couch shoved against one wall beneath my window. You could call it my workshop and storage space and that would be a more accurate description.

Reorganizing and decluttering the office is on my never ending to-do list. My room and I have had an ongoing battle for many years. Supplies and materials have all conspired to keep me buried under piles of paper and blocked by boxes. I need to declare, “This space is MINE!”

Okay. Maybe not yet.

I’ll just resort to little acts of defiance. I’m going to put something on my walls. I want prints. Large bold prints that stand out against the ever encroaching hoards.

a statement that stands with presence in the present {image from farouche}

Beautiful strong type that restores order out of chaos.

I hope they will have typography maps of San Francisco and Los Angeles soon {image from axismaps}

I’ll even take Jedi mind tricks to help the cause.

I am amazed that these pieces are formed with dialogue from the film.
Where is Darth Vader’s, “I am your father.” {image from Skahfee Studios}

It’s the first step to reclaiming my room. Have any favorite prints to share? I’ll be recruiting.