mizutamago

w.i.p.

this little guy will be joined by 7 other plushies and will be headed for a shop in Venice, CA.

my very first order from an actual shop! I really need to buckle down and get to work, I've been the mayor of excuses-ville lately.
the heat (or trying to stay cool) have been hindering my productivity. My goal is to have them completed by next week.

San Francisco was amazing, great friends, great eats and beautiful sites.

The best souvenier I brought back home with me, my take on
an appetizer we tried at the wonderful Universal Cafe. Baslsamic reduction drizzled over heirloom tomatoes, fried egg and bacon..yum!
If you're in the Bay Area and haven't tried the Universal Cafe yet, you must!!!!

Have a fantastic week!!!

catching up

I've been keepin busy lately

Here's another pillow for the good ole Petrie.
(pillow is linen with felt and wool cut outs)

The coffee table needed a face lift, so I painted it white (lots and lots of coats, it took me  weeks!)

We took 2 trips to Mammoth in the past 3 weeks.

celebrated Keith's birthday

watched this little guy,do this kinda thing....

oh seven

Did eveyone have a lovely Christmas and New Year? I just got back from a week in Chicago, I managed to throw in a few quick trips to various thrift store in Illinois. If I may gloat for a sec, here are my christmas presents from Keith. I'm not sure how Keith knew, the Giraffe lamp was something I had been coveting for at least a year...the Bull sculpture is simply gorgeous. I love them both!

some pretty cotton fabrics from a thrift store in Batavia, IL

vintage mugs from a Goodwill in Freeport IL

the cutest little tea kettle, this belonged to Keith's grandmother and it still works :)

Looking forward to spending '07 with all of you!

this is what I've been up to

there's this amazing little thrift store around the corner from my house.
I found this funny little mirror there.

Its above a red dresser than I'm planning on sprucing up and painting white too.

I found a total cheater way to make Palmiers via Ina Garten. Super easy and delicious...the best part is that you can bake just the amount you feel like snacking on, so they're always fresh from le oven.

i heart mexico. about 24 of us trecked down to Esteban Cantu, where we rented a couple of beach houses...um beach houses, 'nuff said.

have pool will travel...

i hope everyone had a lovely weekend.
Like many of us state side, I'm still enjoying my extended holiday weekend.
It's been bloody hot these past few days, and although my mind wanted this weekend to be full of crafting, my body said "get the hell out of here, find some water and immerse"

and that's exactly what we've been doing. We're lucky enough to live about 5 blocks away from the Standard Hotel in downtown where their roof top pool is open to the public.

gorgeous views and refreshing cocktails...it's the next best thing to having ones own oasis.
We've already managed to go twice this weekend!

the hotel is very minimalist with very clean lines, which makes this cute Hippo Trash all the more cuter.

speaking of cute, I saw these at Jon's supermarket in Hollywood

yum.

smoke and fun

Much fun was had outdoors this weekend.
Lots of hiking, soaking in hot springs, outdoor cooking, and lots and lots of fire and smoke...I'm a total pyro.

my friends Ed and Ting minding their own business doing camp like things, when suddenly...confronted with terror.

here's Keith building a sculptural piece out of scrap wood, later to be sacraficed to enable our s'more addiction.

I managed to do a bit of crafting, and finished this little guy. It's going to be incorporated into a collagey thing I'm working on.

Happy Tuesday everyone :)

return from the the land of the rising sun

whoa. I just got back from a jam packed week in Tokyo.
I experienced Japan like I've never experienced it before..I traveled with 5 co-workers who didn't speak Japanese, so I was part-translator/part-travel guide/part-visitor/part-lunatic.
It was an insanely fast paced business trip, and we met so many talented artists, and had the opportunity to visit the most inspired studios.

Mr. Noriya Takeyama was one of the illustrators we met on our trip, he and his lovely wife Yuka san met with my boss and I ,and brought me these lovely vinyl figures (all designed by the artist). He also brought a Frog figure which I didn't post here, but you can see it on his site, if you click on the images from the Few Many Gallery  - he had a show there recently.

you wouldn't believe how teeny tiny some of these figures are!
and I quote Keith "why are these so cute?" repeat x4

many of you who are fans of Ayumi Uyama's Mascot Craft Books probably won't be suprised to hear that she was an apprentice to Takeyama san way back in the day. I've seen his toys at some boutique shops out here in LA, I'm sure some of the vinyl toy shops online carry them too.

I've also returned with more somber news from Tokyo...
My granny passed away while I was there, I was so fortunate that my company allowed me to extend my trip by a few days, so I was able to attend the funeral and hang out with my dad and my extended family.

But I feel great that I was able to say good bye to my granny. It was also really fun hanging out with my dad in the city he grew up in.

I found some adorable cards tucked away in my granny's photo albums...

Birthday Cards my dad gave to his mom from age 12 - 17 ish....I had no idea he had such a sweet side. I also learned lots of fun stuff about my dad, he apparently had multiple bar tabs that he never paid off before he came out to LA ...my granny ended up paying for all of it..heh  My dad, the hardcore partying mama's boy...

Meanwhile back at the ranch....

I missed one of the most amazing events right in our own back yard.

Nearly half a million men and women and children marched down Spring and Broadway in Downtown Los Angeles, towards City Hall to protest the Border Security Bill which was passed by the House of Representatives...I don't want my blog to become a forum for politics, so I shall keep my mouth shut...but can I just say that this is F'ed UP F**@ed UP...people!

 

people marching up and down Spring street and Broadway as far as the eye could see...
Photos courtesy of Keith..

unexpected

Keith took me to Mammoth this weekend. Our mini vacation was full of unexpected goodness, my favorite kind of getaway....I have never snowboarded before, and for weeks and weeks prior to our trip, I was so convinced that I was going to fail, well I'm happy to report that I did just fine and managed to have so much fun learning! (Learning to snowboard = learning that failure is all in my head)

An unexpectedly quiet and serene view of the slopes (one of the many advantages of staying at the hotel next to the ski lodge)

An unexpected wall of snow outside our hotel room.

I have always known about Manzanar, but never gave much thought to where it was.
Although my parents came to California from Japan way after World War 2, this part of American History has always affected me, but actually standing among the remains of the  Manzanar Relocation Camp made me feel things that were most definitely unexpected.

An unexpected homecoming, even Downtown LA surprised us with it's gorgeously hazy rays.

colorful

Aside from my miniature Eiffel Towers, these cute little cafe au lait bowls were the only things I picked up on my first trip to Paris. Although I don't use them for coffee, I use them for lot of other things...dips , condiments, mini-side dishes. Everytime I use them, I think of my version of Paris.

Meringues as puffy as clouds, just sitting happily in a wicker basket.
This picture really does not do them justice.