These are listed... only here.

Most of these have back straps. Sizes do vary slightly; most of these fall into the two main sizes I do for Moleskine-type sketchbooks. I'm not showing photos of linings today... if you have questions, just ask. Payment is by money order or Pay Pal, U.S. deliveries $2.50, please ask for other delivery destinations. All sales are final; these will go in order of request.

Here's what's available:

Heron Bag.
2008-06-08
No backstrap.
Approx 8 1/2 x 5 1/2.
Lining: White w/ Pink Scroll print
$27

Mermaid Bag.
2008-06-07
Backstrap.
Approx 8 3/4 x 5 1/2.
Lining: Blue w/ silver stars.
$25

Green Floral.
Backstrap.
2008-06-02
Approx 8 1/4 x 5 1/4
Lining: Soft orange/yellow/pink plaid
$23

Wonky Dots.
Backstrap.
2008-06-01
Approx 8 1/4 x 5 1/4
Lining: Lime w/ stars
$23

Brown Paisley.
2008-06-06
Backstrap.
Approx 8 x 5 1/4
Lining: Lime w/ stars
$23

Cormorant. Sold.
2008-06-05
Approx 8 3/4 x 5 1/2.
Backstrap.
Lining: Soft green w/ tonal alphabet
$27

Pink Paisley.
2008-06-03
Approx 8 3/4 x 5 1/2.
Backstrap.
Lining: Orange w/ tonal orange circles
$27

Orange Circles. Sold.
2008-06-04
Backstrap.
8 1/2 x 5 1/4
Lining: Deep magenta with small floral.
$25

If you are interested... in any of these or in something specific in terms of color or pattern, let me know. You can reach me at oamyoamy AT gmail DOT com

Posted by Amy at 5:04 PM | Permalink

As I mentioned on the 2-year celebration show... Episode 100... of the Creative Mom Podcast, I have a small set of pen pouches to list. I'm not posting these at Etsy in part because I'll be leaving for vacation and also because some of these may go to an art show instead of to Etsy later this summer.

I'll post these this evening ... I do sort of hate the "first come first serve" approach. Sorry!

All of the ones I'll be listing are visible at Flickr.

Posted by Amy at 10:23 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

This is a reminder that the CMP Postal Letterbox Ring is starting June 1 (or thereabouts). We're sending letterboxes through the mail... with log-books and hand-carved stamps on the theme of "Spring." When you receive a box, you stamp your book (at home) and then stamp your own stamp into the letterbox book, and mail it to the next person. If you're interested in finding out more, Kris has posted some excellent information on the CMP Postal Blog... to read the blog, or to sign up, contact Kris at jehmen@sbcglobal.net.

See you there!

Posted by Amy at 2:56 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Well... I'm off on this "birdhouse" tangent... you've likely heard about it. I thought it might just be two weeks... rounding out April... but I'm still there. And yet... I keep searching for great birdhouse photos... I mean great ones... interesting... not cute birdhouses... but realistic ones... natural ones... ones with good texture or unusual lines but still good for birds...

I don't have a birdhouse. I don't know that there's ever been one in any yard of any house I've lived in...

But... do YOU have one? I'd love to see photos... provided you realize that I might sketch from them if you post them. If you've got great birdhouses in your yard or near you, take a photo, put it at Flickr, and let me know. I'd love to see!

Posted by Amy at 8:34 AM | Permalink | Comments (3)

Well, everyone... it looks like I have been quiet here... or not here... again. Spring... is upon us... already, April has moved in... so quickly...

I posted Episode 93 of the CMP yesterday. And... I've started pulling things out and working on some updates... maybe for Etsy... I'm getting ready to try a bit of a new spin on what I was doing... and that's exciting... so... I'll be showing what I'm doing soon... in the interim, more pen pouches and "nest" cards are underway. It's that initial process of doing the central patch that is the most fun... for sure... I just love that part.

A few books caught my eye recently... have any of you read any of these?

You can tell summer is coming... for some reason... it brings books like this into my realm of focus!

Posted by Amy at 8:23 AM | Permalink | Comments (2)

Well, it's the last day of February! Since I typically sketch in the morning, that means I've wrapped up my 'daily' sketches on shipping tags for February. And... yep... I'm not done with this process yet. It's certainly a bit addictive, and I love how it keeps me focused even when I have only 30 minutes or so to devote to a morning sketch. I think there will be some changes in March... color, maybe... but I'm definitely continuing!

Posted by Amy at 1:06 PM | Permalink | Comments (2)

Well, I'm still doing what I'm doing... as you can see above. The shipping tags are continuing and really it's a good thing. It's a good bit of structure for me in some odd way... without that right now... I'd probably not be "doing it" at all. So, while sometimes I look at them and think... total "rut".... each morning I grab a blank tag... and when I finish it, I'm typically content with it and with having "done" it... I smile at whatever bird has taken shape. And I file it in the green plastic box behind the ones from the days before. So, it works.
Episode 86 is short... but it came out yesterday. A bit on "small" Moleskines in that one...

Posted by Amy at 9:16 AM | Permalink | Comments (2)

Well... tomorrow morning, I'll be on I-80 heading north... but right now... lots of you are having problems getting to EP85 of the CMP.

I've repushed everything... so... hopefully all will be right. But, for some of you, you'll end up with the file twice... but... just listen once, okay? The final file you're looking for, if you haven't been able to get your itunes to realize I fixed this yesterday is Episode 85BB.

I gave everything a new name today... and my iTunes found it right away... so... fingers crossed.

Enjoy! And I'll be back here (blog) and with the CMP next week.

Posted by Amy at 10:02 AM | Permalink

Well... I didn't announce last week that Episode 84 went live, but it did. And now, Episode 85 is live... It's February, and I'm on track. This week, I'm finally talking about the shipping tags... feeling that there's something to say about them after 31 days... and seeing in them a process of both learning and evolution. So... there's a LOT of shipping tag talk this week. (Superstitiously... I didn't want to talk about them "during" the process of the month!) But, also, in Ep 85, you'll find links to a number of artists and projects that caught my attention this week, a few tidbits from our week here at our house, and more.

And... as for the tags... I'm continuing them... which means... I've gotta cut some more!

Books reviewed and mentioned this week... as well as a few related titles (or titles in a series...):

We're headed to Tahoe for a few days. So, I'm hoping to see some birds, see some snow (like 20 feet!), and drink lots of coffee.... oh, and sketch... a lot. They can ski. I'm going to sketch. So, we'll see what happens! I'm taking along my little recorder... the quality isn't great, but I think I might do next week's show "log"-style.

Have a good week!

Posted by Amy at 8:50 AM | Permalink | Comments (3)

I will be sending out the newsletter later today, but I just pushed out Episode 82 of the CMP: "Unexpected Wings" (yeah, yeah, yeah... okay, so there are birds in it...). In addition to things that fly, there is more talk about the Word of the Year (from Ali Edward's site), which I know many of you are thinking about. Some of you have talked about your word on the Yahoo! list. Some of you have blogged it already. Some of you have shared it with me in email. I'm glad many of you are moving toward a word. Here's a great list of words others have chosen for this year from Ali's site.

This week... I also talk about these two books, both of which I really, really enjoyed:

Posted by Amy at 11:56 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

It's been a while since I've been here, I guess. I'm surprised to see I haven't posted in the new year. I've been busy with a number of things, and the show has remained on track... but no blogging. And so, today, photos I've talked about already (in EP 81), but photos that mark a year of possibility and a year of commitment to my own journey... to the continuation of it... and to ongoing exploration. And, as you can see, the work in progress right now is the first step... ATCs for January.

One "blank" at a time.

Posted by Amy at 3:54 PM | Permalink | Comments (3)

Well, as everyone knows, the birds have basically taken over my awareness and so, finally, I found myself at the bookstore intent on getting a copy of the The Sibley Guide to Birds. Everyone agrees I need a Sibley, right? Of course, I do. I've been slow in bringing one home, but it's time. And so, there I was. Both boys had already picked out something (both graphic novel style) and both were in the floor happily reading while I stood in front of the bird books shelf. As my luck would have it, there were no copies of Sibley to be found. I had considered a Kaufman guide, indeed. But I'd decided, in the end, that my first bird book, of my own, should be a Silbeys. So... today was not the day. (I'm really a tried-and-true Amazon.com shopper anyway, but I had a gift card in hand... so, well... there I was.) But, I spent some time looking at what was on the shelves. I finally got to see Letters From Eden: A Year at Home, in the Woods in person, which I've wanted to do for some time, and I think it'll be a great book to read this year. I also found myself enamoured with Robert Burton's The World of the Hummingbird which is brimming with the most beautiful hummingbird photography I've ever seen.

And then, there were the personal narratives... life with birds... Two in particular jumped out at me: Providence of a Sparrow: Lessons from a Life Gone to the Birds and The Wild Parrots of Telegraph Hill.

Both seem worth looking into.

And, there you have it.... a bird-oriented trip to the bookstore. And... on the way in... as we got out of our car, the sound of birds was intense. The tree in front of us was bare of leaves... and at first, it appeared empty. But, looking closely, we finally found them... several birds... and amazing song.

Posted by Amy at 3:02 PM | Permalink | Comments (4)

I was vacuuming... straightening up a bit this morning, and the kids were playing (and still in pj's). As I started vacuuming down the hall, I noticed the small light was on in their bedroom, and I wondered about that and figured I'd turn it off when I got done. When I poked my head around their door, this is what I saw... both in bed, the oldest reading Hungry Caterpillar (one the little one loves still) to his brother... and reading it what we call the "silly way" (which is something "I" do often these days with books we've read hundreds of times... and something I used to do with songs...).

Such a surprising moment. And so sweet.

Posted by Amy at 11:46 AM | Permalink | Comments (5)

Thanks to Amy of the Read This and Tell Me What It Says blog for pointing out this site to me: Stampeaz. It's new to me... but it looks like one many of you will want to know about!

Posted by Amy at 7:27 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

So... we went to see Santa on Sunday... the youngest rehearsed all the night before the three things he was going to tell Santa he wanted. Of course, he also spent time rationalizing that even though he figured if Santa asked if he'd been good that he'd be on the spot, he went through other people that he assumes will be giving him something and... you know... I think he decided all is well in the world with or without Santa. (Woe is me! We have no chance with this one!)

Still, we headed out to see the man in the red suit the next day after brunch which meant, unfortunately, that the little one was a bit tired (it being mid-day). That there was a long, long line didn't help us any, and, not surprisingly, I was chartered with the task of corralling the little one. I did let him run circles around a big pillar in the mall for a bit. It was a long wait, the line inching forwards... inching. And, I noticed something I found fascinating...

I did not take my camera.
(Okay - I considered it.)

As we waited, there were cameras snapping everywhere... in the line (the tree as a backing; perched on top of the giant bronze toy soldier's foot, etc.) and up in front of Santa.

But, at one point, I was trying to distract the little one, and we went up front to see who was on Santa's lap.

And, after the official photo was taken, and before they readjusted fussy velvet and bow-laden dresses (again) and added yet another child to Santa's lap, the mom stepped in front, and took some photos. This family had several different "sittings" with Santa, in fact, and each time, the mom stepped in front and took a few of her own.

And, as soon as Santa saw her... he looked down.

Not really obviously. But... down...

Subtle.

I noticed it... and so I watched.

And... every time a camera appeared, he looked down.

Clearly, that's the protocol.

There is no rule that you can't snap your own photos AFTER the official photo is taken. So, parents don't get mad by being told "no cameras."

But Santa's instructions, clearly, are to make getting a good shot difficult - to look down.

It all makes total sense. Very smart, in fact.

But really fascinating to watch.

To Santa's credit, we did get a nod of the head as he told the boys that the number one rule is "No fighting." And, I swear I heard, right before he ushered them off his lap, "Give your mom a break."

We took comfort in the wise Santa.

For about 5 minutes....

Then, as I sat on a bench after that waiting with the boys for something to be returned, they were happily coming up with alternate "number one rules" - like "no nose picking."

Santa, did you hear that?

Oh, and about that "you can tell Santa three things" approach...

The oldest came to me with a worried look... "He didn't just tell him three things," he said, shaking his head.

"How many did he say?"

"His whole list!"

Oh, it was very funny, and, hearing that, I understood the slightly glazed expression Santa got midway through as the little one kept talking and talking and talking!

Did I mention the one family ... Grandma in red... grown middle-aged son in red and with a very tall bleached pompadour-like hairdo... and twenty-something grandson with shocking red hair and a chartreuse reptile-skin-print shirt... and their little dog... they had a family photo with Santa... and Santa's elf used the horn blower to try and get the dog to ... um... smile. All of this... of course... added to OUR wait in line.

But, I really hope they got a good photo.

Posted by Amy at 6:11 PM | Permalink | Comments (3)