getting paid...and what you might have wanted to say at some point.

The whole getting paid part of being a designer, gets grey, doesn't it?
I mean, our self esteem, confidence, self loathing, cockiness, future rent payments...they are all part of it aren't they? But are they?...This video de-personalizes the whole getting paid thing, at least it has for me. I have learned a  lot from this and feel it's my design-duty to share it with you now. So if you design at all, and have clients, or intend to have clients, do yourself a favor and watch.
Because designers are rent paying, food eating, traveling people too dammit! (enjoy, i did!)
By Mike Monteiro of www.muledisign.com

Party PrePacks!

We have some limited quantities left in our warehouse of some of our very best selling boxes, so rather than just having them end quietly, they are going out with a BANG!
We have partnered them with the most adorably coordinating teeny tags for
party favor prepacks. Don't wait too long...they are selling out.

Portfolio Photo Shoot

The other day I woke up and decided that it was time to get organized. And, quickly!
I had an opportunity to get my design work in front of one the biggest giftware companies in the world, and it had to be done within 5 days... In essence, I needed to get my portfolio together. FAST. I could not let this opportunity pass me by, even if the endeavor felt, well, daunting.
I called my close friend and talented photographer Lynn Poulin and asked her if she had time for a sesh, she said "sure girl" in her cute way. I promised that I would do the styling and she could work her magic.
I also frantically called one of my larger clients, who I have just finished up several collections for and asked begged for samples/mock ups to use (since some of the products are in the process of being produced, as we speak!). Although I didn't get all the collections I had hoped to include, I did get enough to show what I am up to these days. The shoot was, I would have to say, one of the very best we have ever done together.
I had gone back and forth in my mind about what to do, super simple, a little styled, a lot styled. I quickly spoke to Lynn about some of my ideas before starting and she pushed me to do my thing.
(partyware for www.pierrebelvedere.com)

It's so easy to get influenced by what we see all over the internet, all over Pinterest, etc, but when I started to play around and just let myself go where I felt the photos needed to go, they turned out very me, very my style, simply put, what I do best. I am excited to share some of my new products/designs with  you.

Packaging the easy way!

You know how you always see such beautiful, simple things in magazines or online and think,
"why don't I ever do something like that?"
I get people telling me that about my little stylings or projects all the time.
So, here's a really simple one.
I used clear cello bags from my local craft store, I picked up a bag of colorful gumballs at the local grocery store and I used teeny tags from my line, which you can buy, right here (and, coincidentally, they are on sale!)
You can put anything inside the bags, of course, the more colorful and fun, the better! How about a homemade cookie or some fun beads and colorful string?...Best party favors ever and most of all, super easy to make!
Now, go forth and have fun!

random photo styling

I have been wanting, for a very long time, to learn how to take good photos. I am using a little point and shoot, but I am determined to get some results with it... I played around today and tried some new things.

If anyone wants to offer up advice, you are MORE than welcome!
I enjoy the styling part much more than the actual clicking part, but I'm hoping that as (if!) I get better, I will enjoy the picture part too.
Here is a little silk scarf in a BlueDogz Design CC box (I think this is a great gift idea!), a teeny tag used as a keychain, some favorite bracelets, an elephant (yep, random) and my favorite aviators (an ebay purchase from many years ago).

I cried, I laughed...I made a new fort!

After yesterday's breakdown, I got back to making something that I had been wanting to make for a while...a new fort for her tiny-ness!
A little over a year ago I put this little sucker together:

It was pretty simple, some large dowel, tied together with lots of ribbon and and old drop cloth that I draped over the structure, trimmed and sort of sewed into place. We had some good times in the little teepee fort, but, since we only have one, broom sized closet in our entire loft, and no where to really hide anything; after the initial new teepee play week was over, it became more of a pain to walk around than much else.
I folded it up, as best I could and hid it as best I could, which wasn't so great, as it ended up kind of sticking out from under the never-used-crib which is right beside the big bed. She still plays with it every so often, but it falls over lots, is getting harder and harder to set up and generally just kind of bugs me.
...Ever since I got KatieFengShui-ed...I don't know, I just have trouble having stuff hanging around that is not really doing anything... So, the other day, there I was on good ole' Pinterest, my favorite time suck (are you following my pins? you should http://pinterest.com/bluedogzdesign )when I came across this little beauty.
Not only was it very very pretty, but I loved that when it wasn't being used, it could be folded up and put away. Here's what happened.

(and, all this with my reverse sewing lever not working on my cheap little sewing machine).
I used, all together now- IKEA fabrics for the details and 2 big canvas drop cloths that I sewed together for the actual house part. You can pick them up at any local hardware store and they are great for these types of projects or for any indoor forts in general. (indoor forts...that almost sounded like...oh, never mind)
I think she is going to LOVE it!

this isn't about design or how to make something

I am never 100% sure if I should or I shouldn't on this blog, (do you ever feel that way?)
I have experienced moments and thought,
"man, I am SO going to blog about this"
and then, I start to type and I delete and that's the end of that.
What usually happens after that is that I don't blog for a while, even a long while.
These past couple of years have not been easy, no, they have been the hardest years of my life, and, they have also been the very best years of my life. I have felt things that I have never felt before, hurt bigger than ever, loved bigger than ever, I guess maybe they go hand in hand.

I sometimes just wish I could get things super clear and focused in terms of my blog, you know, blog about my design life, things that are pretty. But, that's not what life has been like, is life ever really like that?
For some bloggers it looks that way, but I would bet it's not. Because the thing is, we are all human, and even if we love pretty things and get excited about a new product, or some new thing we can't get enough of, we go through stuff and we bring it to our work.
I mean, come on, we are artists, we are people, we feel shit!

This morning I placed a call for my daughter's daddy. I called a place here in Montreal called Criphase, for men who were victims of abuse as children. He has been struggling, REALLY struggling for a long long time, thinking that he can just get over it,  or stop thinking about it. I can't tell you how terrifically painful it has been to watch him suffer, to see his life falling apart slowly but steadily because he simply doesn't know where to put his pain. I see the patterns in his life, his professional relationships, his friendships, they all look the same, he loses, he puts himself in danger, he goes out of his way for the people who never acknowledge him or thank him or care. He seems compelled to run from what is good and safe towards what is risky and mean and dangerous. Then he doesn't like it, and it hurts and it feels bad (as it should) and he beats himself up again for having chosen the same choice, again.
He left 2 years ago to take care of things, because he wanted to do better to "clean stuff up"...
I have learned that all I can really do, is support, care, listen and keep myself and our child safe from pain and disappointment. It really is true, you can't help someone who isn't ready to be helped. May I just say, this has not been the easiest of lessons for me to grasp.
A few days ago he brought up Criphase, he said,
"yeah, I should really give them a call and see what it's about".
I pulled the best poker face I could muster and said- "really? you think?"... We laughed.

But, then he just squirmed and looked all uncomfortable.
I thought about something my Mom once told me about people getting stuck. That we all have places where we get stuck, but sometimes with just a little help over those spots, we can do it, we can move on and get the job done, but, without the help, we quit, and we might always quit at these same spots over and over again. This is what I was thinking about, LOUD in my head... like rapid fire stuck/stuck/stuck/stuck...
I asked him if there was anything I could do to help, could this be his stuck place?
him: "Um, yes, if you want?"
me: "ok, well, REALLY? ... do you want me to call and get some information... maybe?"
him: "yes"
in my head: (HOLY COW. OK! ok, be cool, BE COOL)
I woke up Monday morning and after getting the little one to her play school I dialed the number.
got voicemail. left a message.
Yesterday morning, I woke up and saw that they had called.
I called back and got to the person who had left the message.
The first thing she said to me was:

"Thank you for calling for your daughter's dad, for having the courage to call for him".

Apparently that's all I needed to start sobbing like a baby, like REALLY sobbing.
WTF? I was not abused, I had a great childhood, I was the one who had to be strong, the one holding down the fort, the one making sure our daughter was far away from the pain, felt good, felt safe.
So much for that girl.
As soon as I could breath again, I apologized for the sudden HUGE emotional breakdown and then, worse maybe, I sort of started to laugh, a reaction to my own shock at my own reaction?... Heck, I don't know, all I know is that it apparently had to come out, and I realized, quite quickly during this breakdown that I was probably in pretty darn good hands, so, what the fuck, I let it out.
The words just seemed to flow out of me like some crazy free associative meltdown.
"I didn't expect to start crying like this, it's just, I have seen him in so much pain for such a long time and it hurts so much to see someone you love hurt so much and not be able to do anything to help, and I see the patterns and the people and the pain and it's the same thing over and over again and I just wish, hope, that he can get some help, and, he has NO money, like NO MONEY and I'm trying so hard to be strong and to help and I am... so tired"
and
I started that weird sort of laugh again...and at that point she started to laugh too and we laughed.
We laughed. And, I felt better, relieved, surprised, and maybe even a little excited by the hope that maybe he was ready, ready to get some help, a step towards, maybe. just maybe. For himself, for his kids, for us.
maybe.