2011 Desktop Calendar Now Available

OK, OK. I know I said that this year's calendar wasn't going to be a cd case calendar, but at the last minute, I changed my mind. The other calendar I'd been working on was meant to be a small wall calendar, but I just couldn't seem to get it as polished as I wanted it to be. So, I am going to hold on to that idea for next year and we'll see what happens.

This calendar features 13 of my mandalas. What doesn't translate in the photo too well, is that the background of each page is the featured mandala in a soft wash, and then the smaller mandala in full-color and detail. The calendars are now listed online at my Etsy shop. Hop on over there to see extra photos.

Benoit Mandlebrot

If it is possible for a mathematician to be "famous", Benoit Mandelbrot was considered one of the famous ones. Known as the founder of fractal geometry, Benoit Mandlebrot, died last week at the age of 85.

He was the author of The Fractal Geometry of Nature, and had a long and illustrious career at a wealth of institutions including IBM, the University of Paris, Boston University, M.I.T., Harvard, and Yale University.

Fractal Pattern in Ice

I was just downloading the photos off of my iPhone and found a photo I took last December. This fractal pattern was created by ice forming on the top of my car. It happened several times last year, and I'm disappointed I didn't manage to get a better photo. The pattern was so beautiful and covered the entire roof of my car. Maybe I'll leave my car parked outside again this year in hopes of catching a better photo. :)

Browsing for Gifts for the Holidays

I've been browsing around the Internet lately to search out gifts before the holidays are upon us. I've been known to be a bit behind in sending out gifts (sorry everyone), so I'd like to turn that around this year. I really love pottery, so I was searching Etsy to see what the sellers there had to offer. Low and behold, I found these cute little bowls (shown above) and fell in love! :) Something about the bright turquoise matte finish on the outside, coupled with the glossy bright orange on the inside just made me swoon. They were created by Theresa Gramlich Neidlinger at Utile Mud and are wonderfully crafted. She also mailed them out to me the same day I ordered them, and packaged the bowls in bubble wrap and packing peanuts. I couldn't be happier. Family, friends...don't be surprised if you see something from Utile Mud headed your way this holiday.

2011 Calendar Coming

I'm currently finishing up work on my 2011 calendar and can't wait to get it out! The format is a bit different this year and will not be a CD case calendar. The images are larger and will be easier to frame if desired. I'll post an update once I get them finished, photographed, and posted on Etsy. Stay tuned!

43rd Street Art Festival

We made it to the 43rd Street Art Festival this year — the first time since we moved to Richmond. For some reason, in the past, we always assumed it was a 2 day event, planned to go on Sunday, only to find that it was in fact a 1 day event!

We found the artwork lovely, and were particularly taken with the pottery of Lee Hazelgrove. We purchased one of his medium-sized vessels and would like to purchase another piece (or two) in the future. (The photo above gives you an idea of his work.)

Charles Farrar's woodturned pieces were also terrific. Again, I was drawn to his unique selection of vessels — just beautiful.

Be sure to check out their web sites if you have a chance.

Spring Cleaning...in the Fall

I've just completed a bit of spring cleaning on my web site, or should I call it, fall cleaning? Either way, I've deleted well over 100 pages! It feels a bit like when you have five inches cut off your hair all at once -- light and springy. :)

I've implemented a bit of jquery magic to view all of my posted images rather than having them open in their own special pages. I've also deleted the option of ordering from my site and am now routing all my orders through Etsy. I thought long and hard about the change, but I'm hoping that my customers will find the transition seamless and just as easy (if not easier) as ordering off of my own site.

Now that I am on a roll with these changes, I'm hoping to bring the rest of my site into the 21st century by doing away with all of the tables (used for laying out the pages) and whipping out the css. I've been kicking around the idea of completely redesigning my site since this would be the perfect time to do it. There's just something about the orange mandala and the orange pages that I still haven't grown tired of. What do you think — keep it the same or redesign?