Nature Day...

It's nature day here on Michelle's blog...=) I had a moment to sift through all of the pictures we (okay, Tzanko...) took at the park over the weekend and had to share the cuteness...so warning: snuggly goodness and a picture-heavy nature post coming your way!

Stanley Park is but a step from our door, and we regularly go for walks around this little lake that's on the way to the beach. There's tons of wildlife and babies there right now, and they're all out and about. This is the scene: Snuggly baby goslings. =) Goslings? I think that's the name for baby geese....Anyways, they look so cuddly! The mummy geese, however, are super defensive and always ready to chase you away if you get too close. Scary!! Don't know how Z got these close-ups..lol....=)

There are a lot of swans there year-round, and there were a few nests...but no babies yet. We found what seems to be the only nest full of eggs the other day just off the pathway so we'll have to watch it and see if we can see them hatching when its time...=)
There are also snuggly little ducklings swimming behind in packs of 8 with their parents....so cute!! They're super fast in the water, zipping around like crazy....he he...and when they're not swimming or jumping up onto rocks, they sleep snuggled together...aww...
And the turtles hopped up onto rocks and logs to soak in the sun - we hadn't even seen turtles at the lake ever, so that was cool! You can see them swimming, too..they just poke their heads out...so funny!And we saw this crane hunt and catch a fish or two..so very cool. See the turtle on the log behind him?

And there are also always raccoons here, and they are quite people friendly...they love the snacks everyone gives them...and they (and the swans, birds, and squirrels, too...) walk right up to you and grab the food from your hands....he he. Did you know raccoons swim? I had no idea until we saw a few in the water....and this guy climbed all the way to a stump on a very tall tree:And its unbelieveably green and full of colorful flowers here right now:

Wow, it looks like we went on a giant nature expedition, when really its just a 20 minute walk around the lake...lol. Feel so lucky to live here and close to all this nature...=) And its so fun to watch the same animals and figure out their habits and things day after day....so cool!

Anyways, I'm out...back to work. Or back to waiting for work to come in, wishing I was at home working. The animation project is seeming further and further from being done, even as I stay up til the wee morning hours...there's always a point where it gets boring and feels like it will never get done, and I was there last night. Feeling totally unproductive and like its impossible to finish right now..but I know it'll pass! It's just frustrating...not to mention I keep getting lovely stuffs in the mail that I want to make stuff with and I can't!! And one starts to feel lumpy and gross after eating and sitting on ones bum in a chair at a computer literally all day long wishing they had time to go for a run. Argh. Only a week, only a week. At least there's hot chocolate to get me through the day. I'm hankering for piles of real chocolate.

Annnd we just realized that our big impromptu martini and art gallery date on Friday was actually our 6-month wedding anniversary...he he...how cool is that?? We've been married for 6 months already! Duude...=) Soo cool. Happy weekend, everybody!

Woodsy Love

Hello, Thursday!
I have a little woodland-inspired eye candy to share today:

This is a project I did for the Pink Paislee blog - today's subject is "Thursday Trends", and the Paislee goodies are just so awesome for making trendy nature-inspired pages, I couldn't resist! I hand-cut the tree out of patterned paper, as well as the bird stamp, and added a few coordinating nature-touches like Hambly woodgrain, tags from Sushipotparts, and walnut ink splatters. Yummy! =) I found this random picture of my when I was small being goofy, and I was struck by how similar I am to the me I was when I was little...thus the journalling. =) You can check out the Paislee blog for my post here, and make sure you also check out Dani's cool stamp-stitching technique - such a great insipiring idea!! Must try it...

I'm just dying to sew - I got some embroidery patterns I bought from Elsie the other day and they have me hankering...=) I was big on cross-stitching when I was like 9 - so dorky, I know! lol...but I need to make something with my hands soon or I will burst; all this computer work in a row has me wanting to whip out the paints and sewing machine....soon, soon!

Oh! I meant to mention that I've had to step down as a Scrapmojo girl - in lieu of more product design work, I've had to step down from the design team so that I'm not too thinly spread (my hubby likes to hang out with me sometimes, too...he he)- so I'm sorry to say I won't be a part of the team anymore. =( so sad! I love those girls and the challenges have been so fun!! So thanks Marie for having me as part of the team, and I'm still going to be checking in on the girls and their fab work over at the Mojo blog!

I did have some (okay, lots...) of picture Z took at the park of all the Spring babies: raccoons, a fishing crane, baby ducks and geese...but alas, left them all at home...so maybe tomorrow! For now, I have to share this girls' super-inspiring tunes: Kate Nash. Oh yes, if you haven't heard her album..you must. That is, if you don't mind 'explicit' lyrics, catchy beats, and a cute english accent....(D******d is my favorite song - even Z likes it a lil bit)....lol...Love it to pieces and it's gotten me through working at home for the last 3 days. I'm hankering for some Donnas' tunes, too...I've resisted buying their new album for some time now...and I've been repeating "Breathe Me" by Sia constantly, too...Oh, music...how I love you. =) Which reminds me, I may actually buy an ipod now that I have an income again. There are thoughts of buying a new computer, too..cuz I am surprised my little machine has been able to handle a big 2-minute project, actually...(knock on wood)...but I would much rather spend money on summer vacations than a computer for now...sooo excited to go away somewhere in June!

Anyways, off I go to leave some blog love all around! =) Thanks, as always, for stopping by with sweet words everybody! Only one day left til the weekend and almost a week left til I'm one-jobbed!! Woot! =) Happy day!

Sun and Animation....

....that about sums up the weekend for me. =) Well, more animation than sun...he he. It was a fabulous day on Saturday here - hotter than I remember it being anytime during the summer last year. Needless to say, way too nice out to not take a break from work and go for long walks on the beach and through the park with ice cream. Heavenly...On Friday we were lucky enough to score free passes to the brand-new animation/comic exhibit at the Vancouver Gallery: I'd never been to a gallery open, much less the coolest opening ever, so it was awesome. Wine, comics, and animation?? Duuude....So not only were there fabulous original comics (which I don't know much about, but they were amazing), drawings from the 'first' animated film, "Gertie the Dinosaur", original storyboards and cells from Disney's "Dumbo", boards and concept drawings from movies like "Toy Story" and even some Wallace and Gromit....I was taken aback when we got to a room that was filled with my favorite pop artists originals. That's right - Roy Lichtenstein lacquer-on-steel from the 1960's. I was so excited...he he....this is one of them that was there: Yay!....*love* his work!! It's so perfect and amazing up close...(sigh). Z and I went on a date before the opening to have some yummy martinis and dinner...and then after the show we grabbed 27 Dresses (finally..) and watched it. =) So cute! Does anyone else remember James Marsden from a tv show called "Second Noah" way back when?? I bet my sister does...we were in love with him, then, and his girlfriend and himself on the show used to make a heart with both of their hands together all the time...so cute!! he he...anyways, random. lol..

So other than Friday, I had to work lots..and I think the weather change made me very sleepy, because it was necessary to take a nap every now and then quickly, and it was a struggle to stay ontask anyways. Buuut....I did get stuff done. Whew! Only a week and half of two jobs left, and I'm counting down the days...hoping it will be rainy til then so I can stay focused...and I woke up to super-loud thunder and rain today, so it's lookin good..lol....on our walks, there was lotsa sun, lotsa little baby geese and ducks at our lake in the park, and lotsa brownie chunk ice cream this weekend, so at least I'll have that to look forward to again, too...he he

Anyways, I'll be back on Thursday with some Paislee goodness....I'm dying to scrap...=( And to sew, too!! And anxiously awaiting some Etsy purchases in the mail. And excited to be going back to the art gallery tonight for a talk from the amazing Marv Newland all about animation. =) Happy day! And thanks for all the sweet words, as always! I'm also dying to make the blog rounds but there's no free time in sight....soon, hopefully!

Love Me Some Red Velvets...

Hello, hello.....and Whew! It's been busy around here.
Get-up-at-6-and-work-til-2-am busy. Sucks.
Especially now, because it's supposed to be the nicest, nicest weekend we've had here in months. It'll be hard to work, I tell ya....but I have to: 2 minutes of animation to animate in just over a week is nutty. Just nutty. Fun, though....=) But nutty.

Anywho...enough of my complaining. It'll all be over soon enough, I know...he he. Onto the fun stuff: Red Velvet Projects! Here's what I made with the yummy May kit:

This kit was sooo fun!! I wish I'd had time to make more goodies, there were lotsa leftovers! The journalling on the "Backyardigan" page is hidden behind the photo on mini bear stationary...that's me toddling around with my toy lawnmower when I was 1 and some. =) Hah, I just noticed now that my pages get kind of crazy and messy and artsy if I don't scrap for a while....I kinda go crazy. lol...I'd been working on a computer straight for days, so when I finally got a moment to make stuff with my hands, I was all over that. =)

And do you see that lil clay owl? That's a kittyrobot owl...he wasn't in the kit, but he matched so perfectly I just had to stick him on there...he he. The quote on that page is from Ingrid Michaelson's "Far Away" song..love it!Also, all of us girls in honor of Red Velvet's year anniversary this month did a Step-by-Step tutorial. So go here to check out the girls' galleries and tutorials if you're in need of some inspo! They're fab!

Here's mine on Filling in Hand-Written Titles with Paint:

Step 1: Gather your supplies - a fine-tip felt pen, a pencil, a kneaded eraser (or a normal eraser), a fine-tip paint brush, acrylic paint. Lightly draw you title where you'd like it to be on your page in pencil. Make sure you make your letters "filla-able"; give them loops or thick edges that you can paint in.

Step 2: Once you're happy with your letters, the placement of them, and are ready to paint, lightly rub away most of the pencil marks so they're faint enough that you can still see them, but they aren't noticable in case you paint over them and can't get rid of the pencil line after. Using a small paintbrush, fill in the parts of the letters with acrylic paint. Don't worry too much about getting it perfect, as you'll just be doodling over the paint line, anyway.

Step 3: Paint all of the letters in and let them dry.Step 4: Using a fine-tip pen, doddle over the letters following your rough pencil sketch of them. I made my letters very loose and loopy so I didn't have to follow a perfect line. This way you can go over a line a few times and get a loose edge that covers up the paint and looks more fluid. Step 5: Finish drawing all of the letters, let the pen dry if needed, and then erase the raimaining light pencil marks. And voila! A cool, hand-filled title for your next page. =)
Oh! And as if those pics aren't enough, I also made this lil matchbook album that came in the Red Velvet kit with my scraps:
And I noticed a question about how to out the album together, so I snapped a picture as I was binding it:
The holes are super-small, and the pages are very thick in the middle. I used the chipboard inside pages as a template to cut my own inner pages out of patterned paper, poked the holes in the bottom, and then used a needle to thread some ribbon through the bottom a few times to keep it secure. =) Hope that helped!


Oh! And I have to say thanks to Mandy for blogging about my little felt donuts. She had a tea party with her 2 little girls and the eco-friendly little felt guys...so cute!!



Annnnd...The Dozens' May kit is being released on Sunday 10pm EST. See the deets here. Sooo excited to see the whole lovely kit!



Otay, and that's a wrap. I was waiting for work here at work and now I have some...I brought my other project to work on here, but the files got all messed up and didn't completely transfer, therefore are not here...argh. Going to an art gallery opening tonight for an Animation exhibit...yay! Getting a much-needed drink before that...lol...Hope everyone has a fab weekend! And thanks for peeking at my lil projects today...=)

Paislee Love...

By way of cards, I show my love for all the wonderful Pink Paislee goodies: You may find that last skull card veeeery similar to a skull card I made during my lil term with Pink.Sugar.Pop...I just loved that last one so much I thought I'd make a new version with the smaller skullie stamps...=) I don't think I'll be able to part with either card, though...hah...I just think they're too cute!

Anyways, there's another Paislee project coming when it's my turn to blog there next week..yay!

I had a chance to scrap with my Red Velvet kit last night..thanks oodles to Rachel for understanding the 2-job craziness that is this month...egad! I'll have them up soon....I'm supposed to have a bunch of work done tomorrow for a meeting that I now have to do tonight because I have to be at here the studio for deadlines today, and obviously I can't work at home while I'm here...lol...yikes! The last 2 week crunch is coming quickly!! Wish my fast working!! lol...coffee is still my friend. Annnd...it's super funny cuz in the last few days I've had a few other job oppurtunities come up, which totally makes me giggle and smile...but then think, "why did this not all happen 3 months ago? All the jobs have to come at one time?" hah...that's my field of work, for ya...It was a super-stressful day yesterday, as I'm the last to have my hands on some scenes of a show that will be shown on tv and, no less, directly to the directors here, and my computer mussed up a bunch of stuff, and therefore a bunch of directors saw some not-so-hot looking renders. Omigosh...and then I had to figure out what was wrong with my software and fix it ASAP and get things back in order. Oh my. Keep in mind, like a year and a half ago I didn't know simple keyboard shortcuts, so I'm pretty impressed at my lil self right now for being able to fix it in a timely manner. Whew!

The Hills, oh the Hills....so mad at Heidi for going back with Spencer.

So sad Audrina will probably move.

I used to think Lo was cool, and now she seems rude all the time.

Soo excited for next season!! =)

Thanks for all the sweet words, as always, too! You guys always make me smile...=)
I leave you with a yummy peek at the Dozens' May kit:

Soooo excited to get this lil baby in the mail!! And the fab Ashley Wren is our guest designer, and the new DT girls are joining in for the first time this month, so awesome! Read more here, and happy day!