Open Shop

I just opened my brand-spanking new Etsy shop! I took all the pictures today, uploaded it, everything. BAM, here I go. The pictures look great everywhere else BUT on etsy, they must have a lower-resolution-not-enough-space for good pictures thing, but whatever, the stuff is really great in real life. I'll see what happens....yikes! Please please please visit it and help a broke girl out!

www.lauradeponte.etsy.com

A great little print I did! NOW FOR SALE!

Great holiday and thank-you cards!

pass it on to your friends! i'll make you a custom wood/linoleum print!

Snow Day!

The weather forecast was RIGHT, it is snowing in downtown Portland today, and boy is it ever! I walked to work with only a few small snowflakes falling, and as soon as I got inside, it started. The wind sent us flurries of snow all over the place, it was like being inside a snowglobe! As soon as I got home I got outside and took some pictures. I've never seen so much snow in downtown before! I was whining and complaining about the impending snow but now I take it back, it is quite lovely.

Here are some pics:

Yay my first snowball! My fingers were numb...


Looking out my fire escape



South Park Blocks in PSU

Oh, Hello Friend-Winter Giveway Contest

Attention all bloggers and lovers of all things handmade! Oh, Hello friend is having an amazing giveway. Four winners will receive a package filled with goodies from great Etsy shops. This is such a cool idea, i'd DIE with delight if I won any of it. Go check it out, enter, and good luck!

For all you Portlanders out there, stay dry and hope for snow!

Holiday Card Round-up (cont.)

First up we've got the mecca for all our paper and stationery needs: Paper Source! I'm so in love with this place, I can't get over it. They are helping me realize my card-making abilities and keep me occupied this holiday season.



They've got great retro styles and classic cards for all your friends and family. Paper Source is also a great resource to find blank envelopes, cards, ribbon, stamps, ink...they have it all. Find your nearest Paper Source store, or shop online here.



This next bunch of cards come from an adorable print shop, Egg Press, located in Portland, Oregon (hey, is it a coincedence that lots of these letterpress shops are based out of Portland? I love it!). They use off-set and letterpress printing to create their whimsical items.




Their style is a mix between old-school and modern design. I'm quite taken with their line of products, which you can buy online here and find in many stores around Portland and the rest of the U.S.




Below is the super talented Lynn Russell of Satsuma Press. Her design aesthetic is clean, minimal and Japanese-inspired. Originally based out of Portland (another one! amazing!), she now lives in Corvallis, Oregon (why'd you leave?) She also collaborates and sells her items on etsy, and her products can be found here.





Until next time...look out for my holiday wish-list!

Brilliant Idea

Lately I've been trying to figure out how to make more money. Was it necessary to try and get a second job, while going to school full-time? I don't think so, seeing as I barely get through the week without wanting to take a nap every day with working at 4 am and coming back from school when its dark. So heres my new plan...why don't I sell some cards and prints to get some extra money? I have most of the supplies, I really enjoy doing it...so why not? BRILLIANT IDEA.

I just opened my Etsy shop, so I will try to get this whole "business" thing up and running ASAP (probably after finals). Holy moly, I can't even explain how excited I am. Today I browsed Paper Source and picked up flat note cards, stamps and ink for my holiday cards and tags. They came out SO cute, I thought "hey, I could sell these!" I mean, I'm pretty sure I can, right? I would also sell my woodcuts, and also some of my photographs. OH MAN, I think I'm on to something. Now all I have to figure out is standard shipping/packing materials for stuff like this. Does anyone have advice? How do I sell stuff easily on Etsy? I need money!


EDITED: heres the front page of my shop! I just did the banner, I love it! www.lauradeponte.etsy.com

Holiday Card Round-Up

image from flickr.com

I am SO SO SO excited for this post because, 1. I LOVE cards of all kinds. Birthday cards, Thank You cards, any type of card. 2. I love letterpress, and anything involving printing, pressing, and paper. 3. I love searching through etsy and finding these great artists who make awesome cards. 4. I love the holidays! Its a time for festivity, fall, winter, shopping and christmas music! I decided to do a round-up of my favorite holiday cards for the 2008 season.

Most of the artists I found were on Etsy but also have their own websites, and thank you to them all for being awesome and (hopefully) allowing me to post their products up on my little blog. Here we go!



My first card round-up comes from a GREAT shop on etsy, littlebrownpen. They create images in pdf files that people can buy (for extremely cheap to be reused over and over!) and use to create their own cards and calendars for the holidays. This is an incredible option for people who are short on cash this year (I know I am). Just print, cut and give to friends and family.



Fun, cute images abound. They even offer printable calenders for your desk or for a friend. Brilliant idea, I want them all!


Next up we have the super talented Tara Hogan from Ink+Wit. Shes been around the blogosphere many times, inspiring little bloggers like me to try out letterpressing! Her letterpress cards are simple and sweet, and many of them are holiday appropriate. Tara Hogan also helps out with Tenth and Grant, a collective of artists based out of Portland, Oregon.


Look at her, working out the gray and yellow combo! These thank you cards are perfect for post-holiday thank-yous.



Tara also puts out limited edition letterpress calendars and prints. They often sell out fast so if you have a chance to grab one, DO IT! They may never be seen again. You can shop at Ink+Wit here.




Yup, loving Ink+Wit all around. I think if I try my hand at letterpress I'd want my stuff to look like hers, clean and simple, short and sweet. Great work, Tara!





The gals at Dutch Door Press have me hooked on their folk-art letterpress goods. Their patterns and Dutch-style images recall a cuckoo clock we had when I was a kid. Everytime I see their work around shops I get all giddy and warm inside.



See? Warm and giddy, like you just found some old gem in the attic, except its in the form of a card! You can buy Dutch Door Press goods here and at their etsy shop here.




I found the lovely Jen at PaperWren while randomly searching Etsy for holiday cards. Her cute, vintage Gocco printed cards caught my eye. I'm definitely loving the boughs below. Jen has been kind enough to give me some help and advice for starting my own etsy endeavours, thanks Jen!



Nothing says "keep warm" like her cards. She uses a variety of vintage images and great colors to make some awesome cards. My faves are the lace and chrysanthemums! You can find Jen at Paper Wren's etsy shop here.

Alright, I believe thats about all the fun I can take in one sitting. Maybe I'll get around to a Christmas wish-list soon...and pictures of my cards soon!

Pumpkin Bread (recipe included!)

Yesterday I made my first ever pumpkin bread! It took a little checking up on since I made one loaf and pumpkin muffins, but it turned out really yummy and...dare I say it? Moist (cue cringing). I figured I wanted to try something involving pumpkin before I got sick of seeing it all over Tastespotting. The recipe I used was off of epicurious.com, and makes 2 loaves (I only had one loaf pan and a short attention span so I improvised with the muffins and baked them simultaneously). I just love the light sweetness of the bread. It goes great with walnuts sprinkled on top and some cream cheese spread over the top. Enjoy!



Spiced Pumpkin Bread
from epicurious.com

Ingredients

• 3 cups sugar
• 1 cup vegetable oil
• 3 large eggs
• 1 16-ounce can solid pack pumpkin
• 3 cups all purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon ground cloves
• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1 teaspoon ground nutmeg
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
• 1 cup coarsely chopped walnuts (optional)

Preparation

Preheat oven to 350°F. Butter and flour two 9x5x3-inch loaf pans. Beat sugar and oil in large bowl to blend. Mix in eggs and pumpkin. Sift flour, cloves, cinnamon, nutmeg, baking soda, salt and baking powder into another large bowl. Stir into pumpkin mixture in 2 additions. Mix in walnuts, if desired.

Divide batter equally between prepared pans. Bake until tester inserted into center comes out clean, about 1 hour 10 minutes. Transfer to racks and cool 10 minutes. Using sharp knife, cut around edge of loaves. Turn loaves out onto racks and cool completely.

image courtesy blogchef.net