Who doesn't need a little nest to cuddle up in once in a while. My son is mad about pillows he drags them round the house and hurls his body on top of them throwing giggles through the air as he does so. I know he would love these cuddly Knitted Bean Bags.
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November 2012 posts
11/21/2012
11/18/2012
Foam Clouds in the streets of Singapore
A recent fire in Singapore, of a warehouse resulted in about 70 barrels (200 litres each) of detergent-based concentrate creating a fairly magical display of thick white foam in the streets. Twitters provided a number of images to marvel at.
Blurp book publishing
If your a first time mum like me, you most likely have a veritable mountain of photo's trapped in your iphone or computer struggling to get out. In an attempt to save them and create some Christmas gifts of my son's first year, I looked around for somewhere to get a good quality book published at a reasonable price. As mentioned I have a lot of photos but wasn't looking to do a print run of a 100. I had heard of snapfish and used Kmart to print calendars for my Granma but was really after something of higher quality that I could have more control over. Luckily I stumbled upon Blurp an online publishing company. There are numerous pathways you can take to publish a book with them, I just downloaded their software which is pretty easy to navigate. I wrote a little story, Dr Seuss style to go with the images and I have finally uploaded it for printing today. It will be several weeks before I receive the books. Whereas you can just pop into a Kmart and whip a little memory book up but I really don't mind waiting for quality. Fingers crossed that's what they are! I will post samples when they arrive.
11/11/2012
MAIL ART
After my lengthy rant about the many and varied pleasures of the Handwritten letter. I thought I would compile a little selection of mail art to further expound the joys of the posted letter.
11/10/2012
Hand Written Letter Project Second Edition Book
The Handwritten letter project is a experiment of sorts that 'promises nothing other than handwritten ephemera', now that is right up my alley. That feeling of heavy pen in hand gliding across dense 120 gsm paper, fill me with longing and remembrance. Now all I hear is the chattering click of the keyboard, the bright hum of the screen. Oh I do remember a time when the only contact I had with a computer was playing 'Where in the world is Carmen Miranda?'.
My brother in subsequent years had a commodore 64 and I have a distinctly sparkling memory of when he turned it's screen into a glowing green birthday message, the words Happy Birthday emblazoned across the screen. The sparkle has worn off somewhat and although I have a deep love of my Mac Book and iphone bordering on the obsessive, apparently now labelled 'nomophobia', I am deeply cynical about my technology obsessed world and I miss getting letters in the mail.
When email came into my life things quite frankly got briefer and more bland. Emails are notes, not letters and are often a way of removing yourself from your recipient, not connecting with them. Work email can get especially tricky and be an easy way to be rude and distant. After all it is a lot harder to look someone in the eyes and say, 'You need to work 3 hours overtime on Saturday, colon parentheses. ' Just like it is easier to defriend a Facebook friend rather than say to them, 'I never want to see or hear from you again.' What was it that Holden Caulfield say's in Catcher in the Rye:
'I'd rather push a guy out the window or chop his head off with an ax than sock him in the jaw. I hate fist fights. I don't mind getting hit so much--although I'm not crazy about it, naturally--but what scares me most in a fist fight is the guy's face. I can't stand looking at the other guy's face, is my trouble.'
Yes it's the other guys face that is taken out of the equation. The other guys face that reminds you that it's a person that your communicating with. Of course that is also removed from a letter but the difference of course is that email is being used to replace conversation. Letters are about long winded prose, they are another layer on a longing gaze, not 'could you pop to the shops and grab some milk on your way home.'
I don't want to say that you can't receive a beautiful love letter via email, its just we often don't. The tactile nature of a handwritten letter is also not something to be underrated, nor is the idea that your letter has taken a journey to get to you, has passed through strangers hands, possibly suffered hardships and still reached you.
Apart from the impersonal nature of email, you also miss out on the joys of snail mail. After all there is nothing more delightful than receiving a little letter in your mail box. When I was 13 I had a pen pal from England and I would spend hours designing the envelop. Swirling the letters of the address on the cover of my giant hand made parcel. A letter can include so many tactile joys. A ticket stub, a sticker, words wrapped in words that flow like water. Dripping in assonance and steeped in alliteration. In an email we call these things attachments and they usually come in the form of 'The 20 funniest dog moments' or 'The man with his penis pierced 8 times'.
Perhaps you'd like to start your own Handwritten Project and write a letter to someone you've been thinking about. Just remember that the words need to travel so consider them carefully.
11/03/2012
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Naomi Pelletier
Dedicated to all things a bit beautiful in the realms of art, film and crafty stuffs.
