Christmas Vacation Part 1

Okay so I finally uploaded some of my Orlando vacation pictures to flickr. I sorted through the Universal Studios pics and of course, most of them are of the Wizarding World of Harry Potter.

We got to the park pretty early so we were able to experience it without the huge crowds...for a few hours.

*Rather than make this an incredibly long post, I'll just mention some highlights and let you guys see the rest of the photos on flickr. I don't want to spoil the park for some people.

My heart fluttered when we saw this! Oh I guess I should mention that I have never been to Universal Studios or DisneyWorld. Growing up enjoying movies with my family, the Universal globe is something very familiar as well as the ads for Universal Studios theme parks. It was kind of a surreal moment, the whole trip was.

We headed straight towards Hogwarts as we knew later on it would be super crowded. On our way we say a bit of Dr. Seuss land which was decked out Christmas style = fabulous! Another thing about me, I'm a huge sucker for Christmas. I love it all, the music, the movies, the decorations, the smells, and most importantly the special time with family and friends.

OMG Hogwarts!!!!

Other awesome things:

• Butterbeer! Omg, so delicious...think creamsoda, butterscotch and whipped cream
• Eating at Three Broomsticks
• Picking out gifts for my friends
• Walking through Hogwarts and seeing all the details put into the ride
• The Dragon Challenge roller coaster!!! My fav roller coaster ever!
• All of the Christmas decorations

And I'll leave you with one of my many favourite photos from the trip. Great friends make vacations so much more fun.

Weekend Adventure

What an amazing weekend! I spent the past few days at Universal and Disneyworld with some of my favourite people. As a graduation and Christmas present, my boyfriend took me to Orlando for some incredible fun. We went to the Wizarding World of Harry Potter and all the parks in Disneyworld. I can't even tell you how super awesome this was for me, not only because I'm a kid at heart, but also because this was my first time going to these places.

And to keep my fingers from falling off, I'll split the posts up...there's so much to talk about and quite a few photos. I've got graduation tomorrow after an early shift at work, and then I get to pick up the last little batch of pottery I made at school. I can't post too many details just yet because some of them are Christmas presents. Just know that I will be making more and putting those lovelies up on etsy ASAP!

Oh and here's a little pic to get you in the holiday spirit, direct from Whoville! Night night!

Etsy shop is open!

The etsy is up and running, finally! I've been trying to catch up with some schoolwork so it took me a little longer than I anticipated.

As of right now, we have bird ornaments, coasters, aprons, and a couple of mugs for sale. I'll also be working in the studio this week to crank out some more mugs and coasters. If you have any questions for us or custom order ideas, please contact us: adventuresathand@gmail.com

And now I have to get back to homework and made-for-tv Christmas movies. haha!

Onward!

Wow! I'm on a craft fair high from this past weekend. ICE was spectacular in so many ways! I learned so much and met so many great customers and vendors. Another one needs to happen soon...well not too soon because I need to create more product.

I was fortunate to share a booth with my good friend, San Smith, and her fantastic illustrations. If you haven't checked out her website, I highly suggest it. She's super fun and her work definitely reflects that.

Pssst...she illustrated my logo. Isn't it great?!

Anywho, we spent all weekend together and had so much fun talking with customers, selling button coasters and zombie unicorn prints. It was a major step and success for me, and my brain is already teeming with ideas, so stay tuned. The etsy shop should be up by the end of the week, after I stuff myself with turkey and coca-cola salad.

Happy Thanksgiving everyone!

ICE

As for the near future, I'm currently making ceramic pieces to sell for ICE. If you have never heard or been to ICE, I highly recommend the event. It's a great place to get handmade gifts and to garner inspiration for your own work. Ambient Plus Studio is housing more than 100 vendors this year and I'm super excited that my friend San and I are included on that list of sellers.

Speaking of etsy, I'm almost ready to launch mine. I plan for it to be mostly home decor items and accessories, with my sisters contributing their handmade creations as well. Creativity definitely runs in the family. So stay tuned and come out to ICE to see me! Our booth is Sanmade and Adventures at Hand.

Oh and if you need some reasons to buy handmade this year, Poppytalk has compiled 101. Check it out.

Have a great weekend!

Past Projects

Wowzers! These past few months have been crazy, what with 3 studio classes and my senior show. I'm so pleased with my works and progress as an artist. Here are a few things that have been taking up my time.

My first project this semester in Advanced Ceramics was throwing 75 things in a 3 weeks. At first I thought this was a huge undertaking but by the end of it, I became pretty proficient and it was easy to make 10 things in an hour.

It took me an additional week to glaze and fire all my wares. Yes it takes a bit longer when you are sharing kilns and glazes with 3 other classes. Speaking of which, I've made some pretty interesting glazes this semester and hope to make a few more before I graduate.

My pride and joy at the moment is this little cupboard filled with "heirlooms". It was the highlight of my senior show, in my opinion.

This piece is deeply personal and I adore each little item I made. I plan to push this idea and visual treatment of ceramic further in my art career....it's so exciting!

So what do I have planned for the future? I haven't figured out everything but I'm going to look into workshops at a local ceramic studio and keep thinking about grad school. I also intend to find a place to volunteer, perhaps the Center for the Puppetry of Arts or maybe the High Museum. We shall see!! That's all for now; I've got to get some supplies and head to school in a bit.

P.S. I'll be making a post later tonight about some upcoming events I get to participate in.

Favourite Friday (late edition)

I wasn't able to post earlier because a wonderful thing happened today...my boyfriend worked from home today. It was really nice to wave to him every once in a while and take a lunch together; a lunch at a really stellar place. Some of my favourites...

~Stone Soup Kitchen...I love this place and my favourite soup so far is the Hungarian Mushroom. What an absolutely wonderful concoction.

~The IT Crowd, I've recently become addicted to this show. If you haven't seen it, give it a shot. I adore Moss!

~BC Footwear, I've owned 2 pairs of their shoes before and they fit true to size. I generally have a hard time finding shoes that fit well and I was overjoyed when I had no problem with theirs. I'm currently loving these babies. Although, I wish they had a light blue or gray but purple is the next best colour for me.

~Baked, I was reminded of this while unpacking a few things today. JT and I went to Charleston this July and popped in this bakery for some relief from the heat. Not only did we purchase 2 cupcakes and a mango cheesecake bar, but I had to have a souvenir mug. It's currently in the dishwasher, almost ready for use. Everything was delicious and if you can't get to Charleston or New York, you can purchase their recipe books on their website or amazon. I highly recommend it!

~Between the Folds, a really intriguing documentary about origami and the people that love it. I loved the fact that they interviewed different people with different backgrounds, it really added a lot to the film.

Sorry this post is a bit random...it's a hodgepodge of the past few days. Oh and I did finish my list from Tuesday, which is a wonderful feeling. Ciao! Off to watch more IT Crowd! Hope you guys have a great weekend!

Whew, I forgot how overwhelming a move can be. Boxes everywhere, the floor littered with packing material. It can seem a bit daunting, but just like everything else in life, all you have to do is chip away at it. One thing that helps me is to make lists, I love them. Here's my list for today. I try not to make them too long. Focusing on the possible is a great way to help you stay motivated.

• Go to work
• Unpack 2 boxes
• Go to dentist (FUN! I do actually enjoy the dentist.)
• Work on art project
• Finish vol 4 of Scott Pilgrim
• Unpack 5 boxes

I'll let you know how I did with the list tomorrow, and I'll show you pictures of the art project I'm working on. I hope you all have a productive Tuesday!

Oh the beginning

I don't think Jonathan will be blogging much at all, so it's just me. Bwaaahaaahaaa

To start out, this blog is all about our adventures in art making and life. We will have an etsy site up soon and will be making regular posts weekly. I'm thinking a Favourite Friday and a Teacup Tuesday...or maybe an art-making Monday. Either way, you will see weekly progress on our projects. I think it's going to be very easy to discern which projects are mine and which are his. I like colourful girly/cute things and JT likes more masculine things, lol.

So the most monumental thing happened this past week. We got a place together, a place in Atlanta. The apartment is pretty sparse and dull at the moment but it will soon be lively and cozy. Christmas will be a lot of fun here. It's a bit difficult to get good photos of the space but here's a few.

It's actually kinda of difficult to take good pics of the space for some odd reason. It's not much to look at now, but just you wait. It's going to be awesome!

And to make this post a little bit of a weekly start, let's talk about some Friday Favourites!

+Our new place! I'm so thankful for my incredible boyfriend and our new apartment.

+San smith's live drawings. Check it out each week on Ustream.

+Reading about different colours. I absolutely loved crayons as a child and I still have a great affinity for them. Some of my favourites growing up were Thistle, Robin's Egg Blue, Maize, and Cornflower. Speaking of which, Cornflower is fast becoming my new fav colour. I've been stuck on fuchsia for the past 5 years. I think it's time for a change.

+Having a break from school for a few weeks. This will allow me to do a lot of things I've been putting off.

That's all for now, have a great weekend!