Best of intentions

Lately I've been trying to figure out how I want to use this blog. When I was setting up this account I had the intention of using it as another platform to advertise my Red Otter shop, showcasing my new creations and discoveries. Yeah, well, I didn't get too far. Quite honestly, those type of blogs (the "advertising" blogs) are fascinating to a point, and then I get tired of the impersonal repetitions. I quickly move onto other blogs. Blogs that talk to the reader like a personal conversation, a letter from them, to me. Blogs that give a peep into the writers life. It's the strange intimacy that I'm attracted to. In any case, I have a very difficult time putting my thoughts together in an organized, collected fashion, and the stress of writing a "professional" blog has become too daunting. So, after that long ramble I'm going to try and step out into a "Julia" blog. My blog. My letter. The peep into my life. So, without further ado, let me say Hello, and welcome!

If I could gather a few select photographs from my computers archive that would best tell you about me, this is what I would show:



This is my husband and I on our wedding day at the end of May this year. He's Scottish on both sides of his family, so he wore his kilt with pride!



I spent a good deal of my undergraduate in Duluth, Minnesota. Right on the majestic, frigid, slate colored Lake Superior. I have a thing for water. I love being near it, listening to it, swimming in it. It's a unique connection, and honestly, one that only makes sense to those who have lived near it. Anyways, here's my "mischievous" look that my husband finds so funny!



Another wedding photo! This is me with all of my bridesmaids, my dearest friends and my sisters. Very important picture!



And, no, this isn't blatant advertising, but this is part of me. My books are part of who I am. I love the process of putting a book together. I enjoy getting lost in my paper scraps, glue and scissors.

These pictures are pieces of my life. I hope they help you get to know me, just a little. Of course, I could always leave it to Facebook's personality application to tell you about me:

1. I would be Julia Roberts if I were an actress
2. Belle is the Disney character most like me
3. Audrey Hepburn has the personality most like mine

Isn't that fabulous? Well, I thought the little quiz's were a hoot. My husband didn't think so:

1. He would be Orlando Bloom if he were an actor
2. Beast is the Disney character most like him
3. Jimmy Stewart has the personality most like his.

Poor guy. He's the furthest thing from a Blooming Beast with a Stewart swagger. I'll tell you about him later.

Ta ta for now, I'm going to sign off for the evening. I have a season of Six Feet Under to watch!

Prep time

After my husband hit the 5:30 alarm this morning, I rolled over and thought to myself "I didn't sign up for this." He has mock interviews today in one of his law classes, so he had to get up a half hour earlier than normal to "prep." He has to look sharp. He has to look dashing, confident, radiating intelligence and oozing power. Which he does very well, especially after a morning involving a leisurely breakfast, a long shower, a smooth shave, a new tie and a perfectly tied plaid scarf. He looks great! But, while he's off to catch his bus in patent leather shoes, confident that he's started the day out on the right foot, I'm sitting here, in my pj's wondering whether or not I should go make a huge pot of coffee or succumb to the sleep gods and crawl back into bed. You see, it's not just Andrew that has to get up. So do I. We have a small apartment, so even if I did want to sleep in it would be hampered by the sounds and lights of "life" happening around me. I feel as if I'm in a fog, and it was only a half hour less sleep! Bludgeoned by a bloody alarm clock.

Tapestry Notebooks

Although I really don't have time to write this afternoon, I wanted to share a few of the pictures I took this morning of my new jotter notebooks. These are the Tapestry notebooks.

I have never kept a blog before, so I'm going to start out slow. There are moments when it's very healthy to have low expectations of yourself.

I would really like this to be a spot where I can visit with other artists, make friends, and explore my creativity. I will be adding the links to some of my favorite blogs that I read every day, along with other sites of great inspiration.

For now, this meager entry will have to do. Ta ta for now!

The beginning

And so it starts!