Fluffbuff

Another good mail day. Today I received something unexpected and wonderful from my friend Andrea who moved to Maryland last October. She has been taking a letterpress printing class and sent me two beautiful hand printed pieces. One is an image of a kitty (is that Mama cat?) and the other a calendar page for April with a quote from Robert Frost.

Grazie, Andrea!

And if that wasn't enough, I also received two books I had ordered last week: Simple Sewing with a French Twist and Lotta Jansdotter's Simple Sewing. Let's see if it's really that simple.

Posted by Francesca at 8:00 PM | Permalink | Comments (6)

  Whole Foods has about a dozen different designs in this line of place mats. These are the four that made it home with me.

I love the whimsical illustrations, especially this map of the US.

The illustrator is Aaron Meshon. Check out his portfolio.

The dinos are for Ben. Boys love dinosaurs, even at 35. :)

Posted by Francesca at 4:33 PM | Permalink | Comments (3)

I love images of horse battles. It all started when I saw Paolo Uccello's battle paintings for the first time. I don't really have that many stamps, but I like the ones I have.

Posted by Francesca at 3:14 PM | Permalink

Since I can't afford to collect antique maps, I sort of collect stamps with maps. Sort of, because I don't really follow a system; I simply choose stamps that appeal to me and there are some truly beautiful ones out there.

Posted by Francesca at 3:14 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)

Some people, when they feel the need to procrastinate, clean up their garage, update their address book or engage in other similarly useful activities. Me, I do something colorful. No, I don't mean that as a figure of speech: I do or make something that involves color. Since my job keeps me at the computer most of the day, the easiest trap to fall into is to start playing around in Photoshop. I figure it's better than raiding the fridge.

Here is some recreational design that kept me entertained for a few hours.

Posted by Francesca at 1:05 AM | Permalink

Just started sorting out the pictures we took last year in Italy. Whenever we go, it's to visit family and friends and we only do the tourist thing for a couple of days or so. Last time we went to Firenze (Florence), Ferrara, and a couple of small hillside villages in the Appennini mountains. Home is in Romagna, with family being in Ravenna and most of my friends in Faenza and we usually end up taking only day-trips from there.

In Firenze, we went to Giardino dei Boboli and then to an exhibit of Leonardo's machines. We both had looked forward to seeing life-size constructions of machines from Leonardo's drawings and I really enjoyed the show. Ben thought the craftsmanship was not quite up to par, but I couldn't tell.

Ornitottero (Ornithopter)
The ornithopter is a flying machine with wings like a bird's. Although it looks very much like a modern-day hang-glider, the ornithopter was meant to be operated by the pilot using pedals that would flap and twist the wings.

Ornitottero Verticale (Vertical Ornithopter)
In this model, the paddles were meant to move in the air as those of a boat in water.

Self-propelling car
This machine is thought to have been used for stage performances, and motion was provided by coiled springs placed under the wheels.

Bicycle

Posted by Francesca at 8:23 AM | Permalink

After the last presidential election, there was a lot of talk about the feasibility of a California secession. For what I can tell since I've been in this country, it's something that comes up again and again with spikes of interests tied to specific events. At the time, I was frustrated by the whole affair and wanted to do something, however silly. One weekend, I designed these banknotes for the spurious California Republic.

Posted by Francesca at 6:48 AM | Permalink | Comments (9)