Shouldn’t art be an every day thing? I don’t mean “everyday”, I mean “every day”. I found this handmade flatware the day before Thanksgiving, and just fell in love with it.

Yeah, I know I didn’t arrange it properly for the photo - I’m into art, not so much etiquette. The brand is Gourmet Settings

I almost didn’t, but since we needed new flatware - ours was getting worn out, but mainly, we just didn’t have enough pieces - I thought why not? Who knew that flatware could make me so happy? Should I be allowed to love my flatware this much?

Creativity Question: What is a simple pleasure in your life that may not be necessary, but just makes life a little sweeter?

Obviously, I can appreciate simple things - little things. And, while they aren’t necessary for living, I wonder if they aren’t necessary for that little dash of happiness - that spoonful of sugar (to help the medicine go down). Your thoughts?

I’ve finally been able to get a little bit of design work done. Here’s the fronts and backs of two seasonal cards I recently designed. No, my website isn’t up and running yet - yes, that probably *should* be my next project. I just don’t have very much to put on there yet, and I’m still working on securing a good printing company and setting my prices. But, I’m very close.

I like to keep my designs fairly simple, but with a little bit of fun. Why not? Especially for the holidays. I would love to hear what you think.

If you are interested in ordering some for yourself, just drop me an e-mail at amy[at]umberdesign[dot]com

How do you make your creations original? Sometimes I have a hard time with this, I admit it. I see a lot of design everywhere and a lot of times I’m saying - hey, why didn’t I think of that? So, what I try to do rather than copying someone else’s design (which, by the way, violates copyright laws), is to gather a little inspiration here and a little there, and mix it with my own until eventually a new idea evolves. How about you?

Okay, so I got caught in the tagging game - I’ll play along.

Four or more places I’ve lived:
Chandler, Arizona
Alpha, New Jersey
Diamond Valley, Utah
Louisville, Kentucky

Four or More Places I Have Been on Vacation:
Nauvoo, Illinois
Niagara Falls, Canada
Palmyra, New York
Seattle, Washington
Franklin, Tennessee

Four or More Jobs I’ve Had:
Model for the art department in college (BYU - NO nudes)
Clerk at a bead shop
Customer Service Rep for AT&T
Freelance graphic designer

Four or More Foods I Like:
Marzipan (hands-down winner)
Bean & cheese burritos
Blackberries, pears, peaches
Mushroom bisque if it’s made right
Chips and guacamole (especially from QDoba)
Vegetables I didn’t grow up eating, like artichoke, asparagus, broccoli, eggplant

Four or More Hobbies I Have:
sewing
photography (usually nature photography)
making things - lots of different kinds of things
learning how to make said things if I don’t already know how
looking at decorating books and magazines
looking at the stars and reading NASA’s website
gardening (I want to get back into that one)
learning about self-sufficiency and preparedness
learning about cooking and vegetarian dishes (not a vegetarian, but don’t eat much meat)
reading about herbs and natural healing
finding the beauty in simple things
(umm… I like to do too many things!)

Four or More Things People Don’t Know About Me:
I’m not big on busy freeway or downtown driving (ok, so it terrifies me)
I have a thing about packaging gifts nicely before I give them
I nibble on my fingernails
I’m often concerned about my weight, but haven’t ever really been bothered about my height (5′ 2.5″)
I’m slightly addicted to ribbon

I decided to add this one too: I don’t own a microwave (and I live just fine, thanks)

Four or More Things I Would Do If I Were A Billionaire:
Hire a driver? heheh
Pay off all our debts and our parents’ debts too
Do/establish something to help/encourage/mentor kids in their educational pursuits
Build an off-grid energy efficient home
Buy some land in Missouri
Think of some ingenious way to contribute to the arts
Save some money and give some away

So how come in the “real world”, when you play tag, you only tag one person, but in blog tag, you are allowed to “tag”, say 3-5 people? Honestly, I don’t know who to tag because a lot of you have already been tagged, so if you haven’t been already, you’re “it”.