sneak peak

Day 9 of No Internet.  Tomorrow we should be getting the internet installed but considering we also have had issues getting hot water, we're not holding out breath. We're working on another zine project with all our extra time, 40 Cats Drinking 40s. Here's a mini sneak peak.

P.S. If anyone's interested in doing some zine swapping, send us an email - ventricularprojects@gmail.com

le petit prince

Meet Pumpkin/Prince Myshkin!  He is an incredibly tiny guy whose interests include leaping across the room and looking out windows.  In his nine weeks, he's already won over quite a few hearts and I don't anticipate that stopping any time soon!

greetings from austin

white on white/kaye blegvad banner/important record listening

The house is very sparsely furnished right now and we won't have internet until the 31st, but Caroline and I made it to Austin safely!  

Last night, we cooked our first meal in the house (veggie lasagna) and celebrated with Sofia Coppola sparkling wine (which we had joked about buying and then couldn't resist when we saw it on sale).  We also learned that having an empty living room comes in handy when you want to dump a bunch of construction paper on the floor and get to zine making!  I can't wait to unveil our new projects in the upcoming weeks. 

bears repeating

For as long as I can remember, I've fucking loved bears. I don't know the origin of my fondness for the creatures, but I can (and do) go on for ages about their majesty. My loved ones are totally enablers, too - they've been known to part with their hard earned cash whenever they see bear related things up for grabs rather foolishly knowing it will send me into a fit of glee. Thanks, guys!

Here's a roundup of (kinda) recent bear related happiness!

My Leah Goren bear dress. I've thought about buying one of Leah's super rad cat dresses countless times, but when I saw that she had introduced a bear print to her Etsy shop, there was no thinking involved - I messaged her asking if a bear dress was possible, and she made sure I ended up with the frock of my dreams. She also just listed a new zine that looks amazing, so everyone should snatch one up!

Lizzy Stewart bear gocco & mug painted by best friend/future roommate, Sara. Caroline, Sara, and I move into the house on Sunday, and I cannot contain my excitement. Year-long arts and crafts sleepover, here I come!

Bear mail! Michelle and I have been bonding over our mutual, obsessive affection for bears for a while now, and a few months ago, we became pen pals. Yesterday, she hinted at the contents of the next envelope I'll be receiving and I cannot wait.

 Image from National Geographic Scans

Just a reminder that the deadline to submit to The Great Outdoors zine is this weekend. You can submit anything printable - photos of your camping trip with your pals that one time, doodles of flowers, poems about bears (if you’re really after my heart), etc.

I really love all the work we’ve gotten so far and I’m excited to spend some time next week putting it all together with Caroline!

sweatshirts

You all knew this entry was coming. APC updated their site earlier this week with the Fall 2011 collection and I am all about the gray sweatshirts. Maybe it's the subliminal influence of Turned Out, but recently I've been obsessed with a minimal 70s vibe - shrunken sweatshirts, undone hair and chunky socks (see entry below). It's unlikely I'll actually get my greedy hands on one of the pullovers below (or the much coveted Rodarte heathered sweatshirt that has been at the top of my wishlist for ages), so I'm hoping I'll be able to thrift a similar one this fall.

Modernizm

I often comment about how one of my favorite things about the internet is how it's put me in direct contact with so many like-minded and creative individuals. Through Tumblr and Flickr, I've come across many talented illustrators, artists, and fellow ziners I would have never had the chance to interact with otherwise. Earlier this month, I started corresponding with Stacy of Modernizm Art Zine who is based out of Houston, TX and formerly of Austin, TX. She sent me a few back copies of her zine project and gave me the inside scoop on the best art spots in Austin, all of which I can't wait to check out soon. Modernizm "focuses on promoting artists, creative collaboration and issues about the visual arts in Texas" - all of our favorite things. 

Recently she started a Kickstarter Project to help fund the expansion of Modernizm projects and as her next issue is "The Texas Issue" and we're moving there next week, it seemed like the perfect time to share with you! You can purchase the previous issues of Modernizm over at her etsy shop. 

thread

My time in Boston is winding down (less than a week!), so I'm furiously trying to cross things of my to-do list. One thing I'm happy to have accomplished is a craft afternoon with my friend Steph - we caught up, sipped iced coffee, and made friendship bracelets on her porch enjoying the perfect, cool weather (which I will miss dearly).

 

The one thing is, we didn't quite finish our projects, so I thought I'd share with you some much more impressive work by Maricor Maricar, a pair of very talented artists that use different types of media to experiment with color, pattern, and typography. 

Definitely makes me want to finish an embroidery project of my own one of these days instead of letting half-done ones litter my bedroom.

rosemary milner

In a dream world, Rosemary Milner's wallpaper designs would adorn my walls.  All of her work is just lovely. Perhaps an obvious comparison, but it reminds me a contemporary Beatrix Potter (one of my favorite childhood authors / illustrators). All images are from her website, http://www.rosemary-milner.co.uk/.

too close to home

I am pleased to report that one of my favorite girls of all time has started a blog of her own, That Dress Isn't Pretty Anymore. Avoid at all costs if you hate good-looking people!

how 'bout a socks post?

Cozy socks are great. Why don't we pay more attention to them? To pay homage to the often forgotten sock, here is a post just for them. RIP for all those little guys who got lost in the dryer.

Wigwam Cypress Socks via Madewell

Lauren Hernandez via MaraisUSA Blog

 

MaraisUSA and Amy Merrick 

Patouf Spring Summer '12

You might remember a while back, I posted about Swedish label Patouf's Spring/Summer '11 lookbook featuring perfect warm hues and the sundress of my dreams that made me think, temporarily, that selling all my worldly goods in exchange for a couple weeks wandering the streets of Europe in cute clothes was a practical life choice.  Well, I might need some help being talked out of that yet again, because Patouf was nice enough to send us some photos of the Spring/Summer '12 range,  and lets just say my first reaction after going through the photos was to look up flight prices!

Once again, I love the colors (pale peaches and muted blues are all I want to wear lately) and how great are those kitty shoes? Round it out with some tough-girl boots & cute dress combos, and you've got yourself some key elements in my dream wardrobe. 

 

Check out their website to shop their Fall/Winter collection as well as a selection of vintage pieces.

steven alan fall '11

Instead of spamming my Tumblr page with all of my favorite looks from the Steven Alan Fall '11 collection, I decided to spam the blog! As always, their styling is impeccable and I need everything. I'm not so patiently waiting for them to update their online shop so I can see whether or not adding any of these dresses to my wishlist is feasible (that green zipper dress is especially lovely).

 

all images via stevenalan.com

Now on my wishlist for fall, leopard print and knit pants. I was bummed to find out that a local company who were pretty well known for their knit separates stopping making knit pants and leggings, I was especially looking forward to stocking up on those to wear this fall with oversized sweaters. If anyone has any recommendations, I'd be happy to have them!