Roll into the weekend

Yes, I actually saw this stretch Trabant roll past me while in Berlin. It cracked me up and I had to share. Here are a few other things I've seen around and thought to share:

Sister Mag - two German sisters created this lovely Deutsch/English online mag. They really set the bar high. I met them at The Hive and they're just as lovely and professional as their magazine. They're humble, too, but their magazine is anything but!

e.m.papers - blog and online shop based in Munich. The blog has some great Hive recaps and the shop features gorgeous and sophisticated printable paper products!

This lovely paper DIY lampshade from Daily Perfect Moment is quite clever.

Listen to what scientists deem the most relaxing song ever.

Little Pink Strawberries has some amazing blog design tutorials (attention self).

A whole Pinterest board of great printables.

Speaking of Pinterest...some good reminders.

I need to do some of these Sania Pell projects with my fabric scraps.

An overview of the handy Stitch Labs for creative business owners.

Maybe*Mej did a round-up of free digital borders.

Craftypod introduced me to this 'Frustration is an Essential Part of Creativity' video.

Have a great weekend everybody!

On Blogging: The Hive (pt 2)

If you gather a group of people who share a common interest, it's almost certain they will talk about that interest. You can also be fairly certain all will leave that gathering with more thoughts and ideas and will (hopefully) feel encouraged to keep interacting with said interest. They might also make a few new friends in the process. I think this is why -if you like blogging- periodic blogger meet-ups are a good thing. The internet is great, but there's something about a human conversation in real life that can just never be replicated online -even via Skype.

At The Hive I had the chance to both talk face-to-face with the people writing blogs I've enjoyed, and meet people writing blogs I'd never heard of. I 'clicked' with people writing about topics that don't fit the profile of what I typically read, and yet I found myself inspired, challenged, encouraged -and befriended- by these people. Horizons were broadened, connections made, old friendships deepened and new friendships blossomed.

While the community aspect was great, it would be amiss to say nothing about the workshops. I've highlighted two of my favorite quotes from Gabrielle of Design Mom and Jeanette Lunde of Fryd + Design. The Design Mom presentation was very professional and inspiring; you can tell she has years of corporate America under her belt. Even though I have no ambitions of internet-domination, it was refreshing and challenging to hear from somebody who plays and works so hard.

Jeanette Lunde was another fantastic keynote speaker and I just loved her presentation (and her fabulous orange skirt)! She was talking primarily about her experience as a designer, with a focus on her beautiful online magazine. She has such a calm and focused personality and Tina, Anya and I enjoyed hanging with her over the weekend. She had several great things to say and while I've highlighted my favorite, I also jotted these down in my notebook: "Choose 1 good picture rather than 3 so-so shots" and "Bloggers: choose just 2-3 images per post as it looks more pro". Definitely something for me to work on, but I loved this advice as it really ties into my creative goal to take better pictures this year.

Later I shared my frustration at the limitations I felt having only a point-and-shoot camera and she had a good challenge. She told me that when she was in school her instructors made them use the simplest cameras saying that modern cameras all had the ability to take decent photos, it was just that people needed to know how to use them. One of my biggest problems is getting enough light (cough, German weather, cough) and she admitted the fancier cameras certainly can help with that, but to keep working with what I have. So back to my user's manual I go! I think I'll have an easier time justifying a DSLR purchase if I can confidently say I have totally maxed out my point-and-shoot first.

ps- Jeanette will be one of the guest instructors for Holly Becker's Blogging Your Way 2.0 e-course next month. I'm sure she will be amazing there and, as a BYW 1.0 alum, I can say the course is definitely worth taking! If I weren't so busy/traveling next month I would definitely be signing up.

There was definitely an information-overload going on at the conference, but I tried to condense it down to the bits that really stuck out to me. If you're a blogger, I highly recommend meeting up with other bloggers from time-to-time, even if it's a smaller, local meet-up. I think it's easy to think that exchanging emails cuts it, but -at least for me- meeting face-to-face has always been an incredible encouragement to keep my blogging dynamic and not get stuck in a static rut.

What about you? If you're a blogger, have you benefited from meeting up with other bloggers? Anybody out there been to a blogging conference? If you were with me at The Hive, what were some of your take-homes?

Berlin Impressions: The Hive (pt 1)

I'm back and boy did I have a good time at The Hive 2012! I think it's pretty hard to go wrong with a blogger meet up when you know you have friends coming and when it's being held in a creative capital of sorts. There's much to process, much to share, and much waiting for me on my regular weekly to-do list. I first want to say that Berlin is truly a great location for creative gatherings; there's so much going on in the country's capitol! After arriving early, Tina, Anya and I decided to go for a walk about town. Here are some of the things that caught my eye along the way:

The top photo is the cover of an adorable travel notebook for sale here. Small Caps of Berlin makes the book; you can see the cute insides here. I just really loved the cover and the fact that it had nice, simple illustrations of typical Berlin things. Not far from there we saw this incredible cat-themed door. Can you see what's on the doorknob?

The Brandenberg -urg Gate is always an impressive structure to me. So much history and so much symbolism are attached to it. This and the Victory Column always make me first think of Wim Wenders though, ha! Have you seen 'Wings of Desire' or 'Faraway, So Close!' ? Great films! 

Have you ever been to Berlin? What are some of your favorite things to do?

Dinner on the Balcony

It's been nice to be able to enjoy the balcony lately and I am so thankful we have some outdoor space with our apartment. I can't imagine living without it! The DIY screen from last year is still going strong and I'm so pleased. It really helps enclose the space and blocks some less-than-scenic views. We have two full trees that surround the other sides of our balcony; the green leaves provide just the right amount of privacy as we look out into our neighbor's yard.

Right now I can't get enough of our white lilac tree and I hope it stays blooming for a while longer! We also have red and white ranunculus all along one side and that's been really fun this year; they look like mini cupcakes, ha ha! They won't be around for much longer though. When we first planted them I kept thinking of 'we're painting the roses red' from Alice in Wonderland, ha! We also found a little gnome and laminated gingham pinwheel to cheer things up a bit. It's the little things...

Do you have an outdoor space? What's making it special for you?

Summertime Shoes

I have a hard time with shoes, namely with size and comfort. I can never seem to find summer shoes that don't give me blisters. I have a pair of go-to summer sandals that are beyond comfortable, but they're ancient and look terribly out of place with what I usually wear out of the house. I'm more mindful of this now that I have to teach a few classes in the warmer months. I've been meaning to try a pair of Gizehs from Birkenstock, so I decided to go for it when I saw them on super sale on Amazon. I bought 2 pair: orange patent leather and black patent leather. Incidentally, the black pair was only 26 Euro.

This is not a fashion blog (clearly), but I thought I'd share. This is probably the only model of Birks that I see Germans wear outside (most other models are for house shoes only), so I hope I don't get any tickets from the fashion police! I really do like their shape and form and I think the orange pair will be fun. Fingers crossed they're as comfy as my other Birks!

What about you? What are your go-to comfortable shoes? I'm a longtime fan of Birkenstock, Keen, Born and Privo. With all the walking we do here in Germany, comfort is key.

New Blog Business Cards

I figured with this month's trip to The Hive in Berlin I finally had the justification to do something I'd been wanting to do for a while: make blog business cards. I have regular business cards for my editing work, but considering the line of work I do, it's not always the time or place to mention I'm also a craft/creative blogger. However, when I talk about my creative hobbies I almost always also talk about my editing work, so a crossover card was needed.

The main problem with making a blogger card is that your card should ideally illustrate your blog's voice and design aesthetic. Since a major overhaul to my blog's design has yet to happen (but it's on my 2012 Creative Goals list!), I was totally on my own. I rummaged through my graphics files, ran a few drafts by friends, and came up with this double-sided version. I'm pretty happy with how they turned out.

I had them printed at a local shop since I ran some test drafts there and liked their prices for business cards. I had my professional editing cards made by Moo.com, so I was curious to see how things compared. I have to say that while local was faster and cheaper, the paper and cutting quality was nowhere near Moo's quality. And you know what? Moo was less than 5 Euro more and would've been done a few days later for standard pricing. I'm not incredibly unhappy with what I have, but next time I'll go back to Moo.

What about you? Do you have personal cards for yourself or your blog? Did you design or make your own, or did you have somebody create them for you?

Modern Lines in Old Times: Stairwells

Night and day. That pretty much sums up the difference between the old location and the new location of one of the university departments I work with. The old location was in a concrete nightmare from the 1970's built on the edge of civilization; some place you could see in a horror movie, complete with flickering, wan, yellow lighting, dark passages and mad scientists. I actually carried a flashlight during winter visits and often walked with my keys between my fingers. I never felt safe there.

The new location is centrally located, well lit, and -dare I say- beautiful. The building is at least a century old, if not more, and has lots of lovely architectural details. The stairwell is my favorite place. The patterns in the balusters are simple, classic, and oooold. Yet I could easily see this being recreated in a modern home or building. I love the gleaming, worn wood and fresh white paint that glows thanks to all the natural light pouring in through the windows. From the windows you can watch children play outside happily at a neighboring day care facility (kita). Germany's oldest gothic church is nearby and its bells peal as class starts. SUCH a pleasant change!