*GLUB-GLUB*

In a new addition to the Funamals collection, Penguin Meets Fish! 

Another new addition to the Funamals studio, is Amy's assistant, Grace! 

And this is Grace, writing her first-ever blog as Funamals :)

With his scuba helmet made from recycled plastic, he dives under the sea, in this new tote bag design. Named the most imaginative tote, by the creator herself, it is definitely my favorite. 

This fabulous new tote is up for sale on etsy.com. 

I love it not just because I helped a bit with the design....but, then again, I may be a little bit partial ;P

While photographing this new tote in Amy's studio, I also took some photos of her fish, Rain, with his giraffe. He is a very photogenic fish.

Tonight, I am sleeping over at Amy's house.  Aside from all of my next tasks for tonight, I think that Amy's "Desk Buddy" needs a night-cap.  Maybe I can slip in some Grace time on the sewing machine when she is not looking.

 Tomorrow we are leaving at 7:00 am to go to an art market in South Haven, MI.  This will be the first art fair I have ever been to as one of the vendors, or vendor's assistant, I should say. :) 

Lovely Living Room Accessories from Inspiring Fellow Artists

Left to Right: Block Print Bike Pillow, Block Print Cupcake Stuffie--both can be found at Artgoodies on etsy,  Dog Pillow--can be found at the k studio website.

I must show off the beautiful and fun pillows that sit on my vintage couch in my living room.  They are made by some pretty awesome artists and their success is very inspiring to me.  Not only are these pieces aesthetically pleasing, but they also provide a constant source of hope that I too, will some day be as successful as they are.  

Lisa Price of  Artgoodies has become a great friend of mine since I graduated art school.  No matter what, she always has fun with her work.  

Shelly Klein of K Studio does amazing work as well.  She is a fantastic example of what can be achieved when an  artist stays focused.  

It is a true pleasure to have such wonderful work in my home. 

inventory intelligence

I have this really neat cupboard that is hidden in the wall underneath some windows in my apartment.  Today it played a key role in my inventory update.

Today  I counted everything I had, pulling it from the nooks and crannies of the random boxes they ended up in after crazy hot days at art shows.  I set aside enough to stock a new store location coming to town and counted up the rest.  I entered each style of greeting card and postcard and their amount into the computer.  Then they were boxed, labeled and stacked into my secret compartment.  Now I know what to reorder and when to reorder my greeting cards and postcards.  Soon I will have some screen printing, textiles, magnets and water bottles to sort through.  Although this is a continual process, my progress today feels really good and I feel ready for the next art show weekend. :)

Mayhem to Management

My pup Mr. Mikey fell asleep like this in the middle of the floor!

Last week got away from me.  Ever have a day to get something done and then all of a sudden people change your entire day's plans all at once?  That is what happened to me and it spiraled out of control from there leaving me exhausted, frustrated and unsure which end was up.  Currently I am really stressed about my upcoming fall season.  I expect it to be busy with almost every weekend booked with a show through November.  Over the weekend I added a seventh location in South Haven, Michigan.  I feel the need to scramble now to make sure I am prepared for the coming months.

Eventually I ended up realizing that half of it comes from the un-organization that is the result of my frenzied week!  And if a picture of my computer screen says anything about how things have gotten away around here, one can only imagine the state of the studio!

So I cleaned things up and then I sat down and began to plan the next few months out.  I pulled up my icalendar and started adding everything into it.  It also allows you to put alarms on events which is great when you need to be reminded in advance for things like appointments and paying bills.  My doctor told me last week that it was time to make a few changes in my life, and that includes enough sleep, exercise and time to myself.  I was also reminded that my house plants need to be watered and my boyfriend needs attention once in a while too.  This means that I need to schedule all of the tasks that need to be done as well as blocks of time for exercise, laundry, grocery shopping, emailing clients, phone calls, the boyfriend, and sometimes even sleeping.  All activities must be written down to ensure that they get tended to--and yes basics like sleep and leisure have to been written in or I'll forget!

This week is already looking pretty busy!

Now that my schedule is more organized, I am feeling much more refreshed and I have calmed down.