I met Barb awhile back while browsing through blogs and immediately was smitten not only because she is from Greenville, SC (where I went to college) but because of her talent of bringing old weathered pieces back to life. I especially love how she names them all.

PS – I’m extremely jealous that not only did she get to meet another favorite blogger of mine, Traci from Bliss, but also she flew to Portland to meet her. Sigh…

juliette

special order – how precious!

coco

a custom order

sanders

reindeer gift tags

oval gift tags

mini polka dot holiday gift tags

More holiday gift tags for all of your wrapping needs. Check out all of our holiday items here.

With our busy work schedules we try to carve out family time on the weekends. Saturday we endured another cold and rainy day but Sunday fared better so we ventured to our local Imagine Nation Children’s Museum for a little play. Getting there right at noon allowed us free reign of the museum from making a path for balls, splashing in water, and playing on the computer. We had so much fun that Kendall and I passed out in the car on the way home.

PS – doesn’t Wayne look dashing with his “mommy bag”?

I just love New England in the fall because you can pick your own fruit and make a delicious breakfast or dessert. Both Saturday and Sunday we enjoyed this apple tart straight out of the oven. Next time I might try it with pears.

Quick & Easy Apple Tart
1 sheet puffed pastry, cut into half OR thirds
3 to 4 apples, cored, halved, and sliced (but not peeled)
1 cup brown sugar
1/4 teaspoon salt

Preheat oven to 415 degrees.
Place puffed pastry rectangles onto a baking pan that’s been sprayed with nonstick spray.

Add sugar and salt to apples. Stir to combine. Allow to sit for a few minutes.

Arrange apple slices on the pastry rectangles in a straight line, overlapping as you go.

Bake for 18 to 20 minutes, or until pastry is puffed and golden brown.

Remove from pan immediately and place on a serving platter. Serve plain, with caramel topping, whipped cream, or a sprinkling of powdered sugar.

Recipe courtesy of The Pioneer Woman

It’s about that time of year when 3rd quarter taxes are due. Yet I find myself doing anything but what I should be doing. For awhile I’ve been trying to perfect creating a silhouette from an existing image. And I think I got it. Just one of the many ideas I have running through my head right now. And I thought this was an especially fun picture to work with and just love the pop of color from the hair bows.

Our 2009 holiday line is now available in our shop. I’m so excited how everything turned out and even have more to add. So stay posted!

I spotted Angie’s shop a few weeks back and instantly fell in love with her modern and simple use of wool. She makes anything from laptop sleeves, iPhone cases, bags, and more… Some of these will show up on my Christmas list this year. Without a doubt. And to boot, she’s holding a giveaway on her blog right now. Head on over (after you finish reading this interview) and enter.

Tell us a little about yourself.
My name is Angie Davis. I live on an island in the Mississippi River in downtown Minneapolis. My formal training is in architecture and I practiced primarily custom residential design for several years until last year when I started designing and constructing my own line of wares. I grew up on a farm in Iowa surrounded by traditional craft but in my adult life, I tend to tilt toward a modern aesthetic. This duality seems to come together in my work as I favor traditional materials and techniques but tend to pare down my patterns and designs to a simple, modern object.

How and why did you create Byrd and Belle?
I started designing and selling my wares in December of 2008 when I like so many of our colleagues, lost my job in our respective fields of design. In its conception, Byrd & Belle was an opportunity to take my suddenly un-needed creative energy and put it somewhere. Since then, it has helped me grow as a designer and discover a (slightly annoying) entrepreneurial twitch that keeps me up at night.

Where did the name originate from?
We have a 90 lb. mutt named Gertrude who we’ve nicknamed ‘Gertie Byrd’. ‘Belle’ is borrowed from Clara Belle, a 14 year old Beagle we cared for a few summers ago. They were quite the pair that summer, our huge, energetic mutt and a deaf, geriatric beagle. We referred to them as as ‘the Byrd and the Belle’ and it stuck.

What is a typical work day for you?
My day begins around 8 am with espresso and chat with my betrothed, David before he heads to work and ends with a trip to the post office at 8 pm. In between, my day is spent keeping up with orders and emails. The production of my work is done in waves. I will set up a mini assembly line and focus on one process at a time. For an item like the laptop sleeves there are 7-8 steps that can be done prior to the final completion. I tend to save the final push until after it is purchased because I like to have a name attached to the project as it gets finished. I think it makes the process more personal and it ensures that your item gets my full attention when it is needed most: right before it goes out the door. When I do get caught up on orders, I spend my time developing new designs and working on prototypes.

How do you keep distractions at bay?
I don’t worry about it. Most days I’m so focused it’s not an issue but on days when I am easily distracted, I go with it. I dedicate a lot of my time to my work so when my brain shuts off, it’s probably because it needs it.

What are your best selling pieces/designs?
The wool laptop sleeves and ipod/iphone cases.

Who/what are your inspiration?
I’m inspired by simplicity in design and function across a variety of disciplines including architecture, graphic & industrial design. It began during my first year of architecture school when I found myself surrounded by other people with similar interests and I was given a vocabulary with which I could talk about design in the context of both visual and spatial studies. We were designing buildings but we were also making elaborate models with obscure materials and experimenting with drawing and the manipulation of images in different ways. It was an incredible experience and it really helped me define my creative process and my personal aesthetic.

Do you have any business advice that worked well for you that you’d care to share?
Invest in good tools. Research sources for supplies and materials and buy from local and/or independent business owners whenever you can. Make friends with your postal workers. Make customer service your highest priority and stock your shops with items you would buy yourself. If you like what you’re doing, it won’t feel like work.

What are your favorite hobbies?
In my spare time, I enjoy going to the movies at 10 on a Friday morning, collecting vintage suitcases, dreaming of my future garden, and catching the occasional show of whoever happens to be making their way through town.

What’s currently on your wish list?
a new pair of mittens
a hand-press that sets grommets
a haircut

Name your top 3 website/blogs.
residential architect
notcot
craigslist

Thanks Angie for sharing with us!
shop | blog | gertie byrd (her other shop)

It has been a rainy bone-chilling kind of day. So we stayed in all day cooking, baking, and watching moves – some even twice. So I decided to try out a new recipe and it was perfect for today. It’s a heavy soup, definitely not a light meal. But satisfying nevertheless. Surprisingly Kendall loved it. Made a huge mess on her Cowboy’s jersey, which Wayne was very happy about. How about those Giants?

Last weekend Kendall and I went to her favorite park/playground. This was the first time she actually took off running to go and play. Much different than our fair experience. A refreshing change. We ran around, played on the swings and even in the sand. Again something new she’s doing. Seeing her grow and experience new things validates why I decided to become a mother.

The Sunday after Kendall’s birthday party we managed to go to one of the local fairs. It was an unexpected hot early fall day and we were dressed inappropriate in our jeans and long sleeve t-shirts but managed to still have a good time. The grandparents were still in town so it was nice to relax with the family eating fried dough and sno cones. Kendall had an OK time riding a few rides but wouldn’t let anyone put her down. I’m really hoping this is a phase she’s going through, being extremely tentative and hesitant in new environments. But even familiar places are hit or miss. Although I chalk this outing up to the beginning of a cold she came down with. The next day she spiked a fever. Coincidence? Unsure. But I do hope it’s a phase.

Lately my father has been really nostalgic. It’s really cute and eye opening seeing him talk about relatives and trying to find those we do not know about. A few of the pictures are of a corn machine that not the day before he was talking with a friend about. (Crazy how these things work out) You see these corn machines are ones he used to make corn meal. It was really neat to see him get so excited seeing these machines roar about. So by request I snapped a few photos so he could play show and tell.

He really is cute.