Come here often? OR Bloglessness of the Long Distance Runner

Well, hello, there. Long time no see, eh?

When last we met in April, I was crowing about having run 6 miles. That was pretty cool. Then I finished a sprint triathlon in May. Very cool.

If you've been following along here for a while you know that when I do things I tend to, well, DO them. So, I got a little caught up in running and swimming and whatnot. Last month I finished my first half marathon, and now I'm training for a full marathon in the Spring. For reals. And though I've been crafting and cooking and writing (you can read about my swim-bike-run exploits here; other stuff isn't quite ready for prime time), just like always, there were inevitable trade-offs. Work greedily gobbles up most of my free time, leaving little time to sit back and appreciate time to draw, daydream, write, think, and laugh. Over the last few months I realized that under these conditions I could either live my life or I could photograph it. I chose living it. That didn't leave much in the way of pretty pictures for the blog.*

But now that another semester is behind me and my evenings are my own again, my sweet blog has been calling out to me, begging to be revived. In particular, some of you have been asking if/when another calendar would be available.

I have good news and bad news. So the good news is that there is a new calendar. The bad news is that it is based on the same drawings as last year—if, like me, you loved those drawings, there is no downside; if, on the other hand, you are sick of them, I guess you're out of luck (that's the bad part).

© 2011 Cameron Blazer // Cottage Industrialist

The printable calendars are available here 

Alrighty, then. You've got 21 days to plan your collard feasting for 2012. Get cracking!

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*Does that sound defensive? I don't mean for it to. I've written three different long, drawn out posts explaining why I took an unplanned break from blogging; how I want Cottage Industrialist to change and grow; and the responsibility I feel to portray my crazy, happy, frustrating life honestly. But every time I have written those posts, they sound like defenses against an argument no one is making. If I want this space to grow and change and be a little different, I only need to make it so. Right?

Happy Beeping Valentine's Day

BEEP!

In spite of a decades-long disinterest in the hoopla surrounding February 14, I started making Valentine's Day cards as soon as my little boy was old enough to hand them out to his friends at school. I can still picture my mother, hunched over our kitchen table, hand calligraphing the cards I had helped her make (butterflies fashioned from pairs of red foil heart stickers) for my class in the first grade. And so, I guess, it just feels right for me to continue the tradition with my son.

This year I planned to do as I have before and make a single, unisex design, but when I got to fiddling with the colors for these robots, I just couldn't resist the traditional pink on red color scheme. But my son was insistent that we had to have a version with the turquoise robot. I think two robots are better than one, don't you? And because I love envelopes, and I love patterns, I thought these would look swell coming out of tiny circuit board envelopes.

There are three pages in all: the first page has both envelopes and one of each card—the envelopes will be easiest to fold if you print them on plain paper. There are also separate sheets with 9 of each card design, so that if you want sturdier cards, you can print these on stock and cut them to size. These are old-fashioned teeny tiny cards, so don't try to put them in the mail, as they are too small for USPS, but just right for school chums.

And if robots aren't your thing, don't forget to check out the dinosaur, cowboy, rocket ship, skunk, and alligator valentines I've shared here in the past. 

As always, you are welcome to download and print as many of these as you like for personal use. Please do not alter or redistribute them.

2011: A Produce Calendar Odyssey

Happy New Year!

Last year I resolved to eat more locally grown and seasonally appropriate fruits and vegetables. And to aid in that effort, I made some quirky little calendars. And  while I have occasionally snacked on an apple in june or sliced up a hothouse tomato in the doldrums of February, I think I can report that I have mostly lived up to that resolution. I like to think the calendars helped with that.

This year I took a different approach to my seasonal foods calendar. Each month features an illustrated fruit or vegetable, along with reminders of the other goodies that are at their peak in that month. Obviously, growing seasons vary around the globe, but I did my best to approximate what is generally in season in large parts of North America for each month. I'm very happy with the way they turned out, and I hope you are, too.

***

But it wouldn't be the new year without a new resolution, right? And working through these drawings for the last few weeks has given me a lot of time to think about what I ought to challenge myself to this year. I've decided that 2011 will be my year of taking care of myself. That means, of course, continuing my seasonal produce odyssey. But it also means getting more sleep. Reading more books. Finding more quiet. Getting more exercise. Singing more 80s pop songs at the top of my lungs. And—ahem, this is the hard one—valuing myself. And that starts today.

This website is a labor of love for me. I would be doing it even if you weren't reading. But it's so much more fun because you do. Because you write to me and share your own funny stories, because you are kind enough to tell me, from time to time, that you appreciate what I do. I use the site to promote my tiny side business, and I get the occasional affiliate payment because you buy something from Amazon after visiting my site (I'm looking at you, Kate!), but this is not a money-making endeavor. And that's okay with me. I LOVE sharing my little doodles and flights of fancy with you, and as long as Cottage Industrialist is around I will ALWAYS make those freely available.

But. And there is a but. This is hard work! For this year's calendars, I designed a new font, refreshed my research about the seasons for North American produce, and drew 12 brand-new illustrations. All-told, I put in about 40 hours of work on these. And but for wanting to brain myself while drawing kernel after kernel of corn, I loved doing it. Still, as I labored stroke by stroke over the thistly choke on March's artichoke and the craggy details of October's carrots, I got to thinking about the widely held concern among artists and craftspeople about the danger of giving their work away, especially in the era of Etsy and the internet. If we make something freely available because we take joy in sharing and we enjoyed the work for its own sake, are we saying, "This thing I spent all this time making is really cool, but it's only worth $.00"? Are we, in essence, devaluing ourselves and our work? Are we letting our desire to share our work (which is an eensy bit tied up with ego, but that's a whole other conversation) trump our desire to be respected and valued for it?

I don't know. But here's what I'm going to do about it today. I'm not going to plaster my site with ugly ads. No, I'm going all NPR on you. Yep. If you want to support the stories and projects and designs that you get here, you can show your support (in any amount you choose) with a small PayPal donation.* If that's not your thing or you don't have a dollar to spare, that's a-ok—I love emails, too! I'm happy you're here, no matter what. It's not about the money, it's about reminding myself that my work and my time are valuable.

So, without further ado, here they are, in a single, printable PDF—convenient, yes, but also huge (15MB), so be patient! Each calendar is sized to print on a single sheet of 8.5x11" paper.

Now go eat your vegetables!

*This is different from NPR in at least one very important way, though: my site may not be profitable, but I am not a non-profit, so don't go claiming your donation as a tax deduction, or I'll have to take off my blogger hat and put my criminal defense lawyer hat to keep you out of trouble!

Update on Monday, December 12, 2011 at 11:32AM by Cameron Blazer

A number of folks have emailed or commented asking whether/when a 2012 calendar would be available. Here it is!

Aargh Humbug!

Little did I know when I planned my little boy's 4th pirate birthday party that I was ushering in what has become a full-blown pirate obsession. In the last six months, he has devoured every single pirate book our library has to offer. He has become distressingly well-versed in the weaponry of 17th century swashbucklers. After he broke his leg this fall, his only consolation was that he would be more convincing as Long John Silver.

Truly, at this point I feel like I live in a pirate ship. So it's no surprise that as I was doodling last week, I started drawing a holiday pirate snowman. You know, Christmas and pirates, a match made in heaven. And to set my little doodle off, I put it on a stocking shape. Big mistake. Because at exactly that moment, my son looked over my shoulder and said, "Mommy! You're making me a new pirate snowman stocking! I love it!" Uhhhh. Hm.

How could I say no? So, after enlisting the help of my personal Craft Fairy Godfriend (buy her awesome, recycled holiday ornaments here!), I think I am going to tackle this guy in wool felt. My husband is afraid. Very (justifiably) afraid.

In the meantime, while exhibiting my peerless fabric-cutting-avoidance-skills, I thought I'd spread the wealth— er, booty—in a little holiday printable: giftcards!

You can download the file here. There are two versions of the cards, which print 8-up to a page and have cut lines clearly marked. Print on heavy card stock, or use Avery pre-cut card sheets (look for products 5881, 8373, 8869) to avoid cutting altogether (my fave!).

As always, you can use this template as much as you like for personal, non-commercial use.

Oh, and if you like these printables, how about keep my poor husband in your thoughts as I undertake this and other absurd last-minute sewing projects in the coming weeks. It could get ugly in here.

A Canning Party - Free Printables from Paper Crave

Summer is a busy time Chez Industrialist, and so I am so happy to have asked the lovely Kristen Magee of Paper Crave to do a guest post. Like me, she shares a love of cooking, design, and craft. I think her post is the perfect blend of all three. I hope you love it as much as I do. Take it away, Kristen!

© 2010 Kristen Magee // Paper Crave

I have many wonderful memories of the yearly canning parties that my family used to have during the height of the summer harvest. Though I wasn't old enough at the time to actually take part in the jam making and pickling fun, I do remember having a great time picking berries from bushes that grew in the woods behind my godparents' house, which was where the parties were held. I honestly don't know how many of those berries actually made it back to the house, instead of going straight to my tummy!

Join the party, and get the free printables!

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