How-Tuesday: Make a Weekly Planner Book with Your Secret Admiral

Check out my latest how-to video made with wonderful Etsy admin Michelle and Eric!

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"This week, Etsy How-Tuesday helps you get organized for the New Year with Etsy admin Julie aka YourSecretAdmiral / julieincharge. Julie shows you how to make a weekly planner, which you an give as a handmade stocking stuffer or keep for all that organizing you'll be doing in the New Year. You can use your own design or download our pdf template."

Don't want to make your own? Buy one here and I'll ship it off to you post haste!
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The video also got a nice mention on Whip Up today!

Congrats to KnitKnit!

I just want to send a big ol' congratulations to my pal, KnitKnit! She will be Etsy's Featured Seller for the next couple of days. I am a proud owner of one her her eyeball ornaments. In fact, after my first excursion to the Acme Smoke Fish Co, Annalise and I picked up a Christmas tree. So, far the only decoration on said tree is a crowning KnitKnit eyeball ornament in place of a star. (Photos of that to come.)

Thanksgiving Feast

Dinner setting.


Homemade cranberry sauce.


The feast, in all its glory.


The pie parade.

A delicious Thanksgiving feast full of homemade treats! A 6 desserts to 7 person ratio always is a recipe for success in my book.

Scientist Dance-off

Of all the news I heard on NPR this weekend, there is one tidbit that stood out from all the rest... I venture to say that there is something very memorable about this equation: scientists + interpretive dancing= Dance Your PhD competition. Yes, competitive interpretive dancing for astrophysicists, molecular biologists, and the gang.

John Bohannon started this contest earlier this year and results were announced this past week. The rules of the competition are as follows: using no words or images, interpret your Ph.D. thesis in dance form. The grand prize awarded to the winners was a year's subscription to Science. If you'd like, you can listen to the whole NPR story here.

Although not voted as a winner, this video (above) by Christin Murphy about hydrodynamic trail detection in marine organisms, is one of my favorite entries. I'm not sure if the hula hooping or music selection or lobster outfits won my heart first.

Portrait Gallery Treasury

I was just perusing the Treasury, one of my favorite ways to browse on Etsy, when I was greeted with a pleasant surprise. My linocut self-portrait is featured among these fine portraits. Thanks for including me, imadeyouabeard! This treasury will only be up for a few more hours, so check it out while you can.

Love,
Your Secret Admiral

It's the Great Waffle, Charlie Brown

Is this what a giant squid eats for breakfast? As seen in the Metrotech Center in Brooklyn, NY.

This sculpture by Martha Friedman is part of the Public Art Fund's new exhibit entitled Trapdoor. Despite the Public Art Fund's excessive use of quotation marks used in the description of this piece, I have to say that it makes me smile every day when I pass this looming waffle on my way to work.

A Great Tutorial: How to Blockprint

Hello, world! I wanted to share this excellent blockprinting tutorial with you. Last week I led a craft night project at the Etsy Labs was carving your own stamp, and this tutorial is one of the resources I recommended on the handout.

There are many wonderful resources out there on blockprinting, and I have to say that this one created by LizzyHouse is one of my favorites. I was seem to return to this tutorial and recommend it to others. It's very detailed, full of great tips, and interspersed with lovely, clear photos. If this doesn't make you reach for your carving tools (or dash to the art store to get some), I don't know what will! Check out the tutorial here and be sure to scroll to the bottom to download the PDF.

Here are a few further resources that I'd recommend as well:

Books:
Linoleum Block Printing by Francis J. Kafka

Lotta Prints: How to Print Anything, from Potatoes to Linoleum by Lotta Jansdotter

Lino-Cuts by Claude Flight

Hand Block Printing on Fabrics by T.J. Corbin

The Craft of Woodcuts by John R. Biggs

Groups:
Printsy (Etsy's printmaking team)

Block Prints Flickr group

Suppliers:
New York Central (my favorite!)

Daniel Smith

Dick Blick

Also, be sure to support your local art supply store!

My New Website!

Drumroll please... I am very happy to announce the launch of my brand new website! You can find it at yoursecretadmiral.com. It is a continual work-in-progress, as I will be adding new info to it all the time.

I'd love feedback, if anyone would like to share their thoughts!

Love,
Your Secret Admiral

Print Party at Fact & Fancy Gallery

Over 100 prints from up-and-coming local & international artists!
$5 from each sale will be donated to the Rabbit House Society

When: November 7, 8, 9 from 12-7pm. Opening 11/7 from 6-7:30pm.
Where: Fact & Fancy Gallery. 75B Hoyt St, Brooklyn, NY 11201

More details here.

Hello, Sock Monkey

Last weekend, I learned how to make sock monkeys. This is my first one! He'll be donated to fresh art to benefit their wonderful programming. Learn all about fresh art's sock monkey program here.

Hello, Pikaland!

If Pikaland was a person and not a blog, she would probably be my best friend. But, as a blog with the most exquisite taste, it has led me to many wonderful gems, including my new favorite artists, Bombo (see: Whaleless) and Katey Jean Harvey.

Pikaland is also home to the PikaPackage, a monthly collection of treats from illustrators and artists who sell their wares online. I am very excited to announce that you can find some of my goodies (see below) among the ranks of October's PikaPackage. Read all about this month's package and enter win one right here.

Hello, Pincushions

I have been making pincushions like crazy. These are my first ones! This project has reminded me how much I love hand sewing and working with fabric. My pincushion frenzy was inspired this tutorial I found on Purl Bee. You can check out the rest of my pincushion family in my shop as well.








P.S. I haven't fallen of the face of the blogosphere, I promise. I am back and I am in action. I have more regular blog posts up my sleeve, so please stay tuned.

Hello, Fact & Fancy. Hello, Brooklyn Flea.

This Sunday, I had the good fortune of joining several wonderful artists at the Fact & Fancy booth at Brooklyn Flea. What a wonderful way to spend an afternoon!



Here are some of my books at the booth!


I like like knitknit's knitted delights. I remember hearting her knitted powercords way back when I first was learning how to use Etsy. Her shop will always hold a special place in my heart (so to speak).


Bailey Doesn't Bark's meticulous and humorous hand-painted porcelain also graced the tables of the Fact & Fancy booth this weekend. I love the cross-section of finery and uncomfortable (such as rats) that she explores in her work.


Oh, astulabee. I am in love with these gorgeous creations, so gorgeous and charming and impeccably crafted. I am particularly charmed by that critter with the twig antlers and her lucky paw keychains. I look forward to seeing what she creates next!

Hello, Summer Salad

I look forward to the farmer's market every Saturday morning. I made this salad for dinner the other night, mainly out of ingredients from the farmer's market at McCarren Park. I like salads that combine fruits and vegetables, as well as salads that combine raw and steamed vegetables. This one does both!

Ingredients:
-snow peas
-lettuce
-fresh cilantro
-fresh dill
-goat cheese
-apple
-toasted chopped almonds
-steamed broccoli
-strawberries
-olives
-cannellini beans

For the dressing, I made a berry vinaigrette.
Recipe for Berry Vinaigrette:
-1 Tbl jam (Choose a good quality jam or preserves)
-1 Tbl balsamic vinegar
-3 Tbl olive oil

Whisk together or shake it up in a jar.

Hello, Renegade Brooklyn

Today is the first day of Renegade Brooklyn. As ever, the craft fair is chockful of wonderful artists. I will have to go back tomorrow to take a closer look at the booths that I missed today. I went to Renegade Chicago last year, and had the best time. Renegade always feels like a crafty reunion to me, with rows upon rows of my favorite Etsy sellers and other crafters all in one place for one fabulous weekend. I leave feeling so inspired, ready to run home and start making things!


To the left is a shot of CallieCo's table, full of zippered delights. I have a wallet made by her and I love it!

Hello, Telectroscope

Do you believe in the Telectroscope? I have paid homage to this marvel twice and it has colored the my summer with a shade of delight each visit. The story goes that artist Paul St. George
discovered his great-grandfather's notes for a transatlantic tunnel connecting London and Brooklyn, a project which ended tragically...until Paul St. George picked up the reigns and finished the amazing Telectroscope! The telectroscope visually connects London and New York, like an apparatus straight out of City of Lost Children.

Are you are looking for the ultimate Brooklyn date? Well, here is the plan for you: First, go to Grimaldi's and eat the tastiest pizza in town and swill some Brooklyn Lagers. Then, stroll down to the water just under the Brooklyn Bridge. Grab some homemade ice cream from the Brooklyn Ice Cream Factory. Savor it while peering into London through the Telectroscope, watching the tourists, and gazing at the lights of Manhattan across the river.

Catch the Telectroscope while you can! It closes on Sunday, June 15 at 6 pm in Brooklyn and 11 pm in London.

Hello, Fact & Fancy

Fact & Fancy is my new favorite shop. If you're in Brooklyn, be sure to stop by. The walls are filled with wonderful and inspiring handmade delights. I visited the shop on Saturday, the afternoon before their opening day, and I love every aspect of the space, from the hand-painted faux bois floor to the impeccable choices of artwork.

Check it out!


75B Hoyt St.
Brooklyn, NY 11201
Fri & Sat 12- 7
Sun 12-6

Hello, New Dress

I put the finishing touches on this handmade dress today. Hurray for summer styles! I learned how to sew this little number and all about beginning dressmaking at the Make a Sundress class taught by the wonderful Cal Patch at the Etsy Labs.

Hello, Readymade magazine!

Last weekend I was waiting in line at the grocery store, when I glimpsed the new issue of Readymade magazine (June/July 2008) in the rack. I snatched it up and found my airmail envelopes featured in the spread on page 26. I got my first subscription to Readymade right around the time they launched the magazine a few years ago. It is so amazing to find my humble little Etsy shop within Readymade's pages. This is the first time my books have appeared in any magazine, so, needless to say, I am thrilled!

Hello, Blogosphere!

This is my first ever blog! Will I sink or swim? Only time will tell. Stay tuned...