Logo for Polka Dot Paper Shop

It's always so hard to do designer picks as we love all the designs we create... but we'd have to go with this one for our fave design for Polka Dot Paper Shop. Owner Kerrie wanted a fresh, preppy, feminine look to her designs and wanted something a little more modern than plain old polka dots. We love how the polka dots were incorporated behind some of the letters in this design... doesn't this logo make you want to go check out their fun website?!

Kerrie's Feedback: Thank you so much for the great logos! I really appreciate your work!

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Title: Taylor Swift Bikini Babe: Polka dot retro or skimpy black?

SEXY SWIFT: Which do you like best? Tay's classic blue and white polka dot retro bikini or skimpy black with skull and crossbones logo on her breast?
"Honey Don't" Carl Perkins cover performed by Ty Walker

Title: The Alternative Polka - FLCL

Footage: FLCL
Audio: Weird Al - The Alternative Polka
Made by Pyrowolf at cybermoonstudios.com
_______________________________________

I know this has been uploaded to Youtube already (For almost a year now?! Cripes! Pretty slow on the uptake aren't I...?), but it seemed only right I put it up myself, if just to say a few things about it... Probably my favorite AMV that I ever made.

I was dying to do another comedy based AMV and with FLCL showing on Adult Swim, I knew I could somehow connect it to Weird Al in some manner. The end result came out rather well I think. That C M S jazz was put there to cover up the [adult swim] logo, though it now seems like a pretty pointless thing to have bothered with.

This was the last AMV I put together and probably the last one I ever really intended to do.

Thanks to ZazieRainyday and all the other people that liked the video enough to put it on Youtube and the comments people have put on them.

(You don't need to bother with that e-mail address I put in the end of the video, this being Youtube and all.)

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Mini Mint Chocolate Chip Cheesecakes

One of Sean's coworkers is moving away and in honor of cheesecake being his favorite dessert, I decided to make mini cheesecakes again for movie night. But this time, I wanted to try mint chocolate chip. I skimmed a few recipes, but ultimately I went with a bastardized version of the Martha Stewart recipe.

I crushed teddy grahams again for the crust. Seriously, so good; much better than oreo crusts, in my opinion. It's buttery and more crackery (yeah, so that's not a word) than oreos, not to mention less crumbley.

To make a crust, you crush the crackers, then add sugar and melted butter and stir until the crumbs have absorbed the butter. Then pack the crumbs into baking liners and bake for 15 minutes until the crust has set.

In the meantime, I whipped up the cheesecake, which took half the time it did the first time I made it. You just beat cream cheese, then add sugar and vanilla, which is the sepia color you see above.

Then add two eggs and sour cream, which gives it that smooth consistency.

And here's where it got unfamiliar: adding extract and food coloring. I added just a teaspoon of peppermint extract and though I was convinced it wouldn't be enough, I was wrong. A teaspoon is the perfect amount!

Then I was supposed to add two drops of food coloring, but that's harder to do than it sounds. I added more like three drops and two dribbles and waited to see what would happen...

It looks perfect! Food coloring is kind of amazing; two drops yields SO much color. I added chocolate chips, which of course sunk to the bottom. As a result, some of the cheesecakes had one or two chips and some were FULL of chips.

Ready to go in the oven...

And fresh out of the oven. All those burned areas you see are a result of my sloppy pouring method. I am unskilled in keeping my baked goods neat and tidy.

After they came out, I had a notion to top them with chocolate ganache. I mixed chocolate chips and cream and voila! Ganache! It was tooooo easy, easier than it should be. But that doesn't mean I couldn't mess it up.

My error came when I enthusiastically made the ganache seconds after the cheesecakes came out of the oven. They're supposed to cool for an hour before adding the ganache, but of course they cooled for about six minutes before it was ready. Not knowing what to do, I just left it on very low heat and stirred occasionally. When I finally thought it was time to add the ganache to the cheesecakes, it had begun to separate, the thick chocolate leaving a yellow oily mess in its wake. And me being me, I went ahead and poured it onto a waiting cheesecake.

BAD IDEA. Gloopy, scary, separated mess. When it hardened, it had yellow splotches. Very disgusting. Distraught, I whined to Sean, who wisely said, "Okay, so make another batch of ganache."

Oh. Alright then.

So, this is round two of the ganache, which went decidedly better.

Messy, ganache-topped cheesecakes.

The cheesecakes are delicious, the ganache magical BUT I'm not sure it was wise to try the ganache move with mini cheesecakes. I think it would work much better with a full-size cheesecake made in a springform pan; the paper liners were buckling under its weight. Otherwise, this was awesome and I packed one for work today that was the envy of my coworker!

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Title: Altoids/Mint Mini watercolor paint box-New process

Watch me retire my beloved companion of many years, my mini monkey paint box, and create a new one.
Altoids/mint tin mini water color paint box/set, showing my new process which allows for more 1/4 pan size watercolor pans for a smaller box. Also addresses some of the problems faced by other mini tin paint box creators.
Great to tuck in a pocket or throw in a purse, easy to use in public without causing a lot of attention, Great for daily field sketches, or to sneak out during lunch break, waiting rooms or subway or plane ride. (do not take the razor blade sharpener to public places, I would only take that with me to the out doors, and is only shown as a possibility, I use a small sharpener, also in a fix, a piece of sand paper or a flat rock or piece of concrete are useful to sharpen a point.)

Free Music by:Jason Shaw
You Tube user/audionautix
http://www.youtube.com/audionautix

Title: Mini Mint Card Dispenser

This mini mint card dispenser is perfect for your next trade show or confernece because everyone in attendance will appreciate recieving promotional mints. These mini mint card dispensers will be imprinted with your logo in our local factory.

Mini Mint Card Dispenser:
http://www.motivators.com/Promotional-Custom-MiniMintCardDispenser-34041.html

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Bridesmaid Invitations

I love nothing more than getting a letter in the mail. I wanted to do something special to ask four lovely ladies to be my bridesmaids and while a phone call (with the squealing and jumping up and down) would usually be best, I thought it would be nice to add a little formality to their days.

I bought this lovely robin's egg cardstock and a gold calligraphy pen. I wish my handwriting were better; I struggle mightily with cursive. But the best part was getting to use a wax seal, complete with the letter "K" for my future last name. I purposely didn't put my return address on the envelopes because I wanted my girls to get the letters and be like, "What the what?!"

They all seemed surprised and maybe a little confused about how to proceed, but that's okay. Sarah was like, "I figured I should send you a card that said 'Yes.'" LOL. But now they have little keepsakes for their scrapbooks.

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Title: Wedding Invitations: Casual, Formal & Funky

http://weddings.dexknows.com/

Wedding invitations can be casual, formal or funky depending on the wedding theme, overall style or personal tastes of the bride and groom. See three invitation examples with planning advice from a successful event coordinator in this video on wedding details.

Expert: Lisa Gorjestani
Bio: Lisa Gorjestani is the owner of Details Event Planning in Los Angeles, California.

Title: DIY Wedding Preparation : How to Save Money on Weddings

Saving money on weddings requires developing an organized budget, prioritizing expenses and completing simple DIY projects for the decorations and invitations. Find ways to save money with tips and advice from a wedding consultant in this free video on planning weddings.

Expert: Wendy Dahl
Contact: dahlweddingcompany.com
Bio: Wendy Dahl is a wedding consultant and the owner of the Dahl Wedding Company, serving Southern California for more than a decade.
Filmmaker: Gina Miller-Britton

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Runner Eye Candy!

Here's a little eye candy for your Saturday- these are some of the recent runners I've been working on- more to come soon!

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Title: Blade Runner - Geisha eating candy

This haunting image dots blade runner both shoving us out and pulling us deeper in to the distopia.

Title: Candy Runner

www.horseadoption.com

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Board #326: Love and Warmth (and a winner...)

First off, since I still haven't heard from the winner of the Beau-coup giveaway, we've got a new winner! Bo who said, i love the whole leaf tea sachet favors. they are in such elegant pyramid shaped boxes with a leaf sticking out on top. i picture them being used as favors in a winter wedding with a lunch reception, along with vintage teacups. Bo, email me to claim your prize!

I know we had a whole week of winter wedding boards last week, but how could I resist a snowy log cabin, deer-topped cupcakes, and kissing in the snow! In my mind, this intimate wedding takes place at a cozy inn, with a day of cross country skiing followed by a ceremony (maybe a short one outdoors!) and a reception full of cookies and eggnog.

Mood: warm and cozy
Palette: eggnog, nutmeg

{click image to enlarge}

Top row from left: bride photo by Aaron Almendral, note basket from Better Homes and Gardens, silhouette cookie photo by S&J Photo, log cabin photo by James Carriere
Row 2: eggnog, bouquet from Martha Stewart Weddings, votive and basket of flowers both from Matthew Mead
Row 3: pearl ring photo by Jessica Claire, cupcakes by Baked NYC via Creature Comforts, invitations from Martha Stewart Weddings
Row 4: notecards by Moderncard, bouquet from Brides, kissing in the snow photo by Grazier Photography, yellow bedroom

Be sure to stop by tomorrow for the first installment of the 2008 Snippet & Ink gift guide!

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Title: boards of canada - dayvan cowboy

brand new video by boards of canada from "the campfire headphase" album

Title: Street Surfing - The Wave Board

CHECK OUT MY NEW VIDEO!!
http://youtube.com/watch?v=SiSLGrTnKXw

Awesome tricks on the wave...please comment

Music: Hoobastank - Same Direction

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