Star-Shaped Deodorant

I've been making deodorant from this recipe for a while now and I really like it. The only problem is that I was pouring the mixture into a baby jar and then having to scrape out the deodorant from the bottom to apply it (it cools to a solid in the fridge). It got pretty tedious. I saw a post on Amy Karol's blog about using a cupcake tin to shape it into pucks but didn't want to use my cupcake tin for this purpose. I'd rather continue to feel my cupcake tin was food safe, you know? Then, I was going through things hidden deep in the basement (I'm still working on a major de-cluttering) and came across a star ice cube tray that was silicone and I'm sure we are never going to use it for ice cubes so I gave it a shot. I love it so far! Easy to use and I can even break of a little star-arm if I need to! I realize that having deodorant handmade in interesting shapes might tip me over the edge of something...into a category of some kind of oddness but I reassure you I'm basically the same person I was before I got really excited about shaping my deodorant. Honest.

My Very Own Ransom Note Alphabet

It was something Lily said in one of her comments that got me hooked on this idea of finding the alphabet, ransom note style, in my surroundings. And, once I had the idea it was lodged permanently and hauntingly in my brain. This crazy alphabet is the result. I'm not happy with everything, wish I'd found a nicer H and that the T and the X weren't from the same thing. But, overall, it was fun and completely random and got me looking around my little world a little different. Next up, numbers!

By the way, there is still time to join the barter! In fact, alot of it, as it looks like I might be bartering with myself soon. So, pretty please, join in the fun!

More Font Friday

More good font fun! This quiz tests your ability to discern arial from the ever-popular helvetica used in so many corporate designs. I did pretty poorly, caught only 15 out of 20 but LOVED the challenge. All of this from Ironic Sans.

A great site to explore. Here is a taste:

60 Seconds in the Life of a Subway Window from Ironic Sans on Vimeo.

Thanks Drea for the great link and for feeding my font nerdiness.

Font Friday

I pass by this truck every day on my way to work and it never fails to make me smile. Look closely and you can see the 'easy does it' written on the door. Loving this is pure Jersey love.

Speaking of great fonts, I was tipped off by a friend to dafont.com, you can download tons of free and fantastic fonts, I used them for the banner font, as an example. Check it out but don't blame me if you sink lots of time into exploring fonts--a nice font is addictive.

More Font Gazing

This whole font thing is, as is always the case with me, getting a little out of hand. I am font stalking all the time and have even started running internal critiques---oh, that is NOT a good font for THAT. (Anyone own the Brett Dennen album, So Much More? The font on the spine of the cd is ALL WRONG, truly. I mean**italics** it just doesn't do the album justice.) It also helping me appreciate some of the ordinary sites around me, like these in this post.


It can also preoccupy me while reading a book to the kids for the umpteenth time. The font in "A Pocket For Corduroy" might be my favorite, check out the word dizzy. It is glorious.
No one in our house knows where this 'promise' pencil came from but how fantastic is that? Have to say, it turns out, there are very few fonts that I actually find appealing. Next up, to feed the obsession, is to find time to watch this movie. Will let you know how it is.

Fonting

The big furor around Ikea's changing type font has got me thinking about fonts more than usual these days. A short walk from our house is a light industrial area complete with an abandoned warehouse of sorts. It is chock full of font inspiration.
I love these simple say-it-like-it-is fonts at a larger than life scale. HEATING! DRYERS! OVENS! WHY ARE YOU YELLING!!?
This Operation Lifesaver reminds me of the fonts from my childhood for some reason, doesn't it seem seventies?
But Men Working Above is my favorite. It is so lovely and tender, I feel like it should say Unicorns and Fairies rather than issuing a warning.

I'm not sure how to thank you...really

I should start by saying that the contractor working on our house project is great. His whole crew could not be more considerate or hard-working. But, he is a little, well, quirky. And, he showed up a few weeks ago with this, ahem, Butt Bench, for our bathroom. It came completely out of the blue. Turns out that as he approaches 60 he has started to consider retirement plans. Primary among them is the manufacture and sale of this bench that suctions to the bathroom wall and rests on the tub to serve as a butt bench. He has trademarked the name (!) and even has a patent pending on the invention. He's currently working on a website and happens to be looking for a pregnant model. Gulp. I have to say it's very handy as a pregnant lady to be able to sit and shave my legs and it's an attractive, handy addition to our tub. Not sure I'm ready to be photographed in a towel, however.