Birthday Madness

WOW... July has hit me with birthday madness. In the last week I have known and/or celebrated about 6 different birthdays, including my own. It's funny how things like that hit you in packs, birthdays, new babies, weddings. It seems as soon as you go to one you are going to several. One of the birthdays we helped celebrate was a milestone...60 years. A good friend of the studios turned 60 and we had a surprise party to go to. Of course such a monumental occasion called for an awesome card and I hit the boards to create one. I came up with this, a bit nostalgic, but fun as well. Inside is a pocket that can hold a gift card or even cash if you wish to give it. A a great quote about growing old..or not growing old I should say.

Since it turned out so well I thought I would offer it in my etsy shop. It's a great card that can be personalized for the birthday boy by YOU. You can take out the replica photo and replace it with one of your own, or send us you photo here at the studio and we'll include it for you. While you're at the shop checking out this card take a look at some of the others we offer for birthdays too. If you are having or had a birthday this month...to you I say..HAPPY BIRTHDAY!!

For the love of FONTS

While checking out some other blogs I randomly look at I found this link. This site has a simple quiz that you can take to see if you were a font what you would be. I love this. I currently have over 450 fonts on my computer. many of those I have searched out and added. I know it's bad when I see advertisements and can say "That's good dog cool " I also feel very limited by my blog page with the very slim selection of fonts they give you to choose from. None of my favorites are here! One awesome site that I check out frequently is http://www.dafont.com/ here you can find loads of fonts most of them are FREE and are available for mac or windows. So I am American Typewriter, not a bad font but I think of myself more as "Desyrel" with some "calvin & hobbes" thrown in.

If you need a place to write down those cool fonts that you see while driving down the highway or looking through the web. Try this handy notepad. It's available in my etsy shop and is refillable. The font by the way is "Fabulous Fifties" and is available at Fonttrader.

All this talk about fonts has me itching...I need to head over to Dafont myself and see what's new, maybe I'll see you there!

Those daring young women in their flying machines.

On May 21, 1932, Amelia Earhart was the first woman to fly solo across the Atlantic ocean.

It was five years to the day after Lindbergh's famous flight, when she took off in a Lockheed Vega, in an attempt to become the second person after Lindbergh (and first woman) to fly solo across the Atlantic. Starting from Harbour Grace, Newfoundland, her flight lasted almost 15 hours, when she touched down in a pasture near Londonderry, Northern Ireland. With this flight she had broken several records ...the first woman to fly the Atlantic solo and only person to fly it twice...the longest non-stop distance flown by a woman...and a record for crossing in the shortest time. (The distance from Newfoundland to Ireland being considerably shorter than Lindbergh's route from Long Island to Paris, her flight time was correspondingly shorter than his 33 hours.)

Amelia Earhart was born on July 24, 1897 in Atchison, Kansas. Her grandparents raised her during her early childhood. From the age of ten, she lived with her mother and father. She was a tomboy - climbing trees, sledding in the snow, and hunting She saw her first airplane in 1908, at the Iowa State Fair, but her interest in aviation lay dormant for another ten years. She served as a nurse in World War One, and took her first ride in an airplane in 1920. After her flight with barnstormer Frank Hawks, she said:

"As soon as we left the ground, I knew I myself had to fly."

Indeed, within a few days, she took her first flying lesson, in a Curtiss JN-4 Jenny. Six months later, she bought her own airplane.

This birthday card from the studio reminds me of Amelia. Perhaps you know someone who has a great spirit of adventure as she did. Look for this card in our etsy shop and celebrate the daring and adventuresome spirit of great women like Amelia.

I leave you with a quote from Amelia made before her attempt at flying around the world, what has become know as her last flight. This quote sums up much of how I think she lived her life.

"Please know I am quite aware of the hazards...I want to do it because I want to do it. Women must try to do things as men have tried. When they fail their failure must be but a challenge to others."
Bravo Amelia!

The Sultan of Swat...begins.

Today in 1915, Babe Ruth hit his first homerun while with the Boston Red Sox. May 6, 1915

In the third inning at the Polo Grounds, 20-year-old pitcher Babe Ruth slammed the first pitch off Yankee right-hander Jack Warhop into the second tier of the right field grandstand for a home run. It was the first home run for the youngster in his 18th time at bat in the major leagues. As Ruth trotted around the bases running out the home run he had blasted, the 8,000 in attendance, cheered him on.

Ruth's impact on American culture still commands attention today. Top performers in other sports are often referred to as "The Babe Ruth of ____." He is considered one of the greatest baseball players in history, in fact many polls place him as the number one player of all time. His name comes up anytime home runs are discussed, including Barry Bond's passing Ruth's career number in 2006. You can find his baseball stats here.

In honor of america's favorite pasttime and the huge number of baseball fans out there, we have created this card in the studio.

It features a replica T-206 baseball card, often times called tobacco series cards since they came in the package of tobacco (not chewing gum !)

It has been a popular seller from our studio and can be personalized for any occasion. We may even have your favorite old time players replica card to put on the front. Look for it in our etsy shop.

In the meantime ...get out there and knock one outta the park...The Babe is cheering you on.

Happy Birthday...Dear Leo.

Today in 1452 Leonardo Da Vinci was born.

He was the illegitimate son of a notary and a peasant girl, born just outside Florence Italy. He was a painter, draftsman, sculptor, architect, scientist and inventor. He learned from observing things and constantly asking questions. There is a great site from the Museum of Science that showcases the "Leonardo at the Museum" exhibit. I especially like the way his eyes move in his portrait on the first page...but hey that's just me.

I also found this quote from Da Vinci that I think is great and still applies to our lives today.

Life is pretty simple: You do some stuff. Most fails. Some works. You do more of what works. If it works big, others quickly copy it. Then you do something else. The trick is the doing something else.

In honor of Leonardo's birthday I would like to present him with this card, to encourage him to celebrate his birth and life accomplishments. If there is someone whose birth you wish to celebrate you can find this card at my etsy shop.

So, get out there today and do some stuff, if it works...then do some more. That's what Leo would have done.

Remember this GUY?

Twenty-six years ago....

On an April 10, 1982 installment of SATURDAY NIGHT LIVE, the Not-Ready-for-Prime-Time Players threatened to boil a real lobster named "Larry the Lobster" live on-the-air.
As Eddie Murphy informed the audience: [speaks fast] "You want to save Larry the Lobster dial 1-900-720-1808. [speaks slowly]. If you want to kill him dial 1-900-720-1809. Now unless you call in to save him, we're going to boil Larry's little butt right here on national television. Now you call in. The phone company is going to charge you fifty cents, but isn't it worth fifty cents to save Larry's life? Or look at it this way: Isn't it worth half a buck to see us boil Larry on TV?" Nearly 500,000 viewers dialed into the program with in the span of 30 minutes.

The final tally? KILL LARRY: 227, 452; SAVE LARRY: 239,096.

Larry is cited to this day in discussions of cruelty to animals and in rosters of famous animals.

I'm hoping that no one is having as bad a day as Larry did 26 years ago today, but if you do know someone who needs a little encouragement. This card is available in my shop in a set of three cards meant to encourage those going through a bumpy patch.

Enjoy the day!

Reach for the Sky!

Today in 1930 the first steel columns for the Empire State Building were set. As an Architect this has real interest to me. This was a time when the reach for the highest building was a passion for those who wanted to leave a mark in the world. To many it is still a passion, to lay claim to the tallest building in the City, State or World. Besides the sheer brilliance of the design what amazes me is the courage and daring of the workers who erected the building. There were no "safety " regulations like we have today. This picture is an awesome look into the workers daily task. It was taken by Lewis Wickes Hines, more of his images can be seen online here. Below are some basic facts on the Empire State Building...maybe you knew them maybe not. You can also take a virtual tour of the building online by clicking here.

Empire State Building
Architect: Shreve, Lamb & Harmon Associates

Facts & Description:

- The Empire State Building is one of the most famous skyscrapers in the world, built in just 18 months during the Great Depression, it was the world's tallest building from 1931-1972. It was surpassed by the World Trade Center, since 9/11/2001 it has regained that title.

-It is 1,453 feet to the top of the lightning rod. There are 102 floors in the building.

-There are 57,000 tons of steel in the structure of the building.

- The shape of the Empire State Building was inspired by its developer, John Jacob Raskob, who is said to have pulled a pencil from his drawer, held it up to his architect (William Lamb), and asked "Bill, how tall can you make it so that it won't fall down?"

- The observation tower at the top of the Empire State Building was originally intended to be a dock for mooring airships. However, after several futile attempts at mooring a zeppelin in the strong winds present at 1250 feet, the idea was scrapped.

- The top of the Empire State Building is lit up at night in different colors to celebrate various holidays.

- The 86th floor observatory is visited by 3.5 million people every year.

In honor of the desire, perseverance and gifts of those who dreamed and created this outstanding building I present this card. I wish you were all around to receive it. WELL DONE! You can find this card in my etsy shop, if you have someone who you wish to honor for their perseverance.