heysusy

IT'S SHOWTIME {part one of the NSS series}

After the big schlep to get susyjack* to the National Stationery Show, I mentioned that I would blog about my experiences. But, what I didn't realize was that the experience was really so much more than just "The Big Show". So, after thinking about it a little bit, I thought I'd break the post up into three parts....the pre-show, the during show, and the post-show. Hopefully, that will be more helpful to anyone who reads this and is thinking about participating. Keep in mind, I'm in no way the national stationery show expert... but the first time counts for a lot.

JUST SO YOU KNOW {Jumbo Gocco Availability}

Just so you know...The really big PG6 Print Gocco is now available at Paper Source.
It has been out of stock for quite a while...but I guess they just got a new shipment. Woop!
With it, you can make insanely beautiful prints like the one up there by Orange Beautiful.
It's big. About 6 x 9 print area size to be (almost) exact.

Sorry for the short post...but...I thought my readers might like to know.

CHOCOLATEERS {mast brothers chocolate}

There are very few things that I can think of that would be worse than finding a beard hair in my chocolate bar. UNLESS it was one belonging to a Mast Brother.

I'm completely smitten by this entire venture...the idea of brothers making chocolate, the old-timey, old-neighborhood, joint-venture quality of the way they express their brand, and the fact that in order to enjoy this, one doesn't have to go far...at least not here in NYC.

This is the NYC that I love (well, along with the rest of it) and that also, seems to be where the future mindset is headed in general. Soaring gas prices, random bits of machinery in our pet food, and a lack of knowledge about who is making or where is inventing what we're consuming has got many of us down as of late. It's great to see people like the Bros. Mast --with a smart, local, hearty business model-- re-introducing something as simple as chocolate. The lovely packaging (which makes me think of old tenement wallpaper or letters stashed away in a lost suitcase) is a stroke of brilliance, and really helps to explain where these guys are coming from in more ways than one.

A wonderful gift...these are obviously bites to be enjoyed, savored, and special. I've been wanting to post about these guys for a few weeks now, and was just reminded when my friend sent me a link to The Unfancy Food Show  taking place in WBurg on June 29th. Thanks Jesski! Ladies...Gentlemen...adieu.

Mast Brothers Website
Mast Brothers Blog

NEXT WEEK {sneak peek}

Hi all! I realized I hadn't posted a sneak-peek yesterday...so I wanted to be sure to post it today, and let you know what I'm working on.

Gift Guides!
Next week--or very soon after-- I hope to launch a new series of gift guides here on hey susy*. I'm really excited about it, and can't wait to see what readers think. I'm hoping to update them on a seasonal basis-- and to add new names here and there, especially if I find a new shop I like. Most, if not all of the selected features will be stores which have an indie slant, so I'm really pleased about that.

One Year Ago...Happy Birthday to Susy Jack*!
Actually, I've been SO busy that I completely forgot to celebrate my own birthday...well, my collection's birthday. That's right. Susy Jack* officially turned one today...June 21. The line was launched on Etsy at this time last year. So, to celebrate, I'm going to be offering a giveaway, and also *finally* creating that post (or series of posts) about the stationery show...pre, during, and the aftermath!

Ok, I'm off to drink a cup of coffee. I apologize for writing this with no caffeine in my system. Enjoy your weekends!

FADEAWAY {gradation and patina}

This morning, I was thinking back to a Theodore Menten book I had when I was little...it was this incredible book of Victorian Women's Fashion paper dolls. I would spend hours looking at each outfit...relishing all of the details that had been drawn into each piece of clothing. Actually, to my surprise, the book is still available, and I've ordered myself a copy. Yay!

So...maybe it was that which inspired me, today...I really love the look of these soft, nostalgic and sort of foggy colors and shapes that are put together in the block of images above. To me, they have a really expressive quality because they're just not so hard edged.

The images of wildflowers and animals are part of a great series of xerox transfers by Jason Meyer...personally, I love the wildflowers  the best...they look like old scientific specimins!

Jeweler Ivey Brassil was kind enough to email me about her beautiful and subtle collection, Enso Jewelry the other day...and I love the way she uses patina and subtle natural colors to give her pieces meaning.

This vessel, by upintheairsomewhere, is just so abstract and personal and lovely...this artist is known for an incredibly light, beautifully impermanent quality in all of her work.

And last but not least is the wonderful collection of jewelry at sweet vintage, an etsy shop is bursting with well-designed, days-of-yore jewelry finds...my favorite is this big, silver oriental cuff-- and I love the way she styles each of her photos with vintage postcards and a soft, white light-- it really brings out the vintage aesthetic.

RARE BIRDS {marcio simnch : photography}

I've taken the past couple days off from blogging because I've been so very, very busy...but I'm back! Actually, my busy-ness in the early part of the week is becoming a somewhat regular thing, so if my posts here on HS* are not fresh on Tuesdays and Wednesdays, please pardon the absense...and always expect me back soon.

Anyway...I am so excited to post about this wonderful photography, all viewable online at the website of Marcio Simnch, who is the talented fashion and art photographer responsible for each of today's images.

There are a whole bunch of series featured on his site all with wonderful, evocative names like When you come back I'll be gone, and Time for Roses, Time for Kisses, Time for Flowers. As the titles would indicate...there's a forlorn romanticism in the work...beautiful, but fleeting.

I highly recommend visiting all of the collections-- each one is beautifully poetic, sometimes gritty, always compelling. I just adore the colors and subtly present concepts in this photographer's work for both his own projects and his clients alike.

 

TO BOLDLY GO {new at sovereign beck}

When I used to write my blog spiralbound_, I featured this great menswear company a couple of times. Anyway, I was checking out some of the newest items on Supermarket today, and noticed some Sovereign Beck ties that I hadn't seen before!

Anyway, I'm a big fan of how they reinterpret the tie. I absolutely love the sharp, contemporary style and touch of humor that these guys bestow on the necktie. On NPR this weekend I heard that the tie was on it's way out. But, personally, I like to see a man sporting one. Or a woman for that matter. Anyway-- I can see both boys and girls looking chic in any of these.

Personally, my favorites are always their simplest geometric designs. They've got a coolness and a retro edge that is confident and a little mysterious.

HONORABLE MENTION {nea wall wear}

Alert! Alert! As I was just checking out my flickr page, I noticed the wonderful, ingenious, jewelry maven nea had uploaded a new image of her wall wear and mentioned it has been featured today over at Design*Sponge.

Anyway, I'm a longtime fan of nea jewelry, so I wanted to include this image, which I don't think made it onto Design*Sponge, but I think it really shows how great these look as an installation, as well as close up.

I would LOVE to see some of these with letters, to spell words. I think that would be really, really fun. Although the symbols are really beautiful and esoteric. Well done, nea

To read more about this great designer, visit her Blog, her very cool website, or check out her flickr photostream  

TAKE ME BACK {nostalgic vintage}

Something happens when I visit Domestikate on Etsy...I get taken back to my childhood. Maybe it's the light that Kate uses in her great photos, or maybe it's the objects themselves, but the remind me so strongly of my days as a kid at Lake George, where we have a small, uninsulated camp that is full of accumulated family tchochkes, memorobilia, and outdated technologies.

It's one of (if not my absolute) favorite places to be, and I can remember, as a kid, taking mental inventory of the items that were there. Many of them have since gone, since there used to be 3 cabins belonging to my extended family and now ours is the only one...but, we still have some of the items that were part of the vernacular, as it were.

Anyway, I spent a while on Domestikate yesterday, and I just love how the simple styling of her shots conveys a really great sense of love for these bygone objects. Actually, the color in the shots reminds me of old paintings. I would HIGHLY recommend perusing her wares for the next time you are looking for an out-of-the-ordinary hostess or housewarming gift. It's like walking into a thrift shop and finding *just* the right thing.

The prices are just right too. Domestikate's  lovely vintage cameras, phones, toys and dishwares are all manageable. So why not indulge in a little time travel of your own?

LETTER BEST {letteria}

I have been such a follower of Swiss paper starlet LETTERIA for a long time now, and yesterday, I was reminded that I wanted to do a whole post on this talented designer after she posted a comment on my flickr account.

I adore the sensibilities in LETTERIA's work. Usually letterpressed, always lightweight, beautifully, simply photographed, and full of wonderful and subtle ideas, this entire collection is an absolute joy, and there is always something new in the works.

LETTERIA has a great eye for creating cool products and packaging with very little extra fluff (something I'm a big fan of!) For example, these beautifully wrapped spools of ribbon for sale on Etsy. How fun are they?

Oh...and if you really want a treat, take a wander over to her blog Allerliebst, where, even if you can't translate from the German, you can still enjoy looking at the pretty pictures, like this image below.

Not to mention...her flickr account shows off even more of her light, fresh and beautiful design and explorations. LETTERIA, i am smitten.