Italian Roundup

I've made a decision: I am going to live on take-out for the next two weeks until my exams are over. I've tried to cook these past few days, but each attempt has been a disaster and keep in mind that these are dishes that I have cooked successfully in the past! What's causing me to screw up? I have to chalk it up to stress over finals. The eggplant parmigiana I made tonight was...not my best attempt. The eggplant was still hard even after I'd baked it in the oven for over 30 minutes. So, no more cooking until after the 21st.

Actually, my failed dish is a nice way to segueway into my Italian round-up. So here goes:


Little Italy by Jennifer Altman - Altman spent a summer in Italy and fell in love with the country. This book is a collection of her polaroid snapshots of her country and her travel narratives. As some of you know, I spent part of last summer in Italy and though I didn't exactly fall in love with the country, it was definitely a memorable experience. While it was not my first time there, it was the first time that I was abroad for a significant length of time (meaning more than 2 weeks) and it was the first time that I was traveling abroad alone. So of course, this book is on my Christmas wishlist.



Notte Sento - I saw this short film, along with a series of short films on love, with my boyfriend a few months ago. This was the only one in the series that I really liked.

And lastly, this is my latest card for the holidays! It is based off the Italian Christmas tradition, Feast of the Seven Fishes. I haven't decided if I'm going to put it up on Etsy yet since it's so late, but it's been one of my most overworked designs - I started sketching a year ago and even made a prototype but was never really happy with what I came up with. I am happy to say now that it's done! I think.... to be continued :)

A Russian Tradition

The Holy Supper, which in Russian Orthodox tradition, takes place on Christmas Eve after a day of fasting, begins with the mother of the family blessing each person by drawing a cross in honey on his or her forehead. I've tried to capture this tradition in my latest card, above, although it is still a work in progress.

(On a similar and somewhat funny note, when I showed this card to my Russian boyfriend, his response was, "I didn't know there was a tradition of drawing a cross on your forehead." But to be fair, he isn't Christian. So... :))

Dawanda's Christmas market

My Christmas train card is on the first page of Dawanda's Christmassy Market! (Rudolph is on page 4)

Ghost of Christmas Past

My latest creation, and of course it is teeming with all sorts of obvious symbolism. The one that might not be so obvious, at least from the picture: I used an out of focus picture of a Christmas tree for the tree at the end of the road.

I got the idea for this card from reading a patent case. This is the first time I've ever gotten any ideas from reading a legal case!

Le Noel en France

In France, children leave their shoes in front of the fireplace on Christmas Eve for Pere Noel to fill up with candy and presents. Here is my rendition of this tradition, soon to be on my Etsy shop.

Ball of Yarn

This little cat is tempted by the dangling Christmas tree ball, which she's mistaken for a ball of yarn. Not yet available on Etsy; I am waiting for a clear day where I can get a good picture.

Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer

I'm in another treasury! This time, it's a Rudolph themed one. It expires soon, so click on the picture to see a bigger version. :)