made by michelle brusegaard

Januweary

2012-01-18T14:35:00.009-06:00

I am Januweary. All I want to do is eat chili and take naps. So weary, in fact, that yesterday I totally screwed up the expiration date on my sale email. So if you're on my mailing list (or if you're not, like I care), here's the real deal on the sale:

25% off at Made by Michelle Brusegaard
using the code HERESACODE
expires Sunday, January 22nd at 11 pm CST

I dated the expiration in the email January 16th, imagine my horror! I would have sent out a correction email right away, but I had to go to college. Because I go to college now! (I'm auditing a 200 level printmaking course so I can learn how it's actually supposed to be done.) Fraught with anxiety, I headed out into the 6 below air to drive myself to college, only to find my durn car deader than a doornail. Because I didn't plug it in and my tiny honda fit runs on what appears to be a lawnmower battery. So I had to call my pops to give me a ride to school. Remember, I'm nearly 32. Here's what I did when I got to college:

It's the first state in a plexiglass drypoint print. I don't know what my deal is, but whenever I walk into an art classroom, I compulsively start drawing girls in dresses.

Since my car was on sabbatical all day and night, I stayed in and printed some scarves in new print/color combinations:

Cranberry with Orange Scroll

Steel Blue with Navy Doilies

Athletic Blue with White Peacock Feathers

And how about that sweet new backdrop fabric?!

What a fantastic combination of flowy organicness, houndstooth, and poppin' 70's color! I got it at the St Paul Antique Mall a few weeks ago.

In closing, I present:

Animal passed out next to his favorite catnip casette: Meowtallica.

valentoony

2012-01-12T09:50:00.007-06:00

oh geeeez....it's 2012. The year the world's gonna end. Already! I guess I shouldn't be surprised, things of world ending magnitude always seem to sneak up. Like Valentine's Day. Prepare yourself!

This valentine/pretty much anytime you want to say something nice to someone card features a line from one of my favorite lovey movies evah: Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind:

You can get it here.
Next up:

I'm ape! If you've never called a significant other "monkey," you might just be from another planet (not the planet of the apes). I got the molded plastic ape featured above on a recent trip to the como zoo in st. paul, where they have this awesome souvenir making relic :

So cool! It makes the whole primate building stink like melting crayons though. That is just the kind of human behavior that is going to get us overthrown by the monkeys.
You can get this card in a set of 10 little guys, or a single, if you only have one monkey in your life.

Last on the new valentine horizon: Sometimes its hard to use your real voice to tell someone you love them. Being sincere is tricky. Give me something serious to say and I turn into a Cockney barmaid. So pretend you have bad grammar, let your jaw go a little slack, and say "I done fell in love with you." Because that's what being a mature adult is all about.
Get it heresauce. And more valentines are available herechips.

Here's hoping this meager post gets me back in the blogging saddle. In the meantime, if any of you guys are savvy to instagram, you should find me over there (@madebymb). Communicating with photos is sooo my style!

Like sometimes I just want to post a photo of a well-tiled floor, no questions asked. Gawd, I'm so mysterious!

enter tumbleweed

2011-11-03T11:24:00.002-06:00

hey! it's me, Lazybones McGee. Well, blog lazy anyway. But, I did write something for someone else's blog, so if you're jonesin' for a little shot of michelle, follow this link over to Colette Paperie's blog.
And here's a photo for your troubles:

My niece in a tree:)

illume

2011-09-14T15:48:00.007-06:00

So last year at No Coast Craft-o-Rama, I met a very nice lady from Illume Candles. I was super excited when she said they'd like to use some of my designs on their candles! You are probably familiar with them even if you think you're not--they sell them at boutique-ish places like Patina and larger awesome stores like Anthropologie. These boho jars are my favorite:

They chose two of my designs-first up, a classic mbmb motif-the onions!

(barnes and noble)-mini tin $7.95

twilight vanilla reed diffuser-$30

twilight vanilla boxed glass candle-$30

And just for fun, here's an onion-y thing that I made:

royal blue onion scarf-$25

They also used my henna brocade design, shown in the background of this card from my shop:

wedding card-$3.25

mulled wine diffuser-$30

(barnes and noble) mini tin-$8

boxed glass candle-$30

Anywho, I couldn't be more pleased with how they turned out. I am huffing the twilight vanilla as I type...it's SO intoxicating!

sup

2011-09-12T08:00:00.003-06:00

well, hello! first up: a coupon code that expires at midnight, september 12th, 2011! 20% off using the code FALLINLOVE at michellebrusegaard.etsy.com. Mmmmk?

second up: that's all I got. I've been so busy being summery...I need to go make a bunch of stuff now!

Announcing the North by Midwest Craft Spectacular!

2011-08-01T10:40:00.012-06:00

Yeah! Some lady friends and I are planning grand forks' first ever indie craft fair! It's going to be Saturday, November 19th, 2011. Applications are due September 1st, you can apply here.
Wahoooooo!
And now for some pictures of what I've been up to:

traipsing about the north dakota countryside, one stumbles upon this sign when turning off for the lil' town of larimore. You see, trees don't just grow naturally here....so we have to plant them so stuff doesn't blow away. I just didn't know we were setting any world records!

stock kitty snuggle photo. I have a lot of these, because let's face it, I do a lot of kitty snuggling. There's one sitting on me right now while I type. Which is why I am even blogging in the first place, because I can't get up to put paper in the printer when a cat is sitting on me, lest I disturb the cat. Anyway, sometimes I get trapped under one of them with only my phone, and taking close up photos of their cute heads is all I can do to pass the time until they've had their way with me fully.

Adam Kemp's art show in a barn. I really want the little calf on yellow.

lovely gardens at the RR Angus farm.

view from the farm. In between those two tress, you can see the outline of the ND Mill, which I believe is the tallest building in North Dakota. It looks small, I know....

black leather feather earrings! screen printed in silver. Bonus side note: I made them out of a leather duster I bought at a rummage sale.

Another rummage sale find: A vintage romance story magazine. Love! And has made excellent collage materials for these two new paintings:

the story titles make the best painting titles. that one is: HE REFUSED TO MARRY ME!

HERS WAS A SUSPICIOUS LOVE!

And then I made some more feather earrings in different colors:

tomato red

and turquoise.
then a new earring print:

totem

yahoo! now back to work:)

free shipping and things you can get shipped to you freely

2011-07-18T11:31:00.001-06:00

the title explains it all...right?! enter the code SHIPPINGGRATIS when you check out at michellebrusegaard.etsy.com. Expires Friday July 22nd at midnight CST.
And the things you can get? The usual selection of awesomeness is of course available. And for the new...last week I made a group of braided jersey necklaces. I hope you enjoy!
$19.50

$19.50

$19.50

$19.50

k, stay cool!

chachachanges

2011-07-11T11:13:00.000-06:00

I made lunch! Sure, it sounds like a simple task to most. But to those of you who know me, I mean, realllly know me....wow. I am a creature of food habit. Of course, I'll try new things if someone else is making it. But when left to fend for myself, I take the path of least resistance. For 2 years of my life, I ate a ham, mustard and muenster sandwich on wheat nearly every day. Then there was the corn chowder and fire hot cheetos era. And most recently, 2 slices of wheat toast with peanut butter. But look at the variety I now feast on! Yes, this summer, lunch has become more than just a brief inhalation of nutrients. It's an assortment of fresh fruit, local bakery bread, laughing cow cheese and hummus. I eat it whilst wearing a floaty ivory caftan on a chaise lounge. Just kidding!

And that's not all...just take a looky loo at my workbench. I've starting screen printing on leather. And then making the leather into earrings:

this pair is my current favorite combo.

These dudes are a close second. Yeah, I call my earrings dudes. I think it increases the cool factor by at least 1 point.
And I hate these:

psych! I love them, too.
And i've also been toying with the idea of opening a vintage shop. I just love going junking so much anyway...I figure why not try to collect some stuff that other people might want? I think I already showed you the vintage clutch I have listed? I could go read my last few posts to be sure, but who has the time for fact checking?! Anyway, here's a few things I've found but have not yet listed:

a tooled leather belt with a harvesty buckle.

an old school homemade boxy button up tank.

sweet crisp plaid shirt! love the shape.

And never fear, though these changes are happening, I am carrying on with my core stuff. I just listed my most manly calling cards yesterday:

Sometimes I forget to remember the dudes. The dudes need calling cards, too! Not the earring dudes, though.

pinteresting....yukyuk

2011-07-04T11:27:00.003-06:00

Just a heads up, I'm doing the pinterest thing now, and I'm fully addicted. I guess it's been around for awhile. You should follow me!

I mean, where else can you find an awesome $345 swimsuit like that?!

also, happy birthday america.

summer camp

2011-06-24T10:57:00.019-06:00

well, hello! It's summer. I've been doing summery things.

setting up shop at art fest.

eating funnel cake for breakfast.

making calling cards for moms ( you can buy them here).

hanging out with heathcliff, the scrappy neighborhood stray.

making strawberry cupcakes, with a handy new cheater recipe. And of course, using betty crocker's cream cheese frosting recipe, pretty much the only thing I excel at making. Besides popcorn.

I made the cupcakes for an event at my apartmastudio-the art and wine walk. Then I went out for a brew and found this amazing pacman chip:

!!!!

then lucy michelle and the velvet lapelles played at NDMOA as part of the summer concert series. wahoo!
Then I decided to try my hand at making some necklaces out of my printed jersey bits:

Seems like a summer camp artsy craftsy thing to do, right?

and another.

And I went to the fair! That's me riding upside down with my niece. My desire to be the "cool aunt" will be the death of me someday.

oooh, and then we did the old timey photo thing!:

my favorite part of every fair everywhere! That's my dad on the left, by the way. Last weekend I went to the lake:

(my friend's 4 year old son took the photo using sports mode!) God, I am just oozing summer over here! Oh and one more thing:

Rummage Sailing! I found that sweet clutch, and since I'm all clutched up, I thought I'd try selling something vintage on etsy:

buy it here for $13.50!
Well, at this rate you'll here from me again in about a month. The place where the computer is the second hottest place in my house. Happy Summering!

don't forget to be awesome

2011-05-26T10:41:00.003-06:00

Just look at my dad's glorious beard.

See the resemblance? Get the new father's day card here.

I forgot to mention.....

2011-05-25T09:07:00.004-06:00

25% off! Use the code SOMESUN at michellebrusegaard.etsy.com. Ends tonight at 11 pm CST. Not good on bulk or wedding orders.
And you could get this new thing:

the je ne sais quoi tank!
PS: this sale has been on since last friday. So if you want to hear about this sort of stuff asap, join my mailing list here, like me on facebook or follow me on twitter. mmmmmk?

deck-o-orating

2011-05-23T15:57:00.010-06:00

I have a fun makeover project to share! Sadly I did not have the foresight to take the appropriate, depressing-looking "before" photo. My back yard is sort of a depressing web of steps built to facilitate entrance to three floors of apartments. The upper two floors have decks. I have a lonely stoop and some grass patches, and a curious nook that I decided to turn into a patio. If my dad wasn't a carpenter, well, I would have just put the table and chairs right there on the ground. But my dad has skills, so we built this:

1/3 of the way there. We had to stop so we'd be able to actually lift the thing into his pickup.

There it is placed into the nook. You can sort of get a grasp on the part weed bed/part cement space in that photo.
And here's the deck finished:

Yeah! It went as smooth as possible and I feel I also learned a thing or two about building a platform. Once that was complete, I entered the decorating phase, the best phase of a home project! Of course budget is concern, because I prefer to spend all my money on cute outfits, paint and beer.
Fortunately, where I live things are often abandoned in the backyard where they reside until someone industrious drags them to the trash. Then the things sit near the trash for upwards of a month, when the garbage collector finally caves and drags them away. It is often a slow and painful process for everyone involved, with the exception of the yahoo who left it there, who is footloose and fancy free somewheres. Enter my new deck table:

this particular table has been living in my yard for the past 9 months. I am pretty sure someone sponge painted it with tar.

Tar and maybe some rocks.
So I picked up some spray paint and....voillllllla:

I wish I could say I hand-painted the design, since I am so into patterns and whatnot, it only seems natural. But I bought a stencil. I'm not a superhero! Of course first I sanded and primed the thing. Then I sprayed it with krylon pimento red in satin finish. I used a stencil that I got from michaels, and ceramacoat acrylic in tahiti blue for the design. After it dried I sort of sanded and roughed it up to make it look a little more distressed. And then I finished it with an indoor/ourdoor satin varnish to seal in the acrylic. Go ahead and call me a braggart, but I loooove the way it turned out!

And there you have the finished Super Cool Hangout Zone, as I'm calling it. SCHZ for short. I got the chairs from target for $9. My favorite thing about them is that they were nine dollars. And I got the bamboo rug at pier 1 for 20% off, so it was $32ish. The string lights are also from target (on sale this week, holla!), and whatever else you see is old stuff. I definitely feel like I need more tschotskes. Story of my life. Anyway I gotta go hang out on my deck. I'm deck people now.

hey is for horses

2011-05-14T10:29:00.013-06:00

Hey! It's been awhile. It's one of those nice sunny spring saturdays. I'm drinking coffee out of my favorite mug and staying cozy in a charlotte ronson cardigan. You know the deal. What's happened since I last poured you a hot cup of Michelle? Ratchet up the footrest on your recliner and read on to find out!

I made it to craftstravaganza!
There's me chatting up Angela from i like you. I'm all bundled on account of it was unseasonably chilly. But a fantastico show nonetheless! I took more photos there of my booth and whatnot, they were all blurry....but I've developed this bad habit of not taking my real camera anywhere. Frown. My phone is just so damn fancy. But seriously, total waste of a photography degree.
I got to spend some QT in minneapolis with my lady joj and her kitties:

Her cats hug each other. My cats try to kill each other. Different strokes, I guess.

I made it out to my favorite coffee shop, anodyne, which I go to more now that I DON'T live in minneapolis....
Also since last you read, I went to visit my grandma for easter/her birthday and my niece and I had some extensive photo shoots in the Evansville, MN (pop. 573) city park:

Post trip I had to get ready for an event at the North Dakota Museum of Art. Here's a new painting:

It's combination screen-printing, acrylic and collage. Yep. I also whipped up some totes of the museum's design for the event:

Then Mother's day happened...check out this awesome photo of my mom being crowned the Dalton Queen of Steam 1965:

Isn't she spectacular?
Oh, and we gots dandelions now:

So summer is totally on its way.

ganza! craftstra!

2011-04-26T10:21:00.006-06:00

yea, craftstravanganza time again! the time of year where you type craftstravaganza over and over in emails and facebook plugs, sometimes shortening to c-ganza in a pinch!

Saturday, April 30, 2011
9am-5pm
Free Admission
MN State Fairgrounds Fine Arts Building
Over 70 Amazing Artists
Free Workshops throughout the day
Free Swag Bags for the first 100 shoppers
if you are interested in volunteering, you may email andy & jenna: craftstravaganza@gmail.com

I am super psyched that Joj will be resuming her post as booth buddy! Remember when Joj and I were in etsy's craftstsragabmakrza video the first year I did the show (5 years ago!!)? Allow me to refresh:

Joj appears at about 3:46 and me shortly after. What a difference 5 years makes! When i am talking (like a surfer version of myself?), they show some napkins with a black leaf design I still use...but they look so different...like a first year episode of the simpsons:

Honestly I am embarrassed to post that. In my defense (a little), I was printing with a gocco hand stamp then, which is not exactly exacting. It looks like a cave painting compared to the current version of the design:

So much crisper! At least Matt Groening must know how I feel:

coupon code + new thing to buy

2011-04-19T15:31:00.005-06:00

GO SHOPPING:)
Just in case you already own everything I've made...here's a new scarf for ya:

melange green with raspberry line drops print.

Wahoo!

water + paper

2011-04-15T14:55:00.012-06:00

hey! it's still springing! round these parts that means precipitating and flooding.
there were a couple days last week where I was able to sit comfortably on my stoop wearing only socks:

then it got a lil cool and rainy. then I drove to fargo on sunday:

wowsers. roads? we don't need no stinking roads. just give me a pylon and an Intrepid to follow. PS: that's no back road. It's the datgum interstate. It closed right after I got off.

And here's my stoop today:

Anywho, I AM NOT COMPLAINING. I'm just marveling at the veritable weather buffet. But I am pretty psyched about summertime. Speaking of the future, mother's day is in the future:

that there is this year's new mother's day card:) It's made up of layered doily scans...you know, all those doilies my grandma made? those ones. Also, new with the doily print:

enclosure cards. aaaand, two more new enclosure card styles:

honeysuckle

and feathers.

k, have a good weekend bloggerinos!

spring with hipstamatic

2011-04-04T08:03:00.011-06:00

animal being sweet and me with chipped toenail paint.

spring snow.

monk sand

tibetan monk making a sand mandala at NDMOA

red river melting.

studio rearrangement.

snuggle henri.
aneesa and auntie shelly aka moi.

new tile painting.

another post with pictures of me and a product...and feathers

2011-03-23T14:52:00.007-06:00

I can safely say I've put my feather print on just about everything now. I even got overzealous the other day and printed it right onto my workbench.

See? I took that photo with my new iphone...with the hipstamtic app, which I just downloaded last night. About a year ago, I felt like everyone and their mom had the app. And I was so. jealous. But now I can communicate my vision of the world through the rose-colored 70's glasses I dream through. If that wasn't a dippy thing to say, we may need to look at redefining dippy. Anyway, expect to see a lot of hipstaprints from me from now until I get bored of my new toy (probably never...I love you, iphone!).
So, I put the feathers on another new thing. And just so you all know, I'm growing weary of photographing myself via timer in my living room. For one thing, I have to get dressed. Secondly, I have to make faces and pose and try really hard not to look life a dufus. Or god forbid, a fat dufus. So, if anyone lives in the grand forks area and wants to volunteer...all the free diet root beer you can drink shall be your reward. And apple sauce. I have so much apple sauce.
OK, the new thing:

linen blend triangle scarves with silver feather print. Available in yellow or purple.

By the way, the awesome horse on film t-shirt I am wearing is from deadworry.etsy.com. Here's what it looks like when it's not obscured by a scarf:

time to turn on oprah and do some printing. happy afternoon!

for me, for you

2011-03-22T15:56:00.002-06:00

so, have you guys ever heard of the jewelry company for me, for you? I've been pining over designer kate miss' lovely necklaces for some time now:

Part minimalist brass, part old-school friendship bracelet, 100% fantastic. She makes them in limited quantities and when she updates her shop they get snatched up super fast. As in, too fast for me to score one! Right now she's all sold out...but you can join her mailing list on the side bar of her blog to be notified when there's more. In the meantime, the inspiration for this post was this find:

On clearance in Target's red hot shop for $24.48! what the what!? Originally 69.99. I totally bought one. And to think, I was just stumbling around the website looking to add $10 to my order of a spring coat so I could get free shipping. Target, you never fail me. And I wouldn't mind being part of your red hot shop some day. hint.....hint.
here's the coat I ordered:

and here's the coat I actually really wanted:

bdg anorak
I decided to be a bargain hunter and get the target coat instead, saving myself the much-loved moolah, funny thing is, when you add a $25 necklace to your order, its sort of cancels out most of that saving you did by getting a cheaper coat. I've learned this about myself; this is how I live. But I'm going to get a coat and a necklace in the mail. GO ME!

free shipping, new thing

2011-03-18T12:41:00.004-06:00

Hey! Free shipping time!

Use the code THEFREESHIP through tuesday, march 22nd at 11 pm CST. Good for you international shoppers, too! Doesn't apply to bulk or custom orders, word?

And check out this new dress:

I prefer to wear it layered. Keep me arms covered! You can get it here.

unglued + new scarves + ombre hair

2011-03-02T15:31:00.006-06:00

oh, hi! well I just returned from the salon and I am as happy as a girl that just returned from the salon. I love my dark hair but I wanted to break up that business a lil bit. My hair gets stir crazy, too. So I did a little interbot research and came up with what the kids are calling "ombre" hair, light on the ends and all beachy. Alexa Chung's is very inspired:

It's a major advancement in the whole highlight/lowlight world, I think. much less contrasty.
Rachel Bilson also has a nice do:

And big surprise, jessica biel, the walking statue goddess herself has cute hair, too:

And here's how mine turned out:

Forgive the expression that says "buy my new signature scent." I don't really like my big smile so that's what I end up with. Oh vell. Anyway, it lightened to sort of a reddish honey blonde...I will probably go for lighter down the road, but it was almost black so this was the safe route. Thanks to Holly at avant!
Also shown is a new totem print scarf...I made that pattern by cutting out paper snowflakes. For sale here.
And in other new scarf news:

The aqua peacock feather returns! This time in army green, since they've discontinued olive over at american apparel.

And the bright aqua wallpaper scarf.
Yeahs!

So I making this stockpile for, you guessed, a show!

"Unglued will be taking place from 9am-4pm Saturday, March 5 at the downtown Fargo American Legion! Admission is free - it will be one heck of a good time!

We are excited to let you all know that we will be hosting 2 craft workshops during the fest!
*11am - Put a bird on it Vintage Silhouette Paintings
*2pm - Bird's Nest Brooch from raw wool
Workshops are free but limited to 20-25 people based on supplies!

We also will have an awesome schedule of local musicians hosted by Dive 95!
9:30 - Luke Torgerson from The Season
10:30 - Ian Johnson
11:30 - Haley Rydell
12:30 - The Valiant Nomads
1:30 - Poor Edward
2:30 - Formerly Fiona"

So come if you can!

buhbye

Sticky Things

2011-02-24T10:04:00.006-06:00

I got really excited at the post office today when I saw this:

It's the new love stamp and it's way more adorbs that those pansies in a basket from last year. Plus, it's going to be a forever stamp, so you can just buy a million of them and use them on everything for the rest. of. your. life. They come out May 19th.

Also coming out this year Pioneers of American Industrial Design stamps, available in July. Good job, P.O.!

And here's another thing that's come out this year (effortless segue, no?)

Line drops sticky notes. !

And the reintroduction of the sticky note set:

I am pretty pleased with how those labels turned out...I owe it all to that snappy new font, LiebeErika

where i live

2011-02-19T18:08:00.014-06:00

I was always meaning to give you all a proper tour or my apartmastudio. I got a new drawing by one of my favorite artists {Adam Kemp} this week, which I photographed this morning for facebook bragging purposes...And then I snapped a few more photos of the pad just for YOU!
Here's the new piece above the fireplace:

Also pictured: Umbra Wall Flowers

The painting area is part of the living room...separated only by a tippy metal dividing screen.

corner work table + old painted organ cover you may recall from apartments past.

The view to the other side. Notice the burgeoning collection of tiny things on the divider molding? I thought you might.

the dining room aka screen-printing zone.

see those red chairs? I wish I had a better before photo, but here's how they used to look:

I recovered the seats and painted those beeyatchs. Take that, dull furniture!
And there you have it, pretty much! Well, I have a bedroom too, but I didn't feel like making the bed today. And there's an office, too, but it's not nearly as cool as the rest. One day I will make it nice and show you. Even when it's spic and span it's a polished poo at best.

a plethora of new stuff...and 20% off

2011-02-14T14:16:00.004-06:00

yeah, I said plethora. that's a $10 word for sure. A little overused in my opinion. But so relevant in this case.

20% off with the code SPRUNG at made by michelle brusegaard until friday february 18th at 11 pm CST.

NEW Doily Print scarves-I created this design from my huge collection of doilies, made with love by my Grandma Evie:

army green

cream

tri-blend heather gray

back in stock-feather towels

NEW honeysuckle calling cards

NEW color combination- asphalt with black wallpaper jersey scarf

NEW henna brocade personalized notes

Thanks for looking...and I hope spring is sprungy wherever you are!

i went to spain and all i got was this entire counterful of stuff

2011-02-08T10:03:00.027-06:00

The first thing I did when I got home home was take all the tchotchkes out of my backpack and arrange them in a pleasing manner on my counter. And then I photographed them. And then I went to sleep for a long time.

The souvenirs or course, tell a story...so what did I do?
Well, first I flew to Madrid. Bill had his own seat on the plane! Pony rights!

There's me in front of an unidentified building in Madrid. I mostly walked around this city with my mouth hanging open. Madrid is filled with pattern and ornament, and I plan to exploit that pattern and ornament in my work.

From Madrid we went to Sevilla:

{Bill frolics during a bus ride} The first hostel I stayed in was cool looking:

It was here where I contracted some sort of evil spanish flu. Probably from having my mouth hanging open all the time. But alas I got some mystery cold medicine and carried on. In seville we went to the museum of fine arts where I saw goya, velazquez and el greco! How's that for some name-dropping? In your face!

(the greco)

The second hostel in seville, the traveler's inn (shown above) was super awesome and in an excellent location.

(me in front of a nearby unidentified cathedral). After carousing one night near the hostel...and one too many cruzcampos, I locked us out of our room leaving only the chilly hallway for a bed. oops! ah, memories...

Beer aside, cafe con leche was the official beverage of spainfest 2011. So creamy...so foamy. After being back two weeks, I realize that I have turned into a total coffee snob. The swill that's comes out of my mr. coffee is no longer good enough for me.

From Seville we took the bus to Tarifa, where plans were in the works to ferry to morocco. Alas, the seas were angry and there wasn't enough time to wait them out. So 2 days in this lovely beach town instead...

The restaurant above was so good we ate there both nights. As far as I could tell, it was simply called "restaurant."

Mmmm....pumpkin soup....y CAFE CON LECHE! (not shown: pumpkin soup)

Once again I packed Bill for the road and we headed to granada, in pursuit of the famous Alhambra, moorish palace and fortress grounds, all covered in ornament and whatnot. And on the bus ride to the hotel, I saw signs everywhere advertising a Matisse exhibit there....wha?!? Yes, i am a lucky lady.

The Alhambra had a huge impact on matisse's work...he was a total pattern lover, much like myself (god, we are practically bro and sis!).

Anyway, for some reason or another (distracted by copious beauty, maybe?), I didn't snap pictures of the exquisite tile work. Here's an example from wikipedia:

Oh yeah, and a lot of the tile was in areas where you're not allowed to photograph. Posterity, you know the deal.

Granada in the rain.

froyo in granada. they call m&m's smarties there. which was very confusing for me.

Enfin, back to madrid to fly away! But first a trip the the la latina flea market:

A dude making ashtrays out of soda cans. I got a fanta one, but it was partially crushed in transit:(

A statue. I'm just positive it means something!
And don't forget the the ham. The jamon. There's ham everywhere in spain. I tell you what.

So that's it! I had a fantastic time and I missed you all! Ohhh here's a p.s.:

The first of the spain/matisse-inspired paintings.

peace my friends!

bill murray wanted to say bye

2011-01-16T13:00:00.000-06:00

I was all "c'mon bill, we gotta go to spain now!" but he was all "just take a picture of me on this passport and THEN let's go." fair enough.

viva espana!

2011-01-11T17:11:00.003-06:00

Yep, I am going to Spain! And no, I don't speak Spanish. Huh. I've learned one phrase so far, upon instruction from my dad:

mi padre es un portero. no tenemos dinero.

It means "my father is a janitor. we have no money." That's what I'm supposed to tell my captors. If all goes as planned, I will not get captured, that's what I keep telling him. And if I do happen get nabbed...well I guess I will owe him some chicken wings. Good luck cashing in on that one, pops!

{that's how henri looked when I told her I was leaving her for 2 weeks}

Anyway, I'm throwing a little 2 day sale before I leave so's I can be rich with euros or whatever when I get there. 25% off of whatever you want until Thursday at 11pm CST. Just enter the code HOLIDAYROAD when checking out at my etsy shop.

So buy yourself a little sumpin mbmb, and I will buy myself some tapas, and we'll all be soooo happy!

(btw, those are new)

it's a baby!

2011-01-09T13:01:00.004-06:00

a baby camera that is:

I just got this little guy for my upcoming vacation, in which I plan to only bring carry on. I normally use a canon rebel t1i for EVERYTHING...but that makes me the girl with the big lumpy purse. While it's a role I am comfortable with, I'm going to try out being the girl with the inconspicuous mini satchel for awhile.
In researching what kind of little camera to get, I found that most of them are lame and ugly. Like cell phones. Why can't cell phones have style?
Anywho, I've been attached to the Pentax brand since high school, where each student was issued a pentax k-1000 in communications class.

Joj and I managed to snag the cameras from the school after a disastrous flood wiped out our town. I hung onto it for a few years, but ended up selling it to a pawn shop in oregon for...gasp...$30 bucks! I am sure I was rich with tacos for a week, but that's beside the point. I was left with a pentax hole.

Enter the pentax I10. As you can see it's significantly smaller than my dslr! It's got 12.1 megapixels...which is still shocking to me. My first dslr was like, $700 bucks and had 5.1. Your phone probably has that now. And it's also got a 5x optical zoom with wide angle...which is equivalent to 28-140 mm. So yeah, I am pleased...but so far I have only taken a couple pictures of my cats. Anyway, full review later I guess...I just wanted to show you how cute/vintage/spy-cameray it is.

yours till the anti freezes

2011-01-03T16:52:00.004-06:00

Hey! It's January! My most least favorite month of the North Dakota year. Skip down to the valentines if you don't want to hear me go Debbie downer on you for a paragraph or so.

The month of December is bustling with activity, followed by cozy sits at the foot of a twinkling tree. December is a holiday party with friends old and new, a time to accent your outfit with velvet and drink a skinny latte. Yes, December is basically a Norman Rockwell painting. And January. January is pretty much a month long hangover. The holidays are over. Your friends have left town. It's 1 degree below zero on a good day. The neighbors steal your freshly shoveled parking spot, as if it were their own! As if thankless shoveling elves did it for them. It wasn't an elf, it was me! There are no elves, it's January!

Yes, only one thing can save you in January: Vacation! And I am going to take one...but more about that later. The etsy shop will be closed up starting January 16th for 2 weeks! Ack! Sweat drops! It's like leaving a baby behind...or as close as I can imagine leaving a baby behind would feel. Maybe not. Babies are more important than stores, duh Michelle! So's I want to remind you to stock up on Valentines now if you'll be needing them. And I present, le selection:

this is not a valentine-set of five enclosure cards

this is not a valentine-set of four

i heart you-valentines

I Fancy You-Valentines

Lurve Card

Like Card

hot tramp, i love you so

Check out the full on selection here.

K, I'm going to crawl back under a blanket now.

the royal tennenbaum

2010-12-09T08:30:00.007-06:00

Hot dog I love Christmas!

Therefore I have put up my tree. As an added bonus, it's eliminated that nasty, dirty chair from my living room.

Unfortunately that damn chair had to go somewhere...so now it's in my bedroom, watching me sleep, envying how clean I am. Back to the tree:

I have also established the wrapping color and texture palette for this year's gifts. Yes, I am trying to make that sound fancy. Yes, it means I bought wrapping paper, thank you very much Target.

And No Coast Craft-o_Rama 2010 was a rollicking success! I have a feeling a lot of Minneapolitans will be getting a little mbmb under their tree this year!

So, yeah, thanks to everyone who came out and supported the cream of the crafter's crop this year! I had a blast. For real.
And now I'm off to print up some more scarves since I sold out of a bunch of styles! It's called a happy problem.

so is this, like, when people have sales?

2010-11-26T01:25:00.003-06:00

I am on the black friday bandwagon! Not in the sense that I plan to wrastle my way through crowds in an effort to purchase cheap electronics. In the sense that I am having a sale!

Through Monday night (November 29th, 2010) at 11pm CST, enter the coupon code "XMASFACE" when checking out at ether michellebrusegaard.etsy.com or shopmbmb.com, and receive 20& off your entire purchase!

new packaging gets me out of bed in the morning

2010-11-18T17:47:00.007-06:00

After nearly six months at my current address, I finally got tired of writing my address in the upper left corner of each and every package I shipped out.

So I got an address stamp! And I also had some spinorty little thank you notes made up, oh how they coordinate just so! Honestly, the photo doesn't capture it...but good god there's only like 7 hours of daylight right now. I had to photograph under the "big light." You know, the fluorescent kitchen kind you never really want to turn on because it reveals everyone's true age? Or maybe you do. Some people are into bright lights; I'm not here to judge.
I also decided to treat myself to some high class business cards:

they's double-sided! Yes indeed I am pleased as punch. Notice how I used my vintage backdrop fabric for the cards. I thought you might like that.

And that's not all that came in the mail today! Here's something you can buy:

A new sticky note design, based on the honeysuckle calendar.
{Sometimes I have to threaten myself into running errands.}

AND...I made up some make things totes in a new colorway:

I should have them photographed and listed in the shop tomorrow:)

for your scarfing pleasure.

2010-11-10T15:59:00.006-06:00

I finally got animal the cat to move out of the way, and was able to whip up 3 new scarves yesterday. Well, actually, i whipped up 36, but you know, three new designs. Actually they're not new designs, but rather new color combinations of existing designs. Actually, that whole first sentence was a lie. Including the part where Animal moved out of the way. I actually worked around him and he tried to eat my toes out of frustration. ACTUALLY.
So here's them scarves:

Asphalt Gray with Yellow Partridges
Heather Brown with Chocolate Feathers

Navy with Aqua Wallpaper Print
Now let's talk about that awesome background fabric. I found it at the thrift store (ARC if you're local), and got at least five yards for the low low price of 10 bucks! I used some of it for a table cloth for my little booth at the third street gallery, I'll keep some yardage for backdrop purposes....and I have no idea what to do with the rest. I'm thinking maybe some button style pony holders....but that's only going to take up a half yard at the most. So let me know if you have any ideas!
Speaking of my little booth at the third street gallery, if you are in the area, you should check it out:

310 Kittson Ave • Grand Forks, ND • 701-757-3333

Gallery Hours:
Monday - Closed
Tuesday - 12:00 - 4:00 pm
Wednesday - 12:00 - 4:00 pm
Thursday - 12:00 - 4:00 pm
Friday - 12:00 - 4:00 pm
Saturday - Closed
Sunday - Closed

There's some great artists in there right now...I'll have to go bck and take some photos to share with you, sooooon:)

cat day afternoon

2010-11-09T14:49:00.000-06:00

that's where I need to stand to print.

not for the faint of zach

2010-10-28T09:34:00.002-06:00

Well hello! Yep, still in North Dakota, still October. Yep. There was supposed to be some kind of nasty storm yesterday...turned out to be a bigger letdown than Y2K. No snow. Why do i want snow? I do not know why I want snow. I do not like snow on my shoes...I do not like snow when I cruise. I do not like snow on my car, I do not like snow when I am walking very far. Green eggs and ham I could take or leave, though.

ahem.

now that that suess-esque awkwardness is out of the way. Everything in my etsy shop is 20% off until Friday at midnight. Bargain hunters, it's you time to shine!! And you don't have to enter a code or anything because I used the fantastic new Etsy on Sale app to set it up! Even if you don't have an etsy shop, you should check out the site to browse all the great deals.

And lastly, because everything funny I've ever learned comes from Joj, I am now addicted to Zach Galifianakis. Anyway, it's a little PG 13, so don't watch it if that's not your thing. But seriously, it's worth it. Chewbacca in a Miata? Yes!

boots and coats

2010-10-22T09:19:00.003-06:00

I'm not going to get really creative with this post, and it's not going to have anything to do with arts OR crafts! It's just about boots and coats, two things I am obsessing over at the moment.

BOOTS

nine west maeble

nine west bradley in red leather
both of those are currently 30% off AND have free shipping!

Sorel Tivoli
Because eventually it's going to snow, and these would like hott with some skinny jeans tucked into them. Or I think so anyway....

Sausalito boot I actually already have these in blue. Such a classic.

Peek-A-Boo Petals Boots

COATS

Lab:CO Funnel Neck Coat

What a Trooper! Coat

Billabong Audrey Womens Jacket in Indigo. I got this one!

Acorn Jacket by LittleHouses

Scoop-Pocket Knee Coat
K, that's all for now.

your face is a blog post title

2010-10-13T08:35:00.005-06:00

hey there! it's still autumn! there's still no snow in god's country! although today everything smells like french fries out there. henri the cat came home this morning smelling like she just came off the line at jack in the box. and we don't even have those here! it's north dakota.
anyway, things are chugging along. i took a road trip to duluth this weekend. here's the view from my friends back porch:

it's a pretty sweet little town and sometimes mbmb thinks about relocating there. but who knows? i am open to suggestions for a new headquarters, that's for sure. right now i am looking forward to a winter of frozen nose hairs. seriously, it gets so cold here that ice crystals form IN the clouds. And then make these wicked prisms on either side of the sun:

Yeah, they call them sun dogs. And if you see them, you should just stay inside. go back to sleep. it's not worth it.
anywho, today i'm going to iron, like, 50 scarves and 100 dishtowels whilst watching law and order on netflix. why? well, funny you should ask, i was just about to tell you!
This weekend it's THE BIG ONE christmas craft show in Fargo. The details:

fargo civic center-$2 admission
October 16th, 2010
Saturday 9 am - 7 pm
October 17th, 2010
Sunday 11 am - 5 pm

I'm pulling out all the christmas stops so get up into that auditorium and buy some stuff if you're local! if not, head over to my etsy shop and check out some of the new additions:

teal and gold jersey scarf

the partridge scarf!
and other stuff, too. you should probably just go look. give yourself a little break.

farewell september

2010-09-30T08:03:00.008-06:00

It's fall. Leaves are swirling and twirling. I'm wearing socks. And a long-sleeved shirt. And a hoodie. And a beanie. Because I'm in North Dakota and the landlord has neglected to turn on my heat.
But that's beside the point. The real point is that THIS IS THE MOST WONDERFUL TIME OF YEAR. Except for Christmas. If Christmas and autumn were ever to merge into Chrismautumn, well that would be my Xanadu. People could exchange presents atop piles of crunchy leaves. Maybe that's what they do in California already.

Anywhey. Onward. So I have been pretty epically busy this last week. And amidst that I decided to go bonehead and give my closet a facelift. What?! What a non-essential thing to be doing in the middle of being busy. It's actions like this that occasionally make me concerned for my mental health. But the closet looks pretty cool now, so I am letting it slide.
Anyway, I had to pick up a few things in order to make this work. I was mainly looking for a solution to clean up my jewelry, because there's a lot of it.

So i picked up this old printer's drawer, which just so happened to fit perfectly atop my dresser. If you're local, they've got some over at the Plain and Fancy Antique Mall and they're on sale for 22 bucks!

Also acquired was this old manly neck tie rack, which doubles nicely as a necklace rack.

I also scored the wall fabric yesterday at the thrift store. It's a super heavy upholstery that I haphazardly nailed to the wall.

Anyway, it was a lot of work. I also reorganized my clothes...but who wants to see photos of stacks of sweaters with fuzzballs on them? Not me.

Once I got that monkey off my back, I was able to make up some new holiday cards:

Partridges!

I know, right?!
I also made the partridges into a screen yesterday:

Next up is printing those partridges in metallic gold onto some forest green jersey. Are you feeling it? I'm feeling it!

Last but not least, there's FREEEEEE SHIPPPPPING in the shop until 11pm CST tonight!

did somebody say calendar?

2010-09-09T12:01:00.013-06:00

Calendar design fest 2010 is finally over! For the last week I've been holing up, copying and pasting, drawing and erasing, and double-checking dates. Well, I should say I've done that for about 2 hours out of everyday. The rest of the time I'm lamenting over the task at hand, distracting myself with kitten videos, gum-chewing and shoe-gazing.
Anyway, it got done. So here's the instant classic, the soon to be ye-olde-desktop-calendar:

And you can even buy it now!

And, just in case you missed my tweeting and facebooking about the new poster calendar:

Available here.

OK! And now I will shut up about calendars for awhile.

p.s. if you are wondering what that fantastic font is, it's called lady rene, and you can get it here.

the yellow umbrella!

2010-09-06T07:55:00.011-06:00

So I went to this really awesome shop {the yellow umbrella} in Bemidji in MAY! And now that it's September, I thought it was time to blog about it.

It's run by these two lovely ladies, and is located at 422 4th St SE and Wood, Bemidji. It's an old old church, which makes for a fantastical shopping environment, methinks. Plus the ladies are merchandisers extraordinaires!

it's an exquisite mix of handcrafted lovelies and vintage finds. Pretty much my favorite combination EVER.

yep, that's nintendo remote soap.

And here's what I snagged:

vintage nesting bowls for my new apartment. Which is totally not new anymore. I am living in an old hat by now, and still haven't posted my usual plethora of home decor photos. Bejeez!

Hey, but I did re-issue last year's poster calendar for 2011:

You can get it here. Today I am going to get cracking on the desktop calendar, and possibly a new poster design for 2011. That is, if I am able to restrain myself from watching Project Runway on Hulu all day. We'll see!

c'mon down and save

2010-08-20T10:36:00.004-06:00

hey!
I am having a sale!
you are having a hard time figuring out what to buy with all your money!
let me help you.

perhaps an uber-autumnal feather scarf?

Or maybe it's time to get your proverbial ducks in a row with some new calling cards?

what's that you say? I'm fresh out of stickers, you say? Nestle in under Michelle's wing...I got some stickers for ya.

So here's how the sale works:
25% off!

purchases totaling $20 or more.

to use:
at michellebrusegaard.etsy.com
Place your order and enter the code "FEATHERMAIL" into the "message to seller" box when checking out. Proceed to Paypal and make your payment, and I will issue you a refund for the difference shortly thereafter:)
If you prefer, you may request a revised invoice reflecting the discount. Enter the code "FEATHERMAIL" into the "message to seller" box, along with "inovice request," and I will send a paypal invoice to your email address for you to pay.

at shopmbmb.com
Simply enter the code "FEATHERMAIL" into the discount code box when checking out.

*offer ends Monday, August 23rd at 11pm CST. Does not apply to custom, bulk,or wedding orders.

things i got

2010-08-06T07:22:00.008-06:00

I am back from Renegade san francisco! And I don't think I've woken up yet! So instead of starting off with a detailed travelogue, I'm just going to share with you the things I bought, because maybe you're into buying things and you want to buy them, too:

Laser-cut felt earrings by feisty elle.

pheasant feather earrings by scarlett garnet.

Picnicky earrings by Paper and Gold.

Women's Organic Geology Wave Tee by raeburn ink. Actually mine's blue with white ink.

Fox tee by gnome enterprises.

Flowers tee by Paste.

Hoodie by Turk + Taylor.

Deep breath. There's more.

Prints and bottle opener by Berkley Illustration.

The Illustrated Man Print by The Black Apple.

Ice Cream Man wood print by Sean Finocchio, our most excellent booth neighbor. And me looking very back to school.

And that will be all for today. Because now I have to make some more stuff to sell to support my indie craft habit.

oops!

2010-07-25T08:32:00.003-06:00

I forgot to tell you all...scarves are $20 thru the end of today! So go shopping...and if you would like to receive these sorts of notifications conveniently in your inbox, sign up for my mailing list here.

And here's a link to the newsletter.

What's that? There's no photo to go with this post? Au contraire. El wrongo.

Doing all this moving has forced me to look through endless rubbermaids of old photos. Remember when you had a film camera and you'd end up with random prints like this? Now I just delete these snippets-o-life before they ever even have a chance. As near as I can tell, this is in my old 88 suburban, with my old bike, and a chocolate cake. Who puts a cake on a bike wheel? Me, I guess.

I'm off to iron some fantastic new creations...laterino, readeronimos!

dirty dirty

2010-07-23T06:55:00.008-06:00

summertime....when the livin's eaaaaaaaasy. so easy to not ever visit your blog and let your readers know what's shakin'. so easy to lounge on the stoop instead of making dishtowels for the masses.

If this summer so far was a nancy drew novel, it would be called "the curse of the dirty chair." that's the dirty chair above. I got it at one of my favorite junk-shopping locations outside of grand forks, complete with bird poo embellishment and for the sweet price of thirty dollars. I had high hopes for this chair. I took it to my parents' house and shampooed it three times. But it's cursed. Even though I can remember cleaning it, it will forever be the dirty chair to me.

with a decorative pillow? still dirty. Also, what's with that acid green color? It wasn't that color in the barn. Color-morphing dirty chair, you freak me out!

perhaps a pillow AND a blanket could help? Nope. Still dirty. Still cursed. Still staring at me from across the room. And the real kicker:

The dirty chair being rejected by Henri the cat. Not that she's super dirty...but coming from an animal who walks around in her own toilet for awhile after she uses it, this is some pretty heavy rejection.

I am hoping to replace it with this chair when the time is right:

peace out, summertimers!

beaucoup de feathers

2010-06-30T13:26:00.004-06:00

this is what i've been working on today:

an alternative to the fancy pants peacock feather, these feature some more pedestrian bird feathers, with lots of detailed line work. I'm printing them in chocolate brown ink on dishtowels.

mmmhhmmmm. that's what I am doing.

and speaking of feathers, i've been lusting over these:

vintage aged brass metal leafy feather hair clips by sproutstudio.

and also this Obi Sling Bag by hierapparel.
apparently feathers are smoking hot right now! anyhoo, mine should be in the shop for you to purchase in a few weeks:)

cow-tipping and free-shipping

2010-06-29T08:45:00.003-06:00

free shipping! until thursday the 1st at 11pm CST. go here.

Now on to the cow tipping.

Actually, there isn't any cow tipping. The whole thing was a lie. I just wanted you to read about my free shipping special. But doesn't my coffee look pretty today?

la-dee-dah

2010-06-18T08:07:00.006-06:00

So I woke up this morning, went outside to check the hail damage on my car, and found a baby shoe and a full can of copenhagen on my stoop. I don't know what it means. But I do know it's better than the nightmare I was having that someone stole my TV.

And then it occured to me: "I should photograph and list some new paintings for sale." Please for to enjoy:

The Golden Plover-$110

Wormhole aquatic-$120

Circles of Ever-$140

Water-$110

super sneaky preview

2010-06-15T08:15:00.003-06:00

Hello, strangers! I'm here to share with you a super secret sneaky preview of my new-apartment-decorating-progress:
What do you think? I'll be posting more, better-lit photos in the near future, but I feel as though I'm off to a good start.
I've been hanging all my art "salon-style," which means I'm already out of lovelies to cover my walls. Lightbulb! Etsy art-searching commence:

Birdhouse - 8x10 Handprinted art print by jenskelley.

No Parking on the Dance Floor-mixed media print on wood by retrowhale.

Willamette Valley by ejwarhus.

Underwater Fortunes by aliherrmann.

Un gachis de peinture (a mess of paint) by Brooke Wandall original oil painting on canvas.

Layers - Original Painting by erindollar.

Uncultured Artist by michelleramin.
Whelp, that's all for today....I'm off to cut a mountain of paper!

p.s.

2010-06-01T18:38:00.003-06:00

Did I mention I'm having a $20 scarf sale until Wednesday at 11 pm CST? Well, I am. Take a peek at the scarves here.

And please enjoy this random photo of vintage lace on display at Bonanzaville, USA.

what about michelle?

2010-05-31T10:47:00.010-06:00

Again with the apologies for not being blogospherically present as of late! But soon that will come to an end and I'll be all up in your business, LIKE, ALL THE TIME! Or, just as much as I used to be anyway...which wasn't anywhere near all the time.
So, I'm moving! Hence the limited availability for posting. Here's a sneak preview of some of the awesomeness that is my new apartment:

It's in the main floor of a neat old house. And it has a non-functioning fireplace! Which is fine with me since I am pretty sure I'm too neurotic to start a fire inside my house anyway:)

Yeah, I'm pretty much obsessed with the original fire place. If you look closely, you can see REAL patina on that metal! Oxidation always impresses me. Looking closely, you can also see someone was overzealous with foam insulation in there.

As you can see, the kitchen is open to the living room and is all nice and open and airy.

View towards the front. Just a lonely record player in there right now.

What will be the new office.

The dining room, aka the screen-printing studio.
There you have it! Now to pack up all my belongings and ramble on. Oooh...but one more thing:

crappy photos of a transplendid rug I scored for my new place, and for cheap!

Hang in there friends, I'll be back before you know it.

it's me

2010-05-05T19:20:00.005-06:00

Hello my blog pals. It's been awhile. Sometimes real life gets too real for the blog, I'll tell you all about it sometime. In the meantime, pour all those emotions you're feeling about missing me into some guilt-free FREE SHIPPING shopping.

(you know the drill when I don't have a photo to go with a post...so here's me circa 1985)

And the details:

FREE SHIPPING!
No need to enter a code, I've already removed the shipping:)
This offer is good through Sunday, May 9th, 2010 at 11pm CST.
Good for standard shipping service (first class mail) only.
Does not apply to custom,bulk or wedding orders.

Visit the shop...you can do it right now if you want, just click here:)

the lineup

2010-04-20T10:29:00.004-06:00

Holy moly have I booked myself! I just got my last notification letter for summer shows, so I thought I'd share the line up with you in case I am coming to your town:

St. Paul Craftstravaganza!
Saturday, May 1
9 AM - 5 PM
MN State Fairgrounds - Fine Arts bldg

Grand Cities Art Fest
June 12 - June 13, 2010
Grand Forks, ND

Fargo Downtown Street Fair
Thursday, July 15 (10:00am - 9:00pm)
Friday, July 16 (10:00am - 9:00pm)
Saturday, July 17 (10:00am - 5:00pm)

The 3rd Annual Renegade Craft Fair in San Francisco
July 31 + August 1, 2010
Fort Mason Center Festival Pavilion

Island Park Show
August 28 & 29, 2010
10:00am-5:00pm
Island Park, 2nd Ave & 7th St S, Fargo, ND

Wow. Compiling that list just gave me some heart palpitations.

Incidentally, I will look to my newest tote bag design for inspiration:

I'm happy with out how it turned out...it really gives me that vintage "weekly Reader" feeling. And it will be available in the shop once I take some decent photos:)

crafty!

2010-04-16T20:39:00.005-06:00

Crafty! Loud, Proud and Crafty!
I am just popping in to give you a sneak preview of a new design...printed on tank tops for your summertime happiness! Goodness I'm exclamation pointy tonight!
These are unisex tri-cranberry heather American Apparel tank tops, and are going to be available in sizes XS-XL so everyone can have one:) Better product photos are in the near future.
I also printed the design on some tote bags, several of which I sort of screwed up. I'm kind of a tote novice...the parts of the tote where the handles are attached are not a nice flat surface for printing, so I ended up with some irregularities on the top of the print. {A before photo would have been a nice touch here.} But then I fixed them by covering up the oops with....wait for it....SEWING!

Can you believe it? I really don't have the patience for sewing, but I knew I had to do something, so I scared up some vintage calico scraps and got to work. And I cursed and struggled with the bobbin and slammed the presser foot on my finger a bunch of times. And I used fabric glue, so everything was sticky. By the end I was covered in several tiny threads and had mistakenly sewn many of the totes closed. It was a long day in the studio.

Nonetheless I am pleased with how they turned out.

the ugliest dresser in the world.

2010-04-14T08:44:00.009-06:00

Have you ever had a piece of essential furniture that you hate with every fiber of your being? Forced to stare at it day after day, you are reminded that no, you can't have what you want. Instead you must live with your albatross.

Could I have styled this photo better? Sure. Could I have tucked all the clothes into the drawers? Yep. But would it have helped? No. Because this dresser is bad to it's particle board bone. It's bad enough that's it all covered in icky laminate. But then they had to go and do this:

A shiny golden handle, to finish off the classy look. Now, my hatred may seem disproportionate. But I am sure that if you think about it, you've got an ugly dresser of your own. Maybe yours is a soiled papasan. Or a chunky futon. Maybe you bought some stacking cubes with corrugated plastic doors from target 10 years ago and made them into a night stand. Oh wait, that's me again. But we need places to sit, places to store, places for people to sleep when they come visit. So we must suck it up and be the change we want to see in our living spaces. So last weekend, we went ghandi on on this SOB!

Spraypaint!

And for the drawer pulls, we used an "instant antiquing" kit, where you first paint a copper finish, and then put on the chemical stuff that makes it turn green. (see it here).
Anyway, I feel a lot better about life now.

And I have just one more pick-me-up to share:

Epic Cross Stitch! And see more epic cross stitch over at the Huffington Post.

underwater adventures

2010-04-08T10:12:00.012-06:00

Hi there! It's still spring. It's still springy! Jesse has taken to covering the back yard with bird seed every morning. That's what my office window overlooks, and so, I am delighting in the clamor of tiny birds and scrappy red squirrels. Right now, as I type! Yesterday amidst all the mayhem, a bird ran right into the window. And it's not one of those clean windows you can see through.
When I am not staring out the window, I am still preparing for Craftstravaganza and paint/printing my heart out.
I've got 7 pieces done now in what I am tentatively calling the "Imaginary Sea" series. I'm hoping to think of a more enigmatic way to say "imaginary sea." And when you hear it, it will blow your mind, and you'll say "how clever she is!" Ahem. So here they are:

{detail}

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Anyway, I out of supplies and moolah today...so I am going to go scour thrift stores for some kind of substrate. Wish me luck!

goodness i'm busy

2010-03-31T16:00:00.013-06:00

Ah, spring has sprung, and it's springy. I have been working like some kind of springtime elf in my basement in preparation for a plethora of spring and summer arty events, firstly the st.paul craftstravaganza, which is Saturday, May 1st.

What have I been making, you might ask?

New Peony Napkins, for one thing. And when I have a minute, I am totally going to make the fabric in the background of the above photo into a valance for my kitchen.

Next up: the best mom ever card! I just designed this baby up this morning, and I'm pretty much in love. Note the awesome embossed metallic envelopes. I found them over at clearbags.com. Of course, I'm going to have to make another version for my mom, because she strongly dislikes the color red....

And I also made the design into a thank you card...why not, I says?

In other news, I'm attempting to paint just as much as I craft in the next month. So I had this idea...of a series of paintings based on what populates brackish waters (places where freshwater meets saltwater). I like the idea of two worlds colliding, and observing the unique creatures that live in that constant mix-up. So when I went to the Bay Aquarium in SF in January, I did a lot of staring, since they have brackish action in the bay.

That pink stuff was everywhere...I don't know what it's called:/

So the one above is unfinished...I was really struggling to communicate that ethereal sea quality mixed with the sort of ornate, repetitiveness of the sea life. The canvas just felt too nubby and the paint too painty. Lightbulb! Screenprinting.

So I switched gears in media and theory. I decided that since I'm not a scientist, I don't like researching sea creatures. I mostly just like looking at pretty things. So now I'm inventing my own sea life instead, making them into a billion screens, printing them, and then acrylic painting in, on and around them.

I'm also making them on hardboard instead of canvas...so much smoother!

None of those are finished, but I thought I'd share since I'm all excited about the progress:)
Back to work!

The Madness Never Stops.

2010-03-25T15:56:00.004-06:00

I'm so crazy, I'm slashing prices. I don't have a graphic to go with my news, so here's a picture of Henri the cat on a vintage quilt I got for $6 last month:

I sure hope you're all cat people.
Anyway:
SCARF SALE
All scarves have been marked down to $20 (from $25) at michellebrusegaard.etsy.com and shopmbmb.com. Sale ends Sunday, March 28th at 11pm CST.
Cover your neck already!

things got moved.

2010-03-23T16:05:00.010-06:00

I may have mentioned that I was going to be in town last weekend, in the town of Fargo. Since we moved here, I am pretty sure we spend at least three weekends a month out of the town of Fargo. So I found myself with some free time and some built-up interior design tension...and voila.

The living room got a makeover! Makeover montage! Too bad I don't have a "before" photo. Foresight is a virtue.
So I've been gathering some treasures new and old that needed to be placed...starting with the new ikea lamps:

Freaking adorable, er, I mean chic...right?! (see the matching floor lamp in the right corner below)

And if you're a regular reader, I'm sure you'll recognize the hanging floor to ceiling lamp in the left corner. If not, know that it awesome. Know that it fought it's way up and in to the living room. Know that it looks perfect next to my JFK portrait. Also introduced from the studio is that red chair in the corner. It replaced a super comfy, yet sadly hulking red chair that has gone to live in the basement/studio with it's old pal, Ugly Mission Style Floor Lamp (not pictured).
Also of note is this fantastic new pillow:

A birthday present from the ever lovely Joj, purchased at Patina.

There's vertical blinds hidden behind those curtains. And hidden they'll stay!

Also from my birthday, a Nikki McClure Print Jesse got at Ecce here in Fargo.
Another new piece of art:

Some sweet embroidered deer I found at the Antique Mall in Moorhead. Stitched at the bottom in lieu of a signature it says "Mother 1941." Pretty Darn precious if you ask me.
There you have it. Now maybe I'll go sew some curtains. And then you'll get to hear all about that, too.

ADDENDUM
Joj wondered what happened to the records...Here you go, m'lady!

hey, you.

2010-03-20T10:25:00.006-06:00

Hi! Well, I turned 30, and then I dropped off the face of the blogosphere for a few weeks:) What's happened, you might ask? Well, first there was the actual birthday-day.

Jesse decided to do a polar plunge for ND special olympics...in my honor.

Which was great, because it was my heart's desire to see him jump into icy cold waters while a bunch of people looked on. Take that! Just kidding, I'm totally not that person. But it was pretty fun to watch. And the happy birthday shirt was soooo sweet. And yes, I made it.
Fast forward to the following friday: picture me in a city...one with tall buildings and a penchant for grain belt...one with a giant cherry and neighborhoods with names like "tangletown." You guessed it, Minneapolis. Which meant one thing:

Ichiban's! Avec le Joj, of course, aaand my cousin tammi came to celebrate as well. A delicious triangle of banter and sushi. Mmmm...Happy Birthday emblazoned in spicy mayo.

Mmmm....spicy tuna hand rolls and a....chocolate donut? Yep, my special birthday treat.

Anyway, it can't be my birthday week forever, I had to move on. So I got this book for my birthday:

I got really pumped about figuring out needlework when I saw this kit on etsy:

It's made by emilypeacocktapestry. Isn't it fantastic? Anyway that one's not crewel exactly, but more cross-stitch. But the thing I love about crewel is the super chunky satin stitch:

As shown on a lovely vintage pillow from defdif. Also, that pillow is only $12!
I'm working on learning all the stitches...unfortunately I wasn't able to find the lovely, thick wools you're supposed to crewel with, so I had to settle for regular old embroidery floss and some cross-stitchy type fabric. It's just practice, anywho.

(that's my practice). It's quite relaxing, I recommend it.
Well, it's Saturday, and I'm not out of town...I'm going to go clean my house and gocco some invitations for a pal. Maybe head to the bookstore later, if there's time.

stickers!

2010-03-04T12:31:00.008-06:00

I woke up this morning with a sense of purpose. Then I drank some coffee and became alert and forgot what the purpose was. So I decided to make stickers! I have been cooking up the idea of this sticker pack for awhile.

There's 8 mailing labels printed on kraft sticker paper, and 20 circle stickers.
Among them, this one's my favorite:

I really hope that the phrase "you're stone fox" resonates with others. Mostly it makes me think of the Virgin Suicides, in which Josh Hartnett refers to Kirsten Dunst as a "Stone Fox." Or was it the other way around? In any case, there was something about him swaggering around in his 70's slacks that made the phrase stick.

Available in the shop now:)

And now to discover my purpose...

sharing is caring

2010-03-03T10:17:00.007-06:00

I went a little wild on feathers yesterday, here's the results:

holy moly!

and a skirt, too!

I'm crazy! Anyway, it's all in the shop now:)

and....

2010-02-26T10:02:00.005-06:00

michellebrusegaard.etsy.com

Studio Redux

2010-02-25T09:47:00.008-06:00

Ah, spring cleaning...well, it's not really spring yet. I guess I should say-stir-crazy-the-walls-are-closing-in-on-me-cleaning. So, I decided to attack the studio.

The long view isn't that pretty, but I swear it's better than it was.

There's a sewing table now! Instead of a table covered with rubbermaids of un-ironed scarves. My favorite part about this wall is the old french tourism ad (on the right). It reads "If you love life, you'll love FRANCE!" So don't bother going if you only like life.

And the screen-printing nook! This is really where I spend most of my time. So I did myself a favor and and made it so I don't print facing the wall anymore. I'm often listening to my ipod...so I spend a lot of time whipping around thinking there's someone behind me. Also, now I can watch wife swap while printing, instead of just listening! Seriously, I hate wife swap...but somehow I end up watching it in the studio A LOT. Damn you, Lifetime!

And of course the 1960's relaxing nook is still intact, just on the opposite wall. This is where I put the dirty pillows...not dirty pillows a la Carrie, but as in pillows that are no longer suitable for living room use. It's like a pillow old folks home.

It's also where my shelf-o-tinys lives. Of course you can't really make them out behind the glare of those teardrop globes. Geez, did I takes these photos with a cell phone or what?

And the painting station...where I am actually working on a painting! I'm working on a series exploring the undersea life in brackish waters. Working on as in, that's the first one.
Speaking of painting...I'm off to fill out applications for summer arts shows. I wish I could paint them an application instead.

new new new

2010-02-22T15:20:00.003-06:00

Hey Pals. Just popping in to share a few new napkin patterns available now thanks to my yudu!

This one's called "leaf specimens," and it's available here.

And that's my new paisley, available here.
I've been continuing my "learn traditional screen-printing better" experiment, but I have been failing thus far. I need a red light bulb and a scoop coater. We'll talk about it again once get those. Because basically, so far I've made a somewhat patterned emulsion blob.

Home Sweet Joj's Home

2010-02-17T11:32:00.018-06:00

So this past weekend I headed via amtrak to Minneapolis for a super top secret Joj visit. It was her birthday last Wednesday, so I needed some one-on-one qt with m'lady. And since she just moved into a beauteous new apartment, we had a lot of work to do. But first a little celebrating:

Sushi at Ichiban's was the first order of business. Unfortunately as is the norm, we were displeased with photographs taken by others, and therefore all I have to share with you is the above lovely rose made by Juice the sushi chef. Happy Birthday, Joj!

Things got crazy after that and we ended up with eyebrow pencils mustaches.
Anyway, onto the decorating stuff. So, this apartment is a real old-timer, complete with one of those schmancy built in buffets:

Immediately after I snapped that photo, the cat in the top left knocked the Fleet Foxes record onto the cat below, and everyone sprang off of the buffet. Troublemakers!

Here's a snippet of the couches Joj got an awesome deal on. The sweet owl pillow is from Lolley's Curiosties.
We hit up some thrift stores and found this awesome waves painting:

Eventually there will be a record stand under there. We feel that it looks too fancy with that little table under it. It's all "look at me, I'm a fancy wall, here's my vahse, la-dee-da!"
Next up, we needed to construct a photo wall. Everyone one needs a photo wall, especially on the way to the can, you know, for guests.

Almost all of those frames were obtained at thrift stores, I'm guessing there's about $10 invested into this wall.
And then onto the REAL project. Blik wall graphics for the bathroom, in iron vines.

At first we were really perplexed, and there was a lot of swearing going on as we attempted to carefully peel the backing off of the decals. But then we got into the blik zone.

Aren't they awesome? I want to stick them to everything now...the beauty is, they don't look like big stickers. They have a nice matte finish that would trick the average viewer into thinking you stenciled or god forbid painted those babies right on the wall.

We also scored that sweet vintage bath rug at one of the many thrift stores we went to.

It's pretty much the coolest bath rug ever.

And for the kitchen, a loverly valance from target...on clearance for $4.48. The tension rod cost more than that. Holla!

More thrift store artwork in the kitchen.

Oh, how I love that floor. I think I might be in the minority on this one, but it's just...perfect. And the lil' yellow rug sets it off just so. Oh, and the towel on the stove is from i like you.
I love her apartment so! Now I want to redecorate my house, of course. But alas, there's other crap to do. And now I'm off to do crap:)

warning: clip show

2010-02-04T18:43:00.016-06:00

time flies when you're not blogging...it really does.

During this not-super-busy-time of the year, I like to catch up on things that I normally never get to. So I've been working on photo albums. It's been over two years and so i have upwards of 600 photos to place into albums.
Allow me to share with you some photos and together we will walk down memory lane:

remember when I went to jamaica two years ago? That was nice.

that was the same year when craftstravaganza in st. paul was really cold. note I am wearing mittens.

then jesse graduated from law school. good show, jess!

then there was some "fishing" with my niece in the summer of aught eight.

but really it should be called "snailing" when she's involved.

That fall, Joj and Bill Murray and I went to Chicago for the renegade craft fair. That was the year when there was all that god awful rain. Over 6 inches, and no, I will never stop lamenting.

Shortly after, I found my cats sleeping in alarmingly close proximity without trying to eat each other.

I retired from paper source, becoming a full time employee of made by michelle brusegaard! To celebrate, I made deviled eggs for the first and only time. I would go on to be known for my delicious wasabi deviled eggs as a result.

I painted a whole bunch and had a show at the third street gallery.
I went to karaoke with joj a lot. And had blonde hair.

I saw lake superior in the spring.

I saw my first in person croquembouche and ate some pieces of it at a friend's wedding in Cincinnati.
Then a bunch of other interesting things happened and I moved to Fargo. I can't be looking through photos all night, I've got me some project runway to watch, and some chicken and sweet potatoes to eat. If that sounds tasty to you, you should check out the recipe from real simple.
Peace Out!

get your heart on

2010-01-26T09:54:00.004-06:00

Hello Blog Friends!

Hello Blog Friends!
I heart you, and so:
I'm offering 20% off of your entire purchase!
The code is "VALENTINE,"
and it's good through Thursday the 27th of January, 2010.
to use the code on etsy:
place your order, and enter the code "VALENTINE" into the "message to seller"
box at the time of purchase. Then wait for me to send you a revised paypal
invoice before making your payment.

to use the code at shopmbmb.com: place your order, and enter the code "VALENTINE" into
the "discount code" box. The amount will automatically be deducted.
*Please note this offer does not apply to custom orders, invitations or save the dates, and cannot be combined with quantity discounts.

So, I'm back to work, but I would quickly like to share this:

I saw this and more spectacular Richard Diebenkorn Paintings when I was at the SFMOMA....you should click on his name. It will link you to google images and then you can just peruse the wonder, instead of reading some wiki article written by a grumpy art history major. J/K, I love art history majors. But seriously, you really only need the images with this dude.

I'm back!

2010-01-20T10:11:00.004-06:00

So I went to San Francisco and Portland and all I got was this lousy pantone mug.

Just kidding, this mug's not lousy! It's the quills! I got it at the SFMOMA gift shop. It was extremely hard to choose between pantone 5757C and 3272C. But as you can see, I chose the former. Obviously.

Anyway, now I want them all. I can't believe I've never seen or heard of them before. I feel so naive, like a small town girl living in fargo, making her way to the big city and being intrigued by its wondrous and colorful mugs. That's me in a nutshell.

Anyway, I did see and do and get a lot more things on my trip, but alas I will have to post them later as I must catch up on that week's worth of work I missed! Therefore I am outtie 5000.

2010 so far

2010-01-07T16:53:00.010-06:00

Hello! I know Christmas is so over, but I forgot to post this adorable, un-stage-able photo of Henri the cat:

So, winter churns on here in the plains even though the twinkle of Christmas is gone. But I am finding many ways to amuse myself during this frigid January. As I mentioned before, I was dog-sitting last week. I was all set to have a bunch of Beethoven moments...but with the exception of an incident with some stolen cat food, he mostly looked like this:

He's a looker, right?!
So Joj came to visit during the frigid new year's weekend...it was 27 below for two days in a row. We had an extravagant friendmas that bore no good photos to post! I guess we were having too much fun to focus on documentation....but all I will say for now is that it was spectacular, and we are spoiled. Thanks, Joj!
Since then, I've been swaddling myself in blankets and watching Dexter for hours on end. It's hibernating time!
OK, well I guess I have been working too, speaking of which-did I mention Jesse got me a yudu for xmas?

Well, he did. I've been meaning to teach myself proper screen-burning, and I think the yudu will be the perfect transitional piece of equipment-It can be used as just a 12 x 18 light box as well. Anywho, my first attempt failed miserably, but on the second try I made these:

A new scarf design...

And some new dishtowels.
So, I am pretty pleased about that.
Oh, aaaand I whipped up some new Robert Indiana-inspired Valentines:

{from the product description}
If you're a fan of Annie Hall, you know just what I'm talking about:

" "Do you love me? Love is too weak a word. I lurve you. You know, I
lo-ove you. I luff you. There are two "f's." I have to invent... of
course I love you."

Awww.... so sweet. And then I combined the sentiment with a parody of Robert Indiana's famous "LOVE" sculpture. Could this valentine be any more cerebral? Finally, the perfect card for the smart and in lurve. "
And there's also a LIKE version:

Whelp, onward and upward...or "couchward" as I like to say this time of day. That's right, more Dexter.

happiest new year.

2009-12-31T09:59:00.007-06:00

Remember when I posted the above fire hydrant photo? Those were the days....

And then a white Christmas came to town:) The interstate was closed between here and Grand Forks until Sunday Morning! So we did not make it for Christmas:( I did a lot of pouting and muttering "what's so merry about it?" Then Jesse made this for Christmas Day breakfast:

Green eggs and red(pink) pancakes with sprinkles! Jesse has found the key that unlocks my heart: food coloring! An we were able to go to Jesse's Mom's across town both days of the holiday, so we were not alone. And in between visits with her, we played the new wii super mario, which is downright awesome. In the end, I think our snow total was 18", while they got 25" in Grand Forks.

All that blizzarding turned out 94 sable into an 05 impala....am I right? That's what it looks like to me, anyway.
So, Sunday: the interstate opened! Huzzah! Presents were opened by all, and after a crazy Christmas, these socks say it all:

And now we're dog-sitting!

This is Jake, or as Joj so aptly refers to him "Mega Dog." He is gigantic and sweet, and scaring the pee out my cats (literally, unfortunately). He's Jesse's Dad's Dog, and we've got him for a week. Did I mention I've never had a dog? And that I pet dogs like cats? I am trying to teach Jake to come to me for snuggling, and go to Jesse for "active play." We'll see if that works.
Meanwhile, in an exciting turn of events, the aforementioned Joj is coming tomorrow for a belated friendmas celebration! We will be indulging in presents, shopping, food and retro video gaming.
I think Jesse and I will be playing cribbage, eating leftovers and consuming hearty winter beer this evening as we bring in the new year. I hope you have an excellent one!

givin' and gettin'

2009-12-23T11:43:00.005-06:00

The Christmas Card Wall is in effect! I was sticking them to the fridge, until Jesse waxed sentimental about having them around the fireplace when he was a kid...It sort of put precious-greeting-next-to-expired-oil-change-coupon into perspective. Anyway, it's no fireplace, but it's quite festive!
In other news I have been playing with my new camera:

But obviously not nearly enough since all I have to show for it are photos of my cats.
Thank goodness the next few days will provide lots of photo oppurtunites! That is, if we don't get 20 inches of snow and have to stay home. Then you can expect more cat photos, maybe with some props.
So, I got myself some Christmas presents. Joj, if you are reading this, don't be mad. I know I am not supposed to buy myself anything else before Christmas, but I had never seen these before the day I purchased them and therefore how could you know that I wanted them?

Red Charlie Oxfords by Lucky. I will be replacing the leather shoelaces with something else. And....

Blue suede with purple shoelaces? Someone get a crash cart up in here.
Whelp, I'm off to iron my last set of dishtowels for a few days...and I am pretty excited about it!

2009-12-17T23:39:00.002-06:00

Christmas Cards! I finally made them....and it's December 17th. It's been a successful season and so I am totally pooped! But that's not a complaint.
I got my new camera yesterday, which was what I waiting for in order to complete the above cards...and it's awesome. Beyond awesome. So awesome it's like that really cool person you wish you were friends with, and you know if you could just talk, they'd see that you were meant to be buds and co-muses. Basically this camera is Bob Dylan. And I don't know how to work it. But I will figure it out....

omg!

2009-12-15T18:06:00.003-06:00

That's my niece a few years ago at Christmas...look how happy she is! You can be that happy, too, because I'm offering free priority mail shipping! The details:

Free Priority Mail UpGRADE

On all orders over $20

ORDER BY FRIDAY, DECEMBER 18TH TO RECEIVE BY CHRISTMAS!

No need to enter a code, just spend $20 or more at shopmbmb.com or
michellebrusegaard.etsy.com, complete your payment paying the regular
shipping price, and your order will automatically be upgraded to priority
mail shipping, which takes 2-3 business days. Offer good only for US
orders. Priority Mail offer is good through December 21st, but you will
only receive your package by xmas if you order by the 18th of December.

trunk show

2009-12-10T10:32:00.003-06:00

And I'll be there! And I keep wanting to make an inappropriate joke about the junk in my trunk.

the most wonderful time of year

2009-12-06T10:59:00.006-06:00

Ah, December, I welcome ye with open, down-encapsulated arms.
All sorts of exciting things are happening/already happened this month. First things first, I got these new glasses that I love:

Right?! Not everybody makes such a big deal out of it when they get new glasses. But I've been wearing corrective lenses since I was about 10....and I have disliked every pair for one reason or another. I kind of wish I had this photo on my computer of chubby 10 year old michelle in the blue-and-white-with-sand-inlay-giant-plastic-middle-aged lady-glasses. And in the photo (which is safely stowed in my parents' photo cupboard), I am working a kool-aid stand at the old folks home. And yes, the picture was featured in the weekly nursing home newsletter.
So I always wear contacts. But no longer!

Also happening this month is me being featured in Minnesota Monthly's gift guide.

THose towels are for sale at i like you, where I'll be having a trunk show with some other lovely artists this saturday, dec. 12 from 2-5. It's at 501 1st Ave NE in mpls if you're around. But of course, you can also purchase these towels in my shop:)
Also happening this month is me getting a new digital camera!

(image from amazon)
I haven't purchased it yet, so if anyone has any opinions about canon models specifically, I'd love to hear! I have an 35mm rebel Ti with two lenses, so I'm definitely going with canon since they're interchangeable. My budget isn't crazy huge, so I'm trying to choose between the xsi and the t1i.
And lastly, the tree is up!

This was the only halfway decent picture I could get before the battery died on my old-timer!
Anyhoo, I am off to work in the basement and more than likely watch a lifetime movie as I do so.

holy ronzoni.

2009-12-01T16:53:00.003-06:00

I'm not trying to brag or anything, but that whole free shipping thing went pretty well! These are some of the packages I sent out today. Thank goodness I got rid of them, normally my large orange cat, animal, claims that futon all afternoon. And he gently snores as I work.
Thanks to everyone who shopped:)
I have been getting lots of christmas shopping done myself. And I am pretty much dying to put up my tree and buy the sufjan stevens christmas album, which I have not heard, but am positive will be awesome. Not like the Bob Dylan one.

Which I am choosing to believe is just a big joke that's he's playing, because he's sneaky like that. But one of the guys on musicheads explained it best when he compared dylan on the album to the creepy uncle that comes over on christmas and gets too drunk and picks on the kids....and won't stop singing:/ I don't care, I still love him. And I would wear this necklace:

By daniellemaveal.etsy.com.

And since I am not that good at unifying my posts, I present you with this:

It's a cozy scarf with pockets on the side seams. So you can leave your purse behind and stick you ID and some trident inside your fashionable accessory!

So cool. It's called the Julian Scarf, and you can get it at Wintercheck Factory for $30!
mmmm k, back to work for me.

FREE SHIPPING!

2009-11-28T11:43:00.002-06:00

Hey everybody, happy post-thanksgiving! I am having free shipping thru Sunday night over at michellebrusegaard.etsy.com. Go Shopping, with out the fear of entramplement!

me me me, blue purse

2009-11-19T12:08:00.003-06:00

So last week or so I heard news that Spoonflower was going to a have Fabric of the Week contest with a 2010 calendar theme. Do you know about Spoonflower? They print your digital images onto fabric, it's awesome. So I uploaded my 2010 poster design and ordered a sample printed on a fat quarter-the print quality is amazing! I'm thinking of ordering some more fabric and hemming them into wall hangings.
Anyhoo.
Voting is now open! You can vote by clicking the "vote here" link here.
Also, I loooove the color of this purse:

Don't you?

featurific

2009-11-17T11:20:00.004-06:00

Still no snow! I don't know why I am complaining. I guess I just like to hear myself type. I will just have to be content watching obese squirrels fall off trees for a bit longer. Because that's a fall thing.
Anywhey, onto the meat of the story. I sent along some dishtowel samples sometime last spring...and lo and behold a customer informed me that I had been featured in Do It Yourself Magazine!

There's my red poppy towel, hanging out on a clothesline in some good company:)

Thanks, diy mag!

In other news, we joined the YMCA last week, and last night I went lap swimming for the first time. I sure do love it! It's like, the best exercise ever, because you never feel sweaty. So I really like it, but I'm pretty sure I swim the way Phoebe runs in that one episode of Friends where Rachel abandons her because she's embarrassed of all the flailing. And I only know two strokes, the rest of them I copied from the lady 2 lanes over with a swim cap and prescription goggles. I am hoping that I will provide a source of amusement for the lifeguard staff.

Whelp, off to the Post Office!

snowvember

2009-11-13T11:00:00.004-06:00

I just wanted to share a funny little something that I see out my front window every day.

When we first moved in, I thought how funny and stupid to have a sign with a picture of a fire hydrant next to the fire hydrant. Of course I can see that there's a fire hydrant there.

Until I realized that that really tall sign is there so that when the fire hydrant is buried in snow, you know it's there. Just so you know, I'm 5'6" and the sign is taller than me.
Lucky for me, due to seasonal Christmas cheer trickery, I am excited for snow anyway!

give-a-way

2009-11-03T22:33:00.002-06:00

Heeellllo!
Just wanted to let you readers know that you can win your very own 2010 Desktop Calendar over at Off Switch Designs' Blog. Click here for details.

ttfn, mbmb

le poster

2009-10-29T15:51:00.005-06:00

It's another rainy day here in Fargo...sometimes I feel like we moved to the pacific northwest instead of North Dakota. Not that I am complaining, give me a melodramatic rainy day over a sunshine dadydream anyday. But when someone like me starts to feel waterlogged, you know the weather has been pretty crazy! Anyhoo, it's supposed to snow boatloads tonight, so....there's your weather report.
On a day like this when there's no shadows and the light only changes from dark to gray to dark again, it's really easy to get sucked into a project and end up staring at your computer for WAY too long. This morning I took on the task of designing a new product-to 2010 poster calendar:

(I couldn't design which illustration would work best...so I just used them all).

(kennedy approves)

So, that's what I did today! and then I photographed it and listed it here.
And now I desperately need to leave this office! I'm off to a wine tasting (or shall I say a "wine-drinking?" That's probably more accurate).

whip it

2009-10-28T07:58:00.005-06:00

I just had the best weekend...joj came to visit and all was right with the world for 48 hours. We shopped and ate out way through fargo, with super mario 3 breaks in between, and finished it off with a matinee of Whip It on Sunday. These are just a few of the things I loved about this movie:

1. That's Juliette Lewis above, playing a totally Juliette Lewis character for the first time in I don't know how long.

2. It reminded me how much I LOVE roller derby! I will definitely be making some trips to the roy wilkins auditorium this winter to see the minnesota roller girls. And I've also learned that Fargo has it's very own group of flat-trackers:

3. I want to take my 10-year-old niece to see this movie, even though I think it's PG-13. Because it embodies the most effortless "girl-power." It's girl-power without saying it all the time. It's girl-empowering, naturally. And if I had seen this movie at her age, I'm pretty sure I would have organized a roller derby in the parking lot outside my apartment building. Or at least thought about it....I was pretty shy.
4. It made me want to dye my hair fun colors and have cool tattoos. I said that to joj as we were leaving the theatre and she was all "I already have cool tattoos and badass hair." So I think for her, there was validation, and for me, longing.
5. Drew Barrymore is cool. Look at this dress she wore to something:

So, you should definitely go see it. On a tiny little side note, the only thing I didn't like about this movie was a scene in which there was product placement for "lash blast" mascara. It just seemed too obvious, like when tim gunn points to the macy's accessory wall and says to use it "thoughtfully." Get a new adjective, tim!

Sale + New Studio

2009-10-21T10:49:00.008-06:00

Ok, first things first, I am having a sale from now thru Sunday, October 25th. I'm calling it the "Pre-Holiday Sale," you know, so you can get a head start:)

I'm offering 20% off of your entire purchase!

The code is "HOLIDAY09," and it's good through Sunday, the 25th of October, 2009.

To use the code on etsy:
place your order, and enter the code "HOLIDAY09" into the "message to
seller" box at the time of purchase. Then wait for me to send you a revised paypal
invoice before making your payment.

To use the code at shopmbmb.com: place your order, and enter the code "HOLIDAY09"into the "discount code" box. The amount will automatically be deducted.

*Please note this offer does not apply to custom orders, invitations or save
the dates, and cannot be combined with quantity discounts:)

I have been using MailChimp to send out my sale emails, and I totally recommend it! You can design a pretty lil' email and send it to your mailing list for a very reasonable fee:) Check out the sale email here.

So, now that that's out of the way, onto some photos of my new studio! As I may have mentioned before, In our new Fargoan abode, my basement studio is double the size of our Minneapolis duplex. It's huge!

So big, in fact, that everything has it's own station:

That's the screen-printing region. Sure I could have vacuumed the carpet. Sure I could have covered those messy boxes with some decorative fabric. Sure could have.

Here's the painting station. I thought about styling this shot more by putting a painting on the easel, but I'm not painting anything at the moment, and I don't want to visually lie to my readers!

And here's the "sewing" zone. Pretend those are air quotes around the word "sewing." Because so far I have mended a pair of pants. I do so love my sewing machine (thank you very much joj!), but my skills and patience are lacking. I do have a sewing project up my sleeve though, so I may master it yet....So, mostly I use this table for putting labels on things. And sometimes I just sit at and gaze at my miniatures, like the creep that I am:)

And finally, my most favorite place in the studio, the 1960's relaxing nook:

That floor to ceiling table/lamp had been in my dad's shed since I bought it at a rummage sale three years ago. I am so happy to see it standing! And then there's a crushed velvet chair. It's a great place for a sit. And sit I do.

But

2009-10-12T16:08:00.010-06:00

It's all crispity and cool here....I suppose it's all crispity most places by now. But I saw my first snowflakes of the season on Saturday in Madison, Wisconsin where we were staying for a friend's wedding. And I liked it.
In other news, I keep trying to figure out what I am so busy doing that has kept me from blogging for 3 weeks! Below you will find the series of excuses I have come up with:
1. I was making a painting:

It's for a benefit here in Fargo called "Bras on Broadway," a fundraiser for breast cancer awareness and whatnot. More info here.
2. I was buying a new car:
The last time we went to Grand Forks, our air conditioner was broken and our car was making a horrible metal grinding noise. I didn't realize how bad the noise was, until late one night when my dad and I were sitting around the back yard fire. My folks live on a mildly busy street, so we're used to crotchrocket revving and that sort of thing, but out of nowhere our ears were assaulted by the most excruciating metal on metal grinding/squealing sound EVER. I jokingingly said to my pops "I hope that's not Jesse!" And moments later he came walking around the corner.
So the next morning we took in ye olde mercury sable, and were told we couldn't drive it home. After a carless week, we decided it was time to buy a car, a new and nice shiny one.

Enter the 2008 Honda Fit in blackberry Pearl. Pretty, right? And we did get the sable fixed to a functional state, so now we're a two-car family.
3. I was updating shopmbmb.com:

I made a new banner and background, and put some new stuff in there...but it's not done. But I was working on it.
4. I was drooling over these boots:

Which I still haven't purchased yet, as I am also drooling over these: boots:

And I guess I also haven't bought them because they cost A LOT of moolah. But thinking about them takes up a lot of my time.
5. I was making new stuff (and in some cases taking goofy photos of myself wearing it):

I made more than that....but I have to go to my grandma's house now. I resolve to put an end to these excuses and blog more frequently!

the fairest of the seasons

2009-09-23T22:38:00.012-06:00

Look! It's my booth at renegade chicago! And it's all sunny and dry! It was a perfect weekend for a craft fair and I think it's fair to say le Joj and I had a fabulous time. Whilst I was there, I purchased my new favorite earrings from Early Jewelry:

Mine are actually a darker walnut color and with green print, but you get the idea. And I also got this, my new favorite tee shirt, or vee shirt, if you will:

From Megan Lee Designs.
All in all, it was awesome. There was even time to meet up with Chicago-dwelling pals and eat barbeque. Hi, Liz + Kirsten!
The only real debacle of the trip was that I forgot to bring Bill Murray, the wonder pony.

So we were missing that little twinkle. We tried to make a tiny plastic monkey our trip mascot, but I never took it anywhere or photographed it, and then I forgot it at the hotel when we left. Sorry, unnamed monkey!
So since my return, it's been time for me to do all the things I had filed in the "after renegade" folder. Cleaning the house, accounting, cat-snuggling, working out, maintaining my eyebrows, and...making my 2010 calendar! The brows are still unruly, but the calendar is complete:

Geez, that was a lot of pictures, and that's not even all the months. You can pick one up in my shop now, if you want....
Onto the next project I go! Unfortunately the next project is retrieving my wounded car from Grand Forks tomorrow...It broke down last weekend when we were visiting my folks. I think that my 94 mercury sable is going to have to retire...which means I'm joining the world of car payments, a world in which back seats aren't just meant for garbage and wet paintings. A world in which the backseat is actually worth more than the painting, so you have to protect and take care of it and whatnot.

up and at 'em

2009-09-09T08:40:00.004-06:00

Ah, sweet fall. There's a woodpecker pecking on the side of my house. I'm not stopping him because I'm a renter. The air smells crisp. I go to sleep with one blanket and wake up wanting two. My plaid shirts finally feel pertinent. I feel alive with the zest of a blazing maple leaf.
I woke up way too early this morning and have already been to the post office and the bank. Let's hope this zest lasts at least until noon.

Look at all the stuff I've been making! The futon has become the new staging area for my Renegade organization and packing. It used to be the place where my cat, Henri, slept peacefully as I worked away in my office. If you look closely at the picture, you'll find she still managed to squeeze in:)
And, check out this new thing I sell:

It's a Things to Do Notepad! And it features my new doodletron illustration. And you can write on it.

Enfin, this is the last day of my little autumn sale, so buy up!
20% off of your entire purchase!
The code is "AUTUMN," and it's good through Wednesday the 9th of September, 2009.

to use the code on etsy:
place your order, and enter the code "AUTUMN" into the "message to seller"
box at the time of purchase. Then wait for me to send you a revised paypal
invoice before making your payment.

to use the code at shopmbmb.com:
place your order, and enter the code "AUTUMN" into
the "discount code" box. The amount will automatically be deducted.
*Please note this offer does not apply to custom orders, invitations or save the dates.

made by michelle brusegaard autumn newsletter { SALE}

2009-09-06T16:44:00.001-06:00

made by michelle brusegaard autumn newsletter { SALE}

Posted using ShareThis

A Place to Sit.

2009-08-25T07:46:00.003-06:00

Did I ever mention how much I wanted a new couch? Probably only a thousand times. I am sort of couch obsessed. We recently tried to sell our old couch on craigslist and at our rummage sale, for the reasonable price of $30.00. No takers. Then we listed it as free. No takers. Then we left it on the curb. No takers. Then the city came to lay sod on the berm and put the couch in the street. That's when I started to get worried. And it had rained a few times by then. One morning I looked out and there were no cushions. Poor couch. And then one day, it was gone. O, happy day!
Now don't get me wrong, this couch gave us many good years. I loved it when we first got it-It was almost brand new...and free from a friend of Jesse's Mom. But the years of cat scratching started to pile up, and I started to fixate. On my unnatural hatred for the couch.

Enter Le New Couch. I had almost given up all couch hope (because I can be a little dramatic at times). Jesse was perusing the classifieds on Sunday and saw listed this 1930's couch for $200.00! I was not expecting it to be this awesome in person. But it is! I guess it was reupholstered 10 years ago, with new springs and whatnot, and then sat in one of those living rooms no one sits in. Anyway, it's perfect!
Whelp, back to work...Renegade is less than 3 weeks away. Sweat drops!