Hello 2015

A video posted by Suzanna Scott (@sushipot) on Dec 12, 2014 at 5:24pm PST

Hello 2015....you have arrived. I'll admit I haven't done much during my end-of-the-year hiatus....I've begun my yearly studio clean/purge but I've also indulged in four whole seasons of Downton Abbey. To tell the truth I'm more than happy to return to a routine and my hands are itching to make something. Happy New Year friends!

Welcome 2014

Well it looks like the New Year has successfully been rung in 'round the globe! We celebrated New Year's Eve with a stack of my made-from-scratch blueberry pancakes and an everlasting game of Monopoly. Patrick and I survived the latter with the help of a bottle of vino. When the clock struck midnight the three of us made a hullabaloo to welcome in 2014.

So...I wanna know how you rang in the New Year? Leave a comment below and next Wednesday, January 8th, I'll draw a name and gift the winner this dancing clock collage. No worries if you live outside the USA....I'll ship it anywhere in the world ;)

Happy New Year my friends!

Sushipot Shop Note: All art blocks (including what's left of the holiday blocks) are marked down 30% through January 15th. Free worldwide shipping ends on January 2nd.

Bricolage Collage

Now that the studio is back in working order from its yearly deep-clean I tested the creative waters with a round of Bricolage collage. Thought this was some fitting imagery for embarking on a new year, with the ships, sailor 'n bits of astronomical references. Aren't we still in a phase of contemplating the uncharted waters of 2013? Don't know about you but I sure am.

Sun Of A Sailor, Bricolage no 84, mixed media on panel

Grand Pectoral, Bricolage no 85, mixed media on panel

Slight Of Hand, Bricolage no 86, mixed media on panel

Path, Bricolage no 87, mixed media on panel

Les Cubes Amusants

Much to my delight, I unearthed some lost treasures during my annual studio purge/clean/organize binge this past week. These French prints are from an old exquisite corpse game of sorts, Les Cubes Amusants. 

Our family is gearing up for an exciting year as we prepare to enter a new chapter of our lives....the 'Life After Grad School' chapter (hip-hip-hooray!!!). Patrick will complete his degree this Spring and we'll be moving soon after. Don't ask me where 'cuz it is yet to be determined as we're currently in the 'Full Swing Job Search' chapter ;)

Needless to say 2013 is bound to be a year full of adventure for our family. I'm not making any concrete resolutions but am embracing the changes head-on and preparing for them by simplifying 'round our home and in my studio so that we're ready to move when it's time. Due to the aforementioned purge/clean/organize binge I've got bins and bins of goodies just waiting to be photographed for the vintage shop. And....big changes afoot at Sushipot as I'll be switching gears a bit. More on that soon. For now I just wanna say from one cast of characters to another....Happy New Year!

Resolution: Time

With the onset of the new year comes the chatter of resolutions being made and much advice on how to keep them. I go back and forth each year on whether to set to paper (or blog) a resolution or goal for the year. In truth, I'm making resolutions all the time, setting little goals for myself and marking off the milestones I make in life and business. As I've mentioned before I'm a dutiful list maker to an obsessive degree.



So this year, in lieu of a list of resolutions, I've decided to take to heart a word/theme/sound I've been mulling over lately and that is TIME. You know....tick-tock.....tick-tock.....tick-tock....in all its forms! As I come up for air after such a busy season in my shops I want to rein it in, slow it down and embrace it. I want to name those things that fritter it away and spend it wisely. Kind of like the day back when Lizzie was only two and we decided to throw away our television permanently! I want that feeling of freedom again--the gift of time--time to live, time to love, time to read, time to create, time to savor all those little things that sprinkle our days.



In order to be more mindful of my time and how I spend it I'm starting by identifying those little "time thieves" in my day and deciding on which ones can stay and which must go and what I should cut back on. No...I'm not planning to do anything rash like throw out my iPhone, but I will cut back on how many minutes of attention it receives!



One big decision that I've wavered on is whether or not I need/should post here on my blog every week-day as I've tried my best to do for the last couple of years. Even though it may only take a few minutes of each day to create a post, there is much brain-time spent mulling over what to post and time spent keeping up with the extra photographing that is involved. Looking back to my pre-blog days I can see I had a bit more studio time and that is what I crave. So...my first little experiment with TIME in 2012 is to scale back here in this virtual space. I'm thinkin' 2-3 posts a week as opposed to 5 or 6. I know all of you artist/maker readers will understand and I thank you for reading what I think is my longest rant (errrr.....post) ever and feel free to call me out if you see me frittering my time away here or Twitter or Instagram or even (oh the tragedy!) on Etsy.

All mixed media collage images by Suzanna Scott, 2007 & 2009

Welcome 2012

A Happy New Year to you! We welcomed in 2012 with a family game night--complete with Operation, Bananagrams, Spot It, Hedbanz, Gobblet and Blink. How did you celebrate?

Pops Of Color

New pops of color in the vintage shop this week including some old school tin clickers (great for that New Year's Eve party!) and another set of color cubes.

Resolutions Report

The Sun by Lizzie Scott, chalk on chalkboard

Thought I'd give you a resolutions report even though I suppose it's more for my benefit to do this 'cuz once again--it keeps my butt on track. I promise not to do this every month of the year!
Here goes:

1. Make a Kiva loan to a fellow artisan on the first day of every month for 12 months. I now have 2 loans under my belt and am HAPPY to report that some of you have jumped on board with this too. Yay! Thank you for joining me--ya'll know who you are!
2. Get Sushipot more involved via social media. Been tweeting 'n twittering all month long and have built up a group of followers, 130 members and growing! Thanks guys! Also, a Facebook fan page has been established this month. If you do the Facebook thing come be my friend! And...I discovered Instagram a few days ago. Ton of fun for photo sharing via these above mentioned outlets.
3. Do my very best to use this every day. Last but not least, this personal goal of mine has had its stops and starts throughout the month. There was a bit of a debate as to where it would get the most use and I finally plopped it in the dining room (for the winter months at least)! Talk about a visual reminder when I'm stuffing my face. Ha!

So there you have it, my resolutions report after month one. I'd love to hear how your resolutions are coming along (or not!) if you wanna share.

Year Of The Rabbit

Illustration gleaned from Whitman's 1928 Children's Modern Drawing and Paint Book

Popping in to say "Happy Year of the Rabbit" to all of my lovely readers who celebrate the Chinese New Year.

Aren't Resolutions Fun?

Illustration from Whitman's 1928 Children's Modern Drawing and Paint Book

Ok...so I know it's already the 3rd of January but I had made a few resolutions for the year (mostly business related) and decided I'd better share them publicly to keep my butt on track!

1. Make a Kiva loan to a fellow artisan on the first day of every month for 12 months. I set up my account on January 1st and have made my first loan.
   
2. Get Sushipot more involved via social media. I've set up a Twitter account (yay!). You can now follow or tweet me @SushipotArt. Next up Tumblr and maybe (??) Facebook.
   
3. Do my very best to use this every day. I remembered on the 30th and 31st of December but forgot on the 1st and remembered again yesterday.
   

As you can see I'm on track with number 1 and 2 but that 3rd one will most likely die an early death. Aren't resolutions fun?

New Year's Feast

Illustrations from Warnes Model Cookery by Mary Jewry, circa 1868

Happy New Year to each and every one of my blog readers, patrons, family and friends! I thought I would serve you a visual feast today by sharing these decadent culinary illustrations from a recently acquired antique cookbook. Our New Year's feast will look nothing like this as we've opted for a more simple fare--a slow cooker full of hearty ham and bean soup with spice cake for dessert. Wishing you and all of yours a prosperous, healthy (and slightly decadent) 2011!!

Out With The Old

The phrase "out with the old, in with the new" is especially poignant as we turn the corner into a new year. Our family spent this quiet week between Christmas and the New Year purging old toys and clothing, sorting papers and receipts, rearranging furniture and in general organizing the belongings in our home. It feels good to have these physical preparations prepare us psychologically for a fresh start in the new year. I must admit that Lizzie's pink "star shoes" were especially hard to part with as so many memories from the past year are affixed to them. But on the other hand, she had outgrown them and is now the proud owner of a new pair of bright fuschia Converse. Bring on the New Year 'cuz we're ready folks!

Tiger and Hearts

This Sunday marks the start of the Chinese New Year (2010: Year of the Tiger) and it's also another much awaited holiday in this house--Valentine's Day :)  I've been informed by Lizzie that our top priority this weekend is to bake pink cupcakes for Daddy and decorate them with many, many rainbow sprinkles. Crossing my fingers that I get to do a bit of thrifting too. 

Wishing you a HAPPY Chinese New Year, Valentine's Day and of course weekend!!

"What Shall I Do...

...For The New Year?" A drawing by Lizzie, age 5 on January 1st, 2010 with a tiny bit of help from Mommy (me) using the Photoshop paint bucket tool.