Say thanks

New in the XOXO series.... Boatloads of Thanks! Get single cards, sets of 5, or 3 of each in mixed set of 6. Be prepared to say thank-you for that upcoming turkey dinner. You know where to find them! photographs by Gina Houseman

Fall back food

The day we set our clocks back as come and gone. I hope everyone enjoyed there extra hour of sleep (or fun, depending on what you were up to). Now it's growing darker even earlier making the days seem shorter. Time for some indoor activities, such as cooking. In the past I haven't had the greatest interest, although I love a finely prepared dish. I was trained however to look at every project's process. Thus, I decided to shine some light for myself into this 'cooking'. My attainable goal is to master 7 recipes I'd like to enjoy often. They should be fairly easy to prepare, using ingredients I can access locally. I want to be really good at a few recipes so I can take pleasure in preparing for myself, and sometimes others, fresh delicious meals daily. Ok there is the goal- I'm giving myself the winter season to work on it. I'll keep you posted. Tonight: I'm baking cinnamon apples. Yeah that's right, I'm starting with dessert. {this recipe makes two apples}

• Preheat oven to 350ºF.
• Remove stem and wash apples thoroughly. Core apples, removing center down to within 1/2 to 1/4 inch of the bottom.
• Peel and remove skin from top quarter of apple.
• Using a knife, score lightly through the skin, moving knife in a circle around outside middle of apple. Scoring will help prevent apples from splitting apart while baking.
• Evenly space apples in baking dish. I used a muffin pan, giving each apple a space.
• Mix 1/2 cup of water and 1/2 tablespoon of orange juice together. Add 1/2 teaspoon vanilla.
• Pour into and over apples letting excess go into baking dish.
• Add 1/4 tablespoon of olive oil into each apple.
• Combine 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon sugar and 1/8 teaspoon almond, mixing together thoroughly. Sprinkle into apples, allowing excess to fall into baking dish.
• Bake uncovered 35 to 45 minutes or until apples are soft.
• As apples bake, baste 2 to 3 times with pan juices.
• Serve warm.

photograph by Gina Houseman

New in town

Papersheep has begun to sell letterpress designs! The first is this truckload thank-you note. Check them out in the shop! photograph by Gina Houseman

This modern world

I started the day hearing the phrase, "It's Papersheep season again". . . meaning it's scarf weather. This was furthermore marked by having the first scarf sale of the season in the works. It's a Walnut Heather, the first Papersheep scarf, the inspiration that came to me seemingly out of nowhere coupled with a compulsion to create it. That original scarf has thus spurred on many more and was somehow lost in the mix and eventually given away as a gift. I was surprising crushed at this news. Not because someone was hopefully wearing and enjoying it, but for sentimental reasons. It was an original to me, the first and therefore a one and only of sorts. It's this attachment to the objects I make that has captivated my thoughts these days. Thankfully the same person uttering those merry words this morning has loaned me an extraordinary book; The Gift: Creativity and the Artist in the Modern World by Lewis Hyde. Mr Hyde, whom finished writing this classic query on gift exchange and creativity, the year I was born, discusses the conflicts posed to artists in a modern society whom have been given a creative gift and also have to do things like eat and sleep. He talks about gift exchange and it's difference from market exchange. Gift exchange being reciprocal usually and the market a one way transaction; goods for money. What I found most interesting is how artists feed on sharing their gift and must reconcile how that is carried out. For instance in order to share that gift, it must first be made for oneself or the sake of making it, preventing market trends and factors from interfering and therefore spoiling the creation of it. Next, a living must be made (unless there is a grant) in order for it's creator to survive. The difference between and yet dependence of these two situations on each other is vital to the act of creation. Can you survive on the sale of your art or do you take a second job? There are so many gems in this book. I highly recommend it to anyone wondering about making the things they love and surviving in the modern marketplace. photograph by Gina Houseman

Me and you +1

Here are some pictures from my latest portrait session. Maternity was a new genre for me, and I really enjoyed it! Maggie and Matt wanted to document themselves to show their little Charlotte when she grows up. A very cool idea from a truely talented (and might I add adorable) couple.

photographs by Gina Houseman

Trash talk

I found this interesting: This Urban beautification project by Adrian Kondratowicz is a new perspective on all our trash.

Summer flair

More flower hairpins in the hiz-ouse. My trip to Maine inspired the theme for these pictures. Don't you just love the end of summer? When the ocean is warm enough to swim in, berries are ripe, and evening breezes cool off the day. I love that bronze glow my skin gets and the ache that says its almost over and soon the crispness of autumn will return.

photograph by gina houseman