Erin Writes

Originally published at erin-go-blog!. You can comment here or there.

The first photo is my stuff–the bottom one is the girl who was sitting next to me.

Originally published at erin-go-blog!. You can comment here or there.

Uploaded some photos to flickr–this isn’t everything I made during the last week, but it’s a decent sampling!

Bookmarks-famous first lines. If you have a favorite first line of a novel (that will fit on a bookmark), please share it with me!

Assorted quotations for framing.

Assorted notecards.

I’ll be posting a bunch of things in my etsy shop over the next few days, so look for them there if you’re interested…or contact me directly if you’d like!

on etsy: calligraphybyerin.etsy.com

on facebook: facebook.com/calligraphybyerin

on twitter: twitter.com/calligbyerin

I plan to offer some specials to facebook fans/twitter followers, so now’s your chance to get in on that!

Originally published at erin-go-blog!. You can comment here or there.

So this weekend, Rand and I went to PA for my cousin’s graduation party. I made him a gift, in addition to a bit of cash, of course.

This, along with a couple of other new items, have been posted in  my etsy shop, although it’s probably a bit late to get any sales on it now! I also made some new bookmarks, posted to flickr, that will be posted in the shop this week. (Oh, and last week, I got a pretty new banner for my shop courtesy of etsy seller the photospot. I think it looks great!)

In addition to the graduation party, Rand and I were able to hang out with my friend Anita, who lives on the west coast. She happened to be in town visiting her parents, so yay!

Before we left for PA, Rand and I noticed that the stuff in our refrigerator wasn’t really as cold as it should be. I turned up the temp a couple of notches, and we decided to wait until we got back to worry about it.

Sure enough, there was no improvement when we got back. We did a little bit of research, and determined that it wasn’t worth trying to have it repaired. This morning, Rand went into work a bit late so that we could go to Sears and look for a new one. It’ll be delivered tomorrow. (It’s a Kenmore, in white…nothing fancy. Because our space is limited, we didn’t really have a whole lot of options. The new one is much better than what we have, and is Energy Star rated.) In the meantime, everything perishable is either in the freezer, which is still pretty much working (not 100%, but enough), or in coolers.

So today, other than dealing with that, I’ve been cleaning up the kitchen, reading submissions for Toasted Cheese, taking care of some stuff Rand and I are selling on Amazon, and getting my car inspected. The inspection wouldn’t have been bad, but my check engine light was on, and so I had to pay for the diagnostic so they could figure out how to get it to shut off…but still, relatively painless. I’m good for another year, by which point we will probably have gotten a new car.

Hmmm…was that all? The excitement of my life knows no bounds…

Originally published at erin-go-blog!. You can comment here or there.

I’ve stareted to upload photos. Vacation photos will be going into this set.

I also uploaded some calligraphy stuff I did yesterday. Enjoy!

Originally published at erin-go-blog!. You can comment here or there.

So I’ve opted to not try and find a mindless temp or retail job for the summer. I’ve been saving some in anticipation of this, but I’d like to have some money coming in.

I’ve been working on promotion for my etsy shop. I just went in and updated all of my listings, as well as adding a new one. My items are custom-made to the needs of the buyer. Here are some samples:

Wedding/anniversary gifts

Baby gifts

Gifts for mom

Gifts for teachers

And more! (click to see my flickr photoset)

You can also become a fan on facebook or follow me on twitter. Please feel free to spread the word!

Anyone  have any promotional advice for me? Please share!

Originally published at erin-go-blog!. You can comment here or there.

The farther away I get from the weekend, the sillier it seems to write up a full report…and yet, I do feel like I need to elaborate on a couple of things.

First, the singing.

Certain people (ahem…) have been bugging me to sing for quite a while. Last year, I sang just a bit with my good friend Jam. We sang together, it was late, and there weren’t very many people around. Yet, it was a step. A baby step, but a step nonetheless.

Last weekend, Rand had his guitar out in the hotel room. He recently learned some Flaming Lips songs and was playing some of them. While he was playing Fight Test, I was kind of quietly singing along while doing other things. He stopped and said, “do you want to sing the chorus?”

“Um, you mean in front of people?”

“Sure, why not,” he said.

So he started over, and we ran it a couple of times, mainly working on the timing. He told me I had to project more. So we did it a few more times, and I did my best to project more.

We ended up bringing it out Saturday night, and it went fine. I projected. I hit the right notes. I got the timing right. And ohmygod, I sang…while not entirely alone, I did sing the chorus all by my little lonesome, with people watching. The floor did not open and swallow me up or anything!

Several people have asked if/when I will sing again, and I think it’s safe to say that it will happen again.

The other big excitement of the weekend, for me, was this:

(Photo by Debbie Ridpath Ohi)

At every filk convention, there is a Saturday night auction. People donate items, and the money goes toward bringing guests to other conventions…travel expenses and such. This year, I decided to donate a piece of calligraphy. The lyrics are from the song “Rich Fantasy Lives” by Rob Balder and Tom Smith, which was named “Best Filk Song” at the 2007 Pegasus Awards. Both Rob and Tom were at GAFilk, so I was able to have both of them sign the piece.

My piece was the last item auctioned off, and it ended up bringing in $300!

I do sell my calligraphy in my etsy shop. I’m happy to discuss commissions with anyone interested.

The rest of my photos can be found here. I’m off for now, but maybe I’ll get around to the rest of it someday!

Originally published at erin-go-blog!. Please leave any comments there.

Inspired by my friend Eden…new baby gifts:

Items can be purchased in my Etsy shop!

One more to add…I made this for the lovely and talented Seanan McGuire, as a “thank you” for helping to promote my calligraphy in her LiveJournal. I was quite happy with the way it turned out:

(click to see a larger version)

The lyrics are from one of Seanan’s songs, “Paper Moon,” which is on the outstandingly awesome CD “Stars Fall Home.”

(see, they’re great for all kinds of occasions, not just weddings!)