ART CRUSH: LET'S SWAP IT & MIKE PERRY.

Have you checked out Let's Swap it? It's a cool idea: a place where artists and designers can swap art for free. There is always one featured item up for swap (an edition of prints, etc). If you like what's up for grabs, you can submit what you'd like to trade (anything!), and the artist will choose the swaps they are interested in. I recently swapped with Mike Perry for this big, bright geometric print! Connecting with artists I like is always a total pleasure. Follow their twitter feed for updates on new swaps.

APPLY TO CITY OF CRAFT.

Pssst...the deadline to apply for City Of Craft is coming up on August the 31st!
That's 5 more application friendly days for all the detail-fanatics in the house.

EAST COAST LIVING.

The second half of my vacation was spent small towning it up in Sackville, New Brunswick. Dennis' family lives just outside the main drag. Take a walk in his hood and you'll find barns, covered bridges, and hay rolls. Though the highway is close, it's refreshingly quiet out there at night (no upstairs neighbours practicing metal riffs or having Monday night ragers!). We ate at one of Dennis' old places of employment (Pizza Delight), and I tried fried clams and scallops at a seafood place decorated with a ridiculous number of fake flowers and butterflies (weird). We saw movies, read books, went cosmic bowling, hung out with the cat (Frank), chilled out at a cottage on the ocean for a day, and generally moved pretty slow. That recipe up there is Dennis' grandma's handwriting - her squares a fixture at every meal (along with her beets and mustard pickles).

THINGS FOR TOMORROW.

Tomorrow is Zine Dream 4 at The Tranzac! As per usual, I did not get around to putting together a finished zine (I'm starting to think this might be an impossible task for me!), but I did manage to put together a couple new things today. The eleventh hour is my hour.

1. Some weird, colourful wishbone prints. To bring more luck and magic into your life. Perhaps you could rip the print in half with your loved ones on Thanksgiving?

2. I printed a pattern onto 6 different vintage silky tanks and tees (one of a kind styles). I picked up all these tops when I was on vacation in New Brunswick. #exotic I will even iron them.

See you tomorrow!

CAMP LIFE.

Week one of my vacation was spent doing a very foreign activity (for me) - camping. I never went camping with my family when I was younger, and classic outdoorsy things (besides drinking in the backyard) were not a big part of our summer schedule. I did spent a lot of time outside in my various neighbourhoods as a youth, but never really in anything you could classify as wilderness (some fishing, the beach, etc). So I got in the van with my pals Rob, Lee, and Tim and headed to Killbear to test my ability to sleep in tents, fend off mosquitoes, and jump in lakes. The verdict? It was awesome. It would appear that I mainly took photos of sunsets and water, because like a typical city dweller, that shit makes me dizzy and jealous. Swimming in the quiet lake 3 times a day was such a treat. Imagine living in a house on the water? Hello new life goal - nice to meet you. If you're going to go camping for the first time, it's helpful to go with someone who knows everything (aka Lee Rose: Master Of Camp Life). She reinvented my perception of what "camp food" means - burritos, pasta, pancakes, etc. And for a little excitement, we almost had a run in with a bear. Grade: A+.

ART CRUSH: JOHN MALTA.

I recently participated in a sweet mail swap with US illustrator John Malta. As you can see here, he does amazing things with colour, texture, lizards, prickly plant life, envelopes, and shaky text. My new well dressed mini lizard painting and the refreshment lover on the tote are both A+. He also makes necklace charms, like this shade sporting cactus (series also includes: melting pizza, bones, big gulps, etc). Check out his website for more! And for those of you not quite ready to usher in the fall with open arms (like me), he's got some sharp summer party shirts in his shop.

ZINE DREAM 4.

Logo by Steph D.
Zine Dream: Facebook / Site

Mark your calendars, cancel your plans: Zine Dream 4 is fast approaching! This annual event is filled to the brim with cool comics, books, music, zines, hand made crafts, prints, and more. Zine Dream is one of my favourite annual Toronto events because there's tons of interesting stuff to check out, and they've got a good casual atmosphere thing going on. And if you're so inclined, you can also enjoy a cold one as you browse! I'm gonna try my best to see if I can come up with a new thing or two before the week is out - the heat is on.

Zine Dream 4
The Tranzac (292 Brunswick Ave)
Sunday August 21st
12-5pm
PWYC