Lions Tigers Pears

math is fun

2009-05-05T09:14:00.000-07:00

Chris Ware
+
Andrew Bird
+
This American Life
=
THE AWESOME.

backseat ukulele

2009-04-17T11:28:00.000-07:00

Ukulélé Sessions with Born Ruffians

celebrate with stacks and syrup

2009-02-23T22:41:00.001-08:00

Why does no one dress up for occasions like Pancake Tuesday?

We should start a new tradition, no?

the secret is out

2009-02-15T19:37:00.000-08:00

As I was buying a cute new shirt this afternoon, my conversation with the cashier went down like this:

Cashier: "Ooh, I like your rings!"

Me: "Thanks!"

Cashier: "Wait, what does that one say?"

Me: "Robot."

Cashier: "You're ... a GEEK!!!"

She blurted out the word "geek" so loud and excited, like she'd figured out my secret.

Which, I guess, she had.

My goal is to feel like be this.

2009-02-02T16:39:00.000-08:00

(image by helmo)

random question...

2009-01-28T14:36:00.000-08:00

Hello to Mattagami Heights.

I feel kinda weird asking this, but do I know you?

My stats show that I get a lot of visits from there. If you're in Mattagami Heights (or thereabouts) and you're reading this, could you drop me an email and let me know if I know you?

lionstigerspears
@gmail.com

Thanks.

today needs more ukuleles

2009-01-25T08:31:00.000-08:00

Just like every other day in that respect.

Dent May & His Magnificent Ukulele - "Oh, Paris!"

Phosphorescent - “Too Sick To Pray” & “At Death”

Katie Dill - "When The Sunshine Sings"

and after all, you're my wonder wall

2008-11-29T16:41:00.000-08:00

like indiana jones, when he's not fighting off bad guys

2008-11-23T14:23:00.000-08:00

In those moments just after finishing a project, I like to take stock of my environment. When I'm in making-mode, I tend to pile one project on top of another, so I can keep going instead of stopping to tidy up. So my desk (and often my floor, too) ends up being a mini archeological dig. Layers and layers of stuff that makes me happy.

Here's one thing what came out of this week's mess: a lil' owl to sit on the top of a friend's Christmas tree.

Hoot!

be my little beast

2008-11-22T12:37:00.000-08:00

If my closet were as large as the internet, here's what I'd be wearing today.

Life is sweet. (Much like the oatmeal shortbread I just bought from my neighbourhood church's bake sale. Those ladies aren't afraid of butter.)

paint swatches subconsciously made me buy this sweater

2008-11-20T20:17:00.000-08:00

lists and pies

2008-10-30T07:24:00.000-07:00

Lists I am currently maintaining:

1. Items I look up on Wikipedia. (Latest: rhumb line.)
2. The number of emails in my inbox when I start work each day. (Currently it's at 665, down from 1193 a few weeks ago.)
3. Innocuous terms that annoy the heck outta me. (Witness: "Eco Bag".)

Speaking of which, Daytum is fantastic. There's something very compelling about tracking the mundane. I have yet to decide what exactly I'm going to track, but the power of the pie charts is there, beckoning. I can almost taste it.

sky light

2008-10-29T22:09:00.000-07:00

Some days, after a long day's work, you walk outside and look up. Then your day starts again, for real this time.

I don't know what's going on up there, but I like it.

free science kit

2008-09-30T22:42:00.000-07:00

I resisted.

love at first listen

2008-09-26T21:10:00.000-07:00

I heard this song for the first time today and I love it.

"Natural" by Okay.

It's a creaky, beautiful song in two parts with a fantastic build.

I want you, I want you to be happy.

lost & found

2008-09-09T22:35:00.000-07:00

While searching for another file on my laptop, I came across this sketch from a couple of years ago. It's yet another unfinished project I started, but I kind of like it incomplete and messed up like it is.

bats, birds and fur

2008-09-01T16:01:00.000-07:00

Some days need theme songs; this is especially true of Saturdays. Recently, my weekend theme songs have featured bats, birds and fur.

The Saturday before last: "Fangs on Bats" by Tullycraft
Fangs on bats. Heavy metal heartbreak. Taking over the world.

Last Saturday: "I Saw the Light" by State Bird
I saw the light, yeah, it shined in my eyes, now I cannot look away. Clouds opened up and the sun came through, it was a glorious day.

This Saturday: "Furr" by Blizten Trapper
So I drove into the woods and wandering aimlessly about, till I heard my mother shouting through the fog. It turned out to be the howling of a dog. Or a wolf to be exact.

search for zen

2008-08-11T21:43:00.000-07:00

Search stats are so interesting. Really. I like discovering what people are looking for - and what led them to me.

The stats feature on flickr is particularly fun (be sure to turn it on if you have a Pro account); they're like little stories about people out in weblandia.

Today I thought the referral search terms were being particularly poetic. It's almost a little haiku, minus all that 5/7/5 hoopla.

little gymnast
giant fan
wardrobe
foot tattoo

best songs to listen to on headphones while walking to work

2008-07-11T20:21:00.000-07:00

1. "By Night into Paradise" by Chet
[download]

Horns: Yes
Tambourine: Yes
Falsetto: Yes

"In the spring, it's a drive; in the fall there is a mist that will just cover you in awe."

. . .

2. "Inside the Cinema" by Culture Reject
[download]

Horns: Yes
Hand claps: Yes
Xylophone: Yes

"I love that Bill Murray, man."

. . .

3. "Olive Hearts" by Bowerbirds
[download]

Hand claps: Yes
Tambourine: Yes
Accordion: Yes

"Our glasses clink, and our plastic swords stab our olive hearts."

. . .

4. "Forks And Knives (La Fête)" by Beirut
[video]

Horns: Yes
Violins: Yes
Accordion: Yes

"And of course my childhood, forks and knives and a hospital bed, where I turned my life over and over again."

. . .

P.S. The drawing's of one of the guys in Beirut, holding up his trumpet above his head and belting out the chorus to "Forks And Knives". Such a good show.

scannerlove

2008-06-29T22:15:00.000-07:00

I finally have a scanner that works. Works! Although I love the colour purple, it's not always ideal to have bruise-like blotches across every picture. This is much better.

Getting this scanner fits in well with my horoscope this week, which says... oh wait, I can scan that, too.

Sounds good to me.

surrounded by things i love

2008-06-02T20:04:00.000-07:00

hello, springtime

2008-05-09T21:15:00.000-07:00

There's this indentation in the sidewalk that I pass by every day on the way home from work.

When I see it, I think about my secret wish to fill it with white resin and black shiny letters that spell out HELLO. It would make the perfect speech bubble.

I'll probably (definitely) never do that, so I'm glad that mother nature is stepping in to create some beautiful street art all her own.

and and the ampersand

2008-04-28T21:50:00.000-07:00

Hoefler & Frere-Jones type foundry have a nice write-up on the ampersand, possibly the most popular typographic kid on the block.

Two amazing things I did not know about the ampersand:

1. The ampersand was around for at least 600 years before the letter W.

2. Some credit the ampersand's invention to Cicero’s secretary. (I sure hope Cicero gave his secretary a raise for that.)

Also worth a read are H&FJ's takes on the pilcrow, aka the paragraph mark, and the eszett, which is usually referred to as that-wavy-B-shaped-thing.

i’ll side with you if you side with me

2008-04-21T15:10:00.000-07:00

Dear Jeff Tweedy,

You have helped me through many a stressful day. Today was no exception.

Thanks again,
me.

it's spring time (and business time, too)

2008-04-13T12:43:00.000-07:00

Springtime has officially hit Vancouver. This means cherry blossoms. Sunshine. Smiling people on out on the streets. Shiny cars playing bad music really, really loud.

Yesterday, one of these cars drove by playing a song with such ridiculous lyrics that I honestly thought it was a song by Flight of the Conchords.

Turns out is was this song.

Their voices really are quite similar.

And the lyrics - "Get ready for a nasty time / All the nasty things we can do" - automatically placed it in the realm of Business Time.

a little give and take

2008-04-05T16:43:00.000-07:00

I made two neoprene purchases this week.

No, the irony is not lost on me.

new accessories

2008-03-22T17:06:00.000-07:00

Shiny red shoes. Matte black MacBook. Need I say more?

tigether furever

2008-02-13T23:11:00.000-08:00

Happy Heart Day!

Did you know that cephalopods (the posse that octopuses, squid, cuttlefish and those oh-so-cool nautiluses belong to) have three hearts?

Well, although not scientifically proven, per se, tigers have two hearts.

That's why I made two tiger valentines. Yes, that's why.

xo,
me

new friends

2008-02-08T20:37:00.000-08:00

As you can see, I drew a near header image... Now with fewer rainbow stripes, but with 300% more smiles.

Before...

After...

I hope you like these three little guys.

inspiration board

2008-02-03T19:54:00.000-08:00

A board full of colours and momentos that make me happy...

steaks, baby!

2008-01-31T19:51:00.000-08:00

Last evening, on my way home, I got on the bus at the stop right outside the Safeway on Broadway. This guy in a wheelchair got on in front of me - he looked like he might be homeless, definitely down on his luck. After he got settled and the bus started moving, he reached under the blanket on his lap and pulled out a pack of steaks. Weird, right? I figured, hey, maybe he didn't want to carry a bag, it might be awkward since he has to wheel the chair and all. But then he pulls out another pack of meat. Chicken thighs, I think. Then another. And these are no small packs of meat. These are family-sized value-packs, maybe a foot-and-a-half wide by a foot long pieces of styrofoam with plastic wrap holding the meat in.

Then, with the three family packs of meat now on his lap, he reaches into his hoodie. And pulls out a pack of ground beef. Regular size.

Three packs of beef later, he's sitting there with a total of six packs of meat, three of which are huge, I'm pretty sure none of which he's paid for, and all of which have been hidden inside his blankets or clothing.

Meanwhile, I am trying to pretend to look out the window without smiling. Cause then he's cocked his head to one side and is winking, while giving the pointing finger-gun to this girl who's sitting facing him, and he goes "Heeey!" No response. "What, it's gross?... Steaks, baby!!!"

hush hush holidays

2007-12-17T23:22:00.000-08:00

The thing about Christmas is that until the big day, things have to be hush hush hush... But these little guys have been helping me out with a few things recently...

Now if only they'd help me pack my suitcases for my trip home for the holidays...

quilted website promo

2007-12-16T11:17:00.000-08:00

Last month, I did some design work for a co-worker of mine, Heike Kapp. Like a lot of creative people, she has so many other talents and interests beyond her day job. One of these for Heike is quilting. She only started the craft a couple of years ago, but is already a very skilled quilter. She's also one of the kindest people you'll ever meet.

I created some business cards and postcards for her, to help promote her website, where she showcases and sells her quilts.

She had tons of great quilts to choose from for this project--everything from more traditional designs to quilts that include fabric transfers of original photographs. In the end, we decided to focus on one quilt in particular, because of the bright colours and the amazing detailing.

Be sure to check out Heike's website to see (and maybe even buy!) some of her lovely fabric art.

map schmap

2007-12-16T10:35:00.000-08:00

One of my photos was recently selected from my flickr to be part of the fourth edition of the Schmap New York Guide.

Schmap integrates maps with photos from "real" people (ie. not necessarily travel photographers), so you can get a sneak peek of the places you might plan to visit.

My photo is of pickles and cheesecake served up at Carnegie Deli.

Mmm, pickles and cheesecake.

cubicle craft fair

2007-11-16T18:37:00.000-08:00

I know, I know. I am not blogging anywhere near regularly. It's been over a month since I last wrote... Yeesh. Life has been busy with trips (Toronto and Boston) and visits (my brother and sister-in-law), courses (2 more courses for my 2D Design certificate down!), plus work and the usual (and unusual) things that life throws at you.

My beaded bracelets that I wrote about are still sadly unfinished as I have avoided the boring part: tieing in all the strings.

Yesterday was a crafty day though, as my workplace was holding it's second annual holiday craft fair and bake sale. Basically, some of my co-workers bring in things they've made and we set up in a group of empty cubicles for an afternoon. Cubicle craft fair... I wonder if any other offices hold these? It sounds like it could easily be turned into a particularly painful episode of The Office, but it really was fun.

The only thing I had time to make this year was 1" buttons.

Plus, I had these button sets left over from last year: I made them from those awesome little paint colour swatches. I am addicted to those things (even though I have never even painted a room).

I love my button machine. Here's the scene post-buttoning...

beware, beaders, beware

2007-10-07T14:38:00.000-07:00

Common Dangers Faced by the Bead Loomer Today

1. Temporal Shifts
Usually preceeded by the Beader muttering, "Just one more line... Ok, I'm coming, I'll just bead more line." The next thing you know, several hours have passed.

2. Tidal Shifts
Usually preceeded by an 'urgent' event, such as a ringing phone, for which the Beader must abandon beading and race to address the situation. This will typically result in a stray limb catching the bowl of beads... .. . ... . . . ... . . .

Boy, that was fun to clean up.

beads are the new pixels

2007-08-27T21:52:00.000-07:00

Recently I've been all about the bead loom.

A year (or two?) ago, I created designs for beaded bracelets based on old school arcade video games. But for various reasons (other projects, procrastination, work, life) I hadn't got round to making more than a couple of each. I think projects are often like books: sometimes you pick up a novel and just can't get past the first page, but then you'll pick up the same novel six months later and just devour it.

And now is the time for devouring. Suddenly, I have a small stack of Space Invaders and Pac-Man beaded bracelets. Beads are the new pixels. Or is it that beads are analog pixels? Hmm.

Here's a sneak peek:

I just have to sew in all the ends... which takes forever. Hopefully I won't take another couple of years to finish this time.

If you're a big arcade fan, check out this video of human Space Invaders. Take that, human chess!

Oh My!

2007-08-24T18:42:00.001-07:00

Hi there. Welcome to Lions Tigers Pears!

I am very excited to move in here, into my new blog-home. Let's get to know each other, shall we? I'll start by answering some questions about what the heck is going on here.

What is Lions Tigers Pears?
Lions Tigers Pears is a home for some of my creative endeavours.

What kind of endeavours are we talking about here?
Lots of stuff. I like to learn how to make and do new things, and to explore and experiment with different mediums. So I end up doing a lot of different things. I sew, I knit (a little), I'd like to learn to crochet. I make toys (mostly plush softies). I own a sweet button maker. I've also painted furniture, made lightboxes and a coat rack. I draw. I design. I'm a maker.

What's with the name, Lions Tigers Pears? Is this all about circuses and fruit?
I wish! That sounds like fun. But no. Sorry.

Isn't it supposed to be "bread and circuses", anyway - not "fruit and circuses"?
I also like bread - especially freshly baked homemade bread - but no. As I mentioned, sadly, there's no circus connection.

So if there's not going to be a circus, what's going to happen here?
I'd like share some of my creative adventures here - things I'm working on, things I've done, things I'd like to do. I'm going to start an Etsy shop very soon, and also have booths at some craft shows this fall, so this is also a place to share info on that. Basically, I'd like Lions Tigers Pears to be the HQ for some of my projects.

Where else are you online?
I co-host the blog Magpie and Cake with my lovely friend Lindsay. There, we talk mostly about delicious goings-on and discoveries in the world of craft, as well the worlds of design and art - often combinations and hybrids of all three. We also talk a little about music and other wonders.

I started the Eye:Hand Coordination Project over on flickr, which is a self-portait game, squared: you take a photo of yourself, then draw of picture of that photo. Here are instructions on how to play. I'd love for you to participate, too! (Yes, I'm talking to you!)

I also have a personal blog, which has been going on and off since 2000. And, of course, I love flickr.

Where are you offline?
I've lived in four different provinces, but am now located in Vancouver, BC, Canada. I love the mountains and the ocean and the forests. The rain, not so much.

Tell me something you can do.
I can do the splits. I worked really hard in rhythmic gymnastics classes when I was a kid to accomplish this.

Tell me something you can't do.
I can't run or jog worth beans. Oh, lungs.

Do you have anything else to add about Lions Tigers Pears?
Roar roar yum. I hope we have fun.