Monogram Monday ... er Tuesday - wait make it Thursday!

I was digging through old photographs (well, OK, I was whizzing through old photograph files but that sounds way less nostalgic) and found some old monograms I did. This was during the time my son had autism and life was a complete blur. No offense to any of the brides, but I don't remember doing most of these!

We were sleeping about 2 hours per night, I was trying to run my social stationery business, take care of two kids, and cure my son of autism. Sleep was low on the totem pole of priority. There were literally some nights I was falling asleep at my drafting table with a dip pen in my hand! (Don't try this at home - it does nothing for the nibs!)

Anyway, I was surpised at what I had accomplished in my sleep deprived state. I miss doing monograms. Maybe I should start doing them again... :-)

Think I went a little flourish crazy here:

Like this one. I'm sorry to say I have no idea who it was for or when I did it.

A calligrapher's dream when the initials are M and W! :-) I did another version I liked even better that was just the M & W ... can't find it!

Poor Linda ... run for the hills - take cover from all that flourish!

For my own personal monogram ... still haven't decided which one.

E, how do I love thee...let me count the ways!

Last one ... I so hope she went with the less flourished one.

Hope you enjoyed seeing them for the first time. I feel like I did as well! It's all a blur! Kiss your babies before tomorrow is yesterday and you can't remember what happened!

Truly,

Erica

 

Happy New Year - 2010!

Wowza - 2010! I truly can't believe it. Back in 1999, I was an executive compensation analyst (can you imagine?!) and we were scurrying to prepare our large company for "Y2K." My bestest friend Lisa and I were in meetings on a daily basis ... what if this, what if that. We were both astounded that the year 2000 was upon us. Five kids between us and 10 years later ... here we are even more astounded 2010 is upon us!

While there are many parts of the past 10 years I'd like to erase (and hope to this year, if you catch my wide drift! ;-p), the past 10 years have brought me personal growth, knowledge, and experience that combined finally make me feel like a grown up. Horror that is, with it came the most joy I've ever known in the form of 3 very beautiful, sweet children whom I adore more than life itself.

As some of you kind readers know, for the past 5 years, I have put my serious pursuit of the arts on the back burner while I studied homeopathic medicine to become an HD (homeopathic doctor). Although that study will last the rest of my life, I have accomplished what I set out to do. And now that I live in a state where I cannot practice without 2 more additional years of medical school to complete an MD, that goal is going to have to be put on hold.

In the meantime, calligraphy has been calling me. And if ever a heart could ache to create, mine is. While I continued to letter greeting cards and such through the past few years... my penwork is grossly out of practice (get it? -- grossly? - inside joke to calligraphers)! So I decided I'm going to try to work my way through the Tamblyn Instructor.

I whizzed through Lessons 1-6 today... then was struck by how difficult it was to make a Capital C in Lesson 7! I had to use all my restraint to not just go off course. Since Tamblyn starts with business writing, no flourishes are allowed - no loops ... ahhh the discipline. But I'm hoping it will pay off with fresher letters. (OK, you can see where I let a few flourishy "t's" fly but then I gathered myself properly. :-) I did manage to squeak out one semi-decent C at the end. (See the tiny arrow?)

OK, for some reason I still haven't been able to figure out this whole processing thing on blogs so I'm now writing to you from the centered position. But that's about it anyway! Oh ... one last thing ...

Truly,

Erica