GREat luck

For: Christy
Occasion: Good luck on the GRE



My dear twin is taking the GRE tomorrow. A totally defunct image, the Scantron sheet of yester-year and number 2 pencil harken back to a simpler time when standardized testing was not done on a computer. (Isn't it fun to reminisce?) The text here reads "You don't need luck..."


"You've already got all the answers."

Christy wants to be a park ranger. Here she is, dancing among the trees in her fancy new olive green jacket. She was talking to me the other day and shared some thoughts with me. Advanced degrees and scores on tests and GPA points do not necessarily signify intelligence: what is more impressive than a PhD in Quantum Everything is the knowledge of what makes one happy, and the realization that these other numbers (GRE scores included) don't weigh in on that happiness.

Much more poetic and poignant than going "Office Space" on a printer/copier, this thought leaves me with a similar inspiration, which of course leads me directly to dancing in forests.

Good luck to all those taking the GRE in the coming weeks and months--may it lead you to your happiness.

Birthday Twins

For: Christy, the twin of my life
Occasion: her (our!) birthday



At every birthday party we had growing up, my mom would make us each a cake. I would always get the chocolate cake and Christy the yellow/white/funfetti cake. Here are two of those birthday cakes, and it's our second birthday.
Another fun fact is that my parents would dress us in certain colors so they could tell us apart more easily. I was always in red or yellow, and Christy in pink or green. I used yellow and pink (one from each color set!) for our decorations. And, because this card is based off our 2nd birthday, and because there are two cakes, we end up with a 22, which happens to be our current age--how perfect!



Here we are, our 2 year-old fuzzy-haired selves, obliterating our cakes. Quiz time: Who's who?

That's right: Debbie's in red with the chocolate cake, and Christy in green with the yellow one! (If you look closely, you can see the "Debbie Dots" as an extra clue.)
The banner in the background is also a quintessential piece of our birthdays growing up: my dad would print them out from our computer and we would tape each page together (hence the dotted lines).

I love my twin so, so, so much. And, this card is so wonderful, it makes me want to cry with joy and twinship.

A very happy birthday to the best friend I could ever ask for.

Birthday Cheers

For: My cousin Bridget
Occasion: her birthday



Bridget is a cheerleader. Here, there are two cheerleaders (with extraordinary strength and balance) holding signs that say "Hey Bridget."



In the blink of an eye, they flipped their signs around to the "Happy Birthday!" sides and busted out the party paraphernalia, all to give my cousin a cheer-ful birthday wish.
I hope she has a wonderful day, and that she never has to stand on someone's shoulders unsupported because I would be worried.

Birthday Sox

For: My uncle Greg
Occasion: his birthday



My uncle is probably the most intense Sox fan I know. (Like, he named one of his sons after Paul Konerko intense.) So I figured it was time to bust out the calligraphy markers and practice my pointy writing. Also making the "Sox" logo, something I have never tried before.



And on the inside, the logo is wearing a birthday hat and has a balloon tied to it. This design is in part homage to the fact that I did not deconstruct the logo into letters until I was about 12: I had always thought it was some kind of symbol of a weird-legged man. Embarrassing, I know, but I also did not figure out that the "D" in the "Disney" was in fact a "D" until an humiliatingly ripe age either.

But I've got it all straight now...

Friendship Bracelets, Friendship Birthday

For: Mandie!
Occasion: her 23rd birthday

My Mandie-pand is a wonderful young lady filled with smiles, hugs, and ideas for crafts! And, because she likes to make friendship bracelets...



It's a friendship bracelet birthday card! I really like the detail of the bracelet's beginnings in this card, and how the threads spell out her name. The pink background is actually a really bright pink--because that's so Mandie!--my scanner just wanted to pretend like it was pale (I'm not sure why.).



On the inside, the bracelet from the front is finished. This time the thread in the bunches is trying to communicate by spelling out "happy birthday." I had no idea thread had so much it wanted to say. It's like Toy Story, almost, except much less likely to be made into a movie.

Anyhow, I love and miss my Manders and can't wait to see her again!

Space Needle Card

For: Sarah Sot
Occasion: her birthday


Sarah had an internship in Seattle this summer, and had a wonderful time out there! In honor of that awesome experience, here's Seattle's renowned Space Needle. And a cloud in the background with her name on it?! Interesting...




Lo and behold, the Space Needle turned into a Space Needle-shaped birthday cake! And the cloud says "Happy Birthday!"? What an interesting day in Seattle.

Anyhow, I love my Sarah Sot very much, and I hope she has an amazing year! She totally deserves it.

A model birthday

For: Jamie
Occasion: her birthday



Jamie is a model, so she always has a absolutely stunning photos. And it looks like we caught a photographer mid-photo shoot. I wonder who the model is--our lovely Jamie, perhaps?



Nope--it's a birthday cake! The background is a sparkly blue glitter paper that I have been dying to use for months. It looks even more fabulous in real life.

This card was super fun to make, and I hope Jamie has a wonderful year!

Goober's appendix tried to kill him

For: Goober
Occasion: Appendicitis!



Goober's appendix got an attitude.



So he took it outside.

This card is kind of gross, and mostly hilarious. The mean appendix is almost anatomically correct--boxing gloves and "Mom" tattoo aside.

We had a bunch of our friends sign this card for him--I hope he has a speedy recovery and a nice relaxing weekend at home.

Karaoke Birthday

For: Molly
Occasion: her birthday



As a prospective student for the Master's program, I met my friend Molly at a narrative therapy workshop last spring. I was super lucky to have chosen a seat next to her, because she has helped me out with lots of tips and tricks in the program, and--wouldn't you know it?--we're classmates now! (What's up, SOCW 541 Research Methods?)

But anyway, this card is sure interesting, isn't it? Who is this mysterious karaoke enthusiast? And just what is she singing?



Straight out of Springfield, Illinois, it's none other than Molly McLay! Serenading us all with the "Happy Birthday" song.

This young lady is extremely talented and passionate, and I'm excited to see where she goes (and I hope she can keep giving me advice in the future!)

To be or not to birthday

For: My uncle Joel
Occasion: his birthday


My uncle is an English teacher, and since I am an English nerd, I figured I should make a Shakespeare card. This quote comes from The Merchant of Venice, methinks.



For however aloof ol' Will was on the front of the card, he certainly perked up when he realized there was a party going on! I bet he just wants a piece of cake.

Birthday golf

For: My cousin Jimmy
Occasion: his birthday



I got to see Jimmy recently at a family gathering, and I found out that he's a big golfer (through direct questioning and secondhand detective work). So, as a variation on the "cake as ball" cards that crack me up so much, here's Jimmy about to tee off!

Fun detail: tied to the strap of his golf bag is a small Titlest golf ball bag. This bag was made for Jimmy by his brother Tommy who, along with his wife Traci, knits and sells all kinds of bags and things. You can check out their website at http://lapinknits.webs.com/!


But back to Jimmy's card:


He's just one easy putt away from a birthday birdie! The flag is a birthday hat, but it's very subtle. The color in these designs is water color pencil, which mimics the texture of the paper background--how fancy is that?

I wonder what sports I'll be cakeing up next!

Hip-Hop-Happy Birthday!

For: Domi
Occasion: her 21st birthday



Domi is a pretty intense dancer. I thought it'd be fun to make a dancing card (a Debbie Dots first!) and so on the front of the card I feature three dancers' legs and feet.




And on the inside, the dance steps spell out "Happy Birthday!" I'm not much of a dancer, but it looks pretty complicated to me. (Especially the Ys. I feel like you'd need some really good balance for that! Domi could so do it though.)
Anyway, I hope she had a great birthday!