We've mentioned more than once here on Smarts & Crafts how much we LOVE libraries!!! So you can imagine how excited we were when Rosie (who is lucky enough to actually work at the library) invited us to participate in San Francisco's
One City One Book Project. For any of you not familiar with the program you can
click here to find out more, but basically it's a fun way to encourage reading, conversation, and community. And of course it's great for all the amazing writers whose books are featured—sort of like San Francisco's version of Oprah's Book Club (only cooler!!!).
Well this month all of us here in San Francisco are reading "Alive in Necropolis" by
Doug Dorst. We've just started it, but it's already reeled us in....not only because there are tuxedo'd zombies running around, but it just so happens to be beautifully written. Here's the blurb on the back to give you a little taste:
"Colma, California, is the only incorporated city in America where the dead outnumber the living. A "cemetery city" serving San Francisco, Colma is the resting place of the likes of Joe DiMaggio, Wyatt Earp, and William Randolph Hearst. It is also the home of Michael Mercer, a rookie cop trying to go by the book as he struggles to navigate a new realm of grown-up relationships. But instead of settling comfortably into adult life, Mercer becomes obsessed with the mysterious fate of his predecessor in the Colma PD, Sergeant Wes Featherstone, who seems to have spent his last years policing the dead as well as the living. As Mercer delves deeper into Featherstone's story, his own sanity starts to slip, too—either that, or Colma's more famous residents are not resting in peace as they should be."Exciting, right?!? So head off to your local library and pick up a copy, SF residents can just
click here....
So before next Thursday send your very best, most "spooky-iest" picture to smartsandcrafts@gmail.com. We'll pick the one that gives us the biggest chills and that lucky person will get a free copy of the book, courtesy of our friends at the SF Public Library.
Well this month all of us here in San Francisco are reading "Alive in Necropolis" by Doug Dorst. We've just started it, but it's already reeled us in....not only because there are tuxedo'd zombies running around, but it just so happens to be beautifully written. Here's the blurb on the back to give you a little taste:
Audrey's photo
Lydia's photo
Rachel's photo
Beatrice's photo
Tony's photo
We've been longtime admirers of (and subscribers to) THE THING, the "object based quarterly publication" created by artists Jonn Herschend and Will Rogan. So it's a big big honor for us to be 1 of only 3 shops in the whole world to be offering Issue #7, The Chaldron Optical System, for sale! Yay us! And boy, is this issue a doozy...Conceived by one of our all time favorite authors, Jonathen Lethem, and created by world class designers Selima Salaun and Matt Singer, this one is particularly spec-tacular. Issue #7 consists of a case, a pair of super hot glasses with clear lenses that you can wear as-is, or swap out for your personal prescription, as well as a care and maintenance manual written in both English and French
Photojojo is an awesome website full of tips, tricks, projects and reviews for photography enthusiasts (like us!) and we were super excited when they asked us to contribute a DIY project for their new book which is out today.
Our magnetic photo frame how-to is one of many inspiring DIY projects in this book, which also includes instructions on how to make a snow globe, a wallet, a lampshade, a wall mural and many, many more, all featuring your own images. It's time to get your digital photos OUT of the computer and turn them into creative, fun projects!
We went to a gorgeous wedding yesterday in Livermore, California, right-smack-dab in the heart of Bill Owens country. I grew up not far from there, in the same sort of cookie-cutter neighborhood that served as Owens' muse in his fantastic books Suburbia, Working, and Leisure. His pictures are amazingly intimate, and funny, and moving and remind me so much of my own childhood that I swear he printed them from negatives of my memory.
We just got back from a meeting of the Taco Bell Drawing Club, organized by the super talented Jason Polan (whom I've mentioned here before....). It was loads of fun.
