I like you too.

A massive shop update all of a sudden. New books, some books you've caught glimpses of, loads of botanical brooches. And now, also, letters to you. My matchbox project has a will of its own and it's also easily persuaded. I'm just having too much fun making my little quirky art things! So, now they really are made as art, not as a creative wastebin thing for my scraps :)

I'm in a terribly good mood this week, so I think it's a good idea to spread the joy a bit. (Free stuff, yay!) I'm just about to reach 300 sales in my shop, so whoever purchases the 300th item will also receive a matchbox letter, specially made just for that person.

And just because I kind of like the people who read my blog, really, really much, I think I could make a little something for you too. Leave a comment (with some contact info, please) and you have a chance of winning two matchbox letters, one mysteriously (or not) in Finnish and another one in English, telling the story of the abandoned house and the magician and the possibly imaginary funambulist. One way to improve your chances of winning is to tell me what kind of things you imagine I've been writing to people or what you would like me to write. I'll draw a fairly random name from a group of nice comments next Sunday (July 19th) and announce the winner right here in my blog. And if the winner happens to be Finnish, I'll just write the story in Finnish too, just because, you know.

Yep, I'm checking how closely you're reading my blog ;) No huge giveaway signs around here and you need to say more than hi. Sorry if you came here just to say hi. I like you anyway.

And so it goes on and on.

Art makes everything better. I know, you told me so months ago, but sometimes I'm a bit stubborn and feel like staying in bed all day will eventually lead into world peace.

Be still my beating heart. Life is happening.



Maybe there'll be no more thunder this week. The sky looks like it has other plans. I hope I get my way this time.

accept all happiness from me

--/Then shall i turn my face and hear one bird/sing terribly afar in the lost lands

- e e cummings

More letters to Shannah

This was not the first time I told the story of the abandoned house, the surprise art gallery and the magician. I think it's the only story I know. I keep remembering more of it all, but I can never find out what actually happened and who wrote the story. And was there a funambulist there at all?

I traveled far to take this photo for you (and me)

That is London sky, my dear. I wish I could see it more often. Like all the time.

Creativity happening, I'm sure it will find its way here soon-ish.

I keep returning to this year after year, for so many reasons.

There was a time when my handwriting was like a line of the tiniest ants of all ants

Now it's slightly larger. But I still think it looks like ants desperately queuing to get somewhere they haven't yet been. The matchboxes I've been making lately are more simple and hold more words. And I've been writing in English as well. I guess at some point it gets frustrating to write to yourself alone. I'm going to show you eight of the matchboxes now and the rest at a later date. (As always.)

When I first moved away from home about eight years ago, I took a small collection of newspaper clippings with me, mostly just random images and some small poems. And for some years I had a wall covered with those images and words, some of them were smaller than stamps some a bit larger than a postcard. I didn't really care about the subjects so much, I was always looking for a perfect color to add to my collection. And the collection grew, and my walls grew. I moved from one room to another and then into the first real apartment and the whole mosaic moved as well. I'm sick of blu-tack. So it was time to do something with my random old people and pretty young people and leaves and trees and lakes. This is what happened.







More.

I've burnt my skin too many times this year (not even slightly tanned though! that's what my super sunscreen is good for). And it's like the summer just begun. Hay fever & heatwave.

Today is the day of the first new potatoes of this summer

I was away from home at home. If you like taps and things, you can go see more photos on Flickr.