birds & blooms

Tomorrow is our ten year wedding anniversary! I can't believe it. Ten is one of those numbers you strive for, ten years are a real, poignant marker of time. Marriage is as hard as they say it is (even harder), and I'm so proud of the work we've put in to keep our ship sailing. Tonight we are having close friends (the ones without kids, because this night is about us!) over for dinner and drinks to celebrate. Then over the weekend it's time alone with David and then Mother's Day alone with Stella which is a tradition I treasure. I have some work to do to prepare for all this celebrating, so I'll leave you with this for the weekend.

This is my friend Anna Branning's new book, Birds & Blooms of the 50 States from Chronicle Books. It's a wonderful book full of her Dutch Door Press state bird and flower prints, which she and her business partner Mara started working on in 2008. The book release party was at Rare Device last night where I snatched up a few copies. I can't stop flipping through it, it's so beautiful. Anna's designs and graphics are gorgeous, intricate, and spot-on. You can pick a copy up online or at Rare Device and probably lots of other bookstores, too. You can also get the individual prints from the book (as well as their amazing textiles and cards) here at their Etsy shop. Congratulations to Dutch Door Press and my dear friend Anna (and also to my colorful pal Bridget Watson Payne, who happens to have edited the book)!

I shot the photos for a step-by-step look at the letterpress process for Anna and the Chronicle Books blog a few weeks ago. You can see that here. It's a fun and interesting process.

Have a really great weekend, everyone, and a very Happy Mother's Day to all the mothers out there. I hope you get whatever you want (or need) on Sunday! xoxo