Those Who Live in Stone Houses

Dutch City Houses Stationary available on Etsy

I really enjoy simple line drawings, and all the funky building shapes you find around here lend themselves well to being outlined in ink. Earlier this week I was thinking about how I've written so many letters to friends that I am running out of my fancy stationary, and then I was struck by the inspiration to design my own writing paper with some Dutch city sketches. One of my friends is always asking me to send her drawings of what I see here, so I will! I went through my photos and picked out some distinctive looking buildings from Amsterdam, Utrecht, and Dordrecht, and put together a set of letterhead and envelopes.

Collecting

My new collection of artwork--and the tulips my boyfriend surprised me with!

While I enjoy making ACEOs, I haven't previously collected any. I figured I had enough artwork laying around here and I should be selling that, not buying more! But...I have recently ended up with some awesome minituare work from some talented Etsy artists. I love that these pieces come from all over the world, and I think the collecting bug may have finally struck. Take a look at the humble beginnings of my new obsession!

Ratten

I've been busy with two new rats I got last month! The first is Karel de Grote (the Dutch name for Charlemagne), a 5 month old male. I call him Karl for short. Karl has big attitude and a love for adventure. He's not much for petting, he'd rather be on the move.

Karel de Grote

 
The other is Distle (Dutch for Thistle), a 3 month old male. Distle is shy and likes to sit in a hoodie, though Karl is helping him learn to be curious about new places. Distle is a home-body who likes to keep his place cozy and clean and often tosses out Karl's dirty bedding.

Distle

I've had rats in the past, but this is a first for my Dutchman. Though he isn't much of a pet person, I think these two are slowly bringing him around!

Hollywood Glamour, etc.

I was invited to participate in an ATC art trade with the Etsy All Handmade by Me team (check them out for sellers who offer completely handmade merchandise), and this seemed like the perfect excuse to make portraits of some of our favorite Golden Age celebrities which I would not be able to list for sale (well, without watching over my shoulder for the copyright gestapo). I'd also like to hear who some of your favorites are in the comments! I'm tempted to add Audrey Hepburn, but for now these are the five I'll be trading:

Marilyn

It's Raining Men

I've been working to get a better represtentation of men in my ACEO selection. These are a few of my recent ones, inspired by the lovely old photographs and snapshots available in the Library of Congress archives. I also had a very nice one of a gentleman with his dog, but it sold before I could take a photo. Not that I'm complaining.

Jay. Etsy

Sergeant Briscoe. Etsy

Alfred. Etsy

Jack. Etsy

Voorburg Artwork

The Voorburg city museum is starting a new exhibition about the town in March, and the art loan gallery there is holding a special juried art sale in conjunction with this. This is my submission, from the USA Day festival I enjoyed the first time I visited Voorburg. A parade of Cadillacs cruising down the main street was one of the highlights of the celebration. Ink is a challenge since it is so unforgiving of mistakes or lack of planning ahead, but I'm fairly satisfied with this one. I mean, there are always things to be improved for next time, but it's still a fun piece.

DAFT: The Residence Permit

Dutch Immigration Part VII

From what I had heard, 3 months was a typical amount of time to hear back from the IND. So, I waited for 3 months and then my Dutchman gave them a call. The person on the phone was able to look on their computer to see that it had not yet finished processing, though they did not know what it was waiting on. So we waited awhile longer, with occasional phone calls to check if there was any progress. Finally, we reached the 6 month mark, and still no permit. With another call, we were told that since they had passed the allowed amount of time, we could hold the IND in default. We would need to fill out a form, and then the IND would have 2 weeks to respond. If they missed that deadline as well, I would be eligible for a refund.

The agent also explained that they were unusually busy at that moment due to an extraordinary number of renewal applications. Seems a number of illegal immigrants had been pardoned awhile back and all of them needed their permits renewed at once. Apparently my timing wasn't so great.

So I was busy filling out the default papers, when I check the mail one day and lo-and-behold there was an envelope from the IND. Inside was the notice that my application was approved! It also stated that my permit was valid for 2 years from the date the application was submitted (so I had a year and a half left), though I had understood it would be good for a year. Maybe this was because the application took so long to process so I would have only had 6 months left at that point?

At any rate, I now have a nifty wallet sized permit/ID card to flash around.

Time for a celebratory drink!