Roasted Brussel Sprouts–Amazing! From Wellsphere

When I was a kid, i HATED most veggies and brussel sprouts in particular. So it was a shock to me that, after becoming a vegetarian, I actually began to LOVE brussel sprouts. It’s pretty amazing! And so are brussel sprouts. I haven’t had any in a long time because I buy organic produce (except watermelons) and organic brussel sprouts are pretty expensive. But this roasted brussel sprouts recipe from Wellsphere.com is making me salivate! Now I just wish I had a working oven. Check it out! You’ll be running to Whole Foods to buy some of these sprouts before you know it. Chirp, chirp!

New Design for Mini-Computer Speakers: Plethora of Rainbow Circles, Geometric

I love creating clean geometric designs! Sometimes it’s all about pattern, color, and shape. These types of patterns can make a strong statement. They look so good with contemporary decor. And this design on these new mini-computer speakers will make others take notice. There are lots of circles in different colors alternating with rows of circles in shades of gray. Click on the link to learn more about these speakers and to buy. They make great gifts, especially for that new graduate going off to college. Chirp, chirp!

Vegan Rice Bowls–Yummy!

I’m obsessed right now with vegan rice bowls! These rice bowls are so simple and a great way to eat your greens! Well, yes, I really do like the idea of eating my salad first before eating cooked food, if I’m eating cooked food. But, honestly, it just doesn’t seem to happen. So I was inspired by Chipotle Mexican Grill’s veggie fajita bowl, the only thing I order there since I’m mostly vegan and gluten-intolerant. So here’s my fave rice bowl recipe. It’s quick and easy as long as the rice has been cooked earlier.

– brown rice seasoned with Spike seasoning
– mixed spring greens
– marinated tempeh sauteed in a little EVOO, Bragg’s Amino Acids, and water
– 1/2 avocado
– tomato

That’s basically it! You can add more ingredients if you like. You can add as much rice as you please, just be sure to add enough seasoning if you add a lot of greens. I use a big bowl and just mix it all together. It’s a quick and easy vegan meal that is very satisfying. You don’t need to worry about adding salad dressing either, so it’s a low fat meal. If you want to make it lower in fat, skip the avocado. But for me, this natural fat is a good thing and it really makes it taste even better. Enjoy! Chirp, chirp!

I’m Baaacckkk!!

Hey, it’s Birdy27! I haven’t posted in FOREVER, but now I’m baaacckkk! I can’t tell you how much work it is to try to build a business, still work, teach yourself guitar, and just live! WHEW! It’s a lot. So I’ve been neglecting my blog. But a blog is essential to having a meaningful online presence, so here I am! I’ve got new designs, more health info, AND I’ve got knitting stuff going on! I’ve got more stuff in my Zazzle shop (including wedding labels,”save the date” cards, bridal invitations, greeting and note cards, and more), in the Spreadshirt marketplace, and I’ve got a new Etsy.com shop! (Zazzle: http://www.zazzle.com/birdy27; Spreadshirt: designs.whoubetees.com; and Etsy: http://www.birdy27designs.etsy.com.) And please join me on Twiitter (www.twitter.com/birdy27) and please “like” me on Facebook and join my fan page (www.facebook.com/birdy27designs). Chirp, chirp!

I Heart Entrepreneurs!

Ecopreneur Design by Birdy27

I heart entrepreneurs! I think I started realizing this after spending probably 50+ Sundays at the flea market with I don’t know how many other vendors. Tweeting regularly on Twitter with bunches of other entrepreneurs also contributed to this feeling. We create, we struggle to get the word out, we put our hopes and dreams on the line, and ride against the tide. I don’t know if it is courageous or crazy, but we believe we can do the different and build a business and a life for ourselves based on our talents and creativity. This “forge ahead despite the odds” often strikes me as, well, strange; however, we do it any way.

So I’m ready to commit to my support of entrepreneurs. Will you join me? Do you know vendors in your area or on Etsy.com or Zazzle.com with really cool stuff? If so, will you at least consider purchasing from them instead of going to Macy’s? Will you tell others about the awesome, unique apparel or designs you copped? Will you promise not to just walk by a booth or quickly navigate away from the web page of a designer or crafter? We, the craziest of crazies or bravest of brave could use your help. For, after all, we really are keeping the American entrepreneurial spirit alive against the big boy corporation mentality. (Not that there”s anything innately wrong with that. But does it uplift the creative heart?)

Creating this cool new design for eco biz owners got me thinking about this. (Available on tees and other items through Birdy27’s Zazzle shop, Who U Be Tees, and on Spreadshirt.com’s marketplace.) And I realized I really do heart entrepreneurs.

If you think about it, you might just find that you heart entrepreneurs, too!

Chirp, chirp.

Birdy27

Luck o’ the non-Irish!

As I mentioned in an earlier post, one of the most challenging things about creating designs for tees and other imprintables is keeping up with the holidays and special occasions. If you thought these events came around pretty fast for you, try conceptualizing, designing, and creating final products for each of them weeks before they occur. Whew! It’s insane! After exhausting most of my ideas before Christmahanukkwanzaa, I have to start getting ready for MLK day, Black History Month, Valentine’s Day, and St. Patrick’s Day. And this is just within the first 3 months of a calendar year. Fast and furious indeed.

Often I can’t even find inspiration until the holiday or special occasion is just around the corner. Wherever inspiration comes from, it adapts to my “works best under pressure” mentality. This is how I got through college and all of a master’s program. This is how I work best. However, this is not what works best for this type of t-shirt biz.

It would be one thing if my job was limited to designing. But when you’re working online with a couple of PODs–print-on-demand companies–and you are your entire staff, then you’ve got perhaps hundreds of products to “produce.” (This isn’t true for my local sales. I only offer a small percentage of the designs I have for my local sales.) With PODs, there usually isn’t a limit to the number of designs you can offer; I have 500+ in Spreadshirt.com’s marketplace and I create more every week. Hey, that’s a cool thing! You can test designs, do custom orders, do quirky designs, and you don’t have to worry if those designs don’t sell. (For my local sales, if a particular design doesn’t sell, then I’m one unhappy birdy.)

This is mostly a good thing. However, I have to take the designs and put them on products. With Spreadshirt.com, I have to pick which print colors I would like for each design based on the color of the product. With Zazzle.com, if I want to change the print color, then I have to go back to the design and create a brand new file with the new colors and this is true for every print color change. Then, for both companies, I have to write descriptions for the designs and figure out tags or keywords for the designs. Next, I have to upload the designs and products into the marketplaces. Double whew! And then it’s time for marketing. But hold on! By this time the next holiday is fast approaching.

I’m not complaining really; I actually love what I do. But could I live without some of it? Yeppers. Do I feel horribly depressed when a holiday passes and I’m so late getting all this done that I miss some sales. Uh huh.

So here I am again. St. Patrick’s Day sales have already begun. Now I’m feeling inspired. And I’m feeling the pressure. Luckily I have quite a few Irish-themed designs already in Spreadshirt’s marketplace. To be clear, I’m not someone who solely focuses on current events and the latest popular topic. Now THAT would drive me to drink. A good portion of the designs I do are non-event specific designs. As Zazzle’s holiday list demonstrates, there are more of these that I could ever keep up with. But I do try to hit as many of the major days as I can. And no matter how many concepts I conjure up, I never feel like I’ve done enough.

Here are a few of my new Irish-themed designs. Most are available on tees/other apparel, bags, and aprons on Spreadshirt.com’s marketplace. (Click on this Birdy27designs link to all all available designs.) A few are offered on tees, doggy tees, magnets, mugs, mousepads, hats, bags, aprons, stickers, buttons, key chains, postcards, greeting and note cards, and more through Zazzle.com. (Click on this link for my Birdy27 designs on Zazzle.) I also have some in my Who U Be Tees shop with Spreadshirt. (Click on this WUBT link.)

And please, by all means, send some inspiration my way for Easter! Chirp, chirp!

Note: For all online products except Zazzle items, get 15% off all orders of $35 or more until March 12th! Use MARCHSALE2 in coupon code.

Birdy27

Vegan Black-Eyed Peas–Totally Delicious!

When I was growing up, I didn’t like southern-style black-eyed peas. Well, that was the only way my mom cooked them, so that’s all I knew. I also didn’t like collard greens or any veggies besides corn on the cob, green peas, raw carrots, cole slaw, and salad. (What a surprise to everyone when I became a vegetarian!) I don’t know why I wasn’t feeling all these things. Was the problem in the preparation?

Well, that certainly was the case with broccoli and cauliflower. If you cook any veggie too much, it is guaranteed to be nasty. But BEPs? You have to cook them well, but maybe my problem was with the big fat hamhock in the pan.

But back to BEPs. My first attempt at vegan BEPs was fantastic! I found fresh peas and I remember adding I tomatoes, onions, and garlic, but I was never able to recapture the magic. So I bid BEPs “adieu” for a while.

A few years ago, I decided I wanted to continue with the southern-theme of our annual veggie Thanksgiving feast. So I decided to give BEPs another try. I was inspired by my mom’s meatless version she was kind enough to fix for me when I visited. But I did something different: I added poultry seasoning. Yep, that’s right, poultry seasoning! That was the answer for me. Just organic BEPs, salt, pepper, EVOO, water, and poultry seasoning. Wow! One of my omni friends said they were the best BEPs she ever had, with meat or meat-free.

Since then I’ve tweaked the recipe a bit. And I tell you, the peas this past Thanksgiving were phenomenal, if I do say so myself. Here is the tweaked version minus exact amounts for the seasoning.

• 1 bag organic black-eyed peas (don’t need to soak them, but you can if you want)
• poultry seasoning (a good amount. the water and peas should darken)
• garlic powder, fresh garlic or Garlic Gold (see note below)
• salt and pepper to taste
• cumin (not a lot. it should enhance the flavor the poultry seasoning imparts, not take over)
• EVOO (probably about 2 Ts, but skip if you’re going to use Garlic Gold)
• water

Cook in covered pan until peas are nice and soft.

Note: for special occasions, I use a product called Garlic Gold. If you’re not raw, this is a fantastic product! It’s hard to find, though, even in NYC, so now I have four bottles delivered to me before Thanksgiving. It is toasted garlic nuggets in EVOO. Amazing!

I fixed some the other day and eat with brown rice. I had some left over and ate the rest without the rice. Um, um, um, um, um. Chirp, chirp.

Birdy27

Update re: Raw Mock Tuna Salad, Raw & Vegan!

I just couldn’t take it anymore! Last weekend, I made a special trip to my fav place to get raw mock tuna salad sandwiches. Went to the counter and was mortified to see that there were no sandwiches! Not even a raw mock salmon salad sandwich! Thoroughly depressed, I said to myself “This is it! I’m going to make my own.”

So I bought some almonds–okay, not totally raw, but the best I could do on short notice–and more sunflower seeds. I soaked 1 cup of each overnight and the next day my Vitamix and I went to work. I used the Chef Sarno recipe as a guide. I don’t practice exact measuring, but I can tell you the ingredients. And one thing I’m learning about “uncooking”: you don’t have to be so exact. So, just like with regular cooking, I add and taste, add and taste, then add and taste some more.

• 1 c each, almonds and sunflower seeds (soaked 10-12 hours)
• lemon juice: probably the juice of 1-2 lemons (used 2)
• sea salt to taste
• 2 T kelp (or a little more)
• a few squirts of bragg amino acids
• dried dill, probably close to 2 T
• dried basil, probably 1 tsp
• chopped onions, probably 1/2 c (i used over 1/2 of small onion, too much?)
• chopped celery, probably 1/3 to 1/2 c (i used almost 1 stalk, too much?)
• a little water
• a little agave or raw honey (if not vegan)–optional

I added everything into the Vitamix and added a little water as needed to get the mixture moving. (If you want yours to be chunkier, just Vitamix the almonds and seeds and then mix them in a bowl with everything else.) It took a while, but, man, it was slammin’! The first day I ate it by itself. The second and third days I put it on top of some raw flax “bread”–my fav brand, Love Force (Italian that day). Wow! I don’t have to buy prepared raw mock tuna salad sandwiches again unless I’m in a hurry!

I’ve got the nuts and seeds soaking now, so I’ll make some more today. Can’t wait! Chirp, chirp!

Birdy27

Update: This batch was good, but not quite as good as the last. It seems you have to add enough dill, lemon, and especially kelp. I kept adding more onions and celery, but maybe too much. But it is still good. I actually add a tiny bit of dulse. Not sure if it helped or not. Just a little different this time.

A Few Of Birdy27’s Cool Designs!

I tried again to add images/photos to this blog and it worked! (What was I doing wrong before?) So here are a few images/photos of my designs on products. More to come.

Alphabet Grafitti, Multi-Color With Patterns\

Life is Good in Lydall Woods

Designing Work Is Never Done!

Whew! When I started my t-shirt business, the only thing I really knew how to do was write slogans/concepts. I had no idea what I was getting myself into! If you had told me five years ago that I’d also become a graphic designer, that I’d be selling products with my designs on them at a craft fair/flea market, that I’d learn how to build a website, I would have denied it all.

One thing I haven’t mastered is getting designs ready for various holidays; you have to think ahead in order to get the timing just right. And I never noticed how the holidays just keep on comin’. I find myself scrambling to do my holiday-themed designs early enough.

Now that Valentine’s Day is almost here, it’s time to start working on my 2010 St. Patrick’s Day designs. I’m decidedly not Irish and that has been a source of inspiration. I’ll post a few of them soon.

Since I started working with online print-on-demand companies, I’ve actually sold hundreds of  my slogans/concepts, the majority I’ve designed myself.  Scores of people I’ll probably never meet are wearing t-shirts with my designs and I’m eternally grateful to them all. I’ve been lucky enough to meet some of my fans in person at the craft fair/flea market. It touches me when someone likes what I’ve created enough to hand me their hard-earned money. And the coolest thing is that they walk away smiling because I’ve created something they value. I LOVE it!

But designing work is never done, so I better get back to work. I tried to add some images in this post, but, um, I failed. Until i figure out how to do it right, you can find my designs at:

– Birdy27’s Zazzle shop: http://www.zazzle.com/birdy27

– Who U Be Tees: www.whoubetees.com

Oh, I should also say that my company name is ALA International. Go to the ALA International website to get to all of my shops and to see some of my cool designs.

I haven’t added anything lately to Kool Kids Tees and I Shop I Am Tees, but I’ll try to get to that soon. Go to my ALA International website for the latest Birdy27 info or bookmark this blog. Chirp, chirp!

Birdy27