cheap dates.

i have finally gotten my act together to photograph the newest sweetie pie press commissioned artist set, cheap dates by tara bursey. these have been kicking around for a few weeks, have been traveling to craft fairs with me and a few even made it out to bruno, saskatchewan, in my first shipment to my first (and best) saskatchewan shop, all citizens. but now that i managed to take pictures, they are also available to the whole world via etsy.

i am very excited that tara mobilized so quickly on my invitation to make a set. and i'm excited on a number of levels - i really like tara as a person; i think she is an exceptionally talented artist of many disciplines (see this); and on top of being thoughtful, her illustrative work is also quite pleasing to the eye. i know tara collects yearbooks, so i am assuming these cheap babes are inspired by her archive. take 'em home. they're lonely and low-rent.

but back to saskatchewan...i discovered the all citizens shop this past month through the recommendation of jen from the toronto craft alert. actually, she recommended that i read going rural, the blog that eventually tracks the inception of this small coffee shop/gallery/gift shop on the prairies. it's a winding tale. and an inspiring one. and at times it gets a little harrowing (well, i don't know if i could go through cold months without hot water). and you know what's great about the internet? you can read a blog, send an email, start a conversation and wind up driving out to oakville a week later to meet a stranger, go to their art opening and deliver a bag of buttons and neck warmers. i guess the c.i.a. knew what they were doing when they made this thing. clearly, they had the support of independent culture on their minds. who knew?