How to Fold a Fitted Sheet

I was on a mind jumping, internet clicking rampage the other day. I was looking here and then saw an ad for something or another there and clicked it and then saw something there and clicked... you get the idea. Like a magpie, I was gleaning this shiny idea and suddenly switching gears to another one. In the midst of this lunch time killer, I remembered that I need napkins. Somehow my napkin supply keeps shrinking. I have found them in the oddest places (under the kitchen sink as dust rags, in Mai's room as doll blankets, mis-shelved and put away in the bathroom closet) but rarely ever in the table linen drawer. So, I google napkins and see a listing for "napkin folding." Of course I have to look at that, I'm a magpie, remember. With my initial purpose of purchasing napkins a fading memory, I learn to fold beautiful napkins that will wow my guests. Then, my eyes focus on the next heading... "Other Folds." It is in this section that I found something truly amazing. So amazing that I have to share it with you... a video tutorial on how to fold a fitted sheet! I've always been a fitted sheet wadder/roller. I thought folding them in an orderly manner was impossible. Behold...

-Shannon Schmalfeldt

The Smithsonian Website

182 [Samurai in armor], [1860 - ca. 1900]. [graphic].

It never occurred to me that entire museums were just a few clicks away. I was doing a "kid's museum" search to try to find interesting things to explore with my daughter online. She has recently been turned on to mummies, locusts and horseshoe crabs. I was wondering what other natural/scientific wonders I could bestow on her when I found out that the Smithsonian is online! The site is full of juicy works that make this museum great and links to other exhibitions at Smithsonian Institutions (Cooper-Hewitt: National Design Museum, National Museum of African Art, and Freer Gallery of Art / Arthur M. Sackler Gallery to name a few). I know a computer screen can not take the place of seeing certain wonders in person, but this website is such a luxury for those of us who would like to tour these exhibits on our own time, from our own locations. My daughter (soon to be 5 yrs old) loves this site InventionAtPlay that we found through a link in the "Everything Art for Kids" section. I have found a slew of inspiration in the "Art and Design" pages. The above image is a sample of what can be found in my favorite section, "Smithsonian Research Information System: Photographic Image Gallery."

- Shannon Schmalfeldt

Autumn Music Playlist

My favorite time of year is Autumn.  I love the crisping of the air, the colors, the fall festivals, and layering!  It seems like it takes forever for Fall to reach the south.  My friends in Wyoming and Michigan are already feeling its full effects.  I am patiently waiting for "full on" scarf and jacket season (usually arrives down here mid October). This is my new Autumn playlist that is on all the time while I'm designing, driving, playing ... LIVING :) and soaking up the season change.

Want to buy some of these tracks?  Click on "iTunes iMix"

- Shannon Schmalfeldt