Gertrude Jekyll

Flipping through The Garden Book this morning, and was taken aback at the majestic wintery beauty of this image:

The garden designer was Gertrude Jekyll and I'm not able to find a photo credit. The location is Munstead Wood, a renowned garden in England. Such a soothing palette of cool blues & greys.. so dreamy

Hey babe, take a walk on the wild side

Listening to Lou Reed this chilly New York morning. "Hey babe, take a walk on the wild side," he sings. You know what Lou, I will!

During the summers when I was 15 & 16, I went hiking, rock-climbing, & white water rafting on the Appalachian Trail along the North Carolina/Tennessee border. That experience lit a tiny spark and the dream was born - I would hike the entire trail.

I am setting out in late March on Springer Mountain in Georgia and will hike 2,175 miles to Mt. Katahdin in Maine. I will carry a pack on my back with everything I need to survive, and aim to keep my pack weight under 25 lbs. I will wake with the sun, walk all day, and set up camp again when I'm tired.

Incredible challenges await me, but as I strive to do in all aspects of my life, I will seek to find the joy & beauty (and hopefully some humor) in the situation.

Happy trails!

photos

Barry White & Sunday Afternoons

Growing up, almost every Sunday began with shouting chaos getting ready for church. My family of six would pile into my mom's minivan, or sometimes we'd take two cars if one group had to go early, or a group was running late. After an hour of calm, holy, Episcopal Eucharist, the chaos started back up as we raced home to tear off our church clothes. We'd gather around the kitchen table for lunch, usually made of random mix-match meals, every condiment on the table, trying to clean out the fridge and eat up any of the week's leftovers.  The highlight though, was every Sunday in the late afternoon, my dad would light up the grill & turn on the CD player. Barry White's smooth melodies set the tone as thyme & rosemary chicken sizzled on the grill. Dad would drink a cold Miller Light & I'd pour a myself a glass of raspberry ginger-ale. My siblings, our friends, and our dear yellow lab Obie would walk back & forth from the house to the back deck to join Dad, as he reminded us to close the door, that he couldn't afford to air-condition the entire neighborhood. It was a perfect way to end the weekend, and look forward to the week ahead.

When I listen to Barry White now, as part of my love for the whole genre of Soul & Motown music, his music stands apart, as it is accompanied by such sweet memories of Sunday afternoons.

Valentines!

So excited to be on the Martha Stewart blog today!! My friend Kristen was so kind to showcase my letterpressed Valentines for sale in my Etsy shop. I'm also happy to be participating in Poppytalk Handmade's "Love Transforms" Valentine & Weddings market this month.

Marigolds

I'm working on some wedding invitations for a May wedding. Tables will be decorated with vintage glass bottles with single yellow flowers. I found these beautiful antique prints while doing some image research and just had to share:

All found here

2011: What a great year!

2011 was literally a year filled with dreams coming true for me. I left my career in a corporate office to work for myself. I made lots of work. I spent three months farming in the south of France. I flew to California and put my toes in the Pacific Ocean. I learned so much and made friends at the Ladies of Letterpress Conference in Asheville, NC in August.  Most importantly, I'm continually working hard to pursue my dream of running my own letterpress & design company. As I look forward to 2012, it's a joyful thing to remember some of the stepping stones along the way from the past year:

With holiday cards & a craft sale under my belt, I began a line of Valentine's cards and joined Nicolette at her annual Valentine's flower stand:

I started doing custom design & printing for wedding invitations for friends and friends of friends. I discovered that I truly enjoy the collaborative process of working with brides to be to create something we both love.

Iris Café in Brooklyn Heights offered to carry my cards:

I was so excited when Amy Merrick hired me to design her website. We had a wonderful time shooting with photographer Bryan Gardner to turn Amy's concepts to beautiful images. Espresso, scones, flowers, good music, good people... such a fun day!

One of my proudest accomplishments of this year was spending countless hours this summer working on my website: www.maconyork.com! Converting magazine PDF files to web images + shooting all my stationery portfolio was quite an overwhelming task but I'm so glad to have it up. Special thanks to Christy-Claire Katien for helping me with this project.

I finally got around to printing business cards for myself, something a letterpress printer & designer definitely needs:

This summer my parents moved from our home near Savannah, Georgia up to the mountains of Chattanooga, Tennessee. My parents are incredibly supportive of my creative ventures and it was such a treat for me to print these moving cards for them:

As a Christmas & housewarming gift, I made my parents some custom coasters:

I finished the year out with two sets of holiday cards:

Finally, I'm so excited to announce that I'm now a proud owner of a Chandler & Price tabletop letterpress! I found it on eBay from a lovely couple in Louisiana. They shipped it freight and it arrived yesterday along with some extra goodies: furniture, packing paper, two quoins, and a quoin key! Woo hoo!

After spending the last 10 New Year's Eves out and about with friends, I opted for a quiet New Year's Eve this year. I stayed in and hung out with my Dad. We put violet liqueur and fresh lemon juice in our white wine for a fun little New Year's cocktail, had a great pork chop dinner, and listened to Jim Croce - a perfect way to end such a wonderful year.

Cheers to a beautiful next year!

xo Macon

Vintage French Books

While strolling around Paris, I came across the cutest vintage bookshop. I love the use of color & typography in these old book covers. Sadly, the shop was closed but I was able to take some photos from outside. 

Christmas Spirit

After a three month adventure traveling & farming in the South of France, I returned to the US to spend Thanksgiving with my family. 


My parents moved from Savannah to Chattanooga this summer and it has been a wonderful experience exploring the city with my family. Hiking, seeing the muppets movie, enjoying a great time out at Public House, walking the family basset hound, and sharing incredible meals made by my dad have made for a refreshing transition back to America. 


I'm headed back to NYC tomorrow and am excited to get into the Christmas spirit. I spent the morning uploading some Christmas classics like Bing Cosby's Merry Christmas. 

I loved the New York Magazine Muppet's Gift Guide and can't wait to see the window displays on 5th ave. I have to admit I've never seen It's a Wonderful Life, so that is a top priority this Christmas. I'm looking forward to being back in Brooklyn roasting vegetables and drinking hot toddy's. I'm especially excited to design, print, and mail my own holiday greeting cards. 


Cheers, here's to the holidays! 

Ville de Nice

Bonjour! I am on a train to Aix-en-Provence after four days in Nice, France. My time was brief but rich. Traveling alone has granted me the unexpected luxury of spending minimal amounts of money. I have become less interested in consuming (both food & goods) as in simply experiencing, and this realization delights me greatly.

Every morning I strolled down to the beach with a yoga mat, towel, sunglasses, and a copy of The Heart is a Lonely Hunter. I soaked in the warm sunshine and gazed out into the vibrant, electric azure of the Mediterranean. There is no sand on the beach – only small rocks, weathered to the softness of suede. When I was hot, I took a dip in the clear, light blue water. When I was hungry, I had a refreshing tuna baguette. When the midday sun got too harsh, I wandered into Old Town, where the tall historic buildings shaded the small cobblestone streets and provided relief from the sun. Every afternoon I treated myself to one scoop of lavender ice cream. In the evenings, I made my way back to the beach to watch the day’s palette turn from bright blues to soft pinks, yellows, and peaches.