
Justin made this new drawing in anticipation for the October snow storm we were rumored to get. We had no idea just how much snow it would be! It was so beautiful, maybe the biggest snow flakes I have ever seen. We were loving it, all cozy and warm inside while the thick snow fell quietly outside.
And then the power went out.
It stayed out for about 36 hours which is the longest power outage I've experienced. This is probably becuase I have always lived closed to downtown in whatever small city I lived in (except growing up in a neighborhood in the woods in New Hampshire, but the power lines were underground there...)

These situations make you realize all the things you take for granted every day -- the not-so-necessary things like tv, internet, radio, but also use of a phone, an oven, and heat. Honestly I enjoyed how it slowed everything down. Justin and I spent the first full day working on projects. But the silence was maddening! I finally dug an old walkman out of the closet and listened to some super old mix tapes really loud through big head phones so we could both enjoy it. The sound quality was equivilent to listening to music on a laptop, and such a relief! For the most part, the day felt good. I kind of liked not knowing what time it was and I was really productive. I made two new Fern Animals in their entirety (along with other things). I didn't hand sew the bodies, but unstead used my sewing machine by hand-cranking the needle up and down. Yeah, it was totally ridiculous and not necessary, but I wanted to see if I could do it! It made me pine a tiny bit for one of those old fashioned foot pedal machines.


When the sun went down it was so incredibly dark and creepy outside. We left our cold house to walk two blocks over for soup with some friends (they have a gas stove) and it felt strange and kind of scary with no street lights, no traffic lights, and every house completely dark with only a faint orange flickering in a one or two windows each.
But now the power is back and things (life, work, etc) are right where we left them. But Justin and I have agreed that it was really nice spending two dark nights reading aloud to each other by candle light. We are planning on making it a once-a-week routine. A plan to slow down and really enjoy eachother's company.
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In other news, Justin has been making some really great new pictures! We've decided to join forces and add some special new pieces to my online shop. I'm always wanting to simplify my internet pressence and combining our goods into one place feels like it makes sense. We've talked before about creating a new company name to head our joint efforts, but I've already made the big name change and I don't think doing it again would be ultimately benificial. Instead I have added "& Co." to Secret Holiday to expand it just enough that it feels like I can comfortably add the work of others to my shop.
Things are still in transition, I'm still reorganizing stuff, but we've put some Justin's work up and I'm excited about having there, amongst my things. The October Snow drawing at the top of this post can be found HERE. He's also made four witchy drawings that are being sold framed (I love getting work that is ready to hang up right away!) and three Santa Claus pictures. These new drawings remind me of 70's children book illustrations. I really like them! Check out Justin's work HERE.

We're offering free shipping on everything in the shop this week. Just enter the discount code "FREESHIP" during checkout and save!
Ok, was that long enough? Ha! Too much to talk about. I still have some exciting upcoming events to mention, but I'll save that for my next post... just to leave you hanging.