Allegrae

I've been making mixed-media ATCs for several years. They're a great creative outlet! I've recently started making postcards and am finding them quite addictive.

My hobbies are varied. I sew and knit. I collect buttons and have my late grandmother's original button jar and sewing baskets, which I treasure.

On weekends, my boyfriend and I sometimes go fishing, with hit-and-miss results. My grandfather was an avid fisherman, and I have fond memories of him getting up early on a Sunday morning and leaving to catch dinner. He'd clean and gut the fish in the backyard, which seemed seriously gross at the time, but my grandmother turned his catch into the most divine dishes. He'd then plant the fish heads in the garden, as they make incredible (albeit stinky) natural fertilizer.

I love being on the water, be it sailing or enjoying brunch at a waterfront seafood restaurant. Give me a New England lobster roll or a seat at a summer clambake, and I'm a happy girl.

I recently started boxing at the gym, which is a great stress reliever. I'm not Muhammad Ali, by any means, but I'm learning to hold my own. I recommend it as a way to feel really empowered!

As you can probably tell, I'm not a girly girl. My art is seldom frilly--more modern, eclectic and occasionally weird. I like pushing the envelope. I prefer dapper gents to Victorian ladies. I'm more film noir than Disney.

I have fantasies of moving to Maine or Scotland, and I'm a little obsessed with finding the Loch Ness monster.

We live about 30 minutes away from a cool whaling museum, where I always take out-of-town visitors. It has a 19th-century whaleboat with all the original gear, and it's pretty amazing. One of the exhibits focuses on women who left their homes to join their husbands at sea. Most regretted that decision! There's also really cool nautical folk art on display, which I'd love to have on my walls.

Ed Sheeran, Allen Stone, Nadja Salerno-Sonnenberg, Valerie June, Petra Haden

The Sea of Lost Girls (Carol Goodman)
Best. Movie. Year. Ever (Brian Raftery) -- audiobook

How to Get Away with Murder
British mysteries (BBC and Acorn TV)
Murder, She Wrote reruns (Maine + Angela Lansbury = retro fun)
Law & Order (old & new episodes)

• Sewing themes (particularly buttons).
• Nancy Drew
• Nautical (ships & sailing)
• Seafood
• Breakfast foods
• Eggnog year-round
• Oceans, fish & marine life
• Fave faces: Idris Elba, Kerry Washington, Lupita Nyong'o, Judi Dench, Helen Mirren

• Religious themes.
• Christmas, Halloween & other holidays (maxed out on these themes)
• Kawaii, Disney & other cutesy themes
• Sticker slapping
• Pink and other pastels
• Puffy stickers

I don't collect postcards (other than the handmade variety). A lot of people send them to me, so I thought I'd make a note here.

• Washi tape samples
• Buttons
• ATC blanks (sturdy)
• Poker-size playing cards
• Die cuts
• Anything nautical
• Sewing-themed ephemera
• Used international postage stamps
• Ticket stubs
• Sticky notes
• Vintage book pages (not smelly/moldy)
• Vintage recipe pamphlets