Posts in Journal Pages
Journal Pages: Prague Sketches

Last week, Mr. Floor and I went on a weeklong city trip to Prague (Czech Republic)! 
The man had never been, and I hadn't been in about seven years and obviously needed a hit of art nouveau art and architecture after having moved out of my old beautiful art nouveau neighborhood of Ixelles in Brussels. 

Day 2 in Prague © Anna Denise Floor - Click to enlarge

Prague did not disappoint. Even though one of the main art nouveau landmarks, Grand Hotel Europa was closed, we sought refuge in Cafe Savoy, and drank in the splendor of the Municipal Hall (or Obecni Dum). Mr. Floor also surprised me when treating me to coffee with an amazing view from the Hotel Golden Well

Day 3 in Prague © Anna Denise Floor - Click to enlarge

We, of course, of course, had to visit the Mucha museum. I am a huge fan, and found the (tiny but full) museum absolutely amazing, although I must say I was a little creeped out by the nationalist work Mucha did as well (this angry girl has been in my nightmares). I also drew some buildings and we found out that Czech food isn't really our 'thing' (very heavy on the meat), but found an amazing Italian restaurant: Trattoria Cicala. The restaurant, filled with an eclectic collection of art and very friendly staff is apparently frequented by the likes of Morgan Freedman and Johnny Depp, which isn't BS - we saw the pictures on our way to the bathroom. BAM! So close to hanging with the famousses, us jet setters, we are.  Oh, and now that we're talking food - THIS is the most romantic and surprising place I've ever had dinner. Go there. Do it. 

Day 4 & 5 in Prague © Anna Denise Floor - Click to enlarge

Halfway through the week our legs were hurting pretty bad from all the walking, so to remedy the issue - we walked some more! The weather was mostly great, apart from one magnificent thunderstorm, and we scoped out most of the city on foot. Once Pesach was over, we headed over to the old Jewish cemetery. I had seen it on my previous visits, but it didn't fail to impress this time around and we sat for a while, drawing some of the tombstones. 

Day 6 in Prague © Anna Denise Floor - Click to enlarge

On our final day (well, last full day, we flew back the day after), we had breakfast at Café Louvre (pretentious, and the food wasn't great, but the interior is nice), spent all day looking at art in the Veletrnzi Palace (part of the National Gallery), drinking coffee and sketching in the awesome museum cafe, Café Jedna.

I'm sure I've missed a ton of things we did in this post, but since we mostly walked around all the sights and parks, I didn't do any more drawing than this. 

Do you draw a lot on your trips? How long will you spend on each session? What tools did you bring? I may actually do a separate post on this, so I'd love your input!

Journal Page: Sunday Sun

© Anna Denise Floor

Last weekend was a fun one with lots of books (reviews to come!), terribly romantic walks, perhaps a tad too much alcohol, too little yoga, and some great music.

If you're looking for a sunny soundtrack to your life this spring and summer, may I definitely recommend Sunday Sun. Some of my favorite songs  are 'Sunday Sun', 'Highly Respected Rebel', and 'Ordinary Love' - but to be honest, almost all of their songs are absolutely charming, fun, with a slight Beach Boys vibe to them. 

What are your favorite books and albums right now? Please share in the comments!

© Anna Denise Floor

Journal Page: An Oddly Colored Birthday

© Anna Denise Floor - Click to enlarge 

Look what I did! I colored that stuff in by hand! Aren't you all excited? Yeah, so was I, actually, until I tried to scan this baby. Above: photograph, with realistic looking colors. Below: scan, with shitty colors that I got tired of trying to fix in Photoshop. Now, either my photoshop skills are deteriorating (hah! right), or my scanner is in need of replacement after a mere ten years of service. Yah, they don't make those things like they used to no more, do they? Now get off my lawn. 

© Anna Denise Floor - Click to enlarge

Anyhow, this was a little while ago. Because I was in New York for my birthday, of course Mr. Floor has to turn around and go to New York for work on his birthday as well. Always trying to one-up me, that one, un-bah-lie-vah-bah! ;-) In retaliation, I obviously proceeded to throw my own birthday party for my family on his very birthday, so I got gifts and attention on his birthday and was in NYC for mine. Having my cake and eating it, so to say, if only I ate cake. Nah, in truth, I was kind of sad and lonely and it was awesome to have them there. Awww...

© Anna Denise Floor

Journal Page: Getting Our Hands Dirty

Two weeks.

A mere two weeks I don't post to the blog and all of a sudden, you make me turn 30! There I was, minding my own (well, everyone else's) business in Brooklyn on a work trip - next thing I know, people are singing happy birthday to me (in Dutch!) and handing me shots of tequilla. I was absolutely flabbergasted. One minute you're enjoying youth, hotness, full of promise, and then next thing you know, BAM you're thirty. In hindsight, I probably should have seen this coming for a while, but you know, thinking about age is très mundane. 

© Anna Denise Floor -- Click image to enlarge

Nah. Enough with the hilarious jokes. I had a great birthday, and then had another awesome birthday when I got home w/ the fantastic Mr. Floor.

But! All of that has nothing to do with this week's journal page, which is actually a journal page from two weeks ago, but I was busy trying to stuff sixteen outfits into a broken suitcase, so I forgot to share. We gardened (may or may not have been my very first time, ahem) and it was actually really fun. Look at me! All domestic and stuff!  

Journal Page: Starfish Style + Reclaiming My Journal

© Anna Denise Floor

Last weekend was a good one, I got spoiled by my man, slept in, went out for coffee, cake, and vintage record buying. Also: I drew a journal entry! Click on the image to see it larger. 

I know, yay, right? But I can hear (at least one of) you thinking:

What happened to the daily journal pages?

Sometimes people ask me what happened to my daily journal pages (on paper). Well, to be honest, after almost six years of doing daily illustrated journal pages (see them here), I was just kind of worn out. It wasn't exciting to me anymore, I felt empty, uninspired, even a little resentful. The daily drawing and sharing came to feel like a task. Another thing to do on my never ending list. With the crazy changes going on in my life last year and the months leading up to it, I just dropped it. I had nothing to say, and the things I did draw felt too personal to share. 

When I started in 2007, the daily drawings were a way of getting back in touch with my creative side, to re-train my hand-eye coordination, to turn drawing into a habit. It then changed my life. I started drawing and sharing my work, I met other (closeted) creatives and collaborated with some amazing artists, I started working on my Etsy shop, got involved in the community, and finally started working at Etsy in my dream job where I can both be creative and feel inspired, use my intellect and OCD-style love for organization, and benefit from running a blog and freelance business on the side. Mission accomplished, and the daily drawings no longer felt necessary (and I'm a sucker for goals. I'm kind of like a dog, really, if you switch balls with goals, minus the drooling and hair and yucky smell. I don't like dogs). Kthxbye. 

I let days, trips, travels, big life moments, go by without recording them on paper, and I didn't really care. I wrote some, got addicted to Instagram, did the occasional commissioned piece, but mostly just let it be.

Having fun again

And then I started missing it again, and now I'm ready to reclaim this journaling thing for myself again. That probably will mean that I'll do them in this new semi-digital format, as it's more of a challenge to me, and right now I'm inspired by doing this. I'll probably only do it on weekends only, not daily (unless I feel like it), but I'll make it a goal to actually do it. In short: I'm ready to have fun with this once more. So stay tuned! 

Illustrated Recipe: Vegan Banana Ice Cream!
bananaicecream.jpg

Hello my name is Anna Denise and I'm lactose intolerant. 75% of adults worldwide actually stop producing the nifty little enzyme called 'lactase' after childhood, and it's not really a big deal, but to Dutch people, not being able to eat dairy is almost like a death sentence. A dinner party death sentence, mind you, because it will turn any good, gezellige Dutch dinner party into a pit of despair and loss. 

First, there's the obligatory fun little run through of all the foods you can't digest. Cheese? Mostly, no. Butter? Nope. Milk? Neh. Yoghurt? Nee. OHMAHGODCHOCOLATE? Yeah, I know. No. 

Then: confusion. "Well, at least you can have goat cheese". No, that would be alright if I had a cow milk allergy. Lactose intolerance is an enzyme deficiency, not an allergy - different causes, different symptoms. I especially love it when people tell you you're wrong about this and insist they know someone who's sister has it and can eat goat cheese. while people can have different levels of deficiency, of course, I'm pretty sure that for me, it's a no go. I mean, it's ok. I didn't really care either, until my bowels exploded. 

And finally, depression sets in, "but I was planning to cook you this really nice meal of butter, cheese, melted butter, cream, topped off with chocolate!". I know. I'm sorry. It sounds amazing, really (this is why it's best to give the host a heads up way in advance, and give them a list of things that are ok).

And while everyone in my life has since ran through all of these stages (sometimes twice), and have actually been very very kind and have cooked me totally lactose free meals since I was diagnosed, dessert remains an issue, as most desserts are traditionally dairy heavy. I myself have come to very much enjoy coconut/almond/soy replacements, but I understand not everyone does.

So! On to the internet I went and found me a little recipe. This vegan lactose free banana ice cream recipe is a life saver. Not only is the banana surprisingly creamy, it's also super easy to make (if you remember to freeze the banana on time). I wish I could remember where I found the recipe, so I could thank the authors for their awesomeness. 

Enjoy, other 75% of the world, apparently living outside of Holland!

Journal Page: We've Moved!

© Anna Denise Floor

After a week of packing and painting, we've finally moved into our new home! 
We're not sure how long we will be able to stay here (the house is for sale, we're not buying), but it's so nice to have a bit more room. Well, in theory, because to be honest, we haven't been able to unpack very much in between work and getting very addicted to sleeping in our new(ish) bed. Ahhh. Bed. I love you bed.

Happy 2014!
© Anna Denise Floor

© Anna Denise Floor

Happy New Year, folks! It's not too late, right?
I hope you all had an amazing holiday break (if you had one), and that the new year has been treating you well. 

We spent new year's eve in Israel, where we traveled around for little over a week (which was amazing, and more on that later). Today, exactly one year after my husband and I met, we're getting the keys to our new apartment, so 2014 is looking good already! I mean, the place has a garden (yes, I know my excitement is remarkable considering my track record of killing even the most robust of cacti, but wharves) and ROOM FOR A KITTEN! EEK!

Anyhow, 2013 has been the most life-changing year in my life so far, and I'm working on a longer comic to sort of digest it all, but with the traveling, moving, and baby-explosion (7 people I know produced a total 8 babies in Nov/Dec!), it's still in the works. I promise to get that done before my 30th birthday comes around, though!

I'm off to work - hope you all have a good time getting back into the daily grind as well! 

Journal Page: Snow Globes and Super Glue

© Anna Denise Floor

So then my colleague Ingrid and I had an epiphany and decided to wear matching sparkly tights to our office Christmas party and even though no one actually said so, everyone was of course very jealous. It is also probably the reason why my team won the gingerbread house making competition (we made a boat), and why our snow globe had dinosaurs in it and looked sparkly and badass. No, actually, I think that may have been my colleagues doing, as I was too busy laughing at my boss who glued his fingers together with superglue (he's alright, although he probably hasn't been able to access finger print protected iPhone for two weeks). 

Anyways, I included the snow globe making tutorial in my drawing as it was AWESOME and super easy to do - big thanks to my colleague Jane, who was the mastermind behind the amazing party and this tutorial!

Did you have an office party? Any good gossip?

Journal Page: Star Gazing

As I mentioned before, Christmas comes early in Holland, and it's actually not Christmas, but Sinterklaas and despite the crazy and probably true things you've about it, it's actually an awesome tradition.

© Anna Denise Floor

This year, we celebrated Sinterklaas a day late, as Mr. Floor was traveling for work, but actually that was fine as I think holidays should always just be on Friday evening, so the elderly amongst us (including myself these days) have at least two days to recover. 

Overwhelmed by all the awesome shoe action, I felt like I had to do better than just buy a book and be done with it, so I bought two books, a wintery sweater, and made a date night out of it. Snacks included. I drew a 'map' with numbers on the floor with washi tape, indicating the order of the gifts. It was awesome, and yes I am aware that I'm bragging so I'll stop now. I think the man enjoyed it. 

Journal Page: Sinterklaas

© Anna Denise Floor

Sinterklaas is here! And what a perfect night it is. Dark and stormy. I can just picture all kids all around the country are hopped up on adrenaline and sugar, tearing open their hard earned gifts as we speak.

Even though Sinterklaas was kind enough to move our share in the festivities to the weekend (he's such a flexible old man), my shoes have been doing some serious overtime these past few weeks. And by that, I mean, my mysterious Sinterklaas has been filling my shoes with the most amazing gifts, as illustrated above.

Hope you're all enjoying your Sinterklaas, Dutchies! I know I sure had enough speculaas for the year, already. Bweurgh. 

Journal Page: Bunnies and Books

I ate, I ate some more, made another attempt at skiing, and am completely enthralled by the gorgeous book 'A Map of the World', Sinterklaas gave me.

© Anna Denise Floor

Quiet Weekend

© Anna Denise Floor

So quiet (but good quiet!) that I've got my drawing finished for the weekend already. So no one do anything crazy this evening, because it will NOT be recorded, y'all. I repeat: it will NOT be recorded. 0_o

PS: The mushroom book is really quite awesome. I'll post about it soon, as I tried taking pictures of it today, but the crappy lighting shat all over that marvelous idea. 

Absolute Beginners

Journal page © Anna Denise Floor

Learning new things really is one of my favorite things in life, but it also means my list of things I suck at is longer than most people's. 

Soccer? Disaster. Knitting? Ehm. Humbling? Tennis? A chapter in my life we will not speak of ever again. Walking? An ongoing battle. 

But mostly - learning new things is just great fun and good practice of cultivating your 'beginners mind'. Some things I learned this week: I relearned that I actually love skiing and am pretty unafraid (we even did some little jumps!), even though I'm an absolute beginner of course . I also learned that my husband is a great teacher when I allow him to teach me new things (heh. Not that I'm usually stubborn or anything...) and that ski pants don't have to make your butt look unattractive (I know right, this was totally holding me back as well). I found out (again), that I'm apparently quite attached to my old boring hairdo. Ah. Such important life lessons here. Next up: enlightenment.  BAM! 

Oh oh! 

Impression of 'me' wearing 'The Knit Kid', for Oh Marie! © Anna Denise Floor

Oh, oh, oh hold on! Before we go there - I wrote/drew a post for the Oh Marie blog, where I discuss and illustrate my Etsy crushes. It'll be a monthly installment, and first up is my ongoing love for The Knit Kid. Read the post here!

Also, if you've never heard of Oh Marie!, go check it out. It's an amazing (free!) online magazine with tons of gorgeous photography, great articles, and DIY magic. Their last issue (#5) was just published and it's once again stunning. Check it out here.

In My Bag

I used to do a photo every year of the sh... I carry around in my bag, but neh. You get a drawing instead.

 © Anna Denise Floor

This week, I've been carrying around a screenprinting kit as well, put together by Femke from Windstilte. I took a screenprinting course over at Urlaub this weekend, and it was great big fun (see a small snapshot of my castle scarf here on Instagram). 

Why is it still in my bag, you ask? Well, folks. Because I'm a pig. That's why. 

What I Ate

 © Anna Denise Floor

Click on the image for a larger view. 

Don't you just luuurrrve the internet? I sure do, and not just because I get to connect with far-away friends and strangers, work and collaborate internationally, and have 24-hour access to information and inspiration (someone say kittehs?). No, actually it's because I get to update everyone on what I eat all day. Heck yes, Instagram, and heck yes, drawing my food. Because I know  you care. Deeply.

 

Look Right

 © Anna Denise Floor

Am a bit behind on posting my journal pages as you can see. These past two weeks have been absolutely nuts. I travelled to London and Dublin for work (yes, my life is actually that awesome, hate me), threw a big wedding celebration with the Fantastic Mr. Floor, somehow messed up my big toe, making it ever harder to walk normally, and generally spent a lot of time feeling Very Responsible for Everything (which is a great way to spend your time. Squiggly mouth smiley face). 

Anyhow - here's a drawing. Tadah! 
Now go away and ignore the fact that it's almost freaking November. 

 

Last Weekend

Journal page for the weekend of October 4-6, 2013 © Anna Denise Floor

Look at me posting this within the week. To be honest, I had this finished on Monday, but I had some other posts lined up and I wanted to spread them out a bit all professional-like. So here it is. If you're in Amsterdam: go see that Pixar exhibition before it ends. It's awesome. I may go back for more myself.