Calendars: A Year's Worth of Cheap Advertising

I really like coming up with new projects to make with our copier. This one took nothing more than a pack of card stock and about an hour to figure out the layout. The resultant calendar went into everybody's bulletins one Sunday at St. Peter's, and the fact that none of them made their way into the paper recycling bin tells me that they are hopefully posted on bulletin boards and refrigerators all over town for all to see. 

I started with photos of some of our stained glass windows (one of the church's best features IMHO). Finding the calendar grid was easy; if you do a Google image search with the word "calendar" and the year, you'll get a lot of results in all sorts of colors and fonts. This is the one we used:

Coming up with the "Holidays and Observances" section was a little trickier. I consulted with folks more "in the know" than me to determine which dates should go into this section (including the Feast Day of St. Peter, for whom our church is named): 

You'll also want to include your church's contact information, just in case somebody does happen to see this calendar posted someplace and finds it intriguing. The final product was printed on card stock to give it some durability. As I write and post this, it's a bit early to start actually producing next year's calendar, but it's never too early to start planning ahead for next year's graphic!

Oh, nuts!

I really want my desk and office to be a welcoming place that people like to visit. It seems like the easiest first step toward that goal is to set something edible out and watch the buzzards circle. I usually lean toward seasonal offerings (mini candy bars at Halloween, candy canes at Christmas, etc.) but I don't want be blamed for contributing to a parish-wide influx of tooth decay. A few months ago I discovered a desk accessory/snack vessel/conversation piece that has developed quite a following: the dual nut basket.

As you can imagine, the nuts go in one side, and the shells go in the other. I'd consider using peanuts, but the Montessori school down the hall from my office has a strict "no peanuts" policy (and all the peanuts I bring to work, usually a pound or two a week, go out the window to the squirrels).

Pistachios have been my favorite nut pretty much forever; to me they're the filet mignon of nuts. They definitely cost a bit more than peanuts, but they're SO worth it. I'm not aware of a better brand than Wonderful Pistachios. The salted variety (is there any other kind, really?) is absolute perfection. Most of the shells practically fall open in your hands (those few that don't get tossed out to the squirrels). It seems to me that Wonderful Pistachios have a more luscious green color reminiscent of avocados (if you have a horror story about how they get that way I don't want to hear it; nothing will make me go back to the twig color of lesser pistachios). They always seem to be on sale everywhere, too! I thought for sure I'd have to put away the basket on account of feeling a financial pinch from keeping it filled with pistachios, but it hasn't yet come to that, thankfully. I had to laugh: one Vestry member looked at the basket and asked in astonishment "Is it self-replenishing?" So it would seem! I hope we don't all burn out on them any time soon; I can't imagine a more perfect snack. Oh, and speaking of "burn": are you wondering what becomes of all those shells? I pour them into paper lunch sacks and use them for fire starters! Talk about being green…

Wake Up and Hear the Coffee

The office at St. Peter's has a new soundtrack: the dull roar of a coffeehouse! A friend of mine recently turned me on to this hipster version of white noise, coffitivity.com. I must admit, when I first heard about it I was skeptical; how long would it take for me to go insane with this thing rolling in the background? Would I get the jitters, or just crave java all day?

I emailed the link to my work account, and clicked on it as soon as I powered up my computer. Astonishingly, I've had it going almost constantly ever since! There is something oddly comforting about the clattering, chattering din of a desktop cafe; I'm starting to wonder how I ever got anything done without it! True, a hot cup of coffee on hand at all times enhances the experience, but is unnecessary. According to Coffitivity, research shows "it's pretty hard to be creative in a quiet space. And a loud workplace can be frustrating and distracting. But, the mix of calm and commotion in an environment like a coffee house is proven to be just what you need to get those creative juices flowing!"

I truly believe it has helped my creativity; I've had an especially productive week that ended with my cleaning my desk to an unprecedented degree. However, I think there is room for improvement. I wrote to the Coffitivity team and asked them to incorporate more actual "coffeehouse" noise into the mix, such as milk being steamed, beans being ground, orders being called out, texts being sent and received, laptops powering up, etc. I wonder if they'll write me back? In the meantime, I'll stay tuned. Maybe all of a sudden I'll hear someone head out for a smoke and know they're working on keeping it real! 

TGI Throwback Thursday!

"Throwback Thursday" on Facebook has been a great opportunity for St. Peter's Episcopal Church to share our collection of vintage photos, and has also given us the motivation to scan them so we can store them digitally in a permanent place. Occasionally we've run across photos that didn't have the names or the year written on the back, and folks have contacted us with information we might never have known otherwise. Here are a few pics that have been posted over the last few months on our Facebook wall, starting with one of my favorites: two ladies serving tea at a "Tasting Luncheon" in 1961 (the dishes served were a sampling of international fare).

 Here's our Vestry from 1964; our Rector, Father John B. Haverland, is front and center.

This is a page from an early '50s stewardship brochure, illustrating the need to expand the church buildings for youth groups.

Here's a group of kids and their pets at the 1954 Blessing of the Animals. The young man seated appears to have a cat in a birdcage! Perhaps in those days cat carriers were relatively unheard of?

 This photo is of the laying of the cornerstone in 1952. It's especially unusual because the altar is situated in front of the doorway at the back of the church.

For a while I thought this image of Rev. Albert S. Clay from 1925 was the oldest photo we'd ever be likely to post…

…but then we were asked to help identify the church and minister in this photo that dates back to approximately 1880 to 1905! It's part of San Mateo County History Museum's archival collection, and it was taken by prominent Redwood City photographer James Van Court. We haven't figured out the specifics of this photo, but we're going to do all we can to help out! 

Not everyone at St. Peter's is on Facebook, but a lot of them are on the mailing list for our newsletter, The Keys. This page in The Keys let them know about the Throwback Thursday photos, and where to find them.

As much as I've been enjoying the classic black and white photos, I'm looking forward to the color-drenched '70s and neon-infused '80s! 

Church of Small Change

For some time, I'd been wanting to make something for folks to put their spare change in to fund various church activities. I'd initially imagined a wishing well or something of that ilk staged in a prominent location during coffee hour; I knew I'd know it when I saw it. When I spotted this unfinished wooden bird house at Michael's, I knew my search was over:

For one thing, the price was right; if memory serves, it was under $5.00. It also passed the test of having a hole large enough for a quarter to pass through easily; I tested this while I was still in the store. When I got it home, the first thing I did was paint it flat white with a glossy black base. 

Then, I came up with a way to "side" it: in the church office is a sack of old-school coin rolls made of paper (newer ones are made of plastic). Between the church's supply and a few my husband had, there were enough to cover the side walls with red penny rolls, the back with blue nickel rolls…

…and the roof with half-dollar rolls. 

 The peak of the roof was made with a roll that had been folded in half and cut to fit around the steeple.

 My husband also had two green dime rolls that fit perfectly on either side of the doors, which I painted glossy red with black knobs. I painted "Small Change Helps in a BIG WAY" under the coin hole…

…and stuck 4 felt feet on the underside so it wouldn't scratch the surfaces it's placed on. 

Lastly, I painted a couple of arrows pointing at the hole. I didn't want folks to think they were supposed to open the doors to "make a deposit." The doors are held closed by a tiny, clear silicone band, but we'll probably use those orthodontic rubber bands eventually. The coins collected during its first few weeks of service will go toward funding an ice cream social for Pentecost. I hope to be able to report that the Church of Small Change has a high attendance! 

Our Newsletter's Latest issuu (er, Issue)

One of my favorite monthly projects is doing the layout for St. Peter's newsletter, The Keys. Both the newsletter's editor (named Peter, appropriately) and I have backgrounds in journalism and mass communications; I think this contributes in a big way to our enthusiasm for producing the newsletter. There's no other way to explain our eagerness to knock out an issue the day after Holy Week ended! 

A few months ago, I thought I'd look at other churches' newsletters for inspiration, and decided I'd start at the top with Grace Cathedral in San Francisco. One thing that stood out to me was the method they use for displaying issues of their newsletter: the digital publishing service issuu.com. Within a few minutes I set up a free account for St. Peter's and started filling a "shelf." We still have a page with the last year's worth of The Keys in pdf form, but I must admit to preferring the e-book format over pdf's. I guess I'm easily amused; I still find "flipping" the pages an almost hypnotic experience.

I hope you'll give this month's fool-themed "issuu" a look! Last month's theme was wind. I'm looking forward to hearing from Peter what next month's theme will be! Stay tuned…

New Nametags for Easter

A few weeks ago, I had the idea of making new nametags for everyone for Easter (125 tags, for starts). The old ones featured one of my least favorite fonts (Papyrus) and a very flat-looking version of the Episcopal shield. The new version features the font Keep Calm (from "Keep Calm and Carry On" and all the memes inspired by it), and a more 3D-looking version of the shield, which can be found here. On a table nearby the nametag kiosk is a clipboard loaded with a few of these forms:

In hindsight, swapping out all the nametags at Easter was probably a risky endeavor; I would have felt really bad if I'd missed anybody. However, I made a list of all the tags I'd made and showed them to "regulars" who know everybody, even the "C&E's" (folks who only show up on Christmas & Easter). I kept all the old tags nearby in a box, just in case I did miss anybody (and if my error was especially egregious, I was there on Easter with the laminator on standby). So far, the feedback on the new tags has been positive (for which I'm very thankful!).

Succulents as Flowers for Lent

Every year at St. Peter's, dozens of folks donate and dedicate lilies at Easter and poinsettias at Christmas; I imagine this is a common practice at many churches. However, this year a third, less floral, request was made for Lent: succulents. I admit, when I first heard the idea, I had a hard time imagining cacti having any place in the church; usually we have two gorgeous floral bouquets flanking the altar. I'm happy to report that I was very wrong; succulent arrangements can be absolutely stunning! I did a bit of boning up on the subject of the use of succulents in non-traditional ways; it's not unusual for them to be used in wedding bouquets, if they fit the wedding's theme. Anyway, I made a two-sided, half-page form that went into the Sunday bulletin for three weeks. Here's the front:

And here's the back:

Fairly straightforward stuff. It might be worth noting a trick that you may or may not be aware of where the use of fonts that don't come with a "bold" option are concerned. As much as I love the font Libra (appearing here in purple), one of its shortcomings is it doesn't have a bold option. You can fake one, however, by giving it a stroke of the same color; I find that half a point is usually sufficient. If you're new to doing layout in InDesign, you might wonder where the option for giving a fractional stroke is; the pulldown menu only offers whole numbers. You can highlight that little box next to the pulldown menu and type in ".5". Along those lines, if you're using Word you don't need to be limited to the font sizes that appear in the pulldown menu; they usually only go to 72 or something. Put your cursor in that box and type in whatever number you want (within reason). Whoops, I really didn't plan to start babbling about graphic design; back to the subject of succulents! Here's one of our two arrangements, which were displayed throughout Lent in copper bowls…

…and were eventually planted on the grounds of the church in time for Easter. Next time I'm at work I'll take and post a photo of them in their new location (as you can imagine, after Holy Week we're all taking Monday off). I'm curious, did your church do displays of succulents for Lent or do you have another tradition? Comments are welcome and encouraged!