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Workplace Wednesday: Photocopier Etiquette

PC Load Letter?!

Did you know that April is Workplace Conflict Awareness Month? Well according to Google and Wikipedia it is! And if the Internet tells you something, it has to be true. Right? Right.

In honor of this clearly legit declared month, we’re posting excerpts from Caroline Tiger’s How To Behave: A Guide to Modern Manners. In How To Behave, Caroline dedicates an entire chapter to office etiquette. It’s my hope that these bits of wisdom, posted every Wednesday this month, will help you to alleviate the conflict in your workplace.

Posted by Eric Smith

Easter Brunch Frittatas

Ah, brunch. It's the perfect meal to attempt a foray into pan-frying frittatas. It’s easy to prep when company’s coming or while the kids are on their Easter egg hunt. It's a versitile dish that allows you to add your own special additions.

This frittata cooks quickly. It’s fluffy, fully flavored with hefty meats, eggs, tomatoes, and lots of cheese. Your family and friends will grab frantically for slices. Enjoy!

Posted by Elizabeth Ann Quirino

Life @ Quirk: March’s Pink Piggy Party

Here at Quirk we know how to work hard and play hard. Our monthly office parties give us an excuse to celebrate. Katie Hatz, our resident party designer, picks fun and quirky themes for us to play with. We went for a Pink Piggy Party in March. We celebrated with pig ear headbands, ate pork-inspired treats, and played pink pig balloon volleyball.

Check out some photos, our music list, and great recipes below. Oink, oink!

Posted by Jennifer Adams

Unloved Books FInd New Life As iPod Docks

Rich and Brenna Neeley, two clever book-loving crafters from Southern California, rescue discarded books and turn them into absolutely beautiful docks for your iPod, iPhone, and/or iPad.

But how can anyone chop up such gorgeous books? A lot of the books featured in their Etsy shop are really quite stunning. Well, according to their profile page, Brenna only recycles “books that haven’t been appreciated elsewhere” with “more than a few [sneaking] their way into [their] personal collection.” So you can be quite sure that the book being used “was not being loved as it should be.”

Visit their Etsy page for more. I’m definitely ordering one soon.

Posted by Eric Smith

Hey, We Know That Waffle: Mei Pak’s Jewelry Featured in Parks & Recreation

We’re pretty huge fans of Parks and Recreation here at the Quirk HQ. Seldom does a week go by that Margaret doesn’t bring up chickie-chickie-parm-parm or reference the Ron Swanson Pyramid of Greatness. So when our crafty friend Mei Pak emailed us about her necklace appearing in an episode, we flipped out.

Mei, who was featured in our recent craft book Microcrafts, creates adorable food-inspired jewelry under the name Tiny Hands. Her scented waffle necklace was featured in the Valentine’s Day episode Operation Ann (here’s a link to it on Hulu).

According to Mei, she’d been in contact “with the show’s wardrobe stylist, sent her some pieces of jewelry, and then all of a sudden… there it was on TV.”

You can read the entire story about how it happened over on Mei’s blog. Congrats, dear! We’re proud of you.

Posted by Eric Smith

Sense & Sensibility & Sea Monsters Makes An Appearance in the Film 50/50

While watching the film 50/50 our Production Manager, John J. McGurk, spotted a book he recognized in this bookstore scene with Joseph Gordon-Levitt.

It’s not the best picture, but you can still tell what it is. Sense & Sensibility & Sea Monsters by Ben H. Winters.

Awesome!

Posted by Eric Smith