I'm so happy to be part of the Creative, Inc. blog book tour today. Creative, Inc. is written by Meg Mateo Ilasco who wrote Craft, Inc. and does a lot of things, and Joy Deangdeelert Cho who is a prolific designer and whom you might know best as the person behind the blog Oh Joy!.

The description on the back of the book reads: "Packed with real-life advice from freelance superstars who have excelled in their industries (and made mistakes you can now avoid!), this book is an essential resource for all creatives -- from illustrators and photographers to graphic designers, animators, stylists, and more -- who want to succeed and doing what they love." The book covers topic on how to promote your work, set fees, license your artwork, deal with taxes and hire and manage. Each chapter goes into depth on what you need to know, offers examples of working out fees or invoicing, and includes an interview or two with a creative professional that gives up a huge amount of great information. They are realistic about when you should charge more or less depending on the advantage, how to look at a licensing deal, whether you should expand a business or close it, whether you should hire (or fire) an agent. Most all of this information is mostly new to me and presented in a way that makes me feel like somebody has my back.

Sound like information you need? Lucky you I have a book to give away! If you'd like to get it please leave a comment with this post. The Fine Print applies. I'm going to do a shorter than normal deadline for this one, you'll have two days to enter and The Random Number generator will be picking a winner on Wed. Sept. 1st at 4 p.m. PST. Good Luck! Winner randomly chosen and is being contacted, thanks for entering!

Scott and I have spent most of the summer with colds (he started it). As a result I've been reading a lot more than usual. I've come to really love reading on the iPhone, largely for the backlighting so I can read without disturbing Scott with a bedside light. But I also love being able to read while laying on my side and not struggling to keep a book open, and not having to fuss over pages that have too small a margin in the center and cause that wavy line effect, and not having to reach out my other arm to turn pages because, let's face it, I'm lazy. It's like watching tv in bed but it's reading and I should probably stop typing right now shouldn't I?

Apparently when I need to be soothed I read fiction that is about the end of the world as I know it, in one way or another:

Daemon (for Kindle). I originally bought this as a paperback to read on airplanes. I found it in a drugstore and with blurbs by Craig Newmark, Stewart Brand and William O'Brien (Former Director of Cybersecurity and Communications Policy for The White House) I couldn't not get it.

Freedom (TM) (for Kindle). Daemon comes to a sudden end, a downside of the Kindle for iPhone is that you have no idea how far you are into a book. So I used the upside of the Kindle and immediately downloaded the sequel and kept reading, all around 2 a.m. Now I cannot remember where one book ends and the next begins, which is bad since I keep accidentally giving Scott spoilers when we talk about Daemon.

The Passage (for Kindle). I kept coming across reviews of this book so I downloaded it next, and it's glorious length kept me company through many long nights of keeping myself awake coughing.

Going In Circles (for Kindle). This book by Pamela Ribon (whom you might know better as Pamie) is a story about a woman knocked over by a divorce, and picked back up by roller derby.

The Breach (for Kindle). This was a short book when compared to my earlier science fiction books, but I kept wishing I had a beach to sit on while I was reading it. It was fast paced and fun.

The Stand (for Kindle). Reviews of The Passage kept comparing it to this so I figured I might as well finally read it.

If you're looking for something to read I recommend heading over to What's In Rebecca's Pocket? and see all the lists of reading lists that she compiles in the summers. (Thank you Rebecca.)

Yay! Shabby Apple wants to give one of you lucky readers a dress. The giveaway is for one of these lovelies:

• Tuxedo III
• Barefoot in the Park
• Pretty in Pink
• Duck Beach
• Anchors Away
• Nine to Five
• Five to Nine
• Baja
• Circo
• L'Amour
• 24K

To enter go visit the Shabby Apple site, then come back here and leave a comment listing which would be your choice. If you cannot decide (indecisives unite!) you can just leave a note letting me know you've take a look at the dresses or at the Shabby Apple blog.

Additionally Shabby Apple is offering Not Martha readers a 10% Off deal when you enter Notmartha10off. This code applies to everything on the site. Little tip: they also have a 20% off code for certain items so double check to see if your choice covered by that instead.

While you look around Shabby Apple please take note of the newly launched swimwear and fitness wear offerings. As somebody who still hasn't gotten a decent bathing suit for this season I've been browsing the swimsuits, and I love the touches of vintage flair. And ruching is certainly something I'm all for. Also don't miss the accessories they have. I'm a little bit in love with the looking glass pendant.

To recap: to enter the giveaway leave a comment here with a note about which dress listed above would be your choice (or just a note saying that you cannot decide). The Fine Print applies. This giveaway only applies to those living inside the US (sorry non-US peeps!). I'll be letting the Random Number Generator pick a winner on Wed. Aug. 4th at 4 p.m. PST. Good luck! Winner chosen, thanks so much to everybody who entered!

Clothes Remake at Design Mom. Asking how to go about having a favorite piece of clothing copied. I also refer you to a similar question over at Ask Metafilter.

Cool Tools: 800 Watt Portable Generator.

shelterrific » kinda genius: reuse your jars with jar tops.

Cool Tools: Pocket Kite.

angry chicken: a gift box. Charming!

I Lock You ~ Bag Lock (NOTCOT). A deterrent from bag snatching from the back of a chair.

Cool Tools: CoverFlex Silicone Lids.

Construction gift for grown-ups? (think lego, mechano, etc.) | Ask MetaFilter.

Here are a few clever paper things that I have caught my eye recently. The first is this set of individual cupcake stands by Hello Hanna, each set is packed flat and you assemble them. I can assure you that they are very cute in person.

The second thing is this memo cube with a small drawer for wrangling things like paperclips. It's designed by Oh Joy! and sold by Chronicle Books.

The last is this blank memo cube meant to be decorated by rubber stamps, and it's got a hole that is cut down through most of the pages that is made to hold a pen. Handy.

Weighing the Evidence on Exercise - NYTimes.com.

My New Undereye Concealer Crush :Hair Thursday.

Benefit The POREfessional. Promises to minimize the appearance of pores even when worn alone, I might test this one.

Intelligence Games For Dogs.

Looking for an attractive, appropriate skirt | Ask MetaFilter. Great suggestions for places to go for inspiration, as well as where to shop and what sort of fit works for a curvy figure.

Where to shop for Men's clothes? | Ask MetaFilter. It goes on: "I'm not 21 and don't want to wear skinny jeans with plaid Vans. But I'm not 40 and do not want to dress in the JCPenney uniform of khakis and golf shirt." I'm marking this one for Scott since, obviously, I'm not a 30-something male.

Looking for a reliable toaster | Ask MetaFilter. I too have given up on toasters, but continuously am looking for a good one.

Gadgets: Sil-Pin, the Silicone Nonstick Rolling Pin by Fiesta | Serious Eats.

Whole-grain bread: healthy for us, death for appliances | Ask MetaFilter. Asking for a mixer that can stand up to the challenge of being used mostly to knead whole grain bread dough.

Digital Home Thoughts: The Great Photo Book Round-Up Review: Who Makes The Best Photo Books?. Via Daddy Types.

a n h - m i n h . c o m: Getting the Boot.

Design*Sponge » Blog Archive » sneak peek: max & linda of wallter. I absolutely love this red bedspread.

Wine Glass & Champagne Flute Sponge - The Spoon Sisters. I need these! Via Juniper Moon Farm blog.

angry chicken: some wanty items. I really like the shape of this skirt as well.

I recently got done reading The Butcher and the Vegetarian by Tara Austen Weaver and I really, really enjoyed it. It was one of those books I stayed up late into the night reading, and couldn't wait to pick it up again the next day.

Tara takes us through the time in her life when she, raised a vegetarian, is advised to take up eating meat to help solve some chronic health troubles. The stories of her trying to figure out how to buy and cook meat are both hilarious and filled with a thoughtful exploration of how to balance the personal and environmental ethics of eating meat. She gets very close to the subject, visiting ranches and farms that are gentle to both the land and the animals, going through some of Michael Pollen's arguments and spending a day at Meathenge. She finds some very good food and people. Tara doesn't take any more virtuous than thou stances, and approaches each question looking fairly at all sides. That makes it sound boring, I admit, but I assure you it's not, the book takes a journey that moves along briskly. I love it when I find an author whose words ring very clear in my head, and Tara is one of those.

for the sake of full disclosure: I consider Tara a friend, which is awesome because she holds gatherings like this one. Her personal site is Tea & Cookies.

Earlier today I was headed to Venue when I spotted this Airstream outside of Blackbird. I briefly wondered what sort of food Moore & Giles were selling before getting close enough to see that it is actually a traveling showroom for leather goods.

They even have chairs welcoming you inside where you can see more of their things.

They've traveled all the way from Virginia and they'll be at that spot in Ballard today at tomorrow. They'll be in Seattle outside Mario's on Friday the 16th before heading to Portland and San Francisco.

Their craftsmanship was impeccable, the company started with shoes and upholstery and know how to stitch something together. If you're curious and stop by to see what they have I might also mention that Blackbird's oldey timey candy shop is about ten steps away.