Sunday, February 28

proof we love hedgies!


oh, how much we love hedgies....



so if you have been to o'suz lately or know me personally, or jessica for that matter, you know by now that we love our hedgehogs. if o'suz had a mascot, it would have to be the teeny tiny hedgehog. Other folk names include 'urchin', 'hedgepig' and 'furze-pig'. even my son redford has a new found love (though most things are newfound as he is only 2) for the hedgehog. he can identify them faster than most as his mama has taught him well. a few things about the hedgehog (not to be confused with the lovely porcupine) that we love:

"Long before the advent of Groundhog Day on February 2nd, the Romans observed a similar event thousands of years ago on the exact same day. Rather than use the North American groundhog, the Romans used the hedgehog."
Hedgehogs are fairly vocal and communicate through a combination of grunts, snuffles and/or squeals, depending on the species.
Hedgehogs are a powerful form of pest control. A single hedgehog can keep an average garden free of pests by eating up to 200 grams of insects each night. It is common throughout the UK to see people attempting to lure hedgehogs into their gardens with treats and hedgehog-sized holes in their fences.




the new ilee hedgie love card, sold out in 1 week.
more on the way....





girl of all work notebook. check out that hedgie with his spikey cactus friend!

hedgehog nail brushes in a variety of colors


the best little hedgie pillow


wee little lucid hedgie necklace




mark poulin little hedgie necklaces
holztiger wooden hedgie



“The fox has many tricks, and the hedgehog only one, but that is the best of all”
Archilochus

Sunday, February 21

he wrote a pocket novel called 'the state that i am in.'

hello, friends! can you believe it -- the sun is out, the snow is melting, spring is peeking around the corner! and with spring comes change of all sorts -- we just rearranged the store, new merch is rolling in, and we're busy cooking up some new features for o'suz news. we've really enjoyed learning more about some of our fave peeps in our 'love it' posts over the past two years, and we'll still feature our artists, just maybe not every month. that being said, if there are any artists you've found in the shop and are dying to know more about, pop us an email to let us know!

and speaking of our favorite artists, we really want you to meet jen siomacco, creator of a pocket novel, saturday shop girl/blog revamper, and all-around swell lady. jen's been working at o'suz for nearly a year and a half now, and just before christmas we started carrying her super cute cards.

everyone loves elephants.


not only are we excited about the cards we have in the shop, but some of us have been lucky enough to get custom a pocket novel treats that we had to share. sweet and simple, and made for me!

these are my little pups, mick and romey, drawn by jen for my birthday!
she even gave romey her trademark blue eye!


and how amazing is this wedding card she made for aaron and moriah?!?
it's aaron! and mo! on a card!


we wanted to know more about jen's creative process and her inspirations, and she obliged. read her interview below! thanks, jen!

what was your first job and how did you end up doing design work?

My first job was at a bagel bakery when I was in high school, and there I learned that I never wanted to work in the food industry again. But there were always creative people around me growing up. My brother (7 years older) taught me to draw when I was young and would always let me pester him about his art projects. He is now an animator, and I would still spend every minute over his shoulder if he weren’t on the other side of the country.

I later went to the UVA School of Architecture, and after graduating I started using the programs I learned in school to create a few playful designs, and that slowly evolved into a pocket novel. I now also put my degree to work as an interface designer at a web publishing company. I really love that every aspect of my life is now somehow related to design.



what is your favorite piece/group/series in your work?

Up until the last year or two, my creative work mainly consisted of a few doodles, and plenty of mildly cartoony sketches of people, but it was always really hard for me to give form to the sketches, and to turn them into something more solid. I have really loved working within the medium of card design. It’s really allowed me to branch out and insert more personality into my work. But I think my favorite thing recently is my small series of animal cards.



who or what inspires you?

I love seeing what other people are doing, and there are just so many creative people out there. I really love industrial products and technology, and I think that people have been doing very cool things with repurposing industrial products into their work, whether it be representations of them, or the products themselves. I hope to further incorporate this in my own work in the future.


jen LOVES robots, she can even build them.

what three websites do you visit daily?

For Me, For You. I’m pretty addicted to Kate Miss’s blog full of her insights on fashion, design, and her adorable cat.


Note to Self. This not so little blog is run by a former resident of Charlottesville, and Sarah always has an amazing array of images and projects to display


Copenhagen Street Style. I spent a summer in Copenhagen a few years ago, and this blog allows me to indulge daily in my intense need for Scandinavian style.


it's the world-famous scotchie!

describe your ideal sunday.

It would start off with brunch with good friends at the blue moon diner, followed by lots of coffee and lazing about at home with my cat, catching up on my reading and enjoying the sunshine (when the snow lets it shine through).


what do you see outside your studio windows?

I work out of my home and here in central Virginia, snow is all I’ve seen lately.

Monday, February 15


drumroll...........


and the 14 winners are:

sara daniel
miska collier
carol rohmann
ellie freeman
susan pollart
kate hamilton
katie gentry
jenny robinson
jaymee jenkins
mary ashton burgh
cicely shelton
allie godsey
rachael kesler
kristen mathews

so $20 one time spree waiting in shop, must be claimed within 30 days please.
yeah winners!!!!

Sunday, February 14

party and raffle news

valentines is clearly not just for lovers, it seems it's for everyone, as it should be. between the snow and the cold, peeps just wanna have some fun. so the party was a huge success, with almost all bubbly and chocolate gone by the end and lots of gifts and treats snatched up. this party goes down as the funnest one we have ever had at o'suz. i have to admit with all that was going on in town i had the feeling in my gut that only a few people would come, boy was i wrong. thank you to everyone for making it a memory for us at the shop. here are some pics and then on to raffle news:

so we have been collecting names for our mystery raffle since first thing friday morning and plan to draw names this evening, feb 14, and post and call the winners tomorrow around 11. just to mix it up we plan draw 14 names, all 14 of whom will win a one time 20 dollar shopping trip in to o'suz. this way, there will be lots a happy people and we can feel we are spreading the love around. stay tuned for us to post the winners tomorrow morn!!!

Friday, February 12

don't forget...


to swing on by for our valentines party where we are having lots of pink bubbly, various chocolate yummies, and 20% off all jewels, all things pink, all things red and anything silver or gold. this includes highway bags, doran accessories, hobo walllets, slip lamps, candles, books, product,cards and much more. come by anytime between 4 and 7 ish. don't forget there is a surprise raffle too!!!
also, in happenings , are art openings at eloise, 2nd street gallery, mcguuffey, a wine tasting benefit for haiti at live arts, a wine tasting at market street wine shop, "art and copy" film at the paramount, birdlips are playing at the southern, soja (soldiers of jah army) at the jefferson and probably lots more. include us in your line up and you won't be sorry. we hope to see you....


Monday, February 8

valentines party at o'suz feb 12th!

with all this snow we fear some of you have been unable to do your
valentine's shopping. likewise, we have been closed a few days for
obvious reasons. so, in honor of all this white falling from the sky
and all the red, pink, and sparklies that need homes in o'suz, we are
throwing a valentine's party!!!

when: friday, february 12th from 3-7pm
where: o'suzannah, where else?
who: you, we hope!

the scoop: 20% off all jewels, as well as all things red and all things pink.
also, in case you are still planner shopping, we will have planners
galore, both dated 2010 and undated, at 40% off just for the evening.

menu will include the essentials: chocolate and pink bubbly.
bring a friend and perhaps treat yourself, you know you want to.

we will also hold a raffle of some sort..details to follow....

please rsvp if you can to osuznews@gmail.com

Sunday, February 7

we are seeing red at o'suz


well, it's that time of year to show your love (and like) to the peeps in your life. one way, and our favorite, is to give the gift of paper and pen. to help out with this, we've got oodles of cards, some mushy, some funny, some pretty, all fabulous!!! here is just a small sampling:






from our new friends egg press

i love you best card

you're out of sight! card

growing love card

you're unbelievable "nessy" card







i am not sure at what point...


your love saves my day

caught in the tentacles of love

i want to hibernate with you

"your love will turn me on" oh yoko card

i lichens you a lot

we flock together

but do you like me-like me?


we also have plenty of fun stamps and blank mix and match cards from waste not paper so you can be crafty and make your own!