why bingo, anyway?

my mom and i planned a baby shower for my older, and only, sister, who we very lovingly call chata, which means short nose. this is a pretty common nickname in spanish-speaking countries. she calls mesnot face sometimes, which is infinitely worse, so it evens out. anyway, she was expecting her first baby, a boy, who is now almost four months and absolutely adorable, and for whom i still have not made up a nickname. i'm hoping something will occur to me during their visit this weekend, something that does not involve noses or snot. coincidentally, coco has just come down with a cold and a small, yet constant, amount of snot is trickling down from her nose.

anyway, we wanted to have games at her shower and looked desperately online for a modern bingo game, only to find hideous, outdated versions that did not go with our event, which turned out beautifully, by the way. so, i decided to make the game myself, using photoshop. it was a huge hit! a couple of guests went so far as to say that i should sell it. i was flattered, but didn't really take it seriously until i found that i had some extra time on my hands, in the form of small gaps during the day (coco's nap time, video-watching time and alone playtime), and that motherhood had transformed me into a more productive person (see procrastination post).

i started slowly, reading about home-based craft businesses, learning the basics of illustrator, finding suppliers and thinking about a format that would save time and money, while reducing waste. i developed the cluster design concept, which made sense to me, since every game is in itself a cluster of images. i made these illustrations, bought the necessary supplies and equipment, and, although it happened little by little, before i knew it, i had the first cluster design bingo in my hands. i opened my etsy shop and, as a way to promote it, opened a facebook page, twitter account and, finally, started my blog.

i have enjoyed every moment of the process, which has been a much needed creative outlet and a source of great personal motivation, and am exited about the journey that lies ahead. i can also thank bingo for my blog, which allows me to deconstruct my personal cluster and share it with others.