Tools & Talismans #67 Melanie Falick

My laptop is the tool I use most. I covered it with a swatch of peel-and-stick wrapping paper printed by Spoonflower and we used it for a photo in The Spoonflower Handbook, a book I edited. I like that the pretty sashiko-inspired paper gives the laptop some personality.  I really appreciate the power the laptop gives me to communicate, write, edit, and design both at my desk at home and wherever else I go to work, but I wish I didn’t spend so much time on it. Same goes for my phone. I use it all the time to communicate and to take photos, but when I spend too much time looking at screens, I feel lethargic and sometimes pessimistic.

I always have a little notebook or some sort of paper, plus a pencil and a pen (often a Sharpie) on my desk. I write down notes when I’m talking on the phone and when I need to remind myself to do something. I also have a To Do list on my computer but I often write down priorities from that list or things I’m afraid I’m going to forget on paper and put the paper in a really obvious place that I won’t miss (such as taped next to the trackpad on my laptop). When I’m editing printed book layouts, I always use a black pencil and an eraser.

Lately one of my jobs requires me to spend a lot of time picking yarn colors for knitting projects (thus the four mini skeins). I absolutely love working and playing with color and pattern!

I like to keep a hand-sewing or knitting project on or near my desk. I often stitch when I’m participating in phone meetings.

I included my yoga mat here because I find that I am happier with my work and myself when I go to yoga class and meditate regularly.

Melanie Falick • Writer. Editor. Creative Director.