11.21.2010

Weekend Project = Chair #3 (Continued)

Going out on Saturday night is for chumps! Ya hear! This week I finally got around to painting Chair #3, and today I picked out some fabric and got busy upholstering the seat back which took me into the wee hours. After a few attempts at duplicating the tufted look (and slicing my finger open with an X-Acto knife) I decided a single button on the seat back was a simpler and more modern approach. I'm actually really happy with the way it turned out! Sooo I'm done for the night...I wish someone would make me something to eat...my fingers hurt! I'll tackle the seat tomorrow after some sleep and gym and other good stuff. Night!

11.16.2010

Etsy Artist Shout Out = TushTush

 
Ran

vintage lady / print

I've been a long-time fan of TushTush. This amazing shop is run by Tali, a freelance illustrator living in Tel-Aviv. I purchased one of her original acrylic paintings a while ago, and I'm so in love with it I find myself constantly checking back to see what she's painting. She also does custom paintings of photographs that would make amazing Christmas gifts...just an idea for anyone looking for gift ideas :)
Sea / print
City Streets/print

11.12.2010

Time for a New Camera!?

Now that I finally own (and love) my new digital Canon G11, I am still really wanting to invest in an SLR. I could have bought a low-end digital SLR for the same cost as my point-and-shoot G11 but decided the smaller size of the G11 and video capabilities ultimately made it a better first-time camera purchase. I wanted something I could easily carry so that I wouldn't ever have an excuse to leave my camera at home. I love my G11, but now I'm still aching for an SLR...and instead of considering a budget busting D-SLR what I REALLY want is a vintage film SLR. I've been doing some research and the Canon 35mm AE-1 seems to be a good choice. More than five million were sold back in the 1970-1980s so there are a lot that are hanging around pawn shops, goodwill and reasonably priced online. I'm sure there are some other great options as well...I plan on buying one soon and giving film a try! 

11.06.2010

Weekend Project = Chair #3 (Continued)

Today I tackled the back of Chair #3. Taking off both sides took about 4 hours, but at least this time I avoided blisters by remembering to wear gloves (but not before puncturing my hand with a rogue staple). Meh...lessons learned. I kept the fabric as intact as possible so I can use it for a pattern for cutting the new upholstery. I'm not sure yet if I'm going to try to duplicate the tufted look, or if I will opt for something simpler. After I got all the staples out I sanded the whole chair. Tomorrow I will do some more sanding and crack filling, and then get started on painting. 

11.05.2010

Dreaming of sleep and white walls


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I've had a cough all week..probably the result of too much fun and not enough sleeping this past weekend. I finally caved and took some Nyquil around 2am last night so my alarm in the morning seemed like some sort of bad joke. In my groggy haze today I came across emmas designblogg, and am loving the crisp all-white Norwegian look. Those Swedes really know how to do it. It's all so clean and peaceful. Makes me want to crawl into bed...right...about...now.
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11.03.2010

Weekend Adventure = Kenter Trail


When I wasn't in character this weekend, I was enjoying the AMAZING weather we have been having. Seriously, it's summer in fall and summer was winter and really it's all very confusing. If you live in LA you learn to be quick on your toes and just take advantage of the clear days as they come. We hit up Kenter Trail in Brentwood on Saturday. This hike is my favorite because it takes you up to a beautiful tree with a bench under it where you can just sit and enjoy the view of the west side, and even downtown LA on a clear day like Saturday. It's quiet and peaceful. The bench has a placard that reads "In Loving Memory of Tony". I don't know who Tony was, but he must have been for a pretty great guy.

The Adventures of Terry and Sheryl - Halloween Recap

In the true spirit of the holiday I spent the majority of it in costume pretending to be A) Terry and B) Sheryl. You see, Terry is a gas station attendant. He wears a shirt with his name on it and an ugly trucker hat. He's what some call white trash, and he loves booze and cigarettes and cussing like a sailor. Sheryl is not so different except that she's a lady, a lady with a rather large mustache and a number of tattoos. When she's not riding her hog you can find her drinking beer through a straw. Terry likes to talk a lot of shit but Sheryl has probably murdered some people.

Gotta love Halloween, man. Good times. I wish I would have stayed on top of posting, but I seriously love Halloween and couldn't focus on anything all week and weekend.

Earlier in the week I hosted a pumpkin carving party that produced a lot of awesome new age jack-o-lanterns. I baked half of the left over pumpkin seeds on Saturday for when everyone arrived for a night on the town. They fill up the house up with the most amazing smell ever, and go great with beer. I baked the second half on Sunday and brought them to work (recipe below).

Pumpkin Seed Recipe:

1 1/2 cup of seeds
2 tbsp of melted butter
garlic powder
seasoning salt
salt

Mix together in a bowl and spread on a baking sheet. Bake for 45-50 mins at 300 degrees until golden brown. Stir once at about the halfway mark so the seeds on the outer edge don't burn.

Enjoy!

10.27.2010

Etsy Artist Shoutout = tastesorangey

Undercover
So Cozy
tastesorangey is a shop created by Clare Elsaesser of Bodega Bay, CA. Most of her paintings show people wrapped up in sheets, squeezing pillows, sitting with ruffled hair. They are so simple yet each one manages to convey something I relate to. She adds a nice touch by stitching the prints onto paper for easy framing. 

10.26.2010

Weekend Adventure = Roadtrip North

This weekend I made the 6 hour drive north to Davis, CA to see my parents and brothers in my hometown. I haven't been home since June and I was starting to feel homesick. I know the drive up the 5 freeway like the back of my hand, but there's still always something exhilarating about getting on the road. The landscape always looks different depending on the season or the time of day so I find myself taking mental snapshots along the way (and sometimes real snapshots as evidenced by these pictures...don't tell my dad...or the CHP)

Despite miserable rainy weather for most of the weekend, I had an amazing time. I was just happy to be around my family. I love them so much it hurts.

I always feel sad on the drive back, thinking of what I miss when I am away, hoping they are proud of me (my dad always tells me he is), hoping I'm not making a mistake by striking out on my own...thankfully I had some beautiful skies and a little doggie to keep me company on the long drive.

10.21.2010

Out with the old


I need to clear out, de-clutter and start fresh. That means that my completed chairs just got posted on Craigslist for ridiculously low prices. I already have a buyer for Chair #1 arranged for tonight and someone else interested...I have this fantasy that they show up at the same time and have a crazy bidding war/slap fight.

Time to move on...can't sit around and hoard chairs in my apartment, and really, all I want is for someone to be stoked to buy something I made.

Chair #1http://losangeles.craigslist.org/wst/fuo/2016942345.html SOLD
Chair #2 http://losangeles.craigslist.org/wst/fuo/2018682839.html 

10.20.2010

Rainy Day

I did some nutshelling today. I was looking at the sky through my rain drop covered window and just had this moment of inspiration. It feels good to be there again.

Etsy artist shout out = karineleger2

Collage-Print
 
5x7 Photo Montage
Karin Eleger is a photographer, painter and graphic designer living in Montréal. Her work is simply stunning. Check out her shop and website. 

10.17.2010

Weekend Project = Chair #3 (Continued)


My hands are blistered from hours of pulling tacks and staples, but I finally got down to the webbing. 

10.16.2010

Weekend Project = Chair #3

Here's chair #3! This will be a tougher project for me than my first two, but I'm up for the challenge. I'm going to start removing the old upholstery today. I also found THIS old paint....

10.15.2010

Until the Dawn

Sometimes we love with nothing more than hope. Sometimes we cry with everything except tears. In the end that's all there is. Love and its duty, sorrow and its truth. In the end that's all we have - to hold on tight until the dawn.
-Exerpt from Shantaram (novel)...one of my favorite books of all time

10.13.2010

Weekend Adventure = South Coast Highway 101

This weekend I was feeling anxious and restless so Eric offered to take me on a mini-adventure up the 101. We drove through Solana Beach and Encinitas before stopping for lunch at this little peruvian resturant called Q'ero. It was BOMB. We ordered sandwiches and I enjoyed the best sangria of my life before we headed back up the 101, stopping along the way to take pictures (the pictures above were taken at Torrey Pines State Beach and the picture below was taken at La Jolla Cliffs). Considering I started the morning feeling miserable, it turned out to be a pretty perfect day.

10.12.2010

Friday Night

Went for a long walk to wear Willow out before hitting the road to San Diego for the weekend. I let her romp around in the grassy area at Ocean Park Blvd while I snapped some pictures. I was loving the long shadows of a day almost over. I have more pictures from the weekend that I will post later when I find some time...now I'm off to try "The Bar Method" class I signed up for with Bonnie. While I exercise regularly solo I've never taken an exercise class of any sort so I'm nervousing about being my uncoordinated self in a roomfull of strangers. Wish me luck!

10.07.2010

Etsy artist shout out = yerinmok


untitled (meredith sitting)

untitled (red umbrella)

There is such a tremendous amount of talent on Etsy, so I've decided to do a weekly shoutout of artists I'm loving. This week I'm featuring yerinmok.

I thought of the idea for a feature when I was curating my first treasury on Etsy and I was just overwhelmed with the amount of amazing work to select from. Check it out here.