OBJECTSandSUBJECTS

The Next Step for Objects and Subjects: Creating retail displays and tags

2012-01-23T14:44:00.000-08:00

I had a lot of fun picking out saucers and small dishes at the thrift store to create these tiered displays. All you need are some candlesticks holders, small dishes and a good glue or epoxy.

Objects and Subjects Earring Cards

Sample Earring Card

I found this shutter at the thrift store for $2 and it is a perfect way to display jewelry!

Creative Seasoning Bottles

2012-01-23T14:25:00.000-08:00

I was getting bored with my spinning seasoning rack and decided it was time to change it up. I thought it would be neat to get a bunch of vintage glass bottles or jars to showcase my spices but then I remembered Ax-Man, a surplus store in St. Paul, MN. They always carry a variety of different types of glass bottles. I bought two different kinds, some that appear to be from some science lab and feature mL measurements and some old ink bottles. They also had bins of different sizes of corks and unfortunately at the time they did not have ones that perfectly fit these bottles so I had to sand them down a bit.

I still want to figure out a cute way to better labels these but for now I simply wrote on some small pieces of white tape. I also want to get a something old that will hold display spices. But for now this cute bottles look great sitting on my counter top!

2011-12-14T14:32:00.000-08:00

More new necklaces for sale!

2011-11-02T15:24:00.000-07:00

http://www.etsy.com/shop/objectsandsubjects

Some new necklace for sale!

2011-10-25T14:46:00.000-07:00

http://www.etsy.com/shop/objectsandsubjects

Recipe: The Best Turkey Pot Pie!

2011-10-20T14:51:00.000-07:00

I love to cook and I feel that cooking is a creative and delicious medium that can inspire your all of your senses.

Last Christmas I finally bought my first dutch oven. I was really excited to cook with it but didn't know where to start. So my dad bought me a cookbook, Braises and Stews, Everyday Slow-Cooked Recipes by Tori Ritchie. So far everything I have cooked from this book is absolutely delicious!! I am trying to make my way through the recipes and so far the only one I have made more than once is The Turkey Pot Pie in a Pan. Since it is the perfect time of year for this dish I thought I would share the recipe.

Please note: I made some changes to the recipe for my liking and I will provide the original and note where I made changes. Enjoy!

you will need:

2 turkey drumsticks, about 2-1/2 pounds total

Kosher Salt

Vegetable oil

4 fresh parsley sprigs

4 fresh thyme sprigs

1 bay leaf

1 yellow onion, chopped

2 celery stalks, chopped

1 large carrot, chopped

2-1/2 cups of chicken broth

1 large baking potato (about 10 ounces), peeled and diced

1 cup heavy cream

1/2 teaspoon dried thyme leaves

Pastry for a 9 inch pie, homemade or purchased

1 cup frozen, thawed peas

Freshly ground pepper

Cheesecloth

I used 3 small turkey legs because that is all my grocery store had. Rinse them and pat dry with paper towels, sprinkle with salt. Next, coat the bottom of you 10-12 inch dutch oven with a thin film of oil and set over medium-high heat. When the oil shimmers, add the turkey and cook until the skin is golden and turkey releases easily from the pan when lifted with tings, about 5 minutes. Continue to cook, turning with tongs as necessary, until golden all over, 8 to 10 minutes more.

While the turkey is browning make a bouquet garni with your herbs. I bought a package of poultry blend herbs because it was on sale and I figured a few extra herbs would just add to the flavor. This had thyme, sage and rosemary, and I added the bay leaf and parsley. Wrap the herbs in a piece of doubled cheesecloth and tie it.

When the turkey is browned, transfer to a plate. Stir the carrot, onion and celery into the pan. When stirring the veggies, this will pick up all the flavorful brown bits from the bottom of the pan.

Pour in the broth and tuck in the bouquet garni, let come to a boil.

Return turkey to the pan, reduce heat, cover, and simmer until meat is starting to pull from the bone, about 1 hour. In the last 15 minutes or so, preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

Transfer cooked turkey back to plate and set aside. Discard bouquet garni.

Add the potatoes, cream and thyme leaves to pan and let come to a boil. Reduce heat, cover, and simmer until potatoes are tender and cream is thickened, about 25 minutes, stirring occasionally.

Meanwhile, roll out or trim pastry to 1/2 inch larger than the diameter of the turkey pan and place pastry on a baking sheet. bake until golden brown, 20 to 25 minutes (it will shrink slightly).

* Using a pre-baked pie crust was a little difficult because it cracked and broke a bit when I flattened it out. Be sure to let it thaw before you use it and be gentle with it. I dipped my fingertips in water and smoothed out the cracks and filled the holes with pieces of dough from the edges as it was needing to be trimmed anyway. This worked out just fine for me.

While pastry is baking, pull off and discard turkey skin, then cut meat off the bone and chop the meat into small pieces.

Add the peas and chopped turkey to the reduced cream mixture in pan and heat through, about 5 minutes; season with salt and pepper.

* The last time I made it I felt that this did not turn out as thick as I would like and I felt the same way this time around. If you want it thicker like me, you can make a roux or use cornstarch. I used 1/4 cup flour and 1/4 butter and this made it just the way I like it.

Remove from heat and set cooked pastry on top of mixture in the pan.

* I had to trim mine to fit and it broke around the edge from me handling it. It's ok though, I just added the broken pieces into the pan. It may not look perfect but it's still deeeeelicious!

To serve, spoon out portions of turkey sauce and crust directly from the pan.

This may be a bit time consuming but all the ingredients are affordable! This is great to do on a Sunday afternoon and it will make your home smell amazingly good. I just made this for my hubby and I and there was enough to fill us up as well as for leftovers the next day, so 4 servings. Enjoy!

Thrift Store Finds - Ideas To Decorate Your Home

2011-10-05T17:18:00.000-07:00

I decided to write a blog post about items to keep an eye out for at the thrift store for you to use to decorate your home with.

I am going to start out saying that I am not by any means knowledgeable about interior decorating, I simply love going to the thrift store and finding bargains on things I think would be great in my home.

Sometimes I get lucky and find a bunch of neat things, some items that are like new and some things that just need to be cleaned or painted to bring out it's inner awesomness!

Here are some ideas:

I found this dish at goodwill for $ .99!! It is solid brass and I love the honeycomb design. It was a mess at first, but then I cleaned it with a lemon wedge and backing soda and it cleaned it right up! I am using it to hold my perfumes but something like this could be used as a key, jewelry or candle dish!

This vintage tape dispenser was a unique find! This also was filthy but I loved the saying on the side and the folk art design and for $1.99 it definitely beats the standard cheap plastic dispenser!

Matchbooks in a glass container or vase has a cool old look, this pink glass vase with matchbooks was an estate sale find. At only $7 I couldn't pass this up!

via Upplgd

Project by Tim Melideo via Apartmentherapy

Old cameras are interesting and beautiful. I always see all sorts of old cameras at the thrift store but they are usually behind the counter or are auction only items. There are lots of ways to decorate with old cameras in addition to setting it on your bookshelf.

I loved the designs and color of this little dish, it moves around my house and serves different purposes. First it held rubber bands and other misc items in my kitchen. Then it held rings and other jewelry and sat on my dresser. Then it held spools of thread for sewing, and right now it holds some old dominoes and serves as a decoration. I wonder what function it will serve next!

I loved the color of the top ceramic bird, he adds a burst of color on my black book shelf. The bottom one had the same design as some of my owl figurines that my mom gave me so I had to buy it. You can find all sorts of figurines in every shape and color. Check them out and if you see something you like take it off the shelf and imagine it in your home. Sometimes its hard to imaging what something will look like in your home when it is surrounded by so many other objects.

Here's an easy one. At some specialty grocery stores you might be able to find milk and cream in a nice glass bottle from a small batch dairy. I bought this one at the grocery store because I needed some cream and wanted the container to keep. This sits on one of our bookshelves and we keep our fortune cookie fortunes in it. Other ideas would be to use it as a vase or fill it with loose change, small rocks or buttons.

Items on our bookshelf.

This cabinet is more of a storage space than a display and in we store our different items that we have accumulated from thrift stores, antique stores, gifts and from family.

These are our small vases. A small carafe, a Session beer bottle (love the color and shape), an orange marmalade jar, and some other vases we picked up along the way.

You can get cigar boxes at any tobacco shop. They are cheap and sometimes free and are great for storage and they look great stacked up on a shelf.

Old lighters would be a cool thing to collect and accent your space with. These two were my grandpas and I think they are so neat!

Old clocks always look great. This one was passed down from a grandparent but you can always find old clocks at a thrift store. There are so many different styles so have an idea of what style would fit in with the rest of your decor.

Glass bottles look great when filled with neat little things or if you put a bunch of different colored glass bottles together. I got these at AX Man in ST. Paul, MN.

Other items to look for can includes pretty decorative plates that can be displayed on the wall, vintage fans, old wood furniture that just need a coat of paint for a fresh new life, decorative frames that can be collaged on your wall, artwork, mirrors, and old books.

Like I said before I am not an interior decorater so I don't really have an design ideas, but here are some helpful links worth checking out! Enjoy! :)

Skull Drawing, by Jeri Mack

2011-10-05T14:20:00.000-07:00

Yard Sale - Purchases from an artist

2011-09-27T14:22:00.000-07:00

My friend and I decided to spent last Saturday checking out local yard sales and estate sales. While driving to one, we drove past what looked like a sidewalk sale. There were some huge pieces of art as well as a couple of tables with books and antiques. We stopped and looked at what we saw and then over heard the owner of the home invite someone to take a look inside. We were intrigued and asked if we could check what was inside as well. "Everything is for sale" he told us, and we headed inside. What we saw when we walked in the house was nothing short of amazing to anyone who appreciates art. Every room was literally overflowing with original art and art supplies. We didn't know where to begin! It is difficult for me to describe how simply awesome this home/art studio was! We could have spent days just looking through one level of the house! Who was this guy! His name is Joe Reno, a well known local artist. He said he needed to sell things to make room and everything was negotiable. It was a little overwhelming so we will have to go back again, not only to see what other treasures we can find but also to take him up on his offer for painting and block printing classes. I love Seattle! :)

Here were my finds from that day:

Original egg tempera painting by Pablo Silva circa 1940's

Vintage Mother Goose storybook.

Antique Croquet Set

Cherub Birdbath

Upcycled Printer Drawers

2011-09-26T13:17:00.000-07:00

Last time I went home to Minnesota was for the birth of my niece Luciana, and while taking a break from hanging out at the hospital in Downtown St. Paul I decided to check out all the antique stores around. If you have a free day, I recommend you go antiquing on West 7th in St. Paul and have lunch at Cossettas while you're in the area. Anyway, first I went to Seventh Heaven Antiques and Collectibles. I got a few things here then worked my way down 7th and ended at Wescott's Station Antiques.

At Wescott's Station antiques, I found all sorts of neat things, including an antique printers drawer. At the time they had a couple of them and looking back I wish I would have bought them all. When I googled them, the photo of the front of the shop has a bunch of printers drawers out front so maybe this is something they get frequently...I don't know but it's worth a look. If you are not in St. Paul, you can always check craigslist or ebay.

Printer drawers come in all shapes and sizes, and there is so much you can do with them. You can put it on the wall or use it as a table top with a piece of glass over it. Make a photo collage or display collectibles or jewelry. It would also be great for storage of small things. I knew when I saw it that I was going to turn it into a jewelry display.

Here is how I made mine into a jewelry organizer and display.

You will need:

a drill with a small drill bit

eyelet screws, small one's for earrings and one's alittle bit bigger for necklaces.

I purchased a few packs of small eyelet screws and a small drill bit to to drill starter holes for the eyelet screws. The wood of mine was too hard with out a starter hole.

Depending on how you use it or want it to look you can paint or stain it. I liked the way mine looked old and natural so I just left it. If I change my mind later it would be no problem to paint it.

I decided where I wanted my hooks to be a drilled a tiny hole. Be careful not to drill too far that the eyelet screw is too small! I did this and just had to make a new hole a tiny bit behind the original hole.

Next I twisted the little eyelet screws in each hole. This part is time consuming because of the small spaces and your fingers will probably hurt a little when you're done.

I put bigger eyelets along the bottom for necklaces and two on top for hanging and voila! A cute and unique way to display your jewelry!

Cleaning up our outdoor spaces

2011-09-07T15:05:00.000-07:00

We moved into our new place in July, and the couple who lived here before us NEVER used the outdoor spaces. Crazy right? There is a nice sized back yard and a cute front patio area. At some point someone planted stuff but after 3 years of zero upkeep everything was overgrown and out of control. My landlord, who lives out of the country, was here for 2 months and was at the house often cleaning up the outdoors and making repairs. He basically took everything out and left us with a dirt yard and a clean slate. He told us we can do whatever we wanted to the back yard. I have never really done much gardening before except for herbs and carrots, so I have no idea what I am really doing, but my husband and I love having our friends over and hanging out outside so we really wanted to make an effort to make our back yard usable and to look nice. I forgot to take before pictures so what I have are photos from one of our summer barbecues that just happened to capture parts of the backyard. Here's what we did.

Our cute little sea foam green house. Inside the fence is our front patio area.

The back yard. There was ivy all over and and lots of beautiful green.

The walkway was non existent due to the over grown plants and flowers. Notice the pine tree branches? We had to duck under them as we came up the stairs. Our landlord trimmed a bunch of the branches to give us more light and to let us have more yard since the shade from the tree basically killed all the grass under it.

If that girl wasn't in the way you would be able to get a better look at the over grown plants and flowers along the fence. :) Note the over grown pine tree branch. No more!

This is how our landlord left the yard. No more green. :( Didn't expect him to take out ALL the life in our yard!

We have to do some leveling and in the spring we are going to plant grass.

He left piles of old bricks and broken slabs of various stone surfaces for us to do what we want with. At some point we will move whats left.

We wanted a walkway so these pieces were perfect for that. We would have probably spent a lot more time on this and rented the proper equipment but hey, we don't own the house.

The finished walkway and garden.

We planted some zebra grass and daisies. Just need to get some more mulch to make it look even better. Also going to get something to fill in the walkway, maybe more mulch or small pebbles.

Here is a before shot of our front patio area. Talk about a lot of weed pulling!

This garden was FULL of rocks, so that was quite time consuming going through and sifting through all the dirt with my hands. But it's always fun to get a little dirty! :) I found a lot of large ones that were perfect for putting around the edge of the garden.

Cool design! Looks a thousand times better with out all the weeds!

Next project will be cleaning up around the corner tree the little plant bed with the rose bush. Then I am going to fill with the same mulch I got for the back yard.

Here is the patio now! I bought the table and chairs from Goodwill and used some Rust-o-leum outdoor white spray paint to give them a fresh new look! I planted a mint and lilac bush, some Walla Walla onions and whole lot of tulips and other spring blooming bulbs. I cant wait to see how this garden will look in the spring!

We still have a lot of work to do but I am so happy with our progress so far and have really enjoyed working on our outdoor spaces! :)

New pieces of jewelry coming soon!

2011-08-31T11:49:00.000-07:00

The biggest struggle I have with my business is getting things all done when I say they will get done. I tend to take my time when creating my pieces and the same goes for photographing them and then posting them online. Most of the time when I create something new I get inspired and just end up creating all sorts of things before I can put the first one up for sale. Then I end up getting overwhelmed with all the pieces I have to photograph an come up with descriptions and packaging. I love it but it just takes me more time than I would like and for that I apologize. The good news is that I finished the photos and made brief descriptions so now I need to finalize packaging for my new body necklaces and get all my jewelry posted! I will let you know when my new pieces are available for purchase! And thank you for your patience! :)

Summer Solstice Sunset

2011-06-23T15:26:00.000-07:00

Seattle Night Shots

2011-06-23T15:15:00.000-07:00

Fremont Solstice Festival

2011-06-21T09:04:00.000-07:00

The Fremont Solstice Festival was amazing and full of beauty and art. I saw a lot of carefree excitement as well as a lot of nudity. It was all that you would expect in Fremont. (Fremont’s official motto “Delibertus Quirkus” means the Freedom to be Peculiar.) It was a lot of fun and I thought I would share a few snapshots from the weekend. I wish I had more but the time was so much fun I didn't think to take more photos! Darn those tasty cocktails! :)

Just so you have more of an idea of what this festival is about, here are a few photos I took at last years festival.

Art Cars

2011-06-21T08:34:00.000-07:00

The Fremont Solstice Fair was here and as always it was fabulous despite the rain. Here are a few of the Art Cars from this years show.

Seattle Street Art - Buffalo

2011-06-17T09:21:00.000-07:00

A beautiful mural in Belltown. I love love love this!

My Art Studio

2011-06-16T14:28:00.000-07:00

I am moving studios so I thought I would take a quick video tour of my current one. Check out the video on my Facebook page. Don't forget to "like" my page to see what I am working on! Please excuse the mess! :)

Making a Paper Mache Head

2011-06-16T13:40:00.000-07:00

For a while now I have been keeping an eye out for a mannequin head for photographing my earrings. No luck. I found some online that were $35 plus $12 for shipping and I have been hoping I would figure out a way to avoid this expense. I remembered making masks in elementary school and I thought that it would be fun to just use my sister as a mold and make a head piece by piece. Well, I figured that would not work out because the main part that I need, which is the ear would be a little more complicated to get the detail. "Hold still for a few hours while a shove wet newspaper in your ear." So the next plan was to go to a department store and see if they sell their old mannequins. Well, the other day I was at a friends house and I noticed some heads that had been painted and made into an art piece. I asked him where he got the heads and he told me that some business had thrown them out and he just took them figuring he could find something cool to do with them, which he did. I told him how I had been looking for one and he offered to lend me one to use as a mold. Yay! I am not sure what these heads were used for as the top of the head seamed to have some kind of a detachable piece, either way these will be perfect.

This head was covered in a spray foam and a lot of paint. He had used this one as a practice head so my friend gave me permission to remove the paint and foam. I could not remove all of it but I got enough to get the detail I want.

Next I made my Paper Mache with equal parts water and flour and a little salt (salt helps prevent mold from growing) and then ripped up pieces of newspaper. I put a thin layer of Vaseline all over my mannequin face so once the masked dried I could easily remove it.

I put a few layers all over the face and smoothed it all over. I let it dry over night and went to check it the next day.

The mask came off easily though I did rip it a little in one place. I decided that it was not as thick as I would like so I put it back on and added a couple more layers.

The added layers made it much better. Next I did the back of the head and neck.

Next, For the top of the head I blew up a balloon and set it in the cavity. Then I paper mached over the balloon, later when it was completely dry I simply popped it from the bottom. I forgot to put a thin layer a Vaseline on the balloon before paper macheing it but it wasn't that big of a deal for me.

After it was completely dry, I lightly sanded the entire head.

It's a little lumpy so if I wanted to refine it more I am sure I could

have made some sort of a pulp to fill in the crevices.

Next a painted the entire head with acrylic paint in a solid skin tone color.

Then came the eyes and lips.

A $16 wig from a party supply store was the finishing touch!

I used my smallest drill bit to drill an earring hole in each of the ear lobes.

Now I can showcase my earrings and hair accessories

with a more accurate depiction of size!

At some point I would like to make or find a stand for

my display head to make her a little more sturdy.

I hope this post was helpful and thanks for visiting!! :)

Upcycled Chandeliers

2011-06-09T15:01:00.000-07:00

I am moving to a new home at the end of the month, and our new home will have a covered back deck. I want to make an upcycled chandelier for the deck area so I am starting to do some research on what I can make. I have seen light fixtures made from old glass bottles but I would light to make something unique and beautiful.

I love the look of this one from Readymade but I do not

have a bunch of burned out bulbs lying around.

I have seen a lot of Mason Jar Chandeliers online and I absolutely love them! I already have a few jars and I almost always see them at the thrift store, plus its garage sale season so I am sure I could find more if not other things that could go along with the Mason jars.

This beautiful Chandelier is from BootsNGus and I really like how they put a light coat of paint on some

of the jars to add a splash of color. They have a great selection in their Etsy shop so check it out!

This one is made by Russ Morgan and it is absolutely beautiful. I love the color created

from the light shining through the tumbled glass. This one may be a bit out of my league!

But definitely check Russ's website to see all his other creations.

This gorgeous Umbrella Chandelier is from Rock and Royal

It is made with high quality glass and crystal.

I am not looking to make a glass and crystal chandelier like the one from Rock and Royal

but I really like the idea of upcycling an old umbrella and possibly stringing some garden lights along the wire frame. I think I am going to explore this and the Mason Jar ideas.

Let me know if you have any suggestions!!

How to make your own Mason Jar Chandelier

recipe by Design Sponge

what you’ll need:

-vintage mason jars

-hanging lamp kit with low wattage bulbs (try your local lighting store, home depot or lowes, or Ikea)

-ceiling light plate

1. punch holes in each mason jar lid, large enough to fit the light bulb cords through (appx. 1 inch). as always, be safe and use gloves and a steady hand when punching holes. to punch the hole you can use either a hammer and nails (which you’ll need to then widen for the cords) or a larger tool that you can tap through.

2. unscrew the lid, insert the bulbs into each jar, feeding the cord through the holes in the lid. whitney suggests using a lamp kit that includes tension clasps to keep the bulb from sliding.

3. tighten the lid back on the jar and adjust the bulb to its desired height (using the tension clasps).

4. using a store-bought ceiling light plate- drill holes into the plate to pull all of your cords through (depending on how many jar-lights you will be hanging). pull the lights through, allowing enough cord to hang the lights at your desired height, and then tie a knot at the top to keep them from falling back through the ceiling plate.

5. contact your local electrician to install the lights into your ceiling- we do not suggest trying to install these yourself unless you’re a trained electrician.

How to make a Recycled light Bulb Chandelier

Recipe by ReadyMade

Materials

Salvaged baby crib cot or bike wheel (without tire)
Burned-out bulbs
Twine or rope
Superglue
Stainless steel chain
4 S-hooks (sturdy, for hanging chandelier from ceiling)
Lots of movies (to watch while you tie all the bulbs on)
Light kit, optional

Tools

Scissors

1. Gather your materials, making sure that the cot or wheel has a wire cross grid to tie bulbs to.

2. Tie different lengths of twine or sturdy rope to bulbs tightly around the circular part of the base of the bulb. Add a small ring of superglue around the rope and the metal base for some extra security.

3. Prop the corners of your cot or wheel on chairs or sawhorses so that the wire cross grid is elevated, open, and accessible.

4. Tie bulbs to cot or wheel at different lengths using double knots and spacing them as desired. Ensure all knots are strong, and then trim the extra strings. Add equal lengths of chain to each corner of cot or wheel.

5. Attach sturdy S-hooks to the ceiling, then loop the chains over hooks to hang chandelier.

6. If you want some functioning light, you can add a basic simple white light kit (like a $5 one from IKEA). Hang the light from the chandelier and discreetly run the cord to power.

Pioneer Square Art Walk

2011-06-08T12:36:00.000-07:00

Art is everywhere in Seattle. It seems that at the beginning of every month, each day occupies an Art Walk in a different neighborhood. The Pioneer Square Art Walk is the first Thursday, and this one is the best in my opinion. Be sure to check out all the Art Walks Seattle has to offer.

Last Thursday I went with my husband and sister and a couple of friends. The Art Walk is from 6-8pm and we got down to Pioneer Square at around 7:45pm, so most of the Galleries were getting ready to close. Thats when we started to head over to the amazing 619 Western. More than one hundred artists work from studios in this six story building. 619 Western is one of the largest artist studio buildings on the west coast if not the world. It has been a workspace for artists since 1979. This space is truly inspiring. All sorts of mediums and all sorts of people.

Hand knitted tree sweaters.

Entering the hallway on the top floor that leads you to the studios.

Stairwell graffiti.

Looking up the stairwell that takes you to the studios.

I collected some business cards of artists that stood out to me and I going to go through them and share with you what I thought was great about them and their work.

One photographer was Richard Gilbert. His current project was the Junk Drawer Project. "My hope for this project is that capturing these drawers on film -- the junk we choose to keep, in its own special place -- will help us to celebrate the ordinary, and preserve the ephemeral, of our lives."

The next business card that I am holding is probably one of the finest letterpress cards I have seen. Thick high quality paper, the design is simple yet it makes a statement. This is the card of Constellation & Co. They specialize in design, letterpress, & handmade ephemera. Their studio was small and cozy and contained some antique letter presses and other printing equipment. The smell of the oil based print ink was in the air as fresh prints were drying. Sara & Brad McNally is the husband and wife team behind Constellation & Co. and they are such friendly people, it is obvious they put great care into their work.

One of my favorite stops at the 619 was at the studio of Chris Sheridan. Such amazing paintings! "The Sacrifice of the King" was the first painting I looked at and I am truly inspired by his work. Another favorite was "She takes Him to the river- to bring in the spring". I love his colors and brush strokes and his subject matter and like looking into his dreams.

Efflux Creations was another studio that excels in multiple mediums. The studio had a collection of art-based apparel that was unique and beautiful. But the website had more to look at. I love the photography that plays with different light sources in a truly creative way and the mixed media work is something to admire.

From the Etsy Blog: The Vintage Workplace With Mod Nest

2011-06-03T10:34:00.000-07:00

http://www.etsy.com/storque/shop/guest-curator-the-vintage-workplace-with-mod-nest-12745/

I love looking at different work spaces, the things that surround you should inspire you. If I could I would probably change my workspace every month, because different things inspire me at different times. But I think the above photo shows a space that I could keep around for a long time! I love everything about it. The vintage desk is beautiful as well as industrial shelving. Perfect for hiding all your odd and ends yet still keep that industrial chic look. "The trick lies in successfully blending old and new. Infusing your home office or studio space with vintage pieces, alongside new, reclaimed and handcrafted objects, creates a diverse, eclectic mingling of styles." -Lia from Mod Pieces. Click the link above to read her article on Etsy!

Bathroom Graffiti

2011-06-02T12:43:00.000-07:00

One thing I love to document is bathroom graffiti. I have so many photos of bathroom art, dirty comments, political opinions, sexual exclamations and tags that at some point I think I am going to have to do something with them all. Here are a few photos of one of my favorite graffitied up bathrooms in Seattle.

Washer Web Necklace and Brass Triangle Hair Clip

2011-06-01T22:39:00.000-07:00

So I have made a lot of jewelry but I have failed to build up my own jewelry collection with my creations. So I decided to start with this necklace and hair clip.

For the necklace I dug up some old washers from my tool box and spay painted them black with speckles of gold. After lacquering and drying, I started assembling my "web" with some antique finish brass chain. I had sketched out a design months ago so I had an idea of what I wanted but it was pretty much a guessing game as far as how long to have each piece of chain be. I didn't check the clock before I started but I think it took me like 1-1/2 hours to assemble. I am really excited to wear this one out. It reminds of something like a glamorous pirate!

For the hair clip...it was originally going to be something totally different but I did not like how it was looking. I had cut and sanded four brass triangles and then used a metal glue to attach them to each other. It was supposed to be a dangly hair clip, but since that didn't look the way I would have liked I slightly rounded the whole piece and added felt and an alligator clip to the back. I will post pics when I sport these awesome pieces!! :D

My first Treasury List on Etsy!

2011-06-01T04:03:00.000-07:00

Check out the treasury list I created inspired by the style of Art Nouveau.

http://www.etsy.com/treasury/4de607cd9e046d91e7f9f853/a-modern-take-on-art-nouveau

what to blog about??

2011-06-01T03:53:00.000-07:00

So I have be trying to figure out what to blog about for what to long. Should I just post about my business, photography, art, cooking or any of the other creative endeavorers I take part in? Or should I just share what inspires me? Hmmm... I have been trying to decide how I should narrow it down and I have come to realize, "Who say's I have to narrow it down?". I am just going to share everything beautiful I come across and create. So stay tuned for whats coming! :)

WELCOME!!

2011-01-29T00:34:00.001-08:00