headed back here in a couple of days...

letter from the road...

Despite my prolonged neglect of this blog I'm still holding on to it. Since I started my new job this past March, my life has changed and this little journal has become that neglected lone sock that got lost on the floor in the back corner of your closet. Do you know that sock? By the time you find it again, it has become half-sock, half-dusty bunny? I didn't mean for my blog to turn into a dust bunny.
Probably now would be a good time for me to bring it back, so I can feel more normal again.

A week from now, I will be heading back home to Chicago, and will be in town for three weeks - the longest stretch of time I will have been home since this past April. In the meantime, I am in Studio City, California. I'm enjoying California while I can, but it will be good to be back home for so much of October.

This past weekend, I went to the Melrose Trading Post in LA, where I found these typewriters. I also found some old photos and print blocks that I am going to try to incorporate into the 30 day sketch I am currently doing. Here is some of what has unfolded so far:

newest creation...

My most recent necklace creation! I wrapped wood beads in different papers, added a few vintage beads and braided some ribbon to tie it around my neck.

despite the practical self...

I have a tendency from time to time to buy objects that most likely won't serve much purpose in my life outside of being beautiful. This weekend I found a few little treasures that fit that category. As I was standing in the shop holding them, a tug of war between my practical self and my treasure hunter self went on in my head:

practical self: "this is just stuff. stuff that will accumulate and take up space. you don't need it. why are you considering this?"

treasure hunter self: "treasure!"

practical self: "how and when are you going to use these?"

treasure hunter self: "pretty!"

... and on.

This time, my treasure hunter self won out, with it's thorough, compelling, irrefutable arguments. So, for $16, I got this bell, letter opener and pin. I also found eggshell peacock feathers at another spot and splurged $6 on a pair. To me their lovely and I think that sometimes (as absurd and legitimate as the tug of war is) that's all the reason you need.

This last one was free! I found it on my walk on Sunday morning.

going for a little bit of pop...

For this year's set and costume designs for The Original Show, I was given the task of creating a work of art on stage that begins in a nearly colorless state and gradually transforms with pops of it as the show develops. Actually, this was just the beginning of the list of criteria that went into this design, and I found myself vacillating between multiple ideas for a while, trying to find the one that best fit the hopes of the director.

The one I ended up going with was this Roy Lichtenstein inspired design. I really liked doing something playful and vivid like this and I think it will work well with the vibe of the show. The central wall is made up of 6 units - each one with three sides. Each side is painted differently, so the units can be spun around to bring in the pops of color. This stage has red curtains, so I tied those into the design, by painting a continuation of the curtains onto the walls in order to bring them into the work of art. The cast will start out in black, and start changing into a more colorful wardrobe (below) as their characters develop.

The title of the show this year, "It's so... original!" came from my word bubble on the right. :)

another papery treat...

This past Sunday I stopped in Fly Bird and decided to "splurge" and get this $2 treat for myself. It's a paper craft nostalgia postcard by monkey design. The front has this image of a general store and the back has guidelines showing you where to cut and fold. You follow the guidelines to turn a 2D postcard into a little 3D pop up vignette. It took me a couple of hours to make it. I lost one of the rear view mirrors on the bike, (should've gotten a fresh exacto blade!) but other than that, it turned out pretty well.

papery treat...

I was perusing the thrift and vintage shops along Milwaukee in Wicker Park last week and found this bit of wallpaper. Tah-Dah! What am I doing with it? Not sure yet, but what I do know is that I would like some more.

diorama...

This is a scene from my kitchen table this afternoon. I have the sniffles (hence the tissue) and I was finishing up my diorama project for MAKE (a little late!). After having some breakfast and some sudafed this morning, I put on a pot of tea, popped in Now Voyager, and set to work. I don't think I've done a diorama since elementary school, so it was kind of fun to do one. I used an old cigar box and modeled the diorama after a Jorge Castillo painting that I like. Now my diorama is hanging above my buzzer in my apartment. Here are a couple more pictures.

I find it hard to resist photographing a really pretty breakfast. Two days ago, when it was four degrees outside, I decided to make breakfast bars. As it turns out, they didn't really want to stay in one piece, so I decided to crumble them up and eat them over yogurt. So, this is how I started out my first Monday of the new year. As of yet, I have no resolutions for 2010, which is unusual for me, but I think I still have a little time to figure it out.

I am doing a new project for M A K E this month, called reMAKE. The idea is to create a new interpretation of someone else's art in a completely different medium. Not necessarily an original project, but I thought it might be a fun way to start the new year. I got the idea to do reMAKE after reading up on Yinka Shonibare's work back in November.

After my breakfast this morning, I went to the art institute to seek out the work that I would choose as my inspiration. I haven't settled on one piece yet, but I'm thinking of doing a photograph by Gary Stochl. I will probably take a trip to the library to dig through some art books before I make my final decision!

sunday...

Sunday began with brunch at Feed. Last time I was there, they had sold out of the fried green tomato benedict, but this time I got one! I don't think I am doing this meal justice with my photograph, but I am doing my best to share the moment. As is becoming ritual, I tried to win a golden egg when the meal was over, but instead won a fortune telling fish - according to which, I was 'jealous' (ouch). If your curious about the science behind those little red "miracle" fish, you can check it out here.

Next on the agenda was Renegade, which was packed, but I managed to find a couple of Christmas presents. Some of my favorite vendors were Cursive Design, oneCANOEtwo, appetite, Sonnenzimmer, and Paper Stories. Spudnik Press was also there with their super enticing art candy machine. For a dollar you could get a small limited edition print from the dispenser. I first discovered this machine at the Spudnik anniversary party two nights before and found myself obsessively feeding it quarters trying to collect all six of the featured prints.

I ended my day with our annual holiday craft night at work. It's when we come together to eat, drink, and make holiday gifts. I mulled some cider and everyone brought great treats... like chocolate chai chex mix which is so delicious and tricky to say five times fast.

awe shucks...

I have to confess, every once in a while, I check my "hearts me" status on etsy... which makes me feel a little bit like a high schooler. Maybe I feel this way because I'm checking in to see how popular I am or maybe it's the term "hearts me" that does it... or maybe a little bit of both. In any case, today I received my 1,000th heart and actually took a picture of it. Yup, that's right.

Now I'm going to go hang it in my locker...

...market recap

A couple of weekends ago I had a booth at Lill's Holiday Market. Since then, I've been working on photographing and posting all of my work to my shop. I am almost done!! Here are a few photos of the market a few new items you can find in my shop.

weekend getaway...

This week I am getting ready for the fast approaching Lill Holiday Market. It's just about a week away and I have plenty left to do! Thankfully, a few of my other projects have just recently wrapped up, including the 30 day sketch and the set design for Museum. In the midst of all this, I decided to come up for a big gulp of air and headed to Denver for the weekend. A dear friend of mine recently moved there, so it was great to see her and explore a new city. We walked around town, visited some great shops (Fancy Tiger, Kozo, Heidelberg Antiques, and Gallagher Books), had a delicious brunch at Gaia, and hiked through Rocky Mountain National Park. Here are a few pictures!

to market...

If you are in Chicago on Saturday, November 14th, come see me at Lill's holiday market! I will be selling jewelry, art and vintage goods. Below is a little snippet from their blog on the story behind the market, and if you follow this link, you can get the rest of the details on where and when. Hope to see you there!

weekend blurbs...

...sitting at a library desk with a stack of good books, working on my current set design project

checked out: "Sketch Book, Conceptual drawings from the World's Most Influential Designers", by Timothy O'Donnell, "Leon Ferrai and Mira Schendel, Tangled Alphabets" and a couple others.

...a couple of finds from the Kane County flea market.  I also picked up a few prints and some really delicious apple cider donuts.

... sidewalk art that I stumbled upon on a walk

...the lesser known public park, where I worked on drawings for the 30 day sketch.

... see the finished version on MAKE.

so close...

If you are even remotely considering doing this, that means you definitely need to do it.  Sign up on facebook.  no pressure.

sunday...

Lounging on the grass in the park... 

after which,  I went to an antique market and got some great paper for collaging.  The thirty day sketch starts in just three days and I plan to use some of it in my book.  On top of that, I've just started a new set design and I'm in for a busy week at work.  I'll probably be visiting this moment in my mind a few times and wishing I could do a little time travel.

M A K E ...

Earlier this month I created a new facebook page called M A K E.  The goal of M A K E is to create an online creative exchange, where artists of all mediums can show what they are working on, share great links and ideas, get inspired, and join in group projects.  The first project starts October 1st, and is a 30 day sketch.  I got a lot of interest when I did my own 30 day sketch, so now I'm trying to get all those people to do it with me!  Help it catch on: I currently have 28 participants, but would love to see that number grow.  Visit M A K E, become a fan, and sign up for the 30 day sketch.

playing catch up...

The last two weeks have been FULL.  A wedding, a birthday, work, and now finally I've started posting some of my new jewelry to the shop.  Here are some shots of petals at the wedding, my henna (which has sadly washed away), and one of my new bracelets.