What's your "Rushmore"?

In case some of you are a little bit puzzled, "Rushmore" is a film by Wes Anderson (of "The Royal Tenenbaums" fame). It also happens to be one of my favorite films which does not fail to make me smile. The  movie is about finding something you love and doing it for the rest of your life. 

I know that this is probably not a romantic film or something one watches over the weekend before Valentine's Day (I was home sick fighting off a nasty cold...) but there is a wonderful lesson to be learned. One may be a barber or a brain surgeon but what counts is that you love what you do and enjoy doing it.

What's my "Rushmore"? So far, LIFE is what I love along with the adventures and misadventures that come with it. Here is my tribute to this movie plus a few handmade items that warmed my singleton heart this Valentine's Day.

The Treasury on ETSY.com

Heartstache Plush MiniHeart by HibouCards

Pleasure Molecule Heart Felt Ornament by WhatNoMints

Jelli Reposes by PhotoGrunt

Colorful Macarons Postcard photo by DarlingSavage

Tooth and Ice Cream Brooches by MemiTheRainbow

=(^.^)=

Heart for Glass

A few years ago, before moving to Seattle, I lived in Tacoma. Known as the Jewel of South Puget Sound, it is also home to the Museum of Glass, opened in 2002. 

Museum of Glass with Tacoma Dome and SR509 Suspension Bridge

As one can see from the following photographs I've recently taken, there is much to see outside the museum itself. The Seaform Pavillon and the Venetian Glass Wall showcases Chihuly's work. The distinct cone structure that gives the place its nickname houses the Hot Shop Ampitheater where live glass blowing takes place.

The "Cone" as seen from Dale Chihuly's "Bridge of Glass"

Crystal Towers

Chihuly's Bridge of Glass

 

Seaform Pavillon

Venetian Glass Wall

Historic Downtown Tacoma seen from the museum

ETSY.com has a number of very talented glass artists. For those who "heart" glass, here are some wonderful creations that caught my (non-glass) eye:

Heart in a Jar Necklace by KivaFord

Miniature Chemistry Set by KivaFord

Heart of Glass Valentine Paperweight by KitPaulson

Earrings by Kristin Perkins

Glass Leaf Necklace by Kristin Perkins

Glass Orca Whale by Totally Unique Glass

=(^.^)=

Now available at Seattle's Ghost Gallery

Late last year, I stumbled upon an independent gallery and boutique in Seattle's Capitol Hill neighborhood. Ghost Gallery was founded in 2006 by Miss Laurie Kearney, a very talented independent curator. Aside from hosting wonderful exhibits, the place features miniature works of art: sculpture, painting, photography. It has a boutique that represents local, independent artists and crafters.

Here are a few of my scarves currently available at the Gallery's boutique:

 

Marley Neckwarmer in Charcoal

Marley Neckwarmer in Taupe

Ripple Scarf in Dusty Rose

Ripple Scarf in Dusty Purple

Ripple Scarf in Navy Blue, Brooch included

My ETSY shop has more new items for the New Year. Come and visit anytime!

Until next time, thanks for reading =(^.^)=

In stitches

 the age where technology is able to do almost everything, it is a huge comfort (for me, anyway) to know that the art of hand embroidery has not been lost. As a child, I remember looking at my grandmother's embroidery as well as learning different stitches in school. Being able to sew by hand came in handy when buttons came loose or clothes needed to be mended.

ETSY is a happy place for me and here, I found several wonderful artists who keep the art of stitches alive and well.

Through her embroidered portraits, dioramas, and jewelry, Cindy Steiler takes hand embroidery to the next level and with a modern twist. Her ETSY shop, MarysGranddaughter, was named in honor of her grandmother who taught her sewing and crochet. I love how she incorporates vintage materials and antique doll parts in creating such imaginative pieces.

girl and her goat - embroidered diorama

bathing beauty

embroidered brooch- greta is not amused

head in the clouds

Johanna Wood of Metal, Cloth & Wood incorporates embroidery in her wonderful sterling silver jewelry. Her pieces are worth collecting, wearing, and showing off. 

Embroidered Bluebird Brooch

Embroidered Apple Pendant

Embroidered Heart Ring

Embroidered Teapot Bracelet

WaterRose's meticulously embroidered wrist cuffs, home décor, and jewelry are sure to invite many compliments aside from ooooohs and aaaaahs. I personally admire her embroidered Queen Anne's Lace.

Queen Annes Lace Wrist Cuff

Starry Night Brooch

Crow and Key Steampunk Brooch

For the science geek in all of us (myself included), Malarie Burgess' aptly named ItsAStitch shop offers handstitched molecules --taking embroidery to the "molecular level" . I especially like her rendition of Oxytocin <3 <3 <3

Love Molecule - Embroidered Wall Art

Caffeine Fix - Embroidered Wall Art

Happy Molecule - Embroidered Wall Art

I hope you enjoyed these embroidered creations. Until next time, thanks for reading. =(^.^)=

J'ai des doigts de fée

A friend of mine recently told me that «J'ai des doigts de fée». Translated from French, this means that I have dexterous hands or literally, I have «fairy fingers». Though not my own, the works you see here tell the story of my handmade life.

I have always been crafty for as long as I can remember, if not, I have always been surrounded by people who made things by hand. 

Though my mother worked  full-time in an office at the state university, she always found the time to sew. I remember spending summer days working at my grammar workbooks or coloring books , with the sound of my mother's sewing machine as background. We had one of those classic Singer sewing machines, with the cast iron body and solid wood cabinets. Mama had her machine outfitted with a motor but still kept the pedal belt just in case the power went out. That way, she can still sew without electricity. 

Vintage sewing machine 8x10 print by Emmy Ludwig

Almost every year when I was younger, my sister and I had dresses custom made by our neighborhood seamstress. This meant outings to the local fabric store for materials then off to the shoe store for matching shoes. 

1960s style Retro Layla dresses by FaithWorks4U

My mother also taught me how to crochet and I gladly acquired this skill . She also encouraged me to cross stitch during summer break. I was  allowed to watch my favorite children's program as long as I didn't just sit in front of the television with idle hands.

By Hand 8x12 Signed Photograph by K. Clark

Orla Inspired Cross Stitch by GraceAndLight

Aside from crafting, I was also sent to weekly piano lessons and kids  summer art camp . My sister and I developed an interest in art and art history through my mother's collection of art books. She loves reading and would happily take us down to the local bookshop to buy books.

the keys, 10x10 print by thephotozoo

Books Upon Books, 8x8 TtV print by SquidArt

L'Artiste, 4x6 fine art print by DearMachine

 

Through the years, my creativity further developed and I took other hobbies including knitting, jewelry-making, photography, and vintage camera collecting. I take care not to let my fairy fingers lose their touch by creating almost constantly.

A Work In Progress 8x12 glossy print by SepiaBlush

Vintage camera girl, 5x5 fine art print by Marianne Lo Monaco

Until next time, thanks for reading. =(^.^)=

New for the New Year

Happy New Year! Manigong Bagong Taon! Bonne et Heureuse Année!

This new year, I am adding new photographs for sale at my ETSY shop. Many of these photos have been waiting to see the light of day on someone's bare walls. I have lots of them stored inside my digital darkroom and just needed some extra free time to get them printed professionally. 

Without further ado, here are fine art photographs that I will be listing in the days to come.

Photograph Sets

As a tribute to those of us who love public transportation and the city of Paris, here is a set of four 5x5 Paris Metro photographs:

Red (one of my favorite colors) + Paris (my favorite European city) = La vie en Rouge, a set of four 5x5 red-themed photographs:

I also have a London Collection of four TTV-Inspired 5x5 photos, for those of you who love London and the color red. I just love those English phone boxes.

 

 

Printed professionally on Fujicolor Crystal Archive Paper, each photo is ready to be placed in standard 5x5 photoframes. 

 

TTV-Inspired 

I have a small (but slowly growing) collection of vintage cameras.  It inspired me to try something new in my digital darkroom: TTV inspired photography. Genuine TTV or Through-the-Viewfinder photography involves taking photographs through the viewfinder of another camera. 

My photographs are TTV-inspired since I digitally blended an image taken through the viewfinder of a vintage camera (Argus Seventy-five TLR) with one of my pictures. The result has a very vintage and nostalgic feel to it. I already have a few of these on sale in my shop but just to give you a special preview of what is coming, I am showing them here on my blog. These photos are also printed professionally on Fujicolor Crystal Archive Paper. For your convenience, I will have them matted to readily fit a standard 12x12 frame.

The Horsemen of Mont Saint Michel

Notre Dame de Paris

On the Bosphorus in Istanbul, Turkey

Alexander Calder's Eagle

This will be all for now and I hope that so far, you like what you've seen. Well, it's time to get back to work and get more items ready. Though I may be busy, everyone is always welcome to pop by my shop.

Until next time, thanks for reading. =(^.^)=