Todays Inspiration of the Day....I call them inspiration trees because they make me want to paint. Most likely I will be using these photos in my next series of paintings. Ah the colors! Oh the strange organic shapes! Love, love, love it!
Sting like a bee! I'm back in the gym doing my Operation Bruce Lee. What is Operation Bruce Lee? It's basically me being a geek. I'm a big fan of Bruce Lee and am using him as my motivation and inspiration to get fit. I have a picture of Bruce Lee by my bedside to remind me first thing when I wake up, a pic of Bruce on my fridge with the words "don't eat junk!" written above his head and then he's tacked to my bulletin board at work- where I eat and can see him and feel guilty if I happen to be eating a cheeseburger. I may update from time to time on my Operation Bruce Lee project. I also like Muhammad Ali and his funny quotes- hence why he gets photo space today.
Another reason to love etsy.com I just discovered this fantastic artist named Matte Stephens and this piece in particular is just standout! Maurice Sendak fan perhaps? All his stuff is pretty awesome, saving pennies, saving pennies! To view his shop click here.
Yikes my little etsy shop is looking threadbare these days! The whole impetus for my shop initially were the hand painted boxes and now theres only one left in my store. I've had some ideas for new ones and some spare blanks ready for painting on. I think I'm going to try my hand at decoupage and see what happens. I always get a little rush posting a new item on etsy, it's like crack for artists!
Maybe it's Hurricane Ike stirring up the winds and whatnot, but I've got the sneezes. I've been a recent sufferer of the ol' allergies, never really got too bad until I hit my twenties. Then like clockwork they flare up- just as every season changes it seems. I've been doing the local honey route and just this weekend bought some from The Honeybee Guild here in Texas. It is sweet and mellow and fresh and I got it at Farmers Market from the Pollards who maintain healthy beehives in North Texas. A noble task in light of the colony collapses we've been hearing about. If you'd like more info about the Honeybee Guild here is their site texas honeybee guild and here is a very informative blog about them: a case of hives The idea behind eating your local honey is to introduce all the local pollen to your system safely so that your body stops falsely reacting to it like it's a foreign enemy (hence the sneezing). And if you stop by Farmers Market look for the guy in the bee suit with the display of bees...he'll give you the buzz on bees and honey, honey!
I'm getting ready to move in about a month so the one word that's been repeating itself over and over in my mind is "PURGE!". It's amazing how much paper one person can collect in one tiny drawer alone, let alone a whole apartment. I've been reading some decluttering tips over at zenhabits and I think I've got my motivation on. Whenever I sit down to watch tv this week I'm going to have a drawer to clean out, papers to tear into bits and a big bag to fill with trash or donation stuff. Just packing away the overflowing cupboard of dishes made me feel light and airy. It's a good feeling. Who needs all this stuff anyway? Why do I have 7 CVS cards that have not been activated? 5 of the same bus schedule? Receipts from dinner 3 years ago? Why in the world have I been carrying this weight around in my dresser drawers while my clothes have no place to live? Don't get me started on clothes, which like bunnies have multiplied till one would think a good handful of people live in my apartment as opposed to two and three cats...and they don't like to wear clothes. So yes, as the seasons change and I get ready for a new habitat I also get ready for new habits and ....that elusive thing called SPACE. If you also need some motivation to get your decluttering bug fired up- I would hit up Leos blog zenhabits and remember -purge, purge, purge!
Krabappel 2 is one of those rare myspace friends I've never met but feel a kinship to. Uber talented. Gorgeous redhead. Full of passion and a love for music and art....oh yeah and she likes "snus" (swedish word for chewing tobacco!) If I ever visit Sweden I'd like to meet my friend Krabappel 2 and see her lovely works in person. I really liked this series she posted, reminds me of glaciers and Richard Diebenkorn. The muted colors and spacial breaks are really up my alley.
Today I did my first run with my Nike Sportsband. Let me just say- I don't have the running shoes that are "compatible" with the sportsband but as my sister can attest- there are ways of getting around that. Unfortunately I didn't know the proper "way" and cheated myself out of a mile or two I'm almost sure of it! The sportsband comes with a small sensor that you are supposed to slip down into the Nike compatible shoes. My sister said she took an xacto and after tracing the sensor shape she cut into her regular non Nike running shoes and made a hole for the sensor and then put her shoe insert over it. Easy. But I just got my pair of New Balances not too long ago so i wanted to see how it would work without cutting a hole and just sliding it under my insert. I couldn't feel the sensor after about two minutes but I'm fairly certain I placed it in the wrong part of my shoe. ;-/ This was further confirmed after I went to the sportsband site and saw the sensor going in...in...up to the ball of the foot part, not the heel as I had thought. Call this a ghetto experiment. I can't afford Nike runners right now. I may be busting out the xacto just like my sis did. Did a test run at the park and came back, slipped off the interface and slid it into the USB and now chilluns- you can see what a lame duck I am....I burned all of 49 calories in about 30 minutes! Like I said- I had the sensor in the wrong part of the shoe. At the gym on the elliptical- 30 minutes is just shy of 3 miles for me. Loving the sportsband- just need to do it the right way next time....
The sportband logs your runs and even has an easy way to share your graphs with your friends on myspace. It tracks your miles, your pace and the calories burned. Which in my case today- was like...one cup of coffee. One...small....small....cup of coffee. ;-) Wanna keep up with my sister on the run? Check out her blog here for inspiration by the Bay... run rene run
My friend Dan was fresh in from Argentina where he'd been working when he heard it was my birthday. Always prepared, he had brought a whole boxload of these much requested cookies (these are no ordinary cookies hot damn diggity dawg damn!)
These are the ultimate little sweet tooth killers. And they come in a fancy box that looks like you're getting some Cuban cigars. Theres only six of these heavenly (hellish?) delights per box but you could easily share ONE because they are so rich and thick. I really can't do these things justice so I'll leave you with someone elses description:
Havanna Alfajores Cookies by Evan Orensten
"I found these Argentinian treats in a coffee shop in Miami and haven't stopped talking about them (and eating them) all week. Made by the well known Havanna brand, the best of the five flavors are the Dulce de Leche, which are coated in meringue. The textures and flavors create an uncommonly complex experience. These cookies are big and rich, and I find that one is more than enough to get the job done. The look and heft of the package is impressive and makes a great gift. If you can't find them in your neighborhood, they are available online from a great Latin food resource you should know about anyway: Amigo Foods. A box of 12 (6 chocolate, 6 dulce de leche) will cost you around $24."
$$24!!! Do I feel like a Princess? Damn straight I do! But.....what will I do when they're gone? ;( Order them online. Sigh!
I was giddy with glee to see my fave little local restaurant All Good Cafe has vamped up their menu. Not only do they offer the tastiest little chicken fried chicken and mashed potato duet but it's looking like some delicious nachos and some other deliciosos have arrived. AllGood cheese platter with cocktails, new wines, beers and "rock-a-mole"? I can't wait for my next trip to AllGood! Check out their site for live entertainment calendar as well as more info on the..droool....menu... allgoodcafe.com
This update comes to us via Eddie Ruiz who owns Avenue Arts Venue...
"If you've ever been to deep ellum or expo park you've seen ozone's murals.
don't miss your chance to check out his new paintings and collect his new toy at avenue arts venue saturday sept.13th. reception 6pm-11pm Free!"
Did you hear that? He said FREE and he said toys, it's like everything a kid wants to hear in one sentence. Too bad those toys aren't free! HAH HAH! Insert Nelson laugh here. Avenue Arts Venue is located in lovely Exposition Park, across from the State Fair of Tex-ass!
A Fine Distraction A Fine Distraction has a beautiful array of handmade jewelry. I was very partial to the "whimsical blue hues blooming" earrings. The colors are gorgeous and I'm happy to report there are other colors of flowers in this little garden of an etsy shop. Go poke around for yourself, please mind the blooms...
AntLee Artworks This is my pick from AntLee Artworks site because damn do i love myself some TIGERS. And bees too, hence why my DJ name is DJ Tigerbee! AntLee has quite an assortment of stuff in his shop- from this cool wood pendant with a handpainted tiger to interesting stuff like a handcarved domino ring in the shape of a raven with a....ruby eye! I like the animal and nature theme in his stuff, go check out more little handmades from AntLee on etsy.com
Bagladee If you're about to rock you might consider throwing all your rocking essentials into this really rockin' little rocket chic tote bag. Hot booted mama "rocket chic" print bag is totally up my go-go bootin' alley. It even has a matching internal pouch which for me adds bonus points! Thats where I would put my fave lipstick and cellphone in a heartbeat! And little diamantes are sprinkled on this honey for extra star appeal. Two thumbs up!
minelolly This is the sweetest little plush softie! I want to stay up late like an owl! I really love the colors and the starry eyes. What a cutie, for more assortment of soft sweet dollies go visit Minelolly's shop on etsy minelolly
Yes, it's Free Love Friday again and that means five people have been given some free promo love here on my blog. I did an experiment today. I posted my usual announcement on Myspace and got my usual no one cares for free promo attitude. Then I posted it on etsy and it was WILDFIRE. Everyone is trying to get their little crafties seen and loved. I love my little etsy community, so much warmer and fuzzier than deadspace..I mean, myspace. Anyway- I have a feeling some myspacers are gonna sneak something in later so heres a two parter. I'm doing double duty in the love department today. First up is ETSY LOVE! Fivefootfury13
I just had to list this little beauty from fivefootfury13's shop. Mainly because I'm a sucker for Pink Floyd, granted I'm a Syd Barrett era kinda gal this is still one rockin' piece of jewelry! Beautiful beadwork here such as this rose headband very unique totally bead crazy stuff here! Check her out! fivefootfury13 on etsy!
"All Is Fine" Yes, right now everything feels fine. The weather, my mood, my creativity and energy and health. All is fine. Then why do I feel so restless?! Oh because i just finished reading a book and haven't had a chance to work on anything for my etsy shop and...um (scratches head) kinda been neglecting that painting I'm working on. The book I just finished was great. It's called "The Geography of Bliss" by Eric Weiner. It was one of those books you could just happily go on reading, along for the ride with no destination in particular and just loving the journey. I must link you to the authors site so you can enjoy it as well : Eric Weiner So now I feel restless, the journey is over and I must find a new book to read. I must work on my painting. I must take advantage of this all is fine feeling.
Since we've been on the subject of promoting your art biz... I was reading in an etsy forum yesterday how some sellers are "shy" about giving out their business cards. I can relate, but to an extent you must remember you're just letting them be AWARE of this really cool thing you're doing. You're not bragging or pushing a sale on them, just raising awareness. Which good promotion is about. Promoting yourself gets a bad rap though. Unfortunately a lot of people think it's bad form to promote yourself. To that I say PSHAW! In this world if you don't take action for yourself it'll never get done. The old saying "if you want something done right you have to do it yourself" rings true. No one is just going to stand up and shout out to the world what an awesome little painting or tshirt design or whatever you just did. You have to do it. Don't let your business or dreams suffer because of some made up etiquette. I have to be a little aggressive with my band and art, any good artist needs to be in this competitive world. Being pro active is only common sense. In honor of promoting yourself some more FOA links! kijiji lunacraft adleaf
I just added two new additions to my etsy shop. One is a digital print from a digital illustration and the other is a digital print from a real life acrylic painting. These are my first forrays into the world of prints. I like prints, they are so colorful and easy to carry around. Nothing like heavy canvas and quite economical on the ol' wallet. Check them out!
