Saturday, January 15, 2011

{Four Finds} #8 Rethink & Reuse...


For the first {four finds} of  2011,  I wanted to focus a bit on something that  has been on my mind- rethinking & reusing. January is always a time for me to rethink & regroup. Simplifying everything seems like what I am trying to do both in our home, with my business, & in my designs. I've been drawn to a lot of innovative objects lately that fall into the "rethink & reuse" category.




Top to Bottom:

Little Houses Light by Chris Theiss for Hutch Studio- When Chris sent me this picture, I was blown away. I love how it was made from reused materials - not to mention the incredible shadows that it creates! {image via here} 

"Sandbank Sofa" by Christiane Hogner - I recently read an article in Dwell Magazine about Hogner. She is a Brussels based furniture designer who makes things out of castoffs she finds on the streets of Belgium. This sofa was originally made for a project - where she used sandbags. I really like all of her work. {image via here}

"My Camera is out of paper!" by Ching Ching Cheng- This camera made from books knocked my socks off. {image via here}

"Dada Dolls" by Hannah Hoch- Featured in an exhibition catalog called "Toys of the Avant-Garde" which is on view at the Museo Picasso Malaga & written about here.  I'm a huge Hannah Hoch fan & was excited to see her dolls included among all of the other very cool toys. (Note: One of my favorite exhibition books is cut with the kitchen knife: the weimar photomontages of hannah hoch by maud lavin). {image via here}  source 

Do you have a favorite? Have you made something recently from something that you had around the house or found somewhere? Hope you are having a nice Sunday!


{Fun} Modern Love...

One of my all time favorite images is Mother & Child by a designer on my top 5 list, Alexander Girard. I love the shapes, the palette, the style, & era in which it was created. I'm also a big fan of Valentines day- and the two fit together for me. So, I made an Etsy Treasury last night that was inspired by both. It's all about my love of modern design- past & present. I like looking at it so I  thought I would post it here...

You can view this Etsy Treasury live here. Hope you are having a nice weekend! 

Friday, January 14, 2011

{Fabric Friday} vintage vera...


I have really fond memories of playing in my mom's scarf box. The feeling of the silks & chiffons, the patterns & colors, and the wafting scent of Charlie Perfume come to mind when I think about it. A while back I spotted a basket of scarves at the antique mall. They were all packaged in ziploc baggies & I really didn't have time to sift through them. But I thought about them & saved that activity for a rainy day- when I need a studio break. That studio break came this week. I was completely delighted searching through the basket - the colors were amazing! But what really got my heart pumping was that the ones I kept picking up, were Vera Neumann scarves- and they were $6 a piece!


Vera was considered the "queen of mod" by many. Popular in the 60's &'70's, her textiles were infused with happiness and her painting background was evident in all of her designs. I'm drawn to her philosophy as much as her designs. Here is a snippet written about why she became so successful.

"...I think the biggest reason was that she painted up to the public. She was of the belief that fine art shouldn’t just be for the wealthy. It should be available to all and it should be incorporated in everyone’s everydays. By wearing a Vera dress, you can take your art with you. By wearing a Vera scarf, you can dress up pretty much anything. By having Vera linens in your kitchen, it puts a smile on your face while you’re doing the drabbest duties. Vera had the philosophy that you should change the art around you every once in a while because you soon stop seeing it. She made it to where a person can change their art as often as they change their clothes. Literally. "  - source


These scarves make me really happy. The colors just sing and the patterns are great! I felt really strongly about having them in my studio. I don't know what part they are going to play in my creating, but just being able to juggle them on whim is worth a lot. They also make for a good rainy day activity with the kiddo. Playing dress up has never been so glamorous... 


If you are fond of Vera as well and would like a little piece of fine art to wear, check out this Etsy Shop that has 297 Vera scarfs in stock!  I don't know about you, but I needed a little bit of cheerful color on this rainy day. Happy Fabric Friday

Thursday, January 13, 2011

{Everyday Inspiration} Vivian Maier...


A few weeks ago a photographer friend of mine, Richard Sayer (Sayer's namesake), passed on a link to me that made my head spin. It was a blog dedicated to the recently discovered photographer, Vivian Maier. She was a street photographer & nanny that  had a prolific collection of photos that were discovered by John Maloof at an auction in Chicago. John had such a strong reaction to her work, that he has been documenting, scanning, & unfolding all the information that he can find about this mysterious lady. The Chicago Tonight show, did a feature on her work that can be seen here


It was these first two self portraits of Vivian that really sucked me in. I absolutely love them. Since seeing them, there has been a lot more information unleashed- a documentary film is being made, a book, along with a museum show in Chicago. The whole story is really fascinating to me & I knew that I wanted to write a post about it all. I've been seeing her photos pop up in the blog world lately, like here & here. But I never can get enough of a good thing. There are tons and tons of photos to choose from and they are all wonderful. What really struck me about a lot of her photos is her ability to capture relationships between pairs. She has a lot of pictures of sweet & vulnerable moments between, friends, couples, strangers, and children. So in the spirit of spreading the word, here is a handful to browse through...


I find both the story of how her work was discovered & her photography itself, inspiring. Looking through the published photos makes me shiver. I'm grateful to my friend for passing on the link to me. It's pretty exciting to know that this project that John Maloof started is really taking off!  Check out this video if you have a few minutes. Enjoy! 

Tuesday, January 11, 2011

{SALE} The KLT Muse is 3!


Hold on to your hats ... the klt:works muse just turned 3 years old! 
It's time to kick up your heals and celebrate!  Today is 1.11.11 - a day like this needs to be extra special. So, from now until 1.15.11 (midnight PST) you can receive 30% off of your klt:works Etsy order. All you need to do is enter KLTMUSE3 at checkout.  And to add icing on the birthday cake, the 3rd customer will receive their favorite klt:letterpress print as well (customer will be notified w/their order)! Whoooeee- that's something to have a party about! Now let's take a glimpse of some highlights from the last 3 years at klt:works with my star model... 

{2010- Spring & Winter}

{2009- Fall & Winter}

{2008- Spring- Fall}


Sayer makes klt:works more fun & just plain make sense. I can't wait to see what the next few years have in store for us. I guarantee he will continue to be my sounding board & biggest helper. So happy birthday little guy! You wear klt:tees well (which is a good thing because  you have one in every color & size)!  

Monday, January 10, 2011

{Everyday Inspiration} balloons & a boy...

 

Something about balloons make me smile. When you add this little boy to the mix, the smile turns into a belly laugh! 


Yep, Sayer's turning 3 tomorrow & what an amazing three years they have been. I think he is ready.... let the celebrating begin!

Sunday, January 9, 2011

{Music Monday} Snowday...


This morning, after Sayer's pre-birthday slumber party with his aunt K & uncle B, we all woke up to a flurry of big, fluffy snowflakes & a beautiful blanket of white outside. Snow days like this aren't particularly common here in the northwest so it made the weekend even more magical for Sayer. 



When I watched the snow fall today, it made me think this holiday Starbuck's video that used the  Matt  Pond PA song, Snow Day. I love the concept of this video & it seemed fitting to play it again. Not to mention, it's always nice to start a Monday morning with some Starbuck's coffee.  Happy Music Monday! (Thanks to our favorite Montreal friends, for the yellow hat!)

LinkWithin

Related Posts with Thumbnails