After a week of rest, followed by several weeks of designing, making and (arduously, with great angst) photographing my new summer collection, I am very proud to introduce Dark Gardens. My new collection was inspired by poisonous and medicinal plants, with a touch of childrens' fantasy and fairytale lore thrown in for good measure. These designs feature some really lovely, very old glass beads in a cobalt-lime-violet colorway. The beads are mostly dark, so I've balanced them with quite a bit of sparkle and bright metals to try to convey a modern line that echoes Art Deco design and the formalizing of nature.
I've also restyled my photographs, so my shop looks quite a bit different than it did a month ago when I went on vacation. It always takes me a while to settle into a new approach, but overall I'm really pleased and proud of the way this collection works together. Please stop by Leaves of Glass and have a look, and thanks for all the good wishes and excitement that kept me going while I was putting Dark Gardens together!
I live in an incredibly small space. I love my studio apartment, and as studios go, it's quite livable (separate kitchen, lots of light, enormous closet space). That being said, trying to maintain a small business and my daily life in the same limited space stretches the laws of physics and poses a decorating challenge. I never want to live without art, so I've learned to populate my home with small but effective art. Small pieces of sculpture cluster on my bookshelf and nestle in plants. Groupings of aceos and small prints hang on windowframes or lean on stacks of supply boxes. Magnets are one of my favorite tiny art forms, and I manage to find small magnetic surfaces all over my home to display a great graphic or a little piece of hilarity. Here are some of my favorite tiny art purchases from Etsy. Shops are listed below, with links.
A. Boleyn aceo on stretched canvas by stilettoheights
B. Good Luck ceramic bird by sproutstudio
C. Red Cross embroidery sampler by miniaturerhino
D. Always magnet by mincingmockingbird
E. Baby Jackelope by skunkboycreatures
F. Moss terrarium by TheOakLeaves
G. Ceramic magnet by CircaCeramics
H. Small wooden house sculpture with recycled tin dress cutout by shixie
*My original plan for this post was to take pictures of these pieces in my home, but it quickly became apparent that if I waited to have time for that, the post would never happen. Therefore, the "in action" part of this post is a little sketchy, but I promise my home really is decorated with all this tiny art!
My Big City Linen Bag
(vintage orange enamel flower pin by cookoorikoo)
* One wholesale order and a handful of individual orders, to the post office.
* One wholesale order to a local boutique (where I put the bag on a vintage theater bench, and despite the fact that it was full of my stuff, shoppers admired it and thought it was for sale).
* Assorted book purchases:
*My current commuting reading: The Best American Non-Required Reading, 2007 edition
*Current issue of W Magazine
*One pound of fresh kolache, apricot & raspberry, from a local bakery
*Macaroni & cheese leftovers after meeting a friend at a pub
*Health insurance renewal documents
*A purchase from stilettoheights.etsy.com, retrieved from the post office (gorgeous!)
*One bottle of sauvignon blanc
*One bottle of chardonnay
*One green sweater
*One green umbrella
*Pliers, chain, wire and beads for an order I finished at the office
*Shipping supplies
*...and myriad other daily necessities that travel with me: phone, mineral makeup from pinkquartz.etsy.com, assorted loose pairs of earrings, wallet, notebook, camera, flash drive, gum, a small forest of pens, change, and used train tickets that grows like moss in the pockets, and on and on and on...
Thanks, tortillagirl, I love my bag! You can buy one here:
