vintage & handmade

I have been posting to day on Etsy. These vintage buttons are so cool and I have a few more pairs of gloves too. I am trying to take advantage of those Holiday shoppers out there who are looking for unique vintage and hand made gifts. Please be aware of your shopping this year if you have not been in the past - buy local, buy hand made and better yet make it yourself!

1991

Allen and I were married in March of 1991, I assume these pics were taken right around then. I found them while attempting to organize this most disastrously unorganized house. I knit the sweater Allen is wearing for him and the one I am wearing was a custom piece for a dear friend and Art History Professor. We had just gotten our tiger kitten and named him Garth after the Garth in the movie Wayne's World. I am now going to knit some fingerless gloves while watching Roseanne on the TV land network. The more things change, the more they stay the same.

Hi Ho its off to Work I go

I have been posting quite a few new items to both of my Etsy shops. There are lots of new fingerless gloves at secondseed and some other interesting pieces at secondseedinstitches. I am beginning to go through my vintage button collection, but it has been difficult for me to choose any to sell, but I have forced myself. But don't cry for me, I have plenty of vintage buttons to keep me happy.

congratulations

I watched Sesame Street all the time as a child. Even when I was 21 years old, I remember returning home from Rome after being abroad for six months, and the first thing I watched on television was Sesame Street. It was such a warm and friendly reminder of my roots. Change is essential to growth and Sesame Street has been criticized for creating the short quick pace that led to generations addicted to adderall and MTV. But I believe that the consistent, exciting and new information provided by Sesame Streeet created extraordinarily talented and creative people. Google came out of it, along with a number of innovations in technology, film and education. Congratulations Sesame Street, and thank you for being there for me and my children. I look forward to watching with my grand children someday.

change is good (I am told)

Starting off fast and furious

I have been featured in a treasury on Etsy. Check it out - The colors are so much what I need right now!

out and about

This is a picture of the office I have left. (No one can actually enter through these doors, no, I have to walk through the disgusting cafeteria and down half a mile of hallways before I can get to the actual entrance of the office). It looks pretty nice from the outside, doesn't it? No one would know from just looking, that inside this room is really a black hole of boredom that impels anyone who enters to their lowest low and destroys even the hint of potential into a million little pieces.

When I started this work I was a fifth grade T.A. and I honestly, enthusiastically thought - "I'll be getting paid to help children all day!" As a stay at home mom, I had been helping my own children and their friends every day for ten years and never got paid for it. I probably shouldn't share this with the world - but in my misguided brooding I believe it is important for the world to understand that people who work in our childrens' schools are treated unbelievably horribly.
(Maybe this will help remind you to give them those Starbucks cards any chance you get!)...

...After all the taxes, union dues and NYS retirement monies are taken out of my pay, I take home $46 a day - if I am lucky enough to work five days a week - do the 3rd grade math, that's right, $230 a week. (This is after 5 years of 3% raises.) And I only work 187 days a year. Granted the benefits are fantastic, and the work atomosphere for most school workers is amiable. But I think now, finally, I have resolute clarity in my decision that I need to do something more with my life.
Kudos for me!

Fabric Fetish

True Up is really pushing me to get a high paying job. I am dying to order fabric! I may attempt to make this purse designed by Jessica Levitt even though I don't can't afford the gorgeous Windham fabrics...I also want to make dress made out of this Vera Garden fabric, inspired by vintage Vera textiles, (The Vera Company, owns the extensive library of prints, original artwork, scarves, and the trademarks and copyrights of the late, iconic American artist, Vera Neumann). Dooce wrote a nice piece on her, you can read it here.And I am loving this pumpkin color in Riley Blake's new line-

Work Day

The rain is helping me get a lot accomplished today. I have been sitting in front of the fire finishing many projects and I have even posted a number of gloves to Etsy.

Halloween Part II

Aster did allow her dad to take her picture before school, the sun was just rising as she purred for the camera. I will add Gage's pic when he is dressed up tonight.

Too Fun

I haven't read Dooce in a while - but I clicked on it today and there is a hysterically funny post about a vasectomy. (I warn any men who might be thinking about reading it-but if you can handle it-- it is very very funny). And anyone who knows me, better know by now, that I really enjoy her photos of her dogs.

Halloween part I

Thursday evening Aster and I continued Halloween shopping. We hit three more warehouses and the mall. She decided, for school today, to be a black and white cat like our Nemo. I begged her for a picture, but no, no picture. For trick-or-treating she is going to be Dorothy. I still have to get her a pair of ruby red slippers and blue ribbons for her hair after school.

My costume, however, did not get made. I bought red material to make Lady Bird Beetle wings but didn't have time to make them. So at the last minute I pulled the Statue of Liberty costume out of the dress up box. I realized walking in to the high school this morning that it is actually a great metaphor for my situation. I am liberated, or at least, I will soon be.Does any one remember the Happy Days Halloween episode in which Richie has a blind date with a very tall girl and she is dressed as the Statue of Liberty?

In one scene, the two of them are driving home from the Halloween costume party, late at night, and Richie's car runs out of gas. The girl is all excited because she thinks, finally, a boy wants to make out with me, but no, the car actually, truly had run out of gas and she and Richie have to walk to a gas station and back. When they get back with a bucket of gas, Richie says, how are we going to get the gas into the tank? And the girl pulls the orange tissue out of the fake Statue of Liberty torch she has been carrying around the entire time and says, here use this!

not someone else's life any more

Yeah, I feel I am definitely leading my own life now.

I realized that I have never worked this long in one one place - other than in my home, ever in my life. This would be my 5th year if I stayed. Today I am very depressed and sad about the ending of my employment. My last day is Friday November 6th. I sent my resignation e-mail and I haven't been going in much. But I actually went to work today - and I realized that I have friends in the building - and now they know that I am leaving, and they are being especially nice and supportive. Even people I didn't realize are friends are being really supportive.I want to blame the administration and leadership for not allowing me to be part of something, but really I wanted to remain anonymous there - I wanted to just do my job, get my paycheck and go home to be the actual person that I am. But some of me leaked out I guess.

So right now, and every day now, high up above or down below, I have to lead my own life.

more

I love love love this owl print from Alexander Henry's upcoming Collection (not available yet), found it at True Up. The design below is an applique owl that was in a display at the Fall Quilt Market.

True Up

Lucinda,

Thank you for telling me about this amazing blog. It offers sales alerts and new fabrics and give-a-ways! I can't wait to read every post ever posted! True up posted the fabric shown above. It is Aomi Ito’s newest collection within her Nani Iro brand which is called Antique Label. This is Vol. 1, Rose & Poppy. I really like it in the green and yellow in the back.

Gem and Mineral Show

On Saturday I was able to spend an hour at the Gem and Mineral Show. I bought some beads and some rocks. I love rocks. Gage wanted a piece of pyrite and I found a nice piece of marcasite. This show is one of my favorites because although I really go to shop, it is more like a giant mineral museum. The fossils and giant gems are so gorgeous.

Halloween Costumes

We spent most of Saturday shopping in stores and online for this year's halloween costumes. Aster typically buys more than three costumes, and, yes, I stupidly allow it. She bought the adorable Hogwarts school girl costume at the costume wharehouse yesterday and I wanted to buy the $5 children's Yu Gi Oh! costume and just wear the mask - but both my children adamantly insisted that it would be disasterous for them if I wore a Yu Gi Oh! mask. I tried to explain that I wasn't trying to be cool, I was trying to be weird and they said that is just what I would be accomplishing and God forbid one of their friends saw me it would be the end for them. So I belligerently put the costume back. I then said I just want to be some kind of Japanese anime and they agreed that would be okay as long as it wasn't Yu Gi Oh!

I said what I really want is to be Hello Kitty, but I can't find anything. Then Aster decides she wants to be Hello Kitty so I am not allowed to be Hello Kitty or any Sanrio character I assume. Once again I give up my freedom and my halloween costume to make my kids happy, The responsibilities of a mom are immeasurable and span an immense, dark universe.

And, of course there is no Hello Kitty Costume on the market. So today I will have to shop for ten hours for the perfect little puffy sleeve white blouse and pink skirt, go to Joanne's and buy material for white cat ears and pink bows and also big buttons. I will let you know how it goes.

2 more things

I read at Salon.com that on Sunday, it was reported that "Mad Men" writer Kater Gordon had been fired -- just three weeks after winning an Emmy for outstanding writing. Gordon began her "Mad Men" career as show creator Matthew Weiner's personal assistant. Hmmmm, (Peggy Olson undertones) so speculation about what really happened is darn near irresistible, despite the lack of confirmed information, or even any trustworthy gossip.

The article describes the fact that any young woman who rises to success is still frequently assumed to have slept her way there. And the fact that we so quickly assume any sexual relationship between a woman and her professional superior necessarily involves a quid pro quo. Can't sex and success ever be a coincidence? Can't talent in fact be a part of what might attract two people working in close proximity to each other? and... sometimes people sleeping together make really good art. The more likely reason is that inexperienced talent is cheap and Emmy award winners may not be. My guess is that Gordon is a great writer and is now ready for something better than Weiner.
You can read the complete article here.

And .. If you are into ideas about memory - check out a great new blog, artevice. It is written by someone I know pretty well...

better late than never on Mad Men

This last episode of Mad Men (titled "The Color Blue") was so very lovely. It was all about memory, mystifying memory -- trying to recall, trying to forget, trying to understand. The episode allowed me to relax for once instead of be completely mired in metaphor. This universal nostalgia theme is interesting because it is so broad and common but at the same time so intimate. The "color blue" is the only metaphor in this episode of which I am aware. I do love metaphors, don't get me wrong, but sometimes there are so many in this show it becomes overwhelming. The charming teacher's tale of the color blue reminds me of an Anais Nin quote, "We don't see things as they are, we see them as we are."

The most obvious point about the idea of attempting to relive the past (and maybe the present as we wish it were) is Betty reading Mary McCarthy’s controversial 1963 novel, The Group. This novel portrays the lives, and aspirations of eight women, all upper class post war Vassar graduates. The women meet in New York to attend the wedding of one of their members and reconvene seven years later at her funeral. One Blog I found wrote this - "if The Group proves one thing, it’s that McCarthy had a piercingly sharp eye for all that goes unsaid in the great institution of marriage." Another blog stated that reading the novel in a bathtub suggests a rebirth for Betty. The motif of female school ties is suggested a number of times in this episode. Don asks Sally about school but not Bobby. Similarly, Lane Pryce laments that Americans never ask him where he went to school. Bert and Roger reminisce about the Sterling Cooper “class” of ‘33 and pointedly comment on a past female alumnus "remember her?”

But much more significantly, Betty’s reading of the novel parallels her discovery of Don’s secret life. At the close of the show, we watch Betty, as she watches Don, at the Sterling Cooper dinner. The empty chair next to her possibly suggesting that she’s contemplating a future without him. What I like about his ending is that thoughts of freedom are common for all females - but clearly a personal, intimate, problem for Betty.

new gloves

I almost sold out of fingerless gloves at the Public Market Artist Row. And I have had a number of custom orders, but I am pleased to say that I have finally posted some new fingerless gloves on Etsy.

artful construction

The construction continues in the High School. At least there are often interesting visual aspects to it. All the ceilings have been removed. I especially love the lights that hang haphazardly and I enjoy looking up at all the pipes and wires.

The pic below is the completed new wing. It is so very white.

crafty projects

I found a post about this book at Tea Tod Toad. I love the baby booties she made (pictured below)from a vintage embroidered doily - (instructions are on pg 12 in the book (project by Allison Jones ~)).

Marcie Paper

I found these wonderful paintings by Marcie Paper while checking out all the websites listed on the Second Storie} website. I hope she is selling at the show in November! I want these for my home!

working together

Heather Layton thanked Allen and I on her blog for helping install her show at Cornell. I really didn't do anything at all, Allen did all the worked while I knit and napped. But she caught us working together ("the concrete construction crew" she calls us) on video, see it yourself here.
Congratulations Heather! As always you imagine the impossible, give yourself to little time to acheive it and then superbly exhibit amazingly beautiful, thoughtful, intelligent, inspiring work.

Autumn

I have had a busy weekend. I tried to sell my work at a show in a Catholic high school gymnasium. I will never attempt that again. I sold a measly $24 worth. The show was in the Fingerlakes and I thought when I signed up for it that at least I would enjoy the drive and enjoy the beauty of the fall foliage. But it rained all day. I love fall, here are some pics around my home and garden that will hopefully remind me that I do not have to drive to the Fingerlakes to enjoy its beauty.

this comes from me too

As some of you may know I am planning on leaving my current job and I do not have another one yet. I have so many emotions about this decision. I know I will be happier. I know I will be able to attend to many more chores and responsibilities and even the other parts of life I enjoy. But there are many issues in my head that bewilder and discourage me. Simply put, I feel that I am too good for the job I am in (although this is not the entire reason I am leaving). I hate that I have this arrogance. I hate that I continually judge and criticize my colleagues for being able to with stand working in this sub par, completely unchanging, non interesting environment.

But the fact is that I can't do the job myself. So how moronic am I? I cannot do the work that I consider simpletons to be very good at. I am such a mess. I wax and wane from feeling superior to feeling inferior, from being so full of myself, to then being so insecure I just want to stay in bed all day. Is there any hope of ever feeling just fine? Are their people who believe in themselves, while remaining humble and supportive of others? I hope there are, I want to be like that. I will try to be more like that.

it comes from me

Last night I watched an hour of the television series on PBS, Craft in America. The show is short segments of many artists, craft artists, who reveal what makes their work and the lives they lead unique. One can also view the show online. I was so enamored by the stories because each and every one of the artists spoke in such a heartfelt manner about the joy they receive from making something wonderful, something that comes from them. I was definitely inspired and also encourage to continue my efforts at making a living making things.

Part of one of the episodes covered the 92nd street Y in NYC. I would love to have a 92nd street Y here in Rochester. It has always been a dream of mine to own a part retail space, part instructional space for arts and crafts. The 92nd St Y classes and workshops are taught by professional artists - even art stars such as Jonathan Wahl, Director of the Jewelry & Metal Department and Bobby Silverman, Director of the Ceramic Center - and are available for all age groups and all levels, from children to senior adults, from hobbyists to accomplished artists who come to learn new skills.

I love teaching, and all the artists in this series speak of how important it is to share the skills and tradition of their craft with the next generation. I will find something that allows me to do this more myself.

art

Love this painting by Michelle Maul. It is available as a digital print in her Etsy shop for a measly $8. And here is a collage by one of my other faves, Kareem Rizk.

Mark Wagner

I saw a piece by Mark Wagner at the Albright Knox Museum. In real life the collage is more visible. But if you look closely you can see he uses currency in a remarkable way.

Sunday in Ithaca

I found these at Sweet Sweet Life. She found them at Woolicious. I have to take more walks in the woods! Today we drove down to Ithaca to help a friend install a wonderful exhibit in the 4th floor of the Econ building at Cornell. It is a rainy, foggy day and I did not even bring the camera. No cerulean or cycan or any variation of blue is to be seen today. But here are other visitors pics of the falls in the gorge that we viewed at the pedestrian bridge. I'm typing this post from a grad student center near the space that Heather's work is being installed as we speak. The econ department is in Uris Hall. Uris Hall is famous for being constructed of Cor-ten Steal, so it has exposed rusty beans.

cyan or cerulean

It is fire drill season in schools. We have sometimes two a day. But the best one yet was yesterday, 9th (last) period. I don't usually talk about specifics of my work on this blog, but I really want to document this story. This story is why I became a Special Education teacher. This story just doesn't happen enough in the position I have now. I am (for) now the special education testing room monitor at a high school. Students who require additional assistance or extra time on tests come to this room.

So, 9th period Friday, the announcement comes across the P.A. that there will be a planned fire drill momentarily, "please exit the building in an orderly fashion etc...." I have two students in the room, one of which is a pretty normal kid, the other is not. I am walking out with this odd 10th grader and I said to him, "Are you looking forward to the weekend?"

He says, "Who are you?"

I tell him who I am and again ask him if he is looking forward to the weekend.

He says with a hands fisted gesture, "Yeah! No more teacher's dirty looks!"

I said next, "It is such a beautiful day, look at that blue sky. I have never seen the sky so blue."

He says something I can't quite hear.

But I figure out that he mumbled, "It's cyan."

So I said to him, "Cyan? Oh... I always think of cerulean as being sky blue.

I think of Cyan as being the color of water, with a little bit of green in the blue."

He says, "Well, it depends on the body of water of course, you certainly wouldn't describe the Black Sea as cyan."

More Mad Men

It was a bloody good show! The latest episode of Mad Men is full of the things that have made the series one of the most acclaimed in television history: Awkward authority, freaked out females and lawnmower carnage. It was the Fourth of July, 1963. And there was sort of a battle, which led to independence from the British for Sterling Cooper.

After Betty 's totally horrifying childbirth experience last week, I was thrilled to have some tragic silliness. I never laughed harder than when that little girl woke up screaming. There are no pics of the episode so I am am allowing myself some eye candy. Some how I missed the Emmy's on Sunday. Mad Men won Outstanding Drama Series for the second consecutive year, while30 Rock received its third straight win for Outstanding Comedy (I would marry Tina Fey if she would have me).

Sunday Sunday

This is a picture of our beautiful kitchen. I was so happy to come home to it today after a long but wonderful Artist Row - dinner ready and waiting (with 12 other people waiting too). I had the most amazing weekend!Here are the chinese lanterns from my garden in my vase from More Fire's discount table at their sale on my kitchen table in the kitchen with the tangerine wall.

Latest beads, Lucinda gave me some marshmallow! Isn't it wonderful? And I guess by now you know how I love the spot light effect in Photoshop filters.

Fiber Festival

Sunday is the Public Market Artist Row! I am taking a short break from all the work I still have yet to complete. But I know it is going to be the best Artist Row ever!

Today we went to the Hemlock Fiber Festival and it was wonderful as always. It was a beautiful blue sky day. I bought some beautiful roving and some yarn and of course we watched the dog herding. Aster took this picture of the frozen bananas (we did not actually eat one).Here I am with my angora rabbit...
No, I did not buy a rabbit. Here is a picture of the actual owner of the rabbit, she was kind enough to let me hold it. It weighed less than a new born baby.

rough around the edges

by Corid

I have been called abrasive. I know this was not meant to be complimentary, but I feel it is. I would rather be abrasive than soft. I grew up with heated discussions at the dinner table that often led to someone going to the living room and getting the encyclopedia to either prove or disprove a point. Of course, these days, my family goes on the intranets for such validation.

I am continually bothered by the softness of conversations. I enjoy learning what others think as well as sharing my own ideas, but I find that many people are so worried about offending, or afraid to be characterized, or concerned about proprietress, that they will not engage in opinionated discourse.

That is one reason I love my journal and my blog. I can say whatever I please. Although, discussions with myself do not often reveal new truths, and definitely do not teach me how to properly engage in conversation.

Coming up...

Coming up:

Artist Row is this Sunday! I am so very excited.
But before then, I have such a busy, fun filled weekend coming up.
I am going to Buffalo on Friday to see the Art in Craft show at the Burchfield Penney MuseumMahine Rattonsey
Delirium 2007
Glass, High Fire Enamel, Found Window
14.75” x 39.5” x 6”

and also the Bad Habits exhibit at the Albright Knox (Bad Habits invokes a motley selection of the more deliciously naughty art in the Gallery’s collection), I will go to the Hemlock Fiber Festival on Saturday, but most exciting of all is the Public Market's Artist Row on Sunday! My favorite thing at the fiber festival (other than yarn and roving) is watching the sheep dogs at work. The dogs are always so serious and the sheep are always so ridiculous. I will have a lot of fiber work for sale at the Public Market on Sunday including felted bags and purses, hand knit fingerless gloves and mittens, felt jewelry and animals. Everything I make is a one-of-a-kind, you don't want to miss it!

Flash!

I sold these vintage flash bulbs on Etsy and I received the most wonderful response. The buyer actually wants to use them on a vintage camera! I thought that they would be objects d'amour, but they are actually going to be utilized, who could ask for more. Only one of the bulbs actually fits the camera in need, I can't imagine how special the picture will be that will be taken by that one time flash.

Pockets for the teeth

I found Heather Layton's Blog by accident, thanks a lot Heather! But now everyone knows about it. She also has a wonderful website. We are lucky enough to own the original of the one pictured below. Her work cannot (literally, it cannot) be described in words.

I was wrong

Mad men did not jump ahead to November. It is still June and we had an upsetting depiction of hospital child birth. Loved the dream sequences though. What is the meaning of that inch worm?