Tim Burton at the MOMA

I'm a lucky girl, because the boy and I are going to spend our Christmas break in NYC. We fly out on the 24th and come back on the 29th and meeting some family while out there. A week of eating, drinking, walking and seeing!

While we are there.... we will have, HAVE to catch the Tim Burton exhibit at the MOMA. The exhibit will be a three-fold examination of his work from as far back as his childhood days! Read the review for yourself on Flavorpill.

Upcoming Digs

The boy and I just signed a lease yesterday for a new place! Super exciting! I am dreading the packing and moving part (yes, we will have professional mover, thank goodness!) but I am looking SO forward to unpacking and organizing.

So, we are going from a 800+ square feet, 1 bedroom apartment into a 1600+ square-feet-single-standing-house just a few blocks away. Pictures cannot do this place just, but you will notice that there are TWO pictures of the kitchen- which I am SUPER excited about. Gas range with six burners and grill, TWO convection ovens, sub-zero fridge, TWO sinks, skylights and cabinets galore.

Wow.

The place has a great upstairs living area- two, separate, large rooms for dining and living, a full bathroom and small office. The downstairs part (don't you love those stairs?) has a large, master bedroom with bath (double vanity, separate shower and tub), a WALK-IN closet, laundry room and smaller second bedroom, which will be converted into my art studio.

And the icing on top of the fancy-pantsy cake is a little plot of land outside, for gardening!

Ok, this is starting to feel like a fairytale again, so I will have to stop here.

Uber Cool!

Check out this website- coolest thing ever! You can sketch and save! Limited color palette, but fun to play with and the "look" is really neat. Some amazing sketches by other people on the website.

http://sketch.odopod.com/

And All That Cushy Stuff...

In my dream house (yes, I do believe I will share tidbits of what it might be like), I would have a room dedicated to pillows and cushions and throws. I'm thinking of a soft, luxurious berber carpet- most likely a neutral, creamy white. There will be tons, TONS of pillows. All kinds. All different. All shapes. All sizes. Accompanying the pillows tossed about the room, will be low-standing coffee-tables, or rather, sturdy trays that will be used for keeping safe, that hot cup of tea or coffee or cocoa. There will be stacks of books throughout the room and beautiful, bright lighting. You can plop yourself anywhere down on the floor, prop up against some lovely pillows and read to your heart's content.

Again, that's why I call it a DREAM house...!!!

Branch

Branch

Pier 1 Imports

Going Home To Roost

Pier 1 Imports

CostPlus World Market

VivaTerra

Creating Some Zen...

This week has been a mixed bag. Mostly good. I took it off to work on some pieces for the Madrigalli Market Art Event this weekend. That was a good thing. Today however, there was a hiccup and my 9-to-5 required I call into a couple of meetings. That caused me to lose some momentum, what with getting on the call, having the computer up and running, checking emails, etc...

The good: my studio is just 1 mile from where I live. I walk to and from. It is HEAVENLY to NOT have to drive. I stop by a great little cafe- La Taza, in the Mission, to get a coffee and some breakfast and continue along my way, desperately trying not to spill all the delicious, liquid caffeine. I get into the studio, have a bite and start pulling my ideas into some sort of program and I start working. Music is playing and I am in a good place. I've started developing a sort of meditation when working on things that used to be loathsome, mundane and routine. I've been super productive, with both new pieces and some of my bread-and-butter items. My techniques have been improving and what used to feel like frustrating set-backs and failed experiments serve as learning steps, milestones, fun challenges.

The bad: well, today and the fact that the past few days, a whiff of depression has been creeping into my happy place. I've been hit with a lot of memories and images of my gramps- who has been gone now for several months. The surprise of his not being with us is still very fresh. And painful. My happy little week of working in the studio is also drawing to a close. I will surely miss the morning walk down to the studio, getting coffee on my way in, as well as the walks home.

But my 9-to-5 is waiting. It will be good to see my favorite girls in the office, too!

Good Read

Boo!

This year, for the first time in about a decade, I carved a pumpkin. And for the first time EVER, I passed out Halloween candy for little trick-o-treaters. Yay! My cousin came over for the special event, as my favorite boy was out of town (well, the country) on business. I carved the pumpkin in the morning time, set a candle in and shivered in anticipation for an onslaught of ghosts and ghouls and goblins.

I bought a TON of candy- pixie sticks, smarties, bite-sized snickers, heath bars, mar bars, little packets of skittles, m&m's and nerds and of course, my favorite naughty treat- reese's peanut butter cups.

My first customer was an adorable Dorothy, with a keen eye and discerning palate, who zoned in immediately upon the peanut butter cups. My kind of girl! She squealed with excitement and exclaimed "these are my most FAVORITE type of candy in the world!"

*grin*

It was a great night!

Madrigalli Market

Be there- or be square!

Oh Poop!

SpiderCamp

So, Renegade isn't happening for me (this year!). Poop!

But all is still good!

Now is time to focus getting some basics covered for the Madrigalli Market in November.

Currently in New Orleans for a business trip. Went straight from the Scarriott in Philly to a sweet place in New Orleans. Nothing is ever all bad or all good!

Still Waiting...

... to hear back from Renegade...

Above is a picture I took at the Monterey Bay Aquarium a few weeks ago.  Can you believe that is a seahorse?  An actual living, "breathing," functioning little critter?  Coolest thing ever!  If you get a chance, this new seahorse exhibit at the aquarium is worth the visit.  I love that aquarium.  The first time I went was probably when I was in grade school?  That place seemed so huge to me and I wanted to run all over the place to make sure I see everything.  Now when I go, there are a few things that I love so dearly, that I want to just sit cross-legged on the floor and gaze for a while- the jellyfish exhibit and the kelp forest exhibit.

Am hopping on the red-eye tonight for a meeting in Philadelphia and next Wednesday, fly straight from there to New Orleans.  Ten days on the road.  Will miss the boy dearly!

Berlin

Hola! Again, it's been something like a million years since I've had any postings. Busy, busy, busy. I'd like to say that I'm settling into some semblance of a routine again and will be more consistent, but perhaps that would be jinxing it...

Some photos from my business trip to Berlin. For the business part, I got to stay at this awesome hotel- Grand Hyatt Berlin- uber pantsy fants! I forgot to take pictures of the shower (I know, that sounds weird), the best shower/bathroom EVER. I will have fond memories of that lovely green marble and deep soaking tub. I was able to take ONE vacation day to explore some of the city. Found a cute little hotel near Checkpoint Charlie and on the day off, I walked out of that hotel, to the Holocaust Memorial, past the US Embassy, to the Brandenburg Gate and then traipsed through Tiergarten and got a beer at a little cafe near the Zoological Gardens and hopped in a cab back to the hotel.

Enjoy!

this was a sculpture on my floor of the grand hyatt, which you see right when you step off of the elevators. they are pieces of granite, suspended by wired, forming a handing tunnel

checkpoint charlie- this area was a major "tourist trap" with tons of trinkets and stuff for sale.

a remnant of the wall- it took a while to get a clear photograph, as lots of people seemed to like to pose next to this piece of history

the holocaust memorial- famous and entirely impossible to photograph it in its entirety and give it justice.

view of some gorgeous blue skies, from the heart of the memorial

us embassy- the is a snapshot of a corner of the building- which was super cool and modern-looking

brandenburg gate

lovely day for a stroll through the garden- couldn't have asked for better weather.

remember this angel from the movie - wings of desire?

Renegade Craft Fair

My talented friend, Linda Fahey and I just signed up for the Renegade Craft Fair today!  Keep those fingers crossed- I am really hoping to get in.

And even if we don't, here are some details:

Renegade Craft Holiday Sale

December 19 & 20, 11am-7pm

Fort Mason Center, Herbst Pavilion

San Francisco

I think this will be an awesome event- definitely check it out and support talented artisans in from the Bay Area!

On a different note- I'm leaving tomorrow afternoon for a business trip to Berlin.  Yay!  Although it's work, I'll be sure to find some time for play, including taking photographs.  I'll be schlepping my laptop with me- so I'll be sure to post some images during the next week.

Bye for now!

Hiatus

Wow- it's been a long time since I've been here!  I can't believe how quickly time has flown by.  It's been crazy and busy and crazy.  Lot's happening- I don't really quite know where to begin...

The studio is finally set up and running.  I like it a lot more now- with the extra "working" space.  It took me a while to get it "just so" and even then, I'm sure there will be more tweaking necessary.  I ended up returning the bookshelf from CB2.  The desk I put up- and I really like it.  It did, however, take me nearly an hour to assemble.  Crazy, considering I usually consider that type of work easy- I've done chairs, tables, media centers, shelves, etc.

I've also decided to put together a "formal" business plan.  Not that I'm ready to quite my day job.  In fact, my day job is sending me on a trip to Berlin this week- no complaints there.  It's just something that's always been on my mind- and I think it would be a good exercise to put something together- it'll use a little bit of my left brain, which has been quite dormant.

Working on producing pieces now, as well.  Will have to post more pictures.  I'll be bringing in some new goodies to Rabat, on Chestnut Street in San Francisco.  Will let you know when- hope you get to check it out!

Shingles...

I prefer Etsy's over mine...

PhotoWorksByDawn

LeaSeguin

SarkaTrager

DuckaBushWoodWork

Stayed Tuned, Kids...

Good news first.  I was able to sell my beautiful, beloved, red, leather chaise via Craigslist!  I'm always a little wary of using that venue- even though it's easy, fast and free.  I got a whopping total of three responses.  The first one, asked me for my name, DOB, address and phone number (I'm surprised he didn't just ask ask me for my SS# and bank account numbers and pins) in order to send me a cashiers check via US mail.  Um, scam, anyone?  The second person dropped off the face of my planet after three emails were exchanged.  Third time's the charm!  A SUPER nice woman inquired about the piece, showed up early on Sunday morning with an extra set of muscles and helping hands and her own truck and cash.  She fell in love with the chaise and took it on the spot.

Sweet!  The best part, is that someone now is going to love it as much as I did.

Now, there is a gaping hole in the studio.  Well, it's a small studio.  So not really a gaping hole.  More like a little pinhole of a space...  I've ordered my bookshelf and wheelie desk from CB2 and will pick up later this week from the San Francisco store.  I'm focused on the functional aspects of how the space will be arranged, but that's all good.  After that, if I still have a little room left over, I may get another plant.

Good things to come.  I'll post pictures of my revamped space soon!

Saturday Farmer's Market Delights

The bounty from the trip to the Alemany's Farmer's Market.  It's a great feeling to get your week's worth of food (good, tasty and fresh food) in one place.

Delightful blueberries and absolutely delicious and juicy!

Fresh basil- so fragrant and spicy- for just $1 dollar a bunch.

It's tomatoes galore at the farmer's market.  Some red darlings next to prickly-looking bittermelon.

The mushroom booth has some of the coolest looking produce ever.  All colors and shapes are represented there.  Hard to take for granted, what special treats mushrooms are, when you consider that most of the varieties out there can possibly kill you!