Crafts for Poor People

Ask anyone who knows me and they'll tell you that I'm crazy about all things "Sedaris".  I have idolized the talents of Amy Sedaris (as well as her brother, author David Sedaris), since her hilarious creation of the 46 year old high school freshman Jerri Blank from Comedy Central's, Strangers With Candy (RIP).  Since then, I've been a dedicated fan and have been thrilled to own her off-beat, (yet right-on), home-ec book, I Like You:  Hospitality Under the Influence. 

Of course, as a girl after my own heart, Ms. Sedaris published yet another amazing treasure:  Simple Times:  Crafts for Poor People.  I just ordered it off amazon.com and you should too!  Not convinced?  Here's some persuasion from the artist, herself. 

Oh Deer!

My sister Katy and her beau Adam have been adorning their apartment walls with the most interesting creations.  Their most recent pièce de résistance is the PETA-friendly deer head mount that Adam created using a chicken wire base and paper-mâché. I love seeing great wall real estate being put to creative use! 

The talent doesn't stop there, Adam contributes his vocal chords and guitar to the über-talented band:

Sleep Well and his latest side project William The Tree.  Take a listen, you'll love them!

William the Tree - Trailer

William the Tree | Myspace Music Videos

Sleep Well - Run

Sleep Well | Myspace Music Videos

メリークリスマス

My brother Dominick currently teaches English to elementary school students in Nagahama, Japan.  He is home for the holidays (it's been a year and a half since we've seen him) but before he left he took this awesome picture with his class wishing our mom a Merry Christmas.  It's just really way too cute.  My brother is the redheaded caucasian top and center, in case you were wondering :)

Beautiful Pharmacopoeia

19th century botanical illustrations are a rare and perhaps nearly forgotten display where science and the arts intertwine. We are all accustomed to the appreciation of full floral blossoms and buds whether they be printed, photographed, or carefully arranged in a vase for the sole purpose to aid in the visual appeal of our surroundings. The anatomical illustrations of various plant specimens, however, can be just as admirable and even a bit more interesting than the familiar allover pattern of roses.

Development of the pharmaceutical industry grew rapidly in the 19th century and banks of new information were published through advanced printing processes. This, in turn, created a new career for artists as botanical illustrators. Botanical illustrators worked in watercolor and consulted with scientists to depict the anatomy, color, and fine details of plant species which benefited the discovery of new medicines.

Medicinal plant specimen have been depicted since the beginning of human civilization, but the 19th century illustrators refined and developed the scientific visual aids into a unique and beautiful category of its own. I recently found some of these images on the Internet and printed 8x10 pictures and framed four of them in my bathroom. Of course the botanical illustrations I chose were not ones that are known for their poison extractions, but instead found beautiful depictions of "bathroom relevant specimen" such as aloe vera.

There is something quite interesting and beautiful about the illustration of the deconstructed flowering plants. Perhaps it's because an art so ancient still remains to look so modern.

The Go! Team

I love this damn video!

Now I Know

So this past holiday season I made about 100 crochet christmas ornaments which were sold at Funk and Standard Variety Store (my previous awesome employer). I wanted to give the ornies as gifts to friends and family as well, but I didn't have anything to wrap them in (being it was Christmas Eve and well.. I didn't really think it through). I grabbed the iPad and did a quick youtube search (gotta love it) and found this awesome "how-to make a box out of scrap paper" vid from etsy! How awesome? All it took was some construction paper and a pair of scissors (minimal cutting involved) and I had the perfect sized boxes to stash these little guys! So awesome! If you're feeling saucy you can even create your own print by using stamps, stencils, or whatever!

Here's the easy to follow vid-ya:



I also have this gem of a book "LOTTA PRINTS: How to Print Anything, From Potatoes to Linoleum" by Lotta Jansdotter. It even comes with stencils! YAY!

Crochet Olé

Recently I've been making chunky crochet throw blankets as gifts or as per request. I get the satisfaction of creating home decor but not having to spend months making anything too enormous (My killer gigantic Empress Blanket [WIP] will be posted in the near future). I normally start with a solid base color and then accent the piece with colorful borders and sew on some sort of floral appliqué. Here are two throws I made for my niece and sister over the past few months.

I used Lion Brand Yarn's Wool-Ease Thick & Quick. I love this yarn because it's super-soft, warm, and has a super bulky weight. Perfect for a chilly night! The negatives?? It can get really expensive due to the quick use of yarn. That doesn't stop me because I plan on making another throw very soon... green??

New Etsy Store Coming Soon!

For customization inquiries please contact me: duffandlorelei@gmail.com