Shop update.

After a lot of braiding and photographing, I have listed seven new Kumi Necklaces in my Etsy shop. I continue to work on new color combos and will add them to the shop as I finish them over the next few weeks. Also, I plan to add a brass and dalmatian jasper necklace as well as two African record bead necklaces in the shop this weekend, so please stay tuned for more updates!

"Mo" compliments.

I admit it, I did it... I Googled my shop. And came across a very flattering mention of my Chevron Neckaces on Mo Pie Please, a blog I didn't know before but will definitely be visiting frequently now. Meagan has put together a really cool mix of fashion, photography, art, style, writing, and too many other fabulous things to list here. Thank you, Meagan, for the mention, and for an awesome blog!

Surprise délicieuse.

After work on Friday I walked through Rockefeller Center on my way up to see "Infinite Variety", the incredible quilt exhibition at the Park Avenue Armory*. I noticed a mass of people on 51st Street near Fifth Avenue, and being a New Yorker my first thought was that it was a pack of tourists blocking my path (really, I'm not that cranky!). As I got closer, I saw they were all either nibbling on yummy-looking food or queueing up to get a plate from a food truck parked on the corner.


I joined the line and was rewarded with a plate of delicious treats from the new Air France in-flight menu created by master chef Joel Robuchon. Perfect timing, as my tummy had begun growling at me shortly before I left my office. My plate contained a shrimp and salmon rondelle, French shepherd's pie with duck confit, and a perfect pastel green pistachio macaron.


As a thank you for the free treats, there was a City Harvest donation box that was filling up with our contributions; so many hungry people in NYC and here we were enjoying free gourmet food. I joined the makeshift dining area (leaning against H&M's side wall) and savored every bite of my petit repas. And to top it all off, I was able to enter a raffle to win a trip for two to Paris!

*I shot well over 100 photos of the exhibition and it will take me a bit of time to edit them down before I do a post about the show; until then, here's one to whet your appetites.


I hope I'll be able to convey how incredible a show it was!

Spot on.

Update: now in my shop!


Fun with dalmatian jasper. This one's mine (greedy gal that I am); more soon in my shop.

New season, new work.

Happy first day of Spring to all of you in the Northern Hemisphere! As for those of you in the Southern Hemi, I wish you a happy first day of Autumn!

The new season(s) bring(s) the promise of new merchandise in my shop very soon...

Taking advantage of this sunny afternoon I threw open the windows and shot photos of a whole bunch of new Kumi Necklaces; now it's just a bit of retouching and description writing and they'll be listed in the shop. (Photo below shows just a few; more colors coming in the shop update.)


Yesterday was also a lovely (if a bit chilly) day which I enjoyed by meeting up with an jeweler friend to try to restrain our spending at the Whole Bead Show in Chelsea, followed by good conversation over a tasty muffin (for her) and pretzel croissant (for me--YUM!) at City Bakery. I did limit my spending by having a shopping list; though I didn't find everything on that list I was able to get what I really wanted: some vulcanized rubber beads from Africa! I can't wait to start making necklaces with these, for me, and for the shop! I also found some fantastic black glass African beads that are a sort of squarish version of those in my Chevron Necklaces for which I'm already brainstorming ideas--stay tuned for updates!

Anthology.

Anthology. Issue number 2 is shipping now. I got mine last week and love every bit of it! If you're still waiting by your mailbox this video should help tide you over. If you haven't subscribed yet, maybe it will help convince you that a subscription would be worth every single penny.

Issue No. 2 Trailer from Anthology Magazine on Vimeo.

Everything is illuminated.

My father is an artist. Nowadays, I guess he'd be called a graphic designer but back in the day he was called a "commercial artist" (as opposed to a "fine artist"). I can't tell you how many times as a kid I got asked "what commercials did he do?". In reality, he has been creating lettering by hand--no computers involved!--for more than fifty years. I may be biased, but I think anyone who sees his work would agree that he is incredibly talented.

For ages I've been meaning to do a post about my father's work. Finally, a couple of weeks ago I had him pull out some of his work so I could photograph it, and ended up also getting photos of some personal work he did when he was at his first job back in the late 50s. So one post became two...

This, the first, is to show that early personal work: a group of calligraphic pieces based on illuminated manuscripts. When I asked my dad if I could shoot them, he pulled them out of a manila envelope kept under some files in a cabinet in his home studio. A manila envelope! I can't believe he doesn't have these matted and framed and on prominent display, but my dad is not an overly proud person. I'm hoping I can convince him to hang at least one of these in his home.

Click on any photo to enlarge; the detail is fantastic.

This one is based on the style of a medieval Book of Hours:

This one is a selection from Moby Dick:

My father is still fantastic at creating ornate letters such as the Q in this one:

My father is an incredible person, and I'm so proud of his amazing artistic talent. He's also plays great jazz piano!

Praying.

My thoughts and prayers are with the people of Japan, and with the people of all areas affected by the tsunamis.

I can't fathom the terror and sadness. So horrible.

Please consider donating to Mercy Corps, Red Cross, or one of the many options listed on HuffPo.

Honorable mentions.

I'm so honored to have my Chevron Necklaces mentioned recently by two wonderful bloggers. Thanks ladies!

i am a greedy girl.


A Thousand Facets

I'll tumblr for you.

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I finally joined the visual insanity that is tumblr. One more thing to try to keep up with!

I'm still deciding on a visual theme, so the layout may change. All part of the excitement, folks.

Game. Set. Matchbook.

The second issue of Matchbook Magazine is out now!






images from Matchbook Magazine