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Since it's Friday, I thought you might enjoy some photos of my new office (aka: the bedroom) and my assistants (aka: the cats) Hopefully it'll cool down around here so I can leave the sanctity of this air-conditioned room soon. Until then, hope you have a wonderful weekend. And stay cool out there! ;)
<3 jena
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Tis the season for grilling and entertaining, but as night comes and all that pretty gardening you've been doing seeps into the dark, you're left with the urge to blast spotlights on all your hard work. These solutions might not be nearly so strong, but they'll add an element of ambiance and subtlety, while keeping your guests from tripping over your zinnias.
Soymade's citronella soy candle in a jar (a) is really all you need to get the party started. Fire power and candle holder all in one! Soy is a renewable resource (whereas paraffin candles are petroleum based) and are are much cleaner burn. Rechargeable LED votives (b) are {obviously} water and wind resistant, keeping the soft mood of evening entertaining uninterrupted. Mariposa Avenue's lanterns truly shine (c) when the sun goes down and are made of reused soup cans! Plus, look at that pretty pattern they'll project on your great outdoors!
Looking for something more festive? Why not look to wedding blogs for adorable and easy DIY projects? Right now we're in outdoor wedding season, and the creativity is in flowing. My favorite? These string light covers via Once Wed (d). Pretty and cheap, you just have to find the time and clear out a space to make 'em!
Miss Modish mentioned Pigeon Toe Ceramics' slip cast jars (e) earlier this week, but they're so pretty they need another mention, and you can buy one or get a price break on two. Reminiscent of Alyssa Ettinger's gorgeous milk bottles, which I bet would be equally beautiful lighting your patio table. If you're in the mood to make something similar, Crafty Nest has directions for making lanterns out of glass jars.
Also on the topic of jars, Not Martha has a much cheaper DIY version of the popular sun jars (f), but if you're in the buy rather than make it camp, Uncommon Goods has the sun and moon versions for $40 each.
Or for something plug-in, Kate on Design*Sponge recently posted a tutorial for repurposing wire planters into a modern pendant light.
Renee Garner has a passion to make things grow, although her brownish
thumb wants her to believe otherwise. When mud pies aren't on the menu,
you can find her doodling the days away at Wolfie and the Sneak.
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The Summer Social was a fantastic little gathering of artists, crafters & soda last weekend here in Portland. I was lucky enough to attend for a bit and had lots of fun meeting and chatting and laughing it up there. Put together by miss Abby the great of Abby Try Again, she's been hard at work all week long to make an online version of all the goodness that was up for grabs, and it's now up for your viewing (and purchasing) pleasure!
Featuring an awesome selection of goods by some fantastic Portland based artists, you're sure to find some must haves in the mix! It looks awesome Abby, thanks for all your hard work!
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As this Pacific NW heatwave drags on and on, I find myself holed up in the bedroom (it's the one room where we have an air-conditioner- the ghetto window kind, yes.) blogging away in a tank and pair of boxer shorts. That's about all the clothing I can stand to wear in such heat (at home, of course!) Yet I wish I had some pretty little something to wear, like this gorgeous Japanese style lingerie from Naomi. Perhaps then I'd feel more like a hot little lady and not as much like a hot, sweaty schlub.
I love how delicate and sweet the designs are, sexy but not scandalous. And perfect for a hot hot (hot) summer day at home. See more lovelies over at naomilingerie.
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It's been almost 2 years since I last wrote about Portland artist Michelle Ramin, and my oh my how her work has progressed since then. I still look at the piece I bought from her everyday as it sits on my desk, but if I had the cash, I'd get one of these amazing, aMAYzing figurative portraits to accompany it on a nearby wall:
Or one of these architectural snapshots from around our fair city, and beautiful Oregon:
See more works over in Michelle's shop. And Portlanders, catch her tonight from 6-10pm at the opening of her solo show, Need it/Got it, at the Falsefront Studio on NE Prescott & 32nd.
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We're back with another great, eco-friendly collaboration today! Kendra from Green Post creates beautiful recycled pulp papers and has paired up with Marnie of Crafterall to use the paper scraps left over from her art projects to create brand new, useful papers! It's a match made in eco-friendly art heaven. Read about Crafterall's experience with the collabo here, and then check out Scoutie Girl to read Green Post's side of the story!
Which came first: the idea or the partnership? Who approached whom?
Kendra and I have had a great camaraderie via Etsy for almost a year giving each other advice, feedback and support, but it was the idea that ignited the official collaboration. I was running out of “thank you” notes to send with orders from my shop, and wanted to do something “green” like plantable cards. I asked on Twitter if anyone had heard of or had a recommendation for plantable business cards. As I was typing, I thought of Kendra’s recent work with paper pulp and wondered if she’d be interested in making some for me. We started talking and the planning went quickly and easily. For me, this was instant verification of a diehard idea.
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I'm feeling bright wildflowers this morning. The only thing that can make this heat and constant sun of summer a little more bearable...
July Wildflowers original by Jamie Shelman :: Recycled Tin necklace by Little Black Rabbit :: Dark Roses Tank Dress at Ruche
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There's something about the end of July into August that always gives me a brief annual weakness for nautical-inspired goods. It's that time of year—I should be at the beach, or on the coast of Maine, where we'd vacation when I was a kid. Good to know that there's no shortage of eco-friendly nautically themed items out there to get me through the rest of the summer.
Clockwise from top left: Red star garland from elizabethwren; 100% organic knit necklace from Sloanester; 100% recycled flat cards from Earmark; upcycled ship's wheel bobby pins from Cassowary Jewelry; upcycled fabric wallet from picklehead.
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I adore this latest design from Pigeon Toe Ceramics! We have a collection of kerr jars on the shelves, perfect to use for summer icy drinks or a quick vase choice for wildflowers plucked from the yard. This ceramic version tho, that comes complete with a hanger, is an adorable votive lantern that looks cute whether it's lit or not.
Maybe I should get one for our soon-to-be new patio, hmm?
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I haven't featured a handmade space in awhile but it's not because great new ones aren't popping up all the time in the group flickr pool, it's just because I'm a slacker and I phased it and I've been really busy lately, oi! So, I thought I better make up for it with this really cute little pottery studio of Tasha McKelvey. Here, she creates her precious and unique pottery and ceramic jewelry. Let's see where it all happens!
Take a peek at all the gorgeous creations that Tasha makes here on her website. And see more studio spaces where work gets done in the Modish Handmade Spaces pool. Feel free to join and add pics of your studio/workspace!
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It's going to be hot this week here in Portland. Make that, realllllly hot. The kind of hot that I thought I would be avoiding by moving from the desert to the lush, rainy, gloomy Pacific NW. Not so lush, rainy or gloomy during the summer, it turns out.
So during these gross 100+ temps that I never want to speak of again, I'll just have to get lost in these photos by Little Gray Pixel- imagine myself laying on a California beach somewhere, soaking up the sun with the promise of a refreshing jump into the cold, salty ocean afterward to cool off.
Oooh, I get the chills just thinking about it. Yes, more of that, please.
Happy Monday, hope you have a great week! And stay cool out there northern hemisphere dwellers! :)
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I've talked about preserving food a little before, and it's time again to return to the topic. We've been overrun with tomatoes this week {I'm not complaining} but not yet enough to can jars and jars at once, so I've been blanching, peeling, de-seeding, and freezing the pulp.
Blanching is the process of plunging a food item (usually veggies, I'm not sure if you can blanch meat. . .) into boiling water, leaving it in there just long enough to soften or barely cook, then removing it and immediately plunging it into ice water.
Why would you want to polar bear your veggies? It's a tried and true method for freezing foods. Plus it's a fairly quick 'n easy way to kill off all the bad stuff that would generally make it spoil faster and the boiling hot to ice cold process maintains color and flavor longer.
First sort your tomatoes {image a}. You don't want to use poor quality or bruised tomatoes. This process won't magically heal them, I promise. Also prepare a large, meticulously clean pot for boiling water, another large pot for your ice bath, and a big slotted spoon {b}. While on the subject of meticulously clean, be just as careful with blanching as you would regular canning. You want to keep the bacteria away or you'll just end up throwing away composting all that hard work. Start your water a-boilin'.
Continue reading "Blanching: More than just a Golden Girls verb" »
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I saw these bags by Eclu on the front page yesterday and fell in love with the photos instantly, and then thought hey, the clutches are pretty darn sweet too!
See what good product photography can do? It reels the customer in so that the quality and cuteness of your goods can sink 'em! See more beautiful clutches for daytime, evening or custom bridesmaid's gifts over at Eclu.
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These images don't even begin to show off how awesome their entire collection is- I purchased a necklace from them and it's so sweet and delicate with the thinnest little chain. It makes me feel like a lady ;) Find more lady-like lacy wood designs over in the Orange Slice shop and psst: they're having a sale right now!
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I want to see this movie. Must see this movie. Oh yes. And the mister is gonna come with me, whether he likes it or not ;)
{images via flavorwire- also a cool interview with the filmmaker there}
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One of my favorite new discoveries from Renegade this weekend is kg + ab. They traveled alllll the way to SF from Brooklyn (woah!) with their absolutely lovely porcelain goodies in tow:
I bought a little fox like you see above and a pair of cats that aren't on their website right now, but I adored adoooored the pair of bears. If I had had more money to spend, perhaps they would be mine...sigh... Their entire collection is gorgeous tho and I can attest, very well done. Take a peek at the kg + ab shop to see more!
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Is it too early to be talking about school supplies? Probably. Let's just say office supplies, then, because I don't think I can wait until the end of the summer to share this line of screen-printed, environmentally-friendly binders and folders from Urban Posture.
Everything from Urban Posture is hand-printed onto recycled stock, like the binders, which weigh in at an admirable 97% post-consumer waste, and the tabs, which are 30% post-consumer waste and are manufactured with 100% renewable energy!
Liz Grotyohann is a co-founder of cosa verde, a marketplace for handmade, environmentally-conscious goods.
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I'm back from Renegade SF with an even greater appreciation for handmade goods and the people who make them. I was prepared to find the amount of talent sincerely overwhelming, and it was- I didn't even have time to check out every booth in two full days!
{cute little Julz of Handmade Julz!}
I definitely gained a new found respect for crafters in sitting behind the booth with Handmade Julz, tho. Helping her set up everything, seeing how much goes into the preparation, lugging the heaviest of heavy tables around, dragging in suitcases full of jewelry, arranging the booth, having everything priced, saying hello and talk talk talking alllll day long to a whole lotta people... Wow! It's a lot of work! Fun and tiring, exciting and muscle aching all at once.
As integrated and sympathetic to the handmade community as I felt before, I still didn't fully understand all that's involved behind the scenes until this past weekend. So, I just want to give a shout out to all of you crafters out there- you are all so incredible! WOW!
I thought I'd share some pics from my experience this morning, and throughout the week I'll highlight some of the new shops I discovered at Renegade that I haven't featured here before. Sound good? Ok, good. ;)
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Last year "green roof" was the eco/design/gardening buzzword, this year the trend is growing, and adapting to the indoors with the concept of "living walls" (aka green walls). Woolly Pocket Gardens have been making the web rounds, as has the Teracrea room dividing system, and ELT has a beautiful photo gallery full of ideas and even makes suggestions of plants that will work best as part of a living wall.
Indoor gardening can improve your home's air quality, while visually pepping up the place, and can add texture and dimension to the space usually reserved for 2-d art. It can also add humidity, while the more comprehensive systems can improve insulation effectiveness.
Since I'm staying inside for the most part this summer {I'm sweating
even when the AC is at 70, people}, I'm desperate to get some green on
my walls, but am not prepared to add another huge project to our
ongoing to-do list (or anything that would soak up a sizable sum of cash)
.
Sunset Magazine's modern cottage (image 3) has a splendid example of the pizazz a little green can add. . . who wouldn't want an easy to care for wall of succulents--indoors or out? If you're thinking "Yes! Please!" but want to start small, both in scale and budget, why not start with a simple hook and a clean, modern, hanging planter? But please, just don't break out the macrame.
1. Perch! Plant Pod: Perch! can do no wrong, and this planter is no different. One part rustic (tanned leather cord) and 99 parts pretty. Available through Branch Home, $98.00.
2. Mystery Petz Moss Sphere: On the other end of the cost spectrum, the simplicity of the form reflects the ease of caring for moss. MysteryPetz.etsy.com, $10.00.
3. An example of another living wall, this one is part of Sunset Magazine's Modern Cottage.
4. The Butter Cream Birdhouse: You can either spoil the birds out in your yard with the prettiest home on the block, or hog it for yourself and hang it inside, stuff a few air plants in the opening and breathe in the simple elegance and form. Green Ware Design, $40.00.
5. Ryan Takaba's Bud Vase: While touting them as bud vases, I would imagine a light, soilless planting medium plus a couple small succulents would work just as well. Or moss. Either way, form and function land even steven with this one. RyanTakaba.etsy.com, $95.00.
Renee Garner has a passion to make things grow, although her brownish
thumb wants her to believe otherwise. When mud pies aren't on the menu,
you can find her doodling the days away at Wolfie and the Sneak.
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I'm headed to Renegade San Francisco, as we speak! I've never been to a Renegade craft fair, or any craft fair quite so big so I'm really excited! I hope to be able to meet many of you lovely readers, awesome sponsors and talents that I've written about here before. You can find me behind the booth at Handmade Julz helping miss Julz out a bit, or likely wandering around aimlessly with a camera around my neck and messy hair. If you see me, say hi!
We're driving (for a long long time) back on Monday, so I'll be back here blogging as normal on Tuesday. See you then!
<3 jena
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