santarchy

heads up, party people: santa meetup tomorrow. be there...plan an alternative to reindeer for getting back home.

interior design

i visited my friend john's house the other day after lunch at ted's bulletin...his place is fantastic! this remodeled church on capitol hill is a multi-unit multi-level condominium building with 14 foot ceilings and fantastic light through the large windows, perfect for displaying his trophy heads (he's from texas) and lovely artwork.

he also has a nice hat collection.

new work

more new work from my new sub-herban elements collection.

our lady of guadalupe

happy 'our lady of guadalupe' day!

national pastry day

happy national pastry day!

it has been sooo long since i have eaten any, but i like looking!

angry birds

an angry birds ball gown?

really??? awesome!

downtown holiday market

the downtown holiday market is the perfect place for your holiday shopping and it opens today!

art basel

the tenth edition of the art fair known as art basel miami beach begins today through sunday.

beautiful bugs

Pretty Flying Dragon Fl... Graphique $1.00	Humble Bumble Honey Bee... JezebelCharms $40.00
Vintage Spider Brooch, ... VintagePennyLa... $12.00	Butterflies LindasEdibleAr... $36.00
Butterflies on Vintage ... piddix $3.00	bee necklace designoptions $38.00
Cuff Bracelet Flies vin... UniqueArtPenda... $28.00	Victorian Dragonfly Rin... CoughingCowNCh... $26.00
Dragonfly Butterfly Ear... CHAiNGEthesubj... $21.00	5x5 VW Bug - Original P... leedledee $15.00
Spider Necklace - gold ... soradesigns $28.50	Images of Butterflies o... DigitalPerfect... $3.50
Butterflies on Vintage ... Eolene $2.20	11x17 Vintage Science P... curiousprints $12.00
Vintage 50s Sterling Si... socaljewelbox $56.00	1901 Dragonflies, Mayfl... CabinetOfTreas... $19.95

Treasury tool by Red Row Studio.

a lovely collection of insects...on etsy!

today's problem: flat tire

arghh! i parked too close to the storm drain and the metal edge popped my tire:(. it really popped and i actually jumped! when i got out to look, the tire was hissing as the air emptied out of the hole.

luckily i have triple-a: i called them...walked the dog...they were there. i learned where my spare tire is and how to crank it down from inside the back of the truck: enlightning!

now, whose gunna fix my wheel?

happy birthday!

today is my friend
mann made's b-day: he's 29 again! 

set the record straight

today is the day to get your world record attempt in the books, er book: guinness book of world records. it may be too late to grow your nails the longest, but you and your friends/co-workers could dress up like clowns and stuff yourselves into a mini cooper or vw. sadly, you can no longer enter your extra long dreadlocks into the competition as they have removed that category.

today's problem: shoes

more specifically, ballet flats.

i'm the type who buys multiples of things that work for me...and i love shoes: this combination can lead to problems. i just bought twelve pairs of ballet flats. actually, i bought fifteen but three havent arrived yet. i dont even have room for anymore shoes.

but they're cute, right?

happy nigel tufnel day!

the eleventh day of the eleventh month in 2011 is nigel tufnel day! why? watch this clip from one of my all-time favorite movies.

speaker box

what do these speakers say to you?

day of the dead

happy day of the dead!

my lovely sister gave me this little

dia de los muertos momento.

happy halloween

happy halloween!

not so sure if oto's "li'l stinker" costume was such a good idea: maybe once around the block!

today's problem: sleeping

one of the problems of living in an urban area is being able to sleep through sirens, trash trucks, barking dogs, howling cats, school buses...i dunno: what else? so for years i have armed myself with a sound machine to mask all noises evil.
i prefer 'ocean waves' to lull me into a deep slumber. then i sleep like a baby and awake refreshed! the mister has grown used to the masking machine: other people think its a bit weird. i once took the sound device with me to a workshop in tennessee. my lawyer/potter roommate said "fine" to it, but i really didn't want to impose, so i set it to wake us at an agreed upon hour...then i left for an all-nighter in the metal shop. when i returned around 4:30am, my roommate was asleep, but awoke as i got into bed, mumbling about a rooster crowing repeatedly. i thought she was talking in her sleep, so i ignored her. she suddenly sat up and said: "the f-ing rooster in your sound machine has been crowing all night!". i must have accidentally turned one of auxiliary sounds on and she couldn't turn it off!

lesson learned: farm noises are not soothing.

(uhm...that's the miami sound machine above: also not soothing)

new work

earlier this year i started a new line of work featuring vintage plastic charms cast in sterling silver combined with gemstones and some of my herban elements findings. i recently had them photographed by my friend sandra of cole rodger photographics, and i couldnt be happier with the results! here is the first piece which combines a little bird with a large blue topaz on a ring shank fabricated from a tulip poplar stamen.

legal graffiti

speaking of graffiti, this is legit: 

take note!

today's problem: fruit flies

wtf?

i thought fruit flies were a summer phenom, but this past week i have been over run by them! they are on my fruit, my vegetables, the kitchen cabinets, the stove...they are even in the fridge! i vacuum them up: they seem to multiply! i tried cider vinegar to attract them away from the fruit, but that just attracted a million more. 

bethesda row art festival

shop local and support the arts saturday and sunday at the bethesda row art festival.

winnie the pooh

i have a specific memory of me turning six years old: we were not rich, so my gifts were only a few but very carefully selected, special gifts from my parents. on my sixth birthday in addition to several coloring books and crayons,  i received a collection of pooh books, including "now we are six".

i was six: how weird!

i read these poems over and over and still cherish them to this day!

happy 85th birthday, pooh bear!

rainy day movie

how to score points with your laundry

start with this gaming machine and your dirty laundry...dont forget the coin and bring your game because this washer wont spin if you suck!

via hungeree

today's problem: columbus day

we never got the day off when i was in school, so i never celebrated columbus day when i was growing up. but now as an adult, it's a three day weekend: score!

so today i celebrate the discovery of india by a murderous rapist who loved a good slave now and again: salut!

graffiti umbrella

with most of the month of september stormy and rainy and the farmer's almanac predicting more of the same for the next few weeks, it is time for me to break down and replace my old wind blown umbrella! the on line search began and this multi-function number is what i came up with.

via weburbanist

today's problem

today's problem begins with etsy, ends with ebay and has vintage purses, scarves and hats heavily involved.

autumnal equinox

trying to get excited about 'sweater weather' and not freaked out by the impending chill.

how to get vintage style

start with a vintage purse, of course!

i have collected vintage bags since i was knee-high to my grandmother, but recently felt the need to update and expand my collection, much to the chagrin of my closet! it all started on etsy when i purchased a woven chrome oval-shaped number with a lucite handle...then it escalated to ebay:

seven bags later, i felt complete!

some were wicker...some were metallic chrome...others were wicker and metallics...many had lucite handles.

then i saw this one:

its italian!

yes: a neon yellow plastic beaded vintage purse from the 60's could not be more perfect!

irony is, cherie has a coordinating red and white one:

of course she does!

dolce!

got bees?

it has been overcast and cool, so the bees are slowing down. i see them sleeping on my sedum. more bee stuff here.

current weather

the current weather is...super hot...record heat...i like it...