Wexford Girl

Bear Cards

 

 

Hello Design Sponge! I was so thrilled to see one of my little bear cards used in this fabulous clock tutorial at Design Sponge. It's not letterpress; it's an original drawing with collage - no two are alike!

You can find many more small bear originals in the 3 Fish Studios shop, on wood veneer and card, all at the recession-friendly price of $15!

Lily Martine Baxter

One of the San Francisco artists I am delighted to know is the talented Lily Martine Baxter. Her work is inspiring - such fresh and confident compositions. Most Octobers, I go to her open studios and she comes to ours (we are on different weekends.)

Here are some of her paintings and drawings - so lovely.

   

   

 

 

All the President's Balls

I can't believe the Obamas had to attend TEN inaugural balls last night. He had to speak at every one - and it was a different speech each time. And they had to dance at each one too. No one else was dancing; they were just taking pictures of the first couple doing their self-concious shuffle, complete with awkward little underarm twirl.

Michelle looked lovely I thought, but her dress was too long; she had to keep picking up the hem to dance. And, as expected, that handsome man looks gorgeous in dinner attire. What a day for them. I hope they got to sleep in today.

The Dud Avocado

Many years ago, my friend Erica and I were talking about our favorite books, no longer in print, that we wished we could find again.* Erica told me about The Dud Avocado, a 1958 novel by Elaine Dundy, and how when she was living in London she found a copy and fell madly in love with it. Somewhere along the line she lost the book, and still searched used bookstores for a copy in the hope she would one day find it again.

Erica's description of the book made me want to read it, so I started looking for it too. In 1995 or so, I found myself in London, and I visited those great old bookstores on Charing Cross Road, hoping to find a copy to surprise Erica with. I didn't find it, but I did pick up a flyer about a book search service. (This, of course, was before Google and Alibris would make searching for out-of-print books easy.) So when I came back to the States, I filled in the form with the information I knew about the book, and mailed it off. Some months later, I was notified that a copy of The Dud Avocado had been found. I received the book in the mail, from England, and presented it to Erica for her birthday. She was floored and delighted and tearful, and it's still the best gift I have ever given. After she had read it again, I read it, and so did our friend Suzanne, and we all loved it.

I was in Green Apple books last weekend, and what do I see? A pile of Dud Avocado's, reprinted in 2007, on the remaindered table (which seemed so weird considering all the trouble it took to get a copy in 1995), so I picked up one for $7 and now I am re-reading it. It really is the most delicious book.

This is from Amazon:

The Dud Avocado follows the romantic and comedic adventures of a young American who heads overseas to conquer Paris in the late 1950s. Edith Wharton and Henry James wrote about the American girl abroad, but it was Elaine Dundy’s Sally Jay Gorce who told us what she was really thinking. Charming, sexy, and hilarious, The Dud Avocado gained instant cult status when it was first published and it remains a timeless portrait of a woman hell-bent on living.

*My book in that conversation was Gran at Coalgate, which happily, I found again too.

Sutro Libre

I had a commission to paint today. She wanted a wrestling bear in front of Sutro Tower - with a shooting star in the sky. 

I did three of them! The middle one is my favorite.

Two of these will be up in the shop next week (but I don't know which two).

The Winner

Well - only 5 comments on the last post! What's up with that?

The winner is number FIVE.

Michelle, send me your address and you will get these two books in the mail. I hope you enjoy them. If you complete a project in either of the books, send me a photo!

 

I have been busy at work and home and I have been a neglectful blogger. I'm sorry. I will have stories soon. In the meantime, read my current favorite blog, by The Office's Mindy Kaling (Kelly Kapoor), who is also a writer on the show. She's very funny.

Eric and I will be in the studio tomorrow 11:00 am - 5:00 pm. It's our monthly LURE gathering, where we open our doors to folks who want to come by and work on a creative project. So if you're in the city, pop in and visit: The best door to come in is 610 22nd street at 3rd. We're on the 2nd floor.

Book Giveaway for Knitters and Crocheters

It's time to admit once and for all that I am not a knitter or a crocheter. 

I can knit; I learned when I was about 8. At one point when I was 12 or so, I made a fair-isle baby's poncho for a competition. Our teacher, Mrs. Stafford, was a craft/art/music freak and we all had to do something, even the boys. (She also had every pupil in her class in a marching band.) When I finished the poncho - which looked pretty awesome - she admired it until she flipped it over, and then she started yelling at me. On the back of the knitting there were great loops of yarn that I hadn't woven in or something. I don't know. It was laziness though, not lack of skill; I do remember that.

And I can crochet; Eric's mom taught me several years ago. I like it better than knitting, but it still took me 5 years to make a baby blanket and I haven't done anything since.

I go to Leigh Wells's famous and very fun monthly Stitch nights, but I don't stitch; I bring little paintings or collage to work on while the others knit or sew* and we all drink copious amounts of wine. 

The truth is, I simply don't really enjoy either of these pursuits. 

Anyway. I am at home today doing a clear out of stuff and I found these two books that I acquired over the last few years, as gifts I think, Debbie Stoller's Stitch 'N Bitch and Melissa Leapman's Cozy Crochet. They are both gorgeous, brand new books. I have flipped through them admiring the photos etc., but I am never going to make any of the projects, I just know it. 

I think they could make someone else very happy, so this is your chance to own them. Leave a comment below if you want these two lovely books mailed to you and I will randomly choose a number on Friday morning, January 9th, to pick a crafty winner.

Yay for giveaways!

*Check out the divine Molly Watson's Christmas sewing project she worked on at Leigh's house. She recreated the dress she painted herself wearing when she was 5 years old. How brilliant is that?

Charley Harper at Old Navy

I got these little board books today at Old Navy. I love Charley Harper's illustrations. I think I'll send these to a little niece called Ava who turns a year old on Valentine's Day.

I have been a bad blogger, but it has been such a busy holiday season. We were in Montana for my first white Christmas, which was just magical. Eric took some gorgeous photos. Then it was back to balmy San Francisco and a New Year's Eve Eve party. (We were festive on Tuesday so it was OK to watch a movie and have a quiet night on Wednesday.)

And coming up for locals, join us at Andalu on Monday for Eric's Lonely Robot art show. We'll be there for dinner and then the reception starts at 9:00 p.m. It should be really fun and his work looks terrific.

Andalu is generously giving 10% of the evening's proceeds go to our chosen charity, At the Crossroads, so your cocktail benefits a really great organization too.