Last night I made new dangle earrings with vintage glass stones. They are so pretty!
New rings
Today I made new rings with vintage glass cabochons!
Tomorrow!
Vanessa of Wanderlust wrote a wonderful blog post about my window installation at her shop. Also, Tomorrow night is the opening party! You're invited! Read about it here! http://www.
Crafty Wonderland Super Colossal Holiday Sale 2010
December was a busy month! I've been meaning to post about the Super Colossal Holiday Sale for almost a month. Here we go... finally!
Saturday, December 11th and Sunday, December 12th were 2 amazing days. One event that has made Portland so welcoming for me has been Crafty Wonderland. I am so humbled that there are people out there that get down with their art nerdy selves; appreciators & creators alike. I would love to give a shout out to all those who attended and supported handmade.
Over 12,000 shoppers attended! The organizers said that this show was by far their biggest and best event to date. It was so nice to meet new and old faces... sale goers & vendors. There was so much handmade awesomeness that I wanted to marvel over, but I had to man my booth. Ha!
A few snaps of my booth...
Greeting cards, Mini vintage Scrabble rings, button rings, bingo rings, compass rings, and vintage Portland map rings in a vintage fisherman's tackle box
Suitcase filled with Herb Series prints & framings • Vintage Oregon map marble magnets on edge
A handful of my favorite vendors handmade awesomeness...
View more snaps on my Flickr.
I really can't wait for next year's Holiday sale!
Caturday
Today has been fun. I took a trip down to Jo-Ann's, stocked up in some crafty supplies. I'm getting ready for the humongous show coming up next weekend! I then hit up Best Baguette for lunch. Delicious! It's becoming one of my favorite lunch spots. It's like French and Asian food fused together. This time around I ordered the grilled chicken with Asian spices on a baguette. I couldn't resist ordering one of their Mango Boba teas as well.
After lunch I made a visit to the Goodwill and found a vintage suitcase for only 7 bucks. What a steal! I also found a vintage travel Scrabble game. I plan on making some jewelry out of these mini letters. Since I brought them home, Yoshimi has been really into playing with the letters. I better be careful and keep them away from her. Otherwise they may be on the floor in every room very soon.
I'm really excited for next Saturday and Sunday! I've been counting down the days until Crafty Wonderland's Super Colossal Spring Show. Everyday I've been doing a little bit to prep for it. I have even made some new handmade goodies that haven't made their way into my Etsy shop. I found some great frames at Ikea the other day. At next weekend's show I decided that I will be selling some of my prints already in frames like above. I have even went in and signed the mattes.
Yesterday I found out where my booth will be next weekend! I posted it so you know where exactly where to find me and my handmade goods. I'm super stoked about my neighbors too... Soma Venus & Camp Smartypants. We are going to have so much fun.
Welp, need to get off the Mac. I have a date with crafting for the rest of the evening. Maybe Yoshimi will join in on the fun. Checking out the dvd collection... maybe watch some Veronica Mars (Yes, I'm a geek), Curb Your Enthusiasm, or Freaks and Geeks? Decisions decisions decisions.
New silly avatar for '10 & Tuesday's accomplishments
A week or two ago I was pondering the idea of creating a new avatar for my Flickr, Twitter, and every other social networking website that is linked to A Tea Leaf. I mean it's a new year, that should mean a new avatar, right? I'm a lil' sad to leave behind the "I Can Has Plum" pic; it sure was a silly one. This year's avatar includes a pretty sweet coffee mug that was just filled to the brim with Yerba Mate. I love this white glass mug, it's fantastic. It has a lot of sentimental value to me; it use to be my grandmother's. I remember when I was a wee one, watching her pour coffee into it and thinking to myself, 'why would anyone drink coffee', blergh. Obviously, in present time at the ripe ol' age of 27, my taste buds have changed. As many of you know, not only am I a bit obsessed with Hello Kitty and Norwich Terriers, but hot beverages as well. Mmm... Yerba Mate.
I've been hyped up this week. It sure has been a productive one. Sometimes I wish I had my own chopper on the roof, though, so I could get to point A to point B uber fast and be so much more productive. I decided that I'd try something new in the sketchbook. Since I love documenting and all, I doodled Tuesday's accomplishments. I used one of my favorite mediums too... Gelly Roll Moonlight opaque pens. (Click on image to view larger.)
I had a ball drawing this. I'm definitely up for another one in the next month or two.
A Tea Leaf at TinyHidyHo Holiday Shoppe
Attention Portlanders out there!
Stop by the Tinymeat store on North Williams to find local handmade gifts! It's a great place to pick out those last minute gifts, treat yourself to something sweet, or chit chat with Tinymeat owner, Michael! My handmade goodies are there, as well as a dozen other local artists' & crafters' work.
Tinymeat's address is 3808 N. Williams, Portland, OR - Located in the same building as Cha Cha Cha & Ristretto Roasters.
Holiday SALE until Friday!
Sale! * SALE! * Sale! * SALE! * Sale! * SALE! * Sale! * SALE! *
Perfect for those last minute Christmas gifts!
I'm having a Holiday SALE for a limited time! SALE ends this Friday, Dec. 18th. Click on the link below to check out all the handmade goodies.
http://www.etsy.com/shop/ATeaLeaf?section_id=6068942
Rural Oregon photographs
Weeping Willow vinyl wallets
Standard Movement Series necklaces
Standard Movement Series Greeting Cards
Sale! * SALE! * Sale! * SALE! * Sale! * SALE! * Sale! * SALE! *
Standard Movement Series Pendants
It's Friday and you know what that means... new arrivals in the ATeaLeaf Etsy shop! And I have a special surprise for you all. You can now choose the artworks you would like for your wearable. It gets a little bit sweeter too: not just one side, but two!
Standard Movement Series Pendants
Choose your favorite front and back and I will personally custom make your new necklace!
Head on over to my Etsy shop and get the ball rollin'. Hope you all have a long and lazy weekend lovelies!
00016 - Western White Clematis
Introducing my 16th piece of my series, Standard Movement.
00016 - Western White Clematis – Click here or image above to purchase a print
To begin with, the oval frame. My thoughtful Godparents found it at an antique store. They are so sweet. As many of you know, I love bubbled glass. Who doesn't? I love how it enhances my imaginative 2-D world. Next, something new this time around. I usually use vintage paper for the main background, in this case I used fresh, crisp ledger paper. I wanted this work to be much simpler than the last, so I left a lot of white space and added fewer textile pieces which represent orbs. I incorporated a white flowering plant that I discovered on a walk to Portland's striking St. Johns bridge. The plant caught my eye with it's showy seedheads.
I searched high and low. Alas I found the name of the white flowering plant, it's called Western White Clematis. I read that it is a perennial vine and a member of the Buttercup family. It also goes by names such as Virgin’s Bower, Traveler’s Joy, and Leather flower. It sounds like a terrible idea to get in contact with, its oils are extremely irritating to the skin. It can also cause internal bleeding of the digestive tract if digested in large amounts. Eek! However, Native Americans would use it for headaches and nervous disorders, in small doses, of course.
If you would like to purchase a print of this original artwork of mine, they are available in my online shop, here. The prints are a limited edition of 30, printed on a heavy cardstock paper, backed with matboard, and slipped into a cellophane envelope. Whew! Did you get all that? I will also sign each print and ship them in a bendproof mailer. Live near Portland and wanna save on shipping? I will also be selling these guys at Crafty Wonderland and Skating with Scissors Craft Bazaar. I'm so jazzed to participate in my first two craft shows!
New Work: 00015 - False Lily of the Valley
It's Saturday and I'm still trying to get caught up with posting last weekend's creations. Whew.May I present to you... 00015 of Standard Movement Series.
00015 of Standard Movement – 5" x 7" – purchase print
I even think it's the best piece I've made thus far.
Within this mint green frame are a variety of items, including pages from a vintage accountant workbook and pocket dictionary, an elementary report card dated 1953, a black & white class photograph. Something new this time around... I incorporated a lace tablecloth, cutting it into honeycomb shapes. I've been meaning to incorporate textiles for the longest time, and alas it finally has been done.
Within coffee rings, I drew a plant, False Lily of the Valley that I discovered while hiking near Indian Beach. Scientific name: Maianthemum dilatatum is an aggressive groundcover for moist shade, which was very apparent... I saw heart-shaped leaves & berries in the shadows everywhere on the hike. I read up a little bit on the berries... "they can be used as food, although they are not especially tasty. Other aboriginal uses of the plant include the treatment of cuts, sore eyes, internal injuries and sterility."
In a future work I would like to illustrate the blooming stage of the star shaped flowers, pictured above. The stamens remind me of snails' tentacles.
I have 00015 prints available in my Etsy shop for 16 dollars each. http://www.atealeaf.etsy.com Each print will be signed, numbered (in a limited edition of 30), and shipped in a sturdy bendproof mailer.
Hope everyone is having a relaxing weekend!
00014 of Standard Movement
After three attempts, my 14th work of the Standard Movement series, titled 00014 is finished! I am more than happy to share this bundle of joy with you on this sunny afternoon.
Bike riding down the Eastbank Esplanade, I discovered a magnificent Weeping Willow. A willow with catkins, might I add. These cylindrical flower clusters are why it took me three tries to make this artwork, I was being a lil' picky of how they were drawn on a page torn from a bookkeeping & accounting study guide, which was once in the hands of a lady named Ava. The drawn raindrops and globe-like orbs faintly blend onto the page.
Within this 5" x 7" filigree frame, on the bottom left-hand corner, I included a snippet of a 1980's Kansas City, Missouri map, once owned by my mother & father. On the top right I included a snippet of a fellow’s charming message that was written in a young lady’s 1976 yearbook, which is also prominent in my 13th work.
You can vaguely see catkins drawn on top of the yearbook signature. They hide around a torn piece of a black and white photograph. I plan on using more remnants of this photo in future pieces. A b&w photograph of what you ask?
It's of an elementary class, adhered pretty darn well to a piece of worn matte board, with no date present. I purchased this photograph along with some report cards from a flea market. I love the idea of using bits of something that was once together, that has created something historical visually, that once had an impact on more than one individual. I like to compare these bits to pixels, which I also love drawing with brown ink sporadically in my artwork.
I also worked in a piece from a hard cover book about astrology that's full of tables. One thing that I think is thrilling about using used books is that at one time in it's life it was owned by someone else and it had a particular purpose. Years later it's now having a new purpose, a purpose that it was not intended to be used. I love flipping open the cover of old books and finding the previous owners name and address written by their hand. I question if they are still alive; do they still live at this address; did they read this book all the way through; did they read this book more than once? I don't believe too many people write their name in their books in this day and age. In today's culture it seems that we go through so much information, that it's easier for us to do away with books after a short period of time. Websites like half.com and Amazon have encouraged this. I find this interesting.
I'll stop there with that thought, I could go on and on but I need to continue working on some graphic design projects! I hope everyone is enjoying their Friday. Also I hope you have a swell weekend and get around to doing something creative! I'm really giddy about tomorrow & Sunday, I'm going to be spending many hours working on a new batch of miniature artworks for new pendant necklaces! Weeeeeeeeeeee!
