Wow. Sometimes I really do think I have one of the coolest jobs ever. This morning, in just a matter of minutes, I was carrying two different letters: one written & signed by Abraham Lincoln and the other by Louis Armstrong. Earlier this week I helped transport one of Dizzy Gillespie’s trumpets. I’ve also carried Louis Armstrong’s first cornet and worked with original Audubon prints, antique weapons and medical instruments. Seriously - amazing.

While I’m on the topic of work, if you’re in or near New Orleans, you should really check out some of the Prospect 1 exhibits around town, including the ones at the Old U.S. Mint. I’m absolutely in love with the work of a few artists there, especially El Anatsui and Fred Tomaselli.

El Anatsui is an artist from Ghana who now lives and works in Nigeria, and he creates these amazing abstract tapestries from recycled found objects like metal foil, copper wire, and bottle caps, as well as other natural materials. These pieces are huge and they look almost like quilts from far away, but up close they’re even more stunning.

Fred Tomaselli’s pieces made me think of my friend Rachelle from greenKangaroo, because they both work with resin but in completely different ways. (Rachelle… you’ve got to check these pieces out in person!) His pieces really need to be appreciated from up close, because there is just so much amazing detail. The three pieces now at the Mint were created in response to Hurricane Katrina, and feature a variety of mixed media (images from books and magazines, leaves, and prescription pills) layered onto large wood panels and encased in resin. I could look at these pieces all day and never cease to be fascinated.

If you’re in NOLA, do yourself a favor and check out some of the Prospect 1 exhibits all around town. I’m planning to go see more over the long Thanksgiving weekend. Does anyone have any recommendations for Prospect 1 venues that are not to be missed?

Uncategorized | No Comments »

I’ve got to admit, I’m usually a bit of a scrooge when it comes to the holidays, although over the last few years I’ve found myself looking forward to them more and more. I think I’ve always been sort of put off by the mass consumption and excessiveness of it all, but as I’ve begun creating some of my own traditions I’ve begun to look forward to the holidays more. The boy and I will be throwing our 4th annual Zombie X-mas party this year, which is always a great escape from the holiday madness for us and all of our friends.

I’m also looking forward to the many upcoming shop local initiatives and local art markets and events around town. My fellow New Orleans Craft Mafia members are busy planning our annual Last Stop Shop market.  It’s always such a blast, and something I know we all look forward to each year.  It’s just great to hang out with so many of my favorite local artists in a cool laid back atmosphere.

Once I hit my teenage years, I sort of got tired of decorating for Christmas - probably because my mom tends to go all out with decking the halls and I thought it was a little much.  But decorating the Christmas tree is something my boyfriend really enjoys, as his dad was a bit of a scrooge about the holidays when he was young, so I’ve gotten more excited about it because I see how happy it makes him.  I love the new holiday ornaments by my friend Heather Elizabeth because they’re all inspired by classic New Orleans imagery.

I think the stockings designed by Jen Hopwood of MyPerennial and available at Mahar Drygoods are pretty amazing as well.  Each one is created from layers of appliquéd wool felt by a small cooperative of female artisans in Hungary who specialize in felt work traditional to their country.

I also love the new line of 2008 holiday cards from Redbean. The designs are just beautiful and they’re all printed on high quality FSC-certified 100% post-consumer recycled cardstock with environmentally responsible inks. I’m usually really bad about sending cards, but a design as gorgeous as this one makes me want to give it a go.

Oh yeah… and it’s hard not to get into the spirit of the season when I come home to a “late birthday/early Christmas” present from my boyfriend - a freaking air hockey table!  Sure it’s a tiny cheaop-o, but still, so awesome!  And I even beat him in the first game we played on it!

Uncategorized | 2 Comments »

The pirates vs. ninjas video is now up on YouTube from the amazing flashmob my boyfriend organized in Jackson Square here in New Orleans on Halloween afternoon:

Uncategorized | No Comments »

Voodoo Fest - I’m taking tomorrow off of work to spend a 3 day weekend at Voodoo Fest and perform with the Noisician Coalition!  I’m super excited because I’ve never been to Voodoo Fest before and there are some great acts (both local and national) performing.  We get the VIP treatment as performers and I’m almost done creating an awesome zebracorn costume for it.  (That’s a zebra + unicorn.  The Noisician colors are red, white and black - it’s perfect!)

my new cassowary mousepad - I moved to a new desk at work recently and I thought I’d spruce up the place with a new mousepad. I found Bluejacket Photo on Etsy and saw that he did mousepads and thought this would be perfect. Oh how I love the world’s deadliest bird! I just might bring out my cassowary costume for Halloween this year.

Skins - One of my new favorite shows, and another reason I’m glad we get BBC America at home.  I’m a sucker for all of the raunchy, ridiculous teen drama.  I’ve also been enjoying Gavin & Stacy, though I missed a lot of it when our Direct TV was out for a few weeks recently.

Uncategorized | 2 Comments »

I’ve been following the Things I Love Thursdays series that Gala Darling started for awhile now.  The lovely Ashe Mischief regularly participates as well, so I thought it would be fun to join in.

• Rose La Biche - I recently broke down and ordered the shirt I’ve been coveting for months and it arrived last Friday.  Unfortunately the small was a little too snug, so I’m exchanging it for a medium, but the designer Lucy has been so sweet and accommodating.  And other than the size, the shirt was everything I’d hoped for!  I can’t wait until the replacement comes in… It’s such a great, versatile shirt.  I’ve already got my eye on another Rose La Biche top.
• an awesome boyfriend - My guy has turned into super DIY dude lately… Somehow I got him hooked on Instructables and now he’s rebuilding my bicycle into what will surely be the most amazing octopus art bike ever.  He’s also taken to researching fancy seafood recipes and cooking me amazing dinners (all because he shot a commercial for a local chef last week and learned how apparently easy it is to make barbecue shrimp).  Oh yeah, and he’s organizing a pirates vs. ninjas flashmob for Halloween!
• BBC Radio 1 - Sometimes I listen to NPR when I’m at work but lately I just can’t take it, so it’s been nothing but BBC.  Annie Mac is my favorite but I also have a growing fondness for the request show.
• Sex on Fire by Kings of Leon - Seriously, I am so in love with this song right now.  Amazing.
• sweater hoodies - It’s still not cold here yet, but the office at work is freeeeezing, so I’ve enjoyed the beginning of fall and snuggling up in hooded sweaters.
• Tabatha Coffey - I never entirely understood the appeal of Shear Genius but I like her new show, Tabatha’s Salon Takeover because it reminds me of Gordon Ramsay’s Kitchen Nightmares (the original BBC version is sooo much better than the new shows on Fox).  I also really love Tabatha’s style and especially her hair.  I need a new haircut soon… I think I’m going to bring in a picture of her cut as an example.
• Inge boot by Fluevog - I’ve been coveting these for awhile now.  I actually started a savings account for them.  Yes, they’re $425 but they’re amazing and I know I’d love them forever.  There’s no way I’m putting all of that on credit though for a single shoe purchase, and I think by saving up for them it will insure that I really do love them as much as I think I do.  (And I really, really do love them!)

Uncategorized | No Comments »

Hi everyone, just wanted to make a quick post and let you guys know that I’m back at home in New Orleans now, safe and sound. I’d like to thank everyone who sent their well wishes and thoughts and to also thank the lovely Ashe Mischief for posting to let everyone know I was alright. Today is my first day in over a week with internet access, so I’ve been spending the day trying to play catch-up in a big way.

I haven’t really had time yet to go back and try to see any of the recent national coverage concerning the aftermath of Hurricane Gustav, but I’d just like to say that while this hurricane was no where near along the lines of Katrina, it still managed to wreak a pretty significant amount of damage on much of Louisiana. At one point I think I heard that almost half of the homes and businesses in the entire state were without power. Some of the hardest hit areas are supposed to be without power for up to 6 weeks. For those of you who have never spent any time in this area during the summer months, let me tell you, September in south Louisiana is HOT. Hot and extremely humid and pretty miserable with no power for refrigeration or air conditioning. Organizations like the Red Cross and even FEMA were doing a pretty good job this time at getting everyone supplies like ice, water and non-perishables to the people who needed them most, but in many areas it’s going to be rough going for the next few weeks.

Anyway, just wanted to check in and let everyone know I’m home safely. It might take me a couple of days to get caught up, but hopefully I should be back to posting again regularly soon!

Uncategorized | 1 Comment »

So today is the 3rd year anniversary of Hurricane Katrina and it looks like we possibly have another storm on its way.

Everyone around here has their eyes on Gustav, but it’s still a bit early to tell. Nevertheless, preparations are definitely underway. I’ve already spent the last 3 days at work dealing with advanced just-in-case preparations and now that it’s become a weekend of wait-and-see, I’m working on making a checklist of what to grab if we need to evacuate New Orleans.

I’ve gotta say, as much as I’ve been trying to reduce clutter and simplify my life over the last few months, there’s still quite a bit of stuff around. One of the things that Katrina taught so many of us is what is truly important in life are the intangibles - friends, family, a sense of place, a feeling of home. That is why so many of us have chosen to stay here and why so many of us are possibly dealing with this all over again. That said, it also makes me realize how few possessions I would really care about if they were washed away. Most things are replaceable, and while replacement incurs expense, it’s not unmanageable in the long run. The what ifs that really scare me about this scenario are the possibilities of losing friends and family all over again, scattering us around like leaves in the wind.

Pray for the best, prepare for the worst. Like I said, it’s still too early to tell, but I think that’s what most of us are doing, anyway. Hopefully this will all blow over (pardon the pun), but the timing certainly makes for an eerie feeling.

Uncategorized | 5 Comments »

DIY City Mag’s New Orleans issue came out this week. It’s so amazing to see all of these local artists represented in one place! I was already either familiar with or I’m friends with a lot of them, but some of the NOLA artists featured were new to me too.

I wrote a couple of pieces for it. If you’ve ever wanted to know EVEN MORE about all the amazing things that New Orleans has to offer, check it out. I’m so proud to call this city home and share it with so many incredible people.

Uncategorized | 4 Comments »

Trashy Diva, my absolute favorite store for over 10 years now, and a company I have had the pleasure of working for in the past, has just been ripped off by one of their wholesale clients. The entire incident makes me absolutely livid. I get so upset seeing indie designers ripped off by big corporations, but when it’s one small business ripping off another, to me that seems even worse. Who raises these people, really?

You can read the full story on Trashy Diva’s Myspace or see the post I wrote about it for Styledash. Please help spread the word, particularly if you have a fashion or design related blog. This is an issue that affects all independent designers. I’ve heard of indies ripping off other indies on Etsy, and I just heard about this screwed up incident right after I got the word of the Trashy Diva rip-off. The whole thing just makes me sick.

Uncategorized | 7 Comments »

The Worn Again Fashion Show was Friday night, and it was a blast! Worn Again Jr. featured kids ages 8-15 strutting their stuff in their own recycled fashions that they made themselves. The main event included more than 50 models and all sorts of recycled fashion - everything from totally wearable stuff that looked like it could have come from a chic department store to amazing costumes to totally avant garde fashion!

The picture here is me on stage in my recycled outfit. I received a bag of clothes and fabric that included this puffy winter vest and some white mattress batting. This is what I transformed it into… You can’t see the detail very well in this picture, but there was a LOT of handsewing and tiny detail that went into this. I had a lot of fun, but I’m so glad it’s over now!

The thrift store art edit was really cool as well… I got this horse drawing that I transformed into something even more utterly ridiculous. (Anyone remember Lisa Frank? That’s what it reminds me of.)

My boyfriend also did an incredible job on his thrift store art piece. I don’t have a picture of the original, but it was this scary clown poster that he turned into an amazing light box with curtains (he sewed them himself on my machine!) and three dimensional hands and bingo balls. It’s Ronny Numbers from The New Orleans Bingo! Show!

You can check out more pictures from this year’s show, as well as a few from last year’s, on my Flickr page.

Uncategorized | 1 Comment »

I’ve been sewing like mad the last couple of weeks, trying to finish my outfit for the Worn Again Fashion Show and fundraiser for Recycle for the Arts. If you’re in the New Orleans area, be sure to check it out next Friday, June 27th at the Republic. It’s going to be a blast!

Recent notable Etsy purchases include this awesome CD case made from a recycled license plate by OldRedBarn (I got this for my Little Sister’s birthday and included some mixed CDs I made for her) and a sample pack of mineral eyeshadows from PureMineralsSource. The shimmery June Bug shade is absolutely stunning!

I’d also like to direct your attention to my friend Raven’s brand new Etsy shop. Raven is an amazing artist and she’s trying to focus on her art full-time now, particularly doing custom portraits, which she is brilliant at! I encouraged her to set up an Etsy shop as another venue for her work, so go check it out.

Also of note: my friend Autumn over at Strange Folk wanted me to let everyone know that vendor applications for the 3rd annual Strange Folk Festival are being accepted now through July 6th! The 2008 show will be September 27th and 28th, Saturday 10 a.m. - 5 p.m. and Sunday 10 a.m. - 4 p.m. This event is juried, and 120 vendors will be chosen to participate. There is no fee to apply. The vendor fee will be $65, and vendors will have the option of renting a table or bringing their own tent. Last year, Strange Folk hosted 100 indie artists and crafters from across the country in a one day event that attracted over 5,000 attendees from the St. Louis area.

Uncategorized | No Comments »

Check it out, the New Orleans Craft Mafia made the cover of this week’s Gambit Weekly. (That’s the weekly free alternative mag here in NOLA.) There’s a picture of me and NOCM founder Rachelle and overall it’s a pretty fabulous piece of press!

Uncategorized | No Comments »