Just a teaser (minus the text).... This is another fun little monster project that I'm working on for a competition of sorts. Hopefully it will be up by the end of the week, I have other things I want to do!
Feb 22, 2011
Feb 12, 2011
imagine.
The first in what may turn into a series of "exercises." Since we moved into our little apartment, this is the view that greets me every morning. The random assortment of furniture conglomerated in the backyard can be nothing short of a supernatural "meeting of monsters." Or maybe it just makes work more fun to imagine so...
Despite our loving relationship, it's been a long time since I've used Adobe Illustrator to create anything, so don't hate on the skill level. This was more or less a warm-up to get back into the flow of shortcuts, manipulating, and layering that Illustrator supports. I even attempted to do a few things the hard way, just to make sure that I still knew how.
It's been awhile since I stretched my imagination and this really was a fun thing to play with. These old houses really are full of monsters.....
protect.
: A reto-post.
I knitted (purled, technically) these covers about a year ago. It was my first experience knitting in-the-round, and a happy accident. Since it's snowing very hard today, and I'm contemplating which flavor of tea I'm in the mood for, another knit project seems appropriate. I have a stash of old projects that I'm finding as I clean off my hard drive, and I think I'll try and spread them out a bit as creativity is moving slowly. I can't wait for this bout of forced hibernation to come to an end!
Feb 10, 2011
knit.
Just the beginnings of a scarf I'm working on... One of the first stores I visited when we moved was Joann's fabrics, to get new buttons for a coat (necessary.) Obviously, I couldn't pass this up, It's navy and sky blue, wool, and super-chunky and it was on sale. I'm knitting it with 10 1/2's. I've never used the super-thick yarn before, but I'm loving it because it makes it go so fast!
I'm also trying to teach myself to handle ribbing better. I get all lost in the yarn in front/ yarn in back thing, but it's coming along. Soon I'll be able to attempt my leg warmers (hah!) and the dorky dog sweater that's going to make Turk into a hipster-dog. Ha ha.
Jan 28, 2011
embark.
A short update:
The last 6 months have flown by!! As 2011 begins, we find ourselves 1,500 miles away from 2010, embarking on a new chapter of life. About a month ago, we were offered a job in central Pennsylvania (seemingly in answer to our deep desire to adventure outside of Texas for a bit.) Within 5 days, we were packed tight into two vehicles driving across the United States. We left most of our belongings in a storage unit in Texas, and we are now exploring this corner of the world, just us and the dog.
Since I have traded my wide-open work space for a four-room apartment on the second story of an old victorian home, the size of projects will definitely be decreasing. I think this is a good opportunity to push my limits and re-discover the vast boundaries of digital media. I have a few projects in mind, but it may take a while before I feel comfortable enough to share. On the flip side however, the never-ending snow on the east coast this winter is creating an awesome background for cozy knitting projects. More to come soon...
Jul 30, 2010
forge.
Meet our newest addition; the coal forge. Now technically, I shouldn't be posting this here, but I just couldn't help it. It's really my husbands toy; I've never forged anything in my life, (though I'm hoping to learn now...) but it's such a neat thing, and it's a part of my family history.
Since we moved in October, my husband has been talking about the forge. It was sitting among my grandpa's clutter, that my grandma just adores, might I add, and I'm sure it was just calling out to him "please, please, take me home!" A couple of weeks ago he finally got his wish. We now have added to the rest of our creative endeavors a Champion Blower & Forge Co. Model # 400 coal forge. It's pretty old... what I'm assuming are the patent dates read "April 15, 1902 and July 30, 1901." I believe it was probably my great-grandfathers, if not my great-great-grandfathers. Neat, right?! But despite it's age, it still works like a dream. When he really got it cranking, I got some pretty great pictures of the sparks flying. So far, he's been experimenting with flattening a railroad spike, to get the feel of things, and hammering on an old piece of i-beam. If you've got an anvil just lying around, or know someone who does, we'd be happy to take it off their hands!
Jul 25, 2010
sit.
New project: Chairs!
If you remember, a while back, I posted about the two part-er table project. Step one was the napkin rings, while step two was fixing up the set of 4 chairs that goes with the table. I'm finally getting around to the second part.
Since there are 4 chairs, all in different stages of being, we'll separate them. A and B used to be finished, until the puppy decided to teethe all over B's legs. So, A gets a few touch-ups and B gets all kinds of sanding, and a few more touch-ups. C is half-way there. Once upon a time, when I was home from school, I decided that I wanted four chairs in my efficiency apartment rather than just two. So I dragged C down from the attic, and sanded away. Then I got tired and abandoned it. Now C just looks like a molted green and yellow mess. And D. D is officially in "before" state. So there's your comparison...
So far, A and B are touched up, re-glued and happy, and after a long afternoon of work, C only needs one or two more coats of fresh paint. D is re-glued and slightly stripped. D needs some help.
Hopefully this will be just a two-update process. We'll see!
Jul 11, 2010
stain.
After forever, the desk is finally finished! Thank goodness, because I really don't get anything done with my computer set up in the living room; I'm ready to move back to my kitchen corner!
All that's lacking now is the hardware, which I'll add in the morning when the top coat has completely dried. After all of the hard work, I'm really proud of myself. For anyone out there who has qualms about re-finishing furniture, don't worry! It's really not as scary as I thought it would be, though you should be ready to put in a lot of hours with some sand paper if the finish is in bad shape. The staining went very smoothly, I used a rag to rub the stain into the wood and just let it dry. For the varnish, I used a foam brush (grand total of 96 cents at home depot) and made very long strokes.
I think, in review, that the color was a good choice, even though it still doesn't match much of our furniture. It was a cleaner version of the original color, and it stays true to the natural wood, which I believe is pecan. I can't wait to get my hands on the other pieces in the set someday so that I can clean them up too! What a great bedroom set it will make!
Jun 27, 2010
grind.
Just checking in... It's job hunting week and that means that from about 6:30 am 'till I fall asleep I'm scouring the web for my new home. As an update, we're looking to get out of Texas (fingers crossed) just for the fun of it. We're really (really) hoping for Boulder/ Denver area. We'd settle for Phoenix / Dallas / Austin, or gee, if we had to, San Francisco / Portland / Seattle or overseas. (: It's a fun time in life where the doors are wide open, we have no ties and we can just see what happens. Or, worst case scenario, doesn't happen. Then we end up right where we're at now moving just a hop down the street. Ugh. Please no. So, shameless plea, if you know of anything even remotely interesting going on in these areas job-wise for an architect or a ceramic artist please contact me! Thanks!
For now, back to the grind......
Jun 20, 2010
strip.
Since my bike is nearly finished, it's time for a new project!
My husband and I are just starting out, and there are times (with much thanks to our families!) that our hodgepodge of donated furniture feels a little like a goodwill showroom. So, my plan of attack is to re-finish a lot of the big stuff to match, such as the bookshelves, a desk, a drafting table we've acquired, and a set of chairs. First up: the desk. My husband had this desk in his bedroom in the "bachelor pad" when he lived with roommates. It's a great piece of furniture, and recently I learned that on top of that, it's a family heirloom!!! Since I found out, I've been trying to learn a little more of the history of the piece, since their family has a few more pieces belonging to the set that I'd like to try and clean up.
But it's really much much more than that... "Olive & Myers Manufacturing Company" was a mattress and furniture manufacturer founded in downtown Dallas in, I believe, 1900. At that time, one of the founders, also the vice president of the company, was Horace Elton (aka H. E.) Spalti. This guy was my husband's great-great-grandfather!! The company in itself has an amazing history. The headquarters were located in a very prominent building located in downtown Dallas; today it is know as 2220 Canton Lofts. H. E. Spalti later became the president of the company, and in the mid-50's Olive & Myers officially merged with a Houston manufacturing company, Myers & Spalti, to become Olive, Myers, & Spalti. My husband's great-grandfather, Horace Duncan (aka H. D.) Spalti became president. Vera B. Spalti, H. D.'s wife, was a name that I was already familiar with; my husband proposed with her engagement ring, and I wear it every day. (:
Here are a couple of pictures of the historic part, and a bunch of the beginnings of the project:
Also, here are some of the links that I found during my "google-fest" on Olive & Myers:
Location of the old warehouse complex in Dallas, Tx:
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)