Gettin' Stuff Done

This morning when I woke up... it was suddenly Autumn. I spent a bit longer than usual snuggled up with my dogs under the blankets, but once I woke up I'll admit, I immediately wanted to put on a flannel shirt and buy a pumpkin spice latte. I submitted to the flannel, skipped the latte, and hoofed it down to Paperish Mess where I dropped off a few items at their lovely little store (I've said it before, and I'll say it again, if you haven't visited this little gem of a shop, you should), but also forgot a few items (magnolia slice keychains) in my bag. Oops.

But I really enjoyed walking around in the substantially cooler weather. I'm sure in a few months I'll be kicking myself for ever thinking that, but today it felt good. I found a few pretty spots along the way back, and it was a great answer to my homesickness about how much I really do love it here in Chicago.

This little window view, with all of it's books, was a heartbreaker.

A perfect porch.

This gorgeous painted door overlooks someone's spilled makeup bag.

It turns out, orange and mint green are a perfect color combination.

Now I'm enjoying cinnamon tea spiked with Evan Williams Apple Orchard in my oh-so-cozy living room, and hoping my "real" workday tomorrow goes by quickly.

Summertime Sadness

How did Summer slip away so quickly this year? Well, it's still hot outside, but the feeling of Summer has definitely left, and while I'm not ready to don my scarves and sip my warm drinks yet, its about time I get into the mindset that Autumn is upon me.

I've been having a bit of a hard time lately, a little bit of homesickness mixed with general restlessness and a tad of "is this all there is", punctuated by moments of absolutely wonderful beauty in the most unexpected places -- it's keeping me on my toes, to say the least.

Funny that, as things pick up at work, it's paralleled by things picking up for my lil' jewelry business -- things are going to be inordinately busy, soon, but maybe I need that to snap myself out of this little funk I'm trying to get into?

The studio will be open this Friday, for First Friday at the Flat Iron Arts Building, and I'm eager to see how my little rearrange of the space will go over. I moved the whole "living room" into another room, and the workspace into the studio where the couch/tv/bookshelves used to be. I'm hoping that in the future, this will really help with having more space for different artists to show their work (if they're interested) in the gallery, and it will also give me more space for when I eventually launch my other project (still top secret, of course).

The new living space (complete with napping dog) -- I've cleaned it up a bit since taking this shot, and the couch is covered in plaid blankets to make me feel like I'm living in a cozy cabin in Wyoming, or something like that.

The funny this is that my little rearrangement has made my living space so completely cozy and lovely, that I'm a lot less motivated to actually go into the other room and work on things in there... so hopefully at some point, having the studio open will kick me into gear.

So on that note, I have to leave my little cozy space to go to work, but hopefully some of you will be able to drop by this Friday, and I'll be happy to show off all the work I've been doing in here. I'll be dropping off more necklaces at Paperish Mess towards the middle of next week, so if you can't catch me here at the studio, you can definitely find my most popular pieces in stock at their sweet little shop.

Long Time Comin'

Has it seriously been over a month since my last post!? Well, that just goes to show you how much I stink at doing more than one thing at a time.

I've been working my job, and tend to want to immediately go to sleep when I go home (on the couch, with bad TV in the background). Now that the weather is finally warming up, I'm hoping I'll stop being so apathetic, and I'll actually get out an enjoy my free days.

Speaking of free days -- I've got a few of them ahead of me, including tomorrow (Memorial Day), so the plan is to set up a small table outside of the Flat Iron Arts Building with a few of my City Map necklaces. That also means that, yes, I'm awake at 12:20am, hoping that a few more Chicago Map pieces will dry by morning (thank goodness for humidity).

It sounds like a nice way to get a little tan, and maybe sell a few necklaces (but mostly get a little tan).

If you'll be in the Chicago area, the building is located at 1579 N. Milwaukee Avenue, so stop by in between your shopping and beer hopping (there's a lot of that to be had in the neighborhood).

I hope everyone enjoys the Memorial Day weekend!

RAWards 2013

I had an awesome time at the RAWards, and NO I didn't win, but honestly I didn't expect to -- the other two girls nominated in my category are so talented, and it sounds cheeseball, but it really was an honor just to be nominated along with them. Catherine of All Things Esque took home the prize! Jane Steele was also nominated, and is of course also quite fabulous.

It was a really fun night, I met a lot of cool people, was highly entertained by all of the nominees in the other categories, and I made a few sales, so that's always good!

If you want to become involved with RAW, go here: RAWartists.org

Kara is the organizer in Chicago, and she is so awesome, that I feel kind of bad for the other cities... but either way, if you want to get involved, it's a very supportive community with great opportunities for emerging artists of all mediums.

I hope everyone out there is having a fabulous weekend! I woke up really late this morning (afternoon) to SNOW, so I'm pretty pleased with that. I've got a little bit of lazy-football-time, before it's back to making/packing/shipping all of my sales. Etsy has been blowing UP this month, hurray for the holidays!

I'm Having a Party, and Everyone's Invited!

This Friday is the open house for the building (First Friday, Flat Iron Arts Building), so I thought why not turn it into a party?

That's how the Ugly-Sweater-Optional Purple Prince Another Lonely Christmas party was born. So if you're in the Chicago area, or even if you're not, this is a great night to stop by, have fun, peruse jewelry, and dance to a mix of Prince and weird holiday music.

Join the Facebook event page HERE

So yeah, ugly sweaters are optional, purple is encouraged, and I will do my damnedest to get y'all some banana daiquiris. You know, banana daiquiris until you go blind...

Well, if you don't know, if you haven't heard this absolute treasure of a holiday song yet, I can promise you'll hear it at this party. Probably several times.

First Friday -- Studio 215 Featured Artist, Tessa / DumbKat Press

I met Tessa at my first RAW Artists showcase -- she was wearing a bright green dress and a hot pink wig, and we shot the shit about baseball and cats.  That pretty much sealed the deal for me -- this chick is badass, and if you want to be part of the awesomeness, you can meet her tonight in Studio 215 for First Friday at the Flat Iron Building.

If you need more inspiration, here's some of her work:

Her prints are available in her Etsy shop at Dumbkat Press

and you can also connect with her on Facebook.

As always this event is open to everyone, young and old, hipster and square.

I may or may not be inspired to make snacks and serve drinks, don't hold me to it.  You can always BYOB, but if you act like a drunken fool my bouncer (Dave) will boot you.

Studio 215 is located on the second floor of the Flat Iron Arts Building in Wicker Park.  Follow the Chicago flag signs to my space, or accidentally run into it while looking for the bathroom.

Either way works.

First Friday Recap

So apparently, good weather does not necessarily mean a packed house for First Friday.  Thank goodness Katie brought in her awesome friends, who kept me entertained throughout the night, and the visitors to the building seemed to really enjoy her work!  She also had free zines to give away (I grabbed one, and stored away another to send to a friend).

One of the more interesting things that happened involved Katie being asked to design a cane for MS patients in need.  It just so happened that the other woman in the room at the time worked with people with disabilities, and had a long list of clients with MS who were actually in need of canes, so it kind of became this awesome circle of people connecting to help other people.

(If you're interested in the program, visit Team Chrissy!  The winner of the 2012 People's Favorite Decorated Cane was Kevin Lahvic, another FIAB resident.)

Katie's work looked great, and I'll be a little sad when she takes it down tonight.  One of my favorite parts of hosting artists is that I get my own little art gallery, sometimes for a few days.

Fringe benefits.  ;)

It was a really fun night, that ended with an actual marching band (Environmental Encroachment) coming up through the hallway and playing in the Collaboraction theatre.  Anyone who knows me probably then knows that I just about peed my pants -- I've got a real thing for marching bands!!  They took the party back out into the streets, where we followed them and danced the wild rumpus, then back into the building again for more fun.

Needless to say, I love this place.

Thanks again to Katie Holland, follow her for updates and how you can purchase her work!

I love my neighborhood: Wicker Park / Bucktown

I'll be honest, I'm just trying to lure my VA friends out here to visit me...

While Ike and I took our morning walk, cigarette and coffee in hand in the cool morning air, I took a few shots up and down Milwaukee Avenue.  My neighborhood is fantastic: full of vintage shops, restaurant patios, shaded sidewalks, wall murals, and funky architecture.

Looking West on Milwaukee Avenue

Empire Liquors

Looks like we're getting more bike lock-ups.

Dog-friendly patios are the best.

LOVE Myopic Books!

The Flat Iron Arts Building (and home sweet home).

The Stemline guys hanging a sign for Mother's Day (they make the hallway outside of my studio smell so wonderful with their beautiful flowers).

Looking East on Milwaukee Avenue

First Friday -- Studio 215 Featured Artist, Caleb Rocha

Today I'm working on a few custom pieces (must be Mother's Day gifts), and enjoying sipping on my coffee, and having the studio to myself to listen to The Vandellas as loud as I please.

I suppose at some point I'll have to start the epic cleaning required before First Friday tomorrow, but until then I'm going to enjoy this.

By the way -- because tomorrow IS First Friday, I'm proud to welcome Caleb Rocha as my first featured artist!!  He's going to bring some of his prints, and I think there's a possibility he might bring a sculpture.  Stop by my studio on the second floor, #215 (follow the Chicago flag signs!) and see what's up, tomorrow night.

These are some of his pieces that I especially love.

Slow improvements in the studio.

I can't believe how long it took us to unpack some of these boxes!  When we used to move somewhere new with my Momma, she was the absolute BEST at having boxes unpacked almost right away, the living room set up promptly, and dinner (usually home-cooked!) on the table that night.  In my very vivid imagination, that's how things always go... in reality, however, it apparently takes me a week or two.  I will blame this entirely on my 'fella, and leave it at that.  ;)

I've got my work desk set up, and knick knacks in the window

I've got a great view for smoking cigarettes/drinking coffee/eating cereal

I've got the "dream closet" (at least as far as size is concerned)

I've got the couch and the "wall of books" and my jewelry set-up

I've got a cozy place to sleep (albeit LOUD)

I've got my bike all fixed up and ready for the warm weather (if it ever arrives)

and, I've got places to get delicious vegan food!

I don't suppose a girl could ask for much more.

:)

Oh, yeah, and the Cubs are at home on Monday.  So life's good.

Better than I expected.

There came a point last night, probably around 3am when we were still moving in boxes and shelves, that I thought "I've made a horrible mistake".  I felt pretty awful, but there it was -- we had so much stuff, we didn't have a kitchen, we had spent a small fortune (by our standards) on the U-Haul and new appliances, and I was really afraid.

What if this isn't at all what I thought it would be?  What if I was going to fall asleep crying for my old bedroom?  What if Dave was unhappy, too?

But this morning, all of those feelings of doubt faded away.  I stepped out the front door of my new building, onto a busy, bustling, loud sidewalk packed with people from all walks of life.  There were cabs honking their horns, and bicyclists defying death in the intersection, and I realized that when I had pictured moving to the "big city", this had been what I'd had in mind all along.  Chaos and noise.  It was like music to my ears.  I thought "this is all mine", and I smiled.

This is my little corner of the world now.  An office with a view, high ceilings, at least a decade of dust caked onto the windows, and a man outside picking through the trash and screaming at nothing or no one in particular, while I sit at my desk and listen to Charlie Parker.

I'm so immensely proud of where I am today, and so grateful that Dave is on board for this journey.  This is going to be a hell of a time.

Don't forget, I'm still running my giveaway for a season pass (for TWO!) to the Randolph Street Market here in beautiful Chicago IL!

Enter here!

I feel like I've arrived.

We signed the lease and got the keys today.  I'm still in a bit of a state of disbelief -- about the space, about the gallery, about the new neighborhood -- all of it is so overwhelming in the best way.

We went to lunch at Native Foods (god, I'm going to go broke with this spot only a short walk away), and took a walk to the park that must be the neighborhood's namesake (Wicker Park).  It's so exciting to have a whole new neighborhood to explore!

I'm so relieved that the waiting is over, even though it means that the packing and cleaning is starting.  So I'm pretty tired, and I don't know if I'll be posting a lot this week (out of excitement) or not posting at all (out of exhaustion), but when the time comes, I can't wait to share more pictures of the space with y'all.

Don't forget to enter my giveaway for a free season pass to the Randolph Street Market HERE!  I've extended it to the end of the month, because I know I'm going to be busy this week.

Okay, time to be lazy on the couch.

The time has come, the walrus said...

Can't wait to post this: This post has been on my MacBook for a few days, just waiting to post.  The power of positive thinking, people!!

I've been waiting for what feels like forever, but realistically has only been two weeks, to say this -- I'm excited to announce that I will soon be part of the great community of creators in the Flat Iron Arts Building in Wicker Park!!

That means I will be opening the doors to my studio for the First Friday events, and will also have open office hours for anyone to come meet me, visit me in my studio, see how I work, and purchase items on the spot.  I'm also looking forward to hopefully starting some sort of "social club" where other artists in the Chicago area can gather, talk about their art, discuss marketing and all of those un-fun aspects of creating that need to be talked about (and get tips from others), and drink lemonade and eat berry pies on my couch.

But before I get carried away on all of these ideas, big and small, I need to go do a happy dance!  An extended, arm-flapping, foot-stomping, twirling happy dance!

The main living area, with the studio space to the left (through the French doors).

Those are our windows!!

My absolutely amazing new building.