SURLY SHOP

Misses November Postcard by Stacey Earley

Chicago illustrator/painteuse & Everso buddy, Stacey Earley, just opened an Etsy shop offering postcard prints of her outstanding series of paintings featuring female nudes with animal heads. And they're calendar girls! At three bucks a pop, these cards are not to be passed up and beyond frame-worthy. Buy them all for yourself and double up for your BFF!

Miss June Postcard by Stacey Earley

Earley also recently returned from opening The Windy City Show at Kayo Gallery in Salt Lake City and an exciting visit to the Pinball Hall of Fame in Las Vegas (a stone's throw from my fave, the Liberace Museum).


Miss September Postcard by Stacey Earley

Support independent artists and all-around rad ladies.


Miss March Postcard by Stacey Earley

Friday the 13th: Lulu Voodoo!!

I have been desiring to write up charming & gorgeous (black) art & (witch) craft powerhouse, Lulu Voodoo, for quite a spell. Laying Friday the 13th before her adorable lil feet seemed a proper sacrifice, so much so I wasn't the only or first to be moved to such a tribute.
Karswell, the charismatic cult leader over at The Horrors of it All (phenomenal pre-code comics blog & SO much more), is featuring an Evil Doll theme today at the bewitching Miss Lulu's suggestion.
Go! Love! Buy the t-shirt!!

Now. Back to what else makes LV so special.
Firstly, the magic that is Lulu Voodoo's Etsy Shop. Check out the hand-embroidered tees & extra rad belt buckles:





Second, her enchanting collage art that I am crazy lucky to have several pieces of in my personal collection.
This being my favorite:

And lastly, but mostly, our decades-enduring friendship (as evidenced by Polaroid, Halloween '95):


Happy Friday the 13th, Lulu! Love you!

andwabisabi on etsy

Andwabisabi designs super-duper ADORABLE PDF cross stitch patterns that sell for just $2.50-$7.50 per pattern. A STEAL.
One of the first craft hobbies I picked up as a child was cross stitch, so I have a real soft spot for this shop. What a sweet little gift/project for all ages!

From andiwabisabi's etsy profile:

Hello! My name is Grace. I'm currently an undergrad student in illustration design. During my free-time I like to keep my hands busy whether I’m baking, cross-stitching, or making earrings. My love for cross-stitching has inspired me to start creating drawings on muslin or fabric with colorful threads. What I like most about my work is the spontaneity. I’ve been working with thread on fabrics and I love how my work starts out as something but evolves into something else by finish. It’s ever-changing and non-permanent, and exciting to work with.
I usually draw about things that relate to me or my family, my childhood, places I’ve been to or wish to visit, or just about little stories I make up. I would like my work to spark interest in viewers and remind them of their childhood experiences and long-lost thoughts. I’d be interested to know how they relate to my work and how they interpret it.

안녕하세요. 십자수를 너무 좋아하는 선영이입니다. 몇년 동안 도안을 사서 십자수를 놓다가, 저더 한번 도안을 만들어봐야겠다고 생각해서 시작했어요. 아주 쉽고, 심플한 십자수 도안들이에요.

So what is wabisabi?
Wabi sabi is an Japanese aesthetic, it's about finding beauty in imperfect objects, accepting its flaws and the wears and tears of time; the impermanence. And in the modern world I believe this is something we really need to embrace.

Love love LOVE.

My Favorite Kelleee

Kellee & Gency.


I fatefully met Kellee from My Favorite Mirror at the Constructor craft show last year. We were reunited on Facebook and will someday be together again in the flesh, preferably at Storybook Land.

My Favorite Mirror collaborates with independent artists to create pocket mirrors, key chains, mouse pads & coaster sets with awesomest darn images you ever did see.

I just received & highly recommend these:


Wolf Baby vs. Fox Baby Keychain by The Black Apple

Honorable Tiger Pocket Mirror by Berkley Illustrations

Get out, Dude! Pocket Mirror by The Little Friends of Printmaking

Underwater Circus Pocket Mirror by Jaime Zollars

Her Words are so Flowery (G.I.R.L. no. 9) Pocket Mirror by Jen Corace

You can also catch Kellee & My Favorite Mirror at a craft show near you all summer long or on her new hit reality television show, America's Next Top Hobo (ANTH).

When in Bklyn..

I've loved the Fred Flare web store long time.

Always perfect for a gift (for me) and the home of all things neat and cute, I was naturally psyched to learn they opened a brick-and-mortar shop in Brooklyn. Of course, two trips to the Borough of Kings later and I still haven't actually made it in the door, but some handmade Valentines created by moi are in transit right now (pictured above).

Why? For a good cause!

All valentines will be sold online and in our new Brooklyn store for the super friendly price of ONLY $4 EACH and ALL the proceeds from the sales of these valentines will go directly to Elder Craftsmen, an NYC based organization that brings craft workshops to local senior citizens. Our last charity event raised $5K. Can we beat it? With your amazing creation in the mix, I know we can!

Check out the Flickr pool.

So buy buy buy starting the last week in January and be charitable to some NY senior artists and downright sweet to your Valentine.

Xmas Card of theYear

Kime Buzzelli is my hero.
Her art is just my absolute favorite. I think I found her etsy shop a year ago or so, or may have even caught an article online that linked me to the shop. I can't remember. All I know is I'm in love with all her gorgeous images. I want to be one of those girls, have those toys and clothes and awesome make-up & hair.

My fine art & costume design background serve me well with my children's clothing line, but trust me, 10-15 years ago, who Kime is now would have been the prototype of who I would have hoped to grow up to be. Make sense? Her work makes want to paint & draw again, which is the best result of admiration: inspiration.

She also has a super rad boutique in Echo Park called Show Pony. I'm telling ya, this mofo is living the dream.

Anyway, I am Kime's friend on Facebook and was lucky enough to make it onto her Christmas card list after gushing over an image of this year's card. Got it in the mail today. I can't tell you how happy it makes me.
A million thanks, Kime!


And thanks again to Kim Romero. She does sooo much for me & this time, I received amazing O'Button ornaments (you can see one to the right of Kime's card) and a leopard ring I admired from afar. I'm a lucky, lucky girl.

On the left side over there, you can see a gingerbread girl ornament made by the talented hands of 4 year-old princess-in-training & Hannah Montana enthusiast, Amy Gruber. That also gets me completely giddy every time I catch a glimpse.

How am I ever gonna tear the tree down??

See ya, 08! Thanks for the Memories!

Thanks to all of you out there reading, buying, encouraging, inspiring and all that other good stuff!
Especially:
Mommy
Kim Romero and circles are forever
Laurie Richter and Fly Right Gifts
Shorty's
Renegade Handmade Store
Etsy
Venus Zine
Katie and Molly
Michael
Kim M.

Here's to a brilliant and beautiful 2009!

xo, r.