Cherry Tree Blossoms
Muscari
Late peach blossoms.
Spring Blossoms
Published April 6, 2013 by kurolaceArt
All posts in the Art category
Spring Bee
Published April 6, 2013 by kurolace
A bee visiting the red bud tree.
You Always Have Friends Around You
Published March 10, 2013 by kurolaceI often have extremely strange dreams when I nap in the afternoon. Even for naps that only last 5, 10, 20 minutes… Today was no exception. I struggled with how to present this to you, and in the end decided to transcribe it, just as it happened / sounded/ seemed to me when it occurred. Of course, this means its in a strange and choppy style, somewhere between bad poetry and prose. But perhaps this helps capture the meandering nature of the entity featured… Also, unfortunately i can’t provide you with the images that should accompany it. If anything, I would have liked to find a silhouette shadow of a man, sitting in the window sill’s light, smoking.
Like many of my dreams, this straddled the line of creepy and comforting.
I dozed on my bed, in the afternoon sun.
And it wasn’t long before it began.
I saw on the wall, the shadow of a man,
through my half closed eyes.
Not quite right, the shape wavered, and dragged.
It has become my practice,
at such times,
to feign sleep.
I was on my side, and soon turned over a bit more,
only to find myself suddenly ice cold, and aware,
of the ragged breathing, which was not my own.
And then, a calloused grey finger, dragging slowly, but gently, on my forehead…
T…i…g…h…t
“I can’t breathe. Could you move over, please?
I like to lay here next to you, you know.
Oh, and I know you can see me…
sometimes,
particularly in the shower…
in the evening, when its a bit later, and a bit darker,
there, in the bathroom above the garage.
I like to watch you wash your hair,
its such lovely hair, I do like it.
So I watch you wash your hair,
And sometimes, I feel, a bit like a man again.
At night, you say your lonely, but you know,
You always have friends around you.
Oh no, don’t be afraid, you’ve got nothing to fear
from the ones who gather here.
These Dead, you see, are neither bad, nor good.
we simply don’t know what to do with ourselves.
But we found you, and now we follow you.
Oh, and once or twice,
when something, not so nice
has come to haunt you,
we’ve always helped, to keep you safe,
because we wouldn’t know what to do
if we couldn’t always be around you.
Oh, we’re Clarence, and Jim, and Lily,
and then there’s him,
and a relative of the late John Addams.
In your room, in your kitchen, in your car,
At the gym.
Through all the various things that you do,
You always have friends around you.”
Near Boiling
Published March 8, 2013 by kurolace
Water about to boil.
Big Tree Gone Bye Bye :(
Published March 7, 2013 by kurolaceSo, yesterday the big fruitless mulberry tree in our backyard finally got cut down. I’m pretty bummed about it, because that tree was older than me, and so, a huge part of my childhood… lol, no pun intended. I used to have a swing on it (the round kind on a single rope), which sent me to the ER twice upon breaking. Also, it was the main shade tree in our yard… we have a ton of fruit trees, and a sorta big cherry tree, but none that really shaded our yard (and house) like the mulberry.
Of course, I knew the tree’s days were numbered. My mom had mentioned that it’d be cut down this spring. The roots were really starting to cause a problem, and the branches have always been a problem (as you can see in the pics below, we have power lines in our backyard). In case you don’t know, mulberry trees drop fuzzies in the spring, so my dad wanted to cut it down before it started doing that (they are the fuzzies that never run out – you find them everywhere all summer long, and still some in the winter!)
So here are the before and after shots 😦
All gone. 😦
Etsy Finds: Wrought Iron
Published March 1, 2013 by kurolaceI’ve been back at it on Etsy… browsing for things I can’t afford to buy. This time I’ve found a few great Wrought Iron items. Many of the wrought iron items on Etsy are vintage things like shelf brackets, wall decor, hangers… but there are some other interesting items as well.
$18.50 from Raidersoflostloot
For example, this vintage 3 tier shelf caught my eye, because the twist in this one is cool. Also, it looks to be a nice black color (I don’t like that vintage not-quite-black-brown color you sometimes find with vintage wrought iron). Its available from Raidersoflostloot for $18.50.
ModernIronWorks $37.99
One of the wrought iron makers/sellers on Etsy offers garden gates and shelf brackets, and although I prefer the flower and humming bird designs, I though that this Spider Web shelf bracket was cool. There was also a spider web gate in the sellers shop. The seller is ModernIronWorks and the bracket is priced at $37.99.
$49.99 CathysMiniatures
At first, I didn’t notice that this was a miniature item! If you’re a miniatures enthusiast or have a (haunted) doll house, you might like this miniature candelabra, which comes complete with candles. The only downside is the price (it is handmade, I assume). Its $49.99 from CathysMiniatures.
Taitaya $99.70
Next I came across these cool wrought iron roses. They aren’t very big, but very cool. The cost about $99 and are from Taitaya, a forge in the UK.
$114.99 stainedglassturtle
There are plenty of wrought iron candelabras available on Etsy, some vintage, some new. But I found a very cool candle holder which combines two of my favorites: wrought iron and stained glass. This cherry red heart stained glass candle holder costs $114.99 and is sold by stainedglassturtle. There was also a clear/white one available.
MetalMastersinc $3,300
Finally, I can help but love wrought iron beds, so naturally I adore this Victorian style king sized bed set, which costs about $3,300. It includes the bed, two side tables and two lamps, so its not a bad deal. Of course I have neither the money nor the space for it! 😦 Its from MetalMastersInc. Just think how great it would look with dark red & black satin sheets! *drool*
Well, there you have it, a wrought iron Etsy wish list. How do you feel about wrought iron?
Some Kawaii Things In My Room
Published December 22, 2012 by kurolaceHi! I suddenly got an urge to take photos in my room, so I decided to showcase some of my favorite items. These items, by my definition, are all kawaii! Although perhaps not all of them are usual examples of kawaii (no big bubble eyes, cute foods, or any of that).
To start, here’s a cute “piggy” bank I bought I Target a few years back.
My mom bought this for me last year while cruising the Baltic.
My Stitch plush… and yes that’s a bandana around his neck.
Another bank… I’ve had this one since before I can remember.
My Victorian bed style wire jewelry organizer…I bought it on Amazon.
This is my Twinkle doll from the old cartoon Rainbow Bright. It makes a squeak noise when you shake it.
A jewelry stand I bought at Hobby Lobby. There are mesh parts (which you can barely see in the picture), where I can store my earrings.
Its hard to take a picture of something like this… not only is it behind glass, but its a foil picture too!
I think the above things are pretty true to my personality. Of course there are plenty of other things which aren’t so true to my personality, but slowly I’m trying to phase those things out.
What sort of kawaii things do you have in your room?
Sculpted Evening Bags by Kathleen Dustin
Published December 19, 2012 by kurolaceI was searching for a snap purse I had seen at the store the other day – a cheap one, covered in purple rosebuds, when I came across Kathleen Dustin’s webpage (thanks to the search term “rosebud purse”). The “exquisite evening bags” on her website really are something unique, and lovely. Of course, seeing as they are works of art, they are a bit out of my price range ($700-800 for a wrist bag). But I still wanted to share some of the pictures from her site with you all, because the bags really are gorgeous…
The bag which came up in my search results is this rosebud bag.
There are some other interesting bags, including gourds, artichokes, and this “opening seed pod” bag.
And these stone bags are really neat.
On the mainpage, there’s a blurb about the artist:
Widely recognized as one of the world’s leading polymer clay artists, Kathleen Dustin has been a pioneer, an educator, and source of inspiration for those interested in this emerging medium. Her exquisite evening bags and polymer clay jewelry are celebrated for their translucent depth of surface and vibrant colors as well as attention to the details of the natural world that inspires her. Kathleen’s desire is to make wearable art that can enable anyone to embrace Oscar Wilde’s sentiment, “One must either be a work of art or wear a work of art”.
There’s also sculpture and jewelry listed on the page’s gallery, but for me its the handbags / purses which catch my eye most.
Etsy Finds: Black Hearts
Published December 18, 2012 by kurolaceHi! I have another set of good Etsy finds for you. This time the search term was one of my favorite accessory/decorations: Black Heart / Hearts. I love simple black hearts, and also sometimes not so simple (like filigree). It think they are the perfect mix of cute, elegant, and sophisticated.
So here we go….
Silver Trumpet Jewelry
To start off the list is a nice charm bracelet with large black hearts from Silver Trumpet Jewelry. There are a few other nice charm bracelets in that store as well. $32 isn’t exactly cheap, but keep in mind that making charm bracelets takes time and lots of materials. I would prefer if this bracelet had either bright silver metal parts, black, or bright gold. These days I just am not a big fan of the aged-bronze/brass look. (Although at one point that’s all I liked)
CBDahlia
The next item is a bit of a twist on “Black Heart”… Typically I’m not into these anatomically correct hearts, but I thought it was clever in this case, and the fact that these are carved is impressive. So if you like that sort of “sarcastic” type of thing, these black heart necklaces are for you! The shop is CBDahlia and each necklace costs $38.
fikashop
Of course, we can always make our own custom items, embellished with these cute black heart studs! They’re on clearance too! Just $4.52, from fikashop. I’ve never used studs before, but I’m under the impression that they are relatively easy to use.
The Washi Shop
If you aren’t familiar with Washi tape, its similar to masking tape because of its paper feel. I love it. Mostly I use it for mailing / packaging items in a pretty way. So you know I just love this black heart, lacey washi tape! Its from The Washi Shop and costs $2.50.
ecofriendly notebook from thisisit
For anyone who likes to horde collect notebooks like I do, check out this “ecofriendly” notebook from thisisit. Its 8.5″x5.5″ and costs $18. You can choose between lined and unlined pages too, which is nice. I love cute school supplies and stationary – even though I’m no longer in school, hehe. Seeing this notebook actually made me think about trying to do something similar by using fabric… hmm I’ll have to try it out and maybe make a tutorial! 😛
nurdanceyiz
Oh, I came across this great throw pillow during my search. Its a little bit pricey, but really cute. I wish my room was a little bit more “in-theme” and that my bed was big enough to have another throw pillow on it! I think I might prefer it with lace instead of that leaf stuff… but still, this is very cute. $42 from nurdanceyiz.
GlitznGlass
Lastly I found this mug with pained on hearts. The hearts kinda look like they have eyes! I’m sort of a sucker for mugs.. lol, I think it might have something to do with my tea obsession… The mug is hand painted and costs $18 from GlitznGlass.
Well, thats it! Hope you enjoyed looking at the pretties and maybe you have gained some inspirations! See you next time! 🙂
Lace Ornaments
Published December 16, 2012 by kurolaceHiya!
I know its been a while, so soon I’ll post a more “update” type of post…. but for now I wanted to give a shameless plug for my Etsy store, which I FINALLY put stuff in.
As I’ve previously mentioned, I have an embroidery machine, which can make all sorts of nifty things. One of my favorites is Freestanding Lace. I’ve made a few different lace projects, and for the Christmas season I made some lace ornaments. I sold a decent number at craft fairs over the last few weeks, but now that I’m done with craft fairs, I’ve got the rest listed in my Etsy shop. The ornaments are $3 each or 4 for $10.
I took pictures of them today since we finally got a small tree for our living room. It was overcast outside, so the colors aren’t as warm as they really should be.
$3 each, 4 for $10
Kurolace 