One Can Never Have too Much Gorey

Are you as excited about this weekend as I am? I am sooo happy to sleep in and enjoy some luxurious hours in the upcoming two days. It’s been a very long week and I am in great need of recollecting myself.

In the meantime I would like to share some of these wonderful Edward Gorey cards I picked up last weekend. I’ve posted some additional ones over at Steam Spectre and would love you pay a visit there and possibly “follow me”? Happy Weekend to you! What are your plans?

{more here}

 

Inspiration

I’ve been very busy indeed the past week or so, but I happily managed to get this little tree for our apartment. It smells so lovely and there is such magic in the soft glow of Christmas lights in the evening. I love this time of year and try not to think too much about how fast it seems to be flying by.

So many blogs have been posting wonderful wish lists and gift guides this season. I’ve been thinking about doing one myself. Naturally it will probably be very Etsy-themed. (Sometimes I think I will need to start another blog and call it “My love affair with Etsy”…)

A few weeks ago I received a very sweet email from Sarah who had discovered Gypsea Tree and gave me an enormous compliment when she told me that she found inspiration here. When you visit her lovely little shop Crooked Thorne Jewelry you will see why I felt so honored. Her work is certainly inspiring to me as well! Below are a few of my favorites.

Part of the description of these bangles are as follows…

“These beautiful bangles have been handmade and aged to look like they just slipped off a Gypsy’s wrist!”

Oh how I love them!

This one is also positively bewitching.

I also love this stunning swan necklace.

Crooked Thorne also has a tempting give away of free gypsy jewels! You must visit!

Thank you for the inspiration Sarah!

{all jewelry photos via Crooked Thorne}

Ruffles and Lace

What girl’s heart doesn’t beat a little faster at the sight of piles of ruffles and spools of silky ribbons? And lace? Oh my… I’ve always thought it would be amazing to learn to make handmade lace, just to know. People often call skills like this a “lost art”, but thanks to the resurgence of crafting and the support of crafters, wonderful old-fashion traditions are made new again. As most of you know I am a big Etsy enthusiast and I always love to see how people find new ways to appreciate the old. I tend to (sadly) dress a little more conservatively than I would like, but any of these would be a lovely way to add a little artistic elegance. What “lost art”  skill would you like to add to your talents?

{All images link back to the little shops they came from}

Houses of Sticks

If you loved all the twiggy wonder of the architecture in Where the Wild Things Are you will especially love these fascinating installations created by Patrick Dougherty.

{all photos via Patrick Dougherty}

Autumn Muse

What have I been doing instead of blogging? Well, a few things. Fall is my creative Muse. Perhaps that is a rather grand statement for my humble offerings, but I do love it all the same.

The beginnings of a warm cozy winter blanket…

Embroidery thread I “borrowed” from my mom. Some of it even belonged to my grandmother and still has the 10 cent price tag.

My little gyspy doll for a very special friend of mine. There just may be more gypsies to come!

Among other projects I’m determined to read the full manual for my camera so that I can take better pictures. So many things to do, so little fall.

What have you all been spending your free time with?

Beautiful Loneliness

I recently discovered this Etsy artist and I think I am in love…

On Ophelia

The other day I started feeling a little melancholy. I think it was the return of the rain, or possibly the seeming end of summer, or perhaps just the general passing of time that late summer early fall always brings. Whatever it was, I felt the desire to collect some images of one my favorite literary characters, Ophelia. I have long been both fascinated and scornful of her. In a scornful period I wrote a paper for a lit class titled “Frailty, thy name is Ophelia!”. It’s rather dramatic to say, but this lady haunts me. There are so many reasons I could expound upon as to why this is, but instead I will offer some artwork…

Are you ever haunted by literary figures?

A Different Way to Fly

I love vintage looking hot air balloons and imaginative Victorian flying contraptions. In reality I think I would be rather terrified to actually ride in a balloon, but romantically it sounds delightful! There is a fascinating short film here if you would like to watch a creepy Victorian  adventure about a man and his flying machine…

Here are some haunting movie stills from The Mysterious Geographic Adventures of Jasper Morello.

“Without Music Life Would be a Mistake.”

I love music and don’t know where I would be without it. I grew up playing the piano and I studied it for over eight years. Once I began college I stopped practicing regularly and I haven’t been able to live with a piano for many years. I miss it, but I know that someday I will have a house again and will be able to put a piano in it. Aaron has a guitar and a lovely Egyptian drum. I also have a beautiful violin that I can’t wait to learn to play. Apartment living isn’t very conducive for musical instruments, but I always think of it as temporary. In the meantime I thought I would share some music that I’ve been filling my days with recently and absolutely love…

In the Dollhouse

When I was little I absolutely adored dollhouses. I still do in fact! Someday I plan to be a crazy old lady incessantly fussing over an enormous elaborate Victorian dollhouse in my front parlor. Until then, I thought I would share some really fascinating pictures of a life size dollhouse art installation. I would love to visit it. I think it’s so clever!

{more here}