As cold weather steadily approaches, I find myself inevitably yearning for my younger days at my old home in San Jose, California. In the midst of fantasizing about the warmer regions of the country, I stumbled upon John Holcomb’s wonderful series of pieces titled, “United Plates” created through his one man illustration and print company, Shorthanded Studios.  In this series, he depicts each state of the union as whatever food its outline conveys.  Now with the help of John Holcomb and his clever creations, I am not only missing California…but I’m also hungry.

An Awesome Book of Thanks! from Dallas Clayton on Vimeo.

Angela Rossi, artist behind BeatUpCreations and participant in the December I AM exhibition

I AM is an online exhibition and shop created by Austrian artist and designer, Mareike Auer. With a great interest in other artists and designers worldwide, she came to notice a need for a platform that would allow others the opportunity to exhibit their work in a comprehensive manner.

Beginning in December, the work of some of the most brilliant artists from across the world will be compiled on the I AM website.  Each artist will be given their own permanent I AM profile page to allow viewers to browse and purchase the work of any specific one that may suit their fancy.  Now the only downside is having to sit and wait till December!  In the mean time, check out their blog and facebook page.

Despite my fervent efforts to stay organized, at the start of each week, something is released into the atmosphere and any ounce of organization that once kept me sane quickly disintegrates.   I wake up resenting alarm clocks as I force my head off the pillow, slowly moving from my bed, to my closet, to the bathroom sink, fantasizing along the way about the nap I swear I’ll take as soon as I get home and never do….and before I know it, I’m running late again.  I pull a sweater out of the dirty laundry, throw on some deodorant, grab my purse,  and as I reach for the car door, I realize that I forgot to get directions….or I picked up the wrong set of keys….or I’m wearing the one pair of black tights that has a hole on the back of the thigh, exposing that hefty bruise I acquired during last week’s race out the door.

So with this seemingly unavoidable frustration in mind, I call this one, “Ode To Everyday” – a 56″ x 71″ drawing on paper using pastel, watercolor, gesso, and colored pencil– because, let’s face it, Monday morning can’t be blamed for the next six days that I manage to  leave the house forgetting something crucial…

I hate moving more than anything, but I must admit, the chance to decorate a new space quickly makes every bit of the heavy lifting well worth it.  Unfortunately, once I am settled in, I soon feel restless and am eager to switch up my decor all over again.  Thanks to TurningArt, I may have found a way to pacify my art-related A.D.D..

TurningArt is a company that allows subscribers to regularly browse the work of hundreds of hand selected artists from across the country and build a queue of work that they are interested in having for their home/office/wherever they see fit.  When their queue is ready, a framed, high-quality print of their first piece is shipped out.  Then, based on the chosen subscription plan, the next print is automatically sent, so they are never left with an empty frame or given the chance to fall victim to home decor boredom.

I have no shame in admitting that I am the generation of the American Girl Doll. I had Felicity, the Boston tea-party era chick who enjoyed horses and parlor sitting. I was happy with Fel, but I did sometimes grow envious of the girl down the street who owned the Victorian one from Boston. There was something about her books (mostly the description of her home and her lace up boots) that made me question whether I had picked the right one. I imagine she would have this bust sitting in her burgundy-velvet curtained window overlooking Commonwealth. Alas, probably without the plants.

Check out FloralArt LA for more!

I have finally realized that no matter the circumstance, within a few months of living anywhere, I am soon itching with cabin fever and anxiously mapping out each and every step of my fantasy travels across the world.  Upon my latest mental adventure, the Michelberger Hotel in Berlin, Germany popped up on my radar and has since given  me a whole new perspective on the importance of somehow obtaining the German version of Rosetta Stone and purchasing a plane ticket abroad by tomorrow.

The main concept for the Michelberger was to create a comfortable and stylistically eclectic space while remaining in the category of “budget hotel”.  Set in an old factory building, each one of the rooms carries an individually designed loft-style atmosphere with high ceilings and expansive windows.  My favorite part: the mix-matching of modern objects with hand-built wooden furniture and flea-market findings.

via Andrew Goldsmith