I Heart Creepy Dolls

I want to start out with a HUGE thank you to Casey and Sloane Simmons, owners of Stuff in Brookside. Some time ago, they invited me to be one of their "Artists in Action" for the Brookside Art Fair. I had the pleasure of hanging out in the gorgeous weather, doing mosaics and talking it up with some awesome people. Here are Lori Buntin, super cute chick and artist extrodinairre (yes, Lori is with Hoop Dog Studios and the one who does the terrific dog chairs at Stuff), and The One and Only Casey Simmons. To say I had a blast at this event is an understatement!! I really really really (please) hope that Casey and Sloane allow me to join them next year! We received many requests for mosaic classes and have picked some dates, so check the Stuff website for more information coming soon.

And I actually got some things finished while on the sidewalk hanging out! Some of it was snatched off the table and bought just as I was finishing it. Thanks so much to everyone who came by to say hello!!!!

Now, for the title of the blog. The cottage has been for sale for about a month now and it's so difficult to live with everything stripped down and depersonalized! Gone are the rusty bird cages, the dress forms, the armless chalk cupie doll, and (most of) the tarnished silver. I haven't been junking because I really want to know what new space we're in so I can picture where everything will go. I feel like my life is on hold!

But today, I could stand it no longer! After spending some time with Sweet Repose I felt inspired and cruised on over to the Mission Road Antique Mall for just a few precious moments. I found this wonderful doll . . . (it was music to my ears to hear Jason dryly say: Great. Another creepy doll).

A funky, rusty bucket . . . (the rustier, the better) . . .

And this holy water dispenser. If you were raised Catholic, you may remember these by the entrance of the church. I thought it would look so cool on the wall in a cluster of antique photos and empty frames. I can hardly wait to decorate that new space, no matter which one it will be. This week I'm going to ask some blog owners if I can post some of their photos to show you where I'm drawing some of my inspiration. I feel like I want to go truly funky French country with at least some of the rooms in my new house. I don't know how some of these people featured in magazines with children do it with cream, light gray and white decor. Come on?? My children eat corndogs (not the vegetarian child), chocolate chip cookies, and fruit roll ups. What planet are these people from where their perfect children make nary a mark on all of that light furniture? The Stepfords, we are not.

Inked

I had a friend at work tell me I was in the latest issue of Inked, a local mag you can pick up free at your favorite KC coffee house or restaurant:

http://www.inkkc.com/article/5017&pt=Trash-to-art:-Stuff-boutique-

Also mentioned are some other terrific artists, Andrea Ring of Amuck, Jane Hosey-Stern, and Ninette Maumus who have received shout-outs on my blog.

Please come see us and check out our work at the Brookside Art Fair on May 1, 2, and 3.

Brookside Art Fair!!!

If you're in the Kansas City area, check out one of the best art fairs in the Midwest happening in the Brookside neighborhood on May 1, 2 and 3. I'll be at Stuff as one of their "Artists in Action" all three days demonstrating my mosaics and getting to know the customers. I loved hanging out in the store for my custom mosaic heart event. It was so fun talking to people about what kind of art they enjoyed to make or collect, discovering fun facts about the loved ones I made hearts for, and I even found out from one customer that I could find Brendan's skinny jeans at the Arizona Trading Company in Westport for a lot less money than what I pay now. Please follow this link to the Stuff site for more information: http://www.pursuegoodstuff.com/ArtShow2009-05.htm

Stuff's other Artists in Action include Kari Heybrock and her amazing glass beads and Elle Binder and her oh so artfully created metal jewelry. Also, don't forget to check out Andrea and Bryan Ring of Amuck (http://amuckdesign.blogspot.com/) who are in booth number 16 at the fair. Andrea and Bryan are amazing artists who have also just been accepted to a prestigious show in NYC!!!! Congrats Andrea and Bryan!!!

Can't wait to see you in Brookside!!!

The Death of a Disco Dancer

Ahhhhhh . . . I spent some time with my dear Morrissey this Tuesday night. I only bawled like a baby through the first two songs, unlike when I saw him in 2007 and didn't really get a grip until about song number five. My friend Katie was kind and only made fun of me a little. (The guy on the other side of her had higher pitched screams than I). He did mainly new stuff, a few older songs peppered in like Ask Me, This Charming Man and of course, How Soon is Now. My very favorite song he sung to me was The Death of a Disco Dancer. This is just the most awesome song and to have him do it was a treat that I savored and I may have squeezed out a tear or two during that one, also. We saw him at the Midland which was is fabulous. We parked across the street for $2, walked right in about an hour before the show started, bought shirts and had a beer or two while enjoying the gorgeous architecture. Brendan and his friend had a blast. The staff of the Midland were great and let me know, hey, your boy was up here walking around. That's the beauty of having a child with giant hair; it's hard for him to hide. I hope Morrissey keeps up his two year appearance streak in KC. If not, I'll just have to make arrangements to go to him, I suppose. Am I over the top about my affection for him? You bet, and happy about it!!!! (Photo found here)

My Kind of Town . . .

Last weekend, we spent some spring break time with my brother, Kahn, and his wife, Kavi, in Chicago. I love that town.

They live in Lincoln Park, a super cool part of the city that's packed with interesting buildings and homes that are narrow, but long.

Although we spent a lot of time just hanging out at home relaxing (ahhhh . . .), we did get out some.

We hit the Lincoln Park Zoo, a free zoo right in the heart of downtown. It's great to be at a zoo looking at animals with the backdrop of huge skyscrapers looming in the distance.

It was a really quality zoo and I wish we would have had more time to explore, but what we did see was wonderful.

Another place we checked out was the Chicago Music Exchange.

They have rows and rows of guitars that you can pluck off the wall and play. Brendan loves it here.

I love the style of this place. Big chandeliers and fluffy couches with the instruments as the artistic centerpieces.

I especially enjoyed this room.

This was really funny.

This is now.

And this was then. Kahn was about 17 in this picture. Brendan was about 3 weeks old. 15 years has flown by.

Another great thing about Chicago is that you can walk to all these wonderful places. We love this breakfast place called Wishbone. Very fun decor.

Another section of Wishbone.

The weather was perfect while we were there, sunny and nearly 60 degrees. What a super spring break! I'm glad we got to get away because now it's time to get to work. We're packing up our house in preparation for a move to a bigger place. Yeah!!!!!!

What a Day for a Parade

Last Saturday, Jason, Dash and I went to the Brookside parade. What a great day with highs in the 60's and lots of sun. Brookside is a terrific neighborhood and the parade is wonderful. Very family oriented and sans a bunch of drunk idiots.

This parade draws quite a crowd. Lots of kids and dogs with hair painted green.

I love guys in drag.

I think the Lucky Charms float was my favorite.

These guys were fun playing guitars and rocking out on their float. They were having a great time.

The old cars were terrific. After the parade, we went to Govenor Stumpy's at 71st and Oak to eat. All the old cars and corvettes from the parade were there but the best part were the two bagpipers that walked into the restaraunt and started playing. It was a great day for a parade and with a maiden name like Dulohery, I didn't even have to be wearing green to get into the spirit of it all.

The Finished Product

Claudia and Amber came over yesterday to grout their pieces. Look back a few posts to see the mosaic partay beginnings last weekend.


Claudia did a frame for her husband and included all kinds of references. He's going to love it.

He likes to bird watch, so Claudia included this cardinal.

She used these old Anagram letters I love and the angel is cute.

The red roses were popped off of a vase.

Amber's zen-like box is for her mom. It was very gutsy for her to choose a box her first time out. They have lots of surface area, are tricky to grout, and take hours of finishing when you paper the bottom, back, and paint the inside like Amber did.

Amber's mom gave her the frog she put on the top of the box. It will be fun for it to come back to her like this.

I had this cameo for a long time and it looks perfect in this box. Especially the way Amber applied the antiquing glaze.

I had so much fun getting together with friends to create art that I'm already plotting my next mosaic partay. One of my friends, Dawn, is a collage artist and I think she would really enjoy doing her own mosaic. Dawn, are you up for it?!