Art Therapy

I don't know about you folks, but it's bleak times around here. The only consolation is that it's been raining somewhat daily, I can't begin to describe to you how much the rain means to me. Looking at beautiful images helps as well -- I suppose that explains the ever-so-slightly increase in postings on here. I've been very lucky with coming across things that are both a sight for sore eyes and the bruised mind.

These three images brought instant smiles.

Kaleidoscope-inspired collage by Rachel Lois Caunt.

"The Times They Are A-Changin" by Liat Yaniv.

"Floral Ocean" by Betsy Walton.

// This peek into an Art-Deco apartment in Shanghai is satisfying my voyeuristic thirst. It is so charmingly decorated, plus I'm a big sucker for those steel-and-glass french doors.

// Also, even though I've never been a fan of the kitschy decor (feels a little claustrophobic for me), I am totes amoureux with the home of Albert and Gillian Maysles (shot here by Todd Selby). Doesn't it shout "life well lived"?

// Lastly, has anyone out there tried Bookmooch? Just wondering if it works.

Diem Chau

Head over heels with these works by Diem Chau, beautifully intricate with a slight nod towards whimsicality. There are plenty more to gawk at in her gallery, where I've been blissfully spending time. Also, be sure to check out her crayon sculptures!

via day of practical awakening.

// A fun link for you, it's a little silly, but hilarious nonetheless. Or maybe I'm just easily amused :-) Besides, haven't everyone sort of thought about it? -- A photography project entitled "What if You Lived at Ikea".

I swear I'm not a shopaholic

If your first thoughts were along the lines of "Nature photography?", you would be mistaken. These are actually office products, produced by Appree of South Korea. Yup, I thought they were pretty cool, I would certainly love to have the gingko notepads around.

Also loving the tissue box with the tissue in flower-like folds. No seriously, as utilitarian as the regular ol' rectangular-shaped ones are, you gotta admit they are ugly mofos that add nothing to a room's decor, am I right? I'm just being persnickety, you say? Hmph, fine, I still say these are prettier to look at.

(via babyramen)

Another cool thing for you to check out (although I trust you'll have come across it since it's making the blog rounds -- it's that cool!) is Kelli Anderson's Paper Record Player. Essentially a wedding invite, she's designed it to showcase a song the bride and her groom wrote and sung together, basically by turning the paper invite into a playable record all on its own! Definitely one for the keeps huh? This isn't the first time her work has made the blog rounds either, I first came across her name when she produced wedding hankermaps (maps printed onto handkerchiefs) for another couple. An undeniably talented lady, that one is.

Mirka

I love rings. They are the one type of accessories I consistently love. I remember one of the first ones that I had bought when I was a teen. It was a chunky rose carved out of silver and soldered onto a half-round silver band. It looked huge on my then-scrawny fingers, and in fact, my cousin made fun of it :-) She wondered out loud if I wore it for self-defence purposes, hah! But no matter, I loved it and wore it every chance I got (which wasn't very many since national schools forbade ornamental adornment of any kind. And yes, even barrettes count as ornamental, can you imagine?)

All these reminiscing just to show you what caught my eye, Mirta's rings. For some inexplicable reason, I've always had an easier time finding chunkier-sized rings that look good on my fingers rather than the thin, wispy ones, which is what I love about the rings above. They look like they can be worn in polite society and yet have just enough idiosyncrasy to make them charming.

I also ❤ ❤ ❤ these pieces below, especially the necklace. She's got a lot of other lovelies at her etsy store.

Ogling

I'm not one to accessorize much, which I sometimes feel is a shame because there are so many little pieces that I see and admire and would indeed love, scratch that, yearn to have. Shingo Matsushita's pieces are an example of that. I love the fact that he uses crochet as a design element but instead of the result looking dowdy, the combination of materials (threads, pearl, leather) and color choices makes his pieces infinitely edgier (oh how I hate that word but you get the drift ;-p)

Two links I've been meaning to share: The Makers -- a photography project by Jennifer Causey that's glued me to the computer screen for the past couple of hours. I love sneak peeks into artiste's work places!

This next link has been on my to-share list for a while, but because I've remained conflicted about it, I never got around to it. Anyway, I've decided it's definitely worth posting about because, for what it's worth, I think it's thought-provoking :-) So here it is: New York City Garbage, its Flickr collection is worth a look at too.