Return Addresses

I love mail, and I send a lot of it.

I also have a long-standing propensity for collections, house-related nostalgia, & city-narcissism.

A year ago, I typed my former (& current) return-addresses on six plain envelopes and pinned them to my wall; it was kind of a whim at the time, but I'm into it.

Now, I'm certainly not saying this is conceptual art, but as a fan, I like the matter-of-fact ease of this little collection. The absolute lack of "artistic" talent involved in putting it together, and how, on my wall, I can't decide if it's 2D or 3D.

Pigeonspiration

I walked in on a major afternoon pigeon convention last week on the corner of 16th and Guerrero. Who knows what they were talking about, but this is the kind of simple situation that I'd love to get printed really, really big.

Original Project - Catalogue

Project 02 - in the works, on the floor

Silly-houettes

I know silhouettes are a little five years ago (up there with ironic deer heads), but I think it's funny to change them or make them naughty.

I got this one at an antique store, cut out some devil horns from construction paper and WENT AT IT. Easy as pie, my friends.

I painted, everyone! The rumors are true!

So you may remember from previous bedroom post that I was suffering from a severe case of "ocean walls."

I meant for them to be a BEAUTIFUL NAVY, but failed, and while I am a pisces, 13 months of feeling like a fish was beginning to get to me.

I chose "urban bronze" and even though it looks like ordinary dark grey in the pictures, trust me when it's say super rad and not ordinary dark grey.

Painted

Painting is FUN! I couldn't wait for Luke's vacationing ass to drive me to Home Depot, so I bought overpriced city-paint yesterday morning and painted 2 of my walls a dark slate blue/grey.

The ladder at my flat is, literally, a hundred years old, missing a step, and the definition of rickety. Projects like this make me remember what a good investment a not-dangerous ladder would be.

It turned out pretty fancy, but now I want to do more with it. I'm thinking next month I'll stencil a pattern on top in a lighter color, or something more elaborate? Those wall-mounted vertical planter boxes are so cool.

Until then,

Toilets:

Sorry buddy, I couldn't title this "bathrooms" seeing as my apartment has a separate WC and shower. God, it's just so European feeling!

Anyway, for our joint house-post this month, here are our toilets. If you can go over-the-top kitschy anywhere in the house, it's the bathroom, and we think you should.

Jess:

I agree. GO FREAKIN' CRAZY. My bathroom has sprouted a small collection of toddler portraits.

Creepy? Probably.

Do I care?

WHAT DO YOU THINK?

Lukie:

Again, excuse my iPhone...

Ciggies

I'm all about glorifying everyday objects, and Lou's birthday fell in the middle of a pretty serious embroidery kick I had. I stitched up a little homage to his brand loyalty and threw it at him with a gruff "Here, happy birthday."

Ah, the taboo of le cigs...it feels semi-edgy to acknowledge and embrace them in a wall-art kind of way.

Plus, as a not-causal, very formal, very big fan of Tom Robbins books - no harm in a little Still Life with Woodpecker shout out.

A light at the end of my tunnel-like hallway

My SF apartment's dark, never-ending hallway constantly fills me with anxiety. I already hung a mirror thanks to the advice from a woman buying my couch off craigslist (who also happened to be a feng shui consultant) but it JUST WASN'T ENOUGH YOU GUYS. So last weekend I hauled out this shelf I found off the street and created what some might call the most beautiful hallway-shelf-arrangement-thing in the world. That's right, the ENTIRE world.

It's funny how a piece of street furniture filled with stacks of old magazines, some shells, and a freebee plant, could so easily turned my frown upside down!

ps- I HATE the color of these walls, but there's nothing I can do about it, so NO WISECRACKS.

Planties

Dude, gotta love a Tuesday off.

I rode my bike up to Mojo on Divis this morning to meet my boy for a petit dejeuner.

Every time I ride my bike up to Divisadero, I end up buying something way heavy and have to somehow walk my bike back down to my apartment while awkwardly carrying said purchase. Last time it was some antique bookshelves from the Other Shop, that I had to weirdly hang from my shoulder. This time, I stopped into Plant it Earth, and ended up leaving with a potted tomato plant, a hanging string-of-pearls succulent, and some cilantro seeds with a bag of potting soil. (the seeds were very light).

I planted the cilantro on my back porch while my upstairs neighbors were in the garden fixing up their bikes and sanding down a really cool slab of wood for a coffee table.

The lives we lead...

Headboard

So instead of a headboard I've got these arrows. I mounted them with pins. I think they do the trick if I do say so myself...

(Sidenote: Handy for self-defense against nighttime intruders)


Arrows from The Perish Trust

Flax field trip

I guess it's technically not field trip if you're alone? I mean there were other people in the store I just didn't know any of them okay?!
Anyway here's the stuff I got!

This Sunprint Kit makes cyanotype-like prints and develop with just sun and water! Just regular old faucet water! Tap water! Just needs water from the tap!



These are some gouging/carving tools and a brayer for woodblock printing! I still don't have good ink or good paper, but you should see the amount of wood scraps I have to work with!

Bird landlord

The other week my dad called from Michigan while he was at the hardware store buying birdhouse-making-things.

He asked if he built one and mailed it to me, would I paint it somehow and mail it back? After responding with a stiff cocktail of 'of course' and 'duh,' he built it and tracked it with great scrutiny as it was imported to California, and it arrived today!

I have a visceral desire to paint it to look like a house-house, but maybe a pattern or a stencil could be cool? Could I wrap it in something? Or now I'm imagining buying dollhouse-sized trees and windows and stuff and doing an insanely to-scale, 3D type deal.

On a bird note, my old room at the front of the apartment has a tree outside the window that's straight up cute-infested with humming birds four months out of the year. Really good bird-neighbors. But now, I moved to the back room a month ago and the neighbor's bird feeder hangs three feet from my new window. The birds in the backyard, seriously, chew SO loudly it's insane. If they think this is for them, they are sadly mistaken.

Maybe if they learn to chew more politely, but only maybe then.

Masterpiece

Last month I started doing a paint-by-number of the Mona Lisa. It's been so enjoyable and such a hilarious use of my (ample) free time, I have two numbers left but I just don't want it to be finished.

These most certainly are NOT play things.

This is a very serious collection of my figurines.

Just Kidding...

I think it's nice to have playful gatherings of things in a living space. It lightens the mood and prevents a room from looking too heavy and over thought.
From left to right:
Ceramic dinosaur trinket from childhood, Swedish tomte my grandpa carved, Haitian voodoo doll from Jess, smoking coffee mug from Kidrobot, fabric doll based off a child's drawing.

I'm a really good pen pal.

Evidence:

A short, wordless letter I stitched up and sent to my friend.

I found this fabric loose-leaf paper at the Curiosity Shoppe on Valencia, and freaked out at the possibilities.

When my long-time friend in Michigan bought his first house, I wanted to send a heartier letter to his new mailbox. It looked really cool folded up in an envelope.

Correspondence is important.

Bed & Bedside

This is what it looks like when our rooms are very clean and tidy.

Luke:

Jessica:

THIS IS A FILLER...

this is ONLY a filler.