Have a good weekend & week recap!

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i admit it...i am addicted to true blood on hbo...which is weird for me because i normally do not like vampire stories. i have started reading the sookie stackhouse books by charlaine harris and started book 3 last night. so, i have this show on my brain. above is a beautiful compilation of photos via tobequitefrank from the opening sequence to true blood. i think it is one of these most beautiful openings for a show that i have ever seen.

in case you missed any of the line up this week...i have summed it up below. have a great weekend my lovely readers!

furniture: pick chairs by studio dror

lighting: color stack by roger borg

interior: adam neale and megan freitas' dream house

finish: conrad shades jazz collection

architecture: modern japan

accessory: floorplan dishes

artist interview: megan kimber

recycled content: recycled belt floor tiles

diy: garden planning

Etsy Lunch Hour: Matryoshka Doll Necklace

luxedeluxe is one of my favorite jewelry designers on etsy. this is one of the cutest little charms i have ever seen! it opens up and there is another little nesting doll inside. ugh. i need it.

DIY: January Garden Planning

as some of my readers may know, i moved into a house last july.  the previous owners had a tiny little garden in the back yard with tomatoes, herbs, peppers and lots of pretty flowers.  i am a city girl, never having had green space of my own.  i thought annuals meant that they only bloomed once a year!  ha!  so when i found out that all of my vegetables that died were not coming back i was so sad.  i didn't get to plan out the garden last year, but this year i can and it is the perfect time to start your planning.  lettuce and a few other things can even be planted very soon!  i found some great vegetable garden designs via domino. (yes, so sad it will be no longer soon!)  get to planning guys, even if it is just a single pot of herbs.  i feel with a weak economy that people are going to try to be more self sufficient.  vegetable gardening is such a great way to start.

i also read up on doing a garden journal via journallife. it's a great way to keep up with plants and what works/doesn't work.  you can keep little pockets of seeds with photos to what they go to or just jot down your thoughts.  old school blog style!

Recycled Content: Recycled Belt Floor Tiles

thank you monica, at of paper and things for posting these recycled belt floor tiles from ting london. i haven't been able to stop thinking about them ever since. modular floor, recycled, and leather belts all wrapped up in one. it makes me so unbelievable happy!

Etsy Lunch Hour: Poppies

recycled poppy pin set in peacock by foundling

i love poppies! last summer i had a few poppies pop up in my wildflowers. they were so dainty and fragile. each bloom only lasted a day or two before their delicate petals fell off one by one. i love all of these sweet poppy finds.


Little poppy bowl by PrinceDesignUK

Orange Poppy original watercolor painting 5x7 inches Affordable Original Art by karenfaulknerart

Artist Interview: Megan Kimber

Megan Kimber is an amazingly talented artist that currently resides in Birmingham, Alabama. She graduated with a BFA in Illustration from the Rhode Island School of Design and an MFA from Savannah College of Art and Design. Her work is so beautiful and amazing that I wanted to share her thoughts and images with you.

Where did you grow up?
I was born and raised in Poughkeepsie, NY. lived there 18 years.

I understand you spent a lot of time in upstate new york with your grandparents when you were young. How has this shaped your imagination and how you paint today?
Good lord, it had a HUGE influence on my work. My grandparents spent their summers in a big old 100 year old house in upstate NY on their family's land, out in the middle of nowhere. i spend a good portion of my summers up there as well when i was growing up. There was no AC, no TV; a very simple existence. So i just ran around the woods, inspecting everything i could - moss, rocks, animal bones, animal tracks in the mud, ferns, fossils, etc......there is a waterfall there, about 50 feet high. The house was also right on the edge of a lake, with a pebble beach leading up to it. We would search for "lucky stones" which had holes in them, and watched the tadpoles hatch. I was very lucky to have this place to grow up in - it was like the background of a fairy tale - a GOOD one, not a frilly one.

I first found your work by seeing a skateboard that was painted for a benefit for UAB visual arts. I also found out after, that your paintings have been used by Yellow Brand Skateboards. How did that come about? That sounds like a very fun project.
Yea i was surprised at how that all came about. A close friend of mine who has skated forever was the first to suggest that i contact some skate companies. I kept putting it off because i thought my painting style was nowhere near what would look good on a board. my stuff has tons of brushstrokes and subtle balances of color and usually you see really strong graphic styles on boards. But Lucian Moon at Satori wrote me back and said he was starting up a side company, Yellow Brand Skateboards, and he wanted me to do some work for him. We were both really excited to bring in a new look to the arena.


A lot of your paintings to me tread in the beautiful invisible realm between reality and fairy tales. What is it that draws you to this place?
you know what? sometimes i have no idea. I just get these ideas on my head as to what would be a beautiful, fascinating reality to me, and i paint it. You know, actually the more i think about it, the more i realize that i think i go that surreal route because i get terribly bored with day to day life and people and what i see around me. i need more stimulus than that.
All artists to some extent like to remove themselves from a certain reality and make their own, and i fall into that category as well. Alot of human interaction is just wayyyyy too complicated and ugly, so i take myself away from that with my work. There is no room for that bullshit in there. its more about simplicity; about humans and their emotions stripped down to their core.
My mom also read tons of fairy tales to me when i was little and so my brain was stimulated with the excitement of a secondary reality from early on; one in which really amazing things happened. My dad taught me tons about nature, which in and of itself is like a fairy tale - so much that happens in nature, on a minuscule or massive basis, is sometimes seemingly impossible and fantastic.

Could you walk us through your process when starting a new painting?
I start with a sketch in my sketchbook or a random piece of paper, usually of a person. Sometimes i sketch someone i know and just warp their features a bit, other times its just a made up character. Usually while I am sketching, i get this feeling or emotion off the character, like it just formed its own personality .... and i kind of envision what they are thinking about. then i think about what sort of environment to put them in. I have tons of reference photos that i have taken over the years to help my inspiration along as well. I will sort through and find a nice pattern or color swatch or mood or environment that would match the character's story well. Next i either transfer the sketch to the board i will paint on, or i just do it freehand. I go over the lines with a crappy pen and ink and dont worry about shaky hands or mess ups. Then I think about what the main color scheme will be in the painting. I lay down washes of thinned out color that i want to be able to show a little beneath the painting. usually i do opposites in temperature - cool washes for a warm final painting, or warm washes for a cool final painting. Then i just go to town and build up layers of paint, shadows to lights.......I always use acrylic paint.

What other artist(s) do you admire?
oh man, there are many. Chris Berens is my latest art crush. I also love Andrew Hem, Jonathan Viner, Scott Radke, Edmund Dulac, Egon Schiele, Sally Mann, Derek Weisberg, Sterling Hundley, Kris Lewis.

I see you have painted a picture of Louis Schefano! What prompted this? He is an old friend of my husband’s. 2 years ago on new years eve i didnt have any plans, so i just went to Rojo just to get some food. Louis was playing there that night, i think with Taylor. Around that period of time, I realized that I have always just painted women and i needed more practice painting men. Louis was interesting looking and I really was surprised at how much I liked his music. So after his show I just asked him if i could paint him and he said yes. He was very cool to paint. he has these crazy good planes, angles and colors on his face.

What do you do when you aren't painting?
working my regular job. running errands. taking photos. listening to music, research random things online......

What brings you to and keeps you in Birmingham?
I was living in Savannah, GA for the 6 years prior to coming here. I got my Master's degree at SCAD in Illustration. I tried staying on there for a bit because I love the FEEL of that little city. It was very inspiring and spooky and full of stories and visual interest. However, in terms of jobs, there was little there for me unless I decided to go into the medical field or work at the stinky paper plant. A relationship was also in the process of crashing and burning so i knew it was just time to move. I chose Birmingham cause my sister lives here with her family and I wanted to be around my nephew as he grew up. On the other hand, I made the mistake of thinking that Birmingham was a bigger city than Savannah and so there would be more art jobs for me. FALSE! I dont know what keeps me here, I dont know how much longer i will stay here. I have the perpetual "grass is greener" syndrome.

Are there other artist in Birmingham you like? if so who?
Merrilee Challis, Wendi Flowers, Daisy Winfrey, Jonathan Purvis, Charles Buchanan, Pat Snow, Chris Lawson..... I'm sure i am leaving some out - im a flake, sorry.

Where can people see your work? web, galleries, etc.
my main site: megankimber.com. I also now have my work up on a permanent basis at Matt Jones Gallery at 2830 6th Ave South, here in town.

What are some of your favorite blogs/websites?
you know, i really dont have any. anytime i try to find some cool ones, i get so many links to other cool sites that it becomes overwhelming so i dont even bother delving in. but i must admit, i am a bit of a nerd, i just started reading the Popular Science website lately. And i like the backlogs of the Daily Coyote.

What do you for fun?
well, lets see. i go through phases...... Honestly, I get stir crazy sometimes because i cant find different, original things to do around here. I hate to say it but I get bored alot. I guess I still dont know enough people to tell me the secret cool places to go. But this weekend is the Chinese festival! I like festivals......But for the most part i really do love exploring, like nosing through some abandoned place, or wandering through the woods.....I almost always have my camera with me....I love flying, I love going on trips.....i also hang out with my nephew, who is 4. we just have these hilarious, random, crazy conversations and make faces at each other. He's sweet and keeps my head in perspective. He's fun to explore with, too. Also I love eating really good food from different, faraway lands.

Things i want to do in the future for fun?

I want to learn how to fly a plane. i want to go to Thailand.

What is on your ipod right now?

hmmmm.....alot of Grandaddy. Explosions in the Sky, The Breeders, Devotchka, Elliott Smith, Arcade Fire, old Liz Phair, Yeah Yeah Yeahs, Band of Horses ....and some random stuff that i put on there to get me inspired to go running and get healthy. You get a bad heart and a funny looking ass when you sit around and paint all day!

Accessory: Floorplan Dishes

from someone that sits behind a computer and works on floorplans all day, i love these dishes. i think they would make the sweetest little gifts. a work mug, or a plate for appetizers or even the sweet little coasters would be perfect for your architect, designer, or draftsman friend. buy yours here.

(via fishseddy)

Etsy Lunch Hour: Hate mail

HateMail - U G L Y

i've been loving on these hate mail cards from carolleedesigns on etsy for some time now. i don't think i could ever send one, but it make me so happy every time i read them.

HateMail --- You Suck

HateMail --- When I Found Out...

Architecture: Modern Japan

modern japanese architecture at its best, located just outside tokyo. i love the views. can you imagine taking a bath in that jacuzzi tub while watching the sun set. simple, white, and gorgeous.



(via c77c)

Finish: Jazz Collection

conrad shades has just introduced the jazz collection which is described as "celebrating the vivid beauty of color and the vibrant rhythms and harmonies of jazz". there are five colorways: riff, boogie, vamp, swing, and groove. the designer line window shades are made from handwoven wood pulp. this is a beautiful way to add a pop of color to any space.

Etsy Lunch Hour: Table Linens

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i am so excited....my dining table is getting delivered to my house right now! when i get home from work i will have a burl wood dining table, 6 chairs and a beautiful buffet. my husband and i have been married over 7 years and have never had a dining table. now, all i need is some awesome placemats, a runner, and perhaps some coasters. filzfelt on etsy has some of the most beautiful table top items that i think will go beautifully with my grandmother's taylorstone cathay like the saucer pictured above.

Wool Felt Placemat ...

Wool Felt Table Runner in 200 Natur - Natural Grey

Interior: Adam Neale and Megan Freitas' Dream House

i love the natural light, outswinging windows, diamond chairs, and the artemide castore pendant lights...to name a few things that are wonderful about this interior. it's so warm and cozy and I would so love to live here. read the post from aparment therapy below to find out more about this wonderful home.

Adam Neale and Megan Freitas' Inverness home is a mix of modernism and Bernard Maybeck's Arts and Crafts-era building style. Chronicle design editor Zahid Sardar calls it "sensible" and even goes so far as to say that "it could well be used as a template for other homes in the West"...

There are some "green" aspects of the North Bay house, too: Recycled teak floors; a concrete wall made of fly ash that absorbs and generates heat in the winter and provides shade in the summer; tall French doors that allow cool breezes to flow through. (via apartment therapy)

Zahid Sardar's article is here: Adam Neale and Megan Freitas' dream house

Images: Paul Dyer / Courtesy Gustave Carlson Design, Michael Maloney / The Chronicle

Lighting: Color Stack

color stack by roger borg is a series of bent neon components to make a seriously cool table lamp.

(via moco loco)

Etsy Lunch Hour: Quail

whole quail egg necklace by kookoobird

a friend that lives up the street lost her quails she had raised since they were eggs to some neighborhood strays. i was so saddened for her loss and think that the quail may be one of the most beautiful and interesting birds. these etsy artists think so as well.


Modern blanc de chine style ceramic quail by mudpuppy

Furniture: Pick Chairs

i love these BBB pick chairs from studio dror.  i think it would be awesome to have a dining room decorated with these beautiful chairs and when a guest wants to sit at the table...just grab your chair off the wall!

(via atelier a+d)

Inspiration: Her Morning Elegance by Oren Lavie

i thought this was a beautiful video.

Have a good weekend & week recap

i hope you all have a great weekend visiting friends/family, cooking dinner, cleaning house or bathing the dog. yes, this is maggie after she discovered a mud puddle at the park a few years ago. she befriended a daschsund and they rolled, wrestled, jumped, and chased each other through that puddle. i couldn't be mad. look at that face.

in case you missed anything this week here is a recap:

Furniture: petal5 stool

Lighting: flight 815

Interior: trans artist office

Finish: wood grain rug

Architecture: ring house

Accessory: notebook dishes

Recycled content: tube light

Artist: camilla engman

Etsy Lunch Hour: jwhitney100

shelves
i found a new shop on etsy that i love...jwhitney100! i love all of these wood designs for the home...all original designs, handmade, and awesome! go. shop. here.

wooden origami seakers with retro grills

all wood urban record player table