Art & Design

July 21 2016

Floating, Flying and Gravity-Defying Paintings by Cinta Vidal

This Saturday, visit my favorite art gallery, Thinkspace in Culver City, to see the surreal works of Cinta Vidal. The figures in her paintings are so consumed, mostly reading books, that they don’t realize that they’re microcosmic worlds have been turned upside down. I like how each piece shows a sense of community yet gives the feeling of isolation.

The opening reception for Vidal’s show, called Gravities, will be held this Saturday, July 23rd from 6 to 9pm. You have till August 13 to check out her works in person. It’s hard for me to pick a favorite but, if I had to, I’d choose Reading Club, seen immediately below. Every single person is reading a book, getting lost in their own worlds. (The poor cats aren’t getting much attention.) How I’d love to collect her works.

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Reading Alone

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Chaos Wave

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Together Alone

Cinta Vidal’s website


Art & Design

July 20 2016

21 Hand Embroidered Necklaces That I Love

I’ve always loved the art of embroidery, so when I started spotting these embroidered necklaces around I was thrilled! Etsy has a number of sellers who just sell embroidered jewelry, which include brooches, bracelets, and necklaces. I fell in love with the space necklace, seen above, and after finding out that there was only one left available, I quickly scooped it up. Today, I’ve put together a list of 21 of my favorite embroidered necklaced out there. While some are clever and others are cool, they’re all tiny, hand-crafted works of art that, when worn, will have you beaming.

Above: Space necklace by BaobapHandmade


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Ice Cream by The Kitschy Stitcher

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Honeybee necklace by bstudio

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The Bike necklace by The Kitschy Stitcher

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Secret Garden Pendant II by Marigold + Mars

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Midwinter Fox by Mother Eagle

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Spotted mushroom by PoppyandFern

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Mini Veggies necklace by BaobapHandmade

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Embroidered Bird’s Nest necklace by Kathy Halper

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Donut necklace by SewnbytheBeach

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Hot Air Balloon Mini Embroidery Hoop by TheKitschyStitcher

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Prickly Pear Cactus by PoppyandFern

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Up, Up and Away by SurprisinglyUpbeat

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Mountain necklace by DaRinaJewelry

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Le Petit Prince by manarayahandmade

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A Kidnapping Story, Poor Sheep by manarayahandmade

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Little Panda necklace by manarayahandmade

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Saturn and Stars by manarayahandmade

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Mondrian-ish necklace by Kathy Halper

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Rainbow necklace by SewCrossHandmade

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Mother and Child necklace by Kathy Halper


Photography

July 20 2016

New Aerial Photos of the Crystal Clear Blue Waters of Bora Bora

It was only a week ago that I found out about Gray Malin. He’s a photographer that take spectacular aerial photos of beaches around the world. He recently announced a brand new series, aerials shot of people swimming in the crystal clear blue waters of Bora Bora. While in some photos, you see a number of swimmers all snorkeling around reefs in still others you see a lone person surrounding with nothing but unbelievably clear water. (I love all that negative space.) These photos would look stunning hanging on any wall.

Gray Malin’s quickly risen to be one of top three, current photographers that I follow. (Of course, Max Wanger is first and Rodney Smith is second.)

On a personal note, back years ago, I went to Bora Bora on my honeymoon. The water there is really that clear blue.

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Gray Malin’s website and Instagram


Photography

July 19 2016

Photo a Day Project: Day 20 of 365, Swimming

Yesterday, I forgot to put up the picture of the day. (This is harder than I thought.) Parker took a swim class and, though he was scared at first, he soon got the hang of it. He took swim classes last summer and still carries some bad memories, particularly of being dunked. Like a lot of children, he hates getting his hair wet. The teacher was very understanding so she never fully submerged him. Instead, he practiced floating and kicking. I’m such a proud mama.


Photography

July 19 2016

Adorable Photo Series of a Camera-Shy Girlfriend, Part II

These are the types of photo series that I love. Almost completely spontaneous, these adorable photos show a photographer’s girlfriend trying to hide her face from the camera. When Mikael Theimer began taking photos like this, he could have never imagined that his series would go viral. Shot in Montreal and the Quebec countryside, the photos show the playful side of photography. Theimer now has over 11,200 fans on his Facebook page and he is contemplating putting together a book. Here, he shares the second half of his series. (I love the cat’s many appearances.)

When asked how his girlfriend feels about her newfound fame, Theimer stated: “Mostly she finds the whole thing funny. When the first series started being shared all over the place, she was a bit uncomfortable (we never expected it would reach so many people), but when she started reading what people were saying about the pictures and about us (lots of positive things), she thought it was really nice.”

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Mikael Theimer’s Facebook page


Art & Design

July 19 2016

New Alice in Wonderland Trompe l’oeil Mural in Denmark

Italian street artist Vera Bugatti is behind this breathtaking mural of Alice in Wonderland. Created in a trompe l’oeil style, where it gives the illusion that Alice is a giant stuck inside a house, it’s a magnificent piece of work. Called “Everyone in Wonderland is Mad,” it was painted in Brande, Denmark, with the help of Carlos Alberto Garcìa Hernandez. “I’m totally in love with this mural,” the artist states. “We created this painting in May 2016, in about 9 days. It is 12 meters large.”

See the window? I love how it looks as if people are popping out of the work.

This isn’t the first time the street artist has created an Alice in Wonderland piece. Here’s another she created just two years ago.


Art & Design

July 18 2016

Micro Pet Tattoos by Mr. K

These micro tattoos by Mr. K are the perfect way to immortalize your pet. In a style that’s reminiscent of Dr. Woo’s, Mr. K creates simple but beautiful portrait tattoos of your beloved dog or cat. Though his Instagram shows that he can do much more than that, it’s the pet tattoos that I’m most drawn to. Could this be the start of a growing trend? I like how they’re all in black. Also, having the name spelled out beneath the face gives it a personal touch.

B O P

A photo posted by MR.K / Sanghyuk Ko (@mr.k_tats) on

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A photo posted by MR.K / Sanghyuk Ko (@mr.k_tats) on

Benny & Winston

A photo posted by MR.K / Sanghyuk Ko (@mr.k_tats) on

Chocolate Rain.

A photo posted by MR.K / Sanghyuk Ko (@mr.k_tats) on

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A photo posted by MR.K / Sanghyuk Ko (@mr.k_tats) on

R.I.P. Gia @miko_lee

A photo posted by MR.K / Sanghyuk Ko (@mr.k_tats) on

via [Dog Milk]


Life

July 15 2016

Photo a Day Project: Day 17 of 365, Golf

It was a success! Yesterday afternoon, we took Parker to his very first golf lesson. When we first met Ms. Kim, his teacher, Parker said, “”Wow, you’re small!” Oh, were we mortified! Granted she was a little short but did he have to say something? Thank God, she brushed it off with a smile and we went on with the lesson. She told him to position his hands so that the “hot dog” was covered by the “bun” and suggested that he hold his arms down like the letter “Y”. I was impressed by her patience. It was only a half hour lesson but I came away with it proud of my son for concentrating throughout. Could he be the next Tiger Wood? (Of course, without all the scandal.)

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