Burger of the Week #81

A tasty little snack for Devil's Night. Happy Halloween. 

Image by Jesse Seaward

Reinvented Lines

I'm delighted by the line work in these jewelry designs by Etsy seller FioreJewellery. 

As the seller puts it.... "Unique designs that will bring a smile to your face." It's true, the cheeky nature and creative use of materials definitely made me smile.  

It's November this week people, may I suggest you get a jump on your Christmas shopping? No better place then Etsy! 

Burger of the Week #80

Raked my first pile of leaves for the season this evening, so this is an appropriate reader submitted BOTW! Fall is here people, and this is really a lovely way to show it! 

You Gotta Have It / She is a Real Person!!

There's been a lot of speculation lately (you know, in my little circle) about whether Lisa Frank is a). a real person and b). still alive. Well, an incredible eblast from Urban Outfitters today rocked my world with an interview that answered all my important LF questions.

You remember Lisa Frank, right?? Unicorns and music notes, kitty cats and rainbows. The pink glitz had more power than all the Marvel comic heroes combined!


Lisa's gone through her personal archives to offer a limited time, limited quantity sale of vintage Lisa Frank goods at Urban Outfitters. You can not imagine my reaction when I saw the email—I so totally remember some of these specifically!

Oh and did you see these? Stickers! Of course, stickers!

Burger of the Week #79

Lovely copper, brass and gold earrings by Brooklyn-based artist Fay Andrada... not sure if they were intended to resemble hamburgers, but they sure do make me hungry!

25 Years later, and He's Still Lost

Let's be honest, I still have the original three Waldo books memorized. If finding Waldo was a full-time job, I'd want it to be mine.

To celebrate Waldo's 25th birthday last month, Newsweek put out this fantastic Waldo fun fact filled inforgraphic. Inspired by the cute Newsweek graphic, I headed to wikipedia to find out more about the striped, un-super hero. 

British illustrator Martin Handford began drawing crowds when he was 5 years old. It can take up to eight weeks to draw a two-page crowd sketch. He first added Waldo to the scene in 1986 when an art director suggested he add a focal point. The first Waldo book was published in 1987 as Where's Wally in the UK and Where's Waldo in the US and Canada. 

Since then, Handford has created an assortment of friends and enemies for Waldo, and has inspired a TV series, a comic strip and a series of video games.

5th grade Halloween—we were a family of Waldos!

I'm disappointed to say, there's a Where's Waldo App for the iphone, but there doesn't appear to be one for android users. That's the first downside to getting the Galaxy 3S rather than the iPhone5 thus far!

I ________ Mad Libs

A         (adj)       trip to the         (noun)       put me face-to-face with an        (adj)       friend.... Mad Libs has to be one of the most         (adj)       , fun games (with the potential for not-so-innocent         (noun)        that transcend age and         (noun)      . 

While the game takes on attributes of an old-fashioned parlor game, it dates back only to the         (adj)       1950s. The Mad Libs website gives a        (adj)       history of the games creation, written by one of it's creators, Leonard Stern. 

I         (verb)       that something so simple can continue to prove to be such a joy, and surely a great tool for         (verb)       the brain. There's even a        (adj)       app for your phone, so we never have to go a         (adj)       moment without grammatical         (noun)      .

Let Hilarity Reign,       (adverb)      !

Call Me Quirky

This past Thursday we went to the UICA's Tiny Terrariums because what's better on a fall evening than digging in the dirt (and gold-painted animals)?

This is part of the Adult QuirkShop's at the UICA. Great new programing at the UICA!

Want to build you're own Terrarium—here's some great inspiration from Pinterest and DIY Instructions!

Cold Day, Hot Glass

Nothing like a little Hot Glass to cure a cold rainy day... It was off to the Kalamazoo Institute of Arts today to see the Corning Museum's Hot Glass Roadshow. The live demonstrations featured master glassmakers turning and twirling gobs of molten glass into beautiful bowls and vases. 

It was such an amazing sight that I briefly considered changing career paths—(I've always wanted an excuse to wear a silver hazmat suit!)—until I realized I'm severely lacking in upper body strength! 

Burger of the Week #78

"Ok Campers, Rise and shine and don't forget your booties 'cause it's cold outside!*" Luckily, the Lazy Oaf has got your back, with weather appropriate burger gear! That is one classy look!

*Name that movie?? It's Groundhog's Day!

Like Wine, but... OIlier

During one of my art perusing afternoons, I stumbled into Old World Olive Press, a merchant of top shelf Olive Oil and Balsamic Vinegar products. 

Old World Olive Press originally opened in Rockford in 2009, two more locations followed in Plymouth and Birmingham, MI. The GR location on Monroe Center opened earlier this year. The facility functions much like a wine tasting. You can sample countless flavors of oil and balsamic vinegars. 

What did I learn? Well, I don't like sipping olive oil straight, even if it is infused! But there is a whole world of flavored vinegars out there that is just waiting to be experimented with–and I can't wait to get started.

I opted for the Cranberry Pear as a first go around. I tried it tonight mixed with oil on a bit of arugula, beets and mozzarella. Amazing. 

ArtPrize Pride

ArtPrize winds down today, and with Friday's announcement of the winner, I think it's safe to say that Year Four has restored my faith in ArtPrize.

Adonna Khare's Elephants is more than just elephants. It's a menagerie of animals, setup as a large, exaggerated triptych. This piece wasn't just my favorite in the Top Ten, it was my number Two overall, so I guess my right to disparage public opinion has been revoked for the year. 

Khare is a California based artist that creates with a carbon pencil and eraser. Her drawings are not pre-planned and it was rather amazing to watch her work, with no reference imagery, while hundreds of people circled around her. The final piece is an imaginative world where animals coexist, tangled together, and juxtaposed with ordinary objects and events. The manner in which this world breaks free from the paper and continues on the wall adds additional depth and freedom. 

I am very happy this piece will be staying in Grand Rapids. 

The rest of the Top Ten line-up is available on the ArtPrize website, along with the Juried Awards. 

Hairstyles for Men

I spent a rainy Friday afternoon in Indianapolis. As this seems to be a city difficult to explore in the rain, we quickly sought shelter inside the Indianapolis Museum of Art — an incredible FREE four-story museum with an impressive permanent collection. Best known for Robert Indiana's LOVE statue, it had works by Monet, Gauguin, Van Gogh, Cezanne, Picasso, Renoir, O'Keefe, Rockwell, and Maya Lin.

We were tight on time, so we moved through rather quickly but a illustration by satirist William Hogarth caught my eye: Five Orders of Periwigs from 1761.

It reminded me of these male styling infographics that have shown up a lot lately:

It's almost No-Shave November. Not sure I'm ready for renegade facial hair again. 

Earning my Full Attention

Once again, a seemingly standard and unimpressive catalog from Anthropologie has blown my mind when given a second look. 

Last summer, I traveled to Spain where I was struck by the complex tilework at the Alhambra and the striking designs of Antoni Gaudí. 

When October's Anthropologie's catalog arrived, my only slightly impressed thought was, that looks like Alhambra-inspired tiles. Today I realized the entire catalog was a tribute to Gaudí using his mind-bending work and beloved city of Barcelona as a backdrop, including the sites of Park Güell, Casa Batlló and Sagrada Familia. 

I love the manner in which Gaudí's organic forms fit so naturally with the Anthropologie collection. The fabric textures, layered on top of the tile patterns create a beautiful combination of color and culture. They've (rightly) dubbed the effect "wearable works of art". 

Lesson learned, never flip so carelessly through the Antropologie catalog. It has proven that it deserves to be absorbed and admired. 

My Favorite Art that you Haven't Seen

Chances are, that even if you've been to ArtPrize, you haven't been to Independent Bank. If this is true, then you've missed several fantastic art pieces, but more specifically, one of my absolute favorites.

Weightless is a photography series by Miranda Haddix, a student from GRCC. It explores what would happen if gravity was an option. Beyond that though, there's something very poetic about it. The loss of control, and the (sometimes) calm feeling of giving in ala "come what may".

I'm quite impressed with the elegant simplicity of these images—surreal scenes appearing quite natural and possible.

You can check out Miranda's photographic work via her Flickr stream.

Fall is Underfoot

Judging by the colorfully changing view outside my window, Fall is upon us. And what's a new season without new shoes? 

Here's the energetic and fun,behind the scenes footage of the AW12 Fall Hush Puppies Photoshoot.

Things are gearing up for another hectic conference season at HP. So while I'm MIA missing this beautiful fall foliage, you can get your new favorite shoes on hushpuppies.com. And be sure to snap them with instagram and share them with #hushpuppiesfaves! 

When Light becomes Art

I realized I've let the GR Lights in the Night event pass without comment— and lord knows I have an opinion...

We went downtown to see the lights last week with pretty low expectations. But from the moment dusk hit and the lanterns began ascending we were awe-struck (and slightly terrified of all the flames surrounding us—it's amazing nobody or nothing burned up.)

The Lights in the Night ArtPrize entry has made the paper in the UK, the news in Sacramento and has lit up local-based news and blogs (get it? 'Lit up'?? And apparently it would have made the Guiness Book of Records had the official been in attendance.

I'm glad it made the Top Ten– it was a beautiful and moving experience. However, I am not hoping for it to win. While I think it was a breath-taking sight, it wasn't a new idea, and really took more in the realm of event planning than artistic talent. 

That said, I hope it becomes an annual event in GR. Because I sure want to be part of that magical feeling again. 

Burger of the Week #77

Oh hello there, little adorable macaroon Burger coin purse! 
Why is it that everything mini is adorable!?
A delightful creation from chiztom on Etsy.