Fabulous Find ~ ABC Block

Have you ever seen a block like this? I picked up this lone block at the Old Summit Antique Show I went to this weekend ~ I am dying to know what the whole set looks like. The pin shaped block is so unusual ~ I have never seen anything like it before. The graphics are printed on paper that has been applied to the 3/4" wooden block ~ wouldn't you just love to see the complete alphabet? Please leave...

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Q & A Journal

I have never been one to write a journal or a diary ~ I've always found them a bit intimidating ~ but when I saw the beautiful book cover of the Q & A a day Journal, I couldn't resist! Who says you can't judge a book by its cover? ~ in this case I did! Black foil typography and graphic elements contrast with raw kraft paper creating a gorgeous book that feels good in your hands. The inside of...

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Happy Father's Day!

{My Dad, me & my brother amidst the cherry blossoms ~ Spring, 1971}It being Father's Day today got me to taking a look through a few old albums to see if I could find a photo of me and my dad ~ I have a feeling that all the good photos are in albums at my parents home ~ all I have are awful photos from my Kodak instamatic. It was also difficult to find a photo where I didn't look just downright...

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Subsidizing Transportation

Hop into your car. Get behind the wheel, start 'er up, and pull away. You're in control. You're the classic (cliched?) free American, out there on the open road, going where you please, alone with your thoughts or whatever radio program/CD/podcast/app you chose. Yeah, you have to obey the speed limit (sort of) and stop at red lights and stop signs. For the most part, though, you're independent,...

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Crown Center Antique Show Highlights

{love this style of illustration on this powder box}This past weekend I dropped by the Crown Center Antique Show ~ for a change, the weather was just perfect ~ something the dealers have long deserved! While shopping I managed to take a few shots of some of the things that spoke to me. I guess I was drawn to graphic design this weekend, as the majority of the images I came home with were of nicely...

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Museum of Arts & Design

{thread wrapped wire basket}After window shopping and visiting the Folk Art Museum, we headed uptown to the Museum of Arts & Design (MAD) which is on Columbus Circle. This being my first trip to MAD, I wasn't sure what to expect ~ the museum isn't huge, there were about 6 floors ~ one of which houses open studios. As we were short on time, we started at the top and worked our way down to the gift...

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American Folk Art Museum ~ Part 3

Eugene Von Bruenchenhein: “Freelance Artist—Poet and Sculptor—Innovator—Arrow maker and Plant man—Bone artifacts constructor—Photographer and Architect—Philosopher” is the title of the special exhibit on display at the American Folk Art Museum until October. Quite the mouthful ~ both his name and description of his work!I wish I had been able to get a photograph of the main display wall of Eugene's...

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American Folk Art Museum ~ Part 2

In addition to the figural and object folk art I posted about yesterday, the American Folk Art Museum had a lovely collection of quilts on display when I visited. I thought I would share some of my favorites ~ visit here to see more of their quilt collection and read more details about the individual quilts and their history. What are your favorites?The images above depict a wonderful, very unique...

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American Folk Art Museum ~ Part 1

When in NYC, a visit to the American Folk Art Museum should definitely be on your list! This was my first visit to this museum ~ while it isn't huge, it is several floors and the exhibits covered many different art forms carefully curated and beautifully displayed. While eating lunch in the small cafe at the museum, we heard that it will be closing at its current location as the Museum of Modern...

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