Beauty is in the EYE of the BEHOLDER...

I truly believe that!

I see beauty in all things rusty, grungy, and just plain cast-off. This illusion is always further enhanced through the lens of a camera - even if it's only my iphone point-and-shoot fixed lens!

Last year, while we were remodeling the building we are currently in, I found beauty in a group of mold growing behind this old, wet, wall of drywall.

To the naked eye, it was a gross mess, but through the lens of a camera, it became a grouping of trees against a dark, starry, Winter night. Can't you just feel the chill in the air?

Here are a few other shots from the same wall....

Same goes for an area of rust stained concrete in our shop, which was the original Coca-Cola bottling plant of Medford back in the early 50's. I like to think the discoloration is from an old, steel cistern or tank that had years of use. I love the colors.

This is the floor in its dry, natural state.

This is the floor (same angle) wet from a mop.

I'm hoping to re-create this look for the floor of the
RUSTY MONKEY Vintage Marketplace and Workshop. 

Maybe even this focal wall that is now based-out in rusty orange colored paint. I'm thinking the plain, one color rust may be a bit boring...??? Although, it will be broken up once my sign - made from vintage corrugated steel - is hung up.

Cheers!

You can tell them a little bird told you...

It's been quite some time since I blogged.

I see that same sentence a lot throughout blogland lately. Must only be the die-hard bloggers that find the time to blog every day! Certainly not me. Oh well....

Just because I haven't found the time, doesn't mean I've been sitting around on my laurels watching t.v. and eating the proverbial bon bons...Does anyone eat bon bons anymore? Hmmm.

The GREAT news of late, well, actually there's a lot I could say here, but the thing I want to share today, is this....drum roll.....

We are in the midst of purchasing a commercial property in a great location with two buildings. Yep. TWO. And the frontage portion of the smaller of the two will house my new adventure...

RUSTY MONKEY Vintage Marketplace and Workshop

Now I'll be able to come to work everyday and do my daily routine for E.B. and fill in all that "dream" time creating art, repurposing goods, and just plain having a ton of fun in my own little space.

Actually, the space will be the biggest space I've ever had - THREE rooms.

Lots of natural light. A roll-up bay door.

All decorated in Rusty, Industrial goodness.

Lots of metal.

Lots of wood.

Lots of texture.

And just a touch of softness.

The additional bonus here, is all those totes, boxes, shelves, etc. that are at home will be moving out and be readily accessible at a moments notice!!! YAY!!!

The Rusty Monkey will be open for sales the 2nd, 3-day weekend of every two back-to-back months. At least that's the plan right now. For example, Fri/Sat/Sun - Nov/Dec, Mar/April, July/Aug, etc...

Art Workshops will be held there too. But, that probably won't happen until next Spring. Even though I'll be busy during that "dream" time, there is still a whole lot of "dreaming" to do....

Needless to say, I am beyond excited, excited!!! Finally, a REAL place where I can set up shop, leave it set up, and play to my hearts content - all during the regular work week - while I'm already at work anyway!!!

The other exciting part is, I will be joined by a handful of my closest friends in the workshop. They will be able to set up their own workplace and then sell their creations too!

Each will have a tag # but unlike a traditional rental booth space, we won't have designated spaces, the overhead will be quite low, so all their (and mine) hardwork doesn't go to the "house".

It's a dream come true and I have my wonderful husband to thank!!!

When we first walked through the buildings, he was the one to say,

"...And Honey, this space would be perfect for you!"

Whatta Guy! He works SO hard and yet he puts me in the forefront of his mind....I love you, BABY!!!

There's a lot to do, but because we are Pre-Close Leasing, I began the process of painting the focal wall behind the check-out counter a beautiful shade of rust, of course, right? The other walls will be painted a subtle shade of cream linen. The old gray carpet is going bye-bye and the underlying concrete floor will be stained muted shades of rust, black, cream....The trim is already painted black and will promptly be distressed. Interior doors will be removed to ease traffic flow. A walled up partition window will be opened back up and galvanized trimmed shelves will be added. I can see some rustic garden fencing over the windows with a touch of burlap.

Out in the bay, exposed wood trusses will be capped with old, rusty, nail-hole-ridden galvanized sheets. The clear twinkle lights will be woven overhead. The little back room...well, here's where a soft touch lands. An overhead chandelier. Too cute. I'm loving it all!!!

Yeah, lots of "dream" time, but I can see it in my minds eye.

Sorry for the long, no-photo, post, but I promise there will be photos soon!!! Times a tickin!!!

WISH. DREAM. CREATE.

Those were the words on the first art piece I had published....

Those are GOOD words!!

Cheers!

Somerset HOME Vol. 6

Home is...

Featured in August 2011 issue.

This is by far my favorite featured piece. Beth, the editor, did an amazing job on the article, the colors, the layout. You'll just have to get your hands on a copy of the magazine to see what I mean.

This issue has a ton of cool projects in it!!

For those of you that can't find it, here's my submitted article...

Home Is…

Ever since I was a little girl, I loved going on the treasure hunts my grandparents called yard sales; jaunts to the old junk yard with the guys; and the weekend trips to the local salvage yard to forage for all sorts of random finds.

As the first born daughter, I must have disappointed my mother a little. She dressed me in all sorts of frills and lace when I was a baby, but soon I showed my true tom-boy colors. One story in particular resonates. Of course, I was too young to remember, but mom always had a way of sharing. One morning she had me all dressed up in a new lacy white dress. My dad was outside working on his car in the driveway and I had wandered out the door. For a split second, I was missing. They promptly found me sitting in the oil drainage pan under the car!

Fast forward to my adult life, I’m still a tom-boy. I still love a good yard sale and get giddy when we pass a junk yard full of vintage, rusty steel. They just don’t make ‘em like they used too. There’s something about real steel –scratched, pitted and rusty with age that just makes me happy.

A couple summer’s ago, Phillip and I were out-and-about on a weekend dune buggy drive and came across a defunct old wood mill. It was incredible. Vintage junk as far as the eye could see. Piles of rusty gears. Weathered wood ladders. Stacks of red, round-bottomed fire buckets. Wooden boxes full of all sorts of hardware, fittings and fixtures. I was in re-purpose paradise!

The following Monday, I tracked down the keeper-of-the-mill and met with him there. As we walked around - me, like a kid who just won a shopping spree at a toy store - he, amused at my excitement- he shared many heart-felt stories:  “the so-and-so used to be here” in an area that was now over-grown with weeds; “these were used for” describing the piles of rusty gear; “who knows who those belonged to” pointing at the old dust covered leather work boots; and a story of the huge owl that was watching us from at least 30 feet over-head in the rafters. 

He shared, “That old owl was abandoned by its mother when it was still in the nest. All of us guys kind of adopted him as our mascot and he’s lived here ever since.” I couldn’t help but have a lump in my throat as we shared a quiet moment; looking around the abandoned building that once held so much promise and hope for this little logging community. That old owl was once abandoned amongst the hustle and bustle of men and machinery and now lives out his life in an abandoned building; where the only noise you hear is the creaking of the doors and metal roofing sections scraping against one another as the wind rolls through.

I will, forever, have a piece of this history in my home and in my heart, as one aged section of corrugated metal from that mill became the base of my HOME sign. It was perfectly aged and distressed with nail holes from a by-gone era.

Using my Cricut die cutting machine and smooth white contact paper, I cut out my letters one at a time, as the whole word was larger than the 12”x12” mat I had. While still on the cutting mat, I removed the negative sections that would become the painted area. Using a length of 6” wide clear vinyl transfer tape, I lined up the topmost edge in the same place each time so they would ultimately be aligned. I burnished each one down; then moved on to the next letter. Once all four letters were adhered to the clear vinyl, I carefully placed it on the rusty substrate. No easy task getting the contact paper stencil to stick to rust, but patience paid off.  

Using cream acrylic paint and a flat stencil brush, I carefully stenciled the letters. Once dry, I outlined them with a paintbrush and black acrylic paint. I used this same technique for the other words. POP represents the number in our family and ELEV the elevation of our house. 

Using three old water spigot handles I had in my collection, I drilled holes at the bottom of the sign and using nylon stand-offs and long carriage bolts, created three pegs to hang items from. To add a bit more dimension, I added some wire “ribbon” by wrapping the sign horizontally a few times and added a wire “bow” embellished with a vintage skeleton key. This wire also serves as the wall hanger.

Very simple, rustic and full of meaning.

Tina Schiefer lives in Grants Pass, Oregon and enjoys treasure hunting, designing and creating mixed media projects. She has previously been published in various Stampington publications. You can visit her blog at patinamarie.blogspot.com where she shares random thoughts about her hopes, dreams and reality. She also welcomes email at patinamarie@gmail.com.

Materials

Vintage corrugated metal section
Skeleton Key
Water spigot handles
Baling wire
Die cutting machine
6” vinyl transfer tape
Smooth, contact paper
Acrylic paint – black and cream
Stencil brush
Fine tip paint brush
Wire cutters

Stay tuned....my little gourd doll challenge project has also been featured in ART DOLL QUARTERLY - Fall 2011...she's...well, you'll see....

Joining the SNS #98 over at Funky Junk Interiors
Playing over at My Repurposed Life too!

FOLK...All American Living....

http://folkmag.tumblr.com/PreviewIssue


Hi All...I found this new magazine today via Donna @ Funky Junk's blog. The premier issue is due out Sept 1, 2011. Looks like a good, down-home publication....right up my alley...! I've ordered some to offer at my Savannah Faire booth. Gotta support these guys!

On another note, I'm counting down the days until two of my projects hit the 'stands....

August 1 issues of Somerset Home Vol. 6 and Art Doll Quarterly.

More on that later.