ULLABELLA Downs a MARGARETA

Stopped by IKEA for a spring fix. First thing we saw was this great fabric called ULLABELLA.

Maybe this classic chair could replace cat scratch fever in the living room:

Dressy drawers:

These lucky and affordable ducks will not be moving to Stillwater.

OK, maybe it's time to take down the tree.

I just ironed the fabric and tacked to the textured wallpaper with pins. 

Voila! Happy Spring!

PS also swapped out the xmas pics above the couch:

Illustration Impossible

Open Letter to Robert Irvine & Crew:
I've been watching your show for the last couple of seasons thanks to Jannine Fisk who I met at the Pillsbury Bake-Off® in 2010.  It's quite impressive how you and your team pull off a complete restaurant overhaul in only a few days.

Here is a FRESH IDEA FROM MY NOODLE for your show: I draw really fun pictures that make people smile. They are well suited for restaurants. I can see them blown up onto canvases or made into decals for large walls (or painted directly onto walls). I'd love to lend a hand if needed (even working remotely from Minnesota would be OK). I've got loads of design experience. I do type/logos. I illustrate. I've designed album covers for K-tel Records. I've even been on Food Network for 5 minutes. And of course I do understand food. Here are some examples of my work and others:

Couldn't you just see these painted on a wall in a restaurant?

Or use this olive oil art for the restaurant logo and menu design?

Best selling shirt at the Minnesota State Fair:

Charity Cookbook Cover:

PS I also have many artist friends and could make art recommendations:

Judy's aprons or portraits on a cast iron pan:

Limitless. Contact me here.

Oprah is Very Fondof DOTWU

Last night I started watching Oprah's special featuring Jane Fonda and her adopted daughter Mary. A few minutes into the special, Oprah and Mary bonded over "Days of the Week Underwear" (DOTWU).

Reminded me of a drawing I did for the Utne Reader:

Which eventually became a rubber stamp.

Picture Show sells all kinds of cool rubber stamps on ETSY. Check it out here.

Apron Update

A few months ago I wrote a post on a book I got from my mom about aprons. I decided to give the book to my job share partner Judy who was working on an interesting mosaic project. Now, a few months later, she has completed 3 pieces.

That red fabric used for the ties is very familiar - was on a shirt I had as a kid.

:

Here's Judy at her show at the Hopkins Center for the Arts.

She also makes mosaic portraits on cast iron pans:

Memory jars and more.

Go do judysell.com to see more.

Francoise is NOT a boy.

Francoise Seignobosc (prounouced say-nyoh-boh') was born in November, 1897, or 1900, in Lodeve, Herault, France. She grew up in France, but eventually came to the United States. She wrote, and self-illustrated, children's books. She died in 1961. SHE? I assumed it was a guy.

I picked this up at a library book sale. The librarian had written in the last name. She must have been the Cher of childdren's books.

 The story is about a girl who loses her duck.

I thought the pages had framing potential, but it took a few years to have the guts to cut up the book. Look what I found inside these frames? EYEYEEEE! Ann Geddes. Very 90s!

My photocopied leaf collection, because real leaves framed will fade and crumble. 

My mom's drawings from her fashion illustration class at the UofMN (the same class I took 30 years later).

She didn't like drawing faces.

Here's the arrangement. OK for a girls room, but not the dining room.

Now, it's time to flip out the living room artwork.

Green with Debbie

I was cleaning out my computer's trash can when I noticed a GI-normous file. It was a PDF of Debbie Reynolds Auction Catalog, pages and pages of costumes she had collected and was now selling. At first I noticed the details and graphic patterns.

And stripes. Too bad this movie was in black and white. 

There were paintings and posters. Awww. Agnes! Samantha! Derwood!!!!

And equipment. Literally, a green light!

I started to notice more and more green.

The Kathy Selden dress sold for $18,000.

Julie Andrews “Maria” turquoise and green dress from Sound of Music
Pre-sale estimate: $6,000-$8,000
Price realised: $55,350

Wonder how this cool graphic jacket compares to the new OZ movie that just came out? Here's how it did at Auction: Emerald-green felt “Ozmite” jacket designed by Adrian from The Wizard of Oz. Pre-sale estimate: $8,000-$12,000 Price realised: $27,675 Wow.

Love how green looks with brown.

There were many shades of grey-een.

Barbra Streisand wore this in Fanny Brice.

Debbie also owned the white getup Audrey Hepburn wore in My Fair Lady. It fetched over 4 million dollars. And the famous ivory pleated “Subway” dress Marilyn Monroe wore in The Seven Year Itch? Pre-sale estimate: $1 million - $2 million Price realised: $5,658,000

Here I am with Debbie a few years ago. Wonder if she will remember me in her will? Or maybe THAT GIRL in the bottom of the photo will? 

I found the auction results here.

You can read the catalog here. 

PS I'm not responsible for the spelling of "realised". Wiki is.