If there is any valuable real estate left on Junior’s wall between finger painted masterpieces and his latest macaroni and glued cereal assemblage, I offer the following for your consideration.

Informed by an obvious love of roadside signage, Funhouse57 creates these naive style graphic paintings on found materials. At $100. and under for each original painting they’re an affordable way to introduce kid-friendly art into your home.

“Alice laughed: “There’s no use trying,” she said; “one can’t believe impossible things.”"I daresay you haven’t had much practice,” said the Queen. “When I was younger, I always did it for half an hour a day. Why, sometimes I’ve believed as many as six impossible things before breakfast.”

Celebrating the art and illustrations from Lewis Carroll’s “Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland” and “Through the Looking-glass”, Impossible Things offers fantastic sets of reproduction prints depicting the illustrations that have graced various editions of these books.

Recently I came across the paper sculpture of UK artist Su Blackwell and was immediately and completely smitten. In her hands books burst into bloom or erupt into mountainous landscapes completely with glowing cottages nestled in enchanted woodlands. Often dealing with classic children’s literature such as Lewis Carroll’s Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland and JM Barrie’s Peter Pan she lifts illustrations from the books’ pages like some elaborate and fantastic pop-up. Indulge a few minutes to browse Su’s website to see more of her work including large scale installations and paper animations.

I know I’ve touted the merits of Thumbtack Press in the past posts - it’s a great site that i browse often. They partner with dozens of artists to create quality art prints (which you can purchase framed or unframed). There is a designated kid-friendly section with some fantastic offerings. Recently I’ve been enjoying the work of Riki Blanco whose imagery is packed with unexpected juxtapositions and big imagination! Most prints run around $25. unframed.

Rather than attempting to herd cats (a near impossible task I’m told) artist Tammy Coombs has chosen to dress them…in pants. This multiples project was created in an edition of 101, each with a handcrafted pair of trousers and name (from Al to Xavier). Each smartly dressed feline is $18. with shipping. Visit the Cats in Slacks website to select yours and then email Tammy at cats@polkadotmittens.com to arrange payment (”check, credit card, PayPal, or gold doubloons.”)

Ok, two of my favorite things have collided in a brilliant way and I’m very exited to share! I have long had a very soft spot in my heart for the work of talented, Rhode Island recently moved to Washington state, artist Jen Corace who illustrated my web shop and continues to create thoughtful, poignant and child-like imagery. She has partnered up with the amazing Tiny Showcase to release the following 8″ x 10″ Oceans Don’t Freeze print. Tiny Showcase is a great operation that partners with artists to create very affordable prints. Most editions sell out the day they are released but this un-editioned Corace print will be available for a full season. And as part of their standard operating procedure, TS allows the artist to select a charity to receive a portion of their prints proceeds. Jen has selected the United Nations Children’s Fund who will receive 10% from each sale of this print.

The Oceans Don’t Freeze print was created from an original work currently being exhibited as part of Jen’s show I Told You So at Giant Robot in New York. This is a brilliant body of new work which includes the piece Sitting, Staring, Thinking seen below (with the jackelopes and patterned wall paper).

Tiny Showcase also has some tees still available with Jen’s image Paper Boats. Two color-ways available on American Apparel shirts for $20. each.

And a little final show and tell. Jen also created the image Dress ‘em Up to benefit the annual handmade sale and exhibition Craftland. TS released it for a limited time in print form and while it’s no longer available on their site they say it’s still available through Craftland. If you feel compelled to track it down, visit Craftland’s site here.

If the holiday season brings out the hibernating crafter in you and you’re looking for a great way to honor your Handmade Pledge, I’d like to point you in the direction of Hilary Lang’s world of Wee Wonderfuls. A self-described “non-practicing librarian, former vintage clothing site owner, and now a stay at home and craft it up mom” Hilary has developed a lovely and ever growing archive of patterns for kid-inspired softies and embroidery. Just released for the holidays are her Peppermint Stitchettes and Mr. & Mrs. Gnome. The how-to patterns are very reasonably priced and would make a great gift for the crafty parent pals in your life.

Also in the Wee Wonderfuls treasure trove is the Make-A-Long story of Olive and Archive, brother and sister softies. As their story develops patterns for a fantastic array of outfits, pets and accessories are released. Love it.

I wanted to share images of some recent contributions to the Play Food Flickr group! If you or someone you know spends time making hand-embroidered hotdogs, crocheted canned goods, origami oranges, polymer pizza, knit noodles, paper-mache pastries, sewn sandwiches or felt pheasant under glass - send them on over!

Flickr Image Links: 1. carrots and peas, 2. Cupcakes, 3. Sardines, 4. Melon & Prosciutto Crocheted Appetizers, 5. plates of tarts, 6. Pecan Pies(whole and slice) and Pecan Tartlet (crocheted), 7. Cure for the Common Cola, 8. Shrimp on the Barbie & Shrimp Cocktail, 9. Cheeseburger Softie, 10. cherries, 11. softie-wip, 12. Apple, 13. Let Them Eat Cake., 14. cinnamons, 15. Felt Project Pic #2, 16. Banana Split Ice Cream, 17. Felt Donut, 18. strawberry & normal cream filling

Every now and then I come across an idea so smart it makes me go “Doh!” (think Homer Simpson) “I wish I had thought of that!” Such is the case with Thing of the Month, a site packed with subscription based clubs in an excellent (and ever growing) selection of interest areas. Take for example the 12 month Flying Objects Club - once a month for an entire year a package arrives at your doorstep containing some freekin’ fantastic flying toy, be it a bird glider, a frisbee, a kite, a rocket, an airplane - all of which can take to the air and fly. Most of the clubs are kid-focused, although I tell you there are several I would love to subscribe to. Whether your passion is crafting, science, board games, robots, paper automata models or great toys for your toddlers there is a club for you. Come on, what kid (big or little) wouldn’t love receiving mail like this every month!

Depending on the interests of the recipient and the size of your pocketbook, you can select from 4, 6 and 12 month clubs or buy the items individually. OR if you’re a little impatient and want, say, all of the kits in the 6 month Origami Club right now - there’s an express option just for you. Below is just a partial sampling of the available clubs:

I really like the idea of introducing original works of art into the everyday lives of kids. Trips to museums and galleries are fantastic and important, but there’s also something to be said for living with art in the home. Granted the majority of us don’t have deep enough pockets to mount exhibitions of ‘blue-chip’ artists in our kid’s bedrooms (nor would you be advised to do so!), but thanks to the wonders of the web we have access to some really fantastic and affordable work. Etsy is a great place to begin your search and is where I came across the work of an unnamed (don’t know why?) Vancouver based artist and mother of two who has set up shop under the name Cici Factory.

She says of herself and her work, “I’m inspired by repetition and colour - and the slight variation that occurs with each. I’m interested in the way colours warm or cool when they sits next to an opposite colour and how they function from a distance as opposed to close-up. From far away, my pieces look like colour field paintings, but on closer observation, you’ll discover that they’re actually everyday objects that are depicted in a quirky, intricate way.” Love it. See her second Etsy shop Lotsa filled with more of her ‘non-kiddie’ work (her words).

Posted in Arts & Crafts, Decoration | 1 Comment »