New Baby in the Family!

I have a new baby to introduce! 

Yep, there she is, my new living room sofa. Found and bought off Craigslist for $700. 

It's down-filled and upholstered in high-quality linen. 

When I first saw it I was planning on reupholstering it right away, but when I saw it in person, I realized the fabric was in better condition than the owner's picture showed (score!!) so I'm going to keep it until I destroy it by lying all over it all day long. 

What do you think of my badass find? 

- Grace

Ghost Malls

Abandoned malls. After discovering these photos on Death and Taxes a couple weeks ago, there has been something about the images that I haven't been able to shake. The fact that these meccas of consumerism, these temples to consumption, once teeming with shoppers and the hot pretzel sellers who fed them, now lay dormant, just catches in my chest. Dry fountains devoid of glittering pennies, empty benches where families once agreed to meet in an hour, the dead neon signs and funky 80s and early 90s architecture. I love and loathe it all. 

- Cathleen

[Shout out to Jenny Morgan for spotting this one first.]

Kukstis Woodcarving

When we vacationed in Kennebunkport the past two summers, I was in awe of the beautiful New England architecture. I had always heard people say New England was a special place, but for me it took seeing to believing. 

The private homes are so gorgeous. 

The blend of American colonial style and neoclassical makes for a style that is uniquely American. 

I wanted to try and bring the Maine flavor back to Maryland with me. One of the houses' elements that 

is easily replicable back home are all the gorgeous hand-carved house number plaques. 

Kukstis Woodcarving in Massachusetts can help you with all of your woodcarving needs. 

In addition to a wide variety of carved number plaques, artist Paul also makes and sells business signs, gorgeous carved eagles, fierce whales and I'm sure anything else you ask him to carve for you! 

I am such a fan of his work and as soon as I scrounge up the bucks I will be ordering a new house number for our home. 

- Grace

How to Polish Silver - The Definitive Guide

That's right, I said it: The DEFINITIVE Guide (Cue dooming music).
My Survey of Silver professor is renown for her expertise in all things silver. Here is her guide to taking care of the delicate silver you may own.

When you've found that your silver is in need of polishing use an old white linen tablecloth and a chalk based polish like Wrights or Goddards. Once you've finished polishing the silver give it a nice rinse in distilled water.

Never put your silver in a dishwasher!
If you see that you need a brush to polish your silver don't use an old toothbrush, use a horsehair bristle brush. This is the most gentle on easily dent-able silver.

Remember, silver polish is a mild abrasive so when you polish you are actually removing some of the silver molecules.

Always handle silver with gloved hands. Never rubber gloves! Rubber is toxic to silver. Wear nitrile gloves. Latex and vinyl are also rubber so don't expose your silver to either of these materials.

If you have an old piece of silver and you notice that is has little black splotches on it- this is a good thing! It means your silver is old. The silver is so old that the silver has been worn away in some places. Treat silver in this state with extra caution and whatever you do - don't get new silver electroplated over the piece.

So---if you've read this far, you're nuts!!

Any tips or tricks you may have when keeping your silver in tip top shape?

- Grace

Go!

This weekend my studiomates and I are participating in GO: a community-curated open studio project. Both Saturday and Sunday, September 8th and 9th, from 11am-7pm, we will fling open our studio doors and show off what we've been working on. Over 1800 artists from all over Brooklyn are participating and hoping for the chance to show in a group exhibition at THE Brooklyn Museum in December. Visitors to the studios must first register at gobrooklynart.org, then they can vote on up to 3 artists that they think should be included in the exhibition. Lucky for them, we've got 3 amazing artists all in one place (studio #407 at 253 36th St, Brooklyn, NY)!!! Here's a link to my artist profile so you can see a little of what I'll be showing (but there will be more for those of you who stop by in person!), and I'll post more after the event. Hope to see you there! 

- Cathleen

Books That Shaped America - An Exhibition

All images via LOC.gov

The Library of Congress is hosting an exhibition titled Books That Shaped America which consists of 88 books that the LOC deems influential to our contemporary American culture. 

The goal of the exhibition is not to list the best books of American literary history but instead to compile a list of books that have shaped our current way of thinking. 

The complete list can be found here. 

What do you think of the list? You can vote for the books and suggest titles the library may have missed. 

The exhibition runs through September 29, 2012 (better hurry!) and is located in the Southwest Exhibition Gallery, Thomas Jefferson Building. 

I think this is a fabulous way to look back at our contemporary culture and ponder the literature that has shaped our personhood. 

- Grace

Dueling Artworks of the Week: Throwback vs. New School

Odilon Redon, Flowers in a Blue Jug, 1910

pastel on paper

Daniel Seung Lee, Lillies, Corolla, 2012

archival pigment photographic print via 20x200

- Cathleen