Week of Wire ~ Egg Decorating

 {source}

INSPIRATION 2014 #93: Here's a novel way to decorate eggs ~ wrapped wire ~ how eggstravagant!  The variety of patterns created is just amazing ~ make sure to check here for many more. While many of the photos aren't the greatest and the site is in Russian (I think), there are some illustrated instructions, so you could try this yourself. On my list for next year!

Week of Wire ~ Candle Holders

{source}

{source}

{source}

INSPIRATION 2014 #92: Another functional object made from wire ~ beautiful candle/votive holders. Wire is such a great material as it is delicate, but strong ~ allowing one to create seemingly fragile objects that are actually very sturdy. While wire is relatively easy to work with, it will do a number on your hands!

Week of Wire ~ Pendant Lighting

{source}

{source}

{source}

INSPIRATION 2014 #91: Interesting and uniquely shaped wire pendant lighting ~ from more traditional and symmetrical to contemporary and asymmetrical. So versatile ~ any of these would fit right in with your eclectic decor.

Week of Wire ~ Functional Objects

{source}

INSPIRATION 2014 #90: Wonderful collection of wire functional objects ~ baskets, kitchen and household tools. Examined closely, these objects are cleverly made ~ many of the baskets are collapsible, while some of the tools are crafted from a single piece of wire. Wouldn't you love a wall of wire in your home?  I know I would!

Hanging with Hangers

{source}

INSPIRATION 2014 #57: Another great way to display photos or other bits of ephemera AND utilize a vintage hanger. This was spotted at littlebyrdvintage on Etsy ~ while this one is already sold, these aren't too hard to come by at an estate sale or flea market.

Luck of the Irish

I know I am several days late (thanks to National Button Week!) and at least a dollar short as I did not find that pot of gold at the end of the rainbow yet, but I did find these intricate shamrock decorations for celebrating St. Patrick's Day. I found these at an antique show a few months ago and was intrigued by the thread and wire work used to create these ~ it is actually similar to some of the old Victorian hair work techniques. The pipe on the light green decoration is die cut and embossed paper, while the little hat is ceramic ~ if you look carefully, you can see the label that says "Made in Japan".

{back view}

I'll bet these were added to corsages or hats or as a boutonniere to show your spirit ~ I have no idea when they were made ~ just wish there were such things on the market today. At any rate, wishing you all a month of the luck of the Irish ~ hope you all had a Happy St. Patrick's Day!

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 store on the street level. Here are a few items I thought worth mentioning:

{wire wrapped leaf sculpture; detail below}

{glass bead and wire wrapped bowl ~ for sale in the gift store}

The piece below is made out of thousands of paper wrapped beads that are hand-wrapped, lacquered and then woven together to form the textile. The paper used for the beads came from recycled materials from the Obama presidential campaign.

{wrapped paper beads wall textile; detail on left}

{wire & bead chandelier}

I can always appreciate when an everyday material or item is used in a different way than it was intended. In this case, yards of ball chain have been fashioned into this elegant chandelier. Even better when the item is inexpensive and yields such an impressive result!

{ball chain chandelier}

Not sure these would be too practical as I work at a computer much of the day, but I thought they have interesting texture and a unique look for a bangle. I have seen dyed gourds in gorgeous colors ~ wouldn't these be even better in a beautiful array of colors?

{natural gourd bangles}

I Spy. . .

While leafing through my newly arrived Pottery Barn catalog, I came upon the image above and noticed the wire laundry basket in the corner! I have had my eye out for these for a year or two and they aren't that easy to come by ~ now that I see this new one for sale for $129, I am thinking that the $55 - $75 price I usually see is quite the bargain! Here (scroll down a little) is one of the vintage baskets I got a year ago ~ you can see what it looks like collapsed ~ it really is a nicely designed item!

{all images from Pottery Barn}

Sparks/White Cloud ~ Fall 09 ~ The Trove

At long last, a few photos of some of the things I came home with from Sparks and White Cloud this fall. It always amazes me that I am able to find such wonderful stuff ~ much of it is so old it is a wonder it has survived.

{Arm & Hammer collectible trading cards}

{old marriage certificate}

{glass patterned paperweights}

Below, an exercise workbook of sorts for children from 1923 ~ initially I thought it was a booklet used in school, but after reading the preface, the book was sold for use at home. "These pages were planned with the hope that mothers may be enabled to spend many happy hours with their children..." There are all sorts of activities ~ pages to color, cut out or draw on ~ animals, flowers, birds, paper dolls, mother goose pictures etc. ~ I've just shown a few samples.

{cover and pages from the Juvenile Artist Workbook}

{old & decrepit, but inexpensive music books}

{loved the pattern on this book cover}

{wall registers I plan to use for jewelry display}

{collapsible wire laundry basket to use for display}

{antique crocheted buttons}

Also, a book called Fancy Work for Pleasure and Profit ~ it is filled with all sorts of nice sewing/needlework related graphics and instructions. Unfortunately, the cover was not in the best shape and didn't warrant a photo. I got this book on the way home from my day trip to Sparks and White Cloud ~ at 1/2 Price Books! I'll let you know if there are any really great tips on how to make a profit with fancy work!

{title page and inside pages}