Has it really been a whole week?!

Indeed, it has been almost a week since I've posted ... where does the time go? So many things to share this time ... hope you don't wear out on me before I'm through! Why don't you get yourself a nice cup of tea (or coffee) and linger awhile, do a little reading, and follow some links!

First - and most importantly - I have to show you the exquisite new piece of art I acquired from Ingrid Mida of Fashion Is My Muse!!!! I love it so much! It's almost impossible to see in a photo - but it's a superimposed image over a lovely toile print which has been embroidered and beaded. It is so delicate and charming and the handwork is nothing short of remarkable. Please visit Ingrid's website here - and be prepared to ooh and aah!
Want to go shopping? These photos of the Paris shop, Maison Objet, were posted on Paris Apartment - and I've already placed this on my list of places to visit when in Paris. Wouldn't this be a delicious way to spend an hour ... or two(!)? If you're a fan of all things Parisienne, you owe it to yourself to check out this wonderful - and informative! - blog.


The Paris Apartment blog is also where I discovered this awesome needlepoint whimsy. Yes - I wrote needlepoint! I think it's so witty and beautiful - and even though I'm not at all a fan of dead animals on the wall, I would so love to own it!I have received two lovely awards from lovely bloggers! The first is Circle of Friends from Shell at Swan of Dreamers. Shell has the most charming blog, which is always filled with inspirational words and words of kindness and respect. She stated that so many people gave awards that specifically targeted women, she was going to pass this on to three of her male blogger friends. I'm going to continue that tradition by passing it on to three of my favorite male bloggers. And they are ...

YSL Guy at Let Them Eat Cupcakes
Mo Mad Dog at Mo Mad Dog Stoneskin
Rupert Alistair at Classic Movies Digest

Guys, please take the award below and pass it on!

The next award is the Premio Meme Award - isn't it pretty?! I was awarded this by Michele of Michele Lynch Art.
Michelle creates fabulous steam punk jewelry ... check out her Youtube clip below - and when you see that wonderful Paris piece at around :33, remember my birthday is May LOL.

Okay, this award requires that I write seven things about myself that you probably don't know. So, here goes...
1. I was born in Alaska.
2. My mother was a Las Vegas showgirl before she became a wife and mother and Republican.
3. I had planned on being a dancer, but when my left foot was almost cut off by a lawn mower when was 13, I had to change career goals.
4. Seeing "Hair" on Broadway when I was in 7th grade changed my life forever.
5. My first appearance Off-Broadway in 1971 was in the nude.
6. I am very very active politically.
7. When I'm angry I swear, curse and cuss like a drunken sailor on leave.

And now I have to pass it on to seven others ... so, I'm awarding the Premio Meme Award to
Elena Maria Vidal of Tea at Trianon
Sandy of Sandy's Creepy Creations
gypsylulu of Gypsylulu Delights
David Toms of Savoir Faire
Marilyn of As Seen Through My Eyes
Catherine of A Thousand Clapping Hands

Tales From an OC Cottage

Please grab the above Premio Award and pass it on! And, folks, if you aren't familiar with these diverse and enchanting blogs, you should take some time and visit. They run the gamut of interests - from history to artists to interior design - but all are terrific people with much to share.


I have no idea why I love this photo - it's not as if haircuts (*making the sign of the cross to ward off evil*) interest me. But this photo just makes me smile. The barbers are so intent - and the customers so cheerful.

I mentioned my year-off birthday a few photos back ... well, if anybody has the inclination, I would just love to own this rare 1905 Mills Brothers of Chicago Double Dewey Slot Machine. Isn't it magical!? I'm not even interested in gambling - but I'm very interested in designing a room around this enormous machine!

Jon found this photo and said if we ever get married again (not in this lifetime, say I!), this is the wedding cake we should have. I must admit that the white chocolate frosting looks like a sheet of white silk tossed over a cake! And I do love those roses just scattered over it. But another wedding. Um. I don't think so.
I have always loved Daniel Merriam's work ... and just recently ran across his website - which is as bewitching as his work. If you're not familiar with his view of the world, please take a long and lingering visit there!




Speaking of art that invites opening your mind, while blog hopping, I came across this little jewel of a piece of art. It's an ATC (Artist Trading Card / 2 1/2" x 3 1/2") titled "Wound." It is by artist Jillian Schneider of Bohemiart. This piece just really spoke to me. You can see more of her work in her Etsy shop here and at her blog.

I finally figured out my nonstop problems with electrical appliances this summer. I am quite positive that I've been cursed by the one and only original Cobra Woman, Maria Montez. Since May we have had break down: air conditioner, refrigerator, dishwasher, oven, vacuum cleaner, computer, Bose sound system, and security code box for the front door. Damn you, Maria! What did I ever do to you?! And, as we just remodeled and replaced everything about three years ago, everything is juuuuuuuust past warranty. Can you hear me growl, Maria, can you?!

This charming 19th century French pique asiette jewel box is a real treasure, isn' it?! I love that, just as altered art and mixed media artists do today, 19th century folk artists found ways to use their broken and damaged bits and bobs of china. I also find it interesting, even though the antique dealer swore it was 19th century French, there is a piece on the front with "Home Sweet Home" written in English!
I'm leaving you today with this lovely Paris apartment ... I'm not absolutely wild about everything in the room - but, oh!, those gorgeous architectural features! Wouldn't you love to live with that fabulous moulding and raised panel doors and crown mouldings and ... and ... ? I would just adore having that painting over the doorway! What a surprise detail! Sigh. I bet that darned Maria Montez hasn't cursed all their appliances!
Okay, I'm off to do arty things ... mostly background work. I have to gesso some canvases to prep for collages, and put the second layer of paper on the backing of the first circus project, and do the final embellishments on three mixed media fabric collages. So, more grunt work than making art ... but it has to be done!

Now - YOU go make something beautiful! ... and show me the results!

♥´¨)
¸.•´¸.•*´¨) ¸.•*´¨)
(¸.•´ (¸.•´♥ Tristan ♥

Please, May I Whine ... Just a Little?

I know I don't whine very much - well, at least not in Blogland. But I really do try to keep complaining down in my life. However, Blogland is really starting to annoy me. Some of my absolute favorite blogs have a drop-down i.d. box in their comment section. For the past month - or longer - I am not able to make comments on those blogs. Now, I know that everybody can live without my (usually inane) comments. But I enjoy posting comments on blogs that I find entertaining and/or thought provoking. I have no idea why - out of the blue - I am no longer able to comment on those specific style blogs. I don't know - maybe it's a mac thing. But whatever it is, it's ticking me off!!!

Okay, I am off to journey through Beverly's Pink Saturday tour of blogs (most of which I won't be able to leave comments on, grrrrrr).

But I did find this (apparently) sure fire way to lose weight. I haven't tried it yet. If you do, please let me know how it worked for you! I like to get a recommendation before starting a new diet.



Have a lovely day! ... and, as always, go make something beautiful!

♥´¨)
¸.•´¸.•*´¨) ¸.•*´¨)
(¸.•´ (¸.•´♥ Tristan ♥

Finally! I feel as if I've hit the jackpot!

Finally! I feel as if I've hit the jackpot! ... and I didn't even go to Vegas!

I'm not terrific at html code and building web pages. My mind just doesn't work that way. So, when I realized I really had to update my website, as it was getting particularly tired and dowdy, a friend told me the only way to do it without having a monster of a time, was to get Dreamweaver and just "follow the directions." Harrumph. Follow the directions, indeed. After the entire weekend and almost all of the last three days, I finally got the new site up and running. I'm not exactly sure what constitutes a job being a "monster;" but, if it takes five days, in MY book, that's a monster! Now that I've actually completed it ... please take a look around! I think I have, at long last, linked all the dozens of pages and thumbnails and have it working pretty well - even though it doesn't view well in Explorer, for some reason.

http://tristanrobinblakeman.com

I decided this photo by David Sherry for Paris Vogue was an excellent example of exuberance and happiness to commemorate the day that Vermont joins the rarified - but growing! - group of states that allows marriage equality beginning today!



If I had a hotel - actually, I hope to never have a hotel - but, if I had one, I would definitely want the reception lobby to have this knock-out French art deco sofa that was in the Paris Grand Hotel. Isn't it lush and wonderful?! The literature from the auction stated that it seats 6. Now that's some big sofa! I love that peacock blue color (remember writing in peacock blue fountain pen ink in junior high?), and is anything better than buillion fringe?
At the same auction was this lovely, lovely hand painted 18th century Swiss commode with serpentine front and bun feet. It's not really my style - a bit too country cute for me - but this one is nice that I would very much like to have it. As the price rose to five figures, I decided it was just as well that I'm not really into country hand painted furniture, as I could never buy it anyway!
A friend sent me this wonderful old photograph of two very spiffy gentlemen posing with their beloved Pomeranian. I suppose there was supposed to be a correlation between the photograph and the many photos taken of Jon and I with our devilish beloved Pom, Dusty.In searching and surfing for vintage circus images to use in a current project, I came across this rather remarkable solid perfume container/compact by Estee Lauder. Though not terribly familiar with make-up and toiletries packaging, I'm fairly certain I've ever seen anything like this on my mother's dressing table.

I have absolutely fallen in love with this antique French iron gazebo. Of course, as it's 14' square, and we only have small front-and-back-of-the-condo decks, I'd have to move it indoor and turn it into a bathroom. But the lack of privacy might be worth it to have such a delicious piece of architecture! I don't believe they carry this at our local Home Depot Plant and Garden Center.
One of my new favorite artists! Though these have the look of assemblage altered art, they're actually bronze sculptures by Ron Rogers. I find these absolutely gorgeous - and provocative.



You can see more of his work by clicking here.

Speaking of gorgeous and provocative! The long awaited "The Private World of Yves Saint Laurent & Pierre Berge" by Robert Murphy and Ivan Terestchenko was released yesterday! I've been hearing about this volume for almost a year - and I've been anxious to see it. I've pre-ordered it from Amazon, but it's not here yet - darn it! I can't wait to take a photographed tour of the famous (fabled!) homes of the renowned designer and his partner.


This excerpt from a review of the book has me even more anxious to read (well, look at the pictures!): One of the most talented and influential couturiers of his time, Yves Saint Laurent began his career as Christian Dior’s protégé and went on to become a legendary arbiter of twentieth-century style. Saint Laurent’s extraordinary taste went well beyond the world of fashion, and in this lavish volume, the eight splendid homes he shared with friend and lifelong business partner Pierre Bergé are presented in immaculate detail. Notoriously shy, the designer and Bergé lived in luxury, surrounded by incomparable collections of furniture and art. From the serene interiors of their apartment on the Rue Babylone to the incandescent beauty of the Villa Majorelle in Marrakech, Bergé and Saint Laurent’s sensibilities come alive. Taken after Saint Laurent’s death in 2008, Ivan Terestchenko’s photographs capture these exquisite surroundings in full, showcasing nineteenth-century French décor, important paintings by modern and Romantic artists, and masterpieces of furniture, sculpture, and silver ranging from the Renaissance to the Art Deco era. Though the homes presented here are now empty, The Private World of Yves Saint Laurent and Pierre Bergé is a testament to a rare union of passion, elegance, and supreme connoisseurship.
I have a few friends who I think would look spectacular in this Louise Black charmer! Not only is the general silhouette pretty amazing, but that skeleton image on the corset definitely takes this out of the proverbial design box! To see more of her work (or get the link to her Etsy shop) just click on the photo and it will whisk you to the exotic and humorous world of Ms. Black!


This 19th century French jardiniere would look amazing with a glass insert and used as as champagne bucket, wouldn't it! It would be the first time I would be compelled to toast the ice bucket!
I know I should wait until Pink Saturday to post this, but I haven't signed up for Pink Saturday yet - probably I'll get started again next week. But I can't resist sharing this. We used to be so easy to please, weren't we?!

I believe I'm going to take the rest of the day off and shake the html code out of my head. I don't want it there! I have limited space and ability to remember things at this age, and I do not want the space being taken up with computer jargon! I'm rereading "Elmer Gantry" and rewatching "The Reader." Sounds like a nice afternoon for me - while basking in the cool, cool (at last) autumnal breezes!

But, you shouldn't be as lazy as I am! Get in that studio - or kitchen - or garage - or basement - or corner of your bedroom - and make something beautiful!

♥´¨)
¸.•´¸.•*´¨) ¸.•*´¨)
(¸.•´ (¸.•´♥ Tristan ♥

Absolutely, Positively, 100%, Complete and Total Truth

... about a few of our rural neighbors.


I have a feeling they have not stolen my vision for the perfect bathroom...

I know this is the shortest post in Enchanted Revelry history; but, I'm off to be semi-productive - you go and make something beautiful - NOW!

♥´¨)
¸.•´¸.•*´¨) ¸.•*´¨)
(¸.•´ (¸.•´♥ Tristan ♥

It's Wednesday, So It Must Be 97 Degrees Outdoors...

Last night, as I was getting into bed to read a while before falling asleep (which seems to take a much shorter time than it did twenty years ago!), I realized that my stack of bedtime reading was getting out of hand. So this morning I gritted my teeth, girded my loins (what does that mean exactly?), and started to shelve the bedside leaning tower of light reading.
But where? I realized that every shelf on my bookshelves were not only completely filled ...
...but that books were piled in front of the shelved books ... so I went searching for another place to store my store ...
however, all the limited space on my art supply shelves was already taken up with books, ....
... and even the drawers in all the chests were stacked with books. What's a boy supposed to do?

Then I saw this fabulous photo on Leslie Austin's charming blog, The Bower. I was so excited to find somebody whose bedside reading pile far surpassed my own! All of a sudden, I was no longer alone in the world with more books than shelving!



She also quoted Sydney Smith: "There is no furniture so charming as books ... even if you never open them, or read a single word." I breathed another sigh of relief that Mr. Smith, the noted clergyman and writer understood. What better permission to come than from a man who can actually make poetry from salad dressing ingredients!

Two boiled potatoes strained through a kitchen sieve,
Softness and smoothness to the salad give;
Of mordant mustard take a single spoon,
Distrust the condiment that bites too soon!
Yet deem it not, thou man of taste, a fault
To add a double quantity of salt.
Four times the spoon with oil of Lucca crown,
And twice with vinegar procured from town;
True taste requires it and your poet begs
The pounded yellow of two well-boiled eggs.
Let onion's atoms lurk within the bowl
And, scarce suspected, animate the whole,
And lastly in the flavoured compound toss
A magic spoonful of anchovy sauce.
Oh, great and glorious! Oh, herbaceous meat!
'Twould tempt the dying Anchorite to eat,
Back to the world he'd turn his weary soul
And plunge his fingers in the salad bowl.

So I have decided that, until I am blessed with an 18th century mahogany bookcase to house my written sleeping aids, I shall simply enjoy the stacks of books that are starting to find their way into every room in the place!
Oh! Before I forget - I found this remarkable treasure at 1st Dibs antique center. Isn't it WONDERFUL?! I would love to have room for it (and an extra fifty thousand to buy it!). I think if anybody deserves an art deco ticket booth (easily converted to a mini-bar or sauna!), it would be me! Not to be selfish or self serving you understand - simply because it's only fair.
Speaking of fair. Somebody else actually owns these exquisite painted and silk upholstered Louis XVI Beechwood Fauteuils. If there was fairness, I'd have them in my bedroom - with books stacked under and beside them, of course!
I have known many weavers and spinners in my time. I am so admiring of their work - and patience! I've tried doing both - not my cup of tea. I've also known several people who have raised their own sheep for their wool.

However, I have yet to see a wedding gown made with the luscious strands from a Lincoln Longwool! This spinner/weaver/shepherdess in Lincolnshire had her gown created from her beloved wool ... and I think it's a stunner! Click on the photo to get a really good look-see! (Whoever came up with that expression?)





Well, I must get my day moving along. Since I didn't accomplish shelving my books, I must go on and see what else I can not get accomplished. Perhaps I'll just lay in my plain simple down home everyman bed and ... read one of those books!


Actually, I'm going to finish some art projects ... why don't you go make something beautiful, too!

...Did you notice I got through this entire post without whining like a third grade girl about the heat and humidity and mugginess and unpleasant weather we're having?

♥´¨)
¸.•´¸.•*´¨) ¸.•*´¨)
(¸.•´ (¸.•´♥ Tristan ♥

Art Treats In the Good Old Summertime

I hope everybody is having a wonderful summer, frolicking out in nature, and moving with the rhythms of the breezes ... and wearing lots of sun screen, of course!

As promised about a bazillion years ago, I'm posting a few photos of the art swaps I've been involved in during the past couple months...I've received such wonderful little treasures!!!

First, in the Mad Tea Party Hat swap, at Mad Tea Party Mail Art, I was gifted this outrageous Tower of Pisa hat by Rebecca of Sugar and Spice Art Confections. Isn't it fun?! There are layers and layers of ruffled crepe paper and ball fringe and paper embellishments and ... LOL. It's loaded with goodies!


...and take a look at the top! A complete Alice in Wonderland court scene! I just love it.

This was my contribution, which was sent off to Deborah of The Painted Nest. I got a little carried away, and I think it's way too heavy to wear in the Halloween parade! But I couldn't resist putting the entire tea set on the hat!

This beauty was a private swap with K.C.Willis of Lipstick Ranch. Be sure to click on the photo to see a larger image (as with all photos here!), and look at all the delightful details. This is such a beautiful piece ... it's hanging in my studio now, and I always get inspired when I stop to examine it!
Now, take a look at this absolutely exquisite and lavish masquerade diadem, which was part of a swap at Marie Antoinette Mail Art group. This beauty was created by Cassandra, and I'm just enchanted with it! Feathers and sequins and gold, oh my! It really is extravagant, and the photo just does not do it justice. You can see more of Cassandra's creations by clicking here.
Several months ago, I participated in a 'tag,' in which we were to offer to give a piece of art to three people, who would then gift you with a piece of their art. How lucky was I to have my friend Anne Huskey-Lockard of el Milagro Studios take up the challenge!? I received this evocative piece from Anne. It's a two-sided canvas - with the 'back' of the canvas serving as a shadowbox. It is wonderful wonderful wonderful! I wanted to hang it in my studio, but there was a bit of a tussle over it here, so we have it sitting in our bedroom. I'm not going to hang it, because I was the freedom to turn it from front to back and then reverse it again as the whim grabs me. If you haven't been to Anne's blog, be sure to pay her a visit. Not only is she a fine artist, she's a delightful writer who always can bring a smile ... and be sure to check out her religious vestments - ooh la la! Quite proper, yet oh-so-glam!

This is the piece I sent to Anne. The little saying under the photo is "I know I missed the boat called perfection; but my errors are portals of discovery; and there are times; when a little madness sets me free."

Well, that's it for the art show today! Aren't I the luckiest of boys?! ... so many talented and generous friends!

OH! I have to share with you a recent sale I made!
This came out of the blue - no previous discussion about the work or even a query as to shipping costs! I was quite pleasantly surprised (to say the least) - for a minute. Then, I remembered the old saying, 'if it's too good to be true, it probably is.' When I took it to the bank, I asked the teller if there was a way of verifying it before I deposited it into my account. She called the bank manager over, who told me that there was no way to actually verify it, as it was a computer generated check without an original signature. Then she informed me if it were fraudulent, Bank of America would close my(?!) account for depositing forged checks. I chose to get in touch with the "buyer" and explain the problem. I have never heard from them since. Four-thousand-dollars-easy-come-four-thousand-dollars-easy-go!

Before I head to the studio, and leave you to your own summertime devices, I'm sharing one of the most exquisite pieces of work I've seen in some time. Just look at the detail and workmanship! Astounding...and to be worn UNDER clothing! Nobody would ever see it! I can't imagine the sleeve pouf big enough to cover those shoulder embellishments!

Now, stay cool - and go make something beautiful today!

♥´¨)
¸.•´¸.•*´¨) ¸.•*´¨)
(¸.•´ (¸.•´♥ Tristan ♥