ULLABENULLA

Embroidered Bodies

Who wouldn't love a jacket or dress embroidered by Karen Nicol? She has an enviable client list and beautiful samples... It would be very difficult to choose!

Victorian Ornament Kits For Sale!!!

I finally created a couple of Victorian Ornament kits to sell in my Etsy Shop.  Take a look and tell me what you think.  I made detailed photo instructions for each, and gathered up lots of goodies to put in the bags. The first one is 'Christmas Pageant Children', the second a 'Pinecone Santa'.  Hope you enjoy them!  More to come...

Victorian Christmas Ornaments at the Castle

I had a wonderful day yesterday teaching Victorian Christmas Ornaments at the Castle!  We had so much fun playing with dresden, paper, glitter, scrap and batting.  The results were amazing!!!  I am going to put together some ornament kits to sell this week so stay tuned - you too can share in the Magic of A Victorian Christmas!!! 

Vegetable Nodders

I just couldn't resist one more Halloween post, these little 'Veggie Men Nodder Candy Containers' from Dresden Star Ornaments are just too wonderful!!!

Altar de Muertos

Today I visited a wonderful DIAS DE LOS MUERTOS exhibit at the Sonoma Valley Museum of Art with my Mother. What I had not known about this lovely tradition is that on November 3rd, the offerings are exchanged among visiting relatives with the words, "Here are the offerings the dead left for you." At the end of the visit the host says, "Take this with you because the dead left it for you." In this way the celebration ends, having established a bond between life and death, between the past and the present.
It was truly moving to see such personal displays (created by local hispanic community members of all ages) amazing floral arrangements and stunning 'papel picado's'. The exhibit was rich in color and emotion - a real feast for the eyes and soul... ENJOY!

Papel Picado

On 'Dias de los Muertos' one often sees beautiful paper cut banners called Papel picado (usually with skulls and skeletons for this holiday). Papel picado is a traditional folk art from Mexico that involves cutting out intricate patterns on colorful tissue paper. The tissue paper is then glued to a string in a line to form banners which are used as decorations for important festivities throughout the year.

I was excited to find a new take on this traditional artform by Máximo González who uses out-of-date currency and newspapers to make playful narratives. He cuts out the bills and pages into smaller shapes to create small tableaus, such as Love Profusion and Landscape with Trash. Born in Argentina, González has shown extensively in Latin America, especially Mexico, where he now lives. His work is whimsical, and full of life and vitality. A wonderful way to continue this folkloric tradition!!!

Dias de los Muertos Skulls and Butterflies

Here are some wonderful skulls by Jose Luis Serrano and Alfonso Castillo. Why butterflies? Every autumn Monarch Butterflies, which have summered up north in the United States and Canada, return to Mexico for the winter protection of the oyamel fir trees in the mountains of the state of Michoacan (150 miles west of Mexico City near El Rosario). The local inhabitants welcome back the returning butterflies, which they believe bear the spirits of their departed - the spirits to be honored during Los Dias de los Muertos. (Find lots of Day of the Dead Links here!)

SKELETONS AND MORE FROM PARIS!

Just in time for 'Day of The Dead', Florizelle brings us these amazing photos from 'Sic Amor', a jewelry shop on 10 rue du Pont Louis-Philippe, in the 4th arrondissement. The windows are dedicated to the delightful French designer Lyndie Dourthe! How inspired can one get - combining skeletons with butterflies and flowers??? Isn't that necklace incredible??? Uh La La - It must be French!!!