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I guess keep doing what I am doing as long as it is fun? I must be a fashion role model for someone out there.
<3
As of today, I am back at work. Here are my most recent summer on-location #ootd pictures.
It was the summer of my dreams – beautiful weather, incredible people, creative juices flowing…. It was and is everything I could possibly desire.
So, not really a conclusion. It’s just another beginning. A renaissance! Today is a continuation of a fun, blessed life. I just had to get up a lot earlier and spend less time with my cat. #catsnamedpablo (yes, that’s a thing). <3
The former Johnny Appleseed’s furniture store (3402 Old State Road, Erieville, New York, 13061) is now The Shoppes at Johnny Appleseeds. The brainchild of Erica Gilmore and her husband Patrick, it is an over fifty vendor facility, with artisans setting up individual shopping experiences creating little vignettes throughout this amazing space.
It is a still-life lover’s dream. Charming folkloric visual merchandising at every turn. The vendors are not there hawking their wares. You are left to enjoy the process of discovery. Vintage clothing, handbags, jewelry, greeting cards, home decor including furniture and housewares, candles, art (Wendy Harris is there!) and even bird houses.
***from the web-site
The Shoppes at Johnny Appleseed reopened in the spring of 2017 as a retail space for crafters and artisans alike. We are excited to offer such a unique venue and are always looking for talented people to continue to grow with us as we build a future at this historic Central New York location.
There is a restaurant as well, the Apple Kitchen, and they serve apple crisp! <3
They have various sales and events – pet adoptions on weekends via a liaison with Wanderer’s Rest and more! You can stay informed by linking to their Facebook page. <3
Current list of vendors –
The Apple Kitchen • Alexandra’s Attic • The Heckled Hen Antiques • Decorative Edge • 13 South Metal Signs • Wendy Harris Fine Art
• Hidden Hearts Honey • The Nook • Kaylie Beth’s Boutique
Patrick Gilmore Furniture Designs • The Crazy Chair Lady
Bayside Wood Products • Mary Gosden Studio
Carter’s Pond Jewelry • The Wire Chick Jewelry • Hop Scotch Farms
Bird on A Wire • Gideon’s Gallery • Final Harvest Woodturning
Kate’s Place Polish Pottery • West Hill Woodworks
Beyond The Twig Fence • Clay In Motion Pottery
Iron Art Glass Works • Balsam Rose Soap Company • Russel’s Books Johanna Wall Jewelry • Mames Place, Vintage Jewelry
Primitive Beginnings • Branchwood Cottage Antiques • Glassy Crafts
Elfriede Dietrich Designs • The Nantucket Cat • Past Times Treasures
Flowers off Main • Wrapped Up Beads • A&K Furniture Designs
Songbird Sewing Company • Classy Glass • The Lucky Lab
Marcia’s Country Cupboard • Richard Stricker Birdhouses
Amondale Farms • Dappled Blue • Old and Everlasting Greeting Cards Rustic Willow Furnishings • Random Acts of Craft, Mirrors
Blooms and Blossoms • The Tulip and the Toad • Brenda’s She Shed
Orchard Ridge Wines • Jenna Paulsen Fine Artist • Mila Group Prints
There is rental space available! Contact johnnyshoppes@yahoo.com for the deets.
Location #ootd part II: with friends and family
Here are some of my Instagram photographs taken outside of the classroom. Summer rocks! So grateful for time off of work, for time to enjoy the sunshine. And for time to bask in the creation of art, and in the appreciation of it. #blessed <3
Here are my looks for January and February 2019. I started with new students so we are easing into the mess. Three students got paint on their clothes on Friday, lol, and one slapped her painting into her chin while attempting to place it on the drying rack. Another got paint on the back of his forearm. What is that about??? Of course, I made it through the week unscathed. I am a professional, as you know.
Disclaimer – I have a couple of repeats here. I tried to change it up, but you will notice that I have those over-the-knee Karl Lagerfeld boots in two colors and about four or five similar Free People cardigans. And – I just bought the Theory Malinka belted cashmere cardigan in three different colors! I still want the black one too, if I can find it.
I know what I like and when I find something that works, I want it any way I can get it. My new desires include the Joe’s Jeans leather cropped pants in all three colors, more Theory sweaters and I have my eye on a white BCBGMaxAzria gown (for no particular reason) and a couple more Rachel Zoe things. I also have 3.1 Phillip Lim on my radar and, of course, more silk Ulla Johnson dresses.
I <3 fashion!
#fashionintherealworld #fashioninreallife #fashionblogger #fashionista #fashioninrealtime #syracuseartist #arteacher #lovefashion
Photo cred: Katy C.
There is no air-conditioning in school. We take my #ootd pics early in the morning and by the end of the day I am sometimes somewhat of a hot and sticky mess. I am grateful to have two fans mounted on the walls in my classroom and I have been drinking tons of iced coffee, water and a Gatorade every day.
No complaints though, as Syracuse, New York weather feels like Florida right now and we are on the verge of summer vacation!
Here are my most recent outfits. My Rachel Zoe dress needs the dry-cleaner stat, as Friday was a particularly muggy day. It is currently a silk version of what my hair looked like later that day – that frazzled ’80s rock star effect that we all discarded with the invention of flat irons. Seriously cringe worthy, lol. I wore boots that day because I was sure it was going to rain mid-day, but that rain did not appear until I was driving home from work. It lasted all of fifteen minutes leaving us with perfect outdoor festivals weather for the weekend – Ozstravaganza in Chittenango and Taste of Syracuse downtown.
One of the best parts of getting back to work has been reuniting with my favorite photographer/bestie/colleague/art teacher/partner-in-goofiness, Katy C. We have resumed the #ootd. Here are my latest outfits coupled with some from before my two month hiatus.
I have fallen in love with a new-to-me brand: Cinq à Sept (5 to 7). I love every piece and am finding room in my closet for these silk confections – three dresses, two tops and counting!
I am also such a fan of Marc Jacobs boots. He and I are the same age. Lol, he really gets me. I feel like the lasts for these shoes were made from molds of my feet. Cray-cray awesomeness!
I love having somewhere to go every day. People often tell me that they never had a teacher like me, alluding to my work fashion. When I was growing up the teachers always made an effort – they wore mini shift dresses with high heels. Had their hair done in the beehive coifs of the day. Were prim and proper, and so, so smart. Beautiful. Miss Emerson, Miss Clancy, Miss Daniels, Miss Adsitt…. I loved going to school back then too. Thank you, Tecumseh Elementary for a dream. I guess I always aspired to be just like these amazing women. Didn’t actually realize it until now – wow!
I love fashion. Love to get dressed every morning for work. Love feeling good about myself, happy, relaxed, confident and this feeling contributes to the dynamic of each day.
We have so much fun. Art is about imagination – imagining your dreams via learning how to draw, how to visualize solutions. I am currently working on four or five different things with the students – clay sculptures and bas-reliefs in a couple classes, horse paintings in a couple…. The Studio in Art students are painting barn landscapes using Wolf Kahn’s color palette and my 5th graders are doing double duty – first an additive wood sculpture then an invention à la Da Vinci. More to come in regards to that one. I will tell you the story of my invention soon. It’s hilarious, I promise. <3
OMG, I love, love, LOVE Halloween! I dressed as a prom queen, a dark angel, a lion tamer, the Mona Lisa and Hermione Granger. It started on October 20th – I chaperoned the school dance. The following Wednesday there was a costume party at the Dinosaur BBQ in downtown Syracuse; Saturday it was a house karaoke party and on Halloween, I did a day and night thing – school then costuming at Notch 8 in Jamesville. Why don’t we do this all year long? Halloween is just the most creative holiday. It is the best! So fun….