February Fashion
Tag Archives: Michelle DaRin Jewelry
Art City
I visited with four friends in their tents on Montgomery Street yesterday. They are all participating in the AmeriCU Syracuse Arts & Crafts Festival, which continues today from 10 am – 5 pm. The festival occupies and includes four streets around Columbus Circle in downtown Syracuse, New York.
Barbara Conte-Gaugel sells unique, handmade handbags and wallets.
John Oneal Heard (johnonealheard@gmail.com) is also a drummer. His paintings on glass reference music.
Charlie Sam creates whimsical illustrations on T-shirts. They are known as having a “both cute and creepy” dichotomy.
And, of course, Michelle DaRin. I love her vibe – and feel privileged to be among her tribe. <3
Retail as Art
Pam and I ventured into Camillus, New York territory tonight to attend a Michelle DaRin Jewelry trunk show at Synple (70 Main Street, Camillus, New York 13031). Michelle’s new pieces are vibrantly bold yet feminine talismans. Each piece is uniquely handmade. I loved everything!!!
This quaint village shoppe is the brainchild of fine artist, art therapist, stationery designer, mother and retailer Kelly Landau. The merchandising is picture perfect.
Synple is a comfortable nook in the heart of the village where you will find friendly people who are passionate about their merchandise – housewares, clothing (Free People is a mainstay), jewelry (including a selection of Michelle DaRin pieces), candles, soaps and all sorts of amazing gifts, treats and stationery.
The Made in the Deep South items are currently 50% off until they are gone. I want that beige cowhide bracelet with the crystal jewel!
Hours of operation are Wednesday – Saturday 10:00 am – 4:00 pm. Kelly is currently working on updating the store’s website. For more information on merchandise and future events such as this one with Michelle, give their Facebook page a LIKE. Here is the link.
Next up for Michelle – a show at The Finger Lakes Academy of Decorative Arts this Friday and Saturday. Information is on their Facebook LIKE page here. <3
Summer #ootd
Kickstarting
I spent the weekend creating encaustic paintings of horseshoes to exhibit in my sister’s new yoga studio. Sophie Tashkovski will be opening the doors to Syracuse Yoga sometime in May. This is such an exciting time for our family! We are so proud of Sophie. She is an amazing yoga instructor and business woman.
Sophie’s logo is a quatrefoil of horseshoes. It is a combination of relaxed elegance, abundant positive energy and a pinch of luck.
The artist in me had been dormant of late – the facelift I gave the Honor Thy Master series kickstarted an eruption in me. The red hot magma (love saying that) is the passion/blood/desire flowing from me to paint again. On Friday, I purchased some supplies then spent all day and well into the evening on Saturday in production. I felt the electricity of luck flowing through me as I worked. Today I mounted the dozen piece collection onto chalkboard-painted masonite. Tomorrow I will do touch-ups and pick up some hooks to attach to the backs so they will be ready to hang.
I also plan to purchase a few more things from the art supply store. I have momentum now and I don’t want to lose it. I will continue to make progress. There’s a smaller series of horseshoes on deck and I hope to create angel paintings and maybe more hearts – they are my bread and butter. I love when I not only have an idea in the creating of work but in addition, a place to put them once they are done. Yessss!
Janine came over as I was painting and I gave her a lesson in encaustics. That was fun – she took these great photographs to document the process. (And, OMG – no make-up and junky paint sweats, lol!)
As much as I love teaching, I really wish this could be my life all the time. It is so much fun! I would need more than a kickstart of motivation though, in order to turn it into a real 24/7 business. I would need to be passionate about the business end and that is more dormant/inactive (really closer to extinct) volcano in me all the time. When Sophie and our friend Gina were talking spreadsheets over drinks at Kitty Hoynes last month, I kind of zoned out, as if they both sounded like the teacher on Peanuts. Blah-blah-woh-waah….
Gina operates Saunacuse, a sauna studio using infra-red technology. (At Christmas, I bought my sisters gift certificates to go there – it is amazing!) I wish I could be as business savvy as they are, and like our friend Michelle DaRin is.
She is the business woman’s business woman role model – artist, educator, wife, mother, jewelry designer, and…kickstarter.
Michelle and her husband are looking to expand their business, which has gotten a lot of press/national attention recently. I am in awe of her raw talent. Her work is infused with so much positivity. Wearing the copper-based enameled bracelets, rings, earrings and necklaces, you can actually feel the energy radiating from the collection and affecting you harmoniously as you dance your way about the day. And by you, I most definitely mean me. I LOVE wearing her jewelry!
Michelle DaRin Jewelry has started a Kickstarter campaign. They are looking to fund a project in which Michelle has more studio space and in addition, a place to teach metal-smithing classes (She has an Art Education degree from Syracuse University).
https://www.michelledarinjewelry.com
Check out the link to the funding page at the bottom of this blog post – you aren’t just handing her money for the heck of it. It is a business transaction. You will receive jewelry – and basically get it for a lot less than the retail value. The more you give the more you get of her hand-made one-of-a-kind pieces. The money will also go towards the hiring of staff trained in the manufacturing of the goods, as there is a strong need to meet the demands of the increased interest in her work. Win-win!
I am so honored to know these beautiful, talented young business women! They are truly kickin’ it!
Click the link below to see how you can participate in manifesting this new and improved vision for Michelle DaRin Jewelry! I promise you will love it! <3
https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/392921309/jewelry-with-soul?ref=project_share
#fashionintherealworld
If you search Instagram for the hashtag #fashionintherealworld, you will find all of my posts. I invented it and #fashioninrealtime, and #fashioninreallife. I just checked them; I think there are only two or three posts on them from random fashionistas. The rest is all me.
Here are my outfits of the day from the last two weeks. The landscape of my background keeps changing as I shift student work around the room. All of my clay projects are complete. The last batch went into the kiln today. The 5th graders are currently working on a three-dimensional wood sculpture, my Studio in Art students are learning watercolor techniques and the rest of the 8th graders are immersed in the various SLO test projects: Statue of Liberty paintings, “under the sea” landscapes with fish (mixed-media lesson), Japanese fan project (also mixed-media) and abstract paintings with realistic horses thrown in. So four additional different lessons for the six classes.
There is a lot going on, which will culminate in the School Fair set for May 12, 2017. I will have my hands full preparing for that exhibition and hopefully even with the upcoming state math tests looming, we will get everything accomplished.
But first – Spring Break!!! I will be working on the business of making art as soon as tomorrow. Can’t wait. Watching students make art is clearly a fun job, but nothing beats the guilty pleasure of creating my own artwork – even though it is super messy and therefore cannot be done in designer clothes. So…I will be sacrificing fashion for my art. I did buy a new dress for Easter though. It is Halston Heritage. <3 OMG, I love it!
The Perfect Cardigan
I am all about the cardigan at work. Kind of a Mr. Roger’s Neighborhood thing, lol. I dress in layers and the sweater comes off pretty quickly. We have been running the kiln, so, it has been toasty in the classroom. I’m always donning multiple smocks in order to not sustain paint, Mod-Podge, plaster, clay, oil pastel or the-like messes on my clothing. It is a messy job, but I am doing my best to keep it fashionable. I love clothes. Love fashion!!!!!
Playing Catch Up
We had a snow day today, so… I’m playing catch up on blogging. Here are my most recent outfits of the day. I got paint on my new Free People tunic top and on something else – spent the day doing laundry and tidying/organizing my closet. A lot of re-runs this post. I went heavy on the leggings in order to go hiking right after school before it got too dark. Along with this snowmegeddon thing, the time change screwed with my perfect world. But then again, I only have to work one day this week – tomorrow. That is, if this snow actually lets up. Crazy! What am I gonna wear? Lol, decisions, decisions.
Dressing the Part
I am back to work and school! It is fun getting dressed up, not so fun going into a building with no air conditioning, but I adjusted to it within days. And today – it actually felt cold in here!
I spent the summer in exercise clothes, bikinis and shorts. I hiked seven miles a day and did pilates twice a week or so. Working on fitting teaching into my exercise schedule, lol.
As for artwork, I took down my art show at the Sullivan Library in Chittenango, New York, and I plan to exhibit the Talisman paintings in October at the Half Moon Bakery and Bistro in Jamesville, New York. Eight paintings are still on display in the Lawrence Pavilion at Summit Medical Group in New Jersey. They will be there until January, I think, unless the show gets extended.
Penny Santy is showing her paintings in the Chittenango Middle School library! She will give a presentation about them on November 15, 2016. I am planning to do some projects based on her work. Four classes will be doing oil pastels or paintings of cows and bulls as part of my SLO tests.
In addition, I’m planning lessons on George Rodrigue, Jasper Johns, Keith Haring, Wolf Kahn, Japanese wood block prints and Greek mythology. So fun!
Art & Music!
Yesterday was one of those perfect days where I accomplished everything I said I would do. I did pilates, as well as some light housekeeping then went to my hair appointment (love you, Amanda!), hiked at Green Lakes State Park, and ended up downtown for some great art and music!
For real, lol. I took these pictures and everything (for those of you who maybe thought I was still off my rocker chasing Pokemon).
The AmeriCU Syracuse Arts & Crafts Festival is in full swing. I caught the tail end of it last night – the vendors will be there all day today and tomorrow until 6:00pm in Columbus Circle in downtown Syracuse, New York. A lot of my friends/Facebook friends are there: Michelle DaRin, Barbara Conte-Gaugel, Peter Valenti, Tim See, and Michael Heagerty, as well as dozens of artisans from around here and out of the area.
There is so much to see. There’s clothing, jewelry and accessories, paintings, ceramics, furniture, soaps…. It is really an incredible experience. And since working the Lavender Fest for Michelle that time, I can appreciate the dedication it takes to spend all day in a small tent in ninety-degree heat with few bathroom breaks in order to interact with customers face-to-face.
I think that is the best part of making a purchase from one of the vendors – that you get to know them and you walk away with an experience rather than just some trinket. You experience the artist’s passion for what they do and you take with you a part of them, the part that contains a vast amount of love.
That is truly special. I love that.
Last night’s music event in Clinton and Hanover Squares was the Northeast Jazz & Wine Festival. More music tonight with the band Atlas taking the stage around 8:00 pm! Hope to see you there!
Summer rocks!
