Showing posts with label christmas gifts. Show all posts
Showing posts with label christmas gifts. Show all posts

Friday, December 16, 2016

CHRISTMAS GIFTS FOR ARTSY PEOPLE


Here's some more Christmas gift ideas! How 'bout one of Hattie Stewart's posters (above)?


No? Well, how 'bout a poster of Dora Maar, one of Picasso's favorite models? I'm guessing this photo (above) was taken by Man Ray.

Ceramic tiles? You can get all kinds on the net.



A lamp?


A framed picture of Dimwit?


For a martial arts fan, a photo of a female athlete?


A poodle poster?


How about Dick Tracy? I love this picture!

Tuesday, November 18, 2014

CHRISTMAS PRESENT IDEAS / CALDER


 When family Christmas gifts come to mind my thoughts turn to the sculptor, Alexander Calder. I wonder what kind of gift would push our house farther in the direction of Calder's home in rural France. Don't get me wrong. I try to get something uniquely suited to the person I'm giving it to, but in some cases Calder influenced things fit the bill. 


I've never given anybody an interior door, but it would make a nice gift, don't you think?


Wow! What a clutter! I wonder if Calder actually cooked in his kitchen? Anyway, there's a few good ideas here. It looks like Calder bought pots and pottery for the way they'd look on his wall.


I like the way Calder hangs pots. A hanging iron pot rack (above) would be a nice gift. I also like the way he made lights out of pie plates and baking forms. 


Yikes! The man is even more messy than I am. He has good taste in some of the details, though.



The items above are all from Etsy, but Ikea has stuff like this too. I'd say some of these things are Calderesque.


Calder loved indoor plants. Plants make a great gift, especially if they're exotic and easy to take care of.


Thursday, November 28, 2013

CHRISTMAS GIFTS/THANKSGIVING

I don't have much money to spend this year, so I'm lucky that the gifts I have in mind are crafts, which is a field where bargains abound. Like the shadowbox diarama above...I love Mexican sculptures and the prices aren't too bad. That's because the box is actually pretty small, it just looks big here. The figures are made out of potato starch and gypsum. 


Or the Moroccan fabric on the left above...My daughter likes stuff like that. That bureau's kinda nice too, but who gives bureaus for Christmas?


This (above), believe it or not, is a pad of paper from a stationary store.


 Here's a nice Mexican beadspread. It's so cheerful!


More pricey, but still a bargain, is this (above) embroidered bedspread. There's better examples, this picture just happened to be handy.

Here's (above) another diorama. It only costs a few bucks.


 Here's one (above) with a theme common to all cultures...the table resplendid with good food.


 How about a Chinese dragon? They come in little paper cutouts like the one above...


...or in big sculptures like the dragons you see in New Year parades.


This guy (above) made his own paper dragon. The dragon could use some improvement but I like the way it's supported by little sticks.


What would I like for Christmas? Maybe a paper dragon kite. I'd hang it from the ceiling. I've heard that it takes an experienced kiteman to fly them. The head has to be light enough so that the disks that make up its body can support it in the air.

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Well, that's all on that subject. Later on this afternoon comes Thanksgiving dinner with friends. I love that holiday. When you think about it, we have lots to be thankful for, even in these times.


BTW: If you're making pumpkin pie be sure you use small mashed baking pumpkins and not the big jack-o-lantern pumpkins that you see at Halloween. The now defunct Horn and Hardart's restaurant made the best pumpkin pie but they were an East Coast outfit and I don't know if anyone on this side of the country ever tasted it. Too bad. That's like never having had pizza.

On the West Coast everyone thinks pumpkin pie is supposed to be brown, the way it comes out of a can.  Not true. A real pumpkin pie is orange like in the picture above, not brown, and it's made with condensed milk. Condensed milk tastes horrible when drunk, but it works great in baked goods. And did I mention orange zest? It'll need some of that too, but not too much.