DIY: Twig Christmas Tree

Forgive last week's absence, friends, but for health reasons (remember my shoulder?) I had to dramatically cut my computer time. I spent the time doing quality things, though, like reading, painting my nails the most ridiculous chartreuse, and setting up Christmas trees.

Yes. Plural. We take Christmas very seriously around here, and that usually means multiple Christmas trees. The kitchen has been set up (white tree, red ornaments), the entry as well (off-white tree, gold/brown ornaments), my sister should be taking care of her room soon (white tree, pink/green ornaments), the living room will probably be last (green tree, red ornaments)... and well, me, I decided to take a different route.

My mother created the original Twig Tree a couple of years ago, but its demise came one rainy afternoon as someone bumped against it and the whole thing crashed to the floor. The vase broke, the twigs broke, the ornaments broke. It was the end, but this year, I decided to take it upon myself to resurrect the beast (or a version of it) for my own purposes. It's a simple DIY, and I'm mostly posting the steps so I can tell you about all the things I did wrong... but here we go anyway.

Times Like These #3

Small post today, just passing by. November is ending and so is NaNoWriMo, which is brilliant news because writing has been a little painful lately. Not just because of my ruined shoulder (I should sue my university), but mostly because I spent September and October working on short stories pretty much back to back, on a slightly exhausting rhythm of plan-write-revise-line-edit-submit, rinse and repeat. My inner editor took over, in all the glory of her french twisted hair and military inspired dresses, and it was very very hard to wrestle her into submission for NaNoWriMo. I'm definitely not happy with what I've written this year, but maybe it's just a phase.

Either way, I'll probably post a story mood board on Friday, and then forget about this altogether.

To the photos, then! Epic sunset from the bathroom window, me in need of a serious haircut (I want my bob back), teeth I've kept in a box all these years because morbid is my middle name (♫ I still keep my baby teeth in the bedside table with my jewelry... ♫), the only focused shot I got from a walk with my sister (we went outside to "see the Fall", but ended up brainstorming story ideas in the cemetery), raspberry brownies, and the return of nail polish (it feels right again, after months of... not).

Well, I'm off to go buy pretty supplies to work on pretty packaging for my Etsy shop now. It's a little weird to say this. My Etsy shop. It's not much yet, but hey, better done than perfect - and don't worry, I won't make you buy anything made out of my own teeth. Maybe someone else's, though.

I'll leave you with that thought. Have a great week!
xx

Enchanted Doll

Our weekly dose of Friday Inspiration has arrived! But first, a story.

I have a private board on my Pinterest. It's called The Bone Room, and if at first it was used to hold images of articulated animal skeletons (very important, if you're me and have had a cat skeleton for a year), now it's kind of turned into my depository for things I want to post about. Eventually. I never really planned for this "inspiration" thing to become a regular feature on the blog, but I think it's kind of helped me narrow down what fits my personal aesthetic, and what doesn't. I'm a very visual person, but being so detail-oriented I can usually find something to like in pretty much everything. But how do I reconcile my love of streamlined monochrome with my love of baroque exaggeration? I don't know, but I guess we can consider that my new crusade.

Anyway. Today's featured artist is Marina Bychkova, a Russian-Canadian figurative artist, and founder of Enchanted Doll, a luxury toy label of exquisite, porcelain dolls.

More than mere playthings, Enchanted Dolls are elegantly sculpted and articulated works of art. Strikingly nude, engraved or adorned in opulent sculptural costumes of precious metals, gemstones, and rare found objects, each doll intricately conveys an aspect of our humanity. Unique and delicate, their forms evoke a strong emotional response, haunting us with their vulnerability. All at once innocent and sexual, Enchanted Dolls depict highly stylized images of femininity, while at the same time reflecting on life’s playful naiveté.

The first time I saw these, they were featured in some art blog (I really can't remember the name, I think it was more than a year ago), and the commenters kept mentioning how the dolls made them uncomfortable, due to them being anatomically correct and whatnot. Honestly, I find that striking about them. The discomfort. At first, I felt it too, and it made me wonder why. Is it because dolls are predominantly objects we associate with children? So does that mean I think genitals are inappropriate for children? Or is because adding genitals to a doll means sexualising it? But then, I would be saying that full nudity is inherently sexual, and I really don't think it is. Am I just a prude? Am I just playing into society's fear of genitals? Deep thoughts to be having around a doll, huh.

What do you think?
xx