One of our big reasons for being grateful this year is to have the best readers in the blog universe! Thank you for coming back time and again to read our posts — we only hope to get better for you. We at Garay Artisans want to wish you and yours a day filled with plenty of blessings, food and family. Happy Thanksgiving!
The shopping day after Thanksgiving is usually called Black Friday. I’m renaming it Black FauxDay since I’m putting forth my 2008 Wish List of items I’d like as an artist. I’m going to steer away from products and stencils because there are waaaaaaay too many I want to try. Did I name what’s on your list or omit something? Let me know in the comment box!
1) We had our trailer stolen along with important tools & equipment. Besides samples (sob!!!), what I miss the most is my Werner 10-Foot Stocker’s Ladder. It had casters that safely locked down when you stepped on them and then popped up to allow for super-easy movement of the ladder to the next area. Then there were the sides built for two people, a mini-platform for supplies and a bar to hold onto at the top. Sigh.
2) Painter’s pants by HakanWear. These are so cool that we are doing a more extensive post of them in the near future. They have pockets specifically for brushes, tools and your cellphone or iPod. Plus, they fit really nicely. The best part? There are areas where you can perfectly position the knee pads they come with and you never see them. They don’t slip out and when working upright, they don’t hinder you, look bulky or give the impression that you need to be cited by the Fashion Police.
3) The job estimating software that comes with the business class The Art of Making a Profit by Susan Bickford of Singing Walls. I’ve been in business over a decade and pricing is still tough for me. I get those questions going on inside my head: Did I cover everything? Am I really making a profit on this? Is this the best price I could give for both them and myself? I’ve gotten it down to what works for us but still — anything I can learn to better the bottom line of my business is worth my attention.
4) Amazon gift certificates. Because you can never have enough resource and technique books. ‘Nuff said.
5) I would really like to lighten my load when I go to consults. Regular samples, trim samples, cabinet samples, Venetian plaster samples, mirror and glass samples…it can get heavy! That’s why I’m wishing on one tool that will help along the way. Its the Cabinet Sample Blanks by Krista Vind and Cindy Everett. No more heavy cabinet doors — just small sample sizes that showcase the finishes perfectly.
6) I’m 5′2″ and not only to I get teased by my team for my height (actually, the lack of it) but sometimes my clients join in as well. And guess who gets to squeeze into the really tight spots? That would be me. When I saw a pic of the stilts from All-Wall, I loved them. I really want them. The only thing I wonder about is how long the team is going to stay laughing when they see me strolling in with them on.
7) A fellow artisan, Mardy from Indiana, turned me on to the Racatac in a recent Art Fusion post. She thought it was the best discovery of 2008. I have to admit, it does look sweet. I also saw the gel-filled Knee Blades recently online. Both would help on a jobsite by the ability to roll around easily to get to tough areas or while working on floors. I will give the Racatac the edge since it looks like you can actually rest and work at the same time, LOL!
8) Love it when big-time artisans put out “sample packets” — recipe cards that are inexpensive but yet give you an all-new recipe to try out. (Heck, nothing can beat a professional class but these are a nice distant cousin.) A few available are the Master Methods, Royal Recipes, ProFaux’s online techniques, Sandra’s Recipe Cards from Faux Like a Pro and the Technique Packets from Prismatic Painting. Now, Anthony Pinkstone and Jason Lucas have teamed up to provide Method Finishing, a “subscription based online resource tool”. The cool part is that for approximately $35/month, you will receive five fresh finishes every month. They are striving to create these techniques with the finisher in mind — not the product manufacturer. Cool, no? And quite frankly…and I don’t say this lightly…I do think that both Anthony and Jason will be future titans in our business. They are that talented. So, yeah, it’s on my Wish List.
9) I’ll keep it at 9 — it’s a superstition. If you get a perfect 10, there’s nothing to strive for anymore. So, lucky number 9 it is. My last item on the 2008 Wish List is that everyone who is reading this will be blessed with life, joy and prosperity in 2009.
Now…don’t be shy…anything I missed?
I struggled with which color to profile next. September/October was easy, you know? The start of Fall could only mean gorgeous orange tones to me. In August, we were doing so many gray samples that it was our Garay on Gray post. But this month? Tough. Should I go with White — no, we’re not that deep into winter just yet. Green — that’s more for Spring. Yellow? More summer. Then, I thought: Red! To me it signifies both the Love you feel for your family and getting ready for the holiday season. Also the color my ears get when I don’t get what I want for Christmas. (No, no I’m just kidding…they really get more of a deep maroon tone than red.) ;)
Here are some pretty pics with our chosen color of the month — some have decorative painting and some are just deliciously Red. Hope you enjoy them and that they inspire you!
Well, there are two big competitions going on right now for decorative artists. They’ve both been well-publicized but I thought I would throw in a little nudge, too.
IT’S FAUX EASY - VOLUME II by GARY LORD
Gary Lord is looking for entries for his new book It’s Faux Easy - Volume II to be published by North Light Books in December 2009. (Volume I is easily one of the best faux technique books out there.) He will be introducing 30 of the best new cutting-edge finishes and decorative painting techniques to enhance anyone’s decor and add style and value to their home. One of those finishes could be yours! For more information, please click here. Please note that the new deadline for submissions is January 15, 2009.
MODELLO BY DESIGN: INSPIRING IMAGES FROM ARTIST’S PORTFOLIOS - VOLUME II by MELANIE ROYALS
Melanie Royals is seeking submissions of inspiring photos incorporating the amazing Modello patterns for the second book in the Modello by Design series. According to her site, Volume II has a release timeline of Fall 2009. Volume I was a raging success and has already become a valuable resource tool for finishers and clients alike. If you’d like to read more about it, please click here.
BTW, consider purchasing It’s Faux Easy - Volume I and Modello by Designs - Volume 1, they are well worth the purchase. We’ve also previously reviewed both here and here. I think it’s wonderful that two of the titans of our industry have provided opportunities for all the decorative firms to shine. I hope you consider going through your pics and submitting your work. Remember — you can’t win if you don’t get your work in! Good Luck! 
You know, I’ve been thinking about what some people have and what others don’t. Today, I looked at my oft-taken-for-granted hands and reflected on how they have helped me carve out a creative, beautiful and satisfying life. I then quietly but passionately thought: Thank You.
Where the spirit does not work with the hand, there is no Art. (Leonardo da Vinci)
Art Fusion is a super hip and ultra cool new place for all artists to meet online. It works very much like a social networking site — you can add friends, upload pictures and videos, leave comments and look up an artist’s profile in a snap. You can also individualize your own page — some look a-may-zing. (I haven’t yet figured out how do it. Technology moves much faster than my brain.) There are also contests coming up and groups to join — I became a member of Fabulous Florida and Sisters Hands. On top of that, it even scrolls the latest forum topics from Talk Faux. I’m sure there are many other capabilities I haven’t yet discovered.
The best part is that you can network with other artists and get to know so many creative people around the world. I hope you get a chance to check it out, if you haven’t already. I say that because membership has steadily grown daily. I’ll warn ya, though: it’s addictive! I hope to see you there…and receive a Friend invite!
Reference Site: www.theartfusion.com
Today, I’m starting a new segment of our blog: Elements of Design. I’ll take a pattern, ornament or any other element of design and share a little info of its history and modern day applications. I love researching the origins of everyday patterns and find it satisfying to have that knowledge when it comes to a particular commission. It’s also cool to see an element of design pop up unexpectedly in everyday life and be aware of its symbolic meaning or special origins. I hope you find enjoyment in these posts as well.
We are starting things off with The Greek Key. It is also called Meandros or the Hellenic Key and has its origins in Ancient Greece. The ancient river Meander was twisty and doubled onto itself, giving a symbolic meaning to the key of “the eternal flow of life”. According to the Dictionary of Ornament, the Greek Key is actually part of a group called the key patterns. The key patterns are variations of a continuous geometric pattern meeting at right angles. The design is sometimes broken up and can also be found with oval forms or rosettes. During the medieval period, the key form was used primarily due to their interest in labyrinths. This is interesting because the Greek myths claim that there is a connection between the key’s pattern and the Minotaur’s labyrinth.
The design itself is crisply graphic but unobtrusive enough to use in both modern and more formal settings. Today’s design variations give a nod to ancient Greece but have a personality all of their own. As you can see, its use can transcend substrates.
Fabric
Seating
Furniture
Flooring
Decorative Painting: As Accent (with tiles) or as a Subject (stripes)
There are several stencil companies with wonderful key patterns. You can easily find most of them by using Stencil Search. Royal Design Studio has a nice one called the Victorian Key stencil in their Sophisticated Borders line (in fact, it’s the one used for the key stripes above) and its sister company, Modello, has some under their Ancient Worlds collection. The Stencil Library also has great designs (click here) and Stencil Kingdom has a full line of Greek stencils. I really like the following one from Stencil Planet but you can see their whole line here as well.
I hope you’ve enjoyed this…until next time, be well!
I came across this artist quite by accident. Jim Lambie, who is Scottish, creates modernist sculptures and installations using everyday materials but most famously, vinyl tape. Very bright and playfully colored vinyl tape. His floor installations usually follow the line of the room’s architecture, which reveals its flow rhythm. In this interview, he says that the room basically controls the piece.
According to the National Gallery of Scotland, his Zobop floor pieces start as the strips of vinyl tape are laid down beginning at the room’s perimeter and ending up in the center. His work is based on the concept of filling up a space yet still leaving it empty. See if you agree.
Here are some other pics, including his sculptures. Below, a video showcasing an installation.
Sources: National Galleries of Scotland, Anton Kern Gallery, Web Exhibits, Happy Cavalier, Carnegie International and the British Council.
Recently, I had the pleasure of having a professional photographer, Lindsay Pardo, run around with me to several past jobsites to take pics. On some of them, it was wonderful to see the finished home. You see, a faux finisher is usually the last trade in. We come in right before the furniture and all the other accoutrements are delivered so it’s rare (at least for us) to get a great After shot.
The following pics are two of my fave shots of an exterior we worked on…or as we call it here at Garay Artisans: Going Outside to Play!
Here’s one of our “during” pics…amazing what a difference a little faux can do, huh? Down with Plain Paint!
P.S. Guess what?!? I wore Lindsay down I nicely asked Lindsay to share some tips with us on taking great photographs of finished rooms (or wonderful shots in general) and impart some other pro tips. That’ll be coming up soon. :) Have a great weekend!
P.S.2. Happy Birthday, Lindsay!
