Mai Autumn

vintage finds

i am having so much fun adding all the vintage goodies to the shop today. it's taking a bit longer than i would have liked, but i discovered another aspect of the listing process that i am getting pretty absorbed in - the history! now, i could just list everything with no extra descriptions, but as i'm researching each of these pieces, i'm discovering all the beautiful designs that are part of each of these patterns, the company's history, when each of the pieces was originally made, and so much more! it's down right exciting when i search and search and i finally see that the little dish in my hands is actually a rare piece of depression glass, or part of a pattern from the 1950s that was so extensive that you could basically outfit your whole kitchen in its little flowers! there is so much to each of these finds and i hope you enjoy the little pieces of history i have found to go along with them.

 

you can find all of these pieces in the shop and i'll hopefully have time to add a lot more next week. i keep accumulating more and more pretty things these days, it's tough to keep up with all the (super fun) research :)

i hope you all have a great weekend! i can't believe it's already friday! this week has just flown by! see you monday :)

vintage dictionary prints

** Update - with the popularity of this post via Pinterest, Dictionary Prints are available again! - pick one up in the shop here - http://shop.maiautumn.com/collections/artwork/dictionary-prints **

after waiting way too long for my flat tire to be fixed just now, i am glad to be back inside the air conditioning to tell u guys about my newest development - vintage dictionary prints! a while back, i came across this falling apart dictionary in the bin of a book giveaway and had a little eureka moment. i'm starting a whole line of prints done on these gorgeously aged pages. this book would have been taking up space in a landfill, and the amazing history on these pages would have been lost. but now, this book is being repurposed into one of a kind pieces of art! and there are going to be many more titles to come.

since these prints are not completely archival, they are much more inexpensive than giclee prints. the ink is the same dye based ink that i use on my regular prints, but the paper is not acid free (hence the yellowing that gives these prints character). each page is about 9"x12" and if you would like, you can request a special page - whatever word you're thinking! i've actually already had someone request their own word, or i wouldn't have even thought to mention that :)

i'm really looking forward to playing around with these pages! keep an eye out for lots of designs to come from them! :)

yay new website!

the day has finally arrived! my new website is ready! i've been working hard to perfect all the little nifty do-dads that have been included in the update. this new layout is going to allow for lots of expansion in organization, product offerings and more interaction with you guys! i couldn't be more pleased with the way it turned out -  i could just hug it! (if one could hug a website lol) check out the screen shot below, and go have fun playing with it by clicking here.

i'd love to hear what you think! and if there is anything that you notice that isn't quite right, please feel free to send me an email at [email protected] or leave a comment letting me know! i'm still testing out every last feature , so it is totally possible i may have missed a thing or two.

it feels *so* good to have this done! just sayin' :)

inspiration - adaptation

if i could sum up a movie in a few images, how would i do it? movies are such a great way to get into a new way of thinking or looking at things. if i'm stuck on a design or painting i'm working on, i've been finding it very helpful to escape into film these days.

today's inspiration comes from the movie, adaptation. i absolutely adore meryl streep, and, after watching this complex flick the other night, i also realized that i love all of charlie kaufman's movies. if you haven't seen it, i highly recommend it!

via cabinet of treasures

 

fig. a.) anthropologie; fig. b.) aileen chong via pinterest; fig. c.) sarah storm; fig. d.) bhldn

 

 calypso st. barth

columbia pictures

it's a lot to take in, but if you're in the mood for a mind bending experience, this film will surely satisfy.

i hope you're all having an inspiring tuesday out there! :)

my mood in one image - 7-26-11

photo by glen m. via pinterest

little bits of my week - staycation

i'd like to say a big hellooo after my little staycation! gosh that week went by fast! i wasn't *as* successful as i would have liked to have been at not working.. but hey, at least i tried! it helped to leave behind most of my usual 'stuff' when i went outside of my apartment all week. on many occassions, i only allowed myself a book and my journal. so nice to disconnect a little!

here are some snippets from my week... :)

 

the majority of the week was spent lounging on the sand, or in my parents' back yard. so, in order of appearance - a quiet beach day in ocean grove, the woods behind my parents' house, the plants and flowers on the dunes by the boardwalk, the basil in my garden (!), and the view north into asbury park.

it was so nice to leave behind all my electronics for most of the days i was out and about. i hope i can remember to do things like this more often. i definitely feel recharged and ready to take on some exciting new work! :) woohoo!

staycation

i'm taking a little staycation this week. yes, i'm attempting to relax a little for once! i'm not really too sure what i plan on doing, but i know that it may involve some crab cookin', beer drinkin', and beach goin'. i got inspired by real simple's article on vacationing at home - so many fabulous ideas here!

it's not an all out total vacation, considering i'll still be on my email and shipping out the orders on my usual shipping days, but i hope to fit in some more me time (and family and friend time!) than usual. i figure that, these days, i'm sacrificing a little bit of my time until i can get to a place where i might be able to hire someone to help out and allow me to shut out the world every now and then. until then though, it seems like i live in the perfect place for a little mini vacation time every now and then - the beach is so close, ny city is a train ride away, and not to mention atlantic city is also a hop skip and a jump away if i need some gambling lol ; )

alright, well, i better go get my bathing suit on and enjoy this sunshine today! i hope you're all having fun out there and i'll see you next week! :)

image via water in my paint

heat wave

it is hot out there this week! as much as i love the summer weather, when the thermometer starts to reach past 95, i get a little woozy. in light of the high temps, i'm thinking maybe i should start planning some plans for a little refreshing dip in the ocean! i do live within walking distance to the beach, so it really is a crime that i don't get up there that much! here are some lovely photos i've capture of my beach life here in new jersey over the past few years..

 

 

 

 

 

most of these ocean views are available as prints over in the shop, so you can enjoy a little beach time any time, too :)

my mood in one image - 7-11-11

artwork via lovely sweet william

i'm starting a new feature that i think will help do a few things: 1) allow me communicate my feelings in a visual way more easily, 2) give you guys some more pretty stuff to look at, and  3) have a little fun while not using words to express myself :) this is the last of talking you'll see in posts like this! i think this is going to be quite fun :)

working and playing

i hope you all had a fabulous weekend! thank you to everyone who bought a heartsy voucher! while i'm busy packing up lots of orders, i'm finding myself daydreaming about some ideas for new paintings for the week ahead. as i mentioned last week, plans are underway for a new series of acrylic paintings, but i'm still focused on my watercolors - they never let me down!

while sketching a little bit, i realized that my bird series still intrigues me and i'm beginning to find new and interesting aspects to play with - color, additional design elements, ink, etc. i'm going to allow myself to keep playing with the watercolor and trying tons of new things - letting the series grow organically. i think that sounds about right. if i'm strict about my acrylic, i think it could be good to let myself mess around with the watercolor - have a little fun with it - explore something! how's that sound? :)

looking at amy ross's illustrations really got me thinking about expanding on a series. she has so much variety in her work, yet it all seems like it evolved (pun intended) out of the same place. check it out:

all images via amy ross