It seems that May and June always seem to be filled with weddings, graduations, birthdays, anniversaries and other gift bearing holidays. Gift giving in this economy can be a stressful thing. Most of us would like to give something meaningful at a reasonable price. (Gifts from the evil land of Walmart just do not seem special!)
With that in mind,i have decided to create a line of jewelry for the budget conscience consumer. Most of these pieces have been created using recycled and upcycled beads and baubles, which help to keep the prices down. Some of the jewelry i have been making this past week are from beads i have been holding on to for 20 years. I finally went up to my ghost ridden attic and am ready to let go of my stash of vintage beads. (I hope the ghosts do not mind.)
More pieces will be added over the next week. Here is just a sneak peek.
For more Budget Conscience Art to Wear for the Bohemian Soul click here!
Today is the 18th anniversary of my dear friend Edie's passing. It was Edie who brought me to a Chinese doctor who gave me acupuncture and stinky herbs for my damaged lungs. She was the catalyst that changed everything in my life at that time. Giving up doing art for a living, going to acupuncture college, a divorce, moving, moving and more moving! I will be eternally grateful for her friendship and her wisdom. And like every anniversary of a friend's passing it makes me ponder things like ....what the hell am i doing? Life is precious. Time to live, laugh and love.
I often wonder when whoever is running the big show in the sky- whether it is GOD, The Goddess, the Universe, the Flying Spaghetti Monster, fill in the blank with your favorite Deity______. Whoever it is does He/She/It look down at us and think "Boy did I create some stupid humans or what?"
Maybe life really would not be so hard if we just paid attention to those little messages or signs sent to us. That billboard that reminds you to breathe. The song on the radio with that perfect message about a current situation. A bluebird sitting on your window sill. Your stomach hurts every time you walk into your cubicle at work. A friend suddenly passes away shaking up your entire belief system.
I find that whenever i try to force something to happen it either backfires or creates chaos. However on those days that i just allow life to just be without any effort it flows. Things happen in unexpected ways. So why is it so hard to just trust that everything will be OK? Who was the first human who discovered the power of worrying? Is it hereditary? Days like this i just want to stay home and watch the Wizard of Oz and eat twizzlers.
Perhaps the Wicked Witch of the west was just trying to tell Dorothy- STOP TRYING SO HARD... with her Surrender Dorothy sky message. Then again, none of us were sad when we all learned you could melt a witch with a bucket of water. (Need to test this theory out next halloween - i wonder if it works on warlocks with big egos?)
Dorothy always had the power to go back to Kansas. She could have clicked those ruby slippers in the beginning had she just believed. Of course- i never understood why she would choose to return to a monochromatic home to live with a mean aunt and uncle who tried to get rid of her dog.
I always wished for a sequel to the Wizard of Oz. Hoping that Auntie Em or Uncle Henry got the nerve to throw a bucket of water on Mrs Gulch. Maybe Dorothy started a dog walking business or became a motivational speaker on the power of belief.... and that the use of color was finally discovered in Kansas.
I invite everyone to surrender today... do something fun and foolish.
Happy Earth Day. Please take the day to be nice to our one and only planet.
"The earth does not belong to man, man belongs to the earth. All things are connected like the blood that unites us all. Man did not weave the web of life, he is merely a strand in it. Whatever he does to the web, he does to himself." — Chief Seattle
Happy Easter. Happy Spring Cleaning. Happy Sun enters Taurus. Happy soon Mercury will no longer be retrograde!
I found a new addiction- crocheting with wire and will soon be debuting my latest art to wear pieces. Meanwhile it is time to do some spring cleaning at the Planet Calamari Etsy shop. All bird nest pendants are now marked down. A few other earrings have also been reduced. Please visit the shop and look for the SALE.
Silver and copper wire with New Jade Serpentine beads.
Silver and copper wire with green marble beads. This was a special request order.
Green turquoise beads with silver and copper wire.
Planet Calamari Etsy Shop for more nests and art to wear. 18% off all items through Saturday morning to celebrate our CEO, Zevo Calamari's birthday. Use the code ZEVO18 checking out.
It is Zevomas here at Planet Calamari! April 14th marks the 18th birthday of Zevo hussein Calamari, founder of the infamous Pooses for Peace and CEO of Planet Calamari!
Hard to believe that this part siamese, tonkinese mix has been with me for 18 years. Longer than any relationship i have ever had!
Zevo was born in Escondido California under the bed of my dear friend Edie about 10 days before she passed away from a long bout of cancer. Zevo and her sister, Baby Pig (who has since passed away) came home to live with me, 3 German Shepherds, 2 cockatiels and another scruffy being we will not mention! This was the very first time i had ever had cats.
Zevo has been cooperative moving with me on my various escapades to Hillcrest San Diego, Toronto, Newton MA and now Salem MA. Who knows where we will all end up next...
For 18 years she has been by my side through all the various changes, ups, downs and absurdities in life. There is never a dull moment living with this Queen of Snark. Zevo is always ready to vocalize exactly how she feels and bites when the need arises. (You can follow her adventures by visiting her blog wwwzevocalamari.blogspot.com
Thank you Miss Zevo hussein Calamari for the love and constant entertainment you have given us. We love you!
To celebrate the life of this extraordinary feline and CEO of Planet Calamari, we will be offering 18% off all items at the Planet Calamari Etsy Shop on Wednesday, Thursday and Friday. Please use the code ZEVO18 when checking out.!
It's Friday and i am feeling snarky. It has been a long week. I am grateful that i do not have TV or else i would be glued to it watching CSPAN or worse CNN and throwing things at it. It is annoying just to read the latest Google headlines or if tempted to visit the Huffington Post
I am in awe at the stupidity of our elected officials. Here we are ... on the brink of the government shutting down because it has spent way too much money in the past on an illegal and unnecessary war, then the bailing out of the greedy bastards on Wall Street (who then congratulated themselves with million dollar bonuses) and a Congress who can vote on a pay raise each year. Not to mention take several vacations, paid insurance and other benefits the common citizen is not privy to.
And what do these buffoons want to cut? Well besides things like women's health which is an entirely new blog topic for another day- they want to cut ART. Funding for things such as PBS, Sesame Street, Art museums, the Boston Symphony, Art education, Dance and more.
Art is one the planets oldest and dearest treasures. Every great civilization honored art and its artists. I believe the key word here is great. Those cultures who cared nothing about art, music or literature that were based on war and power collapsed. Not a pretty sight.
If we take away the arts what will this nation become? Can you imagine a monochromatic life filled with nothing but work, reality TV and war? Maybe NSCAR races and football. (And mandatory church meetings.) I bet House Speaker John Boehner's idea of art is a velvet painting of Elvis and dogs playing poker.
And those GOP folks must know that even Jesus loved art. Well he seemed to featured in so many famous paintings so it must be good. Right? Just look at the Vatican and the Sistine Chapel. It's filled with art. Holy art.
The arts create jobs and boost the economy. Just think what happens when Jimmy Buffett comes to town. He sells out in less than 15 minutes. I know- i have tried several years in a row holding 2 cell phones while on 2 computers in hope of scoring 2 tickets.
So in a matter of minutes, Jimmy is boosting sales for Ticketmaster who hires a ton of people. Margarita and tequila sales are up. The Party Shop sells out of coconut bras and grass skirts. Extra security is brought on for the concert. People are hired to sell t-shirts, whirlygigs and drinks at the show. CDs are sold. Hawaiian shirts, sunglasses and flip flop sales go through the roof. Buffett wanna-bees buy guitars and take lessons. Corona beer becomes popular again. Those walking around with illegal smiles buy Doritos and munchies. People are happy, dancing and spending money and some are earning money. And this is just a Buffett concert. I have no idea what kind of impact something like CATS on Broadway has on the economy of the city it is playing!
How about cutting the salaries of everyone in the senate, congress, lobbyists and over paid government officials to start off with? Make them pay for their own insurance, planes, trains, stamps, limos, phones and benefits. Let's stop wasting money on things like the Bridge to Nowhere, the Big Dig, and whatever they do with all that corn they throw away. OK- so how money did we save so far? Anyone have a calculator?
OK... next up on the list to cut... WAR - hmmm! ugh..what is it good for... AbsoLUTEly nothing. So let's send the bad guys some crayolas, paint and paper. Maybe throw in some clay and beads. Way more fun than shot em up. Way cheaper and safer for our troops. All we are saying is Give Art a Chance. Too bad old GWB didn't think of that option first. And i am sad that Obama backed down on his promise to end the madness.
So let's stop giving away stuff to people who are mooches. Yes- it is politically incorrect to say it...but i will. If you are on welfare then you need to prove that you cannot work. And take a mandatory drug test. I realize not everyone on welfare is scamming the system- but we all know there is a lot of waste. If you have a shiny new car parked out in front of your house, then i want to know how i work the equivalent of 2 jobs and still drive an 11 year old VW bug? Even without a calculator there is something just not adding up here! So let's clean that big mess up. OK... what number are we up to now?
More things to cut from the budget. No more bail outs to Wall Street. Let them dig themselves out of the hole next time. Perhaps the money would have been better spent on things like education or just divide the money up and send every US citizen a check. Some of them may even buy things like.... food or pay rent or save their homes from being foreclosed.
OK... has anyone added up what we are saving yet? Let's see if we can make some money too for the government.
Let's make the corporations pay real taxes. Not fake ones. No more kick backs for the oil companies and the evil conglomerates. Pay up! Come on we all know you have it. That should make a big bundle of cash right away.
Let's make churches pay taxes. Yep- they make a profit. Let them pay. No need for Father O'Greedy to be driving a Mercedes. Just like there is no need for the Pope to wear red Prada shoes. Crazy Reverend Pat Robertson's church is rolling in money. And what about those insane Westboro Baptist Church freaks that protest at military funerals? Now that could pay for the arts right there!
Have i left anyone out? Do we have enough money yet? Well if you think of more ways feel free to add them in the comments!
And even though this is not related to art- i really want to know who will feed the animals at the National Zoo if the government does shut down. Are they going to just put vending machines in their cages during that time?
And do i have to mail in my tax check to the IRS if nobody is there?
With the looming threat of the US government shutting down arts and the rights of women i was inspired to find work by STAT team members that let their light shine though as a beacon of hope. With or without government support we will always be creating art. All we are saying... is give ART a chance!Please spread the Etsy love by commenting and sharing.
I have been collecting vintage hats, purses, jewelry and clothing forever. As a child i loved rummaging through my Nonna's basement trying on her old hats and playing with her pocketbooks. My favorite past time is to roam through thrift shops and garage sales in hopes of finding a piece of the past. It is an addiction. My attic is proof.
I adore the look of the 1920's, 30's, 40's and 50's. Women had style and even manners! Classic hats and purses. Don't leave home with out your gloves or hankies. Red coral lipstick. A touch of perfume. Ah the good old days.
As i have been purging my attic of boxes and clutter, it occurred to me that i do not need to keep every purse or hat that i have found over the years. I no longer wear or use most of these items and the ones i will keep belong to my Nonnas and Aunts. In a perfect world i would own a vintage resale shop, get dolled up everyday for work and feel glamorous.
I really do not need one more business or rental commitment - especially here in Salem MA. So the next best thing to do is to set up a cyber Etsy shop. No parking hassles, city taxes, overhead or mandatory shop hours. No worries about theft, Halloween crowds and no snow emergency parking bans. Happy not to have to invite the mayor of Salem in her ill fitting black suit pose while cutting a ribbon at my grand opening and have her take credit for yet another booming business venture under her reign.
Welcome to the Skinny Legs and All Vintage Boutique , named after one of my favorite Tom Robbin's books. I will be adding more items over the next few weeks. And hope to add the link to this new shop on the Planet Calamari website soon.
"High heels, they put a woman much closer to heaven" Tom Robbins
