Recycled Plants, Recycled Bottles

I'm posting a picture, apropos of nothing, of my summer planters at the shop. They are composed of plants that I chose under self-imposed pressure (for some reason I allotted about 20 minutes at the garden center to pick out plants that I would be looking at for 3 months). As a centerpiece of each planter I recycled an ornamental grass that we already had. It even survived the hack job I did of dividing it for each planter. I'm not usually drawn to sweet peas, but I'm glad I chose them for this summer. It cheers me up to look at them, and we could all use some cheer in '09. And speaking of recycling, I just got these recycled glass bottle lanterns in the store this week.

A simple idea: cutting a circular hole out of the side of a glass bottle and creating a tin well for a tealight or votive candle at the bottom of the bottle. These bottles would look very cool hanging from branches for a little out-of-doors ambiance. And to those of you who look at the bottles and say "I could make it myself" I say: knock yourself out. First, you'll need to drink lots of soda or wine - don't forget to clean out all the sticky junk at the bottom! Then it's just a simple matter of acquiring a glass cutter with a circular bit (be sure to wear your commercial-grade safety goggles while cutting into the glass). Next you'll need to get out that pair of tin snips you've been saving for a rainy day and craft a tealight-shaped holder out of tin. After which you can head to the hardware store for the correct adhesive for attaching metal to glass - preferably one that will withstand high heat - and glue the parts together (in a very well-ventilated room, mind you! This stuff is toxic!). Next you'll get out your tool box and pull out the ol' wire cutters and a pair of hefty pliers so that you can twist 20-gauge wire onto the bottle - make sure the wire is mounted evenly so that the bottle doesn't list to the right or left. And that's all there is to it! Now you just need to hang that bottle in your backyard tree, light a candle and enjoy. It has cost you a weekend and half a paycheck, but you'll have the satisfaction of knowing that you did it yourself. Unlike all those other slobs who simply walked into the store, grabbed a bottle lantern and slapped $8 down on the counter. Suckers.

All sarcasm aside, whether you make them or buy them, these recycled glass bottle lanterns would be a very cool addition to your outdoor (or indoor) life.

New Project

Usually I leave the personal stuff out of this blog, except for the occasional rant, but I just couldn't resist sharing this latest creation.  It took a lot of work - but here it is, coming in at 8 lbs, 2 ozs...

p.s.  So far he's not nearly as cranky as he looks in this photo!

Past Projects...

Yesterday a couple came in with a photo of a canvas they bought from me a few years ago. For a while I was painting these canvases with designs in the negative, putting blocks of color around the image I wanted to create, which was usually left as raw canvas. It was a bit more time-consuming, of course, than doing things the other way around, but has a great effect. Anyway, here it is, recorded for posterity, assuming that is, that posterity will care. So thanks, Customers (who shall remain anonymous), for bringing the photo in - it's nice to know that past projects have lives that extend beyond the shop!

What's New?

I've been putting my little gocco (rhymes with loco) printer to work lately. For those of you unfamiliar with gocco, it's basically a tabletop screenprinter. It's great for creating original designs, all produced by hand of course, but in a relatively more streamlined way. Each design can be created multiple times using the same screen, but a screen does have a life - usually 50 or so printings. In that sense, each design is a limited edition. There are people out in gocco-land who create unbelievably complex designs with their printers - it is really fascinating once you check into what's out there. My images are more straightforward: here are a few designs I sell in the shop as hand-screened postcards and notecards. If your interest in them moves beyond just looking and into purchasing them, you can check them out at the online store here.


Whale - looking a little like a wood-block print.

Whale in aqua - a little bit more modern.


My nod to Motif No.1 - how much more amusing would it be to see the birds attacking all of us who endlessly photograph this fake fishing shack? Didn't quite have the nerve for that.

Creative Customers

One of the benefits of having the store is meeting all the creative people who come in with strong ideas of their own. Of course I get plenty of "what do I do with this?" queries (especially when looking over my admittedly more bizarre pieces), but just as often customers don't need me around to give them inspiration. Take the wall hanging shown below, for example. A customer purchased some of this paper from Midori (a sort of Americanized version of the traditional Yuzen paper I also sell) and created this bird silhouette as an overlay. I thought this was a great idea and was happy for the store to play a small part in her project. Actually, I just stood behind the counter and sold her some paper, so my part was very very small indeed.

Craftytime, Part II

I have stacks of old books that I've been using for collage projects. For those of you who think it's a desecration to dismantle old books, I would posit that I am actually aiding in a sort of reincarnation for a book that was destined only for a landfill. What could be less dignified for a book than to slowly deteriorate amidst piles of diapers and banana peels? Instead the book lives on, hopefully in your very own home, in the form of, in the case of my current project anyway, little paper hearts cut from its pages. Awwwww. That's pretty sweet.


Tiny little Heart Boxes - perfect for candy or momentos or...

Book Box, with a nice little surprise inside (see below).

Look at us! A vintage cake-topper couple, with vintage wedding bells, preserved at the moment of perfect happiness for all eternity.

Projects Unfinished, Finished, and Destroyed.

The list of unfinished projects is long, and grows longer by the day. At least the list as it exists in the real world. The one in my head has little checkmarks beside each project - done and done. Unfortunately I must occupy the real world and try to complete tasks ad infinitum... I have a terrible habit of getting really excited about a creative venture, starting with a fistful of paintbrushes and going at a job - for about 10 minutes. Not even the prospect of public humiliation (so to speak) will prompt me to finish. Witness the example of the back wall behind my counter. "I'll paint a graphic bird/tree/nest thing!" I told myself in a state of delirium. All went well until I got to the boring part, where the bottom of the tree went on and on and on... I just couldn't take painting another blue inch, so I stopped. You think I'd be a little embarrassed to have customers staring at such a glaring example of non-stick-to-it-iveness, but I'm not. On to the next thing!
I did, however, finish with great diligence my design on the chalkboard wall in the store. The theme of birds, once again, prevailed, and I lovingly looked upon my handiwork every day. Until an enterprising young non-customer smeared chalk all over, destroying my minor masterpiece. I confess to not really considering the impermanence of chalk as a medium - which is the whole point of chalkboard paint - when I spent so much time composing my paisley pattern. Next time I should consider completing the paint job instead of the chalk job. Brilliant.

Speaking of brilliant, I post a photo, for your pleasure, of an amazing light fixture (the gold light, not the EXIT sign - yuck), new to Sycamore Hollow but not new to this world in general. No indeed, this piece of goodness has been around for awhile, as evidenced by a little wear and tear and the patina of the gold-leafed surface. It is huge, and if I had my act together I would post the measurements. It will make an impact wherever it ends up. I only wish it could end up in my house, but I am not in the business of keeping this stuff - most of it anyway...

New View of an Old Map

A few years ago I acquired a great old French map of western Europe, with bright, saturated colors. I wanted to get it reproduced in a cost-effective way so that the whole world could enjoy this map. And if not the whole world, than at least the few souls who come into the store or shop online. Lo and behold, I finally have reproduced the map in all its glory, and it can now be yours as well as mine. The colors are still bright and beautiful and it is actually a little more wall-friendly, as I reproduced the map in a smaller size than the original, which demanded more wall space than most of us have.

You might want to consider making this map your own. You and your distinguished dinner guests or uninvited neighbors can examine it and reflect on all the places you've been or the places you might want to go...Or you can use it to cover up that giant hole you made in your drywall in your misguided attempt to hang a shelf with a hammer and a couple of 4-inch nails. It's up to you, really. Map measures 25" x 19"

It's Cookin' Here at the Hollow...

If you have to suffer anyway from the intense and unexpected June heat, Rockport is a great place to be. Walk to the beach, roast for a little bit, then de-roast inside a very pleasant air-conditioned Sycamore Hollow. Central air is a new experience for me, as for the last several years I have only had a window unit puttering along, and unless you were standing directly in front of it (and believe me, customers were waiting in line to do just that on hot summer days), it was pretty useless.

The latest and most delightful addition to the store - besides cool air - is our selection of screenprinted Japanese papers. Lover-ly. Most of the papers we carry are made in Japan in the traditional method, and a few are made in the U.S. using 100% recycled cotton paper. Great for gift-wrapping (if you're feeling extravagant), book-making, covering boxes, etc. etc. Go crazy with Japanese paper - this month's creative tip from Sycamore Hollow.