A Chic Wedding

When you get to be as old as me, chances are you’ve been to more weddings you can count. There’s nothing wrong with traditional weddings, of course, but after a while all the dresses, shoes and tuxes all start to look the same. As someone who is always looking for something different to paint, I was thrilled to be asked to paint Amelia and Radek’s wedding dolls, a present to them from a pretty amazing sister.

Short pant tux! An off shoulder Christian Dior dress with the most amazing silver chrome shoes ever to go with it! Fabulous in every way!

This is a double trio, which depicts the couple’s wedding, their meeting (heck, if I was a guy meeting a chick wearing that dress, I’d ask her out in a heartbeat!), and their hobbies. Of course, for Amelia, it’s not just a hobby, but work as well. If you’re in Brooklyn, be sure to check out Sugarbuilt Cookies to sate your sweet tooth!

Devo

Years ago I did a Devo set and had been wanting to do another. I mean, I’ve got sheets of foam, a hammer, and the hubs’ hole punch set, so there’s no reason why I couldn’t go to town making the Devo hats.

An opportunity arose and I got to repeat the original set AND create a whole new one. It’s for people who like shiny things.

The Grand Budapest Hotel

It seemed that every time Wes Anderson has a new film out, I’m in the States and therefore able to attend a screening in a proper theater with a bag of popcorn firmly anchored on my lap. It is fortunate that I’m around this time also to catch “The Grand Budapest Hotel” and thoroughly enjoyed it. Of course, a set of this movie had to be painted. No doubt!

Here we have (clockwise from left) Monsieur Gustave H, Agatha, Zero, J.G. Jopling, Madame Céline Villeneuve Desgoffe-und-Taxis, and of course, Dmitri Desgoffe-und-Taxis.

Some close ups:

J.G. Jopling’s skull rings.

The Desgoffe-und-Taxises.

The lovely Agatha with her birthmark and accessories.

The best thing about this movie was the Mendl’s cake. Since I’m a lazy baker, I prefer to look at photos of it instead of attempting to replicate it.

This cake is what dreams are made of. But for those of you who have the drive and the will to recreate this delicious treat, here’s a link to the recipe.

Have fun!

Things to Do When You’re in LA (on a 6 hour layover)

The last time I set foot outside the LAX I was seven years old. I took a picture with E.T., I went to a zoo, and I witness a flood at the Universal Studios. So when Emi of Pygmy Hippo suggested that I come and see her at her shoppe during my layover back to Oz, I became religious. You read that right. I had to pray to the Great Organizer of the Universe that nothing would delay my flight so I may go and meet this girl whom I’ve been working with for about two-and-a-half years.

Nothing did delay my flight from Denver to LA, although there was a hairy moment involving a power outage…not something you want to hear at an airport. I planted myself into a cab piloted by a very accommodating driver who put up with my incessant chattering and pointless questioning. You spend two months painting in a basement and I’ll bet you will talk the ear off a cornstalk too! We arrived at the Shoppe just as the sun was losing its last rays and I started screaming like a One Direction tween fan as soon as I spotted Emi. Arms were flapped and words were shouted at top volume. It was so great to see this fabulous shop and its proprietress in person at long last!

Look at this gal! I could, even if I try, never ever look half as cute as her!

Emi’s man Nathan more or less built every single item in the shoppe. He had measured the counter space just so so it was literally designed just for Emi! I’d love to spend hours in there, browsing and trying not to knock over things with the giant butt I’ve acquired over the two months thanks to Mom’s delicious cooking, but alas, there was another flight awaiting me.

We hightailed to the Culver City In-N-Out Burger. As a former East Coast being, I’ve heard great things about their legendary burgers and insanity fries. Emi and Nathan ordered some off-the-menu items for me. It was a shame I was so excited to meet them that I couldn’t finish my animal style fries. But that’s just an excuse to come back out another time, isn’t it?

Thank you, Emi and Nathan for treating me to the best layover meal and conversations ever!

The Pygmy Hippo Shoppe has been featured in many media outlets. This is the one I found that was pretty darn special.