The Swell Life Kitchen

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the swell life kitchen

Yep, getting settled in! And I’ve had a lot of people asking me, “What does your place look like?” or saying, “Send me some pics of your place!!”, so I thought I would do it in installments. I would love to show you all at once, but I’m not that good at cleaning. A little tidbit about me that you may not have known…I am very good at propping and photo styling. So if you see a beautiful picture on my blog, chances are there is something sitting right next to it that I cropped or moved out of the way to get the shot. For me, it’s all about making something look good, even if it’s not great. Oh, well, my secret is out…Anyway, here’s a little peek into my kitchen. I have had the cherry theme for 4 years and I was thinking I needed a change, but I have sooooo much stuff to decorate with and it’s still super cute and fun, so I am keeping it for a while longer. I would say my style is cute and kitschy and colorful. It’s unfortunate that I can’t paint, but I don’t think I would want to do that anyway…ugh, I had an unfortunate experience painting back a room on the day I was supposed to move out. I had to be out by 8 and I was there till 4 in the morning painstakingly painting my bedroom back eggshell! Yikes. Never again until I move into my own place I say!

If you hadn’t already noticed, I have a hard time just sticking to the story (yes, I’m one of those that says they have to go on the phone, but ends up talking 30 minutes more).

So onto the good stuff!

with a cherry on top
My impromptu charger for my counter made from a cake stand!

made by my mom
A detail of a flour sack towel my mom digitally embroidered for me.

counter corner
Here’s one corner of my kitchen.

make your own damn dinner
And a detail of my favorite Anne Taintor postcard along with a mini cherry plate filled with faux cherries I purchased from an artist at the Woodland Art Fair in Lexington a few years back.

cookbooks
And here’s my pretty cookbooks. Too bad I rarely use them.

alexa's kitchen
Here’s a closeup of some embroidered prints my mom made me. She painted the frames to match just for my cherry-themed kitchen.

magnets, postcards, and memories
And here’s a look into my fridge décor. I love Elvis, but many of these were actually gifted to me. I don’t make a point of collecting them or anything, but I still like them.

And here’s some of my favorite kitchen things….

colorful tin bowls
Colorful tin bowls. I love colored metal! I’m just not sure I would want to drink from the colored tin cups!

now all I need is the hotdogs
Plastic baskets and ketchup and mustard squeezers.

hobnail reproduction glasses
My new & colorful hobnail reproduction glasses from Pier 1. A Christmas gift from a friend.

andy warhol servingware
And my Andy Warhol Campbell soup dinnerware and glassware that I just love.

Hope you enjoyed the little tour. I plan on sharing some more photos of my place in the next couple of weeks.

Until next time Swellions!!!

Alexa

My “I can’t live without this” purchase!

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street scene find

A couple of weeks ago, while picking up my check at Street Scene for some photos I am selling there, I spotted this really cool plastic hanging organizer. I’m not exactly sure what this was used once used for, but I immediately knew that I had to have it. I envision it hanging in my studio one day filled with interchangable photos or at the very least holding some mail. I always have such big ideas for my décor, but it is not as clean and polished as I would like. I would love, love to live in a magazine spread, but I seriously don’t think this to be realistic.

Anyway, back to my organizer, I just love all the colors…I’m such a sucker for warm, bright shades (especially red and orange). And I love the diagonal slices of color painted on the back of the plastic…so fab and kinda ’70’s colors with an ’80’s motif!

It’s not everyday that I make a purchase I just can’t live without. I’m pretty good about disciplining myself to stay away from such things. Esp. décor items…I live in an apartment after all which really limits my space and I don’t want to clutter it up even more! But I do have a few things I just have had to buy…these include:

These Marilyn Monroe glasses I bought before I moved to Lexington…
marilyn glasses

This awesome retro tray (also doubles as a backdrop for photographs)
bargain tray

and really, how could you not buy these?
why? because I like you.

I can’t really say that I’ve used these things on a daily (Mickey Mouse ears, seriously?) or even monthly basis, but they do make me smile when I see them.

What have you purchased that you just couldn’t live without?

Until next time Swellions!

Alexa

A visual & vintage cookbook smorgasboard

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pancake mix

I’ve been meaning to post about this for a while, but recently while on a trip home I got out my mom’s old cookbooks that she used back in the early 60’s…and boy was I in for a treat.

If there was one thing I wish I could do art-wise, it would be to know how to illustrate in the 1950’sesque style. I love the kitschy linework and adornment along with the colors they infused into their work…just love it. I’m sure there are plenty of artists out there still doing this style (I met one named Suzie Millions at the CHA show last year who replicated this look to a T and had them featured in her book Retro Crafts.) But there’s definitely something to be said for the unadulterated whimsy and fanciful shapes and designs and linework. I guess it goes back to it be a simpler time…when it was much easier to hire an illustrator to do a cover than to have it photographed. I would def. love to meet one of these illustrators today and hear about their craft. It just amazes me.

Well, I’m going to post a whole slew of photos below of covers, quirky foods, and those beautiful illustrations. I guess back then, the domestic housewife had a lot of time on her hands and could utilize it by ‘whipping up’ a 5 layer cake or several batches of homeade cookie bars. I know very few people today who even attempt a daunting task like that even once a year (actually my sister Angela does around Christmastime-must applaud her for that effort). It seems like Thanksgiving and Christmas are the only real times we actually cook. It’s kind of sad that we don’t “play” as much in the kitchen cause our lives are so overwhelmed by work, kids, and social obligations. I do notice a lot of people have been doing more simple baking like cupcakes which are relatively easy and pretty and are rather quick craft of sorts. I guess it’s all about finding the time to create something – even if it is a 30 minute meal. hope you dig these illustrations and retro foods as much as I did!

sorbet fantasy

cookiesandcandies

coconut layer cake

wagon cake

table talk

practically cookless cookbook

frozen assets

do ahead party book

Until tomorrow Swellions!

Alexa

O Christmas Tree!

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In Full View

I put up my tree today. It wasn’t an incredibly complicated process, but I did realize 3/4 of the way up, while stringing the lights, that I wasn’t going to have enough to finish…so, I had to go to Joann’s and Michael’s anyway, and I picked up another strand. I guess that makes 500 lights on my tree. I love the sparkle. There is nothing like it…even though I do have a “colorful” personality, I like the white lights the best (though I do have a few of those giant-bulbed ones that I dig). I’m not totally done with my decorating, but atleast I got my tree done and for me, that is an accomplishment. I decided not to put my “traditional” tree and instead to put up this white one (decorated retro-style) that a co-worker gave me a couple years back (she didn’t have room for it – yay me). It’s a nice one, but it is not pre-lit and you have to put every branch into the center.

I’m not a big Elvis nut, but I do like him (I’ve been to Graceland). I got the two Elvis ornaments from friends and I purchased the standee a few years back. I actually use that standee in show displays to hang jewelry on from time to time. Here it is atop my tree as a twist on an angel or star topper.

Thank you, Thank you very much for putting me atop your tree.

And here’s one of the Elvis ornaments…

I can't help falling in love with you, tree.

I am in absolute love with this funny Glitterville Ornament. It is so funny and full of life. I imagine I would be pretty mad, too if someone peed on me.

One angry snowman

And there are quite a few of these vintage-reproduction ornaments on my tree…a few years back they were 4 for $1.99 at Rite Aid after the holidays and I picked up 4 packages. Even though they aren’t the real thing, they are still the bomb.

bright & shiny

So, what does your tree look like? Does it carry on a theme or filled with old ornaments from your childhood? Please do share…

Season of Swell Photo Ornament

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So my online friend, Margot Potter put in her post on Tuesday that a group of bloggers were having a “Virtual Ornament Gathering”, so I got inspired and whipped this one up…

season of swell

The idea was that I wanted to create something one part kitsch + one part digital mixed in with a little whimsy and this was the result.

I used my own personal image, but this idea could be transformed into funny ornaments for the entire family or a gift for a special friend with a message that relates to them. Here’s how I made it:

SEASON OF SWELL PHOTO ORNAMENT

Surface
1 wooden shape – 2.5″ x 3.5″

Supplies
– Computer with printer and photo-editing software program (I used Photoshop 7)
– red paint
– foam brush
– small craft brush
– textured white printer paper
– pop dot
– tacky glue
– silver craft wire
– variety of small beads
– 1 small pom pom
– 12″ piece of green glitter sequins
– green fine glitter
– glue gun and glue stick
– scissors
– Preserve Your Memories II Spray sealer

Instructions
1. Paint your ornament with red paint using foam brush. Let dry.
2. Open up your photo editing program and layout a new page 2.5″w x 3.5″h.
3. Fill in background with a solid color. I added a shape layer to mine with a psychedelic starburst background for added pop in a slighly lighter shade than my background image.
4. Layout text over top of background. I used the “warp text” tool using the font, Magnum (downloaded from the internet), to achieve my look.
5. Open up the image you want in the center of your ornament. Using the magnetic lasso tool, I went around my image to define it. Make this selection active and copy>paste this into your ornament document (note: I modified this image slightly by making it look that I had “flipped ends” on my hair for fun).
6. Transform this image to fit just inside you text.
7. Open up a new layer and draw a cartoonish santa hat. It doesn’t have to be perfect, just fun and whimsical. Also add any other embellishents over your photos (I added faux earrings).
8. Now open up a new 8.5″w x 11″h document. Go back to your ornament and click off the background layers and words to just reveal the face and hat. Flatten the image. Cut and copy this image into your 8.5″w x 11″h document. Go back to your ornament image and select edit>undo to unflatten the file and show the layers once again. Now click off all the face and hat and make the background and words active. Flatten this image. Also cut and copy this image into your 8.5 x 11″ document.
9. Load your printer with lightly textured cardstock paper. Print your images onto the cardstock and carefully cut out around ornament and image.
10. Use tacky glue to glue paper to ornament. Let dry.
11. Lightly brush glue onto areas you want glitter to cover on image (I chose the hat). Over paper plate, lightly sprinkle glitter. Shake off excess onto plate.
12. Place pop dot in center of ornament and position image on top.
13. Carefully glue gun sequin trim around edge.
14. Take craft wire and wrap around pencil to form wire coil. String beads and pom pom randomly onto wire. Glue ends of wire to back of ornament with glue gun.
15. Spray ornament with Preserve Your Memories II Spray sealer (it keeps glitter from getting on everything and gives a nice matte sheen). Let dry.

That’s it. Enjoy!