Style Crush: Lynn Yaeger

portrait by Dietmar Busse

Blogging, writing, painting...for me these three actions stimulate many of the same synapses. In this instance I'm speaking of the connective spark between one act and the next. Every time I work on a new painting my mind gets crowded with images of what the next painting in the series will be. 

So it was with my first edition of Style Crush, when I profiled Aaron Ruell. I'd been wanting to share my love for his style for a long time, and naturally, in the process of writing his profile my mind was filled with images of my very next Crush who would appear here. And that is none other than one of my ALL TIME favorite peeps! Lynn Yaeger, aka Baby Lynnie. I have been a fan...no scratch that...obsessed with Lynn for well over 15 years. Stretching back to when we had our furniture line...which I have mentioned was highly inspired by fashion, Lynn was always on my radar. I had photos of her all over my giant inspiration wall. I love her antique boudoir porcelain doll like style.

Her cupid's bow lips...the way she gets extra bang out of that same lipstick...using it to dot her adorable cheeks with a bit of "rouge". And her chosen silhouette, to say that I have worn nearly that same silhouette forever might just be an understatement.   

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Lynn Yaeger is a contributing fashion editor to Vogue.com and a contributing writer to Vogue. And for thirty years she was a fashion reporter for The Village Voice. You've probably seen her unforgettable face on tv whenever there's an in depth report from New York's Fashion Week. 

When she writes about or talks about fashion I know exactly what she means. It feels like she's been peeking inside my brain. And it's this synergy that Lynn has with all sorts of creative types that has made her an icon in the field. She can see the "story" in a collection or even a single dress. And for me, in fashion, in painting, it's all about the story. The who, what, where, when and why.

And even though she can be very specific, this doesn't translate to rigidity...actually, it's the complete opposite. A dress or an accessory may speak something very specific to her, but that doesn't mean she thinks it should say the same thing to you. If she was to have one rule of fashion, she'd say "there are no rules."

You just have to adore Baby Lynnie.

xo Jenny  

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You still have time to WIN!

Hey kids!

Just popping in to let you know that you still have some time to enter the giveaway I am co-hosting over at The Nearsighted Owl!  :)  Ends June 3rd!

xo

when all else fails...

Hey guys!

How was your weekend? It was mega hot here on the N.J. Shore. Big floor fans in full effect! We've got the AC going in the bedroom in order to sleep at night, but it just seems way too soon in the season to actually button up all the windows in the house and put the central air on. Though I'm pretty sure that mindset may change very soon. We're all dewy over here, and sweating and painting don't mix. 

One thing the heat will do is mellow you out. The mood this weekend was a bit slow but productive at the same time. Aaron and I spent most of our time working on orders, organizing, and painting. 

Speaking of painting. I had this phrase in my head and just needed to paint it. It's actually something I've fell back on more than a few times. You can ask anyone in my family...there have been moments of uncertainty, or even chaos...and next thing you know, I've got the mixing bowls out. Some might view this response as a little bit nuts. But it works for me. Baking requires a certain amount of zen and the zen is contagious...not to mention the sweet rewards in the end. 

 You can take this phrase to heart or it can just be a whimsical little saying. We're going to be creating a whole series of these and have a few versions in the works now. I couldn't wait to share these two with you. They're in the shop now...so you you can join the mission too! They are 8x10 and come matted and ready to frame.

xo Jenny

It's time for a Fabulous Giveaway from my lovely May Sponsors!

Hey guys! I'm super excited to share this Fabulous Giveaway with you! I cannot thank my lovely May sponsors enough for their generosity! I am just so honored to be a part of such an amazing community of artists, writers, photographers, crafters, bakers, makers, and all around awesome peeps! This is officially my first group sponsor giveaway and I am super happy to tell you that it will not be the last! I will be doing a group giveaway each month! So stay tuned for all sorts of FUN and fabulosity!

This month's giveaway is brought to you by four amazing gals! Rachele of the Nearsighted Owl, Laura of Vintage2Glam, Dana of Wonder Forest, and Amanda of The Fancy Lady Gourmet! One lucky lucky winner will receive all four prizes! A value of over 175.00! 

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I just love love love Rachele's custom portraits! They are perfect for using on social networks, gifts, business cards, wedding invitations or for bloggers. 

The winner will receive a custom one of a kind portrait of them self or a loved one.  As well as a small ad spot on Rachele's fab blog for a month! Awesome right?!

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Laura's pieces are just so beautiful. See the little brass birdie fly spiritedly from her nest...which is filled with itty bitty baby pearl eggs. These adorable elements are attached to a vintage keyhole found on one of Laura's antiquing outings at the famous Brimfield Market. These pieces are paired with a tiny piece of vintage lace from her stash of trims. The chain consists of a section of brass chain attached to 2 vintage czech glass beads which then attach to fairy silk cords. You can tie the cords to the length you like which makes it so very comfy to wear.

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I was so happy the day I came across Dana's fantastic blog! She is dedicated, stylish, and  generous, to name a few. I'm in love with her fabulous photography. I'm honored to have her as a sponsor this month. This multi talented gal has offered up these two magical and quirky prints. The prints consist of her original photo manipulation artwork. They're sized approximately 8" x  7" and will be printed on a premium luster professional Epson photo paper.  The winner will receive both "Mushroom Dreams" & "Kings and Queens"

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Amanda's work is beautiful! Her cookies are edible works of art. And I want you to know that they taste as good as they look. Me and Aaron have tried them and we just swooned! Her talents with edible artwork are limitless and she has made her services widely available. She creates custom sweets for parties, celebrations, showers, etc... Her specialty is decorated gourmet shortbread cookies. They're buttery and delicious, made with high quality ingredients, and the winner will get a custom dozen!

How fantastic are all of these goodies?! I'm so excited for you guys!

Thanks to this handy dandy widget below it couldn't be easier for you to enter! ...with a few chances at that!

Thanks so so much to these lovely ladies for making my debut group giveaway so awesome!

Giveaway ends May 31.

Good luck!

xo Jenny

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Friday Favorites...and a Giveaway! :)

When I think of favorite things I think of feeling good. So I guess the synonym would be 'feel good things.' Fashion and personal beauty make me feel good...delicious sweets, decorating, vintage things, getting creative...Maybe these things aren't mandatory for living but they're necessary for living well. And being that life can get a bit busy...these things can often take a back seat to simply getting through the day. That's what is so great about blogs, pinterest, flickr, etc... They're all home bases for remembering the feel good things. 

So without further ado, my Friday Favorites:

Starting with this above...

Katie's Pencil Box dress...the color and those polka dots make me melt.

For a while me and Aaron were addicted to scones, and each morning we'd get in the car to find the best in the area. One of our fave kinds to get were Orange Scones!

Life can get topsy turvy and all that. One thing that I think is a bit grounding is to do your nails in a fab way. It's a great accessory and when you look down at your busy hands it's a little reminder of simpler things. I love this Gold Leaf manicure tutorial.

Cottage style furniture...all peely paint and faded color. A well lived in piece of painted furniture warms my soul. I love things with history. Things that are used and used a lot. This piece by Rachel Ashwell  is amazing.

I Love Where Women Create. I love all Jo Packham publications. (It was such an honor meeting her in NYC at the Where Women Cook magazine launch, and getting to spend time with her again when we taught at The Creative Connection.) Getting creative is a must for me, and I hope it is for lots of gals...even those who don't do it for a living. And seriously, one of the biggest hurdles in freeing your creativity is first getting organized. There are so many fantastic and outside of the box examples of esthetically pleasing methods for organizing your creative workspace in this book.

Ok, I hope my favorites made you feel good too! Happy Weekend!

xo Jenny

Ps..... I'm co-hosting a FUN giveaway over at Wonder Forest! Pop over and enter to win an 8x10 print of your choice and some super cute note cards from Row House 14! 

The Brooklyn Art Library & The Sketchbook Project

When I learned of this amazing interactive art project I had two reactions...first was - "how do I sign up?" and the next was actual tears! I know, I know...tears right?... I sound corny, overdramatic, all that good stuff. But I don't know...I just get emotional when I see things like this. Great creative ideas coming to fruition in a big way. It's called The Sketchbook Project and it's curated by the Brooklyn Art Library. If you take a look at that photo above, the shot of the interior of their storefront...that entire wall of bookcases on the right is filled with sketchbooks! And each individual sketchbook is filled up! By "filled up" I mean drawings, paintings, photos, stories, poems, stickers, stamps, doodles, masterpieces, laundry lists, maps, handprints, pawprints...everything and anything that the "artist" so desires to fill the pages with. 

Together, thousands of creative people from around the world are forming a traveling library of artists' books. 

You should definitely watch the video below and click the links and read up on it. Anyone can be a part of it. I think they had more than ten thousand participants last go round! The reason I put the word "artist" in quotes is because you do not need to be an "artist" to take part in this fabulous project. In fact, the participation of non-artists is one of the major motivations behind the project. 

Here's the gist: you sign up, they send you a little 5" x 7" - 30 page sketchbook, you fill the sketchbook up with whatever you please, you send it back, and then get this...your sketchbook, along with ten thousand or so others, becomes part of a mobile art library that tours the country! People come to the mobile art library and get to browse the sketchbooks. While you're sitting at home and your sketchbook travels around you'll receive email updates and stuff, detailing it's whereabouts and all that. 

I absolutely adore this entire concept!

Me and Aaron decided that we're going to collaborate on one sketchbook. At first I was thinking - I'll do page one, Aar does page two, etc...etc... But I think instead we're going to actually work together on each page...so where my brush strokes end and Aaron's begin, only he and I will be able to tell.

Ok, I really needed to spread the word about this and hopefully get a handful of you guys to join in. This is art and community and communication and travel and education and so many other wonderful things all rolled in one. I doff my hat to The Brooklyn Art Library for creating such an amazingly magical project!

xo Jenny 

For the love of Ferris Wheels

(find this print here)

Summer is on the horizon...twinkling, bright, and enchanting. Very much like the visual siren call of the ferris wheel. Slowly turning and glowing on the actual horizon...subliminally calling out to you - "fun this way" - "come here and play" 

It's such a fitting symbol of summer. The giant, playful spinning wheel. The crown jewel of the summertime skyline.

Living on the Jersey Shore...the sights, scents, and sounds of summer always find their way into our artwork. On any given Saturday, a short drive will yield maybe a half dozen ferris wheel sightings. We live close to a handful of amusement parks...and our area also hosts a great many carnivals and fairs around this time of year. When it comes to vacation spots, weekend fun, etc...The ferris wheel is the piece de resistance!

Summer is in the air...and that explains the recent uptick in interest for our Ferris Wheel print above. All of the sudden we've got orders and requests for custom pieces featuring our Ferris Wheel. We just did a personalized plaque for a wedding. (scroll down and see it below) It will hang above the loving couple's "sweets table" at their reception...and this image will also appear on their very own custom candy labels! We were thrilled to do it...especially being that they will have an actual ferris wheel at their wedding! wow!! 

All you have to do is pop over to pinterest or etsy to find oodles of great ferris wheel pics, ferris wheel inspired artwork, gifts, and collectibles. 

I've featured here some of my fave ferris wheels of the moment. 

By the way, to illustrate just how chicken I am of rides, I can recall just a few years ago...down in Wildwood, NJ...out at the end of Morey's pier I believe...there is one of the biggest, most beautiful, ferris wheels I have ever been in the presence of. Anyway, this slow moving gentle giant of a ride was enough to instill sheer terror in my bones. It took Aaron and my little brother Walt about 45 minutes to convince me to take a ride on it. Eventually, after nearly having a panic attack, I relented and went up for a spin on that amazingly giant wheel. We could see for miles and miles...the view was magical! I'm so glad they pressured me to overcome my fears. Anyway...enough talk, enjoy the visual splendor. 

I love the bokeh in this print!

I adore the colors of this classic carnival style wheel.  

Love the antiquey feel of this piece! So charming!

Who wouldn't want to receive a little note in these cheery envelopes? 

Oh gosh yes!! I'd love to dry my teacups with this darling dish towel!

Isn't this print so so dreamy?

I've always been such a fan of wire sculptures. This piece, though mass produced, is totally adorable! I'd love it gracing a tabletop in our home! 

Aaron and our custom plaque order.

We added 11x14 plaques to the shop! :)

Thanks for popping in!

xo Jenny

Bedroom bits

Hi guys! How is your weekend going? Any fun adventures? Thrifty finds? Family fun? Home projects? I'd love to hear about it!  Here at Casa Holiday it is a big bunch of a bit of this and a bit of that. Sooo many things happening at once. Custom projects old and new. Finishing up some orders, starting some new orders. Working on a new series of paintings, (excited!)  chipping away on the studio, (both rooms) and lots of boring stuff like laundry, and mopping...Party! ;)

As I mentioned recently our current bedroom is temporary. We'll be moving upstairs to the "Master Bedroom" at some point...hopefully sooner than later. But as I also mentioned, things are really in flux right now. My sis in moving back from Brooklyn and in with us...all us siblings under one roof! She and my brother Jason cleaned out the Master bedroom last week (it was full of the things my parents have yet to bring upstate) and Missy is temporarily in there on a blow up mattress. 

Before we move in upstairs we have to get new carpeting and paint it. So our current itty bitty downstairs bedroom is just a make-do. It has now officially belonged to every sibling in the family. And since it is situated underneath the staircase it is only known as "The Harry Potter Room".  Maybe the least desired room in the house. It only fits our bed, a night table, another table with a mirror, and a bed for the pups.

We painted it with leftover aqua from our old apartment, did the floor with a mere four boxes of carpet tiles. (I totally recommend them for a small room...so so easy to install...and you can replace individual tiles if say...you drop a brush loaded with paint.) The tiny closet is right behind my head when I'm in bed...impossible to fit a closet door...so I just hung a floor length eyelet curtain. 

It's so small that the photos you see here are pretty much the farthest I could back up with the camera. At first I was bummed at the prospect of inhabiting this room, even if temporarily. But we made the best of it. It's cozy, easy to keep tidy, and a place to sleep. Though don't attempt to sleep later than the other housemates...yeah, being under the staircase means hearing the boom boom boom boom of my brothers bounding up and down the steps. The boom boom bounding is completely uncalled for. When civilized females go up and down the steps they are relatively silent. But boys will be boys.   

The room was glowing in the late afternoon light and I just had to snap some pics for you guys. Just tiny bits...

This is one of the very first authentic pieces of cottage furniture we ever owned! It was a Christmas gift from Aaron's parents...gosh, about 16 years ago! Before the world went Shabby Chic crazy.  We love it just as much today!

One of our many many "crazy babies". Aaron is greeted by this face each morning.

This little old cottage shelf is so wibbly wobbly. Totally one of those homemade projects from maybe the 40's. And next to it is one of my very first "instant relatives"...known as "the boy". We found him in an antique shop about 16 years ago. The glass he's behind is so old and wavy...I love him!

I love our bed. It's vintage inspired. I think from Eddie Bauer home (do they even sell beds anymore?) ...got it about 15 years ago! We painted it black. And the bedding is from Urban Outfitters. LOVE it to bits! It's their waterfall bedding, which I know comes in a few colors.  

That fabulous "Forever" banner is by a dear and amazingly talented friend Caitlin Holcomb!  

This here is "Mr Binney" I like to pretend that he owned an apothecary...with jars and jars of candy that the children would save all week for!

This trio of collage houses were a little project of mine a handful of years ago. They still make me happy. LOVE vintage photo booth photos!

And these fabric collages are all by the same talented lady. I found her on ebay yeeeears ago. I have collected so many of them over the years. I'd love to track her down and see what she is up to now! (I'll let you know if I find her)

Well there you have it. An itttttty bitty bedroom tour. I promise there really isn't much more to the room than what you see here! To take a pic of the bed..I'd actually be standing in a doorway! I look forward to moving upstairs and possibly taking the decor in a different direction. I have a few ideas twirling around.  :)

Thanks for popping in! Enjoy your day!

xo Jenny