Calvin grew up.

This makes me weepy. 

by artist and comedian Craig Mahoney

The painting, 24"x18" acrylic on canvas, is part of Mahoney's solo show Portraits of Awesomeness: The Art of a Fanboy, opening June 7 at Boca Grande Cantina Mexicana in Jersey City, NJ.

Art Basel

A few weeks ago I was determined to see the Art Basel show. Life got in the way but since it was everywhere and I happened to be out, I caught one exhibit and LOVED it!! Here are some pics:

The egg bubble enclosure thingy made of metal flowers

Outside the egg bubble thingy there were 'couches' made of metal coils.
Pretty comfy!

Ateliê Paola

Check-out my Aunt's lesson: How to make a velvet purse in graduated colours!

Ateliê Paola - TV Demo

Sewing Update

Sewing update link

Sewing Machine en-Route!

I've chosen my sewing machine!!!

Indeed, the machines offered in Europe are different than those in N.America and come at a heftier price.  Bummer.


But... once I found my first and second choice here in Europe, I was able to continue my research.  It was tough to find the equivalent!  I did some corresponding with Brother and some smaller distributers who essentially deferred to Brother.


My choices in Europe are coded as follows: 
1st choice (equivalent to Innov-is PC420PRW) is: Innov-is 350SE/400
2nd choice (closest equivalent to Innov-is 80) is: Innov-is 50

I found it on a UK Brother dealer site that is working on their internaitonal website (so they're good to answer my questions in English and as confirmed by them, able to deliver to Germany!)  After extensive research, I found that their price is also the best.  The machine is going for 449 pounds (E515) plus delivery.  And being an official Brother dealer, they also provide Brother incentives like a free wide table before the end of the month (61pound value)!  Yay!  Locally (DE), the "cheapest" I saw it for was E629 (+E13 for delivery) on Amazon.de (no incentive available).  I also saw it for E799 on two German websites and E847 on the German Ebay.  Yikes!!  The customer service has been really great so far (answering my questions promptly etc.) The only down side is that any warranty concerns are to be dealt with in the UK.

Hahahahahahappy!!!

One downside to my #1 machine is that according to a "Notice" I found on the official Brother Europe website, there was a reduction of 6 of the originally included feet.  BIG SHAME!!! but since I get a wide table extension for free I'll order a couple of the feet that are missing for about the same value.  Again, if I had gotten it on Amazon.de, I would still be short 6 feet and have no incentive wide table...

.....update....

I've placed the order and it will arrive in 5 business days!!

I'll write more on the supplier and the machine soon! 

Sewing Machine Research!

So for the past while, much of my free time has been dedicated to sewing machine research.  It's a Christmas gift from my folks.  I've been researching since about November.  Yes, it's true.

I've made a ton of progress ~ at last!!  At times I've gotten quite frustrated because I discovered different geographic regions have different machines and or codes. Like in Europe, I might find something between 2 North American models.  Blah!!!

I've finalized my decision to a Brother machine.  And hence, I'll destroy the hereditary Singer line through both my Mom's side and Malcolm's!  

With my research, I've gotten really tempted to get a serger too!!  But I'll wait and see if I really need it. :)

So the reviews for the Singers were too inconsistent.  It seems like a crap shoot: love it or get a lemon.  And according to the reviews, customer service is less than ideal.  I also read that the manuals are crap, however, I looked at one and it seemed okay.  However, not nearly as comprehensive as Brothers' guide.  You could learn to sew from their guide!!  Brother reviews are consistently good.  And customer support seems so as well.

Anyway, my top two choices (check it out!) for the Brother machine are:

Second choice: Innov-is 80:http://www.brother-usa.com/HomeSewing/modeldetail.aspx?PRODUCTID=NS80&tab=spec

First choice: PC420PRW:http://www.brother-usa.com/HomeSewing/modeldetail.aspx?PRODUCTID=PC420PRW&tab=spec

My preferred is PC420PRW.  Unfortunately, the next hurdle.... the code and or the design may be different in Europe!  I found what I think is the equivalent to my second choice, but darn... I want my first choice and I can't seem to find it!!  

The sewing packages are soooo complete!  Especially when comparing to the Singer, Brother comes with a lot of stuff!  When comparing prices, they were similar, but again, Singer didn't have all the accessories and I'd end up having to buy quite a lot more things (i.e. a cover for the machine!!!??? DUH!)...  Does anyone have any personal experiences with newer Singer or Brother machines???

The next annoyance is that the prices in the US and Canada seem really good compared with the EU.  I'm not sure why!  Is there less demand in North America?  I suspect so.  Something must affect the prices because it's significant!  My second choice machine is less than $400USD and is over 500euros.  Hummm... Anyway, I'll see what the results are (I've sent more queries to Brother Germany). Hopefully I'll find my first choice (equivalent) here.  We'll see.  The other difference between N.America and Europe is the length of the warranty (25 years in N.A. and 3 in EU).  I've inquired about this as well.  Seems strange.  But I did find out from Brother Canada that the warranty is only valid in the country of purchase... Mental note!

Anyway, I'm so eager!! I can't wait!! If I end up with my second choice machine, that's just fine, it's a great machine. I'll just order a couple of extra feet that have me interested.... :D 

Very very excited!!  

Oh and an aside: I've been researching fabrics and compared with the website I found for kids bed linens, I can actually make a set for the same price as buying it (plus labour of course...) which is a bit discouraging.  So I've been on the hunt for some specials on fabric prices and have found some good ones.  I haven't ordered yet as I'm waiting for the machine to be finalized - I don't want the cart before the horse!!  Boy oh boy!  What am I getting my self into!?! ;)

St. Petersburg ~ Day 5

The Hermitage, (1754-1761, Russian Baroque and Rococo). Okay, so I know what I said earlier about only picking one Palace. But now I know, you should PICK TWO! The Hermitage was stunning. Grand, beautiful, ornate, rich, tasteful and simply magnificent. Fortunately, it was not affected in WWII the way Catherine's Palace was. I don't know how or if they protected the artwork but the site itself was not involved in the war. Nonetheless, the Hermitage has had its troubles. In 1830 a section of it barely survived a major fire and in 1917 there were some nasty vandals. As you can imagine there is a lot of interesting history regarding the local individuals who restore, protect and keep it alive and well to this day.

Most of the collection, which reaches almost 3 million pieces, comes from private collections. Unbelievably, only 5-10% is ever on display at one time. We spent about 4.5 hours drooling puddles along the beautiful mosaic wood floors and steaming the art with our dissecting eyes. The Dutch Masters were wonderful and in full vivid presence just as one would expect. From what I've heard, this is one of the biggest collections in the world. I believe it. I have no idea how long I was in those rooms devouring the oils, but I'm pretty sure time stood still. I also stared down some van Gogh, a little Matisse, two Da Vinci's past all the tourist cameras (darn tourists) etc. What a day. Oh, another thing we noticed while passing from one glorious room to the next was that we passed the New Hermitage Entrance (1948, NeoGreek) where Atlantis statues support the Portico. They are so big, powerful, detailed and polished that even the veins in the feet are carved. (Well, that's what was at eye level at least: big toes, feet and veins). They are huge and actually sculpted such that they really look like they are supporting a heavy burden. Very strong Atlanti!

At home we stuffed our faces again! But only after having a totally unhealthy, yet delightfully tasty batch of 'pyshki' beforehand. These are fluffy doughy doughnuts sprinkled with icing sugar. Done Russian style: No, no, no! Not just one! Any normal person has no less than 3 with an average of 6 per serving. And you can't blame them! (or me!) They are great! And you can't forget to accompany them with the best coffee in the world! I loved it! It was the coffee little kids drink. It's like instant coffee, with lots of milk and tons of sugar.

St. Petersburg ~ Day 3

Today, we slept in as usual (I forgot to mention we were actually on vacation mode (heh heh heh)). We woke to another splendid summer day (about 25 degrees and SUNNY!!)

We then spent a number of amazing hours exploring the Russian Museum/The Mikhailovsky Palace, 1819-24. It was full of beautiful Russian art. I must say: it was a blissful time especially after seeing the Russian Art display from the eyes of the NYC Guggenheim Museum. I think in NYC they chose the heaviest, darkest art possible to represent Russians artists, which is exactly opposite of what I saw in St.Petersburg! In the Russian Museum we found some excellent cubist work there by Pavel Filonov. The amount of detail this guy can get in each little brush stroke is like high-resolution pixels. I couldn't even see what he painted because my eyes didn't quite find the pattern (see the ‘Goat’ link below). There were also some very beautiful scenic paintings with an immense amount of detail, depicting forests and other such natural scenes by Ivan Shishkin (see below link). And last but not least, it goes without say, seeing Ivan Aivazovsky's "The 10th wave" in person was truly magnificent!! (Another link below). I left the museum very satisfied.

We then met with an elementary school friend of Evgueni's (another Evgueni) and his girlfriend Nadia. We all walked throughout the city together. It was nice to finally start piecing some of the geography together in my mind’s eye. Because St.Petersburg is built on very marshy land, there are many canals that were designed to control the water and flow into the Gulf of Finland (see Metro depth in day 1). The canals are laid-out like a hand with 5 fingers radiating from the main canal. They divide St.Petersburg into very distinct areas, which stop like a wall once you reach the outer limits. However this day, we stayed well within the city centre and took the afternoon to leisurely explore.

First we strolled into an oasis. The Summer Gardens. It was quiet and big. We walked along the landscaped garden while admiring the lovely, very white stone statues that lined our path. What a whimsical place! We stopped to admire some statues including a monument to the Russian poet Ivan Krylov who translated many fables. It was a really beautiful monument and both Evgueni's were trying to recount all the stories the animals on the monument depicted (See link below). The competition ended with a persistent wasp who honed-in on both guys like they were honey (heh heh).

We crossed the Neva canal on the Troitsky bridge, then a smaller bridge (St.John Bridge) to get to the Peter and Paul Fortress, 1703 (on a fortified island). In the water part way across the bridge there is a sculpture of a hare sitting on a stump, supposedly protecting itself from a flood, which St.Petersburg is famous for. Tradition says you throw coins at it when you cross the bridge. If the coin lands on the statue you can make a wish. We all kind of laughed at it. Why bother, the group huddled at the rail were already throwing tons of coins unsuccessfully. So when (my) Evgueni handed me a coin, I tossed it. I hit the hare and my coin stayed on the statue! So I made my wish and continued on. As we walked around the Fortress fortification to the entrance gates, the place was crawling with sunbathers. Now, I never found cobblestone particularly comfortable, but these good people didn't seem to mind! I even witnessed some bizarre sunbathers who stood against the wall to capture their rays. Legs propped up on the wall ledge and everything! Again, from the eyes of a tourist, I found this ritual rather amusing. I mused: Maybe the sun angle is so different that lying down doesn't give you the full effect...

So inside the fortified walls are many buildings including a prison, the Russian Mint (ironic coupling eh?), the Cathedral of SS Peter and Paul, 1712-33 with it's beautiful tall and golden spire, the Commandant's House etc. On the way out we watched a helicopter take to flight. Wheee. After crossing the Malaya Canal on the Birzhevoy Bridge and the Bolshaya Canal on the Dvortsovy Bridge we were back to the mainland.

We continued to Decembrist's Square where we stopped for some ice cream and a rest on a bench. Benches here are under considerable demand. After loosing a vicious battle for the first bench, we aggressively possessed a second one and made a point of not leaving for some time... it had nothing to do with our throbbing feet.

We eventually peeled ourselves off the benches to admire the monument of Peter the Great "The Bronze Horseman", 1782 in St.Isaak's Square. He is mounted on his rearing horse that is stomping on a serpent all atop a great granite rock.

Just outside the park is the solid, imposing, yet handsome St.Isaak's Cathedral (1858, Russian Neo-Classicism). It is a very beautiful building. I particularly liked the various colourful stone (granite, I think) panels that cover the entire building façade.

After this long day of touring we went to the "Elvis Bar". It was fun and good in it's own way with it's great Elvis cover band. I ordered a vodka and orange juice and got exactly that. A shooter of vodka and a glass of orange juice. Duh! So I did as any novice Russian tourist does: I made space in my orange juice and poured the vodka in. I'm pretty sure everyone in the bar cringed and cursed me as I "tortured" the vodka. I probably can’t fathom how close I got to being violently ejected from the Elvis Bar.

Russian Museum: http://www.rusmuseum.ru/eng/museum/Pavel

Filonov’s ‘Goat’: http://www.msi-mall.com/art/avantgarde/pictures/57.html

Ivan Shishkin: http://www.rusmuseum.ru/eng/exhibitions/?id=589&i=0

Aivazovsky’s ‘The Tenth Wave’: http://www.abcgallery.com/A/aivazovsky/aivazovsky17.html

Other works by Aivazovsky: http://www.abcgallery.com/A/aivazovsky/aivazovsky.html

Bridges: http://www.saint-petersburg.com/bridges/index.asp

Fables: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ivan_Krylov

St.Petersburg ~ Day 1

We took the metro to the city centre. Much of the population relies on the public transit. For me, it's a miracle I got by unscathed. If you get in, the chances you can get out are improved by about 99%. There are swinging doors in and out of the metro. They swing in both directions and are incredibly heavy. It's really easy to get whacked if you mis-time the whole transaction. I quickly learned to keep on the heels of fellow commuters to protect myself from the door-whipping-back-lash. Better yet, follow Evgueni who is a gentleman and holds it open for me (phew!).

If you have vertigo, don't take the metro. It's so deep that you can't see the bottom of the escalator. It just keeps going. And going. If you've taken the London Underground, you just need to double or triple the longest escalator you can think of and that would be the depth of the St.Petersburg metro. It is one of the deepest public transit systems in the world as it's built under a system of canals (see canals in Day 3). Once you get in and down to the trains you are rewarded with a beautiful station. Most of the ones I saw were fairly dark, handsome and decorated with polished stone or marble. And of course, there were also the staple: ceramic-tiled stations, however, I have never seen a glorious metro station until I saw Avtovo Station. If you're in St.Petersburg, I don't care if it's the farthest point for you, go see Avtovo Station. It looks like a ballroom. (See link below).

Once we made it out unscathed we took to the main street, a very wide and bustling Nevsky Prospect. Walking along Nevsky Prospect I saw many historical sites: Singer Building (Art Nouveau) with it's globe, metal decorations, glass facade and interior glass ceiling; from a distance the Cathedral "Our Saviour-on-the-Spilled-Blood", 1883-1907 (see Day 6) which looks like a fancily decorated cake with all the coloured enamel tiles on the domed roof and all along the facade; the yellow and white painted General Staff Building, 1820-1828 (with an arch and a 580m curve); the huge Palace Square which is marked by the Alexander Column - War of 1812 (tallest triumphal column in the world) and flanked by the Hermitage, Winter Palace, 1754-63 a 200m wide, beautiful green with creamy white painted building. From under the arch of the General Staff building, the triumphal column is perfectly positioned in the middle of the Palace Square and in front of the Winter Palace façade. What a crisp and impressive sight!

Aside: It is mandatory for Russians to be enrolled in the Military for 2 years. If there is no war, the reserves spend the time carrying-out civic duties such as scraping and painting heritage buildings to maintain their façades. No pay, its 'voluntold'. It's a big job considering 2 years of leaded exhaust from puffing vehicles creates a thick dusty layer on everything. But at least St.Petersburg looks fabulous and the respective individuals develop a trade... They also get to wear stylish military fatigues to do the duty! It's a bit surreal!

After exploring some of the city we ventured through the vicious doors of the metro, were whisked past the ballroom-like Avtovo station and arrived home with stories to tell. Mine, I saved for here considering all I could say about the city was: "fcusna" which is very wrong (in alphabet and in meaning). What that word means is "tastes good". So my summary of St.Petersburg is: mmmuuummm "tastes-good!" Yeah!

But seriously, it did also taste good! We enjoyed a nice, tasty, home cooked traditional Russian dinner and sprinted off to see Swan Lake at the Mariinsky Theatre, 1859. We were almost late for the ballet due to my sucky-sprinting-shoes (heels). Mental note: St.Petersburg is big so wear slippers as long as possible! (See ‘godsend’ Day 2). When we arrived I simply ogled. I had one of the best seats in the house! The house: Stunning. Gold, round, shiny and twinkling. The chandeliers were calling me to touch them - they were so... twinkly! So eventually, when no one was looking, I did (shhh!). The dancing was ever so graceful as ballet is. I marveled. The music (Tchaikovsky, composed 1875/6) was wonderfully familiar and classic. If I could have, I would have increased the volume of the orchestra. And the scenery and sets were whimsical and perfectly light. What a beautiful building, what a beautiful ballet!

Avtovo Station: http://www.andrewlmoore.com/view_image.php?project_id=6&photo_id=22

Info on the Ballet: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Swan_Lake