Sound in Color: Florence & the Machine-Lungs

09 Tuesday Apr 2013

Posted by melissaoconnor in Color Inspiration, Sound in Color

Tags

album art, arts, beige, color, earthy hues, florence and the machine, green, illustration, lungs, mauve, music, neutrals, pink, yellow

Besides creating amazing music, Florence and the Machine grace their album covers with nature inspired artwork that seemlessly relates to their sound. I love the earthy hues this particular album showcases and how her image is incorporated into the design. There is a nice contrast to light and dark as well as a beautiful sense of how lighting helps color come alive.

Sound in Color: Florence & the Machine

Pastime Loves

05 Wednesday Dec 2012

Posted by melissaoconnor in Shopping

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80s, 90s, animals, Anne of Green Gables, Annie, arts, back in the day, bmx, brooklyn, cartoons, children, Christian Slater, christmas, dancing, dolls, eclectic, Gleaming the Cube, growing up, He-man, jem, kids, Liquid Television, Mister Softee, Monchhichis, Pinterest, prince edward island, Puff the Magic Dragon, Ren and Stimpy, she-ra, singing, Smurfs, Strawberry Shortcake, Sylvanian Families, The Legend of Billie Jean, toys

When I think of the good old days, I remember all the toys and games I loved as a kid. Times were different back then. Growing up in the 80s and becoming a teen in the 90s, I can say that stuff back then was so much cooler. Not to mention, designed better. I see all the toys, dolls and games made for kids today and they just don’t compare. Because of this, I promise to share the best with my kids and make sure they know what cool really is.

Because I have so much love for many things in my past, I created a Pinterest board to collect all of these memorable favorites. From toys and dolls to awesome films, I continue to collect the best of the best. Here, I share some of these goodies with you guys and maybe, if you are part of my generation, it will take you back to the good old days too. And since the holidays are knocking at our door, there is no better time than now to share them with your children.

Mister Softee takes me back to Brooklyn, where I as born. I lived there till I was about 5 or so and one thing I remember so well is hearing Mister Softee down the block. It would get me so excited! I would jump up and down and run out to his truck for ice cream. And it always was the same, soft vanilla with rainbow sprinkles. To this day, I still get excited to hear his tune and its still the best ice cream out there. I love you Mister Softee!

As a child, I was always into the arts. Dancing, singing and drawing were major loves and entertaining everyone with my talents was so much fun. It was no surprise I would love Jem. What girl didn’t? She rocked!

The toys and dolls for girls back in the day were so rad. However, I will always have a place in my heart for Strawberry Shortcake. From all the characters to the beautiful little world they all lived in, this was one I couldn’t resist. I hate how the company recreated their look because it just isnt the same. The original is always better.

Oh, how I loved Sylvanian Families. Since I have always adored animals, how can I not want to play with all these wonderful and sweet characters. All kinds of animals were introduced from dogs and cats to bunnies and lambs. I used to have the little log house and various dolls. It was so much fun to play in animals heavan.

Monchhichis! That’s all I have to say about that.

Was there anyone who didn’t like the Smurfs? I had the toys, I watched the cartoon and even ate the cereal. Smurf’s rule!

When my mother got remarried, I moved to Elizabeth, NJ. My father in law had 3 sons so you can imagine how happy I was to have brothers. Although I played with girl toys, I did love the boy toys as well. They always have cool shit! The one thing my brothers and I could play with together was He-Man and She-Ra. I loved this so much. I always thought She-Ra was a bad ass.

The first time I saw Puff the Magic Dragon, I was in love. What a unique and awesome story. I guess it’s no surprise I grew up into a pot head, haha. I will always have love for Puff. I can’t wait to show my kids this film. Just the music alone is incredible.

Oh my God, did I love Annie. I even had the Annie mansion with all the dolls and little details. The movie just made me want to sing more!

As I got older, I appreciated the eclectic, weird and unique. Nothing says this more than Ren and Stimpy. It explored a different dimension of comedy and animation and I loved every minute of it. You can bet I was a big fan of Liquid Television as well.

And how could I forgot about Anne of Green Gables. Anne will always have a place in my heart. I used to watch it with my cousin Diana and we will both never forget sitting in front of the tv watching Anne’s stories unfold. I was so lucky to have visited Prince Edward Island this past October for our honeymoon. I saw everything Anne I could see!

I am sure many people out there loved Christian Slater. Not only did I love him, I bowed down to one of his best films ever, Gleaming the Cube. I was in awe of the art of skating and bmxing after watching it. So much that I even asked for a bmx bike for Christmas that year so I could start practicing my tricks. Well, I still have that wish. It turns out I never got the bike and so didn’t get the chance to be a famous bmx rider. Instead, my mother bought me a Sea Princess bike that was pink and purple with seashells painted all over it, haha. I just couldn’t win.

Another film that really inspired me was The Legend of Billie Jean. I loved how she took a stand and didn’t give up. The story of my teen years for sure.

There are many more things I adore from my past and you can check some of them out on my Pinterest board, which I am always updating with more faves.

Historic Series: The Joseph Lloyd Manor

07 Thursday Jun 2012

Posted by melissaoconnor in Historic Places

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Abner Osbor, architecture, arts, colonial, design, federal, federal style architecture, historical, history, house, huntington, Joseph Lloyd Manor, lloyd harbor, manor, mortise and tenon, nature, new york

Part of the Lloyd family land, the Manor house was built in 1766 by Joseph Lloyd after his father Henry passed away. Overlooking the harbor, the Manor sits on 2 acres of land in Huntington, New York and shows off its federal style architecture beautifully.

It’s symmetry and clean design is the result of the timber framed technique which is done by jointing heavy timbers by use of mortise and tenon. This joint technique has been used by woodworkers for thousands of years and became familiar to stonemasons and blacksmiths soon after.

The original gable roof is clearly defined as well. This style and shape was often found in gothic architecture and was a big part of 18th century design. During the 19th century some adjustments were made to the house and even more toward the 20th century when it changed ownership. However, original elements of the house still can be found such as the crown molding, wainscoting, staircase, banister and paneled fireplace. You will also find that the kitchen still has its vintage style hearth and bake oven.

The interior elements of the house were designed by Connecticut born carpenter Abner Osborn. He was recommended by Joseph’s brother James and worked on the project with four apprentices. They completed the exterior sheathing of the house as well as the doors, windows and interior paneling and molding.

There has been a number of owners and guests of the Manor house and some that have even rented it for some time. In 1940 it was leased by Charles Lindbergh who needed an escape from the chaos of his son’s kidnapping. During the Revolutionary War, American troops also built a fort on the west end of the Manor property (now Caumsett) and stayed in the house as well.

During the time of the war Joseph was the only Lloyd family member to remain on the land and was joined by Jupiter Hammon, the famous slave whom he inherited when his father died. Eventually British troops took over and forced them to leave. Joseph then traveled to Hartford, Connecticut in 1776 with Hammon by his side. Later in 1780, he took his own life and Hammon was passed down to his nephew since he had no children of his own.

Today the Society for the Preservation of Long Island Antiquities owns the property and offers tours to the public. It is also listed on the National Register of Historic Places. If you haven’t made a visit to the Manor house I suggest that you do. Especially now that the nice weather is here. Whether you take a tour or not, you can appreciate its beauty and design and maybe even get inspired to step back into time to explore your own history. Remember, when you look into the past you can have a new view into the future.

DIY Desk Calendar

27 Tuesday Mar 2012

Posted by melissaoconnor in Art & Design, Crafty Ideas

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arts, calendar, crafts, diy design

I am always thinking of ways to reuse objects and items I have around the house. Recycling what you have is a great way get inspired as well as help with Earth. This project is easy, affordable and useful. Everyone needs a calendar. Whether its for scheduling your time or simply to know what day it is, my DIY desk calendar comes in handy.

{Materials}

CD case
paper
ruler
art materials of your choice

You can do this project any way you want. There are just three steps you need to follow. First, you need a clear CD case. Who doesn’t have one of these around the house? The traditional size works best. This will be the stand for the calendar. All you need to do is open it and disconnect the front. Then turn it around and connect it again. This allows the case to stand up.

Once you have that figured out, you need to choose your paper. Any kind will work. Just be aware of the space where it will go. You probably have 1/4 of an inch to work with so make sure the paper is not too thick. I would suggest card stock but if you only have regular computer paper, that will do just fine. Even watercolor paper would look great.

Now all you have to do is cut the paper to size, design it and slide it in the cd case. If you cut the paper to 4 5/8 x 4 5/8 you should be fine. If you are using a computer program to design the calendar use 4.625 x 4.625 inches.

Get creative with this project. You will be looking at the calendar everyday so it should reflect who you are and make you smile. It can be hand drawn, painted, a collage or digitally designed. Think outside the box and get to work!