Thriftessa Vintage Finds by Kelsey Meyer

I am so honored to have Kelsey Meyer do a guest posting here to talk about her awesome online vintage store Thriftessa.  Kelsey is the gallery assistant at Webster House Galleries in 

Webster Groves, MO.

                                She is super creative, organized and a savvy vintage store owner.

Photo credit Mary Nasser ( that is her artwork that Kelsey is hanging at Webster House Galleries)

I love all things vintage. Clean lines, bright colors and true Americana are what really catch my eye. Whether shopping at flea markets, thrift stores or goodwill, I know what I love when I see it. The rush I get when I find the perfect piece or inspiration is what draws me to buy more and more. 

Etsy is a vehicle for my passion of good design, functional finds and valuable collectables. It allows me to pursue my hobby of dumpster diving and restoring items I know that other people will appreciate just as much as I do. In addition to thrifting, I also design paper items such as calendars to satisfy my need to draw and express my interests in a more litteral way. These photos represent just a few of my favorite pieces that I have up for sale now at Thriftessa.

Edupunk

I am in a very curious stage of life where I seem to be generating more questions in my head as I approach creative problem solving techniques both in my teaching and professional life.   I feel like I have been taking more risks professionally and creatively. I love to learn. I love to feel challenged. A co-worker friend of mine said that this "obsession with learning new things" qualified me as an "edupunk." I Hadto laugh when she told me this becausE i thought it was because I had adult a.d.d. Anyway, here are the areas of my life where I am living the edupunk dream:1. Playing with android photo apps2. Expanding knowlege and implementation in blended learning in my teaching life. 3. Finding new ways to display photos besides in frames.4. Discoverong new collaborative creative interactive projects via web 2.0---geekgasm-- I have a whole post planned for that!--5. Writing blog posts on the Blogger mobile app and learning the tricks of "blogging on the go."

What new things are you educating yourself on?



it

Piecing It All Together

Last night I went through all my art/photo files and put them in a collage to see how all my work over the last seven months in this space would look weaved together.  I love to see my work as a collective whole pieced together like this.  It makes me really grateful for my ability and desire to create.

How to Create Iced Coffee

It's almost that time of year again--where I make heaps and heaps of iced coffee as my morning before work beverage.  Since Luke works at a coffeeshop, I have learned there is a right and wrong way to make iced coffee.  I am going tell you the *best* way to make it.

1. The night before brew a full pot of coffee

2. Pour into a container that holds cold liquids (a water pitcher for example) and put it in the fridge overnight.

3. Pour into a glass and add LOTS of ice!

Starve the Emptiness, Feed the Hunger

This week has been complex and dark. Between the Boston bombings and the Texas fires, it's one of those weeks where the world feels like its on fire.  I hate watching the news during these times.  It is sick when it feels as though the media capitalizes off of people's deep personal tragedies. And just when it seems like the world is going to burn, I take a few minutes to read out of "Cold Tangerines" by Shauna Niequist who states via the Indigo Girls "you need to starve the emptiness and feed the hunger."  In weeks like this starving myself of emptiness means turning off noise of the media and relishing in the things I *need* to remind myself that life, although messy, is beautiful.  So I feed myself with images of color and people I love.

My Favorite Photo Apps

Instagram (iOS and Android Market)

Blender

Afterglow

VSCO Cam

Diptic

                                                                         

Kansas City

I wanted to write this post while I was in this town. I have been away from Kansas City for seven months. After a long summer of being in KC almost every weekend towards the end of Luke' s dads life, I decided I needed to intentionally root myself in St. Louis and take a break from coming to KC while I further connected to St. Louis. Prior to my hiatus, being in Kansas City felt more like coming home to a life and community I was missing out on. It hurts to see community happen without you. That's when I made the decision to grow where I was planted: St. Louis. That is still one of the best decisions I ever made.

Being back in KC after my hiatus has reminded me of the lessons I learned from the people and communities in this city to help propel my life forward in St. Louis. From my time in art school to my time at Jacob's Well, I have learned about the meaning and depth that God brings to human relationships. Being geographically sensitive has helped me to connect the lessons I have learned from my community in KC to cultivating deep relationships in St. Louis. Kansas City: My community and life in KC created a baseline for the way I relate to my friends. My friends from the midtown art scene, Jacob's Well, Lawrence, KS taught me the importance and necessity of a deep sense of belonging. St. Louis: Growing and laying down similar roots and applying lessons learned from life in KC. Roots meet Roots.

Grit and Color

Yesterday I took a few minutes to photograph the beautiful colored buildings of Soulard, this amazing old Victorian part of St. Louis. It is one of those spaces where when you travel over in that area you feel like you are some place else very European. Anyway, my friend Micheala grew up in this area of St. Louis and often reminds me that it is another space in this city whose past resembles days of color and days of grit. This correlation reminded me of my current life situations that represent color and life vs. the grit of learning the hard way.

Color:
1. The amazing spring weather and spending time outside with my family and friends
2. Getting super creative with my friends.
3. Slurped, yoga, the Wu-tang clan, and slip and slides
4. Awesome books
5. The rush talking and dreaming with Luke.
6. Knowing that all my close relationships represent the heart of God.


Grit
1. Getting anxiety about feeling stuck
2. Feeling like money will always solve issues of worthiness
3. Shame of any kind
4. The risk of love.
5. Knowing that God needs us to be uncomfortable

The Awesomness of Pistachios

Photo credit Marissa Winslow

Pistachios are my favorite nut in the whole wide world!! If pistachios are ever an option for me to buy over other nuts, I will buy them. They are the more expensive of the nut family, but I see them as a healthy investment. This nut is small but mighty in health benefits:

Here's a few reasons why:

Heart Health-High in vitamins A and E, protect blood vessels, and reduce the chances of developing hear disease

Helps prevent type 2 diabetes

Increases the production of serotonin and melatonin in your central nervous system thanks to vitamin B6

Linked in helping decrease the chances of developing macular degeneration

Promotes the development of beautiful skin thanks to all the Vitamin E!

Henna and Self Portraits

Photo credit Marissa Winslow

1. Yesterday I wore a scarf with a black tank top.  I really do love this look a lot even though functionally it confuses me.

2. We also had a Henna Party to celebrate Marissa's bday!

Urban Family 2.0

So I was at the grocery store on Thursday after a rough day.  I was rummaging around the produce aisle and decided I was in the mood for root vegetables.  Anyway, I ended up having a hey day photographing them during the "magic hour" (dusk).

Anyway, it got me thinking about this magical time of year where the weather gets warmer, people start to come out of their winter hibernation mode, bbqs happen, the things that took root a year ago regenerate.

Anyway, about a year and a half ago some friends and I started an art collective called the Urban Family Community Co-Op.  We put on hip hop and art workshops around the St. Louis area.  Anyway, life happened..I got pregnant.  We bought a house, etc and the group sort of took a back seat to other life situations for a bit.  Well as Luke would say  "we are getting the band back together."
A few of us are going to start to get together to create for the sake of creation outdoors, my house, your house, your backyard, St. Louis, Kansas City...wherever.

This time--we will start small by setting time to come together to just create whatever it is your create.

More to come on this one.

Favorites

1. Intelligensia Coffee- I LOVE this coffee so much. My coworker introduced it to me. It is so smooth.  My favorite is Breakfast Blend.
2.Henna-We are having a Henna Party  for one of my favorite ladies this weekend.  Check her out!! Henna Expressions.
3.Evernote-This is how I keep track of all my notes for my art, blogs, client notes, to dos.  I can access it on my computer, ipad, and phone.   You can get it on the Android and iOS market.
4.Black Keys- I love this band.  That is it.
5. Blended Schools- The sort of school our kids will probably be attending.  I am learning all about through my CEUs.
6.Lemon Water-God, I love drinking lemon water in the morning.  Some people have been able to substitute it for coffee.  I am not there yet.  It just tastes awesome and is great for kidney and digestive health.

Artist Networking: 5 Things I Have Learned from Lifestyle and Art Blogging

Last night my friend Michelle pulled me out of my weekly routine and had me attend an Artist Social at Soulard Art Market through Art Dimensions, a not-for-profit arts organization that I am a part of .  Last night this great artist named Andre Tourette talked about his work and how he networks.  He talked quite a bit about networking and selling his artwork online and it reminded me of all the things I have learned about creating this blog.  So I am going to share those things here:

1. Having a blog dedicated to my creative initiatives holds me accountable to taking the time to create.
2. No one knows my blog exists unless I network it via Social Networking sites and in person. I use twitter, facebook, and Google+
3. Commenting on other blogs and finding "blog friends" who inspire you is one of the best business moves you can make.  Cross promoting is just a fantastic gift from another blogger. Make a blog button and button swap!!!
4. Variety is the spice of life.  Mix up your content.  Don't do the same thing over and over again. This makes your artwork/writing more relevant as well.  I like to write and photograph food, art, streets, scenes, and some of my diy projects.  I literally love to photograph my lifestyle (hints the name "lifestyle blog.")
5. Post a few times a week to continue to make yourself relevant.  To quote Austin Kleon  "you are only as relevant as your most recent post."

If you would like more information on this, you are more then welcome to e-mail me at julieann.johnson00@gmail.com or comment below.