“... the result is a series of rhyming lines and doodled beasts.”

When I saw this description of an art exhibit at the library, I knew we had to go.

The “Exquisite Bestiary” exhibit by Columbian artist Flora Cohen is a hands-on (“Please Touch!”) display of drawings developed from games she played with her young nephews.

Benjamin and Jonah loved moving around the pieces (attached at the wall with velcro).  They each found an appropriate caption of their own, which I captured on my personal blog.

We also went upstairs to see the “Stories from the Florida Vault” display which included vintage South Florida tourism and hotel brochures and steamship schedules (when Miami was marketed as a package destination with Havana and Nassau).  There were also comic books and sheet music featuring South Florida cities and landmarks.

I just found the Savage Chicken cartoons by Doug Savage.  From his About page:

"When I was a kid, I drew cartoons all the time... I drew a platypus named Ed. I drew a dead dog named Dead Dog Bob....  Many years passed..... Then the chickens came.

Like some sort of haunting supernatural force, the chickens bubbled up from the ol' subconscious mind. In a trance-like state, I drew them on office whiteboards. I drew them in notebooks. I drew them on anything that sat still long enough. People started asking, "Who's drawing those damn chicken cartoons everywhere?"

The chickens were unstoppable. To retain my sanity, all I could do was grab a stack of sticky notes, and release the Savage Chickens."

Great colors from Banana Republic:

This doens't translate as well on-screen, but it's a close-up of the texture of a Cole Haan purse:

I like all of Lacoste's flying people ads - but this one of the company founder is the best:

I not only fly with Donald Pliner, I like his ads, too.  The shoes are hideos, but the ad is well-done.

For the Ralph Lauren ad below (one page of a two-page spread), the same as above.... don't like the purse, but the ad definitely catches my eye.

The small scale of this Vera Wang ad image doesn't do it justice - it's a beautiful muted palatte:

Almost tacky, but colorful and eye-catching!  Dog food from Cesar:

This Natural cosmetics ad gets the Close But No Cigar award - great concept but it doesn't quite come together.  The text color and layout don't mix well:

Jones New York....  colors: ick!  and the model looks like a mannequin:

It's tough to create a good ad with an ugly product - toilets have the problem as well.  Although this ad tries admirably, I still hate Crocs and this ad even admits how hideous they are:  "It's hard to believe the parents were ugly..."

When I visit my parents in Texas, I am obsessive about garage sale-ing. Where they live – unlike Miami – garage sales are very popular and it’s easy to get around so you can cover several neighborhoods in an hour or two. Plus, churches and other organizations there host large annual sales which have all kinds of things I’m interested in: vintage knick-knackery, craft supplies, games/toys, education/teaching resources, kids’ clothes, and BOOKS!

I found this 100 piece children’s puzzle of the United States from the 1950s:

I liked the look of the illustrations so I bought it for 25 cents, knowing there would probably be a few pieces missing. I put it together the other day, though, and all 100 pieces have survived the past five decades intact!

These two little Easter decorations were too cute to pass up – I had to temporarily suspend my rule of No Decorative Objects:

They have a vintage, handmade feel about them... right down to the "Made In Taiwan" stickers on the bottom.

These miniature metal cooking toys for children were an unbelievable find:

I bought a large set including pots, colanders, saucepans, cookie sheets, cookie molds, bundt pan, and more. They boys have created all sorts of delicacies with their new kitchen tools! (um, well, mostly coffee, strawberries, and pizza)

I’ve no idea when these two cards were produced – probably the 60s/70s. They were stuck in with a bunch of craft supplies I bought at an estate sale.

I like their design, though. The yellow/red card was for “Starsnap” dress fasteners and the baby card held “Lady Washington Baby Pearls.”

And this owl illustration I found at the same sale… it was drawn by a family friend for one of their children 30 or so years ago. I plan to change the matting and frame, but the illustration is adorable!