HOW TO : CRAFT A MYSTERIOUS INVITATION

Now here's a way to get your party guests excited.  Write your dinner/wedding/birthday invitations in lemon juice using a nib pen (the text will be invisible).  Provide only the cryptic message "Bake me" in regular ink.  If your guest is obedient they will be in for a real surprise as the fruit juice browns in the oven.

 

42, SEEKS COMPANIONSHIP

We spotted this fella at St. Lawrence market today in George's booth along the north wall.  Although we wanted to take him home and George expounded on his virtues as a companion, we left him behind.  We think that he would suit one of the interiors pictured below; if you live in such a place and are looking for a positive yet pensive presence, he can be yours for $50.

Interior images pulled from rowhousenest.com, verhext.tumblr.com, designsponge.com, architecturaldigest.com

OPAL AND DIAMONDS

Purchased from Cynthia Findlay, this vintage Birks ring is 14 carat gold, with a large opal and 4 diamonds.  Cynthia estimates it was custom made in the 1940s for a woman already owning the center stone.  

I'm not partial to opals, but was completely drawn to this one.  Depending on the conditions when formed, opal can express every colour in the visible spectrum. The internal structure of the stone  diffracts light.  I love how this opal can flash from fuschia to green and into blue.   Opal is very sensitive, it will crack if it gets too cold or wet and can't withstand the impact of a fall on hard surfaces.

The national gemstone of Australia and the birthstone of October, opal was considered to provide great luck in the Middle Ages;  it was believed to posses the virtues of ever gemstone whose colours were represented within the opal.  However, after the publication of Walter Scott's Anne of Geierstein in 1829, the stone became associated with bad luck and the sale of opals dropped 50% in Europe;  they remained unpopular for the next 20 years.   In Scott's story, the opal worn in  Lady Hermione's (an enchanted princess) hair is sprinkled with holy water.  The brilliance is ruined by the water and the woman falls into a swoon.  The following day the only trace of Hermione is a small heap of ashes.

The unusual setting of this piece caught my attention immediately. It's medieval and other-worldy. I love the symbolism that the 4 diamonds represent.  The changing seasons, the compass points, and the elements.  According to Eden Gray in Mastering the Tarot , "the number Four stands for the cube or square, equally divided.  It is the number of reality, the material universe, logic, and reason".  Worn as an engagement ring it is my most treasured possession. 

 

 

CERAMIC SHAVING SET

Grooming products are on the rise and many modern men are looking to the classic shaving tools of their forefathers.  There is currently a collection of vintage brushes lined up along our bathroom window sill, however the terrible design of the plastic razors left me wanting.  With this in mind, and finding a handle and brush kit in the Lee Valley catalogue, I ventured to design my own shaving set.  I couldn't resist the beautiful badger hair and the practicality of a razor head built for the standard Gillette Mach 3 blades.  This kit is designed as a woodworking project, but I thought I would try and fit the hardware to ceramic.

Both pieces are hand made.  I made approximately 5 versions of each the razor and brush handle to ensure a perfect form and size.  The clay I use shrinks 13% from wet to final firing, so I have to do the math and size up when I'm fabricating.  It can be tough to hit a perfect fit as there are so many variables when clay goes into the fire.  It's also hard to refine a form to match a pre-existing object when you're working in a scale that is 13% larger.  Make extra.  More is always better.

The brush handle is thrown on a potters wheel out of a solid piece of clay.  I rough out a form with my hands, wait for it to firm up a bit, and finish by using trimming tools to refine the shape in a similar process  to turning wood on a lathe (the rotation being vertical rather than horizontal.)   The razor handle is made by rolling out a coil of clay, cutting it to a desired length, and leaving it to firm up.  When it is at the 'leather hard' stage I use a drill bit to hand drill a hole, and use a rasp/sure form to refine a straight rod form and to rough out a tapered end.  Once bone dry, I'll clean the forms up using various grades of sand paper.  I then fire once to bisque and fire a second time to glaze.  The clay is my preferred white, with my preferred clear glaze.

This set is a prototype.  There are improvements to be made, one being the length of the razor handle.  I quite enjoyed myself and it made for a perfectly manly Christmas gift (though I think ladies will also enjoy shaving with a ceramic razor).

ALLISON JOHNSTON

A divine combination of Andromeda and Robert Plant, Allison Johnston is actually born of Syrian and Scottish heritage, her goddess attributes emerging from the ether.  After graduating from Ryerson's Radio and Television program, Johnston finds herself knee deep in Toronto's comedy scene, shooting, directing, or editing shorts for D'Main Friends, the Henri Faberge Series and Primo (check out a hilarious remake of the Roseanne intro.)  Alongside these more personal projects, Johnston has been putting her time in as a PA on commercial productions, most recently working in the casting department for the reality TV show 4 Weddings.  

I like Allison's attitude.  She is eager to take on difficult assignments as they will maximize her experience in the film industry.  What's more, she's super modest about her abilities as a performer, despite singing alongside Marianna Khoury and Robin Hatch in the tongue-in-check reggae band TCQ.  Watching a performance I was taken in by the ladies and their tight skills. She assures me it is a fun sideline to her real path behind the scenes.  2013 sees Allison focussing more on her own projects, dreaming of a time when the community of talented individuals working alongside her will reap the benefits of their labours. 

DUPONT SUBWAY STATION

The crown jewel of Toronto's subway line, Dupont station, was design by Dunlop-Farrow Architects and completed in 1978.  The circular theme, curved walls and built in benches create the feeling of an underground cave with bright windows to the world above.  The most striking feature of the station are  the mosaic murals Spadina Summer Under All Seasons by James Sutherland.  Yes, you feel like you're in the 1970's here, but it's a good feeling and should be as valued as a well executed interior from earlier times.

 

 

COULD BE WORSE

The Hares and the Frogs, an Aesop fable

The Hares were so persecuted by the other beasts, they did not know where to go.  As soon as they saw a single animal approach them, off they used to run.  One day they saw a troop of wild Horses stampeding about, and in quite a panic all the Hares scuttled off to a lake hard by, determined to drown themselves rather than live in such a continual state of fear.  But just as they got near the bank of the lake, a troop of Frogs, frightened in their turn by the approach of the Hares scuttled off, and jumped into the water.  "Truly," said one of the Hares, "things are not so bad as they seem."

  

There is always someone worse off than yourself.