Get Out and See Some Art this Weekend!

Hi there. How are you?

I was asked to exhibit my work at the Carbondale Public Library this month. (Did I mention that I now work at the Library?) Yep, I'm the new Teen and Youth Program Coordinator there. I spend each morning at home in my studio and then spend the afternoons at the Library. Love it!

So back to my exhibition.... A collection of my my current mixed-media works are on display in the Library. All pieces are for sale and a portion of the proceeds go to the Library. If you're local, hope you can stop by and take a look! If you can't here's a little look into my exhibition.

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Paducah + Bricolage = Fab Day Trip

Bricolage Art Collective is a fabulous art gallery/shoppe, in the heart of downtown Paducah. I'm happy to report that you will now find a collection of my original work, embroidery hoop prints, pillows, and cards there.

Though Bricolage has been open for some time now, they are having their official grand opening on Saturday. Let me tell you, Bricolage is beautiful! They have curated a lovely collection of local and regional artist's work, Paducah centric gift items, and vinyl records in a gorgeous space.

Friends, if you have never been to Paducah, it's worth checking out. The downtown/Lower Town Arts District has a great mix of shops and restaurants, an art house cinema, and galleries. There is also a fab new brewery about 10 minutes from downtown. Paducah makes a great day trip from Southern Illinois! (Can you tell I love Paducah?)

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Well, That's all for now.

Expect to hear from me in a few days with some more news! Ta-Ta.

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Coachella 2015 - Fashion Fails of the Festival

Hi there. How are you?

A few weeks back, Matt and I attended Coachella, the huge annual music festival in Indio, California. Someday I'll write about the music, but first I must tell you about the fashion scene, or lack thereof. Maybe I'm just getting old and don't understand, but we saw a lot of bad trashy style and not much good.

I couldn't get over how many young girls were dressed almost exactly alike. It's like Coachella had a uniform/dress code that I wasn't aware of.

I made a Polyvore mock of the Coachella 2015 "uniform."

1. It's hot and sunny in the Indio desert, so you if you must wear a hat, it must be black, floppy and made of felt. (Makes perfect sense right?) If you decided to deviate from the black hat, you must wear a flower crown.

2. The desert is dry and dusty, so wear a bandana over your nose and mouth. Makes you look so mysterious and gangsta! Show a little American pride by wearing one featuring the starts and stripes.

3. Underwear makes the best outerwear at Coachella. The skimpier the better......It's too hot for anything else. Visible side boob is a plus.

4.  Add a touch of bohemian to your look with a practical fanny pack. (Actually, this is the only sensible part of the Coachella uniform. You've got to do a ton of walking and standing at Coachella and a purse gets hot and cumbersome.)

5.  White, high-waisted lace shorts make perfect sense when sitting on the dusty ground, waiting for the next band to start. The only other acceptable form of shorts are acid washed jean shorts. Extra points if your shorts are cut so short that your butt cheeks are exposed.

6. Gladiator sandals make the most sense for the many miles you will walk during your weekend at Coachella. If you must have a little more support, wear ankle boots. If you're a real slob, wear Chucks.

Here are some of the actual pics I snapped at Coachella:

Don't worry, I picked on the boys too.

And lastly, here's what I wore. Aren't I so hip?

Though this post was incredibly fun to write and I so enjoy people watching, I post about the current "bare it all" trend because it alarms me. 

Do young girls think this it's necessary to be scantily clad to attract the male gaze? If you ask my husband, he'll say that all a girl needs to do to catch his eye is a wear a sundress. It doesn't need to be super short or revealing, just a well fitting, flattering dress.

Girls, you can be sexy without being skanky.

So readers, what do you think? 

Am I old and and just overreacting? Is it just a generational gap? (I went to high school and college in the 90's when oversized overalls and flannel were all the rage.) Do chime in!

That's all for now. Enjoy your weekend. Ta-Ta!

4 Mullins and a Swede: a Travelogue of Italia In October - Part 2

Hi there. How are you?

I'm back this week to fill you in on Week 2 of our trip to Italy. Click here to read about Week 1.

Next stop on our Italia tour was Pompeii, the ancient Roman city near modern-day Naples that was buried by ash in the eruption of Mt. Vesuvius in 79 AD. 

Pompeii was truly fascinating. It's amazing how well preserved the painting and architecture is. You truly get a feel for ancient Roman life in this massive archeological site. We spent 2 hours exploring and could have easily spent more, but it got a little "burny" out. (It was in the 80's for much of our trip.)  

After a night spent in Sorrento, we drove south all the way to Reggio-Calabria (the very tip of the boot.) After much trouble finding the port and buying a ticket, we took a ferry over to the island. This was quite an expedition! It's a major pain to get to Sicily this way. I wouldn't recommend it! 

Our first night on Sicilia was spent in Taormina, a popular tourist destination on the north-east coast of the island. We celebrated Matt's 40th birthday here with a fabulous dinner featuring seafood and canoli. 

Our next destination with Aragona, the hometown Great Grandpa Carl Cacciatore,  my mother's paternal Grandfather. I'm sure if we would have done some research, we could have dug up some far removed cousins (my great grandfather left Aragona around 1905). We did make a stop in the town square and visited the church that my great-great grandparents were married and came across this World-War 1 monument. If you're from Rockford, you probably know most of the names on this list. So many families from Aragona have emigrated to Rockford in the last century! 

After so much non-stop sight seeing, we needed a little break. Agrigento was perfect for that. Lovely beach, lovely people. We were the only tourists on the beach there. Such a great day! 

Our next stop was Marsala, the hometown of my mother's maternal grandparents. To be honest, there wasn't much to see there, so I didn't take any pics there. We stayed in a lovely resort built out of a former villa.

Our last Sicilian destination was Palermo, the capital of Sicily. It was heartbreaking. The streets are dirty, the air is polluted. The city is literally crumbling. There is just no money to properly take care of things. I hope that something can be done to save the architectural treasures there before it's too late. 

Now, not all of Palermo was bad. We witnessed the most epic Sunday evening "passeggiata" of all time! (Passeggiata is an evening walk.) After spending the afternoon walking around the mostly deserted streets of Palermo, we were amazed at the transformation that took place as the sun started to fade. The people came out in droves! Young and old alike crowded the closed off streets. The outdoor cafes were packed. There was even a pop-up concert!  I'll leave you with a little snip I captured on my i-phone. 

Hope you enjoyed my travelogue. Until next time. Ta-ta.

4 Mullins and a Swede: a Travelogue of Italia In October

Hi there. How are you?

This autumn has been a complete whirlwind. I'm not quite sure how it's November already. Maybe the fact that we spent about half of October traveling may have something to do with it! 

I was lucky enough to spend 2 weeks in Italy with my brother, parents and husband. (This is where the goofy blog title comes from. My maiden name is Mullin and as my lovely readers know, my husband Matt is a Swede.)  I wanted to share some snaps that I took during our most excellent of travels.

Our trip really began at the Dublin airport, at 5:00 AM on a Thursday. We drank Bulmers ciders in an incredibly rowdy airport bar. There must have been 100 people drinking there. Ireland truly lived up to the stereotypes in that regard! 

Mom, brother Kyle, me and Dad (4 Mullins)

Our first stop in Italia was Rome. We spent 4 days in a great apartment near the Vatican. We did our fair share of site-seeing along with much excellent eating and drinking. 

There's my brother and the Swede (Matt)

This guy was posing for me on the roof of the "Typewriter."

After Rome, we rented a car and headed to Tuscany, my favorite part of Italy! I love the small hill towns and the slower pace of life there. Of yeah, and it's breathtakingly beautiful too! 

We stayed in an agriturismo (working farm with guest rooms) near Volterra. Podere San Lorenzo is an olive farm on the site of an old monastery.  Meals were served in the old chapel. We had some of the best meals of the trip here.  This is the natural pool. Had it been warmer, I would have been in it in heartbeat!

As always, I was on the hunt for good chairs. Italia did not disappoint.

This concludes Week 1 of my Italian travelogue. Stay tuned for Week 2 adventures in Pompeii and Sicilia. Thanks for reading! 

Have you ever traveled to Italia? Tell me about it! 

Ta-ta for now.

PS: If you'd like to read about my 2010 trip to Italy, check out these posts on Venice , Verona and Florence, Tuscany, and Rome.