I hope my daughter never posts art I did in elementary school on the internet...

Wow, so as it turns out sorting through items which were in my grandparents' house reveals a wide variety of amazing art to silly keepsakes to dated kitsch. I would have kept this process primarily to myself, but just one day revealed some really cool stuff. Here's just one of the cool discoveries from Saturday:

I completely fell in love with this childhood painting by my mother. Something about it really grabs me.

I think it's the articulation of the arms and the snake:

She's not such a big fan!

The fascinating part about doing this is that you never know what you might find inside something you believe is something completely different. Pressed flowers in unremarkable books, personal letters inside old magazines, old war medals in a drawer of wrapping paper...

And then, sometimes, you discover what's "underneath" by moving furniture.

This was my Grandma's chair. She'd always had it, and she always sat in it.

Turns out that's a slipcover, and I never knew. It actually looks like this:

All of my retro trendy friends think I should remove the slipcover!

That's all for today! More in this theme to come!

--Lael
www.thebookoflael.com

Guest Post: A Midweek Manicure from MixedMethod

Hi! I'm Kimberly, author of the MixedMethod blog! Over there I share recipes, DIY projects, and a once-weekly nail art feature. On Sundays I round-up a bunch of fun DIYs from around the interwebz and share them with my readers. Today on On the Side after Five, I'd like to share with you this week's Midweek Manicure = Triangle Triangles:

For this manicure, I used scotch tape to tape off the triangles to achieve a crisp edge. I first painted a base color of Sally Hansen Xtreme Wear in Mellow Yellow over my clear base coat. Because I used tape, I let the yellow dry for over an hour just to make sure I wouldnt have any problems with the tape - sometimes it's best to use tape on day-old polish. Also, stick the tape on your skin a few times to make it a bit less sticky before taping off your nails. After taping off the sides of each nail and creating a triangle in the middle, I painted on 10 Professional Nail Laquer in the color Moonlight. After that was pretty dry, I pulled off the tape and added a top coat. Voila!

If you like this mani, check out my blog - and check back here, too! I'll be contributing a few times a month!

Happy Wednesday!

Artscape 2012!

Can’t believe it was finally time for my favorite weekend of the year: Artscape!

Usually Artscape falls on the hottest weekend of the year, but this year it rained on Friday and Saturday with some cloudy but dry interludes. Personally, I think this may have been an improvement! Also an improvement, way more cool art than the last few years. And way cooler eclectic installation pieces for performances. 

I went straight from work on Friday night and took these pictures of the fast Ferris wheel and other items around the bridge by Penn Station. (Apologies for some of the blurrier photos in this post.)

We caught a bit of the the Baltimore Rock Opera Society's show. 

After, I checked out the booths. Of special note, the Baltimore Shakespeare Factory has some cool shows coming up, and the Ex-boyfriend Collection has some really cool merch. I bought a nifty shirt! 

After, we went back to the bridge, and I took some more pictures. Looks like that huge statue at Penn Station may have found his/her soul mate! 

And then there was this. I am so sorry I didn't catch what exhibit they were with! If you know, please let me know! 

After closing, we went to a special Artscape edition of  Save Your Soul  (check our their Facebook Group for more info) at Metro Gallery. Very fun dance party! 

On Saturday, I took a bunch of pictures of art cars. 

We also got to see Yeveto play! 

There was, of course, way more to see. But, I'll show you these two awesome pieces:

I love that rhino! After Artscape on Saturday, we checked out Four Hours of Funk at the Windup Space. 

One last bit to leave you with—and I’m kicking myself for not taking a business card—but my favorite booth? An entire booth of jewelry made from forks!

Tune in next time, and don't forget to check out today's new comic at the Book of Lael (also about Artscape) and what's new today at Mixed Method. 

Welcome to On the Side after Five!

Welcome! I'm Lael. I'm a medievalist art historian who works at a library in Baltimore and draws a web comic about my life. I post new comics to The Book of Lael every Sunday. If you want to contact me to chat about my comic, to buy a t-shirt, or to discuss anything at all, you can reach me at thebookoflael@gmail.com.

This is my new blog which brings together artsy people who are all interested in different kinds of art. Comics, crafts, film, studio art, DIY, fashion...the list could go on and on!

There are lots of blogs out there which collect "best of's," and this one isn't necessarily going to be different. I and the other contributors are going to post about the art we create, cool stuff we see and love, things that inspire us, ongoing projects, shows, festivals, art news, and exhibits. Just think, maybe some of you out there who usually read my comic will discover this amazing manicure. And vice versa!

I hope you'll try this out with us, and I hope we all learn about something new and intriguing!

Shoot me an email if you'd like to be a contributor!

--Lael