(I know, sounds like too much, doesn’t it?)

Painting my kitchen has made some of my previous bright, kitschy artwork obsolete:

Though they were cute, I’m selling my roosters, which don’t really go with the muted wall color anymore, and it’s time for someone else to enjoy them. That leaves a small space which I have unsuccessfully tried to fill, but I’m wanting something a little more – dare I say it – modern?

I love gocco because it has that feeling of being old in a new way, like pictures taken with a Holga. What is gocco? The savegocco.com website explains:

Print gocco, is a Japanese color screenprinting system developed in 1977 by Noboru Hayama. Resembling a toy, the compact and completely self-contained printer is clean, quick and easy to use. The system works using flash bulbs, a carbon-based image or photocopy and an emulsion-coated screen. When the bulbs are manually flashed the carbon burns the screen into a stencil. Several colors of Ink can then be applied at one time and multiples can be stamped out, as many as 100 before re-inking is needed. Fans of print gocco appreciate its size, cleanliness, relatively inexpensive cost, and the fact that several colors can be printed in one “pass.”

If this sounds too complicated and you lack a modicum of creative skills, there are a lot of very talented artists selling their gocco prints on etsy. Here are some contenders for my kitchen corner (or that I just think are cool):

Summer Song gocco print, $12

Forsythia branch gocco print, $6

tiny village gocco print, $20 from katep

hey hi banana print, $15 from sugarcookie

vintage lamps gocco print, $8 from cindytomczykart

Gold Series 3 by AmyMarcella, $20

pumpernickel flowers by wonting, $10

fish school gocco by kerrybeary, $12

Golden Fruit by pinkbathtub, $10

Double Camera gocco by leighwells, $18

occie orie 1.1 by birdsandswings, $14

Sacre Coeur by LizzyStewart, $25

Gocco Misprint/Fun print by e50e, just $5!

Raindrop gocco print by blancucha, $22

cluster leaf print by meganauman, $10

Shine by deebeale, $20

Doodle Gocco by nateduval, $15

I think I’m going to have to go with katep’s tiny village, but I have to buy e50e’s misprint because it’s awesome and only $5. I’ll find someplace to put it later.

Discarded scraps from Christmas trees, a craft waiting to happen.

This may be my thriftiest moment yet. When Alex and I were buying our Christmas tree, I noticed these wood rounds laying around from where they had sawed off the bottoms of other trees. Never one to miss an opportunity to indulge my obsession with wood (especially fresh cut douglas fir that smells incredible), I discreetly picked up seven or eight rounds and put them in my bag. While some of them – like those above – are too uneven to be coasters or hold candles, others were more level and had holes through them where the tree stand had been.

I'm no artist in tangible mediums, clearly.

As a designer, I work on the computer and not with a paintbrush. So when this turned out a little silly, I was glad I only painted one side. The smaller, more level ones like these could be used as coasters (painted if you know what you’re doing, left alone if you’re like me) as well.

Our Christmas tree is adorned with pinecones and vintage ornaments.

Our characteristically thrifty tree also features grocery store pinecones and vintage Shiny Brite ornaments. Flea market vendors bring out all their holiday stuff this time of year, and vintage ornaments are plentiful.

I bought this perfect set of 12 ornaments at the Venice High School flea market for $20.

Today is August 11, which means I get to pick something up later today. I’m not sure why it took Frugal Phil’s (my favorite cheap frame shop) three weeks to frame my awesome little pink pearl print:

Small Pink Pearl print by Jordan Crane, $40

but my wait is finally over. I bought this from Jordan Crane at Comic-Con a few weeks ago and can’t wait to see it in its new home. In addition to being really nice, he is an amazingly, wonderfully talented artist whose work is really stunning:

late night, low Nellie

please don't go, out of print edition of 26

don't know if I'm coming or going, open edition print, $30

You go check out the rest of his work – look at the books too! – and I’ll go pick up my framed print. I’ll be right back …

o! chair with such hope
my foremothers shake their heads
next time I’ll measure.

I know it’s totally weird to post the same image twice in one week (and a little weird to post twice in one day; don’t I have a job?), but this little wall planter got me a’ thinkin’: what if there were more plants on walls?

What if they were out of cat-reach and couldn’t be cat-eaten, and their greenery would cascade down the wall like a Clifton’s cafeteria?

The planter I’ve used here is from Ikea and comes in three sizes:

The small square planter is only $3.99. These are not designed to be hung on the wall, but any picture hanging kit can change that.

Each set of 2 of these hangers from Dick Blick is only $1.69 – or $1.52 if you buy at least 6 sets, which you totally will. I know. Then you just pop your drywall or wood screws into the wall (after you’ve measured and leveled, of course), and hang up your little vertical garden. Besides Ikea, there are more resources for planters that could be made wall-friendly – most planters are either not designed for walls, or if they are, they look like they came from your great aunt’s Queen Anne or from The Pirates of The Carribean ride. More modern options exist, like these lightweight metal planters from CB2:

Or this lovely wood planter from Jamali Garden – by the way, I love this shop. Beautiful things and very reasonable prices.

Or these redwood pots from Etsy:

Whatever material you use, make sure you allow for internal drainage but not external – you want the plant to be able to drain, but not onto your television or leather sofa.

Sure, you can always get a plain white switchplate cove for your light switches or outlets at a hardware store for fifty cents. Or, you can go to Anthropologie and pay $32.00:

These are lovely, but don’t actually look that great in person – at least, they don’t look that expensive. The happy medium comes from etsy, where you’re sure to find something in exactly the color and style you’re looking for. They’re usually made with vintage wallpaper, textbooks, magazine pages or covers.

Etsy seller robotcandy has some of the most incredible ephemera used for switchplates, coasters, and magnets, and the prices are really reasonable – $10 for a single switch plate cover. If you see a paper you like but need it in a double or an outlet, most sellers can accommodate your request if it works with the design of the paper.

For more of a 40’s – 50’s wallpaper look, check out fondue’s shop:

There are many more sellers who make these, so you’re sure to find something that fits with your style. Perhaps you’re not so much birds but breasts:

Everyone looks at this and says “oh, for the bathroom,” but what’s wrong with doing a breast exam in any room of your house that has a two-gang lightswitch?

My thoughts exactly. I’ve bought a plate from this seller before:

and I have to say I was quite pleased with it. Right, Lisa? We like it. You can also get discounts for sending back your old switchplate to be recycled, which I didn’t realize before but will sure give it a try next time.

In honor of Apple’s new products and updates (yes, I would like a MacBook Air, thanks), I’m going to skip the antiques route for today and go a little more hi-tech. As I’ve mentioned before, I love my iPhone, even after all these weeks. While the body and the screen are very scratch resistant – I haven’t put a scratch on it yet and I just toss it in my bag – it’d still be cool to have a non-mass-manufactured cover for it. As usual, etsy has the cure:

I LOVE this. In fact, I might buy it myself. But let’s see what else is out there:

There are MANY more styles there to choose from, but just so I’m not a total hypocrite, the ones I’ve shown are almost all under $10 (the exception is the felty one for $16.50) Sorry Belkin, I think I’d rather have one of these.