| Unreal! The secret of silk flowers | | Posted Sunday, January 29, 2006 3:45:07 PM by Kate Grant | Silk flowers used to be the symbol of bad taste. Here is a news flash for you. Not anymore. With the advanced techniques of fabric design and the blossom of home fashion accessories, silk flowers look, and and sometimes even feel, like real flowers. 
They have become a major part in dressing a home and making it feel warm and luxurious, without the extra expense on fresh flowers. Make no mistake, good quality silk flowers are expensive.
They sometime cost more than a bouquet of fresh flowers. But in the long run, and with a proper care, they'll last many years. Silk flower arrangements, wreaths and garlands have become a good alternative for decking the halls before Christmas.
Silk flower petals sprayed with perfume are used as potpure, and you can even spread them in your closet. Many hotels are using silk flower arrangements in lobbies, where a huge arrangement is needed, or as centerpieces on dining room tables.
Almost no one can tell the difference between an orchid made of silk and the real thing. Even the stems look real!
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| | | Reflections of his life | | Posted Saturday, January 20, 2007 2:57:04 PM by Blog57 Team | | A COMPLEXITY of layers, a suffusion of colours, a blurring of boundaries between decorative, functional and fine art. Layering is a style synonymous with David Cheah whether in ideas, painting techniques, textures, motifs or fabrics, as evident in his latest exhibition entitled Being. The richness of layering is like a reflection of my life from my spiritual beliefs to childhood experiences to my heritage, said the 47-year-old. Cheah, a Malaysian-born architect and interior designer turned Chakradance teacher and multi-media artist, returns to Kuala Lumpur from Sydney a decade after his first solo exhibition here, to exhibit a new collection of works. His exhibition of art-work, art-ware and art-wear features 41 creations of both fine art and decorative art. The visual feast is currently on display at Michi Artists Gallery in Bangsar Baru, Kuala Lumpur, and the pieces have been divided into two sections. The paintings on Level One and at the stairwell are framed art-works painted on grass-weave paper, linen-weave paper, veneer and canvas, while those on Level Two are paintings on silk that can be used as wall-hangings, table/ bed runners or shawls. Grass-weave paper was a type of wallpaper used in the 1960s and 70s.... | |
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| | | Sequins & fitted corsets at Bridal Asia | | Posted Saturday, January 13, 2007 12:58:17 PM by Blog57 Team | | Demure gold drapes, crystal beads, sequins, fitted corsets and crushed satin ribbons dazzled the eye as traditional styles married modern designs at the Bridal Asia '07 fashion show here. Day two of the 11th edition of the event at the Grand Hyatt kicked off Thursday with Riddhima Kapoor-Sahni walking the ramp for designer Suneet Verma. The palette ranged from soft demure drapes in pinks, golds and nudes, setting a fragile tone for brides. Delicate 'aari' embroidery, crushed satin ribbons, glass beads, sequins, zardozi and crystal embellishments added shimmer to the show. The collection also featured draped skirts in feminine folds offset with fitted corsets. The line also offered stylish lehangas (long skirts) and sleek silhouettes. "The look for my bride is soft, demure, girlie, sexy and sensuous," Verma told IANS Falguni and Shane Peacock's collection borrowed from traditional couture culture as rich textured fabrics like velvet, brocade, chiffons and georgettes were tailored into delicate patterns with a hint of animal prints.... | |
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| | | Art listings | | Posted Wednesday, December 27, 2006 2:56:26 PM by Blog57 Team | | Art listings are compiled by Duncan Scott Davidson. Because of space limitations, new art shows are listed the week they open (thereafter, shows are listed on a rotating basis). See Picks for information on how to submit items to the listings. For complete listings, go to www.sfbg.com. MUSEUMS Arion Press Living Museum of Printing, 1802 Hays, Presidio; 668-2542, www.arionpress.com. Mon-Fri, 10am-4pm. Free. A museum of historic type foundry, letterpress printing, and bookbinding. Ongoing. Asian Art Museum 200 Larkin; 581-3500, www.asianart.org. Tues-Sun, 10am-5pm (Thurs, 10am-9pm). $10 ($5 Thurs after 5pm), $7 seniors, $6 for 12 to 17, free for 11 and under. "Hidden Meanings: Symbolism in Chinese Art. " Decorative arts from China. Through Sun/31. "Pioneers of Philippine Art: Luna, Amorsolo, Zóbel." One hundred years of Philippine paintings by three pioneers.... | |
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| | | In Texas, boots for walking out of the book store | | Posted Tuesday, November 14, 2006 11:13:18 AM by Blog57 Team | | The average Texan is more likely to buy boots from a chain like Cavender's or Sheplers, but for pure Austin theater, nothing beats Allens Boots on South Congress, with its enormous inventory and wild accessories, like the 12-foot-wide antler-and-brass chandelier ($6,000) or ladies' pink leather rhinestone-studded rodeo jacket (on sale for $450). The store stocks thousands of boots (lace-ups, work boots, ropers and cowboy boots) for men, women and children, from $40 for a pair of toddler's leather cowboy slippers to $6,000 for a pair of custom-made alligator-belly boots for men. Slipping down into the ladies' aisle, I asked a salesclerk for all the accouterments I would need: boots are lined up by size, so you can literally sit for hours with your pull-on hooks (about $6) and a boot jack (about $12) and parade in front of the mirror, looking at yourself in all these boots and wondering why only 15 people bought your book.... | |
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| | | The big test | | Posted Sunday, November 12, 2006 10:58:34 PM by Blog57 Team | | Nothing evokes memories so strongly as the sights and scents of the holiday season. For some, it's the heady fragrance of pine needles or the smell of a turkey cooking in the oven. For others, it's the feeling of cold air sharply tingling exposed faces, or the scratchy warmth of a stocking cap. And almost everyone is stirred in some way by holiday music, as it transports the listener back to a favorite holiday experience.My mother came from a large extended family and made hospitality her top priority during the holiday season. That impulse is apparently engrained in my DNA, because entertaining is something I both love to do, and which I take to rather exhaustive ends. Luckily, I have a partner who is equally enthusiastic about welcoming people into our home. And this holiday season, our first in our new house, is especially important.... | |
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| | | Poppies: Where and when did the poppy-wearing tradition start? | | Posted Saturday, November 11, 2006 3:09:01 PM by Blog57 Team | | The first official poppy appeal was held 85 years ago in the UK. But when - and why - was the first poppy sold? The red poppy worn around the world in remembrance of battlefield deaths has nothing to do with the blood shed in the brutal clashes of World War I. Instead it symbolises the wild flowers that were the first plants to grow in the churned-up soil of soldiers' graves in Belgium and northern France. Little else could grow in the blasted soil that became rich in lime from the rubble. Their paper-thin red petals were the first signs of life and renewal, and in 1915 inspired Canadian doctor John McCrae to pen perhaps the most famous wartime poem: In Flanders fields the poppies blow Between the crosses, row on row... It was this poem which inspired an American war secretary to sell the first poppies to raise money for ex-soldiers.... | |
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| | | “Great Taste” to Feature Formal-Invitations.com | | Posted Saturday, November 11, 2006 1:08:48 PM by Blog57 Team | | 2006 --(PR.COM)-- PTG Studios is pleased to announce the selection of Formal-Invitations.com for its innovative, educational television series, Great Taste. Formal-Invitations.com will be shown in a 5 Part Series segment on "Creating the Perfect Wedding". The segment will air through a combination of Style and W.E. Women’s Entertainment nationally, and regionally on regional news networks nationwide. Formal-Invitations.com offers premium wedding invitations on-line at affordable prices. At www.formal-invitations.com couples can create professional quality wedding invitations for less than $1 each! Ordering online helps them save time and money without having to sacrifice the quality and design preference of their invitation. Formal-Invitations.com offers a unique variety of mix and match supplies to create distinctive wedding invitations.... | |
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| | | An Evening in the Park A Broadway Retrospective Is Theme For March Of Dimes Gala | | Posted Friday, November 10, 2006 7:02:42 AM by Blog57 Team | | Eight of Chattanoogas premier chefs will be creating their culinary magic while the lights of Broadway are glowing in the Chattanooga Trade and Convention Center Saturday evening when the March of Dimes presents its 17th Annual Gourmet Gala. This years theme is An Evening in the Park A Broadway Retrospective and event organizers have established a fund raising goal of $200,000 which will be used primarily to purchase equipment for local Neonatal Intensive Care Units. The March of Dimes is a national non-profit health organization whose mission it is to improve the health of babies by preventing birth defects, premature birth and infant mortality. According to local chapter director Belinda Whitten, one of every six babies born in Chattanooga is premature and/or has a low birth weight which ranks among the highest nationwide.... | |
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| | | A southern Magnolia Ball for Baptist Hospital | | Posted Wednesday, November 08, 2006 2:57:25 PM by Blog57 Team | | For those who love visiting southern states where beautiful magnolia trees dominate the foliage, they were delighted with the décor at the 2006 Baptist Hospital Magnolia Ball. The reception was a complete replica of the balmy south with elegant white paper lanterns overhead, a beautiful gazebo dripping with purple and white Wisteria flowers and vines, park benches and lampposts that were nestled between Dogwood and Magnolia trees. Upon entering the Radisson Hotel Miami ballroom guests were immersed in the rich warm colors of a southern sunset, which magically changed to a midnight blue sky as the evening progressed. Silk Dogwood trees, Live Oaks and Weeping Willow trees lines the perimeter of the room while the elegance of traditional Southern table setting was used for individual tables.... | |
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| | | Music Stories | | Posted Tuesday, November 07, 2006 7:01:57 AM by Blog57 Team | | When the first bit of promotion began for Vegoose 2006 -- an image of Elvis pressed up against a TV screen below the words "We're back!" a la Poltergeist -- music fans' appetites were immediately whetted. After all, the festival's debut in 2005 drew a healthy 36,000 people on each of its two days, the jam-band crowd attracted to a wish-list of improv/roots-rock acts and the indie kids bowled over at the thought of seeing bands like The Arcade Fire, Spoon, The Decemberists and The Flaming Lips play Las Vegas. The inaugural Vegoose was a smash hit in nearly every respect.However, when organizers announced this year's lineup, the excitement was more muted. Sure, many of the jam acts were returning, but on the indie and alternative rock front, there were fewer marquee names. The Killers would certainly draw in locals, yet few seemed really jazzed about seeing Fiona Apple, The Roots or G.... | |
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