Design Vertigo

Thursday, November 18, 2010

Inspired by Alice Paul

I watch Iron Jawed Angels this week. a movie about the young suffragette women's group led by Alice Paul (Hilary Swank) and Lucy Burns (Frances O'Connor). In the movie the women band together to wheedle the United States into adapting a Constitutional amendment guaranteeing women the right to vote.

SUCH a good movie (i gave it all 5 stars on my Netflix raiding) The story was moving and inspiring. I couldn't get over the amazing scarifies these women gave and the obstacles they overcame for the future generations of women to have equal rights as men.
This is story is inspiring me.....

Tuesday, October 5, 2010

More Up-Cycling MOSAIC ART

Pearis Hilton

Pinky Tuscadero

Roxanne J. Squirrel

Mary Kay

TigerLily

Chris Bicay lives in Forest Lake, MN and has always been drawn to art that is bright and whimsical. For years Chris has been creating mosaic “ladies”, each sculpture with their own name and personality. She also incorporates an image of her hero, Abraham Lincoln, into each mosaic lady sculpture. (You’ll have to look carefully to find him!) Chris also creates unique and inspired mosaic spheres of all sizes, most inspired by her muse- polka dots.

She loves the re-use, recycle aspect of found-object mosaics, turning what was castoff and past it prime object back into something beautiful again. You might say that she is the fairy godmother to old ceramics, giving them a new exciting life with a wave of her magic spatula (which is what she uses for grouting).

As a child growing up in Brooklyn Center Chris would sort Chinese Checker marbles by color. Chris then graduated to repeatedly emptying her mother’s old coffee can of sewing buttons and sorting them by color. Most recently she began collecting used ceramic pieces, cutting them up, and sorting them by, you guessed it, color – ta da! – a mosaic artist was born.

If her mosaic art makes you smile, she’s done her job. Enjoy!

She is selling her one of a kind art sculptures at Design Vertigo in a artist of the month Trunk Show for the month of October. She will also being doing an art class, teaching her students tricks and tips of mosaic art and students will be making a round christmas ornament to take home!

Thursday, September 30, 2010

Up-cycling Artist!

Mary Kay Vaughan

Ever since Mary Kay was a little girl and received her first box of 64 Crayola crayons, art had been a part of my life. She dabbled with many types of art forms throughout the years, and her current creative obsession is making art with bottlecaps. "I enjoy taking an everyday item and turning it into a unique art form." Mary Kay has participated in many craft shows locally, and loves to see how people respond to my items, especially when they realize that it all started with a small, plain bottle cap.

Mary Kay was born and raised in St Paul, Minnesota. She is a single mom with 3 daughters.

Pat Weaver

Great Grandma of five, Pat grew up and still lives in Stillwater, MN. She spends her time creating the ultimate in “up cycling” art.

Pat searches antique shops far and wide for unique vintage flatware to crate her extra ordinary jewelry. Each piece is carefully handcrafted and well thought out.

You can find these one of a kind pieces of wearable art at

Design Vertigo

You look like I need a drink!

Winkers are paints that "wink" as you walk. Theres are a big fashion no no... but how funny!!

”Art washes from the soul the dust of everyday life.” -- Picasso.

Get inspired by the mixed media art of Papaya! you can buy paper products from this artist at Design Vertigo in North Saint Paul MN.http://designvertigo.net/

Her blog is awesome too! check it out!http://www.papayablog.com/