I completed a project that I feel pretty good about called the Jazz Age Style Alphabet. I completed an original watercolor painting and used a calligraphy letter for each one. I thought I might feel pressure or get bored with it, but I liked how much structure it provided in terms of selecting images to focus on for my work. An added bonus for this project was that I learned some things I did not know about some of the people, places, or objects I chose. If you are looking for a great project related to a theme you love, I highly recommend doing an alphabet project and challenging yourself to find unique content. I posted the entire alphabet below – I hope you enjoy it!
Category Archives: Jazz Age
Posting for Practice: My 365 Day Challenge
I started the new year by setting a challenge for myself: complete and post one drawing each day on Instagram. Here are a few of my sketches:
I really wanted to establish a practice which would require me to draw at least once a day, and so far I have been sticking to it – I just posted my drawing for Day #37! By the end of the year, I hope to have some drawings that would be worthy of starting my online shop (my goal for 2018). I am focusing on practicing, experimenting, and putting it all out there. I always feel a little vulnerable just before I hit SHARE, but people have been really supportive so far.
This is what I have learned so far:
- this is a great way to keep creative ideas flowing – the more I create, the more ideas seem to just come to me
- having a back up file of content to share is really helpful on the days I cannot create art but I still want to post; whenever I have more time, I draw more than one sketch to keep in a file
- this has been great for experimentation; I love so many styles of illustration right now, but ultimately, I want to develop my own style – the only way to figure it out is to try out lots of different styles to see what sticks
If there is a creative habit you have been wanting to establish, I highly recommend taking on a daily challenge of your own. If you would like to follow me on Instagram, my handle is @adellecirca1920
I would love to hear what you all are working on in 2017. Please share in the comments if you have a chance.
Bright Young Things at the Crane Estate
Hello Jazz Lovers,
I hope you are having a fabulous summer… I certainly am! I had the pleasure of attending the Roaring Twenties Jazz Party at the Crane Estate (Ipswich, MA) on July 31st, and I wanted to share some tidbits with you. The picture above is me hanging out by a genuine model T from the 1920s (man I would have loved a chance to drive that vehicle).
I went with my friend, Myriam, and as you can see, she did a little shopping while we were there. She scored this “come hither” fan which she intends to use to drive members of the opposite sex wild. She also received a fun cheat sheet about how one wields a fan communicates much more than one might expect:
With handle to the lips = kiss me
Fanning slowly = I am married
Fanning fast = I am engaged
Open wide = wait for me
Drawing across the cheek = I love you
Carrying in left hand = desirous of acquaintances
Twirling in the left hand = I wish to get rid of you
Twirling in the right hand = I love another
Closing it = I wish to speak to you
The Crane Estate is a gilded jewel with enchanting views. I tried to capture some of its beauty in these pictures, but of course, they can never do it justice.
This party would not have been complete without my fellow revelers making merry on the grounds and on the dance floor. Here are some of my favorites:
The vendors helped to make this a memorable experience by selling the type of vintage treasures it is hard to find anywhere else. If only I had $1,000.00 to shop to my heart’s content…
I hope you enjoyed these pictures. Maybe some of you can join us next year if you happen to be in Massachusetts in July!
Follow Your Curiosity
I watched an inspiring video by Elizabeth Gilbert about following one’s curiosity to figure out pathways in life here . Up until now, Gilbert has always been an advocate of the philosophy to “follow your passion” because that has always worked for her. A letter from a frustrated reader caused her to change her perspective; the reader had been searching for a passion for years, and had reached the point of being depressed because she did not seem to have one. It caused Gilbert to take a step back and think about the pathways of various people in her life that did not know their passions, but discovered them over time. She has now revised her theory about passion to accommodate people who are like hummingbirds – people who flit from interest to interest, and then eventually they are able to look over the field of their lives to see what they caused to bloom. I am one of those hummingbirds. I went through life for years frustrated by the fact that I could not seem to find one passion that really rang true for me. Now the dots of my life are finally starting to come together to reveal what I am trying to do.
One concrete example of how I have followed my curiosity has to do with drawing. Over the summer, I went to visit the National Museum of American Illustration in Newport because I was curious to see how they would present the work of illustrators in a house museum National Museum of American Illustration .
National Illustration Museum
Summer Memories
Hello Jazz Lovers,
I have been meaning to share some photos of my jazz inspired adventures from this past summer, but time has gotten away from me. Although summer is long gone, I thought you would enjoy hearing about a few events. I attended a Gatsby themed party at the Star Island Resort, and it was quite the affair. The soirée included a lawn picnic accompanied by a jazz band, lounging on rocking chairs on the massive porch sipping our beverages of choice, and exploring the picturesque island at our leisure. The 1920s style hotel was the main attraction on the island, and there were cottages sprinkled about which made it feel like a little colony. Star Island Retreat Center offers all types of personal and group retreats to fit just about anyone’s interest. I certainly have plans to return to partake of the art and writing retreats! In case you are interested in visiting, here is the link http://www.starisland.org In the meantime, here are some pictures to feast upon:
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The other event I attended was a murder mystery cruise held by the Actors’ Studio of Newburyport. We cruised around the harbor, and watched the antics of a professional acting troupe as they tried to deduce “who done it”. The audience actively participated throughout the performance, so there were some interesting ideas presented. My favorite character was CiCi, the hostess, because she was oh so southern and a master at skating around unpleasant topics (such as the fact that their last ship sank just before our voyage). Here are some fun photos from the event (I am sure you can guess which parts each these actors played just by looking at their costumes):
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I hope you all enjoyed your summer as well. Thank you for checking out my pictures, and be well until we meet again.
New Beginnings
I created a new blog header for Notes on the Jazz Age:
What do you think? It took me a few hours to set up the “photo shoot” (if you can call it that) and to take a ridiculous amount of photos. I have always loved black and white photography, and I have vowed to learn as much as possible about it through trial and error and studying the methods of others. I also used this image to create business cards; it is perfect timing too because I only have five cards left with my old blog header.
In addition to learning photography, I have decided that I need to learn to draw. I signed up for a six-week class at the museum in Boston. We shall see how it all turns out. You will definitely see the fruits of my labor because I plan to share my experiments with photography and drawing on this blog. I would love to illustrate my stories in the future. Being a visual person, I have always been drawn to books which incorporate visuals and words.
I just shared a few of my creative adventures. Have you tried something totally new and creative lately? If so, I would love to hear about it.
Jazz Age Lawn Party – The Crane Estate
I attended a Jazz Age Lawn Party at the Crane Estate in Ipswich, MA, and it was the bees knees! (Sorry, I couldn’t resist) As you can see, I dressed up for the occasion and so did everyone else. I truly felt like I was experiencing a lovely afternoon in the 1920s because everyone was dressed to impress, live jazz was playing, and people were dancing the Charleston and Lindy Hop. You can see the grand old estate in the background. The lawn extends along a grand alley all the way to the ocean. I will be posting more pictures of the inside of the Crane Estate from a house tour I attended, but in the meantime, I hope you enjoy these pictures. I wish you all could have been there!
Adelle Circa 1920 