I’m always hunting for unusual things. One of my favorite things to do it check out garage sales, flea markets and tag sales. This past weekend I went to the Alameda Flea Market. http://alamedapointantiquesfaire.com. It’s hard to me to actually go to this flea market as I usually teach classes on the weekend. But last weekend was an exception. Steven, Paulette and I headed over to Alameda to search for loot.
Right off of the bat we were greeted with a fragrant waft of sweet caramelized sugar. We looked around and found this guy! He was selling creme bruleé out of an ice cream cart! Sheer brilliance! We had to order some! The contrast of a chef wearing a clean with chef’s hat and the piles of antiques was quite a juxtaposition! Plus the drama of him using a torch to melt the sugar ended up drawing a crowd! What a great idea!
Next Paulette found some great binoculars. Beautiful textured colored metal. Lots of vendors were offering sales. She got her binoculars at 50% off!
Sometimes it’s great just to see unique things. Often times it can give you ideas to use for your next projects. I was recently interviewed for Fusion Newsletter for the PMC Guild about inspiration. They asked where do I find inspiration? Well for me it can strike me just about anywhere.
Below is a great example. Here is what I saw (with my eyes)
But here is what I thought… “Wouldn’t it be great to make a presentation case for for my jewelry that had opened up like this. Maybe the jewelry could sit in recessed areas like these drafting tools. I love the old leather, I wonder if I could emboss my logo onto leather like this, maybe a wood grain texture, I love how the fabric shows the signs of age, I wonder if I could make something that shows age without making it look dirty…”
Lots of ideas to explore.
You never know what you’ll find.
The idea of not necessarily having a goal in mind is a tough concept for some people to grasp. But it’s what make it exciting to me. Plus it’s great seeing what others find as well. ( OMG did he really buy that……?!?!?)
Here is one of the great things I found. Who knew it existed? Who knew I “needed” it, until I saw it? Tucked away in an old box, under a pile of other old boxes we found these. They might be old ceramic clay tools, but they seem kind a little fragile for that. They seem to be made of either bone or ivory. Maybe they were used for fondant. Whatever the case, now they will be used for metal clay!
