Won't you please join me, along with the editors of The Daily Basics and Yankee Magazine on Twitter on Thursday at 8:00pm EST for #yankeeholidaychat as we discuss baking, cooking and all sorts of holiday inspirations. Get some great tips, share your secrets and great holiday stories!
Looking for a unique luxury holiday gift? Crawford's Stingray line is available for a limited time at Southport Galleries
Alastair & Caroline Crawford in front of their Stingray line in the Southport Galleries, Southport, CT
Property of The Entertaining House
Join Alastair and Caroline Crawford as they present their Stingray line at the Southport Galleries, on Pequot Avenue in Southport, CT. Their magnificent and unique range of stingray products includes accessories, jewelry and items for the home.
Each piece is handmade by their master craftsmen in Bangkok. As a signature, each item has a sterling silver trim or adornment. Only the finest stingray skins are used which they refer to as the "Rolls Royce" stingray business. The merchandise that is offered is available in a stunning variety of colors.
Headquartered in Fairfield County, Connecticut, Crawford sells to a highly distinguished list of private retail and wholesale clients. These clients include: Bergdorf Goodman, Neiman Marcus, Mitchells and Richards.
Crawford introduces between 20 to 30 new designs each year. It is a discreet luxury brand that more than competes with its larger brand name competitors on quality, new designs, colour and product durability.
The Stingray is unique. The color and texture on the items is like nothing you've felt or seen before. It is quite magnificent really. The fish itself is a dietary staple in the South China Sea region. It is caught to eat. The skins, a natural byproduct are often discarded. The stingray skin is exotic and was introduced around in France around 1750 and has been popular ever since. The stingray's skin is the most durable of all the exotic skins. Fishermen in years gone by would dry out the skins and use them as sandpaper on their boats.
The combination of unique designs, handmade quality, sterling silver accents, a range of 30 colors and the incomparable durability of their products gives the Crawford range a winning appeal among its clients.
The Crawfords invite you to come to Southport Galleries to view this extensive and impressive collection. Christmas is just around the corner, and here are some exquisite and unique items for your special loved ones. There are items for both men and women, as well as for the home.
The Crawfords will be at The Southport Galleries today from 11:00 am -4:00 pm and tomorrow, Friday, from 11:00 am - 8:00 pm.
My photos do not do their products any justice! Please visit their website, Crawford Boutique, to learn more about their products.
Southport Galleries, Southport CT
Crawford Silver at the Southport Galleries, Southport CT
Crawford Silver, Pony hair and Stingray cuff, Southport Galleries, Southport CT
Crawford Silver stingray line of silver
Crawford Silver Stingray line
Crawford Silver Stingray line
And a quick little tour of Southport Galleries...
Southport Galleries, Southport, CT
Image The Entertaining House
Southport Galleries, Southport, CT
Image The Entertaining House
Southport Galleries, Southport, CT
Image The Entertaining House
Southport Galleries, Southport, CT
Image The Entertaining House
Below are some hi-resolution images that I wanted to share with you to give you a better feel of the wonderful texture and incredible selection of color and detail. This line, in which everything listed is below $3,000, is truly affordable luxury.
Do you know about Artifact Uprising?
A couple of years ago I told you about Instagram. Then I told you all about Waterlogue. Now, I am about to tell you about something that will revolutionize your entire world... your being... your very existence! Ok, so I'm being a tad dramatic, but I must tell you about Artifact Uprising. Truth be told I hadn't heard of it either, at least not until an ad appeared on my Facebook stream and I decided to click on it.
Artifact Uprising is a very simple yet amazing concept created by Jenna Wolf, founder and CEO, who believes that life should be lived simply, beautifully and creatively. Using only 100% recycled papers, Artifact Uprising gives your photographs a chance to be seen. Choose from a selection of books, cards, prints, postcards, calendars and more to proudly display your images. Give them as gifts. Send them out as Christmas cards, invitations, thank you notes or keep them for your own memory. This is not your average print shop or photo website. It's so much more.
My images, captured from my iPhone are given a new life thanks to Artifact Uprising
With my order I got a simple thank you note. The card stock was heavy and gave my own images, shot simply from my iPhone and shared only on Instagram a very creative and elegant look. These images, most of which were captured over the summer, are as simple as the shot of a bright blue sky at midday, a shot of some delicious salty French fries during a summer road trip, an early morning sunrise over the sound and the sun shining through an autumn tree. These images while so simple, look so beautiful and artistic on the cards.
A simple, quickly captured photo takes on a whole new life on these notecards
Below, images of New York City on a warm summer evening and a picture of my grandmother's pool in the South of France that I took of a magazine image from my phone, give some dear memories an artistic voice and presence. They look even more beautiful on paper.
Get your memories off your devices and onto beautiful notecards, calendars or books - bring them to life
As I look at the image below I remember the night well.... as we walked out from a wonderful New York City restaurant, stomachs full and hearts giddy from a great meal. I was taken by the light in this church and the shadows it cast and the textures it created.
A simple image becomes art when captured onto paper
I've always loved the images my iPhone has captured of food. Perfectly capturing color and texture - You can practically taste the images. The prints were even more spectacular... They could potentially become recipe cards... or perhaps a gallery of images will be hung on the kitchen wall. Or perhaps turned into an invite to a dinner party. Or a self promotional tool for my own photography.
Memories become art and take on a whole new appearance when printed on the lovely 100% recycled card stock
The simple capture of the bottom of a swimming pool on a hot summer day reveals that it's anything but simple as a sophisticated set of patterns reveal themselves spectacularly on the printed card.
A simple image can become a notecard, even an invitation - Pool party anyone?
A Martini, some blueberries, and another early morning sunrise. Memories of a summer day create a collage of memories.
Simple summer moments become more than summer memories
A simple farm fence, a picture of my boys running away from me. An empty lifeguard chair when summer had come to an end. The images of a simple moment permanently etched.
We are all guilty of taking pictures and leaving them on our laptops and cameras and phones with nowhere to go. Where's the creativity in that? Why keep the images locked up never to be seen, shared, enjoyed? It's like having a really good bottle of champagne... only to look at the bother forever, and never to taste the beauty within!
Turn your photographs into gifts that will last a lifetime
With Christmas around the corner, your images could make an incredible gift for someone special. My next project? It will be a book of sorts, that's for certain... I'm not sure if it will be a book of random images, or a specific theme.
Life creatively... get your images off of your electronic devices!
To get started download their app right onto your phone. Even if you think you don't have a creative bone in your body, there's something about the way these images appear in print, on this wonderfully recycled card stock, that may just have you thinking otherwise. In short, this is me imploring you to get your images off your devices and onto paper and into books where they can be truly enjoyed. (You can thank me later!)