Special Guest Post: by kaija of paperiaarre

What Inspires You?

We all know inspiration comes and goes as it wishes. While watching the gorgeous work of others is inspiring, sometimes it’s not enough. Working as a full time artist can take the fun out of art, so don’t forget to relax and try new things yourself. Have fun and keep your mind busy while doing it!
I know this is nothing new under the sun, but just in case someone has managed to miss Keri Smith’s website: GO, see, read and do it! There’s always something that’ll shatter your creative block. Read Wish Jar or start 100 ideas. PLAY. There’s no shout out loud enough in this case!



89. Write about or draw some of the doors in your life (100.ideas)
I have no idea where this door leads to. I walk past it every day and I like it very much. I took a lot of photos of it while making my Turku post for Poppytalk. I’m not going to draw, because I get all anxious about my drawing skills in front of so many readers. But this door, it’s one of the biggest and most fascinating doors I’ve noticed so far. I don’t look at doors often enough. How about you?

If you don’t feel like playing by the rules of others, start something new that suits your needs. If it’s fun, invite others to join you! When I started my new job in April I was too busy to make books regularly, so I decided to decorate a matchbox a day until I had enough time and energy to return to my routines. Sixteen days worth of matchboxes can be now seen here. I experimented with materials, used my precious paper and fabric scraps and tiny treasures I had found (all these things could be considered as trash by some inconsiderate people). Maybe give it a try, even just for three days or a week!


What inspires you? What kind of artsy things do you do just for fun and to keep you going? Will you share if I say please? Please :)

My week as Poppytalk’s Special Guest has flown by and it couldn’t have been any more fun! Thank you for having me!

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Editor's Note: Thank you Kaija for a fun week as our first special guest! We really enjoyed having you and seeing things from your side of the world!

special Guest Post: by kaija of paperiaarre

Contemporary Embroidery

Karen Ruane of Contemporary Embroidery is another talented friend of mine I’ve found through the blogosphere. She’s a phenomenal embroiderer and textile artist from the UK. Most her work is white embroidery on white silk, usually there’s a text element involved. Karen creates gorgeous wrapping cloths, which she describes as the result of her theoretical research into motherhood. These wrapping cloths are complex combinations of embroidery, fabric manipulation, text and pockets. For me they are a true sign of devotion. It takes countless hours to finish each cloth, but those hours could hardly be spent in any better way! I’m definitely not an embroidery expert, but – well, just look at the photos! - could there be any way to make fabric more fascinating?



Wrapping Cloth Five, detail


Wrapping Cloth Five, detail


Wrapping Cloth Six


Wrapping Cloth Six, detail

In addition to the wrapping cloths Karen makes smaller items like beautiful brooches (see this and this!) and small zip purses (this is my favorite). All her pieces are such works of art! I’ve never met such love for detail before. And I love details. I love things that reveal their complexity once looked more closely.
Take a look at Karen’s blog and read more about her work process (it’s fascinating!!), and don’t forget to go see her Etsy shop.

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special Guest Post: by kaija of paperiaarre

Ambiguous Rabbits

I met daskaninchen through Etsy after featuring her Beuys bunny in my front page treasury. My husband is a big fan of Beuys’ so I got him a Beuys bunny for his birthday some weeks later. Along that bunny came a verification of Shannah being the most wonderful person in addition to being a talented artist. She’s been a huge inspiration to me from the day I first saw her work. (And she told me that my writing had poetic qualities, which still makes me all happy inside and out.)
To me Shannah’s work has always been ambiguous. She’s a thinker as well as an artist. Her rabbits are so much more than wool felt plushies! You could see them as toys for grownups, but their simple and beautiful appearance is just one aspect. Shannah’s work comes back to history, mathematics and inspirational art.
These shaman rabbits were inspired by Beuys’ performance “How to Explain Pictures to a Dead Hare” as well as vanitas that include dead rabbits or hares. Daskaninchen’s Shaman rabbits can be seen in the Crammed Organisms Show in Saint Louis right now! If you’re around go take a look, the show sounds amazing!



In addition to my husband’s Beuys bunny our home has another rabbit inhabitant; a beautiful white Fibonacci rabbit (I love it, she's all mine!). Read more about the origins of the name Fibonacci rabbit from here (or here if you’re a math geek). Very profound thoughts behind these beautiful rabbits! Shannah puts it so much better than I ever could, so I’ll just quote her a little: “She may remind you of Alice’s rabbit or the velveteen rabbit as well. The rabbit metaphor has often been used in mythology and literature. For me it always recalls intuition, regeneration, and redemption.” Adds a bit to a plushie, doesn’t it?



These gorgeous three sisters are sold out, but Shannah told me that more Fibonacci rabbits are on their way to the shop. While waiting for them, don’t forget to take a look at the new daskaninchen blog and Shannah’s Flickr!

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Editor's Note:



Kaija of paperiaarre is holding a giveaway at her blog. All you have to do is leave a comment telling her what would your perfect journal be like. She'll make a draw on Sunday, June 15th. Two daisy brooches and a small notebook are waiting for their new owners. Click here to enter.

Special Guest Post: by kaija of paperiaarre

Savilintu and Puhti will rock your socks



I probably jinxed myself and my city by posting photos of sunny days only! It’s been a gray and rainy day after such a long period of summery days. Nature was yearning for water already so it’s good too that the sun gave us a little break today. If you’re yearning for inspiration, make sure to visit the following two of my favorite Finnish blogs! Craft blogs are ever more popular in Finland too and there are some real gems among them. I chose to feature Savilintu (=earthenware/clay bird) and Puhti (=energy, dash, vigor, pep – whatever you may want to call it). They both write in Finnish, Puhti writes also in English, and it’s just about impossible to not fall in love with their photography! Very Finnish and always gorgeous!
Aino’s Savilintu currently on summer vacation, but you’ll enjoy browsing her archives even if you don’t know a word of Finnish! Aino is a magician with a sewing machine! She sews beautiful clothes and quilts, but what made me a true fan of hers are her dolls and of course her unbelievable photos. You can see more photos on Aino’s Flickr.




Isoinpapu, the biggest bean:), is a mother of six. Now I know some of you are sick and tired of bloggers posting about their children, but Puhti is something you don’t want to miss! Puhti is about sewing, crafting, children and great photography. These kids must be the best dressed kids in Finland (at least until I start reproducing)! And boy I am green with envy every time I see photos from Isoinpapu’s home! You can stop reading interior design blogs and meet a real Finnish home :) Creative chaos is the key to contentment.





Now the sun has come back! See how inspiring writing this post was! And well, you’ve been very kind reading this far, you can now go clickety click. Enjoy!

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Special Guest Post: by kaija of paperiaarre

This Is My City

Writing a blog has opened up my eyes in so many ways. I look at things differently and my camera has become my faithful companion (still need to learn how to use it better though). It’s only after blogging about it every once in a while that I’ve realized that Turku is now my home town. This is my city; I just needed to start seeing it as one. I’ve been to Prague and I loved it – then someone from Prague looked at my Turku photos and says that Turku looks so much like Prague. Of course they were right; I just didn’t know how to look at my daily landscape.
Turku is a city by the sea, but it’s not the sea that makes Turku the city it is. The river Aura flows through the city, divides it to my side and to the side of money (I work and do my shopping mostly on the other side).



On both sides of the river there are big hills (Turku is no San Francisco, but still…) and big parks on top of them. Of course we have plenty of lovely old steps! Great workout too, you could walk a route of 11 kilometers and 1256 steps! Let your thoughts rest while your thighs do the work? Maybe not, but steps are definitely in my top 3 of good things about Turku.



I’m sure everyone has seen more than enough of ugly cities, so I’ll share some of my places in Turku with you. Of course we have ugly concrete buildings, but I’ve learnt how to ignore them. We don’t have a separate old town; the beautiful old architecture is right there next to the modern boredom and it brightens up the entire city.



Many of the buildings near the old greater market are from the 18th and 19th century, built after the great fire of Turku (1827), but some are a lot older. I love this little cobbled street that used to be an arterial road sometime in the middle ages, it led from the Kaskenmäki monastery to the cathedral you saw in my previous post. It’s hard to remember in what century we’re living when walking here. This place is a must see if you ever come to Turku! (Soon I’ll start sounding like a travel guide!)



There’s some beauty on the other side of the river too; I didn’t even notice these keys until I took photos of this old gate. Art is crawling out from the galleries. I love it. And I love keys (and locks, gates, steps and bridges too).



I’ll skip the Finnish design talk; you’ve probably read enough about it from non-Finnish blogs, but I couldn’t resist taking a photo of Artek’s store. It’s such a beautiful building right by the riverside!



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Special Guest Post: kaija of paperiaarre

Hello from the hot and summery Turku (that’s in Finland, just so you know)! All this heat is slowly melting my brain and the best way to spend an evening in such condition is to sit down and start thinking. I don’t mean just letting random thoughts roam around in my head, but thinking about things that matter.

I’m so honored to be Poppytalk’s special guest this week, and I promise I’m going to try and write about things that matter: inspiration, details and friendship. All those things near and far. Little bits of Turku, little bits of Finland, little bits of Art.

The most appropriate way to greet all of you is to greet you with flowers! One things that's my daily inspiration is my city. Turku isn't too big of a city in global scale, but in Finland it's one of the big cities. Being originally a small town girl I'm not used to things happening where I live, even though I've lived in Turku for some years altogether. Last week was eventful to say the least, and I'm thrilled to share my excitement with you this week!

Gerbera’s Dream (Gerberauni) - an environmental work of art by artist Kaisa Salmi
(May 31st –June 8th 2008)

These two photos (above) were taken on June 5th.


There were approx. 100 000 gerberas (14 00 plants) on the stairs and in front of Turku cathedral! Beautiful, beautiful gerberas in different shades of white,yellow, orange, red and purple - the lightest colors being closest to the cathedral door.

Gerbera's dream was built with voluntary work on May 31st and June 1st. I took the following two photos on Saturday evening, when the sprinklers were on. Kids (and some adults like me) were running around on the narrow paths. Oh it was such a joy after a hot day!




The fun part in this work of art was that people got to take the flowers home on June 8th.Of course I was there (I have three huge beauties on my balcony now!), and it really didn’t take too long for the whole area to be swept clean from flowers!For some time it seemed like everyone on the streets of Turku had a flower pot in a red and white paper bag with them. So here’s how it looked 45 minutes after I came to pick my flowers:



And yes,there’s a man playing a saxophone on the stairs. I googled a bit and found out that it was the artist’s brother. I liked the thought of some random man playing there better, but you can’t always win, can you?

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