Parrish Relics

I cannot wait a single day longer to feature the business owned and run by the lovely and uber-talented Jen Parrish. An advanced warning...once you buy your first Parrish Relic, you will be addicted...it's just a given. Jen's jewelry is all one-of-a-kind, made by hand with attention paid to every detail. She features stained glass designs, pictorial designs (many of which feature Pre-Raphaelite art), and vessels. Catalog items include necklaces, crowns, earrings, bracelets, and more.

Jen's designs have been featured on numerous television shows and movies, the highest profile of which is perhaps the "B" Anne Boleyn necklace worn by Betty Suarez in nearly every episode of Ugly Betty.

For a lovely set of pictures of items that have been custom-made and sold in the past, visit her Thorn Sold Items page.

I personally own two Relics, (the image at the top is me in my necklace featuring Waterhouse's The Siren) and have asked Jen to make me a third in celebration of my upcoming wedding, featuring a stained glass image by Burne-Jones. I've basically hinted to everyone I know that Relics make great gifts. As I said...once you've actually seen and tried on one of Jen's masterpieces, you will undoubtedly be hooked!

A couple of my favorite recent examples of her work:

Grace Notes Photography

The other day, a friend sent me a link to a stunning photograph inspired by Rossetti. I was blown away by this photographer's work, and I had to share it here! Her work is all absolutely amazing, and she does portrait sessions for a very affordable fee! Grace Notes Photography

I asked her to say a few words about her interest in Pre-Raphaelites, and so I'll let her speak for herself from here on :)

I fell in love with the Pre-Raphaelites the first time I was exposed to their art, back in the late 80's, so when I started doing photography, about 4 years ago, it was only natural that the art that I'd loved for so long would provide the inspiration for my work.


I soon realized, though, that what I was doing with the camera wasn't what was expected! Photographers seeing my work for the first time would comment on how unusual it was--not like photography at all--and would ask me what photographers I admired. I quickly grew quite sensitive on the subject--because I didn't KNOW of any photographers--I was just making photos that reminded me of the paintings I loved! In attempting to find some photographic role models, however, I discovered Julia Margaret Cameron, Lady Hawarden, and the Allen Sisters--all of whom were doing very much what I was attempting to do--only a century or so before me. Cameron, in particular appealed to me, with her sophisticated combination of drama, literature, and subtle flattery to the model, all wrapped up in a dreamlike mist, due to her unusual use of depth of field!

Left: photo by Cameron. Right: Photo by Aurora

The Pre-Raphaelites, Cameron, and the Allen Sisters understood the need for ideals in a time where morality seemed to be in disfavor; the need for peace, in a time when life seemed to be moving along so quickly that people barely had time to catch their breath; and the need for a grand, timeless, romanticized beauty, in a time when ugliness was all too easy to find. While I am, obviously, creating art in a different time, for a different audience, I believe that the parallels between their society and our own are many, and that people today are just as hungry for art that is beautiful, graceful, passionate and gentle. Art that reminds you to step back, and take a deep breath, and invites you to step into another world, where emotions run deep, but appear simpler. Art that celebrates the best that human beings can be, rather than wallowing in depravity.

I believe that however modern they might be, there's a part of almost every woman or man that wishes they were a princess or prince in a fairy tale, where the decisions they make are on a grand, heroic scale, and making the right decision can guarantee them eternal happiness...and I hope that, like my illustrious inspirations, my art can provide a resting place for people in a world that is all too often, noisy, overwhelming, and morally ambiguous.

Crawford Manor...Beautiful Pre-Raphaelite Dolls

Today's feature is a website I have drooled over for several years now. Back when I had a nearly occultish fixation on Lord of the Rings, I admired the gorgeous Arwen doll done by Cheryl of Crawford Manor. Her other doll gowns and resculpts were equally gorgeous, and I was hooked on occasionally visiting the site and imagining her gowns as full size outfits.

So imagine my thrill when I went to the site one day and saw that she had created a doll wearing the beautiful blue gown from my favorite Waterhouse painting of Ophelia!

Cheryl's description of the doll is below:

Ophelia wears an underskirt and narrow sleeves of soft brick red "suede" embellished with a golden nail head design. The “Princess” gown of soft blue “suede” has bell sleeves and a slightly boat shaped neckline. The pattern was designed to skim her figure and then flare into a wide skirt and train. The sleeves are lined with a pale caramel to coordinate with the camel “suede” band at the hem. In order to recreate the designs in the portrait, a stencil was cut and then the design was applied using a rich gold paint to the bodice front on each side of the neck lacing and along the entire hem banding. The neckline and sleeves edges were embroidered using a single strand of metallic gold thread. She wears caramel “suede” slippers which are laced with golden threads and golden panties.

Her bouquet of wild flowers, daisies and poppies rests in the folds of her upswept skirt and a golden thread loop can be caught over her hand to secure the folds. Matching daisies and red poppies are caught in her long auburn tresses. She wears a medallion on a golden chain, gold hoop earrings, embossed golden brow ornament and a “sapphire” faceted crystal signet ring.

A Robert Tonner 16" Fashion Doll Sydney Chase has been completely repainted and re-styled for her role as Ophelia. She has green eyes shadowed in soft charcoal, russet feathered brows, beautifully shaded natural lips, a French manicure, partially braided, shaped and gently waved hair and carefully trimmed applied lashes.

I would love to someday very soon make my own version of this absolutely beautiful gown, so I was fascinated to see it rendered in real fabrics.

Cheryl has also done several other dolls of interest to the Pre-Raphaelite afficionado. These include a beautiful version of Kinuko Craft's Eleanor of Aquitaine (as I've mentioned, I consider Craft to be a modern Pre-Raphaelite), and a beautiful version of Mucha's the Four Seasons (Mucha of course was an Art Nouveau artist, but I find that many fans of Pre-Raphaelite art also like his work, myself included). While you're on the site too, be sure to explore some of her original doll gown creations. Her work is endlessly creative.

I am honored to feature such a talented artist!

A short post today

Do you play guitar? Do you love the Pre-Raphaelites?

Buy a Luna Guitar, and get the best of both worlds.

Seriously...if I could afford one of these, I'd so get one. I've been meaning to learn guitar for a while...a few years ago, a friend taught me to play "Greensleeves" and playing the guitar is such a meditative experience, unlike any other instrument I've tried. Because of this, the melding of P.R. art and the guitar isn't quite as outlandish as it seems.