i have some great pals that are REALLY into reddit (like, in the tens of thousands into reddit) and we all got together to rally the hell out of washington dc this past weekend. in honor of reddit’s MASSIVE role in making this rally a reality, I decided to a) formally join and participate in the community (previously had just browsed as information resource) and b) create some BLING after the famous reddit alien icon.

step 1: DRAW ALIEN WITH SHARPIE. i’m a good drawrer.

step 2: use itty bitty saw blade (1/0) to cut out alien.

step 3: cover all areas with sharpie and nail polish (uh, step 3.5, as apparently chinese sharpie – ” shonRie ” don’t hold up in etchant the way the brand name ones do… FAIL averted) and place into etchant (ACID! NOT THE TRIPPY KIND)

step 4: remove all nail polish and marker ink. polish it up. admire!

step 5: cut out sections of tube to become eyes. begin to solder them on. run out of oxygen ( i have had this tank since January…) at 1am. you are leaving tomorrow. there is no time!!!!! plan b…

step 6: rummage through everything you own. find PERFECT (although a bit huge) eyeballs for alien. glue them on.

step 7: WAIT! first paint alien with liver of sulfur to get sweet patina. use messy noisy buffing wheel to shine. paint with more liver of sulfur. use various papers and polishes to shine and remove blackening from high areas.

step 8: NOW glue eyes on.

step 9: glue on antenna. this will fall off tomorrow. you are not worried. you will convince everyone the necklace itself is the antenna. cause, it is. HAPPY ACCIDENTS!

step 10: attach heavy gold plated chain because THIS. IS. BLING.

hey! your reddit alien bling necklace is complete! now pimp the shit out of it.

spotted at the rally!!!

hey ladies, what nice sacks you have.

great way to class up the reddit after party and impress some admins. were they impressed?

sorry this is blurry. as soon as i get this guy back, i’ll get you some detail shots. sadly, i ventured out for ethiopian food with a friend who couldn’t get in, and was SO EXHAUSTED from rallying i went to bed. Wish I could have partied with everyone, but I had an 8:30 am bus to catch (which meant a dawn ride from georgetown to union station : gorgeous!) At least the bling got to stay for the whole thing!!!!!

Much love to everyone who attended the rally, and to all the neato redditors I met. Happy to be so warmly welcomed into an online community. Please know, if I am slow to respond to your comments, it’s because i have a flaming torch in my hand. :)

i had a nice little wall, all to myself! made 3 new crowns for this show (told ya i was busy!!)

meet the virgin crown ( a lily traditionally represents mary, the virgin mother, in renaissance art) and the cat butt necklace. nice pairing, i think.

this is brass, set with vintage lemon yellow crystal, garnets, and peridot. my first attempt at incorporating stones into the crowns. i like!

details! i will give the crowns their own posts as soon as i can get the photos from ryan’s camera. he is sleeping right now, so we won’t bother him.

this is the liberty crown! it looks so good on…

here is mariel modeling the liberty crown! she is ADORABLE! talented sax player for the band too – whose name i never caught. i’ll get back to you on that.

so this happened. the halo crown. i might be in love with it. i wish it weren’t so hard to photograph…

it’s surprisingly wearable. i would recommend a couple bobby pins for stability long term, especially if you are an animated type person. this was the night before the show. check out my $2.99 sweater win from the salvation army! learning to love the starving artist shopping…

i am in love with this painting. the artist’s name is benjamin keller. he is all of 19. he is incredible. please tell me if you want to buy some of his paintings. this way, he can buy more paint, and keep painting. such a natural talent, and a good person to boot. can’t wait to see what he does next!!

rose gold plated

gunmetal (hematite)

18k gold plated

this “crown” became more of a headband than even a tiara, but it’s pretty, and it goes on your head, and it makes you look important!

i drew out these flames after the stylized type i see often in hindu and buddhist art (from tibet to thailand), where you can really get the sense of the fire whipping and licking and flickering. i’m not content with the stone setting at all, but at the same time, i like that it is an afterthought. i feel like a prominent perfectly set stone would become the focus and distract from the lines of the flames. somehow it needed something there to break up the symmetry, so the stone will stay.

my favorite part, which so so so luckily worked out the way i intended, is the color effect from the solder and exposed copper. as we’ve gone over time after time after time, when you heat the brass too much, it burns off the zinc and leaves just copper, and this is a huge pain to remove. the solder, if you use too much, kinda goes everywhere and is silver. normally you would just sand this off, but i thought maybe the three would create a flame effect – and it worked! it’s not as fine and controlled as i would like it to be, but that can come eventually.

one of the lessons i am still continually learning is what will work for soldering. touching. it just needs to be touching. that’s actually, really, very hard! the wire torques when you shape it. its never going to lie perfectly flat onto the sheet metal (which itself isn’t really flat). so you think you will cut lots of tiny notches in, and wrap them around the wire, but even this leaves lots of little gaps and in return makes it more difficult to heat thoroughly the underlying wire. some of them aren’t soldered, but plenty of them are. a few melted and beaded up, which i luckily liked (i had planned to cut/grind them off after soldering). and somehow, it doesn’t eat my hair! yay!!!!

inspired by the last crown i made, i decided to make more! so far, 3 more! this one is olive branches, and a bit simpler than the first crown. there is a leather tie at the back, making this adjustable. I also like the softness the nude leather brought.  the process was very similar to the first crown. i laminated fine gauge brass sheet together, drew and cut out hundreds of leaves. i removed the tape and paper (not with fire this time but with my hands and the rest in the tumbler) and soldered hammered wire onto each leaf, finishing them again in the tumbler. i was really proud that most of them stuck! a very successful round of soldering this was. not wanting to scald the leaves to copper again, i opted to attach them to the branches only by wrapping the wires around the branch. it was successful, and i am in love with the way the leaves bend and bounce. i was not so much in love with the bruises and blisters on my palms however. next time, i won’t try to do that all in one day – ouch!  i soldered the branches onto the band, which wasn’t so bad. only a few mistakes at first. it’s really harder than you think to line up these tiny wires together, round or flat. i had to hold the branch with tweezers just so and not wobble. still thinking of what the honest best way to do this again will be. Maybe to solder the branches on, then wrap the leaves around? i assume the more i do this the more instinctive i will be able to be about it. keeping you posted on this, so a)i remember, and apparently, b) you can make your own now without all the trial and error!

i’m still working day and night to get my shopping site online and new brand launched, so i am not going to talk too much more, since i have a couple more of these to share with you tonight! thanks for reading!

gosh, i forgot how tiny some of these leaves are! i’ve worn this everywhere too, and it seems to go over well – it’s strangely believable – the fit just works.

yeah i be out there lovin on blogs. so much love to give!!!!!! :)

SHOP SHOP SHOPPING coming soon!!!!! you will be able to shop here! BOOKMARK!

buying makes you to feel nice as the artist can make more lovely things, and the artist to feel nice as to have money for supplies, and most work feels nice to meet you and live your life instead of in drawer.

I’ve gathered the most popular designs into a small selection for your shopping delight. Check out grandmarie.com for our current selection, and be sure to visit again and again as we continuously add new items. Every penny gets reinvested in tools and materials and classes so I can keep learning and making! Thank you for your support. :)

we saw alison brie (in passing, no photo time, my goodness she is even prettier in person!) and kimora lee simmons (HOrrible jumpsuit. she is a TALL lady too. that’s a lot of jumpsuit. i dodged.)

we kept trying to find ways to sneak in, cause, well, that’s fun. then we located the back entrance, and immediately i spotted this:

that is andre leon talley, “the most influential man in the entire fashion universe” as tyra would say. i fantasize anna sent him here to sit in the time out chair for wearing a black polo and shorts to lincoln center. i mean, really? this man is normally in a CAFTAN. the sheer lack of accessories alone has me concerned for the future of fashion. this is acceptable only if you are in mourning AND a line judge for the us open. pathetic. DRECKITUDE!!! ALT, i want an explanation. there HAS to be one, but so far, the interwebs has offered none.

meanwhile, TIM GUNN!!!

quite like the time i saw hulk hogan in vegas, he was mobbed before i could approach. i would for once like to start the mob. sidenote: i can only DREAM of what snarky critique is running through tim’s mind as he poses with beer gut man in raglan t, plaid shorts, and flip flops. sir, you do not DESERVE a photo with this man. UGH.  moving along…

models never stop working. that might have been samantha ronson, i know she was there (charlotte’s show was letting out) but i can’t remember what she was wearing, and frankly…

moving on.

russell simmons. nice. and OLD! wow. i mean, he has AGED in the last 5 years. grandpa like. still looks better than kimora (ZING!)

then…

it’s solange!!!! i was so excited! i thanked her for putting my photo on her blog (http://mydamnblog.com/iblog/2010/09/the-girl-with-the-gold-headpiece/) and she bent down and HUGGED me.

it was just !!!!!!!!! she’s so pretty, and SO nice, and even though the fug girls made fun of this outfit, in person, she looked really really cute – audrey hepburn cute. love this girl.

speaking of girls i love, and the BESTEST ever part of the night:

rosson crow, painter and beauty, enchanting as she hailed her very own cab (everyone else was standing around helpless) to rush back home to change for the purple party. i was shocked she remembered me, but she is so sweet and friendly – i’ve been working on a ring inspired by her paintings, i had to introduce myself to her a few weeks ago to get her ring size, as i’d like to give her the original. her work is inspiring to me, i will make some other post about that in the future. LOVE ROSSON!!!!

other things that happened:

handsome boy in buffalo plaid.

sexy hair playing girl

starlet ahoy. shenae grimes? heard that name shouted. i didn’t watch the first 90210, why would i bother with the 2nd?

totally carmen electra. we were CONVINCED it wasn’t her because she looked so young. like, 20. it was weird. whatever she’s done, it’s working.

ryan was so nice to tag along! lookin good!

yes, and i wore this on my head all day.

if you don’t want to hear about opinionated non fashion stuff… don’t read on. except it’s kind of funny. unless you suspend your rationality on a daily basis in order to allow some mythology to give you a reason for existing. maybe it’s still funny…

SO

we also, previously, had an endless mimosa brunch (thank bacchus) before ending up at the friggin ANTI MOSQUE rally. you can imagine where i stand on that. oh, religion…

so i have on my flames headband (ironically, part of an annunciation inspired series i am doing, after simone martini’s painting, this is meant to represent the holy spirit…) and we are at this:

yes. i am shaking in my boots. the majority of these people were like rabid 4 year olds. having been threatened with gun violence by a furious 4 year old before, i can tell you, this is exactly what they are like.

i, i am like this:

and some dude, seriously, asks me, friendly like, “oh!! what did you come dressed as?”  i don’t know what i said, but he clarified, “what bible character are you?”  and he really thought i was going to say, lazarus, or something… i don’t know of any bible characters imbued with the holy spirit and sacred cat’s butthole… i think i told him i am just me. he was really really really confused. so was i. i have never heard the phrase “what are you” asked out loud as many times in my entire life as i did that day.

humans. we are all humans.

next time, i am sticking to fashion. politics don’t agree with me, no matter how much i drink. scratch that. i really disdain politics, but this religion nonsense… is just that.

cheers!

this is what it was like:

hey there’s me! photo from artfrombehind.net

I really really really wish more people would have business cards. I HAVE A TERRIBLE MEMORY FOR WORDS. Faces, no problem. I can write your blog down in my iphone, sure, as long as i have enough battery to safely find my way back to washington heights (got that memorized now, thanks ;).  so i met a VERY nice fellow named either matthew or michael and bless my heart, i just can’t remember. but he worked for phillip crangi (i knoooooooow – hero territory) and had the best anecdotes… well, he has my business card, but we all know what the ROI is on that kind of thing. i’m as guilty of that as anyone else.

SIDENOTE: dear humans that possess my card,  contact me ANYTIME! i don’t care if it’s been months or years or whatever. i might not remember you, but who cares? not me! it’s FUN to hear from people. there’s no weird call back time frame or nothin. just do it.  thanks, kK

so super fun party is happening. i found people to chill with (since i showed up alone and kind of hitched onto an adorable bunch of boys coming off the subway), and the show will start soon. it’s too bad the frozen drink machines ran out/froze cause i’m feeling, well, sober. at this moment, a man in a dashiki-esque tunic, with huge artsy chain and even bigger afro, wearing regular glasses on his nose and sunglasses on his forehead, pivots into my frame of reference uttering, “now if i could only find someone to roll this joint.”  yes. he said that.

some of you might remember that i used to smoke. i also used to roll my own cigarettes. this would actually not be the first (the third) time i have done this. i wait to be sure he is serious, then say, well, i could, i suppose, roll that joint for you. i inquired as to why he himself would have all this gear yet not the ability to consume it. his answer? “i smoke a lot of joints.” he had a machine at home. ah, technology. argument made.

so i have a chunk of very hard yet fine smelling weed and one paper, on a dark windy rooftop, lit by the light of 4 gay mens’ cell phones. and i am rolling a joint. just at the moment you’ve got all the weed in there and are about to finally actually ROLL this thing, i am hit in the back of the head by something somewhat hard and wet. the boy next to me is soaked in beer. the performance has started! in true kc fashion, i have just been hit in the back of the head by an almost empty beer can whilst rolling a joint for a stranger. i couldn’t resist telling this story, as it’s rare i have this much fun.

ever the gentleman, he let me light the  joint, and then i enjoyed the rest of the show. fantastic! it was brutal, harsh, sick, and full of moaning. it’s like the part of rock and roll you’re glad you blacked out for, since remembering it would shatter you. violent, dark, full of angst, yet totally self aware and gross. over the top. like leather pants you’ve worn for 6 weeks straight on the road. i hate reading into stuff. i feel like i should just get it. and i did. in the back of the head.

the performance was over in a heartbeat, and all the money exited the building FAST. it was surreal. i felt, honestly, like that was a big part of the performance. a nice big fuck you to the collectors. then, a gorgeous and insane young man climbed onto the highest part of the roof. once he got up there and it didn’t collapse, i kind of stopped being worried. then he peed over the side. it was kind of lovely, in a cliched, it’s been done before, but that doesn’t mean it’s not fun to do kind of way. i liked it. then he talked on his phone for a while.

i got to chat with brad some more, and megan lala (who i am dying to get to help me with some photography). colin and i were eyeballing these drawings of the cover of v (lady gaga and marc jacobs) – he had the nerve to ask and got the nice mounted one. mine is ripped, but it’s big! on vellum, can’t wait to color this in, old school nano/kelle style. and yeah, i think i am just going to spell my name however i want.

so it’s time to wander back to washington heights, almost 2am. i go to the train (i have to take 2 or 3) and everyone is streaming out of the m uptown to the m downtown all panicky, there are police… nothing it turns out, just no trains. sigh. guess it’ll be 3 trains, as i wait for the f…. AND A MAGIC A TRAIN ARRIVES! so serious! it was the best night ever. no transfers for me. haha. love that stupid city.

also, i ate dinner here:

i ate the pig. he was not as convincing as he’d hoped. also got a super delicious shrimp salad here (or, as i managed to pull off, salade des camarones, i know only food words in espanol).

ps i smoke weed. do you want to talk to me about that? be my guest. there’s a convenient comment thingy right here. if that changes anything for you, good.

found object (bark) wax sculpture cast in bronze