design-newyork.com

This weekend was full of ups and downs. An up was that I organized my studio (which was in dire need of it, it looked like a hobo had taken up residence there), and I started setting up for Thanksgiving. Want proof? You got it:

A semi-downer was going to the annual cat show at the Westchester County Center. I was kind of meh. I didn’t really get to interact with many kittehs, and no owners were particularly odd or outrageous. Another semi-downer was working on my pigeon/rat holiday ornament. First of all (and I blame my Jewish heritage for this), I made the ornament really big. If one tries to put it on one of those little half-size holiday trees, it’s going to look mighty silly.  I would love to take a picture of it on a Christmas tree, but I don’t know where there’s one that already set up. So I just took pictures of it around my apartment. And for scale, I tried to take a picture of my hand holding it, which involved me setting up my camera with the timer, sprinting over to the other side of the bed, and waiting for the shot to be taken. There were many failures.

Finally, I got a decent shot.

See? A lovely, happy homage to the netherworld characters of my beloved city.

P.S. I also took a picture of the ornament on my doorknob to show how it can be displayed during the rest of the year.

I love, NAY, I adore pigeons. My mom always tells people that when I was a child, she would take me to beautiful European cities, like Amsterdam and Rome and London and Brussels, and all I would care about is the pigeons. I realize they have icky bad things that live on them, but I love them nonetheless. Same goes for rats. Every time I’m in a subway, I stare into the tracks hoping to see a wee furry plump rodent. If I do, it officially becomes a good day for me. So, in honor of this affection for my fellow city-dwellers, I am making a tree ornament with a pigeon and rat.

And the back side of each character has a lovely design that I created incorporating the silhouettes of both the pigeon and rat.

If you are one of those people who likes alternative ornaments on your tree (yes, you, the one with the hand-blown glass pickle), then this might be right up your alley. And since it is not branded Christmas, this ornament looks just as good hanging on the wall, or off a doorknob year ’round. Now, you’re probably saying, “Where can I purchase this delightful trinket that will surely bring joy to my family for years to come and will most likely become a family heirloom, cherished by my grandchilden long after I have shuffled off this mortal coil?” Well, that’s my next surprise. And on Black Friday, all shall be revealed! (It would be really great if you would visual me swirling a cape dramatically around my head while you read that last line. Thanks so much.)

Remember, nothing says Happy Holidays like vermin!