WW161: VALEK ROLLING PINS, TOBY ATTICUS FRALEY AND KEERMEET

Hey guys! Here are 5 things that I think are fantastic this week!!!!

1.) Hey Aimée, Cousin Penny, and all you baking type people…….I found this for you! I HATE to bake…but maybe if I had THIS….I would:

Engraved rolling pins to cheer up your cookies…your cakes, pasta, sugar frosting to cover the cake and even dumplings! (the one above is DOGGIES) Thanks to Valek Rolling Pins:

OMG! Burgers, fries and shakes!! LOVE LOVE LOVE it!

HERE IS WHERE YOU BUY IT!
Thanks Etsy!

2.) HOLY CRAP I LOVE THIS………Toby Atticus Fraley from Pittsburg takes vintage thermoses, picnic coolers, and various found thingies…..and then TRANSFORMS them into robots.

"The Secret Life of Robots", is on view at SPACE gallery in Pittsburgh through April 27, 2014! In his latest installation….he made dozens of robots in domestic vignettes….

"Robots assembled from pieces of Americana illustrate mundane everyday rituals, acts of daring, and precious milestones. These scenes of great joy and crushing sadness cover the beginning to the end of a typical robot’s lifespan, celebrating and revering the beauty in the everyday.”
Am I right nerds??? FAN-FREAKING-TASTIC!!!
SEE MORE HERE!!!!!!!

3.) ok……here is ANOTHER food related thing…..but I had to share how DEEEELICIOUS this sounds…..thanks to The Girl Who Ate Everything!

Ingredients
1 (8 ounce) package cream cheese, softened
¼ cup basil pesto
2 tablespoons sliced green onions
2 cups cooked chicken, shredded
2 (8 ounce) packages Pillsbury® Crescent Rolls
¼ cup melted butter
2 cups seasoned Panko crumbs

Instructions
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F and line a baking sheet with foil. Spray the foil lightly with cooking spray. In a medium bowl add the cream cheese, pesto, green onions, and chicken. Stir until combined. Salt and pepper to taste.
Unroll the crescent dough. Take two triangles and press them together to form a rectangle.
Spoon about ½ cup of the chicken mixture in the center of the rectangle and bring the corners of the crescent dough together, pinching to seal.
Place the Panko crumbs on a plate. Dip each chicken pillow in the melted butter (or brush it on using a pastry brush) and roll it in the Panko crumbs.
Place the chicken pillows seam side down on the prepared baking sheet.
Bake for 20-25 minutes or until chicken pillows have turned golden brown.

Read more at http://www.the-girl-who-ate-everything.com/2013/11/pesto-chicken-pillows.html#vST4v0u7HDQhd7jT.99…and then invite me over for dinner……would ya????

4.) Musically…….I have to admit I have been a bit stuck on this……

or this:

Thank you muppets!!!

5.) This is kinda for the cat ladies……but mostly for the Batman lovers….…..it did amuse me!!!

GO HERE TO SEE THE VIDEO IF IT DOESNT PLAY!

WW150: WAFFLES, @MIDNIGHT, THE PEBBLE! OH MY!!!

WOW!
ONE HUNDRED AND FIFTY OF THESE!
I have a LOT of time on my hands!
Yeesh!
Ok friends……here are the 5 things that I LOVE this week……

1) Ok…..I love brunch….I love grilled cheese…..why not THIS:

 Thanks to DAMN DELICIOUS for this one!!

COME ON!!!!

2) This one is straight from Etsy…..Emily Stoneking sells various knitted dissected animals in a series she calls aKNITomy. CLEVER!!

Her knitted wares include your typical science lab specimens like; a frog, a mouse, and an earthworm, an alien, a bear, a rabbit, a bat, and even a human head. Emily says “I love to explore the places where art and science intersect. I am also interested in using cuddly materials (like cozy knitting) to create objects that many people are usually squeamish about.”
Well done!!!

3) I am A LITTLE behind on this…..but if you get a chance….you should PVR "@ Midnight"…It is a comedy program - is 30 minutes - and ALWAYS makes me laugh!!! Chris Hardwick is the host….and "will lead three celebrity contestants down the ultimate internet wormhole. Culling from the darkest recesses of social media, they will compete to determine who has the funniest take on the day's pop culture."

SO FREAKING FUNNY!!!! Need proof?? How about this #hashtag wars….so funny….so filthy…..

Tune in on Comedy every night at midnight!!!

4) And speaking of geeking out…..I am IN LOVE with my watch from Christmas……THE PEBBLE!!!! It is the most unnecessary gift I have ever gotten…..and yet I LOVE IT SO……What is it???? It is a super device that I NEEEDED!!

Here is the cool part……it is a smartwatch……that sends updates from my phone via bluetooth!
O
M
G
This guy REALLY sums it up for me!!! It is funny!

LOVE IT???
MEEEEEEEE TOOOOOOO!!!!

5) Downtown Abbey is baaaaack!! (yes….I said Down Town!) If you are a fan of DTA like I am……..this will make you laugh….."I guess they will have to get another maid….."
HA HA HA!!!


(thanks Cindy)

HONEST EDS and "TOYS AND TIMES" EXHIBITION

Happy Friday!
I am a busy boy!!
First…I wanted to share this new painting:

"Eds", Acrylic on canvas, 30" x 24"

So…let's talk about it!
As you know, soon Honest Eds will be no more. Sad? Undeniably!
But I think we should celebrate the life and times of this institution!!!!!
This painting is my away of remembering it!
The 'poster' part was SUPER HARD to get right….but after a lot of repaints, I think I got it just right!!!
The background is obviously the Bathurst Subway tile.
Also on this painting…….a sign "so special" that is to resemble the GREAT signs that are all over the inside of Honest Eds!
The Turkey is because they used to give out free turkey during Christmas!
And those 'carnival lights' are like the ones in between the alley!!
I really liked this quote. ("The price of anything is amount of life you exchange for it!")
I tried 4 other quotes - but they all sounded a bit preachy…..so I thought this one was the best!
This piece, is now available with "Go West" (from Monday's post) and you can come out to see them at:

That's right! A big show of ORIGINAL WORKS!!!!

This is your chance to see a HUGE array of BOTH my "Sign of The Times" Series paintings and my "Tin Toy" Series!

"Rob Croxford’s latest exhibition has an agenda: to amuse and entertain! His "Tin Toy Series" is enjoyable for all ages, while his ‘Sign of the Times’ paintings explore the sights and the issues from the city he loves!"

Come out see both BRAND SPANKING NEW work and some crowd pleasing favourites!

This show has a NICE LONG RUN….so there is no excuse for not swinging by to check it out! ;-)

When?      Wednesday December 18th, 2013 - Thursday January 23rd, 2014 

Where?     The Miles Nadal JCC (right on the corner of Spadina/Bloor in Toronto) 

** HOURS: Monday - Friday 9am - 9pm; Saturday - Sunday 9am - 7pm

To get the prints of this painting - or of  "Go West"- or ANY of my 10 other prints, you'll need to come out to see me at the HOLIDAY ART MARKET on December 8th!

*****at the H.A.M. I will be offering a DISCOUNT on all my prints!!!

Or - go to my Etsy site!

HAVE A GREAT WEEKEND Y'ALL!!!!

ETSY.......ONLINE SALES MADE EASY???

Well, as you know, I have been posting images for a couple of months now, of my little "Mixed Messages" assemblages. I am very proud of them, and think they look super! I made 20, yes TWENTY of them for The Toronto Outdoor Art Exhibition last weekend. Due to rainy/hot weather, a terrible booth location on Friday and a number of extraneous factors, they all didn't sell! So, I have decided to branch out to the world wide interwebs to lend a hand! For those of you who don't know what Etsy is, it is "a place to buy and sell handmade or vintage items, art and supplies." They call it "the world's most vibrant handmade marketplace".

So, I am in the process of taking photos and writing up descriptions and making my store look pretty. It is a very very time consuming process. I am sure you could just throw it together, but I am really not that kinda guy! I am a bit of a perfectionist....ok.....I am a LOT of a perfectionist, but that is part of my charm! 

I have even worked up a new logo for the Etsy Store. Here it is below:

What do you think? Is it handmade and cute enough? Ok, here is the real question.....should I replace my old logo all together with this one?

So stay tuned here 'cause I will be adding store details to my blog and my website as soon as I get some stuff listed!