Giving: Amanda's Style

Right off the bat, I have to say the pairing above was done purely for fun. It has little relation to this post except for the fact that it is festive and the piece on the right is New-Orleans based artist Amanda Talley's untitled mixed media on paper. (The image on the left is pure J. Crew.) Amanda sometimes gives her art as wedding presents for very close friends but rarely as birthday or occasional gifts.

She told me, though, that she does make many of her own presents: "Lately I have been giving a four-hour disc mix that I made up for Art for Arts' Sake. It starts off with Louis Armstrong and moves into some O'Jays and then by the fourth hour it has settled into pure funk. It is perfect for friends to download to their iPod for the ultimate party."

"Last year I filled mason jars with brown sugar, grapeseed oil, lavender, and eucalyptus to make homemade body scrubs. I bought a bunch of shells called 'donkey ears' to tie around the top as scoops," she remembers.

"I have also been known to whip up a mean batch of my version of Cowboy Cookies for birthdays. They are oatmeal chocolate chip with toasted coconut, toasted whole almonds crushed, and dark chocolate hand-hammered. I use wheat flour and cranberries. It makes people crazy! I like to wrap them in butcher paper and tie them up with twine and a piece of greenery," explains Amanda.

Hope this served as a little light fare for the end of your week. Credits and sources follow below:

The cookie image is via Martha Stewart; Bell'occhio sells the twine; Seashell World carries the donkey ears; and the jars are available at Walmart.

Update: 4.24.09
Dallas designer Mary Elizabeth Canon selected Amanda's piece and used it in this terrific grouping, as shown above.



Update 9.23.09
See Amanda in action here.