Check out the High Line in Chelsea NYC

photo courtesy of inhabitat website

I recently re-visited the High Line in Chelsea and was surprised to see the immense progress made on the project. The High Line once was a elevated train track that ran along the Hudson River, now it is a renovated walking path and park filled with beautiful plants, innovative architecture, and gorgeous views of the city. The architects and landscapers involved incorporated the original rails into the design and only planted vegetation that would naturally grow there. The first portion, which runs along 10th Avenue between 14th Street and 20th Street, was opened to the public a couple years ago, now it goes until 26th Street! 

photo courtesy of the High Line website

It is such a unique place in the city, fairly quiet and quite serene with many benches to sit and ponder. It is quite a gem in a city full of things to see!

photo courtesy of the High Line website

posted by Sarah

New Senior Photos: Ross!

Ross and I had a great photo session today! I used my Canon EOS digital rebel and both my wide angle 10-24mm lens and standard 28-90mm lens. The weather was perfect (overcast and cool-ish) and we both had great ideas for locations and poses.

Posted by Christa

Ross, like most high school seniors, is proud of his ride, so we took it to a local parking ramp to get a few cool pictures.

Then we stopped at the railroad tracks nearby and got some awesome shots.

Ross spotted the perfect old warehouse with a loading dock where we got a few unique photos.

The loading dock offered a really cool setting - you can't even tell how filthy it is!

 Then we headed back to Ross's house and got some great images with the trees, landscaping, and pond as the backdrop.

I posted a few of my favorites in this post - I'd love to hear what you think! Ross and I talked about the pros and cons of guys smiling in photos. What do you think? Did we capture the essence of Ross without making him look too giddy about graduating?

I also have to mention that we got a few great shots with Ross's sister Melanie. I had the privilege of photographing Melanie's senior portraits a few years ago - and we got a few great brother-sister shots today too! Looks like a great holiday card!

Local art fair: Volksfest & Art Fair in Victoria, MN

Yesterday afternoon I swung by the sweet little town of Victoria, MN to check out their annual Volksfest & Art Fair and I was really impressed with the number of kids activities: gymnastics mats, a rock climbing wall, a dunk tank, and face painting, just to name a few! The kids weren't the only ones having fun though - there were many food and beer tents and a wide variety of artists. The weather was perfect and the fair seems to be growing - I recommend you mark your calendars and attend next year!

One of my favorite TJ Brecht items.

One of my favorite booths was TJ Brecht's handmade furniture. You can check out a few of their items on their website, but I must say it doesn't do them justice! Their booth was very eye-catching and they have really unique, striking items including tables, small hutches, shelves, grandfather clocks, and more. Take a peek and let us know what you think. Don't you just love their pieces?

Posted by Christa

How to create a business name and logo (and how we created ours!)

Christa and I have been asked how we came up with our name 'SophiaFredricka' and what inspired the logo design so we thought we'd share it with all of you here!

Our Grandma Bahr had two beautiful middle names, Sophia and Fredaricka. She was a creative crafter and Christa and I have many fond memories making fun things with her. Naming our business after her is a great fit because of the family tie and special meaning, and SophiaFredricka has a beautiful and memorable ring to it (although, there is one downside, it can be challenging to remember exactly how to spell it - we changed the spelling to make it a tiny bit easier).

When we started talking about the logo design, we both knew we wanted the words 'SophiaFredricka' to be  prominent. We also knew we wanted something simple yet eye-catching which encompassed our concept of tradition and handmade. Together, we created the idea of an intricate frame around our name like a picture frame around a formal family portrait. We both drew a bunch of little frames in our sketch books. Christa looked over at what I drew, and pointing at one in particular said, "Thats it! It's perfect!" It was a decorative, swirly frame that had a charming hand drawn look. Then Christa wrote out 'SophiaFredricka' in her pretty hand writing.

 

We scanned the hand drawn images and used Photoshop to give the frame a color and add background color. Christa resized the frame and the words to fit nicely together and prepared them for our Etsy shop and blog headers.  Voila - a great, customized name and logo! You can do it too, all you need is an idea, paper, pen, scanner or digital camera, and Photoshop. We'd love to know, do you have a creative business name or logo design up your sleeve? We'd love to hear your ideas!

posted by Christa and Sarah

DIY Craft Ideas: stroller fun and a great hair piece display

I am excited to share a couple of today's projects with you (there is one more in progress - details coming soon!). They were so fun, fast, and easy, I made this a DIY post so you can make them too!

First up is my stroller project. We got a second-hand stroller that needed a new belt clasp and a few minor fabric repairs. Sarah installed a new (red!) strap with new clasps earlier this summer. We used the stroller all the time after she put in the new strap, but it really needed a water bottle holder and we also got the perfect thing to bring more red into the color scheme: red ball fringe to trim the canopy!

The canopy is removable so I took it off (and replaced the elastic that holds it in place - it was shot!). I pinned the ball fringe around the full perimeter (on the inside so the sea green trim still shows) and machine sewed it. And that was it!

To make the water bottle holder, I searched through my fabric stash for the perfect fabric and found a beautiful green table napkin. I trimmed off the fringe and ironed a 1/4" seam allowance on each of the short edges. I then pinned the short edges together and sewed two lines for extra strength along the short edges and across the bottom. I then pinned the napkin fabric to the side of the stroller fabric, right where I wanted the water bottle to hang. I disassembled that side of the stroller and machine sewed the napkin fabric to the stroller fabric. To help the opening of the water bottle holder keep a circular shape, I inserted a thin wire (used for jewelry making). I can't wait to try it out tomorrow! Has this inspired you to decorate or make something more functional? I'd love to hear!

My second project is for an upcoming art fair. I have been making these wonderful colorful floral hair pieces and need a fun, easy way to display them. My amazing Mom had a great suggestion and I tried it out today! I took a picture frame (no glass, mat, or backing) and tied 3 ribbons, equally spaced, around it. Then I clipped the hair pieces onto the ribbon - easy as that! I will get enough of the same ribbon to use in 3 different frames. I can't believe how easy this was and I think it could be a great way to display hair pieces at home (or lots of other things like photos, holiday cards, brooches, etc)! What do you think? Great? Too simple?

ReClaim Your Closet!

'Dress Pants' by Sarah Bahr
photography by Christa Bahr
model Nicole W.

I am so excited to announce the fall classes I am teaching at the NYC Textile Arts Center. In my class I will teach students how to creatively alter their clothing using simple sewing techniques. Do you have a beautiful shrunken sweater? Make it into mittens! Did you get a funky floor length dress from your aunt? Make it into a fun mini! Do you have a pair of men's trousers laying around? Make them into a dress!
If you're in NYC check out the many classes and events offered by the Textile Art Center in both their Brooklyn and Manhattan spaces.

ReClaim Your Closet 4 Week Adult Classes:
Thursdays September 1st-28th 6:30-9:30pm Manhattan
Saturdays October 1st-22nd 11-2pm Brooklyn
Mondays November 7th- December 5th 6:30-9:30pm Manhattan

Photo-happy: Check out new Flickr uploads

Happy Friday! I have been in an amazing creative groove this week - exploring some new opportunities at work and doing some fun projects at home! Dan & Casey stopped over to order their wedding books through Apple (it was so fun to look through the photos again!!).

Image of Apple's beautiful hardcover books from their website.

I also uploaded and organized a TON of photos into new Flickr sets! Below is a sneak peek.

Posted by Christa

One of the many red cars photographed at a local car show (I dedicated an entire Flickr set to red cars!)

Venice. Oh, lovely Venice.

One of my favorite images. Sarah in Harriet's 1950's silk dress outside the Guthrie on opening night.

Tomato Art Festival!

If you are in Nashville you must check out the Tomato Art Festival!
As Minnesotans we love a homegrown tomato fresh off the vine as much as any other tomato lover. That's why we were so excited to have Christa's handmade applique coin purse featured on the Nashville Music and Art Blog written by Beth Inglish.  Her blog is full of fun posts on artists and events with a Nashville twist!

Summer is for Art Fairs!

Last weekend we attended the 'Red Hot Art Festival' in Stevens Square Park in Minneapolis. Our artist friend, Erin, was selling her awesome leather jewelry Artist Built at the fair.  There was a great variety of artists and goods for sale. The park was a perfect venue, small, shaded, and lots of green space to have a picnic and enjoy the live music. I love finding the smaller fairs, that way I can talk with the artists and leisurely browse at my own pace.

 Artist Built's colorful tent

Today we went to Waconia, MN to visit our cousin Rhonda who was selling her beautiful hand painted signs and home decor in front  of Jim Gilbert's Wild Bird Store on main street.  There were a couple other artists around the downtown area exhibiting their work. Waconia is also home to the exciting Nickle Dickle Day so mark your calendars for September 17th for a fun filled day of crafts, cars, and music!

painting by Rhonda Tesch Art Market