Pro-Soup Propaganda

What our north wall now looks like!

As I mentioned before, a few days ago Jonathan and I hung up the art that I have been meaning to hang in the living room for a LONG time. I had a specific idea in my mind of what I wanted things to look like, but didn't have the funds for almost a year. I wanted a piece from Ray Troll, but couldn't decide for years which piece I wanted as a large version. I had been wanting since summer, 2011, to have the map that Mary gave me framed and hung, but I was averaging 15 hours a week, not including side hustles to pay for my trips, and couldn't spare the extra money to get the piece really nicely framed like I wanted it. I then wanted something to balance the two pieces I had, so I needed to find something.

That time has come and gone and we finally hung up all the new art in our living room last week and I am THRILLED. It is finally feeling closer to "home." I just need to get some fish in our aquarium and bring our new record player home from work, where I had it delivered!

As soon as I saw this print from Ray, I knew that it was exactly the one I wanted to hang in our space where I would see it all the time. I love that it is salmon (I almost went with this print, which I have been wanting for a very, very long time) and I love that they are swimming through an old growth forest, much like is all over southeast Alaska, but also like you can find in Oregon. The fact that it is a little bit of both states really drew me in. It's also salmon...swimming through a forest. I had this dream a long time ago when I owned five aquariums full of catfish, where I was walking along and going throughout my daily business and there were these tiny cory catfish (this kind, specifically) swimming along through the air behind me while I walked and when I stopped they perched on my shoulder.

Anyway, hands down, I love Ray's print!

I went to my friend Mary Henrikson's house in 2011 when I was in KTN for the summer. I saw her stacks of vintage Alaska Sportsman magazine around and mentioned that Emery Tobin was my great-great-uncle (he started the magazine), and she got this look on her face and said, "I have something for you." As I followed her, she told me that he used to print maps for the USGS on his printer for the newspaper and that she was given the plates with the maps engraved on them.

She started printing the maps and I'm positive I have seen them in the homes of friends and have been admiring them for years!! But she gave me this one and I am so, so, so happy with it. It's like my own piece of Ketchikan history that I am tied to and I love that I can see it every day now.

I figured another map might make a good other side of the salmon print. I found this 1945 map of Portland on eBay. It's from a vintage atlas. It's pretty cool! I wish it was a little bit bigger so I could see our neighbourhood, but it's still pretty neat.

These four Old School Stationers pieces were originally on the north wall in our living room. I bought them at Crafty Wonderland back in the day. I totally love them! Since they are smaller they make more sense in our bedroom on the empty wall in there. It's nice to wake up and see them!

I got home yesterday and saw the sunlight streaming through the windows and lighting up my vintage Ball jar. So pretty! I found those eagle feathers while beachcombing in Ketchikan. The one in the middle is over a foot long! It's huge! 

This is what our Expedit shelf ended up looking like, as per this post here. I am still waiting on the doodad I ordered to hold my laptop and iPad while they charge, but this still looks great. I can't wait to bring the record player home tomorrow night and set it up! 

Not shown on the wall, I have seen this Portland bridges poster at many houses around town and have always loved it. I'm glad we went with the more expensive frame for it because it looks AWESOME. It has little circular divots around the outside that you can kind of see on the left. It just gives it some great texture. I'm really happy with it!