Posts by Sara Barnes

Sara Barnes

Sara Barnes is a Staff Editor at My Modern Met and Manager of My Modern Met Store. She is a graduate of the Maryland Institute College of Art where she earned her BFA in Illustration and MFA in Illustration Practice. Sara is also an embroidery illustrator and writer living in Seattle, Washington. She runs Bear&Bean, a studio where she stitches pet portraits and other beloved creatures. She chronicles the creativity of others through her website Brown Paper Bag and newsletter, Orts. Her latest book is Threads of Treasure: How to Make, Mend, and Find Meaning Through Thread, published in 2014. Sara’s work has been recognized in Be Creative With Workbox, Embroidery Magazine, American Illustration, on Iron and Wine’s album Beast Epic, among others. When she’s not stitching or writing, Sara enjoys planning things that bring together the craft community. She is the co-founder of Camp Craftaway, a day camp for crafty adults with hands-on workshops in the Seattle area.
Art
May 3, 2016

Intricately Hard-Carved Wooden Spoons Pay Homage to Nature with Decorative Handles

Craftsman Giles Newman expresses a love for nature through the art of spoon carving. Using centuries-old sculpting techniques with an axe and knife, he chisels exquisite flowers, majestic animals, and graceful winged creatures along the handle of each wooden utensil. The one-of-a-kind pieces showcase an incredible amount of detail, depicting characteristics as delicate as petals and feathers. Although they're designed and treated for food use, they're best displayed as original works of art.

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Design
April 26, 2016

Exquisite Wooden Rings Reveal Miniature Landscapes Encapsulated in Resin

The handcrafted rings of Secret Wood contain exquisite worlds that reveal themselves as you wear them. Produced using fresh wood, resin, and beeswax, the Canadian jeweler encapsulates miniature landscapes within the transparent material. These multifaceted settings highlight places that beg exploration, such as rocky lagoons, enchanted forests, and stunning waterfalls.

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Design
April 17, 2016

Elegant Bird-Shaped Speaker Sings You a Song as It Lights Up Your Home

The ever-presence and ease of Bluetooth technology has transformed the world of speakers, allowing them serve as more than just audio magnifiers–now, without the cumbersome and visually displeasing jumble of wires, designers are afforded the ability to create decorative objects that happen to play music. One such item is JinGoo, an elegant new speaker and light device that conceals these features by cleverly taking the form of a bird in a rounded wire cage.

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Science
April 7, 2016

Iridescent Opal Dazzles with Neon Fireworks Naturally Hidden Within

At first glance, the Ethiopian Welo Opal looks like something created in a lab. The dazzling gem radiates neon colors that seem almost too vibrant to be naturally occurring. It's completely real, however, and showcases a harmonious mixture of yellows, reds, greens, and blues. When rotated, the stone sets off a firework-like display of these hues. This opal is relatively new in the commercial gem world.

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My Modern Met

Celebrating creativity and promoting a positive culture by spotlighting the best sides of humanity—from the lighthearted and fun to the thought-provoking and enlightening.