Superlula: Taking the Candy Necklace to New Levels

We recently fell in love with Superlula's Etsy shop. Lucky for us, she lives right here in scenic Hartford! Her shop sells adorable candy-inspired jewelry, but her talent doesn't stop there. From the nonpareil rings to the human canvas, Superlula will work with anything that inspires her. In a recent interview she told us about tattoos, Hartford's charm and the upcoming SWAN day. Check it out, while I go get some ice cream...

How long have you been in the Hartford area?

I started working in Hartford in 02, and moved here in 04. I lived in the South End for a few years, and now I'm in the West End- another great neighborhood.

What do you like about Hartford?

I tend to be a small city person, so Hartford suits me well for that reason. Hartford is full of hidden treasures, as far as small businesses and independent places to get food and drinks, or sit with my book and a cup of coffee. Its a lot of fun discovering them, and adding them to my list of go-to places.

What do you hate about Hartford?

Hartford gets a bad rap, I think. I don't always get a positive reaction when I tell someone that I live here, because people just hear about all the scary stuff... not that Hartford doesn't have its share of scary stuff. But, theres quite a bit to like here. My other complaint about Hartford is the lack of punks. Maybe there are punks, and I just don't see them. The music scene is pretty meh. I can't remember the last time a decent tour stopped off in anywhere in Connecticut.

Tell us about your art:

I've been into art my whole life, and I got my BFA from Massachusetts College of Art in '01. That was a great experience and allowed me to get my hands into a lot of things I would never have had access to otherwise. What I'm doing now, is a jewelry project called SuperLula. I hand-cast resin pieces which are turned into beads, pendants and rings; these are really fun and incorporate lots of glitter, sequins, junk food themes, and tattoo themes. I also use a lot of different types of glass beads, pearls, crystals and fancy stuff for a different kind of jewelry. Part of my goal in this is to have a really wide variety of pieces that appeal to different people. Theres been some demand for health-conscious and vegan themed resin pieces, which I am very excited to get started on, and I am currently making large-gauge earrings out of polymer clay.

Where did the candy idea come from?

Who doesn't like candy! I have a tattoo of different kinds of candy on my shin, and thats the one that gets the most compliments from strangers. Candy is very aesthetically pleasing to me; junk food in general is aesthetically pleasing to me. Its bright and colorful and sugary and adorable.

Besides the jewelry making, what other mediums do you work with?

I do a lot of abstract and semi-abstract paintings in acrylic, some with glitter, sequins, beads and photographs glued on. I really like mixed-medium gluing projects. I will occasionally bust out the sewing machine to embellish something or make something new altogether. Sometimes I draw, sometimes I paper mache, sometimes I mess around with my own images in photoshop. My interests are really all over the place, depending on whats inspiring me at the moment.

Do you find it hard to combine art with business?

I've been doing art forever, but combining it with business is something thats relatively new to me. I'm surprised to find that I don't hate the business end of it! I'm able to keep myself organized, and I'm taking a diy approach to marketing and promoting myself.

Where can people buy or view your art?

My jewelry is for sale at www.superlula.etsy.com, and I exhibit/sell at local events. I post that kind of information on my blog, which is www.superlula.com, as well as SuperLula on facebook and twitter.

Anything else you'd like to add?

I'm really excited to be participating in the third annual SWAN Day CT- that stands for Support Women Artists Now. There is an amazing lineup of female artists, musicians, dancers, and talents from the area, and there is even a documentary being filmed about it. If you can, you should really check it out- its on Saturday, April 3rd, at the Warehouse on Bartholemew Street in Hartford.

Hartford Advocate forgets RAW on Valentine's Day; Heartbreak Ensues

For those who care, or have conventionally minded dates to impress, the Hartford Advocate has published this list of Valentine themed things to do this weekend. Wrench in the Works' (pre)V-Day plans sound like a gay old time (like, gay-gay, btw, duh), and we're happy to see them getting some press. But we're baffled by the exclusion of Real Art Ways' Wince: Love Hurts anti-Valentine's day participatory event, at which attendees will share old love letters and other past "artifacts" or romance and heartache, from this rundown, since the Advo is their usual media sponsor and all. Sounds cathartic/hilarious/sad.

CT Scenic won't be in attendance at Wince or any of these - we'll be rocking out to the Murder City Devils in NYC, oblivious to this fake-o holiday silliness. But "an experiment in collective humiliation" sounds pretty great to us, so you all be sure and check it out. Since we won't be there to share, here is an artifact from Katie Scenic's angry myspace blog past, from V-Day 2006, or "can't-be-arsed-day."

Another Shot at Love with CT Science Center

Thursday, Feb. 11: Liquid Lounge @ CT Science Center

We were underwhelmed in the past by the CT Science Center's Liquid Lounge, with it's pricey, difficult-to-obtain drinks and unfitting kid-friendly milieu, but our need to get loaded in diverse settings is strong, so we'll probably be checking out this month's second Thursday party at the museum. Besides, it's, uh, Valentine's week, and we're feeling openhearted. They've promised us cool jazz (bleh), fiery salsa (the dance not the dip), and something called exercise poles (are they anything like stripper poles?). CT Science Center is urging us to continue the boozing all night at something called the Crush Lounge, which sounds extremely sexy, at least judging by that suggestive name. The Science Center is labeling this event "geek-chic," which is great, because that means you can be there and be square.

Scenic Bloggie Love Notes

We have lately been pleased to discover other Hartford area scene-promoting blogs. Blogs like Real Hartford and the Libertine Collective are doing a much more thorough and consistent job than we are at keeping you updated about area events culture. But rather than feel threatened or invalidated by their shining examples, we feel liberated. We will feel free to pilfer - er, share - their excellent content when remember to like things and, in order to forge our own distinct identity, continue to get on with what we do best - wisecracks, navel gazing, Rell bashing, and hitting up the Lot.

Oh, the Irony

Secretary of the State and Democratic candidate for State Attorney General, Susan Bysiewicz, is currently under investigation by none other than the current State Attorney General, Richard "Blumey" Blumenthal. Rumor has it, Camp Bysiewicz obtained a database of citizens' contact info from the SOTS' office, then proceeded to use it to solicit support and donations for her private political campaign. She is now under fire for misusing "official state data for a political campaign". In her defense, Bysiewicz retorted with "Rell did it first" and "It was my campaign's idea". She must have learned those keen debate skills in law school. I can't wait for the day when our entire state is in her capable hands.

Th3 @dv0c8: Keeping Print Media Alive

I don't know what the hell is going on over at The Advocate, but it's nothing a quick filter through Spell/Grammar Check couldn't fix. Maybe whatever stone tablet they are carving into doesn't have this feature, but there's only so far a sentence can run-on before you lose track of it. (See? I even cut that one off before it got out of control.)

Now they've taken to using symbols in place of letters. I can't speak for everyone, but I prefer my articles be decoded before publishing. When I have to stop and translate a cryptogram mid-article, it kind of kills the mood.

I realize not everyone grew up in West Hartford where the education flows like wine, but that's why God invented the blog.

Saturday: CT Roller Girls

We won't pretend at being connoisseurs of roller derby, but what's not to like about a women's sport that combines the nostalgic, awkward charm of rollerskating with the cathartic release of violence? The CT RollerGirls' season opener is this Saturday at the CT Sports Center in a town that exists called Woodbridge. We do have a couple of questions: Will there be beer? And what are the odds that we'll meet a girl there as sarcastically irresistible as Ellen Page? Unless we just go there and meet each other.

Haha, looks like we need to create a "sports" tag. That's not going to be getting very much play around here.

The Moment We've All Been Waiting For (aka What Not to See)

This Thursday your favorite skank-next-door graces New Haven with her giant orange ass:


If they weren't predicting that over 2,000 douchebags were going to attend, I would be all over this NJ Shore-meets-CT Shore scene. Best photo op ever!

What Not To Hear: Mates of State

(Mates of State look as annoying, smug and unlikeable as they sound)

Whilst scanning the calendars for upcoming events of interest, I was dismayed to see the Mates of State are coming to CT (and MA) this month. I've hated this band for years, ever since incidentally seeing them live opening up for Feist in NYC, and have avoided them completely in the meantime. Therefor, in the interest of "keeping it real," I offer you what I had to say about them after that unfortunate gig in February of 2006:

Unfortunately [Feist] had the shittiest opening band ever, Mates of State. the crowd was pretty friendly toward them though, which i guess is a big difference between hipsters and metalheads, who wouldn't hesitate to shout 'you suck!' Mates of State is like 2 hyperactive sexually confused teenagers on Rrozac and Ridlin shouting in your fucking ears for 10 songs in a row that sound like the same crap song. A wonderful example of how people can be both "talented" and "creative" and yet still "suck royally."

Avoid this band Feb. 19 at the Iron Horse and Feb. 20 at the Space.

This Friday: Sophie's Choice Starring Hartford Scene Sluts*

Friday, Feb 5:

Matt Zeiner Band @ The Maple Tree Cafe, Simsbury
vs.
Coulon & Bipolar Jukebox @ Sully's Pub, Hartford

Coulon's Rozz Nash-Coulon

Oh dear, which Hartford area keyboard hottie are you going to choose this Friday? Will it be southern rock inflected Matt Zeiner, or eclectic intellectual Andre Balazs? Since both of these guys have been exposing themselves on stage quite a bit lately, we suggest the Sully's gig, which features NYC-based friends of Doug Wimbish Coulon as headliner, and offers a cool, sexy, melancholic, black chick-fronted antidote to this scourge of moody white suburban guys.

We enjoyed Coulon at last summer's Wimbash and again at a headlining gig, also at Sully's, last fall. We're a little disappointed to note that their previously reported on plans for a living room "salon" tour haven't played out in our area, but what the hell, Sully's may as well be our living room.

*And by "sluts" we mean "all of you," not just the loose women.