Those Who Do It Well - Don Hamilton, Painter

Jennifer & I have been taking our time finding the latest addition to The List - 'Those who do it well'.  It's about quality at Take2, not quantity, and Don Hamilton is our man. 

Who is Don Hamilton?
Don is an exceptional plein air artist able to see light, color and subjects in a way that make his paintings compliment both traditional and modern settings.  Tomorrow expect some postings of his beautiful art, but for today . . . meet the man & see what he values.

Don Hamilton's collection of meaningful objects.  

1. The background is a construction paper collage my son made in kindergarten (He is now 27).  It is of an alligator, and at one time the alligator was a bright “alligator green”, but has faded significantly over time.  This was one of the first times we realized his artistic talent, and I recognized how we pass our influence on to our children.

2. The family bible represents my faith as a guiding force in my life, and a belief that we are made in the image of the creator.  As such we all have creativity within each of us, we just need to allow it to surface and express itself.

3. The horn on top of the bible is the horn of a Mountain Goat from the Bella Coola region, which is located in the Coast Mountains of British Columbia in Canada.  When I as 19 a friend of mine and I took an adventure trip from Colorado to Canada in a 1949 Willis Jeep pickup with a homemade camper on the back.  After picking up a stranger hitchhiking on the Trans Canada highway we began a long hike over the Bella Coola pass.  We got lost and ran out of food about 5 days into our hike.  On the 6^th day we encountered a mountain goat that we shot, which fed us for the next 5 or 6 days, along with berries and other small game while we continued to hike.  Eventually after 15 days we were rescued by loggers on the Dean River.  This horn represents sacrifice and belief in a future.

4.  The oversize tin cup with large colored pencils was a gift from my wife.  In my past life working in corporate america this gift sat in my office as a daily reminder of my creative side, while also inviting interesting doodles from visitors, allowing them to get in touch with their creative side as well.

5. The antique pencil sharpener in the foreground was my grandfather’s, and he used it until he could no longer hold a pencil.  This pencil sharpener is likely 70 or 80 years old and still functional.  My grandfather was a master stonecutter and I would often study his designs and layouts, they were amazing.  He would often critique my early drawings, even hanging one on his studio door when I was about 12.  This drawing hung on his door until the day he passed on.  He was a big influence on my artistic career.

6.  The drawing table these items are sitting on was also my grandfather’s.  He had the habit of tacking his drawings one on top of another, never removing the earlier ones.   When he passed on there were probably 50 different drawings tacked on the table (you can still see the hundreds of tack marks on the surface of the table).    

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Sassy autumn inspired skirts for $40. (Great for running and biking too.)

Drop us a note if you'd like one custom designed for you.

But don't forget you can always get one like everyone else. 

*25% off coupons cannot be applied to custom orders.

*Attached shorts not included.

The Ultimate DIY Gift - But we do it for you!

We know you prefer premium gifts for your beloveds.  But finding something unique in our big box world, is as easy as finding organic SPAM.  Thank goodness, Take2 now offers the ultimate customized gift:
The Lazy Jenny.

(Your mother knew it as the Lazy Susan, but she's old.)

How to Lazy Jenny in 4 easy steps:

1) Tell us your color preference & style: basic color scheme to keep us on track and desired style - classic, retro, whimsy, vintage....

2) Tell us your custom request & where it will be used - monogram, cool graphic, hand stamped custom quote? Kid's room, dining table, kitchen, office?

3) Send us your payment. $45 (simple graphic) to $65 (monograms & hand stamping).

4) Wait for the magic and in about 2 weeks your custom creation is ready. Voilà!

Email us at workshop@take2mrd.com to get the ball rolling.

Welcome to Take2 modern.repurposed.design

What is Take2?

Well let us set the story straight.

Take2 was officially created in the spring of 2012, but our workshop, affectionally known as the lair, was not set in motion until summer.

Tired of seeing tiny boutiques give way to big box names we thought we'd put our stylish heads together, break out the sewing machines & sanders and create one of kind items.

Take2's first goal?  Create singular premium designs with a split personality. How could that be possibly done? Well ....

. One of us is a brash yankee and the other is full of southern charm.

. The mix of vintage, modern, and repurposed fabrics gets our blood pumping. (Sad, we know.)

. We appreciate good design.  Snobs we are not to a particular decade.

. We know two heads are always better than one.

Take2's second goal?  Celebrate those in our community who 'do it well' by sharing their story and work.  We limit our community to the world so we can bring you the best of the best.  It could be another artist, an amazing teacher, or a fantastic chef. If you know of someone email us!

So, how does one learn about celebrated artists and get first dibs on a one-of-a-kind creations?  Simply subscribe to our mailing list and about twice a month we will send you campaign of our newest creations. After that all items will be available to the public.

XO

Jennifer and Jennifer
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