Sasha Darling & The BellJar Blog — Uncategorized

mother day may have come and gone, but fathers day is just around the corner...plus birthdays and weddings!!! Plus we have so many clothes now..so just stop in to shop for yourself!

Was happy to get some emails from friends and customers alerting me to BellJars inclusion of SF Weekly's Best of Issue.

This is what they had to say!

"If you're anything like us, your per-friend gift budget is a little squishy. We usually start with a well-intentioned $30 limit, which stretches toward $60 by the time we're through. Luckily, this turns out to be the perfect range for shopping at Bell Jar, the gift shop opened last year by former Levi's art director Sasha Wingate. The Mission space is packed with enough Victorian and goth arty jewelry, throw pillows, cards, and scented candles to keep the pickiest of giftees happy. New and antique accessories and housewares are mixed in drool-inducing displays of eye candy. There's even a clawfoot tub full of luscious soaps, and racks of designer duds from brands like Twinkle, Robin, and Jovovich-Hawk. Much of the loot comes from local designers, which is nice, and there's the added bonus that no one else is likely to buy your friend quite the same jewel-eyed onyx owl bookends."

Thanks SF Weekly and all it's readers!

Artist and writer Paul Madonna blends his skillful drawing and wry wit to shed an ironic light on a creative means to make it through these tough economic times. In a nod to depression-era ideals, Madonna uses his keen eye for detail to create affordable drawings of “free” condiments he’s collected recently from cafés, deli counters or directly from tables during the blue-plate special. Toothpicks, soy sauce, mini-creamers, honey packets are just a few of the items rendered in Madonna’s articulate pen, ink and watercolor drawings.

Find Paul Madonna’s Things Your Grandmother Taught You To Steal To Survive A Depression on display in BellJar’s gallery from May 20 through June 17, as well as featured in the Believer magazine’s upcoming June issue. BellJar’s gallery serves as a nice compliment to the eclectic collection of gorgeous little things in the Mission District storefront.

Paul Madonna writes and draws two weekly strips, All Over Coffee in the San Francisco Chronicle, and Small Potatoes on theRumpus.net. His first book, All Over Coffee, was published in 2007 by City Lights Books, and the first edition of his new drawing book series, Album, will be published this November by Electric Works. Paul's drawings and prints are shown in galleries and museums, and this summer a five-year anniversary show of All Over Coffee is on display at the Jewett Gallery in the San Francisco Main Public Library. On top of it all, in 1993 Paul was the first ever Art Intern at Mad Magazine, for which he proudly received no money.

Exhibition: Things Your Grandmother Taught You To Steal To Survive A Depression

Date: May 20 – June 17, 2009

Opening: Friday, May 22, 6-9pm

Location: BellJar, 3187 16th Street, San Francisco

Cost: Free

Libations: BellJar will have resident bartenders Sean and Ian serving up lovely Libations-

More info: www.paulmadonna.com