How To Quit Your Corporate Job and Open a Vinyl Record Shop

It has been a goal of ours for some time to make ARTpool a full-time enterprise for both Marina and myself for a few years now--I have worked for a large retail corporation for about five years, while helping when possible to build ARTpool, using the knowledge I've gained at work. Music has always been a passion of mine, and I have been collecting vinyl records since I graduated college.

With the gallery expanding into a cafe, I thought now is as good a time as any to try my hand at starting my own business, and thus ARTpool Records was born!  Using my remaining PTO hours from my job, I hand built four rugged industrial plywood and 2x4 record displays, with the help of furniture designer Robert Zurn.

The general strategy was to construct the bottom portion of the displays first, which were set on castors--then construct the top portion and attach it to the bottom.  We used Simpson Strong-Ties to construct the frames--they were easy to use and are quite sturdy. 



Each display uses two full sheets of plywood--we used maple because of the similar color to the 2x4's.  Finally we finished the wood with an acrylic-based lacquer, due to the metal elements being sensitive to normal lacquer composition.

The displays look amazing in our new shop section, which now includes a cafe and craft beer bar!  It's pretty much all my favorite things in one building, so needless to say I'm much happier than I was when "working for the man".  Come visit soon!

Swanky Wall Decor!

We now have locally made vinyl record clocks available at the gallery including Johnny Cash, Led Zeppelin, Jimmy Hendrix, The Beatles & custom options available with any artist of your liking. It's the perfect gift for any music lover! $25 each. Also available on our online store where we ship world wide.

 

Bastille Day Inspired

In celebration of Bastille day, we raided ARTpools extensive vintage boutique and found garments fit for a Parisian princess. Travel has influenced everyone here at ARTpool, but the sleek and mysterious style of French streetwear remains a staple for Caroline's (our intern) style.

Here are a few of our favorite looks from the streets of Paris,


Our looks from the gallery,


Find all of our French Independence- Inspired looks on Etsy!

Maria Johnson Lynch

ARTpool features over twenty awesome local artists in our gallery and even more during our monthly events.  From painters, sculptors, illustrators, fashion designers, and jewelry makers, no two artists are alike. With that said, we would like to highlight our artist Maria Johnson Lynch for all of her amazing work with recycled materials, just in time for Trashion Fashion!

Maria grew up in Southern California and moved to the west coast of Florida many years ago. She tells us, "most days you will find me in my workshop (aka- kitchen) creating something fun. Anything from mirrors framed with cut up soda cans, pull-tab bracelets and bottle top magnets, to wine cork door wreathes. Now and then I actually use my kitchen to bake a few loaves of banana nut bread. I use recycled materials for everything I make (except my bread)."



You can find Maria Lynch's artwork as well as her two children's books here at our gallery or head on over to her etsy account!

Retro Recycling

Good morning, folks! The DIY spirit is running through our veins today! With one of St. Pete's largest recycled fashion shows rapidly approaching, we wanted to highlight all of our recycled goodies in ARTpool.

Our window displays are decked out with DIY tissue paper lanterns, crafted by Evan! They're great to hang on fishing wire, especially near air condition vents because we noticed that they like to dance around. :)

Looks from previous Trashion Fashion shows are also on display. If you'd like to see all of the designs in a nifty little book, you're in luck! Check out our merchandize page for all of our publications, or go straight to the books listing on blurb!

Designed by Dan Benson

Designed by Marina Williams

Designed by Hana Hyman

Marina is always coming up with new, brilliant ideas for something. She's the mastermind behind brainstorming for our gallery, for the vintage shop, for our events, for our web postings, and basically anything else that involves a creative imagination. Almost all of her jewelry is hand made, vintage, upcycled or all of the above! Check out our Etsy page to browse through her vast collection of bling or swing by ARTpool and say hello!

 p.s: Ask Marina to make the scrabble piece necklace of your dreams! Choose from a variety of chains and have your necklace say whatever you please :)

We will be posting more, very soon, about our independent artists' DIY designs! Come back soon!

One last thing, promise. If you haven't already purchased your Trashion Fashion tickets, do so quickly! Seating for the runway show is limited and buying your ticket online is cheaper ;) click here for tickets!

High-Waisted Heaven

Vintage high-waisted shorts galore! Which ones were meant for you? We have a plethora of choices; hand dyed, studded, tattered, frayed and rolled. Come by ARTpool to find your perfect pair or check out our Etsy!

 Here's what we paired our favorite with,

 

Summer Love

Our new window is looking fabulous, clad with the cutest of vintage swimwear. To perfect your look, we have oodles of retro sunnies, scarfs, sunhats and summer sandals! Stop by to peruse our great finds, to learn about our upcoming events or to just beat the heat!

Swing by ARTpool Gallery in St. Petersburg, FL or shop our Etsy store: http://www.etsy.com/shop/marinawilliams