SEASIDE Julie Fluke likes art thats different, unusual, out of the mainstream.

Art that is, as she says, tilted.

Thats why she calls her new Seaside store Tilted Art and Gifts.

The small storefront at 417 S. Holladay Drive features jewelry, sculpture, paintings, glass and other art pieces. Much of the work is created by local artists. Some of Flukes own paintings also hang in the shop.

I want people to find things here that are unusual, not the ordinary things that they can find at other galleries, Fluke said.

She even takes pieces that have been rejected by galleries that may consider them too controversial.

I look for things that make people smile, that have a sense of humor, she said. That have an edge.

She pointed to a wall hanging showing a four-pane window frame created by a local artist. Under it are small piles of broken glass against a red background. The piece is called Last Bottle of Wine.

Theres a story to that piece, Fluke said, but she declined to reveal it.

One-of-a-kind necklaces and earrings made by artists from Seaside and Warrenton also are featured in the store. In addition, she has quality jewelry from Mexico and metal art from Haiti as well as items from other locations.

Fluke said the move from Palm Springs, Calif., where she lived and worked as a special needs teacher in a high school, back to the Northwest, where she was raised, began when she became reacquainted with a friend she knew in high school in Lake Oswego.

The friend lived on the Long Beach (Wash.)?Peninsula, and when Fluke visited, she began to ask herself what she was doing in Palm Springs. She moved to the North Coast last October.

I decided to make a major life transition, Fluke said.

Fluke began painting as a hobby three years ago. When one of her paintings was accepted for a juried art show in Palm Springs, Fluke said she felt validated as a painter. She began selling her artwork. Some of her paintings hang in the shop, and the colorful logo for the store is taken from a painting of hers.

After her move to the North Coast, Fluke met several artists, and they suggested that she operate a booth at the Sunday Market in Astoria. But she decided to open a store instead.

I decided to do something that was in my heart, something that I would enjoy, Fluke said.

She drew on previous experience as a store owner at the Vancouver (Wash.) Mall and in Battle Ground, Wash. and searched out a location. Although she considered the Long Beach Peninsula and Astoria, Fluke chose Seaside because it had the right mix of residents, second-homeowners and visitors.

I thought it was the best fit for me, she said.

Eventually, Fluke said, she would like to have local artists represent 90 percent of her merchandise. She also wants to create a website for the store.

But she will continue to add items that reflect her interest in the local art scene as well as in her travels.

Ive lived in Mexico four times, Ive traveled to Europe and Ive studied art, Fluke said. Id like to bring all that to this store.