Cherish

There is a lot of hubbub to December for me, especially when Thanksgiving is on the later side as it was this year. We are still decorating, buying, and trying to keep up with all the activity. Some days it goes better than other others. Last week was particularly busy as I was also getting art ready for the Bizarre Bazaar. It was a great show and I was amazed with all the beautiful work when I stopped down there this weekend. We got our tree, Sheldon, up on Saturday and then it promptly fell and shattered a few non-special ornaments. We were very lucky that the special ones remained unscathed. Next on the agenda....Christmas cards and an altered calendar collaboration that I need to get caught up on. And, of course, Stampaway class applications are on the horizon. What a couple of weeks!

Resist

I haven't done a new resist card in a while but really enjoyed revisiting the technique for my classes two weekends ago. Another online group is doing a tutorial of sorts for my book so I thought I would post this for them! It was done with a mixture of Clear Resist, Distress and Nick Bantock inks from Ranger.

On another note.....go see TWILIGHT...you won't be sorry!!!! I saw it this week and was immersed.

I am busy working on artwork to sell at the bazaar the first weekend at Rock Paper Scissors. I am getting pretty excited about doing it and seeing what everyone else has been working on. Fun..........................

Junk

I love to pepper my altered calendars and atcs with junk mail so when an opportunity for a junk mail ATC mingle came, I went for it. For those of you that haven't tried this, take a catalog or sale flyer page and tear out patterns that go together. Then tear strips and glue them down or use some other easy adhesive. Very fun and easy..........Add what you want on top to finish it off and you are good to go. I included some samples in this post.

Classes were great last weekend. I'll be back at RPS on January 24 with two classes. One will be the advanced resist class and the other is as of yet, undecided.

Weekend Classes

I am going back in the classroom this weekend here in St. Louis. I can't believe how long it is since I have taught a whole weekend for a store. I think it will be fun and definitely the cocktail party tonight will be great. I couldn't ask for a better welcome back than I've gotten.

This piece is for my demo tonight! Enjoy......and have a great fall weekend.

Hallowwweeeeennnnn

I found patterned paper and transparency overlays that were born to be used together. I added just a hint of color in between the two layers and used the mini pom poms to and sentiment to finish off this ATC. Chills and Thrills is courtesy of Red Lead Paperworks here in St. Louis. If you haven't visited their site, you should to see all their smaller, interesting stamps. Those are my favorites, although they have a lot of other wonderful stuff.

Remix again

More digital art ........................ tres addicting!!!!!!! These are all the same ceramic tile pieces that have been manipulated. Enjoy!!!!!!

PS: My Missouri classes are doing very well. It will be fun to get back in the local classroom after a few years on hiatus. Dates: November 7-9, 2008 in St. Charles.

Remix

I was lucky enough to be invited in a Photoshop class with a friendly group of quilters this fall. I've had Photoshop for years courtesy of my nephew while he was in college but only knew how to use a small portion of its capability. I am begininng to have fun reworking some of my old artwork using the various adjustments and filters. It is fun seeing my old compositions become something new. The pieces above are the original pointillism piece from my book (bottom) and the transformation into a 5 x 7 with black detailing (top).

Perhaps Yet Again

That word has been my mantra since we moved here last August. I couldn't tell you why except that it signals hope and possibilities to me. Maybe I need that right now. Daily life is chaotic right now as I navigate the back to school pitfalls and preparations for beginning to teach again here in St. Louis. I will be resuming some teaching in November at Rock, Paper, Scissors with some debut weekend surprises. It should be fun and I look forward to it. I have been lucky enough to join a quilter's Photoshop class this fall and I am having fun learning more about the program that I have used for years and only new a tinge about. I guess you are never too old to learn new tricks!!!

Chicago Escapade

I have been fascinated with that word for quite sometime so when I picked a letter for my local ATC guild August project it just had to be an "e". Summer is winding down here and school is about to begin for Sam. She's been in Chicago with a friend from school and her parents for a shopping trip. I think she has had quite a lot of fun but I have missed having her here. It was a glimpse into three years from now when she is off to college. I think I want to retreat into my own little world where she is with us all the time. At least that is where I want to retreat while she is gone and happy with life! So here is some art to toast to your Chicago escapade, Sammi.........

Ebony and Ivory

Well, I am still getting back into the swing of things from Stampaway. It was so fun to see many old friends and make some new ones as well. My classes were filled and full of so many eager and talented people. They were a pleasure to teach. I could have done without the hour and fifteen minute delay from the security alarm, though. I am sure they would echo that sentiment but everyone helped out to get the show on the road and were gracious about it. Shopping was fun at the Preview Party, but I was all but spent before that so sitting was a priority for me. I did a lot of product restock and bought a few new images, but my damages were minimal. Tracy and I went to the antique mall again up in Springfield all day on Saturday. Last year I bought old windows. This year it was an antique birdcage. Go figure....... We had a terrific road trip. Enjoy the posted art. These are 12" x 12" canvases so I would categorize them as wall art. I got quick photos of them before they headed off to CA today.

TUcKEr!!!!

Well, we have entered puppydom with a vengeance. Tucker has been with us for almost a week now. We picked him up about 13 hours after returning from the east coast. He is settling in nicely and as long as I am trained to take him out, we do ok. My studio is definitely off limits for him so I am not getting much done. I was lucky to get my Stampaway supplies ordered this week. He is 10 weeks old and a beautiful mix of black and brown. He is 10 pounds at this point but as furry as can be. I always love the poodle coat before maturation. Will he grow as big as his big brother, Bogart? Only time will tell. He can put his paws on my shoulders when he stands. I am sort of hoping that Tucker will be a little smaller. We'll see! Here are some puppy pics!!!

Impending Puppydom etc......

June is passing by so quickly as we are in the midst of preparation for puppydom. Right now Tucker is the name of choice but he could end up as Truman, Kikkoman or even Blackjack. We'll decide while we are on vacation for the next 10 days. Will our 10 year old Bogart be ready for this????? Hmmm.......and two black standard poodles. Will we be able to tell them apart? I would guess so. Tune in to find out. Enjoy my altered calendar for the month. That will have to keep everyone busy while I am gone to the east coast. I'll eat some Armand's Pizza in Georgetown and some Cincinnati chili on the way. Happy 4th of July to all! We'll be back after that.......

Birds of a Feather

In celebration of our daily birding here in Missouri and an ATC exchange online.....enjoy........! Soon we will be adding a puppy to our household so don't be surprised if somehow there are some furry pictures uploaded in July!

Miracles Happen

I had fun transforming another 4" x 5" canvas that was leftover from a demo from last year. This one started out spot brayered with some Golden Fluid acrylics and Krylon leafing. At least that's what I think was on it last year. To update it and make it into something more than a background I added two noise stamps in eggplant Adirondack and then trees and leaves in black and white. I took a gold Decor It pen and played with the shapes a little and then added the sentiment. It was a fun exercise today.

Expect Great Things

Well, we are into June and school is almost out here in St. Louis. I am so looking forward to summer--hence the title of this entry. Everything is beautiful here right now, mostly due to the 11" of rain we had in May. We are still avidly birding in our backyard and are attracting a wonderful mix of species. We put up hummingbird feeders yesterday and are hoping that the Curry Cafe will attract them as well. I've been working on a watercolor tall book swap for a local group here but took some time last night to rework a canvas I had done in a demo last year sometime. I was pleased with the overall effect. It is so fun to rework something that is just lying around on your desk. This piece started out as a spot brayer demo and ended up showcasing not only acrylics, but gesso, dye inks and metal work. You just never know where things will end up sometimes. That's the fun of these processes.

Shapes

I spent some time last night playing with circles. I've not done a lot with circles in my artwork because I am generally a more linear person, but thought it would be nice to do something a little different. An aside....I hate ovals. I have no idea why, but can't say I have ever even made anything with an oval shape in the 14+ years I have been playing with paper. That dislike also extends to oval mirrors, turkey platters, etc. I wonder if an oval did me wrong in my childhood! I never get tired of squares or rectangles. Hmmmmmmm. I wonder if other people have shapes they just don't care for. Let me know!

Sammi

This is a digital of the collage the photographer is printing to celebrate her regional championships win. I couldn't resist putting it up.......always the gushing mom.

Embrace Imperfection

I was up early this morning before the rest of my household and had a delightful bowl of cereal outside on my patio. The understory is now completely filled in our ridge. It is beautiful in its imperfection and is the perfect backdrop for our bird "restaurant". Things were quite hopping this morning, as a matter of fact. I think our "Denny's" opens up before the sun and then continues a brisk business all morning. It is fun to see the couples show up and the brazen hussys or BMOC birds try to break up the camaraderie. Nature does imitate life very well, but doesn't worry about every little detail. Hence, today's artwork theme. I enjoyed marring the background some before adding the wonderful paisley tree. It was a fun exercise today in using what I already had and putting it together in a haphazard way. The sentiment came from a conversation with my best friend a couple of days ago.I love it when nature inspires and when things just come together because they should.

Listen Closely

I am trying to get quiet and listen, hoping that I will know which way to go. It is easy to get lost in the quiet where I live now. I am hoping that the solitude will help me on my journey.

Sunkissed Moments

Well, May is here and a lot is in bloom. I am thrilled to say that we are getting our house landscaped today finally. I will, of course, post a picture when it is done. I have really been enjoying getting back into doing some painting so I painted a series of abstract designs for Mother's Day cards that can be found on my site. Having a brush in my hand is one of those tactile experience that I missed while struggling to deal with our relocation. I hope I am coming out of it. Happy Mother's Day.......and many sunkissed moments for all of you.

Ordinary

I actually did some watercolor yesterday while Sammi was at the gym out of some paper that I had to cut up to move.....enjoy! It is amazing what you can do with a clipboard, Lyras , a waterbrush and 5 hours. Art felt good again.........

HAPPY BIRTHDAY, SAMMI!!!!!

Happy Birthday, Sammi!

Tomorrow is her 15th birthday......I am hiding this piece of canvaswork in her locker for a surprise this afternoon. ENJOY..................................

Imagination

We are finally coming out of winter here in St. Louis and boy do I need spring badly. This has been the longest winter in my life for many reasons. My in-laws were here over the weekend and we were able to tour Grant's Farm on a beautiful, sunny day yesterday. It was wonderful. Sammi's season is done and she won the Region IV championships in South Dakota last weekend. What an amazing meet she had. She moves on to train level 9 now for next season.

I did this included artwork for an ATC exchange for favorite quotes. I hope I can rediscover my imagination. It seems to be hiding somewhere these days.

No art in sight

Sammi's season is finally coming to a close so maybe art will begin to happen again. We have one more meet...regionals in South Dakota... in April. Then she starts training for the next level (9). It never ends, but at least we are local during the rest of the year. I am enjoying being part of an ATC art guild and collage club here in St. Louis. They seem to have more inspiration than me these days, but I do enjoying the gatherings. Wonderful people with wonderful ideas and hearts of gold.

No art as a pic this time but here is one of Jim and Sam headed off to the Barat Academy Father Daughter Dance tonight.... Enjoy!

White on White

There are big flakes of snow coming down yet again today, although I doubt we are in for any accumulation. I am SO ready for spring after these latest snows and forced hibernations. But at least it is the endish of February. We leave on Friday for Wisconsin so I am sure we'll be heading into more snow there, but at least it is just overnight for the latest and greatest gymnastics competition. Two weeks from now is Tampa so at least we are going south.

Not much arting going on here, but I am uploading an ATC exchange card that was appropriately themed: white on white....esp. since I keep seeing those flakes. It was an interesting card to do. The background is torn deli paper spot coated with gesso. The lacy embeliishment was embossed in white as were the words. It was a stretch going almost colorless, yet I really like the finished product.

Still unpacking here so no new classes scheduled until Stampaway in August. Stay tuned for any changes to that schedule.

Hard Holidays where art and music meet

No, this isn't my art at all, but the cover for a new EP put out by my nephew, Jon (25). His long time friend, Tia, did the cover artwork for him and it turned out great. I have put a link to Jon's myspace (or click here)so that anyone who wants to can listen to his music. Jon has been creating music for years and it has been interesting seeing the evolution and the depth that he now brings to the table. My personal favorite off this EP is Used Books Torn Pages but Nations and Hard Holidays are creative as well. I am amazed at the varied layers of music that can exist within one song and as everyone knows by now, I love layers in my art and the constant reveal. I wish Jon all the best with his music and his life. I celebrate what he has brought to all our lives with his talent.

2008 art

I promised some new art online and here it is. The two jpgs are new class samples done on layered canvas. ENJOY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Celebrate '08

Happy 2008

everyone....

We had a great trip

east for Christmas

but headed back

early to St. Louis

so Sam could have

a shot at going to

her first meet.

The foot isn't quite

at 100% but she

was able to compete

and win three events

and her meet in Kansas City over the weekend. Art samples to follow tomorrow online, but for now I just wanted to celebrate my amazing daughter. Here's to a happy and healthy '08!!!!