Believe 2014

BELIEVE: (verb)  1. accept (something) as true; feel sure of the truth of. 2. hold (something) as an opinion; think or suppose.    SYNONYMS:  think, be of the opinion that, have an idea that, imagine, suspect, suppose, assume, presume, take it, conjecture, surmise, conclude, deduce, understand, gather, fancy, guess, dare say

It's a word used everyday in real life, the art world, journals, greeting cards, tv diatribes, talk shows, etc.  I haven't even chosen it for a rubber stamp because so many other people have. It's a word you don't even really think about because it is so pervasive.  That is until what you believe is tested.  What you thought was true, is not.  What you believe on faith only, wavers.  It's easy to say you believe in something or believe something to be true until that moment.  And the aftermath of that moment.  That is when what you really believe becomes apparent.  Life is full of these moments.  Some we chose to engage, and some we chose to let slip by, clinging to what we KNOW is true.  My moments to engage came over eight weeks this fall.  I am still in the aftermath.  I am still making sense of it.  I am still seeking the truth that I so want to believe.  It's an intense process that becomes all encompassing.  It's a process that is lonely.  It's a process that you must go through to accept the new normal. This process will continue on into the opening moments, maybe weeks of 2014. 

I celebrate my personal journey with this piece of art.  The focal piece was a Citrasolv piece that I originally manipulated early in the fall.  I played with it a little in November, adding some more solution and then using some foil and alcohol inks to enhance the color.  Today, I used Jessica Sporn's 9 x 12 stencil for  StencilGirl to create the focal ledge using Titan Buff, Mars Black, and Bronze Golden Acrylics.  The charm is actually a left over from a Charming Charlie's necklace that I used for something else.  PPA holds the metallic fibers together. 

Happy New Year to all.  I am looking forward to 2014.  I hope you are, too.  


UPDATED WINTER TEACHING DATES:

Ephemera Paducah, Paducah, KY :  March 7 & 8   2 all day classes
Stamper's Ink, Kansas City, MO :     April 11 & 12  3 classes

Jingle all the Way

Well,  it's the wee hours of Christmas Eve day if you celebrate.  It's December 24 if you don't (just sit back and enjoy all the hubbub of last minute frenetic activity if you don't.)  I've been with family for a couple of weeks and there's nothing that means more to me.  Jim finally joined Sammi and I over the weekend at my sister's so except for the dogs (who are at the spa - our politically correct terminology) we are able to see everyone.  The recent snowfalls made it a little difficult to move Sam out of her current college, but were beautiful to see in the woods that dominate the Pennsylvania landscape.  We are happy to see her move forward to our alma mater, Gettysburg College in January.  She will continue preparation for getting her Doctorate in Physical Therapy there and we will get to have a lot of Pizza House, our favorite spot.

Knowing that I was coming east for the rest of the month, I did work on this project in my own humble studio before I left.  I've just been stitching since I've been here so that is a nice break from what I usually do. I decided I wanted a little celebration that could sit in an easel in my new sunroom.  Once I knew size it was easy to figure out what I wanted to use.

To begin, I took a 4" x 4" Dick Blick canvasboard and painted it with two light coats of Golden Fluid Acrylic Titan Buff.

I then used the new Red Rubber Pallete from Rubbermoon.  This is a very firm piece of backed rubber that can be used with many different mediums.  I chose Golden acrylics in Titan Buff, Silver,  and Bronze to mix in a thick layer on the palette.  To create an interesting pattern, I took one of the Catalyst Silicone Blades, and ran it through the paint, before grabbing a 2" x 2" piece of Stampbord ( a small clayboard piece by Ampersand).  I then gently pressed the front of the white Stampbord into the paint and pulled straight up.  It pulled a texture from the blade and allowed for some peaking of the paint as well.  This was set aside to dry.

While my piece of Stampbord was drying, I repeatedly stamped the jingle x 3 stamp with StazOn onto a scrap of white art tissue paper.  I tore it haphazardly and then affixed it to the canvas with Golden matte medium. 

While the other two pieces were drying, I stamped the Christmas Tree in a Pot stamp onto another scrap of tissue paper.  I then trimmed it and mounted with matte medium it in the center of the now dried, painted Stampbord. 

Once mounted and dried, I added color with Ranger Adirondack Alcohol Inks in rust, espresso, and bottle with a liner brush as well as a dollop of white gesso for the star on top of the tree. 

Before mounting the Stampbord, I cut a 2 3/8" x 2 3/8" piece of spruce colored cardstock to act as a mount.  I then mounted both with Scoretape. Once mounted, I wanted a tiny bit more texture so I added small dots of Golden bronze with a toothpick. 

I hope you enjoyed this little project.  As many of you are starting to tell, I love to work small.  

Enjoy this wonderful time of the year no matter what or how you celebrate. Thanks for following me on my journey this year!  Stay tuned for 2014....................