What Was I Thinking?

Here is another night's doodle.  For about three or four days in a roll the journal theme seems to be negatives.  So, I made a deliberate attempt last night to do something more fun.  I will  post that later, but here is a few evenings ago drawing...

Everyday

My goal is to create something, be creative, or do something creative everyday.  I have been doing pretty good with this goal.  Today, as I made the yard sale rounds, I found a really great desk to use for a sewing table in my sewing area.  It is long enough for two machines to be set up on it.  It also has one side that is raised about three inches or so, which is nice for me since I am tall.  I have put the machine that I use for free motion and heavy duty sewing tasks on that.  I hope this will help me sew longer.  I have found my back gets tired after a while, and discovered I am bending over to see what area of the fabric I am thread painting on and that is probably the reason I have the back tiredness.  Hopefully, tomorrow, I can give it a run.  Today, I am posting another of my watching TV drawings.  Thanks to all of you who come here to view my blog!

TGIF

When I worked I was always so happy when Friday was over and I had the week end to re start my energy for the next week of work.  I sometimes was able to do something artsy, but not often. I don't believe you can be very creative when you are tired.  Since I have not been working, I am being creative everyday! Yay!  But, for all of you who still work-TGIF!  And here is another evenings doodling in front of the TV!

Thread Painting Progress

I have been slowly working on my thread painting so I thought I would show you my progress.  This is all experiment, using common sewing knowledge and free motion.  I am lucky enough to have a free motion sewing machine, all be it ancient, but if you don't have one of these machines, jump on over to alma stoller's blog for a tutorial on using machines without the free motion capabilities.  Her link is at the bottom of the column on the right, just scroll down to it.  Anyway, thread painting is not very difficult, except learning and practicing the control of moving your fabric around.  I am not sure where I am going with this painting, just playing it by ear???  Adding the pink to her face right now...I will add some shadows later, I think.  Right now she looks embarrassed...lol

A Round Robin Experience

Over in 14 Secrets I signed on for a "Wreck This Journal" round robin.  I have never been involved with a round robin before, so this will be fun for me since I am into the "journey" of experiences.  We will mail the first time on June 15.  I have been working on getting my journal ready.  We were to find a cheap notebook-I am using the old manila covered sewn composition book, then prepare it with prompts for the other artists.  The first thing I did was gesso all the pages and covers lightly to give them strength.  The blue lines of the pages still show through but I decided that was okay for this project.  Next, I painted on the covers, using some letters for resists.  I was going to glue the letters on, they are plastic, but decided to wait until the journal returns to me so it will be less bulk to mail.  Next, I made a place on the inside cover for the artists to sign in.  On the first page I glued the list of participants and addresses so it will be easy to send on.  Last, I stamped instructions for prompts on spreads, leaving a blank spread in between each spread so no one has to work back to back.  This has been fun so far.  I am sure more information will be found as I move along through the process!

More TV Watching

Life is just a bowl of cherries which says summer!  I am wondering... how will summer change my artistic activities?  I have a feeling I will be less active.  A good time to forage for winter time supplies.  Yard sales... here I come!

Hanging Out in the TV Room

I have been playing in a small journal each evening while DH watches TV.  I will be posting these colorful little drawings now and then here.  I mostly start with a person drawing then use colored pencils, and write with a pitt pen.  Just some small colorful art journal pages.  This one I did because of a new word:  "stinkeye."

Found This Ledger

I found this old ledger/journal I think at a yard sale recently.  It just caught my imagination.  I tried a transposer on the net and I think the words are German.  I was sad the written pages were torn out, it would have been interesting to see what was written in it.  The handwriting looks so lovely.  The cover is heavy pebbled card, the pages have very light horizontal lines too.  I will eventually have fun with this!

I had this lady cut out from a heavy glossy magazine laying around the studio like maybe all winter.  Then I read about stencil art.  And you know how I have to try something once I read or hear about it.  So, I had this old book that had such lovely paper it was printed on, but the subject matter was not so great.  I cut the pages out of the book and stenciled my lady onto these pages, maybe a dozen or so.  Since, then, I have just played with other stencils over her.  I am not sure where this is taking me, but you know, the journey is the fun!  I am to the point now where I am thinking journal pages, but we will see.

Surprise!

A unexpected package arrived in my mailbox yesterday.  A lovely handmade looking but so professional looking small journal with interesting and lovely feeling pages, calling me for some artsy things to be added.  Inside this journal was a sweet note from fun new friends I met at the interesting and awesome Textile Evolution Retreat along with email addresses.  I love surprises, don't you.  I love this journal and certainly will make use of it!  Thanks to the ladies who took the time to sign it and  to Liz to mail it to me!  

Meow

Many artist sites put out challenges to prompt artists to play.  This is a turquoise and orange one from Milliande.  Had a bit of fun with this one!

Sculptures

Here's a peek at my work in progress.  Later I will post a picture of the finished piece...

Sculpting

I have be sculpting little heads with air dry clay.  I have never used this stuff before, but I like the feel of it when I am sculpting.  What I am making is little heads to represent different roles I have had during my life.  I did a baby, a young girl, a teenager, a young woman, and from then just female heads, one for young adult, young married, divorcee, wife, mother, non-traditional college student, career person, grandmother, retiree, and artist.  Today, I painted them to look like old sculptures with verdigris.  I will  be putting these into a printers tray, along with some artifacts of things I like, like I made a bird sculpture since we watch the birds so much.  I will put something that represents my artist side, my love for my dogs, etc. too.  I want the whole piece to look like a miniature museum display of antiquities of busts and other specimens, but not sure if I will reach that goal.   A change of pace for me.

Trying New Ideas

You know how you see a picture of something artsy on someone's blog, or in a magazine, and it's a technique that you have just gotta try?  I have seen these machine stitched beautiful pictures lately so I wanted to try.  This is a work in progress.  The fabric is not irridescent, but it does have a white on white paisley pattern which rather reminded me of tattoos.  I have been playing with the idea of incorporating the look of tattoos in some of my pieces of art lately.   I don't know why this scanned like this.  I am also working on preparing a "Wreck This Journal" journal for a round robin, which I have not been involved with before but decided to give it a whirl... 

Playing With Colored Pencils

I read on one of the art sites I hang in, to doodle or draw while you watch TV, or other places, whenever you can.  So, the no prompt and this one, Inside prompt, I did while not paying much attention to TV. lol

No...Journal Prompt

I started with the word no, and played!

Fabrics Again

Here is a transfer from an old photo of my DH's ancestors, which I enlarged from a 3X5 to full 8.5X11 size.

Yesterday I made air dry clay heads for an assemblage I have in my "head".  Excuse the pun.  I have what some might call a printers tray, and I want to fill it full of heads representing my many personalities, true or imaginary.  So, I am sculpting heads.  I visualize it looking like a display in a gallery, with busts of famous people, only in this case it is miniture and the people are just "art."

Since the first of May, I have been able to work out in my "garage" area studio which is fun.  I made mono prints last week which is rather messy and now the clay project is happening.  You know how messy clay is.  It is nice to have a place to be messy!

Sunny

You know how "sunny" it feels to start a project, work on it, then finally come to the end?  And also the feelings in between the beginning and the end, of the nagging need to "do", keep working, meet the deadline if there is one, just get "er done?"  Today the "sunny feelings"  are from several completed projects.  In the recent I finished up my book started at retreat, which makes me feel sunny,  Yay!  Then last Saturday, I taught the quilt workshop which was so much fun!  I had a mixed group of students.  They all made the most "artistic" quilts and had fun too and that makes me feel sunny!  Then, the "Sun Motif" ATC swap I hosted over in 14 Secrets has been mailed out, so thats a sunny feeling (see picture above.)  And yesterday, for Mother's Day, my three car girls and their mother was here, and we roasted hotdogs and marsh mellows which the car girls have been begging for so long, but the weather has not cooperated until yesterday.  The brought me the most wonderful little solar blue fairy light to hang in my garden, and their company made me feel sunny.  Life is just sunny!!! lol

Stencil Art

I used a picture I cut out from a magazine cover and used that for the first stencil.  I added two more layers of stencils, then a layers of pictures, then layer of words.

She Has Her Head In the Stars

I have been working on this small wall quilt for the last couple of weeks.  Isn't she just cute!!

My Transfer Collage

Here is the almost finished piece.  I am still wondering if I need to add anything else.

Buttons!

I have a sweet cyber friend Barbara who just recently turned me on to buttons.  Who knew they could be so interesting?  I learned a new word, pessimenterie (sp?), and have looked and looked at buttons on the net!  Wow!  So, in honor of Barbara's passion, I am posting pictures of my huge but rather useless collection of buttons, all collected, I might add, by accident!

Finally-My Book!

Success!

I am so excited.  I have tried "transfers" at different times and the only time I was able to finish with results that I could use have been with packing tape mini transfer. The other day, I walked into my studio with some "pictures" from magazines, and a photo copy enlargement of an old photo and some card stock and pieces of fabric.  Usually when I try transfers, I have read and researched, and followed someone's directions, and failed!!  This day, I sat down at my work table, layed down a piece of wax paper, put my card stock on top, used a soft brayer to cover the card with golden liquid gel matte medium, placed my picture face down onto the card stock, used a hard brayer over the whole page making sure it was stuck down.  I let it dry for awhile, sprayed the back of the picture with water, peeled the paper off and you see the results above.   Now, I have to finish my started "painting!"

Last Page

Here is the last page of my textile book.  If I get so I can, I will show a picture of the book as it should be viewed.

Page Four

Page four of my textile book.  Most people were making eight pages but I had to move on so mine only has six.  So, today is the next to the last page!

Yesterday, I worked on doing some photo transfers.  I have never had these work out but yesterday must have been my lucky day... 

Swallow Play

I made this grid just playing around activity.  I guess someday I will do something with them.  They remind me of a sheet of stamps.... hmmmmmmmmm

Page Three

Here is what I call page three of my textile book.  All the pages look somewhat alike but they are different.  When the book is displayed, standing up on it's little rock feet and dog wood uprights, it looks panaramic, or like a tri-ad, 

Another Textile Page

This is page two of my textile book.  The uprights, which allow the book to stand is dogwood twigs, the tiny feet on the twigs are polished rocks, the hinges holding the twigs, are burlap...tried to keep it organic to match the pages...

Digital Play

This is a digital play I did for a journal prompt:  Wrinkles.  It makes me laugh!