July 30-365 Days of Photo Prompts

Thursday, I will not be here to blog.  So, I just want to remind you to check out the 365 days prompts.  The link in in the right column.  July 30th is one of my photos... I have no idea which one now as I submitted them like a very long time ago.  Hope it's a good one!  I will not be able to see it, once the day is over with so you all will have to tell me what it was!

Another Yardsale Recycle

So, this little bench, for $1 was very dirty when I picked it up at a fund raiser, painted brown, been out in the weather, I believe.  Gave it a basic coat of acrylic, added more layers, a picture and a crown for the little princess it will go to, and " wow" I love it!

Organizing ATCs

Do you swap ATCs?  Do you keep them in one of those "baseball" card plastic three ring binder thingies?  Or do you have a better way to keep them?  

I have swapped ATCs for about 8 or 9 years now.  I don't have like a kazillion ATCs, but I have quite a few.  I have had them in a three ring binder... but, I like to pick them up, feel them, touch them, read them, check out the techniques and the elements used, that sort of thing.  Digging them out of the plastic slots does not encourage this sort of behavior!  So, I have always thought:  "there must be something better out there!"

Well, the picture is of a small cabinet I found at a yard sale for a dollar over the last week end.  I loved the paint colors.  It did have some problems tho.  It was missing a shelf, the knobs were gone, some nicks and scratches.  Some one had painted in copper on the top little decorator cap, which looked really tacky to me!  But I love recycling stuff if I can, too! 

So, I brought it home, touched up the paint, replaced the shelf, removed the broken knob back plates.  I added an old piece of wire weaving at the top, looked around for something to use as pulls for the doors... don't you just love it when things fall into place... the blue hummer and the blue and green old vintage piece of jewelry is just right for the colors here.  Now, all I have to do is take all my ATCs and put them in little glass containers to set on the shelves.  The dishes will be fun to shop for at yard sales too!

When I want to play with them, I can just quickly lift out a dish and start to play!  I love it!

Wish....

Wish I knew how to post a video.  I do not have any one who can give me tech support so I do not know how to put a video here.  But, I wanted to share this cutie so here is the link.  

http://www.culturepub.fr/videos/rubber-cement-colle-les-nonnes.html

This is too cute... especially if you use glue for anything!

A Peek into Zines...Mini Books

A lady I find so inspiring, Alma Stoller... see her link in the right hand column, bottom... does a zine swap every year.  You can get one of her most amazing zines on her etsy shop if you like zines.  This year, I am so tickled to get to join her "I heart zines" swap!  So, I have been making some things to put in my zines.  These little hand made mini books will be included in my zine, along with some other fun things.

Group Art

Over in 14 Secrets, we are doing a "wreck my journal round robin."  Here I two pages I just completed.  The prompts were tape in some dryer fuzz and cover this page with used stamps.  I quickly penned in the fuzzy thoughts on the tape struggling with the word knome, knomb, finally leaving it.  Now, today, now that the page is gone forever, it hit me.. I meant gnome! lol

Old Linens

I love old linens.  I am always drawn to them when I see them at yard sales and auctions.  I used to make lovely decorator pillows, and small art dolls with the pieces I found.  Now, I use the pieces in art quilts and my mixed media.  And, these paintings were done on an old 1975 linen calendar.  When, I make a sandwich of the paintings,  with other layers of fibers, or use them for a journal cover, I will probably add some bits of lace from other old linens too.  And, if you want to see who inspired me to try this, google DJ Petitte, her paintings on fibres are so beyond beautiful!

Fairy Story

Last week end we followed signs for a Yard Sale for what seemed like forever into the backlands outside our local village (town.)  When we arrived at this old farm house it was surrounded with contents that looked like they came from hidden places, like old garages and sheds and basements.  Not too clean looking, dusty, you know?  But, we poked around for quite a while because we were the only adventures who would drive this far and long to find the place.  

Eventually, we came upon hundreds of small sea shells in boxes and tubs.  How lovely they seemed amongst the other junk.  I ask about them and the girls (women) said their grandma had decorated shells and sold them at art fairs many years ago.  There were still some with flowers and ribbons attached in the manner of her art.  Since our oldest car girl collect shells, we were looking at them for her.  Suddenly, it occurred to me how much fun we had as a family when both our kids and all the grandkids  trailered in a  caravan to the Oregon west coast a few summers back.   So, I said to my DH, "we should take them all for the car girls.'  He made the sellers an offer we were surprised they accepted, they dumped them all into a big plastic storage tub, helped the old people (us) to load them and we brought them home.  As we drove home, we were discussing the shells, and I suggested we sort of do a "shell hunt" for the car girls.  We settled on that.  We live in the desert, so having a "shell hunt" would be a new experience for the girls.  My DH took the shells out, and sprinkled them liberally amongst the sagebrush and rocks, the morman tea, the rabbit brush, and the grease woods.  Finally, today, the car girls decided to visit!  So, said to them,   "do you believe in fairies?"  Oh, yes, they did, especially the 6 year old and friend.  So I told them I thought I had seen a shell fairy around the yard, and perhaps she had come to visit us since we visited her in Oregon, did they remember?  Oh, yes, said the 9 and 6 year old, the 3 year old had not been when we were on the sea shore, but since she has to do the same as her older sisters, so she said "yeah."  " Well, when you are outside," I said, "you might want to look about a bit and see if she left us a gift or something" They all had so much fun collecting shells, and took their sackfuls back home with them, chirping and playing with the shells, listening in them, feeling them.  

My DH, who now cannot do much because of COPD found great pleasure in helping the shell fairie prepare for such a delightful visit, and in watching the delight of the car girls as they collected shells and talked about going to the sea with us once. There are still many more out there yet, they have not found so I am sure we all will enjoy this activity again soon. 

Hidden Treasures (Again)

Here is the post I had originally picked to post today:

Organizing Artistically

Do you sometimes think...whew, I gotta get rid of something around here so I can breathe?  That's where I have been lately.  So, every day I think...I will organize and I will remove anything that I will never use!  And the other stuff I will sort so I can find what I want when I want it!  So, out to my "garage" studio I went, pulled out a few drawers of paper, sorting them into decorative paper handmade, deco paper commercial, hand decored papers, card stock, ephemera large and ephemera smalls, letters and numbers, patterns and plains.  This works for about maybe fifteen or twenty minutes, and then something just flips a switch in me, and I sorta just float off into an "artistic' fog.  For example, I was sorting my "sayings" from my "alphabets".  And I have this journal that is so full but still had some empty pages.  So, I thought I would just pick a saying at random and paste on each empty page, then I would art journal according to the saying.  So, now I have pages that say things like "explore, change your power, choose sides, very funny, relax and have fun, eighth moon, fetish, chocolate, born to, the moment..."  Then I was sorting some pictures I had so I was trying to add pictures to the saying pages that matched.  Then I decided to gesso some pages and so rounded up all my "in process" journals so I could do pages in all to have them ready to go.  So goes my organizing... it is so much more fun to create than organize.  LOL

Digging for Treasure

Seth, The Altered Page guy (see right side bar for link) and his Hidden Treasures group activity has been so fun.  I hope you get over there and join in.  All the artist's old posts tell quite a story.  

This is mine....

I had no intention of starting an art blog to begin with.  I was just learning to blog to keep in touch with my kids.  As my very first two posts ever below will explain, my art blog came about because of my computer challenged status.  I maintain a certain level, but don't get too technical or you have lost me.  My lost blog has turned into my most fun activity!

Tuesday, June 10, 2008

Found in Cyber Space

Well, I found my old blog. I have no idea why or how. So, now I have 2 active blogs. I will try to keep this one for my "art" activites, and the other one for any other stuff I might want to write about.

Friday, May 30, 2008

Lost in a Cyber Maze

I had a blog going (and still do I guess) but I can't access it anymore. I do that often here in cyber space. I start something then after a few times, I can no longer get there. I keep trying but end up just starting over with a new name and password. That is why I am here today. New blog to replace the one I had before.

Paper Bag Journal

Over in CCS Janey posted a tutorial for making a small journal out of four brown paper bags.  When you fold and place the bags together you get pockets at the front and back to "stash" things in.  Kinda neat.  This is the front cover of one I am working on.  I think I need to add a bit moreto it... I am thinking some fibers.  

Tea Bag Doodles Journal

This was a fun little project.  When I bound the pages together I folded the half pages in half with the tea doodles together.  Then I bound them with padding compound. This leaves me several spreads available between the doodlings for journaling or adding what ever I decide to put in this. The doodles are pale enough I could even journal on those pages too.   Finally, I added the tea stained hand made papers and used a tea bag cover for the spine.  I am happy with the way this turned out. And I got to use my hand made Swallow stamp, Sigh!

I Forgot!

Yesterday, I posted I was going to join Seth's Digging Deeper project on Thursday.  Well, my age is showing here because I forgot something important.  I have no clue how to do that!  Do I copy and paste? The one I decided to re-post does have a picture that I don't think I have anymore, or it is so buried in little things you plug into the side of your computer that I might be a year digging for it.  I don't think this was Seth's intention, lol.  So, any of  you computer whizzes if you can give me a step by step tutorial, I would be most grateful!

I almost have my tea bag journal bound.  I tea bag stained two pieces of handmade paper for the covers, then covered the spine with a tea bag cover.  I put it all together with my padding compound... something I have never played with before.  I hope it works, even if it is red! sigh

Digging Deeper With Other

http://thealteredpage.blogspot.com/2009/07/digging-deeper.html

If you go to the link above you can read about Seth's new collaborative  group activity.  I will be doing a digging deeper post next Thurs. so be sure to check back that day.  This is fun!   Sigh....

Just Playing

I play with Kathryn over in True North Arts at times.  She had a challenge going dealing with making maps and one day I was playing in Photoshop and manipulated a photo and it reminded me of a map (the background here).  Then I started to give it a topo look by drawing lines on it.   Then Kathryn talked about the compass" and finding our true north.  So I drew a compass rose over the whole thing with soluable graphite pencils.  A bit of water on a paper towel to blend the graphite.  Then black marker pen to finish it up.  After all of this, I decided it is a keeper and I will put it in one of my journals. 

Last of the Tea Bag Doodles

Here are my last tea bag doodles.  I folded all the pages and bound them into a mini book.  I will probable use it for a small travel journal or something like that, if the binding holds up.  I tryed something new, using padding compound to bind them together.  I think I will need to put a cover of some sort over the pages, we will see....

365 Pictures

Have you noticed on the right side bar the post about 365 picture prompts?  I am just reminding you to check it out, because on the dates listed, one of my pictures will be there!  The first one is July 30th!  I hope you all will view it and do a piece of art from the prompt... maybe a journal page, a collage, a painting, a writing, something!  If you do, be sure to let me know where I can go to to view it!  I will remind you again when it gets closer to the date!

Retro Stuff

Is retro the correct word?  I don't know for sure, but I think this little 4X4 inch purse is quite old.  I found it at a yard sale and it just had to belong to me.  It is made of velvety soft glove leather and that old plastic.  The bottom was very dirty on the bottom edge where someone had put it down on something dirty, and it had a little tear in the leather right on the upper edge where it hooked into the plastic handle/clasp.  I fixed the tear with some vynal (sp???) repair glue then painted on it with acrylics.  Now, the dirty bottom is gone and so is the tear.  I love these little clasp purses!

Assemblage?

I have been playing around with my junk-er art supplies-to try to make some art dolls.  I have never been one to make dolls, but lately, I have seen such cute ones, I decided to try.  I don't think I have the vision to do these up right.  I better stick to something less doll like.  

The "See My Heart" doll has a glass upper torso that you can see through when held up to the light.  Her heart is blue.  I look at these and think...hmmm they need something, but what?

Latest Collage

I had to fix the writing on this. The word opener is where I messed up.  I was feeling good about how well this went together than messed up with the very last layer-the writing.  Luckily for me, I had the panels from the bottom of the door cut outs so it was just a small "patch" to make the n into an r.  Sometimes I just decide to live with a mess up, but couldn't do that with this one!

Another Round of Tea...

Today is my last day for making tea doodles.  I have some I really like and some I think are really sucky... (I learned that word from my kids, lol).  All of them are going into a mini book.  

Finished!

Added "A Is For ART!"

These little lovelies/ATCs are in the mail and off to a fun swap from the 14 Secrets gang.  Fun!

(Blog GiveAways)

(Here's a give away you might want to try, just visit the following blog!  The prize seems fabulous!

http://keepsakesbymelissa.blogspot.com/)

Hanging the Art

Added paintings to the frames, then mounted the frames on the walls, er, cardstock.  Now all that is left is some words.  The words are.....

Next Step

I painted the background with grey mixed with gesso and the frame with burnt umber then embellished the frame with a gold marker...

Guess What I Am Making Today

Here are the supplies....

My Environs

Just a couple of snaps from where I live.  We "heart" our hill!

Doodling Ideas

One's art goes as far and as deep as one's love goes.
Andrew Wyeth 

Over in CCS in the doodling group someone mentioned tea bag doodling.  And so I began....

I have another "starter" brewing this morning.  These are fun.  They remind me of the "smear art" (see the side bar) that a lovely artist Carla got me started on.  See the link to her blog on the bottom of the right bar too.  I just have a small stack of card stock in the kitchen, and when I remove a tea bag from brewing, plop it on a sheet.  Remove whenever, and let dry.  Then go ahead, be whimsical and have fun!  Easy, sigh!

More Crows

Here are a couple of other "crow" efforts.  Live a Colorful Life I used watercolors, conte crayons, graphite pencils, mixed media.  The black crow in flowers... acrylics.

I work in whatever medium likes me at the moment.
Marc Chagall 

This happens to me often.  Because Milliande is having a "walking with crows" challenge, and because I had the following mediums: Golden black gesso, old catalog cover crow stencil, acrylic paints, yard sale found rubber stamps, white signo pen, this crow painting occurred, lol. I added "is where the heart is" after the scan.

Rocks With Wheels

I collected iron items for several years with the idea of having a welded metal gate made for the entrance of our road.  Lots of old machinery parts, wheels, gears, stuff like that.  My "welder" DH now has COPD so I don't think the gate will become a reality.  These wheels and rocks are found right at the very top of our dugway.  I still like them even if they won't become a gate.