Harps In The Willows

Got Wood?

2011-08-10T23:42:00.001-07:00

Here is another fun swap I participated in for the Art Charms group. The theme was wood, so we had to make charms incorporating wood in some manner. The possibilities were endless - wooden beads, sticks, blocks, spools, shapes - you get the idea. I was poking around my local Ben Franklin store in the packaged wood items and found some cute, little spools. I decided to wrap them with wire and add beads as I wrapped. It was a challenge getting that springy wire to stay on the spools, but I finally came up with a system that worked. I was happy with the way these turned out.

Adopt An Ancestor

2011-08-10T23:28:00.000-07:00

Here are some charms I made for the Art Charms swap Adopt An Ancestor. This was my first attempt at soldering. I cropped and reduced some of my vintage photos, sandwiched them between 1-inch glass, applied foil tape around the edges and soldered. I soldered a jump ring at the top and added a bead dangle.

Mixed Media Art Charms & Jewelry

2011-08-10T19:11:00.000-07:00

I'm not exactly sure how I discovered the new Art Charms group at Yahoo, but before I knew it I had joined. I have never made jewelry, and I don't count the one class I took in college years ago because it was totally uninspiring and unproductive. It ranks down at the bottom of my college experience along with the weaving class I took.

The group was started by Peggy Krzyzewski and Christine Hansen, very talented artists who have had years of experience teaching jewelry making, metalworking, and making lampwork beads. Of course, I just had to purchase their book Making Mixed-Media Art Charms & Jewelry.

This book is a wonderful resource because it opened up a whole new world of making art charms and also because it is great for the beginner as well as experienced jewelry makers. As a group, we have been going through the book chapter by chapter trying all the techniques. The really fun part is all the incredible swaps, and there is no pressure to participate, it's a matter of choice. So far, I've participated in quite a number of swaps and have received amazing charms in return. Experience in this group ranges from new to very experienced. The focus is on having fun creating, and members are so supportive and willing to share. If you'd like to learn to make amazing art charms and have fun doing it, this group is for you!

I'm Back!!!

2011-06-28T16:56:00.000-07:00

I would like to thank all of my friends and followers who have been so patient during my hiatus from blogging. I've used this time to give much thought to where I was going as an artist and where I wanted to go. I felt like I was in a box, and decided I needed stretch out and explore new paths. This journey has been incredibly fun! I've got lots of new experiences to share with you and I'll keep you posted on my new adventures.

Holiday Countdown

2010-12-03T10:30:00.000-08:00

Lisa of Ten Two Studios is having her fabulous, yearly Holiday Countdown. Each day beginning December 1 through December 25, Lisa will post a page of printable image sheets for you to use in your artwork http://countdown.tentwostudios.com/ If you're in a hurry and can't wait for each day's images, or would like better quality images you can go to http://countdown.tentwostudios.com/buyit/

More Flea Market Freebies

2010-09-18T12:39:00.000-07:00

I'm still going through some of the goodies I got at the Flea Market last weekend, and thought I'd post a few more freebies for you to use in your artwork. The reading primer is so sweet; it has a copyright date of 1906. Sadly, it's in pretty sad condition and falling apart, but I love the illustrations and the stories are so cute. I love how pictures of objects in the stories replace the words.

Flea Market Freebies

2010-09-11T18:54:00.000-07:00

I manged to scan some of the cabinet cards and a few pages from the Sally and Billy reader for you to use in your artwork. Please feel free to download them. You are welcome to use them in artwork for your own use as well as artwork for sale. I would love to see any projects using these images, and a link back to me is appreciated. Please do not sell these images or include them in collections for sale.

Fabulous Goodies from the Flea Market

2010-09-11T17:50:00.000-07:00

It was tough getting up so early this morning, but my daughter Shelby reminded me that the Flea Market opened at 6 a.m. and we needed to get started if we wanted to find treasures. This absolutely amazing Flea Market is hosted by the Lion's Club and happens twice a year, so folks come from miles around looking for bargains.

There's always tons of very diverse stuff at this particular event, but I had made up a wish list of what I wanted to focus on finding - old photo albums, cabinet cards, old postage stamps, and some very old books. Shelby and I scored almost immediately. She found some vintage note cards and stationary, and I was ecstatic to find a seller that had several old photo albums. I did a brief look through and decided I had to have three of them. I bargained with the guy and got a pretty fair deal. He also had a very sweet 1940s baby book which became part of the package deal. I spent a good portion of my budget on the albums, but they were worth it.

A few sellers later, I found some zip lock bags of older U.S. stamps. I was ready to snap them up, but the price was $20 for each bag which was, sadly, just not budget friendly.

Shelby found 3 lovely vintage handkerchiefs and a darling vintage pink lady's ceramic cigarette box with 2 little ashtrays that fit inside the box. The box has little ceramic flowers on the top and each ashtray has a flower on it as well. No, she doesn't smoke but she fell in love with it because it is so unusual.

I found some old books that are falling apart for really cheap, so now I have some great materials for an upcoming project. I also found an old childrens' reader, Sally and Billy, copyright 1928.

At one of the last booths I visited, I really scored. A gentleman had a box of cabinet cards that were in excellent condition. At $1.00 each, I bought 20. The greatest part was that some had the names of the people in the photos written on the back.

it was a fabulous shopping day. Shelby came home with some very cool stuff. I came home with almost everything that I had set my sights on finding, minus the postage stamps, and only exceeded my budget by $20. Best of all, we had a great mother-daughter, spend time together day.

I'm a Winner!!!

2010-08-16T17:12:00.000-07:00

I was so excited when Kristin of Retro Cafe Art emailed to let me know that I was a winner of her fabulous giveaway. Kristen very generously gave each winner a choice of either a typewriter key necklace or 10 digital collage sheets. I chose the 10 collage sheets because I just couldn't resist them. They are fabulous. You must take a look at her blog because not only is Kristin an amazing artist, she also has amazing art supplies, vintage finds, image cd's and much more. I can't wait to do some shopping.

One Year of Blogging Giveaway!!!!!!!!!!!!!

2010-08-11T10:31:00.000-07:00

My friend Cory of Pink Dogwood Blossom is having a fabulous giveaway to celebrate the anniversary of one year of blogging. She's got some sneak peek photos of the lovely goodies she's giving away. Cory is a fabulous artist, and her blog is beautiful so be sure to visit and leave a comment to enter.

LolliShops Summer Design Reveal #3 Giveaway Winner

2010-08-08T19:43:00.000-07:00

Congratulations to Kim who is the winner of the tags that I created for Lollishops' Summer Design Reveal #3 giveaway. Please be sure to visit Kim's blog to see her lovely artwork. Thank you to all who participated in my drawing and became followers. I love making new blog friends.

Flea Market Sunday Winner!!!!

2010-08-04T18:05:00.000-07:00

Congratulations to Terri Gordon, who is the winner of the journal for the Flea Market Sunday giveaway. Hop on over to Terri's blog to view her absolutely fabulous artwork. I would like to thank everyone who so kindly left comments and signed up to follow my blog. I love making new crafty friends.

LolliShops Summer Design Reveal #3 Giveaway

2010-07-31T23:06:00.000-07:00

Summer is passing quickly, and it's that time again...time for the LolliShops Summer Design team reveal. As usual, Sadie sent some fabulous vintage ephemera, a cute little cottage made of fabric that she crafted, and other bits and bobs to work with. For this month's theme, I chose tags. I love tags and I love making them. The little cottage and froggies are perfect subjects for whimsy. The vintage little girl seems to echo the lovely sentiment on the birthday tag. I hope you like these. Please leave a comment, and you will be entered in my tag giveaway. For an added chance to win, become a follower of my blog. When you leave your comment, just mention that you've signed up to be a follower and your name will be entered twice. I'll announce the winner on August 8.

Welcome to the Flea Market

2010-07-31T22:30:00.000-07:00

It's Flea Market Sunday, and to celebrate this fun LolliShops event I'm giving away this sweet little journal. Just leave a comment and you're entered. If you'd like an added chance to win, sign up and become a follower of my blog. In your comment, please mention that you've signed up as a follower.

Flea Market Sunday on Lollishops

2010-07-31T00:58:00.000-07:00

This Sunday, August 1, is Flea Market Sunday on LolliShops.com! This event is a blog giveaway with several vendors participating, and is hosted by Sadie Lou Who of LolliShops. com. Participating is easy...for your ticket to win fabulous treasures, handmade creations, inspiration kits, and lots of other goodies, just visit the LolliShops.com blog on Sunday morning where you will find a list of participating blogs. Don't Forget!!!!!! Mark your calendars and go to the LolliShops.com blog first thing Sunday morning for a tour of the Flea Market without leaving the comfort of your home. I'll be participating in the Flea Market, so be sure to come back and visit for the chance to win my giveaway.

A Little Gem

2010-07-23T01:19:00.000-07:00

Today was a hectic day, but as I drove past my favorite thrift store I couldn't resist stopping in to see what I might find. The glass showcase that is near the entry door is always the place I stop to look at first. Unfortunately, there was a lady paying for her "finds" so I couldn't really look in the case without being rude. I hovered close by pretending to aimlessly look at some books when I heard her ask the lady behind the glass counter if she could see the little autograph book in the case. Well, I can tell you that snapped me to attention right away. Without being too obvious, I kept my eye on the little book in her hand and kept hoping that she wouldn't buy it. Well, Hallelujiah, she handed it back to the lady who put it back into the case. It seemed like forever until the customer paid for her purchases and left the store.

Like a spider on a fly, I stepped up to the case and asked the lady behind the counter if I could please see the little autograph book. My heart skipped a beat as I held it in my hand and opened the front cover. On the very first yellowed page, written in pencil, was the name Verna Newell, Kingsburg, Calif., February 18, 1929. I leafed through the autograph book and read some of the entries dating from February 18, 1929 to January 15, 1930. Also on the first page was a price sticker which I looked at with trepidation thinking that this little gem would be expensive...Imagine my surprise when I discovered that the cost of this little darling book was $3.00! Only $3.00! I snapped it up and headed home with my treasure.

Kingsburg, CA? Where's that? I Googled it and found that Kingsburg is located on Freeway 99 in the heart of the San Joaquin Valley near Fresno. Kingsburg supplies the state with lots of tree fruits, raisins, and grapes. In the early 1900s many Swedish settled there giving the town the name of "Little Sweden". A popular event, a two day long Swedish Festival is held during the third weekend in May. I think we actually drove through there once upon a time when we were on our way to visit our son, Greg, who is stationed at Fort Irwin near Barstow. I vaguely remember seeing Swedish flags.

The autograph book was a gift to Verna by an admirer - "With Love Verna, Richie Lee Vaughan". There aren't many autographed pages in the book; in fact the majority of the pages are blank, but the entries are priceless. Verna's classmates, the class of 1933, were the signers. Sadly, a few of the pages that are written in pencil are nearly illegible because they have faded, but the majority are still clear. The entry that I love the best is dated January 14, 1930:
Class of 1933
Dear Verna:
When the roses bloom in winter
And the snowflakes fall in June,
When the sun comes out at midnight
And the moon comes out at noon,
When the waters cease their flowing
And two x two is ten,
When today is tomorrow
Maybe I'll forget you then.

Your friend and classmate
Hatsune Matsuoka (this is a guess, as some of the cursive letters are illegible.)

But, the strangest thing of all, and this is definitely serendipity, is an entry in the book dated January 15, 1930, written by a girl with the first name of FRANCINE....my name...how random is that?

And the winner is.....

2010-07-22T22:00:00.000-07:00

Congratulations to Cory (Dogwood)! Cory is the winner of my LolliShops giveaway, the Have a Little Fun and Pink cards. Cory is a fabulous artist and I hope that you will visit her beautiful blog Pink Dogwood Blossom. I would like to thank all of you for participating in my giveaway, and leaving very sweet comments. I will be having a giveaway next month, so please don't forget to visit my blog and leave a comment.

LolliShops Summer Design Challenge #2 and Giveaway

2010-07-15T10:12:00.000-07:00

It's time to reveal this month's design team challenge. Sadie sent some absolutely awesome papers, ribbons, laces, buttons, tags, tickets, and darling vintage ephemera to play with. Here are 2 cards that I came up with. This challenge was a fun one, and to celebrate, I'm having a giveaway! Just leave a comment and on July 22, I'll choose a winner.

God Bless America

2010-07-04T02:18:00.001-07:00

Happy Birthday America. Live loudly for liberty! Preserve our Republic from those tyrants, both foreign and domestic, who would seek to destroy it and take away our freedoms.

Two New Finds

2010-06-22T14:11:00.000-07:00

On a whim the other day, I stopped in at one of my local thrift shops. I didn't have much time to browse around, so I almost didn't stop. But, being a thrift store junkie, I couldn't resist taking a quick look. I'm so glad I did because I found this darling, red vintage scrapbook. Red happens to be one of my favorite colors, and it was priced at only $1.00, so I decided I had to have it. It measures 8-1/2 inches by 11-1/2 inches and the pages inside are all blank. Whomever owned it, never used it. I'm not sure what I plan to do with it for now, but I'm sure I'll think of something. Any suggestions?

My second find, is a copy of the April 1954 issue of Holiday Magazine. I have never heard of this particular magazine, but it showcases getaway vacation spots. It has wonderful old ads for cars, shoes, clothing, appliances, filtered cigarettes, Cris Craft boats, makeup and more. I love the travel ads for Bermuda, New York, Miami, Brazil, Nova Scotia, South America, Oregon, Virginia, and other fascinating places. There are ads for airline travel and train travel. It also has some very interesting and insightful articles; I especially enjoyed one written by Nobel Prize winning author William Faulkner describing growing up in his native Mississippi in the small town of Oxford. The story relates how much Faulkner loves his native land and its people - "He was born of it," Faulkner says of himself, "and his bones will sleep in it."

Another article that I found interesting was about South Carolina's Pirate Coast. In the early 1700s, the infamous Blackbeard, "gentleman pirate" Stede Bonnet, and other lesser known buccaneers sailed from Carribean harbors to Charleston and the sea islands of Carolina's coast. Blackbeard was notorious for wearing an arsenal of pistols and lighted matches in his hair. The article went on to relate the legend of the young woman who lived in a large house near the old city gate. The author, Herbet Ravenel Sass states, "In the preserved house is an old family Bible, on the yellowed flyleaf of which is written a scandalous thing: that a daughter of a certain excellent local family had run away from home and kindred to become the latest 'wife' of Captain Edward Teach - the celebrated pirate Blackbeard. Now I had long known about this woman, but only as a legend, a whisper from the Coast's incredible past - a whisper which said that of Blackbeard's many loves his ultimate favorite was a magnificent creature both beautiful and damned who had been a high-born Carolinian lady". Mr. Sass goes on to state that as a youth he had dismissed the legend as one of the old wives' tales with which the Coast abounds, but now believes the story to be true; a pirate treasure better than a chest of doubloons.

Here is a picture from the magazine depicting Blackbeard with his guns and smoking hair. The magazine is oversize and will not fit on my scanner, but I will attempt to take pictures of the ads and post them soon.

Swap Meet Adventures

2010-06-05T19:38:00.000-07:00

After lunch today, my daughter Shelby and I drove to a swap meet we had heard about. When we arrived, we were surprised to see that a few of the vendors were already packing up their stuff to leave. We found out that the sale had begun at 5:30 this morning; way too early for us! Even though we arrived "late", we managed to find some good stuff. We rummaged through a box of greeting cards and found a few older ones, so we snapped those up. At another booth, I found a small, in nearly perfect condition, green ledger that I fell in love with and had to have. The lady I purchased it from was very sweet and in a bargaining mood, so I managed to get it for half the asking price. The inner pages have no marks or writing on them, so I think that I will use it as a personal journal.

My next purchase was a small shoebox containing old photos. Some had been removed from a photo album and had black paper spots on the backs. Some of the photos had notations on the back, and all of the others were blank. It always makes me kind of sad to see treasured photos of someone's loved ones now ripped out of the album and put into a shoe box (sitting on the ground) for sale. I love these photos and try to think up little stories and scenarios about the people.

Another treasure I found is a magazine called Delineator, which I have never heard of. It's dated September 1943, and the original price was ten cents. I absolutely love the very fashionable lady on the cover powdering her nose. The magazine has fashion ads, recipes, stories, food ads, and home decor articles. I will see if I can scan some of the ads and post them later; the magazine is a larger format than my scanner so I may have to take some photos. I scanned the cover, and as you can see I wasn't able to get the entire thing.By this time, all the vendors were packing up, but my last stop netted me a few older postcards. After I scan them, I will post some of these.

Oh, and not to forget about Shelby...she found a darling, collectible figurine, a background rubber stamp, and some vintage trim. Both of us came home with little sunburns on our necks and faces, free of charge.

LolliShops Summer Design Challenge

2010-06-01T00:23:00.000-07:00

I was so excited when I received the LolliShops design team kit from Sadie Lou containing the sweetest vintage goodies ever. The vintage birthday card was absolutely darling, and I couldn't resist the lace, ribbon, sheer fabrics, buttons and the most adorable velveteen flower with a little heart shaped pin. The precious little girl was not only on the front of the card but also on the inside, so I determined that I would use both of them in my creation. In keeping with the vintage elements, I decided to do a shabby birthday themed collage on a canvas. I began by layering acrylic paints, vintage calendar pages, birthday sheet music, dictionary pages, paper scraps, the fabric and elements included in the design kit, and I rubber stamped swirls and flowers to finish. I hope you like my first design team creation. I'm really looking forward to see what challenge Sadie has lined up for next month.

Shabby Repurposed Journal

2010-05-28T23:59:00.000-07:00

I heard about an online journal making class given by Mary Ann Moss, and after visiting her blog , I couldn't wait to sign up and get started. I love the idea of repurposing pages from old magazines, books, ledgers, receipts, security envies, leftover scrapbook paper, fabric, maps, and anything else that I can get my hands on. The possibilities are endless, and finding things to use for my pages is like going on a treasure hunt.

Here are pics of my first journal. I didn't make a sewn cover for this journal, but decided to use chipboard instead and covered it with scrapbook paper and then collaged. As you can see, the pages are sewn - very easy and fun. Since this journal is done in shabby style, sewing isn't precise, adding to the shabby look. For my next journal, I'll definitely be experimenting with a sewn cover.

I enjoy watching Mary Ann's many videos; she explains everything clearly each step of the way. I especially like that there are no time limits - I am able to work at my own pace. Included in the class are many printouts of journaling boxes and ephemera to use in the journals. I highly recommend this class.

A New Challenge

2010-05-27T01:48:00.000-07:00

I've been chosen by my friend Sadie Lou to be a guest design team member for the Summer for LolliShops . Sadie Lou is a wonderful artist and always manages to come up with the most amazing creations. Visit Sadie's blog, Sadie Lou Who to see what she's been up to.

I was a little nervous and very flattered that Sadie would give me an opportunity to create for LolliShops. Not only did she invite me to play, but my daughter Shelby as well. Shelby is a budding artist and has incredible talent. It will be fun sharing my studio space with her.

I was really excited when I opened my packet from Sadie and found the darling vintage birthday card, lace, ribbons, fabric, buttons, and a few other embellishments (not in the photo). Now the challenge begins...let's see what I can come up with. I'll post on June 1st.

National Letter Writing Month

2010-04-30T00:34:00.000-07:00

Did you know that April is National Letter Writing Month? I had no idea until my friend Lindsay Ostrom posted a 28 day challenge on her blog. Lindsay comes up with some fabulous ideas for challenges each month. If you would like to play along, just email Lindsay. Each day was an adventure going to my mailbox to see what fabulous, creative mail art would be waiting for me from blog pals near and far. Making cards to send was a great creative challenge for me, because I don't really consider myself a card maker. I almost purchased some ready-made cards to send, but couldn't find any that I liked or were appropriate for the challenge. Instead, I purchased blank cards with envelopes and some blank tags with envelopes and brought them home to my little studio to see what I could come up with. I made the decision that I would try to use up the images and scraps that I had left over from other projects. It was an incredible adventure and exercise in creativity, and I was amazed to find that my leftovers went together fairly well. I really got hooked on making cards, and especially loved making tags. I thought you might like to see what I came up with.

Signs of Spring

2010-04-18T00:38:00.000-07:00

There was a break in the rain, so I took the opportunity to go for a walk at Western Gateway Park in Penn Valley. Squirrel Creek flows through the park, so I decided to meander down the trail that parallels the creek and led to this little bridge. The oak trees hadn't begun to leaf out yet, but the creek had lots of water from the abundant rain, and the new spring vegetation was green and lush. In the damp, shady spots I found patches of lovely, succulent miner's lettuce (Claytonia perfoliata). As the name implies, Miner's lettuce was harvested by California gold rush miners of 1849 as a source of vitamin C to prevent scurvy. It was most commonly eaten in salads, but could be boiled like spinach. It was also a favorite of California Indians. I love the taste of Miner's lettuce, which reminds me a bit of spinach, so of course, I had to gather a few young leaves to munch on. I wandered onto anther trail and spotted a chunk of bark with moss and lichens. The dead leaves on the ground were quite a contrast to the lush surroundings, but I noticed that shoots of green grass were poking up through the rotting leaves. As I neared the end of my walk, I was happily surprised to encounter a patch of lovely wild violets. I couldn't resist picking one of the violets - the fragrance was delicate and amazing. The fragrance was so lovely that I kept sniffing it all the way home.

1960s Shrine

2010-04-15T00:01:00.001-07:00

This shrine was inspired by a challenge for our Blind Faith art group. I applied gesso to a cigar box that I acquired at a yard sale last summer, choosing red as my main color and blue for some of my lettering and for accent. I found some 60s themed scrapbook paper to cover the front and as a lining on the inside of the shrine. I glazed over the papers to mute the bright colors and then stamped peace symbols in white. I bought a package of zig zag cigarette papers and painted them using acrylic colors that coordinated with the scrapbook paper. To make my collage on the inside cover of the shrine, I photocopied some of the mini posters and other ephemera I had collected when I frequented the Avalon Ballroom and Haight Street in San Francisco. I drew the flower child and gave her bell bottoms and a tie-dyed shirt. The "roach clip" is actually a hair clip that I embellished with beads and and charms. I printed out the words from the song Where Have All The Flowers Gone on a transparency, cut them in strips, and glued them around the inside of the shrine.

WTJ Update

2009-08-22T01:12:00.000-07:00

I've been making progress in my journal, but I'm still sticking with doing the "safer" pages. I've sewn a page, made thick and thin lines, rubbed a page with dirt, tore out a page and put it through the wash cycle and glued it back in, dribbled paint on a page, glued in random items that I found on the street, glued, scribbled, pressed leaves, and dropped the journal from my second story balcony. All of that was fun, but I realized that I wasn't pushing myself to actually do something destructive. I decided that I needed to muster up the courage to take the journal into the shower. I began very cautiously by hanging it from the soap dish using string. As I showered, I noticed that the journal was getting sprayed only lightly. I really wanted to get it wetter, but on the other hand, I didn't want it to get saturated because of potential mold issues. I repositioned the journal so more spray would hit it. By this time I was really getting into the process and would purposely aim the shower head to spray on the journal. The end result was that the front and back covers, and pages closest to the covers, were fairly wet. The inner pages were more protected, so only the edges of those pages were wet. The journal is now drying, and I'm happy to say that it has taken on a somewhat warped look. All in all, I was surprised that I was able to let go and not be so protective of my work; in fact, taking it in the shower was liberating and fun.

New Journal Page

2009-07-29T23:40:00.000-07:00

Recently, my friend Lindsay invited me to participate in a local artists group known as the Blind Faith Book Club. Members meet monthly to socialize and display their art. This month's prompt was "What I did on my Summer vacation". We were to create a project of our choice using only things we already had in our craft supplies. The project could be a scrapbook page, journal page, fiber art piece, paper sculpture, or whatever. Since circumstances have prevented me from doing anything fun this summer, I chose to create a journal page so I could write about how much I miss traveling and camping.

As you may notice, some of my words and letters in the journaling are a little darker in spots. This is the result of the gel pen I was using. The pen kept skipping so I had to go back over some letters, and I also had spots where the ink was smearing. I left things as they were; quite a change for me, since before doing Wreck This Journal I would have been really upset about how imperfect the journaling turned out. Surprise of surprises, I actually like the way the lettering looks.

Wreck This Journal Update

2009-07-29T23:04:00.000-07:00

Well, so far I've managed to rip, chew, cut, tear, poke holes, scratch, pour coffee, drip paint, draw, burn, and generally be destructive to the pages of my journal. I've collected fruit stickers and grocery receipts to glue into the journal. I'm working on collecting things that I find on the street, in my couch, in my pocket, my purse, and anywhere else to add to the pages. While some of the instructions on the pages of the journal may seem simplistic and innocuous, I believe there is a deeper purpose in these exercises. This project is extremely therapeutic and is giving me the ability to free myself from my "things always have to be perfect" syndrome. It's quite liberating to take a sharp object in hand and poke and scratch pages, rip pages out, and generally be messy. Since beginning this project, I believe my artwork is reflecting this new attitude that imperfection is part of the work and has value. Mostly though, it's fun! More destruction updates in the future.

Wreck This Journal??????

2009-07-12T00:36:00.000-07:00

The BIG question is...Will I really be able to wreck this journal? When it comes to my artwork, I get hung up on the "fear" that I might wreck my work by doing something that I might not like, and regret having done. I lack the courage to be free when creating. I want to be able to create, experiment, and not worry about the outcome.

When I learned about this journal by Keri Smith, I figured it might be the answer to my fear of letting go and encourage creative experimentation. I especially love Keri's statement on the title page, "to create is to destroy". She also issues a warning, "You may be asked to do things you question. You may grieve for the perfect state that you found the book in. You may begin to see creative destruction everywhere. You may begin to live more recklessly." I think this is exactly what I need. The idea of always trying to achieve perfection is a creativity killer.

Will I be able to rip, poke holes, chew, crumple and deface pages? Will I be hesitant about using a page as a napkin, taking the journal for a walk by dragging it down the road, or taking it in the shower? Let's just say that I'm working up to it by doing the "safer" pages first. My first page involved going to the grocery store and collecting fruit stickers to glue onto the page. Now, that's pretty easy and safe. It's a good thing that the pages can be done in any order.

Incidentally, my 19-year-old daughter, Shelby, wanted to play along, so she bought herself a copy. She's ahead of me on the amount of pages she's done, and she is being very fearless about wrecking her journal. She's really having fun with the process and takes her journal everywhere. Her courage is an inspiration to me. At least I will have her for creative support when we take our journals for a walk down the gravel road.

Les Petits Roi et Riene - Final Project Completed

2009-05-29T08:03:00.000-07:00

All finished! Adding the boy doll to the layout was a challenge. I had to place him just so in order that his arm fit behind her at the right spot, and I didn't want to have his legs partially covered by her skirt. Rather than paint her dress and his jacket, I used scrapbook paper. I wanted the hair to resemble the powdered wigs worn at the time; they were pretty elaborate but I decided to keep it simple. I'm pretty happy with the way my little king and queen turned out. This class was so much fun and has really inspired me to draw more Petit Dolls. Thanks Suzi!

Petit Dolls Final Project Sketch

2009-05-29T07:43:00.000-07:00

For the final class project, I chose to use a doll I drew that was my interpretation of Marie Antoinette. Suzi had provided us with a template of a boy doll that we could use if we chose. The style of her boy didn't exactly work out for my girl, so I redrew his face and parts of his body to make him fit my theme. He's upside down because her skirt was so full that I had to flip my sketch book in order to fit him on the same page. Unfortunately my scanner cut half of him off, but you get the idea.

Petit Doll with Kitty

2009-05-29T01:01:00.000-07:00

Before I cut out my Petit Doll, I prepared my wood piece. I chose my color palette. Since I would be giving her a pink dress, I decided to go with pink, purple, touches of blue, and anything else I thought would work. I chose paper scraps to add to my background for interest. When I was satisfied with my preliminary background, I cut out my doll and glued her on. Once she was thoroughly dry, I painted her eyes, lips, hair, and dress. At this point, I decided to scrap the dolly she is holding and substitute a flower instead. I added more color to her face and gave her pinky cheeks. To finish, I also touches of color to the background, some stamped images, and embellishments. I also added a little friend. Here is my completed Project 1.

Petit Doll Project 1

2009-05-29T00:47:00.000-07:00

After I drew my dolls, I decided I would use the doll holding her dolly since she would be a bit simpler to work with. I began working on shading her face using colored pencils and blending the colors together in order to give her pleasing skin tones . At this point, I left her eyes, hair, and dress uncolored because I wanted to do these after she was cut out and mounted on my board. Her nose smeared a little during the blending process because I had sketched with a softer lead pencil. I knew I could wait and correct the smear after gluing her onto the board.

Petit Doll Sketches

2009-05-29T00:37:00.000-07:00

After playing with heads, the next step was to sketch a Petit Doll on paper that would be for our first project. Suzi encouraged us to draw dolls with simple lines so it would be easier to cut them out. I made these two sketches.

Petit Dolls Beginner Class

2009-05-29T00:15:00.000-07:00

In April, I signed up to do Suzi Blu's Petit Dolls Beginner Class. I had taken the Petit Dolls Winter class, which I really loved, so when Suzi offered this class I knew I had to do it. In this class, Suzi is covering more of the basics like background preparation, composition, shading, shabby technique, embellishments, using beeswax, and lots of other cool stuff. Suzi is a great teacher who generously shares her knowledge, is encouraging, and genuinely cares about her students.

At the beginning of the class, we were encouraged to make sketches of heads and experiment with drawing eyes, noses, lips, hair, and eyebrows to give our dolls different expressions.

Mother's Day ATC

2009-05-28T23:31:00.000-07:00

Life has been a little crazy, so it's been awhile since I've posted. In between all of the busy stuff, I've managed to fit in some one on one time with my Muse to create. Working in my journal is a great stress reliever and is very freeing for me since I can simply play with no pressure or expectations. It's been a lifesaver!

Before I knew it, Mother's Day was looming on my horizon. I decided that I wanted to make an ATC to send to my friend Jerilyn as a surprise. I looked through some photos I had collected and absolutely loved this one. The sweet expression of love between the little girl and her mother touched my heart, and made me think of the love shared between mothers and their children throughout the centuries. I love the way it turned out, and Jeri was thrilled to receive it in the mail.

Valentine Blog Party Winners

2009-03-02T14:45:00.000-08:00

I wrote all of the names on slips of paper of those who left comments on my giveaway, placed then in a big bowl, mixed them up and randomly chose two names. The winner of the Love ATC is Judy H. of http://www.knottyneedle.blogspot.com/. The winner of the B is for Bird Gothic Arch is Heather of http://heathersdaydreams.blogspot.com/. Congratulations Judy and Heather! I want to thank all of you who took the time to stop by my blog and leave very kind comments. The blog party was fun, and I loved visiting each blog, seeing all the gorgeous artwork, and getting to know all of you.

Valentine's Day Giveaway

2009-02-14T22:34:00.001-08:00

In honor of our Valentine's Day Blog Party, I have created the Love ATC and B is for Bird Gothic Arch as giveaways. If you would like to enter, please leave a comment and after 12 noon on Sunday, March 1, I will have a random drawing to choose 2 winners. Please be sure to leave me an email address or blog address to link back to.

Freebies

2009-02-14T22:08:00.000-08:00

I found these old books at the thrift store Please feel free to download them and use them in your artwork. The Lettering book has a copyright date of 1895, and Agatha's Unknown Way has a copyright date of 1898. Please do not include these images in a collection or collage sheet for sale.

Saltine Toffee Almond Candy

2009-02-14T18:04:00.000-08:00

This recipe is amazingly easy to prepare and uses ingredients that are readily available. The candy is so delicious because it's sweet, salty, crunchy, has chocolate and toasted almonds.

Saltine Toffee Almond Candy

Ingredients:
Saltine Crackers - approximately 1-1/2 sleeves
4 ounces butter (1 cube)
1 cup packed brown sugar
2 cups chocolate chips (semi-sweet or milk chocolate)
3/4 cup toasted almonds, chopped (or other nuts desired)

Preparation:
Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.

Place almonds in a pan and toast in oven until lightly browned. Watch carefully so that the almonds don't scorch. Remove from heat and let cool while preparing the candy.

Line a 15-1/2 inch x 10-1/2 inch x 1-inch baking sheet with aluminum foil; spray foil with non-stick cooking spray.

Arrange the saltine crackers in a single layer on the foil lined baking sheet, making sure there are no empty spaces between the crackers.

In a small saucepan over medium-high heat, melt the butter and sugar, stirring while the sugar melts. Bring the mixture to a rolling boil and boil for 3 minutes. Carefully pour the sugar-butter mixture over the saltines, covering as many crackers as possible (toffee will spread in the oven).

Bake the crackers in the oven for 5 to 6 minutes until the toffee is bubbling. While crackers are baking, chop the almonds.

Carefully remove the pan from the oven and allow to cool for 1 minute. Sprinkle the chocolate chips over the top of the hot toffee, and let sit for 5 minutes so chips will soften and begin to melt. Using a knife or spatula, spread the melted chocolate over the entire surface of the toffee. Sprinkle with chopped toasted almonds. Cool completely. Break into pieces to serve.

A Small Visitor

2009-02-14T17:51:00.000-08:00

I looked out my kitchen window and noticed that a hawk had decided to perch on the limb of one of the oak trees.

Snow In The Sierra's

2009-02-14T17:23:00.000-08:00

Another storm came in bringing us much needed moisture in the form of snow. The only problem we had was that power lines were knocked down, so we were without power from 7:30 a.m. on Friday to 5:17 a.m. Saturday morning. It's a good thing we have a wood stove in the living area to keep us warm, and where I was able to do a little simple meal preparation. The worst part was that our well is pump-driven, so with no electricity we aren't able to run the water. We had some emergency water set aside, so that helped. No television and no video games, so we played board games by oil lamp light. I also worked on some Valentine's Day cards for my family. Even though I had the oil lamps and candles lit, it was really difficult to see what I was cutting with the X-acto knife. All the while, I kept thinking about those brave pioneer women who created their beautiful quilts with tiny stitches by lamp and firelight! It really made me thankful for electricity. I thought you all might enjoy this gorgeous view of the snowy landscape from my kitchen window.

Petite Dolls Workshop

2009-02-02T21:17:00.000-08:00

I joined Suzi Blu's Petite Dolls Workshop, so I've been working my way through the lessons. I began doing some practice sketches of eyes and getting the shape and placement correct, head shapes, head tilts, lips, gesture sketches, shading and blending. When I felt confortable with the beginning level, I moved on to sketching faces, drawing and shading and blending the eyes, and working on hair styles. Suzi is a great teacher, and her pdf's and videos are uplifting, entertaining, extremely instructional, and fun. She makes each step look easy, with the emphasis on practice, practice, practice. So far, I've been sketching on paper, but I'm ready to try sketching on a piece of birch playwood and then using a woodburning tool to outline the doll. I'll use watercolor pencils and acrylics to shade and paint the doll. I think one of the most important things I've learned from Suzi is to take chances, and that it's ok to mess up or ruin a piece because it's part of the learning process.

Whart Will You Say Yes To In Your Life?

2008-11-24T00:16:00.001-08:00

Suzi Blu's art challenge was, What Will You Say Yes To In Your Life? Many of us in Suzi's group are participating in the 3 Week Challenge, November 23 through December 14, which is based on the book The Artist's Way, A Spiritual Path of Higher Creativity, by Julia Cameron. This book is guiding us on the journey to discover and recover our creative selves, to encourage our artist brain, and to disarm the logic brain that is the constant critic that stifles our creativity. I say "Yes" to having the courage to let myself take chances in my art. What will you say "Yes" to? Want to join the callenge? http://3weekchallenge.ning.com/

Days of Yesteryear ATC Swap

2008-11-23T23:10:00.000-08:00

The theme of this swap was Days of Yesteryear. It was make 3 and get 3 back. This swap was really fun because the theme had so many possibilities.

Because it was so close to election time, I chose to do votes for women. Can you imagine what it must have been like for these courageous suffragettes motoring through the states in an effort to get women the vote? This photo was taken in 1916 in the Nevada desert. It must have been a real challenge traveling in the heat in a car with no air conditioning and wearing those long dresses with long sleeves, and who knows what they wore underneath - corsets, pantalets?

I have always admired Annie Oakley. She was born in 1860 in a log cabin in Ohio. Her father died when she was 9 years old, so Annie shot game to feed her family. She gained the reputation as being an expert marksman. At the age of 16 she entered a shooting competition in Cincinnati where she competed against another expert marksman, Frank Butler. Annie won the competition by one point and also won Frank Butler's heart. They married and performed in a traveling shooting act. In 1885 they joined Buffalo Bill Cody's Wild West Show, and Annie was the star of the show for 17 years. Annie Oakley succeeded in breaking down barriers for women with her determination, strength of character, talents, and accomplishments.

The Jazz Age was a flamboyant time. New attitudes, and the philosophy of individualism were epitomized by the flapper culture. Flappers had style; they were "modern". They were considered fast and brazen by the older generation. Flappers wore makeup, bobbed their hair, wore glitzy, baggy dresses that exposed their arms, short skirts that exposed their legs, and wore their stockings rolled down and powdered their knees. They were the flaming youth of America.

Gothic Arch Theme

2008-11-05T01:25:00.000-08:00

The theme for this week is Vintage Children; here is what I came up with.

Intuitive Collage

2008-11-04T00:09:00.000-08:00

Nurture the Inner Child

The Journey

The prompt is to go through magazines and intuitively choose images that catch my attention and elicit a reaction . I started with a background, and once that was glued down I began looking at the various images that I thought I might want to use on my page. I began arranging the images on my page, but was surprised that some of the images I thought would work, didn't. When I was happy with my arrangement, I glued everything in place. I studied my finished collages to see if I could find some meaning for myself in what I had put together.

In Nurture the Inner Child, I see the background as being a setting of peace and serenity, like being on vacation. The dream-like woman represents me and my dreams of what I want to accomplish. The clock tells me that it's a time in my life to throw off any constraints and let my inner child come out to play. The child is standing in the water which represents life - placid on the surface, but with currents flowing beneath. The bird represents a time of stillness to enjoy the process; the butterfly symbolizes freedom to fly with my dreams.

In The Journey, the woman walking on the road is myself. I'm larger than my surroundings because I'm confident I can overcome whatever diversions come my way. In my hand, I carry a plant, symbolizing growth. I am growing and maturing as I am on this journey. I have been on this journey for some time. The various buildings in the background indicate that I have stopped along the way. The mountains represent my inner strength, stability, and endurance. The clouds tell me that I will not always have blue skies, but challenges will come. The stone arch is my protection and shields me. It also emphasizes that the focus is on me - I am the one who decides which direction I will travel. The flower reminds me to see the beauty all along the way. The open door represents new opportunities that await me as I travel along my road.

Doodles

2008-11-01T00:47:00.000-07:00

My interpretation of the Doodles Sampler prompt.

Lost and Found Prompt

2008-10-31T22:53:00.000-07:00

Throughout the day on day 1, we were to intuitively collect everyday items that could be worked into a collage. Some of the items I collected were an old postcard of Venice, an Italian candy kiss wrapper, a ticket for a drawing, a child's playing card, an Italian illustration of a baby eating candy, the words Admit One from a dental appointment card, and assorted clip art.

On day 2, I made a border out of my collected items, and on days 3 and 4, I collected affirmative "I" statements that I wrote on the veins of a leaf that I had printed out from a photo of fall leaves provided by Kathryn.

On day 5, I added photos and journaled about what I had lost and what I had found. On the Lost page, there is an arrow pointing to an element with a blue brad in the corner. Under the flap is a secret message. The message was a little fortune that came in a Baci Italian candy kiss and reads: Give me a hundred kisses, a thousand kisses and yet hundreds more, kisses by the thousands.

Creating my Lost page was very emotional for me, because it brought back so many memories of my grandmother who had passed away when I was 9 years old. I lived with my grandmother and grandfather from the time I was very little, so losing her was a very traumatic experience. The found page was a joy to create because I now have a beautiful little grandaughter. My final step was to add the leaf with the affirmation statements I had written.

Halloween Gothic Arches

2008-10-29T21:22:00.000-07:00

Bat Girl

Girls' Night Out

Witch's Brew

Art with Suzi Blu

2008-10-26T23:24:00.000-07:00

Project Suzi #1 was to make a crown. I traced my pattern on an old file folder, cut it out and painted it. I used gaffers tape for the design on the bottom. My embellishments are faux rhinestones, little mirrors, silk flowers and leaves, and confetti stars. I hot glued the crown to a plastic headband. The pouffies are made from strips of scrunched up tulle hot glued to the inside of the headband. It's good to be Queen!

Happy Halloween and Welcome To The Party

2008-10-26T01:09:00.001-07:00

2008-10-26T00:39:00.000-07:00

Welcome to the Soul Journal Halloween Blog Party hosted by Collage Diva and the Yahoo Soul Journal Group! It's wonderful to have you stop by and I hope you will visit the participating blogs listed on Collage Diva's blog. Here is a recipe for Pumpkin Bars that are easy to make and absolutely fabulous.

Pumpkin Bars

2 cups all-purpose flour
2 tsp. baking powder
2 tsp. ground cinnamon
1 tsp. baking soda
1/4 tsp. salt
4 eggs
1 15-oz. can pumpkin
1 2/3 cups sugar
1 cup cooking oil
3/4 cup chopped pecans (optional)
1 recipe Cream Cheese Frosting
Pecan halves (optional)

In a medium bowl stir together flour, baking powder, cinnamon, baking soda, and salt; set aside. In a large mixing bowl beat together eggs, pumpkin, sugar, and oil. Add the flour mixture; beat until well combined. Stir in chopped pecans, if desired.

Spread batter in an ungreased 15x10x1-inch baking pan. Bake in a 350 degree oven for 25 to 30 minutes or until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean. Cool on wire rack. Frost with Cream Cheese Frosting. Top with additional pecan halves, if desired. Cut into squares. Store in refrigerator. Makes 24 bars.

Cream Cheese Frosting:
In a medium bowl beat together one 3-ounce package cream cheese, softened; 1/4 cup butter or margarine, softened; and 1 teaspoon vanilla until fluffy. Gradually add 2 cups sifted powdered sugar, beating until smooth.

2008-10-25T23:48:00.000-07:00

I Give Myself Permission To...

2008-10-24T00:26:00.000-07:00

This prompt was designed to help us listen to our hearts. We may be so busy working, doing daily chores and taking care of others, that we neglect ourselves. It's important for us to make time for ourselves and create art. Our mission was to create a permission slip by writing permission statements enabling our creativity. A few of the permissions I gave myself were to create my own style, to dream, to have patience with myself, to disregard negative criticism, to try new things, to make mistakes, to pack away doubts, and to have no self-criticism. My permission slip is safely tucked away in the envelope until I need to refer to it again.

Step Out

2008-10-23T23:18:00.000-07:00

The journey continues for our Yahoo Soul Journal group with the first prompt, Instant Gratification. Our instructions were to flip through catalogs or magazines and pull out any images that grabbed our attention. After selecting an image, we were to glue the image on the page leaving room at the top for a title. The next step was to trace around the image and draw lines following the contour. Using gel pens or markers, we were to write in the lines; finishing touches were then added. I loved this picture, because to me it represents freedom in my art; to be bold and courageous, to step out and create with no boundaries, not to be afraid to create for myself regardless of whether my art appeals to other people or not, and not to be affected by negative criticism.

Fall Color

2008-10-22T13:50:00.000-07:00

Faerie ATC's

2008-10-18T16:42:00.000-07:00

Here are the ATC's I made for the faerie swap that I signed up for

Miss Bella Misfit

2008-10-17T00:07:00.000-07:00

We were to do a spread about the time we felt like a misfit. Following Sarah's instructions, I began my misfit character by doodling a random shape on the page using a fine tip permanent marker. I studied the doodle to see if any of those lines resembled a character. This was really challenging to me because I had gotten carried away and had so many lines on the page that it was hard to distinguish a usable shape. Finally, after a few days of studying, Bella took on a life of her own and began to emerge. As you can see, she has decided to be the Dolly Parton of Misfits.

My Home and the Neighborhood

2008-10-16T23:38:00.000-07:00

Sarah had us recreate our home and our neighborhood. The house we drew was to be a symbolic one - such as what we would have drawn when we were children. I drew my house as a single story, using dictionary paper as a faux shingle look for the roof and chimney. The front of the house is a pocket made from a paper bag that will hold the paper dolls I am still working on of myself and my family. Since I live near an 1849-era gold rush city in the Sierra Nevada Foothills where the architecture is predominately Victorian, I chose to draw my own version of Victorian-style homes for my neighborhood.

Taped Pages

2008-10-16T23:14:00.000-07:00

Making these pages was so interesting. Sarah had us gather different types of tapes we had around the house. I used masking tape, foil tape, strapping tape, electrical tape in a couple of different colors, and clear duct tape. I made sure I had some scrunched up areas of tape to add texture and interest. After the pages were taped, I did some sanding to remove the shiny surfaces and expose some of the fibers in the strapping tape. I applied a wash of blue acrylic paint, and wiped the excess off with a paper towel. To give my pages an antiqued look I did another wash of very thin brown paint in some areas and wiped that off. I absolutely love how the scrunched tape areas and textures of the different tapes really show up. I decided to leave these pages as they were and not add anything else because I wanted to be able to make color copies and use them as backgrounds for other projects.

Inchies

2008-10-16T23:00:00.000-07:00

For the inchies pages, Sarah sent us on a scavenger hunt to find images in magazines, or parts of images that caught our attention. We had a specific list of images to look for - a smile, hands, a flower, a bird, something beautiful, something exotic, a chair, a pattern - just to name a few. Background colors and arrangement of our inchies was totally up to us. This was a very fun page to do.

Soul Journal

2008-10-16T22:53:00.001-07:00

Sarah Whitmire at Caspiana issued a new visual journaling challenge to everyone with a willing, creative spirit. She urged us to join her on a journey that would let loose our creative souls. The opportunity to go on a journey with daily, guided journaling prompts that would unleash my creative self was a experience I couldn't pass up. The Soul Journal challenge is still open, so if you would like to participate follow this link to Sarah's site http://sarahwhitmire.blogspot.com/