new collage pages in my art journal

i have to tell you a little story....see that shiny green/ gold piece with the wonderful pattern with the little pull tab? well, i was shopping and always looking for interesting napkins or kleenex, and spotted those at a checkout. i was so excited to see the pattern, and thinking that the pattern was ON the kleenex. well, let me tell you what, i opened it to use my wonderful new kleenex to discover, the pattern was ONLY on the packaging! what the heck?! so now i have loose kleenex in my studio because i have used the plastic wrap for art.

i bought the cute colored folder tabs at our little variety store that will be closing and matched it up with my tea wrapper and part of a recipe for a coffee cake. not to worry...i  didn't use my gramma's recipe card. i managed to score a vintage box of recipes at an auction, so that i when i want to use something like that for something arty, i don't have to feel bad about tearing or destroying the recipe.

this is a top view. the page on the left was a skinny page so you can see some of the other pages done previously. you can easily see my kleenex wrapper with the tab now.

i decided to break out the embossing powder- a lovely shade of green....some stamping, a paint chip, a little watercolor background, and poof!

some scraps on my counter....

this was a beginning of a landscape, that will now be something mixed media; and i thought needed the sticker through it....what are you gonna do?!

oh, here is a sneak peek at my newest "doll" for a lack of a better word. the spring is a little too long and the head was wobbly- so i had to hold it. :) and i need to find some arms.

feeling uninspired....

i had started this piece at my art class, and unfortunately have not gone back to it yet....i am feeling out of sort with my creative side. i was in my shop on sunday and couldn't hardly get anything to work. i don't know if it is the oppressive heat here in the midwest and my lack of wanting to do anything, or if my creative mojo took a summer vacation without me. i collaged first, and taped off the edges, and then, used matte medium to create the diamond shapes, and watercolor is what is providing the color so far.

junkin' at the flea market

got up early yesterday to drive to this little bitty town in SD- population 81, but, seriously trying to get their flea market going. when i go to flea markets though, i want flea market deals, and the stuff in the background here although interesting- more like antique dealer pricing...i was bumming just a bit...

however, there was an old farmer gentleman who had come late and had by far the most interesting stuff (in my eyes) with great rusty patina. check out this studebaker tail light.

loved this light...i did buy 2 items from this farmer- a vintage hood ornament (for $2 :) and some rusty large gear thing (which was totally cool- especially at $3.)

oh- i did also score these 2 way cool green glass jars. when i saw the vintage label, i think i almost hurt my arm grabbing it out of the $3 box....

and check out the texture on the jar and the perfectly rusty lid- these also were such a score. totally worth the trip to this little bitty town!! are there good flea market by you? would love to hear where the good one are!

friday's charm

i had bought stuff to make charms, and finally had a chance to play. these were a few of my first ones. i, of course, used shinky dinks, stamping, staz-on ink, and UTEE. can't wait to put them onto a bracelet!

"berried" delight

there is an artist reception tonight, and this is the summer dessert i made....a family favorite for us- berried delight from jello. to make the crust: 1 1/2 c of graham cracker crumbs (i use more- probably double), 1/4 c sugar, 1/2 c (1 stick) butter or margarine melted. add sugar and butter accordingly if you double the crumbs. mix all together in your pan, pressing firmly. refrigerate until ready to fill.

this will be your next layer. it is a 8oz package of cream cheese, softened, 1/4 c sugar and 2 Tbls milk. mix until smooth. once you are happy with the smoothness- add 1/2 of a 8 oz tub of cool whip topping, thawed.

once the above is mixed well and smooth, spread over your graham cracker crust.

you will need 2 pints of strawberries, hulled and halved. then, layer your strawberries on your cream cheese/ cool whip layer. just one layer of strawberries- i normally just make rows to fill my pan.

this layer is pudding. you will need 3 1/2 cup of cold milk, and 2 (4-serving) packages of instant vanilla pudding and pie filling. mix the milk and pudding in a large bowl for 2 minutes until thick and then pour over your cream cheese and strawberries. this needs to be refrigerated for 4 hours or until set. just before serving, spread the other half of the cool whip over the pudding. and enjoy!! it is relatively easy to make and always a favorite!

for Margaret

in my small town is basically a 5&dime store on main street called Renfro's Variety. the little lady that runs that store turned 97 this year and finally decided that she should retire and sell the store. the last week items have been 50% off of the already almost ridiculously low prices. i went to look through and pick up anything of interest both thursday and again on friday. thursday was "hot dog" night here, and Margaret had participated in hot dog night for the last 50 years, and the store was packed. her family ran the till and assisted customers so she could visit with everyone- which she loved to do. on friday, she actually rang up my stuff herself and thank me for coming. if you needed something and couldn't find it anywhere- you went to Margaret's- she would always have those items! she past away yesterday. God bless you Margaret! an end to an era and something already rare these days....you will be missed.

clarity

i wish i had a window into life. i am feeling slightly out of focus and wanting some change. and maybe all that is needed is to remove the clutter. we cleaned and reorganized the spot just outside of my studio, and what a difference it made. i can actually get to all of my canvas. crazy....i am in need of clarity. less stuff. i have a fair amount of stuff that i have collected from auctions (and good stuff i might add :)). i am debating on how to get rid of some of this. should i consider another etsy store- one with just vintage items? is there someone out there that does this? i am just unsure. part of me just wants it gone- and the good will trailer will be here in a week. or, i don't need a fortune for my items, but, i am not sure on the shipping and listings. any advice?

figure drawing- 1st attempt

i am lucky enough to live close to a larger city with universities...ones with great art departments. my mom and a few friends have been going to this drawing time for quite a while, and i had been wanting to give it a try. it finally worked out last night. drawing is not necessarily my strongest suit, but, i would like to change that. this group normally meets on thursday evenings and rotates models between male and female. i was using a sketch and wash pencil to do my initial drawing. then, it blends nicely with a little water.

here we were getting more into the drawing after the warm ups....i only showed you a couple of my first ones because i have not done figure drawing before and he would only hold the pose for about 8 minutes....i was barely getting anything down! this one was a little better- although, i purposely cut off the bottom of the drawing. his legs and the bench that he was sitting on got a little weird. i did use my white soft oil pastel to sketch my initial outside shape and then, went back in with the sketch and wash and india ink.

this was my favorite drawing. our model sat in this pose for the last hour. after my previous drawing above, i decided i was not going to tackle the legs and bench again- so i only drew his upper half. i used a hot pink soft oil pastel to sketch the outside initial shape. i filled in some shadow with a sketch and wash pencil and then broke out my india ink; and finished up going back in with a black and white soft oil pastel.

words

happy wednesday!

art journal page

i love the circles and polka dots! makes me happy!

this is just the beginning on this side- we will have to see what i finish with. happy monday to you! thanks for stopping by to see!

teapot

i started with wire for the armature to hold my paper. i used two different types- a light gauge and something heavier to be the main support.

i wanted to use tissue paper for the outside of my "teapot." i used white paper that i painted with watercolor. if you do this, move quickly and gently with the paint to your paper, as the tissue paper can be delicate. let this dry before applying to your armature.

i used a 50/50 mix of matte medium and water to stick and apply my tissue paper. you have to be a little careful, as the tissue paper can be delicate to apply, but, not too bad. you could use modge podge if you don't have any matte medium. i also used some glimmer mist to add a little glitz.

here is my lid...it is drying. same process...wire up your support and paper.

here is my finished teapot all ready to go to the tea party show. it looks a little like the teapot that jack built (heehee...) oh, well, i am never perfect and this wasn't suppose to be either. i like the quirky shape and handle.

my spout is not necessarily 3 dimensional, but, i decided that was ok too. that part is almost translucent- i couldn't get a good pic of that though. anyway- hope you enjoyed the teapot! do you have a teapot, teacup, or something related to tea? share a link in the comments and join this tea movement!

celebration, and fruit

we had friends over to celebrate the 4th, and my girlfriend brought over these totally cute fruit kabobs.

and then she proceeded to stick them into this 1/4 watermelon to serve! how cute is that?!

then some celebration....hope you all had a great 4th of july! be sure to stop back....i am making a teapot with armature and tissue paper for our local tea party art show.