re-purposed father's day

i had been saving dried out tea bags for another purpose....and today- they got a calling. i emptied the tea out and cut out my heart shape. i then, stamped onto the bag and stuffed it with a cottonball; finally stitching around the heart.

 then, i had been wanting to re-purpose a cereal bag....so, i cut out my rectangle shape and painted on the inside and stamped on the outside of my bag- leaving space for my teabag heart.i stitched the bag and heart into one and put a book page behind. i liked being able to see the words through the bag. i wanted my piece to eventually be able to be placed into a frame so i built the background to fit a 5"x7". i used brown paper, painted scraps, stencil, a bingo card, and acrylic paint for the background paper. finally, had the kids and i sign it for the perfect postcard.

i was so proud of myself re-purposing things that when i explained it to my spouse...he said only you would re-purpose and use garbage to make a card sweetie.... :)

and here we go.....

1. One of my favorite birthday presents was my brother.... born on my birthday 6 years later.

2.  today's image above is because i love collage and paint....it was as simple as that.

 3. The moon has been a sliver- looking like a fingernail.

4. sometimes being creative includes not being afraid.

5. i was tempted by the many stencils...may have to get a few new ones....

6.  site-seeing and walking are some of the things i like to do on vacation.

7.  And as for the weekend, tonight I'm looking forward to seeing the great gatsby, tomorrow my plans include working on our basement (hoping to move my studio to a larger space) and Sunday, I want to play in my studio.

today's fill-ins were brought to you by Roben-Marie

pieces for collage

i find myself saving anything paper. i love overpainted paper and seem to have found myself trying to use every scrap that i have. some of those saved papers wait on my counter for a while and find themselves victims of throwing paint and ink.....i found the scrap of book paper pleasantly tainted with color and knew i would have to create something special for that one piece....

the words i found...."carried by sweetest whispering voices" -this is the key for me on my creative work process....must listen to them...

words from a book

i love finding words in old books to re-purpose and take those out of their contexts and use for my purpose....yesterday, my mom and i got to play in the studio for the afternoon.

i had purchased little canvas....2"x2" squares which were perfect! i did background painting and i had cool looking used paint peeled off my plastic table protector- what could be better?! both look so adorable on my shelf; inspired by special people in my life- my mom and my husband....

 this one was inspired by my mom who will be having surgery this week for a lump and starting treatment- truly....there was nothing she could not do....she is positive and strong....

and this one is for my husband for many reasons....as well as, he is working in our basement to move my studio to a larger space because he understands how important creating is for me....yep- with all my heart.

summertime inspiration....

are your kids finally out of school? for the first few weeks of summer anyway they will be chasing around with friends and going to the pool (at least until that gets boring....)....so, that may mean for you..... some extra creating time!!

there is an awesome class that will be starting soon....check out this out! Roben-Marie is super talented and very creative, and she will be hosting this class. art that will be created in the class will require postage....yes- i did say postage! you will transform things to send snail mail to your favorite people. and tell me who doesn't like getting something address to them that is not a bill?....

i remember the day that a small package arrived from Roben-Marie for me....i knew it was special the second that my eyes spied the top half of the mailer sticking out of my mailbox- painted in some of my favorite colors and stamped on. i knew that what was in that package was awesome, and i had received a piece of original work from Roben-Marie. what could be better?!

so send those kiddos out on their bikes with friends; give them a few bucks to stop at the local gas station for a Slurpee and get yourself signed up for this you've got mail....art class!!

class complete- finished items

with our class now complete, i took additional pictures of Cora's pieces while we were placing the items into the window for public display.... this first pic is her encaustic piece. it is a wooden cradle with acrylic paint layered with wax and ribbon. i am not sure that Cora will ever work in wax again....there is a trick to working with wax and it is not always very easy to control. our focus on this project was to discuss the safety issues and concerns when working with encaustic and experience- which she did receive, but, the lack of control was not her favorite.

 her "found" box turned out really nicely. it began life as a gloves wooden box and with a little paint and paper and some stamping- it was magically transformed. Cora made ATCs on yupo to place inside.

 this is Cora's smaller canvas painting- we did talk about color choices and she did some painting with her fingers.

 this was the finished larger acrylic painting- she did a great job with color choices.

i am so glad to have met Cora and to have the opportunity to work with her! i cannot wait to see what she accomplishes.....dream big Cora and follow your whispers!

final lesson....now done

yesterday was our last day....all of our projects complete; objectives met; canvas painted; collage framed; found box done....in a flash it all came together. the past two weeks of exploring mixed media was made possible by Southwest Minnesota Arts & Humanities Council. Cora had applied for a grant through SMAHC and got it....it helped to pay for supplies and my time as a teacher and artist. when she left yesterday- i asked what she thought, and she told me it was even better than what she  expected and that now, she was armed with so many new techniques. what more could a teacher ask for....thank you Cora for taking the time, listening so intently and your willingness to work.

 i had rearranged my studio a bit so that both of us could work. the pile of paint was between us so each could easily reach....now, there is an empty spot and only this pile of paint left. Cora was able to take her finished pieces with her to show her family before we place the items for public viewing downtown today.

as a final project, we had overpainted onto a tablet of paper i had purchased for her and she was wondering what in the world we were going to do with the overpainted paper....well, make cards of course! we had talked about the process, and Cora picked out the portions that spoke to her and made this ever lovely card! she has been the most wonderful student and clearly was able to take what i was telling her, and make it her own. i am happy we are finished as far as the grant requirements, but, sad that Cora will not be coming to paint on a regular basis. thank you Cora!!