Thursday, August 27, 2009

Feel the Love: Texture in Art

Hello! I'm working on some 4x6 (postcard size) pieces for the TEXTURE themed swap I am hosting on atcsforall.com. This one involves various papers, paints, stamping, buttons, a vintage photo, glitter, microbeads and beeswax. I adore beeswax! So versatile and smells divine! But the more I look at this the more I think it still needs something... I'm thinking perhaps some stitching with twine/rough string? Not necessarily a border, but some "here and there" stitching to tie it all together a bit more... Whatcha think?

I love this one, as it feels very feminine and romantic to me. And it's composed of many materials and layers, with lovely bits of shimmer and sparkle. It starts with a base of handmade paper adhered to a bristol board base, covered liberally with gesso, with additional paper and beads added while the gesso was wet. Then I used shimmery purple and gold paints, and sealed with a thick layer of diamond glaze, sprinkling with fine glitter....and finally laced the edges with organza ribbon. Such fun!

Hope you are creating (playing!) too!

Friday, August 21, 2009

Sweet Summertime



Summer sure is flying by! Hard to believe the end of August is almost here, along with the hustle bustle of families preparing for back to school. I want to slow down a little to enjoy the fleeting moments... to appreciate the long summer evenings, fresh from the garden produce, and the feeling of being warm all the way through to the middle of your bones like only the summer sun can cause. To find time to notice the tiny little joys like the swirling flurry of tiny beautiful moths lighting briefly in the grass before dancing away...gone in a twinkle but leaving a smile in their wake. Time to appreciate the changing colors of the sky as the sun sinks away and gives over to the night...a painting that changes by the minute. To make time for family and friends, BBQ's and ice cream cones, and laughing until your sides hurt, and sleeping in on Saturday morning. Waking up to the sunshine instead of an alarm clock. Time to simply enjoy.
What's your favorite little summer moment? Catch it while you can, and savor it.

Monday, August 3, 2009

Whew!


BABY IT'S HOT OUTSIDE!
This little doll I call "Tamale" agrees - in fact, it's a little TOO HOT, with 100+ temps for several days in a row. Perfect weather to take shelter in the air conditioned studio and create some fun.
You can see Tamale's funky little friends on my flickr page.... They were tons of fun to make using altered original photos of random everyday objects. (An idea inspired by Corrie04 and her "Mad Scientist" chunky page swap over on atcsforall.com)
Lots of projects in the works right now...art dolls, buttons(yep, the kind for clothes - it's a commission job), ATCs, journals and chunky pages and birds... WOOT! Fun stuff everywhere I turn!
Along with the fun of creating, we've been enjoying the bounty from my Dad's garden...fresh tomatoes, zucchini, corn, onions peppers, and lettuce...YUM! So good! The taste of summer. I need to take a trip down the valley to check out the delightful items available at the local fruit stands - there's abundance in variety and flavor to be discovered.
Hope everyone is having a super summer!! Hugs and Happiness to all!