Mother Nature Got Creative This Week

...by way of Hurricane Irene.  Posting a couple of photos from the neighborhood....multiply these by the hundreds and you get an idea of what it's like here. Once we were finally able to step out of our homes, we were driving under power lines that sagged under the weight of trees.  There are still many "sketchy" trees still standing and some that have huge limbs hanging high up, not yet ready to come down....
This was taken right around the corner from my home....on a deadend street.  The power lines are down and the houses on the other side of this....can't get out....this is a street where I walk my dog.

 This photo goes with the one above it...it fell down across the road.

ART - Just Do What You Like!

I really like having different altered books to work in at the same time, because if I'm not in the mood for one subject... I can just pick up another book and work on ...that subject.

 HOME & GARDEN

Here is what I did this weekend.  I love my art supply cabinet, which I have photographed on earlier entries on this blog, but I decided to do a drawing of it and put it in this book....well, it had to be there, because I love this cabinet and isn't "home" all about putting things in it that you love?

The Gift

I received a gift in my email yesterday....a belated birthday present and a great one!  My friend and artist, Morna, created a new banner for my blog...something I've wanted to change for quite awhile, but technology doesn't come easily to me...so I love it and it's more special because it came from her.
Her blog is http://www.mornacrites-moore.blogspot.com/ 

 My Altered Book Class

Yesterday I had my altered book class and we learned a new technique...encaustic...working with wax.  We worked on special boards designed for encaustic work, adding our collage elements and then putting the coating of wax over these materials.  Suffice to say, that this is a technique that takes practice and sometimes the wax doesn't "take" the way you think it should....which happened on my collage.  The background paper resisted in several places.  Not being a patient person, I don't think encaustic work is for me.  You could create a beautiful collage and then not have the wax work well....and there goes your piece.

When I got home, I decided to do the theme I intended for the class in my altered book since I already had the background pages prepared and I really love the result, love the colors.

ATC Card

done with napkin using the encaustic technique

Backgrounds

I have my monthly altered book class next weekend and we're going to learn how to do an encaustic technique.  We're supposed to bring our own collage materials for this particular class and I was struggling to come up with a theme....and then I decided it's going to be Sunflowers.  I don't know if you can actually do this technique in  an altered book, so I also prepared a background on a stretched canvas.  
The two pictures above have the identical colors, but you can see that in spreading the paint out....the canvas took the paint differently than the paper.  I spread the paints with an old credit card.  The colors are Night Sky, Basil Green and Quinacridone Azo Gold, with a little bit of matte medium mixed in.  I've been gathering "sunflower" themes/colors..a packet of sunflower seeds, a yellow felt button, some dried leaves, a poem called Bring Me The Sunflower by Eugenio Montale,  nature stamps...bee, butterfly, dragonfly...somewhere in my art room I have some tiny sunflowers on floral wire but I'll be darned if I can find them....

Special Things...

You see a lot of things on my blog about my son being a US Marine and how I love the American flag and that I have a Red, White & Blue art journal....well, yesterday was a great day.  

I have a colleague who was in the military once upon a time and he still does great things for our soldiers stationed in the Middle East....but today, I was the recipient of a special gift from him...because I am now a Blue Star Mother...a mother of a son on active duty in the Middle East.  So he gave me a blue star pin that I will treasure and wear every day as well as a window cling and a small banner with the blue star that I will hang.  People who don't have a relative or close friend in the military....have no idea what it's all about...  My son is the only one in his high school class who was interested in the military...or at least the only one who has pursued it.  I would never overrule my son's calling in life....after all, it is his journey.  So, above is a picture of the small pin that I will proudly wear.  Also in the picture...is a Red, White & Blue bracelet...I went on ETSY in search of one...and it arrived yesterday in my mailbox with a handwritten note from the artist..."Please thank your son for protecting our freedom."  It doesn't get any better than that...so that's my week. 

Home & Garden Altered Book

I have several altered books I'm working on at the moment...one on Females, my Red, White & Blue, the Word Journal and this one....Home & Garden.  So I painted this little stone house and cut a door out and added a piece of screen to make the screen door.  I painted a picture of my dog, Boomer, and he is the greeter at the door.  I added a bead for the doorknob and a lantern at the peak of the house from the Pottery Barn catalog.  The most fun was making a real, screen door.

Altered Book Class - Couture

Last Saturday I had my monthly altered book class.  Last month the subject was Steampunk Divas and this time....Couture.  This goes nicely in my book about females.  Dress pattern paper is the background with paint spread on with an old credit card.  Some rubber stamping, bubble wrap, collage, and ephemera. 

My Red English Racer

The house next door to me recently went up for sale...a house with 2 young daughters and a puppy.  It got me to thinking of my own childhood...when I was their age....it was the best part of my childhood.
We lived in a super neighborhood with lots of kids.  The Christmas I got my red, English Racer was the best.   We didn't have all of the fears that parents raising their children today have....we rode our bikes all over the place and we could go out on Halloween without fear.  Those were the days.  So...I went on the internet today in search of my old neighborhood and found a map which I used on the right side of the page.  My sister, Dianne, got a bicycle that Christmas as well...hers was a black English Racer.   Our bicycles were much more fun than a doll could ever be in my book! So...this is the latest entry in my Red, White & Blue journal.

Fireworks - It IS a Celebration!

FIREWORKS!

 I get into two different frames of mind on the 4th of July....one is about how lucky we are to be where we are and enjoy the freedom we have .... I can listen to any patriotic hymn/march and burst into tears....and I can also enjoy the celebration...the fireworks, etc.  After all, what is the 4th of July without the fireworks!  So...believe it or not, I started to do these pages thinking the page on the left was going to be things we enjoy on the 4th like ...ice cream and popsicles...and it turned into an explosion of ....fireworks.  So....Happy Birthday, America.  And Tom....for you and ALL of  your buddies serving this great country....God Bless You!!!

 

A Day at the Beach

Nothing Like A Good "Read" at the Beach

And so the holiday weekend begins....

I was searching the internet for a photo to post since I don't have any new art at the moment... this is what I think of when I think of the July 4 weekend...the beginning of summer...but how many Americans are actually enjoying a scene like this this summer?

Women Rule!

This is my tribute to Sharon Tomlinson...she's amazing at painting faces and these faces are hers.  I won a contest on her blog and she sent me some sheets of her art which I have cut up and used above.    

When I started on these two pages...I didn't like what I had done and considered glueing the two pages together and moving on....

OK...THAT'S WHEN YOU HAVE TO PUSH THROUGH IT AND SEE IF YOU CAN SALVAGE WHAT YOU'VE DONE....don't give up.

So...I kept playing with it today and I am now happy with the result.  Sharon is a fan of Gustav Klimt as am I so in her honor...I included a small picture of one of his paintings.  Her blog is my top favorite to follow....she's very talented.  Her blog is www.allnorahsart.blogspot.com.
This is the 2nd series of pages in my FEMALE - Altered Book.  Yesterday's Steampunk Divas inspired me....

ALTERED BOOK CLASS

STEAMPUNK DIVAS

I went to my monthly altered book class today and the subject was Steampunk Divas....we did gel transfers, transfer on fabric, a transfer on a domino, ephemera, collage elements.  Fun subject.

HOME and GARDEN

The start of a new altered book....love the subject, home and garden.  These pages have stamping, a napkin, paint, collage, charcoal.

"I Arise Today".....

Red, White & Blue Journal

 
The late John O'Donohue is the inspiration for these pages.  If you don't know who he is, you should Google him....

I arise today

through the strength of heaven,

light of sun,

radiance of moon,

splendor of fire,

speed of lightning,

swiftness of wind,

depth of sea,

stability of earth,

firmness of rock.

 ***

Red, White & Blue Journal

Purple Mountain Majesties &

Amber Waves of Grain

'

I can't let Memorial Day go by without  creating some art in my red, white & blue journal.....Caran d'Arche water soluble crayons, collage, charcoal.  That is Tom's silhouette in the picture.

Sunday Before Memorial Day

A Prayer.....
Most gracious God and Father, in whose will is our peace; turn our hearts and the hearts of all to yourself, that by the power of your Spirit the peace which is founded on righteousness may be established throughout the whole world...

Moneygall, Ireland

Photo by Matt Dunham, AP

We're heading into the Memorial Day weekend next week...I've hung a plant with red, white and blue flowers outside my kitchen door and there are various American flags tucked here and there around my home.  So when I went on my MSNBC page a moment ago and saw this photo....naturally, I loved it.  Our president is getting ready to visit this small, Irish hamlet, and they are literally rolling out the....red, white & blue carpet....putting a fresh coat of paint on their homes and "spiffing" things up for his arrival.  I don't care what your political views are....we live in the greatest country in the world.  Hope you have a flag to hang next weekend for all of those who have served our country and continue to do so.

Red, White & Blue: Bluebird

I was headed out early last Sunday morning and I was about to pull out of my driveway,  when I spotted a bluebird just sitting on my mailbox.  I love bluebirds and I took this as a very positive sign that he decided to land where he did.  So he was the inspiration for my pages last week.  I like the way nature "communicates" with us when we're....open to it.  I did these pages mostly with watercolor pencils.  And the stars are silver metal. 

Altered Book Workshop - TIME

 

 There is so much to say about the subject of time....just not enough time to write about it.  We had a fun class today....but I am challenged by getting things done in the 2 hours we work on our pages....it goes by so very fast.

Here are the pages...

and a close-up of the woman's hair....

The bird in the picture above is bringing another gizmo to the "hair" of the woman here.  We used various papers, some Tim Holtz Distress Stains, rubber stamps, embossing materials and ephemera to do the pages.

For the Red, White & Blue Journal

A quick little addition for my journal that I painted this afternoon.  The real flowers are in the photo below.

It Is A Happy Mom's Day

MAD WORLD

Red, White & Blue Journal - EGGS

Red, White & Blue Eggs

When else would I be doing this except Easter weekend!

It's Easter Weekend.....

This photo of Easter eggs is from the International Business Times...they are gorgeous.  I hard-boiled some eggs yesterday that I'm going to color today....not this calibre for sure but it will be fun. 

John O'Donohue

John O'Donohue was a wonderful Irish poet and philosopher who died at age 52, but he left some wonderful pearls of wisdom and I'm going to share one with you...an Easter treat.

For Equilibrium, A Blessing 

"Like the joy of the sea coming home to shore,

May the relief of laughter rinse through your soul.

As the wind loves to call things to dance,

May your gravity be lightened by grace.

Like the dignity of moonlight restoring the earth,

May your thoughts incline with reverence and respect.

As water takes whatever shape it is in,

So free may you be about who you become.

As silence smiles on the other side of what's said,

May your sense of irony bring perspective.

As time remains free of all that it frames,

May your mind stay clear of all it names.

May your prayer of listening deepen enough to hear in the depths the laughter of god."

HAPPY EASTER

Playing with Art....No Agenda

Wasn't ready to put my paints away for the week, so I started playing this afternoon...nothing in mind....and this is what came out.   My question is....should I write words inside the colorful spaces....or just let it go....for now, I'm just letting it go....

Altered Book Class - Egypt

Left Page

Right Page

The Jewel of the Nile

Between my Word Journal with Papyrus and the class today, I've covered Egypt!  We used light molding paste to create the Nile and had some fun collage pieces to glue to the pages.

Red, White & Blue Journal

SPRING BREAK

I haven't added anything to my Red, White & Blue journal for awhile and while my son was off enjoying "Spring Break", I did a couple of pencil sketches in the journal and today decided to paint them....the grown son on the left....and the younger version....a time for exploration....Tom would have had a large grin on his face and his neck is too long and and and...have to practice faces....

Word Journal - Papyrus

I chose the word papyrus for my word journal/altered book this week.  I used some brown grocery bag paper for the background of the two pages and I folded over the "pyramid" pages to make a pocket on the right that contains a mini book and the one on the left opens to reveal a picture underneath.
The pyramids are gold paint, and there is a little paper bead I made, securing the pocket.

Above is the left page. Across the very bottom which you can't see, is the word papyrus, repeated all of the way across....sorry about that! The images are from a book I got at our local library book fair last year for $2....a hardbound book printed in 1948 entitled The Book of Costume, Vol. I.  Wish I had Vol. II as well!

Above is the right hand page with the little book removed from the pocket. The little twig attached on the right is from my yard...I thought it looked like a writing implement. This is a notecard from The Metropolitan Museum of Art.  I added pages to the inside...it opens to reveal....

  There you have

PAPYRUS