Friday, August 26, 2011

who knew - joint compound?

joint compound...
 makes for great art
 as I found out in 
Judy Wise and Stephanie Lee's class this summer
(they also have a wonderful book for those of you that missed the class).
Here are some pics of the beginning stages of these two  pieces.
 I first etched basic texture into the wet compound...
 then tried to figure out what I saw in the compound
and added a bowl and pots with this nifty little sewing device.
anybody know what it's called -
used for tracing patterns I believe?
 then I rubbed in some black acrylic
 to get some instant lines.

time for an art break
 after the on-line plaster class was over
 a group of us who had only met on-line during the class
decided to have a party at my house and share our art endeavors.
check out the table above filled with our fun...
 and meet my new friends
Melinda, Jill and Jeanne
 above is Jill's beautiful book and homemade case
 and interior pages
 and a plaster piece.
check out her blog to see "the kraken" - just gorgeous.
 here is Jeanne's bounty of beauty
 and her crackled plaster cat.
 next is Melinda's adorable cat
 and frescoed scene - 
just love these colors!

ok the art field trip is over 
and back to finishing my pieces.
 thanks for guarding Matteo.
 the next steps involved trying to pick out
the shapes I wanted and
 then adding lots of paint layers,
rubbing them out,
etching in others,
adding buttons and paper
some stamping and gold leaf,
 and finally putting them in the vintage frames I found for them.
think they will stay here until I hang them up.

On a different note, 
would love prayers or good thoughts sent my son and daughter-in-law's way in New Jersey
as they wait for the storm to hit Saturday...
geesh they have had the weather.

Sunday, August 21, 2011

summer hop

finally summer arrives...
and Zoe and I could not be happier.
we get to enjoy the patio
and the plants
and the sun
and the most incredible wisteria ever
and the paths
and mr. crow who surveys the yard
and the fountain
and one foxglove left
and sedums too.
but of course the yard takes work
and it seems we rarely sit and enjoy it.
a couple of blogs back I showed you the tree that we took out here
(where I dream of a studio)
so we needed to change the gravel and planting area
and we worked two days to do that
and cut more trees
and everyone pitched in
to move bark and edge
(just love corgi butts)
and explore.
and finally some rest
and pool time.
now if we could just get day #7 above 80 degrees this summer...

Tuesday, August 16, 2011

ready for a change

in hopes that summer will stick around awhile longer
I decided to do my yearly
let's change the look of the blog
and update it with a crisp and summery feel...
so I will be experimenting and goofing around this week 
until I get it just right
or until I give up and throw photoshop out the window.
well I can't really do that but sometimes I want to.
so what do you think so far?

Monday, August 15, 2011

shall we fly south?

OK I happen to think this post is just brilliant
and nobody else but me left a comment -
hmmm...
does anybody else agree this is a great way to plunge into something new?
it just makes sense to me and I do believe 
I will try it with this new sorta phobia I have been experiencing this week.
let me explain -
here are various birds...
that I photographed while on vacation at Balboa.
don't they look happy?
well I do believe I am going to pretend to be them,
or more precisely,
 the canada geese that have already decided 
that it is time to migrate south for the winter.
do they know something I do not?
you see we have not really had a very sunny summer
(I do believe only 5 days just a tad over 80 degrees)
and I love living in the Pacific Northwest,
but I do require a gorgeous summer full of vitamin d 
to get me through our grey days until the next summer.
and I am feeling extremely panicky 
because I have not yet had my sunshine fix for the year - not even close!
this California girl (albeit 31 years living in the PNW)
is starting to hyperventilate and freak out to put it mildly.
So I will take Kim's advice and just pretend that I can soar south anytime I want.
maybe I can sit under a lamp to feel the heat, 
close my eyes,
hold out my arms,
 and just pretend I am floating above the clouds
with all the other canada geese honking around me.
it couldn't hurt.
and I do believe I am craving some grass and bread right about now...