Collage Cards

A friend and I got together last week for an art play day. I find I need a friend to do this with because I forget about the play aspect of art. I have so many projects to work on that I go to them instead of experimentation. So, I packed up a few bags full of fabric, found paper objects, beads, buttons, thread and whatever struck my fancy, some muffins to start the day, soup for lunch and a movie to have on in the background. My friend supplied coffee, a great salad, some wine (how decadent to have wine for lunch!) a good space to work in and a plateful of cookies and goodies! The results for me were these collage cards that I am going to put in my local stationary shop, Paper Doll.

New Year - New Calendar

Well, a new year has arrived and with it comes choosing a new calendar. For me this is an important task because I have to love my calendar, after all it will be by my side for a whole year and it has to work the way I need it to work. I have tried monthly and weekly formats, large, medium, and long ago when I was in high school I had a really tiny one which Hallmark gave away. I used to make up abbreviations to fit on the little squares which I thought might keep my parents from knowing what I was doing. The abbreviations went something like this....hotdlam...meaning heartthrob of the day looked at me. Those were the days! Now I abbreviate my colonoscopy and mammogram appointments.

After a lot of different trials I have come to find that We'Moon calendars are my favorite. They are filled with great artwork, prose, poetry, and some astrology. I find if I am waiting for an appointment I can always take out my calendar and read something interesting. Last year I was unable to find one but several weeks ago I snapped up one at my local bookstore so I am ready to organize and schedule my life for another year. I hope you have found the calendar of your dreams. Happy New Year!

Frosty Santas

We have had some pretty cold weather here and Jack Frost has visited! I took photos of our windows and did a little photoshop magic and put my favorites from my santa collection in front of the windows. Enjoy!

Give Away Day

This is just a quick post to let you know that today is Sew Mama Sew's big giveaway day. Go to their site and you will find three lists of blogs that are hosting giveaways. The list categories are; Sewing and Knitting Supplies, Handcrafted Items and Supplies and Handcrafted Items. I have participated in this before but this year I am just going to spend my time checking out blogs and maybe sign up for a few giveaways. Have fun!

House of Yum

If I had any little ones to buy holiday gifts for the fabulous felt food at House of Yum would be tops on my list. My friend Beth White and her friend Danielle Miller have come up with amazingly creative felt play food. Their moniker is "Feed your childs imagination!" In addition to feeding the imagination the food also might get your child to try some different items on their real plate! I'm not going to say much more because the images of the tasty treats say what words can't describe. Go to their blog and order up some tasty shrimp lo mein, tea and cookies, pizza, bacon and eggs and fortune cookies.

New Work

This is the newest-old piece I have been working on. The four large panels were made several years ago and I didn't know exactly what to do with them. I had them pinned together to form a sort of pyramid that stood (kind of) and I was thinking they might make a sculpture or doll skirt. When I came upon them a few weeks ago I wanted to reconfigure the pieces so you could see them all at once. I took them apart and instantly was filled with ideas of where to take them. I made a central piece that echoes the stars and points on the bigger pieces. I seem to always incorporate leaf images so made the skinny strips with leaves. I'm now working on smaller pointed pieces to go between the long and large pieces. They will have birds and shisha mirrors. All of this is hand stitched which I realize is a bit insane...but there it is. This is a piece about personal symbolism, birds, leaves, hands, spirals hearts and eyes often show up in my work and have meaning for me. So, now I have to go and thread a needle and get some more stitching done!

Tabula Rosa

About a year and a half ago I was asked to join an art doll round robin along with 8 other women from all over the U.S and several from Canada. I happily joined but a month into the process I realized I would have a difficult time continuing. Most of my supplies and materials were in storage and working space was at a minimum so with sincere apologies I asked that my doll be sent back. Well, these wonderful, giving and creative women said they were going to keep her and work on her even in my absence. What returned to me a few weeks ago was amazing. Tabula Rosa, the name I had given her, and her journal are works of art. I am so grateful for the kindness, caring, time and creativity these women put into this piece. The pictures only give you a glimpse of the good energy Tabby brought back to me! Thanks again everyone!