My Happy Holiday

Hi  everyone!--I'm back--I  hope  you've  all  had  a  happy  Holiday  and   looking  forward  to  2013.   We  certainly  did  around  here--but  wow--I'm  a  bit  exhausted  and also  a  bit  glad  that  things  will  be  getting  back  to  normal.    One  of  my  favorite  parts  about  Christmas  is  shopping  for  gifts--I  really  do  like  getting  out  into  the  busy  stores  and  'fighting'  those  crowds--to  me  that's  fun--really!  But  I  also  did  some  online  shopping  which  can  be  a  bit  scary--just  click that  button, and  you  can  get  anything  you  want--I  have  to  admit--I  get  out  of  control.   I  even  did  some  shopping  for  me--

 

 

 

Pam  Carriker  is  now  offering  her  very  popular  online  class  Journal  365  in  a  DVD  format,  and since  I  never  took  this  class--well  I  decided  that  I  needed  this  for  Christmas.  I  haven't  really  started  watching  the  videos  yet  (4 discs!),  but  I  know  that  they'll  be  excellent--it's  Pam  Carriker--how  can  they  not  be?!

 

And  for  my  art  room--

 

 

This  is  a  print  that  I  ordered  from  Sharon  Tomlinson's  Etsy shop  Norah's  Ghost.   She  made  this  piece  during  our  online  class  A  Diary  of  Faces  (I  talk  about  this  class  in  my  last  post).   I   found  this  frame  for  it--nice  size  too--13x 19--perfect  fit--I  love,  love,  love  Norah's  Ghost!

And  I  found  an  unexpected  surprise  in  my  mailbox  on  Christmas  Eve--

I'm  in  the  latest  issue  of  Somerset  Studio  coming  out  in  Jan--THAT  was  a  very  nice  surprise!

So  now  that  things  are  winding  down,  I've  been  able  to  take  some  time  for  myself  and  'play'  in  my  room--one  of  my  favorite  things  to  do  is  paint  papers--

....and  then  doing  something  with  them...


 

 

 

 

 

I  enjoy  the  entire  process  of  making  pieces  like  this--from  starting  out   with  a  blank  piece  of  paper  (any  kind--text pages,  cardstock, canvas  paper,  watercolor  paper,  etc. etc.)  and  finishing  with  a  piece of  art--having  no  idea  how  they  will  end  up--the  papers  help  me  make  the  story.

 

So  I  hope  everyone  will  be  able  to  take  the  time  in  2013  for  their  passion  too--it  IS  the  best  therapy--even  in  these  very  cold  months  ahead  (well--at  least  in this  part  of  the  country). 

 

Happy  New  Year  everyone!!

A New "Shadowbox".......and I'm Still Working in My Workshops

This  time  it's  a  6 x 12 gallery  canvas  turned  over  and  magically  becoming  a  shadowbox  again--

If  you  follow  my  Facebook  page,  then  you  already  know  the  little  fact  about  this  wood  spool,  but  if  not,  I'll  tell  you--

These  wood  spools   are  around  6  inches  tall,  and  I  found  them  at  a  garage  sale.    There  were  2  boxes  of  them  with  about  30  in  each  box.   The  lady  let  me  have  them  all  for  $5.00!!    I  see  lots  of  possibilities with  them.   I  LOVE  garage  sales  (in  case  you  don't  know),  and  I  can't  wait  for  them  to  start  up  again!

......and   I  had  fun  with  all  of  the  little  details......

I  seem to  have  a  recurring  theme  in  these  last  few  pieces  that  I've  been  making...

...and  that  would  be  that  Life  is  Good!   And  right  now  life  is  very  good  here  in  Salter  land.   Well,  for  one  thing,  Spring  is  on  its  way--Winter  never  came,  so  we've  been  enjoying  spring-like  weather  for  a  while  now.    And....tomorrow,  I'm  going  to  a  baby  shower---my  son's  girlfriend's  to  be  exact.  I  mentioned  last  Fall  that  I  was  going  to  be  a  grandmother  for  the  first  time--April  to  be  exact.   And  now  we  know  that  it's  a   girl!    Oh  my  goodness!!--I  forgot  how  fun  it   is  to  shop  for  a  little  baby  girl.. and  I'm  having  lots  of  fun  shopping  for  her!   And  then  in  May,  my  daughter  is  getting  married!   So..Life  is  pretty  good  right  now  around  here--a  little  hectic...but  in  a  good  way.

I'm  still  enjoying  my  Fresco  workshop  with  Joyce--

.....just  loving  the  texture...

And  speaking  of   workshops--back  in  the  Fall,  I  signed  up  for  Sharon's  Faces  in  Collage  class,  but  really  didn't  have  time  for  it.    But  now  I  started  fooling  around  with  paint-over  collaged  faces.   I  wanted  to  try  it  out  in  my  journal  of  girls,  and  I  loved  painting  this  way--

At  first,  it  felt  kind  of  weird  painting  over  a  face  that  was  already  there,  but  I  got  over  that  quick--I  love  that  the  facial  features  are  already  there  to  guide  you,  but  how  you  can  turn  the  face  into  your   own  style.   I'm   hoping  to  make  an  art  piece  from  what  Sharon  is  teaching  us  in  her  class.

And  one  more  thing--I  want  to  thank  Natasha  for  giving  me  The  Versatile  Blogger  award  on  her  blog  today---great  start  for  my  day  and  weekend.   Go  check  out  her  blog --she's  very  fun,  not  to  mention,  a  very  talented  artist!

More Sharing--Art and a Giveaway--And A New Etsy Listing

So  still  no  new  art  but  I do  have  more  art  that  I  can  share  with  you,  just  not  my  own .  To  start,  I  collect  Santas,  and  every  year  I'll  acquire  a  new  one,  and  this  year  I  found  one  from  one  of  my   favorite  bloggers--Heather  from  Audrey  Eclectic--

Don't  you  just  love  him?!   I've  been  trying  to  get  out  my  other  Santas  for  the  Holiday  season,  and  at  the  rate  I'm  going,  I'll  be  finished  decorating  sometime  in  January--maybe  even  February.   I'll   start  decorating  the  house,  and  then  I'll  get  side-tracked,  but  I'm  working  on  it.  Back  to  Heather's  Santa---he  most  definitely  belongs  here,  and  when  he  meets  the  other  Santas,  he'll   feel  right  at  home.  Make  sure  to   go  visit  Heather--if  you've  never  been  to  her  blog,  then  you're  in  for  a  treat.

And   I   treated  myself   to  a  Christmas  present  with  Sharon's  print  from  her  Etsy  shop--

LOVE!!

I've  already  framed  it  and  this  piece  titled  "Circus  Day"  is  ready  to  be  hung  in  my  studio.  I  can't  get  over  the  talent  and  creativity  that  Sharon  has!  You  can  see  more  of  her  very  unique  artwork  at  All  Norah's  Art  and  also  her  Etsy  shop,  where  she  also  offers  digital  collage  sheets  that  she's  made--pure  eye  candy.

And  in  my  last  post  I  showed  you  Mandy's  piece  that  I  won--the  beautiful  bird,  which  is  a  lino cut.   Well,  she's  having  another  giveaway  this  month  of  one  of  her  prints,  and  yes  I'm  entering  again--her  work  is  amazing--just  take  a  look  at  her  Etsy  shop!  And  you  can  go  here  for  her  giveaway.

Plus,  I've  added  a  new  item  to  my  Etsy  shop.  Last  week  I  had  my  first  sale  (thanks  Debby!)   It  was  my  Hippie  necklace,  so  I'm  putting  a  new  one  in  my  store.  This  one's  a  bit  different  than  the  last  one--

It's  on  a  linked  glass  bead  necklace  that  attaches  in   the  front  with  a  toggle  clasp.   This  little  Hippie  girl  and  her  friend  on  the  reverse  side   sure  are  getting  around.   I  can't  wait  until  everything  calms  down  so  I  can  explore  the  jewelry -making  world  more.   And  remember--everything  in  my  Etsy  shop  is  15%  off--the  code  word  is  CHRISTMAS.

And  one  more  thing.....Thank  You  Ansota  for  this....

I  like  this--I'm  a  Stylish  Blogger--Cool!!

So  I  better  get  back  to  my decorating  and  wrapping  presents,  and  hopefully  a  little  art  time  too!

Hey Guys, Have You Tried This Technique?

Wow, I'm pretty tired from this weekend--alot of bloggers out there with some pretty inspiring studios--some of them intimidated me a bit , but you know what?--I still love where this blogger creates!  I consider my art room to be  my assistant helping me when I'm  "stuck".  I have everything on hand that I need in the places where I know  they are. I think by organizing my room and decluttering it has really helped me.  I guess it depends on which is the best way for you--messy? or neat?--whatever!!

And at my party I showed you my work in progress, and I finished it, and I'm very happy with it, although it was very hard to get a good shot of this because it's  a very dimensional piece--

I'm going to show  you a step-by-step of how I put this together.  I started out with this very cool canvas that I found  (with the help of Suzi)  at Dick Blick--

This is a 9 x 9 canvas with very deep sides--2 3/8". I love these--I bought them in the 4-pack.  And then what I did, was turn it over, because I wanted it to be more like a shadobox.   Then I collaged some of my papers and prints on it and also added paint.  Basically, I just covered every part of the canvas.

These are the different pieces that I used to put into it.  You see that yellow block to the right?  (vintage child's block--got it at the antique show), well it was the perfect height to elevate the main heart from the surface of the canvas.  So the technique that I wanted to show you is a fairly popular one. It's using aluminum foil--so simple.  If you know how to use gel medium, then you can do this.  I say gel medium, because that's what I used--you  can  use  any type of glue.  And there are a few ways you can apply the foil also.  The way that I did it this time--I crinkled up a piece of  foil and  then opened  it back up and laid it flat and then applied it with the gel medium onto the larger heart.

Another way of doing it, is to not crinkle the foil and apply it to the surface with extra heavy gel medium and while the gel is still wet, you can take the blunt tip of a paint brush and make designs  into it  or whatever you want.  You just have to be a little careful, because it can tear.  And then another way is to glue down embellishments onto your suface, and then apply the foil crinkled or uncrinkled. You'll get the imprints of whatever you embellished--it also gives great texture..  So after I put the foil on and it was dry, I just put some alcohol inks and acrylic metallic paint on it.  I always put a gloss varnish over that--you get the look of metal--very cool,  very easy, and very inexpensive. Alot of  journalers (is that a word?)  have used this technique for the cover of their journals. And if you click on this for the close-up, you can really see the texture.

So after I assembled the collage, I put the final touch on:

I used a metal picture frame and attached a piece of jewelry that I found in my stash.

And before I was even thinking of making this collage, I was using my Golden paints on something else, and I had some left over, and there aint no way I'm wasting this expensive stuff, so I just painted myself up a paper, which happened to work perfectly for the border and smaller heart.

So if you look at the jewelry piece--a pendant, actually, fairly large--and the paper--they match perfectly.  In person, they really are the same colors, right down to the swirls.  And I painted this paper with no particular thought in mind, and  I didn't even remember that I had this pendant until I found it afterwards.  But you know who did know that I had it?-- Clara!

For those of you who don't know, Clara is my muse.  You can read about her here, and then here  (the image on this one is hanging with me in the studio), and then here.  So, I have to say Thank You to Clara for this part!

And also, I started a new class--not like I have anything else to do.  You know when you go to a restaurant with that delicious buffet, and you have to get EVERYTHING, and your plate is just overflowing?  Well, that's my life right now. So I'm glad that this  is an ongoing class.  It's with Sharon again at  All Norah's Art--

Faces in Technicolor.  I'm going to have to put  this class on hold  until late July.  I have 2 shows back to back next month, and next week, I'm taking a mini vacation.  But this post is getting long, so I'll tell you about it in my next post--stay tuned.

And if you missed my studio tour party, its the post right below this.

With Help From Jane and Inspiration From Jen

I'm  sure everyone knows Grittyjane--she is such a talented artist.  And she's also very generous in sharing her techniques with us through  her  tutorials.  Her one tutorial is prints on wood, which is basically what I've been doing, but her tutorial  (for only 10 dollars, I might add) has some helpful tips in it--it's well worth the price.

And the inspiration is from Jen, my artist friend that I talked about on this post.  Her website is

 p.s. enjoy your life, and on it she has her wood block prints, and that was my inspiration.  Her's are on  3 x 4 blocks that she cut from a 2 x 4.  So I decided to make my prints on blocks too--thanks again Jen for inspiring (I saw her at Fairport too!)  I wanted to tell her what I was doing, because I would have never thought of doing this.  Instead of getting a 2 x 4 board,  I decided on  a 2 x 6 one, and cut them up so that they would be 4 x 6 blocks. So for about $6.00, I was able to get 24 little blocks.

And THEN..... I was reading Sharon's blog and on this post, she was showing how she cropped her art, and it looked so cool this way.  So when I did my wood blocks, I decided to do this to a few also--

These 2 are actually from just one painting, but now it's 2!

And of course, I have to embellish and finish off the sides--

I want to finish off each one differently, so even though there will be multiple prints, they'll still be a bit different from one another.

So when I look at what I've done with these so far--

as a group--I'm really happy with the direction my art has been going--it makes me smile : )

Two New Girls

I call these my Garden Girls--

I really love creating these faces and a BIG Thank You to Suzi and Sharon for being my face teachers.  I can't believe how much they've taught me and how I continue to learn.  And it always amazes me how all of the student art is so unique from one another's .  Suzi tells us to copy her, and her videos and pdf's are very detailed, explaining that this is how we learn--to copy.  And even though we do "copy" her, it's always our own style, because it's coming from us. Makes sense, everyone is one of a kind--so they're art will be too--it's part of us.  This is why we're so protective of it, I think, and probably so overly critical too.

BTW, Sharon is having a new online class, and she is giving a free one away to someone.  Just go to this post to enter the giveaway.  Hope everyone here in the U.S. is enjoying their Memorial Day holiday.  The last 3 day's weather here has been exceptional--I'm loving it!

Work In Progress--Taking What I've Learned

I've had to put my online classes on hold for a while so I can get ready for my show next week.  However, I'm taking what I've learned so far and putting them in my art pieces.  I started this box--

First thing I did was take this old box (you know how I like to take the old and make it new again)

The front of it is perfect--it  has a textured design right in the wood already, so all I did was layer some paint on it.  And then I made a background from what I learned in Sharon's class--All Norah's Art.

 

 Then I transfered the inkjet copy of this castle, which is another technique that I learned from her class.  I actually like to do inkjet transfers better than the toner copies. I seem to get less of the fuzzies. I found this free image on Artefacts blog.  Actually, it wasn't the main image--it was in the background, but it's what I was looking for. This is a great blog with alot of vintage free images--just click on the name.  The reason, I wanted to use this castle-like image, is that I wanted to keep up with the Tudor theme that I'm learning in Suzi's class.

When I was creating this face, I was also watching the lesson of Suzi's, and she was well into her painting when she decided to change the features of her face, because she knew they weren't right--so she fixed them.  Well, I wasn't liking my nose (I'm having SO much problems with these noses at this angle!) I watched how she did her corrections, and I followed along, and now I'm happier with the nose.  Normally, I would have been afraid to do this, but I just watched her and I was able to do it! 

So this is Mother's Day weekend in the U.S., and I hope everyone has a wonderful day on Sunday.  Our weather isn't looking too promising, but it's Spring, and that's all that matters!  So happy Mother's Day everyone!!

My 2 WIP's Completed And More Food

So I finished my 2 pieces that I showed you last week....I changed them up a bit.  Here is the canvas one--

And I just want to say, Buffy, you read my mind.  She had commented last week that the way I had done it reminded her of playing cards--possibly the Queen of Hearts, and that's exactly what I had in mind.  So this is my version of the Queen of Hearts, ala Suzi with a little Norah thrown in,  and speaking of the Queen of Hearts, who's excited about Alice in Wonderland?!

And here's the finished box--

I'm really happy with the way these both turned out.  Here's what they looked like last week--

When I put these  photos up last week, I knew immediately that I was going to change them--I just couldn't get with these colors, but I'm still glad that I went through the process, because they add so much to the completed pieces because of the layers.

And now for Fattening Friday---this one is a favorite in our house, and I was surprised that not everyone has heard of them in different towns.  This is a pepperoni  ball--

You can get these at any local pizza shop here.  What they are, is pizza dough stuffed with pepperoni and deep fried  (of course).  You can stuff them with anything, though.  My grandmother used to make them from scratch and filled them with anchovies and called them fish balls.  I know your proabably thinking--ewww!, but if you like anchovies,which I do, they were delicious.  This one came frozen at the grocery store from a local Italian market, and you just heat them up in the oven, and they're still good.  But being the artist that I am, I can't leave well enough alone.  I always cut them open and put more pepperoni and a thick slice of mozzarella in them--

And then they're even better, and more fattening! I always make an antipasto salad to go with them--

And it makes for one delicious meal!

A Thank You To Milliande And Others

So as I said before, at the end of next month, I have my first art show, and all of these art pieces that I've  been making are going with me.  But I need to build up my inventory, for lack of a better word.  And I've kind of been in a little slump.  So I've been watching Milliande's art journaling videos on utube, and she helped me make this piece this week--

One of her videos was on resists using crayons.  I was going to try it in my journal, but I figured I would just do it on canvas.  And of course, it didn't turn out like hers, so I ended up covering it all up.  But my polka-dot tulips and house are done with the Caran d'Ache Neocolor 1 crayons ( I love those-I love the way they look over acrylic).  My point is, is that she motivated me into doing something.  I take Dell (my laptop) all over the house with me--she's always by my side.  And I'll turn on Milliande's utube station, and start watching.  I love watching her.  Every once in a while, she'll look up at the camera and smile--you feel like she's in the room with you.  I really am grateful for all the time that she's taken to do all of these January art journaling videos.  She even has a link for each video of the supplies that she uses, and also if you have any questions--she's there to help you.  What a generous lady she is!  In one of the videos that I watched, she's making her journal page with her daughter Maya.  Her daughter is so cute, and is so proud of her artwork.  You just know that Milliande is encouraging her every step of the way, and at the end of the video, Maya has the biggest smile on her face--they both do!

Milliande encourages ME through these videos, and so has Mystele, Suzi, Sharon, and KC Willis.  And I'm sure by the end of the year, there will be more names added to this list.  I'm doing and learning things that I never thought that I would be able to do.  And it's through these very talented artists/teachers that I've been able to do this,  and I just wanted to say "Thank You"  to them.  And I also wanted to say thank you to all of you for your comments and support--they brighten my day up, and I need it especially at this time of year.

I really feel that my work has grown, and I'm really proud of that.  One reason, is because I received my response from an art show that I apply to every year.  If you do shows, then I'm sure that you're familiar with the "rejection letter" that you can  get when you apply.  This is the way it is--you'll never get into all of the good art shows.  Well, this year I was accepted!! And I know it's because my work is so much better than last year, so another reason to thank all of these ladies for encouraging me!

So today I'm off to the mall and one of my favorite food places (I love food :) Panera Bread.  Is that restaurant nation-wide?  I'm not sure.  All I know is that I love their soup and sandwiches, and of course I'll be bringing home one of my favorites there--a cinnamon crunch bagel!

Nature and Spring

The theme this week at The Three Muses is nature, and I wanted to do something with flowers--

I call her my Norah girl  (as opposed to Suzi).  This week in our class, Sharon was showing us different ways to create a face.  Basically sketching on a background with a Stabilo pencil.   I started out with collaged papers and then sketched her face.  Well, she was kind of washed out looking, so I added just a little color.  And the roses are napkins, which Sharon had showed us in the first week.  I love the way they go on--very transparent and delicate looking.

Plus I found a book in all of my stash here that was just all poems.  I didn't even realize that I had it. It's a High School library book published in 1965 called "The Golden Journey"--poems for young people--

There are so many really good poems in this book that I know I'll use--I don't remember getting this book at all!

I definitely wanted to do something flower-related.  I miss them, and I can't wait until I can see any type of green outside.  I'm sick of seeing this day after day.........

Suzi And Norah

So I'm taking two classes right now, and they're both on faces, but they're different from one another.  I've been taking Suzi Blu's class for a little over a month now, and here's my latest goddess:

She has to be my favorite so far.  As much as I really like the whimsical , colorful art, I 'm still loving the shabby look, and as soon as I drew her face, I knew that's how this piece would turn out.  In Suzi's class the face is colored mostly with the colored pencils  (Prisma), and then  a few finishing touches with the acrylics.  You can do it however you want, but this is how she teaches it.  Also, I'm trying to get a little looser with the hair.  The way she teaches us --it's the face that is the most important--everything else is abstract--so anything goes, including the hair.  I'm still working on that part.  I do know that all of my girls have nice full heads of hair, and this one as a little natural curl to it.  Probably because I have stick straight, baby fine hair that won't do anything.

And then in Sharon's class, All Norah's Art,   we learn  how to color the face with acrylics, and mostly using Folk Art brand paints, which are inexpensive, but still work good.  This is my first face.

Now I've been only taking this class for a week, and I notice some things that I'd like to improve on, but overall,  I'm very happy with it.  I love the look of  Sharon's faces--they have an old-fashioned, vintage look to them.  And you see that house in the background?--that's an inkjet print transfer, which I 've never been successful with before.  But Sharon shows us in her step by step video (one of  7 for the just the first week alone!) how to do this, and I was so pleased that it turned out (I keep telling everybody this : ) She's very thorough with her lesson, and I love watching her paint.  Her new lesson starts today!

I love creating both of these faces--Suzi's and Sharon's-aka Norah's.  I turn on the videos and work along with them.  I know Suzi's by heart--I don't even watch her anymore--I just listen.  I talk along with her, because I know what she's going to say next.  And I'm sure it will be the same for Sharon's, once I watch them enough--right down to her Southern drawl!  Both of these classes are still available to sign up for, and I can't recommend them enough!

No fancy cooking this week to show you, but I will have some cake and ice cream. Yes....today is my birthday.  I am 56 years old today, and what are those sayings?--"You're as young as you feel", "Age is just a number", "Youth is wasted on the young"--I know there's more.  These sayings were all probably invented by "old" people to make us feel better.  But you know what--they're right.  If I live to be 100, I know one thing for sure--I will  NEVER  be old!!  So I'm off to the internet now to look for some more age sayings : )