Artistic Renderings

#3 Handmade Day of the Dead Cuff Bracelet

Still leaning towards the #3 for a little while this new bracelet is one that might be a little steampunkery,
Gothic, Modern, Superstitious, a small piece of assemblage, who knows....but I like it.

The material I have used for this bracelet is some cording I purchased at our Military Surplus Store and although it is nylon and lightweight, it is a sturdier feel than yarn or thread....

The Skeleton and Coffin are from the Day of the Dead collection of charms and the angel is also from the same company (Tierra Cast) which can be purchased from Dragynsfyre on Etsy. If you look at photo #1 and #2 you will see that these charms are 2 sided and the design will be either the same as in the skeleton or different as is on the coffin. The back of the angel on the front of the bracelet has wings on its' backside.

The #3 and the knot clasp are actually buttons.

There may be a bracelet I do with the same elements.....but it will be different so all will be one of a kind. I don't care for factory line things.

#3

For some reason the number "3" is bouncing around in my life and I have a friend, who would tell me; "pay attention" for whatever reason....might be a good one. Her life of late has been revolving around the word "bear" and I know she is researching...

SO....the bracelets that I have been making are #3 ??? and I want each one to be an original and different in some way. I have 2-3 listed on Etsy and will be adding them as I finish. I could do several a week, or maybe none for a month.... I do the art that appeals to me when it appeals to me. That is when I feel I do my best work.

On a visit to a military surplus store (these are wonderful places to find "things" for art) to pick up some brass zipper heads I found this gorgeous brown twine that is thin and will definately hold its shape being nylon. This twine has been worked up with crochet stitches for a Steampunkery Gothic Day of the Dead cuff type bracelet, with silver jewelry items. It is ready for me to begin putting it together keeping in mind that the focus will somehow relate to the 3. Right now I have nine jewelry items and 3 x 3 = 9. It is inspirational to take something like this; just for the heck of it, and run with it to see where it might,,,,,or might not go.

It is nearly 3 AM //// honest, all kidding aside; which seems to be my normal bedding time of late.

Clay

My mother used to make salt dough for me when I was younger..... I loved Play Dough....and the smell of each was unique. This was my introduction to "sculpture" with clay.

I love sculpting and playing with polymer clay. It is something that is easy and creative to do while relaxing and watching tv in the evenings. I like to keep busy...and feel it helps the dexterity of my hands and fingers.

I really enjoy sculpting the roses and when you use
the metallic clay the roses almost look real to the touch with a velvet textured look.

Since I have not done a lot of clay work I normally pick up what is on sale but prefer the firmer clays as my hands generate a lot of heat and I find with some clays I have to continually put it in the refrigeratior to stiffen up. I also have to put it in right before baking so that I can do a last quick shaping, lifting and lowering petals and elements
so that they hold their shape a little longer when in the toaster oven.

For some reason I am intrigued to try some clay in a mixed media piece so I have been thinking of a theme that would work....

My mother used to make salt dough for me when I was a little girl and then there was play dough. I loved the SMELL of Play Dough.

Guess I need to pull out a brick of clay and set it by my "night chair" to tempt me into working with it.
It might be fun to make some "elements" for a bracelet....or maybe a pin? A paperclip book mark?
Endless ways to use this artistic medium.

:Copyright 4-13 Diana Putnam

Fused Glass Landscape Pendant

My friend Candace brought me the fused glass pendant back from her winter vacation.....and I love it.

A landscape fused glass piece that is just gorgeous. There is just a touch of a creamy yellow as if the sun is either rising or setting so I incorporated that color into the pendant necklace portion that I designed as I went along. I love the blue moon in the fused glass piece so I used one dark Swarovski crystal on the left side to duplicate the moon at the top right of the pendant.

The white pieces you see are frosted and floral shaped. I used 2 with a large Moonlight swarovski crystal inside to mimic the clouds in the pendant. The beads around the fused glass are 2 different shades of Swarowski crystals. Tierra Cast spacers were used and I have 5 tiny, triangular shaped, handmade lampwork beads up near the clasp.

Such a neat, special piece.

Button Bracelets

I just finished making these two coin
bracelets out of some large buttons that I love....

The top picture is mine as it was the first one, and not as nicely done ... but I will be making another like it.

The bottom bracelet has different buttons (the shank has been cut off and rough spots polished out) and I used stones inbetween the coins for a real rustic, steampunky, gothic, medieval look.

I will list the bottom bracelet on Etsy and if it doesn't sell in a week or so it will be headed to the Art Boutique back in Penna.

Hammered Iron links, jumprings. and clasps are high quality jewelry findings by Tierra Cast and sold by Dragynsfyre.

I can hardly wait to wear mine tomorrow.....

Beer Rings

Here in Oregon Craft Beer is pretty much a "staple"and I really wish I liked beer but I just can't get the "beer bug"..... Many of the breweries have a restaurant as well as the bar and all types of Tasting variations. The take home "jugs" are called Growlers....

I bought the ring bases about a week or so ago because I thought they were different....and unique and I knew that eventually I would use them....but was surprised when I found a way to use them as the base for "beer caps" = beer rings..

Then why not beer cap paper clip book marks?

Just quirkly little craft items that just might be different and unique enough to be a hit? Quirky can be fun....

Strawberry Blossom

I can smell the strawberries.....I wonder if anyone back in PA goes "strawberry picking" anymore? It was a big thing at our house growing up and I still have one of my dads berry pots. When my Dad would come home with the buckets full it was hucking the berry, strawberry stained fingers....but goodness they were delishiouss. Mom made strawberryjam that we enjoyed all winter long on our morning toast. There was also a strawberry desert she made that was out of this world but ooohhhh so fattening. I can remember my Dad getting stung by bees, shot at because he was "tresspassing" on their property, chased by a bear....and many other stories. Some seasons the berries were small and others they were large. He had his "favorite" patches and would head out every night after supper until dark....picking. This just might be a cool picture to paint with memories attached... Will be challenged with the shading, the soft fuzzy inside areas of the flower....and the green backdrop.
I think this will be one of my next pieces to sketch out.

Vintage Watch Rings

I really love some of the watches from "days gone by" and decided to repurpose them into one of a kind rings....and looked until I found ring blanks that would accentuate the watch faces.

The watches don't work but are still inctricately engraved, added features which are so pretty, and work well for "just" repurposed vintage items.

The top one (to the left) is going to the boutique gallery back in PA and the one on the bottom is mine. I am stilling looking for a charm that I can dangle from the watch.

I save the bands from both of these watches and I am going to make bracelets with them..and hoping I can get one done over the weekend.

Mixed Media Vintage Lampwork Designed Necklace

I bought the red, green and blue silvered ivory handmade beads from my daughter when she first listed them on her Etsy site. I wasn't sure just what I was going to make; but I knew it would be art related with the Primary Crayola commerical color beads.

Any time I see artistic charms, buttons, etc. I pick them up. Sometimes I have something in mind sometimes I don't...and I didn't when I bought the cup of brushes, easel, paint palette and larger paint tube.

The vintage watch has been a favorite one that I picked up somewhere....as well as the chain, and reticulated butterfly.

The silver wings above and at the bottom of the red lampwork bead are from Tierra Cast as well as the hammered antique silver clasp.

The bees around the green and blue beads are small Buzz buttons that I sell on my Etsy site.

The necklace has finally come together and all of the "I am not sure what I will do with it/them"; has come together into a neat artistic piece with a bit of a story too.

I am hoping that I have a 2nd assortment of the charms and tube of paint because I would like to do another one to put up for sale.....similar but different. I really do like one of a kind.

Different beads, different clasp, and it becomes another one of a kind piece.

How time flies when one is creating with the tools of an artist, inspired, sometimes going back into time and combining many pretties into just one delightfully unique piece.

African Violets

My mother had a low cupboard in our "pantry" at home where she nurtured her African Violets. I don't remember her ever replacing them...so they were the same ones for a good 20 years. Now I am going to see if I can keep just one alive and thriving with my greenless thumb......

I love the lost and found edges, the rippled edges of some of the petals, and eventually I will have to paint them....I love the furriness of the leaves and the definateness of the flower centers....

Statue

When I saw this statue at one of our local thrift stores today I had a "feeling" it would be going home with me. This isn't normally what I would say is my preference in art but the lines, color, detail, mixed media, realism and the possibility of it being hand made along with With a price tag of $5.00 -----------------I KNEW it was mine and I held it a bit tighter thrilled with the find...the treasure...

I LOVE good art pieces...and am not locked into any one thing any more than I am locked into just one medium when I work.

I am not sure what this is made of and there are no markings anywhere that I can see. If anyone knows anything when you come on and read this post please send me a comment.

The item has a drilled hole in the bottom and there is an area of hollowness on the inside. I am wondering if it isn't wood of some kind that has been colored with dyes or inks as well as being hand carved? I love the way it has been distressed and the blending of one element into another. In looking at it more I am wondering if it might be bone?

The statue stands about 16" tall.

The jewelry is simplistic wire, nothing fancy. ( Earrings and the bracelet.) The belt and the border design on the "cloak" looks carved and it is very precise and intricate. The light shines on the piece and the reflections are gorgous and when viewed at different angles you find that you can still see the entire piece...so the form is excellent in my opinon. There is not a blemish on the piece so it has been well taken care of which means someone liked it as much as I now do. It has found a home on the wall right beside where I watch tv, read, etc. and I KNOW it will be a source of inspiration...

I am hoping that I can find some time to do a bit of research and see if I can find anything on this beautiful piece.

This statue is not old and from my research the most I have found is that it is a piece which is resin... Old or new, expensive or not expensive, it is still a piece that I consider to be really special and well done which inspires me.... the blending, intricate detail, mixed media look, etc....

Out of the box

Most generally when I go thrift shopping, to a garage sale, etc. I am looking at things differently than most people as I was when I saw these delightful box shelves which were meant to be hung on the wall. I knew they would work perfectly on my drafting table where I work to hold items that I use on a regular basis..... I only picked up one but when I went to pay decided to go back and get the 2nd one...and I am glad I did cause they work perfectly.
One is at the top of my table out of the way...and the other one to the left edge of the table with items I use on a regular basis. They really help to organize my table so that everything is pretty much right at my fingertips.... The table is at an angle so with these little shelves and the rubberized shelf paper on the table things stay put.... A good purchase for $5.00.

When you see items think out of the box..... and you will be amazed at what you come up with.

A sign of Spring??

This was always a SURE sign of spring when I was little growing up in PA so despite the fact that my husband says it is going to freeze "hard" and stunt the green leaf formation for spring/ summer. I am choosing to believe that it is a SURE sign of spring. The pussy willlows are so big this year....fat and just as soft as a baby bunny.....

I like that the branch shows the pussy willows in different stages of growth/opening and how pretty grey, silvery white, and brown are together. Hmmmm. So many different forms of inspiration.
Size, color, context, technique(s) to achieve, medium to best use, etc. in everything we "see" and btw does copyright come into play when Mother Nature is the designer, the artist?

Speaking of copyright. Jerry Yarnell is always referring to copyright ..... and his take on it is much different from what others with less credentialing would like us to be scared into believing....and I feel with his being a professional artist and teacher, author of several excellent, excellent technique books on painting, seminaring all over the world, with his own tv show and online classroom that he is more legally adept at leading students in the "right" direction.

Mother nature is a great "teacher".... when we want to be taught. Sometimes far better than book learning and how are new things found if not through the "doing" process....the trial and error of discovery, and the finding what works best for YOU, the artist.

Sketch

I have wanted to do some sketching.... something I could never do before so it is an amazing feeling to see something happening on paper.... by me with just a normal #2 pencil which is really my favorite so far to use.

About a month ago I was gifted with a fantastic book of the works of Harrison Fisher so his book inspired this sketch. I have to move her chin out a bit but other than that I am delighted. I am anxious to try another.... I loved the Gibson girl hairdo's of the
60's (I was a hairdresser as well as teaching high style in a local Cosmetology School in NY state) but this was never the less a challenge to complete . I can just about visualize how this is going to look with a bit of color and sparkle. I have no idea who this woman is.....she came from within...

Somewhere along the line this year she will be done in watercolors and I have begun noting colors to use, etc.

I have also had a lot of fun sketching some unusual animals and experimenting with small....so many different avenues in artistic journeys....

I Wish I had JUST Known

This weekend I lost; through natural cause; a friend from my hometown in Pa.... It is a hard one for me for a lot of different reasons and I have spent my days since the call remembering...

I didn't know she was sick...this sick... although I questioned in my mind why I didn't get a Christmas card this year but knowing Pam as I do I know why I didnt'. Even if she had my new phone number she wouldn't have all, wouldn't have wanted me to know and she would have instructed her husband and family to "keep still". . As much as she "was" full of pep, jovial, etc. she was also very quiet....and she worked things out her way, always but not with a LOT of quite thought. I don't think she would have wanted me to know she was sick....based upon the friendship we had with one another so I must accept and understand.

We were always there for one another...and just "being there" was sometimes the way we helped one another. We both knew there were no words that would be understood, or that would help when we went through some hard times together. She needed to work things out her way....as SHE needed to and she knew I understood that and it required a very quiet friendship....

But still I wish I had JUST KNOWN.....

Even though we rareley saw each other, spoke on the phone or wrote letters.... (She is in PA and I am in OR) and in 34+ years we have only seen one another about 5 times...but when we did get together we were immediately transformed to the friends we were back in the 1960-1980's. It was if we still lived next door to one another and had seen each other just the day before and we were young and spirited. We got caught up on one anothers' lives, family, laughed, etc. enjoying our time together and making the most of the time.

Pam was 59 and crossed over much too soon agewise, but I know as much as she hated to leave....she
coped....she thought....and she accepted,, I thank God for the memories but I wish I had Just Known.

Love and Peace Pam.....I celebrate your life and I know "you know".

Roo

This is actually my 3rd rooster piece this month. (see archives for the other 2)

The feathers are courtesy of Ely at http://www.quillnaros.etsy.com and http://www.quillnaros.blogspot.com. Ely paints feathers and the black, red and white one (left) that I purchased from her worked perfect with this piece as well as some little fluffy feathers that her "birds" shed...or molted I guess is the correct terminology that she has sent me.

I used a photo of a canadian postage stamp and love the colors....so decided to do a mixed media rendition.....Note the zipper on the right which acts as the stem for the sunflower...and I have momma and baby ladybug buttons to carry on the color theme..... It is amazing how the pieces just kinda fall into "being". In the sunflower I have added different size swarovski clear crystals to give some glam and sparkle to the piece as well as my favorite Glamour dust Paints which I have added here and there. The painting itself was done using Liquitex soft bodied paints and the canvas is a handmade, handstretched canvas board that is an ATC. One it is matted, framed and the extra elements are added we have a neat, one of a kind, piece of art.

This one is titled just "ROO"

Recycle Pretties

There are times when I go thrifting or to a garage sale and find glass that is too unique or pretty to pass up. I love something like this for loose change, candleholder, jewelry holder for my dresser etc. I have glued a cordial glass and a cup together to get an item that can be used 2 different ways .... These make great display pieces for boutique events to display jewelry ....
I also like the ones that are not so high like the bottom one, filled with rice to use as a display. It sets in the bathroom with pretty little soaps. It is a beautiful leafed plate glued to a short glass candle stick holder.

So see what you might find on your next outing that can be recycled.

Mr. Roo Mixed Media Assemblage

Mr. Roo is done. I have added a blurred effect to the picture but on the left is a chain with a key on it and over to the right top edge is Mr Roo done in scrabble letters. Legs have been added to the left and right corners and the bell is free standing. The feather at the bottom I made using steampunk scrapbook paper and fringed with fringing sissors... The curtain is a vintage hand crocheted collar that worked perfectly to give the appearance of a window. I "think" the piece is done but one just never knows. It is setting where I will walk by often and will be able to determine "done" or "more".

This is a FUN piece.

Mr. Roo

Mr. Roo started when my husband brought home this loud metal cow bell; from all places, Harbor Freight.

When I completed the bell I thought I was "done" but apparently not as it is working in to be a piece of mixed media assemblage and it has become a process. All of my pieces will be one of a kind...and a lot of creative time is spent on pieces from the start of conception unti the completed delivery.

I should have 98% of the new piece done by the beginning of the week...but the other 2% seems to come after a week or so have passed.

Enjoy your art.

Key Necklace by Dragyngirl

This is the awesome necklace that my grand daughter made me for Christmas..... The key is vintage ( not a replica) and she has wired swarowski crystals and seed beads around the top opening of the key. Around the shaft of the key she has handbeaded a cover which really dresses up the piece making it unique and one of a kind. The chain is gunmetal, and the crystals and beadwork is done in shades of purple and mauve which are just gorgeous. The beading she has done is intricate and very time consuming..

High five Meghan.

A New Niche

In our master bedroom is a little niche that wasn't being utilized and I had the trundle bed in front of the window. (I have had all of my buttons, mailing items, etc. in our dining room, along with my computer printer, etc and the business has grown to the point where I had to have a designated processing area.

This niche area just kinda "was" and so I have taken the 2 corner shelving units you see and placed one on each side of the table where I will do my mailing. The desk has 3 good sized drawers so it holds my baggies and business cards, etc.

I still have the shelving unit in the left corner to go through so this will give me another 3 shelves. (the piece came from a Tole shoppe that was going out of business (handmade) where I took classes, did classes and loved going in to pour over new books, surfaces, etc. so it is a great memory for me.

The unit in the right on the right my husband made for me when we lived in California and I love the scalopped gingerboardy trim on the top... The knobs I got at an antique store in Penna. and they have 3 primitive houses on the tops. This piece holds all of my buttons, jewelry, paintings etc. that are on Etsy and in mini plastic containers.

The shabby chic white table in front of the window is a chippy piece that I got at a garage sale and is one of my all time favorite pieces.

On the right wall which you can barely see is an extra bed....well 2 actually as it is a trundle bed. Might be a neat place to come take an afternoon nap once I am done. I have given myself a week to complete.

I think I am going to look for some different curtains to go on this window so will add it to my "look for" list I carry with me in my purse. I would love to find some Dark Midnight Blue sheer for that window....

NOW.......... comes the "unfun" part. Finding new homes for all of the "things" that came out of the 4 pieces I put here. Hopefully about 1/2 of it I can destash or trash.... I have a mess in the bedroom, dining room, and back down in the area where I work... Shoot.

BUT.......Once again it feels good to be getting more organized...which is something a lot of us procrastinate on, and I am soooo guilty. I am not going to say "tomorrow" anymore ...

Just have to do things in "spurts" and "rests" lol.... learning how to change my lifestyle of living.
My "rests" will be "create time" so that is like my "reward" for doing what needs to be done that is not fun..

I have had this faucet piece for nearly a year
waiting for the right place....so to help tie things together it is on the wall to the left above the desk.

Starting to move things around and add things that aren't just the norm is what is fun....to live with art.
I moved this chair, added a handmade crocheted doily to the seat, a couple of magazines on the rungs
and my stash of Stampington, Jewelry Affaire, etc. arranged this way and that way on the floor. I will have to be more conciencous about dusting. but I like the look....and so for me "it works" and that is who I set out to please....

On the water faucets I painted a landscape on 3 pieces of glass with space between layers and matted that I did several years ago, and a popular spot here in oregon along the ocean up North is a photo I took and have done a painting of.....I need to find that piece and change in out .....

And my final shot was taken a few minutes ago....it is dark out, just one light on and a kinda "closed shop" look......

Giraffe

My daughter brought this back to me when she went to the Tuscon Gem, Mineral and Bead show in Tuscon last week. I really love giraffes and have a giraffe bracelet she made for me so will have to look at it and come up with a way that I can wear the two items as a set...

The item is first of all; and most important handmade. I like that it is unique and one of a kind. To me that makes it an heirloom. ORIGINAL art. When you can take someone elses art work (such as with this piece) and add your own "rest of the item" it becomes really super special in my book....You won't be seeing everyone with one, and I love to say "I made it" and then give credit to the original artist for their part in the design.....

So....another project tray.... and ideas to come up with.

I REALLY miss my groups, and those who were my friends...miss reading what they are doing, etc... but I was just spending too much time on the computer and had to cut it down to be able to create....and keep up my Etsy site... Hopefully I can get myself into a schedule of sorts and can maybe come back ..... if they let me and I have to hope a few will check in here to see what I am up to.

Mixed Packs of Buttons

I am beginning to list several mixed packs of buttons on my Etsy Site. The above is an Animal pack of buttons that are 5/8" and the buttons to the right are 1/2" and perfect for jewlery clasps (ie: on bracelets) and I call this pack Orbital.

My daughter thought these out of the box sets would be ideal for those fashion artists who like things just a bit different, or don't want 3 of the same button when doing mixed media, altered, art etc.

Take a look when you have time.

http://www.artisticrenderings.etsy.com

ATC Glitter Roo

I have no idea who the design artist is of this piece.....but this is my rendition of his/her design.

I have painted on an ATC portrait grade canvas and Liquitex Soft and Heavy Body paints as well as my FAVORITE Glamour Dust paints by Americana DecoArt. It is framed with a gray/green mat which fits in a 4" x 6" frame.

This will be sold on my Etsy site W/O the frame allowing whomever purchases to choose the frame of Their choice.

There are many small pattern designs I have collected and have decided to do some ATC
painting, mixed media, etc. They are small,
inexpensive, low shipping, and all of the pieces will be one of a kind and not copies.....

It would really be nice if I could capture the way the glitter enhances the designs and colors but the light just reflects pretty bad and gives a negative rather than the positive delight of these paints.

Believe Tree Assemblage

Believe is one of my "pay attention words" for 2013. I have wanted to do a Wire Tree assemblage so I decided to sit down

and do a tree..... I wandered around downstairs picking up things that I thought might work well together and assembled this piece

a couple of nights ago.

I am not sure if "this is it" or if I am going to do more. Part of me says leave it alone and yet another part of me says use and go farther...so I think that means making another similar to this one so that both of my whims are nurtured.

I love bare trees, limb structure, whispy, nature, vintage, rocks, driftwood, jewelry pieces and buttons .... so this is a good believe for me.....

My next step will be to go scrounging for another substrate to use.

It is so much fun to create....and create for me. If someone sees something they like. contact me and we will see what we can come up with to customize especially for you.

Markham Gold

At the same place that I got my lampshade today I picked this book up off the floor and very quickly leafed through it to see it was photos of artwork. I looked on the inside first page and it was marked $1 so I decided it would really come in handy with mixed media...and for that price .. what a deal.

I just finished looking at it closer and it is beautiful. There are over 11,000 , yes, 11,000 pages of beautiful age old art. The page edges are gilded gold, and there is a gold ribbon marker.

When I went on the internet to see if I could find out anything on the book there was only one site listed....a bookstore which had the book listed as
$103.00....so I guess that was a good buy. But even more the contents of different artists' work to look at all in one place.

It is fun to look at pieces I like and wonder how they achieved a certain look, effect, etc. and then
how I might be able to do it with acrylics.... You can learn a lot just by looking and seeing....so this book will get plenty of use.

SOooooo 2 treasures this week.

Lampshade (Before)

This is my treasure for today. I saw it at the thrift store last week and it "haunted me" so today I went back and it was still there so it came home with me for $1.00. The framework is metal and good and strong so I will take all of the material off and will be redoing with vintage dresser scarves that I have been purchasing when I found one I liked. Several years ago I took a class at Joannes for "recovering" lamp shades so I have the knowledge I need to do it successfully.

The shade is 18 1/2" tall, the top diameter is 3 1/2" and the bottom is 9" so it is a tall, thin shade.... I may use it for the vintage kerosene stove that I wanted to turn into a lamp....the shape is right and I think will work perfect.

Cigar Box Assemblage

I found a smoke shop here that sells wooden, the heavy cardboard, and the empty cigarette tins at a very reasonable price (at least I am willing to pay the price) so I am hoping that tomorrow I can get started with an assemblage using one of the boxes.

Nothing in mind except some neat wallpaper that looks like tin ceiling tile.....this is where I will start...and where I end up nobody knows....

All of the really nice wood ones were
gone ath the shop when I was there as a man had come in right before me and purchased 80 of them . I will stop tomorrow while I am out on errands and see what he has in stock now. It will be nice to have a "pick" and not just ordering unseen from the cigar company I normally buy from....and I won't have to pay shipping anymore so to pay a bit more for the actual cigar box is "worth it"..... I want to get a real boxy one and make a clock out of it. That should be a fun one to design and work up....or should I say work up and design?

Tonight I was making knit sleeves for a denim jacket I want to redo.. I will add some steampunk elements too on the front and back. I am also crocheing what I am calling a Dred Lock necklace. Seems as if I am flitting all over the place....but I am learning a lot, feel more creative, and spend at least 1-2 hours per day (if not more)working on "something".... Removing myself from a very active Yahoo group has relieved a lot of pressure (much of which I inflicted upon myself) but in relieving the pressure it has allowed me to not think aout what I should and needed to be doing and giving me more time to
be more creative....and channeling my thoughts geared in that direction.

Chair

I am wanting to paint this chair as it has so many different artistic "parts" with vertical and horizonal...but just how?

Surfing the internet has not brought forward anything that I found inspirational so I guess it is up to me .... I think I will start with black or dark brown for the basecoat....and then, and then...well, who knows what might happen to this piece of furniture.

I LOVE tables and chairs....but my husband is beginning to loose his sense of humor and my daughter tells my grandson "count how many chairs Neema has in her house....and the prankstering begins. So I need a WOW factor...

Oeeeee, Boeeeeeeee

Shadows and Reflections

Sometimes we find shadows and reflections in the wierdest places and when I see something like this I marvel at the fun there is in photography art. I will crop this and will use it in a piece of collage art..... what was being reflected? A pair of glasses..... the light was a desk lamp..... This will also work well in one of my assemblage pieces that is "trayed".....

Additions to Studio

Today was a really nice day so I got my husband to do some honey do's for me.

(Left) He hung in a corner my makeshift, non lighting, chandelier which will have ATC's, tags, cards, etc. that either I have received or made myself.

I purchased minature plastic clothes pins which will clip the art to the (Art-delier) oooe, that sounds a bit French and French is in so "make your Art-delier soon.

(Right). Although it might be hard to identify hangs a string of Chinese lanterns with printing on the outside of the rice paper hanging once again from the ceiling. On the cord in between the lanterns I have clipped art work .... I realize that because these two new items are on the same wall, and at different heights I have to add one more hanging item. It looked really pretty tonight when I went downstairs and just lit the lanterns so I am pleased. I prefer atmospheric lighting vs harsh overhead. I may decide to be a bit more artistic with the lanterns (now that I have seen pictures) and maybe have a lantern somehow hover beside or above some of the artwork to illuminate.... I need to go down there and work, or just sit to see how I can make the change. This will eliminate the hanging effect and will be the only off set I will need.

It is so much fun to have "art in progress" with this room and I think eventually (maybe by spring) I will know exactly what direction my art is going and I will be able to get rid of a LOT of books and supplies.

Today's Treasures

Today was Pru's grooming day so I had 3 hours to pass away so I did a little thrift storing and below are 2 of my finds.

The fishing pole is only about 5" long...the plastic wrapper is still on the cork handle....and in perfect shape. (75 cents). Then in another store I got the pool ball stir-ers which were in a shot glass. The little pool balls are just going to be perfect as I have a "mans" mixed media piece I have "trayed". ( and the fishing pole just might fit in also.... hmmmmm ) I got the pool ball stir-ers, the shot glass and an older cribbage board for $1.00 so I feel as if "as far as treasures go" it was a good day.

PS. Pru is "pritty", smells so clean and fresh, and is supporting a very colortive 3 cornered necktie. She will sleep good tonight...