New Hand Painted Cat Cards For Some Special Friends

Here a few newly hand painted cards. I used with a combination of inks: J.Herbin inks , J.Herbin Calligraphy inks, J. Herbin Pearlescent inks, Dr.Martin's India inks - and just a touch of Golden Interference Red/Gold. These will be off to new owners this morning. One a "huury back" rather than a "good bye" for a favorite doctor who is leaving and one for his nurse who will, once again, have to 'train' another new doc. The third card goes to the great, friendly people at the front desk of our Medical Center who somehoe seem to manage to always answer those blasted phones with a smile! Did I mention they get home made sugar cookies too?!

How Does A Flower Grow? Almost A Book.....

C&T Publishing has a cool group called the "Creative Troupe". Through a bit of the luck of the Irish (or something else) I am a recent addition. The latest "call out" (when you say if you want to participate in that particular round) was to use some of their products in whatever way you wanted. These finished pieces are given to C&T's sales reps to show to art supply stores in the hopes of adding sales of their prducts. I agreed to play with some Lutradur (these exercises will be in tomorrow's post) and one of the small square blank books that C&T sells. I was having a a difficult time with this project for some reason. I had started on a theme and then half way through had realized that this was not the way I had wanted to do the book! I was frustrated and irritable about it. Oh well ! I decided that I had to press on & fulfill my promise to send this in. Yesterday, a day when the planets all seemed a bit misaligned for me anyway (shall I simply blame it on the Persides meteor showers?!) my brush water bin tipped over and washed all over the book! Before I could react fast enough I had damaged the pages in the back of the book. They all stuck together from the gesso that I had primed the pages with and when I tried to open the pages they tore apart and left very rough patches. I had the finished pages wrapped in plastic wrap to protect them from my sometimes over enthusiastic painting!

I contacted Lisa at C&T to tell her that I would not be able to send back the book (mea culpa) - and offered to return it with the other things they had sent to me. Thankfully Lisa said that I could get an extension and that she would be happy to send me another book if I wanted to continue with the project. YEAH! Now I can do the project the way I now envision it....and I got an extension to boot. Thank you Lisa!

I am excited to be able to be connected to C&T Publishing in this very small way. They are a Washington company for one thing - and I like that - and they also have the best craft & quilting books & fun supplies. I have always respected the company quite a bit, and, over the years I have purchased a lot of C&T books! Being a part of this "Creative Troupe" will garner me a decent discount on some books I've been eyeing and maybe some of my work will get just s tiny bit of exposure. It's all good - or will be at least. These are the few pages that I had done using the growth cycle of a flower as a theme. The next book will be similar but done much differently.

I did enjoy playing with the Lutradur - as I generally do. I had fun using it to make art cards. I am hoping that C&T will also like them though. Right now that's what I need to do - go and finish putting them together so that I can get at least one thing in the mail on time to them!

The page above got some water damage too - but it is not as obvious but
in the photo below you can see the damage that the water did.......
I am ready for the clean new pages and a chance to have a re-do!

A New Mandala & Some Great New Acrylic Inks

By now many of you must know what an incurable art supply junkie I am! I buy art supplies rather than clothes, food or household objects. I love being surrounded by art supplies - which, of course, includes those supplies related to quilting, felting and knitting as well as to painting and drawing!

I found these fabulous new acrylic inks made by Liquitex and, of course, I had to have the whole range of 30 available colors. I sold some pens to be able to buy the inks - so as not to upset my inner exchequer! I am happy to say that it was a good exchange too. These inks are rich - saturated colors. They work really well with dip pens - and, of course, brushes. The color range is quite complete and the metallic colors are truly beautiful! I searched for the best prices and found that my usual purveyor of choice (DickBlick) had the best pricing for these inks. Here is the link to Liquitex - see what they say about their new inks. Joggles, one of my favorite craft and class suppliers is also now selling them - go here to see what they have. Liquitex says that you can use these inks on fabric - although I have not yet tried them for that. Maybe today I will though. I think that they would heat set some but am not sure that they would hold up to much washing. Then again - I really need to test their washability I guess!

A new Mandala piece I just finished - it's 9". I have been drawn to very earthy colors lately -I find them to be very calming - helps me get more centered. Hummm Is that really possible ??!

The metallics are rich and vibrant.

The Work Of My Hand

I've been experimenting with a variety of pens, inks, watercolors & acrylics. The "work of my hand" was painted/drawn/inked on a page of my regular (daily writing versus art) Moleskine lined journal. The paper is very thin &, once I had started this drawing I wished I had done it on my Clairefontaine Watercolor pads. Thankfully, a layer of gesso on the paper really helped to beef up the weight & made this sort of detailed work possible on such thin paper possible. I loved working on this hand ! I may doing a regular painting of both hands in a similar style - I have some nice square canvas' all ready to go !

If You Want To Learn More About Acrylic Paints,Mediums & Gels These Two Books Are Perfect!

These two books were written by Chris Cozen who is a Golden 'Working Artist. When I first noticed them they sounded as if they would be perfect for me - since they addressed all of the things that I was specifically interested in. I read the reviews & several people indicated that this is a very slim book - almost a pamphlet,that the photos were small & that the author did not mention that other products could be substitued (why would a Golden working artist promote another companies products though?!). After reading more I decided that I would wait to spend the money on these two books - and got some other titles instead.

The other books that I got (one of them is by another Golden working Artist Patti Bradycalled "Rethinking Acrylic") are excellent & I am glad that I added them to my library. I was still , however, drawn to these books - so I ordered them. I am SO glad that I did! These two books - and yes they really are more like 50 odd pages of a large pamphlet - are packed with exactly the information I wanted about transferring images and using the wide variety of available acrylic mediums. Yes, the photos are small - but they are quite suitable to the the information that is being presented. The lay-out is excellent. Pictures of what mediums & gels work to achieve a particular result. Clear, concise & to-the-point. I highly recommend these two titles if you want to know about using acrylic paints, mediums & gels to the best advantage. I found a "recipe" for a glaze in "Altered Surfaces" that works besutifully! Thus far each technique that I have tried using theses books for inspiration has been a success & I am far more confident in my use of mediums and gels now too! These books are available through Amazon, your local independent book seller & good art supply places.

Fascination Or Obsession? What Some Great Paper Can Do To You!

I think I just have to blame it on Karen from Exaclair. I simply can't stop doodling! I am having so much fun with the fabulous new Clairefontaine fine art papers that she sent to me! I doodle in the morning, at work on breaks & in the evening while I watch the tube (must be why I can't remember if I watched some shows or not!). I have been using colored pens, J.Herbin inks & acrylic paints. There are so many kinds of 'coloring things' that I want to try. I'm used to using very small brushes - and that has helped me to 'stay in the lines'. Interesting that I can stay within the lines in art work but not in life! The nuns must have missed something with me!

Also, Teena, was observant enough to see that today is my blogaversary! Yikes! I thought that I still had a few days. I can't believe that I am into my third year of blogging. I began this blog on a whim really - like so many of us seem to do. It never crossed my mind that I would become a dedicated blogger or that this blog would become a meaningful part of my life. I find it amazing that my cyber friends often seem to know my moods more accurately than the people I work with do! I wanted to have a surprise give-away to celebrate this day but, since it came up faster than I had planned I have to think about what to do. Suggestions?

I want to thank all of my cyber friends whose notes and friendship makes make me want to continue blogging -especially on the days when I least feel like it. Thanks too to folks like Karen who support keep me fascinated (or is it obsessed) with making art of one kind or another!

New Favorite Matte Acrylic Paints & Some Great New Art Books

I have used acrylic matte craft paints for a lot of years - generally Plaid, Americana or whatever other brands that places like Michael's sells. I really like the flat, almost chalky, matte-ness of the paints & they look really good in certain situations. I recently sold a couple of things in order to fund an order from Dick Blick and, while I spent hours going over my 'wish list' again & again , I had a look at Blick's matte acrylics -of course I had to try a bunch. There were very reasonably priced and the colors looked divine! I am happy to report that these colors are, in fact, divine and they do perform very nicely on a variety of media; cold press watercolor paper, various journal papers, pastel paper. Nice, creamy, saturated colors that give me better coverage than a lesser priced brand and retain that matte-ness that I like so much! Give them a try - I think you too will be most pleasantly surprised at the rich colors that you can have on hand for very little money! No. They won't take the place of my beloved Golden acrylics - but they all certainly have their uses - and these paints from Blick deserve a place in your paint box!

I also had a bit of a spree - also funded by the sale of some other items, at Amazon. I got the three books shown here - all of which are well worth the price. Mixed Emulsions is geared more to the mixed media painter I think (ATC's, Art2Mail, journal pages etc). One of the things that I find particularly interesting in this book is a 'time line' that runs along the bottom of the pages and describes the history of the item or technique being described.

"Acrylic Revolution" and "Rethinking Acrylics" are filled with information that I wanted to learn more about. The chemistry of acrylic paints, the differences between all of the mediums, gels and grounds and the different types of paint - transparent, opaque - and which colors give you which effects. Having never had an art class, this sort of information is really important to me - as I like to understand why things do what they do! There are also a lot of very interesting techniques ,that are suited best to acrylic applications (rather that oil paints), explained in much needed detail. I am happy to have found these two books. Initially I had thought that there might be some over-lapping of information and, to a very minimal degree, there may be a bit of that. All in all though these two books provide different ideas and information about my favorite kind of paints. I love the smell of oil paints - but I prefer the faster clean up and greater flexibility that acrylic paints and mediums offer.

I already have another order in my cart at Blick's so I guess I need to figure out something more to sell! Thanks, as always, for checking in. Seeing your comments and seeing folks 'follow' my blog with Google really makes me smile! A lot!

Have a very happy, creative weekend!

Peachy Cat: The Series

I am doing a series of cat faces and this is one that I just finished. I am not that fond of this one but that's okay - it will work. I am triny different color combinations and will then pick those that I like the best and do a whole cloth type of quilt with them I think. The green, in actuality, is not as flourescent as it appears here, although for some odd reason the other colors are quite true.

It appears that the hummingbirds may catch a break this weekend...we may actually have some Spring like weather this weekend. Today is sunny but chilly here - but it is snowing on the mainland!!

It's My Thing Tuesday: What In The Heck Have I Been Doing All This Time?!

There are times when it feel like I am not accomplishing a single thing. I have nothing much to post and nothing at all to 'brag' about! This is one of those alow times for me. Things are 'in the works' but nothing is really finished so I though that I would, at least, share with you a couple of the things that are not quite there yet!

First is this fabulous hoodie scarf. It was not as easy as I thought it would be to find a hood pattern so I was thoroughly pleased when I found this one from D-Made. It's under the free patterns. I love having some cabling running the length of the scarf - I needed some practice in cables anyway and this was the perfect amount to do. The hood part itself will have a cables edging to it when all is said and done. The cabled scarf part will be 7" when it's done. I am using Knit-Picks Worsted yarn in Fire Brick.

The next thing that I have been working on is something that I doubt too many of you will have an interest in - but it is fun for me! Thisis my first fountain pen restoration project. I am wokring on an old Shaeffer pen. I have to replace the sac (the thing that holds the ink) and also a small washer in the top of the blind cap. Unfortunately, no one makes the washers so I am trying to figure out what matieral i can use to fashion one from. This is truly, a mercury retrograde kind of thing, I can't finish the repairs until i figure out what to do about the washer. Arghhhhh..... Other than this irritation though it is really quite interesting to discover how pens are made. I had never taken one apart before. The book, fondly referred to as "Da Book", was given to me by a kind person on the Fountain Pen Network. This is one amazing site. Friendly people willing to share all of their knowledge and information - no no one knows where to get washer material - everyone has made their own!

Last, but not least, in the on-goingprojects is some painting. I am taking another on-line calss from Paulette Insall called "Enjoying The Journey". The first lesson was on creating backgrounds. This was the first background that I made (there have been several) and, since it was rather pale & relatively boring, I decided that I would start another in my 'cat series' on top of it. I am working on a few painting projects right now that will, ultimately, become whole cloth quilts. The 'cat series' is one of those "soon to be quilt" projects. I am playing with color & facial variations for the cats. This one is really just a flicker in my eye at this point - but what else can I say I am working on things - but nothing is 'presentation' worrthy yet!

Oh! Baby It's Cold & Snowy Outside! Plus A Return To Chidlhood

Here is an updated photo!

I took this photos at 9:00 pm last evening. Lot's more of this beautiful stuff (well, beautiful when I don't have to drive I mean) is still falling. It's that small crystalline structure that glistens in the light. What an unusual winter we have had so far!

My cousin has been clearing out a lot of old family memorabilia. She has, thankfully, sent me many things that bring back long forgotten memories. Letters with my mother's beautiful & unusual handwriting, letters in my grandmother's clear hand , and lots of other letters from family members to my beloved Grandmother, Thea. I have to share two things that were in the package that made me chuckle quite a bit. Two pictures I had drawn and sent to my grandmother when I was 11 or 12! Aren't these dramatic! I don't know how most 11 years old draw, but somehow I think it's better than this! I am so very grateful to my cousin for the wonderful family momentos she sends my way. These objects and letters really warm my heart!

I wonder what I was thinking? Veronica Lake? No! She was way before my generation!

More Golden Play

This little piece was not quite dry when I took the photos of the other cards that I posted today. I used the same gesso techniques - but some used gold leaf rather than paint to emphasize the gessoed areas. I made this for a challenge - but unfortunately I no longer remember which place the challenge was! Ohhhh - this is bad when it was only a week or so ago and I have forgotten where the idea came from ! I remember that the blog owner said that she had contemplated not doing a challenge this month because everyone gets so busy - but she decided to post it anyway. You needed to use a recognizable part of the picture of the girl, which I chose to paint rathe than print,cut & glue. The prompt for this challenge was 'beginnings'. Anyone know where this challenge was?? Anyway, I think this card, larger than the others, turned ot well. and I like it I enjoyed doing the painting of the face and I liked the layers on the paper, the gesso and the gold leaf. I sure have been having fun lately...now I must need to buy some more Ginko for that memory lapse!

New Cards: Exploring Golden Mediums

I have been doing some playing - I know that seems hard to believe! - with some Golden mediums. After I had posted the first batch of these cards, a friend suggested that I try Golden Absorbent Ground as well - as it absorbs the paint better. I also had some Golden Clear Gesso on hand - so I though I would try them all together and see what result I came up with. I think that we tend to use brands that we are used to using - and that is probably one of the largest reasons that I prefer Golden products. I have used them for a long time & I like them. They never fail me & their products are always, in my mind, just a bit superior to other brands. There have been times when I could not afford them and have bought many other brands to use - but I always return to using Golden products as soon as I am able to. These cards were made in various ways using lots of layering techniques - I am still considering them part of my tree series. It is interesting to use the clear Gesso over colors for adding more texture. You can then color the clear gesso& layer more colors for more texture. I have to say that, after experimenting with the absorbant ground by itself, I did not like the way my cards were coming out. - too much color was being absorbed and I was losing some of the texture effects I was looking for. I like the way Gesso acts as a bit of a partial resist. The 'magic' happened when I layered some regular gesso on top of the absorbant ground - that yielded fabulous results! I am still in the midst of experimenting - and have several more, larger pieces in varying stages of drying & gesso layering. I had so much fun with these. It seems to be invariable that the ones that I consider tossing turn out to be the pieces that I end up liking the most. A good reason to keep layering and reworking a piece. Even my rag looks colorful and is more fun to use (after careful washing of course!) after these "Golden experiments"!! More to come ....

Oh yes ! I DID in fact start that new quilt too - and I think it is going to be a lot of fun to make. Simple, but effective & sleeping under it will, I think, create happy reveries !

The "Bud"

"Wind Tossed"

Tangled

"Banded"

Results From The Dye Painting Class

It's amazing how this simple combination of color just makes me sigh -
like being outdoors on a sunny day!

As you can see from these photos. I had a wonderful, fun play time in Ann Johnston's Dye Painting class . I had somewhat forgotten what a "high" it can be to do this sort of work. Now, at least, I know that I will be doing more of it! I have 4 pieces that I will be working on some more today and I also have 5 pairs of socks curing in colors that I could not find and needed: warm brown, moss green,gray,deep red & one that will be a surprise. I can't wait to share the other pieces - of course they may look great or they may look bad -- that's what I love about this technique. You can make add as much serendipity as you wish to the process! I wish I had taken more photos of people's work - but the lighting really left a lot to be desired. Hopefully, Robin will post some photos of her work on her blog. Her fabrics were magical - even as a "dye virgin" as she called herself!

In other news, I need some feedback from those of you who have been stopping by for awhile. I am considering, for a variety of reasons, switching to TypePad for my blog. I am wondering if making the change would bother you - or would you follow the blog in the new location? I have twelve more days to decide - so I would appreciate comments and feed back about this. Thanks!!!! in advance!

Violet and gold -
One of my favorite color combinations !

A touch of lime green & yellow with some red & black.
I like this funky little piece!

Another limey green and dark violet combination.
I was experimenting with shadow shapes

Two new pairs of socks that are richer in color than this shows.
They were thrown into whatever colors I had left at the end of the day

This is one of my favorite pieces - crazy wild I think!

Navy blue, red and green. Not sure what I think of this...but there it is!

Some good old low water immersion (LWI) dyeing. Love this piece!
The combination of violet & golds or rusts seems to be a
thread that ran through my work during this workshop.

This is my "end of day" cloth. I sopped up the left over colors with this "rag".
The 'rags' are always quite interesting! Sometimes all muddy - sometimes usable!