I Folded...

...and folded and folded. Who knew I could have one day made a living at folding paper like Sipho Mabona !??  When I moved to Japan I fell in love & couldn't have enough origami paper.  If my parents gave me money I would spend it on origami paper.  There was always a silver page or gold page, or both at the bottom of the stack and I always had a hard time folding those. I would save them for last because they were pretty. I would get so upset if I messed up on those pieces. haha Looking back it was sort of a comfort having that paper to play with being in such a new environment & culture. I love the Japanese people, Japanese art, food.  My mom jokes (but it's true)  that she was still finding paper of mine long after I moved out. (I won't say how long. haha)

A nice package of origami paper can still stop me in my tracks. 

After all these years I can still make these in my sleep! I also make one upside down with a little flare...

My son's wedding is July 3rd.  The rehearsal party is at my house. Maybe I should start now and cover the backyard in white cranes!  hum.... I think I'd need some volunteer paper folders my yard is pretty big!  Did you know according to Japanese legend that 1000 folded cranes makes a wish come true? Who's in? Who's folding with me?

 

Today I plan to work listing some new art & paint some more.

So folding my hands in prayer is the only folding I'm going to get done today!

Create a great day!

Blessings!

 

 

Squirrel ! ...

.... and I'm off!  That didn't take long did it? Today I was "squirreled" after viewing an online artist friend's new video.  Mystele Kirkeeng.   She is a Mixed Media Diva!  She makes it look so easy & not messy at all.  I love to watch her process and I am happy that I have some of her art.  Well right there on the side bar was a video by Betty Franks, Mystic Tulip Art, (click on their names to view their videos)  and her colorful doodle painting caught my eye so I watched Betty and I then painted & doodled all day.  I love mixed media pieces. I try, I make a mess, I have fun for awhile then I start thinking too hard, I get stuck, or I ruin it somehow, anyway I'm not ever super happy with the end result ...  then I clean up the mess & vow not to do it again for a long while...  But these were fun! It's just paint & ink. No stamping, poking, scraping, coloring, spraying (well I didn't spray. I dabbed ;)  I actually did some paintings like this in 2008 or 2009. I even resorted to my white lines like my ol' folky folk art I used to do.  

I took pictures of my process today so you could see that too.

 A great tip that Betty has for doodling is what I am gonna call the "double doodle".

Going over your lines twice and not perfectly does look really good!

 

 I already have some ideas for more and will probably think of a few more when I'm trying to get to sleep.

I did these little spontaneous pieces yesterday.

All 3 of the latter are ACEOs. 

Now I'm off to bed with paint in my head! 

Blessings!

Dancing in Color...

Just Off The Easel...

***

"Drowning In Yarn"...

... That's the name of my new piece.  This is a painting of one of the pieces I drew in the Little Pages video a few posts back. Click HERE to watch the video. This is the 2nd one I've done and may be the last that I paint on canvas. I may start painting them on paper instead.  I love painting on paper now and I used to be so afraid of it because it isn't very forgiving.  These portraits are quirky,  not as quirky as my clowns but a little quirky. I may not paint all of the pieces I drew in the video but definitely a few more. 

 "Drowning In Yarn"

I painted this one because it was one of my favorite drawings in the group. I sketched it because I recently had to remove all the huge Space Bags full of yarn out of my studio and into my guest bedroom to make room for new sewing machines & room to sew.  I have the big Spaces Bags full, one for reds & pinks, one for greens, one for blues, ... then there are the bags of "UFO's" (un-finished objects) or here's a good one "PIGS" (projects in grocery sacks) hahaha . I have bags of things that are finished, ready for packaging, or some just done to work out patterns, or just for fun, nowhere to go.  Oops I shouldn't fail to mention the human body sized basket trunk full next to my recliner.  I thought I'm drowning in yarn... hey but what a way to go! Could I go buy more yarn? Why yes, yes I could! * In my head as I just typed Why yes,  Anthony Bourdain's voice was resounding in my head as though he was questioned if he could eat more pork. haha My Mom keeps telling, just this morning in fact, of all the things she is knitting and new knitting patterns she is trying with a beautiful soft & delicate yarn.  It's so tempting to stop what I'm doing to pick up some needles, but I am resisting, I'm painting about it instead! 

In addition to painting on canvas I am experimented with paint on fabric. 

Can't wait to show you what I am doing! So stay tuned...

~God Bless & Create a great day~

*Note to self - must have de-stash sale!

Little Pages...

...of inspiration...

Ta Da I Tried It Thursday...

...This week, mixed media art play.  I'm trying to quit listening to my left brain tell my right brain what to do and just live in my right brain for a while. It's happy there. haha  I actually tried several projects that got me inspired and in create mode.  I made 2 lace books like these by Scrappin Happyxo for friends over the past week or so. Each took several days for me to do solely because of not being able to make a decision on how the fronts should look. Rearranging them over & over.  Just Click on her name to watch her video.  I'm not going to share mine right now because they are in the mail as I type. Maybe a post for another day.  I will say that I really had a lot of fun constructing these with paper like her, however, I put cereal box cardboard in mine on front & back covers & pages to make them sturdier, a little more functional.  The more you create the better you will be at it.  It made me want to learn how to do different bindings & make lots of art journals to play with.  Honestly I have never painted an art journal. I have many many spiral notebooks with notes, lists of things to do, sketches, ideas, plans, etc... but never have really painted "art journal".  While I was daydreaming of starting one & looking for some inspiration & helpful tips, I came across this video by Alma Stoller. Painting on a magazine page.  This was a fun & partly a major fail project so I am going to share this one.  

As soon as the video started I knew I had to try this! I bet you want to now after watching and I hope you do!  I "needed" to try this because I feel like my backgrounds just got boring.  In 2008 I sold mixed media paintings (not glued paper though), very folk artsy, incorporating sand, but somewhere along the line I just got too simplified, or out of touch.  Anyway, I found an old Fine Cooking Magazine, I must have been saving it for some reason. After doing my first pages I decided to use it as a funky art journal. (I did end up ripping 1 page out but the rest will be left in tack)  I feel the need to explore new products & try new techniques. I almost feel like burning everything and starting all over.  Reinventing myself. I actually know of an artist who did just that - but then spent a little time in the hospital if you know what I mean. Happy to say she is back to work but she is also back to creating the same art. So can we ever really reinvent ourselves?
Doing this project/exercise, I found out that I love painting on magazine pages with acrylic paint! It turns the stiff paper into a fabric like texture with a matte finish almost suede like.  I love the feeling of it. Could it be varnished with acrylic & then sewn on? hum...

 I also learned that it doesn't adhere to canvas very well or I'm a bum gluer.

My first pages...

I started off having so much fun, no plots, no plans, then all of a sudden I am painting food! hahaha

 There was a pea pod on this page upper right corner -  I call this "Minding my Peas & Q's". haha

 I ripped out a page  (see below) so I looked to the next page for inspiration.

I left the backs of the painted pages unpainted for now but may end up painting over them. 

I love tomatoes.

The words on this page are  from the collage sheet in my last post. I'm glad I saved this magazine. :)

This portrait page I cut out to put on a canvas...  Also realized that since it's a cooking magazine that I will leave all the paintings food related.  I do like to paint some food. Love kitchen art.  (Sushi paintings & veggie paintings are in my Etsy Shop)

Major Fail. This canvas turned out to be a hot mess, I don't even want to show you how it ended up but I will.  I used Golden medium to adhere it to the canvas but as the magazine paper dried it began to lift off. Then as I started to paint over it, it began to wrinkle & bubble.  Perhaps next time I will gesso the canvas first, or use a different glue. 

 I have to admit I did feel a twinge of guilt for spending so much time on a go nowhere piece but I have to admit that I think it was worth learning what I did, and I must say that the background isn't boring! Some of these might find their way onto a canvas in my Etsy Shop.

I hope this inspires you to try something new.

Create a Great Day!

Free Form and Fresh Eyes ...

...Thanks to Milliande! I was taking a break from work on a portrait commission today, when

I watched Milliande's wonderful Free Form Youtube video. I have been a subscriber of hers on Youtube, but honestly  & sadly so, I have only taken the time to watch one of her videos, and that was a long time ago. Now I regret all the fun I've missed & have to watch all her videos as soon as I can. I had to take time out to try her exercise, her "form play" would be just the thing to give me a "fresh eye" & get my creative juices flowing. A little "Right Mind" work. It was so fun to see what was created from a  random squiggles! Each one is like a little Meditation. Warning this may become an addiction!

This is her video and how you get started...

 

Here is my squiggle page...

Looking at it from all sides I pulled a few of these figures out...

 

Using pencil, ink, cream colored  & black acrylic paint these fun little creatures came to life...

I created 5 little pieces in all but here are 2 of them... 

Happy, Bubbly, Marshmellowy, is that a word? ... 

Rainy, Lazy, Curled up, Disconnected by Weather...

 

If you give this free form play a try,

please leave your link below.

I would love to see your Free Form Fun!

Show me your squiggles!

It is Love...

Promised Demo

"He Lives"

 

As you can tell in the video I had started another, then stopped to video. I left the 1st one to finish later. It's a lot of fun to get into your right brain and just let the paint & spirit flow. It was many coats and the time is severly edited. Layers, layers, & layers.

 I hope you enjoy the video.  Sorry it's shakey in parts, I actually painted with one hand and held the camera in the other...and then the phone rang! Maybe I can get my son to fix it for me.

Have a wonderful Sunday. I hope you let the Spirit move you.

A Little Doll...

Back to Business

What? It's almost the end of the month. I have been so busy! It's good to be busy but I have been feeling a little overwhelmed the last few weeks. I am listing some paintings on Ebay with low starting bids. I just listed this mermaid with a starting bid of just $20! Click on the picture to make your bid. I am cleaning out my studio so I will be listing a few more.

I finished a few paintings for the gallery class I will be teaching. Simple and easy. More than a few people have expressed an interest in buying a tutorial painting class to see & learn how I paint. So I tried to make a video of myself giving a class. Oh geez!! I can't do it. I want to but unless I stay totally out of the picture or wear a bag over my head it's not going to happen! The unknown artist instead of the unknown comic! hahaha I'm too shy for my own good. I'm going to work on it though!

I am revamping my studio to make room to sew. I used to sew all the time but haven't touched a machine in years. I am having so much fun "painting" with thread. Free-motion sewing using they embroidery or darning part of the machine is so much fun. I'm not really good at it yet. Here is the first thing I have done. It's going to be a pillow cover. I didn't use stabilizer so it puckered more than I thought it would. If you care to try this be sure to use interfacing or stabilizer, or double the fabric so that you won't get the puckers. I love the look of it, like a pencil drawing. I have a long list of pillows like this I want to make.

Time, juggle, juggle, juggle...

Create a great day!

Sharing

Just wanted to share this wonderful video of one of my favorite Artists, Michael Parkes.

That's alot of Coffee & Paint!

This looks like so much fun. Let's try it with iddy biddy cups!

The video says this is a painting. How do you feel? Do you think this is a painting?

"A Shot In The DarK"

Was That Fun?!
Making this video kept me busy & my mind off of some bad news I received for a time today. I will as promised post my blog award from Sharkbytes & pass it on, as well as some Shout Outs to some lovely people that featured my art in their Etsy Treasuries in upcoming posts.

It's One of "Those" Days...

It's 3:00...

...and I'm still in my pajamas. I'm thinking of getting dressed. Later...maybe. It's so wrong it's right. hahaha

A Joy Ride...

...Come on let's go!

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