tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1076924022940408332023-11-16T01:37:27.228-05:00Sepia and GlitterJane B.http://www.blogger.com/profile/04139653018234611531noreply@blogger.comBlogger84125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-107692402294040833.post-89661612472716526062012-05-03T08:00:00.000-04:002012-05-04T08:16:37.569-04:00Birds Welcome Here<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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This is a message for my local bird tribe - they read blogs too. I've been really trying to make my back yard into a 'back garden' because I figure it sounds more enticing to you.</div>
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(Marketing, you know.)</div>
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Doesn't the little cottage seem like a place that you might want to raise a family? I don't have cats that might be a little too interested in you. Ok, I have dogs. But I've put little fences up, and they are very short-legged. So they aren't able to get very close.</div>
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I've also been taking extra effort with keeping the bath filled. I know your kind likes that, and you like it cleaned too. Check. Birdbath cleaned yesterday morning. </div>
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There's a squirrel feeder too. Um no. It's NOT a squirrel feeder, it's a bird feeder. Purportedly squirrel proof. I'm finding out that the Gang of Four Squirrels has figured out how to outwit the spring mechanism. But hopefully you all will be able to share.</div>
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Open house! Come on over! I've even got sculptural representations of you. </div>
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As a hint.</div>
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<br /></div>Jane B.http://www.blogger.com/profile/04139653018234611531noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-107692402294040833.post-1560420298543868412012-04-29T17:56:00.001-04:002012-04-29T17:56:31.995-04:00You, me, and the Flea<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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April 28 was the <a href="http://fancyfleamarket.typepad.com/">Fancy Flea</a> - the most gorgeous, shabby, grungy, chipped painty, ironworkish, extravaganza of color and texture that you could possibly imagine outside of Paris. Except this brocante of home and garden gloriana resides two times a year in the little town of Lakeland, FL. Which is where I grew up. If they had stuff like this when I was young, I might not have been in such a hurry to leave! </div>
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See the person in the hat taking a photo in the left corner above? That's me...</div>
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There's just all manner of bric-a-brac - it's like a flea market on the tastiest concoction of steroids ever seen by womankind. A truffle extravaganza of old linen, time-rumpled suitcases, old glass milk jugs with garden flowers...</div>
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Dainty leaves nestled in crystal sorbet cups...</div>
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Old steel wash tubs filled with Gran's china, old table legs, and a violet or two to make it merry.</div>
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Old picture frames, imagery flown away, now resting on hot pink chairs, and stacks of leaves and ironwork.</div>
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Crystal drops, and lemondrops. And worn silk ribbons...</div>
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Dreamy, isn't it?</div>
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Looks like millefiori - actually deep, sweet, earthy scents of exotic soaps! In a wheelbarrow, of course.</div>
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BWA - birds with attitude.</div>
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I about had a conniption over these wonderful old spice jars. A conniption, I tell you! How in the HECK I didn't spend every penny I own, and then robbed the pockets of anyone walking by is beyond me. Well, except I do have standards, you know. And I'm saving for a <a href="http://dayledoroshow.com/blog/index.php/capturing-ancient-france-artist-journals-and-art-dolls/">trip to France</a> next summer. That might have something to do with it.</div>
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I'm already looking forward to the autumn edition of the Flea - can't come soon enough!<br />
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<br />Jane B.http://www.blogger.com/profile/04139653018234611531noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-107692402294040833.post-46217954670898963642012-04-15T12:02:00.001-04:002012-04-15T12:04:38.402-04:00Artfest Charm Swap Tutorial<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
Hello friends! Finally got caught up on my sleep after the delicious insanity and 3 hour time difference of <a href="http://www.teeshaslandofodd.com/artfest/info.html">Artfest</a>, and, if you participated in <a href="http://hootenannie4.blogspot.com/">Annie's charm swap trade</a>, then you saw a little tag on my charms which promised a little tutorial on how I made them. Finally, here it is! </div>
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Note to self: probably should have done this before I left, but as usual, I ran out of time. Oh well, nobody died of it, world didn't come to end, etc. ;-)</div>
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This does require that you know basic crochet first - if you have not learned that yet, I recommend CraftyMinx's <a href="http://www.craftyminx.com/2011/11/crochet-school-.html">Crochet School</a> tutorials - she does a really excellent job of explaining in GOBS of detail how to make the chain stitch, and the various crochet stitches, etc. etc. So, my little tute assumes you already know how to do that.</div>
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Step one - chain on four - or however many chains you want. Depending on the size of the circle you want to make, the gauge of your yarn,etc. this may vary.<br />
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Step two - slip stitch to make a circle. Then start double crocheting into the middle of the circle. This mystified me when I started crochet - being self taught (and didn't know about CraftyMinx yet) "So you mean you put the hook INTO the middle of the circle? and not around the sides??"<br />
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Yes.</div>
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Double crochet about 18 stitches. Your mileage may vary depending on the yarn weight, etc etc. Honestly, as my yarn was variegated, I just kept going until I saw the colors match up - "Whee, my yarn I'm crocheting is lilac! The yarn I've already crocheted is lilac! That means I'm done with this one! Only 72 more to go...."<br />
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Note: I haven't actually picked up my crochet hooks SINCE I made this project...As a mixed media artist, it is my privilege to be absolutely bezerkers over sketching, or acrylic paint, or collage, or polymer clay, or freeform crochet...right up until another shiny object beckons! Mixed media artists can do anything, but sadly, not at the same time.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjTnoUscMiXI92P0bOZHN1SxZhqGdivgQanQUtfqT3GlYce4zlmuhKqXvYwxahgaonrzBJV1tkPJgTUQAuSO4lypi0dbB6dZIstPx8mQwX10RgFQgXrkNNkwo2eDc3FpvhROGkm5KsJZbnT/s1600/IMG_4481.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjTnoUscMiXI92P0bOZHN1SxZhqGdivgQanQUtfqT3GlYce4zlmuhKqXvYwxahgaonrzBJV1tkPJgTUQAuSO4lypi0dbB6dZIstPx8mQwX10RgFQgXrkNNkwo2eDc3FpvhROGkm5KsJZbnT/s320/IMG_4481.JPG" width="239" /></a></div>
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Yay! You have half the 'oyster' made. Tie off the yarn, snip snip with the scissors. Now you can practice your crochet-in-the-round skills again and made<i> another</i> one, just like the first.<br />
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Whew, now we have both sides of the oyster, and it's time to put them together. How? Sewing them with your yarn needle and more of the same yarn you used for the oysters. I don't know what the stitch is called - basting? Overhand? I'd call it the 'just get them where they are attached together dammit, stitch.'<br />
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Sew them together until you are about 3/4 of the way closed, then, tie off your yarn, and snip the tail ends so it all looks neat and tidy.<br />
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You now have a pouch, or 'oyster' for your Pearl of Wisdom. That's the glass pebble with the word on it. What I did to create these was:<br />
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<ul>
<li>Write some poetic words that described my experiences at Artfest and Fort Worden from my previous visits, (I really liked doing this), and typed them up on the computer.</li>
<li>Put them in a table, and made it where the bounding lines of the table weren't visible, but they all lined up nicely. This was not for aesthetic reasons, it was to conserve my vintage paper, as they aren't making it anymore...haha.</li>
<li>Tore a piece of paper from the endpapers of an old book (an atlas of crop yields in the US circa 1935) so you know, one of those books that you keep around for its collage fodder. And because I want to know where the sorghum production states were...not really.</li>
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Fed it through the printer - voila! Instant appropriate words for my project without having to spend hours rummaging through old books, or dictionaries. I'm amazed I haven't thought of this before actually. As I have an inkjet printer, I then sprayed the words with Spray On Matte Sealant. You could probably use Workable Fixatif or any of those sealer sprays for this. Use whatever you got, but try it on a sheet first to make sure it doesn't stain your paper wierdly. Otherwise, the ink will run when you try gluing the paper to the pebble.</div>
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Cut or tear out your scrap of paper with word on it, and then use gel medium on top of the word to stick it to the back side of the pebble. (No need to reverse the direction of the word or anything like that.) When dry, I then sealed it with another coat of gel medium. I used Claudine Hellmuth's Studio Multi-Medium in matte finish, but any kind will work I'm sure.</div>
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Annie is running an Artfest commemorative charm swap next year too - already cogitating on what I'm going to make for that! Artfest...sigh....I love you. </div>Jane B.http://www.blogger.com/profile/04139653018234611531noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-107692402294040833.post-51622019869735321692012-04-05T14:55:00.003-04:002012-04-05T21:33:32.370-04:00Just returned from Artfest!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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Hi friends :-) I just got back from Seattle last night (oh very late...) so I will be posting on here this weekend with the tutorial on how I made my Artfest charm swap items as promised. Just wanted you to know :-) and I have some beautiful photos to share with you too. What a glorious art adventure it was!Jane B.http://www.blogger.com/profile/04139653018234611531noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-107692402294040833.post-2209799771213565752012-03-23T20:27:00.000-04:002012-03-23T20:27:11.536-04:00How very curious<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<span style="text-align: -webkit-auto;">I'm attempting to navigate the newest incarnation of Blogspot's uhh..interface? Is that the right word? Anyway, I noticed that it gives me statistics on how many people look at my blog (more than I'd think) and from where they are doing their looking. (The US mostly, followed by Canada which makes sense to me, and then followed by India, and Australia.)</span> </div>
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Blog visitors from India and from Australia somehow came as more of a surprise. </div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhCiN0IlQd1ErjKeQoZ6IS-u-Wz_PrxSoEmBqp9YkrX53Wra7B2dbwigWToO_q9vWzWMwltzzXjAP3srXbpmAbfswzVxrPBURqkJiPKrds6OJP13eLhI-8NCY5l-HSQQcKuFiUHduVv-H9V/s1600/IMG_4041.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhCiN0IlQd1ErjKeQoZ6IS-u-Wz_PrxSoEmBqp9YkrX53Wra7B2dbwigWToO_q9vWzWMwltzzXjAP3srXbpmAbfswzVxrPBURqkJiPKrds6OJP13eLhI-8NCY5l-HSQQcKuFiUHduVv-H9V/s640/IMG_4041.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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I hope my blog readers in India are looking at their laptops from a gloriously colorful temple with lush flowers, and placid fishponds, and not bored IT folks sitting in a cube somewhere in Delhi. I imagine wherever you are, readers in India, that it might look like this.</div>
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Kenny the Dog, however, advises me differently. He's pretty sure that squirrels are my biggest readers.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjL9NsuXlCa-Yv-93_Iz-JezTzhnBynAERLEZwkHi_JmYYyLgbchf25cl6z_WIHo00ySiGn44juG4kmskKiScVrwnk4j8t2Yu1vnQerzn2foM92Ax80vhmqRnThJWVs3GhO-MDDXxaNFgd_/s1600/IMG_4235.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjL9NsuXlCa-Yv-93_Iz-JezTzhnBynAERLEZwkHi_JmYYyLgbchf25cl6z_WIHo00ySiGn44juG4kmskKiScVrwnk4j8t2Yu1vnQerzn2foM92Ax80vhmqRnThJWVs3GhO-MDDXxaNFgd_/s640/IMG_4235.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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He says in between admiring the spectacular acorn hat action, my readers probably are more like this. He's very attuned to the squirrel tribe. </div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhy0N0ev9j2b-OIPfPw8Jjwj_UhewqrhWj7Acsylq6wiIv0WD0yDeQ3NNZVqC-R1c__VQ2UYtR6sZK04tRbfa4J67nvdNcIWiKE4mGccG9lFJVRctguHW3tfwZsYBZ9LhXbdEj6CyCXpR_8/s1600/IMG_4097.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="484" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhy0N0ev9j2b-OIPfPw8Jjwj_UhewqrhWj7Acsylq6wiIv0WD0yDeQ3NNZVqC-R1c__VQ2UYtR6sZK04tRbfa4J67nvdNcIWiKE4mGccG9lFJVRctguHW3tfwZsYBZ9LhXbdEj6CyCXpR_8/s640/IMG_4097.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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<span style="text-align: center;">(photo credit unknown, but not me. I salute you Buddhist squirrel lover, whoever you are.)</span><br />
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<br />Jane B.http://www.blogger.com/profile/04139653018234611531noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-107692402294040833.post-60884957445442963452012-03-20T20:35:00.000-04:002012-03-20T20:35:47.421-04:00Blogging Logjam<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhgAb3syjHlVNZl-62Z15Gk5JXt27n8Gq59uV90VJM7Nlfj2TDUwn6BNYUQlRp5NedruPLOrG-D2ju9sjE8mc1ADkB2mXTL2NuXMz99yOS-FF8ACFHyvgjPJPdSEOYXJYY-eTL8qQpgk25s/s1600/IMG_4535.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhgAb3syjHlVNZl-62Z15Gk5JXt27n8Gq59uV90VJM7Nlfj2TDUwn6BNYUQlRp5NedruPLOrG-D2ju9sjE8mc1ADkB2mXTL2NuXMz99yOS-FF8ACFHyvgjPJPdSEOYXJYY-eTL8qQpgk25s/s640/IMG_4535.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">On the very edge of my rather large feet (I couldn't say "tiptoe" because really, how old AM i?</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhy0swUMNK5WvJFprVkMAWffslR_plTyB_EwnxHdOfBjivNYfsyiyk_4KVYTvDOMaBQqkBTDLKqnsUxbw453y4PCfGoq6pKiKqdszDfvGpwbpxWshcjoxZnuIf-tA9vx3PCeck6gUrbcE8Y/s1600/IMG_4545.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhy0swUMNK5WvJFprVkMAWffslR_plTyB_EwnxHdOfBjivNYfsyiyk_4KVYTvDOMaBQqkBTDLKqnsUxbw453y4PCfGoq6pKiKqdszDfvGpwbpxWshcjoxZnuIf-tA9vx3PCeck6gUrbcE8Y/s640/IMG_4545.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">In which I very carefully, very slowly..</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjPhAIqjBK3m-XgdGpvct-2iOH-O5xM34zmFyuwedF3SqX0MziG0UgQbkLtuQUaKfY7XPcxX7LpWPIulB8WnjRxx7MLT-n4KcqlZgYJvaUeyc5ZjfBmT32IWyxvtGByyN68m1h9jTC6vvR4/s1600/IMG_4616.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjPhAIqjBK3m-XgdGpvct-2iOH-O5xM34zmFyuwedF3SqX0MziG0UgQbkLtuQUaKfY7XPcxX7LpWPIulB8WnjRxx7MLT-n4KcqlZgYJvaUeyc5ZjfBmT32IWyxvtGByyN68m1h9jTC6vvR4/s640/IMG_4616.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Return to my blogging activities....</td></tr>
</tbody></table> The problem with blogging, like exercise, is that when you stop doing it (I'll just take a break for a week, or maybe 10 days...) is that you start to get all log jammed. There's so many things to say, that you just don't even know where to start back up again. So then weeks turn into months. Many months. It sort of becomes embarrassing when friends from the blog world stop by. And of course they are far too polite to say, "So what have you done since last, uh, October?" but one wonders if they think it. <br />
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So I've been thinking about the qualities of the blogs that I really love. The ones that whenever they update (and well, they do update a lot) that I really look forward to reading. What do they have in common?<br />
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They're short, usually.<br />
They have a sense of humor. Not Captain Comedy humor, but I feel good when I visit.<br />
They focus on small things - not big elaborate art trips, or fancy classes, or showing off this and that. Because even if you don't want to show off, sometimes when you only blog about the big things, maybe it comes out that way. I don't want to be 'that blogger.'<br />
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So, I'm going to try it that way for a bit. See if I can update more often. See if I can just show you the little things that quite thrill me. Like my new succulents. See them above? I've always wanted to grow them, ever since I was a kid and loved my Welsh grandmother's rock garden where I'd hide out under the bushes and pet the plants. So far they seem to be doing ok. I've added some choice crystals to their bowl, because they might just help the plants feel more positive vibes. I want them to be happy plants.Jane B.http://www.blogger.com/profile/04139653018234611531noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-107692402294040833.post-66679108986398377802011-10-18T22:39:00.001-04:002011-10-18T22:41:56.315-04:00Textural Bliss<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEijg_ljJimWWqlgv-CkszmLWbRivETne6Wx8XN_yQqlsESrSdLEEXtHvr5rjLWkR2RowdvviUpBenaRqF135QBlfRifM_go7yxlMuL7389mEclfpcPjZN5eIswGXeTYnN0-XbzVg5YCYyi3/s1600/October+2011+038.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEijg_ljJimWWqlgv-CkszmLWbRivETne6Wx8XN_yQqlsESrSdLEEXtHvr5rjLWkR2RowdvviUpBenaRqF135QBlfRifM_go7yxlMuL7389mEclfpcPjZN5eIswGXeTYnN0-XbzVg5YCYyi3/s320/October+2011+038.JPG" width="239" /></a></div><br />
This past Saturday, I had the pleasure of taking a textured acrylic painting class with the always lovely and gracious<a href="http://sarahwhitmire.blogspot.com/"> Sarah Whitmire</a> and her charming husband Jarred at the <a href="http://www.jtfolkart.com/">Jeanine Taylor Folk Art Gallery</a> in Sanford, FL. I've been dabbling with acrylic paints for years (haven't we all), but never did a lot with texturing mediums as, well, they are rather expensive and who knows what you'll like, and not like, and go "what was I thinking" about. Who knew, they are so cool!!<br />
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It was a very full seven hours of class, went by in a flash. We first drew our paintings onto the canvas, then did some vintage paper collaging, then started laying in textures to our heart's content. As you can tell, I went rather Van Gogh inspired (I feel a certain kinship with Vincent, as do so many of us I think. Overwhelmed at times by beauty, struggling with doubt, driven by the need to create) and did a painting of my favorite flowers - the mighty French sunflower. God I love sunflowers, I love their big happy faces and their liveliness.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg6aB2LQJZEFZyyloMF2OXfjGBS3255giw7ubjc2IgCzyxwAIeaKHKY5cEB8ekT_KzPTstRbCoYypLUYZw5epfWp8vCXuaIB02EEc_Fc07ow086Qn2xRk9tC_aSAtEnwcRc4wNflyi5Z7Wq/s1600/IMG_3424%255B1%255D.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg6aB2LQJZEFZyyloMF2OXfjGBS3255giw7ubjc2IgCzyxwAIeaKHKY5cEB8ekT_KzPTstRbCoYypLUYZw5epfWp8vCXuaIB02EEc_Fc07ow086Qn2xRk9tC_aSAtEnwcRc4wNflyi5Z7Wq/s400/IMG_3424%255B1%255D.JPG" width="400" /></a></div><br />
And of course it had to be rendered with turquoise and teal and robin's egg blue, because I'm all geeky over these colors. I practically hunger for them. Who knows which colors I'll want to taste next year, but for this year, it's all about the warm ocean colors. And then, there's a bird.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhA-68XX2S32b7pVAf07UGu7fXOzODh1l0kle3d7TDiu3E2CbZB5frvGNovbjce9Fi2n2Gl0lVME0H5R1m45Al29hZXx2Ipm0wXjaQQ0tKUElTnZVO9MovJfJMR_VVSNS9gMxH0lmh4argE/s1600/IMG_3693%255B1%255D.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhA-68XX2S32b7pVAf07UGu7fXOzODh1l0kle3d7TDiu3E2CbZB5frvGNovbjce9Fi2n2Gl0lVME0H5R1m45Al29hZXx2Ipm0wXjaQQ0tKUElTnZVO9MovJfJMR_VVSNS9gMxH0lmh4argE/s400/IMG_3693%255B1%255D.JPG" width="400" /></a></div><br />
Of course there's a bird, (my artwork always has a bird in it somewhere, they represent the muses and guides) and the bird has lots of eggs around the outside of the gallery canvas. Because we mixed media artists have lots of little art eggs all nurturing along in our nests at the same time, don't we?<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjcb74Fd70nqoYuc_0CJTmxKd3wi3dSk9X_KRmeHlxQ6hrISpiBTbmlNEJjaJUeDvICZ6gA4jogv6BbgOwq3K-x1lnWq-KB2gSs2GQsYDoRVUyb14EXMVVIGLouWnJYPAX1cdy-ma6Qt7gn/s1600/IMG_3694%255B1%255D.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjcb74Fd70nqoYuc_0CJTmxKd3wi3dSk9X_KRmeHlxQ6hrISpiBTbmlNEJjaJUeDvICZ6gA4jogv6BbgOwq3K-x1lnWq-KB2gSs2GQsYDoRVUyb14EXMVVIGLouWnJYPAX1cdy-ma6Qt7gn/s400/IMG_3694%255B1%255D.JPG" width="400" /></a></div><br />
Anyway, back to the story! We laid in our textures, and then went to lunch (an eminently sensible thing to do with all that creative energy pouring out) at the yummy<a href="http://sanford365.com/day-345-gourmet-2-go-sanford-fl/"> Gourmet 2 Go</a> restaurant which is one of those restaurants that I wish we had on every corner, as opposed to mediocrity and a guaranteed indifferent chain meal. I love restaurants where the chef is a real chef, he knows his knifework, he selects his own produce, and he's proud of it. In another life, I worked in the high-end catering business for five years, I do appreciate my vittles, no doubt about it. Superb creamy celery soup and a tuna melt with a twist to die for with a nice glass of Chardonnay - I wish my lunches during the week were as good...extra good as I got to eat with good friends and new friends. Why is time spent with the art tribe so magical and so rare? It's like a champagne that should just pour every day.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjA3dkzeZKq0FoHdg3SkGvytjk9v6Q9PwE9p-pQtYJ0hqYaobb2x3KD_pMa0duc6kTv33LAQfKHpO88OVYFoNBwVZlXWPXCZHoCErM_zyx3OODtZAbp4Etk-oFP94nc7aWVnMBrhju2hARi/s1600/IMG_3641%255B1%255D.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="298" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjA3dkzeZKq0FoHdg3SkGvytjk9v6Q9PwE9p-pQtYJ0hqYaobb2x3KD_pMa0duc6kTv33LAQfKHpO88OVYFoNBwVZlXWPXCZHoCErM_zyx3OODtZAbp4Etk-oFP94nc7aWVnMBrhju2hARi/s400/IMG_3641%255B1%255D.JPG" width="400" /></a></div><br />
So <a href="http://sanfordinfo.com/">Downtown Sanford</a> is one of these wonderful little examples of little Victorian <a href="http://articles.orlandosentinel.com/2011-10-15/news/os-downtown-sanford-revival-20111015_1_theo-hollerbach-downtown-revival-historic-sanford-welcome-center">downtown revival</a> - and it has reinvented itself gloriously from derelict buildings and general malaise to a thriving, bohemian, art gallery filled creative space. It has a nice little farmer's market, six or seven art galleries, a paint your own pottery place, a crystals shop, a <a href="http://www.divinemotherearth.com/">faerie/eco/hippy clothing shop</a> and a <a href="http://www.divinemotherearth.com/gypsys_lair.html">tribal bellydance</a> cafe - all in a couple of blocks. And the truly fab Taylor Folk Art gallery. I wish all galleries were as accessible, as friendly, as welcoming, and as just plain inspiring as this one. I'll post more photos about this soon.<br />
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So we get back from lunch, miraculously texture has dried, and if not, it can be helped along with your trusty heat gun. Off to the painting! And the layering of paint after paint, and washes, and just general fun. Sarah really shares her art knowledge with this one, and inspired us all to go outside of our creative boxes and let loose. She manages to pull off grungy yet still cute and attractive as few others can.<br />
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Now I'm a big fan of the online class, that's for sure. But once in a while, it's a great thing to be able to take an actual live class with an art tribe. It refills the well. Make a promise to yourself to treat yourself once in a while if at all possible. It's juicy and soul-inspiring.Jane B.http://www.blogger.com/profile/04139653018234611531noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-107692402294040833.post-30477739317629795352011-09-05T22:00:00.001-04:002011-09-05T22:01:36.280-04:00Weekend checklistAbout this time on Sunday night (in this case, Monday) I tend to have these little mental reviews - did I spend my time meaningfully this weekend? Did I do my chores? Did I do more art than chores? <br />
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<ul><li>Washed laundry and put away - check</li>
<li>Listed relics of former hobbies on eBay - check (if you need model horses...i have a few...)</li>
<li>Sketched - yep! Four pages of Dachshunds and one sushi lunch. Waiter asked if I still wanted my soup as I hadn't eaten it....I'm too busy drawing it, you craven vizigoth! I don't care if it's cold, I've watercoloring to do. No sense of the aesthetic here. I'm quite sure in Paris this would not happen.</li>
<li>Did my Mom's banking (Mom has Alzheimers, so I get to deal with dreaded math a few times a month, always depressing)</li>
<li>Worked in my travel journals - painted backgrounds, printed out some photos, wrote some things in support of my Nick Bantock Spain journal. For some reason, this book intimidates me a bit. How do you capture one of the most amazing experiences of your life in a little book. With mere photos. Guess that's why it's taken me a year and a half to get started. Not sure if it will in any way represent, but it certainly won't if I don't do anything it all. Feeling slightly emboldened. Slightly.</li>
<li>Knitting - knitted three rows! Wooo hoo! Mastery of the needles is surely obvious.</li>
<li>Swept house - dirt, begone! Take that, sand...</li>
<li>Long artsy discussion with husband the musician - I may be creating the artwork for his band's album. Or whatever they call it now. They have albums still? I guess so.</li>
</ul><div>On balance, an adequate mix of the sublime and the ridiculous. It was a success.</div><br />
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Jane B.http://www.blogger.com/profile/04139653018234611531noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-107692402294040833.post-78393520006203497942011-08-28T17:45:00.000-04:002011-08-28T17:45:47.764-04:00A further foray into watercolorsSo I've really been getting into trying to stretch my drawing talents a bit further, and well, what's the fun in not adding some color to them? It is probably stretching it a bit to try to learn two skills at once, but you can't really do much watercolor without drawing. And at least the sketching end of drawing looks a bit empty without watercolors, so there we are.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjDFuKCj9s1PI9IiNZRqK_A8_1lUwC92IHPUpwt8dwiNbXn8zrIfCtJjLZfRmrzyK74Wv_8-61py0d9jkW98aC8c8Y6ADJ_46xSuF1q58C1mCoeZ2jyGH1YUQNW_3VRt7MN-hk9z9CmwP8-/s1600/Brugges.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="202" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjDFuKCj9s1PI9IiNZRqK_A8_1lUwC92IHPUpwt8dwiNbXn8zrIfCtJjLZfRmrzyK74Wv_8-61py0d9jkW98aC8c8Y6ADJ_46xSuF1q58C1mCoeZ2jyGH1YUQNW_3VRt7MN-hk9z9CmwP8-/s320/Brugges.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br />
I thought I'd share with you the drawings I did this week - I'm really pleased with how they are coming out. No, I didn't happen to find myself in Brugge (or Bruges, all the same place) this week. More is the pity, as it's no doubt much more fabulous than the hot, rainy, drearyness of late summer in Florida. Next time I go, I'm so bringing my watercolors. I wasn't 'into that' when I was there two years ago. The photo this drawing was taken from was taken by me though.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh6ahMDwOzSfnILnqKwX6CEKsP7DoD0h_UmGTdB26FgbPA63YffqXE8pDrDaR35zpRIXjFTNUrxG6eq5UYG2JZ7MvC4nyWaURxmV0Q-dpNpAD_tT6ayXZkpoajJwXb9TQYY-MpT06gjqInw/s1600/deer.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="146" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh6ahMDwOzSfnILnqKwX6CEKsP7DoD0h_UmGTdB26FgbPA63YffqXE8pDrDaR35zpRIXjFTNUrxG6eq5UYG2JZ7MvC4nyWaURxmV0Q-dpNpAD_tT6ayXZkpoajJwXb9TQYY-MpT06gjqInw/s320/deer.jpg" width="320" /></a></div> <br />
I saw this little guy at work on Friday. We have woods right near my office building, and I was getting in my car to go home for the day and saw this lovely buck sitting in a patch of sunshine, ruminating on the world. One of the things that really appeals to me about art is that it makes you very observant. And appreciative of the world around us. All these other people were heading to their cars, on their phones, I don't think a one of them even noticed this guy. I'm sure he didn't mind flying under the radar either.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-IRTGNrKnsPVidjKEIoT9SZf6tQeZtkoXGFvBUTKgkaC7E0s7Xs1u5nOQYfKOfmJJi3mCGCm6bjl6zJrol8Mb-0SH09gBwwC9PemXDq7dleb5r7K3AbS8RgCUfYmK_DdKqu1zDilJjD_9/s1600/Sleepy.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-IRTGNrKnsPVidjKEIoT9SZf6tQeZtkoXGFvBUTKgkaC7E0s7Xs1u5nOQYfKOfmJJi3mCGCm6bjl6zJrol8Mb-0SH09gBwwC9PemXDq7dleb5r7K3AbS8RgCUfYmK_DdKqu1zDilJjD_9/s320/Sleepy.jpg" width="314" /></a></div><br />
This one I drew this morning; and this may be my favorite. Nothing like post-breakfast sleepy hound in your lap to inspire a bit of drawing. She was all curled up and cuddly....Jane B.http://www.blogger.com/profile/04139653018234611531noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-107692402294040833.post-61506582140157312782011-08-21T20:50:00.000-04:002011-08-21T20:50:38.710-04:00Watercolors with Jane LaFazioOh, it's been ages, just ages since I posted last! I've been up to lots of things....I do need to go back and finish up those Artfest 2011 posts, though with some irony since Teesha Moore is now getting ready to take registrations for Artfest 2012....hah.<br />
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Isn't that always the way though - when you are busy with lots of things, it's hard to find time to post. After Artfest, I went the very next month up to Prince Edward Island, Canada to do a <a href="http://www.ritchieacecamps.com/ace-camps/sabrina-ward-harrison.html">workshop</a> with Sabrina Ward Harrison. Which was just amazing! That's another whole post in and of itself, and needs to be revisited. And journaled about. I did write a 'words only' journal a few days after I got back at least. The art journal part of it though? Well I do have the book actually bound (yes, hand bound) and all ready to start getting filled to the brim with Sabina-inspired mixed media goodness.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjvySa6u6ebG82QTFC-LI3Nuqg0V2OLZqV-am_9G-_uzU-ze8XlSW8ZZH0_kbW-QsJgpuvpu1yx3Uxi9s-_PuR-gmghUEYj4t6-HCKHLlvLgt5TN0OtOq8RdrHJvVZ8PkU5NWdb_p9E_Q8e/s1600/North+Carolina+wild+lily.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="230" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjvySa6u6ebG82QTFC-LI3Nuqg0V2OLZqV-am_9G-_uzU-ze8XlSW8ZZH0_kbW-QsJgpuvpu1yx3Uxi9s-_PuR-gmghUEYj4t6-HCKHLlvLgt5TN0OtOq8RdrHJvVZ8PkU5NWdb_p9E_Q8e/s320/North+Carolina+wild+lily.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><i>Carolina Wild Daylily</i></div><br />
One month later, I went up to North Carolina to take a class with <a href="http://plainjanestudio.com/watercolor-journals.htm">Jane LaFazio</a> at Random Arts, in Saluda. My third visit to <a href="http://www.randomartsnow.com/">Random Arts</a>, and always a genuine joy. Probably my 10th at least visit to North Carolina. I can't quite decide if my spiritual home is in the lush green mountains and rushing streams of western North Carolina, or the land of the tall trees and the powerful oceans of western Washington. One or both I think.<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhkit5rroeWMrRd4_7NMuyVOvEuwPQ-TPwMZuH4EcF3g04g3_aqgNu72XSTYJPB4MyfaNHS-4k-KPS0dCPO_e8SW-BUsz5V53DeyaKE_OzItYbJ2x0GSOOKC88cLUkOZie5VmUIjukWbUQs/s1600/Little+plump+dove.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="221" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhkit5rroeWMrRd4_7NMuyVOvEuwPQ-TPwMZuH4EcF3g04g3_aqgNu72XSTYJPB4MyfaNHS-4k-KPS0dCPO_e8SW-BUsz5V53DeyaKE_OzItYbJ2x0GSOOKC88cLUkOZie5VmUIjukWbUQs/s320/Little+plump+dove.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><i>Little plump dove, blind contour sketch</i></div><br />
Anyway, I wanted to share with you the results of my watercolor sketching class that I took with Jane. What an amazing lady! A very kind and generous teacher, and so full of encouragement and sparkle. I really felt very inspired and confident that I want to pursue the fine art of sketching more after this class. Class works scattered throughout the post.<br />
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<div style="text-align: center;"><i>Still life Study</i></div><br />
And when I got back to the cabin that we stay at whenever we are in WNC, aka - my "pretend home" up there ("oh, yeah, our cabin is in Fruitland...it's near Hendersonville. Oh you don't know Hendersonville? Well it's about 45 minutes south of Asheville." sounds like I own it, no?) I don't, but the very nice Landen and Benny do, and for very reasonable rates, they let us think we own it for the week. I sat out on the back porch one fine and sunny morning, surrounded by the tall, tall trees and the wonderful sound of nothing but birdsong and silence, and painted what I saw. And here that is...<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi5FOEMiRxCi44rDamAR3NsflrP_AjLOL5F98Ywf02Qfz_6kwPO741j7_8GsQHyLLaIsajiw7-hX-tcNtLGU2pDzFBeWW3LyxogUpodtvI1klIFUkAwlUB7nnIh1X4sshmaGDjrQ-4jNgph/s1600/Lazy+Rocker+Cabin+NC.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="215" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi5FOEMiRxCi44rDamAR3NsflrP_AjLOL5F98Ywf02Qfz_6kwPO741j7_8GsQHyLLaIsajiw7-hX-tcNtLGU2pDzFBeWW3LyxogUpodtvI1klIFUkAwlUB7nnIh1X4sshmaGDjrQ-4jNgph/s320/Lazy+Rocker+Cabin+NC.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br />
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Jane B.http://www.blogger.com/profile/04139653018234611531noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-107692402294040833.post-72029020147215750272011-04-13T23:48:00.000-04:002011-04-13T23:48:06.612-04:00Artfest Forever! Day One<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjwCYvWwo2znX8OFoO-xwQ_axae5s65RnyQeR9eLG7wgBmT8k-hn6IiXQDzqdudApHrihzEfz0M9h8cEr1V_nXDguBSPp_YudGeyOr_L0PgovgX6ZbcywnGjCvWw2et43LMFppe4RWWzsah/s1600/IMG_1679.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjwCYvWwo2znX8OFoO-xwQ_axae5s65RnyQeR9eLG7wgBmT8k-hn6IiXQDzqdudApHrihzEfz0M9h8cEr1V_nXDguBSPp_YudGeyOr_L0PgovgX6ZbcywnGjCvWw2et43LMFppe4RWWzsah/s320/IMG_1679.JPG" width="320" /></a></div> I'm just back from a crazy busy week at <a href="http://www.teeshaslandofodd.com/artfest/classes.html">Artfest</a> in <a href="http://www.ptguide.com/">Port Townsend, Washington</a>. What an incredible event<br />
- I am already counting the days till I can return to my own version of heaven. Just a few quick snippets of day one here. The above picture is on the Bainbridge Island ferry, on our way to the Fort - really quite pretty weather, and that was a preview of the glorious days of sunshine to come. I was very lucky to carpool with some wonderful new friends to the event - you meet just the nicest people at Teesha and Tracy's events.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjmoGCYuSkaAJiWeH4vvjmzifO4NSaNdC9pPahIGiItXv824DMebOqyHupisSCbjnXdwL8FZ_PtrCn9xFE7VgiPErmJzOBKW931hAe2HK7Tt8_UDQqnn-yoP951ZsUamEVrkN3x-rB5YmbC/s1600/IMG_1694.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="239" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjmoGCYuSkaAJiWeH4vvjmzifO4NSaNdC9pPahIGiItXv824DMebOqyHupisSCbjnXdwL8FZ_PtrCn9xFE7VgiPErmJzOBKW931hAe2HK7Tt8_UDQqnn-yoP951ZsUamEVrkN3x-rB5YmbC/s320/IMG_1694.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>Two hours of ferry riding and navigating later - here's the <a href="http://www.parks.wa.gov/fortworden/">Fort Worden</a> Commons! Time to get checked in and pick up our adorable goodie bags - these were very useful tote bags (for your grocery shopping) and water mugs that were incredibly handy for making sure you remembered to hydrate with all the swirl of gypsy art madness going on. <br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiFf1w-JD_ukAVj1L_-LQo-GnTQ9iB7XDL-V3ufmw_H5gaCRRwrFiUASVxG5iOwlXs3WzlE-K_aLjM9LqZudhE92KIUobcpQ0IRfZ8nSFq8757AQRUfp-YhpCijCre2NVMXN_3Uttb1fZ3t/s1600/IMG_1692.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="239" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiFf1w-JD_ukAVj1L_-LQo-GnTQ9iB7XDL-V3ufmw_H5gaCRRwrFiUASVxG5iOwlXs3WzlE-K_aLjM9LqZudhE92KIUobcpQ0IRfZ8nSFq8757AQRUfp-YhpCijCre2NVMXN_3Uttb1fZ3t/s320/IMG_1692.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>Ok, there was one hitch in the proceedings. The US postal service apparently sat on my box of paints that I shipped - with an explosion of gesso as a result. Yes, that was me cleaning gesso of of EVERYTHING in the bathroom of dorm 225 for an hour or so. I did have lots of tea and sympathy from my fellow artists though, and the use of a scrubby sponge. Everything pretty much got cleaned up, and I learned a valuable lesson about the powers of ziplock bags. Lesson: use bags for paint! And, <a href="http://www.akamaiart.com/">Akamai Art Supply</a> to the rescue - one tub o' gesso later, I was all set again. Yay Akamai!<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiTjIGWB57xodCw6UtUsdhyyEpcwccPq-NkayUk_YxPcPPzymOBhNjul6Q-qklqhLh9u4Xb0Jf-N4RsnMi5ZnB4ftlen7VVK7-wx9pnA99MDLRCWjuMxc9dHO8KrddoMj7MtWrSHquLRTJb/s1600/IMG_1703.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="238" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiTjIGWB57xodCw6UtUsdhyyEpcwccPq-NkayUk_YxPcPPzymOBhNjul6Q-qklqhLh9u4Xb0Jf-N4RsnMi5ZnB4ftlen7VVK7-wx9pnA99MDLRCWjuMxc9dHO8KrddoMj7MtWrSHquLRTJb/s320/IMG_1703.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>After the opening meeting, I went for a quick walk on the beach - this is what the<i> real</i> <a href="http://www.stepheniemeyer.com/twilight.html">Twilight</a> in Washington State looks like. Nary a vampire in sight... More of the story soon!Jane B.http://www.blogger.com/profile/04139653018234611531noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-107692402294040833.post-84457139179972636992011-04-04T18:05:00.000-04:002011-04-04T18:05:13.363-04:00Artfest Trades!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEit1zls_mxL0O2zDErNq8h2SZfiny4hMKW5un3qhtRy92z8akaDTgToh8Q4YUQFpRRJEhO_vzBOrHHGAsSJEtMS4ZpE3xy22MBhChHfz6KaHRGMjRroorXhjB3FsNteO1AsrzUb09twf46J/s1600/IMG_1670.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEit1zls_mxL0O2zDErNq8h2SZfiny4hMKW5un3qhtRy92z8akaDTgToh8Q4YUQFpRRJEhO_vzBOrHHGAsSJEtMS4ZpE3xy22MBhChHfz6KaHRGMjRroorXhjB3FsNteO1AsrzUb09twf46J/s320/IMG_1670.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>I'm getting ready to attend my first <a href="http://www.teeshaslandofodd.com/artfest/classes.html">Artfest</a>! I have been to <a href="http://www.teeshaslandofodd.com/journalfest/classes.html">Journalfest</a> before, so I can't wait to get back to the magical <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fort_Worden">Fort Worden</a>, now packed with 500 of my fellow mixed media artists. I'm told Artfest is like a really amped up version of Journalfest - I think my muse is going to be spinning about a hundred miles a minute....<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhEdI-_SeCIUHeT4-rVcx-JBAj6jW47K7AucmBhCJy88tK5d8AMtId5ePVwM-u4d4LXrzyTbHGxKM6cgpl9IxssKhmCRwFoAjRcJXlQp6KEnucPvQueLFL5CN9OInj8p0taqj4V3Kd-rhdy/s1600/IMG_1671.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhEdI-_SeCIUHeT4-rVcx-JBAj6jW47K7AucmBhCJy88tK5d8AMtId5ePVwM-u4d4LXrzyTbHGxKM6cgpl9IxssKhmCRwFoAjRcJXlQp6KEnucPvQueLFL5CN9OInj8p0taqj4V3Kd-rhdy/s320/IMG_1671.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>So one of the big events from what I've read on the Yahoo group is trades - and these are the ones I'm bringing. They are hand made, hand painted, enameled pendants with handmade 'yarnpeltery' tassels (that's what I call my collage knitting and fiber endeavors). Some of them even have Swarovski crystals on them, others have moonstone and amethyst beads - I'm so looking forward to sharing them!<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhxCWbU2_1rdPQNUTIFVxboMX79KHneyWYh2M6rLnRyqQJkyvTmopO-drhooLIdedEBEyH0Am-Nwq2Kgb2j71DlybQVeIS8n5lDvcpcM9JuB2V0cKbugaBOu9ZavkVDq3TwlecusvKYPFej/s1600/IMG_1672.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhxCWbU2_1rdPQNUTIFVxboMX79KHneyWYh2M6rLnRyqQJkyvTmopO-drhooLIdedEBEyH0Am-Nwq2Kgb2j71DlybQVeIS8n5lDvcpcM9JuB2V0cKbugaBOu9ZavkVDq3TwlecusvKYPFej/s320/IMG_1672.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>I'm also including my artwork on <a href="http://us.moo.com/en/?gclid=CKeLwJfvg6gCFcZe2godu2bYrQ">Moo Cards</a> with the pendants, (see below) I think this will be awesomely fun. <br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi0ncBC0AwrNh4bG4rqqQmsKvhtacjPyuXLpTqDQAzBTRwudXJ7lwt6J2_2LaxCjbGZNFYE3sNv366PjoJgQKf29tT2sk0Sow26NZ71ixSfBPEq4HhyphenhyphencZ6blI2pJsye1pAIx0mwc3e9LaBO/s1600/IMG_1636.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi0ncBC0AwrNh4bG4rqqQmsKvhtacjPyuXLpTqDQAzBTRwudXJ7lwt6J2_2LaxCjbGZNFYE3sNv366PjoJgQKf29tT2sk0Sow26NZ71ixSfBPEq4HhyphenhyphencZ6blI2pJsye1pAIx0mwc3e9LaBO/s320/IMG_1636.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><br />
Really looking forward to meeting my fellow Artfesters and trading with you all! (as a journalism major a few moons ago, I think all these apostrophe marks would probably get me in trouble with my old professors, but hey - it's a goddess tribe gathering!) Jane B.http://www.blogger.com/profile/04139653018234611531noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-107692402294040833.post-71325856765996454682011-01-15T21:27:00.000-05:002011-01-15T21:27:15.481-05:00Beautiful backgrounds for you to enjoySunshine warmed my toes on my back porch this afternoon - it was a beautiful day for getting outside and throwing some paint around...and after I threw, here's what I got back from the paint goddesses...<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjKBKSYCeEMfAlLQ4zrejqjAMHyX4B9iauiKI5EG28s1L5utnnRDQQpKgCTIBlNcfrITjoiprGG8snxrV_hZc_RIqXjlmF9301Wvr8mXX85xTkVHEM-gEDv6gi0bgh6PoFgwTWAle6-8GZC/s1600/blue+orange+background.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjKBKSYCeEMfAlLQ4zrejqjAMHyX4B9iauiKI5EG28s1L5utnnRDQQpKgCTIBlNcfrITjoiprGG8snxrV_hZc_RIqXjlmF9301Wvr8mXX85xTkVHEM-gEDv6gi0bgh6PoFgwTWAle6-8GZC/s400/blue+orange+background.jpg" width="318" /></a></div>There are just one layer - the beginning layer of my new art project - I asked the universe what my guiding word for this year is - and what I got back was <i>focus</i>.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJiviUUXYPDmMHomcCk-L49pMbUzpIhUDnK6Rinm0S1bEDqooTIVDq4UTXaOaszAx-NuYqhVDWptA5LOJ3-vnXOAMW7Fy_YuvVwmXlvsYwchAgd30D2PICXEaMjoUbcySxTVMSX8TAvlP_/s1600/pink+background.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJiviUUXYPDmMHomcCk-L49pMbUzpIhUDnK6Rinm0S1bEDqooTIVDq4UTXaOaszAx-NuYqhVDWptA5LOJ3-vnXOAMW7Fy_YuvVwmXlvsYwchAgd30D2PICXEaMjoUbcySxTVMSX8TAvlP_/s400/pink+background.jpg" width="302" /></a></div> I'm thinking every day on this word...I suspect it means more than it seems. It turns and swirls every day, bringing me more things to consider, more joys to revel in.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhjfWFSFsT0dcdtULhDB3hfwkeKKoSlQix_H-ra8dpp2jh-Ys3CfdNJaf_vaDWrSa7uFZvGN3TFcyogoua0xNN0CffYP43bgEZtDDWCxy_ZNnrfV15YoiCVxVRumpL_XD7iUcD2EKjarl9k/s1600/teal+background.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhjfWFSFsT0dcdtULhDB3hfwkeKKoSlQix_H-ra8dpp2jh-Ys3CfdNJaf_vaDWrSa7uFZvGN3TFcyogoua0xNN0CffYP43bgEZtDDWCxy_ZNnrfV15YoiCVxVRumpL_XD7iUcD2EKjarl9k/s400/teal+background.jpg" width="316" /></a></div>I think <i>focus</i> means to choose what art project I most enjoy, and to pursue it with relish and abandon to its richest conclusion. Not let myself get sidetracked, sideswiped, sidelined. See what mysteries will be unfolded to my newly opened eyes. These paintings, just the first layer, are part of that focus.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgbTwdw4E_rwTGWdHUy2buJSP6cii_1EaHgrq3OI1xG_GRCmn6oX5zQCYZ16aRVJZvSxY72ppZ1YqIyjZRjW6qilfz1qCzaKaz2xN4x6tzY9s3KHi07AWSgIjkpgg9nPgGQgiCmEo7SrlNV/s1600/red+background.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgbTwdw4E_rwTGWdHUy2buJSP6cii_1EaHgrq3OI1xG_GRCmn6oX5zQCYZ16aRVJZvSxY72ppZ1YqIyjZRjW6qilfz1qCzaKaz2xN4x6tzY9s3KHi07AWSgIjkpgg9nPgGQgiCmEo7SrlNV/s400/red+background.jpg" width="302" /></a></div>Practicing yoga, freedom, self acceptance, non-judgment, honesty, contentment, peace. And layers that will continue to unfold throughout the year.<br />
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Please feel free to download the backgrounds in this post for your own creative endeavors! Just leave me a comment and let me know what wonders your new art year is unfolding. Sharing is caring!Jane B.http://www.blogger.com/profile/04139653018234611531noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-107692402294040833.post-90690367082864290522011-01-10T21:44:00.003-05:002011-01-10T22:17:29.257-05:00The muses are swirling around....<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJp1Y3i0V1b2vjjoX-ic_19A2-cz-3JqPslq-5uOH_vpqlo7yF-g2UwrbqzdSruoPj74o9uTIFjyEueJE75hzYosbApT9EqjmKhwpAZOe89j1CVa649jc3JD9JhZCvE6vguc029u43-UvO/s1600/IMG_0995.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJp1Y3i0V1b2vjjoX-ic_19A2-cz-3JqPslq-5uOH_vpqlo7yF-g2UwrbqzdSruoPj74o9uTIFjyEueJE75hzYosbApT9EqjmKhwpAZOe89j1CVa649jc3JD9JhZCvE6vguc029u43-UvO/s640/IMG_0995.JPG" width="640" />.</a></div>I firmly believe we can achieve world peace through art journaling, universal health care, and subsidized massage therapy for all. Tell me we would not all be better off with these things? In the meantime until all this becomes reality, I listened to the summons from my internet friend <a href="http://www.journalgirl.com/">Samantha Kira Harding</a>, and I wrote up a brave, crazy thing today. I wrote a plan for my art journals, for making things to actually sell (so I can prove to myself in some concrete fashion that somebody else is listening - Capricorn, we are tangible affluence kinds of folks). I wrote to myself the who/what/where/when/whys to try to explain to myself why I want to teach and to share the wonder, frustration, obsession, life affirming things that the mixed media collage art world has brought me. <br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgPWbiikTNLoBtNObXZzNlvcej5TMxnT9rsJpx6nuG4d9J6H9rS88UDaGX4S8AKHQ5-75syNELLMkbmbkr_D-5uXMUgFwWTKkcLQzRKIl-dVchD-LQfRtrZGtPV10Q_ACFtlHG5G84ePrYV/s1600/IMG_0993+copy.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgPWbiikTNLoBtNObXZzNlvcej5TMxnT9rsJpx6nuG4d9J6H9rS88UDaGX4S8AKHQ5-75syNELLMkbmbkr_D-5uXMUgFwWTKkcLQzRKIl-dVchD-LQfRtrZGtPV10Q_ACFtlHG5G84ePrYV/s640/IMG_0993+copy.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg8iGVe39n5tGBW9FvRjZWPFzrrG6WTQCGD9ircU6EwZRXZnstHSbYu9Epff7Aa7W4Vngi0SxorI76k8kf2UDYoI0aKWRAU8Mya4ynFR4shONbWpJoDZP8tZ7UqVQLsUHeMBrFChO8gzf1N/s1600/IMG_0997.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"></a></div>That's me in the left corner of the picture - soaking in the pearlescent sky and swirling mists that rose from the earth as I drove home from work - the muse was letting me know she was listening to my dreams, and she was believing. This will all become reality. I know it.Jane B.http://www.blogger.com/profile/04139653018234611531noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-107692402294040833.post-16529370212434557822010-12-24T14:24:00.000-05:002010-12-24T14:24:52.892-05:00Merry Christmas!Earlier this month, we did a spontaneous trip to New York City to celebrate mine and my husband's birthdays - as a good friend of mine says, "Wow, when you get spontaneous, you go to New York City. When we get spontaneous, we go to Cold Stone Creamery..." I can't believe I've gotten to this mid-life age, and never been to New York before! This will be remedied in the future. I thought I'd share a few shots with you of the city in winter. <br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhlIPqZCr7uDMhUNKK9jVNl_wn0ernTjic75hK_Db20vyeLyi6D2HmunPS7Q3ZbiHKuwpS3UKKqKvezOxEuMmFyGnzzJTr2ZMNhkXEUKT02icHRa9aomtEZKjSA2CbgD-75J2Cyg9TDiwGH/s1600/IMG_0479.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhlIPqZCr7uDMhUNKK9jVNl_wn0ernTjic75hK_Db20vyeLyi6D2HmunPS7Q3ZbiHKuwpS3UKKqKvezOxEuMmFyGnzzJTr2ZMNhkXEUKT02icHRa9aomtEZKjSA2CbgD-75J2Cyg9TDiwGH/s320/IMG_0479.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>Macy's - and I never made it past the first floor. I definitely didn't get to Santaland, (and if you have never read "The SantaLand Diaries" by David Sedaris, do yourself a favor and do do. It is everything you love and hate about Christmas in a nutshell. Extra points to you if you have ever worked in customer service, as you, dear readers will especially appreciate this one!) <br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiTUFiZZ4EPCUldjRUUlA9zT2_v1S8bXJuRpJ1fxteU80zC5kcHX_8NTutoQQiw4OepHXIiXPKYBiCBCfdwviCIgaKffF8vmXgTU2zqjJD_bq6FHdMaoW5RdHMC2Xsqh6otcVvFftVVrvMp/s1600/IMG_0521.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiTUFiZZ4EPCUldjRUUlA9zT2_v1S8bXJuRpJ1fxteU80zC5kcHX_8NTutoQQiw4OepHXIiXPKYBiCBCfdwviCIgaKffF8vmXgTU2zqjJD_bq6FHdMaoW5RdHMC2Xsqh6otcVvFftVVrvMp/s320/IMG_0521.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Ice skaters in front to Rockfeller Center. </div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi67V8pl6mw3FLruE5f9PO-HoeZzS_uIPMX7yrcyyeYJ-slD8S1pUdjO-5JcGQc0NAR3ImSX8Ka8Ad4Y41kauvy9vdJInWuFnHT7o-m_PS5C-zIynoUO-V8z9YkViBZLqb97oWcNX_D3DmF/s1600/IMG_0527.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi67V8pl6mw3FLruE5f9PO-HoeZzS_uIPMX7yrcyyeYJ-slD8S1pUdjO-5JcGQc0NAR3ImSX8Ka8Ad4Y41kauvy9vdJInWuFnHT7o-m_PS5C-zIynoUO-V8z9YkViBZLqb97oWcNX_D3DmF/s320/IMG_0527.JPG" width="239" /></a></div>The famous Rockerfeller Center tree; it was so amazing to see this many people all going to visit an evergreen. <br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjdruXsgqshoSirrwr7IBDwY-70dq-6A55luDD1xLtIRiz-4NYOl5EFTDMQYN7rFZESlRqF9Fw7xmzcE9ESDDtXvs7fYaqzKBtdXgRvuGE66quHfo1GaXs_4ffEF7xloTWBO_7HUAlnFq6K/s1600/IMG_0569.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjdruXsgqshoSirrwr7IBDwY-70dq-6A55luDD1xLtIRiz-4NYOl5EFTDMQYN7rFZESlRqF9Fw7xmzcE9ESDDtXvs7fYaqzKBtdXgRvuGE66quHfo1GaXs_4ffEF7xloTWBO_7HUAlnFq6K/s320/IMG_0569.JPG" width="320" /></a></div> It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas!<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhYsBIkbbKIX2PO5_YPZLQXL2LMySZLZZFHBUbZA8Uzt64vCg6XTSh4q2BKwRt558f2v-q6dVeTNkc2FsfjEl-T_hOpLBrB0vSnDKZzqoxF2x_CZwpLEiQLsmZYKt-aFkXKQFeUtc91ONne/s1600/IMG_0638.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhYsBIkbbKIX2PO5_YPZLQXL2LMySZLZZFHBUbZA8Uzt64vCg6XTSh4q2BKwRt558f2v-q6dVeTNkc2FsfjEl-T_hOpLBrB0vSnDKZzqoxF2x_CZwpLEiQLsmZYKt-aFkXKQFeUtc91ONne/s320/IMG_0638.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div style="text-align: justify;">The old dairy next to the sheep meadow, Central Park.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">Merry Christmas, Blessed Solstice, and brightest blessings for your New Year. I hope all your artistic dreams come true. Seasonal hugs, Jane</div>Jane B.http://www.blogger.com/profile/04139653018234611531noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-107692402294040833.post-48162891070898553992010-12-03T18:22:00.011-05:002010-12-03T18:22:00.392-05:00Why I don't like iTunes, but won't trade my iPhone for anything...a non-rant<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgnSTHON_XxmNnuHTpy4fXT7Vx5djPkQsplLpw7TdMs2rk-KFWwN-DEpzISOKJ-OsM5rZ5Kfx6PuGxeLJxAcMLDbBTTbza0ay3uMzU2UbWHoLwco81cO9JSzZa7cckiKsw8p0OYSZZ3v9Ne/s1600/IMG_0440.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgnSTHON_XxmNnuHTpy4fXT7Vx5djPkQsplLpw7TdMs2rk-KFWwN-DEpzISOKJ-OsM5rZ5Kfx6PuGxeLJxAcMLDbBTTbza0ay3uMzU2UbWHoLwco81cO9JSzZa7cckiKsw8p0OYSZZ3v9Ne/s320/IMG_0440.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>I don't like iTunes. Everyone else seems to think it's so intuitive - no, I cannot concur. I find it entirely counterintuitive, and irritating. But, lest you suspect a rant coming on - this is not in fact a rant. It's a....not sure what opposite of rant is - er, praise? Can one have "a praise?" Well, I will proceed to do so anyway. <br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhHH8dJscHoVS8M924MxTVwP5pSlNpfQxfc-VySY2GCe3cquyP2bCV5s26VYWhE2a9OPJaf9XpdfzJzuS8hx-k4dn0hx9maNRhufvIchTjtEupiKIpN-nxziMW043iKVnR7RekAXokZCKEq/s1600/IMG_0195.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhHH8dJscHoVS8M924MxTVwP5pSlNpfQxfc-VySY2GCe3cquyP2bCV5s26VYWhE2a9OPJaf9XpdfzJzuS8hx-k4dn0hx9maNRhufvIchTjtEupiKIpN-nxziMW043iKVnR7RekAXokZCKEq/s320/IMG_0195.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>This is a praise of the iPhone, despite the perfidy of its operating system, because for photography apps, it just can't be beat. My favorite of all? <a href="http://hipstamatic.com/"> Hipstamatic</a>. It enables one to take those artsy sort of photos that one admires in the journals of people like <a href="http://www.sabrinawardharrison.com/ee/">Sabrina Ward Harrison</a> and so forth. Folks that just ooze artsy and effortless in making crap photos look so intentional and good, but yet so carelessly tossed off the lens as to be barely worth a mention. You know what I mean - some people just make you think "artist" with everything they do, and they usually take craptastic photos. With apologies to Sabrina of course, because she probably doesn't have to resort to trickery, or even Lomography. And she's totally amazing. Shanti, shanti, shanti... But I digress... <br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhcHosQ1YIN5z9Xh-_kwA5oAKg80dzML66hDmloAtLvEALl_xTEKd8eS4iugMKRgxGrjgtXLyPH9mFp74p_Zz_OgZnSrLWeP4R7fpxGE8Pqq3yjWO9p2GUUJ0bbxteWoV2bldnj2wya_tbn/s1600/IMG_0196.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhcHosQ1YIN5z9Xh-_kwA5oAKg80dzML66hDmloAtLvEALl_xTEKd8eS4iugMKRgxGrjgtXLyPH9mFp74p_Zz_OgZnSrLWeP4R7fpxGE8Pqq3yjWO9p2GUUJ0bbxteWoV2bldnj2wya_tbn/s320/IMG_0196.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>So the truly artsy types have had a bit of help over the years - they started using Lomo cameras before the rest of us. The Holga, the Diana - such plastic bodied, light-filtering in, exposed film decadence! But those still require that you actually develop the (long outdated) film. The Hipstamatic for iPhone requires no more than a quick download off the camera..<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjiwYcpNn53oCxjHzu0HBR6Gxp02YO8hXN6S9GXjv23pjacOpLYMlA_j4XnTGqFOFSp2NlQpBCOZREiMKu7O5gHMBIqyeTZsI_ZREWXvT9F4ceFl05p1wEDUzxdac28uePkjRf8LGwWpAU7/s1600/IMG_0197.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjiwYcpNn53oCxjHzu0HBR6Gxp02YO8hXN6S9GXjv23pjacOpLYMlA_j4XnTGqFOFSp2NlQpBCOZREiMKu7O5gHMBIqyeTZsI_ZREWXvT9F4ceFl05p1wEDUzxdac28uePkjRf8LGwWpAU7/s320/IMG_0197.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>All that fussing with using manual SLR's back in my college days. No, I don't regret taking proper photography - I learned how a real camera, and developing film, and printing in a darkroom actually properly works. It was my favorite class I ever took along with archery (except when I shot myself in my own arm. The teacher said in 20 years of teaching, she'd never seen anything like it. I was sidelined until a spot in badminton opened up. Best weeks of PE ever.) Oh, and "lifetime crafts" - how cool is that? I learned how to cut linoleum blocks to make stamps for printing. This would turn out much more useful in later life. I do love liberal arts colleges. <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"> <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj_jTmFiPBbp5A6F4WO7giOoKbepuW4AsNl6h8scOgpCHXsFWj1AOMNcU4GF-e0ZIF7kOE8h94Buqw6grnrOhzuPZPd7XpxTOcKoKGZ63LwlpdR2r7DVpROAS0rTlF-ImqoH5ud0z6TqJsQ/s1600/IMG_0437.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj_jTmFiPBbp5A6F4WO7giOoKbepuW4AsNl6h8scOgpCHXsFWj1AOMNcU4GF-e0ZIF7kOE8h94Buqw6grnrOhzuPZPd7XpxTOcKoKGZ63LwlpdR2r7DVpROAS0rTlF-ImqoH5ud0z6TqJsQ/s320/IMG_0437.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>But the Hipstamatic app for iPhone is so much MORE FUN! Even better, you get multiple "lenses" that produce all sorts of truly magical effects. These photos were taken with the Dali lens package. More surrealism than a mere phone ever had daydreams of. Can you believe it's really just a phone? This still amazes me.<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjTrT6ovnM4UWZF_Qo-C6RRCcpkOSuo-xH8F52XlnMpaXDbhsp2AbrKREI8F0FF1fUzYdO8VYnG3CrnQ7QMhQJiq38w4BuRea8o8whmaNdMRHeAR7jhd9iwalQ3KFuQTIkXM6r8rxh0MDMd/s1600/IMG_0439.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjTrT6ovnM4UWZF_Qo-C6RRCcpkOSuo-xH8F52XlnMpaXDbhsp2AbrKREI8F0FF1fUzYdO8VYnG3CrnQ7QMhQJiq38w4BuRea8o8whmaNdMRHeAR7jhd9iwalQ3KFuQTIkXM6r8rxh0MDMd/s320/IMG_0439.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>So are you making handmade Christmas gifts for all your relatives and friends? I'm sure hoping that mine appreciate my slightly off the wall photography - coz they're gettin' it in some form or another! You saw a sneaky peek. Shhh....it's our secret.Jane B.http://www.blogger.com/profile/04139653018234611531noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-107692402294040833.post-33178551888967559972010-11-27T16:12:00.000-05:002010-11-27T16:12:36.576-05:00Finds, loot, stash...from the Fancy Flea<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgXtRP6yDEHrU-c9LjEifdEqKF3foYqA_aqRCALHuMr-WMxu4cFAq8XUnlmh11C4-wJNOr1SC8u_RquWQQsv94QDBX3G4QIPYbBIJPaSggFTa23yu56YoH2gZv0w3tCHPwvwHjGt6tWd6MQ/s1600/IMG_0368.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgXtRP6yDEHrU-c9LjEifdEqKF3foYqA_aqRCALHuMr-WMxu4cFAq8XUnlmh11C4-wJNOr1SC8u_RquWQQsv94QDBX3G4QIPYbBIJPaSggFTa23yu56YoH2gZv0w3tCHPwvwHjGt6tWd6MQ/s320/IMG_0368.JPG" width="238" /></a></div>From my last post, I had mentioned that I'd show you my snazzy finds from the Flea - so here they are...a lovely little chest of drawers in miniature size (it's probably 18 inches tall, with little drawers). All handpainted - you can see it on the left behind the blue candle. Then, from the same artist, a handpainted candle holder to go with it all. That's the one with the yellow circle with the dots on it. So fab in the studio!<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgROxnjECUlqBzYk3_zXfRh7U4iVf2L7Bl_l0JFoU5mBVfaerVVnBGvCB39L7DJ5YkINYsU_RN82p2cyQOHRnMOqJmnsCN9tSHLup3Fxn7tOvyKmaS8a3owHn1ZN-j-MNLYAvIA25yBPjDZ/s1600/IMG_0376.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgROxnjECUlqBzYk3_zXfRh7U4iVf2L7Bl_l0JFoU5mBVfaerVVnBGvCB39L7DJ5YkINYsU_RN82p2cyQOHRnMOqJmnsCN9tSHLup3Fxn7tOvyKmaS8a3owHn1ZN-j-MNLYAvIA25yBPjDZ/s320/IMG_0376.JPG" width="320" /></a></div> Here we have a bumper set of chandelier crystals - just waiting to be transformed into some jewelry. Or some "faux chandelier" treatments of my own. See, I'd love to own a chandelier and decorate the studio with it, all Parisian attelier inspired and generally decadent. But I live in a climate that only resembles Paris on the hottest days of summer - the Parisians install a "tropical beach" called the Paris Plage by the banks of the Seine in August just to try to make it bearable. If you could get out of town, you would....and it's like that much of the year here. So, practicality wins out, and a ceiling fan wins. Doesn't have to look like an ordinary fan though. And so hence, faux chandeliering - I'm slowly but surely adding bits of crystal on where I can and stringing it from other beads, and fishing line if that's what it takes. Its as faux French as my command of the French language is...<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgxhCWRklxwLpQPjzPsLpsrSPB-PqFpdal1c8gwucsp_ft2x-sA5mCY69wczDxxExnfdd6zUjptgCRzNWbbqprQBZRaKJX5kHR5jbMlf6LBPmno6kX6KEerlN-3PQMONzNHIXOuoB0Do0uC/s1600/IMG_0378.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgxhCWRklxwLpQPjzPsLpsrSPB-PqFpdal1c8gwucsp_ft2x-sA5mCY69wczDxxExnfdd6zUjptgCRzNWbbqprQBZRaKJX5kHR5jbMlf6LBPmno6kX6KEerlN-3PQMONzNHIXOuoB0Do0uC/s320/IMG_0378.JPG" width="320" /></a></div> Now isn't he just looking all mysterious and evocative sitting on the top of the painted chest?<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg1f2JKPqq91DbwX1wCEE52HbC3mnRrjLvXkt6IG8WSV66PMaK99J8a12p4w3KYv6Bs7If_t8Cu46ssIwer_F5m815vgzNHwa6R-9zqDptXnlztRHE3yMxl9b5HBw2H1Qj0HsmdvrEwrfHG/s1600/IMG_0383.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg1f2JKPqq91DbwX1wCEE52HbC3mnRrjLvXkt6IG8WSV66PMaK99J8a12p4w3KYv6Bs7If_t8Cu46ssIwer_F5m815vgzNHwa6R-9zqDptXnlztRHE3yMxl9b5HBw2H1Qj0HsmdvrEwrfHG/s320/IMG_0383.JPG" width="320" /></a></div> and here it is, the piece de resistance...direct from the Fancy Flea...the typewriter. You remember I said I was going to take a chance on buying it, because I wasn't really all that sure if it was going to work. So last weekend, I took it out of its case (the original) and gave it a good once over with the eyeballs. Well, pretty soon I could tell that a key seemed to be stuck in the operative position. One that was not about to allow any other keys to do what keys were meant to do (i.e. strike paper.) Other than this, however, it seemed to be in pretty good shape. A couple of hours of typewriter research go by.<br />
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Who knew that there was a market for vintage typewriters in this age of technology? Not I. But, "Each man has his peculiar interests" to quote Lincoln, and so it goes with musty old office equipment also. I found a place that repairs them about two hours from where I live. Not really fancying the drive, but what can a seeker of art supplies (oh yes, that's why I wanted this baby to work, so I can use it for making vintage looking text to add to mixed media work) do?<br />
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Well, one invites one's handy husband to take a look at one's "new" typewriter. So get this! My husband - who took apart many of his family's appliances as a child and apparently reassembled most of them - fixed up the vintage typewriter for me! He whisked it off to the garage, and emerged with it cleaned, oiled, and running beautifully. I couldn't believe it. I ordered it new ribbons this week - and it should be in pretty good shape at that point. Particularly for a 75 year old machine. Did you know there is a typewriter database? Oui. Mine is a 1936 Royal Model 0 standard portable typewriter; I'm very pleased with it.Jane B.http://www.blogger.com/profile/04139653018234611531noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-107692402294040833.post-50812454488170350642010-11-14T21:55:00.001-05:002010-11-14T21:57:45.527-05:00The Fancy Flea<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgL9Xsh-nTAO73XmdtT39tnN1TucCm0EjubhaXP1wKYeeXAeIsk2Bqx6lOwFPSFFde1LMSVeYqPImkd4xf5SNhBt_PD7Vb68n1J2TUdXTi2JbtLlxaVsgMDa0SrAzasuGxJ80IpBnlQCTgV/s1600/IMG_0233.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgL9Xsh-nTAO73XmdtT39tnN1TucCm0EjubhaXP1wKYeeXAeIsk2Bqx6lOwFPSFFde1LMSVeYqPImkd4xf5SNhBt_PD7Vb68n1J2TUdXTi2JbtLlxaVsgMDa0SrAzasuGxJ80IpBnlQCTgV/s400/IMG_0233.JPG" width="297" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;">My new friend Kim, (who I just met this week - this very week! how fortunate am I?! ) is featured in the bible of artsy style <a href="http://www.wherewomencreate.com/">Where Women Create</a> magazine. Because of her wonderful art blog <a href="http://deardaisycottage.typepad.com/">Dear Daisy Cottage</a>, I found out about a lovely, French-style flea market right in my hometown - Lakeland, Florida. </div> <br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhl77qwMlg_PIhoQpZuKhf3GEne1AAWqu28N4F_x3kWR94S6mPQpCSQS3gYSxpyqtT9WP_Zv7Dg3HAk31BFvJ9Vpl-u_EJiFLv5sZVQPnHOd5nYSLTBvR1aI0OplRDkGG3CeVLpVhz1GE3Y/s1600/IMG_0235.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhl77qwMlg_PIhoQpZuKhf3GEne1AAWqu28N4F_x3kWR94S6mPQpCSQS3gYSxpyqtT9WP_Zv7Dg3HAk31BFvJ9Vpl-u_EJiFLv5sZVQPnHOd5nYSLTBvR1aI0OplRDkGG3CeVLpVhz1GE3Y/s400/IMG_0235.JPG" width="297" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;">This pinnacle of gorgeous baubles and hip rediscovered treasures is called "<a href="http://fancyfleamarket.typepad.com/fancy-flea-market/2009/09/welcome-to-the-fancy-flea-vintage-home-garden-market.html">The Fancy Flea</a>" and what an apt name it is. It's just like a flea market except much, much better because its filled with all the things that an artsy wacky chick such as myself <i>needs</i>. Handpainted furniture, vintage chandelier drops, fashions from the early 60's, homegrown plants, handmade jewelry in unexpected jingles and luscious drops.</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: center;">When I saw Kim's posts on previous Fancy Flea events, I thought, "well that must be in some wonderfully hip and totally artsy place, like Portland, or Seattle, or San Francisco, or anywhere that's at least a thousand miles from where I live. Le sigh." Turns out that sometimes artsy and fabulous can be just an hour down the road! </div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgbaGI0j8msxBcXAX3bIuUFXv2znUidSABtobSHB1rNT2JYp9T-Flqy9bQ1iSRzKVP78Vc47ULgCN4EOurzuiwnwHSNdwSAgcklpCYJcONwWcHsCzVGcxVbh5iAe3FjTgCcI3hrRsTpFeuF/s1600/IMG_0238.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgbaGI0j8msxBcXAX3bIuUFXv2znUidSABtobSHB1rNT2JYp9T-Flqy9bQ1iSRzKVP78Vc47ULgCN4EOurzuiwnwHSNdwSAgcklpCYJcONwWcHsCzVGcxVbh5iAe3FjTgCcI3hrRsTpFeuF/s400/IMG_0238.JPG" width="297" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;">Isn't it interesting how you can let go of your convictions that nowhere near you can possibly be fun, when you just look around a little bit with fresh eyes?</div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhjV2-0vkSNGetCBQOT2kUqz-wS11DCd94iIokZ1QtyILH8ZCLPM15mCOvarrqv9DXr12dYnP4ixcJVCxeN-XEHlT1mUw4QIvf10OAZi0NV-J5xgy_PsTx0nO_XSKDJy39D_uTOyTqE9mWT/s1600/IMG_0239.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhjV2-0vkSNGetCBQOT2kUqz-wS11DCd94iIokZ1QtyILH8ZCLPM15mCOvarrqv9DXr12dYnP4ixcJVCxeN-XEHlT1mUw4QIvf10OAZi0NV-J5xgy_PsTx0nO_XSKDJy39D_uTOyTqE9mWT/s400/IMG_0239.JPG" width="297" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;">Yes, the sky was really this blue, and these birdhouses really looked like they were about ready for me to take up residence.</div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjGjMqMDjPHT8qsKhRijmGcAQJ6mIfhbcBwdGhsPZHwRyz0kygHtBrAjNtE1xRQJHLAQC1fF1YamTrdWcNBydjya39ffubKCiWSmZ7LSjadHEwrO16e9Hyceo9Su1DtyKMnUWs53YM9s0rH/s1600/IMG_0242.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjGjMqMDjPHT8qsKhRijmGcAQJ6mIfhbcBwdGhsPZHwRyz0kygHtBrAjNtE1xRQJHLAQC1fF1YamTrdWcNBydjya39ffubKCiWSmZ7LSjadHEwrO16e9Hyceo9Su1DtyKMnUWs53YM9s0rH/s400/IMG_0242.JPG" width="297" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"> So many yummy flowers and vegetable plants for sale - even European olive trees! How I'd get one of those back in my rather tiny car, I'm not sure, so I settled for treasures from the market that were a little more portable. Specifically a portable Royal typewriter from the mid 1930's! Now I just have to find somewhere to clean and oil it, and replace its ribbon. I'm told it works fine otherwise...I took a leap of faith on this one. It was just that kind of day.</div> <br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiZnGQcbXgthBOFVvaTL7ku2kmUaF56c35fYPaRE7ZGqi9UrLLZnzsbvp6_yFdfBfi82PRsHUfGnuZgS-bMgZpgQajKymLZ7l7anDm-6Oxwe5GH5cOZs2EycNJ9Q0327Pgun3etmpqIlUXq/s1600/IMG_0251.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="297" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiZnGQcbXgthBOFVvaTL7ku2kmUaF56c35fYPaRE7ZGqi9UrLLZnzsbvp6_yFdfBfi82PRsHUfGnuZgS-bMgZpgQajKymLZ7l7anDm-6Oxwe5GH5cOZs2EycNJ9Q0327Pgun3etmpqIlUXq/s400/IMG_0251.JPG" width="400" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;">I've been totally in an orange frame of mind for a while - which is funny because it's not a color I wear or anything, but somehow its snuck all over my studio at home too. Which is probably why I got a super fab nested box of drawers painted all pink and yellow and orange and teal at the Flea. Did I mention it was handpainted? Did I mention it was $15?! I do love it a lot. I'll show you a photo of my flea market finds soon... </div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhdpqAC3v-oEWSJjBu1_3HQgxeAUx0limbxX0KkXUz5vZTNFnT22BAlGOFaRQsic4Hk529b_0BSxEFQ_UGGLpsyaKDO3s2hOMyT9EjIA75DQnWK_ZmoXYFpludZJsB7o2Wx1KVm6WDSKFdg/s1600/IMG_0271.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="297" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhdpqAC3v-oEWSJjBu1_3HQgxeAUx0limbxX0KkXUz5vZTNFnT22BAlGOFaRQsic4Hk529b_0BSxEFQ_UGGLpsyaKDO3s2hOMyT9EjIA75DQnWK_ZmoXYFpludZJsB7o2Wx1KVm6WDSKFdg/s400/IMG_0271.JPG" width="400" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;">And if I hadn't already spent a bit more than I intended...and wouldn't you with all this luscious temptation....I sure would have loved one of these juicy ripe purple goodies. Intense, non? </div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjjWTQcj-YGpL7v_j-hxz15KFnWfV2ngNU858IXDucc74ATmQTOX3ymxRoWmZWBz_KtWx60JiHN2_KFJTDegkRTAFO7TS0T_JQTQLAhtVU1f5g0qrF5vdkMceSOCEWWg-KHfmtZLDkq2689/s1600/IMG_0253.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjjWTQcj-YGpL7v_j-hxz15KFnWfV2ngNU858IXDucc74ATmQTOX3ymxRoWmZWBz_KtWx60JiHN2_KFJTDegkRTAFO7TS0T_JQTQLAhtVU1f5g0qrF5vdkMceSOCEWWg-KHfmtZLDkq2689/s400/IMG_0253.JPG" width="297" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;">I bet you're making mental plans for their next Fancy Flea event in your mind, aren't you? I am! I'm not sure exactly when the one one is yet myself, but I think it will be in the spring. Yes, we have beautiful weather here in the spring too. Summer is another matter, but we have gorgeous Novembers, and simply lovely Aprils.</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgb653xIn8Ciqo7Eq9ywNiiI3VfmiApBQjr-9bpU2uoRsyTpItAx1QxYqJmL7AmGCB88bMxNytzj5d9Y0c-tdbYm8XPEXZ7uI13GosM6eSxz_6wv1zVMPyoGFWH6kKUb5l_KcCbHM2_GZfQ/s1600/IMG_0268.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="297" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgb653xIn8Ciqo7Eq9ywNiiI3VfmiApBQjr-9bpU2uoRsyTpItAx1QxYqJmL7AmGCB88bMxNytzj5d9Y0c-tdbYm8XPEXZ7uI13GosM6eSxz_6wv1zVMPyoGFWH6kKUb5l_KcCbHM2_GZfQ/s400/IMG_0268.JPG" width="400" /> </a></div><div style="text-align: center;">Is there somewhere near you that is unexpectedly artsy and cool, and you just never realized it? Maybe there is, and it's just waiting for you to discover, or re-discover. Thank you again Kim - you're a treasure! If you'd like to see more photos of this beautiful event, please stop by Kim's blog (this is the <a href="http://deardaisycottage.typepad.com/daisy_cottage/2010/11/the-flea-was-the-place-to-be.html">post</a> where she talks about her visit to the Fancy Flea) - I guarantee you will be as charmed by her as I was, and her photos are much better than mine - simply to die for!</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjjWTQcj-YGpL7v_j-hxz15KFnWfV2ngNU858IXDucc74ATmQTOX3ymxRoWmZWBz_KtWx60JiHN2_KFJTDegkRTAFO7TS0T_JQTQLAhtVU1f5g0qrF5vdkMceSOCEWWg-KHfmtZLDkq2689/s1600/IMG_0253.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"></a></div>Jane B.http://www.blogger.com/profile/04139653018234611531noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-107692402294040833.post-46358278868199486842010-11-06T11:28:00.004-04:002010-11-06T11:50:51.750-04:00Dancing with late summer<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiFalgajccFh4WgAz_3LcjHdUjLiSuH-yoO_8bfTKVHu__LuhvNq2FVJNlILPEXu7C6ANo7p1hyjgQpyBlCLjJzZUBoqyOTSxOnpIAWIBmw4bqrJ51fzeVR5wW_g2sHEBcTCUjkkik6KNS1/s1600/IMG_0074.JPG" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><br />
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In the part of the country where I live, autumn meanders slowly into our lives. It teases us with the occasional day of weather in the 70's, then unerringly shoots back up to sticky before you know it. This dance of climate uncertainty straggles through October, leaves still mostly green, grass baked from a long summer, stillness daring the cooler nip of fall to just try and intrude.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEglv8GLzDRhboUlHl3Bn0KCuKIDJXktcCtM1wiRk2VX1DYCL8B_am1JlyTUx_tAdNqej5fP4P4vFwaDojYOV_J4WKqQ_nTMNeI9C9xhJj_Ypq3tT4E0ytMxB0xmqbpmQFVJUWWWfNYzDb5D/s1600/IMG_0083.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEglv8GLzDRhboUlHl3Bn0KCuKIDJXktcCtM1wiRk2VX1DYCL8B_am1JlyTUx_tAdNqej5fP4P4vFwaDojYOV_J4WKqQ_nTMNeI9C9xhJj_Ypq3tT4E0ytMxB0xmqbpmQFVJUWWWfNYzDb5D/s400/IMG_0083.JPG" width="400" /></a><br />
I wait for the spell to pass, as do we all. I begin to doubt that the heat will ever break. I swear that it has never been this hot, for this long, in any other year ever. Despite global warming, the weatherman assures us that this is not a record.<br />
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Due to a love of ritual raindancing I decide that surely a change in the season could be prompted by my dusting off the lovely copper and plum jackets in my wardrobe. Perhaps an attempt to don wool (and get strange looks for my trouble.) Perhaps the conjuring works, as eventually we do (shhhh! don't scare them off!) get a few cooler days, to reassure us that the autumn change will finally arrive.<br />
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On one of those days, when you feel that you can safely leave your air conditioned home to go about touring, you might take the time to seek out the<a href="http://www.yearlingrestaurant.net/entertainment.html"> few corners</a> that still exist in my overdeveloped state (you have to look hard) where time doesn't change any faster than the weather does.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiFalgajccFh4WgAz_3LcjHdUjLiSuH-yoO_8bfTKVHu__LuhvNq2FVJNlILPEXu7C6ANo7p1hyjgQpyBlCLjJzZUBoqyOTSxOnpIAWIBmw4bqrJ51fzeVR5wW_g2sHEBcTCUjkkik6KNS1/s1600/IMG_0074.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiFalgajccFh4WgAz_3LcjHdUjLiSuH-yoO_8bfTKVHu__LuhvNq2FVJNlILPEXu7C6ANo7p1hyjgQpyBlCLjJzZUBoqyOTSxOnpIAWIBmw4bqrJ51fzeVR5wW_g2sHEBcTCUjkkik6KNS1/s400/IMG_0074.JPG" width="400" /></a><br />
Where the occasional sigh of Spanish moss as it drops from the live oak branches high overhead is about as clear a sign as you'll get that autumn winds will truly arrive. Well, maybe.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiied3BbBPpDyyv5LAp_Av0p_7w5z4ejvrVT7q-NWbb767eSGmRhZpVX8vqgRS86y9Ib8n3ucoz7lTEeEpU6pDeT6IydEf51ih254vHJ5KRIT3IIWJxJuVCG_TLajx3W-UlUjF_d0xspOhK/s1600/IMG_0076.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiied3BbBPpDyyv5LAp_Av0p_7w5z4ejvrVT7q-NWbb767eSGmRhZpVX8vqgRS86y9Ib8n3ucoz7lTEeEpU6pDeT6IydEf51ih254vHJ5KRIT3IIWJxJuVCG_TLajx3W-UlUjF_d0xspOhK/s400/IMG_0076.JPG" width="400" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhPfZDKC7su_Q8-CHvn8D6cb0NhEpRMYOq0aWMO5dZhaHfQ-4Hm6IwzpC0QcZS4jsG88rm40f0SxKYTIbCuqcdUidVPlQlA2OeoDrh5vftL2MpSauYyrgrvyBKWAXnRQrMYfvbX1VfViALt/s1600/IMG_0107.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"></a></div><br />
Oh, I do envy the people that have four seasons. My heart practically aches when I see pictures of fall colors on the mountains of the Blue Ridge. The misty otherness of <a href="http://www.papayablog.com/2010/11/halloween.html">Halloween</a> celebrations on the Oregon coast, or my own memory of the bright dance of trees in Washington state. But for now, this is where I am, and it does have its own peculiar charm. The <a href="http://www.scenicus441.com/_woodswink.htm">wood</a> creaks just a little more as the summer dampness dries, the cicadas stop their chirps, perhaps they share more certainty that autumn will finally arrive.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgpgpbf9_rUHEQU2d7zqn4UxFjMtaerMGr9n9kUjaRMszOHLwxV1bEJ61LgzPCY0FZybIhDbuMju0WtS4Q2RHJc0V59n5s4VTvt_Bgg5QlDRENKuUdoMMRT5q6NT3mXko7JD6dMNVCTS7va/s1600/IMG_0204.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgpgpbf9_rUHEQU2d7zqn4UxFjMtaerMGr9n9kUjaRMszOHLwxV1bEJ61LgzPCY0FZybIhDbuMju0WtS4Q2RHJc0V59n5s4VTvt_Bgg5QlDRENKuUdoMMRT5q6NT3mXko7JD6dMNVCTS7va/s400/IMG_0204.JPG" width="400" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhp-_l-oD4Z7Q4uA6uuPzrRp9sTwVTYJeyRYz5IcibxX4PcJuudNmxq0_JvrGUVDIaiUi2AqaqqW4lFLTAD_uN1REIBTxtG1CiRAtINscdCo81FSZNeNsW6He11Nj0EMOttdLJb2T_WZshw/s1600/IMG_0201.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"> </a></div><div style="text-align: left;">PS - A special note of thanks to all of you that are following my blog - I do appreciate it! I don't post very often, not for lack of intent, but keeping up a blog is rather time consuming and if its an art blog, like this one, then even more so because, well, all those pictures! I do wish Blogger was a little less clunky in formatting and easier to stick the pictures where you want, and the size you want, etc. It's hard to retain a steady readership when you don't post often, and so then one doesn't get much commentary and traffic, so (confessional) it's less motivating to post to begin with. I do it too - stop following blogs that don't update often. I'm guilty as much as the next. Anyway, thank you all for sticking with me even though I'm your friend you don't hear from too often.<br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhp-_l-oD4Z7Q4uA6uuPzrRp9sTwVTYJeyRYz5IcibxX4PcJuudNmxq0_JvrGUVDIaiUi2AqaqqW4lFLTAD_uN1REIBTxtG1CiRAtINscdCo81FSZNeNsW6He11Nj0EMOttdLJb2T_WZshw/s1600/IMG_0201.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"> </a></div>Jane B.http://www.blogger.com/profile/04139653018234611531noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-107692402294040833.post-8275905895163883242010-08-22T10:31:00.000-04:002010-08-22T10:31:03.508-04:00The Camera in Your PocketOh, so much to talk about....it's been ages since I have posted here, but I assure you dear readers, I've not been idle in the art world! Oh no, not at all. I think I have the opposite of a creative block going on - more of a creative bottleneck. <br />
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I was truly blessed to have a the art trip of a lifetime this past May when I got to go to Spain and study collage with <a href="http://www.nickbantock.com/">Nick Bantock </a>for a week! That's Nick in the picture, along with some of the other folks in the group having one of our many wonderful dinners by candlelight in the cool Spanish evening air. Just the food and wine and company were heaven itself.<br />
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Yes, it was as incredible as you would think it would be. We went to Ronda (setting for Nick's book "The Forgetting Room") - those are wild poppies growing on the hills that you see in the photo below. Such a beautiful town and so wonderful to go there with other artists. To see it with the eyes of an artist and have the time to just wander the back streets with a camera and capture all the richness. Nobody saying, "come on, Jane...do you HAVE to photograph every light post and door hinge..."<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhn9xQfQHDzTHm94CJ3VT07jfx1a6U91U8UgiAjwpyw9QxNUe6xiSHaklYbKX3BESCef-SNY91N2IVFoXEkM2PlRigyiAq3qFe2n7c7vbIgkX02hLmc38jB72pW6WThrGtlhO9xvj0BEoqe/s1600/A+Flavour+of+Spain+108.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhn9xQfQHDzTHm94CJ3VT07jfx1a6U91U8UgiAjwpyw9QxNUe6xiSHaklYbKX3BESCef-SNY91N2IVFoXEkM2PlRigyiAq3qFe2n7c7vbIgkX02hLmc38jB72pW6WThrGtlhO9xvj0BEoqe/s640/A+Flavour+of+Spain+108.JPG" width="480" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhhl3vvbLegk72fasxjeOiRr_RZNbUEbkQ_J1wv8ujL9iP_lDS5UXTEtzHrw7qJP9mBMsXdVKya2ttV0xxD1th1tkAsjlOMxnlnWJdOByG12RtYReu2p85nWLZHZjpLxc7KoblRkAexqaVx/s1600/A+Flavour+of+Spain+092.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhhl3vvbLegk72fasxjeOiRr_RZNbUEbkQ_J1wv8ujL9iP_lDS5UXTEtzHrw7qJP9mBMsXdVKya2ttV0xxD1th1tkAsjlOMxnlnWJdOByG12RtYReu2p85nWLZHZjpLxc7KoblRkAexqaVx/s640/A+Flavour+of+Spain+092.JPG" width="640" /></a></div><br />
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Then on to the Alhambra in Granada.<br />
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Cordoba during the Festival of Flowers. <br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj6JBVqZ3jjWRJ2ekNgVEhnb3es7MOOj_orjg7Eor7tRg7WqJ9vCwZJmpuLwyEfjXDZdKVbMR6ivvt4VMF-1aZE0ge-J6a5F1w-IW8ixBlP0WGmHN5waaLY2QrAbh9T89khb8sZdtiLRk5o/s1600/A+Flavour+of+Spain+345.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj6JBVqZ3jjWRJ2ekNgVEhnb3es7MOOj_orjg7Eor7tRg7WqJ9vCwZJmpuLwyEfjXDZdKVbMR6ivvt4VMF-1aZE0ge-J6a5F1w-IW8ixBlP0WGmHN5waaLY2QrAbh9T89khb8sZdtiLRk5o/s640/A+Flavour+of+Spain+345.JPG" width="480" /></a></div><br />
This is the Mosquita - amazing..<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj3HBaA3a6_wvisq8bLaeFYV-TD4cZbTmdsR5F1SJttFt9rEtiqzzl11HgsJGbLnANeoZpVX2XLCSLCl_Z7ruJqUCRt9-yJwW2rU9WDj9gDcUsTBNuWIkmvIo5zzgBwMVBjNZpkvHZ3K82o/s1600/A+Flavour+of+Spain+342.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj3HBaA3a6_wvisq8bLaeFYV-TD4cZbTmdsR5F1SJttFt9rEtiqzzl11HgsJGbLnANeoZpVX2XLCSLCl_Z7ruJqUCRt9-yJwW2rU9WDj9gDcUsTBNuWIkmvIo5zzgBwMVBjNZpkvHZ3K82o/s640/A+Flavour+of+Spain+342.JPG" width="480" /></a></div>Oh, we saw flamenco, we danced, we sung, we painted, we drank LOTS of wine. Oh my.....so, more posts to come on this one.<br />
When I got back, I started taking LK Ludwig's The Camera in your Pocket iPhone photography course - and that has been totally fun and really got me back into photography again. It reminds me of when I was in college oh so many years ago and was taking photography and had all these photo assignments to do - ah, so much easier now in the world of digital!<br />
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And now, a couple of weeks ago, I started Mary Ann Moss's "Remains of the Day" class - which is a shabby journal of scraps. Now, I've been having a few technical hitches with my sewing machine to say the least, but overall this is a brilliant course, and I've been very glad I've been taking it. More pictures to come on this.<br />
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So....lots and lots of material for upcoming blog posts to share with you. So stay tuned!Jane B.http://www.blogger.com/profile/04139653018234611531noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-107692402294040833.post-74946519689772699802010-05-02T20:28:00.002-04:002010-05-02T20:43:29.063-04:00Walking around and looking artfully at the world<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhSVmkRvcZwKj_nkv8ZSXBqf-IuCAdkEuOaVqFltZci98a5sHes0boFQtp6xJ0ZlwILChAM8w4syy6NPBrg0NIXCzGLG8ErZ2RNNUREXn9vl8McFkunk5gHavmyLbm8eclAhkkln0o0g1zL/s1600/IMG_0568.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhSVmkRvcZwKj_nkv8ZSXBqf-IuCAdkEuOaVqFltZci98a5sHes0boFQtp6xJ0ZlwILChAM8w4syy6NPBrg0NIXCzGLG8ErZ2RNNUREXn9vl8McFkunk5gHavmyLbm8eclAhkkln0o0g1zL/s320/IMG_0568.JPG" /></a></div><br />
So one of my favorite things about making art a part (p-ART! hah, I amuse myself) of your life is that I think you notice things more. Appreciate the effort that others make, or that just seredipitously happens, to make the world just cooler. I also really enjoy the <a href="http://www.toycamera.com/index.php?option=com_myblog&show=ToyCamera-iPhone-app.html&Itemid=70">Toy Camera</a> iPhone app - you can get artsy on the go. That's what these photos were taken on. Note the faux-<a href="http://www.lomography.com/">Lomo camera</a> effects. Badly taken shots turn artsy! Except much cheaper, as you aren't dealing with real film and real developing and prints as you do with a Lomo camera. Do I want a Lomo camera? Of course I do. I'm also a bit cheap.<br />
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Speaking of prints, I do wish, however, that iPhone would make an agreement with the <a href="http://www.polaroid.com/Products/Polaroid+PoGo/Overview/Overview/1804">Pogo Printer</a> from Polaroid. Have you seen these things? It's a little tiny mini printer that hooks up to your camera and prints out pictures directly from it. As stickers, no less. I was fortunate enough to see one in Art Journaling action at <a href="http://www.teeshaslandofodd.com/journalfest/info.html">Journalfest</a> last October, and I think it's going to add bells and stars and twinkles to journaling on the go.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgL8DJx6TpOXMvv7sOChxRLzNKUkQWK1LVcaJ10A8Rf9HDb-P3fIb7_u1w6jCt3oHIxAuwUotn6uMBNLWTs5QwEnNdwDUPKhuj4fL5kLeE4KLvJUL9reGDEmFKFW4yCi2Rv5pHbsQTnzmLR/s1600/IMG_0566.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgL8DJx6TpOXMvv7sOChxRLzNKUkQWK1LVcaJ10A8Rf9HDb-P3fIb7_u1w6jCt3oHIxAuwUotn6uMBNLWTs5QwEnNdwDUPKhuj4fL5kLeE4KLvJUL9reGDEmFKFW4yCi2Rv5pHbsQTnzmLR/s320/IMG_0566.JPG" /></a></div><br />
Now for my other exciting bit of news - I'm going on a trip to Spain in a few weeks!!! As you can imagine, I'm planning on using my Pogo Printer for all my art journaling while I'm there. <a href="http://www.nickbantock.com/Bantock_Tour.html">Delivered by Accident in Twilight - The Art of Collage with Nick Bantock</a>. Now doesn't that sound like something you just HAVE to know more about? It hasn't really even sunk in that that's actually me, and actually me in Spain, with the grand master of the collage world. It's on the verge of intimidating.<br />
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In the meantime, until the way exciting tour de Spain, here were a few sightings from my local Thai restaurant. Just flowers, and wall hangings, and rugs, but don't they conjure up images of exotic, lush art filled rooms? The food was great too.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjgJuOGQkjshtACmwJMvi9ta1TYMFLOiugN82wjtYMeBPimERQP0jTTQR7NNSp-1P3DyefMonB29Y9Yqj3nTZslm9Ho3-k-sOTrnY4Uc1cjtvFN9FiKJVdp-F3EyYJkeJm1tH9mB15NKP37/s1600/IMG_0567.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjgJuOGQkjshtACmwJMvi9ta1TYMFLOiugN82wjtYMeBPimERQP0jTTQR7NNSp-1P3DyefMonB29Y9Yqj3nTZslm9Ho3-k-sOTrnY4Uc1cjtvFN9FiKJVdp-F3EyYJkeJm1tH9mB15NKP37/s320/IMG_0567.JPG" /></a></div>Jane B.http://www.blogger.com/profile/04139653018234611531noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-107692402294040833.post-51321758473520435402010-04-25T08:58:00.000-04:002010-04-25T08:58:30.418-04:00A few experiments with paper cloth<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj7XFbgaVTuRduzmJclR0W8yN5nfNKWf7gDlsW9AHTfEuWtW3caV7ZJcNMlnE59yzPn9oy8m9XuFG4ZdOtY_U1e9GqtfGFHNateg0SefJbeRYf6HJ9P-3wpeTZhWrz0SXDfctw0oQH_97rh/s1600/IMG_0622.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj7XFbgaVTuRduzmJclR0W8yN5nfNKWf7gDlsW9AHTfEuWtW3caV7ZJcNMlnE59yzPn9oy8m9XuFG4ZdOtY_U1e9GqtfGFHNateg0SefJbeRYf6HJ9P-3wpeTZhWrz0SXDfctw0oQH_97rh/s320/IMG_0622.JPG" /></a></div><br />
I've been a little bit..uninspired...by ordinary old paper lately, and I've been taking an interest in cloth instead. To this end, I've taken a few basic sewing and quilting classes - not with the idea that I'm going to become a real quilter (not sure that I have that kind of patience - I think quilter would turn into quitter fairly soon.) Not really with the idea that I'll become a real seamstress either - I am perfectly fine with purchasing my clothes. There is no such thing as anything being "sew easy!"<br />
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I never learned to sew at my mother's knee (I can't recall her ever sewing other than when she complained about having to sew my brownie patches onto the uniform). So to make up for this lack of prior training, I've been taking classes at my local Joann's Fabric with the patient Miss Brenda. Me and the other eight year olds that can outsew me any day. I'm still pretty intimidated by the women at the fabric counter, the bobbin on my machine still makes me feel a bit uncertain, but I'm slowly learning the nomenclature and thinking of small (very small) things to make. My goal is to make an art quilt - something nicely impractical. What's the difference between art and craft - how useful it is! Well, no, that's not really my definition, but it's funny. In the case of an art quilt, however, by the time you've got all that stuft stuck on there, it would cower in front of a washing machine.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgtexTBRN9e-sVuXH89piSDb4K5GTdLJy9TeNI9KKD6gRWcTREiI6z4v5V1Jr4tapMGuMO_hbbA4Do4qODI5JcYO5wet8StC6mLxk4SRPslVBy0VfqFvosB2Qtq2czXJwF9bYcnxC6Hzx8N/s1600/IMG_0623.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgtexTBRN9e-sVuXH89piSDb4K5GTdLJy9TeNI9KKD6gRWcTREiI6z4v5V1Jr4tapMGuMO_hbbA4Do4qODI5JcYO5wet8StC6mLxk4SRPslVBy0VfqFvosB2Qtq2czXJwF9bYcnxC6Hzx8N/s320/IMG_0623.JPG" /></a></div><br />
Anyway, to that end I've been reading the book <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Stitch-Alchemy-Techniques-Projects-Mixed-Media/dp/1596681136/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1240238813&sr=8-1">Stitch Alchemy</a> and have found some inspiration in the idea of making "paper cloth" which is basically muslin or similar cheapie fabric saturated in gluey water and then covered in paper strips. You let the stuff dry overnight, and then collage and embellish - just like regular paper. This I can deal with. You can see a couple of examples of what I've been up to with this in the pictures. I think this has distinct possibilities!<br />
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I'm a little concerned that this is definitely in the impractical for regular use category, as I think the dye/ink/paint will most likely run right off the second its exposed to water, but I'm going to experiment with covering it with spray-on sealant, and with sticking gel medium on it, and maybe decoupage medium. See what sticks, so to speak. It's some fun, very non-intimidating to make stuff though. And it's almost like paper - paper I can deal with!Jane B.http://www.blogger.com/profile/04139653018234611531noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-107692402294040833.post-53173054348866263042010-04-11T22:23:00.001-04:002010-04-11T22:30:02.396-04:00Nesting and stitching<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZ7W0LXEyCgHyQ3c4_pUMKdzLUS8vJ9aePqflE_ILHXarXNKp_W0M22cDZqS27901ZMcM0EZNtCMqxvlFcoEtWdgDAuILWhzeGFsbOn_CwLJbzjvnRPz5AehLLZ_NYgA66WKdi7BzKwJDu/s1600/November+pix+005.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZ7W0LXEyCgHyQ3c4_pUMKdzLUS8vJ9aePqflE_ILHXarXNKp_W0M22cDZqS27901ZMcM0EZNtCMqxvlFcoEtWdgDAuILWhzeGFsbOn_CwLJbzjvnRPz5AehLLZ_NYgA66WKdi7BzKwJDu/s400/November+pix+005.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>Nesting and stitching<br />
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Swimming through the sea of reeds and murk<br />
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Watching and waiting<br />
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Listening in limbo<br />
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Wondering if the sleeper is going to awaken<br />
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Hello friends - apologies that I haven't posted to this blog in months. I really am here; I've just been on sort of an art hiatus. Its not to say that I haven't been doing a few things in the background here, I redecorated my studio, made the 12 days of jewelry at Christmas (guess what were given as gifts this past year?), danced around the edges of art, was fortunate to spend an art playdate in January with my good friend <a href="http://www.souljournaling.com/">Sarah Whitmire</a> . Heck, i even made a creation for submission to Somerset Studio for an Impressionists challenge....no idea if it will be accepted, but at least I submitted, right? The issue comes out next month; haven't heard anything, but I'm viewing it as no news is good news, right?<br />
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As a note, still waiting for "Queen Isabella at the Frost Fair" to appear, this was a piece I submitted probably two years ago for Black and White challenge. I was very excited to have my first published piece of artwork in SS, but due to outside factors beyond anyone's control, (the economy) it's publication was put on semi-forever hold. It is supposed to be appearing in this Summer's upcoming Somerset Gallery, so hopefully it will and then will wend it's way home. I'll be happy to see it again!<br />
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But all that being said, I haven't been feeling inspired to jump back in to art for me for months. <br />
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I do experience these creative recessions every so often; my muse just goes into sort of a long winter's nap. She and I normally have a very cool and groovy relationship, in which she spins and dances and keeps me up at night. But, sometimes she just needs to be the introvert like me too. The bigger me (that's the one the rest of the world sees - has been feeling pretty introverted too.) I have a long list of correspondence that I need to return letters to, a long list of to-do's that I need to accomplish so I'm less of a feral friend to the folks that send me letters and attempt to keep up with me. Lord love em!<br />
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I feel a bit (a lot) guilty for not making art, but then there's other things that I also really enjoy, like genealogy, and bicycling, and gardening, and so for a while now, I've just done those instead. And then of course, there's all that boring "real life" stuff like holidays and Christmas cards, and post-holiday hangover (not a real hangover, but I swear I don't recover from December until the end of January) and family matters and a six-week stretch of cleaning out our entire house of nicknacks and junk that have been a bit time and energy consuming. A dear lady on one of the bulletin boards that I read described this sort of thing as "nesting" rather than flying, and that made me feel a bit better about the whole thing. The guilt and so forth. Made it seem less lazy, and more necessary. The creative flow stopping to pick up sticks so to speak.<br />
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But as the months have gone on, I have been waiting and wondering and listening to see if the muse is done with her nap. Beginning to wonder if this hibernation is going on a little too long. I listened to the very inspiring podcast by Rice Freeman Zachery (<a href="http://ricefz.libsyn.com/index.php?post_id=561261">notes from the voodoo lounge</a>) on "10 Ways to Jumpstart Inspiration" and followed her suggestion of "try something completely new" so I did a few quilting and sewing classes - way the heck out of my comfort zone. I'm a paper artist, darn it!. Overall I quite enjoyed them (though very stressful! Argh! So much math in sewing!) and I do want to get a bit more into art quilts, definitely, but I'm not sure that they are the whole answer either. I redecorated, and I sewed a sofa cover (not artsy, in fact of all things, it's beige, but my dogs seem to love it.)<br />
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Which all brings up to today; I was out for a bike ride with my beloved, and we were talking about the-rest-of-our-lives (hey, we're middle aged, the span of time suddenly seems a little less elastic) and he suggested I really do need to get on with this art teaching and getting my art business going. And with the conviction that spring and sunshine and birds and orange blossoms bring, it suddenly seemed like an awfully good idea. Ideas are beginning to churn around<br />
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Am I over the long winter's nap yet? Jury is still out, but I'm feeling a bit of creative fluttering. I hope so.<br />
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Do you have any muse nap wake-her-uppers? Any suggestions for your fellow artist(s)? Bring em on!Jane B.http://www.blogger.com/profile/04139653018234611531noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-107692402294040833.post-90356915785121412302009-11-24T20:00:00.002-05:002009-12-02T22:07:39.287-05:00Art cottages by the sea<div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhmBCOXGV3RH5cYM1JsRzFTMTm6p9iwjGU3wy7KI5Q_NQdnlInJWzs0RKRTti2lVkwYICXI5bDGy2SG2-ndtidFkNP9I68SIsnrb9Ss-TM3-SbzKaal5nhu9_yQo4lyLtlNqfRzD3MKwC3t/s1600-h/art+cottage+lr.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" er="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhmBCOXGV3RH5cYM1JsRzFTMTm6p9iwjGU3wy7KI5Q_NQdnlInJWzs0RKRTti2lVkwYICXI5bDGy2SG2-ndtidFkNP9I68SIsnrb9Ss-TM3-SbzKaal5nhu9_yQo4lyLtlNqfRzD3MKwC3t/s320/art+cottage+lr.jpg" /></a><br />
</div>My art cottage that you see is from a collage (if wishes could make it real!) it represents my ideal life. You know about that one...the one where we live in a fabulous art community of kindred spirits, and we eat lots of delicious food and don't gain weight, and our dogs come to "work" with us every day, because our work is art and we do this in an adorable cottage by the sea with the smell of roses and lavender wafts through the windows, and we can wear our gypsy clothes....<br />
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</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;">I am at least lucky to have a room of my own in my ordinary suburban house for my art studio (and that's a pretty cool thing too) and I've been a bit fired up this week to paint the boring white bookshelves in it into glorious hot pink, and mango orange, and Indian Yellow Hue gold (well, that's what Golden paints calls it) and maybe some sage green. I got a couple of guest chairs for my room this weekend at an antiques market (nice word for maybe-I'll-find-something junk rummage) and they're already painted in adorable stripes and spots and so forth, but I think they need a little more tweaking...<br />
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</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;">Good thing it's a four day weekend, huh! Hope you spend yours the way you want to - with family, or friends, or solitude (and that's a GREAT thing too) and pets and art and your muse!<br />
</div>Jane B.http://www.blogger.com/profile/04139653018234611531noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-107692402294040833.post-16631946308169819912009-11-19T20:54:00.009-05:002009-11-19T21:14:22.734-05:00Beeswax collage with Claudine<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhCZfjphnPkEQ9og2RXi0fDwb-EEg53WjLekoSaIKhX466omXZSL6TUqjem864Fte1Nhb_im9QLDar7UF2sq70wp8i85MX1mIVNF1ftmAIcgzYI8QUByp9dMLkdgATC4JUTFah1BERTNzei/s1600/November+pix+021.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5405998684923422322" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 258px" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhCZfjphnPkEQ9og2RXi0fDwb-EEg53WjLekoSaIKhX466omXZSL6TUqjem864Fte1Nhb_im9QLDar7UF2sq70wp8i85MX1mIVNF1ftmAIcgzYI8QUByp9dMLkdgATC4JUTFah1BERTNzei/s320/November+pix+021.jpg" border="0" /></a> Parisian Collage - with photos taken by me this summer in the city of light...<br /><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhPzkyDIxAangnVmlKLa7llol3g9lPwbaogf1cOA6OQXjvlD8XBgLEp4TdwO6gwcx5if5to04vrHJm2uhT9qeNQLn8GhLfQoW8MbpUaNSRhDGHvNiYE8u_T0gmyLT6kWVEi4Ygw4KmqC1QW/s1600/November+pix+018.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5405998606090488962" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 255px" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhPzkyDIxAangnVmlKLa7llol3g9lPwbaogf1cOA6OQXjvlD8XBgLEp4TdwO6gwcx5if5to04vrHJm2uhT9qeNQLn8GhLfQoW8MbpUaNSRhDGHvNiYE8u_T0gmyLT6kWVEi4Ygw4KmqC1QW/s320/November+pix+018.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><br /><div></div><div></div><div></div><div> </div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi2gruWvd23Wl6Rdsm3BJNkRAbvL9KYnLOdc79u63EfZe-MViFKHikSODGpzE5hIhnflzmZxS0x1z0SC3vxXP1g6mRuk_xbXs1c1xQ6ouPx4WGfKQfv7WCIGgZB6yiOzlCrKVpC-IrMjs2X/s1600/November+pix+010.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5405998518798266818" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 225px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 320px" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi2gruWvd23Wl6Rdsm3BJNkRAbvL9KYnLOdc79u63EfZe-MViFKHikSODGpzE5hIhnflzmZxS0x1z0SC3vxXP1g6mRuk_xbXs1c1xQ6ouPx4WGfKQfv7WCIGgZB6yiOzlCrKVpC-IrMjs2X/s320/November+pix+010.jpg" border="0" /></a> Flower fairies dancing in my autumn garden...<br /><br /></div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div><br />And see that they have a queen! She loves pink flowers and rainbows, notice how her throne is crowned in them...<br /></div><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjm8mPVB0sUB9WhBY4rv8YJJRPmxAmYcVbOnErCGRhWzz2etxPT_5i4AL0xM0Ewc9zAA6KvolDATzVDDfRKm0zCgzQko3yvMCrwgpjYFCqpaxRXXt9Om4S5TUY_ATALQo3wsa2WQvD2-Mrl/s1600/November+pix+017.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5405998785730844866" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 240px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 320px" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjm8mPVB0sUB9WhBY4rv8YJJRPmxAmYcVbOnErCGRhWzz2etxPT_5i4AL0xM0Ewc9zAA6KvolDATzVDDfRKm0zCgzQko3yvMCrwgpjYFCqpaxRXXt9Om4S5TUY_ATALQo3wsa2WQvD2-Mrl/s320/November+pix+017.jpg" border="0" /></a></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div>How fortunate I feel that I had the opportunity, on top of all the other artistic wonder that I've had the pleasure of experiencing this most artful of years, to attend a <a href="http://www.collageartist.com/workshops.htm">beeswax collage class </a>with <a href="http://claudinehellmuth.blogspot.com/">Claudine Hellmuth</a> this past weekend at the Art League of Daytona Beach. </div><div></div><div>A nice small class, lots of one-on-one guidance and inspiration from Claudine herself - I felt like this class was such a revelation! I've had all the supplies for about four years, but never really quite had the confidence to step much into the world of beeswax collage. Now I'm very glad I did! This was the second class I've taken with the glamourous and gracious Claudine - and I just adore her. She is such a sweetie! She really keeps things upbeat and positive, but always with a wry sense of humor and a lot of patience with demonstrating and explaining things.</div><div> </div><div> </div><div></div><div>The thing with beeswax is that it basically renders everything with a filmy, gauzy haze of dreams - and it makes the divisions between the layers disappear. It's like working in collage heaven, all your images seem to blend and become transparent. Like Photoshop for the fingers. Ok, maybe not quite, because Photoshop has never actually burned my finger and I did manage to touch a hot iron with my thumb! Claudine observed that "I don't usually get injuries in my class..." Well, I also managed to shoot myself with my own arrow in a college archery class, so clearly when the right brain takes over from the left. Uh huh, I need supervision. But, it's a clear sign that the muse is dancing and gallivanting, and she was certainly out for a spin with the wax. I can't wait to try some more of this technique!</div><div> </div><div>Pictures above are of a cigar box that I collaged the top of (I think it will be the holder for my Art Journal that I did of my summer trip to Europe) and the front of a vintage photo album that'll eventually become another art journal. The flower is just...well...a flower. But it was "rescued" from the "distressed plants" section at Lowes and I figured it might light a moment in the blog spotlight.<br />Wheeeeee!!</div></div>Jane B.http://www.blogger.com/profile/04139653018234611531noreply@blogger.com5