Has it really been that long?

I've been MIA... so sorry. Various health issues.... earlier on I didn't even know I had "health issues".... have kept me both from my daily creating and my daily blogging. Praise God we have ruled out the meanest and nastiest health issues and are left with some that will mean creative living, but not a "death sentence" by any means. (Visit my other blog for more info: Trustjoyfully.blogspot.com )

In the meantime, I may not have been creating daily, but I have been creating. And, I've been teaching others to create as well. We ended our homeschool year with an assemblage/collage project which used the background paper technique from The Artistic Mother book, although we applied it to stretched canvas. Then we used many found objects and went to town. I hope to post pictures at some point... the projects were amazing!

I was also asked to make a series of BFF necklaces. Quite a challenge! In the end I used one of my background papers, added stuff on the computer, shrank it down, made a collage and then cut it into pieces to be applied to each domino. I was VERY happy. So was the lady who ordered them. So was the shop owner who asked about me to see if I would be interested in working with them to sell my jewelry. We'll see if I follow through... life, energy, health.

In the meantime, I've made several necklaces for friends, and continued to gather found objects, haunted auctions and hit garage sales. As "Art and Soul" approaches (our local art and craft show which I've been invited to take part in) I am seeing that I want to limit some of my work: necklaces, notebooks and some Christmas stuff. My domino and "Bit of Charm" necklaces have a small following, and from the last show I know my button jewelry should also sell well. So, just taking baby steps. Still creating, just slowly, but savoring the lack of fear about health issues!

Hope you all are doing well!
Shalom,

Kim

Too many pies?

or too few fingers?

I feel like I've gotten my creative juices flowing EVERYWHERE. And, as is often the case, about the time I get going something stops me. This time it's some nasty bug I've picked up somewhere... fever, chills, cough, burning lungs, you know... nastiness.

But, I've continued to work. And, best of all, I've shared the creative process. Last Friday I began teaching collage to a group of 9 homeschool students... AND... their moms. Yes!!! I finally have ALL the moms participating. We used the background pages technique from TAM (The Artistic Mother) for our canvas and while they dried we went "shopping."  Everyone had brought "found objects" from home to share, I passed out an egg carton to each person and we went digging. A junker's paradise!

The flu/cold bug hit full force on Saturday after a full day of serving at a wedding and by that evening I was huddled and shivering under blankets while my precious Dear cared for me. We dragged out of bed on Sunday morning, headed to church so I could teach Sunday school and be refreshed by the preaching, then home again to repeat Saturday night. Monday we drove Senior Son to the airport, then home to more shivering.

Blessedly the bug is working it's way out of my system, although it's not gone yet.

 This is MMH's journal from her party. It was a "mistake" as she put it, but turned into the most gorgeous journal. The back side is more of the same along with a picture of an elf and an old ship. 

SERIOUSLY GORGEOUS!

I've been LOVING using "The Artistic Mother" with my homeschool art class AND with MMH's birthday party. We did "background canvas" for our collage work in art class, but for the birthday party we made the journals. Well, they did. I'm not ready yet.

This is Wee One's journal. I think she was hungry... note the DQ, McD's and other food related items... along withe the "stop" theme... even related to the paper. Cute for a little 10 year old!

While they were working on their journals I painted more background pages, then started stamping. Then I went and pouted for a while as my pages did NOT turn out the way I wanted. I guess I'll be working on more pages. The only problem with all this is the AMOUNT OF THINGS I HAVE TO GET DONE IN THE NEXT 7 DAYS! YIKES!!!! In the midst of this online art fun, I am also helping with a first time ever Christian Childbirth Expo, which is being hosted at our church. There are five of us running this thing and I somehow am making all the fliers, invites, inserts, name tags, etc. Which "should" be fun, but somehow I am also having two booths on Saturday, same day as the expo. One is at the expo and one is at a friends sale in town... her first ever house sale. She has this awesome 40's bungalow that is decorated... in the style of the 40s. It is so stinkin' cute! Anyway, she's selling vintage, supplies, and art. (She's also an antique dealer.) In the midst of this I have to seriously get some housework done as the nasty bug has slowed me down, plus teach some co-ops, etc.

I did get about 9 necklaces, 2 pairs of earrings and 2 GORGEOUS button bracelets made last week. YEAH!!!! Of course, once I made them I wanted to keep them. AHEM! Anyone else have this problem? Sometimes it's hard to sell the art. (Other times it's "hard" to sell the art... like mine isn't moving at all on Etsy or Artfire...).

Well, that's enough. I have more pics from my weekly photo tries. I've been reading and rereading about the photos and I'm still learning. But, that's another post.
Blessings, Kim

Background Papers...and a collage

I think I jumped the gun just a bit. But after I picked up the book I got SOOOO excited. I did go home and tidy up my work area, but it's a small small small area and so it's never totally tiday. One thing out means a mess. Anyway...

As I read I saw endless opportunities to use the lessons within. I was so inpsired that I finished several projects already in progress. My biggest project? I completed my doula certification. You can read here about that. I finished a domino necklace, put it on, took it off, took it apart and remade it. Then made earrings to match. (Pictures to follow later.) I also completed a lovely collage and two background cavnases. Coincidentally (not in my world!) I am just starting to teach collage to my homeschool art class and decided that they would also be making a background paper or canvas. So, I did two in the "conveyor belt" style which Shona speaks of. Both of these are gesso primed flat canvas boards measuring 5 x7.

On the first canvas I used a spring green, pink, and a rich blue. I'll have to find the color names. These were all acrylics I had on hand. I used similar techniques on both canvases. I found I had way too much paint and the colors muddied, so I scraped more, used a wet towel and muted the entire canvas. I began again with less paint and a different dragging technique. I then added a few drops of water and blotted with a towel. I have not added any stamps or prints to this canvas yet.

The second used a pale pink, country blue and a dusty green. I used 3 pools of each color and used a putty knife for scraping. Although I used much less paint my "drops" were more like "blobs" and so I found I had way too much paint and again the colors muddied, so I scraped more, added tiny drops of water and blotted with paper towels. I began again with less paint and a different dragging technique. I then added a few drops of water again and blotted with another paper towel. I scraped a bit more and then I used the edge of the knife to "scratch" the paint. They are addicting! I had so much fun.

Well, when I brought them to class on Friday to show the kids I learned  they were doing fern prints for science. Who says a stamp needs to be rubber?! I painted up the fern leaves and added them to one of the canvases using a pink I had mixed, a rich cobalt blue and a glittery green. (You all will learn that I LOVE LOVE LOVE glitter!)

So, that's the start. Today's art was taking photos outside. I figured since I started a day early I was okay with that. I have not worked on my goals as yet... spent 14 hours since yesterday completing my doula certification and that was one of my life goals I had set. So, onwards. I'm looking forward to visitng all your blogs to see what's up in the creating process. I'll be working on more backgrounds as Mama Magpie and I are doing an art day together and that's what we'll be working on. So, watch her blog next week as well.

Shalom!
Kim

for more of "The Artistic Mothers" art goup please visit Trudy's blog, or look at my links on the right... I don't have them all added in yet, but that's another goal. :~)