When I Grow Up ...

... I want to be a mermaid ... at least that's what I said when I was five ...

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Recently a comment I read had me thinking about art. Specifically my art ... and if I consider it mine ... or even art. See, I have had a lot of years to form ideas of what I consider to be "real" art. To be honest, what I do doesn't make the grade (try to bear with me ... this really isn't a pity party and I'm pretty sure I'm going somewhere with all this) ... I am uber-perspectively challenged, my color play often looks like some sort of psychedelic trip gone very, very wrong, I can look at a color wheel and STILL not get it, and although I have tried a number of mediums, there isn't a ONE thing-style-type that rocks my world and makes me want to east, sleep, breathe it ...

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... but I like to make stuff ... more than that ... I

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LOVE

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the whole process of creating ... even the random (sometimes often) frustration of things being all wrong ... the motion of it ... the sratch-scrape-slide of pen on paper, the sharp creasing when folding, sticky fingers, paint in my hair and on my clothes ... time vanishing and then reappearing somewhere totally different ... strange stiffness from sitting in one position for far too long (ok, maybe I don't love the way it feels, but there IS satisfaction in it) ... the desire to try something new and the fears that goes along with it ... and then ... pushing those self imposed boundries ... trying it ... and finding out that the new thing opens doors to different worlds - and options - possibilities! ... returning to comfort and safety ... satisfaction of a job well done (even the occassional sadness that happens when a piece is complete) ... the happy surprise when something turns out ten times better than imagined ... all of it ...

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I no longer want to be a mermaid (I don't really want to grow up, either) ... but last night ... or was that the night before ... anyway, I mentioned to Don, "when I grow up, I want to be an artist".

Guess what

... today I realized ...

I AM an ARTIST

*sighs*

pretty cool, eh?

Results ... Update ... Reminder

That's right, it's official! The Pink Artists Project has come to an end ...

$3,028.34

was raised to benefit Susan G. Komen for the Cure

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.

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How about that update on the Red Art Project?

After my last post I ended up painting over all the sponging in solid red ... I am happy to see the umbrella's pop again:

The piece is still in progress, so stay tuned ...

... BUT ...

... I am forced (I admit it, willingly forced) to take a pause on

The Red Art Project

What?!?

What could possibly pull me away from it?!?

Did you forget?

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.

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This Saturday is:

And I have a few suprises in store for the PARTY!!

Come back on Saturday

... you just might win a PRIZE ...

Moonlight Squash Blossom & Pink Pretties

Not too long ago I was visiting Cat's blog and she posted a few items that she had just finished. All of the new pieces were stunning, but one just sang to me. For days I would go visit her Etsy shop just to drool (ok ... also hoping that nobody had purchased it, either) and finally last week I was in a position to treat myself to a prezzie ... drumroll, please ....

Tada!

My new necklace, Moonlight Squash Blossom, arrived in the mail on Monday:

here's a detail of the piece:

Pictures really don't do this stunning little work of wearable art the justice it deserves.

* sighs *

AND

This past weekend I also recieved my package of little pink pretties from

Amber Dawn's

Think Pink Charms Exchange:

Above is a group shot and the next four are close-ups.

(Feel free to click on any photo to see larger versions)

I can't begin to tell you how impressed I am with each of these amazing little pink creations and feel so lucky to have them. I will definitely wear them with PINK ARTIST PRIDE!

... and think about this ...

all of this came about thanks to a community of people answering

Monica's

call to artists for a very special project ... speaking of which, the drawing for

Love Squared

& other fabulous artful prizes is still happening ...
the drawing is open until October 15th, so go check it out.

Another Step Closer ... plus Beachy Keen!

Somehow I missed taking pictures after getting the little charmies painted black ... ah well. Once black I felt like they were missing something ...

POLKA DOTS!

yep, that's right ... first I tried using ye ole standard tiny round paint brush, but it was rough going, so I flipped it around and used the butt of the brush ... mucho betterer. Here's a close up of the front and back:

Next step ... gloss. High gloss. I think that'll do the trick.

Next up ... photo's from Monday's treck out to the beach. I thought there would be neat things due to the recent storms & only wish I had planned tide timing better ... I thought I was going at low tide, but it seemed pretty high to me ... then again, that could be due to Ike.

--- click on the below pictures (any picture for that matter) to see a larger version ---

this crab carcass looked like it had been planted there and posed like that ... I just really like the way it's splayed and its colors against the color of the sand and shells ... take a closer look at the postion of the front claws ... what does it look like to you?

then I came across this bit of ocean vegetation ... the color of it was amazingly rich and deep. Plus, the little hitch-hiker was pretty cool, too.

The most surprising find was a handful of urchins scattered here and there. I have never seen any urchins on my beach visits, so this was a rare treat ... I couldn't help but snap a few shots and take a closer look:

and then I thought to roll it over (with a shell, of course) and discovered this little critter was still alive ... I don't know the proper thing to do when you come across a beached urchin ... are you supposed to leave them there to get eaten by birds or dried out? or put them back in the ocean? since I didn't have a naturalist handy, I did what felt right & returned him to the gulf (along with three of the four others I came across - the fourth was unquestionably lifeless, so I brought it home with me ...).

It was a gorgeous day and there weren't many people out, which is always a bonus.

What kind of fun things have you been up to?

Charm Update and Doodley Doo's

Slowly, but surely, I have been working on the charms. I have framed the glass pieces and added a loop for the jump ring. Here's a shot of them (post cooked / pre painted):

The next step will be painting the frames black. I haven't decided if I want to do them simply in black paint or a metallic black paint - I am leaning towards metallic, but think I will test a few in each color ... either way, I'm thinking that I'd like to finish them off with a coat (or two or six) of high gloss varnish ... I am really trying to take my time with these (procrastinate) since painting Sculpy has a tendency to be the bane of my existance ... I'm trying something a little different ... which has me holding my breath a bit ... fingers crossed, please. :)

In other news ... I am rarely found with just a single project going ... it had been a while since I doodled with my Sharpie, so ...

and

and may your days be full of

Wishing you a plethora of all three, ~M~

Soul Journal - Days 2 thru 6

Sadie and I have been spending the last few nights working on our Soul Journals. Once we had finished our writing (today I feel ... ) we covered all the writing in a fairly thick coat of Gesso. Some of the words were still visible, but it didn't matter ... the next step was Claiming Our Journals. On the first page we wrote "This Book Belongs To" and our full names over and over and over ... I can't say that I am pleased with mine (makes me feel like I have a muddy mess of a soul ...), but I'm taking one of those brave steps and sharing it just the same ...

(it helps to remember that the pages are not set in stone. I can revisit, rework, add, modify, and/or change the pages anytime I feel like it ... I seriously think it needs some sparkle and at least a little less random kindergarten scribble).

After marking our territory, we built some Soul Armor. I like the direction this one is going. I do want to add some color ... fear seaps in (ok, completely soaks me to the marrow) ... step away from the book! I added words, written a whole bunch of "I choose" statements, added a touch of pink ... more color can wait (anyone want to give me a crash course in color?!?)

Here's the 2 page spread:

Sadie was ready for the next step, so on we went. Sarah provided a list of 24 things (a smile, a hand, an eye the same color as our own, etc.) that we were to find in magazines. We spent some time pouring through a bunch and called it a night. The next day we painted a dark wash over two pages (previously collaged and Gessoed - is Gessoed a word?). Once this step was done we cut our pictures into 1" squares and attached them in grid patterns ... eyeballed. Sadie opted to do a modified design; her pages look great! I added six more images (30 total) so I could have five rows of the pretty little pictures.

Here's where we are:

and a couple of details to check out:

Click on any image to see a larger view

For more information or to get the actual promts we are following, please visit Caspiana - she starts talking about the Soul Journal project on July 13th in a post titled "S. Journaling".

Good for the Soul ... Journal, Anyone?

A while ago Kathryn from Collage Diva celebrated a milestone birthday - she turned 40!! - when she discovered that this year I celebrated my 40th too, she wanted to send me a little somethin ... look at the sweetness that I received this past Saturday:

The lovely collage is printed on Chinese Dupion Silk.

The gorgeous lighthouse photo of Marshall Point Lightin Maine

is a Kathryn Antyr original photograph.

AND

The little moo card is simply adorable! - click on any photo to see more details.

Then today I came home to another piece of mail love:

How sweet is that packaging?

- uh, not the flowers ... I added those to keep the address's private -

Inside was a print from Elizabeth Beck of e.beck.artist

:

She had a contest (check it out here) & I lucked into being one of the winners (for asking the most questions - lol). I was able to pick out one of her prints - to see the set, visit her Etsy Store here - and have it customized ... I asked for "happy is as happy does" ... you know something ... I'm glad I did. When I look at this print I'll be riminded of that simple thought and who knows ... maybe I'll just do more happy.

Here's a detail:

(remember, you can click on any image for a larger version)

Finally, Sadie and I have taken the plunge and are making our very own Soul Journals.

First a little background ... Kathryn had mentioned the soul journal project and then within a day or so I saw it again on Grrl+dog's blog ... they had come across Sarah from Caspiana and were joining her challenge. Part of me wanted to jump in, too, but I resisted. The next thing I know nearly a month had passed. Well, I recieved just the nudge I needed (in the form of - "do it anyway!") ... so, I am ... and Sadie is, too. I went back to Sarah's original post ...

Sunday, July 13, 2008

Soul Journaling-

I’ve been dreaming about a project I’d like to do with you all for quite some time. It is part journaling, part mixed media or visual journal. I have been mesmerized by all the visual journaling that I have come across lately. I have lots of trouble starting projects like this…the ever feared blank page and not knowing what to write. In good old fashioned creative writing they use prompts to help you get started. So why not start there? I’d like to give you daily prompts to journal along with me. There will be both writing and mixed media prompts. You can choose to follow me exactly or break free on your own and just use my idea as a starting point, it’s up to you. So without further a due… I’m challenging you to start a Journaling journey with me!

Sadie and I went out and bought our books (Sadie has given me the OK to talk about her part in things, but I am not allowed to show the pictures of her progress). She picked out a red crocodile-looking-leatherish book and I picked this one:

Once we had our books picked out we were supposed to glue random Dictionary or book pages to the first 3 pages in your journal. They could be ripped or hanging off the edges or neatly trimmed. We don't have any old dictionary's or books to use ... instead we printed a bunch of random stuff and collaged the pages (how does one count the pages? is front one, back two, next three? or is the spread considered a page ... after this first part, I beleive each side is a page on its own ...). Here are my three (double page spreads) collages:

I thought it was interesting that Sadie and I gravitated to a lot of the same stuff.

Next: start writing on the first page over your dictionary pages. Start with the prompt: “Today I feel…” Write for at least 5 minutes and circle or rewrite any words that catch your eye in your text that describe how you are feeling. If you run out of things to say, just say what’s in your head…”today I feel stupid for listening to Sarah about this whole journaling thing…” Rewrite the prompt “today I feel…”every time you get stuck or start a new thought . Write for as long or on as many pages as you want.

so, we did ... here are two of my pages all written over (double page spreads):

That was it for the day. The next prompt is to gesso over all the written pages and to CLAIM our books (we're already there, but I don't have photo's at this time ... and am not really sure that I am quite done with the first attempt at claiming my book - Sadie, on the other hand, has claimed hers and it looks REALLY terrific). Tonight we'll be starting on Day 3. As soon as I post this, we'll be picking out our armor!

If you've ever found yourself wanting to work on an altered journal, but didn't know where to begin, this just might be the thing for you ... in case you didn't click the link above, here's the first Soul Journal Post from Sarah ...

... happy is as happy does!

Cranes, Cranes and ... more Cranes

When in doubt, fold cranes ...

lots and lots of little cranes ...

you don't have to count them ... there are 52 cranes ... or ... 26 pars of matching cranes

matching cranes? now, why would a girl do that???