Thinking of Sandy

I thought I was done but apparently not.  I have tinkered around with the card since my last post but I think now that it is now complete.

To make the mixed media art postcard I used:

• recycled junk mail card
• magazine images, text and punch cut-outs
• organza ribbon
• acrylic gesso and paint
• sharpie pen
• oil pastels
• paint chip colour swatch
• glitter glue
• bingo card 
• glitter sticker paper 

I had a lot of fun making this card!!!  Not everyone will comprehend the reason for some of the imagery but that is okay since it is very personal. 

This and That

I'm home alone!  I love having the house to myself!  My old guy is off fishing with the boys and I am on holidays.  Sweet!

I woke up at 0300 hrs this morning and I tried to lie down again but I got up to see who had sent me a text message.  It was from my daughter of course!  We had a good chat and a plan was made for me to go south to see the family on Tuesday.

I wanted to take this time to do some art.  It was my intention to get quite a bit done on the postcards for the next postcard challenge that is about to begin.  I don't really have much to show for myself yet but these to pictures.

The first is a drawing of a male face that I found in a recycled art journal that I started some time ago.  I just liked the green and blue colour and finally after looking at it for a time; I saw what looked like a face. I just followed the lines and this face formed.  Fun!  Not a lot of effort but fun nevertheless!

I hope that it isn't similar to the face that was found in the toast.  It isn't meant to be anything serious, it as just kinda cool to actually see something on a gessoed page that was just plastered with leftover paint.

The next picture is a postcard that I am making for a friend who has cancer!  I thought I would do up a "thinking of you" card.  Just because - just because I can!

It is a mixed media piece using a re-cycled mail card that I keep getting in the mail.I gessoed it too and slapped on some paint.  Then I doodled on it with a Sharpie.  Cut out some images from magazine pages along with some text that I hope she takes as a positive message.  There is also one piece of a National Geographic that I had treated with CitraSolv for it didn't really cut through the ink (I must assume that I didn't apply enough liquid to the paper).   I will pop this into a gift wrap envelope that I have cut yet and mail it out on Tuesday before I head to Toronto.

Just a chance photograph

I am confirmed to take part in the next postcard swap!  Looking forward to participating once again and I have start to make my substrate and some of the other embellishments.  FUN!!!!  I have decided to make them slightly different this time as well.  I loved the process of covering the mixed media journal that I bought from the woman who hosts this swap; I have decided to make these cards in a similar fashion.

I caught a glimpse of some movement while driving home last night from work.  I was lucky to get this quick snap of the wood ducks that I had seen earlier in the farmers field not far from this bit of marshland. I think I am going to have to put my turbo zoom camera in my car so I can get some better shots when these opportunities turn up; they are often unexpected.  I love things that happen just "by chance". I love the late afternoon lighting as well!

When I first caught sight of these ducks, I would never have guessed that they were in fact DUCKS!  As you can see in the photo below their bills (beaks) are not very large so I thought they were birds!

Random Thoughts

My hubby is working afternoon shift and I have time to myself.  I love that!  Listening to 2 Cello's album quite loudly (possible a old fashioned moniker for CD; possible even CD's are "old fashioned" these days).  Regardless, love the music!  If you didn't see them on Oprah and Ellen then do go to iTunes and check them out.  Love making art to the music!

I think that I have joined up for yet another mixed media postcard swap!  I haven't started any but I am getting some "foundations" down.  I think that they will be reminiscent of my journal cover.  I loved making it and I think that I will have fun making the postcards using this system.  It is faster and way easier than sewing.  The down side is that I love the results of hand sewing; so, I just might change my mind yet again.  Who knows!  Not me, not until I actually start the project.

I have to say that I had fun today with the CitraSolv solution and my National Geographic magazines.  My only complaint is caused by my own stinginess!  I love the results when I apply the Citra Solv "liberally".  Every time I reduce the amount of solution spread on the page is when I am very unhappy with the results.   I'm not sure quite yet, I have even been thinking I might use some of the papers  for the postcards.   So many choices!!!

Anyway, today is the day that I finally caught the culprit who has been pooping on my car.  I even have evidence that he is obviously the likely suspect.   I mean really.... buddy.....give me a break.  My hubby parks his shiny new silver truck right next to mine but his goes unscathed.  What gives??!!  I say that his truck makes for a good target too! 

Blue Cheer - Mixed Media B-day Wishes

I have made another postcard for a good friend of mine who will be having a birthday this week.  I sent the postcard via express post but it will still take two days so she will be getting it a day late.  Oh well, I just couldn't be helped.

I call it Blue Cheer, the title of this project is not solely because of the song (okay so they were a one hit wonder!!) Summertime Blues.  It is because we will be going out on her boat in Lake Ontario again this summer.  So much fun and the view on the water is breath-taking; I never tire of the 1000 Islands.

In the snap above you can see it up close; you can see the netting over the organza, the sparkly fabric (I found it in the sale bin and I would expect it is used for skating costumes and such like).  I did a bit of embroidery work and of course my beloved beading.  I put the two fabrics to get using glitter glue for something else different in this mixed media piece.

  I knew that I had a blue button somewhere in my stash and I knew that I just had to add it.  But where?? I decided that it would be an abstract representation of the sun.  I sewed the button on and used slivers of organza to add more texture.

I made the horizon off-kilter reminiscent of being on the boat in a windy stormy day with the waves getting higher and higher.  I hope that my friend can see my vision.

I had a very "fluid" plan in my mind when I started my creation and I am quite happy with the results.  I hope my friend enjoys her card as much as I did creating it!!!

Fake is the New Real!

I was trolling through the net and came across this title for a journal page on making a fake journal.  I don't really have any intention on doing this but it brings up a point.  I now have to acknowledge that "fake is the new real"!!!  I hate having to do this but when I think about the ham we had last night this point really hit home.  Most so-called ham's are pressed meat into a shape that resembles what we think a ham should look like.  I don't know why we think that ham is something that should be perfectly round or shaped like a thigh is beyond me.  If my recollection is correct a ham had a bone in it and when it didn't my parents would buy a picnic pork shoulder (a ham for poor people!!).  Hmmm, weird memories but at least they are fake.

Finishing up my current project but no photo's yet.  In fact, I forgot to take any so it is almost finished and there are only a few to show you later.

I tried to make some "artist tape" using some dollar store and other cheap tapes that I bought at that big bad "W" store.  I don't go there frequently but I knew that they would likely have something cheap.

The article is from Somerset Studio's March/April 2012 edition and it seemed easy enough so I thought that I would give it a go.  I dug out some stamps as well and used my Staz On stamp pad to see how they took on the tape.  For colour, I used Tri Art liquid paint, Liquitex acrylic as well as Ranger Inks.  It was a good trial and depending on the look you might be going for on how likely I would be to actually using these in an journal.  Now that I have made some, I will use them just to say that I did.

I went for a walk the other day and came across these flowers at the end of a farmers lane way.  I think that they are domestic flowers but I have never seen them before.  I love the pastel shades of pink and purple and especially liked the dots on the leaves.  If anyone has any idea the name of this flower let me know.

Spring walk

It is Easter time already and we will be packing to head down to Toronto to see the family.  Very nice!  It is a very fine sunny day so driving will be easy and I think that many will be coming north and we will be heading into the city so traffic should be less hectic than weekday.

I had a wonderful walk yesterday although it was really cold.  The sun was shining but the wind was brisk.  Luckily, I was wearing the appropriate attire; often I am not and find the walk miserable.

I as always I brought my trusty camera with me and got a few good snaps.  I think this one of the crows is the best of the lot though.

It is a bit surreal in its minimalism.  I did however enhance the colour since the current spring time colour around here is beige and brown.  Spring is sprung but the farmers crops are not peeking out of the ground quite yet.

I read a blog and the author puts up pictures in her "noticing journal" and I totally get where she is coming from.  I call noticing my surroundings, consciously looking.  It is amazing what you will see when you are consciously looking around you to see what there is.  At first there seems like there is nothing new to see.  I walk several different paths but really there is not much different on any given day but if I actually look....sometimes there is a lot.  For instance, these three birds that I caught in flight.  They had just landed in the field and I had to wave my arms and whistle at them to get them to move once more so I could take this snap.  It wasn't where I wanted to grab the picture but where I could since I only carry my point-and-shoot with me on my walks.


I rushed into town yesterday to buy the ham and I'm glad that I did since they had lots of hams that were smaller than the two that they had the day before.  I got one that was a reasonable size and popped it in the freezer.