Poppin Poseys

Poppin UP all over!

If you read my blog post yesterday (or scroll down to view my entire vent/rant/rambling) you can see that lately, I'm all about LEARNING and less about cardmaking!  But truly, I'm up in my creative space doodling, typing, taking pictures, editing pictures, gluing, coloring...honest.

Now I've added another way of 'showing off my creativity'.... Instagram!  It's me taking pictures with my phone (go figure.... I'm taking pictures with my phone) then, I'm altering the pictures slightly and posting them through Instagram and getting funky pictures... like those to the right ---> (click on one to bring you to a slightly larger picture, in most cases with descriptions.)

Supposedly, these will be updated in real time... so I guess that means after I take a picture with my phone and I apply it too the Instagram app... it will update here on my blog!!!!

Wow, that is really mind blowing to me!!

Anyway, the above picture is a mixed media collage.  Did I post this before?  I swear, now that I'm working 30+ hours a week outside the home, my days are no longer my own.  I have to go into my creative space to de-compress.... but  now I'm playing with so many TECHNICAL toys... I need to get back to 'hand' crafts.

Stay tuned....

Techie Bird

The ideas keep coming! 

I'm learning something new every day... and loving every bit of it.  But I must admit that I'm a technoligical overload.

On the above picture I learned how to add the misty edges and the text that lays on top of the photo... (forget about the actual layout I saw on a challenge for Mojo Monday and that I saw something similar while blurfing) that's all stuff I learned from tutorials on Splitcoast Stampers that someone gave me a link... and then I followed how to do this in PSE8 (Photo Shope Elements 8)  That Photo Shop learning has been within the last 4 months.

Then at work, I've set up the phone, fax/printer/copier, am learning a Outlook, which is NEW email to me, plus learning the company computer programs for chart notes and information on patients and doctors offices...scheduling my boss with Google Maps... enough about that.... plus the family got NEW IPHONE 4S and having to learn that... it's more than just learning a phone... it's all the social media that goes with that... pictures with your phone called Instagram... adding APPS (aplications)... links and feeds, downloads... my head is spinning from all the new stuff I'm learning.

But, we got a dose of reality Sunday night.... don't know why yet.... but with a snap, crackle and a big *POP* our power went out for 1-1/2 hours. 

Pitch black

.... with homemade pizza in the oven.  We ate it mostly cooked by candle light!  The street behind us had power... we can't figure out what might have made it snap! Some neighbors saw a flash... we have huge ComEd towers behind us in the field.  We had heavy winds most of the day, (but just windy... not like high gale force)  and it was in the 60's.... very un-usual.  The rain started mid afternoon....

but when you don't have power... you think about those hit and devistated by MAJOR storms... and they are out of power now for days or weeks.... you think oh, I'll just go check my email... oh, I'll just go read a book... oh I'll just watch some tv.... but you can't!  Makes you step back and say... whoa....

This little birdie is telling me I need to slow down a bit!

Brave Bird

Tweet, tweet...

The size is very deceptive!

 The top picture is the back cover of my newest Art Journal... I think!  I think it's my new art journal because I created it with a lot of blank pages.  Clean, crisp, white pages.... to doodle, paint, dream and create!!

As part of my on-line class from Brave Girls Art School.... so, so loved the class.  I L-LEARNED to feel more comfortable about collage art... which was putting together on a 10" x 14" canvas (2 in this case, front and back covers).... acrylic paint (using paint brushes and fingers and popsicle sticks), fabric (and lace and fiber) and paper pieces (embossed and patterned), mod podge and other silly and fun doo dads.... and creating a whimsical expression of unique ART.

Oh, here are the blank pages!  You'll have to stay tuned... probably into 2013 to see what wonderful master pieces they turn into!!!!

Here is a side view with the 2" rings for binding the book together.  Not sure if I will keep this as the binding... it isn't working as smooth as I hoped when I open it. I have a few other ideas for the binding. But for now I can easily take the pages out!

I certainly think it's a BRAVE step to think outside the box... this Year of Self... I'm trying often (almost every day) to SEEK, EXPLORE, LEARN, & FIND new things to inspire me to be a better self.

Oh, I've not left behind my cardmaking and all the other crafty things that are part of my heART... this is just what I'm doing, today!!!!

Beautiful Soul

Love is in the air...

and on some of my greeting cards ♥

If you've been following my blog for any amount of time, you know that I like art.... I like heart art... I like ♥ ... I like heART.... however you say it... I have great fun and satisfaction creating. And I try to create EVERY day!

I've created lots of cards over the years... and I love to LEARN new 'stuff'.  That's part of who I am this year, in creating the YEAR OF mySELF.... seeking, exploring, learning and finding.   And I'm LEARNING collage art.... I'm painting!  I'm taking art classes (on line through Brave Girls) and I'm learning from great bloggers who share their talent.

I got the idea for this card from Stephanie at Homegrown Hospitality

This type of card and tag seem like  a new version of  country crafting that I did over 15 years ago.  Freshing up the heART ♥ a bit.

Come back and visit me again real soon...

I'd like to brighten your day!!!

My fall mantle

 Staying true to my SELF or my Year of SELF.... I am learning. Every day I'm trying to Seek out and LEARN something new!!!!

I looked at my fire place mantle yesterday and said to my SELF...Yuck!!!  although I dust it... I hadn't changed it for awhile.  That my friends is BORING!!! Staying the same day in and day out... is boring to my type 4 personality.  I like changes... controlled changes that I'm in charge of....

I had all of my fall stuff out anyways to decorate the front porch... it's all placed in my Type 4 special orange and black storage bin... I visit Pinterest so much I thought.... you just have to put things together and get some color going... so I used all my own old 'stuff' and put this little vignette together in less than 10 minutes... and I'm so liking it! It's perfect to brighten up our family room!

It has been a very long time since I felt the need to make some adjustments and changesin my life, in my style, in my art... everywhere....about me... mySELF... and I'm learning from seeing so many cool ideas on Pinterest just how much I miss frugally decorating my house. Making an extra effort truly makes it more like a cozy warm home... and then on the cheap when you re-use stuff you just had laying around in a bin in the crawl space!

I'm working at it, my SELF... S-seeking, E-exploring, L-learning and F-finding!!!

I'm Brave...but not like some

 Okay, as part of thinking outside of my creative 'box' and working on my SELF, exploring a different kind of art other than keeping an Art Journal (oh and of course my little faux creative greeting card company), here is my first mixed media canvas board from Brave Girl's Art School.  It's a 6 week online art class that I signed up for and the first week we are making Funky Flowers!

The flowers are created of  'lots of things you find around the house'.  So, there are petals made from patterned fabric, patterned paper, lace, buttons and other do dads.  Then I used Sparkling paste (from Home Depot) and colored it with acrylic paint to make texture, texture and more texture.  And then pieces are 'glued down' with Mod Podge. Many layers of Mod Podge.

To me, this has a cottage feel to it.  I can't say it's my 'style' but then I don't know what my style is when it comes to painting. I still love the detail my ink pen gives me.... but I'm trying to be FREE and paint what I feel... la dee da!

It's an extremely beautiful sunny day .  Just like I remember watching the Today show at 8:46 am 11 years ago... I was kid sitting with my kids and 3 other teacher's kids...before school started for my first and third grader... and then life in middle America and every where in the United States was on hold... for days... what the hell was going on!!!!  I will never forget.

Peace! 

Off to Market (myself)

To SHINE is to market yourself!

And I quote mySELF:

 From a post at House of Shine.... If for instance, for this blog and your daily posts, sometimes you need to repeat the message a few times.  Someone may miss your blog one day and miss the fact that they could participate in a challenge, or they need a reminder to send out a YEP (yellow envelope project.). 

Repeat, repeat, repeat! 

If you want to get the message across.

If we are 'teaching' our children life lessons, it's repeat as well, but they(children) do by what they see.  So, if you push in a chair, open a door, help someone who is struggling ... people see what you do.  I think it's an insurance company (commercial on tv), and it's like paying it forward.... someone silently sees a co-worker cleaning up a mess, then the next scene is that person opening a door, the next scene is the struggling person helping their neighbor rake the yard.... and so on and so on.  

Repeat, repeat, repeat.

But I think you(Claudia, you wrote the original idea on her blog)  wrapped it up in a nutshell..... BASICALLY.... it all goes back to manners, old fashioned etiquette and respect, treat others how you'd want to be treated!  Take a moment, look someone in the eye and sincerely thank them or acknowledge them... If someone needs help opening the door, put aside personal bias and take one moment to help them, with a smile :0)

Why try to fit in, when you were meant to stand out!!!!

Never get tired of doing little things for others.  Sometimes those little things occupy the biggest part of their hearts.

Rinse, and repeat, and repeat, and repeat!!!

Market yourself and SHINE!

Flight 8:24

Although I haven't posted any pictures for a while, I am still mixed media painting in my heART Journal.  Here is a page from one of last months entries! Lot's of yellow with pop, pop, pop of red.

It relates to an earlier blog posting of mine Go (to school) The empty nest.  I should have punched out birds with wings, darn. I did the picture before I found the caption.  But I didn't know I was going to relate it to a theme for this weeks posting. (if only I could think that far ahead, NOT!)  Flying the coop.  End of the summer, back to school.... If you look closely, you can see the butterflies taking off from the bottom left of the page up to the right !

The birds are active this morning.  They actually line up to take turns in the bird bath and in our little fountain out back in our 'secret' garden.  While one is splashing and spreading it's wings in the little bowl, others wait on the rocking chair back, and behind that on the brick patio, waiting their turn to get a little bathing action.  It's a flutter of wings and squawking.

I think another reason I posted about the mother bird worried about her baby falling out of the nest, and darn, it would have been perfect to post it at the time... but Cooper, my trusty furry friend had to show me something he found in the back under a lilac tree.  There has been lots of activity outside my creative greetings home office... and sadly, Cooper showed me to a 'real' little birdie who had fallen out of the nest, to young to take flight it fell to the ground below.  He didn't make it. Is there any symbolism in all of this?

Amidst the squawking and feather fluffing, life and (death) still goes on.  Often times we notice the ones making all the noise!

Oh, heck.... going ahead, send some FuN MaiL

and brighten that quiet one's day!!

Trilogy by Design

 Card number 3, in this weeks card trilogy. 

All three cards are connected with the same mono-chromatic color scheme and I used two different 4" x 6" patterned paper sheets to add the major color pieces to all the cards.  Other coordinating paper scraps were added from my stash.

All three cards have a different feel to them as well.  The top 'thank you' card is very simplistic and straight forward.  The punched circles are all 'perfect' in their rows. The ribbon and the punched edge are all very calculated.

The second card, although there is no sentiment, it could be used a number of different ways, from a thinking of you card... anywhere in between, up to a hello note card!  The different size banner shapes and the book fringe make this card somewhat, versatile,  eclectic and spirited.

The hugs and kisses card is most planned.  It follows a layout from Mojo Monday (if interested, scroll down to find that blog over to the right -->).  The shapes are all uniform, there is a mix and match theme to the pattern paper... plaid then paisley, paisley then plaid. I colored the little girls hair and the hearts to the reds and oranges throughout the card palette.  And this last card has the most detail with multiple  layers, framing, added floss, faux stitching holes, the banner sentiment and crystal effects to pop out the hearts!

Today's post was a two fold project, actually.  I wanted to use up all the paper I had pulled to work on the cards, so I found 3 completely different ways to do that.  And, I also learned how to sharpen the color and add a watermark stamp to the cards while working on my skills in Photo Shop! I'm LEARNING (something new, almost every day)

I'm really happy my plan came together.  Now get out there, order some creative greetings from me, your humble starving artist card maker and send some FuN MaiL..... it WILL

brighten someone's day!

Lil Bit of Fringe

Two handmade greeting cards with similar patterned papers and colors themes have already been highlighted (one yesterday and the other today) on my blog. 

Did you know there is something out there in the card making world called One sheet wonders???  Where some creative soul took apart one sheet (normally 8" x 11-1/2") of crazy fun patterned paper and cut and divided to make an impressive color coordinated mix and match of 10-12 different card fronts.  This week I'l reveal a 3 sheet wonder... I'm starting out small!

I'm using a small sheet as well... a Hippie Chic Matstack from DCWV and it's only 4" x 6". Please notice the funky reds and oranges with paisley, plaids and glitter.

The fun surprise on this card is the book paper fringe.  Here's a close up view.

 

With coupon in hand, last year I bought the Martha Stewart fringe scissors.  It's cut is really cute, but don't know how often I will use them.  Maybe this fringe style would be more useful making big fluffy pom pom flowers for a gift, or some sort of ribbon hanging off the present.

Stop in tomorrow and see how I end my trilogy.  There is more behind the pictures too... learning  how to set up a photo shoot, upload and color enhance the photos, and add a watermark and shadow around the pictures.  Trying to EXPLORE the possibilities with PhotoShop Elements... and of course trying to create a fun card to....

Brighten Someone's Day!

Hello, sunSHINE!

Seventeen years ago... I casually walked into the hospital in Wisconsin to start a new chapter in our our lives... delivering this sweet baby girl and 25 days later moving with her, a newly 2 year old big brother and their dad to Tennessee. 

The stars began to dance and the fireworks went off the next day!

Happy Birthday Sissy!!

I took on a small challenge using popsicle sticks and somehow tried my hand to make them SHINE!  I was actually surfing through Facebook over the weekend and a cute picture like the size of mine above came about... some friendly artist posted a pic of this similar design but she used a huge wooden palette to make a great wall hanging. I'm a fan over there at Hobby Lobby.... crafty, creative and cute people inspire me, what can I say???

 I scaled mine down, much, much, much smaller.... and made my 'hello' sunSHINE palette out of four popsicle sticks, a little acrylic paint and some mod podge.   I'm thinking this will work perfect as a gift tag off of one of my 'creative greeting' card packs!

Go on over to the House of Shine and see what Claudia did with her popsicle sticks: http://houseofshine.com/BLOG/tabid/67/entryid/625/Shineworks-July-2012.aspx

She is creative, full of spirit, fun and she's got moxie!!!!  Get your Shine on, and then go

Brighten Someone's Day!  Send some FuN MaiL!

I'm Right!

I thought I was going to write a post about being uniquely special. I read all the time different quotes. ' be a first rate version of yourself, not a second rate copy of someone else'. So I'm pumped up to tell you I'm different, but not as special as I first thought.

I'm left handed. I'm one of the 10 percent in the population that can always say "I'm in my right mind". If you recall dissecting a brain in biology class, we learned the left side of the brain controls the right hand, thus the right side of the brain controls the left.

For the longest time I've been telling people that I'm ambidextrous, because "I thought" that I was adept to using both my left & right hand equally. Just like many things in my life, I can do a lot of different things well ... but while growing up I have been confused. There is a difference between doing things equally well verses having skill and dominance.


There have been hundreds of studies of children to adults and their dominant hand usage. Most left-handed people develop 'mixed handedness' simply by living in a world where most objects are suited for right-handed people. Studies say that heredity is not involved in handedness. However, adopted children often take on the traits of their biologically parents dismissing the fact that although adoptive parents teach their young children handedness, there are varying factors in all scientific studies.


My mom is left handed and my dad is right handed. I think that is why I was a confused child. I inherited the writing and drawing skills from my mom, but my dad taught me how to play all sports. But when I was young I was often frustrated because I felt that neither hand was 'right'... I mean correct. Or, I could do things with both hands, at the same time. I'm finding that the term I should have been using was that I am 'mixed-handedness', I am able to do different tasks better with different hands.


Unfortunately, being confused most of my life I'm one of the statistics of a left hand dominant person. Studies show that we are more likely to have mental health, language & academic problems. Leonard da Vinci is one of the most famous 'mixed handed' people. He would draw with his right hand and write with his left. I write and draw with my left hand, but find that I paint better with my right hand. I used to be able to write with both hands, going forward with my left hand and going backwards with my right. Remember, I and other left handed people have often had to adapt to a right handed world.... every day items like scissors, knives, school desks, notebooks, and power tools were originally designed for 90% of the population.

Although I know I'm special, I finally discovered the correct term for my confusion. I am proud to announce that I am 'mixed handed'.... not a unique as ambidextrous... I never tire of ironing, or sweeping, shoveling or raking, painting or scrubbing.... I can do those things equally well with both sides!

Life: Where heART immitates it!

As part of my year of SELF 2012 (Seeking, Exploring, Learning and Finding) I have taken on a challenge to create outside my box and learn how to design pages in my Art Journal with different techniques of mixed media.

A copy artist or doodler by nature (using pen, pencil or markers) -   painting with a brush, observing shadows and hard to see details is not something that comes naturally.  I've not been trained to paint.  But here is my journey and a few pages that I have done recently.

I see an image.  In most cases I page scroll through hundreds of photos on a Google search of mixed media art.  Something catches my eye and I try to re-create it with my quirky & whimsical touch.... here are my attempts... using gesso, paper scraps, mod podge, acrylic paint, markers, stamps and other discarded household items, like bubble wrap, mesh netting from fresh vegetables, bottoms of glass jars and other funky things!  The sentiments are pulled from random words typeset in magazines and then I try to put the puzzle pieces of words together to make some creative thought!

Most of the collage pieces stick to a color theme.  At least that way I have some handle on where the piece may end up.  I have the need to outline!  Pages are full to the edges, approximately 8-1/2W x 11" H

Random rips and tears. A splotch of paint... color here, white there, dot, dot and dash.  I think there is so much more that can be added to this one.  I don't feel quite as inspired some days as I do others.  But bottom line... it's the middle of June and I continue to try and work on this Art Journal.  Initially going outside my comfort zone because I know in the long run, if I ever were to meet a challenge... head on... I need to be able to do things I'm not used to or don't want to!

...what we see

depends

mainly

on what we

look for.... pinterest

Say Hello to my Little Friend

I'm very lucky that I didn't break anything. A couple of Sunday's ago I fell into a window well on the side of our house. I'm sure you're thinking what in the h*ll? And, where are the pictures!

Bubba came up from the basement after watching his sport shows and animatedly told me that our dog Cooper's second best friend was in one of the basement window wells. (I'm his first BEST friend) Trying to figure out the puzzle, I really had to think about his statement. I thought maybe he was talking about a tiny tree frog. We have found them many times before. So, with my dear son not far behind, I ventured outside to see for myself.

I looked in the first window well, nothing. Then I moved on to the next one. I saw at ground level that the metal grate covering the well was about 3 inches away from the wall. That gaping whole would be easy enough for something or any little critter to fall in. Sure enough, when I peered down... I saw *Chip scampering around in the rocks!

Our 7 year old Lab mix will sit for hours by the down spouts that are on the sides of our house off the gutters of the roof line. He will wait, and wait and wait for the *chipmunks that hide in and around the trees and bushes off the foundation of our home. One little guy must have been running along betwen the landscaping mulch and the basement brick and sky dove head first into a 4 foot wide by 5 foot deep window well. There was no way out!

I knelt in the mulch and slowly pulled the grate further to the right away from the house. In that area of landscaping is the air conditioner and heavy arbivitae bushes. The grate got stuck on a branch. I tried to jostle it free and the grate started falling into the well. It got hung up on the branch and then the area where my right hand was got hung up on the lip of the well.... and I started falling headfirst into the well, right behind the heavy metal grate.

I totally lost my balance and the next thing I knew, I hit the rocks with my left shoulder first, then my head and then the backside below my tale bone. I was still holding onto the grate when Chip jumped over my head to avoid being completely squished to death.

I layed there for a moment with my legs and feet sprawled up skyward. And then I began to assess the situation. I literally fell head first into the window well. Now what? I don't think I broke anything. I finally let go of the grate, moved my head from side to side and noticed I could easily peer into the basement window. Wow, I hadn't broken a window either... that was a good thing too!

Chip was pacing back and forth along the window sill. I'm sure he was pretty excited that he hadn't met his demise.

As I looked up to the blue sky, I was wondering where my son was. I thought he was right behind me. So, I started pounding on the window, trying to draw some attention to anyone in the house. Probably a minute later I see him peering down at me. "What are you doing?" he asks. I just yell up at him, " go get your father please!!!"

Chip and I both made it out alive. Honestly, I didn't freak out, especially about being stuck in the window well with a rodent. We have had so many little critters around the yard that I knew he was probably more afraid of me than I of him. He actually made it out all on his own. When I finally got up-right and stood up... he climbed up the screen of the window, jumped on my back and jumped to safety off the top of my head. He got the h*ll outta there when he got a clear get-a-way!

I climbed out with the help from my husband and a 6 foot ladder. I can laugh about it now. And really it was pretty funny right after it happened. I cried too! I was banged up and bruised on some of my bony spots, but I am very, very lucky that I had fallen and could get up!

Cooper now has a new spot to lay and watch for Chip. He just senses something really good happened around that window well!!

Full Circle

 So, you know how things in life sometimes go full circle? 

I didn't post to my blog this past Monday because we left the house early to get on the road to visit family in Indiana.  But on Tuesday, I mentioned that I had completed the book during the ride, Remembering Isaac by Ben Behunin and highlighted an ink doodle of a Forget-me-Not type of flower (which is described in the book)... scroll down or click on the link here!

Anywho, it's a wonderful tale of the journey of a young artist, a book 'about a wise and joyful potter of Niederbipp'.  As part of his duty becoming the new town potter, he must design and create the motif on the past potter's gravemarker which is a cement bench in the town graveyard.  Jake sits in the peaceful graveyard thinking of what to create for a man he never met.  But a man who seemed to touch so many towns people's lives.

This week, ironically... on Tuesday, I went to Wisconsin to visit friends and family(hi mom & dad) .

A special artist friend KL and I completed the grouting for a water catcher for my secret garden, a tile/glass mosaic we had started months ago. I briefly told her the story of the book I had just completed about Jake the Potter, as she guided me through her beautiful garden filled with blossoming flowers and unique artisan garden sculptures.

An overwhelming emotion of happiness and serenity came over me... I couldn't believe how full circle the story was coming around me.... although I was not in Niederbipp PA.... I felt a connection! "We need to connect with people on a daily basis to remind us of our own humanity."

To complete the story.  I spoke with BE yesterday.  She was the wonderful one who originally sent me the book and a mug from the author.  She actually met the author Ben Behunin, of  Remembering Isaac and spoke with him a few times in his pottery studio in Salt Lake City.  Not only is he a potter, but an author and a kind and gentle man within his belief.  BE has been inspired by his stories that she has told many of her friends about this joyful book. She was so kind she thought I would like it too!

"Arise and go down to the Potter's House, and there I will cause thee to hear my words." Jeremiah 18:2

And finally, as some of you know... I often talk about the House of Shine, a gathering place for anyone committed to being the best and bringing out the best of others!  As Amy and Jake the two main characters of the story discuss the meaning behind Isaac's artist stamp which is a letter B(first letter of his last name) with 6 lines radiating from it like flower petals... Amy says... "Maybe it's about letting your light shine", she said, "like a candlestick."  I want to SH!NE!

Bump in the Road

I have been going through stuff in my stash in my 'art' studio, looking at stuff in my smash (book) and shuffling through stuff in my mind!  Some is a bit of a clutter scene, but I realized it's all the things that make me .... me!    I'm starting to purge things, and for the other 'stuff' trying to find a place for the unknown to be stored... if I really want to keep it for some day!

I noticed a pattern to some of my cardmaking this month.  Hearts, ♥ big, tiny... red ♥... not red... perfect and a bit grungy....but all have some sort of meaning of life and love behind them.

On some cards you have to look a bit harder to find the true heart.  Not that the others are fake... but it might be hard to filter out all the other 'stuff' until you truly find what's been there all the time!

And some hearts are very clear.  You just have to enjoy and accept them as they are.

There is more than 1 path to happiness.  The road to happiness has many on ramps!