Speaking Your Truth

Finally finished....Here's my Chapter 6 Project from Kelly Rae Robert's Taking Flight book...


We worked with two new art techniques with this project - gold leaf and molding paste. I really liked the molding paste :) Last night, I went over to Nikki's house for our final art night together - the nerve of you, girl, to move away from me, and leave me without a real live art friend! We worked on the FINAL project in the book, but you'll have to wait for photos since I still have some touch ups to do. Way to go Nikki! We made it through the ENTIRE book!! I can honestly say that I couldn't have done it without you!!

Now that we're done with the Kelly Rae book (!!!) I'll be focusing on my clay for the rest of the summer. Stay tuned!

Till next time,

Honoring Your Memories

It's about time I posted some photos of my Chapter 5 Taking Flight project! Nikki and I finished our projects over a week ago (maybe even two weeks!), and I really want to post these before I move on to Chapter 6!

The theme for this project was "Honoring Your Memories." I definitely felt pulled toward some early memories from my family of origin. Not a whole bunch of happy memories, but they are memories to be honored, nonetheless. I know that all of my past experiences, positive and negative, have contributed to who I am today, and I'm feeling pretty good about how my life has "turned out" so far (AND I'm looking forward to all the future has in store :) Working on this project gave me plenty of opportunities to re-visit my past, and do a little more healing (always a good thing, even though it doesn't always feel so good!).

Back to the art...I'll start with this close up shot of my "blue bird of happiness." I love how this bird turned out! I made it from polymer clay, and finished it off with a few coats of golden acrylic paints. It symbolizes the happy times in my life - those in the past and those yet to come. The "1963" above the bird represents my birth, and the "2009" below represents the present. The bird is heading east towards the sunrise of a new day :)


Below is a shot of the entire project. The base is a 12 x 12 piece of plywood, covered with an assortment of scrapbook papers and ephemera (so many hidden messages in there...I should probably make some notes on the reverse so I remember why I put them there!)

The two photos on the top are of my mom's family (her Ma and Pa on the left, and a "Kodak moment" with some of her siblings on the right). The photos on the bottom are my family of origin. The one in the middle makes me laugh because it reminds me of all the matching outfits my mom used to make for my sister and I. She was quite the seamstress! (by the way, I'm the little sister).


I found the church photo in my Mom and Dad's old photo box. There was nothing written on the back, and both my folks have been dead for quite a while, so I can't ask them where the church is. But it is an adorable little church, and I knew just where it belonged in this project. I put the church in the center to remind me of the "bigger" family that I'm a part of, and to represent the importance of faith in my life.


I do like how this project turned out, and I learned a few more techniques along the way! I think I'll put a frame around this and hang it in my art room. It will be a good reminder of where I came from, who I came from, and how far I've come.

ps...if you know where this little church is, please tell me!!

Till next time...

A Sense of Hope

It's Monday night, and I just returned from my Monday Art Night with Nikki. We had a special guest join us tonight (welcome to the club, Emily!). I just finished my Chapter 4 project of Taking Flight. I am making the project "my own" by adding my own personal touch of bisque fired clay pieces...and subtracting the wings that Kelly Rae shows us how to make in her book.

We did actually make some wings tonight, but I just didn't feel like they belonged on this book. Here's what they look like for now...


I'll hang on to them, because I'm sure I'll figure out a way to use them in some future project!

Nikki...if you're reading this....I am so enjoying our art nights together! If only I could figure out how to make those wings really work, so I could fly out to see you every Monday night in California! Maybe I could attach them to Precious and turn her into a Pegasus pony :) I'll keep you up to date with my progress on that one!

And now for your reading pleasure...here's "Hope" by Emily Dickinson...

Hope

Hope is the thing with feathers
That perches in the soul,
And sings the tune--without the words,
And never stops at all,

And sweetest in the gale is heard;
And sore must be the storm
That could abash the little bird
That kept so many warm.

I've heard it in the chillest land,
And on the strangest sea;
Yet, never, in extremity,
It asked a crumb of me.

An Ordinary Day...NOT

Such an ordinary picture....it's from my dad's apartment in Chicago around 1958. He and my mom met when they lived in the same apartment building.


I thought about using this photo for my Taking Flight chapter 4 project, "Finding the Sacred in the Ordinary". But the photo seemed just a little too ordinary!


The chapter encourages us to look at the ordinary events in our life, so I did that today...I start the day in an ordinary bed. Ordinary, but so comfortable...and I just love my cloud robe that is sooo soft (probably because it is soooo old - it really is time for a new one).


And I start up my ordinary teapot...which I use "religiously" every morning to make that oh-so-important cup of coffee.




And while the water is warming up, I feed my ordinary cat his breakfast. A bit more carefully these days, because his breakfast and dinner are now served with an injection of insulin.


Then, it's off to work...an ordinary day at preschool. Where ordinary children enjoy one of the first real spring days by painting and playing outside...here one of the children is painting a picture of the bubbles that the other ordinary children were making today....


Then time to come home to see some of the first ordinary buds in our back yard.


And to take a peek at the ordinary garden in these early spring days...


And off to the barn with my ordinary daughter to visit her ordinary horse. The horse who began as a rescue, and can now win champion ribbons at shows. The horse she loves.


Come to think of it...there's nothing at all ordinary about my day. How bout yours?

The Taking Flight Saga Continues...

Nikki and I are continuing to meet once a week for our Monday Art Night. Our goal is to complete reading Taking Flight by Kelly Rae Roberts and to complete all of the accompanying projects (one per chapter) before the end of summer.

We're both feeling pretty impressed that we've made it through the first three chapters, and we're even staying on schedule! It really makes it easier, and much more fun, to go through this book with a friend. Which just happens to lead into the topic of chapter three: Creating Community.

I was having a tough time deciding what words (if any) to add to my project. After looking through poetry books, scripture verses, favorite Rumi quotes and my own personal collection, it finally hit me...Love One Another. That short three letter phrase that makes all the difference in the world.


The background of this project was made up of notes and cards from friends and/or family.


What a difference in the before and after!!

As I worked on this, I spent a lot of time reflecting on my circle of friends, and I remembered how much of a difference those people have made in my life. I most definitely wouldn't be where I am now without the love and support of friends. So I dedicate this piece to all of those in my life who have taught me how to love and how to be loved! I couldn't have made it without you!!

In case you're interested, here are some other quick notes on the creative process for this piece: The two figures were created from polymer clay that was imprinted with a hand carved linoleum block. The center heart was created from a technique in Kelly Rae's book - we used floral foam, plaster and some other secret ingredients :) The bird's body is formed from polymer clay as well as the letters on the twig. The wings of the bird and the leaves on the twig are bisque fired hand formed ceramic pieces. And the twig is from my neighbor's Corkscrew Willow Tree. Thank you Denny :) Needless to say, I'm definitely enjoying working in mixed media!!

Till next time...

Amazing Tool for Exploring Colors

I LOVE COLORS!
But sometimes that love leads me to complete color overload, where I spend hours and hours and hours thinking about ALL OF THE POSSIBILITIES available to me, and I end up not even getting to the creating (please tell me I'm not the only one with this issue!)


But thanks to a recent e-mail from Stumble Upon*, I found an amazing on-line tool to help me visualize colors, patterns and palettes. You don't even have to put on your shoes to go there...just click HERE and you'll be magically transported to ColourLovers.com where you will "Find design inspiration with thousands of palettes and color schemes to fall in love with."

I'm currently having fun with my third project from Kelly Rae Robert's book "Taking Flight." It has a seriously grungy look to it (that's my opinion), which is NOT my typical comfort zone (give me crisp and clean any day)! The paints I used were Titan Buff and Raw Sienna, which were followed by a lettuce green alcohol ink and 2 pads of distressing ink.


I'll be adding some polymer clay forms to this, and I've been trying to figure out what color those forms should be! I'm going to try my new tool at ColourLovers.com to help me with that decision. I'll let you know in the next day or so how it turns out!

Till then...


*disclaimer for the stumbleupon site....I cannot be held legally responsible in any way whatsoever if your discovery of this website leads to days and days of endless intenet browsing. (Hint: try setting your kitchen timer for 15 minutes, it worked for me...maybe there's even a StumbleUpon Anonymous group...hmmmm...)

Anything is Possible!

Anything IS possible...how appropriate for the Easter season! Here is my completed Chapter 2 project for Kelly Rae Robert's book. My plans were to put a flower in the middle of this piece, but spirit took over and spoke boldly...


This was created on an old book cover (5" x 8") using acrylic paints, a variety of objects for texturing, and polymer clay (the central figure was imprinted with a hand carved linoleum block; letters were stamped with a metal alphabet set). Fun to Make!

I needed the reminder that miracles DO happen!

live each day with arms wide open,
being true to yourself,
knowing that anything really is possible.

Facing Your Fears - Polymer Clay Project

I'm now reading Chapter Two of Taking Flight which is titled Facing Your Fears. The creative project from this chapter involves polymer clay, paints, texturing and embellishments. The goal for completion is March 9th! At the end of this post, I'll add my first photo from this project!

In addition to the cool projects and techniques that I'm learning from this book, I love all of the quotes! Here are three of my favorites from this chapter...

Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate. Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure. It is our light, not our darkness that most frightens us. We ask ourselves, "Who am I to be brilliant, gorgeous, talented, fabulous?" Actually, who are you not to be?...And as we let our light shine, we unconsciously give other people permission to do the same.
Marianne Williamson

When you follow your bliss...doors will open where you would not have thought there would be doors, and where there wouldn't be a door for anyone else.
Joseph Campbell

Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things you didn't do than by the ones you did do.
Mark Twain

This chapter focuses on our creative fears - identifying them, and hopefully, learning to release them. Kelly Rae Roberts lists these as some of her creative fears...(I can definitely relate to them!)

Who do I think I am?
What if my work isn't good enough?
What if I'm not talented enough?
What if I can't make a living doing something I love?

The timing is perfect for this chapter. I teach during the school year, and my paychecks stop at the end of May. I will definitely need some type of summer income this year. Right now, I'm trying to decide if I should be looking for a summer job or if I should be putting my energy into my art (which I hope will eventually generate some income). My fearful side says, "You better find a real job....you could never earn enough from your art." But my hopeful side feels differently and knows that more than anything, I love to create things. The hopeful me knows that it makes perfect sense to create art and earn money from doing what I love. With this being the first day of Lent, I think I'll dedicate this time to focus on the hope aspect of my creative dreams. Sounds like a plan...focus on the hope!

So here's the beginning of another canvas...who knows what it may lead to.....



Until next time....

Watch Me Fly!

Mission accomplished! Yesterday, I put the final touches on my Whispers Art Journal. I bought some gold chain, red and orange beads, and some gold letter beads to spell out "Watch Me Fly" - it seems like an appropriate title for my first Taking Flight project.

Last night Nikki and I got together for our Monday Night Art Night and had a show and tell with our first completed project! We're both very happy with the way our journals turned out, and even better...we were both happy with the process! Both of us veered a bit from the original instructions of Kelly Rae's book, but we know that part of the point was to make these "our own."

Instead of ribbon and fabric letters, I went with the chain and beads to hold my book together (I realized that ribbons just aren't my thing, and I wanted to include beads somewhere!). And on the inside, I put several recycled map envelopes which will, over time, hold some "treasures" from this part of my creative journey. I also used acrylic paints for the cover portrait instead of the Shiva Oil Paint Sticks which the author suggested using (I didn't have the paint sticks yet, and didn't feel like waiting for them! But I have them now, so stay tuned!). I noticed that the acrylic paints made the portrait "stand out" more than the muted oil paint portrait example in the book. This seemed very appropriate, because this part of my creative journey is all about me "getting out there" instead of hiding my gifts and talents.

Nikki's journal had her own unique twists on it as well. Instead of a human face on the cover, she drew a clock face (clever, clever!). And she decided to leave out the inside pages completely, which makes the journal look more like a piece of art to display. We are both so proud of ourselves for completing the first project! Maybe you heard us celebrating and yelling, "Yea! Us!!"

PS...(Check out Nikki's final project on her blog - One Faithful Step)

Whispers Cover...Again

After many, many, many, many changes, I have finally finished the inside front cover of the Whispers Art Journal...



I spent way too much time working on this today because I made so many changes. I won't say it was wasted time, because I learned a lot of things that I'll be able to apply to future projects.

Well, it is now late in the evening, and I've had enough creating for the day! May your creating bring you satisfaction, too (and hopefully, quicker that mine did)!!

More Whispers Journal

I knew that I would be doing more to this porject...
and I don't think I'm done yet!



There are some parts I like about the page
-the look of the "stepping stones" that go around the page
-the parts of a Rumi poem that I wrote in the center
(excerpts from "How Long Will You Hide")
-the lines that surround each "stone"
-the words that I wrote along the edges
(inspiration, energy, time, space, support, encouragement, focus, trust,
open mind and last but not least...you are already an artist)
-the words written in the "stones" at the top and bottom of the page
(ha ha ha! written in stone!)

And there are some parts I'm not too thrilled about
(which may "magically" disappear in a future posting of this project!)
-the "zebra stripes" in the bottom right had corner
-the dashed lines along the two edges
-the placement of the words that are written along the edges
(I think they'll be ending up somewhere else on the page)
-the pen color that I chose for the Rumi poetry excerpts

It helps to get those thoughts out of my head and on to the paper (so to speak). At first I thought about making some changes and then posting the photo. But I really like documenting the process of this project. It will be fun to look back at the evolution of this project once it's completely finished!

(and speaking of "finished"....I was planning to finish this whole thing by Monday night! Yikes!! It's already Friday night! I'm so glad it's the weekend!)

To end this post, I'll copy the entire Rumi poem for you here...
Enjoy it!


How Long Will You Hide
by Rumi

How long will you hide
your beautiful
festive smile

teach your laughter
to a flower
manifest an eternity

why do you think
the door to the sky
is closed on your face

it allures and invites
your magical touch
to open and arrive

an entire caravan
is waiting in ecstasy
for your coming and leading

come on my friend
use your talisman and
harness all their souls

today is the day to unite
with your longing beloved
wait no more
for an unknown tomorrow

a tambourine is in a corner
begging your playing hands
a flute is sitting dormant
begging your happy lips


Till next time...

Whispers Art Journal...Almost Done!

Lots of growing and learning going on here lately! I'm making steady progress on my Taking Flight project, and I've learned how to crop the images that I've scanned so I can post the pictures here!

My friend Nikki and I have decided that we'll finish our Whispers Art Journals by next Monday, and then we can start on the next project from Taking Flight. Chapter 2 is titled "Facing Your Fears," and the project involves working with polymer clay and adding texture with household items....sounds like fun!!

Well, You've already seen the front cover of my first Taking Flight project. It's from Chapter 1...Unearthing Buried Dreams! (but now the cover is in the new "scanner" version. Much easier than taking a photo!)



Here's the inside of the front cover that I worked on Sunday...



Last night I worked on the inside back cover...
(It was Monday Art Night at Nikki's!)



And here's the back cover of my Whispers Art Journal...



I don't think I'm completely finished with these covers yet...I'll keep you up to date with my progress. Till then....

Taking Flight...Continued

Well, well, well! I am pleasantly surprised at the finished product! I'll share the photos with you for now, but I'll have to come back tomorrow to tell you about the process. I got myself in such a "creative groove" tonight, that it is now way past my bedtime, and I do have a day job that I must be at in the morning (cheerful and awake would be a plus, too!)

So, enjoy the photos for now. Thank you to my friend who encouraged me to do this project!! Can't wait to see yours!! :)

Now I want to get my hair cut!!









Good Night!
See you soon!

Taking Flight!

Hello Creative Friends!

Last October, my friend Nikki gave me the book Taking Flight by Kelly Rae Roberts. She also bought a copy for herself, and we decided to do the projects in the book together (that way we could encourage and motivate each other as we go through the book!). Since it's now February, we decided that it would be a good time to get started (better late than never!!).

So last night, Nikki and I got together to start working on the first project, a "Whispers Art Journal". It involves a bit of painting on fabric, some collage on old book covers, with some painting and drawing. Between the two of us, we have all of the supplies we need to finish this first project!! We're off to a good start!

Both of us were happy with the collage on our book covers...but there's still painting and drawing to do. I'll be taking photos of my project along the way to document the process (and, as I told Nikki, in case I liked the cover better before I add the paint to it!). So here's where my Whispers Art Journal is right now...



Obviously, I'm in some sort of "word phase" of my creative life right now - I wonder what that will be leading me to! Nikki and I are planning to get together on Monday nights to work on these, so I'll keep you up to date on our progress! Let me know if you've completed any of the projects from Taking Flight. I'd love to see your finished pieces!!

Happy Creating! See you next time!