Ancient Teachings

I finished another collage using paper back books over the weekend, like the one I posted previously:  By The Book

Except this time, I included these “other materials”:  a postage stamp, text, images from an old book on Botany, image of a man from a hardback book cover on yoga for women, hand stitching, gauze-like material from the binding of a hardback book and some of my own Gelli-plate prints!

I found this mosaic format a fun challenge.  I tried to balance color, texture, line and shape without making it too busy.  I also tried to create a story with a little mystery.

This style is a bit of a stretch for me… but I’m enjoying the process!

I’d love to hear what you think!

Cheers! 🙂

Petal Punch

I discovered this super FANTASTIC flower punch at Hobby Lobby before my hip surgery:

 

I love that I can use both the positive and negative of each petal punch!

Below are some examples of handmade cards I recently made using this punch:

 

Do you have a favorite?  I hope you share it with me!

Cheers! 🙂

I Spy… Collage!

As many of you know, I LOVE taking online art classes!!

When Carla Sonheim announced her year-long class for 2019 would be Collage, I had to sign up! 🙂  You can find out more about it at CarlaSonheim.com or CarlaSonheim.wordpress.com

I introduced myself on the private Facebook group by cutting out letters to my name from a color copy of this collage I showed you here:  And That’s How…  I really enjoy the wonderful community of artists who take Carla’s online classes.

Carla will be teaching along with two other fabulous artists:  Lynn Whipple and Anne Marie Grgich.  Class starts today!  Hoorah!

Below is a collage I created with paper scraps in my art journal:

I spy…

A bird,

A dictionary word,

Two pages from a shorthand book,

And some fish lure hooks,

A child wearing a blue coat,

And three scraps of music notes,

There is more to find, like #441,

Collage is fun for everyone!

Can you find all these items in my collage?

I hope you will consider joining me in this FUN online class!

Cheers! 🙂

Year Of The Pig…

A little birdy told me that 2019 is the year of the pig.  The Chinese New Year starts on February 5th but I decided to start celebrating a bit earlier…

Have you ever eaten a pig in a blanket?  Small sausages wrapped in dough and baked.

Today’s weird bird is about a bird bundled in a (pig) blanket:

This bird is resting on a branch after “pigging out” over the holidays! (I can so relate…) Lol! 🙂

Before Weird Bird Wednesday started, I was creating weird birds, such as The Pigsney Birds from 2015.

A little whimsy and word play to give you a smile and brighten your day!

Cheers! 🙂

Gelli-Plate Prints

Many of you know how much I LOVE to print with my Gelli-Plate!

When Carla Sonheim announced that she was going to teach a NEW online class on How to use more of your Gelli-Plate, I immediately signed up!  🙂

The class starts today, so if you want to learn more about it, check out her online class at CarlaSonheim.com

I’d been wanting to purchase the larger 9 x 12 inch size Gelli-Plate so I splurged when Dick Blick Art Supplies was having a recent sale.

I decided to do a test drive (so to speak) of my new Gelli-Plate so I made these prints using Golden fluid acrylic paints, stencils, leaves and household items:

I have A LOT more prints but these were a few of my favorites.

Which one do you like best?

Cheers! 🙂

What The?!

Bleep!!

A short blip to wish you…

Happy Weird Bird Wednesday!!

Cheers! 🙂

Pattern Play

One of my favorite black papers for drawing is this Strathmore Artagain paper:

It is super fun to draw on with Prismacolor pencils…

Faces and imaginary hats were my inspiration yesterday evening:

And pattern play with color!

Cheers! 🙂

Two Hands

I experimented yesterday with tracing both hands with a black Micron pen:

My right hand on top of my left hand… Then adding watercolor to both:

I used watercolor paper by Daler Rowney, Langton Prestige in rough grain for my above experiment.  I love how a pinch of salt into the wet paint gives a nice texture.

I also experimented on Arches, 140 lb hot press watercolor paper with a different paint color palette:

The smooth texture doesn’t react to the salt or the watercolor in the same way as the rough grain:

Yet, it gives my two hands a different dimension.  I plan to doodle on this one as it is much easier to draw on with ink.

I like the first painting for its simplicity and the second one for its complexity of layers.  How about you?

Cheers! 🙂

X, Y, Z And…

I made it through the alphabet for my art journal!  WHOOT!

And I completed 31 days of watercolor in July for World Watercolor Month!!

I thought you might enjoy seeing my finished alphabet pages…

An X-ray Tetra Fish for “X”:

“Y” is for Yellow:

“Z” for Zentangled zoodles… Which are zucchini noodles!

I still want to add paper collage and a few extra details to complete these pages… so stay tuned! 🙂

And I completed 5 additional watercolor pages to finish my 31 days – I will post them later this week…

I am happy to be done so I can focus on some other art projects.  Yet, I had so much fun!

I enjoyed my extra time at the lake last week... I think my highlights were swimming in the lake – three times a day, reading a super good book, painting outside daily, making paper butterflies with a friend, daily naps and cool evenings.

Wishing you a happy day doing what you love!

Cheers! 🙂

Watermelon Birds?!

Nothing beats the heat like a slice of watermelon…

These weird birds made their “appearance” for the letter, “W”:

They are wacky Watermelon birds!

I used watermelon images from my Bon Appétit magazine and painted their beaks with watercolor. A few details were added with a pencil, black micron pen and white gel pen.

Carla Sonheim is offering FREE art videos for Kid’s Art Camp this week.  Each day is a short video.  I always enjoy participating and seeing what others create.  Any age can sign up.  I encourage you to check it out at CarlaSonheim.com

These “wild” birds were from lesson one:

I hope you join in the fun… and be sure to have a slice of watermelon!

Happy Weird Bird Wednesday!

Cheers!