Funky Flowers

I am having a total blast meeting new friends, being artsy and enjoying life!  Of course, all that is in between caring for Nana, paying the bills, chores and all the other junk that life throws at me.  

 

The Brave Girl Art School is my latest course I'm taking and holy moly, I am LOVING it!  Melody Ross, Kathy Wilkins and all the Brave Girls in the group show so much unconditional love and real honest, down to earth smiles.  Smitten, I am!

Right now we are learning about Funky Flowers.  Here's my first take on it.  Believe me, this won't be my last.  In fact, I've already started on my next one.  I'm completely and utterly hooked!

 

 

Hope you are inpsired a bit by my Funky Flowers and are able to find

little snippets of time to be artsy!

  

my world

having fun with mixed media

"Edit out those people who instill fear, doubt or negative thinking into your world."

-Deb Walsh

Embrace Vulnerability

Hey there and thanks for visiting!  Today I wanted to share the journal I created that was inspired by Kelly Rae Roberts and my friend Kelly.  This is our first month and the first chapter of the Taking Flight book.  I had a blast!  I have to giggle because I did it all wrong but I so had fun with the process and will be sure to create more of the Kelly² inspired girls. 

 

For my journal I filled it with vintage ephemera for art journaling.  It'll be really fun playing and learning more about myself along the way. 



quiet the inner critic

listen to the whispers

embrace vulnerability

manifest courage

begin today

I had a diary as a child but stopped when I lost the key.  Now, I find myself spilling my hearts desires onto pages, bringing to life the secrets deep within my soul and painting them on a page.  More often than the "AHHHHH HA!" moments are my random thoughts that make no sense at all...those fill my journals and help me to grow.  Do you keep a journal of some sort? 

Journal prompt from Taking Flight this month that spoke to me most is "What inspires you most?"  Enjoy your thoughts and let your creative soul breathe!

Friendship, Whispers and Colors

Hey you!  Thanks for popping in.

Check out this AMAZING organizer I bought this week for $20...yes....20 worth of happiness!  It holds all my acrylic paints, twinkling H2o's, Gelatos, oil pastels, Neocolor Crayons, Liquitex Fluids, Bombay paints, Glimmer Mists and baby wipes.  There are a couple other trays that hold random paints and colors.  But it's chock full of COLORS!  Each tray spins on it's own.  The downside of this organizer is that my index fingers and thumbs are wicked sore because of all the nuts and bolts that hold this contraption together.  It is so worth it!  :)

I've got so many books that I just "had to have" and they sit on my nightstand.  I really do have good intentions of reading them but before I know it...I'm off to dreamland.  Taking Flight by Kelly Rae Roberts is one of those books but my dear friend Kelly and I are going to help each other listen to the  whispers of our heARTs as we read the journal prompts and encourage each other along this journey.  I'm really looking forward to diving into this project with her. 

My desk is clean, paint tray completely clean, book is ready to go and I've got the afternoon off!  Time to let my creative soul listen to the whispers today.  Hopefully, you are able to find some time and play this weekend as well.  Enjoy!

Focus

Hi and thanks for popping in to say hello.   I have not been here nearly as much as I want but my days just seem to all blend into each other lately. 

Many of you know, each day I go to my visit my Nana and keep her company for the day.  Yesterday was really difficult for all of us because it was Grandpa's Birthday.  He would have been 94.  It feels like he's been gone forever but it's only really been 4 months.  There have been so many times I've needed him.  So many times I've wanted to curl up close to him and ask him life's most difficult questions.  Now, I find myself with Nana each day, asking her those questions.  The days that are most difficult, matter the most.  Those are the days hearts are poured out.  I've learned so much from my grandparents over the years.  I hope I am able to continue to learn from Nana for many more years to come. 

I won't say it's easy to leave my studio each day, leave my beautiful vintage fabrics, paints, sewing machine and pretty papers and say goodbye to them for yet another day.  I feel as though life is guiding me on a different path right now.  I am still able to find bits and pieces of my nights to work in my studio but emotionally, I am often drained of all creativity and I find it difficult at best to just get myself home, make dinner and flop into bed. 

I am still journaling here and there and dreaming of my etsy shop.  I did finally decide on my word for 2012...FOCUS.  I so need to focus more.  Right now, I need to focus on the relationship I have with my Nana each day.  I need to focus on her and be in our precious moments to listen and really hear all the stories.  The stories of my Great-Grandmother making apricot jelly and how nobody liked it.  And I need to hear the story of how my Great-Grandpa would take Nana on the train to Philly and how he would let her hold his pocketwatch while the train moved along the tracks.  Focus.....

My sewing machine, my vintage fabrics, paint and papers will all be there when I can focus more time on them.  They aren't going anywhere. 

My days with Nana....she is drifting deeper and deeper into her dementia and she is my focus and I LOVE my focus. 

Do you have a special focus for 2012...or maybe even a focus for today?  I'd love to hear your focus!

Wandering Vagabond

I belong to a wonderful group of art journalists who inspire, encourage, laugh and are simply amazing women!  Last week one of the prompts was "What are 5 places you'd like to visit? 5 places you've visited and would like to go back to". 

Well of course I thought about my Life Book and how one section is about places I would like to visit.  So here is my page I came up with. 

I think I've found I like more white space on my journal pages but they don't really photograph very well.  Have you found any great sites to learn about photographing your photos for your blog? 

Hope you are enjoying your day and my creative soul is so ready for 2012, is yours?



Over the Top

Okay, so I'll say right now this project is way over the top and something that is WAY out of my usual but I have to admit, I had fun doing it.  I'll also admit that I'm scared of posting this but you know....this is my blog and I have to come to the realization that people will enjoy some of my creations but not all.  I must be a Brave Girl. 
I stumbled across an artist that just rocks my creative juices.  You know the kind of creativity that begins down deep in your soul and you have a hard time sleeping because of the excitement that is resinating inside of you to create?  Yeah, well....Teesha Moore does that to me.  I watched her videos which she graciously has up on YouTube for all of us to watch and be inspired. 

Melody Ross says we should not worry so much about what our art looks like at the end but the meaning behind it and this page sure has some guts to it. 

Pushing PUBLISH now.  Do you ever hesitate about pushing that button?  If so, how do you get beyond that feeling?  Looking forward to hearing from your creative soul on this subject!    

Breathings

of your heart...

Today I thought I might share some of my art journal pages.  This is my first art journal so it's rather scary sharing them but it's all good because some I like and others I don't like so much but I learned from them and that's what counts. 

Daisies are such a simple, sweet, and innocent looking flower.  They really  make me happy.  I need to practice drawing, painting, paper peicing and molding mine into my own creations.  Here's some made with pieces of book paper.  The glare makes this difficult to see but this page is so shiny because of all the strips of paper and Mod Podge for the background.  It was fun and a bit messy. 

Another page....I don't like this one so much.  Oh well, live and learn.  :)

This page was completely an inspiration from Donna Downey's Inspriation Wednesday this week.

 
Enjoy!

Happy Sunday!

Over the last week or so I have been working on making a fabric journal for myself using some of the vintage linens I've purchased recently. Until I actually create on a page I'm not certain I am in love with the journal but I think it'll work.

It's kind of got that tattered unfinished look that I love.  I'll be sure to post my first entry in the next couple days.  I have many thoughts brewing in my lil' o brain. 

Today I read these words: "art is about pushing the boundaries and making a statement."  I found it off Grove's website.  Not sure if it's Grove's or Donna's Statement but I really love it and it makes me feel happy to read it.

My SheArt2 class is in it's second week with 1 week to go.  Gosh, I have been trying so hard to work on my girl's faces but they just don't quite have the look I'm going for.  Today, I did play with some plaster and made the girl's hair 3-D and also added some glitter.  She's cute but I still would rather no face.  The hair and glitter rock...I just wish you could see it better.  I'm hoping soon I'll actually have a face for you. 

Hope you had a great weekend, enjoyed the weather and found some creative juices along the way.  Enjoy your week!

Happy Friday!

Okay, so some really fun things have been going on in my life over the last couple days.  I have connected with some new friends over at A Lil Scrap of Heaven.  They are all quite amazing women and oh so very creative!  We get together enjoy each other's company and show off all our creations.  It is sooooo much fun!

Oh and don't you wish your work desk looked like this right now?  I'm a very lucky girl!

Did you know yesterday was Pandemonium Day?  So I received an amazing gift!  Matt bought me an art class with one of my favorite artist!  I have been following and admiring Christy Tomlinson for quite some time.  Even when I wasn't into my passion of paper, I still followed her a bit.  Since opening my paper, ribbons and buttons again, I am completely and totally in awe of this woman.  She has a few classes that she offers on line and I'm taking one!  I am so excited and can't wait to be inspired even moreso.  I'm really not sure it's possible but I'm thinking it's gonna happen.  Here are a couple art journal pages I worked on today which were completely copies for Christy's tutorials but with my own unique twists.

 

Hope I was able to inspire your creative soul a bit today.  If I didn't, I'm pretty sure Christy will!  Her studio is one of the most amazing I've seen so you should really check it out.  

She did a great video for us  :)