Paddle Boarding with Lisa Guerin

When I visited with Lisa Guerin today and saw one of her recent art pieces, I was reminded how much I love her art. It's like I've loved it for a thousand years. So tender. So beautiful. So perfect.

Just like Lisa herself. My longtime friend who I adore and have worked with, cried with, laughed with, and grown with.

Today, Lisa took me out to give me my first paddle boarding lesson. She was an awesome teacher ... tender, patient, and supportive ... and so inspiring with her ability to balance amazing poses on the board with her core strength.
It was one of the most challenging activities I've done in a long time. In fact, there was a point when the wind and speed of the board took me out much farther than I had intended and I got a little scared. Then I felt the adrenaline kick in, as well as some basic insticts and core strength of my own, along with Lisa's gentle presence at the shore that brought me back. Safe and sound.

When I reached the shore, it felt like I had conquered a new world. So much fun.

Life's curve balls are what Lisa's been catching like a champ for a while and I'm so thrilled to see her landing in a good place. Safe and sound. Lots more paddle boarding will be had with Lisa as weather permits ... I can't wait. And she will be working on a class to offer in Studio CRESCENDOh. Will it be shrink art? Paper dolls? Assemblages? Paper art? Whatever it is, it will be lovely, tender, and beautiful. Just like her.

Who I Am

Last month when I was painting with my painting cohort in The Painting Studio, we decided that we would ponder the question of "Who Am I?" in terms of our art, and to share our thoughts on that at the end of the day. I'm not sure what I actually shared that day but after this past weekend of art-making with Lynn Whipple, I have rediscovered the answer that has been there for me all along. I am a minimalist.

God ... it feels good to say it. I'll say it again. I am a minimalist. Simple. Clean. Poetic. Deliberate. And certainly not to be confused with simplistic. In my quest to explore different styles I've been struggling ... trying to find a good answer to the question of who I am. I want to cultivate other facets of my art but I know I feel the need to celebrate the core of who I am, and the art that wants to come out of me through this minimalist aesthetic.

And you know what? The answer to who I am is also that I am a lover of fibers. And in realizing these powerful truths, I've started some pieces that I'm genuinely elated about ... because I feel they exude who I am. And I feel that if I stand with them, those who "get it" will find me. And that's really exciting.

These pieces are almost done. I can feel it.

And thank goodness. Because I feel I have a path to continue on as I prepare for an art show with The Painting Studio artists. It will happen on Saturday night, October 6, 2012, which is the first Saturday of the month, which means it's the art walk open house where the entire artist village in Santa Ana comes to life. The participating artists will be showing and having for sale, our original works on canvas. It'll be a beautiful night. All dressed up. Beautiful works of art. Twinkle lights. Family. Friends old and new. Music. Wine. And a celebration of who we are ... from minimal to maximal, and everywhere in between.

Thanks for all the break-throughs and discoveries, Lynn.  

Hearts Wrapped with Thread on Spools Tutorial

Check out my latest sweet little creation.

I love this project because it finally allows my stash of vintage spools of thread to be put to good use.

Unwind a bit of the thread from a spool, cut a small heart out of batting or felt, place the heart onto the spool and wrap the thread around the heart and spool several times.

Place the end of the thread onto a needle and then poke the needle through the thread on the spool to achor it in place.
Thread a piece of craft wire through a vintage button, twist it and then make one end into a little tangle so that it can stay at the bottom of the spool nice and snug so that the button at the top can stand in place.

They look great in multiples like this ...

Stacked like this ...

Or singularly like this.

Happy crafting. :)

Tracing Wheel & Typing on Fabric Tutorial

You may remember my showing you here, how to use a tracing wheel to make paper tape. So recently, I took the tracing wheel to make marks with acrylic paint on pieces of drill fabric.

Once the lines were dry, I fed the fabric into my typewriter to type lyrics from one of my favorite songs from my favorite musical. I love the faintly, ghostly look of the text.

I cleaned off the black acrylic from the tracing wheel but not completely. It still had some black on it. I rolled it in some red acrylic, and marked the journal pages to create reddish/blackish dotted lines.

I used Washi tape and quilter's 1/4-inch masking tape to adhere.

Art Journal with Typed Newsprint Strips Tutorial

Type newsprint paper with periods and the little degree circle sign ...

Tear into strips ...

Adhere to your journal page.

Teaspoon Art Doll Tutorial

Check out these teaspoon art dolls that I made.

I had gotten the doll heads during my trip to The Farm Chicks event earlier this year from a vendor who was selling so many cool things. And these spoons are something I picked up at the Irvine Valley College flea market that I recently attended with Sarah.
I used E-6000 to adhere the doll head to the main part of the spoon.
I wrapped pieces of ledger paper onto the spoon's handle then wrapped it with string.

I used black perle cotton, red crochet thread, and white string. To make the bow, I tied a piece of drill fabric witn perle cotton and tied it to the spoon.

I'm so happy with these girls. So simple. So stunning.

Exploring Watercolors with Easy Strokes & Lettering

I've been painting small panels with watercolors and falling in love with how the shades look. Just simple strokes. Nothing special but spectactular in their simplicity.

Check out how beautiful the strokes look on vintage ledger paper. So pretty, don't you think?



And then in my small journal ... easy strokes of watercolors followed by lettering with my oblique pen.

Happy watercolors. :)

Crocheted Rock Stamping Tutorial

I've been playing around with my crocheted rocks.

Turns out that they can be inked and stamped to make the coolest little marks.

Perfect for adding special effects to journals and such.

Happy creating. :)

Button on Pencil Stamping Tutorial

Cute as a button, right?

Adhere a button onto the eraser of a pencil with just a bit of E-6000. (Make sure you wipe off any excess that oozes out of the two holes of the button.)

Ink the button and stamp.

Easy peasy.

Happy crafting. :)

Everyday Extraordinary :: Rachel's Stamps

.: Everyday Extraordinary :.

They're here ... finally here ... the stamps I've been waiting for not just these past weeks, but for the past several years ... stamps that I imagined could exist ... finally have become. So beautiful, so romantic, so Rachel.

For my note of thanks, I collaged a piece of ledger paper onto a piece of sheet music and then added a wash of gesso and let it dry. I stamped that with an image from Rachel's Romantic Botanicals collection and then added a simple note at the bottom with my favorite pen.

Understated elegance.
Thank you, Rachel.