One Hundred and Seven

Yesterday at around 2:30pm MY MAN and I went to run some errands. We must have had been brain fried already to go out in the heat. But when the thermostat in the car registered 107 degrees and the temperature gauge was closer to the HOT, I really knew we were brain fried.

Coming back home it felt like the house ac was really pushing hard. I am grateful for it at all- a home and some ac. There are many that don't have either.

Here is a second accordion book I finished yesterday. These are a lot of fun and so inexpensive to make. I think they would make cool, little gifts.

Too Darn Hot

I am getting to play today as I have a day off. I threw some color down on strips of cardstock and rather than wasting the paint, I did some pages in my art journal and index cards. I like the effect-

kind of like batik.

Feeling Sentimental

I have been feeling rather sentimental lately- call it hormonal, menopausal. Call it a check-in moment, a look at where one is in one's life. Call it a life-is-too-short-moment- so you really want to be doing what you want to be doing as much as you possibly can... call it really missing being somewhere where you feel the urge to go, where you feel some place is calling you. Call it a connection between people, between families, between the lines on a map and your front porch and the ocean.

My maternal great grandparents built a summer home on the coast of Oregon. I was raised in New York State but my parents were from Oregon and so my memories of summer growing up were traveling by car in the Country Squire station wagon (and later a VW microbus) all the way across the country to Oregon, where we visited relative in Portland and this summer home in Yachats.

In 2006 I cleared money from a savings account and took my children and I to Oregon to see family I had not seen in 40 or more years. The summer house was as I had remembered as a child. It was eery yet familiar.

This summer I am in the midst of redesigning, recreating, rearranging spaces, both emotional and physical. I want to clean out, clean up the garage, make some changes in the rooms in the house now that chldren are mostly gone, and do some other things that will allow me to continue with this burst of creative energy. Which leads me to wanting to share this with you.
My great grandfather was a self taught artist. He painted in oil but I think also made jewelry from rocks found on the beach. I have had in my posession some of those paintings of the Oregon coast which are soon to be finding a home on one of my walls.

There is a little building, a little shed in front of the house where I believe my grandfather used to paint. I don't recall whether I was given his paintings before or after my trip but, looking at them now I can imagine him being in that shed, amidst the smell of lindseed oil and the ocean. Literally, one could walk from the shed across the highway,follow the path bursting with blueberries and you are standing in front of the Pacific Ocean. Feeling very small.

The little house remains in the family, protected, cared for by my cousins. Five years ago next month I was there amidst the laughter of people connected to me.

I hope it will not be too long before I am able to return. It holds a special place in my heart.

I feel it calling me.

I Threw Some Color Down.

My studio looks like a cyclone hit it again. I am amazed that my artist child can be this messy.

I worked on some collaging in The Sketchbook Project journal. The deadline for completion is not until January 2012 but time does have a way of sneaking up or flying by, depending on how you look at it.

I threw some color down on some blank pages and collaged some borders in a bigger art journal.

And I worked on some more pages for a new accordian book.

I hope your weekend was creative as well.

Stitches

About fifteen years ago I bought an old Singer sewing machine from a coworker who was getting a new one. I think I paid less than $50.oo for it. It came with all these little boxes containing all kinds of gadgets, much of what I had no idea what to do with. I think I thought I was going to one day teach myself to sew more than the jumper I last made in "Home Ec" class back in junior high school. It was almost as much of a disaster as my only two knitted sweaters I attempted to make a few yrs later. Anyway, I don't recall doing too much more with it except hemming a few pairs of pants for me or my children through the years. But it went with me all through all the moves I made, finally landing in the garage when I bought my first(and only) house.

A few weeks ago I went in search of it in the garage, dusted it off and lugged it, and I mean lugged it, upstairs. Tonight I reviewed how to thread it, wind the bobbin and played around with stitching.

I attempted first to sew two pieces of collaged paper together and I guess the tension was such that I tore the paper - almost perforated it perfectly. I then tried a light weight index card which was ok. I wanted black thread but didn't have any black thread- or not enough so I used dark blue-probably denim blue which is why I believe I really did hem some jeans or pockets over the yrs.

My friend Robin over at Pink House Studio sent me something through the mail a few months ago. The mailing envelope was so beautifully stitched with all these cool swirls and designs.

Anyway, my mini sewing session was fun. I didn't throw any temper tantrums. I didn't get frustrated with myself. It was quite fun. I then proceeded to show MY MAN my experiment. Ooops. My bad!! Not a good move as he then announced he had a collar on a shirt that needed to be mended. Geeeeeeesh! Grrrrrrr......
I hope I can get my stitching to look as good as Robin's.

Works in progress

Been working on several things at once........ these are some collage works in early stages..on envelopes..... on wood.... on cheap thrift store finds..

Create Your Life

A finished page in my Sketchbook Project journal. I really don't know too much about working with watercolors, in fact, stayed away from even attempting them. I admire those that can do it. I just know I love color and am trying to be brave and take chances. I kind of like the results. What do you think?

Did You Know..........

lol... chuckle. chuckle. I know you always wanted to know.