Gelli Printing Newbie

My friend Kelley Walker over at One January Day loves her printing plate from Gelli Arts so much that she teaches classes. I couldn't take them cuz of tax season so last week when I was being super lazy, I mean, recovering, I watched a bunch of videos on their site and decided I absolutely had to have one. So yesterday I went to My Heart's Fancy and bought one. Here are some results.

 

The above were made using a stencil from Tattered Angels - the first one was with the stencil on top of the paint on the plate printed on a magazine page, the second was printed on a map after the stencil was pulled from the plate, and on the third one I brayered the painted stencil on top of another print (pink paint that had been stamped into).

But my favorites are what Kelley calls Messy Seconds (watch her video) and what Gelli Arts call Plan B.
love, love, love the grungy look
like doors with tons of layers of paint wearing off - but with subtle patterns in them

Naturally, there's a mess to clean up.  But everything fun is messy.

 

Not sure what I'll do with these little gems.  Art journal pages (ah yes, something else I haven't done in forever) or parts of a collage or maybe the handmade books we're making in art group.  

But I do know I'll be pulling this out again.  And again.

ps ~ it's good to be back

Squeezing in some Jewelry Time

It's been a crazy busy summer but I've managed to squeeze in a little jewelry making time.

Mostly it just resulted in what looked like an explosion on my workspace.

But I managed to try some new wire work (first picture) and to make some charm necklaces.

LOVE, LOVE, LOVE

the pinks & oranges in the piece I made for Mary.

Loved it so much that I'm working on some pieces for myself.

And the blues & greens of Carmen's necklace are some of my favorites ~

so calming & don't we all need some of that?

They remind me a little of my vacation.

Yes! We also squeezed in a small vacation ~

a visit to see our daughter in Denver.

It was not long enough ~ I need LOTS more Dani time.

Have you found time to make anything this busy crazy summer?

Arting with Friends

A year ago, my friend Ellen (above) and I took an encaustic class from Ellen Koment

in the Paseo Arts District here in Oklahoma City.  It was a long hot two days.

We learned a lot. 

And then, because we didn't use it right away, we forgot a LOT. 

So yesterday Ellen came over and we practiced, practiced, practiced.

And if you know either Ellen or me, you know we talked and talked and talked.

But that really helped us be loose in our experimentation.

(More on the experiments at the bottom of the post.)

Here's the only piece I made from scratch and finished.

Well, I'm not quite sure if it's done.  I think so but . . .

Makes me think of grapes for some reason

(maybe cuz I am ALWAYS hungry?  LOL)

The next piece is one I started in class and didn't like.

So when I first whipped up my batch of encaustics, I covered it in white.

And I still didn't like it!

So I scraped and dug and put green wax in the cuts, scraped some more, etc, etc, etc.

Still didn't like it!

So yesterday I pulled it out and covered it in black.

Then I scraped in a tree which I filled with gold.

A lot more scraping and torching and this came out.

I like it.  But it's nothing like what I usually do.

Which can be a very good thing some times.

Ellen and I had so much fun! 

By the end of the day, I think she was as in love with scraping as me. 

I'm telling you, it is soooooooooooo relaxing ~ even contemplative. 

And I'm pretty sure she'll be buying a kitchen torch soon. 

They are so much less intimidating than those big old tank things. 

And easier to control. 

My friend Roz loaned me her torch but I'm going to wait to use it til I do something BIG! 

You see, I am deathly afraid of fire and I burn myself all the time in the kitchen. 

Yeah, I'm a little confused as to why wax is my favorite medium. 

Talk about pushing yourself out of your comfort zone!

In my last post I mentioned I was working on 3 art group projects.

This year we're doing a round robin of boxes.  Very cool. 

When they're all done, I'll share pictures.

In addition, every month the hostess gives us a "challenge".  

I've got to admit, I am pretty lax about doing them.

But in May, Lynda gave each of us an unfinished curved wood cabinet door.

LOVED IT!

and I came up with this ~ After the Fire

Working on the curved surface was tricky. 

But again, something new can yield wonderful results.

Also in the last post I showed some works in process.

Here is one of them with a few more steps of wax collage & color.

Looking pretty different, huh? 

Well, I think it's about to change.

You see, while we were experimenting and talking yesterday, guess what happened?

I got distracted (surprise!  not) and ignored a piece

on the heat for a little longer than I should have.

And I loved the glass smooth finish it gave the wax

so I'm going to do it with this piece on purpose.

I have no idea how it will work becuz you just never

know what the wax will do when it gets hot. 

Okay, you know it will melt, but will it run, pool, slide completely off?

I'll let you know what comes next with this.

I love arting with friends.  New ideas just seem to form in the air.

And while most of the women in my art group do work entirely different than me,

I always come away so inspired.

I am so glad I revamped my studio so there's room for two or three to play.

There's even room for small class of four.

If you're in OKC, let me know. 

Maybe there's some arting in our future.

what I'm thankful for

I’m thankful for forgiveness, grace and mercy becuz I am in dire need of them all.

I pray that I will practice forgiveness, grace and mercy with others.

I'm thankful for my mistakes as they've made me who I am and I like who I am now.

I pray that others will learn to forgive themselves, live without regret, and, most of all, like themselves!

I’m thankful that I live in this time, in this country where women have the same freedoms as men to vote, to speak, to pursue their dreams.

I pray that this will continue here and that all people everywhere will be free from oppression & repression.

I’m thankful for the constitution that guarantees my right to practice my religion.  Or not.   Where I am guaranteed the right to speak my mind, to protest my government, to assemble.

I pray that we will remember the price paid for those freedoms and value them accordingly, that all people everywhere will have these same freedoms.

I’m thankful for my parents, Uni & Bill Ball, who not only taught me the rules but taught me to love without condition, to think for myself, to value the thoughts of others, to have compassion for those less fortunate, to appreciate the differences – not to mock them.

I pray that I might be a loving parent, spouse and friend as modeled by them; that I will value what makes people different from me and not try to force them into a mold.

I’m thankful for my husband, Patrick Schoenfeldt, who loves me, not inspite of all my weirdness but becuz of it, who tells me I’m beautiful so often that I believe him, who knows my dreams and works toward them with me, who inspires me to be loving, who understands that domesticity is not as important as passion.  (If you want to know more you can read the blog posts about how he saved our marriage here)

I pray that I will love him as well as he loves me and that he will always be here with me.

I’m thankful for my children, Nathan Opdyke and Dani Turner, who give me so much joy, who actually like to spend time with me, who are affectionate and smart and kind and good friends to their friends; that I can see myself in them yet see how different they are from me and from each other (tho this took me some time to see).

I pray that they can learn from my mistakes, that they will know the love I’ve known, that they will have all they need and then some, that they KNOW they are loved beyond measure.

I’m thankful for my home that is a haven from the craziness of the world, that’s cooler than the summers and warmer than the winters, that is often filled with family & friends, fun & laughter.

I pray that people everywhere will have a safe haven, a place to weather storms; that they can too be surrounded by those they love.

I’m thankful for art – both in the big sense of the word and that I am pulled to do it; that I now have time & space to do it; that it’s brought me in contact with other creative people who contribute so much to my life on so many levels.

I pray that I will never cease to have new creative ideas and the time to try them.  And that people will “get” it and be willing to pay for it.  J

I’m thankful for work for both Patrick and myself; that Patrick loves architecture & gets to practice it at a firm that actually has work; that I’m good at accounting & that in these tough times I am able to pick-n-choose between assignments; that I don’t have to do it 60 hours a week any more (see the previous section).

I pray that we will always be able to do what we love and know that that is more valuable than money.

I’m thankful for friends, the ones in-person and the ones on-line who I’ve never met up close; for all they contribute to my life and my art; for the support they’ve given me and the times they’ve set me straight.

I pray that I will be a good friend, honest, loyal and giving.

I’m thankful for Facebook & Blogger where I’ve reconnected with old friends, met new art friends and been able to get to know two younger cousins.  I’m also thankful that I can hide, unfriend, block or ‘mark as spam’ those who only contribute negativity.

I pray that I will be a positive contribution to the online world and appreciate the differences in our great, vast world.

I’m thankful for my mind.

I pray that I use it well and it lasts as long as my body – or longer.

I’m thankful for Diet Coke™, margaritas and dark chocolate (tho not margaritas with dark chocolate).

I pray that I can learn to exercise moderation.

I’m thankful for high heels.

nuff said  J

I hope you have a wonderful day with family, friends and food

filled with laughter and memories

and that your grattitude is known by all

2 New Blogs

Just wanted to share with you a couple of new blogs from my daughter and her friends.

TABLE FOR TWO

"more opinions than we know what to do with"

is a dining blog by my daughter, Dani, and one of her two besties, Katelyn.

(Katelyn is the one who took our wonderful anniversary photos as well as the photo I used in Dani's birthday art.)

I'm telling you, reading that blog is just like listening to them talk!!

Photo by Katelyn

BRITTANY RAEANN ART

is an art blog by my daughter's other bestie, Brittany

and her first post is about a piece she bought from me!!

These young women mean a lot to me - I've known them for so long, watching them grow from pre-teens to young adults discovering their own passions.  Well, one of them I've known for a lot longer - hehe.  Anyway, thanks for helping me support them in their cretive endeavors ~ Sherry

Blue

I've noticed lately that nobody's reading my blog . . .

could it be cuz nobody's posting to it?

hehe

I have been so neglectful lately of everything -

including the things that matter most to me

family

friends

art

I am so sorry for not posting or reading your blogs regularly -

in six weeks I should be back to normal.

Which we all know isn't all that normal  *WINK*

I made the piece above, BLUE, over a couple weeks

by dabbling a little every nite - and I mean a little.

Patrick dropped it off for

MONEY TALKS, ART WALKS

Maybe we'll see you there Saturday nite?

ps ~ since some have asked, I plan to get brave and post about the art I wrote about in my last post soon - how I did them, full size pictures, etc.  And, they did not get into the OKLAHOMA FRIENDLY show.  They had 785 pieces submitted and chose only 20%.  Guess that makes the rejection easier to handle. 

ART TIP OF THE DAY!!!!!

I know this isn't a new tip, but

PLAN AHEAD!!!

Remember to take the appropriate sized vehicle

when buying oversized art supplies 

OR 

have a great sense of humor 

or both!!!!

See the PT Cruiser in the garage?

Wouldn't it have worked so much better for this large canvas than the Audi TT?

In all fairness to myself & Patrick, we didn't KNOW we were gonna

buy a canvas when we headed out to spend our gift cards this morning.

ps - thanks Jessica for the new canvas!

heARTfelt gift idea

I'm sure you are all crazy busy right now so the last thing you need is another Christmas gift to make!  That's exactly how I felt when this idea popped into my head when I should have been sleeping Friday night.  I already had some gifts that HAVE to be finished THIS week (we're celebrating on the 19th at our house).

So what did I do Saturday morning?  I started three new gifts!  I was even diligent to take photos of the steps so you could see.  Unfortunately I messed up with renaming the files and my computer ate them so you only get to see the finished product and hear about the steps. 

The idea behind this is to give something very personal yet displayable (is that a word?); to share my thoughts and feelings with them in a way where neither of us would feel too exposed if others saw it; to give them art and feelings at once.

Those of you who do art journaling and collage might want to make these using your regular techniques but with the twist of a hidden personal note written just for that special person.  

Here's how I did it (again, sorry there are no pictures):

1. adhere book pages to heavy paper -- I used watercolor canvas because I didn't like the watercolor paper in my stash
2. do the masking tape technique
3. hand-write a personal note to your friend -- I used pencil but you could use a pen as long as it's not water-soluble
4. paint with white gesso -- this will cover a lot of the writing but not all
5. adhere assorted papers on top -- I really like to use tissue papers and hand-made papers for this step
6. your message should be pretty much obscured - if you want to be sure nothing too personal shows, scan it and look at it on your computer screen - it's amazing what shows there!!!
7. add paints as desired
8. if anything is water-soluble, hit it with a coat of clear matte spray paint
9. think of one word for them for the coming year - your wish or prayer for them - and add it to the collage either with calligraphy or your printer -- guess which one I did?
10. present to your loved one by telling them what you wrote

Anyway, after making these and destroying my schedule even further this week, I've decided that in the future these would be perfect for birthday gifts - sort of a blessing and prayer for the coming year.

I also realize some people might not feel artsy-fartsy enough to make them and am trying to figure out how to make them for others - perhaps they write the feelings down and I put that as the first layer on a collage and end with the word of their choosing.  Any ideas on that?

Okay.  Better go.  Still have those original gifts to finish in six days!

In the Mail Last Week

I received some great goodies in the mail last week and wanted to share them with you.  Please check out these two artists' blogs and leave them a comment - their generosity deserves a pat on the back!

From Liz-Anna in BC, I received these gorgeous handmade papers that I won in a giveaway.  After receiving them and reading all the work that goes into them on this post, I decided to order two cards from her Etsy store.

ingredients from left to right: Moose Poo, Swamp Grass & Recycled Paper, Cattail & Recycled Paper,
Stinging Nettle & Recycled Paper, Iris Leaf & Recycled Paper, Pure Corn Husk

Yes, your read that right - Moose Poo Paper.  It wasn't included in the original giveaway but I was so fascinated by the concept (read about it here) that she threw a piece in for me.  I cannot tell y'all how beautiful and richly textured these papers are.

I also received a hand-bound journal from Martha Lever in a swap.  Naturally, I have misplaced her note telling me what type of paper she used but it feels like it will be perfect for sketching & painting.  She stamped, spray painted and stitched the cover.

Aren't those ribbons & fabric strips adorable? However, as with most beautiful journals I have, I haven't been able to bring myself to mess up the pages yet!

In exchange for the journal I sent Martha one of my INSPIRING WORDS charm bracelets.  I had never done one quite so big & colorful before.  She was so sweet she made a little video of it here.  If you want to see more of the bracelets I make to order, they're here on my website.  I hope to write a post about the different charms that went on this bracelet soon.

Thank you again Liz Anna & Martha ~ Sherry

Beeswax & Encaustic Play Date

Today two of my friends came over so we could play with beeswax and encaustic. Lisa Bruno runs the stamp section at My Heart's Fancy and Roz Grage is a stamper and my BFF (yes, I'm in the 4th grade!!).

I usually collage the old-fashioned way, with lots of glue or gel medium, then add a layer of beeswax, sometimes with color, sometimes not.

This time NO GLUE.  Yikes!

We all started with a base coat of paint so we could dispel that blank-canvas-syndrome.  We followed this with some modeling paste applied thru stencils.

Then we ate lunch while the modeling paste dried.  I love this time of year with all the delicious fruit so lunch included a great fruit salad mainly made up of berries.  Lisa brought chocolate bundt cake with chocolate chips.  mmmmmmmmm.  (Later we discovered how delicious and how much more healthy it was to eat the cake with a pile of berries on top!!)

After lunch we applied a layer of beeswax with chip brushes and melted them in (and off in some cases) using our heat guns.

Next we added some sheer papers melted in with our irons.

Then the fun (and scary) part:  using only our irons, we added color with encaustics and crayons.

We had soooooooooo much fun.  Not much is better than friends talking, eating and making art together.

Here are the final products.
What do you think of our little experiments?
What do you suggest for names?

Thanks ~ Sherry

linked to the week 22 challenge at LOTS TO DO

Another Shortie

No new art to post. I'm beginning to think I won't have time in the studio until April 16th.

But I did want to share some news again:

A friend from high school bought KEY TO MY HEART as a wedding gift for her daughter and future son-in-law. I feel so honored! It's so exciting to sell something - and two pieces in a week - WOW!!! Now if I could keep doing that perhaps I could avoid next tax season!

I received the beads I won at Numinosity Beads. Boy does she ever do beautiful lampwork.

In my last post, I mentioned that my friend Ellen showed us lots of journal pages when our art group met last week. I didn't give a link cuz she hadn't been posting for awhile. Well, now she's posting photos of her work daily and her talent is growing. Please check her out at Completely Collaged.

Thanks again for stopping by ~ Sherry
OMG - just realized this is post number 75!!! I can't believe it!

A Quickie

Tax time is taking it's toll on my time and energy so I have no new art to share - not even a doodle. Well, not one that I want anyone to see - and probably not for the reasons that immediately pop in your head.

But I don't want to ignore y'all. I get so excited when I get a comment or a new follower and I want you all to know how much I appreciate you. So, since there's no sharable art, I'll share some good news and a few links if you don't mind.

First, my friend Maura who owns My Heart's Fancy bought Risk Blossoming. There really is nothing more exciting than having someone contact you and say I HAVE TO HAVE THAT. Of course, when I delivered it to her, I turned around and spent the money on Tim Holz stamps, etc. Thank you Maura.

And I finally put a piece of jewelry in my Etsy store.. I made this piece a few weeks before we moved and it's been staring at me from my mannequin this whole time!

Nancy received her prize necklace and blogged about it . I was so happy to find out she liked it. And her post brought some new readers and followers. Thank you Nancy.

Then I won a prize at Numinosity Beads. I can't wait to get these beautiful beads. Thank you Kimberly.

Boy, I love blogland!

The last thing to share in this rather haphazard post is that my art group, The Ephemerites, met last night. I love getting together with these friends and seeing all of the goodies they are making. It is always inspiring and my tax induced funk was lifted. My friend Ellen had so many journal pages and sketches - I'd show you but she's been too busy arting to blog. Roz showed us a piece of a soda can she embossed in her Cuttlebug - I'll definitely steal that idea. Lynda & Jackie had made lots of gorgeous tags. Their styles are so different and I loved each piece. Thank you all.

Well, hope you have fun visiting these other sites. And THANK YOU for stopping by, following and commenting ~ Sherry

Peace

When peace, like a river,
attendeth my way,
When sorrows like sea billows roll;
Whatever my lot,
Thou has taught me to say,
It is well,
it is well,
with my soul.

- Horatio G. Spafford

A friend of mine is going thru something right now that is incredibly emotionally draining. I want her to experience the "peace that passes all understanding" and I really don't feel like I have the words to inspire that. So instead, I'm hoping this canvas will remind her that she's loved - not just by her family and friends, but by her savior.


I started by covering the canvas board in a dictionary page (the old dictionary was given to me by her). I removed part of the page with masking tape, a technique I learned from Beverly Seymour several years ago. Then I glued down a print of the heart from the piece I posted a few days ago. Other ingredients include

pattern tissue,

white gesso & clear gesso,

swirl stamps w/ brilliance ink,

portfolio oil pastel (water soluable),

pan pastel,

graphite pencil & prismacolor,

glass bead gel,

my favorite part (haha) -

an image transfer of the word peace BACKWARDS

(see the note on yesterday's page about checking the print BEFORE using it)

and of course, a polished coat of beeswax on top of it all.

I'm Iced In!! What Fun!!

I'm iced in today so I get an extra day to play. YAY!! I'm working on the pendant for Nancy and a collage for my friend. Both of these have involved lots of experimenting. And I've learned a couple of things so of course I had to make a journal page about it!! The generousity of other artists never ceases to amaze me. Specifically today I want to thank

• Silke gave some instructions on image transfers on her blog and I decided to try again.
• Dankartistry on Etsy was kind enough to answer a question I had.

Thanks to everyone so willing to share. And thanks to all of y'all for stopping by ~ Sherry

Moving: Done; Unpacking: HaHaHa

I'm writing tonite becuz I think I should, not cuz I have anything important to say. We're in our house but we are far from being unpacked. Some of Christmas is even up in some of the rooms. I love this house. But I'm tired of never finding what I'm looking for. (It's cold here now and where are my sweaters?????)
You know what would help? MAKING SOMETHING. But the odds of that happening any time soon are pretty slim since all the art supplies are in boxes in the garage. OH! Except for the stamps at Roz's house. Maybe a "play date" is in order!! (Actually I guess we're having one tomorrow - we're going to WITH JOY - I need some more sheep for my nativity set.) Anyway, I feel like I'm going thru withdrawal cuz I haven't made anything since 10/23! YIKES!

No creating yet. I have to get that closet in order. But after that, maybe we can put up the shelves in the new studio and start bringing boxes inside. I'll keep you posted ~ Sherry

Inspiration: The Company of Other Creative People

Awhile ago, I wrote a post about IDEAS & INSPIRATION. In the last paragraph, I wrote "the number one thing that gets my creative juices flowing is interacting with other creative people". It's the main reason I look forward to my monthly art group meetings. It's why I read blogs by other artists. It's why I buy books full of "eye candy" created by others.

When a group of creative people get together to create, ideas fly around the room. Soon you can watch new ones form in mid-air. A BIG BANG of ideas. Or maybe it's more like reproduction. It works with solving work problems too: start discussing the issue with a co-worker and the not-quite-right solutions you voice outloud come together and produce the right answer. It's just not as exciting with accounting as it is with art.

A couple of weeks ago, ten of us got together to make ANY WHICH WAY books that one woman ordered from Mrs. O'Leary's in Wichita. Everyone brought their gorgeous rubber stamps, inks, papers, tags and more. Just looking at the "goodies" was a very heady experience. We all have different directions in our regular arts-n-crafts. It was so exciting to see what everyone was doing for their books. Most of us stamped backgrounds and sayings. Two women made their books about their recent trip to Asia & Europe (can you say JEALOUS????).

But the exciting thing was how everyone shared their tips & techniques and their praise & suggestions along with their stamps & inks. We shifted into creative overdrive and all left at the end of the day exhausted and inspired.

Reached a creative block? Invite a few friends over to "art" and you may find you can't stop creating for a month ~ Sherry

a stamp from Mrs. O'Leary's