Answer for SuSaw

Chica, it is a hot glue gun and then a Krylon pen.

Beryl Taylor picts

One is a pict of me and Beryl. The other one is a pict of me and Jean.

Beryl Taylor Workshop-other people's work

Here are some picts. Middle is Jean's. Bottom is Kathy's from Valley Ridge. More picts in post underneath this one. Don't you just love the frog?

Beryl Taylor Workshop-other people's work

thought you might like to see it. I told people in advance that I probably would not remember their names. If you want me to put your name underneath your piece, just comment and tell me which one is yours.

Beryl Taylor's Workshop this weekend

Well, I was up in Muscoda, WI at Valley Ridge Art Studios for a workshop. It is the only workshop I am taking this year. If you ever get up to Valley Ridge, it is really worth the trip. Let me do my plug for them (which I don't get anything for). The venue is very, very nice. It is in a farmhouse setting. You can stay at the main house, if you want. The actual workshop building is self-standing. It is a large room with coffee, fridge, snackies, things to shop for, bathroom, and individual tables. Everyone gets their own folding art table. There is usually a limit of 14 people per workshop. There is a lot of space so you can do your thing. The view is very breathtaking. Lots of rolling hills in the area. Make sure you get the lunch that they offer with the workshops. The salads and desserts are YUMMY! They are very generous with food and drink there. Kathy and Bill are very friendly. Kathy takes the workshops and works on things when she can.

http://www.valleyridgeartstudio.com//default.asp Link to the Valley Ridge website.

Kathy always gets quality instructors there. The bookbinding and metal classes are awesome.

Okay, back to my workshop. If you know me, then you know that I don't take a lot of workshops any more because I don't like to pay money and not learn much. It is too expensive nowadays to pay money just for some time to play. I am very selective in workshops this year. I only took this one. I have Beryl's book and was curious about how she did things. The class was very informative with lots of fun little tips and stories. It went slower than I would have liked, but that is a problem in all the workshops I take. I work really quickly and don't think about it too much. I actually played with Polished Pigments and worked on something else in between what we were doing. I understand since instructors need to pace themselves with the rest of the class. Now, Jean, who was also there, she actually make a lot more stuff than I did!

I learned how Beryl makes her stuff pop. I sewed on seed beads and played with a glue gun. I actually don't use sequins but can see their uses now.

Beryl was a very good instructor. She was very patient and went around answering questions. She showed us little things that we could do. She did not push how she did something on us - which I hate. Making the fabric paper the way she does was fun. I have been doing it a slightly different way. Her art pieces are fab. She shared all her supplies. She had a couple of really good stamps - like I need any more.

I have attached my finished piece to this post. What do you think? I am very happy with it. It took awhile to sew all the beads on. I did like that I took some time and sewed each one on. I did a lot more detail work during this workshop than I normally do. She also showed us how to do the puffy little hearts that you see in her book. It is quite easy. If you click on the pict, you will see a more detailed view. This was a fun workshop for me.

Quilt binding

Hola! I just wanted to say very quickly that I appreciate all the comments about how you bind your quilts. I have opted for just a plain zigzag stitch. That does not mean that I won't keep trying. I will keep trying and will look at how other people do theirs. It will come, it always does. Thank you to all the quilters out there who shared with me their techniques, their thoughts, and their time.

playing with resin from Little Windows

Click on the picts for a larger view.

There was this woman at a booth right across from where I was doing demos at the Quilt Festival. It was not until the last day that I made it over there. She had this great way of making resin charms/pendants without the bezels. Now, I have seen some other products elsewhere but I did not really like them because the resin did not come out easily.

http://www.little-windows.com/

http://little-windows.com/store.htm?cid=6 resin

http://little-windows.com/store_item.htm?itemid=58&cid=13 mini drill only $6!

I finally got around to trying it. I used found objects and made bracelets out of them. I just wanted to play. The molds were easy to use. They did come a little bit warped but they bent back straight without a problem. There is a leaflet included with the resin kit that tells you everything you need to do. Instructions were easy to follow.

Some of my found objects were thicker than others. They needed more resin. I guess you would need to watch that. Probably more shallow items would work better. I really liked how the buton and and the flatter charms turned out.

The resin itself was easy to mix and it did not smell. The trick is to stir slowly so you don't get bubbles. I did not get that many bubbles when pouring or afterwards. I did get a few but they easily popped. I found one trapped underneath a charm but I never would have found that anyway.

I waited overnight before popping the resin charms out of the mold. I put it in the freezer for about 30 seconds before doing so. If you lay it on a hard surface, resin side down and press with thumb right in the middle, they come out easier than twisting the mold (for me, at least). I started drilling the holes right away. I got the mini drill that was on their site. It is a handy little tool. I think it is adorable. There is one thing though. The length of the drill bit is fixed. If you do deeper pieces, then you will need something like a Dremel tool or something with a thinner diameter drill bit to go through the resin. The mini drill will only go so far since you cannot adjust the drill bit.

I had no problems putting holes in a couple of the charms. The problem was with the wire. I started putting the bracelet together about 15 hours after the resin was poured. It was still too soft. The wire was ripping into the edges. I stopped and waited an extra day before doing the wire stuff. It was still easy to ream out the holes in the resin with the little drill two days after pouring.

I usually use resin from Rio Grande. This resin is just as good and the pricing is comparable, if not better. What I liked about the kit was that there was a clear plastic lid to the kit that served as a clear cover for my mold while the resin was hardening. That kept the dust off. For those of you who have done resin before, dust can be a pain because it can show up on your resin like little dimples.

Of course, you can use this resin with the metal bezels. Suze Weinberg and Susan Lenart Kazmer carry bezels. I like the no bezels thing, too. This way is so much easier than using tape and borders and yada yada yada.

There is one other cool thing that I have not tried yet, they sell this doming tray that you can use to put a dome on your resin piece. That would be great for buttons, pendants, etc...I just think that would be fun to do.

http://little-windows.com/store_item.htm?itemid=62&cid=7 small doming tray

If you try it, let me know how it turns out.

Stampin' Up stamps for sale - Sold already!

If you don't already know, my younger sister passed away last month. My sister had a bunch of Stampin' Up stamps. My sister never labeled them, so I don't know what they are called. They are all either new or barely used. They are all wood mounted or have the wood mounts. They are ready to mount. You would just need to trim the excess rubber off it. The adhesive side is already on there. They are in the clear plastic cases. I know that per set, they run $15-$24. Some of them are probably retired since I bought them for her about 4 or 5 years ago. You wuld find them for a lot more on eBay.

I am asking for $125 for the whole lot - includes mailing costs. I am not going to split up the lot due to high mailing costs. Email me offlist if you want them.

11 stamps - they are the ones where you get the outline and then the inside of the stamp. There is one for leaves, butterfly, and rose. There are three stamps for each thing. There is also the phrase thinking of you and happy birthday

Simple Somethings - set of 4 with birds, flowers in pots, flowers, and strollers with long legs, stems, that kind of thing.

There is a set of 4 like a Linda Engelbrecht type of thing. I am probably not getting the name right. It is homey, quilty type stamp.

17 stamps with castle, dragon, knight, frog prince, princess type theme.

set of alphabet stamps

Smorgasborders - 9 border stamps so nice, all my love, friends, rectangles, flower and stem, girl and boy, love with some square and heart blocks, leaf and stem, and row of flowers.

18 misc stamps and 9 misc stamps with sayings on there.

5 stamps with magic w/text, love w/text, 2 letter ones with designs all around it, and one texture stamp.

6 stamps - Winnie the Pooh, Eeyore, warm wishes, my good friend, birthday greetings, and make a wish

4 stamps with 4 different seasonal trees. One is bare with snowman, one spring with flowers, one fall leaves, and summer tree.

4 stamps with asian writing. The english is on there: harmony, love, wisdom, and tranquility.

28 little stamps with some having sayings and some with single pictures. Some of the pictures are balloon, gift, Xmas tree, balloon, heart, snowflake, candle, ladybug, bib, purse, cherries, leaf, clock, bee.

8 set with snowmen, mittons, Xmas tree, snowflakes, and sayings

9 misc stamps - picture border, flowers, snowflak, leaves, bird, inside of the picture border.

3 set of Asian pictures: flowers, blossoms with bird, and cranes or some bird. There is one stamp with vertical asian writing

11 letter stamps with the I can't remember designs where there are designs as part of the letters. Ma Vinci's carries something similar to it. I looked it up and they are Codex letters.

7 or more set with images and then a zig zaggy picture frame - border stamp

Set of 4 Simply Sweet - not even mounted yet. Row of cute chairs, flowers in vases, birthday cakes, and then a row of dresses

set of 12 simple drawings with a saying underneath the pict: perfume bottle, flowers, arm chair, hat, flower losing one petal, gumball, crown, purse, flip flops, dog, umbrella, baby outfitset of

14 with simple picts and little sayings underneath

number set

Email me if you want them. Paypal only please.

Quilt binding question

I am still rather new to quilting and have a binding question. It is not an easy thing for me to do. I have seen it on YouTube videos and have seen online tutorials. There seems to be two ways that people do it.

1. People will fold the binding in half, sew the raw ends of the binding to the front of the quilt, fold the binding over, and then hand stitch the back. That seems to be a lot of work. Can't I do it this way but machine the back to the quilt instead of hand sewing? Does it matter if you see stitches on the binding?

2. People iron the binding in half lengthwise and then sew the binding on by machine. I am having trouble with doing the corners with the smaller quiltie pieces. I am using thinner width binding strips with the smaller squares. I am having problems where the binding will slip and I end up sewing the binding but not to the edge of the quiltie.

So basically, how do you sew your binding on? Any suggestions to help a quilting newbie like me? Thanks in advance, quilters and fabric artists out there!

RR quilt squares

I just finished the green quilt squares for my color quiltie RR. It is the only RR I am doing this year. I have not been in an RR for awhile now. The color for this month is green. It our first month. I had a little trouble with the Big Bite crop-a-dile. I will need to write them about it. It smashed some of the eyelet heads or the backs did not flower very well. I had to throw out a lot of smashed eyelets.

One will go to my RR partner for this month. I will keep one for my own quilt. I have not decided if I will make one big quilt or two different ones - one with RR squares and the other one the ones I did myself.

I am quite happy with the results. I did not do any binding except a zig zag stitch so that the person binding the squares together could bind at the end. I thought it might look odd if I did the binding and it was a middle square. No matter really. I did not specify binding. Some people might do it. No big.

One thing I have started doing is ironing on some heat bond to adhere my sandwich layers together before doing any sewing. That has really minimized movement and has saved me a lot of time and aggravation.

Comments welcome. Click on the picts for a larger view. Don't tell me about the loose threads, I know they are there. I will trim them later on.

Winner of this weekend's give-away is...

Jean M!!! This was her comment:

I can use these on my ball chain bracelets. Patina will look great!Thanks Jean

Email me privately with full name and snail mail addy please. I will have more stuff to give-away. Thanks for stopping by and looking at my blog. Belinda

Hobby Lobby Comments

I got a lot of comments about my Hobby Lobby post. Many of them made me smile. I surmised that it was run by a Christian company since their door has a sign that says they take Sunday off for worship and so employees can be with their families. I think that it is good for the families who want to spend time with their families on Sundays. I don't know how practical it is in this world when Christmas stuff shows up before Halloween.

Does anyone remember when stores and restaurants used to be closed every major holiday like New Year's and 4th of July? Even grocery stores used to close early on Labor Day and Memorial Day. It was a running joke that the only places open during the holidays were movie theatres and Chinese restaurants. I see less and less of that all the time. A lot of places are only closed on Christmas now. It is convenient for people like me who like to shop with less crowds and who likes to take advantage of after-holiday sales. No, I usually don't do the Friday after Thanksgiving sales at 5 am unless there is something specific I really want for someone in my family.

I was just commenting on how contradictory it was that Hobby Lobby was closed on Sundays but their coupons came out on that day. I guess the people who do their advertising do not share the same views.

Thanks for all the comments around the contry and how their Hobby Lobby stores are in their area. Ours here does not do any Christian advertising that I am aware of. The area that I live in is very mixed. There are a lot of different types of people out here. We live right by Naperville, which was named the #1 place to raise kids at one time. There are a lot of families out here that are racially mixed - which was one of the reasons we moved so far west from Chicago. My kids are racially mixed - half Chinese and half Russian. I grew up in areas where I got a lot of crap for being Chinese. I don't want that happening to my kids. The advantage of living here is that there is a ton of stuff to do with the kids. I don't have to worry about my kids when we go out and eat because there are a lot of kids everywhere. They are older now anyway. The downside is that I have to buy seasonal clothes early or they run out of my kids' sizes. Try and buy soccer cleats mid-season, I usually have to go online for that!

Enjoy your week people. I am going to clean house now before finishing up a project. I need to get started on my samples for Dremel and to get packed for Valley Ridge this weekend. I am taking my one workshop for the year with Beryl Taylor.

Hobby Lobby

Explain to me why Hobby Lobby emails their 40% off coupon on Sundays and they are closed on that day? I wonder every time I check their email to see what the weekly coupon is. Don't most people print it out and then go out that day to use it? I usually forget about it and then don't use it. I end up deleting the message instead of using the coupon.

Joann's is open 7 days a week. I sometimes will print off the coupon and use it but I usually have some from the Sunday paper and from the mail that I toss in my purse so I will use it if I end up at their store.

Just wondering at 6:30 in the morning.

Super Brush Swabs

I got some samples awhile ago of these swabs. http://www.superbrush.com/

They are these little foamy swabs that kind of look like the things you use to put on eyeshadow. I do like them a lot though. They work really well in small applications. They don't fall apart and you can wash them a few times before having to toss them - if you remember to wash the paint off right away, that is. I am notorious for leaving paint on brushes and then having it dried up and impossible to get off.

I recently had to get into some small areas on my polymer clay stuff. The swabs worked great in that application. They are also good for chalk ink. I did some small stuff like ATCs and inchies and they were much easier to use than the detail brushes I have. They are easier for me to control.

I am not sure where to get them retail. They are also used in other applications. So, don't forget to look around the next time you have a doctor's or dentist's appt.

OT: I saw these huge-O cotton swabs - like the ones you use for your ears - at a recent doctor's visit. I asked and snagged a couple. Looks like a big white match to me. Don't have a clue what I will ever do with it. I just had to have it. You understand that, don't you?

Not much art on my blog lately

Hey all. I have not been posting a lot of art on my blog lately because the stuff that I have been working on for the last couple of weeks have been for magazine and book submissions. I am not supposed to have those up until I get a definite "NO!" from them. You will be seeing more stuff from me next week because I will be at the Beryl Taylor workshop at Valley Ridge - will post that after I get home - AND I have to get some more samples done for Dremel for CHA in mid July.

I did not want my subscribers and other regular readers to think that I have given up on creating and posting how I do something.

Fabric 2x2

Well, they are all done. I sat and finished hand sewing on the flowers and buttons last nite while watch CSI Miami and Food TV. I even punched holes in them and put on the eyelets for the binding ring. I am so groovin' on the Prima Flowers. Some of these on here are not Prima. I got them as a RAK from someone and thought I could put them to good use.

Hope the swappers like them.

Everything is relative

For some reason, I picked up a book in the discount bin called Bergdorf Blondes. I enjoy reading how the other half lives. I am not rich but not poor. I am not sure where I am on the middle class rung. I know that I have a lot more than others yet am lacking compared to other people.

Yes, I get slightly envious when I see people's art space that are nicely decorated with clean, organized shelves, bookshelves, and nice pieces of furniture to display their artwork. My art space consists of our second floor loft and loft closet. I share that space with my husband's computer and desk. I fear that I will soon be joined by my son because he just inherited a laptop.

I cannot comprehend how people who have a lot of money can spend so much money on face peels and clothing. Is it because I cannot do it? I cannot see myself spending hundreds - let alone thousands of dollars for one dress. I cannot imagine starving myself or coloring my hair to look like everyone else. I thought that I was being extravagant when I would buy myself a Coach purse. I can't even do THAT now because a Coach purse has gotten SOOO expensive. After having 2 c-sections, I do not understand how people can routinely get elective surgery to remain looking 22 at 56. The risk is too great for me to contemplate. Yeah, I will grow old ungracefully.

I guess that it is all relative. Look at all the art stuff I have. I do have a thing for purses. I think about what else I could do with the money. It seems to be a waste to me. I am 44 and walking around in flip flops (by choice, mind you). I prefer jeans and shorts to a skirt or casual pants. I have only just begun wearing shirts with patterns on it. I have been doing black and solid earth tones for a very long time. Yes, I easily fit into that black/white look that a lot of teachers wear.

I did not even know what Jimmy Choos were until I saw it on an episode of Sex In the City (no, I have not seen the movie yet). I would have just thought it was the name of another Chinese relative that I have yet to meet. Fashionable clothing and shoes look uncomfortable to me.

Is it just that I don't wish for what I can't have? If I could have it, would I indulge? Would I be easily swept up in that rich lifestyle? Does it really exist or is it just fiction? I live near Chicago. We are not known for high fashion. I don't go to Downtown Chicago/Magnificent Mile enough to know what would be the height of fashion or not anyway. I don't read any of the fashion magazines. That stuff makes me laugh out loud anyway. I am lucky if I keep up with the "Do" and "Don't" things for that specific year. Yeah, I am lacking in that department. I might be behind a year.

I don't feel the need to be first to get anything except maybe something in electronics. I don't even do the "first" thing when it comes to art supplies. I wait and try it out first before buying. I try to buy only what I will use when it comes to art or jewelry. Can you imagine being a three year waiting list for a Birkin purse? They are so big that I can hide my 5 yro daughter in one of them with all my other crap that I carry around. It is larger than the Olsen Twin I have seen carrying one.

It was amusing for me to read how other people live. It was also comforting to know that they have problems, too. Their problems might not be the same as mine but they deal with issues just like I do on a daily basis.

Going to work on projects now. Done musing.

Weekend Give-away

Key not included - it is just for a point of reference. I found these cool, patinaed airplane washers. I thought someone might like them for found object jewelry or for assemblages. There are 12 total that I am giving away. Inside diameter is about 3/4" and outside diameter about 1" - just a little less.

To play, just comment on this post. You have until Sunday to comment. Comment as many times as you like. I will pick a winner on Monday.

Rubber Stamps for Sale - Sold

Sold - gone. Thanks!


I have a bunch of rubber stamps that I don't use any more.

There are over 30 UM stamps that are for polymer clay, Zettiology, tsunami, and more. The Zetti stamps are great stamps.

I also have 4 of the 7 Gypsies stamps that wind around and there are words on there. It is like a manual date stamp but with words on it.

Mounted:

Michael deMeng stamp with the two skull heads in a boat
Invitation stamp with spider hanging from it
deMeng man stamp with a border. Part of his head is shifted. It is a big stamp.
Postmodern Design Wooden Ruler Border
Zetti - Asian girl pouring tea
Stampington Diagram Man
deMeng skull with a flower in his jacket
deMeng skull that says Thomas Becket on it
Stamper's Anonymous stamp that has Albert Einstein at the bottom. It is a collage stamp that is circular
10 misc mail art stamps including a Mona Lisa face
deMeng heart
big ruler which has 1 and 2 on it
Stamper's Anon ruler
Nick Bantock Tamarind
I think this is a Tim Holtz one with tix in the background and guys in an old car on RR tracks
Stamp with just lines on it for text
Zetti stamp where you see the woman's eyes and she has the striped Zetti hat on

There's over 55 stamps in the box. I am asking for $70 plus $8 for flat rate mailing due to weight. That is less than $2 per stamp! Most of them are used but are still in excellent condition.

Email me if interested. Paypal only.

I am cleaning out my art space - again. I have a lot of stuff for making art jewelry - charms, beads, chains, junk jewelry that you can take apart. $55.00 domestic only - I will take care of the mailing costs. Email me privately, if you are interested.

Twinkling H2Os and Gouache paints - SOLD!

Sorry, already gone.

I have a new set of 12 Twinkling H2Os, a barely used set of 18 tubes of gouache, some used H2Os with no lids (works fine when you add a little water to it), and I will throw in a bunch of ribbons that have been sitting here neglected. $30 plus $6.00 mailing US only please. Paypal only. Email me if interested.

Can you tell that I have been cleaning and trying to get rid of stuff that I don't use?

Brads, Brads, Brads! - are sold, sold, sold!

Sorry, gone.

$21 for 4 bags of brads - large, medium, and small sizes. What you see in the picture is what you get.

$21 + $6 mailing costs domestic only- it is pretty heavy. There are hundreds - if not thousands of brads. They are mostly round but some flowers, some squares, and some misc shapes. Paypal only please. Email me if you want it.

Some of my necklaces FOR SALE! - Sold

All gone.


#5 - far right is gone. $12 plus mailing for each one or $60 plus mailing for the rest of the lot.

Click on the pict for a larger view.

$12 each with $3 domestic mailing and $5 international.

If you want the whole lot $72 with $5 domestic mailing and $8 international.

Email me privately, if you are interested.

A lucky find

Finished necklace on my scanner. Click the pict for a larger view.
My son, Zack, took the two picts of me with the necklace on.
Closer view of the awesome heart.

I was at the Bead and Button Show a couple of weekends ago with my daughter. One of the booths was from Zoa Arts. http://www.zoaart.com/index.html

I found this fabulous heart made from shibuichi. They tell you what it is on their website. Loving it because it looks so distressed and it has that copper/gold/grey tinge. Wishing there were some local workshops on how to do this shibuichi thingie. It will come with time. Patience is usually not one of my virtues when it comes to art.

Well, I finally took some time to put together the necklace part. I borrowed the leather strap thing from the artist, Lisa. She had the heart on a necklace with a brown leather strap. I liked the black. The leather is from part of an old wallet that fell apart. The crap I save. Anyhoo, I used bits and pieces that I had laying around. The most important component here were the copper jump rings that I got from eBay. I have been buying them in bulk from Hong Kong/China. They really do come in handy.

I wore it today while I went to lunch with the folks and my kids. I got 2 compliments while dining. I ran some errands afterwards and the bookseller at Barnes & Noble was really groovin' on it. I got stopped at Target as well. Looks like this necklace is a huge success. It is very wearable and I am lovin' it. Thanks, Lisa at Zoa Art!

Solutions to blogger issues

Okay, there are certain glitches to blogger. Can't complain since it is a free service.

Ever notice how sometimes you will leave a line in between paragraphs but it does not work? The blank line disappears? I have tried various things - that work - but the easiest thing is to space 3 times and then hit backspace once before typing. You will always get the blank line between paragraphs. I hit on that by accident.

If your picts do not load in compose mode, for whatever issue blogger is having, just publish your post. Go back in and edit. While you are in edit mode, then load your pictures and it will work. Don't know why, but blogger posted a message about this awhile back.

Just a public service announcement to blogger users.

postcards to Kelli

Bandanna Flowers
Bandanna Buttons
Taking my own path

These are the fabric paper postcards that I just made for Kelli. One of the things that I had to get used to when going from paper to fabric is that the focal points can be so vastly different. In a lot of art quilts, the focal point is not obvious to me. It may not be there at all. It seems to be more about patterns, colors, and textures than anything else. Maybe, that is just what I see.

I figure that the design composition with fabric may be different or the artist's viewpoint is different. I find that I no longer use collage images much except for maybe ATCs and inchies. I use them once in awhile with fabric but that is more of a muse than anything else. I find myself more drawn now to fibers, buttons, and other more "raw" objects than commercial. As said before, it is a preference. It is not a "diss" to people who use commercial images. I still have them and use them - just not as much.

I am happy right now because what I am doing allows me to use found objects and re-purposed things a lot in many different ways. I get to use my beloved metals as much as before. Even though I have slowed down, I am still experimenting. I am in love with my sewing machine and fabric. Yeah, it might change, but I am happy with it right now. It might just be that I am happy that I am on summer vacation. Yes, kids, teachers love summer vacation even more than you do! We love all of you but we need a break, too.

Funkysiren

I wish you and your daughter the best. I do not know how you can be coping so well with not knowing.

Oh! My Aching Back!

This was a really busy weekend for me. We were at Great America Saturday and my daughter was in a parade yesterday. I woke up this morning with a lot of pain in my lower back. I can't get comfortable in any position. My back has not hurt like this since my powerlifting days. I don't know if it was from Great America, sitting on the curb while watching the parade, sleeping on the couch, or a combination of all of them. All I know is that Tylenol is not working. I can't take aspirin based products with my stomach. I am walking around stooped over like a little old woman with osteporosis. I am going to have to take it easy for the next couple of days.

It was pretty hot for the parade yesterday. My daughter was in a black cheerleading outfit. My son loved it because people in the parade threw candy at all the kids. They gave out little plastic bags for the kids for the candy. My kids were on quite a sugar high!

Happy Father's Day!

Today will be a very busy day for our family. It is Dad's day. I will have to go and wish my dad a Happy Dad's Day but not do much with him. I guess my sister's death prevents him from celebrating anything so soon. Does not mean I can't wish him a Happy Dad's Day and a Happy Birthday tomorrow. Kids got him a card and I got him a small gift. I will have to make him a duck later in the week just because...

My daughter is a cheerleader now and she will be in a parade today. Still gotta wrap my dh's present from the kids. My son tie dyed a shirt for him. I will have to wash and dry that early in the a.m. so he can give it to his dad.

I am dog tired after the entire day at Great America but I am still too wired to sleep. I will go and make some tea. That and a movie will put me right to sleep. I usually have no problems going to sleep but my body is on auto pilot from doing art.

I digress. Happy Dad's Day, Phil! Happy Dad's Day, Dad! I hope that all the Dads in the world have a good day today and that they give you a teeny bit of art time today.

TOD - what bad habits do you have while doing art?

I just finished up my paper fabric and fabric postcards that I am going to send to Kelli. I had one done but I had started 3. I hate to leave things undone. It does not mean that I don't sometimes abandon a project until a later date, I just don't like doing something half-way that needs to be completely done.

I am one of those people that cleans as she works. Most of the time anyway. I always clean-up as I cook. It is something they drilled into me at cooking school. I was sitting there at my sewing machine when I looked down at my pj pants. They were full of scattered pieces of thread. Yup, I looked down at the carpeting around my chair and there was a ton of little threads of various lengths and colors all around me. Of course, I picked most of them up. I figure that the vacuum will pick up the rest later. That is a bad habit of mine where I just snip off the ends of the thread and just swipe it onto the carpet.

I also leave out everything I need for a project until I am done. I warn my family not to touch it, step on it, or move it in any way. There is sometimes a particular order to my madness. I try to keep my stuff out of their field of vision but that is not always possible. I get pissy when someone moves my stuff even if only to admire it. Did you think it still might be wet? Ugghh!

Another bad habit I have while painting is that I have a tendency to use my fingers more than my brush. I sometimes leave the paint open until I am done with it. I might walk away to do some laundry, make some tea, or make the kids something to eat. Yes, I forget to cap the paint. I will come back later and the top of the paint will be nice and crusty. I am also guilty of not cleaning my brushes until I am done with a project. That is why I hardly ever buy expensive brushes. I will usually clean glue off of a brush right away but not gesso or acrylics. Gesso does nasty things to the brush bristles.

Sometimes, I will squirt out too much acrylic paint. I hate to waste it, so I will put the excess on a piece of scrap or something for a later project. Yeah, I have yet to use any of those. I have better luck when I paint on dyed muslin. I just have to remember where I put the muslin before the paint completely dries out.

When I am working on a paper project, I will absently set aside the smallest piece of scrap especially when it is something that I have created myself (background paper). I will pick up the entire heap of scraps and put it in my paper scrap bin. Well, when I am in cleaning mode, I will go through the bin and wonder why I kept such small pieces of scrap that is taking up space but will not be used unless I consciously do so.

How about you? I would love to hear what your bad habits are while doing art. Comment so I can have a good laugh, too.

Be well.

Great America Outing

For some odd reason, my dh suggested that we go to Great America today. I don't know what got into his head! We live about an hour and a half away, but that was not the issue. I have so much to do! My art muse has not fully returned yet but I had a creative spurt last nite. It got so sidetracked today. I think he suggested it because my son and I each had a free ticket to get in - teacher and reading thing.

It was actually pretty fun. The lines were too long for the really big roller coasters. We settled on the smaller ones with much shorter lines. We did a lot of rides and saw one show. My 5 year-old got to go on bigger kid rides for the first time. I won each of the kids a colored dragon. We were not quite done when it started to storm. It got instantly freezing cold and we had to get hoodies to keep ourselves warm and dry from the downpour. Overall, it was a good day. I came home to some great Chinese carry-out that my dad brought over from Chinatown. None of that Chinese American stuff but the real deal. I like egg rolls as much as the next person but I grew up on real Chinese food. It is comforting for me to eat it every once in awhile. BTW, for those of you with peanut allergies, it is not advertised, but egg rolls are made with peanut butter. That is the binder that keeps the stuffing together when you eat it. You don't taste it much but it is there. I don't know of any egg rolls that do not use peanut butter, there might be now because of so many peanut allergies. My daughter cannot eat any kind of tree nuts.

I am sitting here now not quite ready to sit at my sewing machine and work on my pressing projects. I have set a deadline for myself for specific projects so I can get my Dremel samples done and get stuff together for my 3 workshops. I know that I am out of school but I have other things in life to do during the day like clean house and take care of my kids. So, what am I doing instead? I am reading, playing Bejeweled and Chainz2, doing inchies, finishing up ATCs, fixing up my wall so I can have a backdrop for my wall hangings. I know that I will get over it soon and get into art mode overdrive very soon.

I am going to finish my tea now and get the rest of my mail art postcards done for Kelli. Night!

Going down Memory Lane

I was just replying to a message in a Yahoo group about altered books. I went through my blog looking for old ABs that she could see. I don't bother to label my posts. Maybe I should. I have been blogging for over 5 years now. I kept saying "OMG!" in my head when I saw some of the things I used to do. I would never do some of that stuff now. The things I used to be into! How things have changed. I have done a lot of techniques on this blog.

It is funny how you see yourself progress through the years. I wonder what I will say about myself another 5 years from now. I have also noticed that I post more now than I used to at the beginning. I am also less busy now with the art, if you can believe that. Even though I am going to be the Dremel artist at CHA and then teaching 3 workshops right after that, I am only going to take one workshop at Valley Ridge this year. I was a working artist at the Quilt Festival. I am doing more with art but am swapping less and am running less Yahoo groups. That really frees up my time to do the things I really want to do. I am taking a lot fewer workshops nowadays. I think that I am taking only 2 art related ones this whole year.

Yes, I was a newbie once, too. I am so glad that I am no longer the embellishment queen. Shiver!

Inchie Fever - AGAIN!

Yeah, I needed something fun and easy to do while watching mindless kid shows with my own kids. I just made these samples up. You can see the background papers underneath the 3 samples. Click on the pict if you want a larger view. You can see where my hand slipped with the gold paint pen while I was edging one of the inchies.

You can use up whatever background scraps you have or you can use 1" chipboard squares. I just got a bunch from stuff4atc.com. The stamps are from Diva Impressions RS and Art Girlz. You don't need inchie sized stamps. You can use a much larger stamp and just take a section of it. I just used a piece of scrap paper and masked what I did not want to go on the inchie.

I am hosting inchie swaps in the Diva Impression RS and MM Art Friends Yahoo Groups. Hope you can play!

I am off to run errands with my kids. Be well, art friends!

My sister passing away

It is hard to believe that my sister is gone. It has been almost a month now and it still has not sunk in. I still reach for the phone expecting to call her. I would always call her and tell her what the kids were doing. I think of her whenever I go to the bookstore. Her favorite thing was to go to bookstores and get tons of books to read. For some reason, neither one of us were big on borrowing books from the library. I don't mind reading books that friends loan me, but my library card is lonely from unuse.

I cried the other day when my 5 year old showed me how she could ride her bike all by herself - with no training wheels. I was so sad because Tina would never get to see that. Although Tina was not into art herself, she was very supportive of what I did. She went to my gallery exhibits and would see what new thing I was doing when she was in town. I was kinda sad when we went to the local Japanese restaurant for sushi and noodles. That was something we always did together.

We were 8 years apart. We were never really close as some sisters are. We did not really talk about personal things. I think her friends knew more about her than I did. Since she was an adult, I did not pry. We did do things together and I would swear at her for spoiling my kids so much. She absolutely loved chocolate and everything she gave us would have something chocolate with it.

Commenting on My Blog

I just got a comment that I am not sure what it meant. Hey, if you don't like what's on my blog, then don't visit me. There are others out there that are probably more entertaining for you. If I am not your cup of tea, then choose another flavor. Have a nice day.

Playing with my Diva Impression Stamps