Monthly Archives: December 2006

my january inspiration table…
lots of new things i found in dusty thrift shops and arranged together. oh, and i bought the most marvelous winter ceramic necklace!

the necklace:

Thinking about the new year and some new directions that I would love to explore. I love my sketchbook to death! Wrote down some new ideas, rolled them up and tied them with a string. Over this break I hope to develop all the little pictures that that have been brewing in my head, some more abstract than others.

sleepy, slightly ill. sipping lots of tea.
more twosie goodness.
i simply love the boxes that my ink came in.
shadow box thrift shop find. i am actually ripping out the mushroom embroidery on this because it has something else it wants to be. don’t worry, the mushrooms will be recycled into something else, maybe stitched into a crazy quilt. hmmm…

my cozy desktop. clicky below.

i love this one! it has sort of a milky glaze-like appearance. pencils and acrylic layered in all kinds of ways. will post when complete.

My journal page from last week, honoring pairs of things that I love…
and a pretty pair of vintage vases that I bought last Thursday to hold my new paint brushes. Mushrooms I made from clay.

Things i love, times two.

Ring-a-ling, I’m tucking the “april” bell away til spring.

Studio window. I finally bought candles for these guys.

I wish I had a vintage pair of salt and pepper shakers. They would be perfect for this post.
I also wish that my new boots fit me and I didn’t have to return them. I already drew them in my journal page and now they are no longer mine. 🙁

Won’t you please list some things that YOU love times two?

I found the most beautiful baby blue deer planter last week. It was love at first glance, my heart nearly thumped out of my chest while my eyes were quickly scanning a shabby assortment of junk. It was in the most dreadful condition too….all brown and dirty… someone tried to paint it with acrylics! I can not say how much the color and shape inspire me so. I am going to put it on my yuletide alter with light blue pillar candles on each side, holly, mint, and a dainty ceramic blue bell.
planter pictures posted in

And atid bit of a project, so far, juxtaposed with a sketch book idea. My most recent realization…Sketchbooks are awesome! I have finally found my little recording device, a true springboard for future ideas, color palettes, composition, narratives….
I have been hoarding thrift shop found wooden homes. Sanding them and gessoing them, preparing for something I’ll post when completed.
Tidbits below. Can you guess?

One sunny afternoon in July I took a walk to the library and to my disappointment it was closed. The place is built in a wooded part of town with a stream and woods behind it.. .I live in the heart of suburbia surrounded by pretty wooded parks, fields and trails. To my surprise, as I was wandering around the the library exploring its fabulous earthy mid-century architecture I came face to face with a red fox! He was sleeping in one of the alcoves (the library was designed to blend with nature, all of the windows have nooks with greenery planted in them). Perhaps the fox was confused or maybe rabid? But I think he was sleeping there, as he seemed to be curled up in a little ball when my sight first caught glimpse of him. Ever since this event my eyes have been opened to all the fabulous wild creatures we have living here…deer, owls, rabbits, and raccoons to name a few. The creatures are completely locked in by the houses, reliant on the land humans have set aside for them, and the extra kind humans who keep their properties natural.
Here they are, the first four pages of my new sketchbook!
Pens, acrylic paints and colored pencils.
One, two

Three, four

My sketchbook is little. These pages are 3 1/2″ by 5 1/2 ” each!
Just to get an idea…
And you get a sneak peek at pages 5 and 6!

more soon…

And so…

Yes, I need to start recording all my little scenes for future paintings. Otherwise they will be lost in my head and I will not remember them all. I started to carry my sketchbook with me EVERYWHERE and so far I have 4 pages complete! Getting a head start on one of my my new years resolutions.
Collagey overview of my weekend, sketches and vintage finds…
some jewels posted in

click below for the full photo story…

Two small pieces of pages 2 and 3 for now, micron pends and acrylics. I need to work small so I can carry the sketchbook around in my pocket. These are not the whole two pages, just part of them.

I made these pretty tags to label my fabrics…

Teeny tiny deer pin. No, he does not have an eye missing. There is only one rhinestone setting.

Love!

Flower child…

Besides all this I…
* went for a walk and found the prettiest little plant table in someones trash! I am going to paint it and draw a little scene on it.
* went shopping and bought the best boots ever!
* gessoed a little wooden house for an art project that I am working on that I will share very soon…
* napped and dusted and ate and drank a peppermint latte.

Just one for now…
I simply love this little box I bought! Its quite old and fragile which makes it even more wonderful but what I really adore is the art on the front.

I’ve been sorting through my antique fiber stash and it’s quite inspiring. I thought I didn’t want to work in the fiber medium anymore but its quite funny how I can look at old textile pieces and see pictures and little scenes within. Its good to take a breather and step back. Isn’t sepia is just so magnificent?
Vintage lace, circa 1920’s
Me in the summertime, circa 2005. I miss the blossoms on my old street.

Going through my art quilts and I decided that parts of this piece are my favorite of all time. Most is painted canvas, free motion sewn and appliqued with bits of vintage lace from the 20’s and 60’s, completed in Dec 2005. There’s strength in her serenity.

Which leads me to question where I am going with my art and painting and sewing and such…
Every year around this time I reevaluate and with this I am re-inspired.
So many little scenes in my head, some with texture, some not, some with just paint. I am going to follow my muse, full circle.
What are you reevaluating this new year? Please do share!

I found this magnificent pixie boot planter awhile ago that I absolutely adore. Coincidentally since then I’ve been collecting little planters, and the other day I found two of the the most fabulous ones ever! The first one is a baby blue deer and the second is a beautiful big bluebird perched on an apple blossom, both thrifted. Very spring but I will post pictures of these treasures as soon as I plant some herbs or moss in them. Today I was browsing the plant section at Whole Foods. They have dainty potted herbs and I think I would love to try my hand with some rosemary, as it does quite well indoors. November is gone and I have yet to post pictures of my little inspiration alter, so here they are, along with the woodsy pixie boot which I took outside for a photo shoot in the twigs.

For those new to my journal I have been making inspirational alters in my studio full circle now, and I do love them so. I stated out with a formula for placement but now I go on intuition. As I go for my walks through the woods I pick up little naturey things here and there and put them on my table. I use things people give me, crystals and trinkets, and things that I made. I also adorn the table with things I pick up in thrift shops and such, which is a more recent habit. Its starts out small and then it grows as the season goes on…

Some things I did this weekend~

~worked in my sketchbook
~rode a horse
~walked 6 miles
~pulled out every bit of vintage fabric I own and started to sort. Still in the process.

~*~*~welcome December, snowflakes and all things magical!