for the weekend


Happy October ~

What a weird, strange, bizarre day this has been... but we have had rain all day, which is good.
We've had an endless pot of coffee on the table... and good music playing.

All my links today are from Colossal.... it's a fantastic site.
* film about miniatures
* medieval manuscript art
* skeleton art
* this is rather cool
* illuminated man o' war
* a rather unusual instrument
* statues in motion
* paper flowers
* fantastic porcelain
* pirate printing


So. Remember the other day when I showed you the 80 books or so that the daughter had "discovered" in her room? ... and how I was lamenting about how to get through them all?
Well, it occurred to me that this might be good fodder for a post or two somewhere along the line here on my blog... as I go through them, read them, think about them.
Shown above, is a short stack of books that I am going through right now.... but it's sort of a "cheater" kind of stack; because I have either read them already, or have seen the movie... and now I am just deciding if I should keep the books themselves or not.
(the rest of the books in the bunch I haven't read):

* Wonder Boys by Michael Chabon: The movie is on my FAV list. And to be honest, I was nervous about reading the book because notoriously, it seems there are always so many diffferences between a movie and the book, that one must consider them completely separate beasts. That said, the only real difference between the book and the movie, is the ending. I love the book. I love the movie. Excellent read.
* The Secret Life of Bees by Sue Monk Kidd: I read the book long before I saw the movie, and loved it so much that I always kept a couple copies so I could pass them out to friends. It's that good.
* This I Know by Susannah Conway: I have spoken with Susannah online. She is as genuine in person, as she is when you read her book. Very, very good.
* Female Nomad and Friends by Ruth Golden Gelman: I read the first book she wrote, Tales of a Female Nomad... and loved it. This one, not so much.
* The Bridges of Madison County by Robert Waller: Didn't really like the movie, was hoping the book was better seeing as it had so very much critical acclaim. It is very prettily written... I will say that.
* The Ice Queen by Alice Hoffman. Years and years ago, I was a fan of Danielle Steele. Alice Hoffman has her beat in the romance genre by leaps and bounds.
* Fried Green Tomatoes at the Whistle Stop Cafe by Fannie Flagg. LOVE the movie. LOVE the book.
* The 10th Kingdom by Kathryn Wesley. I bought this years ago, after the mini-series came out. The series was pretty good... a little slow... but a modern take on a fairy tale. The book, however, I just can't seem to get into. I've tried and tried. ... but there it is.

We'll see what the next grouping holds.... in the meantime, I will see you all back here on Monday, and I hope you have a great weekend.

9-30-16



So... I ran errands today... the first I have really been out and about in about a month.
And now, I just got up from a nap.... and realized I forgot to post here on my blog.

The photos for today's post are ones I took this summer, and never edited until today.
I love milkweed. There is just something so very elegant about it.
Hope you are all having a good evening, and I will see you all tomorrow for my weekend post.

9-29-16



ah... the folly of it all.
Just when you think you've put your eyes on every book in the house, and made the tough decisions of what stays and what goes.... 
your daughter finds 2 more large boxes of books in her room.
Fiction. Tons of them. Discovered last night.

So now, I have a stack (pictured above) of about 80 fiction books (there's 2 more on my nightstand) to read, skim, keep or toss. 
Actually... I think once I give them a try, I will most likely pass them all on to someone else rather than keep them... 
as we just don't have the shelf room. 
But alas. ... and >>sigh<<
I am my father's daughter.

See you all tomorrow...
(the photo below is an excerpt from a comic.... I love it... cuz hey... bunnies.)


9-28-16


Several months ago, I started a new "series" of posts... if you will...
And so on Wednesdays; I intend to post an old photograph to inspire your creativity. 
 Write a poem!  
Plot out a short story!     
 Have inspiration for a piece of art or composition.... let your artistic soul shine.        
(you can click on the photos in this post to make it larger to see).

This little boy seems completely amused.
Perhaps the photographer is being silly... or maybe the boy is up to something.
Perhaps he knows where the cookies are at this beach party?
Perhaps he is watching the family dog steal a burger while folks aren't looking?
Maybe the umbrella isn't a photo prop at all, and the boy has just knocked it down?
Only you can tell his story...

See you all tomorrow.

9-27-16


I feel like I should probably admit myself to some kind of 12 step program for book hoarders.
Last night, the daughter and I went through the final boxes/ tubs of books and magazines that we had. It has come to my conclusion, however, that I had way more books than I thought.

I come by it honestly. My grandmother had a huge room in the upstairs of her house that was essentially her "library"... and she read a paper sack full of books each week. My dad was the same way... and when he passed away in 2010, he had a collection of over 10, 000 books in his basement (all cataloged and divided into genres and in alphabetical order by author).
I love books.
I love the illustrations, I love the feel of the paper, I love the cool covers... I love the written word.
And... I also use old pages for envelopes, and old illustrations for collage art... so there is a "purpose" behind it as well. Needless to say though, things had gotten a bit out of hand for our small living and working space. I apparently, have a particular fondness for atlases and old dictionaries, botanical themed books and art books... as there seemed to be a disproportionate amount of those in the stash of books. No surprises there I suppose.

I would show you pictures, but it's a little embarrassing. Suffice it to say, that when all is said and done... we have kept about 15 (probably less) boxes worth of books for our personal library. And, there are 6 tubs of books, and 2 boxes of magazines that I have set aside to go through to either sell, or use for collage and such. And, we have already set aside to be gifted/ donated at least 25 boxes worth of books and 15 or so of magazines. eeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeehola.

There have also been a few surprises... like the Japanese anime book we discovered that I had picked up on a whim at a yard sale many years ago; thinking I would use it for collage. Apparently, it's now worth about $50. And I found several weird old books.... one on Palm reading, that is worth about $30, and a frontier living book worth about $70. More importantly, once we get them all out of the studio; we will have more room.... which is invaluable.


((this is our main "bookcase" of books... yes, it's in the kitchen. We have one other wood shelf in the living room,
and then a few boxes of Jim's technical books, and a few boxes of Jim's comic collections that we have kept for our "personal" library.))

9-26-16


It's "Maker Monday!" 
... my series of posts where I feature something the daughter or I are working on, and encourage the maker lifestyle.

This has been a crazy week.
A week of working in the garden ... gathering produce, gathering herbs and drying them for the coming seasons...


--of organizing and going through some of the stuff we have in the studio/ basement and trying to figure out what we are keeping, 
what we are selling... what we are gifting...


--and of figuring out what things we want to work on... and working on them.
It's been busy... and a bit chaotic at times... but we are working on it all.
But... to this end, I have nothing to show as a completed thing we did this week.
It's all be a bigger part of the whole process.
And that is good.

See you all tomorrow.

for the weekend


I took this photo earlier in the summer of the interior of a friend's barn. I am just now getting to editing it.... but I think it's cool.
It's photographs like these that make me love photography so much. The light... the texture... the interesting bits...
And of course, to me it is a reflection of my friends and their home... which is always good.
Some times you just have to take time out and enjoy looking about you and seeing how beautiful things really are...

And hey... it's the weekend! Which means I have some links to share with you all:

* Historic photographs of 19th century Lumber Camps
* 1920s art nouveau prints
* Cavin-Morris Gallery
* artist Wenyi
* artist Olek
* artist Amber Cowan
* 20 female artists pushing Figurative painting forward
* painting with gunpowder!
* artist David Burton
* photographer Steve Axford
* hoarder... or artist?
* just funny
* photographer Niki Boon
* artist Jesuso Ortiz
* interesting read...

I hope you all have a great weekend, and I will see you back here on Monday.

9-21-16


Several months ago, I started a new "series" of posts... if you will...
And so on Wednesdays; I intend to post an old photograph to inspire your creativity. 
 Write a poem!  
Plot out a short story!     
 Have inspiration for a piece of art or composition.... let your artistic soul shine.        
(you can click on the photos in this post to make it larger to see).

This is a cool one.
I love how the woman in the photo is practically engulfed in the flowering bush...
and how the gentlemen seem to be in character of some sort.
Perhaps this was for a play? 
Or perhaps it was a committee for something.. and they were feeling a little dramatic?
Either way, it's awesome.

What is their story? 
Only you can tell it...

see you all tomorrow.

9-20-16


Today is just a quick post, so I thought I would share some photos I took yesterday.
See you all tomorrow...

((The spider is a super cool dude we found in the yard. 
He is an "Arrow Spider" or Micrathena safittata. 
I have never seen one before! 
Not dangerous to people, and totally awesome.))


9-19-16


It's "Maker Monday!" .. my series of posts where I feature something the daughter or I are working on, and encourage the maker lifestyle.

As you know, we've been going through things and trying to clear out a bit...
We've been going through all our books -- this also includes all the jewelry making books and magazines that I have saved over the years. Now, I will preface this by saying that before we moved back to PA, I did get rid of quite a few magazines. That said... there were still a TON of them that I had packed. Then the question became, what to keep... given the amount of room we have.
I've decided to keep one particular magazine, because I adore it. And I've tucked a couple dozen of those issues under the bottom shelf. But this still left me with loads. As a result, I have decided to try to pick out a project in one of the magazines each week or so, and see if I can do it. It will:
  1. expand my skill levels 
  2. help me use up some supplies and add inventory to my Etsy shop and 
  3. perhaps be fodder on occasion for my blog here.
This is what I did today...
In the Spring 2014 issue of Wirework, there is a necklace design by Brenda Schweder called a "RainChain" necklace. She uses a wire jig to fashion several of these components, along with circles and links; to complete a statement necklace piece.
As it so happens, I have a wire jig, although I haven't really used it much at all. This was a perfect opportunity though.... so I selected the pegs and began fashioning a shape similar to the design in the magazine. I wanted to keep things similar, but felt a more dramatic change in the size of the circles was important to me. I chose 18 gauge copper wire, because I love copper, and I had some. Plus, I figured if I messed it up.... it was better than using sterling.


After I made the components, I hammered them like she had in the article.
Like her example, I decided to wire wrap a bead into the center of the design (although she wire wrapped a bead into each one... I felt that just one would be plenty enough for the look I wanted).
I chose to use crab agate rounds... because the orange tones of the stone went so well with the copper.
I then added jump rings, and made my own ear wires... which I most always do.
and ta-da!


While mine are similar in design to what she had outlined for her necklace, it still has my personal touch and aesthetic.
Keep creating folks! and I'll see you all tomorrow...

for the weekend


It's the weekend! Because I've been so sick this month, I decided that perhaps an interesting post for this weekend would be to share some of the movies I've watched these past few weeks...

* Rock the Kasbah - Bill Murray. Suprisingly good.
* Volver - very interesting tale... beautifully shot.
* Pawn Sacrifice - this is about Bobby Fisher. I have no idea how accurate it is, but it was interesting.
* Blue Jasmine - just horrible. No likeable characters here.
* La Dolce Vita - an older movie from the 60s. Personally, I didn't like it at all.
* Trumbo - really good. Great cast. Great story, and a glimpse into a time I know nothing about.
* Hello, My Name is Doris - cute. And I love Sally Field.
* I Heart Huckabees - weird. One of those movies that you think about later and wonder if you really understood it at all. Great cast.
* The Lady in the Van  - Dame Maggie Smith, plays a tortured character. Pretty cool.
* Bunny and the Bull - so strange. I think there was probably a good story in there somewhere.
* Jupiter Ascending - don't bother, unless you just like Channing Tatum.
* Another Earth - again. Weird, and horrible. Don't. Just don't.
* Eye in the Sky - I got this because I love Helen Mirren and Alan Rickman... but I couldn't finish it.
* Legend - about the Kray brothers; London mobsters. Sad, but good.
* Dear Eleanor - lighthearted (for the most part) fluff.
* The Notorious Betty Page - not sure how accurate it is, but it was hopelessly devoid of emotion... which was actually the most unsettling part of it all.
* The Driftless Area - again. Could have been a great story... but it just felt flat.
* Get Low - great story. Beautifully photographed. Great cast. But miscast as a dark comedy? wasn't funny at all.
* Miss Fisher's Murder Mysteries - got on a whim... and it's fantastic. This is apparently a series currently still in production, out of Australia. Fabulous. Highly recommend.

Well, there you have it.
I hope you all have a great remainder to your weekend, and I will see you all back here on Monday.

((The photo for today's post is another mandala print I did. It is from the same series of photos I took this week of my burning bush plant outside, but I altered the color schemes and patterning quite a bit)).

9-16-16


I'm feeling out of sorts today... as my grandmother would say.
Not sure if it's just the day, poor sleep, or the headache that is racking my brain today... but I can't seem to form a cohesive thought.
So. I will leave you with a photo of Lady Thumb blooms. 
I always thought they were super cute, and am lucky to have some growing near our steps.
Apparently, it is also called Tufted Knotweed.
See you all tomorrow.

9-15-16


Funny how things work out.
Sometimes the best laid plans... are just that... plans. 
And the universe has another scenario it's waiting to have play out on your stage. 

Heaven knows I didn't plan on getting sick or losing so much time trying to get better.
But it's the nature of it... and perhaps in the whole scheme of things, it's been good.
One of the things we did manage to do, was go through some of the stuff we'd still had packed from our move here  almost 3yrs ago... and I have had a renewed sense of urgency to unload and clear out things we really don't need to be hanging on to. ... to fix up some of the things we have in order to sell them... and to organize the things we intend to keep, so that we can access them and actually use them to our best advantage. It's all about streamlining... lightening our load... and making the best use of what we have. 
It is with trepidation, that I have canceled my participation in shows for the remainder of the year...
For now, I will be concentrating on selling my work online, out of my studio space, and at my friend's place over in Germania, PA.
I think, that now is the time to reorganize and concentrate on making the best artwork that I am able to
... and concentrate on building my skills and honing my craft. 
After all, who knows what the future will bring.

See you all tomorrow.

9-14-16


Several months ago, I started a new "series" of posts... if you will...  
And so on Wednesdays; I intend to post an old photograph to inspire your creativity.
Write a poem!  Plot out a short story!    
Have inspiration for a piece of art or composition.... let your artistic soul shine.      
 (you can click on the photos in this post to make it larger to see).

((I love this photo... here is my take on it))

This is Frederick.
Poor Frederick. Frederick was the runner up to the RCA "make your dog a star!" contest.
But his cousin, Buster, beat him... and now has a 50yr contract with RCA Victor.
Frederick says it was destined, he snarls.... as "Buster was always the favorite.
Momma named him after the movie actor and it went to his head..."
Now Frederick and Buster don't even share a bone with each other at Thanksgiving.

9-13-16


So. I've been sick.
... and I apologize for not posting these past few days.

I was started on a new medication 2 weeks ago, and it's been a bit of a bugger to get used to it.
Good news... I've probably slept more in the past 2 weeks than I have in a very long time; and actually feel rested.
Good news... I have ankles for the first time in many, many years (decades). 
Good news... I've lost about 17lbs in 2 weeks... which is mostly fluid... which is really good for my heart. 
Good news...markedly less of the chronic day to day pain I have with my SLE and such. 
Not so good news... nausea, vomiting, dizziness, brain-fog, passing out...  
 oh, an as a bonus... I managed to get a whopper of an ear/ sinus infection. 
However, the past couple of days I have started to feel a bit more human, so we'll see how it goes.

We also took this opportunity to start going through the 30-ish boxes of books that we've never unpacked since moving to PA. So far, I think we've decided to part with over half of them... and it's a good thing. I've checked the value of some of them, mostly some of the older ones... and will be selling some of them online or locally. But it's good to have them all out where we can see them and be able to access them. I am definitely my father's/ grandmother's daughter... and I have a "thing" for old books... but it's silly to have so many that you can't even get to them. And with having a small house... it's just the right thing to do. 

And it's starting to look like Autumn out there! 
The bottle cap gentian is blooming... the wild turkey have been close enough to hear as they wander in the woods...
and apples are falling from our ancient crab-apple trees in the yard.

Time for tea...
See you all tomorrow.

(the photo for today's post is a photograph that I took yesterday of some of the leaves on our burning bush plant in the yard. 
The colors were just gorgeous, and I made the photograph into one of my mandala prints)

9-9-16



I'm still trying to rest and recoup... so today I am simply posting some photos.
See you all tomorrow.

9-8-16



Yesterday I found out that a friend had (suddenly) passed. 
We didn't know each other terribly well, but she was one of those people that you meet and just feel as though you have been friends with her for your whole life. She was the embodiment of the term "free spirit"... and she adored life. She was full of joy every single time I saw her; laughing and relishing every moment. I know that she will be missed by many folks far and wide.
So, to you, my friend, I raise my glass... 

9-7-16



Several weeks ago, I started a new "series" of posts... if you will...  
And so on Wednesdays; I intend to post an old photograph to inspire your creativity.
Write a poem!  Plot out a short story!    
Have inspiration for a piece of art or composition.... let your artistic soul shine.      
 (you can click on the photos in this post to make it larger to see).

I have no idea how old this photo is, although I could guess by the clothes these happy girls are wearing, 
that it is sometime in the early 1900s-teens.
To me, they look like they are on vacation.
Perhaps they have taken a trip to one of the great lakes. 
Perhaps they are on their way to Niagara Falls? or maybe Canada?
At any rate, they look happy to be out and about and exploring new things.
As, I hope, are you today.

See you all tomorrow.