Four Little Ladies

And now for Colette Copeland. This was my last Silver Bella project to finish. I have mentioned many times that I did not finish one project during the event. Look, I am a college Zoology professor. We have labs. I have taken lots of labs. You get busy, put your head down and finish the project in lab. This makes sense to me.  It seems to not wotk that way with art projects and thus my Incomplete Projects List has grown until I feel I cannot enroll in anything else. It adds buzz to the bee hive that is my brain. Completing a project is so satisfying as is marking all of Silver Bella off my list.

Colette Copeland is the sweetest most precious thing. I wish I had been more aware of her during class but the rush to work and listen and complain was all too much. Her A Bird in the Hand posts are just little sweet kisses. This project is three wee dresses hanging on a line. I used a picture of my mother circa 1933, me, very 70s and my little sweetie in the 90s. Mother was embellished with lace, a treasured button and these little celluloid bangles from the Tinsel Trading booth at Creative Connection.

On my picture I opened the beloved Mrs. Bird bottle for the first time and used some buttons from Miss Colette to surround my picture. I thought that was so appropriate. I love this bowhead picture of myself in the yard.

My little girlie in front of her white and yellow playhouse. I hand stitched a fresh green vine encircling her. Boy how I try to be that vine to enclose, but not encase her. She is a teenager and will leave for college in under two years. I can't take my eyes off of little girls right now. I find such sweet sadness so often these days.

I put my dresses on a linen background and made tabs for hanging. And then I thought it would be great to have some kind of commercial drapery hanger for it. Went to eBay and found one. Look how perfectly it fits. I love this about being alive right now.

Three little girls at the start of different lives with profound impact on each other. I really love all the symbolism here.

The Colette pages in my Junque Journal...

Capturing Colette...

Little Colette Copeland is so sweet and my Project Runway quilt channels her spirit.

Little Angry Fairy

This month I completed all my projects from Silver Bella in November. I was not able to finish one thing while there. User error. Class times too short for unknown reasons. And me saying "this class time isn't long enough" didn't help anyone. Not anyone. I see that now...

This is the Caged Fairy class sample by Kerry Lynn Yeary.

My version. I thought I would be a genius at folding wire. Seriously. I thought I would. I was wrong...

The angry little fairy is my daughter. First day of preschool. She was so mad that I wanted a stop and take a picture. So big and bad with her little rabbit and grimace. That rabbit is like 4 inches long. She was so tiny. And angry. Lawdy, I love her so much.

The Junque Journal entry for the class.

Next and final installment is CoCo's class...

Have You Seen My Whipples?

Well, let me tell you all about them! Artist Lynn Whipple came to Silver Bella 5 and, other than Kaari Meng and the attendees themselves, I signed up because of Ms. Whipple.

She is the most delightful, energetic, positive person. But not annoying. Seriously how does she do that? It's because she is sincere in her joy to share. She was so very generous with her techniques and her praise. Lynn's work above and below.

Recently Heather Ales announced she would take on the challenge of not buying any new supplies for the year of 2011. I really love the idea of this challenge. She does allow buying products she will use within two weeks for a specific project. I have been thinking about this quite a lot. I find I am able to say 'no' to new things by never entering the shop in the first place. I have definitely walked around Michaels with my coupon just looking for something to buy. I mean, I have a Crop-a-dile for god's sake. I don't even really know what to do with it, but I have one.  While I am not going to stop buying supplies, it has made me think about organizing and using what I have to accomplish these unfinished projects.


Lynn at work. Why is so so awesome?

One thing I need to do is stop enrolling in classes while I have so many incomplete projects. I made a list, a long list, of projects that still need to be done. I believe there were about 15 things on it! Last year, I bought three online courses I never did use.  Because classes have offered so much growth and inspiration to me, it is hard to say no.

I did sign on for the Brave Girls Soul Restoration Workshop. Its a 6 week commitment and I intend to take it seriously. It started this week. I am a little scared about it.  The Soul Restoration Workshop says you will print out over 100 pages. And just in time! My printer stops working. Since I also start teaching again, I sucked it up and replaced my dinosaur of a computer. That was a task. I still have to learn how to use everything. However, it feels so peaceful to start the year out feeling good, replacing broken things and getting organized.

So...all this about Heather and the Brave Girls project really is about my Whipples. I decided to just start working through that Incomplete Projects List. Whipple projects were first. I am very delighted with these ladies, 'found aunties' from old photos.

Mama always said pretty is as pretty does...

Just bloom...I cannot take my eyes off this gal.

Fly Girl...Soar...

Once I finished the projects I made a page in my Junque Journal being assembled from the Silver Bella swap of the same name.

This journal is to be a collection of things from Silver Bella and the Gilded Nest as well as other events from the year.

Below is my first art journal, from a Donna Layton class in my last post. In class we mostly talked about the making of a journal. She brought books full of inspiration as well as her own remarkable journal. I did these final pages in the Whipple style. 'Kindergarten,'  my school photos from K through 5th. I will have to show you the rest of the journal sooooon. 

When you can say yes to a class, how do you say no? I got so much inspiration from meeting Lynne Whipple. I could actually hear her encouraging voice in my head while working on these projects.

Oh sure, find a balance between learning, and creating. Sigh. I want to do it all. All the stuff, all the classes and all the time. My mother used to say 'keep chunkin' hard.' Just keep at it. I will keep working on balance. Saying yes. Saying no. The trick is to find the stillness to enjoy it.

As December Declines

This week is that final slide into the new year. I hope you enter this week satisfied and spent in a good way. I'm feeling pretty good. Reflective without remorse. I wanted to post something pretty for the last or nearly last post of the year. Actually I think I post something pretty most of the time and so it is quite fitting to close the year with handmade beauty and the friendships such work inspires.

I did Suz Reaney's Upcycled Treasures one-on-one swap for Silver Bella. Each participant was to create a one of a kind necklace pieced from vintage jewelry and found objects. Suz randomly assigned a giver and givee to each member of the swap. We answered a questionnaire of sorts so we could please our recipients. I had never done a project like this before nor had I met Lisa Orme for whom I was making a necklace.

Let me show off my contribution. Here my packaging which bears Lisa's initial in a brooch. I was very thrilled to see her wearing this rose later in the weekend.

 Aren't layers just delicious?

Inside the pouch was this cigar can I found at Junk Bonanza in Minnesota.

 

Inside the cigar box was another pouch! Packaging foreplay...

 The little velvet pocket held a surprise pair of earrings to go with the necklace.

 Seriously, sexy right?

Ahhhh, the necklace. I had such a hard time parting with this!

Every single piece came from another necklace, earring or button jar.

 This pewter cameo was found at the Canton, Texas flea market.

The entire ensemble...I met Lisa after I designed the necklace and packaging. She is gorgeous and laid back, with a hippie feminine chic quality. Once I took in her delicious style, I even more excited that my creation would be a great fit.

 Here is Lisa opening it at Swap night in Omaha in November of 2010.

Look at cute dear sweet Franc Franke sitting next to Lisa.

I loved this necklace so much I offered to buy it from her if she didn't like it.

No sale...

I absolutely fell for Miss Rita Blanks at Silver Bella in 2009. I was lucky enough to cross paths with her last summer at the Gilded Nest event in Dallas.

Somehow the fates assigned her to make my necklace.

Oh good stuff.

This necklace is a generous melange of rhinestones, pearl birds, robin's egg blue, tarnished brass, silver and gold.

Rita managed to make this piece full of intrigue and yet somehow delicate.

That would describe Rita herself. I adore this woman.

I adore her.



I am so happy how this experience turned out. I have a wonderful new friendship with Suz that got very deep very quickly. Suz returned from Silver Bella to devasting news regarding his husband's health. I am so glad to call her friend.

Thank you Suz for this year of friendship, laughter and tears.

Thank you Rita for you whom I enjoy just knowing out there in the world.

Must Make Pretty Things

My last post was about the 'r' word. Please read it if you have not. If you did read it, thank you. If you read it and commented, thank you, thank you. If you read it, commented, admitted you had used this word and will rethink use of it, I am deeply touched by your candor. If you said you would talk to your children about use of this and other words, then you have changed the world.

We changed the world.

Life has lots of ugliness built in to it. There is pain, sadness and ugliness. This is why we make pretty things, isn't it? In God's image, we create beautiful, interesting things, driven to do so.

On my return from Silver Bella, I had only unfinished projects. I was impressed that Jackie Peters decided to finish a project daily and post about each all week on her blog. She is so driven, efficient and productive. It feels good to produce. It feels good to make something pretty. It is very important. This is often called craft. 'Crafting' is starting to sound like a bad thing. Arts and Crafts, art vs. craft. Craft used to mean a lifetime's work, a honed skill. A craftsman. What if it is the work of a woman's hands? Creating and producing, making beautiful things. Calming herself, restoring her soul.

I have had some drive amidst the knit, knit, knitting I have been doing to get on with the projects from Silver Bella. One was Teresa McFayden's group project called Art Sisters. It was to be 2 x2 inch squares set in a frame. I found it very difficult to get much done on site. Also, if I make something, I need some incubation time to figure out what I would actually want hanging around my house. I do try to edit. Some people have no such obstacles and busted out some astounding things. This from Karla Nathan, a fully decorated frame. !

  

Danielle Muller. Oh Danielle. Look how gorgeous this is. And complete. How do people do that? It creates a little competitiveness in me. It also gives that negative voice something to work with. Mostly, however, it is like watching an athlete perform the unbelievable, it inspires me.

I love Danielle's quiet and lovely piece. Also, Danielle is cute all over.

I decided to take the Art Sisters chunks I did complete and combine them with my Junque Journal swap. Sheila Rumney completed the front and gave us the back of the journal covered in music.

I added my Art Sisters to the very back journal cover.

I added the remaining project contents and intructions to the inside face of the back cover. I intend to build the journal from my swap packages.

While I did not take the Kaari Meng necklace class, I purchased the kit. I had some time one late afternoon recently. I rarely work in our library but the afternoon sun called me to this spot and I worked from here.

Here is my necklace and it is fabulous.

From left over pieces, I made these earrings.

I found a beautiful place to sit. I am grateful to have a beautiful safe place to sit. I create beautiful things. Thank you hands, grateful for time.

Grateful for this blog.

Thank you dear reader. I feel inspired by you and these beautiful things.