New Treasures

These are some of the new treasures I found at the Grapevine, Texas convention. I traveled with two awesome art friends, Jan and Barb!




I debated for a long time whether to purchase Teesha's journals. The pages have never been published before and I found them to be very inspirational for my own journal pages! I am thrilled that I decided to buy!



I love "Lost Coast Designs" and I purchased the coolest images. The embellishments were purchased from "A Stamp in the Hand".



Susan from Stamp Diva made a maze book recently with the cowboy/cowgirl theme. I am hooked. I purchased some stamps from her and I found some (above) at the convention. You can view Susan's wonderful Cowgirl maze book using the link on the left "Diva & Friends". Then you can start your own collection!



I love these moulds. I use them using polymer clay...but could also be used with the hot wax. There was such a huge selection that it was difficult to decide!



These clear stamps look like antique lace! I can wait to use them. Won't they be perfect for the paper doll projects... and all the other stuff I make!



These stamps probably have been out there for awhile, but they are new to me. They were purchased from "A Stamp in the Hand". Sets 1 and 2 can be inter-changed with each other.



I love stencils, too. The snowman is for Kimberly!

Favorite Things

These are a few of my favorite things to see in my yard during the summer.

The glass garden bulb was purchased from a shop in St. Charles, Missouri a few years ago. I love how is fits into the azaleas.

The White Rabbit from an Alice in Wonderland collection was purchased with my late brother-in-law Bob in mind. He was always running late....and we have a reminder of "Uncle Bob" as we all called him each time we pass going and coming from our home.
He is snuggled in among the greenery checking the time.

Summer in Tulsa

My neighbor Holly has a great gardening thumb and these are the photos of the beautiful landscape that I get to enjoy all year long!

This is the view of our side yard looking into her yard. The very dear neighbors we had before only had a beautiful green lawn. Bernie always wanted to plant flowers but her extremely frugal husband Eli was against such a frivolous expense. They were the original owners to the property and raised their family there for forty-five years.

The new owners were so excited to have this "blank" canvas in which to paint with flowers. Holly has done an incredible transformation. Bernie has passed on and it gives me great pleasure to know that her property is brimming with luscious plants!

Brillante WeBLOG Award!

Thank you Catherine Moore for nominating my blog! She is the creator of Character Constructions and most recently hosted the Theatre des Modes. You can view the slide show at both her blog and website. Catherine's artwork is also been featured on the cover of The Artful Storybook by Terry Taylor.

In accepting this award, I agree to:
1. Display logo and link to who gave it.
2. Nominate at least 7 blogs.
3. Add links to those 7 blogs.
4. Leave the nominees a message that they received the award.

I would like to share this award with the following BLOGS:


Vintage Moon Studio
Farmgirl Fare
Faerie * Dust * Dreams
The Paris Apartment
A Bird in the Hand
Tongue in Cheek
On A Wing & A Prayer

Thanks Joe for helping me with this post!

Door to Adventure

This is a page from my very large journal where I found different photos of doors. I am very enchanted by doors! When I am the passenger in the car, I can not help but look at each of the doors on the houses in a neighborhood.

To me, the door is the portal for adventure. You don't know what is on the other side, but you want to open it to find out. And what's waiting for you most of the time is a "good thing".

I've opened the door for my own opportunities in jobs, friends, art....even this blog!

I purchased a stain glass door at an auction that originally came from England. My husband took out the mail slot and we added an antique escutcheon with wonderful detailed scroll work and an antique brass door knob to match. It is now the entry door between the sun room and garage. Each time I open the door going into the garage, I just know someday I am going to be so surprised to find the garage clean. What I do find is my awesome car to take me to the next adventure!

The Other Paris

Okay, so Charles City, Iowa is not the same as visiting Paris. One of these days soon....I'll have an opportunity to visit Paris. In the meantime, it's off to Iowa to spend July 4th with my sister Annie and her family. We've been getting together over this holiday for about twenty years now. Sometimes we meet around Bull Shoals Lake in Arkansas, too.

The best thing about traveling to Iowa is the very nice and welcoming cool weather compared to the ovens of Oklahoma! It's so refreshing. And the second great thing is that we travel through Kansas City and I get a chance to see one of my favorite brothers, Paul and his amazing wife and family. The visit will be too short!

One of the big attractions that my husband and I always look forward to is the small town parade. It is an absolutely "must" see experience. It always makes me cry because everyone knows everyone and the whole spirit is terrific. Charles City is known as American's hometown. There will be antique tractors, new farm equipment, the local fire department, and the local horse club. Then there are many surprises of floats and advertising of small businesses.

I also want to mention that the fireworks display is beyond Tulsa. First, everyone all year long donate to the fireworks in the donation jars set in all the businesses for the whole year. They raise a ton of money.....so look north...you'll see incredible fireworks!

So I am off to see I O W A ! ! !

(The recent floods have really created hardships for the farmers and city folks. I pray their recovery from this disaster is speedy!)

Eye of God

Isn't this an amazing photo....it's named the "Eye of God". I love space photos and can look at them for hours.

The Universe is beyond my imagination!

Love That Man of Mine

My sister Mary took this photo of my husband at a family gathering. The expression on his face is one that most people see. It would describe Bill - who is always optimistic about life's problems. He is the most loving and generous person I know.

June is the month we celebrate our anniversary and we've now been married thirty-seven years. Where does that time go?

Bill is been my biggest fan and crazy in love with me. Gotta love that man of mine!

Garage Sale Finds

Don't you love garage sales? Just before the rains came on Saturday, our neighborhood had a garage sale. I didn't have time to participate...oh, yes, I did.....I bought!

This is the first of the treasures I found to make me smile.

I'll place them in my sunroom...perfect location.

Marie - Queen of France

Before Catherine Moore's (Character Constructions http://www.characterconstructions.com/) Toy Theatre invitation.....I did not know much about Marie Antoinette. But before I began my project, I purchased the books that Catherine suggested and began reading. She was for me, a fasinating woman whose entire life unfolded before me as I read. One of the best books I enjoyed was "The Journey" by Antonia Fraser. It was written in such a style that held your interest to find out the "what's next".

This was my second purchase on the garage sale route in our neighborhood. As soon as I spotted Marie, I knew I wanted her to be in my studio.

Last of the Treasures

My immediate next door neighbor had for sale the Sho-Do Calligraphy - Life in Miniature set for $1.00. Who could resist?

It is so tiny and cute! And it's perfect for display!

All these treasures and all within walking distance! If I was smart, I should have insisted that they choose something from my house as a trade....yes, maybe the ratio should be 3 of mine for 1 of yours!

Monk and Penelope

Tulsa had a terrible rain storm yesterday that uprooted trees, broke tree limbs, and down power lines. I live in mid-town and this is the second hardest hit storm we've had recently. Our beloved trees have taken quite a beating ! ! !

I sure did not want to get up this morning to go to work. I was so tired....but when I arrived at our office, we discovered we're without power. So yeah.....back at home.

When I walked through the door, I found my two very adorable pets sleeping away.....

They were so stressed with the storm yesterday, too. Now they are snoring away without a care. Monk has a small black mark on his nose and is just a bit larger than Penelope in size. They are litter mates and most of the time....best friends.

Books, Bunnies, and Tea

I am crazy about books, especially my art books! There are gobs of books in my studio and I have purchased so many book/magazine holders for them. Already the shelves are brimming with art books and now my desk. Never would I contemplate discarding my Somerset Studio issues, RubberStampMadness, Cloth, Paper, Scissors and all the "how-to's".

I love sitting in my very comfortable studio chair, read about new techniques (or at least new to me) and enjoy a cup of tea. This is my routine in the evening when I am too tired from a day at work.....especially on Monday nights.

The little bunny hides the post-it-notes for marking pages to study later or trying a new technique. I have lots of magazines that have the little post-it-note tags sticking out everywhere.

Am I the only one who has an obsession with art books and magazines? And just what do you do with them so they are available when you want to research but not in your space for creating?

Memorial Holiday

I am so excited to see family over Memorial Weekend! I have lots and lots of family and everyone is traveling from all parts of the country. It's going to be wonderful just hanging out with life!

Yipee! Not to forget good conversations and good food!

Tennessee is a beautiful state and there is so much to do!

Forever Friends

My art friend, Minori lives in Japan. I have gotten to know her through many art exchanges. She's doing a remarkable job of corresponding in English and I have learned a lot from her. One of the big things that I have gleaned is that even though she lives on the other side of the world with a culture and language barrier...we're the same. She is a woman my age with the same experiences, joys, and desires. We're sisters, so to speak and I am excited that I have had the opportunity to find this out! Minori took this photo of her climbing roses in the front of her home. Beautiful!

Published in RubberStampMadness!!!

I just received my May/June 2008 issue of RSM featuring my book. WOW!! It's always a thrill to being published and seeing your artwork in print! This book was a joy to make and I appreciate the great writing by Joyce Baldwin that really captured my feelings about the project. RSM is a terrific publication and their staff is awesome. RSM http://www.rsmadness.com/ has done two feature articles previously on my work and this is my fourth time being published by them. I've added the photos of my book to the slide show at the right side.

I never tire of rubber stamping and I so appreciate this publication that is dedicated to this art medium. The biggest craze seems to be scrapbooking - but wouldn't that hobby be even more fun with rubber stamp images being added to the pages telling your story? I am also a calligrapher - and I add rubber stamp images to my projects there too!

So if you are a rubber stamper and have not sent in your art work to RSM - I can only encourage you to do so. They are a kind and generous staff who really appreciates their readers!

Innovative Calligraphy

Philbrook Museum http://www.philbrook.org/ is hosting a juried exhibit of recent artwork by members of the Calligraphy Guild of Oklahoma. Our artwork will be on display for about 6 weeks. Thursday, April 10th is our opening reception and I can hardly wait! This is a lame photo of my piece named "Krazy Kat". I made this piece when Denis Brown from Dublin, Ireland, http://www.quillskill.com/ taught a class at our guild. Michaels Craft Center did the framing for me and their staff is awesome. I invited King, Sue, and James. I pretty sure they'll be there since they framed most of the artwork!

Altered Book

I participated in an altered book round robin which began in September 2007 and ended in March 2008. This weekend, my awesome book of "Time" returned back to me. I say awesome because of all the terrific artists that left their special blueprint in my book. (I had my drawing class on Friday but because the package was waiting for me when I was leaving the house, I could not wait.....so I had to open the package. Well, needless to say - I did not make it to my drawing class)!

There are so many details! It is a treat to sit down and view the pages and then to discover something you missed before. There is so much eye candy!

This book bounced backed between the United States, Japan, and England. I apologized to those that had to pay the international shipping costs! This book weighed too much! But I vowed that my next altered book round robin would be a miniature book! I promised them!

Click on the link to see the pages in this book: and select "Fifth Child Studio". You can view my other artwork there as well.

Miniature Pop-up Theatres!

I first learned of these theatres from Catherine Moore when she wrote in her blog about a friend that had sent her a popup miniature theatre. From Catherine's site, I visited Iisha Helfman's site: http://www.hestiahouse.com/ where you can order these very delightful theatres. It's hard to decide which one you want to have - they all are so adorable. I ordered the Christmas theatre for my daughter Kimberly, for that is her favorite holiday. The garden theatre is perfect for my friend Karen, as she has a special connection to all things bunnies and gardens. I thought it would be such a wonderful treat for those children she works with at the hospital. I am saving one of the theatres for my own collection....which I photographed here - but to see the best photo, visit their web site!

Iisha Helfman processes your orders quickly and responds to any questions you might have. I could not be more thrilled when I received my theatres all neatly packaged in a wonderful corresponding folder inserted into the just right size envelope.

What an artful treasure to share with little ones where they can make their own stories for the scene....Oh, who am I kidding....what an artful treasure to share with any age!

After posting, I guess it will no longer be a surprise for Karen or Kimberly when they receive their theatres. Thanks Iisha!

No Expectations Journaling

When I first saw individual journal pages being published in magazines such as Somerset Studio, I fell in love with the journals and I knew that I wanted to do some journals of my own. However, the beginning process was not as easy as I thought it would be. At first, I intimidated myself with high expectations of how my journals should look and feel. When I discovered that I have my own style and set of rules (no rules), I freed myself to just being able to write what I wanted to, whether it was meaningful or not. The point for me was, being artful.

I have made journals now of all sizes and paper types. When I am in the mood for rubber stamping and adding text with all the different markers and pens, then I choose the journals that I have made with card stock. I also have journals made with watercolor paper that I use when I want to add my own color background and adding text with a dip pen. I make these journals different sizes as I found if I want to add a lot - then the "too small size" was too difficult for me. Then of course, the flip side - when I have only a few words of text, the "huge" size would be too intimidating to even begin.

So I would encourage everyone to begin a journal and know it is for you. You can either choose to share your pages or not. There is no right or wrong way to do your journal. Give yourself permission to enjoy the process and learn from your own entries.

I have found that I enjoy my own journals but later in time. This particular journal I begin over a year ago.

I used a cover from an old book and inserted my own papers.

Making Artful Surroundings

I know I am probably like a lot of women out there who are "saving" that wonderful gift or purchase to use for the perfect "someday." After arriving home from a recent trip where I bought additional pieces of Portmeirion and placing them in the cupboard along with my everyday 'ugly' dishes. I had an Aha! Moment. I made a decision to unload all of my everyday dishes (functional - but not beautiful). I have so many beautiful dishes so why not use them - ALL of them - EVERYDAY?!

So I packed up a few boxes of dishes for donation and now my kitchen only has the "good" dishes to use! And I use them each day because....."SOMEDAY IS TODAY" and that is really all we have....TODAY!

Off to my studio to replace "function" with "beauty and function". This is either a sugar container or spoon holder from the past that makes a really neat pen/pencil/brush holder. There....that already looks better!

ATC's

ATC's have been popular for some time now. I imagined by the time I completely filled an old sewing drawer full of ATC's, then I would be "done" making them. But that's not the case.

They are little miniature works of art that allow an artist to try new techniques and ideas without a lot of time or materials invested. I enjoy making them best when there is no theme attached. It allows me to use those bits of scraps and odd embellishments that I have just about everywhere in my studio space. I just can't quit making these cards!

I have started giving an ATC away along with a birthday greeting or tucked inside a book with a message for the recipient. I am enjoying even more when I add a calligraphic letter or word and coloring my own background paper.

When I have an ATC arriving in the mail for me....I love sitting down for a cup of tea and taking the time to enjoy the miniature artwork.

Again, I am hoping the popularity of these little jewels stay around for awhile....I am just not tired of making them yet.

These ATC's were done by Madison and Judi in a recent trade.

Irene Has Arrived

Can you believe I actually won?!!! Denise made this felted brooch and it arrived today. I have already attached it to my favorite jacket's lapel. Won't I be stylish!!! Yes, I am so lucky!

Visit Denise at First Born Studio: http://firstbornstudio.blogspot.com/ and you can link to her Etsy site http://www.etsy.com/shop.php?user_id=51477 here if you want to acquire your own handmade felted brooch by Denise!

I LOVE IT!! I will be seeing you soon - xoxoxoxo

THANKS!

Birthday Gift

This was one of my birthday gifts. My sister and I made a pact a few years ago that we would send HANDMADE items to each other for our birthdays. It makes the gifts so special. I treasure all of them!

Annie, made this for me. I don't know the design/pattern name - I'll call it the 8 Star design... quilters always name their work. Funny, I do, too! I have already placed it on my dining room table. The colors are wonderful - I LOVE IT!

Thanks Annie!

Another Gift From Sister

This bag ROCKS! I have already received a dozen compliments on it. It's the perfect size, too. Annie added such neat trim and it has little "feet" on the bottom of the bag.

Thanks Annie! You're the best!

Just For Fun Information

This is such a fun tool. No matter what you draw....it will be child-like. Just celebrate the little kid within! http://www.zefrank.com/scribbler/.

I am so proud of my sister's grandson, Alix. He is living life large and don't you know....he is going to do great things with his life. He has the best parents, Luke and Dixie! Wow! ! ! What an amazing family. This is Alix's site: http://walk.jdrf.org/index.cfm?fuseaction=extranet.personalpage&confirmid=86736180.

For an ATC trade, I suggested a "Ya-Ya Sisterhood" name as the theme. This is where you can get your name: http://ya-ya.com/yaya_name

Antique Buttons

I collect antique buttons. My favorite ones have been given to me by my sister-in-law, Pat. She is also a collector of buttons but she is willing to share. I keep the most prized buttons in an antique jelly mold from England. It's a great way to display the buttons and I can see them easily any time I want some eye candy!

Photo of my Front Yard

Tulsa is still trying to recover from a winter storm that arrived a week or so before Christmas. We were without power for nine days...but we personally purchased a generator so we were toasty warm in our home along with house guests.

The City of Tulsa has contracted to have the tree limbs removed from the curbs. Today was the second pass for the pick up of debris. We will have one more pick up that will happen in a couple of weeks. Yes, February is almost over.

The limbs were stacked on our street about 6 feet high and you could barely see driveways. Our cleanup is still in progress. There is so much to do yet. Our city is in a really ugly state right now!

Roses For Sara

Don't you just love shopping Tuesday Morning?! I have this wonderful bouquet of roses on my dining room table that look and feel so real that I have had guests lean over to smell the fragrance. They have a puzzled look on their faces when there is no fragrance! I have them in a frosted vase and that gives the impression they are in water.

Studio Stuff

I have such a great studio space. I am in the process of purging as I have almost outgrown my space and that's a huge ridiculous. But here are a few of my favorite things one will find in my space: Monk, an apron June handpainted which is a treat to look at, and Kimberly's wizzard which makes me smile!

Recycle

Thanks to Larry's cigar addiction and Debbie's thoughtfulness in saving those boxes for me....I had plenty to share with the workshop participants. Instead of the traditional goodie "bag", they're receiving the goodie "box". Thanks Larry and Debbie!

Brush Lettering Practice

Someone at our Calligraphy Guild said that even commission work was "practice". This felt like commissioned work as I wanted to do a really great job on each person's scrap paper book. I took this idea from my friend, Denise when she sent me one of her books along with a piece of artwork. Hey....what a great idea...there is something to do with all those bits of scraps! So after I stapled a few papers together, I just started writing their names on the covers using a Pentel brush pen. Oooooh, that was fun, too!

Retreat Goodie Bags

What terrific fun I've had this weekend playing around with alcohol inks!! The hardest part was choosing the best necklace for each participant in our workshop. I used a rubber stamp specifically sized for the dominoe and applied a glaze on top. Of course, they needed to be drilled for the black silk cording.

Family Ties

A man named Joe came into my life, my daughter's life, and my family's life. He is connected to us to many ways. I was fortunate to meet his father before he died. What an imposing figure, both an "old coot" tough guy but also of a gentle nature. I think he has inspired Joe to take a risk. First it was a marathon and now a new challenge. This is his site....perhaps you will be inspired, too. http://www.ironwimp.com/

Sister's Exchange

My sister's name is officially Annie; however, we address each other only by "sister." Just like the Baldwin sisters from The Walton's. And we both appreciate "the recipe" too. So sister and I decided to exchange fabric pages until we have enough to make a fabric book or die trying....whatever comes first. I should mention that she suggested the first challenge which was rick-rack. This is her first page and it's awesome. I LOVE it!!! Sister is so clever! Just how much of the recipe did she consume to make such great Yo'yo's?


Sister thinks that I am teasing her, but honestly I have mailed to her my exchange and she should receive it on Saturday. I could not resist making her the angel that she is in my life!

The angel doll fits inside the pocket and the description is listed on the Evidence Tag.

The next challenge.....zippers! Stay tuned.....

PMS

I'm that age...what can I say. My husband buys me a lot of milk and now I know why!

Merry Christmas from Madison!

Madison is a very artistic thirteen year old who made this wonderful ATC for me. She enclosed it in a shadow box that she also made. I am so lucky that she has adopted me as her mentor!