Leap of Faith - Rock n Roll Craft Show

It's a leap of faith that I took this evening and submitted my application thru ZAPP for the Rock and Roll Craft Show, to be held in St. Louis the weekend following Thanksgiving. I may have lost my mind. But it's all about following a dream and living the life I imagine. I have been postponing too many things, and had/have convinced myself that I let others manage my life. I am the only one in charge. ( Well, except for that God stuff, that is.) Generally, the only person stopping me...is well....me.

Here's my artist statement. And the photos here are the photos I submitted of my work.

Now off to work.

Paper, textiles, fiber and STUFF, that’s what my ART is made of. I am inspired by vintage photos, and images, cast off quilts, linens and blue jeans. I enjoy making new and repurposed projects with paint, ink, paper, rubber stamps, repurposed fabric, embroidery and the quilted arts. As an emerging mixed media artist I continue to explore the conflict between decorative and useful; new and repurposed. Finished creations include cards, journals, collage, photos, totes, purses, ornaments, decorative and gift items for the home and holidays.

never surrender your dreams

Never surrender your dreams.

Jesse Jackson

enough is enough

Enough is enough. It is time to follow your dream and live the artful life you imagine.

I open every door

Not knowing when the dawn will come

I open every door.

Emily Dickinson

My flowers have souls.

A Quote from Lavender and Old Lace

"I always thought my flowers had souls."

August challenge on "Mind Wide Open"
http://mind-wideopen.blogspot.com/2009/08/august-challenge-contest.html

A Wonder Horse In Hand Worth Two In A Rose Bush?

Don't you think this would be a fun addition to your yard? I love it. When I was a kid I had a "Wonder Horse". I don't know what happened to it. We still had it when we sold my parent's house. We must have sold it at the estate sale. My family is holding their collective breath, worrying that this will be added to our yard. It would be fun in the middle of a climbing rose bush.



In search of a 1955 edition of the "Wonder Horse".




If you find one, don't tell my family.

Let your light shine!

Let your light shine!

Kingdom Come State Park, Kentucky

On the road again.

Heading out to Eolia, Kentucky with OHPC for a mission trip. Be back next week!

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Dogs Are Better Than Humans

Dogs are better than humans,
They know
but do not tell.

Emily Dickinson

Another piece that I think I will submitt to www.rocknrollcraftshow.com. The little girl and dog is from a collection of ATC papers I received as a gift. The circles are cut from Basic Grey scrapbooking paper. The sideways check marks on the left are from the background vintage ephemera that I used as the base layer of the collage. It 's a carbon copy page of an invoice from a dry goods story from the late 1890s. Also a scrap of vintage sheet music along the bottom. My new favorite paint colors Paynes Gray and Quinacridone Crimson, which make me thing of Raspberries and Blue Jeans. Also a graphite pencil used for high lighting and shading and fine point sharpie marker for lettering.


I made this!

Sweet & Gentle Child

Be always like the lamb so mild, A kind and sweet and gentle child.

I'm taking another leap of faith, I am going to apply to be in the http://www.rocknrollcraftshow.com/ . The deadline to apply is early September, and the show is the weekend after Thanksgiving. Now to compile some "stuff" to sell, submitt some photos, and write an artist statement. This is my first, officially completed. piece to have available for sale.

It's a collage/mixed media piece on 1/2 inch art fiber board, 4 by 4 inches. Lots of layers and soft gel medium. The image is Dover Clip Art, the words are from a school music book that had been my father's. The little circles are from Basic Grey scrapping paper. The stamped image is from Stampin' Up and I painted over the letters with titanium white Golden Fluid acrylics. Someone, probably, should have taken it away from me about an hour before I stopped messing around with it. A lot of the basic background images are covered by paint, there are torn pages from a dictionary, but I like it pretty well. We are all our own worst critics. I'll learn to stop. ( That's hard to say, about many things.)

I made this!

Twilight Chapter 2

Chapter 2 from Twilight. Hmmm....it set the stage for more action.Established Edward and Bella's uneasy early relationship. Bella's class schedule, school routine, and all about cell division. I used some stock photos from Microsoft Office Photos, you can get some simple clip art. There is an image here of a girl looking in a microscope, another of very enlarged cells, and a math equation written on a chalk board. I still can't escape the "green". Class was in building 4. This piece has the feel of a scrapbook page for me, which is ok. I wanted to establish the reason for the OPEN BOOK title for the chapter, Bella's mom's concern for her, and of course, Edward finding Bella "difficult" to read. Why is that? hmmmm... I wonder...

http://chelise.typepad.com/vita_crepusculare/

Oh, by the way, I am officially addicted to digital collage with PSE6.

Contentment - Mind Wide Open

Here is my first entry for the monthly challenge on Gail Schmidt's blog "Mind Wide Open". Each month you can visit her blog and see the image she has posted from her shop, Shabby Cottage Studio's. Your challenge is to use the image and word in your work, and stretch your artistic mind.





I am finding contentment with my digital collage skills. Outside of my comfort zone, Green!





This is the image that Gail provided

Also included is this photo of the coneflowers blooming in my yard.

and this collage element from Gail's shop, that was included in Pam Carriker's Art Journaling class at Creative Workshops.




I am still amazed by the magic you can make with digital collage.

18 years!

It's our 18th Anniversay!

Me 1963

That's me on the left, and my best pal Monica. 1963.
Happy 4th of July everybody!