Living Out Loud

New Year, New Leaf!

noreply@blogger.com (Loudlife) — Thu, 02 Jan 2014 05:57:00 +0000

(5x5, Available, $35 on Etsy)

Well, hello there! It's been a while. A loooooooooong while. The evil-yet-somehow-beloved Facebook stole me away from my blog for quite some time. On top of that, I have gotten very far away from my steady art habits. But! I'm climbing back on the bandwagon, ready to play my heart out.

To that end, I am going to participate in the "30 Paintings in 30 Days" project that Leslie at Slices of Life is coordinating. Leslie's Day One post is here.

On Day One, I have sucked.

Oh.

By the time I slept in (It IS New Years Day), had breakfast, had a hair-combing war with my child, got us both dressed and ready, went to a birthday party, went to the store, and came home, it was nearly 7:30. I have since been hanging out with the the family. Hm. No painting done. So I'm starting out behind. Meh.

Well, I'm going for it anyway. Today, I will post a picture of a painting I completed earlier this year. (On the bright side, it was completed in a single day!) Tomorrow, I will have to work on 2 paintings to try to catch up.

Hey, I'm feeling pretty proud that I updated my blog look, wrote a post (Albeit a small one), and posted something on Etsy!

Onward and upward!

Painting available here: https://www.etsy.com/shop/Loudlife?ref=l2-shopheader-name

You Can Help Rexy's School Win a 5,000 Dollar Arts Education Grant!

noreply@blogger.com (Loudlife) — Thu, 18 Oct 2012 08:22:00 +0000

KRIS Wine is having a contest to give winning schools money for Arts Education. Basically you submit your school's name and then they post it in the listing on their Facebook page and then you and everyone you know votes for your school there. (You can vote every day.)

I found about it after it had already started, but I thought, "Why not try?" So I submitted our school's name. By the time they confirmed our entry it was three weeks in, but hey - you never know, right? So I posted it on the PTSA Facebook page and it captured the imagination of another of the moms and she became an overnight, one-woman cheer squad! Virtually overnight, we went from the bottom of the list with 3 votes (which I believe were from me, my sister, and my sweet friend Kris) to being in the running for a grant!

How the winnings shake out is like this: The top 16 schools get grants. Schools 7 - 16 get $1000 grants, schools 2-6 get $2000 grants, and the #1 school gets a $5000 grant. For our little 150 student school, even a thousand dollars is like a fortune! We, literally, are the hand-me-down school in the district. We don't even get bus service for our school. So we, the PTSA, are constantly fundraising and constantly applying for conventional grants and constantly putting out calls for this donation and that donation. I know all schools do that, but seriously - our school is in constant danger of being closed because it is so small that the government-money-per-student we get is only just enough to keep the doors open. And a big influx of money earmarked especially for arts education??? Are you kidding me? It's like a miracle!

As the last 4 weeks have gone by we have been slowly but surely climbing up the listings. One of the top schools has 1200 students, the school in the #1 spot - and they have been in it for nearly the whole contest - has a bit over 500 students. And we, with our little 150 student school are now in THIRD PLACE! Yeah, you read me right! 3rd place!!! Whoooo Hoooooooooooooooo!

The number one school has a huge lead over everybody. We are nearly 3000 votes behind them (we have 1708 to their 4657 as I write this). It's a little daunting, but we've got 2 weeks to catch them (contest ends October 31st). We need to bring in about 225 - 300 votes per day to pass them. Currently, we hold steady at around 100 per day.

So I am asking you, dear blogosphere, for your support in this endeavor. Please help me help Rexy's school and go to Facebook, go to KRIS Wine, "like" them, click on the box that says "Win $5000 for your kids' school," click on the purple circle that says "Vote Here" and enter "Cascade K-8" in the search box. A little red pushpin will appear on the map, click it, and click on the little box at the bottom of the pop-up. It's a lot of steps, I know. But look at those sweet faces in the video - don't they make it worth it?

My girl feeding a bird at the zoo.

Blog post coming soon! In the meantime, Check out this awesome - so awesome! - video from Lynn Whipple if you haven't already. (Or even if you have)

noreply@blogger.com (Loudlife) — Fri, 15 Apr 2011 18:03:00 +0000

Art at the Speed of Life Blog Tour - Day 12

noreply@blogger.com (Loudlife) — Sat, 12 Mar 2011 12:00:00 +0000

Here is what it looked like over at my house when I agreed to be on the Art at the Speed of Life Blog Tour:

Blog tour………………………………………………….

Hmmm………………………………………………………….

…

Oh! Look at the time! I’d better go do that………….that……..….thing………………

Yeah…That one thing. That one that really needs to be done right now instead of this…

Right?

…

Yep. Here I am in this book and I suspect that someone came in the night and sucked all the creativity out of me.

In fact, I’m sure of it! Call the authorities!

…

Okay, maybe not.

Hmm………………………………………………………………………….

…

Here’s how I came to be in this predicament:

I’ve known Pam for over 34 years – we were newborns then! …Yeah, right. Anyway - Pam and her sister very kindly approached me at the school bus stop when I first moved into the neighborhood and, as it turned out, lived right across the street from me. We became fast friends. As I got to know her, it became obvious that Pam was very creative and artistic. We became the best of friends and I was very sad when she had to move a few years later. We kept in touch for a while but lost track of each other around 1985 or so. Fast forward to April of 2007 and lo and behold! Pam and I find each other in a small online group! After more than 20 years! Here we were doing the same sort of art and unknowingly making the same online friends. Small world, eh?

When we connected and started talking, Pam told me that she was going to try getting published in a couple magazines. Well, of course they loved her work - and her! She quickly became a favorite in the world of mixed media publications. I was (and still am) so proud to know her! After generously sharing her techniques and work with people via magazines and online classes, Pam started writing her book. I was so excited for her!

When Pam asked me to be in the book I sort of panicked. What? Stop having cocktails for breakfast, Pam! Be in a book about finding time for art? I need that book! My work area is always a disaster and that disaster grows like a flood plain during monsoon season. I’m volunteering for my daughter’s school about 3 times a week and I usually work on 3 or 4 fundraisers a year for it. My daughter has autism, so I work with her after school and on weekends on socialization issues. My husband has an active vintage bicycle hobby and we produce two big events a year. Our house is miniscule and I certainly don’t have a “studio.” The amount of art Pam and many of my other online friends produce astounds me. Why on earth would anyone want me to be in a book about making time for art?

Oh – wait! Despite all of the above, I was listening when Pam first told me about how she finds time for art in her life. I actually do produce some art from the jumble of supplies that inhabit my work area. I may not work on things every day, but that’s me – busy and running around, and needing some down time when I stop moving. (And there’s that small matter of my computer game addiction…) I realized that I do make “art at the speed of life;” the speed of my life. So I would say, don’t be intimidated by your schedule and time constraints. And don’t put pressure on yourself to be productive in a way that doesn’t work for you. You can find time in your life for making art. I do, and, frankly, I’m kind of lazy!

The Trials and Tribulations - and Completion! - of a Painting...Plus a Really Cool Real Cake!

noreply@blogger.com (Loudlife) — Wed, 09 Mar 2011 22:26:00 +0000

So here is the process I went through for the "Let Them Eat Cake" painting. I started out taking photos of each step, and did really well for a while; unfortunately, once I got started on the actual picture, I got so caught up in it that I forgot to take photos! Oh, well.

Okay, here's the blue on the red. I didn't like the blue paint that I had on it, so I tried mixing another color. Here it is with the two separate colors. After it dried, I did another sketch right on the canvas. This one I did with watercolor pencil. I like using watercolor pencils for sketching on paintings. They're so easy to erase and don't leave residue for the most part. Sometimes I can't get charcoal pencil off the paint when I make a mistake and if I've custom mixed the background color, painting over it becomes a hassle.

After I sketched it I realized two things. One, the cake plate was way out of proportion to the rest of the cake. Two, I still hated the background color, waaaaaaaay too bright. (It's hard to tell in the photo, you'll have to take my word for it!) I started to wipe off the sketch and then realized that it didn't matter if I was just going to paint over it - plus I still needed to take this photo.

You know what that meant, right? Shopping! Oh, yeah... Took a quickie trip to Michaels because I was sure I had gotten Golden liquids there before. Wrong. The good news about that is that I didn't have to make a total decision on the color there at the store. The paints they had were cheap enough that I could pick out a couple colors to try and pick up another bottle of my favorite green.

Here is me throwing a couple sample strokes of paint at the painting. Even though they both looked quite blue in the bottles, against the brightness of the blue underneath one looked gray and one looked green! Agh! So I decided to mix them together and see what happened. I didn't mind it, it need a little somethin', somethin, but overall was happy with how the color was turning out.

But then, ack! I realized that there were some very unsightly bumps on the canvas! (Help! Canvas ProActiv, STAT!) So I tried sanding them down and painting over them. While the bumps felt smooth, as soon as I put paint on them, they showed up big time. Sigh.

So I was like, "Okay, I'll put some molding paste on the canvas! No problem!" Oh, lordy! So far from even, it just started creating more oddness.(That's wet paint from when I was painting over the sanded part and the white part is the molding paste that I gave up on.)

So I just pulled out another canvas and picked one of the new paints - the aforementioned grey looking one that looked perfectly lovely and blue when it wasn't on top of the other, brighter blue - and painted yet another background. Which, yes, I forgot to photograph!

Then, while that was drying, I sketched, cut out, and outlined the vintage dictionary page that I was using for the cake plate. I love my vintage dictionary! It is one of those gigantic, 6 inch ones from the late forties and has awesome color pictures of different species of animals, birds, reptiles and the solar system. It also has maps of the world, and charts for the moon phases and other fun stuff. It belonged to a boy that lived next door to my husband when he a little kid. One day my DH took me on a drive and showed me his old house - he hadn't been there in years - and the neighbor was having an estate sale because she was moving into a nursing home. It was the same neighbor, the boy's mother, after all this time! Her son had written his name in his little-boy handwriting on the cover, so I think of the coincidence of that day every time I pick it up.

I also went over to the computer and experimented with fonts for the "Let Them Eat Cake." I printed it out and, because I have an ink jet printer and it will otherwise smear with the slightest moisture, I sprayed the printout with a clear, matte, quick-drying finish. I cut out the words and inked them up a bit so that they didn't look so starkly white. Then I outlined the words with a dull-ish charcoal pencil. In some sort of elven magic way, if I write on the paper soon enough after spraying, the charcoal seems to meld with the spray and doesn't smear when I run my finger over it. I've no idea why not.

Then I got to painting - and forgot to take any pictures! So here is the finished product. I know it doesn't appear that the original blue and this blue are all that different - but they really are quite different from each other! And isn't this cake plate so much more in proportion than it was in either of the sketches?

The other thing I was going to show you was this amazing cake I saw at a 6 year-old's birthday party that we went to. It was FANTASTIC! The little girl's grandmother made it and she is NOT a professional. Can you believe it??? She made each and every thing. 5 little fairies and each one has completely different hair! One of them even has ringlets! There is a teeny, tiny, little tea party on the stump; teeny, tiny teapot, teeny tiny cups, and little pinwheel rolls and a tiny cake. Each cupcake had a big flower, 2 little flowers, and 3 leaves; and each flower and leaf was hand-painted! Besides what you see here, there were 30 more cupcakes lined up on 3 long tables for the kids. I talked to Hollie, the little girl's mother, and she told me that her mom had always made amazing cakes for birthdays. Can you imagine the amount of work that went into this??? Geez! It was all I could do to get to the store to pick up the cupcakes for Rexy's class on her birthday. I mean, I can sort of see doing it as a grandmother or an aunt (my sister makes really awesome cakes for Rexy's birthday parties) but when you actually have children at home??? I would be calling for cocktails before the third flower was painted - frankly, before it was even iced! I'm thinking of sending this to Cake Wrecks for the day she shows the pretty cakes (Fridays? Sundays? I forget.).

Lastly, a quick reminder that we're having the Art at the Speed of Life Blog Tour right now!

Here's the schedule:

Art at the Speed of Life Blog Tour

1-Mar
Crescendoh - Jenny's Blog:

http://jennydoh.typepad.com/

2-Mar
Suzi Blu:

http://www.suziblu.typepad.com/

3-Mar
The Altered Page/Seth Apter:

http://thealteredpage.blogspot.com/

4-Mar
Suzan Buckner:

http://www.thriftycollageartist.blogspot.com/

5-Mar
Sue Pelletier/Laugh*Paint:

http://www.suepelletierlaughpaint.com/

6-Mar
All Norah's Art:

http://allnorahsart.blogspot.com/

7-Mar
Faerie Enchantment:

http://faerieenchantment.blogspot.com/

8-Mar
My Collage Art:

http://nancylefko.blogspot.com/

9-Mar
Always Chrysti:

http://alwayschrysti.com/always-chrysti

10-Mar
Lisa Bebi's Art Blog:

http://lisabebi.blogspot.com/

11-Mar
Jodi Ohl/Sweet Repeats:

http://www.sweetrepeats.blogspot.com/

12-Mar
Living Out Loud (Hey, that's here!):

http://loudlife-laurieblaumarshall.blogspot.com

13-Mar
The Feathered Nest:

http://the-feathered-nest.blogspot.com

14-Mar
Paulette Insall:

http://www.pauletteinsall.com/blog

3/15

The Art of Julie Bergmann

http://juliebergmann.typepad.com/pinkparismatch

There's Only 6 Weeks Between Winter Break and Mid-Winter Break and I Now Realize Those Six Weeks Kept Me Sane

noreply@blogger.com (Loudlife) — Mon, 28 Feb 2011 20:19:00 +0000

Ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh.

Today was February 28th and it was the first time I've been alone in the house since February 11th. (Rexy was out sick, so I guess I really only had 5 weeks.)

Then I had to go to Rexy's school this afternoon and teach an elective jewelry making class to 1st graders. Yes, Mommy was a little cranky. It took a couple of them all of about 6 seconds to get on my last nerve. Seriously. I was sort of afraid I might get a phone call from one of the boy's parents tonight! I got VERY FIRM with him. Although my worry was somewhat alleviated by one of the other mother's telling me that there's is an epidemic of "testing the limits" behavior going around the 1st grade boys. Delightful.

Rexy's Play Doh Snowman and Sun

So remember that canvas that I put leftover paint on? Today I covered it up with red paint, intending to try out Suzan's cool blue on red effect. Bleh. Mine didn't look good at all. (Um, I forgot to take a picture of the blue on red, so all I have is the red...) Then I realized that what she actually does is red on blue. (I think. Maybe she does both - well either way mine didn't look good.) Oh, well. Now I've covered up the red, which I was kind of liking. Bummer.

I'm going to paint another painting in my cake series to donate to a friend's fundraiser. Their theme is "Let Them Eat Cake and Love Art!" I thought I'd show you my so-refined sketch. Yep. That's the plastic that was on the canvas and I did the (very) rough sketch with a fuchsia pink Sharpie. Okay, you've got me. It's not so refined. But it's practical! This way I can figure out the scale on exactly the right size.

Anyway, I'll keep you posted on my progress from plastic to painting.

Blog Tour Alert!!!
There's an awesome blog tour featuring the artists of Art At the Speed of Life - some other special guests, and the fantastic Jenny Doh!

Here's the schedule - it starts tomorrow!

Art at the Speed of Life Blog Tour

1-Mar
Crescendoh - Jenny's Blog:

http://jennydoh.typepad.com/

2-Mar
Suzi Blu:

http://www.suziblu.typepad.com/

3-Mar
The Altered Page/Seth Apter:

http://thealteredpage.blogspot.com/

4-Mar
Suzan Buckner:

http://www.thriftycollageartist.blogspot.com/

5-Mar
Sue Pelletier/Laugh*Paint:

http://www.suepelletierlaughpaint.com/

6-Mar
All Norah's Art:

http://allnorahsart.blogspot.com/

7-Mar
Faerie Enchantment:

http://faerieenchantment.blogspot.com/

8-Mar
My Collage Art:

http://nancylefko.blogspot.com/

9-Mar
Always Chrysti:

http://alwayschrysti.com/always-chrysti

10-Mar
Lisa Bebi's Art Blog:

http://lisabebi.blogspot.com/

11-Mar
Jodi Ohl/Sweet Repeats:

http://www.sweetrepeats.blogspot.com/

12-Mar
Living Out Loud (Hey, that's here!):

http://loudlife-laurieblaumarshall.blogspot.com

13-Mar
The Feathered Nest:

http://the-feathered-nest.blogspot.com

14-Mar
Paulette Insall:

http://www.pauletteinsall.com/blog

3/15

The Art of Julie Bergmann

http://juliebergmann.typepad.com/pinkparismatch

It's going to be chock-full of artists' insights, inspirations from the book, interviews with Pam Carriker, our illustrious leader/author, and lots more!

My Name in Print! Whoo hoo!!!!!!!

noreply@blogger.com (Loudlife) — Sun, 16 Jan 2011 00:09:00 +0000

My publisher's copy came this week! Soooooooooo exciting! It's hard to believe it's a reality for me, I can't imagine how Pam must be feeling!

And they really didn't edit what I wrote much, although I haven't checked it against the original that I sent them yet. It seems to be what I remember writing! I'm pretty sure it's shorter, but that's a good thing! I am a "why not make a long story longer?" type of storyteller!

They used two of the three pieces that I sent them, the 3rd piece that they didn't use was different stylistically than the rest of the book.

Oh, let's take a look at that name in print again...

Still exciting!

To buy a copy signed by Pam, go here or to get an unsigned copy go here.

The Last Ten Days...Art Every Day Month (Yes, that was in November)

noreply@blogger.com (Loudlife) — Thu, 16 Dec 2010 07:58:00 +0000

Finished! Can you believe it? I only started it, um...last March?

Well, as it turns out, I suck at blogging every day (no surprise there). But I did make art nearly every day in November! Here are the pictures with some bare bones explanations. I loved having a structure, i.e. the commitment to make art every day, to work within. I would like to make all sorts of promises here about how I'm going to continue this...but I probably won't. ( This post tells the story very well in a way that looks very similar to my life..."Clean all the things???") However, I am going to renew my commitment to making art - and to selling it. Like everyone else these days, we could use the money!

This guy's coming along...

I used to do quite a few craft/art fairs and I forgot how fun they could be...they're also frustrating, boring, and loooong - but fun more often than not. My old friend Jen Lawson and I shared a booth at the Winterfest craft fair at Rexy's school and it was fantastic to have someone to talk to. We talked about sharing more in the future. (She makes fantastic jewelry and I have pics of both of our booths from the Trunk Show we did and from Winterfest - I'll put them in a later post, I think we have enough pictures for this one!)

Just a few changes; adding eyes, polishing,etc

Speaking of pictures of my booths. That is where I got many of my photos for this post. Can you believe I forgot to photograph the finished pieces??? So I took some pictures at the shows and cropped them. That is why the focus is so questionable on many of them. Especially this one. It was the first thing I sold at the trunk show, so I didn't get a chance to take a better picture.

Well, it's impossible to see, but I added the words, "Sing to me of Friendship, Laughter, and Love."

So, this is the last ten days of November - and December 1st (the trunk show was on the 2nd). I really enjoyed it and I want to thank Leah Kolidas of Creative Every Day for the challenge. Thanks, Leah!!!

I changed something here - her mouth?

This is just me using up paint that was on my palette. I've no idea what I'm going to do with it.

The prize in progress

The prize completed as seen in previous post.

The price wrapped for mailing to Midwestie Lady

So, me making all that art gave Rexy the jones and she decided to delve into her watercolors. The little paitings here are a collaboration between the two of us.

Finally finished, I added the caption "Admire the Beauty Around You.

This one is sort of finished, I'm not really satisfied with it, I think it looks a little bare. The words on the icing are "Eat Cake."

I added the word "Explore" to this, even though I have declared it finished...I can see more fiddling around with it coming down the pike.

(I've had this one laying about for quite a while. I added the words, "feel at home" to the tree...more will probably happen. Our neighbor had cute felt garland decorating her booth - that's the red circles in the upper left.

I've had this one for quite a while, too. It never felt complete. I worked on the face of the girl , softened it up, softened her hair color, darkened the background. I liked it much better after that.

I like his tail, it kind of looks like a cape in the wind.

"Dream Your Life, Paint Your Dream" is an adaption of a Vincent Van Gogh quote, "First I dream my paintings, then I paint my dreams."

Worst photograph ever! I completely forgot to photograph this pair of earrings, so I just cropped a larger photo of my booth.

These I managed to take off the display stand and photograph, but it's still a bad photo!

This is a collage I did a long time ago for Nancy Baumiller's weekly challenge - what's it called? I can't remember right now. Anyway it was always a little bare to me, so I added the fanciful houses. I guess it was the right thing to do, because it sold!

Wow, making the background dark on this really changed it, huh? Still a work in progress. Maybe I'll be done with this before Rexy graduates from college...maybe.

A Winner! (and a guide to the friends)

noreply@blogger.com (Loudlife) — Tue, 30 Nov 2010 08:37:00 +0000

So, finally! Finally I am posting the winner. Thanks to everyone who entered. This time, for the first time ever, I had way more entries on Facebook than I did on the actual blog. Way, way more - over 600% more entries came in via my Facebook message box. How the world is changing, huh? So here you go -

The official drawing basket...

The official daughter drawing a name...

(do you sense a Hello Kitty theme in our house?)

The official winner!

The Melange Team's own

Linda - Midwestie Lady!

Hurray!

Linda will receive this magazine, the latest issue of Cloth Paper Scissors...

and this piece of art, made by me...

And if you're curious, this amended picture has the names of each friend (There were actually 76, but I realized that you would really have to be familiar with them to have seen a couple of them - so I just included all the entries):

(the names can be read if you click on the picture)

Optional Reading:

The Excuse(s)

I am terribly sorry it has taken me so long to get this posted. It's been a crazy week and a half! In eleven days we celebrated Thanksgiving twice at 2 different locations, each an hour's drive away, Rexy has not been in school since the 18th - 1 sick day, 3 snow days, 2 school holidays, and 1 teacher workshop day, The DH did not go to work on the 3 snow days, I attended 2 school meetings, 1 school arts/music event and somehow managed to keep my sanity despite my loss of Mommy's Me Time that was essential to my schedule for being ready for the two shows I'm selling at on Thursday and Saturday of this week. Panic? Me? You betcha, sister!!! Oh, and my dishwasher is broken. (Okay, sure, I did manage to break away and go see Harry Potter with a friend - but I'm pretty sure that was necessary decompression, or something.)

Art Every Day Month, Days 17, 18, 19, and 20 - oh, no!

noreply@blogger.com (Loudlife) — Sun, 21 Nov 2010 07:07:00 +0000

Ack! I'm falling behind! I worked on this painting over several days. (After starting her "fast and loose" I am now in "slow and tense mode" - sigh.) Mostly just fighting with the crookedness of everything. Still not satisfied, and of course more to complete! Much, much more!

I have, indeed, picked a winner for the contest - yahoo! But I have yet to photoshop the pictures of the drawing. I'm behind all over the place! So much so that I am ending this post here. I'll be back!

Art Every Day Month, Days 15 & 16

noreply@blogger.com (Loudlife) — Thu, 18 Nov 2010 01:28:00 +0000

November 15th

Day 15 seemed like it would be a day with lots and lots of time for art. Somehow, though, that theoretical time never materialized. I suppose if I hadn't insisted on sitting and watching "Chuck" - instead of efficiently watching it while doing something - I would have gotten more done. But I was lazy, lazy, lazy.

So this is what I did while Rexy was at school. These two paintings got some got some - very scant - attention. What I did is noted. Yes, that's the poppy painting that I was working on months ago that I meant to send in to Somerset Studio. (That's Pam's art on the cover this month!) I just didn't like it at the time. I had to ruminate on it for a while and I didn't build rumination time into my timeline! (not the first time that lesson has hit me over the head!) Nor do I feel it is done yet.

I also messed about on Photoshop with a new profile picture for Facebook. I took the picture I had to send in for the book and Warhol-ized it. I was liking it until I realized that the top of my glasses don't show very much and it looks like my eyebrows are the top of the frames - making it look like I have on giant 80's glasses! Oh, no! I also think I should have exaggerated it more, the op-art-ness of it isn't really showing up very well.

November 16th

So on Day 16, I decided to get my act together. I worked on this painting. As you can see, I can't quite decide what to do with the background. I usually try to get the background squared away before I get started on the main image of a painting - but this time I decided to just give up and move on. This is a terrible photo, but I really like the dress. It's looking very filmy and Jane Austin-ish. I realize her head looks quite large, but that's mostly from the angle of the photo. It's much more in proportion in real life. I'm actually happy with how she's turning out - but she's far from done.

Speaking of the book, there are now some inside pages to see on the Amazon page. Click on the pic below to check them out!

To learn more about Art Every Day Month, click here.

A Contest!

noreply@blogger.com (Loudlife) — Tue, 16 Nov 2010 01:25:00 +0000

Do you want the latest issue of Cloth Paper Scissors delivered to you completely for FREE? 'Cause I have an extra and I'm giving it away! I will choose a winner at Random from the correct answers to the following question: How many stuffed "Friends" are there on Rexy's bed? Each one has some part of it visible, usually the head. Click on the picture to see the large version. (The Hello Kitty head in the bottom left corner is a pillow, as it the large pink and white item in the far right corner that the pink spotted coat bear is sitting on. They don't count.)

You can leave a comment with questions - or the answer - or you can message me on facebook. I will draw the winner on Friday at about 9pm Pacific time. I will cover the postage and I will also include something made by me - but I don't know what yet. It will be a surprise!

Here's why I have an extra copy:

Do you ever do this? I subscribed to Cloth Paper Scissors a while back and was told be the service that it would take X number of weeks for it to start. I immediately forgot when that would be. I hadn't received it and so kept buying it each month. Basically, I assumed that if it was in the store and I hadn't received it yet, then I wasn't going to for that month and so figured I should buy it. Skip to last week, I'm at JoAnn's and they sell magazines at a discount. There the latest issue was and I hadn't received it - so I bought it. Today I go out to the mailbox and there it is! Sigh. Oh, well.

So, if you want the latest issue of CPS completely for FREE - enter this contest!

Art Every Day Month, Day 12, Day 13's Life Lesson, and Day 14's Lameness

noreply@blogger.com (Loudlife) — Mon, 15 Nov 2010 07:48:00 +0000

This little painting is what I worked on on Day 12. My goal is to make affordable art for the two sales I'm doing this holiday season. They're both small events, so I really need to be the one people choose to buy from if we're going to have Christmas this year. I keep fighting with myself, because I want to be true to my self - but I need to sell, too. Then I get into that dilemma of trying to make what sells instead of what makes me happy. Agh! I guess that's the eternal dilemma for artists, isn't it?

Day 13 was a bit of a bust, artistically. I went to a huge arts and crafts sale called Best of the Northwest with Rexy, Rexy's new little boy "friend," and his family. (More on that later.) I had gone to this years ago and thought it was a little lame, but this time I was surprised. There were some great artists there and if I'd had the money there were many things I would have bought. One thing that I found completely amazing, though, was the number of people who not only weren't on Etsy - but had never even heard of Etsy!

What?!?!?! I felt like I was late to the party by not opening a store until April of 2007! And I already knew about it from 6 dozen people by then.

Then I felt kind of sad. These people who haven't even heard of it are probably living in sort of an artist-vacuum. Meaning that they probably don't have a lot of artist friends. I know that can be a lonely place. Even when you have other friends. Years ago, gosh - probably 25 years ago - I used to do a lot of writing. I didn't know any other writers and my circle of friends didn't include any dedicated artists. No one with a drive to create. I was out one night with my oldest friend and a new-ish acquaintance (What was that guy's name??? I really am getting old.). I don't know what we were talking about, but I mentioned a poem I had written during the course of the conversation. My friend laughed and started to give me a hard time, but then the new acquaintance popped in with, "Oh, I write poetry, too!" and my friend immediately shut up (that guy was pretty cute - and had an Australian accent.) I had the most amazing feeling of being understood.

I also at that moment realized how trapped I was in my past and that people from my past were invested in the image they had of me. I started to notice that any deviation in dress, or occupations, or life choices from what people considered the "norm" was threatening to some. Very threatening, in some cases. It had never occurred to me before that my friends and family didn't necessarily have my best interest at heart, that they might actually be trying to shield themselves from a scary unknown. Believe me, I didn't have a Sunshine Susie upbringing, but this was still news to me. Somehow I'd missed that lesson.

Wow, that was a huge digression! Anyway, suffice it to say I was completely surprised by the number of people who said, "Etsy? What's that?" at an art show.

Of course that didn't take the up the entire day, the rest of the day I helped out the DH with a small vintage bicycle event he was hosting. What I also did was stand up most of the day in the boots I haven't worn since last winter. Ouch! By the time we got home I was good for nothing but lounging about on the couch (and the computer). Today, wasn't much better, either. We had company today and I had a school fundraising meeting (that I accidentally showed up for an hour early!) and in between, what did I do? Why, lounged about on the couch! However, since I did show up for the meeting an hour early and had some time to kill, I roughly ~~sketched~~ scrawled some ideas into my school notebook.

(I said roughly!)

Anyway, consider this the official renewing of my Art Every Day Month vow. See you tomorrow.

Art Every Day Month, Days 11 and 12 --- Um, just make that Day 11

noreply@blogger.com (Loudlife) — Mon, 15 Nov 2010 06:43:00 +0000

November 11th and November 12th

Well I spent much of my time yesterday and today working in photoshop and searching the internet for appropriate - and free - photoshop brushes. I was working on a Save the Date card for the school auction. Which will have to relate to the eventual invitation and program. The school's theme this year is "under the sea," or something of that nature. Hence the shell/seahorse/water images. Of course I second, third, fourth and fifth guessed myself. I decided to make a printout of each one and take them to the next meeting. Part of the problem is that they have to be cheap, cheap, cheap! That means one color printing. We can buy colored paper and cardstock, I just have to be sure that I get enough of each so that we don't have a "color discontinued" issue at the last minute. As you can see, school related activities get me a little bit tense and humorless. I kind of don't recognize myself at these times. What is the deal? Am I the only one with this issue?

The other thing I worked on today is this little painting. My goal is to make affordable art for the two sales I'm doing this holiday season. They're both small events, so I really need to be the one people choose to buy from if we're going to have Christmas this year. I keep fighting with myself, because I want to be true to my self - but I need to sell, too. Then I get into that dilemma of trying to make what sells instead of what makes me happy. Agh! I guess that's the eternal dilemma for artists, isn't it?

Uh, never mind! I wrote that, then went to take a picture and - the camera's battery was dead. Sigh. I'll save Day 12 for the next post.

Art Every Day Month, Days 9 and 10

noreply@blogger.com (Loudlife) — Thu, 11 Nov 2010 20:42:00 +0000

No time! No time! Quickest entries ever -

Day 9, I only did some sketching - and I wrote a poem, but I forgot to take a picture.

Day 10, I worked on the girl on the left's shirt some more - still don't like it - and started this little house painting and the background and sketch on the canvas behind them.

To learn more about Art Every Day Month click here.

Art Every Day Month, Day 8

noreply@blogger.com (Loudlife) — Tue, 09 Nov 2010 06:04:00 +0000

Day 8 and A Blog Post About it on the Same Day!

Today I made myself work fast and loose. Or at least I gave it my best shot. I also made myself use a stiff bristle brush. I usually - okay, always - use a soft bristle brush. I like smoothing everything out and blending imperceptibly. Except I like looking at art that isn't so painstaking. So for today's painting (the portrait) I made the fast and loose vow and I used a stiff bristle brush. I didn't do too badly at the fast and loose part. I definitely got what you see done about twice as fast as I normally would. I still blended things pretty thoroughly, though. It's ridiculous, really. You wouldn't believe the debate I had with myself about leaving the paint under the right eye a little rough! You'd think it was world peace or something...

Then I sketched out this little guy and threw on a first layer of paint.

I'm starting to panic a little about the amount of work I need to get done before the holidays sales I'm working. So far, I haven't finished a thing you've seen in the last week - except the jewelry. I think sometimes that I freeze up when faced with big projects. I find it tough to get myself to pick up the paintbrush or pliers, although once I get started I'm totally into it. I've been reading Twyla Tharp's fantastic book,

The Creative Habit: Learn It and Use It for Life. One of the things she talks about it is having a ritual that you do every day before you begin - something to "prime the pump." I've been trying to think of something that would work for me, but no great ideas are standing out yet.

Twyla's book on Amazon:

To learn more about Art Every Day Month click here,

Art Every Day Month, Days 6 and 7

noreply@blogger.com (Loudlife) — Tue, 09 Nov 2010 02:40:00 +0000

November 6

Well, Saturday was pretty slim in the art making department. I decided that I would have to include the apple tower I made on Rexy's lunch plate! That's really reaching isn't it?

I also worked on photoshopping this picture. This is Rexy's bed. On Rexy's bed are her many, many, many stuffed friends. It was originally two pictures - because I don't have a wide angle lens - and I blended them into one. I am sizing it really, really small on purpose because I've decided to have a contest! But! Not today. That's why the small size, I don't want it to be too visible because the contest involves telling me how many stuffed friends you can see on her bed. I will be giving away something that is not yet complete. Check back for more details

November 7

This is what I worked on on Sunday. But I forgot to take a picture! I sketched in the woman, but forgot the picture taking part - and then started painting her today! Oops.

To learn more about Art Every Day Month click here.

Art Every Day Month, Days 3, 4, and 5

noreply@blogger.com (Loudlife) — Sun, 07 Nov 2010 06:59:00 +0000

November 3rd

Well, while I am participating in Art Every Day Month - what I'm not doing is blogging about it every day. I meant to, honestly. But then I took these photos. Ugh. I couldn't get a single picture that I could love on Day 3. These are the best of the bunch, if that tells you anything. After messing about with them on photoshop and then having photoshop freeze up suddenly so that I had to close the whole thing down and lose all my edits - well, suffice it to say that swear words were flying about with abandon.

Today I decided to tackle the editing again. I just couldn't bring myself to take another picture of this stuff after the 2 dozen or so that I already took. Clearly, I will have to take pictures again anyway. Just not today. I decided that these would do for here.

What this stuff is, is some jewelry that I made. I'm participating in a Trunk Show on December 2nd (if you're on facebook you can view the event here.) And I'm going to be selling both jewelry and mixed media stuff.

So I've been trying to make a lot of things. I've been only marginally successful, so I'm glad the Art Every Day Month came along. I'm better with structure.

So how cool are these two pendants? The one above is purportedly hundreds of years old. I must say that I sort of doubt the truthfulness of that claim. Still, it looks old - and cool. I love the one below, too. It's huge, 2-2.5 inches in diameter (I haven't actually measured it.) It's carved from some mystery stone. It's a mystery stone because I can't remember what they told me it was at the bead store. I always have problems remembering what stones are. I guess it pretty much doesn't matter to me as long as I think it looks pretty. I know it matters to some people, so I should make more of an effort to note what different stones are...but...I'm pretty much a slacker when it comes to that.

November 4th

On the 4th day I worked on this friendship painting some more. I attempted to shade the skin some more and fix the hands a bit. I painted in the faces, but I wish they looked a little happier. I began filling in the hair on one of them, it's just a sketchy start though.

I also slapped some background paint on three other canvasses. The middle one, though, is the same one that I put green on the other day. I was so unhappy with the green coverage that I decided to just cover it up. I've no idea yet what I will be putting on these next three canvasses, but it's easier to start with a painted canvas than it is to start with an empty one.

November 5th

On day 5 I decided to sketch some stuff out in my sketchbook/visual journal.

Sadly, I also sketched this poor gal. Yikes! She's a little bit Little House on the Prairie, isn't she? And bitter about it, too! (Did you know that water color pencil doesn't really erase?)

Okay friends, that's the last 3 days. I'll write about today tomorrow...

To find out more about participating in Art Every Day Month click here.

Art Every Day Month, Day 2

noreply@blogger.com (Loudlife) — Wed, 03 Nov 2010 06:59:00 +0000

Whew! I was afraid I would crap out on the 2nd day - but I didn't! Granted, I didn't do a lot...but I did something.

First, I worked on yesterday's job. I fiddled around some more with her hair and filled in her skin tones. I only got so far as the whites of her eyes, though. Which gives her kind of a devil look. Or zombie. Or something bad.

Anyway, I thought I would put more distance between the painting and the camera so that you could see how small the canvas I'm working on is. It's very small. Very, very small. I have a hard time working small. So why, you may ask, did I put this on such a small canvas?

It's the tissue tape. See it there on the right? I love it! But it's kind of small. Skinny, I guess. And I really, really wanted to use it. But it seemed to get swallowed up by surface area on a bigger canvas. So I had to go small. That link takes you to Kris Hubick's Retro Cafe Art Gallery store's Tim Holtz page where you can see all the different kinds of Tissue Tape. It rocks. Apparently it goes transparent with the application of wax or encaustic medium. I can't wait to try it!

The only other little bit of art that I did today was to put some green paint on top of the beginning of another painting that I decided against doing. Two things were working against this sad little canvas (well, edging into medium sized, really). First, I was using a crappy little house paint trim brush to apply the paint; Second, the paint was waaaaaaaaaaay more transparent than I expected it to be. And kind of watery. Hmmmm... Now I've got odd ridges. Guess I'll have to work with that. I may have to mix my own green to get some opacity.

See you tomorrow...

To learn more about the Art Every Day Month, click here.

Art Every Day Month, Day 1

noreply@blogger.com (Loudlife) — Tue, 02 Nov 2010 06:59:00 +0000

Oh, geez. I'm not sure I should've signed up for this, being the slacker that I am. But I did. And here's day 1:

I worked on this WIP. I sketched in faces and I sketched in a fix of the hairline of the one on the right.

And I worked on this WIP. I fixed the face shape, fiddled with the hair length - still unsure about it, decided the neck shouldn't be six feet long and so made the body more proportionate, did a wash to try out bangs...and still can't decide about them.

While teaching a jewelry making class at Rexy's school today, I whipped out this little bracelet using the kids' beads. She loved it and was inspired to come home and make more jewelry.

And lastly, I photoshopped these pics today. The first one is Rexy and I sitting next to our freshly carved pumpkins (which subsequently landed on the cutting room floor); the next two are of my girl in her Halloween princess costume while trick or treating.

Learn about Art Every Day Month here.

What an Art Supply Bonanza!!!

noreply@blogger.com (Loudlife) — Sun, 22 Aug 2010 22:00:00 +0000

Don't these look nice??? They were given to me! My cousin was helping a friend of the family clean out his father's house after he passed away (Rest in peace, Win.). Both of Win's (the father) wives had been artists and there were tons of art supplies. Dana (the son) didn't know what to do with everything and my cousin said that I would be happy to have them - and she was right! Aren't they gorgeous? And look how many! There are TWENTY-SIX brand new, unused brushes there! Can you believe it? 26!!!

And that's not all! Take a look at this unbelievable sight:

Drum-roll.........
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These are the used brushes! Look at that! I first thought that I would be able to get them all in the green jar that that same cousin had given me for Christmas this last year (See next image, isn't it cool?). But I was sorely mistaken! Three containers later...Wow! There are 145 brushes in the picture above!!! For those counting at home, that is a total of ONE HUNDRED AND SEVENTY-ONE brushes! I may faint...

(These are the super-tall ones only - and the jar is filled up!)

There were also these (mostly unused - and what's there is fantastic) sketchbooks:

These 2 smaller (with just 2 or 3 totally sweet watercolor paintings) watercolor pads/books:

(How awesome are those graphics?)

And these extra large pads. One 140lb, 24"x 36" water color paper. One is a mystery weight 11"x15" watercolor pad (cover is gone). One is a 13.25"x17" sketch pad for charcoal, pencil and watercolor - nice, heavyweight paper. One is a medium textured, 12"x16" canvas pad.

There is also (not pictured) this nifty contraption for holding tight the canvas sheets - I think. I haven't quite figured it out yet. I'm going to take it to Gini (when I finally get over there, Gini!) and ask her opinion about it. My cousin said there is also an easel - very sturdy, she said - that she couldn't fit into her car that she's going to go back and get (Pinch me!). I simply cannot believe my luck! I keep looking at them. It's just amazing.

Thank you

Winston, Dora Mae, Margit,

Dana, and Kim E.

Winston Coy, the most elegant man I've ever known.
Loved by many.
His passing was noted here.

The Book is Available for Pre-Order!

noreply@blogger.com (Loudlife) — Tue, 17 Aug 2010 06:54:00 +0000

Look! You can preorder Pam's book on Amazon! We're all so excited! Pam has written a beautiful and inspirational book about making room for art in our every day lives. Several of us were lucky and honored to have been chosen to contribute to it. If this is your first time hearing about it, read the book blog here.

Random Tuesday Thoughts

noreply@blogger.com (Loudlife) — Tue, 10 Aug 2010 14:10:00 +0000

This is my second time participating in Random Tuesday! Thanks to The Un-Mom for hosting!

First, should my old roommate ever come upon this blog: You do not have to soak a Non-Stick Pan overnight after you've used it - and you especially don't have to soak it for 2 or 3 days. Yes, I mean you, Crazy Ex-Roommate. Yes, I've been holding it in for the last 19 years - what about it?

My husband sent me this awesome link to a collection of photographs from 1939 to 1943. They are rare color photographs of the era and some of them are just breathtaking. All of them so evocative of the time period that you feel as if you're right there.

This short film of a poem is beautiful. This is the same filmmaker who made the Art film I posted about here.

It may be cheating because I posted the previous two things on my Facebook page - does anyone really mind?

(How could someone hurt this girl's feelings???)

Can I just say how much I really hate the next door neighbors who make their 7yo look after their 2yo all the time? Just because I asked if just one time the 7yo could come over without the 2yo because there was already a girls' playdate going on (the 2yo is a boy - and a rough and tumble, disruptive one at that) they decide to use the children as a weapon and threaten not to let the little girl come over without him and say that my child cannot come to their house then. (Seriously? You think it's okay to saddle the 7yo with the responsibility all the time while you sit at home free and clear? Not to mention the free babysitting you're getting from me.) I really hate them. There. I said it.

Am I the only one that wants to cry when my child is unhappy?

Here's some stuff I've gotten recently at estate sales:

Happy Tuesday! Live long and prosper.
(Yup, stole that one from Mr. Spock.)

Illustration Friday, Caged

noreply@blogger.com (Loudlife) — Fri, 06 Aug 2010 18:57:00 +0000

I'm not sure what happened, but my Illustration Friday link didn't let my thumbnail show up! Thanks for visiting if you took a chance and clicked my link anyway!

For Your Protection

This piece illustrates how we can inadvertently become prisoners in the interest of protecting ourselves. And, also, how we can inadvertently make prisoners of others in the interest of protecting them. The rust symbolizes how this process can sometimes be so gradual that it is years before we realize what we have done.

This piece reminds me that it is good to take chances sometimes.

Please visit the Illustration Friday site to explore work by other IF artists.

Neighborhood thievery - what to do?

noreply@blogger.com (Loudlife) — Mon, 02 Aug 2010 20:30:00 +0000

So........the newest little neighbor girl took a quarter out of our bathroom and held it up for all to see claiming she had found it on the way over - unfortunately for her it was a Canadian quarter and so recognizable as the one that had been on our bathroom counter (Rexy was using it for play money - sorry Canadian friends). It happened while I was at the store and my DH was in the backyard with Rexy, the 7yo from next door and the 6yo in question from 2 doors down. DH said he could tell something was up because of the way she stumbled over the quarter-finding story when she realized he was sitting right there.

(He was already freaked out by her because he had overheard her talking about French kissing to the 7yo! I repeat. She's Six. Years. Old. He had no idea what to do with that, luckily Rexy was out of earshot at the time.)

This girl always - within 5 minutes of her arrival - asks to use the bathroom and I've found her in Rexy's room afterwards each time, while the rest of us were outside in the backyard. Now I can't help thinking that she's been stealing every time. I suspected it once before when she kept putting her hand in her pocket and then looking at me.

Frankly, it's only a quarter - what do I care? Right? But I don't want success to encourage repetition. We confronted her and sent her home. The DH told her to tell her dad because we were going to talk to him. Yeah...right. Like she's going to do that. Now I feel like I have to go over there tonight when he gets home (I was in the middle of cooking dinner last night when the DH told me about the quarter conversation and had to get right back to the stove after we sent her home - otherwise I would have gone with her.) So how do you start that conversation???

Ugh.