I found a fabulous new place to hang out - Artistic Artifacts in Alexandria Va. Once a month, the group meets to just share art "stuff". We trade ATC cards (for those who are interested) and any art we have been working on. There are also short presentations on various art techniques and new tools/supplies. It is an incredibly talent group of women.
On Saturday I took an Indigo dye class with the owner, Judy. Artistic Artifacts also has great classes! I will share the results later this week.
The owner recently did a little renovating to the shop and to help her decorate the walls, she posed this challenge to the group:
YOUR NAME HERE Challenge
A very wise art teacher required her students to spend 10 minutes in warm up before class each day. The assignment: make your name. The idea was that since you know your name better than any other set of words, you can focus on HOW it’s made rather than on WHAT to make.
1. Assemble your first name in a 9” x 12” format, either portrait or landscape orientation. Add JAMS to your piece.
2. Pieces may use any/all materials attached any way appropriate for the medium. Sewing, welding, nailing, gluing, stapling all work. Be sure heavy stuff is supported so it doesn’t droop or fall off.
3. Embellish to your heart’s content. Use up those snippets of trim and those lonely earrings and broken charms.
Here is what I came up with:
I enlarged one of my favorite vintage postcards from St. Catherine's Day. I was curious about this holiday so I looked up it's meaning. I have collected several of the St Catherine post cards but never knew why they were sent on this day. I thought the tradition was very interesting.
St. Catherine is the patron of unmarried women, students, philosophers, craftsmen who use wheels (e.g., potters), lace makers, and milliners.
On St. Catherine's Day, it is customary for unmarried women to pray for husbands, and to honor women who've reached 25 years of age but haven't married -- called "Catherinettes" in France. Catherinettes send postcards to each other, and friends of the Catherinettes make hats for them -- traditionally using the colors yellow (faith) and green (wisdom), often outrageous -- and crown them for the day. Pilgrimage is made to St. Catherine's statue, and she is asked to intercede in finding husbands for the unmarried lest they "don St. Catherine's bonnet" and become spinsters. The Catherinettes are supposed to wear the hat all day long, and they are usually feted with a meal among friends. Because of this hat-wearing custom, French milliners have big parades to show off their wares on this day.
I am super excited to be teaching another class at GoldensHill Papercrafts in Clifton, VA.
This class is Basic Collage 101 and here is my description:
Do you have trouble starting a collage? Not sure what techniques or colors to incorporate? Do you freeze up when it comes time to actually glue down an image? Then this class is for you!
In this exercise we will focus on the different steps of making a collage (i.e. stencils, paint, tape transfer, glue paper, scratch/sand, etc) To create our collage, we will randomly select a technique and limit ourselves and spend only three to five minutes on it. When time is up, you need to commit and move on to the next technique, building upon each previous step. Instead of speed dating we will be speed collaging! Your finished pages can be mage into cards, or a journal or used for a variety of art projects.
Be prepared to get messy so bring your apron and a desire to explore. Please come to class with a theme in mind, it can be as simple as a color theme. Other good themes are: travel, vintage, spring...
I love making kits for my class.
I am happy to share that this class sold out and another one is scheduled for Thursday, May 31!
Gōng Xǐ Fā Cái
“wishing you a prosperous new year”
2018 is a Year of the Dog
In Chinese astrology, each year is related to a Chinese zodiac animal according to a 12-year cycle. 2018 is an Earth Dog Year.
Years of the Dog include 1934, 1946, 1958, 1970, 1982, 1994, 2006, 2018.
If you're a Dog, the following are deemed lucky for you:
To learn more about this holiday see my previous post.
This quote is so true and something that has become a reality for me in the last few months.
I am selling my cards at Chick's Picks this weekend!
It is a new design I have been working on using batik fabrics from "my collection".
The image below is the advertisement for the show (not my art).
If you are in the local area - please stop in for a visit!
Hillary (the owner of Chick's Picks) does an amazing job with the display and set up. Really with EVERYTHING!
This time the show is in a barn with a big brewery right next door to drop off your husband! See... I told you she does an amazing job with everything!
Welcome to my blog! I love creating mixed media cards, art, and jewelry. This blog is a place for me to share my creations, my collections, and what inspires me (travel, art, photography). The hubby and I travel often and I love collecting and sharing unique finds from the countries we visit. We are currently living in Montreal, Quebec.
You can see my art and articles in the following magazines:
