#2 For the Art Show Complete

I am so pleased to present to you this 12"x16" (30.4 cm x 40.6 cm) beautiful tree that I am so proud of. I love her! I had it in my mind that I had the perfect green (Indian batik jungle green) to compliment the beautiful paper I bought for the trees themselves. I wanted to do one piece where I really just made the tree my focus with no background to detract from it. I am contemplating the idea of putting a little bit of ground cover flowers like buttercups or tiny daisies but I may just leave well enough alone.

I am going to go back to finishing the big mountain/cherry blossom piece because the ideas for the next ones aren't fully formed yet.

I had my first job interview today! I was surprised at how well I kept my nerves in check. I just feel so rusty since I have been a stay at home mom for almost 2 years now and was only part time shortly before that. I wish I didn't have to go back, this wasn't part of the "plan" we but we have to do what we have to do these days don't we?! Last night I had to make a mad dash to the store as I realized while I did have pants to wear that I had no tops! Thankfully I was able to find something (and some nice new shoes on sale!) because I hate shopping for clothes...I'd much rather be buying craft supplies :o) I had a really good feeling about it and I think the interview went really well. I'll know something by Friday. Fingers crossed!

A little 9x12 and some news

Here's a newly completed little 9x12 (22.9 x 30.5 cm). I am once again bummed by the photo quality as the moon and the sky look sooooo much better in person. I created this piece by layering blue lace paper over a gaudy glitter paper, in person you can see a little bit of glitter and shimmer through the blue giving the illusion of stars. The moon has texture and looks a lot more natural than in the photo.

So in my little mini break from my big 18x24 I've been blogging the process about has presented me with an exciting opportunity. While perusing local news and events on Craigslist I discovered that there will be a juried art show in Bellingham (15 minutes away). I inquired and found out that they are actually jurying the art in 2 weeks even though the show is not until November!!! I AM ENTERING! So if I don't blog or leave comments for anyone in the next little while you know why!! I have exactly 12 days to get 4 or 5 pieces done!

I have no expectations, maybe some hopes but I am realistic. I have no idea what the calliber of artists are in the local area but I want the experience. If nothing else I will get a feel for how these juried shows work and get exposure to the other local artists in the area. The Art Director that I was emailing with was very intrigued and said they have never had a paper artist enter and this is their 40th show! This for me is a giant leap forward. I am a totally fear based person, I am not adventurous, I don't jump off cliffs without knowing there is a safety net. I'm more excited than nervous at this point but I know that will come closer to the day when I have too much to do and not enough time. Good thing I work well under pressure! Wish me luck!

Burnt out

So yesterday moved at a snails pace. My arm, shoulder and hand are sore from all the blossom work. I feel antsy and was not at all motivated to keep going. Break time.

Instead of doing nothing, I have begun planning out all my cards, gift boxes and smaller art pieces. Did a bit of sketching. After this big one, I think it will be time to work on some smaller pieces that are quicker to complete. I am getting ready to work on something other than trees and have been thinking a lot about art for kids rooms, etc. Getting excited by the ideas in my head. Slowly but surely an idea for a children's book has been brewing in my head but I am going to let that one progress naturely.

I also took some steps to ready myself for selling my stuff. I ordered boxes and envelopes for shipping my work from the post office and started figuring out my price points. This is a huge leap for me, its one thing to create its another to sell. I am a little bit terrified of how people will respond to my work or if anyone will bother to buy it. Its not why I make this stuff but what's the point of making it if its just going to sit in my closet and collect dust?! Thanks to all of you who follow and/or take the time to comment...it definitely helps.

Major Progress

Well, I did not think I would be posting anything regarding my latest project for awhile. I was going to work on all of the ground details, etc. but decided against that. Instead I thought it better to get the trees glued on and get the leaves and blossoms done first so as to not over do it and end up with a crazy, chaotic mess of things to look at. The process of putting on the leaves and/or blossoms is probably the single most time consuming thing I do and I have surprised myself at how much progress I made over the weekend.

First I punch out hundreds of tiny flowers (I got this punch out of the dollar bin at Michaels). Luckily I had already done a lot of this previously so I could get right to it once the trees were glued on and dry. Then I take each flower and make them 3 dimensional with a sheet of thin craft foam, an embossing tool and a circular motion (tired hands by the end of the day). I kind of go back and forth, I'll curl a bunch, then glue them on, curl some more, glue some more, etc. I go through once and place one flower on each branch tip, I call these the anchors.

Once the anchors are dry I go back and press 2 more flowers into them with that same embossing tool to create 3D bunches. I'll do this until I am happy with the result. The below picture is after I have gone through and made each anchor into bunches of 3's. I will go back and fill it in some more later.

I though I'd add a close up. Later I will go back and put a tiny bit of detail paint into the centers of each flower.

I am very excited about how this project is coming along. I hope that the details I add to the ground along with the fence will help add dimension to the overall piece but I am thrilled with the progression of my work in each new project. Stay tuned, I may get finished much sooner than I had anticipated!

Note to self!

I am reminded today about how important it is for me not to get ahead of myself. Today I decided that before I put on any of the details that I am going to put the trees on and get the blossoms done (a very long, tedious process) before anything else. A little voice started nagging at me just before I started the process of gluing the trees on the canvas board and I remembered that I had not tested the tree paper beforehand. GOOD THING!!! This paper is hand painted, as soon as I touched the UV gloss to the paper I could tell the colour was running. No biggie - just have to UV gloss the trees carefully and let them dry BEFORE I glue them on so when I go to do the final coats of gloss they don't bleed onto the background! Phew!

Thankful for small nagging voices in my head today that's for sure!

Phase 4 continued - Background Complete!

Background complete. YEAH! Very excited about how this turned out and can't wait to start putting in all the details. Shrubs, groundcover flowers, etc.

I seem to be moving very fast on this piece but I am VERY excited about the progress I've made so far. Had a bit of creative adrenaline today and am now frustrated that I have to stop and wait until tonight or tomorrow to continue. This baby needs some good solid drying time (lots of glue!!!!).

Lots of questions and second guessing going through my head right now. Are the trees too big? Should I cut new, smaller ones (I'd hate to but....)? Where am I going to put the fence? What colour should my groundcover flowers be? How many shrubs should I put on it? Am I going to run out of glue? Blah, blah, blah.....its comes along ;o) Really having a hard time deciding about the trees though. I love these trees but they just might be too big and they'll fill in once I put all the cherry blossoms on. MMmmmmmm......I guess we'll see.

Happy creating everyone!

Phase 4 - Glue, glue and more glue

Okay, this morning I made some progress and took some photos even though the glue is still wet. Yesterday I applied the snowcaps to the mountain cutouts. Very messy and tedious trying to get it all lined up right. The I glued them onto the canvas board once they were dry. This morning I added the road and started gluing on the grass. I did not glue the top grass panel all the way on in case I need to add more background and want to tuck it behind the panel. The trees are still not attached (just there for effect). I will be working on the background trees and foliage and the fence next. Oh, and adding details and shading to the two main trees will be in there somewhere before I glue them on. I haven't decided if I want the fence in front of the trees or behind yet but I am leaning more towards having it in the front. We'll see.

If you haven't noticed I did not curve the road like in the sketch. I realized that I am still not totally comfortable with proportion, etc. and didn't want to deal with the added stress of trying to figure out the different dimensions of the fence boards, etc. to make things appear bigger as the got closer. I figured since mountains, roads and fences are all new elements for me I would reign it in a bit until I study drawing more and feel more comfortable. Baby steps.

Once I get to the end of this project I will post close ups as well. The paper I used for the roads is actually cork paper and looks like tiny pebbles. The photographs don't do my pieces justice, you just can't see the texture and details. I choose papers to use based on colour, pattern and texture...texture being a HUGE part of it!

Mountains, etc.

So the pieces are starting to come together although nothing is attached at this point. I just thought a picture of it with only the bare bones components would be helpful to see. I cut the mountains out of blue and gray papers to add depth. My next step is to add the snowcaps on the mountains before I attach to them to the canvas board so if any of them don't turn out right I can do it again. I plan on doing that tonight.

I may add some puffy white clouds in the sky but haven't made up my mind yet. If I do, I'll apply them to the sky before I glue on anything else. Then its messy time ;o) I will glue on the completed mountains, the dirt road and the grass next.

Once that's done it will be magic time and my favorite part...all the details! There will be another layer of foliage and background stuff between the mountains and the trees, the fence needs to go on, ground cover flowers in spotted areas, etc. Then the trees and ALLLLLLLL the blossoms and leaves on the trees. There are some details to figure out still but they will be based on how its looking as it comes along.

As they projects come together I seem to get more done in a shorter period of time, excitement = adrenaline = more productivity!

Phase 3 - cutting the trees

This is the paper for the trees.

I freehand draw the tree on the back of the paper. You could draw it on the front too I just don't trust my drawing skills enough yet. By drawing on the back I do have to keep in mind that the tree will be in reverse....

And then I cut the tree out with an exacto knife. I will go back and apply fine details to the tree with acrylic paint before gluing them onto canvas board.

I have already made an error. The second tree (not shown) was supposed to be smaller in scale to give the illusion that it was further back than the one above. However, after drawing and cutting it, it really doesn't look much different in size. Its not the end of the world though, I had already planned on reworking the fence and road so now I will continue to adjust the picture as I see appropriate.

The Lemonade Award

Thanks so much to Vania for nominating me for the Lemonade Award for great Attitude/Gratitude. Normally this would be the part where I pass this wonderful thought onto others. However I am so new to blogging that I haven't really built up a repore with many other bloggers yet and am not following enough blogs to reciprocate. To those of you I have communicated with or are quietly following my blog, I thank you from the bottom of my heart of showing your interest and following my work.

But to all of you out there....All you mothers (and fathers for that matter), crafters, artists and soul seekers I say keep at it. Keep putting your work and thoughts out there for others to find you. Its been a long road getting myself into the mindset of being part of the artist/crafter community and not just an outsider looking in with admiration. I am finding more and more that I am not so different from many of you and that's a nice feeling.

I find myself in a position I had hoped to never be in. I am just at the beginning of this path of following my passion and pursuing my dreams and now the reality of the economy is setting up a roadblock. My husband's industry is dead (construction) and he finds himself out of work for the first time in a decade, on the other hand, I used to work in accounting and there is always work.

As a highly emotional creature my first instinct was to mourn the death of my dream, the logical part kicking in says its not a death but an obstacle. The question is how do I balance work, my kids and my passion if I do, in fact, end up going back to work? I am now determined to find away...how can I give up on the dream now that I have allowed myself to pursue it?! I will find a way, I have to...for myself and for my kids. I want them to believe their dreams can come true if they just work at it. I have been lost for too many years to let go of the final missing piece from my life.

Keep dreaming and creating everyone! Your blogs and your work inspire me and feed my imagination! I'm off to make lemonade out of my lemons!

Phase 2 of new 18 x 24, Template and picking paper

I'll apologize in advance for the terrible photo quality. I am apparently not a photographer ;o)

This is drawing #2 for my new 18 x 24 and would be the one I consider my template. I drew this one at 9 x 12 so I could easily figure out the dimensions of the components in the picture. For example, in this picture the larger tree is approx. 4.5" x 6.5" so I doubled it and cut my paper. Mainly I do this because I don't have a proper work area and most of my paper comes in large sheets. You can't read any of it but in the sidebars there are notes about what papers I will be using for each component.

Here is a photo of all the paper I have on hand for this project and the canvas board I have already started.

I am still missing the paper for the larger mountain and the snow caps. I will have to get this paper before I start assembling anything so I will continue to work on cutting the components until I get it.

Sarah - I will post continual updates on this project. I had thought about doing it at some point and this seems like a great project to do it with.

I do not use embossing techniques at this time but I haven't ruled it out by any means. I do have a concern about how the embossing imprints would hold up when I apply the final coats of UV gloss and that it might just make the paper soggy and lose the texture. I will have to experiment with this at some point. I do however use a 2 ended, ball-tipped embossing tool for a lot of my assembling (it looks kind of like a pen). I find its a great little tool for giving the blossoms dimension, applying them to the piece and for tiny dots of paint in flower centers, etc. Handy little tool!

It all starts somewhere

This little sketch (3"x4"ish) is the beginning of my next major project. I drew this on a scrap piece of paper while watching my daughter rip and smoosh a PB&J sandwhich into a million pieces before actually consuming it....oh, the glamour ;o)

These rough sketches don't usually represent what the actual paper piece will look like but they give me a starting point. I never bother to draw the tree foliage or other smaller details because they're not really necessary at this stage and the less prep work I can do the better! I am always too anxious to get going on the next step.

So here's the plan. This little sketch will eventually be an 18 x 24 spring blossom scene. I have only done one other piece this large. The ground will be mulberry, the trees will be cut from some really special paper I found that has the look of bark (at $9 a sheet! Ouch! but well worth it). Leaves and blossoms will be indian batiks and any ground cover I do will be from hemp paper my mom found in a dollar store of all places (GREAT stuff)! The fence will be made from an off white crackle-looking paper (pealing paint) and the road will be made from cork paper that I thought looked like a million little stones. I'm not sure what the mountains will be made from, it depends what I have on hand or if I have to order something.

I am really excited about this piece. For one, I really take my time on the larger ones, I get to do more detail and its a cummulation of a lot of components I have tried in other pieces, lessons learned and a few new ideas. I have not done mountains, roads or fences yet.

Also in the works right now is a Cherry Blossom branch that I am currently frustrated with and ignoring until I come up with some brilliant plan.

Oh, I meant to share my typical tools. I don't rule anything out but my main tools and supplies, besides paper of course, are:

Paper punches (leaves and flowers)

Exacto knives (trees and detailed pieces)

Modge Podge (assemblage)

UV Acrylic Gloss (preservation)

Paint brushes (fine details and for applying water for torn fiber paper edges)

Acrylic paint (fine details)

water (thinning glue and wetting paper edges to be hand torn)