My Process... Practice makes perfect

Ok, so after my few days of overtime mayhem, I felt like I needed a release and when I got home last night I had a sudden urge to play... so I painted... Like I have said before my art journal is a place I allow myself to make ugly bad art (well I guess not-so-perfect-art is more like it)... My process has become a way to have fun, but also document tips and tricks I learn along the way... Here we go...

I usually start with a need to try something out... for this journal entry I wanted to try upgrading a rubber stamp by painting it with acrylic paint... a very simple idea, something I could expand on in never ending ways... This is the stamp I chose... I loved the simple and whimsical lines...

Next I mixed some paints until I got a background color I liked... I let it dry and then I mixed a darker color to glaze on the edges of the page... I will usually thin a glaze color with a little water to make it more transparent, but since I'm doing this on a journal page, and I didn't want the pages to wrinkle, I just wrapped a baby wipe around my finger and dipped it in a the glaze color and ran it along the edges of the page... (I later went back and did the same with the "pearlescent" color... a little bling)... And because I can't stand to have empty spots on my page I did a little laying down of color with my oil pastels... it looks messy, but I love it...

I don't buy a ton of different acrylic paint colors (The Golden brand is a little pricey but glides like butter), and since I tend to mix my own custom colors I like to keep a journal of the colors I've mixed and what I used to get them... This is the page I did for this journal entry...

On the opposite page I write little notes on tips and tricks I've discovered... for example, I discovered that my #2 Round brush worked well for precision coverage, but not detailing around the edges of the stamp... my small angled brush was better for the outlining and echoed that same delicate whimsical looked I loved from the beginning.. also, I found it was easier to blend when I applied my acrylic glaze directly to the area I was working on...

I encourage all of you to PLAY!!!... by the way... I have my color theory class with my Mati tomorrow, so stay tuned for another little lesson...

I WANT A HOUSE!!!

I am so determined to get the hell out of my apt... My upstairs neighbors have decided to allow another family to squeeze into their two bedroom apt (that makes a total of two husbands, two wives and three kids... oh, and one on the way... and from the look of the wife, she's due any moment... can't wait for another screaming baby)... they also allow their kids to stomp around the apartment at 8 o'clock in the morning... When did parents completely lose control of their kids?

So once again I worked OT last night until 430am, got to sleep around 530am and was at work by 2pm the same day... I can't stress how much I want a house... unfortunately it is at the expense of my health, sanity and patience... My apt lease ends in March, and damn it, I don't think I can stand living here any longer than that.. 9 months and counting...

Overtime Junkie

I'M SO FREAKIN TIRED!!! It's amazing what 14hours of work will do to you... I got home from work at about 6am this morning (mind you I started work at 230pm yesterday)... Finally went to sleep at 7am, and then Joseph showed up at my place to love on me before he went to work... ahhhhh!!!! a perfect end to a long day... cuddling with my love...

I'm still cleaning/organizing the office... it's coming along, but still needs a lot of work... more pictures to come... I hope everyone is having a wonderful Thursday... I'm going to take another nap... talk to you next time....

Weekends, Classes and Inspriration

Joseph and I had an amazing weekend just hangin' (still didn't go golfing, but hopefully soon)... went to his folks to check in, and then to mine for an impromptu pool party in their new backyard (which we have official named "The Resort")... it's unbelievably gorgeous and so relaxing, especially when mom is cookin' on the grill... Maureen brought the two girls over, and we just kicked back and enjoyed the nice weather... This is a pic of my mom with Kelli, who is almost 3 months, and me with Lexi who is 19 months.

I love seeing Joseph with babies... a little foreshadowing of things to come... It's amazing how when love is truly REAL, how good and RIGHT it feels... I love this man...

He is the most genuinely loving man I have ever met... he appreciates me for who I am, no matter what I do, or what kind of mood I'm in, the I feel safest when I'm in his arms...

On another note, I talked to my Mati again, and we set a date of next Monday for our first Color Theory Class... hopefully, I can spread the wealth and post a little outline of what I learn for all my fellow bloggers (along with my homework assignments)... I'm so freakin' excited!! (and a little nervous... it's always a little unsettling when other people are judging your work... thank God Mati is a complete sweetheart... I'm sure she'll be kind, even if my paintings are horrible)...


I'm an avid Amazon.com shopper... I have been buying tons of art books (mixed media, photography, scrapbooking, etc.) and I love the techniques and inspirational projects they offer... they just make you want to play (they also make you want to spend way too much $$ at Michael's, but we won't go there)... I received Mixed Emulsions in the mail yesterday morning and have spent every sitting moment digging through it... I highly recommend it!!! It gives great techniques on how to alter photographs using everything under the sun from stucco to oil paint, and even condensed milk... craziness!! GO BUY IT and get inspired!!

For my Jofus!!!

A little something for my honey, who LOVES the curly hair... I LOVE YOU SO STINKIN' MUCH!!!

My Mati and Creative Spaces

Well, I couldn't sleep last night after talking to my wonderful and beautiful friend Mati... she is a SPECTACULAR artist (go see her stuff at http://www.eyeofthestorm1.com/), and has invited me to her home to teach me color theory... I have absolutely NO idea what this entails, however, any pointers she can give me is very appreciated... stay tuned for what I learn...

Also... I am in the midst of cleaning/organizing my office/creative space (well, Joseph will tell you I've been doing that for months now, and it doesn't seem to be looking any better... unfortunately he is absolutely correct)... The messiness is RIDICULOUS and does nothing for my so-called "Creative Juices"... I've been forced to create on my kitchen table, kitchen counter tops, and my bed (which has become my favorite 'cause I can watch reruns of Seinfeld while I work)... Thanks to my manager's husband, who has graciously agreed to build me my very own work table (and to my love, Joseph, who lovingly put together my IKEA cube system) in a few short weeks I will be equipped with the worlds best creative space... I CAN'T WAIT!!! I'm a very lucky girl...

This is what my kitchen table has become... AHHHHH!!!

And this is my disaster of an office... I know I know... it's horrible... (sorry about the dark pictures... there's almost NO light... I hate that!!!)

Play...Grow... Eat... Love...

Hello All!!! So it occurred to me tonight, as I was painting over a doodle I did in my art journal, that we are all way to concerned with being perfect... and according to my new creative idol, Miss Suziblu (http://www.suziblu.blogspot.com/), your art journal should be the one place you are allowed to create bad ugly art... So, instead of carefully planning my next move on my next entry I picked out a couple colors of my acrylic paint (along with the Iridescent pearl I picked up yesterday) and just started painting... then I dipped my brush in black paint and wrote the first words that came to mind... PLAY... GROW... EAT... LOVE... I don't know about you, but I think these are very wise words (well, maybe not the eat part)...

First Acrylic Painting Class

So I had my first acrylic Painting class Saturday morning at the local art store with David Lobenberg (check out his work on http://www.davidlobenberg.com/)...

I have to say that I was a little intimidated when I walked into the class and everyone was comfy cosy with their well-worn supplies... their stay-wet pallets were covered with paints and such from previous projects, whereas mine was perfectly white (because I bought mine that day along with everything else on the supplies list)... I asked the woman sitting next to me if she had painted before, of course she had, and when the teacher was giving a little intro into the wonderful world of acrylic paint (complete with industry lingo) everyone else seemed to follow right along, except of course for me...

I spoke to David a couple weeks before the class to make sure that I didn't need any previous experience to follow along in the class, and he assured me that I didn't... my previous paint experience only included touching up little details here and there on my scrapbook pages and using it with my foam stamps... needless to say I was a little terrified when he set a still-life picture of an apple and lime in front of us... OH MY GOD!!! There's no freakin' way I was going to be able to do this... I was certain that my final piece would be the worst in the class...

I decided to just take it one step at a time and tried not to look at every one's perfect paintings... Well, when I was done with the apple I set it on a nearby easel to rest my eyes a little and stepped back to view my work... i was pleasantly surprised when one of the women came up to me and said, "Your apple is beautiful"... well, if the experienced painter thought my apple was beautiful, who was I to argue... anyway, here is the finished product (with he reference photo on the right)... I guess I have no reason to be scared of still-life paintings anymore...

I'm thinking about making a frame out of lattice wood pieces, a little tip from miss Claudine Hellmuth, and I can't decide which color to paint it... I've narrowed the choices down to classic black or yellow... whatcha think?