Do you ever get a strange nervous feeling and you don't know why? I know some people don't, but I do (probably something to do with being the parent of teens). I decided to call it Random Freefloating Anxiety. The other day, I had one of these attacks of RFA, and in the process of getting rid of it, I had the idea for this drawing.
I've been working more on my Art Journal, but have been still working very timidly, and I wanted to explore a more purposeful style. In all my art classes in high school and college, I learned to sketch, to pencil things in first, but I've been seeing and hearing about just drawing without sketching, and I wanted to try that out for myself.
So this drawing is both a visualization for me calming my brain, and an experiment with a technique I don't usually use.
The Boy Friend Forever said "it's not your usual style...I like it" LOL Those are two separate statements, and I knew it when he said it, but it sounded funny. I like it too. And it's not my usual style. But I do want to explore this style more.
7/17/08
Alphabet Brainstorming Exercise
I’m working on making a prompt jar, I found the idea in the Art Journaller section of Art Scouts, but I’ll bet the basic concept has been found other places as well. The concept is to create a bunch of prompts for yourself that will be jumping off places for ideas. Art Journals, writing, pretty much any art form or even meditation can be sparked by prompts. There are sites that help provide prompts, there are books, and even cards to prompt you. But there is a difference in being prompted by others and being prompted by your own ideas. Ideas beget ideas. So I’m working on creating a set of my own prompts that will spark my own brain.
In thinking about how to make a large set of words for prompts, I came up with this idea that I thought I would share.
I found it very interesting to find what popped into my head. Of course, the words I had already thought of led to the next words, so it was interesting to see how the going up words differed from the going down words.
In thinking about how to make a large set of words for prompts, I came up with this idea that I thought I would share.
- Write the alphabet in a column on a large sheet of paper
- If you can orient it ‘landscape’ you’ll be able to fit more words
- You can skip X &/or Q if you want
- Start with A, write the first word that pops into your head, then go down to B, then C, and so on
- When you get to Z, start again at Z and go back up
- Don’t edit yourself-just don’t write the same word twice
- Keep going up and down, writing one word for each letter, until you’ve filled the page
I found it very interesting to find what popped into my head. Of course, the words I had already thought of led to the next words, so it was interesting to see how the going up words differed from the going down words.
7/14/08
Perfection Procrastination
A little story of overcoming that putting-it-off-till-it’s-perfect crap!
Remember that bag I crocheted and fulled way back when? (back when I could upload photos easily) I loved it when I was making it, I loved it when it was done, but it wasn’t quite finished, it needed the perfect button. And by gads, I would make it the perfect button! Since I’m a polymer clay artist, I will make a button in just the perfect size and shape, in the colors that will mirror the fringe.
Now lately, I’ve been getting all my poly clay supplies organized, my art supplies overall organized, my house organized, my brain organized…well, you get the picture, more organizing than actually doing. And so the button had yet to be made, and the purse had yet to be used.
Yesterday, a busy day for a Summer Sunday, we were getting ready to leave for theatre in the park*, and I was troubling over what to take with me. I had a few things I needed to take, you know: keys, wallet, sunglasses, but didn’t want to take my regular (read: big and heavy) purse. Too bad I hadn’t finished that perfect button, because this was exactly the occasion that I made my little purse for.
Well, in perfect shell style (I’ve been known to make a pair of earrings in the car on the way to where they will be worn), twenty minutes before we have to leave, I decide that I can make the perfect button later, and I need to find the good-for-now button right NOW! Poor BFF (boy friend forever) making a sammich as I’m whipping things out of my art supply closet, throwing things around him on the table, he had no idea what my crazy brain was up to! I knew I had a couple choices of buttons that would probably work, and I found one that works just fine. And even if I don’t make that perfect button soon (or ever), at least I didn’t let my cute little purse sit in some box waiting for perfection.
Rah! For overcoming perfection procrastination! On to the next ‘waiting’ project!
*We have the coolest theatre experience here in Lincoln. In the huge park on the edge of town is a theatre in a little valley, surrounded by pine trees (thus the name Pinewood Bowl). Every summer around this time, they put on a musical under the sun and stars. The doors open at least an hour early so you can get a park bench seat, or find the perfect place to park your lawn chairs or blankets. By the time the show starts, the sun is behind the trees, and they time it perfectly so intermission is hitting right when dusk is over, and the second half of the show is lit with stage lights, and a wide screen on the side of the stage shows close-ups of the action.
It’s always a great experience just to be in an outdoor theatre, but the shows are awesome, too. This year it’s The Music Man (it runs again next weekend if you’re local), my uncle happens to be one of the producers, and this year, my young cousin was in the ensemble, too, which made it even more fun to watch!
Remember that bag I crocheted and fulled way back when? (back when I could upload photos easily) I loved it when I was making it, I loved it when it was done, but it wasn’t quite finished, it needed the perfect button. And by gads, I would make it the perfect button! Since I’m a polymer clay artist, I will make a button in just the perfect size and shape, in the colors that will mirror the fringe.
Now lately, I’ve been getting all my poly clay supplies organized, my art supplies overall organized, my house organized, my brain organized…well, you get the picture, more organizing than actually doing. And so the button had yet to be made, and the purse had yet to be used.
Yesterday, a busy day for a Summer Sunday, we were getting ready to leave for theatre in the park*, and I was troubling over what to take with me. I had a few things I needed to take, you know: keys, wallet, sunglasses, but didn’t want to take my regular (read: big and heavy) purse. Too bad I hadn’t finished that perfect button, because this was exactly the occasion that I made my little purse for.
Well, in perfect shell style (I’ve been known to make a pair of earrings in the car on the way to where they will be worn), twenty minutes before we have to leave, I decide that I can make the perfect button later, and I need to find the good-for-now button right NOW! Poor BFF (boy friend forever) making a sammich as I’m whipping things out of my art supply closet, throwing things around him on the table, he had no idea what my crazy brain was up to! I knew I had a couple choices of buttons that would probably work, and I found one that works just fine. And even if I don’t make that perfect button soon (or ever), at least I didn’t let my cute little purse sit in some box waiting for perfection.
Rah! For overcoming perfection procrastination! On to the next ‘waiting’ project!
*We have the coolest theatre experience here in Lincoln. In the huge park on the edge of town is a theatre in a little valley, surrounded by pine trees (thus the name Pinewood Bowl). Every summer around this time, they put on a musical under the sun and stars. The doors open at least an hour early so you can get a park bench seat, or find the perfect place to park your lawn chairs or blankets. By the time the show starts, the sun is behind the trees, and they time it perfectly so intermission is hitting right when dusk is over, and the second half of the show is lit with stage lights, and a wide screen on the side of the stage shows close-ups of the action.
It’s always a great experience just to be in an outdoor theatre, but the shows are awesome, too. This year it’s The Music Man (it runs again next weekend if you’re local), my uncle happens to be one of the producers, and this year, my young cousin was in the ensemble, too, which made it even more fun to watch!
7/10/08
4-H Projects
More stuff that mom brought me from my childhood included this set that I made in 4-H and took to the county fair. I thought they were kinda lame at the time I made them, but now they're just cute.
The 'serving tray' was an old cookie pan, in case you couldn't tell, spray painted and decorated. The 'hot dish mat', as it was named by the intake person who must have been from Minnesota, is a piece of cork with felt glued to the back, also spray painted and decorated.
I bought a can of clear matte finish that I'm going to spray them both with, (like the judge suggested), and the tray will work perfectly in my cupboard to hold all my spices. (That's a big project for another day!)
Below, along with removing the address, since my parents still live there, I added the notes from the judges.
The 'serving tray' was an old cookie pan, in case you couldn't tell, spray painted and decorated. The 'hot dish mat', as it was named by the intake person who must have been from Minnesota, is a piece of cork with felt glued to the back, also spray painted and decorated.
I bought a can of clear matte finish that I'm going to spray them both with, (like the judge suggested), and the tray will work perfectly in my cupboard to hold all my spices. (That's a big project for another day!)
Below, along with removing the address, since my parents still live there, I added the notes from the judges.
7/7/08
Make Me!
I love when something demands to be created. That happened to me this past weekend. I’d been using my duct-tape wallet for a few months, liking it, not loving it, and the past couple weeks, I’d been thinking about what to replace it with. Thursday morning at work, the idea overtook me, and I had to stop working for a few minutes to draw out the plan: a small felt wallet, embroidered with beads, with a zipper and two other pockets. This morning before work, I transferred my important things into the completed new wallet.
Granted, it was a long weekend, and I was able to work on this project more because of the holiday, but I have a feeling that whenever this project had demanded itself to me, I wouldn’t have been able to do much else until it was finished.
Don’cha just love when that happens? When a project refuses to go on the back burner, jumps into your head shouting "MAKE ME", and just about puts itself in motion without you.
I’ve mentioned that I have been feeling a little noncreative lately, so it was even more exciting for me to have this priority project hit me. Through my noncreative-feeling period, I did keep working, mostly crocheting, and kept watching blogs and flickr for ideas, and researching on Etsy. A week ago or so, a quote inspired me, and I dug my Art Journaller supplies out from the bottom of the stack of crap on my desk, and moved it to my bed stand. Most nights since then, I've doodled, nothing spectacular, but just kept working.
I guess that's the key, do the projects that inspire you, and even when you're not feeling so inspired, keep working until you're inspired again.
Granted, it was a long weekend, and I was able to work on this project more because of the holiday, but I have a feeling that whenever this project had demanded itself to me, I wouldn’t have been able to do much else until it was finished.
Don’cha just love when that happens? When a project refuses to go on the back burner, jumps into your head shouting "MAKE ME", and just about puts itself in motion without you.
I’ve mentioned that I have been feeling a little noncreative lately, so it was even more exciting for me to have this priority project hit me. Through my noncreative-feeling period, I did keep working, mostly crocheting, and kept watching blogs and flickr for ideas, and researching on Etsy. A week ago or so, a quote inspired me, and I dug my Art Journaller supplies out from the bottom of the stack of crap on my desk, and moved it to my bed stand. Most nights since then, I've doodled, nothing spectacular, but just kept working.
I guess that's the key, do the projects that inspire you, and even when you're not feeling so inspired, keep working until you're inspired again.
7/6/08
Heart Dish with Etsy Purchases
Heart Dish with Etsy Purchases
Originally uploaded by seeshells
Since I was taking the photos of my heart dish from my childhood at the same time as I was taking photos of my recent Etsy purchases, I decided to put them together, and what perfection! I think that's the perfect thing for my little heart dish to hold, and it sits by my computer to inspire me!
7/3/08
And The Back
Here's the back of the cute heart dish. It has my initials (my formal initials that is) and the date: 2-1-75, which would make me about a month and a half after my 11th birthday, in the 4th grade. That date also means I created it on a Saturday (I had to look it up, because I didn't remember doing anything like this in art in elementary school), so it wasn't a school project. Maybe a 4-H special seminar or a Saturday church group?
The piece is about 2 1/2 inches across and about 3 inches from point to highest peak.
The piece is about 2 1/2 inches across and about 3 inches from point to highest peak.
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