sorrow for the lost Lenore

Ok this is late for the October Crusade but here it is anyway...


For Michelle Ward's October Street Team Crusade themed Get Gothic . I wanted to something the kids and I could work on together and to include my ongoing bird theme. "The Raven" by Poe was a natural. Interesting how the idea progressed. We ended up making a shire to "the lost Lenore". Not exactly scary, just sad. I especially like the touch of the dove "dressing up" as a raven. Dove~~~peace, love and happiness now twisted into the gentleman's tormentor as he goes insane. We included love letters, candles, graveyard dirt, dried flowers, jewelry, and her photo.
The box is the La Guardarropa Shrine from Coffee Break Designs, very cool and easy to adapt.
...now I gotta get thinking on November's "Imaginary Friends" theme.

Some of the "parts" before

stuff

I've been busy...and my blog hasn't been a priority. Last week has had many ups and downs. My grandmother came to visit and we made plastic "fabric". She used it for a fab clutch purse. Check out the tutorial here. Very fun! Boy if she lived closer, we would get in tons of crafty trouble!

My hubby and I had our 15 yr wedding anniversary. We had a nice dinner at home. Sirloins, baked potato, cloverleaf rolls (homemade), salad, and turtle brownies. Yummy! The kids helped set the table up nice. They were on their best behavior. Nice evening, better than eating out.
Lastly..............
My poor, poor Bluto, my little guy, my shih tzu is 12 and not in good shape. He has had many health problems. He only has days left, I know it. I try not to think about it, but instead...that is all I can think about!!!!

More photo experiments

A few more photos here
http://www.flickr.com/photos/36318055@N00/

Halloween ATC Swap and a growing disaster!

As you can see my studio is a bit of a disaster! I'd like to say that this was the exception, but alas no, my studio is always a MESS! I think I work better this way. At least until I cough or sneeze and then some small scrap of paper I needed goes flying into the abyss!

"What does this have to do with swaps?" you say...

I hosted my first swap ever. An ATC swap open to members of WIST (Wisconsin Street Team for Etsy). I didn't get a real big turn out, but that's OK. I tried to stay organized as each batch of ATCs came in. I had a box set aside for them and all was going perfect. Too bad I wasn't as organized with my own cards. I lost 2 of them (1 Cat and 1 Jack o' Lantern) just before the swap ended! I didn't have time to replace them. Oh well, I was going to give each swapper a card from me as a bonus, but I just didn't have time to replace the lost ATCs. Maybe next time.

My ATCs

How Cool is Michelle Ward?

Very cool!

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"In Motion"

This past weekend I took a class with Michelle Ward. Firstly, she is a great teacher! Her enthusiasm and energy is infectious. This class was at Valley Ridge Art Studio (...again) and it was called "Backstage Pass"
We created a small 6x8 inch shadow box assemblage and kept a journal during the process. We sketched ideas, worked out problems and tried new techniques that are in the journal, but may not have ended up in the assemblage.

a few of my process pages

Think of it as a design file. With clippings and paint swatches, a peek into the process. A great reference for further exploration of an idea or a technique....and fun too. My assemblage is not complete yet. I need to dig out the right sized gear to put under the left foot for balance. My journal doesn't have much writing. Mostly experiments with paint techniques and finishes. I liked the whole process and I will continue to use her suggestions. I forgot my camera, but hopefully Michelle will post some of the pics she took on her blog.

Tagged by Jen

Six interesting things about myself....hmmmmm I'm not sure what others would call interesting but, here it goes:

1. Years ago I worked at various Park Service locations along the Mall in Washington DC. I worked up at the 490 ft level of the Washington Monument, inside the Lincoln Memorial, Jefferson Memorial, and Arlington National Cemetery. I wasn't a Park Ranger, I worked in the historical bookstores.

2. I love to read and to stay up waaay too late reading. Not unusual for me to only get a few hours sleep, just so I can finish a good book. I just finished "Elves of Cintra" by Terry Brooks.

3. I am a SciFi geek. I love the TV show "Stargate SG1". I also thoroughly enjoy "Army of Darkness" and other Bruce Campbell movies. His books are worth reading. I laughed so hard at "Make Love* * the bruce campbell way"

4. When I was a kid, I used to read books about survival. You know, how to make shelter, desalinate water, start a fire etc... But the first time I went camping was in college. We were in the Ozarks during spring break and I was totally freaked out the whole first night. Can you say "Blair Witch Project"? Except I was imagining toothless hillbillies with axes. Very embarrassing!

5. I love chocolate and PB, chocolate and mint, and....ok chocolate! Yummy!

6. I am a horrid speller! My 9yr old spells better than I do. My grammar and punctuation needs work too! If it wasn't for spell check I would have spelled grammar wrong!!!! When I see a misspelled word, I know it is wrong. I just don't always know how to fix it.

I decided not to tag anyone else, but if you want to see who Jen tagged.......go here :-D

Artapalooza pt 2

Hello, I'm a bit late posting this. I put off planning my son's birthday party for weeks. So now I'm in a rush to get everything done for Saturday. So far so good.

Well last Saturday was a beautiful day! Perfect weather to be outside. I saw some people who purchased from me last year, and I met some new people. Again, I had a good experience there. Better turn out than last year, but a different crowd. I see a lot of potential for ARTapalooza. The only problem I saw was the date. Last year the fair was a week earlier. This year unfortunately, it was the same day as the Iowa/ Iowa State Game. Hawkeyes lost, sorry Iowa fans :-( ~~~~~ Congrats ISU :-D

I'm not a football fan. I know, I know, not the thing to admit when living in Wisconsin. If a WI team is planning, I want them to win. Loyalty to my home state always! Like Saturday when the Badgers play the Hawkeyes.

Bucky Badger rules!!!

My Dad was a huge Badger fan and we had to have every game on. Even if he dozed off, forget about turning the TV channel. He'd wake up immediately. "Hey, I was watching that!"
funny the things I remember about my Dad.....

ARTapalooza

Saturday I'll be in Cedar Falls, IA for ARTapalooza on Main, a fun street fair. Last year it was my first art fair ever and my second blog post! It was such a good experience as a new artist, I couldn't wait to go back this year. The organizers even put a photo from my booth last year on this years poster! Cool!

Have good weekend all!

More Art Journal

Last time I posted pics of my journal, the right side just had a base coat of paint.
What a long legged birdie! I like the chunky stemmed flowers too.
~~~~~

Most of these designs are now 1inch magnets and pocket mirrors.
I love the little tree in the top left corner...so cute!
~~~~~

The right side is yet to be finished. It is 3 small brown paper bags,
slightly overlapped to form a single page with pockets.
I'm not sure what I'm going to do yet.
I never have a plan until I start.

First Week of School

Well it's official, both my kiddies are in school. First week is almost done. I miss having them around. My girl is getting so big! Fourth grade...WoW! The first month is always tough, review time. She usually doesn't need any review, so she sits bored! Hopefully 4th will be different. She needs to be challenged. She's 9 and for the last year has been teaching herself to read some Egyptian hieroglyphs and shes a wiz at ancient Egyptian mythology. I know she'll be OK, but still...

My little guy had his first day of Kindergarten. I thought I'd be bawling as I left the school. I didn't. I think it was because we're so used to the school, preschool was in the same building last year. This seemed no different. My hubby has the week off, so I wasn't alone. Family was coming that night, so I went right to work finishing a few things in my studio.

It was odd though, around 11:30 am I stopped, came upstairs and just wandered around for a few minutes. Not sure why, until I realized..... that is what time the bus would drop off my little guy after preschool! All afternoon my anxiety grew, something wasn't right. I ended up going to the school early to wait for the bell. I just needed to know his day went well. He ran out into the hallway and jumped into my arms smiling! I had nothing to worry about. The next few days I've been distracted by visiting relatives. Next week is the real test, when I will be alone all day!

New in my shop

Hello all! I just added Dia de los Muertos Shrine Kits to my Etsy shop.
Easy to make and a great way to honor a loved one. I'm adding additional kits over the next week. Each has a different color combo for the background papers.

Kits are 18.00$ and it includes US shipping!

I made this shrine using my kit. It is in remembrance Spud, my ferret who died 8 yrs ago. I miss him. He was a great little guy. Until now I just had a photo on my fridge. This shrine is so much better.

Make Some Noise! GPP Crusade #11

Finally I am getting to Michelle Ward's Crusade 11- Make Some Noise!

Back to School time got me thinking of the old Bare Naked Ladies song "Grade Nine" It makes me LOL. I found this photo montage someone put on You Tube for it.

I love music, but I don't own too many CDs. I prefer to hear a mix of artist and styles. Unfortunately I don't like any local radio stations. I listen to internet radio a lot, mostly retro 80's or alternative. But I can listen to almost anything from classical, punk, ska, alternative, more folksy stuff, classic rock, 50's doowap, old crooners and ballads, and even some showtunes. I could probably think of more if I had time!

Pandora.com is pretty good at picking out music for me and now I'm just tweaking my stations. I just like way too many different types of music. And I have to be in the right mood for each type! I'm really not a difficult person *grins*

If I had to pick my all time favorite band it would be the Police or classic Billy Joel!

Happy Birthday to Me!

I'm taking the day off to unplug, relax, read my book, play with
the kids, and celebrate my 36th birthday!

:-)

Our Family Grows

I wanted to introduce you to a new member of our family...
"Patch" We adopted this cutie on Monday. Who would give up this little guy?
He is very sweet, affectionate, and playful. Not at all skittish.


The younger of our two dogs is really interested in Patch.
Not aggressive, just curious.

Light bulb shrines deMeng style

Friday I finally took my class at Valley Ridge! I had so much fun, but it was a long day. I had to leave the house by 6am to get to Muscoda by 9am. A bit foggy and dreary, but no problem. Michael deMeng is such a nice and friendly guy and a really good teacher! He explains everything well, answers endless questions, and is actually pretty funny. He shared some of his "secrets", which you have to take his class if you want to know!

I was determined to branch out and make a shrine very unlike my normal artwork. This is my showgirl or "Rockette" I started with a faucet knob that reminded me of a 50's scifi rocket. Made this fiery lady inside....how do ya like the red marabou feather! I was thinking Las Vegas showgirl, then someone else said "like the Rockettes". Duh why didn't I think of that...rocket/ Rockette. Sometimes I can be dense :-D

Close up view----damn reflections!

Critique time!-also see how I added vintage upholstery tacks
around the base (stagelights)

This is one of Michael's he brought as an example. Terrific, but damn
that light reflection!



The drive home was long, but uneventful.

I forgot to take a photo from the studio. It was cloudy and rainy most of the day. But I had a nice sunny drive home. Dinner was a Butter Burger from Culver's, Yummy! The one in Sauk City is the original Culver's, cool. I had to try their sour apple lemon ice. I love sour apple flavor and this was the most sour I ever had! More than Altoids apple sours (or apple gum). It was terrific!

Back to School

I made these two collages yesterday afternoon. I saw the Sun briefly, so I guess it inspired me!

Each collage is 5x7 on 140lb watercolor paper.

I'm backing up for my class tomorrow. I'm so excited! Lucky for us in Wisconsin to have Valley Ridge Art Studio nearby! I just hope no roads are closed due to flooding!
For me, Muscoda is about 2.5 hr drive. Unfortunately, I'm in a one day class only.
I wish I could have taken all 5 days of his classes.
But what a class! Michael deMeng's Light Bulb Shrines.
Back to school for me. Cool huh! I can't wait!

I'm adding a few more charms and another pocket mirror design
on Etsy in the next couple of days.

Have a great weekend!

Grey grey day

I feel wore out, grey days do that to me. We've had rain for 2 days and today is still.....grey. Not seeing the Sun for 3 days is draining. I'm like a sunflower, I need to feel the Sun's warm rays on my petals. Oh well, at least now my grass is no longer dying!

TtV test 6

TtV test 6
Originally uploaded by byxanthe

One of many Through the Viewfinder (TtV) experiments I did today. I have a Kodak Duaflex IV. I'm just winging it really! I love the odd look of these photos. A fewmore are posted on my Flickr site.

Tree Mother

This is the temporary name for this assemblage. Not sure if I like it???
Naming my pieces has always been tough.

A mama bird watching us closely as we peek at her eggs.

This started out as a wire form I found at a flea market in North Carolina.
I built onto the form with copper wire. The bird is a vintage artificial one, the nest is shredded money dipped in wax, and three handformed little eggs.

Somerset Home Volme 2

I'm finally posting about this! I've had scanner problems, so these images aren't the best.

I have always enjoyed sharing ideas with others, I considered becoming a teacher.
Maybe I still will be sometime?????

Hope you enjoy the article and please leave a comment!

Thanx
Xanthe





















Somerset Home Volume 2

GPP Street Team Crusade #10

I made over a dozen pieces of mail art this month...and forgot to scan or photograph any of it! Duh!
One friend who received an envelope of mine post a pic on her flickr Here.

This one I haven't mailed yet. The recipient likes a country style
so here is "Ginger" the chicken.

This just needs to be addressed!

This is the before I folded it.

A large USPS tyvek envelope than I recieved. I cut it down.

Art Journal

I'm still working in my recycled packaging art journal. The front and back cover is a used bubble envelope and the interior pages are various envelopes and paper bags. I sketch in a plain mead sketchbook. It is full of crap actually. I just doodle, sketch, whatever. In this journal, I experiment and make small collages I've turned into soldered charms and pocket mirrors.
So far I'm really enjoying it :-)

So as I'm writing this I am watching TV... I am so horrified about the bridge collapse in Minneapolis. I feel so sorry for everyone involved. I can just hope it looks worse than it really is. Scary!

Etsy shop now open!

I finally have everything up and running on Etsy. I have 6 items listed and will be adding more over the next few days.
Whew! maybe I can stop and rest. Ha!
I have lots of new pieces in the works...more assemblage and jewelry.
later!