World of Joy

New Journal and pinterest

2012-02-03T21:30:00.001-06:00

I finally filled my former journal and needed a new one-kept putting off making one then decided that i
have plenty of books i've made in the past that were just sitting there waiting to be used. So I introduce
my newest journal-made at Artfest in 2002. It was an Albie Smith class-whom i adore. I think i've taken
four classes with her in the past and every one of them was great-she is a great teacher and you come away

with a finished product. If you ever get a chance to take a class of hers-do it, you won't be sorry!

Have you discovered Pinterest yet? It is so addicting but so full of inspiration. I've done a few things on there (tutorials) that i've found and made a few recipes that were really good. Here are some fabric hearts i made recently-inspired by things i had seen. Today i made crock pot chicken and dumplings~they were pretty good for a short cut of the real thing-didn't stop me from eating them!

Happy 50th Anniversary to my Parents

2012-01-27T16:13:00.000-06:00

January 27, 1962 they said "I Do."
He was on leave from the Navy, she was in last semester of college. He went back to Hawaii and she finished school-then they got to live "Happily Ever After."

50 years 3 children, 4 grandchildren and 2 bonus grandkids later, they still do~
We love you mom and dad!

Jeanne Art

2012-01-24T17:15:00.001-06:00

These were done by my friend jeanne-she doesn't have a blog so i "blog" stuff to pin for her :) check out my pinterest board "friends art" to see more.

(under donna joy)

Anatomy of an Art Piece

2012-01-18T19:56:00.000-06:00

Thought i would chronicle a piece of fabric art this week. I was given a wonderful stash of rusty metal pieces
some years ago-chicken wire, old bed springs, barbed wire, misc large pieces of metal-you get the picture. I knew i wanted to use some of the chicken wire on a fabric piece-so I got the base of the piece ready and attached the wire to it. There it sat.

Last week i went through some fabrics to start in on this piece. I knew i wanted a western theme to go with the chicken wire. Reds of course. This is what i gathered to use on the piece.

I then picked my "base" fabrics that the rest of my "collage" and images would be built on.
I then layed out the images to decide on their placement.

Here you see i've removed the middle image-decided it was too much. I'm trying out my belt piece but not really liking it.

I decide to go with a large rusted nail-what has it got to do with cowgirls? Don't know but i liked the look along with everything else. Originally i was going to make this piece with the short side top and bottom. After playing around, decided to turn it in this configuration.

After allot of playing around, this is how the piece turned out.
Images layered with burned papers, a suede piece to finish off the top and bottom along with the fringe-because a cowgirl needs a bit of fringe.

Closer looks at some areas of the piece.
And there you have many hours chronicled in these photo's.
I think i'm happy with how it turned out~

My Word for the Year

2012-01-12T16:38:00.000-06:00

I've never been one of those to pick a word for the year. I've never been one to sit and ponder deep thoughts about the world and my life-that's just not me. (i'm not saying i'm stupid, just don't do the really deep thinking like some that i know) there is nothing wrong with it~my brain just doesn't think that way :)
So this year I decided it was time to put on my "big girl pants" and get over it. (life, not the word thing)
My word is...

It is time to :

I have heard on Oprah that people have to "accept the new normal" to get past the "stuff" that has happened~only then can they move on. After all that has happened in my life in the last 2 1/2 years, I am going to try really hard to let it go so to speak~all I have done is dwell on "what was" instead of "what is."
Over~thinking too many things. (at least according to one person) The past is what it is, nothing can change it so with the new year, it's time to move on best I can and live.

My Latest Scores (for the grand sum of $1.00)

2012-01-06T22:16:00.000-06:00

I've been lucky the past few weeks with "trash finds" and one goodwill find that cost me 1.00.

I happened to be in the store the week of Christmas-saw a lady holding a wooden box that she picked up from the shopping cart of "new" stuff. I thought "you really don't need that-I do" :) It worked because she put it back. I casually walked over to pick it up, inspected it for show and took it. It's not in great shape, but love the patina/words. It's sitting on top of some suitcases in my bedroom now.

My next finds were trash finds. The lampshade is wire based-like you see now w/"stuff" hanging off of and decorated cool. This one still has the fabric on it so i'll leave it like that until i decide to deconstruct it.

Second, my french doors-intact, no broken glass-must have remodeled. 2 houses down so they were carried home in the night~ Gary didn't seem too happy since i have other "future projects" sitting in the house and garage. That is one of my goals for the year: to finish some of these things-or in some cases to start! I've tackled one of those this week. Found an old chair some time ago that I cut up for "parts" to use in mixed media. The legs were still intact. I had some leftover wood from a repair in the house so i cut it down a bit and screwed it onto the legs. I made a cushion of foam and will cover it w/fabric for a stool/leg rest. Just need some nails as my staple gun won't penetrate the dense wood. It's a start!

Wooden Tree

2012-01-04T23:36:00.000-06:00

Made this in dec-used carpet tack strips (recycled)
attached to a board and added glitter glue~simple project

(Almost) Happy New Year

2011-12-30T18:24:00.002-06:00

Been busy this week creating in between visiting with my aunt and uncle who are visiting this week
from St Louis (how do you like our 70 degree december days?) They head home tomorrow-just in time
since we'll be getting a cold snap on sunday-but colder in st louis! I made a fabric "card" for a friends birthday that you can see here. (i deleted my pictures w/out realizing they hadn't been uploaded)
I made this little crown for another friend. The rhinestones on the tips are vintage-they have little channels
running under them to sew them on. I can't imagine what it would have been like to have to sew a bunch of
those on a dress!

These two wall hangings were gifts to me-the framed piece was made for me by Traci and i love it-it now hangs in my bathroom where i can see it every day. The kelly rae piece was from Margo-it too hangs in my bathroom-the colors went so well in there it had to stay!

I worked on this wall hanging this week for the newest member of our family: Emma Klaire. She makes me a great-great cousin! am i even old enough to be that? She arrived in sept and I finally decided what i wanted to create for her. I added the glittered mini clothespin so Krystal can change out what photo she puts on display. Made a soldered piece which i hammered her name into-hope she likes it!

crown made for me from another friend~love it!

Look for the latest edition of The Pulse on sunday

where you can see the answer to a question i was asked. :)

Master Class

This and That

2011-12-23T16:05:00.000-06:00

Thought it was about time to get on here and update my blog. Last two weeks have been a bit busy with family obligations-My nephew had his first band concert this month-he's playing the saxophone. I was impressed on how good they sounded for just 3 months into band~ way to go Patrick!

The first image shown here is a fabric piece i did for a friend for Christmas. The image is a bit shiny due to the transfer paper, but you get the idea. I originally tried using some muted pinks but they just weren't working, so i grabbed a red i had nearby-and then the piece just flowed. When i had it all put together and finished I realized "no wonder the pinks weren't working-black/white/red (off white) are her colors"

I wasn't even thinking of that when i was working on it-but my subconcious sure was!

This plate of goodies was a gift to me and my family. Needless to say they taste as good as they look. The presentation was wonderful too as i now have a felted star ornament to boot!

This piece was done for another friend for Christmas. I knew what colors i wanted to use for her-creams/black/browns-her colors. The fabrics came together pretty quickly-it was the image i had a harder time deciding on. Normally i would pick fabrics based on the image, but not this time. I found this image last week at an antique mall and knew she would work. I decided to add the "pop" of red inside the tin-because it is something that she would not do. :) The other pictures are just some details of the finished piece.

Playing Catch Up again

2011-12-05T21:59:00.000-06:00

Time seems to pass by faster than i realize these days.

Nov 20th was my art meeting where we made these cute houses-it even has a light in it!
This beautiful rose was given to me by a customer-it was stunning while it lasted-and smelled good too!
More to come...

Home Again

2011-11-19T16:03:00.000-06:00

I left town again on Nov 1st, thinking i would be gone about 6 days. It turned into 16-however my grandfather
now has 24/7 care until they find an assisted living facility for him to stay in. It will be one heck of a battle
to get him there, but that is what he needs at this point in his life. He is 94 and did pretty well to be in
his home as long as he has-sadly with the short term memory loss, it's hard to get him to understand what he
needs to do. I'm glad to finally be home-it was beautiful up there-autumn colors were in full glory until the rain
and wind blew all the leaves off the trees. I forgot my camera so all i had was the phone to take pictures-will
try to get them on here later.

The Pulse

2011-10-29T13:47:00.001-05:00

On sunday, i'll have a link on Seth Apters Blog along with several other bloggers
be sure to check in to see what technique/tool i can't live with out right now.

Go Texas Rangers!!!!

2011-10-26T19:15:00.001-05:00

One win away from our first World Series...let's hope they can keep playing like they have all year!

Missouri and Back

2011-10-23T21:35:00.000-05:00

I went to Missouri Oct 15 with my dad-my aunt was there too. More issues with my grandfather. Hard to see the deterioration of his health. Got home thurs night (20)

Gramp and Donna

Dad, Gramp (Harry) and Me (donna) 3 generations

Today was my art meeting-this was one of the trades i received-thanks Patti, it's my only outdoor decor this year!

Creepy Doll 2011

2011-10-14T16:46:00.000-05:00

Made another creepy doll this year. This one is realllly ugly so if you don't like gross, don't look any farther... Started with a soft bodied doll. Plaster, glue and layers of paint later

Pumpkins

2011-10-01T21:47:00.000-05:00

It's October and that means the pumpkin patches are now open. It's actually a little cooler this week-

fingers crossed that the days of 100 are over now. Went with my sister and her daughter to a local patch tonight and got some pictures.

Paper Stacks

2011-09-20T19:35:00.002-05:00

Seth Apter has come up with another project for bloggers to see-Paper Stacks.
It goes live on wed. He will link up all the participants (70+) for you to peruse. This image is a stack of journals-including the "big ass pink and black" one on the bottom (and yes, that is the name i gave it when i made it for artfest one year)

I decided to add more pictures to this post after seeing the first 20 participants. Originally didn't want to "clog up" this post since we have lots to go look at-but i like seeing all the other photo's that others have posted that I decided "why not?" So you can look at some of my book collections-I keep saying I don't need anymore-but then I see one I can't resist :) Thanks for stopping by-i try to answer all comments, but in case I don't-do know that i read and appreciate them all!

Art Day

2011-09-20T19:25:00.004-05:00

Sunday was my art group's meeting. We made these adorable little stuffed kitties compliments

of Traci Mine isn't quite finished, but will look similar to this one (her sample) She sells these and other stuffies on etsy and local art fairs.

We Did It!!

2011-09-13T19:20:00.000-05:00

By it, i mean broke the record of 1980~officially now have had 70 days of 100 degrees or higher.
Today to break that record we had a balmy 107!
We Texans are tough like that...

.

10 Years Later...We Will Never Forget

2011-09-11T10:16:00.001-05:00

Many words have been written and spoken about this day-A day that changed us all. 10 years later we still cry when we see the footage. Today as we see the images again and the memorials, we remember And we will never forget...

Halloween Images

2011-09-09T21:36:00.002-05:00

Couldn't Pass up on Passing this on :)

2011-09-09T21:09:00.003-05:00

women are Angels.
And when someone breaks our wings,
we simply continue to fly....on a broomstick.
We are flexible like that

Playing with Oil and Wax

2011-09-04T15:43:00.000-05:00

Decided to try playing around with acrylics/then oil paint over it.
Today i added the wax. Not thrilled w/the the image, but figure if i heat
her again, i'll mess it up worse. So for now, this is how it will stay.


detail of left corner

Another Giveaway in Blogland~

2011-09-03T20:09:00.000-05:00

If you go to this site

~you can read all the details on a chance to win a piece of art from Patti

Unexpected Trip

2011-08-31T10:55:00.001-05:00

Got a call thursday (aug 18) did i want to accompany my dad to Missouri to help deal with my grandfather and help with the drive there. I agreed to go and we left friday morning. At this point in the summer, anything to get away from this unrelenting heat wave. ( Actually it would be good to spend time with gramp and my aunt Linda since she would be there too.)
Grandpa had fallen-no injuries, but he didn't want us to know. Thankfully he has neighbors that look out for
him and let us know things like this. He's had some equilibrium issues along with short-term memory loss, so his kids decided they needed to check things out. We spent the week dealing with dr calls, home healthcare-which has already been stopped. (i have a very stubborn, independent grandfather) and errands. Still some things that need to be taken care of, but those can be done on the phone. He was also told to stop driving-he's 94 and that will be a huge adjustment as he started driving around the age of 10-he grew up in the country in a different time.
My morning view from the deck looked like this most days. (2nd photo) can't get this to line up and tired of trying. I remembered some old photos that were on the lower level that my aunt hadn't seen so i got those out-then found a bonus-Old photo's from my grandmother's side of the family that no one had ever seen before-They are written in croation so we'll have to translate, but what a find!
It was hard to leave grandpa-lots of changes in his life right now-only time will tell how he will deal with them.


our resident spider had a web every morning


The woman in plaid is my great-grandmother


Gramp and Dad at college of the Ozarks after lunch

Me and Grandpa (S of the O) after lunch


Linda and Grandpa after lunch


Birthday celebration (few days early) for dad

Time to say Good-Bye

Croation on back of photo

Dad cooked one night

Almost 90!

2011-08-10T22:20:00.000-05:00

Randy, Marian and Gary


Randy, Marian, Gary & Randy

My mother in law turns 90 on friday. We all met up for dinner tonight downtown at Razoo's-where she wanted to eat. I hope i'm doing this well at 90.
Made this little card for her-90 deserves something one of a kind!
Happy Birthday Marian!

New Art

2011-08-02T22:05:00.000-05:00

Sunday was my art meeting-missed the last 4 so it was nice to attend. Our theme was "crowns" so i made this little wall hanging. I was happy with the way they turned out.

close up of the crown

Remember the carpet tack strips I was working with? Well here is what i have done with them so far: painted them with watered down acrylic.
Nailed them down to a board-using mostly nails i pulled out of my concrete along w/the strips. I have a piece of rusted metal that i got
off some ranch land south of here (thanks Greg!) and Gary and I cut out the heart shape w/the cut-off wheel. It will now be attached to the colored strips when i figure which direction I want it to sit. I'll add a quote to it, a hanger and it will be done-total recycled exept for the board it's nailed to!

Dan Eldon

2011-07-30T16:32:00.000-05:00

For anyone who fell in love with Dan Eldon's journals in the 90's, here is a glimpse into more of his work!
Found this today while browsing art sites-there is allot more on this site to check out-

Heat Wave Energy Burst

2011-07-26T11:36:00.000-05:00

Last sunday i had the sudden desire to start cleaning out the garage-It has needed it for over a year, but I decided last wk was "the day." I got quite allot organized, thrown out or consolidated. I continued the work on wed and you can actually walk through in more than one spot. :) I also got ideas on how to use some of the rusted metal pieces I got a few years ago off a ranch. This is all on the heals of my art room cleansing that is going on too-I figured when the mood finally hit me, i had better go for it!
See the piece of wood under the splintered pieces
carpet tack strips~i have a plan for all of this. An art piece-so i am creating and recycling-Since i still have more carpet to pull, that means more tack strips-and more recycled art :) When I make progress on the piece, i'll post some pictures.

Day 22 But Still not Counting :)

2011-07-23T16:19:00.000-05:00

I think the entire US (those of us in the heat wave) are ready for it to end! I say we need a
national day/time to all pray for rain at the same time the indians do a rain dance and maybe it will happen~
I will update pictures as soon as i find out where my cord went that goes to the comp...that conveniently disappeared~

Day 14, But Who's Counting?

2011-07-15T12:05:00.000-05:00

Yes, today is day 14 of 100+ temps. We need rain! Some cool weather would be nice too-i'll even take 40. OK, i'll even settle for 70. But that's my limit.

New Storage/30 days of Get your Art On...

2011-07-12T14:16:00.000-05:00

Since i finished my chest of drawer makeover I decided that it could count for 7 days of the 30 days of art that Traci Bunkers is doing-killed 2 birds with one stone. Now i have to do some other art every day to put on here. Not sure that it will be daily, but i'll try to do something~while the mood strikes. Here is the chest- Will post a full picture when i take a better one-the one i had is blurred. Not sure if i will keep it white or if i will glaze over that-time will tell. At least i've done something that could be called creative :)

The Slump is Over

2011-07-08T21:55:00.004-05:00

After months of not creating, seems my "mojo" came back the past 2 wks-finally.
I've been re-doing a chest of drawers my sister didn't want. It will go in the artroom for storage.
It's being painted white-where i haven't papered it w/vintage book pages. These are some of the drawers w/out the handles on them-those may get painted too. The top and sides are also covered w/the paper. Haven't decided yet if i will glaze over the white paint to antique it, but when it's all done, i'll post a picture.

I've also done two wall pieces. The little boy in airplane and the girl holding the heart.
I really like them-and the little boy is hanging in my living room for now-but he may be a
gift for someone who has a birthday this month~haven't decided :)
I'm also taking an awesome online class: Full Tilt Boogie. I have heard great things about Mary Ann Moss in the past-her "Remains of the Day" class so knew this one had to be good too. I was right. The class was actually a gift-and i am loving it. I think it's what got my spark going again to create. Her videos are well shot, not stuffy and dry. The directions are concise, the PDF info is great-i highly recommend this class if you've thought about it. It will show you some new bookbinding stitches, great ideas for book covers and using a vintage album~ I've made my practice book-but it's packed up to be mailed off to someone special . When i get a real one made, i'll post that too~ (click on link FTB above to go to mary ann's blog and click the sidebar for class info)

Today's Interesting Encounter

2011-07-07T15:59:00.004-05:00

While mowing today a small SUV pulls up and i figure he needs directions. So i walk over to see what he wants and he says "oh, you're not who i thought you were-sorry." I say "no problem" and start to walk away. Then he says, "well maybe you are-do you smoke?" nope. (thinking maybe he wants to bum a cigarette. (duh) Then he says "do you know anyone who smokes? Well, Nathan does, but i'm not telling him that. "No, i don't, sorry" Then he looks at me and says "OH, NO. not drugs or anything, just weed" "Just weed." "no, can't help you" i reply (although i really could but won't) :) " Oh, ok, I just moved here from Tyler-well, i see you're working so i'll let you go." He turns around and honks as he drives off.
Not drugs-just weed. Since when did weed become legal? Did i miss something there? Did i mention he had a kid in the front seat too? About 7-9 i'm guessing, and he's out trying to score some weed. Did i also mention that he acted like he had already HAD some weed-or something-at noon. I guess he could have been an undercover cop looking for a bust, using the kid to throw you off, but somehow i seriously doubt it.

Roosters

2011-07-05T18:49:00.003-05:00

What's so special about roosters? I saw these today and had to have the picture.
Why? you ask. Well read this and you'll see why. I picture leaving one at my brothers' front door one day...

More Bunny Love

2011-07-02T23:50:00.006-05:00

Few more pictures-these were taken friday night. The bunnies were pretty energetic and curious. One climbed right onto my hand-i had moved some grass away and he just kept coming.
Trying not to mess with them too much but couldn't resist the guy!
Sad note today (july3) sometimes nature just sucks-bunnies didn't make it.

The Pulse/Style File

2011-07-02T17:05:00.003-05:00

S e th Apter's 5th edition of his online project The Pulse will begin this weekend.
The postings will begin this weekend with a bang, which I thought would be perfect for Independence Day in the USA. There will be posts on Saturday 7/2, Sunday 7/3 and Monday 7/4 to kick off the project. After that, posts will go up every Sunday. Given the number of responses I received, I expect that postings will go on until spring 2012.

My response for the question ‘How would you describe your artistic style’ will be highlighted in my blog post this Monday July 4th.

Bunny Love

2011-07-01T16:04:00.004-05:00

(Kate and Clara)

One of the dogs found a rabbit's nest this week-He had one bunny in his mouth but put it down
when told to- we put the two bunnies he had messed with in a box until we discovered where the nest was-mama rabbit had her babies near our bedroom window. They were burrowed and hidden well, but not from the nose of a dog. We put the babies back along w/a piece of towel to try to help keep ants away. The nest is lined w/grasses and fur from the mom. These are less then 7 days as their eyes aren't open yet. The "star" shape on their foreheads will disappear by the time they leave on their own.
The nest had 5 total babies and we are monitoring their progress. Luckily they are in our "side" yard which is fenced from the rest of the backyard. We re-inforced the chain link where the dogs can burrow under so that the rabbits would be safe. The two in the pictures above sadly didn't make it. A third didn't either. Not sure why but we still have two to watch progress. Mama comes at dusk and early morning. We've seen her around the neighborhood for months-little did we know she was scoping out our yard for babies. (we ARE the safe house for animals it seems) We had to dispose of the dead babies today-didn't want maggots and ants to get to the other two. We took out some of the dirt too-don't want the smell of decay to attract predators. We are determined that these two make it-more pictures to come.

mama rabbit the nest

Playing Tourist

2011-06-28T13:19:00.007-05:00

This past weekend i got a chance to play tourist in my own backyard. We had family in from St Louis-my aunt, her daughter Tina, tina's kids Madison and Hayden and another cousin Krystal and her daughter-to-be. (in sept) We all hung out at my parents' house fri night-nice to visit and catch up-this time for happy times. The last time we were all together was for a funeral in Dec.

(engine) (conductor) (our car)

(family)

Hayden, Tina, Madison
All Aboard!

Patrick, Addison
Hayden & Tina (like mother like son)
Linda, Mom Krystal (and emma to be)

Addison & Madison

Sat we all met up in Grapevine to ride the Tarantula train (vintage train) It takes you to the Stockyards and several hours takes you back to Grapevine. Hayden (6) and Madison (almost 9) had never been to Texas. They wanted to see horses, cowboys and longhorn cattle. When we were nearing the Stockyards Madison got all excited when she saw cactus! It was funny to hear her yell "MOM-CACTUS! look there's cactus!"
We got to experience the authenticity of an old mode of transportation (sans air conditioner in texas heat) We did have ceiling fans and open windows to catch the breeze. As we were leaving grapevine an airplane was coming in to land at D/FW airport. I commented that it was probably not a view the people in the 1800's would have seen. (neither was this)

We got to experience an ambush/ gunfight/ train robbery while on board.

Madison and Addison dove under their seats when they heard the gunfire. They did get up when we were boarded by the "robbers" and were deputized by the sheriff dude that came on after them. (After that the girls and Hayden used their water bottles as guns and said if they came back they would just shoot them-bravery. after the fact. :) )
We were hungry when we got to the stockyards-even though they had drinks and snacks for purchase on the train. Popcorn and nacho's were had by some (2 orders of nachos for Patrick) We had burgers at Risky's and looked around in the shops-saw a "cattle drive" and hung out until time to board the train for the ride back. (cowboys)

Some of us channeled our "inner cowboy" by sitting on a saddle. yee haw!

We got to cheer on a bicyclist and did the universal motion for honking-didn't we all do this on road trips as children? It was funny to see people sitting in their cars laughing, looking puzzled or just plain ignoring the train. We did manage to elicit some honks though.
When we got back to Grapevine it was off to Grapevine Mills (outlet mall) so the kids could experience Rainforest Cafe. We weren't hungry after the late lunch so it was drinks and dessert for us. Linda ordered the Volcano cake for us to share-there were other items too, but that was the "centerpiece" of our goodies. We even left some-it was that big. Looked around the mall for a short while-then headed back to mom's. Suzanne, Tina and the kids closed the mall and headed to her house.
Sunday found those w/no or grown kids meeting up to head to IKEA.

Krystal and Sandra had never been. Spent several hours browsing and enjoyed the restaurant there. A "few" things were purchased by linda and krystal. Mom managed to find a few things and i got one-a new toilet scrub brush for the bathroom since maverick chewed up the last one.
We all met up for dinner-the husbands included-at Mi Pueblo for one last meal together. Topped it off with Yogurtville frozen yogurt before all headed back to respective homes. The Missouri bunch headed back to St Louis bright and early mon morning-It was a short visit but lots of fun packed into a short time. Y'all come back now-ya hear!

Father's Day

2011-06-19T18:23:00.003-05:00

We all met up at Joe T Garcia's in fort worth for brunch/lunch.

Keith, Mom & Dad

Travis & Patrick
Mom, Me, Suzanne, DAD, Keith

Randy, Gary, Nathan
Had a nice meal & good company-when they weren't off taking pictures
sue, ty, addison aren't in my pictures...will have to "steal" some from suzanne...

Delicious!

2011-06-14T17:01:00.004-05:00

What do you get when you combine these?

These! (found recipe here)
White Chocolate Caramel Cashew Oatmeal Bars

I changed it up a bit-used walnuts instead of cashews-but they are quite tasty-rich so you
don't need a big one!

Zipline!

2011-06-03T16:11:00.004-05:00

Last summer i bought a groupon for gary and i to zipline. We finally used it this May~ and it was a blast. I would do it again in a second.
We saw this sign on the way to the staging area-I told gary it was to keep the sheet shooters from using zipliners as target practice :)

Then comes the "class" where you learn how to sit and all important: how to stop.
Now i'm ready for the real thing-it was scary the first time i let go~then it was FUN!

this is where the longest run comes to an end. This was a 1500' run-we got to do that one twice~Here i am finishing up my last run. Gary really was there! He had his phone with him, so he was the one taking all the pictures. Next time i'll get shots of him~

Art?

2011-05-14T21:49:00.002-05:00

Will i ever create again? I'm beginning to wonder. It's been over 5 months now. I get ideas,
sparks but enter my art room and nothing. No desire. Maybe this is a good time to go through all
my supplies and purge. When i won't sit and think, "but one day i might need this" :)
i want my life back.

Easter Eggs-in a new way

2011-04-30T10:05:00.004-05:00

My friend Shannon posted this on fb and her blog-i think everyone needs to see it! A new way of dying eggs.
When browsing blogs this morning, i saw some more done on this blog~so check it out because you will want to start hunting down silk ties for next year~
(click on "this" to go to blog sites, for some reason, it's not highlighting)

Images of Japan

2011-04-23T18:34:00.001-05:00

Check this site out for images from Japan and the Tsunami damage-so hard to even
comprehend.

Yes I'm Still Alive

2011-04-09T16:44:00.003-05:00

Can't believe it's been this long since i posted. I was hit with a viral infection that is in it's
4th wk now. I finally feel like it is weakening. It's caused me to miss most of the visit when some
relatives came to town. I coughed so much it feels like i cracked a rib, i haven't slept laying flat in a month-and i'm ready for my damn ears to pop already. Other than that, i'm here. :) I see that my roses have bloomed-the tulips and iris' never flowered this year-maybe due to that snow/ice we had. I'll have to post rose pictures tonight.
Night that i got sick i had gone to the park to feed ducks with Suzanne and Addison. (must have been that night air that got me) :)

Textures

2011-03-06T18:31:00.005-06:00

Thought since i haven't been making any art i would post a few pictures from Ft Worden area circa 2008...Nothing like peeling paint and rust!

The Pulse

2011-02-26T12:01:00.004-06:00

Be sure to check out Seth's blog sunday for another addition of "The Pulse."
A photo i sent in back in Nov '09 (of a collection of mine) will be in this addition.
Can't remember what i sent, but it might have been books~since i can't stop buying old
ones~
A Happy Birthday to my hubby too-won't say how old though :) ...

Book Giveaway

2011-02-22T19:05:00.003-06:00

Mary Beth Shaw is giving away a copy of her new book on fri so click on the link to read all
about it-Haven't seen the book yet but it looks like it is a good one-esp if you like her art like i do :)

Feb Art Mtg

2011-02-13T18:04:00.007-06:00

Sally, Traci H

Olga / Suzy

Today Jeanne and I co-hosted our art meeting. We decided to show our "expertise" at how to
make a steampunk heart out of clay. Once we arrived at the library, everyone pretty much dived into their clay-didn't even touch the snacks we brought! (that has to be a first) I broke the ice
so to speak by grabbing a cookie-then carrots, cake, chips....
These are the hearts that were made-most in progress:
April Donna G

Carol

Melody

Cold Weather Cooking

2011-02-04T18:57:00.004-06:00

Today's special was potato soup-and boy was it yummy!
Here is Maverick playing in the snow-this guy still needs a forever home. Looks like we get a little break in the weather tomorrow. yea.

Did i mention the snow? we got about 4" on top of all that ice-and tonight it all turns to ice to make the roads a bit more fun...

Damn It's COLD outside!

2011-02-03T17:32:00.005-06:00

We haven't had this many days of cold ever-that i can remember anyway. I just heard on world news tonight that it's colder HERE than Alaska-go figure. Normally we get 1 day of icy roads-everything shuts down because we aren't equipped for ice-don't get alot of it. It then melts the next day. Not this time-temps not above freezing until sat. But wait! (like those commercials) we get snow fri morning to top it all off! I actually left the house for a bit today-After being home since late mon night, i was stir crazy-actually showered and got out of my pj's. Did some cooking and baking yesterday though~
The one thing i'm sick of hearing is "they should have been better prepared for this" (mostly due to superbowl being here-well HELL-O people we don't GET this weather here. Schools closed for 4 days in a row-never happened before, so deal with it you northerners~it's a Fluke...
Below are the cookies i made-and made them smaller than normal since i've been grazing too much while stuck at home. The french toast was gary's, which was finished BEFORE the rolling black out-mine was just starting to cook when the black out it. it wasn't so good.

ICE

2011-02-01T20:38:00.004-06:00

Well, we actually got the ice storm they predicted. My aunt was texting me from St Louis last night saying up there the grocery store shelves were empty of many items. She said normally they predict a storm, everyone buys milk, bread and eggs and no storm-so then everyone has to make french toast the next day. So i've declared today "National French Toast Day." I made a bacon/cheese sandwich though, so i'll make mine on wed.
The dogs enjoyed going out as usual, just not in long increments of time-except Maverick-his first cold spell. He was very frisky-had to make him come in. That wind chill is a killer. Lots of baking going on in N Texas~ That is Jack in the picture-chillin' after coming in from the cold. Looks like he just needs a beer and a chick and he'd be fine...

49 Years and Counting...

2011-01-28T21:44:00.003-06:00

That's how long my parents were married as of yesterday!
Congratulations to them~

A New Site is Launched!

2011-01-27T16:21:00.002-06:00

A new mixed media site was launched today.
Rice Freeman-Zachery and Tonia Davenport have been working in secret for many months to build a new community for all of us to visit, share, learn, and be inspired by.
It's being added to now-there is a free ebook to download once you sign up-i've already downloaded it for myself~
There are videos, pictures, slideshows, podcasts, blogs, tutorials, e-books, wallpapers, artist profiles, and shops.
so check it out!

Super Bowl XLV

2011-01-20T22:40:00.004-06:00

Well, we had the World Series earlier this fall, next we're hosting the Super Bowl. Personally, i don't really care about any of the teams that could end up playing this yr, but since it's here, i had to at least take pictures of the stadium before everything is blocked off. Driving by you can see where large tents and stages are being set up for the upcoming parties. (and the stupid decision to sell tickets to sit out there and watch a screen so they can count that as "attendance") Anyway, here it is close up and as personal as it gets from my vantage point :)

Happy New Year!

2011-01-04T17:30:00.001-06:00

So i'm a few days late-better late than never! All i can say is i hope that 2011 is much, much better
than 2009 and 2010! If it's not....well, no telling.

Merry Christmas

2010-12-26T17:14:00.006-06:00

Riley say's "merry christmas"

Did our usual Christmas Eve at mom and dad's house. Ty, Keith and Sandra were not there for dinner (pizza's) but came later. We had a nice visit with everyone-had a few good laughs-sadly at Suzanne's expense. Sandra said to Keith, "honey try this, your sister made it" "Which one?" he asked. "Suzy...but it's GOOD!" have to know her history w/cooking (and the skunks) to understand why we laughed so hard. Wish i had thought to take a picture of everyone-we never
think of that when we are all together-until the time has passed.
Pat
Ty, Nathan, Travis
Keith and Sandra

here was the hit of the night.
Addison got a "babysitter barbie" it came with barbie, child and potty. (complete with toilet paper) i kid you not. She sits, then you see the "mess" then flushes (complete with sound) and
potty flips inside to reveal clean water again....(addison is fighting potty training w/a vengeance)

maybe this will help!

More from St Louis

2010-12-11T18:02:00.003-06:00

Although it was a sad trip, it's always good to see family. We even had a few laughs~
Keith took a call when we were at Colleen and Eric's. We all noticed his pose through the window-that's when the cameras came out. Sam went out to strike a pose behind him, but only
got one in before he started laughing.
Here is Mike with Molly-the newest family member.

Grandpa and me on Thanksgiving Day-he flew down to spend a
few days with us-very nice to have him here with us.

For my Cousins~

2010-12-07T22:22:00.002-06:00

St.Louis

2010-12-02T11:38:00.002-06:00

Here we are again-in St Louis. It's a sad visit just as it was in august. This time we're here
for the funeral of my cousin, Doug. His passing was sudden and so unexpected-two of our families burying their sons too soon. It's cold here today-it was 25 last night when we got in.
I'm at my aunt Linda's-where the trees are bare and you can see the river below and for miles around. Saw a woodpecker up close this morning and a cardinal-the red sticks out when there is no green. We head to the funeral home this afternoon to visit with family and friends and say our final good-byes in the morning. I'll post more when i'm back in Texas~
Rest in Peace Doug, we'll miss you~

What Have I Been up To?

2010-11-22T16:47:00.006-06:00

Little bit of everything it feels like. I did manage to send a box of "goodies" to Missouri. These pieces will be for sale in Hermann-at The Gold Rhino antique store. These pictures show them in their almost finished state.
We celebrated Addison's 3rd birthday this week end. Patrick took these pictures for me-good job Pat~

Last wkend i met Mary and Donna at the Cattle Barn in ft worth and looked around for bargains. I came home with all these keys for a good deal~now to come up with some jewelry or art ideas to put them to use!

And finally, still trying to find Maverick a home! This lovable guy needs a forever home! He's now housetrained too~and very affectionate. Loves trips to the dog park~

The Alice in Wonderland Book Project

2010-11-12T16:24:00.010-06:00

Our books are now done and sunday was the tea to celebrate the ending~to see the finished books, crowns and ATC's. Of course there was food and drink as Mary had tea catered for us! What a nice touch! This is Mary-our hostess, in her crown. We were all given a base to design our own crown.
Below is the table-set and ready to go~

Here is the group, anne, april, donna j, melody and donna g
and mary is in the picture above!

Here is the food:sandwiches, scones, clotted cream, strawberries dipped in white/milk chocolate, lemon tarts, brownie bites...and the list goes on-all served with hot tea and ice water. It was delicious!

Here is a picture of my crown and the other 3 that were there: Me, April, Donna and Mary.

I came with the white gloves ready to attend the party in style. Needless to say, the gloves came
off-they really aren't conducive to eating when you aren't used to them-and i haven't worn any since i was about 5.
Finally a sampling of the artwork done in the books-each book was a different size so each page is uniquely done to fit each book.

7 Gypsies Giveaway

2010-11-01T17:41:00.001-05:00

If you go here you can see the goodies that 7 gypsies are giving away for this holiday season.
stamps, paper tape and ATC kit-all sure to get you in the mood for Christmas!

World Series

2010-10-31T15:12:00.003-05:00

This is what you see driving up to the Ballpark...

These flags are all over the streets near the ballpark.
And here we have the proof:Rangers are in the World Series...
still surreal~ Antler Up!

WORLD SERIES HERE WE COME!!!

2010-10-23T14:28:00.004-05:00

Rangers won the pennant last night-beating the Yankee's 6-1!
NEVER did we think the words, "the Rangers are going to the World Series" would come from our mouths! We were lucky in 1996 to be at the game when they clinched the division and got to go to the one game here-but were beaten by the Yankee's that yr-they lost, but it was still exciting that they got to the play-offs at all. THIS is surreal. What a great feeling...

October~

2010-10-19T17:16:00.004-05:00

This little guy was our project at the October art mtg. Traci of Art-T-Dolls generously shared this pattern with us so we could each have our own batty character. (you can find them for sale on her site-among other creatures) they were great fun and each ended up with it's own little personality.
These are the spiders i made for my art meeting on sunday~they don't photograph very well though. They started out as styrofoam balls, then morphed into these. If it's october, that means i've broken out the halloween socks. This is my newest pair.

These are 2 swaps i received at the meeting-now adorning my house. Love them. One on left is from Traci and the right is from Donna

And finally, a peek at the last piece of art i finished. Will post more pictures soon. I'm working on several pieces that will be headed to missouri for sale in a cool antique store...

Catching Up~

2010-10-14T16:59:00.003-05:00

First, if you go here you can enter for a chance to win these wonderful earrings! Wish i could say I had made them, but that's not the case. love the resin paper!
My aunt Norma and her friend Jan were here last wk. I took some time from working to spend
time with them and my mom on their shopping treks. With Norma, that's the only way to say it-she hits every store known to man. (of course, i tend to do the same when i travel too)
We spent fri hitting estate and garage sales. I got a pr of gloves and an old book on ettiquette. They will both be finding their way into my art pretty soon. I also got stung by a wasp again on mon-same hand, lower spot on my wrist and 2 days of swollen monster hand.
Sun we all met up at Joe T Garcia's for brunch. Gary and i had tea and visited as they chose to eat outside. NOT a fan of outside dining when flies/birds and birdshit become part of the experience and all of the above did. I met up w/them later and went to the stockyards. Saw a fabulous skirt and shirt that would have been really cute, but for over $300.00 they both stayed in the store. Spent tues with them in Grapevine before taking them to the airport that afternoon. This is their 3rd visit together and it was nice that i had no bodily injury this time that kept me at home~

Help "A Place to Bark"

2010-10-03T17:14:00.001-05:00

If you go here to watch this video, you can rate it to help Bernie's animal rescue. She is a one
woman operation for the most part doing all she can to save dogs and cats from being put down.
In the past 5 yrs she has rescued 2500 animals-and if she gets enough votes can win 25,000 to $250,000 towards her rescue mission!

Donna VS. Wasp(s)

2010-10-01T15:01:00.003-05:00

The wasp(s) won. Not sure if there was more than one-just felt a sudden sting, said a bad word as i brushed it off of me-never saw it. Nice results though..
last night

today

There's Something About Saturdays...

2010-09-26T17:02:00.005-05:00

For some reason, it just seems that sat night is my creative night. I seem to get more done and be more in the art mood then. While in there the other day i was looking at stuff i had started but not finished. I normally like to work on one thing in particular, but sometimes get started on a project but not know where i want to go with it. I didn't think i had that many "going on" until this past week when i noticed a pretty tall pile of "stuff." I took a look and sure enough, quite a few things that i never did complete. Either didn't like how they looked or couldn't decide what to do to finish them. Here are some pictures of most of these projects:

Then of course came a bit of goofing off. I came across the hair that came off of "creepy girl" and couldn't pass up the opportunity to let the dogs model it-2 of them anyway... can you see the sheer joy on Nala's face? :)
Riley was a bit more cooperative-but not much.

She's Done

2010-09-18T21:35:00.002-05:00

Here is creepy girl in all her glory. She started out as a broken doll a friend gave to me to "do something with." So i did.
She's ready for her close-up:

Our houseguest enjoying some fresh air-Maverick (with his tiger stripes)

Finished a piece of art this week. Call her "Barefoot and Butterflies." Still need to put her in a shadow box-

I'm also taking Alisa Burke's online class, Color My World and here is my
color "wheel."

Temporary House Guest

2010-09-12T16:49:00.002-05:00

We have a house guest. Rumor was that he would stay 2-3 nights then leave.
Discovered today that's not the case. "Someone" changed the plan. New plan is for him
to stay here while WE (i) house train him then he can go back home, NOT to the friend's
house he was going to go to. (at least that is the story we were told.) yea right.

Just look at that paw-it is huge for a few month old puppy. His name is Maverick. He was found wandering in an industrial area-with another puppy. Nathan and Ashley rescued him. He didn't come instantly housetrained-imagine that! So he is happy here while he is in training. Nala doesn't mind him but the others do-so we have to keep him sequestered from the others. What fun that is. He seems to be picking up on "house rules" pretty quickly. He seems to be very smart: loves to fetch a ball or toy and bring it to you to chase again. He likes to cuddle up with you too-a real sweetie.

We Remember...

2010-09-11T15:00:00.004-05:00

I don't think that anyone who was old enough that day to know what was going on will ever forget where they were when they heard the news or saw the images.
I had turned on the tv that morning which i rarely did. Took Nathan to school and heard on the radio a plane hit the tower. First thought: small private plane. Got home and saw the image on tv of smoke-and immediately knew that was no small plane. I sat there watching Good Morning America-as the commentators spoke-when suddenly a plane comes into view and Diane Sawyer says something about it. I'm thinking "that's not right, planes aren't allowed in that air space." It was totally surreal. Then it hit-and i think "Oh my God, what is happening?" As many others did that day, i sat glued to the television-watching as the horrors unfolded. Thinking of all those people trapped in there-can they get out? We went to lunch that day. It was eerie. Even driving, the streets seemed quiet. The burger place had a tv on-other than placing an order, it was silent, everyone watching. Living near a major airport made it odd to see no planes anywhere. Too quiet. The FAA did an unbelievable job that day of bringing in all those planes safely. Our world changed that day. I don't think anyone foresaw the ripple effect-businesses closed for good, economy that shifted-jobs that were lost. Security. These things don't happen on American soil. until now. We look at people differently-we want our borders closed-and safe.
Some think we are. I've heard stories from those in military-higher ups. Some on the radio, some friends of family. Many things have been stopped, but too many things that need to change haven't-I hope it doesn't take another 9-11 for that to happen. I hope we never see another day like that again-once in a lifetime is enough.

Coming Right Along

2010-09-10T15:48:00.006-05:00

well, the creep show girl is coming along-thinking i'll probably do a gray wash over all this to finish her off.

This moth was at the window the other night-it was really big compared to other moths-can't really tell that here, but it was.
We have a temporary house guest right now-will get a picture of him up soon~

Silliness Giveaway

2010-09-02T16:48:00.003-05:00

Maybe not actual silliness, but a class in silliness and drawing. If you click on here you can see
how to get a chance to win Carla Sonheim's next drawing class.

Creepshow Doll

2010-08-30T19:37:00.003-05:00

Saw some things online recently that inspired me to start this creepy little doll. My friend Carol
gave me this doll because she knew i could do "something" with it. She came with a pretty little
yellow dress-it's gone (to my niece) she was broken-so now she is officially headless.
i think when i'm done, the body will be holding the head. This is her in the first stage of altering.
More to come as she progresses...

Halloween Mood

2010-08-29T14:32:00.001-05:00

It's only 90 outside so i'm getting in that halloween mood already...
have my new music ready to add here next month~

25 Years Ago...

2010-08-20T20:48:00.004-05:00

This one was born...

my how time flies!

Sad Day for our Family

2010-08-13T18:18:00.003-05:00

(andrew, nicole and nathan circa 1989)
Found out this morning that my 25 yr old cousin was found dead in his bed.
I can't begin to imagine what my aunt went through finding him-and all the events
following that discovery. I'm glad we have lots of family in St Louis to be there for
the family-i'll be heading north for a funeral next week.
We miss you already Andrew-RIP
How do you say goodbye to one so young? what do you say to family that sounds adequate?
words can't convey what you feel for the loss of one so young. Death is a part of life, but it seems so much harder to understand when someone leaves us this early-didn't get to fulfill a lifetime.
nathan and andrew 1989

Aug 8th

2010-08-13T18:13:00.004-05:00

My mother in law turned 89 this wk-we all met up at Razoo's on sunday for dinner~
randy, marian, mary, randy & gary
randy, randy, marian, gary and me~

Road Trip

2010-08-03T20:16:00.003-05:00

OK, so we only went to Weatherford to eat pizza, but it was a bit of a drive. They have good pizza, reminds me of Italian Inn that finally closed in the 90's due to the crime in the area.
We also ended up here. We went to Gibsons alot when i was growing up. (at least when we lived in Texas) got many a school supply and stationery pad there. The last time I was in one was when we lived in Alice. in Jr High. remember looking at the stationery so i could write friends back in Hurst-and at the crafty stuff. Brought back alot of memories!

And here's Gary-checking out the toys-

Art Day

2010-07-22T18:48:00.003-05:00

Monday i watched this little one~and she wanted to do "arts and crafts" so we did. I got out the paper, ink pads, rubber stamps, scissors, glue stick and paints. Guess what the favorite was?
She made 2 books, 1 realllly big book for her mom. A BIG card for Nathan and just played.
We made handprints in paint-even footprints-(mom doesn't know about those yet) but it washes off so it's ok~ :)
i think i finally have everything put away again-waiting for next time...

Homemade Goodness...

2010-07-17T22:04:00.002-05:00

Saw this on Alisa Burk's blog and since i had just made up a batch of choc. chip cookie dough
the night before, thought-why not? so i had a homemade ice cream sandwich-yum!

Collage Playground book Giveaway

2010-07-12T17:39:00.002-05:00

Go to this link to see the info for the giveaway of this book: Collage Playground

F+W Media has gifted the Marketplace with a copy of Collage Playground for someone to win. the above link will tell you what you need to do to enter! good luck!

Chaos and the Cattle Barn...

2010-07-10T14:24:00.003-05:00

How can these two have anything in common? Moreso than you think. I've been *trying* to go through my art room and purge. I've got the giveaway pile, the trash and the sell piles. It's verrrry slow going. Sometimes i walk in and turn around and leave. Other times i get inspired to start a project or work on an ongoing one. Needless to say-it's a slow process. I want to narrow down some of my art stash, but it's hard to do when you are into mixed media.
THIS is what my room looks like right now-
There are piles of stuff EVERYWHERE in the room-stuff in boxes...need more bookshelves now that dresser is out. haven't found any so may just build what i want. Spent hours in here last night going through things and rearranging others. The naked eye can't tell, but i can!
Today i needed a break so decided to head to the Cattle Barn Flea Market in ft worth. I thought it *might* be a bit cooler today w/the clouds (no air, just fans all over) it IS a cattle barn after all.
It was cooler, but humidity set in-i didn't go there to look pretty or impress, so that was fine and since i was dripping wet by the time i left, a good philosophy.
I dug. I dug through boxes, bins and shelves. 2 1/2 hrs later and $20. poorer, here is what i came home with-can you see today's theme? Like i need to add anything else to "the room?"
no, but hey, i have plans for this stuff....

And finally-Happy Birthday to Nala! She turned 7 on fri so got to celebrate with a few treats from Three Dog Bakery-of course, she was a good girl and shared with Jack and Riley!

KC Willis~

2010-07-09T16:13:00.002-05:00

If you're one of the few who hasn't been to collage camp~ now is your chance to-for a discount.
Check out this post on her blog to get the details. I joined last spring- and it was wellllll worth the price-and for a short time, you can join for $54~KC does beautiful work-you can see it on her website if you haven't-taking her online class will show you how she gets her "look."

So Far This Week

2010-07-07T19:57:00.007-05:00

Fireworks and concert sun night in Hurst. Saw Emerald City again-really like them. Mom, Dad, Gary, Myself, Nathan, Ashley and Jade were all there. Brought our picnic dinner-drinks, snacks etc... enjoyed the evening.Here is some stuff i've come across while mowing this summer-the first is a skunk skeleton-i still need to really look at it, but waited a month to pick it up after first finding it. The second is my frog skeleton and bird wing-obviously the bird lost whatever fight it was in.

The following is some of my current art-they'll be on Etsy soon. Last is a picture of the yardstick i made to display stuff on-saw this on another blog from "where bloggers create" and had to copy the idea. Old yardstick and tiny cuphooks-screw them in then use for display. Great idea!

Catching Up-Again

2010-07-02T21:57:00.004-05:00

Been putting off posting due to 'where bloggers create' but it's time to get back to it~
Here is something i picked up last wkend.
This is my metal folding measuring stick. First time i had seen one made of metal (and wouldn't you know, i saw a 2nd one this wk-n0t as good a price though) love the font of these numbers. here it is unfolded~i'll be making another shape from this to hang on display.
This is just a pile of some of the rusty stuff i've found this week. I also have a frog skeleton and a skunk skeleton-haven't taken photo's of those yet but will soon~don't know yet how i'll use them, but i have something in mind :)

Catching up and PSA

2010-06-28T15:13:00.003-05:00

I didn't want to post this past wk so you won't have to scroll to see my space, but it's time to get back to blogging :)
First a PSA (public service announcement) i like to say on this day every year now~
DO NOT STICK NAILS OR PINS IN YOUR MOUTH WHILE HANGING PICTURES OR
SEWING! if you wonder why? read this to see just what can happen. to see the actual nail
click here. It is now nicely framed and hangs in the dining room as a reminder. :)
will add some pictures later of stuff from the past wk~

Where Bloggers Create

2010-06-19T10:27:00.010-05:00

Disclaimer: my room doesn't "quite" look like this now-it's in the middle of being boxed up/reorganized and purged :)

As usual, late to the party~should have done this last night, but had another commitment...
Once upon a time, we moved into the home where we currently reside. It had 3 bedrooms and a game room. This meant that i would get the smallest bedroom for my artroom! yea. I couldn't wait-no more dining table for me. I got 2 cabinets from a building surplus store for the base of my table. that way i could house more stuff. One side was a 3-drawer cabinet and the other was one drawer and one door-small shelf inside to house some larger things. We came across and HEAVY piece of wood in a warehouse that my husband had access to-they used to build lockers for golf locker rooms and this was a piece they left. i cut it down to 6ft long by 3 ft wide. yes it would take up alot of room but that meant a friend could work on one side, me on the other if needed. and i could store stuff on top too at each end.
The game room was used as the computer/tv room. My son and his friends hung out there in HS. Many a night 1/2 the soccer team spent the night on that floor-i mention this because it's a good sized room-that came w/built in desk/shelves and wet bar. We had a tv, couch, desk and comp table in there. (and extra room)
Fast forward a few yrs when i my art room table was "full" and i moved projects out to the dining room, kitchen and living room. My husband looked around and said, "i think you need to move your artroom to the game room." I looked at him innocently and said "you think so?" (couldn't have planned that if i TRIED) but not that others can't learn from it :)
It was a task to pack up and just move down the hall-but oh so worth it. Now i had a sink in the room and didn't have to go into the bathroom for cups of water. and more space. One wall was taken up with the bar/desk but that was ok-it was mine.
Walk in and this is what you see-although i have removed the dresser now-it took up too much room for too little storage.

i found this red couch at an estate sale. couldn't pass it up as it a)was brand new practically and b)was a sleeper (for guests) Originally was going to go in the living room, but found something else since i couldn't find a piece at that time to go with it. That's ok, works in the art room.
I'll just let the pictures speak for themselves. the room is currently undergoing another change-trying to purge and re-organize to fit more what art i'm doing now.
Alot of my "pretties" are put away for the time being. These containers were made for me by a friend-put to good use.

vintage stamps found at an estate sale for $8! Love old books to use for the words or just nostalgia

my printers tray of "bling" (a portion of it anyway!) and my lights! i have lights hanging all over the room-mostly halloween but it makes it magical at night~
and for all those who hear comments from people-or your spouse- that don't "get it" when it comes to our stash/hoarding tendancies: I have a friend who was robbed some yrs ago. The only room in the house they didn't touch was her artroom-robbers figured there was nothing in there. (guess where I hide things now) this was fact as the muddy footprints throughout the house stopped at the art room door!

More Alice Pictures

2010-06-09T19:36:00.003-05:00

More pages from the Alice in Wonderland swap. This is an 8 X 10 size page. Found a B & W picture online and printed, colored it and added it to scrapbook paper. I embellished it a bit and it's ready to be added to the book it will go in.

This is a smaller book. Again, found online picture to print and color. This one is adhered to a background that i painted. I color copied the colored piece, then glued that to the paper. Cut out the original and glue dotted it on for dimention.

The Party Continues...

2010-05-30T23:11:00.002-05:00

Fri night was dinner with some art friends~Italian food of course. Met at Siciliano's. My favorite
garlic rolls to start the meal off.
Here we are after dinner: Margo, April, Me, Patti, Carol and Traci. good times~

Sun while gary and i were out, had to stop for snowcones at Bedford Snowball. My usual-coconut and cream. I've been eating these since 1981-hard to believe! (i think i was just a baby then) :)
tonight we had dinner w/my parents, then dessert back at their house. I'm stuffed.

My Birthday~May 26th

2010-05-25T22:35:00.005-05:00

Birthday portraits...dinner at Buca di Beppo.

dessert with no calories.

dessert With calories-much better~

Shots Around the House

2010-05-14T17:25:00.003-05:00

Thought i would share a few photo's of things around the house. The picture above is an old lamp base with two old books sitting on them. The cigar box was made by a friend (lisa) and a bird's nest sits on top.
Found these old paper clips at an antique mall somewhere-or maybe an estate sale. They are sooo cool and different. I love old packaging and ads-the wording was so funny.
These are several old bottles with anagrams and scrabble tiles in them. I love vintage text/letters. The black with white lettering are probably my favorite. Love finding stuff like
that at estate sales when they are marked really cheap! The box is an old one found at an estate sale-for $1. love a bargain. Did 4 girl cut outs for the inside and frame moulding on the bottom. It's temporarily sitting on another lamp base-i'm about to go through some of my older art pieces and put them on etsy~need to make room for newer stuff-and clear out some of my "clutter."
On a different note-Casey James is in town today~had planned to go to the Stockyards to see him today but the rainy/crummy/floody weather kept me away. I don't usually stay home in inclement weather, but just didn't want to get out in it today~Good luck to Casey anyway. :)

Mother's Day report

2010-05-10T18:20:00.004-05:00

Got up to go to brunch with the whole family today-Joe T Garcia's in ft worth. seems to be a place we go to for family gatherings, or when we have out of town guests.
Our family and my sister's extended family all went (minus nathan and sandra) Food was good as was the company. Mariachi's played for us~joked about it when they had the room surrounded.
If this were a movie i said, next, they would pull out their tommy guns from their instruments and shoot us all~
Gary and i bummed around town after brunch.
Had to go by the cemetery so he could officially see where he had been stuck this winter-and just as i said...waaay off the road!

I got an old vintage school book from 1/2 price to use on art projects. love the old font.
took a nap and ended up having dinner with the parents. Movie night-"The Other Man" nothing great.

The Weekend...so far

2010-05-08T22:17:00.004-05:00

Had dinner fri night at Casa Milagro in Richardson for a friend's birthday. I had eaten a late lunch so figured i would just snack-and visit. There were about 9 of us there to celebrate April's day. What's a birthday girl without her tiara? This birthday/cheesecake didn't hurt matters any! it was quite yummy. I'm sure Carol made it herself :)

It was good to hang out with friends and forget about all else for a night!

Sat morning when we let the dogs back in, Riley came running in with "something" in his mouth.
He ran straight for the dining room to hide under the table. I figured it was a mouse, just hoped it was dead. I was wrong. He dug up another mole. (dead) We had to trick him out-by saying "let's go for a ride" to get him away from the mole. He guards things-and will growl/bite if you come near. (He got to walk around out front while gary disposed of said creature.) as close to a drive as he was getting for now) We are one mole less now and about 6 new holes in the backyard where Riley "hunted."
Worked on the art room today~*trying* to purge some things and rearrange/reorganize so i can actually make stuff and not spend so much time moving things just to have a 12" spot to work in. Made a little headway before suzanne called me to eat dinner with her. We got pizza and just chatted at her house-Addison too. Now it's back to "the room."

2010-05-06T10:45:00.003-05:00

Be sure to check out Trash to Treasure's blog for this awesome giveaway~found her recently and you can see some great eye candy~someone will be a lucky person to win all this!

2010-04-28T19:17:00.003-05:00

Susan Tuttle is giving away a copy of her new book: Digital Expressions which you can find on Amazon if you don't want to wait.
Click on her name to go to the post to read all about it. Her first book, Exhibition 36 was wonderful and if that is any indication to this one-you are in for a treat.

Latest Art

2010-04-28T18:29:00.004-05:00

Here is what i did over the wkend for my art meeting.
Used scrap pieces of wood i had in the garage, cut them like tags. painted and collaged them.
Now to find something new to work on~