Fluffing round on a Sunday

Playing with photos in Photoshop – not wanting to learn too much yet, just the basics for now.

still working on my lines

I’m off to Wellington in a couple of days to look at the exhibition space we’ll be using for the end of term exhibition. In the meantime I’m just keeping on with my lines and shadows.

Seeing the world through curious eyes

I think *really* looking is the key to making art. Seeing the world with interested eyes, looking for colour, pattern and form. Recently we looked after a friend’s farm for a few days and I spotted this colourful character in the orchard.

How do YOU see yourself?

I got behind the camera and what did I see?

Greying hair
Tired eyes
43 year old problem skin
Too many chins
Chipped nail polish

But hang on, what else do I see?

A loving wife
A daughter who has been caring for her mother for 8+ years
A sister, auntie and friend
A good employee who knows she is valued by her employers
An artist, scrapbooker, photographer, fabric artist

How do you see yourself? Are you kinder to others than you are to yourself? Probably!

Why not be kind to yourself this weekend – I bet you deserve it.

Playing with the scenery

I took a pile of photos last night of the Tasman Sea, some farm hedges, sheep etc.

I have been playing round with combining semi-transparent photos, some in colour, some black and white. Just thinking through ideas, looking for possibilities…

GPP Crusade 17: Pandora’s Box

Michelle’s GPP Street Team challenge for February was to create a “Pandora’s Box”.

Pandora’s Box? – a journaling kit or tote full of favorite tools and supplies to keep on hand for journaling without having to scratch around looking for stuff. For once I was onto it, and already had a kit that sits on my desk 24/7. (Okay, so why has it taken me till the 1st March to post about it? Heaven only knows!)

The kit – which is more a semi-contained pile of stuff – consists of:
Navy, pumpkin and gold ink pads
Brick and purple Walnut Ink
Gesso and gel medium
A small range of pencils – pastel, graphitint, charcoal, water soluble
Black, purple and bright yellow ink
Golden fluid acrylics – raw sienna, med yellow, cerulean blue, burnt orange, black and manila cream
A roll of paper towels
A large bottle of Diamond Glaze adhesive
A few spools of cotton
Bernina Aurora sewing machine
Red, navy, burgundy, yellow and light blue oil pastels
Roll of masking tape

And that’s it – same stuff, all the time. I find it works for me; there is some colour consistency across mediums, lots of options for texture and depth, plenty of mess, and the speed of items I am familiar with. Perfect…