Metal 2x2's

Another swap in the can so to speak! This one was for MMArtFriends again. There's always a good swap going on in that group and the quality of what you receive is good. This one had to be 2" x 2", made of metal and have a metal focal point. I mostly used this great 12 x 12 sheet from Provocraft that I had gotten eons ago. It's stamped with dots - very cool. I used some alcohol inks, gesso and koh-i-noor inks for coloring. You get a nice pattern when you sand off the dots. The rest is pretty self explanatory. The one in the upper right is a slide mount done with metal tape, embossed and distressed. I thought the 'window' was perfect for hanging a charm!

Four

Well, I just finished up another swap for the Frenzy Stamper number book swap. This one has 4 x 6 pages and ranges from 1-25. Again, the concept for this one took much more time to execute than I had planned on, but the outcome is exactly what I had envisioned. That alone is a huge accomplishment for me! To have something come out just as the mind's eye sees it? Doesn't happen too often at my house! LOL! The picture doesn't quite do it justice. The focal point is heat patina'd copper mesh layered onto a blue patina copper mesh background. It's affixed with rusted staples which compliment the rusted washers. Look closely, the background is done out of phone book pages. And just think, I did 27 of these puppies! ARGH! Anyway, I'm waiting for Maddie to finish up her pages (my little girl is doing her first swap!) and then I'll send them in. I don't want to be late getting to the store (I was last time) and get disqualified. That darned freeway construction caused me to miss many of my fellow swappers! Luckily, I sent my pages in early so I wasn't left out. I hope this is an enhancement to the book. I've already seen the covers on-line at www.mizz-frizz.blogspot.com and they're great! I can't wait to see what else comes in for this one!

IMPORTANT! Orphaned Works Legislation

There are some really disturbing things going on in Congress right now that can affect all of us who post any pictures on the internet, etc. If the legislation passes, you no longer will own the copyright to your own work at the moment of creation. You will have to register it with clearing-house type companies to have a copyright. And even that will not prevent someone from stating that it is orphaned and use it as their own or even registering it themselves. Who would police such a thing? I don't understand why this is even a consideration. It seems to me that the only people this will benefit are the registrars - of course it would be a fee-based registration process - and people who want to use other's artwork without paying for the right to do so. Imagine what a hassle it would be to register everything you produce! This makes me so mad that my head could spin right around a la Linda Blair! But I will not rant excessively here. Please check out the links below for more information. Go to the petition and sign it. Write to your Congressman and Senators. Tell them that this is not acceptable. It is another way our government is stripping our rights one by one. This legislation has been brought up before and defeated. They keep rewriting it and resubmitting it. And this time, some shady behind closed doors things are happening. Please, please educate yourselves and stand up for the rights of artists, crafters, and creators everywhere! Do you enjoy art blog surfing? Imagine no pictures for fear of theft of creative works. Imagine NO EYE CANDY for inspiration. It's a travesty. We must band together and be heard. Please do your part. Let everyone know about this. We can prevail if we are loud enough and strong enough. Thank you.

Sign the petition here - please use correct info - it must be verifiable.
http://www.petitiononline.com/Stop2913/petition.html

Learn more about the Orhaned WOrks Act here:
http://www.illustratorspartnership.org/01_topics/article.php?searchterm=00185

My Little Punk Rocker

Maddie, my daughter, was invited to a costume party. Well, she had the option of dressing in Hawaiian garb, 80's getup, or punk rock. Well we did the punk thing and she looked so cute! She didn't look like herself at all, but we had fun putting it all together. I couldn't get her to wear safety pins in her ears though. "Just because you did it, Mom, doesn't mean it's not gross!" Well, she's got a point there! We found a really fun shirt that had a license plate on it that says BAD GIRL, a cut up and frayed jean jacket, black leggins, flame job hightops and a ferocious belt! Then add the pancake makeup with heavy eyes and lips and the funky hair and she was good to go! I think she looked awesome, but you can judge that one for yourself!

Walking Toward Paradise...

This canvas I did for a friend for her birthday. I hope that she likes it. When I was making it, the Robert Plant song of the same name just kept running through my head, so that stuck as the title. Sometimes what I think is pretty neat, the rest of the world seems to wrinkle their nose at. It's nice to have the on-line art community to share with. There's no judgment, or questioning looks - ha ha! I can't even see you! Or the big one, "So what are you going to do with thaaaaaat?" (tilted head and curled lip) Ugh! I despise that question! Many of my friends and acquaintances don't know how I have the time or wonder why I'm not doing something more productive. For me, art IS productive. It feeds the creative need in me, even if it's not gallery quality stuff. I don't care. Maybe someday it will be, but for now, it's a journey. I love to learn and try new techniques and see where it leads. I started sewing at around 11 and did that for many many years. Used to make most of my own clothes. Not anymore! I also used to make soap, and that fed my creative need. Most people don't question soap making because you have a tangible and useful product when you're done - especially after they used it! If you've never tried a good quality handmade soap - you don't know what you're missing!

But anyway, she's walking toward paradise. I'm not a mall shopper, but this gal is. She's all done up and headed for Nordie's! That's HER paradise! Just send me to the art store - that's MY paradise!

Altered Photos

These are some altered photos I've done. I learned the techniques from Karen Michel. She's a fabulous and giving artist - very down to earth. And she has a style that I really connect with. The best thing about these is that you can hardly make a mistake and there are many happy accidents! Enjoy!

Memorial Day Camping

Well, the kids got out of school and our plan was to take the 5th wheel and head up to Stoneman Lake in the Coconino forest (just south of Flagstaff) as we always do this time of year. We'd been having some unseasonably cold weather as of late and it was snowing up there! Needles to say, we bowed out of that one really fast. I had ENOUGH snow growing up in Upstate New York!

So we opted to head north about 45 minutes and camp behind Lake Pleasant. It's a great camping area that has loads of trails to explore in the Ranger. It's the area that we stage in to head up to Crown King. And it doesn't feel like we're making a mortgage payment to put gas in the truck to get there either!

Of course I came down with a ridiculous head cold the first day, but I toughed it out and still managed to have a blast. Two other families came with us: the DeHeers and the Gillespie/Jensens. We went on some great trail rides, did some target shooting and found a trail that takes us right down to the lake on the far side of 'Party Cove.' It's been a few years since we've had a boat, but Party Cove will forever be etched in my memory banks! The kids braved the icy depths and went swimming. I sat firmly on the shore and watched! It was just a nice relaxing 4 days off and a great way to kick off the summer. I love exploring in the desert and unfortunately we're cut off for the next several months because it's too hot to be out there. Hopefully the next camping trip we'll be able to retire to the forest where it's cool!

Oh! Check this out! One of the boys was riding his dirt bike out of camp and came across this...


A gila monster! YIKES! It was about 50-60 yards from our camp! They're protected - not that we would have done anything to it anyway - but they're poisonous, too! It kinda freaked me out, but the kids thought it was soooooo cooooollll!!!!