An Experiment and a Surprise

So, first the experiment.  I bought a roll of translucent film that has a sticky side and a side with some texture on it, it's a Tim Holtz product (even after swearing off of any new products, I'm so weak).  So I created a quick sketch with oil pastels, too quick apparently because her eyes are way off.  The first picture below has the film attached to a page in my fabric journal that's covered in plaster and painted with flowers and text.  And on the one below it it's just attached to the plain linen page next to it.

 

I definitely prefer the top one - the flowers underneath distract from the fact that I completely messed up the bottom 3rd.  I put some of the backing paper underneath it so I wouldn't get the red pastel all over the linen, and apparently I put the wrong side down because it completely stuck to it, and after much scraping I finally resorted to finger nail polish remover and by that time it was completely messed up, you can see the line where I had it folded back.  Lesson definitely learned!

 

 

Now, for my surprise. I got my first ever piece of mail art last week.  The talented, and hilarious, Chris of parabolic muse is kicking butt in the Index Card a Day challenge that many people are participating in right now.  I gushed over one of hers in particular, and lo and behold it arrived in my mailbox - so exciting!

 

 

I just love anything with a checked pattern, and combined with the trees and that red sun against the green, I just love it.

She Had Travel On Her Mind - SOC Final Week

Our last week of Summer of Color - I can't believe how quickly it went by, and I'll definitely miss it.  Thank you Kristin for being such a fabulous hostess as always!    This week's colors were Sepia and Sage - two colors I love.

 

The page looks all wonky and not square because this journal has just become impossible to photograph.  Never again am I buying a journal that won't stay open, much less lie flat! The temptress of a store Anthropologie got me with the fabulous cover and inside pages that are all handmade looking and different from each other, but even as I was buying it a little voice in my head was warning me that I'd regret it.  Unfortunately I often ignore that voice!

 

And as much as I do love these colors I did feel the need to add some contrasting pops of color.

 

 

 

Also I found this today when I was downloading pictures from my camera.  We took my parents to Lake Tahoe a few weeks ago now that we've discovered a favorite spot, and my husband took some pictures of the squirrels that run around there. I just love this shot...

 

 

 

 

Summer of Color - Week 5

This week's colors are candy apple red and yellow.  I wasn't feeling inspired, but that had more to do with my week than the colors. I almost didn't participate, but I decided I just couldn't let myself do that, so I forced myself to sit down last night with no idea what I wanted to do.

 

 

 

 

 For some reason I got the urge to paint this drawing I had previously done based on an actual doll that I'd seen a picture of.  I decided to do it in watercolor, even though it's not on watercolor paper as soon became abundantly clear, so there are some issues with the paper in spots where I was trying to do multiple wet layers  - that's what I get for not planning ahead.

 

The mystery substance around her neck is supposed to be some kind of filmy tulle that the doll had as a collar - not quite sure I achieved that look!

Flying Bravely into the Unknown - SOC week 4

In spite of my previously confessed short attention span, I felt compelled to finish my little winged girl unintentional series I started.  I loved this week's chosen colors for this - charcoal grey and pink - the grey worked out really well to represent the "unknown". 

 

 

 

 

She doesn't have shoes this week, because as everyone knows one of the advantages of flying is that you don't have to wear shoes - but she got some pretty old lace at the bottom of her dress instead.