Box O' Goodies

Remember this matchbox I showed you a couple weeks ago? Well my partner Nicole received it the other day! Happily, she is thrilled with the goodies I sent. If you want to see what was inside, she's posted about it on her blog. I'm glad she did-I forgot to take photos of the goodies before I wrapped it and mailed it off.

 The box for my other partner was covered in anaglypta that I added a layer of colour to, using an ink pad. I tied a gauzy gold bee print ribbon around it and added a ceramic bumble bee button to it. (Marlene is into bees.)

This is an extra swap that I made for the swap hostess, Heather. It's going postal on Friday. The paper I used to cover the box is from a security envelope. I've got quite a collection of them and I like finding new ways of using them. It was alot of fun stuffing the boxes full. I can't wait for my returns to show up! It's going to be fun to see what treasures are inside them.

I haven't been in the studio much the past two weeks. I've been very ill with a sinus infection and so I haven't felt up to being creative. I've finally got medication and orders for an x-ray which I will go do later today, so hopefully I'll start feeling better soon. Meanwhile, Indy and I are couch surfing and watching interior design shows, in between naps. And so it goes...

Happy Easter! Joyeaux Paques!

Hello Peeps! I hope you are enjoying the 3 (possibly 4) day weekend off. We got lucky the last 2 days with sunny, warm weather, which meant we were outside all day yesterday. We took Indy to Spanish Banks for a dip in the ocean and then headed over to Stanley Park for the first picnic of 2011.

While we were at the park, we were lucky enough to come across the area where the Blue Herons are nesting. It's a pretty impressive sight to see these large birds landing high up in the branches. Their nests are huge! We had a chat with a woman who was there surveying the birds and she explained a bit about what was going on in the heronry. I remember when the birds nested in the center of the park, right outside of the aquarium in the evergreens. Apparently, the entire population migrated en masse to its current location on the ocean (English Bay) side of the park because of eagle attacks. The eagles come and steal eggs or the chicks if they are so inclined and the herons are pretty much helpless. Kinda sad, but that's how nature works.

My friend Alyx has some beautiful photos of this year's nesting season. The heron photos are about 1/2 way down. I took some myself, but they weren't great-it makes me think I'd better finish doing my homework and hurry up and get my new DSLR! I'd like to return before nesting season is over and try again with the new camera.

I spent today baking up a storm in anticipation of tomorrow night's dinner. Friends are joining us. I baked some cabbage buns this afternoon (an Easter staple!) and I had to cover them and put them away-the temptation to "taste test" was proving to be too much! Tonight we'll BBQ and I got some corn on the cob. MMM! Looking foreword to switching up our day to day menus for the warmer weather fare.

I hope the Easter bunny is good to you!

Good Things Aplenty!

First of all, the magic mailbox was very good to me last week. My husband brought me a piece of mail which at first glance, I had no idea where it had come from. After I flipped it over I saw the return address and I couldn't get it open fast enough!

Awhile back, I'd sent a thank you note to Brain Williams for the autographed photo he'd sent me, which was taken at the 2010 Olympics. Turns out, this piece of mail was a thank you note for the thank you note. *laughs* That's Prairie manners for ya! It just goes to show that Mr. Williams is indeed, the nicest guy in television. Maybe someday I'll be really lucky and our paths will cross. You just never know! I do believe that anything is possible.

My friend Pilar sent me this beautiful birthday card, which is from her original painting Goddess of the First Thaw. I just love her soulful work and she is one of the most thoughtful people I know. She's always sending me cards to say hello or to cheer me up. Everyone needs a friend like her-she's a gem. Take a minute to check out her Etsy shop-she has some wonderful work available!

Starbuck's send me a birthday postcard for a free whatever I want. YAY! I'll be stopping by my local shop for a frappe soon. Free is good!

See? I told you my birthday morphs into a month-long celebration! I wouldn't have it any other way! I'm also getting excited as the time to purchase my new DSLR camera with birthday money gifted to me by family and friends draws near. I'm still doing my homework so I can make an educated purchase, but the plan is to have it in my hands by Mother's Day. I am also planning to take Vivienne's You Are Your Own Muse in the fall as well. I figure by then I will have had time to learn the new camera enough to be able to continue my exploration of self-portrait photography. I had such a good experience in Wading In and I am excited to learn more. If you missed my interview with her, you can find it here.

Another thing I am really happy about is that my husband got us tickets to see Little River Band in the fall. We have 4th row seats! It's his favourite band of all time and I like them too. Their music has been the soundtrack of our life together. My husband owns all their albums and we've listened to them a zillion times over the years on our road trips. We were lucky enough to see them at the PNE last summer at an outdoor concert and it was fabulous. Their music conjures up such good memories for us and we're looking foreword to this "date" in the fall.

Meanwhile, back in the studio, my fingers have been flying as I write some articles for a new project I am involved in. (which is why things have been so quiet around here!) I am really excited about it and I'll share the details soon-the unveiling is scheduled to take place next month!

The Magic Of Wading In

(Touch, a self portrait taken this week.)

This morning I am really pleased to share that I am the featured artist on Vivienne McMaster's Muse interview series. To read about my magical experience in her Wading In class, you may click here.

Feel free to comment there..or here...or both! *wink*

Would You Like To Wade In?

Hey gang, Vivienne McMaster who taught that wonderful online self portrait class I just took, Wading In is giving away a spot in her class!

I HIGHLY recommend her class. I learned so much! It's not about the techie stuff-it's about learning to see yourself in a different light and to open yourself up to the possibility that you can express yourself through photos. You do not need fancy equipment-I worked with a half-dead crappy SONY point and shoot and managed to get some incredible shots to work with. (One of them appears in the brand new header on my blog, another is the icon of me on my sidebar.) You also do not need to be some sort of expert photographer. All you need is to have an open mind and the willingness to explore the possibilities. I promise you, you will surprise yourself.

If you want to see more images I created in class, just visit my Flickr (the link's right there on the sidebar) and click on the Wading In set.

So what are you waiting for? Go enter! Click here.

For added inspiration, Vivienne is also featuring interviews with past participants of Wading In and You Are Your Own Muse. You can read the first one she's posted here. She starts with an introduction and then at the bottom you will see the names, which you click on to read that person's interview. Names will be added as more interviews are posted. I'd bookmark it if I were you-there's going to be lots of wonderful sharing happening there!

Giving & Receiving

 Hello from my studio! As you can see by my desk, it's been a busy time here. Those little baskets are bits of projects all sorted. (I can't work in a mess!)

 I wanted to share some of the goodies I've received in the mail from friends recently. See that cool little doll perched up there? My friend Michelle made her for me. She constructed the body from paper clay. It was her first time using that medium and I'd say she did a darn fine job of it! It was her gift for a small Valentine's exchange I did with her and Penn. Love it!

Since Valentine's was so long ago, I can't remember if I've shared what Penn sent or not. This is the canvass she made. I love that she went the anatomy route. I really like medical themed things. You can't quite see, but she's sewn nine mica buttons onto it as well.

 

This is the wall about my desk. I just keep adding art to it as I receive it, which is why it looks a little unbalanced at the moment. That's okay, it's a work in progress. It's just nice to look up and be reminded of my friends.

Speaking of friends, this came in the mail late last week from Karenann. She is the queen of layering. When I first got to know her and she sent me a piece of her work, I was completely blown away by her skills at layering. I am nowhere as good as she is, but she inspired me to develop those skills. Sometimes your friends make you a better artist!

Karenann also does Zentangles. She's really good at is, as you can see. Look at the rippling ribbon in the center! WOW! That's elevating the art of doodling to a whole new level.

 

On the giving end, I've been working on these large matchboxes. I'm in an exchange over at Speckled Egg. I have two partners and this is one of the boxes I made. I'm sharing it because that partner has gone out of town and is away from the computer, so she shouldn't be able to see this. *fingers crossed* She's into art journalling, so that's what her box is about.

 

I used a pretty brad as the drawer pull. The box for my other partner is completely different. It's suited to what she likes, but I'm not going to post it because I don't want to ruin the surprise. I've got them all packaged up and ready to go for when I make my next trip to the PO. They're not due for another two weeks, but I worked on them for two days straight and I'm ahead of the game! (Go me!)

In other news, I have some really amazing things happening, which I will share as soon as I can. It's exciting news and I am really pleased.

And one last thing I wanted to add to this post on giving and receiving: I want to give a shout out to one of my friends who did the MS Walk on the North Shore this weekend, even though she's going through a rough relapse of her MS. She managed to raise $800. I am so proud of her! She is an amazing, brave woman and I am so blessed to know her.


The Magic Mailbox: Japanese Goodness

 About two weeks ago, I was reading Kelly Kilmer's blog and she posted about her Washi tape. I've been collecting it for awhile now, after Teesha got me hooked. (Behold the power of the internet!) Keeley posted a link to her favourite source, Washimatta, so I went to have a look....and as you can see, Veni Vidi Emi-I went, I saw, I bought!

 There are some really cool postage stamps on the package.

 Waves, such a part of Japanese culture...kinda of sad given the current state of things.

 I'm going to save then all and they will find a their way into one of my ROD journals.

 Even these little stickers for the postal carrier are adorable. Smart to put this one on as spring in BC equals a fair bit of rain and believe me, I've had parcels arrive that have been dropped in puddles. (My passport in fact, which is when I learned that the leather covers which are dark blue are NOT colourfast. It was destroyed.)

 The crying, broken coffee cup! Love it!

 Karen, the proprietress of Washimatta wrapped everything so nicely, it was a treat to open it.

 When I looked at the back of the tag, she's written this little note, which is why I am posting this. If you go to Washimatta, and order tape, she is donating the proceeds to the Japanese relief effort. Karen lives in Tokyo, and even though she and her family are okay, she is reaching out and helping others.

If you're thinking you'd like some tapes for your very own, why not order now and make that money count? It's a win-win-you get some cool tapes for your art making adventures, a very cool little package like I got AND excellent customer service from Karen (it took a week and a half to get here!) and Japan gets some much needed help. (Which means you also get to have a warm glow in your heart!)

Here are the links to Karen's relief effort:

Washimatta on Etsy

Washmatta Online

And Karen's blog, if you'd like to follow her:

Washimatta Blog

 These were the tapes I bought. Gorgeous!! I am so pleased and I've assured her I will be back for more.

 Penn gave me this pencil case for Xmas-it's one of our favourite collage artists, Colin Johnson, who is now designing for Blue Q. I've been keeping my tapes in it.

 See? I think I can only fit one or two more rolls in it before I'm going to need another bag. (Good problem to have, I must say!)

 So here are the reds in my collection, so far...

 ...the pinks...

 ...the blues and a green...

 ...the browns...

 ...the blacks...which, incidentally as Penn pointed out, you can write on with a white Sakura pen.

 And lastly, a couple rolls of tissue tape, which is crazily overpriced. (It's sold by scrapbooking companies.) The Washi tape is by far the better deal. I can get three rolls of washi, with likely double the amount of tape for the same price I paid for these two rolls. Just sayin'.

Penn gave me some laminated sheets awhile back and I realized they would work to send some washi tape to a friend. The beauty of washi tape is that it's extremely forgiving. You can peel the tape up off things and reuse it. I have rescued every bit of it that's been used as packaging on parcels sent to me. Waste not, want not! It just felt wrong to throw it away. It's too pretty. If by chance it loses it's tackiness, you can just add a dab of glue stick and it's like new!

Penn sent me a link to the charming little story about how these tapes came to be. You really should read it. Here's the link.