Catching Up!

My last Petite Swap box arrived! Isn't this cool? It's was originally part of a box for a Parker Brothers Game of Palmistry. I've never see that before. Marlene knew I was into hand themed things so she hunted down some very cool goodies for me.

 See?! Things with the letter L, washi tape, hands, lots of red bits, silk ribbons and buddhas. Yummy!! Thanks Marlene! That was great fun!

 Meanwhile, I am still sick and struggling to find the energy to get back to work in the studio. Over the weekend, I had a bunch of the self portraits I've created printed. I had them done in 2 x 3 size, which was essentially a 4 x 6 with two prints of the same image on a single print. I just had to cut them apart. It was very inexpensive-66 photos for $7 and that included the tax.

I love this size-it's perfect for sewing into a ROD or doing a collage to frame. I've got 2 sets to work with, but I am torn about what I want to do with them. I'd like to make a book, but I kind of want to wait till the end of the year and have ALL the self portraits printed so I can have a year's worth in the book. Doesn't that sound cool? I mean how often do you get to have an entire year's worth of photos of yourself, taken of you BY you?! And artsy ones at that?

The other idea I am mulling over is also to have a giant frame with a black mat and to mount the images in grids. That would be so amazing on the wall. I don't think I would use all the photos, but pick the best of the bunch and mount those. Ikea has some pretty big frames that would work.

This is the stack I have to work with so far-it's 33 photos. I didn't print all of them-there were a few I missed accidentally, so I'll add them to the order for next time. Next time will be after July, when I've finished taking Light Hunters. I am sure I will have another tidy little stack by then. Who knew I would be so smitten with photography? Certainly not I!

I've also been writing like a mad woman for the new Someonelikeme.ca/Commemoi.ca  MS website and blog, which I told you about on Wednesday. I've been working on posts for my assignment there so I can stay ahead of the game. It's been good getting into the groove of serious wordsmithing again. Don't worry though-I won't be abandoning my blog. Would I do that to you? No way! This blog has been chugging along since August of 2004 and this post is number 1,270! That's alot of posts in almost 7 years! It's crazy to think that I started blogging in the dark ages, before most people were blogging, never mind artists!

Yes, I still have plenty to share, so I'm not going anywhere. Back with more soon!

Magic Mailbox: Petite Box Swap

Goodies have been arriving in the magic mailbox again-the returns from the Petite Box Swap. This one was From my partner Nicole. (I realize I photographed it upside down, after the fact. Whoops!) Anyway, it was crammed full of fun goodies.

Nicole sent wonderful ephemera, washi tape, fibres and buttons for me to play with. I think some of it will become a part of my latest ROD journal. I loved everything she sent.

Remember this box I made for swap hostess Heather? Well somehow the envelope I sent it in arrived at her home EMPTY. ARGH!! Yes indeed, somehow the contents were "lost" in transit. What I think happened is that someone got sticky fingers. I was so annoyed, but I didn't want Heather to be empty handed, so I made another box for her.

This is box #2 for Heather. I made the paper from cuttings taken from art magazines and stitching them together on my sewing machine. I added some hand dyed silk ribbon and a vintage flower button. I love the way it worked out and I am pleased with a new way of recycling and repurposing my old magazines. The magazines aren't cheap, so finding new ways of using them makes me feel like I am getting my money's worth. I also make envelopes out of them.

This is a the back of the box. It was worth the do-over I think.

While I was working on box #2, Heather's box for me showed up. Isn't this adorable? I actually saw these type of mushrooms in the wild last October while I was on my 20th Anniversary trip. The tops were as large as my husband's hand. They were very fairytale.

Look at all the yummy red and aqua goodies inside! MMM! So inspiring! I am thinking I might want to make an ROD just working with this colour pallet. That could be fun.

There's one more box in transit that I'm waiting for. This was alot of fun and I will definitely do it again. If you want to see more boxes, there's a Flickr group with tons of photos.

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 Bessie Series For Girls

So this week, I've been dealing with this. And by "this" I mean 3 days of IV steroids, which has not been fun. It never is. I've been pretty wiped out. On the good news front though, I had something amazing show up in the magic mailbox, which lifted my spirits.

Back in January, I posted a little Flip video I made of an ROD journal I sewed for Mandy Fariello, for a private swap. I just received the journal she made me and it was *so* worth the wait!

Her journal came in this cool jacket, which reminds me so much of a black Persian lamb coat my grandmother had hanging in her closet for years. This cover is not made from Persian Lamb, but it is fabulous!

The base of her journal was made from an old book, which I've instantly fallen in love with. I love daisies. I see them growing on the roadside in completely random places throughout BC. My Gramps hated them-he'd always be mowing them down, so it amuses me when I see them-it makes me think of him and his little quirks. For someone who planted so many gardens all his life, it's always amused me that he had such a hate on for daisies!

I have no idea how Mandy cut this cover down to size so cleanly, but she did a fabulous job. Isn't it pretty?

Inside the jacket, was a small strap to hold the journal in. The interior is wool.

The journal slides out of the jacket easily, when I want to work inside.

See how chunky it is? Love it!

Mandy filled it with all sorts of odds and ends. This page with architecture is wonderful. I have a "thing" for architecture. If I were a math whiz, there's a good chance this is what I may have chosen to to do with my life.

I love ephemera of all sorts. See? She even included a map piece of BC!

And old bank deposit slips from days gone by. I like how they punched number shaped holes in them.

Mandy makes these great post box stickers. I am pleased she put one in my journal. She has them available for sale in her Etsy.

More fun! One of the best things about these types of journals is that nothing goes to waste. I love putting disparate things together to create something new. It's so relaxing to make do with what you have. I can spend hours sewing paper. It's like a Zen meditation and really doesn't require much thought. Even on a day when I'm not feeling up to snuff, I can usually manage to make a few pages.

She also included one of her Moo cards. I have quite a collection and one of these days I want to frame some of them and hang them in my studio. I started collecting them when they first came out and wrote an article for Somerset about making 3rd generation art from Moo Cards. I've been addicted to them ever since. I now make "faux" Moos-moos from scratch that I print and assemble myself. Not that I don't still order real Moos, but sometimes when I need them in a hurry, the faux method does the trick!

Anyway, I wanted to share all of Mandy's hard work and to say THANK YOU to her for such a wonderful swap. It's great making new artist friends and being able to share our art with one another. This is a journal I will really enjoy using and treasure always. Thank you Mandy, for making my week!