My inner bot

This afternoon, my five year old daughter asked me to sit with her and draw robots.

I drew two robots: "Love bot #9" and "Color bot #7".

I think "Love bot #9" is my inner bot come to life.

Notice the confused smile?

Notice the weary/worried/wary eyes?

Notice the outstretched arms?

Yes, this is my inner bot-child, reaching out the world in love, only to be confused by the fact that the world is largely unimpressed by, unresponsive to, and so glaringly unneedful of my abounding love.

I'm not one to over analyze, but truly, "Love bot #9" captures how I so often feel in my deepest moments of discouragement.

On a brighter note, my daughter drew some lovely bots of her own.

Check them out!



As you can see, our styles heavily influenced one another.

She chose to name her bots, "Cry", "Care" and "Funky".

I rather like her "Funky Bot", she has such a delicious, bouffant turquoise doo!

I wonder what it would be like to have such a sassy turquoise flip for a doo?

Do I dare to find out?

Barbie Body Part Art!

Click here to see some seriously awesome jewelry!

Cherished friends

Taaa daaa!

Here's my last two page spread for the Christian Mixed Media Summer Paper Bag Book Round Robin! (Phew, was that a mouth full, or what?)



...and here's a quick close-up photo of the left page.



This was an amazing Round Robin. The participating artists all did incredible work!

It was my sincere privilege to be a part of this endeavor and I can hardly wait until my book returns home to me!

Coming soon!

A new paper bag book spread is almost finished!

It's full of felt, acrylic paint, chipboard tags and beads!

I'll post photos soon!

Check back, won't you?

Pitter Pat!

two page spread for P.B. rr~j. N-L

Oh my!

What can I say?

I love this spread!

It makes my heart go pitter pat!

......more photos follow!

and....

and one more.....

Pretty cool, huh?

I hope Amber likes the pages!

New spread coming soon!

I've just finished a new two page spread for the Paper Bag Book Round Robin.

I'll be posting some photos of the completed pages soon!

These two pictures show the spread in the early design phase.



Oh my!

Just wait until you see the finished pages!

They are drop dead spectacular!

(Even if I do say so myself!)

Keeping things simple

Are you passionate?

Christ was/is.



Do you love?

Christ does/did.



Do you love the color, red?

I do!

Ok, so enough of my silliness already.

This is the two page spread I've recently finished for a paper bag round robin I was allowed to join.

I painted the face of Christ using acrylic and watercolors, which I then collaged onto the page and stamped and painted some more.

I made the little hearts using felt and beads.

All in all, the pages are rather simple; but then, I like keeping things simple.

Simple suits me.

I think "simple" suited Christ as well.

These pages are for Sunee. I hope she likes "simple" too!

Collage Components

This weekend, I've been working on a two page spread for the Paper Bag Book Round Robin that is being hosted over at the Christian Mixed Media Artists Yahoo Group.

Friday and Saturday I tried to paint a portrait of Jesus using watercolor and acrylic. I wasn't faring too well.

I had a few problems. You see, I'm better with abstracts....I'm horrible doing real life stuff.

Why in the world I even attempted painting the face of Jesus is beyond me; but try I did, over and over and over.

I must have painted seven different faces before settling upon the one you see pictured above.

The eyes aren't quite right, but oh well, it's all good!

I'm using this as a collage element, so lots of layering is going to happen and I am fairly confidant that the wonky eyes won't be a problem.

Here's a photo of the collage as it moves through the next step.



I've adhered a piece of this really cool open weave red paper stuff over Christ's face and I've embossed the Jesus fish and the dove in opposite corners.

This is the first time I've tried embossing....it's kind of a pain, but I sure see lots of creative potential with this technique.

Anyhow, stay tuned!

More photos to follow soon!

Blog Plug!

Every now and then, people cruise through the blog and they leave their comments.

I love it when that happens!

Recently, Kristin stopped by, left a comment here and since I was curious to know more about her, I took the time to pull up her "complete blogger profile".

Kristin keeps two blogs. One is called "Life Stories" and the other is called "Playful Art Journal".

Check her out!

If you are in the market for a new journal or sketchbook, be sure to check out Kristin's Etsy shop. Her shop features some gorgeous hand bound books that are very reasonably priced!

Well my friends, that's it from me.

Stay tuned, new Paper Bag Book pages coming soon!

One Good Life!

Fabric ATC by j. N-L

If there's one thing I love, it's coffee!

Oh, how I love my coffee!

I also love my friends.

When I combine these two loves, well then, I think that I have hit upon the perfect recipe for a very good life indeed!

Anyhow, this is just your garden variety ATC. I made it with fabric, beads and double stick peltex. (Although I did dye the fabric I printed the words on with a little of the morning's left over coffee...I thought that was somewhat creative, if not apropo!)

This ATC is relatively simple as you can see, but oh the colors and the texture are so much richer in person! I'm going to play a bit more with fabric ATC's! They really are a hoot to make and they have so much creative potential and possibility!

Well, this ATC is heading off in tomorrow's mail to a new friend! I hope she likes it!

Miniature works

This is so cool!

You all just have to go and see!

Miniature books!

Miniature books!

Glorious, tiny, two inch works of art!

What are you waiting for, hmmmm?

Just click the phrase, "Miniature books!"

Paper Bag Book...

Here is a photo of a two page spread I recently finished for a summer paper bag book round robin.

The theme for this book is "Friends".

I wish the photo were a tad better, but you get the general idea, don't you?

Here's a close-up of the left side....




The little placard under the "friends" picture says, "Cherish Friends".

Here's a close-up photo of the right side of the spread.



The little charm on the recipe card is a cook book and the tag at the top of the photo fits into a little pocket built into the bottom of the left page.

I wish you could see this in person! It's really quite lovely and it is my hope that Beth will enjoy this page when the RR is finally finished and her book returns to her!

Inspiration!

Alas, I have no new art to share.

Adjusting to summer has robbed me of what little creative zip and zing I possess!

Oh, but rest assured, all is not lost!

Here's a cool link to some great art at Inspire Me Thursday!

Why not check it out?

It's truly inspirational!

Mystery girl?

I'm not a big fan of porcelain dolls.

Ordinarily, I like my dolls to be strange and abstract.

This cutie patooty however, interests me.

I'm not sure if it's her wacky hairdo, or those odd little eyes, or the crocheted dress, but something about this little doll is oddly compelling.

My grandfather gave this doll to me. Although she appears to be more than a few decades old, she is in excellent shape. She's about six to eight inches tall. Her entire body is porcelain and the legs and arms move.

I'd sure like to know more about her.

If you recognize her, or think that you might know more about her, would you kindly let me know?

Purpose found....

I wasn't sure where I was going with this Creative Play Day Challenge piece.

I think I now know.

I'm going to make a small, 5 inch by 5 inch square felt book that speaks to the pain of child abuse and neglect. It will be entitled, "Childhood Lost".

This will be one page in that book.

Too many children suffer from the effects of child abuse and neglect....too freaking many.

This ought not be.

Will making this book change anything?

Yes. Put quite simply, it will change me.

It will be yet another step I will take towards healing my own woundedness.

And who knows, maybe, just maybe when I've completed "Childhood Lost" it will help someone else too!

Childhood lost...

The theme for this week's Creative Play Day Challenge is "Childhood".

My piece is a digitally altered photo of a crying child that I printed onto a piece of cotton fabric.

Do check back in a day or two. I should have more photos up soon....

Summer Psalms

Paper Bag Book Cover

This paper bag book cover was created using handmade papers, paper flowers, beads, and sharpie markers.

The colors are much richer in person. I wish you could all see how soft and beautiful it is!

Here's a photo of the back cover.....



Just in case you were wondering, here's what the back cover says:

Summer Psalms is a small but praise worthy collection of psalms composed and illustrated by three beloved daughters of the King.

Take a few moments. Fix yourself a glass of iced tea. Find a cool, shady spot to sit and then prepare yourself. Because...

Summer Psalms is your opportunity to experience the sacred ordinary through the writing and the art of three women who understand that every summer day is a living, breathing psalm!

I mailed this book out the other day so that the next person in our Round Robin will be able to do a two page spread. I'm hoping that each person in the RR will compose their own psalm and include it in their spread.

The RR will end with the summer.

Won't it be fun to see this book when it returns?

I can hardly wait!

Scattered pieces

paper bag book cover

My paper bag book is coming together nicely.

I have the front and the back cover ready to assemble.

All I need to do is to glue the paper spine, glue on the front and back covers, and then set the rivets!

I'll post more photos when the book is completely assembled and when I have better light!

Until then, here is a photo of my ISBN number from the back cover page!

New Beginnings

paper bag book

Today is a day for new beginnings.

I am currently participating in a summer paper bag book round robin, and the time has come for me to design the cover and sign in pages for my book.

I'm struggling. I really am.

I have no vision, no theme...nothing is coming to my mind. I am lost in my own creative void.

Ordinarily this would upset me; but today is different somehow.

Somehow, I sense that if I can just quiet myself and settle into the interior space of my own heart, something will emerge....

...something wonderful,

something beautiful,

something worthy of this day that I've set aside for new beginnings!

So check back later...something wonderful is coming!

I can feel it!

Pooh on you!

collage in progress

The voices are back.

I hear them telling me that I am no good.

I hear them telling me that I am not an artist.

I hear them laughing at me.

"Why do you bother?" they ask.

...and...

"Who do you think you are?"

Some days the voices are louder than others, and some days the questions are more hurtful; but I have learned that the only way I can quiet their noise is to invite them in for some huckleberry tea.

Together we sip, and as we do, the voices sweeten.

My friends tell me that I should banish my inner critics forever. Perhaps that works for some.

Me?

I prefer to invite my inner critics to tea and woe them with love.

Bloom where you are planted!

I've learned a lot of things during the past 45 years that I've walked this earth.

Perhaps the most valuable of these is this, "Bloom where you are planted."

.....or in other words, enjoy what you have, right where you are, TODAY!

Today, is all we have.

Ok, so enough of my philosophizing!

Let's get to the business of creating art, shall we?

This is a mini ATC, which means of course that it measures 1 1/2 inches by 2 1/2 inches.

I made it using royal purple and ivory felt. The face in the center of the flower was heat seared onto a piece of muslin. Don't ask me how, because I don't know. My friend Annie gave me a sheet of little faces to use in my art and this is one from that sheet!

I used embroidery floss to stitch the petals, and the word, "Bloom". Each layer of felt is both hand stitched and glued (using fabric glue) together for added durability!

I placed a piece of heavy duty cardboard in between the front and back layers of the felt to give the ATC its requisite stiffness. I then stitched the two felt layers together using a three bead fret stitch, fireline and some Toho beads.

Voila!

A sweet little ATC was born!

Mini ATC!

Oh Boy!

I've spent the past hour or so playing with felt and I've created the sweetest mini ATC!

It's just the cutest little thing...measures 1 1/2 inch by 2 1/2 inch! Cute! Cute! Cute!

I'll have photos on Friday, so check back soon!

Flower Power!

Well, I haven't been very artsy for the past few weeks or so.

I did paint up some wood flower cut outs and adhered them to the back door steps.

All in all, it looks very sweet!

I've also painted some wooden dragonflies that I will be adhering to the rise between each step...

Yessirreee, spring is springing in my neck of the woods!

I'm enjoying the exterior modification of my home so much that I think I'm going to attack the milkbox next. It's rather drab and desperately needs a face lift!

Maybe painting the milkbox will be an especially "mooving" experience! LOLOL! (Yeah, that was bad, I know!)

Anyhow, here's another shot of the stairs, just for those of you who are curious enough to care!

Fun stuff, wouldn't you say?

Oh dear!

What WAS I thinking?

I mean, who in their right mind paints their back steps lilac and baby blue?

Ugh!

This really isn't what I had in mind and boy howdy, does it clash with my brightly colored studio door!

Oh well, I'm going to play around and add some bold splashes of color to spice things up!

I 'm also adhering some brightly colored stones my five year old painted for me to the outer left edges of each step. I'm thinking these changes will really liven up the look!

What do you think?

I'm pretty nutty aren't I?

Oh well, here's a side view for you all, just so you can get the full baby pastel effect I've got going on over here!



Aren't these just the most dang blasted beautiful steps you've ever seen?

The Studio

Yes, the studio is a mess right now; but trust me, it looks better than it has in nearly a year.

As some of you may remember, our studio was burgled last Spring. The computer was stolen, along with many, many other items. It has taken me all this time to begin sorting and cleaning through the mess.

Oh, I did a general cleaning and inventory to assess our losses after the break in, but I didn't have the heart to actually sort and to reorganize everything.

Believe it or not, I'm very nearly finished!

Here are some other photos. It's a nice little studio. It will feel good to have it in order once again.



*****and*****

Wings!

Mixed media canvas panel~j.N-L

Well, last week's theme for the Creative Play Day Challenge was "wings".

I decided to get a littly funky and made a bouquet of dragonflies surrounded by sequin flowers and painted vines!

I created this piece on a 5 x 7 inch canvas board. The first thing that I did was to apply a wash of turquoise and yellow Lumiere paint to the gesso'd board. Then I drew and outlined the dragonflies.

You may have noticed that each dragonfly is the same. I hand drew the first dragon, and then traced that same image onto the board three times over.

The dragonflies are painted with Lumiere and acrylic paints.

Next I glued some flower sequins to the panel using heavy duty gel medium. Swarovski crystals were adhered in the flowers centers. I painted the vines using acrylic paint and then adhered more flower sequins. I place teeny, tiny vintage yellow beads in the centers of the small flowers. You can fit about 24 of these little hummers per inch. That's pretty darn tiny, right?

Anyhow, the smaller blue flowers across the top are 3 mm glass flower beads. They also have the yellow teenies in their centers.

The quote in the bottom right corner reads, "Deep in the sun-searched growths the dragonfly
hangs like a blue thread loosened from the sky."

This quote was printed on a piece of yellow tissue paper using our trusty ole inkjet printer. I collaged the quote onto the canvas board using gel medium.

The entire surface of this piece has been sealed with gel medium as well.

Voila! A bouquet of dragonflies...a veritable bevy of winged acrobats!

Mine! All mine!

meesh bead

Some days my friends bless my life more than I deserve.

Today was just such a day!

Early this morning I met up with my gal pal Michele. We had coffee at the Blue Pepper and we talked and laughed our way through the morning.

Michele is an extraordinary lampworker. She does things with a torch and glass rods that I can only dream about doing.

Anyway, she gifted me with two new cd's and the pendant pictured above!

OMG!

This pendant is huge! I mean, it's a truly substantial hunk of glass; and man, oh man, it's waaay prettier than the picture could ever show!

Suffice it to say, I feel as though I have won the lottery today! Two new cd's, a beautiful new bauble to wear, and some quality time with a dear friend!

Yesssiree!

Life is good!

Adoration

H2O kitty~j. N-L

The theme for this week's creative play day is "animals".

I really wanted to create something "frame worthy".....

I painted this instead.

I'm not happy with the way it turned out and I may try another, or maybe not.

Anyhow, there isn't anything special happening here...just a little 140 lb watercolor paper and my five year old's watercolors!

I do like one thing however. I like this watercolor kitty's title: "Adoration".

That's a title that fits!

I am the Queen!

mixed media canvas~j. N-L

Well, here it is!

Jerri's self portrait!

Here's how I made this little piece of art squared.

First I painted the canvas using a mixture of bright green and yellow acrylic paint.

Then I hand drew the body on a piece of cotton fabric that is designed for use with making printer copies. I used acrylic paint and sharpie pens to color in the detail. Acrylic sealer was applied to seal and protect the color.

After I cut the body out of the cotton fabric, I adhered it to the canvas using gel medium.

Creating the face was a bit tricky. I took a digital photo of myself, which I resized and then printed onto a piece of that cotton fabric that's designed for use with inkjet printers.

I had a little cabochon that I had already made with "Delight" modeling compound. It was necessary to sand it down a bit in order to get it to the appropriate size; but that didn't take too long! After the sanding, I applied a little gesso to the cab and then adhered the cotton printed face over the cab using a two part epoxy. Once that had dried, I applied another coat of acrylic sealer to cab's surface.

Ok, so now it's time to adhere the face to the body and this time around, I used gel medium. I also adhered the crown (formerly a charm on my daughter's charm bracelet) using gel medium.

I printed the words, "I am the Queen" on 140 pound watercolor paper (on which I had applied a wash of yellow/green acrylic color). I used gel medium to adhere the words to the canvas.

Small 3mm Swarovski crystal accents were added to the belt and shoes. A small royal scepter was created using some vintage green beads and a yellow flower sequin with a red Swarovski crystal center.

So there you have it!

My self portrait!

My self portrait...a work in progress!

mixed media canvas~j. N-L

Oh Boy!

Check this little canvas out!

The creative play day challenge for this week is "self-portrait".

Today I began the challenge and tomorrow I shall finish!

All I need to do is collage on some text, give the queen some hair, and add a royal scepter!

Aren't I just too freaking cute?

LOLOL!

A Whirl in Whimsey

Artist's Trading Card~j N-L

Several weeks ago, the creative play day theme challenge was, "whimsey".

I wasn't able to participate then, but this week, I found a little time and feline inspiration to create the ATC you see above.

Now, this isn't the best photo! The colors are much more vibrant in real life! I don't have any image editing software...so I can't sharpen and resize the way I would like!

Oh well, you get the general idea of what the card looks like, right?

Anyway, I just love this little ATC! It's bright, and light and full of whimsey!

**********

PS~"Cat angels are the reason there are no mice angels." is a Mel Brooks quote!

Even death must bow....

mixed media, studio wrapped canvas~j.N-L

How?

This piece was created using a small four x four inch studio wrapped canvas, one of my own hand sculpted skulls, one of my youngest son's precious plastic lizards, and some dried/dyed hydrangea blossoms from last Winter.

The painted background was created using Adirondack Alcohol Inks (I just love these darn inks). I used a two part epoxy to adhere the skull and the lizard.

What Does It Mean?

The theme for this week's creative play day was "beauty".

Right now, the earth is waking up in response to the relentless nudgings of the coming Spring.

Is there anything more beautiful than Spring?

This piece was also influenced by the beginning of the Lenten season. Although I don't observe Lent the way many do, I do recognize Lent as an important time to pray and prepare for the resurrection of Christ.

So for me:

Spring + The Risen Lord + Eternal Life and Salvation = BEAUTY

Have you ever been....

watercolor doodle in journal~j.N-L

Have you ever been afraid?

I mean really afraid of the blank page?

I have.

The good news is that I've managed to finish a couple of old art projects.

This has freed me to begin a new creative play day project.

The topic is "Beauty".

I should have photos before next Tuesday!

Won't that be fun?

Creative inertia

mixed media panel~j. N-L

Artistic lulls suck.

Oh, I have a couple of little things lieing about that need finishing; but by and large, I've been adrift in a sea of creative inertia.

I long for an artistic life but I have no clue as to what that means....

And lately, I am too tired to explore the possibilities.

So I sail instead, upon the sea of creative inertia.

Valentine Bling!

Hot Glass Goddess Extraodinaire, Michele Goldstein has new Valentine Bling available in her boutique!

Click Here!

Circles

The theme for this week's play day is, "circles".

I haven't found time to create any art this week, but I've spent a fair amount of time thinking about circles.

Specifically, I've been thinking about how my life just seems to circle around and around the two cycles of shame and self-hatred.

So be prepared folks.

If any art evolves from this heavy musing, it is bound to be as pensive and as dark as a day, sucked dry of all hope.

My ATC for Creative Play Day

ATC by j. N-L

The theme for last week's creative play day was color and we were required to use only one color.

I wish there were some way for me to capture the richness of this card. It's a beautiful card...full of swirling blues and alive with sparkle from the mica powders, crystals and Lumiere paint.

The background was created by layering watercolors, acrylics, gel medium, Lumiere paint, and ink. Although you cannot tell in this photo, the colors are quite vivid and the sparkle is rather intense!

I sculpted the heart with "Delight" modeling compound. I tinted the modeling compound with acrylic paint and then applied a very, very light wash of turquoise Lumiere paint to the surface when the heart had dried. A red/blue interference color of pearl ex, mixed with gel medium was applied to the lips and the cheeks.

I attached the face to the background with a two part epoxy. The flat back Swarovski crystals were added at this time as well. I made the beaded wire piece with some iris turquoise charlottes.

There you have it.

This is my heart, "Tangled up in blue".

Tangled up in blue...

Late last week I received word that my mother had died unexpectedly.

This morning I sat down with some "Delight" modeling compound and sculpted a little heart.

Once the heart has dried sufficiently to sand and shape, I will create an ATC using this as the focal point.

If you would like to see the finished piece, check back soon!

I will finish this ATC in the afternoon and submit it for Christian Mixed Media's (a yahoo group) Artistic Play Day...

The theme for this week's play day is, "Color"; and we are required to use only one color.

I've chosen blue....

Why?

Because since my mother's death, I have been tangled up in blue.

Creativity Takes Flight!

Winged Soul

Tuesday's Play Day theme was "Creativity Takes Flight".

I wasn't able to play on Tuesday, but I did manage to eek out a little time late this morning.

Here is a close up shot of part of my little four by four canvas.

Until I get a little help from Mother Naure, (in the form of natural light) I probably won't be able to get a full on shot of the entire piece.

So, I guess you will just have to wait with baited breath until the sun decides to shine!

I'll be sure to post photos and a description of this piece once I am able to get a decent picture!

Until then, may your soul soar on the wings of creativity!