Alphabet Pages

In one of the Yahoo Groups - Alphabet Discovery Workshop - we are working our way through the alphabet. We were to get a journal and use it exclusively for these alphabets. Several years ago my boys had bought me a sketchbook from one of the large bookstores. It is a 9 inch by 12 inch sketchbook. I rarely do studies that big, usually a small sketch in a moleskin or a photograph to refresh my memory is all I need. So when this opportunity presented itself I decided to use their gift.

We are randomly going through the alphabet. I think it is easier on the spine of the book to sort of jump around. I have used the letter dictionary pages down the middle on some pages to give the book more support. So far so good. I am still trying to catch up with the group. Some of these girls are really fast.

Some of these Frida images are from Gaby Braun. Thank you Gaby!

The Zetti girls are from Teesha Moore.

Country Roads - Mountain Streams

Country road to my oldest son's house.

Do you ever get that feeling of peace, that moment of total muscle relaxation, of deja vu when you go on a trip and you know that this place is in your genes. Some primeval place that generations have passed on to you? Well, for me the mountains are that place.

North Carolina is blessed with the Atlantic Ocean, the coastal plains, the river basins, the foothills and the oldest Mountains of North America - the Blue Ridge Mountains and the Great Smoky Mountains. When I go to visit my friends and family in the mountains there is this one point where you have left the coastal plain behind and you enter the foothills - here my stomach and my psyche just sort of have this overwhelming feeling of relaxation.

I thought I might share a few of my photos from my most recent trip with you. They are just a few, so bare with me.

progress has taken it's toil

One of those beautiful scenes. The farmers and ranchers in North Carolina are using at least two donkeys in each field with their herds now. It is to combat the coyotes that are making their presence known here. They are filling a predator spot that the wolves left open. Apparently the donkeys are quite aggressive and will stomp anything that tries to come into their pasture. This group of cattle have their two donkeys watching over them.

Hay cut and rolled, waiting to be stored. The field smelled so good and was steamy from being cut.

The swimming hole in my son's neighborhood. I take his pups here to swim. It is so much fun.

On weekends the locals like to hangout on his rock. It is quite deep here and very quiet. My youngest son and I found a bunch of snake eggs here after a good rain.

Much of the creek is lined with these gorgeous rock formations. I am always amazed to see trees growing out of the rock.

Theme Thursday - Orange

Orange Zetti inchie

Beautiful Orange ATC

4 by 4 Orange Artistic Whim

The challenge for Theme Thursday was to do something - anything - in orange. Lately I have been doing a lot of digitals for these challenges and this one was to get messy with paint and ink. It was rainy and stormy so I jumped right in on this one. It has been awhile since I have played in my studio. I ended up making several pieces. I love orange.

Backgrounds for You - Orange

These remind me of bubble gum and popcorn.

Here are a couple of backgrounds for you to use. Simple paint on watercolor paper. I am working with orange and its relatives today. I will post later to show you what I ended up doing with these. Hope you can find a use for them in your art work.

Stormy

I woke up to more thunderstorms. We are having a wave of them. I have all sorts of things to share, but think I had better wait till the weather calms down. It is sort of dark - that kind of weather you just want to grab a book, crawl back into bed, and have a nice cup of tea.

Collage Sheet Freebie - Maude Fealy - The Theatre

After much travel, friends and family it is always good to be home. I love to put on a good movie, put everything away, do the wash, catch up on my mail. I love to travel, but I love to come home.

I made this collage sheet using some postcard and magazine images. I am sure you have seen Maude Fealy's face in some art work. She was an American - Southern/from Memphis Tennessee - actress. She was quite the stage actress. Good friend of Cecile de Mille. Made several "silent" films, but never made it in the "talkies." One of those actresses that could not make the jump. However, she was a beauty! Hope you enjoy this collage sheet.

Quote - Families

Our Girl is Two!

Yes she is! I can't believe it has already been two years since this wonderful creature came into my life. My heart explodes with love for her. She is a joy to behold. This is how you tell people you are two. The thumb is one and the index finger is two. So guess who has been entertaining me lately....

Summer Reading

I wanted to share a couple of good books I have read in the past week or so. You might have already read them because they have been out for some time now. I usually take my time getting books, sharing with family and friends, yard sales, etc. Both of these two books deal with women and how life treats them and the obstacles they have to deal with to become the women they truly are.


The first book The Glass Castle by Jeannette Walls is a memoir of her early life. Hopefully she will have a lot more to say. It is a very good read. Hard in some places. When my mother gave it to me she said I am not sure if you will want to read this it is hard. I am glad I did. Jeanette tells us the story of growing up with nomadic, artistic parents and her siblings. Life is full of dreams, despair, and disappointment and delusions. It is a wonderful read. Gritty, tough, kind, an ironic. I have heard Paramount is going/ maybe they have made a movie of this.



The second book Prodigal Summer is wonderful. It has been awhile since I read a book that I could feel and smell the imagery so well. Barbara Kingsolver is a southern writer who brings the woods to life. This is the story of three women who lives intertwine. Each one overcoming obstacles to find out who they are and what is important to them. The science of animal attraction is particularly powerful. I really enjoyed this book and was sad when it was over I wanted it to go on and on. What are ya'll reading? Any suggestions?

Quote - The Family

Graffiti Art

I am really into graffiti lately. I really love the stencils some of these artist make. I make it a point when I travel to try and find graffiti. The local police have been very helpful if not a little quizzical about it. This is four different pieces I put together. The boy stencil is from my favorite - Jef Aerosal. The text is from an artist out of New York City.

SOARTFUL CHALLENGE - Angels Everywhere

This past week has been hectic. Today I have spent a lot of time on the computer going through emails, catching up on things. One of the things to catch up on were challenges, down loading some photos from my camera, and my blog.

I enjoy these challenges so much. They give you a starting point. Sort of like a "prompt" for a journal. I guess it is a visual prompt. This week for Soartful Challenge it was this lovely digital grid that June created. I decided to use some of my own Freebies and make this digital collage.

One of the things I have experienced this week is that there are Angels everywhere. Sometimes they are in human form, but they are there. Lifting our spirits, helping to point us in the right direction, giving us strength, showing us love and laughter.

Four Letter Words - More

Sun, Fun, Sand Collage Sheet

I have been missing in action all week. It is the beginning of birthday season in my family. We have two birthday's on Saturday and one on Sunday. I have been busy recovering from being out of town for my birthday and getting ready to leave again.

I did find some time to scan and put together this collage sheet. One of my ex's was Japanese. He had this wonderful aunt - Auntie Sue - who gave me several cool things. When she passed on her daughter gave me even more. I hope you enjoy these postcards I made into a collage sheet. They make me think of Auntie Sue as a young woman.

The Art and Life of Abbott Handerson Thayer

Angel

The Virgin

Winged Figure

Portrait of Raphael Welles Pumpelly

Noon

Girl Arranging Hair

I thought I would share one of my favorite artists with you. His name is Abbott Handerson Thayer. I am sure many of you have seen his work. The American Art Museum in Washington DC has quite a few of his paintings.

Abbott Handerson Thayer was born in Boston to a country doctor and his wife. He became quite fascinated with nature and considered himself a naturalists. He studied James Audubon's bird paintings and spent a considerable time practicing painting the barn life at home. He attended art school in New york and Paris. Came home and married. He settled in New Hampshire.

Life was good. He set up a portrait studio and painted Mark Twain, Henry James and others. Then two of his precious children died within a year of each other. His wife and the three remaining children became nomads for a while.

Abbott Handerson Thayer was probably so stressed at this time that his bi polar disorder became more than just an occasional oddity. He began to suffer from anxiety attacks which he called "frightful fits". Slowly life got back on track. His first wife died and he remarried. He often painted the girl they hired to help with the children and chores. He opened a new studio and also began to teach.

He was known for his beautiful wings in his paintings. They were thought to be almost life like. I am sure his study of nature had a lot to do with that. He also used his three children - Mary, Gerald and Glady's - in his paintings. You can see all three in his painting the Virgin. Also Mary is one of his winged angels. Glady's also became a painter when she grew up.

The thing that he is also noted for is camouflage. They call him the father of camouflage. He studied how animals and birds used there coloring to hide from predators and to help the hunt. He helped his son write the first book on this subject. They were known to "paint" their clothes to study animals and birds.

I am drawn to the rich colors that are sometimes muted, the soulful eyes of his models, and the lovely landscapes he uses as his backgrounds. I hope you enjoy his paintings.

Roses for Me

This is one of my favorite Rose paintings. It is by Abbott Handerson Thayer. I have a lot of blue pots in that style around the outside of my house. They always make whatever is growing in them so beautiful. In one of the biggest pots I have, a miniature rose bush grows. My children gave to me about fifteen years ago for Mother's Day. It too, blooms pink. Whenever I look outside I think of this painting, wondering whom the roses were for.

This is my Birthday Weekend. I will be doing birthday things, traveling a little and hopefully spending some time with those I love. Some in spirit and some in person. After my birthday weekend begins the round of family birthday's begin. I told myself today to start walking a couple times a day because there is going to be a lot of cake, pies, cookies, and ice cream in the next few months. Maybe some extra laps in the pool might help, also.

I am asking everyone I know to please do something unexpected for your self and for some one you may not know. Give that stranger an extra big smile, open the door for someone, pay for some ones coffee, leave an ATC in the bathroom at the library or work. Just some random act of kindness. You never know where it will lead.

Its My Party ....Freebies

Because it is my birthday weekend I decided to pick something that I thought everyone would like...so ...here are some French Postcards for you. I am thinking the thing they all have in common is hair things. My BFF sent me a box full of goodies - some of them were wonderful hair ornaments from when we were in high school. I still have the long hair so she sent me hers, they are FAB...silver , tortoise shell, yummy.

She looks dressed up for a party.

She looks like she might be the entertainment for the party.

She is the princess of the party!

What better way to spend a special day than with a friend.

Just too cute, love the ribbon in her hair.

The party is over she is ready to go home.

SOARTFUL CHALLENGE - Owl - Magical nights

Last Saturday's challenge for Soartful Challenge from Art Freebies was this awesome picture of an owl. I was late working on it as I was out in the country listening to the crickets. I really love these birds. I have a Great Horned Owl that lives in this big old pine tree off of my driveway. Every afternoon right before dusk she comes out to hunt.

First, she sort of hops out of this large crevice in the tree. Then, a quick stretch of the wings and she is about six feet out on the limb looking around. Sometimes she will just sit there. Other times she will fly up into my neighbors very large magnolia tree. Just waking up and getting the lay of the land. Then she takes flight and soars across the front of my yard, across the golf course high up into another pine tree where she waits for dinner.

Off and on during the evening you can here her return to her nest and feed her two owlets. Some nights if I go for a late swim and lay still in the pool on my back, she will fly over me so quietly that I feel the air move and see her large shape. I think she is as curious about me as I am her. This year she left me the broken shells to her eggs on my patio. A gift.

My collage is about young love and the things that go on at night. The owl in his painting represents the hunt that all people go on to find their mate. The courtship - flowers, first date, first kiss...Thank you June for such a wonderful image.
p.s. all the images in my collage come from June's Art Freebies blog.

original image

I Won a Give Away

How exciting I won a give away that Belinda Spiwak was having on her blog Altered Belly. I won a cool bag from Trader Joe's, a signed copy of CPS with Belinda's article - Mixed Media Collage Tiles using fabric, Smoochie paint, and a pack of the Metallic Gelly Roll pens. Belinda had posted on her blog how she had been using these pens on fabric. I am always interested in new techniques and this one sounded easy and fun. Can't beat that.

I have known Belinda through some swaps, some different Yahoo Groups, around the internet so to speak. She is one of those personalities that when she gets into something - metal - fabric - etc. she is not afraid to experiment with anything and everything. Then share her experiments. I think we all need obsessiveness, this immersion to be able to become really good at something.

Thank you Belinda for having this give away. I will use my bag, treasure, read and gleam from CPS and I am off to experiment with the Metallic Gelly Pens.

Doggy Treats - Muttballs

I took presents when I went a visiting this weekend. Dogs are much needed companions on the farm. Although my poor pup passed away a few years ago I still love dogs. Scooby Doo next door is my pal. I went to our local Pup and Kitty bakery and found this cool book of recipes for treats by Stephanie Mehanna. I thought I would share this easy recipe I adapted from hers. It was a big hit. The hounds kept an eye on me all weekend.

Muttballs

1 pound ground or minced chicken
5 ounces of dried bread crumbs or crushed crackers
1 tablespoon dried oregano
1 egg

Mix all the ingredients in a bowl. Roll into 1 inch balls and place on a greased baking pan.
Bake in a preheated oven at 350 degrees for 15 to 20 minutes or until golden brown.
Remove from oven. Cool. Store in an air tight container in the refrigerator.
These can also be frozen for up to six weeks.

Theme Thursday - Stripes - ATC

I have finally gotten around to Theme Thursday's Challenge. This past week it was to make an ATC and the week before it was Stripes. I decided to just combine both themes and go for it. I googled stripes - big mistake. There are a lot of striped things out there. I got sidetracked for a few hours looking at stripes. I decided on the cross walk and this adorable girl all dressed in stripes. With a bit of manipulation I was able to get this dear girl surrounded by stripes. She has a bit of an attitude - hurray lets go do something fun - shop for more stripes!