The Mirrors

About once a month I get an itching to go junking. Not looking for anything in particular usually,  just getting out and into shops that make my nose twitch from the smells and my heart thumping when I find the FIND. I like to fly solo on these adventures so if one spot I decide to hang an hour in and the next 5 minutes no one is waiting or irritated with me. I also enjoy being alone honestly. Teaching all day everyday you get over being spoken to. Do I hear an AMEN from other teachers out there?  hahaha....

Last Thursday I should have gone home and worked in the studio. But honestly I wasn't in the mood. Instead I headed off to a local antique shop and the Goodwill. These hand mirror were in an antique booth for $1.49 each. I immediately knew what needed to happen with their plain ugliness.

Vero, the Naked Art Gallery owner really prefers that we make our art from recycled products. Well, except the art, we all do tend to paint on wood panels and such. But her gallery is know for art that functions, is a little funky and is recycled. So I knew these mirrors would strike a happy cord with her!

I had to clear gesso and black prime them first. Then I painted with acrylics and sealed with clear spray. I hope the paint stays put. I listed them at $14 each and are available at the gallery here.

The mirrors fit perfectly in your hand and would make great Valentine's Day gifts for friends and family. So have you found anything cool lately and made it extra special? I love finding old treasures and re-purposing them. Wait til you see what I'm doing with my wine bottles!

Bike Paintings

A few years back I started painting what I have dubbed, "The American Still Life". Basically these paintings are of objects that have some sort of fond memory for myself from childhood up until adulthood. And most of them have wheels.

Bikes, trucks and campers are some of my favorite to paint. I find that having this type of genre in my art booth really moves people, some to the point of tears. You see, I think we as humans gather and hold onto memories in funny ways. I can vividly remember being piled up in the back of our olive green station wagon surrounded by Barbies as we drove the 8 hours to Sarasota, Florida every year. I can feel the scratchy carpet on my skin. I can smell the plether seats. This vehicle brings back magic memories of our time as a family unit. We ALL cried when we sold the wagon and bought a brown Peugeot.

I can also remember my first real bike, down to the detailed race number on the front. How the rubber handlebar grips always blistered my hands. I remember riding all over town on this girlie dirt bike, making wooden ramps with the boys on the school basketball court every weekend. I remember when my little sisters brown cameo themed banana seat bike was stolen from our yard and how the police brought it back we were so scared. Why would someone steal her bike?

A friend of mine told me when she was a teenager her parents rented an RV and took off for the summer. Her memories of this adventure will forever be embedded in her mind. So you see, you don't necessarily have to be a bike rider, own a truck or camp in a camper to want to own one of these simple paintings. I find my art tends to find homes with people who embrace the story that accompanies the art or reminds them of their own story.

 Maybe by purchasing and hanging one of my American Still Life paintings you can open a conversation up with your family about, "remember that time we...." And then that story can be handed down to the next generation. What a lovely way to share your life, through art. Don't you agree? These are available to purchase at my Birmingham gallery, The Naked Art Gallery. Check Vero out, she has an awesome selection of artists.

Metalsmithing

Every once-in-awhile I just HAVE to make jewelry. I just do. I get an idea in my head and have to run with it. These are made using the awesome techniques I learned from Stephanie Lee. The techniques she taught me years ago have really broadened my jewelry making vocabularies. I love seeing how far I can take the skills learned. Pushing new shapes and designs. It's rejuvenating.

Over the holiday break I had such an wonderful time playing in my studio. I actually started with these, then after a deep cleaning and reorganization of the studio, I painted the watercolor boxes. I had to let the watercolor box idea percolate a little more. In other words, I was over thinking the watercolor boxes and knew it so I had to let it sit until I could focus.

Do you get like that with your ideas? Sometimes I think and plan so much on an idea that by the time I get to the doing of the idea they FLOP. Spontaneity can be a good thing for my artsy brain. Otherwise I'd just sit and think about ideas all the time and never get anything done. These jewelry pieces were a total spontaneous idea. I was actually cleaning the metalsmithing table and thought...I wonder if I could make a 3-D heart shape? And I could.

These are at the Naked Art Gallery in Birmingham if you are interested. They are $48 each. I sent 12 different ones. Vero usually gets everything online here. Check it out and all the other cool artist in her gallery!

The Watercolor Boxes

I teach K-5 Art Education in a public school near our home. It's a great job...really stress free because it's not a certified position (even though I am certified in art k-12). So I get to come to school...play art with kids all day....and go home. Seriously, where else could I find a job where I get to do that right? In my classroom I am probably not the norm when it comes to the typical "art teacher". I like a very neat, clean and organized classroom. In fact I go through days of cleaning. Purging crayons, testing markers and throwing out stinky paint. Side note peeps, old paint is the worst smell on the planet. Hands down. No lie. Blerg. Anyhoo.....before the holiday break I always do a major paint station clean up. Because of said smells. I didn't want my room to smell like dead paint upon return in January. I was throwing watercolor pans out by the dozens because well, they don't make them like they used to. In the old days we art teachers could buy the individual pots of colors and replace the old ones. Especially colors used out quickly like blues. And poor yellow. He gets to be yellow for one student and then he becomes green or orange. Yellow doesn't stand a chance in an elementary art room. While throwing all these pans out I had a vision....first I started thinking they'd make cute pencil boxes for our upcoming Southern Circle Retreats. I'd wanted to make something special for the attendees from me to keep their supplies in we use and voila! They worked perfect. (can't show yet because I want them surprised)

And then I started to look at the larger containers closed up without the watercolors pans in them and found they were stunning on their own. The various paint colors splattered all over. Hmmmm....I wonder if paint would adhere to the inside so that when closed it becomes sorta a magical shadow box?

The answer to that question is yes. Yes. Yes!! Of course it took some trials on what to put first to get the paint to stick. Again, clear gesso came to the rescue. Superhero of my studio these days!

Now I did remove some paint in areas so you could see my images a tad better. Not much though. I just love these so much and am tickled to think my creative brain actually thought this up!

To stamp I decided on the outside was best so you could really read the words. Plus it gives the overall affect of 3-D better. Now, ding dong me just grabbed a stamp pad not looking for permanency. Urgh.....So then I had to spray a little clear on top to protect the words from smearing. Lost one in the process. Bummer. Oversprayed it and made it cloudy. Then the light went on in my head to look for my staz-on pad. What would I do without that sucker?

These too are headed to the Naked Art Gallery Microlove opening. Although I might make some more for my Etsy shop. I'll be sure to let you know if I do.

I Puffy Heart You

I used to say on my blog all the time "I puffy heart you". A few years ago when I found these metal "puffy hearts" at the mart I had to buy them to paint on. And yep....they sat in my studio for years. The even got packed in moving boxes from one studio to another if that tells ya anything about age.

Each year my favorite Birmingham Gallery, The Naked Art Gallery, hosts a Microlove art show. All the work has to be tiny, like no larger than a postcard. Each year I do something fun. Last year it was a series of 4" encaustic paintings. They were so adorable. This year I pulled these out! They turned out awesome. I just wish I'd bought more.

The metal surface was tricky to paint on so I used clear gesso first. Clear gesso has got to be the best invention like ever. Ever. First of all it's clear. (duh jenni) Second of all it has this awesome sandy texture unlike white or black gesso. It makes the paint go onto the surface dreamy. And I was able to leave the heart above with metal showing through since the clear didn't affect the color of the metal. The other 2 I got a little carried away with the flowers and painting. Last step I sprayed them with a clear spray which the name of is escaping me but it comes in a turquoise can and makes your work look like glass. Anyhoo....if you are interested in these they will be available at Naked Art Gallery.

Hope you had a fabulous Christmas holiday. I was a little quiet here during the break for personal reasons. Sometimes you need to step away and gather yourself before you can present yourself again. It was not the best Christmas to be quite honest, too much stress and not enough joy. If I looked back on my blog posts from previous holidays I'd probably have said the same thing. My hope is that during 2015 holiday, yes already thinking about it, we change something. Yeah. Something.

Later guys.....

Leather Cuffs Headed to Alabama

I have to admit, this batch of leather cuffs is good stuff. I kinda got carried away seeing what I could add to each one to make it super unique! Vero's been selling my cuffs since probably 2011. They are a great seller for her as they are both one-of-a-kind and priced just right for your budget. :) This group will be for sale in her online gallery. My page is here. In the store she'll have like 20 more. Like I said I got carried away this time around with the making.

I also made a few new dainty gentle reminder bracelets using the USA stamp blank and those teensy vehicle charms. Look at that truck. Love....love the way these look on your wrist!

If you are in the Birmingham area you should definitely check out the gallery. Vero was recently named one of the TOP 10 MOST INFLUENTIAL WOMEN in Birmingham!! Woohoooo Vero. I mean seriously. That is like the coolest honor. I am so glad she took a chance on me all those years ago. Her gallery has been such an inspiration for my art career. I love being a Naked Art Gallery artist!

Candy Beads and Teensy Charms

It's embarrassing the quantity of artsy pieces and parts I have in my studio. Seriously. I've got stuff. Paint, embellishments, jewelery making, felt, stamping, wood burning, leather crafting, clay, you name it I dabble in it. It's like I am a blue hairy art Cookie Monster.  I HAVE to have art stuff all the time and devour all that has to do with art. Every once in awhile I get inspired to just use it. And the past few weeks I've been a monster making fool. The tiny bike and camper charms are a part of an OLD series I did with metal stamping. They were super cute. But I got bored with the making of them so the extras got stored away. Since I tend to buy in bulk for fear of the stuff never ever being made again, I have like 50 of these teensy wheeled charms left. These adorable stretchy beaded bracelets are the end product of such hoarding. It's the beads fault really. I was in Hobby Lobby the other day minding my own business when these pastel candy looking beads with a clearance price tag said "BUY ME!". So I did. And these are the result. YEAH!

These will be available at Naked Art Gallery in Birmingham, Alabama after this weekend when I get them there. They are $18 each. I am sending 6 total. If ya want one she can do online purchases. cool right?

So off to figure out what needs to be used up next. The jewelry making supplies are overwhelming my artsy brain right now. These stretchy bead bracelets are an excellent way to reduce the bead hoarding. So perhaps I'll stick to this for a spell.

Leather Cuffs

I've been crafting cuffs for years.  Trying this and that with them.  Never really making a living off of it, just enjoying the crafting of something different.  I actually get tired of painting.  Gasp.  Right?  And this is something fun that uses stuff I have around the studio.  This past weekend I went to the mart for the January gift show.  There's a vendor in the cash and carry area I LOVE to buy my leather cuffs from.  Yes, I could be thrifty and use belts, but his leather is like freaking butter on your arm.  So I buy his.  It kinda helps he's from some foreign country, talks real smooth and is hot in his skinny European blue jeans.  Did I just say that out loud?   This time I bought some fun colored pieces too...including white, hot pink, navy and orange! 

Anyhoo....I was taking Claudine Hellmuth's online class where we learned a bazillion new techniques.  One was using embossing powder on sticky back canvas.  And although I really like that particular technique, there was a little light turned on in my noggin to use the embossing powder on leather.  Oh sweet baby in a footed onesie, this was the mecca.  First because I've been a buying stuff for years including embossing powder and rubber stamps.  So the piles where there waiting for their rising from the studio grave.

This is kinda addicting.  In case you try it.  So many combinations.  So many end results.  These are of course headed off to the Naked Art Gallery.  The first batch I made and sent her all sold the first month.  Birmingham people know good stuff when they see it I tell ya.  If you like any you see however on my instagram feed let me know before I ship.  Be glad to sell one to you.  BTW I'm artsyorange on instagram. 

Well...gotta go make some dreams come to life.  Hope you guys are having a fabulous Thursday!

Little White Flower

During the Thanksgiving break I worked in the studio a pretty good bit.  I'd run down, paint, go do something else, come back, paint.  It was really nice.  I love having a clean studio and a new heater.  For the Naked Art Gallery I went rather small....8" squares.  10 total.  Plus I worked on a bunch for an upcoming show in Nashville this weekend.  I like working small because my simple images tend to work well on a small scale.  I've yet to attempt a large encaustic.  Perhaps that should be a Christmas break goal. 

These 10 should be available online or in the gallery by the weekend.  Check it out: Naked Art Gallery

Have a great Wednesday!!

Naked Art Gallery Craft Bazaar

So where are you going to be this weekend??  Because peeps, I'll be here:

 With loads of new jewelry, and other goodies!!  Yep....goodies.  Come see us!!

 The new heart design is definitely puffy heart worthy.  Yep.

At first everone in my house was supposed to go with me and us make a weekend adventure out of it at Dad's lake place.  That is until oh.....night before last. When my Mother informed me that Mailey had a singing engagement Sunday which of course Mailey did not want to miss (more on Mailey's recent coming out of her shell wanting stardom in singing adventures).  Then William ended up with baseball practice and a sleepover invite.  Then of course there is the issue of Ellie the cat that got beat up and has to be monitored...and then there is Lily.....and her evil sidekick Graham Cracker.....so..........I am going alone.  ALONE!!!  Yooooooohoooooo!!  I can not wait to see my girlfriends and have a real girlie dinner and maybe a martini (or 2)!!  I am super excited.  Ok...selfish I know.  I love Birmingham so much and miss it and all its' magic. Sigh.....So I am going to make the very most of the time away from the family and soak in as much Birmingham culture as I can muster in the 36 horus I am there.  Oh, and hopefully Sunday there will be sales in abundance for all artisans participating in the Craft Bazaar.  So, until Monday.....hoping you have a lovely....and perhaps magical weekend as well!

Making New Jewelry

Originally posted 1.7.09
I've never thought of myself as a jewelry maker. I dabble in many things....and jewelry making would be one of them. Mostly I like to make things for myself to wear that no one else has. Then Vero at The Naked Art Gallery saw my nesting jewelry series in a blog post and asked if I wanted to sign on at her gallery as a jewelry artist. Right now she carries my paintings and porcelain jewelry line like below. The porcelain has my original paintings embedded into them with a bail glued on. Not really much thought to making those. Like mini paintings on your neck! And ears!

The nesting series I did a few months back was tedious but quite rewarding for me. First, not one piece was alike. I made about 10 pairs of earrings and 2 necklaces from these nest-like beads I found in New York. It took me hours to put them all together. So today I have 3 pairs of earrings left and 3 rings. I hand delivered them to Vero last week and her first reply was, "You are making more?" Well, you see those beads came from NY, and I have no idea where. So today I ventured into etsy and put in...materials....findings....and guess what? I think about 10000000 hits came up. Yikes! I opened the first shop that looked appealing called PatinaQueen. And there I became so inspired that I can't wait to put my new series together. Since I paint mostly birds and their environments I think my jewelry should reflect this as well. Everything I chose was brown, teal, turquoise, amazing greens, and a dab of pink. I already know the line's name, "Nestlings". So be looking for a new post soon with some sweet birds and nests that you can wear similar to those below.