A little book of oddities

For the past few days I've been working on a little book of collage; I enjoy making little books, collecting my pieces and putting them together to see what I can come up with. I used covers from 7gypsies that grabbed my attention because they are the kind I look for in old books. These covers are postcard-size and they are perfect for my smaller pieces.

First I make the pages.

Then I sew the signature(s)  with binder's thread, and glue on the covers.

My grandfather would be proud!

[Click on "Little Books' in the menu above to see more pages.]

A stitch in the fabric of time

We actually got a heat alert for the city. So I went out early to do my chores, and came straight home to sit it out. I am a moderate creature; I dislike extremes, both heat and cold. Happily I have lots of things to do at home, which is also my workplace.

Today, it's stitching little pieces. I made a few for a friend in Australia, and it got me on a roll. I love this fabric because it becomes part of the whole picture.

Be good to your friends -- Kevin Bacon

Saturday things

We went to the Brickworks, an organic market that I really love, thanks to Jc who goes there regularly, and roamed around sampling fruit and a fantastic chocolate cookie that was all chocolate (Spanish style) dark as sin. It was my breakfast.

There is lots of stuff for kids, and this is my favourite. It reminded me of Hobbit land.

As a child this would have thrilled me. I loved nooks and crannies in nature and was always looking for them. Of course, I was always looking for faeries too...preferably sitting on a toadstool.

Late summer fare

It's that time again.

The time of the cherries has passed and given way to peaches and nectarines (I eat them daily) and field tomatoes and corn. All grown in Southern Ontario, fresh and juicy.

What I do when I see rosemary, in pots or a bush in a garden: I run my palms up the sides and then bury my nose in my palms. And breathe in the fragrance.

We're blessed to be so well-fed. Think of all the work that went into producing our food, from the earth to the seeds and the humans who cultivated it and got it all the way to our tables. Think of all the people who don't have enough to eat, and help in any way you can, even if it's just giving your lunch to a homeless person you pass in the street.

The rain came, the headache left, and the sun appeared.

And so did Somerset Studio. I'm always a little stunned to see my work in this gorgeous magazine. Once I've sent off the assignment, I turn to other things so I forget about it. Then the magazine arrives in the mail and I remember....and it makes my day. It will never get old. In this issue I did the With One Palette feature; and the With One Stamp in Mélange features a number of artists' rendition of my rubber stamp This Old House, and did they ever do a fantastic job!

Thank you, thank you!

Today I nursed a barometric headache.
I hope you didn't.

Little obsessions

My current little obsession is shadows, or shades (spirits). I have no idea why, but I don't ask, I just go with it as long as it appeals to me. I now have a pile of tiny art, destined for my Etsy shop, that I'm going to attach to mat board cut to size.

Meanwhile, the air has cooled a little and I'm reminded that September is around the corner. Already. I was out most of the day, and in my peregrinations I stumbled on a vegetable patch in the grounds of my building. It seems an enterprising maintenance man on the management's staff has been planting tomatoes and cucumbers and eggplant, and I was told I could help myself. I love when people do things like this!

Today (and every day) I'm grateful for good friends. Especially the friend who rescued me from a little funk that was tugging at me yesterday. She is beautiful, and her beauty radiates calm and positivity. I've rarely met people who are physically beautiful who also have that same beauty inside them, in their soul.

They say you have to be a good friend to have good friends, so I do my best every day. Sometimes I get lucky!

I was up late last night finishing the last of Stieg Larsson's trilogy, The Girl Who Kicked the Hornet's Nest. I couldn't put it down, so I stayed up until I finished it. By then I was wide awake, so I carved a nighthawk... it seemed appropriate and it relaxed me. The drawing is more approximate than exact; call it artistic licence.

I'll be going to the library to return the book and ferret out more to read. I am so grateful for our library system.

I spent yesterday putting out a string of little fires. I'm not one to let things malinger; I prefer to confront little problems and get them out of the way -- stat! The downside is that I get exhausted and I'm thinking I should start meditating again. I've also let my yoga practice (Hatha) go because of tiredness, so it's a vicious circle. But I have to start somewhere, so I will.

There was one bright moment when I looked up from my work and saw a nighthawk circling the park. I watched it until it disappeared into the horizon. It must have sensed the question I asked here and answered me!

Portal

Pebbles and tiny art

I've been totally charmed and inspired by my friend Carolyn's various interpretations of pebbles. So I thought I would embroider some. However, they turned out to be more like seeds, so I'll have to try again... 

Tiny art: an idea I learned from a doll -- zendoll.

Shadows

WIP

Work in progress.

Aren't we all.

I'm tired so not many words today. I will be curled up with a book and have an early night.
See you tomorrow!

Finally, justification for unusuable paper scraps. When I cut out images, I usually throw away the leftover bits of paper. I was clearing my table when I realized that one cut-out looked liked a stencil. So, of course, I used it as such, and eurika! (for me, anyway). I will have to cut more carefully in the future and see if any shapes are usable.

Land of the giant birds

Only because if you do them to scale they get...lost! [Stamps by Paperbag studios]

What's he waiting for? Open the window and feed me already!

Debutante

I made my debut on the Paperbag Studios design team. The new stamps are right up my alley; they arrived on Friday and, of course, I couldn't wait. I made three pieces of art using not only the houses but also pieces of other stamps -- it's a little like painting. The stamps do the drawing for you and you paint and collage.

The Neighborhood

Love & Kisses

Guess who's coming who came to dinner last night...

This gorgeous girl who is filling the space left vacant by dear departed Django. She was rescued from a pound in Florida and came to live in Toronto. We became great friends over dinner(she has inherited Django's water bowl in my kitchen), and she may be spending a weekend with me in October when her guardian (I don't like the term "owner") goes to Montreal for a conference. She is very very sweet and very smart.

Meet JEANNIE!!

Friday's child

A busy day. A good day.
See you tomorrow.

Cheers!

Shabby grandeur

I love the look of  genteel shabbiness, the kind you see in some of the old Irish houses, not that there are many left. People with money have been able to renovate them and while the more modern look is wonderful, I still prefer the old look.

Nighthawks

A spread in my visual journal with a legitimate question. I used to wait for them in late August and watch them circling the sky. Some years ago they disappeared. I still think of them and wonder where they are.

While working on a couple of projects/commissions, I always need to break away every so often and do something else. This time I made and started a visual journal. It took forever to paint all the pages, given that each pair of pages had to dry before I could move on to the next. I had no pre-conceived ideas; I just let whatever happen happen. After a few pages it was obvious that the main theme was space, as in space to breathe. And mystery; the hidden, the undiscovered. Only...16 pages to go...

 

Days of travel

Once upon a time I was a travel writer. I was tailor-made for it because I'd been travelling all my life and knew a thing or two. One country I never dreamed I would ever visit was Russia. But then walls came tumbling down and doors opened and invitations were issued. It was a strange and amazing visit, a visit to another world, some of it, unbelievably familiar, as in déjà vu. From Moscow, we took the overnight train to St. Petersburg, and it was like entering a story by Chekhov....

The first time I saw St. Basil's church in Moscow's Red Square, I was stunned. I actually first saw it as we drove through Moscow and I looked to my left and spied the domes inbetween two buildings.

Detail on one side of St. Basil's church.

Thursday art

Ghost Circus. It disappeared many decades ago, but its energy still remains and the horse senses it. That's my story, anyway!

The light of my life. My nephew.

And the light of his life (after his wife), puppy Rosie

See you on your birthday Sunshine!

Tipis

Tipis on Turtle Island

See that piece of spotted tape under the head? I got it from Paperbag Studios. I've fallen in love with these tapes, dots, grids, similar to washi tape but not transparent. I feel like taping everything with it.

I'm also proud, and pleased as punch, to say that I've joined the Design Team at Paperbag Studios.

Day trip

I was charmed by my first visit to St. Jacob's. The first place we stopped at was an antique mall/market and, oh joy, it was fabulous. A great variety of vintage and antique items at breathtakingly good prices! We spent some time there, then headed into St. Jacob's main street where I posted a letter to Australia here:

We visited several of the little shops, and of course the bakery where we tasted the most heavenly maple syrup. One of my friends dragged us out of there because she was afraid of getting addicted; it was that good. Then we had lunch. For a few dollars,  I had a battered fish sandwich with slaw that melted in my mouth -- delicious! More wandering, a chat with a beaming Mennonite woman in another antique mall, and a little shopping.

Muskoka chairs

The Maple Leaf forever!

Treasures. I collect silver spoons, only the ones I truly love. This one was $5, sterling, and wrapped in a plastic bag with a label hiding the handle. I saw many spoons that I liked but this one is the one I chose. I snapped it up without opening the wrapping. When I got home I took it out of its back and on the handle I saw an initial that stunned me! It's an initial that's very dear to me.

I painted today. No mixed media, no collage, just paint and paper.

Tomorrow is a civic holiday, and I'll be going to St. Jacob's with some friends of mine. St. Jacob's is a little Ontario town west of Toronto, with a farmer's market, antique shops, a quilt gallery, a Mennonite museum. Like that. I'm looking forward to taking the day off and going somewhere interesting.

[This piece is available in my Etsy shop. SOLD]