Coldest Day Ever

It's been 40 hours since I have been outside.  About 32 hours ago the temperature fell below 0 degrees. And I mean air temperature, not wind chill.  This morning I woke up to this. . .

It's mind blowing!  Especially after yesterday. . .

I am going to have to stand on my balcony today just to see what it feels like.  I think I will finish my morning coffee, though (and build up my courage).

It's tough being a native Floridian living in the cold midwest.  I hope you are staying warm wherever you are.
- christina

Abstract

One day I was walking through the lobby of my apt building and happened upon an abandoned painting.  It was a print of giant poppies, the kind that can be bought at a bed and bath store.  I decided that it would be the perfect canvas for an experiment in abstract art, so I took it home.

First I collaged the canvas with fabric, paper, and book pages.  I used cardboard and crumpled tissue paper for texture.

I painted it with buff and then white acrylic paint using a credit card as a brush in order to leave some of the background uncovered.  Finally I added the orange and black to complete the painting.  I used a charcoal pencil to shadow some of the textured areas but I’m not sure it’s even noticeable to anyone but me.

I am happy with the way this piece turned out because it looks the way I imagined it.   Believe me, that doesn't happen all that often.  In addition, my daughter wants this painting.  She has never before asked me to give her a piece of my art.  She says she is going to hang it over her desk and I am extremely happy that she likes it.

- christina

Arm Knitting

You know how weird coincidences happen in life sometimes?  I was talking to a friend the other day and she asked me if I had ever done arm knitting.  Well, I haven’t thought about arm knitting in a long time.  It’s something I had heard of, but never tried (I am not one of those women who have a stash of yarn lying around the house).  I told my friend that I had never tried it, but would like to learn how to do it someday.

Three days later I am at a friend’s house for dinner and a young lady is wearing a scarf that she made herself by … (you guessed it ) … arm knitting!  It was adorable.  She said she could teach me how to do it and I could make a scarf in less than an hour.  Luckily, my gracious hostess IS one of those women who have a stash of yarn and she gave me 2 skeins of beautiful blue llama/wool yarn.  I was so excited!

My young friend taught me how to arm knit and she completed a scarf for our hostess.  I completed my scarf in about 45 minutes.  I think I could have done it in a shorter amount of time, but I was drinking wine at the same time.   

The process was very simple and I would like to do it again.  I’d have to find a YouTube video (such as this one) to guide me in the casting on and off, but the rest I could do from memory.  I recommend you try it because it's an instant gratification project.

The bad news is that you will have to go into a yarn store to buy yarn and we both know how dangerous that will be!  Good luck.

- christina

My finished scarf. :)

My Word for 2014

I keep hearing about people choosing a special word for 2014.  It's a variation on the New Year's resolution, which is something I don't like to make.  Selecting a word for the year means that your actions and decisions are guided by that word.  After some thought, I have selected my word for the year.

STRETCH

I plan to consciously strive to stretch myself this year in all the things that I do whether it is art, work, or relationships.  I will try to do a little bit more than I think I am capable of.  I will stretch myself beyond my limits.

commons.wikimedia.org

What is your word for the year?

- christina

100 Papers

Back in August, I set a goal to paint 100 pieces of paper by the end of 2013.  The good news is that I successfully met my goal!  I did have to work all the way up through New Years Eve to make it happen though (I work best under pressure).  Here is a portion of my collection.

As you may be able to tell from the photos, I started with large pieces of paper and got smaller toward the end.  Yes, I actually counted a tag as 1 piece of paper!  If it had paint on it, then I counted it.

I used my Gelli plate for almost all of the papers.   I think I am getting better at creating with the plate, but I still have to practice more.  I used mostly craft paint and I think my results would have been better if I had used higher quality paint.  I wanted to use up what I had rather than buy new paint.

I’m sure you are wondering what I am going to do with my 100 papers.  When I set my original goal, I decided not to worry about what the final products were going to be.  Creating the painted papers was enough for now and I am happy with the results.  

Perhaps my goal for 2014 should be to create art using 100 pieces of painted paper!  I'm going to think about that for awhile longer before I decide.
- christina

The Christmas Tree

I love real Christmas trees but they can be expensive, plus I don’t own a Christmas tree stand.  In an effort to keep the “one use only” items in my apartment to a minimum (and save a little money) I decided to build my own Christmas tree this year.  

I drew some pictures of what I wanted and got out my trusty tape measure in order to determine the size.  I put blue painters’ tape on the wall so that I could get an accurate idea of the dimensions of the final product.  Finally I headed off to Home Depot with my son in tow to purchase the wood (not because I thought the wood was going to be heavy, but because sometimes I like to drag him along on shopping trips as a kind of slow torture).  Home Depot cut all the wood for me and, in a happy measuring coincidence, I ended up with only 4 inches of left over wood.

The assembly was fairly simple.  I used 2 screws to attach the cross pieces to the “trunk” of the tree.  I hammered small nails randomly into the cross pieces so that I could hang ornaments.  And the assembly was complete!

I love the way my decorated tree turned out.  In the dead of winter, anything that lights up makes me happy!  And my homemade Christmas tree can be used anywhere in the apartment for other holidays, as well as hanging family photos or artwork.  Birthday tree, anyone?

Have fun decorating, everyone.

- christina

What a Sight

A few weeks ago I made an emergency visit to my local art supply store (sometimes a girl just needs a fresh, fine point, black Pitt pen) and this is what I saw.

I actually laughed out loud when I saw the Storm Troopers and the Sand Person in front of Dick Blicks.  As I approached the store I could hear the Storm Troopers talking and their voices were electronically enhanced just like in the movies.  One Trooper was giving the other one directions, “drive down Naperville to Ogden and go east …”  It just seemed so strange and out of place.

It turns out that an artist who had worked on the Star Wars movies was visiting the store on that day.  I was happy to have an explanation as to why those costumed people were hanging around.  As I shopped, the characters came inside (it was pretty cold outside) and one of the Troopers actually asked me if I needed any help finding something.  I was so tempted to ask him to say, “These aren’t the ‘droids you’re looking for” but I controlled my urge and behaved.  The whole experience left me with a big smile on my face – plus, a new pen!

- christina