Snowed in

Another sketch , practice practice, I am enjoying Alisha sketchbook class as you can sketch anywhere.  And you don't need much, \i was watching the Oscars as I did this one, but I changed the channel mid stream.  I am glad the Kings Speech won, I have gone to the movies and saw that one, which I enjoyed.  But if you want an action film, that one is not for you, not much action happening in that film.  Other than the weekend was good, hubby and i were out for supper with friends on Saturday, the Shopper came over on Sunday for dinner, the boyfriends was busy.  After supper the hubby went to the hockey game friends and the shopper and I went out to Walmart she needed groceries and I decided it was time to get out of my Jammie's and get some clothes on.  The weather here has been stay in the Jammie's weather don't bother to go you will freeze your ass off if you do kind of weather.  So other than sketching and watching tv, and renting movies that was it for this girls weekend, I hope yours was better than mine.

Welcome to the Neighbourhood

Neighbours:  They moved into the neighbourhood 15 years ago, out of a small house, to a brand new one.  One happy family, a mother father and daughter.  The neighbourhood was safe and Brady Bunch like.  Their daughter could ride her bike with other little girls, around the neighbourhood.  Before you knew the family had been there 15 years, the bike riding little girl had grown up and moved on with her life as she should.  The two parents, moved on with there life, the wife retired, the husband worked part time, and the neighbourhood changed as all neighbourhood do, people moved and came and went.  The wife who had worked most of he adultlife,made adjustments, and got a routine going .  One day she  realized that she really did not know the negibhours on her street all that well.  Because she had worked most of her life and had friends who were outside of the neighbourhood she did not need to make an effort with the neighbours other than hi how are you, and small chit chat on her way out and into the house.  Now that time seemed somedays to stand still  she had time to wonder about the neighbours   .  She knew some things, by her observing the comings and goings of the street.  There were  two doctors  who were married to nurses.  She knew one Doctor was an emergency room dr.  because she had seen him there.  He had looked and her and in his eyes she knew he knew who she was but he did not come over and say anything and she did not make the effort to do so either..  She knew the family two doors down had come from Russia, and he was a engineer and the wife was a part time worker at a retail store.  She knew the retired couple on the corner were retired, that the wife looked like she was anorexic and walked constantly at all times of the day and night.  The husband rode his bike, and motorcycle and truck, and never walked or talked or waved.  She knew the young couple on the corner, an out of work schoolteacher and a pharma salesman who travelled alot were not happy.  She knew the new family next door to her were happy, and nice , two boys who didn't go to school but looking for jobs, a mother who stayed home, a sister who lived there and was retired, and a husband who worked early in the morning and late into the night and a dog that never got a walk.  Then there was the couple who had three girls, two dogs and a nanny, who shovelled his driveway down to the cement, but in the summer did not take the tree cuttings out to the garbage and where they still resided beside his house  one year later. Where he had two huge dogs, who never got a walk.  Where both parents were not working, but yet still had the nanny and let her walk to the bus in 40 below weather while they remained warm and cozy in there house.  Those all were the  neighbours who did not know her name, she did not know there names either except for the neighbours on each side of her.  She decided that it was fine with her that she did not really know who they were, but she knew enough about their life's that she did not want to know anymore.  She did wonder what they thought of the family in the White house with blue trim , who had two grey hondas, who had a daughter who used to park her car on the street, but was not there anymore.  Did they to look out there windows and surmise they knew about the life behind the windows.  But in all cases of the neighbours on her block they knew one name of someone in her family , they knew Devil Dogs name Sofie, the only sociable one in the family, who if she could would have gone and kissed everyone on the block.

1000 and counting

do you hear the drum roll , wait for it,  yes that definitely a drum roll.....

Well first off I want to thank everyone who comes to my blog, I appreciate each and everyone of you.  If you leave a  comment or just sit quietly by.  This is my 1000th post, I cant believe it.  When I started this blog, almost 5 years ago, I did not envision myself blogging this long.  I have met some wonderful people through this blog, in all different parts of the world.  Could I have done that without this blog ?, I have improved in my art journey because of this blog.  I have improved myself because of this blog, because I never would have found those wonderful artists who offer online classes.  Or the YOUTUBE videos that show you how to do anything. This blog of mine helped me to adjust to being retired, and you know when you retire you will find it an adjustment.  I was able to keep busy checking out favourite blogs, emailing friends and adjusting to life in a slower pace. And it was a big help when I was taking care of my mother, and helped me to heal with kind words from my blog friends.  So in order to say a big thank you to you all for sticking with me thru thick and thin, I am going to have a give away so if you live in tin buck two doesn't matter, if you live in the North Pole, doesn't matter,  so no matter where you live, I will send the prizer   The prize will be  the book called  Master Collage.  I love the book so much, its inspirtional  and just such eye candy to look at.  So I went and   bought another one for the draw. why , because you deserve it. Dont forget I do own a gold mine, so I am rolling in it, ha ha, not.  So all you have to do is leave me a comment with you name and your email address.  If you dont feel safe leaving your email. go to my profile and find my email address and leave me an email there..  The draw will be on my birthday March 17 .   So I just wanted to say thanks again, here is to another 1000.

Did you know I own a gold mine

Did you have a good weekend? Are you ready for the new week to start? Am I to perky for a Monday morning? I have been up since 7:00 am and have had way to much diet coke this morning.  I have been trying to phone the government, which is about impossible.  I have been phoning about some stocks that I am selling.  Yes I said stocks,the only stocks I have ever owned.  A gold mine stocks that I bought about 25 years ago, and then went down so low they were off the stock exchange.  Now they are back on and way more than I pd for them, so I am selling , a little windfall in terms of money is always a good thing.  I have a whole list of things that I need to get checked off today, hence the getting my butt out of bed at the ungodly hour of 7:00 am.  I vowed when I retired they would be no getting up before the clock strikes 9;00 am.  But duty calls, and sometimes you just gotta get up. I am also getting the shingles shot, on my doctors recommendation, because I came down with that rash from a sore throat, I am at risk of shingles and I dont need them to arrive.  The shot is $195.00 but hopefully my insurance witll pay for it.
I have been working in my sketch book, and these are some of the results, pencil and watercolour, just sitting with it while watching tv and what ever shows up on the paper shows up.  Do you sketch?

Letting your child out

Another page in my visual journal, I was playing around and this is what came out.  I found the image of the toy, and did a paintover technique, the girl was in a fashion mag and did a paintover on her to, and the background is mine, was playing around with colour

So its Friday, any plans for the weekend.  The weather here is so cold  so not much is going to go on here.  Though of course I am going to go out, you just cant not go out, dress for the weather.  My scrapbook store, where I buy hoards of paper I don't use, is having a little competition, that \i thought I might enter.  You cant either do a layout, not for me, make cards, not for me, or alter something.  I thought I might alter something, I will take pictures along the way, so today is the day to go gather some of the needed supplies.  I like the thought of the hunt.  Did I tell you that I won a stamp making machine again at my scrapbook store, i just entered my name, and it was picked.  Its by Theresa Collins, I won it just before my mom passed away, so I forgot all about it, till I saw in the studio, so I am going to give a try today.  So what are you doing today.

What kind of house do you live in

I created these cards for an ATC trade.  The Theme was houses, this is my thought on houses.  I don't know if it is what they wanted, but this is what I created.  I have already send them in.

Today is a go day, I am doing the laundry as I type, I do know how to multi-task.  I have to take the mother in law to the dentist and few other places.  I am meeting the shopper and the hubby out for dinner tonight.  And I need to create some art.  I have an idea percolating in my Brain and it needs to get out of there and onto some paper.

An ode to Pablo

this page started with me just jazzing around with paint, trying to get some paints together that went well, and inspired me.  next came the half moon circle and columns, I had some art stickers of Pablo Picasso that I had got the last time i was at the art gallery, and walla a page is born.  And the quote actually is one of my favourites of his.

weighty issues

I was watching Oprah the other day, and they had models on, and thought to myself how many women or girls in there life have wanted to be a model.  Alot, me included when I was younger. The expectations
put on models are I think damaging to a young girl, just starting out.  You must be thin, thin have you seen some of those girls, I don't think they are naturally that thin, do they not eat anything.Its the lifestyle that\s also attractive, flying all over the world, wearing clothes from fabulous designers, being awed by millions.  It is the opposite for a girl who has not the "perfect body|" and who defines perfect. The girl who has a normal body of a growing girl wants more, bigger boobs, a smaller waist, a straight nose and etc.  So when do we as woman stop and say I have this body and its the way I want it.  Is there a stopping point where we are happy with what we have....

Gone Fishing

I know you have seen my girl with the fish on her head before, but this time I just reused her again, but in a different setting, that is according to Pam Carriker how to reuse your art work. The house was a real estate ad that came in the mail, that I painted, the trailer, was a magazine picture, that I also painted.  But as it happens it looked exactly the same as our trailer.  I used some rub ons I had and paint.  It works for me.  I was remembering  my family\s annual vacation every year.  We had 2 weeks that is all my dad ever got.  We went somewhere every year, we didn't have alot of money, we always had some kind of trailer or tent.  This was our first trailer and it was called the Delee for my sister and I, my other sister was not born yet.  We went all over BC with that trailer, it was small as hell, but we eat outside, cooked outside, and inside when it rained, but we had a great time.

Is it Big Bird?

As I said before I was on a role in my art journal, this page has many layers of paint on it, but this one was the one I settled on, I happen to like these colours.  In the end he kinda looks like big bird from Sesame Street,  I drew the bird used a stamp for the wings, painted the body, and used a I think a tim holtz stmp for the body in white and Titan buff . Other than that, today is kinda of a get off my butt and clean the house up day. 

Do you wear Red

I never wear red, I always thought it was not my color.  But when I was on my holidays to Phoenix last year, I actually bought two things in Red, a shirt, and a jacket.  And today I am going to wear the jacket to a meeting I have to go to.  I feel good in it, is there a color you feel good in.

I have been busy working in my art journal, as you will see in the coming days.  I am like on some kind of roll, and you just have to go along with, even if it means staying up till the wee hours of the morning.  Even though I have been retired for about 3 years now, I still have not got the routine down yet, where I go to the studio in the afternoon, instead of after supper.  I have also been busy working on Julies class, finished a
project (clap your hands, first project I have ever finished from a online class), Alisa sketching class started
today.  So I am going to be busy, plus we just switched over to a Cable Internet connection so now my
trusty laptop is not working with the router so I have to find out what is going on with that.

So what are you doing today?

Which one do you like better

 Last night while in the studio and going thru my art journal I cam across this page.  This page was a page I did for a Nudge from Diana Trout.  It was to stick done as many differnt things as possible and try and make it cohesive.  I did not like it, it looked unfinished to me.  So I decided to do a redo.

this is my redo which I happen to love, and I have all the intense bluewater colour all over my fingers to prove it.  It still needs something, but for now I am letting it go out into the world, via the bog and asking you .  I think it needs maybe some journal ling under the fish, what do you say.  How do you like my dog
I hvae been drawing funkafied animals lately.
Today I am off to the bank, walking Devil Dog while the weather is good, and back into the studio.  You have to get there while the feeling is there.  Also did two pages from Julies class, which I will show you tomorrow.

I am Free

Does she look familiar? Well sorta, in the free online course i took with strathmore papers and artist Pam Carriker, it was all about using bits and pieces of art from your old journals, make copies of your journal pages and then add them to make a journal page.  .  It was fun to make and truthfully I would make another one . The course was good, Pam is a great teacher, i see now that I could have taken  myself further, so the next one I will.  Because as you all know this is the year of me being FEARLESS.  I am trying to post more last month was awful in terms of posting.  I   read Janet blog and she was going to do something special for her 1000 post and missed it.  So that got me thinking, I am just about at 1000 posts, I think 10 or 11 away from it.  Once I reach it, this month, I am going to celebrate a giveaway...so stay tuned.