Prepping for Market Days

old soul
Old Soul Bracelet
Wow, I can't believe it's been nearly two weeks since I've posted! I hope those of you in the States had a wonderful Thanksgiving holiday. Since my Paint Mojo workshop, I've been busy prepping for Market Days, which is this weekend in Tallahassee. This is the biggest show I do every year, and this year, I have two booths! I'm doing one booth for jewelry and one booth for photography. Thankfully, Whitney's coming along to help me! I have quite a bit of new work done, but I've not photographed it yet. I'll wait to see how the weekend goes and then do an update to the website and my Etsy shops. If you are in the Tallahassee area, I'll be in Building 4, booths 417 and 418. Stop in and see me!

Old Hank (Ford)
Old Hank
  

Paint Mojo Recap

Painting 1
Beginnings....
This past weekend’s Paint Mojo workshop with Tracy Verdugo was the third multi-day “art retreat/workshop” I’ve taken since I started playing with paint and paper. In each one I’ve attended, I’ve learned tremendously … both what works for me and what doesn’t work for me. Some of the things I’ve learned have boosted my confidence, and some have shaken my confidence. I think both happened on this trip.
 
Painting 2
This was towards the end of the first day.
Tracy is a wonderful teacher, very gracious and very giving of herself. And her work is truly beautiful. And she sings too!  My struggle was in my skill level. As I already shared with you, I was pretty apprehensive about that 30” x 30” canvas. And it definitely got the best of me! I’ve never been comfortable with a paint brush in my hands. When I’m working in my art journals, 99 times out of a hundred, when I’m adding paint, it’s with my fingers. But I did my best to work through the process and eventually came to the point where I accepted the fact that I was just going to simply have to play and not worry about the outcome. Once I hit that point, I felt much better! What I’ve shared with you here are only five of the stages that our paintings went through. There were many others!
 
Painting 3
This was the point at which I actually kind of liked my painting!  I wanted to stop here!
The final stage didn’t actually make it home looking like this, unfortunately (bottom picture). I took that shot with the canvas lying on the table drying. Once we thought our canvases had dried enough, we all went outside for a group picture. My orange “sun” had not dried enough so it dripped even more (one of the things I learned is that I’m not a big fan of drips) and I also managed to brush up against it. It did add a lovely orange stripe to my jeans that I had already decided to sacrifice to paint that weekend so that was a nice bonus! I’m planning to go back to the canvas and try to “finish” it to a point where I’m happy with it … but that will have to wait until after Market Days! We also made two smaller paintings on wood that I haven’t photographed. I’m giving those to my girls to complete in whatever fashion they want to, so I’ll photograph the before and after of those and share with you when they are done.
 
Painting 4
But alas, I couldn't stop there, because our next assignment was to cover most of it up...
All in all, I had a good experience. I learned a couple new techniques that I will definitely play with in my art journals (ink and spray water bottles do wonderful things together!), and I loved meeting new friends and catching up with old friends who were there. I finally met “in person” a few people I’ve been friends with on Facebook for a couple years now! And as with every trip, I took my camera. Regardless of how the art I’m going there to create comes out, the magic I’m blessed to create with my camera makes every trip worthwhile. I’ll share some of that soon. Thanks to Tracy and all my new Paint Mojo friends for a lovely weekend!
 
Painting 4
End of day two and what I was about to go home until my sun got messed up and joined my jeans.

Furry Face of the Week: Meet Kenzy

Kenzy...Kenzy is also another long timer. This is the second time I've photographed her. She's an Australian Cattle dog/Whippet mix. A little shy but very loving. Gorgeous coat. Photographed 11/2/12.

Meet Kenzy! Kenzy is an Australian Cattle Dog/Whippet mix.  I've photographed her three times now and she's really starting to come out of her shell.  The first day I tried to photograph her, she wouldn't even come near me, much less look at me.  And look at her now!  It's amazing that even though these dogs are in a shelter, they are getting more love than they did wherever they came from.  Kenzy is a sweet heart and a long timer at ACPS, so let's help find her a home.

I missed my usual Friday morning shoot this past Friday since I had to get some time in at the office before I headed down to Tracy Verdugo's Paint Mojo workshop (see post below). It's amazing how much I miss these guys when I miss a week!  They have truly captured my heart.  I only wish I could give them all a home!  More on Tracy's workshop later in the week.  My brain is still processing it!  Amazing learning experience. 

Getting a Little Paint Mojo

This is the work of Tracy Verdugo
Sit Awhile By This Deep Pond of Love by Tracy Verdugo
In 90 short minutes, I will be hitting the road for St. Pete to take Tracy Verdugo's Paint Mojo class.  I am extremely excited...though I must admit I'm also quite intimidated by the 30" x 30" canvas on our supply list.  Yikes! It's big!  I've never considered myself a painter. I don't think I can paint realistic images. But that's what drew me to Tracy's work.  I love the awesome color (you know I'm a color girl), all the randomness of it all, and the way she seems to find images in all that randomness.  It's just gorgeous. 

This will be a fun little getaway for me.  I'm staying in a little mom 'n' pop hotel on the beach and plan to be up early enough to grab that beautiful early morning light for some good shell hunting before heading to class. Will have camera and shell gathering bucket in hand!  I'll share pictures of it all next week!  Wish me luck!

November Free Bling!

November 2012 bling

Time for my monthly Free Bling Friday giveaway! Random.org picked comment number 11 as the winner of my October Free Bling, so congratulations to Maeve from Michigan!

Ready for the holidays? I know I'm not!  But here's a sweet Santa pendant to get you in the spirit.  I used a vintage Santa in a silver bezel setting and topped it with glass.  To be eligible to win, simply visit either of my Etsy shops (here for jewelry and here for photography) and leave a comment in the comment box below with the link to your favorite piece, your location, and a way to reach you by midnight December 6. Want more entries? Tweet, blog or Facebook this giveaway and leave another comment with the link. The next winner will be drawn via random.org Friday, December 7.

Don't want to miss a single Free Bling Friday? Click here to sign up for free weekly email updates or subscribe in the reader of your choice over there in the right column. And be sure to like my Facebook page for specials. Thanks for stopping in! Giveaway open to US and Canadian residents only.

Sketchbook Project Fun Journal Spread 24: Superstar in the Bathtub

Fun Journal Spread 24

Spread 24 from the Fun Journal! A couple of weeks ago, I was having "one of those days."  It was only about 10:30am when I posted on my Facebook status that I needed Calgon to come take me away. Well, as luck would have it, my husband saw that post.  He didn't comment, but as I was driving home from work that afternoon, he called me to see what my ETA was.  When I arrived home, he and the girls were waiting in the driveway for me.  Benny took my work things and the girls escorted me upstairs and into the bedroom. They helped me get out of my work clothes, and then they walked me into the bathroom where the most awesome bubble bath was waiting for me. Along with my bubble bath was my book, a glass of tea and a plate of grapes and crackers.  Is that not the best way to come home from a tough day or what?  I am a lucky girl. This journal page commemorates that day!

The "moon" is from my stack of coffee filters that the girls and I inked up months ago. The top row of stars was cut from the strip of paper along the bottom, leaving me with another row of stars. I used acrylic paint, spray ink, oil pastels, and Sharpie paint pens.  Click here to see the rest of this journal.