My Week in Art

Duo-Challenge

Throwback Diva #1: Simplicity

It's a String Thing #257: "Twilight"

To me, simplicity means back to basics with the Z string and my good ol' Mac 'n Cheese patterns.
I was intrigued by "Twilight", Adele's choice for IAST #257. I knew, as I was working through this, I would need contrast. All of the line work was down and I started with Twilight and then balance with blacked out Mooka. I don't think I've ever done that before. I like it.
One of my on going challenges with these Duo-Challenges is shading. Graphite make such a mess in the sketchbook.  When I started this, I had an idea to use my Staedtler Triplus Fineliner and go back with a water brush and blend out some shading. I took a break from the drawing for a day and then when I went back I forgot my plan and started in with the Tombow grey markers. I used a water brush to blend out the markers and realized I'd used a couple of different pens that bled two different shades of grey. Oh well..

Zendala Monday

love me some black Pokeleaf

I used a black Prismacolor pencil to shade this. It's more evident in person.

 Mission: Inspiration Facebook Group

August Challenge

 Mixed Media Sketchbook

I recently joined a new mixed media art journal group. Each month one of several artists will create a  prompt list to guide you though all of the steps to complete a journal page. I found this to be the answer to my ever growing pages of stalled starts. I'm great at starting and getting some cool backgrounds going and perhaps a layer or two of stamping and stenciling but then I hit a wall. I love the way this turned out...even though I missed a word:-P

Travelling Tangles:

My finish...

...to this ATC started by Joey van Oort

Another finish...

 ...to Joey's start

Eco-printed papers

I wanted to experiment with Eco-printing on a variety of different papers and envelopes for potential use in my junk journals. I'm also thinking about Inktober and the possibility of doing a month of botanical illustration on some of these papers. This was fun.

 

Flow-ish Journal for a swap

I gutted an old Yoga instruction book and covered it with my used paint clean up baby wipes. I stitched several together, then painted and stamped circles all over it using a set of curlers.
This was a "No Theme" swap.

I made a decorative paper clip using an image of a Victorian corset I'd cut out of a museum fashion book. Under the clip are several cheese stickers I painted and stenciled.

I included a lot of costume/fashion stuff and museum postcards.

Lastly, I wanted to share this super cool prize I won in last weeks "Freebie Friday Giveaway" at the Facebook Group "Anything Goes-Tangled Art For Everyone". This was so exciting because not only is it such a great gift but it's also the first time I've ever won a giveaway😁

13 Shades of Grey Tutorial by Sonya Yencer

Thanks so much for stopping by. Your  thoughtful and generous comments delight and inspire me.

My Weekly Duo-Challenge and Another Artsy Rabbit Hole

Duo-Challenge

Throwback Diva #5: Orbs

It's a String Thing Challenge #252

My random pick for this week's IAST companion was the Diva's prompt of "Orbs". This was not meant to be an orb overload, but it took on a life of its own because I love drawing orbs.

My start

It's so funny that I still wait until Monday to pick my companion.

Adele's challenge was to use the pattern Deeday as a string within  4 box string. This one got a little tedious I have to say and it wasn't until I posted the photo that I noticed how off balance the whole thing looks, but that's ok because I really love the orb side and the negative space😉

I managed to score this nifty mini-haul today from my neighborhood Aaron Brothers going out of business sale for all of $8.66. There we're about 30 of these Zentangle kits going for $6.57. I had to laugh because it sort of proves my suspicion that San Francisco is not a hotbed of Zentangle enthusiasts.

These are the Travelling Tangles I completed this week:

My finish...

...to Heidi Whitney's start

 A few days ago I had a very delightful read over at Margaret Blank's blog. She and I have exchanged many swaps over the years as we belong to some of the same groups. In this particular post she was lamenting, with her hilarious wit and cynicism, the angst she experiences when she attempts to start her incoming Travelling Tangles. She was currently lamenting over one of mine;-) I had to laugh because she brilliantly expresses the fears and uncertainties that all of us TT swappers feel at one time or another.

I had one of those experiences with Heidi's tile. I made such a mess of it at first. I picked up the wrong pen when I started with the Inapod. Not only was it black ink (Heidi used Sepia), it was also a large nib Uniball, quite bold and juicy. I spent the entire drawing in problem solving mode, a roller coaster of frustration and triumph.

My line work is never steady on a good day

In the end, it was a triumph. High contrast is always good, but I prefer to ease into it😉

 Another finish...

...to this Bijou from Heidi

My finish...
with a Lily Moon floral sun

...to this delightful start from Spring Taylor

My finish...

...to Jules Mack's delightful note card

It free- styled into a leaf sampler 😉

Yet, another new rabbit hole:

As I was YouTube surfing journal inspiration for my TTMMJJ, I discovered the Facebook group Trashy Junk Journals and its sub-set, Flow-ish Journals.

This is a Flow-ish Journal I'm making to send off to a swap partner.

I dove head first into this one. Within a day of my discovery and acceptance into the group, they posted the monthly swap. The theme was Grocery. You may or may not know that I'm a Cheesemonger in a small specialty market in San Francisco...so how could I not, right? 70% of what ended up in this book, I already had at home and the rest came from the recycling bins at work and my own grocery packaging from my kitchen. I had so much fun making this.

A Flow-ish Journal is a paper collection of inspiring recycling and assorted arted bits that are then meant to be removed and used in the creation of your own or your swap partners junk journal. It's a way to contain all of your junk so it's easier to use.
I'm just sharing a few bits as this pretty much took up my week in art but I don't want to give too much away in case my swap partner comes by. I already alerted her that I'd be sharing this here.

The cover is made from a shopping bag from the market where I work. I stitched one of my paint blotting napkins  (from the long defunct Trader Vic's restaurant), to the bag to complete the cover. I hoard these super thick napkins from a Holiday Inn sports bar near Blicks Art Supply.

The signatures are not bound but just tied around the spine with a ribbon so the pages can easily slip out. I attached several of my cheese pins to the ends of the ties. Many of the pages came out of some beautiful specialty food catalogs I got from the Fancy Food Show and my local Edible magazine.

Envelopes and pockets made from mailer postcards and weekly mailer flyers hold loose, arted tags and stickers that get scattered throughout. The butterflies are color copies of my original art. I also used painted junk mail windowed envelopes and deli bags with strips of assorted washi tape that can be removed and re-used. I have tons of really cool cheese stickers. Some I painted (there are two on the front cover, but most I left alone.

 I love the little food illustrations on this page from Edible. I decorated large paper clips with bits cut off a Racer 5 beer carrier. There are bits of my original art scattered throughout. The black and white sharpie doodles are done on scraps of card stock from the recycling bin at work.
This is quite a little beast, but it fits in a Flat Rate USPS envelope;-)


Thanks so much for stopping by. Your thoughtful and generous comments delight and inspire me😍

A Duo-Challenge and Other Artsy Stuff...

Duo-Challenge

Throwback Diva #3: A Blind String

It's a String Thing #251: Simple Stuff

featuring: Stiks and Munchin

This week I'm using Diva #3 as my Throwback companion to Adele's IAST challenge. I always seem to do some kind of figure 8 string no matter how hard I try to avoid it. I did a quick Pinterest search to find a new-to-me, floral-ish pattern and found these two. Love them! Fortunately Adele's string was an easy fit and though I wasn't all that inspired by looking at Stiks initially, once I started drawing it, I loved it and then Munchin was a super zen addition as well. I added a little bit of "Morse" too. This took forever and I truly enjoyed it.

I've been loving the loads of Happy Mail I'm receiving from my Travelling Tangles peeps. Each envelope is a treasure trove of inspiration. Check this out...

Seriously! who would not LOVE getting this in the mail, notice that awesome envelope that Heidi Whitney sent. Amazing;-)

Another pile of delights from Spring Taylor

In addition to the lovely starts, my swap mates send extra backgrounds, colorful trimmings, note cards and other miscellaneous bits that speak to my multi media junk journaling muse. I had accumulated quite a stockpile, so I thought I'd have a little fun with them.

Some Travelling Tangles completed this past week:

My finish...

...to this gorgeous start by Heidi Whitney

Another finish...

..to another of Heidi's starts

This weeks post was a little later than I usually like. I was out of town on Wednesday (my blog day) for a work related farm trip. 

More Cheese Adventures

This is Haley.

She's a 10 day old water buffalo.

  

We went to Double 8 Dairy in Sonoma. They are audaciously and relentlessly working toward a retail market for fresh buffalo milk mozzarella and ricotta...in California.  This is crazy- rare...and oh, so heavenly:-) We use their buffalo milk base for the soft-serve in our creamery.

Thanks so much for stopping by! Your thoughtful and generous comments delight and inspire me.