Treat!

Happy Halloween my Little Pretties . . .

Love from my trick-o-treater to yours . . . xo

Willowing & Friends!

"Wishes for my Younger Self"

Altered child's board book

Week 2 of Art, Heart & Healing focuses on creating an altered board book that affirms positive statements about ourselves. We were encouraged to place a photo transfer on one side (I used gel medium) and write out wishes for our little selves on the other. Although I did write out my wishes (hidden under all that gesso), I ended up using bits of a vintage poem(s) to illustrate my desires. It reads, "May your day(s) be filled with roses /  And your skies be bright and clear / May each hour reveal true love and faith / From all whom you hold dear . . ." 

I used images from The Graphics Fairy in addition to personal photos (the birdcage and baby picture) in order to complete my story. Final touches included framing the transfer with silver, white and gold gel pens and the use of water-soluble crayons, pencil and charcoal to help enhance and define the background and clip art. Now on to the second layout for week two: using whimsical characters to create a scene we would have liked to experience in our youth . . . xo

Necklaces

Made from "Thank You" Journal Page

Made from "Alice knew there'd be Hell to Pay" Journal Page

Detail of Inkssentials Memory Glass and 1.5 x 1.5 inch color copies

I had to try it. . . . Equipped with the Journal Pages from Willowing's class under my arm, and inspired by artists such as Nicola who turn their artwork into pendants and jewelry pieces, I decided to take my brand-new paintings to a local printer and have them made into 1.5 x 1.5 inch copies so that I could have a go myself. . . 

You may remember the piece, "To Market" I recently made with some of the same materials. This time instead of a pig charm, I used both a vintage and new earring (I had only one of each - and kept them of course) to attach to the bottom of the necklaces. The frame is surrounded by iridescent and clear Swarovski Crystals and attached to a 30 inch chain. You may see more of these in the future as they are a bit addicting to make. . . 

Kristin xo

Moleskine: Alice

"Alice knew there'd be hell to pay"

5 x 8 Journal Page

Okay, as promised, here is my first Moleskine journal page. It was inspired by all the luscious backgrounds and drawing techniques we're exploring in Willowing's class and is dedicated to my friend Amy who I always think of when it comes to Alice and Wonderland . . .

Thank you for looking - more journal pages to come . . . xo

Moleskine

WIP: 5 x 8 Moleskine Journal

"Alice knew there'd be hell to pay"

I have an idea. Inspired by Willowing's class to play with faces - and armed with my beautiful new Moleskine from Carin - I've decided to complete a journal and share the pages with you here. Complete being the operative word. Oh, and share. I'm guilty of starting several journals (some with "themes" or specific techniques I want to explore) but I never really finish any of them. But this new Moleskine is so pretty and full of promise . . . I would hate to do it a disservice. So, as of today, I will be sharing my journal with you in various stages of completion. 

Here are the beginnings of page one, the working title is, "Alice knew there'd be hell to pay." I'll let you know how it turns out . . . promise . . . xo

Willowing & Friends!

"Thank You"

I'm so happy to be a part of Willowing's online course, Art, Heart & Healing. Not only am I meeting some wonderful new artists (there are almost 1,000 people participating at this point!), but I'm also learning new tips and techniques for painting faces, something which is very new to me. Week 1 (of 4) challenges us to create a journal page expressing our intentions. My journaling (underneath all the paint and gesso) was the repetition of an old Hawaiian statement (Ho'oponopono) meant to help clear the mind and heal the heart. It reads, "I love you, I'm sorry, Please forgive me, Thank you." Therefore, my single chosen word/phrase (found in her hair) is Thank You. . . .

I took a few pictures along the way in case you are interested in seeing the page come together:

Pencil sketch on 12 x 18 cold press watercolor paper

Applying color

(unfortunately I did not have the proper supplies, so I fudged with acrylics instead of the suggested Caran D'Ache crayons)

 Beginning background

Initial stamping

Completed Page

By the way, if you are interested in learning more about Ho'oponopono, consider picking up a copy of the book, Zero Limits by Joe Vitale and Ihaleakala Hew Len. It was an incredible read that I highly recommend. Thank you for looking! I'm SO looking forward to next week's lesson . . . 

Kristin xo

Wordless Wednesday

"What we play is Life"

- Louis Armstrong

Wordless Wednesday

Lucky Girl!

Thank you Julia!

Thank you Carin!

Thank you's are in order to two special ladies who have warmed my heart (and enhanced my walls) with their lovely gifts. I was the lucky winner of two recent drawings and wanted to share my gratitude with you and them. Thank you, thank you, thank you both from the bottom of my heart. I am honored!

Kristin xo

Have You Heard?

The wonderful Willow is offering a free 4 week on-line course on Art, Heart & Healing that begins today. There are already over 900 participants and it looks like it will be a lot of fun! Click on the link to find out how you can join in. I look forward to seeing you there . . .

Kristin xo

Altered Matchbook

Painted decorative papers, died lace and "Artisans de Provence" label from a box of beautiful soaps I received as a gift

Matchbox painted in metallic acrylic, distressed with ink and highlighted with glitter

Interior holds a piece of toile fabric, Swarovski crystals and beads and a stamped and hand-written scroll on printed paper

Kristin xo

Wordless Wednesday

"Who looks outside, dreams; who looks inside, awakes."

-Carl Jung

Wordless Wednesday

No Plan, No Purpose - Result

Detail 

It was a lot of fun (and a bit of a challenge) to create something with No Plan or Purpose in mind before doing so. I started with a few of my favorite collage materials, some matte gel medium, a 16 x 20 canvas panel and an open heart. I decided to go with the flow and see what happens. Since you have all been so kind as to comment on my progress, I thought it would be interesting to show the Results to you step-by-step. Here's what I came up with . . .

Soften the background with cream and pink acrylics

Add scalloped edges and a decorative curtain. Sand.

At this point, I knew there would be a disco ball in the center.

Highlight and define with white paint and charcoal. 

I found a vintage image from a greeting card that I outlined with charcoal and burnished onto the canvas to serve as the base for my central figure. I then spent time defining and painting the figure before adding crystals and glitter to her dress, disco ball and drapes.

The Final Result  . . .

"Under the Disco Ball"

16 x 20 Canvas Panel

(you may click to enlarge)

Thanks for joining me on my journey! Let's do this again sometime . . .

Kristin xo

No Plan, No Purpose II . . .

WIP

Coming along: 16 x 20 canvas panel collaged with vintage materials and handmade papers. Ready for the next step - still no idea what I'm doing - just moving ahead . . . 

No Plan, No Purpose. . .

I can't remember the last time I sat down to create without an intention or pre-planned idea of what I wanted to accomplish. But today, I'm mixing things up a bit. This is what I've got: a few of my favorite college materials, some matte gel and a large 16 x 20 canvas panel. And no plan or purpose. I'll let you know what happens . . . .

Wordless Wednesday

"Never give up. This may be your moment for a miracle."

- Greg Anderson

Wordless Wednesday

MMM: Shrines

Affirmation Shrine

"My good is rushing to greet me"

Detail of stork and circled #2

Teardrop crystal and crackle medium

This will be the first time that Mixed Media Monday is going monthly! With this prompt, Shrines, each participant will have an entire month to complete their pieces. I decided to take this opportunity to revisit a style of assemblage art that I first shared here. This latest piece is what I have come to call an Affirmation Shrine and reads, "my good is rushing to greet me. . . ."

The above was created using the back of an 8 x 10 canvas and a 5 x 7 canvas panel. I first painted the "front" back and sides of an 8 x 10 canvas in several soft washes of grey and blue. When the layers of acrylic were dry, I then added crackle medium (that had been mixed with paint) to the sides and corners of the "frame".  A few strokes of this mixture was also added to the canvas panel. Several layers of crackle and acrylic were applied to the rough exterior until I got the distressed look that I was after. The final step in this process was to wash the dried frame in charcoal. The canvas panel was also given a wash of soft acrylics before being collaged with damask wallpaper, stars, babies and the stork image from The Graphics Fairy. 

Final assemblage details include a teardrop crystal added to the top right of the frame with an eye hook, a bit of pink feather behind the wing of the baby that is meant to represent Kendra, glitter and white gel pen on the stork that is carrying the baby rushing to greet us and silver glitter details on the lining of the "clouds." Lastly, Swarovski crystals adorned the sky along with the cut out stars, vintage text was applied in a ransom-note style to spell out the sentiment and a portion of a vintage ruler was added to the front of the piece with E-600. The final touch was to use a craft knife to rip the exposed canvas sides so that whatever the piece is hung on will show through. 

Thank you for looking! I so look forward to seeing everyone's shrines this month . . .

Kristin xo