Farewell Felicia

My dear friend Felicia is leaving our workplace for bigger and certainly better things. Because it is not "goodbye" for us, I created a friendship card instead to wish her well.

It's a gate fold card with a belly band. Inside the card is:

 A Recipe for Friendship

You will need:

A pinch of happiness
1 handful of kindness
2 spoonfuls of gentleness
1 pint of sharing
A teaspoon of helpfulness
50 cups of laughter
A sprinkling of cheerfulness
A gallon of love

Mix all ingredients together.  Add much warmth and understanding.  Hold it all together with  lots of hugs.

Under Construction

.)

I am so excited! Okay, so yes it has been a year or more since I posted anything. That is because things have been so busy and we have been happily learning all about our new hometown and the surrounding area. But, back to why I am so excited ... Construction has started on my new studio space! Yep, drywall went up this weekend...next is building a closet, paint and flooring. THEN I will be able to get back to the wonderful process that is creativity. Stay tuned. (I would post a picture, but the room is a mess since everything has been piled on tables in the middle of the room to make space for the drywall guys to do their job

New Life ... New Beginning!

Here is a little hanging I did earlier today to celebrate both the birth of Spring and my new journey...



WOW! How life changes! Last time I posted anything to this blog, I was in South Florida panicking over hurricane season. Now I am HAPPILY living in Grayson, Georgia in a wonderful new home. Yep, I quit my job and moved north. It is wonderful.

I have been busily unpacking (ha ha ha) and getting my studio space set up in the basement. It's a little rough-shod right now, but will be perfect once the drywall goes up. Life is great.

Congratulations Patti!

My co-worker Patti got engaged this past week. Here is the card I made to congratulate her (click on the image for a closer look)

No Time For Art!

How sad is that title? No time for Art? What is that all about? It's about the fact that, yet again, I have let life get in the way of creativity! But not for long. You know how you get that itch to create something? Well it has been stirring in me and I am going to commit time to put hand to paper and do something wonderful. So stay tuned!

But on a very very good note ... I sold one of my handmade books! Yep, that's right -- S O L D. It was the last book I made and the one posted here on January 29th. The house book. What happened is that the book was among some others that I was exhibiting at the Andy Gato Gallery on the campus of Barry University in Miami Shores, Florida. Someone who went to the show contacted me and wanted to buy the book as a gift for his wife.

Although I was very happy to have made the sale, I still had that feeling of apprehension when I let it go to its new owner. Sigh!

Here it is ... my latest handmade book!!!

It was inspired by the book In This House by artists Angela Cartwright and Sarah Fishburn who collaborated with fellow artists using mixed media techniques and their imaginations to create handmade books that best expressed their idea of 'home'.

The questions posed in my piece are meant to be thought-provoking and inspire contemplation. The book was made using collage, stamping and other mixed media techniques. Ephemera was added and the entire piece was 'antiqued' using Tim Holtz Distress Ink. It is bound, accordion-style, using beaded jump rings.

Scoll down to see the cover and pages! I hope you enjoy it!

The Woods - a handmade book

Here is my latest handmade book. It is called "The Woods". The text reads:

“Use what talents you possess; the woods would be very silent if no birds sang there except those that sang best.”

It is a quote from American author, educator, and clergyman Henry van Dyke (1852–1933). I became familiar with it in the mid-1990’s when I was it was on a note card given to me by an acquaintance. Since then, the quote has been a favorite. I looked for a structure that would allow me to use both the quote and the beauty that I find in barren trees. I chose the star book because I wanted the trees to stand above the structure in a form that would evoke the idea of the woods.

Feel free to click on the photos for a closer look!

It lives in a portfolio made of mulberry paper. Here are a couple of more pics. Enjoy!

A Spoonful of Wisdom

If you read down the posts in this blog you will see one about handmade books. By reading it you will learn that a "book" is not necessarily a collection of printed pages that have been bound in the traditional sense. A handmade book can take on many forms and structures. With that said, here is my latest piece.
It is entitled "A Spoonful of Wisdom" .... read on....




and was made in fulfillment of class requirements for course ART-340 (Handmade Books Structure & Binding) at Barry University in Miami Shores, Florida. The book was created using salvaged items and thrift store finds. Each spoon was colored using Tim Holtz™ Adirondack® Alcohol Inks from Ranger Industries. All are accented with 22gauge copper wire and beads or various fibers. They hang from copper finishing nails. The wooden mounting board was base coated with dark brown acrylic craft paint, followed by a coat of Valspar Weathered Crackle Glaze and topped with Valspar Ultra Premium satin finish paint found in the “oops” bin at Lowe’s Home Improvement.

The text used in this book is a quote attributed to Hindu Prince Gautama Siddharta, the founder of Buddhism, 563-483 B.C. and retrieved from www.thinkexist.com. The text reads:

"Let yourself be open and life will be easier. A spoon of salt in a glass of water makes the water undrinkable. A spoon of salt in a lake is almost unnoticed."

Tom's Birthday Card

Tomorrow is my friend Tom's birthday. Here is a card I made for him. Happy Birthday Tom!

Art Day

Ok, so lately I have been in a bit of an artistic rut. Not by my own choosing mind you, but because that dreaded thing that keeps many of us from doing what we love (or just from doing period) has crept rampantly into my life ... LACK OF TIME! Ugh...no time to do anything.

But, all is not lost ... this is the Labor Day weekend and I have traveled up from Fort Lauderdale to the Atlanta, Georgia area to visit my sister, my niece and her family. Fortunately, the "art" gene has imbedded itself into my great niece ... Brianna. The child absolutely loves to do anything remotely related to art. She draws, paints, beads, and bedazzles anything she can get her hands on. Bri would rather "craft" as she calls it, than do just about anything. Today we set out to the craft store and bought a bunch of wooden cutouts and acrylic paints. She has been going to town...painting monkeys, horses, cats, flowers, shells, hearts and dogs. She is having a great time. Best of all, she is outside on the patio, quietly working her craft and staying totally entertained. Love you Brianna!

Family Reunion Favor

Well, here we are only a little over two weeks away from our first family reunion in many, many years. I am in charge of the "welcome" bags that everyone will be given upon their arrival in Pigeon Forge, Tennessee.

Here is a "favor" that I made. It uses a 5"x7" artist canvas that has been inked and antiqued with walnut ink. A 'pocket' was added to the lower half along with a ribbon and tag. Next I scanned and printed some vintage family photos representing each group of family members that will take part in the reunion. (The handsome couple on the right are my mom and dad!). The photos are mounted and tucked nicely into the pocket. Lastly EVERYTHING got another dash of ink! They will be put into cellophane bags and tied with a gossamer ribbon. I am happy with the result and hope my family enjoys them as well.

Another Handmade Book & A Card

So it is Day 3 of heavy rain here in "Sunny" South Florida...no complaints ... we are on water restrictions like most of the Southeast. Instead of doing nothing because of the weather, here I am posting to the blog.

The first picture is a handmade card I made for my friend Cynthia's birthday this week. It is hard to tell in picture but the background is scored in a diamond pattern. Next it was stamped with a full sheet stamp in a leaf pattern using a light green ink. Next the scroll-like leaves were stamped in dark brown. She liked it very much!

The next two images are of a cascading envelope book I made as a birthday gift for a friend who has had a long and successful career in the theatre as both an actor and director. The accordian of envelopes cascade out when the cover of the book is opened. Inside each envelope is a bit of entertainment-related trivia that happened on the day and date of his birth.

Hope you enjoy!

Handmade Books

One of my absolute favorite art forms is the handmade book. Once being introduced to handmade books, you will never look at a book the same as you once did.

So, just what do I mean by the term handmade book? Well, a handmade book can take on many forms. It is definitely not the standard hardbound book with pages in it (although, it could be!). I was fortunate enough to take a 16-week class on the art of handmade books at Barry University. The professor, Tom Rockwell, referred to such books as "narrative structures". Author Michael Jacobs (Books Unbound, 2006) defines a handmade book as "a small, intimate, handheld object that reveals information over time."

I like to take both of those definitions and combine them to say that a handmade book is a narrative structure that transmits information over time. And, yes, I am certain there are others who would define it differently (post a comment and let me know your thoughts!).

Those of us living in South Florida are lucky enough to have THE premier collection of handmade books in the country (I argue ... in the WORLD) right here in our own backyard. It is the collection held on the campus of Florida Atlantic University (FAU) in Boca Raton at The Arthur & Mata Jaffe Center for Book Arts in the Wimberly Library. The Jaffe's have spent a lifetime collecting handmade and artist books. The collection is spectacular. You can check out a small part of the collection by visiting http://www.jaffecollection.org/

As for me, I am a novice but one that is totally hooked on the art form. Below is a sample of my work. In brief, my dad was stationed in Guadalcanal in WWII. There, he met a photographer, sent to capture images of the war, who gave him a huge amount of the photographs. They have always been part of my life. Unfortunately, like many war veterans, my dad never talked about the war, what he did or what he witnessed. I only have these photographs to look at and imagine what he saw. This book is called War Stories and is dedicated to my dad. Hope you enjoy it. *** Click on the photos to see a larger image...you'll be able to read the story on the last page of the book ***

Ah! Blogging Day One

Today is June 2nd and the first day of my blogging experience. I am not sure why I decided that today would be the day that I would start a blog. Hmmm. Maybe it's because hurricane season started yesterday and I live in South Florida and needed an outlet for my nervous anxiety over the prospect of my roof blowing off sometime between now and November 30th.

So, a little about me (still not totally secure with putting personal stuff on the web) but here goes ... I am divorced, 47 and live and work in sunny (humid) South Florida -- the Miami/Ft. Lauderdale area to be exact. I work at a university in Miami and have a BS degree in Professional Administration and an MS in Human Resource Development (A.K.A. training and development). I absolutely love training and adult learning.

I live and breathe for creativity and can literally feel the creative urges welling up in me. The problem is ... they are trapped .... The Artist Within Me! I don't know why, but for some reason I am afraid to just let go and create. I think it has to do with my need to do the best job that I can and for the work to look "perfect"??? Whatever that means. I believe the purpose of this blog is to start learning how to release the creativity. Baby steps perhaps. I am not even sure how a blog really works or if anyone will ever read it, but it is, no doubt, therapeutic if nothing else.

If you are willing to travel with me on this journey of creative exploration, I am happy to welcome you!

"Where the spirit does not work with the hand there is no art"

~Leonard DaVinci