Fall and Winter Classes at "Believe in Your Child"

I was very excited to discover that there is a creative studio right in my own neighbourhood. They mainly offer children's classes, but I'll be teaching weaving classes there for both adults and children in the fall. The dates will be announced later on. You can find out more on the Believe in Your Child website.

52 books, week 16 - The Gussie's Retreat

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I have a group that gathers a few times a year at a house on a lake just south of the border. They call themselve's the Gussies. I think it is because their first retreat was in August - get it? Three days to just make art in a lovely setting is such a luxury.

The art that I do at the retreat is always very different from what I do at home. I love to play with all the things that people bring to share and this seems to be about the only time I get out my gelli plate and do some printing.

This book is coptic bound with assorted cardstock pages. I used some navy velvety finished mat board for the covers - they were exactly the right size. The velvety flocked stuff on the cover got a bit mucked up when I was making the art but I'm okay with that, not everything has to look brand new all the time.

52 books, week 15 - Le Cadavre Exquis

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We used to play this game with the kids when they were young - usually when we were waiting for our meal to arrive in a restaurant. One person starts by drawing a head, then folds the paper over so the next person can only see a bit of the neck. That person draws the body and folds the paper over again. The last person draws the legs. When the paper is unfolded, everyone has a good laugh at the funny creature that was created.

At the Artzona art retreat, a bunch of us supposed grown ups played the same game. A few people decided to collage their body parts. I'd never thought of doing that, so I had to give it a try when I got home. I used a combination of drawings from children's picture books and images from National Geographic magazines. Some of the combinations are rather bizarre - but that's the whole point of the game.

I didn't really do a lot of planning for this book. I had a bunch of index cards lying around, so I used them for the backgrounds of each page. After I had created all the pages, I started looking for something to use for the cover. I happened to have a folder that was exactly the right height for the three index cards. I love it when things work out that way.

52 books - Week 14 Happy things in April

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The April installment in the happy things series. The pages in this book were rather plain, so I embellished them with my new collection of washi tape. I try not to buy into art material trends, and I resisted this one for a long time. Then I went to an art retreat and I lost my resolve. Now I own about 20 rolls in an assortment of colours and patterns.

52 books - week 13 - A tiny story

More about 52 books in 52 weeks

This is a tiny leather bound book with several signatures. It is only about 1cm square, but it is not the smallest book in the collection. Later in the year, I made a REALLY tiny book.

This book had many tiny pages, and I filled them with a story - I just put my pen down and started writing. I didn't stop until I reached the last page.

Getting ready for SeARTle

I'm getting ready for an art retreat in Seattle that is in a couple of weeks. It's appropriately called SeARTle. Exchanging art is a big part of this event, since it is organized through an on-line art swapping group. I made some pin back buttons to trade. Most of them are mini collages made from bits and bobs that I picked up at previous retreats. There's always a "free table" - full of art supplies that people no longer want. It's so hard to resist bringing stuff home. 

I also promised to bring a loom along for people who'd like to give weaving a try. I'll use the same warp for a community weaving event back on this side of the border the following week. I might call the finished weaving "Cross Border Connections"

Wish flag update

I'm hosting a wish flag exchange. Six people signed up, which works out well because it means that everyone will receive a flag from each of the other people in the exchange. Here's a peek at the ones that I have received so far. Aren't they beautiful?

One of the participants also included some little arty gifts for me. I'm sure she's been stalking my pinterest boards, because it's like she's been reading my mind.

On the far left is a pendant that she sent me, with a tiny wish bone, bit of ribbon and beaded strand. On the far left, I've paired the beaded strand with a pendant I made recently. I've been trying to decide on what to use to make it a necklace and this is perfect. The middle picture shows the other bits she sent - she knows I love that ribbon. I "stole" some from her when we in San Diego at ArtDiego. I love the heart and the peacock feather and the bit of filagree and the Eiffel Tower charm too.

I can't wait to see the other three sets of flags, and I need to finish my own as well.