Visions of Betsy McCall

 I've decided to spend time creating an entry for the JRAC (Jordan River Arts Council) fall Rare Threads exhibit. The theme of ancestral inspirations struck a cord. I have a stash of lovely handkerchiefs that belonged to the matriarchs of my family. The idea started as fabric trays of black linen that would have pieces of the textiles attached with french knots. In my usual fashion this has morphed into something completely different.

The fabric tray thing was much to boring, blah, unimaginative. I guess it was just a jumping off point for other ideas. A large paper doll with my mothers face began to emerge. I spent quite awhile yesterday finding the right facial image. Then I worked on the proportions for the doll. Had a little help from Pinterest as I have a board of all sorts of art dolls. The black linen will be the body of her dress. A mock up of the skirt will be next so I can figure out the layers and volume. There will probably be wire stitched into the skirt so it can be very 3D. Does anyone else remember cutting & playing with Betsy McCall paper dolls?

These fine ladies helped me come up with the body. It will be hand painted fabric sewn to pelon. I'll copy the face onto fabric as well after I alter it a bit in Photoshop. The joints will be hinged with small white pearl buttons. But don't hold me to that.

A plug for some of my current favorites in supplies. Rotary cutters weren't part of my arsenal until recently. Wow are they nice! The metal triangle was on the supply list for PBI & I love it! So flat, nice markings, just the right size for most jobs where a 90 degree angle is imperative. The protractor is an oldie but goodie. Angles are always tough to duplicate, but I've learned to use the right tool.

Today a parting shot from a little walk I took last week down the alley from work. Who doesn't love a tree house? This one caught my eye. It's a classic. It screams summer to me. I love the boards at different angles. Too bad it's an old stump & not a living tree it's attached to.

Blasts from the Past

 

My own personal collection of things from the Past I use almost daily that have a connection to my own history.   Some functional some decorative. I especially like the functional ones. They get handled frequently and remind me that simple things are the best in may cases. 

 Believe it or not these were in the kitchen I grew up in. Wooden spoons I use every day in my own cooking. The patina they have taken on is gorgeous.  Being able to use them on any kind of cooking surface makes them indispensable. They are 3 different lengths. The longest can be used when I'm stirring a "vat" of home made spaghetti sauce or soup. Whenever I see hand carved kitchen spoons at art markets I want to buy them, they are beautiful, but I have my own with all their little nicks and aquired defects I'm intimately familiar with. Why mess with well seasoned and familiar?

 These are aluminum serving pieces. The little tray sits on our counter top to catch sticky notes, paper clips, those little things you use all the time. Keeps them in reach but with an artful flair. The bowl on the right is my go to for chips & crackers for a get together. Love the flared shape of the one on the left and the grape cluster motif. Can you tell I'm a visual person? Always noticing the details. 

These take a little explaining. A friend of my father's made these. He melted lead and poured it into muffin cups...kinda scary don't  you think?  Then he painted them with enamel. I'm assuming that protects me from handling the lead! There is a screw embedded in each one so the knob of choice could be screwed onto the top. They are weights. There is a piece of felt glued to the bottom of each so they won't scratch anything they are set on. They come in SO handy in paper & book arts. That pesky rolled paper needs to be tamed, flat metal rulers need to be held in place, piles of small pieces of paper need to be contained on the table. These always get comments when I pull them out to use at work shops. Artists are envious of little gems like this.

I'm sure I could use them as a weapon as well, they are HEAVY. 

               Who doesn't appreciate a good ole' compass? I have about 7 of these in various sizes.

These bracelets are strictly decorative. I posted not too long ago in "Telling Stories" about these.  If you are curious about the back story check it out. I love wearing them in bunches of 3-5-7 or if I'm feeling really spunky 11 or so. 

When you look around your home what old treasures do you see that have a special place in your memory?  I'd love to see what others hold dear.

Metalica

I recently found a picture on Pinterest that struck a cord using aluminum duct tape as an art medium. It just so happens my husband had a roll of the stuff in the "man cave". How convenient. Plus there was a roll of the mesh tape used in dry walling I needed for texture. Click the  picture to link to the page.

  

        

So here is my leap from that image...

 

Yup, Cheez-It boxes. I have to admit that I bring home the large boxes from crackers we have in our break room at work. You can make book board with several layers of them glued together, and use them as substrate of all kinds of things. 

Then the madness began. Cutting teeny weeny pieces of the cardboard for the letters I wanted. Then gluing them to the board.

 

The final result with a simple message.

After bone folding all the parts for the best relief I brushed black acrylic paint over the entire surface then wiped off most of it leaving the aged effect. Time consuming but it got me" in the zone". That's what is seems to be all about. Hoping my ATC group enjoys them.

Ready to Travel

In 2 days we head out on a BIG trip. Three weeks in Alaska. The planning began about a year ago and the time to check one off the bucket list has finally arrived.

First up will be a stay with a couple in the SERVAS travel organization who live in Anchorage. I encourage you to check out this great international organization. The link will take you to a TED talk that discusses the idea behind SERVAS at 8:45 into the talk., or you can find them at www.usservas.org. You do home stays for at least two nights in order to get to know your hosts. The main premise is to promote cross cultural understanding.

After that we head to Kodiak Island for a week. We have scheduled a trip to a remote lodge to do bear watching with Kodiak Treks. If you don't hear from me again after August 5th or so...you get the idea.

Saw a great post on the site of a fellow paper artist I met at Interlochen Arts Academy this summer about packing your art supplies.  Find her blog here. Here is her rendition for storing brushes:

Scounged around in my supplies and came up with this:

I used buttons to hold the elastic to the non slip rug "stuff" I had on hand. the film canister tops hold gouache of different colors I can use with my copper plate nibs I'm taking along. The nibs are being kept safe int eh little clear plastic screw top container in the lower right. A glue stick, small scissors and my trusty 8X10 journal of choice I shared a few posts back complete what I'm taking on this adventure.