Busy week.

It's Friday again,

and this has been a busy week for me. Normally I don't have things I have to do, except housekeeping and such. So, when each day has something that I must do, it feels busy. I did find some time to play with colors though, and had much fun doing this page in my altered book.

 What I've used here is copies of some old work of mine, prints, rearranged them and add in some new. My old art turned new and the expression is completely changed. The background is in fact a sheet of paper I did for use in an earlier project, and before ripping it, I scanned it and now it came in handy. This is my week 5 piece in the challenge Color me Positive. The prompt was all about having big enough dreams. I changed it to one word, Dreaming.

At some point in my process I'm always photographing what I'm doing, to have a different look at it. And most times I then see things to change, so also with this one. The butterflies have too strong a color and the background need some more depth around the flowers.

 I also added the word, Dreaming in a lemon yellow color to give a bit more warmth to it. Notice how the small addition of the same color beneath the flowers makes a big difference. This is all made using water soluble medias except from white gesso. It was fun and fairly quick done, and you know, cutting and gluing just like in kinder garden. Fun!

Linking to Paint Party Friday, have fun everyone.

Art journaling

Today my fried and I had our first art journaling day together.

We had fun and she made her first page. Not at all happy with the result, which I very well can relate to, but the most important thing is that she's started. I had to get started yesterday just to warm up before we met, and I did a page which I thought of as finished when I left it.

But, of course, it wasn't finished. A lot more work to do here. This page was one I had left a long time ago, and finally wanted to do something about. I didn't have any plans except getting my fingers messed up with paint, and I sure did. Acrylic paint, some neocolors 2 and markers are what I used to make this one.

Yesterday I also had the great pleasure to order some new Twinks. 5x The Whole Enchilada and some for me as well. I'm so happy for that, 5 new people that will start painting with the Twinks, and I get to increase my collection as well. Not bad at all. I also finally ordered quite a few Zeta journals and some more watercolor paper. Boy do I have alot to wait for in the mail. It feels just like winning the lottery.

My journal spread is done, and I'm happy with the result. The colors are a bit more balanced in person, my photo shows it too blue.
We've had pure summer here for some days, and our appletrees are just about to blossom. I'm so looking forward to that, they're so beautiful when it happens.

Thanks for popping in, I hope you've enjoyed your visit.

Back to normal

Easter is gone

and my life will enter a normal mode again. There is some catching up to do, but then it's normal. I've had time for some art journaling, and made a page quite similar to another one I made some time ago.

Today I had an appointment with the hair dresser, and that was about time. We've also had pure summer the last couple of days, and that means garden work. All the vegetable beds are now ready to be planted in, and some of the flower beds have been weeded, but lots remains.

I have a plant that will give some beautiful pink daisies, the color is extremely pink perhaps more like magenta. I have to watch well over this plant, or the slugs will eat every single sprout that shows up. Today I removed it from the flower bed into a pot situated in one of our decks. I hope to keep it alive this time. This is my third one, the slugs won twice, but not this time. I'll keep an eye to it every single moment.

This years crop will be, potatos, beets, peas, carrots, strawberries, onions and swedes. In addition we have some herbs and fruits. My rhubarbs are ready for cooking already, that's quite early but I love it. Isn't gardening fun and most times relaxing? Do you grow anything in your garden?

What to do with the water?

Happy PFF everyone!

Let me start todays post by saying thank you all for visiting and leaving me a comment. I'm so thrilled to read all that you have to say to me, and now that my class is over, I might be visiting you too. Thanks!

I were playing around with my brushes, trying to paint some realistic water, using acrylics. As kids we just paint something blue and called it water. Oh my, how easy most things were in childhood. My sister always jokes about her childhood, she's saying : Childhood was a gorgeous time...................... afterwards! Yes, we tend to forgrt the problems that might have been.

Well, my water, I mixed a color that looked like water and started turning my brush, oh my it actually looks like water. Ok, lets do the land and the sky while luck is still here. One could, possibly, point at the lack of white reflections on the water, but hey, look at that water! One can't expect everything in a first try, eh?

So, now I have this fabulous background, how should I use it? What about a dragonfly? Wouldn't that be pretty close to normal? I think so, lets draw a dragonfly. With pen, right on top of my teriffic water????? Well, actually I sketched the dragonfly on paper before I transfered it to my page. I use my pan pastels at the back of my sketch, easy way to transfere. Black pan pastel most times but white if I use black or tinted paper.

I picked the colors I wanted to use on my dragonfly, Twinks watercolors. Now, watercolors on top of acrylics isn't excactly a chess move, the acrylics behave like resist so I had to be patient and put on lots of paint. But, it ended well and later I've found some lousy acrylics that works super together with watercolors.

What did you say??    a bit too large compared to the pole.................... pffffft, can't you see it's a pretty close close up?! A pole in the middle of the ocean, you say. Oh my, it's a lake and it's close to the shore, THIS side!!
No matter what, I'm very happy with my result, and I found the image of the dragonflt on the net. This was made in my art journal which is an old book I'm altering.
Thanks for stopping by, I hope you've enjoyed your visit.

Back to normal

 

Today I felt for painting something new.  For awhile now I have been thinking of drawing quick faces, max 15. min. Today I did that, and did the painting very quick too, I want to make something that looks less overdone. And I could use the practice to loosen up a bit.

Today's painting is "good" when it's about loosing up, and I like the way it turned out. The background was another test, it could be worked alot more but I saw what I wanted to see.

 

 

Do you often feel the need to change the way you work? I have been collecting alot of different faces lately, to use as inspiration photos for these quick drawings. I also need to convince myself that less perfect can be just as interesting  as a more perfect work. Todays work is a page in my art journal.

In fact, I like this one better each time I see it. What's on your desk right now?

My art journal again.

 

 

I made this spread using some outcuts from the newspaper.



How much easier it is to do things the right way. Now, that I've filed all my photos, everything fell into place. Thanks heaven I'm a stayer, otherwise I wouldn't have learned all this.

I had much fun making this spread, the birds are so beautiful with the wings spread out. Originally they were sitting on each end of a fallen branch, but I couldn't help wanting to manipulate the situation.

The Jaybird looking a bit "headless" just flying and singing and dosen't notice any danger.

 

 

 

What do you think? Was it a bit too cruel of me?

 

I did some new things on this spread. I used my water soluble crayons and painted them out using gesso instead of water. Great way of doing it and the black pen had no trouble writing on top at the end.Good idea I think! The only thing to concider is the hue of the color, the gesso will lighten it.The background forest is done using acrylic paint.

 And in this very moment of writing I think, why not use Matte medium instead of gesso? Smart, I'll have to try. That means the color won't change, and the black pen still will work well on top.

 

Beautiful sunshine here today. 

A new background

 

I started a new background in my journal today.

Just some paint on the spread before I used some bubble wrap on top in the wet paint. After drying I usd a stensil and sprayed a whitewash on top again.
What happened was that the bubbles became whitewashed too, and it became quite interesting. Left side. I used a WS crayon to emphasize some of the flowers from the stencil.

The right side has just the bubbles in this photo, but I have added the stencil on this page too. The circles are cutouts from a papertowel. I still don't know what to do on this spread, perhaps I'll enjoy the result for awhile.

At the moment there are alot of things I want to try, but can't get started with anything.
Otherwise I've been asked to teach a course in art journaling but I do hesitate. I don't know if I could do it. I've tought many courses earlier, but never in art journaling. If I was to do it, I need to make a good program to ensure myself that the participants really got paid for their money.

I'll have to think a bit more over it.

I had to do something different.

 

The last two days 

I've been in court. I was there to support a friend of mine, and it was quite interesting to attend a real case. When I returned home today I felt for doing something else than my project.
Sometimes I just feel for splashing colors all over in my journal, and today was such a day. Normally I don't like the result, but today it's not too bad. Do you often feel that way too?

I'm sorry the photo is a bit shiny, but it was the best I could do. I think I will try it more often to use more colors in the background. Not too many though.
Otherwise it's Sandra weekend so we have to do something fun. She got her own paint, canvases and easel for Christmas, so she's nearly a full artist now.
I hope you'll have an enjoyable weekend too!

Hello 2013 !

 

We're finally there, a brand new year has begun.

The old one past in an ocean of fireworks as usual. The weather was excellent for a firework, wet but not rainy. I'm glad it's over and we can start looking ahead.
Do you have any great plans for 2013?
I have decided on writing a series this year, and I'm working on it. I also want to make some stamps, and I made my first try today. The stamps will be included in my series, so I don't have anything to show off yet. I think this will be a great year. I'm planning to make more funny folks and old words too so there's alot to start with.
I hope you are ready for a great new year too, lets make it a wonderful creative year in blogland as well as in our own daily lives.
I'll leave you with a spread I made yesterday.

Just wanted to say hello.

Time didn't excist.

 

I had a fantastic day yesterday.

I was working in my journal and didn't notice a thing before Handyman came back from work. I really felt how much I've missed it, that good feeling to just let go.
It was all about faces, hair (!!) and laces. Can you tell I had fun?
I often wonder how all these girls have enough space in my pencil, eh....they do live in the pencils, don't they? Who are they, why do they look as they do? I also wonder wether my girls looks the same or if they have anything in common. Is it possible to tell that I made these girls? No matter what, I have fun making them and I don't get bored of it either.
Notice her lace dress, I made it with my white pen and added some shadows. It looks quite real, doesn't it? I glued bookpaper patches onto the pages before starting my work. It's not all that easy to paint on top of that but it adds so much that it's worth the extra work.

I almost gave up on the one below. Not at any point she would cooperat. She was a struggle from start to end, but now I like her.  I used much less paint in her face and the letters shines through. At the beginning I didn't like it, but now I think it's cool. Notice her throat too. Sorry that you can't read the text but it says:

It's always a problem figuring out a great hairstyle while drawing.

Some times a rainhat makes a big difference in a girls life.

Her dress is special made for her, one of a kind worldwide. I always end up not knowing what to do below the throat. The dress is from a background paper I made awhile back, cut out and glued on top of something I disliked. Her arms, you ask..........pftttttttttt  she had to amputate them. But let me tell you, she's really good using her feet.

 They live next door to one another, and just as I write this I see that one is out-standing and the other withdrawn. It's the size that does it. My fish/monster had to wait, I so much wanted to make these girls.

I know I have to do this more often, it's just that there are so many other things I want to do too. Isn't that what we call a luxury problem?
Thanks for visiting, it's always so inspiring.

Art journaling.

 

I finally worked in my journal again.

It isn't excactly a Monet and it's far from done but at least I did something in my journal. You probably know how often we're looking for new items that can become good stencils. I found one yesterday. My old and well used glass ( can't find the word) in which I store my glasses. I cut up the sewing and voila........new stencil.

The only thing I need to get hold of is a good roller. Below is my first try, not bad. I'll have to make a new one for storage of my glasses,but these things happens from time to time.

The page was already paint when I start working. I added some clear tar gel to see if I could achieve a certain effect, but that didn't work well. I'll try it over again later on. The Monster / fish is a leftover from earlier projects. I have no clue on how this will end, but then again that's part of the fun.

I think I was inspired from the radio today, a childrens program, they were talking of a monster living under a childs bed.
Sandra is coming this afternoon so perhaps we will continue painting together.  Rainy and stormy so it suits well to stay indoors playing. Enjoy your weekend too!

Busy, busy, busy.

Easter, lots of painting, biking with my friend, a birthday to celebrate and Sandras project.

This has been kind of busy. I have been painting a lot lately and it seems I've started my own version of facebook. (painting faces) It's so much fun and I've seen some youtube films and tried some new things too.
The weather has been excellent lately, frost at nights and bright sunny days.

Sandras project this weekend has been to make her personal project book in which she will describe how she is doing all her different projects. I had to help her of course, but the writing and decorating she is doing herself.

 At the front cover she has added the logo of the organisation she is a member of and which this whole project is organiced within. When the book was done she was very proud and wanted to start writing in it at once. As you probably remember her first try was to make a friendship bracelet. That whole process is now well documented and today she will write about making her book.
I showed her a tecnique to use in her art journal and she loved it, so she has been journaling too.

My journal holds two new faces too. The first one I made I tried to make a face with my own twist and I like it. These downpointing eyes suited me well and the rest was not planned at all. The next became an odd person too but I like her too. The text made me laugh, I didn't plan it but these two seem to be quite opposite of each other. I'm not frightend of hights. I guess it was the high house that made me choose that word. I used acrylics and soluble crayons. The other one is made with crayons only. I was thinking of a thin layer (with lots of water) on top of her to make it look more like a bubble, but I'm afraid of smearing it into a mess. Perhaps I'll try to spray it on.

A birthday to celebrate.
My youngest brother turned 50 this week and we had to pay him a visit. My siblings and I bought him a present and in addition to that I had to make him a bird.
My brother is a dedicated musician and he plays a cornet. Every May 17. he marches in front of the parades playing his cornet,
The bird I made for him of course had to be a cornet tail.

 I suggested to him to use the bird as a mascot hanging on his cornet which created a huge laughter from some of his musician friends.

I hope you have a lovely time as well.

Put a little effort in.

Art journaling.

I had forgotten how to use my journal and had problems with what to do. Right after the last mandala I continued to work in my journal and found my way back.
This face isn't the best I've done but luckily it doesn't matter. I'm not really an angel person but for some reason this one ended as an angel.

 I'm pleased with how the background came out, I really did alot to achive that result.
Isn't it a bit of a paradox that I'm using an old book, gessoing over the text and then glue in patches of texted paper. It wouldn't be the same though to use the existing text
.
I think I will use a little time figuring out different headlines to work after. It would be fun to try having a goal. As it is now what happens happen, and it feels a bit aimless.

Another thing I've been thinking of today is, what is it about faces? Why is it so fun to make them? Have you ever thought of that? I've not found the answer yet, but it has to be something that make me want to do that.
Do you know what makes you draw/paint faces?

Art journal page.

Another mandala.

This page was a thrill to make. The mandala is one thing but the surroundings was a long time meditating. Isn't that nice to just disappear into whatever one are doing and stay there for a long/longer time?

 Yesterday handyman and I finally had a good wash in our conservatory so now it's ready for use. Now that it's so clean and tidy I got inspired to make some decoration touches in there, but handyman claimed : " it's not a dollhouse" Well, he's right I have to think over again. But I'll come up with something that we both can agree on.
Handyman has started his Easter holiday and that's good. I think he has been far too busy the last 6 months. As usual we stay at home and enjoy some lazy days. The spring is here and several flowers are blooming in the garden. Always such a joy when that happens. This season I hope we can find the time to do some changes in our garden. There are far too much insight so I want to plant some bushes to "hide" behind. We have quite a big garden and it takes alot of work to keep it. Perhaps we should think about doing it simpler soon.

The mandala was painted using the twinks and the rest is done using markers. I tried to paint a face the other day but it landed in "the round archive." I havn't done that for a long time now and therefor I don't have it in my hands. Have to practice a bit I think.
I know an artist (70 yo +) who is a master of calligraphy and she has told me that her art demands daily practice even after a long life doing it. That's impressing to me, that anyone are so dedicated to their art. Perhaps that's the differens too. I spread alot more between different things while dedicated people consentrate on their "small" area.
How do you do it?
Happy Easter to all of you.

The Hotlips.

What a fun day I had yesterday.

The weather was so nice yesterday that I went for a walk downtown. Right in the heart of our town we have this pond with a lot of different ducks and swans. And alongside a channel there is a tiny sculpture park with benches to sit down. I was there enjoying the weather and the birds, I forgot to bring my camera. Next time I will.

When back home and all the housewife stuff done, handyman and I went for our evening walk and after that I sat down with my journal. I was thinking of doing a fun face, but something different happened.
For a long time now I've had this magazine cut out and before I knew I had glued it into my journal. From there on I lost the feeling of time, and just worked in my journal. The result became a surprise to me and it's not a funny face but several.

The cut out was an image of several lipsticks and before I knew they had become a choire and of course they had to be called: The Hotlips.

This morning I did read a post written by Quinn Creative where she is talking about different sorts of people and that inspired me to make my own little wonderings about the members of my choire. If you have a good look at them, could you tell anything about their personalities? I can, and I have played with these thoughts the whole morning. It's so much fun.



It was so much fun making this page and good to get started journaling again. I've missed it.
Have a fab day and take care.

Kaleidoscope.

Wouldn't it be lovely to own a kaleidoscope that, in a little fragment of time, made a new breathtaking design each time you shake it?


This is my latest work. It was really fun to make it and it took me three days.
The first photo is taken when I was ready choosing the design. At this stage I've decided how I want the design to be, not only the design itself but also the depth of it. In this specific mandala I let the four "side figures" have almost the same design as the main one.
Once this is done I start to choose the colours. And then add the colour as the next photo showes.

I prefer to work on one mandala, so the colours of the rest are decided for when needed.


Not everything is planned, sometimes things appears while working. If you look at the main mandala, you can see the small checked areas which really forced their way to be included. And I'll have to say that I like them very much. The checks are so small that they don't interrupt the rest, on the contrary they help the rest pop out.
The pattern of a ready cut cake wasn't planned either, but when I chose to make a quite heavy line between each square outside the star I got that bonus effect.
The design in the outer sircle (of the main mandala) could have been different. I aimed for a design which held the feeling of air and dissolubility, and it does, but it would probably be even better with that design in just every other or third square. That way it could have been clearer what I wanted to create, instead it can easily be seen as a repetitive design only as it is now. All these things are much easier to spot when the mandala is done. When I'm working on it I'm so focused that I don't see other opportuneties than those I've already chosen. I'll have to work on that.


Don't you just love the red petals?
I do!! They really pop out and looks like velvet, so much that I have to touch them from time to time.
For me mandala is a circle, as you might have noticed, but I'm working on bending the rules. Step out of the frame so to speak and it's exciting.

I hope you're all well and enjoying your time.

New Journal.

This is the first spread in my new journal. I like the left page, that mandala means something to me and contain my wishes for this new journal. In the right page I've tried to make a "copy" of one of the main glasspaintings in the Chatedral in Palma, Mallorca. I found it was not a good way of working. It's not mine and I don't feel any relations to it. Dull!
I will try to finish it though, wouldn't dream of starting a new journal with an unfinished project.

Today I'm going down town together with a friend, looking for what's new this season. We have such a beautiful morning here. This last night we had our first frost, and early this morning I could follow the sunrise which made the mountain - edge look like gold. That sight always take my breath away. A lot of crows had their morning meeting in a large tree in our garden and it seems they couldn't come to any agreement. Right now the town starts to awaken and the sounds of it reaches me. It's lovely to be able to have these slowly mornings, which I missed a lot when I was working outside home. I really whish everyone could have the time and opportunety to enjoy the magic moments of a sunrise.



I'm not as creative as usual these days. I don't know why but I prefer doing other things. Amongst other things I've read about low carb food because I'm going to reduse myself a bit. I have gained some kilograms and I don't feel comfortable with that.
My mandalas have inspired others to make them too, my niece (Lill's Life) has made a mandala too and felt the calmness of doing so. I liked her first attempt and am certain that she will make them again. She lives far away from here, so I enjoy following her blog.

Have a nice day and take care.

Closing one, and open another one.

At last I've finished my first journal. When I'm sitting here looking back I feel I just started it, but time flies. It's 6 months since I first started. I've learnt a lot and still enjoy the time spent in it. Now I have a new book to start in and this one is even larger so I have more space to work on.

I have done Mandalas lately and they are so fun to make. I've even made some very private ones. I will continue to make them and try to make them even more "my own" Have you ever tried to make them, and did you put into them expressions of your hope or thaughts of any kind?



This one (below) is made in remembrance to my father, or to this little Buddha that belonged to him. My father was given this item as a gift when I was a child and I always liked it so much. I asked my mother for it some years ago and she told me it was broken and thrown away. Early this summer we (my husband and I) had a clean up in the attic and I found my old schoolbooks. To my pleasure I found a drawing of the Buddha in one of my books and that's why I could use it in one of my Mandalas. It makes me happy to have it in my journal, that way I can always recall my memories of it.



The next one is very private too, it's made for a close relative that suffers from breastcancer. My hope for her is the very best and is expressed in this Mandala. I really do hope it helps. The four seasons of the year are included because she told me that she had to count a year to overcome this illness.


The last Mandala I made is the last page in my journal and doesn't mean anything special. It is the end of my journal and that's it. It is a bit different than the others and I guess that I was influenced by my friend Alw'en when I made it. She came visiting yesterday and I made it while she was here. We spent several hours together painting, and good things always happen when we spend time together. I really enjoyed her company!


That's all for today which is windy, rainy and cold. So cold that we have a fire going in the stove. First time this season.
Wish you all the best!

Mandala

Hello.

It's about time for a new post and what could be better than to show you my latest made Mandalas. It's a very relaxing task to make a Mandala, what attracts me the most are the fact that there are no rules. Use what you have and let your feelings guide you.

Like most people I'm very facinated by the wonderful glass-paintings in the old churches and lately I've start wondering if I could do anything similar to that using Mandalas as my workingspace. I've let me be inspired from a blog where Karin Bartimole are showing how she makes a journal. The journal showed is ment for making Mandalas in. Have a look here, scroll down till you find the name Karin Bartimole and look at her you-tube films on how she is making her journal. It's very inspiring.


As you see I have another space ready for my next Mandala and I just can't wait to start it.
Right now I'm waiting to know who is the one to get this years Nobel Peace prize, that's always such an exitement. Today a Syrian woman is the hottest name.
Today is windy and rainy here so the weather outside is perfect to stay indoors making Mandalas.

Have a nice weekend everyone and take care.

A bit of this and that.

Hello!

I have been doing a bit different things lately. The journalsppread below was made some days ago. At this point I was thinking of what words that appeal to me. Have you ever thought of that? Once you start thinking all kinds of words are popping in your mind. But what are the ones you are coming back to? The one word that always get me to think is reaction. Ever since I learned what it ment it has been my favorite word.
The word ROSE mean the flower but also means to give credit or praise. (in Norwegian that is.)
Once I start to think of some words they lead to other and a kind of "movie" starts rolling. That's really facinating.


As I wrote earlier on, the knitting season is here and I've knitted my first pair of socks this weekend. (first pair for the season) I've had this yarn in my stash for a long time and wanted to use it. It's not the best choice to these patterned socks but I wanted to knit a pattern and I wanted to use this yarn. In any case they will warm my feet and that's the main issue. The colours is not at all that blue, I don't know what happened with my photo.



Today I have made cakes. Applecakes.
I did start with the usual one, and then I tried to make cupcakes and that went well. Easier to freeze them as cupcakes, or at least easier to handle. Tomorrow I'll probably make a lot more. I forgot to add the almonds at the last cupcakes and that is so irritating. They taste and looks a lot better with the allmonds.


What have you been up to lately?
Wish you all the best and thanks for visiting.