THERE ARE NO LITTLE THINGS….

"There are no little things.  Little things are the hinges of the universe."

Fanny Fern

I watched a Teesha Moore video on the Artstronaut Club site and saw where Teesha used Faber Castell Gelatos to shade her drawing so I thought that I would give it a try.  So with my set of  Gelatos that I picked up for $3 bucks in the children section of JoAnn's, I set about to mark my page.  I selected metallic purple to go around the head and some of the border.  Not too bad!  I liked the look so much that I thought that I would try my Caran D'Ache Neocolor II crayons also and they did a decent job too!  Wow!  More tools to experiment with and use in my art.  I'm beginning to feel like a mad scientist!  lol

Let me give you a tip about where to buy the Gelatos without breaking the bank. Buy the children's sets (10 crayons) if you can still find them.  (I noticed that they had a few sets left on Amazon.com)  The children's sets, made by Faber Castell, are called gel sticks and are identical to the Gelatos but at a fraction of the cost. Different packaging but the same stick inside the box.  They don't come in all the variety of colors that the Gelato sets do but the colors are pretty awesome just the same.  Especially the metallic ones which have six colors in the set (gold, silver, purple, blue, green and melon).

In case you are not familiar with the Gelatos they are delicious little lipstick like tubes of water-soluble  crayons that can be used with water and a brush to give a watercolor look or straight from the tube to make marks like a crayon.  You can even shave bits of the stick into a mini spray bottle with some water and make your own sprays.  They really are very versatile.  I used them in my collage straight from the stick like a crayon and then rubbed them a little with my finger to smear them.

What do you think?  Does this sound like fun?

Until next time,

Hugs,
Ginny

"STOP IN THE NAME OF LOVE…..

It's been about a year and a half since I started meeting once a week with a group of friends who happen to be like minded about their art.  Most of us met at Yoga class.  The yoga class is made up of over 60% creatives.  Coincidence?  Anyway, I didn't mean to get off track.  I started to explain how important belonging to an art group is to artistic growth…. besides forming wonderful friendships, your art friends can encourage, inspire, trade tips and techniques, offer constructive advice and keep you focused on your art.  But most important…you learn from each other!!!  This is true whether you are involved in an on-line Facebook or Flickr group, an on-line class or if you meet in person in a classroom or with a group of art friends.  Art friends are best!!!  Yay!  Rah Rah! Rah!  (The "Art Friends Are Best" cheer.  lol)

I just love my art friends!  Without them I would be stuck somewhere trying to decide what to do next.  Add more color, shading, highlights, embellishments, etc…..

Take for example my collage of the girl with the globe head.  Of all the collages that I have done, it is perhaps one of the least inspiring.  I don't know why but I had a hard time getting started.  So I did what I always do when I feel that way…I put pen to paper and added some dots here and there.  If I "prime the pump," unusually one thing will lead to another and before I know it, the collage will begin to take form.  But this one….I got all the way to the point where the background needed some patterning and stopped!  Then my friend Judy pointed out that she would like to see the lines from the grid below the flower continue through the background.  Something that I hadn't thought of.  (This is where the harps play and butterflies are released in the universe.)  Anyway, I added some lighter curvy lines and fell in love with the piece!  Something so simple but yet so powerful…it was the glue that tied it all together!

Collage before embellishing

Let me tell you about some of the challenges with this piece. You can see from the before picture that the collage lacked color and vibrancy.  Except for a little pop of red and yellow, the collage is pretty much monochromatic….brown and tans.  Also, the collage pieces themselves seem dull….so the first thing that I did was to liven up the collage pieces with pops of neon gel pens and Prismacolor pencils.  I added highlights and shading to give them depth.  Then I added some cool tones with the touches of blue and the green vine.  I completely colored the face and hands using Prismacolor pencils and lastly, I added shading to the background using a dark brown Prismacolor pencil and a red Faber Castell gelato.  The light tan curvy lines were painted with a Molotow Paint Marker.  I love these markers, they write on everything and are permanent when dry!!!

If you have any questions about the techniques…please feel free to ask!  I love to share!  Or….maybe you have a technique that you would like to share!

Until next time!

Hugs,
Ginny

GREATEST GIFT OF THE GARDEN

"The greatest gift of the garden is the restoration of the five senses."

Soon it will be Spring in Florida.  The oak trees are dropping their leaves like crazy…getting ready to put out new ones and my African Iris put out one bloom….trying to get an early start.  I can't wait!

This has been a really cold winter for Floridians.  I know that you Northerners would probably think that it is bathing suit weather compared your temperatures but we have a damp cold that chills a body to the bone.  Anyway, I am ready to put away my winter clothes in exchange for shorts, sleeveless tops…and flip flops!!!!

Here is the latest journal page in my "Teesha" journal.  I guess you could say that the garden was definitely on my mind…not initially but that's how it ended up. When I first start a page I seldom plan a story or theme…it just sort of evolves and then when it presents itself…I choose the quote.  Some people call this tuning into the universe or being guided by your muse.  Whatever it is that guides me…the universe, a muse or something else…I give thanks!  It is this part of the creative process with it's unexpected twists and turns that gives me the most pleasure when making my art.

Until next time!

Hugs,
Ginny

REORGANIZING MY STUDIO

Hi all….it is time to reorganize my art studio and give it a fresh look.  Why? Because I can no longer find what I am looking for…I can't get inspired because of it's messy appearance (I'm anal that way)...and I find myself in the breakfast nook painting instead of in my studio.  So that's it….time to reclaim my art space and make it a place that I enjoy being in when I paint.

So…...that being said…I thought that I would share some of the changes that I have made.  (If you have been following my blog for any length of time…you may have already seen some these.)

I saw this on Pinterest and thought that it was a GREAT idea!  Inexpensive towel racks to store punches.  I found these at Ikea for $2.99, the hanging wire basket for $2.99 and a package of hooks for $0.99.  I hung them behind the door to the room as I had no other area that would accommodate the size.

I use a basket to store my finished and unfinished visual journals.

I found these magnetic containers at the Container store for $1.99 a piece.  I use them to store tacks, picture frame nails and wire, paper clips, etc.  Great for small items.  The magnetic strip is from Target. I found a package of two strips, with magnets, on sale for $4.00.

Everyone seems to question how to store markers.  I prefer to store them on their sides regardless of what the makers say.  I store them by color families and in stacked plastic cubicles that I made by gluing together plastic containers.  I found the plastic containers at the Container store for about $2.50 each.  They come with lids (and in several colors) that can be used for separating small items in drawers.

Everyone needs a utility cart at the end of their drawing table.   I made mine many years ago to hold paint in my tole painting days.  Now it is being used to hold all those essentials like gesso, matte medium, brush basin, stamp cleaner, box of acrylic tube paints, deli paper, etc.  Those items that I wish to keep at arms length.  If I didn't already own this one, I would buy the rolling kitchen utility cart from Ikea. (It is nicer looking than mine and comes in several colors.)

These are little wire baskets that I found at Target for $1.99 each.  They are the exact length of Pitt pens.  I attached them to the end of the cart to hold erasers, eyeglasses, credit cards used for spreading paint, etc. The idea was to get everything off my desk but still have them close by.

I use several of these (unattached) to hold my Copic Multiliner pens and washi tape. They are a nice size to carry from room to room.

This is my most recent and impulse purchase from Ikea.  It is the size of a large file cabinet and has two different height drawers.  The taller drawers are perfect for hiding those ugly flip top craft paint bottles.  The remainder of the drawers will hold all my paints and pencils in tins, pan pastels, Cuttlebug dies and embossing folders.  I still need to label the drawers so that I can find everything.  lol.

Another item left over from my tole painting days…a tote for my paints.  I wanted something portable  that I could carry to the porch, outside, to a friends house or even a class.

This is a plastic tote that I found at JoAnn's.  It is intended for use with scrapbooking but I found it to be an excellent way to store stencils.  It has a removable top that is also a snap close container and is the perfect size for storing small 6" X 6" stencils.









This is a view of the wall behind my desk with everything in its place.  The storage cabinet with the small drawers and paper storage holds rubber stamps, inks, embossing powders, Silks paints etc.  It is a custom cabinet from BEST.  I have had it for about 18 years and bought it when I was into card making.  Now I use the card making supplies in my mixed media art.  Notice my new cabinet from Ikea?  It fits perfectly in the space between the BEST cabinet and the bookshelf.

I installed the curtains to pretty up the ugly bookshelves that hold plastic containers and drawers.  They are installed the on swivel rods so they can swing out of the way when I need to remove something from the shelf.



And of course….It helps to have natural light.  I am so lucky to have a floor to ceiling window facing the south side of my house.

I hope that this gives you ideas for your own space.  Now...I am going to go paint something and make a mess.  Tee Hee!

Until next time….

Hugs, Ginny

WE DO NOT NEED MAGIC TO CHANGE THE WORLD

This is a quote by J. K. Rowling that I stumbled upon and thought that it was perfect for my journal page: 

"We do not need magic to change the world.  

We carry the power we need inside ourselves already.  

We have the power to imagine better."
J.K. Rowling

I hadn't planned for it to be about magic.  She was going to be a modern day "Alice In Wonderland" but it didn't work out.  When I put the rabbit in her hand...she looked more like a magician than Alice.  Oh well, sometimes those things happen and you just have to go with the flow! 

I drew the top hat as I couldn't find one without going through the trouble of scanning, resizing, etc.  It was just easier to draw one from scratch.  The chalkboard effect was a pleasant surprise…I drew the radiating lines with white Prismacolor pencil and then roughed in the lettering with a white charcoal pencil. I like the look so much that I quickly grabbed the Krylon Fixatif and gave it a spray.  If I had gone over the charcoal lettering with white paint pen in my usual style…it would have competed with the white scrollwork and the white stripes in her shirt.  I hope that you like her!

Collage before the pen work

Until next time….

Hugs,
Ginny

MOVING RIGHT ALONG

I'm moving right along in my "Teesha Style" collage journal.  I'm working on several pages at a time.  First, I prep four pages, front and back, next….I do the collage work on all eight pages and lastly, I finish each page with paint, ink and pencil.  Working this way really seems to speed up the process as I can do all of the collage work in one sitting and utilize many of the magazine clippings that I planned for use and then decided otherwise….I find a use for them somewhere while they are still fresh in my mind.

Here is my latest journal page.   I really like the way that this page turned out.  I love the colors and the wormhole pattern used for her hair and tree roots.  Also, an unexpected feature is the way that the Prismacolor pencil bled through the white pen used to write the word "When"…. giving it an ombre look.  What a happy accident!

Completed journal page

Journal page before embellishing

Well, until next time!

Hugs,
Ginny

MOMENTS THAT TAKE YOUR BREATH AWAY

This is my latest journal page in my "Teesha Journal."  I think that the famous artist's pictures are from an old calendar and the rest is free Artist's papers from Somerset Studio Magazine.  Everything else is by ME!

I discovered that it is a lot easier for me to use magazine clippings or art from discarded books, especially children's books, than to use collage sheets of other people's art.  I guess that when I uses other people's art the end result sort of looks like that person's art and not mine, even though I have altered it to make it my own.  I guess that the way around that is to make my own collage sheets from my own art.  Now…where to begin!!!

Here is the collage before altering with doodles, coloring and adding the quote. (Sorry, I got carried away and started altering before taking the "before picture." The white pen work and the diamonds on the elephants pants was not on the original.)

Until next time….

Hugs,
Ginny