Weekend of crafting

In mid October I took a long weekend in St. Louis. Purpose of the trip was to visit my sister-in-law and to got to a miniature show. My sister-in-law loves to do crafts so we did some collages, some artists trading cards and a couple projects found in Somerset Studios. Thought I would share some pictures.

Collage

Here is my latest series of collages. They pay tribute to the chicken. If you know about Key West, where I live, you know that chickens are always in the news. Some love them; some not so much. Canvas size is 3 x 4 inches.

More Collage Tapas

In April I posted my first 25 2 inch collages. Well, I have finished another 25. Think they will look good together.

Collage Tapas

I have been having such fun doing small collage pictures. In one of the Somerset Studio magazines in the last year or so I was inspired by an artist who created 100 one-inch collages. Well, I am way too blind to do a one inch collage. I decided about the smallest that I could do would be a two-inch one. It took about 30 tries to get 25 that I liked well enough to put in a frame. I am now working on the next 25. I used a few stickers but 90% or more is recycled materials (ads, magazines, church bulletins, etc.). Unfortunately, I can't find the specific article so I am unable to give credit where credit is due. Again, the 1 inch collages was the inspriration for this piece.

Accepted at Show

I am so happy today. I received acceptance into a show being held at the SODU Gallery here in Key West. It is entitled "From a Woman's hand" and it runs from May 7 - 28. Oil Painting is one of my passions and I am trying to develop that side of my artistic personality. Part of the proceeds go to the WomanKind Health Care Center.

Girls Gone Wild

Thought I'd share my most recent collage. I just loved this little Christmas card and then I found this great picture of older ladies lined up on the beach. Thought they made a great pair. Added real shells, bucket. I also added a little biplane in the top left corner carrying a banner. Unfortunately it appears I chopped that part of the photo off. Sorry about the title for the blog - just wanted to get your attention. The size on this is small - a little less than 4 inches wide by 7 inches tall.

Collage Christmas Cards

I have been carrying around 3 Christmas cards for over 15 years. Always wanted to do something with them, but framing just didn't seem right. After discovering mixed media, I completed 3 totally enjoyable pieces that make me very happy.

Altered Art Bracelets

After trying my hand at wire wrapped jewelry - see previous post - I decided I could make altered art bracelets. I have posted only a couple here - all are on Etsy.

I post them on Etsy for sale. Click the link and take a look.

Altered Art Wire Wrapped Jewelry

I started making wire wrapped jewelry about a year ago. My son and lots of his friend were in Key West for Spring Break. I had nowhere to work on any of my other art projects so decided I could wrap rocks with wire (or at least try) to keep me busy. It has burned into a great hobby. No two are alike. I wrap pebbles, beach glass and other items that seem interesting. I sell on etsy - click the link and get a close up of each.

Faded memories Assemblage

I just love dolls and collect them in all sizes. These little lovelies just were begging for a spot all their own. They all came together in this little piece. I don't have a clue what the rusted item was that I placed in the lower right hand corner. Just loved it look and thought it added just the right element to that space.

A Chance to Dance in France

My inspiration for this piece came from a section of Key West called House Boat Row. It was a series of houseboats of various sizes (about a dozen if my memory serves me well) that connected to the seawall. It is no longer here due to a long drawn-out court case about who owned the sea bottom and the citizens rights to tie up to the state's sea wall. Lots of legal mumbo-jumbo, but bottom line, they all had to move their house boats. We started coming to Key West in 1987 and moved here in 1994. One of the boats had a sign on the front that was "A chance to dance in France.". It captured our imagination and we loved what it implied. It stuck with me and I had to dedicate this assemblage to that free-spirit thought.

Doll made of found objects

This project was to make a doll from found objects. As you can see - it has a box, a salad set, the beaters from a hand mixer and lots of pictures and miniatures (one of my passions). The head is made of a plastic bubble that was the packageing of a light. We also were asked to write a story about our doll. The following is supermom.

Super Mom

Super Mom is a
Mom
Wife
Sister
Daughter
Employee,
Chauffeur
Scrap Booker
Miss Manners
Photographer
Boo Boo Healer
Cook
Artist
Laundress
Miniaturist
Jewelry Maker
Ceramist
Lover
Gardener
Decorator
Reader
Tutor
Graduate
Financial Planner
Nutritionist
Travel Planner
Coach
Housekeeper
Neighbor
Sorority Sister
Church Member
Crime Watch Member


Super Mom is
Tired
Thrilled
Frazzled
Rewarded
In Love
Loved
Respected
Proud
Dreamer
Realist

Super Mom is
Happy with her Life
And
Her Life Makes her Happy!

Assemblage

Wrapped Assemblage - my first exposure to any wrapped art was in Kansas City Missouri several decades ago. Christo wrapped the sidewalks of Loose Park in yellow cloth. It was awesome.

Image my surprise when I was assigned in a mixed media course to do a wrapped object. The first item was the wrapped shower caddy, razor, washcloth and shampoo bottle. Since I really believe we should recycle items, I used brown grocery sacks. It was a very fun project and turned out interesting. When completed, one of my classmates asked if anyone had used blue painter's tape. Since no one had, I tried it at home. The pencil can has a loose diplay of pens, pencils and a pair of scissors - wrapped in painter's tape. As you rearrange the contents, the display keeps changing.

Assemblage - my new love

I took a mixed media class this past fall and discovered my new love. It is so much fun. Here are 3 that I did that pay homage to Leo Kaplan. If you don't know him, please google him. He's great. The first one for my son, the 2nd for my husband and the last for me. Lots of trinkets that has special meaning and before the projects, they were just stuck in a drawer. Much better to have them displayed.

Ceramics

Last year I wanted to attend a class at our local community college and waiting until the last minute - I couldn't sign up for the intended mixed media class. Not to be left out in the cold, I decided I would take ceramics. I had always wanted to take a ceramic course, but just not at that time. Oh well, I enrolled in a hand building Ceramics I course and fell in love with it. I have taken two other courses in ceramics since then. Thought you might enjoy my sea grape leaves, in the small picture, wine bottle holder, and free form containers (I use for odds and ends). It is great fun. I will later post some of wheel thrown containers and Raku containers.