Lessons Are a Good Thing

"We all need a bit of empty space to clarify and focus the world of possibility ahead."  Philippa Stanton, Conscious Creativity

I love these winter months when I'm tucked inside before the gardens need me.  I like to think it's when I can be the most creative in my studio....but that hasn't been the case for a variety of reasons. This has been my time of "empty space"....and puzzles.

BUT....several weeks ago I agreed to do a project for a friend using a photo and programs....I wrote about it here. At first I thought it was going to be easy but actually found it VERY difficult.

It might have been tough just because I was trying to make something during this time of a creative pause.  And...there's pressure when you HAVE to produce something.  For every piece that I thought was OK enough to put in one of my shows....I had one or two things I started and abandoned. Nobody knew but me. 

After a few missteps with punched squares and lack of ideas and inspiration this would have been one of those projects I would have abandoned....but I wanted to follow through and give her something. So I kept trying.  

I collaged a background from the program in an 8 by 10 format. I framed the edges using the image from the program covers and started filling in with words. It took me a while to realize that this was too big....and out of proportion for the photograph so I cut it down to 8 by 8 and it was much better.

I knew it needed more color....and something to ground the bottom so I experimented with a variety of options including papers, other photographs, and even fabric. But the colors in the photograph were so intense that when I tried to match them...it got crazy loud.  I was stumped...and frustrated...and just worked on my puzzle.

I finally landed on a "stripe stack" like I did for the last show using softer versions of the colors in the photo. I mixed papers from catalogs with white word pages from the program. This felt like it could work...or at least be good enough.

So it's almost done and I'm going to be OK enough with it to give it to her.  It will be a gift...not a commission and next time I'm asked to do something like this I will just say no...or do it with them not for them.  Lesson learned....and all lessons are a good thing.

It Was Time

"We all obsess about what we are doing and accomplishing. What if we let it go and simply made the way we live our lives our accomplishment?"  Maria Shriver

All of a sudden it was time to take the puzzle apart....and just like that it's ready to become someone else's adventure.

Faith's Buttons!

Not one thing on my list today had anything to do with buttons. 

But when someone gives you buttons....you just have to play. Thanks Faith!

Recycling

This lovely image reminded me of the woods behind our condo in Portland.

I ushered at church on Sunday and one of my jobs after the service was to pick up bulletins from the pews for recycling. I admired the cover during the service......so you won't be surprised that my pile didn't make it into the recycling bin. There's got to be a use for them don't you think! At the very least they can be torn up to use to make the collage birch I want to try again sometime.

Origami Tie Book

Lynne continued our folded/exploding card exchange and sent me what she calls an origami tie book.                                                                    

Its folds up to a small square tied with a bow....almost like a little ornament.  It opens to a larger square and the triangle folds provide good places for text or images....loads of possibilities!  Thanks Lynne....for the card AND the directions!

You can see I'm enjoying the bright colors of my puzzle as a back drop 

for my photos. Once I take it apart...I'm passing it onto my friend Patsy.

And....I have to share a picture I snagged from my sister LaVonn's Facebook page. She came home to a patch of tulips planted on the snow bank going into the garage a few days ago. Way to go Tim!

Strawberries

When I got back to Lexington today I had envelopes from my both my art friends in North Carolina. 

Anna sent me these precious felt strawberries. The tiny little stitches on the berries and the floppy tops are just delightful! Thanks Anna! I love them!

I'll share Lynne's creation tomorrow and stretch out the fun. I love sharing other people's art....especially when I'm struggling with my own.

The strawberries will live in the corner of my kitchen. They're a sweet reminder of warmer days to come.  And...did you notice the skinny bottle of marbles?  Yes...I keep playing with marbles because you just can't go wrong with marbles.

Perfect Timing

Today I'm celebrating being in the right place at the right time.

Paul and I are in Portland for a few days and today was partly an errand day.  I could have done things in any order....but because of perfect timing I ran into Marita....a dear friend from my teaching days.  It's been well over 10 years and it was like we hadn't missed a beat. There's nothing better than unexpected joy!

One of the creative things I did today was rework Margie's silk bouquet.  It now looks better from both sides...and I made a few other improvements. It's a nice splash of spring as you enter her apartment.

And there's nothing like a picture to give you some perspective...I can see a few tweaks I want to do.

2001

It's official....this puzzle has 2001 pieces.....kind of funny.

Some of you may be relieved that the puzzle is finally done...now I can move on to other things...or at least another puzzle. ha ha  

I was certain there were pieces missing so I was compelled to finish it this morning.  After finding 3 pieces on the floor camouflaged in the design of my rug....I was relieved that they were all there!

I had to chuckle because thank goodness I'm a terrible housekeeper and hadn't vacuumed or I would have ended up with 1997 pieces.  Or I guess it would have been 1998...but the extra one wouldn't have been helpful. 

I looked back at this photo and realized it's been almost one month to the day since I started.  Not bad!  I thought it would take me until spring. I may leave it on the dining room table for a while....it's certainly a splash of color!

Puttering Mode

The story of the day from Brian Andreas now comes from flyingedna.com.

It was a puttering around the house kind of day....and when I'm in a puttering mode....even the chores seem less of a chore.  And...it helped that between almost every task I sat with the puzzle for a little while....and that makes me happy.

I'd been working on it in two halves on each side of the table. But I found myself looking for a piece that was already attached to the other half so it was time to join them together. It's really coming along....I'm getting close!

And I may have found the perfect container for my tiny marbles I wrote about a few days ago!  Margie gave me this baby bottle that she used with Paul...and his sisters. She gave it to me when we were going through some boxes in her basement in Colorado and I actually dropped it on the cement floor.  I would have been devastated if it broke....but here it is...all in one piece!  Phew!

"Village of Women"

This image and story is by Brian Andreas and  part of a series called "women rising."  I am grateful for the village of women in my life.

Aw Shucks!

Grateful for a husband who snaps a picture of a bowl of push pins on a co-workers desk....just because he knows I'd love it.  

Thanks Paul! 📌

And if that wasn't enough.....

...he came home with a found object for President's Day!

Awww shucks! 📌

Shadows and Snow

"If you choose not to find joy in the snow, you will have less joy in your life but still the same amount of snow." author unknown

I will never grow weary of the long afternoon shadows in our back yard in Maine this time of year.  You don't get this in the summer...only in the winter...and only because of the snow. 

And just recently I've come to appreciate the sharp angled shadows from the morning sun....equally beautiful.

My friend Patsy knows I love the shadows and recently sent me this photo from her front porch down east Maine. I have taken dozens of photos of this view...and now I have one more of the shadows and the snow.  JOY!

Marble Mania

I love marbles. They just make me happy. I have quite a collection...including these handblown art marbles I display with little LED lights. One even has a liquid center with little bits of color that float around.

But I've always admired my sister Angie's marble collection.  She displays them in all kinds of interesting jars and containers including an old gum ball machine. Last time I was there I realized one of the reasons they were so striking was that hers were mostly opaque. Simple, colorful, opaque marbles displayed in interesting ways.

So for a while now I've been keeping my eyes open for opaque marbles....finding them one or two and a time at antique and consignment shops. I love having something to look for...and I'd be happy if I came home with 1/2 dozen. Some of them are in this jar in the studio...pretty even at night because they are opaque.

 

But recently I hit the jackpot at a consignment store just up the street from the condo. I found a HUGE jar of marbles....almost all opaque. They were already at the lowest price...and they accepted my even lower offer. I was in marble heaven.

Although I found only a few purples...every color of the rainbow was there. I filled this funky bottle which goes nicely with my "JOY" stripe stack and wooden fidget toy. My friend Jane made the Nantucket baskets and gave me the old bottle....so this is my "Sparks Joy" shelf.  (her last name is Sparks)

This little cookie jar came from Anita and now holds some of the new marbles....and this glass flower frog holds a little rainbow.                                                      

But the most exciting discovery was all these odd ones...many of them clay marbles....some of then teeny tiny.  This bunch alone was worth the $20 I paid for the whole jar full. 

As you can see I still have quite a few to play with. There was an abundance of black and white so I weeded some of them out and put them back into the very ugly jar they all came in....a rather scary looking owl. 

Yes...there's a bit of marble mania at the condo right now....but I'm lovin' it...and Angie would love it too!

Centerpiece

I know some of you subscribe and read this blog by e-mail....thank you for that. But recently I've had a few reports that sometimes it doesn't come through and I don't understand why or how widespread the problem is. I poked around my settings a bit and didn't see anything out of the ordinary...but the irony is I'm not sure I'd recognize if there was.

In the mean time I'm still here almost every day and you can always view the daily post directly on the blog site:  http://joyfulputtering.blogspot.com/ 

Thank you again to everyone who takes the time to follow along with my joyful ramblings.  It does continue to surprise me.  As my little blog image says...I am "Surprised by Joy!"

I found this wooden bowl at a consignment shop a few months ago thinking it would be a good vessel to dry my wabi-sabi nature finds.  But for now it's holding my found plastic objects....not your typical dining centerpiece....but it makes me smile.

This bowl has a lot of wabi-sabi character itself. 

Colorful Little Acorns

Happy Valentines Day....and Happy Birthday Nancy!

These sweet little acorns caps came from Florida by way of Janice. I felted some for me a while back... and today I made a little set to take with me to England for Philippa.

I felted the heart in honor of Valentines Day....and my sister's Valentine birthday.

This gives you a better sense how small they are. Some of the balls of wool were so small it was hard to stab them with the felting needle. I wish I had a Florida connection....maybe they're found other places???  I nearing the end of my stash.