More Pops of Orange

It seems like just a few weeks ago I was saying "where has August gone?"  Now I'm wondering the same thing about September. I can't believe it's the last day of the month.  And pops of orange seems to be a theme this time of year....so that's what I'm going with again today.  There's still a lot of green....but I just adore the occasional pop of orange.  

I love everything about this time of year, actually. The winding down of one season ....and the glimpses into the next.

A few pops of orange in the gardens on our walks.

Here's the postcard I'm keeping from my mastersheet.  After cutting the postcards....I added a few more details and finishing touches on each one including a pop of orange. 

And speaking of a pop of orange....this is the latest finished puzzle on Margie's board....a gift from Roseanne. It was a challenge...but Margie stuck with it.

Isn't it gorgeous!  I'm struggling getting into the groove with my newest one.

Mastersheet

Here's a view of our back yard from the street with some subtle pops of color....and the white seven-sons-flower tree blooms glowing in the late afternoon light. 

My shared art projects are on their way to Becky, Tracie, and Brenda....and I hope they arrive by the end of the week. This time our goal was to create a "mastersheet"....sometimes called a "masterboard." Basically it's just a large collage or art piece that gets cut up to make smaller parts. It can include recycled art, gelli prints, ephemera, postage stamps, magazine and catalog cutouts, book pages, music......anything goes!    

Once we finished our mastersheets....we were to cut them into pieces so each of us would have something from everyone's original sheet. They could be any size.....bookmarks, ATC's (artist trading cards the size of baseball cards), or postcards....the size did matter.

For my mastersheet I used cutouts from a home depot catalog,  pages from a vintage 1941 Time Book ledger, a piece of old sheet music, and various other ephemera including some very cool Asian pages from Roseanne.

I absolutely love this "Time Book" ledger from Liz! She has several from her husband's family business....Mackenzie Manufacturing. The handwriting is incredible....and it's interesting to note that hourly rates for workers ranged from .35 to .90 an hour.  It may seem wrong to cut it up...but if I don't use it....it may end up in a landfill.  So I will use it sparingly and spread it around in my collage artwork for others to enjoy. 

Even the blank pages are cool!

I used a very limited pallett of just blue and neutrals....then just kept cutting and pasting.  I will admit....I wasn't so sure when I started....but I just kept going. I worked on the back of a large calendar page....and used matte medium as my glue under and over the paper pieces.

One of the techniques I've seen used is to cover the whole thing with a light coat of watered down gesso to unify the piece.  I was cautious......but I did see how it softens the hard lines and darker colors.  I took the photo in the evening which is never a good idea.....it looked much better in the light of day....but I didn't take a second photo.

Then, using a viewfinder to help me decide placement...

I cut my mastersheet into four 4 x 6 postcards....and I was ready for the next step. Stay tuned for my final results.

Here's what they looked like on the back.

Formatting and Fiddling

Both Paul and I both noticed a difference today in the woods....even from yesterday.  

It may have been just the lighting....but you could feel fall creeping in.  All of a sudden there were as many browns, oranges, and yellows on the forest floor as there were greens...and the lower angle of the sun changes everything.

And THIS....is happening in the neighborhood!

Liz's birthday has come and gone...so she has her 2022 4 x 6 desktop Reader Calendar.  I thought I would share the pages since it was one of my puttering projects in the last few weeks.  

I make two months at a time side by side in my "pages" program....these are screen shots of those documents.  I have a file of reader images I collect throughout the year....and I've made templates for the months that I adapt for each year.....then it's just cutting and pasting....and formatting and fiddling.  I kept it mostly neutrals this year....with just a touch of color here and there.  One of Liz's favorite colors, after all, is gray.

I decided December needed a little color.

Every year I thank the artists who photograph or create these reader images.  I never sell these calendars....they are just for the enjoyment of the whoever receives them. I have, at times...used my own art.....like the three scrap collage calendar I did for Becky for 2022: http://joyfulputtering.blogspot.com/2021/12/three-scrap-collage.html

I've Got Mail

"Don't wait for the perfect moment....take the moment and make it perfect."

I put three postcards in the mailbox today for the shared art trade with Becky, Tracie, and Brenda.  We'll see how these little art cards survive their journey to Wisconsin.  More on them to come....I really enjoyed this project!

And....I took something very special out of my box too.

It's a good day when you can say:"I've got mail from Scotland!"

Susan sent me a lovely homemade card and a beautiful fall bookmark.  I love having art friends all over the world! 

Thanks Susan!

Paul and I seized the perfect moment on this spectacular early day and took a field trip to Wolfe's Neck State Park.....a 244 acre peninsula in Freeport Maine.

It's only 30 minutes from home....and neither one of us remember having been there before. It did not disappoint.

Quintessential Maine coast view!

There were trails all along the water with these little views through the trees that were just spectacular.   

This island was an Osprey sanctuary...no humans  allowed.  

Do you see the nest high in the trees?

There were several places with paths or steps down to the rocks along the water.

Down this particular path....Paul went right....

And I went left. 

It was a good day in Maine today!

Limited Pallette

I may be a sucker for color....but I will admit I'm loving the limited palette in these painted papers I've been making over the last few days.

I've been itching to do some mono printing...especially leaf prints before they  disappear for the winter.....but I'm a little rusty.

As a way to get back in the groove....I  signed up for a little mini course with Rebecca Sower called "Winter Tree." It was only $15....and she is taking us through a project from start to finish.  In the mini course she shares her techniques for making textured papers and good tips for collaging.  I have admired her work for years. Her earthy pieces...and use of her hand drawn birds make my heart sing. 

https://www.rebeccasowerart.com/ 

https://www.instagram.com/rebeccasower/ 

This is Rebecca's class piece.....there is an interesting mix of textured papers on all the sides.

I'm quite fond of the winter sky with the black silhouettes of the bare trees. I celebrated it here in this post:

https://joyfulputtering.blogspot.com/2018/02/winter-skies.html

So for now I have some papers ready...now I need to find photo I love...and get a wooden paint panel prepped so I can play with this limited pallett.  

I couldn't stop making these little bronze dots last evening on this textured background...some with a skewer...and some with my finger.  I loved the mix of the bronze and the blue!

Sucker For Color!

I spent most of the morning working on the next art exchange with Becky, Tracie and Brenda. But I can't share it yet....so it's a good day report in on the latest pop of color on my puzzle table.

I absolutely fell in love with the colors and design of this puzzle....and I couldn't resist buying it. I'm a sucker for color....and these colors are the perfect segue from summer to fall.

But now that I've started....I'm having a little bit of a what was I thinking moment."  It's going to be a challenge!

The last time this happened to me....I almost abandoned the puzzle. But the beautiful colors of the iris kept me going...and I got it done....and you can see it here:

https://joyfulputtering.blogspot.com/2019/11/soaking-it-in.html

I'm starting with the dots in the middle of the larger flowers....and will move out from there.  I think my strategies will have to evolve on this one.  And...I just set out my little Halloween trick or treaters....and they're cheering me on. 

I absolutely love these little guys!

How could I resist these colors?  Could you?

Like Clockwork

I'm rounding the corner of the 8th year of writing this Joyful Puttering blog.  Back in January of 2015 I could not have imagined I would be still at it....every single day.....and Paul wondered if I would run out of things to say. 

But like clockwork....the seasons come and go...there are field trips and creative journeys....and an abundance of joy that comes from noticing what's right outside my door.  I have a constant flow on inspiration.

So if you've been with me long-term.....you get some of the same content at certain times of year.  And if you're new....consider yourself warned. I have annual rituals that I celebrate...even the ones that are more mundane.

Every year about this time I cover Christmas matchboxes for Folly 101.... a beautiful little home and gift store in downtown Portland.  It's a funny little job....but I get paid to cut papers....then sit and watch Netflix while I glue the colorful papers onto the boxes.  It's oddly comforting. And like clockwork it becomes the topic of another blog post...because it was one of the ways I joyfully puttered today. The photos look about the same every year....but I always take new one.  It's just what I do.

I've had the papers cut for a few weeks....a perfect mindfully mindless (love that phrase) task in the evening while I watch TV. 

I use matt medium as my glue...and this little chunky cutting board as a weight while they dry.  I've got the process down to a science.

Yesterday after the latest episode of The Great British Baking Show I was half done. 

And this morning....I finished covering the last of the 150 Christmas matchboxes.  I just looked back at my invoices....and I've been doing this for 17 years.  That's a lot of matchboxes.

And the best part is now I get to take a creative excursion downtown to this charming little store for the delivery....and I'm going to take Patty along for the ride.

Next year....some time in the early fall....like clockwork....I'll probably be writing about this mindfully mindless joyful puttering task again.

I found this photo on Folly's Instagram Page.