123123

Subtitle (Sesame Street Style): This Post Is Brought To You By The Number 3.

Today is 12/31/23....do you see the pattern: 123123!  I have people in my life who look for number patterns....so appreciation for them has rubbed off a bit on me.  And since 3 is my favorite number....counting 1-2-3....1-2-3 seems especially cool today.

The number 3...and a little joy were the themes of Liz's (Paul's sister and a lover of number patterns) Christmas gift for me.  All these things were found at thrift stores which makes me love them even more.

Speaking of three....yesterday I attended a surprise birthday party for my dear friend Linda in Lexington.  It was good to see several dear friends....and celebrate this wonderful woman.  

And in anticipation of Linda's celebration I started with the word "party" on yesterday's Wordle puzzle....and look where it led me! The only thing that would have better than getting it in two tries would have been getting it in 3.

I didn't get a photo with the birthday girl....but I did get a photo of me with my Lexington walking buddies. Anita and Janet have been walking for years and years and....and they welcomed me along the 12 years Paul and I lived there.  

The 3 of us lived just a few blocks from one another and would meet on the corner as often as we could for a morning walk.  

It's been almost 3 years since I moved....and Anita and Janet are still walking.

I just remembered that I got today's Wordle in 3 tries. Many of us in New England were happy to have our first sunny day in a very long time. 

Anchor Image #4

Subtitle: Stripes and Dots

The final anchor image was my own.....and this is what I wrote to each person when I sent the image:

"I have pinned this piece by artist Jonas Wood on Pinterest several times.  I've always wanted to play with it so this project seemed to be the perfect time to do just that. I believe it's actually a collage.  

I chose it because of the simple shapes and whimsical quality.  There are so many ways it can be interpreted and reimagined using paint and/or collage.  And there's an opportunity to do something fun with the color scheme, the pot and the background...or not. All of that, of course, is up to you.  This plant can become anything you want...or need it to be."

I wanted my piece to be a mixture of paint and collage.  

I played around with a few ideas...but ended up with a simple watercolor that I embellished with catalog snippets.  I really appreciated the varied leaf shapes in the anchor image....but ended up sticking with circles for the leaves and stripes for the table. For better or worse....I'm a stripes and dots gal. 

At first I stuck to greens and blues....

but it changed for the better when I started to add some color.  I used words from a catalog to create the striped tablecloth and embellish the pot...and patterned snippets for a pop of color on the leaves.

I especially like that you can see the word "stripes" peeking through on the pot.

I didn't take too many process photos....but this was my table when I was starting to audition papers. The watercolor was barely dry.  This was also the point where I thought....this could work.

Tracie created a whimsical watercolor and embraced the varied shapes of the leaves of the anchor image.  We all thought her plant pot was especially excellent....and I adore the cats peeking from behind the table. The pops of red were a nice nod back to the one red leaf in the anchor image. Well done Tracie!

Beck reinterpreted the image into a collage tree. Her paint chip leaves mimic the colors and shapes of the anchor image so well....and she added the one striped leaf as a nod back to the anchor image. Becky and I have a long history of looking at paint chips together....so that connection was not lost on me.  She added pinky red stems...also like the anchor image....something I had forgotten about...nice job Becky!

Brenda lovely watercolor potted plant also had red stems....and I really appreciated all the  soft shades of green. Her pot was well done too...nice shading!  She added a few extra pieces of mine that she saw on my blog....description to follow.  When I create little decorating "moments" in my home...I generally group three things together....so way to go Brenda!

You can see the green vase and the striped plant pot on my puzzle table here.  The pot came from Emily, my goddaughter, and the plant that Brenda painted into the pot came from Becky (Emily's mom) and I have several here and there around my house in other pots.

Well done ladies...the Anchor Image Exchange is complete...and was a big success!  

I wonder what's next?

Anchor Image Exchange #3

Subtitle: Fiddling and Fusing

Becky's anchor image was a bold beach sunset.  There were a couple things that caught my eye right away...the subtle pinks and purples at the horizon...and the little sliver of land on the left along the horizon with what looks like a lighthouse right at the end. 

You have to really zoom it to see the lighthouse...and I think I was the only one who noticed it.  Maybe it's my Maine lighthouse radar.

Becky's was the only card I more closely recreated the anchor image. I added the little lighthouse....with a tiny gold dot for the light. It's hard to see my lighthouse in this photo.....and it's hard to capture the gold straight on.....  

...unless you tilt it to the light. 

My piece started with four gelli prints the colors I pulled from the sky.

I also used this printed paper gifted to me from Roseanne...I thought it might be just the right substrate to give the water some texture.  I decided to add fusible webbing to the back of everything so I didn't have to use glue.  It worked perfectly.

I found a black geli print for the beach...then fiddled with the shapes and colors before I fused it all together. I am fully aware that I overworked the water on the finished piece.

It would have been so much better with more of the texture from the paper showing through like it is here. I just kept adding another layer....and another trying to get that depth. I should have kept it simple and stopped way sooner. 

I knew I wanted to add some dune grass and my first thought was to stitch it in.  But that could have gone very badly...so in the end the white paint pen against the black beach worked well. The moon is punched out of watercolor paper painted with white shimmery watercolor.

I think the tiny black mount frames it nicely....

and the pink scalloped envelope liner was just right.

I put a favorite beach quote on the back 

and anchor image #3 was ready to go back to Becky.

Becky took a very different approach on her version of her anchor image. 

She focused on the color scheme... and the moon became the center of her flower.  It evokes the image perfectly.

Both Tracie and Brenda created watercolor versions.  Tracie's sky is so dramatic....I especially love that yummy purple horizon line! She captured the swoopy line created by the moon so well.  

Brenda's watercolor sky is also swoopy and beautiful with all the distinctive colors. I thought she captured the moodiness of the water and I love the tuft of dune grass in the corner.

Anchor Image Exchange #2

Subtitle: Pieces and Parts

The second anchor image came from Brenda.....a page from A Snowy Day by Ezra Jack Keats...one of her favorite books from her childhood. 

I wasn't familiar with the story....so I thought a context for the image would be helpful. I found a reading of the book on YouTube...and that changed EVERYTHING!  

I was quite taken with the story about Peter and his excitement about the Snowy Day.  I've always loved a snow day off from school...as a child growing up and as a teacher.  I still love a snow day.

I adored the patterns and images throughout the book and I knew instantly that I would incorporate several of them into my art piece.  I wouldn't recreate the exact scene....but would honor the pieces and parts of it with pieces and parts from the whole book. I smiled all the way through this creative journey. 

The snow in the book looked like watercolor splotches.....so that's what I did.

The pattern in Peter's pajamas got recreated on the buildings and his bed frame became the fence.

And I knew this little snowman would have to be in there somewhere.

I LOVED the tile floor in the bathroom....

and knew immediately it would become the watercolor sky. I even included the rubber duckie.  At times I was a little giggly.

I recreated this image of Peter sliding all the way down the hill and tucked it into the snow.

This is the pattern I created from Peter's pajamas. I took a screenshot of one tiny little section from the book....then cut and pasted it over and over to create the graphic. I printed onto painted papers...resizing it a bit for each building. 

I sat with these pieces and parts in a pile for a long time before I had the nerve to cut and start glueing.

I recreated the snowman and painted it with shimmery white watercolor....

...and I typed the words from the first page of the book for the back.  

I was tickled to find a piece of scrapbook paper that looked a lot like the bathroom tile/sky.....and Brenda's anchor image was ready to go. 

Brenda recreated the page from the book beautifully. It looks just like the achor image.  Her memories and connection to the book made these cards even more meaningful. She told us she remembered every single page.

Tracie made the precious snowsuits a focal point as Peter and his buddy went out to play on the second snowy day at the end of the book. I love the polka dots...and the cat peeking through the fence....and I think her watercolor snow is so effective.

Becky's card was dimensional and interactive with little show globe feature. Very clever Becky.  Little Peter in his red snowsuit and the snowflakes are loose...and can be shaken about. She used some sort of painted texture medium to create the glistening mounds of snow.  

Anchor Image Exchange #1

Subtitle: Ponder and Play

I will have to say....this Anchor Image Exchange project was both challenging....and incredibly fun.  The images couldn't have been more different...and each one sent me on a unique creative journey.

I got Tracie's image of a window first....and it came with this quote: "You are looking at the world from your window, that's good, but there is something missing here, something very big: You must also look at your window from the world to see yourself!"  Mehmet Murat ildan

After quite a bit of pondering....
I came up with a wacky idea....and just went with it. 

I decided to use one of my blind continuous line self portraits I did while taking  the "Funky Faces In Stitch" class with Gina Ferrari. I wanted "me" in the window...and this version of me seemed just right.

Tracie enjoyed hearing about that class here on the blog....and ended up doing her own blind self portrait. And I ended up recreating her drawing in stitch and sending it to her as a gift.  You can see that project here: https://joyfulputtering.blogspot.com/2022/11/friendly-face.html

I loved this class....and this post shows some of my advanced process for doing some of my funky faces towards the end of the class: 

https://joyfulputtering.blogspot.com/2022/10/mistakes-become-opportunities.html

After coloring in a copy of one of my drawings I cut it out and auditioned several backgrounds.  

In the end I typed out random words and phrases that I hope describe me....how I would like the world to see me. 

I cut out a purple window grid from a gelli print...because Tracie lives in a purple house...so why not! The anchor image house was pink....purple made perfect sense.

I wanted the illusion of shutters....and wanted include a window box. I had to ponder and play for a while and there's lots of evidence of that all around in this photo. I'm chuckling now...because this simple lined paper looks pretty good....less busy. 

But in the end I came across a printed image of my rolled paper tubes that is the header for my blog....and it reminded me of the lines on a shutter. And it oozes MaryAnn!

I used some of my loose watercolor flowers and leaves in the window box.  And there's some of that lined paper being put to use as the window box.

Finally, I edited my ramblings a bit for the back. My rendition of Tracie's anchor image is a little wacky....and I had a blast pondering....playing....and putting it together.

I found some complimentary paper for the envelope liner....and Tracie's anchor image project was ready to go.

When Tracie was choosing her image....she had narrowed it down to four photos of a window.  

She chose just one to send around to the rest of us....but her own card included four separate windows representing different aspects of her life. It was fun hearing all the details and stories about her decisions and painting process. Her watercolor images are just precious...and she tucked in a cat...or two on all her cards.

Brenda created a scene from the outside looking into her own home.  It included her dog Farley who is always at the window greeting everyone....and her beautiful hydrangea garden right outside. I love the mix of watercolor....and an actual photograph of Farley.

Becky's window was reflective of her mood at the time....quiet and reflective....and like the cat....sometimes just hanging on! Some of the pieces and parts of her card were dimensional and the color scheme has such a moody....and cozy vibe!