Easter Morning

This had to have been taken on an Easter morning. 

I'm not sure what year it was...but I look like I might be around 10, which would make my sister LaVonn around 11 and Nancy around 7. 

I remember getting new Easter dresses almost every year. They were often homemade....but every once in a while we got store bought one.  And I have to smile at Nancy's hair. We had one hair bun in the house....and it looks like Nancy was was the winner this particular Easter.  I think all three of us were quite stylish!  

Paul started off his Easter sermon talking about the eruption of Mt. St Helens....and the story has a good message even if you aren't a practicing Christian.

The view at the Easter morning
Sunrise Service at Pine Point Beach.

Paul reminded us how after the eruption there were dire predictions of what the future would be for the devastated landscape around the mountain.  But 44 years later, life has returned....both vegetation and wildlife....and it's thriving. "The mountain, it would seem, has had something of a resurrection."

I was thinking about that story as I took a walk this afternoon and found the snowdrops and crocus thriving that just a week ago were buried in heavy snow and ice. Our ice storm wasn't anywhere near as horrible as a volcano....but it didn't seem possible that there would be signs of life left is these spring blooms after the thaw.  

But these spring bulbs, it would seem, have had something of a resurrection."

Linda asked me about the little red heart that sits on my puzzles....and I thought I would tell this little story again for those who are new to the blog.  I bought it several years ago from Soul Made Goods. I had admired Jessie's hand carved hearts for quite a while and finally ordered one that said joy.  

It landed on my puzzle table when I opened the package....and it's been there ever since.  I love moving it around wherever I am working on the puzzle and it literally makes me smile every time I pick it up.

It's been in my puzzle photographs for all these years....

and it's a daily reminder that joy is often right there in front of you.  

And just as planned....I finished this fabulous artful puzzle this beautiful Easter morning.

On My Table

I can't believe it's almost April...and tomorrow is Easter! Time does seem to fly these days.

After I met with Ida and Sally....I used what was left from Tuesday at the Table to make the April calendar page for Becky....and I got it in the mail early!  Seemed just right since my theme this year is whatever is on my table.

I cut a piece from my example master board...and used several of the tissue doodles that I had on hand. 

April calendar page ✔

On my table upstairs.....I added more leaves and some black and white pen doodles to my recent collage. 

I'm not sure I love it....the second set of cutout leaves are too big. I used the same leaves for both gelli prints...but I wish I would have chosen something else like palm leaves. Oh well.  

I do think it's better....or at least more interesting now.  

 

And I did add the birds to the grid collage page....and did an experiment with paper cuts. It's always tricky glueing down delicate papercuts.

So this time I put fusible webbing on the back of the paper before I cut out the circles....and all I had to do was iron it on the collage.  It worked perfectly.  

There are times that I might not want to iron on top of a collage....so I'm going to do this with caution.  

One more sitting and this colorful puzzle will be done.  

I'm saving it for Easter morning.

One Day At A Time

"How do you do it? said night. How do you wake and shine?  

I keep it simple, said light. One day at a time."  Harry Baker

One of my mail goals today was to make and get a birthday card in the mail to my sister-in-law Alyson. It needed to be creative and unique....just like her.  

Last year I made her an itty bitty bird book that fit inside a matchbox and included photos she had taken of curls in the gardens in her neighborhood.  Alyson continues to love birds....I'm still cutting birds from a bird book she gave me.....and she had given me a little pile of stamps that she had acquired from her grandmother.  So I put the two together along with scraps of this and that and made her a snippet roll birthday card wrapped around an old spool.

(The link above is one side of the itty bitty bird book....and this is the other side.)

The paper on the top and bottom of the spool was cut from the liner paper from an old book. I thought it made for an attractive vintage label.

I glued the snippets on a strip of adding machine paper and did two stitch lines to make things more secure.  

I glued one end on the spool....and stitched a piece of silk ribbon to the other end so it could be tied for closure. Finally....I wrote a little message on the back.

I'm not sure she reads the blog....so I think it's OK to post this.  But Alyson...if you are reading this.....HAPPY EARLY BIRTHDAY!  Here's a little glimpse of what's on its way to Denver. I know you have mastered the art of taking one day at a time!

Got Joy

Paul and I spied this licence plate while visiting Margie a few days ago.  

I think she/he and I could be friends.  It's always nice to know others "got joy!" 

I hope you do.  

 It's always a good day when I connect a puzzle from top to bottom.

I'm working on this simple 500 piece one....just the color and ease I need right now!

I'm enjoying these little eggs on my puzzle table. 

I'm not sure where I got them...but they feel kind of old school...and I like that. They've got joy!  

I collaged another nine patch background...this time all palm prints on tissue.

The branch overlay was cut out from a copy paper print.  I may do something more with this piece...but I'll let it sit for a day or so.  This image is cropped and framed digitally....it helps me visualize what might be possible.

Here's what it really looks like....with the before and after adding zinc white paint.  The paint softens the harsh lines and unifies the collage....it's a miracle worker.

Options

There were almost too many options today....it was hard to know what to do first. But I had been thinking about some palm prints I made last week that I was going to play around with on Palm Sunday.  But the storm was Saturday night...and our power was out on Sunday so everything paused.  

I found this pressed palm in a scrapbook from my highschool years...and I've used it several times making gelli prints.  

It's encased in acrylic paint now...so it may last forever.  

But I decided to work in on one of my big art journals....drew some grids...and played around with some of the palm prints. I'm not the best at collage...but the only way to get better is practice. I worked in a tight color pallette...and put down the first layer with a glue stick.  I tried to keep the rule of thirds in my head all the time.

This was one of my favorite light value papers....

and it was a junk paper where I picked up ghost prints and leftover paint from the plate.  I think I even cleaned my roller on it. Such great textures!

 

  I knew I was missing some darker tones....

...so for the next layer I added a bit of dark blue to all of them.  They were all on deli paper and all had a some sort black paint scribbles on them.  I also added some of this fabulous tissue I got from Roseanne.  Wasn't loving some of them at this point.

Next I added doodles I had one on this green tissue print. I thought a few more black marks would be good. 

Knowing when to stop is not my strong suit.  

But I'm pausing here...and will look at it again tomorrow and see how I can improve them. I think little handwriting writing might be nice....  

....and maybe some birds?  I have lots of options.

This one may be my favorite....I like the simplicity of it and I love this little doodle.  And there's something about a nine patch grid that is just such a pleasing layout.

Do you see what the words say?  "Sincerely Margaret"

Creature Comforts

Our power came back on around 11:00 this morning. Phew! There is nothing like 64 hours of no electricity or heat to put things in perspective and think about all the creature comforts we take for granted. It's also good to know how little we really need....and still do OK. With a little lot of help from Margie of course.

But there's nothing like 7 hours of having the power back to put a little spring in our step. Paul and I kicked into gear to assess the things in the fridge and freezer....which wasn't as bad as we feared. 

We salvaged quite a bit....but used this as an opportunity to give it all a good cleaning...throw some things out...and make room for a fresh start.

Before long we'll be back into our routines....

and the everyday calmness of our lives.  Which we love, by the way.

I do think we'll appreciate our creature comforts just a little more...and hopefully not take them for granted. 

Three Ups

Just a quick post while we're at Margie's doing our three "ups": warming up...charging up...and catching up.  

We still don't have power.  I'm trying not to get discouraged....I know we are still better off than a lot of people in the world...so I'll try and count my blessings.  

I've taken lots of photos around the neighborhood....and will go through them in more detail after we get out power back.  For now...here's a little glimpse of our ice storm.

This tree was uprooted and stretches out into the pond.

Ice can be so beautiful.

But it can certainly do some damage too.

The view out the patio windows while the sun was going down.  

Still...an icey winter wonderland out there. 

It's about 52 degrees in the condo....and I'm ready for the power to come back.

Caked in Ice

We’re caked in ice here in coastal Maine…it’s wild out there! No power or internet…but we’re fine. Posting this from my phone… then turning it off. 

Additional Ounce

I've been thinking about this post for several days.  But like yesterday's post...it required some time and thought because it comes with a few several side stories.  

So bear with me...or at least humor me as I layer up the stories....which all lead to these fabulous school bus stamps. 

Part One
Yellow School Bus Stories:

I grew up on a farm in the country....so spent all of my school years riding a yellow school bus.  

We lived at the bottom of a big hill...and one of us would watch out the bathroom window and call out when the bus was at the top of the hill. It gave us just enough time to get our coats, bags, and lunches and scramble out to the end of the driveway in time to catch the bus.  

Our boys...Nate and Sam used to ride a yellow school bus when we lived in the suburbs of Cumberland, Maine....and they didn't love it.  When we moved into Portland when Nate was in 8th grade and Sam was in 5th....we lived close enough where they could walk to school. One of the best lines ever was when Sam said "being able to walk to school is better than Christmas."

One of the times I was helping my sister Angie during her declining years I bonded with a yellow school bus.  Angie lived in rural Missouri with long country roads lined with cornfields. Our two weeks together were busy and focused so I would take early morning walks while she was still asleep. 

And every week day I met this school bus coming down the hill....and I always paused and watched it come and go until I couldn't see it anymore.  It was comforting.

Part Two

Stamp Stories:

I thoroughly enjoyed my Ounce of Joy giveaway project and putting together envelopes for my Art Hearts and Fusing Fun sales. Sending bits of this and that would require only one stamp was a fun way to approach it. I weighed every envelope....and made sure it didn't go over the ounce. 

My friend Dotty ordered an ounce of fused fabric and I had a little trouble keeping her particular envelope an ounce or under so I just added an extra stamp...and then threw in more fabric.  At the very same time she was mailing me her payment in an oversized card that needed extra postage....so we chuckled as we compared extra stamp stories.  

Part Three (A bit of a digression...but then again...maybe not.)
Fusing Follow-up:

Dotty just recently posted this project on her blog where she used a tiny piece fused fabric (from the extra stamp envelope) for this plant pot.  

It seems just perfect and had me smiling from ear to ear. I love how she dabbled the paint on top of the fabric making is all so cohesive.

https://dottyseiter.com/2024/03/22/in-the-middles/

And here....Dotty used a tiny fused tree as a moment in this fabulous multi layered piece.

https://dottyseiter.com/2024/03/14/nicholas-wilton-free-workshop-post-6/

Part Four

Pulling it all together:

OK....back to the yellow school bus stamps.  

Both Margie and I needed stamps...so I put an order in online at the USPS store and they arrived on Wednesday. But I got two envelopes of stamps from the post office on the very same day....the ones I ordered and the school bus stamps in another envelope.  I was confused...but thrilled.  I didn't see the bus stamps in my forever stamp search...but I LOVED them.  I thought it was a mistake...or maybe a gift from the post office...but I set them aside to investigate later.

Dotty texted me a while later and asked me if I got an unexpected package.  I said no...not even thinking of the stamps that had come earlier.  I was baffled....but on closer look I realized that the bus stamps were a gift from her....and they were ADDITIONAL OUNCE stamps.  

Who knew there was such a thing as an "additional ounce" stamp!  I didn't.  For just 24 cents more, you can mail up to 2 ounces in one envelope as long as it fits the other size specifications. Wow!  Of course you have to have a regular Forever Stamp on the envelope too.

SO....in the spirit of paying it forward....at some point I'm going to offer another give-a-way that I'm going to call An Additional Ounce of Joy!  I'm not quite sure when or what it's going to be....right now I'm just exhausted from telling this whole story.  But I'll figure something out sometime this spring and let you know.  And whatever I do....I can add envelope liners again....and insert heavier things and not worry about keeping it an ounce or under because Dotty has the additional ounce covered!  How fun is that!  

Stay tuned....but be patient.  And congratulations if you made it to the end! 🚌   

Creativity Coach?

It's time to talk a little bit about Tuesday at the Table with Ida and Sally. (I love all the t's in that sentence!)  Working with these women around my table has been an absolute joy....and something I am willing to do with anyone who is interested. (And maybe we could even do it on Zoom.)

I've not always thought about myself as an artist....but I've been a teacher for as long as I can remember. I stumbled into my actual school teaching career by accident....but I grew into my art teaching quite naturally.  I've always enjoyed facilitating creativity and being a resource for anyone who showed interest. Paul recently thought I should call myself a "Creativity Coach"...and I  kind of like the sounds of that.  

Sports coaches don't necessarily have to be the best athletes...but they have to know enough to help inspire and turn their players into better athletes. Ted Lasso (have you seen that wonderful series?) didn't know anything about soccer....but he was a great coach. 

So maybe as a Creativity Coach...I don't have to be an accomplished artist...I just need to know enough to help my students uncover and tap into their own creativity....and facilitate and inspire art making.

My goal with Sally and Ida has been to facilitate the kind of art that they want to do but also introduce them to some new techniques and skills that might inspire them to widen their scope. I'm willing to try anything they're interested in....and chances are...I have most of what we might need.

I've also decided that anyone who takes a class with me will go home with as much supply and stash as they could possibly want...it's just part of the price of admission. So both Ida and Sally get to fill a bag anytime they come.   

This last Tuesday I offered up the idea of starting collage with a "masterboard"...or "mastersheet".....and both Ida and Sally gave it a try.  I describe what a masterboard is in this post: https://joyfulputtering.blogspot.com/2022/09/mastersheet.html

Ida collaged a neutral masterboard....then cut it up and worked on the individual pieces adding pops of color and layers with painted papers and even a grassy napkin.  They are all works in progress that she can continue to develop at home.

We talked about how using something like this circle cutout (from a road map) can unify a piece and help pull it all together.  Ida can choose whether she wants to use it or not because I sent it home with her.

Sally started with more color in her masterboard...and certain areas were a little stark. I showed her how she could use zinc white paint to softened some of the colors and lines and unify the piece. ...and she can decide if it still needs a little more.  Once she cuts this up...she can start adding layers and more pops of color and collage elements on the smaller pieces.

Using a viewfinder...I showed her how she could isolate parts she liked to cut out and develop further.  

 

We also talked about the magic of using tissue...both hand drawn and printed....as well as pretty napkins when you separate the layers.  They also help soften a piece and work as a veil as the background just fades away and the design looks like it was drawn or painted on. I use a lot of hand drawn swirls in my collage work.

I painted these white swirls on deli paper and worked them into this collage for Becky. I love painting swirls in gold. Sally used one in her masterboard.

Recently I've been hand doodling on art tissue with a permanent marker or paint pens...and even sending tissue through my printer.  If I want to be sure the image doesn't smear, I collage it upside down.

When I use words...like this alphabet I print it backwards so when I turn it upside you can actually read it right side up like in this piece.  No smearing...and it looks like it's written right on the piece.

  

To put a piece of art tissue through my printer I tape it to a piece of paper...making sure the tape is really secure.  I turned it upside down in my printer tray and just print as usual.  

Now these two images of this black and white photo can be used as an overlay in one of my collages.  

Here Sally used a few of my doodles in one of her collages and the colorful striped parts are commercial tissue that I had doodled on. 

I sent them both home with art tissue so they could doodle their own.  

Creativity Coach?  Yup...that's what I want to be when I grown up.