time to breathe

Our weeks are so full lately. When you count football (I do) and scheduled art time (yes, I do schedule it in though spontanious art is ALWAYS welcome) it barely leaves time for adventure.
We did manage to squeeze in a hike a few weekends ago.

But we're long overdue for jumping in Abby and driving around the mountains.

This weekend was supposed to be devoted to making my kiln-space weather-tight. We've worked out how to make that happen. But we need a few sunny days to get that done. Though they keep saying it's going to be nice this weekend, it's currently pouring!!!

And speaking of sunny, I need more sunny days to work on my bottle wall. I'm stalled out at 3 layers. All my friends have been contributing to the cause! Between what I've already collected and is waiting for me in the barn... and what my friends have given me, I've got several hundred wine bottles waiting to go into the wall. At roughly 46 bottles a layers, I've got about 4 or 5 more layers I can add. But I need 2 days of sun guaranteed to make sure the cement cures.

Next weekend is pretty empty. On Halloween night we're going to see 101 Dalmatians, the musical. The rest of the weekend is open but I don't want to do so much manual labor I'm feeling too tired for the trip into Atlanta.

The following weekend, November 6, 7 & 8 will be a busy one. This is the weekend for Slotins Folk Art auction. http://www.slotinfolkart.com/ Traditionally, we go to the viewing on Friday night. When we've had our fill and searched every single nook and cranny, we walk over the tracks to have dinner in one of the great restaurants in Historic Buford. But I'm sad to say all my favorite places have closed down or gotten new chefs and changed their formats. I'm sure we'll still go out to eat. But I don't know where.

Then, if we find art we NEED to have, we come back on Saturday, the 7th. Steve Slotin knows how to treat his customers well. He caters breakfast, lunch, dinner and snacks plus has an open bar the whole day (complete with irish coffees and bloody mary's at 8 am). This year I don't think our budget will allow us to purchase anything. We tend to mostly buy during the March auctions (can you say "Tax Return"???). So I don't know if we'll go back on Saturday.

Plus, due to an odd series of events, we're also going to a musical downtown November 7th! It's called In The Height and I've never heard of it. But we're going! I love musicals. It should be fun.

Then on Sunday the 8th I'm taking an all-day PMC class. It was the same day as the Paint With The Artist at Around Back At Rocky's Place. But I'll catch the next one.

In addition, I started 2 new canvas's last night. I think I'm going to like them both a lot. I've been painting lately on flat canvas's. Then I watched a tutorial on The blog of Maron Doyle http://manondoyle.blogspot.com/ the other day and I remembered how much I LOVE painting on textured canvas's. So I prepared 2 yesterday afternoon and I can't wait to get home and paint!!!

Whew!!! Deep breath and breatheeeeeee......

Buddha and a Thousand Candles pendant

Today's necklace uses the pendant made from my Buddha Ohm Ring painting. I printed a picture of the painting on heavy photo paper at about 1/2 inch square. Then I cut out the majority of the picture to leave just the subject matter. I also printed out my favorite Buddhist quote to the size of 1/2 square of regular printer paper:

Thousands of candles can be lit from a single candle,

and the life the candle will not be shortened

Happiness never decreases by being shared

First I placed the quote in the pendant blank. On top of that I placed my picture of Buddha. I then added a 2 part resin mixture and allowed it to drive overnight. It becomes hard within a few hours but it's still sticky to the touch for about 24 hours. For the first 2 hours you need to periodically check and blow out any air bubbles that appear.

After the resin had completely cured I added it to a multi-chain necklace I had made. I embellished with a few blue glass beads and an Ohm pendant. Lastly I added a toggle clasp to secure.

Pendant Crazy

the Merlot Crow hung on a gold chain

Where's My Vote?

AFP on leppard

Walking On Cobblestones

Stockings

Serenity

Robert Johnson

Buddha and a Thousand Candles


I've missed making jewelry lately. I'm soon going to be taking a PMC certification class (which will allow me to both teach and purchase supplies at wholesale). But in the meantime I thought I'd play with some pendant blanks and resin.

All the pictures used are thumbnails of my own paintings. I printed them all in miniture and added to the pendant blanks.

I need to work on my resin techniques. Too many air bubbles. But I'll get that fixed. Also, these pictures are WAYYYY enlarged. The bubbles are not as noticable in real life.

Diagnostic Right Mammogram; Most Such Findings Benign

I painted this over the weekend. I knew I'd put the last letter from my Dr. to good use.

Mixed media & acrylics on canvas

I would not have you lose your hearts in the singing

Something very different for me. It started with a quote by Kahlil Gibran from The Prophet.

Pleasure is a freedom song,
But it is not freedom.
It is the blossoming of your desires,
But it is not their fruit.
It is the depth calling unto a height,
But it is not the deep nor the high.
It is the caged taking wing,
But it is not space encompassed.
Ay, in very truth,
pleasure is a freedom-song.
And I fain would have you sing it with fullness of heart;
yet I would not have you lose your hearts in the singing.



I thought I would end up with something else but this is what came from it.