Altered Book - Today's Special

Today's Special

This was inspired by a discussion I had with a friend who was annoyed by her date telling the waitress she'd be "well compensated" for her extra attention. It made me think of other things a waitress or waiter would be annoyed by, since a single customer can cause a lot of additional running around.

Today's Special (Detail)

I layered the original page with a coat of gesso, brushed on magenta acrylic paint, and spritzed with my walnut ink. I also used the ink on the bottom of my coffee mug to make coffee rings...though I do think they are way to dark. I perused MyFonts.com and found one under the search of "diner" called Coffee Service. I used this for the title of the piece on top of one of my favorite collage scraps, the paper doily!

As a last minute detail, I added the aqua stripes that I smeared with brown stamping ink, and for all you Big Lebowski fans, I think it really pulled the piece together.

Focusing on My Weaknesses

I decided to get back to my all paper, traditional collage roots, for some creative therapy. Maybe I can figure out where I need to go by getting my hands dirty and letting my mind wander through the fields of paper, paint, and gel medium.

I decided to focus on my road blocks and make them work for me instead of letting them get in my way. Here's my list that got me started:

1.) Problem: I want to collage in a journal. But then, I need to buy a new one. But I don't know what size. I don't know how it should be bound. Should I make my own journal? Then if I make a mistake, I REALLY will be pissed.
Solution: I decided to alter an old 2009 hard bound weekly calendar. Now if I make a mistake, I'm not out anything, AND it's already going to look ratty because I'm altering it. Whew. I can move on.

Altered Book
Original State

2.) Problem: But wait. What if my arms don't look realistic? Hands are also very difficult to do with paper and eyes can be tough too. They require a lot of detail.

Solution: Instead of fussing for a real look, I'm going to let my artwork look UNreal.

3.) Problem:  I don't want to spend too much time on each piece. I want to keep the projects small and easy...otherwise, when I mess up I'll be REALLY pissed that I'd spent so many hours on a meaningful piece only to have to toss it as a final step.
Solution: KISS - keep it simple, stupid. I plan to remind myself of this on every page.

4.) Problem: How shall I write my journal text? My handwriting sucks, and I don't want to make any spelling errors. Shall I collage each letter or word? Seems rather time consuming. Should I type and print what I want to say and then insert into my piece?
Solution: I'm going to use this altered book as a way to explore. So I will try all three mentioned above and research other ways to input text...Stamping? Stenciling? Transferring?

5.) Problem: Well, I don't have to worry about staring at a blank page and messing it up with an altered book. But, I do have to worry about making errors on page one. What if, at the end, I want to create a title page that ties it all together?
Solution: I'm starting on page five. Plenty of room left in the beginning without all those first page jitters.

5.) Problem: I'm a known procrastinator. I need a deadline or I'll tinker with other projects.
Solution: Well, I'll do that anyway. BUT, I'm going to enter it as a Cloth Paper Scissors Artisan 2011 contest entry, due the end of summer. There's my deadline. Now, it's time to get started.

First Step - Rip It Up
Removing Signatures

First things first. I've already removed additional pages by finding the threads to each signature and tearing out 2 sets each. This will give me room to add my collages with the hopes my altered book will still close at the end. I used opaque white gesso for the first time, painting over the first spread of calendar paper readying it for ART!

I've cut out my pieces for the first image...and...that's as far as I've gotten. Hey! It's progress!

The Big Send Off

I was trying to work on another set of houses for the Cloth Paper Scissors contest...but procrastinated too long and wasn't able to get to it today. I was going to add wheels and have them be "mobile" homes...they would have been so much cuter than the ones below...if only...

But, since these are done, I'm sending them off to the "Home Sweet Home" contest.

A Scrappers Weekend

Space!
Yvonne, Ginger, and Sheryl

What happens after you get rid of the wicker furniture set that was taking up space in your basement? Well, if you're the crafty sort, it's another excuse to throw a scrapbooking party! Four of us got together again for a Second Annual Basement Scrapbooking Party to socialize and get caught up on projects before the Western WA Scrapbooking Retreat this November.

I worked on another Cloth Paper Scissors magazine contest called "Home Sweet Home." I don't like my final work, so I'm unsure if I will start again or not. We'll see what this week brings. Below are the two houses I finished during our creative weekend.

Journey Home

Music Home

Character in Color

Tayisha

I worked hard on those hands! I finally found the path from "girl with big hands" to a girl holding a butterfly in perspective. I played around with some different techniques on adding shadows...but ultimately liked the way I've been doing it. I'm sticking with what works.

Enjoy!

Creative Cup Challenge: Character of the Week 001

Tyaisha

Meet Tyaisha, the character of the week. She is a 10 year old black American girl, wears glasses, but doesn't like them. She loves cats and is fascinated by bugs. She's an introvert and doesn't have a lot of friends. Her favorite thing to wear is a casual hoodie with capri pants. She lives with her single mother in an apartment.

"Where's my hair? Where are my legs?"

Freaky Fingers

It has not escaped my attention that I didn't put glasses on Tyaisha. I tried it on one sketch and she looked like a bug. So I thought to go ahead and draw her without, and maybe add them in when I do color...is this a wise approach? Or am I flirting with disappointment?

She loves cats, but living in an apartment, I'd think her mother would say 'no' to pets. So Tyaisha shares her adoration by wearing cat shirts. She's toting a bug carrier in the first sketch...and probably has a magnifying glass and butterfly net somewhere in her repertoire of bug tools. Naturally, her capri pants are also cargo style...great for holding bug bait and gummi worms.

To help find poses for this assignment, I surfed gettyimages.com. Very helpful!

Would love a critique. Lay it on me. I know hands and feet are my weakness.

I'm STILL on Vacation!

I'm on vacation enjoying some sunny weather, spending time with my family, and sipping the occasional adult beverage with my feet up. Pure relaxation.

With the end of bliss staring me in the face, (tick tock) I began to wonder why I even brought my sketch pad. I haven't done any drawing or felt very creative on this trip. But, just now, I remembered a book I started reading: Is Life Like This? A Guide to Writing Your First Novel in Six Months by John Dufresne.

I may not be sketching, but I am getting my "creative on" through writing. I've been exploring the exercises from the book mentioned above. One of my favorites for Week 1 is to write "Top 10" lists. The author mentioned another book to get list ideas, called The Pillow Book of Sei Shonagon translated by Ivan Morris. It got great reviews on Amazon, so I'm looking forward to checking this out when I get home.

Top 10 Things I Enjoyed on this Vacation
1.) Watching the movie, Thor, in Imax 3D with my SO.
2.) Visiting with a high school friend. One I haven't seen since the last reunion 13 years ago.
3.) Eating ice cream cones with my daughters and Oma at Star Burger, affectionately still known as Frosty Freeze.
4.) Eating shish kabobs and drinking wine with Oma and Opa's long time neighbors/close family friends.
5.) Watching the movie, Bridesmaids, with SO and B-I-L.
6.) Shopping at second hand stores for kids toys.
7.) Reading the book, Graceling by Kristin Cashore, by the (kiddie) pool side.
8.) Playing with my daughters outside by making mud pies, swimming in the kiddie pool and watering Oma's garden with spritzing bottles.
9.) Visiting the town's library, especially the childrens book section.
10.) Writing "Top 10" lists!

Top 10 Books I've Checked Out From the Library and Read While on this Vacation
1.) Graceling by Kristin Cashore (Excerpts from this novel were read at one of the SCBWI conference sessions)
2.) Falling for Rapunzel by Leah Wilcox (I wanna buy this book! Funny with great verse)
3.) Waking Beauty by Leah Wilcox (I wanna buy this book too! Funny with great verse)
4.) My Sister Ate One Hare by Bill Grossman (This book was read at one of the SCBWI conference sessions)
5.) Fire by Kristin Cashore (Second "companion" book to Graceling)
6.) Don't Let the Pigeon Drive the Bus! by Mo Willems (Was read at Library toddler time and quoted by my girls there after)
7.) Busy Little Mouse by Eugenie Fernandes (Loved the illustrations)
8.) My Truck is Stuck by Kevin Lewis (Have read multiple times in the past but always worth re-reading)
9.) Is Life Like This? A Guide to Writing Your First Novel in Six Months by John Dufresne (Lessons for week 1 and 2 got my creative juices flowing)
10.) Down by the Sea with Mr. Magee by Chris Van Dusen (Fun verse and spectacular illustrations)

Top 10 Things I Probably Won't Do Again
1.) Take the Nevada Southern Railway excursion. Twice is enough.
2.) Have a margarita at Sunset Station. A margarita in a plastic cup is uncivilized.
3.) Order a Kyuuri cocktail while having sushi. It was good, but sake would have been better.
4.) Sit in the section where our waitress serves in Green Valley Station. She was a dolt.
5.) Go to the Mirage's Secret Garden with dolphins and white tigers. Once was enough. The dolphins were cool but caged cats just doesn't do it for me.
6.) Make stepping stones. I'm done with this project! I made 4 for my mom, 4 for myself, and 4 here for my M-I-L.
7.) Leave my incontinent cat home alone to over eat.
8.) Order a falafel burger again. Dense.
9.) Who thought the movie, Black Dynamite, was a good idea...George!
10.) Read Hippo Goes Bananas by Marjorie Dennis Murray. My summary for this book...with friends like these, who needs enemies?

and a bonus!

11.) Not stay up until 1:00 am writing "Top 10" lists!

Goodnight.

Links to Share

I went to the SCBWI Western Washington 20th Annual Writing and Illustrating for Children Conference over the weekend of April 16-17. Unfortunately, due to a major head cold (lasted 2 weeks!) I did not bring my 'A' game. Feeling like I was in a fog most of the time made me a little anti-social and in serious need of a nap.

Enough whining!

I'm finally feeling better, and with a bout of sunshine under my belt, my attitude is coming 'round. So, I thought I'd better share the good stuff. Below are some links that I discovered and enjoyed from the conference:

1.) Met my critique partner from Australia who just happened to be hobnobbing in my neck of the woods, Kim Fleming. I'm a big fan of her artwork. Here is her portfolio: http://www.kimflemingillustration.com

2.) Met Shane Watson and am excited that he is now a part of our Creative Cup critique group. He is a fabulous illustrator. His portfolio: http://www.oreganoproductions.com/

3.) I collected postcards for my favorite artists at the conference's Juried Art Show.

Robin E. Kaplan is an inspiration and was the 2nd runner up winner. Her portfolio: http://robin-e-kaplan.artworkfolio.com/ 

Ward Jenkins makes drawing look fun and easy. I really enjoy his style. His portfolio: http://www.wardjenkins.com/WARD_JENKINS.html

Margie B. Segress is exceptionally talented! Her portfolio: http://www.bymargie.com/index.html

4.) My favorite guest speakers at the conference were Rollin Thomas (Alternate Picture-Book Structures), and Lin Oliver (Tricks of Writing Effective Dialogue).

5.) Authors were discussing software they use to keep thoughts, research, outlines, character development, and drafts organized. Scrivener was mentioned to me a couple times. I found a list of other writing software at Literature and Latte.

Research on writing software brought to my attention a review site. I found this very helpful to break down feature sets, ease of use, tool sets, reviews, and cost. The site is called Top Ten Reviews.

Getting Some Perspective!

This has been a tough image! Perspective/foreshortening is a lot harder than I imagined. I took a picture of my daughter and it helped to draw on it to see where everything lined up. Just thought I'd share my process!

I kept cutting the boy's suit in Photoshop to get it situated just right, played with the transform tool, pasted, cloned, painted...so this looks cobbled together. It is a learning piece for sure. I'll print it and redraw it to get a clean image. Then I'll rescan and start piecing it together again.

Success will be mine...dammit!

Speaking of success...I've been reading up on drawing the figure, expressions, and figures in action. Here is a book list that I'm finding most helpful:

Cartooning the Head and Figure by Jack Hamm
Drawing and Cartooning 1,001 Faces by Dick Gautier
Action! Cartooning by Ben Caldwell
Drawing Fashion by Bill Thames
Dynamic Figure Drawing by Burne Hogarth
The Artist's Complete Guide to Facial Expressions by Gary Faigin

Craft Published in Cloth Paper Scissors!

Cloth Paper Scissors Cover
March/April 2011 Issue

My Deux Pois Bakery confections were a contest finalist for a reader challenge hosted by Cloth Paper Scissors magazine. The challenge was called "All Buttoned Up" and needed to showcase the obvious, buttons!

It was a great surprise to receive my copy of the magazine in the mail before it even hit the news stand! I didn't know they were going to gift me a free copy. And I got a double feature...the contents page and the feature article. How sweet is that?

Cloth Paper Scissors
Contents Page 3

Cloth Paper Scissors
Feature Page 79

Color Acuity Test

Instead of working on my very important project, I wandered down internet lane in discovery of more information about the eyes' rods and cones. I wanted to leave a pithy comment on Andrew Finnie's post regarding this subject, but instead, lost myself in a hue test at xrite.com

I'm happy to report that from the range 0 being perfect color acuity to 99 being pretty low...I got a whopping 7! Apparently, I have a minor deficiency in the aqua range...which if funny, because aqua is my favorite color. I love what I don't know, apparently.

Take the test and feel those rods vibrate!

Ain't No Chicken!

Owl at Home
Digital Collage

I just finished this paper collage turned digital collage today. FINALLY! It's been sitting on my desk for months...and piece by painful piece, it has clicked together like a puzzle to tell Owl's story.

Too bad Illustration Friday's theme this week is "chicken." I'd've really liked to give owl the debut he deserves. Alas, he is alone.

Below is the actual collage piece that I had to scan in two passes. As one can see, I did not pay attention to the light direction and had to rework Owl's eyes in the digital version. I was going to hang the original, but those eyes are really going to bug me.

Owl at Home
Paper Collage: Scan 1

Owl at Home
Paper Collage: Scan 2

Hollified for the Holidays

Flip Flop's Savory Flapjacks
Holiday Version

Here is my They Draw and Cook Contest entry with some holiday flair! I added some Christmas lights and holly to give it a more festive look.

Happy Holidays everyone!

They Draw and Cook Contest EntryIllustration Friday: Savour

Flip Flop's Savory Flapjacks

I heard about the They Draw and Cook Contest today and thought I would hurry and get something done before the 9 pm PST deadline. I gnawed over pumpkin soup ideas, hot chocolate recipes, crepes...then finally, my favorite, pancakes!

I started this image at around 2:00 pm when I put the girls down for a nap...and worked straight through until 8:55 pm PST. Thankfully, hubby was amenable to getting dinner for himself and the girls. I was in my groove.

My hand has a cramp and I'm getting a slight headache from slouching over my computer non-stop...but I think I'll survive. It was a good test of endurance.

This also works with Illustration Friday's theme this week, savour! Love it when that happens.

Western Washington Scrapbook Retreat

Tea Cozy
Jodie and Stacia

And the fun begins! Jodie drove up from Bend, Oregon to participate in the WWS Retreat. We left a day early to enjoy the town of Port Townsend, but, before we got too far down the road, we had a delicious breakfast at the Queen Mary Tea Room in Seattle.

Later that morning, while sitting in line to cross the Hood Canal Bridge, we noticed the car in front of us had a license plate cover that read, "Crazy for tea cozies." How apropos! My monkey brain loves seeing pattern connections.

Cropping Buddies
Shannon, Tonya, and Jodie

The retreat was a lot of fun. I was roped begrudgingly into volunteering for the Bumpy Basket Raffle, and although I didn't do much, I met some nice ladies and enjoyed myself in the process. Sometimes, I surprise myself. Next year I won't be so hesitant to participate.

Here are a few finished projects from the retreat:

Gingerbread Man
Christmas Cards 2010

Hello.
Floral Greeting Cards

Woot, Roar, and Quack
Artist Trading Cards

I'm a Finalist!

Deux Pois Bakery Confections
"All Buttoned Up" Contest entry

While perusing the Cloth Paper Scissors website, I came across the list of 24 finalists for the "All Buttoned Up" contest...and my name is on it! I should have gotten an email letting me know, but never did. Truly, a Black Friday surprise!

Card Swap

The Western Washington Scrapbookers Retreat is drawing near! A weekend of dedicated creative time...time away from kids, routine, and responsibilities. For me, the ball starts rolling with the introduction of the card swap.

Last year I used old music sheets for my "Just a Note" greeting cards. This year, I had bought an old atlas from a garage sale and was eager to use the maps for my inspiration.

A Single Daisy Can Be My Garden...
Final Count: 15 Cards

A Single Friend, My World
Front, Inside, and Back

The original quote for the card came from Leo Buscaglia, which read, "A single rose can be my garden...a single friend, my world." I took the liberty of making a flower change to suit my needs. Leo, please forgive me!

Scrapbooking Party

What happens after you get rid of the pool table that was taking up space in your basement? Well, if you're the crafty sort, you throw a party! I invited a couple of my scrapbooking friends over for a mini retreat as a warm up for the Western WA Scrapbooking Retreat this November.

Basement Setup
Yvonne, Ginger, and Sheryl

I'm not a scrapbooker, but I love paper, glue, and all those doo-dads that go with the biz. I opted to work on a project for the Cloth Paper Scissors contest called, "All Buttoned Up."

I had sewn some fabric confections, sprinkled with buttons and lace, as a gift for my toddlers back in February. I thought this would make a great contest entry for the use of buttons...and decided to polish up the project by working on the container.

Confections with Buttons
...and the bakery box

I used matte gel medium to adhere strips of paper, sponged on a coat of brown acrylic paint, adhered the "Deux Pois Bakery" logo with dye cut circles and gold paint dots. I repeated the pattern inside the box, by lining it with brown, pink, and cream polka dotted paper.

An Array of Treats

Singled Out

Cleanup at the GulfIllustration Friday: Ripple

Cleanup at the Gulf

I thought I'd offer a more hopeful illustration referencing the Gulf's oil spill crisis. Some critters are being saved...One can hope that with the extra waves Ripple is creating, that more will follow.

Engulfed

Engulfed

My attention was drawn to Kelly Light's blog, Ripple, today, which inspired me to create this image while my brain stewed over the oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico.