STONE ANGEL ARTS

Moving in Cyberspace

noreply@blogger.com (DIANE) — Sat, 11 Oct 2008 01:07:00 +0000

I've decided to move my blog to be part of my Stone Angel Arts website. This was something that I had always planned to do but it took my brother's help to make it actually happen. All the previous entries have been transferred to the new site, so please stop by and say "hi". The new blog can be found at www.stoneangelarts.com/blog.

GPP Street Team - Crusade #22

noreply@blogger.com (DIANE) — Sun, 31 Aug 2008 23:34:00 +0000

I've posted entries in the past for Michelle Ward's Green Pepper Press Street Team Crusades. Well, she has challenged people again to stretch their wings open their hearts with a "Pay it Forward Challenge". She challenged people to make a gratitute gesture (think of something you can do for someone that 'pays forward' a kindness done to you). Seeing Michelle's challenge prompted me to finish something I had decided to do almost a year ago.

Last fall I bought the book "Living the Creative Life" by Rice Freeman-Zachery and was immediately enamored with the insight that all the artists provided (not to mention all the great eye-candy to inspire one's own creativity). I hadn't even finished the first chapter when I found myself constantly thinking of two childhood friends who encouraged my creative dreams. Although I still am in touch with them, for the past several years we have succumbed to only an annual christmas card for communication. Even though I had no idea if either of these women have continued on their own creative journey, I felt it necessary to buy each of them a copy of the book. My initial intention was to mail the book as soon as I got it (I think it was in October of 2007) but life got in the way. Then I was going to try to get it out to them for Christmas but again life got in the way. I don't know how many times I looked at those books (and the padded envelopes that at some point I put with them) but they just never found their way into the mail system. When I read Michelle's challenge earlier this month, I knew the time had come. Within a week, I had notes written to my dear friends Mary and Cathy and had entrusted them to the US postal service. I only hope that they find the book as inspiring as I have.

I'm baaaaaack....

noreply@blogger.com (DIANE) — Sat, 30 Aug 2008 22:39:00 +0000

I know it has been over four months since I last posted anything but I am still here (you can see me as I photographed Lake Michigan at the end of June). Everyone's life has their share of chaos and here are just a few of the chaotic happenings in my life since I last posted:

My hard drive crashed (I just had it replace after Thanksgiving last year and at the time I didn't remember that I had purchased the extended warranty) and it took 5 weeks before I received my computer back from the service center (because they had to send it in 3 times to get it operational...but hey, I now have a new motherboard and hard drive).
Our basement flooded, dried out, had the carpet cleaned, flooded again, dried out, had the carpet cleaned AGAIN, FLOODED AGAIN, carpet and padding was ripped out where the water was seeping up in the center of the basement. The water table kept getting too high and even though the sump pump kept up with the perimeter, water seeped up through a couple of cracks in the foundation.
The school year ended and my oldest son "graduated" from elementary school. He starts 6th grade at the middle school on Tuesday.
baseball, Baseball, and more BASEBALL! Number one son played in the majors and number two son played coach pitch and I was team parent for both teams. Then our season was extended by five weeks with tournaments since number one son made the 11-year old all-star team.
We celebrated my parents 60th wedding anniversary with a family weekend in Sheboygan (which is when I took the above picture).
A very long house project that included new siding and paint removal from the brickwork in the front (and subsequent tuckpointing because a lot of mortar came out during the powerwashing).

Wow, I'm exhausted just reading about all that again. I am looking forward to school starting on Tuesday so that I can get back in my studio and find some time for my art (something that I have been in dire need of). So hopefully I will have some new artwork to post about soon.

The Mailman Delivers

noreply@blogger.com (DIANE) — Mon, 07 Apr 2008 16:02:00 +0000

Last week I received a note from the fabulous mixed media artist, Pam Carriker, that I had won a giveaway she was offering on her blog. It was a wonderful surprise on a day that had been grueling (as I was working on a house project that has been plaguing me for quite some time). The goodies she sent me arrived in my mailbox on Saturday and I couldn't believe the treasure trove of artsy goodness that the envelope contained. I love Pam's work and getting so many handmade items from her made my day. Each of the items are gorgeous but I think my favorite is the cat ATC. It fits my sense of humor and it was so incredibly timely because I have been talking with my son about idioms (he is just starting a project in his class on the subject) and here was a fun example to share with him. Pam, in case you are reading this, your artwork will be shared with his 5th grade class in the very near future (although first I need his teacher to assure me of its safety). Don't you just love a GOOD MAIL DAY?

GPP Crusade 18

noreply@blogger.com (DIANE) — Sun, 30 Mar 2008 01:52:00 +0000

I know I haven't been doing the Crusades for that long, but I have to say that this has been my FAVORITE! Stamp carving is ADDICTING. I carved three new stamps for
Crusade No. 18. Two of them resemble an ironwork fence and the last one was kind of a spur of the moment carving of a pair of eyes. I have a lot of stamps that have eyes but for some reason, I felt the need for a pair that was bigger.

The designs for the ironwork style stamps were from a book on architectural clip art. I carved them so they could be lined up for a continues design of any length. The larger of the two is about 6 inches wide. The basic design for the eyes was traced from a piece of artwork I have by Christina Lazar-Schuler. The eyes of the woman in the piece I have have such a haunting quality that I thought they would be perfect for a stamp. I traced them on tissue paper and then transfered the pencil to the stamp surface. To get a lighter feel to the shadow and iris of the eyes, I used one of my Stampbord tools that is used to create cross-hatching on Stampbord. It worked well to make that section of the stamp less solid.
These two art journal pages show the stamps I created. The one page includes a bunch of stamped images (birds and flowers) using See Ds Stamps by Sugarloaf. My carved stamp is the fence in the foreground. The other art journal page features both the eyes stamp and the other ironwork stamp (which was stampe in silver Brilliance ink and then embossed using Broken China Distressed Embossing Powder by Ranger Ink. Just a reminder...if you click on the image of the journal page, it will open in a lightbox and you can see it better (and scroll to the other image). I thought I would mention that again since the little symbol that indicates multiple images is difficult to see on the pictures.

Next month's challenge is going to be making stencils. I am getting geared up for that. I actually made a stencil a couple of months ago and still have yet to use it so I know this will give me the kick in the butt I need to finish that project.

GPP Street Team Crusade #17

noreply@blogger.com (DIANE) — Sat, 01 Mar 2008 19:57:00 +0000

Again, I'm sneaking my blog entry in under the wire for Michelle's challenge. The sad thing is, I actually had my art journal box done for almost two weeks. Although I haven't posted my picture until now, I think I can finally say that I am an art journaler. I have tried starting art journals off and on over the past two years but never did more than a couple of pages. Well, I'm proud to say that this morning I did my sixth consective daily art page since I put together this box. But even more exciting for me has been that each page is a result of my thoughts while I have been riding my exercise bike (that means I've spent 30 minutes biking everyday for the past six days -- YEAH! pardon me while I pat myself on the back). I took the box out for its first "travel experience" yesterday. My friend Kay and I took a road trip to Green Bay to check out a business, The Assemblage Studio, I discovered web surfing last year. The photo of my art journal box was actually taken "on location" at The Assemblage Studio. Since I didn't have time to finish my page after biking, I took the box so I could finish it there. I need to do a little raving now about The Assemblage Studio. What I loved about this business was the concept of having an amazing variety of items to purchase for altered art projects plus the ability to work there (so we could pick out the perfect pieces as we worked). Teresa Ann Gifford, the owner and altered artist extraordinaire, was so incredibly nice. Since the road trip was only planned less than a day before we went, we didn't think to call ahead to see about the work space or anything. But Teresa welcomed us with open arms and shared not only her wonderful space but a wealth of information.

If you ever find yourself in the Green Bay area (technically the business is in DePere), definitely plan a stop at her business or sign up for some of the amazing classes she offers. You will not be disappointed.

I'll sign off with pictures of a couple of my favorite art journal pages.

Frozen Beauty

noreply@blogger.com (DIANE) — Fri, 22 Feb 2008 02:37:00 +0000

This winter has been particularly crazy in Madison. We have had record amounts of snow (over 80 inches so far) and several cold spells that have included wind chill warnings. We live close to my sons' school so they have always walked to school except in bad weather. I have used a zero degree guideline during the winter so that when the temperature with the wind chill is below zero, I drive them to school. At times, I think I am driving them more than they have been walking this year. Yesterday, after I dropped them off at school, I realized that I had the camera in the car and decided to capture some of the beauty that was in and around the neighborhood. Over the past weekend, we had some of the worst weather this season -- freezing rain and then snow. It made things a big mess for driving but the coating of ice on the trees made things sparkle when the sun was out. I couldn't resist its beauty so I drove around to get a few shots. These are a few of my favorites.

A Day That Truly Sings

noreply@blogger.com (DIANE) — Sat, 09 Feb 2008 03:32:00 +0000

I have to share some of the highlights of my past few days. I will admit that I was in a bit of a slump for the past week but today I felt like the planets were aligned. Okay, maybe not the whole day. My day was supposed to start with my one month post-LASIK checkup for my eyes. Unfortunately for my doctor, it was not his day. He was in an accident on the way to work and never made it. According to the staff, his car was totaled but fortunately, he was not seriously injured. Anyway, I had planned to have lunch with my friend Penny on State Street and treat myself to a few "artist fieldtrips" along the way. Since I got downtown almost an hour before I was to meet Penny, I was going to check out an exhibit at the Overture Center but ended up detouring to a little shop that I had always wanted to check out. The name of the store is ShangriLa Collections and they carry all sorts of imported items from the Himalayan Region.
I have been fascinated by Tibetan Singing Bowls since I first heard about them a few years ago. I had looked for them online and at various shops but never found any. In this wonderful little shop, my search ended today. They had several different ones and this is the one that chose to come home with me. It has a wonderful sound and I can't wait to learn more about the tradition and beliefs associated with the bowls. The rest of my day included a few more fun purchases and then an evening spent with Kurt and the boys. All in all, it was a lovely day.

I also want to share one last thing for today. Yesterday I finished my last ZNE Book Club assignment. It was the first time I did something like this on a stretched canvas. I am really please with how it turned out although I need to get a better photo. Hopefully, I will fix that soon. So now I'm off to do some reading before bed. My book group meets on Sunday and I have a lot of the book left to read. This month we are reading Thunderstruck by Erik Larson.

GPP Street Team Crusade #16

noreply@blogger.com (DIANE) — Wed, 30 Jan 2008 03:45:00 +0000

Yippee! After many months of stalking Michelle Ward's Green Pepper Press Street Team blog and thinking "I'm gonna do that", I FINALLY DID A CRUSADE!!!

Crusade #16 was to "Journal your Blog" -- Pick a post and add it to a page in your visual journal. I did have an art journal that I had started late last year but it has been slow going. But earlier this week, I decided what I wanted to do for the GPP Street Team Crusades was to work larger (especially since I tend to work small). So I bought a heavyweight drawing pad that is 11" x 14" and I'm using that for my crusade entries. I will admit there is another reason for the use of the large journal but that will wait for another day. Because of my hard drive crash and the fact that I lost all but two (the ones I posted on the blog) of my photos from our vacation to Arizona, I decided to journal the September 8th blog post entitled "Time to get caught up". I only journaled the first part of that entry (just in case you check up on me) since it captured the extremes of the story. I also decided to handwrite the blog entry. It just seemed like the thing to do.

Playing with Glazes

noreply@blogger.com (DIANE) — Wed, 30 Jan 2008 01:28:00 +0000

I had joined ZNE Book Club last June when they were working through the Claudine Hellmuth book "Collage Discovery Workshop" but wasn't able to keep up with all the assignments, so when I saw one of the Art Techniques ATCs Yahoo Group was doing an ATC swap based on the book I thought it was the perfect opportunity to do some more work with the book. The first swap was to use a glazing technique with acrylic paints. I had bought some red rosin paper before Christmas and had used it to make a glazed background that I've used for a few other projects. Since I had the background made so long ago, I don't know why I procrastinated on making the ATCs. But in the end I finished them up and mailed them today. Now I will have my fingers crossed for them to get to California by Friday. Here are the four ATCs I made for the swap.

I'm also working on my first entry for a Green Pepper Press (GPP) Street Team Crusade. Hopefully I will finish it up tonight so be on the lookout for another post soon.

Stampbord Artist Trading Cards

noreply@blogger.com (DIANE) — Thu, 24 Jan 2008 01:42:00 +0000

First of all, can you believe that I'm actually posting a second entry in one day??? WOW! You can tell I must have had a very productive and creative day. Anyway, I finished up the last of my Stampbord artist trading cards for a swap I'm participating in through the Art Techniques ATCs group on Yahoo. This was one of those swaps were I did three totally different pieces. I am so glad that I am not the swap host. I would have such a hard time assigning pieces to each participant. Hopefully, no matter which ATC each of my fellow swappers receive, they will be happy. I have to say that I love all three and couldn't pick a favorite.

In case you haven't noticed from my last post, I'm using a new way of posting my photos on my blog. My brother just started alpha testing his company's new photo sharing service. I love how I just load my pictures one place and I can arrange them in portfolios to create slideshows. If you are interested in learning more about it, check it out at FocalPower.com When you see the multiple picture icon at the bottom of the photo, it lets you know there are several photos (so click on the photo and use your arrow keys to see the rest).

Doing my homework

noreply@blogger.com (DIANE) — Wed, 23 Jan 2008 17:41:00 +0000

I've had a very busy week but I did make sure to do my homework for the ZNE book club. The assignment for the week was a bit out of my comfort zone since it involved actually drawing my own picture. Not something I do much lately. It also involved me digging out some art supplies that are among the oldest I own (actually, I'm surprised that I have kept them all these years). The color on the piece is primarily oil pastels and just to let you know how old they are...they have a price of $1.75 on them. EEEEK! Can I be that old? Anyway, here is the finished piece.

This piece uses a 12 inch ceiling tile as the substrate, which was then covered with a page from an italian newspaper. After a coat of gel medium and gesso, I then drew the scene with the Vespa. Oh, how I really want a Vespa...but that is a whole other story. The original newspaper included an article with an image of a wasp type insect and while researching the history of the Vespa I found out that "vespa" is the italian word for wasp. So synchronicity was working when I decided to draw that image (which I did before learning that fact). Anyway, I had to include the quote that gave the scooter its name (located above the handlebars - next to the original wasp image). Since this assignment was outside my comfort zone, I would love to hear what you think of the piece (be gentle, although I am fine with constructive criticism).

Addendum: The quote I refer to above is the following "Sembra una vespa" ("It reminds me of a wasp!") which was said by Enrico Piaggio, the owner of the factory that designed the scooter, when he heard the buzzing sound of the engine on the second prototype. The name stuck and the rest, as they say, is history.

ZNE Book Club

noreply@blogger.com (DIANE) — Fri, 18 Jan 2008 03:16:00 +0000

Today is the last day to finish up my first assignment for the ZNE Book Club that is working through the Karen Michel book "The Complete Guide to Altered Imagery". As usual, life got in the way of my plans and I didn't get a chance to work on any of the techniques until today. My first couple of altered photos were great learning experiences but didn't turn out anything I would want to keep. I did find a few very dark photos from the early 80s that I decided to alter using a bleaching technique.

A couple of things I learned from this process are:

when using sandpaper or some type of scratching tool on photos, it is important to moisten the photo so that you remove only the emulsion. Otherwise it is very easy to damage the paper of the photo itself.

Staz-on ink is not permanent on a photo that has been bleached prior to stamping, even though the bleach solution was neutralized by rinsing in plain water.

bleaching a photo will create colors ranging from a dark orange-red to yellow since the cyan ink color is the first to be removed by the bleach.

Vision Notes: My eyes have been doing well. Other than an occasional lubricating drop, I haven't been doing anything. Yesterday I did try to take my glasses off (which I obviously don't wear anymore) for the second time since having my LASIK surgery. It occurred to me after I did it last night, that what I was really trying to do, was shut my brain down and relax. That motion of reaching to take my glasses off had become synonymous with sleep. Without seeing the world through blurry eyes, it has become harder for me to relax and rejuvenate.

An Inspiring and Generous Soul

noreply@blogger.com (DIANE) — Wed, 09 Jan 2008 03:12:00 +0000

Yesterday I received a treasure trove of inspiration and art supplies from the wonderful Sarah Fishburn. She was posting vintage images for her fellow artists before the holidays and I was thrilled to have found them. The day before Thanksgiving, my hard drive crashed and took all my images with it. So I began visiting her blog quite frequently to check out her posts. On December 20th, she posted on her blog that she was going to be giving away some jewelry made by Tiffini Elektra X that features her artwork. The cost of an entry was a book recommendation and a quote. Since these are two of my other obsessions, I couldn't help but respond to her post. Late last week I found out that she had picked my name as a runner-up for a grab bag of arty supplies. As cool as the jewelry was, I was extremely excited about winning some cool supplies from her since I love her work. I have to share a glimpse of what wonderful things she sent me.
Arty Supplies from Sarah

Inspiring Postcards of Sarah's Work

Sarah's Multi-piece Collection
Unfortunately, my pictures don't do it justice since I got a glare with my flash. Hopefully, I will get a chance to take some better pictures tomorrow. Thank you so much, Sarah!

Seeing the world with 20/20 vision

noreply@blogger.com (DIANE) — Mon, 07 Jan 2008 03:09:00 +0000

It has now been three and a half days since I had my custom bladeless LASIK surgery and I still find myself looking around just to read things that are in the distance. I have always been a big wimp when it comes to things involving my eyes. Even when I wore contacts, I could never actually touch my eye to remove the lens. I used to use my eyelids to catch the edges of my contact lens and fold it to get it out of my eye. So the whole idea of having LASIK surgery did not sell itself to me very easily. Maybe I was swayed a bit by the Tiger Woods' advertisements for TLC, or maybe I was just realized I needed a new pair of glasses and figured out that I could have surgery for less money than it will cost me to continue buying glasses (assuming that I live an average life expectancy), after all I am still an accountant. Well, at some point last fall I decided to at least look into it and the next thing I knew, I had scheduled an appointment for the surgery. I had my surgery on January 3rd and I'm really glad that I scheduled it during the holiday/new year craziness because it took my mind off what I was about to do. Of course, life always has to throw in a curve ball as well and on New Year's Eve I started coming down with a cold. I'm not sure if I was hoping for the surgery to get cancelled or not but the doctor gave the green light so Thursday at noon I went in for my appointment. I was so nervous that I'm still amazed that I didn't chicken out but an hour later I was walking out of the surgical room relieved that it was done.

I was so impressed with all the staff at the TLC center in Madison. One of the best things for me was how Dr. Probst and the surgical staff continued to count down how much time was left for each part of the procedure. Since the surgery on each eye consists of two parts - creating the corneal flap and the laser contouring to correct the vision - it helped knowing how much time was left for each part. Creating the corneal flap takes about 30 seconds and is probably the most uncomfortable part of the procedure. There is no pain involved but it is a weird sensation of pressure on your eye. The laser contouring takes only about one minute. During my procedure, they were counting down the time in 5 to 10 second increments. Prior to the surgery, they give you a pill that is to help you relax. Even after the surgery, I couldn't help but wonder if the pill had actually worked because I still felt very tense but since I made it through, I didn't care.

Immediately after the surgery, I really wasn't aware of how my eyes felt. I think that there was just a part of me that was happy to be able to see (because they did have you look at the clock as soon as the surgery was done). I guess my first real awareness of any discomfort was just as I was leaving the office building. I did keep my eyes mostly closed but noticed that they felt very gravel-y (notice I didn't say sandy because it definitely felt more like gravel). They give you a complete regimen of three different types of eye drops and as soon as I got home, I put in the anti-inflamatory drops, Pred Forte, and the antibiotic drops, Zymar and some of the lubricating drops and took a nap. Two hours later I woke up to find that my eyes felt almost completely back to normal. I was purely amazed and ecstatic! My left eye felt totally normal and my right eye felt like I had an eyelash in it. Since then, my eyes have felt mostly normal, with the exception of when I know I've probably pushed it a bit much with being on the computer. My first follow up appointment was less than 24 hours after the surgery and I had 20/20 vision. After 30 years of wearing glasses or contact lenses, in a sense, I feel like I'm seeing the world for the first time. I am so proud of myself for actually going through with the surgery and would encourage anyone to at least see if they are a candidate. This has definitely become another "defining moment" in my life.

What would DaVinci Do?

noreply@blogger.com (DIANE) — Tue, 01 Jan 2008 03:30:00 +0000

I have been thinking a lot about the materials I use in my artwork. I think it is because I rediscovered my need to create through the path of scrapbooking. When I began scrapbooking over seven years ago (although, in a sense, I have been scrapbooking since I was a kid), all the talk was about archival quality. It took me a long time to let go of the need to use only acid-free products in my scrapbook. But finally I realized that I really didn't care about whether the scrapbooks outlived my great-great grandchildren. I just wanted my boys to enjoy reliving their past (and I know they do because they pulled out their books again today). Now that I am playing with every type of art material imaginable, I find myself wondering how important it is to invest in quality supplies. Did the Great Artists think about the permanence of their work when they created it? I really think that they just NEEDED to create and as they say....the rest is history. I would love to hear your thoughts on the subject.

4x4 Friday - Punchinella

noreply@blogger.com (DIANE) — Mon, 31 Dec 2007 03:54:00 +0000

As the new year quickly approaches, I've been looking for different challenge blogs/websites that will help me to keep creating even when I don't think I have the time. One of the sites I found is 4x4 Friday. I decided to get a jumpstart on my New Year's Resolution to create more art and do this weeks Friday challenge. Here is my first 4x4 challenge entry.
I had so much fun making this. It was one of those creating experiences that fed on itself. As I thought about the punchinella (the waste product from making sequins - for those of you who didn't know), I thought of using it like a fence with an animal. After that, it was just a matter of following the various associations that my mind made. I love when things like that happen! And I'm ready for the January challenges because I cut enough 4x4 pieces of matboard to do five more challenges. So bring it on!

Open for Business

noreply@blogger.com (DIANE) — Fri, 21 Dec 2007 01:23:00 +0000

I couldn't just let this time of the year go by with the normal holiday busyness. I had been thinking that I needed a bigger studio space for quite awhile but didn't seriously pursue it until a couple of weeks ago. We had some excess furniture that needed to find new homes and I called St. Vinnie's to make a pick up. That was when my brain went into hyperdrive on the larger studio idea. After bringing the subject up with Kurt, we discussed the various options and decided that moving from my current studio in the basement to the other basement room that was twice the size was a good plan. Little did he know that my plans called for immediate relocation. The discussion took place the weekend of the 8th and last week I became the Energizer Bunny, painting walls, moving furniture, cleaning out excess stuff and everything in between. There are still a few bins of supplies that need to be put away but as of last night, my studio is "open for business". I have my work table cleared and all the main supplies in accessible areas. I have been craving some creative time (and although, getting my new studio space ready has be creative, it is not in the way I want) and now I can actually play. For now, you can see my studio pictures and hopefully soon there will be new work posted as well.

Did you notice my affirmations that I painted on the walls before the actual painting began? So many people talk about the need to believe in your dreams and the power of affirmations so I just couldn't resist to put my own mark on the world (or the wall) when I was making my new work space "home".

Building a better Mousetrap

noreply@blogger.com (DIANE) — Mon, 12 Nov 2007 22:49:00 +0000

Okay, maybe I'm not building a mousetrap, but I have been building. After having reserved my domain name over a year ago, I decided it was time to actually do something more than have a page that said "Under Construction". Last week I decided to move my domain to a new server and have been actively working on building my website. I'm feeling pretty happy with the overall design that I have set up so now it is time to get down to the nitty-gritty and add actual content. Since I am a novice website designer, I welcome all comments and critiques of my site. The site is StoneAngelArts.com. If you get a chance to stop by, please let me know what you like, what you don't like and any other suggestions that you may have.

What do you do between answering the door on Halloween?

noreply@blogger.com (DIANE) — Wed, 07 Nov 2007 16:31:00 +0000

You make jewelry, of course! Okay, maybe not everyone does but that was what I did between doling out candy to the cute and creepy trick-or-treaters prowling my neighborhood. I have been wanting to improve my beading skill of making bead dangles and I decided it was the perfect activity for when you get interrupted alot. The result of my Halloween handiwork is this Cha-Cha bracelet.

I had posted this in my gallery at ILove2Create.com and I had a request for directions....so here they are (from a newbie beader). The items I used were the following:

Needle-nose plier
Round-nose plier
Wire cutter
7.5 inch large link chain w/clasp
headpins
pre-mixed Czech glass beads (66 grams-but I have some left over)

Since I was using a pre-sized bracelet chain, all I did was make the indivdual dangles that are on the bracelet (which, if you remember, was why I decided to make this in the first place). Each dangle is between 1/2 inch and one inch long. Each link on the bracelet has two dangles attached to it. One is longer and one is shorter. Each dangle is made by threading the desired number of beads on a headpin and then the headpin is cut and the end shaped to form the loop that allows the dangle to be attached to the chain link. For my dangles, I simply started with a larger bead directly above the head and then added additional beads, alternating colors. The tricky part to the process is forming the loop. Here are a couple of links that show the process: Bead and Button magazine and WigJig.com. I particularly like the example in the second link but since I didn't leave a neck on my headpin like they show in the example, I wanted to include both. The process is really the same. Here is another picture of my bracelet that shows it in more detail. Also, I made sure to add the two dangles that were on each link to the opposite sides of each link. I think that after making more than 50 dangles, I feel much more confident in my wireworking abilities. The unexpected benefit of this bracelet has been the soothing sound it makes. It has been compared to the sound of a rainstick.

The Creative Process

noreply@blogger.com (DIANE) — Sat, 03 Nov 2007 21:12:00 +0000

I have been thinking a lot about this lately. Mostly because I have been reading "Fearless Creating" by Eric Maisel with a group of fabulous artists that I met through Meetup.com at the beginning of the year. We were all interested in working through "The Artist's Way" by Julia Cameron and started meeting twice a month to work through her book. We have since finished that book and decided upon the Eric Maisel book to continue our journey for a more creative life. Last Sunday we discussed the first chapter, which I had a really hard time reading and relating to my creativity issues. We are meeting again tomorrow to discuss chapter two, which deals with choosing a project. I don't know if I am just the odd-man out with this subject but I just don't seem to be finding the exercises meaningful. One of the big topics in the second chapter is not discounting the difficult project ideas. Maybe it is the type of art that I do, but I never eliminate any of my ideas. Sinced I have been working on more assemblage and found art pieces, I tend to "see" the start of a piece when I find an object. It may take months before I find the right combination to actually begin a piece. But other times I can see something and know immediately where to start. I may not know much more than the start but the first step has such a strong pull that I "know" it is it right. The perfect example is a piece that I finished about two weeks ago.

This shrine began life as a capiz shell bowl I bought on clearance at Target. I actually bought three of them because I thought they would make lovely candle holders on some black bookshelves I have in my living room. It wasn't until I got them home and was removing the labels that I found that one of the labels was actually embedded in the finish of the bowl. I decided it wasn't worth the $1 or less per bowl to return them to Target but I just shoved them in a drawer and forgot about them. That is until about a month ago when I came across them and immediately had a vision of cutting the part of the bowl with the label off and using the remaining part of the bowl for a shrine. I'm sure part of my "vision" came from my recent acquisition of a Dremel tool and my discovery of all the wonderful things it can do. But anyway, the point of my story is that even when I first started this project, I had little more envisioned than a piece of a bowl on its side. The rest of the piece grew as I worked. So I don't think I ever "give up" on a project. I just haven't found the right starting inspiration. I truly hope that my enthusiasm picks of for the book. I am to be the discussion leader for chapter three, "Belligerent Commitment: Starting Your Work", which I chose because it seemed to encompass my feelings for the book at the time.

Can't wait for the weekend

noreply@blogger.com (DIANE) — Wed, 12 Sep 2007 13:14:00 +0000

The design team and I at ILove2Create.com are busy putting on the final touches to two amazing events. The first is our Girl's Crafting Weekend that starts on Friday, September 14th and goes through Sunday, September 16th. This is similar to the cybercrops we have held in the past but with a few new twists. Envision three days and two nights at a wonderful bed & breakfast with your best bunch of girlfriends -- there will be a goody bag waiting for you, along with scrumptious meals and fun challenges and games, complete with fabulous prizes. Be sure to check out the message board to get all the details.

The other event it the return of the Scrappin' Survivor Contest. This is our third season (in television terms) and it promises to be better than ever. You can sign up through noon EST on Sunday, September 16th and the contest is open to EVERYONE. The only requirements are to register at the website (which is free) and have at least 10 posts (which can be on the message board, comments to work in the gallery, or posting your own work in the gallery). I have been part of each of the Scrappin' Survivor Contests and have loved every minute of them. And we have learned from the past to make the contest more about scrappin' and less about surviving (because there were a few sleepless nights that first year :-o ). Did I mention that the top THREE winners of this year's contest get to be guest designers for the Scrapbook Society kits in the following months? Love that!!!

One last update...my jury duty was a bust. I sat through the selection process only to be eliminated. Oh well, maybe next time.

Time to get caught up

noreply@blogger.com (DIANE) — Sun, 09 Sep 2007 00:07:00 +0000

I know it has been awhile since I posted anything. Part of the reason was our scheduled vacation to Sedona, Arizona and the Grand Canyon. The other reason were the events before and after our vacation. First, a little background. We live in a neighborhood that is adjacent to a marsh and there had been a lot of rain the week before we left on vacation. The one event that we weren't prepared for was torrential downpours with no power. Several years ago we had new drain tile and a new sump pump installed in our basement but on Wednesday, August 22nd, our worst nightmare happened. We had over two inches of rain in an hour and no electrical power for four hours. You can just imagine what that means for a mostly finished basement. We baled water from the sump pump as fast as we could but with the ground already saturated, we just couldn't keep up. This was certainly not what we needed before leaving on vacation. Luckily after removing as much water as we could from the carpet, leaving the basement to dry out for the week with five fans and two dehumidifiers was just what it needed.

Moving on to the vacation, it was the first time the boys and I had ever been to Arizona. Kurt had been to the Grand Canyon when he was a child and was really looking forward to showing it to the boys. We ended up going on Monday, August 27th. Before leaving Sedona, we knew that there were storms near the Grand Canyon but after looking at the radar, we decided to go ahead since it looked like it would be clearing out. We did run into rain on the way, between Flagstaff and the South Rim but by the time we reached the first viewing point in the park, it was clearing up. Our first view turned out to be incredibly special -- including seeing a rainbow below us in the canyon.

We had a great time in Arizona. The boys really seemed to enjoy hiking, even though it was pretty hot while we were there. I have to add one more picture from the trip. This one just cracks me up. You just never know when you will find a sign with arms!

Since we've been back home, I've been busy cleaning (and decluttering) the basement, working on plans for the ILove2Create.com anniversary celebration, getting the boys back into the school routine, and doing laundry. Things aren't going to be letting up anytime soon since I have been summoned for jury duty for the next two weeks. I am desparate for some creative time so I'm trying to think of what I can take with me to do while I wait through the jury process. Hopefully I will have something to show later in the week.

Touching Lives

noreply@blogger.com (DIANE) — Sat, 18 Aug 2007 21:25:00 +0000

Today started out as a classic "lazy Saturday" as I listened to the pitter patter of raindrops on the roof. The windows had been open so I had snuggled under my blankets and started my day by enjoying the luxury of sleeping in. As the day went on, I was excited to finally have come up with a concept for a project I had been struggling with and headed into my studio full of energy to complete that and another one that was close to completion. As I was working, I turned on my computer and checked my email. As I was reading through the digest of one of the Yahoo groups I belong to, I was stunned to find out that Vickie Enkoff had died. Vickie was the owner of Creative Chaos Rubber Stamps, of which I had been a customer the past year. I was always so impressed with her products and the service that she offered. She was very open about her health issues on her website and yet as a customer, you always felt that you came first. Although I never met Vickie, her passing has saddened me greatly. I hope that she had some sense of how many lives she touched with her kindness and her love of art. My prayers go out to her and her family.

A Little Game - Pay it Forward

noreply@blogger.com (DIANE) — Sat, 18 Aug 2007 01:32:00 +0000

I have been spending a fair amount of time in the past week surfing the internet. Some has been related to upcoming changes at ILove2Create.com, some has been related to our fast approaching vacation to Sedona, Arizona, some related to getting the boys ready to go back to school and some has just been for fun. I came across Alice's House blog tonight and she has started a Pay It Forward game. This is the explanation she had copied from another person's blog that describes the game.

Be one of the first 3 bloggers to leave a comment on this post and you win. What, you ask? The winners get something home-made and crafty from me within the next year, but you have to promise to post the same on your blog and follow suit for 3 new people. If you think this sounds like fun, just leave a comment and I'll get in touch with you.

As soon as I read her entry, my mind was a flurry of ideas that I could make to pay-it-forward(PIF). So if you would like to be one of the recipients, post that you are interested and I will get in touch with you. Now, I think I will go hit the studio.