Teaching........

Thursday was the first day of our Artful Journaling class at the local art center.

We had nine eager to learn students from a variety of backgrounds.....and it was fun!  I teach with another woman, who's name happens to be Jan, too.  We refer to ourselves and the Jan and Jan show!
Jan P. is great at creative writing and getting our class members into thinking retrospectively.  They seem to like that.

 We are linking our students to The Document Your Life Project, which you can learn more about at www.arttothe5th.com. 

Our class is only four weeks but the Document Project will go on all year by giving members weekly journaling prompts and ideas on how to create art with those prompts.

This has been a very popular concept, they have 3800 member, or more, already signed up.  It is free, informative and very inspiring.

So, first lesson in the art part of the class agenda was making the calendar pages for our planners.

Dividing pages into eight equal parts required some math skills and concentration....that was the hard part!  Then came the creative stuff!





Our class is only two and a half hours long and we have a lot to cover.  I decided it would move things along if I were to make a Gelli printed mono print for each person.  We are following the DLP prompts and their first one was "doors" and we went with that.

Students may use my prints, as they are, or make their own creative pages.  These are the class samples that I made.

I am so anxious to see the nine interpretations of "doors" that our group comes up with, I can't wait for Thursday.

Gone but not forgotten......

I'd tell you I'd been traveling........but you'd never believe me.

Christmas has come and gone, New Year's has come and gone and I've been no where in site, as far as, this blog was concerned.  So, by golly it is time to get caught up.

I've been getting a BUNCH of cool inspiration since the first of the year.  I've joined in on the Document Your Life Project which you can access here http://www.arttothe5th.com/.  The "life" project is FREE, if go to the blog site you will find out how you can join me, and 3500 of my closest friends, in journaling fun and inspiration!

I did buy a Moleskine Planner, as suggested, won't buy another one for this purpose.  I'm a pretty casual journaler but I really did not like the weight of the paper in this book.  But, it's O.K., I've always wanted a Moleskine journal....now, I have one and a better idea how to use it. 

Of course, I'm doing everything my way but it has been delightful to see the various interpretations of the suggested prompt each week and the inspiration is truly endless.

The first week, the prompt was doors........here's my version.

Second week......selfie!

The tip-in is the back of the doors piece above!  My "selfie" celebrates buying new jeans!  I really, really hate buying jeans.  I have short legs and too much middle and no butt......do you have any idea what it takes to cover that up!  I found some stretchy Levi's that I, actually, love.

As, if this wasn't enough excitement......I'm taking Joanne Sharpe's newest class, Draw Your Awesome Year.Click here to visit her blog and learn more. This class is not free but it is well worth the money, Joanne is a very good teacher.  More great journaling ideas.....like this.

I'm finding I love Tombow pens and lettering almost as much as my new Levi's!

Stepped out on my own on these two journal pages......I may be drummed out of the club, we'll see.  "Renaissance" was inspired by a piece of art I had in my stash and a book I'm reading on the Italian Renaissance.  "Hello" is just doodling on a Gelli print!

 BTW how I've overcome the too light paper in the planner is, of course, by gluing in a piece of watercolor or drawing paper for back up!

I like having more space on the calendar page to write entries into each day, so that is a plus for this planner, and I will add tip in's as I go along and feel the need. 

It's good to be back.  Hope you are all well and digging out from under whatever Mother Nature has thrown your way!

Merry Christmas!

 

I Wish You All of the Blessings of this Christmas Season

 

 

and

 

 

And an ART FULL New Year!

Mish mash and cold weather........

We have had five days of temps below freezing......this is Oregon, for heaven's sake.  Someone posted a map on Facebook that showed it was colder in Oregon than in Alaska, must be global warming!

In any case, Captain Jack Sparrow's Mom still walked him everyday even if it did take as long to get dressed for the cold as it did to walk around the park!  Jack had to wear his coat, Jack does not like having that thing put on him........

Is that a heartbreaking look or what?  As soon as he out the door....he forgets the humiliation his human has placed upon him and runs through the park without a care, coat tails flapping in the wind!

The cold has kept us pretty close to home and has been an opportunity to do a little Christmas decorating........I do mean little.  Our tree is very small but I like it.

I love my '40s hat tree topper and the angels that I bought years ago.

Also, I've had some time for art.  I signed up for Teesha Moores's new Artstronaut's Club and have found myself inspired and greatly influenced by their work.  This was her husband, Tracey's, suggestion and that was drawing a shape and then when ever time permits, filling in around it.  I started with the fish and I'm doodling my way around the page.

 

Now that is some journaling fun!  I have about six or seven Tombow pens that I don't use them very often but this has been a way to experiment with them and with some fine tipped colored pens that I  have.

I've been playing with it for a couple days and I'm still not finished but I'm doing another similar page, for sure, when I finish this one.

Hope you are keeping warm and enjoying you holiday season!

 

Drawing practice........

My grandson who turns eighteen in  a few days, pictured here with his cousins, is a pretty good artist.  Of course, I'm encouraging him to stay interested and practice. 

When they were here on Thanksgiving, we had a brief lesson in blind contour drawing....which he thought was fun and did well.

This was his drawing of the table after his "warm up" piece, the drawing  of the vase on the left.

This is Grandma's drawing.....the scribbles on the side were done while I was waiting for GS to finish his drawing.  They look amazingly similar, don't they?

Here is what we drew.  Some of you may not know what "blind contour drawing" is, so I'll try to describe.  It is drawing an object's outline/contours while not looking at the piece of paper you are drawing on......keeping your eyes on the object you are drawing while moving the pencil on the paper.  Got that?  Not sure I do......but it is a fun exercise in slowing down and looking at what you are drawing.

So, while in the drawing mode I found this old water soluble pencil among my drawing tools and drew this.

Last night, I drew this handsome fellow from a magazine photo.

Here's hoping you have some time, during this busy season, to enjoy your artfulness!

Day after or "leftovers" day.......

Our day after Thanksgiving started cold and frosty.....

Looks like snow but it is just fog and frost.....so I took my time, this morning, reading the paper and drinking my coffee while sitting in front of the warm fire in the fireplace. 

What I love most about Thanksgiving are the leftovers.....you with me?  I remember, several years back, on the day after Thanksgiving I had to go off to work (that is life in the newspaper business) and my four teenage children picked the turkey clean.  By the time I got home there was no  cold turkey sandwich for Mom......really I've never forgotten or forgiven!!  Well, I have sort of......there are some years, now, when I forget to remind them!  Holidays are all about the memories.

Speaking of memories......I've wrapped up the "Gratitude Journal" and it will soon be wrapped and under the tree. 

I put prompts on some pages...........

 

 

And some pages I left open for the recipient to write their own meaningful thoughts and/or experience. 

 

 

 

Finally, I thought I would share this little idea with you.  Some of you know that I have a new Gelli Printing Plate that I've been having a great time with and I've made a BUNCH of prints.....some good, some not so much!  But, I've figured out one way to use up a few.......

 

 



 

I typed out this quote that I really like, cut and pasted it four times on one page.  Then I ran the Gelli prints through the printer so the quote would print on the unpainted side, cut them into lengths and I've stitched each one with a "red line of thread".  I'm giving them to friends instead of Christmas cards this year.

Enjoy your weekend.....hope you are staying warm, as there are parts of the country where it is much colder and much more miserable than it is on the west coast.  So stay safe!

They grow olives in Oregon?

You bet they do!  Surprisingly, there are several farms in Oregon that are, now, growing olives and pressing their own oil.

Saturday, Hubby and I traveled to Dayton, Oregon with our son and his wife and one of our granddaughters to visit Oregon Olive Mill at Red Ridge Farms. 

In Oregon we have five mountain days, where the sky is so clear you see all five of the volcanos that surround the Willamette Valley and Saturday was one of those days and this was our view from the farm.

 In this photo you can see the rows of grapevines in the foreground.  This part of Oregon is, also, rivaling California in grape growing and wine producing.

Over to the right, you get a glimpse of our iconic, Mt. Hood in the distance.

Later, inside, we tasted three different olive oils and celebrated "Olio Nuovo".  The celebration of the first pressing of the olives.

Granddaughter Staci trying her first oil........yum-m-m-m!

Some of the goodies that were for sale.  We bought olive oil gifts for our special friends and ourselves, of course!  Great day in a beautiful setting.

Meanwhile, back to the "Gratitude" journal!  Another couple pages wrapped up.

Now, is the perfect time to remind ourselves of all the wonderful things we have to be grateful for.  Here's hoping your Thanksgiving is full of love and family and great food.