Creative Spark

There wasn't much art to be had around here yesterday as it was a day filled with preparation for my husband to return to work. He's been off work for over almost 5 months due to an injury that he got while working. He's had surgery and  was ready to get back to work. Unfortunately it's his birthday, what a day to return to work, huh? But he has tomorrow off for the 4th of July Holiday, so that counts for something, I hope. PLus, we have ice cream cake in the freezer, that's enough right there to make anyone's day!

This morning, I woke up and felt that spark. That need to fling paint. No specific ideas, just wanting to work. It was a super productive day all around, I got quite a bit of chores done around the house and I got all kinds of arting done therefore I have stuff to blog about! I am one happy girl!

I started off with working in my Gratitude Journal. I am really making some headway at getting it caught up!

I had gotten as far as a couple layers into the background late last night as I was washing after dinner dishes.  And this morning I finished my mom's page!

 

Moving out of the family part of my list I am moving on to more things that I am thankful for. Back in February our hot water heater died for a day. My husband was crafty enough that he got it working again (and it is STILL working *knocks on wood*) but not having something you use every day and take for granted really makes you notice how important it has become. I am DEFINITELY thankful for hot water!

 

I know, I am using the punchinella  on EVERYTHING! I don't have any stencils right now as my craft budget went out the window while hubby has been off work. So, I was lucky enough to receive some punchinella in Happy Mail a few months ago and I use it on almost everything!! Ah well. : /

Next I took a sketch I had done last week (seen below).

I knew what I wanted to do with it but I don't have the drawing skills for it. I tried drawing flowers for her hair and that went to the dogs in about 3 minutes! So, then I had another idea...

I looked up some beautiful flowers and printed out pictures, cut them out, and voila!
This is one of my most favorite pages ever!! I don't even think it needs words on it! I thought briefly about painting her, but I really liked her like she was. And now I love the flowers because they give it a 3-D effect because they aren't glues flat, most of the edges are lifted some so it just comes off the page.

My muse really came through for me today and is pretty happy with all we did!

I also finished off last weeks MDS (Multi Day Spread) in my Book of Days, and started this weeks. I will blog that tomorrow!

With that I am going to go watch Scott Pilgrim Vs. The World with my babygirl. 18 months old and she watches that movie like she knows what's going on, she LOVES it! :)

Soothing the Soul

Yesterday I worked on something that completely soothes my soul when I do work on it, but something that I don't work on nearly enough!

My Gratitude Journal.

I have not worked in the Gratitude Journal for some time, since April, in fact! I haven't even added to my list since around that time! You can see the last time I worked in my Gratitude Journal here, in my old blog.

Wow! That was a while ago. I always spend a few moments a day thinking of my blessings and what I am thankful for and I always think to myself that I should write some of this down. I don't, of course. I always say I will remember it later, I never do. But there is never a shortage of things I am grateful for, so I guess I had better get to work!

So this is what I completed yesterday...

Lukas' page. I used layers of red and blue acrylic paints and masking tape. This was a really fun background to do work on. Cut the letters from a magazine and used Opaque markers for the lettering. The red bleed a little into the sun and it doesn't want to cover very well but that's ok.

Lukas is my middle child, but he is my sunshine. He is the sweetest and most well behaved boy I know, always an angel. He was born 8 weeks early after a particularly rough pregnancy and didn't get to come home to me for 2 weeks. I am blessed to have him in my life.

 Arianna's page. The baby of the family and totally the trouble child. At 18 months she is my mischief maker. Always into everything she shouldn't be in, but I love her. The purple paper in the bottom left with scribbles on it is her "art". She loves to have her own paper and pens when I am sketching or painting and after writing all over herself she usually gets to the paper eventually! If there is going to be an actual artist in the family, my money is on her!

And lastly, I plopped down with my sketchbook last night while watching TV and this came out. I am particularly proud of it because I am really working on shading and I think it is a pretty good attempt. Maybe I will paint it tomorrow. Maybe not. I may leave it like it is and just do something fun with hair, I have a couple good ideas.

Gratitude in the Kitchen Studio

I haven't been as active in my art as I have promised myself, as I always plan to be and because of this my art supplies have migrated yet again in search of the perfect place for me to "art". This time, it's the kitchen! Yesterday I posted to my sisters in the Book of Days facebook group that I was having problems finding time with chores and my little ones around to get projects underway, completed, and even just holding onto good ideas for my art! Well they inspired me with their advice, ideas, and input on how they do things to move into the room I spend most of my time in! Thank you ladies, you have done my heart good!

Even though the dining room is only a room away from the kitchen, in fact, it's practically the SAME room, I can't seem to get in there and BE creative. I guess, maybe, I don't like the room. I don't like it's set up, or perhaps its lighting options. The over head light gets so hot when it is turned on and up, and with summer right around the corner I know that this is going to cause trouble. The overhead light also provides light with just a hint of an orange tint, only slightly annoying and off-putting, especially since the room is usually so dark that you need the light even in the daytime!

But in the kitchen, there is a big window that catches morning light so wonderfully (in fact, that's going on my gratitude list today, that window in the morning), it doesn't have the most spectacular view, the backyard and our dog that desperately needs to be groomed, our neighbors house, some power lines, and the tops of the trees at the park, but it is such a wonderful window to open up in the morning, and morning is usually when I feel the best so I HAVE to enjoy it!

I didn't move everything. I figured most things could stay in their storage places in the dining room, I use our hutch for art supply storage. I just moved in the things that I love to play with the most, things that inspire me when I have them near at hand. My gesso and paints in a plastic tote, watercolor crayons, pens and markers, brushes, and a trash bowl. Simple!

 My new workspace!

So, I went straight to play after moving my things around and a few more things joined me in the kitchen, a tub of scrap paper and ephemera and a stack of magazines I have had sitting around for a couple months now. First I started cutting apart one of the magazines and while I was doing that I realized that I hated the first spread in my Gratitude Journal, so I decided to change it! I don't think I still have a photo of what it was before, but below is what I did with it.

 I collaged some colorful scrapbook paper I had laying around.

 Covered it with some gesso, stamping, and paint.

Cut the lettering and heart from a magazine, and added some other touches to the background including the circles of purple paint with the cap to my empty water bottle!

And the end result...

Yeah, I am pretty happy with it. In all honestly I do feel like it needs something more, but I also feel like I will know it when I see it! Maybe when I am cutting pictures and words from magazines, or maybe next time I go to the store.

My Gratitude Journal is a small moleskine knock off with lines. I have taken two pages at a time and glued them together to make them sturdy enough to withstand some art, and so far, it's working pretty well, at least it didn't disintegrate like the larger one that I had and glued 4-5 pages together at a time (too much stress on the binding, I learned). 

So, that's my gratitude in the kitchen studio thus far today. I am happy and arty. And, every time I go into the kitchen for something I splash some paint on something or glue something down, I have pages going in both my Gratitude Journal and my Book of Days at the moment.

I think I will make much progress in this room because it is where I spend most of my time cooking and washing dishes (the perpetual and hated chore), this will also probably help me keep the kitchen substantially cleaner as I wash dishes and do other chores while waiting for paint, glue and gesso to dry. The only downfall of this room so far, no seat! I can see now that I am going to have to invest in a stool and fast!!

 My baby girl sat in her highchair while I got my art on!