Cocoon

Sometimes (a lot lately, actually) I am disappointed that I'm not accomplishing more art - especially for not getting back to my daily hearts. I miss doing them, and know I could be more faithful. My goal is to become a working artist, so everything I do now is "education" and "training" and "market research." It is (hopefully) my next career and I try to be serious about my pursuit of artistic expression.

To combat my tendency to self-criticize, I remind myself of all that I do accomplish! Recently, I looked back at just a few of the things I've done over the past few weeks and decided I was right to not berate myself. I completed and mailed my 2nd batch of postcards (see below), spent 7 hours caring for my granddaughter while my older daughter was in the ER (thankfully, it turned out to be nothing, but the day was gone - and you need to know I'm going to be a grandma again in September!), spent another evening running both my daughters around so they could see their father who happened to come through town), took the dog to be groomed (you can see his eyes again!), prepped potatoes and salads for several hundred for a fund raising dinner (then attended the dinner after another meeting; my younger daughter is going to Africa in July) and completed a fabric "sculpture" of a butterfly and cocoon for an art display at church. This morning I even managed to plat that package of strawberry plants (that would die soon, since I'd had them for several weeks).



All this in addition to the standard fare: teaching full time, running younger daughter to work and various volunteer activities, preparation and teaching an adult Shepherding Group (like a Sunday School class; I don't teach every week, though), hosting Deaf Young Life Leadership meetings (light snack and beverages), trying to keep up with reading my artsy books and magazines, quiet time, and the usual attempts to organize and keep up with household chores and stuff.

None of this is meant to be a cry for sympathy or any praise for doing nice things. I simply share my thought process. It helps me get it out there and be more objective AND hopefully be being open about my struggles with self-acceptance others can maybe identify similar tendencies in themselves and be kinder to themselves. I meet people all the time who give and give and sacrifice, but still get down on themselves for not doing more. Every so often we need to step back and see the half-full cup of water!

Spring Green

I just finished my next set of 6 postcards. I used a bright green fabric (the colors do not show up well in this photo) for the background and added long lines of straight stitching in bright colors. I wanted to have solid yellow circles, but nothing in my stash seemed right. Then I saw it - the bright yellow duct tape! It was just the ticket. My only mishap was forgetting about the duct tape and briefly ironing on the front of one card! I doodled with some metallic blue paint to cover the damage.




We've had some very welcome sun-drenched days and the crocuses are blooming. Spring seems to be on the way and I wanted to bring some of that freshness and whimsy to the cards. I hope the recipients get a smile with their cards.

Finished Card

Painted Mistake

Back of cards

postcards

I finally finished the postcards and put them in the mail last week. Each has additional painting and a small heart of microbeads. Each card also has a small picture on the back so recipients know their card is part of a group.

Things have been hectic lately, but I hope they settle down soon so I can get back to my art. :-)

Group Postcards

Today I finished the main stitching on the overall heart design. I even like the way the stitching looks on the back!


I covered everything with contact paper and sticker hearts before adding some metallic paints. I used a small roller for the teal and a brush for the purple.


Then, I removed the stickers. I will play a bit more with this before cutting into 6 postcards and embellishing further.

Yellow Bow

Just grabbed the two closest pieces of wool felt and found some contrasting embroidery floss. First did a running stitch around the heart, then wove the yellow through the running stitches to make the loops. I finished with a bow so I wouldn't have to finish off the thread, then couched the "tails" of the bow. Of course, I just had to add a button. I thought I'd try spray starch to protect the loops, but it also wound up flattening everything.

Cold Day, Warm Heart

We haven't actually had much snow for a few days, but some of the raindrops are slushy and my daughter had 2 snow days this week. We may even get some flakes overnight. The first half of my week was spent preparing many last minute details for the basketball tournament our school is hosting. The rest of the week has been focused on taking photos, supervising students taking photos (part of their final exam) and preparing photos for sharing in slide shows and eventually on our school website. I've been working 10 to 12+ hour days. I left after only 10 today because I'm beat and still fighting the beginnings of a cold (and I had to do laundry so I can go back to work tomorrow!). Another full day tomorrow, a few hours of meetings on Sunday (my daughter is going on a mission trip to Burkina Faso, Africa, in July), then I plan to put on my PJs, curl up on the couch and enjoy the Super Bowl!

Art has taken a back seat this week, but I have sketched and worked on the big heart that will become postcards. Today I made a quick wool heart with rustic stitches and a silvery snowflake just to honor our chilly week.

Beauty from ashes

One of my postcard lists' owner/moderator's condo burned last week and she lost everything but the clothes on her back. That would be devastating for anyone, but for those of us who sew, quilt or "make art" we have our stash of fabrics, papers, paints and other necessities for our creations. Then there are the collections of postcards received from exchanges with individuals all over the world.

My card for Phyllis is made from recycled wool clothing and includes random embroidery stitches. For me, art can make beauty of chaos - beauty from ashes. My wish and prayer is for Phyllis to have a speedy recovery from this chaos and that she will find beauty in the process.