Procrastination vs. Success

Oh, I do procrastinate. In all things, big and small. When there are not reasons to put things off, I will invent one. Next thing you know it is less than 36 hours to a brand New Year 2011. For the first time in 10 years my #1 resolution will not be to lose weight, but to get my stuff done as I am not getting any younger! In my search to psychoanalysis myself, I found this wonderful article by artist Leslie Riley who has started a web blog about artist success:

The Secret to Getting What You Want in 2011

Remember the Spice Girls song lyrics, “Tell me what you want, what you really, really want?” Well, I’m asking you - what do you really, really want? That’s the first step to making it happen – figuring out what you really, really, want. Really. It’s as basic as that. If you don’t know where you want to go, who or what you want to be or do, how will you get there?

So many of us roll through life like a tumbleweed, letting life happen to us. I know, because I did that for so many years. Yes, I got places, but for the longest time I felt like that tumbleweed or, more appropriately, like the ball knocking around in a pinball machine. I hit the right spots some times, rang the bells and scored some points, but, inevitably, where did I end up? A few tilts and then, yep, you guessed it, down the hole. Over and out. Time to start over but, again, without a plan - leaving it all to chance.

Now I know better. I know how to get what I want. I say it’s a secret but it really isn’t. It just feels like one until you begin to live by it. It is so very simple that many of us dismiss it or put it off like it's optional or just an interesting exercise to do when you have a moment.

And now, for the big reveal, I’ll turn this over to W. H. Murray, a mountain climber, who, in his 1951 book, The Scottish Himalaya Expedition, shared this secret more eloquently than I ever could:

“This may sound too simple, but is great in consequence. Until one is committed, there is hesitancy, the chance to draw back, always ineffectiveness. Concerning all acts of initiative (and creation), there is one elementary truth the ignorance of which kills countless ideas and splendid plans: that the moment one definitely commits oneself, then providence moves too. A whole stream of events issues from the decision, raising in one’s favor all manner of unforeseen incidents, meetings and material assistance, which no man could have dreamt would have come his way. I learned a deep respect for one of Goethe’s couplets:

Whatever you can do or dream you can, begin it. Boldness has genius, power and magic in it!”

This is something I have lived by for over 20 years. The quote has been on my mirror for years so that I see it every day. The words run through my head every time I have a dream. I begin, and the magic – providence – moves with me. I have had it happen too many times for me not to believe it. I look for it in others as well, especially my clients. I can see that when they commit to something and take action, that the Universe steps up to meet them and help them on their way. You might be thinking I’m a little woo-woo right now, but trust me on this. COMMIT. Take ACTION toward the dream and you will find what you are looking for.

Still not sure? Will Henry David Thoreau’s words convince you?

“If one advances confidently in the direction of his dreams, and endeavors to live the life which he has imagined, he will meet with success unexpected in common hours.”

So I ask you, what do you really want? Can you commit to going for it? Can you break it down into doable steps and begin? Take the necessary action to get what you want? I’m betting you can. So here’s what you need to do right now:

1. Decide what you want.

2. Write it down on an index card and post it where you will see it every day – even better, put one next to your bed, too.

3. Figure out the first step towards that dream.

4. Take action. And watch for signs that the Universe/Providence/God is helping you.

5. Repeat steps 3 & 4 until you reach the dream.

Lesley Riley, The Artist Success Expert, is the founder of Artist Success, Solutions for the Struggling Artist. To receive her bi-weekly articles on creating your own success as an artist, visitwww.ArtistSuccess.com.

Happy New Year 2011

Altered Magazine Journal

Started this journal back in August. Pages of old Readers Digest were soaked in Citrasolv after masking certain words and elements. After drying I went through and applied gesso in areas both for design and to allow for journaling later. The Citrasolv destroyed the glue binder so the magazine became single pages which I taped and sewed together to make my signatures. The front page had the word 'breakthrough' showing through the ink so I decided this would be my title and theme. 

I made the cover from my stash of antique car upholstery fabric and other scraps. My inspiration  for this is from Mary Ann Moss's class Remains of the Day which I am delighted to be a member and I highly recommend. 

I have been traveling for 3 1/2 weeks and am so ready to get back to this and other projects. Will post the completed journal soon.

El Carp of the Diem at the Flamingo

Zen

The Amazing painted ceiling in the Grand Canal Shoppes.

Cathy and Tyler first visit

My daughter Cathy (mother to six of my grandchildren)and Tyler,
my only granddaughter visiting with us at the Venetian here in Las Vegas.

Bernina Challenge

Eyes on You

Fabric collage quilt 

Golden Eggs

Paper fabric collage quilt

Black and White

All paper quilted to felt

These are my entries to the Bernina Challenge. Last day to vote is June 25th. 

These have been keeping me quite busy the past 3 weeks.  Before that it was spring cleaning and gardening. Before that it was my new 'arsenal' of toys. 

After 4.5 years with my little 3.1 pixel digital Olympus I upgraded to Fuji Finepix S1800 which sports 12 mega pixels and 18x optical zoom. Oh Joy.

While my HP Photosmart is alive and well, I needed a printer than uses pigment inks so I got an Epson Workforce 1100 that will print me out a piece of fabric 13"x19" - almost fat quarter size!

Oh Double Joy.

Rhythm of Life

Ah, yes, it has been over a month since my last post. Mom spent 8 days in the hospital and ended up having a stint installed in a collapsed vein in her heart. The week following her discharge she was tired and weak of course and hardly wanted to leave her room. I am happy to say the last few weeks of her visit we were finally able to relax and spend some quality time together. Although we did not get into making journals as we hoped (except for one I gave her to keep up with all her meds), I was able to share some of my painting methods and she showed me her bead and jewelery making skills. We had a couple of nice sunny days that she sat in my yard and talked to me while I tackled all the weeds that seemed to have appeared from nowhere. She is back home safe and sound and I miss her already. The first 3 days after her flight, I finished tackling the weeds and doing some late spring cleaning and now I am finally getting back to art - hooray!
As in life, it is important to find rhythm in and when we tackle creative pursuits. My sister wrote a compelling article about rhythm as it pertains to the written word in her blog here.

Painters Way To Rhythm


Now I am off to find my muse and get my rhythm back.

Mom on Life

Copyrighted 'Mom at 18'

I will be forever grateful that my 80 year old mother was determined to travel so far to visit with me for two months. We had visions of making jewelry (her passion - she brought a huge stash of beads), art journals, quilts, and of course some trips to the casinos for a game or two of Bingo. She has been here for 2 weeks and 4 days and we have done some of that although most of the time she has been gasping for air and taking to her bed. I had to take her to emergency yesterday and they have kept her overnight for 'observation' just as I and my brothers and sisters have done so many times in the past. She suffers from COPD (Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disorder), CHF (Congestive Heart Failure) HBP (High Blood Pressure) , Diabetes and Leukemia. Throw in Diverticulosis and allergies and yes, it is amazing she is still with us. She looks ten years younger and most people are unaware that she has so many health issues.

I leaned on the window frame, above the curtain, where she couldn’t see me, and watched the sun dapple on the balcony and her. The lake below sparkled and danced; at the horizon the sky swelled up behind lazy sails. Sea gulls were soaring and screeching, searching for breakfast washed up from the night before. Two white butterflies wafted up to the balcony cavorting and spinning, seem to say, “Look at me, look at me”! Yet still she kept to her multi-task of working the morning’s crossword and searching for a recipe for tonight’s dinner. She moves her head up and down, finding the right spot through her bi-focal. The bright light on her unkempt hair shows not a strand of gray, but is shocking nonetheless. A soft breeze floated the cheap polyester fabric with its huge red poppies from her shoulder to expose the smooth plump flesh hanging just below. She calls it her calf-a-tan and I can’t remember a time when she never wore it.

I watched her head bob for a few more minutes, when she looked at the window I was standing, then off towards the lake. After 30 seconds, she was back to her crossword.

A long time ago, I remember being a part of the scene I was watching; her gently holding a bird that had flown in the window and was injured. The sun shining on her then made her look as if a high priestess while she tended to the fallen sparrow….. excerpt 'Remembering to Forget'  Journal CAEden 2001 

I hope mom will be with us for years to come. There is still so many layers, so much to learn and remember. On my way to the hospital where I hope it will be good news that she is stable and can come home so we can start our journals.

February Respite

Been away for awhile and wish I could show you great things I have accomplished. While I know I am not alone, it has been a struggle to find a direction the past week or so. We have had a small family crisis to work through and my beloved sun just can't find a hold with all the storms coming in from the Pacific. My 80 year old mother is coming for a two month visit this weekend and I am so excited but this has also kept me out of my studio. I keep my fabric stash in our guest bedroom and somehow organizing that closet led to a major cleaning and purging of every closet in the house! There is one truth I am starting to realize about myself and that is I am a hoarder. There is not one thing that if I can't wear it, use it or eat it that I don't think, well, I can make something out of it. I do feel a bit justified that I am doing my bit to save the planet by recycling stuff, however, some of my 'stuff' is over 30 years old!

 

Since I have no new work, I thought I would share the quilt I made for mom last June for her birthday. I learned so much with this as it was only the second 'real' quilt I have ever made. All the photos were transferred to fabric using Bubble Jet Set after my daughter Julie and I spent months finding, scanning and restoring every picture we could get our hands on of  her. I used some left-over upholstery fabric, pillow ticking, cotton batting, lace, ribbons and buttons. The six pieced friendship stars were to represent her six children and the 'moon men' appliques to show that Cancerians are ruled by the moon. The Friendship Star pattern can be found here.

It has just started raining big fat droplets and is to go on all day and night. I see on the news a big snowstorm is spreading all over the NE and people are bracing for it, so I guess the groundhog just might be right this year. I think I will go make a cup of hot tea and finish the ATC's I had started before getting into closet cleaning. All four of the first ones I made (that you can see below) have been traded! The cards I received in return are beautiful so I can see how this just might be addicting. But really, it fits right in with my hoarding tendencies don't you think? 

The Angst of It All

Here is a scan of the first ATC's I have ever made. I think am calling these finished and have quite a few backgrounds ready to go. Maybe I am ready to join a swap but feel I have to experiment a bit more. The background for 3 of them are painted baby wipes. They stayed soft after the paint and have a fabric feel to them. All are done on playing cards - I have a never-ending supply of those here in Las Vegas. The metal circle with the painted 6 was made from the cover of a coffee can.
As I was making these and thinking about starting some altered books and art journals, I came across a 30 year old fabric covered sketchbook of mine that had many unfilled pages. Some of the drawings and notes that I had done where near and dear to my heart so I have vowed to complete the entire thing. Problem is I will have to give up on a theme but I have decided it will have only my own drawings with maybe a few embellishments here and there.

This is the first pages I sketched yesterday from a flier of the Phantom of the Opera which is playing here at the Venetian. It is done with gesso and water-soluble graphite pencils. Drawing in ink is a favorite technique of mine with the pencils coming in second.

One of the drawings from 1983 that I liked were of clowns so I did a sketch (on the left) of some others from a magazine clipping that I have kept for as long.

And finally, this one done in 1984 with brush and ink is a self portrait. Maybe not so well-done but expressive. It expresses some heavy-duty angst I was going trough at that time of my life. Although I am quite happy to not be in that place again, I want to be able to bring back the 'feeling' that I had in my sketching so long ago. When I get to the last two pages I will do the Phantom of the Opera again in the hopes that with all the practice more of my hand and style will be gained again.

Odds and Ends

 It was my resolution to get this blog off the ground at the beginning of 2010 so I pushed it out there without too many frills. I wanted to have made my own header and background by now but have been having too much fun playing in my studio. Couldn't bear looking at my sterile page any longer, so went over to The Graphics Fairy and grabbed a background and to Cute and Cool  for a header that matched. They have great tutorials there to help you make your blog pretty! I am very grateful to these and all the other awesome, inspirational and talented sites I have been following.
The rain has finally left us and will be back to 60 by the weekend. Totally enjoying the sunshine today and happy that I can finally take some things outside that need to be done there. I am spray painting some journal pages that I will be posting later. Trying to get a batch of ATC's done also. Even with the small size, they seem to take up more time than I thought they would. Maybe I am over thinking too much which happens more than not!
My mini-quilt project will be on its way to Georgayne (the raffle winner) in the morning. I have decided to make a pillow out of the 'Power of Women' flour resist piece. It sits next to my sewing machine waiting to be free-motioned stitched with pretty rayon threads.

Drum Roll Please......

 

Here is the final result. After reviewing many options, I decided a simple binding but it still seemed a bit lacking. I printed little butterflies (images from Dover) on fabric using Golden digital ground, beaded them up and added to the bottom.  Georgayne is the winner!  Please e-mail me with your address and I will mail it out to you.

Raffle Today!

I am adding the final embellishments as we speak to the soon-to-be raffled away mini-quilt that I decided to name 'Vintage Reserve'. The names have been gathered and are going into a bowl so that Mike can draw a name which I will post later today along with a photo of final piece.  Sorry for the delay but had one of those last minute midnight inspirations!  I appreciate and thank you all for the comments and suggestions - every one very good! Good luck!

One day to comment for raffle.

Has been a gloomy week with all the rain so have felt better to curl up with a blanket and read my just arrived back issues of Cloth Paper Scissors and Quilting Arts. I also have read and carefully considered the comments I received for the finishing of my mini quilt. In a previous post I said that all who comment would be in a raffle to win the finished piece. What I will do on tomorrow's (12 PM PST) deadline is put all the names in a box and have my husband Mike select a name. The winner will need to e-mail his/her address and it will be on its way!
Considering everything, I am leaning towards a simple double or triple gold roping finish.  The rick-rack is definitely out!  I will be working on it this afternoon and will post a photo as soon as I can.
Keep the comments coming!

Speechless

After a year and months of our suffering about our economy, job loss, health issues, etc., what has  happened in Haiti sure puts things in perspective. I was in Labadee, Haiti a little over a year ago as a site stop on my first ever cruise vacation. It was oppressively hot, even by my Las Vegas standards, but very beautiful. We were disappointed that there was not a little town nearby to explore, but there were local artists and vendors set up that we could talk to. There is controversy with the Royal Caribbean Cruise Line now that they have resumed docking there. You can read about it here:

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ynews/20100119/ts_ynews/ynews_ts1063

I agree with the cruise line that every little bit helps, although I would be even more uncomfortable right now than I was when there. The thing is, no one person can fix the bleed in something so big. If everybody gives - just a little - then maybe we can make a difference.

To Art or Not to Art, Part II Raffle

Spent the last several days deciding what is to be done with my now painted flour resist batiks.  After printing the images on organza and deciding that was not going to work, thought I would start with what I called the 'Ugly' before.  Actually, that piece was really not part of the resist process - merely a piece of muslin I threw on the remaining acrylic on my palette!  So I guess you would call it a mono print. Therefore I felt confident to experiment and toss it if I wanted to. Well, the more time I spent on it the less inclined I was to call it a complete disaster! 
You can see 'Ugly' in a previous post where I first laid in some color. At that point I could see trees in the background and maybe a lake and I printed some trees to play with that idea. Nothing worked until I found in my napkin stash some orange colored grapes and I used matte gel medium and glued it onto the muslin.  Hey, that was fun and now I was on a mission to make something out of it. I drew and painted the bird on a piece of the napkin and threw that in the background. Seemed to need something to bring you into the scene, so drew and painted a big butterfly on deli paper and put him in front.  Here is a close-up of the first lay down.

From the beginning, I knew I wanted to try some free-motion stitching on this and decided it would become a mini-quilt.  Had some fusible fleece, grabbed that and fired up my new Viking Emerald 183. There were some big frustrations; I broke 3 needles and did a lot of cussing, but after a while I was having great fun.

I used a purple rayon thread in the background to make that area recede and all the rest a yellow cotton thread. The Ugly Duckling has not exactly became a Swan, but had fun trying!  But now I am stuck on the finishing and am hoping I can get your comments on where to go from here.

These are two ideas for finishing and I apologize for the bad photography.  Another thought I had was to blanket stitch the edges adding either beads and yarn or both.  What do you think?  I will set this aside until next Friday to finish.  Anyone who posts a suggestion or comment will be in a drawing to receive the completed piece! It is 9 3/4 X 11 before I add the binding and it will be ready to hang. To do so, click on the word comments (it will underline when you point to it) just below this post and the form will come up.

To Art, or Not to Art?

Have to tell you about the Good, Bad and Ugly of method experimentation. I mention this poker game as a clue that I need to learn when to keep them, when to ditch them, when to walk or run. Of the 4 pieces that I did the flour resist, two are good, one is bad and one is downright ugly. Lot to learn on the process of painting on cloth. While they were drying I decoupaged this flimsy cover of a sketchbook I want to work in. I also made some prints on deli-wrap papers with my new Golden Digital Grounds for an upcoming experiment. Next Friday is my workshop at Desert Art Supply but just couldn't wait! Also painted some of same papers black and stamped them with some foam art stamps I made. More on that later.

So now we come to the painted, flour resist pieces - where to go from here? I pinned them to my design wall and thought the wavy one looked like my pool and thought of embellishing it with some photos of said pool I had taken last summer. The 'ugly' one reminded me of a tree on the bank of a lake, so I pinned up this deli-paper print of a tree to think about it. Have no idea how much you will be able to see through the deli when I glue it down, so maybe organza? My favorite, the one that looks like window panes (because I spread the flour mix on my counter top which left the impressions of the tile) has a b&w photo of yours truly which works, but I may decide on another figure of some sort. The Power of Women I plan on quilting and painting after that and ideas are floating in as to embellishments.

Flour Paste Resist

Wish I could give credit to whomever it was that I read about this method but I am the Senior Executive of the CRS Club. If you don't know what that means, then you are too young to ask.

I knew of only the wax method for making batiks on fabric but in gathering info to start a project learned of three other possibly easier methods to do the trick! Flour resists really caught my eye since I had a 5 lb. bag sitting unused in my pantry. Will be trying the gouache and gel method next. What I thought was cool was that you could make marks in the drying flour and get designs as well as cracks. You can see in the photo I used stamps, my fingers and the end of a brush to make designs. Although some cracks have formed, this was before the actual cracking process. I believe the mix was 2 water to 1 flour but it was like a pancake batter that I used a spatula to apply to pre-washed muslin. It is best if you can stretch it on something (like the back of a canvas) or pin onto felt covered foam board. After it dries completely, go crazy scrunching it up to make your cracks! Once done, you can use India ink, fabric paint or acrylic to cover and let dry 24 hours.
Try to remove as much flour as you can before taking to the sink - the less to remove by water is best. Let it soak a bit at first and then rinse till all flour removed.
So now what will I do with them? For sure I want to add color so here is my start. I used Lumiere fabric paint and Fabric Mate pens.
There are 4 pieces and my favorite is not shown. They have been drying all night so today I get to continue which I will post details tomorrow.


Nothing like fresh-picked lemons. Thanks Linda! Can't wait till my tree produces like that!

New Year, Blank Canvas

Here is a mini-quilt - my first free-motion project that I actually broke my sewing machine on. No worries, it was very old and it provided me with the excuse to buy a new one. The image is printed on cotton treated with Bubble-Jet Set and is of my mother circa 1946 (on the left, the only gal with slacks).

I am always excited to begin a fresh new year yet nervous as well. It is just like starting a new painting and I spend hours making lists, planning and dreaming. The Resolution List by this time has become totally unmanageable and outrageous, so I have torn it up and decided to just go with the flow and live by this motto:

If it is not fun, don' t do it,
If it is not broke, don't try to fix it,
Love well, myself first, and finally,
Live by the Golden Rule.

My dining-room-turned-studio was definitely broken and disorganized so I have spent the past 3 days re-arranging, sorting tools and gaining a tiny bit more space and a clearer head to work with. I am fresh now to work on some journals, ATC's and quilt projects I had started earlier. The most impressive task I completed was getting my 25 year old image files back in the proper order (like, I can find them now) which really set off my Muse. Some of the images were from old calendars that I had written notes and appointments on. What a hoot to see how far I have come yet how some things never change!
I am experimenting with Never-Dull, dryer sheets and lint, painted fuse-able, dying and painting fabrics, the new Golden Digital Grounds (signed up for a class for this one) and machine free-motion and felting. Whew. Maybe I need to make another list and shorten it!