Boxes, books, and papers oh my!

I love boxes!

When I was up in Dallas

I picked up a few cigar boxes

for one dollar a piece.

Then when I got them home

 I was looking through some old CPS mags

that my friend Laura gave me

and happened across a cigar box tutorial

by Cheryl Prater.

I love how it turned out.

You really can't see the dimension in the photo.

 It's mainly a cab card and collage.

 The card and each little tile cut out

is raised up, the face being the highest.

I have 2 more cigar boxes to experiment with.

Oh, the possibilities!

-ALTERED BOOKS and PAPERS-

Old books are something that I love to look at.

These old books were just crumbling

from dry rot,

when I found them at the thrift store,

except the covers were still in good shape.

I paid 29 cents each for them.

I made a cut out

 and put my watercolor in behind the cover,

added the vintage jewelry,

then glued the ends of the pages together.

I will probably finish this off and

 use this book as a book end.

This one I did the same way

 except I made 2 separate cutouts.

You could put anything in the window.

The book you see here

is on old hymnal I found at the thrift store.

I thought it needed a more angelic watercolor

in the window.

I added some fabric paper around the window and

a paper flower with a vintage button.

Then I added some black velvet ribbon,

 sari ribbon, old jewelry crosses,

 and some beads.

She also has a cross with black gold on her neck.

These books could not be read anymore

as they were too dry rotted,

but this way they can still be enjoyed

for their beauty.

How can you repurpose and alter an old book?

Let me know by leaving a comment.

I like to practice using my watercolor pencils

 on any kind of paper I can find,

including paper from books.

I buy the cheapest books I find at the thrift store too,

 sometimes the ones no one else wants.

I love old hymnals, old dictionarys, old atlas's,

old bibles, old botany books, old gardening books,

old science books, old literature books etc.

 Most are for less than 50 cents.

Some I keep on my shelves as is and just love them

and others I use

for many other things.

It's just one more way I like to.....

Savor the Day!

Yvonne

October Art Show and a Request

 The Art Center for the Islands

is having their

Rock, Paper, Scissors Group Show

starting October 1st.

I took 11 pieces over Sunday.

 My Love's Sorrow art quilt made it

on the front page of their newsletter.

I was so surprised and pleased!

I would not be in this show

 if it wasn't for my friend Darlene.

A somber request to all of you reading this...

I usually don't do this sort of thing,

but I feel I must....

Please keep my artist friend Darlene

in your prayers.

She encouraged me to join the

Art Center for the Islands

and to get in the October show.

 She has recently been diagnosed with

bone cancer.

 ALSO...

My friend Shirley,

who I have posted about many times,

 is the person who encouranged me

to enter the TDA quilt contest.

She is having some health issues

right now,

so please keep her in your prayers.

She was going to be in the

October art show also,

but is unable to.

She called me up in Dallas,

before the TDA quilt unveiling

to let me know how proud she was of me.

That touched my heart.

One more request...

please keep another person,

who will remain nameless,

 in your prayers.

She would not want me to go into details.

But I figure the more prayers for her, the better.

She is very close to me.

I am truely blessed

 by having these women

and many others like them

 in my life.

Who are the people in your life who encourage you,

who support you,

who love you no matter what,

who call you to say they are proud of you,

who tell you they care?

Savor the Day!

Yvonne



Raisa's Altered Book Journal

This is my altered book journal for Raisa.

The 2010 Art Doll Coolaberration

is underway.

If you would like to see Raisa,

 more of this journal,

and more of what the other artists are doing

please go to

http://2010coolab.blogspot.com/.

Get on in the beginning

and follow along with us

 on this one year long journey.

See the artistry

in the dolls,

and the creativity in the journals.

Hope you become a follower!

Savor the Day!

Yvonne

T Tuesday--- drinking in the nectar

Today I am still trying to catch up from my trip.

But first it's time for Tea on Tuesday.

Tea on Tuesday helps me slow down

 long enough to 'drink in the nectar'.

"There is more to life than merely increasing its speed."

------Gandhi

It was a wonderful trip.

 It started in Wimberly, Tx.

with my good friend Lana,

One fun thing we did was stop in

Dripping Springs at

Thyme and Dough,

a little bakery, bistro and coffee bar,

 for lunch.

I had a wonderful sandwich and

for dessert I had an agave strudel.

Ummmm ummmm good!

 I found some wonderful teas here.

The tea is made by Harney & Sons.

  I am having the

Pomegranate Oolong

this morning.

http://www.harney.com/

Please join us for tea

by visiting Kimmie at

Art in Red Wagons

Sitting...thinking

Sipping pomegranate oolong tea...

 on this cool fall morning,

a time to sit

thinking thoughts...

 memories are precious gifts.

In my photo above you can see

an Artist Studio Tour brochure.

That is one thing Lana and I happened across

when we arrived in Wimberly.

There were about 15 artists on the tour.

It was a wonderful way to savor the day.

Here are some of the artists links.

Enjoy!

http://www.zannajames.com/

http://www.master-goldsmith.com/

http://www.theoldoaksranch.com/

http://www.lillipell.com/

http://www.anntempleton.com/

http://www.meekgallery.com/

http://www.bettyrhodesfineart.com/

http://www.tombenderimages.com/

http://www.edwardpovey.com/

www.dltolar.com/art

Be content with your journey.....

and take some time to drink in the nectar.

Savor the Day!

Yvonne

TDA Quilt Unveiled

Here it is! 

Click on images and zoom in

 to see just how beautiful this quilt is!

The 2010 Texas Dept. Of Agriculture's

Wildlife Adventure Awaits Quilt.

You can see my turtle block toward the bottom on the right.

The quilt was gorgeous. 

I really can't say enough

about the work that went into this

by all of these talented women.

The ladies who designed it and quilted it did a wonderful job.

 There are 25 winning blocks, including mine,

 and smaller blocks of embroidered animals,

pieced blocks of batik,

and batik borders.

There is hand stitching, ribbon embroidery, beading and more .

So much detail is in this quilt.

The quilting is custom for each individual block.

Here is a close up of my turtle block

and you can see some of the smaller pieced blocks that they added,

a winning fish block,

and some of the quilting that was done.

Remember they sent us the fabrics to use in our block,

brown leather, cream linen, green wool,

and a variety of cotton batiks to choose from.

I'm standing here with Maria Davis,

 who was the quilter/designer for this project.

Terri Vogds contributed with the embroidery detail/design work on the quilt also.

The quilt will be on display at the state fair for one month,

then travel around the state

 with the TDA's permanent quilt collection

from now on.

It was great to be a part of this!

For more info on this quilt you can go to

http://www.gotexan.org/

(to the consumers area)

They will soon be putting up pics of the quilt,

and also more about

what each quilter said

 about their individual block.

Here is what I said....

"Texas turtles, both land and sea,

 have an important role to play in nature.

If we lose them, it affects everything.

They have been here on this planet,

 in something like their present form,

 since before the age of dinosaurs.

According to Indian legend,

the turtles back provided a base

for the first land

that was formed

in the midst of the great waters. 

Conservation of the turtle's habitat is crucial.

The fabric in the top two thirds of the block

has holes in it,

 representing the habitat that is changing."

The presentation was very nice,

the unveiling was exciting,

the quilt was beautiful...

but best of all....

my sister Lanette got to share all of this with me.

Savor the Day!

Yvonne

Art Dolls...Then and Now

 THEN.....

I've been asked the question....
 of how I got started making art dolls.

It was in Kerrville, Tx.,
less than 10 years ago,

when I took an art doll making class at

Anne Schneiders home.
The class was called
  Dolls for the Soul,
and was given by a guest artist.
Please visit Anne's website,
as she is a wonderful poet and artist.
http://www.poetsmask.com/about.htm

The photo below shows me,
front row, pink top...

in my first and only art doll making class.

This was the very first art doll I ever made!

I was hooked!

I named her Ravana.

front

rear

In the beginning,

I made many more in this style...

like this one...

 

and this one....

and many more.

I've made many different kinds of art dolls since then,

 much smaller,

and using many different media.

I have learned better techniques,

and many different styles.

The round robins have really stretched my creative wings.

I've learned so much since Ravana

and continue to learn even more.

NOW...

2010 Round Robin.....

Gail has set up a new blog for this project.

 Please visit
 http://2010coolab.blogspot.com/

• 
  
  to see who the 7 artists are,
• 
  
  to get links to each artists blogs,
• 
  
  and to read all the artists own written posts.

Hope you become a follower,

so you won't miss anything!

It is going to be exciting to see all the doll starts,

and how each progresses throughout the year.

I just posted about my doll start...

so go see what I named her!

I am still working on my

altered book journal

that will travel with her.

NOTICE:

I am leaving on another trip in the morning and

will be gone for about 10 days or so.

Please enjoy visiting all the artists blogs

and our project blog as well.

Until then,

Peace and don't forget to....

Savor the Day!

Yvonne

Tea and Fiber Arts

Tea on Tuesday is always fun for me!

This mornings tea is from a 'fairy lily' flower,

 a tight little package,

ready to infuse in the tea pot.

Here is my tea flower after infusing for about 3 minutes!

It was fun to watch it open!

The tea is delicious!

Visit Kimmie at

Art in Red Wagons

to read more about Tea on Tuesdays.

Tea Dyeing Tip:

Tea dyeing is natural, it's earthy,

and it can be a beautiful shade of brown,

but it's not permanent…

 unless

                                                       you soak the fabric in a solution of:

                                                                      2 cups vinegar

1 cup water

2 tablespoons salt

 

So go tea dye something!

 

The Fiber Art Society Group met on Sunday.

Everyone brought back their blocks they had worked on

for the collaboration art quilt.

Many of you have seen my 'ladies head' block
but for those who have not then click here.

I think this project has been fun for all,

and made us stretch our creative wings a bit.

This quilt will be put together

by the brave and talented artist

Laura Osbun. 
Then in February it will be in the
Corpus Christi Quilt Show.
I will not be showing photos until after the show,
as we would like it to be a surprise to all.
So, you will have to wait!
Oh, the suspense!!!!!  :)

But I can show you a few of the wonderful things that
were brought to show and tell.

We have 2 basket makers in the group now,

and they are both very talented.

 Here is a wonderful free form sculpture

made from palms. 

Our new basket maker gives classes in basket weaving.

She happened to be wearing a necklace,

made with pieces woven around a turkey bone.

I thought it to be very unique!

I loved it!

A very pretty little art quilt!

Cadi traveled to Corpus with a few of us

 and I suggested she bring some of her beautiful jewelry.

She is a woman who quit her job to become a full time artist!

She received an applause at the meeting for that one!  :)

Cadi creates beautiful precious metal clay jewelry,

and does many other creative things as well.

Please visit her new website at

http://idacadesign.com/

to see her beautiful creations.

I'm sure she would love a comment from you.

 In ending this post I wanted to share something with you...

something I read in a book called,

 Inner Simplicity

by Elaine St. James

Inner Simplicity: 100 Ways to Regain Peace and Nourish Your Soul

"We are all born with a deep core of creativity."

and also,

" For many of us, the ability to tap into our creativity comes only after we have slowed down to the point where we can take the time to get centered. 

Learning to be and learning to be creative are two sides of the same coin."

So, in your own way,

take the time to get centered,

find inner and outer simplicity and

your creativity will bloom.

It's one more way to.....

Savor the Day

Yvonne

 

Something old, something new!

Many times,

quilts are about preserving old memories.

You may see T-shirt quilts,

quilts made from denim jeans,

or quilts made from pieces of your childrens clothes.

There are endless ways to put together quilts

from fabric that is our memories.

This is a quilt that was shown at Saturday Quilters,

made from a man's shirts....

her husbands shirts....

all loving memories to her...

every block and border

 put together with love.

Man's Shirt Quilt close up...

Variation of bear paw with Log cabin center.

This quilt used material from her mother's stash,

which had memories for her.

Close up view.

Part of Joni's bargello quilt.

Many, many small pieces indeed!

This pattern would surely become a special memory.

Shirley's Victorian Chatelaine,

that she made years ago.

A chatelaine was something new to me!

It goes around your neck,

keeping everything handy for sewing.

Can you name these?

The ladies at Saturday Quilters always have something to show...

and something that is usually new to me.

So, try to learn something new,

preserve the old memories in some way,

and don't forget to...

Savor the Day!

Yvonne

Art Shows Coming Up

I am always amazed

at how much I miss when I am not online.

 

I have been offline for over a week.

Been busy getting ready for a couple of shows.

Lots going on but the big news is

   Tropical Storm Hermine

going right over the top of us.

This was a few days before the storm hit.

We have had fall like mornings,

nice rain off and on,

and then all of a sudden

T.S. Hermine forms just south of us.

Before we knew it,

in the middle of the night

we had 74  mph winds

 and lots of rain.

No damage to speak of,

just 2 big broken tree limbs,

 my neighbors chickens are MIA,

our boat sunk in the yard,

but all in all, not too bad.

Now we just need some time to dry out.

I did miss

Tea on Tuesday,

but I have had my tea every morning,

usually my Yerba Mate.

Visit Kimmie at

Art in Red Wagons

if you want to join us.

I'm getting ready for Trade Days here at home

on September 11th.

My DH made me 2 display boards

made from pegboard.

I love them!

 

  I will be selling

my handmade soap,

large bed quilts,

art dolls etc.

THEN....

October 1st will be an art show in Port Aransas!

Better get busy!

Savor the Day!

Yvonne