Graffiti inchie and my graffiti art best of show

This inchie is from a photo of some actual graffiti that I found.

I have made graffiti art background pages,

along with Bea and Kris.

I put together a piece awhile back,

using our pages,

and entered it in an art show

where I won

Best of Show.

This was last year,

but for those who have not seen it,

click here to view.

http://inkspillersattic.blogspot.com/2010/06/graffiti-wall-project-done.html#links

It also sold the night of the reception.

I was thrilled!

Visit Kris for more inchie art.

http://everyinchiemonday.blogspot.com/

To see my finished inchie mixed media piece with 52 inchies in it,
click
http://inkspillersattic.blogspot.com/2011/09/close-ups-of-words.html


Savor the Day!

Yvonne

Time to Fly

Time to Fly

It's fall, and millions of monarch butterflies are migrating

 to warmer climates for the winter—

heading either to the California coast or through here in south Texas

 to certain mountains in Mexico.

My friends Karen and Steve took this photo recently of

Monarch Butterflies in their yard.

They said there were several hundred in their trees

out by their picnic table.

What a beautiful site to see!

I just had to share it with all of you.

Click on the photo to enlarge it

for a more spectacular view.

"Just living is not enough," said the butterfly, "one must have sunshine, freedom and a little flower."
---Hans Christian Anderson

"You can chase a butterfly all over the field and never catch it. But if you sit quietly in the grass it will come and sit on your shoulder." ---Author Unknown

Karen states."God truly is the greatest artist!!"

I totally agree!

Savor the Day!

Yvonne



More fabric collage

In my previous post

I showed you some of the

beach themed fabric collages

I'm making for gifts.

Here are just a few more I've made,

with different themes.

You can click on each photo to enlarge if you like.

Copyright free photos are found online,

or use your own vintage photos.

This one uses some of my pieces of rusted fabric,

and also a dictionary page for the word

Cowboy.

You can add anything.

Sometimes I add my paper fabric,

pieces of old maps etc.

This one uses a piece of sari ribbon.

I save even the smallest pieces

for projects like this.

I like to mix florals, stripes and solids.

I also alternate often with lights and darks.

Remember balance and design principles,

even for things such as these fragments.

If you make some, let me know,

I would love to see them.

Savor the Day!

Yvonne

A surprising labyrinth

Each time I take a little trip

I look at the labyrinth locator online

and find out where I can find one to walk.
I also think they are very pretty.

Click on http://www.labyrinthsociety.org/

to find one near you.

I found one at a spirituality center in the Tx. hill country.
 I had to go beyond the second building
to the prayer path and take the right fork.

I walked and walked through the wildness of the land,
and sometimes I would come across a place to pause.

I kept walking the winding path
that was lined with local limestone rocks,
seeing lilttle surprises now and then.

This little statue was just one of many surprises.

This 8 ft. tall wooden Fruit of the Spirit plaque was another surprise.

Then about 250-300 yards in...

the path opened up to a clearing and there it was....

I had arrived at the labyrinth.

It was an eleven- circuit labyrinth —

a Texas vernacular reinterpretation of the well-known design at Chartres.

I was so pleased and surprised.

Here I am at the center of the labyrinth.

So, find a labyrinth.
You may be surprised too.

Savor the Day!
Yvonne

Fragment Fabric Collage

What do you do with lots of pieces of assorted fabrics

that are given to you?

Make fabric collages.

I have been having more fun making these.

Copyright free photos are the focal point.

and I always add a quote.

Vintage buttons and embellishments are used also.

I make them anywhere from 8" by 10" to 16" by 20".

Here are some with a beach theme.

"Don't wait for your ship to come in.

Swim out to it."

"You can comb the sands or lie in the sun,

the choice is yours, as long as it's fun!"

"A real friend is someone who takes a winter vacation

on a sun drenched beach, and does not send a card."

"Live in the sunshine,

Swim the sea,

Drink the wild air."

---Emerson

Each one has raw edges on each fabric layer.

Denim or some similar heavy fabric is used on the back

to stiffen the piece, so it hangs nicely.

It is added last, to cover up all the stitching that was done.

Then I stitch a hanger on the back,

and it's ready.

You can stiffen it further by adding

spray starch to the back.

Makes great gifts.

Savor the Day!

Yvonne

Odyssey--- art doll

I finished my 3rd art doll last night,

 for an upcoming art show in November.

You can see Hyacinth, who was the first one

I made for this show,

by clicking here...

 http://inkspillersattic.blogspot.com/2011/10/art-doll-hyacinth.html

You can see Myrena, the second one I made for this show,

 if you click here.

http://inkspillersattic.blogspot.com/2011/10/mermaid-art-doll-on-tea-tuesday.html

Now meet

Odyssey.

She is very colorful and I wanted her to look

 like she comes from

under the sea.

Odyssey is made using polymer clay, just like the others.

Her hair is recycled sari yarn,

which I love

and I've used it often on my art dolls.

On top of her head are 5 poly clay fish

with beads for eyes.

I first tried a hat, but then went with

something totally different.

There is a tiny shell on her forehead,

and she has a turquoise stone necklace.

Here is a close up view.

Next photo is the back view.

Odyssey is mounted like the others,

on a 4 inch square wooden base.

Hope you are enjoying the fall weather

and creating something.

It's all to help us...

Savor the Day!

Yvonne

Mermaid art doll on Tea Tuesday

Happy Tea on Tuesday everyone!

I'm posting early btw.

This morning I had

Tahitian Vanilla Hazelnut by the Yogi Tea Co.

I love how it has a little quote

attached to each tea bag.

Visit Kimmie for more tea posts.

Click http://artinredwagons.blogspot.com/

=================

My DH told me I needed to make a mermaid art doll

for a show I have coming up soon

at the Port Aransas Art Center.

Here on the coast there are so many mermaid items,

that I never really wanted to make a mermaid....

until now.

I wanted this one to be a little different.

Remember, she is an art doll...

so anything goes....

she has no arms,

no flowing hair,

does not look like your average mermaid...

but you can still tell she is a mermaid,

by her tail (of course)

Here is....

MYRENA

Myrena is 12.5 inches tall,

and is made from polymer clay.

Here's tips on how I created her.......

I wanted to give her lots of motion, so...

Her bottom hips and tail are straight on,

with her upper body turned to the right,

then her head looks back to the left.

Her tail comes up and is quite large.

For color...

I added nutmeg brown acrylic paint to her entire body,

then wiped it off right away,

just leaving a hint of brown,

especially in the recessed areas.

Then on her tail I added silver liquid leaf,

just on the high spots, not in the recessed scales etc.

This will tarnish over time,

and should be very pretty,

with her indented scales still showing the brown.

You can seal the liquid leaf if you choose.

She is attached to a 4 inch square wooden base

that is painted black and has a gloss sealer on top.

She is mounted with a dowel that goes into her body.

There is also a dowel in her neck connecting

her head to her body, for strength.

That's it.

Hope you try polymer clay one day.

If you do, email me and send me a photo.

Would love to see what you are doing.

Savor the Day!

Yvonne

Words of Encouragement

Do you remember getting gold stars in grade school,

every time you did a great job?

It always made me feel encouraged to do more good things.

I had a teacher who always said,

"OK students, You did great yesterday,

now let's get started on doing even better today.

Let's see how many gold stars I can hand out."

Here are some words of encouragement
she always wrote on the blackboard....

 The words are...

BEGIN

IMAGINE

LAUGH

BELIEVE

SEEK

PLAY

TRUST

LISTEN

CREATE

CONNECT

TOUCH

FORGIVE

PRAY

HOPE

CHOOSE

APPRECIATE

GIVE

READ

WRITE

RELEASE

To see this inchie in a finished mixed media piece click,
http://inkspillersattic.blogspot.com/2011/09/close-ups-of-words.html

Come visit again.
Tomorrow I will be showing another art doll.

Savor the Day!

Yvonne

Daddy's Little Girl

I have been making some fabric collages.

These are just fragments of raw edged vintage fabric,

trim and buttons from long ago.

I also use copyright free vintage photos

and I usually add a quote.

This one is for my niece Bekah,

who is having a little girl

in December.

I think this little girl holding her doll is so sweet.

The quote says...

"I love being a girl,

because I'm daddy's little girl,

and that rocks!"

Savor the Day!

Yvonne

Art Doll--Hyacinth

I named her Hyacinth.

Another name meaning hyacinth is

Giacinta.

I wanted to do something really different this time.

She is painted polymer clay.

Her hair comes from a horses tail.

There is a bead and feather at her neck.

Then I added a little tiny bird on her hat.

At her shoulders she has hooks,

like there could be arms added.

But....

She has no legs and no arms.

I didn't add fabric to her either,

like I usually do to my dolls.

She is attached to a 4 inch square wooden stand.

I painted it black and put

a pretty stencil on it

and some turquoise dots

here and there.

She will be going to the art center.

Savor the Day!

Yvonne

FOLK magazine

I recently won a magazine called

FOLK from Amy over at

Four Corners Design.

http://www.fourcornersdesign.blogspot.com/

Thank you so much Amy!

This magazine is wonderful!

You can visit the magazine website at

http://magazinebyfolk.com/

or visit their blog at

http://americanfolklifeblogspot.com/

There are ads of course

(and even those are great),

but mostly there are great articles,

patterns, DIY projects, recipes,

home decor tips and ideas,

great photos and much much more.

It is filled with things that

"immerse the reader in a life that journeys at a slower pace"

as Editor-in-chief Ben Ashby says.

If you like to see and read about the little things

that make life worth living

then check it out.

It's another way to...

Savor the Day!

Yvonne

Fondue !

Each month my friend Karen and I

decide on a theme for a dinner get together.

This month was FONDUE.

When is the last time YOU did fondue? :)

We had chicken, shrimp and beef

that could be cooked in oil or broth.

There was cheese fondue with bread,

a salad, and lots of sauces to choose from.

For a drink we had lemongrass tea,

which was out of this world.

Fondue is a very communal meal,

and we loved every minute of it.

It was a first for our friend Margie (in the red shirt),

who is 80 years old. 

You are never too old to try something new.

For dessert, we continued the fun

 with many different dippers

(pretzels, rolled wafers, fruit, marshmallows, biscotti)

in coffee chocolate with almonds,

chocolate with orange liquer

and also a caramel sauce.

It was a good way to end the meal.

Try something new to you,

or do something you haven't done in years.

Laugh, laugh and laugh some more.

Nothing like good food,

good friends,

and fun to help you....

Savor the Day!

Yvonne

Tea Day with Eleanora Duse

It's Tea Tuesday already!

How time flies!

Today I am having some tea

that was sent to me by

Patricia at

Artfully Ooglebloops.

The tea is a blend of green tea, acai, pomegranate and blueberry .

Very nice, thanks Pat!

All of those good things from the earth,

and the cup my daughter Jessica gave me years ago,

made me think of one of my favorite quotes...

"If the sight of blue skies fills you with joy,

if the simple things of nature have a message you understand,

rejoice,

for your soul is alive."

---Eleanora Duse (1858-1924)

Eleanora Duse was an Italian theatre actress,

in the 1800's and early 1900's.

She was the only woman to make the cover of

Time magazine in 1923.

Many said she was more talented than any other female of her time.

She became her characters.

She knew how to.....

Savor the Day....

Yvonne

Fleetwood Mac - Dreams

I love this song!

Here is my DREAMS inchie.

For more dream inchies visit Kris at

http://everyinchiemonday.blogspot.com/

This inchie is in my finished mixed  media piece

WORDS,

http://inkspillersattic.blogspot.com/2011/09/close-ups-of-words.html

Savor the Day!

Yvonne

PPF Hummer

                                                        A flash of harmless lightning,

mist of rainbow dyes,

The burnished sunbeams brightening

From flower to flower he flies.

                                    - John Banister Tabb

And the humming-bird that hung

Like a jewel up among

The tilted honeysuckle horns

 They mesmerized and swung

In the palpitating air,

 Drowsed with odors strange and rare.

And, with whispered laughter, slipped away

And let him hanging there.

                           - James Whitcomb Riley

Happy Paint Party Friday everyone!

Visit http://paintpartyfriday.blogspot.com/

for more creativity in painting.

Savor the Day!

Yvonne



WIP's to Share

This week I've been working on several new projects.

I'm making some Fragment Fabric Collages,

each with a different theme.

This one is a cowgirl theme and says,

Cowgirls Promise--All Grit and No Quit

As you can see, I have each piece pinned on right now.

I will do some stitching and add some embellishments,

like the vintage buttons and lace you see here.

Then I will add batting and a back to it,

along with a way to hang it.

 Fragments are a fun and easy way

to use up scraps of fabric and lace.

---

I am also making

felted wool wrist pincushions.

While visiting my cousin Paula recently,

I saw that she was using one,

and how handy it was.

She had lots of felted wool and fabric scraps,

so I started making them during my visit with her.

I love using mine,

when I'm doing hand work.

My plan is to make plenty of handmade items

for the Christmas season,

that is quickly approaching.

Do you have any great ideas you would like to share?

If so, I would love to know how to make something new.

Savor the Day!

Yvonne

Time to make soap!

Well, it's that time again.

Time to make soap.

I've been making soap for about 12 years now

and always have fun doing it.

I've tried many different recipes

and shared my love for this old craft many times.

This day I shared it with my friend Karen.

Remember her?  She's my tree hugging friend.

As you can see,

she is having fun stirring the soap mix and

 acting silly for the photo!  LOL

Karen learned how to make a basic batch of handcrafted soap,

using several kinds of oils and lye.

She made it especially hers by adding coffee grounds and cinnamon essential oil.

Here it is still in the mold,

after sitting overnight wrapped up in blankets.

Now it is hard enough to cut into bars like mine.

My batch is Patchouly/Lavender.

The batch made 17 bars of almost 4 oz. each.

After 3 weeks of curing,

they will be ready for their labels.

_______

I was going to keep making more batches,

but then my 12 inch long glass thermometer I use for soap making, BROKE!

OH NO!

 No more soap making today!

 I just went online to

Majestic Mountain Sage at

http://www.thesage.com/

and ordered another one, a metal one this time.

That old thermometer lasted a long time.

I also ordered some essential oils,

one new one being 'sweetgrass' EO.

Oh yes, I also ordered some

French Green Clay

to make soap with.

This soap is called

Savon de Marseille.

In France it has been used for generations

to clean everything from

linens to babies' skin.

The soap got its name because the city of Marseille,

on the southern coast of France,

was one of the most important

soap-making centers of the Mediterranean.

French green clay is a natural clay hidden deep beneath the earth's surface.

It's very good for the skin.

I am excited about making this soap!

So try an old craft,

learn something new,

have fun and....

Savor the Day!

Yvonne

It takes TEA to tango

When I went through Corpus Christi recently,

I stopped in the Tango Tea Room for lunch.

I learned about this wonderful little hide away

from my friend Karen.

Visit http://www.tangofandango.com/

to see just how wonderful this little place is.

For lunch I had their special of the day,

the Saigon sandwich,

which is fried tofu with avocado,

shredded carrots, cucumbers,

cilantro and spicy Saigon Sauce

served on a Bolillo Roll (vegan).

Also vegan chips on the side.

It was delicious to say the least!

They have over 60 varieties of green, black,

 herbal and medicinal teas. 

Every day they select two teas

brew them up for a tasty iced tea experience.

I chose the Bongo Congo black tea,

with a slice of lime and stevia.

(loved the playing card flower centerpiece on the table.)

They also serve Jet tea which is blended ice, fruit and tea.

Also on the menu is

 Hot tea by the pot, and

chai tea latte, hot or iced.

They have wonderful vegan and gluten free food here.

I require neither one really,

I just like great tasting food!

Did you know that stressed spelled backwards is

DESSERTS!

So, next time,

to help keep my stress level down (good excuse anyway)

 I will try

one of their wonderful desserts, like

 Lotus Chai Heaven,

or Mucho Mocha.

Visit Kimmie for more tea posts..

http://artinredwagons.blogspot.com/

It's one more way to...

Savor the Day!

Yvonne

The Eye of Curiosity and giveaway winners!

"This week look at life with your “eye of curiosity”

and let your heart and your mind wonder

 as you approach a new experience.

 Trust that the work has been done,

that you are where you are

because that’s the best place you could be.

Let go of the past experiences

that somehow left you bruised

and skeptical

and welcome the possibilities

a brand new day offers to you."

---Anna Scherer

This inchie is already in my finished
mixed media piece
WORDS
http://inkspillersattic.blogspot.com/2011/09/close-ups-of-words.html

The eye is acrylic and used
in making polymer clay art dolls.

Now...
announcing the 3 winners of
my studio stash giveaway.
I had my husband draw three names
and they are....
Tammy of T's Daily Treasures (in Kuwait)
Teresa of Cedar Junction (in Texas)
Mary Anne of Magpie's Mumblings (in Canada)

Please send your mailing address to me at...
thyme4giving@yahoo.com
and I will get your goodies out to you this week.
Congratulations to all of you,
and thank you to everyone who entered.

Savor the Day!

Yvonne

Color Harmony

This year in my watercolor class,

our teacher Dolores

is teaching from the book

Watercolor Wisdom

by Jo Taylor, AWS.

For homework

we have to paint something using one of the

five color harmonies...analogous, triadic,

complementary,monochromatic or

split complementary.

So, I had fun with a little hummingbird.

I quickly painted these, just to try out

three different combinations.

The top is Triadic,

the left one on the bottom is complementary,

and the one on the right is monochromatic.

Let me know what you think of the colors.

Savor the Day!

Yvonne

Studio Stash Give Away

No, I'm not giving away pumpkins,  :)

but aren't they pretty.

I love seeing lots of them together.

Hope all of you are having a great October.

Recently Patricia over at

Artfully Ooglebloops

http://artfullyooglebloops.blogspot.com/

had a giveaway.

  I received my package today...

Wow, I just love everything in it.

Thank you Patricia, so much.

I love the woven papers,

the words that came in the green striped box

and, and, and....well just all of it!  :)

It's been awhile since I've had a giveaway here

at Inkspillers Attic.

Now it's time again!

Leave a comment if you want to win

a package of mixed media goodies from my stash.

I will randomly choose 3 winners.

Each package will be different.

 I will notify the winners by email.

Giveaway closes Sunday night at midnight.

Happy October everyone!

Savor the Day!

Yvonne



Spirit, Strength, Feminity of Woman

Spirit, Strength, Feminity of Woman

(16 in. by 20 in.)

is my submission for Week 30 at

 Paint Party Friday

I love the use of stencils for background designs.

 Real lace was used as a stencil for her veil.

I didn't paint her to look realistic,

but I was happy how she turned out.

Most of my mixed media pieces have a quote

or words added to them. 

Is feminity a word?

Not sure about that one.

Contrast is also important.

Here the brick(ish) and wrought iron background,

vs. the lace veil and rose.

Hope you visit PPF because now

there are more than 60 blog participants

showing some very creative art pieces.

You can click on the PPF logo in my sidebar or

click on

http://paintpartyfriday.blogspot.com/

Savor the Day!

Yvonne

'Hug a Tree' earthy tea day

Happy Tea on Tuesday everyone.

My sister Lanette gave me a package of

very earthy tea...

Zengranny's

Sage Gardens Berry Delicious Tea...

--hand blended and infused with intention--

The dried herbs are in fairly large pieces,

and the berries are dried and whole,

and it takes about 15 minutes to infuse.

It is not in separate tea bags.

Ingredients are:

blueberries, hibiscus, green tea,

lemongrass, rosehips, orange peel, spearmint and

yerba mate (which comes from a rainforest tree)

It also comes in an eco friendly package.

You can find zengranny products

from the Texas Hill Country at

http://www.zengranny.etsy.com/
You may be asking ...
What in the world is THAT in the photo?

More earthy things, that's what.

My tea is shown here with some earthy things

from my friend Karen.

The large long 'earthy' pod looking thing

came from a palm tree in the area.

The other two 'earthy things' came off of a tree stump,

and are a hard tree fungus

called 'artist conk'.

 I enjoy the uniqueness, wonder, and beauty that

Mother Earth gives us.

AND...speaking of 'earthy'...

This is my friend Karen!
Isn't she cute hugging that tree!!!

Karen was visiting family in Seattle

when she felt compelled to have a conversation

with this wonderful tree

 ( yes, she is known to do this type of thing, and more of us should )

and then give it a big hug

(which has been shown to be good for your health).

She told me she has a

"love for the reaching to heaven giants,

sanctuary for lots of God's little creatures,

providers of oxygen to all living creatures."
I hope this inspires you all...

to go hug a tree!

I know what Karen will wonder after seeing this,
 how come she is on the same post as fungus????  LOL
I love ya my friend!!!

 Savor the Day!

Yvonne

Destination inchie and quiz

 The United States is still the world's leading destination

 for immigrants.

America now has 43 million foreign nationals,

 more than any other country,

with a million more arriving every year.

Why?

Freedom--

--to worship

--from want

--from fear

--to create

How much do you know about America and immigration?

Take this interesting PBS quiz to find out...

http://www.pbs.org/destinationamerica/usim_qz.html

Savor the Day!

Yvonne