Moonscapes - A Visual Journal

Pages 1/11/12

2012-01-11T18:52:00.000-08:00

Photos I took on the Hipstamatic for iphone at the Computer History Museum in Mountain View. There were some awesome old computers. If you are local to the Bay Area and are a bit of a geek, like me – you'll enjoy it. Since when are 'Pac Man' and 'Pong' history? ;-)

Pages 1/7/12

2012-01-07T18:20:00.000-08:00


This is a sketch I did on a paper grocery bag. I'm adding it as a tip-in page into the altered book. I find tip-ins a good way to use the doodles I create while on the phone. Some of them can be pretty cool!

Page illustration. My book theme is 'Lyrica Obscura'. The words are 'What shape does the silence have?' This line is from the song, 'The Headphonist, by Kinky.


	Altered book pages with collage bordering added.

I am slowly making progress on my altered book. I'm starting to add collage to the borders, and making some tip-ins to add some interesting papers and doodles. It kind of bulks up the book too since I have to have it ready to mail in a few weeks. I'm working on the cover next, trying to figure out a closure that will be adjustable enough to work if the book gets really bulky.

Pages 1/3/12

2012-01-03T19:03:00.000-08:00

Preparing the Altered Book. Removing pages, gluing pages, and waiting for them to dry.


Back Cover. I sanded the cover, then painted the book with good acrylic paint and used metallic pens. This isn't done, I'm just getting started!

Interior Page. Working on laying in a strong base for collage. Acrylics, pens.

Interior Cover. The them is 'Lyrica Obscura'. Those gem lyrics that make you stop and think ... and play over and over.


Another Interior Page. Building up colors and layers with paint.

Well, yeah. It's been awhile since I blogged. Sorry. What can I say, my life has been a whirlwind since about October. I do so much on FaceBook these days that I keep forgetting to update the blog. If you're reading this, and you haven't added me on FaceBook, follow the links to the right and catch me there.

So, this is a new project I'm working on. It's an altered book for a Round Robin I am in. I'd kind of forgotten how much work it is to prep these bad boys. Finding the right book, removing pages, gluing pages together, painting the pages ... e-yikes. It's fun though. It def give me a break from ceramics for awhile and it's good to mix it up.

I thought I'd share the process. It's still in early stages, but you might be interested in what steps I'm taking.

Lessons learned so far? Make sure you pick the right book to alter. Make sure the spine is sewn in, not glued. Take the book and crack the spine really wide. Do you see sewing? It's a good book to alter. Also, check the paper. What's it like? This one has a newsprint finish and it took foreverrrrr to dry. Make sure it has good paper. Test it before you put a ton of work into it. (I didn't. lol.) Anyway, I have it working now, I just had to make sure there were about 3-4 pages glued together for strength.

Pages 11/27/11

2011-11-27T16:32:00.000-08:00

Since I've been feeling under the weather I've been doing small projects in front of the TV while I rest - ATCs, painting pottery and doing some finishing work on various small projects. I've had these Day of the Dead clay magnets in a box for well over a year, just waiting for magnets to be attached. I finally finished them up. Nothing like some brain dead finishing work while sick. One more small project off my list.

Pages 11/26/11

2011-11-26T21:16:00.001-08:00

Here's the Frida ATC all painted with watercolors. I really like the way this turned out! (She looks a tiny bit angry though. lol)

Pages 11/25/11

2011-11-25T22:29:00.001-08:00

Here are a couple of new ATCs I've been working on. The Santa was inspired after watching the Macy's Day Parade. Christmas with a twist. The other Frida / Catrina card was inspired by a Mexican folk art compact I bought a few months ago. I've never done any other types of skulls besides traditional and I thought it would be cool to try some different styles that include necks and shoulders. I thought it might be interesting to try adding some personality as well.

Pages 11/12/11

2011-11-12T13:41:00.000-08:00

Working on painting some small trays about 6" x 6". I used underglazes on low fire clay. These are in the kiln and will need to be overglazed with transparent and fired one more time. I think I like the contrast between the bright color and the simple black and white. I think I might not paint the center portion. Hmm.

Pages 10/26/11

2011-10-26T18:20:00.000-07:00

Some recent ATCs I've made. Copic markers, inks and watercolor.

Pages 10/19/11

2011-10-19T18:43:00.000-07:00

Treasures from the kiln. Check out the haul. :-) Opening the kiln is always big fun. Perfect firing, nothing lost, nothing needing to be re-fired. Getting ready for my show in November. Hoping to get in one more load before then.

Pages 10/18/11

2011-10-18T18:52:00.000-07:00

Sketchbook spread and a couple of ATC doodles.

Pages 10/15/11

2011-10-15T15:50:00.000-07:00

Benicia old ship bone yard from the highway.

Crazy refinery in Benicia.

Restaurant in Marriot Hotel in Sacramento.

Inside of old record shop in Old Town Sacramento. There were tons of records, pinball machines and jukeboxes.

Vinatage concert posters all over the walls. I love Stevie Ray.

Close up of Juke Box selections.

Strange park in the middle of Old Town.

I love the California rolling hills.

Staircase in Old Town Sacramento.

Heywood Building. Old Town Sacramento.

On the road again. The clouds had this super cool pattern.

Rolling hills in farmland, near Pleasanton.

Photos from our recent getaway to Sacramento. These were all taken with the Hipstamatic on the iPhone.

Pages 10/13/11

2011-10-13T11:51:00.000-07:00

I've been ignoring my blog lately. But, I've been working on projects the whole time. Here's a selection of some things I've been doing. A couple ATCs. One was for a friend's family member who she sends copies of my cards to. She loves collecting them, and I thought it would be nice to make her a custom card with her name on. Also shown, my mini journal I have by my desk at work so I can quickly scribble in when I get a jones to draw. I use mostly highlighters and it's fun to limit the palette as well as the materials I use. Lastly I've been putting together more ceramic skulls for an upcoming show. I enjoy jumping around with different types of media. Makes it more interesting to stretch the imagination and my skills.

Pages 09/15/11

2011-09-15T18:25:00.000-07:00

Been working on my journal lately. Here are a few finished pages for you guys to look at. I love journaling. It really gives me total freedom to work less mainstream. It's art for myself, not anyone else.

Pages 09/10/11

2011-09-10T10:57:00.000-07:00

A few weeks ago my pottery guild had an open studios tour which I signed up for. Other members went from place to place to see how others had set up their studios. It was good because it forced me to clean up my enormous mess. (Mind you, some of the boxes on the floor got stacked in the back room, shh.) So, I took some pics to document that a. I *do* have work surfaces where piles if crap normally sit. b. I am able to keep it clean for 3 weeks and counting!

I didn't take photos of the pottery studio. I think it's clean too still. Maybe I better quickly take photos of that too before I cram it full of crap again?

This is the front room of our house, which in normal families, we'd have a big unused dining room collecting dust. My husband is pretty awesome. When I first moved in he immediately said, "This should be your studio". Really? Do you know I'm a pig? Really?

He's pretty awesome. I love that he accepts that I am a bit of a slob. I try to keep it contained to this room. *angelic smile*

Pages 08/01/11

2011-08-01T18:52:00.000-07:00

Here's a snapshot of the final tip in page for my friend. 'She's Alot of F's ...'

Pages 07/28/11

2011-07-28T12:37:00.000-07:00

Working on this tip-in page for a friend's 50th birthday. Size is 7X7. She's doing a 50th birthday journal and capturing her year. Hope she like this! This is the ink only version before adding color. I always scan after I do a black and white piece. I try to capture all stages of the design.

Pages 07/25/11

2011-07-25T17:52:00.000-07:00

This sun bowl is now ready to be glazed. All the underglazes are in place. Once it comes out of the kiln, the colors will brighten up and be shiny.

Pages 07/13/11

2011-07-13T11:14:00.000-07:00

Pretty cool - I got interviewed for EQSQ's Blogger of the Week. Check out the article.

Pages 07/03/11

2011-07-03T11:13:00.000-07:00

I've been super busy with work, so not alot of time to create right now. Here are a couple ATCs I did over the past couple of weeks.

Pages 06/11/11

2011-06-11T13:12:00.000-07:00

Photos from our outing to San Juan Bautista.

Old Adobe Antiques. All the times I've gone to San Juan Bautista, it's NEVER been open. Had to capture the 'Open' sign and open door.

Adobe wall.

Jardin's Restaurant gardens.

Paloma Paloma. Day of the Dead altar right in the store.

One of the many antique stores there. Good prices too!

Rogue roosters all over the place.

Huge cactus'. About 10-12 feet tall.

At the mission. One of the most beautiful places to me.

El Camino Real.

Bob walking up the Mission hall. We were disappointed the chapel and grounds we closed.

Gilroy roadside stand.

I love our California hills.

Heading home. Back to busy Silicon Valley.

Pages 05/09/11

2011-05-09T17:53:00.000-07:00

We finally finished the tiled mirror over the weekend. Last step was to add black caulking around the tiles to weatherproof it. Bob did this step because it required more muscle than I could handle. (Yeah, I'm a wimp.) I was in charge or wiping off the extra gunk and cleaning the tile off. :-) Now we let it dry, and it will be ready to hang outside. What do you think of the final?
Bob applying the caulking.

Close up of the tile with caulking.

Final mirror - complete! Ready for the garden.

Spanky our cat 'helping'.

Pages 04/30/11 Afternoon

2011-04-30T17:10:00.000-07:00

Shots with the Hipstamatic on iphone. In and around the pottery show at Bargetto and antique shops in Soquel, CA. Bargetto was a nice setting for the pottery show.

Pages 04/30/11

2011-04-30T10:12:00.000-07:00

Bob and I are putting together a mirror frame kit we bought from Aftosa. I was originally going to paint my own tiles, but we found a seller on eBay (search on Mexican Talavera Tiles) who sells batches of Mexican tile odds and ends pretty inexpensively. You can buy them in various 'lots' from 5-100's. We thought this would be cool for our outdoor garden area. The tiles are gorgeous and I have a bunch leftover that I will make coasters for outdoors too.

I must say, we weren't terribly impressed by the frame kit. I'm really not sure what they were thinking when they designed this. There is no support for the back besides minimal metal strapping. I mean, we are adding TILES to this, they are heavy! Also, many of the support straps were bent, making the tiles uneven in placement. We had to get a piece of Plexiglas cut so we could glue it in to the frame for support. We glued it and let it dry for a good week. We stacked boxes of books on top to make sure it stayed flat. Sure enough, this worked and we had a nice strong support for the heavy tiles.

The picture above shows the planned arrangement of the tiles. I wanted to be sure I knew the tiles fit and that I had a pleasing design before we started gluing. Plus, the odds and ends tiles I bought aren't all the same sizes. Be warned when buying tile ends, you are getting leftovers. Some of the tiles are also slightly warped. Testing them first will tell you if you might have problems gluing later on.

Next we applied the tile adhesive and worked away at arranging the tiles a lock at a time. It's a messy process. About half way through I realized we had the frame upside down, and some of the tiles were upside down. Luckily we were able to fix that before the tile glue had set. (d'oh!)

Now the tile adhesive sets and dries and the next step will be to caulk it. Caulking pics tomorrow! ;-) (Below is the frame with all the tiles in, ready for the caulking.)

Pages 04/26/11

2011-04-26T17:55:00.000-07:00

Set of 5 aceos / atcs. Found these in an envelope. Guess I forgot about them. Glad I found them again.

Pages 04/16/11

2011-04-16T12:20:00.000-07:00

3 ATCS in pen and ink and watercolor. I left a couple with blank areas. I was thinking about doing cards at Zazzle where people can change the type to whatever they want. They'd make pretty cool business cards. ;-)

Pages 03/26/11

2011-03-26T17:43:00.000-07:00

A couple of ATCs drawn with Copic markers and colored with watercolors.

Pages 03/21/11

2011-03-21T21:11:00.000-07:00

'Skull Eye' ATC.

Pages 02/08/11

2011-02-09T18:19:00.001-08:00

Colored versions of the black and white ACEO cards I posted a few days ago.

Pages 2/5/11

2011-02-05T17:12:00.000-08:00

Some black and white ATCs done over the holidays. The 'Many Tears' card was done after my dog Luna passed away on Christmas Eve. The rest are mostly doodles I did to keep my mind off of it. Art Saves. ;-)

I'm working on painting the color onto these. Will post the color ones soon.

Pages 02/04/11

2011-02-04T18:22:00.000-08:00

These are some of the pages from my book I made for Arthouse Co-op's Sketchbook Project.

Thousands of people across the globe signed up for the project. Over 28,000 people! The sketchbooks will be exhibited at galleries and museums as they make their way on tour across the country.

After the tour, all sketchbooks will enter into the permanent collection of The Brooklyn Art Library, where they will be barcoded and available for the public to view.

For my book, I pulled out the guts of the book and replaced it with heavyweight watercolor paper and then rebound the book. I did a variety of techniques, collage, painting, drawing, doodling - whatever I felt like. The theme was 'The View From Up Here'.

Pages 01/03/11

2011-01-03T18:37:00.000-08:00

Luna and Spank (Hipstamatic). This kind of reminds me of a record cover.

Pages 12/14/2010

2010-12-14T19:24:00.000-08:00

I just got this photo from the person I did the illustrated story for. This is the piece framed. Her husband loved it. It's pretty trippy to think something I made is hanging in a person's house. Sounds weird, I know ... but even after I've done this for so many years I still get that 'good' feeling. Pretty cool.

Pages 12/05/10

2010-12-05T18:55:00.000-08:00

This weekend I was in the Holiday for the Arts show at the Olive Hyde Gallery in Fremont. You can see my bottle toppers, some painted ornaments and a platter on the last photo on the top shelf. It was a nice show!

Pages 11/29/10

2010-11-29T17:56:00.000-08:00

Here's the final scan of the artwork with color for my client. I think it turned out nice. There's alot of gold leaf added on the stars ... tiny dots of gold all over.

Pages 11/28/10

2010-11-28T15:11:00.000-08:00

Well, all finished inking the lines. What do you think? Now to color it all in like a speed demon so I can be done by tomorrow. Colored version soon. (I hope!) I am enjoying this project, just wish I didn't have to rush it. The words are beautiful. I hope they like it.

Pages 11/27/10

2010-11-27T11:05:00.000-08:00

This is what I am working on today. It's a love story a client wrote for their husband for their 30th Wedding Anniversary. She wants me to make it look like an illuminated manuscript page. I don't really *do* calligraphy, but she is ok with just my handwriting. The pencil sketch is ready to be inked and I am praying I don't have any kind of pen malfunction, or BRAIN malfunction when I go to redo the lettering. I already had to rewrite it once because I left out a paragraph. (I wondered why it fit really nicely the first time I wrote it out.)

It's an odd feeling creating something so very personal for a client. But I am really honored to have been asked. I just reallllllly don't want to screw this up. (BTW, I blurred out their names for privacy.)

I'll post progression as I go today and tomorrow. I have to hurry, this needs to be done by Hanukkah for a gift. No pressure! (Yeah, right.)

Pages 11/26/10

2010-11-27T10:19:00.000-08:00

A few more ATCs / ACEOs I finished. All of these were done on reclaimed / recycled card stock. Some of them have words from the advertising still on them. One is painted on a piece of heavy cereal box paper. The black and blue cards, I used a white sharpie poster paint pen for white highlights.

Pages 11/25/10

2010-11-26T12:12:00.000-08:00

Here are a set of 9 ATC journal cards colorized and scanned. Some are done on 140lb. watercolor paper and some are done on recycled card stock I cut up.

Pages 11/19/10

2010-11-19T19:09:00.000-08:00

A few ATCs in black and white. Will color them in watercolor later.

Pages 11/14/10

2010-11-14T12:32:00.000-08:00

My display at Art in Clay 2010. You know, it never fails to surprise me what items sell at any show. Last year I sold a ton of bottle stoppers, and this year ... not one so far. On the other hand, things that didn't sell LAST YEAR, are selling. *scratching head* Oh well, shoppers keep me on my toes all the time. I'll never figure it out!

Pages 11/12/10

2010-11-12T12:01:00.000-08:00

Some pics of the Holiday Show at Higher Fire. They did a really nice job of setting people's work up I think. The space is open and bright.

Pages 11/03/10

2010-11-03T09:53:00.000-07:00

My finished clay boxes. I was *SO* excited when these came out of the kiln. The colors on the moon box really intensified more than I expected. I finished the lids with ornamental pulls.

Pages 10/30/10

2010-10-30T18:43:00.000-07:00

Yellow Dog.

Pages 10/20/10

2010-10-20T18:46:00.000-07:00

Some new arty magnets just finished and fired and ready to package. I promise, they aren't as yellow as the picture. My iphone makes everything look jaundiced! lol. These go for $9 a piece. If anyone wants one before they go to a show - lemme know! ;-)

Pages 10/16/10

2010-10-16T18:06:00.000-07:00

Here's a new clay box I am working on. It's pretty big at approx 8" wide and 12" tall. I am working on a day to night theme. I still need to finish the mountains, and then do some words on the hair of each character. This piece still needs to be glazed and then a handle topper will be added to the top so the lid can lift easily.

Pages 10/15/10

2010-10-15T18:23:00.000-07:00

I went crazy and doodled a whole pile of ATCs this week. Some are done on old postcards I chopped up. Next I'll work on coloring them with watercolors. I'll post the finals when they are done.

Pages 09/27/10

2010-09-27T18:33:00.000-07:00

This is a new covered, extruded ceramic box I am working on. The top comes off, so I am using the top as a 'landscape'. (So, the line of the lid is the mountain ridge.) One side is going to be daytime, and the other side will be nighttime. Just getting started on this. Usually I don't sketch, I just go for it ... but this one needed some planning to make the transition from day to night work. Will post as I progress.

I've been extremely busy with work and preparing for a couple shows the past weeks, so my poor blog has been neglected. After all the ceramic shows are out of the way, I need to get back to some painting or collage. I hear it calling! ;-)

Pages 09/06/10

2010-09-06T10:43:00.000-07:00

On my art table: Working on underglazing my ceramic bottle toppers. I tend to do a bunch at a time to save paint. I have a bunch of Day of the Dead toppers I need to get ready for my show at Higher Fire in October.

Pages 08/25/10

2010-08-28T11:32:00.000-07:00

This is one of about 6 bisqued extruded boxes Bob and I made. We weren't sure they'd even make it through the first firing without blowing, but they did! The size is about 8X8, which is pretty large. They weigh a TON. This is the first underglaze layer I painted on with Duncan Underglazes. The design wraps around the entire box.
This will go into the kiln and be fired to 06 so the underglazes bake on nicely. Then it will need to be glazed and fired again. I'll post the final glazed piece once complete. There's always a risk it will crack in the next firing, so you can't get attached to pieces. There's no way you know if it's going to make it.

Pages 08/26/10

2010-08-26T09:57:00.000-07:00

The Seafood Festival website is finally up. Check out some of the illustrations I got to do for them on the site. Pretty cool. :-) Here's the link.

Pages 8/14/10

2010-08-14T17:55:00.000-07:00

These are some cute little clay circles I painted with underglazes. Getting ready to fix the paints in the kiln. Once they are fixed, I'll glaze them and refire. These were alot of fun to make. My vision is to adhere ring backs to them and make some cute girlie muse rings. A super power creative ring. Each one is about 1.25" wide. Will post the finals when the next firing is done.

Pages 07/22/10

2010-07-22T12:03:00.000-07:00

More pics of my stuff at Itty Bitty. Grabbed these from the shop's FB fan page.

Pages 07/10/10

2010-07-10T13:28:00.000-07:00

I worked on some ceramic tile magnets last night while watching TV. These small items are perfect to work on when I want to chill, but feel like doodling. The size is about 1.75 X 1.75. They'll need to be glazed and fired.

Pages 06/26/10

2010-06-28T11:38:00.000-07:00

Here are the set of 6 illustrations for the Seafood Festival website and print material. I am so glad I am done as it was a pretty large job. I am now recovering from a bad case of arm strain and carpal tunnel! lol.

Pages 06/23/10

2010-06-23T18:23:00.000-07:00

Here's the logo for the Pittsburg Seafood Festival I just sent out to the client for approval. Art is colored with pencil crayons and washed with odorless turpentine. It's been awhile since I've used this technique as there seems to be more interest in the patterned ink illustrations I'm doing right now. I forgot how lonnnnnng this technique takes. It takes some time to build up the layers with the pencil crayon. I still have a set of 6 smaller illustrations to complete. I'll post them when they are done.

Pages 06/18/10

2010-06-18T11:27:00.000-07:00

This is the revised sketch for the Pittsburg Seafood Festival logo I am creating for this year's celebration. It incorporates a lot of elements from the downtown area and specific items from the festival. Just waiting for approval before I do the final drawing and color it. Then the type will need to be added. I'll post the final as soon as I get there.

I am also going to do a series of small illustrations for the website as well as a mailer and billboard. Big fun. ;-)

Pages 06/06/10

2010-06-06T12:02:00.000-07:00

A couple of my pieces displayed at OVCAG's The Language of Clay exhibit at the Olive Hyde Gallery. For more info about the show click here. For more photos of the show click here. Here's a great article about the show which is published in the Tri-City Voice newspaper.

Pages 05/29/10

2010-05-29T13:47:00.000-07:00

4 more Copic ATC doodles just completed. I'm going to work on a line of illustrations for note cards (Celebrate, Thanks etc.) Celebrate is the first.

Pages 05/20/10

2010-05-20T16:50:00.000-07:00

Here's my final illustration for the San Joaquin County Fair on one of the covers of the publications. It's cool to see it complete with all the type on it.

Pages 05/15/10

2010-05-15T10:35:00.000-07:00

Three more ATCs done with a Copic marker (brush end). Colorized with watercolor.

Pages 05/08/10

2010-05-08T16:55:00.000-07:00

I am making progress on the illustration. I have all the painting in. I've been working on it most of the morning while watching Wife Swap and Most Haunted. (Love that trash TV. *lol*) Now have to go back and build up the color in some places and add all the highlights and accents. The ribbon on the left really needs some better treatment. I'll work on and finish the painting in a few hours. Then, I have to scan and add the logo in Photoshop. Almost there! I'll post the final as soon as I am done. I'm ready to be working on something else. ;-)

Pages 05/05/10

2010-05-05T19:15:00.000-07:00

4 more new ATCs done with Copic markers and watercolor.

Pages 05/04/10

2010-05-04T11:41:00.001-07:00

Here's my in-progress illustration for the San Joaquin County Fair for a friend of mine. I have all the lines inked in and ready to paint. There's room for a masthead at the top and once painted and scanned the Fair logo and other info will be dropped in in Photoshop. I always scan at this point – just in case something unexpected happens, like a screw up on the paint. (Or heaven forbid, I spill coffee all over it. Which I've done!) I'll post the final as soon as I am done.

Note

2010-04-24T14:08:00.001-07:00

I had to turn on moderation on messages due to some very annoying spammers. Sorry guys. Spammers suck.

Pages 04/03/10

2010-04-03T10:51:00.001-07:00

I got a couple Copic markers recently and I was playing around with the brush end of them. (The Copic markers have two ends, one soft and fluid like a brush and the other chiseled and hard.) I like the way the brush allows a thick and thin line depending on how much pressure you apply. I also used the chiseled edge and added a thick border around the entire card. I added watercolor after drawing the lines and the ink held up really well with no bleeding out of the ink. I'll definitely be using this technique more.
These are ATCs to celebrate the coming of Spring! Yay. ;-)

Pages 03/05/10

2010-03-05T18:39:00.000-08:00

Here's a set of ATCs I recently finished. All are finally colored in. Pictured are a couple journal cards, some new skellies and a flaming heart. All ATCs are drawn with ink and then colored with watercolors.

Pages 02/21/10

2010-02-21T11:02:00.000-08:00

Found these pics of my stuff at Itty Bitty Boutique on their Facebook page.

Pages 01/24/10

2010-01-24T13:12:00.000-08:00

Just listed a Day of the Dead skull ATC on eBay. This is a hand colored linoleum block print. I carved the block, printed it and then went back in with watercolors.

Pages 01/16/10

2010-01-16T10:51:00.001-08:00

A Way to Use Old Christmas Cards in Your Artwork
I recently took down a stack of Christmas cards. There are so many neat papers, foils and textures on the cards I hate to throw them away. Every year I go through each card and trim off the prettiest parts of the cards and throw them into a lunchbox I keep of scraps. Last night I made some ATCs with some of the scraps.

I discovered that I could take long strips of paper, glue them on and stack them on top of each other to make a really nice layered background. It didn't matter if they were even straight, in fact it looks better if it's NOT straight.

All the cards above are made from Christmas cards. I used the same image of the woman on each of the cards to practice this technique.

Pages 01/09/10

2010-01-09T13:06:00.000-08:00

First post of the year. I've been busy, what can I say. :-) These are a couple photos of my work that is in a gallery boutique in Campbell, CA. I've been there about a month and stopping over tomorrow to restock. There are alot of great artists displaying. From glass, to cards and jewelry. It's a delightful little shop. Campbell's a great day trip too. Lots of cute shops and good places to eat. They also have a really good farmer's market on Sunday. More about the boutique here: Itty Bitty Boutique.

Pages 11/19/08

2009-11-19T18:43:00.000-08:00

Here's my table display from the recent pottery sale I was in. It was a lot of fun and I actually SOLD a few things. lol.

Pages 10/24/09

2009-10-24T14:11:00.000-07:00

Hi guys! I hope everyone isn't completely sick of me asking to vote for my card! *LOL* (Apologies if I am.) If you have a sec and you think this piece is cool - I sure would appreciate a vote. :-)

Please vote!

Click here to vote for my entry

Follow Up 11/19/09 - Hey! I got 4th place! The contest is over and I won a gift card for $200 and some free cards. Not too bad at all. Thanks everyone for voting. I appreciate it!

Pages 10/10/09

2009-10-10T14:54:00.000-07:00

A final batch of Day of the Dead hand painted ceramic skulls. They were ALOT of work, but worth it. It's so cool to see them all together. To the left are a few covered with glaze waiting to be fired. Next week I'll get them into the kiln. My November show and sale is fast approaching and I am beginning to feel the pressure.

Final Skulls

Pages 10/07/09

2009-10-07T00:51:00.000-07:00

These are my ceramic pendants finally packaged. I am really pleased with the final overall packaging. I ended up making my own packaging backing and painted them and cut them myself. I think I still might stamp the outside boxes to add even more to the design.

Pages 08/15/09

2009-08-15T11:46:00.001-07:00

This is my messy art table out in the living room. My husband suggested I get this table one day when we were at Michael's. He thought it might be a good thing to get all my art stuff off the coffee table. ;-) So, this is what I do in the evenings while we watch TV - I finish off artwork and do whatever needs to be done.

I thought I'd show you some of the projects I am finishing off. I don't like to work on one thing too long, because I bore really easy! I have about 10 things going on at once here. The bisqued moons you see here were painted with outdoor paint. Last night I started adding details to them with a Sharpie oil paint pen. You can see them closer in the photos below. I'll work on these quite a bit more. I will add details to the eyes, lips and cheeks and will most likely go over them with some sort of paint treatment so the pattern isn't so 'in your face'. Once done, I'll seal them with sealer and embellish with beads. I'll show you them as I go.

Also on the table are Day of the Dead magnets which I packaged in small zip bags. All that's left to do is make some sort of tag on my inkjet, so they'll sit there for a few more days while I get around to making the tags.

There's a candlestick I started working on. I have a box of 6 to do, and this is my prototype. I work out the pattern before I do the rest. This shape is very tricky, but I think it's working. I still need to complete the top portion, but got bored and moved on to something else. lol.

To the right are a couple of wine toppers that went through the kiln a second time due to a bad glazing. I finished them up by adding the corks. These are ready to put into inventory. Behind the corks are the tops to two boxes that need another coat of transparent glaze as I did a 'patchy' job last time. The glaze I use is on the table to the far left. There's also an ornament that got stuck to a kiln stilt. Doh! I had to file it down with that long white rectangular tool you see sitting on the desk. The bad spot will need to be reglazed and fired again. Once it fires it will be as good as new.

Lastly, there's a box to the right. These are the boxes I ordered to package my 3" button ornaments out. I was testing the ornament to make sure I ordered the right size! The wire you see near it is what I am going to use to make a hanger from. I take a bit of copper wire and curl it around to make a really neat hanger.

Oh! Nearly forgot! The purple square you see to the right by the moons - this is photo cube I made from leftover clay. They've been high fired and painted with acrylic paint. I poked holes into the top before firing. Last thing I need to do is add multiple wire curlies so you can add photos. I have it on my desk to figure out what size wire gauge to buy. I'll post them as I finish them.

So, that's it. Those are all the small projects I am finishing up. As you can see, there are alot of small finishes that need to be done before a project is considered complete. Another side to the creative process.

Pages 08/08/09

2009-08-08T17:49:00.000-07:00

Another kiln firing. Still working on ceramics rihgt now, preparing for the November Pottery Sale I am in. It's ALOT of work. I made 40 bottle toppers and painted about 24 pendants, 8 small skulls among a bunch of other things! The ornaments came out really nice, as well as the pendants and the two little boxes. Still more work to do, almost everthing you see in black and white needs color painted on.

Pages 07/14/09

2009-07-14T10:57:00.000-07:00

I didn't paint this painting, but I just won it on eBay and I am thrilled. I've admired this artist for sometime and I finally won a piece. This painting is titled "3 Boats on the Water" by artist, J. Rudy. There is not alot of info for this artist but I found this gallery with examples of their art. Below is a detail of the piece showing some of the cool collage elements that are hidden in the painting. Awesome work. I can't wait to get it.

Pages 07/02/09

2009-07-02T12:09:00.000-07:00

Here are a few of the ATCs I made when I had friends over for an ATC night. It's been awhile since I did traditional collage and it was fun to get back into glue and paper. I had to explain how to make ATCs to a group who had never made them before and it was a challenge. Most people had a tough time not 'over thinking' even though I told them to relax and do whatever first comes to mind. After making a few, people finally chilled out and got it.

I never plan my collage. I go ahead and use items that call out to me and I try to get people to do the same. You never get anything done if you stress over the blank page!

We plan on getting together every third Thursday, and next time we've agreed to make Matchbox Shrines.

Pages 06/20/09

2009-06-20T09:28:00.000-07:00

A strange digital collage ATC. All put together in Photoshop.

Pages 06/16/09

2009-06-16T18:17:00.000-07:00

I spotted an image of mine in the Somerset Studios, Creative Impulse Newsletter. It's one of the twinchies I made for an ArtChix swap which is now in an ArtChix collage sheet. Here's a link to the how to, and the video. Enjoy!

Pages 05/25/09

2009-05-25T10:15:00.001-07:00

These are photos of my journal I made at the workshop I took with Teesha and Tracy Moore a A Work of Heart in San Jose. It was a great workshop. Teesha is a great teacher willing to share all her techniques an journaling secrets. She is extremely passionate about journaling. I found myself really overwhelmed with emotion as she spoke abut how important it is to her to teach journaling. She also encouraged students to take what they've learned in her class, and teach it themselves. Pretty cool.
Teesha brought a stack of her journals for us to look through. It was amazing to see them up close and personal. I honestly thought they would be BIGGER. *lol* Sounds goofy, I know. The journals were an 8X10 size. Don't get me wrong, I wasn't disappointed in the least. I just expected the journals to be larger. ;-)

Here are a few of the new techniques and tools I learned about. 1. Sharpie Poster Paint Pens in different sizes in funky fluorescent colors. These pens will write on anything! I wrote over pastels and thick collage. Get them soon, as they are being discontinued! 2. Portfolio Series Pastels. An inexpensive water soluble pastel which is awesome for creating dreamy, smooth backgrounds. I like to use colored pencil for this type of thing, but fell in love with this technique. 3. Copic Markers with airbrush attached. Tracy taught us how to airbrush with these pens with a simple attachment with wonderful results. He provided dozens of stencils to try, and was very generous with letting us play with all the pens.

Overall, this was an awesome experience and I learned a lot. It was great to meet the Moore's.

See all my workshop photos here.

Pages 05/15/09

2009-05-15T11:27:00.001-07:00

I am still on a bit of a pottery kick. This is the latest kiln fire from this Wednesday. The trivets, skulls, mugs and ornaments are all on the final glaze fire. Last things to do are add some cork backing to the trivets and do some nice copper wiring on the ornaments. I am really pleased how the hand made skulls came out. I might do some in color next time, but it's alot of work!
The cardboard box of pendants, two boxes and the frames need to be glaze fired now. I am not 100% sure how I will finish the pendants and frames yet.
I'm off this afternoon and tomorrow to take a workshop at A Work of Heart in Willow Glen with Teesha and Tracy Moore. I am really excited to learn some of their techniques. I'm hoping I can take some pictures to share with you.

Pages 04/15/09

2009-04-15T14:18:00.000-07:00

I got to open a freshly fired kiln load this morning. It's like Christmas! There is still one shelf load left, but have to leave hubby to upload it because I am far too short to reach the bottom. ;-) This was a mix of glazed pieces and bisque pieces. So if some look shinier than others you can tell which are glazed and which aren't. I was really pleased with pretty much everything. I was even able to recue the ornament I fired upsidedown. Oy. I was amazed it made it! (You can see it in the first photo. It's in the bottom left - the white ornament.)
Tonight I'll start with more glazing and see if I can get another kiln load ready for next week. I'll also be busy adding corks to the wine toppers. I was really pleased at how well the colors came out on the toppers.

Pages 04/11/09

2009-04-11T10:26:00.001-07:00

Last night when I got home, I had a nice little surprise waiting for me. Last month some of my art was licenced by a company in Texas to be included in a line of domino jewelry. The company is called Phenomenoes. I was delighted to receive some samples of the jewelry and am very pleased at the clarity of the printing and quality of the product. Overall I am really stoked to be a part of the collection. Check out all the designs I have in the catalog here.

Pages 04/05/09

2009-04-05T10:52:00.000-07:00

These are some pages I made for a swap I am in. The theme is 'Odd Girls'. The bases were made in Photoshop and then printed on a laser printer. Then I altered them by painting in the hair, adding collage pieces, stamping and drawing and adding some fibers. I find it's a good way to save alot of time when there are alot of pieces to make. By making the bases in Photoshop, I saved alot of time and I was able to make the 23 pages fairly quickly while still making each page unique with stamping and painting..

Pages 03/30/09

2009-03-30T23:04:00.000-07:00

I bought these bisque pendants for another project. My original idea did not work out. I'd planned to collage on the surface and it just was not working. Sooooo, after having them hang around my studio for over 2 years, I decided to paint them with ceramic glaze and make painted pendants. (What they were actually intended to be! lol.) I am on a kick right now to use up and finish projects I started, or bought and never did. This is one of them. These will be fired in the kiln and then color will be added to them, baked again and then a clear glaze added over them. Although, I am kind of liking the stark black and white. Maybe I will leave them with no color. What do you guys think?

Pages 03/13/09

2009-03-13T18:13:00.000-07:00

Find more photos like this on creativity unleashed with Traci Bautista

I thought I'd share this slideshow of the work from the other students in Traci's workshops. There has been some really fabulous work made!

Pages 03/07/09

2009-03-07T18:55:00.000-08:00

Another of my 'doodles' from the Bautista workshop. I used a variety of pens, Sakura Gel Pens, colored pencils, correction pens, sharpies.

Pages 02/21/09

2009-02-21T16:21:00.001-08:00

I got pretty behind with my Traci Bautista workshop this week because of work. Today I buckled down and spent a bit of time going through the exercises. Most of the exercises were about spilling out your random thoughts using a variety of different mediums. I used Sharpie paint pens, gel pens, highlighters, markers, white out pens. I found it really fun to randomly write words and didn't stress out while doing them. I recommend trying something like this. Take out a blank sheet of paper and start randomly scribbling the thoughts in your head. Then mess around with different pans and see what happens. Try using a bunch of pens you'd normally not draw with, like a highlighter. Just when you think you are done, push it again and add more color or line work.

The painting above I started with a really dark blue background and swirled in some lighter blues. The exercise was to write with a white out pen. I also used gel pens and a sharpie pint pen for the blacks. This one is my ode to the blank page. ;-)

Pages 02/06/09

2009-02-06T10:28:00.001-08:00

This is another exercise from the class I am taking with Traci Bautista. We had to collage a sheet of paper with varios ephemera we had, then cover with paint. Once dry we were to doodle and write words about 'who we are'. I honestly was really scared to cover the collae I made with paint. Afterall, it was quite a bit of work! *LOL* But, I am glad trusted the process because the outcome was interesting. I like the way the type from the collage peeks through. You really have to look for it, but I think that's the point. The focus should really be on the words, not the collage. ;-)

Pages 02/01/09

2009-01-31T10:37:00.000-08:00

I just wanted to share some swaps back I received from the ZettiZoo Yahoo Group Day of the Dead swap. I was really blown away at the quality of these pieces. There was so much thought put into them right down to the tiniest detail. Left: By Catherine van der Hoeff, of the Netherlands. Incredible key chain featuring felted beads, and an array of fibers and ribbons. There's a nice little jeweled piece up the center with a tiny shrinky dink sugar skull. This is just an awesome piece. Even the back of the shrink charm is thoughtfully covered in a black lace finish. Her presentation even blew me away. The presentation cards are also hand made. Middle is by Teri Velazquez. This is an altered locket key chain. Another fab piece which has been covered with fabric and paper embellishments and highlighted with sparkles and metallic zig-zag rick-rack. Right is by Lori Nowak. Lori has taken a paper maché ornament and has decorated it with hand painted skulls and patterning. The back is finished nicely with hand colored DOD rubber stamps. She's added some brightly colored fibers to finish it off. I love the details in this piece as well. Lori even has a tiny bone paperclip hanger at the top. Awesome work ... I am very pleased with my returns. Thanks to such talented artists.

Pages 01/30/08

2009-01-30T16:48:00.000-08:00

Wow, I actually have blogged quite a bit this week. I think taking the online workshop has been helping me loosen up and get back into making art.

This is the 2nd exercise in Traci Bautista's workshop. We were supposed to look for imagery that had patterns or shapes and try to create our own designs from them. Traci suggested taking digital photos, but since I am chained to my office chair, I had to settle for magazines.

I liked this jewelry I found, and thought it really worked with the style of doodling I like to do. I pretty much just abstracted the shapes, and took some artistic freedom to make it my own. Interesting exercise. I wasn't sure I was going to like it, but I can really see how this can be useful if you're stuck in the rut of drawing the same thing all the time. (Like me! lol)

Pages 01/29/08

2009-01-29T10:02:00.000-08:00

I tend to get bored when I do one type of artwork for too long. I think mixing it up is a really good thing to do. This week I am totally on a ceramics kick. This is a bisque fired little box I bought and I painted it last night. I painted all the surfaces of it, so anyway you turn it there's something to see and to disscover. Like the skulls, this will need to be fired, and then I will paint on colored underglazes and they will be fired one more time.

Pages 01/28/08

2009-01-28T09:46:00.000-08:00

I've been working on clay Sugar Skulls. My husband and I hand molded the skulls, and they were bisque fired. Once out of the kiln I draw on all the line work. They will be fired again to make the black permanent, and then coated with transparent glaze and fired one more time. I hope to do a few with colored underglazes, but that will be ALOT of work. I'll post the finals once they are all complete.

Pages 01/27/09

2009-01-27T18:23:00.000-08:00

I am taking an online course with one of my favorite artists, Traci Bautista, author of Collage Unleashed. This is week one and the first exercise. (There are several exercises which I've not completed yet.) Week one is all about ideas and inspiration. The idea was to chill out and randomly write our thoughts on the page with various pens and marking tools. I was really surprised at some of the things that came out. It was also very 'freeing' to draw without a plan. So far I am enjoying the workshop. It's also really nice to set aside some time for myself to learn new techniques.

Pages 01/25/09

2009-01-25T11:39:00.000-08:00

Last night I made some bookmarks out of trimmings I had leftover from various projects. I am terrible about throwing anything away, especially perfectly lovely painted trimmings. I also had some vintage faces leftover from the Hearts 5X5 collages I wanted to use up. First, I started by applying some white gesso to a hand carved stamp and stamping directly onto the paper. I like to stamp on an old magazine. I stamp my artwork and let the overflow paint go directly onto the magazine page. Then I just turn the page and stamp the next one on the new page. It saves alot of mess, and I can work my way through an entire magazine without having to throw away wet scrap or newspaper. I let it dry and apply my faces and whatever other papers I want to use in my collage. I punched a hole at the top of the bookmark and then used the punched piece as a button. Next, I paint all the hair. I let it dry really well and then draw on the swirly lines with a gel pen. To finish up I tied on some cool fibers I got at Michaels last weekend. ($2 for a spool of coolness!)

Pages 01/24/09

2009-01-24T11:10:00.000-08:00

Hi everyone, I must apologize for not being around over the past few weeks. Work got crazy busy for me and I wasn't able to do much art! I have a couple swaps I am involved in so I am posting one of the collages I made for Alerted Art Obsession Yahoo Group 5X5 Hearts swap. We are making 10 5X5 squares with a 'hearts' theme. Once we send in our hearts, we will be mounting them into a display. Once I get my swaps back I'll post some of the results. Mine is made up of a panted background which has been stamped with hand carved stamps, collaged, and then individually painted. I masked off the bottom and painted the stripes. I finished the edges with rubber stamp pads.
I'm not sure I am done though. I may add some other feature, like some sort of text treatment or an eyelet with some danglies. I am ambivilent about adding any hanging elements though since we are going to be mounting these. Hmm.
Featured left (click to enlarge) is another approach to the Hearts 5X5 collage by AAO member Teri Velazquez. I like the different texture treatments she did. All the hearts are similar, but the treatment is very different.
The swap hostess, Tejae Floyde, has posted some info about the process she used for her hearts collages. I thought the technique she did for the background was very interesting. Check it out!
By the way, the Altered Art Obsession Yahoo Group is once again open for membership. If you are interested in joining, stop by. The group is juried and you must provide images of your work and requires filling out a questionnaire. It's one of the best groups I have belonged to with very quality swaps. If you make high quality work, and want high quality work in return, I suggest you apply.

Update: Above, a picture showing all the participants of the swap.

2008-12-28T11:35:00.000-08:00

'Strange Little Girl'. This is a digital ATC made with multiple layers in Photoshop. This is for the next Artist Trading Cards Yahoo Group digital ATC swap. I love playing around with digital ATCs. It lets me express another 'style' I have. It's also enjoyable for me to take take the tools I use at my day job as a graphic designer, and pull in my 'crafty' side to create digital collages.
For those of you interested in trading digital ATC cards, the Artist Trading Card Yahoo Group group is open for membership, and has regular monthly swaps. They have alot of different swaps each month in all genres, not just digital.

Pages 12/17/08

2008-12-17T17:44:00.001-08:00

I swapped Goth Postcards with british artist, Gillian Allen. She sent me a wonderful stenciled card in return. The technique is really cool and the result is a hazy, almost mysterious and ghostly look. It's definitely something I want to try in the future.

She also sent a link to a tutorial she wrote about this technique. I thought I would pass it on to all of you. Making Stencils.

Here's a link to the final goth art postcard pieces. It's a truly fabulous collection with many talented artists. There is quite a range of styles and treatment of the subject. I hope to do more swaps with this group again.

Pages 12/05/08

2008-12-05T09:18:00.001-08:00

This is our little Christmas Forest on our front lawn. :-)