A Project A Day....

So, let's not go there. Let's go here http://4x4friday.wordpress.com/ and here http://www.inspiremethursday.com/ and here http://fftwistedtuesdays.blogspot.com/. There are so many excellent sites on the internet for artists and writers who need a jump-start or a kick-start (whatever your preference). Between blogs and websites and photo-sharing communities, there are literally thousands of prompts and challenges.

I've been watching the three mentioned here for awhile and decided to take the 4 x4 challenge of "Faces" last Friday. The idea is to created a relevant piece of art within the requirements, blog about it and link your blog on the site. So this is my first effort. Only regular rubber stampers and collage artists may get it, but that's okay.

One of my other faves, because it is a bit off the wall, is fellow ZNE member Suzan Buckner's site Fluffy Fatbottom's Twisted Tuesdays at http://fftwistedtuesdays.blogspot.com/. Suzan and her partner in crime for this challenge, Heather Robinson of http://creativesolace.blogspot.com/ come up with the greatest themes. There's lots of great art to see. I love looking at Suzan's art wherever I run into it. She's active in a challenge group for every day of the week and more. You can learn about them all at her blog http://thriftycollageartist.blogspot.com/.

So much to see and do! Barely time to post this Lamb Chop photo. Gotta love Lamb Chop.

Also, Happy Birthday this week and soon thereafter to the dear and published! Lisa Kettell (she of a million blogs and sites and groups) but mostly fearless leader of The Faerie Zine http://thefaeriezine.blogspot.com/; my sister-in-law Judi and her husband Doug, my boss Michelle, the glamorous Caroline (of the beaded necklace post), and my neice Suzanne, well on the hill at 45.

I Think I Hate My Computer or It Hates Me

So why do I have to be a computer guru to run my blog? I tried to give my blog a fall makeover, with colors, fonts, a new banner, and I feel like I have been trying to hold on to a greased fish, or whatever that saying is.
Some of my art friends are experts, in that they create a lot of their collages and ATCs all via computer, merging or altering vintage images. I cut and paste everything by hand, as probably 50 percent of altered artists do (have become somewhat of a whiz with tiny scissors), but when it comes to my blog and the computer, we aren't really friends.
I know just enough to be dangerous, having used a computer for more than 20 years (yes children, back before there were cell phones and CDs) and having run a newsroom as a managing editor and having received national publication awards. I'm not bragging. I'm just saying this square electronic box shouldn't be so intimidating. But more times than not, it keeps little secrets from me. Just that last tiniest bit of info, code, that final step that would make everything work just right, photos post correctly, layouts come out the right size, etc. The final step is elusive, and I actually think my computer (or fill in the blank here, copier, scanner, camera, etc.) are laughing at me- like playing a game of tug-of-war with a puppy. A snarky puppy.
Having survived a full-out crash this week and struggling to get all my settings back to "normal" might have something to do with this post. Just leave me alone, evil laptop, and let me cut and paste. You do your thing, and I'll do mine.

I Saw A Spirit - collage

Here is a little collage I did for my ZNE Book Club assignment this week. We are to create a mixed media collage one step at a time, by drawing random tasks from a bowl and performing them in order. Mine were: write, use Twinkling H2Os, sandpaper, sand again, stamp with bleach, distress in some way, use water color crayons, paint, distress, apply a photo, scratch, apply a transparency, apply magazine bits, apply background paper bits, apply text, overstamp, seal.

I made this copy, and also a sepia one, before sealing as I think I will coat it with beeswax or maybe spooky beeswax drips, I haven't decided.

Next up is a numbers theme ATC for my ATC/ACEO Enthusiasts group on ebay, and the collage will also serve for the August month-end collage challenge for CaaT. I am continually amazed by all the talented people on ebay! It would be so great to do nothing but create, post, sell, buy, read beautiful blogs, rinse and repeat all day long!

Tonight I picked up some more art supplies. I am going to try my hand at acrylics, so I got some paint, brushes and thick little fat canvases (5x5). I also got a bunch of paint swatches (Lowe's) and will be collecting wallpaper swatches for my next endeavor.

Finally, I am awaiting some domino-size tiles in the mail from my BkNq (book-nique) group, out of which I am supposed to make a tiny book. Not sure what my subject will be! I have gotten lots of suggestions at home for verrrry short books, such as "Guide to Safe Hunting," by Dick Cheney and so on...you get the idea...and I don't want a political blog!

More Friday ATCs

Here are some new ATCs I created to list on ebay. Also got my dare for ATC/ACEO Enthusiasts on ebay: Interpret "Star Chamber." This happens to have a 10th century England definition (which I certainly did not know!). But I can interpret it anyway I want to.....think I might be able to add this to the "Rock" theme for AWLA......brain working......