Scrapbooks and journals, oh my!

Besides my February table above, I wanted to show some pictures of the outstanding fabric journal my niece Abby, 13, made and sent to me. When I was at her house last fall, I noticed her busily sewing scraps of fabric together, and she showed me the darling journal cover she was making for one of the art journals I had given her.

Knowing my terrible sewing skills, which usually end up being solved by fabric glue, I asked her if she would make me a journal cover, and when she came to visit I sent her home with a bunch of flannel and other swatches.

A few days ago a fat package arrived, and in it was not only the wonderful journal cover above, but also the teeniest, tiniest one-inch journal with paper inside- perfect for my Blythes and their dollhouse! (I wonder what they'll write in it?!)

Meanwhile, I have been printing color photos of my Blythe dolls for about six months, fully intending to put them in a scrapbook, so I could remember the dolls I've bought and sold. I finally got that going this month. As you can see in the top photo, I had an interloper inspecting my work during the photo session. More pictures on my Blythe blog here.

Snow Days and Cat Play

The new ruler of the household, Tinkerbelle Louise, has prevented art or any other hobbies from occuring, just because of her darned cuteness! No time to read or paint! It's time to play with the cat, pet the cat, feed the cat, snuggle with the cat. And watch the snowstorm rage outside. In one day about 10 inches did more traffic damage than last year's 53 inches in one week. Never a dull moment.

A new journal for a new year

I hoard journals. I love all sizes and types, from purse-size Moleskine to hand-made and hand-bound journals, board books, bound pages, whatever. I treasure journals I have received as gifts. I have a gorgeous handmade one from Laurie Blau-Marshall. I have a beautifully-covered one from Michelle Geller. My great-niece just gave me a pretty one for my birthday. I just bought one on clearance at Pier 1.

So what is the problem, you ask? I don't ever seem to write in them. I have journals with watercolor paper, lined pages, blank pages, pages made from maps and cool ephemera. I love to look at them, and I love knowing I have them in case inspiration strikes. But I couldn't seem to make a mark.

I guess I felt I'd be ruining the beauty of the journal somehow, which I know is dumb, especially because I actually drool over examples of others' filled journals. Even my great-niece has a totally cool journal she writes and doodles in and add mementos. She even stitched herself a fabric cover for it. I bought her Dawn DeVries Sokol's Doodle Diary to keep her inspired.
And she did just that.

Meanwhile, I would buy Stampington's Art Journaling magazine. I would stare for hours on end at cool blogs, especially work by Pam Garrison and Pam Carriker. I even advanced to tearing out magazine pages and pieces of magazine pages that inspired me. In fact, I have baggies of paper bits just waiting for a place to call home.

Finally, I decided the new year and new month are a very good reason to start a journal. That, and the fact that I had been itching to paint, draw, make collages, doodle, draw zentangles, do Zettiology-like art, and what better place to do everything, than in a journal. When I mentally commited, I was so excited, I woke up at 5:30 a.m. on a Saturday and started right in preparing pages.

I am using a plain, 9" x 12" *ish* journal by Canson with watercolor paper pages. I collaged several pages with my paper stash. I was further inspired by a "supply swap" I had just done with Jade Adams, and could hardly wait to use the goodies she sent. I also have a ton of new rubber stamps from Unity and their kit-of-the-month club, as well as Unity Stamps by Suzi Blu, all of which I want to play with.

After I collaged a few pages, I realized I hadn't left myself any room for the "dreaded" writing down of thoughts. Intentional? Maybe. Or maybe just inexperience. So I painted the back side of the pages with watercolors, and ended up making color-theme spreads, each with a blank page for my thoughts.....if I happen to have any.

Happy Holidays!

I adopted me some kitty!

She looks a little cranky here, but I think it was just the camera phone. She's fun and playful and stuck her arms out of the cage to get my attention from among 150 cats at the no-kill Small Miracles Cat Rescue in Ellicott City.

Bridget (new name forthcoming) and her cage mate Jill were by far the most animated of the house full. President, owner and founder Moira Leskovic is a saint. Check the photo gallery on their Web site and help out another lucky kitty or adult cat or the shelter.

Bridge is six months old, born June 6, a spayed female, and a look-alike for my former Mookie, whom I had for 18 years. I'm picking up the new little one Dec. 29. She looks big here, but she's only a kitten of three or so pounds! I wish I could have adopted several.

I'm so excited! I finally 'did' some art.

I woke up just itching to paint...which is fantastic, since I've barely touched a brush in probably 10 months or more. Just haven't been motivated. But today I knew I would paint. Something big. And big-eyed.

At first, I thought I might paint a picture of a Blythe doll and started out with a face and eyes of that ilk. Then I remembered my Suzi Blu class and all the wonderful mermaids on her Web site. I had painted two 16 x 20 canvasses already from a class I took last winter: Marie Antoinette and also Rodeo Girl. And I had one empty spot next to them anyway. So I looked at some of the mermies in Suzi's group for inspiration and also a gorgeous Mermaid ATC I had received from Shonna Bucaroff of Twisted Figures. And then I was off!

I sketched; I mixed colors. I painted; I glittered. I smashed sea shells to attach along with a net-like piece of ribbon and little bottle (message in a) I had just gotten in a swap with my Zettilicious friend Jade Adams. I dug through cigar boxes for treasures and found a couple of gold 'things' for earrings and a hair ornament. I smudged with charcoal and graphite pencils. I sponged with punchinella and paint. I made bright circles for bubbles.

And then I made myself physically leave my property so I would quit touching it! Cannot wait to hang it up; I am happy. Happy to be making art again. And ideas are exploding in my head. Zentangles! Felt matroyshka ornies! Journal pages! A stitched journal cover! A china doll head with art canvas body! I am so ready.

Invasion of the Sock Monkeys

I played host to my niece Abby, 13, from Indiana Thursday through Sunday so she could go to a Blythe Meet with me and go to the Visionary Museum's Sock Monkey Saturday. We joined nearly 500 other folks who traveled to Baltimore to make sock monkeys. The free event provided patterns, instruction, needles, thread, yarn and stuffing as well as human helpers and a photobooth to capture our first moments with our sock friends.

Last year I attended but wandered in so late, I could only take the pattern home and make Gladys myself later. She's the bright blue one. This year Abby and I got there right when it started, and four hours later we were still stitching and stuffing away, having worked through lunch or even a stretch break. When we left at 3 p.m., Abby's Gary (the squid-like grey one), had only one arm and some other surgical needs. My Bob, in traditional sock monkey socks, needed some more work, too.

But we had more fun things to do, so we hurried through the museum and gift shop and back to Columbia, and then on to Triple A antiques to search for vintage vinyl. I was so proud of Abby's selections: The Carpenters, Carole King's Tapestry (a must-have, I told her), and The Doobie Brothers.

Besides all this, we made cupcakes and hosted nine guests for a doll collectors' meet, ate at a seafood buffet (Abby was not impressed), had cheeseburgers, onion rings and milkshakes from Cheeburger Cheeburger, watched movies Little Miss Sunshine and Scott Pilgrim vs. The World, some cute television, like a Lindsay Lohan movie and a Miranda Cosgrove television special, and Abby went with me to a business lunch where she said all of us healthcare sales people were "talking in a foreign language."

And to top it off, she flew home to a big snow and a two-hour school delay....which was perfect since she still had homework waiting in Indiana. Auntie G went straight to bed to rest and recover from the whirlwind of a weekend.

Happy Birthday to my Little Buddy

20 years ago today I was greatly relieved. Why? Because my two-week-overdue, estimated 10.5 pound bouncing baby boy finally came out 20 years ago yesterday, with surgical assistance, which was fine by me. I was pleading with anyone who would listen, including the bump in my abdomen, to pleeeeaseeeee come out!

Turns out he was only 9.25 pounds, a very nice size for a baby if I do say so. Nice and filled out and not so small that you worry you will break the baby. Or maybe it had something to do with Alex being baby no. 2. I was a little older and wiser.

Now Mr. Alex is a sophomore at Ball State University in Muncie, IN, majoring in hospitality and doing well in school. I am sure he is on the countdown for winter break though!

When Alex was about 2-3, we enjoyed reading the Little Critter books by Mercer Meyer. We didn't know what kind of critter Little Critter was, so for some reason I said it was a "ratfink." Alex repeated after me, "sink, mommy, sink." That soon turned into "woosink" instead of "ratfink," and somewhere along the way, Alex dubbed himself Buddy Woosink. I still call him that now and then, but Bud, Buddy and Little Buddy have all stuck, as well as Al and Big Al and AJ. Then there was his pre-school teacher who called him Alex P. Keaton Smith, as he was a lot like Michael J. Fox's character when he was about 4-5. Of course, 'Alex' always works, too.

Happy Birthday, Alex, my little buddy woosink.

Happy Hanukkah

Happy Hanukkah
Originally uploaded by Gina2424

And now a word about my nephew......

I often blog about my talented niece Abby, 13. But, now it's time to spread some love to her brother, my equally-talented and uber-cool nephew Josh, 17. Besides being an apparent ladies' man, if Facebook must be believed (and it must), he is charmer to young and old, and a fun-loving, normal high school senior. He's also a 'guitar-bud' to my son Alex, 20, his cousin.

Besides being musically-oriented and a former football player and cross country runner, Josh is incredibly artistic. He has taken ceramics, photography, digital art and more, but every time I go to their house, I am struck by his charcoal drawings.

Here are three, including a self-portrait. He has multiple ribbons from art shows and much other work, which I hope to feature here in the future. He definitely has a variety of career options, and right now is considering Geology as a major at Indiana University, where his dad works.

His artist-wannabe auntie admires him for many reasons; his drawing skill is only one.

Happy Thanksgiving!

Thanksgiving People by Alex
Originally uploaded by Gina2424

Table art. Wall art. Art art

I changed my dining area table top from late summer harvest-y colors finally to something a little more holiday-ish. I went with gold, red, and black and white with black toile, and later that day I hung this newly-framed signed and numbered print called "Taksaka." It all matches beautifully. I call it my falliday table. I figured I can leave it until after Valentine's Day if I'm feeling particularly lazy in the decorating department. I used to change my tabletop monthly. This is my apartment in Columbia, not my house in Leesburg. Happy Fallidays!