Tag Archives: ideas

Oct6

Work Hard, Play Hard

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When my kids were growing up, I always emphasized how hard work was the work ethic that was important.  I also emphasized if you work hard, you have to play hard.   This offsets the exhaustion of working hard.  I love that philosophy, and my kids have this as their work ethic to this day.

It also came to my attention that laughter is the best medicine!   We are a family full of laughter, love, and hard work.  My grandchildren are being raised with the same philosophy, and they work very hard in school, get good grades, and actually look forward to going to school each day.  Boy, have things changed.  My grandkids all go to schools where the teachers don’t just stand and teach or lecture, they actually dress what they are teaching, getting the kids engaged.  That is different from when I went to school, with the philosophy that you sit down, shut up, and learn from a lecture, or chalk board explanation.  We don’t all learn the same way, and it wasn’t always a snap to get a good grade.

When my husband Les turned the calendar over and this Proverb was staring us in the face, it made me smile.  After all, this has been a constant in our home for years.  To see it on the front of our calendar helped me know my feelings were correct.

I copied this from our calendar, and I hope it  will ring true with you as well.

Thank you for stopping by to see what Stone Soup is up to.  See you soon.

 

 

 

Sep9

Heat Lazy Part 2

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This week is considerably cooler, even the humidity isn’t so bad. The air is still on, and we are still glued to the TV, and reports of the horrendous hurricanes that are happening in the Southeast. Les and I haven’t stopped worrying about everyone since before Harvey hit Houston. Other than donating money, clothes, etc, Les and I can’t participate, or help in other ways. So we watch and listen.
Meanwhile, I need to stay busy, and my busy is usually my art. This week I’ve been working on my third Prayer Flag, and more tags.

Being a Mixed Media artist gives me an excuse to save all kinds of little things.  Bags of things know one else wants or needs, pieces of fabric, anything you can imagine somewhere in my stash of goodies….I have it.   Putting it to work is key in this process.

Sep5

Keep The Art Habbit

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While battling heat over the weekend,  it left me no choice but to resort to surfing You Tube.  This is what I have for Tuesday…..It never hurts to polish up on our drawing skills!

Sep1

Prayer Flags, Or Are They?

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Last saturday was our monthly Diva Day, and after getting together for so many years it becomes difficult to have a project to share.  But share we did!  We had a small group, but we still manage to have fun.  We narrowed it down to two choices, and our Maxine decided on flags.

Our inspiration comes from everywhere, and I researched for hours trying to bring ideas to the table for everyone to be inspired.  Jane laFazzio is an inspiration when it comes to fabric and hand work.  Check out her website if you get a chance, you will be amazed at her work.

The fabulous DragonFly Flag was created by artist Karin deBaay.  As we all oood and aweeeed over it, she told us she was trying to come up with some ideas to bring to everyone when it just fell into place, and she had to go with it.   Karin showed up to the party with a finished piece!

Maxine Custer and myself sifted through bags of fabric, ribbon, and various other trinkets to decorate with while deciding which  bits and pieces  spoke to us.

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While Maxine worked on her flags, we all decided these flags weren’t really Prayer Flags, but rather, Inspirational Flags.  In fact flags can be whatever we want them to be, and today they aren’t prayers, but rather Kindness Flags!

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My first flag just spilled out in a big surprise…..The birds, the sequins, it was all very unexpected.   It was so much fun to put together, I decided to create another flag, and while waiting for glue to dry Karin worked on some of her journal pages…..

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Doesn’t Karin do beautiful work?  She is a fiber artist, and all of us get more inspiration from her than she will ever know.

Maxine was also working on a lovely piece that speaks more eloquently each day.

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While I completed my second flag, I  realized  I needed more flags for them to fly free on my patio.  An artist can’t just have two flags!

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Since we gathered not just to share and inspire each other, but to celebrate Karin’s Birthday as well,  we had a Yummy summer salad, and Fruit Tarts from the French Bakery.

Karin had a fun day…IMG_0127 2

Maxine was inspired to keep creating…..IMG_0125

And I’m here to tell the story…..IMG_0128

This is the story of a Diva Day of small proportions, and lots of fun!  Thank you for checking in with Stone Soup,  I love it when you respond, and appreciate all your comments.

 

Jul11

What do we do when it’s to hot to do anything?

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Now as the summer heats up, and we all get just a little at the end of our rope, this is the time to sit in front of a fan and  sketch.  As  I’ve told everyone many times, I’m a “Goldie Locks Girl!”  I like it just right….not too hot, not too cold.  Needless to say, this is not my favorite time of year.  It is way too hot for me to function, and if I do go out of the house for any reason, it has to be early, late,  or I’m out.

What do we do?

This is what I do… I will sketch, draw on rocks, cut images out and glue them on paper, sometimes I look for ideas on Pintrist.    Sometimes I’ll take a picture out of the paper or a magazine, and just draw it.  This gives me an idea of how to shade a subject or the perspective of a subject next to something else.

That’s cheating!

In my eyes, that’s just practicing.   Art students copy the masters all the time enabling them to study a particular artist, a method, or just perfecting their skills.  I’m working all the time on simply getting better at what I do.  If I’m not trying to sell these little sketches, how can it hurt anyone.  On the other hand, I think it’s very difficult for me  to copy a piece of art.  I can’t help changing things, sometimes a little, sometimes a lot.  I always have to put “me” into what I do.  So, no I don’t think I’m copying anyone.

Inspiration comes from everywhere!

Often I say that I’m inspired by many things.  It could be nature, or someone elses style, or color palate.  I love color, and I’m always seeing something new, and creative in my world.  Isn’t that why we take classes from an artist we admire?  I frequently sign up for an online class in hopes of learning a new technique.  The classes are usually Pen & Ink, or Sketching on the Move (that one I’m still working on).  But I believe everything we do, think, and experience makes us, and our art more interesting.

I thought this little video would be of some help in getting everyone going, because I think it never hurts to get another kick start, or see something from another artists eye.  Coffee shops are a great place to find new material.

Thank you for following me, and checking in to see what’s happening. Each of you provide me with a wealth of inspiration, and add to my creativity.  I hope I can do the same for you.

See you soon….

Jun27

Rabbit Skins???

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Fortunately we don’t have to boil “rabbit skins” any longer to be able to have Gesso. However this artist brings up a couple of points that are worth listening to.  For me, this looks like a lot of work, however it depends on the type of art you are painting, and how particular you need to be.

Take a peek, see what she has to say, and maybe she will speak to you, it can’t hurt!

Happy Gessoing!