Zeke & Mya

As most of you know, Mya is our 1 year old yorkie, and Zeke is our 3 year old silky. Now that our son is grown and on his own, these are our two babies, and we love them dearly. They bring so much love and laughter to our lives, and I love this photo of the two of them in their Christmas outfits!

Comfort Painting

I have been struggling in the studio recently, while trying to complete a new series of collages for a fundraiser. I have tried to make meaningful collages, which I decided probably wouldn't sell to anyone but me. Then I tried to make cheerful, colorful collages, which totally did not work for me. So I gave up (temporarily) and got my watercolors out. I painted the ocean that is my new blog header.

Then I decided that my fundraiser collages should be created in the style that I have been working recently, and they could either sell or not, but I would at least enjoy making them. Happily, I have a series of 10 collages drying in the book press, with the first layers on them. I am excited about them, and I should have done this weeks ago!

A Time to Recuperate

We had a minor emergency with Zeke, and he ended up spending a day at the vet's and undergoing anesthesia. He is recuperating now, but still doesn't have much energy. Yesterday he finally started eating and drinking a little bit. I was getting worried, because he is so little to start with, and now he is really thin. But he has turned the corner, and he's getting a little bit better each day.

New Series

I have been painting and collaging on a new series of work about the edge of the river, where the reeds meet the water, and the sunlight glistens, casting shadows.

Here is a sneak preview of a few of the pieces...

Water's Edge #3

Water's Edge #4

Water's Edge #5

Water's Edge #10

Wordless Wednesday

Ups and Downs in the Studio

Recently I attended an art retreat in a cabin on acres of wooded property alongside a river. It was phenomenal to walk through the woods and along the banks of the river, and I journaled about my experiences at the end of each day. As I reread those journal entries, I decided to use that inspiration to create a series of collages for the ONE fundraiser. My inspiration was so overwhelming that the collages practically made themselves, and within a week they were in the book press drying.

The problems started when I didn't leave them in the book press. I was anxious to add more layers of paint to them, and to make a long story short, they ended up warping as they dried.

So I gave up on those collages and started a new series. This time I concentrated on the river's edge as my inspiration, and I loved the almost watercolor effect that I achieved with these collages. Tonight I photographed them and uploaded them to my computer. At that point, I realized that all the subtle color shifts do not show online, and their true beauty is lost.

So I went back to my original series and peeled off the top layer of each collage. My thought was that I might have a chance of pressing them flat again if I eliminated some of the bulk. As I type this, I have both sets of collages in the book press --- where they will remain until they are totally, 100% dry!

Christmas Pups

TJ, Mya, Zeke

Here are the puppies in their Christmas collars! These are so easy to make and add just a splash of holiday color. Plus, even dogs that hate to wear shirts and sweaters don't seem to mind these. They're just a sewn tube of fabric that slips over their collar.

And my best Christmas surprise? TJ is getting adopted, and it will be a great home for him!

My Life Has Gone to the Dogs!

I don't know how it happened, but rescue dogs have taken over my life, or at least this week of it!

Many of you will remember Chili, my little foster chihuahua. This is a photo of her that her forever mom sent me yesterday, featuring Chili in her new "smoking jacket". I could not be more thrilled with the couple that adopted Chili, and I appreciate all the photos and videos that they continue to share with me. AND tomorrow I will get to see Chili again for a short visit!

This is Bounder, a German shepherd/lab mix puppy, available for adoption from Helping Hand 4 Animals. He is one of the puppies that I photographed for the rescue on Tuesday. ADOPTED

And this is Gia, one of two little beagle puppies that I also photographed on Tuesday for Helping Hand 4 Animals. All of the puppies were so adorable! ADOPTED

And these two little guys are malteses that needed transport and foster homes. I will be driving to Iowa tomorrow to pick them up and bring them back here to their new foster homes. They will be available for adoption through Wag N Train Terrier Rescue.

But today I am taking a "me" day and painting in my studio! TJ, our current foster puppy, is recovering from his neuter yesterday, so he is pretty mellow for a change. It should be a quiet day around here --- perfect for adding more paint to some projects on my work table.

Santa Claws

Yesterday I spent a few hours photographing dogs with Santa to raise money for Wag N Train Terrier Rescue. We had a volunteer Santa and elves, and I was the volunteer photographer. Half of the sales of the photos went to the rescue, so it was a worthwhile adventure. The photo above is my favorite from the day. This is a little 8 week old puggle.

Studio Plans?

When you head into your studio each day, do you have a plan? Generally I do, but some days I get sidetracked in a new direction. This morning I had every intention of working on some new fiber/mixed media collages for an upcoming fundraiser. But then I saw my paint brushes and realized that what I really wanted to do was paint. I have learned that it is best to give in to these notions, so out came the paints and papers.

The Good Life

This is Zeke in his most favorite position, sleeping on the back of our couch.

My husband grew up on a farm and believed that animals should not be in the house, let alone on the furniture. It took me several years to get him to agree to a small house dog, but even then he said that Zeke was not going to be allowed on the furniture. Fast forward three years, and we now have two little dogs, and they both sleep on our couch or on our bed all the time!

Wordless Wednesday

Forever Home for Christmas

TJ, our little foster westie mix puppy, has several adoption applications now, and I couldn't be happier. I would be thrilled to see him have a forever home for Christmas. Keep your fingers (and toes) crossed that it all works out for him!

Winter into Spring

Winter into Spring #1

This series of mixed media collages is about the transition from winter to spring. There are lingering winter snowflakes, mixed with the bright new greens of spring growth and an early blossom here and there.

The collages include hand painted and printed papers and cloth, and also incorporate pieces of some of my watercolor paintings. If you'd like to see the entire series, please click here.

Happy Thanksgiving!

Thanksgiving is my favorite holiday! As I get older, I care less and less about all the holidays that are tied to gift giving, and more and more about the holiday that reminds me to be thankful for what I have. I am blessed with a life that is filled with love, and for that I am very grateful!

I hope all of you have a wonderful holiday, celebrating with family and friends!

Wordless Wednesday

Radiance Series

Radiance #1

6"h x 5"w, mounted to 10" x 8"

This is the first piece in a new series of mixed media collages. The inspiration for these collages was all of the beautiful glowing colors that are created when the sunlight shines through the autumn leaves as they are changing colors, and the happy feeling I get when I see those colors.

The collages are created entirely with papers that I have painted and printed just for this series of work. There are six collages in all. Please click here to see the entire series.

Wordless Wednesday

More Leaves

Concentric

Another watercolor of leaves, using a new technique for the background. I like that this new technique gives me the ability to have a solid black background. It really makes these leaves dramatic!

I am probably done painting leaf scenes now that snow is on the ground here. I do have a new idea sketched on my watercolor block though. I want to paint the snow covered terraces in the fields of our farm, so that will keep me going for a while.

Wordless Wednesday

Pomeranian Puppies

Belle (female)

male

Ariel (female)

This morning I photographed three little 5 week old pomeranian puppies for the Nebraska Pomeranian Rescue. They weigh about 2 pounds, so you can imagine how small they are! The male doesn't have a name because he is already spoken for, but his new family hasn't named him yet. The two females are still available for adoption through the rescue.

Wordless Wednesday

Home Again

I am home from the art retreat --- rejuvenated, inspired, and thankful for the opportunity provided to me. I stitched layers of canvas onto smaller pieces of canvas, as the first layer of texture on those pieces. Plus I used gel medium to add cheesecloth and crumpled tissue paper to squares of masonite board and canvases. All totaled, I have 40 new backgrounds ready for paint, and I am thrilled.

The setting for the retreat center is beautiful --- acres along the East Nishnabotna River, and the weather was gorgeous! The leaves were mostly gone in the woods, but there was fungi everywhere, and I took a couple hundred photographs. Because of the wooded setting, there were also numerous varieties of birds. The nuthatch above was perched near our deck one morning.

Art Retreat

This morning I am off to a 3 day art retreat, where I plan to work with mixed media texture and stitching. The setting is several acres along the East Nishnabotna River in Iowa, so I am taking my hiking boots and camera as well. I cherish these few days of uninterrupted time to create, far away from the distractions of every day life.

The little fellow in the photo above visits this suet feeder several times a day, but this is the first time that I've been able to capture him with my camera. He doesn't stay for long, so by the time I go in and get my camera, he is gone. This time I happened to have my camera with me as I heard his call, so I patiently waited for him to get to the suet, then snapped several photographs of him.

Wordless Wednesday

New Guy at Our House

This is TJ, a 4 month old westie/chihuahua puppy that we are fostering now. He weighs about 6 pounds and is a real sweetheart! We just got him yesterday afternoon, and he has settled in quite well with Zeke and Mya. All 3 of them were playing fetch in the backyard last night. AND bless his heart, he slept through the night last night!

TJ is available for adoption through Wag N Train Terrier Rescue.

http://www.petfinder.com/petdetail/17607593

Photoshop Again

Same process as yesterday --- these trees are my Background Layer.

This photo of an angel is Layer 1.

This time I changed the Blend Mode to Overlay, AND slid the Opacity slider to 50%. This step makes the angel even less prominent.

Then go to File, New, and change the Background Contents to Transparent. In this new file, choose the Text tool, change your Font and Pt. Size to something you like, and type some text to go with your merged photos. Then use the Move tool to move this text over to your overlaid photos and position it wherever you like it best.

For a collage artist and photographer, this process has unlimited potential!

Photoshop Tutorial #1

A couple of days ago, I started researching how to combine images in Photoshop, in a way that the images are overlaid, and each image shows in the finished image. Here is what I figured out.

The first step is to select two photos to use, and make sure that both photos are the same size and resolution. Open both photos in Photoshop and decide which image is most important --- the one that you want to feature most prominently in the finished image. I know this sounds backwards, but that image is the one that needs to be the Background Layer in Photoshop. In my example, the dried flowers are my Background Layer.

Click on the other image, and using the Move tool, move the second image on top of the first image. At this point, the second image will totally obscure your original image, and the second image will be Layer 1. In my example, the photo of the trail marker is Layer 1.

Now, in the Layers panel, double click on the image for Layer 1, and a pop-up box will open. In this pop-up box, there is a field named Blend Mode. It defaults to Normal. Change it to Overlay. Click OK, and the magic happens!

Tomorrow I'll post an example in color, and I'll add some text to it.

Wordless Wednesday

Green Tomato Relish

We have started the process of cleaning out the vegetable gardens for the winter. We've only had one slight frost so far, but the tomato plants have quit producing tomatoes, and the green tomatoes weren't ripening anymore. So we picked the green tomatoes and pulled out the plants. The only plants left in the gardens now are the green peppers and the cherry tomatoes.

Yesterday I ground up the green tomatoes with some green peppers, carrots, and zucchini and made 4+ quarts of relish. It has a sweet and sour taste to it, and we all love it!

Afternoon at the Lake

Yesterday I took my camera and headed to the lake to check out the leaf colors. So far this year the colors have been fairly disappointing. We had plenty of moisture, but the leaves seem to be dropping before they turn the magnificent colors that I have been envisioning. Here's a shot of the bank of the lake, so you can see what I mean. I am an optimist though, so I'll keep hoping that there's still time for some great color.

Perspectives

Perspectives #1

I've started working on a new series of collages that is really exciting to me! They are inspired by the walks I took with Dad along the shore, and the colors are reminiscent of sea glass. My dad and I spent many hours walking together, picking up shells and stones, and talking about every topic imaginable. He was a very intelligent and logical thinker, and his thoughts gave me perspective as I was growing up.

Magenta Skies

Magenta Skies #1

I recently finished a new series of 10 mixed media collages titled "Magenta Skies". These pieces were inspired by a sunrise walk I took last Autumn. The sky was a gorgeous magenta color, and the trail was overgrown with Osage Orange trees. I loved the contrast of the warmth of the sky against the cold thorny branches of the trees. Click here to see the entire series.

Change of Scenery

I have been in Lawrence, KS for the last few days --- attending an opening reception and a workshop. Both events were fun, but the highlight of my trip happened far earlier in the day. Each morning I went to Clinton Lake before sunrise and watched the sun rise over the lake. Some mornings were foggy; some mornings were filled with sea gulls and herons; some mornings were quiet and serene. I took over 300 photographs and came home filled with inspiration!