Monday Monday

Sunday afternoon it thundered but no rain.

Rose-Breasted Grosbeak

It finally rained today.

And I saw a snail on the front steps at my sisters home.

There are two rose-breasted grosbeaks eating at my bird feeders. They are so pretty.


Friday I took Dane to have the nerves in his leg tested. While he was getting little shocks, I sat in the waiting room and had fun. There must have been 25 of these magazines in the waiting room. Nothing else to read just Neurology Now Magazine. This guy on the front just screamed that he needed some attention so I got my trusty micron pen and started on him. This si what I ended up with.

I decided to just leave it in the chair when we left. Somebody probably found it and thought it was really on his head.

Moral of this story: Always be prepared and take a Micron pen with you where ever you go. You never know when somebody may need a laugh.

I signed up to make tote bag favors for a NAME Houseparty. NAME is short for National Association of Miniature Enthusiasts.

The committee need 500 to fill the conference attendees tote bags and asked for volunteers to make 10 sets each. So I made 10 sets.

They set the pages to print. They gave the dimensions for the book covers.Each one of the 3 books is different inside, too. I didn't make a set to keep but I still have the template.

10 sets of 3 books all packaged in little baggies.

So here it is 3 days before it is due in the committee's hands and I am just getting started.

But I made them. All 10 sets. It took me most of the afternoon to cut and put them all together but I did it. I mailed them first thing this morning.

I hope they like them.


Sunday I was cleaning my studio. I have a 10 drawer cart on wheels where I store misc tools, supplies, papers, etc. It wobbles.
I wandered into the living room and asked my husband if he thought he could help secure the cart.
We took it outside and he placed a piece of laminate board on the back side. It is 99% better now!

Lastly, I want to introduce you to Arrow.
He is 15 years old and getting slow. His joint bother him when he gets up. He can't see very well due to cateracts and his hearing is becoming selective.

He is still active and can bark extremely loud. He will be heard!

Some mornings he just doesn't want to get out of bed though. He sleeps a lot during the day but that's ok. He's earned it.

He also has Addison's disease and takes pills each morning and gets a shot once a month to keep him hydrated.

Then Sunday and Monday he peed on my floor.

 

DOGS! We'll keep him and keep him comfortable as long as possible. He just better quit peeing on my floors.

Off to create something in my cleaned up studio.
Terri
Waiting for the glue to dry

What's In Your Wallet?

I just like to say that...

It's been a busy week for me. We had some friends and family here on Sunday. Ray put some chicken on the grill and it was good! Had all the fixin's to go along with it - beans, potato salad, cool sliced vegetables, and my sister made a birthday cake for me! It was delicious! I love homemade cakes! No store bought cakes! This was the first birthday cake I have had in several years. Thank you Honie!

Monday afternoon our friends from San Antonio came down. Ray and Glenn went fishing down the intercoastal and spent the night at the cabin. Glenn caught a 7 pound drum and a 6 pound trout. They caught several 2 and 3 pound trout so their fishing trip was a success.

The Saturday before Ray caught a 5.something pound trout and I do have a picture.

Ray Baby and the 5.something pound trout

 Pam and I went junking Monday afternoon. I found a head vase to add to my collection and some used dental tools to use in when working with clay. Tuesday morning I took Dane to his pain management consultation - the shot comes next Monday. Then Pam and I visited Hobby Lobby, Michael's and Joann's. Around 5:30 the guys came home and had to clean up from their fishing trip. Then Pam and Glenn had to drive home.

This is SAM

Wednesday was awful for me. My sinus decided to act up and I felt horrible. I got up at 4:15 am, fixed some coffee and drove my sister and her husband to the airport to catch a 6:00am flight. Got them there safely, came home and laid around for a while. I worked on the Passport most of the day when I was up to it. The Passport is the twice a year publication for the Society of American Miniaturists. I am the editor. I finally finished it today. Now to make the corrections from my proof readers.

Before, it was just stained.

Oh yeah. Last Friday I did some painting again. I had Ray Baby add a little more support to our old bookcase (his dad made it years and years ago). Then I sprayed it white, moved it into the guest room
and filled it with books.

After painting it white

I did complete another tangle in my newest journal. What do you think?

Well, that's about all I can think of for now. I'm about ready to hit the pillow cause tomorrow is another day in which to excel!

Have a great week and go create something!

Terri
Waiting for the glue to dry

Starting Off With A Laugh

Today I want to start off with giving you a good laugh. I am a firm believer that laughter heals the soul and we should find something to laugh at every day, even if we have to laugh at ourselves.

Sometimes the biggest he-men are can be the biggest babies. This video brought tears to my eyes. Just watch it and you will see why. Be sure to have a tissue handy.




And if you like cartoons, you must check out Eric, the circle. Each cartoon is created by different people. I've even created a few. Here is the link to follow. You can join and create your Eric cartoon to share with the world. http://www.ericthecircle.com

Now for an update in my world.

Sunday was quite productive for both my husband and myself. Ray changed the light fixtures from my old studio to my new studio. The lighting is so much brighter now and I can see what I am working on again. Ray worked in the yard and I did miscellaneous things around the house. Can't remember what they were cause that was a whole 24 hours ago.

Today I can tell you about. After doing my weekly trip to the grocers and a couple of misc stops, I wandered thru Barnes and Noble for about 30 minutes. And I didn't buy anything. Just thumbed thru some books and magazines to get inspiration. Then I got busy at home.

The round bird feeder.

The rectangular bird feeder

The cup and saucer bird feeder

I took down the 2 bird feeders, cleaned them up and grabbed my newest favoritist toy - a can of spray paint. I sprayed both feeders lightly, then filled them with bird seed and rehung them. Since my paint was handy, I grabbed the 2 tins cans sitting on the kitchen counter, cut them into petal shapes and sprayed them white.

I cut these into petal shapes, spread them open and sprayed them.

I took the painted cans into my studio and painted the leaves a metallic purple and metallic pink with a little green around the stem. Next I got out my trusty soldering gun and soldered a nail into the middle of the cans and now I have 2 bird feeders made from cans that look like flowers.

The finished tin can flowers. I used the end of a paint brush to get the black dots in the centers.

Still need to put them on some sort of post but I will do that later. I have to get my watercolor supplies together since we are meeting in the morning. Update on that tomorrow.

Now I'm off to fix fresh trout for supper. Yum Yum!

Til next time, go create something
Terri

Gardening Finds

I spent the weekend in San Antonio at my first ever scrap book weekend. What an enjoyable time I had. Those scrap book fanatics carry more equipment with them than a miniaturist! I leaned so much and got to play with all the die cut machines. I even made envelopes for my ATC's (Artist Trading Cards). Everyone was helpful and generous with their time, tools and supplies. So now I have another project since I have about way too many pictures to go through and organize. Then again, I am retired now...LOL!

This morning I stopped by the nursery and picked up a couple of plants. I bought 6 little Dusty Millers (Ray always said he liked these), a sweet potato vine ( I love the bright green color) and a red geranium (one of my favorites). When I got home I was going to plant these and then work on a scrapbook page or two and the Passport for SAM (Society of American Miniaturists).

But that's not what happened. I started planting 2 of the dusty millers. I noticed the hollywood junipers on the right side of the house needed to be trimmed. So I went to the garage to get the saw and decided to find a container for the geranium. I found one and potted that plant. I returned to the front of the house, planted 2 more dusty millers and pulled some grass that had grown over into my flower beds. I planted the rest of the plants and the sweet potato vine. I started pulling more weeds and grass and thinning out the airplane plants and snapping their runners off. Then I started on the left side of the house. I trimmed the hollywood junipers then started cleaning those flower beds.

One thing always leads to another and I am not too organized at times My legs are tired tonight. I finally got everything cleaned up and watered and went inside. It's a good thing, too, because a cold front came in and I was wearing shorts.
 

I did find a couple of things in my flower beds that I want to share with you.

When I was trimming the juniper I discovered an old abandoned wasp nest. I thought it was kind of neat and I might have to use it in an arrangement.

When I was pulling weeds I pulled something long out and tossed it on the ground thinking it was a lizard. I looked closer and noticed it was just the tail. So I kept this to show Ray Baby when he got home. Around lunch time, Dane and Aaron stopped by on their way back to work so I showed them my finds. After they both looked at the tail, it was decided, are you ready for this, it is the tail end of a snake!

oooooo snake farm, sure sounds nasty, snake farm, probably is...(Ray Wylie Hubbard)

So there you have it. My beautiful flowers are all planted, a wast is flying around searching for his nest and some slimy snake is slithering through life without his tail.

I was able to start working on the Passport but I'll save that for another day.

What's hiding in your garden?

Terri

Project Complete and Another Started

I finished my frame painting project. I still have a few more frames to paint but they are in storage and I'm not quite ready to hang them. I did learn something though.

I had purchased the wrong paint and had to use a primer, let it dry for what seemed like hours, then paint the frame again and let it dry for more hours. I was in my studio and looking in the supply closet when I found a can of the paint I needed. And it was white satin. I grabbed the can and ran to the garage where my frames were waiting for me to spray them.

The paint I found is Krylon Fusion for Plastic. Also works on wood, metal, wicker, and more. I sprayed all my frames and they were dry within 15 minutes of being sprayed.

I love this paint!

Now as promised, here is a picture of my wall with the newly painted frames. I really need to rearrange the pictures so if anyone is good at this, come on over!

My Wall of French Fashion Plates

I had 1 picture that was also trimmed in material. When I painted over it the fuzzy still showed. So I took a measurement of the width and visited my favorite store, Hobby Lobby, when I purchased some lovely white lace trim. I glued the trim around the frame and it looks great. (I did have a minor incident and broke the glass in the upper right-hand corner.

Lace trim up close and personal

The whole picture with broken glass. This picture is in the middle of the wall.

I'm happy with the results.

And my current project?

I belong to several on-line groups, one being a Zentangle Inspired Art Yahoo Group. Each month we have swaps and challenges. One of the April Swaps for ATC's (Artist Trading Cards) is a Georgia O'Keef picture. We print a picture then add our tangles to it. I am making 4 of these to swap with other artists. Here are the first 2 I have completed.

2 1/2" x 3 1/2" ATC #1 on Georgia O'Keef painting

ATC Swap #2 on Georgia O'Keef painting

 I have 2 more to complete and I have an idea to make a couple more just in case anyone wants to swap one on one with me.

I'm off to look through pictures so my scrapbooking weekend with my friend Mary Helen. THis will be a first for me since I've not done much scrapbooking...yet.

Have a great week and go create something!

Terri
Waiting for the glue to dry

Busy project

I love to collect things. One of the things I collect are French fashion plates from the 1800's called La Mode Illustre. These are ladies dressed in the fashion of the day. I have quite a collection of these that people had framed and hung as artwork. And that is what I do with them. Duh!

I do not like the frames since they are brown and ick and ugly. I wanted to unify my collection so I am spray painting the frames. I thought about black but that seemed so drastic for these pictures so I settled on bright white satin.

I purchased the spray paint only to get home and realize I needed primer. So another trip to Lowe's to get primer. 3 cans!

If you haven't done this yourself please realize that this is a several day process since there are other obligations in my life like cooking, laundry, grocery, errands, etc.



First I had to select the pictures I wanted to paint. (I did this in small groups so I wouldn't overwhelm myself with a big project). When I purchase these they are usually in pairs so I painted like frames together. I also have several duplicates of the prints but they are in different frames and different sizes.
 


Next I took a whole piece of cardstock and placed it in the center of the picture to protect the glass. Then I taped this down with Frogtape or Painters tape. I very carefully used my exacto knife and trimmed the paint to expose the wood that was to be painted.


 Once I primed each frame, I had to let it dry for about an hour. Since it was a little humid (lol, a little humid in Corpus Christi, that's a laugh) I waited about 2 hours.
Then I sprayed each frame with my satin white spray paint. Again I let them dry for a while.



While the paint is drying I returned to my studio and started preparing another group of pictures. For this group I sprayed them with primer and let them sit overnight. This really worked great. I got up and sprayed the paint early the next morning and they are drying now.

 
 Once back in the studio I carefully remove the cardstock and painted tape. If there is any paint on the glass it is easily scrapped off with a razor blade.

And finally this is what the finished product looks like. I think it is a great improvement.

I still have 1 more group of small pictures to work on and I'll post the wall of fashion once I have them all painted and rehung.

Til then, I hope y'all had a nice Easter and remember why we celebrate it.  Now go create something!


Terri
Waiting for the glue to dry