Spreading my wings...

I am so behind on my journal pages. I should have about 20 pages started and I just completed page 3...yikes! I do have a very good excuse, though. I took a left turn, a delightful left turn, and embarked on a jewelry soldering workshop from the super talented Cat Kerr. But that's a future post.

I recently discovered Plaster Craft mesh and wanted to make a couple of hearts with it and I did. While doing so, these wings just kind of evolved.

Free form wings with some old lace!

Love this bird nest stamp!

Tissue Tape from Tim Holtz and one cute Mr. Rabbit!

 So, this page kind of represents me spreading my wings this year. Makes sense when my word for the year is "Fearless!" Fearless and flying...I like it!

Daisy Lou...

Such a SWEET face!

Emaciated....poor girl!

My next journal challenge was "your greatest accomplishment of 2012."  That was a no brainer for me. Her name was Daisy Lou and she came to me 5 days before Thanksgiving.  She was emaciated, scared, and tired. She was laying in a pile of leaves on the other side of our backyard fence and Trixie, our basset, was barking at her. Daisy didn't even care. I truly believe she had given up.

I took her food and fresh water and she inhaled it like she hadn't eaten in a week. She wouldn't let me really touch her, so I decided I would make her eat out of my hand to gain my trust. I put a blanket out for her and fed her about every 3 or 4 hours. She did eat out of my hand, but when I tried to grab her collar with my other hand, she pulled away. I got my camera and was able to zoom in on her tag and see that her name was DAISY LOU! YAY! However, the tag was laying up against her rabies tag (which was a little worn) so I couldn't see if there was an owners name and phone number on the other side of her name tag. I just had to be patient.

Luckily we were having a warm spell, so the nights weren't too cold, but I still lost sleep worrying about her out there and wondering if she'd still be there in the morning. Well, she was. I guess she like that food! The 2nd day, 2nd meal of that day, she got so excited to see me, she actually kissed me! Yep, right on my nose! I almost cried I was so happy. She got a little playful and even barked when I asked her if she wanted food. I still made her eat out of my hand and by now I was able to pet her. The day was so nice, that I just sat out in the sun with her gently talking to her. I gave her toys and a Frosty Paw treat. She still kept her distance, but I was gaining ground.

One of the happiest days of my life!

On day 3, I told Daisy we were going to do things MY way. Cold weather was on the horizon and I had family coming in for Thanksgiving. So, while I sat with her eating out of my hand, I took a deep breath and just grabbed her collar and hung on. I had a leash with me and hooked it to her really fast. It's like she instantly felt secure and calm. She let me hug her and pet her and I was OVER THE MOON!!! There was the name of her owner on the other side of the tag. My prayers had been answered. I had my cell phone with me, so I dialed the number and got a voicemail. I left a message and 1 minute later, I got a return call. Her "dad" was shocked and thrilled that I'd found her. She'd been missing for 2 months! He left work immediately and came and picked her up. As soon as she saw his truck, she went nuts! He cried, I cried, and Daisy Lou cried! He showed me pics of her he had on his phone (when she was a healthy weight) and there was a very lonely Great Dane by the name of Lilly Jane at home missing her her. I hugged Daisy and she gave me more kisses and waved goodbye.

Unconditional Love

I still get choked up when I think about those 3 days. Daisy changed my life. I learned so much from her. So, this journal page is dedicated to her. I love you, girl, and I'm glad you're safe and warm at home with your family.

~Nan~

"Fearless"

So here we go with another new year. Remember when you were a kid and the year 2000 seemed like a space odyssey? Should I feel old? Naw....you're as young as ya feel, right? Ok, maybe that's not a good analogy. haha!

I just recently took on a challenge from the wonderfully talented mixed media artist, Kelly Hoernig. I met her on facebook via a mutual friend, who just knew we'd hit it off.  Kelly started a group, art aMUSEment on fb and the challenge is to put together an art journal and she's put together prompts to help spark our imagination. Our first assignment was to choose a word for 2013. Something that meant something to us. I chose the word, "fearless."  I am my own worst enemy, so I hope to get out of my own way and just be free to be ME!

So, here is my cover page for my journal. I've chosen to use 90lb water color paper, mainly because it's what I had on hand and I want to use up what I've accumulated.  I hope you all enjoy the ride of 2013 and if you hit a bump, just get back on and keep pedaling!

Mixed Media Fun!

Over the past several months, I've been experimenting with different techniques for mixed media collage. I wanted to add a lot of texture with a lot of different mediums.  Here's the end results...

I drew her face on vintage French book paper.   My goal was to draw a decent face!

My daughter was the inspiration for this next one. She has a very crazy stressful job!

In an Attempt to Balance her Life, She lost her Head!

           I drew her face on vintage ledger paper.

I discovered Plaster Craft...one of my new favorite things! Messy, but Fun!

Free Form in Plaster Craft.  Can't wait to do more!

Happiness is a vintage baby dress!

I think this is my favorite! I bought this vintage cutie on Etsy. It was a very very pale yellow when I started. My secret ingredient?  Liquid Nails!

                                      I wanted to do something really whimsical for Halloween...

The gnarly tree is plaster craft. I had so much fun with these colors!

                                                          Last, but not least...Pumpkins!

Be Grateful!


That's it for awhile. Time to get my house in order for Thanksgiving and the arrival of family. I'll still be sewing...not quite as messy! 

You only turn 30 once

Birthday Flowers from her sweet husband!

My daughter, Kira, turned 30 in August! It just doesn't seem possible, but you can't stop time, darn it! I traveled to Utah to spend a couple of weeks with her and help celebrate with a girls bash that I'll never forget! It was a beautiful night in SLC and we held the party in her backyard.  Not sure which was louder the music or the laughter, but we had FUN!

Vintage Hankie Garland

I've been collecting vintage hankies for years and decided to make a garland with them to hang on Kira's deck for the party. I sewed them onto jute with vintage buttons. It was hard to get a good photo of it, but you get the idea. We also strung lights and it looked so pretty at night.

Her newly landscaped backyard and garage. A windstorm caused a HUGE 50yr old Blue Spruce to fall and take out the garage.  What a mess it was!

The theme of the party was INDULGE! It was very "girlie" with lots of pink and salt water taffy and vintage linens and candles every where and did I mention PINK?  

"INDULGE"

Candles in various cups and glasses

Shades of Pink!

Nice water bottles, eh?

Kira wanted a coconut cake and a coconut cake she got! Buttermilk Coconut Cake to die for! She also had a raspberry filled cake which was just as good. Each cake must have weighed about 10 pounds! I made her  crown...the BIG 30! You're never too old to sport a crown, right?

You CAN have it all!

Her sister, Adri, drove up from Vegas and surprised her. It was awesome!

Kira and Adri

Me and Kira....she's my best friend!



I still can't believe she's 30! I'm so proud of the woman she's become. Very successful in her career, married almost a year to a wonderful man and she has a heart of gold! I am one blessed mama!

Heirloom French Hand Sewing

Back in 1990, I took an heirloom French hand sewing class with a friend of mine. Our girls were 2 and 3 years old at the time. We both loved to sew and wanted to expand our horizons. We had visions of making our little darlings sweet summer dresses made of batiste with delicate lace and hand embroidery. This was our ticket to pure bliss!

The first thing we learned how to do was Shadow Embroidery. I've never done anything so fine and delicate in my life! The back of the design is just as beautiful as the front. I wish I had taken a photo of it before I put this together. It almost looks like a fishtail design. The point being you get the "shadow" effect on the front. I elected to embroider Kira's initial with some delicate flowers and leaves. This was going to be the bodice of a little sundress. I don't see a sundress...do you? Hey, my intentions were good! :)

Isn't it DIVINE? The rosette is made from satin ribbon and finished off with  a vintage button in the center.

Next was learning to sew entreduex, which means "between two" in French. It's a way of connecting lace to lace, lace to fabric, or fabric to fabric. I remember getting frustrated over this. It's very delicate and took some practice, but the results are well worth it. It's used in heirloom sewing and baby clothes. Very beautiful!

The "batiste" fabric is a very pale green. Those are two different laces sewn together at the bottom. I had to add the millinery flowers because....well, I just HAD to!

I had to add this teeny tiny crocheted pin cushion because it just seemed to fit. No pin cushion is complete without pins, right?

Last, but not least was smocking. Again, the plan was to use this piece in the bodice of a little sundress, connected with entreduex and then more on the bottom. I can still see that vision in my head! Now why none of this came to fruition is beyond me. I'm just happy I saved all of it. I did make Kira some adorable Easter dresses that had smoking and hand embroidery involved, so I wasn't a COMPLETE failure!

Again, the fabric is "batiste" in a yummy peach shade. All that embroidery work was done by hand.

My friend ended up buying a smocking machine which is really cool. It actually gathers the fabric for you, with your guidance. Then you hand embroider whatever you want on it. It's an interesting technique and I was very pleased with the way mine turned out.

I came across this little "stash" while searching for something else. I knew I had saved it and would someday do something creative with it. A sampler of those pieces as well as some others I used in dresses I made for  Kira. I had to add a piece of that stunning French lace that I hand sewed down the front and back of her wedding dress. I'm in a sincere love affair with that lace!

I wish you could "feel" this lace in your hands. There's just NOTHING better than lace from France!

Just had to add one more....*sigh*

Viola!

The test is to see if I can actually part with this and give it to Kira. She's turning 30 in August. It seems like yesterday I was dreaming of these beautiful little dresses.

Imperfection is beautiful!

I recently had the pleasure of taking a KC Willis class at one of my favorite little shops here in OKC, Paper Crown! I met KC online last year when I took her Collage Camp workshop. We became friends on facebook and the rest is history! Finally getting to meet her, in the flesh was such a treat. We both feel like we've known each other a long time...kindred spirits!

I titled this piece "Imperfection"...it just seemed to fit!

Me and KC...LOVE her!

The beautiful thing about this class was... KC just put a blank canvas in front of me. I added the background fabrics, she gave me some direction and let me
SOAR!

Crazy patchwork hearts!

After I machine stitched all the little pieces in place. This was time consuming, but well worth it.   

I added vintage buttons and lace....

More do dads! I wish you could feel all the different textures.

KC said, "there are NO seam rippers in class...no ripping out stitches." You get what you get. I LOVE  that. A lesson in letting go and seeing the beauty in the imperfect. 

I had to add in a few "clumpies", strips of fabric, an old doily, and millinery flowers.  Clumpies are what you get in your washing machine when you wash canvas and the edges fray. You're left with this AMAZING ball of clumped up thread!

There it is...my BEAUTIFUL "imperfect" wall hanging! It measures 29"x 21". 

Thank you, KC, for a WONDERFUL day! For sharing your secrets, your knowledge, your amazing talent and your heartfelt stories!