Overcoming the Blahs

I have found, if I don't make art of some kind, every day, I get the 'blahs'. So, you would think that would keep me on track wouldn't you? But sometimes life gets in the way of art.

I went for 4 days without any art time! And boy did it show. I felt lathargic all day, I dropped everything I touched... and I was very cranky! LOL

So, finally this evening I got a few minutes of quiet time to create a new journal page (no, this is not it below). I grabbed a piece of watercolor paper and gave it a whirl. Watercolors are something that I love but am not very good at. I took a class in high school and my teacher thought I had great potential but unfortunately we didn't have any watercolor classes available at college and I have just not gotten much practice since then (although I have lots of supplies lol)

But the good news is......I am still on track for my 4 pages a week for my journal! This is really amazing! We are heading into the 4th week of the year and I have 13 pages done! WoooooHoooooo!

So this page is one for last week. I was playing around with layering background papers.

The face stamp is from Tin Can Mail. The hands are from Stampers Anonymous.
I also worked on a zine last week. It was my first (and most likely my last). I know lots of people love them but it just wasn't for me. Trying to coordinate 8 panels for one theme just wasn't fun for me. But at least now I can say I made one. :-)

Happy Monday

Does anyone really enjoy Mondays? I know I don't! I struggle to get up for work and then once I am there, it seems we always have system issues which turns the longest day of the week into an eternity! LOL

I got my 4 journal pages done again last week! I am very proud of myself!!! :-) So I am sharing a couple of them with you.

Sticking with my diet theme....now if I could just stick with the diet. hmm

Here is my lovely lady again. I just love her LOL

She is living my life...balancing above all those tempting goodies....trying her best not to fall (fail).
It has been pouring down rain here for a week. That puts a crimp in my creative thinking. Puts me in the mood to sleep though LOL

I needed 1 more page for my week and had absolutely no ideas! So, I began rummaging through my vintage photo drawer. And tucked into a little bag was this photo. I had shoved it into the drawer and never used it! These women just look so happy. It looks to me like they never let the weather get them down. From the smiles on their faces I have a feeling they were fun to hang out with! So I did! LOL

They look so proud of their fancy outfits. Those gorgeous fur coats and don't you just love the plumes on their hats?!

I don't know, I look at their faces and they just seem to know a secret....to happiness maybe. :-)

So far 2011 is going good!

I can't believe how creative I have been this week LOL After the past few years of barely able to complete an ATC, to create 3 in one week (6 in 2 weeks!) is just amazing LOL

These 3 are for the monthly swap...at the end of February! Yeah I am way ahead!!!! WoooHoooo

So, here we have a very fancy kitty. She (and her gold embossed crown) come from the Stampin Up set Cool Cat. The diamonds and French postmark are from the Tim Holtz French Market set by Stampers Anonymous.

I painted the background with acrylics blending from mauve to pale yellow. It is a very simple card and yet with the gold ink and embossing, sort of fancy. :-) Minnie (my little diva kitty) approved.
Ok, this one is odd, I know LOL But last week we bought a new toaster. And I couldn't get this song out of my head. My ex's niece used to sing a song about loving toast when she was around 10 or so. Not sure this is the exact song but close enough!

And don't you love that toaster? It comes from the Cricut cartridge "From My Kitchen". My new toaster sort of looks like that...very retro. But mine is a cool metallic red! Very sassy!!! LOL

And this last one was inspired by my lack of ability to stick to a diet! LOL This woman has way more will-power than I do! I swear, I love chocolate chip cookies and no way would I ever be able to resist them let alone do my exercises on top of them!

BTW this lovely woman comes from VivaLasVegastamps. Isn't she great?

The only fun thing about taking out all the Christmas decorations is bringing back all my collectibles. We finally got my antique school desk back in from the garage this week. Kitty loved it. He hopped right up as if he was ready for school....which is hilarious because Kitty is really dumb! If you every read Tucker's blog you would have gotten to enjoy Tucker's view of Kittys intelligence (or lack there of LOL)

My Resolutions are still intact!

I completed my 4 journal pages this week. WoooHoooo! I know, it may seem like much but believe me, this is big!. I usually have forgotten my journal by January 2. LOL

I began by slapping acrylic paints onto my 4x6 cards. (they are taped to my Olfa cutting board - and yes I can hear all you quilters gasping LOL)
And here they are! All done and signed on the backs. :-)

Hmm I see that I didn't stamp anything this week....very strange for me LOL
I have a mix of painting, photos, drawing, writing....I am liking this process so far (1 week in LOL)

BTW I drew and painted the dragon myself. I think he is cute. :-)

This was a very productive week for me! I also completed my ATCs for the monthly swap (and they aren't even due until the end of the month!)

Since people won't get them until early February, I tried to think ahead. I have Chinese New Year (it is going to be the year of the rabbit) and Valentine's Day. (the happy couple comes from VivaLasVegastamps) And how about the Village Blacksmith? That background writing is a ledger sheet our hostess sent me with last months ATCs. Such cool handwriting! I'm not sure exactly what it was....a list of names and dates....but now it is our blacksmith's customer list. :-)

Oh yeah, I am on fire this year! heehee

New Year's Resolutions

Happy New Year!

I hope you have all arrived in 2011 safe and healthy.

We rang in the new year at home watching movies and just enjoying being together. We paused the movie for a few seconds to watch the ball drop and then back to the entertainment LOL

Throughout the day yesterday I pondered on whether I wanted to make resolutions. Every year I make one and every year I have forgotten it by mid January! And then the guilt sets in. Who needs to set themselves up for a guilt trip every year? Not me! No more!

This year I decided I will make them but then taylor them to my needs....no more generic resolutions for me!

So, sort of as an accountability thing....here are mine:

1. Create an art journal and make entries at least 4 times a week. (in the past I have tried art journals and felt pressured to make art in them every single day...with my schedule, that was just asking for failure!) My plan, create pages using blank 4x6 index cards and bind them all together later. Not so much space that it is overwhelming, not so small that you can't be creative. I will paint 4 card backgrounds each week and then throughout the week, collage/paint/embellish them. I just finished my 4 backgrounds a few minutes ago and they are now drying....great start to the year!

2. Lose weight. Someday I hope this is not a resolution but until then, here we go again. This year though, instead of trying some diet plan and then feeling guilt when I slip up, I plan on adjusting what I eat....to make the focus of my day fruits and veggies. Wish me luck!

I wish you all the best in all of your resolutions and hope that 2011 is a happy, successful and art filled year for us all!