Tuesday's Blanks Filled In!

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BLANKS FILLED IN...
I had a great day Tuesday...filled with chatting via Skype with a friend in Ireland, followed with breakfast out with an artist buddy followed up with a short trip to the Long Beach Depot for Creative Reuse where I found these little wonders. I had said don't tease me, but a trip to a store like this is just the inspirational nudge one may need. When I saw these cardboard thingies I thought of stencils of houses... my friend saw kitties.

What comes to mind for you? 
These were amazingly expensive, too!  All of 10 cents...
After a fine morning of chatting, and searching I headed back home and happily began beading my large quilt project... and today, Sunday, it is almost done. I am looking forward to sharing it here and of course, then starting the designing on my Yosemite piece.

Happy Sunday All ---
Wishing you a wonderful, creatively fun day!

Don't Tease Me Today!

Design Group has declared this a week off!
This means that there is no official (right, like anything is really Official) Tuesday's Teaser. Maybe I can use this time to work on my Yosemite quilt design.. or stitch further on my current art project.. or maybe use some of those early teaser exercises to inspire my next project, or maybe - What?!?

The day is full of possibilities -- I'd love to hear what you're up to today,
and I promise to fill in the blanks of my Don't Tease Me, Tuesday - LATER!

Enjoy the day, and take the moments given to you to daydream
and allow creative thoughts to reach you.

Sketchbook Postings - Sunday

Admittedly, we pulled out three words from the basket -- the first two were boo-hoo'd and then came 'Sunday'. Immediately someone said 'don't tell me how it is spelled'.. and we were off. I was thinking of sunny days -- what came to mind for you?  Me recent renderings seem also to have taken on a mandala influence... might be my friend Warren's influence from over at the Daily Doodle . In any case below you'll find mine and a few from members of my design group.

Time is Flying - It is Time

I've been working on focus this year and feel like I am taking steps (small as they may seem) in this direction. I have put these steps on paper and worked out a plan to keep me moving. Moving I am, but you know there may be sidetracks along the way and I uncovered one last week. This one came up as I was calendaring and realizing that my hubby and I are celebrating 20 years of marriage this March. This got me thinking about that long ago wedding in Yosemite -- freshly fallen snow and the whole valley looking like cake covered in beautiful white frosting... Back then I was a brand new quilter, and of course I had to have a signature quilt to commemorate this special day. Well, admittedly I did have the guests all sign blocks and even made them into a top -- but, OMGosh who on earth picked those colors?!? I have no trouble understanding why this quilt was never finished.

I don't have many UFO's but this is one of them. From that first year of quilting, till now, I wanted to create a Yosemite quilt and I had even started collecting images of the scene I first wanted to stitch together. The chapel at the foot of Half Dome - of course. It is time, and I will be off - wonderfully sidetracked - to make this quilt. I'm posting a picture of the original quilt top -- and I hope to enlist my friendship group to maybe help me unstitch those signatures blocks so I can include them on the back.

It seems fitting - it was right around my 10 year anniversary that I set off on the road to creating the Fast-Piece Applique method that I use, and have written about, to stitch my quilts together. I made the quilt By The Light of the Moon based on that year's anniversary trip to Mendicino. So, now is the time for my Yosemite Chapel piece.

Would you like to hear about it as it gets pulled together? I'll be filling you right here as I get going.

You can all be my accountability partners for this project.

Wish me well.

(maybe I can even figure out a way to represent the hiking boots that I had to wear to the chapel. Worn to get me through the snow and then changed in order to walk down the aisle).

Tuesday's Teaser -Sketchbook Stretching

The Tuesday Teaser subject this week is:
Sunday

  Join in fun, and share with others your own Tuesday Teaser
drawing & collage, or words & short tale.

It’s easy, so grab your sketchbook or some paper.
1. make a timed drawing (5 minutes) of something/ anything that comes to mind when you think about the teaser
2. create a collage (15 minutes) using the drawing ideas to guide your way

Or if you love is of words…
1. make a list of all the words this week’s teaser makes you think up (5 minutes)
2. create a short tale (15 minutes) using your word list

I'll be posting the design group's sketchbook results on Monday-next.
I'd love to share yours, too so email your drawings or word wanderings to me... Tuesday Teaser and I'll include as many as possible!


For this one you may want to ignore how it's spelled and let the word speak to you. I had a great time with it!  But, getting started is a must.

Sketchbook Postings - Ovation

When I heard 'ovation'   it made me think of waves of clapping, happy, exciting people... but mostly the waves.
What ideas did 'the teaser' pop into your head? Below are my quick sketch and timed collage
based on this week's word.

Calendaring: Resistance is Futile

Last week I found blogger Kesha Bruce and I jumped into my long overdue review of my self journey. I mentioned the need of focus last week and I have been using Kesha’s words of wisdom to guide me through this needed venture. She first calls our attention to the need to have an End Game.

You need to know where you wanted to head off to before you hit the road. Since many of use spend a great deal of time doing many things because they are expected of us it can be a bit daunting to acknowledge just what it is that we want, let alone put it down on a piece of paper and map out a plan on how to get there.

I’m here to tell you that resistance is futile, and it may not be as painful as you believe.

My End Game started by determining ‘my’ income. After all, I work for myself, and who but me can figure that out.

I’m not going to tell you that committing this to paper was easy. All week long there were two work stations calling my name. One with the sewing machine, with a really fun new piece needing stitching...

And the other, with computer and calendars calling from the other side of the studio.

Then I found a quote by Ursula LeGuin –
“It is good to have an end to journey towards;
but it is the journey that matters in the end.”

This was the next nudge I needed (I did mention resistance, right?)

I took a look at my revenue streams – teaching/ art sales & commissions/ product sales, etc and mapped out the potential, including my personal goals in each of these areas.

On a roll now I could see how the marketing plans could be produced in accordance to the importance of each of these in turn…

Ok, here comes BIG resistance…
for me, it is really hard to plan for myself. Schedule myself!
Those that know me well might think I’m lying here, for I’m the ultimate planner, and a really good project manager…. But this is more daunting, it is a schedule to make it all happen!!!!  

Breath… time to go back to the smaller pieces.

This is what helped me this week. It is great, and totally needed, to have a big plan…. But it is the journey that matters in the end… the little pieces. Figure out the little pieces that you identify you need to have in place to get to the End Game. They all add up in the end, and in order to deal with the inevitable, finding one is working better than another, I built in review points.

Enough… this next week I’ll be working on my weekly schedule. Need to make sure there’s enough time in the day/week to get the things done that I want.

Is it Tuesday? Time for a Teaser

The Tuesday Teaser subject this week is:
Ovation

  Join in fun, and share with others your own Tuesday Teaser
drawing & collage, or words & short tale.

It’s easy, so grab your sketchbook or some paper.
1. make a timed drawing (5 minutes) of something/ anything that comes to mind when you think about the teaser
2. create a collage (15 minutes) using the drawing ideas to guide your way

Or if you love is of words…
1. make a list of all the words this week’s teaser makes you think up (5 minutes)
2. create a short tale (15 minutes) using your word list

I'll be posting the design group's sketchbook results on Monday-next.
I'd love to share yours, too so email your drawings or word wanderings to me... Tuesday Teaser and I'll include as many as possible!

Don't think about this one too long -- just DO IT!
I was really surprised with my results, and I look forward to seeing YOURs!

Focus, Focus, Focus

At the beginning of this year everyone seemed to be picking a ‘word’ to best describe what and how they saw 2011 unfolding. My word of choice though not fanciful, or remotely inspiring to others, was FOCUS.

I wanted this year to be one where I could stand back, take a look at just where my life has been leading me since I took the ‘leap’ into my art life. There has been so much that I have done since that time back in 2003… many tasks undertaken, many goals set and achieved and I have been exceedingly grateful for this amazing time.

It is just now it is the right time to figure out what I really want to do and set about doing it…. FOCUS, FOCUS, FOCUS!

I drew the word onto a sticky note and hung it above my computer when January began.

Then… January began… and once again I set about moving though my daily life. Work, family and goals, and looking back it was not unproductive. In fact, it was a productive and successful month. I had some wonderful present & teaching opportunities, my website & blog were updated (per my goal), BUT, FOCUS was left staring down at me from the sticky.

Like Gibbs on NCIS, my gut is gnawing at me.

You know how when something is meant to happen… you say it out loud… and the universe answers. Well, I have received answers from many directions and finally one has hit home.

Out on Twitter yesterday, I found an RT (for non-Twitterers this means retweet – or the resending of a message they have seen/liked and wanted others to see, too) from someone that I follow pointing me to the blog of Kesha Bruce.

Her words resonated with me, and I could see myself as she described herself… only her journey began last year...luckily for me, she shared it along the way. She provided me with the doorway and I'm ready to step though. A plan is needed!

More to follow as my journey --- guided along by Kesha’s is explored. Starting back to her blog entry of March 11, 2010 and her One Year Plan.