The Ombre Basket

This is the first basket I've started after the lovely workshop with Carolyn Zeitler.  Her infinite patience and gracious teaching are inspirational and I look forward to a long and creative connection to her. 


This photo shows the top wrapping, and a little of the shaded coloring, from black to sable needles.  (Thus the name - "Ombre Basket")

I started with Canary Island Pine needles that are darker than the ones shown on the left (you can see the difference between dyed and undyed needles). This batch of needles is the transition or middle of the basket. The needles on the right are the ones used at the top of the basket. The tips of the needles absorbed the black dye more than the shaft, so the basket has a continuous spiral of the black on the outside.  A little aside: I look at the coloring of the dark sable needles, and wish just a little that my hair was that deep, rich, brown-to-black. It's yummy!
This is how the basket looks when you start. This is a full day's work. The beginning is the most difficult, and for the basket itself, the most important work, for as it begins, so it will follow.  (Yes grasshopper, keep stitching.) 


Now you can see the early stages of the basket, where I am changing from the pure black needles to the deepest sable. This is about day 3. 

I work on this a little here and a little there, as time permits.  The baskets may be the "final straw" in driving me to install better lighting over my favorite chair. I like working while the idiot box is on, but it's so dark... 


Here is the start of the finish, where I am wrapping the needles with raffia.  I'm not sure exactly how I will end it, but I'm up to three rows of wrapping so far. I may need to get a curved upholstery needle soon.

You can see a little of the inside of the basket, and the three rows of wrapping. The basket is not as large as I envisioned in the beginning, and I believe I understand why. (I started coming "up" too soon!)


Working on this basket is a joy. I feel centered and calm after stitching for a while, and watching the progress brings a smile to my face.  Carolyn Z. plans out her marvelous baskets, but I seem to have a more organic streak in me, as the baskets I work on all seem to have a mind of their own, and the outcome is frequently not what I had planned. 

Perhaps as I practice the new-found techniques I will become more disciplined, ... or not. 

Addendum: I left the basket on the table overnight, and my furry little devils chewed most of the trailing pine needles off.  Not a tragedy, as I can add more needles back, but a reminder that nothing is sacred in ART.  Four-footed art critics.  Hummph. 

Pretty, Shiny, Sparkly... Stuff

I confess to that very popular affliction that seems to touch many creative people, although I am not sure if I am ADD or ADHD or dyslexic or whatever.  (At this stage of my life, it really doesn't matter, does it?)
Distracted by things that sparkle or are shiny or move, I can lose thoughts faster than the blink of an eye. With that said, I also claim that this "affliction" helped drive the creative force within me, so that I found alternate methods to achieve what I wanted to create. Seeing things slightly out of the usual, grasping for the chaotic, I find pleasure in the edges of beauty. Perhaps I will always be "three degrees off plumb", but it works for me.

                          
My earlier artwork has incorporated bits and pieces of shiny metals, sparkly papers and found objects. I now believe that I've stumbled upon something that can take what I've learned before and translate it into more "pretty, shiny, sparkly" things. 

Recently, I have become involved in a class that explores glass and metal design. I'm having a ball. Glass fusing, metal shaping, and soon, enameling are all part of it, and I look forward to each class with anticipation. I've made new friends, and look forward to the time when we continue the teaching of the class on our own time, perhaps collaborating with each other to create new things. I've already learned from them, and hope that I've given back some too. 

Indian Summer

 I am always surprised at how much I enjoy Autumn. It's early morning; I woke at 6:15 and tiptoed into the family room to have coffee and a quiet read with the cats while Jim slept. 
 The backyard is slowly revealed as the sky lightens, and I can see the leaves scattered over the grass and patio. It's time to start raking leaves to pile up for compost and mulch.

A week has gone by since the party, and I am still basking in the warmth of accomplishment. It's a small thing, but I take pleasure where I can, and laugh at myself for the omissions and errors that occur. I meant to take photographs of the event, and other than the shot of the first delightful little guest, nothing more was done. No one else did either, so it will only live in memory, which might not be too bad after all.


The other fun I'm having: a jewelry class and blues harmonica lessons. Four Sundays of listening to Mick Martin ramble on about blues harmonica, and some tips on playing for a couple of hours. He has a rich history stuffed into his brain, and knows the players, the events and so much more.  I can play part of "Low Rider" now. Just part. Won't disgrace myself by trying to play at parties yet...

Working On Art, Working On Life. Not There Yet...

Family, Friends and Welcome Readers:

A friend posted this on Facebook, and I read it with that incredible feeling of excitement I get when I come across something that resonates in my soul. Ira Glass has nailed it.

I'm still working on things, on art, on life.  

The Patio Project is Finished...

 The patio project is finished, or at least the cement part of the cobblestone pavers. We are now adding some fill dirt to the edges and starting to plant ground

cover to landscape. This has taken three of our summers to complete, and I will never watch the DIY channel again and think "Oh that looks easy, I can do that". 

However, it is soooo worth it. I love the look, and it has that air of very old cobblestone streets, a bit uneaven (no 4" spike heels please) and worn.  We acquired a table and chairs from some friends and have discovered that there is a lovely breeze that crosses the yard there.  It's nicer than the little patio off the family room.

Now we are starting to take care of the rest of the yard, which was sadly neglected this summer in favor of the cement work. Think we will have a party in October to celebrate.  Brats on the BBQ, beer in the cooler and Bocce Ball on the meadow/lawn. Wheeee.

Red Shoes

There is something about a pair of red shoes that uplifts my spirits and makes me smile. I am ready to invent an occasion to wear them, to prance around and grin until my dimples ache.  Is there love in red shoes, or just the illusion of romance?  Happy dance for feet!

The miracle of current internet shopping has made a chore (one that formerly brought me to tears) a pleasant prospect. With this delight, I currently have two new pairs of shoes that fit my odd-duck feet, one the pictured in red, and a lovely black suede in the same style.

Pavers, Cobblestones and Cement Mixers

The Great Patio Project is nearing the finish. It's taken three summers, instead of the foolishly estimated "couple of weekends" (Curse you, DIY channel)...  We have only a couple more rows of paving stones to cast and place, and individual cobbles (?) to cast along the edges.

Would we do the same if we only knew???  Accorting to my beloved husband, uh - NO!  Would we be able to find anything that would be similar commercially, probably not. The patio is unique, and I really like how it looks, although we will have to come up with a solution for the edge, as I am not completely happy with what I used to edge it (composition board, like "Trex".)  

We will be celebrating our project's completion sometime after Labor Day (appropriate, eh?)  BB-Q fired up, meat on the grill, Bocce Ball and Croquet in the backyard. Hammocks will be hung, and chairs scattered under the trees.  Last days of summer...

Summer's Swift Passage

Summer is flying by, and we have only a few weeks to call it our own before the appearance of Autumn. I had the pleasure of taking part in a "Plein-Air Paintout" as part of the California State Fair here in Sacramento, where about 35 artists spent two days painting in public at the fair. We then presented our work in the art section for comment, ridicule, awards and general viewing. These are the pieces that I completed.  The top work is of the stairs leading to the Raging Waters waterslide, as seen from the Forest section of the fairgrounds. Kids haul huge floats up the wooden stairs, and then jump into a slide/tube, and scream until they come out the end, splashing into a pool. Fun... right?

 These are the view I chose for the other painting. The one on the left is the composition "test" I did after scouting the fairgrounds a few days earlier, and the one on the right is the one I did for presentation. Left is pallet knife, the right is brushwork.  I sat under the shade of huge redwood trees, at picnic benches, in a lovely setting.      

                                                                                

I was amused to find that the people who talked to me were generally kids, who asked: "What are you doing?", as if they had never seen anyone paint before, (a sad comment on the arts in schools, no?)

Roses and Apple - (oils/pallet knife ) Painting at Hildas

It's been a busy few days. Had a lovely painting session with an artist friend, worked on those pavers that have been hanging around for multiple seasons, set up some activities for August (a basket-making workshop with an incredible instructor) and did the normal household chores that are always around. Since I have a guest coming (actually two this month) I actually ironed pillowcases and freshened up the room. I can't believe I actually did that (ironing sheets), but Martha Stewart must have taken over my brain for a little while. I'll do an exorcism later to make sure she doesn't take up permanent residence.
We've had a strange summer with the garden, but are still harvesting green beans, those pale green scalloped squash, corn, some (small) tomaotes and zucchini.  The corn is so sweet when it's fresh picked and thrown into the boiling water.  I can eat 2 or more ears by myself. Nom nom nom.

Plum and Apricot Tart

This was the best tart I've ever made. Classic frangipane and fruit filling, with fruit from our trees. Added some of my favorite spice mix, Divine Desserts from Pollen Ranch. Yummmmm. I'm keeping this recipe and looking for more fresh fruit.

Plums from the Garden, Small Oil Study (8x10)

Plums today, maybe apricots soon. So, 2nd week, 2nd painting. This might be a nice little series of fruits and vegetables, the bounty from the garden. Hmmm. Green beans?  Patty pan squash? It's a thought. No painting today, had to be a plumber. Such is life. At least the temp. stayed below 100 degrees. Lots of visitors and plans for the month of July.

Magnolia Leaf Study

So this morning, I slipped out of bed, started the coffee and went into the studio to paint. I'm trying to limber up the skills so that I can participate in a plein-air paint-out at the California State Fair in July  (oops, I'd better get that application into the mail quickly...)  It's over a weekend, and any work completed will be exhibited. Of course, any artist working will be an exhibit all their own, and better be ok with people offering advise, or wanting to talk about their grandchild's fingerpaints that show genius.
So, this is the first of the studies meant to get me in shape.

Where Do the Mornings Go?

Intention: finish emptying dishwasher, put breakfast dishes in the washer and head out to do some garden work.  9 AM


Reality: Emptied the dishwasher, put in breakfast dishes, and started to wipe down stove. Noticed that the fan screens were a "bit" dirty. Took them out. GROSS!  OK, I hadn't cleaned them since before I took the temp job with VZW last September, and time just slipped away. In face, many of the "deep" cleaning jobs around here were shuffled aside during that intense 7 months.

The screens were saturated with grease, which is no surprise, since my beloved hubby has been making popcorn lately, and while he cleans up his mess (mostly) those aren't even a speck on his horizon. 

I started with dish washing detergent, grabbed a toothbrush (they are aluminum mesh, and a bit fragile) and started in. Mmm, no go, or at least not really fast.  Dug around for the Goo Gone, and it's down to it's last little bit, and the sprayer doesn't work well.  Fetched the Dissolve-It from the garage-laundry area and dragged the rolling stool to the sink. 

Gaack. There is an impossibly large amount of stuff that those screens hold, and it kept coming out.  Once started, in to the finish on this, so I kept running hot hot hot water and spraying them down, gently brushing all the while.   Now they are clean. Finally. I re-inserted them under the hood, and wiped down all the surfaces with the last of the Goo Gone. Cleaned up the nasty mess in the sink, and put my kitchen back in some semblance of order. Now it's 11am. My hands are pruned, and the morning is almost gone, the temp outside is warmer. Oh well. Will water the plants I was going to set up irrigation and pick a few weeds for good measure. 

Maybe tomorrow?  Naaaah.

Plein Air Painting at Pt. Arena

 Here are a couple of small paintings I did last week off the cliffs at Pt. Arena, near the lighthouse. I used a limited palette suggested by Terry Miura, not much more than this:

ultramarine, ivory black, cad yellow light/lemon pale (I can't read the tube anymore), cad red light, transparent red oxide (he calls it magic brown...), white, cerulean, and yellow ochre

I decided to limit the colors I use for a while, although I am going to play with Sarback's colors this summer. I'm thinking that using her method of underpainting warms and cools will work for a number of things.

The day I was painting the lighthouse, the wind was blowing so fiercely, that I taped and tied and bungee'd everything down, and started roughing in the composition. Jim stayed in the car to read where it was warm (don't blame him). After about 40-50 minutes, I had the "bones" but realized that the wind was so strong, I couldn't keep my hand steady, so I packed up my kit, and took my frozen fingers back to the cabin, and painted on the sheltered porch. It's amazying what a row of cypress as a windbrake can do for temperature and wind speed!

I am going to pick a day this week and set up my paints for another session. Might also try to drop by an open studio and do some figure painting as well.

Back from the Coast

This was a journey colored by blues and greens, with splashes of every other color to accent it. Every day along this rocky, dramatic coast was different, and the blues changes with the passing of the hours.  These are not friendly beaches, with miles of sparkling-sugar sands. These are jagged teeth and crushing waves that hammer and pull and grind. For all of this, it is breath-taking. For all of this, I am pulled to stand along the cliffs and watch, mesmerized by the drama and power.                 

 

Jim and I had a chance to tour the Botanical Gardens outside of Ft. Bragg. The rhododendruns are in full glory right now - I've never seen them like this before. If I lived up here in the northern coastal area I would be here frequently. to walk and paint and just feast on the variety and richness of the plantings.

Will post the plein air paintings I did soon, and more photos. Need a nap right now.