ONE SHELF AT A TIME

Today I started my intensive cleanup in my studio. It is such a massive job so I am doing it one section at a time. Today I did the easy but messiest section.Where I sit and do all my work...

Before

Here is a photo of that area. I am not sure how I manage to create such a mess but it gets like this and some times worse with each project. Also I wanted to re- organize my shelves so the things I use most days, like the pencils etc.. are easy to get to and the the other stuff I can't live without is up higher. 

After

The square bottles are from peanut butter pretzels that hubby loves but we can't get any more. I love them for storage since they are square and stack nicely. If the red cap is out it means the bottle is empty . Because they are clear it makes an easy way to find things if I can see what is in them by looking at the bottom. 

Before

.I also got rid of stuff from under the table that was taking up space because I did not bother to return it to it's proper place after using or never put it away in the first place. Like the tub of stuff sent home from hospital when Bob was in there a couple of months back. And the large shoe box from new shoes I talked Bob into buying a month ago. Though the shoe box came in handy to contain all the crayons and pens I have that do not stack nice and were in several little containers.

After

Soon the large brown box will be gone. I am using it to mail the large Pirate doll to my daughter in Washington unless she can tote it with her when she leaves after my grand daughter's wedding in November

     

Garage studio destination

And then of course there is always the stuff to deal with after you clean.  There is the large box of stuff that mostly goes in the garage studio where I do all my smelly work that needs ventilation.

Trash

                                                 






And the two bags of trash that needs to be set out for pick up tomorrow morning.




The next thing I will tackle is the other table top on opposite side of room and all the mess on it...mostly trash or needing to be put away. If I get these two things done in the next couple of days I will be a happy camper.

After all of that work I deserve a day of making art...but will try to not mess up .

AWARDS

My daughter Deb who just recently received the SYNERGY AWARD with her company, WYLE'S AEROSPACE GROUP

WYLE'S AEROSPACE GROUP

I will not even try to explain what she does in her company other than to say she is very good at it. Along with her accomplishments on the job she is a wife,  mother and grandmother and a friend to all the neighborhood kids. And she loves everything Disney. 

She also a gifted seamstress and has found time to construct her niece's wedding dress from a picture. She has a dream of starting her own sewing studio where she can teach classes and invite other fiber artist to come and create unique and artistic items to wear and to teach others to do the same. Debbie has many other talents though at this time this is what she does and loves best. 

DYING TEES, MAKING LISTS AND OTHER STUFF

Yesterday and today I have been playing around with some odds and ends, making list and trying out the tutorial I did for a wrap. 

The dying I did yesterday and learned you can't fit a whole  wardrobe of tees in one soup pot and the color of the dye is not necessarily the color you will get. This is equal parts orange and tan...looks pretty okay but a bit on the orange side for me

Here is what I got after rinsing and drying. Not good, not bad, but can be better. I think I will try over dying at least one of them and see what happens..also they are sort of splotchy which is the reason for not fitting so many on one pot...weight wise it was okay but volume wise not so good.  I thought it was interesting that even though all the tees were 100% cotton not all of them dyed the same color. Which makes me think it is never going to be perfect. 

Along with my experiment in dying tees I made more decisions on what I am going to do in my near future. Near as in the year 2014. Right now I feel so very bogged down with projects that are started and not finished and I don't like the feeling. 

I also feel like my life has been taken over with stuff and I intend to clear out everything that is not being used or will never be used or I can get again easily if I need to. I could start my own pizza business with all the boxes I have saved "just in case." Same with egg cartons and oatmeal boxes...Good heavens. Do I really think I will never eat oatmeal and eggs again or that pizzas are going to become extinct. Fat chance of that ever happening.

I am going to start sorting it as if I were moving.......Some of the stuff will be be packed into boxes and labeled for future use...stuff I really do not want to get rid of but don't want to look at any more (for now)...other stuff will be donated to local craft people and some will go into recycling...Then by the time I get into the new year I may be able to think straight and have a clear idea of where I am going, how I am going to get there and where I can find the materials to do it with.

 So, that will be my end of year project...

THINGS WE REMEMBER

This morning I started my new routine. I call it my 12 step program since it is a tape of 12 basic yoga poses. It is so basic it is named Yoga For Dummies. Years ago, when I was young and agile and lived in Indiana, I took yoga classes from an oriental man who was a wonderful  teacher. He had so much to offer and his cost was so affordable. I don't recall how I learned about him but we, a car load of friends drove into Gary, Indiana to take the classes in a closed down store right in the middle of town. It was a 2 hour class and during the first class he said, and this is a quote I will never forget, " You will never know how good yoga is for you until you stop practicing it." I think of him saying that every time I get a pain in my back, stitch in my body and just plain ache all over...This tape I am using is so appropriate since I am a dummy for ever having stopped practicing yoga. As I was struggling to do even a semblance of the basic pose, sometimes having to use a chair for support,  I remembered the way it used to be...and how wonderful I felt and I am looking forward to that day again.

I am trying to establish a regular routine since that seems to work best for me as opposed to random exercise. It is too far to drive any place for a structured workout. I know myself well enough to realize it will not last . I have all the gym equipment here in my home that I need from yoga tapes, walking tapes, exerstrider poles for outdoor walking, top of the line elliptical machine with a TV in front of it for helping to pass the time to a couple of free weights and an  exercise ball...No more excuses...I will just do it! And by the way, after just one day of my 12 step program I feel better and more energetic...

After my exercise this morning I took a walk around my garden and took these photos. I love the spider. I thin it is a Golden Orb Garden Spider. We get lots of them in the fall and enjoy watching them as they weave their lives in our presence.That's our spoiled baby Marshal inside the screen in the background. He is a rescue dog and of unknown origin. The vet thinks he is part collie and part shepard. He is clipped now but normally has a coat like a collie with coloring like a shepherd so perhaps the vet is right though Marshal thinks he is human and honors us with his presence. And we love him for it!

I am not a gardener so I am not sure what this flower is but we get blooms each fall on the ends of the stems. It dies out in the winter but always comes back. It was among the dead and dying plants at the nursery  so we got it for almost nothing. A good investment.The butterflies love it. 

OUT WITH THE OLD AND IN WITH THE NEW

Fun Foam art pieces
October's Altered Minds workshop

This late afternoon and evening, instead of my usual Zentangles I spent the time catching up on blogs I follow and reading a book I just started. It was a time to relax and renew and contemplate the end of a relationship with ASG as a leader and the beginning of a new one as a follower.

I have belonged to the American Sewing Guild since I moved to Florida in 2002.. I dropped my membership for a year and then picked it up again after spending a year as leader in the newly formed Florida Sewing Sew-ciety where again I was a leader. Having four sewing groups to keep up with was a bit much so needing to downsize many parts of my life and commitments in order to have time to do some things I want to do I decided to resign as the leader of one of  the neighborhood groups. I am excited! This is going to allow me time to explore some creative endeavors I have wanted to do for a long while. My groups will now consist of  two sewing groups and one art group.

The two sewing groups being garment sewing and the other hand sewing. Both groups are lead by the same very accomplished person and with her I hope to glean more knowledge on  construction of  well fitting garments and  the fundamentals of the Alabama Chanin technique of hand sewing. I know I have mentioned this before but it is worth mentioning again.

I will renew my membership in the Altered Minds Mixed Media Art group that I joined several years ago but will only attend  certain workshops. The group is floundering as many groups do from apathy and lack of participation in both leading of workshops and participation in workshops after they are planned and put together by the person leading them. A lot of work goes into the facilitating of a workshop and when you get 20 people signed up and 10 of them have appointments or whatever it is discouraging. 

In the Mission Statement and rules of the art group it clearly states that each person will contribute their talents to leading a workshop. We limited our membership to 30 but in the past 5 years the same few people lead all the workshops.I will be teaching my last one in the month of October and then I am done for at least one year. If no one steps up to lead the group will fold.

I think this is a common problem with all the groups here in my area but no one seems to be able to spark a new interest and recruit new and active members so perhaps having them fold because of lack of active members is what has to happen before they realize what a treasure they had. A few can carry the masses but it is easier and more fun if the masses help carry the load. 

Along with the groups I belong to I will keep plugging away at getting my LifeBook 2013 caught up and finished this year or for sure by early next year. I am deciding on whether or not I want to join in the LifeBook 2014 or do I want to explore a different type of art. I have plenty of time to make that decision.

And last but most important is my health. I will have more time and spend more time on getting my body healthy again by getting out and doing more active exercises such as biking and walking. I will not be able to use the weather as an excuse for many more days. Exercise will actually be my number one priority from now on...!

WIP

I need to start dinner pretty quick and will be busy tonight so going to get my blog written early. This is a start on my next class in LifeBook 2913. It doesn't look like much right now. Lots left to do but it so far I like what I have. The trees, done in a watercolor crayon and Sharpie marker, will be come a lot darker before it is over as they are on the top of the one on left. Saturday I will finish it.

All of my luncheon prep is done and all I need to do tomorrow is assemble the tea sandwiches and pack the car. I got finished a lot earlier then I had anticipated so I had time to play a bit in my studio. Tomorrow will be up early and out the door by 8:15 to go help set up. I will definitely be happy when this is over.

Hubby will be home from golfing soon so I best stat getting the pizza ingredients together...I am going to try cooking the pizza on the gas grill and hope it works...also hope the rain holds off for another couple hours...I am beginning to think we need to build an ark...off to cook now....

A SUCCESSFUL DAY

Today was a success even though I did not get any real art done  until late in the day I did get some necessary chores started and some even finished.   First thing this morning I did my tutorial on how to make the  wrap, then I did some prepping for my luncheon I am catering on Friday and finally this evening before I sat down in front of the TV I did a Zentangle.

This is not my best Zentangle. Ran into several problems as I was doing it. My mind was not on drawing and it showed in my hand as I tried to move the pen in the direction I wanted it to go. Left side kept wanting to take over. My pen was not working up to par. I had forgotten it was running low on ink and started it before I remembered so went ahead and finished it. So it is what it is...as Ruth says. Not good, not bad, just is.  That happened to me with the red ink before but I stopped in middle of that one. I may go back and finish it one day.

I did not get to proof my tutorial so when I get a chance I will make one following my online directions and see if it is really workable. Sometimes we see what we want to see or read what we want to read and since I know how it may be I haven't put it clearly on the page. I hope so and I hope to see at least two wraps made from the directions.

Tomorrow will be busy as well as Friday but on Saturday I am going to give dying a try. I have a box of white tees from when Bob gives blood and I am dying them to use in my Alabama Chanin  http://alabamachanin.com/ classes of hand sewn garments. I plan my first garment to be a top to wear with my slacks. Not sure which ones until I dye the fabric. I have  no expertise in dying so I have no clue how it is going to turn out color wise. I have black, brown, white and ivory slacks so it should work with one of them. And if all else fails the color will work with jeans. Everything goes with jeans.

I need to get back to my Life Book 2013 soon but with only short bits of time here and there I hesitate to start a page. My next in line is rather involved with acrylics so I may skip it for now and go to a less complex technique. I want to get finished at least by the end of February if at all possible. It is making me think twice about starting the next year of classes...Just more to get behind on.


I have spread myself pretty thin for the remainder of this year with the two sewing classes and all the art I want to do. But it will all work out. I will prioritize again and put the most desired on the top of my list. It will make me happy.

All in all I would have to say it was a pretty successful day. Not good, not bad, Just is! I love that saying...

SCARF TUTORIAL

Finished Rami scarf

Start with a piece of fabric the size  you want. I used a finished scarf I had that was 84" long and 27 wide. It makes a wrap big enough to keep you warm so if you want a smaller wrap use less width but still keep most of the length. Pin and try for size before finishing.

Be sure to finish all edges before going to next step. You can machine or hand stitch the hems on all edges or, my favorite, if the fabric is conducive to burning you can finish them that way. Do a test first...see how it works and how it looks. Google  to see how to finish with burned edges, Here is a chart to tell you what burns and how it burns. http://www.ditzyprints.com/burnchart.jpg You can also google how to burn but all I could find was flowers...Basically all you do is hold the fabric edge to a candle flame and let it singe..Keep a towel handy to put the flame out so it doesn't get out of control All you want to do is singe not burn the house down. Do this in a well ventilated area. I use my garage studio. If you are using a knit you can leave the edges unfinished and fringe the two short edges like the shawl in the photo. If you have a serger you can stretch the knit to make a lettuce edge...the possibilities are endless

folded fabric

After getting the edges finished the next step is to fold the fabric in half and do a seam on either the inside or outside  of wrap depending on how you want it to look...If you are burning the edges you can put it so the edges show on outside. If you do that be sure to leave at least a 1" seam allowance as it looks like part of the design that way

seam line

Start the seam line about 6 to 8 inches from edge and sew up about 12 inches leaving a nice large opening for head and letting the fabric drape nicely. I suggest basting first to see exactly how long to make the seam...

poncho look front

You can leave it draped down over the shoulders for warmth  and more of a cover up or poncho look 

poncho look side

pulled up on shoulder
front

pulled up on shoulder
back

Or you can pleat the folded side up to make more of a drape in front and back

Front

Back

I have several of these scarves so I think I will fashion a way to use them like this or just straight as a wrap. Perhaps put buttons on top side and  loops on other side to fasten and if I want it open I can use it without buttoning...The buttons and loops will then be a fashion statement..Just another idea...

NEW IDEAS AND ADVENTURES

Today as I was reading my previous blog about the draped scarf I am going to make I started getting some fantastic ideas on how to make it/them. I say them because I do not think I can stop at one. In fact I know I will not stop at one. Today, as  I was putting together a tutorial in my head so I can write it out and send it to Ruth if she wants it and for sure use it in a class for my ASG group I started thinking about the ways to finish the edges other than plain old hems.Hems are nice if done properly and can be hand sewn or machine sewn but for an artist or someone  that does not sew it needs to  have a non sewn technique. That is where the fun begins.

So, depending on what the fabric is made of it could be burned like Yvonne Porcella teaches in her book 'Color Changing Hues'. If you choose to make it from knit it can be left with no hem at all since knits do not ravel.  And if you have a high end machine that does fancy stitches like mine does it could be machine hemmed and  hand rolled and sewn  if you have nimble fingers. Much of it will depend on the style you want to evoke and the fabric used. 

Yvonne's book is a treasure trove of information on dying, painting and finishing of fabric. I laugh when I think of the era I bought this book in. I was an avid cloth doll maker and fell in love with her art dolls and have been in love with art dolls ever since though my doll making phase is over with for now.

Here is an example of her art dolls and if you look closely you will see the burned edges of the fabric





The book also has great tutorials on dying and painting your own fabric which is another option to make your draped scarf very 'uniquely' yours. But that is another subject altogether so will save it for later.

CATCHING UP & GETTING AHEAD

Today was spent getting all my art classes burned to a DVR disc so I can refer to them at a later date if I want to. I was two weeks behind with the Life Book 2013 so had to do that one first then went to the Harvest Queen class and made two sets of disc. One for Ellen and one for me. We were allowed to both sign up for the online streaming video class but only one of us could access the videos after they were ready to burn. That took a week and then I was gone the day it finally became available so it was another thing I got behind on.

About the time I got the burning finished my new book arrived from Amazon so I had to take time out to browse through it and get inspired to do my two large paintings this fall when it is cooler in the garage where I will be working and all my social obligations like birthdays and weddings are over with and my out of town visitors have returned home.

Then I remembered to go to my daughter's photo site to download the photos of the Cummer museum and came across these photos of a wrap/cover up that I want to make to wear in November over a sleeveless dress. It doesn't look all that great here with the dress I am wearing but with the right fabric and the right dress it will be stunning.



 It is just a rectangular piece of satin chiffon, folded  with a seam towards the two ends which when sewed together in such a way  it allows it to drape nicely. 

It is not  draping correctly on this dress but it will when I get it on the dress I am wearing to the wedding...and will be made in a coral chiffon.

THERE'S NO PLACE LIKE HOME TOTO

What a whirlwind weekend we had. Long drive u p to our daughter's home, bunko fun and champagne toast to 'us' not long after arriving and then after all that it was swimming at midnight. A nice refreshing end to a long Saturday.

Sunday started out with a late breakfast cooked by my son in law Stan who knows how to cook grits and eggs better than anyone I know of...then a quick shower and dressed and off we went to the bridal shower for my grand daughter arriving just in time for mimosas and hugs around from family and friends. 

After all the customary games and food and  oohing and aahing over gifts we made our excuses and headed over to the Cummer Museum where my daughter talked them into letting us in free since she had forgotten her annual pass...She is a good talker and we saved $20 with a promise to not forget it the next time...Between rain showers we toured the outdoor Sculpture Garden then made our way back to the beautiful and very old formal gardens. I took lots of photos with my daughter's camera but we headed home before I got to upload them to my computer so now  I have to wait for her to send them so I can post them.

The drive home was uneventful but for a typical Florida torrential down pour about 30 miles from home. Electric had been out so took a while to get everything up and running again but accomplished in time for Bob to catch the last 2 and a half quarters of the Chicago Bears game and me to catch up on my blogging and emails.

It is always a joy to go on a road trip and it is always a joy to be home again. Life is good!

LONG DRIVES AND SURPRISES

I did not want to miss a blog even though I  am worn out and not getting a good connection through my daughter's hot spot so will keep this short...We are at my daughter's home for the night. Just got home from a 'bunco' party with 20 of her friends and neighbors. What a loud evening it has been...but I won $7.00 for the evening so bad plus we walked to the event and back again so got a little bit of exercise after the long drive of almost 3 hours...Plus, at the end of the evening we had a surprise champagne toast for our anniversary from all the ladies and their significant others. That was nice. Now I am going to go for a late night swim and then to bed...

TED TALKS AND ZEN

Not so long ago I was reading the morning comics and on the one comic I especially like was a mention of TED talks. I had no idea what it meant and by the time I had finished the comics I had forgotten  about it.... but...I kept coming across the reference often enough that it peaked my curiosity enough to find out what it was...How? 'Google' it of course. What I learned is that I can listen to different people talk intelligently about different subjects and not go off on a tangent of political or religious or otherwise crap. 

I love talking about politics, religion and most any other subject I can think of as long as I am not preached to or put down or made to feel stupid because I am not an expert on the particular subject. Politics, for example, are not spoken in my house. Too many times it has turned ugly so I said; "that's it...no more!"   When I discovered TED talks I was most happy. I can't carry on a conversation with the speaker but I can listen, learn and perhaps have a change of heart about many things. I can learn about new things and more about old things. My blood pressure stays stable, I do not get ulcers nor do I feel a need to 'fix' damaged egos or feelings. I can just enjoy! I subscribed to the daily TED talk and today I enjoyed listening to "Why Mayors should rule the world" and it was the first intelligent idea I have heard concerning our state of the 'world' in such a long time and wondered why. 

The word 'why' leads me off in a whole new direction so I will leave my question unanswered for now. There are just too many "whys"...

While I listened to the TED talk I did this Zentangle. It is the first time I tried one using angular instead of curves as my 'string'.It did make it harder for me to do as I kept wanting to curve my base lines..which I finally did...I think Zen does not flow smoothly when there are angles...

LEARNING SOMETHING NEW

I love new ideas and new projects and never get tired of learning. Today I went to my newly formed Alabama Chanin sewing group. We call ourselves that since we are going to focus on perfecting her technique of hand sewing. A combination of applique and reverse applique using knits.

 Months ago I did a small project to see how I would like doing it and I love it.The photo above shows my scarf made with two different recycled t-shirts and a simple leaf design, stitch around, then cut out revealing the underside of the scarf. That is another nice thing about this technique. You can recycle so many pieces of clothing you never thought to ever use again. t-shirts are perfect and can be beautifully pieced together  to get the size needed for your project. 

 Now I just have to decide what piece of clothing I am going to try first. I want to use a pattern I have that I know fits good to make the learning process that much easier  and I have a bin full of tee shirts that I am recycling and repurposing .  I will probably start out with a top to go with a skirt or pants I have already. Later after I am more proficient at it I will tackle a more involved piece of clothing.

After I came home from my meeting I didn't feel like getting started on a new project so sat myself down and did my daily Zentangle. ..a little worm was born...

ZENTANGLES' NEW STUDENT

Bob's first Zentangle

This is a short write tonight but didn't want to miss a day of blogging. I got busy working on my painting and didn't take time to do any Zentangles so I am posting this one that Bob did. He did a good job for someone who didn't think he could do it. And when finished he did a second one. Will get a photo of it tomorrow and put it in his file.

LEARN SOMETHING NEW EACH DAY

I have decided my lot in life is to be befuddled by technology  and then out of necessity learn a new lesson each day. 

Today I took several photos of my painting as it progress along and each time I took one I would send it to myself.  On the last one I kept waiting for it to arrive in my mailbox and in never did so I re sent it. I did that twice each time wondering what the little airplane symbol on the top of my cell phone meant. I even resorted to asking my technology illiterate hubby. He knows even less then I do about all the new fangle electronics we have. Finally after much talking and wondering I did what I always do when I want to know something. I Google it. Voila..right there on top of choices it tells me my phone is in airplane mode. Hmmm ..what does that mean I ask myself. So I continue to read and learn my phone can be put in airplane mode and it will allow me to play games but not recieve messages or send messages...I am so happy to know that since I have no intention of flying in the near future and don't play games on my phone. I don't do much with my phone but take photos. A bit of a pricey camera but it is what it is. Now to figure out how to turn off the little airplane. Finally figured that out and now have my photos and now I knew one more thing today  that I did not know yesterday...

All you world travelers and techies can stop laughing now. I still prefer my old fashioned telephone from 1969...It works no matter what and I can actually hear perfectly with it. 

I worked out my flying symbol frustrations with this Zentangle.  It reminds me of a yoga pose. One that I can't do. Maybe it is a reminder that yoga is good for me and if I keep practicing it I will be able to do this pose. 

SEWING AND TANGLING

My day got off to a really early start since I had to get my rear out of bed by 6:00 am so I could be on time to my destination. 

Today was my one of my sewing group meetings. Membership in ASG has fallen off a bit and in this group which is a 'Special Interest Group' geared to couture sewing it has dropped quite a bit for various reasons. So...today was a re-group and re plan meeting of the onew interested in continuing. We have changed things a bit which I think all good groups need to do on occasion. We are still an advanced sewing group but not so demanding on how much we needed to do in a year. Plus we are dropping two summer months of meetings since it seems to be a time when every one is either gone visiting or have visitors. It was also stressed that EVERYONE has to take a turn at leading a workshop of some sort. 

So we have successfully planned our next year with a variety of activities including road trips to boutiques and thrift stores. It promises to be a fun group once more. 

I am doing a workshop next month on coloring on fabric with water soluble crayons and adding some free motion sewing to the item. The idea being to be able to add the technique to a garment. Hummmm.   I wonder how that will work for washing the garment. Think I will try it out.

Then on Thursday we are getting our 'hand sewing' group started. This will be a really small group since hardly anyone wants to sew by hand now a days...Everything needs to be fast and easy. But that is okay as we can work in our leaders home which makes it good for her and she makes great coffee. That makes it good for me!

We will be working with the Alabama Chanin  books  http://alabamachanin.com/  and using some of her stencils she so generously provides free of charge if you want to down load and cut them out yourself. Her ready to use ones are a little pricey so I will be making my own. 

My day started early and lasted until afternoon...it has been a long one so I didn't feel like starting on a project when I got home. I had coffee and worked on a tangle. My goal with this tangle was to incorporate my name into it somehow. What an absolutely wonderful way to relax and let the day fall away. I think I am becoming addicted but tomorrow I am going to work again on my Harvest Queen painting. I want to get it finished. 

LET'S HAVE SOME FUN

My painting...WIP

This weekend I spent playing with Ellen as we watched a streaming video and learned a new technique of painting with acrylics. Ellen finished her painting but I got only about half way through mine. I tend to get caught up in detail and worry if it is done correctly and does it look right. Ellen's approach to painting is to treat it as if she were still in kindergarten. Don't worry if you get messy, just have fun. That is the important part. Just have fun. 

I think the 'having fun' part is what is missing from my art. Seems everything needs to be  significant and serious. Needs to be perfect. I am trying to get over that and loosen up but it is hard. It is the rigid rule we were taught in school. Stay in the lines, conform, do as you are suppose to do. No decisions or deviations from the norm. No individual thinking or actions. 

So yes, it is very hard to take a paintbrush and paint away not caring whether it is the right way, whether it is good or bad. Just have fun with it. I will finish my painting and then when I start a new one I will try painting with abandonment and see what happens. And the whole time I paint I will chant Ruth's mantra. "Not bad, not good, just is."

In fact I will try to institute that concept into my whole life and see what happens. Bet I will be much happier.

Here is Ellen's  completed painting. Can you see how much fun she had.

It is very beautiful

ORIGAMI FLOWERS AND STUDIOS

Studios

Art Studio (before cleaning up)

Today was a shopping day again. Seems like that is all I have done lately but I am almost finished and ready for the weekend. The food is purchased, many dishes are prepared in advance and now I just need to look for some books I have on origami flower folding. Oh, I also had to clean up my studio and get it ready for the flower folding with Ellen on Saturday.

                                                            Art Studio (after cleaning up)

I have 4 studios and one of them is in the garage. This is where I do a lot of messy work that can't be done indoors.I can back the car out and then have the whole garage to play in. It is where Ellen and I do a lot of our creating when she comes for an art retreat at my house. Usually hubby is there to help us with the grunt work like cutting wire baskets apart for altered art pieces, providing tools we may need and of course is always willing to help us clean up afterwards. Yes, he is a keeper. His work area is the opposite side of garage.

Garage Studio

I have two more studios to work in. One is a sewing studio/guest room with blow up bed and the other is my outdoor studio where I work in winter on messy outdoor projects like concrete work. I will wait and do a post on those two studios after I get my new/recycled sink hooked up for my out door studio.

Talked a bit with my daughter about the catering of my grand daughter's wedding reception and ironed a few details out with that and then made an angel food cake for dessert this weekend. Strawberries are frozen and just need to be thawed and sweetened and we will have some short cake with it one night.

We dropped our membership in Sam's Club because we thought we were spending too much money driving to and from. It is about 35 miles one way and we try to go only every 4 to 6 weeks. Today, after having to pay outrageous prices for fruit and veggies I decided we are re-joining Sam's. I can get twice the amount for the same price on fresh produce and many other items. And as long as I make the trip coordinated with other shopping and lunch out with hubby it is easy to rationalize the amount for gas.

Time now to get dinner started...

PATIENCE, PERSEVERANCE, FRUSTRATION and FedX

Smart TV's

What do you do when you get a TV that is smarter than you are? You  persevere! Then after the perseverance has not helped and your patience has come to an end and frustration sets in you stop, take a deep breath and have a cup of coffee and sit back and relax and complain to your ever patient hubby, who is no help at all since he still can't get the TV turned off without hitting the wrong button....and  then you pick yourself up and try again.  

As I wrote before, my friend and I are taking the live streaming painting class this Friday and I thought since I have this wonderful 'Smart TV' that we could watch it on the TV instead of my small laptop computer. To do this I needed to get logged into Facebook (I think) on the TV and could not get passed the sign in link. It kept telling me my email was not recognized...I checked and rechecked and finally got that correct and then it said my password was incorrect...I am sure everyone has gone through this at least one time with a password. It doesn't help that you can't see the password so you have no idea why it is incorrect...Finally, thinking I had lost all memory of my FB password  I went to FB on my computer and logged out and then put in a wrong one so they would send me a link to change it. Which I did. Now my 'Smart' (assed) TV does not like anything I put in. Not the email or new password. 

It is time for lunch so I stop, thinking maybe a nice break and some brain food will help. It didn't! Tried coffee again and that didn't help either other then me needing more bathroom breaks.

Since Facebook is so uncooperative,  I decided to get my computer coordinated with my Smart TV and perhaps then I can get something productive going. So...following the prompts I do as it says. I have to download an app from the support center for my TV or my computer..never figured out which..and tried both... but when I go there all I can see to down load is the manual which I have scoured from front to back with no help coming from any of those pages. There were other things I could down load.  Like stuff for my washing machine, my dryer, my mobile, (not sure what mobile they were talking about)...maybe my auto(mobile) or perhaps I need something downloaded for my spaceship. That is about how it went.

Now it is time for dinner.

After dinner and before cleaning up the dishes I decided to again try to get Facebook on my TV so brought up the internet.  Figure again how to scroll around, got over to the login page for Facebook and started the login procedure with my old email address, my new password and finally after all day of messing around with my time saving devices I was able to see my home page pop up. 

Okay, now do I want to stay logged in or do I want to log out and go through all of that again. There was a place to save my password but I never could get to it so I decided to stay logged in. 

Now with great trepidation I closed out the internet, went to regular programming and then to see if I could get back in easily. I  went back on the internet and viola... right at the top of the page was a Facebook logo so I clicked on it and was back on my homepage.  I will keep my fingers and toes crossed and hope I do not have to go through that again. 

I just love my Smart TV.

And I love FedX as it brought my new paints today. Right on time. Hurray for FedX and internet shopping! Now I am set for Friday's class.

And because I love internet shopping so much I ordered a Zentangle book for myself. Why! Because after the day I have had I deserve it.

BELLY DANCING AND FUNKY DOLLS

More than great day!

My day started at 5 this morning and is just now winding down.  I wound down a while ago. Today was my Altered Minds meeting and to get there on time I need to get out of bed at 5:00. I have time then to drink coffee, stretch my limbs and get a shower so I can be on the road at 8:00...no later. It is about 70 miles one way so I can get through all the school zones and arrive at my friend Ellen's home in time to check out her newest art project and acquisitions.  She is a yard sale shopper and this week she got me an outdoor sink for my outdoor studio. It is a laundry sink but will work great out doors. Now to get it hooked up and usable by the time I open that studio for the winter. Needless to say I am excited about having it. I won't have to bend over the water faucet with the hose when washing a brush or cleaning a pot of concrete. 

Now what do 'funky dolls'  have to do with anything. The photo above is one I took is so I can remember how to make this particular doll. I want it for my Life Book 'mascot' so to speak. One of my friends had it today and I loved it with all the affirmations and words of encouragement hanging from of it. Another project to do when the weather is not conducive to working outside.

And that is not the end of my great day. I love all the artful gals I have in my life. Both on FB through Ruth, my Altered Minds group through Ellen and my Special Interest Sewing group with ASG. Now I am hoping to add a new group to my life that will insure more exercise for me and some fun along with it.

Call me crazy but Patty, of Daily Creative Practice, has inspired me to join in a free belly dancing group that meets once a month not too  far from my home. If it turns out to be a good idea at my age and in my condition and after trying it for free I may go ahead and join a Belly Dancing troupe..of course I need to at least learn the basics. What a lot of fun this is going to be. 

And my good day doesn't end there. Along with the belly dancing I am going to attend a drum circle that meets in my neighborhood every month. That is another event I have been wanting to do. I will take my hubby along the first time and if he is not interested in going again I will go alone. Who knows I may end up dancing around the bonfire.

After leaving the meeting and all the good things that happened there we, Ellen and I , drove over to another friend who just bought the house next door and is going to be moving into it as soon as it is ready. She wanted to get rid of some things so I became the new owner of 4 beautiful ceramic flower pots, a cool rusty bird cage complete with a tired looking bird and a pretty blue glass totem she made and no longer wants. I will hang the bird cage in my "ugly tree." Ugly Tree you ask! That might have to be the subject of a new blog.

I got home about 6 this evening and hubby, knowing how tired I was suggested we go out for a Mexican dinner. He didn't have to twist my arm but did have to wait for me to have a much needed cup of coffee.

My eyes were bigger then my stomach so I brought home most of my dinner. Tomorrow we will have fajitas for dinner. 

End of a wonderful but tiring day!

TYING UP LOOSE ENDS and chicken bones

Chicken bone waiting to be used in an art project...

Getting It All Together

Today was a day of getting odds and ends finished and gathering up my supplies for a workshop at my Altered Minds group tomorrow morning. 

First thing on my agenda for the day was to get the stuff that was given to me when a friend downsized sorted and dealt with. Since I already have enough stuff to sink a battle ship and then some I kept hardly none of the 'stuff'...Instead I divided it up into a bag of nice large pieces of fabric and will give them to the quilt guilds and senior centers that do charity work. 

The second bag will go with me to my meeting tomorrow as it is ruffles and trims and can be used for our workshop. Whatever is left over will go to the thrift store with a member who works there. 

The third bag is yarn and will be given to the gals in the art group who do knitting and crocheting and if they don't take it it also will go to the thrift store.

Now don't worry, I did not leave me out. I kept a basket full of beads. For someone who does not bead I sure am accumulating a lot of them. But they do not take up a lot of room so I don't feel too bad about keeping them. 

After getting all that done and packed in my car and my hubby's car, he will take the fabric bags to groups, I started work on my keepsake book. The one about the wedding dress. Got a lot done on it. Five pages which may not seem so much but it took me a good part of the day to get that far. I have to down load and print out the photographs first, the cut them apart and then figure out how to arrange them on the page and then of course glue them down to finish the page. My next step in that project is to do the lining part of the dress. Eventually I will get to the gown itself. 

Last of the day was to gather up all y stuff to take to my art group meeting tomorrow. I have several show and tells and a class next month so I am taking the samples I made...All in all it was a very productive day and I am pleased with it. 

WEEKEND

The above image is from a class I did and changed my mind about using her. I did a different one for the book but kept this one and have her hanging on my wall watching over me. Keeping me on my toes. 

According to what I was taught the weekend is a day of rest. If that is so how come I am so tired. Seems like I have been on my feet all day running back and forth from computer to printer to studio and then do it all again. But  with all that running back and forth I was able to get all my hearts glued on my ornaments and worked a bit on my wedding dress book. 

For my book pages I decided to go in and down load a different size for the photos. I am working off my daughter's Flickr account and had downloaded all the dress photos in a 'large' size. It dawned on me today that if I did the original size they would be sharper and better and I could change the size when I printed them out. It appears to have worked. A lot of time and ink was wasted by me not knowing enough about computers and such but it is not the first time I have wasted time and ink. Now I have the first few pages of the book done with a poem on the first page and the second and third being a double layout with a fabric swatch taking up space on both pages. I feel good about the day's work.

I have shut my printer down for the evening and will soon be doing the same with my computer. Tomorrow is going to be a busy day of sorting and organizing the stuff from my friend who cleaned out her sewing room. Had planned to have it done by now but life gets in my way once in awhile. Does that ever happen to you?