Bits & Pieces Collage Swap

Here it is! I couldn't wait any longer! This is the collage I made for Heather as a part of Jenny's Bits & Pieces Collage Swap. I mailed it out Monday so she should be receiving it either today or tomorrow. I hope she likes it. The color scheme is one that I love (and Heather too) so that made it so much fun to make. You can see close-ups of the individual squares here. This was such a great way to use up all those left over scraps from other projects. And I love to make tiny pieces of art. Such fun! Thanks for arranging the swap for us all Jenny!

We're leaving for the cottage tomorrow morning. It's been 2 months since we were there last. That is a long time. I hope the house is still standing! It will be nice to get away since May and June have been so hectic with all sorts of things coming up at the last minute. It's time for a little R & R.

What Kind of Flower....

I am an Echinacea What Flower Are You?

"You are a health conscious person, both your health and the health of others. You know all about the health benefits and dangers of the world around you."

I don't know about how health conscious I am about myself, but I do think I am health conscious about the people around me. Click on the link above to find out what kind of flower you are.

I was working on my Bits and Pieces Collage Swap for Heather this weekend. I put the finishing touches on it and will send it on it's way this morning. I had so much fun putting it together. Jenny tried to pair people together who like similar things so that made it even more fun. I am happy with the way it turned out. . .I almost didn't want to part with it! Sometimes I feel that way after I create my art pieces, do you? Below is another sneak peek at the finished project. Don't peek Heather, if you want to be totally surprised!! I will post the whole thing after she has received it.

Besides finishing up the collage this weekend, I finally got around to cleaning out the room we use for storage in our house. It sounds very lavish to have a whole room just to store things in, but that wasn't the original purpose of the room. Actually the room is supposed to be my dear husband's workshop, but he really can't do too much work in it since it has become over-run with boxes of stuff that we've accumulated over the years. Well, to be perfectly honest the room has become a complete dumping ground! It all happened very innocently when I just put a box or two in there "temporarily" until I was able to put them away where they belong. And you know how that goes - soon the boxes started multiplying like a litter of rabbits and eventually we could hardly walk into the room!! I hated to go into that room because I was constantly reminded of my chronic procrastination and also of what a pack-rat I am. Seeing all those boxes made me so stressed out.

Then yesterday I was inspired by Kari's latest prompt in her Everyday Notions Challenge which dealt with emptying some area in order to spawn creativity. In the book, Foolsgold, the author states:

"Giving over to silence, waiting, allowing, listening....In the emptiness we might get an inkling - as if something lights up and twinkles - of how we'll begin to form and open to who we're becoming, who we most truly are. We need to leave space both for what we'll discover and what will emerge to discover us."

I must admit that I feel so much lighter and freer after finally clearing out that room. Now I enjoy opening the door and seeing the emptiness of the room. I am hoping that the process of purging all that excess will leave room for new ideas and creativity to move in.

Sneak Peek

Here is a sneak peek at the Bits and Pieces Collage that I am making for sweet Heather. She likes pink and aqua like I do so it is fun putting this together for her. Jenny over at Every Day is a Holiday was nice enough to host this swap. It is such a great way to use up your scraps and leftovers.

Artsymama is hosting another challenge called Everyday Notions which I am going to participate in. Kari is such a creative artist and her past challenges like the Book of Dreams and Cabinet of Curiosities were totally awesome. She will be posting prompts on Wednesdays and Saturdays, so you may want to check it out if you are looking for some artistic inspiration.

Day Trip

Yesterday was a gorgeous day here so we decided to take a drive up to the Milwaukee Art Museum, which is located along the Lake Michigan waterfront. The museum building itself is quite a masterpiece. The main pavillion is a Santiago Calatrava designed building featuring glass walls enclosed by the Burke Brise Soleil, which is a sunscreen that can be raised and lowered creating a unique moving sculpture. At noon the huge wing-like sections of the building slowly lower down enclosing the glass walls. It is worth going to the museum just to see this amazing structure!
The photo below is taken inside the pavilion looking up at the Burke Brise Soleil.
Below is the view from inside the main pavillion which overlooks Lake Michigan. It is an absolutely marvelous setting. The museum cafe where we ate lunch looks out over this same view.

Another example of the cleverly designed bulding where the structure itself creates a work of art.This Chihuly glass sculpture is the only bit of color inside the pristine, white marble and glass pavillion. After finally getting over our amazement of just the museum building, we went on to enjoy a special exhibition of Impressionist Camille Pissarro, whose work inspired great artists like Renoir, Monet and Cezanne. In addition, the musuem is the home to great works by Monet, Picasso, O'Keefe, Worhol, and Rodin just to name a few. It was a delightful way to spend a sunny June day.

Pink and Aqua

Pink and Aqua - my current favorite color combination courtesy of Flickr.

Busy, Busy, Busy

I recently signed up for a couple fun swaps. First of all is Holly's Crown and Tiara Swap, which sounds like pure fun to me. Who wouldn't love to add a tiara to their wardrobe? Then today I signed up for Jenny's Bits and Pieces Collage Swap, which sounds like a great way to use up all those leftover scraps that I can never seem to part with. (What a pack-rat I am!) Check out Charlotte's post on this same subject. If you hurry you can still get in on this swap. Then Dawn, Melissa and I are working on a Winter Wishes collaborative which sounds like it will turn out to be an amazing keepsake project. And finally, I have a collaborative Recipe Book that I have been working on with an art group that I meet with in my area four times a year. This group started out as a Rubber Stamping group over 10 years ago, but has evolved into a mixed-media art group as the members styles and tastes have changed and evolved. We have some extremely talented ladies in this group. I can't wait to see the end result of this cookbook in November.

Graduation Journal Update

Thought I would give you an update on the graduation journal I am making for my daughter. I still have a lot of work to do on it, but I always enjoy seeing other people's work at various stages of completion. This is a journal for my daughter to add her own thoughts and ideas to, so I want to leave a lot of the pages free from embellishments so she will have room to write.

Update on the Patriotic Crown Box and Collage Kits that I offered through my etsy shop - the last box that was in question was paid for so they are completely sold out now. Sorry. But I am working on some new things for the shop now and will let you know about them soon right here.

Tuesday Topics

Thank you to everyone who ordered the Patriotic Crown Boxes and Collage Kits from my Etsy shop. I was so over-whelmed by your response and happy that you loved those crown boxes as much as I did. I packed all the orders up and shipped them out this morning, so hopefully you will have them by the end of the week. I may have one more Crown Box and Kit available. I will know by tomorrow or the next day and let you know here.

I hate to say it but I think that icky throat thing that I had last week may be coming back. I noticed that my throat started feeling a bit sore again this afternoon. How can that be after taking all those mega-doses of antibiotics? I don't want to have to go back to the doctor. Maybe a popsicle will help soothe the pain. What do you think?

Did I tell you about my cooking mishap over the weekend? I saw a recipe for Cobb Salad in the latest issue of Redbook Magazine while I was waiting to have my hair cut. The picture looked so tasty that I decided to make it for supper Saturday night. The recipe called for crumbled bacon and instead of frying it I decided to be more "health conscious" (well...as healthy as bacon can be) and broil the bacon instead. When I took it out of the broiler, the pan slipped pouring hot bacon grease all over my hand and wrist. Yeowee!!! After letting out a blood-curdling scream, I quickly got my hand under the cold water faucet. The pain was tolerable as long as it was under cold water, so we decided to eat our salads outside on the deck while my hand soaked in a bucket of ice water. (I wish I had a picture of that to share with you!) Fortunately the pain subsided by the time I went to bed, but by the next day the huge, ugly blisters and scorched skin appeared and believe me - it wasn't a pretty sight. Now that a few days have passed, the burns seem to be healing pretty well with the help of lots of aloe and Neosporin. I am sure it will leave a scar, but I am so grateful that I didn't have to go to the emergency room. Oh, and if you were wondering. . .the cobb salad tasted just as good as the recipe looked!

Something New in the Shop

I just finished adding these fun little patriotic crowns to my etsy shop. Each crown is actually a box and I have filled it with an assortment of goodies to help you make something fun for July 4th. The box itself makes a delightful decoration on your table or perhaps crowning touch atop a stack of cake plates. Use your imagination to come up with a collage, a card, a scrapbook page, an ATC, etc using the contents of the kit. Have fun and have a great weekend!