Mid Year Report

Happy Canada Day Everyone!

Here we are at mid-year and I have to wonder how you are all doing at keeping your New Year's resolutions. I called them New Beginnings this year and had three of them on my list. I'm not doing so well with the weight loss and tidying but I'm certainly having a great time keeping the third one. That's all about furthering my art.

I have gone out of my way to make sure I learn new things this year. As I've told you I took a course through Sketchbook Skool called Drawing Without Talent and really enjoyed it. I was so pleased to see a definite improvement in just a month's time.

Then I got involved with a group that met at our local library once a month. I was introduced to a lot of new mediums while we set about creating an art project for Canada's sesquicentennial. The work was all photographed and printed on shipping labels that were then stuck onto a map of Canada in a way that corresponded to the regions. The map was unveiled this past weekend with just some of us in attendance.

In the meantime, I took on a five-week course at Sketchbook Skool that, among other things, had me go sit in a public place and draw what was in front of me. I had never done that before and I thought it was great fun. It will be my new summer pastime. In fact, I just got invited to join a local group that would be doing just that each and every week throughout the summer months. A year ago I never would have considered accepting such an invitation but the Sketchbook Skool courses have given me the confidence to jump in with both feet.

I stopped by the Sketchbook Skool closed Facebook page to tell them about it. I was excited by this new opportunity and wanted to thank them.  They put out a weekly bulletin in video format for the students and they even mentioned me in that (from about the 1:20 to the 2-minute mark). While Dean of Students, Morgan Green, managed to put her own spin on things what she said rang truer after I actually experienced my first session with this group.

We met in a local park where there are all sorts of sights worth drawing. I expected everyone to gravitate toward something of interest to them, but they all clustered around two picnic tables. I stayed close to them but sat off to the side where I had a better view of a suitable subject.
I like to draw in pen and then apply a watercolour wash. I forgot my watercolours at home but did have my watercolour pencils with me, and a water brush, so I used those. One young gentleman was interested in this process so I showed him how it worked. Me! Not only was I exposing my scribbles to a known artist, but actually showing him how to do something! I'd certainly call that progress, wouldn't you?

Now, if I could just do so well with the tidying and weight loss...... Maybe another new beginning is needed for the second half of this year.

What have you accomplished so far this year? Or do you need to begin again too?

Slowly But Surely

How are you doing with your New Year's Resolutions? I didn't actually make any, but I took the opportunity to get a fresh start on several things around here. So far, I can't say that I've been doing so well, except for that first week.  Statistics show that 92% of people drop their New Year's resolutions before the end of the year. Many of them do within the first month.

This past week I pretty well goofed off.  I did clear out some clutter from a few areas, but never actually finished any of them. One end of my computer desk got cleared, and a working space on my studio desk got cleared so I could have a spot to make a bigger mess with paint and/or inks.  I did manage to sort through and file the bills and other papers in my inbox and filing slots, and I also got my business books to balance for year-end (on the first try too!) And just like the two desks, I have half a closet all cleaned out and vacuumed.  Half a job doesn't sound good, I know, but half a job certainly gives me the incentive to finish what I started.  Each half job happened because I was looking for something, which just proves I need to reduce the clutter.  Now I'll be looking to finish those jobs.  That's a goal, right?

I have been a bit more successful in the art department.  While my drawing class could have been finished within a week, I've been stretching it out, so that I don't feel rushed. It's been fun as I had to draw something complicated upside down, and draw something specific from memory and draw something else without looking at the paper at all. How any of that can turn out better than if I just tried to draw it the usual way, I don't know, but almost all of it did.  Apparently, I have to let go of the idea of what I'm trying to draw and just follow the shapes.

I remember doing an ink and wash years ago. My instructor wanted to challenge me and stuck a picture of a chipmunk on a stump in front of me. I sputtered, "But you know I can't draw," to which she replied, just make marks. Make more marks in the dark areas, and fewer marks in the lighter areas." I had no faith in that but somehow ended up with a chipmunk on a stump, without actually ever drawing a chipmunk or a stump.  I guess I just have to get out of my own way and connect my eyes to my hand and disengage the brain that is busy trying to make sense of it all.

In the meantime, I've found a Facebook page that teaches all the steps involved in mixed media. I've been interested in that for a few years now, so I'm working my way through the video morsels they offer that teach even the most basic of techniques. This will give me a good kick start on creating new works of my own as time goes on. Since the morsels are done on small notebook pages, they don't take long.  Sooner or later, though, I will need some stencils, which is something I don't currently have. I think I'll try making some of my own though. That could be fun.  

There's the problem right there.  I'm playing instead of working. I got all the Children's Fitness Tax Credit recipes done for the karate class though, and will install my tax software this week.   I will finish the three spaces I started. I need the studio desk for all this artwork.  I need the computer desk for the upcoming  tax season, and I definitely need my side of the closet cleaned out. If I start by getting rid of all the clothes that no longer fit me there would be a lot more room.  But wait....I did manage to lose another pound so maybe I can save some money and fit into those clothes yet.

So, as you see, I have not yet dropped my New Years Res.....er.....New Beginnings. I've slowed down a bit, but I'm still working on them.  What about you?

New Year, New Beginnings

Happy New Year everyone!

At this time of year many people start making resolutions. I'm not going to do that, as promising to take a firm course of action would only set me up for failure. Instead, I've got some new beginnings to make.

The first is that I want to explore my art a little more than I have been the past couple of years. I am looking into a few courses that might help with that, and I have subscribed to some interesting U-Tube channels, that motivate me to just play and try things. You may get to see some weird stuff this year, but I'll try not to bore you with everything.

The second thing is my usual, declutter project. I start the year off like this fairly frequently. As we start to put away Christmas stuff (okay, so I have not done that yet), I get the notion to put away other stuff as well.  Stuff is something I have a lot of, and it tends to accumulate in messy piles here and there. Home Storage Solutions puts out a this guide each month on what to declutter and when.  I've followed it on numerous occasions in the past, and will be doing it again.  It's a good kick start, if nothing else. Their plan is never overwhelming as it breaks things down into small jobs that often aren't meant to take more than 15 minutes.

The third thing I want to do is to take another stab at losing some weight. I like to believe that a little extra weight at my age is probably a good thing. It gives me something to fall back on if I become ill.  Today I weigh in at 160 pounds, which is a bit too much for my 5'4" frame. I have sore knees and feet, so less weight would likely be helpful with that.  I have no intention of trying to get back to what I weighed in my youth. I was way too skinny back then, despite eating everything in sight.  I would, however, like to fit into at least last years clothes! I got a shock recently when I was going to a dance, and found I didn't have a dress that fit, where normally I have a hard time deciding which one to wear. I refuse to go out and buy a larger size, so I will work on slimming down, and then reward myself with a nice new outfit.

I plan to keep you updated on how things are going from time to time. Maybe I can inspire some of you to some new beginnings also. I'd love it if you shared your ideas and accomplishments on any of these subjects, or your other goals throughout the year.  Let's do this together. Start fresh.

Going Forward in a New Year

As a new year begins, even people who claim not to make resolutions seem to think it's a good time to start a new project, or make plans for the year ahead.  The web is full of helpful tips for those who are determined to lose weight, or just live a healthier lifestyle. Getting rid of clutter seems to be another popular theme.

I didn't really have any new plans for this year, but when I read a blog by Bonnie at Jasper's Gems about Week One of a De-clutter Project I was reminded that I definitely have that sort of problem here and perhaps I could follow along for a while and tackle some of it.  I say "for a while" as I'm not about to make it a New Years Resolution, and set myself up for failure.

I've lived in the same house for over 37 years, so you can just imagine the piles of stuff I have accumulated during that time. There is no doubt that the time has come to try to weed some of it out. I'd be totally overwhelmed if I committed to do it all in one year.  I'll just start someplace, and hopefully keep on going.

There are three areas I'd definitely like to tackle this year.

I need to go through all the accumulated recipes, and try to just keep the ones I've already deemed to be good. I set up a filing system for them last year, but I wasn't really trying to getting rid of many at that point. I just wanted to make them easier to find. I think weeding them out will have to be project number one as I'm still having problems locating some of the recipes I know are in there, on days when I actually want them.

Project number two is related. I have piles of magazines under the bed in the spare room. They all have corners turned down on recipes I intended to make. No, let's not think about that yet. I have to do the first purging before I go there! I know now that I've somehow become a hoarder, when it comes to recipes, and that's just silly since we can find one for anything we want to make right here on the web.

One should never make a spare room a storage area, according to Flylady, who also has a page on de-cluttering.  Too bad nobody told me that before I got started.  At least she seems to think I can get everything under control in just 15 minutes a day!  I can handle 15 minutes, but I can't guarantee how long this plan will last.  One day at a time.  Collecting recipes has become like an addition, and I'm putting myself on the program!
 

The third area is right here in my office/studio. It needs to be thoroughly cleaned out and reorganized. As it is, I'm dragging my art work to the kitchen again, as my desk is piled with stuff I really have to find a way to store. I cleaned it all off just before Christmas, but you would never know it.

I thought, perhaps if I followed along with another blogger trying to tackle clutter, and reported in here from time to time, I might feel more accountable, and actually get something accomplished.  Don't lay any bets though, as life gets pretty busy for me between now and the end of the tax season.

Oh, that reminds me.  My recent computer problems have delayed my year end report for the karate club. So, balancing the books, printing off those reports and properly filing all the paper involved in my business will be the first project for this year.  That should even clean up some of the clutter on my desk. :)

The Results of A Little Commitment

My New Years Resolution for 2013 was to get more involved with my art. Back in March I told you about various projects that I had been doing for the Art House Co-Op .  I had also signed up for a few other projects by that time, that I knew I wouldn't be able to share until they were all done.  The idea was, that if I committed to such painting projects, it would force me to take the time needed to complete them. It was a good plan.

Early in the year, on Facebook, I saw someone post something about giving away things they made to the first five people who commented on that status line.  There was a condition that the responders post the same offer on their page.  Then I saw more of my friends post the same notice I mentioned to one of them that I'd love to get in on that, but I didn't know what I could make. She told me that a small painting would be lovely, so I jumped in with both feet.  I lucked out though, as, instead of having to make things for five people, and only getting one thing back, I managed to get into a basic exchange with four other people. I posted on their page and they posted on mine.  I was thrilled, but still had to figure out what I would paint for them.  I was very happy that the project deadline wasn't until the end of the year so I had all year to work on it.

The lady who said she'd be happy with a small painting happened to have a photo on her facebook page that I had already saved to file, as I thought it would be a good thing to try painting someday.  I would have asked her permission if I'd done it for any other reason than to give to her for this project, but it seemed the perfect subject for this, so I started with that.

This is the first time I had ever tried to paint a dog, I thought he was pretty cute, though I wasn't sure if she would recognize him or not.  As she has a few of these little fellows, I'm still not sure if she identified it as the right dog.  I don't know the dogs personally, so I have no way of knowing which one it was originally meant to be either.  It doesn't matter, I guess, as she seemed pleased with it, and I was pleased that it resembled any kind of dog, let alone a specific one. Not too bad for a first try, I was thinking.

That made it easier to decide what to do for the next
project, as there was a dog at that household too.  I went back to the facebook files to see what I could find for the second project, and I came up with the family beagle.  That's a step forward as now I had to contend with an entire dog, not just the head. I was very happy with it when I finished, but now, months later, I'm not so sure.  Perhaps I've improved as the year went on, causing me to be more critical now. However, it was mailed off to one of my long lost cousins, who immediately recognized her dog, and sent many thanks, so I guess that was another success.

A friend of mine had seen me working on both of the above projects and made some rather nice comments, so I thought I'd surprise him by trying to paint his puppy. He's not on Facebook, but he does have a Flickr account, and while he thinks his photos are safe there, I do know how to steal them.  He was extremely pleased when I presented it to him.

Oh, I must say that in the past I've never felt that I produced anything good enough to give away, and here I am doing it time after time. I guess that in itself is a step forward.

So, since I'm learning to enjoy giving away paintings, I decided I'd try a portrait. My daughter-in-law had lost her grandfather over the winter months, and the family was preparing to do a memorial service for him in the springtime.  I thought he had an interesting face, but in most of the pictures I saw of him, he had on a baseball cap.  While I wanted him in his overalls, I didn't want the cap, so I looked for another photo of him facing the same way, and then combined the two. I was really happy to have produced a human face, but since I didn't know the gentleman well, I wasn't sure if I had captured him or not.  I took it to my daughter-in-law and asked her if she recognized this person. She got the sweetest grin on her face and said, "That's my Grandpa!"  I asked if I could take it to the memorial, and she said I could. When I arrived there was no one around to see me place it among he other pictures on display, and it took a while before anyone knew where it had come from.  Then one of the aunts said, "There's only one artist in the room."  LOL  I've been elevated to artist status now. That made my day.  The painting went to reside at the family cottage where the old gentleman spent a great deal of his time.

With one portrait under my belt, I decided to try another. I couldn't find usable photos of pets on Facebook to use for my next exchange project, so I made off with a photo of the lady I would be sending the painting to.  Faces were a nice change from dogs, and I think perhaps I even do better at them.

Meanwhile, I had also discovered something called the Petal Parade on Wet Canvas. I told you about that back in May, when I painted the Parrot Tulip.  For me, to finish painting something within less than a months time, takes a concentrated effort.  I started with the Parrot Tulip in May.

Moved on to Apple Blossoms in August

And switched to acrylics to try a pumpkin flower in October.

I decided it was time to get back to my exchange project, and I just had one more to do. Since I was doing so well with faces, I decided to capture this lady in one of her many costumes. She's involved in re-enactments, steampunking, archery, face painting, belly dancing and karate, so she's seldom in regular clothing.

I discovered that while I had no trouble with likenesses at a larger size, when I made it smaller, even the tiniest fraction of an inch out, you create a totally different person.  I rather like this painting anyway, and may make it into cards, but it definitely could not be sent out as the final exchange project.  So, back to the drawing board, so to speak.

I noticed she had a new dog, so I took a stab at him.  Cute little fellow, don't you think.  I hope she's as happy with him as I am.

I couldn't finish out the year without doing one more dog.  I have a friend who is good enough to give me a lift to various functions in the area that I wouldn't have gotten to without her. She has a pug, so I decided I'd surprise her with a little Christmas present.  I'm getting rather confident at painting dogs, and I must be doing alright as now I've had a few people ask me if I'd paint their pets.

All in all, the idea of committing myself to projects this year has worked very well.  It kept me painting while some other friends from my old paint class tell me they have not picked up their brushes at all this year. All this practice has given me more confidence, and, I'm sure, increased my skill levels as the year went on.

I did very well at keeping my New Years resolution for 2013.
Now I just have to set some new goals for the coming year.

Resolutions and Goals

This picture is one Mother Nature painted on my kitchen window.
Yes, it's frost.


 I hope you all had a very Merry Christmas, or whatever holiday season you celebrate.  I certainly did.

I got a very interesting gift this year. It's called a Buddha Board.  I had never heard of one of these before, but it is a flat panel that you paint on with plain water. The picture vanishes as it dries.  It's a fascinating thing, as sometimes, while it's drying, the wet bits suggest a different picture, and then you can connect the dots and come up with a new painting you had not originally planned on.  And as that one dries, it can happen again.  You have to work quickly as there really isn't any time to stop and think. It's really freeing, and already I'm learning that art does not have to be perfect to be interesting.  This may take me in entirely new directions.

The new year is fast approaching and some people like to make New Years Resolutions.  I used to do that, but usually, after getting off to a great start, the whole idea would just fade away. Last year, I thought of my resolution as more of a goal.  I had decided I wanted to advance my art.  I have succeeded in that.

First I started an art journal, where I could try out things, without worrying about how they turned out.  Nobody ever had to see what I'd done in there.  Amazingly, I've dug it out and shown all kinds of people various attempts throughout the year.  I tried a few different mediums, some with texture, some without. I saw progress as the book went on, and I have now bought a new one for next year. 

Then I started gathering with a couple of friends once a week. This was a good move as it forced us to have something new to show and discuss. None of us are the sort that would ever just say, "That's lovely."  While we do encourage each other, we all know we want to hear the truth, so nobody ever hesitates to make constructive suggestions.  We all appreciate that, and move forward in the directions we have been pointed in.

Recently I was in my first art show as a painter (I've been in several as a photographer before).  While I didn't have as much confidence this time, the hardest part was figuring out the pricing.  I had a great time at the show though, and I wouldn't hesitate to do it again.  I even made a couple of new artist type friends that day.  One of them, Jayne Couch,  has since shown me a much better way to draw faces, and I truly appreciate that.  That may also take me in some new directions as time goes on.




Finally, over the past week, I got a phone call  from someone in BC who saw a photo taken on the day of the art show. She was all excited about my hibiscus my paintings and wants to buy it.  The deal has been struck and now I just have to get it shipped out to her.  I've had two other artists suggest I take my painting right to the UPS store, and have them package it up for me there.  As I don't have a clue how to do it properly, I will be following that advise.

So, now that I've succeeded in following that goal this past year, I think I will work a little harder at it this year.  I have a perfectly good spot designated to work on my art. The original idea was to be able to attack it anytime, without having to set up first. Over time that area has accumulated piles of stuff, both art related and not, and it is anything but a workable space at the moment.  I'll fix that, even if I have to reorganize a couple of rooms, to get the everything into a more logical and permanent spot. Then I'll try to divert some of my wasted computer time into doing something a bit more creative. That may be necessary anyway as the paint class I have been attending the past couple of years may be folding for the time being.  I have a couple of paintings underway at the moment, and several more in my head so I'll have to set aside some time to work on them at home.  Hopefully that will become more of a habit once I get my space cleaned up.

I want to put some of my paintings on an online shop this year too. Oh, I know that was one of my resolutions last year. At least I have a couple of places picked out, and will decide soon, which to pursue first. I think I know, but need to read all the fine print first. 

And on the blog, I think I may attempt something a bit new here too. I get lots of free things, and I'm thinking of adding Freebie Friday to tell you about those things.  I'll tell you what came in the mail through the week, and do a bit of a review on some of it.  We'll see how that goes. 

So, my usual New Years Resolution is to lose the Christmas weight gain, as always. With a few new art related goals in mind, I have more hope of moving forward in the coming year, just as I did in the past one.  I'd love to hear what you have planned for your coming year too.  Please share.