Mothers Day Gifts

Again I have started to slack off on doing art daily. Long term motivation seems to be what I need. Now that I have defined the problem, what is the solutions? I don't know. I am holding out that once I move and can be in a new place and set it up I will be more motivate. All in favor say "aye." Hahaha



For mothers day though I did create some gifts. I did tin sunflower collages. I took the idea I learned from Opie and Linda O'Brien and with a twist made it my own.


Ingredients

Wooden Plaque or piece of wood at least 3/4 inch thick

Tin (I used an old folgers coffee can and a cafe du monde coffee can that is not old.)

Heavy Rubber Mallet
Can Opener
Tin Snips
Permanent Marker (I used a sharpie)
Hammer
Pliers
Awl
Piece of Scrap Wood
Carpet Tape
Finishing Nails (I got mine at Home Depot for less than $1.)
Gesso
Paint brush
Water
Matte Medium
Sheets of Music
Glaze or paint mixed with a glazing medium. I used golden glaze in violet earth.
Drink Can Pull Tab





Steps

1. Preparing the wood. The plaques I used were already finished. So if you are using just plain wood you might want to sand it smooth first. I covered mine in gesso. Let that dry. Then collage sheet music on it with matte medium and let dry. You can use any vintage paper you have. I wanted something to give the background interest. Glaze over the collage. Let dry.


2. Preparing the tin. Using a can open remove the bottom of the coffee can. Then with the tin snips cut along the seam of the can. I bought my tin snips from the O'Breins and they work great. They sell them on their Etsy site which is the link on the supply list. Using the rubber mallet flatten the metal. Now every thing is prepared.


4. Using a permanent marker, trace your design on the back of the tin. Simple designs work best but the tin snips do a great job on detail work as well. Cut out your design.
5. With the hammer, awl and scrap wood tap a small hole in the tin where you would like the nails to be placed. You can use a small metal punch for this but for me the awl works just as well.
6. Place a piece of carpet tape on the back of each of the tin pieces. Arrange the pieces on the wood as you would like them. Use the carpet tape to hold them in place.
7. With the hammer and finishing nails, attach the tin to the wood.
8. Attach the pull tab to the back with a finishing nail. This will work as a hanger for the finished piece.

ArtFest 2010

Artfest this year was much different experience than the year before. The biggest difference was I was part of Camp Runamuckus. A collection of some of the most creative, animated, funny, caring women I have ever met. I really feel privileged to be part of this group.



Since I have in Camp Runamuckus, Artfest had a much more "camp" like experience then last year. I love camp. I went to camp as a kid many many times. I loved it for all the arts and crafts we did....yes that might be where this obsession started. Then as an adult in college in the summers I was a camp counselor. So camp for me is like heaven.



My first class was with Lynne Perrella called Going Baroque. This was a class focusing on texture gesso backgrounds with lots of color and then using a large image and developing the story around that image. I choose Ludwig II because he was such an interesting guy and had some great castles to throw in the mix.



Lynne is a great instructor and has been doing this for years. She was great with suggestions and explaining techniques. There were some moments of touchy feely stuff I could have passed on but what was the class going to do while the gesso dried.



This class I really got the chance to explore textured gesso with all sorts of things, using stencils and reintroducing me to portfolio water soluble oil pastels.



I love the piece and I am so impressed how much it looks like a painting and not a xerox copy. This piece is not finished for me. I plan to stencil the word "vision" on the bottom and embellish it more.

My second day was what I called my branch out day. I was doing something I am not familiar with and don't really know how to do it. The class was called Getch your paint on but really should have been called getch your caulk on since we drew with bathroom caulking to make cool raised out lines. Michelle Allen was the instructor. Michelle is new to teaching and so at time had moments where she had a hard time articulating the techniques, but was great at demoing them. At times, I was explaining the basics of stamping to her but she was great with suggestions and her whimsical technique was so fun. I always loved caulk as an adhesive but now I will for sure use it to draw with.

I do not do a lot of painting, so this class was really a stretch for me. I took the leaf and flower motif from my doodles during staff meetings and just expanded them. I really liked how Michelle encouraged us to use contrasting colors. That got me out of usual color pallet. I never have done anything so vibrant before. I am still not sure I like the piece. All the artwork from Artfest hangs in my office and this piece is the one everyone comments on and praises....go figure.

The last day I purposely choose a class that would come easy to me and was right up my alley. Collage a Trois with Linda and Opie O Brien. I love them, so much so I wish they would adopt me and I could live in their art world with them. I choose this class, because by the end of Artfest I knew I would be brain dead and needed something that I could do without too much thinking. I have never worked in tin and really this class was collage with tin. The tin was nailed to a wood base with finishing nails. Sarah, from Camp Runamuckus was with me and she is a hoot. It made the class so much more fun. Both of us finished in about 4 hours.

I named my piece the butterfly dancer of New Orleans and I just love it. I think I will do tin collages for mother's day gifts if I can find some brass finishing nails.

Artfest was so awesome once again I am just counting down the day til I can sign up for next year. You should join me.

I want to give a shout out to a great crepe place in Port Townsend, Water Street Creperie. Food was great, services was supreme and the prices were very reasonable. If you are ever in Port Townsend try them out. (The don't seem to have a website, so I can direct you there. So come on boys who own the creperie get with it so I can send peeps your way.)