what to do part two

i had so much fun playing with kate's background

and her challenge

(above is my first attempt, see previous post)

i decided to take the challenge one step further

and see what i could do with MY same

project to make it different

i played with some filters, rearranged the layers,
and kept trying out every blending mode
same project, 4 different results
i'm not sure which one i like best!
this was so much fun i think i will go back to some of my
old projects and see what i can do !

what to do with this?

my friend, marie, aka lost aussie

has posted this challenge on her blog

she found through

this disordered life

here's what it says, quote:

wHat wOuLd yOu do wiTh thiS?
"One of the things that most fascinates me about art

is how you can have a group of about thirty people

give them the same task and

they all come up with something different.

It's amazing.
This is a collage and paint background i created.

I was about to work over it but

then i wondered what other people would do with it.

So if you have the time,

download this image and work your magic with it.

Just remember to show us what you do!"

.............................

so i took the challenge

i added a few pictures (above)

a textured background

one of my photos from a local cemetery

script found on an old postcard

and some latin text

i played with the sizing and blending modes

and this is what i came up with

let me know what you can do

i love texture

while wondering around the city

i'm always on the look out for texture

it's everywhere, if you stop and notice

some of my best photos are of "grunge"

it's fun to play with them in ps

they make great collages

they make interesting backgrounds and overlays

to add to other photos

and lately they have inspired

some really great encaustic pieces

photos taken in the "junction"

baby momma

for the past few months i've had this

little cat hanging around my garden

every morning i would find her under the hostas

right next to the bird bath

then i noticed a few dead birds

so i put the bird feeder away

and gave her some food

she was very tiny and shy

and would eat and run

i called her "baby"

every morning she would be back

then she showed up with a collar on,

then a few weeks later, no collar

she started to warm up to me and

decided to come in the house, then eat and run

one day i noticed she was getting a little "round"

and she was eating 3 small cans of food a day

finally i got to pick her up and sure enough

i could tell she was pregnant

so i started calling her "baby momma"

WELL....................

yesterday she gave birth to 3 kittens

momma and babies are doing just fine

and now we know who the father is!!

i hope they get their mothers eyes!!!!!

playing around

with so much on the go

work, the garden, enjoying the summer

i haven't spent much time

sitting at the computer

except for e-mails and my blog

going through my junction photos

i realized how many texture photos i took

so i decided to sit and play a bit in ps

above are 4 photos

i adjusted and layered and

played with all the blending modes

this is what i ended up with

the junction

i've lived in toronto for 27 years and

have never been to the junction

a little neighbourhood being revitalized

located on dundas st west

a few art sisters told me about some great shops

that i "just" had to visit

so, one day last week i spent the day wondering

first stop crema for a latte

then around the corner into wise daughters

handmade crafts and art classes

i met mark at his store (above)

no name on the sign, just some cool junk

and inside , a real treasure trove of things calling to me

"assemblage"!!!!

i found some old wooden spools,

some rusted washers and cow ear tags

he's located right across the street from smash

a great salvage store

featuring jerome jenner

and of course i found some cool texture!

the top of a stool in smash, an old ceiling,

mail slot and a bin of thread

everythings coming up lilies

i forgot how many lilies i have in the garden

mostly orange and yellow

about 5 years ago while wondering through canada blooms

i found a booth selling "bare roots"

lilies and hostas

so i bought a ton

potted them and kept them in my bay window

watering, waiting, watching them grow

finally green leaves, then transplanted them into

the ground when it had thawed

something very satisfying about this process

especially when you get great results

above, my favorite

hemercallis hybrid

moonlit masquerade

daylily

posts from blogger past

every morning after i wonder through my garden
i sit and read through some my favorite blogs

while visiting marie, the lost aussie

she posted about something seth , the altered page

he brought up a great point

and has challenged everyone to go through their "old" posts

and find a "buried treasure"

well, once i got reading, i realized that

this is a wonderful "self discovery"

when i started blogging , it was to take

the next step in my evolution
i was a little nervous, i'm by no means a writer

and was wondering how i would ever

come up with the words never mind

have something that would interest people

WELL

a year and a bit later
i've posted 235 times,

have had over 7700 visitors,

and 77 followers

i had a hard time deciding which was my favorite post

so i decided to use someone else's words

words to inspire

posted november 19th

for "a day of sharing words"

a challenge started by

lk ludwig

"we get so caught up in the furry of our lives
that we forget the essential thing about art-
that the act of creating is a healing gesture,
as sacred as prayer,
as essential to the spirit as food is to the body

our creative work reveals us to ourselves,
allows to transform our experience
and imagination into forms that
sing back to us in a language of
symbol of who we are,
what we are becoming,
what we have loved and feared.

this is the alchemy of creation:
that as i attempt to transmute a feeling or a thought
into and artistic form that can be
experienced by another,
i myself am added to,
change in the process."
jan phillips

--------------------
photos from my weekend trip to owen sound
it was truly a creative time which changed me
thanks to lk ludwig for starting this idea
(see previous post)

-------------------

some of my favorite posts

what's in a name?

good question

been there, done that

sacred

aince awa, aye awa

thanks seth, for sending me on this trip

and thanks too, to all my visitors

happy creating!

moon child

i've been celebrating my "birth week" since saturday

but today is the actual date

every month i'm a moon child

my moods change accordingly

everyday i'm a crab girl

defiantly, hard shell, soft inside

and everything i approach is sideways, never head-on

it might look like i'm a "go getter"

but i will contemplate everything, from all angles,

before i actually do something, i'm just quick at it

now that i'm older and wiser!

oh, did i mention the water!

i'm ruled by the tide, twice a day

good thing i have that crab shell to hide my mood swings!!!

me when i was 4

seems like a long time ago

oh, wait a minute! it was!!!

art sisters

a few weeks ago i received an invite

to my friends ludgera's
"art sisters birthday party"

three of us were celebrating our "39th" birthday!!

it was a fab U lous party

12 artists hanging out

eating, drinking and making art!

we all took a "vow"

"what happens at art sisters , stays at art sisters "

( our real ages and who had "non" virgin drinks"

lugera, hope and myself all b-day girls

leslie, mary, carmi, susan w.,

daniza, martha, christina , susan v. and
katie ( the twisted sister, back right!)

everyone hard at work

there was some amazing work going on

it was fun to each interpretation of the same photo

what a talented bunch

so inspiring to be around all this creative energy

some of my altered photos

i spent most of my time walking around the room

admiring all the fantastic work

i learned a few new tricks,

thanks martha for the staz-on resist technique!

presents galore!!!

OMG!!!! i was so blessed and

i was overwhelmed by every gift

handmade cards and art,

the background is a silk scarf from paris,

just beautiful, i might have to make it into a halter top

an antique book, 1893, with lots of images to scan

encaustic wax and dry artist pigments

along with a huge piece of barn board

( it will look great covered with wax and metal)

bezels, felt flower, hand cream, pencils, canvas and paper

a lavender sachet, my favorite scent,

with a beautiful angel sewn on top

and a bottle of henkell

(which will be enjoyed during a bubble bath!)

this was the best birthday party, EVER

thanks girls !!!

discarded

my new arrival from

catherine anderson

this months them: discarded

i'm always excited to see every ones

interpretation and their photos

my submission
an old school bus that was once used
as someones home
i love the balloon shades
there was evidence of a fire and
had been abandoned for a while
------------------
photo taken last year
near my friends cottage
in owen sound

fun with clip art

i love the blog world

my friend ludgera sent me this link

saray-viola

there are so many links to different sites

for free vintage clip art

somewhere is this dragonfly image

( i will find it again)

i played with it in ps

added some paper images,

some text from an old post card,

a postage stamp and a photo frame

found on flickriver

out for a stroll

today was one of those days

on my own with

nothing to do and no where to go

so i decided to head down to my favorite

neighbourhood, queen street west

there is just so much to see and do

art shops, galleries, vintage clothes,

antiques stores and junk shops

cool cafes and funky shops

in the same block

i met taco the newfie

and then found this sign

who could resist a peek in the paper place

i always spend way too much


this sign reminded me of judy
----------------
all in all if was a great day
i got some new art supplies
hit a great yard sale
and met some interesting people
i love it when the day just happens!

rusty things

this weeks challenge at

unique exposure

is rusty

i could have posted a hundred photos!

-----------

above a few from my trip

in arizona

O' CANADA

parliament hill, ottawa


we got to witness the "changing of the guard"
at the war monument
the bag pipes always make me cry
i feel so lucky to have been born here

sir john a. macdonald
--------------
to all my fellow canadians
HAPPY CANADA DAY!
-------
photos taken last july first
in ottawa