layering it up!!

after a week in

susan tuttle on-line class

the first three lessons have been

all about layers and blending modes

above i used the texture i created

in my encaustic class last week

a photo of a tree, some text and a

grunge frame i found online

i added the tree photo on top of the texture

used the "screen" blending mode

the text was next

using the "multiple" blending mode

at 21% opacity

and finally the grunge frame

set to "hard light" blending mode

after i flattened it

i felt it was a bit too dark so

i duplicated it and

used the "screen" blending mode

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i like taking on-line classes

it forces me to sit and focus

and play!!!!

heatwave

with temperatures reaching a springtime high

and today it's 30c

i'm so happy to have a shade garden

with all this heat things are blooming weeks early

encaustic class

i just love how i start with one idea or intention

and then, with the magic of an iron or heat gun

the wax moves you in a whole other direction

happy accidents

i started out with several shades of caramel

rubbed in some green and umber oil paint

using waxed paper and an iron

i smoothed, moved, created bubbles

added more wax and oil paint

and then used the heat gun

finally a little more oil paint

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i haven't decide if i'll add a photo

but definitely i will use this texture

for my photoshop class

this time i added some square pasta

flattened it with wax paper and the iron

the gaps with the pasta created a lot more bubbles

the red oil paint really shows them off

here i was tried to re-created a "rust" effect

i used loose leaf tea and brown wax to create some texture

layers of several shades of blue

and finally a little copper powder

enjoyable weekend

now that all the work is done

i had a chance to really enjoy

the fruits of labour

just a little bit of maintenance

for the rest of the season

i even got to sit on the deck

with my new laptop and get some

work done for susan tuttles

online class

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above, a photo taken at the

paris antique market

for the texture

i used a scan of

some scratched paper

i found at the scrap booking store

years ago

i turned it into a black and white photo

i thought it would be too subtle but it worked

you can see more of our class work on flickr

the difference a fence makes

three years ago we put up this back fence

it gave us a chance to use the last 30 feet of our yard

i've been so busy planting

laying flagstone and enjoying the peacefulness

i haven't notice my neighbours yard

until yesterday!!!

i just hope when the wind does blows

it's moving north!!!

my side has been growing beautifully
every morning after an hour or two of working

i just sit with my tea and enjoy!

what a way to start my day

in the garden

it's our first long weekend of the garden season

time to relax , bbq, get the annuals planted

and celebrate

the queens birthday

happy victoria day weekend

to all my canadian friends

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above, one of many cornflowers in my garden

and wonderful layer mask from

shadowhouse creations

and some text from and old letter

encaustic class

some days you just have to let go

which is hard for me

i always have to have a plan

be in control

know exactly what i want to do

and how to get it done
today i was drawing a blank

a big blank

i dreamt of this great idea

it work out perfect in my dreams

and then when i got to class

nothing

which was frustrating a first

but i did let go and thought

i would just spend the class practicing

or try new color schemes

which lead to the 2 long boards above

this one was created with lots of wax

crisscrossing back and forth

to create lots of texture

but it looked boring so i stared adding

splashes and drops

and then came the drips!!!!

finally oil paint and scraping

back and forth until i liked the results

in between layers on the first board

i worked on the second

this time

a thick layer of wax and then covered
with parchment paper

out came it iron and with the help

of my class mate ron

we created some really cool bubbles

using the same technique

with the oil paint and mineral spirits

added more color

which enhanced the texture

i think next week i will

add a third board and maybe a

photo transfer

sneak peak

yesterday, my friend ron and i

made our way to the palais royale

to see the press announcement

for the musical

priscilla

queen of the desert

making it north american debut

this fall

we were greeted with a class of sparking wine

and a hot pink feather boa

several members of the london cast were there
to preform a few of the numbers
and available for photos afterwards



the costumes and make up where amazing
i can't wait to see it live
i've watched the movie a least once a year
it's alot of laughs and tears

cool, green and shady

after a week of rain and cool temperatures

things are really looking lush in my garden

the huge siberian elm
has bloomed early
casting a lovely shadow on the back lawn


my woodland garden at the back
is getting lots more sun
now that the cherry tree is gone
hopefully the shade plants won't mind
the extra sun



even "beanie" seems to "fit" in
trying to hide under the bird bath

encaustic class

today was all about trying a new color palette

and then applying them in a different order

above three boards

using taupe, sage green, blue and gold

using the heat gun and a palette knife

at the same time

to move the wax and mix the colors

sort of like frosting a on a cake

i use crumpled up wax paper on parts

of the warm wax to texture it

and rubbed in oil paint in other parts

i also added chunks of the gold oil stick

this canvas i painted blue first and then

completely covered it with gold

and tried the same technique

this canvas was gold first

then the blue and green on top

and finally gold powder mixed with oil paint

when heated

it created

an interesting

crackle/marbling effect

paris statue

on our first day in paris

( it seem like a long time ago )

we wondered around our neighbourhood

( for eight hours)

going through my photos i found several of

a statue we found that day

it is two bronze statues

that have been sliced into several pieces and

then rejoined together

i'm sure carmi told me the name but

for the life of me i can not remember

i tried googling it and nothing

right now i wish i could split myself into 2 or 4

so i could get to all the things i want to get done

a second brain would be nice too!!!

the back was just as interesting

this large bass was just one of the items

the base

the side

springtime

no matter what

i'm up by 6am and in the garden

i have a lot to catching up to do

i got way behind while in paris

it's really starting to look good

most of the weeds are out

and i've done some rearranging

splitting and new plantings

all i need is some cedar mulch

since i have lots of shade plants

they bloom early

may is the best month in my garden

hopefully it will warm up so

i can get more work done later today

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some of my shade loving plants

astilbe, brunnera, coral bells, foamy bells,

bleeding hearts, ferns, solomon's seal,

corydalis, hostas, clematis, rhododendron,

lady's mantle, lungwort, periwinkle and hydrangea

encaustic class

it's been 2 months since my last class

it was good to be back

i really wasn't sure what to do today

so my teacher suggested working with

the heat gun and a palette knife

to create texture

it was fun just playing

with no real goal in mind

other than to see what can happen!!

two detail areas

on the left i added white oil paint right out

of the tube and then heated it up

cool crackle effect

on the right i got more of a marbling effect

on the second board

i practiced the same technique

adding a few more colours

i can't wait 'til next week to experiment some more!

paris street grunge or art?

as i wondered the streets of paris

i managed to use my little camera

for my favorite -- grunge shots

there was tons of stuff to shoot

above are a few of my favorite

several stencils, funny plaster faces ,

rusted and painted doors and

paper covered drain pipes everywhere!

in french so they will make great overlays in ps

a peeling billboard in the subway

and my reflection in a window covered in graffiti

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i still haven't gone throught all of my photos
but i know i will have months of fun
playing with them in ps

artist spotlight

i'm so honoured to have been chosen

by lorrie grainger abdo

for her "artist spotlight interview" series

lorrie found me through

one world one heart

i love the blog world!!

it has been a wonderful source of inspiration

and i have met so many creative and generous people

thanks lorrie

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above

one of the many postcards i found in paris