A Day In the Life...

Now that we've moved our bookcase, I can see all the library books I have. So I'm trying to read all these (not shown is the book on my bedside table; Leonardo's Shadow, I'm reading it first before I share it with the girls.):

while attempting to clean this (yet again):



Listening to this while cleaning/working in the studio:


and possibly working on these UFOs (un-finished objects I guess is the abbreviation):

How is your summer?

Summer Art & Update

Plans are like pie crusts, easily made, easily broken. I planned this whole summer in my head of art, art and more art. Kids participating, kids doing their own thing, whatever. It hasn't worked out that way. The art muse thought it was time to just trot off on vacation. So I've been subsisting on art magazines, books and the occasional forced art project. I'm sure the muse will come back soon, in the meantime...

I made a set of cards last night, basically to try using the painted papers I made weeks ago.

The mix of colors really intrigues me. I didn't know that all the mix-match of papers would be okay together. I kept the backgrounds simple white to accent the women and papers. These Spicy Women cards will hopefully be an Altered Pages kit soon.


After I made these, I was in bed trying to go asleep but was thinking about them. It gave me a good idea for an altered book I'm supposed to be starting and shipping off by July. THINK SPICY! I hope it comes out well, I can't wait to share it.

Another little bit of art I played with was Artified Blocks. Using normal children's blocks and altering them. It was a fun project. They should be up on the Altered Pages kit site soon as well. These would be a great project to use with Inchies you have made. If you didn't know already, I did a collaged inchies tutorial awhile back. Just make those and glue to your blocks!


Coming up, probably some doodling for Diary Project 2010, mani/pedis and maybe some painting. What are you doing this summer?

Release Perfection

Have I told you about the Stampin-Up club that I belong to? I belong because I like the night out with friends (Trisha is one), not because I need another bloomin' thing. In fact its a running joke in our club. Kris (ie: me) never knows what to buy because she don't need anything. I think my demonstrator considers it a challenge to come up with things I might need and how I can use them.

Anyway, got off track there a bit. Here's why I write. Rhonda, my demonstrator (and friend!) can not understand why I don't mount my stamps I buy from her. But I like messy! I don't want to have a big block of wood to contend with. So I save my blocks. They sit on my wood shelf, right next to all the other wood things I never use.

To make Rhonda smile, I decided to alter one of the blocks just for fun. You can see the beginning of the collage (before I liked it) in the last post. I like it much better now.

It's also a good motto for me. Release Perfection. Okay, let's face it. I'm not perfect, we all know that. I'm always over-analyzing myself on this blog! That should be proof of my imperfection. But I think in my deepest soul, I want to be perfect so I think I'm always disappointed in myself in some way because I can't live up to my own standards. I'm working on releasing.

Collage made with: Stampin-Up wood block, scrapbook papers, magazine cutout (do you see her face?), rubons, stamps, paint, ink, painted wings (my big Christmas clearance find!), pompom trim, pretty bird, hand dyed fabric strips braided and nailed to the sides for the hanger.

Soulful Therapy

Do you ever feel like you're a copy? That all pieces that add up to be you were gathered from other people? That there is no original part that belongs to just you? How does that happen?

I know I'm an individual. I'm sure my children, DH and family members could loudly and succinctly tell you all about how I'm unique (said with the eyelids all the way up, shaking the head lightly from side to side in a slightly bewildered fashion.) I do things a certain way. Don't we all? I like this, you like that. Unique. It's not a bad thing. But its certainly a different word than someone describing you as 'oh, she's so Sweet!' (crinkling their eyes as they say it, smiling in that happy way that makes you feel like the person they're talking about could possibly be your long lost soul mate you never knew you needed, until now.)


Being an individual but yet trying not considering myself a copy of others, as it pertains to art, is a hard thing for me. I don't feel like an original. I feel like everything I ever think of making or attempting is because I saw it somewhere, someone's blog I stalk showed a similar thing or the styles are synonymous with some one or some magazine I read.


Sometimes I feel like I'm just waiting. Waiting for the real 'me' to pop out and take over and rule the studio. Not having to worry 'oh this piece is so like what so and so makes.' I've been paralyzed by this feeling lately that I really haven't stepped foot in my studio for almost 3 weeks now. I have a room full of supplies just begging to be used but I can't seem to formulize an original idea. No amount of magazine reading, avoiding art doing something else, or relaxing is going to fix this.


This post is turning into one of my normal self-analyzing sessions I can tell. I think I place too much emphasis in my brain on being original. I know, we gather inspiration from everywhere, but it seems to me, if I'm really an artist, art will pop out of me like a newborn baby. I won't have to borrow it from anyone. Probably an irrational idea I'm sure.


The lovely Miss Fanciful Twist was speaking today about living from the inside out. Her post made me think really hard (as usual. She is my morning therapy in a bottle.) I started wondering, what opinions of myself, my life and art are influenced by outside forces? What do I really think of myself? Do I want to embrace the person that I am on the inside, regardless of what others might think? That's a hard question. It requires not caring about what people think. I can tell you right now, many many people have blogs just for the express purpose of sharing what they make so they can hear feedback and praise, to speak to their self-doubt and waffling esteem. I know, because I'm sure I'm one of them at times. We all want to be accepted. We all want to be loved. I'm thinking I've been looking at life all the wrong way. Worrying about if this person or that truly cares about me. It doesn't matter. Not really. We have to love ourselves first. I might have forgotten how to do that. I'm going to work on it this week though. Making a list of things I love about me. Another list of what matters to me most, not what others think should matter. As Miss Twist says, I need to fill my life with what I love.


Stay tuned while I figure it all out. What do you love about yourself? Real things, not what you think others want to hear. What matters most to you? What do you need to fill your life with love?

(Note: Pics are of things found in my studio.)