Happenings in the studio - Right now!

Right now......
I am enjoying these beautiful roses that my DH brought home to me on Saturday.
I am mailing in a request for the marriage license for my first marriage many years ago - just can't find it and I absolutely positively have to have it to renew my driver's license - to prove I am ME - the ID requirements to get or renew a license in Florida are absolutely onerous and insane. There was a story in the newspaper Satuday about a 72 year old woman having to produce a marriage license from 50+ years ago
I am enjoying the much much needed rain that we got this morning
I am working on a big project for submission

I usually work on my ironing board as I have to stand to create, and the height is just perfect

I am obsessed with painting with lots of color right

I am finishing a small sewing project

I have my desk fairly tidy right now

I have all of my scrapping and paper crafting supplies stored in their bin and in these few containers that you can see on the bookcase. I have weeded down to absolute essentials! and only a very few manufacturers.

I have finished a very funky project that cannot be shown yet.

Hope your week is going well and thanks for reading,
Chris

My Core’dinations Creative Frenzy

  I love Core'dinations cardstock pure and simple; I love the clear bright colors, the weight and texture of the paper, and the brilliant embossed papers that just beg to be distressed. The first layout I created during my frenzy was done with 3 pieces of Core'dinations CoreColor Cardstock - brown, a soft yellow, and a royal blue. I threw acrylic paint at the background and added some Prima ribbons, a Maya road flower, Jenni Bowlin butterflies and journal card, October Afternoon alphas, and some feathers and buttons, and of course, the wonderful vintage children that I cut from an old book that was falling apart. I finally stitched around the edges with my sewing machine.

The next layout also consists of 3 sheets of Core'dinations, two of which are from the Jenni Bowlin Whitewash collection. On this layout I also used some Jenni Bowlin patterned paper; October Afternoon alphas, sticker, and paper; Prima flower and butterfly; Pink Paislee alphas, Martha Stewart doily, Liberty fabric, and vintage lace dyed in coffee.

As always, I love to layer (can you imagine how thick my albums are?!)

Finally, the third layout is a simple one - I love this photo of my niece laughing and enjoying a game of chalk hopscotch on the driveway, and I wanted the eye to focus on her sweet smile. I used 2 pieces of Core'dinations Whitewash on this one, sanding and then throwing a little acrylic paint at them. The patterned paper, larger alphas, and banner are Sassafrass, and the the other alphas are October Afternoon. I made the flower by hand ruching fabric and added the buttons in the center and some long pins. The porcelain buttons are from my collection.

Hope you like these - I had so much fun creating them!
Chris

Orchids again

I know, I know, that I said I was going to move away from painting flowers - well, I started going to a painting group on Wednesday mornings, and one of my friends had some photos of orchids so........

One thing that I always find fascinating is how many different ways and versions painters can paint the same subject. My friend and I often paint the same subject but our styles and color senses are so very different that our paintings look very different. We want to have one group session in which everyone paints the same subject - won't that be fun to see all the variations?!

Gotta run - I'm working at the used book store today.
Chris

Prima March BAP

I guess you know by now that I am a huge Prima fan and love to try the Build a page sketches, but this one I just don't know about....... I wasn't super fond of the sketch and I have to admit that the Moulin Rouge papers are not my favs -- but they were the only ones purchased by the lss that I visited when I visited my son earlier this month. We don't have a lss and I really hate to purchase online - I want to see things IRL and also there's always the shipping cost. Anyway....

I used a Prima mask and sprayed 2 colors of glimmer mist, and then sprayed a white Prima flower with mist also. I layered several different flowers on top of each other

and added these little pendants that I made with wire and seaglass that I had collected in Trinidad

I then layed lots of laces - Prima and vintage - to create the look of water or waves - to go with the photo of my nieces. I am going to try to take another photo of the layout in different light (to get rid of the strange glare) before I send it to Prima.

Thanks for looking,
Chris

Right now...........

Right now.........

I am enjoying some of my delicious homemade bread and cinnamon rolls

Marveling that the poinsettia that I had on our dining room table at Christmas is still in bloom on my lanai

Watching Hana get a "much needed" nap on the ironing board - it's like she becomes this mountain lion on a cliff or a panther in a tree - she loves to sleep on the ironing board

Scrapping like a fiend

Hope you are having as much fun as I am today!

thanks for reading,
Chris

Prima picks and my take on it

Check out the beautiful green palette of the Prima picks for this month - so spring-y!!!!!!!!

 And here is my take on the Prima color pick - I created the background paper by painting watercolor paper with cream and white acrylic paint, then stamping very lightly with a Prima clear stamp in Ranger vintage photo distress ink. Then I traced around a Prima mask with pencil and filled it in with white acrylic paint. I used a Prima package for the frame for the photo of a calla lily that I took in the Biltmore green houses. I created the giant flower by painting a white Prima flower with green watercolor paint, spraying a piece of wide Prima lace, 2 Prime Love note botanical flowers, and 2 Prima butterflies with Ranger color wash in lettuce. The flower is constructed of 5 layers, and the big butterfly is glued on the top of a crocheted Prima flower. The leaves are Prima as are the other smaller underlying flowers (I cut one of the tulle flowers in half). The laces are Prima. The quotation is by Katherine Hepburn, and I thought it was perfect because, well, calla lilies are strange-looking flowers!

I really enjoyed creating the background paper and while doing this one, ended up with several more that you will be seeing on future layouts.

 If you are here for the http://paperissues.blogspot.com/ blog hop, go to http://chrisaiton.blogspot.com/2011/03/paperissues-blog-hop.html 

Thanks for reading
Chris

Girl Camelot Challenge

 I don't participate in many challenges any more but when I read Cynthia's  Girl Camelot Challenge, I just had to join in. With the color palette and Cynthia's little inspirational tips about flowers, garden parties, and, of course, the fabulous mid-century fashion, I knew that I wanted to use a photo of my mother dressed in a simple sheer spring dress. She has a flower at her waist and wonderful high heeled sandals.  I used a vintage paper rose, a Prima sprig, and a vintage brooch from my collection. The colors are so clean and crisp.

I too love the simple and classic beauty of mid-century fashion - pearls, pure colors, simple lines - just so refreshing!

Playing with paint and happy Ostara

Watercolor paint is such fun (but frustrating) to play with - I never cease to be amazed and awed by the way the colors mix, mingle, and blend on the paper

Sometimes the paint colors kiss, sometimes they mate, and sometimes they fight but the winner is always a bit changed by the loser.
AND then, there's always the challenge that Mother Nature provides

how can I ever begin to create such vivid colors as these - SHE is a master painter!

Joy to you on this Vernal Equinox!

Tulips on my table - another sign of Spring!

If you are here for the bloghop, go to http://chrisaiton.blogspot.com/2011/03/paperissues-blog-hop.html
ttfn
Chris

Paperissues blog hop!!!!!!!

Welcome to my blog, and if you are here because of the http://paperissues.blogspot.com/ blog hop, a second welcome and hope you like what you see.  Our theme was favorites - so here is an altered frame project that is full of my favorites - the background is a watercolor painting of azaleas that I painted; the photo is of azaleas in my yard (so love them and this year the bushes were super abundant with blossoms - such a fantastic display of color!); the flowers are Prima (a favorite mfg), and piling on embellishments is one of my favorite methods of creation for layouts, altered items, and cards.

This project was actually done on the inside/backside of a prestretched canvas (I had used the other/right side for another project a while back and when I was looking through my storage cabinet for a frame, decided to take it apart and use it for this project. The painting was done on watercolor paper, glued to the canvas and then I added all of the "stuff". Finally I painted the canvas frame with pink and green acrylic paints and added the butterflies (some old but cherished K&co chipboard butterflies).


Hope you like this. The next blog on the blog hop is http://gretchenmac.blogspot.com/2011/03/hoppity-hop.html .  Be sure to check out all of the DT blogs and the main Paperissues blog - many of the DT members will be giving away RAKs and a
Paper Issues Store RAK

will be sent to randomly picked hopper who follows the http://paperissues.blogspot.com/ blog so check it out!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! And I know that lots of the other bloggers are offering RAKS on their individual blogs. You have until April 2 to hippity hop!!!!!

Cheesecake Factory sent me a $10 gift card because we ate at one when we were on a trip and since we don't have one here, I will RAK it off - just mention that you would like it or put CF or something like that in your comment.

AND I just received the Spring 2011 issue of Somerset Memories, in which I have 2 layouts, on pages 32 and page 55. They also show one of my handmade flowers on page 146. I am so so so excited and thrilled!!!!
ttfn
Chris

A little madness in the spring is good for the king (and the queen too)!

Right now..........
I am painting flowers

I am enjoying our fabulous weather

I am relishing the soft pastels of spring (really on a color kick - my library got exploring colour by Julia Caprara through interlibrary loan for me - it was recommended on Julie Balzer's blog and is a fantastic book about - what else - exploring color! Filled with exercises on thinking about and experimenting with color - it is really a book about using color in embroidery but the concepts are perfect for painting or any other art - I am working on - no, I am playing with a personal color collection and am getting some great ideas for using color in my art)

I am drinking a cup of tea

I am listening to Immortal memory by Lisa Gerrard

 I am loving this little thrifted vase (I love to get these little things out from my linen closet - it's the best of both new (like shopping) and old (like cherished friends)

 I am loving all my new Jenni Bowlin toys (and the old ones too)

I am playing with my spool collection - putting on display some of the most spring-like colors

So, there you have it!

Yesterday I was pretty down - the whole Japanese disaster is beyond my comprehension and I feel such sorrow for their plight. Plus on a personal level, the bills are coming in for my little surgeries, and our home insurance bill came - up 15% - just killer for the budget!

BUT you just have to laugh in a black humor way when the Federal Reserve tells us that we have no inflation - I loved the story in the NY Times about the NY Fed chief talking to a crowd in Queens who were complaining about inflation in food and energy. He told them that we don't have inflation - after all, the new Ipad2 is the same price as the original Ipad - so the commenter said "Let them eat Ipads!!!!!!" and someone else said, "Well, you know, Queens is a tough audience!"  My DH and I were cracking up at lunch today, he made a joke about eating a "big mac" but I said if you got indigestion from eating your Mac, would that be a "mac attack"?  and of course it degenerated from there.......I am wondering though about how to season my old laptop - definitely some garlic and possibly some rosemary (for memory/remembrance, you know!!!)

Anyway, today I am enjoying the abundance of my life. I am truly thankful for my family, my home, my health, my cat, and my friends - and that includes you - thanks so much for reading!
ttfn
Chris

A sneak peek, happy St. Patrick's day, and a little much-needed laughter

On Saturday March 19 we are having a http://paperissues.blogspot.com/ blog hop so be sure to stop back by and see the whole altered project with a little how-to. . Paper Issues Store RAK will be sent to randomly picked hopper who comments and follows the paperissues blog (all current followers are included).

AND a bit of much-needed laughter in this time of such sad news from Japan
http://www.ritholtz.com/blog/2011/03/artist-household-objects-wire-this/