the workshops: pop art panels

Thank you to all of you who have already signed up for Prospector Artisan Workshops!

We are so excited to meet everyone and spend a fun couple of days together.

I will be sharing a little more about each class for the next few Wednesdays. I decided to start with mine because I know that some people will look at these paintings and feel like they need to be able to draw to participate in this project. I'm here to tell you, I did not hand sketch any of these portraits. They were made using a process of transferring different aspects of the image to the canvas.

I am really excited about these projects. I am a big fan of Shepard Fairey. I think he is the Andy Warhol of today. I developed a way to immulate his style with my own artistic twist.

This class is going to get messy, just the way I like it.  Students will learn several different techniques for creating texture and "aging" their canvas.  We will lightly cover topics like color theory and composition. But mostly we will be getting the paint on the canvas and probably our hands too.

I want to do these portraits of all of my children. I am looking for just the right photo of each child that shows their personality.

I'm really hoping other people love this style of art as much as I do. It is fun and light-hearted and anyone can do it.

Promise.

Register today!

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a lofty goal

Hi there. 

I'm happy today. 

My goal is to stay happy all week. This is a lofty goal for a girl like me. A girl with a full nest and much flitting to get done.

Here's some things that tend to make me a happy bird:

* clean sheets * pebble ice and Nehi peach soda * paint on my hands * milky baby breath * nautical antiquities *  old pawn jewelry * vintage Asian art  * petrichor* * pantone color books * accordion music * striped tights * peonies * cowboy boots * belly laughs *

I recently did this collage.  It's called "The Date".  I used Margie Romney-Aslett's new papers.  They will be available in stores mid-March. You can get a sneak peak of her entire line at CHA this weekend. If you are going, pop by her booth and say hi.

It is an original piece. 24"X 24" and one and a quarter inch deep. It is available to purchase here.  I think it would go great in a little girl's room.

Smartly dressed mice? That makes me happy too.

* petrichor- n. (pronounced /ˈpɛtrɨkər/; from Greek petros "stone" + ichor the fluid that flows in the veins of the gods in Greek mythology) is the name of the scent of rain on dry earth

The random number picker chose comment #44 who happens to be Leslie from Texas. I happen to know Leslie and I know that she has a delightful little blog where she features lovely things almost everyday.  

And now, my dear netternuts, raise your glass to a happy week. If I can do it, so can you.

rush hour

The boy is away at art camp this week. I thought I would love having him gone. Really I did.

But I'm missing him and feeling all anxious and funky.

The house was so quiet today with him gone. The baby was sleeping. My chores were done. It was too hot to work out at my bench doing jewelry. So I busted out the paints. I had my own little art camp right there in the kitchen.

I call my creation "Rush Hour". You can buy it here if you are so inclined.

girly stuff

Here is my most recent painting. It's called Weber Sleepers. I grew up in Weber County, Utah. It holds a soft spot in my heart. I built this piece over a map of Utah. It is for sale here.

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There are a few little items that I've been needing. Sometimes, when I blog in the evenings, I am distracted by the conversations going on in the other room. When I hear the boys discussing plans to collect spiders in my good jelly jars, I find it distracting.

I can't stand when I have a really juicy line of thought going and poof! its gone because I heard Ben tell Thom to run into my bathroom and bring him my tweezers.

I've come up with a solution. Ear plugs. But I, of course, don't want just any old ugly ear plugs. I want Holly Golightly ear plugs. And I'll be damned if I didn't find some! Fancy ears, here I come.

The other item I'm in dire need of is tea towels. We go through tea towels around here like, well, paper towels. I simply can't abide a dirty tea towel in my kitchen. And I'm looking for unique and funky. Anyone out there got suggestions for me?

I'm lovin' these from Atlier LZC, but I'm not about to pay $20 for one.

Tomorrow we will discuss more of my many many needs. Like lipstick in the perfect shade of pink and monogramed stationary.

audrey eclectic

"A Mother's Prayer"
Leave a comment and win this Audrey Eclectic Print!

The haunting season is upon us and I find that now is the perfect time to introduce you to an artist whose work I find mesmerizing, beautiful and haunting!

Heather is a wife, mother and folk artist living in northeastern Oklahoma. She has been painting and creating in some form or another since she was a little girl, but it wasn't until she had her own daughter that she felt truly inspired to start her own business, Audrey Eclectic, so named after her little muse.

One of the things that I really like about Heather's work is that it is green. Here's what she had to say about her eco friendly process:

Becoming a mother has also made me more conscious of what kind of world I want to leave my daughter, so I am happy to recycle through my art whenever I can: many of my paintings start their lives as boards at construction sites, with the scraps in the trash pile coming home to me. I wash them, sand them, paint them and voila: a beautiful painting where once there was nothing but scrap.

Take a moment to browse her shop. Her art is surprisingly affordable and would make a great Christmas gift. She has several pieces that would look lovely on my walls at Christmas. You can also see more of her work on her blog.

A winner will be randomly selected on Thursday morning. Please check back to see if you are the lucky duck that day. I will need you to send me your shipping information. Good luck!

Oh, and I want to wish my most favorite sister-in-law of all time, HAPPY BIRTHDAY JULIE!

artsy fartsy me

I have this thing about buying pre-fab art. I'm not sure where I picked up such a snobby attitude, but I really have very little interest in owning prints. Having said this, I do like limited prints and hand printed pieces, and I do own own set of prints that I bought at Z Gallery that I truly love. But for the most part, I want originals.

The problem is, I also have this thing called a budget. Such an ugly word, budget. Bud-get. Yeez. Anywho, I have semi rectified this situation by painting my own art. Please make no mistake. I am not a gifted artist. But I am crafty in both senses of the word. I have found that it is pretty easy, once you have a concrete idea, to come up with a product you can hang on your wall, at least until you have company over.


Take for example my guest bedroom:


Originally, I wanted a large cast iron sea horse sculpture to go above the bed. First, I couldn't find exactly what I had conjured up in my head, and second, when I did find something I thought would work, it was $2200. Ah- no.

I took the photo of the sea horse sculpture that I liked and painted it onto a canvas. It isn't an exact match, but that's what I like about it. It is my own. I didn't want to spend the money to have a huge canvas custom stretched to the size I wanted so I just bought two smaller canvases (on sale at Dick Blick) and painted an anemone on the other canvas. It has a little hidden clown fish in it that makes me smile. I still wish that the canvases were larger, but all in all, I'm happy with the result.

I really enjoy painting. I find it totally relaxing and almost hypnotic. I signed up to take a weekend long class (Sept. 20-21) from Anahata Katkin, owner and founder of Papaya. Check out her work she is amazing. I am hoping to come away with some fabulous pieces that I can be proud to hang on my wall.

I'll tell you another word, uglier than budget. Frugal.