tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18575135248498460592024-02-19T08:40:23.894-08:00fishwifetalesA little of this and that; mostly polymer clay.Unknownnoreply@blogger.comBlogger278125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1857513524849846059.post-66429857830157875402017-02-22T16:42:00.001-08:002017-02-22T16:42:48.884-08:00When life gives you grapefruitsI have been up to my usual February stuff. Busy making buttons, bookmarks, a few jewelry items and a couple of hanging things. Worked on an owl today...<div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi0eh-qVtWhWrdL3GX9gomIB2D4fXTA9sdQqWM64qbUnRfsKBzYnFqQipHuLsqpWAQAc7rNWz6-MxZ_vT0jtxdGBdGu28wxymKTalLBAK1Nd96JuM7V2QZcn26zDNUcqHvMFykzH6S9PlUa/s640/blogger-image-1246036257.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi0eh-qVtWhWrdL3GX9gomIB2D4fXTA9sdQqWM64qbUnRfsKBzYnFqQipHuLsqpWAQAc7rNWz6-MxZ_vT0jtxdGBdGu28wxymKTalLBAK1Nd96JuM7V2QZcn26zDNUcqHvMFykzH6S9PlUa/s640/blogger-image-1246036257.jpg"></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><br></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgCdGhIuH3ScfToV0zge2Fo8nzzxRtZl17Te8COFkgmfpOyqMjtsTKODOuGrzNiyIqNqFVbcAk01Tpr8PPAmkA4qRJCT2YOxN-GkAWLGpZz4zBL8ZfxmUvndF2keMCoFrxExwcvsscCaOp9/s640/blogger-image-979733534.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgCdGhIuH3ScfToV0zge2Fo8nzzxRtZl17Te8COFkgmfpOyqMjtsTKODOuGrzNiyIqNqFVbcAk01Tpr8PPAmkA4qRJCT2YOxN-GkAWLGpZz4zBL8ZfxmUvndF2keMCoFrxExwcvsscCaOp9/s640/blogger-image-979733534.jpg"></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;">And when Monsieur Hibou was done, I had a few beads to embellish his hanging cord. I needed to put them somewhere so they could "dry" after I had glazed them. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><br></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;">There are grapefruit in abundance and so I cut one in half and used the thick skin and pith as a support for the beads to dry. I can still eat the grapefruit as the glaze didn't touch the fruity part. Some of you probably recognize the leaf cane that's on one of the beads, and on the branch that the owl is perched upon. Those canes turn up just at the right moment even if they are 8 or 9 years old!!!!</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi4kv3_PqKKIyhweZlxZtME134aMDrCahtk6Oo3Jf9-xjtQrExHXjv4sdU-TBhhvqZmxOSjtaeUu_KnM3QZPr8qoim34GLzmmko4OwBS2uP02hF2y38ks6MNt7w73H_p2-57e1WV7HMB5hn/s640/blogger-image--1504830935.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi4kv3_PqKKIyhweZlxZtME134aMDrCahtk6Oo3Jf9-xjtQrExHXjv4sdU-TBhhvqZmxOSjtaeUu_KnM3QZPr8qoim34GLzmmko4OwBS2uP02hF2y38ks6MNt7w73H_p2-57e1WV7HMB5hn/s640/blogger-image--1504830935.jpg"></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;">At least something turned out okay today. </div><br></div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1857513524849846059.post-8758539357685779722016-08-29T07:21:00.001-07:002016-08-29T07:21:19.166-07:00Boots not made for Walking. Or rather Boot.So the summer is nearly over and most of my excursions have not been "on foot". I snicker when I say this, because when I taught about explorers who did their land travels across this expanse of the country, we often said they travelled "on foot". Well, and I don't mean to step on anyone's toes here, wouldn't it have been more likely that they travelled on two feet? If they only travelled on foot, then they'd have had to hop everywhere and given the loads they were transporting and all their gear, how would they ever have travelled very far? Just one of the fun stories I shared with my classes when I taught history. But I digress. <div><br></div><div>Today I would like to share a little creation about the above tongue in cheek remark. <div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgiqvxu-q8hjX-OWq9NsPCFjuusOrrWsGDYTM5Bg9j8HLwltnQfdeLpupg3FDfefXF00eFKIQ6dBp1piVv15lRx_YZaepEUnV50x9UAquxj4a6nSZss3FjhZ608xq9Sr4a61xvgg5oWudFT/s640/blogger-image-2127559896.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgiqvxu-q8hjX-OWq9NsPCFjuusOrrWsGDYTM5Bg9j8HLwltnQfdeLpupg3FDfefXF00eFKIQ6dBp1piVv15lRx_YZaepEUnV50x9UAquxj4a6nSZss3FjhZ608xq9Sr4a61xvgg5oWudFT/s640/blogger-image-2127559896.jpg"></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;">I have made bigger boots before, but this one and these black and white shoes are destined to become embellishments for my next books. I think I will call one of them. The Boot Book and it can be a travel journal for someone. As for the shoes...I might call the composition, "If the shoe fits, wear it" and dedicate it ☺️ to someone with very tiny feet. Be mindful that you don't juxtapose the initial consonants of the words shoe and fits, or you'll have something on your collar that was deposited by the flying foo bird! </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><br></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;">That's all the silliness for today. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><br></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;">And now, it's off to play! </div></div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1857513524849846059.post-78900390878312753942016-04-14T06:34:00.001-07:002016-04-14T06:35:04.434-07:00Touching the SurfaceThis Saturday I will be teaching a polymer clay workshop at Local Colour in Winnipeg. Two of the five techniques I will be doing are the ones below:<div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgoaIa5rBlbqBn_REZwoux_B2XLdfSRyiIGNDb5dFUYIWKG3cEIi7dsEr5tDbpHh06u1xVr3Yb9OPJEcQdAQo1BEu4w15QIVJG4bTLNotEbkbYuGjY6t1M6xjaPi44yxHjRcqFKgyRmLtjJ/s640/blogger-image-1939083108.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgoaIa5rBlbqBn_REZwoux_B2XLdfSRyiIGNDb5dFUYIWKG3cEIi7dsEr5tDbpHh06u1xVr3Yb9OPJEcQdAQo1BEu4w15QIVJG4bTLNotEbkbYuGjY6t1M6xjaPi44yxHjRcqFKgyRmLtjJ/s640/blogger-image-1939083108.jpg"></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;">The one on the left is transferring a black and white image to polymer clay. Once it's baked, the image can be coloured with pencil crayons or Prismacolor ( or other) markers. Or it can be left as is, depending on your intention. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><br></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;">The sample on the right is a collage of mokume gane slices. I love the randomness of this technique and marvel at the immense variety of effects that can be achieved using a few simple tools and colours of clay. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><br></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;">When all the procedures are completed, we will put them together on a canvas to create a sampler. Hopefully, this sampler will serve as incentive to the class <span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue Light', HelveticaNeue-Light, helvetica, arial, sans-serif;">to further pursue the myriad techniques that can be produced using the versatile medium of polymer clay. </span></div><br></div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1857513524849846059.post-61624483656739579102016-03-14T11:25:00.001-07:002016-03-14T11:25:54.610-07:00When life gives you lemonsWe have been fortunate for the past several years to have lemon trees in our winter retreats and yesterday I composed a piece that incorporated many parts of the tree: its leaves, the fruit and even the fragrance of the leaves. <div><br><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEizHV9-0Ct9Urh7JtEiMZUFcSxyQSGcGgcD9b7P9e_Fa8Q2riHPBv0reu7Pp-_M_qTqCc0aBln7tjJ9N0KtLFCqA2BjI545O_k46Dfpiqga3APfJWq2NveqR0QfiIwJ6Gyy-K1gxS1r2ORa/s640/blogger-image-952594035.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEizHV9-0Ct9Urh7JtEiMZUFcSxyQSGcGgcD9b7P9e_Fa8Q2riHPBv0reu7Pp-_M_qTqCc0aBln7tjJ9N0KtLFCqA2BjI545O_k46Dfpiqga3APfJWq2NveqR0QfiIwJ6Gyy-K1gxS1r2ORa/s640/blogger-image-952594035.jpg"></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><br></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;">In my most recent book, (I am not writing one, just making an art journal), I used the lemon for not only inspiration, but also used its actual parts. I said a wee thank you to the lemon spirits as I plucked about ten young leaves from the tree to use as textures. When I rolled the leaves into what would become the inside covers, I could actually smell the lemon in the oil in the leaves being pressed into the polymer. Of course it won't be detectable now that it's baked, but the smell left a lasting impression on my olfactory receptors. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><br></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;">The <span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue Light', HelveticaNeue-Light, helvetica, arial, sans-serif;">trees have already blossomed and many of the flowers have become tiny fruits. For </span><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue Light', HelveticaNeue-Light, helvetica, arial, sans-serif;">the past weeks, those blossoms were so, so frragrant you could hardly walk by at night without stopping to sniff. This time around, I didn't make any polymer lemon flowers, but rather chose to go the fruit route.</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue Light', HelveticaNeue-Light, helvetica, arial, sans-serif;"><br></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue Light', HelveticaNeue-Light, helvetica, arial, sans-serif;">I made a small lemon-slice cane out of translucent, white and yellowish polymer; reduced it and then added a few slices and wedges to the front cover. I purposely sliced the cane irregularly, since when I am slicing actual lemons that's the way they come off the blade. I also made a few beads out of the lemon remnants...even textured my little lemon bead with the rind of the citrus. I used the peel also to make the cover less than smooth. After the covers were baked, I "antiqued" the impressions with a light green mix of paint. It's hardly detectable on the outside cover, but pretty evident in the vein work that's on the inside covers. </span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue Light', HelveticaNeue-Light, helvetica, arial, sans-serif;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhWnV4mMGAfIVz8XybEq6cH_3yQ08-jz0pwP1aaFyhsHcbuNxY3JXmw5gH8I4EBHB-rFQ2rOeRBAFfp3OOb-SXSjm19TmHFR0k-n2aQtzxbI6pqNx3JIATKno3zftJa9jO3oY691-4NjG47/s640/blogger-image-1017657425.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhWnV4mMGAfIVz8XybEq6cH_3yQ08-jz0pwP1aaFyhsHcbuNxY3JXmw5gH8I4EBHB-rFQ2rOeRBAFfp3OOb-SXSjm19TmHFR0k-n2aQtzxbI6pqNx3JIATKno3zftJa9jO3oY691-4NjG47/s640/blogger-image-1017657425.jpg"></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhfCPAxs0cCk24ZPejwKBdDoVyjITdyBGdhw-kSTW_jBWcYei3FC4vc0NcY62gXr_8_oK5qqs8TRh7b7ygVU0hAa6bhaDybgWmL88ACzJAq91HP_zidoQxcKdqTt7yDh00C0sI6oVbAz7Nc/s640/blogger-image--1991013728.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhfCPAxs0cCk24ZPejwKBdDoVyjITdyBGdhw-kSTW_jBWcYei3FC4vc0NcY62gXr_8_oK5qqs8TRh7b7ygVU0hAa6bhaDybgWmL88ACzJAq91HP_zidoQxcKdqTt7yDh00C0sI6oVbAz7Nc/s640/blogger-image--1991013728.jpg"></a></div><br></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue Light', HelveticaNeue-Light, helvetica, arial, sans-serif;">So, I say, when life gives you lemons....make journals. </span></div><br></div></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><br></div><br></div></div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1857513524849846059.post-81335615475761181762016-02-14T05:49:00.001-08:002016-02-14T05:50:39.058-08:00Lots of good fish, good fish in the seaAnyone who is really familiar with <i>The Mikado </i>know that those title words are used repeatedly in the finale of act 1 of that G & S musical. I think of it every time I compose a new fish. Here is the one that I worked on recently:<div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEggYJKTMfuR3qOhF-B95L5BkBP9VPsDINFUy8TihaY2W8j761WBoQTEMeKz8eeVfhK378dKMmUfucHu3PjEbLNET9j3lFMvf_1Q4_otUjt3kZK9CWH4nrI81zSar4knNa_HDlbPmGAXraaa/s640/blogger-image--242059376.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEggYJKTMfuR3qOhF-B95L5BkBP9VPsDINFUy8TihaY2W8j761WBoQTEMeKz8eeVfhK378dKMmUfucHu3PjEbLNET9j3lFMvf_1Q4_otUjt3kZK9CWH4nrI81zSar4knNa_HDlbPmGAXraaa/s640/blogger-image--242059376.jpg"></a> </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;">The hanging is quite lengthy and of course, being a Pisces it has difficulty in making up its mind, so just for fun, here is the other side. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj9AYcOzOP1Sioqbeg4zHMbMo2Pe5i9CxQr0n8xXwrSx3fmb7dyhpe0pvHvFsilAp_r-t5w2IQ-Yp9hMvlc6Phh2sk3fT-xRrorXO5wGiRRHg-sev__l8f-oBAsv4240bU-xT8dmzC73GTh/s640/blogger-image-2039668313.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj9AYcOzOP1Sioqbeg4zHMbMo2Pe5i9CxQr0n8xXwrSx3fmb7dyhpe0pvHvFsilAp_r-t5w2IQ-Yp9hMvlc6Phh2sk3fT-xRrorXO5wGiRRHg-sev__l8f-oBAsv4240bU-xT8dmzC73GTh/s640/blogger-image-2039668313.jpg"></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;">I tried to keep the cane work to a minimum, and besides the eyes and the lip canes, I basically only made three different canes. But by combining them, stretching them and giving them slight twists here and there, I had enough variety to hopefully keep the<span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue Light', HelveticaNeue-Light, helvetica, arial, sans-serif;"> decorative elements from being boring. </span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue Light', HelveticaNeue-Light, helvetica, arial, sans-serif;"><br></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue Light', HelveticaNeue-Light, helvetica, arial, sans-serif;">The fish is about 9 inches by 5 inches and is totally polymer, with some copper wire used as fin support structures. The wire also goes into the inner viscera of the fish to form a sort of armature. </span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue Light', HelveticaNeue-Light, helvetica, arial, sans-serif;"><br></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><font face="Helvetica Neue Light, HelveticaNeue-Light, helvetica, arial, sans-serif">From a structural point, the one issue that constantly presents potential problems is knowing where to position the fins so that the final sculpture hangs relatively level. The balance in this one is a little "off" but I am not about to go and purchase a Level. I just keep my fingers crossed that if the fish has to swim a little upstream, at least it's heading in the right direction. </font></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue Light', HelveticaNeue-Light, helvetica, arial, sans-serif;"><br></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue Light', HelveticaNeue-Light, helvetica, arial, sans-serif;"><br></span></div><br></div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1857513524849846059.post-59498232687295570282015-11-30T10:15:00.001-08:002015-11-30T10:15:02.457-08:00Back to weaving<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">So I have been very occupied recently and now can finally see the light of day. I haven't been doing too much polymer recently but did manage to fashion some beads and button to enhance this woven purse....I started it during the summer. I have three others to finish as well, but this one is in colours I don't usually go to. <div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhx0zPDOJJrc1QT40jrc1e4biPhJlXh9fhaupUAMalVA7_ba4HIdFaKHdzNDfZSUmr7DcZavyom149AVQj5ZVJ-Qau6XqgjCtAhwRA3O-0SYrLeWDEbNQ3LWwI1qItuH7B1xuc-1d7F3a3b/s640/blogger-image--1443273339.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhx0zPDOJJrc1QT40jrc1e4biPhJlXh9fhaupUAMalVA7_ba4HIdFaKHdzNDfZSUmr7DcZavyom149AVQj5ZVJ-Qau6XqgjCtAhwRA3O-0SYrLeWDEbNQ3LWwI1qItuH7B1xuc-1d7F3a3b/s640/blogger-image--1443273339.jpg"></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;">The bag is large enough to encase a standard I-phone and I sewed a pocket into the lining to hold a credit card or keys. The strap is rather long, but that way it can go cross body, an option some people are interested in. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;">Unfortunately, the huge load of stuff I usually carry in my own purse wouldn't normally fit in this bag, but I tend to carry a "lot" of baggage, lol. </div></div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1857513524849846059.post-86350230265824143262015-08-13T04:52:00.001-07:002015-08-13T04:52:34.477-07:00Here. There. And everywhere<div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEifZDnHL4gdD4IBY5ZMlNlQmbL3LtNNtRda_xtr0e8HpcsR244NTv9oqVq4UxKBc-B_4-s3T1-okRHQqqEEXdSoEUr7zpYSOEvQ6EFs1iMbAMHSEiyGWmE8dUFPntUYyR-5LsQRwGyceUo9/s640/blogger-image-201586958.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEifZDnHL4gdD4IBY5ZMlNlQmbL3LtNNtRda_xtr0e8HpcsR244NTv9oqVq4UxKBc-B_4-s3T1-okRHQqqEEXdSoEUr7zpYSOEvQ6EFs1iMbAMHSEiyGWmE8dUFPntUYyR-5LsQRwGyceUo9/s640/blogger-image-201586958.jpg"></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;">Miss Daisy is going for a grooming today so she can be all spiffy when she sits at her booth (with her dad) at the Victoria Beach art show this weekend. Their mission will be to help raise funds for the East Beaches animal shelter. It's the same organization that Molly also sat for the past seven or eight years. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><br></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;">I will be busy in my booth with my polymer clay accent pieces. I have some new items this year and it will be good to be back at the Beach after a year off. The event wasn't held last year because construction on the new facility wasn't complete. Now that it is ready (although some work still has to be done on the exterior) I am looking forward to seeing my old friends at that lovely and popular event. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue Light', HelveticaNeue-Light, helvetica, arial, sans-serif;"><br></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue Light', HelveticaNeue-Light, helvetica, arial, sans-serif;">Returned yesterday evening from Kenora after a busy day at the market there. That venue continues to be a fun and interesting place to meet and greet. Saw many old friends from both the education and art field yesterday, and it was so nice to catch up with them. Then spent a delightful mid afternoon lunch with relatives and friends at the pizzeria in Kenora. And there were cupcakes too! I got half a dozen cupcakes from the gal whose booth is beside me at the market. She makes the most delicious "heavenly creations" ( that's what her cake business is called). I'm sure they were a fitting treat after the workout (swimming) for our young relatives from Guelph. </span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue Light', HelveticaNeue-Light, helvetica, arial, sans-serif;"><br></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue Light', HelveticaNeue-Light, helvetica, arial, sans-serif;">So it's catch up day today and tomorrow. I have several " holes" in my inventory that need to be filled by Saturday morning. It is a two day sale at the beach so I need to be well stocked. And since we will be heading back to Kenora again next Wednesday and off to Morden for the corn and apple festival a week from Friday, I will have to spend a couple of late nights supplementing my stash. No rest for the wicked. </span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue Light', HelveticaNeue-Light, helvetica, arial, sans-serif;"><br></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue Light', HelveticaNeue-Light, helvetica, arial, sans-serif;">Thank goodness we have our new air conditioner installed. With the heat index very high (well into the 30's Celsius) it's nice to be able to work in comfort.</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue Light', HelveticaNeue-Light, helvetica, arial, sans-serif;"><br></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue Light', HelveticaNeue-Light, helvetica, arial, sans-serif;">Hot August nights, here we come! </span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue Light', HelveticaNeue-Light, helvetica, arial, sans-serif;"><br></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue Light', HelveticaNeue-Light, helvetica, arial, sans-serif;"><br></span></div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1857513524849846059.post-12549377370168920912015-07-19T04:55:00.001-07:002015-07-19T04:55:27.065-07:00Around the world in five (campy) daysTomorrow the fun begins. As part of a group of four art-minded adults, we will be offering a summer camp activity for youth in Stonewall, Manitoba at the Quarry Interpretive Centre. My block of time will be art forms from five continents using polymer clay as a medium. It's rather a mixed (travel) bag, but will involve lots of hands on activities to keep the young-uns away from technology for a few hours each day. <div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg8mj-3SHIUaTIyud52noroPgDcME-rfMiueIwcpJgAkKdepmZm42NJoTdA4DND3SgDS5c2KhJXgKgjCiidBI89yNiEGo8LhFVLe9nLwPRFpbvGv9LNmpKSMb_qlpWzkM8dTUfA0QH-vPNt/s640/blogger-image-785125420.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg8mj-3SHIUaTIyud52noroPgDcME-rfMiueIwcpJgAkKdepmZm42NJoTdA4DND3SgDS5c2KhJXgKgjCiidBI89yNiEGo8LhFVLe9nLwPRFpbvGv9LNmpKSMb_qlpWzkM8dTUfA0QH-vPNt/s640/blogger-image-785125420.jpg"></a></div>Our first stop is South America so I plan on making these folksy parrot-type sculptures that can either be suspended from a hook or hang on a wall. In the session we will form the body and do some simple caning for the wing and tail. As well, we will make a bit of faux wood for the branch/perch for the Polly to sit upon. (Lol -a "Polly"mer Clay Polly). Would love to make ocarinas too, but the time frame won't permit. So I will just have to practice playing the little clay ocarina I got from Peru a few years ago. </div><div><br></div><div>I hope to post some of the kids' compositions here so stay tuned. </div><div><br></div><div>Off to pack my gear!</div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1857513524849846059.post-62596216147433587302015-06-29T07:20:00.001-07:002015-06-29T07:21:07.961-07:00On the rocks<div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgxNBTzVYDDscgQmMQ6e_bglHnKHhrQjuezB_r7ENXWR_1xZa7OwsipqLKQxBsMj2OYW0L_6gkyeOz15O7HhMPt6Pjd48quL2gFeoqvbygy23kSGwqtUGsCY5h_luTstMpJpFJ3WXXiaGrt/s640/blogger-image-902486285.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgxNBTzVYDDscgQmMQ6e_bglHnKHhrQjuezB_r7ENXWR_1xZa7OwsipqLKQxBsMj2OYW0L_6gkyeOz15O7HhMPt6Pjd48quL2gFeoqvbygy23kSGwqtUGsCY5h_luTstMpJpFJ3WXXiaGrt/s640/blogger-image-902486285.jpg"></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;">I called this little girl Mavourneen. She is trying to cool off in the heat and humidity. I suppose I should put some water in her rock pool. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;">I had made a bunch of little faces a while back and finally figured out a way to use one. The composition is fairly simple. First I made a bunch of stones and set them on top of a light bulb to bake. While that was in the oven, I did a rough formation of the arms and body over some wire and then attached that to the hole in her head. I made a simple cane for the scales, cut it down the center and overlapped them all, up to the b- line. (She's fairly ample in that region) Then when she was finished baking, I added some ribbon for hair and festooned it with some glass beads and "seaweed" around the back. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;">She is sitting there waiting to go to Kenora on Wednesday. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;">Happy summer! </div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1857513524849846059.post-29373666973472840412015-05-11T14:18:00.001-07:002015-05-11T14:21:08.975-07:00Fishing season openerSo, the fishing season of"fish"ally began this past weekend, but to bh's dismay, the weather was way too cool for him to go out on the waters. His friends braved the conditions, though, and of course, the fish were jumping into the boats. (So they say...they're fishermen and of course the truth is somewhat questionable.)<br>
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That aside, I did a little fish locating of my own and found this pescatorial present in my clay oven today. </div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgVz2qkrOIiqy1ihrDhWYwSEPkhfQ7EMsOOGFtep4JW_xYSYYSKYO3YiY4S8dv4FubuEWBvQzkIOqEfoeBbOWK180hRk_4O4fPGU0jyQn5prodIBpj5PvDUyRfIiCF5ZBcsTP9qkLFSd6Oq/s640/blogger-image-1675214586.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgVz2qkrOIiqy1ihrDhWYwSEPkhfQ7EMsOOGFtep4JW_xYSYYSKYO3YiY4S8dv4FubuEWBvQzkIOqEfoeBbOWK180hRk_4O4fPGU0jyQn5prodIBpj5PvDUyRfIiCF5ZBcsTP9qkLFSd6Oq/s640/blogger-image-1675214586.jpg"></a></div>
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Of course, there's another side which is a little different. This fishy had a Botox injection in the lips </div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgTGn9Iw9FnqSEIA90nC65BidhVyMAbYVPx-wxml6pvnGB0v-rLbnwlDa8sfrkUkb52MklX7HSZxokJjqJ5fz6qawMfzOyYQCHTlWL5-Qu0x7ceVWHbP3ymo7HBfYWKS_neb4SUgAAYGML1/s640/blogger-image-1699548477.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgTGn9Iw9FnqSEIA90nC65BidhVyMAbYVPx-wxml6pvnGB0v-rLbnwlDa8sfrkUkb52MklX7HSZxokJjqJ5fz6qawMfzOyYQCHTlWL5-Qu0x7ceVWHbP3ymo7HBfYWKS_neb4SUgAAYGML1/s640/blogger-image-1699548477.jpg"></a></div>
Sorry my hand and the dining room got in the way. I was trying to hold the fish in one hand and the iPad camera in the other, and couldn't deal with all the shaking of the dog wanting to see the fish up close. That Daisy is a verrrry inquisitive little one.<br>
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This weekend I will be going up to one our fabulous lake beaches for the first rural sale of the season. I hope this stringer of fish and other beachy things will lure folks to my booth. Of course I will have other hangings, a few new books, and the usual assortment of this and that. </div>
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Hope to see a few of my friends this Saturday at Winnipeg Beach. It is after all, the of"fish"al cottage opening weekend...and since the weather's been a little better than last year, hopefully it will be a great long weekend. </div>
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Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1857513524849846059.post-80437913784657449382015-03-16T21:28:00.001-07:002015-03-16T21:35:54.215-07:00From cover to cover, we've got you coveredI I've been making handmade artist's journals from polymer clay for years and love love love to make them. I usually hand bind the signatures using Coptic binding and decorate the spine with beads or fibres. I've taught a few people how to make them, but the task is a little daunting if you've never worked with polymer clay and are a novice at book binding...and you've only got three hours.<div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjwYbIRRjLUjfePDiLfwaOFK3QDEnff0QcGvKXrHpv7P1kvy9mqmtp1ndYrLKA_1uLmB82EkDKEgKkqbq-_fXFAec3mYjcCzzdPr_DW_kwdvs7Ixcip1eCJ9higkwAAVHull8ddp2NK_xt-/s640/blogger-image-1528422547.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjwYbIRRjLUjfePDiLfwaOFK3QDEnff0QcGvKXrHpv7P1kvy9mqmtp1ndYrLKA_1uLmB82EkDKEgKkqbq-_fXFAec3mYjcCzzdPr_DW_kwdvs7Ixcip1eCJ9higkwAAVHull8ddp2NK_xt-/s640/blogger-image-1528422547.jpg"></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;">These are a few of the books I've made recently, and much as I'd like to share how to do them, they just can't be done in a three hour workshop.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><br></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;">So when I was approached to teach a workshop at Artsjunktion, we decided to do a workshop on making covers for sketchbooks using a purchased coil bound sketch pad. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgiEOME6KTrpSFYw3sZA9TK1FfCuzXQNfCj5h_AId-ZQixrOrE3_bO5Njfb_mzpULKNRhqGTznBvwCk6GBLqHjMudrLCmNVI1O6ZHY6Gipk1stp5V1Ax8zSfizfiqE6pu39p1pvRpjxtP82/s640/blogger-image-408736782.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgiEOME6KTrpSFYw3sZA9TK1FfCuzXQNfCj5h_AId-ZQixrOrE3_bO5Njfb_mzpULKNRhqGTznBvwCk6GBLqHjMudrLCmNVI1O6ZHY6Gipk1stp5V1Ax8zSfizfiqE6pu39p1pvRpjxtP82/s640/blogger-image-408736782.jpg"></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;">This is the ideal size sketch pad to cover. When finished it's not too bulky and the size lends itself well to working with polymer. If it's any larger, the covers tend to slump if you don't have an armature. And if it's too small...well you don't have enough space to do your art, or sketches, or journaling or zentangles or...you get the drift. Having a coil binding means the task of struggling with a Coptic binding is averted. <div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhE6HIFJ8FaGh5xblwhiAGuJ80npdG5z22KgvyUNnCGuU3qGKWumKDjRJLpqwbeqMn6s9b7Wir7k1hZcHT3BHH8wVXlBq09noBXQ1EiEwzDVpCzLNZWHOZDQl9XtBQZPVj958TlMWYzR-7t/s640/blogger-image--1132549098.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhE6HIFJ8FaGh5xblwhiAGuJ80npdG5z22KgvyUNnCGuU3qGKWumKDjRJLpqwbeqMn6s9b7Wir7k1hZcHT3BHH8wVXlBq09noBXQ1EiEwzDVpCzLNZWHOZDQl9XtBQZPVj958TlMWYzR-7t/s640/blogger-image--1132549098.jpg"></a></div></div>This is a sample I made about a week ago, using alcohol inks and some innovative texturing materials to enhance the polymer. Of course, the choice of textures, design, colors and style has infinite possibilities. Those issues will be dealt with at the workshop. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><br></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;">If you or anyone you know is interested in taking part in the workshop, it will be held at the artsjunktion facility in Winnipeg on Saturday, April 11th from 9 am to 12 noon. Here's a link to get more information about the workshop and a registration form: </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><u>http://artsjunktion.mb.ca/upcoming-events/?ee=56</u></div></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><br></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;">If that link doesn't work, just google the artsjunktion web page, click on workshops and check out "Journal Covers Using Polymer Clay"</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><br></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;">Hope to see you there!</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><br></div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1857513524849846059.post-3377592468957030612015-02-16T13:28:00.001-08:002015-02-16T13:28:47.581-08:00Bicoastal creation.So we are just a few hours from the Gulf of California and the main inspiration for this comes from the Florida side of the continent. <div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgpXdFLSz27eMwlh7iUBwBve8o0Du-BCNtKTXP0KvMmAXUGNiCJGljDVDGFgnxbuiXCPWIQjD2wwkTWnUhARNYYK9XnEYeNWLBobURsTy744HNmBIcInAyMZ-Mn7dmK6yk3jPUPdp9mViP3/s640/blogger-image--832434511.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgpXdFLSz27eMwlh7iUBwBve8o0Du-BCNtKTXP0KvMmAXUGNiCJGljDVDGFgnxbuiXCPWIQjD2wwkTWnUhARNYYK9XnEYeNWLBobURsTy744HNmBIcInAyMZ-Mn7dmK6yk3jPUPdp9mViP3/s640/blogger-image--832434511.jpg"></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;">I have made loads of Beachy things, mostly stones, snaills, seahorses and fish, but the inspiration for this neck piece was directly from the west coast of Florida. We often spent Christmas vacations there while I was teaching full time and I absolutely loved beach combing.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue Light', HelveticaNeue-Light, helvetica, arial, sans-serif;"><br></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue Light', HelveticaNeue-Light, helvetica, arial, sans-serif;">The snail, starfish and white thing are simple hand formed polymer creations, but the scallop shell and faux coral have closer ties to the beach. I made the scallop using a modified Skinner blend sheet which I coaxed along an actual scallop shell I collected many years ago. After I made the impression of the ridges, I used the inner part of the real scallop shell to make a backing. For the faux coral, I made a molded impression of an actual conglomerate of whah might be coral ... Not sure... but it was plenty interesting with lots of texture. I whipped up a small batch of "impromptu" coral colors and put it in the mold. Fortunately the impression took pretty well, and where it wasn't good, (there may have been some undercuts), I used a needle tool and pulled out some pipe work. </span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue Light', HelveticaNeue-Light, helvetica, arial, sans-serif;"><br></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue Light', HelveticaNeue-Light, helvetica, arial, sans-serif;">I tempoarily have it strung on heavier waxed cotton cord. Not certain how I am going to finish it. Maybe I'll sleep on it tonight and have a few pipe dreams of how it is all going to come together. </span></div></div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1857513524849846059.post-36797062396406209492015-02-10T08:17:00.001-08:002015-02-10T08:25:04.867-08:00For the birds, continuedSo yesterday was my first post in ages, and here I am today, with a bit of a follow up. <br><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhGY-KAdbSWRBWBe5R-Iv5ZN-sZcvErTU7DsAp8Q0Rpy1ic4oyEr5SUR0JisvfR4ZyycxcboU93enH9YKQn1dnaXPpkHIuZ5kkPD1cudRmscmbFmmaDDDFH_lY3-Tsi-s6Z4nYAf4EgXYPu/s640/blogger-image-386203004.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhGY-KAdbSWRBWBe5R-Iv5ZN-sZcvErTU7DsAp8Q0Rpy1ic4oyEr5SUR0JisvfR4ZyycxcboU93enH9YKQn1dnaXPpkHIuZ5kkPD1cudRmscmbFmmaDDDFH_lY3-Tsi-s6Z4nYAf4EgXYPu/s640/blogger-image-386203004.jpg"></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><br></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;">This is what I am doing with the birdhouse cane. The completed bookmark just to the left of center is for the neighbour who is the birdhouse collector. The others with flowers will be also become bookmarks, while the little one at the top left is a charm that I will use to embellish something. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><br></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;">In my last post, I mentioned that that I had seen birdhouses on Cindy Leitz' polymer clay tutorials. If memory serves me correctly, I believe that was also where she demonstrated the bookmark hook similar to what I have here. To see the way Cindy explains her method, here is the link: </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><br></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;">www.beadsandbeading.com/blog/?p=13064</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><br></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;">Speaking of birds, when I went out with Daisy this morning, We were greeted with the sweetest of bird songs. I guess that means spring can't be far away in some places!</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><br></div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1857513524849846059.post-89213605983091848382015-02-09T07:04:00.001-08:002015-02-09T07:11:52.321-08:00It's for the birdsPosting to this blog has been very lax lately...not that I haven't meant to write. It's just that old nemesis of time.<div><br></div><div>Yesterday was a fun filled day where we hosted a pot luck on the patio and then followed that with a little game night. It was enjoyable with Daisy providing half time entertainment with her spin <span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue Light', HelveticaNeue-Light, helvetica, arial, sans-serif;">the bottle antics. Even though she has a dozen "toys", playing with an empty water bottle was just as engaging for her. </span></div><div><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue Light', HelveticaNeue-Light, helvetica, arial, sans-serif;"><br></span></div><div><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue Light', HelveticaNeue-Light, helvetica, arial, sans-serif;">Earlier in the day, I spent a couple hours doing some </span><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue Light', HelveticaNeue-Light, helvetica, arial, sans-serif;">clay work. Inspired by our neighbour's bird house collection, I thought I'd give making little bird houses a shot. I have made some three dimensional sculpted birdhouse before, thanks to "PCT" Cindy Leitz 's instructions on her weekly site. For this effort, I thought I'd try a cane.</span></div><div><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue Light', HelveticaNeue-Light, helvetica, arial, sans-serif;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjwc0QTheSmKtlNHHTfVj7P_4VCUI-gk6n331m4dEEWR5zhBl6M032_PFtClE9TK1lwMjMqPtqCj9kDDznJTI8QTdh4oiFL6HyBiNDSzxbnKfG4YczlqxGIJE4z4rgVvlt0UL62WXeG8M28/s640/blogger-image--2141699396.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjwc0QTheSmKtlNHHTfVj7P_4VCUI-gk6n331m4dEEWR5zhBl6M032_PFtClE9TK1lwMjMqPtqCj9kDDznJTI8QTdh4oiFL6HyBiNDSzxbnKfG4YczlqxGIJE4z4rgVvlt0UL62WXeG8M28/s640/blogger-image--2141699396.jpg"></a></div><br></span></div><div><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue Light', HelveticaNeue-Light, helvetica, arial, sans-serif;"><br></span></div><div><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue Light', HelveticaNeue-Light, helvetica, arial, sans-serif;">My cane is pretty simple and its shape evokes a bit of a hobbit house. I pre-baked some tiny perches and inserted them with a bit of t.l.s. close to the base of the abode. In the cane slice, I inserted an eye pin, and will probably make this baked sample into a bookmark charm. </span></div><div><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue Light', HelveticaNeue-Light, helvetica, arial, sans-serif;"><br></span></div><div><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue Light', HelveticaNeue-Light, helvetica, arial, sans-serif;">The stripes were originally intended to represent planks of weathered wood, but was afraid the weathering details might get lost in the eventual reduced cane slices. So, they ended up like jailbird stripes. Maybe I'll assign each one a number!</span></div><br><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhvmTCXucfviD4ACNVDaRWMXDc9ajjjwCE6LeqJJmxz1pG2ekG5jVC-aGCYwO6GB_HL4SQmXd5fioXrbfySpqCcrNSJdS1EgbgNb-wvPZiB4sIvuGwpJH5T1L8ABzd20f1ZuUC_rIg0E1qU/s640/blogger-image--111794949.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhvmTCXucfviD4ACNVDaRWMXDc9ajjjwCE6LeqJJmxz1pG2ekG5jVC-aGCYwO6GB_HL4SQmXd5fioXrbfySpqCcrNSJdS1EgbgNb-wvPZiB4sIvuGwpJH5T1L8ABzd20f1ZuUC_rIg0E1qU/s640/blogger-image--111794949.jpg"></a></div><br><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjGDrqgksUPZ_HYlI_5JRYitTpV34Q5uyMGlD4GxggcF2ypPy4uDzHP8Hdl9oRb4l2uJE0z8O3svlCO4jcWwGEC4gxwIsegWj4E0w4hWv1nN7JlomiZpy-eBs7Q4M68ehYEDVyBAw5NdrSl/s640/blogger-image-1531205341.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjGDrqgksUPZ_HYlI_5JRYitTpV34Q5uyMGlD4GxggcF2ypPy4uDzHP8Hdl9oRb4l2uJE0z8O3svlCO4jcWwGEC4gxwIsegWj4E0w4hWv1nN7JlomiZpy-eBs7Q4M68ehYEDVyBAw5NdrSl/s640/blogger-image-1531205341.jpg"></a></div><br><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><br></div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1857513524849846059.post-75956080186294591172014-11-22T09:15:00.001-08:002014-11-22T09:15:26.421-08:00What a day for a "Daisy" break.So our little girl is five months old and she loves the kids in the neighbourhood. She doesn't mind the cold, if it's just around freezing and she adores shovelling the snow with her little nose. She's a little difficult to see here, but she's definitely out there. <div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJopJvwudfnNpJl2zA72EGCFBaCGQgFwOa3JLf5b5FBcPs3cr9UT7GtpilX4nOzm1WJxUfN6vRrTH-3z5WDd8Qd4LyAUp06H9kLBbNVrlNxSe5JI1xn-MYIcF6saJwdgl-ROw1Rux6JdSm/s640/blogger-image-652714964.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJopJvwudfnNpJl2zA72EGCFBaCGQgFwOa3JLf5b5FBcPs3cr9UT7GtpilX4nOzm1WJxUfN6vRrTH-3z5WDd8Qd4LyAUp06H9kLBbNVrlNxSe5JI1xn-MYIcF6saJwdgl-ROw1Rux6JdSm/s640/blogger-image-652714964.jpg"></a></div><br><div><br></div><div>Today, while out for a mid morning stroll, the kids took a short time out from their street hockey game to stop to say hi to her. I swear, if she knew how to hold a hockey stick she would play too. No doubt she could steal the puck in her mouth and could fend off the entire opposition if she was allowed off the lead. But that's not going to happen. </div><div><br></div><div>She usually times her late afternoon outings to be in synch with the same kids when they're walking home from school. She stands on her hind feet in our front yard watching for them turning the corner onto our street. They all yell "Daisy!" And she starts wagging her tail waiting for them to give her a little back rub. </div><div><br></div><div>One more good thing...the kids play street hockey practically everyday for an hour or more while it's light out. Since it's Saturday, they've been playing for nearly two hours already. Such a nice change from the run of the mill staying inside being occupied by video games as many nine and ten year olds are prone to these days.</div></div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1857513524849846059.post-49063270281509468372014-10-26T14:39:00.001-07:002014-10-26T14:39:39.229-07:00A new beginning<div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhEJarucOnsP46nknqTLt56lGeco40xReRmUXTkQ0okfOoLe47vzSLOZlh3MTyrS0rbgH6k2LMD9FgA5RdVDjDBSm3qUB4rUuw_OW0y3QwaYsuj8TQNdNBkwJbJtb5DRwlZ2lbQ7e_i4r77/s640/blogger-image--1027352134.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhEJarucOnsP46nknqTLt56lGeco40xReRmUXTkQ0okfOoLe47vzSLOZlh3MTyrS0rbgH6k2LMD9FgA5RdVDjDBSm3qUB4rUuw_OW0y3QwaYsuj8TQNdNBkwJbJtb5DRwlZ2lbQ7e_i4r77/s640/blogger-image--1027352134.jpg"></a>So this is our new baby. She has been with us for three weeks now, and because she's just over four months, we've been kept very busy. The first thing I had to get accustomed to was that she could see. I was so conditioned into having to be the seeing eyes for Molly, that I actually did a double take when the little one, Daisy, narrowly avoided a corner by moving away from it. She's doing a marvellous job of going potty outside; but not such a great job of deciding which items are toys and which are off limits like the television remote. Hopefully those decisions will become clearer as the days go by. She's growing quickly and is learning commands readily. She goes into her crate when I have to work on clay as she is so fast that it's impossible to keep an eye on her 100% of the time. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><br></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;">I did manage to get a bit of claying done this weekend. Here's a sample. <div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhqW6uezhqKJWr8JMG_YNMDrLb3_j0ORRnuj96Gv9hFum5kasiT44KdUEwYlLkGi2CYjtqes1Ickm_uVyPDdZBinjcqJ3Ro_kFtp54q3LexVNwz9UOk02O9PMrn3HYFPmYSTweIkL4XDwVt/s640/blogger-image-1754536.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhqW6uezhqKJWr8JMG_YNMDrLb3_j0ORRnuj96Gv9hFum5kasiT44KdUEwYlLkGi2CYjtqes1Ickm_uVyPDdZBinjcqJ3Ro_kFtp54q3LexVNwz9UOk02O9PMrn3HYFPmYSTweIkL4XDwVt/s640/blogger-image-1754536.jpg"></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><br></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;">I have a couple of shows in November and December and am down to just one book so that inventory needs to be replenished. I'm glad because books are one of my fave things to make. Have the covers and signatures ready for a few more. Just need to sit down and bind them. Hope I can tear myself away from the pup to get them done. Wish me luck! </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj2qmi0rq4Tf9qKf2Yht9td6yFn5sN2vmV0Uv2aEZMMKBb2cVbpOU4pygcHA5chtBWwwm_4H_hhapOZfzKcvXf7ol7hjlyM2hKNAQe6Y8g4buLXXDRyykPHfFRqn9-oDWrdoH4bItXGS1ym/s640/blogger-image--1886819729.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj2qmi0rq4Tf9qKf2Yht9td6yFn5sN2vmV0Uv2aEZMMKBb2cVbpOU4pygcHA5chtBWwwm_4H_hhapOZfzKcvXf7ol7hjlyM2hKNAQe6Y8g4buLXXDRyykPHfFRqn9-oDWrdoH4bItXGS1ym/s640/blogger-image--1886819729.jpg"></a></div></div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1857513524849846059.post-47169725329456018612014-09-12T08:56:00.000-07:002014-09-12T09:42:05.009-07:00Saying Goodbye<div style="text-align: center;">
One of the most difficult posts...</div>
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On Wednesday, we had to say goodbye to our beloved Molly...I know I have written about her several times in this blog, but they were mostly about happy experiences, or at least ones that had a happy ending. Sadly, this one does not. <br>
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We knew that our little girl was fading, and that her health issues were becoming increasingly complex, but still it is terribly difficult to say goodbye to such a sweet and lovable girl. She was such a cutie, and so nice to everyone. She always had a smile for those who were interested in her. Even in her golden days, as in this picture taken about six months ago, she looked like a cutie-petooty.<br>
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Over the course of her life, she faced many challenges and hurdles that she overcame. From being tossed about from home to home over her first year, she fell into our laps and provided us with countless hours of enjoyment and entertainment. From the first day when she leapt from the sofa to the loveseat, to her last days, where she modelled her "Blind as a Bat Man" costume (two days prior to her demise), she was a bundle of love. <br>
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She was an excellent travel companion, always ready for a road trip. When we would pack up for an out-of-towner, she'd sit on a jacket or her travel bag (It said Princess on it), and we'd help her into her crate in the back seat. Whenever we stopped anywhere, folks would always comment on how pretty she was, and there was that little smile on her face, as if she knew it was her people were talking about. She loved our trips to Arizona. She had plenty of friends there...and didn't miss freezing her tushie off in the winter! We always stopped in the same motels along the way; I'm sure lots of the clerks remember her. Even 'pee stops' were familiar too. Despite her blindness over the past four years, I'm sure she recognized' that park in North Platte, just on the outskirts of the city, where we'd always stop for a picnic and say hi to the Canada Geese there.<br>
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We will always recall her beauty in the many pictures we have of her, but we are going to miss her something terrible. <br>
Unknownnoreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1857513524849846059.post-32005707656973300822014-09-03T06:00:00.000-07:002014-09-03T06:00:36.185-07:00The Big White-OutSo, it's the first day back at school for most kids all over...Sigh. For me, it's a work day too, but not in the school of fish! All my fish are done baking and the rest of my preparations for the Yorkton Sunflower Art Festival are tasks of putting together, sanding, buffing, staining, and other necessary finishing touches to make the work appear 'professional'. Huh? Well, maybe semi-pro!<br />
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That being said, I spent a while this morning typing up and printing some brochures on the home computer/printer/scanner thingy. <br />
Unfortunately, I cannot upload the brochure, but here's a little open fairy door just to give you a hint of what no-good I've been up to.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg5JvTZbZHkCawH0xGzB80l1TzJhbt8lA2Bo8TPPuxQeu593rwBzsi0CPSoMSzVCCJF2QiHRhiqtr0bWldII6SGHCwUgzXnUlKYu9sp9K4MmVdzVjynB-Vn1_OiafJUbXjX1rmzFRmeBotU/s1600/fairy+door+open+edit+(2).jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg5JvTZbZHkCawH0xGzB80l1TzJhbt8lA2Bo8TPPuxQeu593rwBzsi0CPSoMSzVCCJF2QiHRhiqtr0bWldII6SGHCwUgzXnUlKYu9sp9K4MmVdzVjynB-Vn1_OiafJUbXjX1rmzFRmeBotU/s1600/fairy+door+open+edit+(2).jpg" height="240" width="320" /></a></div>
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When I made the brochure, I did it on two pages, both landscape settings, and double columns each. I started at the "end", which was column two of page one, (really the cover) which included a bit about my experience in polymer clay as well as a picture of my hands holding a finished object. Then I proceeded to the other side of that page, which was actually the fourth page of the brochure. On that page I wrote about where my art has been published, where it is available and contact information regarding special orders, classes, and related information. </div>
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In the two page interior, I wrote about the nature of polymer clay, techniques, and what type of items I am currently featuring in my repertoire of compositions. For these two pages, I simply began in column one with characteristics about polymer clay and column two reflected the nature of items I make. </div>
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Now, I digress a little. A while back I mentioned that hubby was hosting a philanthropic fishing derby and he's been uber-busy (and a bit cantankerous) with all the preparations. Needless to say, I have tried to be of assistance although my free time is very scarce. For the last three weeks he has been trying to corral all the necessary information regarding sponsors etc. to have the materials like posters, brochures, and registration forms printed up. A monumental task to say the least...and even after many hours of preparation and effort, misprints and errors still happened. </div>
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The above frustrating experience directed me to make my own brochures for the upcoming (and future) events in my own "show" cases. I decided to make and print the brochures myself. On my little Canon D-I-Y all in one. I rely on it to print my sales tags, business cards...all the necessary doo-dahs that I include with my sale items. To my delight and surprise, I had enough ink to print out one brochure, and saved the document to my little USB thingy, in case I need to print it and am not at my home computer. </div>
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Two more things for all you back to schoolers...remember the orientation of the paper when you are printing stuff back to back on two sides of the same sheet. And finally, save your first best hard copy for reprinting purposes. On those sheets, mark them with a small dab of white-out. . That will remind you that it's your "original", you will be able to see it, and the white out won't show up on the reprints. </div>
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Hope this helps someone who is struggling out there. </div>
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Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1857513524849846059.post-67451612400124633412014-08-09T08:40:00.001-07:002014-08-09T08:40:57.836-07:00Busy-ness as usualWhew! After having spent some blissfully idyllic days in the coolness of lake country, it was a bit of a shock to return to the heat and humidity of the city. <div><br><div>The Sioux Narrows Arrs Festival, their 53rd, was wonderful and it was great to see a lot of my cottage country friends from the provinces and the near northern states. It was also fun to reconnect with lots of my fellow artisans. Even Molly had a chance to see her pal Niko. </div><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhRr-IMEJDrnhCsRk4rfxo_AIpqCzcqWxt9S_LX7uChP11duJgSI9zyHBVW1uy2y8iGGVsI8a6nZolRyXf8cUDB0O_egDb6EX9Nw1-QqEhvjAyUFAtS03WSo8B8eE4IQ3cjRuP1UN2-tOEW/s640/blogger-image-395522486.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhRr-IMEJDrnhCsRk4rfxo_AIpqCzcqWxt9S_LX7uChP11duJgSI9zyHBVW1uy2y8iGGVsI8a6nZolRyXf8cUDB0O_egDb6EX9Nw1-QqEhvjAyUFAtS03WSo8B8eE4IQ3cjRuP1UN2-tOEW/s640/blogger-image-395522486.jpg"></a></div><br></div><div><br></div><div>The fall sale season is approaching fast and this year I have some new venues to add to my list. I believe I have one or two more stints at the Kenora Farmers' Market and will cap off August with the Morden Corn And Apple Festival. Then in September, I will be heading for Yorkton, a first for me, and then it will be two solid weeks of helping hubby prepare for his "walleye" fundraiser. I'll discuss that a little more as the date approaches. </div></div><div><br></div><div>In October, I am scheduled for the Holiday Art And Craft Fair in Dryden and the sale at Headingley which I believe is the weekend after Canadian Thanksgiving. In November, I will be at the Beta Sigma Phi sale in Kenora, the Christmas art and craft fair at the CanadInn in Fort Garry, a couple more little shows and the Gala of Gifts sale at the Brandon Art Gallery. I don't have all the dates at my fingertips, but I will be there, with new "Best Fishes" ornaments and all the usual stuff. I believe I have one or two more shows scheduled in December, but more of that in another post. <div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg7zQHYDpzLq1zc34cgm1mhytqQ4CHyiR_cjkpNcbneCN0cag5_UbUOJwyb4_4lkOfRGBEZlHOHH69nkbsYuL6l4urndzyaTyQjveD2eqfSTvQTyAhlmLrlHO_3Dbh64y0i32h3tx7rj1lN/s640/blogger-image-920070427.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg7zQHYDpzLq1zc34cgm1mhytqQ4CHyiR_cjkpNcbneCN0cag5_UbUOJwyb4_4lkOfRGBEZlHOHH69nkbsYuL6l4urndzyaTyQjveD2eqfSTvQTyAhlmLrlHO_3Dbh64y0i32h3tx7rj1lN/s640/blogger-image-920070427.jpg"></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;">I made this cosmos vase and put a few of the colourful blooms in it. They're blossoming quite nicely and fortunately (for them), they're too tall for the critters to eat. Much as I love the cute little bunnies in our yard, they have devastated my pansies and violas. They just love to put their front paws on the pots and nibble away at the blossoms. Yesterday I told Bunnyhoney to go away. He/she did briefly, but when I took Molly out a bit later, there he/she was again. Some bunny is gonna get a surprise when I out the containers of violas on a table later on today. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><br></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;">But now, it's off to the clay table to invent some<span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue Light', HelveticaNeue-Light, helvetica, arial, sans-serif;"> new inventions for my inventory. </span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><br></div></div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1857513524849846059.post-18573769937543174422014-07-28T19:16:00.001-07:002014-07-28T19:38:07.543-07:00Truite arc-en-ceil<div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh-iPHdrT-RjNkB76LVPYDrkL5VSpqoUe2AdbGQl12MEMDg24evxnV6U90oKyyrwBNIyERYcvfwMG2aUKcvEJcnqKAFVQ6uon3enN6uobMcCXg0XUstjvH9i0fGXTnhMGYDz25NJ-sgu-qn/s640/blogger-image--2040306550.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh-iPHdrT-RjNkB76LVPYDrkL5VSpqoUe2AdbGQl12MEMDg24evxnV6U90oKyyrwBNIyERYcvfwMG2aUKcvEJcnqKAFVQ6uon3enN6uobMcCXg0XUstjvH9i0fGXTnhMGYDz25NJ-sgu-qn/s640/blogger-image--2040306550.jpg"></a></div>Preparations for the Sioux Narrows art fair this weekend have kept me hopping and the ovens going into the wee hours the past couple of days. Here is my latest fish hanging in the style of most of my fish--two sided so that hanging them in a patio window allows bith sides to be viewed. This species is quite a bit more flamboyant than most of the fish in this area...maybe he/she'd feel more at home in some Caribbean waters. <div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"> <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgdVmxFzGzQxgtKwbefdb_iR3uSbauzEeCubSeob57YQz0cGg5Yu5_fHW9a1ZG3ck7l8XR_G-WeYcH9sxYkByaugg4cK2XVJuy8DhMEyxDOvMcT1fqutVINUvEhF5_EZMazmtOP7SRIZT59/s640/blogger-image--848954185.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgdVmxFzGzQxgtKwbefdb_iR3uSbauzEeCubSeob57YQz0cGg5Yu5_fHW9a1ZG3ck7l8XR_G-WeYcH9sxYkByaugg4cK2XVJuy8DhMEyxDOvMcT1fqutVINUvEhF5_EZMazmtOP7SRIZT59/s640/blogger-image--848954185.jpg"></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;">I am also in the process of making some other figures; one that has been studying lines to take a screen test; one a fishmonger complete with wire basket of fish, and the last figure has just what kept Neil Young searching for. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"> <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhHuSK1EEv_IFwtic8KlT4xrKw2YzExTR8_7tpZjYQ_x4Tvz98zvhBXJUPsVCx0UovcJ01sKHJAjqvzr-q_zkhLj9GXGss1sULGjMxEf8tP3G0ZrEQ0JBDvd9KCsNyCYmSyjJuWFv1A35Nd/s640/blogger-image--1085213162.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhHuSK1EEv_IFwtic8KlT4xrKw2YzExTR8_7tpZjYQ_x4Tvz98zvhBXJUPsVCx0UovcJ01sKHJAjqvzr-q_zkhLj9GXGss1sULGjMxEf8tP3G0ZrEQ0JBDvd9KCsNyCYmSyjJuWFv1A35Nd/s640/blogger-image--1085213162.jpg"></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;">The heart is suspended and is slightly movable...it's encrusted with what I think is pure gold pulver. My dad used to do decorative painting and after he passed, I found this small vial-like bottle of gold pulver amongst his other supplies. It was a very small vial and it might be composition leaf-powder, but it's more than sixty years old so just maybe it's the real thing. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><br></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;">I guess one could do an assay to determine if it is. Or maybe not. </div><br></div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1857513524849846059.post-676742302494367932014-07-26T08:59:00.001-07:002014-07-26T08:59:36.029-07:00Swimming upstreamThe last couple of days have been an emotional roller coaster for me, but this fish did get done...not fried but done. <div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgDyTNdwMjcenf8B74hbqyoztKckhYoUOm_r1SX9JtYkkJJqDcmGK3EKQBOPQIGGQS1NcGAUeO7ZdzGEqgh4yeggf2WHr6noKok1v_vYNHL8bjV2lxcsYf_H5Mz0jJSfQk3elvygPh6kgGi/s640/blogger-image--538014527.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgDyTNdwMjcenf8B74hbqyoztKckhYoUOm_r1SX9JtYkkJJqDcmGK3EKQBOPQIGGQS1NcGAUeO7ZdzGEqgh4yeggf2WHr6noKok1v_vYNHL8bjV2lxcsYf_H5Mz0jJSfQk3elvygPh6kgGi/s640/blogger-image--538014527.jpg"></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;">He will be heading for Sioux Narrows on Lake of the Woods, along with his joined at the hip (and other places) flip side below. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEha7Kh4LbwogBEirERKNqFxllbdqYli85wGXtfLqXTVgmufbNJk-OpD82TJFGSvmZoClnyr49nQHE5W_jL8aXB2o_ENRxMduiq9inx7MkbRgeUNp2ElNDnb042H5zjbyiBg3WyTOnrS2uRx/s640/blogger-image-648991516.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEha7Kh4LbwogBEirERKNqFxllbdqYli85wGXtfLqXTVgmufbNJk-OpD82TJFGSvmZoClnyr49nQHE5W_jL8aXB2o_ENRxMduiq9inx7MkbRgeUNp2ElNDnb042H5zjbyiBg3WyTOnrS2uRx/s640/blogger-image-648991516.jpg"></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;">Normally I have quite a few fish followers there so I am into high production gear this week. Fortunately, no fish were harmed in this process. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><br></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;">Back issues continue to shorten my work days...but doing the best I can.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><br></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;">See you at the big lake!</div><br></div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1857513524849846059.post-5085597497964998502014-07-22T08:51:00.001-07:002014-07-22T08:57:13.817-07:00The heat is on!<div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhjqkJsFc_KNMYiBGmpdnyiXyG3BYIf5og_Uil1VR5ASmQUDhG9pawljcAWwkQ3v4PT8JSRJ738XpOMjysy_y1rK_UDESPn0Ih9-cp5G7PMUOtQazvm88DMJ9H8GEbP9vV5FHNJ5n3cdihg/s640/blogger-image-90330720.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhjqkJsFc_KNMYiBGmpdnyiXyG3BYIf5og_Uil1VR5ASmQUDhG9pawljcAWwkQ3v4PT8JSRJ738XpOMjysy_y1rK_UDESPn0Ih9-cp5G7PMUOtQazvm88DMJ9H8GEbP9vV5FHNJ5n3cdihg/s640/blogger-image-90330720.jpg"></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;">Here is the artist's journal I finished as a gift to celebrate my cousin and his wile's fiftieth anniversary. I will be sending it away soon, so gave it a quick camera shoot to prove I actually got some work done during the heat wave we are experiencing. The humidity has been pretty high so I've mostly worked in the early part of the day. Unfortunately, I've been having some back problems, but that, like our fleeting summer will soon pass. <div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi1RH7yd3n2t-XLbAi6JMNAomfpIQG6HC261XtWJRQstKvcHmedP007STNz9m1iHVKkIWYY-G_-1qp0yh6xk_5GrADzP_-dg7rNc4q7Tijs6Cg-7p-6EslI93yW7Zc_YddYy8ig4rvEPBbr/s640/blogger-image--643920187.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi1RH7yd3n2t-XLbAi6JMNAomfpIQG6HC261XtWJRQstKvcHmedP007STNz9m1iHVKkIWYY-G_-1qp0yh6xk_5GrADzP_-dg7rNc4q7Tijs6Cg-7p-6EslI93yW7Zc_YddYy8ig4rvEPBbr/s640/blogger-image--643920187.jpg"></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;">Here is the back view of the book. I like the colours which are not very visible on the front side. But it was important to commemorate the occasion with a few transfers which I got from my cousin's daughter. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><br></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;">Thankfully my back is quite a bit better now, just in time to prepare for the annual excursion to Sioux Narrows. I hope to complete a couple of new projects that have had to be put on the back burner due to other commitments. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><br></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;">I plan on adding some new fish characters to my inventory; some small and some of the "master angler" genre...at least as far polymer clay is concerned. There are some restrictions to work around when working with polymer...one of which is the size of the oven. I do use my kitchen oven for more sizeable sculptures, but even then one has to be conscious of the distance from the heat elements. Last week, I used my little convection/toaster oven for one of my stickmen, and protected the head in a sock to prevent it from scorching. Wouldn't you know that the cotton sock got just a little too close to the top burner. Talk about smelly socks. Good thing I was close by and able to prevent serious damage. Just a reminder not to stray too far from the oven when things are curing!</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><br></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;">And now it's back to the clay table for a few more hours. Tomorrow I will be at the Kenora Farmer's Market and am looking forward to a busy day. Just hope it isn't a scorcher!</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><br></div></div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1857513524849846059.post-86834185839331629282014-07-19T08:37:00.001-07:002014-07-19T16:51:28.317-07:00Fifty years and counting<div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhLDnaI8ddnOhlrBezsXi8pnH-5EMNMARXig1C7UgIwF489S8hZodK5klp8ovhlzkvApL21-Hj-de3TslgYhiQ3Dl4gMrDPD8RfFv13F7zo1Y6wdUwATHNTqEX87lBWok2hvEr9TPGK0oup/s640/blogger-image--1777080175.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhLDnaI8ddnOhlrBezsXi8pnH-5EMNMARXig1C7UgIwF489S8hZodK5klp8ovhlzkvApL21-Hj-de3TslgYhiQ3Dl4gMrDPD8RfFv13F7zo1Y6wdUwATHNTqEX87lBWok2hvEr9TPGK0oup/s640/blogger-image--1777080175.jpg"></a></div>I am devoting a good part of this weekend to a project that's been nearly fifty years in the making. On August first, one of my cousins and his wife will be married for fifty years, and although there's not a big hoopla, I decided to make a "book" that will have art pages inside for them to fill as they wish. <div><br></div><div>Their daughter sent me a few pictures which I've cropped and had copied, along with the wedding invitation of 1964 that my sister found in a dresser drawer. I have integrated the whole works to make the cover and then bind it Coptic style. I am miffed that we no longer have our tabletop xerox. I had to go to the print shop and when I asked for a reverse image the gal made a "negative". <span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue Light', HelveticaNeue-Light, helvetica, arial, sans-serif;">Hmmm. But on the second try she got it right and the images transferred well onto the clay. </span></div><div><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue Light', HelveticaNeue-Light, helvetica, arial, sans-serif;"><br></span></div><div><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue Light', HelveticaNeue-Light, helvetica, arial, sans-serif;">Hope to post a photo of the completed book after it's done. </span></div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1857513524849846059.post-27740308893891436852014-07-14T08:47:00.002-07:002014-07-14T08:47:23.779-07:00True ConfessionsOkay, so I feel like I am entering the Blog Confessional Booth, so here goes.<br />
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Bless me, Blogfather, for I have sinned. It has been six months to the day since my last post. (OOOOH, that sounds dreadful!)<br />
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Here are my blogsins:<br />
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- I have been busy<br />
- I have been working<br />
- I have been claying<br />
- I have been going to the Farmer's Market and doing other events<br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj1PRj6u8VzTEvBhnfwFH2jprky-oypTJxtnKSfI-nW_i8AKCwl8_6W1hZMbJ1T8r8LRPWQzSkvm4fTTqDrkIV-RdvD_GfVnRFkNDsYxEWrqHnUsBsB8GloJyUEYx3scJqA6Ju8IyEcPrxM/s1600/fairy+door+open+edit+(2).jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj1PRj6u8VzTEvBhnfwFH2jprky-oypTJxtnKSfI-nW_i8AKCwl8_6W1hZMbJ1T8r8LRPWQzSkvm4fTTqDrkIV-RdvD_GfVnRFkNDsYxEWrqHnUsBsB8GloJyUEYx3scJqA6Ju8IyEcPrxM/s1600/fairy+door+open+edit+(2).jpg" height="240" width="320" /></a>- I have had difficulty logging into this Blogger (they changed my name) and I've filled the air with blue words that frustrated me<br />
- I have been using my 'technology time' learning how to navigate my I-pad Mini<br />
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Okay now, with all that out of the way, I will post a few of the things that I have been up to.<br />
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First, now that school's out for summer, I have been able to clay away. One of the things I made on a rainy weekend, and there have been many this year, was a group of fairy doors. It took me three tries to figure out how to work the hinges so that the door opened fully. <br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhqtBcv-LAgkbXLWrN2SK_eZTMRRgbvw7veFlpeXMFbXsC95SbH_29vPuSts_IRGIOV9fRCNg0R4ZF0gp6Hk-StU9NjnjD7beQ7t-mm2fPkOoCJtqLWaHGHVEOTBFjmJiCrHx7ThFxf1GrB/s1600/fairy+door+closed(2).jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhqtBcv-LAgkbXLWrN2SK_eZTMRRgbvw7veFlpeXMFbXsC95SbH_29vPuSts_IRGIOV9fRCNg0R4ZF0gp6Hk-StU9NjnjD7beQ7t-mm2fPkOoCJtqLWaHGHVEOTBFjmJiCrHx7ThFxf1GrB/s1600/fairy+door+closed(2).jpg" height="149" width="200" /></a></div>
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I had seen this on a tutorial, but of course I didn't follow the exact steps and changed it a lot, especially the way the hinges were. Instead of using metal hinges, (which I have<em> somewhere</em> but can't find) I went with some black cording and put it through holes I drilled through the stonework and the door. For the picture, I used an inkjet print that I lacquered on both sides, so that it would be waterproof (I hope)... <br />
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The other doors that I made, are similar, but the doors only open part way. You can still see the fairy scene inside, but I tell people that these doors only open wide enough for very small fae to enter, and to keep the big bad trolls out! Works for me.<br />
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Since the 25th of June, each Wednesday we have gone to Kenora, Ontario to participate in the Farmer's Market there. It's quite a drive (two hours) but it is a lovely one, with outcroppings of the Canadian Shield interspersed with lovely lakes. Kenora itself is on Lake of the Woods, and is a beautiful resort area, although lots of folks live there year round. Sadly, the originator of the market passed away two weeks ago, but the market carries his name and it is sure to carry on for many years to come. <br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgld_1eYO2E4jVolrihJCWCCQ-YdS1nH3DsCeQTauzFrSq-NWYT3Hx5N6hHbY0FhZ7g0gU350avTd_LaZ0YGhptE8bfV0S7YtxGz2hdwIWGiOWoipVdY2sseNDYOfkoxfUrohybhXGMDSdb/s1600/Matiowski+Farmers+Market+in+Kenora+002.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgld_1eYO2E4jVolrihJCWCCQ-YdS1nH3DsCeQTauzFrSq-NWYT3Hx5N6hHbY0FhZ7g0gU350avTd_LaZ0YGhptE8bfV0S7YtxGz2hdwIWGiOWoipVdY2sseNDYOfkoxfUrohybhXGMDSdb/s1600/Matiowski+Farmers+Market+in+Kenora+002.JPG" height="240" width="320" /></a></div>
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This is the actual site along the dock, which is right in the center of the city. The big covering has sides that can close up should the weather become too inclement. It was almost necessary to close the sides last Wednesday as I was located right by the dock. The wind was playing havoc with my stands and we had a slight mishap with one of the Ikea metal folding screens tipping, but fortunately nothing broke. The polymer is really strong and I don't worry about the hanging things on the screen, because they are actually meant to be out in the elements.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiRJlPgimTuYsYUkRfPcFTBep8QbSNQw7b1_xhu5mbG7dTdUfuCznUJ0w9JpzauyzkBC0HguKgRGYHWePt39kFuZhicWiz3A1NeFkchC5pAl6_evVNOCpxqMTtuoMUoVohYoRqIPzAVPJyp/s1600/Matiowski+Farmers+Market+in+Kenora+005.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiRJlPgimTuYsYUkRfPcFTBep8QbSNQw7b1_xhu5mbG7dTdUfuCznUJ0w9JpzauyzkBC0HguKgRGYHWePt39kFuZhicWiz3A1NeFkchC5pAl6_evVNOCpxqMTtuoMUoVohYoRqIPzAVPJyp/s1600/Matiowski+Farmers+Market+in+Kenora+005.JPG" height="240" width="320" /></a></div>
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Here are a few of my buttons, and some light switch plates.</div>
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This past weekend, it rained (again) and the wind blew like crazy. So, once again, I had a little time to 'play' seeing as how our planned barbeque was not going to happen. While I was waiting for my hair to dry, I selected a random magazine from my collection. It was the first edition of "Expression"...sadly that publication has ceased to exist. In it, I found a project by Vesta Abel, and fortunately, I had the requisite supplies so I gave it a try. Of course, I changed the technique to suit my style of claying, but I did use her suggested grape vines (which I had selected from our backyard vinery some years ago) and also this incredible handmade paper that I have stashed away in my paper room. (You wouldn't believe what a paper person I am...that goes a waaaay back to when stationery had its own 'department' at Eaton's!) Maybe that explains my infatuation with handmade books--it certainly isn't the reading part, lol. In any case, here are two of the stick persons that I made yesterday:</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi5mzXJ4qN8qTEujucXLNvq_FpVYXyEJ8O6sZmerC7LzAQRWkZsA3rnj2EFddoZ4JeT47XmNKLz6DK22Qh82Hi_7hZGvb_QgHweACbJRMj6iqHmBCqQLK_bSRDEkjtEODANnvBzu-FIvC8i/s1600/july+2014+stickmen4.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi5mzXJ4qN8qTEujucXLNvq_FpVYXyEJ8O6sZmerC7LzAQRWkZsA3rnj2EFddoZ4JeT47XmNKLz6DK22Qh82Hi_7hZGvb_QgHweACbJRMj6iqHmBCqQLK_bSRDEkjtEODANnvBzu-FIvC8i/s1600/july+2014+stickmen4.jpg" height="320" width="240" /></a></div>
The above creation reminds me of Ringo...maybe that's why he has a 'starfish' (thank you Cindy Leitz) around his neck.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh-Kp67a5a8LRUzOHzdDbw3CMWZTO4q6qoKdqAb2Xh-e78iy6kGgsI6ucCOhvkieaShNcHCJMevuWJG1kJyHey2evAh39iPQyCdZfbABi0mFjt_h64CXM6KziL1k6_Z3OmlOO1sPW1AMiQw/s1600/july+2014+stickmen3.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh-Kp67a5a8LRUzOHzdDbw3CMWZTO4q6qoKdqAb2Xh-e78iy6kGgsI6ucCOhvkieaShNcHCJMevuWJG1kJyHey2evAh39iPQyCdZfbABi0mFjt_h64CXM6KziL1k6_Z3OmlOO1sPW1AMiQw/s1600/july+2014+stickmen3.jpg" height="320" width="240" /></a></div>
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This one, I've called "ADAM", with apologies to our next door neighbour. It's because of the position of the polymer leaf that's affixed to a certain region of this guy's anatomy, "EVE"n though he's fully clothed. If a person were to hang these on a window, they are 'good' on both sides, even though I haven't photographed the obverse sides.</div>
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Well, I am hoping this admittance is an acceptable act of contrition...and hopefully, it won't be another six months until my next posting.</div>
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Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1857513524849846059.post-40740884517680814802014-01-14T13:31:00.001-08:002014-01-14T13:31:40.532-08:00Mamma's got a brand new...<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEix6ZusXbaVYVlrRhRtUyaF0BdRvw25TmeBnlWI48mOTXxbJUhM2oIytH0MDkJodNDhseuwFm52gxN6d01V6Wv6lLJ-lDRyyTxDxIksLXE3-MOe13TPb57htUAN71IRsM0_GPzfhsOeg9Z-/s320/Little+bag++(2).jpg" width="232" /></div>
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So much for wanting to keep this blog up to date. Here is a sample of another little phone bag I made...the button actually sits straight, but I had to scan it to get it in here, and sometimes the scanner doesn't always co-operate. </div>
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I'll hopefully be posting a bit more, but in the meantime, I'm off to take Molly for a walk in her new little stroller. We decided to get her one, since she loves being outside here, and with her blindness, walks have been little more than a trip to the stones outside the door for her to squat and do her business. Hopefully, I can upload one of the pictures or videos of her in her little Molly Mobile.</div>
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