I am thankful for many things this year: my family and friends, my health, a loving home, and the ability to work in a career that I truly adore. I've read that if you choose a job you love, you will never have to work a day in your life. I feel so blessed to be able to get up every day and create, to play, to interact with creative and kind people. Thank you for supporting me in doing what I love.
Suzanne
Robbie's New Coat
While rubber stamping is my first love, I adore creating art of all kinds. It is too easy to fall into a comfortable rut by only "doing what you know". To keep things fresh, I sign up for classes and challenges that don't necessarily involve rubber. One of the groups I belong to is an altered book round robin. About 20 of us meet once a month to show our work, swap books and learn from each other. I always look forward to ABC (altered book club) night! The theme of the book I'm working on this week is "Family portraits: Real or imagined". Since it is the week of Halloween, I decided to go with the "imagined" part. Above is the portrait I'm including in my layout. "Robbie" was so much fun to create, that I may have to make him a little sister. Happy Halloween week!
Suzanne
Creative slumps are the worst. Creating art is always uplifting to me, so why is it that when I need it the most, it doesn't come naturally? If I am not happy, there is just no point in going to the table. I can't force it. If the slump is extended however, I start taking art classes.
It doesn't matter the subject, if I commit the time and money my body will be there. With a class, I don't have to do all the work. I show up. There is a set project, a set schedule. There is someone able to direct my efforts and give suggestions and encouragement. Most of the time inspiration will strike. Usually it will come in the form of rebellion.
I never want to do a project exactly as directed. I want to make it "mine". I try to take the experience and push the limits. I want to experiment. What exactly can I do to the project to bring it one step from the brink of failure? (Sometimes I don't recognize that line until I've crossed it!)
Today, I was stretching. I attended an encaustic workshop with a dozen local artists. Painting is not my strong suit and the majority of the other students had impressive art backgrounds. I am used to being one of the more experienced participants in a group, but I was totally out-gunned. Those talented women were turning out painterly masterpieces - I went out into the parking lot and picked up trash. Collage is my comfort zone and so I fell back to what makes me happy. And I was happy, all day long. I came home with new skills and a renewed interest that I hope will carry over into my own studio play. My encaustic collage is above.
Suzanne
Last week, I got an unexpected gift during a difficult time. I got a box full of handmade greeting cards - 15 years worth.
Many of us started stamping by making greeting cards. I started making cards in 1996. At the beginning I thought I'd make two of each card so I would always have a reference. After a while, I decided that I didn't need a copy of everything. My taste and style were changing rapidly. I didn't need to be reminded of my clumsy attempts.
Then, when I least expected it, my early work came back to me. I lost both my Father-in-law and my Mother-in-Law in a few short months. I loved them like parents and they treated me like a daughter - so much so that they apparently saved everything I ever made them. I was so moved. Not only did I get to check out my attempts at embossing, I got to read the old letters I had enclosed. It was like finding a journal that I didn't remember writing - little snapshots of my life over the years. What a blessing! I cherish those early cards now and plan to keep them - smudges, crooked corners, and all.
(The above card is from my "House Mouse" phase)
Suzanne Melvin
As much as I was anticipating Christmas this season, I am happy it is in the past. The month of December was a blur! There were so many Holiday projects I wanted to tackle. I was going to make handmade ornaments. I was going to fashion a huge netted wreath for my front door. I was going to convert burlap sacks into pillows!
Reality downsized my grandiose plans a bit. I did make some ornaments. Last year my friend Shelly Hickox showed me how to alter those little floral mushroom birds. I had few left over and I pulled out my "snowman box" from the closet. (The "snowman box" is filled with only white and glittery accents, perfect for making snowy christmas crafts.) I painted the little birds and coated them with glue. Each got a unique blend of white glitter, flocking, and feathers. Each ornament got a different topper. (Princess bird and party bird are pictured above.)
For the wreath project, I bought those huge rolls of floral netting in bright green and white. The salesman told me that the netting practically tied itself. What I believe he actually meant was it is impossible to get the stuff to lay flat. I ended up tying fist-fulls to the mailbox and calling it a bow. The wreath concept was beyond my abilities. I finally broke down and watched a few YouTube videos and leaned the secret was to use a "wreath frame". Oh well, next year!
The pillow idea fell completely flat. I had the BEST burlap coffee bags with green and red graphics to use for pillows. I couldn't decide how to cut them to keep them from raveling out. I also couldn't decide which graphics to sacrifice when making a square out of a rectangle and indecision ruled the day. Rather than hack up the bags and hope for the best - like I did the floral net - I put the project off. And put it off, until it was too close to Christmas to get any enjoyment from them. By Christmas day, I was ready to pack everything away.
I am ready for the New Year, now! I always approach January with a sense of optimism. It is a fresh start, Spring is around the corner. It is time for new resolutions and change. You may have noticed I switched up the look of my blog. I am also making a change to the Oxford Impressions website. I will have an updated website with a new look in a couple of weeks. I am pretty excited! I will let you know when the new site is ready!
Take care and have a Happy New Year!
Suzanne
I must confess. My good intentions about decorating early dissipated in the wake of gift shopping. I still do not have a Christmas tree up! I'm chagrined. I thought by stating my plan, I had a better chance of making it happen. Nope. Of course it is not too late to decorate for the holidays, it is just too late to have decorated early. "Early" is over.
If I could just point to a pile of gifts and feel justified about the delay in decorating, it would make me feel a bit better. However, my big Friday spree resulted in presents only for myself! I bought a YuDu home screen printing device. It was half price and I convinced myself at the store that my daughters would enjoy it. I could give it to them as a gift and still play with it myself. The plan might have held up a bit longer if they hadn't "discovered" the giant box in the back of my car that same day. My youngest immediately pointed out that I would probably only use it once or twice and then put it out in the garage with the unused kiln from last year. My oldest inquired if I had looked into using the web store "CafePress" if I was so eager to design my own t-shirts.
Since my daughters are clearly not interested in the screen printer, I am in a quandary. Do I keep it for myself or take it back? Yes, I'd like to play with it. Is it worth the money? Is it worth the effort? Am I really going to start wearing graphic t-shirts?! One day I'm convinced it is a waste of time and money and the next I'm not so sure. If anyone has any YuDu experience, I'd love to hear about it. My receipts are taped to the refrigerator awaiting a decision! Help!
Suzanne
