5 Minutes of Clean House

 This moment won't last, but I will enjoy it for now. My house is clean. 

With two children and a dog, this clean moment is fleeting. 

The housework cycle will continue.  

I could get discouraged. I usually do. But not at this moment.

I googled housekeeping quotes and most of them are what I expected; sarcastic humor masking complaint. But I found a few that made me smile.

I am thankful for a lawn that needs mowing, windows that need cleaning and gutters that need fixing because it means I have a home.... I am thankful for the piles of laundry and ironing because it means my loved ones are nearby.  ~Nancie J. Carmody

I got the blues thinking of the future, so I left off and made some marmalade.  It's amazing how it cheers one up to shred oranges and scrub the floor.  ~D.H. Lawrence

I'm going to try to remember D.H. the next time I am scrubbing something.

8 is Great

When I was 8, one of my favorite books was a Valentine's Day book by Tomie DePaola.

I am sure I bought it with a sweaty handful of change at the Scholastic Book Fair. I looked through that book all year long and dreamed about little parties I might have with my friends. We would make Valentines and eat cookies and make dough necklaces and play heart-themed games. We would look just like Tomie DePaola kids.

Although my mom did a stellar job of keeping my sister and me entertained with crafts and cookies and dough projects, we never got around to having a Valentine's Day party.
Over thirty years later, my 8 year old daughter picked this book out of a stack of someone's discards. I am delighted that she too is in love with this book. She too dreams of the little Tomie DePaola Valentine's Day celebration.
In the spirit of Tomie DePaola, we had our own little Valentine's Day craft time. We made felt heart pins. Her joy was a thrill to see.

Thanks Tomie!

Adding Shapes to Layers

Collage update: Shapes have appeared. 
I am going to call this piece "Relics."

The free online dictionary defines relic: 

Something that has survived the passage of time, 

especially an object or custom whose original culture has disappeared.

What do you see? 

Belt Buckle?

Seed Pod?

Erector Set Piece?

Comb?

Hair Pin?

Where were these relics found? 

Under a couch cushion? 

In a vacuum bag? 

On another planet? 

In the dirt 100 years from now?

And who found them?

"Try as you will, you cannot annihilate that eternal relic of the human heart, love."
Victor Hugo

I am going to sit with the piece for a while. Not sure if it is done yet. 

It doesn't feel done. Not sure what needs to happen next.

So we sit and look at each other for a while.

Balancing the Stack

How we hold on.

Things.

People.

Ideas.

Beliefs.

Guilt.

Hopes.

Hurts.

Memories.

Sometimes I'll do almost anything to keep everything in its place.

Balance.

Stack.

Wrap.

Tape.

Rope.

The result?

Immobility.

So what does the shiny red circle represent?

Perhaps it is the part worth keeping.

Changing Shapes

I repeatedly use these cardboard shapes as stencils in my paintings and collages. A few weeks ago, I decided to convert them into collage pieces themselves. I started by covering the pieces in old textbook pages, sheet music, or maps.

Today I will begin adding layers over the paper. First step, a light coat of gesso.

 

This is my favorite shape. I don't know what it is. Perhaps a piece of metal from an obsolete machine. Perhaps a pod from an extinct plant. I just like the curves. 

I like it so much, I did one piece using only this shape. 

Stay tuned for evolving shapes.

Snow Day Number 2

Day 2 snowed in. This rarely happens in Atlanta. Starting to feel a little cagey. 

Had a little trouble focusing today. Some of the highlights...

1) Made another valentine. Put it in my shop.

2) Used up a pack of recipe cards. I stitched lots of different shapes and cut them out for later collage projects. I just need to add paint and more paper bits to turn these into clock faces or other images.

3) Made a nice discovery. Ghirardelli chocolate bags make really cool metallic accent pieces when sewn (and they smell good.)

Don't these sewn pieces look like painted tin? 

Just learned we will be home again tomorrow. Squirrelly alert.

CraMWO Project #6: Make a Valentine

A snowy day. Kids out of school. Just feeling like a Valentine today. 

This one is about 3 inches high and has a little bit of stuffing in it. 

I think I will stick it in my Etsy shop. 

If no one buys it, perhaps I will just keep it for days when I am feeling low. 

Hey, I like you.