Saturday, November 14, 2009

More Fantasy Folded Altered Book

I have no idea how I managed to lose the days from Tuesday until today. It was just "one of those weeks" I suppose.
But, I had part of yesterday, all of today and maybe all of tomorrow all to myself!!
It's that time of year up here....DEER SEASON....where most of the men disappear from home to go stay at deer camp for 1 to 2 weeks. Oh how sad for all the women folk.......NOT!!!! However, a smart gal will put on a show like she doesn't want to be left alone for any number of days; she'd much rather have her guy stay home with her. You can't be in too much of a rush to get them packed, goodies packaged up, and shoved out the door! The women folk (in my family) are not allowed to be at camp during Deer season; we have to try to fake being upset over that, too. I mean, really, at our family camp right now are anywhere from 4 to 10 guys, eating, drinking, hunting, doing what guys do best when left alone and then all sleeping in a small cabin bunking area and on couches; the nightly sounds and smells wafting through the cabin. You get my drift....you don't wanna be there, but you pretend you're upset that women aren't allowed.
Yesterday, I waited until I saw the Explorer turn the corner and go out of eye-sight and then....I did the HAPPY DANCE!!! After that dance, I just sat for a hour or so doing nothing. No TV, no music, no scanner, no noise at all. Just perfect calm quiet. The hushness was heaven!
After sitting and reveling in the quiet, I did have supper while watching the news and after dishes, I went to the art room to watch TV and did a new page in the Fantasy Folded Altered book. Before I did the page, I was looking around in there trying to decide how to change it around to make it workable, so did some measuring and tried to see what I'd have to move out in order to make the changes. While doing that, I opened a drawer in a storage container and what did I find that had been stashed in a safe place during the last non-completed attempt to unclutter? A couple collage sheets that I knew I had, just didn't know where I FILED them. Now if I could find the rest of them that must be in another safe place! LOL!
As I said, the Fantasy book class is given by Patty Van Dorin of Tuscan Rose. In her shop she has a lot of very nice goodies, including some nice collage sheets which I had purchased earlier this year, maybe even last year. So I was just giddy to find a couple of her sheets and one of my favorites, at that!! I sat right down and played, making a new page and then started to get ideas for the next page to work on later today. Before I can play, I promised myself I would mop the kitchen floor and then further contemplate how to change the art room into a workable space.
The solution of a much bigger room/space isn't a option. We have a tiny house with tiny rooms and that's the way it is. I don't have too much "stuff ", though! No, that's not the problem at all; I have one whole room and part of another just for the heck of it! I can't even begin to say that with a straight face! And I was on eBay last week looking around; which means I have several pkgs. of art books coming my way! Can't ever have too many, right?
So for today, here's the newest page in the Fantasy book. Maybe I'll take pictures of my "oh so neat art room" later and let you see why it takes much pondering to figure out how to move it around yet again.


Tuesday, November 10, 2009

More Fantasy Folded Altered Book pictures

Before I put up today's pictures, I want to say thanks for the comments that have been left for me. They make me feel soooo good! Thank you!
I'm starting to feel better today but now everything smells and tastes like good ol' snot! Hope I get over that part soon!
We're having a week of Indian Summer here in the Northwoods and it's warm (during the day) and sun shiny and I don't even feel like going outside. I enjoy the sunshine, even just looking out the window. We go way too many days here in the Fall/Winter without a peek of sun.
Anyway, I'm going to go ahead and show the rest of the pages I have done in the Fantasy Folded altered book and then I'll decide what else to show tomorrow, maybe. I changed computers and in the transition I lost a whole heap of saved pictures. I knew it would happen; email addys and favorites were lost, too. G'rrr! I'll have to take new pictures of some other odd artsy items I have sitting around. I think I may have lost a whole heap of yard/garden pictures, too.

So here's more of the book; after these pages I still have about 10 pages to work on before doing the cover and final touches. Seems like it's taking me forever but being my first altered book there's a long learning time in there! I didn't heed one of Patty's suggested directions for choosing the right size book correctly and now it's giving me a problem! You'd think at 50+ years, I'd learn to follow directions or advice, but I never seem to get it right.....always wander off on my own, even if just slightly, and then pay the price later. That's me!

Now tell me, who can resist doing something with these "men in kilts"?
I just love these 3 lads. I giggle each time I look at it. I've used these guys recently on a piece of mail art so it's not new to one special FAIRY sister, just a different take on the same theme. I might just do this one over and over!


This is 1 page, then a half folded page and then the next page peeking in to show what's next!


and this is the next page; it's a half fold and a I guess maybe a 1/3 fold. Now you can start to see the surprise at the end starting to peek through the folds, too.


And this is 2 pages, both 1/3 page folds.
That's all I have done for now. Enough bravery for today!!

Monday, November 9, 2009

Decisions

I couldn't decide if I should or if I did, what to show today. It's a Monday, I'm still sick and I've been blog hopping, looked at so many marvelous things & ideas that now my head is really spinning. If I'd spend as much time DOING my own art as I do oogling others and trying to learn techniques, looking up supplies and books, well, then I'd have plenty of art to show! I need a sort of schedule and I need to stay away from the computer; but what wonders lurk in this beloved machine!!! One little click leads to thousands! And on top of blog hopping I dared to sneak a peek on eBay last week and look at painting books, painting patterns and other needful things. I know better, but I did it anyway! I promised myself  I'll truly get back to art everyday and even back to some painting because these books and patterns coming will give me that spark to start on the growing gift list in my head!
I did manage to do a couple pages in the Fantasy Folded Altered Book so I suppose I'll just keep showing more pages in the order that I have them done so far. Showing pictures of any art I do is a lesson in bravery, especially if I dare to show it to others than the few I dare show it to before now.
So here's a few more pages for today:







That's it for today!