Creativity, Crafts, Books, Movies, Greyhounds & Favorite Things

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My challenge for November is to paint one girl painting every day.  I’m doing this for Art Every Day Month.  I wanted to have all my backgrounds done and ready to go on November 1st, but I was a few short…13 to be exact.  So, in addition to painting girls this month, I’m also playing catch-up with my background canvases.

This week, I completed four new backgrounds.

I kept it simple and basic.

I’ll add more details later.

Art Every Day Month – Day 16

Here’s today’s girl.  Every day, I’ll start a girl painting.  Most won’t be finished, but I’ll get something started…a lot or a little or like today, a very little.

Daily Inspiration

 

Most men lead lives of quiet desperation and go to the grave with their song in them

Henry David Thoreau

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All this month on Thursdays, I’m writing down some of my school memories.  I’m doing this because I’m putting together my first little photo album.  Two weeks ago, I wrote down some journaling prompts and I’m going to use them to “free write” some of my memories.  My hope is that this will help me pick the stories I want to include in my album.  Here we go…

What did I want to be when I grew up?

I wanted to be an archaeologist, specifically an Egyptologist.  I had a book about the treasures of ancient Egypt and that’s what started my interest.  This was in junior high school.  I remember we were given a test to see what career we’d be good at.  I want the test to come back saying that I was best suited to be an archaeologist because I figured that would convince my mom that this was the career for me.  I selected answers that I thought would lead to that result.  So, the perfect career for me…FBI agent.

Who were my favorite and least favorite classmates?

My favorite classmate, my best friend, Ellen.  We met in kindergarten and we’re still friends today.  The first time I got in trouble at school was because of her.  Every day we had a “rest period” where we had to lay our heads down on our tables and rest.  We set a different tables and one day Ellen lured me over to her table for rest period.  It didn’t take much for her to lure me.  She was my new best friend and in the way of small children, I always wanted to be close to her.  Miss Cichowicz saw me, snapped her fingers at me and pointed me back to my table.

Fortunately, I didn’t have to deal with any bullying in school, but there was a little boy name Dimitri who made more than one of us cry in elementary school.  He made me cry by pushing me against a bulletin board.  From what I remember, the teacher was out of the classroom and he was acting up, so I got up to go get her and that’s when he got me.

What are my memories of my teachers?

I had good teachers all during my school years.  There were a couple stinkers, but no horror stories like I know some folks have.  One of my favorite teachers was Miss Smith, my fourth grade teacher.  I think we were her first class.  She was young, beautiful, stylish and an awesome teacher.  She was the creator of the Easter egg method of learning our times table that I told you about last week.  She made learning fun and was a great teacher.

What did I do during recess?

Hmmm…I remember getting blisters on the monkey bars.  Our playground had a lot of large oak trees and I can remember playing make-believe games around their roots, but I don’t remember anything specific.  I remember enjoying recess, but no standout memories.

Art Every Day Month – Day 15

I’m participating in Art Every Day Month.  Every day during the month of November I’m going to start a painting. Most won’t be finished, but I’ll get something started…a lot or a little.

Daily Inspiration

“Be yourself” is about the worst advice you can give some people.

Tom Masson

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Super easy, super quick, super cute.

I made a four-petal paper pattern, then cut two pieces using two different colors of felt.

Backstitch around the pieces using one strand of embroidery floss.

Place one piece on top of the other…

…and add a button to the center.  A quick, easy flower.

Art Every Day Month – Day 14

I’m participating in Art Every Day Month.  Every day during the month of November I’m going to start a painting. Most won’t be finished, but I’ll get something started…a lot or a little.

Daily Inspiration

And this, our life, exempt from public haunt, finds tongues in trees, books in the running brooks, sermons in stones, and good in everything.

William Shakespeare

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One of the things I love about reading blogs is learning about ways to help out people and pets.  Our friends over at Mayzie’s Dog Blog are hosting a fundraiser for the pets of Hurricane Sandy.

The FUN-raiser runs from November 12-17.  The proceeds will go to these 3 rescue shelters who have been working around the clock – sometimes without water or electricity – to help pets who have been through so much.

Liberty Humane Society in Jersey City

Posh Pets Rescue in New York City

Staten Island Hope Rescue

Here’s How it Works

Just click on this fundraising link and make a donation from now until this Saturday, November 17th.  You can pay with PayPal or a credit card.  That’s not all…when you make a donation you’ll be entered to win a super cool swag bag.  There’s one swag bag for kitties and one swag bag for doggies.

To learn more and see the prizes, click this link to read Mayzie’s post announcing the FUN-raiser and this link to read additional information and learn about even more prizes.

Art Every Day Month – Day 13

I’m participating in Art Every Day Month.  Every day during the month of November I’m going to start a painting. Most won’t be finished, but I’ll get something started…a lot or a little.

Daily Inspiration

A loving heart is the beginning of all knowledge.

Thomas Carlyle

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Here’s what’s been happening in my studio…

My focus the entire month of November is the Art Every Day Month challenge.

I’ve committed to starting a “girl” painting every day of the month.

Most (probably all) won’t be finished, but I want to take this opportunity to start painting again.

My goal is to paint without much thought.

Just get the creative juices flowing…

…and see what girls show up.

I like to paint the backgrounds first, with no thought about what girls will go on them.

I didn’t start November with 30 canvases, so I’m still playing “catch-up.”  This week, I painted two background canvases.

Since I’m so busy with my girl paintings, I want to keep November’s “Try This” posts simple and fun.  I love making flowers, so all this month, I’ll do a different flower every week.  Last week’s flower was a puff flower.

I also had one of my card clubs last week.  We made a Christmas card…

…that was pretty inside and out.

We also made this beautiful card for autumn.

Art Every Day Month – Day 12

This is today’s girl…

Daily Inspiration

My ideas usually come not at my desk writing but in the midst of living.

Anais Nin

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I went down to see my daughter at Purdue University this weekend.  On my way down, I stopped in Delphi, Indiana, to go to the 2nd Annual One Stop Shop.

The One Stop Shop was held at the Wabash & Erie Canal Interpretive Center.

The Wabash and Erie Canal was the longest man-made waterway in the United States (468 miles).  It stretched from Toledo, Ohio to Evansville, Indiana and linked the Great Lakes to the Ohio River.  The canal era ended by the 1870s after about 30 years of use.  The Delphi section of the canal is the only remaining accessible Indiana portion which still has water in it.  I want to visit again in the spring or summer.  You can take a tour on a replica canal boat and there are a lot of wonderful hiking trails.

I didn’t pick up much at the One Stop Shop, but I loved the photographs by Aaron Hutshell.  Aaron is an Indiana photographer who captures the beauty of our home state.  I purchased two of his photographs…one of a sunset with a farm silhouetted against the horizon and another of a sunset at Camp Tecumseh in Brookston, Indiana. Aaron is not only an exceptional photographer; he and his wife, Patricia, are establishing a not-for-profit organization, The Slave Project, to help the victims of human trafficking.  This is of interest to me because after reading The Blue Notebook, I wanted to find out more about groups that seek to help these victims.  I look forward to learning more about Aaron’s organization.

If you prefer Facebook, here are the links to Hutsell Photography and The Slave Project.

Art Every Day Month

I’m participating in Art Every Day Month.  Every day during the month of November I’m going to start a painting. Most won’t be finished, but I’ll get something started…a lot or a little.

Daily Inspiration

Givers get given to.

Russell Simmons

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Sometimes I pick up a book like this because the bargain books are less expensive than purchasing a magazine.  Also, I’m a sucker for trivia and interesting bits, so this book caught my attention.  Did you know this is how these began?

The Mad Hatter

This saying was the result of an early occupational hazard of those who made hats before the Industrial Revolution.  The hats were mostly made from animal fur, such as beaver and rabbit, with mercury, also known as quicksilver, being used in the processing.  Mercury’s harmful qualities were not realized at the time and the hatters, through frequent handling of the dangerous liquid metal, slowly absorbed it into their systems and poisoned their bodies.  The first symptoms appeared as “the shakes,” soon followed by mental aberrations.

The Barber’s Pole

The red and white striped barber’s pole is a relic from the days when barbers not only cut hair, but were also surgeons.  During the process of blood-letting, it was customary for the patient to grip a pole tight in his hand, which made the veins swell and the blood flow freely.  In the process, the pole became bloodstained which led barbers to paint the entire pole bright red, thereby concealing any actual blood.  When not in use, the pole was hung outside the shop and the barber wound bandages around it.  Eventually, the real pole and bandages were replaced with one painted red with white stripes and became a barber’s trademark.

The Piggy Bank

During the Middle Ages metal was rarely used for common household utensils as it was too expensive.  More economical was a type of clay then commonly known as pygg.  It was also used for dishes, pots and jars and eventually all earthenware was referred to as pygg.  Frugal housewives would put aside what money they could into one of these pots or jars and the container came to be known as the pyggy bank.  At some point, the origin of the term was forgotten, and when a customer ordered a pyggy bank, the potters erroneously produced a pig-shaped moneybox.  The piggy bank captured people’s imagination and caught on.

Art Every Day Month

I’m participating in Art Every Day Month.  Every day during the month of November I’m going to start a painting. Most won’t be finished, but I’ll get something started…a lot or a little

Daily Inspiration

Love is a game that two can play and both win.

Eva Gabor

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My challenge for November is to paint one girl painting every day.  I’m doing this for Art Every Day Month.  I wanted to have all my backgrounds done and ready to go on November 1st, but I was a few short…13 to be exact.  So, I’ll be working on those as I can.

This week, I finished 2…11 more to go.

Art Every Day Month

Here’s today’s painting…

Daily Inspiration

We are so accustomed to disguise ourselves to others that in the end we become disguised to ourselves.

François Duc de La Rochefoucauld

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All this month on Thursdays, I’m writing down some of my school memories.  I’m doing this because I’m putting together my first little photo album.  Last Thursday, I wrote down some journaling prompts and I’m going to use them to “free write” some of my memories.  My hope is that this will help me pick the stories I want to include in my album.  Here we go…

What schools did I attend and what were they like?

I attended four schools.  I went to Ardmore Elementary School (K-6), Coquillard Junior High School (7-8), Dickinson Middle School (9), and LaSalle High School (10-12).  My favorite school memories where in elementary school.  Ardmore was a small neighborhood school, so I was with basically the same kids from kindergarten until we “graduated” 6th grade.  I became a lot less interested in school when I went to junior high school and beyond.  I was in that group of kids that were stuck between the change from junior high schools to middle schools.  I always did well in school, but I did not like school past 6th grade.

School bus memories.

Thankfully, I don’t have many school bus memories.  I say, “thankfully” because I’m thinking that memorable school bus memories would probably be bad.  Oddly enough, my most vivid school bus memory occurred in the 1st grade.  My bus driver, Ernie, was a sober man who ran a tight ship.  For Christmas, my mom wrapped up a candy bar for me to give to him.  When I gave it to him, he smiled at me and I can remember being so surprised and a little scared because I had never seen him smile.

What was I good at in school?

I have always loved learning.  I remember loving anything to do with stories.  One favorite memory (connected with math of all things), was learning my times table in 4th grade.  It was around Easter and for every “times” we learned, we got a little white construction paper egg.  We could color it anyway we wanted and then it was glued on a chart.  We also got a jelly bean…any color we wanted, but just one.  When we finished all our times table, we got a large marshmallow egg.  I loved the whole process.  I know my multiplication table because of jelly beans and those little construction paper eggs.

What activities did I participate in?

I was in a spelling bee, 4th & 5th grade.  I was in band, 5th through 10th grade.  I played the flute.  That’s all I can think of.  Surely, I was in more than that!

Art Every Day Month

I’m participating in Art Every Day Month.  Every day during the month of November I’m going to start a painting. Most won’t be finished, but I’ll get something started…a lot or a little.

Daily Inspiration

A word is not a crystal, transparent and unchanged, it is the skin of a living thought and may vary greatly in color and content according to the  circumstances and the time in which it is used.

Oliver Wendell Holmes

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My creative time this month is consumed with painting for Art Every Day Month, so November’s “Try This” posts will be a potpourri…anything that strikes my fancy and is fun and easy.  Today, a puff flower.

Start by cutting a circle.  I used felted wool.

Sewing a running stitch around the edge, just as you would to make a yo-yo.

Pull the thread to gather the stitches and fill with fiberfill.

Using embroidery floss, stitch up through the middle of the puff, wrapping the thread around to the bottom and stitching up through the middle again.  Repeat this five times.

Finish by stitching beads to the center of the flower…

or a pretty button.

Art Every Day Month – Day 7

Here is today’s painting…

 Daily Inspiration

Time changes everything except something within us which is always surprised by change.

Thomas Hardy