Wandering Star

Apart from major computer aggravation (mine has died, RIP) things are clipping along at a very fast pace. Molly is graduating this week, work is crazy busy, and I had the most wonderful weekend taking a class with Michael de Meng (the weekend before last, slight delay in reporting due to said computer issues). This past weekend there was far less on the calendar, so I was able to spend time getting inky and painted, made a bunch of cards and finished my de Meng inspired frame.

This photo is my grandfather, he had the photo taken to send to my grandmother, who he was courting at the time. I turned up at the class with several different photos and bags of bits and pieces to play with, but this is the one that 'spoke' to me. I'm really happy with the way it turned out in the end. There are lots of little details, but the general theme is communication, love, peace, and ruminations along those lines. The toy soldiers were adopted from my son's old toy box, with a little painted magic they look a lot like scrimshaw, how perfect, sailors used to carve ivory while on their long journeys. OK, yeah, scrimshaw carving is probably somewhat before my granfather's time, but he did send home carved ivory, tea sets so delicate you could see through the china, and treasures of all sorts from his adventures.
I didn't feel the frame was 'finished' as it was at the end of the class, but now that I've added text and map pieces to the frame I'm a happy camper. Also, I needed to muddy up the poppy a little more, it was too bright. In it's new layers of ink, paint, and stamped text and crackle texture, it just looks much better to me. The hand holding the test tube is one of my son's old GI Joes, it has these cool articulated fingers, sorry Joe, but you really do make me happy in your new format, and I pledge to use the rest of your bits for other projects, OK?

My friend Mary and I had a blast, mega thanks to Michael for being so generous with information and time, and to fellow class members for being a very diverse and interesting bunch, it was a real treat to take the class. At the end of the class we 'toured' everyone's creations, it was amazing to see the variety of the pieces everyone had made, wow! Thanks also to Tamara at Zinnia, she's a very welcoming host and Zinnia is a most unique store, if you're in the neighborhood of South Pasadena at any point you NEED to check it out!
Oh, one more thing, a confession. A couple of weeks ago I waffled on about how I should be spending time cleaning up my studio, but to be honest, I don't like clean, tidy studios at all. I love creative clutter, always have. I sometimes feel that I should really desire to be a spotlessly tidy kinda gal in order to please others, but it's just not likely to happen, it's other folk's dream, but not mine. The upside of this is that I didn't have to go to one single store before the class, I had everything I needed - tools, materials, frame, toys, everything - right here in my own little paradise. AND the other people who turned up for this class had their own collections of odd stuff stored in bags, boxes, and sometimes in sorted containers - aha, the joy of finding like souls in the universe, there's nothing quite like that. I am not SO weird after all, or there are plenty of other weirdos just like me out there, either way I feel so validated :) I did find a couple of fun items for my next art journal project at Zinnia though, and picked up a few of the Golden paint colors this weekend to mix up the 'uuzsh' . Now where's that photo of my grandmother, I know there's another frame in here somewhere ... :)

The moral of this story? Never throw anything out. You NEED it :)