Belise on paper

Seaside Town monoprint

2012-02-12T16:28:00.000-05:00

This monoprint is much larger than what I mostly create. It is approximately 8 by 20 inches. My press would not be able to print this size. The plate, and eventually pressing, were thanks to artist Sarka Buchl Stephenson. I met her last year when I took her printmaking class through the Varley Gallery in Markham, Ontario.

Detail of Seaside Town monoprint

With the clear plate over my sketch I begin to paint in the buildings I want to be blue.

This detail shows where I painted more buildings orange and red.

Merry Christmas

2011-12-23T13:17:00.003-05:00

Here are a few of the Christmas cards I sent this year. I made them on my press by simply rolling printing ink on some natural (and fairly flat!) winter greenery.

If you celebrate, have a wonderful Christmas!

Newfoundland and Labrador. Majestically modest.

2011-08-16T16:21:00.010-04:00

As I am not a writer, there is no way for me to convey, in words, the feeling I felt while traveling across the rocky island of Newfoundland for 10 days. Continuously impressed by the strength and texture of the scenery and by the warmth and unpretentiousness of it residents, I can only share a few of my 700 photos and encourage you to plan a visit to this most wonderful Canadian province.

Right Brain? Or Left Brain?

2011-05-17T12:16:00.008-04:00

I was going to tell you how right- or left-brained I am and why I have to sometimes force myself to let go when creating. But I got distracted learning about what characteristics come from which side of the brain. According to an "online" test, I discovered I am 52% right brain and 48% left brain. I find this all very amusing.

Nevertheless, the following photos show some of my latest watercolour monoprints. When I created these I really tried not to plan or overthink it. They were exercises in play. Which is good for my right brain. Or left brain?

This one welcomes some mixed media or collage.

Illustration Friday - Safari

2011-05-15T19:19:00.007-04:00

This is a quick watercolour monoprint I did for this week's Illustration Friday. The vehicle, tree and giraffe were drawn in with watercolour pencil crayon after the based coats had dried. I think the composition would have accentuated the wide open space, and have been more effective, if I had a wider plate to use.

Emerging Group Art Show

2011-04-20T13:59:00.004-04:00

The annual Emerging Group art show opened today at the MacKay Art Centre in Unionville. Three years ago this show was organized by Judy Livingston, an established watercolour and acrylics artist, as well as an enthusiastic art teacher. This year, with some guidance from Judy and her husband, Mike, the show was produced by a committee made up of five of the show's participants. So far so good.

The piece I entered into the exhibit is called Spring Returns. It is a watercolour monoprint with an additional ink drawing. At this time of the year we are waiting for the brown of winter to be replaced by squeaky, green, spring leaves. The inspiration for this piece is that spring will eventually return, and, even on the old, weathered trees will we soon see renewal of life and fresh, new leaves.

Illustration Friday - Journey

2011-04-18T13:33:00.005-04:00

Travel from "here" to "there" with many stops in between. That is my idea of journey and I illustrated it with the above suitcase dotted with old-fashioned travel stickers.

Illustration Friday - Bottled

2011-04-10T20:41:00.008-04:00

This is my contribution to this week's Illustration Friday challenge. I used my Baby Richeson Press to create this watercolour monoprint. I added some ink keylines around the bottles to highlight them a bit more.

This photograph shows the first "round" using masks to create the monoprint. Which version do you like better?

Here is a detail. I wish you could see it in person!

Too Intense: kaleidoscopes and ice

2011-03-01T10:36:00.006-05:00

I have another app on my phone which brings me pure, intense visual joy. It is a kaleidoscope app which constructs endless combinations of colour and line.

It is amazing that I have only taken photos of about 20 and not more.

Looking at these images is undescribable to me. It is a physical experience. Maybe it is like walking into a chocolate shop with rows and rows of delicious chocolate available for you. Or, like visiting a bookstore, old or new, with books you have never seen before. Or, the view from the top of a mountain or inside a cathedral. See, even my examples are trite.

And, it is not only the bright, symmetrical, computer-generated images that can move me to tears. The photos of ice below, taken by my husband while he was skating on a natural pond, also put me in awe.

Illustration Friday - Layers

2011-02-21T19:02:00.004-05:00

The subject LAYERS intrigues me. This is my contribution to Illustration Friday. I like the idea that things are not what they may seem. You need to dig through the layers to fully understand something. And, when you think you have hit the core another layer will surprise you.

Found: Brian Wildsmith books on my shelf

2011-02-15T10:33:00.009-05:00

Detail of Brian Wildsmith illustration from Professor Noah's Spaceship

Every once and a while I remind myself to move away from my computer screen, and the world of beautiful, inspirational blogs, and go look at the books on my shelves.

Last week I found our (my husband's and my) copies of Brian Wildsmith books. We have each had these illustrated gems since we were children. The earliest one was published in 1970. According to his website he has illustrated over 80 books. Please visit the following links for wonderful interviews and more information about him. I could not do this prolific, British illustrator justice by giving small biographical details in this post.

Interview by Madelyn Travis here.

Interview by Susie Mesure here.

Turning the pages of these books I was awestruck with the intense and seemingly theatrical illustrations. The colours, the lines, the shapes, the textures. Wow! Below are a few detailed samples of his illustrations.

Detail of Brian Wildsmith illustration from The Circus

Detail of Brian Wildsmith illustration from Professor Noah's Spaceship

Detail of Brian Wildsmith illustration from The Rich Man and the Shoe-maker

An Esty first for me...

2011-02-05T14:39:00.006-05:00

It was a quiet Saturday morning.

A little newspaper reading with my cup of tea.

Some hemming and hawing going on here and there.

Then, "ding". Email.

Oh, what's that, I wonder.

Ahhhhhh, orange and blue items. I love orange with blue. Scroll, scroll.

"Oh, my gosh!! Oh, my gosh!!" My young daughter rushed to the scene thinking something was wrong with me.

"One of my pieces is in an Etsy Finds email!" Wow!

That changed the day.

Thanks for post, Etsy. Thanks for the visits, everyone.

Mini kaleidoscopic creations

2011-01-28T12:44:00.009-05:00

For someone like me, who loves pattern and repetition and collects kaleidoscopes, the iPhone app SpiraSketch is pure pleasure.

I get giddy when, with a few strokes on the screen, I can create a symmetrical design with up to 24 reflections. Do I "draw" a straight line? curly line? Which direction do I go? What colour palette should I choose?

Here are some of my favourite designs I have saved.

What's Awesome?

2011-01-09T16:11:00.010-05:00

First, my family, friends and my health are awesome.

Another awesome thing is that I received The Book of Awesome from a dear friend at a late Christmas gift exchange. It was wonderful to get the book, but the awesomeness was because my friend didn't even know it was on my wish list! More treats were received including an art magazine from another friend who would never find herself in the art section of the magazine racks.

Creative iPhone/iPod apps are also awesome. When not getting to the next level of Angry Birds I am "doodling" with various apps like SpiraSketch, Meritum Paint and Brushes. Did you see David Hockney's New Yorker cover illustration last fall (Oct 2010)? It was created using the Brushes app. Fleurs Fraiches, his recent exhibition in Paris, is juicy, digital art created and displayed on iPhones and iPads. Read more about it here and here.

My true list of awesome does not end here, but the last mention for this post is: I feel it is awesome that my husband reads my blog. Last September I posted about a typewriter I painted for Illustration Friday. In the post I had commented that I would love to actually have a shiny, black, antique typewriter. To my delightful surprise I received such a typewriter from my husband for Christmas. He secretly found it through an independent seller online. It was made in Canada in 1938. And, it types beautifully.

High-tech, low-tech and thoughtfulness are awesome.

How MANY days ’til Christmas?

2010-11-16T09:07:00.012-05:00

39?! It is serious list-making time!

One of the first traditions in our family is making our Christmas cards. The year when my daughter was born I wanted to somehow include our new addition in the card. I painted four cardinals in a wreath (two parents, a growing boy and a new baby daughter). This painting has since been framed and comes out of storage at Christmas to be hung in the front hall of our house. At this point I have only visions of this years’ card. Hopefully, this weekend will be the time to get those visions tested on paper!

This weekend the four of us will also be taking our annual trip “downtown”. This trip is, in our kids' eyes, primarily to get a new piece for our growing Christmas village. For my husband and I it officially starts the season. We will begin at the Eaton Centre, a large shopping mall in downtown Toronto. The glass-ceilinged mall is not what draws us there. We could get the Christmas village addition at any department store. But, it has now become a tradition to look at the decorations, watch the children sit with Santa, and take some photos of us at the fountain.

We make a stop next door at The Bay, an old, Canadian department store in a historic, red brick building. Every year they have windows along Queen Street decorated with Christmas scenes. From there we decide whether to go east or west to shop at some wonderful, independent shops that can only be found “downtown”. And, of course, we stop for tea/coffee and a sweet indulgence.

Once home, with our son's exuberance, we start to pull the Christmas decorations out of storage. By the end of the night he will have set up this year's Christmas village. Hopefully, by the end of the weekend, I will have Christmas card production well under way.

POD Project - Food, contained

2010-10-26T16:31:00.004-04:00

The subject for this POD project was food. I took the image of flying food (that Laurel of CranberryCloud supplied to me) and placed the food (pieces) into colourful, rectangular segments. Order has been brought!

I can't stop looking at the orange leaves!

2010-10-18T19:50:00.007-04:00

Without a doubt fall is my favourite season. Here are ten reasons why:

1. Gorgeous orange, red, and yellow trees.

2. Crisp blue skies against the orange, red and yellow trees.

3. Walking through the leaves along an unraked path.

4. Apples.

5. Wearing orange scarves.

6. Picking out some pumpkins for the front porch.

7. Baked acorn squash.

8. A first fall fire in the fireplace.

9. Cool mornings that justify a warm cup of tea or coffee.

10. Chocolate and peanut butter candy bars I need to buy for Trick-or-Treaters!

POD Project - Resplendent, indeed!

2010-10-06T11:34:00.006-04:00

I am playing catch up with my POD (Point of Departure) creations. For the subject of animals, Laurel gave me a beautiful photo of a bird called a quetzal. Not knowing too much about this colourful bird I went to the web to get more info.

Resplendent quetzals live in the forests of Central America. Both the male and female have brilliant blue, green and red colouring. However, only the male has the long train formed by twin tail feathers which can grow up to three feet long. This site has more information. But, the last fact I will share here is that the currency units traded in Guatemala are called "quetzals". I found that fact to be interesting enough to include a reproduction of a paper quetzal in my piece.

I do not feel this POD to be my strongest. Yet, as discussed briefly with Laurel yesterday, our POD project is meant for us to try anything we want. Any medium, any process... to let loose with no audience or outcome in mind.

Now, I am going to practice that again with the next POD subject: food

Illustration Friday - Old-Fashioned

2010-09-27T11:52:00.004-04:00

Typewriters are old-fashioned symbols of production, correspondence and technology. I would love to have an old, black, manual typewriter as a giant paper weight in my office.

This is my contribution to this week's Illustration Friday.

What's in a name?

2010-09-25T12:29:00.005-04:00

I consider myself to have a fairly creative mind. However, when it came to titling my recent mixed media art pieces I really drew a blank!

My most recent pieces are now posted in my Etsy shop. And, you will notice, they are generically named No.1, No.2, No.3, etc. Yawn. Maybe during my morning walks next week I will brainstorm for some dynamic, humorous names for them. Stay tuned.

September Morning Walks

2010-09-21T08:55:00.006-04:00

Almost every morning of the last few weeks I have been walking around the paths not too far from our home. Yesterday, I finally remembered to bring my camera to record the glorious long shadows and bright morning sun.

Altered Books on Display at Varley Art Gallery

2010-09-15T10:32:00.004-04:00

I am thrilled that my altered book is among the twelve on display at the Varley Art Gallery in Unionville. Yesterday, I viewed the exhibition and was amazed with the quality of ideas and artistry. To protect these beautiful creations they are displayed behind glass which I completely appreciate. However, you can not help but wish you had the opportunity to journey through all the pages of every book.

Thank you to artist Judith Livingston for co-ordinating the exhibit.

Here is a peek at my altered book.

POD Project - Old tech

2010-08-29T08:14:00.002-04:00

Technology was the subject for June's POD project. The original image Laurel gave me looks like a page from a machinery textbook.

Here is my creation. I included three little rocks I recently found.

It's been a year already?

2010-08-28T17:27:00.004-04:00

Last August I posted my first blog entry. It was of a page spread from my mini sketchbook. Here is another peek into my mini sketchbook. I sketched this scene earlier in the summer when my husband and I spent a weekend away at an inn. Looking back over the summer, I think this moment was the longest time I could sit still and daydream.

POD Project - Far away fashion

2010-08-28T13:19:00.006-04:00

Fashion was the subject for the "Point of Departure" project from May. Laurel (from Cranberry Cloud blog) gave me a page from an auction guide. The image was of a Chinese Emperor's robe from the 19th century.

I've Stalled

2010-08-10T17:36:00.008-04:00

Today, this quiet summer day, is the day to clean and organize my studio. I have been going great guns for the last four hours. The floors have been swept, the computer dusted and everything that was on the floor in the studio is now on the floor outside the studio. Now I find myself checking out my favourite blogs and browsing iTunes for some new music. Oh yes, and searching book prices on alibris.com.

I guess if I have stalled here at the computer I should at least be productive and write a long overdue post.

Where have the last two months gone? They have been busy: year-end fundraising at my children's school, three family birthdays including a milestone celebration for my husband, two pro-bono design projects, two trips to Prince Edward County and planning and packing for a family trip to England.

I haven't even posted about the Artist's Alley in May. Well, it was a sunny day and I made one sale. Which was one more than I expected. For me, this first participation in Artists' Alley was all about experience. Planning. Setting up. Trying not to feel shy. And, staying cool in the heat. I will be participating again on Sunday, September 12.

I am also three (?) months overdue with the POD Project I participate in with fellow art blogger Laurel at Cranberry Cloud. (Sorry, Laurel. Better late than never, eh?) Look for POD updates soon!

Now, back to some studio organization in order to have space to create some artwork. The following are photos from the past few months.

I will be back soon!

Lisa

My booth at the Artists' Alley in May.

A piece created in May.

Another piece created this year.

A mini (10cm high) stonehenge on a beach near Picton, Ontario.

Beautiful, ancient steps in Wells, Somerset, England.

Comings and Goings

2010-05-24T21:02:00.006-04:00

Where has the month of May gone?

It has been a very busy month for me. Early in May my piece, Excessarama, was in a group show at the McKay Art Centre in Unionville. Now I am prepping for next Sunday when I will have a booth at Artists' Alley. You can find us on Robinson Street just west of Main Street.

Here is the McKay Art Centre on the night of our show reception. This was shot at a rare moment when you did not see many visitors out front. Over 120 people visited us that night!

POD Project - Flowers reformed

2010-05-02T15:31:00.007-04:00

The April subject for POD was botany. Laurel supplied me with an ancient, but not valuable, printed scene of wildflowers. If I remember correctly, she took it out of a frame she bought at a yard sale. I cut pieces from it and made my own botanical creation.

Original image.

My new image.

Jump over to Laurel's Cranberry Cloud blog and see the beautiful world she created with a giant leaf I gave her.

Excessarama is now complete!

2010-04-27T15:35:00.007-04:00

Today I am decompressing and cleaning an "excessive" amount of mess.

Over the last three days, I spent most of my time finishing a large mixed media piece called Excessarama. It has been entered in the annual juried exhibition at the Latcham Gallery in Stouffville, Ontario. I will know by tonight if it has been accepted.

The piece is a commentary on one's experience when they shop at dollar stores. When we go into a dollar (or discount) store we feel like millionaires. We can afford anything. We can buy as much as we want. Looking at an organized shelf or wall in a dollar store with all the colours and textures of the shiny, unused items, they look like economical jewels. We think to ourselves, "That looks nice. I need one of those. How many should I get? I wonder if I can find...?" We are enticed to buy stuff. I am most enticed by cheap wax paper, low-grade eyeglasses and mittens that go missing through the winter season.

Aside from the obvious questions of: Is it recyclable? Is it of good quality? Do I really need another one of these? What person in a far away country put these tiny toy pieces together for very little pay? I would like to pose the question: What if ALL we had were dollar stores (and discount stores) to buy the products we want in our lives: clothes, food, toys, furniture, computers, cars, etc?

Illustration Friday - Linked

2010-04-10T13:22:00.006-04:00

I am always attracted to the idea that everything is connected (linked).

"There is a path between any two neurons in our brain, between any two companies in the world, between any two chemicals in our body. Nothing is excluded from this highly interconnected web of life."

— Albert-Laszlo Barabasi, Physics Professor

In my piece I used watercolour, ink with a lino stamp I made, and paper. The paper was a gift from my printer on a day when it decided to spew a sheet at me with my image underneath thousands of stripes of colours. Nice effect, but how much ink was used?

Core Series all on Etsy...

2010-04-09T14:17:00.004-04:00

All twelve of my Core Series mixed media pieces are posted in my Etsy shop. Phew. Done. Yay. Now on to the next series.

My Etsy shop is now open!

2010-04-07T12:15:00.003-04:00

I have posted the first four of my original mixed media art on Etsy. The following eight will be posted over the week so be sure to come back to see them all.

POD Project - Do you dot your i's?

2010-03-31T16:05:00.005-04:00

This month's POD subject was typography. Laurel, the blogger with whom I share this project, gave me three little pages of text about typewriter keyboards. On the back of one of these pages I saw my "point of departure". It was a couple of paragraphs about why we place a dot on the i.

“It has to do with something called ‘minim confusion’. In handwriting, a minim is the small downward stroke used in m, n, i, u, and so on. In early writing there was no dot on the i, and the minims were written almost identically. This could lead to confusion in words containing a lot of minim next to each other.” An example was given: minimum. I loved how it looked without the dotted i's. Can you see the word repeated throughout my piece?

Artist Trading Card's Event No.3 -- part 2

2010-03-27T10:51:00.010-04:00

As usual the Artist Trading Card event at the Latcham Gallery was busy and exciting as 16 "traders" buzzed around the room asking "Wanna trade with me?"

Here are the cards I traded that night. You can see my favourite three cards on my flickr site.

For my friend Laurel, of Cranberry Cloud, it was a family event. Her husband John participated again and her daughter Eleanor took part in her first ATC event. I traded with each of them and they have allowed me to post their creative cards here.

Laurel's card. Be sure to view all of Laurel's cards on her site!

Eleanor's card. She did cool linear portraits with a single colour added to each. This one is called "Lime".

John's cards require installation. They come flat and you assemble the three cards on the enclosed wire to create a three dimensional piece. His series is called "Caulderizations: 2010". (John, let me know if you have a site I can link to!) Update: if you have a facebook account you can view John's cards here.

Artist Trading Card's Event No.3

2010-03-22T13:07:00.008-04:00

My first batch of ATC's. I made these in November 2008.

These are from March 2009.

This coming Wednesday I will be attending my third Artist Trading Card event. It takes place at The Latcham Gallery, a lovely public gallery in Stouffville, Ontario.

I had known about ATC's for a few years and searched online for trading events in my area, to no avail. Needless to say, when my art teacher, artist Judith Livingston informed me about the event at The Latcham I knew immediately I would be there!

For this Wednesday I have 13 cards ready to trade. I'll post photos of them later in the week.

Alex Janvier is on my list

2010-03-20T22:07:00.007-04:00

I had intended to make this post a list. With the list I would add a complimentary or, at least, an impressionable photograph from my personal collection. As I was scrolling through I came across some photos I took last July while on a trip with my family to Ottawa, Canada's capital city. The pictures are various views of a mural painted on the ceiling of a grand stairwell in the Canadian Museum of Civilization. I remember craning my neck for a long time and being awed by the work. Not having written the name of the piece or the artist at the time, today I searched "ceiling art" at the Museum of Civilization's website. I was thrilled to find an unexpected amount of information about the actual work, titled "Morning Star" by Alex Janvier.

The paragraphs state details about the "features of the painting reflecting aboriginal values and philosophies." The circles, the colours and the four quarters are among the many symbolic features of the painting. Regardless of the symbolism I was (and still am) mesmerized when I view my photos of this piece of art.

An added bonus was found at the bottom of the text: a link to his web site. I felt like how my children do on Easter morning when they hunt for chocolate eggs. I couldn't wait to find information about him and view the artwork on his site. Fed up with my oohing and aahing, my daughter pulled herself away from beside me to venture to her own inspirational whim.

We can feel great pleasure from viewing art (or photos, or people, or cinema, etc.). But sometimes something we view knocks us speechless. Alex Janvier's work did that to me. I thank him. What a gift.

Back to my idea of posting a list tonight. There will not be a list here in this post as I had planned. However, Alex Janvier is a new and very definate member of my top ten favourite visual artists.

Illustration Friday - Subterranean

2010-03-16T22:49:00.005-04:00

For my contribution to Illustration Friday I created this collage, mixed media piece. At the top, watercolour on rice paper overlaps another watercolour. The red at the top is the same paper as at the very bottom. In between are overlapping layers of coloured cover stock and some papers I printed. The white line work was done with acrylic ink.

Illustration Friday - Perspective

2010-03-02T13:31:00.007-05:00

This is my perspective on this week's Illustration Friday's subject!

For the most part, I consider myself a half-full kind of girl!

POD Project - Home

2010-02-28T14:47:00.004-05:00

The subject for February's POD project was Home. My friend, and fellow blogger, Laurel gave me a page from an old children's craft book as my "Point of Departure". The craft was to make Noah's Ark: a home for many. I should have taken a photo of the page before it was cut up. I will try to remember to do that for next month's POD project. Visit Laurel's blog to see what see did with the page I gave her.

Illustration Friday - Propagate

2010-02-21T22:18:00.002-05:00

Illustration Friday - Adrift

2010-02-17T10:47:00.004-05:00

Here is my collage for Illustration Friday. Unfortunately, the scan doesn't show the beautifully textured white Unryu tissue background.

My photo in Schmap!

2010-02-11T09:00:00.004-05:00

Back in January I received a message on my Flickr account stating one of my photos had been short-listed for inclusion in the tenth annual Schmap Boston Guide. Well, today I found out the photo has been included.

You can view the photo here. It is one of many highlighting this specific tourist attraction.

The photo is from a trip I took to Boston last fall with my family. When I look at it I am clearly reminded of the four of us slowly walking around this historical site absorbing the history and the atmosphere. It was lovely.

You can view more photos of our New England road trip here.

Illustration Friday - Muddy

2010-02-07T17:13:00.006-05:00

Here is my interpretation of this week's Illustration Friday subject: muddy.

Big corporate finances are "unclear" to me.

A New Look to Loot Bags

2010-02-03T12:25:00.005-05:00

Recently, my daughter celebrated her birthday with eight girlfriends at our house.

Together, her and I made spiffy, little loot bags for the guests. With some simple cutting and sewing we made small, felt purses. Inside we put what my daughter (and hopefully the guests) would enjoy: a homemade note booklet personalized with each girls' initial, two pencils and a pack of (colour coordinating!) candies.

It took more time to put these together than buying some bags and loot at the toy store or dollar store, but it was far more rewarding (and memorable) to make something special.

The premier POD project

2010-01-31T12:49:00.007-05:00

January is an ideal time to start a monthly project. My friend, Laurel, and I wanted to do a collaborative art project each month and came up with POD.

POD stands for Point of Departure. Every month we give each other an image (relating to the monthly theme) and that image becomes the point of departure. We each take our new, unfamiliar image and make a collage.

January's theme is jewelry.

Pop over to Laurel's blog to see what she did with her jewelry image.

Title: Connecting

Excuses revisited

2010-01-27T17:38:00.006-05:00

Well, it's been two weeks since I publicly stated three big goals. See the post here.

I decided to share some short-term goals with Laurel and came up with three to attain before our next meeting:

1. to make and post at least twelve pieces of art to my Esty store

2. to contribute at least once to Illustration Friday

3. to brush away my self-consciousness and perfectionism when it comes to making my art

What was I thinking?!? Make and post twelve pieces to my Etsy store. My Etsy store isn't even set up. I haven't painted the walls yet...

Seriously, I know goal number one is still to be attained and I am fine with that. I am well into a dozen collages. As far as getting my Etsy shop up and running... I will be very happy when the paint has dried and all I have to do is hang the art.

Goal number two will always be a goal. I really enjoy getting the Illustration Friday email every week to inform me of the new subject. Hopefully, once I am rolling with the Etsy routine I'll have more time.

Goal number three: check! I made every effort to just "do" my artwork... Go with it... Discard rubbish... Start again...

Please, stay tuned.

Listful Thinking No.1

2010-01-14T20:35:00.003-05:00

Being a planner and a collector of things, I like lists. No, I love lists. Lately, I have enjoyed roaming the blogland to read some new year's lists. Also, I can't say no to any book of lists.

Many moons ago while at school I read that making lists helps your creativity. I started a journal that was just lists: birthday presents for my sister, ideas for the next assignment, even a list of future lists. I found that journal today. What a hoot!

The following is a list from that journal. From what I can tell it is the only list I didn't create. And, it is my first Listful Thinking moment to share with you.

15 Pairs of Contradictory Proverbs

1 -- Look before you leap.

He who hesitates is lost.

2 -- If at first you don't succeed, try, try again.

Don't beat your head against a stone wall.

3 -- Absence makes the heart grow fonder.

Out of sight, out of mind.

4 -- Never put off till tomorrow what you can do today.

Don't cross the bridge till you come to it.

5 -- Two heads are better than one.

Paddle your own canoe.

6 -- Haste makes waste.

Time waits for no one.

7 -- You're never to old to learn.

You can't teach an old dog new tricks.

8 -- A word to the wise is sufficient.

Talk is cheap.

9 -- It is better to be safe than sorry.

Nothing ventured, nothing gained.

10 -- Don't look a gift horse in the mouth.

Beware of Greeks bearing gifts.

11 -- Do unto others as you would have others do unto you.

Nice guys finish last.

12 -- Hitch your wagon to a star.

Don't bite off more than you can chew.

13 -- Many hands make light work.

Too many cooks spoil the broth.

14 -- Don't judge a book by it's cover.

Clothes make the man.

15 -- The squeaky wheel gets the grease.

Silence is golden.

No More Excuses

2010-01-12T11:56:00.009-05:00

New year, new goals. My studio is clean of all Christmas paraphernalia and it is time to get back to work.

Today I had my first meeting, of the new year, with friend and fellow art-blogger Laurel of Cranberry Cloud. We meet every two weeks to share ideas and experiences with blogging and Esty stores. Although there is a lot of blogging support online it is terrific to talk face-to-face with someone (over tea, out of the studio). It feels like a creative, fast-paced brain storm session which is hard to do via emails.

I decided to share some short-term goals with Laurel and came up with three to attain before our next meeting:

1. to make and post at least twelve pieces of art to my Esty store

2. to contribute at least once to Illustration Friday

3. to brush away my self-consciousness and perfectionism when it comes to making my art

Ready... set... go!

Snowed In

2009-12-09T11:19:00.007-05:00

In the Greater Toronto Area we had an unseasonably dry November. Today, it is finally snowing. Unfortunately, it is very heavy, wet, slushy snow. Hard to shovel. Wet on the clothes.

We knew the "storm" was coming and I planned for it. Yesterday, I was out running errands and doing Christmas shopping knowing I wouldn't want to be in traffic today if I didn't have to.

So, I am in all day and quite enjoying it. We are lucky to have a wood-burning fireplace. I don't usually light a fire during the day but it seems to add to the festive projects I need to get done. Our tree needs lights before we decorate it tonight. The hidden gifts I have bought so far are in various places around the house. I need to organize them before I forget what I put where. And, I finished making our Christmas cards last night. It would be great if I could get them all signed and ready for the mail tomorrow.

Many blogs are focusing on traditions these days. Making my own Christmas cards is a tradition I have had for 15+ years. Here is a peek at our card this year. I cut the ornament from lino and used a basic black stamp pad for the ink. Then I painted it with watercolours. Time to go sign them.

Illustration Friday - Unbalanced

2009-11-19T23:27:00.001-05:00

Christmas editions

2009-11-18T23:02:00.006-05:00

Today was splurge-at-the-magazine-stand day. It happens every mid-November when the juicy Christmas editions of some of my favourite magazines hit the stands.

From top to bottom, I bought, Canadian Living, Style-At-Home, Canadian House & Home, Oprah, Martha Stewart Living, Real Simple and Country Living. Three Canadian, three American and one British.

The British one I bought, Country Living, is actually the edition before the holiday. I guess the magazines from the UK are shipped by boat, thus the delay. Country Living is a magazine I buy more than any other throughout the year. I am not a "country" girl per se. This magazine seems to highlight artisans which is the attraction for me.

Anyone who knows me can tell you I keep my magazines, especially Christmas ones, for a long time. Years. And, when I am finally ready to part with an edition, I look through it one more time and tear out any pages I want to save... gorgeous photos, lovely wrap/gift ideas, even beautiful typography. I am sure you know what I mean... like the beautiful inspiration I see daily on the fabulous blogs I peruse. It sounds as if I am talking myself out of a tradition... maybe next year I will be more engaged in this creative blogging realm and not find the desire to splurge at the newsstand. I doubt it...

Illustration Friday - Skinny

2009-11-05T18:34:00.005-05:00

My contribution to this week's Illustration Friday is a drawing of seven, from dozens of existing, skinny houses from around the world. They are located in (left to right): Canada, United States, United States, Great Britain, The Netherlands, Portugal, United States.

Inspire Me Thursday --- Mademoiselle Caroline Rivière

2009-10-30T16:35:00.005-04:00

Here is my work for this week’s contribution at Inspire Me Thursday.

My first banner

2009-10-08T11:17:00.010-04:00

Belise on Paper has been in the blogisphere for almost two months now and I think it is time to create a banner.

What to do... what to do... ?

It was probably procrastination that told me I should "print" my own paper for my banner. So, out come the printing ink, a roller, a sheet of Plexiglas and some paper (mostly Japanese Unryu tissue). For some pages my rough technique was to roll printing ink on the Plexiglas and scrape off the negative areas. For other pages I painted on the ink in a random way. I also used watercolours which bead on the Plexiglas but soak and bleed beautifully into the tissue.

Here are some examples of what I created:

This kind of project is good for me. I tried really hard to just let go and not think about what to do. My background in graphic design, where every element of design has a purpose, is still strongly part of my creative being.

I now have many new ideas for printmaking the next time.

Illustration Friday - Pattern

2009-09-30T14:47:00.005-04:00

Molecular Autumn

Here is my first contribution to Illustration Friday.

It's that time of year again...

2009-09-09T10:06:00.001-04:00

Yes, here in North America, it is back to school time. My two grade-school children started yesterday. But, it is also when I create my annual Christmas List book.

Inside at the top of each page is a name of someone I will buy (or make) a Christmas gift for. The very first page I title My Wishes. That way if someone accidentally opens up the book they won't spoil any surprises. I make it at this time of year not because I am super-keen to get started with Christmas preparations, but so I can write down any gift ideas I get and have it all in one place.

Every year I make a new cover design and print it on card stock. Six plain sheets of copy paper are used for the text pages. Two staples at the spine hold it all together. The result: a 3.5" x 7" practical booklet with 24 pages for notes.

This is my 18th consecutive Christmas List booklet.

Earth Art Exhibit

2009-08-29T11:29:00.000-04:00

Next weekend I will be visiting the Royal Botanical Gardens in Burlington, Ontario. From July 3 to October 12 at the RBG one can view the amazing Earth Art Exhibit. Many artists from around the world have created one-of-a-kind installations of art using natural materials and plants.

More information can be found here.

One of my favourite pieces from last year is called

V = B0 + B1 *D^ B2 + B3 *D^ B4 *H^ B5 by Neville Gabie.

From the program: The title of the work is the mathematical equation used by foresters to calculate the total cubic volume of wood in a tree by measuring its girth and height while it is still standing. Using this formula, science and conservation staff of the Royal Botanical Gardens calculated the total volume of this red oak (killed by gypsy moths) before it was cut down. The resulting work is the entire tree, from the largest sections of the trunk to the smallest branches, cut into cubes and packed as a solid block in its original location.

Teeny tiny doodles

2009-08-21T14:04:00.000-04:00

I really like my 4" x 6" black, hard-cover sketchbook. It fits well in my purse or bag.

In it you would find notes on current art projects, house decorating ideas, lists, sketches, etc. The above doodles I started when I wasn't thrilled with what I saw in front of me. I drew out the frames first which measure appoximately 1.5" by 1.75". Then I filled them one by one. You don't have to commit a lot of time and, if you have to stop, you can easily restart again.