Mini kaleidoscopic creations

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?

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?

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

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!

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!

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

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?

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

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

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

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?

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.