Gramma's Studio

 In my last post I mentioned that my granddaughter was coming for a visit and we were going to go through the cabinets in my studio.  I also made a rash statement.....something about possibly organizing said cabinets.  😂😂😂😂😂😂

We did succeed in going through the cabinets!   

But the searching/"organizing" stopped when we found a brand new Gelli plate that just begged to be used.  

 

This thing is so much fun!!  You put acrylic paint colors on the Gelli plate, smoosh them around, make some marks through the paint, and print onto paper!  So fun and so addicting!  We spent several hours playing with this!

We really should have had a second brayer, one to apply the paint to the Gelli plate and a clean one to run over the back of the paper to make a good print.  We used a paint brush on the plate.

Some of our prints drying....

She came up with a wonderful idea for using our prints.  She is going to write Bible verses on the back of each print, then she bound them into a book by punching holes along one side and threading ribbon through the holes.  I forgot to get a picture of her bound book though! I am interested to see what Bible verses she writes in her book.

We couldn't imagine missing out on any new crafts or art supplies, so we took a road trip to Hobby Lobby and Michael's!

 

 

 

 That led to a trial run at weaving!  Since the work table in the studio was covered, we migrated into the kitchen....

                                * Notice my Christmas table cloth still on the table. 

 My Granddaughter managed to finish three projects while I am still working on my first.  She made a towel and a bed throw for her sister's dollhouse! I'm not sure what she was going to do with her 3rd project.

 

 

We had a little down time so she got comfy with the newest big Blick Art Supplies Catalog that had recently arrived......

 Gus making sure she was okay behind that catalog.  She hadn't moved except to turn the pages in a long time.

She also sent some time feeding the squirrels with Grampa!

We had a great time, laughing, making art, learning new things, playing Farkle with Grampa and just being silly.....

 

 

I love making memories!

 

Happy New Year!

 

 Welcome 2021

For all the crazy, sad things that happened this past year, we have seen so many blessings too.  We spent much more time together as a family, in person and virtually, and spent less money since we were not eating out, going to movies, or taking a vacation.  

I never dreamed I would see 2021 when I was young.  That just sounded like science fiction!  I am working this year to form a habit of reading my Bible first thing every morning.  If I wait until later in the day, so many things get in the way.  My mind is less cluttered early in the morning, and hopefully I will be able to retain more of it!

I can't wait to begin a fresh journal.  I still have a few pages to fill in my old one. I thought I would fill it with drawings of my Christmas presents.  That would be a fun way to end a crazy year.

I hope to produce more art this year. I want to finish a charcoal drawing I  started of a really cool dog I found on the internet. (I got permission from his owner who is also the photographer.)  I have more ideas than hours in a day!  One of our granddaughters is coming to help go through my huge cabinets in my studio this week. They are packed with stuff I haven't even seen in several years. No telling what we may find! I also have a large antique trunk filled to the brim with fancy fabrics, plus jars full of buttons, laces and vintage hankies I have collected from estate sales. She is a natural born organizer so I am hoping we will find some fun stuff to play with and get organized too!  It will probably require a trip to Dollar Tree for bins (and maybe some other fun stuff Haha!)  I'm sure there will be pictures to share!

 Until then.......

 

Urban Sketchers

The USk/DFW group is not meeting in person right now so our group leaders decided to challenge us to draw an interior area of our homes that included Christmas decorations.  This is my drawing of part of our living room and entry hall, showing off our Christmas tree.  

As Promised.....

 As promised, here is the facing page, finishing the Fiddlers Competition sketches at the Bowie, TX 25th Annual Bread and Chicken Festival.   The medal is the Achievement Award that my granddaughter received for competing in the contest.  The fire helmet is there because the fire station is where the contest was held.  The car was one that caught my eye at the Car Show!   I think I need to add a pumpkin or two though!

 

 

Urban Sketchers/DFW

The Dallas/Fort Worth Urban Sketchers group met, for the first time since March, for a face to face sketch outing in Historic Downtown Carrollton, TX.  It was so good to see each other's eyes, at least, and to sketch together! It was a beautiful day when we arrived, then a cold front moved in and cast a shadow and brought a cool breeze with it.  But it was still a wonderful outing!  As we were getting ready to leave, the sun came back out in all its glory!

Here are my sketches from the day.....

Fiddle Contest

 

 

 I finally finished the sketch I started as my 12 year old granddaughter competed in her first Fiddle Contest.  She just started taking lessons this year and is doing so well!  I was amazed at her confidence as she took the stage and announced her song.  I know I am biased, but she really is good!!  She was up against kids up to 18 years old that had years of practice and experience and sounded professional.  But instead of being discouraged by how good they were, she was planning to learn harder songs for the competition next year!  So, this is my sketch of the day....the 25th Annual Chicken and Bread Days Fiddlers Contest in Bowie, TX.  (And yes, I just realized that I left the L out of Fiddlers.) Haha!

There will be more about the Festival on the facing page that I will show later.  There was a car show, a pumpkin patch, food trucks and vendors all around town.  It was so much fun!   

The other thing that made this day so special is that this was the only contest this year that was not cancelled because of the pandemic!  It was wonderful to see people together and not wearing masks since it was all outdoors.  It was good medicine!  And Praise God that it was a beautiful, sunny but cool day!

 

 

Housecleaning

 My granddaughter just spent the night with us. She wanted to spend time in my studio with me, making a new leather journal for her 12th birthday. She remembered every detail about folding the paper, stitching the book together, setting rivets, everything!  I was so proud of her!  This is her new leather journal filled with Canson Mixed Media paper.....

Immediately after she finished her beautiful journal, I put her to work cleaning my house from top to bottom.  She was a trooper! She moved furniture, she vacuumed my 3 story Victorian. She scrubbed the bathtub, repaired furniture, cleaned the huge rug in the music room, hung pictures on the walls and did it all with a smile on her face!  

She even vacuumed the shingles on the roof!  Who does that for their Gramma?