Friday, January 30, 2009

what's in a name?

i've been visiting hundreds of blogs since the start of owoh
and have noticed many people wondering about
how their blog got it's name
most of my regular bloggers are friends ,
so they know the answer or i've never asked
my website is all pulped out
i've always loved paper and started making
papier mache in the early '90's
i was making a lot of home decor items and
was enjoying it very much
i made my own pulp, sculpted each item, added wire ,
painted or decoupage
by '96 i was attending a huge craft show
and needed to make a ton
so i invited all my girlfriends to my house for a "margarita" party
and asked them each to bring a blender
well before you knew it, drinks and pulp where flying everywhere
at the end of the nite i was taking a break
and one of my friends said
"hey, get back to work" and i replied "i'm all pulped out"
and she said "that's it! that's your name!"
since then my art has evolved , working on collage,
mixed media ,assemblage and jewelry
i've taken many classes, here in toronto, at
so when i started my blog i called it
the evolution of nancy
lately i've been concentrating on my digital work and encaustic
i promised on my owoh giveaway that i would make 150 art cards
and something special for all my followers
well, out came the paper and i started to collage again
i'm so happy to be knee deep in paper and covered with glue!
the above is one of a series called "countries roads"



Wednesday, January 28, 2009

finding my muse

i need to find my creative muse, agnes
she usually shows up around the full moon
but i can't wait that long
i need to make 150 cards to send out
to my owoh blogger friends
the gypsy caravan list is up over 680
i wish i could make that many cards
i've spent a lot of time
surfing through all their blogs
and now need to quite my mind, find agnes
and get to work on some cards
i'm glad its snowing
now i have no excuses
above is a photo that
takes me to a peaceful place
it's the lonely cyprus tree
on the number one hwy
just south of carmel, ca

Monday, January 26, 2009

encaustic class

i worked on several projects today
trying to learn some patience!
above is a background done mostly by
my teacher mona, as a demo
showing me how to create a multi colored
textured background using hot and cold wax
i will try to add a photo transfer to this one
we're not sure if it will work out
due to the chemicals in the cold wax
but that's what the class is for
experimenting

another one of my projects
not sure if it is done
but don't know what it needs?
the background is a map then
a photo transfer and some black wax
to fill in the rest
i'll work on it some more
when i find out what it's missing



Sunday, January 25, 2009

tomorrows class

last week was my first day back to school
i'm taking the same encaustic class as last year
12 weeks, three hour classes
i just felt i need more time with the medium before
moving on to something else
that's what i usually do
i have to know how something is done
but the more i researched the more i realize
i've just touched the surface of what can be done with wax
looking through my "texture" file
gave me some great ideas for
some experiments in class tomorrow
not sure how it will work out but i'd like to try
the one above is from a picture of a metal door
i found on queen st. west
played a little in ps
and added one of my photos on top
i have three projects to finish from last week
so i hoping to at least start working on this
i'll let you know tomorrow what i've done

Friday, January 23, 2009

another day

one goal i set for 2009
was to spend more time on the computer
since the start of owoh
i've done just that
hours spent looking at so many wonderful blogs
getting lost in "links"
learning about so many people, foreign lands,
seeing some fabulous art, discovering new things,
new music and lots and lots of widgets!
i hope i have a chance to get to all the participants
above is another project in ps
the background is a picture of my hot plate
that i use in my encaustic class
i enhanced the b/c and warped it alittle
i thought it make a cool sky
so i added my beach trees on top
tried a million things to it but liked it just this simple

Thursday, January 22, 2009

decompressing

i'm still overwhelmed with all the responses
from everyone participating in owoh
so to clear my head
i went for a walk on the beach
yes , i know it's -12c
but it cleared my mind
i got a good dose of vitium d
and the sound of the waves, soothed me
and i managed to get some great tree photos
when i got home i played in ps
i used a texture, a film strip frame,
some text and one of my tree photos
layered and played with the blending modes
so to clear so when i gotwhen whenwhei got h texture, my photo
and a film strip frame

Tuesday, January 20, 2009

one world, big heart!

yesterday i posted for owoh
went out all day
came home and checked my blog
and i had over 60 comments
WOW
that was the first day
it took me all night to go through every one!
then visit their blogs and i haven't
been to owoh links list yet!
everyone has been so kind with their comments
i will be blessed with some wonderful friends
i'd better get to work
i promised everyone at least an art card!
(i decided to add a limit of 150 only after i did the math)
(i my have to enlist the help of my friends)
thank goodness i have 3 weeks
it will help get me through this crazy winter!

Monday, January 19, 2009

one world one heart

Photo



well today is the day
where bloggers get to meet new friends
so to all my new friends
thanks for stopping by
and i hope you enjoy
please add a comment below
with your link so i can visit you

this is the prize to drawn on feb.12th
i think everyone deserves a prize
so i'm working on some hand made art cards
as a thank-you to all (limit 150 cards to be made)
also, anyone who adds to my "followers"
will be added to my links list
thanks again, nancy

link back to my main page

link to my photograpy

some of my art

my jewelry

Saturday, January 17, 2009

waiting for spring

during this deep freeze
i've been dreaming of my garden
because i work from home
i really don't have to go outside
i don't mind hibernating
i get a lot done in the house
cleaning and purging
organizing and re-organizing
my taxes are ready to go
i even have time to take up sketching again
only 62 more days 'til spring!

Thursday, January 15, 2009

urban art

another found collage
so simple but effective
with just a click of a button and a
a simple group of posters becomes
and eerie image
and an added ttv

Tuesday, January 13, 2009

found collage

while wondering the streets yesterday after class
against the white backdrop of the piles of snow
i noticed a lot of "urban decay"
it seems that no surface is sacred
above is a shot from a utility box
several layers of posters and flyer's
faded and torn
it was the image of the woman that caught my eye
after playing around in ps
adding several of my own layers
of texture, grid and stamp
i'm happy with the results

Monday, January 12, 2009

one world one heart

just a "heads up"
next monday is the start of owoh
and event started a few years ago in the blog world
and was featured in artful blogger
it a great way to meet other bloggers and
there are prizes!
i will have a great giveaway posted on the 19th
all you will have to do is leave a comment to enter the draw
and the winner will be drawn on feb. 12th
so stay tuned................

Friday, January 9, 2009

getting organized


for the past few days i've been combing
through all my photos
now i have more folders than before
but it was necessary
i mean, i have a good memory and can usually find
what i'm looking for........eventually!
but now i have it fresh in my mind and
have found some "long forgotten" ones
i started a "texture" file and now have over
700 photos and i'm sure to find more
i've posted some of my favorite ones on flickr
above is one of my favorite angel photos
and the background is from an old truck
the door(seen below) was just covered with rust
i played with the hue/saturation in ps


Thursday, January 8, 2009

steel and stone

my first jewelry class was at art unraveled
back in the summer of 06
steel and stone was the name of the class
taught by richard salley
a wonderful man and a great teacher
he has just started a blog
if you ever get a chance to take one of his classes, do,
you will never regret it
when i got home from arizona i was charged
i would love to take another one of his classes

Wednesday, January 7, 2009

good question?

i think i will enlarge this picture
and keep it hanging so i can see everyday!
i took this picture in the fall while
wondering the streets of nyc
i have so many photos that i've always
wanted to take the time and organize them
so today is the "when"
i have many "cool and interesting" photos
of signs, grunge and urban decay, the sky, trees
found objects and small details
i know this will take some time
i have 47 folders with 93 sub folders
to go through
since making the switch from film to digital
my inventory has grown immensely
it will be fun to find some "long forgotten"
photos that i can play with in ps
oohhhh there's a new folder!
if i get lost in the files,
will someone find me?!!!

Monday, January 5, 2009

morning walk

"one kind word can
warm three winter months"
japanese proverb
this makes winter bearable!
a view of lake ontario at
the bottom of silverbirch ave.

Saturday, January 3, 2009

try and try again

after yesterdays post
i was wondering "how did i do that?"
it's been 2 years since i created that one
i've learned a lot since then
one thing is to save every stage!
so i figured since i did it once i could do it again
first step, find the pictures i used
one was from alcatraz ( a great source for decay)
and the second from a light house near pacifica
just outside san francisco
second step , which i always do
play with the hue/saturation
the brightness/contrast
and shadows/highlights
plus i aways have to see what a picture looks like in b/w

step 3 is adding color
just for fun and to give some contrast
step 4 layer one on top of the other and
use the "multiply" blending mode
find the right positioning and crop and save
then the fun begins
i love to try on every mode
just to see what happens
below are just a few alternatives from the original


you never know what will happen after playing in ps



Friday, January 2, 2009

been there, done that

i've seen this list several times
it was interesting to see how many i've done(in bold)
things i would like to do(italicize)
and things i haven't done, don't want to do or just can't
understand why they were put on the list( regular font)

1. started your own blog ( so glad i did)
2. slept under the stars (several times in the b.c. rockies)
3. played in a band
4. visited Hawaii
5. watched a meteor shower
6. given more than you can afford to charity
7. been to a Disney theme park
8. climbed a mountain (one of my favorite memories)
9. held a praying mantis(i was a tomboy and held many insects)
10. sang a solo
11. bungee jumped
12. visited Paris(would love to visit again)
13. watched a lightning storm at sea
14. taught yourself an art from scratch
15. adopted a child
16. had food poisoning(hopefully never again)
17. walked to the top of the Statue of Liberty
18. grown your own vegetables
19. seen the Mona Lisa
20. slept on an overnight train(from paris to barcelona)
21. had a pillow fight
22. hitch hiked(many times and lived to tell about)
23. taken a sick day when you’re not ill
24. built a snow fort
25. held a lamb
26. gone skinny dipping
27. run a marathon
28. ridden a gondola in Venice
29. seen a total eclipse of the sun
30. watched a sunrise or sunset(as often as i can)
31. hit a home run(only once)
32. been on a cruise
33. been to Niagara Falls
34. visited the birthplace of your ancestors(ireland and scotland)
35. seen an Amish community
36. taught yourself a new language
37. had enough money to be truly satisfied
38. seen the leaning tower of Pisa
39. gone rock climbing
40. seen Michelangelo's David
41. sung karaoke(and apologize)
42. seen Old Faithful geyser erupt
43. bought a stranger a meal in a restaurant
44. visited Africa
45. walked on a beach by moonlight(my favorite)
46. been transported in an ambulance
47. had your portrait painted(actually sketched)
48. gone deep sea fishing
49. seen the Sistine Chapel(when it was half way cleaned)
50. been to the top of the Eiffel Tower
51. gone scuba diving or snorkeling
52. kissed in the rain
53. played in the mud(again the tomboy thing)
54. gone to a drive-in theatre
55. been in a movie
56. visited the great wall of China
57. started a business(several)
58. taken a martial arts class
59. visited Russia
60. served at a soup kitchen
61. sold Girl Scout cookies(not as a girl scout or guide)
62. gone whale watching
63. gotten flowers for no reason
64. donated blood
65. gone sky diving
66. visited a concentration camp
67. bounced a check
68. flown in a helicopter
69. saved a favorite childhood toy
70. visited the Lincoln memorial
71. eaten caviar
72. pieced a quilt
73. stood in Times Square
74. toured the Everglades
75. been fired from a job
76. seen the changing of the guard in London
77. broken a bone
78.been on a speeding motorcycle(driven)
79. seen the Grand Canyon(twice, loved it)
80. published a book
81. visited the Vatican(drank wine on the steps,
seen the pieta`, cried)
82. bought a brand new car
83. walked in Jerusalem
84. had your picture in the newspaper
85. read the entire bible
86. visited the White House
87. killed and prepared an animal for eating
88. had chickenpox
89. saved someone’s life
90. sat on a jury
91. met someone famous
92. joined a book club
93. lost a loved one(too many)
94. had a baby
95. seen the Alamo in person
96. swum in the great Salt Lake
97. been involved in a law suit
98. owned a cell phone(not by choice)
99. been stung by a bee
 
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