Life at the kitchen table

And so, I am still at my kitchen table.  One good hip (hurray!!) and one wonky hip.  I am getting around a lot better, driving, walking around the house without my sticks, etc.  Still waiting for a surgery date for the second one.  But I know that once it's done, I'll be good to go, literally.

In the meantime, I am still taking online classes.  This is a pic I created in a class with Susan Tuttle. A class that I am just loving.  It is a composite of about 5 pictures that I took on my trip to France in 2012. Plus several filters and effects thrown on as well.  Took quite a while but it is such fun.

And as I was looking for images, going through my own blog but several years back, I notice that many many of my travel pictures have been trashed and it's even impossible to tell what some of them are.  I suppose it's people stealing photos to use as their own (?). for whatever purpose, I don't know.  It's a bit frustrating, I must say.  Not sure what the solution might be....maybe size pictures impossibly small????  What to do?  And so I suppose that means that I'm offering up this one as well.  Sigh.  I feel so picky even worrying about it.  Can't decide if it's worth worrying about or not....sorry just rambling here.

Spending hours and hours playing with these pics and the process.  The windows are open, the birds are singing, I'm going to go and pick lettuce and herbs for my salad at lunch.  It's all good.

I'll be back.

One done, one to go

So, one hip operation done, one to go.  And I am so very happy to report that everyone was right!!!  A very successful surgery and recovery.  Yay!!!  It's been two months and I am so very pleased.   My guy looked after me and treated me like a princess....I am so spoiled.  He made everything very easy for me.  So lucky.

Now, it's just a wait for the next one.  I am still hampered by my second hip, but I cannot believe that it might be possible, after all these years, to finally go for a walk!!  And it's spring.  Still not at my sewing machine or my dye pots, but that will come in time.

In the meantime, I have escaped my kitchen table, or at least, I am only there when I want to be.  And lately, I have been playing again with my watercolours.  I have taken a couple of online courses, (it's what I do, right??), one with Jane Davenport and another with Danielle Donaldson.  Both excellent.  But the one with Danielle Donaldson seemed to have hit just the right chord with me, at just the right time.  Playing with colours and doing small pieces.  A few of them are in the pic above.

I'm off to play again today.

this first one is the link for the danielle donaldson class....just scroll down the list for her class info.

http://jeanneoliver.ning.com/

http://janedavenport.com/

Jacquard fabric painting and surgery dates

OK, tomorrow is my surgery date to have the first hip replaced.  Oh my goodness, such relief.  I haven't been doing much lately, which you probably know from my lack of posts, but I have been registered in several online classes!!

I have 'taken' a class with Jane Davies on printing with the gelatin plate and collage. 'Taken'  That means that I have watched the videos that accompany the class.  Now I am 'taking' Jane's class on Color Theory.  I am also enrolled in classes with Jane Davenport and they seem to be pretty good as well. I can sit at my kitchen table and draw, at least.  And I am 'taking' a class on linocutting with Dijanne Cevaal, also very interesting.

And then there is Netflix.

I have also taken, and been able to work on, the two classes offered by the Pixeladies.  And because I have Photoshop Elements loaded on my computer (which sits on the kitchen table), I have been able to get some work done.  But it's frustrating how feeling trapped, sore, (and yes, blue) can sap one's energy, which is why I have been so absent for so long. And when I upgraded to Elements 14, I managed to import all my picture categories, but I have had to go through all my (several thousand) photos again and reassign categories to them.  (I think I must have done something wrong during the importing....not much of a tech person, alas).

 Anyway, it's meant I've been reviewing a lot of things, which has been interesting.  The above photo is of a little picture I drew onto fabric some time ago and then painted with Jacquard fabric paints.  The paints were really old but still performed beautifully.  Then just a bit of heat setting and I was good to go. Unfortunately, the paints are at the back of the closet, tucked away, and the fabric is on the bolt.  And it all feels somewhat insurmountable, the idea of bending, stretching, pulling, etc. to get out more supplies.  Can't wait until I can get back to my 'normal' routines....so looking forward to a good walk!  But that will have to wait until I have the second hip done.  But hopefully by the end of this coming summer I'll be all fixed and contemplating some lovely walks.

And now, oh my gosh, a face!  I never draw faces....but the Jane Davenport class I am taking is all about Alice in Wonderland, and she has a face!!  So here is a first attempt...this is done with pencil crayons, a medium that I have no experience with, yet!  It's fun to take on something new.  Especially now when I am wanting to be distracted.  This particular class, Wonderland, emphasizes the use of watercolour, which is why I signed up, and the pencil crayon lesson is from her class 'Supplies Me' (yes, I signed up for that one as well!) but I am sort of doing it with and 'Alice' theme.  Multi-tasking, right???

Anyway, away I go to make sure I have everything in place for when I come home from the hospital...a two-night stay only.  Thankfully my guy is here to fill the 'caregiver' role and I am so very grateful.

So, I may be absent once again (thank you for hanging in there) but when I come back, it should be with renewed spirit, and certainly renewed joints!!! Yay!

Back, but maybe not too soon.  But I'll be back.

Lots of links below.  Check them out!!!

http://origidij.blogspot.com     www.janedavenport.com   www.janedaviesstudios.com

www.pixeladies.com

Pixeladies classes and abstracting photos

I know, twice in two days, really, what is going on!!  I have been working today on the course offered by the Pixeladies and since I'm trying to not watch so much Netflix I seem to have time for other things (quelle surprise!!).  Not painting today, which I also want to do, but perhaps tomorrow.  Ok, ok, I did watch a BIT of netflix this afternoon (I'm often up by 4 and the days get SO long), but I have also done a bit of photoshop elements as well.  Baby steps.

I have been working on a photo I took in Arles last year (one year ago right now, I cannot believe how the time has flown!).  Anyway, here is a series of photos.

Starting with the original (after straightening it a bit, something else I'm learning).

And then with a few tweaks to work on gradations and ideas for fabric and stitch.

And finally a piece that might be more accessible using hand dyed fabrics in gradations of greys and that could be highlighted with stitch to enhance the finer details suggested in the pieces above.

Such a lot of fun, with tons of possibilities.  I could take out quite a lot of the details in the windows (using some of the editing ideas that the Pixeladies explain) but am thinking of other ways that one could create the look of curtains using cut back applique and stitch.  The beauty of fabric is its tactile quality and I think it would be fun to play that up here.  Now, who knows when I might ever get to this, tied as I am to my kitchen table, but at least the brain is starting to turn over a bit.  That's a start, right???

Such a fun course (you were so right, Margaret!!) and I would really recommend it.

I'll be back.

www.pixeladies.com

Rose hips and small steps

I haven't been too busy lately and here it is almost the end of October already.  Fall is moving through the garden, along with the raccoons, squirrels, deer in the front yard and (new to me, good grief) several rabbits.  Does this mean the end of my vegetables I am wondering??? I hope not. I have been told that the rabbits are after the clover in my lawn (no herbicides or pesticides, happily for them) but I am wondering about my vegetables come spring time. We shall see.

But today a friend invited me over to her place to do a bit of painting, to sort of spur each other on since we both seem to be in a bit of a slump!, and I was entranced by the rose hips outside her window.

I was delighted to see them since I had arrived at her place with absolutely no direction in mind.  But after a lovely lunch we settled down to do a bit of painting.

And then I found this pic that I did a while ago in one of Jane Davies' classes.  I am enrolled in another of her classes for next month..,hoping I can accomplish something at that time.  In the meantime I am enjoying the Pixeladies class and am starting week four tomorrow.  Which happily is a review.  I am gong to have a go at abstracting some photos in the next bit, something that they teach in one of their lessons.  We'll see. (Quite a lot of 'seeing' in this post, not a lot of doing.  Alas.  But I'll show you if I get to the 'doing' part!!)

That's it for now.  I've decided that I've been watching too much Netflix so I am cutting myself back to evenings only.  Makes for some very long days but I'm hoping to re-establish some sort of art focus.  We'll see (again, already) how well I do with that one.

I'll be back.

Photoshop Elements 14 and Pixeladies

I spent a lovely evening last week with my elder son and his family.  And my computer.  My son is a computer whiz and he spent about three hours with me uploading Windows 10 and PE 14 and other related bits and pieces.  At the same time, I was able to spend some time with my grandkids and my daughter-in-law.  But mostly it was being able to hang out with my son, bless his heart, because he is usually such a busy guy with work that the three hours were an absolute joy and very precious to me. We had a lovely visit whilst we were waiting for things (see how computer literate I am!) to download to my computer.

I had signed up for the latest beginner classes with the Pixeladies (link below) that started this past week.  And so here is my first effort with adding a watermark to one of my pics.

This is a page from a little book that I created a while ago.  I started with painted Lutradur and added all kinds of bits and pieces, then hand and machine stitched onto the work.  I'll show you some more pics next time.  In the meantime, I'm pretty chuffed with the results and really pleased with the classes (thanks, Margaret for the recommendation!).

Not much else happening, still shackled to my kitchen table with these wonky hips of mine, but each day that goes by brings me closer to my surgery (the date for which is still far away and unannounced, alas).  But I'm taking this class for the moment, then the part 2 follow-up, and I am signed up for a class with Jane Davies in November that I am determined to have a go at, even though it means standing up to do it, but I'm going to try.  ( My pharmacist tells me I can always add Tylenol to the other mix of painkillers I'm taking, but I am really reluctant to do that).  You will know if I succeed with the course because I'll post!!!

I'll be back.

http://www.pixeladies.com/

The True Cost. A documentary.

I recently watched a documentary that I think should be required viewing for everyone.  So I'm going to go right out there and suggest that you watch this one.  It's a life-changer, to be sure.  It's called The True Cost and it's about who pays the true cost for the clothing we wear.  It's about Fast Fashion, throw-away fashion, it's about Rana Plaza, and it's about the last two decades especially of the disaster that has become our consumer-oriented approach to the clothing we wear.  Did you know that the fashion industry is the second largest polluter on earth, just next to the oil industry? Shocking.

The movie is available on Netflix.  Watch it.  Watch it with your kids.  They need to know too. Check out the movie's website and watch the trailer.  Please.

www.truecostmovie.com

I have also purchased, from Amazon, the book Stitched Up.

From the back cover:  Moving between Karl Lagerfield and Karl Marx, Stitched Up delves into the alluring world of fashion, exploring class, consumerism, advertising and garment factories to reveal the beneficiaries of exploitation.

Ok, that's it for today's rant.

In other business, there hasn't really been too much other business!  I have sort of stumbled somewhat. and am still stuck at my kitchen table.  I have been doing and not doing.  Sort of in survival mode.   With this little one.

And exploring the possibilities offered by my world.

It's all good.

I have been doing lots of life drawing, but I don't expect you want to see those.  But I promise to be back shortly with more.  I'm starting to work again and so, I'll be back....

www.truecostmovie.com