Addictive little 1X1 mini artworks!!

The other day while reading my favorite blogs, I came across some wonderful little mini artworks on Chrysti's blog. She explained that they were 1x1 collage squares and that she was participating in a swap where she had to make 100!! I became obsessed with these tiny masterpieces and knew that I had to join the Yahoo Group that Chrysti belonged to and join that swap!! So, in my year of NO committments, I have joined the Altered Art Obsession Yahoo group and I have joined the 100 1x1 collage square swap AND I am having a blast making them!!! So far I created my background and I have cut it up into 100 1x1 squares and I have collaged my first 15. So---here are the first 15!!!!

Another bit of art...

My year, my number...

a little bit of art...

Me again---I'd like to welcome my good friend Sandy to the wonderful world of blogging!!!

My good friend Sandy is finally blogging!!! Please take a look at her blog "Auntie Sandy's Art". She is a talented, beautiful woman who is now sharing her art, her stories and her family.

What I've been doing besides driving Joey to and from preschool...

Several weeks ago I got together with a few of my "inner circle" art friends---I love them dearly! We attended a "work day" held by the Midwest Collage Society. The very talented Belinda came prepared to show us some very cool techniques and projects. We worked with Ranger Color Washes in an altered book format, the Jonathon Talbot collage method and my absolute FAVORITE of the day---little matchbook shrines--- Michael DeMeng style sort of!! Since then I have been industriously cranking out matchbooks!!! They are so much fun! Now I have to figure out what to do with all of them! I have scanned in a few (maybe more than a few--plus an ATC) and my collage that I made with Belinda's guidance---

OK...feeling much better now!!

Silly aren't I??? YES!!! And a bit under confident??? YES, that's me!!! I really needed to hear that somebody was really out there reading my blog---and I am happy to say that some of you dear people left comments and now I feel so much better!!! Thank you, thank you, thank you!!!

JUST WONDERING....

Is anyone reading my blog??? Please just leave a small comment---like "yes I've been here"!! PLEASE!!

Collage Round Robin

I have been participating in a Collage Round Robin for the past several months. It is being hosted by my friend Belinda (see her blog at http://alteredbelly.blogspot.com/). The project idea came from an article in the last issue of Cloth Paper Scissors magazine. The deal is this---you have five or six artists in a group and each artist does a background on a 1/2 sheet of watercolor paper. Each artist then mails their background to the next on the list and that person adds to the collage (their own interpretation---anything goes) and mails on to the next person the following month. Eventually the piece comes back home to the original artist as a finished masterpiece. The above images are the what I added to the collage in my possesion this month. The theme seemed to be "Pears" as in the fruit---but what I added was "pairs" as in eyes and guys!! Having fun and feeling creative---FOLLOWING MY BLISS!!!

Two days in a row---still trying to keep it interesting!!

I was just taking a few minutes to read a few of my favorite blogs and I came across a very fun site listed on LoneCrowArt (Laura Lein-Svencner's Blog). It is called "Make Your Own Pollock". You need to try it out---it is way too much fun!!! You also must check out Laura's blog. She is a very talented artist/teacher living here in the Chicagoland area.

Oh---and it's supposed to be interesting!!!

So I am adding a little interest!!! This is a 12x12 mixed media collage I finished a few days ago. It is a technique that I learned at Art Unraveled in a class taught by Gail Russakov . The class was called "Tasty Textured Squares" and it was fabulous!! It was my very favorite class and I will use this technique often. I will post a pic of the original piece that I completed in her class (that one was orange---you know, my very FAVORITE color!!).

I was reading (and thinking) last night....

I was laying in bed last night reading the new issue of Somerset Studio magazine when I came upon an article about blogging. It pointed out that in order to have a SUCCESSFUL blog (one that is read by lots of people), you have to UPDATE your blog often. As you can tell---I have not been doing this consistantly. I would really, really like to have a super, duper blog that lots of people read. Hmmm...guess I need to re-think what I've been doing here and make some changes!! Can I do it??? Blog more often??? What a challenge!!! I think I will try!