Mom's House (Part 2)

Happy New Year!!  Last year I wrote a blog post on my mother's creativity.  There is more to share and below are some examples of her work I saw when I visited at Christmas.  Over the fireplace my mom placed empty wine bottles she spray painted and added magnolia leaves for a nice greenery display for Christmas.  She also took an old wooden pallet and spray painted the word "flowers" to put in her garden.  Lastly, in the dining room she took off the top part of a standing lamp and placed a potted plant on it.  In that same room the chandelier is covered with mini lampshades she found at a hardware store.  ~ JM

Spray painted wine bottles with magnolia leaves.

Wooden pallet used as a display for the garden.

Standing lamp base with potted plant.  Also, chandelier with lampshades.

Thumb print turkeys

I made the cute little turkeys with the kiddos for Thanksgiving. Super easy and super cute! I found this idea on Pinterest and then added the frame and ribbon.

Sweater Mittens

After eating too many slices of sweet potato pie my sweater no longer fitted so I decided to make mittens out of it.  😛

Directions:  1.) Turn the sweater inside-out 2.) Trace your hand on the sweater with a marker for the mitten pattern. 3.) Cut out the pattern.  4.) Sew the perimeter 5.) Turn the finish product right side-out. (I saw this idea on Pinterest.)


Below is what I made.

 ~ JM

mandarin orange pumpkin patch

Tomorrow my preschool class will get to pick a special treat out of the "pumpkin patch" I saw this idea on a coupon for the oranges and then added the addition of the stems.

Writing Workshop: Sylvia Plath

I attended another writing workshop at the National Portrait Gallery.  This time the theme focused on the visual artist, novelist and poet Sylvia Plath.  To learn more on this fascinating woman click on this Smithsonian website.

Plath responded with the traumas of her life through her work.   He voice oscillated from light to dark, joy to despair.

Plath did her dissertation on Fyodor Dostoevsky who wrote a short story called The Double. (Click here for the summary) This short story relates to writing prompt #1.

Writing Prompt #1:  Write a story from the first-person perspective in which a character has an alter ego or a double.  How do the two personalities interact?  How are they different and similar?

Writing Prompt #2:  Imagine your version of an idyllic scene, whether it is real or literary.  How does your idyllic scene look and smell?  Who lives there and what do they do?  What makes it feel special?

Writing Prompt #3:  Look at Plath's visual art self-portraits.  Compare and contrast the images she created of herself.  Free write (fiction, nonfiction, or poetry) in response.

My response to #3:  Sitting in the orchard on a cold, blistery day.  The darkness and storm  approaching but I don't know where to go.  I reached out for help, wondering if anyone will come.  Sitting here waiting.  A swirl of the unknown, there is uncertainty in this place.  My eyes cannot see but I know what is out there.  A world full of pain but also hope.  I feel color, warmth but also shadow, darkness and loneliness.  What is out there?  Is it friendly? Approachable? Inviting?  I will go, experience it and see.   - JM

A screen shot of Plath's self-portrait.

I love rocks

This is one of my favorite rocks that I brought home from a recent trip to Missouri.  I thought it would be perfect to fill with water, like a little pond.  I then found the cutest little deer to come to visit the pond :)

Paint This and That

I like the look of block colors and so I painted four squares with bold color and glued paper leaves on the top of the canvas.  For the second project, I used enamel paint to decorate a small glass vase. -JM

Water color paint and colorful paper leaves on canvas.

Enamel paint on glass.

Architecture Photography | Cityscape Drawing

In the beginning of the summer I was in NYC and took pictures of the wonderful buildings in the Meat Packing District and Chelsea neighborhood.  Below are architecture photography tips.  Keeping with the theme of architecture I also drew sketches of  the cityscape. The drawing ideas I found online through YouTube tutorials and Pinterest. 

Photography tips (link to article):

• use strong leading lines
• look for geometric shapes
• find patterns
• seek out frames
• photograph reflections
• use height to create depth and perspective

Pictures I took that illustrate strong leading lines, geometric shapes and patterns.

  ~ JM

Cityscape sketches.

summer water globe

I made this for our bathroom as a fun reminder of our summer trip last year. I used a mason jar and hot glued a beach sign, seagull and lobster inside then filled it with water and blue glitter.  I think I might try again with a smoother jar and raise up the decorations, but it was fun to make!

Say Yes to the Homemade Dress!

I had so much fun at a "Sip & Sew" class held in Maryland.  I am not sure if drinking and sharp needles go hand-in-hand but my dress turned out decently.  😉   I made an African print dress that will go perfectly with black leggings.  ~ JM

Yours truly modeling the dress.

African print dress material.

Entry for state fair

I have been dreaming of entering something in the MN state fair competitions.  I love going and seeing what people enter and the winners etc.  I decided to enter something in the photography category and chose this picture.  It is one of my favorites from a trip to Rwanda.  I love the joy in the faces of the children.

July 4th

As the holiday weekend is here I did some projects focusing on the American flag.  This a fun activity during your picnics and barbecues! Using a mason jar and acrylic paint I painted the flag.  This can be used as decor in or outside the house and be really festive with a small electric candle in it during the evening.  Secondly, I used a small wooden white block that cost $0.50 at Michael's and a small canvas board to paint the flag in unique ways and display a patriotic phase, for example, "God bless America" or "My country tis of thee" or "Let freedom ring", or "America" etc...  ~ JM

cookie dough truffles

I believe I have found the most delicious treat in the whole world.  I found this cookie dough at Target and it doesn't have eggs...so you can eat it right out of the carton....but then I thought I would coat them in milk chocolate and drizzle them with white chocolate!  Yummy and easy too :)

Triangles!

This month is a theme of triangle projects with a focus on wall art.

For the first project I put washi tape on my wall which is a nice temporary way to decorate a room.  Washi tape is a decorative colored adhesive tape. Click on link to see other ways to use washi tape.

 Secondly, I used card stock of triangles and hung along the sliding glass wall (works by Matisse have a similar look).  Click on link for more information on paper cut outs by Matisse.

Also, I created a colorful triangle drawing using color pencils.  You could also use paint to create your masterpiece.   I found some examples on Pinterest. ~JM

Washi tape on walls.

Triangle wall decor.

Triangle coloring.

Pinterest examples of "triangle art".

Pointillism Art

I volunteer as mentor/tutor to a 3rd grader once a week.  This week we did a project focusing on pointillism.  I have done a blog post on this before but wanted to show off my student's art work.  Materials: Q-tips and paint. 😊 ~JM.

Pointillism by my student.

Examples from Pinterest.

Blank Cards

I have done blank cards project on this blog before focusing on Christmas cards but I wanted to do it again when I saw a pack of 24 cards for $3!!  Some ideas I found on Pinterest by searching "blank card ideas" and "simple ink drawings".  I used an ink pen and water color.  ~JM

Easter project

Joy in His presence

I made this for Easter.  Our church encourages creative expression and I love it...because it helps me understand God more as I plan and pray what to make.  This year my focus was on the joy we have when we spend time with God and also for the joy set before Him...Jesus gave up his life for us.

Yarn + Glass

I apologize for being a few days late with my entry.  I chickened-out with my original creative activity of playing the guitar--I hope to do it next time 😏.   Instead I created a decorative vase using yarn, Mod-Podge, and a glass cup/vase.  Directions:  Brush and cover the Mod-Podge on the surface and carefully wrap the yarn around the glass.  For best results use thick yarn (I had thin embroidery string which created gaps). ~ JM

L- Starting to wrap the yarn around the cup | R - Finish Product

Emoji paper clips

My son and I made these and I think they are so fun! We found the idea on Pinterest. We used polymer clay, glued them on with a little extra clay on the back and baked them up!

Felt Stickers and Paint

I had so much left-over felt stickers that I wanted to use them for this month's blog.  This is a great activity for the whole family to celebrate spring! I used the stickers in two projects:
1.) Wood Bunnies:  I bought blank wood bunnies at Target for $3.  I drew the eyes and whiskers and added different stickers and color paint to make each bunny unique.
2.) Printing Press:  I made this rudimentary printing press by using the felt stickers as a raised platform on rolled up cardboard (you can also use an empty roll of bath tissue).  I made sure the stickers were saturated with paint and then rolled the roller onto the paper.  ~ JM

Bunnies!

Printing Press

                 

Heart pillow

I made this pillow with two microfiber cloths, but rather than sew them, I used a hot glue gun!  I also glued on the heart felt stickers.  It is nice and cozy...and only cost one dollar :)

Abstract Art

Abstract art uses a visual language of shape, form, color and line to create a composition which may exist with a degree of independence from visual references in the world (Rudolph Arnheim, Visual Thinking).

In the first painting I used cardboard and scraped the paint both vertically and horizontally followed by stenciling a bird sitting on a branch (my blogging buddy gave me these stencils years ago 😏).  In the second painting I blended big blocks of squares.  ~ JM

using cardboard to create texture and using stencil

blending squares