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!