Studio in the Works

First and foremost, I hope everyone is staying healthy and safe. 

5 years in the making..... but I am happily working/sweating on creating a working studio space.   Having a studio space to paint really wasn't a necessity for me. I was fine with using our dining room table for a painting area.  When we would have friends or family over, I would simply put away my meager supplies.  However, a few months ago, when work invaded my dining room table re: studio space,  something had to change. 

We purchased a tuff shed as soon as we realized our garage, which is attached to our house would flood.  Yeah, we knew that the concrete was old and cracked  in our garage, but it wasn't until a few months after buying our 60 year old house did we find out that water would come up from the cracks.  I think we should have had a clue when we would see frogs jumping  out of the cracks....for real.   Oh well.

Recently we had windows installed in the tuff shed.  Since I work with oil paints, I really need ventilation of course having natural light too.

Check out what I have done so far:  I cut the bead board paneling for this wall.  I actually used soffit which is a roofing material.  I put a coat of paint to test the color.  Eventually the studs will be painted the same color.  I am kind of going for a shabby chic look.

Cut bead board paneling

Here is a photo with the 2 x 4 shelves nailed into the studs.  The shelves are what holds the paneling in place.  Also, I primed and painted the floor with a country blue oil based paint from Sherman Williams.   The color is called Drizzle......it reminds me of the rain.  Also, this was left over paint from our kitchen cabinets. 

check it out: 

I love the floor

Other updates:  I have been sewing....but I have been really bad and not blogging.  I am half way through my children's story book illustrations.   And if that was not enough, I am currently writing a youth novel......however, my best girlfriend is helping me with it.  Yeah we social distance outside on her back patio every two weeks and basically she tells me everything bad about the book.  Which is truly a great friend! 

Happy returns,

christin

Fun furry paws and ears

         Halloween is quickly approaching and my thoughts are on a small play that I will be performing on Halloween evening.  Really, it is more like taking story time and making it come alive with costumes, props, and a little bit of singing.  (It should be all of 30 minutes.)

         The story is  Grimm's  "Little Red Riding Hood."  So my co-worker will be the wolf and since we are on a budget, and I can sew.........I said I would make the wolf ears and paws.  Easy enough I thought.  Ha!  Considering I never have sewed with fur before!

        Love the internet..........there are lots of wonderful tutorials on making fur paws and ears.  I found a very helpful website called Matrices.net

       She has a free paw pdf pattern.......easy enough to download.  Also, she has step by step clear instructions.  (Awesome)  So, the paws were really easy to make, but the fake fur is harder to sew with.  Make sure you use a heavy duty needle.  I sewed the paws on the sewing machine along with the paw felt pads.  No need to zigzag the felt....I just used a regular top-stitch. Also I used thin black foam to cut out paw claws, just remember to sew them with the  pointed edge facing paw pads before you sew paws right side together. To finish off the edge of the paw gloves I used a scrap of black bias tape.  Check it out: 

Wolf Paws

       For the ears, I looked on the internet for a ear pattern.  Please note:  I printed out a pattern that looked like a good size.  I wish I would have held it up to my headband.  They came out a bit large, but I think for a goofy wolf it works.  In the future I think I may make the ears smaller.   The ears were a little more work.  After sewing right sides together, and turning out,  I hot glued black foam on the inside so ears will stand up straight.  I hot glued the pink felt  and another piece of fur on top to cover the bottom felt edge.  Then the ears were hot glued to the headband. Check it out: 

Wolf Ears

      Materials:  I purchased a yard of fake fur which is enough for paws and ears.  I think I have enough to make a tail if I feel up to it.  1 piece of black felt for the paw pads and 1 sheet of pink felt for ears. A scrap of black bias tape to finish the edge of the paws. 1 sheet of thin black foam for paw claws.  Also, a headband for ears and hot glue.   Time:  Around 4 hours for the paws and 3 hours for the ears.  (Could be quicker but I took my time....since I really didn't know what I was doing. )

Check it out: 

Wolf, coming out of the bushes

Check out the wolf claws 

 I hope this was helpful. Happy Halloween to all! 

Manga Madness

    Creating oil paintings haven't been in my reality for a few years now.  Studio renovations are still in the works, so my only option has been creating with less toxic materials.  Watercolors, acrylics, pencil and markers have been a life saver.  Granted I am not painting exactly what I want too, but none the less art is getting produced on the dining room table! 

    Mainly I have been focused on the illustrations for my children's story book.  I didn't realize how long this would take, but it is real easy to draw and watercolor an illustration only to show it to my husband and he comes up with a better idea.........so I start over.   This little book has been dear to my heart so I want it to be perfect.

  Eventually I will share the illustrations but for now I am guarding them.......but I will share another project............Manga Madness.   

  Personally, you all should know that I am not an illustrator.   I like more loose organic lines, yet I find myself working on this Manga program for work.  In order for me to help other people create a manga, I thought it was important for me to create a character and story line.......that way I can walk other people through the steps.

    So here goes nothing, Let me introduce you to:  "Meesha the Ninga Librarian".   Yes, that is a book for a hair do!  I have learned that Manga characters have unusual hair dos and their eyes are pretty large.  The characters tend to be show lots of emotions in their drawings.  Any who......the story line here is simple.  Meesha lives in a big city where crime is rampant........yet she is able to protect herself by the throwing the book she carries.  It comes back to her like a boom-a-rang.   I wanted to keep the story short and sweet although you will meet other characters...............not quite sure how I will develop them.   Check Meesha out.



 

"Meesha the Ninga Librarian" 

As I update the story, I will totally share this manga with you all.  

Farewell Pillow

     My co-worker decided to retire, so on her last day we threw her a farewell party.  Of course I wanted to make her something special and a decorative pillow felt like the perfect gift.  So that is exactly what I did.

Pillow size:  12" x 16"

Followed "Cottage Magpie's"  directions...........which I refer too every time I make a decorative pillow.  Angela has photos and makes it super easy to quickly sew up a pillow.

Fabric:  Linen with a little spandex.  (I wanted 100 % percent linen in a cream color but this was all I could find at Joann Fabric store.....so  Half a yard please!)

Embroidery:  I went online, and found a design I liked.  Traced it on to tissue paper and started hand stitching.  I kept the design and colors simple. 

For the border:  Well I really didn't want this pillow to be fussy and trim could have made it over the top.  I had enough fabric left over to create a border; which I cut 2 inches wide and folded over.  So the border is actually about an 1 from the edge of the finished size.  I used a ladder stitch via my machine to sew it in place and keep the underside seam from unraveling. 

Check it out: 

Simple decorative pillow with lots of details.

Time:  About 3 hours of hand stitching and 4 hours of sewing pillow together. 

My coworker loved it and said it was going on her bed.

*************
      So Mardi Gras was yesterday, was my costume finished on time........Nah.  The weather turned unexpectedly cold (we are talking the high temps in the 50s ) and there was no way I was going to be dressed as an adult Tinker Bell.    Fortunately the Irish Italian parade is coming up so I am thinking Tinker Bell in all her glorious green will make an appearance........unless it turns cold again.  Then I will be forced to wear jeans, jacket and gloves.   We will have to wait and see!

Hello Kitty Pillow ...........gift for a co-worker

A co-worker's birthday was coming up and I really wanted to make her something special.  I know she adores Hello Kitty so I decided to make a decorative pillow for her.  

For a pattern, I went on the internet and looked up a "printable coloring sheet" and found a cute simple line drawing; which I printed out.  

I used felt for Hello Kitty's face. ( I love that you don't have to finish the edges of felt) and for the fabric I went straight to my stash.  The polka dot fabric is a classic quilting cotton, and for the back fabric I had some black cotton sateen...........so soft!   

The only materials I needed to purchase was the ric rac and pillow form. This project took about 4 hours to make. (Yeah, Cause you know time is in short supply these days)  It helped that my fabric was already washed! Check it out:

Simple Hello Kitty Pillow

By the way, she loved it!

Next up, another decorative pillow with hand stitching.  I do have another co-worker who is retiring............so I think an elegant simple pillow is just the present for her. Of course the chocolate chip cake with chocolate buttercream frosting I am planning on baking will be a nice addition too;)

Somehow I will make time to finish my Mardi Gras costume.  Yes, I am sewing up a fairy/ Tinkerbell inspired costume.   Currently I am drafting the blouse pattern, and the skirt is finished.  Still have a cape to sew too! Fingers crossed it will be finished on time. Although blogging about it is a different story.  -I have sewn so much this past year but you wouldn't know it by this blog....bummer-

Moving on: My last post spoke about my children's story book.  I couldn't get the words right for the group of drawings that are on this blog....... so I wrote another rhyming story first and now I am working on the drawings/paintings.   This is a long process that I am hoping to have finished by the end of the year. 

Happily creating .............I hope you are too!

A Children's Story Book.....

      As of late, I have been writing and working on sketches for a children's story.  The title is "A Lady, Her Dog, and the Most Exquisite Flower Ever". I am always amazed how experiences in life, whether we want them or not, helps us with our future projects.  My time in Asheville wasn't always the best, maybe because we were forced out of New Orleans with Katrina, but again, the mountains and surrounding environment left an amazing impression on me......so it is not surprising that the book takes place in a mountainous town.  Here is the introduction:  

This is a story about a lady, named Clara, her blind dog, called Lucky, and the adventure both set out to discover and take the most exquisite flower ever known to exist. Clara, who is a commercial gardener, has a unique gift, she was born with a radiating light, a light so bright it keeps people from looking at her. However, with this gift she is able to grow plants twice as fast and is the most successful gardener on the East Coast. It is not surprising she wants the most exquisite flower ever for her garden. 

    Here are some rough sketches:  

"A Lady, Her Dog and the Most Exquisite Flower Ever"

"Mother Wolf Holding Bow and Arrows"

Of course I do need to mention, that these are original drawings and they should not be copied without my consent. 

Beatrix Potter Exhibit

         Even though this post isn't exactly about painting, sewing or gardening, it is about painting, sewing and gardening.  For the month of April, I created a Beatrix Potter display at work.   With the recent movie of "The Tale of Peter Rabbit", I really wanted to pay homage to Beatrix Potter, who was an incredible artist, gardener and land conservationist.  The lady had guts & when her little tales were rejected by various publishers; she continued on until Frederick Warne Publishing finally published her stories. 

     Check out the photo of the display:

Beatrix Potter Display, books in left bookcase

      Also, to entice the little ones to read, I created a wool felted Peter Rabbit and placed him in  a diorama; which will be raffled off to anyone who checks out a Potter book.  I used a shoe box to create the diorama and wrapped it in felt.  The diorama has a real swinging potting shed door, wood fence, wood wheel barrel, and of course the green watering can.  Also, I must admit,  I am addicted to wool / needle felting.  I love that you can make little miniature sculptures.  Little wool felted Peter Rabbit is only 2 1/2" inches tall!   Check it out: 

Wool Felted Peter Rabbit & hanging clouds in Diorama

 Ok so I thought it would be cute to place Peter in our little veggie garden:

Peter in our garden

    Beatrix Potter based her illustrations from the many  pets she had.  For ex: she really had a bunny named Peter.  Also, there is a well known photo of Beatrix with her little pet mouse Xarifa.  So it was only natural to wool felt a little mouse too for the display.  Check her out in her little mouse cage:

Xarifa- pet mouse

    Also, I did find this wonderful Potter craft book; which contains the pattern for a "Mrs. Tiggy Winkle pincushion".....check it out: 

Mrs. Tiggy Winkle Pincushion

Lastly, I did paint (a copy) of Peter in the garden from Potter's classic "The Tale of Peter Rabbit" .  It is not an exact duplicate, but close enough.  Yeah, I left out a white section of his chest....oh well.  Check it out: 

Peter Rabbit in the Garden

I thoroughly enjoyed creating and executing this display...........but even more so, knowing that people are checking out Potter's books!