Ocean Grove Giant Flea Market

This weekend was Ocean Grove's Giant Flea Market. I think there were over 365 vendors... a great turnout. I found some vintage jewelry, buttons and beads as well as a 1950's Girl Scout Handbook, an Auto Touring card game, tin soldiers, a very pretty sweeper set and some other miscellaneous stuff. Ahhhh, flea markets... I could shop them every day!

Cupcake No. 3

My third attempt at a cupcake... I used Studio acrylic paints on cardboard with vintage book pages and letters. I really like the background on this one, but not much else... it's a learning process.

Who Doesn't Love Grocery Shopping?

You make the list...
You find a parking spot...
You search out the groceries...
And you put them in your cart...
Then you take them out of the cart...
You put them on the belt at the register...
Pay your money and put them in a bag...
Then you put the bags in the car...
Take the bags out of the car...
You bring them in the house...
Then you un-bag them...
Sort them...
And put the groceries away.

Okay, I'm tired now. I'm going to find something to eat! Wheeeee...

There's No Place Like Home...

My 2nd "cupcake as therapy" piece. Claudine Hellmuth Studio acrylic paints on cardboard with charcoal, vintage rhinestones, some Barbie shoes, and plenty of Stickles glitter glue! There's no place like home... There's no place like home... There's no place like home...

Good Fortune...

I am very lucky to know people who know and appreciate what I do creatively. This particular evening, I had the good fortune of going to a family friend's house to preview her yard sale stash. However, this is no regular yard sale! You see Gail's goodies are from her many years of owning an antique shop. I found so many wonderful things, but this Mother Goose book nearly made me cry. The illustrations and typography are amazingly inspirational. What you see here is only a tenth of what she let me have... photos, buttons, jewelry, books, ephemera, and more! And she wouldn't take a dime! She was happy to have it all go to a good home where it will be lovingly used to create something new. I am truly blessed. Thanks Gail!

P.S. Any of you locals out there, sale is Friday and Saturday... 14 Surf Ave, Ocean Grove, NJ 07756!

Pink, Fluffy Cotton Candy...

Mmmmmm... this watercolored cotton candy came out so good, I want to eat it!
Amazing how two colors... pink and red... and a 2B pencil slightly smudged, can create such an impact. Simple imagery, simple subject matter... and just simply sublime.
If you'd like to purchase a necklace featuring this cotton candy art, check out the Whimsical Jewelry section of my Etsy shop!

Weaknesses...

My first cupcake, and it ended up being a watercolor. One medium that I have not really played with at all in my past. But I'm loving it. It's practically mistake-proof, and you can build layers upon layers of color. Fun!

Art As Therapy...

Since attending the Art & Soul retreat in Hampton, Virginia, I have been on this "high" from being so free to create, create, create. Having been through such a difficult year, I found that I am at my best when I am immersed in the process of creativity.

So I have decided that I will use this "elixir" to my advantage and when I am feeling sad, mad, angry, depressed, or anything else that I'd like to break out of... that I am going to create. I'm going to draw, or paint, or watercolor, or sketch, or collage... because that is where I find my joy.

My original thought was to create a cupcake—my favorite subject matter to draw and to eat!—in as many different ways and styles to suit my moods. But on the first night, my sweet Juliet was curled up on the couch and I couldn't help but draw her and paint my sketch with watercolors. I'm really digging this newfound escape. So, there will be more to come...

Letters and Photos and Games, Oh My...

Here's what $15 got me at an early in the season flea market this weekend. The games were $2 and $3... the 25 letters were 5 for $1... and the photos were 25 cents apiece... I got 20 of those. Not a bad haul... Tis the season!

Christmas In... May?

Yes... Oh, yes... the Tacky Style Gods have answered my long time prayers for a pink Christmas Tree! Not only that, but I got it for $2.49! Yes, that's right... two dollars and forty nine cents. Can you believe it?

You see, our local Cost Cutter is going out of business and I kept forgetting to stop by. But this evening, mom said... "hey, did you still want to go to Cost Cutter" and so we took a trip. Not too much great stuff left...

Except this egg-cellent pink tree, which was 90% off. Yay, me!

Weaving Metal Structures...

On Sunday eve, on my last day of Art & Soul... I made this wonderful woven metal cuff with the "jewelry architect" better known as Susan Lenart-Kazmer. Every class I have taken with her over the years has taught me so much about jewelry making from a "cold-join" perspective. I've have absorbed everything I could in her workshops and put it into practice in all the pieces I create. Susan is such a vibrant, vivacious, uplifting teacher.... it's hard not to want to take all of her classes!

Gridlocked...

On Sunday of Art & Soul, I made this amazing piece in a workshop entitled Gridlocked, by the very talented Lisa Kaus. Beginning on a prepared wood substrate, we told our own story using a structured gridded pattern... but being loose and whimsical within those spaces. I loved working with the graphite pencils and watercolor crayons to draw and color images. And flea market finds along with decades-old ephemera are my favorite items to collage with. The project was finished off with a layer of beeswax and buffed by hand. I enjoyed every minute of this class... it was perfect for my style... and I absolutely love the finished piece!

Practicing Whimsy...

On the third day of Art & Soul I took a class called Practicing Whimsy. In this workshop, Carla Sonheim took us on a drawing journey of learning to let go a bit... something I totally need to do! We did exercises using our non-dominant hand, drawing without looking, drawing with one continuous line, making objects with wire and more. Some with props and sometimes just from memory. In the afternoon we practiced our watercolor and charcoal skills, then created a small "series" of paintings. I did the fish and the bird which were tied to the wire technique and then made them cohesive with color. My favorite thing are the kitty-cat clouds in the bird scene. Hooray for whimsy!

Junk Drawer Metalsmithing...

Friday's class was Junk Drawer Metalsmithing with Stephanie Lee (that's helper hubby Vinnie behind us in the photo). The workshop was jam packed with techniques using metal sheet, copper piping, solder, etching solutions and more to create all kinds of "relics" from the past. I was amazed at how simple these really were to make. I am no longer afraid of solder. And Stephanie is a fabulous teacher... very descriptive in her demonstrations and even taking things one step further by explaining the safety and origins of the procedures and materials. Another great class!

I'm Back And Totally Inspired!

So I'm back from Art & Soul... rested and rejuvenated... and ready to play, play, play! The opening night class went well, and everyone had a great time. It's fun to see each student's projects at the end of the night. They all get so creative.

The 5 classes I took were spectacular, and each year is a blast, but this year was the best so far! I made so many wonderful things from jewelry to collage to drawings... and I'll tell you about one class each day. So, here goes...

On Thursday, I took Simple Metal Jewelry: Bent, Beaded and Balled with Linda and Opie O'Brien. What a fabulous class. It really was simple what we made... but with a total wow factor. The photo above shows the two pendants I made and they were really easy... and fun... to do.