Busy days are here again.

It seems as though my days are filling up rather nicely lately. I have Christmas gifts that I am working on, and 'Stuff' that HAS to be done.
Yesterday, I decided that I wanted to bake some tasty chocolate cupcakes from scratch (NO box mixes for me!!) So I hauled my ass to the store in the FREEZING cold wind to pick up the few things that I needed, and whipped up a batch of GINORMOUS cupcakes. Seriously, these damn things could EASILY feed 2 people a piece. I like homemade cake (much less sweet than a box mix) and I love to make homemade ganache (semisweet chocolate/peppermint ganache to be exact.) They are soooooooo tasty!
I have 2 skirts to make before Wednesday night's Christmas program - one for each girl. Along with 5 pairs of pajamas for Christmas gifts. AND......various charms and pieces of artwork that I intend for gifts as well. Candies and cookies and presents.....OH MY!!

Busy, busy, busy!

Another VERY GOOD day for the books!

Today the youngest girl child went off to have an adventure with her Nana and Papa that will keep her busy overnight and most of tomorrow as well. So the oldest girl child and I decided that since she had to stay at home (She's very loosely grounded for the time being.) we would go to dinner and have a 'Grown Up Girl's Night Out'.

Our evening began with a trip to one of her favorite restaurants, New China, for sushi and lemonade. After dinner, we decided to drive across town to one of the fabric stores so that I could check out their selection of bottom weight twill for the girls' skirts that I need to get started on for their Christmas program at school. (The selection was SAD to say the least, although I did manage to pick up several more buttons to make into charms for their bracelets and a metal craft jewelry book that I cannot wait to try to make some of the stuff in.) A quick trip to one of the craft stores in town revealed the fact that I am going to have to seriously consider looking online to buy jewelry making supplies if I want quality stuff (Aluminum filled copper wire is just not going to cut it for these projects, I need the good shit.) Then to WallyWorld for some tracing plastic for the pajama patterns I need to get started on this weekend, and a quick-ish trip to the bookstore for some fun reading materials. We decided to cap off the night with a trip to Starbucks for some Peppermint Hot Chocolate, and made our way back home.

It was such a long and busy night, but it was so much fun. I love spending time with my girls, and I am so glad that they love spending time with me. :D

Today was a VERY GOOD day!

The youngest girl child and I decided this morning that we were going to go out to lunch together (Something we used to do quite often, but for the past several months we just haven't been.)  I let her choose, and she picked her absolute favorite restaurant ever ~ Fuji's Japanese Steakhouse
She LOVES it there (and I do too.)  They have tasty, tasty food, and even tastier sushi.  :D 

We decided that, to add to our 'Girlie Day', we would do a little holiday shopping 'cuz there are some things that I need in order to get started making some of the gifts I have planned for Christmas this year.  We stopped off at one of MY favorite yarn stores so that I could browse their selection of vintage buttons ~ www.simplyfibers.com  I can't buy yarn there 'cuz they mostly stock wool/wool blends, and I am allergic to anything that began it's life close to/as part of a sheep.  (I am kind of interested in some of the spin it yourself fibers that they have ~ particularly the camel hair ~ but, alas, I cannot spin my own yarn.)  I managed to find some pretty sweet buttons to make charms for the girls' ever growing charm bracelets for Christmas (and a couple for myself as well. :D)

After that we decided to hit one of the used bookstores in the area to see what we gems we could discover there.  The littlest one found a book of children's poetry and short stories from 1966 that she fell in love with, most likely for the large rooster that dominates the front cover.  She enjoyed it so much, and it was only a dollar, so we brought it home to stay.  :D

Then we took a trip to our favorite thrift store in search of more good deals that we could bring home and turn into GREAT stuff.  Sadly, the only things that I found that I fell in love with were a child's board book (to make an altered book out of  :D) and a salad service set that included 1 large serving bowl and 8 smaller bowls. (It was AWESOME!  All of the bowls were shaped to look like they were made out of lettuce leaves, and it was VERY vintage and AMAZING!  Sadly, it was all priced individually.  So, between the large bowl and all the individual bowls, it was WAY too expensive for me to want to buy it at a thrift store ~ $25 bucks for all the pieces.  I have limits.  LOL)  I may go back in a few days to see if they lower the price on the pieces.  If they do, I am snatching them up so fast their heads will spin. (Get it?  Lettuce?  Heads?  I'm a dork.  I know.)  Then I will post pics so that the rest of the World can drool over my find.

After a trip to our favorite Starbucks, we headed for home.  We seriously enjoyed our outing.  It was something that we hadn't done in a very long time.  It was really nice to spend the day together ~ just the 2 of us.

All in all.  Today was a VERY GOOD day!

Testing. Testing. 1 - 2 - 3 (Is this thing even on anymore?)

((knocks the dust off of art supplies and other various studio items))

Okay, so I know what you are thinking to yourselves.  'OMG!!!  She is ALIVE!!!'

Yes.  Yes.  It is true.  I am, in fact, alive and kicking.  Some random acts of personal bullshit and some life issues, caused a rip in the fabric of space/time.  It will be alright.  I promise.

Anyway, I am going to see if I can get back on the horse, so to speak, and get some shit done.  It's too late in the year for me to completely catch up with the ATC 365 project (which makes me very sad 'cuz I had started a fairly decent collection of my own works.)  But I am creating stuff again, just to get back into the swing of things.  Hopefully, it will last.

Day 32 ~ ATC 365 ~ 32 down, 333 to go :D

Ahhh...what would a week be w/out a card created in my absolute favorite style ever?

Sad, that's what.

Anyway, here's more cussing and more black paint.  2 of my favorite things to create with.  :D

Ahhhhh.....BLISS!   ;)

Day 31 ~ ATC 365 ~ 31 down, 334 to go :D

Another cupcake!  'Cuz I was literally jonesin' to make one.  I LOVE cupcakes!  They are just so damn cute.  This one was made during my massive 'Use of Thick Ass Acrylic' fest.  It took FOREVER to dry, but the texture of this thing is just AMAZING.

It's tactile and it's beautiful.  :D

Day 30 ~ ATC 365 ~ 30 down, 335 to go :D

OMG, has it actually been 30 days!?!?!?!  I can't believe that it has been this long.  This is the last of my practice backgrounds.  And I have learned that, while I like the technique for other things, the whole 'face' thing just isn't something I'm good at.  Not in the realistic sense anyway.

Somehow, I am pretty sure that I am okay with that.

Day 29 ~ ATC 365 ~ 29 down, 336 to go :D

I had a couple of these watercolor 'blob' technique backgrounds left from my 'practice disaster' laying around.  So I decided that I would go ahead and use them for project cards since they weren't doing anything else. 

This guy appears to have taken one too many bong hits for the day.  ROFLMAO  Obviously, this is soooooo not my forte.

Day 28 ~ ATC 365 ~ 28 down, 337 to go :D

I had an 'acrylic' kinda day  :D  I just wanted to mix thick paints together and play.  So I did.  This is the last heart for the themed week.

I love the red, black, and white of this one.  They are such simple colors that just 'pop' when you use them together (which I do all the time  :D)

Day 27 ~ ATC 365 ~ 27 down, 338 to go :D

This card was one that I actually had to remake after I royally screwed up the first one and filed it in the 'Round' file (also known as the trash bin  LOL)  The idea came to me while I was actually watching something on television, which is an activity that I don't do all that often, during a commercial break.  How odd is that?

The first version was much more 'delicate'ly done, but I jacked it up.  And this is what the remake came out as.  I like it, but I wish I hadn't F'd up the first one.

Day 26 ~ ATC 365 ~ 26 down, 339 to go :D

Another heart for the theme.  This didn't exactly turn out quite the way I had envisioned that it would.  Meh (shrugs) some things just don't.  I have come to terms with this.  And, as the phenominally unshakeable Scarlett O'Hara would say, tomorrow is another day.

Ummmm.....yeah.....so......whatever.  ROFLMBO

Day 25 ~ ATC 365 ~ 25 down, 340 to go :D

Yeah, I get that I have taken a bit of a break.  I am now playing a serious game of 'Catch Up' that may or may not be kicking my ass at this point.
Day 25 was created for a week in which the theme was 'Hearts'.  The concept came from a post/idea about a project that a friend of a friend had posted on their blog about collecting heart cards for a future 'benefit' for Haiti (Which, as anyone not living underneath of a rock would know, has suffered from a MASSIVELY tragic natural disaster.  And, as a poverty ridden country, is struggling to cope.)  I don't have a blog link for the project, but if you check out the Project 365 blog using the link in my sidebar there is info there.

I kinda 'copied' the heart for this one off the side of my brush washing cup.   LOL

Day 24 ~ ATC 365 ~ 24 down, 341 to go :D

I found this image that I wanted to use of these 2 African villagers carrying a baboon by the legs between the two of them.  They had hunted and killed the animal, and were carrying it back to their 'home' for consumption.  The image was so striking and powerful to me.  Mostly because I found it to be extremely cruel and disgusting.  However, it did also make me reflect on the fact that life does not always operate the way that I think it should.  And, that not everyone on this planet lives the way that I do (in fact, the vast majority of the planet is not nearly as 'blessed' as I am.)
I began to look at these men in a different light as they struggled to carry their bounty back to their village, intending to use it to care for their people in the only way that they had ever known.  I started to change the ideals I held about them and the opinions that I had formed as to their way of life based simply on that picture.  These were men to be respected and honored among their families, because they had done the one thing that was required to exist on this planet ~ they had provided sustinence.  Those few moments I reflected upon that picture changed the way I thought about the things in my life as well.
It is amazing how one picture can change the way that you think about certain things.
Anyway, this has nothing to do with what I used the picture for, but I just thought I would let you all into my world for a few moments so that you could see how the Artistic Process can allow one to grow as a person.  :D

I guess that the words kinda go with how I was feeling at the time as well  LOL

Day 23 ~ ATC 365 ~ 23 down, 342 to go :D

Ahhhh....I decided that today I would paint Chili Peppers as a way of bidding a fond farewell to the chosen theme for this week.  I'm pretty sure that these would be exceptionally spicy if they were real.  ;)  (Okay, that was totally CHEESY, but it's all I've got.  ROFLBMO)

Exceptionally spicy.  Yes indeed!

Day 22 ~ ATC 365 ~ 22 down, 343 to go :D

I really like cupcakes.  I'm not gonna lie.  I have yet to meet a cupcake I don't like (although, the Zombie cupcakes that I say this afternoon were DISGUSTING in a major kind of way.)  I'm not a huge fan of actually EATING them.  I just like the way that they look.
I decided that I would attempt to use the watercolor 'blob-y' techinique for the face swap (the one I have been practicing lately) and see how it turned out.  I'm not so sure how well I like it, but it's a cupcake so how freakin' awful can it possibly be.  :D

Besides, it's PINK!  How wrong can it be?!?!

Day 21 ~ ATC 365 ~ 21 down, 344 to go :D

I realize that I completely SUCK at keeping up with the posting.  I DO make the cards every single damn day, I just am tooooo lazy to scan them in one at a time.  I prefer to scan a bunch all at once so that I can just zip around and crop and shit all at one go.
I am still practicing for that swap on a4a.  But I think that I am going to have to drop it (in fact, I would say that I am, like, 85% certain that I will) simply because I draw, like, cartoon-y people, and everyone else is, like, PHENOMINALLY realistic.  Seriously, I am in a group of fan-freakin'-tastic artists, and I feel like my cards just don't measure up.  It's not a huge deal.  But, to avoid causing disappointment to others that may feel my talent doesn't match their own, I will likely bow out gracefully  :D

Anyway, if nothing else, I count myself extremely lucky to have learned a new technique to incorporate into my artwork.

Day 20 ~ ATC 365 ~ 20 down, 345 to go :D

Day 20 ~ Honestly, I never thought I would make it this far and still be going strong  LOL  I'm not one for 'longevity' when it comes to things like this.  I also can't believe that I now own 20 pieces of art that I created with my own hands and ADORE.  This was such a great idea, and I have to thank Robin so much for coming up with it.  W/out her hard work and dedication to this project, I'm sure I would just be doing the same thing I always have.  Instead of, you know, challenging myself every single damn day to complete something worthy of her grand idea.  She works amazingly hard for all of us, and I appreciate her so much.  ((FLOWERS for ROBIN!!))

This one, I'm not so sure about.  Perhaps due to the simplicity of it all.  I can't help it.  I'm a fan of complicated.  It's how I roll.  :D

Day 19 ~ ATC 365 ~ 19 down, 346 to go :D

It seems that I always fall back on this style of cards, but I like it.  :D  It is what flows from my fingers the most easily.  I like to paint (I LOVE to paint) but when I sit down to create this is what comes to me most of the time. 

At first it kinda freaked me out ~ it is somewhat disturbing at times ~ but I've learned to embrace it. To accept it. To let it be. It is what it is. And I LIKE it. :D

Day 18 ~ ATC 365 ~ 18 down, 347 to go :D

WhaaaHoooo!  This posting catches me up!
Continuing with the 'Chili Pepper' theme, I decided to try and paint one on text.  I think that it needs something, but I can't figure out what (And I went a little insane with the green shit  LOL  It'll be alright.)

Tomorrow, I don't know what I plan to do, but whatever it is ~ it will be here.  ROFL

Day 17 ~ ATC 365 ~ 17 down, 348 to go :D

My friend, and one to some of you as well, The Mad Catter (from a4a) had the honor of choosing a 'theme' for the artwork this week.  The theme is one that is completely optional, it is just, like, a 'go-to' if you need/want to try your hand at it.  She chose to challenge us with the theme of 'Chili Peppers' after being inspired by the flamin' hot artwork of another Project 365 participant ~ Jo. 
Soooo, in honor of the theme, I spent the past two days creating Chili Pepper themed cards to the best of my ability (and trying out a new technique that will potentially come in handy for a later swap over at a4a :D)

These things are just so CUTE!

Day 16 ~ ATC 365 ~ 16 down, 349 to go :D

I freakin' LOVE this image!  It is so odd and so sweet and just so jacked up all at the same time.  Day 16 is likely my favorite card from all of last week.  :D

This card amazes me, and I will keep it forever  LOL   ((Honestly, I could stare at it for days and it would always amuse me.))

Day 15 ~ ATC 365 ~ 15 down, 350 to go :D

Day 15 began with me, attempting to create something amazing with this sweet ass Geisha image that I have.  I've had it for a while, and used it before.  I like the expression on her face (although I did white out her eyes to make them more on the 'dead' side of the fence.)

I'm not sure that 'whore' fits in the literal sense of the word, but it makes sense to me.  It is what it is.

Day 14 ~ ATC 365 ~ 14 down, 351 to go :D

Yeah, I know, it's been a while since I scanned and posted any of my cards.  The Man Child has been home for the past couple of days, and so I have been kinda busy.  I have been able to complete the cards, I just haven't had a chance to get them scanned and posted.
So, today, I plan to do the past 5 days and get all caught up :D

I made these cute, little, whimsical style girls for a 4X4 swap on a4a.  And I had an extra, so little Mary (who likes to fiddle with shit) decided that she wanted to stay here with me.  :D  I :heart: her so freakin' much.  She's beautiful.

Have you ever done something REALLY stupid?

And, by REALLY stupid, I mean flat ass, really freakin' stupid? I won't elaborate at this time, but suffice it to say that I stuck my foot in my mouth and then proceeded to swallow it up to the hip did something that I might come to regret tonight. Sometimes I can be such a dumbass. Seriously.


Anyway, so, a blog that doesn't contain any artsy shit. That's a first in a while, eh? I just thought I might aprise everyone out there that reads this that ISN'T interested in all that paintin' and collagin' mess of the situation as it stands. Life is slowly, but surely, running circles around my ass. That's all. LOL No, not really. For the most part things are going fairly normal around here ~ kid stuff, house stuff, mom stuff, with a little bit of other stuff thrown in to keep things interesting.  How new and different than any other day/week/month that I have ever had before. ((insert blatent sarcasm and then re-read that last sentence.))
 
The youngest girl child has a dentist appointment in the morning.  I'm a little leary to take her after the last one that didn't turn out so well.  But what else can ya do?  She has to go.  It's not like I can fix the problem myself.
The oldest girl child thinks that she might have broken her toe.  I don't think that it's broken, but I think that she managed to bruise it really well.  She's worried about it affecting her performance in something called a 'Pacer' in gym class next week.  I told her not to worry so much, she'll get wrinkles (she about fell over  LOL)
 
The Man Child is supposed to be home this weekend, so we are having Christmas while he is home.  It might seem odd to some, but that's the life we live ~ so, Tis the Season, and all that shit.
 
That's about it.  So freakin' exciting, I know.  I did think about questioning the concept of 'Pimp Juice', and what exactly it was that Nelly meant when he refered to someone only wanting him for his pimp juice, but I'm thinking that that would be an issue for a whole 'nother post entirely.

Oh yeah, one last thing, I made these sweet ass charms for a swap on a4a.  LOVE them!  I managed to make one for myself (unlike the fairy bottles that I ended up ass-out on.)

So much for a post without artsy shit in it, eh?  ROFLMBO

Day 13 ~ ATC 365 ~ 13 down, 352 to go :D

This has to be a record.  I am officially posting Day 12's card a full 7 hours before Day 12 is over.  (Meh, ((shrugs)), it was done and I was ready to scan.  So....)
Drumroll please......

I drew the pear.  I painted the pear.  I ate the pear.  All is well.  (The pear is not as 'bright' IRL.  It's more mellow and 'pear' colored, but my scanner decided to scan it in as post-nuclear disaster colored pear.  Which could be cool, I guess.)

Day 12 ~ ATC 365 ~ 12 down, 353 to go :D

Ahhh....the joy of a good cupcake.  In case anyone has managed to forget, cupcakes are something that I ADORE.  They are just so freakin' cute, the little miniature cakes.  They make me want to squish their little cheeks, well, if they had little cheeks anyway. 
Alright, enough of the 'cutesy cupcake' psycho-babble.  ON TO THE ARTWORK!!

Freakin' adorable, I tell ya.  Just look at it.  ;)

Day 11 ~ ATC 365 ~ 11 down, 354 to go :D

While I was frittering away the time looking for something to paint my pear on, I ran across an old dictionary page in my big ass stack of text pages.  (Yes, it is a big ass stack of text pages.  And, yes, I refer to it as 'my big ass stack of text pages'.)  On that old dictionary page was this.....

Well, okay, so the WORD 'Cheesecake' was on the page at least.  The drawing/painting came later.  Courtesy of ME.  :D

Day 10 ~ ATC 365 ~ 10 down, 355 to go :D

Seriously, I think that every single artist participating in Project 365 has drawn/painted a Pear, and I was beginning to feel like I had missed the boat or something.  So, I painted my own damn pear just to fit in.  :D

And I like it  :D  I am not entirely certain what the French text behind it says, but I am pretty sure that it is some kind of religious stuff (mostly 'cuz it talks about doctrine and the first words on the page translate to Jesus Christ  ((snicker)).)  I'm guessing that fruit painted over religious stuff is okay.  It's okay with me, and that's all that really matters anyway.  Right?  LOL

Day 9 ~ ATC 365 ~ 9 down, 356 to go :D

I hate scanning pictures.  I do.  So I decided that I would take the weekend off and scan everything in on Monday.  'Cuz I can.  ROFL

A little horizontal action for ya on day 9.  ;)  I know that I said I was going to draw this weekend, but I found this super disgusting image of these gloved hands dissecting eggs and I just had to use it.  There was drawing completed.  Just not on Day 9.

Day 8 ~ ATC 365 ~ 8 down, 357 to go :D

I know.  I know.  It's like a freakin' MIRACLE!  Not only is the card done, dry, and scanned.  But I am writing this and uploading it a FULL hour before the magical midnight cutoff for Day 8.  I'm on a roll.  But don't tell the Universe 'cuz tomorrow it'll throw me a curveball and I won't be able to tell my ass from a hole in the ground.

This woman has such a strict expression on her face that I had to use text that made it out like she was secret thinking about annihilating her entire family in her spare time.  Then maybe she'd smile.  :D

Day 7 ~ ATC 365 ~ 7 down, 358 to go :D

Hold your pants on Ladies and Gentlemen!  Yes, I am posting my Day 7 card before I go to bed on the night of Day 7.  HURRAY!!  It's dry and I figure why not 'cuz I had to scan the card for Day 6 anyway.

I found this image in a National Geographic and had to use it.  Originally, I had bought several for, like, 50 cents for the entire stack with the idea that I would keep a couple and give the rest away.  However, I found no takers, and have been steadily using the images out of the magazines for my own artsy purposes.  The pics are always so striking and so different.  They make great art.  I love them.

Day 6 ~ ATC 365 ~ 6 down, 359 to go :D

I had determined that I was going to paint for Day 6, with my fingers.  So that's what I did  :D

I LOVE this orange paint so much (and the green too) and the contrast with the ever present black is just amazing. But not is a Halloween-y kind of way, more like a Background-For-A-Punk-Band's-Concert-Poster kind of way.  ROFL

Days 4 & 5 ~ the Re-Mix

So, I am thinking that being completely disgusted in one's artistic ability, and actually putting it out there for the entire (potential) world to view, forces something inside of a person to actually get up and tap into creativity that wasn't there at first.  'Cuz I finished these two cards (well, refinished one and finished the other) in about 2.5 seconds (eyes open and everything.)

See, now all this one really needed was a light coat of black paint and some text added to it and it was no longer File 13 worthy.  I actually like this one enough now that I'm not planning on throwing it away.  ROFL

And this one, while not exactly what I would like it to be, will not be joining the trash can party either.

Interestingly enough, I think that I am going to take a nap now.  I just had to show the world that I don't suck as bad as I presented myself earlier.

Day 5 ~ ATC 365 ~ 5 down, 360 to go ~ The CRAP artwork continues

There are no words.  There just aren't.  This one isn't even totally finished, 'cuz I am just at a loss as to where to go from here (except that the thought of going back to bed is appealing.) 
This blows!

I am thinking some kind of Eiffel Tower painted on it, but I have no idea and hand painting is something that requires the ability to think clearly (which, at this point, is questionnable at best.)
Anyway, whatever.  Today's will be up at some point.

Day 4 ~ ATC 365 ~ 4 down; 361 to go ~ Something has gone WRONG in the South of 'Denmark'

Um yeah, so I have not one clue, but I am guessing that I have lost my mojo. I'm sick and I am taking medicine that makes it difficult for me to keep my eyes open on an hourly basis. And I am pretty sure that it has stolen my groove and hid it from me. This shit better not be permanent. That's all I've got to say.

Day 4's card will likely end up taking residence in the 'round' file (perhaps accompanying day 5's which I will be posting next.)

Consider yourselves warned.

Day 3 ~ ATC 365 ~ 3 down, 362 to go :D

There is a swap going on over at a4a that involves work inspired by the ABSOLUTELY amazing artist Teesha Moore. I was not quick enough on the draw to manage to snatch a spot for myself however (it filled up in, like, minutes I tell you. Minutes.) I am Numero Uno on the waiting list though. (Yes, your's truely has been 'Wait Listed' ROFL)
Sooooo, while I attempted not to throw things in a display of anger due to my horrid luck (you know, the luck that states that I am ALWAYS a few minutes late and a few cents short) I decided to sit down and create today's card in what I interpret to be the style of Teesha Moore. (And, yes, I do know that it really looks nothing like her work. Cut me some freakin' slack ~ I know that I'm so not 'zetti' enough to hang with the likes of Teesha Moore. :D)

It was kinda nice to break away from the 'Norm' of what I always create though. Perhaps I shall do it more often :D Although, next time, I will endeavor to make it look a little bit better than the first go 'round. ROFL

Day 2 ~ ATC 365 ~ 2 down, 363 to go :D

Inspired by the insanely ridiculous words of Lady GaGa ROFL

On a bonus note, my 10 year old thinks that it's great! :P

Day 1 ~ ATC 365 ~ 1 down, 364 to go :D

I didn't make any resolutions this year, but I did make a promise to myself that I would attempt to channel my creative energies into something every single day. So I decided that along with CED2010, I would make an effort and join in my friend Robin's Project 365. It kinda kills two birds with one stone, 'cuz if I create an ATC a day then I will be 'Creative Every Day' as well. :D
Anyway, here's the ATC from yest. (which was Day 1.) And I will post Day 2's card when it's finished drying.

This is going to be fun! :D

Happy 2010!!!

Today is January 1st 2010. Isn't that insane? I cannot believe that time has flown so freakin' quickly through the 2000's. This also happens to be the year that my oldest child completes the decade as well. (Seriously, I have no idea where in the hell the time has gone. Soon I'll be buying her girly, teenage shit and I don't like that idea very much ROFL)
Anyway, today is also day 1 of CED 2010. I plan to work on some bookmarks after I put the girls to bed, and then possibly work on something for the January theme as well.
This is going to be fun!