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My Journey As A Creative Designer - Woodworking and Beyond

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7M views 13K replies 477 participants last post by  teaklight12 
#1 ·
Beginning this Blog

I recently was referred to this site by Steve Good, who has a wonderful, comprehensive scroll saw forum and blog page. Although I have been doing woodworking for almost fifteen years, I have finally reached a point in my life where I am able to make it the main focus of my activities. Since my life revolves around my woodworking and business, I believe that this blog will reflect that very clearly, although it will also be somewhat personal. But I think that woodworking is very personal anyway.

It has been a long journey to get to this point. There have been many good times and some not-so-good ones, but I appreciate every single step because I think that if even one thing was different, I would not be where I am today or who I am inside. It isn't only the positive events in our lives that make us what we are. Many times it is the negative things that mold and shape us and teach us to look at things in a certain way. I try to remember that when things are tough and move ahead.

I have learned that there is only one thing we can be certain of in life: change. Whether things are good or bad, we need to hold on and appreciate the moment, as we can be certain that things will be different before long. This helps us to not only appreciate the good days and things we have now, but also hang on when things are not so good, as we know that they will be different soon. I like this philosophy.

I liked reading about the new contest offered by this site in the newsletter. Fluidity. It is a perfect theme for projects because our existence itself is fluid. I am anxious to see what interpretations are going to be, as I am sure everyone else is. It will be an adventure for all of us for sure.

So why am I starting this blog? The other day I received a call from a customer who had a question for me. He kept saying how surprised he was that I answered my own phone. I have worked as a Contributing Editor for Creative Woodworks and Crafts Magazine for the past 13+ years and I guess in the scroll saw community, many people have heard of me. It seemed so odd to me that he would think I would have a secretary or staff. We kind of laughed about it, but it really got me thinking about his interpretation of my life. We all tend to form opinions of others from very limited information. We see the outside of a person as they are presented to us and many times are very quick to categorize that person in our minds. I do it myself.

But in my years of talking with and dealing with many people from many different places, I have come to realize that people are like icebergs. We only see the tip of them and below the surface is a vast, complex side of them that is the basis of their actions and thinking.

Everyone has a story. Everyone has traveled a journey. No two people have traveled identical paths. Thus, we are all unique in our thoughts, actions and creative processes. I enjoy hearing others stories. I think that listening to others and hearing their experiences helps us to understand each other. With that understanding, we learn.

I have used the phrase "Knowledge Is Power" in my signature since I have been on the web. Once someone told me that they thought it was quite arrogant of me to say that. He thought that I was implying that I knew more than anyone else and he found that offensive. I told him he couldn't be more wrong. My interpretation of the phrase is that our QUEST for knowledge EMPOWERS us to make better decisions about things in our lives. We are never finished learning. I learn every single day from my friends, colleagues, fellow woodworkers and students. We never know when we will learn something new. Sometimes you can learn from even a seemingly insignificant event. I feel the key is that we need to be open to learning.

Everyone has a story.

So I will close today with those thoughts. I don't know how often I will post here, but I hope to make it a habit. I don't know if anyone will even read this, but somehow it doesn't matter. Writing is a key in self-awareness. By writing things down we categorize our actions and it helps (me anyway) to keep my life organized. Organization leads to peace as far as I am concerned.

I am quite overwhelmed with the scope of the site here. I am still getting my footings and lurking around. I think for the first several days or maybe even weeks I will be more of a passive observer while I find my comfortable position among the others here. I want to upload the new things I am working on here. Like everyone else, I am anxious to see the response they get. I love seeing others projects and could spend my days just looking.

Although it is quite intimidating, the forum looks like it is full of friendly, knowledgeable and wonderfully creative people.

I think I am going to like it here.
 
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#9,574 ·
My Little All-Season Tree - Dressed for Christmas!

As I write this morning, we are in the midst of what looks like a blizzard. We are not alone however, as I understand that much of the northeastern United States and Canada is also experiencing this storm. While they are calling for anywhere from 20-30 cm of snow with winds up to 80 kmh, some sources are saying that it will be changing to rain later on today, which will make it extremely messy/dangerous.

Word of this storm has been around for the past few days, and while we already had several inches of snow on the ground, we have been bracing ourselves for whatever comes today. After all - I do live in Canada and it is December. It is hardly unexpected.

We are well supplied and ready for whatever this system will bring. We have extra water, food, cat food and have no reason at all to leave the house. In fact, I had the weekend pretty much planned on finishing up preparing the last of my things that have to be mailed out for Christmas (Yes - I know I may be a little late!) and hope to have everything on its way by Monday.

With that said, I am taking a little break from designing. I have some things that are going to be due to the magazine as soon as Christmas has passed, but for the most part my calendar is clear and I will have some time to do what I would like to do in the form of being creative. I have several ideas and look forward to doing things in a relaxed manner. It makes things fun.

So for today, I will post pictures here of my little "all season tree" dressed up for Christmas. I am afraid that I rather neglected it this autumn, with us being away on our trip to Chicago. But after doing my mass organization and having all of my seasonal decorations right in place and easy to get to, it will be easier than ever to keep my tree up to date and redecorate for each season. Once again I will try to do so. :)

Following are pictures of my little tree in its Christmas glory. The first set of pictures is in daylight, so you could see the little ornaments better:

Christmas tree Plant Christmas ornament Holiday ornament Twig


Christmas tree Christmas ornament Holiday ornament Ornament Evergreen


Christmas tree Christmas ornament Holiday ornament Branch Evergreen


Christmas tree Christmas ornament Plant Holiday ornament Branch


Christmas tree Christmas ornament Plant Holiday ornament Ornament


Christmas tree Christmas ornament Holiday ornament Evergreen Ornament


The next several pictures are with the tree lights on. I really think it is beautiful. The first three pictures highlight the ornaments I received from this years' ornament exchanges that I participated in. The two reindeer were made by Judy Hunter and she even made one for Keith:

Christmas ornament Christmas tree Light Holiday ornament Branch


Christmas ornament Christmas tree Branch Holiday ornament Ornament


Then there was my darling ornament from my Tole Painter's Unite page that was done by Gerri Loney:

Christmas tree Christmas ornament Light Holiday ornament Christmas decoration


And two ornaments that were given by my son and his wife:

Christmas tree Christmas ornament Light Plant Holiday ornament


Christmas tree Plant Christmas ornament Holiday ornament Evergreen


Upon organizing, I found several of Debbie Mitchell's "Cozy Cubby" ornaments that I had painted over the year and decided that would be the main theme of the tree:

Christmas tree Christmas ornament Light Holiday ornament Ornament


Christmas tree Christmas ornament Light Holiday ornament Branch


Christmas tree Christmas ornament Light Branch Plant


Christmas tree Light Christmas ornament Holiday ornament Evergreen


Christmas tree Christmas ornament Holiday ornament Ornament Red


And of course, the Cozy Cubby star topper that I painted last weekend. :)

Christmas tree Christmas ornament Holiday ornament Christmas decoration Evergreen


I really think the tree looks wonderful! My kitty Pancakes seems to agree!

Christmas tree Christmas ornament Plant Cat Wood


I hope you all have a wonderful day today! And I hope you enjoyed seeing my little tree. It just goes to show you don't need a giant tree to have a nice one. I am very happy with it.

I am getting a lot done already and happy to stay warm and cozy inside with Keith and my kitties.

Happy Sunday!
 

Attachments

#9,575 ·
My Little All-Season Tree - Dressed for Christmas!

As I write this morning, we are in the midst of what looks like a blizzard. We are not alone however, as I understand that much of the northeastern United States and Canada is also experiencing this storm. While they are calling for anywhere from 20-30 cm of snow with winds up to 80 kmh, some sources are saying that it will be changing to rain later on today, which will make it extremely messy/dangerous.

Word of this storm has been around for the past few days, and while we already had several inches of snow on the ground, we have been bracing ourselves for whatever comes today. After all - I do live in Canada and it is December. It is hardly unexpected.

We are well supplied and ready for whatever this system will bring. We have extra water, food, cat food and have no reason at all to leave the house. In fact, I had the weekend pretty much planned on finishing up preparing the last of my things that have to be mailed out for Christmas (Yes - I know I may be a little late!) and hope to have everything on its way by Monday.

With that said, I am taking a little break from designing. I have some things that are going to be due to the magazine as soon as Christmas has passed, but for the most part my calendar is clear and I will have some time to do what I would like to do in the form of being creative. I have several ideas and look forward to doing things in a relaxed manner. It makes things fun.

So for today, I will post pictures here of my little "all season tree" dressed up for Christmas. I am afraid that I rather neglected it this autumn, with us being away on our trip to Chicago. But after doing my mass organization and having all of my seasonal decorations right in place and easy to get to, it will be easier than ever to keep my tree up to date and redecorate for each season. Once again I will try to do so. :)

Following are pictures of my little tree in its Christmas glory. The first set of pictures is in daylight, so you could see the little ornaments better:

Christmas tree Plant Christmas ornament Holiday ornament Twig


Christmas tree Christmas ornament Holiday ornament Ornament Evergreen


Christmas tree Christmas ornament Holiday ornament Branch Evergreen


Christmas tree Christmas ornament Plant Holiday ornament Branch


Christmas tree Christmas ornament Plant Holiday ornament Ornament


Christmas tree Christmas ornament Holiday ornament Evergreen Ornament


The next several pictures are with the tree lights on. I really think it is beautiful. The first three pictures highlight the ornaments I received from this years' ornament exchanges that I participated in. The two reindeer were made by Judy Hunter and she even made one for Keith:

Christmas ornament Christmas tree Light Holiday ornament Branch


Christmas ornament Christmas tree Branch Holiday ornament Ornament


Then there was my darling ornament from my Tole Painter's Unite page that was done by Gerri Loney:

Christmas tree Christmas ornament Light Holiday ornament Christmas decoration


And two ornaments that were given by my son and his wife:

Christmas tree Christmas ornament Light Plant Holiday ornament


Christmas tree Plant Christmas ornament Holiday ornament Evergreen


Upon organizing, I found several of Debbie Mitchell's "Cozy Cubby" ornaments that I had painted over the year and decided that would be the main theme of the tree:

Christmas tree Christmas ornament Light Holiday ornament Ornament


Christmas tree Christmas ornament Light Holiday ornament Branch


Christmas tree Christmas ornament Light Branch Plant


Christmas tree Light Christmas ornament Holiday ornament Evergreen


Christmas tree Christmas ornament Holiday ornament Ornament Red


And of course, the Cozy Cubby star topper that I painted last weekend. :)

Christmas tree Christmas ornament Holiday ornament Christmas decoration Evergreen


I really think the tree looks wonderful! My kitty Pancakes seems to agree!

Christmas tree Christmas ornament Plant Cat Wood


I hope you all have a wonderful day today! And I hope you enjoyed seeing my little tree. It just goes to show you don't need a giant tree to have a nice one. I am very happy with it.

I am getting a lot done already and happy to stay warm and cozy inside with Keith and my kitties.

Happy Sunday!
Lovely, and thanks for the advice on finishing projects.
Brandon
 

Attachments

#9,583 ·
Preparing for the Holiday

We made it through the snow/ice storm unscathed.

What began as several inches of snow in the morning, turned to falling ice pellets and rain by noon. I must say that I was a bit disappointed, as I feel that not only was the snow much prettier than ice and rain, but it was also safer.

Somewhere mid-morning, I tried to open the door to take a better look outside. Pancakes and Edgar ran to investigate just how deep the snow was.

Dog breed Snow Fawn Carnivore Felidae


It was about 5-6 inches and we were barely able to push open the door. I had thought about taking a nice walk down the road as soon as I was dressed. But that ideas was soon put on the shelf when by the time I had something to eat and showered and changed, the snow had changed to icy rain, accompanied by strong winds. My Winter Wonderland was turning into a huge mess.

So I decided to tackle the task at hand - getting everything that I wanted to mail out ready for the post office. As I made the final list as of what was to go, I realized that it was a lot more stuff than I had thought.

I am not great at sending cards and things. I get behind just like everyone else. Each year I buy a box of cards that I intend to send to those who touch my lives and more so than not, the majority of them don't get finished or sent. The realization of how FEW got sent out in recent years was quite evident as I opened my box of Christmas wrap and such and found THREE nearly full boxes of cards from years gone past which were testament to my previous failures. For each year I simply run out of time and wind up abandoning the project altogether. Thus I store the cards for "next year" and I completely forget that I have them and buy more. The result is a good variety and quantity of cards on hand. But seeing them this year made me more determined - this year I will succeed in getting them out.

I spent pretty much of the weekend writing cards. I know that many don't send cards anymore, and that is understandable. Postage is costly and people tend to communicate even more online than anything else. I have taken a fancy to sending "e-cards", as they can even go out last minute and still be on time. But it seems that when I finally found a really nice site and subscribed to them, many of those on my list subscribe to it as well. That kind of takes the fun and surprise out of the card to me, although they are very pretty to watch anyway. So for this year, I decided to send some real cards through the mail, and while I realize that they may be a little late, they will be sent nonetheless.

I also had to get the boxes for my children ready to be shipped. Since they are going via courier, there is hope that they will all arrive on time. We did pare things down a bit with them though, as it is difficult for me to purchase things for them here in Canada and send them to the USA. The cost for shipping is high and I feel that they would rather have me give them the additional money and get something useful than spend it on shipping. But I did make them all something nice as a keepsake, as well as my dear little grand daughter Willow.

Nose Cheek Skin Lip Hand


She is growing so fast and I am enjoying seeing her pictures as she gets bigger. I made her a special little keepsake that I didn't want to show here just yet.

So once things get posted today, the major pressure is off. I am pretty set for things for my family here in Canada and I will feel a great relief by the end of the day. Our own family here is small, and we will wind up having a low key Christmas. It will be quite different without Keith's dad here, and I am sure it will be even harder for Keith and his mom. We plan on having Keith's mom over on Christmas Eve, and she is going to teach me how to make the Acadian dish of rappie pie which I speak of so often. That to me is the best gift she could give, as her rappie pie is the best I ever had. We plan to cook and watch some Christmas movies and just enjoy each others' company, which will make it a great day.

On Christmas Day we plan to head to Digby to spend the day with Bernie and Ellen and their daughter Cindy. I call them my "Canadian Family" as they had long ago welcomed me into their home. I don't think I spent a Christmas or major holiday without seeing them since I met them nearly ten years ago. It will also be a wonderful day, as we are bringing Keith's mom to join us.

So little by little things are getting done. For the first time in a long while, I am not thinking much about "work." I want to take this time to enjoy my friends and family and life in general. There is enough on our site so that work can be put on hold for a short while, with little negative consequences. There will be time to get back to it soon, but for now, I want to enjoy the season.

It feels odd not to be driven by deadlines and things of that nature. But it also feels good. Taking time to relax and enjoy what we accomplished is very important in our well being. I believe this with all of my heart.

I enjoyed watching the cats interact with Edgar (the elf doll) yesterday. It seems that they all took turns getting to know him. First Richard:

Brown Cat Felidae Carnivore Small to medium-sized cats


And then Coco:

Cat Felidae Carnivore Small to medium-sized cats Toy


I think it is going to be a good week.

Have a wonderful week yourselves. Please try to not get stressed out by the season. Take time to enjoy your friends and families and the time you have with them.

Happy Monday
 

Attachments

#9,584 ·
Preparing for the Holiday

We made it through the snow/ice storm unscathed.

What began as several inches of snow in the morning, turned to falling ice pellets and rain by noon. I must say that I was a bit disappointed, as I feel that not only was the snow much prettier than ice and rain, but it was also safer.

Somewhere mid-morning, I tried to open the door to take a better look outside. Pancakes and Edgar ran to investigate just how deep the snow was.

Dog breed Snow Fawn Carnivore Felidae


It was about 5-6 inches and we were barely able to push open the door. I had thought about taking a nice walk down the road as soon as I was dressed. But that ideas was soon put on the shelf when by the time I had something to eat and showered and changed, the snow had changed to icy rain, accompanied by strong winds. My Winter Wonderland was turning into a huge mess.

So I decided to tackle the task at hand - getting everything that I wanted to mail out ready for the post office. As I made the final list as of what was to go, I realized that it was a lot more stuff than I had thought.

I am not great at sending cards and things. I get behind just like everyone else. Each year I buy a box of cards that I intend to send to those who touch my lives and more so than not, the majority of them don't get finished or sent. The realization of how FEW got sent out in recent years was quite evident as I opened my box of Christmas wrap and such and found THREE nearly full boxes of cards from years gone past which were testament to my previous failures. For each year I simply run out of time and wind up abandoning the project altogether. Thus I store the cards for "next year" and I completely forget that I have them and buy more. The result is a good variety and quantity of cards on hand. But seeing them this year made me more determined - this year I will succeed in getting them out.

I spent pretty much of the weekend writing cards. I know that many don't send cards anymore, and that is understandable. Postage is costly and people tend to communicate even more online than anything else. I have taken a fancy to sending "e-cards", as they can even go out last minute and still be on time. But it seems that when I finally found a really nice site and subscribed to them, many of those on my list subscribe to it as well. That kind of takes the fun and surprise out of the card to me, although they are very pretty to watch anyway. So for this year, I decided to send some real cards through the mail, and while I realize that they may be a little late, they will be sent nonetheless.

I also had to get the boxes for my children ready to be shipped. Since they are going via courier, there is hope that they will all arrive on time. We did pare things down a bit with them though, as it is difficult for me to purchase things for them here in Canada and send them to the USA. The cost for shipping is high and I feel that they would rather have me give them the additional money and get something useful than spend it on shipping. But I did make them all something nice as a keepsake, as well as my dear little grand daughter Willow.

Nose Cheek Skin Lip Hand


She is growing so fast and I am enjoying seeing her pictures as she gets bigger. I made her a special little keepsake that I didn't want to show here just yet.

So once things get posted today, the major pressure is off. I am pretty set for things for my family here in Canada and I will feel a great relief by the end of the day. Our own family here is small, and we will wind up having a low key Christmas. It will be quite different without Keith's dad here, and I am sure it will be even harder for Keith and his mom. We plan on having Keith's mom over on Christmas Eve, and she is going to teach me how to make the Acadian dish of rappie pie which I speak of so often. That to me is the best gift she could give, as her rappie pie is the best I ever had. We plan to cook and watch some Christmas movies and just enjoy each others' company, which will make it a great day.

On Christmas Day we plan to head to Digby to spend the day with Bernie and Ellen and their daughter Cindy. I call them my "Canadian Family" as they had long ago welcomed me into their home. I don't think I spent a Christmas or major holiday without seeing them since I met them nearly ten years ago. It will also be a wonderful day, as we are bringing Keith's mom to join us.

So little by little things are getting done. For the first time in a long while, I am not thinking much about "work." I want to take this time to enjoy my friends and family and life in general. There is enough on our site so that work can be put on hold for a short while, with little negative consequences. There will be time to get back to it soon, but for now, I want to enjoy the season.

It feels odd not to be driven by deadlines and things of that nature. But it also feels good. Taking time to relax and enjoy what we accomplished is very important in our well being. I believe this with all of my heart.

I enjoyed watching the cats interact with Edgar (the elf doll) yesterday. It seems that they all took turns getting to know him. First Richard:

Brown Cat Felidae Carnivore Small to medium-sized cats


And then Coco:

Cat Felidae Carnivore Small to medium-sized cats Toy


I think it is going to be a good week.

Have a wonderful week yourselves. Please try to not get stressed out by the season. Take time to enjoy your friends and families and the time you have with them.

Happy Monday
Have a gr8 week. Sip on a spiked eggnog to de-stress.. lol
 

Attachments

#9,591 ·
Snow, Memories and Frienships

As the sun begins to illuminate the morning sky, I look out and notice that once again the snow is gently falling on us here in Nova Scotia. This time is isn't the windy, violent type of snowfall that occurred the other day, but rather the soft, large flakes that gently float to the ground.

It is getting lighter out, and I can see that already several fresh inches of snow have accumulated on the ground. As yesterday things were all cleared up from the weekend storm and once again there is a fresh, white blanket which covers everything in sight.

Winter in the country is beautiful. While I know that many of you have very valid reasons for not liking the snow or the cold that accompanies it - try as I may I can't feel the same. We will just have to agree to disagree. I have been on this Earth long enough to realize that what makes this world a wonderful place is that people are different in their likes and dislikes and that is part of what makes life so special and interesting. How boring it would be if we all felt exactly the same about everything! It certainly wouldn't be a world which I would want to live.

I love snow - especially around Christmas. I have a few memories of Christmases past where it rained or the weather was sunny and warm and to me it just didn't feel the same. The thought of bundling up and snuggling with others and cooking warm meals and drinking cocoa are only part of the joy of the season, and all of these things I associate with snow and cold. It is just how I was brought up. This type of weather also triggers memories of venturing out in the snow with my grandfather to pick a tree when we lived on the south side of Chicago. The scene in "A Christmas Story" of them choosing the tree is exactly how I remembered doing the same - only with my grandfather and my uncle Wayne who was only five years older than I and more like a big brother than an uncle. I remember one year when one of my front teeth had fallen out and the other was loose, Wayne offered to pay me a quarter if I would loosen up my other front tooth and pull it out in time for Christmas so that I could say "All I want for Christmas is my two front teeth." I took him up on it.

Memories like these - of the snow filled streets of Chicago - also bring warm thoughts of ice skating after school, playing football in the snow with our friends, and Christmas caroling on our way home from Gage Park after our dance lessons and basketball games. It was just as cold, but we didn't care. I remember peeling off layers of frozen socks and hats and mittens that appeared as if they could break into pieces, and taking a nice, warm bath to warm back up again where my skin was deep pink from the cold. Then I would don my jammies and cuddle with one of my cats and have cocoa while looking at our own tree in the parlor. It was a magical time for me and these memories will be replayed in my mind as long as I live. I am happy to have them.

This morning when I awoke, I saw Edgar reading one of my Christmas cards.

Glasses Hat Toy Headgear Costume hat


Being his first Christmas, he didn't know much about Christmas cards. I could see the wonder in his eyes and Pancakes came over to see what he was looking at. Being a cat, Pancakes doesn't know how to read. But I was surprised that Edgar was able to read so well being fresh out of Elf School. Miss Brenda (his creator) must have taught him well.

Felidae Carnivore Small to medium-sized cats Fawn Whiskers


In any case, Edgar read the beautiful thoughts from the card which I received from my wonderful Lumberjock friend, Anna. Anna is a very talented woodworker and scroll sawyer and we had the pleasure of meeting her and her husband Jim this summer when they came here to Nova Scotia all the way from British Columbia for vacation. We have a wonderful friendship which began on our mutual love of creating and had a wonderful visit. I was thrilled to get such a lovely card from them.

While Pancakes is unable to read, he was able to tell Edgar a little bit about Christmas and friendships and how he felt that they were becoming great friends as well. Edgar seemed quite happy with that idea.

Anna had made the card herself. She had used a pattern that my partner Kieth designed and cut the intricate filigree bell out of paper on the scroll saw. She then embellished the design with some beautiful crystal rhinestones. It is beautiful and thoughtful and meaningful at the same time. And we just loved receiving it.

Brown Textile Sleeve Gold Beige


I love this time of year. I love seeing the creativity in others that are around me. I love that many people, no matter what religion they follow, look upon this time of year to express their love and kindness towards others. I have friends of all religions - or no religions - that take this time of year as an opportunity to reflect and be grateful for all they have. And that I believe is a good thing.

I always look upon the holiday season with hope. I hope that the world will be kinder and more understanding to others around them. I hope that people realize that just because others don't think exactly like they do, that doesn't mean that they are "wrong" or "bad" people. I do think that in order for our world to succeed and continue to be strong, we need to be tolerant of others and their own beliefs.

Am I being idealistic? Probably so. But that is the way I am and I don't see that changing any time soon. It is just part of the person that I am. After all - if an elf and a cat can get along so well, anything is possible.

Vertebrate Carnivore Mammal Organism Art


I wish you all a wonderful Tuesday!
 

Attachments

#9,592 ·
Snow, Memories and Frienships

As the sun begins to illuminate the morning sky, I look out and notice that once again the snow is gently falling on us here in Nova Scotia. This time is isn't the windy, violent type of snowfall that occurred the other day, but rather the soft, large flakes that gently float to the ground.

It is getting lighter out, and I can see that already several fresh inches of snow have accumulated on the ground. As yesterday things were all cleared up from the weekend storm and once again there is a fresh, white blanket which covers everything in sight.

Winter in the country is beautiful. While I know that many of you have very valid reasons for not liking the snow or the cold that accompanies it - try as I may I can't feel the same. We will just have to agree to disagree. I have been on this Earth long enough to realize that what makes this world a wonderful place is that people are different in their likes and dislikes and that is part of what makes life so special and interesting. How boring it would be if we all felt exactly the same about everything! It certainly wouldn't be a world which I would want to live.

I love snow - especially around Christmas. I have a few memories of Christmases past where it rained or the weather was sunny and warm and to me it just didn't feel the same. The thought of bundling up and snuggling with others and cooking warm meals and drinking cocoa are only part of the joy of the season, and all of these things I associate with snow and cold. It is just how I was brought up. This type of weather also triggers memories of venturing out in the snow with my grandfather to pick a tree when we lived on the south side of Chicago. The scene in "A Christmas Story" of them choosing the tree is exactly how I remembered doing the same - only with my grandfather and my uncle Wayne who was only five years older than I and more like a big brother than an uncle. I remember one year when one of my front teeth had fallen out and the other was loose, Wayne offered to pay me a quarter if I would loosen up my other front tooth and pull it out in time for Christmas so that I could say "All I want for Christmas is my two front teeth." I took him up on it.

Memories like these - of the snow filled streets of Chicago - also bring warm thoughts of ice skating after school, playing football in the snow with our friends, and Christmas caroling on our way home from Gage Park after our dance lessons and basketball games. It was just as cold, but we didn't care. I remember peeling off layers of frozen socks and hats and mittens that appeared as if they could break into pieces, and taking a nice, warm bath to warm back up again where my skin was deep pink from the cold. Then I would don my jammies and cuddle with one of my cats and have cocoa while looking at our own tree in the parlor. It was a magical time for me and these memories will be replayed in my mind as long as I live. I am happy to have them.

This morning when I awoke, I saw Edgar reading one of my Christmas cards.

Glasses Hat Toy Headgear Costume hat


Being his first Christmas, he didn't know much about Christmas cards. I could see the wonder in his eyes and Pancakes came over to see what he was looking at. Being a cat, Pancakes doesn't know how to read. But I was surprised that Edgar was able to read so well being fresh out of Elf School. Miss Brenda (his creator) must have taught him well.

Felidae Carnivore Small to medium-sized cats Fawn Whiskers


In any case, Edgar read the beautiful thoughts from the card which I received from my wonderful Lumberjock friend, Anna. Anna is a very talented woodworker and scroll sawyer and we had the pleasure of meeting her and her husband Jim this summer when they came here to Nova Scotia all the way from British Columbia for vacation. We have a wonderful friendship which began on our mutual love of creating and had a wonderful visit. I was thrilled to get such a lovely card from them.

While Pancakes is unable to read, he was able to tell Edgar a little bit about Christmas and friendships and how he felt that they were becoming great friends as well. Edgar seemed quite happy with that idea.

Anna had made the card herself. She had used a pattern that my partner Kieth designed and cut the intricate filigree bell out of paper on the scroll saw. She then embellished the design with some beautiful crystal rhinestones. It is beautiful and thoughtful and meaningful at the same time. And we just loved receiving it.

Brown Textile Sleeve Gold Beige


I love this time of year. I love seeing the creativity in others that are around me. I love that many people, no matter what religion they follow, look upon this time of year to express their love and kindness towards others. I have friends of all religions - or no religions - that take this time of year as an opportunity to reflect and be grateful for all they have. And that I believe is a good thing.

I always look upon the holiday season with hope. I hope that the world will be kinder and more understanding to others around them. I hope that people realize that just because others don't think exactly like they do, that doesn't mean that they are "wrong" or "bad" people. I do think that in order for our world to succeed and continue to be strong, we need to be tolerant of others and their own beliefs.

Am I being idealistic? Probably so. But that is the way I am and I don't see that changing any time soon. It is just part of the person that I am. After all - if an elf and a cat can get along so well, anything is possible.

Vertebrate Carnivore Mammal Organism Art


I wish you all a wonderful Tuesday!
You too Shelia - trying to finish my last project for the year, perhaps in the next two days then I off till Jan 1st
 

Attachments

#9,598 ·
Out of My Comfort Zone

Yesterday I pretty much finished up the last of the things that I needed to do for the Christmas holiday. Everything that I wanted to mail out had been posted and all the gifts that I had to get or make for my own giving here in Canada were complete. I still have some wrapping to do, but that should only take a short time and I will certainly get things done over the weekend. I think I am doing pretty well.

It is a strange feeling for me to be so on top of things. I don't think that there has ever been a time before when I was ready for the holiday so early. Perhaps it is because our families are a little smaller. Or maybe it is that we decided to downsize the holidays a bit and limit our gift giving. Probably it is a little bit of both.

As we arrived home from our daily errands of visiting the post office and stopping at the store, I felt rather odd. Usually as I return, I am planning out the days activities and work, and on a deadline to finish the latest project that I am working on. Whether it is self-imposed or a deadline for a catalog or magazine, I treat it with equal importance and I attack it with enthusiasm.

But yesterday, my "to do" list was complete. I am certainly not out of ideas, but for some reason I didn't really feel like jumping into another project just yet. I live from project to project all year long and I suppose that I wanted to take a minute to stop and enjoy the day as it was and my surroundings and enjoy the season. After all - that is what I advise everyone else. We need to take time for ourselves and stop and just "be" once in a while. Otherwise life seems to just slip by.

I thought of all the things that I wanted to do for myself. There is some sewing that I want to do. Not mending, mind you, but creating something out of fabric. I have a few ideas of what I want to make - just for fun - and I never seem to have time to do that.

I also want to do some things with clay. Last year I had purchased some materials to do some small clay pieces and they are sitting in the box I designated for them waiting for me to find the time to work with them. This too is something that is strictly for myself. I had some ideas of what I wanted to create and while I don't have a clue as to how to go about it, I think it will be fun to try.

And then there is painting. Since I was a young child I have always longed to paint. I don't quite know why, but recreating images in paint is wonderfully satisfying for me an it is something that I have been longing to do. Not the type of painting that I do to create patterns so the design can be replicated over and over again, but the kind of painting where I create actual paintings. One of a kind works of 'art' if you will that I can call my own.

A couple of months ago I bought an entirely new type of paint (DecoArt Traditions) with the hopes of using them for my own creating. They are different from my normal DecoArt Acrylics in that they feel and work more like oils. I am unable to use oil paint because I find myself having trouble with the fumes (they make me feel rather ill) and while I do use the Genesis Heat-Set oils, there are many lessons and projects which teach with the newer Traditions paint. I invested in a rather large set of them in hopes of furthering my own education in painting and they have been waiting for me to find the time to pull them out and try them.

With all these creative avenues to follow, it was no wonder that I was in a muddle. Sometimes when we have too many directions to follow at once, it tends to stop us altogether. We are frozen and unable to mover in any direction.

But the other day on Facebook, I changed my timeline photo to a beautiful snow leopard picture and a friend of mine commented on how stunning of a creature it was. I had told her about my recent trip to Brookfield Zoo when I had visited my children in Chicago and posted another photo that I had taken of the new snow leopard cub 'Everest' and his mom. My friend said "you should paint it!" and it got me thinking. The photo was good and clear and it would make a nice painting I thought. So that is what I decided to do.

I haven't painted this type of painting in years. In the past, I have done some nice paintings of wildlife and 'big cats' which I am very proud of. While it is good to be happy with your work, as time goes on and I got farther and farther away from when I created it, I found that I was intimidated by my own paintings and found myself wondering if I would ever be able to do as well again. I realize that may sound silly, but it is true.

It seems that by those previous paintings, I set the bar high for myself and my own expectations of what I could accomplish were great. But as the years passed by and I never really got back to doing paintings of that type, I somewhat 'forgot' how I accomplished them and began to lose confidence. It only has gotten worse over time.

There were several years in between where I didn't even really paint at all - not even 'fun' painting - and as with most things we know how to do, if we don't do them on a regular basis, our skills get rusty. But this past year or so I have been not only finding some success in painting from patterns others created and online lessons, but also creating my own patterns to teach. One step at a time I have been getting back into things.

But I feel that I have reached a plateau and the next step was the scariest of all - to jump back into doing something that for me would be considered "difficult." It was time for me to push myself to my own limit and get out of my comfort zone and advance. So yesterday I jumped in.

I decided to take some photos along the way of my progress. This not only helps me remember the steps that I took, but it also gives me another perspective on what I am doing. It is odd how different my own work can look in a photo. Seeing it on a computer screen allows me to see things from a different perspective and I notice things that I perhaps didn't notice with the naked eye. I decided not to show you my reference photo until the end, although I have shown it here before both in my blog and on Facebook. It is no secret, but I do have my own interpretation of what I am seeing and I don't transfer everything literally from the picture to the painting. So for now, I will just show my work.

The painting size is 14" x 11" and is going to be done on masonite. I began by making a background with shades of Prussian blue and greens. I wanted it to look as if the subjects are in a shadowy cave, and I love the color Prussian blue. I also thought that the snow leopards would show up nicely.

I painted the main rocks that they are sleeping on and then began their eyes. I like doing the eyes first - even if it is done preliminary and subject to change later on. To me, it gives the painting its' soul and if done properly, it is encouraging to me and helps me continue on.

Carnivore Felidae Terrestrial animal Art Snout


I was happy with Everest's eyes so far.

Head Eye Paint Painting Art


I then completed his mom's eyes and put a base color on her nose. (Her name escapes me at the moment) Her nose will have much darker coloring over it, but I was testing out the colors that I was using and trying to make sure that they would work. It also helped me feel if I was heading in the right direction.

I began to work on Everest's head, although looking back on things this morning, I realize that I probably shouldn't have done that first. However, I think that I needed to see some progress and I was over-eager to see some results. Again I was testing out colors. I am finding it a bit of a challenge to mix and work with these new paints. Not one that I can't overcome mind you, but something that I need to get used to. In looking back I am wondering if it was a wise decision on my part to begin with one of the main focal points of the painting. I rather think that I would have been better off feeling my way around on a more nondescript area and then by the time I get to the heads, I would be more comfortable in what I am doing. But I did what I did and we will go from here. The good thing about painting this type of fur is that it is composed of many layers, and I have the opportunity to improve on what is there without negative consequence.

Window Felidae Cat Carnivore Small to medium-sized cats


A close up of the under layers. For some reason, the lighting here made the painting look a bit blown out. It looks a lot more 'smeary' than it actually is. But at least you get the point.

Grey Carnivore Felidae Wood Whiskers


I spent the remainder of the evening basing in the undercoat on Everest's body. This established the fur direction and the general colors and placement of the spots. By this time it was after midnight and I was really tired. It was good for me to stop and take a break and look at things with fresh eyes in the morning.

Felidae Carnivore Small to medium-sized cats Whiskers Big cats


So that is where we are so far. As I looked at what I have accomplished so far, I am not discouraged, but there is much to improve upon. Some of the things, like the shape of the head and the length of the tail will be adjusted as things progress. Those are part of the process.

It dawned on me that in my excitement to see things get "done" and look like a painting, I am doing things rather backwards. Common sense tells me that I should be painting the further areas first, and closer areas afterward. While I knew that all along, I think that my eagerness to see if it would look nice or come out overtook my common sense. By painting the front areas first, I am continually adjusting the edges of the fur and mucking things up. I have decided to change tactics.

But I do believe it is salvageable and I will continue on. This is after all a learning experience for me. I will say that it is very hard for me to put myself out here when I am so fearful of the outcome. But doing so helps me to look at things from a different perspective, and hopefully encourage others to take a chance and try something new. After all, it is only a piece of masonite and some paint. If I ruin it, the loss is minimal. And if I learn from my errors, than the time that I invested is well spent.

I hope you all enjoy seeing this painting come to be. I don't know how long it will take to complete it, but I hope that I am able to work on it until I am 'finished'. Maybe it will inspire some of you to step out of your own comfort zones and try something new. What have you got to lose?

Have a wonderfully creative Wednesday.
 

Attachments

#9,599 ·
Out of My Comfort Zone

Yesterday I pretty much finished up the last of the things that I needed to do for the Christmas holiday. Everything that I wanted to mail out had been posted and all the gifts that I had to get or make for my own giving here in Canada were complete. I still have some wrapping to do, but that should only take a short time and I will certainly get things done over the weekend. I think I am doing pretty well.

It is a strange feeling for me to be so on top of things. I don't think that there has ever been a time before when I was ready for the holiday so early. Perhaps it is because our families are a little smaller. Or maybe it is that we decided to downsize the holidays a bit and limit our gift giving. Probably it is a little bit of both.

As we arrived home from our daily errands of visiting the post office and stopping at the store, I felt rather odd. Usually as I return, I am planning out the days activities and work, and on a deadline to finish the latest project that I am working on. Whether it is self-imposed or a deadline for a catalog or magazine, I treat it with equal importance and I attack it with enthusiasm.

But yesterday, my "to do" list was complete. I am certainly not out of ideas, but for some reason I didn't really feel like jumping into another project just yet. I live from project to project all year long and I suppose that I wanted to take a minute to stop and enjoy the day as it was and my surroundings and enjoy the season. After all - that is what I advise everyone else. We need to take time for ourselves and stop and just "be" once in a while. Otherwise life seems to just slip by.

I thought of all the things that I wanted to do for myself. There is some sewing that I want to do. Not mending, mind you, but creating something out of fabric. I have a few ideas of what I want to make - just for fun - and I never seem to have time to do that.

I also want to do some things with clay. Last year I had purchased some materials to do some small clay pieces and they are sitting in the box I designated for them waiting for me to find the time to work with them. This too is something that is strictly for myself. I had some ideas of what I wanted to create and while I don't have a clue as to how to go about it, I think it will be fun to try.

And then there is painting. Since I was a young child I have always longed to paint. I don't quite know why, but recreating images in paint is wonderfully satisfying for me an it is something that I have been longing to do. Not the type of painting that I do to create patterns so the design can be replicated over and over again, but the kind of painting where I create actual paintings. One of a kind works of 'art' if you will that I can call my own.

A couple of months ago I bought an entirely new type of paint (DecoArt Traditions) with the hopes of using them for my own creating. They are different from my normal DecoArt Acrylics in that they feel and work more like oils. I am unable to use oil paint because I find myself having trouble with the fumes (they make me feel rather ill) and while I do use the Genesis Heat-Set oils, there are many lessons and projects which teach with the newer Traditions paint. I invested in a rather large set of them in hopes of furthering my own education in painting and they have been waiting for me to find the time to pull them out and try them.

With all these creative avenues to follow, it was no wonder that I was in a muddle. Sometimes when we have too many directions to follow at once, it tends to stop us altogether. We are frozen and unable to mover in any direction.

But the other day on Facebook, I changed my timeline photo to a beautiful snow leopard picture and a friend of mine commented on how stunning of a creature it was. I had told her about my recent trip to Brookfield Zoo when I had visited my children in Chicago and posted another photo that I had taken of the new snow leopard cub 'Everest' and his mom. My friend said "you should paint it!" and it got me thinking. The photo was good and clear and it would make a nice painting I thought. So that is what I decided to do.

I haven't painted this type of painting in years. In the past, I have done some nice paintings of wildlife and 'big cats' which I am very proud of. While it is good to be happy with your work, as time goes on and I got farther and farther away from when I created it, I found that I was intimidated by my own paintings and found myself wondering if I would ever be able to do as well again. I realize that may sound silly, but it is true.

It seems that by those previous paintings, I set the bar high for myself and my own expectations of what I could accomplish were great. But as the years passed by and I never really got back to doing paintings of that type, I somewhat 'forgot' how I accomplished them and began to lose confidence. It only has gotten worse over time.

There were several years in between where I didn't even really paint at all - not even 'fun' painting - and as with most things we know how to do, if we don't do them on a regular basis, our skills get rusty. But this past year or so I have been not only finding some success in painting from patterns others created and online lessons, but also creating my own patterns to teach. One step at a time I have been getting back into things.

But I feel that I have reached a plateau and the next step was the scariest of all - to jump back into doing something that for me would be considered "difficult." It was time for me to push myself to my own limit and get out of my comfort zone and advance. So yesterday I jumped in.

I decided to take some photos along the way of my progress. This not only helps me remember the steps that I took, but it also gives me another perspective on what I am doing. It is odd how different my own work can look in a photo. Seeing it on a computer screen allows me to see things from a different perspective and I notice things that I perhaps didn't notice with the naked eye. I decided not to show you my reference photo until the end, although I have shown it here before both in my blog and on Facebook. It is no secret, but I do have my own interpretation of what I am seeing and I don't transfer everything literally from the picture to the painting. So for now, I will just show my work.

The painting size is 14" x 11" and is going to be done on masonite. I began by making a background with shades of Prussian blue and greens. I wanted it to look as if the subjects are in a shadowy cave, and I love the color Prussian blue. I also thought that the snow leopards would show up nicely.

I painted the main rocks that they are sleeping on and then began their eyes. I like doing the eyes first - even if it is done preliminary and subject to change later on. To me, it gives the painting its' soul and if done properly, it is encouraging to me and helps me continue on.

Carnivore Felidae Terrestrial animal Art Snout


I was happy with Everest's eyes so far.

Head Eye Paint Painting Art


I then completed his mom's eyes and put a base color on her nose. (Her name escapes me at the moment) Her nose will have much darker coloring over it, but I was testing out the colors that I was using and trying to make sure that they would work. It also helped me feel if I was heading in the right direction.

I began to work on Everest's head, although looking back on things this morning, I realize that I probably shouldn't have done that first. However, I think that I needed to see some progress and I was over-eager to see some results. Again I was testing out colors. I am finding it a bit of a challenge to mix and work with these new paints. Not one that I can't overcome mind you, but something that I need to get used to. In looking back I am wondering if it was a wise decision on my part to begin with one of the main focal points of the painting. I rather think that I would have been better off feeling my way around on a more nondescript area and then by the time I get to the heads, I would be more comfortable in what I am doing. But I did what I did and we will go from here. The good thing about painting this type of fur is that it is composed of many layers, and I have the opportunity to improve on what is there without negative consequence.

Window Felidae Cat Carnivore Small to medium-sized cats


A close up of the under layers. For some reason, the lighting here made the painting look a bit blown out. It looks a lot more 'smeary' than it actually is. But at least you get the point.

Grey Carnivore Felidae Wood Whiskers


I spent the remainder of the evening basing in the undercoat on Everest's body. This established the fur direction and the general colors and placement of the spots. By this time it was after midnight and I was really tired. It was good for me to stop and take a break and look at things with fresh eyes in the morning.

Felidae Carnivore Small to medium-sized cats Whiskers Big cats


So that is where we are so far. As I looked at what I have accomplished so far, I am not discouraged, but there is much to improve upon. Some of the things, like the shape of the head and the length of the tail will be adjusted as things progress. Those are part of the process.

It dawned on me that in my excitement to see things get "done" and look like a painting, I am doing things rather backwards. Common sense tells me that I should be painting the further areas first, and closer areas afterward. While I knew that all along, I think that my eagerness to see if it would look nice or come out overtook my common sense. By painting the front areas first, I am continually adjusting the edges of the fur and mucking things up. I have decided to change tactics.

But I do believe it is salvageable and I will continue on. This is after all a learning experience for me. I will say that it is very hard for me to put myself out here when I am so fearful of the outcome. But doing so helps me to look at things from a different perspective, and hopefully encourage others to take a chance and try something new. After all, it is only a piece of masonite and some paint. If I ruin it, the loss is minimal. And if I learn from my errors, than the time that I invested is well spent.

I hope you all enjoy seeing this painting come to be. I don't know how long it will take to complete it, but I hope that I am able to work on it until I am 'finished'. Maybe it will inspire some of you to step out of your own comfort zones and try something new. What have you got to lose?

Have a wonderfully creative Wednesday.
Your painting is going to look wonderful when it's finished. I love the way you have done the eyes. They are very alive and expressive. How are you finding the Traditions paints to work with? Are they thicker than the acrylics? I finally got back to some painting on the weekend and find after many years of not picking up a paintbrush, I have lost some of the techniques. I know that with doing more I'll get back to the standard I was at many years ago. I certainly enjoyed my day painting and plan on lots more over the winter.
Sunny, windy and cool here today. A nice break after the rain.
 

Attachments

#9,603 ·
Progress on Leopard Pair Painting

I feel as if I am slow in getting the blog up here this morning. I have been up a while, but have been picking through the many emails that I have here and looking at what others are making for their Christmas gift giving.

I love being friends with so many creative people on Facebook and through the forums. I think it is wonderful to see what everyone is doing and I feel very inspired by all that I see. I believe that artists and creative people feed off of each other, and by congregating at such places like Lumberjocks, Steve Good's forum and Facebook, we not only share our ideas, but we support each other as well.

I have been so encouraged in the past couple of days from all the nice comments that you have all sent me on my snow leopards painting. Even though at first I was very unsure of which direction to head with it, you have all cheered me on and helped motivate me to stick with it.

When I lived in the Chicago area, I had joined a painting group through the Society of Decorative Painters. Not only did I meet with the group during the regular meetings, but I developed friendships with other members and we met several times a month to share our love of creating. This was an important reason as to why I was able to learn and advance in painting, and I made many friendships during that time that I still carry with me today.

I find that the same applies to woodworking. Fifteen years ago we formed a group that "met" in a chatroom that was hosted by one of the major woodworking magazines. The group met twice a week for probably two hours and we talked about the projects we were working on and answered questions and generally had a fun visit. I remember back then when the internet was new how I marveled at being able to talk to someone in New York state as well as Washington State at the same time. I also still have many of these people as friends, and over the years have met many of them in person as well. Without their friendship and encouragement I don't know if I would have continued my pursuit of learning woodworking.

We are fortunate to have open communication like this. I find myself stopping in on various Facebook pages several times per day to see what my other creative friends are up to. Only now it seems that the scope has expanded. Where we used to communicate with people from all across the USA, now we are able to forge friendships with others from all corners of the Earth. It is truly a smaller world.

With that said, I will get on to showing the progress I made yesterday on my painting. It snowed most of the day, but we were able to manage to get to the gym and post office. It was apparent when I arrived home that I would be in for the duration, and I took the majority of the day to paint.

As I mentioned yesterday, I changed my plan of action on the snow leopard painting. While it was good to see the painting coming to life, I knew in my heart that initially I was going about painting it incorrectly. When doing fur, it is especially important to paint the things furthest from you and work your way forward. When I had started, I pretty much did the opposite, causing me to have to re-paint the edges of each section and causing it to look unnatural. While it may seem unnecessary to most of you, I will in all probability wind up re-painting the small leopards head and face near the end of the project. I feel that it is the right way to go about it.

So yesterday I began by loosely brushing in the underlying colors and establishing the direction of the fur of the leopards.

Cat Carnivore Felidae Whiskers Lynx


While I had done this on the baby leopard, I needed to do the mom the same. While it doesn't look like much, it is a very important step in the process and to me it is one of the most difficult ones. One of the things that most may not realize is that not only does fur on an animal naturally follow many different directions, but it also varies in length as well. While this may not look like much, it is in essence a road map of how I need to paint the fur in order for the animal to look natural. I find that the natural transition areas are sometimes the most difficult to establish, even though I am looking right at them in a photograph. There are areas that are somewhat random in direction and it is often hard for me to let my mind follow these random patterns and replicate them in the painting. But I try my best.

Once that layer is done, I can begin painting the fur in earnest.

Cat Felidae Carnivore Small to medium-sized cats Whiskers


I began by laying in the fur in the center of the body of the mom snow leopard, as I felt that was the part that was furthest from me. This fur was very short and I was still getting used to the paint I was using, as well as figuring out just how I was going to go about filling things in. It was a very slow go at first, but all of a sudden I began seeing the results that I wanted and it encouraged me a great deal. Up until this point, I was still quite uncomfortable in what I was doing and I struggled through trying this and trying that to make things look how I saw them in my head and on the photo. But things began to "click" and I felt much more comfortable and I knew I had finally figured out what I needed to do to continue. It was a good moment for me.

Carnivore Small to medium-sized cats Felidae Whiskers Grey


I continued to work on the upper body and shoulder, and worked my way down to the front limb and paw. It is hard to believe that getting this far took well over eight hours for me to do.

By dinner time, I had moved across the entire front limb of the mom. By painting in the fur, the area seemed to "grow" and looks rather out of proportion with the rest of the animal. But this is natural and things will all balance out as I continue on and finish. (I hope!)

Cat Carnivore Felidae Small to medium-sized cats Whiskers


I want to mention that at this point, things look rather flat. The fur is not toned or glazed yet, which will give the animal contours and shape it much better. I did do a bit of shading in the middle side section, which set it to the back a bit, but I didn't want to go too far right now because I feel that it will be better to do all at once, after the fur is painted on the entire animal.

I did do some preliminary glazing/shading in the area behind the baby's head where the mother's foot and tail are showing. This was a very undefined area in my photograph and it took a lot of concentration and thought for me to paint. The only way I could really differentiate the tail from the foot was by doing some glazing and shadowing, and it helped me understand where I was at the time and which direction I needed to paint.

Felidae Carnivore Small to medium-sized cats Whiskers Grey


It just goes to show that there are no hard and fast rules to follow. Everything is subject to ones' own discretion. For a difficult area, I think it came out nice and I am very pleased with it. While it probably won't be a focal point in the final painting, it will certainly play its part in making the painting look realistic and correct.

It was getting late at that point, and I was getting close to quitting, but I did paint a bit further on the chest area. This area has a lot of white in it on my photograph, and I have to be careful not to make it look too uniform or boring. I fear that it will look rather plain until the final steps of glazing and shading are applied, and I am going to have to restrain from picking on it too much right now. While it still has some fill to be painted, it is the type of place I can leave and come back later on to refine, so I think that I will probably wind up doing that.

Cat Felidae Carnivore Small to medium-sized cats Whiskers


So that is where we are today. I have hopes of beginning to work on the mom's head and face today. If I can nail that part, I will be well on my way to having a decent painting. Only time will tell . . .

It is Thursday already, and Christmas is closing in on many. I hope you all are where you want to be with your preparations and taking some time to relax and enjoy the season. I see so many people stressed out and I feel bad for them. Remember that most of the stress you feel is that you put on yourself. Take a breath and try to remember that the most important thing is being with those you love.

Have a great day!
 

Attachments

#9,604 ·
Progress on Leopard Pair Painting

I feel as if I am slow in getting the blog up here this morning. I have been up a while, but have been picking through the many emails that I have here and looking at what others are making for their Christmas gift giving.

I love being friends with so many creative people on Facebook and through the forums. I think it is wonderful to see what everyone is doing and I feel very inspired by all that I see. I believe that artists and creative people feed off of each other, and by congregating at such places like Lumberjocks, Steve Good's forum and Facebook, we not only share our ideas, but we support each other as well.

I have been so encouraged in the past couple of days from all the nice comments that you have all sent me on my snow leopards painting. Even though at first I was very unsure of which direction to head with it, you have all cheered me on and helped motivate me to stick with it.

When I lived in the Chicago area, I had joined a painting group through the Society of Decorative Painters. Not only did I meet with the group during the regular meetings, but I developed friendships with other members and we met several times a month to share our love of creating. This was an important reason as to why I was able to learn and advance in painting, and I made many friendships during that time that I still carry with me today.

I find that the same applies to woodworking. Fifteen years ago we formed a group that "met" in a chatroom that was hosted by one of the major woodworking magazines. The group met twice a week for probably two hours and we talked about the projects we were working on and answered questions and generally had a fun visit. I remember back then when the internet was new how I marveled at being able to talk to someone in New York state as well as Washington State at the same time. I also still have many of these people as friends, and over the years have met many of them in person as well. Without their friendship and encouragement I don't know if I would have continued my pursuit of learning woodworking.

We are fortunate to have open communication like this. I find myself stopping in on various Facebook pages several times per day to see what my other creative friends are up to. Only now it seems that the scope has expanded. Where we used to communicate with people from all across the USA, now we are able to forge friendships with others from all corners of the Earth. It is truly a smaller world.

With that said, I will get on to showing the progress I made yesterday on my painting. It snowed most of the day, but we were able to manage to get to the gym and post office. It was apparent when I arrived home that I would be in for the duration, and I took the majority of the day to paint.

As I mentioned yesterday, I changed my plan of action on the snow leopard painting. While it was good to see the painting coming to life, I knew in my heart that initially I was going about painting it incorrectly. When doing fur, it is especially important to paint the things furthest from you and work your way forward. When I had started, I pretty much did the opposite, causing me to have to re-paint the edges of each section and causing it to look unnatural. While it may seem unnecessary to most of you, I will in all probability wind up re-painting the small leopards head and face near the end of the project. I feel that it is the right way to go about it.

So yesterday I began by loosely brushing in the underlying colors and establishing the direction of the fur of the leopards.

Cat Carnivore Felidae Whiskers Lynx


While I had done this on the baby leopard, I needed to do the mom the same. While it doesn't look like much, it is a very important step in the process and to me it is one of the most difficult ones. One of the things that most may not realize is that not only does fur on an animal naturally follow many different directions, but it also varies in length as well. While this may not look like much, it is in essence a road map of how I need to paint the fur in order for the animal to look natural. I find that the natural transition areas are sometimes the most difficult to establish, even though I am looking right at them in a photograph. There are areas that are somewhat random in direction and it is often hard for me to let my mind follow these random patterns and replicate them in the painting. But I try my best.

Once that layer is done, I can begin painting the fur in earnest.

Cat Felidae Carnivore Small to medium-sized cats Whiskers


I began by laying in the fur in the center of the body of the mom snow leopard, as I felt that was the part that was furthest from me. This fur was very short and I was still getting used to the paint I was using, as well as figuring out just how I was going to go about filling things in. It was a very slow go at first, but all of a sudden I began seeing the results that I wanted and it encouraged me a great deal. Up until this point, I was still quite uncomfortable in what I was doing and I struggled through trying this and trying that to make things look how I saw them in my head and on the photo. But things began to "click" and I felt much more comfortable and I knew I had finally figured out what I needed to do to continue. It was a good moment for me.

Carnivore Small to medium-sized cats Felidae Whiskers Grey


I continued to work on the upper body and shoulder, and worked my way down to the front limb and paw. It is hard to believe that getting this far took well over eight hours for me to do.

By dinner time, I had moved across the entire front limb of the mom. By painting in the fur, the area seemed to "grow" and looks rather out of proportion with the rest of the animal. But this is natural and things will all balance out as I continue on and finish. (I hope!)

Cat Carnivore Felidae Small to medium-sized cats Whiskers


I want to mention that at this point, things look rather flat. The fur is not toned or glazed yet, which will give the animal contours and shape it much better. I did do a bit of shading in the middle side section, which set it to the back a bit, but I didn't want to go too far right now because I feel that it will be better to do all at once, after the fur is painted on the entire animal.

I did do some preliminary glazing/shading in the area behind the baby's head where the mother's foot and tail are showing. This was a very undefined area in my photograph and it took a lot of concentration and thought for me to paint. The only way I could really differentiate the tail from the foot was by doing some glazing and shadowing, and it helped me understand where I was at the time and which direction I needed to paint.

Felidae Carnivore Small to medium-sized cats Whiskers Grey


It just goes to show that there are no hard and fast rules to follow. Everything is subject to ones' own discretion. For a difficult area, I think it came out nice and I am very pleased with it. While it probably won't be a focal point in the final painting, it will certainly play its part in making the painting look realistic and correct.

It was getting late at that point, and I was getting close to quitting, but I did paint a bit further on the chest area. This area has a lot of white in it on my photograph, and I have to be careful not to make it look too uniform or boring. I fear that it will look rather plain until the final steps of glazing and shading are applied, and I am going to have to restrain from picking on it too much right now. While it still has some fill to be painted, it is the type of place I can leave and come back later on to refine, so I think that I will probably wind up doing that.

Cat Felidae Carnivore Small to medium-sized cats Whiskers


So that is where we are today. I have hopes of beginning to work on the mom's head and face today. If I can nail that part, I will be well on my way to having a decent painting. Only time will tell . . .

It is Thursday already, and Christmas is closing in on many. I hope you all are where you want to be with your preparations and taking some time to relax and enjoy the season. I see so many people stressed out and I feel bad for them. Remember that most of the stress you feel is that you put on yourself. Take a breath and try to remember that the most important thing is being with those you love.

Have a great day!
O.K. This post was worth waiting for this morning. I'm enjoying watching the progress.
 

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#9,611 ·
Moving Right Along

There are times such as this when I wish I never had to sleep.

I find myself getting so wrapped up in my project that the days seem to pass at the blink of an eye. Yesterday was just like that.

I sat at the table in the late morning and began once again working on my painting. Besides writing my blog here, there were some every day chores that I had to finish before I could settle in. (Showering, getting dressed, answering emails, etc.) and I found myself wondering why doing all this seems to take so long. All I want to do is paint.

I was happy that the day before I had made a nice pot of chicken soup. There is nothing like having good food to quickly heat up without muss or fuss when I am focused like this. I ate my 'brunch' while looking at the progress that I had made up to that point on the painting. I needed to plan my next move and decide where I would adjust.

The more I looked at it, the less I liked the face of the little snow leopard cub, Everest. While his eyes looked good, he had a cartoon-like look to him. I didn't see it the night before, but after being away from it for a while, it was very apparent to me why. The fur pattern on his face was all wrong. The strokes were too uniform - not varied in either length or direction enough and the fur didn't look natural. I especially didn't like the left side, as the 'cheek' fur seemed to swoop up in a uniform curve. My eyes were drawn to it, and even the intensity of his eyes didn't pull me away from it.

The fur inside of his ears was much too long as well. Snow leopards have little fur inside their ears. What they do have for fur there is short and stubby except the long tufts coming from the head. That would need to be fixed as well.

You all may think that I am being too critical of myself on all of this. But I don't really think I am. One of the most important things about drawing and painting is to be able to look at a piece objectively and actually see the areas that need adjustment. The ability to do this helps to make the end much better. When I point out these areas, it isn't done so with the objective of beating myself down or looking for someone to compliment me and tell me otherwise. It is part of the process of painting and creating the best painting that I am capable of painting.

Did you ever look at a painting and like it over all, but felt uncomfortable because something was just a little "off"? I notice that at times in looking at various works. I like the overall look of the painting, but there is something - just something - that keeps me from being at ease with it. Be it the shape of an eye or a ear placement or the pattern or length of the fur. Something is just not what it should be.

Usually it is not immediately apparent, but upon looking closely and analyzing things further, it eventually is found. I see these types of things on many of my previous paintings. While sometimes they are more difficult to figure out than others, I think that as we grow as artists, we are more aware of things like this. I believe that this is a good thing that I am able to spot these discrepancies and shows that I am continuing to learn and advance. I also think that it helps me do better with my own paintings in the long run.

So while I may sound overly critical regarding what I am doing, I want you to understand that I am not saying it is "bad." There is always need for improvement and I think as I advance in my painting skills, the bar gets raised just a bit higher with each painting. By doing that, I will hopefully become a better artist. I want to be able to do the best that I can each time I paint. Settling is not an option, or why bother at all?

With that all said, let's get to yesterday's progress. I continued to fill int he fur on the neck and work my way up to the left ear.

Cat Felidae Carnivore Small to medium-sized cats Whiskers


It was at this point - when I really looked at the fur pattern of the ear - that I really realized just how wrong the ears on the cub were done. I felt that mom's ear came out nice, and looked very realistic. At this point it isn't really 'done' however, but it was a good start.

Eye Felidae Carnivore Small to medium-sized cats Painting


I began working around the head and coming up the right side. It was at this point that I realized that painting the chin and underneath the head may be a bit tricky, as in my photograph that area was very white and a bit blown out, as the chest was. It was at this point I know I will have to rely on instinct and recall the proper shaping of the chin, to make it look like it is supposed to.

Felidae Small to medium-sized cats Carnivore Whiskers Big cats


For now I put a wide shade of charcoal under the chin as a shade, and I felt that I would be able to go back and give the chin a better shape later on. I also noticed that the dark fur pattern in front of her left ear was much too straight, and looked like a slash. That would need to be adjusted as well, but for a start, it wasn't bad.

I also began laying down the shades for the right side of the face, under the eye. Since her head was at a slight angle and the light source was coming from the right, I needed to be cautious about this area and make sure that the shades and highlights were properly placed as well as the markings. But so far, it was looking OK.

Head Eye Felidae Carnivore Human body


The next step took several hours in the making. I probably should have taken another photo in between, but I was so involved with working that I simply forgot. I completely filled in the fur on the entire head, and adjusted the fur markings and major shadows as well. The upper nose is tricky because it has a black-ish look to parts of it, as if her skin on her face is black itself and the short, stubby fur of the bridge of the nose has been worn off with time. It may appear a bit blotchy now, but in the end, everything will get glazed and toned (which is accomplished by using washes of transparent color) and it will not look as stark. I think it will be OK.

Felidae Carnivore Whiskers Small to medium-sized cats Painting


I can honestly say that I am happy with how she looks at this point. Even after I woke up this morning and looked at her, I was still pleased. Understand that she is by no means "finished" but she is indeed coming along very nicely and I think this will be a painting that I will be pleased with when I am done.

Head Felidae Carnivore Organism Big cats


I didn't put my brush down until nearly eleven. So overall I think I put in a pretty full day. I wanted to go on, but my eyes were tired and I reached a point where I felt I should walk away for a bit. It was a good and productive day.

I received news later in the day that the news article that the reporter came to interview me for had been published. Keith's mom heard it from a friend of hers. I suppose in our little area here, we are receiving our 15 minutes of fame. ;) The link to the article is here: http://www.thevanguard.ca/News/2013-12-16/article-3545201/Long-road-to-success-for-artist-entrepreneur/1

I can't say I am thrilled with the picture he chose of me. (Who really likes their own picture anyway?) Of all the poses he took, he chose to have one looking up at me from below while I was looking down at the saw. As a result, I have several 'chins' and no neck. But that is my own vanity speaking and I am what I am and I (hopefully) don't look like that in person. I also thought it was odd (funny) that he mentioned my age. I don't really care, as everyone who reads my posts regularly knows that I am 'fifty-ish' anyway. But I just don't know what it had to do with the article. I don't even remember him asking me how old I was. Perhaps I am going senile after all. ;)

So for me it was a pretty good day. I am very pleased that so many of you enjoy my sharing this process with you. I have received many, many notes and emails from you all who are watching and I do like sharing what I am learning with you. It helps to make me look at things more closely as well.

Thank you for all of your encouragement. It is nice to feel that I am not alone in this journey. I hope to continue on today and make some more progress and see where we wind up.

Have a wonderful Friday.
 

Attachments

#9,612 ·
Moving Right Along

There are times such as this when I wish I never had to sleep.

I find myself getting so wrapped up in my project that the days seem to pass at the blink of an eye. Yesterday was just like that.

I sat at the table in the late morning and began once again working on my painting. Besides writing my blog here, there were some every day chores that I had to finish before I could settle in. (Showering, getting dressed, answering emails, etc.) and I found myself wondering why doing all this seems to take so long. All I want to do is paint.

I was happy that the day before I had made a nice pot of chicken soup. There is nothing like having good food to quickly heat up without muss or fuss when I am focused like this. I ate my 'brunch' while looking at the progress that I had made up to that point on the painting. I needed to plan my next move and decide where I would adjust.

The more I looked at it, the less I liked the face of the little snow leopard cub, Everest. While his eyes looked good, he had a cartoon-like look to him. I didn't see it the night before, but after being away from it for a while, it was very apparent to me why. The fur pattern on his face was all wrong. The strokes were too uniform - not varied in either length or direction enough and the fur didn't look natural. I especially didn't like the left side, as the 'cheek' fur seemed to swoop up in a uniform curve. My eyes were drawn to it, and even the intensity of his eyes didn't pull me away from it.

The fur inside of his ears was much too long as well. Snow leopards have little fur inside their ears. What they do have for fur there is short and stubby except the long tufts coming from the head. That would need to be fixed as well.

You all may think that I am being too critical of myself on all of this. But I don't really think I am. One of the most important things about drawing and painting is to be able to look at a piece objectively and actually see the areas that need adjustment. The ability to do this helps to make the end much better. When I point out these areas, it isn't done so with the objective of beating myself down or looking for someone to compliment me and tell me otherwise. It is part of the process of painting and creating the best painting that I am capable of painting.

Did you ever look at a painting and like it over all, but felt uncomfortable because something was just a little "off"? I notice that at times in looking at various works. I like the overall look of the painting, but there is something - just something - that keeps me from being at ease with it. Be it the shape of an eye or a ear placement or the pattern or length of the fur. Something is just not what it should be.

Usually it is not immediately apparent, but upon looking closely and analyzing things further, it eventually is found. I see these types of things on many of my previous paintings. While sometimes they are more difficult to figure out than others, I think that as we grow as artists, we are more aware of things like this. I believe that this is a good thing that I am able to spot these discrepancies and shows that I am continuing to learn and advance. I also think that it helps me do better with my own paintings in the long run.

So while I may sound overly critical regarding what I am doing, I want you to understand that I am not saying it is "bad." There is always need for improvement and I think as I advance in my painting skills, the bar gets raised just a bit higher with each painting. By doing that, I will hopefully become a better artist. I want to be able to do the best that I can each time I paint. Settling is not an option, or why bother at all?

With that all said, let's get to yesterday's progress. I continued to fill int he fur on the neck and work my way up to the left ear.

Cat Felidae Carnivore Small to medium-sized cats Whiskers


It was at this point - when I really looked at the fur pattern of the ear - that I really realized just how wrong the ears on the cub were done. I felt that mom's ear came out nice, and looked very realistic. At this point it isn't really 'done' however, but it was a good start.

Eye Felidae Carnivore Small to medium-sized cats Painting


I began working around the head and coming up the right side. It was at this point that I realized that painting the chin and underneath the head may be a bit tricky, as in my photograph that area was very white and a bit blown out, as the chest was. It was at this point I know I will have to rely on instinct and recall the proper shaping of the chin, to make it look like it is supposed to.

Felidae Small to medium-sized cats Carnivore Whiskers Big cats


For now I put a wide shade of charcoal under the chin as a shade, and I felt that I would be able to go back and give the chin a better shape later on. I also noticed that the dark fur pattern in front of her left ear was much too straight, and looked like a slash. That would need to be adjusted as well, but for a start, it wasn't bad.

I also began laying down the shades for the right side of the face, under the eye. Since her head was at a slight angle and the light source was coming from the right, I needed to be cautious about this area and make sure that the shades and highlights were properly placed as well as the markings. But so far, it was looking OK.

Head Eye Felidae Carnivore Human body


The next step took several hours in the making. I probably should have taken another photo in between, but I was so involved with working that I simply forgot. I completely filled in the fur on the entire head, and adjusted the fur markings and major shadows as well. The upper nose is tricky because it has a black-ish look to parts of it, as if her skin on her face is black itself and the short, stubby fur of the bridge of the nose has been worn off with time. It may appear a bit blotchy now, but in the end, everything will get glazed and toned (which is accomplished by using washes of transparent color) and it will not look as stark. I think it will be OK.

Felidae Carnivore Whiskers Small to medium-sized cats Painting


I can honestly say that I am happy with how she looks at this point. Even after I woke up this morning and looked at her, I was still pleased. Understand that she is by no means "finished" but she is indeed coming along very nicely and I think this will be a painting that I will be pleased with when I am done.

Head Felidae Carnivore Organism Big cats


I didn't put my brush down until nearly eleven. So overall I think I put in a pretty full day. I wanted to go on, but my eyes were tired and I reached a point where I felt I should walk away for a bit. It was a good and productive day.

I received news later in the day that the news article that the reporter came to interview me for had been published. Keith's mom heard it from a friend of hers. I suppose in our little area here, we are receiving our 15 minutes of fame. ;) The link to the article is here: http://www.thevanguard.ca/News/2013-12-16/article-3545201/Long-road-to-success-for-artist-entrepreneur/1

I can't say I am thrilled with the picture he chose of me. (Who really likes their own picture anyway?) Of all the poses he took, he chose to have one looking up at me from below while I was looking down at the saw. As a result, I have several 'chins' and no neck. But that is my own vanity speaking and I am what I am and I (hopefully) don't look like that in person. I also thought it was odd (funny) that he mentioned my age. I don't really care, as everyone who reads my posts regularly knows that I am 'fifty-ish' anyway. But I just don't know what it had to do with the article. I don't even remember him asking me how old I was. Perhaps I am going senile after all. ;)

So for me it was a pretty good day. I am very pleased that so many of you enjoy my sharing this process with you. I have received many, many notes and emails from you all who are watching and I do like sharing what I am learning with you. It helps to make me look at things more closely as well.

Thank you for all of your encouragement. It is nice to feel that I am not alone in this journey. I hope to continue on today and make some more progress and see where we wind up.

Have a wonderful Friday.
Good morning Sheila,
That was a real nice write up! I'm glad that things are moving in the right direction for you and your business. Thank you for sharing your painting adventure. I enjoy watching the creation of a work of art.
Rick
 

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#9,618 ·
Little Things Make a Difference

I didn't get a great deal of time to work on my painting yesterday. After all, it is only a few days until Christmas and I had some house chores here to take care of and I had planned a wonderful dinner date with Keith and his mom for the evening. We had been trying to get together for about a week now, and had to change our plans a couple of times because of the snow and ice. I was happy we were finally able to make a go of things.

I did however get a couple of hours in and I did some refinements on the mother snow leopard. While I really liked how she was turning out up until this point, when looking at her the next morning, I saw something that I missed the previous day.

Below is a close up of how she started out. Not bad, but I felt that something looked off to me.

Hair Head Eye Felidae Carnivore


What bothered me the most was the area to the left of her nose. While the other side of her face looked shaped and contoured, the left side looked bland and flat. I mentioned before that I have to do additional shading and toning when all the fur is in place, but I realized as I was looking at her that there was just something missing.

Hair Head Eye Felidae Carnivore


I also looked closely at the shape of the nose. Again - at the left side, it appeared to slightly bow towards the outside of the head a bit. While I realize that faces of these animals could vary and this could very well be correct, on my reference picture of Everests' mom, the nose seemed to be much straighter than I portrayed.

Hair Head Eye Cat Felidae


I took some time and added in some contours on the lower cheek of her face. I did this by adding darker fur layers and some transparent darker washes. I also emphasized the fur pattern there slightly and as a result it set the upper cheek forward towards me and gave that side of the face a much better shape.

Hair Head Eye Felidae Carnivore


I also darkened along the outside left side of the nose, pulling it inward ever so slightly. This gave a more streamlined and chiseled look, which more closely resembled the mom. It wasn't difficult to do this, but it did take time. Since the fur consists of multiple layers of color, I was able to gradually move the light area to the right one stroke at a time. I am pretty happy with the results.

Eye Felidae Carnivore Whiskers Grey


Below is a final result of my efforts. I would say it took me about an hour to fix these things. Not bad, considering.

Hair Head Eye Felidae Carnivore


I find that getting away from something we are working on for a while does wonders for our perspective. While I was extremely happy with the Mom on Thursday night, when I looked at her Friday morning these two things just jumped out at me. While these adjustments may seem to be small, I think they were very important and will play a large part on the overall painting. I placed the two versions side by side here for you to have a better comparison.

Hair Head Eye Photograph Felidae


Like many of you, I am also anxious to see this painting completed. Each day as it begins to come together, I get more and more excited. But I don't want my enthusiasm to get the best of me - as in the beginning when I rushed through painting the cub. While the cub looked OK at the time, sitting next to the mom at this point you can see a huge difference (I hope!) in the level of painting. I look at it now and the cub looks much more cartoon-like in comparison to the mom. I just didn't take the time and steps required to make it look better.

Felidae Carnivore Whiskers Big cats Leopard


But all is not lost. When I get to that part of the painting, I am sure I will be able to improve on it, so I am not in despair. It will come together with time.

Thank you again for all of your thoughts and comments. I hope you are all enjoying this experience with me, for I am learning a lot and hope that I am helping you look at things a bit differently as well.

The weekend is upon us and it is a busy time for most. I am pretty much together though on my holiday things, and only have some food and baking to think about, as well as wrapping a couple of gifts. But I still have time for that.

Have a wonderful weekend. Try to enjoy the season and the process, for the day will come and go in the blink of an eye.

Happy Saturday!
 

Attachments

#9,619 ·
Little Things Make a Difference

I didn't get a great deal of time to work on my painting yesterday. After all, it is only a few days until Christmas and I had some house chores here to take care of and I had planned a wonderful dinner date with Keith and his mom for the evening. We had been trying to get together for about a week now, and had to change our plans a couple of times because of the snow and ice. I was happy we were finally able to make a go of things.

I did however get a couple of hours in and I did some refinements on the mother snow leopard. While I really liked how she was turning out up until this point, when looking at her the next morning, I saw something that I missed the previous day.

Below is a close up of how she started out. Not bad, but I felt that something looked off to me.

Hair Head Eye Felidae Carnivore


What bothered me the most was the area to the left of her nose. While the other side of her face looked shaped and contoured, the left side looked bland and flat. I mentioned before that I have to do additional shading and toning when all the fur is in place, but I realized as I was looking at her that there was just something missing.

Hair Head Eye Felidae Carnivore


I also looked closely at the shape of the nose. Again - at the left side, it appeared to slightly bow towards the outside of the head a bit. While I realize that faces of these animals could vary and this could very well be correct, on my reference picture of Everests' mom, the nose seemed to be much straighter than I portrayed.

Hair Head Eye Cat Felidae


I took some time and added in some contours on the lower cheek of her face. I did this by adding darker fur layers and some transparent darker washes. I also emphasized the fur pattern there slightly and as a result it set the upper cheek forward towards me and gave that side of the face a much better shape.

Hair Head Eye Felidae Carnivore


I also darkened along the outside left side of the nose, pulling it inward ever so slightly. This gave a more streamlined and chiseled look, which more closely resembled the mom. It wasn't difficult to do this, but it did take time. Since the fur consists of multiple layers of color, I was able to gradually move the light area to the right one stroke at a time. I am pretty happy with the results.

Eye Felidae Carnivore Whiskers Grey


Below is a final result of my efforts. I would say it took me about an hour to fix these things. Not bad, considering.

Hair Head Eye Felidae Carnivore


I find that getting away from something we are working on for a while does wonders for our perspective. While I was extremely happy with the Mom on Thursday night, when I looked at her Friday morning these two things just jumped out at me. While these adjustments may seem to be small, I think they were very important and will play a large part on the overall painting. I placed the two versions side by side here for you to have a better comparison.

Hair Head Eye Photograph Felidae


Like many of you, I am also anxious to see this painting completed. Each day as it begins to come together, I get more and more excited. But I don't want my enthusiasm to get the best of me - as in the beginning when I rushed through painting the cub. While the cub looked OK at the time, sitting next to the mom at this point you can see a huge difference (I hope!) in the level of painting. I look at it now and the cub looks much more cartoon-like in comparison to the mom. I just didn't take the time and steps required to make it look better.

Felidae Carnivore Whiskers Big cats Leopard


But all is not lost. When I get to that part of the painting, I am sure I will be able to improve on it, so I am not in despair. It will come together with time.

Thank you again for all of your thoughts and comments. I hope you are all enjoying this experience with me, for I am learning a lot and hope that I am helping you look at things a bit differently as well.

The weekend is upon us and it is a busy time for most. I am pretty much together though on my holiday things, and only have some food and baking to think about, as well as wrapping a couple of gifts. But I still have time for that.

Have a wonderful weekend. Try to enjoy the season and the process, for the day will come and go in the blink of an eye.

Happy Saturday!
Absolutely MAGNIFICANT! Without your tutulage I, not being so artistically inclinded, I wouldn't have noticed the need to correct, but you've really improved the appearence immensely. Many thanks for taking your valuable time to walk us through the steps. No critisism, but do leapords not have decernable whiskers? Being white to grey, maybe they are there but my single eye misses them.
 

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#9,627 ·
Exploring New Horizons

It rained most of the day yesterday and also throughout the night, melting the six or so inches of snow we had on the ground and leaving an icy mess. The temperature seems to be hovering just above zero, which means that any precipitation will come in the form of ice or cold, and muddy rain. Yuckky.

There is a chance of some snow on Tuesday and perhaps Wednesday as well. I hope we get at least a dusting, as it just doesn't seem like Christmas without snow.

I am coming to the end of my 'time off' as the holiday approaches. I did some baking yesterday and I have some more that I want to do before Tuesday. I also have a couple of last minute gifts to wrap, but that shouldn't take long at all. I can't ever remember being so ahead of the game or relaxed at this time of year. Perhaps I am finally figuring it out.

I did get to work on my painting yesterday as well. While I wasn't able to put the number of hours into it that I had on previous days, I still made decent headway. It is getting there and I hope to finish it up sometime next week.

All the while I am working on it, I am thinking of other projects that I will be doing in the future. The magazine will be expecting its submission for its May issue just after the new year and I have something in mind for that. I am still thinking about it though and need to let it develop a bit more. Hopefully by the end of the next week I will be able to move ahead with things. Before I know it we will be thinking about fall and Christmas projects again. Such is the publishing world.

As far as the painting goes, I have a couple of progress pictures to share.

I began working on the back body and leg of the mom snow leopard by laying in the under layer of fur. This once again established the direction of the fur and gives texture:

Felidae Carnivore Small to medium-sized cats Leopard Whiskers


Since the back and leg have a lot of shorter fur that is facing directly at you, it was not really an easy task. I find it difficult to paint this type of fur easily, and while the pattern radiated from the central area outward, if done too uniformly, it would look unnatural.

Fawn Terrestrial animal Snout Pattern Felidae


Once the base was in, I added a couple of layers to fill in the area.

Felidae Carnivore Leopard Small to medium-sized cats Big cats


Finally, I added softer strokes to make her look 'fluffy'.

Carnivore Leopard Big cats Felidae Small to medium-sized cats


I had to breath a small sigh of relief now, because for the first time she is starting to look in proper proportion. I must admit that there were times when I wondered if that would be the case, but I am pleased to see the result.

My own photograph had the front of her leg rather white and blown out, and while I realize that this is a highlighted area, I also realize that it needs to be toned down just a bit. It looks especially bright though without the cub in front of it filled in. I think that I will move ahead for now and paint the cub before doing too much adjustment, as I won't be able to really tell how much toning is necessary until the entire painting is complete. Everything will be relative.

It is places such as these when it is difficult to let things be and move on. The way my mind wants to think is "start a section - finish a section" but I am learning that it just isn't possible to do things that way and have them come out right. And learning is part of the fun of doing something like this.

I realize that the blog here has gone off in the direction of painting more than woodworking this past week or so. But to me, it is all part of the creating process. When I began writing 1200 entries ago, I mentioned that the focus wouldn't always be strictly on woodworking, even though my main income is through selling scroll saw patterns.

Things evolve and people evolve and I am finding that there is a great deal of overlap between woodworkers and painters. While some woodworkers are strongly against painting wood in any way at all, I find that there are many, many of them who enjoy the different options that I have introduced and are open to learning about them with me.

I also find that as I am more active in the painting sector of creating, many painters are interested and can appreciate what it involves to work with wood and the scroll saw as well. It is after all, all about creating in general.

My guess is that I will keep fluctuating between woodworking and painting as long as I am designing. Some days I will be discussing all woodworking and others I may discuss all painting. My hopes are that even if you aren't particularly interested in whichever topic I am focusing on at the time, it will still be an inspiration to you and encourage you to stretch your creative thinking. Perhaps by trying something new, you will find you really enjoy it.

With that said, I am going to get moving. I hope to enjoy the day and do some last minute things, as well as move forward again on my painting.

I wish you all a great Sunday today. I hope you are able to relax and perhaps explore a new horizon.

You must learn day by day, year by year to broaden your horizon. The more things you love, the more you are interested in, the more you enjoy, the more you are indignant about, the more you have left when anything happens. - Ethel Barrymore
 

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#9,628 ·
Exploring New Horizons

It rained most of the day yesterday and also throughout the night, melting the six or so inches of snow we had on the ground and leaving an icy mess. The temperature seems to be hovering just above zero, which means that any precipitation will come in the form of ice or cold, and muddy rain. Yuckky.

There is a chance of some snow on Tuesday and perhaps Wednesday as well. I hope we get at least a dusting, as it just doesn't seem like Christmas without snow.

I am coming to the end of my 'time off' as the holiday approaches. I did some baking yesterday and I have some more that I want to do before Tuesday. I also have a couple of last minute gifts to wrap, but that shouldn't take long at all. I can't ever remember being so ahead of the game or relaxed at this time of year. Perhaps I am finally figuring it out.

I did get to work on my painting yesterday as well. While I wasn't able to put the number of hours into it that I had on previous days, I still made decent headway. It is getting there and I hope to finish it up sometime next week.

All the while I am working on it, I am thinking of other projects that I will be doing in the future. The magazine will be expecting its submission for its May issue just after the new year and I have something in mind for that. I am still thinking about it though and need to let it develop a bit more. Hopefully by the end of the next week I will be able to move ahead with things. Before I know it we will be thinking about fall and Christmas projects again. Such is the publishing world.

As far as the painting goes, I have a couple of progress pictures to share.

I began working on the back body and leg of the mom snow leopard by laying in the under layer of fur. This once again established the direction of the fur and gives texture:

Felidae Carnivore Small to medium-sized cats Leopard Whiskers


Since the back and leg have a lot of shorter fur that is facing directly at you, it was not really an easy task. I find it difficult to paint this type of fur easily, and while the pattern radiated from the central area outward, if done too uniformly, it would look unnatural.

Fawn Terrestrial animal Snout Pattern Felidae


Once the base was in, I added a couple of layers to fill in the area.

Felidae Carnivore Leopard Small to medium-sized cats Big cats


Finally, I added softer strokes to make her look 'fluffy'.

Carnivore Leopard Big cats Felidae Small to medium-sized cats


I had to breath a small sigh of relief now, because for the first time she is starting to look in proper proportion. I must admit that there were times when I wondered if that would be the case, but I am pleased to see the result.

My own photograph had the front of her leg rather white and blown out, and while I realize that this is a highlighted area, I also realize that it needs to be toned down just a bit. It looks especially bright though without the cub in front of it filled in. I think that I will move ahead for now and paint the cub before doing too much adjustment, as I won't be able to really tell how much toning is necessary until the entire painting is complete. Everything will be relative.

It is places such as these when it is difficult to let things be and move on. The way my mind wants to think is "start a section - finish a section" but I am learning that it just isn't possible to do things that way and have them come out right. And learning is part of the fun of doing something like this.

I realize that the blog here has gone off in the direction of painting more than woodworking this past week or so. But to me, it is all part of the creating process. When I began writing 1200 entries ago, I mentioned that the focus wouldn't always be strictly on woodworking, even though my main income is through selling scroll saw patterns.

Things evolve and people evolve and I am finding that there is a great deal of overlap between woodworkers and painters. While some woodworkers are strongly against painting wood in any way at all, I find that there are many, many of them who enjoy the different options that I have introduced and are open to learning about them with me.

I also find that as I am more active in the painting sector of creating, many painters are interested and can appreciate what it involves to work with wood and the scroll saw as well. It is after all, all about creating in general.

My guess is that I will keep fluctuating between woodworking and painting as long as I am designing. Some days I will be discussing all woodworking and others I may discuss all painting. My hopes are that even if you aren't particularly interested in whichever topic I am focusing on at the time, it will still be an inspiration to you and encourage you to stretch your creative thinking. Perhaps by trying something new, you will find you really enjoy it.

With that said, I am going to get moving. I hope to enjoy the day and do some last minute things, as well as move forward again on my painting.

I wish you all a great Sunday today. I hope you are able to relax and perhaps explore a new horizon.

You must learn day by day, year by year to broaden your horizon. The more things you love, the more you are interested in, the more you enjoy, the more you are indignant about, the more you have left when anything happens. - Ethel Barrymore
Nice writings, and quote at the end. Ethel said a bunch.
 

Attachments

#9,632 ·
Rough Spots

I can hardly believe that tomorrow is Christmas Eve. The last several days have gone by faster than I can believe. Last Monday I sent out all of my packages and I thought I would pretty much coast through the next week. After all - all of my deadlines were met for my magazine and woodworking projects and since we are only have a small gathering for this holiday with our families locally, there isn't much to do.

I do have some gifts to wrap though and I have some baking to do. I need to get to that today as well as tidy up the house. And there is always that 'last trip' to the grocery store and post office. Today will be full.

I have spent the past several days working on a painting that I am creating. It is not large (11" x 14") but extremely detailed and I feel that it is a learning project for me that will not only teach me to be a better painter, but a better designer and artist in general.

I haven't painted this type of painting in years. I now remember the reason. I find that I get completed absorbed and obsessed with what I am doing. And the time that it takes to create something such as this doesn't always fit into my schedule.

But this has been what I call my 'vacation' from regular work. While (as Keith says) my 'vacation time' looks quite similar to my work time, I don't think that things could be farther from the truth.

To me, art is very emotional. It doesn't matter if we are creating a painting, a woodworking project, pottery, or anything you can imagine. the driving force behind most creative people is emotion. While I love the woodworking and painting patterns that I create on a daily basis for others to do, there is something very different about making something for no other reason than desire. In some ways, I feel that I am being totally selfish in doing this, because during this process, there is no consideration whatsoever as to whether others would be able to recreate it (a concern that I have when I am designing a pattern) and there are no rules that I feel I have to follow. I can mix colors how I want, go back and change things, and don't have to worry about organizing the process in my mine so I can do it again. It is total artistic freedom. I believe that is what makes it special to me.

With that said, along with freedom comes risk. When I began this piece five or six days ago, I looked at a blank board with fear. I wondered if what I envisioned in my head would ever make it to reality. It was then that I decided to dive in and share the step-by-steps here with you through this blog. Somehow that made the commitment stronger for me, as it gave me no real "out" if I were to stumble and fall. It raised the bar to another level and I knew myself well enough that by putting myself out here, I would have to see it through to the end. It was a safety net that I built for myself to ensure that I made it to the finish.

Yesterday was the first time that I needed that net. After finishing the mom snow leopard (for the most part) and being reasonably happy with it, I now had to deal with the cub. As I looked at the face of the mom and the face of the cub that I quickly painted that first day when I was anxious and not thinking things out, i knew that some drastic changes needed to be made.

The face looked very cartoon-like to me in comparison to the mom. The fur pattern was too organized and even, which was unnatural for an animal. The ears were pointy, almost fox-like and the fur pattern inside them was all wrong. The head shape to me was incorrect. To me, it was a mess.

Carnivore Cat Felidae Grey Small to medium-sized cats


Did I only paint that a few days ago? It looked like something that I did years ago or that a child did. The eyes themselves were alright, but the rest of it was what I feel the result of rushing into the painting due to being excited, and needed to go. For a brief moment, I consider taking the painting to the scroll saw and lopping the baby off.

So I got to work and really started to re-paint the entire baby. It was a long and tedious day, and there was a point after I was going at it for a while around dinner time when I felt that if I hadn't put myself out here and shown this to the world, I would have packed it up and put it in the back of the closet to finish 'another day.' I kid you not. I didn't want to face the humiliation of quitting though after so many people were here cheering me on. So I pushed ahead.

Eventually, I got to the point where the new foundation for the head was laid and the tables began to turn.

Felidae Carnivore Small to medium-sized cats Cat Whiskers


It wasn't there yet, but there was a glimmer of hope that I would be able to salvage things. I was able to round the ears so they looked right, as well as reshape the head and define the nose and markings. I will honestly admit that this was the most difficult part of the process so far, and it was painstakingly hard to accomplish. No - this did not come easily to me. By the time I was to this point, my head hurt and I was doubtful it would ever be 'finished'.

I walked away for a while and took a breath. It was already getting into the evening hours and I had been at it all day. But I knew that not only was the holiday approaching, but that I needed to complete this painting so that I could eventually get back to my real work of designing. The clock was ticking and as much as I would love to take all the time in the world to finish this, I just didn't have that luxury.

After a rest and a cup of peppermint tea, I was drawn back to the painting. This time I did something different - I painted upside down. Since at that point in time, I was having the most trouble replicating the fur pattern, I turned the painting upside down and tried it that way. Not only did it help me stroke the fur better, as the natural direction of the head fur went toward the back, but it allowed me to look at things from a different perspective and get through whatever was giving me trouble. I am somewhat happy with the result.

Felidae Carnivore Organism Whiskers Big cats


(The previous photo has a slightly bluish cast to it because instead of taking the picture with a camera, I placed it on the scanner. I am finding as I am finishing that the detail isn't showing up as much in the photos and the scanner does a better job of picking them up, although it tones the picture differently than the incandescent light. When the painting is complete, I will use better lighting and take good, high quality photos. For the progressions, this will have to do for now or I will NEVER get finished.)

I feel as if I climbed the final mountain and from here on it should be OK. All of the complicated overlaps and directional changes of the fur are behind me and all that I have to complete is the cub's back and tail. Then the final toning and refining (and yes - whiskers!) will be added and I will be able to call it a day.

It is with a sigh of relief that I am writing this morning. I woke up and looked at it and I am still happy with it. That is good. I don't know how much time I will have to paint today, but hopefully I will have just a bit. It would be nice to complete it in the next couple of days.

I thank you again for tolerating me here on this project. While I know it is 'off topic' to some, I do believe that as creative people, we all go through rough spots in our creative process. Some think that because I am a professional designer, that I am exempt from these times and I think I just want to show that I am not. I believe we all have our ups and downs when creating and I hope by sharing mine with you, it helps you get through your own as well.

Have a wonderful day. I think it is Monday - one of my favorite days of the week. :)
 

Attachments

#9,633 ·
Rough Spots

I can hardly believe that tomorrow is Christmas Eve. The last several days have gone by faster than I can believe. Last Monday I sent out all of my packages and I thought I would pretty much coast through the next week. After all - all of my deadlines were met for my magazine and woodworking projects and since we are only have a small gathering for this holiday with our families locally, there isn't much to do.

I do have some gifts to wrap though and I have some baking to do. I need to get to that today as well as tidy up the house. And there is always that 'last trip' to the grocery store and post office. Today will be full.

I have spent the past several days working on a painting that I am creating. It is not large (11" x 14") but extremely detailed and I feel that it is a learning project for me that will not only teach me to be a better painter, but a better designer and artist in general.

I haven't painted this type of painting in years. I now remember the reason. I find that I get completed absorbed and obsessed with what I am doing. And the time that it takes to create something such as this doesn't always fit into my schedule.

But this has been what I call my 'vacation' from regular work. While (as Keith says) my 'vacation time' looks quite similar to my work time, I don't think that things could be farther from the truth.

To me, art is very emotional. It doesn't matter if we are creating a painting, a woodworking project, pottery, or anything you can imagine. the driving force behind most creative people is emotion. While I love the woodworking and painting patterns that I create on a daily basis for others to do, there is something very different about making something for no other reason than desire. In some ways, I feel that I am being totally selfish in doing this, because during this process, there is no consideration whatsoever as to whether others would be able to recreate it (a concern that I have when I am designing a pattern) and there are no rules that I feel I have to follow. I can mix colors how I want, go back and change things, and don't have to worry about organizing the process in my mine so I can do it again. It is total artistic freedom. I believe that is what makes it special to me.

With that said, along with freedom comes risk. When I began this piece five or six days ago, I looked at a blank board with fear. I wondered if what I envisioned in my head would ever make it to reality. It was then that I decided to dive in and share the step-by-steps here with you through this blog. Somehow that made the commitment stronger for me, as it gave me no real "out" if I were to stumble and fall. It raised the bar to another level and I knew myself well enough that by putting myself out here, I would have to see it through to the end. It was a safety net that I built for myself to ensure that I made it to the finish.

Yesterday was the first time that I needed that net. After finishing the mom snow leopard (for the most part) and being reasonably happy with it, I now had to deal with the cub. As I looked at the face of the mom and the face of the cub that I quickly painted that first day when I was anxious and not thinking things out, i knew that some drastic changes needed to be made.

The face looked very cartoon-like to me in comparison to the mom. The fur pattern was too organized and even, which was unnatural for an animal. The ears were pointy, almost fox-like and the fur pattern inside them was all wrong. The head shape to me was incorrect. To me, it was a mess.

Carnivore Cat Felidae Grey Small to medium-sized cats


Did I only paint that a few days ago? It looked like something that I did years ago or that a child did. The eyes themselves were alright, but the rest of it was what I feel the result of rushing into the painting due to being excited, and needed to go. For a brief moment, I consider taking the painting to the scroll saw and lopping the baby off.

So I got to work and really started to re-paint the entire baby. It was a long and tedious day, and there was a point after I was going at it for a while around dinner time when I felt that if I hadn't put myself out here and shown this to the world, I would have packed it up and put it in the back of the closet to finish 'another day.' I kid you not. I didn't want to face the humiliation of quitting though after so many people were here cheering me on. So I pushed ahead.

Eventually, I got to the point where the new foundation for the head was laid and the tables began to turn.

Felidae Carnivore Small to medium-sized cats Cat Whiskers


It wasn't there yet, but there was a glimmer of hope that I would be able to salvage things. I was able to round the ears so they looked right, as well as reshape the head and define the nose and markings. I will honestly admit that this was the most difficult part of the process so far, and it was painstakingly hard to accomplish. No - this did not come easily to me. By the time I was to this point, my head hurt and I was doubtful it would ever be 'finished'.

I walked away for a while and took a breath. It was already getting into the evening hours and I had been at it all day. But I knew that not only was the holiday approaching, but that I needed to complete this painting so that I could eventually get back to my real work of designing. The clock was ticking and as much as I would love to take all the time in the world to finish this, I just didn't have that luxury.

After a rest and a cup of peppermint tea, I was drawn back to the painting. This time I did something different - I painted upside down. Since at that point in time, I was having the most trouble replicating the fur pattern, I turned the painting upside down and tried it that way. Not only did it help me stroke the fur better, as the natural direction of the head fur went toward the back, but it allowed me to look at things from a different perspective and get through whatever was giving me trouble. I am somewhat happy with the result.

Felidae Carnivore Organism Whiskers Big cats


(The previous photo has a slightly bluish cast to it because instead of taking the picture with a camera, I placed it on the scanner. I am finding as I am finishing that the detail isn't showing up as much in the photos and the scanner does a better job of picking them up, although it tones the picture differently than the incandescent light. When the painting is complete, I will use better lighting and take good, high quality photos. For the progressions, this will have to do for now or I will NEVER get finished.)

I feel as if I climbed the final mountain and from here on it should be OK. All of the complicated overlaps and directional changes of the fur are behind me and all that I have to complete is the cub's back and tail. Then the final toning and refining (and yes - whiskers!) will be added and I will be able to call it a day.

It is with a sigh of relief that I am writing this morning. I woke up and looked at it and I am still happy with it. That is good. I don't know how much time I will have to paint today, but hopefully I will have just a bit. It would be nice to complete it in the next couple of days.

I thank you again for tolerating me here on this project. While I know it is 'off topic' to some, I do believe that as creative people, we all go through rough spots in our creative process. Some think that because I am a professional designer, that I am exempt from these times and I think I just want to show that I am not. I believe we all have our ups and downs when creating and I hope by sharing mine with you, it helps you get through your own as well.

Have a wonderful day. I think it is Monday - one of my favorite days of the week. :)
These cats have a very serene look about them. Very expressive, very awesome paintings Sheila.
 

Attachments

#9,644 ·
A Re-Post From Christmas Past

OK - I paid the price for my half a week of artistic adventure. Yesterday I needed to play "catch up" and was absolutely worn out by evening.

Needless to say I made no progress on my painting. But it will be there for me when the holidays are over. Perhaps the time away will do me good.

For today's post, I want to re-post one of my favorite blogs that I have written. I know it is kind of cheating, but it was fun and cute and since I have many more readers now than I had when it was posted originally, I thought you would all enjoy it.

Merry Christmas to you all. Thank you all for giving me a reason to get up and get moving every day. Your friendships and inspirations are gifts that I receive each and every day. I mean that.

Enjoy your days to the fullest.

"Remember: No man is a failure who has friends."

Enjoy the story . . .

It seemed like only yesterday when we realized the season was upon us:

Cat Felidae Carnivore Hat Small to medium-sized cats


We donned our gay apparel:

Cat Felidae Carnivore Small to medium-sized cats Whiskers


Planned out how we were going to decorate:

Cat Vertebrate Green Felidae Carnivore


And got to work.

The first order of business was to put up the tree:

Christmas tree Cat Christmas ornament Plant Nature


We may have had some trouble along the way:

Cat Felidae Carnivore Orange Small to medium-sized cats


But in the end, we figured it all out and just took in the beauty of what we created:

Christmas tree Cat Felidae Christmas ornament Carnivore


But we couldn't rest there! There were stockings to be hung:

Cat Felidae Window Small to medium-sized cats Carnivore


Windows to clean. (Hey! stop fooling around there!):

Cat Window Handwriting Carnivore Felidae


And gifts to wrap:

Textile Bag Linens Felidae Present


As we dreamed of our own gifts that Santa may bring:

Water Boat Cat Felidae Wood


But now it's all almost done. And it is time to take a break:

Cat Felidae Carnivore Drinkware Small to medium-sized cats


We still have some cooking to do:

Cat Felidae Carnivore Small to medium-sized cats Table


But everything will get done in time for us all to sit down and have a great dinner with loved ones and friends:

Table Felidae Toy Carnivore Cat


And enjoy all that they holidays bring us:

Cat Felidae Carnivore Creative arts Small to medium-sized cats


I want to take this opportunity to say Merry Christmas to all of you! Remember to take time to enjoy the season and have some FUN! To those of you who don't celebrate Christmas - have a wonderfully happy new year!

Cat Felidae Carnivore Organism Rectangle
 

Attachments

#9,645 ·
A Re-Post From Christmas Past

OK - I paid the price for my half a week of artistic adventure. Yesterday I needed to play "catch up" and was absolutely worn out by evening.

Needless to say I made no progress on my painting. But it will be there for me when the holidays are over. Perhaps the time away will do me good.

For today's post, I want to re-post one of my favorite blogs that I have written. I know it is kind of cheating, but it was fun and cute and since I have many more readers now than I had when it was posted originally, I thought you would all enjoy it.

Merry Christmas to you all. Thank you all for giving me a reason to get up and get moving every day. Your friendships and inspirations are gifts that I receive each and every day. I mean that.

Enjoy your days to the fullest.

"Remember: No man is a failure who has friends."

Enjoy the story . . .

It seemed like only yesterday when we realized the season was upon us:

Cat Felidae Carnivore Hat Small to medium-sized cats


We donned our gay apparel:

Cat Felidae Carnivore Small to medium-sized cats Whiskers


Planned out how we were going to decorate:

Cat Vertebrate Green Felidae Carnivore


And got to work.

The first order of business was to put up the tree:

Christmas tree Cat Christmas ornament Plant Nature


We may have had some trouble along the way:

Cat Felidae Carnivore Orange Small to medium-sized cats


But in the end, we figured it all out and just took in the beauty of what we created:

Christmas tree Cat Felidae Christmas ornament Carnivore


But we couldn't rest there! There were stockings to be hung:

Cat Felidae Window Small to medium-sized cats Carnivore


Windows to clean. (Hey! stop fooling around there!):

Cat Window Handwriting Carnivore Felidae


And gifts to wrap:

Textile Bag Linens Felidae Present


As we dreamed of our own gifts that Santa may bring:

Water Boat Cat Felidae Wood


But now it's all almost done. And it is time to take a break:

Cat Felidae Carnivore Drinkware Small to medium-sized cats


We still have some cooking to do:

Cat Felidae Carnivore Small to medium-sized cats Table


But everything will get done in time for us all to sit down and have a great dinner with loved ones and friends:

Table Felidae Toy Carnivore Cat


And enjoy all that they holidays bring us:

Cat Felidae Carnivore Creative arts Small to medium-sized cats


I want to take this opportunity to say Merry Christmas to all of you! Remember to take time to enjoy the season and have some FUN! To those of you who don't celebrate Christmas - have a wonderfully happy new year!

Cat Felidae Carnivore Organism Rectangle
Good morning Sheila,
I would like to wish you, Keith and your family a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year.
Rick
 

Attachments

#9,654 ·
All Is Calm . . .

In many ways this Christmas was different than Christmases past. Yet in some ways, it was familiar.

As time goes on and yet another Christmas season comes and goes, I realize more than ever that life is constantly changing. With those changes come the reality that things will never again be as it has been in the past. While that is certainly a good thing in some ways - as all of our memories of past holiday celebrations aren't always that wonderful - it also means that the good memories will rely on us to keep them alive in our hearts and our minds and to honor them each year as Christmas passes.

This year was a rather different kind of Christmas for me. After years of raising children and having large family gatherings filled to the brim with people, food and gifts, we had a very different atmosphere.

Things are different in my life now. Over the past several years, I had come to love and embrace Keith's family, as they had embraced me as their own, and it felt good to have a place to spend the holidays where I felt so comfortable and loved. I also have my dear friends Bernie and Ellen and their daughter Cindy, whom I call my "Canadian Family" because of the love and caring they have shown towards me since I came to this country nine Christmases ago. They all have made a huge difference and have helped fill a place in my heart that missed my own children and family during the holiday season. They have stuck by me through both good times and bad, and I am very fortunate that they are in my lives.

It is times such as these though that I wish I could be in two places at once. Seeing my children and new grand daughter a couple of months ago only made me miss them more this Christmas. But knowing that they are happy and settled and all healthy helped to alleviate the pain I felt for not being able to be with them. As a parent, the greatest gift we can receive from our children is to see them successful and happy. In that respect my mind is at peace.

I really missed Keith's father Artie this year as well. He had lost his battle with cancer this autumn and since then, it has been a time of adjustment for all of us. I can't tell you all how many times something comes to mind and I would catch myself thinking "we'll just have to ask Artie." and I would remember that it would no longer be possible to do so. I don't know if I realized the impact he had on our lives and how much I would miss him. But I do now.

Although our local family is much smaller now, we still had a lovely Christmas celebration. Keith's mom spent all day Christmas Eve with us, and she showed me how to make Rappie Pie - an Acadian dish that had been a tradition in her family for years. To me, it was one of the best gifts that she could give me, as not only did I learn more about her and Keith's heritage, but we had a beautiful day together as well. It came out wonderful and we spent the day talking and cooking and watched a couple of movies - all the while we were entertained by my three cats. It was very different from the way we had spent other Christmases, but it was lovely and a wonderful memory in itself.

On Christmas Day, we headed to Bernie and Ellen's house. Again this was rather low key as far as what we had done in the past. Ellen had lost her brother over the summer, and both her grand children have moved to different parts of Canada. In the years past, she had a house bustling full of people and children, but this year it was only us. We were very happy that Keith's mom joined us as well, as for me it was extra special to have my entire Canadian families together at once. Although there were only six of us (Bernie and Ellen's daughter Cindy was there as well) it was a wonderfully pleasant day filled with family and good food. We set strict limits on gift giving, but there was still plenty of things to open and the greatest gift of all was the gift of love and friendship that we all felt for each other. It was a good day for all I do believe.

As I sit here this morning and reflect on the day, I feel content. While the holiday celebrations may not have been as large as they have been for me in the past, they are certainly just as meaningful.

Every day I try to look at the positive side of things, and be grateful for the good things in my life. Since I have decided to do that, I have noticed that even when some things weren't going so well, there was still an abundance of good things I had to focus on. I know I am very fortunate and I don't ever want to let myself forget of about what a wonderful life I live.

I hope you all had a beautiful holiday as well. No matter how much you celebrate Christmas - or even if you choose to not celebrate it at all - I hope that you focus on the good things that surround you and appreciate and love each and every day for the good things it offers. It truly makes life enjoyable.

Today I am still going to be low key. Perhaps I will do so for the remainder of the week. I have a deadline due for the magazine after the new year and I am thinking about it now, but I don't think I will begin working on it until Monday. There are other things that I want to do in the next few days and I am not ready to jump back into work just yet. This is a gift I have chosen to give myself this year.

I think that Pancakes had the right idea yesterday:

Felidae Comfort Carnivore Small to medium-sized cats Fawn


Enjoy your Thursday
 

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#9,655 ·
All Is Calm . . .

In many ways this Christmas was different than Christmases past. Yet in some ways, it was familiar.

As time goes on and yet another Christmas season comes and goes, I realize more than ever that life is constantly changing. With those changes come the reality that things will never again be as it has been in the past. While that is certainly a good thing in some ways - as all of our memories of past holiday celebrations aren't always that wonderful - it also means that the good memories will rely on us to keep them alive in our hearts and our minds and to honor them each year as Christmas passes.

This year was a rather different kind of Christmas for me. After years of raising children and having large family gatherings filled to the brim with people, food and gifts, we had a very different atmosphere.

Things are different in my life now. Over the past several years, I had come to love and embrace Keith's family, as they had embraced me as their own, and it felt good to have a place to spend the holidays where I felt so comfortable and loved. I also have my dear friends Bernie and Ellen and their daughter Cindy, whom I call my "Canadian Family" because of the love and caring they have shown towards me since I came to this country nine Christmases ago. They all have made a huge difference and have helped fill a place in my heart that missed my own children and family during the holiday season. They have stuck by me through both good times and bad, and I am very fortunate that they are in my lives.

It is times such as these though that I wish I could be in two places at once. Seeing my children and new grand daughter a couple of months ago only made me miss them more this Christmas. But knowing that they are happy and settled and all healthy helped to alleviate the pain I felt for not being able to be with them. As a parent, the greatest gift we can receive from our children is to see them successful and happy. In that respect my mind is at peace.

I really missed Keith's father Artie this year as well. He had lost his battle with cancer this autumn and since then, it has been a time of adjustment for all of us. I can't tell you all how many times something comes to mind and I would catch myself thinking "we'll just have to ask Artie." and I would remember that it would no longer be possible to do so. I don't know if I realized the impact he had on our lives and how much I would miss him. But I do now.

Although our local family is much smaller now, we still had a lovely Christmas celebration. Keith's mom spent all day Christmas Eve with us, and she showed me how to make Rappie Pie - an Acadian dish that had been a tradition in her family for years. To me, it was one of the best gifts that she could give me, as not only did I learn more about her and Keith's heritage, but we had a beautiful day together as well. It came out wonderful and we spent the day talking and cooking and watched a couple of movies - all the while we were entertained by my three cats. It was very different from the way we had spent other Christmases, but it was lovely and a wonderful memory in itself.

On Christmas Day, we headed to Bernie and Ellen's house. Again this was rather low key as far as what we had done in the past. Ellen had lost her brother over the summer, and both her grand children have moved to different parts of Canada. In the years past, she had a house bustling full of people and children, but this year it was only us. We were very happy that Keith's mom joined us as well, as for me it was extra special to have my entire Canadian families together at once. Although there were only six of us (Bernie and Ellen's daughter Cindy was there as well) it was a wonderfully pleasant day filled with family and good food. We set strict limits on gift giving, but there was still plenty of things to open and the greatest gift of all was the gift of love and friendship that we all felt for each other. It was a good day for all I do believe.

As I sit here this morning and reflect on the day, I feel content. While the holiday celebrations may not have been as large as they have been for me in the past, they are certainly just as meaningful.

Every day I try to look at the positive side of things, and be grateful for the good things in my life. Since I have decided to do that, I have noticed that even when some things weren't going so well, there was still an abundance of good things I had to focus on. I know I am very fortunate and I don't ever want to let myself forget of about what a wonderful life I live.

I hope you all had a beautiful holiday as well. No matter how much you celebrate Christmas - or even if you choose to not celebrate it at all - I hope that you focus on the good things that surround you and appreciate and love each and every day for the good things it offers. It truly makes life enjoyable.

Today I am still going to be low key. Perhaps I will do so for the remainder of the week. I have a deadline due for the magazine after the new year and I am thinking about it now, but I don't think I will begin working on it until Monday. There are other things that I want to do in the next few days and I am not ready to jump back into work just yet. This is a gift I have chosen to give myself this year.

I think that Pancakes had the right idea yesterday:

Felidae Comfort Carnivore Small to medium-sized cats Fawn


Enjoy your Thursday
Pancakes and many other furry friends have no problem just letting it all hang out… hehehe
 

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#9,663 ·
Adventures of the Mind

I have returned from my short time away. Although I didn't really go 'anywhere', in my mind I had left on a wonderful adventure. I find that there are many ways to change things up - by reading and exploring and perhaps learning new things.

To me, every time I learn something new it is an adventure.

I am not sure why I was born with the yearning to make things. I remember being as young as seven or eight years old, sitting on my grandmother's porch learning embroidery from a neighbor in her south side Chicago neighborhood. We used old tea towels and iron on patterns, and I learned all the basic stitches from my grandmother and her friend, Mrs. Kuba.

I don't know what we did with the towels that were finished. I don't think it ever really mattered. What mattered to me was that I was creating something and how the beautiful colored thread always thrilled me.

Recently a friend of mine posted something on Facebook that brought these memories to the surface once again. It was a link to a site which teaches beautiful embroidery. The artist is very talented and has many books, videos and kits available which teach these outstanding techniques.

As if I needed anything new to entertain myself with, I ordered the book "A Perfect World in Stumpwork". I received the book on Christmas Eve. I felt it was a gift to myself, and over the next few days I read through it and decided that I wanted to learn more about this beautiful art.

When I initially ordered the book, I also ordered a cheaper kit and some supplies from Ebay to practice with. Coincidentally, they also arrived on Christmas Eve. I was thrilled because I would have the means to try some of the techniques taught in the book and refresh my own needlework skills at the same time.

Over the next few days, I played around with the ribbons and thread and began my sampler. While not perfect, I am happy with the result so far.



I plan to explore this type of creating more, as I have ordered more supplies and look forward to learning some of the beautiful techniques in the book.

I also spent a portion of the day yesterday changing my little all season tree to its winter theme. While it looked nice for Christmas, I love the cool aqua and silver theme, along with the glass snowflakes and icicles that I have. To me, the cool aqua tones are soothing and relaxing.

I had found some cute flocked polar bears and penguins last year in our travels, and they adorn the tree as well.





I also made a matching bow for my pretty mohair polar bear that I designed several years ago, and brought back with me from Chicago this October. He had been in storage all these years, and it is one of the bears that I couldn't part with. I had named him "Boris" (which I thought was fitting) and I show him here with Edgar:



So many people get depressed during winter. They don't like the cold or the snow or the inability to do outdoor things. I find that it never really bothers me, as I have learned to make my surroundings here as pleasant as possible and use the time to explore new and creative things. The quiet time that winter brings can be used to ones' advantage if one chooses, and made into a wonderfully positive season.

While these things that I have been doing may not appear to have much to do with woodworking and painting on the surface, they are all instrumental in my own process of creating and designing. Many times I am asked where I come up with so many different types of designs, and where I get my ideas from. My answer to those who ask is that I try to live life to the fullest, and I do that by keeping busy and filling my days with many different sources of inspiration. Seeing the beauty of the world around us is not a difficult task. All we need to do is to open our minds and observe.

Seeing colors.

Reading others' thoughts.

Trying new techniques.

These are all things that stimulate the imagination and jump start our own creative ideas. I find that because I fill my life with creating and living it to the fullest, I don't have time to worry about winter or other things that I can't control. And I believe that makes me a happier person.

We are almost to the end of the year. As I reflect on the year that has just passed, I am pleased with all that I have accomplished. However, I feel that it pales to what I have yet to experience and enjoy. It is because of that, I wake up each day and look forward to what it will bring.

It is Monday today, and that is the beginning of a new week. I have said many times that Monday is my favorite day, because it is a chance to start fresh in a small way. I have enjoyed my time away from designing, but my head is full of ideas. Many of these ideas have come during this short time away, and I do believe that there are may still to come.

Although we are only on the first week of winter, I am going to be working on some designs for the magazine that will have a spring theme to them. My brief absence from designing has made me long for it even more. It was just the jump start I needed.

I hope you enjoy today, and every day. For those of you who despise winter, keep in mind that spring and summer will soon follow. They always do.

"I wonder if the snow loves the trees and fields, that it kisses them so gently? And then it covers them up snug, you know, with a white quilt; and perhaps it says "Go to sleep, darlings, till the summer comes again."
― Lewis Carroll, Alice's Adventures in Wonderland & Through the Looking-Glass

Have a beautiful day.
 

Attachments

#9,664 ·
Adventures of the Mind

I have returned from my short time away. Although I didn't really go 'anywhere', in my mind I had left on a wonderful adventure. I find that there are many ways to change things up - by reading and exploring and perhaps learning new things.

To me, every time I learn something new it is an adventure.

I am not sure why I was born with the yearning to make things. I remember being as young as seven or eight years old, sitting on my grandmother's porch learning embroidery from a neighbor in her south side Chicago neighborhood. We used old tea towels and iron on patterns, and I learned all the basic stitches from my grandmother and her friend, Mrs. Kuba.

I don't know what we did with the towels that were finished. I don't think it ever really mattered. What mattered to me was that I was creating something and how the beautiful colored thread always thrilled me.

Recently a friend of mine posted something on Facebook that brought these memories to the surface once again. It was a link to a site which teaches beautiful embroidery. The artist is very talented and has many books, videos and kits available which teach these outstanding techniques.

As if I needed anything new to entertain myself with, I ordered the book "A Perfect World in Stumpwork". I received the book on Christmas Eve. I felt it was a gift to myself, and over the next few days I read through it and decided that I wanted to learn more about this beautiful art.

When I initially ordered the book, I also ordered a cheaper kit and some supplies from Ebay to practice with. Coincidentally, they also arrived on Christmas Eve. I was thrilled because I would have the means to try some of the techniques taught in the book and refresh my own needlework skills at the same time.

Over the next few days, I played around with the ribbons and thread and began my sampler. While not perfect, I am happy with the result so far.

Flower Plant Tablecloth Textile Rectangle


I plan to explore this type of creating more, as I have ordered more supplies and look forward to learning some of the beautiful techniques in the book.

I also spent a portion of the day yesterday changing my little all season tree to its winter theme. While it looked nice for Christmas, I love the cool aqua and silver theme, along with the glass snowflakes and icicles that I have. To me, the cool aqua tones are soothing and relaxing.

I had found some cute flocked polar bears and penguins last year in our travels, and they adorn the tree as well.

Christmas tree Christmas ornament Light Branch Fawn


Christmas tree Christmas ornament Light Holiday ornament Ornament


I also made a matching bow for my pretty mohair polar bear that I designed several years ago, and brought back with me from Chicago this October. He had been in storage all these years, and it is one of the bears that I couldn't part with. I had named him "Boris" (which I thought was fitting) and I show him here with Edgar:

Toy Carnivore Art Snout Companion dog


So many people get depressed during winter. They don't like the cold or the snow or the inability to do outdoor things. I find that it never really bothers me, as I have learned to make my surroundings here as pleasant as possible and use the time to explore new and creative things. The quiet time that winter brings can be used to ones' advantage if one chooses, and made into a wonderfully positive season.

While these things that I have been doing may not appear to have much to do with woodworking and painting on the surface, they are all instrumental in my own process of creating and designing. Many times I am asked where I come up with so many different types of designs, and where I get my ideas from. My answer to those who ask is that I try to live life to the fullest, and I do that by keeping busy and filling my days with many different sources of inspiration. Seeing the beauty of the world around us is not a difficult task. All we need to do is to open our minds and observe.

Seeing colors.

Reading others' thoughts.

Trying new techniques.

These are all things that stimulate the imagination and jump start our own creative ideas. I find that because I fill my life with creating and living it to the fullest, I don't have time to worry about winter or other things that I can't control. And I believe that makes me a happier person.

We are almost to the end of the year. As I reflect on the year that has just passed, I am pleased with all that I have accomplished. However, I feel that it pales to what I have yet to experience and enjoy. It is because of that, I wake up each day and look forward to what it will bring.

It is Monday today, and that is the beginning of a new week. I have said many times that Monday is my favorite day, because it is a chance to start fresh in a small way. I have enjoyed my time away from designing, but my head is full of ideas. Many of these ideas have come during this short time away, and I do believe that there are may still to come.

Although we are only on the first week of winter, I am going to be working on some designs for the magazine that will have a spring theme to them. My brief absence from designing has made me long for it even more. It was just the jump start I needed.

I hope you enjoy today, and every day. For those of you who despise winter, keep in mind that spring and summer will soon follow. They always do.

"I wonder if the snow loves the trees and fields, that it kisses them so gently? And then it covers them up snug, you know, with a white quilt; and perhaps it says "Go to sleep, darlings, till the summer comes again."
― Lewis Carroll, Alice's Adventures in Wonderland & Through the Looking-Glass

Have a beautiful day.
Good morning Sheila! Glad to have you back. I missed reading your blog while having my coffee. The world is right again.
Rick
 

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#9,672 ·
Closing Out the Year

As we close out another year, it is hard not to reflect back on what has passed and look ahead and wonder what tomorrow may bring.

As with every year, 2013 had its good days and its not so good days. We lost Keith's father this autumn to cancer. It was a profoundly sad time for us all. Ironically, within days of that, I became a grandmother for the first time with the birth of my beautiful grand daughter, Willow. It was as if she was sent to comfort my feeling of loss and sadness, and was a reminder of life renewing itself.

Nose Cheek Skin Lip Chin


The year 2013 has brought me many new friends. I have met so many wonderful people through our Tole Painter's Unite painting page from all corners of the world. Their love of creating have been a source of joy and inspiration to me and have rekindled my love of painting.

I also got to travel to see my dear friend Jeannie and meet some fantastic woodworkers. In our few days teaching in New York, Keith and I were able to meet with and make friends with fellow scroll sawyers and we thoroughly enjoyed that. We are thrilled we get to return again in a couple of months for an even bigger show, where we will not only be able to see these friends again, but also see old friends and meet new people and share our love of woodworking. It will be an incredible time.

Our business has done well, too. Our website sales for the year are up nearly fifty percent from last year. That is saying a lot! Although we have had a great deal of growth, we still try to be personal with every customer who visits. Keith and I try to treat people how we wish to be treated and we like being able to personally respond to all the questions and concerns that our customers have. So many of our customers are considered true friends. What a joy that is for us!

Although some people don't enjoy social media pages such as Facebook, I have found that when used properly they can be (and are) a wonderful way to share information, friendships and creativity. Yes - it takes some time, but when I look at all the new friends and inspiration that I find on that site, I think it is time well spent. I certainly think that my participation there has enriched my life a great deal. If nothing else, it personalizes customers and turns them into friends, as sharing our life's triumphs, struggles and families with each other brings us all closer.

New Year's Day is a significant day for many. It is a division of time in which one can gauge ones' progress and accomplishments. It is a starting point and an ending point at the same time, where one can close one door behind them and open another where a fresh start and a world of hope awaits them. I don't believe any other day of the year is looked upon in the same way.

It is also a time for resolutions. As people reflect on their accomplishments of the past year, and also perhaps of their short comings, they make vows to themselves to do better. Be it eating better, exercising more, or even accomplishing more when it comes to working or creating, it always seems like a good time to start fresh and new.

For myself, I don't see things changing much. I wake up each morning with a sense of "newness" of the day. I look at each new day as a new opportunity to do wonderful things. After all - why wait for a new year to be the best person we can be? If I fail on one day, I can always look forward to the next morning to start over and try again. It is amazing how having that mindset can invigorate you.

But closing out the year is also significant. Yes - there are things that I could have done a bit better (posting my receipts for the year, for example!) but there are also things that I have accomplished that I am very proud of. I am surrounded with love and friends and family and wonderful, creative people. And I am happy and at peace.

I wish you all my friends and family the best that 2014 has to offer. Remember though - it is up to you to make your own happiness. I believe that many of us don't realize the power we have over our own lives and happiness. The world is our oyster. We DO follow where we focus. If we choose to focus on personal growth, creativity and being happy, we are sure to feel that way. Our best gift to ourselves is to not allow negativity to rule our lives. There is so much good in the world that you can center on instead.

I saw a wonderful quote that I wanted to share with you today. When I read it, I thought it was incredibly inspirational. It reads as follows:

"I hope that in this year to come, you make mistakes.

Because if you are making mistakes, then you are making new things, trying new things, learning, living, pushing yourself, changing yourself, changing your world. You're doing things you've never done before, and more importantly, you're Doing Something.

So that's my wish for you, and all of us, and my wish for myself. Make New Mistakes. Make glorious, amazing mistakes. Make mistakes nobody's ever made before. Don't freeze, don't stop, don't worry that it isn't good enough, or it isn't perfect, whatever it is: art, or love, or work or family or life.

Whatever it is you're scared of doing, Do it.

Make your mistakes, next year and forever." ― Neil Gaiman


I don't think that I could have said it any better. ;)

Thank you my friends for a wonderful year. Thank you for your friendship. Thank you for your support. And thank you for your inspiration. I know without you all I would not be in the happy place I am today. I am truly grateful.

Happy New Year!

Smile Art Poster Painting Illustration
 

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#9,673 ·
Closing Out the Year

As we close out another year, it is hard not to reflect back on what has passed and look ahead and wonder what tomorrow may bring.

As with every year, 2013 had its good days and its not so good days. We lost Keith's father this autumn to cancer. It was a profoundly sad time for us all. Ironically, within days of that, I became a grandmother for the first time with the birth of my beautiful grand daughter, Willow. It was as if she was sent to comfort my feeling of loss and sadness, and was a reminder of life renewing itself.

Nose Cheek Skin Lip Chin


The year 2013 has brought me many new friends. I have met so many wonderful people through our Tole Painter's Unite painting page from all corners of the world. Their love of creating have been a source of joy and inspiration to me and have rekindled my love of painting.

I also got to travel to see my dear friend Jeannie and meet some fantastic woodworkers. In our few days teaching in New York, Keith and I were able to meet with and make friends with fellow scroll sawyers and we thoroughly enjoyed that. We are thrilled we get to return again in a couple of months for an even bigger show, where we will not only be able to see these friends again, but also see old friends and meet new people and share our love of woodworking. It will be an incredible time.

Our business has done well, too. Our website sales for the year are up nearly fifty percent from last year. That is saying a lot! Although we have had a great deal of growth, we still try to be personal with every customer who visits. Keith and I try to treat people how we wish to be treated and we like being able to personally respond to all the questions and concerns that our customers have. So many of our customers are considered true friends. What a joy that is for us!

Although some people don't enjoy social media pages such as Facebook, I have found that when used properly they can be (and are) a wonderful way to share information, friendships and creativity. Yes - it takes some time, but when I look at all the new friends and inspiration that I find on that site, I think it is time well spent. I certainly think that my participation there has enriched my life a great deal. If nothing else, it personalizes customers and turns them into friends, as sharing our life's triumphs, struggles and families with each other brings us all closer.

New Year's Day is a significant day for many. It is a division of time in which one can gauge ones' progress and accomplishments. It is a starting point and an ending point at the same time, where one can close one door behind them and open another where a fresh start and a world of hope awaits them. I don't believe any other day of the year is looked upon in the same way.

It is also a time for resolutions. As people reflect on their accomplishments of the past year, and also perhaps of their short comings, they make vows to themselves to do better. Be it eating better, exercising more, or even accomplishing more when it comes to working or creating, it always seems like a good time to start fresh and new.

For myself, I don't see things changing much. I wake up each morning with a sense of "newness" of the day. I look at each new day as a new opportunity to do wonderful things. After all - why wait for a new year to be the best person we can be? If I fail on one day, I can always look forward to the next morning to start over and try again. It is amazing how having that mindset can invigorate you.

But closing out the year is also significant. Yes - there are things that I could have done a bit better (posting my receipts for the year, for example!) but there are also things that I have accomplished that I am very proud of. I am surrounded with love and friends and family and wonderful, creative people. And I am happy and at peace.

I wish you all my friends and family the best that 2014 has to offer. Remember though - it is up to you to make your own happiness. I believe that many of us don't realize the power we have over our own lives and happiness. The world is our oyster. We DO follow where we focus. If we choose to focus on personal growth, creativity and being happy, we are sure to feel that way. Our best gift to ourselves is to not allow negativity to rule our lives. There is so much good in the world that you can center on instead.

I saw a wonderful quote that I wanted to share with you today. When I read it, I thought it was incredibly inspirational. It reads as follows:

"I hope that in this year to come, you make mistakes.

Because if you are making mistakes, then you are making new things, trying new things, learning, living, pushing yourself, changing yourself, changing your world. You're doing things you've never done before, and more importantly, you're Doing Something.

So that's my wish for you, and all of us, and my wish for myself. Make New Mistakes. Make glorious, amazing mistakes. Make mistakes nobody's ever made before. Don't freeze, don't stop, don't worry that it isn't good enough, or it isn't perfect, whatever it is: art, or love, or work or family or life.

Whatever it is you're scared of doing, Do it.

Make your mistakes, next year and forever." ― Neil Gaiman


I don't think that I could have said it any better. ;)

Thank you my friends for a wonderful year. Thank you for your friendship. Thank you for your support. And thank you for your inspiration. I know without you all I would not be in the happy place I am today. I am truly grateful.

Happy New Year!

Smile Art Poster Painting Illustration
Happy New Year to you and Keith. Yes I can say that I, also, had my best year ever. A new craft show, new customers, word of mount and most of all, CUSTOMER SERVICE before and after the sale. I saw a quote from L. L. Bean, the show maker, that said something like this, "When a customer purchases a pair of shows, wears them out completely, I want them to quickly return as a happy customer to purchase another pair:. Well said. I have not fully decided which directions I will take in 2014 but have a firm ideas. I wish you guys the very best and I am always watching the web page for new and interesting patterns (to me). Keep them coming.

And congrats on that new and very cute grandbaby.
 

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#9,682 ·
Welcome, 2014!

As I close the door on 2013 and move into 2014, I am filled with hope and excitement.

In many ways the past year was wonderful. Our business grew tremendously - even though we are still in a sluggish economy. It appears that little by little, we are gaining momentum and that our efforts are paying off.

This didn't happen over night though. I have been working at the business for years, and in reviewing and tracking where all of our new customers are coming from, I find that it is a mixture of many places and factors that have contributed to our success. There is no magic place or formula, and there is no way around hard work in making a business succeed.

One thing for certain - we wouldn't be where we were without all of you. Whether you are a scroll saw customer or a painting customer, or just someone who stumbled upon my blog here, I know in my heart that without your continued support, we wouldn't have the business we have. And both Keith and I thank you very much for that.

I would have never thought three and a half years ago when I began this blog that I would still be writing this far down the line. In the beginning, I thought it would be another avenue to try to get my name out there and let people in the scroll saw and woodworking communities know that I existed. I figured that I would write every once in a while and perhaps bring a few new people to our site.

But being a creature of habit, this blog has become a cornerstone of my day. Each morning as I speak to you through my writing, I map out my day and plan what I will accomplish. I believe that one of the most difficult things to do when you work for yourself is to make yourself accountable to YOU. It is sometimes too easy to put things off until the next day when something else comes along - whether the new thing is business related or not. But for some reason, by talking about what I plan to accomplish here in the morning, it helps me to stay focused throughout the day and follow through so that the next day I have something to show. While this self-imposed accountability isn't necessary all the time, as I am pretty good at being motivated, there were times (I admit) when if it hadn't been for me saying that I would be at a certain point and you all expecting to see it in the next post, I wouldn't have accomplished it. And I thank you all for that.

I appreciate all of you comments and support and of course your friendships. I never would have thought I would have made so many nice friends along this road I have chosen. It is something that I will always be grateful for.

So with that said, I want to kick off this new year with a thought for you. I saw this on Facebook yesterday and I loved it so much I wanted to share it because I believe in it so strongly:

Cloud Building Sky Wood Font


I don't know who the quote is from and if anyone else does, please let me know so I can give proper credit.

We ARE all writers of our own story. I think that if we only realized that, we would be much happier people.

While there are some things that occur in our lives that we can't control, the majority of things that we allow into our lives we have full control of. We each have our own personal path to follow, and as much as we would like company on that path, we need to travel it alone.

No one can truly come with us. We can meet others along the way, and walk beside them for a time, but ultimately we are left to travel our own lives beholden to no one but ourselves. For in the end, we are responsible for our own happiness and well-being.

I look forward to the upcoming year. While I know there may be places that I will stumble along my own path, I also know in my heart that I have set clear goals before me that I will follow and as long as I stay focused on them, all will be well.

I wish you all wonderful things in the new year. I hope you all remember that there is no limit to what you can accomplish, for you are the story tellers of your life.

I hope you share your stories with me and others as well, as creative people find joy and inspiration in the successes of those around them. I know I do.

Be kind to yourself. Allow yourself to be human. Embrace your ideas and creativity as you would hold a new born child and nurture it and watch it grow. And cherish every moment!

Font Darkness Poster Event Graphics


It is going to be a wonderful year!
 

Attachments

#9,683 ·
Welcome, 2014!

As I close the door on 2013 and move into 2014, I am filled with hope and excitement.

In many ways the past year was wonderful. Our business grew tremendously - even though we are still in a sluggish economy. It appears that little by little, we are gaining momentum and that our efforts are paying off.

This didn't happen over night though. I have been working at the business for years, and in reviewing and tracking where all of our new customers are coming from, I find that it is a mixture of many places and factors that have contributed to our success. There is no magic place or formula, and there is no way around hard work in making a business succeed.

One thing for certain - we wouldn't be where we were without all of you. Whether you are a scroll saw customer or a painting customer, or just someone who stumbled upon my blog here, I know in my heart that without your continued support, we wouldn't have the business we have. And both Keith and I thank you very much for that.

I would have never thought three and a half years ago when I began this blog that I would still be writing this far down the line. In the beginning, I thought it would be another avenue to try to get my name out there and let people in the scroll saw and woodworking communities know that I existed. I figured that I would write every once in a while and perhaps bring a few new people to our site.

But being a creature of habit, this blog has become a cornerstone of my day. Each morning as I speak to you through my writing, I map out my day and plan what I will accomplish. I believe that one of the most difficult things to do when you work for yourself is to make yourself accountable to YOU. It is sometimes too easy to put things off until the next day when something else comes along - whether the new thing is business related or not. But for some reason, by talking about what I plan to accomplish here in the morning, it helps me to stay focused throughout the day and follow through so that the next day I have something to show. While this self-imposed accountability isn't necessary all the time, as I am pretty good at being motivated, there were times (I admit) when if it hadn't been for me saying that I would be at a certain point and you all expecting to see it in the next post, I wouldn't have accomplished it. And I thank you all for that.

I appreciate all of you comments and support and of course your friendships. I never would have thought I would have made so many nice friends along this road I have chosen. It is something that I will always be grateful for.

So with that said, I want to kick off this new year with a thought for you. I saw this on Facebook yesterday and I loved it so much I wanted to share it because I believe in it so strongly:

Cloud Building Sky Wood Font


I don't know who the quote is from and if anyone else does, please let me know so I can give proper credit.

We ARE all writers of our own story. I think that if we only realized that, we would be much happier people.

While there are some things that occur in our lives that we can't control, the majority of things that we allow into our lives we have full control of. We each have our own personal path to follow, and as much as we would like company on that path, we need to travel it alone.

No one can truly come with us. We can meet others along the way, and walk beside them for a time, but ultimately we are left to travel our own lives beholden to no one but ourselves. For in the end, we are responsible for our own happiness and well-being.

I look forward to the upcoming year. While I know there may be places that I will stumble along my own path, I also know in my heart that I have set clear goals before me that I will follow and as long as I stay focused on them, all will be well.

I wish you all wonderful things in the new year. I hope you all remember that there is no limit to what you can accomplish, for you are the story tellers of your life.

I hope you share your stories with me and others as well, as creative people find joy and inspiration in the successes of those around them. I know I do.

Be kind to yourself. Allow yourself to be human. Embrace your ideas and creativity as you would hold a new born child and nurture it and watch it grow. And cherish every moment!

Font Darkness Poster Event Graphics


It is going to be a wonderful year!
Happy New Year to you and Keith and the rest of your families! And it is another month closer to Saratoga Springs!
Rick
 

Attachments

#9,693 ·
Getting Back in the Swing of Things . . .

Oh - I just had to laugh at myself . . .

I got up early this morning (just before six - which is good considering that I have been sleeping until almost seven over the holidays) and I got to the task of doing some 'house cleaning' on my computer. You know the stuff - organizing your files, answering emails, sorting through things - the usual.

I got things pretty much under control and I am almost ready for a back up and to start working on my files for taxes and I am sitting here with it still being dark out thinking to myself "Boy! I am really ahead of the game this morning!"

Then it hit me . . . I have a BLOG to write this morning!

Oh, how soon we forget! ;)

I think I am getting old.

I did start the year off yesterday getting some things accomplished. I got the next newsletter written and our site is updated with new patterns and sales (http://www.sheilalandrydesigns.com). While I haven't been doing much designing in these past couple of weeks, Keith has been busy with a couple of new patterns. He made this lovely plaque to add to his "Self-Framing Leaf Bordered Wildlife" series (SLDK236)

Bird Wood Rectangle Beak Art


And another Bible plaque - this one is from Psalm 118:1 (SLDK347):

Brown Wood Rectangle Font Wood stain


(It is a good thing that ONE of us is working! ;) )

Both of these designs are available on our site now, along with lots of other fun winter projects to replace all of those empty spaces in your house since you put away your holiday directions.

We also have new specials on our Pattern Specials page to kick start you on your Valentine's Day projects. It is never too early to get started. :)

Human body Font Art Ornament Magenta


_

As for me, I am really getting moving after my nice break. I have many ideas and I will be at the scroll saw today so I should have something to show you tomorrow.

The vacation is definitely over and I am back at doing what I love to do the best - design!

We are expecting some really frigid weather and lots of snow here in Nova Scotia, so I am going to be kept pretty busy staying here at home and working. I hope the results will be lots of fun, new projects. It is a great way to start the year.

Have a wonderful day today. Stay safe and warm.

Dishware Textile Font Creative arts Serveware


PWF02 - Snowman Collector Painting Pattern (Kits Available)_

Happy Thursday! :)
 

Attachments

#9,694 ·
Getting Back in the Swing of Things . . .

Oh - I just had to laugh at myself . . .

I got up early this morning (just before six - which is good considering that I have been sleeping until almost seven over the holidays) and I got to the task of doing some 'house cleaning' on my computer. You know the stuff - organizing your files, answering emails, sorting through things - the usual.

I got things pretty much under control and I am almost ready for a back up and to start working on my files for taxes and I am sitting here with it still being dark out thinking to myself "Boy! I am really ahead of the game this morning!"

Then it hit me . . . I have a BLOG to write this morning!

Oh, how soon we forget! ;)

I think I am getting old.

I did start the year off yesterday getting some things accomplished. I got the next newsletter written and our site is updated with new patterns and sales (http://www.sheilalandrydesigns.com). While I haven't been doing much designing in these past couple of weeks, Keith has been busy with a couple of new patterns. He made this lovely plaque to add to his "Self-Framing Leaf Bordered Wildlife" series (SLDK236)

Bird Wood Rectangle Beak Art


And another Bible plaque - this one is from Psalm 118:1 (SLDK347):

Brown Wood Rectangle Font Wood stain


(It is a good thing that ONE of us is working! ;) )

Both of these designs are available on our site now, along with lots of other fun winter projects to replace all of those empty spaces in your house since you put away your holiday directions.

We also have new specials on our Pattern Specials page to kick start you on your Valentine's Day projects. It is never too early to get started. :)

Human body Font Art Ornament Magenta


_

As for me, I am really getting moving after my nice break. I have many ideas and I will be at the scroll saw today so I should have something to show you tomorrow.

The vacation is definitely over and I am back at doing what I love to do the best - design!

We are expecting some really frigid weather and lots of snow here in Nova Scotia, so I am going to be kept pretty busy staying here at home and working. I hope the results will be lots of fun, new projects. It is a great way to start the year.

Have a wonderful day today. Stay safe and warm.

Dishware Textile Font Creative arts Serveware


PWF02 - Snowman Collector Painting Pattern (Kits Available)_

Happy Thursday! :)
Morning, and have a good day. I really musta been half asleep when I first opened this up and started reading, I thought you said, just before sex….. LOL Sheeesh, sorry, my eyes are not open yet…. OH, and btw, nice stuff as always. I like the Cardinal
 

Attachments

#9,699 ·
A "Good Day"

We have all had those type of days where nothing seems to go right. You know how it can be. Something breaks. You forget something important. Things just seem to come apart at the seams as the day goes by. It isn't fun and it happens to the best of us.

Conversely, there are good days as well. On those days it appears that we can do no wrong. Everything falls into place as the day progresses and it seems that no matter what we are doing. Everything works out well. Those are certainly the BEST of days.

I sometimes wonder - does this happen by "chance"? Or is this something that we had laid the groundwork for? Is it just a natural occurrence that comes as a result of a lot of work and good planning? It is hard to say.

As a practical person, I choose to believe that the majority of the things that happen to us are the direct result of our own actions. Before you all begin to jump all over me for that comment, please realize that this is by no means an absolute opinion. I realize that sometimes there are circumstances that are beyond our control that may impact our lives in either a negative OR positive way. I am generalizing and saying that for the most part, we are our own destiny.

Those of you who read often know that one of my favorite sayings is "We follow where we focus." I truly believe that having that attitude not only helps us through the worst of problems, but can even make a bad situation into something that is beneficial to us. I think having a positive attitude makes all the difference in the world.

I often receive notes or messages from people asking me what I did to reach the level of success I have achieved. While some may not consider me a "success" by textbook standards, I do feel that I am very successful in finding a happy and pleasant life. However, that didn't occur overnight and it took lots of work and struggling to get to where I am.

There is no 'magic formula' to reaching your goals. Circumstances around us are constantly changing, and I feel that more so than ever it is important to be able to be flexible in our goals and face adversity with determination and an attitude to change things and make them better for ourselves.

It is easy to sit back and feel 'victimized' when things don't go according to plan. Many times I see people who are envious of others.

"She has a huge house!"

"He has a great job!"

"Why can't I have those things?"

"They are just LUCKY!"

I truly believe that 'luck' has very little to do with success. Usually what makes a person succeed is that they have dedicated themselves to accomplish their goals and have worked very hard to obtain them. There is really no way around hard work needed to achieve success.

I have also learned during my trip though this lifetime, that things are not always as they appear. In the beginning entries of this blog, I stated that I felt that people are like icebergs - we only see a small portion of them and have little idea of the majority of what they have experienced and what they have endured. I think it is very difficult to judge others unless we have experienced the exact same things as they have, which is nearly impossible. It would be like watching five minutes of a movie and then making a judgement on the entire film.

We all have our crosses to bear and our own demons to fight. No matter how happy and carefree we are on the outside, there are thoughts and feelings that live within that no one will ever see. And we need to respect that in each other. I think that by doing and living our lives with compassion and understanding toward each other, we can make our own personal world a happier and better place.

I am sorry that I got off on a tangent. Sometimes in the morning I just think. ;)

I was very happy yesterday. Several good things occurred and I felt really good about them all.

I received a package from DecoArt of a new line of paint (YES - MORE PAINT! :D) that I feel will be of great interest to painters and woodworkers alike. It is called "Chalky Finish Paint" and is mainly for home decor, but will also have many smaller project and craft applications as well. Right now (until the end of May) it is available exclusively through Home Depot in the United States, and I will keep you updated on its distribution as I find out more. Here is a link to Home Depot where you can take a closer look at it:

DecoArt Chalky Finish Paint at Home Depot#

I am truly excited about this product and I will be blogging about it more in the very near future. I was sent an entire set of samples:

Textile Wood Material property Circle Pattern


Isn't that incredible? As a designer, I LOVE receiving new products to create with and review. It is truly a huge inspiration for me to be involved with such amazing companies! It was as if Christmas all over again!

I also saw that my friend put a link up on her Facebook page that my "All My Love" romantic box had made the cover of the February issue of Creative Woodworks and Crafts magazine!

Font Poster Cuisine Advertising Event


I don't care how long I have been doing this - it is always a huge honor and thrill for me to have my project chosen for the cover. Even after fifteen years of working with the magazine I still feel giddy as a child when I see they picked my project. I am very proud of this design and I am happy that the editors at the magazine felt that it would be suitable for the cover. What a great feeling!

We also had our final numbers for our website. Our mailing list is growing every day (you can join our mailing list here - Mailing List) and our business is growing nicely. We made some difficult decisions last year regarding our business and the distribution of our patterns and to be honest, we were concerned that we were doing the right thing. But sometimes you need to take a risk and instead of sitting back and allowing our business to fail, we chose to buckle down and work harder than ever on it. And it seems to be paying off.

The point of today's post is not to lecture, but to inspire.

I realize that we all have bad days and bad times we go through. I have had them as well. They aren't fun and they certainly can take the wind out of your sails.

When that happens to me and I catch myself sliding down the rabbit hole, I try to step back, take a breath and think to myself "how can I make this work FOR me?" Usually before long I find an alternative direction to head that I hadn't thought of before. The new direction may be uncertain and scary, but more times than not it opens other doors I haven't even considered before. And it allows me to grow in ways I never would have thought of otherwise.

Yesterday was a "good day." There were too many positive things that happened to even mention here. Perhaps some of them occurred by chance, but many of them were the results of hard work and determination and building my business and life on with a good and positive attitude. And I am very appreciative of every one of them.

I hope you start the new year with the notion that anything is possible if you try hard enough to achieve it. I think my "theme" for the year is going to be that WE are the masters of our own destiny. We have much more control over our lives than we ever realized. And what we do with that is up to US.

I wish you all a wonderful Friday!
 

Attachments

#9,700 ·
A "Good Day"

We have all had those type of days where nothing seems to go right. You know how it can be. Something breaks. You forget something important. Things just seem to come apart at the seams as the day goes by. It isn't fun and it happens to the best of us.

Conversely, there are good days as well. On those days it appears that we can do no wrong. Everything falls into place as the day progresses and it seems that no matter what we are doing. Everything works out well. Those are certainly the BEST of days.

I sometimes wonder - does this happen by "chance"? Or is this something that we had laid the groundwork for? Is it just a natural occurrence that comes as a result of a lot of work and good planning? It is hard to say.

As a practical person, I choose to believe that the majority of the things that happen to us are the direct result of our own actions. Before you all begin to jump all over me for that comment, please realize that this is by no means an absolute opinion. I realize that sometimes there are circumstances that are beyond our control that may impact our lives in either a negative OR positive way. I am generalizing and saying that for the most part, we are our own destiny.

Those of you who read often know that one of my favorite sayings is "We follow where we focus." I truly believe that having that attitude not only helps us through the worst of problems, but can even make a bad situation into something that is beneficial to us. I think having a positive attitude makes all the difference in the world.

I often receive notes or messages from people asking me what I did to reach the level of success I have achieved. While some may not consider me a "success" by textbook standards, I do feel that I am very successful in finding a happy and pleasant life. However, that didn't occur overnight and it took lots of work and struggling to get to where I am.

There is no 'magic formula' to reaching your goals. Circumstances around us are constantly changing, and I feel that more so than ever it is important to be able to be flexible in our goals and face adversity with determination and an attitude to change things and make them better for ourselves.

It is easy to sit back and feel 'victimized' when things don't go according to plan. Many times I see people who are envious of others.

"She has a huge house!"

"He has a great job!"

"Why can't I have those things?"

"They are just LUCKY!"

I truly believe that 'luck' has very little to do with success. Usually what makes a person succeed is that they have dedicated themselves to accomplish their goals and have worked very hard to obtain them. There is really no way around hard work needed to achieve success.

I have also learned during my trip though this lifetime, that things are not always as they appear. In the beginning entries of this blog, I stated that I felt that people are like icebergs - we only see a small portion of them and have little idea of the majority of what they have experienced and what they have endured. I think it is very difficult to judge others unless we have experienced the exact same things as they have, which is nearly impossible. It would be like watching five minutes of a movie and then making a judgement on the entire film.

We all have our crosses to bear and our own demons to fight. No matter how happy and carefree we are on the outside, there are thoughts and feelings that live within that no one will ever see. And we need to respect that in each other. I think that by doing and living our lives with compassion and understanding toward each other, we can make our own personal world a happier and better place.

I am sorry that I got off on a tangent. Sometimes in the morning I just think. ;)

I was very happy yesterday. Several good things occurred and I felt really good about them all.

I received a package from DecoArt of a new line of paint (YES - MORE PAINT! :D) that I feel will be of great interest to painters and woodworkers alike. It is called "Chalky Finish Paint" and is mainly for home decor, but will also have many smaller project and craft applications as well. Right now (until the end of May) it is available exclusively through Home Depot in the United States, and I will keep you updated on its distribution as I find out more. Here is a link to Home Depot where you can take a closer look at it:

DecoArt Chalky Finish Paint at Home Depot#

I am truly excited about this product and I will be blogging about it more in the very near future. I was sent an entire set of samples:

Textile Wood Material property Circle Pattern


Isn't that incredible? As a designer, I LOVE receiving new products to create with and review. It is truly a huge inspiration for me to be involved with such amazing companies! It was as if Christmas all over again!

I also saw that my friend put a link up on her Facebook page that my "All My Love" romantic box had made the cover of the February issue of Creative Woodworks and Crafts magazine!

Font Poster Cuisine Advertising Event


I don't care how long I have been doing this - it is always a huge honor and thrill for me to have my project chosen for the cover. Even after fifteen years of working with the magazine I still feel giddy as a child when I see they picked my project. I am very proud of this design and I am happy that the editors at the magazine felt that it would be suitable for the cover. What a great feeling!

We also had our final numbers for our website. Our mailing list is growing every day (you can join our mailing list here - Mailing List) and our business is growing nicely. We made some difficult decisions last year regarding our business and the distribution of our patterns and to be honest, we were concerned that we were doing the right thing. But sometimes you need to take a risk and instead of sitting back and allowing our business to fail, we chose to buckle down and work harder than ever on it. And it seems to be paying off.

The point of today's post is not to lecture, but to inspire.

I realize that we all have bad days and bad times we go through. I have had them as well. They aren't fun and they certainly can take the wind out of your sails.

When that happens to me and I catch myself sliding down the rabbit hole, I try to step back, take a breath and think to myself "how can I make this work FOR me?" Usually before long I find an alternative direction to head that I hadn't thought of before. The new direction may be uncertain and scary, but more times than not it opens other doors I haven't even considered before. And it allows me to grow in ways I never would have thought of otherwise.

Yesterday was a "good day." There were too many positive things that happened to even mention here. Perhaps some of them occurred by chance, but many of them were the results of hard work and determination and building my business and life on with a good and positive attitude. And I am very appreciative of every one of them.

I hope you start the new year with the notion that anything is possible if you try hard enough to achieve it. I think my "theme" for the year is going to be that WE are the masters of our own destiny. We have much more control over our lives than we ever realized. And what we do with that is up to US.

I wish you all a wonderful Friday!
Your blog this morning reminds me of the old saying, "How do you get to Carnegie Hall?" - Practice, practice, practice
 

Attachments

#9,710 ·
Two New Projects on the Go

You know you have a pretty good life when you wake up in the morning and there are so many (good!) things that you need to do that you don't know what to begin with. I can't tell you how many times that has happened to me lately. It seems that more so than ever I have more ideas and projects in my head than time. And that is a wonderful feeling.

After taking my week or so off from designing, I find that more so than ever I just can't wait to get back at it. Even though I may have not been actively working, I find that my mind is always thinking of new and fun patterns to create. I found that over the years I have trained my mind to observe things not only for what they are, but also for what they could possibly become. One picture or idea can easily trigger several new designs, and seeing things like fabric, ribbons, flowers, or even a bird can evolve into a new idea for a project. It is all so much fun!

We were hit with a pretty big snow storm yesterday. From early morning light until late into the evening, the snow fell and the wind was blowing. I read reports online of the nearby town of Weymouth (about 20 km north of us) that had major flooding all through town because of higher tides of the storms. Hopefully people were safe and no one was hurt. The post offices were even closed in our entire area, as were most businesses. I was happy that they allowed workers to go home and be with their families and be safe.

We were fine here. We were warm and well-prepared and never lost power. If I hadn't looked outside, I wouldn't have known that there was a storm. This morning is sunny and calm and I woke up to over a foot of new snow from yesterday's storm. The drifts are much higher. It was a perfect time to stay in and create.

And create I did . . .

In yesterday's blog, I highlighted the new supply of paint that arrived at my door from DecoArt. This is their new line of "Chalky Finish Paint" which is intended to be used to achieve that "Vintage" look that is so popular today. As the name implies, it dries to a super-matte finish and has a beautiful, soft, antique look to it. What is great about it too is that it needs no real prep and covers really well which makes it perfect for applying over old or the ever-popular re-purposed furniture. The colors are also amazing. They range from soft tones to some beautifully striking deep hues. They are going to be a joy to work with and I can see many applications not only in my scrolling patterns but also in my painting patterns. My head is already spinning with ideas.

But first of all, I had the issue of storing them. As many of you know, I live in a small place here and organization is the key to my existence. Neither Keith nor myself like clutter, so we try our best to keep everything neat and orderly, which is sometimes hard when we have so many supplies we use for our work. As you saw yesterday, I had quite a large pile of paint to think about storing, and I needed to figure out how to fit it into things so it would be accessible, yet out of the way. I had room on a top shelf of my one closet, but since the paint came in 8oz jars, the box of them was pretty heavy. I didn't like the though of having to lift them over my head to pull them down.

I went to my own closet and on the floor I saw a pretty cool (albeit ugly) wooden plywood box that may be suitable. I only kept a couple of loose painting surfaces in it, so it was possible to redirect those items and use the box for storing the paint.

Shipping box Packing materials Package delivery Wood Rectangle


I tried to fit the paint inside, and it all fit perfectly!

Wood Box Cuisine Food Ingredient


Even the 12" x 12" stencils fit over the top of the paints as if they were MADE to go in that box! The box was an old box that Keith had received when he purchased his large sub-woofers when building his speakers years ago. It was made of sturdy plywood and had corner hardware and were put together really well. It was perfect to hold all the weight of the paint. But it was really, really ugly.

Then the idea came to me . . .

I had wanted to test the paint before applying it to the project that I was working on anyway, so why not test it on this box? It would be the perfect opportunity for me to see how this paint performs, and I also thought that if I documented the process, it would be great material for an article on using the Chalky Finish paint. What a wonderful use of my time this would be!

So I got to work and started disassembling the box and playing around with the new products. So far, the results have been FABULOUS! Here is the top of the box at this point:

Wood Font Art Handwriting Publication


And I am not done yet!

I am testing several of the different products that are in this line of paint and I am so far very happy with the results. I still have a way to go though, and I promise to blog the entire process when I am done.

In the mean time (while I was waiting for layers of paint to dry!) I was going back and forth to the scroll saw and cutting out my next project for the magazine.

I decided that I would make several of the project and show some different options for finishing. At the end of the day, I had a whole box of wonderful parts to work with! :)

Wood Art Font Pattern Auto part


What a productive day!

Needless to say, I can't wait to get back at this today. I will be working on BOTH projects and can't wait to see them all finished.

I already have the next project that I will be doing planned out in my head, so there is no time to waste. Whether we have sunshine or snow, it is going to be a wonderful weekend.

I hope you all have a great weekend as well. Stay safe and warm and try to enjoy whatever the day brings.

Happy Saturday!
 

Attachments

#9,711 ·
Two New Projects on the Go

You know you have a pretty good life when you wake up in the morning and there are so many (good!) things that you need to do that you don't know what to begin with. I can't tell you how many times that has happened to me lately. It seems that more so than ever I have more ideas and projects in my head than time. And that is a wonderful feeling.

After taking my week or so off from designing, I find that more so than ever I just can't wait to get back at it. Even though I may have not been actively working, I find that my mind is always thinking of new and fun patterns to create. I found that over the years I have trained my mind to observe things not only for what they are, but also for what they could possibly become. One picture or idea can easily trigger several new designs, and seeing things like fabric, ribbons, flowers, or even a bird can evolve into a new idea for a project. It is all so much fun!

We were hit with a pretty big snow storm yesterday. From early morning light until late into the evening, the snow fell and the wind was blowing. I read reports online of the nearby town of Weymouth (about 20 km north of us) that had major flooding all through town because of higher tides of the storms. Hopefully people were safe and no one was hurt. The post offices were even closed in our entire area, as were most businesses. I was happy that they allowed workers to go home and be with their families and be safe.

We were fine here. We were warm and well-prepared and never lost power. If I hadn't looked outside, I wouldn't have known that there was a storm. This morning is sunny and calm and I woke up to over a foot of new snow from yesterday's storm. The drifts are much higher. It was a perfect time to stay in and create.

And create I did . . .

In yesterday's blog, I highlighted the new supply of paint that arrived at my door from DecoArt. This is their new line of "Chalky Finish Paint" which is intended to be used to achieve that "Vintage" look that is so popular today. As the name implies, it dries to a super-matte finish and has a beautiful, soft, antique look to it. What is great about it too is that it needs no real prep and covers really well which makes it perfect for applying over old or the ever-popular re-purposed furniture. The colors are also amazing. They range from soft tones to some beautifully striking deep hues. They are going to be a joy to work with and I can see many applications not only in my scrolling patterns but also in my painting patterns. My head is already spinning with ideas.

But first of all, I had the issue of storing them. As many of you know, I live in a small place here and organization is the key to my existence. Neither Keith nor myself like clutter, so we try our best to keep everything neat and orderly, which is sometimes hard when we have so many supplies we use for our work. As you saw yesterday, I had quite a large pile of paint to think about storing, and I needed to figure out how to fit it into things so it would be accessible, yet out of the way. I had room on a top shelf of my one closet, but since the paint came in 8oz jars, the box of them was pretty heavy. I didn't like the though of having to lift them over my head to pull them down.

I went to my own closet and on the floor I saw a pretty cool (albeit ugly) wooden plywood box that may be suitable. I only kept a couple of loose painting surfaces in it, so it was possible to redirect those items and use the box for storing the paint.

Shipping box Packing materials Package delivery Wood Rectangle


I tried to fit the paint inside, and it all fit perfectly!

Wood Box Cuisine Food Ingredient


Even the 12" x 12" stencils fit over the top of the paints as if they were MADE to go in that box! The box was an old box that Keith had received when he purchased his large sub-woofers when building his speakers years ago. It was made of sturdy plywood and had corner hardware and were put together really well. It was perfect to hold all the weight of the paint. But it was really, really ugly.

Then the idea came to me . . .

I had wanted to test the paint before applying it to the project that I was working on anyway, so why not test it on this box? It would be the perfect opportunity for me to see how this paint performs, and I also thought that if I documented the process, it would be great material for an article on using the Chalky Finish paint. What a wonderful use of my time this would be!

So I got to work and started disassembling the box and playing around with the new products. So far, the results have been FABULOUS! Here is the top of the box at this point:

Wood Font Art Handwriting Publication


And I am not done yet!

I am testing several of the different products that are in this line of paint and I am so far very happy with the results. I still have a way to go though, and I promise to blog the entire process when I am done.

In the mean time (while I was waiting for layers of paint to dry!) I was going back and forth to the scroll saw and cutting out my next project for the magazine.

I decided that I would make several of the project and show some different options for finishing. At the end of the day, I had a whole box of wonderful parts to work with! :)

Wood Art Font Pattern Auto part


What a productive day!

Needless to say, I can't wait to get back at this today. I will be working on BOTH projects and can't wait to see them all finished.

I already have the next project that I will be doing planned out in my head, so there is no time to waste. Whether we have sunshine or snow, it is going to be a wonderful weekend.

I hope you all have a great weekend as well. Stay safe and warm and try to enjoy whatever the day brings.

Happy Saturday!
Good morning Sheila,
You never know where you are going to get painting surfaces for free. I was walking thru a warehouse type store and by a seafood display I found several neat wooden boxes that was used to ship packaged salmon in. I was told that I could take them so I did. The top was slide in and the whole box was perfect for a candle box. I sanded the trademark off and Kathie painted a woodsie camp scene on the top and we sold them as candle boxes. The salmon were packaged in vacuum sealed plastic and were frozen so there was no fishy smell. That was one of the best finds I ever had.
Rick
 

Attachments

#9,716 ·
Sanding, Sanding, Sanding!

There are very few woodworkers that I know that enjoy sanding. I am sure that there are some out there, but it seems that most of them really don't like that part of the process at all.

As usual, I don't necessarily go along with popular opinion. While sanding may not be my favorite part of the process, I still find joy in shaping pieces and bringing them to life by sanding. I love to remove old, outer layers and see the fresh wood underneath exposed, revealing it natural beauty. Or giving wood life by creating flowing lines and edges. I suppose anything can be fun if you look at it in the right way.

It is a good thing that I think of things that way, as yesterday I spent most of the day sanding and shaping a large number of wood pieces that I need to complete my next project.

I've mentioned before how Keith teases me because I tend to make more work for myself than necessary when I design a project. When I made the jointed Skeleton pattern, I didn't make just one, but I decided to make eight different color variations (four were neutral color combinations and four were neon colors.)

Vertebrate Human Wood Bone Mammal


SLD433 Dancing Skeletons Scroll Saw Pattern

But I had envisioned them in so many fun and funky colors that I thought it would be an injustice not to show them. Besides . . . it gives people choices and helps people of all tastes see how different a single project can look if changed slightly. I think that is a good thing and encourages others to look at things with wider eyes.

So for this project that I am working on now, I decided to make several different color variations of it so that it will appeal to a wider audience. Besides - it is fun.

Unfortunately though, for blogging sake, it was a day of many hours of work in which there is little visible results. If I showed you a photograph of the box of pieces as they sit this morning, you wouldn't see any difference from the photograph of the pieces I showed you yesterday. So you will need to wait another day I am afraid.

But hopefully there will be lots to see tomorrow, as I hope to nearly finish up these pieces today.

I did however make good progress on my ugly storage box as well. The hardest part of that project is that I need to be PATIENT while the layers of different paints were drying. I also needed to do only two sides at a time so that I could handle things easier. This is where having more than one project on the go at a time came in handy. While waiting for one to dry, I could go back and work on the other. Here is a picture of the results so far:

Rectangle Cemetery Wood Font Handwriting


I know it looks a bit 'plain' and it is by no means finished. I have the detailing to do on it today as well as working on the other bunny project. So I will be a very busy girl!

With that said - I am going to keep this short and get back to things. I hope you enjoy seeing these projects come together.

I also wanted to let those of you who may not know that Lee Valley Tools has been having a Free Shipping Event that will end TOMORROW. I had meant to let you know sooner, but I honestly kept forgetting. I usually do my shopping when they have this offer, as it does save me a bit. There are certain items that I really like getting from them and although their prices may be a bit high, I like their quality and customer service.

Product Font Rectangle Signage Magenta


Lee Valley Free Shipping Offer

I hope you are all staying warm. Have a wonderful Sunday!
 

Attachments

#9,717 ·
Sanding, Sanding, Sanding!

There are very few woodworkers that I know that enjoy sanding. I am sure that there are some out there, but it seems that most of them really don't like that part of the process at all.

As usual, I don't necessarily go along with popular opinion. While sanding may not be my favorite part of the process, I still find joy in shaping pieces and bringing them to life by sanding. I love to remove old, outer layers and see the fresh wood underneath exposed, revealing it natural beauty. Or giving wood life by creating flowing lines and edges. I suppose anything can be fun if you look at it in the right way.

It is a good thing that I think of things that way, as yesterday I spent most of the day sanding and shaping a large number of wood pieces that I need to complete my next project.

I've mentioned before how Keith teases me because I tend to make more work for myself than necessary when I design a project. When I made the jointed Skeleton pattern, I didn't make just one, but I decided to make eight different color variations (four were neutral color combinations and four were neon colors.)

Vertebrate Human Wood Bone Mammal


SLD433 Dancing Skeletons Scroll Saw Pattern

But I had envisioned them in so many fun and funky colors that I thought it would be an injustice not to show them. Besides . . . it gives people choices and helps people of all tastes see how different a single project can look if changed slightly. I think that is a good thing and encourages others to look at things with wider eyes.

So for this project that I am working on now, I decided to make several different color variations of it so that it will appeal to a wider audience. Besides - it is fun.

Unfortunately though, for blogging sake, it was a day of many hours of work in which there is little visible results. If I showed you a photograph of the box of pieces as they sit this morning, you wouldn't see any difference from the photograph of the pieces I showed you yesterday. So you will need to wait another day I am afraid.

But hopefully there will be lots to see tomorrow, as I hope to nearly finish up these pieces today.

I did however make good progress on my ugly storage box as well. The hardest part of that project is that I need to be PATIENT while the layers of different paints were drying. I also needed to do only two sides at a time so that I could handle things easier. This is where having more than one project on the go at a time came in handy. While waiting for one to dry, I could go back and work on the other. Here is a picture of the results so far:

Rectangle Cemetery Wood Font Handwriting


I know it looks a bit 'plain' and it is by no means finished. I have the detailing to do on it today as well as working on the other bunny project. So I will be a very busy girl!

With that said - I am going to keep this short and get back to things. I hope you enjoy seeing these projects come together.

I also wanted to let those of you who may not know that Lee Valley Tools has been having a Free Shipping Event that will end TOMORROW. I had meant to let you know sooner, but I honestly kept forgetting. I usually do my shopping when they have this offer, as it does save me a bit. There are certain items that I really like getting from them and although their prices may be a bit high, I like their quality and customer service.

Product Font Rectangle Signage Magenta


Lee Valley Free Shipping Offer

I hope you are all staying warm. Have a wonderful Sunday!
Good progress on the box, Sheila. The edges look a little 'crisp' though. Could I suggest actually distressing the box before you paint it next time (dents, rounding edges etc). Having said that the paint effect is very convincing.
 

Attachments

#9,722 ·
Box Transformation Using Chalky Finish Paint

What began as a storage solution turned into quite an interesting project. All weekend I was thinking of the phrase "necessity breeds invention" as I worked on the storage box for my new line of paints.

On Friday, I received a shipment from DecoArt of their new Chalky Finish paint. This is a totally new line of high-adhesion paint that has a beautiful, soft matte finish that is becoming very popular. Many people are working with flea market finds and pieces of old furniture and re-purposing them instead of throwing them away. This paint is geared to be used in that market, as well as to make coordinating pieces such as frames, boxes, trays - you name it.

The paint itself comes in wide mouth 8oz and 16oz sizes. It is available exclusively through Home Depot until the end of May (USA stores only) and then will be reviewed for other marketing options. I am hoping that it will be available on the DecoArt site after that, as there are plenty of people here in Canada that are waiting to get their hands on it. The Home Depot link to it is here:

DecoArt Chalky Finish Paint

The good news for the USA folks is that Home Depot will deliver it free if your order is over $45. Not a bad deal.

I was able to receive samples of the paint because I am in DecoArt's Helping Artist Program . DecoArt has always been very supportive of designers and artists, as they realize that we help get word out and test their new products. From my standpoint, it is wonderful to work with a company that is so dedicated to the creative industry. Their products always seem to spark my inspiration.

My first thoughts when receiving these samples was "where the heck am I going to put them?" Those of you who read regularly know that I live in a small place. I wanted to keep them close at hand because I have several new ideas for using them, but I didn't want them underfoot either. I rooted around and on my bedroom closet floor I saw a good sized box that I thought would be suitable. It was from some sub-woofers that Keith had ordered many, many years ago and was the box that they were shipped in.

Shipping box Packing materials Package delivery Wood Rectangle


It was pretty ugly, but it was made of plywood and was good and sturdy, which is what I needed to hold the 35+ pounds of paint. I tried the paint and it all fit perfectly inside - as if it were made for it!

Wood Box Cuisine Food Ingredient


I was even able to fit the 12" x 12" stencils that came with the paint.

Brown Rectangle Wood Material property Font


I could have stopped there, but a wonderful idea came to me. Since I was planning to use this paint on my next project, I needed to test it out first and see how it would perform. What better way to test it than to re-paint this ugly box and make it look a little nicer? It would be the perfect opportunity to see how things would work and practice on. Besides - if it didn't look good, what did I have to lose? The box was going to be stored back in the bedroom closet anyway. So I began working on it.

Since the paint needs no real "prep" - all I needed to do (after removing the hardware from the box) was to give it a light sanding. I base coated the box in a warm, deep brown tone and applied a crackle medium over it. (The Chalky Finish line has its own crackle finish) After that dried, I applied a somewhat heavy coat of light cream colored paint. The heavier the top coat, the larger the cracks would be. The box crackled very nicely, and the crackle hid most of the flaws and banged corners and raw edges of the plywood.

I then used one of their stencils and applied a nice one to the top of the box:

Wood Font Art Handwriting Publication


I then applied one of the stencils to the inside cover. I really liked doing the stenciling, as it was fast and fun.

Brown Textile Sleeve Art Wood


After finishing the sides and edges of the lid, I continued to crackle the entire outside of the box. I left the bottom and inside to do later on, as they didn't need the crackling on them. Here is where I was yesterday morning:

Rectangle Cemetery Wood Font Handwriting


I thought it looked pretty cool. But it looked a bit "sterile" and plain. Since I had several more stencils to choose from, I decided to do more stenciling on the box to dress it up a bit.

I used a cool "Distressed Harlequin" stencil on the box sides. The irregular diamonds went perfectly with the "French" theme and crackle finish:

Hand Table Finger Nail Dishware


Even my new elf friend Edgar got in on the action and helped me out:

Headgear Hat Toy Art Stuffed toy


I didn't want the design to be boring, so I added a portion of the stencil from the lid design to carry down on the front center, under the lock. I also added some of the harlequin design on both the inside and outside of the lid to tie it all together.

Rectangle Wood Font Pattern Stationery


Rectangle Wood Material property Font Hardwood


Now it was looking pretty nice. But it still looked a bit stark. I decided to try the DecoArt Tinted Acrylic Wax Finish and tone it down a bit. I sparingly applied this wax to the outside and inside lid of the box:

Hand Wood Gesture Finger Art


This gave it a beautiful, warm finish. I continued to apply the wax to the entire box.

Now all I needed to do was paint the inside and bottom. I chose DecoArt Multi-Surface Satin paint for that. I LOVE the satin finish on this and I felt it would be more durable for both the bottom and the inside of the box which will have the most contact with items. As with the Chalky Finish paint, the adhesion is excellent and it needed no prep or top coat finish. I think it looks beautiful:

Rectangle Wood Font Material property Pattern


My only dilemma now was the hardware. With the box looking "distressed" and crackled, I didn't want to put bright silver hardware back onto it. I looked on Google and found a recipe for rusting out hardware. You mix a concoction of bleach, apple cider vinegar and salt and put the hardware in a jar with the solution for a couple of days. It is there now and looks like something out of a horror movie.

Tableware Drinkware Window Cup Serveware


So that is where I am at today. I may leave the hardware another day or so to see what happens. I hope it works.

In the mean time, while I was allowing all the layers of paint and finishes to dry on my box, I worked on my bunny project. I made good headway and I should be able to assemble them today.

Wood Cookie cutter Font Ingredient Art


I used the Chalky Finish paint on them as well and they look amazing! Almost suede-like in appearance. They are going to be a wonderful project I think!

I hope you liked this little walk through of this new product. I am going to do a detailed article later on with the process. I think that for this new paint will be a wonderful product for painters and woodworkers alike - even if you don't like to paint.

I will show a final picture of the box when the hardware is finished. It may take a couple of days, but I need to allow the paint to cure before I fill the box anyway. Now my only problem is that I don't want to put the box away! I need to find a place to have it where I can see it! :)

I wish you all a happy Monday today. Stay warm and safe. Stop back to see how the bunnies turned out tomorrow.

Rectangle Wood Basket Storage basket Box
 

Attachments

#9,723 ·
Box Transformation Using Chalky Finish Paint

What began as a storage solution turned into quite an interesting project. All weekend I was thinking of the phrase "necessity breeds invention" as I worked on the storage box for my new line of paints.

On Friday, I received a shipment from DecoArt of their new Chalky Finish paint. This is a totally new line of high-adhesion paint that has a beautiful, soft matte finish that is becoming very popular. Many people are working with flea market finds and pieces of old furniture and re-purposing them instead of throwing them away. This paint is geared to be used in that market, as well as to make coordinating pieces such as frames, boxes, trays - you name it.

The paint itself comes in wide mouth 8oz and 16oz sizes. It is available exclusively through Home Depot until the end of May (USA stores only) and then will be reviewed for other marketing options. I am hoping that it will be available on the DecoArt site after that, as there are plenty of people here in Canada that are waiting to get their hands on it. The Home Depot link to it is here:

DecoArt Chalky Finish Paint

The good news for the USA folks is that Home Depot will deliver it free if your order is over $45. Not a bad deal.

I was able to receive samples of the paint because I am in DecoArt's Helping Artist Program . DecoArt has always been very supportive of designers and artists, as they realize that we help get word out and test their new products. From my standpoint, it is wonderful to work with a company that is so dedicated to the creative industry. Their products always seem to spark my inspiration.

My first thoughts when receiving these samples was "where the heck am I going to put them?" Those of you who read regularly know that I live in a small place. I wanted to keep them close at hand because I have several new ideas for using them, but I didn't want them underfoot either. I rooted around and on my bedroom closet floor I saw a good sized box that I thought would be suitable. It was from some sub-woofers that Keith had ordered many, many years ago and was the box that they were shipped in.

Shipping box Packing materials Package delivery Wood Rectangle


It was pretty ugly, but it was made of plywood and was good and sturdy, which is what I needed to hold the 35+ pounds of paint. I tried the paint and it all fit perfectly inside - as if it were made for it!

Wood Box Cuisine Food Ingredient


I was even able to fit the 12" x 12" stencils that came with the paint.

Brown Rectangle Wood Material property Font


I could have stopped there, but a wonderful idea came to me. Since I was planning to use this paint on my next project, I needed to test it out first and see how it would perform. What better way to test it than to re-paint this ugly box and make it look a little nicer? It would be the perfect opportunity to see how things would work and practice on. Besides - if it didn't look good, what did I have to lose? The box was going to be stored back in the bedroom closet anyway. So I began working on it.

Since the paint needs no real "prep" - all I needed to do (after removing the hardware from the box) was to give it a light sanding. I base coated the box in a warm, deep brown tone and applied a crackle medium over it. (The Chalky Finish line has its own crackle finish) After that dried, I applied a somewhat heavy coat of light cream colored paint. The heavier the top coat, the larger the cracks would be. The box crackled very nicely, and the crackle hid most of the flaws and banged corners and raw edges of the plywood.

I then used one of their stencils and applied a nice one to the top of the box:

Wood Font Art Handwriting Publication


I then applied one of the stencils to the inside cover. I really liked doing the stenciling, as it was fast and fun.

Brown Textile Sleeve Art Wood


After finishing the sides and edges of the lid, I continued to crackle the entire outside of the box. I left the bottom and inside to do later on, as they didn't need the crackling on them. Here is where I was yesterday morning:

Rectangle Cemetery Wood Font Handwriting


I thought it looked pretty cool. But it looked a bit "sterile" and plain. Since I had several more stencils to choose from, I decided to do more stenciling on the box to dress it up a bit.

I used a cool "Distressed Harlequin" stencil on the box sides. The irregular diamonds went perfectly with the "French" theme and crackle finish:

Hand Table Finger Nail Dishware


Even my new elf friend Edgar got in on the action and helped me out:

Headgear Hat Toy Art Stuffed toy


I didn't want the design to be boring, so I added a portion of the stencil from the lid design to carry down on the front center, under the lock. I also added some of the harlequin design on both the inside and outside of the lid to tie it all together.

Rectangle Wood Font Pattern Stationery


Rectangle Wood Material property Font Hardwood


Now it was looking pretty nice. But it still looked a bit stark. I decided to try the DecoArt Tinted Acrylic Wax Finish and tone it down a bit. I sparingly applied this wax to the outside and inside lid of the box:

Hand Wood Gesture Finger Art


This gave it a beautiful, warm finish. I continued to apply the wax to the entire box.

Now all I needed to do was paint the inside and bottom. I chose DecoArt Multi-Surface Satin paint for that. I LOVE the satin finish on this and I felt it would be more durable for both the bottom and the inside of the box which will have the most contact with items. As with the Chalky Finish paint, the adhesion is excellent and it needed no prep or top coat finish. I think it looks beautiful:

Rectangle Wood Font Material property Pattern


My only dilemma now was the hardware. With the box looking "distressed" and crackled, I didn't want to put bright silver hardware back onto it. I looked on Google and found a recipe for rusting out hardware. You mix a concoction of bleach, apple cider vinegar and salt and put the hardware in a jar with the solution for a couple of days. It is there now and looks like something out of a horror movie.

Tableware Drinkware Window Cup Serveware


So that is where I am at today. I may leave the hardware another day or so to see what happens. I hope it works.

In the mean time, while I was allowing all the layers of paint and finishes to dry on my box, I worked on my bunny project. I made good headway and I should be able to assemble them today.

Wood Cookie cutter Font Ingredient Art


I used the Chalky Finish paint on them as well and they look amazing! Almost suede-like in appearance. They are going to be a wonderful project I think!

I hope you liked this little walk through of this new product. I am going to do a detailed article later on with the process. I think that for this new paint will be a wonderful product for painters and woodworkers alike - even if you don't like to paint.

I will show a final picture of the box when the hardware is finished. It may take a couple of days, but I need to allow the paint to cure before I fill the box anyway. Now my only problem is that I don't want to put the box away! I need to find a place to have it where I can see it! :)

I wish you all a happy Monday today. Stay warm and safe. Stop back to see how the bunnies turned out tomorrow.

Rectangle Wood Basket Storage basket Box
Wonderful~!
 

Attachments

#9,731 ·
One Bunny Toy Finished

As the deep freeze continues to grip both Canada and much of the USA, we here in Nova Scotia have been very fortunate in that instead of bitter cold and snow, we are having rain. In looking at our weather service, it appears that although we are slightly below freezing today and may receive a small amount of snow, our temperatures will be nothing like the biting cold that much of North America has experience. In fact, yesterday was almost 'balmy' as it rained for most of the day, washing away most of the snow that was left here from the past weekends' blizzard. We are starting fresh it seems.

It was a good opportunity to get some errands done as well. Keith and I made the rounds to the gym and to several stores and we had his mom come over for the day to visit. It was nice to have company after so many day of us being somewhat housebound. I like when she comes because it gives me a chance and to cook a good meal and have some good company. She brings her needlework and doesn't mind that we do our own work here as we all visit. The cats really enjoy her as well, as they get extra attention and do their best to entertain. It is good for everyone.

While I didn't finish assembling all the bunnies that I had painted and ready, I was able to put together one to show you today. I decided to begin with the unpainted oak bunny, as that was the one I wanted to take step by step photos of for the instructions for the magazine article. I am very pleased with how it came out though, and I can't wait to finish putting the other four together today. I love when projects come together how they are supposed to.

I spoke with my editor from Creative Woodworks and Crafts magazine yesterday and not only did she love the bunny toy replica idea for the project, but she also said she would love me to do an article on using the DecoArt Chalky Finish paint that I used on the box from yesterday's post. I was really pleased to hear that because I think that there are many applications in the woodworking area for this product and I was happy that I had the foresight to take many photos along the way of the process of refinishing the box. I am still waiting for my hardware to rot for another day in the bleach/vinegar/salt concoction so hopefully by tomorrow I will be able to use it and re-install it on the box. I am pleased that everything seemed to fall into place nicely.

So without further babbling, here are pictures of the finished Summer Bunny Toy Replica . . .

The hardwood bunny is made of oak. While oak is not a great choice of wood for fretwork (because its open grain doesn't hold up to delicate scrolling) it is a good choice for something like this. I love how beautiful the grain looks on this toy and the warm rich color it has. After cutting and sanding, I wiped down the pieces with mineral oil, and after allowing it to absorb into the piece a bit, I sprayed them with several coats of shellac. This is one of my favorite wood finishes, as it give a warm, rich look and brings out the grain of the wood nicely.

Brown Toy Wood Creative arts Fawn


I decided to 'dress up' the bunny by adding some pretty scroll work on his neck. This is very similar to my bunny ornaments from last year (SLD420 Ten Fretwork Bunny Silhouette Ornaments) I think it really makes the toy look special and is not difficult to add in. I tied a simple organza ribbon on his neck, along with some freshwater pearl beads. This I felt gave the piece a beautiful summer-y look.

Pollinator Insect Arthropod Butterfly Wood


And finally, I created some simple carrots as additional props for the bunny. The carrots have jute tops to them and look really cool. I had had some green jute at some time, but I must have used it out. I think the green would have looked really nice as well. The wheels have a nice scalloped shape and heart cut outs, which I think adds to the romance of this project.

Natural material Wood Creative arts Tree Jewellery


Overall, I am really happy with the results. I can't wait to see the beautiful parade of colors when assembling the other bunnies. That is my main objective for today.

I have decided that each day I want to feature a pattern from our website. We are approaching (or may have already surpassed) 500 patterns on the site. While we try to keep things organized, we realize that people don't always find all the patterns that they are seeking there. By digging into our archives and highlighting a pattern each day, I think it will show you all some nice designs that you may have missed. I hope you enjoy seeing them.

Today's design will be the SLD420 Ten Fretwork Bunny Silhouette Scroll Saw Pattern.

Brown Wood Gesture Fawn Creative arts


Feather Wing Magenta Fashion accessory Natural material


This is a pattern for the scroll saw and shows several finishing options for the bunny silhouettes. As with all of our ornament patterns, you can use them for wreaths, garlands, magnets or even stand ups. They are a lot of fun to cut and decorate. They were the inspiration for this toy project.

I hope that you are all staying safe and warm. I talked to my daughter in Chicago yesterday and she said that it is indeed a dangerous situation. This morning I see that many of the commuter trains there are not running for a second day in a row due to frozen switches. While I love winter, I don't love dangerous weather such as this. I hope you all take extra care to stay safe.

Thanks for all of your support and comments as well. I truly appreciate them even though some days like yesterday I didn't have much time to answer right away. I am glad you enjoy the blog here and what I do.

Have a wonderful Tuesday!
 

Attachments

#9,732 ·
One Bunny Toy Finished

As the deep freeze continues to grip both Canada and much of the USA, we here in Nova Scotia have been very fortunate in that instead of bitter cold and snow, we are having rain. In looking at our weather service, it appears that although we are slightly below freezing today and may receive a small amount of snow, our temperatures will be nothing like the biting cold that much of North America has experience. In fact, yesterday was almost 'balmy' as it rained for most of the day, washing away most of the snow that was left here from the past weekends' blizzard. We are starting fresh it seems.

It was a good opportunity to get some errands done as well. Keith and I made the rounds to the gym and to several stores and we had his mom come over for the day to visit. It was nice to have company after so many day of us being somewhat housebound. I like when she comes because it gives me a chance and to cook a good meal and have some good company. She brings her needlework and doesn't mind that we do our own work here as we all visit. The cats really enjoy her as well, as they get extra attention and do their best to entertain. It is good for everyone.

While I didn't finish assembling all the bunnies that I had painted and ready, I was able to put together one to show you today. I decided to begin with the unpainted oak bunny, as that was the one I wanted to take step by step photos of for the instructions for the magazine article. I am very pleased with how it came out though, and I can't wait to finish putting the other four together today. I love when projects come together how they are supposed to.

I spoke with my editor from Creative Woodworks and Crafts magazine yesterday and not only did she love the bunny toy replica idea for the project, but she also said she would love me to do an article on using the DecoArt Chalky Finish paint that I used on the box from yesterday's post. I was really pleased to hear that because I think that there are many applications in the woodworking area for this product and I was happy that I had the foresight to take many photos along the way of the process of refinishing the box. I am still waiting for my hardware to rot for another day in the bleach/vinegar/salt concoction so hopefully by tomorrow I will be able to use it and re-install it on the box. I am pleased that everything seemed to fall into place nicely.

So without further babbling, here are pictures of the finished Summer Bunny Toy Replica . . .

The hardwood bunny is made of oak. While oak is not a great choice of wood for fretwork (because its open grain doesn't hold up to delicate scrolling) it is a good choice for something like this. I love how beautiful the grain looks on this toy and the warm rich color it has. After cutting and sanding, I wiped down the pieces with mineral oil, and after allowing it to absorb into the piece a bit, I sprayed them with several coats of shellac. This is one of my favorite wood finishes, as it give a warm, rich look and brings out the grain of the wood nicely.

Brown Toy Wood Creative arts Fawn


I decided to 'dress up' the bunny by adding some pretty scroll work on his neck. This is very similar to my bunny ornaments from last year (SLD420 Ten Fretwork Bunny Silhouette Ornaments) I think it really makes the toy look special and is not difficult to add in. I tied a simple organza ribbon on his neck, along with some freshwater pearl beads. This I felt gave the piece a beautiful summer-y look.

Pollinator Insect Arthropod Butterfly Wood


And finally, I created some simple carrots as additional props for the bunny. The carrots have jute tops to them and look really cool. I had had some green jute at some time, but I must have used it out. I think the green would have looked really nice as well. The wheels have a nice scalloped shape and heart cut outs, which I think adds to the romance of this project.

Natural material Wood Creative arts Tree Jewellery


Overall, I am really happy with the results. I can't wait to see the beautiful parade of colors when assembling the other bunnies. That is my main objective for today.

I have decided that each day I want to feature a pattern from our website. We are approaching (or may have already surpassed) 500 patterns on the site. While we try to keep things organized, we realize that people don't always find all the patterns that they are seeking there. By digging into our archives and highlighting a pattern each day, I think it will show you all some nice designs that you may have missed. I hope you enjoy seeing them.

Today's design will be the SLD420 Ten Fretwork Bunny Silhouette Scroll Saw Pattern.

Brown Wood Gesture Fawn Creative arts


Feather Wing Magenta Fashion accessory Natural material


This is a pattern for the scroll saw and shows several finishing options for the bunny silhouettes. As with all of our ornament patterns, you can use them for wreaths, garlands, magnets or even stand ups. They are a lot of fun to cut and decorate. They were the inspiration for this toy project.

I hope that you are all staying safe and warm. I talked to my daughter in Chicago yesterday and she said that it is indeed a dangerous situation. This morning I see that many of the commuter trains there are not running for a second day in a row due to frozen switches. While I love winter, I don't love dangerous weather such as this. I hope you all take extra care to stay safe.

Thanks for all of your support and comments as well. I truly appreciate them even though some days like yesterday I didn't have much time to answer right away. I am glad you enjoy the blog here and what I do.

Have a wonderful Tuesday!
Hi Sheila,
A beautiful 3D assembled pieces. There are so many things I noticed: the grain orientation blending from pieces to pieces, the proportion of each part and the magnificent eyecatching eye. The added parts are also amazing to think about. Surely it will be best buy for all season and ages.
You are really thinking on your design outside the box. Thanks for sharing. Have a nice day.
 

Attachments

#9,737 ·
And Then There Were Five . . .

I frequently hear from my partner Keith that I create projects and then "make work" for myself. He says this because I am not really satisfied with creating one version of a project. If I envision the projects several different ways, I can't help myself but to make them all.

I know that isn't the most efficient way to work, but it is part of me that can't be helped. I figure if I can picture it several different ways, then others will appreciate having the choices as well.

Such has happened with my little bunny toy replicas.

I love making the dimensional sculptured woodworking projects. They involve a bit more than just cutting them out and finishing them. Usually they involve sanding and fitting and other things that to me are a bit more challenging than just cutting flat pieces. I am actually building something.

Throughout the years I have made several toy replicas. While I love them all, there are certainly some that I favor more than others. With each one that I build, I learn something new to make it a little better or easier to assemble. I find they are a lot of fun to create and a very satisfying project. I am thrilled at the nice response I receive from them as well.

So yesterday I showed you the first completed bunny:

Brown Toy Wood Creative arts Fawn


He is made of beautiful oak. While oak isn't always the best choice for scrolling because of its open grain, for something like this that doesn't have a lot of delicate fretwork cutouts, it works fine. The wood grain is beautiful and I only needed to give it a light oiling (a quick wiping of mineral oil) and a couple of coats of spray shellac to yield this warm and soft finish. It truly is a great choice for a project such as this when you want to show the beauty of natural wood. I thought the soft yellow organza ribbon and pearl spray accented it nicely.

But I also enjoy color. While natural wood tones can be beautiful, there is no denying that even a slight splash of color can really make a project outstanding. Since this bunny design was slated for the May issue of Creative Woodworks and Crafts magazine, I wanted a project that would represent spring and summer by being bright and cheerful.

Enter these beautiful DecoArt Chalky Finish Paints!

When I began drawing this design last week, I knew that I would want to make some in pretty pastels. I had planned on using the regular DecoArt Americana paint line that I use so often. But on Friday, I received a delivery of their new Chalky Finish Paints and I knew that I wanted to try them out on this project.

You can read all about the Chalky Finish Paints at the link above on DecoArt's site. They are a new line of beautifully soft colors of paint that is intended to be used for home decor. Since there is no preparation necessary, the paints are perfect for both new wood projects and re-purposing old items or flea market finds. They have terrific adhesion to a variety of surfaces and dry to a soft, super-matte chalky finish. To me the finish looks almost suede-like. Until May, they will be sold exclusively through Home Depot stores in the United States, but after that they will be more widely available.

For the painted bunnies, I used solid birch. I liked the light color and since I wanted little or no grain pattern, the wood worked very well. I chose a variety of soft colors and made four additional bunnies in blue, green, peach and pink. I think that they all look wonderful together:

Art Font Wood Jewellery Metal


I gave each bunny a matching ribbon and used the creme pearls as well. And for the colored versions of the bunnies, instead of drilling decorative holes in the scrolled neck motif, I applied a few matching crystal hot-fix rhinestones that I purchased from Rhinestone Canada. (This company continues to be one of my favorite suppliers, as I have heard back from many customers from the USA and around the world that have ordered from them and were thrilled with their products and customer service!)

Vertebrate Toy Ear Organism Fawn


Mythical creature Toy Wood Fawn Art


I am very happy with how they turned out.

Now the only problem is that I have to send them on their way to New Jersey to the offices of my magazine so they can be photographed for the article. It is hard to make something that I like so much and see it go out the door right away. But that will just be more inspiration for me to make something new.

I believe that my editor told me that the May issue of Creative Woodworks and Crafts will be out in early April. I will not have the pattern available on my site until sometime in May, after the magazine has its run. I have already had many inquiries about the pattern and I suggest that if you want it quickly, you consider subscribing to the magazine. For the cost of a couple of patterns, you can have eight issues full of patterns from me, Keith and many other wonderful designers. It really is a great deal and allows you to have your patterns earlier.

I sometimes feel bad when I post such a fun project and won't be able to offer the pattern for a while. But I hope that people do realize that the magazines are still a really good value and that they consider supporting them. I know that most like digital files, as they receive 'instant gratification' and have their patterns immediately, but for myself, I still like to hold the magazine in my hand and leaf through the beautiful color photos of projects. For me it is the best!

Thank you all for your positive responses on this project so far! I am overwhelmed at the nice comments that I have received. It really makes me want to do more and do even better on the next project. What a wonderful feeling.

Today's featured project will be Keith's SLDK197 - Filigree Snowflake Ornaments.

Brown Leaf Textile Wood Art


This beautiful (and a little bit challenging!) design is perfect for your post-holiday decorating. Wouldn't these look great with some beautiful blue or clear crystal rhinestones applied and hung in a window as sun catchers?

I hope you all are keeping warm and that you have a wonderful Wednesday. Stay safe and happy!
 

Attachments

#9,738 ·
And Then There Were Five . . .

I frequently hear from my partner Keith that I create projects and then "make work" for myself. He says this because I am not really satisfied with creating one version of a project. If I envision the projects several different ways, I can't help myself but to make them all.

I know that isn't the most efficient way to work, but it is part of me that can't be helped. I figure if I can picture it several different ways, then others will appreciate having the choices as well.

Such has happened with my little bunny toy replicas.

I love making the dimensional sculptured woodworking projects. They involve a bit more than just cutting them out and finishing them. Usually they involve sanding and fitting and other things that to me are a bit more challenging than just cutting flat pieces. I am actually building something.

Throughout the years I have made several toy replicas. While I love them all, there are certainly some that I favor more than others. With each one that I build, I learn something new to make it a little better or easier to assemble. I find they are a lot of fun to create and a very satisfying project. I am thrilled at the nice response I receive from them as well.

So yesterday I showed you the first completed bunny:

Brown Toy Wood Creative arts Fawn


He is made of beautiful oak. While oak isn't always the best choice for scrolling because of its open grain, for something like this that doesn't have a lot of delicate fretwork cutouts, it works fine. The wood grain is beautiful and I only needed to give it a light oiling (a quick wiping of mineral oil) and a couple of coats of spray shellac to yield this warm and soft finish. It truly is a great choice for a project such as this when you want to show the beauty of natural wood. I thought the soft yellow organza ribbon and pearl spray accented it nicely.

But I also enjoy color. While natural wood tones can be beautiful, there is no denying that even a slight splash of color can really make a project outstanding. Since this bunny design was slated for the May issue of Creative Woodworks and Crafts magazine, I wanted a project that would represent spring and summer by being bright and cheerful.

Enter these beautiful DecoArt Chalky Finish Paints!

When I began drawing this design last week, I knew that I would want to make some in pretty pastels. I had planned on using the regular DecoArt Americana paint line that I use so often. But on Friday, I received a delivery of their new Chalky Finish Paints and I knew that I wanted to try them out on this project.

You can read all about the Chalky Finish Paints at the link above on DecoArt's site. They are a new line of beautifully soft colors of paint that is intended to be used for home decor. Since there is no preparation necessary, the paints are perfect for both new wood projects and re-purposing old items or flea market finds. They have terrific adhesion to a variety of surfaces and dry to a soft, super-matte chalky finish. To me the finish looks almost suede-like. Until May, they will be sold exclusively through Home Depot stores in the United States, but after that they will be more widely available.

For the painted bunnies, I used solid birch. I liked the light color and since I wanted little or no grain pattern, the wood worked very well. I chose a variety of soft colors and made four additional bunnies in blue, green, peach and pink. I think that they all look wonderful together:

Art Font Wood Jewellery Metal


I gave each bunny a matching ribbon and used the creme pearls as well. And for the colored versions of the bunnies, instead of drilling decorative holes in the scrolled neck motif, I applied a few matching crystal hot-fix rhinestones that I purchased from Rhinestone Canada. (This company continues to be one of my favorite suppliers, as I have heard back from many customers from the USA and around the world that have ordered from them and were thrilled with their products and customer service!)

Vertebrate Toy Ear Organism Fawn


Mythical creature Toy Wood Fawn Art


I am very happy with how they turned out.

Now the only problem is that I have to send them on their way to New Jersey to the offices of my magazine so they can be photographed for the article. It is hard to make something that I like so much and see it go out the door right away. But that will just be more inspiration for me to make something new.

I believe that my editor told me that the May issue of Creative Woodworks and Crafts will be out in early April. I will not have the pattern available on my site until sometime in May, after the magazine has its run. I have already had many inquiries about the pattern and I suggest that if you want it quickly, you consider subscribing to the magazine. For the cost of a couple of patterns, you can have eight issues full of patterns from me, Keith and many other wonderful designers. It really is a great deal and allows you to have your patterns earlier.

I sometimes feel bad when I post such a fun project and won't be able to offer the pattern for a while. But I hope that people do realize that the magazines are still a really good value and that they consider supporting them. I know that most like digital files, as they receive 'instant gratification' and have their patterns immediately, but for myself, I still like to hold the magazine in my hand and leaf through the beautiful color photos of projects. For me it is the best!

Thank you all for your positive responses on this project so far! I am overwhelmed at the nice comments that I have received. It really makes me want to do more and do even better on the next project. What a wonderful feeling.

Today's featured project will be Keith's SLDK197 - Filigree Snowflake Ornaments.

Brown Leaf Textile Wood Art


This beautiful (and a little bit challenging!) design is perfect for your post-holiday decorating. Wouldn't these look great with some beautiful blue or clear crystal rhinestones applied and hung in a window as sun catchers?

I hope you all are keeping warm and that you have a wonderful Wednesday. Stay safe and happy!
Beautifully done Sheila and Keith! The bunnies and snow flakes are both wonderful. Thank you both for sharing.
 

Attachments

#9,742 ·
Everything Doesn't Always Work Like it is Supposed To . . .

With the five little bunny toys ready for their journey to the magazine for photography, my attention has turned back to finishing the box project that I worked on over the weekend. For those of you who missed, I used my new Chalky Finish Paint by DecoArt to transform this ugly wooden box:



To this:

Rectangle Wood Basket Storage basket Box


One thing that I liked about this box was that it had some cool hardware that added to the character. Not only did it have hinges and a latch, but also corner pieces and dress pieces besides.

My problem now though was that the hardware was all shiny silver, which I didn't feel went well with the new look of the box.

Finger Everyday carry Font Nickel Jewellery


It certainly didn't seem to go with the theme of the box, and I didn't want to re-install it 'as is.'

I went to my computer and did a search as to how to rust metal pieces quickly. I thought that some rusty looking hardware would look rather nice with the crackle paint, distressed stencils and muted colors.

I came across several different posts from different places which had formulas for rusting metal pieces such as jingle bells very quickly. While the recipes varied slightly, they all seemed to have the consensus of using bleach, cider vinegar and salt. I thought I would give it a try.

I carefully mixed the concoction in a jar (as per instructions) and put the pieces in. They immediately began foaming up (which I thought looked promising) and continued to do so for the first day. I checked the jar periodically, as I didn't want it to explode or anything like that. The instructions said to "loosely" cover it, so I felt that allowing some air to escape periodically was probably a good idea. I gently stirred the contents from time to time, and with the mixture turning brown, I hoped that the job was getting done. It looked really gross and ugly:

Tableware Drinkware Window Cup Serveware


The time frame on most of the different sources were all pretty much the same - I was to leave the metal pieces soak for about two days. This was tolerable for me because I had other things to do (the bunnies) so I was distracted and it didn't seem to be as much as a hardship for me to wait.

Yesterday morning marked the beginning of the third day and I had thought that certainly the reaction that I desired would have taken place by then. However, I was extremely disappointed when I took the pieces out of the jar, allowed them to air dry in as much sunlight as I could find (again - as per instructions) and the result were pieces that if anything, looked even shinier than when I began:

Finger Tool Household hardware Auto part Metal


I was not happy. :(

So when we were out doing errands, we went to the three hardware stores in our little town to see if there was the possibility of finding anything that would remotely work with this box. As often happens, we came up empty.

I know that Lee Valley would have the pieces I would want, in the finish that I desired, but besides the fact that they no longer had free shipping, I didn't feel like spending $30 or more on hardware for this 're-purposed' box, as it would defeat the point of using it in the first place I would think.

I was discouraged, but I had an idea . . .

As most of you know, I am a DecoArt junkie. I have most (many - not ALL!) of their lines of paints in many, many different colors. They do have a line of paint called Gloss Enamels which adhere to many non-porous surfaces. You can even bake them for added adhesion and durability. I had a deep brown metallic color called "Rich Espresso" that I thought would look nice:

Hand Liquid Bottle Cosmetics Plant


I applied the paint to the metal piece by using a deerfoot stippler brush and lightly pouncing the color on. this gave the paint more 'tooth' and made the surface look old and irregular - just the look I wanted.

Cigar Tobacco Finger Wood Idiophone


I let the pieces dry for several hours, and then I put them into the oven to bake for 30 minutes at 325 degrees. when I took them out and allowed them to cool, I tried to scratch a corner of the paint off with my nail and it seemed like it stuck pretty darn good. Since the hardware from this box won't be handled much, I think it will do an adequate job.

I decided that even though it looked pretty good, I was going to apply another coat. I will do that today and will re-install the hardware and show finished pieces of the box tomorrow.

While it would have been nice to have the hardware rust as it was supposed to, or even find new hardware, as I said - it would have defeated the purpose of reusing this box. For the cost of one little bottle of paint (with much left over, as you could imagine) I think that this is a perfect solution.

Once again, I want to praise DecoArt for another awesome product. I know I recommend them a great deal, but they have an extensive variety of paints for so many applications and I always seem to have luck with their products. I also like the fact that they are all odorless and acrylic based, so there is no caustic smell. I can't say enough good about them.

Today the bunnies begin their journey to the magazine for photography for their article. I will finish up the box and then get started on the next project(s) that I am going to be working on. This was really a fun couple of days and I truly appreciate all the nice comments that you all sent me regarding these. It really makes it fun to design.

I hope you all have a wonderful Thursday.

Today's Featured Design:

Organism Font Pattern Creative arts Art


Aqua Art Pattern Circle Font


SLDP212 - 10 Summertime Strokework Bunnies Painting Pattern

These darling bunny silhouettes ornaments are fun and easy to do. Their vivid colors will certainly brighten up your day! You can use them as plant pokes, in wreaths, on an "all season" tree, or even as refrigerator magnets. While they would make wonderful Easter ornaments, they will certainly be a welcome site all through the spring and summer months! But watch out - we know how bunnies multiply! Before you know it you will have a whole house full of them!

This item includes the painting pattern (with cutting instructions) only. If you wish to order the wood kit (SLDPK211) or pattern & kit combo (SLDPS212) _
 

Attachments

#9,743 ·
Everything Doesn't Always Work Like it is Supposed To . . .

With the five little bunny toys ready for their journey to the magazine for photography, my attention has turned back to finishing the box project that I worked on over the weekend. For those of you who missed, I used my new Chalky Finish Paint by DecoArt to transform this ugly wooden box:

Shipping box Packing materials Package delivery Wood Rectangle


To this:

Rectangle Wood Basket Storage basket Box


One thing that I liked about this box was that it had some cool hardware that added to the character. Not only did it have hinges and a latch, but also corner pieces and dress pieces besides.

My problem now though was that the hardware was all shiny silver, which I didn't feel went well with the new look of the box.

Finger Everyday carry Font Nickel Jewellery


It certainly didn't seem to go with the theme of the box, and I didn't want to re-install it 'as is.'

I went to my computer and did a search as to how to rust metal pieces quickly. I thought that some rusty looking hardware would look rather nice with the crackle paint, distressed stencils and muted colors.

I came across several different posts from different places which had formulas for rusting metal pieces such as jingle bells very quickly. While the recipes varied slightly, they all seemed to have the consensus of using bleach, cider vinegar and salt. I thought I would give it a try.

I carefully mixed the concoction in a jar (as per instructions) and put the pieces in. They immediately began foaming up (which I thought looked promising) and continued to do so for the first day. I checked the jar periodically, as I didn't want it to explode or anything like that. The instructions said to "loosely" cover it, so I felt that allowing some air to escape periodically was probably a good idea. I gently stirred the contents from time to time, and with the mixture turning brown, I hoped that the job was getting done. It looked really gross and ugly:

Tableware Drinkware Window Cup Serveware


The time frame on most of the different sources were all pretty much the same - I was to leave the metal pieces soak for about two days. This was tolerable for me because I had other things to do (the bunnies) so I was distracted and it didn't seem to be as much as a hardship for me to wait.

Yesterday morning marked the beginning of the third day and I had thought that certainly the reaction that I desired would have taken place by then. However, I was extremely disappointed when I took the pieces out of the jar, allowed them to air dry in as much sunlight as I could find (again - as per instructions) and the result were pieces that if anything, looked even shinier than when I began:

Finger Tool Household hardware Auto part Metal


I was not happy. :(

So when we were out doing errands, we went to the three hardware stores in our little town to see if there was the possibility of finding anything that would remotely work with this box. As often happens, we came up empty.

I know that Lee Valley would have the pieces I would want, in the finish that I desired, but besides the fact that they no longer had free shipping, I didn't feel like spending $30 or more on hardware for this 're-purposed' box, as it would defeat the point of using it in the first place I would think.

I was discouraged, but I had an idea . . .

As most of you know, I am a DecoArt junkie. I have most (many - not ALL!) of their lines of paints in many, many different colors. They do have a line of paint called Gloss Enamels which adhere to many non-porous surfaces. You can even bake them for added adhesion and durability. I had a deep brown metallic color called "Rich Espresso" that I thought would look nice:

Hand Liquid Bottle Cosmetics Plant


I applied the paint to the metal piece by using a deerfoot stippler brush and lightly pouncing the color on. this gave the paint more 'tooth' and made the surface look old and irregular - just the look I wanted.

Cigar Tobacco Finger Wood Idiophone


I let the pieces dry for several hours, and then I put them into the oven to bake for 30 minutes at 325 degrees. when I took them out and allowed them to cool, I tried to scratch a corner of the paint off with my nail and it seemed like it stuck pretty darn good. Since the hardware from this box won't be handled much, I think it will do an adequate job.

I decided that even though it looked pretty good, I was going to apply another coat. I will do that today and will re-install the hardware and show finished pieces of the box tomorrow.

While it would have been nice to have the hardware rust as it was supposed to, or even find new hardware, as I said - it would have defeated the purpose of reusing this box. For the cost of one little bottle of paint (with much left over, as you could imagine) I think that this is a perfect solution.

Once again, I want to praise DecoArt for another awesome product. I know I recommend them a great deal, but they have an extensive variety of paints for so many applications and I always seem to have luck with their products. I also like the fact that they are all odorless and acrylic based, so there is no caustic smell. I can't say enough good about them.

Today the bunnies begin their journey to the magazine for photography for their article. I will finish up the box and then get started on the next project(s) that I am going to be working on. This was really a fun couple of days and I truly appreciate all the nice comments that you all sent me regarding these. It really makes it fun to design.

I hope you all have a wonderful Thursday.

Today's Featured Design:

Organism Font Pattern Creative arts Art


Aqua Art Pattern Circle Font


SLDP212 - 10 Summertime Strokework Bunnies Painting Pattern

These darling bunny silhouettes ornaments are fun and easy to do. Their vivid colors will certainly brighten up your day! You can use them as plant pokes, in wreaths, on an "all season" tree, or even as refrigerator magnets. While they would make wonderful Easter ornaments, they will certainly be a welcome site all through the spring and summer months! But watch out - we know how bunnies multiply! Before you know it you will have a whole house full of them!

This item includes the painting pattern (with cutting instructions) only. If you wish to order the wood kit (SLDPK211) or pattern & kit combo (SLDPS212) _
Hippety Hoppety down the bunny trail.
 

Attachments

#9,746 ·
Fin.

I made the best of yesterday and surprisingly got a bit accomplished. The five little bunnies are hippity-hopping their way to New Jersey to the offices of Creative Woodworks and Crafts to be photographed for their article. I lovingly packed them and their carrots up and I HOPE they all arrive safely. We shall see . . .

I also finished up the transformation of the "Ugly Box Project" that I started over the weekend. I want to emphasize that what is important when doing projects such as this is to be certain to allow ample time for the layers of paint, etc. to DRY PROPERLY! I am a bit embarrassed to tell you how many projects I have ruined by rushing the drying process or not allowing enough time for things to CURE. (I lost count!) I find that when doing projects of this nature, it is far best to do them along side another project so that you can be distracted and do other things and not just think of the task at hand. It makes it far easier to allow things the proper cure time and the results is much better. Trust me on this one!

I have lots of step-by-step pictures, so without further delay, here we go . . .

I re-installed the hardware on the box. While that sounds like a minor task, it actually took quite a while. The original hardware had round head Phillips screws and while I looked for some nice brass screws in my neighborhood, I was unable to locate them. I had used the DecoArt Gloss Enamel paint on the faces of all the hardware pieces, and I allowed them to dry overnight AND baked them in a 350 degree oven for about half an hour to help harden and cure the paint. I am sure it will harden further over time, but I didn't want to scratch it up during the installation process. I used a brownish color (Rich Espresso) and a deer foot stippler brush to tap on the paint and give it a bit of texture. It looked pretty cool I thought.

Go Black Rectangle Font Wood


Rectangle Wood Font Brick Urban design


Rectangle Wood Basket Font Art


Brown Wood Beige Rectangle Wood stain


I really loved all the hardware that came with this box! Remember folks - this was a SHIPPING box that was sent with a sub woofer speaker that Keith had bought a couple of years ago. This was just the packaging for the sub that was intended to be discarded. It is cool that a company would put so much into the packaging of a product.

The satin black inside of the box looked great I thought. The DecoArt Multi-Surface Satin paint looks just fabulous! It needed no sealer and dried to a beautiful and DURABLE satin finish. This will stand up to the use of the box nicely!

Rectangle Wood Beige Box Flooring


One thing that I didn't want to keep the same was the bottom of the box. The metal corners would cause it to scratch any surface that it would be on. (Not cool!) So I left the screws off the bottom:

Wood Hardwood Metal Wood stain Fashion accessory


And I cut some black felt pads for the feet. I cut two for each corner and used the extra strong glue and a glue gun and glued the two layers of pads into place. I felt that the glue itself would also pad the bottom feet of the box.

Tool Hand tool Office instrument Font Tints and shades


Wood Flooring Rectangle Table Jersey


I think it looks very nice and very finished, and the bottom is now soft and won't scratch anything.

Wood Rectangle Beige Hardwood Box


I then wanted to touch up the tops of the screws, as they were still silver and bright. I daubed a bit of the DecoArt Gloss Enamel paint over each of the screws:

Wood Door Household hardware Metal Font


I will probably add another coat of paint over the screws in another day or so, but for now, I think the box looks wonderful!

Rectangle Wood Font Book Pattern


It was quite a transformation!

My only problem now is where to put it. I initially found it on the bottom of my bedroom closet floor and I thought that I would store my new Chalky Finish Paint in it there. But the box came out so cool looking, I don't want to put it away!

I also had news yesterday that these paints are available in CANADA! I have had so many people ask me about them this past week and I was thrilled to hear that they are being sold not only by Home Depot in the United States, but now by a company called Stockade here in Canada. Stockade has a great reputation and should serve you well.

I hope you enjoyed this little transformation. I had fun showing you. I love working with new products and I am very happy with the results of those that I used here. I think it is amazing what a little paint and some thought can do to make something ugly into something beautiful.

Wood Font Rectangle Hardwood Wood stain


I wish you all a happy, happy Friday! :)

Today's Featured Product

Organ Human body Textile Pink Font


SLDK205 Filigree Heart Ornaments by Keith Fenton
 

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#9,747 ·
Fin.

I made the best of yesterday and surprisingly got a bit accomplished. The five little bunnies are hippity-hopping their way to New Jersey to the offices of Creative Woodworks and Crafts to be photographed for their article. I lovingly packed them and their carrots up and I HOPE they all arrive safely. We shall see . . .

I also finished up the transformation of the "Ugly Box Project" that I started over the weekend. I want to emphasize that what is important when doing projects such as this is to be certain to allow ample time for the layers of paint, etc. to DRY PROPERLY! I am a bit embarrassed to tell you how many projects I have ruined by rushing the drying process or not allowing enough time for things to CURE. (I lost count!) I find that when doing projects of this nature, it is far best to do them along side another project so that you can be distracted and do other things and not just think of the task at hand. It makes it far easier to allow things the proper cure time and the results is much better. Trust me on this one!

I have lots of step-by-step pictures, so without further delay, here we go . . .

I re-installed the hardware on the box. While that sounds like a minor task, it actually took quite a while. The original hardware had round head Phillips screws and while I looked for some nice brass screws in my neighborhood, I was unable to locate them. I had used the DecoArt Gloss Enamel paint on the faces of all the hardware pieces, and I allowed them to dry overnight AND baked them in a 350 degree oven for about half an hour to help harden and cure the paint. I am sure it will harden further over time, but I didn't want to scratch it up during the installation process. I used a brownish color (Rich Espresso) and a deer foot stippler brush to tap on the paint and give it a bit of texture. It looked pretty cool I thought.

Go Black Rectangle Font Wood




Rectangle Wood Basket Font Art


Brown Wood Beige Rectangle Wood stain


I really loved all the hardware that came with this box! Remember folks - this was a SHIPPING box that was sent with a sub woofer speaker that Keith had bought a couple of years ago. This was just the packaging for the sub that was intended to be discarded. It is cool that a company would put so much into the packaging of a product.

The satin black inside of the box looked great I thought. The DecoArt Multi-Surface Satin paint looks just fabulous! It needed no sealer and dried to a beautiful and DURABLE satin finish. This will stand up to the use of the box nicely!

Rectangle Wood Beige Box Flooring


One thing that I didn't want to keep the same was the bottom of the box. The metal corners would cause it to scratch any surface that it would be on. (Not cool!) So I left the screws off the bottom:

Wood Hardwood Metal Wood stain Fashion accessory


And I cut some black felt pads for the feet. I cut two for each corner and used the extra strong glue and a glue gun and glued the two layers of pads into place. I felt that the glue itself would also pad the bottom feet of the box.

Tool Hand tool Office instrument Font Tints and shades


Wood Flooring Rectangle Table Jersey


I think it looks very nice and very finished, and the bottom is now soft and won't scratch anything.

Wood Rectangle Beige Hardwood Box


I then wanted to touch up the tops of the screws, as they were still silver and bright. I daubed a bit of the DecoArt Gloss Enamel paint over each of the screws:

Wood Door Household hardware Metal Font


I will probably add another coat of paint over the screws in another day or so, but for now, I think the box looks wonderful!

Rectangle Wood Font Book Pattern


It was quite a transformation!

My only problem now is where to put it. I initially found it on the bottom of my bedroom closet floor and I thought that I would store my new Chalky Finish Paint in it there. But the box came out so cool looking, I don't want to put it away!

I also had news yesterday that these paints are available in CANADA! I have had so many people ask me about them this past week and I was thrilled to hear that they are being sold not only by Home Depot in the United States, but now by a company called Stockade here in Canada. Stockade has a great reputation and should serve you well.

I hope you enjoyed this little transformation. I had fun showing you. I love working with new products and I am very happy with the results of those that I used here. I think it is amazing what a little paint and some thought can do to make something ugly into something beautiful.

Wood Font Rectangle Hardwood Wood stain


I wish you all a happy, happy Friday! :)

Today's Featured Product

Organ Human body Textile Pink Font


SLDK205 Filigree Heart Ornaments by Keith Fenton
That is most certainly QUITE the transformation on that box!

It almost seems like you've done this before….. ;-)

Very good idea applying felt to the bottom - I have to remember that!

Cheers!

-bob
 

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#9,753 ·
Diversifying Your Skills

Since I am in the drawing stages of my next design, I don't have much to show you today. I hope to finish drawing today though, and perhaps I can even get to the saw and do some cutting.

I did however come across something that you all may be interested in seeing and I wanted to share it with you today.

I have spoken before of my dear friend Leldon. I have known Leldon since he was about 15 years old and I had met him at a scroll saw picnic. Like many others there, I was amazed at his talent and focus at such a young age. His interest and dedication towards woodworking along with his friendly and easy-going personality made him a favorite among the woodworking crowd and we became good friends.

Over the years, Leldon and I have remained in touch. We speak on the phone frequently and I am happy to refer anyone who is looking for finished woodworking projects to contact him. He has never let me down and customers are always happy with the quality of his work and his fair prices.

Leldon likes doing just about any type of woodworking. He does some part time specialty work for an establishment near his home called Southern Accents Architectural Antiques. Southern Accents salvages and restores beautiful antiques and replicas used in home decor.

A while back, Leldon was asked to cut some large corbels for a project. He used his scroll saw to do so and they turned out beautiful.

Wood Font Art Toy Hardwood


They were created for Brittany Bailey to use in her DIY blog called Pretty Handy Girl. In the blog, she transformed the corbels using some easy and fun faux finishing techniques. The results were amazing!

Plant Flowerpot Wood Houseplant Gas


After the nice response that I received from my recent box transformation project, I thought that Brittany's blog would be of interested to woodworkers and painters alike.

Wood Rectangle Font Hardwood Wood stain


I often receive email from both woodworkers and painters who ask me tips on making a living through their craft. We all know that it is difficult to compete with cheap, mass-produced goods from China - especially when the economy is struggling. I find that if one is able to diversify and not be so specialized in offering one kind of service, it does increase your chances of finding success in doing something you love.

Home decor and renovations are some of the areas that are still going strong - even in a slow economy. People are more apt to upgrade or fix what they have rather than start over again and buying new, and by offering your special skills as either a wood cutter or painter for these types of projects, you may find yourselves with many new opportunities. It's something to think about . . .

It's raining and windy here in Nova Scotia and seems more like spring than winter. It is a good day to curl up with some tea and a kitty or two and finish my drawing.

I hope you have a beautiful Sunday.

(You can reach Leldon and see more of his work at Leldon's Scrollsawing on the web)
 

Attachments

#9,754 ·
Diversifying Your Skills

Since I am in the drawing stages of my next design, I don't have much to show you today. I hope to finish drawing today though, and perhaps I can even get to the saw and do some cutting.

I did however come across something that you all may be interested in seeing and I wanted to share it with you today.

I have spoken before of my dear friend Leldon. I have known Leldon since he was about 15 years old and I had met him at a scroll saw picnic. Like many others there, I was amazed at his talent and focus at such a young age. His interest and dedication towards woodworking along with his friendly and easy-going personality made him a favorite among the woodworking crowd and we became good friends.

Over the years, Leldon and I have remained in touch. We speak on the phone frequently and I am happy to refer anyone who is looking for finished woodworking projects to contact him. He has never let me down and customers are always happy with the quality of his work and his fair prices.

Leldon likes doing just about any type of woodworking. He does some part time specialty work for an establishment near his home called Southern Accents Architectural Antiques. Southern Accents salvages and restores beautiful antiques and replicas used in home decor.

A while back, Leldon was asked to cut some large corbels for a project. He used his scroll saw to do so and they turned out beautiful.

Wood Font Art Toy Hardwood


They were created for Brittany Bailey to use in her DIY blog called Pretty Handy Girl. In the blog, she transformed the corbels using some easy and fun faux finishing techniques. The results were amazing!

Plant Flowerpot Wood Houseplant Gas


After the nice response that I received from my recent box transformation project, I thought that Brittany's blog would be of interested to woodworkers and painters alike.

Wood Rectangle Font Hardwood Wood stain


I often receive email from both woodworkers and painters who ask me tips on making a living through their craft. We all know that it is difficult to compete with cheap, mass-produced goods from China - especially when the economy is struggling. I find that if one is able to diversify and not be so specialized in offering one kind of service, it does increase your chances of finding success in doing something you love.

Home decor and renovations are some of the areas that are still going strong - even in a slow economy. People are more apt to upgrade or fix what they have rather than start over again and buying new, and by offering your special skills as either a wood cutter or painter for these types of projects, you may find yourselves with many new opportunities. It's something to think about . . .

It's raining and windy here in Nova Scotia and seems more like spring than winter. It is a good day to curl up with some tea and a kitty or two and finish my drawing.

I hope you have a beautiful Sunday.

(You can reach Leldon and see more of his work at Leldon's Scrollsawing on the web)
Sheila, thank you for sharing Leldon's site! I really like the contrasting woods he uses on the word art signs. I have seen that before and for whatever reason it didn't strike me as it did this morning. Funny how that happens sometimes. The link to Brittany's site would not work for me. Enjoy kitty cuddling, drawing, rain and tea. A Winnie the Pooh blustery kind of day here.
 

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#9,762 ·
Just Because . . .

A while ago I had an idea for a pattern.

I don't remember exactly what triggered it, but I thought it would come out cool and I was thinking about it ever since. It's one of those patterns that I want to make for no particular reason other than to see how it would turn out.

I find myself sometimes wondering if I am going in too many directions at one time. Then - sometimes only hours (or minutes) later on, I think of something else that I want to try or another new technique, theme or medium to work in and once again wish for more hours in the day.

Many of my designs are driven by deadlines, seasons and requests. In most ways that is a good thing, as it helps keep me on track and on a certain time table and helps me set and achieve my goals. But there are times when the projects that I am thinking about don't fit into these categories and I have trouble making the time for me to develop them. They go from year to year living only in my thoughts and sometimes it is frustrating because it just never seems to be the right time to make them into reality.

I don't usually believe in "New Year's Resolutions", but I do believe in setting goals for yourself no matter what time of year it is. When we bring in the new year, it may seem more significant because many view the new year as a time for starting fresh and making new commitments to ourselves to better our lives in some way.

I look at my past year and I am happy. Our little company continues to grow and we are doing well. We had some sad times throughout the year as well, but for the most part things moved in a positive direction and we are pleased with our progress.

But I do believe that part of being successful is to continually set higher goals for yourself and to keep challenging yourself to improve.

So with those thoughts in mind, I am working on this pattern "just because."

The more I think about it, the more I like it. I can think of probably ten or more new designs right off the bat that can fall into the "Just Because" category. They are patterns that I will do "for no other reason than because I want to." It won't matter to me if they really sell or not. They will be there for those who enjoy them. But the main reason I am making them is "just because" I like the idea. And that is good enough for me.

So here is a quick sneak preview of what I have drawn:

Joint Head Hand Hairstyle Shoulder


You can see they are dancers. They are going to be pretty cool though, as I have some nice ideas for them that I hope you will like.

I like my idea of "just because" designs. It will keep me from feeling as if I HAVE to do something for this reason or that (approaching holiday, magazine deadline, etc.) It will allow me to feel as if I am in control on those days when I feel that the company is taking over (all small business owners feel that way sometimes, I suspect) and it will remind me of the joy I find in doing my job.

Hopefully, you all will enjoy them as well.

Have a great Monday!

Today's Featured Product

Human body Font Picture frame Wood Art


SLDK179 Classic Collection Heart Basket
 

Attachments

#9,763 ·
Just Because . . .

A while ago I had an idea for a pattern.

I don't remember exactly what triggered it, but I thought it would come out cool and I was thinking about it ever since. It's one of those patterns that I want to make for no particular reason other than to see how it would turn out.

I find myself sometimes wondering if I am going in too many directions at one time. Then - sometimes only hours (or minutes) later on, I think of something else that I want to try or another new technique, theme or medium to work in and once again wish for more hours in the day.

Many of my designs are driven by deadlines, seasons and requests. In most ways that is a good thing, as it helps keep me on track and on a certain time table and helps me set and achieve my goals. But there are times when the projects that I am thinking about don't fit into these categories and I have trouble making the time for me to develop them. They go from year to year living only in my thoughts and sometimes it is frustrating because it just never seems to be the right time to make them into reality.

I don't usually believe in "New Year's Resolutions", but I do believe in setting goals for yourself no matter what time of year it is. When we bring in the new year, it may seem more significant because many view the new year as a time for starting fresh and making new commitments to ourselves to better our lives in some way.

I look at my past year and I am happy. Our little company continues to grow and we are doing well. We had some sad times throughout the year as well, but for the most part things moved in a positive direction and we are pleased with our progress.

But I do believe that part of being successful is to continually set higher goals for yourself and to keep challenging yourself to improve.

So with those thoughts in mind, I am working on this pattern "just because."

The more I think about it, the more I like it. I can think of probably ten or more new designs right off the bat that can fall into the "Just Because" category. They are patterns that I will do "for no other reason than because I want to." It won't matter to me if they really sell or not. They will be there for those who enjoy them. But the main reason I am making them is "just because" I like the idea. And that is good enough for me.

So here is a quick sneak preview of what I have drawn:

Joint Head Hand Hairstyle Shoulder


You can see they are dancers. They are going to be pretty cool though, as I have some nice ideas for them that I hope you will like.

I like my idea of "just because" designs. It will keep me from feeling as if I HAVE to do something for this reason or that (approaching holiday, magazine deadline, etc.) It will allow me to feel as if I am in control on those days when I feel that the company is taking over (all small business owners feel that way sometimes, I suspect) and it will remind me of the joy I find in doing my job.

Hopefully, you all will enjoy them as well.

Have a great Monday!

Today's Featured Product

Human body Font Picture frame Wood Art


SLDK179 Classic Collection Heart Basket
This is way kool Sheila. It wouldn't hold my ice cream, but I really like the way you've constructed it. Way kool.
 

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