Organizing!

It's been a long time since art popped up on this blah...blah...blog...shameful. I seem to currently have oodles of "almost" finished pieces...everywhere. My studio has been an absolute disaster! Barely a path to stand or walk. My ability to put things away as I open them...is non-existent. Plus, my attention to buying junk is far outweighing my ability to store it. (a constant problem) So, many hours have been put into the process of organizing my space, that productivity has been minimal. Yikes! I seem to operate under this premise: My studio is a mess until I cannot stand it anymore, and I stop all creativity and production to spend days cleaning and putting everything away....to begin the whole process once more. Hopefully, at the end of this week I will share some photos of my new organized space. Can't wait to show you...can't wait to see it actually finished. Which leads me to my very FAVORITE quote...

"Success comes from the back bone...not the wishbone."

Day 2 of Life's Mysteries!

Just a few more shots of flea market heaven...... This simple little dinette set and rocker covered in the most lovely of lavender Naugahyde was traffic stopping. As the story goes, the former owner (now deceased) loved the color of purple...and all its shades. Her husband forbid her to decorate with any hint of purple, because of his dislike of the color. (Obviously, compromise was not something discussed in this household.) But, upon his death (he being first) this opened the door for decorating freedom. She took his life insurance policy and blanketed the house in her favorite color. From carpet...to furniture...to drapery....or knick knacks. Just a little royal irony....hmmmm? Worlds largest flower frog.....6 inch steel spikes mounted on a wood block. What dainty flower would you spear? Perhaps a 12 foot sunflower?

This was the ultimate up cycling of the common everyday Goodrich tire. Simply invert...and scallop the edges...voi'la...you have a decorative flower pot.

Loved this shade of purple glass. The photo is not as rich as the color in person...but, quite beautiful. Obviously, the Naugahyde purple decorating lady would have lined every window seal with these beauties.

Tables of miscellaneous everything....jewelry...dice...stuff....rocks...marbles....endless!

I personally do not collect fiesta ware...but, it is beautiful in quantity!

This concludes our photos of the end of the school year flea market celebration! Simple photos....and complex mysteries! Enjoy!

Life's Mysteries!

Welcome to my world of obscure! Yes, as a celebration of my daughter's end of school year....we went junking at the flea market! We were both so excited to get there early....and stay late! The beauty of junking....is experiencing the weird...the odd....the unexplainable...the obscure...a mystery or two. So, trip down my path into all the above.... If you remember, the last time I went junking, I found an "A" that I so wanted...but oh, so heavy. This time I found one oh, so big. Is this not a fantastic "A"? Talking about a monogram in font 4,792....

This is a chair, ottoman and side table all made from animal horns and skins. Now out west this might be a common decor item...but, in the south...nope. I thought the McCoy green vase really set the whole ensemble off to a new level. Contradiction...my essence.

This may have been one of my favorite vignettes. Musty...dirty...manequin body parts scattered erratically next to a taxidermy turkey. Why?

Standing on its nose is a full size fake, plastic, green alligator. Who is the consumer?

Beautiful glass and vintage chandeliers...all hung in front of the restroom and showers. Yes, another form of contradiction.

We had a fantastic time, and stumbled upon some of life's mysteries. Check back in tomorrow...more to come!

I Miss A Tree!

"Did you ever see an unhappy horse?

Did you ever see a bird that had the blues?

One reason why birds and horses are not unhappy

is because they are not trying to impress other birds and horses."

-Dale Carnegie

The storm recently attacked a very large and lovely oak tree in my back yard. On its way down it took off a corner of my house. It is finally all repaired and the remains of the tree are sitting on the curb. This tree provided shade for years...homes for many birds and squirrels...beauty for all...and lots of oxygen for everyone. I'm not sure I ever did that much for the tree, but it sure gave a lot to me. Just thought using a few twigs in some art would preserve it in some small way. I miss the old tree. Isn't it odd that a person can get attached to a tree?

Mother of Good Fortune!

"Diligence is the mother of good fortune."

-Benjamin Disraeli

I have the good fortune to conveniently live smack-dab in the middle of the "Antique Alley 500 Mile Yard Sale". This past weekend was filled with four days of junk bounty available to everyone willing to skip through the yards of anyone living on US Highway 11 going from Bristol, VA, Tennessee, Alabama and ending in Meridian, MS. Yes, I was one of those fortunate souls who trekked through some very moist weather to stumble upon some outstanding finds. Pictured is all the treasures I found in my one day eight hour stint in junking heaven.

The beauty of combing the yards of the south...can be compared to shopping in one of the infamous retailers of the south. Thanks to Mr. Sam Walton....Wal-Mart has become a retailing giant offering anything from a tire...to a gallon of milk...to a flat screen TV...on down to a roll of paper towels. Shopping in a series of yard sales...you can find a 1922 yearbook....a pile of fantastic jewelry...roll of rick rack...and a ruler. In one 50 square feet of yard, the possibility of discovering just about anything is wide open. It is truly the good fortune of the hunter!

The Springfield, OH 1922 annual was one of my favorites. The lovely lass at the top of the page, Livia Allen had a wonderful quote..."Do you not know I am a woman? When I think, I must speak." You have to love the spirit of this young lady. I so would like to know what she did after graduation...

Of course, any kind of yummy old book is an easy purchase for me. Love the illustrations...the innocence of the stories...and the aged paper!

The day is long....sometimes quite hot....but, filled with interesting people and things....leading me to think I was certainly the "Mother of Good Fortune". Can't wait until next year....

Mantra for the Day...

"Life like a mirror, never gives back more than we put into it."

-anonymous

Absolutely loved this tiny little rusty mirror. Which lead to me to find this awesome quote. Mantra for the day....

Don't forget to check out my collecting blog on Glitter and Grunge!

Who Knew?

I absolutely love to embroider on paper! It reminds me of when I got my first sewing kit as a kid. I think my mother still has the animals I made.... The kit was thick cardboard cut-outs of animals. Their legs, feet, torso, and head were individual pieces. Around the exterior of each piece were dye cut holes. In each kit was a supply of yarn to weave in and out of the holes to hopefully assemble a whole animal. If you were inventive, you might put the long neck of the giraffe on the body of a pig. I leaned toward the "not matching variety" of body parts. I vividly remember sewing...and pulling it all out....then sewing it differently...and pulling it all out....the little holes of the cards were literally worn out from the process. Trust me there was minimal creativity involved in this sewing process...other than defying the natural assembly of animals. But, varying the yarn colors and body parts served my sewing need quite well. This act of controlled embroidery could have well been the beginnings of my freelance embroidery future. Who knew.....

Junking Nirvana

Today is all about over-sized stuff! This weekend while visiting my Mother, we spent a large portion of Saturday doing my favorite thing....looking for someones discarded used stuff! One part of the journey to "junking Nirvana" is stumbling on to odd ball...over-sized things...it makes my day! The giant "A" was fantastic. I so wanted it....but, it must have weighed about 50 lbs. To actually hang it on the wall I might have to hire someone to build a support system to insure no one experienced a concussion should it fall...or purchase a piece of furniture that could benefit from a 50 lb., 3 foot tall letter doodad...or someone might feel that I suffer from some type of personal monogram neurosis. I pondered....debated....and left it sitting on the ground. I still loved it! Next came this over-sized cowboy head smoking a cigar...hanging squarely in the middle wall of the "Star Cafe". It is used as an autograph page for the cafe....it had random signatures that I could not read...but, it had this unmistakable silent scream of "Yee Haw!" I just loved it!

Then this "taxidermied" peacock stumbled into my path. It was clearly my favorite. Just debate this one moment...

1. what room do you accessorize with a stuffed peacock?

2. do you have an extra $400 to invest in a stuffed peacock?

3. do you find it oddly creepy to see wilting peacock feathers on an otherwise perfect peacock body?

The whole bird was strange...over-sized...yet, perfect in its own freaky way.

Just a little glimpse into Junking Nirvana.....

What Inspires Me

I found this image buried in a stack of drawings and doodles of a "How-To" art book copyrighted 1928. The image was not signed...but, I thought it was beautiful. All I did was embellish the image with stitching, notions and tatting...then added the quote by Thoreau. The art deco frame was perfect....I thought. I envisioned a man sitting and sketching this beautiful young woman as she waited for a bus or fairy. The doodles and drawings did not have duplicate images...it was almost like he sat somewhere and sketched whomever attracted his eye. If I were guessing from the information gathered in the book...I would assume the artist and his muse might now be in the neighborhood of 105-115 years of age. I wonder if she ever knew it was drawn? What happened to the artist? I love finding little pockets of artistry, and then attempt to back in to what was going on to create them. Artistic gems of this sort are truly what inspire me.

Enjoy!

"Vision is the art of seeing what is invisible to others."

-Jonathan Swift

What do you see? Some might see... 1. Too much junk. 2. Over stimulation. 3. Garage sale gone bad. 4. Colossal waste of space. 5. Nothing I would want to peruse. Others might see... 1. Too much junk! 2. Over stimulation. 3. Garage sales under one roof! 4. Incredible use of an old two story warehouse! 5. Oodles of great stuff! If you notice...many of the points are the same if not similar....they are only read with the use of an exclamation point. Isn't it great how important that one little click of the upper case "1" makes in viewing the picture? Never forget the power of an exclamation point! It totally acts as a positive influence on your psyche, and no doubt a visual deflection to the brain...enjoy. NO! ENJOY!!!

More Is Better To Me!

OK, experiencing a little "maximalist" - ism. I was waiting on my daughter at swim practice...I sat in the car watching a soccer game (not my favorite) and kept sewing stuff on to the picture. Obviously, a sign of pure boredom. It became a plethora of doo-dads and stuff. My first opinion was "stop"....then I continued to look at it...and I liked all the junk. I love the little, teeny, tiny frozen Charlotte with the broken arm. As someone who is a creature of "more is better", I often want to debate, "have I gone too far?" Oddly enough....I NEVER remove anything. More is ALWAYS better to me.

Sunny in Sweetwater!

I had the distinct pleasure of being one of three artists featured at Morris Galleries in Sweetwater, TN this past Friday night. When I arrived, my area looked like this (see below)...the beautiful large frames that housed my art were fabulous...not to mention the antique table with all my goodies scattered about. My creations have never been merchandised so beautifully. It was such a fun night! The gallery is truly a gem in the heart of Sweetwater. This beautiful historic building has been lovingly restored and filled to the brim with outstanding works of art. The many artisans represented are varied and multi-talented. I am honored to be placed amongst their ranks.

This is a view from the back of the store looking to the front door. Notice the beautiful hardwood floors...all original!

This is a fellow artist I met, Kristine. She creates beautiful, one-of-a-kind jewelry from polymer clay. Her artistry is stunning. You must check out her website to fully appreciate what she does with a block of clay. Kristine shared some artistry business with me, and I found her to be just as pretty as her jewelry.

The middle dear is the owner of the gallery, Susan Morris. She is the genius of the store and quite an artist in her own rite. She creates fibre art and jewelry (I now own a pair of earrings-yea!) that is unbelievable...look here for her story. Her artistic endeavors are quite remarkable. Sweetwater should be very proud!

So, to say I had a fantastic time Friday night, is an understatement. Thank you Kristine and most certainly Susan....it seems incredibly sunny in Sweetwater.

"Those who bring sunshine into the lives of others,

cannot keep it from themselves."

-James Barrie

Stack of 45's!

One of the largest wake-up calls to my age was about three years ago. My daughter and I were in my workroom and I pulled out of a file a few 45 records. She picked them up and said, "what is this?" That hurt. She really had no idea what a record was....I went through the CD comparison and explained my affection for Donny Osmond and David Cassidy, that I collected 45's just like she bought songs for her IPOD...and she said, "yea, yea, yea." Her next question was, "what are you going to do with these?" Valid question. I no longer have a turntable....so what do you do with a stack of 45's? Make art....