i made something.

 

Lately I've been crafting up a storm.  I've been crampy so I've been lounging around this weekend.  Saturday night was so great because the girls played barbies, my boyfriend played video games, and I made stuff.  I've sort of been feeling bad lately that I hadn't really finished the 30 day journal challenge, and I wasn't really happy with my journal pages, so I decided to start over.  My new 30 day journal is SO cute!  It will get it's own post when I'm finished....I can't wait to show you!!  While I was waiting for the gesso to dry on one of my journal pages, I spotted an unfinished wood photo frame across the room.  I had painted a blue dahlia in my journal and had some left over paint on my cute little daisy palette,  so I went straight to work painting the picture frame.  I'm so happy with how it turned out!  It looks really really cute with a real photo in it, and up on the wall.  It was just a cheapie Michales wooden frame I got in the kids craft section, and I just used my cheap Wal-Mart craft paints on it.  This is a fun craft that anyone can do.  Dahlias are easy....just paint a bunch of black ovals and fill them in with whatever color you like (tone on tone colors would look great too).  If you decide to do this project, please leave a link to your work in the comments....I'd love to see your dahlias!

 

the meat train

I think I want to be a vegetarian.  I've been really grossed out by meat lately, particularly in the last week.  I'm really not sure what it was that made me want to jump off the meat train.  It will most likely be a gradual process.  I'm not ready to give up fish and seafood yet.  And I will never ever become a vegan.  I love milk and cheese and eggs waaaaaaay too much! 

My reasons to give up meat:

1. It's expensive.  Especially if you are purchasing organic meat (which you should be doing, but that is a whole other topic).
2. It's disgusting.  I've always been creeped out about raw meat.  I just hate walking past the butcher section in the grocery store.  It stinks.  And all those neat little packages of bloody meat lined up in neat little rows on display just feels terribly wrong.  Raw meat has bothered me since I was a little girl.  I have to double bag it and place it on the bottom of the cart so it doesn't touch any of my other food.  In the check out I ask that the meat be put in a separate bag.  And when I have to cook meat I usually don't want to eat it.  I still eat it.  Meat tastes good.  But preparing it yourself is awful.  Eating out is worse though.  I can't believe the things they try to pass off as meat!  Those cold slimy slices of chicken with fake grill marks in salads, the bacon in sandwiches that is either burnt crispy ash or greasy transparent floppy slices of fat with a little meat mixed in, the steak in a fancy restaurant that leaks blood, the shriveled up chewy chicken patties, the ground beef and pepperoni that is bathed in orange grease......uuugh.     *shiver*
3. It makes me feel good to not eat it.  My body actually feels better.  My mind feels clearer.  My body less lethargic.  Food tastes better.  And I like animals.  Cows, lambs, pigs, chickens.....all very cute.  I've seen animals get mistreated and slaughtered inhumanely and it makes me want to throw up.  I understand the food chain, and that animals eat other animals and all that.  I'm ok with others eating meat.  I don't think it's incredibly unhealthy.  I will still serve it to my family on occasion.  I would never ask someone to prepare something special for me at their house.  It's simply a personal choice.  Eating meat is just something I'm not comfortable with anymore.

Just thought I would share.....and share some lovely paintings from one of my favorite artists Mark Ryden.  You should check out his other work as well.  It's hauntingly beautiful in a funny way.  Here is a link to his official site.

The Sketchbook Project: 2011 » Art House Co-op | We build art projects and communities

The Sketchbook Project: 2011 » Art House Co-op | We build art projects and communities

this looks really interesting. i think i might want to do this!

art journal

I've been browsing blogland lately and I keep lingering on art journal blogs like this one.  It just looks like such a creative and pretty way to express yourself.  I don't feel like there is as much pressure as there is if you were to paint a picture.  Paintings require a lot of mental preparation whereas art journaling is a lot more laid back and improvisational.  You get an idea of what you want to do and go with it.  I love that with mixed media art, you can incorporate everyday mundane things like masking tape.  It makes me feel like a little kid in art class.  It is pretty amazing really what you can do with things like construction paper, watercolors, glue, stamps, torn pieces of paper, ball point pens, and tape.  This is my first art journal page.  I'm pretty pleased with the results.  I can't wait to do more!!

un éléphant.

Some images are just too precious to slap up on the fridge.  This little gem just kills me!  Kid art is just so sweet and perfect sometimes isn't it?  I just knew this elephant drawing belonged in a frame, but the white background seemed a little dull. So off  we went to Michaels to pick up some scrapbook paper and a pretty silver frame at 40% off.  I cut the scrapbook paper to fit the frame, cut out the elephant (see the tiny mouse?), and glued it on the pretty background.  In the frame it went, and voila.  Ready for a real wall.  I think I will do more of this with my girls art.  Cut & paste the adorable bits together.  You know how sometimes the little one draws something so perfect that you hold your breath and hope that they are done.....and then they add something else that just well, adds too much?  I love that my girls express themselves through art.  As a mom, you of course have your personal favorites.  The kids do too.  Sometimes their favorites and your favorites aren't the same.  It's funny how Daisy told me that she didn't particularly like that elephant drawing, and that she didn't think it was one of her best.  The elephant is definitely my favorite.  Go figure.