Fly Deco Spread

Spread I did for the Zettijournal RR. Theme was FLY. Left collage images from ArtChix. Right collage images from outsidethemargins.com.

Egyptology Deco for deco RR

I am doing a deco RR in one of my groups. I am not very active in this group but want to participate more than I have been. So, I thought that a deco RR would be a good way to do it. It is not a huge commitment that let's me see firsthand the awesome art this group creates. I have been doing a lot of stuff on Egypt at school. This subject really speaks to me. That and cemetery stuff. I especially love cemetery angels. I don't know what it is but that kind of stuff always spoke to me - even as a child. I loved to watch old fashioned horror movies, make the monster models, and read the monster type comics. Photoshop makes it possible for me to manipulate cemetery stuff in a way that really looks cool to me (and probably to me only). Thanks to everyone who sent me cemetery pics. Maybe that is why I love CSI so much and read up on forensic mysteries and things of that nature.

Catching up

I attended the artists' reception at Artful Gatherings a couple of weekends ago. It was my second time at one but my first time attending as a participating artist. It was very interesting to see what other artists are doing. I have to say that my stuff was pretty different from the rest. I am very happy for an art friend - both her pieces sold before the reception. I was ecstatic to win 3rd place my first time out. I don't know how often I will do this since it is kinda time consuming for me. I think that I will try to do it at least a couple times a year. Things have been really busy with me lately. I am running drug-free month at school. It is a month full of activities and contests. It is really keeping me busy. I finished off a couple of fat book swaps and am trying to write something for a zine. I also have to do some carry-out ATCs as inclusions for another zine. I have been sidelined again with a cold - probably strep throat, too. One of my kids at school had it, so naturally, I get it. I have also been busy cleaning out stuff to give away, sell, or to trade. I have only been having a few spurts of creativity. We had a very cold spell for a couple of days here and now my car won't start. I do need to start on my next mini zine - which will be about things that sideline me from creating art that I really want to do. I think that I could write volumes about that one subject.

Choas places at an exhibition!

This is the piece is the one that took 3rd place at a judged exhibition. The exhibition is at Artful Gatherings in Lemont. This piece also was in Susie LaFond's Fresh Cargo Zine. After it came home from the zine, I worked on it some more and put it on a 12x12 canvas. I then punched out the circles with the prongs. I am not sure what they are called - sprockets? The green circles in the middle are washers with Alcohol inks in Pesto. The piece itself is on 140# watercolor paper. I took a distress ink pad and rubbed it all over the watercolor paper. I thenimmediately spritzed with water and ironed it. When it dried, it took the cap of an old lipstick and white gesso to the background to make the white squares. They are filled with twinkling H2O watercolors. The focal image is from a Zettiology collage sheet. The speak and hear no evil images also are zettiology collage sheet images. Loopy brads holding the measuring tape sheet from Karen Foster. After I did the background, I put donw some background papers. Put the focal images on there and then used some watercolors and paint pens to add some color to the piece. The little blue circles were made with paint and punchinella (sequin waste) piece. You can find punchinella at a local craft store like Michaels or Joanns or you can order it from skybluepink.com. I was very happy with this piece and very pleased to have placed at all.

Fat Book Examples

Here is a fat book that I hosted a while back. The Oddball Fat Book. Cover art by Cindy Irish. This is how a fat book looks bound with a plastic wire coil. Most fat books run 30+ pages - usually 40-60. Size is 4x4". Art is done on the front side. In some fat books, there is art on both sides of the page. If you are interested in fat books, then you might want to investigate the Fatbooks Yahoo group. This example posted for ABC-Altered Book Club.

Postcard front for a postcard fat book. All my postcards have a common theme of secrets. Each card shows a little secret about something.

Postcard fronts for a postcard fat book. If you like doing fatbooks, then you might want to join the fatbooks Yahoo group: http://groups.yahoo.com/groups/fatbooks/
The fat books that come out of this group are very high quality.

These two pages are the front and back sides to fat book pages for a fat book swap. Theme is altered photos.

This is my favorite one out of the 4 that I finished. I did 2 for an exhibit this month at Artful Gatherings in Lemont, IL. I kept two of them for myself and have not finished a 5th one. The background was something I tried after reading an article in Issue 5 of Cloth Paper Scissors. Love layer acrylic paints. The little aliens on top is done with one of those Suze molds and UTEE with Pearl Ex. Same thing with the crown. The lettering was done with Ten Seconds Studios metal tools. If you do a lot with metals like I do, then you might want to take a look at their metal stuff. I got mine from marcopaper.com. tensecondsstudio.com for the metal tools and related items. Texture is dried glue from a glue gun and dribbled beeswax. The piece looks much more rich in person. I think that I am going to hang this one up with just some wire.

For Chinese New Year

Just something for the New Year. Loved the little Buddhas. Had to find a use for them before they got lost and just collected dust bunnies. The middle image is a matchbook piece that I did right after a DeMeng workshop. I love doing those matchbooks! I usually make them as ATCs.

The theme of this exhibit is"What's Love Got to Do with It?". I had found a technique for a background that I wanted to try. I actually did several variations of this background at one time. The top left piece has two hearts and part of a matchbox ATC that I did after a DeMeng workshop. The left heart is made from a metal sheet. Heart on the right done UTEE and Pearl EX. I had a great time playing with the background. It came out pretty good. I spent quite a bit of time placing focal images to see which one worked best. This is going to be a juried exhibition. Keep your striped toes and long fingers crossed for me.

This one is "Inner Diva". Can you tell that I was experimenting on a background? I saw the technique in a magazine and I wanted to try it. Done on 140# watercolor paper. I used UTEE and Pearl Ex with a mold that I got from More Than Memories for the little aliens and the crown. Love the crown!

Busy creating

I always start out with something in mind and it never turns out that way. I had all sorts of things wandering around in my mind for this Elton John calendar page. It is based on a song, "No Valentines". I am not sure if I am liking this yet or not.

Deep, dark secret

Have you ever kept a secret? You know that it probably is not a big deal to anyone else but it is to you? Is there something that you would never admit to? I'm not talking about something really serious or illegal. I am talking about stupid stuff like I am a closet romance book reader. A lot of women read romance novels and there is nothing wrong with it. Well, I am not a girly girl. I am one of those detached, distant Chinese women who must have been a Mongolian warrior in a past life. It kills me to admit to anyone that I read historical romance novels. It's just that sometimes I need to read something that I don't need to think about. I need to read just to read.

Most people do not know that I collect die cast pick-up trucks or optical lenses. There is just something about them that I love. I think I like pick-up trucks because I think I should be living in Texas where there are gun racks in each pick-up. The only problem is that I am allergic to animals! Go figure.

My last confession is about dolls. A lot of people I know already know that I hate dolls because they have always been creepy to me. The eyes are just sooooo very creepy. I used to take my action figures and use them to take apart Barbies. I still use dolls today in my art - but they are always disfigured and dismembered. I do love one type of doll though. I love the Cabbage Patch dolls. I have a couple of the big ones but I absolutely adore the newborns that were only out right after Thanksgiving. I have several of those. I normally hate cute but there is something about them. It might be because I have had two children of my own. They satisfy my need to hold a little one without actually having another one (which is not happening, thank you very much).

Okay, I have 'fessed up to my deep, dark little secrets. What about you?

Appreciate the comments about website

Just wanted to thank everyone who commented on my website. Some of the comments contradicted each other. I did read each one carefully though and made changes where I thought it made sense. I know that my website will not appeal to everyone the same way. I can't make everyone happy, so I did what I thought that I would like and what would be readable. Thanks again for taking the time to comment! My website will always be a work in progress and I will keep your comments in mind when I am working on it. Belinda

Working on my website

I have been meaning to do one for awhile. I got the domain at the end of this summer and have not had time to do anything with it. Well, I finally sat my butt down and started working on it since I am on winter break. I thought it would be daunting but it was actually a lot easier than I thought it would be. The service I picked has made it very easy for me to set things up - kind of like "Website Design for Dummies". It is pretty self explanatory and the website creator leads you through it step-by-step. I have had to e-mail the company with a few questions but the response has been very fast (within 12 hours every time). The cost is very reasonable. This is who I am using - Network Solutions standard package. http://www.networksolutions.com/

I recommend this site only for people who are okay with a canned site. You can only be so creative with the standard package. You might opt for something else if you want your site to be more funky or more "you". This service gives me what I need and it also can incorporate Paypal in when I need it later. Whooo Hoo. I think that I am set. My other purpose for setting up this site is to see if I could actually do it. My artist partner and I are setting up an online shop - so we will need a website for that with Paypal capabilities.

I remember reading in one of Teesha Moore's zine that an artist should really have their own website. Websites nowadays are an artist's online portfolio. I guess that you could just put only your blog on your business card but a website on there would be more professional looking. I am interested in seeing what some artists' business cards look like.

Hmm, my question now is whether or not I will keep up my blog since I have a website and am paying for that. This is a free service. I guess I can suck it up and upload to the website and to here. Would that be too redundant? The quandries created by technology.

Here is my website: http://www.crazyartgirl.com/pages/1/index.htm . It is still a work-in-progress. Tell me what you think - honestly. I need constructive criticism here - not acccolades or sugar coated comments. Thank you so very much. I will seriously consider every comment I get and will do what I want anyway. Hah! 8-)

Tired but can't sleep

I am going to be so tired later on today! The kids got up early on Christmas Eve and convinced us to let them open up their presents. Santa is bringing them presents today. My parents and sister are giving them a lot of presents today also. I have spent a big part of my day taking things out of boxes, untying the wire that held the toy to the box. They are the biggest pain in my butt. I also did a little art. I just finished doing some ATCs to put in my last mini zine for a mini zine swap. I pulled out the beeswax to do some beeswax ATCs and I also worked on my website. I have had the domain for while but have not had time to set it up. It is www.crazyartgirl.com. I still need to work on it but a couple of pages are done. I finished the cover on one of my ABs with beeswax and brown shoe polish. I worked on the inside of one of my ABs so I can put it up for exhibition next year. I also dribbled some beeswax on some watercolor paper for texture. I want to do some painting over the texture. Time to give up for awhile. Well, I am starting to fall asleep. Time for some tea and raspberry pie before I go to sleep.

Getting sidetracked

I do some of my best thinking when I am doing something mindless. I get some of my best lesson plans while driving to or from school or while I am in the shower. I was just thinking while I was ironing some distressed sheets for my mini zine. I am normally not a very philosophical person. I don't spend hours thinking about things.I am by no means shallow. I am actually pretty conservative - not showing my creative side to too many people - in real life. I wear mostly black or earth tones. I think my immediate family and my kids at school see most of my creative side. I think of something and I do it. That is the way I am. I am a great follow-through person. I have a type A personality with an endless amount of energy and no patience for people who get in my way. Anway, I was thinking about doing this mini zine. I had been thinking of doing a zine for a long time now. I have done a few mini zine swaps now. Well, I have decided that it is not something that I really want to do. There are several reasons why but I just don't feel it. I will finish with this one swap and then do no more. I will continue to get art zine and contribute to them but will not be doing them myself. I might change my mind sometime in the future. I changed my mind about ATCs. Well, I just realized that I am getting sidetracked again from what I really want to do with the art. I want to be able to create what I really want to with the materials I want to play with. I want to create. I can't do that if I keep hosting and participating in swaps. I have decided that I am going to take a hiatus from swaps in 2006. I will finish the projects that I have committed to and will start nothing new. It is a promise to myself that I must push myself to keep. I want to finish my altered books for exhibition in April. I want to take a few select workshops to play and to learn about something I really want to do. I want to work on my Coke bottle challenge. I want to make some more matchbook pieces and Matchbox car pieces. I want to set up my website and get it going. I want to get my business with my partner going. I need to focus if I am going to do that. Life has kinda sucked for me this past year. I have been getting a series of chronic sinus infections and have started getting migraines. I even had sinus surgery this fall to correct the problem. It has improved since the surgery but I am sick now AGAIN with a sinus infection. DH is not as understanding and supportive as I would like him to be. I need to take care of my kids right now. One wants to go to sleep and the other one wants to eat. I will have to think about this some more. It is time to simplify and not get constantly sidetracked.

Tyveks pins that I did for the Art Explorations November Swap. The background is done with Suze Weinberg's UTEE and a stamp that I got from her site. www.schmoozewithsuze.com The background looks so shiny because I used Pearl Ex. The texture is tyvek painted with Lumiere and Adirondack acrylics. Then I heated it with a heat gun. Make sure you are in a well ventilated place to do this. The tyvek I used were from used Post Office priority envelopes. Yes, I save those when I get them from other people. I painted the backside a gold color since it crumples up when you heat it. Keep the heat gun moving or it will burn. I glued on the tyvek with some diamond glaze. I found some small metal pieces and put those on. Have tons of metal pieces. I cut a tiny bottle cap in half and put the little rings in that. I used some alcohol inks to color the metal so it would not look so shiny. I used some irredescent gold paint to highlight some of the areas on the tyvek. I then took some glitter glue and some of Suze's bead stuff on the tyvek. Let dry completely. When done, I used some cool pin backs that have the pin part and a pendant piece on there. It is a sort of all-in-one type of deal. I got those from skybluepink.com for a very reasonable price. It is actually called a pin bar with bail (pendant part). It is under charms on her site. Check out my punchinella stuff in her gallery while you are there. I usually don't like shiny but for some reason, I love shiny UTEE. I usually hate glitter because it gets all over but I am beginning to like it for certain applications. Tell me what you think. No, really - comment!!!

Tyvek pins for Art Explorations November swap.

This is an ATC I just made using a rummy tile. This is for the Gleaner Swap for January. This was one of my phases - domino art. My mini zine is about the art phases that I have gone through. It is in an ATC format. I think that people will like what the ATCs come in (little teaser). The technique is using Brilliance Gold and Transparent red oxide. I just got this fun stamp from Limited Edition RS and it was perfect as the background for this ATC. I still prefer rummy tiles to dominoes since they are more flat. If you like domino art, then you might want to join the domino art Yahoo group. It is a great group to learn domino techniques. Many wonderful domino art jewelry pieces also. I just looked at the stamp and hoped the writing was in Japanese. I HATE it when I mix my Asian stuff. I guess I am a little particular about it because I am Chinese. Hmm. I wonder what it would look like with my chop somewhere on there.

Here is a scan of my completed ATC Stab book generously shown to the Art Explorations group by Sharie. Thanks so much Sharie. It did not take me very long and it was worth it!!! The inside of this stab book is shown at the end. These are not complete instructions - just how I did it. You will need to visit the Art Explorations Yahoo group to find the complete instructions. 

You start with a 4" square and cut 3/4" off of that for the binding and so that you can open and close your stab book easily.  

The scan cut off the right corner but there is about a 1/2" edge like on the left side. Just wanted to show you how it looks after I glue the 4 inch square on there with a little 1/8" gap. Make sure you give it a fold where the crease is so that the cover will open and close more easily later on. 

This is showing the backside of the cover with the corners mitered. It does not have to be precise because you will have a piece of paper covering the uneven edges in the next step. 

This is how you look after you miter the corners and glue down the edges. It is easier if you fold the edges over first and then glue. Make sure you fold over the strip where the crease is so that your cover will open and close easier later on. 

This is how is looks after I glue on a square 3 1/2" onto the back (inside) of the cover. Make sure you bend back and forth where the crease is so your book cover will open and close easily later. Make sure the 3 1/2" square is securely glued down after doing this.

These are the signature pages. 3 3/4" by 3 1/2" inches. You fold along the 3/ 3/4" edge so the that you end up with a 3 3/4" length. You are folding the 3 1/2" in half to get the 1 3/4" width. Left is folded in half and right is the cut signature sheet. The folded edge is what goes inside the binding. The 2 open edges will be where you will glue your plastic sleeves for the ATCs. 

Okay, I cheated and deviated from Sharie's method of doing the Japanese stab binding. What I did was cut a strip of 3/4" wide by 4" long strip (cover) and a 3/4" wide by 3 3/4" long strip (signature pages). I positioned the smaller one on top of the longer one eyeballing the difference in length on the top and bottom. There is a little space at the top and bottom because the signature pages are a little shorter. I marked the two strips together at 1/2", 1 1/2", 2 1/2" and 3 1/2". I also marked it in the middle of the width at 6 little notches on my ruler (half of 3/4"). I then used a small hole punch which is 1/16" or 1/32" (can't remember which) to punch 4 holes as seen in the picture. I then used this as a template to punch holes into the covers and signature pages. When you line up the covers and signature pages, they should match up. Once I put my needle through the first hole, I did not have any problems doing the subsequent holes.  

This is what the front cover looked like after I did the stitching with a large needle and embroidery thread. I have used a similar stitch on some of my decos. I found a great site with instructions on how to do this called Japanese stab binding by Gary Miller. The site address is http://www.sdmart.org/pix/japanesebook.pdf#search='japanese%20stab%20binding' I liked how Sharie's stitching looked but I am too lazy and arthritic to do that! I needed to use a pair of pliers after awhile to help pull the needle through.  

Here is what the finished stab book looks inside. All I did here was put one strip of mono adhesive along the length of the signature page. I did it going along the outer right edge. I put a couple of layers on and then positioned the sleeve. Okay, my book is not completely straight, but isn't that part of the appeal? Thanks again to Sharie for the great instructions and her hard work. If you want to see complete instructions, then you can go to the Art Explorations group. It is under the File section. If you are not a member, then you are welcome to join our Yahoo group. Of course, spammers not welcome. http://groups.yahoo.com/group/artexplorations/