07/21/2015

WOW!   it's been way too long since my last post.  

Things have been very hectic lately as I was was in the process of a move. Not just my home but with my art also.

Here in Florida it gets sooooo very hot and I don't do well in the heat. We have been having temperatures in the high 90's, mixed with the humidity our heat index has been hanging around 105°. Not good for this lady LOL.

My move placed me very close to a co-op than an acquaintance of mine has opened called Creative Soul of Saint Augustine. It is in one of the outlet malls here at the I-95 and State Road 16 Junction. So my art is now there and I work there a couple days a week to do my part. 

It was very hard to drag my gear in and out so I had to build a loom that I could lleave there and also figure out how to do a set up so that I'm not hauling stuff back-and-forth across that huge hot parking lot. When we finished she even set me up in the very front window

Here are a few pics.  

She found this frame somewhere and I really love the way it works. It's a picture frame with a cork backing and all I have to do is thumbtack my bracelets up through the loop that the tags are attached with. This way no snags in the fabric, yet no one can just pick them up and walk off. 

I try very hard not to think of people doing things like that but realistically speaking it does exist. Since I can't be there to watch I like having them attached. I didn't want to wrap them around something and button them because then people can't see the design factors in their entirety. I think it also puts people off when they have to unbutton it, they feel intrusive. I really like this display.

Here you'll see a picture of my table with my art on it through the glass. I'm not real good at taking these kind of photos unfortunately.

And here you will see the loom I built, warped, and demonstrate with. It's attached to my antique piano stool. If you look closely you will also see and inkle loom on display.

Whoops my mistake I did not take a picture of the loom in the shop, but here it is anyway set up in my house before I took it down there.

Gotta love pink and orange together.

I've also been expanding on some of my skills. So let's take a look.

I was standing in the local dollar store and a child in front of me had a small pallet of watercolors.  I ask him where he got them and I bought one, $1.89. Realizing of course that these are not going to be of the highest quality, but it's something to play with since I've never used watercolors at all.  Or even done much in the way of painting. So I got them out I just decided to make some backgrounds with him. Here's a pic…

This is a piece of 11 x 14 Bristol board, so I cut it into smaller pieces and a eliminated the spots that got muddy. Then I got out my ink pens and this is what happened.

I am also working a sugar skull on the same paper.

In the middle of all the other chaos my daughter dropped in unexpectedly from Austin Texas. She was only here for about 24 hours so rather than mail her a birthday present to her I presented her with this as a birthday card and this bracelet…

I think she liked them both.

Then the lady at the co-op decided that I should stretch my skills and try an abstract piece a basket work. It's not something I ever thought I would do,  I prefer functional art, not pieces of work that are only for looking at. As pretty as that may be it's just never been my thing.

Here's what I did.  I really hated it right up to the last minute but I think it does make a statement.

It's extremely sinuous and 3-D, there are angles all over the place like this… and I cannot even tell you how difficult it is to make those twists and turns and holes.

And this...

Of course I've also been working on my textile jewelry although not as much.  On the loom right now.

And the other end of the warp a duplicate of my own anklet. At Fourth of July a lady wanted to buy it right off of my ankle so I'm making her one.

I've also tried my hands at a little bit of beadwork.  This one is for me (The first one of anything always is ) as I did not have a black bracelet-check it out. 

This is done with no glue or backing, strictly a needle and thread to do the framework with beads and then place the straps.  It's not done yet as I haven't decided on a closer.  Can I just tell you how very time consuming this kind of work is.  And I cannot tell you how tiny these beads are!!!  I wear my magnifying glasses and have a magnifying handheld next to me. LOL it's hard getting old.

It took me five tries. The first stone was Square and I got it almost completed and then I discovered a broken thread. GGGRRRRRRR

Took it apart started again, that frame was too little so I took it apart.  Got almost done with the third one discovered two broken beads. GRRRRRR. Took it apart, AGAIN, started over this one to tight again… It seems I am very heavy-handed when I sew.  Probably from making firm baskets for so many years. The fifth  time was a charm though.  

Not fast, but by then, after all the epic fails, I kind of had the technique firmly in my mind. I had to make myself be conscious of each and every stitch but I finally got it!!!  I was so very excited and it only took me 14 hours. Lol

Then onto the straps…

There is a hole in the stone and Max placed a silver piece in it for me and I decided I  did not like it since there was absolutely no silver any place else on the piece.  I have since taken it out and I'm trying to decide how to fill it. But I do have the straps done.

I actually took a class from my friend @KraftyMax (I cannot figure out how to make her name into a link for you on this phone, but you can find her on Facebook) and she will help me figure these things out. My plan is to try and do the same technique with Juniper instead of the stones.

I'd like to speak to a different crowd than what my textile jewelry is addressing. Maybe the bead bracelets will be the answer.

I did try one yesterday with a little bit larger beads and had an epic fail…between the funky shape of the wood and the larger beads I just could not get it to look nice. Right now I'm in the process of lacquering up a more round piece of wood and then I will try again with the regular number 11 Delica beads. Wish me luck.

And then my little Wiggles became a celebrity! Max took some awesome pictures of her little face check her out…she commandeered Max's little dogs bed and made herself right at home.

I love that shot. You can find more on KraftyMax's blog.

I think that pretty much catches us up-to-date!  Please don't forget anything you see here is for sale,  all you have to do is contact me at pandulaarts@yahoo.com or earthbaskets@gmail.com.

You can also find me on Instagram and Facebook. Facebook has stopped letting us RSS feed the blogs into our pages but you can still find me on there posting regularly. Either on my personal page under Marsha Knox, or Pandula Arts Creations or Earth Baskets.

I'll try to be better about posting more often girls and boys till then be safe and happy.

9/18/14

How about a purple on purple catcher with amethyst stones?

I love Juniper wood.

I treated myself to an easel for my birthday gift to myself and I used it today.  

I'm feeling like fall is in the air let me know what you think. This one is charcoal and graphite.

Not bad for my first attempt if I do say so myself.  I love pumpkins.

9/10/14

This is my absolute first completed charcoal drawing.  Usually I get frustrated and they end up in the garbage. This time I just kept going.

I saw an acrylic painting tutorial on YouTube with this Gerber Daisy and so I thought I'd give it a shot with charcoal.

I'm about halfway through in this picture.

Then I darkened it up a bit and tried to do the center of the flower…

The center of the flower got a little muddy looking, and it took me a while to figure out how to make it look right.  I couldn't seem to get the strokes so I did random strokes/dots, kind a like stippling.

I'm calling it done.  

There are some things I wish I had done differently, but I think it looks enough like a flower.  And the mess was kept at a minimum from the charcoal!!! I learned a lot and that was the main goal.

i'm also working on a basket for my friends baby shower, this one is pink and brown.

Busy, busy, busy, art doesn't make itself !!!  So I got to go!  Talk to you soon.

July 28, 2014

Teeny teeny teeny basket…

And here we have the inspiration photo…

And here is what I drew…

Better by far than anything I did with ink. So far anyway. This is done with graphite pencil and carbon pencil. 

I like this kind of shading, although I do read mixed opinions about it. Some say it ruins the paper, some say it smashes the graphite and makes it muddy, I think that I like it anyway.

Doing a little drawing.

More like practicing drawing!

Here is the inspiration picture. I found it on the Internet I do not know who drew it.

And here is my version...

Keep in mind that I was certainly not trying to exactly duplicate that photo. This is my version of a freehand likeness of it.  

Not to make money. Not to scam anybody else's art, just an inspirational photo to help guide me in my own drawing.

I have a lot of trouble with that little part over the top lip...dead center just above it.  I don't even know what that little part of our face is called, but I'm not happy with that part of this drawing.

So it looks like I'll be drying more mouths.

Just a little FYI, I never could locate a sketchbook that I was happy with. Either it wouldn't lay flat or it was the wrong kind of paper, the wrong size, the wrong texture, I just could not find one that I liked.

So I made one. I took the pads that I had bought At the art store, to my local office supply and had them cut to fit a three ring binder.

I then had holes punched in them. So now I have a very nice firm board (the binder).  I just fold the top of the three ring binder back on itself so I can draw with a comfortable size.  Plus, when I'v used the pages in the book I take them out and put them in another three ring binder in chronological order so that I can see my progress. I can flip through the pages at anytime and see if I'm getting any better or not.  Plus it keeps them nice and safe!

Here's a picture.

Already owned the art paper. I got it with a coupon 40% off months ago. The cheapest pad I saw that I thought I could live with was around $16.  Today I spent $3.47 to get it cut and the holes punched in it and I got exactly the paper I want, several kinds of paper actually. And I have plenty of refills when ever I want also.

Easy peasy and economical too.  I call that a win-win.

June 23, 2014

I am so excited!!!

 I have been really working hard with my pencils trying to find something that I can sell in my booth besides just baskets, kind of break up the work a little bit. 

I was working on the beautiful drawing that you saw on Birch paneling and wrecked it, bummer bummer bummer!!!

But I decided to persevere and switched over to charcoal instead of graphite pencils. And look what I got. 

I have been trying to do a perfectly shaded sphere for years.  I'm thinking nailed it today. I'm also thinking I might just forgo pencils for a while and stick to the charcoal.

Check it out!

The reflective highlight in the bottom picture is a little too bright but I fixed it it's not so blaring now, gray now instead of bright white.  But My goodness I am so proud.

A 'lil progress ...

Wow! Half way through June already!!!

And I, like everyone else in Florida, am feeling the heat.

And of course when it is hot like this not many people want to come out and walk around at the farmers market. So sales have been slow and I have been playing with my pencils!

This is graphite pencil on Birch plywood.

Kind of reminds me of an underwater seascape.  

I have also been playing around with my Dremel tool, I've been trying engraving.

I've also been trying wood-burning. And guess what ... I still come back to the pencils.  

Turns out both in engraving and wood-burning are very very difficult.  I am trying to come up with something that I can add onto my table at the farmers market to sell with my baskets.

This will probably be just a practice piece, but now I'll show you the practice piece from this morning...where I had every tool in the house out trying to figure out what I wanted to do.

This was the first design and you can even see I tried color pencil.

I guess as far as drawing, without proper instruction I'll just stick to the pencils.  I'll keep you posted.

Oh yeah and this is a piece I was doing on paper.  This is the inspiration piece.

This is my version.

Not quite done yet, not the greatest paper, so I'm not sure I will finish it.

Look what I did!

September 3, 2011

As most of you know I am from an entirely female family...no boys...at all.

So when it comes to giving presents to a boy child, I find it especially difficult.  Up until now, The boy in question has been too young to notice if I gave something to his older sister, however, now at 6 yrs. old I believe he will indeed notice.

As you may re-call I recently wove a purple band with peace signs in it fro my friend Max's daughter Aye.  I have been procrastinating on sewing it up until I had at least 2 projects for the sewing machine to be drug out.  I now have the band for Alissa's pencil pouch complete and need to do my sewing.  This did leave me with the dilemma of what to gift to Aye's brother, Monster.

When Aye decided she was into peace signs, I already knew she was into purple, so it was kind of a no-brainer to weave up something for her...what in the world do you weave for a boy?????  My first thought was a belt.  Only it has to be pretty narrow to fit through the belt looms of a 6 yr. old's belt.  This meant an extremely low thread count and I wasn't at all sure I could chart up a skull that tiny.

So, at work the other night I was talking to a woman who acrylic paints.  I happen to have some paints so I decided to give it a shot...let's just say painting is not my forte'!  I did Captain America's Sheild, and believe me I have new respect for the folks who paint.  Very hard to stay in the lines with a wet medium.  So I got out my pencils, color pencils, and markers.  Did a google search on skull image's and used the results for inspiration.  

CHECK IT OUT!  I did it!  Here it is still on the board.  I added his name and 'KEEP OUT'!  For the door of his room.  Can't show the finished product because of his real name being on it...But this time I have something totally about him to give him!

One for Aunt Marsha!

And he LOVES it!  I did give him the Captain America shield painting, but thank goodness it went to a 6 yr. old.  I won't be gifting any more paintings for quite a while. lol