miles beyond the moon

I am heading home today after attending a fantastic workshop with Karen Burns all about painting with Corel Painter and Adobe Photoshop.  Karen creates such stunning work with her digital paintbrushes.  In this workshop she generously shared her methods, tips and techniques and resources for creating beautiful paintings.  While I know a bit about Photoshop, Corel Painter is a huge and powerful piece of software and learning the program can be a bit daunting for someone who just want to sit down and paint.  Karen gave us a roadmap to get started painting quickly and we all loved the results we were able to acheive in just one weekend. 

Besides demonstrating her painting techniques and sharing her secrets :-) Karen spent one-on-one time with each of us.  She suggested brushes we might use to achieve the results we were looking for or techniques we might consider to impove the compostion of our paintings.  At the end of the weekend we each went home with at least one finished painting - printed on fine art paper or canvas - that we can frame and hang on our wall at home.

I created FOUR paintings that I am thrilled with!  I have never before attended a workshop where I have been this productive and so well pleased with my work.  Kudos to Karen for being an outstanding teacher who conveys the knowledge of what she does so well and who inspires us to create paintings of our own.  Thank you, Karen for a truly awesome weekend!

A Fan of Black and White

More black and white image play with the photos from Marie's workshop.  I never realized I could become such a big fan of b&w. :-)

 

A bit of creative play.

 

Rainwashed.
 

 

At the Bechtler Museum of Modern Art.

I'm recently back from a Fine Art Creative Black and White Photography and Photoshop workshop in Charlotte, North Carolina with Marie Otero.  The workshop was a mix of morning photo walkabouts in the city and afternoon sessions of playing in Photoshop - exploring many techniques to process our photos into dynamic black and white images.  Marie was one of my first (and the best!) Photoshop teachers, and it was great to finally have a chance to meet her in person.  It was also great fun to connect with old friends and meet some new ones.  The workshop was mind-blowing!  So many new things to learn and explore.

One of the new things for me to try was some street photography.  I have always been a bit intimidated about taking photos of strangers, but it was SO much easier to do with a group of other people doing the same thing.  On our Sunday morning photo walkabout we came upon this stylish guy on his motorcycle.

It was obvious he had other things on his mind, and was not aware that we were snapping away.

All of a sudden he turned his head and caught sight of us.  Three cameras with big lens pointed directly at him.

He was a good sport and gave us a big grin before he sped away.

Amelia :: A FREE Friday Download

It has been wayyyyy too long since we have had a FREE Friday Download to play with.  So today meet Amelia.  She is another vintage girl from my collection of old photos.  Don't you just love her crushed velvet dress, and what a hat!  Click here to download Amelia.

Today is Art Friday, and I can't wait to get back to The Mermaid Circus.  I really wanted to take this class since it is Teesha Moore's first ever online class.  To be able to sit with Teesha and watch while she creates one of her journal pages is a rare treat.  And I am loving Jane Davenport's illustration and painting lessons too.  She had me enjoying drawing again.  Take a look at these cuties :-)

Hope you have a wonderful weekend and have some time for art play!

2012 Inspiration - My List of New Classes

The New Year always brings the anticipation of a brighter year just over the horizon.  I like to build on this excitement by setting my sights on learning new things.  This is kind of long post, so buckle in...

Starting in January 2012 I have built a curriculum of classes, workshops and eCourses designed to help me build on current skills, learn some new things, and keep me motivated to continue to grow and change all during the year.

 

I'll be continuing my December Daily/ReVerb 2011 workshop in January.  Hope Karney gave us some great journaling prompts to help us write about the celebrations, heartaches, and lessons learned in 2011.  I've been expanding on those prompts to also write about setting my intentions for 2012.

 

I'll also continue to be part of Art Journal Caravan all during 2012.  Each week Tangie Baxter gives us an itinerary - a theme and a series of quotes.  We create an art journal page - digital or paper - based on that theme.  I had the best time in this workshop last year and made some amazing journal pages.  I am SO excited about this year's AJC since Tangie will be focusing on maps and cartography.  I love the idea of using maps as the way of exploring and documenting my life on my journal pages.

 

I discovered Ali Edward's One Little Word in 2011.  As Ali puts it ... "A single word can be a powerful thing. It can be the ripple in the pond that changes everything. It can be sharp and biting or rich and soft and slow. From my own personal experience, it can be a catalyst for enriching your life."  Once a month Ali will post at Big Picture Classes with words of encouragement and ways we can refocus on our Word.  My Word in 2011 was Mindful - and it truly was a catalyst to help me appreciate the simple everyday moments that make up our lives.  My work for 2012 is Change.  I'll be writing more about that in the New Year.

 

I am always excited to learn more about Photoshop.  It is hands-down my most favorite way to be creative.  In January I'll be taking Digital Art Journaling - all about digital mixed media techniques - with Jessica Sprague and Nancie Rowe Janitz.  I'm REALLY looking forward to this workshop!  Digital journaling is my favorite way to play in Photoshop, and there is always something new to learn.

 

I took two Adobe Illustrator classes in 2011, but what I learned - I have forgotten!  I really want to give this program another chance, so I've signed up for two more self-paced classes for Illustrator which are taught by Carina Gardener. I need more practice!  You can look forward to seeing some new digital elements in FREE Friday Downloads once I get back up to speed.

 

Kim Klassen is one of my favorite teachers.  So many of the techniques I routinely use in Photoshop I learned in one of her classes.  Kim's new eCourse - Beyond Layers - starts in January and runs all year.  Each week will start with a note of inspiration or encouragement from Kim.  Later in the week she'll have another post - a more hand's on creative one.  This eCourse is coming at the perfect time for me.  I have just fulfilled a long-held dream and purchased a DSLR camera.  I will begin to learn and explore my new camera using this eCourse as a jumping off point, and I know I'll have some great Kim Klassen textures to play with as well.

 

 

OK - finished!  Does this seem like a long list to you?  I have discovered I really like having a "full plate" when it comes to taking classes.  I love the excitement and motivation of starting a new class.  The tricky part is finding that balance between the learning and the doing so as not to feel overwhelmed.  I like that so many of these workshops are self paced or are spread out over a whole year, I think that will be just right for me.

 Are you taking a new class or workshop in 2012 that you are excited about?  I would love to hear more!

December Daily/ Reverb11 Journal

I am following along with Hope Karney's daily Reverb11 journaling prompts on her blog.  Each day during the month of December she will post a topic to write about that will help us reflect back on 2011 or to look forward to what we hope will 2012 bring. 

I spent some time over the last two days putting together the journal and preparing the pages that will  be page dividers for each day.  My journal will be a combination of digital and paper since I enjoy both.  Here's a look at what I've done so far.

Not much yet to see on the cover.  But I have some ideas in mind ... that comes later.

 

Cover pages for December 1 - December 12.  I have only decorated the fronts of the pages so far.  I will decorate the backs of the pages too.  I want to include some hidden compartments and fold-out pages - I love interactive books.

A closer look at some of the pages...

Two sweet faces for December 2.

 

Four elegant ladies strolling through the falling snow on December 4.

 

December 8 - don't you just want to pinch those cute little cheeks?

We've had some great journaling prompts so far.  They have really got me thinking - and writing.  On December 1 Hope asked us to write about something new that we tried in 2011.  I decided to write about the the art workshops and retreats I attended in 2011 - something I had not done before.  It was great to take classes with so many kindred spirits - and so much fun to immerse myself in art and mixed media with such talented teachers.

Just posting all these photos makes me want to get back to journaling.  I want to make a calendar page for December to schedule all the events of this busy season.  I think it will help keep me sane! 

 

Reverb 2011

Hope Wallace Karney is hosting a December Daily/Reverb11 event on her blog. Every day during December Hope will post a journaling prompt that will help us reflect on the past year and give us ideas about how to manifest what we want to happen next in our lives. Take a look at the journal Hope created last year - I just love it! And I really love the idea of using my journal as a method of exploring and directing my life.

Intention based journaling is something Teesha Moore talked to us about in the Little Journal of Big Intentions workshop I attended in August. I was also lucky enough to meet Hope at that same workshop. When I read Hope's blog post today it was as if everything has dropped into place. It is time for me to create a journal that is more than just pretty pages. It is time to go a little deeper and look inside my heart and soul for what is meaningful and important. Thanks Hope for all your inspiration. I am excited to begin!

Picture Fall ~ Days 6 and 7

It has been a crazy busy week at work so far without much opportunities for photos.  But I don't want to get too far behind with my photo project, and I'd like to show you a couple of images that I have captured.

 

subtleties

The assignment for day 6 was to capture a monochromatic palette.  With this photo I wanted to capture the subtle shades of browns and grays in the bowl of polished rocks we keep on our kitchen counter.  These are rocks we have collected on our travels.  We've polished them in a rock tumbler and keep them on the kitchen counter so we can admire them every day - we love all the colors and textures.  Each one is so unique.

 

 

after the fall

 

To appreciate a single leaf - to notice the one among the many - was the goal of this day's photo.  This one golden zelkova leaf was perched on the edge of the curb near my parking spot at the office.  It held a single drop of water poised delicately near the edge.  A simple gift that I may have missed on any other busy day as I hurried to get from the car to the office.  But today I stopped and looked.  And took a photo to remember this simple, beautiful thing.

Picture Fall ~ Days 3 to 5

I got way behind on my Picture Fall project this week.  A crazy day at work on Thursday and a morning of fog yesterday did not make for great picture taking opportunities.  So I caught up today.

 

unexpected beauty

I spotted this branch of leaves in the garden out of the corner of my eye as I walked past them.  Most days I wouldn't take a second look, but they fit the theme of unexpected beauty just perfectly.  I love the way each leaf is curled in on itself showing us a side you don't usually see.

 

 

morning light

I must admit that Lunaria annua - Honesty (also called Money Plant) is not one of my favorite plants.  In fact, I consider it a weed and pull it out every chance I get.  This plant was growing in my compost pile and just perfectly captured the theme of morning light.  Maybe I should give these guys a break???

 

 

little reminders

The prompt for Day 5 was to find words that were what we needed to hear today.  While getting my grocery bags out of the back of the jeep my eye fell upon the word Whole from my Whole Foods shopping bag.  I realized right then and there that Whole is how I am feeling - and after a year of trials and heartaches, I think that is a pretty good way to feel.  I used the magic of Photoshop to blur the bag and allow just the word Whole to show.

 

I've got a new digital collage to show you.  Maybe I should call it a digital assemblage since I really spent some time building this one.  Come back tomorrow and I'll tell you all about it.

Two Things

IMAGINE - NEW DIGITAL ARTWORK

I created this digital collage with elements from Freestyle - the latest collection of vintage ephemera from Tumble Fish Studio.  The word "imagine" got me thinking about John Lennon - can you believe it's been almost 31 years since his death?  I can close my eyes and still picture where I was when I heard the news - I'm sure many of you feel the same.  With all the chaos and strife that has been going on in the world it seems a good time to take his message to heart once again.

When I was creating this piece I wanted to find a way to make the image of the earth transparent so it would not obscure the sky or the words behind it.  I tried several Photoshop blending modes - hard light turned out to be just right for getting the effect I was after.

 

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 PICTURE FALL DAY TWO:  COMFORT

Today's prompt for Picture Fall was to create an image that showed the true comfort of your soul.  For me, comfort often includes ritual, and one of my favorite rituals is a cup of tea.

I often have a cup of tea when I need warmth, or a moment to think, or as a pause in a busy day.  This is the teacup I use at the office.  I love the fact that it was fashioned by someone's hands and is one-of-a-kind.  My favorite tea is an oolong tea called Coconut Pouchong from Golden Moon Teas.  I love the subtle fragrance of coconut that fills the room when I brew a cup.  It is a ritual of comfort, especially on a rainy day like today.

PS>I used several textures from Shadowhouse Creations to add extra warmth to this image.