Like I said before I have been been thinking about making a cute little platypus.
This is what I have so far.
And I decided to do the next best thing to painting in my opinion, PASTELS!
Here's my new colorful owl.
This was kind of an experiment with my scanner and I'm really happy with how well it captured the color. I think I will continue to experiment with pastels and maybe put some in the shop.
This week is crazy busy so I thought I would do a fun picture post of the things I am inspired by at the moment.
I went to Bishop again last weekend and there was a new art gallery opened. A large painting of a gorilla holding a flower smiled at me from across the street and I was amused and intrigued. I soon discovered the work of Ginger Fox, her contemporary style is colorful and fun. I can't find a photo of the Gorilla painting but below is a painting that is also very colorful and captivating. See more here.
picture from her website
I finally got a good picture of my pansies, aren't they pretty :)
I also got around to hanging some prints up in my room, it makes me happy to have a little color on the walls, it makes me want to get more stuff to decorate the walls and make some of my colorful contributions of my own.
I've always liked collage and mixed media, but have experimented too much with mixed media lately. I am really feeling inspired by Katie Daisy and Mindy Lacefield their techniques are pretty cool.
It makes me want to start painting again.
Katie Daisy's mixed media
Mindy Lacefield's cute little couple
And last but not least, I made my Thanksgiving pie on Monday night, better late than never when it comes to pie.
I tried this large pie crust cookie cutter thing for the first time that cuts out hearts all around. Pretty fun. but I still enjoy free hand carving and eventually I experiment with making puff pastry from this book. She is my current baking inspiration
So I mentioned awhile ago that I was going to work on making a bunny plush, well it started out ok and then I had a problem with the ears. Then I can up with an ear solution, but still ran into problems.
It's still not turning out like I want, but out of that came more concept sketches so I am excited about that. I'm still going to play with some ideas this week, right now I'm thinking about koalas and platypuses lol
bunny attempt #1
close up of the face
bunny attempt #2 he looks like a neon tater tot lol
I finally got frustrated enough to switch gears and start working on drawings again. I finished my scarf owl and I'm happy with how he turned out. I tried some different techniques on the tree bark and the background.
I also got some new pansies, I really love pansies they are my favorite fall flower, with their happy little faces, pretty color variations and pleasant subtle fragrance.......what more could you want from a flower?
My Thanksgiving was wonderful watching the parade, cooking and hanging out. I was so happy to see the Kaws balloon in the parade. See more about the balloon and the process here.
The leaves have really started to turn finally and it makes for a beautiful back road drive.
I did pretty good Black Friday and got some pretty good deals online, will have to do a fashion post soon :)
Here's my craft show excitement, as I said in my previous post I had been to Funky Finds before and I was happy to see some of my old favorites.
First off, Sharen Chatterton does really amazing and vibrant watercolors. I love flowers and her painting are so happy and bright. The first year we saw her we bought a bookmark and started following her newsletter. This year I'm happy to report, I got this wonderful pansy print for my Mom.
I love pansies, and the gardening items mixed in.
Another one of my favorites I was happy to see again is Gypsyharte. Three years ago I really didn't know anything about needle felting but her creations were just so cute and personable I bought a felting kit determined to created little creatures of my own. My mom has more patience and does well at it. Three dimensional items are a little more tricky, but I think we feel a little more confident so this year we got a pumpkin kit! Look how cute Gyspyharte's little pumpkin is! She is very talented.
I love her little mushroom toadstools and birdies :)
Another fun shop I saw was Fuzzy hippo I love the 3-D texture in solid color, and the ones that make actual shapes are fun too. The wedding stuff is cute and they even have furniture too, perfect for graphic geeks :)
And I finished my 3rd octopus. Her name is Ruby and her favorite color is purple (as you can tell by her bow). She loves to play dress up with her friends, and practice her hula hooping. Her favorite snack is chocolate pudding cups. She will soon be in the shop :)
She is made out of Fuchsia fleeces with purple accents and hand stitched facial features, including her eyelashes.
I think she turned out pretty cute, and I can't wait to make a little blue guy with a bow tie, inspired by my sketch.
Ok hope to post more soon, hope you are having a marvelous Monday!
I really like this Marc Jacobs dress, it has lines that actually flatter and it has pockets, which is a big deal for me :)
But alas it's pretty pricey
Here is a dress from Modcloth that has a similar idea at at more reasonable price.
It even has button tack details on the sleeves, I love the little details :)
Marc also has really cute tech accessories, like these animal smart phone cases.
They are so cute they make me want to get an iPhone!
I can't decide which one is my favorite
Also he has flash drives and coin purses! I love when a theme is carried through in many different forms.
The Bunny is so cute
oh novelty coin purses
Ok enough about that, I had a super great time at the craft show, I saw some people I didn't see at the last show so that's always fun and I've been sewing another softie so I plan to post about both of these things later in the week. Hope everyone is having a marvelous Tuesday!
There is also a huge antique mall, I love getting lost looking through antiques, especially jewelry.
One of my favorite fabric shops, Cabbage Rose, is also in Ft. Worth, they have so many different kinds of fabric: cotton, flannel, corduroy and laminated cotton, you know to make rain coats, or table cloths out of. Awesome! I'm like a kid in a candy store.
But this weekend, I am going to local craft show, Funky Finds. They have local artists and a pet adoption area, it's great, this will be my third year to go, and I can't wait :)
I think I'm going to go see the new James Bond movie this weekend too and maybe stop by my favorite pie place for a slice of Druken Nut or Lord of the Pies.
So I finally finished a new stuffed creature I had been working on.......things seem so simple in my head even when I put them together but construction is not always as easy as I imagine it to be.
A couple years ago, I made a goodbye and good luck cake for one of my coworkers. She was really into twilight and vampire stuff so I made her a bat cake topper. Then I remember it the other day and decided it would be fun to make a plush bat. I took my sketch and made it into a pattern.
I love cute little fangs :)
In huggable plush form
Meet Ben
close up of the face :)
Meet Ben the bat, he loves to play tag and hide and go seek. Fall is his favorite time of year and he loves fruit cups. I used anti-pill fleece for the 1st time, I definitely like the texture better than regular fleece its definitely great for making animals. I hand stitched most of his face, I experimenting with doing a zigzag applique around the largest part of the eye. I plan to add to the shop tomorrow after I take some better pictures. Working on more creatures, I'm eager to share as fast as I can get them done.
I was in Walmart the other day and look what I found in the craft aisle......mini canvases with an easel! So cute and tiny. I'm going to have to dream up a mini painting just so I can display this tiny canvas somewhere :)
I finally got to wear this scarf the other day, it is getting a little cooler now but still not consistently cool. Also I found this shirt at Urban Outfitters, I really like their BDG brand shirts.
1. Simply Vera: Vera Wang Sweater from Kohl's (last year)
2. BDG floral print shirt from Urban Outfitters
3. Supersoft pretty scarf Mossimo Supply Co. (I think this is it?) Target
What do you think about the Narciso Rodriguez collection at Kohl's ?
It's a little too 60's mod colorblocking for me. I think some of the dresses are cute, but let's be honest I don't wear knit dresses. Some of the tops are cute but I wonder what the material feels like. I probably will pass on this and wait for the new Prabal Gunrung collection at Target in Feb.
Also I'm glad all this election nonsense is over for the most part. I hope we can work together and do what's best for the country. I have decided something, thanks in part to reading the Happiness Project.
Doing things makes you feel better, it makes you feel accomplished, the act of contribution is a positive one. So when I feel overwhelmed about the future of our country and I start to feel helpless, I am going to do something to help my community. How can you help your country? Help your community.....grow where you are planted. I decided to organize a food drive at work, I was a little nervous but to my surprise everyone is pitching in and bringing stuff. Instead of trying to do it all on my own, I decided to include others, because everyone likes to have that awesome feeling you get when you have helped someone else and the overall result will be a larger donation, so that's more than I could have hoped for.
Anyway sorry to ramble on, just thought I'd share. Happy Wednesday to you, a little something below to make you laugh :)
