Winter Sun

In the summer, I often forget about the winter sun that shines in our kitchen until winter comes along and we are warmed by the suns rays.

Christmas Delights

 A lovely winter afternoon was spent crafting with a few dear friends. Every possible craft supply that may give inspiration to the heart and hand was carefully set around the creative space.

While making things, yummy treats sweet and savory along with Esprit de Noël tea and homemade hot chocolate with whip cream and teeny tiny chocolate chips sprinkled on top for the children were sipped and nibbled on while cutting, gluing and conversing.

Using these wooden spools was at the top of the list!

Before everyone arrived, I had a quiet moment to entertain my craving to craft. A few natural items created this pleasing piece. 

During the following hours some glitter was accidentally added to the tree and gave it that bit of sparkle it needed! Thank you dear friend!

A hand felted fluffy bird was the beginning of this colorful place marker.

 The first of the wooden spool place markers! The natural grooves in the wood sparked the stripes.

 Now for some pink!

  

Yay! The birch bark paper straws found a home in this piece along with the bell, inspired by one of our dear friend's creations!

 Searching through the whole collection of beloved deer, this one was the perfect size.

Our dear friend brought a gift of beautifully homemade wrapped twig ornaments... which inspired wrapping Lake Superior driftwood!

Gold,  hearts and some natural items were gathered and put together in an ornament.

 Using the same idea, my daughter added shimmery color to the letters and glitter! Love it!

 A couple more of her design!

String Art

For this Art Experience, we made string art!  

I've wanted to make this project for a long time and finally have the chance!  For this piece, I had inspiration from a drawing I did on the bathroom mirror earlier in the day. 

Even if it's raining and feels gloomy, the raindrops can shower us with color!

My daughter made the following beauty!

Cut & Paste

Sitting under a canopy in the backyard on a breezy summer day while browsing through magazines was an ideal way to spend time with friends. Every now and again the breeze would lift one of the cut images into the air to let it fall somewhere in the grass. One image was taken away to not be found! Off to the next image. These are the surrealistic images that were created over hours of cutting and pasting, chatting and sharing.

The following two images were created by my daughter. She has an eye for arranging the images!

Golden Numbers

I purchased the multi-colored numbers and letters for my kids when they were little and since they've grown and I like to give new purpose to items in my home, a little gold spray paint dramatically changed the numbers from colorful fun to elegant! 

The dear daughter of one of my dear friends suggested I also add photos of the newspaper I used when spray painting the numbers. Cool!

Whimsical

This was a relaxing and meditative art experience using layers of paint. Connecting with your own flow, the canvas was painted with many colors, followed by a veil of white paint where some of the color would peek through to catch your eye. When the paint dried the image was drawn and filled in with more color!

Hedgehog

Pelican by Mila

Tree with Multi Colored Leaves

Raindrops 

Being Crafty

All of these crafty creations involved much time, though every minute meditative. For me, it was putting together a puzzle without the original picture. I love this kind of creating!

Walking through one of the shops I frequent, I spot a stitched shoulder bag and said, "I want to try that!" Right now it is stretched over a canvas frame that I used while stitching the shapes and the herringbone design. It may be sewn into a pillow or a shoulder bag or...we will see!

This project reminds me of a patch quilt or a curiosity cabinet. The piece below is my daughter's creation!


 

The mosaic mirror had begun many years ago at "Beach Day" during the winter season! It patiently waited to be finished this summer!
All of the fragments are from our own broken dishes and contains many memories.

When I'm Looking the Other Way...

While painting, we often use a paper plate or a piece of wood for the painter's palette. These images appeared in the middle of painting the Dots series.

A New Look

 

This toy box was once a honey wood color painted white when it arrived at my home. After sitting in the garage for months patiently waiting for a new look, I chose some leftover "Persian Blue" paint from another project and spray paint in two tones of gray. The herringbone theme is still going strong!