The Saving of the Cardboard Tube

Good morning/afternoon to you.   Here it is the almost last day of June 2012.   Remember I said time flies when you are having fun or getting older?   Now where does that put me?   I am getting older and having fun so time is blowing my hair back.  You have seen the advertisement when the lady is running in a field of beautiful flowers and the sun is shining down with a beautiful glow on her and her beautiful hair is flowing behind her haven't you?  Well, trust me that is not me but time will blow your hair back.  

OK back to reality here my friends,  I have been taking the classes of Zinnia's Artful Gathering.  Now their second sessions are fixin to start and if you are so inclined please go there, a little clickie thing is on my side bar, and sign up for a class.  I have finished my wall hanging with Pat Winter's Crazy Quilt 101 and I have just finished up my last two bracelets with Mary Jane Chadbourne.    Remember we morphed from wood to a beautiful bracelet.

Mary Jane is also a wonderful teacher, I love her method of teaching, she explains it wonderfully and then you go to town creating and cutting and glueing to your hearts content.   I think collaging like this is like when we were in kindergarden, we were not inhibited and just did what we felt like doing.   This to me is, what Mary Jane is helping us do, just create and let our muses flow.    I even found a wonderful cardboard tube to put my bracelets on to do some of the finishing sprays on.   Now that discarded tube has a new lease on life and has cheated the deadly dumpster one more time.   No trash bin for the tube.   Sorry got a little carried away there.

So on with the showing of the last 5 bracelets. 

The domed bracelets with some bling also or as grandaughtere use to say lights on them.  The whole process was fun. 

The flat bracelets with also semi bling and some hand drawing.   On both I did some squiggles and even a couple of my original drawings.   I just played.

Now I have to admit when I first started making the bracelets I thought my goodness Mary Jane this is a lot of work to make these.  At the end of creating them  I thought Mary Jane this is nothing but pure creating fun.    See I even talk to my teachers when they aren't around.

Thanks for stopping by and seeing what is going on in my world.  Have a safe weekend and see you in the next post here in blogland.

XOXOX

Annette

Silk Ribbon and Beads

Do you ever just stumble onto something and think where has this been all my life? This is just up my alley and here I am semi ancient and just learning it and playing with it.  What is it you ask?  Crazy Quilting with Pat Winter at Artful Gathering and Mary Jane Chadbourne with her beautiful bangle bracelets.  That is another post coming soon, I am so impressed by both classes.  Anyone really knowing me knows I am not impressed easily.   Session two is fixin to start soon and has lots of art forms that might attract one of your fancies.   Or you may make a great discovery as I did.    I beleive I have mentioned how good of a teacher Pat  and Mary Jane are?   After several weeks of their tutorials I am invinceable-almost- in both of these forms of art.  Well, invinceable may be a stretch, but grandson did give me permission to run with sissors after he said Nana you just jumped out of a plane.  So maybe that is a good word to use.

I have two friends Anni P and Janet G that do fabric art and embroidering and I know they would love this also.

I showed you the kit I purchased from Pat, she didn't know me at all or even from Adam but choose colors with the tealish blue that I would have picked.   Is that lady looking into my brain, oh that is scarey for her I do beleive.

I do highly reccomend taking on line classes, they are great and you can do at your own pace.  No races, no who can get finished first or who can jump the highest or run the fastest.  Just piddle along all you want.

For those who might have forgotten what the kit looked like------here it is.  

Here is the journey my little project consisted of.   Now I was suppose to make a purse but chose to make a wall hanging so I could enjoy it everyday.   Pat taught us so many stitches and of course the bling is perfect for this Texas girl.    I whipped out my handy dandy sewing machine and went to tow sewing little pieces of fabric together. 

The little butterfly was already done but what  a perfect touch and just look at the beads and stitching. 

The little fargo roses, even after practicing these little critters came out differently every time, I guess like mother nature roses.  

More pearls and beads.   Can't get enough of the bling I do beleive. 

I don't know about you but this is the only type of spider I will allow anywhere around me.  Just a cute little beaded one with gold web.  The rest of them can be squashed flatter than a flitter.  Gone, dead, off with their heads.  They are food for someone like flies and scorpions but go away little spiders. 

I hope you are not getting bored, I just wanted to show you all of it up close and personal.  I did most of this at night while watching the Texas Rangers win and lose.  Boooo on the losing the games they did though.   This is perfect TV creating, well unless you drop a bead and Jewel the furbaby sees it and thinks it is food and you have to beat her to it to pick it up.  Just a little Jewel note there.

One more pretty corner, I did later add some more to this corner but you will see it in the finished piece. 

Now this corner I think I got carried away and just encrusted it forget the emblishing with this stitch, the more the better. 

The center of the art piece, a tad dark to bad I don't know a good photographer.  I might have to fire myself.   Sorry a little jockularity there. 

Here it is the finished piece, I was going to hang it in our bedroom but I couldn't enjoy it as much as when I hung in our bath room.  On the girl side, Eldon did enjoy seeing it and looking as I progressed with it but don't think it goes with the deep sea fishing photos on his side of the bathroom. 

So there you go, Crazy Quilting and I have figured out how to combine it with my journal making .   Grandaughter even wants some of these pieces.  

Well, thanks for stopping by and seeing what is going on in my world today.  

xoxoxox

Annette

What a Bucket List Trip

I know I have mentioned my bucket list.  The young whipper snappers may think that is old but it is a list of things you want to do.  Even if you want to put mopping a floor on your list, it is your list.   Not that mopping the floor would ever be on mine, I just don't see enough adventure in that do you?

A few weeks ago Grandson said Nana isn't sky diving on your bucket list?  That young man does listen.  You bet it is so the adventure was beginning.   Never in the whole experience was I nervous.  Nope not one bit.  

I won't babble on I will just tell you the trip and the feeling of it all.   Oh what an experience  it was also, I don't know if words will describe it well enough. 

The only thing I was disappointed in is------- I was going to yell Geronimo when I jumped out and forgot until half way down.  Kind of senseless to do it then wasn't it?  Well and we had to get up by  5:30 and get ready and drive out to Skydive Dallas.  I am not an early morning person unless I have to be.  Let me tell you that company handled themselves so professionally and I was impressed how it all was handled. 

We are practicing how it is in the sky, now believe me I thought I was doing like Allex did.  I don't think my body bends like hers anymore, but guess I did OK I am here to tell you about it.   You can giggle, I sure did when I saw the picture.  

We were put into little groups and I was in the group with Grandson, Granddaughter and  ex son in law.    We were issued our costumes and needed to be very snug, so mine was and squashed parts of me a lot.  : )   Then we had the little leather skull caps to wear nice and tight on our heads with some clear goggles. I found out why we wear the cap, it helps keep the wind out of your ears.  It was horrible on the hair do though.   Man I was uptown, ready and with my costume on and my little family there to enjoy the fun.  Hubby was taking the pics and did an excellent job I might say myself.

Here we are in our little costumes ready to go.   Allex, me, Addison and Bobby.

Here I am with my new best friend all ready in my costume, buckled up and harness ready.   I was ready to fly like a bird, well sort of.

We loaded a plane with several others and  off we went to 13,500 feet.   I was getting warm up there but when they opened the side door it cooled things off and I felt just pretty good.   Granddaughter said her feet were cold but when you get my age you hardly ever get cold.  Now I have been up in a small plane at least 25 times when I use to shoot aeriel of farms and spray planes in Tandem.   Usually spray pilots took me up in the planes  and they do like to show what theyl can do with the airplanes.   I know for sure you don't get hot in those things they will make the tummy pretty upset.  The pilot of this plane made it a smooth ride up.   We were sitting on little benches safely and tightly hooked and attached to our Tandem masters as I called them or our very best friend for 20 minutes.     Hats on, goggles on  and it was my turn.  Of our little group  I thought I will go first,  Allex and I were closest to the back of the plane.  

Here we are waiting for the plane, we entered first but were the last to jump.  There were some divers that did competition jumps in there with us, don't think we were in that category.  What do you think?  There is an altitude thingie on the strap, don't think I even looked at it.  In fact I forgot about it. 

Loading the plane with our parachutes  loaded and well packed.  Bobby in the opening, then Addison, Princess and then me.   Well the pros in the back there.  We did kind of blend there for a few minutes.   

I scooted on the bench with my new best friend and we both stood up and he twirled me around told me to cross my arms and head back.    One two three and we were out the door quicker than you could blink and eye, I think we were sucked out but either way out we went.  Addison said I closed my eyes but must have been a second because I saw the new best friends thumbs go up and I knew I had gotten out of the plane and correctly.    They warned us that the two most important things were the getting out and the landing.  WHEW   I had gotten that part right.  Now we whizzed down for 60 to 90 seconds free fall at 120 miles per hour.  That has got to be the best feeling in the world.  I cannot say anymore about that.  I had to do my little arch and hands and arms bent but it was pretty easy with the wind blowing on you as you fall down to earth, oh I should say free fall to earth. 

A couple of views of me in the air, my goodness what form I had .  You know I never looked up to see the canopy the below view was just to pretty.  I did look and see others, my family, coming down though.  I even looked for Eldon on the ground but didn't find him.  In some of the pictures I was a dot, didn't think you wanted to see a dot with a purple chute in the air. 

The above pic is my landing form

We then got to practice what my legs did for  the landing. Then I heard  the words---get ready to land  and it all came to an end way to soon.   Will I do it again? In a New York second.  It was not scared at all and again I was not nervous one bit.  Now what else is on my list?   I even saw on TV where with a new best friend you can jump off of a mountain and glide in the air like that.  I think I need to add that to my list.  

Bobby in the Red, yellow and white, Addison in the blue and black and white and Princess Allex in the orange and see her shoe strings even match. Now that is fashion. 

          Safe and sound and smiles on the ground.   We are all hooked. It was just so good for the soul to feel that way.  

Well thanks for stopping by and seeing what is going on in my world today.   xoxox Annette

What KInd of Art is She Doing Now?

You know I just love it, even after 51 years of marriage-- hubby and I have the best time over the simplest of things.   It is good that we can laugh and have fun together even after all this time.    Sometimes it is even discussing  what is a building going to be or how the new cotton looks coming up or the formation of the clouds or the red dirt in our sky when the wind is blowing.  The wind blowing in West Texas?  Oh surely I jest.    But today, I loved it.  Eldon came into the living room, we were fixin to go out and mow the yard and said what kind of art are you doing now?  I said what?  He said you know that "thing" you have in the art room bathroom.   I couldn't imagine what he was talking about?  I have paintings and stuff hanging in there but has been there  a while. I went to look and came out just laughing my head off. 

 It was 6 of my bracelets drying that I am making in Mary Jane's class at Artful Gathering.   I just thought putting them on the towel holder and on the neck of a bottle grandson gave me to decorate was the perfect place for them while they were drying.   

There you go just had to share what was going on in my world today.   Have a good one. xoxoxoxoxo Annette

Second round of Artful Gathering

So you are asking,  how are your projects coming Annette in Artful Gathering?   I am loving it and just get to play just like a little kid in a candy shop.  Remember when you would go to the store and just stand and look and look at all those wonderful candies?  They would be in a jar or wrapped up so you just look to your hearts content.   Thinking what would my 5 cents buy me and can I get it eaten before my brothers and sister would see it and want some.  Not that I was selfish but I wanted that goodie all to my self.   This is how I am feeling with the two classes I am taking. 


Now remember the first picture I posted with the strange little papers flying out the edges and trying to escape?  Well here is the bracelet finished, well except for the protective spray.  This is all one bracelet just different views.  It truly evolved it's self, I kid you not.   I started with the flowers and goodies in the paper and the bracelet just grew to be this pretty little thing.  So today will start some more of them and see what journey they take me on.   Mary Jane is a great and patient teacher and holds back nothing in teaching this method.  Way to go MJ.   I have taken art classes, years ago, and the teachers were wonderful artists and shared nothing.  I am sure you have taken from some like that also.  

Next is the Crazy Quilt class by Pat Winter.  Oh I  love this class also. It entails bling and you know how I love bling, even my purse is full of  bling.   Guess that is where grand daughter gets the love of bling when she was little, she called them lights.  Works for me.

I feel like Pat is leading us by the hand and also sharing everything and  not trying to impress us at all just the pure joy of teaching.  I feel like I hit a home run on teachers here.  Now don't get me wrong I am sure all of Zinnia's teacher/ artists are great from the art that I have seen produced in the classes.

You remember the kit I showed you, well here is the fabric pieced and the stitching done. Next I get to do the ribbon stitching and then THE BLING!!!!!!!  Pat showed us how to do all these stitches and I now remember how I use to do embroidery.

Well thanks for stopping by and seeing what is going on in my world today.   Can't wait to share more of the CQ and bracelets with you.  A true Metamorphosis.
xoxox

Wood with Mary Jane and Beads and Fabric with Pat

What have you been up to now Annette?  Well, y'all are fixin to find out here and now my blogger BFFs.

Zinnia as you know I have spoken of before has this Artful Gathering online Art Retreat this is her second year of it and I know a success.   If you haven't checked it out please do there is a little thingy on my side bar.  I just think this is the greatest way to learn new techniques and easy peazy in your jammies if you want to.  I use to, in my painting days, go to workshops back east in New England and Ruidoso New Mexico to name a couple of places and loved those and would go with fellow artists to learn and would be like a big slumber party.  Now I don't have to with computers and Internet.  I know we love the computers and hate them both together or at least I do.  

This year I am getting adventurous and taking two classes.  Gulp the pressure is on as they are only 6 weeks long but the DVD saves the day in case I get to dilly dally around to much.  I do have a tendency to do that sometimes-dilly dally or some may call it piddle around.    My classes are   Metamorphosis Collage Bracelets with Mary Jane Chadbourne and Crazy Quilting with Pat Winter. 

Love the word Metamorphosis even in movies when something turns into a good alien creature or a caterpillar turns into  a beautiful butterfly.  Now I will be turning wood into a beautiful bracelet and beads into a wonderful piece of crazy quilting. 

Now I am going to show you what I am starting with on both of these projects and kind of tease you as I go on how they develop are grow into something pretty. 

Now what in the world is this you ask?   The basis of my beautiful bracelet.   Mary Jane explains it so well and I just follow along and listen to Merlin the Magician series on the TV as I work.   What does that have to do with the bracelet?   Only my mind knows for sure.  Gotta have my background noise going on here. 

This is the kit I ordered from Pat Winter with the Crazy Quilting class.   Aren't the colors great?   There are a few more treasures in it but have to surprise you with what they are.    I use to embroider when I was----15 years old.  Yep they had needles back then, I remember doing embroidering  for a homemaking project I did  some sweet baby heads and embroidered them and was so proud of it, it was  like a coverlet.  What happened to it?  Only it knows, it probably got trashed but it did give me some good memories when I started practicing stitches for this class.  

Both of these classes are awesome and  I can't wait to show you the finished projects.

Well that is what is going on in my world for the moment, thanks for stopping by.

xoxoox

Pink and pearls

I don't know about y'all but I talk to myself and even answer myself and on occasion my pretties that I make talk to me.  My art room gets pretty loud  in there at times with all of us talking, the music playing and TV on.   We are flat having a party in there.  Sometimes the fur babies are in there with me also but they just sleep thru the whole experience.   I know you are saying what?  Yep my pretties  just seem to take over and have a good time and seem to guide my fingers to what it wants to become.  I guess this is my muse taking over.   I do wish she would tell me ahead of time so I don't have to go thru the motions of trying to create.  She could say-"ANNETTE I AM GOING TO CREATE THIS FROM THE START", I am sure she would say it nicely though.

I made four Coptic sewn books and this is the first one that was decorated. 

Sometimes a project will speak to you as you create it.  At first I was going to create this journal one way and as I began to paint the covers it just went in it's own direction.   I had a yellow paint pulled out to paint the chipboard and didn't like it so pink just says here I am. 

Some things are just deemed girlie.  There is no question about it--pink and pearls just says GIRLS.   

I am not sure how to make the pretty spines I have seen on the Coptic binding books but this is my version of it. Lots of fabric scrunched together. 

The inside of the end pages looked a little plain so on the front one and back one I had to stencil this cute bird on here and of course a tad of lace.  Gotta make it girlie.   The pages are great for  our art journal or whatever we want to do to a page of paper.  Man we can add the layers on these pages.  I didn't know, until I started art journal that you can piles so much "stuff"on a page of paper and have fun doing it.   I am a "trash digger" as grandson lovingly calls me.  Nothing gets thrown away until it is looked over to see if it can be recycled into art. 

Close up of some of the  lace I used,  some I just "found" and some is ancient, well was trimming I used in a daughters dress only about 45 years ago. Hey, that is almost an antique.  Isn't 50 years suppose to make something antique?   Of course in age that just makes one  wiser and full of sage advise.   The larger pearl button is no one knows how old, found it in my button tin. 

The finished front of the book.   The ribbon is pink  and girlie but just had to put it on there.  After sewing the book I played and took forever on this cover.  I thought OK, I need to not take so long but this is for fun and it is  permitted. 

Now I forgot to mention there is a site, I can't find it right now , but will hunt some more that the artist makes the prettiest needle cases and that is what inspired me to make this cover.   She has a shop on Etsy and all.    Gotta find it in my blog hopping and give that talented lady credit.

  

That is it for the day and thanks for stopping by to see what is going on in my world today. xoxoxox  Annette

It's June !!!

Well here is it June the 4th and I am getting behind here.  Now I have no real deadline in anything, just the ones I put on myself.  I bet none of you ever do that do you?   I think sometimes we are own worst enemies or bosses or whatever title you want to be.  that is the good thing we can be who we want to be anytime we want to be it.  

I have had my first ever give a way and of course the rules changed so it was a win win for everyone.  The prizes are in the mail except for Denice and Melva's.  Need your addresses girls.  It was a fun thing to do and I am approaching my 100th follower, well a few behind so have to be thinking of something good to celebrate that mile stone. 

Last weekend we did go to Dallas and see wonderful grandson and granddaughter.  Such blessings in our lives, I know I am sounding like a Nana but I am.  Addison had called and said he had a weekend that wasn't chock full of activities so off we went.  The Texas Rangers were playing and we went to not one game but two of them.  They won and that is great for us.  One game was a day game and Addison got us seats in the shade of the stadium.   THANK goodness, he know how Nana hates to "glisten" .  That is what Victorian ladies called sweating.  We had a great time and will certainly go again.  Reminds us when he was younger and played Little League.  Yes it was hot sitting outside but loved watching him pitch and being involved.   

Here we are in our "costumes" as I call them. 

Now you may ask is that all we did?   No way Jose, more pics will be coming.  I guess you figured that out by yourselves didn't you?  

I am starting the Artful Gathering on line workshops June 6th and certainly will share what Zinnia's group has to teach us.   I am taking two classes this year, feeling frisky I guess.   One is the beautiful bangle bracelets by Mary Jane Chadbourne and then with Pat Winter  and her crazy quilting class.  Trying to find the needles for that one was a challenge, but hope what I bought will work. 

So you see we have things going on and can't wait to share what is happening June the 17th with me.  Eldon says no way but it is on my bucket list.  One sweet friend this morning said Annette listen to Eldon don't do it and then she signed off that she loved me if she didn't talk to me before then.   It will be the thrill of a lifetime and on my bucket list.  Thanks Addison for thinking of me

That is it for the moment for me  and thanks for stopping by and seeing what is going on in my world.

oxoxoxoxoxox Annette

   

First ever give a way-THE WINNERS ARE---

Hi Y'all,  well as you know this is my first ever give a way from my blog.  I am needing some addresses, sooooooo if you are on Facebook please just private message me and I can get it there.  Some of y'all I have the addresses and if not I maybe can go to your sites and get them.  I know you are thinking OK come on get with it give us the names.  I now have over 10,580 views   Yahoo and thanks you are making me strut like a banty rooster in a chicken yard.  Someone is enjoying my rambles. 

18 of y'all  signed up---------------------- so everyone of y'all are getting a card.  I just couldn't  put your names in a hat and draw six.   Sometimes I change rules in the middle of the stream I know but love each and everyone of you.  The ones signing up on the May 12th post and the May 11th post y'all are it!!!

The names I have are     Jackie, Crafty girl ( Elizabeth), Jane ( in the U S)   Jane (in Italy), Bev, Braleigh, Marie, Marla, Netty, Mary Jane, Denice Metz, Mandi, Darlene, Anne, Melva, Malinda and Nelda. 
So congratulations to you all.  I will be having another one  looks like in the near future, getting close to 100 followers, can't beleive that. I will make it nice and only one thing.  Possibly :  )  NOW IF I LEFT ANYONE OUT BE SURE AND TELL ME.  PLEASE. XOXOXO

Thanks for stopping by and seeing what is going on in my world. xoxoxoxox