Bird Song ATC

October's prompt for the Creative Mom Podcast Artist Trading Card swap was "song," and I have to admit this one gave me more trouble than I had expected. I went though several different concepts before settling on this song bird (a wren).

pencil drawing on cream cardstock

The final subject matter actually surprised me, though perhaps it shouldn't have considering last month's card. I love the little guy's personality though, so much so that I may have to make another for myself.

Pattern ATC

I hadn't posted anything, because I wanted this card to have a chance to get to my swap partner for this month's round of the Creative Mom Podcast Artist Trading Card swap. This month's theme was "pattern."

watercolor markers and Sharpie on cardstock

The card I received was more along the lines of geometric pattern, but I really wanted to do something inspired by patterns in nature. I thought about spiderwebs, honeycomb, and other items crafted by nature, but in the end I went with a more transient form. I love this idea of birds on a line, having arranged themselves by chance in a pattern: big bird - little bird - big bird little bird - big bird. The only pattern there the one that our eyes and mind make rather than intrinsic to the subject matter at hand.

Boston: Here to There

It is time for a little catch-up blogging on the Artist Trading Card front. The last Creative Mom Podcast ATC prompt was "here to there", and my immediate idea was to do how I get around: public transportation. In this card I used the images on a MBTA CharlieTicket and an MBTA map.


I have to say that Boston has pretty good public transportation. How else could I get to this point in my life without ever owning a car? There is the "T", a color-coded train that runs with-in the city itself. The bus system then criss-crosses the T routes in ways that may only make sense to an urban designer. And the commuter trains that take people out to the suburbs.

Oops gotta run! I have to catch the bus to meet a friend for brunch.

Home

May's theme for the CMP ATC swap was home. We have been really focusing on trying to live more sustainably, so the inspiration for this card was clear. A favorite quote from the Tick kept floating around my head while I worked on this card. (Yes we do try to keep down the amount of "stuff" but it is still a great quotable.)

"You can't destroy the Earth! That's where I keep all my stuff!!"water soluble wax pastels on cardstock

It has been far too long since I used these water soluble pastels. I am so pleased with the results, even if my technique could use a little work.

Listen

I put this ATC in the mail a week ago, but then I realized that I had never posted about it here. April's prompt for the Creative Mom Podcast Artist Trading Card Swap was "listen."

2B pencil on cardstock

Some cards I really struggle with how I want to do them. What medium should I use? What should I make? How should I lay it out? From the time the theme was announced I knew exactly what this one would look like.

Wings

In Deathly Hallows, I have to admit that the whole dragon plot point struck me as a little too convenient. (No I do not planning on spoiling.) With the prompt of "wings" for the February CMP ATC swap, though, I knew I wanted to do something with dragons. So after playing around with a couple different ideas, I ended up with this one as the dragon flew off. Something about the image of the dragon flying off into freedom just captures my imagination, despite not caring for the way it fell into the story as a whole.

gesso, acrylic paint & pigma micron pen on cardstock

Somehow this was my first experience working with gesso. I had picked some up a while back, because I had been hearing about it so much on the Creative Mom Podcast and on various art blogs. It was really interesting. I like the texture it gives and am looking forward to experimenting with it my moleskine now too.

Socks ATC

The December prompt for the Creative Mom Podcast Artist Trading Card swap was "gift". And I know my recipient is an avid Harry Potter fan. So it was only natural that I wanted to combine these two things. I was thinking about what my favorite gift that was given in the series, and the answer was quick to come to mind.

Although Mrs. Weasley is famous for her knitting, there is another knitter who knit Christmas gifts: Dobby! (Actually there are 2-3 more knitters if you count Hagrid's "circus tent" he was knitting on the train, Hermione's SPEW knitting, and Dumbledore's love of reading knitting patterns, but I cannot attest to whether or not they knit Christmas gifts.)

This ATC was worked on cardstock in watercolor.


Socks seen here:

• Vernon's sock ("foul" "mustard-yellow" and "extra knobbly") that Harry gave to Dobby
• One red sock with broomsticks and one green sock with Snitches, that Dobby knit for Harry, after buying the wool from the wages he is now free to earn
• the black "slimy" sock that Harry gave Dobby that won him his freedom - a bit grey from the wash?
  
• a violet sock from the pair that Ron gave Dobby (knit by Mrs. Weasley)
• an orange tube sock - because I can see Dobby doing tube socks at first before figuring out how to turn a heel
• a blue Jaywalker - because muggles aren't the only ones who fell in love with this pattern
• and finally a yellow sock in progress
  

Signs of Fall ATC

Does everyone else find their house full of leaves at this time of year. They are picked up on our walks home from school. This one for its amazing yellow color. That one for its mottled appearance. That last one for its funny shape.

Last year I played around with the idea of leaf line drawings. The basic idea was to put down a layer of paint. (I use acrylic.) Don't try to make it even, basically just slap it down. Then after the paint is dry use the texture of paint to pull out the shapes of leaves. Perhaps the curve of a denser area of paint reminds you of an oak leaf. The more you do it, the more shapes will leap out at you. And even if you don't see anything that calls out to you, the organic texture of the paint is great for giving dimensionality to a simple line drawing.

This year I tried something a little different.

Signs of Fall
Cardstock, acrylic paint, and Sharpie marker

For this Artist Trading Card, I started off with a fairly thick layer of orange, then a dabbed layer of brown, and finally a top splotchy layer of yellow. Each layer was allowed to dry before starting the next layer. And then after everything was dry I just started drawing with the sharpie. In the past I have worked with pencil first and then gone back over with ink, but I really like the organic feel of just letting the line fall as it will so this time I just went with ink.

1 year blog-o-versary

Today is my blog's first birthday! It is funny to think that it has only been that long though. I feel like this is such an integrated part of keeping track of my creative journey and meeting so many other crafty folk.

A year ago I was just returning from a research trip in Madison, WI, where I had been listening to the Creative Mom Podcast and thinking a lot about my creative life. Then I started a blog up just before last year's Boston Knit and Crochet out.

So in honor of muddling through a year of learning Blogger, re-learning with new Blogger, discovering and re-discovering several crafts, and many happy artistic endeavors I am doing a small give-away. (If you are not a knitter, feel free to enter anyways. I am sure I could pick something up.)

2 skeins of Lorna's Laces Shepherd Sock in Bittersweet, a copy of Knitting Rules, and a skein of Mind's Eye Merino/Tencel sockyarn in Coral Snake

To be eligible please leave a comment by Sunday September 9th midnight EST. Remember if you you don't sign in with your blog for your comment to include other contact info so that I can get a hold of you.

At Water's Edge

I have been making my way through some of a slight backlog of episodes of the Creative Mom Podcast. In show 52 Amy mentioned that she wished that she had a book of reference models. At that I suddenly realized that I had exactly that!

So prompted to take down the book from my shelf, I worked with the "Illustrator's Reference Manual Nudes", which I picked up at a used book store year ago. One of the nice things is that it shows each position from many different angles so that you can pick the one that appeals to you most.

Picking one that appealed for what I was thinking of, I got to work on my June ATC. Like Jessica and Amy, I knew that I wanted to work with mermaids. I have a special thing for mermaids and nayads of all kinds.


Originally I was planning for this to be un-colored, because I liked it so much as a line drawing that I finally opted to leave it as it was. But then on a whim I took out my watercolors and went to work. I am not perfectly happy with the result (the cardstock doesn't take watercolor well as I had already found out), but I love the colors.

And this was the first time I had ever used white, which I know is verbotten by some purists. With the colored cardstock though I really wanted to get the white for the light house and a more natural skin tone (ie not tinted blue).

Reach for the Stars

This month's theme for the CMP ATC Swap was "Reach for the Stars". Chiquita has been interested in ATC cards, so this month she sat down with me when I went to work on my May card. Both cards were worked on colored cardstock, Prismacolor markers, and acrylic paint.My card is on the left. I really like how the skyline worked out; it reminds me of Boston's silhouette from the Cambridge side though I didn't worry about getting it exact. Look you can even see the pyramid-like Cambridge Hyatt.

The card on the right is Chiquita's, and the interpretation is totally her own. I love this frog card so much! I asked her if she would be willing to swap for one I made, but she tells me that she has plans for this one. She will make me another copy though, which works for me.

Index card book

A while back I Need Orange posted about her idea of having a teeny tiny scrapbook. I loved this idea! Similar to ATCs, this was yet another way to avoid feeling intimidated since it is of such a small size. I do actually like working big, but I find I often do not have the time or space to work as large as I did in college (or even as a kid).

So I stopped by the campus book store, and sure enough they had a very similar thing. The pages are a little too small for collage, so instead I am using mine right now to glue in cut-outs of pictures that I find in magazines or Chiquita's Weekly Reader that I might want to draw later. I had been avoiding doing this in my moleskine because I was too worried about the cut out pictures not being archive safe. Here though, they can all be together, and I don't need to worry about them harming any other work. And due to the ring binding, it can sit completely open to work in, which is really nice.

Additionally I am keeping a list of prompt ideas as suggested a few episodes back of the Creative Mom Podcast. The size of these pages is great for themed prompt ideas or sections of EDM prompts that I didn't do yet.

New Toys - Watercolor

I was in Central (Cambridge, MA) anyways the other day, and I was drawn into Artist Supply which I have passed by before but never stopped in. (BTW it was great. I totally recommend this store if you happen to be in the area. The staff was incredibly helpful, the selection was very good and the prices excellent. Yay for local business!) I was on the hunt for a water pen, such as I had heard about on CMP, to do watercolor when I am out and about.

Next thing I know I am walking out the door with with a Koi Water Color Pocket Field Sketch Box and a new waterproof pen. (I love my Pigma Micron, but I wanted to try something a little different. So I picked up a 0.7 mm Staedtler pigment liner, which I love! Even if my hand brushes the ink right away or I paint over it immediately there is no smearing at all on watercolor paper.) This gave me an excuse to break into a small watercolor moleskine that I had bought a few months ago. I know some people like to break in new sketchbooks with a special drawing or painting. I am of the other school of thought: just do, don't worry about being special. The swatch squares here let me get a good feel for both the paints and the paper without worrying about making "a piece of art". Now on to the more interesting uses.

A Place of My Own

This month's prompt for the CMP ATC Swap was "A Place of My Own". At first I thought I would do something along the lines of what Autumn Mommy ended up doing, my imagination. I just couldn't figure out the perfect way to do it though.

So I though, and I thought. Where was my place that was all mine? Then it hit me. Most of my crafting is done in stolen moments. I knit on the bus. I sketch in my moleskine in between other things. Painting is usually a shared activity, with my daughter painting her own work next to me. The one exception is spinning.

When I spin, I take a little quiet time to myself. Usually it is after the little one is asleep. I might listen to a podcast while I work or I might just enjoy the quiet zen of the sound of the wheel turning and the treadle moving. This is a time when I let the stress of the day slip away, and for a few minutes I just am. My hands just work. My mind is still.


Inspired, I grabbed some watercolor, my favorite pen, and a pencil. I sat in my spinning chair (not even replacing the flyer which I had removed to re-align the wheel) and set to work. After a quick sketch, I broke out my brushes. Usually I have to struggle to get the looseness I want when I use watercolor. For some reason this ATC was a lot easier though. I put my spinning wheel down on the cardstock and added the basket of roving I keep in the same corner. Bright puffs of soft fiber added some color where there hadn't been much before. Sometimes I guess you just have to let inspiration strike.

February CMP ATC

The prompt for this round of the Creative Mom Podcast ATC Exchange was "alphabet soup". I had played with a bunch of different ideas for this card, but sometimes it is best just to keep it simple.

This was made with just a piece of card stock, acrylic paint, and some mini letter stamps.

CMP ATC 2

Whew! This will make it in just under the gun as I will be sending it out this week. It is my second card for the Creative Mom Podcast Artist Trading Card Swap, done in Prismacolour Markers and a Pigma Micron pen on cardstock.

With my partner in Asia at the moment I have been playing with drawings of asian things. Although my partner is in China, he has a great foundness for Japenese culture, so I was thinking of him while playing with different ideas. I hope to continue a small series with different kimonos such as this one.

Although not perfect, I am seeing improvements in my use of these markers. The trick is in not allowing the marker to dry before continuing the color. Otherwise you get very obvious streaks. There is a little bit of streaking here, but it is much better and mostly just in the background. It is nice to see some progress!

Creative Wishlist

Amy from the Creative Mom Podcast has got me thinking again. What is on my creative wishlist?

At the moment the list of specific things is actually pretty small. I have been trying to destash my entire art stash (not just my yarn stash) as we may end up moving in the next year once I finish gradschool. Here is my short list.

• Watercolor pencils


• Eleanora Sock Pattern


• Prismacolor Marker 12 color set in Cool grey, Warm grey, or French grey


• sock blockers


• crochet hook case


• interlocking foam puzzle tiles for blocking


• q-snaps

What sorts of things are on your wishlists?

CMP ATC 1

This weekend I managed to finish my first Artist Trading Card for the Creative Mom Podcast (CMP) exchange. Unlike the other card that I am working on (currently a sketch of a bamboo pot) that I have labored on and reconsidered countless times, I just sat down and completed this one in a short period. It is of a monarch butterfly and done in Cray-pas. I didn't even sketch first, just went right at it.

I surprised myself by really liking the media. I hadn't used it since I was in elementary school, but in many ways it reminds me of a slightly less ephemeral version of working in charcoal. I definately have a lot of room for improvement, but I enjoyed the process a great deal and look forward to doing more with it.

Creative Mom Podcast Artist Trading Cards Exchange

If anyone else is interested in swapping Artist Trading Cards, the deadline of September 31st is coming up quickly. You can see the Amy's post on this exchange for more details.

50 Non-crafty Facts

To continue with my 50 Crafty Facts for a total of 100 things about me:

1. I am a member of a CSA.

2. I was a triple major as an undergraduate (chemistry, math and physics).

3. My favorite vegetable is zuchini. I think I could live on just steamed zuchini with a little bit of freshly cracked black pepper other than that whole nutrition thing.

4. I do research that may someday contribute to you using fuel cells.

5. I have 3 step brothers, 1 half sister, and 1 full sister.

6. We have a pet African Fat Tailed Gecko named Cupric.

7. I like the flavor of onions but can't stand the texture.

8. I don't like horror movies with the exception of vampire flicks.

9. We don't have a tv, and I like it that way.

10. I am routinely asked if my daugher is my sister. The really distrubing part of this is that I actually have a sister who is younger than my daughter.

11. I am 5' 2.5". At my height you fight for that last half inch.

12. I love camping and hiking.

13. I jointly own a tandem kayak.

14. I freckle especially across my arms and shoulders.

15. I was in vocal music programs in school for 6 years.

16. I really wanted to be a boyscout when I was little. I didn't understand why my dad wouldn't let me, but it was obvious that the girlscouts was not equivalent.

17. Even when it is really hot, I will still sleep with a sheet.

18. I learned to cook when I was 10 and my parents got divorced. As my mom didn't cook, it was that or live on tv dinners until I moved out.

19. I don't like to eat meat in the summer. It isn't for any particular reason; I just don't care for it then.

20. I started getting strands of silver at 16.

21. I am allergic to mold.

22. One of my favorite songs is "Rubby Ducky" by Blümchem, known by most people who have heard it as "that techno dance remix of Ernie (from Sesame Street) singing 'Rubber Ducky' in german".

23. I have never broken any bone in my body.

24. I learned to HTML code when I was in middle school with my dad.

25. My first computer was an Apple II GS.

26. I love unagi (bbq eel sushi).

27. My least favorite domestic chore is doing the dishes.

28. I hate guessing-games.

29. I have a completely irrational fear of deep sea fish that keeps me from going to the aquarium.

30. My first real job was as a produce clerk.

31. There are few things I like better than a really ripe pear.

32. All 4 of my wisdom teeth were impacted and thus removed.

33. I have never had my driver's liscence; driving reduces me to an anxious spazy mess.

34. Only a 0.6% of the populaion has my blood type (AB-).

35. I like the metric system.

36. I love Boston.

37. I do not follow any sports teams other than in the Olympics.

38. I am a bookcrosser.

39. I grew up just down the street from the ocean.

40. When I am stressed from overwork I forget to eat; when I am emotionally stressed I over eat.

41. My accent changes slightly depending on who I am talking to.

42. I still love cuddly stuffed animals.

43. I hate being late for things so much so that I am usually early if I can help it.

44. I have been told my handwriting is too neat for me to be an engineer.

45. I love the words persnickety and ostracize.

46. I really like BPAL, a company that makes really inspired essential oil blends.

47. I love taking baths. My newest bath obsession is Fantasy Bath (particularly their bath bombs).

48. I once worked developing toothpaste and as a result I have strong preferences on what I use.

49. My partner works for iRobot, and I have robots that both vaccum and scrub my floors.

50. I have found someone I hope to spend the rest of my life with.