Foggy Morning

It was chilly the day before and it heated up yesterday but cooled off again overnight. I woke up to this this morning.

But then the sun decided to scream through the fog and it was amazing.

Yesterday I was able to get the skellie mermaid that I had seen at Michael's Craft Store. I had my eyes on it for the past two months almost. Of course they had moved their Halloween items because Christmas is now taking over. The sales associate had to go in the back to find her. There were two left. And this one is mine. Love her. She will get a bikini top, a ratty skirt, a dead lei, some jewelry around her neck and a crown of fish skeletons. That will happen after my doll show the first weekend in October.

Isn't she great! Have a nice day.

Better Late Than Never

I almost have a batch of monster doll pins done. Almost. It seems I get to the end of something and stop. Not a good habit. Maybe I lose my faith, or nerve, or whatever. I tell myself that I'd rather clean the bathroom or do laundry than add hair and hearts to these little darlings. It's amazing how our brain tricks us into doing what we don't want to do and not what really makes our hearts sing.

I did manage to finally get the September front page for my Bullet Journal done. Yeah, yeah, same old thing. A day late and a dollar short. I kind of knew what I wanted to do then scrapped the idea. So I did that wonderful yearly rite of passage. The first day of school. I used oil based color pencils. Walnut Hollow I believe. I do like those pencils and years ago I was getting pretty good with them. Then I stopped. Now it's back to square one. But I shall continue because now I think I have a pretty decent pencil sharpener. One that won't crack the leads or eat up the pencils.

I think I would like to try this drawing again. Add a few more things. Then I drew some pumpkins. I was going to make them jack-o-lanterns but I'll have plenty of time to do them next month. I used Tombow markers on this one and a Tombow brush pen which I truly find amazing. You can get a fine line and with a little pressure, get a wider line. Like using a paint brush. Gonna have to work more with that too. I messed up on both with the lettering. I guess I wasn't paying attention but for right now, I'm pleased with both. Because it's fall. Not technically but for me, fall starts right after Labor Day.

Until next time. Have a nice day.

A Small Drawing

Still working on catching up on things. I drew this little setting earlier this month and just colored it last night. I like the characters and still haven't named them but the rat with the martini is my favorite. I've never been camping, so it's one of the things I like to draw. Ever since I was a little kid and summer would roll around, I had school chums who always went camping with their families each summer. I thought that was so cool but I never got a chance to do it. Maybe one day I'll get lucky.

The drawing is in my Bullet Journal. I'm trying to jazz it up a little with some color and drawings. I won't get as complicated as some but I like looking back and seeing what I've done. This is my third journal and I'm almost done with it. Looking back at the first one, it was more business like. Just what I needed to do. The second one had more drawings in it but that was to brighten it up a bit. This one has more drawings and some scenes.

I really need to get back to drawing on the regular. I can see where I need and want to improve. I used color pencils on this. But I like markers too. Ah... the learning curve. But if you don't use it, you lose it. I know I still have several sketchbooks to fill up. So I best get to it. Have a good Friday.

Holy Smokes!

Yikes! Two weeks into the new month and as usual, I'm behind. This month has not been kind and I know... it's just begun. The cosmic balls in the sky are playing croquet. Anyway, I drew my August cover for my bullet journal more than a week ago and I finally got it finished. I should probably name these characters as they are showing up each month. The rat is wearing sunglasses, the spider is too and drinking a drink and barbecuing a grub. What do you do for August but go on a road trip? There is a Transylvania County in North Carolina and a Hell and Bad Axe, MI. I had fun with it.

I Take That Back

Today is Day One of my next trip around the sun. The last two days were spent having fun. Now I'm back to creative work. I have quite a few projects for my new year, deadlines, goals, and a few things on my new bucket list. I don't know how much I'll reveal along the way or just tell you when things are done or I'm ready to jump on a plane. Some things you have to keep close to the vest.

Last month was okay. Yes, I'm still a wee bit hard on myself but I'm human. I did get a large project done. The doll and sent a load of other dolls to North Carolina for a theater production. Yes, I have to look at the small things the I did and not the five page list of things I didn't do. I was able to get my front page to July's Bullet Journal done. I got the idea from christina77star. She's on Facebook, You Tube, and Instagram. She did not have the skellie guy in her tub. Or the rat. Those are my additions. Still working on my handwriting too.

And I finally made it to a farmer's market. The Oakland County Farmer's Market and it was very nice. Here's my haul for $18. Beets, bok choi, green beans, zucchini, and Whitefish pate`. Gonna eat healthy this week.

So, it's a new month and a new day. Gonna prep my veggies for cooking so I won't have to worry about meals for the rest of the week. Have a nice day y'all.

June, June, June

I kind of don't know what to expect this month.  I have a couple of things I need to get done. Which I'm kind of dreading. But if I put my nose to the grindstone I will get them done and out of my hair. Speaking of hair, my hair isn't doing anything right at the moment. I don't know if it's because I'm getting older, or diet, or what but I'm thinking of cutting it all off and starting over. I just don't want to deal with it right now. Had a yard sale yesterday. I won't be taking a cruise anytime soon. Ha! Everyone was saying, "You don't have what I'm looking for." Seriously? Okay, why say anything at all? Just look and go. And the weather has been kooky. We went from winter to a quick spring, winter, summer, and fall. Yeah Mother Nature, you're drunk. At least now the sun is out. I guess all I can say is, "Whatever." Can't control it and I'm in Michigan. Wait a few minutes and the weather will change. Like it or not.

So tomorrow will be a trip to Salvation Army to donate things that didn't go yesterday. I just want it out of the place. I ca't use it, maybe someone else can. For the rest of the month, I will continue to downsize and clear out my mother's place. What fun.

The plan is to get back to creating. Anything. I've started out with my front page for June in my Bullet Journal. I like these little creatures and will continue to work on them. I'm going to have to straighten the dungeon so I can get back to work. At least I got the tables that I used in the yard sale back up again. See ya.

Toledo Doll and Bear Show

I did it! I survived my first venture back into doll shows after about eight years. I'd done doll shows many years ago and stopped. Now I hope I'm back. At least for some of them. It was a nice show. A true doll show with antique, reproduction antique dolls and bears. There were also some antique miniatures and dollhouses, and two reborn repaint doll artists. A few vendors were selling fabric for fancy doll clothes. Just about everyone was nice. I sold my first piece before the show started. I didn't sell a lot but I made some new friends who gave me lots of advice on other shows, suppliers, and where to get information on doll related things. There were two teddy bear artists, an animal artist, and me, the only doll artist who made their own work.

I got such a good response with my work. Quite a few were happy that I was there because I was different. I had pieces for everyone. Normal to Halloween! People were asking if I was going to come back next year because they knew someone who liked Halloween or cloth dolls. One lady, who is with a cloth dollmaking club, is trying to get their own show together and asked if I would like to be a vendor. I gave her my info. She really liked my dolls. Someone commented on how varied they were. I told them that I had to do different things or my head would explode. Then she said, I guess you have to find your style. I told her that I have a style, that if you look close enough, that all of these dolls were made by one person. Whether its' in my paint job, my color palette, how I make my outfits, you can see it.  And I am good, working on being better.

I guess I really missed being a part of the doll show circuit. I guess I'm back and I'm looking forward to the next show.

Here She Is!

It finally came through. Good grief.

I'm supposed to be participating in Inktober and here is my first one. Yep, I'm behind. But the month is still young.

Here

The past week has been a strange one. Had a bad anxiety attack at the beginning of the week. Then when I started to feel better and work on things, the area had three electrical brown outs on three different days. That also put a further crimp in things but I kept going and did what I could as long as the sun was out. I'm hoping the upcoming week is a lot better. For now, I finished stitching my third embroidery piece. It's not all Redwork but that's okay. I like how he turned out.

#wendyluane #redwork #embroidery #dayofthedead #pearlcotton

Five Days In

Okay, so time is being weird. I already know I'm weird but time, well, it's screwy. Plus, Monday holidays throw things off. Now it's time to get back on the wagon. I finally got some sketches done. A couple of witches, a skellie lady, an octopus holding an ice cream cone, and some beginning folk art sketches. I don't know where any of this is going but I did it and I'm feeling lots better. There's nothing like putting pencil to paper. Erasers are cool too.

And Juno is still hanging around. I like how he changes colors when he's on the grey deck.

More catching up tomorrow. Have a good evening.

What a Dreary Day

It's been raining, sleeting, and snowing all day. It's cold and grey and well, it's not spring yet no matter what it says on the calendar. Anyhoo, things are moving along. I sketched a few dolls and I like the basic design. I believe I can use that basic design to make different dolls. So happy that I have access to a printer that can enlarge things. Now I will refine the basic drawing and make a final pattern for new doll 1. The other little creepy dolls will be small pins.

I drew the Day of The Dead face directly onto fabric instead of using a stabilizer. This is my third piece of Redwork and it may get some other embroidery stitches. I don't know yet. It may even get some beads. We shall see. The previous two pieces had stabilizer and I didn't use a hoop. I also had a bit of a problem getting the needle through the stabilizer but it held the fabric well enough so I didn't need a hoop. On this new project, I will try it without the hoop. I think the fabric has a good weight to it to allow this to be done. I'm using Kona cotton and Valdani pearl cotton thread.

#redwork #embroidery #valdanipearlcotton #Frixionpen #dayofthedead #dolldesign #halloweendoll

It's Been Too Long

Moving just sucks. And I think I have one more big one in my distant future, the last one for this lifetime. Until then, I'm working to get back on the creative wagon. No more excuses, dilly dallying, or whining. Back to work. The past two days have been productive but I usually can't get to all that's on my list. But each day, I do a little more and today, I made myself work on dolls in the morning. Which I did. Started three new doll heads, worked on three heads that I'd started ions ago, added a forehead and chin to Frank's monster, redid a box skellie, worked on my Beach Creep, and continued work on a doll I started from a Deanna Hogan pattern. I drove around the neighborhood and didn't get lost. Had lunch and now I'm doing my posts.

This is the step that always gets me caught up in doubt. I'm working in a new medium, not quite sure of myself or what the heck I'm doing, and I'm fighting not chucking everything. Why? Because nothing looks like anything that I have in my head. So I keep telling myself that it's just the beginning. Cut myself some slack, let the clay dry and do the next step. Let things dry? Yes... I can be impatient and I'm working on that too. I'm trying to remember what a friend told me to think of when I'm working on my projects. Make it Suck! That way if it does suck, I won't be disappointed but if it looks pretty awesome, I'll be surprised.

I also got back to my Redwork. It's a particular type of embroidery that started out using red thread called Turkey Red. The country, not the bird. Seems like they created the first colorfast dye for the color red. Now women could embroider things and launder them too. There are all sorts of designs out there. I took a workshop from Beth Dix of Primrose Lane in Black Mountain, NC. It took me a couple of tries to get the hang of it again but I really like doing it. Now you can use any color thread you want. My first piece was a leaf using a variegated thread.

The piece that I'm working on now has the Turkey Red and a darker overdyed red. I've gotten a little further but this was the pic I had available at the moment.

And here is one of Beth's pieces. As you can see, she used different colors for each thing and colored in the spaces using crayons. This piece has been set into a quilt.

Hopefully, I can say that I've gotten a good new start to getting back to making things. There's going to be a lot of pushing myself. And spring is coming. The calendar says it's here but the temps say otherwise. Stay tuned.

#redwork #turkeyred #paperclay #dolls #monster #embroidery #skellie

Dolls

I'm making dolls again. I had started these two ages ago and decided they needed to be finished. Deserved it. Or make the decision to toss them and move on. They screamed that they wanted to live, so here we are. Working on hair and hats. They will be ready for sale at an upcoming craft fair.

#skelliedoll #witchdoll #halloweendoll

31 Days of Halloween

Yes, I'm still working on that challenge and may be a little behind but that's okay. I gave it a go and I'm okay with that. I used Ink Tense paints and India ink.

#31daysofhalloween #bitofred #skelllie #shrunkenhead

In Progress

Got a couple of different things in progress. I submitted pics of my work to an upcoming craft fair and I want to be ready. New skellie pins waiting to be turned and stuffed.

A little further along on these guys. I don't know what to call them yet.

Stuffed hats ready for bat ornaments.

31 Days Continues

Yes, the challenge continues and here are two more drawings. Both I used a fountain pen and ink with a little red.

#31daysofhalloween #bitofred #skellie #kidvampire

Two Little Paintings

I am a work in progress. I had a good early part of the week, then I had problems with my sinuses because of the weather and humidity and didn't get much done at the end of the week. I tried to salvage something by doing two little paintings. The mermaid is a thank you card and the other has a letter in it to a friend. I enjoy writing letters to friends and most of the time I add artwork. And I have a short list for today.

Doll Day

Tuesday was doll day. I'm glad I made the time to work on them. I really miss working on dolls. These babies are cloth. I finally painted faces and they are ready to be dressed.

The two on the left are Halloween dolls. Yeah, I know, I'm behind but I finally got going again. They are a new pattern and I want to make Frank's monster, the Bride, a mummy, and something else in the series. The one on the right is my last Gail Wilson doll. Painted, stained and ready for hair and clothes. It's going to be a long day today because I'm back to working on quilts. After almost causing a fire in a friend's kitchen (oops), I have to get to work and quit fooling around. And no drawings yet. It's going to be a long day.

#halloween #skellie #witch #gailwilsonkit

Mariachi Band Taking Shape

This is my last commission for the year. A Day of the Dead Mariachi Band. I finally started getting some skin on them. Once this layer hardens, I can add more and pose their arms. Their instruments will be made too. Stay tuned!

31 Days of Halloween #12

Yikes! This month is getting by me so fast.  But I have two big projects I'm working on that will keep me alive and well.  I still have almost two weeks in this month, so get ready to see some more stuff.  I'm also going to start working on things for my last two shows and get more work into some shops.  I love this time of year.

This is acrylic paint on canvas board. 9" x 12"

Vase of Skulls