Oh, it's been crazy...

in the studio these past ten days.  An installation of the new Windows 10 and subsequent un-install (don't ask!) has left me reeling, out of sorts, and computer-cranky.  Don't we love to hate them?

At any rate, now that I have things back to something resembling normal, I can show you what else I've been up to (not much as you can imagine!).  I've finished a painting - a test of Golden gesso, and doesn't it shine?

'Gold 'n Pearls'  12" x 6" mixed media on cradled wood panel © Win Dinn

This other completion is also filled with metallics, and as difficult to photograph as they all can be. Texture and glow are everywhere.

'She Lived it All'  10 x 8" mixed media on cradled wood panel  © Win Dinn

I've been working off and on these shoes at Puffin Design for quite some time, and have a couple of ladies coming in to watch the progress.  It's been fun to see their reactions.

'Dancing Shoes' altered shoes © Win Dinn

 I always love seeing close-ups of these crazy projects,

Dancing Shoes Detail

and the side-views are intriguing as well.

Dancing Shoes, side view

I've started a mini-book, and hope to finish it this next week,

and of course I've still got mandalas on the brain, on the table, and in the works.  This colouring book is slated to be printed by the end of September, so I've got to get a move on!

Now that I've got you wearing your creative thinking cap, can I have your suggestions for a title for this new mandala colouring book, designed especially for adults?  I'd love to hear your idea!

Just because I could...

...I did it again.  I'm possibly (read probably, absolutely) hooked on these tangled fun foam plates and created another one in an overall grid pattern this time.  I immediately tested it with stamp pads and ink,

and then my trusty Gelli plate.  These prints are the first prints, and I love the colour underneath generated by the dry paint on the plate from previous printing sessions.

 I may have gotten a little carried away...

 with more than one print.

There was something about these prints that triggered a conversation with a good friend regarding the energetic changes happening in our world right now, and I was reminded about the connections I have with others.  I fussy cut a house-wrap mask that spoke to me of this,

 and overprinted one of the Gelli prints.

I used my Posca pens on it, and can see that it will become part of a journal page.

My use of the fun foam plate has enlivened it a great deal - I suspect that another Gelli plate session will hit the studio this weekend when  Alice Saltiel comes to visit.  Sounds perfect to me!

And you?  What's triggering your creativity these days?

I'm always looking...

...for new ways to create interesting backgrounds, and I thought I'd share a couple of ideas with you this week.

I wound up with this, which I thought would be a good start to a painting.

The process started last week with a 6 x 6 tangle on fun foam (below right), and I immediately made a Gelli print (or ten) to see how it would look.

I liked it enough that I started a 9 x 12 piece (here) on fun foam,

and then went nuts with my beloved Gelli plate,

printing one

after another,

after another.  These ghost prints made with Golden Open Acrylics (have I told you how much I LOVE them for Gelli printing?) pleased me no end.  I thought this one would make a good start for the first photo,

so I created a house wrap stencil of vines that had been tickling the muse for a while.  I printed a first print on a clean sheet (not shown), and then over-printed the above with a ghost print.

I'm pretty happy with the results and just as soon as I finish my manic mandala fixation I'm going to be making more of both the fun foam tangles and the house wrap stencils.  I'll keep you posted with the results no doubt.