Things are ticking right along...

...in the studio.  Finishing the 'Take Heart' journal meant I could carry forward with a slip case, and this one has a different clasp than others I've done.  

You really have to love Velcro, right?   

The largish heart on the front has a strip sandwiched between the back papers of the slip case.

That creates a band to secure the book inside.  I learned several things when making this book and case, mentioning before that the book style is not the best when one has a yen to add layer upon layer.  It would make a more elegant book had it three or four pages to each signature.  Will I remember that the next time?  Maybe.  😄

The slip case was problematical given than I wanted to use both painted Typar as well as its original greyed surface.  I used cardstock and adhered the Typar to both sides, finding it challenging (at the least) to fold and secure.  A layer of printer paper would have been a better choice.

All in all, though, I'm happy with the look and feel, and love the wide variety of the heart quotes inside.

I managed to finish the painting for our grandaughter this week as well.  'Chloe's Blues Clues Birthday' is ready to be on its way.

A great advantage of having grandchildren is that one doesn't lose sight of the important cartoon characters on the go.  😉

As well, I thought you'd have a laugh at this 'oh-good-grief-its-ugly' stage of the Arcturus painting.  As always when paintings are at this stage, I'm wondering whether I can get it safely out of the mess it's in!

I'm looking forward to seeing where you're at in your week.  Happy creating and may the rest of your spring be brightly filled with sunshine and blue skies!  

By now you might suspect...

 ...that I'm a bit of a colour pig.  One of my favourite things to do is splash three or four colours on the page, smoosh them with a palette knife and see how they play together.  And it's the lazy woman's way to create tag backgrounds too.

This combination of Red/orange Quinacridone (Liquitex), Turquoise, Quinacridone Red, and Hansa Yellow (all by Golden) just made me so happy I was giggling with the drool-worthiness.

No matter where I looked, it was all just luscious - pink, red, green, purple, black and the potential for wonderful greys.

Which meant, of course, that I have the colour combination for yet another in the Arcturus series.  Can't you just see each of those moons in one of the gorgeous shades above?

It's a much better combination than the first one I auditioned - I'm so all about the wild and crazy intensity of high-key hues.

And what a fun thing to do while waiting (and waiting and waiting) for the slipcase glue layers to dry.  Ditto goes for the painting for Chloe, also in progress and drying under those well-used art books.

I'm looking forward to seeing your colour this week - feel free to post links in your comments!  

Hearts are everywhere...

 ...in this journal.  Now complete with 62 spreads, it measures 6" high x 4 5/8" wide x 2" deep.  I know this because I've already got a slip case in mind, and needed to ensure I had sufficient Typar-covered cardstock to build it.

As always, I got carried away with the additions, and it's much deeper than I expected it to be.

I also finished the zen mandala this week - it made a wonderful change while I waited for the heart spreads to glue-set, and I love the depth that's been achieved by working back into the mandala with Inktense pencils, black pens and a white Gelly Roll pen.

I don't want you to think that I've been lolly-gagging since finishing the curtains...I've started on a painting for a treasured granddaughter, who will turn 2 years old next month.  That should keep me out of trouble for a bit before I get started on that slip case cover for the Take Heart journal.

Somehow, the creative list gets longer every day, and isn't that the way it should be?!  We do live the best life.  🤩

Phew!!

 I think the curtains are finally done (for now). I checked the start date on these and found that April 2019 was the kick-off.  Really????  Could it truly have taken 3 years for this project?  That's abnormal even for me (I say, tongue in cheek, given that I've got paintings in the studio that were started 10 years ago and are still on the go 🤣).

It's been challenging to get a photo of them in situ, given that they are primarily see-through.

These colours are closer than the others,

and the turquoise is closer to true.

Of course that wasn't the whole of this week, as I've started a few 'something new' pieces as well.  I photocopied a zen mandala that I'd done some years ago onto a gel print that was less than a favourite. I sprayed it with some workable fixative, twice, and starting in the top left corner, you can just see some black and white additions to the pattern.

 

This one is going to take a while to complete, given that I'll need to go over all the initial mandala design in several different thicknesses of black pen, as well as add some Inktense pencil work and put that white gel pen to use.

I've also got a bit of a handle on the birthday painting for our granddaughter, so that's in progress on the bottom of the photo.  The heart journal is still on the go, as you can see from the right hand area, and I've got another journal idea for the use of the 2021 word of the year oddments.

I love it that the ideas are never-ending, even when I wind up working in a 12" square piece of the table.  The creative life is such a gift, right?!  What are you up to these days - feel free to add a link in your comments below.  

Happy creative week, my friends, and here's to many more!