Faerie Moving Day!

I just couldn't wait to share the beautiful faeries I have captured. These faeries are getting ready to be placed into their new homes. Beautiful glass jars filled with natural dried flowers and pretty polished stones. They will have butterflies and dragonflies as their companions and the jars will be tied up with ribbons and plenty of sparkling glass beads and swarovski crystals.....you know how faeries just love sparkles and glittery things. I will be sure to post a pick of the Faeries' new dwellings...but for now it is off to the work table to complete Faerie home construction!

Ready....Set.....Garden!

In celebration of the changing of the seasons, I have created my very own Gardening Journal. It is a simple recycled notebook that has been covered in decorative papers and its pages shall be embellished on an ongoing basis as I add the little tidbits I discover on my gardening journey. I envision a collection of Gardening Journals spanning several years to be passed on to future generations of my family. Each one cataloging the planting and harvesting of various vegetables, herbs, and flowering plants. Perhaps I will include in depth "how-to" instructions as I learn to dry herbs, and can vegetables, make flavored oils and homemade herbal teas. I can hardly wait for the snow to melt so I can get to planting. ...Perhaps I shall start with a simple Kitchen Container Garden, and maybe a pretty little collection of Kitchen Herbs growing in a clay pot and given the center of attention upon the island in the kitchen. Hmmm....certainly something to think about.

Think Spring

Well, it felt and looked like spring for about a day, but winter refused to move on and in a matter of a few hours on Friday we accumulated at least 6 inches of snow. I have been so ready for Spring. On a recent trip to my Grandparents, I was inspired by the many birds that frequent the feeders around the yard, and I took out my paints and papers and went to work. I completed 9 little 4x4 bird collages. I am still uncertain as to what I will do to finish the pieces off. I might make them into a chunky book, or frame them individually, or even frame them as a group. I thought that once the snow was gone for good I would go out and gather some twigs and leaves and other outdoor items to add a little natural appeal. I really enjoyed making these little birdies and am certain I will make many more of them before the season is over.

What is a Star Box?

I don’t know why the box was created, but my earliest memory of the Star Box is when I was 10 years old. One day I asked for some small piece of nothing that you might generally find in someone’s junk drawer and was told….”Go look in the Star Box”. The Star Box was an old red and brown card board box of unremarkable size, it’s most distinctive characteristic was a large black star drawn right on the center of the lid in permanent marker. There were no words written there, just a big black Star. Why the star came to be is unknown to everyone except my Mother. She drew the star so many years ago, and until now I have never thought to ask her what her intentions were in marking the box that way. All I know is that the Star Box became a home for all manner of items that still retained some useful life and lacked a permanent resting place.

Now many years later I have created a Star Box of my very own, and all those loose buttons, errant paperclips, various broken bits of jewelry and scrap pieces of twine, basically anything that has the potential to be transformed by the imagination is tucked safely away within the Star Box. One day as I carefully peruse the contents, gently fingering the tiny treasures, inspiration will take hold and these lost little pieces will find new life…..as art.