The Summer of...

So I will confess to being a workaholic. If I'm pried away from my home office and studio for very long I admit, I get a little anxious thinking of everything I want to get done here. But lately a new pattern seems to be forming. Today my brother (love him) managed to get me away to join he and our mom to see the movie "Avengers". By the time the 20 minutes of previews and commercials was over, my anxiety about my to-do list was quieting down, and I was able to have a good time hanging with them and seeing an excellent, action-packed movie. I know the old adage about "all work and no play...", but sometimes I get so busy in my "artist with her nose to the grindstone, paying her dues" mindset, I forget to make some time to do things just for fun. But when I do, the payoff is that I return to my work refreshed and inspired, often with something new to bring to it.

Just to set the record straight, I love to have fun, and I do realize the importance of balance in one's life. And in the past few weeks, I've had the opportunity to enjoy a number of new adventures! In a series of firsts, I visited some new towns, walked some beautiful new nature trails, cooked some new dishes, went kayaking, and went to an amazing Korean sauna I'd never been to. Just reflecting on the past month or two, I'm putting it out there right now: This is gonna be an amazing, wonderful summer (more great firsts, please!). Professionally and personally, artistically and otherwise. I'm going to make that happen. What are you putting out there?

P.S. I promise I'll be posting projects I'm working on and sharing techniques as part of my amazing summer - stay tuned!

A Contagious Thing

A while back I had the pleasure of meeting and helping a beautiful elderly man. I know that sounds funny, but it is accurate because it really refers to his energy and the glow in his face. He was with a sweet lady whom I had met before and who had talked about him to me. According to her, (she was probably several years his junior) they had been long time friends and roommates, and (I suspected) that she also acted as his caretaker. Before I ever met the gentleman, she had talked about what a kind friend he had always been, and how they had been there for each other, but it was a special privilege to get to meet him myself. The first thing I noticed, of course, was his frame, stiffly curled over the walker he was using. He was practically doubled over, and had to lift his head to make eye contact. When he did, and we began to talk, I noticed a pair of stunning bright, crysophrase colored eyes dancing and opening wide with expression as he talked.

crysophrase gemstones

They made me feel that the "real" him, his youthful spirit was there inside, with the same vibrance he must have had in his youth, even though his physique did not reflect that. When he became tired, she and I helped him to her SUV. We had to go very slow, so we had time to talk more, and he told me that he was about to have his 83rd birthday. I offered my congratulations and he made a few jokes about it, then slipped into a bit of philosophy about life. He stopped to ask me how old I was, then huffed in amazement when I told him, telling me I didn't look near that old, lol. When he asked me about my work and my philosophies on life, (his mistake?) I must have gotten this faraway look in my eyes, and launched into my ideals about making the most of every single day, how thankful I was for so many things that some folks will never have or enjoy, and how much I love my work. He shook his head, telling me that what I said gave him chills, and that we all need to keep that sort of perspective on living, to get the most out of it.
It was kind of a moment, like two spirits who were polar opposites (at least externally), having a brush with understanding a little of the meaning of life, and realizing how much alike we all can be. Okay, yes, maybe a little corny, but genuine, so go with it.

Anyway, the point is that passion is totally contagious. Passion for life, passion for learning, passion for whatever makes us feel fulfilled. Any of us, when we reveal what makes our spirit sing, can inspire others to realize or just remember their own. What would the world be like if we did?

Wordless Wednesday



 



Good Vibes in Blogland

I'm thrilled and thankful to share that I was given the Liebster Award by my friend Ildi, of Ildi's Papier Mache today! Vă mulţumim, Ildi!!

The Liebster Award is given by bloggers to their fellow bloggers who inspire them and have under 200 followers. The Liebster Award takes it’s name from the German word meaning Beloved, Dearest or Favorite.

Here's my award!

The tradition includes passing the award along to 5 bloggers who have motivated and inspired you. To accept the award you must:
1. Link back to the person who gave it to you and thank them
2. Post the award to your blog
3. Give the award to 5 bloggers with less than 200 followers that you appreciate and value.
4. Leave a comment on the 5 blogs to let them know that they have been offered this award.

Here are my chosen honorees:

1. Tracy, at One Brown Crafter, who inspires me endlessly with her wonderful art and ideas. She frequently adds amazing content to her blog and facebook page!

2. Cassandra, of Creations by CC, who is a talented photographer who also shares her home, garden, and craft projects, plus yummy recipes.
3. Tisa, at Mochatographer, another super talented photographer, who shares her adventures with clients, equipment, techniques, and her inpirations.

4. Aimee, of Made in the Fold, who creates beautiful handwritten invitations, custom stamps, and more.

5. Dana, of Tumblestone Handmakery, who makes whimsical jewelry, frames, and more, and shares her inspiration in blogland.

I invite you to check out all these talented people- you will not be disappointed!

Thanks all, for your contribution to the creative universe!!!

un{LUCKY} Friday

So I'm thumbing my nose at Friday the 13th. It's been a pretty uneventful day. Possibly because I got all my mishaps in earlier in the week. I did all kinds of slipping, fumbling, dropping, etc. and topped it off by being sick and slow to finish my tasks. I also found out my laptop likes dark roast. :o(. The sight of me grabbing it up, flipping it upside down to try to keep hot coffee from seeping into the works, then cleaning, whining and praying really hard must have been HIlarious. Funny thing, once the coffee dried, the pages seemed to load faster, lol. Caffeine is king. So I guess by the time today rolled around I was just done. The quota had been met.

I'm feeling better now, and I even made some progress on a project that's been on the backburner for a while. It's still in its infancy, but will become a part of my website very soon. I invite you to take a look at my new goods shop, which consists of all kinds of great items that have my art and designs on them!

http://www.cafepress.com/embellishedbyrenee

You'll find wall decor, home goods, accessories, and soon apparel, with lots of my paintings, drawings, photography and digital art, old and new, emblazoned on it. Hope you take a look and enjoy what you find!

New Frontier

What's been on my mind the past couple of weeks (at least in the marketing section of my brain)? Among other things, QR codes. I've been hearing about them and seeing them pop up everywhere, but until recently, have kept the idea of getting one for lil' ol' moi on the back burner. What is a QR code, you ask? It is a series of pixels arranged in a design, which, when scanned with a smart phone or tablet, takes you to a specific website.

scan me!

Odds are, you're seeing them pop up everywhere as well. Anyway, just like every other new social media/ networking/ marketing           "you need to do this today" thing that I come across everyday, when I first heard about regular folks like myself getting them, I said, yeah, that sounds good, but it'll just have to go on the bottom of the pages long to-do list. Well, in the same spirit that has moved me to finally find time to update my website, get the mobile version functional, and make other progress, I, Renée Parker, am finally going to generate a QR code for myself! Humor me, I'm taking baby steps to bigger things :o).

Just by googling "QR code generator", you'll find a slew of websites where you can plug in a website and instantly download a custom QR code to use as a direct link. I plan to create one to use on stickers, which I will then slap on my business cards, my packaging, my forehead, etc.

This is the back of my business card with a sample QR code sticker

 These are the days where one must make their work easy access, and cater to the world of plugged-in folks with short attention spans, lol. Edited to add: Scan applications used on smartphones, tablets, and other devices can easily be downloaded free of charge. There are numerous different scan apps available, and they can be found on itunes, the android marketplace, or by googling "scanner application". Many of these applications are primarily used by consumers for comparison shopping by scanning traditional barcodes in stores, but also work for QR codes!

So that's my latest scheme. Stay tuned-- who can say what else is brewing, lol.

Wordless Wednesday

One Tip Tuesday

Today I would like to tout the benefits of the humble spray bottle for studio use and beyond...

This simple, dollar store denizen (or free, if you recycle an empty cleaning bottle) can serve a multitude of purposes. In the studio, with just plain water in it, I use it for various tasks, such as: light spill cleanup, rewetting papier mache so I can continue to sculpt it, reviving acrylic and watercolor paint (I sometimes spray it directly into the little watercolor cups!), and for helping me achieve interesting paint effects and textures (just by spraying lightly at different stages of the drying process). It's also nice for clearing glue and paint off my hands until I'm ready to stop and wash up, and for wetting fabric for stretching over shapes and forms. As a bonus, if I ever have kids, I think this would make a handy "monster spray". A couple of squirts under the bed or in the closet, and no more monsters! Do you use a spray bottle in your work? What are your best uses? Do you use plain water, or a special mixture?

On Color

Submitted for your inspiration...

We only have to look closely at the easily accessible world around us to find the color and form that has inspired artists and designers since the beginning of time. Live with your eyes open!

Finale Friday

No, Finale Friday is not gonna be a "thing" now on my blog, lol. I just wanted to take a sec to share the finished spin on the mini painting I posted on Wednesday. After I posted the sketch, I was supposed to go to bed, but I just looked at that thing and I couldn't stand it. And since my studio is connected to my bedroom by my bathroom, I came up with every excuse to run through the bathroom like a hamster in one of those tubes just to "start" painting a "little". So I finished the painting before I hit the shower. And here it is:

"au lait au lait" 2.5in x2.5in acrylic on canvas

The first in a series of themed minis, I was inspired by how much I enjoy moments with all my favorite cups, with my favorite things to put in them, while I'm working, relaxing, spending time with my favorite peoples... I can't make it sound as fun as it's going to be when there are a number of these finished to look at. But I have been trying to get myself in the habit of doing regular small paintings for practice and for studies for larger pieces. And when I thought of the cups for subject matter, well, that = motivation to get rolling. Funny, if you find something that gets you interested and excited, you can use that to reach a goal. Like getting motivated to exercise.

Anyway, a habit takes 21 days to form, right? So if I commit to doing a minimum of 3 non-anal, non fussy small or mini paintings a week for 3 weeks, then I'll be on my way to bigger, better things. Crossing my fingers, toes, and paintbrushes...

Wordless Wednesday

Ideas Galore



a batch of papier mache pulp
waiting to become something amazing

Okay, if you're just stumbling onto this blog, my work, or me, for that matter, you probably don't know that one of my all time favorite mediums (as an artist with a short attention span) is papier mache. My name is Renée, and I am a papier mache addict. There I said it.

Anyway, I was online doing some research for some new techniques. I had stumbled onto an old book with a different type of paper art that I wanted to try. In my searching, I happened onto a new design blog, which I instantly followed and wanted to share. So here we are. Dornob: Design Ideas Daily is a rabbit hole of things to look at in every type of design. They just happened to have a post that included examples of beautiful forms made of papier mache that sucked me in: http://dornob.com/pulp-projects-recycled-paper-pots-planks-shelves-more/. I will warn you, this blog is packed to the brim with ads, but if you can look past them to the meat of the content, you might find some gems yourself. Enjoy!