Friday, May 18, 2012

Gelli Plate - My New Art Toy


I've been reading about gelatin printing in blog land and the amazing monoprints you can make for backgrounds.  Trust me, this thing is addictive!  Check out the website for a video how-to.  There is also a Facebook page full of ideas and uploads of cool prints.

This is the printing plate:


Basic printing is pretty simple - load on some acrylic paint:


Then use a brayer to spread the paint over the gel plate.  I used too much paint on a few and not enough on others - seems like the trick it to get enough paint to create texture without so much that it flows over the textured pattern.

Now the fun - press items into the paint to create some texture.  I pressed on a piece of sequin waste, the inside of a Starbucks coffee sleeve, a stencil letter and a foam flower stamp.

Now just lay paper (I used white card stock) on the Gelli plate and rub very gently to make sure the paint.   Lesson learned - the stencil letter left lots of white space....


Another try with yellow and blue paint.  I used a wood-grain tool to make the semi-circular design.


And here's the print:

 

Clean-up is easy - I wiped the plate with baby wipes (carefully so you don't make scratches/dings in the plate.  It is pretty sturdy, but since it is gel, it would get scratched).  I still had some paint left on, probably because I used too much on some, so I washed it off gently with some mild dish soap and patted dry with paper towels.  The plate stores in its case.


Not sure you can make a mistake with this - even some that had bloopers have sections that will make interesting cards, ATCs, and backgrounds.  I want to try fabric printing, using other things to make texture - bubble wrap, buttons, stamps- and overstamping  the print, adding embellishments, text, images - stay tuned!

Monday, May 14, 2012

Cube Farm Dweller


I've spent the last three months at my temporary gig in a cube farm.   This is my last week on the farm and I'm ready to be let loose.  It's a good gig, but I've got lots on my agenda -  a trip to Scotland, family visits, gardening, art fun and sewing projects  to name a few.   Time to pack up my stuff !

A few arty doo-dads


My chair was pretty ratty, so I draped on old tablecloth and tied it in the back  - instant "reupholstery".  Shots of color are mandatory since cube farms are big on beige - lots of boring beige, bathed in the glow of fluorescent lighting.  I love how so many of my fellow farm-dwellers bring in color - there are lots of pashminas draped over walls and chairs to combat the beige-blahs.

No trees are being saved during this  project.  Used Post-It note art installation!




I'm really looking forward to attacking my growing list of projects. Bye-bye cube !

Saturday, May 12, 2012

The Pick of the Planet



It's May, and that means my annual pilgrimage to garden nurseries is in full swing.  When we moved here I fell in love with a unique nursery called "Garden of Eves".  Sadly, GoE closed up shop a few years ago.  Whenever I 'd drive by it, I'd wish my Montana Horticulture Daughter lived closer so she could open up a shop there.  That  didn't happen, but next best thing did - GoE is open,  reborn as "The Pick of the Planet" and being restored to all its  former funky glory! 

There's lots to love here - the store's name includes "specialty growers", so you won't see rows of the usual suspects here.   I love that I had to ask "what's this" and "what's that".  

The buildings are a large part of the charm .  This place makes a shabby-chic re-purposer swoon! 


Love this brick arch inside the big greenhouse.  Through that arch are all the babies waiting to be big enough to make it in the weather that is New England spring - unpredictable!  I'll be back to get some white tradescantia -a fuzzy whitish variation of wandering jew [which really needs a new common name!] and a  gorgeous red sweet potato vine.

Inside the main old building:









My favorite - the old, dilapidated green house, festooned with ivy-gone-wild:




As I was checking out Lynn asked if I was a gardener.  My response, " Well, I garden, but don't consider myself a gardener".   Gardeners are people that KNOW things!  Think I'll be learning all kinds of new things here - maybe even one day qualify !


Sunday, May 6, 2012

Kitchen Tour Ideas





We're in the thinking stage of changing out our kitchen counter tops.  By thinking, I mean that The Captain is approaching this by logical investigation and comparison shopping, and I'm freaking out.  We have lots of counter top space - 70 square feet - and I'm afraid of making a big, expensive mistake! 

He bought tickets to the Newcastle Kitchen Tour and yesterday we traipsed through some absolutely gorgeous kitchens.  Newcastle is a small town on the water and  home of  the highest per capita income in the state, making it the perfect place to check out fancy-schmancy kitchens. 

All the kitchens were professionally designed , so it was a chance to "second -hand" shop their great ideas.  Sadly, there was a "no photographs allowed" rule, so I only have a few pictures from the brochure:


I do love this all-white look - and the window shades- and the drawer pulls!



Interesting wall of cabinets without hardware - out of picture range are two large suction cup knobs that you move to whatever cupboard you need to open!

All of the houses were stunning, most were new or newly renovated.  A couple of colonial-era homes were on the tour and it was interesting to see how very old, very small kitchens were transformed and yet kept their old-world charm.

I noticed a few themes:

     *  All of the houses  except one had granite counter tops (the hold-out had soapstone). 
     *  Most houses had large islands
     *  Most had large deep, single sinks
     *  All had lots of light - either natural or artificial
     *  Window treatments were absent or minimal
     *  All had minimal clutter - counters were pretty bare
     *  Most had light colored cabinets - either light wood or painted white

We learned a couple of things - that my idea of having the stove island done in butcher block has been done and looks fantastic.  Check it out in the photo above. 

Another good idea - the off center faucet, like this one from Young House Love:





On the way home, we checked out some counter top options.  I like the idea of granite, but not the highly polished look.  The aged, "leather" finish is nice - matte with some texture:





 I also saw some Corian I liked and love the one piece sink option, plus the no-seam finish.  While it costs as much as granite (at least the color I like does), it doesn't have the instant pedigree of granite!  This is Corian Verde:


And with the Corian one-piece sink:


More searching, more looking, more investigating before taking the plunge.  Any suggestions?

 

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