Art Journal

 

a scattering, smidgen of, sample, snippet,,,
some pages from my journal

 

XO, April

 

 



 

How to Fill a Book (and a Giveaway)

Sketchbook, notebook, diary, journal… I have always wanted to hold in my hand a complete book filled with my thoughts, notes, sketches and/or art. But until recently, I was going about it all wrong. Once, I did completely fill a journal/diary. It felt somewhat satisfying but something about it didn't feel thorough. Although I didn't realize it then, what felt wrong was that it didn't contain any doodles or sketches.  When I tried to keep a sketchbook, I felt my work looked forced, flat and lifeless. Up until very recently, I kept these ~ a sketchbook, a journal, and a spiral bound for lists. When the number of things in a book that I didn't like grossly outweighed the morsels I did, I would go through them, and tear out pages…I would save drawings that I was happy with, of a thought that I felt I had captured well, of the list I needed. All the pages I wasn't happy with were tossed and the blank pages were left. The poor books would end up looking like a binder- just two hard covers leaning into one another left with some blank pages and a bunch of raw edges along the binding inside. 

Well, now I have one book. It is for everything. I have not torn out one page and I am well on my way to filling it up. How did I do it? I started simply. Most often, the page starts as a list (grocery, things to do…) then it may get a quote or something that made me smile that I don’t want to forget. Days later that same page may be revisited with some paint covering the list I don’t need anymore or something I wrote that I don’t feel needs to be read again. It is messy, full of layers. I love it… when I use it as a sketchbook my art feels more alive.  When I need a list, I know right where it is. And, I have never had a journal for my thoughts that I have felt more comfortable with.   

Here are some bits of it…

  

  

     

I would like to give away a notebook for you to fill. If you would like to be entered to win it, leave a comment. A winner will be announced here on Monday 6/23. ♥

***The winner(s) are both of you who commented! :) 

XO,

April

Happy Saturday.

Hello!

Wishing you all a Jam-Jam-Zin-Zin day!

Ojai Fish. A New Painting.

Little Ojai Fish

(Not so little really. 36”x36” acrylic, ink, gold leaf and paper on canvas)

XO,

April

Bees Bums

There is a hive near a path I walk daily. The other day I was warned about it by a well meaning person. I wanted to be polite but this warning really bothered me. Imagine being warned about a lovely group of friends you look forward to seeing on your morning walk. I wished for a minute with this man who was already on his way… I wanted to say, let’s not be fearful of these helpful little friends with the adorable fuzzy bums!

XO,

April

Silly and a Kiss

Love this.

A lovely collection of pictures that "capture the human experience" HERE.

XO, 

April

Spring Mantle

Spring Mantle....

*A garland from  This Etsy seller I had various styles of these glass garlands in my favorites on ESTY for a good year... Then one day I just cracked and bought it before I could talk myself out of it. I have never regretted that purchase. It's one of my favorite things. 

*A "Chocolate" bunny. It's ceramic but he looks so much like a chocolate bunny! And he holds candy inside. There was a decent sized earthquake here last night. Many of my friends who live close by lost things. I was certain this bunny was going to be broken. I was so happy when I arrived home and found him whole. This morning he got a good helping of earthquake gum to hold him in place. :)

*“Happily” on the chalkboard. Because yes, Happily. 

*Daffodils. About $1.00 at Trader Joes in the spring. I buy a bunch just about every time I go.

I love spring!!!

XO,

April

i've never gotten a tattoo, but i think i must have sucker written across my forehead (Me too!)

posted by jennifer and April

so i did a quick trip to albertson's friday morning.  i had to get one item... ricotta cheese.  
it is not one of my normal shopping stops, but since it is close, it is good for those random forgotten items.  


when i first went in the door, i noticed an advertisement for a game they started.  monopoly. you know those grocery store gimmicks (which by the way, i just looked up in my dictionary circa 1972... and the first definition of gimmick is:  a secret means of controlling a prize wheel, ect.  anything that tricks or mystifies; deceptive or secret device)   telling... very telling.  
now, i had two reactions to this... almost simultaneously.   one being oooh a monopoly game. fun!   and the second being, ugh!  not another scam game.  

(When I walked into my Albertsons, there was this poor guy dressed up like the Monopoly man passing out the game boards.) 

i remember the great albertson game fiasco of 2011... (or 2012... or whenever) when i was so into it.  i would spend so much time obsessing about what stickers i needed to win a hawaiian vacation.  i didn't win anything.  i had 16 duplicate stickers for multiple items, and was one sticker away from winning 10 million dollars... but not even a $5.00 shopping spree was to be had.  I too, was instantly brought back to the last time they did this Collect- these- tiny- coupons- lick- and- stick- ‘em- on- a- game- board- game- waste- hours- hoping- to-win- an- elusive- prize game of 2012… and so when I saw the poor 19 year old kid dressed as a Monopoly man I,  like my sister,  had two very opposite feelings at the exact same time. YeS!!! FUN!!! I’m may win a prize!!! And at the same time… No!!! UrGH!!! Puhlease…I’m no sucker!!!

nevertheless, within 10 feet of walking in the door, i had 3 packages of red vines in my hand. 
you get a bonus ticket for each package.  i excused this for myself by thinking that they would be great for a movie night over the weekend.

I kept right on task- Next to the can of olives I was going to buy was another can...that came with a bonus ticket! I was not swayed. In my head kept running the puhlease!!! I’m no sucker! I picked up the can I would normally buy and congratulated myself for not getting caught up in the sham, racket, flimflam.    

then, when i got to the checkout line, i was thinking, if the checker asks if i am playing the monopoly game, should i tell her no?  it is like the classic angel on one shoulder, devil on the other.   but in this case, one one shoulder is a calm and sensible gentleman shaking his head. 
with the supreme knowledge that nothing will come out of this "game" other than a littering of spare game pieces at the bottom of my purse, and possibly adhesive on the tickets that might make me sick when i lick them.   on the other shoulder is a fun 17 year old.  jumping up and down.   her side ponytail flipping around.   squealing in delight at the prospect of $10,000,000.  or maybe just a hawaiian vacation.


I made it to the check out all proud of myself.  The checker said to the old woman in front of me, “ You earned 5 game tickets” And my pulse quickened! See, I AM a sucker… I just try to keep that in check. But being a sucker can be so much FUN! So, when the old woman said “No, I don’t need those”. I wanted to scream “Give ‘em here!” or at least say politely, “I’ll take them.” But I didn’t. Instead I thought…wow-what a responsible, sane old woman.  I thought that for a moment but I did collect my (1) ticket and on my way out I thought… I like playing games. It’s fun. Darn it. I should have asked that old lady who doesn't play shell games for her tickets. 

so when the checker handed me my 4 tickets i calmly accepted them.  however, i didn't take the game board....not from my checkers line at least.   i was still in the middle of the battle between mr. sensible, and miss fun.  but as i walked towards the exit, i stopped at the last check line before the door.  to grab a game board.



i did however use a wet paper towel to moisten the game pieces. Not me… That toxic glue is delish! Do you remember when we’d go to the post office with mom if she had a bunch of mail like a pile of Christmas cards? and how fun it was to lick the stamps?!

cheers! -Jennifer   XO, April

I love you...

Ways to say it….

*I love you more than all the ants in a greedy anteater's snout.

(I just read that an anteater can eat 30,000 ants in a day. Who counted that?)

*I love you more than one lady loves her pupas. 

*I love you more than all the 4 leaf clovers in Edward Martin's collection. He is the World Record Holder. Beating George Kaminski (who was in prison! and found his clovers within prison walls. Can this be real?) I am finding multiple sources saying it's so... cRaZy! Check out this Chicago Tribune Article

*Love you more than the 100 tons of dust fragments that enter earth's atmosphere daily.

*I love you more than the amount of time I could spend searching for mind blowing facts to tell you just how much.... 

hehehe. Happy Tuesday to you all. 

XO, 

April

Lighthouses and January

It is January and I am thinking about lighthouses. Not so much the structure or the mechanics of a lighthouse -although that is interesting… More so I am thinking as I drive home from the grocery store about what they can symbolize, as I’m on a walk…about the people who kept them long ago, and very often about the mysteries of the ocean. You know…The really big things.

Why am I thinking about lighthouses? The book I am reading right now, 
The Light Between Oceans takes place on an island where the main character is a lighthouse keeper. And, the book I am reading aloud to my 7 year old is Moominpappa at Sea. Have you read a Moomin book? They are my favorite chapter books for children…magical and beautifully written and thought provoking. The Moomin family moves to a lighthouse on a tiny island and have many adventures.

I recommend both books.

Following is a passage from The Light Between Oceans. The characters live on Janus- an island a half day’s journey from the coast of Australia......

“        “You know Janus is where the word January comes from? It’s named after the same god as this island. He’s got two faces, back to back. Pretty ugly fellow.”

“What’s he the god of?”

“Doorways. Always looking both ways, torn between two ways of seeing things. 

January looks forward to the new year and back to the old year. He sees past and future. And the island looks in the direction of two different oceans, down to the South Pole and up to the Equator.”            “

Here’s to thinking forward to a new year and remembering the past and to not forgetting to contemplate the important things.

*Learn more with this article about a light house keeper…. 

http://www.independent.co.uk/news/people/profiles/first-person-i-was-one-of-the-last-lighthouse-keepers-1777548.html

* And if you want to visit a lighthouse.... 

http://travel.yahoo.com/ideas/ten-best-lighthouses-sleep-011841593.html

XO,

April

Not a vacation.

Hello!

Since I posted last I have...

*picnicked on a bridge with a few of my favorite people,

*danced like crazy late into the night to some live music,

*went for a quick ride on a flying elephant,

*did some modeling for a fantastic little shop (https://www.etsy.com/shop/strawberryoaks )

*met with some new friends to discuss a good book

*explored an estuary,

*flipped into a foam pit at a trampoline park,

*visited 3 different beaches

*kissed my love by a campfire

*and I have had breakfasts, lunches and dinners with a princess and a superhero.

So- I haven't posted recently, but I have been very busy. And Happy. 

XO,

April

A Twist of Language

A handful of riddles for you. 

*What comes once in a minute,

Twice in a moment,

But never in a thousand years?

*By night they come without being fetched,

By day they are lost without being stolen.

*Light as a feather with nothing in it,

A strong man can’t hold it

Much more than a minute.

*What has a bottom 
at the top?

*What has six legs,

Two heads,

One tail and four eyes?

                             XO,

                             April

(letter M, stars, a breath, a leg :), a person on horseback)

Grand Adventures Await You in A Little Book...

This piece was created for a very special event.   

“More than 150 professional artists donate hand-crafted miniature masterpieces. The All the Arts for All the Kids Foundation throws one of the community's most well known parties which is attended by over 500 supporters - people who believe passionately in arts education. They bid on and take home these tiny treasures and all proceeds generated help provide teacher arts grants and lessons in “All the Arts for All the Kids." 

It is this organization’s passionate belief that the arts are the birthright of every child, and as such, the Foundation champions the arts in the Fullerton School District. We enthusiastically raise funds which are used exclusively to supplement the District’s ongoing arts programs.

This grass roots community effort is staffed solely by volunteers, so that all proceeds go directly to the children in every school in the District.” - http://www.alltheartsforallthekids.org

Pictured is my contribution for the 20^th annual Pin Auction  titled Little Book. It was made from a small blank book, book pages, gold thread, a wooden box lid, sticks, and paint. I am honored to be part of the event.  

A whale, A lizard (who started out as a dragon), A girl with an umbrella, a man with a top hat, 6 stars, a puffy cloud, a crescent moon, a hummingbird, a song bird, a dragonfly, 2 musical notes, a butterfly, a fish and an octopus.  All materializing out of this little book.

  

                                        XO, April            

                                                        

59 Books and a lot of LOVE

I love libraries.  I love books. Reading a good book aloud to a child is one of my favorite things. I love stories and I love art and a children’s book is quite often rich in both. A trip to our local library means 2 huge book bags full overflowing. I often get comments or funny looks from other patrons when I’m checking out or heaving 2 overfull bags to my car while towing 2 children.  I love that I can let my children choose any books that catch their eye. I love that I can choose any books that catch my eye... Or my heart. And we read them. All. The good ones a few times. Right now we have 59 books checked out. That is a lot for us but we usually average about 30. We also have many books in our own home library. Here are a handful of my favorites this week…    

*Anything by Elisa Kleven is a favorite of mine. The artwork inspires me every time I read one of her books.

*"One night when the moon was full five little mice heard the sound of music carried by the wind..."

*A sweet story about everything going wrong and ending up perfectly.

*A fantastic way to learn about history is through a children's book. 

I cry every time I read this one.

Now, Go to the library! :)

XO,

April

A Quote to Paint

XO,

April

Children's Art and an Old Ottoman

Recently I made it to a neighborhood rummage sale and had some good luck . I found a quilt, some boxes that I intend to use for paintings, a shoebox full of lace seam binding, a small deer statue that I will be dressing up for the holidays… and this ottoman,

tuffet,       pouffe,        hassock,

                                             footstool

One of the things I remember so well from my grandparent’s home was one very similar (the same material and color) although theirs was cylindrical and the grand kids loved to roll around on it......

....I was drawn to it because of those happy memories.

Around the same time someone sent me an article about an artist who combines her artwork with her children’s and then I saw a sharpie on the counter…. And my idea was hatched!

I asked my children if they would want to draw on the ottoman!

I only asked that they wouldn’t scribble, they had to pick out a spot to work and leave space for me because I was part of the project too.  

What is important is happy children and 

for them it should be about  the process not the product.

So I left the room so I wouldn’t interfere. Whatever they would have come up with, I would have been able to work with with the zen-tangle, doodle design that I had in mind. 

So after they did their art, I added mine and here is our finished product.

 

XO, April

Autumn

In less than a week we will bid adieu to summer and 
Welcome fall.

Today began my welcome for this beautiful season.

“Pumpkin trees” replaced some Eucalyptus

  trimmings on the mantle and next to them are some pumpkin candies in a jar. 

I enjoyed the perfect late afternoon light.

Oh, and fall food! 

Biscotti and Coffee for breakfast and Chicken pot pie for dinner

, April