What's in my Studio....

Check out this post for my GIVEAWAY, part of Our World Our Art 2014.  

And now on to the Mess Continued.... 

Part of the studio table... with vintage book page covered canvas panels, Artist Trading Cards in progress, old postage stamps (check out this fabulous shop) and a MESS! But then, you figured that part out, didn't you? :)

SeARTle Art Retreat is coming right up (next weekend) and that's what part of this mess is about. The rest is the ongoing sorting and re-organizing. You'll be proud of me... I have tossed or recycled a bunch of stuff. Ha! 

And just a shot of what's blooming in the garden this week. Oregon Grape - native to our area and a hummingbird magnet. Not the best photo, but you'll note the SUNSHINE! Not usual this time of year here, and we're loving it. 

Have a good week, everyone! 

Check in to see what other folks have on their workdesks at What's on your Workdesk Wednesday, hosted by Julia.

What's in My Studio...

Working this week on some of the gesso and watercolor paintings I started and are still in progress. My sister made an unexpected trip up to visit this weekend, so of course we had to play with our art supplies. This was a technique I showed her, although we didn't get one totally completed. (They take time with all the drying needed, and heat drying just does not give the same cool effect.) I meant to get a picture while she was sitting across the table from me, but we were too busy chatting and playing and it didn't happen. 

What is remaining today is this painting, right before I put another layer of green. You can also see some copper tape (an estate sale score) being made into inchies. The copper tape was attached to strips of mat board and textured using an embossing plate. 

In other news, this morning we went to our favorite Joe's Gardens for a few plant starts. It was sunny and beautiful (although not exactly warm). Here are the kale, beets and spinach waiting to be planted. (The large kale in the background wintered over.)

Oh my goodness, I love this time of year when the sun shines. :)

Check in to see what other folks have on their workdesks at What's on your Workdesk Wednesday, hosted by Julia.

What's in My Studio... fairy house makings!

Fairy house makings! 

Scavanged bits and pieces from the recent wind storm drying in front of the furnace vent. You'll note the hose from the vacuum at the top left. Many leftover droppings even though most are on newspaper. 

The cones and the light green mossy branches at the right were just brought home from my hubby's first foray for morel mushrooms today. (He found a few... they are almost ready!) 

Hubby cut the door for the fairy house. 

We used a wood bird house from Joann's, which will be the base. More on this project to follow... 

Out on the planting table, just outside the studio walls is this adorable little planter. Oops, this shot is in the greenhouse waiting for the dirt. Rest assured it does have it's dirt and is happily awaiting further growth. 

My great niece painted this pot herself, for my birthday (Saturday). Part of my happy day included hanging out with M and her brother in the morning while Mom worked for a couple of hours. Yay for me!

In other news, I've had a busy week in the Etsy shops. They are keeping me hopping for sure (and in spending money) and also keeping me well on track to triple my sales this year. I may have to bump that goal up. Another yay! :D

I'm still happy! Happiness is, after all, a state of mind.  

OMG, is anyone else addicted to this song. O.o  

Sharing with Julia and the rest of the Wednesday Work Desk sharing folks... 

What's in my Studio

It's another What's in my Studio Day... and Whats on my Workdesk Wednesday. 

So many things going on this week! One of my priorities has been making more of these vintage bottles with replica labels for my Etsy Shop. Folks seem to like them, so I like to make sure I have a few of each design in stock. 

You can see some Artist Trading Cards scattered about. Partially getting ready for our local ATC trade this coming Saturday and partially just playing. The things on the ledge are just there on their way to some yet-to-be-determined final storage spot. The terra cotta pot is from the office, and the pens are also awaiting their final storage spot. It will happen one of these days. 

I'm unlikely to make my re-organization deadline for myself of my upcoming birthday, but that's okay. Messy is just the way it flows most days in my studio. :)

And just to celebrate the Spring Equinox this week... a view of crocus in the yard. Yay for Spring! 

Check out what others around the world are doing at Julia's What's on Your Workdesk Wednesday. 

What's in my Studio - crocus

Crocus sketch in progress

I was totally inspired by this "Last Words" page from a regular magazine I get from our local Food Co-op. We only have a few crocus in the yard this year after re-doing some of the garden beds last year. We added raised beds over the garden where a lot of my crocus formerly resided. Even though we transplanted a lot of the bulbs, very few have shown their little heads. I'll be re-planting come next fall. 

I'm still in the clean the office and studio re-organization mode. And becoming a bit despondent with the lack of progress. How the heck did I get so much crap, I want to know? I'm at the point where I'm going to box some of it up to get it out of my sight, and will tackle it again later. Anyone have suggestions, other than chucking the lot into the garbage bin? *grin* 
(I do have the toss, donate and keep boxes going strong, but it's sorting the keep that's undoing me.) 

In other news, it's almost been warm here. Well, if you call 50 degrees with a bit of sunshine warm. It's not as cold as it was, so that's improvement. And I noticed this weekend that the Oregon Grape in the front yard has buds!  They are one of the first blooming native flowers and the hummingbirds flock to them. Spring is coming! Yay!

So... what's on your work desk today? Check out what others are doing with Julia's What's on Your Workdesk Wednesday. 

What's in my Studio - clean desk!

I've been sorting and cleaning and working on getting organized. It's a slow process when you also clear out old boxes of stored papers that couldn't be tossed/shredded yet... and now can. I've found a few fun things along the way, and gotten rid of lot's of stuff. It's still a work in progress. 

The desk and table in my office look much better! It feels SO good to have it cleared. My Etsy mail packaging station is now on the table. You can see the little scale and small pile of books that will be listed shortly. The blue thing is the paper cutter for cropping labels to fit small packages. A few matted prints are beyond, also waiting to be listed. Oh, and you can see a box under the table. It has additional books ready to be listed. 

In other news, we had snow over the weekend, and still have a bit. Here's a shot of our front yard on Saturday afternoon. 

Hope your week is going well! 

Sharing with Julie's What's on Your Workdesk Wednesday. 

What's in my Studio...

We're still traveling. The art desk where I'm working right now is the coffee table in the condo we're renting. Here's a shot of a painting in progress: 

Colors aren't true, but you can get an idea. I'm quite enjoying my Peerless Water Colors, which are so convenient for traveling and using with my water brush. Of course, that doesn't mean I left my other travel set at home... it's here too, just not at use today. 

Also wanted to share a bit of the trades and goodies I acquired at the ARTzona retreat this past weekend. 

I had a wonderful time visiting with familiar friends, and meeting some "old" online friends in person for the first time. What a delight! And of course, met a lot of new folks as well. Most of the folks I've traded with at some time or another on atcsforall.com. It's such fun being in a room full of artists and taking in the creative atmosphere. 

One more shot... of my Etsy work station while on the road. Laptop is with me and I've been conducting business as we go along. I have orders from both shops to mail as soon as we arrive home. :)

Sharing my traveling workspaces with Julie's What's on Your Workdesk Wednesday. 

What's in my Studio...Lap

My work desk while traveling to Arizona is my lap... as we're driving along. These pages have bits of things to remember and a sketch of some of the scenery along the way. I plan to watercolor this sketch and made little notes on the side to remember the colors. You can't see the sketch very well, unfortunately. 

Check out what others have on their work desk at Julie's What's on Your Workdesk Wednesday.

What's in My Studio

A painting while in progress on my studio table. 

Three Orange Flowers - nearly finished

I've been asked to hang a few of my paintings at Giuseppe's Al Porto for the next couple of months beginning January 15th! Cool!  This painting will be one of them.

Three Orange Flowers - 8 x 10 (#13)
Print available

Another painting on the same theme, finished Sunday. 

Two Orange Flowers 6x8 (#12)

These are paintings #12 & 13 for the "30 Paintings in 30 Days" challenge. I'm not going to be able to continue this technique in a few days, as we'll be traveling. Back to watercolor sketches until we are settled again for a few days. :)

What are you working on this week? 

Check out what others have on their work desk at

What's in my Studio

I was surprised this past week with a package from members of atcsforall.com. I'm one of the moderators on the site, and these wonderful folks have been secretly collecting little cards and gifts from a whole lot of the members to thank us for being there. Isn't it fun? Thank you to all the members who sent goodies! You made my month!
If you like trading mail art of all types, check atcsforall out. We're a friendly place to visit.

This week for WOYWW, I'm sharing a bit from my office/studio/mailing center, which is at the other end of the house from the "studio". This is the laptop command center, with a view (that you can't see) of the evergreen outside the window that houses a suet feeder. Many little birds come and visit me daily. I love it!
That pile next to the laptop are books that are in the process of being listed in my Vintage Etsy. They have been photographed and just need me to finish the listings so they can be posted.  You can see my open computer glasses case, and a couple of bottles and some caliper thingies that will also be listed. I can't remember why I had the double sided tape out. The cord is for the camera. Oh, and there's a tiny 2x2 collage canvas there too next to the books.

Once I have the books listed, they will be stored on the shelves in the back bedroom, which has become the Etsy storage and photography room. I actually have two sets of shelves, this is the smaller one.

Etsy books storage shelf

And this pile is some of the old sheet music I bought at the recent Friends of the Library Book sale. (That's where a lot of the book pile came from too! I love libratry book sales!) Most of the music is in very poor condition, so I'm listing them in my Etsy shop as ephemera. I did keep a pile for my art too. :)

Apropos of nothing... does anyone know how to get more hours in the day? :)

Sharing with What's on Your Workdesk Wednesday and  Artist Studio Day.

What's in my Studio...

This has been a bit of a crazy week, with a few pesky health issues causing some stress. All will be well. However with all that is going on, I have not taken an actual picture of my studio in all it's messy glory. o.O  

I created a few ATC's this weekend for an art a-thon on atcsforall.com. This photo was taken in the studio. Does that count? :)  

I could not get this to scan well, and the photo is pretty lousy, but you kinda of get the idea.

Last weekend we went to the Port of Bellingham Holiday Festival, where the main attraction is the gingerbread house contest. This entry is by my friend Llew. City Sidewalks includes our local arts and craft store.  She got First place in her division. (You can see the blue ribbon to the right)

 This cool church is by another friend, Vonnie, who took second place. Yay for their creativity!

I'm still working on some ornaments, and pins and tiny canvases. My final Holiday show of the season (thank goodness) is this Friday in Fairhaven, from 4:30 - 9:00. So I'm getting a few more goodies ready.

Finally, I wanted to show you my recent painting on display at the Allied Arts Gallery. The open house last Friday was wonderful and I made a couple of new friends while I was there. All the art in this exhibit is under 6 x 6 inches, and in a variety of mediums. Glass work, sculpture, photography, ceramics, mosaics, and paintings.... I worked a shift in the gallery Saturday, so had the opportunity to get a closer look at all the wonderful art.

Low Tide and Autumn Mountain III by Helen Campbell

Hope you're having a wonderful week! 

Sharing with What's on Your Workdesk Wednesday and  Artist Studio Day.

What's in my Studio this week...

This week I've actually been working on paintings! Yay! 

An almost finished mixed media canvas destined for the Petite Fours Miniature Art Show at Allied Arts.  The show starts this Friday, Dec 6, and goes through Dec 19th. If you're in the area, I hope you have a chance to visit the gallery at 1418 Cornwall Ave in Bellingham. 

Low Tide 5x5 mixed media canvas WIP

You can see the molding paste and soft gloss gel containers, which are sort of holding up the pictures I'm using as reference. These are photos I've taken on various adventures around our area. I also have a gazillion buttons and you can set the tin and two jars in the background if you look closely. And lace! I found this lace at a garage sale last summer. It's mid-century french lace, a very cool find! 

And just because the WOYWW folks love seeing bits of the mess, here's a shot of the closet.It actually doesn't look too bad. I have things stored (mostly) in clear plastic tubs I got at Costco, so I can see what I have at a glance. Alas, not everything is in the containers yet. Some is still in boxes and needs to be transferred. One of these days, I'll get it all finished and organized. I will. Really. :)

Have a wonderful week! Check back on Friday for a view of some of the new paintings. 

Sharing with What's on Your Workdesk Wednesday and  Artist Studio Day.

What's in my studio...

A peek at the mess especially for my WOYWW friends... :)

The piling station for in progress work that I'm going to get to one of the these days... The shelves are full of journals, some done, some not. Some of the old maps I use in my art are there too. Stuff. 

My Big Kick with dies and a pile of in progress paintings in the background. 

And the first layer of molding paste and string on a 5x5 canvas... I'm working on this one again tomorrow. I really am! I plan to have it ready for the Petit Fours Miniature Art Show submission next week. I'll share the progress on Friday. 

I'm continuing to work on things for the Holiday Festival of the Arts which continues until Dec 24th. Restock items for things that have sold and I don't have enough to replace. Cool, actually. :)
Also I'm prepping for the evening art sale on Dec 13th. As well as the Petit Fours show next week. Will the work ever be done? I'm feeling exhausted tonight.

However, I'll be fresh and ready to go in the morning. I'll check in with folks then!

Sharing with What's on Your Workdesk Wednesday and  Artist Studio Day.

What's in my Studio..

What's in my studio this week? A messy work area! Oh my! I got started tidying this weekend, but started a few more projects so the mess continues. Ah well!

The Holiday Festival of the Arts booth did get set up, although I'll be rearranging slightly tomorrow. This post shows the initial set up.

I couldn't bring myself to take a picture of the messy work area, so what I'll show you today is the sort of tidy table where I'm finishing up some more matting of prints for the Holiday Festival. I'm also participating in a Handmade Holiday Market with other local Etsy sellers on Dec 13th, so making sure I have enough to tempt buyers.

You can see my trusty ATG gun. I just changed the tape, and need to put a backup refill on my shopping list. Also have some framed ACEO prints showing.

And lest you think I'm not getting any art done, I started these wood watercolor gesso abstract paintings. I'm at the stage where I'm trying to figure out what will appear in the random patterns the watercolor and gesso mix created. These wood pieces were leftover bits from other projects.

4 1/4 x 3 3/4 wood abstract WIP

8 1/2 x 5 1/2 wood abstract WIP

Have a wonderful week!

Sharing with What's on Your Workdesk Wednesday and  Artist Studio Day.