PPF: Final Cabinet of Curiosities

Last month's theme at the Sketchbook Challenge was "Cabinet of Curiosities." I loved the theme and made several Cabinets (check them out here and here).  This one was laid out on my work desk all month, and I finally got around to finishing it. The background is painted with Golden acrylics, with some old text collaged in below my curiosities. the two items in the middle are copies of swap artwork I made. I took the photographs of the skull on the hand and the mixed face in a natural history museum. The antlered woman is from a fashion magazine (check out the spider on her neck) and the other curiosities are from purchased collage sheets. I'm posting this to Paint Party Friday. You can check out the other entries at this link.  Which is your favorite curiosity? 

Attitude of Gratitude {6}

Time for my penultimate posting of pages from my November Attitude of Gratitude journal. To see my earlier pages and to learn more about my journal, click on the "gratitude" label at the bottom of this post. These first two pages, up top, offer very general statements of gratitude - I am grateful for those I love, those who love me, and those people who make me happy.  The quote on the left hand side of the page comes from Bernice's Attitude of Gratitude challenge blog, Day 25. The page on the right hand side was inspired by my friend Deb's blog post from last Friday.  You can see her version here. I fell in love with her quote from Marcel Proust ("Let us be grateful to the people who make us happy; they are the charming gardeners who make our souls blossom.") and knew I wanted to use it in my journal. 
The second set of pages for today discuss very specific things for which I am grateful:

The page on the left is from Day 24 of Bernice's Challenge Blog - Photography. I used her quote "When people look at my pictures, I want them to feel the way they do when they want to read a line of a poem twice." - Robert Frank. The page features two photographs I took, one in Venice and one in Budapest. As my journaling says, photography has brought me so many blessings, and I am grateful for all of them.  The page on the right is a variation of her Day 28 prompt - Seasons. I wrote about how grateful I am for the various sports seasons which my family enjoys! Washi tape and faux stitching were two techniques she featured on her blog this month, and I used them on these two pages.
I've only got one page left in my journal! I know I'll find an inspiring prompt in the next few days to finish it up. Did you do a gratitude project this month? If so, are you almost done?  And for everyone, let me know if anything here catches your eye.  I love comments!

Wordless Wednesday: Leave your llama at home

Sign at entrance to Cunha Soccer Complex, Nov. 24, 2012

2012 Soccer Alumni Game (photo essay)

On Saturday, my son's high school soccer team played the annual alumni game. It was great to see so many alumni there, enjoying the beautiful day.

One of our mid-fielders broke his leg during the football season, so now he's our manager.  I loved his look.

And it was nice to get a good photograph of Henry's coach (didn't notice the cool reflection in his sunglasses until I uploaded these):

But for me, it was all about watching my boy:

The alumni kept the game close during the first half, but the Varsity eventually won 8-3. I can't wait for the rest of the season!

A Peek Inside My Life

Outside My Window... my neighbors are starting to put up Christmas lights, and I'm surprised by how much it makes me smile.
Around the house and garden... I'm living with a very goofy dog. She still has a lot of puppy in her, and she thinks she can fit into Gypsy's little bed.
I am thinking... that I will start decorating for Christmas early this year.
I am thankful for... the start of soccer and basketball season; love seeing my kids play.
From the kitchen... the last of the turkey and mashed potatoes. We spent Thanksgiving Day with some good friends, but Paul cooked up some of our holiday favorites so we could have leftovers. I love that man.
I am wearing ...  shorts; we are still having gorgeous weather.
I am hoping ... for good news from Paul's doctors this week.  He's undergoing some new tests. Prayers definitely appreciated.
I am reading... my students' final papers; grading is the only bad part of my job. I also hope to read the material for some online classes.  By the way, in case you haven't heard, Kat Sloma is giving away a free ebook on digital photography basics. you can download it here.
I am busy creating... the final pages of my Gratitude Journal and loving the way it has turned out; also ordered my Christmas cards and created some photo cards to give as gifts.
I am hearing...  a voice in my head repeating this quote from Bernice's Attitude of Gratitude blog: “Love is the only reality and it is not a mere sentiment. It is the ultimate truth that lies at the heart of creation.”   Rabindranath Tagore
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P.S. I put the numbers 1-19 into the random generator, and up popped "2," which means the winner of The Good Neighbor Cookbook is Scrappy Jacky!  I'll be in touch to get whatever information I need.

Attitude of Gratitude {5}

I hope everyone is enjoying their weekend - here in the United States it is a four day weekend to celebrate Thanksgiving. In keeping with the spirit of the season, I have been working in a gratitude journal, playing along with Bernice's Attitude of Gratitude Challenge Blog. To see more of my journal pages, simply click on the "gratitude" tag at the bottom of this post.  I have five more pages to complete in my journal and about eight more days left of November, so I think I will complete it by the month's end.
For the page on the left, I used part of Bernice's quote prompt from Day 22 Thanksgiving.  I chose the last sentence, "Gratitude makes sense of our past, brings peace for today and creates a vision for tomorrow." Melody Beattie. I also used her technique prompt, to stamp with gesso (which I then painted with Byzantine metallic green paint). I decided to record a few random things for which I am grateful and mounted the journaling on shrine-shaped pieces of text (edged with brown paint). I thought this worked well with the two small pieces of artwork on my background page.  I am grateful for my students who say such nice things to me, caring doctors and therapists and the dogs who make me go outside and walk in nature.
The page on the right draws on the Day 21 Celebration prompt.  I used the quote from Oprah Winfrey, "The more you praise and celebrate your life, the more there is in life to celebrate."  I added "I am grateful for good times spent with family and friends." I adapted the technique prompt ("use wrapping paper") to use a piece of handmade paper I had on my desk. More brown paint for edging and stamping, along with Adirondacks acrylics cranberry.
Have you entered my Thanksgiving weekend give-away yet? The deadline to enter is Sunday night (California time). To enter, go to this post and leave the type of comment requested. 

PPF: Safe and Secure

Hi regular readers and PPF Friends! It's been way too long since I played along with Paint Party Friday. This month I've been busy with other things (including a Gratitude Journal - you can check that out, along with my Thanksgiving give-away by clicking on this link), so I'm really happy to have completed something for today. 
I've been tinkering with this art journal page for a while and have finally declared it done. It had its genesis in the Fall Fearless and Fly Prompt #4: Safe and Secure, using warm colors (blues, greens, violets). When I thought about it, I realized that I feel safe and secure late at night, snuggled in my bed, knowing that my family is also safely tucked in all around me. I realized that I had not been sleeping well at all whenever my husband was in the hospital for his chemotherapy treatments.  A few cycles ago, my daughter asked if she could sleep with me while dad was in the hospital. I said yes, and I slept so much better. Now she sleeps with me whenever Paul is gone; it truly does make me feel more safe and secure. The four dragonflies on the journal page represent my family (can you see the little hearts). The two plum damsel flies are the dog and cat (who sleep with me and my husband) and the solo plum damsel represents my daughter's dog, who sleeps with her. The dragonfly stencil is from Club Scrap. The flowers are stamped with gesso. Besides the blues, greens and violets, I also used micaceous iron oxide around the edges. 
Thanks to Artists in Blogland for sponsoring the Fall Fearless and Fly challenge series and Kristin and Eva for sponsoring Paint Party Friday. To see the rest of the PPF entries, check out this link. Thanks for stopping by!