MUSHROOM DREAMS

navigating our way 'through'

2012-01-31T14:55:00.001-05:00

she wrote about her friend who lost her mom.

she knows the feelings all too well, since having been through it just a little while back with her own mom.

this is how we connected. or rather how i contacted her.

i read her blog and she was talking about her feelings of losing her mom. i cried all night that night knowing that i too would some day soon be navigating through my own journey of my mom's illness.... she recounted her mixed emotions of love and anger and grief for the loss, and yes, also relief for a parent who has had to endure pain and sickness for so long. so utterly bitter sweet.

i instantly felt connected to her. she knew how it felt. she had made it 'through', as difficult as it was, she made it 'through'. and that was just what i needed to hear. if she could make it through, well then, so could i. i wasn't going to fall apart. and my world wouldn't come crashing down around me. i could and would make it 'through' too.

(my mom's recent scare in the hosptial a week ago)

i sent her an email. and she was very kind to reply back and offer an abundance of love and support. it was serendipidious that i would meet her that same fall at SQUAM ART WORKSHOPS. i love the way she's there for her friends. and even for those she barely knows, and yet she reaches out to comfort, despite going through her very own pain. i think she is a rather incredible being. i just wanted her, and you dear blog reader to know that.

and dear blog reader, if you are also navigating your way through the loss a loved one, know you are not alone. there are people out here in blog-o-sphere who will listen. and understand. you just have to reach out.

i dedicate this piece i very recently created , 'she kept them close to her heart', to both her and her friend.

sending lots of light, love, and prayers for a peaceful heart to her friend.

xoxx

ETSY GRAND OPENING

2012-01-28T13:53:00.000-05:00

Hand made journals, new, in my shop. Made by me!!! Please click on the image above to come visit me.... Enjoy!!!

Squeaaaaalllllllllll.... so excited. This has been a goal of mine for a very long time now.

an airy aquarian

2012-01-26T09:48:00.001-05:00

january is my birthday month. yes, i'm an aquarian. to a tee.

can't believe it's january again.... i remember my last birthday like it was yesterday. how is it that time seems to just literally whiz by.

me right now.

this saturday i'll officially be 41 years old. yet somehow my brain refuses to believe this. when someone asks me how old i am, my brain always wants to say 26. i still feel like a kid despite having 'adult' responsibilities, home, job, kids, hubby, bills to pay etc.. it's crazy.

and yet, when i attempt to sketch out my portrait, i manage to age myself about 20 years. go figure.

happy birthday to all my fellow aquarians out in blogosphere...xoxx

2012-01-24T09:39:00.000-05:00

1. charcoal and pastel, 2. eyestudy, 3. naked, 4. outline

2012-01-23T12:40:00.000-05:00

1. charcoal portrait, 2. trying to understand, 3. pre-landscape of my life, 4. post-landscape of my life, 5. WIP step one sketch, 6. charcoal and white pastel, 7. what i've learned so far, 8. practice joy

i haven't posted for a few weeks. a lot has been going on. i've been drained emotionally and physically. the only thing keeping me sane is open studio workshop. keeping my brain and my hands busy through it all.

hoping life gets back to 'normal' soon.

a more full update soon.

xoxx

OPEN STUDIO: prompt 'i am here..'

2011-12-28T18:18:00.004-05:00

journaling reads: i am here. listening to my internal compass. following the nudges towards my all that is. steering towards madness, joy, mindfulness, however you wish to describe it. sweaty palmed and anxious, amidst leaning into vulnerability. being seen. hearing my voice. running with a torch in my hand. looking up. looking beyond, moving forward. discovering a new order, decluttering, reorganizing, and deconstructing. a new attitude and a new me. becoming more and more myself with each day.

Doodle-mania

2011-12-26T21:09:00.003-05:00

Love these apps for my iPad: upad, label maker, amazing typewriter, and my bamboo stylus. I could just doodle and colour for ever.

guerilla kindness: take what you need

2011-12-23T13:36:00.002-05:00

i saw this flyer over on kelly rae roberts, and thought i'd like to make a version of my own and post them around town. myself..........these days, i could use a little bit of laughter. actually a lot of it would be nice.

feel free to take what you need... xoxx

winter solstice: releasing ceremony 2011

2011-12-22T23:41:00.004-05:00

releasing ceremony (winter solstice)

see pixie campbell's blog for details

ETSY SHOP GRAND OPENING: SAT JANUARY 28, 2012

2011-12-19T14:14:00.001-05:00

HANDMADE ARTISAN JOURNALS

I have a love affair with all things patterned paper. It's been an ongoing obsession of mine for the last many years. So much so, that I have collected more patterned paper than a girl can handle.

In addition, I also have an obsession with beautifully hand crafted artisan journals. All the journals I use are always made by me. It just feels so much more special when it's handmade.

Using my awesome stash of beautiful acid-free patterned papers for hand crafted covers, and filling the pages with only the best quality papers (Fabriano Artistico 140lbs cold pressed), I have handcrafted artisan journals for you as well. I'm certain that you will love them as much as I do.

I can't wait and am very excited to share them with you. I am a strong supporter of the handmade revolution and frankly, there's nothing like owning something that someone has made with their own hands, who has spent time loving putting it together. I strive to make my journals unique, and no two are ever quite the same.

Please take note, my journals are beautifully designed products, but not perfect. If you want perfectly aligned edges, and perfectly sized paper, then these journals aren't for you. My journals are full of quirky goodness and that's what makes them so beautifully unique. Perfect in their imperfection.

Not to mention, the size makes them easy to carry around with you in your purse, and take out when the creative spark hits. Keep them for yourself, or gift them to a journal lover.

Come visit my Etsy Shop:

Mushroom Dreams, on Saturday, January 28, 2012 HERE

Journal Details:
approx. 6" x 8.5"
glue is acid free
acid free clear vinyl for covers (to protect the patterned papers on the covers of journals)
white, waxed linen for binding with a simple pamphlet style binding
all patterned papers and embellishments are acid free
cold pressed, Fabriano Artistico 140 lbs watercolour paper
90 lbs hot pressed Strathmore sketching paper

Shipping Details:

will ship to Canada, USA, International

feeling the pull of the sea: squam 2012

2011-12-15T11:53:00.005-05:00

(squam 2011 - sommers cottage)

a new website for squam. my head is spinning with excitement. so many choices. too many decisions. how am i to pick and choose. thinking of my life changing experience last year, at squam 2011 fall, blogged at here:, here, here, and here.

(squam 2011 - the entire gang)

squam fall session; squam spring session; squam by the sea; and yes, even squam in italy.

i have such happy, inspiring memories of squam 2011, and i've been looking forward all year to see these new offerings. but now i feel overwhelmed. i don't want to miss anything. i want to see and do it all. i want to see friends made again. new possibilities. new adventures. new inspiration. new and old friends to meet.

(squam 2011 collage)

i'm being instinctively pulled by the sea. nags head, on the east coast of north carolina's outer banks. the idea of painting for three days in this class, in a beach front cottage, saltwater splashes, and sounds of waves soothing the soul, late night bonfires, hanging with like minded soul sisters.

yes. i'm feeling the pull of the sea.

Tutorial #1: Rounded Corners

2011-12-12T20:52:00.001-05:00

i just love the look of rounded corners on photos. don't you?

here are a few of my favorite pics. i rounded the corners using photoshop elements 8, on my mac, and added some of ali edwards awesome word art, downloaded free from her website.

here's my samson, getting his fix of stinky shoes. yes. my dogs likes to lick stinky shoes and feet. the stinkier, the better. according to him, that is. that's him going to town with elisa's slippers.

and here are two of my favorite pieces i created in misty's last class. btw, she's running another on-line workshop, 'open studio', this january, which i'll be signing up for very soon.

see how much nicer pics look this way. clean. nice. i may be doing this to my every photo for the next little while.

and yes ali. i agree. love always wins.

so here goes how i do it. don't know if it's the right way, but it works. i'm sure there's a million other ways to do it but this is my version:

using photoshop elements 8
file - open
layer - layer from background
layer - new layer
go to the rectangular, rounded corners and click and drag across the photo from corner to corner
drag photo onto layer 0
layer - create clipping mask
layer - flatten

and voila!

Meet Warhol aka Pockets

2011-12-12T11:33:00.003-05:00

hey art friends.

thought you'd find this interesting. charmaine, a co-worker of mine works with monkeys (both in Ontario and in Borneo with Orangutans), and has taught Pockets, who she cares for at the primate sanctuary, to paint. yes. he paints and even has his own gallery showing. all proceeds go to the sanctuary... check out the article here

pockets has his own gallery showing. some of his work has earned up to $400.

funny, some people are arguing the sanctuary shouldn't use him to make money that will go towards the sanctuary. the really funny thing is this. if canada had laws to forbid the purchase of exotic animals, then pockets wouldn't be in the sanctuary in the first place. the painting wasn't started or meant to be a money making venture. it was meant to entertain pockets.

moral of the story. canada, get your shit together and ban the sale and purchase of exotic animals. did you know that i could purchase a baby tiger and have him in my home as a pet. yes folks. there's no law that says i can't. and that my friends, is so so wrong.

December Daily: Day 1

2011-12-01T19:25:00.000-05:00

can you believe i went through all day yesterday thinking it was Dec 1st. well, good thing i was wrong cause i'm now on time to start my december daily. if you've been reading this blog, you know that i've tried doing this every single year, but never quite having the patience to document the day. however, now that i have some new toys, it's making documenting and posting so incredibly easy, how could i not take part.

so thanks to my ipad, this is my first instalment. day 1.

i'm so loving this little ipad of mine. thanks steve for making my creative endeavors so much easier and faster. right at my finger tips.

Blogging from my ipad

2011-11-30T19:47:00.002-05:00

pondering my new word: a year of madness

2011-11-29T14:11:00.002-05:00

for the third year now i have made it a tradition to choose a word of intention to help guide my year. last December it was this. and the year before that it was this.

so as i was blog hopping, i landed on this fabulous blog and was awestruck by this poem, by John Kerouac,

and so i have found my new word of the year. 'madness'. i want to be mad about life, mad about living, mad about everything that i do. i want to wake up and be mad about my day ahead. i want to in a constant state of euphoria about living and being alive, and living with passion, and desire, and intent.

i knew these last two pieces i created would eventually make sense to me. huh. funny how things make their way to you when you least expect it.

and then, the other day when i opened up my halls throat drops and it gave me this message:

don't waste a precious minute, indeed.

i want to be mad. i want to invite and welcome and surround myself with 'madness'. to live life fully. to enjoy life fully. madness. it's a good thing, no?

what's your one little word?

francesca xoxx

blog makeover

2011-11-22T11:54:00.000-05:00

so the blog is gettin' a long overdue makeover.
new blog header, with matching links to my pages: flickr, facebook, two peas, and pinterest.
and i think it's kinda cute.
i'll be changing the blog header and page links when the urge strikes, which i feel may be often.
so if things look a little wonky in the next little while, you'll know why!!!

and i need some HTML help. how do i change the code in blogger HTML to make the margins of my blog wider. any advice??

happy tuesday
francesca xoxx

creative frenzy

2011-11-14T12:55:00.001-05:00

this weekend, dom and i made an impronptu drive across the border to do some holiday shopping. we love shopping in buffalo, new york. with the dollar doing fairly well, you can get some really good deals. and the variety... gosh the variety.

anyway... i found myself at joann's. and i. nearly. fainted. i'm canadian folks. we HAD a cheesy 'fabric land' but the closest one to me closed down. we do have a fabric 'district' at Queen and Spadina, but it's out of my way, and expensive. so, needless to say, i was like a pig in shit at joann's. ALL those gorgeous fabrics, everything you could ever want. bolts and bolts of gorgeous stuff.

i ended up buying, two yards each of: unbleached duck cloth; drill fabric; burlap; muslin, and a sewing pattern. i have plans for each...

i've been pondering my word of intention for 2012, and 'determination' keeps popping up. determined to learn to sew. determined to execute my ideas. determined to take my creativity to a whole new level. determined to be a better person. mom. wife. sister. and yes. i want to learn to SEW. hence, all the fabric and pattern. somthing i've been meaning to do for a very long time. and to execute my ideas, I NEED TO DO THIS.

this weekend was a creative frenzy. aside from joann's, i started making 'macrame' knotted beaded bracelets. a new fun favorite of mine. i could do this all day.

after i did some of that, i stuffed my fabric in my knapsack and trekked on over to my mom's house. i want her to teach me how to read and cut from a pattern. it's actually easier than i thought it would be. granted, i bought myself a very basic (beginner) pattern.

my mom has a lung disease and very weak these days, so we didn't get very far. but it was a good distraction for her. and a good learning opportunity for me.

hopefully i'll be wearing it next week. i'll keep you posted with picture updates! let's hope i don't break another sewing machine.

happy monday...

Francesca

p.s. are you watching 'the walking dead', on AMC sunday nights? damn, i love that rick and shane. and glen is just too cute. and seeing merle again freaked me out. he's such a creep. love this show. and what the hell did jenner tell rick secretly?

artfest 2012

2011-11-04T14:11:00.000-04:00

so i'm all signed up for artfest 2012. the fests of all fests created by the artist extraordinaire teesha moore. every year is an awesome line up of very talented artists and workshops to choose from. so many in fact, that it took me nearly a week to finalize my choices.

orly avineri: 'outside the inside' i've been admiring her jounal pages for quite some time now. very rich and textured and layered. a visual feast for the eyes. i can't tell you how excited i am to meet her in person and watch how she creates.

misty mawn: 'open up' and 'portrait session' how could i pass up the opportunity to learn from my fav misty mawn. yes, i'm taking both her collage class and her portrait class. it's just absolute magic. fucking. magic. when she puts the brush on paper. not to mention she is the lovliest, most beautiful person to boot. she just has this beautiful aura about her.

ok, enough gushing.

so back to artfest. the 'trades' are the big thing at artfest. well, most of you already know about this, but in case you don't, basically you create something, anything your heart desires (ATC; jewellery; postcards; collage bags), and then you make 100 (or more of them), and then on Saturday night you trade with the other participants. so when you come home, you have 100 other goodies to enjoy when you get home. how cool is that. so this weekend i'm getting my stuff ready to create... 100 of 'em. needless to say, i'll be buried under piles of paper, for sure!
not to mention i'll get to finally meet and share a house with these fabulous ladies: lyn tivenan, carlanda brown williamson, phyllis peterson, jodi kincaid and more.. the sister act continues!!! off to the nunnery we go... (ok, sorry, inside joke only we'll get).

and what i'm loving these days:

this 'grumpy looking' little red riding hood who didn't want to pose for any pictures.

this print that's gonna make it's way to my mailbox soon

these stones that make me feel better: tumbled blue chalcedony

and fridays. oh how i love fridays!!!

happy friday my friends....

francesca xoxx

playing with colour

2011-11-03T10:21:00.001-04:00

playing with watercolours, and golden fluid acrylics

in love love love with every shade of grey, combined with bright colours especially yellow

i don't think this new wave of playing is quite yet over. oh. no.

xoxx

francesca

nothing gold can stay

2011-10-28T11:19:00.000-04:00

Nature's first green is gold

Her hardest hue to hold.

Her early leaf's a flower;

But only so an hour.

Then leaf subsides to leaf.

So Eden sank to grief,

So dawn goes down to day.

Nothing gold can stay.

--- robert frost

Phillis Wheatley

2011-10-21T15:00:00.002-04:00

i read this book last january. it was also during the time i took my first ever online class, drawing and painting portraits with misty mawn.

click on image to go to amazon

it's a fictional recount of the life of phillis wheatley. i was so moved by her story, that i was inspired to portray her likeness for my first ever portrait drawing.. which wasn't a very successful attempt, but it started the journey that i'm currently on, so for that reason i'm exceptionally fond of it.

what brought this thing full circle for me was when we visited boston. phillis' old stomping grounds. i had forgotten about that. and lo and behold this is what i ran into on one of our walks in the back bay area, imagine my delight

the statue is part of the boston women’s memorial on commonwealth avenue, a series of three statues of bostonian women by meredith bergmann: Wheatley, Abigail Adams, and Lucy Stone.

this poem, is inscribed on the memorial:

Imagination! Who can sing thy force?

Or who describe the swiftness of thy course?

Soaring through air to find the bright abode,

Th’ empyreal palace of the thund’ring God,

We on thy pinions can surpass the wind,

And leave the rolling universe behind:

From star to star the mental optics rove,

Measure the skies, and range the realms above.

There in one view we grasp the mighty whole,

Or with new worlds amaze th’ unbounded soul. “

and it's this poem, On being brought from A F R I C A to A M E R I CA ...

'T WAS mercy brought me from my Pagan land,

Taught my benighted soul to understand

That there's a God, that there's a Saviour too:

Once I redemption neither sought nor knew,

Some view our sable race with scornful eye,

"Their colour is a diabolic die."

Remember, Christians, Negroes, black as Cain,

May be refin'd, and join th' angelic train.

....that really gets me when i read it. what i wonder is... did phillis write what they wanted to hear because she knew she was being treated and held like a pet who does tricks. survival mode. renounce my origin. say what they want to hear. or did she believe it? i like to think she was being facetious and fully aware of the game she was playing.

go here for a complete list of her poetry.

Squam Art Workshops 2011: Group Pic

2011-10-19T09:48:00.002-04:00

imagine being in a glorious location. surrounded by powerful, magical, talented women. and art. yes, it was mighty. and it all rests in a little piece of my heart.

photo credit: Thea Coughlin, and Squam Art Workshops

Francesca xoxx

Hawk Totem

2011-10-18T14:25:00.000-04:00

(image taken from google HAWK search - author unknown)

through the guidance one very incredibly talented wise woman and her guidance in her soulodge, i've become AWARE of my animal totem. it's been the most interesting thing i've yet ever discovered. so much more learning to do, and hoping to take her fall online course to further delve into the world of animal spirit guides. here's how it all unfolded, between us:

--------

Pixie, i really need your feedback, cause i'm feeling kinda crazy at the moment!!

i went into journey last night, and i'm in shock with what i came out with. a good shock. it was exhilerating. i just wanted to thank you for this experience, and at the same time i think i need some consolation that i am indeed not going crazy.... lol.

i just wanted to share a little bit of what i experienced... my totem is HAWK. it's HAWK. it was the only one to come to me. it was like it was waiting for me... patiently waiting... and funny thing is, i live in toronto canada, and i don't even think we have any hawks in the city. i don't know what a hawk looks like nor have i ever seen one in real life (that i know of). and what astounds me is that i immediately knew it was HAWK, and not eagle, or falcon, or whatever. it was HAWK. could it be?

what was even more incredible, was i became HAWK even before he presented himself to me. i was in my 'forest', my happy place by the fairy tree, and i went into the little opening in the tree, and found myself in blackness. wasn't sure where i was or what i was going to see.. when all of a sudden i could feel myself floating in the air. it startled me at first. but i kept on and before i knew it, i was up in the sky looking down into a beautiful wide open field of yellow wild flowers.. i was HAWK, i had wings and i was flying, and i had taloned feet. i then landed and was me again, and that's when HAWK appeared from above. watching me. and then flew off and i followed him with my eyes until i couldn't see him anymore. i wandered a bit not sure of what to do with myself, when HAWK came back and beckoned me with his eyes to follow him. he had these reddish/brown sparkling eyes. i followed and again it was like i went through to another portal, and this time i found myself in a very desolate, dry, windy, barren desert. the earth below me was dry and cracked, void of any life. the wind was howling and blowing wildly. i was naked. bare naked. all i could do was get down onto the ground. i found myself in a fetal position. not scared. not hurt. not anything. i just was. surrendering. HAWK was above me circling and circling and circling in the sky watching, protecting me.

ok. now that you think (and frankly i think) that i've gone completely crazy.

next thing i know i'm following HAWK back through the portal. i swear he was smiling. i swear it was like he was saying, 'it's about time', and led me back to the portal, back to my fairy house in the tree, back to the woods, and ultimately back to myself.

how did i manage to conjure all that up? am i just making this up? is it real? what do i do with this now? i feel excited, yet i must admit i think i'm feeling like 'ok, i am crazy, what am i doing?'

i guess i need to do this again, and see what happens. if HAWK comes back to me. gawd. i'd love your feedback if you have time.. and damn so wish i had talked to you at squam. but i guess i was feeling a little shy and awkward.

f.

-------------

Francesca!

Ha ha! I'm laughing and crying and covered in goosebumps! I will write in depth later. My darling, you are NOT crazy. You are in touch with your primitive "all that is". I am so happy for you! It's like giving birth to yourself, isn't it?!

Awroooooooo!

Warmly and more soon,

Pixie

----------

pixie! i'm crying just reading your message. giving birth to myself. holy c**&&^!

i've never felt so 'awake' in all my life.

funny thing, now that i think about it. the whole time i was at squam, and during my wanderings in the woods, my eyes and head were always looking up. like i was looking for something. i even used my iphone and video taped up to the sky and up towards the trees. and what's giving me the chills as i type this, i did hear one very loud 'rwaaaa', don't know if it was a HAWK since i've never heard one. but i now know it was.

thank you wise woman xoxx, you don't know HOW MUCH this means to me.

-------

so peeps, needless to say, i've been doing much research on journey work, crystals, and smudging, and medicine bundles, and getting in touch with spirit. thanks beautiful pixie!!!

kee-eeeee-ra!

francesca xoxx

a manifesto of sorts

2011-10-17T12:10:00.001-04:00

elisa: "mommy, when i grow up i want to be an artist like you"

me: "baby girl, you already are an artist"

i was reading this very powerful manifesto that really resonated with me, from a very talented and spiritual squammie sister, and it just gave me goosebumps all over when i read this particular piece:

"i have faith that my creative babies know how to birth themselves, that i am the carrier and the nurturer, but ultimately they have a life of their own to live, and i must give it to them"

it only took me almost 35 years to finally figure out what it is i truly want to be doing with my life. i vow to help nurture and listen to my creative babies and act as a vehicle to help them birth themselves and their own purpose in life.

it's a beautiful thing.

francesca xoxx

Sketchbook Project 2011: part deux

2011-10-11T14:54:00.001-04:00

sky, air, soar, transformations both inside and out

earth, roots, grounded, reality, responsibility

infatuation with bird, and his song

the sky, the head, the heart, and earth

daily affirmation. i know i am. i know i am...

reminders, messages, uniting with 'all that is'

a space for my viewers to add some journal love of their own

ideas, dreams, visions, messages coming at a dizzying pace

if you squint, perhaps you'll find her

a hummingbird: legends say that hummingbirds float free of time, carrying our hopes for love, joy and celebration. the hummingbird's delicate grace reminds us that life is rich, beauty is everywhere, every personal connection has meaning and that laughter is life's sweetest creation.

thanks for visiting,

francesca xoxx

this is a sketchbook: sketchbook project 2011

2011-10-06T12:58:00.001-04:00

remember this post about the sketchbook project 2011?

the project will be touring internationally, and they have even added a toronto date:

Toronto, Ontario Canada

July 18th-22nd

The Gladstone Hotel

1214 Queen St. W

Toronto, ON

here's my little sketchbook that will be included in the tour:

back cover front cover
5.25 W by 7.25 H
100% recycled paper
70lb text stock
32 pages

since i've been super inspired since coming home from Squam Art Workshops, i've revisited my sketchbook last night and lost myself for a good two hours or so just filling it up. it was good solitude time. dom was out for his usual long walk; the kids were quietly reading their books and samson was curled up on his blanket in his usual spot just outside my room door.
i could hear the whispers of xavier sounding out his words; elisa's quiet ramblings of making up her own little story guided by the pictures; and samson's occasional yawn and the licking of his paws. this is the kind of solitude i love. the solitude of being together, yet in our very own quiet little worlds.

i will post a few of my favorite (work in progress) pages thus far :

if you'd like to participate, you still have time to sign up. the deadline is October 31st. so go ahead. what c'ya waiting for!!

francesca xoxx

from front to back

2011-10-04T15:53:00.000-04:00

thanks to http://craftside.typepad.com/ we got these little journals free at squam upon our arrival. front and back covers have images from misty mawn's book 'unfurling'. and how fitting for my adventure. here is a little sampling of what i did with mine. i call it art journaling, guerrila style.

altered cover with b/w photo and various word art

'P' made from a twisty twig i found outside the cabin for our handlettering class with penelope dulligan

photocopies of photos and then transferred onto clear tape, using clear shelf lining. yup, cool technique, thanks to sarah ahearn bellemare.

handmade tag from my 'bum skirt' purchased at vendor night from emily falconbridge

more b/w photos. clear packing tape on top of photo. lots and lots of packing tape on top of everything. my new obsession. and a favorite quote, 'you must give birth to your images. they are the future waiting to be born -- rilke

vintage playing cards used as breakfast, lunch and dinner passes. love it. and some bark from outside my door, and some wall paper i was able to get 'free'...

i kept all the business cards and collected them in this journal. and even some email correspondence tucked away in little glassine envelopes for posterity. and washi tape. lots of washi tape.

more business cards. more b/w photos. more washi tape.

the poem read to us by elizabeth on the last day... and the dining lounge where lots and lots of conversations and meetings happened.

the magic of the first night in the longhouse. found me tucked away in a cozy rocking chair stunned and in awe of where i actually was. more word art that describes some of my emotions.

ah. sommers. i miss thee

another glassine envelope with a pretty yellow flower/weed that i found outside tucked away for good, and a sticker from a store in town, 'the comman man', where we went on saturday afternoon. my name tag and some notes from new found friends.

the end. for now. but so much more to come.

francesca xoxx

mushroom dreams

2011-09-29T15:40:00.000-04:00

you may have noticed i've changed my blog header and more importantly, the name of my blog (no longer ode to posterity).

why mushroom dreams?

i've come back from the woods of new hampshire, and squam art workshops, a changed woman. really. in the best of ways. i feel more focused. energized. and filled up in a way i haven't felt in a very long time. i've come home with so many ideas making their way to the surface, so much so that i don't know where to begin.. so i'll begin at the beginning.

staying in a cabin in the deephaven camp was like going home to yourself... those woods, the lake, the whispering whiper wills, the mushrooms, oh those mushrooms. it really is a magical place where you can just be and listen to what the universe is trying to tell you . it was good for my soul. for my heart. and mind. it was kinda like a solar panel, that soakes in all the light and stores it for later use. well that's what SAW was. an opportunity to rest your soul, soak in friendship, and spark your creative energy. for me, it was a refueling. is any of this making sense?

why mushroom dremas, you ask? well as you can tell, those red mushrooms in particular had me at first sight. i didn't realize how much i loved those little (and very big) fungi. as per the thesaurus.com, when mushroom is used as a verb, it means to 'sprout; grow quickly'.

some synonyms for mushroom are: augment, blow up, boom, burgeon, burst, detonate, expand, explode, flourish, go off, grow, grow rapidly, increase, luxuriate, proliferate, shoot up, spread, spring up.

and that's exactly how i'm feeling... an augmented sense of awareness of who i am, and what i want, and where i want to go. a burgeoning of ideas to expand my creative endeavors. ideas that will help my creative mind and spirit flourish, and grow. and it all seems to be coming at me fast and furious. shooting up, spreading, and springing up... just like that. mushroom dreams.

i'm still processing ideas, and scribbling furiously in my idea journal. still trying to make sense of all the little bits. gawd, it's so nice to feel alive again. and excited about something you hold so dear. it. feels. really. really. good

postpone your dreams no more

2011-09-23T18:15:00.001-04:00

driving home, leaving new hampshire

here is what elizabeth read on sunday morning to close out the session. It comes from John O'Donohue's To Bless the Space Between Us and these are the last two stanzas of his poem "A Morning Offering."

may my mind come alive today

to the invisible geography

that invites me to new frontiers

to break the dead shell of yesterdays

to risk being disturbed and changed

may I have the courage today

to live the life that I would love

to postpone my dream no longer

but do at last what I came here for

and waste my heart on fear no more.

that's just what i was talking about. right? moving through my fear to get to that place where i wanna be. what beautiful words that rang true to my heart. so eerily captured in a few stanzas. i'm certain he wrote this for me.

feeling ready and full speed ahead to take on my one wild and precious life.

quote by mary oliver

Squam 2011

2011-09-19T17:21:00.000-04:00

i am back from a fabulous week away which started off in boston, and then a four day art retreat, that is Squam Art Workshops, out in the beautiful woods, and hills of new hampshire.

i knew i was in for an incredible time, but i didn't realize how incredible it would actually end up being. for a gal who is an introvert and who's not comfortable being a social butterfly, this was a big deal for me. i knew no one, and going in, i was nervous about that. but i kept remembering my one word and that was 'risks'. moving through my fear to create new experiences. and that's just what i did. it was fabulous. like a blur of 4 four days of creative bliss.

and here i go feeling weepy and emotional again thinking about it, in a soulful, joyful way. and full of gratitute for the art sisters that i got to meet and hang with.

the beauty of squam is that you can do as much as want and as little as you want, depending on your mood. if you want some alone/quiet time, the woods, the trees, the mushrooms, the paths, and the lake are there to keep you silent company.

if you want to talk, and giggle, and talk art, or just laugh and chat and bond, there were plenty of opportunities to connect and stretch and bond, and just laugh...

sommers cottage was very charming in a rustic way, with a fabulous burning fireplace (that would somehow be magically lit by the time we'd get home from classes). my cabin mates and my roomie were awesome. so different, and from all over the world: japan, the cape, san fran, boston, texas, and new hampshire.. it was cold at night and we all sported warm socks, jackets, hats, and whatever else you could layer on. so funny, one night it was SO cold i had about three blankets on, my clothes and my two jackets, and my scarf wrapped around my head. when cheryl, my roomie woke in the morning was pretty hysterical laughing at me all bundled up into one big mess in the bed. memories like this to last me a long while.

my first class painted icon, with misty mawn was an utter thrill for me. i consider her my mentor, art-guru and master of all. i for the first time created a piece using acrylic that i actually like. it was as if there was an electric creative current in the air, and in addition to being gently guided by misty, it felt like a dream. come. true.

my next class was sarah ahearn bellmare. what a sweetheart she is. and so super, like, super talented gal (btw i'll be saying 'gal' from now on thanks to my 'gal' cheryl). she had the most incredible collection of vintage papers and ephemera and dictionaries, and books, and photocopies of vintage pics for us to use. i was in utter shock at the sight of it all. i wanted to just snag everything and run off with it. she gave us these super 2 minute prompts to create, and boy, it's changed my life. I had an 'aha' moment in her class which i'll discuss further in another post... total AHA moment. if you don't have her book yet, you MUST get it. worth. every. single. penney.

my last class was with penelope dulligan, 'hand lettering'. she's just so talented. she made hand lettering look so easy. but really, it's not.. there are so many tricks, some very suble that will totally change the look of your piece. what i took away most from this class is that hand lettering isn't about your penmanship, it's about creating hand lettering to suit a piece... do you want it to demonstrate joy, or anger, or to light or dark, and so many way to express emotion, or a message through typography. i also had an aha moment in her class. i'll discuss this in a later post.

and the final event of the week was the vendor night. here's who i met and what i bought:

emily falconbridge: tee-skirt and bum skirt, clothes she upcycles from tee-shirts and sweaters. and a felt package... SO COOL. emily girl, i want to be you when i grow up. i really do. i only wish i had more time to chat with her... and come on, isn't it funny to see her literally kneel down to my size. sooo so funny.

sarah ahearn bellemare: two beautiful prints and her book 'painted pages' (run and get it now if you don't have it)

mary beth shaw: wood icing and stencils

maya donenfeld: aka maya made. one of her coffee sack bags... ADORABLE

flora bowley: i wanted her ipad case but it was sold out. actually EVERYTHING she had sold out by the time i got there..lol

caryn lynn duncan: mixed media artist: three prints

hillary sloss: cards with her beautiful photography on them

and thanks to elizabeth for creating squam. and jen gray who gives the best hugs... and sharing stories about our moms. and to jonatha for her beautiful singing voice and entertaining us all... you ladies are gold. pure. shining. gold.

and look below what misty brought for me, upon my request of course... it'll be framed and hung on my wall very VERY soon. isn't it beautiful. i've had a photocopy of this on my wall for the longest time. now i have the real deal.

and oh so much more, but think i better stop here otherwise this post could go on forever.

all in all. it was a magical time. it sparked so much creativity and ideas, and friendships that i never thought imaginable. pushing through your fear. it's a good thing.

hugs to you all my friends,

francesca

it's been an intense week

2011-09-08T13:25:00.000-04:00

1. a, 2. b, 3. c, 4. d, 5. e, 6. f, 7. g, 8. facesmoleskine1, 9. facesmoleskine2, 10. facesmoleskine3

it's been a pretty stressful six months. and in times of stress i go to my art. it's a great release for me and keeps me sane when there's insanity all around me.

well this week has especially been pretty insane. and it shows. it definitely shows in my art. just look at the faces above. they started off light and the more intense the week got, the darker and more sinister the faces became. kinda like how i was feeling.

what i have learned this week: FOLLOW YOUR GUT INSTINCTS.

you know what i mean. that little voice in your head that's trying to tell you something. well, LISTEN TO IT. it's talking for a reason. and i wish i had listened. like. really. listened. i made a very bad decision despite all the reservations i was feeling, and the outcome just came to give me a punch to the solar plexis. yup. i shouldda listened to my gut. it never fails me.

all i can say is, new hampshire, here i come. soooo ready for a delicious vacation.

it was a pastel kind of night

2011-09-01T10:30:00.000-04:00

soft black pastel in moleskine journal

1. black pastel faces1, 2. black pastel faces2, 3. black pastel faces4, 4. black pastel faces3, 5. black pastel faces5, 6. black pastel faces6

i bought me a package of soft pastels the other night at deserres, and did the speed walk all the way home so i could tear open the package and use them. i thought i had bought the pack of mixed colours, but to my chagrin, what i ended up with was 12 sticks of black. all 12. black. i'm such a dunce. in my haste to buy them, i didn't check or read the package after grabbing it from the shelf. why i assumed it was a multiple colour pack is beyond me. moral of the story: ALWAYS READ THE PACKAGE BEFORE BUYING. lol

so, i pulled out my moleskine and went to play. um. to my surprise, i'm in love with the black pastel. love. it. so glad i now have 12. of. them.

and yes, more faces. obsessed with capturing the face.

what have you created today? what's your favorite pastel brand?

The Toronto National Exhibition 2011

2011-08-30T18:22:00.004-04:00

CNE poster for Canada's Victory Celebration, 1919

Toronto National Exhibition 2011

what an incredibly fun evening we had again this year. this is our 2nd year that we've taken the kids. here's my post from our visit to the ex last year.

Toronto National Exhibition 2010

see, nothing much ever changes. it's loud, it's noisy, it's crowded, it's greasy, and wild, and full of characters, but you know, i still love it and look forward to it every summer. i went as a kid every year and i'll continue to go as long as it keeps coming back to Toronto. i wish that my mom had taken pictures of us at the ex. i would soooo love to see them. i hope to add these to my 'project life' album (inspired by Ali Edwards).

another ex bites the dust...

see you next year candied apples, princess gates, ferris wheels, rows and rows of games and stuffed dolls (mainly smurfs this year), and fun house. oh, the fun house.

new family member

2011-08-25T10:43:00.005-04:00

meet swimmey. he's our newest addition to our family. elisa picked him, picked out his new home, including the pink stones and castle. he's been with us almost three weeks now, and so far so good. he's made himself at home. and i swear he gets excited when i open up the blinds and say good morning to him. he comes right up to the tank and flutters his little fins like crazy as if her were waving to me.

samson, on the other hand, is a little forlorn. he's feeling a little left out with all the attention swimmey has been getting. the big galoot.

happy thursday everyone.

Francesca

p.s. IT'S JERSDAY.... talk about fish out of water..

scrap-art

2011-08-25T09:42:00.000-04:00

1. Honeymooners, 2. Pure Sunshine, 3. Together, 4. magical moments, 5. magical moments paper doily, 6. be happy, 7. be happy - detail, 8. wind beneath your wings, 9. self portrait, 10. remember1, 11. remember2, 12. adventure1, 13. adventure2, 14. Xavier - October Afternoon, 15. Elisa - Hambly

i was just looking at some of my scrpabook pages and i think i need to get back to my documenting. i don't want to forget all the beautiful little moments that i managed to caputre in my scrap pages. scrapping has changed through the years and it's no longer about stickers and frames. it's evolved into a craft that is more of something that i like to call 'scrap-art'. above is a mosaic of some of the pages i created througout the years (just click on the links to view each individually). i could easily pick up anyone of these pages, put it in a frame and hand it around the house. Hmm, that's actually not a bad idea.

i'm itching to start making more 'scrap-art'.

but to do this i need to start picking up my camera more often. i must go home, take it out of the cupboard, and blow the dust off it first..!!

what are you itching to do?

a year of confronting my one little word: risks

2011-08-24T21:07:00.000-04:00

collection of works 2010 - 2011

click on the link below to see larger version of each photo

1. wondering#1, 2. wondering#3, 3. i am courage, 4. beatrice #2, 5. the only way through is through, 6. untitled, 7. untitled, 8. work in progress, 9. icon, 10. a crown of feathers, 11. work in progress, 12. finally, i am, 13. Santa Lucia, 14. you fit, 15. seeing, 16. diva (collage #1), 17. i am courage, 18. untitled, 19. Art Journal: Lady Blue, 20. me, 21. faces101, 22. faces101, 23. faces 101 - Part 2, 24. shy, 25. modesta, 26. mosaic3, 27. hope, 28. bert, 29. faces 101, 30. do you see it?, 31. little angelita, 32. mosaic2, 33. molly, 34. faces101 , 35. faces 101 - Part 1, 36. modesta

remember my post on, my one little word for 2011: risks. it's my year for taking risks, doing the unexpected, plunging into things i've always wanted to do but held back out of fear. well, this year is my year of walking through my fear, and taking that plunge. what better way to encourage growth, and learning, and expanding, and believing in yourself. the only way through, is through. so here are some of the ways i've met my own little challenge:

SQUAM ART WORKSHOPS (SAW)
when i heard misty mawn was teaching, i signed up even without talking to my husband first. eventhough i hadn't a clue where it was. eventhough i don't know a soul who's going. it was automatic. the fear settled in afterwards. but i'm past the fear of not knowing anyone, and of being in the middle of nowhere at Squam Lake. it turns out i actually do know people going, ie misty and i'll get to know my house mates rather quickly, and guess who's going to be a vendor, the awesome emily falconbridge, whom i've connected with already. so three you go. the only way through is through. one past squamee attendee said this:

"you have to bring an open mind and heart, choose the classes that scare you the most, and push yourself. You have to put yourself out there, meet new people, have creative conversations you never realized were possible."

                                                                                  ----BJ Lantz, Florida
and that's exactly what i plan to do. amen.

ARTFEST 2012
hello people. this is the fests of all fests in the mixed media art world. and i'm flying to washington on my own. on. my. own. peeps, this is big for me. makes me wanna throw up when i think about it but i'm doing it none-the-less. the only way through this one is with ATIVAN. and lots of it. if you have any flying solo tips (for those of us of the white knuckle brigade), please let me know in the comments section.

ON-LINE COURSES
i'm taking every course i can, even on-line. trying new techniques, new styles, new adventures. it keeps me motivated and learning and stretching. here are some thus far:

1.     Misty Mawn, Stretching Within
misty is an absolute treasure. she is the ultimate teacher, artist, mother, photographer, blogger, on the planet. she's super generous with sharing her talents via on line classes where she creates an encouraging, super supportive environment for you to grow, and make mistakes, and learn, and share as an artist. i thank her for that. also for creating a group of gals from stretching within that i still keep in touch with and plan to go to artfest 2012 with. she's helped me to create my own tribe of supporters and i love her for that.

2.     Carla Sonheim's Faces101
this online class was fast, short and choc-a-bloc full of techniques. i didn't know what to expect from this class and i walked away AMAZED. i had all the tools, but learned to use them in an entirely new way. i'm still playing around with her techniques, making them my own, and i'm finding i just can't stop myself. best $35 i ever spent.

3.     Katie Kendrick's Layered Impressions
i've been an admirer of Katie's work for a long time and so excited that she's sharing an online class in september.

and there will be more to come, much much more, i'm sure.

earth shaking news

2011-08-24T09:53:00.002-04:00

so i finally filled up my beloved journal. it's a moleskine that i covered with all kinds of stuff:
patterned paper by Pam Garrison
Melissa Frances white vintage fram
Heidi Swapp felt butterflies
my own hand stitched butterfly
and other odds and ends: ribbon, brads, buttons, hat pins

and here's my last page: little angelita

and i'm so excited cause i now get to create and start another one. i absolutely love starting a new journal. creating the covers are my most favorite. if i could just create journals all day, i'd be a happy camper. the pages are fresh and crips, and ready to fill.

in other news, it was an earth shaking day yesterday here in good ol toronto. there was a 5.9 earthquake in Virginia which made it's shake known all the way to us. this is the 2nd time we've felt this. the last time it happened was last year, and i believe it was august too. us torontonians don't get earthquakes or tornadoes or any kind of real natural disaster, so when something like a little shaking happens, well, it's BIG news. facebook was a-flutter with where everyone was when they felt it. crazy, eh?

feeding my addiction

2011-08-22T10:36:00.003-04:00

more of my current addiction, faces using oil sticks in my moleskine. here are my latest additions:

top left to right: shy and hope

bottom left to right: bert and molly

have a beautiful monday!!

more faces

2011-08-17T09:46:00.002-04:00

1. faces101, 2. faces 101, 3. faces101, 4. faces101

this is yet another new technique i learned from carla sonheim on how to create faces. i thought the watercolour technique i used to create my 'blob families' was my favorite. well, errr, this one is by far my most favorite.

for these faces i used shiva oil sticks, my finger, and a kneaded eraser. easy peasey.

the image below, is one i have in progress. can you see the face emerging from the shadows? man, i love this.

by the way, i just found out that emily falconbridge will be a vendor at squam art workshops. i sooooo can't wait to meet her. and hopefully purchase one of her funk-a-tized refurbished items, that she also sells in her etsy shop. if you haven't yet visited her blog, you must go now. she's an incredible artist, and mother.

happy wednesday friends

mondo beyondo dreams

2011-08-15T12:24:00.000-04:00

woot. woot. can you believe it, cause i can't. i'm all signed up for artfest 2012. fort worden, in port townsend, washington, i'll see you in march. it's the old military base where they filmed 'officer and a gentleman', you know the one, with richard gere and debra winger.. yup. my all time favorite movie too , no joke.

i'm going as part of a group of ladies i met during mistys online classes. and boy, let me tell you, it's going to be a hoot. There's 11 of us from this group going, and we've reserved one of the officers houses (which are haunted by the way. yes. ghosts. have. been. seen. eeeeeeeks).

i just registered and paid. now to look up and book my flight. oh yeah. flying solo, did i mention that? the girls are laughing and calling me, 'the white knuckle brigade'. at first i was, 'what the hell is that', until i looked it up on wikipedia. too funny. but ooh so true. yes, you'll find me grabbing my armrests so tight, my knuckles go beyond white. i'll probably need a barf bucket and some ativan to accompany me. and a nice looking steward holding my hand wouldn't be so bad either. lol.

this is me. walking through my fear of travelling, and travelling alone at that. if i end up in saudi arabia, i wouldn't be surprised. i'm a dunce when it comes to directions. lol. but i'm excited none-the-less.

squam, artfest. what next. life sure is getting mighty interesting when you decide to take some risks, and do things that you didn't think that you'd ever do. shaking things up some, and it feels right.

HUGE THANKS to jen lemen, and andrea scher, the masterminds behind mondo beyondo. i had put going to squam, artfest, journal fest, and all kinds of fests, on my mondo beyondo dream list. see what happens when you put your intentions out into the universe. the universe actually listens and makes things possible. it makes it possible. this was a huge revelation peoples.

so what dreams are coming true for you. i'd love to hear.

will you be going to artfest? which classes? if you have any pics of the officers house Madrona #277, i'd love to see them.

here's to more dreams coming true,

today's affirmation

2011-08-11T12:16:00.001-04:00

“We don’t stop playing because we grow old; we grow old because we stop playing.”

--George Bernard Shaw

reminding myself to not take everything so seriously.
reminding myself not to put playing off until the dishes are done, the laundry put away, and the floors swept.

like leo buscaglia says, i want to“.. still get wildly enthusiastic about little things... play with leaves, skip down the street and run against the wind.”

and i'll send you an original of one of my blob family members to the first one to leave a comment on my blog, of who said the following:

"today was good, today was fun, tomorrow will be another one"

any guesses? ready, set, go!

meet the blob families

2011-08-10T16:23:00.000-04:00

carla taught me how to use watercolours in a way that i'd not used them before. and let me tell you, it was so much fun.

this is blob family one:

uncle charlie on the bottom right, his mustache went awry, happened at birth. aunt lucy, bottom middle, well, she forgets to put her teeth in hence the no upper lip. and aunt maude, top right, well she was born miserable. and her daughter to the immediate left, miss filomena the harlot.

geesh, these guys are just about as crazy as my real family.

and blob family number 2:

these guys are cuter and quieter. except for elizabeth, top left who's heavy on the rouge, according to good art friend livvie (if she had a blog i'd have linked you up).

you should try creating some blob families of your own. they're very entertaining, and reveal all kinds of interesting stories.

just breathe

2011-08-08T11:11:00.000-04:00

these days i need reminders to just slow down and breathe. just. breathe.

stretching artistically

2011-08-02T08:30:00.001-04:00

i love the fall. i love everything about it. the cool breezy days, the sun shining, darker nights that come earlier, thick warm socks, a great sweater, jeans, cacaphony of colour, the start of a new school year for the kiddos, the hibernation that ensues.

this year, i have the added anticipation of the following activities:

Faces! 101, Carla Sonheim

carla is such a fun and fabulous artist. so damn spontaneous in her creativity. love that. how she creates the cutest creatures and faces from just a blob of paint. she makes it look so easy.

Squam

here is a map of the site. i'll be in the sommers cottage. beauty abounds. this four day retreat could not have come at a better time in my life. i'm looking forward to some time alone (meaning away from my husband and kids). some time away to ground myself. to get invigorated by some time spent away from the usual grind of life, and fully immersing myself in pure creative intoxication. being around like minded creatives, meeting new friends, discovering new surroundings, and making connections with myself and with others that i didn't think possible. all so very exciting.

i'm signed up for the following:

Painted Icon, Misty Mawn - Thurs

Pages and Paint, Sarah Ahearn - Fri

Hand Lettering, Penelope Dulligan - Sat

and last but not least, here' the latest i've just signed up to:

Layered Impressions: a poetic approch to mixed media painting, Katie Kendrick

how exciting is it. and it doesn't end here. i've got one more post about ARTFEST 2012. yup folks. this is my year of all things art. my next post will be about ARTFEST. are you going? what classes will you sign up for? all i can say is woot woot!!

travelling. meeting new artists. stretching artistically. finally meeting online friends IRL. and meeting my all time favorite mixed media artist, misty mawn. how cool is my life right now? so so cool.

wreck this app

2011-07-21T13:05:00.000-04:00

look what is out in the market, folks. wreck this app on itunes. keri smith, i love everything you do, and this app is no exception. here' me defacing a picture i hate of myself. i like it much better now. smile.

if you don't yet have this app, get it now. like. right. now. you won't regret it.

have fun, and stay cool in this tortourous HOT weather we're having... well in toronto anyway...

francesca

p.s. makes me wanna break out and sing at the top of my lungs, 'it's hot, it's hot, it's hot in here, there must be a pi phi in the atmosphere'... ah the good ol days.

ch-ch-ch-changes

2011-06-30T19:59:00.001-04:00

if you're an aquarian, can you feel the changes in the air, because i can.

i can even smell it.

some good, some bad. you know it when you dream of end-of-the-world kind of dreams; when there's a hint of excitement or buzz in your body but you're not sure why; and when there is a lunar or solar eclipse in your natal chart,

as per Susan Smith of astrology zone, here are the descriptions of a lunar and solar eclipse:

A solar eclipse occurs when the moon stands between the Sun and the Earth, cutting off the light of the Sun. A solar eclipse is always a new moon and in astrology tends to mark new beginnings.

A lunar eclipse occurs when the Earth stands between the moon and the Sun, cutting off the light of the Sun from the moon. A lunar eclipse is always a full moon and usually marks endings or culmination points. They bring up memories, dreams, and emotions, so they often pack a big punch.

particularily for aquarians, she says,

"Eclipses are super-powerful new moons and full moons, action packed, as if operating on steroids. Their job is to move you out of a complacent situation into one that is much more energized and active. An eclipse will do whatever it must to get you moving. It may give you surprising information, a sudden new opportunity, a disillusioning experience - something to shake you up and make you look at the world with new eyes.

Eclipses are also famous for providing crystal clear truth, and when you get that extra piece of information, it changes everything. They help us to evolve into a new level of maturity and insight, and for the information they do bring, be grateful, for it is given by a loving universe to protect you. "

i am getting bombarded on so many fronts that it's making my head spin (like in the exorcist kinda way). holy smokes, how much can one girl handle all at once. suffice to say, my brain hurts from all the brain activity that i've had to put on overtime these last couple of weeks.

chages in the home, work, personal, health, yadda yadda yadda. universe, please stop throwing me curve balls. please. although i'm an aquarian i still like my routines. they keep me grounded and in touch with reality. and it gives me the confidence to go out and do my thing.

and in staying in line with the 'changes' theme, here are some of the changes a portrait has gone through these last few weeks. painting is my escape. it's a great way to unload all that energy out of my head and onto the canvas. what an incredible release of emotion and expression. painting does wonders for my sanity. smile.

so, being the stubborn head that i am, i attempted one image first with acrylics and, um, not so good. so i tried it again in acrylics. um. better but still not so good. so tried the same image a third time. this time not on canvas but on watercolour gesso'd board. and to shake it up, this time i used my beloved, go to, shiva paint stiks. and here i'm at least brave enough to show you #3:

and yes. i think i like her. i like her very much. dearest shivas. i don't know why i'm resisting and insisting on learning to paint with acrylics. even when you never let me down.

just an aquarian trying to conquer the world, and stay sane in the process.

hugs and hopes for a peaceful day,
francesca

i have a dream

2011-06-06T15:39:00.001-04:00

me at work (iphone, instagram app.)

i've been having all kinds of dreams lately. good dreams. dreams that are new to me which are catching me off guard. i'm feeling a shift in my heart and mind with regards to my children, my home, the way we live our life. this is going to come out all garbled because i haven't had much time to process it all... and if you know me, i need to dwell and process things before i can make any sense out of them.

i'm starting to think this is what a mid-life crisis feels like.

i have dreams of no longer living in the city. i want a quiet life on a farm in the outskirts of the city, with a couple of free roaming chickens, a pig, and hey maybe even a goat or sheep.

i have dreams of being a stay-at-home mom. i want to pick my children up from school, and make their lunches. i no longer want to have to worry about daycare, and nannies and wonder what they're doing at any time of the day. are they being loved, are they being cared for, are they having fun, have they eaten.

i'm feeling emotional and kinda-wobbly and kinda-off-kilter, for lack of better words. my compass is skewed and i'm not really sure if i should make that left turn. or if it'll make any difference.

all this emotion. why? sparked by a new search for a nanny. our beloved dearhearts daycare is closing and the fear of making the 'wrong' choice, or better yet, the pressure to make the 'right' choice.

finally found my way back here

2011-06-03T12:24:00.002-04:00

well let's see, what have i been up to lately:

first, look what arrived on my doorstep on May 27th. Unfurling, by Misty Mawn.

i've been in heaven devouring this beauty. can't. put. i. down. meanwhile the kids are running in the house wild, jumping off tables and blind-folding the dog!!

there's just so much beauty in this book i find it hard to put down. what i love most about Unfurling is that it entices you and lures you into all kinds of ways to be creative that i hadn't thought about: creating stamps, using paper clay, oragami, in addition to drawing, painting, collage. but it only gives you so much info that you can't help but scope out more info.. i love that.

second, look what we got!

dom bought if for us so that when i go to squam i don't have to lug my laptop with me. this little baby does it all in it's little compact form. love. love. love. it.

lastly, speaking of squam. i'm so utterly excited to go to my first art retreat. i've made this journal to take with me. hoping to use it as a 'year book' type journal to get the artists i meet to sign my book for posterity sake. and to journal in to keep me busy. here's a little peek of the cover.. not yet done, still have to add the lace to it.

btw, if you're not already using the 'free' instagram iphone application, what are you waiting for?? lol

i just found a list of items i should be bringing: insect spray, warm socks, good hiking shoes, warm undies for night time cause it gets cold, flashlight cause it's a long dark walk from the sleeping cabin to the workshop cabins (eeks hate HATE the dark), snacks, coffee mug... if you've been to squam art workshops in the fall, i'd love to know if i've missed anything.. now gotta think up some ideas for making some little giveaways at squam..

HAPPY WEEKEND friends!!! it's FRIDAY, i'm in love...

Francesca

getting my paint on

2011-05-11T18:38:00.002-04:00

whilst coughing up my lung. damn this cough and sinus crap. so sick and tired of it. my ribs are starting to hurt from sputtering so much.

so whilst home, i decided to get my paint on. why not. i thought it was a good way to cheer my miserable self up. and it worked.

i thought i'd spice things up and use a new product (to me that is), goldens fiber paste. after it dries on the page, it gives the effect of handmade paper. so, i spread a nice thick coat, and painted over top. and i got this awesome texture. gonna give this a try with watercolours next.

a close up of the texture underneath the paint.

caran d'ache with titanium white, and crate paper patterned paper. just having fun.

and last but not least, finally getting to my sketchbook project 2012. i plan to post all pages when done. so fun working on a small size. it's quick and dirty!

and see my new brushes to the far left? sigh. i'm in love. i especially like the mongoose hair brushes. they push around oil paint so effortlessly and precisely. i have yet to try out the sable brushes. sigh.

ok. now to get dosed up on some anti-cough meds lest i cough up my other lung!

mothers day love

2011-05-09T13:29:00.001-04:00

for mothers day i got to buy myself whatever i wanted and this is what i chose, (but don't tell my sister, if she finds out i spent this much money on art brushes, she'll knock me over the head for not opting to buy a piece of jewellery, or an expensive pair of shoes, or some sort of nonsense) :

raphael fresco red sable brushes but rounded filbert #'s 2, 4, 5, 8, 10, 12

raphael kevrin mongoose brushes, filbert #2, 4, 6, 8, 10, 12

a little bit extravagant, and a little bit pricey, but you know what they say.. a happy mamma makes a happy family. and this mamma sure is happy!!!

thanks mimmo for knowing how to make this mamma extra happy!! xo

confessions of a 7 year old

2011-05-06T11:12:00.000-04:00

iphone photo of xavier and his certificate

forgive me father, for i have sinned.

xavier experienced his first reconciliation last night in preparation for his communion on may 14th. he is very excited to receive his first communion and i was surprised to see that he was very serious about confessing his sins.

on the way to church i asked him if he knew what he was going to confess and if he'd thought about what he was going to say. and he said, 'yeah mom, we've been preparing at school '.

so when it was his turn in church, i had to present him to father carlos, and off i had to go. xavier was very serious and father carlos nodding his head, both had their heads turned so i couldn't see what they were saying, nor could i hear them. ok. yes. i was dying of curiosity as to what a 7 year old had to confess.

when it was over he had to sit for five minutes and pray, and then was given a certificate and off we went home. he was so proud of himself.

so on the way home, i couldn't resist and this is how the conversation went:

me: so xavier, how'd it go?
xavier: good
me: what are some of the things you confessed?
xavier: i can't tell you mom, it's between me and god
me: (stunned), um, can you at least tell me one thing?
xavier: no, it's private. oh but i did forget to tell him that i slapped dad
me: (super stunned) oh dear, we better go home and say those prayers 100x over

a blast from the past

2011-05-04T08:46:00.000-04:00

my sister sent me a text message this morning that, "rick springfield is 61 and got busted for a DUI".

first off you're probably thinking, why would she send her sister this message. well, if you know me, you must know that i was a HUGE rick springfield junkie when i was 16. and i mean HUGE fan. the kinda fan that went to his concert and did the ugly cry through out the whole thing. um. yeah.

so outta curiosity, i googled this and found the article. and OMG. OMG. all i could say was OMG. at 61 he's still HOT. i mean, look at this man. who looks this good at 61? i die. as for the DUI. well he needs a good spanking... and i'm more than willing to administer those spanks. but look at how HOT he still looks. bestill my heart.

france

sketchbook project 2012

2011-04-19T14:37:00.001-04:00

so i've signed up for the sketchbook project 2012.

the theme i chose is, 'this is a sketchbook', from a full host of themes.

i'm so excited that this year the tour goes international, and they have added Canadian dates for the first time, in Toronto and Vancouver. I'll actually be able to go visit my sketchbook when it goes on tour. Really? How cool is that?

It's simple. You sign up. Choose a theme. Pay $25. And they send you a sketchbook to fill up. You return it to them. And it goes on tour and eventually housed in the permanent collection of the Brooklyn Art Library, and will always be available for viewing.

can't wait to start.

remember my one little word for 2011? well it was taking 'risks', and doing things out of my comfort zone. well this is another leap forward into getting involved in the art community. yay me.
so what are you waiting for? have you signed up yet?

france

on being a chemist

2011-04-17T20:24:00.001-04:00

'art is the only way to run away without leaving home'

---twyla tharp

a neighbour friend sent that quote to me, and i can totally and completely relate. it made me chuckle. thanks Marie for sending it to me!

i am seriously thinking one needs to become somewhat of a chemist in order to paint with oils. it's not as simple as opening up a tube of paint and picking up paint brush. now i know why a lot of people prefer to work with acrylic. it's less cumbersome. and less expensive as i'm realizing. the prep work is tremendous. the clean up afterwards is tremendous. but despite it all, i still love working with oils.

there are special papers for oils. if using watercolour paper the oils will eventually eat away at the paper. or better yet oil primed linen is best, which you could also buy raw (unprimed), and prime it yourself. i've also just found out it's best to use an oil painting ground or primer which you can tint with your paint of choice.

not to mention all the different mediums you can buy for glazing.

poppy oil: thinning agent
saffron oil: to dilute white, rather than linseed oil to prevent yellowing.
walnut oil: used like linseed oil, but flows more freely, and less tendency to crack or yellow
stand oil: used for glazing, no yellowing or linseed stand oil, but needs to be used with turp or white mineral spirits

yeah.

it's mind boggling.

then there are the brushes. i'd love me some new brushes. i'm saving my pennies to buy these babies: raphael red sable brushes like these here; and the filbert isabey mongoose ones here; and the escoda bristles short filberts here.

but, i'm reading and researching and learning. so it's all good. learning as i go. and making all kinds of mistakes. but oh well. there is no better teacher than mistakes.

and here are a few of those mistakes. smile.

for the painting above (work in progress), i used a gel transfer

another work in progress. using my table top easel for this one.

have a great night,

france (or francesca, or fran, or frances, whatever comes easiest!!!)

on random conversations

2011-04-12T16:03:00.000-04:00

yesterday the conversation between xavier and elisa and myself went something like this:

an iphone photo

Xavier: mom how old are you?

me: i'm 40, why?

Xavier: i don't know (while smirking)... how old do i have to be when i can pick E up from school.
me: hmm, dunno, maybe when you're about 14 or 15.

Xavier: oh

me: and when you're 15 E will be 12, so it should be ok since it's a close walk to home

Xavier: smiles some more

me: my gosh and that would make me 48

Xavier: laughs out loud, mom that's old
me: and when you're 25, E will 22
Xavier: wow

me: and oh my gosh that'll make me 58 (eyes glazed over feeling very scared about getting old!!!) and when your 40, E wil lbe 37 and i'll be 73. OMG (said loudly), i may be dead by then, (tears starting to well up in my eyes thinking i won't be around for my kids)

Elisa: (pipes in) mom, if you die then i won't have a mommy anymore

and well........ that was the clincher. The tears these old eyes of mine produced!! then domenic came in rolled his eyes, shook his head and called me crazy!!

on being brave

2011-04-09T12:48:00.001-04:00

you know when you've just finished a piece and you're so excited about sharing it but it's late at night and taking pictures of your piece just isn't optimal so you wait for the next day so you can take shots in the mornings natural light... but then you look at your piece, and you sit and look at it standing still for a few mintues, with your finger on your lips, soaking in the details of your work, and how you think, hmmm, i didn't see that last night, if i just add this, or change that, and then you grab your brushes, and paints and add more layers and wonderfulness, until you put it away again to realize, you'll sleep on it and take another fresh look in the morning, and when you do you say, hmm, good, but not yet done, and again you grab your brushes and paints and intend to add just a few little details and layers, and all of a sudden, inspired by a spark, you change it up again and add new elements to just make it that much better.

(how's that for one long run on sentence!)

well.

that. exactly. what. happened. to. me. with. these. two. pieces.

piece #1

and piece #2

and that's why i love my oils.

just when i think i'm done, i get the urge to go on. and i can because the oils allow for slow drying time and i can start where i left off. and i'm in love with that because i love to give my pieces time to rest, and look at them with fresh eyes in the morning. my mind likes to process ideas so the rest times allow me to dream and germinate new ideas.

when i close my eyes after painting at night, i still have in my minds eye, brush strokes and a vision of how i want to create or have my finished piece look. is it unusual that you dream of how you want to paint, and imagine how you want your piece to look? am i just crazy? or do most artists do that? i guess it's bound to happen since i do my best creating at night before i go to bed.

i only wish that i had taken pics of my process. i hope to remember to do it next time. a glimpse into how i create, and my thought processes.

i'm excited to show you these two pieces, because I really love them. i felt good and confident when creating these and i think that feeling is expressed in the final piece. being brave and forging ahead. are they done, you ask? perhaps. i'll let you know in the morning! lol.

yay! saturday, i love you,

happy weekend all,

france

slowing down to discover and uncover

2011-04-07T15:35:00.000-04:00

when i pick elisa up from play group at the end of the day, after big hugs and getting a run down of how her day went, i scoop her up and try to rush us home. at this time of the day everything is rush, rush, rush... on fast forward. you know how it is, you're tired from a long day of work, you're trying to think up what to cook for dinner (since you didn't defrost anything the night before), and helping with homework for the xavier, and baths, and dishes, and taking the dog out. ouf. so needless to say, i 'try' to rush us home.. so many things to get done before the end of the day. with elisa's little legs and her boundless curiosity, there is always something catching her attention and 'slowing' us down. regardless of my hisses in the background, 'c'mon elisa, chop chop, let's get a move on'. etc.

but yesterday was different.

yesterday we, I slowed down. on purpose.

there was new life bursting everywhere we looked. the spring season is starting to make itself apparent and there were extra beautiful things that were catching our attention:

mr. sparrow making a new summer nest for mrs. sparrow and babes with fresh weeds and things;

a bird singing this beautiful song, (we think it's a blue jay but we're not sure);

fresh new flowers and buds sprouting through the dead dried leaves and twigs; finally some life and colour back in our yards:

and of course, the usual neighbourhood cat chase of our beloved Bill, Toby, and Charlie:

i was reminded to stop rushing us home; that there is always something to discover and uncover with every step we take. but most importantly, i was reminded that i just need to take the time to notice.

and with that, this is the before:

here she is after:

'the possibilities are everwhere, facing my fears one step at a time'

enjoy your day, and endeavour to slow down. you'll be surprised at the things you'll discover.

France

spring has sprung

2011-03-23T13:52:00.002-04:00

the weekend was busy busy. didn't get a second to do much art. but by monday night, i started to get antsy... so i pulled out my go-to favorite supplies. can you guess by now what they are? lol. my oils and my handmade journal. sigh. and created this. as you can tell, i'm still working on it, and am loving the peace and tranquility that i feel when i draw and paint and blend and totally lose myself in the 'zone'.

not sure why i'm fascinated with painting faces, icons with halos. but i am. perhaps i'll expand onto something else once the fixation subsides. or maybe not. it's all good. just riding the tide until it lasts.

this next mixed media piece was fun. i have all kinds of images in my special 'box' when i'm in the mood to do this kind of thing. it's loaded full of arms and hands, and heads and bits of this and that. never know when you might need a couple of outstretched hands like these:

and this is my 'studio' today, right here, right now.

it's officially spring, and toronto is experiencing a snow storm. yes folks. we have 10 inches of snow coming down. 'just when i thought i was out, they pull me back in'... thanks michael corleone for that line, cause that's how this storm is making me feel right now.

hope your part of the world isn't being so hard on you!

happy spring'ish day!

france

a right brained girl, in a left brained job

2011-03-16T21:34:00.000-04:00

equals one very unhappy right brained girl. i've written this post over almost 4 times. me thinks i just won't say anything until the words come easily. right now i'm struggling to express what i'm feeling. in short, the evenings are too short, the weekends whiz by too fast, and wishing i could just snap my fingers and make some dramatic changes. jibberish. sorry, i know. i have too many ideas floating in my head right now. gotta let them stew for a while. perhaps things will start to make sense soon. stay with me folks. i'll wake up out of this funk soon.

in the meantime, still having a love affair with my oil stiks. can't get enough of them. i'm experimenting with the oil sticks and using them with paint brushes rather than my fingers. using paintbrushes give the piece a very different look. it's smooth and velvety looking, and gives it quite a dreamy look.

i used a photo of my little elisa as a reference.

i'm very obsessed with painting faces right now. and loving it.

ouf. is it friday yet?

france

crown of feathers

2011-03-13T11:26:00.000-04:00

i just can't stop myself. another one using shiva oil paint stiks. i think i may have just found my medium.

happy Sunday,
france

this girl love oils

2011-03-11T20:32:00.000-05:00

i may have just found my medium of choice. peoples, i'm in love.

this is far from finished but i'm already liking the look, and most especially the ease of blending. i can even leave it for an hour and come back to it and still be able to blend. ahhh. heaven. i'm really in love.

ok. back to painting.

adios amigos! yayyyyyy it's Friday...

france

working through the ugly

2011-03-11T10:53:00.000-05:00

oil, in moleskine journal

acrylic on watercolour paper

i had a very (unusually) quiet house last night. dom took the kids to an inpromptu visit to their grandmothers house, which left me all alone to my own devices! it didn't take me long to slam the door shut, and at break neck speed run to my room with all my paints and supplies. nothing makes me more giddy than a quiet house and a couple of hours to indulge in my favorite past time. painting. sigh.

i'm determined to keep painting until i start truely liking the results. and therefore i must remind myself to keep painting through the ugly. i know it's a matter of practice, and learning what works for me, in terms of brushes, and products. not to mention to continue painting to establishing my own style.

what i find most difficult is when taking a course, or when you admire another artists work it is difficult not to create something that looks like 'their' work. i have to remind myself the importance of trying out their techniques and styles as a learning exercise, but to then take those techniques to a new level, by making them unique to me, and establishing my own style. and how do you establish your own style. by painting and creating. a lot.

i know what i like. i know what i want to create. i can see it in my minds eye. and i'm working on translating that vision into my art work.

in this post i must give a shout out to a few artists who's work i've been admiring lately:

Pam Carriker: the daily sketches of portraits she's been producing of late just blow me away. very inspiring.

Jesse Reno: incredible works that make my head spin (in delight, not in an exorcist kinda way).

and last but not least

Flora Bowley: i tried to get into her class at the fall session of Squam this September, but it was full. so upset about that.

HAPPY FRIDAY, woohhooooo

France

Visual Journal

2011-03-07T10:40:00.001-05:00

this weekend i went MIA. i totally unplugged myself from the internet, blogging, facebooking world. and it felt great. i was so much more productive and creative than i have in a long time.

i actually managed to create two handmade journal from two sheets of 22' by 30' windsor and newton, 140lb, hot pressed, watercolour papers. I used the Teesha Moore 'amazing 16 page journal' technique on her blog to make it.

i then went on to make mone more journal using the same stitching technique, with my Fabriano artistico, cold pressed, 140lb watercolour paper. boy, i was on a roll.

i then used that last journal and decided it was going to be my visual journal. and got right to the cutting and pasting. it's funny... you start by cutting out things that resonate with you, and you don't really know how the heck or why the heck you cut them out, but you just know... then when it's time to glue, it's funny how the pieces you picked to cut out just seem to fit! it was like i was on automatic pilot and each piece knew where they should be. it was the most fun ever.

here are some WIP pages. i have yet to work on them, with writing, quotes, etc... but thought i'd show them anyway:

(front cover)

(back cover)

(inside pages)

journaling and quotes will hopefully happen tonight.

what's your favorite binding stitch? do you know a fast and easy way to bind journals? i would love to hear about it. if you have a link to youtube or your blog, please share.

have a great week,
francescsa

my weekend: parties and portraits

2011-02-20T20:46:00.001-05:00

Warning: photo heavy post! I loved working on this piece. I used all kinds of stuff and it felt good using a lot of things I had on hand, but hadn't used in a long time, for example, my alcohol inks, and tim holtz crackle medium. Misty, as part of the class exercise, suggested to go big. So I did. And it was great.

This is the full viewage: love is all i got to give. and just underneath her (super-sized) hands: love is all there will ever be. and the cute 'toujours'.

After I got painting out of my system, I had to tend to Elisa's 4th birthday party. We had a small get together at my house with our family. Elisa was sooo excited. She was so happy to have everyone there for her special day.

Xavier learned how to put tattoos on all by himself (thanks Helen). And he turned into a Xavier-von-diet. Love the sleeve he created with an ENTIRE package of tattoos.

And Anthony even came by. With his girlfriend. Yup. He's got a girl, Fey (I think she spells it). Oh puppy love, you're so cute.

This would be the old man section. KMSL. My brother with the blue and my hubs in the brown. And yes, Al, you're definitely losing your hair.

And Peter my nephew! Yup he's a cutie and the girls just love him. Even Elisa.

And here's moms, and Helen (aka the tattoo putter-oner-helper), and my sis. All of us crammed into our little house. It's perfect for four people (and a furry dude), but put a few more people and it all of a sudden becomes horribly clausterphobic. It's a good thing I liked everyone who came. lol

I'm sooo exhausted. Hosting parties are lots of fun, but boy, oh so tiring boy.

Happy Weekend,

Francesca

yay Monday is a holiday Family Day. What will you be doing?

finally, i am

2011-02-12T15:47:00.001-05:00

gratitude

listening

stretching

ever changing

and pouring out

finally

i had so much fun working on this piece. it started with the prompt 'i am', and to describe yourself without using adjectives. these words for me came quick and furious.

gratitude: grateful to the universe for listening to me

listening: to my inner voice that i have ignored for far too long

stretching: learning, growing and taking risks by putting my work out there

ever changing: expanding my horizons, meeting new people, 'seeing' in new ways

pouring out: writing, painting, playing, exploring, in every creative way possible

this finally feels like me.

thanks for stopping by,

francesca

stretching further within

2011-02-07T22:29:00.000-05:00

santa lucia

you fit

more art work just keeps pouring out.

seeing

2011-01-31T22:21:00.001-05:00

can't seem to get enough of this one image. i've now used it in a few pieces, and i'm sure there will be more to come. loving caran d'ache pigments...so delish when you add some water, and/or titanium white.

bought me some new brushes with my birthday $$ and can't wait to use them. more to come soon.

btw, i hate mondays. and this monday was no exception. all i could think about was coming home to my new brushes and experimenting. but of course, no time tonight. food to cook. homework to supervise. kids to play with. laundry to put away.

hoping for a better day tomorrow,
Francesca

Squam, Artfest, Italy

2011-01-28T13:52:00.000-05:00

there are so many fests, and art gatherings i want to go to. which one to go to. which classes to take. there is so much out there i want to try. one step at a time, right.

so, i think i'll start with squam. it's in new hampshire and close to boston. this is the closest to toronto and we can drive down as a family. we plan to spend some time in boston, and then the family can drop me off at the retreat on thursday, and pick me up on sunday, and off we go back home. i've applied for this and this and this class.

my next trip is artfest. i want to take this, this and this (but it's full so i'll take this). how incredible.

and my ultimate trip would be italy. creating art in italy with artists i adore. nothing can beat that.

in my 40th year i've become brave. i'm taking my one word 'risks' to the limit and expanding my horizons. earlier in life i never would have considered travelling on my own, let alone be brave enough to take an art class. with other artists. but most of all brave in calling myself an artist.

brave in my art. brave in my heart.

if you're attending any of these events, please let me know which ones. would love to know what you've chosen to take..

i've been creating stuff i never thought i would. more to share soon.

have a happy friday,
francesca

diva

2011-01-26T08:48:00.000-05:00

on to week three of collage. love love love this part of the course. i'm going to use some of the images of the girls i sketched and reuse them in my collages. it's so much fun just moving around papers and bits of stuff on your page until you love it, and then gluing them down and splashing paint over it. it's fun. it's freeing. it's immensely fun. i love it that i am using images that i've sketched making it more personal. this piece i did really quickly. i was so inspired to make a collage, but i wasn't doing a good job of staying in 'the zone' to finish it off like i would have liked. my attention was split between trying to satisfy my creative spirit and trying to keep two littles busy enough to give me time to finish. it's a juggling act i tell ya.

so folks, i'll be 40 years old this week. yup. the monumental 4-0. i become an official quadrugenarian this friday. funny how there are so many days when i still feel like i'm 20, and somedays where i feel like i'm 90.

what are my birthday plans? not sure. so far friday night with the girls - all us aquarius girls. looking forward to some good food and wine and i'm sure a few good laughs.

are you celebrating a birtday too this month? any other fellow aquarians out there?

happy Wednesday,
Francesca

painting with acrylics

2011-01-22T21:34:00.000-05:00

sigh. painting with acrylics is so dang hard. i just can't seem to make it work. on this one i used canvas board, with jenny bowling papers and some tissue paper that came with my new coach purse!! looks great. but my girl. not so sure i like her. but i'll keep practicing. practice practice practice. oy. i sure hope this eventually gets easier.

happy saturday night,

francesca

i am

2011-01-21T20:26:00.000-05:00

i am courage. it takes courage to grow up and become who you really are.

wondering #3

2011-01-16T19:47:00.001-05:00

do you ever question the direction your life has taken? do you ever wonder if you should have done things differently? do you question the choices you've made? well, i've been asking these questions of myself today. seems i'm in some sort of funk. i snapped up my moleskine journal and sketched away my mood. i was feeling brave enough to 'bust out' in my journaling and used more elements to express my emotions. journaling, stamping, cavallini stickers. ah. that made me feel so much better. art saves. indeed.

happy sunday,

francesca

p.s. guess what. i almost don't want to tell you cause i don't want to jinx it. but THIS is what i'll be doing in 2012. I'M SO EXCITED I'M GOING TO COMBUST. (the 2012 itinerary hasn't gone up yet, but i'm sure it'll be the same). Yay me.

Beatrice #2

2011-01-15T18:16:00.000-05:00

'e caddi come corpe morto cade'

Divine Comedy, Purgatory, Canto V

i just love this image. every time i draw her, she seems like an entire new woman. i'm going to do a few more and my favorite of them will become my painted piece for next weeks lesson. i like this one cause she's plump and round. a real woman! so excited to see what number 3 will look like. perhaps i'll have something to post tomorrow morning.

happy saturday all,

Francesca

Awakening

2011-01-11T15:45:00.000-05:00

Misty is such a kick-ass instructor. I'm learning to do things I never thought I could. I now know that I can.
Awakening to a whole new world of possibilities. Yay me!!

If anyone out there in cyberspace is taking an on-line course, please do share. I'm always on the look out for new, awesome on-line classes.

happy happy happy,
Francesca

i come from

2011-01-03T14:19:00.004-05:00

- a long line of strong beautiful women who loved their families with absolute selflessness

- from a long line of strong men who worked themselves to the bone to support their families

- a place where family comes first before anything and treated with the utmost respect

- hard working parents who instilled in their children early in life the value of a dollar, and the value of a job

- long happy summers with scraped knees, barefoot, and tangled up long braids

- sibling rivalry

- of playing 'name that tune' with vinyl records and 45's with a portable 'bay city rollers' record player

- butterfly hunting with homemade nets, of hide-and-go-seek on summer night blackouts

- growing up in the 80's and white makeup and the smiths

- skipping class, going to U2 concerts and thinking we were 'cool'

- crab apple fights and going to the video game store to spend all our quarters

- coming home, leaving home

- long summer weekends at the cottage in the 1970 brown monte carlo, all 12 of us packed into the car including the dog

- mortadella sandwiches, chip sandwiches, bottles coke, and smushed up bags of chips to make them last longer

- an incredible university experience where i learned many of lifes lessons

- of late night bonfires

- tragic car accident and death

- drinking espresso, and big family dinners

- becoming a wife, and a mother of two

- losing myself

- finding myself

- deconstructing myself

- listening to my hearts whispers and 'stretching within'

- still searching

-still learning

-still finding

- loving life

now it's your turn. where do you come from?

francesca

this little light of mine

2010-12-24T13:38:00.000-05:00

wishing all a wonderful happy healthy christmas! let the magic begin..

merry christmas eve!!

francesca

Frame and Text Overlays

2010-12-20T19:15:00.000-05:00

Finally taught myself how to create frame and text overlays in Photoshop. I just love the effect. Great for when you don't have time to scrapbook but feel the need to document a little story or saying. Since I haven't been doing much scrapbooking lately, I see a lot of my time spent doing this.

This is probably how I'll be documenting Christmas 2010.

francesca

untitled

2010-12-19T18:49:00.003-05:00

here's my latest portrait. i think he's so pretty.

getting myself prepped for misty's online class. woohooo.

and still working on this...

happy sunday night,
francesca

2010 Completion Ritual

2010-12-10T21:23:00.002-05:00

This is me. 39 year old me with all my perfect imperfections. Time to reflect on the old and ponder the new. Remember my completion ritual last year? Here are some of my reflections.

What do you acknowledge yourself for in regards to 2010?

- for speaking up for myself and demanding I be heard
- for making time for my art a priority
- for being brave in posting my portraits even though they were very amateur and certainly less than perfect
- for finding the new me. And redefining me in a way that more accurately represents me.
- for finding the best day care ever for my little girl
- taking pride in watching Xavier read and devour books
- for taking on-line classes with my favorite artists
- for purchasing my first piece of original art
- for finally getting my kids to sleep in their own beds (this was a BIG one for me folks)

What is there to grieve in 2010?
- I grieve an illness of one we hold dear that have left us feeling helpless and hopeless
- I grieve losing the baby-ness in my children and no longer being able to hold them to my chest as I sing them to sleep

What else do you need to say about 2010 to declare it complete?
I thoroughly enjoyed 2010. It held a lot of happiness and joy, with just one touch of incredible sadness. I declare 2010 complete.

As I stand up I declare 2011 the year of taking risks, artistically, professionally, and personally. The dictionary defines risk as, "take or run a risk, to expose oneself to the chance of injury or loss; put oneself in danger; hazard; venture".

When I say risks I mean intentionally putting myself into situations that make me feel uncomfortable all in an attempt to assist my growth both in breadth and scope. I want to attempt things that will take me out of my ordinary and fling me into the extraordinary. I want to do things that'll push me out of my proverbial box. Yup folks. This is gonna be interesting.

Do you have a ritual that you do every year? If you do I'd love to hear about it. If youhave posted it to your blog please leave a link for me to come visit.

and just for fun, have you ever seen so many birds on a wire??? i thought it was the end of the world when i saw them flock like this above my head!! but it sure made for an awesome iphone hipstamatic pic...

Happy day everyone,

Francesca

stitchin' and bitchin'

2010-11-29T15:39:00.000-05:00

quick. look up. see the blog header? yeah, well, i'd made some little progress on it, but essentially still requires lots of attention to complete. i think i kinda stopped because i was running out of little ideas to stitch. so to remedy the creative block, i got me a couple of books. and lo and behold i have found my embroidery mojo again. just like that.

two reasons why i chose these particular books:

1) seriously? because look at how damn cute the covers are
2) because i'm slightly obssesive and can't just buy 'one' of anything
3) because one comes with a cd choc-full of images you can resize in photoshop elements to resuse over and over again
4) and because the other comes with a bunch of really awesome transfers ready to use

...and that's the truth folks.

so i've printed up my patterns and am ready and rearing to stitch and bitch tonite. cause i'm good at that (bitchin' that is, not stitchin').

btw, fact: did you know you can use your laser jet printer to print up a pattern (reverse it if it's lettering), and iron it on to your fabric for an instant transfer? well, i tell ya, i know that now. and you know what that means. anything that is printable is going to be ironed onto fabric. cause i'm crazy like that.

happy monday,
Francesca

Merry Xmas to Me from Me

2010-11-24T14:58:00.000-05:00

after checking misty's blog yesterday (a daily ritual, mind you), i noticed she'd posted more originals to her etsy shop.

GASP. QUICK THINKING.

so i did what i had to do. i put dom in a strangle-hold, wrestled his wallet out of his pocket, found my way to his credit card (because mine had to be shredded heehee), and single handedly made a successful transaction.

so this sweet baby will arrive on my doorstep some day soon:

this is the reason why i picked up my paint brush. this is the reason why i'm so inspired to paint faces. this is the reason that i can't stop thinking about putting paint to brush, brush to canvas. i find her work incredibly inspiring, to say the least, and choc-full of emotion.

it's small but it speaks volumes. so misty, if you're reading this, know she's found a good home where she'll be well loved.

ok. gotta go. waiting at my front door. is it here yet????? lol yes, i'm indeed insane. i do declare.

love love love,
Francesca

Journal Pages: in progress

2010-11-22T13:28:00.000-05:00

'you have everything you need to begin'
my inspirational quote for the week

Seaside Sandcastles Collage Heaven (in progress)

Pinwheels and Togetherness Collaged Heaven (in progress)

'Sunday Best' embroidered collage in progress

happy Monday,
Francesca

Art Journal: Lady Blues

2010-11-16T12:48:00.001-05:00

'lo viso mostra lo color del cuore'

---- dante alighieri

My new 'studio' and collaged furniture

2010-11-14T18:48:00.002-05:00

So. I was working from my basement. I used it as my dedicated creative work space. Although it was a big space that accommodated all my thousands of dollars of 'stuff', I just wasn't able to make it my happy place. It was great for a while and I enjoyed the convenience of an art sink and tons of cupboard space. But the lack of proper lighting and natural light was getting to me. I know now that working in a well lit space with natural light makes a huge difference in my state of mind when creating. It's huge. So in light of this (no pun intended), I've move shop to my bedroom. Yup. The bedroom. Laugh.

I figure my most serene favorite part of the house is my bedroom. It's where I go these days to relax and hide and recharge. Not to mention the light during the day is incredible. We have a huge south facing window so we get tons of sunshine.

Be because I can only fit one cupboard into the space only the essentials will come up with me.
My most favorite go to things ONLY like alphas, stamps, rub ons, my paints of course, and my easel. Yes. My easel. And to freshen up the room I've done a little something funky with one of my drawers that will house said products.

(this is where I was going to give you a mini tour of the room but blogger isn't cooperating and won't let me upload the video.. i'll try again tomorrow.)

new studio and collaged furniture from Francesca Di Leo on Vimeo.

So, for now here's a close up of the cupboard, however it's dark and raining outside so the lighting isn't at it's best, so the quality isn't very good...

This space is still a work in progress. The walls are bare so perhaps some shelving and some framed 'somethings' need to go up. New curtains perhaps. But I want to make sure that I don't clutter it up because that'll make me crazy. I like clean and simple especially if it's also serving as a bedroom.

So there you go. A little view into my life and home. On to collaging more furniture... this is dang addictive. I say that a lot don't I. oh well.

Happy Sunday night all,
Francesca

ABC Wednesday : Q

2010-11-10T08:00:00.015-05:00

on january 28 i will become a quadragenarian.
huh? you ask.
yup, a qua-dra-gen-ar-ian, a person between the age of 40 and 49.
i will hit the big 4-0 mark. 40. me? really? yeah, this is horrifying me just a 'little' bit.

to ease myself into quadragenery, i am planning on a trip to good 'ol Paris. i want to sit in a cafe and drink espresso, and journal, and people watch, and visit museums, and pretend i am a parisienne, and nod my head when people speak french to me like i understand. wonder if my quebecoise will get me through. smile.

ok. off to enjoy a quarender (dark red apple) and some quirk (soft cheese made by skim milk) by the soft light of a quarion (candle).

now go here to see more 'q' goodness at ABC Wednesday.
and if you want even more 'quirky' words that start with 'q', go here.

happy hump-day!

Francesca

more journal pages

2010-11-08T12:17:00.002-05:00

so I can post from my iPhone. Huh. how awesome is this.

i will admit I haven't done any scrapping lately. in large part because i haven't printed up any photos. but even more so because i haven't had any motivation to do so.

right now:

- really into playing in my journal after the kids go to bed and pulling out all my art supplies on my bed

- planning my 40th birthday trip to paris
- can't believe i'll be 40 this january
- loving my new short hair
- in love with shiva paint stiks
- planning on enrolling in two new courses - preferrably on-line (painting with Misty and perhaps a photog)
- i am in LOVE with meatloaf, especially this and this recipe
- am planning to use my slow cooker more often to help simplify my evenings
- love watching the kids participate and enjoy sunday mass, and catechism
- listening to xavier read to me from his goosebumps book series
- love finding xavier reading on the couch, or lying down on the carpet, or in his bed. LOVE IT.

experimenting with my embossing tools and my stamps. and journaling. and drawing my 'pretty ladies.

when i get home today, i should have a lovely box waiting for me at my doorstep. my monthly awesomeness that is studio calico november kit.

happy monday,

francesca

ABC Wednesday : P

2010-11-02T14:26:00.003-04:00

Jackson Pollock
Photographer Hans Namuth extensively documented Pollock's unique painting techniques.
Birth name	Paul Jackson Pollock
Born	January 28, 1912 Cody, Wyoming, U.S.
Died	August 11, 1956 (aged 44) Springs, New York, U.S.
Nationality	American
Field	Painter
Training	Art Students League of New York
Movement	Abstract expressionism
Patrons	Peggy Guggenheim
Influenced by	Thomas Hart Benton, Pablo Picasso

FACT: Pollock's No. 5, 1948 became the world's most expensive painting, when it was sold privately to an undisclosed buyer for the sum of $140, 000, 000. The previous owner was film and music producer David Geffen. It is rumoured that the current owner is a German businessman and art collector.

Pollock introduced the use of liquid paint. He used paint pourings as one of several techniques on canvases. He began painting with his canvases laid out on the studio floor, and he developed what was later called his 'drip' technique. He used hardened brushes, sticks, and even basting syringes as paint applicators. Pollock's technique of Pouring and dripping paint is thought to be one of the origins of the term action painting. In this way Pollock challenged the Western tradition of using easel and brush. He also moved away from the use of only the hand and wrist, since he used his whole body to paint. Time magazine dubbed Pollock, 'Jack the Dripper' as a result of his unique painting style.

Now, get out your canvas, get out your liquid fluid paints, and a turkey baster, and let the magic begin. Ready, set go. Meet you back here when you're done. Would love to see your version of the 'drip' technique. ok?

Francesca

glimmering hope and mary with some shrooms

2010-11-01T10:31:00.001-04:00

i just bought these two new stamps. there's a whole series of them and i plan on buying them ALL. because if you've been reading this blog, you know i'm obsessive like that. i just adore them. they're so pathetic and adorable at the same time. how could you not love them. they're called Glimmering Hope and Mary, and you can find them here:
glimmering hope
and
mary

i plan to use them for xmas cards! you're probably say 'huh, but they're goth, halloween no?', well yes, halloween cards, xmas cards... just think glimmering hope with a santa hat on her head a gold star on her chest and a sparkly sparkly dress with lots of glitter. and mary with a santa hat and a candy cane in her hand and some presents at her feet. ah. genious. gonna give it a try this weekend and see how it goes. i always say i'm gonna make xmas cards, and then never do it. so i'm determined this year. hopefully i'll have something to show you this weekend.
and since i'm on a stamping kick, this is what I bought the week before:
giant shroom
and
mushroom group

how adorable are they. there was another text stamp to go with it that read, 'everyone needs a quiet place to hide' , would'a gotten it but the funds ran out. laugh. shhh don't tell my husband. he's complaining that i'm using up the mortgage and the babysitting funds. laugh more. i told him to then get himself a 2nd job. let's just say, he wasn't laughing or amused in the least.

and alsas, another one of my paintings. this one sketched in front of a mirror trying to seriously capture me. i like the light and dark. and the definition of the eyes, but not liking the hair and the nose. how do you paint hair? i just can't figure it out. arghhh.

you need to click on the picture to get a better view of it

happy souls and saints day!!

Francesca

Happy Hallows Eve

2010-10-31T09:32:00.001-04:00

these two munchkins are all excited. it seems even X is excited. normally he doesn't care to go house to house, but seems this year he's looking forward to it.

E goes to all the neighbourhood houses and asks me to take pics of her alongside all the halloween props. she's such a hoot.

i love her jesse and doggie alongside the rats. this kid is hilarious.

yesterday X had a halloween birthday party at N's house, and they had a BLAST.

and whilst X partied, E got her long overdo haircut.

before:

and after:

yes, the hairdressers were all dressed up in costume too.

can't wait for tonight myself. E is gonna be the cutest little 'cat in the hat' and X the leanest and meanest 'iron man' ever.

happy, safe, candy full Halloween everyone!

Francesca

she's at it again

2010-10-30T18:50:00.000-04:00

stayed up late last night playing with my shiva paint stiks. they're oil paints, literally like a humongous crayon. they're oil paint but so much easier to use and less mess than oil paints from a tube. they're rich and creamy and blend super easy with just your finger. love the soft creamy texture of them.

here's my girl. i must say, i kinda like this one. little by little i'm starting to like my ladies. this one just seems so much more real to me, and closer to what i'm trying to achieve. lots of work and practice still to do. the eyes, the mouth... ugh. the mouth. it gives me trouble. and the hair. she looks like she's having hair trouble, just like me. i can't get the hair thing right in real life either! smile.

happy saturday, and hopefully you're out at a rip roaring halloween party. have a brewsky on me, will ya!

later folks.

Francesca

ABC Wednesday "O": OULIPO

2010-10-29T10:41:00.003-04:00

so, i'm a little late in posting for ABC Wednesday. so let's just pretend it's wednesday, shall we!!

the letter this week is "O'. and my word for the week which i have just recently discovered and would love to share is: Oulipo.

Oulipo. what the heck is that, was my first thought. so i immediately googled it. and wikipedia brought this up:

Oulipo (French pronunciation:[ulipo], short for French: Ouvroir de littérature potentielle; roughly translated: "workshop of potential literature") is a loose gathering of (mainly) French-speaking writers and mathematicians which seeks to create works using constrained writing techniques. It was founded in 1960 by Raymond Queneau and François Le Lionnais. Other notable members include novelists Georges Perec and Italo Calvino, poet Oskar Pastior and poet/mathematician Jacques Roubaud
interesting i thought. but still not sure what the heck it meant. 'constrained writing'. another word required translation which once again lead to more research. back to google:

Constrained writing is a literary technique in which the writer is bound by some condition that forbids certain things or imposes a pattern. Constraints are very common in poetry, which often requires the writer to use a particular verse form.

Below are some examples of Oulipian constraints:

S+7, sometimes called N+7
Replace every noun in a text with the noun seven entries after it in a dictionary. For example, "Call me Ishmael. Some years ago..." (from Moby-Dick) becomes "Call me islander. Some yeggs ago...". Results will vary depending upon the dictionary used. This technique can also be performed on other lexical classes, such as verbs.

My Version: of N+7
you fit into me like a fish hook into an eye, a fish hook an open eye (my favorite poem by M. Atwood)
N+7 = you flavour into me like a flag host into an factor, a flag host, an open factor
go here and this site, the N+7 Machine will do all the work for you, you just have to input your sentence. Snowball
A poem in which each line is a single word, and each successive word is one letter longer.

Lipogram
Writing that excludes one or more letters. The previous sentence is a lipogram in B, F, H, J, K, Q, V, Y, and Z (it does not contain any of those letters).

Palindromes The most familiar palindromes, in English at least, are character-by-character: The written characters read the same backwards as forwards. Some examples of palindromic words: civic, radar, level, rotator, rotor, tacocat, kayak, reviver, racecar, and redder.

Or Phrases, Palindromes often consist of a phrase or sentence :
"Go hang a salami I'm a lasagna hog.",
"Was it a rat I saw?",
"Step on no pets",
"Sit on a potato pan, Otis",
"Lisa Bonet ate no basil",
"Satan, oscillate my metallic sonatas",
"I roamed under it as a tired nude Maori",
"Yo banana boy",
"Rise to vote sir",
or the exclamation "Dammit, I'm mad!"
Punctuation, capitalization, and spacing are usually ignored, although some (such as "Rats live on no evil star") include the spacing.

So, there you have it. Oulipo, writers seeking to create works using constrained writing techniques. Got it. It all makes sense now.

ok, now how to translate this to art and painting. paint without the colour blue? paint something that looks the exact same when put upside down? lol

have a great Friday!

Francesca

playing with paint again

2010-10-28T12:19:00.001-04:00

so i've been very inspired lately by mess: the manual of accidents and mistakes by kerri smith. you know, the one also responsible for wreck this journal. if you don't know about it, and you like to play with art and experimentation, and creating out of your proverbial box, then you must run, not walk, over to kerri's blog. go now.

anway, in the spirit of experimentation for the sake of experimentation and the love of playing with all things creative, i've taken out my journal and have been playing with paint, and journaling, and automatic writing, and it's been making me very happy.

i put the kids to bed at 8:30pm, and after that, it's my time to play. i sit in my disheveled bed, open my journal, pull out my paints, and stay up until i can barely keep my eyes open.

there is nothing super extraordinary about these pages. it's just a fun way to try out new techniques, new products, test ideas. and the best part, no pressure. and learning along the way.

see.

now you try.

get out your journal. and don't think too much. just do it. if the blank page is intimidating, splash some paint on it. drip some ink blots on it. that should get your creative juices flowing.

ok.

lunch time.

happy art'ing,

Francesca

Shadow Shot Sunday

2010-10-24T19:36:00.000-04:00

light and shadow. make for beautiful pictures.

today was a beautiful day. church. to our favorite breakfast nook called Tulips. and then out to buy Halloween decorations for the big night next week. there's excitement in the air!!!

ok, off to watch Ghostbusters with the kiddos. remember that movie?!?!?

happy sunday,
Francesca

My Favorite Things: to wear

2010-10-22T15:26:00.001-04:00

(click on images to see a larger version)

I am loving this free template over at the Cathy's blog. Gonna call it my Favorite Friday, where each Friday will be a new edition of my favorite things. How excited are you about this?!?!? lol

I rarely scrapbook about myself, so this is a good way to document some of me and my life.

I tried to put the two pics side by side cause it looks so much sweeter that way, but for the life of me couldn't figure it out. If any of you in blogger blogland can help out with some tips on how to do that I'd appreciate it! I'm technically retarded and can't figure out the simplest of things!

It's all digital but you can go hybrid on this page which is cool too. Super fast, super easy.

Ok, gotta go get X from school and E from playgroup.

and hey, Misty says she's going to set up another on-line class. How excited am I? OVER THE MOON... can't wait for more details.

Francesca

xoxoxo

Shadows Shot Sunday

2010-10-17T17:50:00.001-04:00

No I haven't fallen off the face of the planet. I've just been busy out enjoying this gorgeous fall weather. We've been out almost everyday soaking up the last little bit of warm sun, and wearing sweaters, and running through leaves.

We wish everyday could be fall. The kids picked up every full intact leaf they could find and brought them all inside. They weren't sure what they wanted to do with them but they just knew they had to have them. So in came about 30 leaves all in various sizes that looked like this. So I got out the crayons, and the big chart paper, and we embossed away. All kinds of leaves, in every single colour. It was a cachophony of colour and leaves. Gorgeous. Then Xavier wanted to cut them all out, and so we spent another hour just cutting them out. Then he wanted to glue them onto another sheet of full scap paper. But by this time it was close to bed time and off to bed my two little artists went.

But back to autum. The best season of the year if you ask me. Warm sweaters. Getting under a cozy comforter at night, with a slight breeze through the window. A symphony of colours all over the place. And here are a few reasons why I love fall:

More crafty goodness coming. I promise.

Happy Sunday,
Francesca