Journal Your Art Out

Giving my rational mind a rest today and making art without rhyme or reason. I highly recommend it as a spiritual practice. These snippets I offer... without further explanation.

Where Women REALLY Create

Stayed up way too late last night, waiting for my room to cool off and my head full of thoughts to settle down. Paged through the latest issue of Where Women Create, looking for inspiration... but was left with a sort of empty, anxious feeling of being nowhere near the level of perfection and professionalism displayed on those gorgeous pages.

Walked into my studio this morning, coffee cup in hand, and took in the full 365 degree view of my weensie space. And sighed. Table strewn and piled with ongoing projects, sketches, rolls of wire, pliers and cutters randomly left lying around (instead of neatly organized on a magnetic strip as one jewelry artist's studio in WWC sported). Shelves stuffed with boxes of buttons, findings, paints and adhesives. I just wondered to myself... if those artists had no advance warning and had the magazine camera crew surprise them on a random, ordinary day, would their studio really look that cool? That tidy and coordinated?

No, I thought, THIS is where women REALLY create...

At least a dozen projects going on at once.

My new flush cutters get used so often I just leave them out. I should really just wear them on a cord around my neck.

Learned how to make my own long kidney ear wires the other day. Take a chance... you never know!

The remains of the old jar that used to hold my antique marble collection... until it jumped off the shelf and committed suicide one day. Now, the shards have all been tumbled and are waiting for me to wire-wrap them into adornments.

Brand new birthday brush sticks! Can't wait to muck them up.

Another birthday gift... this gorgeous old button!

Random scene on my nearby supply shelf. Some things are even labeled.

A sneak peek at part of what I'm adding to my current piece of the Hot Flash collaborative project.

Potentially... that doll will also sport these hands, once I decide whether to cover them with clay or not. I'm thinking yes.... although I like their skeletal-ness. These are made from old plastic-coated telephone wire.

And last but not least, since my upstairs studio is also the back entry hall, the ledge above the stairs seems to always serve as a staging ground for whatever is currently being harvested and/or needing to ripen. Currently: TOMATOES GALORE! Wonderful, beautiful, vibrant red home-growns! Something tells me I'll be making sauce soon... stirring the pot while crafting, no doubt.