jo sasser

STOREFRONT

2011-12-05T08:42:00.022-06:00

hi and welcome to my website storefront! i'll keep this listing current with all the items i have for sale. i will continue to have an etsy store, but etsy listings take so much time, and they expire!

if you see something you like just shoot me an email about it at josasser@yahoo.com . if you are local i can arrange a delivery/pick-up, or i can create a reserved etsy listing for the item for you. i am flexible on pricing, offer discounts for multiple items, and i love trades!

ART
-only a portion of available art is listed here. contact me for more!

'dorothy'
16x20" canvas board for simple framing
landscape or portrait - there is no "up" in this piece
$100

'helen'
16x20 canvas board for simple framing
$65

'world peace'
7" wood disc wall ready
#184
$25

'i carry your heart'
7" wood disc, wall ready
features a quote from the e.e.cummings poem
'this is the wonder that's keeping the stars apart . . . i carry your heart (i carry it in my heart)"
#156
$35

'he loves me'
7" wood disc, wall ready
#158
$30

'wanda'
8x10" canvas board for simple framing
$45
(see it in my etsy store)

'cleo'
8x10" canvas board for simple framing
#183
$45

'elizabeth'
8x10" canvas board for simple framing
#179
$30

'ada'
7" wood disc, wall ready
#159
$20

'finn'
painted book page dry mounted on 5x7" black cardstock
$20

'frankie'
painted book page dry mounted on 5x7" black cardstock
$20

'oliver'
painted book page dry mounted on 5x7" black cardstock
$20

'orville'
painted book page dry mounted on 5x7" black cardstock
$20

'oscar'
painted book page dry mounted on 5x7" black cardstock
$20
***oscar has some room for customization! add a name or phrase above his head for free!***

'otto'
painted book page dry mounted on 5x7" black cardstock
$20

'summer II'
painted book page dry mounted on 8x10" black cardstock
$20

'summer I'
painted book page dry mounted on 8x10" black cardstock
$20
***purchase 'summer I' and 'summer II' for $35***


'amber spring' $20


'lavender spring' $20 *purchase 'amber spring' and 'lavender spring' for $35*

'grow'
3 gallery-wrapped canvases, each 4x12" making a 12x12" piece
#271
$55

flower sugar skull
painted 5" paper mache skull
$20

winged heart sugar skull
painted 5" paper mache skul
$20

COWLS/SCARVES
- all my scarves and cowls are crochet by me. i use a variety of yarns that includes acrylics, wools, alpacas, and handspuns, so please read the descriptions for those details. i accept custom requests.


ruby red cowl with mother of pearl buttons acrylic, super soft #235 $20

gray cowl with electric yellow buttons
acrylic, super soft
#238
$20

gray cowl with teal buttons
acrylic, super soft
#239
$20

gray confetti cowl with brown buttons
100 % wool, very warm
#240
$25

gray and white cowl with teal buttons
100% handspun angora wool, soft
#241
$25

pink, orange, gray cowl with tan buttons
100% handspun wool silk, very soft
#243
$30

pink, orange, gray cowl with tan buttons
100% handspun wool silk, very soft
#244
$30

cowl in fall colors with wooden buttons
gorgeous in person - photos do this yarn no justice!
100% handspun wool
#245
$30

purple/gray cowl with purple buttons
50% wool, 50% alpaca, very soft
#346
$25

black cowl with hot pink buttons
acrylic, super soft
#000
$20


aqua cowl with red buttons acrylic, super soft #233 $20

lime cowl with teal buttons
acrylic, super soft and thick
#236
$20
(see it in my etsy store)

plum cowl with wooden buttons
acrylic, super soft and thick
#234
$20

gray/purple/blues/browns cowl with purple wooden buttons
50% wool, 50% alpaca, very soft
#242
$25

purple and gray nubby scarf
acrylic, very soft, 61" long
#228
$35

nubby scarf in blues
acrylic, very soft, 50" long
#229
$30

scarf in pinks and browns
acrylic, super soft, 72" long
#230
$35

child's scarf in blues with coordinating removable flower hair clip
scarf is acrylic and super soft, 42" long
flower clip is felt with a blue button
#195/196
$35

cream scarf with cascading red peonies
acrylic, super soft, 77" long
#231
$45

WREATHS


12" ruby red yarn wreath with aqua painted cardstock butterflies #264 $17

10" gray yarn wreath with blue painted cardstock butterflies
#265
$15

12" flatback yellow yarn wreath with orange stripes and gold/plum/ruby red yarn mums
#266
$25

BROOCHES
- all my cockroach brooches are $10. the following designs are available, custom orders are welcome

(see it in my etsy store)

HEADBANDS
- this is just a portion of what is available. contact me for more!

RECYCLED, UPCYCLED, and GREEN

recycled crayon - heart
pinks/reds
$1/each

recycled crayon - jersey
shown in camo, but many colors available
$1/each

recycled crayon - plane
many colors available
$1/each

recycled crayon - rocket
many colors available
$1/each

recycled crayon - star
shown in blue, but many colors available
$1/each

recycled crayon - trophy
shown in blue, but many colors vailable
$1/each

recycled crayon rainbow pack - stars
$5/pack

square flower box in red and aqua decoupaged with old book pages
4.5" across
#263
$12

round flower box in purple/yellow/blue decoupaged with old book pages
4.5" across
#269
$12

round flower box in purple/yellow/blue decoupaged with old book pages
4.5" across
#268
$12

round flower box in purple/yellow/blue decoupaged with old book pages
4.5" across
#270
$12

wool dryer balls
for replacing dryer sheets!
several colors available
$6/pair


sugar skull owl in cool tones 3" thrift shop owl given a new, much more fabulous life $15

large sugar skull owl
5" thrift shop owl given a new, much more fabulous life
$20

JEWELRY

'rose' vintage lace hankie pendant
1x2"
#251
$8

'daisy' vintage embroidered hankie pendant
1x2"
#252
$8

'rosebud' vintage embroidered hankie pendant
1x2"
#253
$8

purple necklace featuring handmade beads made from magazine pages
20" with magnetic closure
#256
$12

pink and brown necklace featuring handmade beads made from magazine pages
19" with magnetic closure
#257
$12

yellow and orange necklace featuring handmade beads made from magazine pages
17" with magnetic closure
#255
$12


'harvest' bracelet 100% wool hand-felted beads #049 $25

necklace
100% wool, hand-felted beads that fade from lime green to aqua, alternating with frosted acrylic beads
17"
#161
$45

'sweet lavender'
necklace
100% wool, hand-felted beads with alternating glass beads
18"
#163
$50
(see it in my etsy store)

'peacock'
22" necklace
100% wool, hand felted beads
#162
$60

CUSTOM WORK

i custom paint toms shoes, both privately and at 'style your sole' events in the area. price depends on design

paintings using your name, price is by design (i do more than just robots!) and number of letters

custom murals in your home/office

toms!

2011-11-30T09:03:00.000-06:00

i had the awesome opportunity recently to paint toms shoes at a "style your sole" event, and i wanna show off some of my work from that day . . .

this event was specifically geared towards children's toms, so prepare for some rainbows.

it was a really great time, and for a really great company! toms gives a pair of shoes to a child in need for every pair sold, and those are some pretty lucky kids cause these shoes are crazy comfy. seriously. i just bought my first pair and i want to wear them always.

i got a call last night and it looks like i'll be doing another style your sole event at nieman marcus in st louis, dec 10 10am-2pm! come and visit!

jo

can i paint you?

2011-10-25T16:48:00.000-05:00

your face, that is . . .

wanted to show off my new example boards! these are what i take to my face painting gigs, so if that's why you're here these are what you'll see:

the left are a group of generic cheek designs and on the right are half and full face designs. yes, i can so many of these smaller or bigger, and yes you can choose different colors, and yes i can do things that aren't on the boards :)

i can also make up a board of customized examples to fit a party or event theme.

this is an example board i made for a recent art walk, that shows images of famous works of art and then a face painting example inspired by each piece. (van gogh's starry night, monet's water lillies, dali's persistance of memory, warhol's flowers, kahlo's roots, a portrait by picasso, and munch's scream) every time i offer themed face paint it's a huge hit.

and you probably want to know about pricing. if you are wanting to hire me for a private party i charge by the hour. it's $45 for the first hour and $25 for each additional. there is a minimum booking of 3 hours for saturdays and 2 hours on sundays. i also charge a small travel fee if driving more than 30 miles from my home. i require a $20 non-refundable deposit to hold the date. these prices are subject to change :)

if you are looking for face painting for an event, please contact me and we can talk business.

feel free to contact me if you have any questions.

jo

been feeling a bit dead lately . . .

2011-10-23T11:40:00.000-05:00

i have developed something of an obcession with the day of the dead, specifically sugar skulls. this last month or so i dedicated some time to doing some dia de los muertos crafting. here goes:

first, i went to the local goodwill and picked up these drab yet lovely owls, surely once part of some awesome old lady's owl collection:

and now:

they both got a solid coat of black, then white bases before all the feathers could be painted. i am quite pleased with them and trying to find homes for them.

and then i got some paper mache skulls from the craft store and they got a makeover:

detail shot of the first one:

thanks for looking!

jo

boo!

2011-10-14T22:44:00.000-05:00

it's looking new around here . . . some small changes on here and many changes everywhere else. change is good.

jo

i set fire to the rain . . .

2011-09-16T23:41:00.000-05:00

is anyone else completely addicted to adele? yes, of course you are, because she is phenominal! i've been listening to her over and over while i work lately, and i sing along, loudly. but anyways, time to talk about what i've been making . . .

i think it's about time to catch up on some swap lovelies that i've made, now that all their new owners have taken possession.

first are three airbrushed t-shirts i made for my personal swap buddy, atsuko. these are based off some embroidery designs that she and her daughter enjoy, and i think they've found a happy home.

night owl

naughty birdie

curvy mermaid! she's my favorite. this mermaid has some junk in her trunk and she's rockin' it.

this is a painting i did for myloveasdeep as part of a personal swap. she's got a thing for the whale vs giant squid story and i had a blast painting this. i've decided that wood is my favorite paintable surface. love how it turned out and was sad that i had to send it away. it's a good thing she loves it or i'd ask for it back.

altered puzzle pieces! i was involved in an altered puzzle piece swap with several other ladies, and these are the pieces i produced:

shark and seahorse for an 'under the sea' theme

picasso theme (the bottom one is a self portrait)

fruit theme

there were a lot of theme ideas for these two. i had fun with it.

phoenix fox i painted for phoenixfiredesigns

button tree i made for goldensunshine in a personal swap

that's all the painted goodies i can show you for now. i have lots more, but i don't want to overwhelm.

thanks for looking.

busy busy busy . . .

2011-08-25T15:39:00.000-05:00

i don't have a whole lot of time to chat today - meet the teacher night! thing 1 happenes to have the same second grade teacher as i had for second grade, so the whole "meeting" thing seems a bit silly, but i digress. the joys of a small town.

today i'm going to show off some of the winter gear i've been toiling away on. scarves and cowls aren't that exciting to look at, but i try to make them interesting?

this cowl is real wool and alpaca, in gray and cool shades of purple/green/blue/brown

cream cowl with teal buttons

lime green cowl with aqua buttons

plum colored cowl with wood toggles

long cream scarf with red and periwinkle peonies cascading down one side

thanks for looking,

ack!

2011-08-24T09:49:00.000-05:00

geez . . . i have not posted in for.ev.er! so much loveliness has gone down and i have so many things to show you! now, i cannot show you everything today, because your brain would bust from overload, and you'd be simply heartbroken at not having all of the greatness for yourself. it's okay, we'll take this slow.

today, for you, some airbrush. i keep getting requests for more airbrush, and so you're going to get it! this is stuff i've been doing over the blisteringly hot summer, so enjoy . . .

here's one i did for a swap on craftster . . . i'm pretty proud of it

(in process)

(finished)

more to come tomorrow!

jo

i'm a stalker, too

2011-08-09T15:27:00.001-05:00

i find great joy in perusing the work of other artists and crafters, and one of my favorites is having a give-away! check it out . . .

oopsicraftmypants

and what is she giving away, you ask? why, it's one of these:

i know, right? you cannot run over there and sign up fast enough, huh?

have fun, and take a look around her site and see all the lovelies she's making!

jo

getting my swap on . . .

2011-07-21T17:28:00.000-05:00

i've been out for a bit, but things have been getting super crafty in here, lately. the heat advisory is partly to blame, but mostly because i've been involved in a few craft swaps.

here's some of the stuff i can show off, because my partners have already received it. the rest will have to wait a bit longer.

this is a painting i did of our lady of guadalupe as a sugar skull for redstar13. she mentioned loving the images of our lady of guadalupe, as well as skeletons - so i put the 2 together. i do hope she likes it.

around the outside i painted a rosary's worth of roses ( the roses with 2 leaves are the mysteries/our fathers and the single leaves are the hail marys). and to be accurate, you would use the three roses on the front and the cross in her hand to complete it. no, i'm not obsessive at all.

these are 2 sets of magnets i made for troublet, one set for each of her kiddos. this was my first adventure in polymer clay, and it was alright. i would rather use ceramic, but i am without a kiln so i guess i'll stick with the polymer for a bit ;)

i've got a lot more to show you, someday.

jo

proof in the pudding . . .

2011-06-24T19:23:00.000-05:00

so i do this airbrushing stuff, and at least a dozen times a day i get asked if the paint fades. the answer is "not much . . . if you take care of it right".

the right way to to iron or heat press the shirt before wearing the first time, then when washing turn inside out, wash in cold water, and line dry.

but who really does that? i sure as hell don't. i make shirts, iron them, then abuse them like crazy. inside out, paint side out, hot water, cold water, soiled setting, and always always throw them in the drier. sure, i don't care as much because i can just make a new one, but let's just call it an experiment.

so here's a shirt i made for my dear husband in 2009:

this is before i even took it off the shirt board - it doesn't get much fresher than this.

now, after 2 years of being worn and abused at least once a week, this is how it looks:

modeled here by my studliness himself. a little faded, yes, but still looking awesome. imagine how good it would look if i did care for it 'as directed'?!?

so, in summery, the paint does stay.

jo

make like a tree . . .

2011-06-23T13:36:00.000-05:00

why must summer be so blessed busy? so very many things going on and i'm just treading water in the storm. oh, and to actually accomplish something is a small miracle!

soooo, months ago i was asked my my sweetie of a friend, who is expecting her second child any minute now, to paint a tree on the wall in her kiddo(s) room. and last week i finally got to getting to it. sara wanted a tree that looked old, and that worked with the baby's comforter - can do!

some in-process pics:

and the final product:

i think it turned out pretty fabulous. now that his room is ready, hopefully he'll make like a tree. come on, baby!

jo

happy happy . . .

2011-06-13T07:22:00.000-05:00

birthday to me! yup - 28 today. having a tough time with a number that is so certainly not how old i feel.

so, anyways, yesterday we had a party/luau for my little man and i - he'll be 1 on the 16th. this is merely the first of many birthdays he'll have to share with his mama. so our theme was luau, and i found some great little luau rubber duckies, so it worked for both.

his cupcakes:

and my cake:

my first 3-layer cake! i was very impressed with myself. and, it was a pina colada cake, which was fabulous and super easy to make.

recipe:

2 boxes white cake mix
2 cans sweetened condensed milk
2 cans pina colada mix
1 cup rum (i used parrot bay)
whipped cream (turned out to require less than 1 tub)

make 3 9" round cakes as directed, only add 1/2 cup rum to the mixture. mix the colada mix, milk, and remaining rum. right out of the oven you poke holes all over the cakes and pour the mixture over until it's absorbed (next time i will cut off the tops of the cakes, as you do later to make a layered cake, before pouring the mixture on). chill before constructing the cake.

nom nom nom

jo

some things i made in recent history . . .

2011-06-06T11:23:00.000-05:00

today i am going to post some airbrushed stuff that i made - and not stuff that i made light years ago - some of it i made just this past weekend! really!

i know you're too excited for words, so let's get to it . . .

first, this is a shirt i made for the little man for our birthday luau coming up. his little swim trunks are blue, green, and purple, so i made this to match. progress pics!

drawn out.

add color.

plus name and white accents. ta da!

some hats i got all colorful on:

this is an old bowling pin i got from a local bowling alley, and i painted it to use as a first place crazy bowl trophy . . .

after i painted this i made some other trophies that i liked better for this particular event. so, if anyone needs a crazy bowl trophy, i got one for sale :)

gotta go . . . big double birthday luau to prepare for!

my favorite things . . . up for some swap?

2011-06-03T13:18:00.009-05:00

oh happy day!

craft swapping is one of my newest most favoritest-est hobbies. if you're reading this you are probably already as addicted as i am, and if you have no idea what i am talking about, pay attention.

this post is where i get to play oprah and show you all my favorite things - most from the craft world, but some from life in general. just looking at all these goodies at one time makes me excited!!!

first a brief discussion about my "style". it's shabby chic meets modern country? i am a recovering hoarder (just kidding, mostly), so i don't allow myself many knick-knacks. if it hangs on a wall, awesome - otherwise it must serve a purpose or be extremely sentimental.

my living room is most every color in the spectrum, using blacks and tans to ground it. the focal points are an elaborately carved wooden desk that i painted a nuclear-esque green with distressed accents, and this large canvas from ikea:

as you can see - it's quite colorful. any colors found in this canvas are welcome in my living room!

the lower left corner of that image are the colors of my neighboring kitchen - red, aqua, and lime green. our master bedroom is in shades of yellows and oranges. the only "drab" room is the bathroom, as we inherited some rather taupe tile that has forced me into some steely blues and deep purples.

my crafted wishes:

(sewn/needlework)

- hooplas! my hoopla wall is in my kitchen, so the color scheme is aqua/lime green/red (other colors are ok, but those should be dominant), and no larger than 10" hoops. you can paint it, cross-stitch, embroider, felt, bead - whatever! any of the following themes:
bunnies, sugar skulls, peacocks/peacock feathers, coo-coo clocks, ninjas, cupcakes, the cheshire cat, dandelions, sacred hearts (and other catholic insignia), anything from or inspired by these: http://pinterest.com/josasser/i-want-hoopla-loves/ . take a look around my pinterest boards and there might be something else you can hoopla out

- a toddler walking leash (yes, i'm now one of those parents) - see some of my pins for examples

- a fabric coil bowl or bowls. i love scrappy/multicolored ones, or one in the reds/aquas/greens would be awesome, too!

snugglymonkeyco
(i like the colors of this one, but NOT the handle)

pinnaclepatchworks

- quilt. i have a long time love of quilts, and i am yet to really own one. bright playful color(s) are all i require - solid colors are fine, too. i have some on my pins. a girl can dream.
- pillows! i have need for indoor and outdoor throw pillows, and i like bright colors and cool themes. any of the themes from my list would be great, and bright greens/purples/oranges/reds/pinks/blues - all great. here are some pillows that i have fallen in love with . . .

eataduckimust
yes, this one is black, but wouldn't it be super fun in purple? or aqua? i say yes.

letterperfectdesigns

(this is the closest thing i could find to what i want - i would prefer a brighter color for the pillow, and the letter "s" of course!)

- patchwork skirt for me. i love bright colors!

iamroses

- an apron, in my kitchen colors. i need a full apron. ironic embroidery is fine. i am in love with this one:

creativechics

but i cannot do a halter and it definitely could be wayyyy simpler. i do require a big pocket or a couple little ones. more example on my pins: http://pinterest.com/josasser/i-want-it/

- pretty potholders. i'd love some quilted potholders, especially like the ones on here: http://pinterest.com/josasser/i-want-for-my-home/ . reds/aquas/lime greens for my kitchen, please?
- for my daughter - clothes for her build-a-bear fox named "foxy". if foxy and georgia could match in some way, all the better (she's an 8-10)

- small wetbags, big enough to fit my cellphone, my checkbook, etc into. i could use at least 3. take a look around my pins to get an idea for my style as far as fabrics go.

- a bolero for my daughter, to go with her first communion dress. the dress is white classic eyelet fabric, so a short sleeved eyelet bolero would be awesome. i can provide pics of the dress. she will be a size 8-10 when she wears it.
- superhero capes ( http://pinterest.com/pin/74641169/ ) for 3 kiddos for christmas. ask for specifics

(knit/crochet)

- a crochet or knit shrug for me. long or short sleeve are fine, but i want it looser. bright color, purple, orange, whatever. i have an example in my pins - http://pinterest.com/pin/98476029/ . i'm a huge fan of skif international, so anything inspired by them is awesome. you'll have to talk to me about sizing.

skif international

- a crochet "bender" hat for a christmas gift for a friend. specifics here: http://pinterest.com/pin/103248831/
- dead fish hats for my kiddos http://pinterest.com/pin/98092504/
- a few reusable swiffer max covers - see my pins

- a purple lap-sized afghan

(other craft)

- ATCs - high quality and colorful (bright colors) in any 2D or very slight 3D media you master, in any of the following themes:
peacocks/peacock feathers, 7 deadly sins, cheshire cat (doesn't need to be the disney one), birdies, sugar skulls, catholic insignia (sacred hearts, our lady of guadalupe, etc), bunnies, dandelions, demetri martin comedy, e.e.cummings' 'i carry your heart', edger allen poe's 'the raven', the wee free men, zebra stripes, buddha, lotus flowers, anything inspired by my pins. please note that i intend to mat and frame these, so anything too 3D or interactive is not going to work ;)

- felted soap in any of these scents: lilac, milk, white tea, fresh linen, honeysuckle, anything light and calm. felt to match a bathroom in steely blues, greens, and lilac to darker purples

- faux taxidermy!!! my husband and i agree (for once!) that our breezeway feels a bit like a hunter's lodge, so the theme in there is bright, colorful, playful, taxidermy. it's a little odd, but i am really excited about it. we want the critters to be insanely obviously fake, especially mythical or prehistoric creatures: ~~a yetti~~, ~~a unicorn~~, ~~nessy~~, a dragon, a snipe, etc, etc. anyone willing to make me a whole series of these would be generously compensated - it's one of my biggest wishes.

aicreatures

- a jacob's ladder for my god-son for christmas/birthday. http://pinterest.com/pin/74643399/

- family portraits!!! i have the typical wall covered in photos of my family, but i also include artist versions of the same - caricatures, fashion designer sketches of us, sihloettes, etc. i am open to any ideas along this path, but especially a "family portrait" of us as our signature animals (bear, bunny, monkey, fox), day of the dead, or something stylized or cross-stitched - whatever you're great at! size isn't important - it can be as small as an atc or as big as you like! i can provide family photos to help you out. these are some examples of things i love and want:

flowerofthedead

jordyluxe

more examples of family portraits on my pinterest: http://pinterest.com/josasser/i-want-family-portraits/

- yarn wreath for my front door. all four of these wreaths were made by the same etsy artist: knockknocking. i love love LOVE her style and colors and whimsy. the front of my house is very plain - i need to get some personality out there!

this one is my favorite - it's like it's after my own heart! aqua! red! birdies! if she would have thrown lime green in there i would not have felt guilty for dishing out $60 to get it.

- a family name/established sign. the photo below is an example of what i am talking about, but by no means is it what i want mine to look like. it should say "the Sassers, est. 11.11.06", or something to that effect. colorful, a little shabby - if it looked like it was painted on a piece of a tree or some reclaimed barn wood, all the better.

bosheree08

- a wooden, hanging growth chart. again, reclaimed barn wood style, bright colors. this is close, but not quite:

growinlikeaweed

if you are wood-handy and can make me a naked one that i will paint - that works too!

- ceramic cups/tumblers or smaller soup bowls. i am not interested in "sets", as i do not want any 2 cups or bowls to really match. i try to pick out pieces where the glaze has some aqua/lime green/red in it. no handles, please.

hurricanepottery

squeekyrightshoe
(i just purchased this particular bowl for myself for my birthday - happy birthday me!!! i keep it on here to show that i don't mind "seconds" - i think it makes the piece more awesome)

(supplies)

- wooden shapes (flowers, butterflies, bugs, hearts, whatever!)- used crayola crayons - nubs and bits welcome!
- a cut up tree branch, at least 3" across. this is what i want to do with it: http://pinterest.com/pin/79151581/- 3 solid yards of sheer ivory fabric
- thick or chunky yarns, especially wool that is dyed or undyed
- dyed or undyed felting wool

moonlightbaker

- old game boards/pieces, whimsies
- large buttons, 1.5"+
- old, ornate or wooden picture frames, most any size
- alphabet stickers, or rub-ons
- acrylic paint and brushes
- wooden candlesticks, bowls, plagues, etc that i can sand down and paint
- a wood-burning tool
- 8" embroidery hoops, especially wooden ones or any red/lime/aqua ones
- embroidery floss (bright colors, the stuff that looks like tinsel - i never seem to have enough white!)
- a board book suitable for altering
- fun ribbons (rainbow, zebra stripes, sparkly, etc)
- origami paper (wrapping paper cut into squares works fine )
- this masonite house album or something similar :http://alphastamps.com/Collage_Supplies-Blank_Books/Boxes/c4_59/p10189/Masonite_House_Album/product_info.html
- sliced branch buttons

buttonsnmorebuttons

non-crafty favorite things . . .
~~- skyline chili, not available where i live. i have dreams about this stuff.~~
- nutella
- aveda tea, the best tea i have ever had. i only have one bag left!

face painting!

2011-06-01T13:46:00.001-05:00

back in the day . . .

2011-05-17T21:42:00.000-05:00

as many of you avid blogstalkers might have read, we've moved recently into a home that is a bit larger than our previous dwelling. it's no mansion, that's for sure, but it is nearly double the shoebox we had and that means a lot more storage space. now, my mom gave me some time to settle in and get house set up before i got the call - the call to "come get your crap!"

i've been trying to do just that. slowly, load by load, i empty my stuff from the folks' basement. i don't know why i was surprised to find that she still had all my high school art projects. all. of. them.

it's got me all nostalgic. i am determined to photograph them and post them up here for y'all to see, and then maybe get rid of some of it. i'm sentimental and all, but there's only so much use i have for a bust of abraham lincoln.

anyhow, in leiu of my high school art, i'll indulge you in a bit of my college coursework . . .

for a while i was focusing my work on the idea of body image, and the unrealistic expectations of women to fit into a standard "shape". i can get all sorts of into this, but let's keep things light, shall we?

first, a portion of a series of photographs that juxtaposed objects with human form:

this is a corset i made by ripping up old clothes, turning it into rope, and forming a corset. it is completely functional, if anyone cares to take the time to undo all the knots and retie them again :)

bound

(front view)

bound

(side view)

here i took a piece of wood, quite literally from the side of the road, and i carved it to give it a more flattering figure, then constructed a custom hot pink satin corset for it. ain't she pretty? what is truly odd about this piece is how much my mother likes it. also, i have no idea how i made that corset happen on my limited sewing skills.

in rare form

ahh, glass. where i studied one was encouraged to cross medias and try to find ways to incorporate your emphasis into whatever studio classes you happened to enroll. it took me some time to figure out how to bring textiles into glass without causing fire, but i think i got it. hand pulled clear/aqua glass with (again) custom made corsets. these corsets are quite tiny, and preceded the hot pink corset above. still, no idea how i pulled it off.

squeeze

looking back at all this i realize how much time i was able to devote to my art, and how absolutely wonderful that time was for me. as wiley approaches his first birthday i become more and more eager to get back to my work. he's old enough for us both to benefit from another caregiver, for a portion of the time. now, all i need do is find said amazing/awesome/loving/perfect person and find a way for me to pay him/her!

dreams.

jo

look what i did this weekend . . .

2011-05-16T14:55:00.001-05:00

these days it seems like i only get to making lovliness when absolutely forced to. my little fox is sly as ever, and he is fast and sneaky and strong and smart. oh, and me - i am exhausted.

thing #1 had a birthday party on saturday, and birthday parties require gifts! i always try to make gifts for these little people, especially when i know that their parents have the means (and often times far greater than my own) to buy their child whatever they desire. i have one small advantage, and that is that i do what i do. so, here's what i made for the birthday girl:

it has a wall hanging bracket on the back, and i do hope she likes it. i think i would have liked it when i was 7 :)

i could not attend the party because i was at work! yes, tis the season when i don the neon yellow shirt and slave away at six flags every saturday in the airbrush t-shirt booth. this was my 4th saturday out there, and business is hopping. before the rush started i knocked out this shirt for my little guy:

i know - it's adorable. i was going to post a pic of him wearing it (this size is a bit big so he looks all 'thug' with it down to his knees) but he decided to take a header into the table and i don't need any more pics of him injured.

i also finished my t-shirt scarf! you might recall my previous post when i started this project. if not, see it here. i have learned a lot from this project, the most important thing being that one needs to cut the t-shirt very evenly throughout or the scarf might look a mess when you're done! moral of the story is that it is done, but i might make some adjustments to this piece before it's "final".

so, blogstalkers, that's what i did this weekend somewhere between the meetings, the crowds at six flags, and the runny noses i found the time to do what makes me happy. yay for me.

jo

* my iso *

2011-04-07T13:35:00.000-05:00

don't get excited. this post is all business and no fun, unless you have a lot of crap lying around your house and want to get rid of it!

i am really trying to be a greener artist, using more recycled stuff and making less craft store purchases. so, this is a list of items that might be in your trash/recycling that i would love to take off your hands. if you'd like to donate, send me an email.

i will keep this list current, so feel free to come back to it periodically :)

magazines
hardbound books (of little/no literary value)
wooden picture, any size, with or without glass/backing
old t-shirts
fabric
cereal boxes, flatened or not
glass vases, bottles, canning jars
yarn
blender (long shot, but why not?)
felt
embroidery hoops
ribbon

thanks!
jo

thanks you

2011-03-31T10:12:00.000-06:00

first, a shout out to anyone who is reading this or anyone still "following" this poor, neglected blog. i offer no excuses. oh, well, maybe just one . . .

here he is, my grand excuse. this is at 7 months, so sometime mid-january. this little fox of mine started crawling sometime around christmas, but he really started to master the sport in january.

and then here . . .

8 months. walking. see how happy he is? what you cannot see in my rapidly greying hair behind the camera. that leaf he's holding? i am sure it was in his mouth meer seconds after the image was captured. please note that it was an unseasonably warm march day, and therefore the lack of footwear.

oh, and that's not all . . .

9 months. attepting to defy gravity, and not in the awesome musical wicked way. he's not being rotten, persay, he's being quick. he's too quick. and he is stealth.

one more shot of the boy just to show you how i get through the day:

yes, there he is. stop it, stop it! i cannot take the cuteness! put it away! when he calls me from jail one day this pic will be what gets me to bail him out. but anyhow . . .

so i have my hands full. it hasn't stopped me completely, but production is slower than normal. i have also been doing a lot of creative cooking and baking so that i can be artsy while also feeding the fam.

here's something i've been working on:

i always see people on etsy selling t-shirt yarn, which made me desperately want to make a t-shirt scarf, which made me rip a perfectly good shirt from my closet and start cutting.

i was really escited about the possibilities offered by using a tie-dyed shirt for this (yes, i tie-dyed this one myself). no way to know till i try!

ahhhh . . . the prettiest little ball of t-shirt yarn in the whole wide world. did i mention little? yeah, i was a little afeared when i saw how tiny it was, so i opted for a skinny scarf for my first go at this.

i've started knitting, and while i haven't gotten very far, this is what it looks like:

i kinda love it. hopefully a final product post will be coming soon!

i've completed a couple other scarves, but they need a little embellishing still. lots of in-process projects!

no telling when i will return, but i promise that when i do there will be more lovliness than you can handle. deal?

jo

off topic

2011-01-03T19:16:00.003-06:00

so we are completely and totally moved out of the old place and that mean that i can devote my energies (or whatever energies i can coax from caffeinated beverages) to our new home. by "our" new home i probably mean "my" new home - the first home that has ever belonged to me - the first home where i decide what goes on the walls and which colors go where - me. bliss.

and even while i have been waiting for this for so long, i am content to do everything right the first time even if it means that i search for the right color/fabric/furniture for a while.

such has been the case for my kitchen curtains. the kitchen is destined to be gorgeous in shades of aqua blues and lime greens, to coordinate with my collections of same colored glasses, textiles, and utensils. i intend for the bulk of the kitchen to be painted a lighter shade of aqua with one large wall painted white. i hope to find a fabric for the curtains for the two windows that have such a pattern that i might paint it onto the large white wall in a larger scale.

some fabrics that are front runners at this point:

teja in blue by dena fishbein

flirty dance in lime by patricia bravo

tea garden by dena designs

i really love this one. if it is not my curtains it will surely be found somewhere else in my home. i also think i'll have a lot of fun painting it.

mckenzie df70 - aqua by dena designs

and here's some others that are not entirely eliminated:

nicey jane hb20 by heather bailey

hoot hoot in marchmellow by moda

peacock eye in green by patricia bravo

pop garden wallpaper roses by heather bailey

sanctuary seafoam aromatherapy by patty young

tufted tweets birdie dots grass by patty young

and one more that won't let me cut and paste the image: http://www.spoonflower.com/fabric/330065

i have fondness for all of them.

after i choose the fabrc i will choose my paint color to coordinate.

decisions, decisions.

jo

it's a handmade christmas!

2010-12-29T04:11:00.004-06:00

hello!

oh, i do hope everyone had a wonderful christmas. mine has been lovely and white and happy, and who wants more than that? take a look at my kiddos christmas morning >

i am only sad that my family christmas is held on or after christmas day and it is not until now that i can show off this year's gifts!

i have tried year after year to only give handmade gifts. i have given up on this with my own children - they do deserve to have their zhu zhus and board games like all the other kids. but my nieces and nephews, parents, etc - i might be the only one giving them handmade presents and i consider it my duty. my abilities might not allow me to personally make all of their gifts and so i do buy handmade when this occurs.

my mom purchased these two scarves from me for my grandmas. my mom does try to embrace the handmade, as well. she also commissioned me to make a photo book for one of them using one of those online photo place, but i left the captions blank and hand wrote those in and drew in a family tree in the back. sadly i didn't take any photos, but i'll get some eventually.

our family stockings. in order: barry's, georgia's, wiley's, and mine. they are small stockings, as i think those big stockings are a bit ridiculous (and expensive to fill!)

this is our new nativity. obviously i did not make this. i purchased it from an exceedingly talented local woodcarver. i had looked for years for a nativity that was special AND that the baby jesus was removable. baby jesus isn't born until christmas, so he doesn't belong in the nativity until then! anyhow, this fella made it happen. he makes so many gorgeous things, so you should check him out: http://www.jimcarves.com/

i made this for my 1 1/2 year old great niece, addie. it's a little felt house that is kinda like a purse and a little colorful egg 'family' that fit inside.

my niece, baylee (13? 14? - geez, i should know this), has a thing for daschunds and recently took up a cooking class. why not make her a wiener dog apron?!?! it turned out super cute, and i made a little matching flower barrette to jazz it up. i think she's probably too cool for the barrette, but little addie will likely take it off her hands.

i painted this for my mommy. the colors in her living room are sage greens, tans, and purples. my mom has a default setting for neutral, and if it were not for my diligent nagging all these years i am convinced that she would be swimming in a sea of taupe. it's my job to force her to be colorful! she loves the painting, by the way.

i got these adorable little cars on etsy from mervs cars for my great-nephew and god-son, nicholas.

another gift for baylee. i got this from etsier bratfactory, and it was hard not to get one for myself. i am not sure where the mustache craze came from but i am intrigued.

on the left is an image of a very nice 55 chevy bel air, and on the right is a photo of my dad's 55 chevy bel air that is still in early stages of hot-rod-dom. i gave these photos to a friend of mine, and below you'll see the final product.

this is airbrushed onto the back of a dress shirt. gene, the artist, taught me everything i know about airbrushing and is obviously extremely talented. check him out: airtrixairbrushing.com

my brain must have fallen out of my skull, because i forgot to take pictures of some of the other handmade gifts that i gave. i will have to return with all of those. humph.

until then

i'm back - ish

2010-12-19T07:32:00.000-06:00

the move is nearly complete! we still have stuff at the old place that we are working on clearing out, but we are fully living in our new home, and it's really awesome.

all throughout this move i worked on a custom project - a 60" tree skirt - on the side. i just sent it off friday, so it's already done and gone, but i wanted to show and tell about it, cause i am pretty pleased with how it turned out.

these are the materials, as requested. cardinal red and lime green felt, and big lime green buttons for the closure

an early "sketch". the tree skirt was to be mostly red with dot cutouts to reveal the lime green felt beneath. i suggested this topstitching to make the skirt more durable, and thereby adding significant time to my work - but it's real cute!

another "sketch". she didn't end up wanting my little stars, but i made the sketch and i am showing it :)

final product!

i hope she likes it.

my last post for a bit

2010-12-05T11:03:00.000-06:00

the craft fair yesterday was a success! my knitted wares have gone over smashingly, and the headbands are hit as always. good, good day.

so now we have to focus on the matter of moving out of this home and into our house. this is no small task, and i will likely not be around for a while. try to contain your tears.

a few newbies to tide you over:

and i am not so busy to whip you up something for a christmas gift, or to send out something i've already made. i still have a large inventory of goodies that can be yours!

jo

Dec 4, 2010

2010-12-03T21:48:00.001-06:00

you can find me at the ics craft fair in columbia, il (321 s. metter)! hope to see you there!

jo

do not hit your screen with your shoe . . .

2010-12-03T16:26:00.000-06:00

this is very exciting! behold, my latest creation, just finished in the wee hours of the night . . .

the cockroach brooch!

i know - it's weird, and a little creepy. okay, maybe a lot creepy. but it's not something you see every day, and i needed to make something that i felt sure that i was the only one making it. anyhow, i think i succeeded!

this one's a little sassy

i think they're awesome. you should agree.

treasury alert!

2010-12-02T21:02:00.000-06:00

i've been featured again! see this:

here:
http://www.etsy.com/treasury/4cf8427d20c36d91c874879b/felt-purple-love-felt#4cf85ca04b5b8eef1ac80a55

jo

hot off the, err . . . craft table!

2010-12-02T03:58:00.000-06:00

brand new barrettes! i was looking for something that i could make that is as special as my other headbands and barrettes but that required far less time and therefore i could price much lower. i like to have something for every budget - especially at christmas time!

these are a single layer of felt are airbrush painted with 3 layers of color. i love how the colors overlap - they remind me of a kaleidoscope, so that's what i am calling them - kaleidoscope barrettes.

i'll see how these little guys do, but in the meantime i'll be looking for other uses for these little colorful do-dads. hmmmm . . .

the boy has fallen back to sleep and so must i.

'tis the season

2010-12-01T20:26:00.000-06:00

time to make some ornaments!!!

baby girl's first christmas - tiny stocking

baby boy's first christmas - tiny stocking

that's all - just wanted to share a bit-o-love.

finally . . .

2010-11-30T21:04:00.000-06:00

for months i have mentioned my new lover - knitting. finally i am ready to show it off. behold:

the colorway of this yarn was 'electric blue', and it is. i made the red/aqua barrette there to go with it, and it happens to be adorable either worn in the hair or attached directly to the scarf! ridiculously cute, if i do say so myself.

this is a sky blue baby-sized hat with ties. the ties are absurdly long, which is either cute . . . or absurd.

colorway: driftwood. yah, it's not very sexy sounding, but it has loverly blues and greens hiding in the brown. again, i made a flower barrette to match.

this colorway is called 'fiesta', but i want to call it 'after my own heart'. i wanted to make a coordinating barrette, but everything i tried to pair with it just seemed insignificant.

adult sized pom-pom hat. adults secretly yearn for the days when pom-poms were appropriate. i'm with toys-r-us on this one - 'i don't wanna grow up . . . "

this cowls is a darker grey, but not nearly as dark as it has photographed. the coordinating barrette is made from an old fleece sweater, and it is stunning together. i actually made a headband almost the exact same as this barrette because i love the contrast so much.

this is not nearly all of the things i've made recently, nor is it all the things i have knitted or photographed, or anything. i have oodles and oodles to show off!

if you like anything you see, come by the ics craft fair in columbia, il this saturday - dec 4! it will all be there. otherwise, check out my etsy shop next week or get ahold of me!

jo

prodigal blogger

2010-11-30T09:54:00.000-06:00

it has been a while since i graced this blog with my presence. life is getting a bit crazy. the little man is moving, and so are we! buying a house with much more space, suitable for small mobile kiddos. we are thrilled/exhausted/busy.

also, i have a craft fair coming up this weekend. why not? nothing better to do, eh? so my life is cleaning, producing, and packing. oh, there's some sleep in there from time to time as well.

today you get to see more of my airbrush stuff.

first, some of the more cheesy, typical airbrush stuff that i made at work on a daily basis:

the not-so-typical:

this is the 'georgia bulldog' bulldog on a grey t-shirt. it was painted for personal use, not for sale.

this is actually painted on a 12"x12" cork board

using the airbrush for other things:

white felt, painted rainbow, and used to make this dove barrette

the fade from purple to pink on this felt barrette is paint - ta da!

again - airbrushed felt. makes it a bit more special, don't you think?

alright, the natives are getting restless. hope to post again soon!

i've been featured . . .

2010-11-05T17:37:00.000-06:00

on an etsy treasury! check it out . . .

HERE

enjoy!

jo

you don't wanna hear my excuses . . .

2010-11-04T18:31:00.001-06:00

and i don't want to have to give them. i have all but abandoned my poor blog. i am sorry.

tis not for lack of craftiness! halloween brought out some real creative juices, and i'm working on photos to share those gems. today i am merely popping on to let you know that i am still alive and still making stuff.

jo

my hamster wheel

2010-10-21T17:36:00.001-05:00

the little man of the house has reached the 4 month mark! he is laughing and jumping and making sounds . . . and sucking the life force out of me! don't get me wrong, cause i love my little dude way more than i ever thought possible, but he is an energy drain like i have never experienced. and these days he is learning to play, which is seriously infringing on mommy's creative time.

so i have been absent as of late, and i do apologize. i've been putting some time into etsy and promotion there. i have also started pushing christmas orders and they've already started coming in! oh, and did you know halloween is next week? yah - so i've been toiling away on pumpkins and costumes and and and. breathe.

tonight i finally finished fixing my headband model pics. my little girl has been my model for, well, ever. she's getting a bit more attitude about helping me out with this so it's taken a bit more bribing this time around. alas, i bribed, she posed, i photographed, and here they are:

it's dinner time and i gotta get crackin'.

jo

where does it go?

2010-10-12T20:56:00.000-05:00

i do not understand how i have whole days that simply disappear. what did i accomplish today? anything? geez.

today i did spend a bit of time working on a bulletin board for my daughter's school. i signed up to be a room mom, and while there are 3 other room moms for me to be working with none of them seem to be stepping up to any of their responsibilities. so there's this bulletin board that each grade gets a turn at and october is our turn. yes - october is half gone. i had hoped that with all the craziness that october has brought me that somebody else would have taken this on. i'm done complaining, i promise.

so i've been preparing to put this bulletin board up, but you won't get to see that until it's done.

so into the archives i dive . . .

i made these as an experiment in embroidering on paper:

i have since turned them into brooches - soon to be found in my etsy store!

it's been a long day. see you tomorrow.

jo

joyful exhaustion

2010-10-11T14:56:00.001-05:00

wow. a weekend of sheer exhaustion. if there were no children in this house i imagine i would still be asleep, but if i had no children i doubt i would be so tired. hmmm . . . children both cause tiredness and prohibit sleep. who came up with this?

anyhow.

it is unseasonably warm in st. louis right now - shocker! st. louis having weird weather - who'd of thunk it? so all my adorable matching family outfits for the 2 weddings this weekend didn't happen. i'm still bitter, but perhaps they will be even more awesome at thanksgiving.

i have recently taken up a new craft - knitting. it is one still that has long eluded me and i have completed a hat and a scarf in the spare moments i've stolen since thursday. i am quite impressed with myself. i'd love to show them to you, but i wanna make them a bit more special and awesome before i show them off.

so today i've fished around and i've got one of my all time favorite drawings to show you.

balance

pencil drawing

2007

balance detail

this is another example of my scribble drawing style. i don't know if there is a straight line in the whole picture. i don't recall the exact measurements, but i'll guess it at 22"x36".

the image i drew this from

ah! it's 3! this day has all but disappeared. much to do . . .

holy headbands, batman!

2010-10-07T16:25:00.000-05:00

i've always thought that my little headbands were a little, well . . . boring. it appears that i am mistaken. at the art walk this past weekend they were an oober-hit!

don't get me wrong - they are cute. even cuter on the right little (or big) head. i try really hard to come up with new designs and to make each one totally different. i think that makes them tiny, wearable pieces of art instead of just accessories. anywho, here's some new ones:

i had some scraps of this little funky birdie flannel - too adorable

using more fabric scraps. that's being green, eh?

fun colors!

orange and pink. hot.

another funky birdie

sweet purples. that's another bit of scrap flannel - purple with little turtles

this one is already sold. apparently somebody else thought it was perfect for fall, too.

this one is my favorite. if it hadn't sold i would probably have made it mine by now. this shade of blue is one of the colors i used in my wedding, so it is dear to me. i used french knots instead of plain stitches on one of the circles - i'll be using that little embellishment more in the future.

i'm gonna get cracking to recoup my headband inventory before december, cause i am wiped out!

this weekend is a bit insane for us - 2 weddings and a rehearsal dinner in 3 days! i'm sleepy just thinking about it. don't be surprised if i am scarce the next couple days.

oh! and the featured artist questionnaires are ready and some have been distributed. that means you'll be seeing those posts soon! i can't wait!

jo

what a wednesday!

2010-10-06T12:40:00.001-05:00

so, so many things going on today. so many things going on all month, for that matter. october always gets crazy here.

i've been working hard on making my etsy listings. items will be added to my shop slowly, so keep checking back if there is something you are looking for.

today i want to introduce you to wanda.

i started with this lovely orange background and no idea of what to do with it. i've been having a love affair with purple lately, but wanted to do something fun. so, what better than a purple robot?!?! wanda is pretty awesome, if i do say so myself.

you can pick her up now in my etsy shop!

jo

felt balls? no, really . . . felt balls

2010-10-04T12:39:00.000-05:00

i'm sorry. sometimes craft sounds dirty.

today i wanted to show you some things i worked during my blog abandonment. in a previous post i showed you some felted balls . . . err, beads(!) that i had made, and here's the final product:

and a few others that i felted and strung in the past couple weeks:

the left one fades from blue to green as it goes around, which i think it so totally cool. there are little clear/frosted beads between. the purple on on the left is pretty enough that i am considering keeping it. there are glass beads on that one.

the wool that i bought on etsy for the green and purple ones felted like a dream. i need to track down that seller and buy her out!

these beauties will be making their way to etsy soon. as always, if you are interested in buying something just shoot me an email and we'll set you up!

sidebar, revisited

2010-10-03T12:55:00.000-05:00

if you've been following along you will recall my post a few weeks back, titled 'sidebar', when we discovered a butterfly cocoon on our house. then, moments later had a caterpillar come and visit our cocoon. Here's a pic i took of our visiting caterpillar with his friend's cocoon in the background:

he was quite the model.

well, i did not realize, but my little girl caught this caterpillar and put him in her bucket. *disclaimer* we have strict rules about critter capturing, but this guy was able to climb the side of our house, so i doubt an open bucket would have caged him long. she but a stick in there so he could climb out and a few leaves to munch on.

the next day we found that this caterpillar had made his own cocoon right inside her bucket! i am completely regretful that i did not photograph this second cocoon, but it looked exactly like the first one, on our house. since he decided to stick himself in such a portable location we decided to take him up to the school and show her class. it was pretty awesome to be able to show them photos of the caterpillar, and his cocoon.

about 3 weeks after we discovered the cocoon on our house that butterfly escaped. i assumed that our bucketed friend would soon follow suit, so i got a little net and covered the top of the bucket. yes, yes, i realize that this means he was trapped in there, but we just wanted to see him before he flew away. not two days later i found this:

you can see the vacant cocoon on the side of the bucket and our little friend on the bottom. his wings were all curled up, still, so he wasn't prepared to do much flying. i put the net back on and took him up to see the kiddos at school again. when we got back i did some reading and found out that monarchs eat juice from oranges, among other things, so i threw some orange bit in there and put the net back on so that my little girl could release him when his wings straightened out.

we left him in there all day, but his wings were still curled, so we released him just the same.

he is such a looker!

i hope that he is doing well, wherever he is, now.

jo

it's sunday!

2010-10-03T10:47:00.000-05:00

see. i promised that i would return today and i have. slowly trying to regain my good blogger status.

i had a lovely day at the art walk yesterday. it was cold, and at times rainy, but people came out anyways and patronized. i also got to see a lot of friends, which is one benefit to doing a show in your home town. success! for those of you who missed it . . .

i forgot to put my small white tablecloths over the blue, and realized after i was nearly done setting up! everything looks so much better on white. i have come up with a few other ways to improve my display in the future: thinner tables so everything can be reached, more signs/explanations, title cards/sizes/prices of paintings displayed on fronts, frame all the paintings, etc. i also noticed that at this particular walk people were more interested in jewelry and accessories than actual art. most of my customers were children, which is fine, because they were doing the walk, too, and most art is not for them. i am happy to cater to a younger demographic.

so, what's next? i have a craft fair in early december, and otherwise i will be posting on etsy! i'm going to try to get my airbrush studio going, as well. oh, and i have some very cool new stuff to show you, so just you wait. also stay tuned for featured artists, new projects, and my first giveaway!

calm down. i can tell you're excited,

until tomorrow.

i'll be right back

2010-10-01T21:26:00.000-05:00

i know, i know. where have i been? i hurt inside when i think of how i have neglected this blog in the weeks past. but it will all be over tomrrow.

tomorrow is my showing at the local art fair and then it will be my glorious return to my poor, neglected blog. i have so many new lovelies to show you and there will be massive additions to my etsy shop. i know you are eagerly waiting. only one more day - i promise.

some of you might be reading this having just seen me at the art walk - hi! i hope you'll stick around and take a look at some of my stuff.

so, come look for me on sunday. i'll be here.

jo

bad, bad blogger

2010-09-23T19:55:00.001-05:00

my sweet husband informed me today that i have not posted a blog in 6 days. i have not verified the truth of his statement, but it has been far too long since i have posted and i feel awful about it.

what's been going on? life! we baptised the boy, then i had to detox him from all the holding and cuddling and attention he got over the weekend. both the kiddos have colds. the little girl lost her first tooth today! my back is completely out of whack and i'm coming down with a cold. the art walk is in barely over a week and i am freakin out a bit.

breathe.

so, it is not that i haven't been doing thing. i have. i just don't have oodles of time right now to post it all. and also most of the stuff i am doing is not finishing. it's production stuff - making parts that will later be a whole.

so what i did today . . .

felt beads!

i have great gooey gobs of this roving and i should explore other uses for it, but it makes such lovely beads. in a couple of days they will look like this:

also working with some purples, greys, blues, peaches, and yellows. very exciting stuff coming up.

but don't be expecting much more posting in the next week. produce, produce, produce! i will take pictures along the way and then i'll have oodles to show you after the 2nd.

goodnight.

oh yah, what did you do today?

2010-09-17T19:15:00.000-05:00

it has been a long day. and yes, i did not post yesterday because it was long, too. yesterday i got to visit with my person (yes, a grey's anatomy reference as i watched all of season 6 in the last 3 days) and when we get together for the first time in many months there is very little time for much else. so yesterday was awesome, and i made nothing and was unproductive in most every way.

and today. today i made something, but i cannot show you. it is rather mean of me to tell you about something you cannot see, but it's my son's name and there's that whole "announcing your kid's name on the internet" thing, and you understand, right? to tell the truth i cannot even tell you about what i made, yet. damn these rules!

but i also made dinner. a fabulous dinner! a dinner that classy ladies in ruffly aprons toil away for hours making. we had stuffed pork chops, brussel sprouts, hawaiin sweet rolls, and apple sauce. we also had dessert from a local bakery that we patronize far too frequently. i always feel accomplished after a good meal, especially when my 6 year old picky eater gobbles down her brussel sprouts without argument. woo hoo!

it isn't your fault that i cannot show you my loveliness for today, so i am gonna find something to show off. ah - i know! helen . . .

helen

2010

detail

i have never, ever liked skulls. i thought they were creepy and morbid and gross. and then i started looking (really looking) at sugar skulls and the dia de los muertos stuff, and i kinda fell in love. you might have noticed that i heart bright colors and joyfulness in my stuff, and it turns out that sometimes these dreary/morbid/creepy skulls are all that colorfulness that i love. love! helen was my first real effort, definitely not the last.

satisfied?

busy, busy weekend coming up. our little heathen is getting baptised, so no promises.

have a good one!

jo

feeling blue . . . and red

2010-09-15T18:59:00.000-05:00

bliss! i got to paint today. i set a clear goal for myself. there was something i had never painted and i wanted to challenge myself.

a rose.

i have drawn a rose, but never a 'finished' drawing, and surely never a painting. it is only as of late that i have been brave enough to paint anything. i'm falling for it, and what better way to express my new love for painting than to paint a rose?

here she is . . .

elizabeth

i don't know how correct of a rose it is, or even if i did a decent job, but i kinda love it. does she need some flair? i am not definitely calling her done just yet.

these colors - red and blue - they are dear to me. it has to be this blue, and this red. not patriotic blue and red - bleck! caribbean blue and blood red. this is not the first time we have met.

it seems i have been searching these colors out for some time. i wonder if it is coincidence that this blue is my favorite color and this red is my husbands? ponder that.

i believe it is time to retreat back into season 6 of grey's anatomy and cleaning like a mad woman. my person is coming over tomorrow and i have missed her immensely, so i don't intend on getting much done other than heaps of catching up.

boring

2010-09-14T21:24:00.001-05:00

i know that they are not the most exciting thing, but all i have for you tonight are headbands. more massive cleaning today (courtesy of hoarders) leaves so little art-making time. no more excuses, on with the pretty . . .

front and back

heart and peace sign

i am really loving the idea of the reversible headband. i have to get clever with it, but i enjoy the challenge.

more . . .

not very exciting, but still lovely.

goodnight.

sidebar

2010-09-14T15:44:00.001-05:00

this post is not art related at all. i merely want to share with you some simple excitement from my day.

yesterday i had noticed a large caterpillar hanging on the front of our house. i assumed it was caught in a spider web, and i marveled at how it managed to get that high to get caught in the first place. today i walked by and saw this . . .

it's a cocoon!

i was tickled. and it's so pretty. it has these gold specs on it (you can see them in the photo - those aren't reflections of light). i could not wait to show the little girl when she got out of school. she was equally tickled.

she went out to play with her friend, and not 5 minutes later she runs through the door yelling "come look!"

a friend of his must have come to visit!

the first caterpillar was all greens when i saw him, but this second guy is just as big. perhaps later i will have another cocoon to show you.

that is all.

2010-09-13T21:39:00.000-05:00

i am a very, very bad blogger. have i mentioned that i have had 3 other failed blogs before this one. i guess they weren't so much 'failed' as 'completely abandoned and of little value to anyone'. that being said, i missed my post for yesterday and on top of that i had promised to make something new yesterday and it quite simply did not happen. bad blogger.

i would like to place the entire blame on the show hoarders. i don't have tv, but i found this show on hulu and i watched all 5 episodes yesterday. i don't know if it is possible to watch this show without becoming obsessive about cleaning your own house. so i watched, and cleaned.

then today i got my acceptance letter from the upcoming art show, and with it my assigned location. now i am freaking out a bit. i have 3 weeks before the show and i need to get in high production mode. but wait, i have to go to pta meetings, and take care of my family, and walk kids to the library, and my son gets baptised this weekend, and craft fairs i was planning on attending, and first grade spelling words to practice, and and and. mini panic attack.

breathe.

so tonight is going to be the first in a series of featured artist posts. now, don't gag, but today's featured artist is my daughter.

this is one of her paintings from last year. lovely, no?

and here is a collaboration that we did:

at the age of 2 she drew a remarkable set of scribbles. i took those scribbles and made a silk screen, then printed and dyed my own fabric, then sewed this dress. she then modeled the dress. we make a great team.

no promises for tomorrow. i am still horrified by hoarders images and need to do some more housework. i may post tomorrow, i may wait a day and wow you with my productivity. oh, the suspense.

let's go to sleep.

inspired?

2010-09-11T21:37:00.001-05:00

it is late and the day has been so very long. having nobody to care for my wee one (too long and boring a story to tell) i was forced to call in to work today, and in lieu of going to work i called a friend, packed up the baby, and went to the st. louis art fair.

i have not been to this particular fair in several years, for several reasons.
1 - it's huge. overwhelming, really. you have to really love art to get through the whole thing.
2 - it's not terribly close to my end of st. louis
3 - parking in non-existent
4 - all the work being shown is very high-end, and therefore i have no delusions of ever purchasing anything
5 - it is normally in mid-september and that means h o t for st. louis
this year proved that #1-4 are still true. i like my life, but today left me feeling unsuccessful as an artist and terribly poor financially. no more st. louis art fair for me. to top it off i was not terribly interested in any of those showing. and their website sucks. there.

wait, i take one thing back - the not being interested in anyone showing. there was a local gal who was doing and art demo that we caught the very tail-end of. i was quite taken with her style of painting and her down-right ballsy use of color. then when i looked in the program i found that her name was not listed. boo! boo st. louis art fair! luckily, she mentioned her name while she was speaking and it stuck in my head.

jennifer hayes

check her out. you'll thank me.

the busy day has not allowed for much more than sketching. my honest hope was that i would come home with so much inspiration that i would get right to work. what actually happened was i hopped into my pajamas and cuddled up with the babe to watch the new star trek movie.

alas, in the spirit if artists inspiring other artists i do present a small collection of my atcs - artist trading cards.

(left to right, top to bottom)

i see roses in these weeds, meadow, hanging on a moment, she brings grace and beauty,

stand tall, twirl, true love

if you have not heard of atcs, they are 2.5"x3.5" pieces of art that one creates and trades with other artists.

i originally got into the trading to do just that - i wanted to have a collection of art. what i found was that it is an awesome way for me to create 'rough drafts' in miniature with little investment. atcs are an awesome tool and tons of fun besides.

this series of atcs i call 'sweet nothings'. i was experimenting with embroidering on photographs and paper. these actually lead to a larger series of pieces that i'll show you some day.

greener grass (framed)

tomorrow i promise something new.

pleasant dreams.

guess what!?!?

2010-09-10T19:34:00.000-05:00

my blog has been viewed over 200 times (according to google analytics), and by nearly 60 different persons!!! i am very excited to know that i am not blogging to myself everyday, and even more excited to know that most of those visits are repeat offenders. now i need commenters and followers - hmmmm . . .

i am planning a give away in exchange for comments and followers. it will be awesome. stay tuned.

anyways.

have i mentioned that my day today has been effing crazy? i am exhausted and i feel like i have done remarkably little. i did make a new headband today, and it's pretty darn cute and different and i love it. alas, i am too tired and too busy to scan it and load it, etc. so, despite my having made something today i am going to dip into archives to show you something i haven't showed you before.

felt jewelry!

i hand felt all my own beads. if you have ever felted before you know that it takes for-ev-er, but it is eerily calming for me. i haven't worked on these in a while and now that i am looking at these lovelies i think i'd like to bust out my wool this next week.

more . . .

this bottom one i call 'happiness'. i heart bright colors.

so that's all for tonight. very sleepy.

ps - personal note in case she is reading. my most awesome cousin is driving home today and i cannot wait to see her. it's been 6 months, or so, and i have missed her dearly.

mission complete.

2010-09-09T10:25:00.001-05:00

so my goal was to start and finish something today in order for me to go out tonight, and i did it! confession - i was not terribly ambitious. i added another errand to my plate for today and it will consume my afternoon. so, somewhere between walking the peach to school and getting my little fox and i ready for the day, i watched a movie and made this:

i told you i wasn't ambitious, but it's still cute. i made one similar to this for a craft fair last year and it sold before i was finished setting up. i don't really like making duplicates of anything so i intend to find ways to stay with the christmas colors and make them all special.

here's a couple others i have knocked out this week amidst the chaos:

front and back

i cannot get away from this color combo! it makes me smile.

have i mentioned that nearly everything i put on this blog is for sale? i am building inventory right now for some upcoming shows, so my etsy shop is practically empty. if you are interested in anything you have seen (or something custom) leave a comment or send me an email.

oh, and if you're following, my little man is back to his happy self. only got up once last night. we are all thrilled.

jo

found!

2010-09-08T14:30:00.001-05:00

my heart wants to paint. i have been walking by my pile on empty canvasses and bare wood discs all day long and i know (i know!) that if i even try to get one out that something terrible, like a spontaneous brush fire in my living room, will occur. it's not that i have a large amount of incredibly dry brush in our home - it's that these last 24 hours have been hard. i would rather wait for this 'whatever' to pass.

part of the 'whatever' is my little fox who is slowly getting back to his normal. i cannot wait. i miss my happy baby.

my free time today has been dedicated to the business side of art making. pricing and inventory-ing, and figuring out how i will package and so on and so on. it is tedious, but it is the kind of thing i can drop quickly and for hours if need be. painting seldom allows such interruptions.

in my diligent (and at times ocd-like) inventory-ing i rediscovered something i had painted a few months ago. it got put on a shelf because it was larger than the others and wouldn't fit in the same box. she's pretty so i will show her off.

calliope

i have a thing for peacock feathers but had never painted one before this. i think it went well.

i am setting a goal for myself for tomorrow. there is this small town mini-event happening tomorrow evening. i want to go, but i am requiring that i start and finish something art-esque tomorrow before i can go. fingers crossed.

is it time for bed, yet?

2010-09-07T19:58:00.003-05:00

apparently my little fox has a very sensitive stomach and even mild changes to his formula make him very irritated. i got about 3 hours of sleep last night. i function like a swiss watch on 10 hours. i can survive on 5-6. 3? 3 simply does not do.

we have the formula issue figured out and hopefully resolved, but it is 7:30 and it feels like boulders are pulling my eyelids down.

today did have some highlights . . .
1 - brunch with an old friend. we are in different places in our lives, which seems to be a common thread in all my 'old' friendships, but it's really great to reconnect. one of the perks to staying planted in one place is eventually everyone comes home and you get to see them again.
2 - i mailed off my application for the upcoming art walk. i actually took the whole packet into the post office to make sure i put the correct postage, and then realized that the address i was sending it to was a p.o.box in that very post office. i paid $1.50 to deliver the package myself, and i was told that it would arrive tomorrow. really? it'll take until tomorrow for you to walk it into the next room? i digress . . .

my peach had her first sleepover at a friend's house the other night. this particular friend lives directly across the street, which makes for a great first sleepover. it was her friend's birthday so she asked me to make her a headband for her gift. my daughter - she was like a regular customer. she picked out the colors and everything. turned out pretty cute:

front and back

i just recently started adding a little something on the back side, so i guess technically it is reversible.

some other headbands i've got lying around:

i am always working on new ideas for these and they are super fun to make. they are also completely adorable when worn.

did you know that a sleep deprived state can feel like you're drunk? it's not all bad, but i need to wrap this post up before it gets indiscernible. tomorrow is slated to be a lazy, pajama wearing day.

goodnight. wish me luck.

happy labor day!!!

2010-09-06T19:49:00.004-05:00

church picnics are like a slice of heaven for me. attendance prizes, games, plant/craft/cake stands, face painting, quilt bingo, running into old friends and making new ones. i got to spend my day with my family and friends. can it be any more awesome? as i sit here typing one-handed while holding my exhausted little boy in all my sun burnt glory i can assure that yes, there was one way the day could have been more awesome - i could have won a quilt.

i love quilts. i do not actually own any quilts because i love them too much to ever use them but cannot bare the thought of the loveliness sitting in a chest somewhere not being loved upon. some day i will have a quilt in my life.

so today you get to see the closest thing to a quilt that i have ever made:

it's just a little pillow. more patchwork than quilt, but that's all i got. even this is too precious to use and thus it lives in a storage tub in the basement. so, so sad.

apologies for the short post today. nothing ends a day with family quite like cuddling on the couch. i highly suggest it.

meet dorothy . . .

2010-09-05T09:34:00.006-05:00

it has been a very busy holiday weekend so far! my yesterday was so jam-packed that i didn't have a chance to get on here. i guess it's a good thing that i never vowed to post every day, huh?

so i have come up with a plan for those days when i have nothing or no time to post . . . i will feature another artist. it seems that over the years i have surrounded myself with creative people who are extremely talented in their chosen media. these 'featured artist' posts will start soon, as soon as i get it all organized. i know you'll love it.

in honor of labor day i will be sharing with you my labor of love for these past two weeks. allow me to introduce 'dorothy' . . .

dorothy

2010

i know there's a lot going on. she's bright and colorful and busy and she makes me happy. hopefully she will make somebody else happy, too.

some in-process pics:

background and first flower.

some flowers done, others in-process.

more done. more in-process. wondering if it's possible to run out of color.

(here you can see one of my layout tricks - little wooden discs with different colors on them to figure out what color flower should go where)

flowers all done. time for the flair and highlights!

done!

details of the final piece:

i hope that i didn't let you down. she took me a while to finish but i am pleased to move on to the next project.

tomorrow is our church picnic. it's a pretty big deal for my family, partly because it is held about half a block from our home, and partly because the weather tomorrow is supposed to be unbelievably gorgeous. today i am hoping to make something to donate to the craft stand, depending of course on my little boy and if i can keep myself from wasting the day away on long walks on this lovely st. louis day.

we'll see.

redemption

2010-09-03T21:13:00.002-05:00

to make up for my missed post yesterday . . . 2 posts today!

really big news - i believe i may have finished my big painting project that has tied me up all week. no, you cannot see it, yet because it is late and i have some small details to clean up.

rather, by numerous requests (yes, more than one person has asked me) i am going to show off a little of my airbrushed stuff. very little, actually.

my husband asked me last year to help come up with a logo for his company. i was working as an airbrush artist and had some down time so i make some examples for him on t-shirts. here they are:

i just realized how obtrusive those watermarks are with a grey background, but you get the idea, right? ignore the chalk marks all over the shirts, as i took these photos before they were washed.

hmmm . . . that didn't really show you too much range, did it? okay, okay. just a few more. these are just random shirts i made out of boredom. the flower one i made for my mom (aren't i a good daughter?).

tis past my bedtime and i have to work (yes, occasionally i do go to work) in the morning at the same stand where all these lovelies were made. who knows what i'll have to show you then?

sweet dreams.

jo

success and failure

2010-09-03T15:41:00.002-05:00

it happened. i did not post on this blog yesterday and it was my first missed day. i am sad, but i guess that family has to come before blog every now and then and that's what happened last night. failure.

oh, but success! i finished one of my projects this morning! no, it's not the big one, but i am extremely excited to reveal. and even more success . . . i took in-process pictures!

some robots sketches from my sketchbook. i needed five figures for this project, and it was decided that robots were the coolest way to go.

from here i figured out order and drew out a rough draft on the board i was to paint.

in process . . .

done!

roboWiley

2010

(the right side has been cut off a bit, not sure why)

so there you have it. i hope you are excited as i am.

it is a remarkably gorgeous day outside today and i have already been artsy and crafty for the day so i intend to get out of the house for a while. if your weather is anything like ours i suggest you do the same.

cinderella?

2010-09-01T23:57:00.003-05:00

yes, it is nearly midnight. it was quite a day. my little man is just not feeling well at all. i am making an attempt not to complain about being a mom (which i love) so i am afraid that you don't get to hear any of it. i'm sure you are heartbroken. typing one-handed so be forgiving (shout-out to all the multi-tasking nursing mamas!).

i did a bad thing. i started another painting project before finishing the other. you see, even when he's being a demanding crabby little terd he still lets me have some fun. he'll make a great husband one day, don't you think? i am so excited about this new project - i cannot wait to show you. but i will, wait that is.

i am really tearing through my archives these days, but it's a lot of fun to think of what i've done. i often get new ideas when going through my old ones :)

i showed you an example of my drawing a couple days ago, so how about i share the first drawing where i developed my 'jo method' . . .

'vague'

2007

i cannot recall nor can i whip out a measuring tape right now. 14"x28" is a sporting guess.

the theme was loosely assigned. anyone who knows my husband should peg him for the model, although his mouth is slightly smaller. i would show you his photo for comparison, but i might have an easier time catching bigfoot on camera. he's not a fan of having his photo taken :( but all through art school he would sit and model for as much as i needed. he's a good husband.

four minutes until i turn back into a servant. goodnight.

jo

come, join me on the green side . . .

2010-08-31T19:43:00.005-05:00

i am convinced that my little fox must be in the middle of a growth spurt. he is acting like a newborn again with the 'i'm starving' screams and the constant soiling of diapers. so, since we are cloth diapering i spent the day organizing and laundering in efforts to streamline the process a bit. i managed to get some painting in, but i decided to dedicate today's blog post to cloth diaper education.

first, some background. i first realistically considered cloth diapers not even a year ago (didn't even know i was expecting #2 a year ago!) and when i did the decision was solely for economic reasons. don't get me wrong, i love the earth, but i despise spending money just to throw it away. that's insane. so that's why i drank the kool-aid, but i am hooked on them for so many reasons:
1 - we never run out of diapers
2 - they are so super cute (see below)
3 - my son has never had a diaper rash
4 - no infamous 'blow-outs', and they leak no more than disposable diapers
5 - no nasty gel goo touching my babe's bottom, only sweet, soft, fluffy cotton or bamboo
6 - my little guy was born with his father's lack of butt, and cloth diapers have awarded him one heck of a cotton booty

so, time for show and tell . . .

this is a prefold (specifically a green mountain diaper yellow edge prefold) on the left and on the right it is modeled by my handsome growing boy (2mo+). prefolds are the old-school cloth diaper system, and still the cheapest way to go. modernized a little by the snappi (the blue thing holding it all together) that replaced the diaper pins. i do own diaper pins but i've never used them!

prefold require a cover, so here's a partially complete shot to show you all the pieces:

an alternative to the prefolds is to use what are called 'fitteds'. a fitted diaper is an absorbent prefold equivalent that has some sort of closure so you don't have to use the snappi or pins. fitteds also come in the most adorable prints and patterns. unfortunately, the adorable-ness disappears under the cover, but it does make diaper changes just a bit more colorful.

left - our stellar model in a fitted with a cover ready to go on
right - a group shot of all the fitteds i had clean at the moment. see what i mean by cute? zebra stripes, knights and dragons, safari animals, atari, zoo critters

here he is at 2 weeks old in a fitted with garden gnomes on it

a few super-cute covers. most of our covers are ugly and purely functional, but a few cute ones in the mix makes me happy.

the last type of clothe dipe is extremely similar to a disposable diaper in function. it is also, generally, the most expensive way to go. this is the 'all-in-one' or 'one-size'. an all-in-one is all the absorbency of a prefold or fitted but already has a waterproof outer covering, so you just throw it on them.

this is a yellow bumgenius all-in-one

every diaper type i have mentioned so far is sized. this means you have to buy larger diapers as your baby grows. the exception is the one-size diaper. the one-size snaps in the front so you can adjust the length and thereby the size of the diaper. the absorbent pads are separate and you tuck them into pockets in the back of the diaper. it's slightly more work than the all-in-one, but i set all my one-sizes up when i pull them from the dryer so they are ready to go.

left - sporting a bumgenius one-size on the smallest setting

right - a happy hienies one-size to show the adjustment snaps

we use a little bit of everything, as you can see.

now, i know what you are thinking . . . i didn't make any of these diapers, so why are they on the my blog? well, my dear, i did make my own cloth wipes!

from left to right top to bottom: funky chicks, aqua dots, blue dots, bunnies, chickens, vintage chicks, monkeys, pigs, sharks, turtles.

most are double-sided flannel, but some are flannel/terry cloth

all stacked up!

so, i've sold you on the easy and cute, but how about the buck? a lot of people will like the idea of cloth then run away screaming when they see the price tag. if you go with one-sized or all-in-ones and want to buy them brand new you can expect to pay a bundle (if you go this way and use the diapers for 2 children they are still cheaper than disposables for the 2 children), the difference is that you are paying all at one time instead of spreading it across 3 years. but, if you go with a cheaper option (prefolds, econobum) or buy used (which all of the above diapers are) you'll have saved 1000's over your child's infancy.

screaming boy means this post is over!

a goat called donkey

2010-08-30T20:17:00.005-05:00

yet another day sacrificed for the sake of family . . .

i am sure that you all have these days, where your well made plans are beaten down by those who require more of your attention than you have to give, and when your home is more akin to a train station than a sanctuary. i forgot to eat lunch.

the bright side: i got some of my errands done and got some good deals on items that will be art someday (a few canvasses, fabric, items for towel cakes, etc).

the dreary side: no creative pursuits today.

if my little fox lets me sleep tonight i have promised that we can stay home all day tomorrow in our pajamas and cuddle and make beautiful things. the larger painting i have been slaving over (she does have a title, now - 'dorothy') is begging me to finish her.

but i cannot leave you with nothing! what shall i pull from my archives to wow you? ah - I have just the thing . . .

my daughter had a dear stuffed goat. his name was donkey. that alone is a terribly long story, but i digress. i chose donkey as a subject for a project in my drawing class.

'portrait of a goat called donkey'

isn't he sweet? this little diddy is quite indicative of how i like to draw - ordered chaos, if you please. i like to do a bit of an organized scribble. i don't know of anyone else who draws like this, so we will call it the 'jo method'.

at the time i was also working a bit with embroidering on paper, and my drawing professor allowed me to experiment a little with the idea of drawing with thread.

'cotton portrait of a goat called donkey'

every line you see is a piece of thread. i believe this portrait took me about 4 hours to complete. labor of love, i assure you.

are you wow-ed?

it's time to get ready for bed. wish me sleep.

day of rest?

2010-08-29T20:03:00.003-05:00

not for me! sundays are the day i use to catch up with life. i ran errands and cleaned house and organized and cooked the day away. and then, when dinner was done and my surroundings were less horrible than they were this morning, and the babe was asleep, and i finally had an opportunity to be artistic and make loveliness . . . i decided to take my kiddos on a walk.

my babies! no criticism of the picture as it was taken with my phone.

i've lived in this town since i was five, and as long as i can recall it has been the walking-est town i know of. everyone walks. we live about 2 blocks off the main street and within walking distance of 4 parks (with playgrounds), and while we are less than satisfied with the building in which we reside, we are completely in love with our 'home'.

so we walked and rolled. the weather was g o r g e o u s, which is oh so rare for st louis. my sweet husband even came out and joined us for a bit. it was wonderful.

my apologies for the lack of project. i only hope you got a moment of joy from your day as i did mine.

good night.

jo

under the wire . . .

2010-08-28T20:59:00.003-05:00

a day had nearly passed without recounting my day. shutter the thought . . .

today was the bridal shower of my cousin. i received many "ahhh"s for my towel cake and several recommendations that i do it professionally. i'll consider it.

the shower wasn't terribly long, but the preparation of myself and my two kiddos for the shower took me most of the morning and has completely depleted my energy. fret not, as i do have some show and tell.

i thought of this 'thing' i wanted to paint a few days ago and last night i couldn't take it anymore. so i started it yesterday evening and this morning . . . voila!

it reads "this is the wonder that's keeping the stars apart . . . i carry your heart (i carry it in my heart)". it's a line from an e. e. cummings poem (that i love - read it here). this expert is a bit long for a piece title, which i am still mulling over.

i like it. the orange 'blasts' coming from the small heart were an afterthought, intended to add a bit more color, and i am less than thrilled with the outcome (mostly that they resemble candy corn and ultimately don't seem to fit). i am also seeking out new and more fabulous ways to paint text.

i do have a dear love for poetry, thanks in part to my high school literature teacher (shout out to Sr. Elaine!), and i do hope to make a series of paintings inspired by my other favorite poems. i've officially added it to my list of possible future pursuits. won't it be grand when i win the magical time lottery and can accomplish all those items on the list?!?! no, but really, suggest me some awesome poems to inspire me and we'll see what rolls out . . .

'tis one minute to my bedtime. sweet dreams.

jo

school daze

2010-08-27T14:30:00.002-05:00

ack! only 20 minutes before big sister gets out of school and i've not posted anything! the horror!
last night was 'meet the teacher night' at her school. it's slightly humorous to me because i attended the school myself once upon a time. then it was "my school". it became my mom's school when she began teaching there (still does), and now it belongs to my daughter. as far as schools go not too much has changed. she had the same kindergarten teacher i had, has the same principal, and it was only by sheer chance that she did not get the same first grade teacher i had. the teacher she does have attended the school as well only a couple years ahead of me. her brother was in my class. meet the teacher? we've met.

i have been painting for a good part of the day, but it's been backgrounds and in-process stuff . . . nothing worth sharing, yet. instead i will show off a project from last week. it goes along with all these school memories, anyways.

every year my/her school's priest comes up with a yearlong theme (this is a catholic school - did i mention that?). the last two years i have designed a bulletin board to go along with the theme that remains up for the entire year. the first year i was commissioned by my mother, as it was her turn to do the board. last year the other third grade teacher asked me to do it for her turn (she made my family dinner in thanks and it was totally worth it!), and this year i assumed that the job was mine. it seems i was correct.

father normally releases the year's theme about a week before school starts, so i was eagerly waiting to see what my challenge would be this year.

2008-2009's theme was "come holy spirit, guide us on our journey. teach us to listen, learn, and love", and this is my visual interpretation:

2009-2010's theme was "lord god, our hope is in you, for you can do all things, provide all things, and overcome all things" . . .

(a detail shot)

and this year it is "christ has set us free so be the change you want the world to see". here ya go:

(detail)

i am pretty proud of it, and i love all the feedback that i get throughout the year. next year i am thinking of signing the thing.

i really have enjoyed these. can't wait until next year!

jo

why my baby is so much more awesome than your baby (at least today, to me), so there!

2010-08-26T12:11:00.002-05:00

last night my sweet, wonderful, precious baby boy slept for 9 hours with only one small wake up for diaper/food. i'll remind you that he is but 2 months old and normally sleeps for 3 hours at a time. today, he is my hero.

he has also been sweet as pie and is letting me work on a large canvas i have been dying to finish. i am getting closer, but i will not share until it is complete. worry not, i am taking plenty of in-process pics. rather, today i think i will show you a few more of my mosaic flowers . . .

agnes

claudia

faustina

gwen

isadora

kay

lorraine

meredith

nina

olga

silvia

yolanda

zoe

i am quite obsessive about the naming of my work. i take it as seriously as naming a child. if i develop a series of pieces i typically do assign a theme to the names. for this "mosaic flowers" series i am using names of female catholic saints, all beginning with a different letter of the alphabet. having 24 of this size i used all the letters except q and x (you can imagine how many female saints had names with these letters!) and when i started working in a larger format i started the alphabet over, but still using the saintly names. now that it's all typed out there it seems a bit complicated. i suppose it has become an obsession of keeping all things organized, but i digress.

to thank the boy for the gift of sleep i have decided to take him on a walk if the opportunity presents itself today. another gorgeous day in st. louis (rare, indeed!), so i may take my camera along. bliss!

2010-08-25T07:01:00.001-05:00

much of my day today will be spent cleaning in the basement, so it is unlikely that i will have time to dedicate to loveliness. you see, the basement has become something of an indoor pool and i need to go down and determine what has been destroyed and clean up some. i am bracing myself for sadness.

and so i offer what has been my august project. i had not used an actual paint brush for more than face painting since high school. it was hard for me then, but i am older and steadier, now, so i decided to pick up painting again. the result has been a series of small pieces i am calling "mosaic flowers". allow me to introduce . . .

delphina

<---

edith

--->

meredith

<---

vivian

--->

these are just 4 of the 26 total i have produced. these and 21 others are 3.5" wood discs. it is time to move on from this specific project, for now. i am excited to see if/how these sell at the art walk, and perhaps my etsy.

*update* we have returned from walking big sister to school and i am even more sad due to the gorgeous weather that i will not get to enjoy while cleaning the basement. might have to make time for a walk today :)
**another update** the basement damage is bad but not horrible. losses include a few of my less precious drawings, some toys, a handful of books, and a mini christmas tree. it seems the dry portion of the basement isn't reliable as such :(

jo

sweet surprises

2010-08-24T09:07:00.002-05:00

my heart belongs to film photography. and while my wallet definitely pulls me to digital my heart wins out every once in a while. i will go out with my kiddos and spend a roll of film on a beautiful day, throw that roll in the drawer with the rest, and wait to win the lottery so that one day i might develop the whole lot of them. sigh.

. . . or i can pull out a roll at random and develop it and see what lovely surprises await me!

look what came out . . .

based on the clothes she is wearing and the fact that the field we went to for these shots is now a parking lot, i would say that roll of film was about 2 years old. that would have put my little peach at about 4 years old. she was 2 when i took my first photo class so she has been learning to model as i have learned to shoot.

some some the ol' archive:

awwwww! 2 years old - my baby!

time to hit the grocery.

jo

a marvelous monday

2010-08-23T13:23:00.002-05:00

woo hoo! oh happy day! oh sweet, sweet celebration! today i am experiencing a joy known only to parents of young children, and that is the first day of the first full week of school. words alone cannot express.

i love my daughter. she is sweet and kind and smart and funny. she also talks. a lot. and asks thousands of questions a day. it has been a long summer. it is time for her to talk to her friends and ask questions of her teacher. god help them all.

so it is me and my little fox during the day. he is a happy, smiling boy most of the day, and some days (like this very one) he lets me get something done.

today's project was a gift for my cousin's bridal shower this coming saturday. i despise shopping from a registry, but she happened to register for towels and that means i got to try my hand at a towel cake. also made possible by additional funds from mom, sister, and niece.

take a look:

ingredients: 4 towels, 4 hand towels, 4 rags, ~4 yards of ribbon, cake topper, strait pins, dowel rod
i painted the bride and groom stick people on top to look like them:

aren't they sweet? i am not privy to the colors of the wedding or what her dress will look like, so they are pretty generic other than the hair. i was tempted to scrap this idea and make a bride and groom rubber ducky, but the bottom of the stick people fits into the towels so nicely!

the roses on the top of the cake are actually made of soap - how fun!

what i learned in this project: a dowel rod = steel reinforcements and
strait pins = super glue in terms of a towel cake.

eeeek! only an hour until i must retrieve my peach from school! until tomorrow . . .

jo

a suiting introduction

2010-08-22T09:39:00.000-05:00

hi. my name is jo.

this is my blog. it is my earnest hope that it becomes a script of my life, that is funny and colorful and splendid.

i live in a great, small, midwestern town (right across the mississippi river from st. louis) with my little family. my husband and i have a little girl who is 6 and a little man who just passed 2 months old.

i call myself an artist. i hold a bachelor's degree in studio art, but it also happens to be what i love to do. i paint, and sew, and weave, and draw, and airbrush, and sculpt, and design, and alter, and photograph, and craft, and, and, and. i have media committment issues. my goal is to be creative most days.

once upon a time i tried to be a serious adult. it simply has not worked out for me.

so there i am, in a teeny little nutshell. i'd hate to ovewhelm in the first post.

jo

jo sasser

STOREFRONT

toms!

can i paint you?

been feeling a bit dead lately . . .

boo!

i set fire to the rain . . .

busy busy busy . . .

ack!

i'm a stalker, too

getting my swap on . . .

proof in the pudding . . .

make like a tree . . .

happy happy . . .

some things i made in recent history . . .

my favorite things . . . up for some swap?

face painting!

back in the day . . .

look what i did this weekend . . .

*** my iso ***

thanks you

off topic

it's a handmade christmas!

i'm back - ish

my last post for a bit

Dec 4, 2010

do not hit your screen with your shoe . . .

treasury alert!

hot off the, err . . . craft table!

'tis the season

finally . . .

prodigal blogger

i've been featured . . .

you don't wanna hear my excuses . . .

my hamster wheel

where does it go?

joyful exhaustion

holy headbands, batman!

what a wednesday!

felt balls? no, really . . . felt balls

sidebar, revisited

it's sunday!

i'll be right back

bad, bad blogger

oh yah, what did you do today?

feeling blue . . . and red

boring

sidebar

inspired?

guess what!?!?

mission complete.

found!

is it time for bed, yet?

happy labor day!!!

meet dorothy . . .

redemption

success and failure

cinderella?

come, join me on the green side . . .

a goat called donkey

day of rest?

under the wire . . .

school daze

why my baby is so much more awesome than your baby (at least today, to me), so there!

sweet surprises

a marvelous monday

a suiting introduction

* my iso *