If not now...

The prompt for Monday's "Beyond Layers" exercise was just this...If not now, then when...
its the companion piece to my word for the year, BEGIN...
its all about moving ahead instead of being stuck in procrastination...

what are you going to get done this week that you've been avoiding/neglecting/forgetting...

for me, I'm going to finish my submissions to two summer art shows

and start some research for a potential big project...

and you?...

Cultivating the spark

You see a picture...a spark goes off...inspiration has hit...you journey to the basement for supplies...

This is pretty much the process I followed when I spied this photo on anything goes here...which, by the way, always has the most interesting items displayed in the most unique ways...be sure to check it out...

I never thought of using these vintage metal curtain rings to display photos/cards/ephemera... what if I could figure out a photo display stand using these rings...I knew I had plenty of these rings leftover from my mom's stash of stuff (as if I didn't have enough of my own...I now have plenty of stuff from my mom too...) 
I rummaged through a few piles in the basement...

Here's what I came up with...starting with a base, I drilled a hole in a cedar fence post cap with a paddle bit...

I found an old broom handle that was the perfect diameter for the rings to fit around...I had to cut down the handle to size...its been raining and cold here forever (unlike the rest of the country that had a blast of summer!) so I had to work inside, on my kitchen island...

good thing my reclaimed wood island already has that vintage patina...because now it has a smattering of blue paint on the edges...

Once I had the hole in the base, I painted it a lovely vintage gray...I adhered a large rusted washer over the hole...this would give added weight to the base (and conceal the rough edges of the drilled hole...)
After the paint and adhesive were dry, I inserted the broom handle into the hole...I pounded a large head nail through the underside of the base into the bottom of the broom handle to give it extra support.

To attach the curtain rings to the broom handle, I planned to nail each ring in place...I drilled a tiny hole into each ring...making a pilot hole with a sharp screw/nail keeps the bit in place while drilling...

and then I secured each ring with a small 5/8 x 18 nail...

















I built my display from the bottom up...

until it was complete...

I offset the ring clips so I could display cards close together without blocking the view of the nearby cards...                            

This display will work great at home...as well as at art shows this summer  (those are my vintage art cards I have clipped on the display...for sale over at my etsy shop...) 

Maybe I'd better find another broom stick and make a couple more...

Linking up to Funky Junk Interiors Saturday Nite Special...plenty there to cultivate your creative spark...

Layers & Textures

Collage is a process of layers...adding and subtracting until the image is just right...this is what I love about the process...it can be subtle or complex...and when its complete, there's such a textural depth that gives a richness to the image.

Part of what drew me to Beyond Layers, the online class I am taking with Kim Klassen, is that I wanted to learn how to incorporate these same layers into my photographic work.  Though it is only three months into the year-long course, I've learned a lot...and have loved experimenting with different techniques and textures.  Kim provides the textures for participants to use in our exercises...but it got me thinking...I could probably experiment with my own...

So I started by scanning whatever interesting surface I found in my studio...a piece of burlap, my mom's old leather wallet, the top of a rusted metal box, lots of sheet music...

Earlier this week, I spent an afternoon with Kate Hartley of Full Circle Studio.  Kate does beautiful collage work that is reproduced on switchplate covers, kitchen towels, magnets...and more projects in the works.  Kate wanted the quick overview of how to incorporate layers via the digital version into her work...now, granted I have just a minuscule amount of knowledge of what is available within Photoshop...but it was enough to spark great enthusiasm in Kate of what the possibilities could be!

Here's one of my recent photos, each version edited with one of my created layers...

edited with burlap layer
























edited with leather layer

edited with rusted metal layer



edited with sheet music layer




























I'm happy to share my textures...leave me a comment and I'll email you the four textures shown here - burlap, leather, rusted metal and sheet music...if your blogger profile doesn't have your email, make sure to include it in your comment - otherwise, I won't know where to send them...and then I would love to see what you do with them...post your photos on the Four Corners Design facebook page...so we can all "ooh" and "aah" over your lovely images...

Spur of the moment

Sometimes you have a lazy Saturday...sometimes you get a million things done...today lies someplace in between...

While trolling my usual blog list this morning, I spied inspiration from Funky Junk Interiors unique lighting post...
a lamp made from a wire trellis/tomato cage type item...it reminded me that I had three wire crab pots sitting outside in the rusting area of my backyard...

I cleaned up one of the wire cages...

threaded a HEMMA light cord from IKEA through the top, screwed in an Edison light bulb...plugged it in and I was done!

It was the motivation I needed to change out my dining room vignette...

I opted for a bird nest/spring feel...but always love having a good measure of rusted metal...
my new lamp provides plenty of that...

Linking up to Funky Junk Interiors Saturday Nite Special...lots of inspiration - for one of kind lighting...and more...

But wait...if you think my project was easy...visit this fantastic link-up over at it all started with paint...
many more creative projects that will take no time at all and give you a sense of satisfaction...

Art is personal

Seth Apter's newly released book, The Pulse of Mixed Media, takes the "pulse" of many artists, asking them personal questions about their work and having them interpret their answers via their art.  I haven't yet seen a copy of the book, but am anxious to get my own copy...Seth is making several promotional stops around the country...word has it he may be stopping in the Seattle area...

He invited his blog readers to participate in the promotion by submitting their answers to a couple of the questions posed in the book...and being artists, it would only make sense if your answer was in the form of artwork, any format but limited to 5" square... so I obliged...

The first question was "If your artwork could talk, what would it say?"
My response...

The second question was "Who has had the most impact on your creative life?"
My response...

The third and final question was "What is the one thing you have never shared with the creative community?"
I passed on this one...I'd rather keep my secrets to myself...

But its no secret that this is the book the creative community is talking about right now...check it out for yourself...
click here...

Spring fever!

Even though the rest of the country is experiencing Spring...here in the Pacific NW, we seem to be stuck...not really winter...but not really spring either. 

But that doesn't deter me from having spring fever...and to celebrate this first day of Spring, I'm having a Spring Fever Sale at my etsy shop!

8 spring-themed vintage art cards are on sale at 20% off (since its march 20!) through the end of the week...no special codes to enter...the price of $6 for a set of 4 flat note cards already reflects the 20% discount from the regular price of $7.50 per set.

So if you aren't too busy smelling the daffodils...head over to my etsy shop and get your fill of Spring and start sending springtime notes to all your friends...you gotta feed that fever!