Altered by the Sea

Monday, June 10, 2013

A Small Score - But Very Choice

Had a chance on my recent time off to visit a

huge antique mall up the coast in Cayucos.

Three floors, lots of eye candy and inspiration.

I picked up only three things,and very nice they are too.
A wonderful vintage (when Cuban cigars were still sold here)
cigar box with great graphics and labels ,

a rusty well used lunch box
that features a handle on the top,

and this fascinating sample of different fonts
embroidered on hemp cloth.

I see this as the cover for a journal devoted to typography.

Don't you love a successful hunting and gathering session?!

Saturday, June 8, 2013

Suitcase Saturday Travel Score

One of the things I love to do when we travel is bring home a tiny something that really reflects that particular country or city. These trinkets are usually a little more tourist-y than my usual scores but they do have the advantage of taking almost no room in the suitcase, and I love to display them on the bookshelves that hold the travel books and novels about where we've been.

Picked up these iconic structures on my first trip to Paris ,

the Eifel Tower is 4" high and the Arc de Triomphe 1".

This exquisite miniature watercolour (2x2") of Edinburgh Castle

reminds me of our wonderful visit to Scotland.

What could say Venice better than a gondola -

a silver one, about 3" long.

And this martial guard, just like the ones I saw

changing at St, James Palace in London one morning

stands only two inches tall.

Thursday, June 6, 2013

A Cut Above!

Last October at a workshop with Lynne Perrella and Anne Bagby, Anne showed us how to transfer photo copies of patterns and designs onto large (12x12") slabs of Safety Kut (a material for making rubber stamps). I did the transfer - using matte medium on both the Safety Kut and the copy, and let it dry over night. Then sprayed water on the paper and rolled it off until the what was left was the Safety Kut with the design transferred onto it. At this point it was ready to carve. And so it has sat in my studio for the last 8 months.

I watched Anne do it at the workshop, I watch her (several times) on her DVD doing it, but I was nervous of making that first cut. So last week during my time off I thought "OK, now's the time!" I got out the Xacto and the lino tools, took a deep breath and just went for it.

It was not as scary as I had thought it would be. I sliced through a few stems and leaves I hadn't meant to, but on the whole - not bad for my first time. I will proof it several times to see what needs to be fixed and then start stamping away. I know it will be easier next time and will not be another 8 months till I try it again!

Tuesday, June 4, 2013

Return to Turkey

This journal is a fictional story in words and ephemera

of a young woman from London who returns to the

birthplace of her ancestors for the first time.

She is a tourist and yet, not a tourist. She sees the

mannerisms and characteristics of her

great grandfather, her aunt Sashsu

and others, in the faces she meets on the streets.

She visits the bazaar and finds a flair for haggling

that she knows is in-born.

The mosques, the tile work, the architecture

speak to a place in her heart that

has waited all these years to be fulfilled.

This piece has been waiting for about two years,

and finally came together last week when I

had the time off to work on it.

I wrote out the journal entries and then translated them

in Google Translator to Turkish. I used a nib pen and sumi ink to

then transcribe them on several of the journal pages.

The bought journal with its picture frame dividers

and palm tree theme provided an excellent substrata.

I had amassed a goodly amount of ephemera and

collage materials, including stamps,

old coins and tickets that

my friend Franny had collected for me

on her trip to Istanbul in the fall of 2011.

As with so many of my pieces, there were months of

sitting and marinating and then it all came

together and was created in just a few days.

Sunday, June 2, 2013

Life on the Coast

Cayucos Pier, beautiful sunny morning.

just had coffee, a scone and journal time -

does it get any better?

Friday, May 31, 2013

From the Bookshelf

Another one from my early days, a decade ago, when I first started put more than writing in my journals. Claudia Nice is a name recognized by most anyone who has dabbled in watercolour and pen and ink. She has many books available on these subjects and all are easy to follow, beautifully illustrated with her work and full of wonderful advice and ideas. This particular volume speaks of the different types of sketchbook journals and gives many examples of each. The first section has a great supply list and compact lessons on dozens of techniques. This is one I return to again and again over the years. Used copies can be found quite easily, a good source to have to hand.