Seed Paper Project (with help from the kids)

I've had a couple reincarnations as and artist, one of them was as a paper maker. However one thing that I have always carried with me, through out my incarnations, is my Prairie practicality. Whatever I have, I've got to use up and not waste (hold that thought).

Last year I found this book, by Kerri Smith in San Francisco. I was so excited when I found it in the store, since earlier that day I had just been explaining to my husband how I was interested in Guerilla Art. After I calmed his fears about having to bail me out of jail for tagging, we talked at great length about how Guerilla Art (a random act of kindness, if you will) can effect a community.

I love the idea of making art for no other reason than to make the world a more interesting place. I found myself particularly drawn to the Seed Bombs but we modified it into "SEED PAPER"  (here is where the need to use up materials comes in).

We picked a sunny day, got out some buckets  filled them with water. Then we went to town, ripped up paper, (the kids favourite part) threw it in a blender and made some pulp. I used left over cotton fibers and some abbacca but mostly we used paper from our recycling. It was also a good excuse to clean out some storage space. I also used a few of my old prints from my printmaking days. When I said I've had a couple of reincarnations I wasn't kidding and did I really need 10 additions of each print? This project was particularly exciting for me because I not only did I uses up left over materials  I also freed up some space for myself. YES!

Then came the wet part. We pulled sheets of paper (got soaked) with our screens (got soaked), squished the water out (got soaked) and sprinkled our seeds in the paper. Then we sandwiched the seeds between sheets of paper (which wasn't really part of the wet process but we were already soaked). We used sunflower seeds, poppies, hollyhocks, cone flowers anything that was perennial.

We hung the sheet of paper on our patio doors and a few of them we placed dried maple leave on top.

Neko, our girl cat hung out to supervise and to soak in all the sun!

After a day or so the paper had dried on the windows and it was time to pull them off ...

And reap our rewards! Stack O' Paper!

We attached a little note inviting people to join our forces and to become  "GUERILLA GARDENERS"


For mission details or to figure out what to do if one of these sheets surfaces in your vicinity visit:

http://redspottedpatch.blogspot.com/2010/05/guerrillas-in-our-midst.html

Happy gardening in your yard or in an urban area that needs some green love!

Time Flies when you're having fun!

My son turned 10 this week and I think I'm still in shock, how did this happen?

Wasn't it last Halloween we dressed him up as Elvis and put him in Chris's guitar case?

 

I remember like it was yesterday when he got the scar above his left eye.

AND

I'm sure it was a few hours ago I listened to the stories he made up about the
"OCTOPUS SHARK"

I found him once pressing on the top of his hand, what is he doing I thought to myself, then it hit me he was being Buzz Light Year and shooting his Lazer while making sound effects.I still get all sentimental when I hear the "Toy Story" theme song.

He certainly had his "Monster Moments"

...but there we a lot of changes in his life, we moved,  he acquired a little brother

and a little orange furry creature that he adored-Yo Jo. I  didn't think it was possible to see someones heart break until the night Yo Jo didn't come home.

He always loved animals and they didn't have to be fuzzy.

But being his father's son he also loved video games . I  lost him at playing Jak and Daxter, it was too advanced for me. Remember Freddy Fish or Pajama Sam, they re still more my speed.

It seems like there was no time in between him cutting teeth to loosing teeth

Luckily his younger brother doesn't  introduce us as "Maceo's Mom, Maceo's Dad, Maceo's Grandma, Maceo's Grandpa, Maceo's Aunite Julie..." any more as cute as that was!

He was nervous about turning 10 because he thought he'd have to stop playing but I told him just because you're in double digits you don't have to stop playing!

There are time to be serious sure, but there is always opportunity to play no matter how old you are

I just can't believe it,  when he was little  people would stop me and say, "enjoy it it will be gone before you know it." I would smile knowing I took a million photos. Some how it hit me this week he's 10! 10 years did go by in the blink on an eye. It makes me appreciate the fossils he's fascinated by even more... I just wish

I'd gotten him something more than a TV dinner!

(just kidding they're cupcakes, see there is always time to play)
Happy 10th birthday Maceo

Love Mom(my)

Happy Belated Mother's day!

.

When  I first showed my friend Linda "Lizzy-B" (drawing on your left) I was excited but didn't really know where to go with it. Linda suggested I ask my friends for their favourite dresses and to draw them. So I did. Which is how the drawing above came to be and how it found it's name "Lysa, Jen, Cori and Linda"

The First skirt is mine and well, I have a confession, Jen never got her dress to me. However the second skirt even though it is mine, always reminds me of Jen, she has this incredible sense of design I find inspiring. The third dress is Cori's. Cori is the sweetest person I have ever met and I loved the hemline of the dress she brought me! Linda that's hers on the end (right). Linda is the wisest person I've ever known. I know if  I can't figure something out, all I have to do is pop over for tea. Somewhere in our visit she'll help me find the answer to what ever problem I need to solve.

Each of these lovely ladies are Mothers and each of them have their own style of Mothering that I admire.

  To them and to you I wish you a Happy Mother's day!  Even if it is a day (or two) late-Oops

Guerilla Gardners Unite!

Welcome to the first step in becoming a "Guerilla Gardner"!

Your mission: to encourage green in urban areas. This mission is so secretive the rest of the population will not even know the movement has begun... until we have green everywhere!

You have two missions to choose from:

Mission A (short and sweet):

Leave seed paper in spots around town for others to find and plant. For example tuck the paper in Library books or newspapers at coffee shops or on park benches. Somewhere you feel the recipient might be prone to see the mission through.

Mission B (longer but more fruitful):

Step 1 - Scope out an area the could use some green!

Step 2 - Dig a shallow hole.

Step 3 - Place the seed paper in the hole.

Step 4 - Water the paper. This step isn't necessary but helpful for best results.

Step 5 - Cover paper with dirt. For best results make sure seed paper is covered with good soil.

Step 6 - Optional but for best results stop by and water your spot, especially if we hit a dry spell this summer


Step7 - Take photos of your success and  post a link to your photo in the comments.

Good luck and happy gardening! For more information on seed paper visit: http://redspottedpatch.blogspot.com/2010/05/seed-paper-project-with-help-from-kids.html

So whatdayaknow!

I went to collect my drawings from Serendipi Tea today, since it was officially the last day of Art Walk, and Shelly the owner invited me to keep my show up for another two weeks! She's been receiving lots of positive comments, especially from those who have a passion for fabric. Shelly also encouraged me to check the comment book, which I did and especially loved the comment from one woman that said I should show in England! My son was with me and said "did she leave some plane tickets?"

So thank you to Shelly, my family and friends that made this show a success! If you didn't get a chance to see the show, no worries. Now you have another two weeks to see it; and... nudge, nudge... Serendidpi Tea is a great place to take your mom for Mother's day... I'm just sayin'!

P.S. - I still have more pictures to post of my drawings in future blogs. Coming soon!