Stencil Breakthrough ... and Break Out!

BREAKING through and breaking out! It's a hot summer day today, and while we don't have air conditioning, it is still cooler inside than out right now. Ideal for artwork, but not for house cleaning. Well, studio cleaning ... yes, I've done that. I can't believe how many pencils, pens and crayons I have. But that's usually because I can't find anything and I have to go buy more.
With this recent burst of organization, however, those days of "more" be over. I am ending up organizing myself and not leaving it to the Mister, who has enough of his own stuff to do. He's moving into the new garage/shop and I will inherit the old garage off the dining room. I can't wait to have room to spread out ... but I must improve my work habits. Wish me luck.
Thanks to Judy Wise for posting on stencils (search her blog for "Tweaked" if you don't see it). She included a photo of the process and it made it a lot clearer for me. So I printed a photo and set to work. It's a picture of someone who reads this blog often, so let's see if she recognizes herself. : )
I then cut out slivers around the figure like Judy did and realized how you have to think ahead about the positive and negative space you create.
Here's the photo stamped with ink. I didn't want to spray paint the image since it smells so bad and I didn't want to take time to lay down newspapers. OK. I was real lazy.
After I had stamped it all over - and it took a while because the slivers I had cut away were small and only defined the person in the photograph just a little - I peeked from time to time to see how I was doing.
Then voila! Here is the little girl in the photo. Who could she be?
This was really fun and will, now, certainly not be the only stencil I do. I can see where I need to improve.
Hooked on so many things. My list of "to do's" keeps getting longer.
By the way, the photo at the beginning of the blog entry is of the computer room at work. It is usually kept locked, since it's the heart and brains of all the computers in the newsroom. I thought I saw a visitor who might be up to no good, however. (That's right - it's a monkey in the works. No wonder Jim brings a banana to work every single day!)
Here, also, for an ending, is a photo of the "other side" of the woman painted on glass. I turned it around yesterday and was surprised to see how different she had become from the "person" she was when I started. Hope you've got good weather where you are and something fun to keep your mind and hands busy - femminismo
P.S. Almost forgot this intriguing flower I saw at Sylvia's house. It's a hoya - a 10 foot long, or longer, vine. Inside plant. Check it out by clicking on the image for a closer look. The flower petals have little tiny hairs on them. Before the flower blooms the tiny petals look almost metallic. It's one of those plants - like the passion flower - that could be placed in a "Star Trek" episode and they would fit right in.

So Much Going On ... Living Life.

YES, there has been a lot going on. Good and bad. One of my favorite teachers died. I attended her funeral this past Friday, June 13. It was like going home again, there were so many familiar faces from my childhood and teen years. My teacher, Mrs. Nyberg, would have been 99 years old this month. She knew it was time however, and so ... she let go of this world.
At the life celebration for her it was obvious, looking around the room, that she drew only the best people to her. We will all miss her. She was full of fun and lived LIFE - not the pale imitation, but the real thing. So, in her honor, let's LIVE it!
WELL, for starters, our family is going camping on the property this weekend and so it was only "natural" that we would need ... well, you know. A proper outhouse. (There's the "starter," above.) There are going to be small children along and we wanted to make this wilderness adventure a little more civilized.
The Mister said I could get a construction job now since I got so much on-the-job training holding the plumb up to make sure his building was ship-shape. Verrrry funnnny.
I decided to try out the balance beam on a tree that stretches from the road across the creek. The Mister estimated it is maybe an 80-100 foot long fir tree that blew down years ago but has been suspended in the air so it has stayed solid and hasn't rotted. I may have mentioned before my lack of balance - Meniere's syndrome (spelling?). But I made it across to the creek, pulling nettles that lurked along the log waiting to sting the next log walker. It's a really cool log.
The other end is shown too, with the mister pulling off some of the smaller branches. The ones sticking out sort of help those of us with balance problems along the way. We need to figure out if the "path" goes any further, or if this is the end. The ground is damp here because there is the creek and a spring, too, so the ground is real wet.
Last picture tonight and then it's off to other chores.
Jen: I painted my new lady's eyes green. Not sure if she looks hypnotic or just a little insane. I think maybe I have her nose the way I want it. I was studying Judy Wise's and Katie Kendricks' artwork to see how they "did" noses. So I guess this is the way I "do" them. Painting on glass is turning out to be lots of fun. I am learning as I go along, and as usual I want to do it perfectly right away. Argh! Grow up, self!
There's still shading to do, but I'm getting closer. I love throwing on the paint - femminismo
p.s. Just one more photo. I found a new flower on the property: inside-out flower. Here's a picture I stole from the Web site Rainy Side Gardeners.