Artist Highlight - Yellena James

Oh my goodness, it was a good mail day yesterday. Look at this print from Yellena James! I couldn't take advantage of her print sale, but it's still running so maybe others could grab them up.



I love her use of colour and her tiny, tiny details. These look like a lot of fun. I could definitely get lost in this. This painting is called "Silk".



A detail from her thank you card!



This is a little extra piece. I'm not sure what I will do with it. Don't you just want to colour it??



What also came in the mail yesterday was a little bundle of printer ink! Woot-woot. We haven't had a functioning printer for a couple of years and it's driven me nuts. Honestly, it will still drive me nuts because it's such a cheap, awful printer that it's no good for images. Like, at all.

But this means I can print out text, forms... maybe even try out paypal shipping?? I still won't be able to print photos on paper which is lame, but I guess I should use the colour ink for something.

I can't believe ink cartridges for this hunk of junk run over $50 each. I get that the cartridges do all of the work, but the work that these do kind of suck. Not worth it. Refurbished for the win! Amazon had some for ten bucks with free shipping! I should have looked ages ago.

Journal post 01/12/12

So yesterday we saw The Devil Inside and it was pretty fun. It wasn't scary by any stretch of the imagination; it's been so long since I've seen a movie with an audience so maybe I'm wrong in thinking how strange it is to hear so much laughter during a horror flick?

The shaky camera was unnecessary because according to the plot we were looking at footage meant for a "documentary". Yeah... I don't think any of that would have been included due to the terrible camera work. They definitely could have zoomed out a bit and not lost the "found footage" charm at all.

They were also going for a blair witch "reality" but totally goofed that. I mean... blair witch started marketing as a "real thing" way before the movie came out. That's why it worked. Adding an obvious disclaimer at the intro and a website link at the end doesn't actually add realism. Just more laughter.

Oh man, and we saw it in an AVX theater to boot. Cracking bones and high pitched screams don't really require enhanced sound, LOL. Nah, that's cool. I would rather have watched it on my tv at home I think.

I'm getting bored with religion-based horror, just because it really isn't creepy at all. Maybe it is scary for people who actually believe in exorcism, but to me it's kind of like my grampa trying to convince me that a rock is actually an egg. A movie is trying to convince me that we live in a world full of demons and devils that like to take over human bodies for no apparent reason (it's fun? They wanna be sedated?) and that shouting the name of a well-known philosopher will fix it.

But then why do I think ghost films are so great? I don't know. Maybe because they lack the human ego factor.

Scary, nope. Fun, absolutely.

Journal post - 01/8/12

My journal isn't particularly "arty" I guess. But it records and that's all that really matters. Day three of the 365 Project Part Deux and of course so far it's been easy.



Going to the cake shop today...

Project 365

It has been a super long time since I took the last photo for my 365 Photography Project - the one where you take a photo every day. I stopped because my friends stopped. I stopped because I'm a homebody, and it's difficult to document a day where nothing at all happens.

Looking back at the photos, I wish I'd kept going. Those random terrible photos on those days I'd spent doing nothing actually did bring back some memories. Not so terrible after all.

But how do I shake off that annoying feeling at the end of the night when I'm tired and realize I haven't taken a photo yet? I'm pretty sure I have weeks worth of photos of random crap at night. Is it just another potential source of project burnout?

...

Apart from the Project 365 blog, I've been inspired by a few things today!

Papirmasse: This looks soooo cool! I kind of want to sign up some day. Receive a collection of art prints through the mail for $5 a month.

Instagram Photostrips: A (somewhat unnecessary) tutorial on how to make photobooth-esque strips from your digital photos! Of COURSE I should be combining images onto one photo. More bang for your buck! The internet sure has a way of making me wish I had one of those newfangled phone things. Fun games, useful apps, photos you can actually transfer to a computer...

Foam stamps without carving: You can make a stamp just by writing with a pen? Good grief. I wonder if I could use a styrofoam egg carton? I think I have one...

journal post - 01/04/12

It's hard to resist the temptation to make new year's resolutions. Truthfully, there is nothing fantastic about beginning a new year. Nothing has happened between December 31 and January 1st that will magically change our lives forever. So what is with this new energy and determination? I made a to-do list yesterday, a combination of easy steps and huge undertakings.

I am procrastinating on the dental and auto front.



Anyway, this year I have resolved to be more productive! I know I know, vague resolutions rarely see any success. I'm not going to bother guilting myself into getting physically fit, since I know myself pretty well. (read: FAIL) But I can resolve to do the things I've been putting off:

- Get wisdom teeth removed
- Book my driving exam (eep!)
- Join an arts council
- Get back into bookkeeping (also figure out whether or not I should register as an artist)
- Definitely submit a portfolio for reals and for the first time ever...
- Enter more juried shows if I can find em and they aren't expensive
- Say "yes" to opportunities

...and so forth.



I should probably add "be more social" to that list, instead of just hiding away from everyone. It's easy to throw up my hands in defeat when everyone I know seems to be leaving town! Which is the weirdest thing ever, by the way.

Winter Rose Journal

I did a lot of cleaning on Christmas day and found a forgotten piece of bookboard! I took that and the last of the Strathmore paper and made a journal today.



I don't really know what I'm going to do with this one. The cover is a bit wrinkly and some of the pages inside have small tears along the edges. I also got a few metallic splodges here and there. Strangely, I still like it. It has character I guess.

Poppies

Available Here.



The start of this new year brings with it a load of responsibilites. I'm sure I'm not the only one who has ever said "pffff - it's a holiday week, I'll do all that stuff next year". And wouldn't you know it, tomorrow arrives eventually.



My cookie caper that changed to easy street just changed to crazy challenge this weekend, so I'm starting off the year well.