Just Chillin...

One of the things I must constantly defend about our lives as professional farmers is the fact that we are tied to the land we work. It is a very big deal to arrange to for the care of the animals and the continued smooth operation of the dairy without Jake in charge. For the most part, we are content to stay put. I have worked hard to make the place where I must be also be the place I WANT to be. Hence... my studio! Oh, don't I have fun in there!

It is still a treat to go away for a little while though, and Lincoln City, OR is one of our favorite places. We got to spend a few nights there this past weekend. The days were sunny and beautiful the whole time we were there (a rare thing, believe me!) so we took advantage of every moment we could get to hang out on the beach.


I tried to take some portrait shots of the girls, but it took a moment to get them to settle down and quit clowning... Unfortunately, I didn't notice that by then my camera lens had fogged over from the change in temperature and humidity, so this is the only decent shot I got. It serves Alice right for being such a goof that I had to post *this* photo of her, LOL!



The wind is always blowing on the NW Coast, and Lincoln City's beach is famous for its kites. This display is maintained by one of the condo/hotels there, and I could watch it all day.



This dragon kite was my favorite! Isn't it the coolest? We actually went into the kite shops looking for one like it, but didn't see another.





Lydia and Jake tested the water... personally, I think they are nuts! Way too cold for me, but they must have been out there for a good 10 minutes before even they decided that the warm sand was a much more appealing option.




I just happened to have my camera in hand as this seagull swooped by. I don't know what made me snap, but I'm glad I did. Sometimes I take a good shot in spite of myself, LOL!





Jake and Alice insisted that I give up the camera and get in a shot... as a rule I HATE having my picture taken, but we were all having too good a time to argue, so I figured "what the heck" and let Alice have it. So here I am. I did NOT hold my sun hat that way on purpose, but it sure does disguise a multitude of flaws!

I am so sorry to see this summer end, but at least we got to see it out with a bang. I hope to have updated photos of my dolls in progress by the end of the weekend as well.

Happy Last Days of Summer everyone!

Nothing finished... Yet!

I would give just about *anything* to have a photo of a finished project to share, but I don't... yet! On the other hand, I have made some good progress on 3 alternating dolls this week, and so will have something to show for my efforts soon. Each of these little babies has a lot of drying time involved in their processes, so I feel justified in breaking my promise to myself to work on only one thing at a time for the sake of effeciency.

Yeah, right. I do believe that I am incapable of that kind of concentrated effort anyway, LOL!

This little lady is "Charmed One", from an online class by Sherry Goshon. She is a very clever design, intended to display a charm collection, and I am having pure fun making her. I am enchanted by Sherry's face designs -- doesn't she have the most wonderful expression? I wish I could say that I *intended* the paint job on her body to turn out the way it did, but I have to confess that Serendipity played a big part. The background paints flew on almost by themselves, and the bottom "flame-y" part is a scrap of silk fusion I happened to have lying around that just happened to blend perfectly. I trimmed it to fit, stuck it on with some Mod-Podge, and it was Meant To Be -- I LOVE it.

I intend to give her arms and sleeves yet this afternoon, but I have to let the fixative I used on her face dry yet, so I thought I'd post a quick blog spot while I wait. I see by looking a the photo that the box I used for her base needs some attention too, so it's just as well I took a little break.





As for this doll, if she EVER gets finished, it will be a miracle. "Lavinia Mae" is a pattern by Shari Lutz, designed to resemble an Izannah Walker doll of the early 19th century. She was originally intended to be a gift for my mother, but now I just want to get her off of my UFO pile!

I began her years and years ago when she came out as a pattern in "Cloth Doll" magazine. First I had to wait 6 months for the parts to make her head to be backordered. Then I lost the issue with the instructions to put the head together. By the time I found it, I had misplaced the parts for the head.

Once I had finished creating the head, I had misplaced the pattern pieces to create the body. By the time I had made the body, I had once again lost the head. This week I finally managed to get all parts, instructions, and ME into the studio at the same time and got her assembled. Now I have run out of gesso, and so can't prime her arms until I can make a run to the city to get some more.

See what I mean?

I am still working on the Klimt doll as well, but the beadwork is going slowly. Her neckpiece IS finally finished however, and once I finish her belt, the rest of her costume will fly together pretty quickly. In the meantime, it's still just one bead at a time. We'll get there eventually!

Who knew that there is an entire online community dedicated to collecting Jurassic Park toys?! My oldest daughter has been in love with dinosaurs practically since birth, and began collecting these figures when she started finding them in the toy aisle at Goodwill. Her latest thing is doing what her group calls Customs.


The blue gray dinosaur, an "Aqua Spino" (be sure you want an answer before you ask!) is a working toy from her collection. The other, a non-functioning duplicate, is her first attempt at a Custom.





She used craft acrylics and her own imagination to create "Lava Spino", the first in a planned series of "Elementals by Raptorgrll", dinosaurs with genetic mutations that allowed them to survive the natural disasters that wiped out the rest of their species'.

I think they are pretty cool!

As for me, I am still working on stabilizing the cover and end papers of my "Poe" book. I am also beading a collar and a belt that will anchor my Klimt doll's costume. Hopefully there will be photos sometime before too long!