Clean Hard Fast:7

CLEAN: the dishes in the dishwasher.
HARD: to realize the number of items we must number for up-coming boutiques. But thankful we are IN  these holiday events! I am "80" for everything. A few years ago we did other venues that required different number. Needless to say this eventually drove us crazy - not a HARD thing to do - and we gave up those events. Simply not worth the effort. Not that we "work smarter, no harder" all the time - haha - but being artist/craftsman "80" makes life a wee tad easier this time of year.
FAST: how I drew today's bear. Grabbed the first piece of colored paper from the bag in Junk Drawer, sectioned off a four by six inch area, motioned to the pastel pencil container (Friendly Farms Small Curd Cottage Cheese Low Fat) to attend to duties, and started in to the mystery of creating Something quickly.

This fuzzy, perhaps dangerous, quirky bruin appeared. Nano-seconds of tiny decisions go into drawing quickly. Yellow pastel ears and curvature of head were the beginning. Next, with black pastel, eye area next blocked in, but no eyeballs. A dark blue pastel teddy-bear "stitched" nose next,(oddly, most of my bears' noses are indigo blue - no, I don't know why), and mouth that demanded to be drawn smiling.

Yellow fur with bit of orange followed, and body contours were outlined in black. (It's taking way longer to type HOW drawing was created than creating the drawing.) Eye decision made - hmm - instantly forming personality. White highlights here and there. More yellow to tone down black.

Still deciding on possible text, or leaving space blank, or putting color in spaces... I think this piece will stay as is for now. I don't know if the world needs another being possible up to no good, but this little guy was fun to draw and now he exists.

As long as we exist we can make the effort to create that better world, town, home we wish and hope for, so -  done with the dreaming and on to the doing!

Fare-thee-well,
Sue
Facebook Page: Sue-Rowe-Studios

Clean Hard Fast: 6

CLEAN: More parts of the vegetable garden, though chard and kale refuse to believe that snow is forecast tomorrow.
HARD: how my heart was beating after I challenged me to running part of one-mile walk. Actually ran more than last half mile. Granted, most of that WAS downhill all the way, except for the last two blocks of the STEEP Pine Street hill. Yup, legs made it up that - in a running fashion.

Fashion was not running fashion. Golf cap, red goose-down winter jacket, gloves, jeans, decent walking shoes, head-phones. I could not have looked like a runner. But I was doing the best "running" I could make the legs move. Mantra: " Re - lax don't care re-lax do't care re-lax don't care" got body and brain to team up and do deed. I am a runner because I ran. You are an artist if you make art. You are a gardener is you grow a plant.

FAST: how we trying to prepare for Holiday Boutiques, Holiday shows, and gallery requests. Listening to CALM RADIO in iTunes, but not feeling Calm.

Sun is shining. Trying to feel Sunny.

The Bikery, our favorite local cafe is no more. The place was PACKED on Saturday morning, Sunday was it's last day, and today holds auction of furniture and fixtures. Lucky is the winner of the retro orange couch and two matching chairs.... Who will win the 2011 era "New Yorker" magazines? Somebody.

Time to start setting up at Roseville, MN's "Peggy's Holiday Boutique." We bring many of the support grids and other parts of infra-structure, so get to see large hall transformed from empty to full and bustling. Good thing some Type A Personalities have always been in charge. Odd to feel like see we're setting up this show "last week." No, it's bee a real year. Sheesh. So time to make a Thermos of herbal tea, not think of all the over task to be accomplished this week, and get on to these chunk of the day.

Yes, the web-site is still down. No, I haven't gotten to the powers that are in control. Another mission for this week. You can check my Sue Rowe Studios Page on Facebook for fun and games - ha. Will try and post some bruins soon. Darned other priorities!

But The Green Bay Packers won the battle over the Minnesota Vikings, so some parts of this football fan family will enjoy the reflected glory of Green and Gold till the next games. Shallow is good at times. Re-lax don't care be shallow. Just not all the time.

Create Beauty in some way today! YOU CAN DO IT! Report on efforts. Be Kind?

Fare-thee-well,
Sue

Clean Hard Fast: 5

CLEAN: One of the two Junk Drawer Journals I've taken along on a quick goofing-off jaunt to Kansas City, Missouri. The other is being quickly filled with trip notes, reminders, & directions to places.
HARD: to believe how much Great Art there is in Kansas City.
FAST: how the long did not go at the original Oklahoma Joe's BBQ place. But well worth the wait. Ahead of us in The Line was a couple from New York City. She spoke of the awful days following the downing of the towers. And other things. later, while re-filling our drink cups, we wished each-other "safe travels," and she said Thanks for the great chat, Hon (or words to that effect). The guys behind us  in The Line counciled theCarolina Pork Sandwich. I'd been told earlier in the week to order The Z-Man Sandwich. We decided on both, plus an order of onion rings. Darned fine choice. And though the place is small for the number of folks filing through we managed a table for two up against a wall. Thought I'd be watching other folks eating, but no, too busy chowing and trying for my fare share of the brown crunchy rings.

Rained most of the day - mucked up plans to walk the sculpture garden of Nelson-Atkins Museum. I LOVE the large collection of bronzes by Henry Moore..., but they will wait again for another visit. But between the galleries there and at the Kemper we are arted up to our eyeballs. I feel odd zipping past so many paintings and sculptures - preferring to focus in on staring hard at a selected few. An exhibit of Islamic art from ancient times to the present had my eyes glued to ONE illustrated page filled with the tiniest figures, flowers, text, ropes of almost-invisible gold dots.... I could still be there - following the intricate patterns of one small work.

Now it's time for a bit a relaxing and figuring out the possibilities of tomorrow. Rain and 37 degrees here was not part of plans. Such is life.

Ever onward - time for a swim, and maybe a Bloody Mary. Hmm... we may have to get away more often...

Fare-thee-well,
Sue

Clean Hard Fast: 4

 Yes, head is still clanging - along to Mozart piano music this dark morning.

CLEAN: not the work desk or kitchen table.
HARD: to believe our outdoor art fair season is over. It went out well, with a lovely, nippy, sunny weekend in Red Wing, MN. I learned that when a man says "I LIKE that bear" it means "I want to BUY that bear." Two different gentlemen at different times of day on Saturday. Thank you, gentlemen. I hope you enjoy your new bruins. Oh, and got to give away two of the Junk Drawer Journals made earlier this year to two new art fair friends who immediately put them to note-taking use!
FAST: how early mornings went DARK. It's 7:05 A.M. - time for tea, egg, bacon, and garden greens. But greens will have to be gathered blindly or by flashlight. Sigh. I still vote for five A.M. daylight - all year round.

A bit over a month ago it felt time to play with new techniques - thus the playing with acrylic paints that happened to be on hand and goofing off with papers - just to see. Here is one result:

Acrylic paint on 7" x 5" paper

I'd started doing mono-prints, but ended up cutting stencils out of scrap backing boards. Yay, for not tossing scraps. The four-inch wide boards can be cut into pieces for three bears. Yes, the designs are limited in size, but forcing oneself to work within limits IS a good challenge.

Papers, were, once again, scraps. But good scraps - either printing or heavy-weight water-color papers.

Paints ranged from garage-sale "craft" stuff to  new good goodies that I had to go BUY once I started loving the results. Especially exciting were the metallics in with or over the original layers.

The acrylic bears have now graduated to being painted on small wooden boards, and folks and I are happy with the results. I even "craft" stenciled two bears onto a canvas tote. It sold at the Red Wing Art Festival, though I wouldn't have minded using it myself. Have a small stack at these tote bags (25 cents each at a summer estate sale) so more of that doing will get done. We'll see how tough the board paper stencils are and how long they last.

Well, typing has taken long enough that a bit of yard is visible. Greens, here we come?

Web-site is down at moment - argh, but Facebook Page: Sue-Rowe-Studios is alive and fun.

We are attempting a too-long-in-the-doing vacation soon. And yesterday while working a shift at American Gothic Antiques I learned, at long last, of Kansas City's Oklahoma Joe's BBQ, so new eating plans for KC! We always ate at Gates.Time for a new chowing adventure. Great Art and Great Meats await! Now to carve out a chunk of time. Carve out a bit of time today for creating happiness, joy, and perhaps a piece of art or two. A crow is cawing "You CAN do IT!"

On to the day's Grand Adventures!

Fare-thee-well,

Sue