happy homeschool room

Friday, June 28, 2013

Going's On

6/28/13

What is going on in my world:

Well, today is "National Kiss Your Pet Day". My 7 yr old Boxer Bruiser was more than happy to oblige me while trying to pin him down for a photo op. My other Boxer Adella who is 10, is a bit more excitable and harder to get a picture of. Plus her breath is less than desirable. I also have an 18 yr old Terrier mix who is senile and would nip at me if I tried loving on her. Yes, you read that right, she is 18. I think she was a cat or a Phoenix in her past life, because there have been several occasions in the past 2 yrs where we thought for sure it was the end, and she bounced back every time. Her name is Bessie and we adopted her from a kill shelter. She was 5 at the time and she was on doggie death row, and when we saw she literally had 24 hrs to be adopted, we stepped in and brought her home. I was 6 months pregnant with Gidget at the time, she is now 13. Bessie has been absolutely a wonderful dog. We spoil our dogs more than our kids. :0

Adella

Bruiser Napping with Daddy

Bruiser the Intellectual

Bessie

Giving Mommy hugs

My son Michael went camping with his girlfriend Heathers family this weekend. They are camping up in Warrior Creek,NC. It is Western NC in the Yadkin River Valley. Hopefully they aren't getting the thunderstorms we have rolling through right now.

Heather & Michael

I'm also playing around with some new technique's, and art supplies. I just got an order from dickblick.com I got some Caran d'Ache Neo Color II's, some new Derwent pencils, Golden Matte Medium, and Golden Fluid Acrylics. I also ordered 22x30 sheets of Fabriano 140 lb coldpress Watercolor sheets, which haven't arrived yet. I'm using the sheets to make Teesha Moore's 16 page journals.

Here is the link for part 1; http://youtu.be/1z6qmXGRrsE?t=8s and the link for part 2;

http://youtu.be/1vvSsJ39bc0. These 16 page journals are super easy and can be used for Valerie Jodin's journals. Valerie's journals are absolutely beautiful. I really urge you to check out her blog and see all her journals, http://visualblessings.blogspot.com.

One of the techniques I learned from Valerie is to put down Matte Medium before putting down my Golden fluids. This is especially helpful when using a quality heavy watercolor paper. It keeps the paint from being absorbed by the paper too quickly, and it allows for you to move the paint around easier. I drew my doodle Peacock bigger and with less doodle. My Derwent Inktense pencils also worked well on the Golden Matte Medium. It's not quite finished. This is done on a 9x12 piece of Strathmore 140lb hot-press watercolor paper.

My Peacock

Well that's about all for now. We are having one big ole' thunderstorm thunderstorm and the power has already gone out once. So I am going to finish this up before I end up losing the whole post.
Remember to "KISS YOUR PET". Hope you all have a great weekend. (((HUGS)))

Blessings,
Kim

Wednesday, June 26, 2013

WOYWW & SOC WKS # 2 & 3

6/26/13

So it's been a crazy not so crazy week. I'm most definitely behind on my SOC challenge, and way way behind on the ICAD challenge.
In the SOC challenge I have week 2 done, just not posted. I'm also just about done with week 3. I'll probably just post both weeks at the same time.

As for the ICAD challenge, I have no idea how far behind I am. That's how behind I really am. Though I plan to get as close to caught up as I can this weekend.
I'm also going to work on my Embellished Edges journal for the Embellished Edges mini class I am doing with Valerie Jodin at visualblessings.blogspot.com. Valerie is truly talented. The class is only $15 and is self paced. It is a mini course, therefore the lessons are short. I urge you to check out Valerie's work on her blog.

In the last week my daughter Gidget had Champ Camp. All the Champion level dancers got brand new choreographed dances. They had Sean B. who came across the pond from Letter Kenny, Ireland to teach them their new dances. In 6 days Gidget probably spent about 20 + hours at dance. Her poor feet are covered in blisters, her muscles ache, and she is completely wiped out. Even so, she has not stopped smiling. She is actually quite sad that camp is over. (I think there is a lesson in there somewhere)

Outside of carpooling for camp, (the dance studio is 38 miles from my house) I have not ventured much from the house. Besides the 90 degree humid weather, I have been struggling a lot with my pain levels. Coupled with insomnia, I haven't exactly been motivated to do much of anything. Thus leaving me very frustrated with myself, because I am not a fan of whining, and that's what I am doing right now is whining. I really could have it so much worse.

Well without further ado, here is my WOYWW (http://stamping-ground.blogspot.com), and my SOC challenge, weeks 2 & 3. I have to add, that I really struggled with the wk 3 color combos. I think a) because we did green in week #1, b) I had trouble getting my Gelli prints to cooperate, and c) my colors really came out muddy this week. I added some stamping and doodling to my prints for both wks # 2 & 3. (I haven't finished my beads yet, I need to finish rolling them.)

Also my work desk is really just my coffee table, which is in much need of a good painting. The house we are currently leasing is small, with very little work and storage space, and my supplies have slowly begun to take over my entire downstairs. Throw in my not so great organizational skills, and…well you get the picture.
Enjoy!!!

WOYWW

SOC wk #2

WOYWW

SOC wk #3

WOYWW

SOC wk #2(everyone LOVES a Hersey Bar)

SOC wk #3

SOC wk #2

Sunday, June 16, 2013

Summer Of Color Week #1

6/16/13

Well the end of week #1 is at a close, and I am getting my color challenge done at the last minute. Well not entirely true, I have been working on my project for a few days. I'm just getting it posted last minute.
The color challenge for the first week is Turquoise & Citron Green. I'm not exactly sure my colors are a spot on match, but I worked with what I have. I spent the first few days in quiet contemplation deciding what sort of project I wanted to do. Well quiet contemplation isn't how I'd describe my thought process. It's just with the vast amount of choices I was undecidedly torn on what I wanted to do.
What I finally decided on is to make a journal using Gelli prints. I'm also making beads from foil and paper to embellish with.Each week I will pick 4-6 prints in the weekly colors, with beads in the same color scheme to bind and embellish into a journal as the final project. Here are my choices for week #1;

Painted sheet of aluminum folk

painted with Liquitex and Galerria acrylics, & Gesso

The beads so far, still need some more work.

I'm also working on my drawing skills, which I might add are not all that great, but with practice I hope will make somewhat perfect. I sketched out a girl that I will incorporate into the final journal piece. So I drew a young girl, and made her shirt Turquoise and Citron Green using my Derwent Inktense pencils, I just LOVE LOVE LOVE my Inktense pencils and blocks. I'd like to add one thing about my girl. Her face isn't properly shaded, one, I'm not sure what I'm doing, ( would love some advice in this area…PLEASE!!!), two, I don't have all the proper colors for creating skin tone. I have a few, so there again, if anyone wants to take my pitiful self on and give me shading and color skin tone 101, I'm all ears. Well without further ado, her is my nameless girl.

The last picture I took without a flash to see if it would darken the picture, it did that and gave it a bunch of new tones. This is done on a 1920's dictionary page in Inktense pencils. I hope y'all like her. She is beginning to grow on me.
So there you have it, Week # 1 Citron Green And Turquoise. I feel like a little kid nearing Christmas, waiting to see what the Poll results reveal. I hope you like where I'm going with this SOC Challenge. I'm excited to see what everyone else comes up with.
I would like to add if this is your 1st time here, please feel free to look around, or leave a comment. You can also email me if you have any questions. I would be most excited if you would become a new follower. I will follow you in return. Looking forward to getting to know some or all of you.
HAPPY CREATING!!!!!
Kim
P.S. I'd also like to share my sweet granddaughter Kaya, she is 3-1/2 and is a pistol. She usually doesn't like her picture taken, but every once in a while she'll let you get one.

Thursday, June 13, 2013

The Switch to Bloglovin'

6/13/13
<a href="http://www.bloglovin.com/blog/5062973/?claim=yp3mh9nn2qu">Follow my blog with Bloglovin</a>

Well I've decided to join in and jump ship from Google Reader to Bloglovin'. If you haven't yet signed yourself up, pop on over to bloglovin.com and join. It's actually wonderful.
How it works; I get a daily post from bloglovin that shows posts from my favorite blogs, it runs as one post, showing each individual blog, each one has a quick description of the post content, so I can decide if I want to read more. I can also post a comment quickly and easily right from bloglovin. It's rather nice being able to do this all from one page without having to hop from blog to blog.
It is also very simple to switch everything over from Google Reader to Bloglovin, this way you can keep all of subscriptions from Google Reader. You simply click on this link: http://www.bloglovin.com/import/reader, it will bring you to this prompt,

you then click on the blue bar, choose your google address if you have more than one. (I have 5 gmail addresses, so I checked each one.) After a few minutes, like magic, all my subscriptions in Google Reader are now on my bloglovin' account.

Then to find my blog I clicked on the downward arrow by the little heart in the browser and clicked my blog in which this screen pops up; It says MY BLOG, you type your blogs name in and hit search, it will then give you a html code to put on your blog, which you see below, and then I just need to hit Publish. (and hope it works)

Scroll to top

So I'm rather Techno challenged, and hope I explained that switch well enough. If not feel free to ask me any further questions, or just read it over on bloglovin. It is all really easy. The old adage"If I can do it, so can you", truly applies in this situation. When I say I am Techno challenged, I am a get frustrated easily, scream and spit, and mumble @#*& and *%#$@ out loud. Bloglovin has made the switch easy.
Hope to see you there very very soon.

Blessings All,
Kim

Saturday, June 8, 2013

Summer Of Color; Artisist Choice

6/08/13

Hello all, how are you doing? I am hanging in there. Life has been a bit stressful lately. More so than usual. I've been told once or twice that God never gives us more than we can handle, quite frankly I'm beginning to think whoever came up with that phrase has never experienced a truly stressful period in their life. Though I'd quite like to think that, I'm more than doubtful these days. I can say that I'm blessed that my family is healthy and together, so in that sense life is good.

I have been working on a summer homeschool schedule. I know cruel and usual punishment, right. Not really. I actually have Gidget doing a lighter schedule than her regular school year. She will continue with Math, Reading, and working on her writing. Gidget is actually on board. She will actually be a grade level ahead in a Math and Language Arts. Which is favorable since she will be starting Latin in the Fa;;, along with an outside Science class, and we will be starting a Charlotte Mason Co-op as well. which we are both super excited about.

Also this summer Gidget will be getting brand new choreographed dances for her Irish dancing, so she will be working hard on that all Summer to be ready for Fall competitions. Her dance school has a choreographer coming from Letterkenny, Ireland in a few weeks to teach the Champion level dancers all new dances. She is both anxious and excited.

Today I made myself a list of about 15 things I am going to work on over the Summer. In hopes that 1. I will relieve some of the stress in my life, 2. I will enrich myself by learning new things, and 3. Feel a sense of actual accomplishment by completing my long overdue list.

One of the things on my list is the "Summer Of Color: Artists Choice", which is blog event that will take place over a 6 wk period. Each week we will be given a color prompt in which to create something artistic. It can be any medium we choose. Please feel free to click on the button on my side bar to read in detail more about it. I never seem to follow through with things these days, so I'm hoping this will change all that. After all, it is only one color prompted project a week, right?

I've also been working on a few other projects which I will be post about next time. One of my biggest goals is to work on separating all my art stuff onto a separate blog from homeschool stuff. I'm also working on changing my homeschool content around. All a very tall order for someone who can't blog regularly, who is techno challenged, and struggles with my pain levels 2/3 rd's of the month. One can hope….

Well I am hoping that this finds you all well, and please feel free to check out Summer of Color, and join in.

Blessings,

Kimmie <3

Gidget's Last Feis, she placed 4th(19) & 10th(25)

Saturday, May 25, 2013

New Journal Pages

I'm working on some new Art Journal pages. I decided that working out this whole Art Journaling business on my own just wasn't going the way I had hoped. I thought after almost a year I'd be further ahead not only in technique but confidence as well. The jury is in and I'm not where I'd hoped.
I have plenty of different products to use, I have several styles of journals, I have Moleskine's, a Global Art's Watercolor Hand-Book (9x12), a Dylusions Journal, a 9x12 Strathmore Visual Journal with 140lb. & 90lb. Watercolor, and a few altered books. (which I had no clue what I was doing, so they are fragile) I also have a few basic style sketchbooks. I have been collecting stamps, stencils, sprays, acrylics, water soluble crayons and pencils, glues, loads of ephemera, and more. I have spent endless hours on the internet perusing blogs, google, pinterest, and YouTube watching tutorial after tutorial trying to get past the blank page.
I have ideas swimming in my head, but then I face that blank page and my ideas get lost between my brain and my hand. Now I have managed some journal pages in the past year. More often than not I hit that roadblock and have no idea how to accomplish my thoughts.
There are quite a few talented folks who choose to share their artistic gifts with the rest of us. They are not only talented but are inspiring. One such artist by the name of Julie Fei-Fan Balzer of balzerdesigns.typepad.com, like many other artists, offers online classes. One in particular called "30 days in you Journal", has been so helpful in getting past the blank page.
Julie shows how you can create a beautiful page in 10 minutes or less everyday. She breaks down her thought process, gives you substitute products if you don't have the product she's using, she takes you step by step.
I have started a 30 day journal, I'm taking her tips and creating my own style. Or trying anyway. Julie has also made taking an online class fun and easy. Something I'll definitely do again.
So I'm going to be brave and share what I have done so far. With any luck I'll get busy with other products and projects to share as well. Have a great holiday weekend.
Blessings,
Kim