Orange Spiral Arts

Three Hungry Baby Birds

One of the exciting things that has been happening around here this summer is spotting a robin's nest in our front yard maple tree.  I love observing nature, especially something so special as baby birds.  I've watched the mother robin sitting on her eggs (which I couldn't see because the nest is too high).  Recently I looked to see if there were any babies yet, and lo and behold, there they were!  Three hungry baby birds.  Here are a few photos that I captured of the nest, mother robin, and her three baby birds.

Another observation that my husband and I made was that the mother robin was visibly listening to the ground in order to find food.  It was really cool to see.

Have you taken any nature photos recently?  Do you know any special facts about robins?  Feel free to share in the comments below.

Blessings,

Briana

Open Book & The Visual Journal Collective June Meeting on ATCs

Tonight's meeting at MCBA was super fun, thanks to the great presentation by TJ Goerlitz of Studio Mailbox.  TJ presented on ATCs or Artist Trading Cards.  She also talked about mail art (hello Ray Johnson), inchies, and swaps. If you are a fan of paper, ephemera, and art, you'll love this stuff, too!

 

Before the meeting, I hung out at Open Book and read, Photographing Your Children: A Handbook of Style and Instruction by Jen Altman.  

I was on the roof and took a few photos of what was around me.

Here are some photos from the June Visual Journal Collective meeting.  You can find out more about the Visual Journal Collective by visiting Roz Stendahl's blog.

(TJ has a whole bucket of inchies!  I feel jealous, how about you?)

TJ said she was nervous, so she was cracking jokes.  They were very corny and related to mail art.  Roz and the rest of us thought her jokes were great!

A whole table of ATCs (Artist Trading Cards)

After the presentation by TJ, we all made some of our own ATCs.  It was so much fun!

Have you made ATCs before?  Ever participated in a swap?  Interested in doing an ATC swap with me? Leave a comment below, or send me an email message.  I am inspired and would love to do either an ATC swap or a mail art exchange.  

The greatest thing about ATCs is that you can create them in a short amount of time.  As a new mom, that is the type of art I need.

Mary Ann Moss Likes Paper

Tonight I am feeling energized by Mary Ann Moss' upcoming online class.  She just released a promo video. 

SEWN from MAM on Vimeo.

The class is called "Sewn".  I love how Mary Ann Moss paints, creates patterns, and sews stuff.  Pretty much anything she teaches online is super fun and fabulous!  You can find out all of the details for "Sewn" on Mary Ann's blog.

Nature Walks = Happiness

Summer is finally starting to show itself around here.  I can now get outside with the baby and take some walks in nature.  We love going to state parks.  Now is the best time to get out, before the mosquitoes start biting!  Here are some recent photos of some of our adventures in/with nature.

We have love our BOB stroller for walks in the woods.  For the street and sidewalks, we prefer the Chico stroller.  

I recently heard that Minnesota was rated as one of the best states because of its nature parks.  I am sooooo grateful to live so close to nature parks!  Those walks feed my soul and make me feel alive with new ideas!  I feel connected to all things from those walks.  

Have you been for a walk lately?  Where did you go?  How did you feel?

File Folder Stencils

Yesterday I had a yearning to play with paint.  I went down to my studio, looked around at the mess, thought about cleaning it up, but then thought about my limited time.  I decided to pull out some paint and get to work.  

Before heading down to the studio, I had grabbed a file folder and started cutting out shapes to use as stencils.  I got this idea from Carla Sonheim.  

I was going to use the Gelli Arts printing plate, but instead, just used a smooth piece of plexi glass.  I think I was curious to see how it would work for monoprinting.

Most of the time when I am creating, I focus more on the process, rather than the product.  I like colorful, abstract art, so that is what I tend to make.

Here are a few of the results from my monoprinting session.

(Sometimes the backs are just as interesting to me as the front of the monoprint).

 If you are interested in stencils, printmaking, Gelli Arts printing plates, and monoprinting, you can watch a quick video I made on Vimeo.

 

Gelli Arts Printing Plate Demo (with help from the cat) (Enhanced) from Orange Spiral Arts on Vimeo.

Have you tried the Gelli Arts printing plate yet?  What were your results?  Have you done monoprinting using other surfaces?  What were your results?  I would love for you to share your thoughts and links in the comments below!

Happy Creating,

Briana

Hi Everyone!
Happy Monday. Today kicks off Lisa Sonora Beam's Creative+Practice online workshop. This is the third time I am participating in it, it's that good. For more information, go to http://www.lisasonora.com/workshops/