Sunday Postcard - Poe

I clearly remember studying Poe as a child. I remember "The Tell-Tale Heart" scaring me half to death, the plaintive "Anabel Lee" bringing me to tears, being raptly absorbed in "The Raven" and thinking there was wisdom in "Eldorado". Poe's life was short, but he certainly left his mark! As a matter of fact, this challenge inspires me to revisit his work. Thank you for jogging my memory!

Saturday Workout - Altered Cabinet Card

This fellow is from a cabinet card of an anonymous ancestor in my great grandmother's photo album. Unfortunately he was not identified. I've given him dreams of Paris, a beret, and a monocle. Who knows - maybe those dreams came true! Thanks for the challenge!

Three Muses - Fowl Play

I chose fowl play for this week's challenge at Three Muses. I like the contrast of black and white in the background and the glorious color of this happy rooster!! The chickens on our farm were my mother's business (she kept her money separate like the smart woman she was), and each week we sold just over 100 dozen eggs...each and every one carefully gathered, cleaned if necessary, and cased in proper fashion. I miss many aspects of life on the farm, but gathering, cleaning and casing eggs is NOT one of them! Thanks for stopping by!

Mixed Media Monday - Moustaches

Marvelous Moustaches, they say, at Mixed Media Monday. My moustachioed guy is from Flickr by Nicci, the background and frame are from C. Bauman of Scrapbookgraphics, with an overlay of a vintage ad from Google. After I look at this, I think it would've made a great postage stamp person! Thanks for looking!

Saturday Workshop - Jewelry

At Saturday Workshop we were asked to make jewelry. I have to apologize for my photography. I couldn't seem to get a photo without glare on the middle piece. The first piece, a necklace, is hand-made polymer clay beads interspersed with purchased beads. The middle one is made from recycled jewelry and watch face. Lastly there are two beaded bracelets. This was a great challenge. It's such fun to see what everyone else is making!

Art Creations 10-21

This was such a beautiful background to work with. I've used some filters and enhanced coloring, and a couple of images extracted from John W Waterhouse paintings. His models seemed to belong in this setting. Thanks for looking.

Theme Thursday - Faces

For a time, I collected vintage books illustrated by Harrison Fisher. No one portrays the American woman as beautifully as Fisher. Each is more lovely than the last. Credit for the bling butterfly to Lorie Davison of Scrapbook Graphics. Thank for stopping by!

Three Muses - Long Ago & Far Away

I went with "long ago" on this one, and a vintage wedding photo from Art-E-Zine. Background and "sprig" by Miss Honey. I love to look at the old photos and wonder where and how their lives played out. Thank you for going back in time with me!

Mixed Media Monday - Mother & Daughter

I decided to do a vintage piece for this challenge. The old book is from Oscraps Charmes, the mother and daughter image from Flickr collage images, the "sprig" and ribbon from Honey Designs. Book title and author are fictional additons by me. Can you imagine ironing one of these dresses with a flat iron heated on the stove, after washing it on a washboard, of course?! Thanks for looking!

Sunday Postcard - Gothic Grunge

The cold, rainy weather we've been having for a week is quite conducive to things dark and mysterious, so this bit of dark "gothicness" came together rather quickly, with the help of the world wide net (and Flickr, of course). Actually, I'd give a mulled cider for a scarecrow in the sunshine!!!

Theme Thursday - Winter

Brrr! I'd rather have autumn first, Indian summer, Thanksgiving, and pumpkin pie!!! But (sigh) I suppose winter IS coming. Background for this piece is one of my own paintings, and I've added the image of the girl from Flickr Collage Images. The frame is from Flickr Frames to Use. Thanks for looking. Keep warm!

Three Muses - Hair

I'm afraid my entry is a bit avant garde. I couldn't seem to come up with something conventional. The background and face are googled and "toodled", and the "hair" is from a mask by Kubivet. Thanks for indulging me!

Mixed Media Monday - Pink for Breast Cancer Awareness

Our entries were to include pink this week, in honor of breast cancer awareness. I thought of the lyric for Melissa Ethridge's song "I Run for Life", and this is the end result. I honor the courage of all the breast cancer survivors out there, and those who are still "running for life".

Sunday Postcard - Blackbird

I've always liked the photo of the blackbirds on the fence, gathered as if for a committee meeting. So, when I saw this challenge, I knew exactly what I wanted to do.....and I wanted the "late dude" to be a vision of sartorial splendor! This was great fun. Thanks for the challenge!

SatWo - 9 er ATCs

WOW! This is a challenge to end all challenges! My piece of art is urban mania, based on the style of the artist Romere Bearden. It divided rather well into separate ATCs. It was fun to try to get this on the page!

A BLOG RANT

For the most part, I use my blog for posting the art I create in response to the art challenges I so enjoy. From time to time, however, I feel a need to comment on life as it is today. In the Stone Age (when I was a child), the grocer in our little town had shelves stocked with rural necessities from soda crackers to bag balm. It was a folksy little place where the local farmers gathered to visit a bit before heading home from their errands, and the kids could get a towering ice cream cone for a dime. I was thinking of it this week when I was bumbling about in my ex-favorite grocery trying to find the items on my list. The store is being converted from a medium-sized, easy accessible store to one of those mega-stores where I need a golf cart to get from produce to paper products. Nothing is where it used to be, and the layout, I'm convinced, has been planned by a demented chimp on speed. In the good old days, a pound of coffee weighed 16 ounces, and picking up a box of crackers was a simple thing. Now it gives me a horrendous headache. Do I want regular, salt-free or low salt? Extra crispy or regular? Cheddar, ranch or barbeque? Baked or traditional. Low fat or no fat? It's enough to leave hapless shoppers in a corner in the fetal position, whimpering quietly. My friends and I are in our senior years. We wear out quickly. We have decided to lobby for a first aid station somewhere mid-store!

Art Creations - 10-9

This week's lovely image at Art Creations Friday was a pleasure to work with. I chose elements from Manuela Zimmerman at Scrapbook Graphics. Thank you for looking.

TGIF - Rain

The challenge this week at TGIF is "Rain",--a timely challenge since it is raining in my world and flood warnings are posted!! Street scene is a stock photo (by evobrained), little girl is from Kubivet, rainy window is also a stock photo, the window is Jen U Designs, and the bird is from Karen's Whimsy. Need I say it's a digital collage?! Thanks for the challenge. It was fun to put it all together.

Theme Thursday - Bird

This week's challenge at Theme Thursday is to create an ATC replete with bird. I'm hoping this regal rooster qualifies as a bird! Visit Theme Thursday to see all the other birds this week, and thanks for indulging me!

Three Muses - Numerology

This is my entry for this week's challenge at Three Muses. The lovely image is from SueZQue at Flickr Collage Images, the rest from LindaGB at Scrap Artist. I'm anxious to see what the talented artists who contribute to the challenge at The Three Muses have in store!

Mixed Media Monday - Maps

I loved this challenge, and I plan to use my entry for the cover of my 15th art journal. Hat and tree from Maya at Scrapbook Graphics. Map from Mapsorama, zebra googled, and eyes from my stash. Thanks for looking!

Sunday Postcard - Skulls & Skellies

My "skellie" is "stylin'", and fighting his way through the spider webs! Fun challenge. Thanks for looking!