Bodhisartva ..... Art/Spirit/Life

Brooklyn Wanderlust

I'm in Chicago now, working.  I'd much rather be back in Brooklyn, even though the heat was so bad.  Katie and I did our share of wandering, despite the rain and humidity.  Think of what we might have accomplished had the weather cooperated!

Breakfast on Sunday - Pies and Thighs.  I had already had their famous fried chicken and waffles, so this time I opted for the over-easy eggs on a roast pork hash. Pretty spicy, but excellent.

Katie had grits, fried catfish and eggs.  Now this is a breakfast.

Mimosa, anyone?

 

Brooklyn Flea Market

I love the Brooklyn Flea Market.  It's small, but such great stuff! Now, if I could just carry all of it home!

We started the day at the Brooklyn Larder for breakfast. Possibly the best food I have ever had in my life. Homemade biscuit with frittata and bacon.  I wish I had one right now!

Also wanted to buy everything off their shelves, but luckily couldn't carry it all.

Then, on to the flea market, where we had to pace ourselves; bloody HOT in the sun. Luckily, there is lots of food and beverage and ice and a bit of shade for a rest.  Katie found the coolest lighted globe.  Having non-buyers remorse for some things I did not get, but happy with what came home with me.

The folks from Radio Lab were there giving out free posters; I'll get better pictures than this later, but they are really cool.  The number 3 is from a game of Flinch. Why I continue to acquire these, I don't know, but I do like numbers, so that could explain it.

Speaking of numbers, these little brass pins were cool. Hmmm...someone out there knows she will be getting that #5, I do believe. 

On the way home, we stopped at Junk and another thrift store, but really ran out of steam because of the heat.  Barely made it back to the airconditioning to collapse for a few hours.

We ended the day at Prospect Park again, fireflies and all.  This is a terrible picture, but look what we found.  The swans have babies!

Sweet and fluffy.  Why do swans and cygnets always look mad?

L.A., D.C., N.Y.C.

I've been on the road and a bit jetlagged.  LA to DC for a meeting on vision, a visit to the National Eye Institute and a congressional reception.  I did not do much sightseeing because it was bloody HOT and humid the whole time.  I'm a wimp with heat, I'm afraid. Washington is such a beautiful city; I'm sorry I didn't have more time and better weather.

Next leg of the journey - take the train to New York for a visit with my youngest daughter.

Met her at her office and went to lunch around the corner at Gottino.

Delicious sandwich, served with...caper berries?  Have you ever heard of these?  Tangy, yummy. We've been searching all over for them since!  We also ordered a shaved brussel sprout/walnut/pecorino side dish which was beautiful.

Sadly, it tasted as though someone had knocked over an entire salt shaker into the bowl.  I wish I had taken a picture of the replacement, which was a baked beet dish wrapped in filo and topped with some kind of rich cream.  I guess I was too busy eating it to take a photo.  Delish.  Kato went back to work and I wandered.

Did you know that Andy Warhol is now watching over Union Square? 

 

Big Projects - Part III

Welcome back, boys and girls.  Here we go with the next phase. Well, truth be told, going all the way to the end here.  

When we last saw our paper, it was out of the book press and crisply folded.  Each paper folded in half is called a folio. When you combine a number of them together, they are called a signature.  We have 10 signatures in this book.

Next, I search through my stash of patterns to find one that has 10 signatures and is the right size for the spine of the book. Finding none, I have to make a new one.

The spine and covers are cut from Davey Board, which is thick cardboard, essentially.

Using the paper pattern I made, I punch holes in the spine with an awl. This is the tedious part of the process, as the board is thick and there are 80 holes to punch.  Ouch. Can you say finger cramp?

The front and back covers, with the spine between them, are laid out on top of my chosen bookcloth and cut to size.

Using my handy PVA glue (polyvinyl acetate), I glue down the bookboard. I trim the cloth and fold it over the edges of the bookboard, sealing neatly.

The inside of the covers is lined with more bookcloth, again using the PVA.  I think these colors are a nice combo.

Usually, I would cover the book first and then punch the holes in the spine, but this time, I experimented with punching the holes and THEN covering them.  It was pretty easy to punch the holes in the spine when it wasn't covered with the cloth - and even easier to punch through the cloth alone.  I might do this from now on. 

Here is the finished book, showing the waxed linen thread stitched through the spine and holding the signatures in place.

I finished it off with a vintage bone button.  I may add some bead later, so I left a tail hanging.

So, there you have it.  Did I go too fast or skip some steps?  No problem, because I am teaching this class at Zinnia in South Pasadena on July 14th.  You can join us and I promise I will be much more specific on the directions - you can even take them home.

Sign up here for "My Big Fat Artist Journal".   

 

The Gift of the Garden

 Here. 

There are many joys in the garden, but let's be honest. It's all about the tomato.  These little yellow pears are flooding the vine right now and they have such a rich and spicy taste.  I did get one red tomato as well, but ate it too fast to take a picture! 

The front porch is weighed down with greenery of all shades.

Most of these are hoya and the one that always blooms first is the hoya carnosa.  I love these amazing waxy flower heads, hanging heavily down all over the vine which is growing ever higher.

On the other side of the porch, the Madagascar Jasmine is just starting to open its incredibly fragrant flowers.  I'm afraid it gets a bit too much sun now to be entirely happy, but we just trimmed the palm tree and that's just the way it is.

The gardenia seems to be doing well for a change.  I've been picking a blossom in the morning to put into my car for the work commute. It somehow makes the drive less stressful.  And, it still smells great when I get in to drive home!

Finally, back to the tomatoes. And yes, they are every bit as good as they look.

 

Big Projects - Part II

Remember all that ripping and folding and ripping again?

Well, they've been squashed in the bookpress for awhile now and they currently look like this.

Quite a difference, yes?  It's not a necessary step, but it does make it easier to sew the signatures and also to envision how thick the final book will actually be.  

Next, I'll tuck three pages one inside the other to form a signature.  You'll see.  I'm making a wonderfully thick journal with 10 signatures, so I have to create a template for it.  You'll see.

In the meantime, stay silly.

 

Words

When I can't seem to settle on anything creative, I have a couple of choices.  One is to clean and rearrange the studio, which is always satisfying - but takes some energy.  The other is to go through my stacks of magazines and cut things out.

When you are just sort of "floating", it seems that words jump out at you from the page.  I don't ask myself why that word, why this word.  I just cut it out and figure a use will come to me.

Sometimes, I'll sit with a dictionary or other old book and just snip out phrases or words or definitions.  Teeny, tiny bits.

They end up in journals or collages or paintings. Or maybe, they just sit in this little box for years.  Some of these little ones have been there that long. You just never know.

English was my favorite class in school. Can you tell?

Do you use things like this in your art and journals?

The Mini-Flea

Every few months, there is a small but fun "sidewalk sale" near our house. The vendors are mostly other artists and they have completely cool stuff.  You're never going to walk away with a lot, but everything will be excellent.

That odd metal thingy on top of the box is a bottle opener.  Wish I could show you how it works; it's surprisingly efficient.  

Lately, I'm finding these small shelves all over the place. I figure the universe is trying to tell me something, so, I bought it.  Look at the color of that tool case!  I need another one of these like a hole in the head, but it was only $8 so how could I pass it up?

I collect compasses.  Maybe I think they will tell me where I am going, since I have no clue.  I could not get a good shot of this one and I wish you could really see the bright blue metal against a caramely background.  You'll just have to come over.

Free parking, a great breakfast and home by 10 a.m.  By the way, it's held outside the astounding studio of Clare Graham.  His space and work just blow me away.  

Do You Think I Have a Problem?

I think I may. Have a problem, that is.  I LOVE alphabets. 

I've used rubber stamps for decades; used to have them made for me before there were so many available. I've gotten rid of a lot of them, but I have about 3,000 still.

But alphabets?  Won't give those away. 

Can. Not. Get. Enough.  Big ones..here's one of my first.

Little ones. From Graven Images - my favorite and ones I use all the time. The company is no longer around sadly.

New ones. Kinokuniya.  Comes in it's own box, very handy. They have lots of sets of different sizes; numbers, too.

Old ones.  Found a whole set at the flea in a falling apart cardboard box.  Yes, Chris, I am still looking to find one for you!

Silly ones.  Each letter has a design that starts with that letter.

See?  The "O" is olives and the "I" is...well...an eye, of course

And, I have a few treasures.  I came upon a huge wooden case at the flea market a few years ago. Well-worn and with pretty clasps.

Nothing missing - lots of punctuation and special characters - heaven!  The seller indicated he was a friend of Frank Zappa and that Frank liked to make signs with this set. Who knows, but it's an interesting story.

Of course, it's too big to carry around for journaling.  So, I have a ziplock bag with this pile of not quite so large letters.

I found this very handy little set from Corey Amaro. 

It would be great if I had the entire alphabet in this form, but I'm still looking. I do carry around the numbers, though.  

There are so many ways to put words down on paper and these rubber stamps are just one of them.  Obsessed?  I should say so.

The Studio Windowsill

All summer long, I keep these bottles filled with a rotating collection of blossoms.  And I don't want to hear any comments about all those Patron bottles.  Someone gave them to me; I didn't drink a drop!

These David Austin roses are in the back corner of the garden and I can't believe I forget to pay them a visit from time to time to see if they are blooming. The heads are so heavy, they almost touch the ground, so it's good to pick them early on.

The true, absolute last of the sweet peas :-(.  The vines are looking shabby and they are on the fence right behind the now exuberant tomato plants. So down they come.  It's always a sad moment for me.  I love sweetpeas, but I suppose if we had them all year long, I wouldn't appreciate them nearly as much.