Making Logos on Cards

I am very excited about learning how to create a logo out of a soft rubber that fits my mould. Here are the pictures of the logo I made for Judy and Em Rigg at Palm Key. This is a Palmetto tree which is the state tree of South Carolina. I'm very pleased and so are Judy and Em.

Speaking of being pleased, if you need a vacation getaway near the Low Country of South Carolina, I highly recommend Palm Key. It is located on the marshes of SC and is convenient to Hilton Head Island and Savannah, Georgia. Each cottage is a separate unit with low country vegetation surrounding it. Cottages have 1 to 5 bedrooms.

Check out the Palm Key website for more information.

Well, Back to Work and School

Fall means an end of summer vacation for me. It's off to teach art to elementary students. It is always a rude awakening to get up at 5:30 am 5 days a week and drive 29 miles to my school, teach 6 classes a day, then get back in the car and drive home. Today, after teaching 2 days, I am totally drained! I have to build my stamina so that I will have energy to make paper on the weekend. :-)
I explained the process to some 5th graders and they were very interested, especially in the paper with shredded money. I promised I would teach them!!

Great Papermaking Weekend

I have had a great papermaking weekend!! It really is the last weekend before I start teaching school again. I'm not ready or excited about it because I have loved making paper so much this summer. I feel like I have made more than I ever have!! I finished some paper for a client that has their business logo on the front. I'm totally psyched that I accomplished it. When I have permission, I will post pictures of it here.

Then I made paper out of oriental bittersweet leaves as a freebie for the Western North Carolina Alliance. The staff works to pull, cut, and kill this invasive plant from our National Forests. It has been a big hit!! I didn't take any photos of these :-(

Lastly, I am thinking about featuring another artist on my blog. I'm not sure how many times per week I could do this, while returning to teaching again. Let me know if you'd be interested in collaborating.

Thanks for reading~!

Taking Son to College for first time

How many of you have taken a child to college for the first time?

It is quite an emotionally draining experience. While I'm happy for Ashby, I am sad for me and Bob because we will miss his presence. I also am happy for Ashby because I know that Bob and I have done a great job to prepare him for this next stage in his life. I want Ashby to achieve and learn all that he can while at college to carry him forth in life. I have come full circle in my thinking and know that this is a natural progression in life but wanted to express my feelings.

Thanks for listening.

The Time Travelers Wife

I went to the movie The Time Travelers Wife with some girl friends because we had read the book. The main female character, Claire Abshire, is an artist and papermaker!! I loved it. The movie had one clip/scene where Claire was in her studio. The first part showed her scooping up pulp and throwing it into a hidden machine and then the noise of blending. It showed her holding a mould and deckle, then it showed her pressing it and then the paper laying on the blanket. Also in the studio shot was a hand book binding press. I just loved it but I bet half of the people watching didn't understand what it was.

Oh, well, you can see I'm obsessed with papermaking. :-)

Chopping, Cooking, Canning

Like the title says, I've been chopping, cooking, canning tomatoes to make chunky salsa. Bob, my husband and Ashby, my son, wanted chunky thick salsa, so that was what I was working toward.
For two days, that's what I've done for about 3-4 hours. Pioneer women were tough to cook and can all the food for the winter. The counter is loaded with 2 days worth of salsa making. The first recipe had 4 jalapenos and 6 pablono peppers. I made 4 quarts yesterday. Today with a different recipe, I used 4 pablono peppers, 2 cayenne and 2 bell peppers and lime juice, I made 5 quarts and 1 pint.

Whew, I know it will taste good in the winter.

Secret Revealed!!!

I am so excited and pleased to announce my secret--my first video on how to make hand made paper!! It has been in process for many months--we've (my son & I) taped 4 different videos. The link today is the final product. We both are so proud of our hard work.

Well, technical difficulties....can't upload video. Will try again later! Need to cut to 100 MB. Maybe tonight!

Well, I've successfully uploaded the video to facebook.

Click and check it out.

After watching the video, please answer the question--would you be interested in a more detailed description of papermaking?

I have one secret and something different to share!

I have a secret that I am dying to tell everyone about, but I promised my son I wouldn't even tell my husband. The secret will come out tomorrow, so tell everyone you know to log onto my blog and follow.

Speaking logging on and following, my friend Aurora Rose is hosting a great giveaway if she can reach 150 followers. Please check out her blog to find out the details.

Back to Papermaking

Well, on the business side of things, I received a check from a gallery last week, I have two different jobs to make special paper and I have some pictures of my Queen Anne's Lace paper which reminds me of Christmas. What do you think? I'll add the link to buy them a little later. The pack will have 10 cards for $15.

Now is the time--I listed these note cards in my artfire studio. Here is the direct link to these cards.

A Moment of Respect

My husband & I just got back from the funeral of his best friend, 2 years older than him. He had flu like symptoms and went into the hospital, got pneumonia and never recovered. He was only 60--way to young to die. It has hit me to think about what all I am doing and it's importance. Ed was an architect, planner, environmentalist and lover of all living creatures. Everything he did or touched, he did with an ease belying it's importance.

I am reminding myself that the day to day hassles aren't the important things but do what you love and give of yourself.

For my Blog Friends

Hi, I've just listed my gift card holders which you helped me design. I'd like to offer you a chance to buy these first. I'm selling 2 for $3.75. Mention my blog in your checkout and I'll throw in an extra card holder, because you are my friends. Click here to link to my new item.

Gift Card Holder Ideas

Hey to my trusty blog readers!! Here's three ideas for the gift card holders made from my paper. Tow are folded, origami style and the other one has the bead and loop sticthed onto the paper. Give me feedback, please!

Gift Card Holders are in Process

A big thank you to people who have posted support and new ideas for the gift card holders. I want to take a minute to explain about papermaking. This morning, I was actually making the sheets of paper which are made while wet. The pulp in floating in a lot of water.
I had fun mixing leaves glitter, chunks of colored pulp, the money shreds, and other random things into the pulp.

Next, I pressed the paper with a hydraulic press to compress the fibers.

And finally, I have the sheets in my drying press which keeps each sheet flat as drying. 24 hours later, the paper will be dry and I'll be able to start folding into cards, or envelope holders. I made a few pieces in the shape of an envelope which I thought some people might understand.

New Idea--Need Feedback

I've been thinking about this idea for a while and talked it over with Ashby and we think it's wonderful for the holidays. Since I am so in love with my shredded money cards and tree money cards, what about a gift card holder made with the money paper? I would fold the paper in threes and have a way to hold the card inside. Would that be useful, wasteful, boring, or exciting?

Hey, Check out this blog that I just found. She's having a great giveaway with soaps and bath salts. I just love the title--Salad for Breakfast--Click on the link to the right!