Making time

I made time today to connect and converse with friends.  A bit of making fit in the in-between spaces in my day - a frame for my latest collage...

...and glazes for these small pots - they will be cream and lavender colored when they are fired.

Framed!

Bald Head Island collages now complete and ready for delivery next weekend.

Also got back to visit this amazing sculpture at high tide...

Catching up and new space to work...

We had planned to be away this weekend and plans changed so we find ourselves at home.  It's good time for catching up on projects and process toward creating better spaces for working.

Here are a new batch of labyrinth touchstones for Art-o-mat...

Some new frames - the large one was completed today and the smaller ones were cut a while ago and assembled today.

Here is my new workbench space in the carport, complete with a new miter saw for frames.

And the latest layer of photo transfer on this collage - trying to be patient and wait til morning to peel it back so that the glue fully dries and I get the best transfer.

Finishing work...

Most of my making today was the finishing steps.  I spent a couple hours on the computer creating note cards from my flower collages.

This evening I worked on sanding and gluing several frames.

This work is often more tedious than creating art but it is the part that helps the work get out into the world.  The time to frame things - whether a physical wooden frame or a high resolution scan for a card - is an important part of the process and the practice.  It is what allows me to signal completion and open creations up to new experiences through sharing.

Making frames and making space...

I spent some time today on in-between steps, cutting wood for frames, sanding and organizing supplies.

Here are the new frame molding pieces...

And a photo of my labyrinth glazing workshop at St Aidan's - I can't wait to see how these turn out after glaze firing...

Making, community and knowing when to stop...

Today was a full day.  We celebrated our son's 13th birthday (more than 2 months late) with a great group of boys.

In the afternoon I led a labyrinth making workshop.  

Part of our discussion focused on knowing when to stop working.  I thought if that this evening as I continue to work in these recent collages....

I'm hoping with a good nights rest to feel more decisive in the morning and get these completed and framed.

Home stretch...

Today I worked in finishing up pieces to Hang at Huntley Meadows this week.

Here's a color wheel for the show...

...and the rocks I used to weigh down the center while I glued the edges...

And here's the completed frame for yesterday's piece...

I also photographed all my work for the show and visited the space at Huntley Meadows to begin laying things out for hanging.

Help, supervision and new layers...

I'm especially thankful today for all the help from my family.  Chad applied the wax finish to my frames today so I could glue in the collages.  Pup acted as supervisor...

...paying close attention to detail...

This evening Chad and the boys added wire to all the eye hooks they put in last night.  Kevin even found one collage Id framed upside down.  

This evening I added a few new layers to collages...

This last one will get a new photo transfer tomorrow...

Sanding and finishing work

Today I spent a couple hours sanding frames and putting finishing nails in larger frames for extra reinforcement.  Not a lot to show for this work but it feels good to take this time and care completing things.

We spent the evening joining my parents for a celebration of my dad's 70th birthday - fun to see pictures, hear stories and especially to enjoy the music of his high school band.  

Here's my photo for the day of his initial surprise at seeing all who gathered for his celebration...

New fence...and big frames

Today I made molding for several larger frames.  This required a higher fence for the router table so I started by making that.  It took time away from making molding but then, once it was done, it was so much easier to cut the larger pieces.  It felt good to take the time to do this right.

I made 4 large frames today for color wheels and photos.

After dinner the whole family pitched in to help with adding eye hooks to frames while I cut matts for photos.  I love the energy of family making...

Working outside...

Today was a beautiful day and I appreciated it that much more after all the rain.  I particularly enjoy working in my carport workshop on days like today. I get to enjoy the fresh air and natural light while also having shade for my work and tools.

I created another set of framing molding and several frames.  

Frames, mini frames and a walk in the rain...

Today I made s few more frames.  And I used the small extra pieces of molding to cut some mini frames.  They are 2 by 3 inches - the size of my art-o-mat collages.

I also thought about practice and the idea of commitment.  Today I delivered postcards to Huntley Meadows for the show.  I've committed to walk in the park once a week but just haven't felt like it this week with all the rain.  Today I thought I'd just go a little ways down the path.  It was dryer than I'd expected under the cover of trees and the sound of rain on branches combined with the glow of all the green was sort of magical.  

It was a shorter walk - just a little ways onto the boardwalk and I was rewarded by getting to see this fellow...

I'm glad for my commitment to a weekly walk to get me out even in the rain.

Revisiting, framing, collecting...

I did more revisiting of collages today.

I added some drawing to this one...

This is an old one where the transfer didn't work with the background - I tried a new background, combining paper and paint

And redid the transfer on top...

Here are some new frames - and a close up of framing molding just off the router and ready for mitre cuts...

Finally I spent some time this evening collecting...

...the maple seed pods that were EVERYWHERE last week are almost gone.

There are plenty of the tiny ones still on the trees.  The larger ones are harder to find now - most of the ones in my driveway are wet and torn.  I'll have to be on the lookout for them...more dragonflies coming soon.

Frame shop

I cut and assembled a few more frames today.

In the foreground is my favorite framing tool.  I purchased it in college after using the ones in the shop there.  Metal corners fit over the frame corners and then a band pulls it all tight, holding it in place while the glue sets.

My other framing tool is one that's brand new to me.  I just learned how to use a router a few weeks ago.  It cuts the notch or the "rabbet" in the wood to make the frame molding.  I used to use a table saw but it was a lot less precise.  It was also more dangerous as it was hard to push the wood all the way through for such narrow cuts.  The router is mounted to a router table and looks like this...

Framing...

This weekend I was offered the opportunity to display some of my work in the display case at Martha Washington library.  It's great timing to share some of the things I've been working on for my show at Huntley Meadows AND it's a great incentive to begin framing.

Today I made 8 frames.  It was a perfect day to work outside in the carport.  I figured out a system to have the router table on one side and the saw on the other, allowing me to work back and forth between the two.  

Here's today's framing workshop...

And my first few frames...

Rabbets

I spent yesterday learning about framing and then looking for tools to make rabbets - that's the name of the groove cut into wood to make molding for framing.

It took visits to 3 hardware stores to find a rabbeting bit that would work and to get just the right size screws to attach the router to the router table.  

Then today came the fun part - it works!  Here is my first frame...

And this morning's glazing - now cooking in the kiln...

Here is my first set of labyrinth touchstones for Art-o-mat - bisque fired and ready to glaze...

Lots of making...some with pictures...

Today was busy.  Chad helped me work on cutting molding to build frames for collages.  We are getting closer to a workable design but it still felt like s lot of time cutting and measuring and a lot of set backs.  More to come on framing...

In the mean time, I'm loving the glowing greens of this photo transfer on yesterday's collage...

And have been catching up on glazing some of my leaves printed in clay.  Watercolor glaze on the leaves with more tiles for the St Aidan's labyrinth sign on the lower level.