October 2011
8 posts
One More Time
The New York alley is finished.  I want to do this same alley in a vertical composition with a different palette.  It seems odd to want to do the same subject twice - that’s unusual for me - but in this case, I really want to pull a different piece from the same subject as a challenge.   I made a simple drawing on tracing paper and prepared my board today.  I’m using tinted wax...
Oct 30th
100 Little Things
I kept working today in spite of a hundred little things.  I’m having a lot of trouble photographing pieces now — the glare from the overheads is terrible.  Still thinking about this one but I’m nearing the end.  I’m sure I’ll work a few more hours on it. And this is one of the hundred little things today :)  This is Dorothy, sitting behind my encaustic table...
Oct 28th
6 tags
Darn Oil Bars...
I bought a few oil bars a year or more ago and after a few very frustrating attempts, put them in a drawer.  I felt like I’d find a use for them eventually.  Today, I needed some subtle texture and value changes.  I used rough sand paper to indent the wax surface and tried heating the edge of an oil bar before applying VERY lightly and smudging. For the first time, I see oil bars in my...
Oct 27th
30 notes
Back to Work
After a week of traveling followed by a week of nursing a cold, I’m finally heating wax again.  I pulled out the piece I was working on before the long interruption and was afraid to dive in.  It’s strange what a week or two away will do.   I picked up a tool, feeling very uncertain, and dug in — and a few hours later, couldn’t figure out where the day had gone :).   ...
Oct 25th
Carm in Charge
Carm was front and center today.  All day.  Maybe she sensed that SOMEBODY needed to take control!  I came back from the Keys with a terrible cold and know from experience that I can’t work with wax until my congestion is gone.  So, I thought I’d work in casein for a week.  Well, that plan bit the dust when I discovered I was out of illustration board.  I placed my order and it...
Oct 20th
Interruption!
We were traveling last week and I was feeling weird about interrupting my work for a week - but it’s just a week, right?  Not a big deal. Well, I picked up a massive head cold last week and now I have to work through my two weeks of dripping, dragging, snorting, gagging, and coughing.  No, I don’t have a positive attitude.   The one thing I learned last year is I can’t continue...
Oct 17th
Chinatown Alley
I’m working on the first layers for a new encaustic.  It’s based on a wonderful alley I discovered near Chinatown in New York.  We were there a few weeks ago and this alley was fascinating —- shades of gray with fascinating textures and lines.  Of course, I’m pushing the grays toward blues, greens, and reds.  I know this first layer will become muted as I add layers of...
Oct 5th
A Beautiful Weekend
We did it!  Two days of yard sale for the DOGS and it was very successful.  We set up at 6am yesterday and today - the front yard of the studio was covered with tables and we had two tents in the driveway for clothing, shoes, and handbags. WE HAD A BLAST!   The icing on MY cake is that Zoe, my foster dog, was adopted at the yard sale!  A lovely lady that is a supporter of our group fell in...
Oct 1st