Tuesday, December 20, 2016

Sorry for the long absence!

Thought I'd better check in as it's been
so long since I've done a post, and to my
surprise, many more of you have signed
on in my absence!
THANK YOU!
How Wonderful!

I guess since I have been at this blog for some
years now, there is a lot to dig through and find
some motivation for your mojo!

Nothing major, and/or exciting to post honestly,
I have only had the opportunity for short stints
this past few months of tag making and quick
art time. Here are s a few of my mini projects....

...lots of tag making!




Lots of Bits and Bob's usage of 
Graphics from a myriad of Wonderful
Graphics Companies.


Itkupilli, Tumble Fish, Crowabout and
ArtChix to name a few...


And stamping and inks always a fun way
to be creative.


....self portrait.....grin.....


I love tag making, it's a quick way
to grab some art time without a lot of fuss.





...and of course some digital arts play time too....





...and had a great fun time with Itkupilli's
latest concept of torn photos....


...they were a fun challenge!






Always great fun to have a play with the 
Graphics from
the Designers at Mischief Circus.
( Itkupilli Graphics used above).

And had a bit of playing around with
some small projects...
Mixed Media Bracelets
using ArtChix Graphics.


Ideas from the wonderful workshop
from Desert Dreams Studio a 
few years back!


I need more practice :)

So there you go....
I've been gone, but have kept my toes in the 
creative waters.

And now that we're in the 
Christmas Season
with Year end looming....
Oliver Howard and I would like to send
You All
the 
Best of Wishes 
for the Holiday Season!


Here's to a Fabulous 2017 
For All of Us!
See you next year!
Cheers!!!















Tuesday, August 30, 2016

Better Late than Never...


Hey All
Thought I'd better at least 
check in with you all so you'll know I am still around,
and yes, still floundering for the Summer months.
But as the Summer is coming to a close,
I'm pleased to say I've still managed to get a bit
of art time in once in a while, so just a quickie
blog post to catch up.

First off, Better late than never,
I'm referring to the Fabulous Workshop 
I took a couple of years back with 
Mary Jane Chadbourne
Her Wood Doll Workshop was great fun,
and I'd bought three of her great wood doll blanks,
and had completed two of them, but the third
ended up on a back burner as life tends to get in the way.
So pleased to say I finally finished the third wood doll.

Named my Hippie Dippy Doll
'When Pigs Fly'


It's been one of my favourite sayings for years,
and I tend to collect flying pigs so thought
with this last doll I'd go for it :)
Using Mary Jane's Wonderful Wood Doll Blank
and lots of papers and bits and bobs, 
and some great items, including the 
Lazier Cut Out of the Flying Pig
from 


I so enjoyed getting back into playing
with assemblages again, and even went as
far as making bits using my art tags to incorporate.


It really felt good to finally complete the set :)


Such fun!

And as usual, been keeping busy with....
Tons of tag making!



I've been spending the Summer doing some 
clean up and reorganizing the Art Room,
and came across a ton of printed up Graphics
from a myriad of Companies over the years
that I've collected yet not really played with.
So I've been cutting out tons of graphics of
an evening while watching t.v. and now have
a go-to box of graphics, as I've also
made a routine of early morning 
Coffee and Tag Art Making.


And even diving into some of my stamp collections,
and I hate to say, some I've never even used yet!
Character Construction Stamps have
been sitting and waiting for me to notice them in 
my collection, so lately Coffee and Tag making
has been spent with them :)

Gorgeous Quality Stamps
that I'd collected a ton of and I'm so sorry
I've waited so long to play with them!



I also dabbled a bit in some
quick crafts, popsicle stick arts.


Found them to be a bit of fun.


And even experimented with a idea I saw
on Facebook of using discarded recycled plastics
to create Shrink Plastics.
Used my hand carved stamp of my Favourite Boy
Oliver Howard to experiment with...
another fun project :)

So as you can see, Summer hasn't been
a total loss of Art Time,
but really looking forward to some 
Fall and Winter serious Play Time
with the Art Room.


Hope you find some inspiration to get into
the Mojo of some Art Time for Yourselves too!!!
Thanks for having a Boo!!


Enjoy!














Friday, June 10, 2016

My Summer of Puttering and Arts
June 2016


Well by now, since this year is flying,
already being June for goodness sakes!
I am sure you've figured out that there 
isn't a general
 rhythmic pattern to my posts here on
the blog as there usually is. 
Out of the ordinary over this past 
5 years of blogging, and being organized,
and having a 'purpose' to it all.

Welcome to my year of Floundering!


(Graphic from the Wonderful Designers at Mischief Circus.com
Itkupilli and Holliwood and TumbleFish Studio)

A few 'life' things going on this year,
so the ebb and flow of arts seem to
be consistently interrupted. But it hasn't
halted thanks to a handful of mediums
still to keep my mojo in practice.
Digital Arts being the first, not particularly
as a preference, but unique on it's own, for me,
quick and easy, turn on the computer and with
a cup of coffee in hand, a 1/2 hour of some
graphic fun when life keeps knocking you on
the head wanting attention...


( Graphics from the Fabulous TumbleFish Studio
at Mischief Circus.com)

And usually a piece of Chocolate Cake!


(more TumbleFish Studio Graphics)

Another plus to playing with Digital Graphics
is it doesn't ruin the piece you're working on
if you drop Chocolate Cake Crumbs....grin.


(Graphics from Itkupilli at Mischief Circus.com)

So I have this year, given myself the permission
to let go of the 'practice' of being organized and
having a purpose to many of the arts and spending
more time this year focusing on a couple of 
individuals in my life.



(Graphics from Itkupilli at Mischief Circus.com)

It's our Oliver Howard's 15th Year coming
up in September, and although he's doing
really well in the health department in general,
I felt this year, he needed more of my attention.
He's been a brilliant companion, fur baby, ok, my son,
GRIN
sharing me over the years with our other pets who've 
come and gone from our lives, and my arts and all 
the life bug-a-boo's that have taken my attention
at time away from him.
Their time is far too short with us.

And then there's the other individual
the guy I live with, that one that hangs around,
the holder of my moderate esteem, 
a.k.a. the Buddha.

(Graphics from Itkupilli at Mischief Circus)

It is our 28th Year of being married this year,
and unfortunately the 'Buddha' has been having
some health issues, but with my usual tongue in cheek,
( something he's quite used too after all these years),
I've managed to ruin his reputation by nicknaming
him the 'Buddha' thanks to the medications he's
having to put up with during this episode of ill health.
He has a new appreciation for women and water weight
I'll tell you!



(More Wonderful Graphics from Itkupilli)

..and after having the 'Buddha' home for two
months earlier this year, I'm pleased to 
report he's back to work and out from under foot!
(And feeling a bit better too )

Once he was back to work, I grabbed the first
art supplies I could find and off I went on a 
frenzy of colour!

Thank goodness for Dylusions Spray Inks
and Ranger's Tag blanks as I was in need
of letting some mojo loose!


And it got a little carried away....


...spraying here, there, all over the place 
( and even Oliver Howard had a bit of 
colour play too....but he took to his
bed for a nap before I could get a pick.


then of course, once the Mojo was
in a state of euphoria I had to start grabbing
journals and have a play again....


Bits and Bobs of watercoloring, and stamping
and cut and paste works!

And when journaling wasn't enough....
I thought I'd dive into my vintage book collection


so off like the wind I went for a few weeks 
of making my own...


Cutting paper, stamping, inking, 
altering books, and stitching
until my hands could barely move...
what a great feeling of accomplishment!

Made the regular duties and chores a little
more palatable during my Floundering periods


(more Fabulous Itkupilli)


...now I've been eyeing up the carving tools....
hmm....guess this Floundering isn't going well....grin.

So after such a long period of not posting,
me thinks this post might bring you up to date
on all the going's on at Birdnuts Mixed Media
and the continual quest for Mojo time in 
amongst the Bug-a-Boo's of Life :)

So here's wishing You All
a Wonderful Summer months ahead!
Hoping you'll carve out or spray or paint some
colour in your days ahead, and give yourself
permission to Flounder too whenever possible!

And remember, try to have ...



A Happy Thought at least once a day!

(Love these graphics from TumbleFish Studio)

See you soon!


Enjoy!


































Sunday, March 27, 2016


Happy Holiday Weekend!


Hello All!
Happy Easter Weekend!
And you know what that means....Spring!!!


Which Oliver Howard enjoys
and it's the beginning of the 
Spring Shedding Season!
Let the games begin! GRIN


So with a long Holiday Weekend,
and around here, it's a lovely, quiet,
weekend to relax, I decided to dip my
toe into an assemblage project that's
been kicking around in my head for some time.
It's been a long time of taking a break from
doing any 3D mixed media arts, and it
felt so good to have a dabble.

My ode to Spring and to Nature 
and even channeling a 
bit of my love for 
museum collections.


I photographed the inside of this assemblage first,
as you'll see in the next photo's, once I put on
the protective acrylic sheet cover, it became
a pain to photograph! 
(Anyone who has any photography tricks for
photographing things like framed pictures with glass 
tricks, please share their tricks with me! )
GRIN

First off 
I started with a great masonite kit from


Basic Shadowbox Shrine Kit

With an assortment of 'finds',
pussy willow branches, woodpecker feather,
rare egg from a plastic bird....tee hee....

I used a Melissa Frances
that I used 
to alter.

And used a Fabulous Graphic
of a Woodpecker 
from our own Local
Finchley Paper Arts.


Many fussy hours later.....
With some Tim Holtz Wheels,


And many details later....
using Fabulous left over Scrapbooking Papers,
ribbons....



And more vintage finds, of a Bakelite 1920's door knob, 
and some old florist bits a bobs,  later....


Walla! My Ode to Spring and Nature

This makes me want to 
make another one....grin
Luckily, I have a couple more kits!
So you never know what I might 
come up with next!

I've also been busy with
my Digital Arts play this month too ...

Using Wonderful Graphics from
at
Mischief Circus


And using my own Private Collection
of photo's of our local herd of Deer.
Another Ode to Spring
with my Dear  'Oh Deer Bubbie'


Our Darling Bubbie, our outdoor pet for 
many years, tends to crop up in my works
over the years, and Miles Beyond the Moons
graphics just suited this Spring's Muse perfectly.

And of course, had to have a dabble with the
Fabulous Ms. Marsha's Latest Kits
from

and again channeling Spring...


So that is what I've pretty much been up too in
the being creative corner of life this month...
oh yes, and I finally found a spot for last
months wonderful project, ( check out last
months blog post).

She fit in beautifully in the art room, along with
all of my other precious Favourite Artists Works!

Well there you go....grin
Hope you're having a Fabulous Holiday Easter Weekend!
Keep busy, and hope you get some Art Time!!! 

Enjoy!!!