Better late then never!

You see - it's not that I don't create the challenge images. I'm just a day behind! The following two images were ones that I worked on for the Gothic Arches challenges. I was really hoping to get the fantasy challenge finished on time. : (

But...as I titled this blog, it's better late then never!

"Fantasy Ball"

You can view other magnificient Gothic Arch creations at:

http://gothicarches.ning.com/

"Mascarade Ghosts"
Originally, I had been working on this image for the Gothic Arches challenge. I created a slightly different version for an ATC challenge since I was too late to submit this one. I decided to go ahead and add this so you could see that I actually do finish the challenge images! ; )

~*~These creations are made using my own ideas with the help of a few images I have found online and through Dover Publications. They are not for sale and only used for educational purposes and art therapy. Copyright on these images are only intended for the digital enhancements and not for the images used from other sources. ~*~

Artarazzi Challenge #13

Although I am late once again (Even though it's Saturday here) I thought I would still share what I created for the Artarazzi Challenge. The above image was what we were given for a background to use in the challenge. As soon as I noticed the ripped paper I had an idea. Unfortunately, last week was a very busy week and I really couldn't get to it until today.
So here is my final creation.
"Dragon Rip"
Check out what others did at:
http://artarazzi.blogspot.com/2009/03/challenge-13-sampler.html

Theme Thursday Challenge

"Egg-stra Special"

And indeed this one is very special to me. This was one of the first ATC-size paintings I created just a few short years ago. Using watercolor and acrylic paints, in miniature version, the hummingbird and flowers came to life. I wanted to do something special with it for this challenge so I scanned it into Photoshop CS in order to give it a feeling of being painted on an egg.

I hope this challenge site is ok with original images being transformed into digital art. I don't really know since I've never participated before.

You can find out more about this challenge at:

http://themethursday.wordpress.com/

Birds of a Feather

While searching for the next challenge to participate in, I found one that was right up my "tree". The theme is birds, nests, eggs, etc. I'm a bird lover/watcher through and through so I just had to contribute something! Whether it be realistic or fantasy doesn't matter to me as long as I can convey my little birdies through art. All the following examples were hand drawn by me - then sent to photoshop for colors, textures, and enhancements. I hope you enjoy them all.

"Flutterbye"

We loved growing hollyhocks in the SW and apparently the hummingbirds loved them too.

"An unusual meeting"

I've never seen a Red-wing Blackbird and a Bluebird together other than through my art but it felt right to put them together in this large flowering Rose of Sharon.

"Zettibug"
I created these last two images for a zettiology swap. They are certainly unconventional for zetti -which is exactly how it should be since I'm not what you would describe a conventional person to be. I love to add my own flair to my art whenever possible. Once again, these are hand drawn then sent to photoshop.

"Zettibird"
Although some folks might think of this as strictly digital art, I feel it is multi-media in the sense that the original concept was from my own drawing. Then you can also think of it this way...I use filters in photoshop defined as watercolor, pastel, embossed, etc., etc., etc. All of which are classified as artistic mediums. So, there you have it, a multi-media experience! : )

To be continued...
My next blog post will have the image I have selected for the Theme Thursday challenge.

So Artful Challenge

Here are my two images for "Magical Ice" in the So Artful Challenge. I would like to take this time to express my gratitude to June for giving so many of us the opportunity to participate in this wonderful challenge. She has done a magnificient job. Thank you June!

http://soartfulchallenges.blogspot.com/

I just read about the other challenge June hosts at Art on the Darkside and although I will miss it, I realize the importance of putting that aside at this time. I hope this challenge does not have to depart as well (although I would fully understand). I thought perhaps this one could stay as a monthly challenge instead of a weekly challenge if that would help. If not, that is ok - it was just a thought I felt I should share. [Hoping June will see this since I don't have her email addy.]

Mind Wide Open Challenge

This was a difficult challenge image for me to wrap my creative head around. For days I didn't have a clue to how to work with her. While searching the free samples at Dover Publication today, I found some historic pictures of steamliners in the 1930's and like magic, an idea appeared. I hope you enjoy this travel back in time as much I have enjoyed learning more about it through the creation of this image.
If you would like free samples of images through Dover Publications, you can go to:
http://www.doverpublications.com/sampler/0306/

On March 8th, you can go to:
http://www.mind-wideopen.blogspot.com/ to view the entries for this month's challenge. At that time, it will be open for voting. Everything you need to know for casting your vote is listed on the mind-wideopen blog. It should be interesting to see what everyone created for this challenge.

Down in the meadow

Do any of you remember this song?

My mom would sing this to us when we were young.

Such wonderful memories are often remembered through music.

Down in the meadow in a little bitty pool

Swam three little fishies and a mama fishie too

"Swim" said the mama fishie, "Swim if you can"

And they swam and they swam all over the dam

Boop boop dit-tem dat-tem what-tem Chu!

Boop boop dit-tem dat-tem what-tem Chu!

Boop boop dit-tem dat-tem what-tem Chu!

And they swam and they swam all over the dam
http://www.niehs.nih.gov/kids/lyrics/fishies.htm

One of my fond memories was going to Birch Bay for summer vacation. We would play on the beach, collecting shells, sand dollars and such. They seemed like amazing great finds! There was a gift shop that sold all sorts of things made from sea shells - the obvious jewelry, clam shell sets to serve a seafood appetizer in, little shell dolls, shell fish, etc. I found the images above

while researching fish and just had to save them. Although they aren't exact to what I remember, they did trigger that gift shop memory and very special summer vacations.

I mentioned recently my obsession with drawing fish and wondered why.

Perhaps these memories are part of the reason -

a way to rekindle a time in childhood.

Now and Then Trio

Here are my entries for the Rooftop ATC challenge at:

http://tmta.wordpress.com/

I say entries because this image is actually cut into three ATC images. The initial image was too wide to reduce to an ATC so I cropped, and cropped, and cropped to make it into three. I look at it this way - when in doubt...try something different...like cropping.

I love this challenge! I wanted to show something from my heritage and this so works! From the old to the new...I just love the combination.

This past winter, we were snowed in for almost two weeks. The snow just kept falling to the point I was wondering if it would ever stop. The roads were the worst I've ever seen in my lifetime. Little to say, I was thankful when it finally melted. I have viewed winter pictures from Norway that amaze me. There were literally just paths through the snow from cabin to cabin. Uffda... It must have been very hard to live there way back when. It's difficult enough now.

Anywho, I hope you enjoy this set of images.

My thanks to tmta for this most wonderful challenge. : )

Thank you All!

Wow! How delightful to receive so many comments/opinions on my entries to challenges! I so appreciate them all!

Thank you all for taking the time to view them and leave a comment or two.

This has really been an amazing journey into the multitude of challenges presented online.

The owners/moderators/hosts are all terrific and I would personally like to thank them for all their dedication and efforts to make this possible.

~I would also like to encourage those who haven't given it a go to do so!~ See you in the next challenge!

Joan Marie :)

Ghost of Mascarade for SundayPostcardArt challenge

"Ghost of Mascarade"
This is my entry for the Sunday Postcard Art challenge at:
http://sundaypostcardart.wordpress.com/2009/02/22/mardi-gras/
Uniquely ghostly, don't you think? And you all know how I love purple!
I have to say I had no idea where this was going when I first started it. Sometimes you just have to go where the images take you. I really enjoyed creating this one and hope you enjoy it too.
Are you all getting ready for Mardi Gras? If you enjoy attending activities for Mardi Gras, you can find these beautiful masks online from one of many costume shops. I was really impressed by the beauty of so many of them. They're listed under Venetian masks.
Actually, I would love to have one (or more) as a wall decor. They look much better on the site because they don't look like ghosts! ; )

So Artful Challenge - Trees

This time I won't be late! LOL

I painted these with acrylics on canvas - the originals are 8x10. When I began to swap ATC's, I made prints of these and framed them in a tri-frame. Trees in the winter months have a beauty like no other time of the year especially when they are covered with snow or ice.

I was fortunate to have one of the original pieces published in a New Mexico magazine. To this day that seems simply surreal to me.

Please check out more tree images at:

http://soartfulchallenges.blogspot.com/

I've already seen one image created by Tacey and it's absolutely beautiful!

So Artful Challenges

LOL...this one I'm definitely late for! I seem to get confused because of where the challenges are located. Some of the challenges end a day earlier for me since I'm in the states. I'm sure I'll get the hang of it sooner or later but in the meantime I can at least show it here in my blog, right?

If you would like to take a look at this challenge, it's:

http://soartfulchallenges.blogspot.com/

It's really a great challenge and like most, the theme changes weekly.

Love in the Garden

Well, I'm late again. This was to be for the challenge blog... http://sundaypostcardart.wordpress.com/

The theme was chairs. It really doesn't matter that I always seem to be a day late or so...I have fun whether it's for a challenge or not. It helps to have themes to give me a new path. If you get the bug for a challenge, this is a great one. Postcard 4x6 size is the name of the game.

Believe it or not...the newer challenge was for hearts so I guess this will work out just fine for the current challenge! Who would have thought? ; )

Image Writing

I have tried and tried to upload this with the image and writing larger but it appears this is the only size it wants...so, you know the drill. If it's too difficult to view...just click on it for a larger version.
I thought it was time to share some writing since I dabble at that too. It may seem a little "dark" but of all I've written, this one was always received the best. It seems many can relate to it.
I would love to see this as a challenge and when I figure out how to present and receive that through my blog, I'll give it a go. If any of you could guide me on how that is done, that would be much appreciated. Perhaps I could even add a bit of incentive to that too. : )

Two Colorful for my Fishy Friend

Perhaps I just spent too much time watching the super bowl ads or perhaps I was humorously thinking of ads that I enjoyed as a kid or perhaps I was thinking of my colorful fish friend - OR all of the above... I felt compelled to do this for fun. AND this was a fun one.

The fish commercial of 1961 may have had many auditions - even from a few that didn't fit the bill! Heh heh Times have sure changed since 1961, haven't they? Where once we could only observe... now we can be a part of through our own creations.

***Many thanks to my Colorful Fish Friend who enlightened me with bright, fun, textured colors and design!***

Dedicated to the child within - may it ever stay young at heart.

Art Creations Friday - 4th design

Hope everyone is having a great week! Here is my 4th design for the Art Creation Friday challenge. Not sure if I'll get the 5th one completed so now all I have to do is figure out which one should move on to the challenge. Which one would you want to see in the challenge?

I've been having so much fun with this background, I haven't taken any time for any other challenges...and to be honest, I'd rather continue on the 5th image I started then move on to the others.

Like my friend, fish have entered my life through art lately - I don't know why - but I love them. Perhaps for no other reason than to appreciate the fact that they're here and should be cherished just as much as any other living creature on this planet.
Odd as this may sound to some of you, the fish first started to appear to me in the texture of one of my bathroom walls. What can I say? Some folks gaze up at the clouds and see images - I look at everything with a texture and see images! LOL
I hope you enjoy this image as much as I have enjoyed creating it.

***My Thanks to Dover Publication free samples for the foreground image and to Art Creations Friday for the background***

SeaShadows

Sea Shadows - another possibility for the Art Creations Friday challenge.

This image incorporates the background (used on two layers) with one of my original digital images.

SeaGarden - Art Creations Friday challenge

~~~~~~~~~Sea Garden~~

SeaGarden - another possibility for the Art Creations Friday challenge. Not exactly the palette I usually work with but I found it pleasing.


This creation incorporates two images. The background and the foreground. I painted the foreground several years ago in watercolor. It was great to work digitally with it.


I find it amazing how many directions you can take a few images. Playing with colors and lighting is always fun. This is way more pleasant than doing housework! Ha!

So there you have it - another image to satisfy some curiousity! Heh heh
(SeaShadows is the next image I will be uploading shortly. For some reason, I couldn't attach it to this post.)


As always, feedback is welcome! : )


p.s. I have two more in the works but I doubt they will get posted right away. They are still in their beginning stages.

First image - Art Creations Friday

Can someone tell me how a smaller orange-colored fish got the name Goldfish? LOL Are there some that are actually gold in color? I was just wondering about that since I've never seen a gold one.

Here is my first image using the background for Art Creations Friday. I have four more that I'm currently working on and hope to finish by late this evening. I'll post as soon as I can. Hopefully, this will help to satisfy just a small amount of your curiousity! ; )

Art Creations Friday in the works

Here is the image for the current challenge in Art Creations Friday. Although I spent most of the day working on an image to enter, as sometimes happens, the computer blitzed and I lost everything I had worked on. So, figuring this background didn't want ferns and leaves on it, I decided to see what I could find in my Sea life folder.

I found a sea image I had created in darker colors but I figured I could work with it. Sure enough, the two images combined quite well.

I found two others that seem to be working as well so I'm not sure yet which of the three I will be entering. Stayed tuned in for more! I should be able to upload the images by tomorrow...hopefully!

Art on the Darkside Challenge

Once again, way out of my comfort zone - Here's "Who's Next" The creepiest carousel image I could come up with thanks to multiple photos found through Google. (None of the images were listed with a copyright.) Ghosty and spinning out of control - Where does this ride take YOU?

And now without further ado, here's the link where you can view more dark images:

http://artonthedarkside.blogspot.com/

If you'd care to participate, the challenges change weekly. Come on...won't you go out of your comfort zone with me? Give it a try...I dare you! Muaaaaahaaaaahaaaaaaaa

Art Creations Friday

This is Thursday afternoon and I've just finished my two images for the art creations friday challenge. Unfortunately, I think I might be too late getting my entry in. There is a new image for the next challenge already. Well, these would have been for challenge #12. This was a very difficult subject for me. It took days to wrap my head around it. I can't even begin to tell you how long I stared at this lady's face to get a feel for it. Please note: My text ideas are totally fictional. I'm too lazy to do research! LOL

Anyway, I sure wish I understood the rules for all the challenges I would like to participate in. Some are very clear about starting date and ending date - I wish they all were!

Post Note: Now that I've had the chance to view the other entries, I think I need to start thinking outside the box more! What great entries!

If you would like to take a look, the link is: http://artcreationsfriday.blogspot.com/

Small World of Inchies

Another new challenge! The theme is Pink. My contribution to the "Small World of Inchies" challenge is the image to the left. I'm not even sure if I did this correct or not but the image you see was made using three "inchies". I hope it's ok I combined the three together. If not, I do have a separate image of each inchie.
If you would like to find out more about inchies, just click on the following link.

http://smallworldofinchies.blogspot.com/

The image to the right was created using two inchies, layered 10 times, over a bookmark background I painted two years ago. I added a window-look to add some dimension.

Each and every inchie I used for the two compostions I hand painted in acrylics.

New Set of Creations - Elements

I started this set in 2008 for a swap themed elements. Not only did I not finish them in time due to illness but if I remember correctly, the host didn't accept digitals. With enough time, that usually does not present a problem for me. I have ways of making them into originals twice over. First by drawing the images before I photoshop them. Second, from two techniques I use from prints. One technique is to print multiples of the image, cut out certain pieces from each print, then with a little glob of paste, layer them onto the base print. I can embellish them any way I want to at that point. (A little trim, some bling, some brads, etc)

Another technique I have used a couple times is to print the image on 110 lb. cardstock then simply drybrush water over areas or drybrush watercolor paint over areas. Does "drybrush" sound like an oxymoron to you? All that means is that you don't want your brush so full of water that the colors on the image bleed. I learned that technique quite by accident. While painting a different image, I somehow had a drop of water fall onto one of my prints. I thought it was ruined but as I took a second look, I thought "Hey, that's kind of cool"! So, instead of throwing the print away, I dropped more droplets onto the print. Need I say more? Try it out if you haven't already. It's really quite fun! No matter what you create, just have fun doing it. AND for goodness sake, don't throw it away! There is always a way to recycle even the mistakes! :)

An Artist Perspective Challenge

Just in case you can't read what it says above, just click on the image and you should get a larger viewing. At least that has worked for me in the past. Hope it works this time too.

Thinking outside the box

This is a geometric design that I created using oil pastels for an ATC swap. The original was the center rectangle image. I took that image and enlarged it for the background - then lowered the opacity. I went back to the original image and moved that one to the top of the background. Then I simply duplicated the center image four times to create a layered effect. Using contrast and brightness, I tweaked the image to make it "pop" and then added lighting effects. This one was fun! I can think of many ways to use this technique. If you haven't tried this yet, I recommend you do. This is a great excercise in thinking outside the box with shapes as well as color.

I was framed

This is an image I've wanted to work on since fall. The original two photographs were quite different. I combined the two then used filters, color effects, and embossing in photoshop cs.

As always, feedback is welcome!

This recipe is one I created to show off the flavors of the Northwest with a twist. Yep, I just had to add the jalapeno! ;) Of course, you don't have to add that when you make this. You could use Hot sausage instead. Heh heh OR not.
It's an easy recipe and the flavor is very rich and tasty. Now you have two new recipes to try. :)

Sausage Pepperoni Penne

In large skillet, brown ½ lb. ground sausage, ¼ lb. chopped pepperoni, 1 sm.-med. diced onion, and ½ -1 diced jalapeno pepper. Add ¼-1/2 lb. sliced mushrooms and 3-6 cloves of minced garlic. In small bowl, add 1 T. cornstarch to 3 T. half & half. Set aside.
Add 4 oz. of heavy cream and 4 oz. of half and half to meat mixture. Mix thoroughly.
Season with cracked pepper, red pepper, salt, and parsley. Add dash of dried rosemary, dill, and cilantro. Add cornstarch mixture and stir until thickened.
Boil penne’ noodles till tender, drain, and add to sauce.Serve hot

It's amazing how much the Southwest influenced my cooking. Although the following recipe didn't have any jalapenos, I just had to add them. It just wouldn't have the flavor we've become accustomed to without them. I also add cayenne or chili flakes to heat it up a bit more. This has become one of my family's favorites. Hope you enjoy it as much as we do.

Corn casserole

1 sm. Chopped sweet onion
3 Eggs, beaten
¼ C. Milk
1 Can Whole kernel corn
2 C. Grated Cheddar Cheese
1 Can Cream corn
1 Pkg. Jiffy corn muffin mix
(Any corn bread mix will do)
1 Pt. Sour Cream
(AND I add 1-2 minced jalapenos)

Beat eggs; add onion, milk and corns, (drain regular corn first), and muffin mix. Add optional jalapenos. (I saute' the onions and jalapeno first) Pour into a greased baking dish. Cover with sour cream. Bake in a 350 degree oven for about 45 minutes or until center is done. Sprinkle with cheddar cheese and put back in oven until melted.
You could also add ground beef, ham or Italian sausage to make it more interesting.
***The original recipe came from the "Seasoned with Sunshine" cookbook.***

Mind-wide open challenge

Hi everyone!
I just entered my first challenge outside the groups I belong to. This was a really fun challenge using the lady image along with the prompt word Dream.
If you would like to participate or check out the entries, just go to http://www.mind-wideopen.blogspot.com/
The entries will be posted on February 8th for voting. The winner will be based on the image with the most votes.

Thanks and appreciation goes to Birgit who shared this link and more with our group at http://groups.yahoo.com/group/Digimation/
More thanks and appreciation goes to Gail who created this wonderful challenge.

I look forward to participating again next month.