Saturday, May 22, 2010
Mother's Day Cards
Tuesday, May 18, 2010
Coming Up: RVyAy! Records, Vintage, & Art Fair
Friday, May 28 and Saturday, May 29th, 7:00 to 10:00 pm at Gallery 5, Richmond, VA
PREVIEW
Friday, May 28th
7PM - 10PM
$8
Special preview Friday night featuring performances by Ophelia, Go Go Funk Yourself, Burlesque and a special collaboration by No BS Brass Band and Gull. Record vendors in the adjoining room.
Saturday, May 29th
12PM - 6PM
FREE
Record vendors downstairs and craft vendors upstairs, with Cherry Bomb spinning records on both floors.
Check it out!
I just took The Art of Sewing class at the Visual Arts Center (an amazing class for beginners like me), and I'm now obsessed with sewing. So I have ideas for some cute little plush fabric toys. Maybe they'll be ready in time for this event? We'll see...
Monday, May 3, 2010
Gelatin Printmaking Process
This is an extremely fun printmaking process that you can do at home. You mix up a thick batch of gelatin and pour it into a flat pan. I used a piece of plexiglass with modeling clay around the edges to create a wall. You pour in the jello, scrape off the air bubbles, and let set. You can visit here for a more detailed tutorial on making the plates.
Then comes the fun part - printing! Using water-based inks (I used Akua inks for this experiment), you just roll the ink on with a rubber brayer and then place hand-cut paper shapes, plant matter, string, stencils, and anything fairly flat on top. Place your paper over the jello plate and gently rub, then lift it up. You can experiment with using negative and positive shapes by laying objects and stencils down, directly painting strokes of ink on the jello slab, and layering colors and textures.
This jello print was made in layers. i rolled up ink and placed plastic netting over it to create some texture, then printed it. Then I inked up an orange color and placed leaves on top. The result is shown here - the leaves acted as stencils by blocking the ink transfer, and remained as white shapes. The great part about using jello is that it has a bit of natural suction when you press your paper down on it, so that ink lifts up very easily. There is no need to apply a lot of pressure. You can re-use your jello slab, even if it gets moldy! Just rinse it a bit, blot out the excess moisture and make use of the interesting holes and cracks in the jello.
Then comes the fun part - printing! Using water-based inks (I used Akua inks for this experiment), you just roll the ink on with a rubber brayer and then place hand-cut paper shapes, plant matter, string, stencils, and anything fairly flat on top. Place your paper over the jello plate and gently rub, then lift it up. You can experiment with using negative and positive shapes by laying objects and stencils down, directly painting strokes of ink on the jello slab, and layering colors and textures.
This jello print was made in layers. i rolled up ink and placed plastic netting over it to create some texture, then printed it. Then I inked up an orange color and placed leaves on top. The result is shown here - the leaves acted as stencils by blocking the ink transfer, and remained as white shapes. The great part about using jello is that it has a bit of natural suction when you press your paper down on it, so that ink lifts up very easily. There is no need to apply a lot of pressure. You can re-use your jello slab, even if it gets moldy! Just rinse it a bit, blot out the excess moisture and make use of the interesting holes and cracks in the jello.
How to Make a Collagraph
I want to post more info about different printmaking techniques. it's a shame that printmaking is so undervalued as an art form because not that many people understand what it is. it has gotten to be a "secret art" unless you have studied it.
These photos don't quite show the entire process, but i will post more at a later time.
This print is a collagraph, which is basically a collaged printmaking plate. You can use any materials you want, provided they are fairly flat. If an object is too bulky, it will not print well and may also damage your paper and the rollers of the press. My collagraph plate was made using a base of cardboard. I cut layers of cardboard away, and added tape, sandpaper, plastic netting, Brita filter carbon grains, and cut paper shapes. I also cut little marks into the shoes and grass area with my razor blade. The whole thing was then covered with a few layers of acrylic medium to seal the added elements and to waterproof the plate so that I could ink it. I used Akua waterbased inks for this print. I will do another post later about the process of printing. As you can see, the print comes out as the reverse of the plate. Most printmaking techniques besides screenprinting will make a reverse image. Collagraph is a really fun technique, and you can do it on the cheap (which is great if you want to make big plates or simply experiment.)
These photos don't quite show the entire process, but i will post more at a later time.
How I made "Flower Girl":
This print is a collagraph, which is basically a collaged printmaking plate. You can use any materials you want, provided they are fairly flat. If an object is too bulky, it will not print well and may also damage your paper and the rollers of the press. My collagraph plate was made using a base of cardboard. I cut layers of cardboard away, and added tape, sandpaper, plastic netting, Brita filter carbon grains, and cut paper shapes. I also cut little marks into the shoes and grass area with my razor blade. The whole thing was then covered with a few layers of acrylic medium to seal the added elements and to waterproof the plate so that I could ink it. I used Akua waterbased inks for this print. I will do another post later about the process of printing. As you can see, the print comes out as the reverse of the plate. Most printmaking techniques besides screenprinting will make a reverse image. Collagraph is a really fun technique, and you can do it on the cheap (which is great if you want to make big plates or simply experiment.)
Thursday, April 22, 2010
6th Day of Fasting
Yesterday was the 6th and final day of my fast, and the day i broke it. i felt pretty even-keel that day, but i was excited to eat again. at around 4 pm i cooked some vegetable soup. i used fresh parsley and kale that had overwintered in our garden.
Strangely, eating after 5 days wasn't quite as triumphant-feeling as i thought it would be. it just felt normal. though i was only supposed to eat the soup that day, my tummy kept wanting more. it was hard to know when i was really full. i knew i shouldn't overstuff myself, but i ate some roasted seaweed, many handfuls of raw pecans, and half an apple. my tummy was grumbling like crazy the whole night, trying to process so much.
This morning i only craved another glass of lemonade. i think i ate a bit too much last night. i feel fine, but not bursting with energy the way that some fasters seem to feel.
Early this morning i woke up with several thoughts running through my head. This fast has been helpful in showing me a different way of thinking, and of putting together pieces of a puzzle i've been trying to solve. Originally, i wanted to go on this fast to detoxify as i felt sluggish and unmotivated. i have always had trouble focusing, and i'm a major procrastinator and worry-wart. During this fast, i felt oddly "normal." i didn't feel anxious or over-worried as i usually do. my moods were more stabilized. this makes me realize that i need to keep a better watch over my blood sugar dropping. during the fast, i could tell everytime i needed more lemonade because i would become suddenly irritated and angry. once i drank the lemonade i felt better. i believe that i have internalized a lot of these negative feelings that may have a large part to do with my metabolism and blood sugar levels. Maybe because this fast focused my attention so much on elimination of bodily waste, it was easy to see these negative thoughts similarly as "invaders," separate entities that enter into my mind and become stored inside my body as pent-up irritation. i've resolved to practice letting go immediately. Also, maybe just the simplified practice of drinking lemonade helped clear my mind and allowed me to focus on the fasting without thinking about too much else. i became a bit weaker through this fast, so it may have given me only enough energy to be aware of the fast.
another realization is that much of my hang-ups about food come from a deep-rooted fear of "not having enough" - physically, emotionally, financially. i think i've always been like this. it makes me act selfishly at times, and feel like i need to hold onto things for fear that i'll lose them or will never have another opportunity to have them. i think this feeling has impacted me negatively my whole life. i've read that if you want to experience abundance, you need to practice abundance. i had been trying to do that more consciously ever since the new year, but this realization compounds it.
and the last realization leads me to why i have trouble focusing. this doesn't have to do specifically with the fast, but i believe something about the process helped me to figure it out. it's not so much that i don't have enough energy, as i first believed, but that i MISUSE my energy. i divert it through anxiety, worrying, and distraction. the reason that i divert my energy is that i become overwhelmed very easily. i am not a good multi-tasker. i have always been jealous of others who seem to do many things at once so easily. i used to think this was something i should just get better at. but i have to accept that my strengths lie in different areas, and i need to develop those strengths. i am much better at doing one thing at a time. it takes me way too much energy to switch gears constantly. i believe this is the reason i am so detail-oriented. it allows me to focus much more fixedly. if i have too many things i need to do, it's like my brain just shuts down and i can't deal with anything. I decided that i need a way of organizing my thoughts to streamline my tasks so that i don't get overwhelmed. so far i haven't quite found a system of doing that, so i am searching around for one. but it feels good to know that i've found the root of the problem, and i can begin to work on it constructively.
Ever since beginning teaching at the Visual Arts Center of Richmond, i have been sometimes overwhelmed at the prospect of teaching and all the planning it involves. there have been times i've freaked out and felt like i simply couldn't do it. but one thing that helped was to simply sit down and actively try to solve "the problem" - write lists of the materials i'll need, brainstorm on class ideas, and call people if i need help. this very basic way of tackling problems has been so much more helpful than simply beating myself up for not feeling capable right away. i AM capable. I just feel afraid sometimes.
anyway, this has been a rather long post. but i felt it was important for me to get these thoughts down. hope everyone's having a great day. time to go to the grocery store and get some cat food for Dozer. Here's a picture of him jumping on me when he wants to tell me something.
Strangely, eating after 5 days wasn't quite as triumphant-feeling as i thought it would be. it just felt normal. though i was only supposed to eat the soup that day, my tummy kept wanting more. it was hard to know when i was really full. i knew i shouldn't overstuff myself, but i ate some roasted seaweed, many handfuls of raw pecans, and half an apple. my tummy was grumbling like crazy the whole night, trying to process so much.
This morning i only craved another glass of lemonade. i think i ate a bit too much last night. i feel fine, but not bursting with energy the way that some fasters seem to feel.
Early this morning i woke up with several thoughts running through my head. This fast has been helpful in showing me a different way of thinking, and of putting together pieces of a puzzle i've been trying to solve. Originally, i wanted to go on this fast to detoxify as i felt sluggish and unmotivated. i have always had trouble focusing, and i'm a major procrastinator and worry-wart. During this fast, i felt oddly "normal." i didn't feel anxious or over-worried as i usually do. my moods were more stabilized. this makes me realize that i need to keep a better watch over my blood sugar dropping. during the fast, i could tell everytime i needed more lemonade because i would become suddenly irritated and angry. once i drank the lemonade i felt better. i believe that i have internalized a lot of these negative feelings that may have a large part to do with my metabolism and blood sugar levels. Maybe because this fast focused my attention so much on elimination of bodily waste, it was easy to see these negative thoughts similarly as "invaders," separate entities that enter into my mind and become stored inside my body as pent-up irritation. i've resolved to practice letting go immediately. Also, maybe just the simplified practice of drinking lemonade helped clear my mind and allowed me to focus on the fasting without thinking about too much else. i became a bit weaker through this fast, so it may have given me only enough energy to be aware of the fast.
another realization is that much of my hang-ups about food come from a deep-rooted fear of "not having enough" - physically, emotionally, financially. i think i've always been like this. it makes me act selfishly at times, and feel like i need to hold onto things for fear that i'll lose them or will never have another opportunity to have them. i think this feeling has impacted me negatively my whole life. i've read that if you want to experience abundance, you need to practice abundance. i had been trying to do that more consciously ever since the new year, but this realization compounds it.
and the last realization leads me to why i have trouble focusing. this doesn't have to do specifically with the fast, but i believe something about the process helped me to figure it out. it's not so much that i don't have enough energy, as i first believed, but that i MISUSE my energy. i divert it through anxiety, worrying, and distraction. the reason that i divert my energy is that i become overwhelmed very easily. i am not a good multi-tasker. i have always been jealous of others who seem to do many things at once so easily. i used to think this was something i should just get better at. but i have to accept that my strengths lie in different areas, and i need to develop those strengths. i am much better at doing one thing at a time. it takes me way too much energy to switch gears constantly. i believe this is the reason i am so detail-oriented. it allows me to focus much more fixedly. if i have too many things i need to do, it's like my brain just shuts down and i can't deal with anything. I decided that i need a way of organizing my thoughts to streamline my tasks so that i don't get overwhelmed. so far i haven't quite found a system of doing that, so i am searching around for one. but it feels good to know that i've found the root of the problem, and i can begin to work on it constructively.
Ever since beginning teaching at the Visual Arts Center of Richmond, i have been sometimes overwhelmed at the prospect of teaching and all the planning it involves. there have been times i've freaked out and felt like i simply couldn't do it. but one thing that helped was to simply sit down and actively try to solve "the problem" - write lists of the materials i'll need, brainstorm on class ideas, and call people if i need help. this very basic way of tackling problems has been so much more helpful than simply beating myself up for not feeling capable right away. i AM capable. I just feel afraid sometimes.
Tuesday, April 20, 2010
5th Day of the Fast
yesterday was definitely the worst in terms of feeling cruddy. later that night my body temperature dropped a lot - i was so cold! i fantasized about eating warm soup. i also fantasized about eating some pecans - anything with some healthy fats in it. i got the hiccups, which was making me slightly nauseous as it was causing all the fluids in my stomach to jump around. I know it's normal to to get sick during the fast, but when you're already run-down it's easy to feel frightened that something is going wrong. for the first time since starting the fast, my stomach felt SO EMPTY. it felt so scary.
this morning i felt better, no sore throat and more energy. i had hiccups throughout the day, which is strange. i wonder why and if anyone else has had this reaction. i know i could continue on this fast longer, as i think the 4th day was probably the worst. but i decided to do my "Ease-Out" phase of fasting this afternoon. i started drinking the fresh-squeezed orange juice. tomorrow i will drink more orange juice and then cook a soup in the evening! i will eat mostly the broth, but it will be nice :) i guess that i have wimpy willpower. i know that sometime in the future i will try the fast again, maybe make it a yearly thing. if i can increase my duration each time, i will be happy.
i went to the grocery story today to get the oranges and some vegetables for soup and salad. i was very tempted by all the food i saw! i feel like i've lost some of the mental strength i had before because i'm totally obsessed about all the meals i want to make and the deliciousness of food. Though i eat pretty healthy, i'm definitely thinking of how good everything will taste! Evan's grandma is going to take us out to lunch next monday, so i am really looking forward to eating at Kuba Kuba, an awesome cuban restaurant in Richmond. last time i got huevos rancheros and tostones (fried plantains).
i was reading a Master Cleanse forum and i found an absolutely delicious-sounding recipe for a raw "soup." i have not tried many raw food recipes before, but it makes me curious about getting a raw cookbook. i will post a pic when i make this soup.
***
This recipe is from The Complete Book of Raw Food~ Lori Baird, editor
Abeba and Anna's It's Really Soup:
serves 8 to 10 people
10 to 11 fresh Roma tomatoes, chopped
1/2 red or yellow onion, peeled and chopped
4 cloves garlic, peeled
fresh basil to taste
fresh dill to taste
2 tablespoons fresh-squeezed lemon juice
Celtic sea salt to taste
2 tablespoons olive oil
1/8 to 1/4 cup raisins
1 to 2 red bell peppers
1/4 jalapeno pepper (optional) (i used habenero because i love spicy!)
1 cup sun-dried tomatoes, finely chopped then divided
1 avacado cubed
1 ear of corn cut from the cob
1/2 sweet yellow pepper
finely chopped parsley for garnish
In a blender combine 6 of the tomatoes with the onion, garlic, basil, dill, lemon juice, sea salt, olive oil, raisins, red bell pepper, jalapeno, and 1/2 cup water.
Blend well.
Add 1/2 cup of the sun dried tomatoes, a little at a time. Blend well.
In a large bowl, combine the avocado, remaining fresh and dried tomatoes, corn and the sweet yellow pepper. Pour the blended mixture over the chopped veggies and stir well. Garnish with parsley.
***
and here's a pic of some yummy food i made last summer, as a celebration of food! it's a tofu scramble with cornbread and soy sausage. quite delicious.
this morning i felt better, no sore throat and more energy. i had hiccups throughout the day, which is strange. i wonder why and if anyone else has had this reaction. i know i could continue on this fast longer, as i think the 4th day was probably the worst. but i decided to do my "Ease-Out" phase of fasting this afternoon. i started drinking the fresh-squeezed orange juice. tomorrow i will drink more orange juice and then cook a soup in the evening! i will eat mostly the broth, but it will be nice :) i guess that i have wimpy willpower. i know that sometime in the future i will try the fast again, maybe make it a yearly thing. if i can increase my duration each time, i will be happy.
i went to the grocery story today to get the oranges and some vegetables for soup and salad. i was very tempted by all the food i saw! i feel like i've lost some of the mental strength i had before because i'm totally obsessed about all the meals i want to make and the deliciousness of food. Though i eat pretty healthy, i'm definitely thinking of how good everything will taste! Evan's grandma is going to take us out to lunch next monday, so i am really looking forward to eating at Kuba Kuba, an awesome cuban restaurant in Richmond. last time i got huevos rancheros and tostones (fried plantains).
i was reading a Master Cleanse forum and i found an absolutely delicious-sounding recipe for a raw "soup." i have not tried many raw food recipes before, but it makes me curious about getting a raw cookbook. i will post a pic when i make this soup.
***
This recipe is from The Complete Book of Raw Food~ Lori Baird, editor
Abeba and Anna's It's Really Soup:
serves 8 to 10 people
10 to 11 fresh Roma tomatoes, chopped
1/2 red or yellow onion, peeled and chopped
4 cloves garlic, peeled
fresh basil to taste
fresh dill to taste
2 tablespoons fresh-squeezed lemon juice
Celtic sea salt to taste
2 tablespoons olive oil
1/8 to 1/4 cup raisins
1 to 2 red bell peppers
1/4 jalapeno pepper (optional) (i used habenero because i love spicy!)
1 cup sun-dried tomatoes, finely chopped then divided
1 avacado cubed
1 ear of corn cut from the cob
1/2 sweet yellow pepper
finely chopped parsley for garnish
In a blender combine 6 of the tomatoes with the onion, garlic, basil, dill, lemon juice, sea salt, olive oil, raisins, red bell pepper, jalapeno, and 1/2 cup water.
Blend well.
Add 1/2 cup of the sun dried tomatoes, a little at a time. Blend well.
In a large bowl, combine the avocado, remaining fresh and dried tomatoes, corn and the sweet yellow pepper. Pour the blended mixture over the chopped veggies and stir well. Garnish with parsley.
***
Spring Bada Bing
hello folks,
here are some pictures from the Spring Bada Bing show at Plant Zero in Richmond. the photo of me is slightly blurry, but i liked the flowery dress i had on - it was so spring-like. i hardly ever dress up, so it was a nice change.
and here are some of the new pins i made for the show: Commodity Pins made using gel transfers of xeroxes of vintage food products, and Flower Pins made from hand-cut paper. i had fun making those.
the show had lots of great vendors. one of my favorites was an artist named Jaime Zollars. she had some beautiful silkscreen prints for sale.
thanks everyone who came out! it was nice to see some new and familiar faces.
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