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Giuseppe Arcimboldo (1527 – July 11, 1593) was an Italian painter known for creating imaginative portrait heads made entirely of such objects as fruits, vegetables, flowers, fish, and books. He was skilled and imaginative in his art.

                                                              
  Wow!  First it's a Salad Bowl filled with vegetables and then flip it over and it becomes a bearded man wearing a hat!

  



Some art images in the style of Giuseppe Arcimboldo.  Enjoy!









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Tints, Shades, and Tones

These terms are often used confused, though they describe  simple color concepts. If a color is made lighter by adding white, the result is called a tint. If black is added, the darker version is called a shade. And if gray is added, the result is a different tone.


A Tint can be called a Pastel. It's any color with white added.
A color scheme using Tints is soft and soothing.




A Shade is simply any color with black added.
Shades are deep and powerful. 



A Tone is created by adding both White and Black. Any color that is "greyed down" is considered a Tone.
Tones are somehow more pleasing to the eye. They are complex and subtle. 





Loom Knitting

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Loom Knitting

I've just discovered loom knitting. It's so much fun!
Many people (me included) have tried knitting with needles. They find the technique very confusing! I was always dropping a stitch....arrrgh!  Loom knitting is so much easier! Looms are used to turn yarn into fabric, similar to needle knitting.  Basically, looms work like manual knitting machines.  It is very easy to make hats, scarves, bags, pillows, and blankets.

I'm using the loom called Knifty Knitter. This is what the looms look like:
 Each set includes four sizes of looms (small, medium, large and extra large), a hook and a pick tool.  I got my set at Hobby  Lobby (http://shop.hobbylobby.com/) for about $ 12.00. 
A flat panel scarf like the one below can be made on a round loom.

I’ve made several scarves and I’m not tired of loom knitting yet.  It’s very addictive J.  I’d like to try changing colors and making stripes.  There’s lots more knitting to be done…so try it.  It might become the hobby you're looking for!! J







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What's a Bottle Tree?


Have you ever seen a bottle tree? 



Aren't they cool! 
Bottle trees are a Southern folk tradition with the purpose of warding off evil spirits, while at the same time recycling colorful bottles.  I just like the way they look. 






Folk tales claim that the bottles trap bad spirits at night, which are then destroyed in the next morning's sunlight.  Sounds like a great idea to me!
Here's one made from a post with metal spikes to hold the bottles.






I've made my own version of a colorful bottle tree.  I have a crepe mrytle tree in my backyard that I add interesting glass objects to.  It's evolving into something that I've grown quite fond of.
I recently received a catalog from At West End with many clever, interesting items to inspire just about anyone!  They sell several iron bottle trees and one that even hangs from the eve of your porch!
 
Have you ever thought of making you own bottle tree?  I love how the sunlight shines through the colored glass.  I think it is a wonderful addition to your yard! You can use a living tree, a wooden post in the ground, a tree stump, or even metal rebar to create a tree form.



 Have fun and create a little of your own urban tree bling!!
                                                            
                                     

My First Post

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My first post on my attempt at blogging!  I'd like this to be a place to journal about my art projects...whatever they happen to be.  My daughter has encouraged me to create a site to write about my art.  I think it will be fun!  I'm a recently retired art teacher and am enjoying working on art projects for myself these days instead for my classroom!  
I've just connected with creativeeveryday.com to, hopefully, to give me a jump start in creativity in 2011.  Yeah!!  This seems to be an interesting site where Leah has a challenge "with the idea of bringing more creativity into our lives". 
  I look forward to seeing what projects I'll create in the coming months. She has monthly themes as a suggestion to help if you care to use her idea.
Creating the look of my blog was a learning experience for me this evening and it is still a work in progress.  Fun and frustrating at the same time.  I'd like to add some of my favorite blogs -ones that I enjoy visiting whenever I have time.
Well I'll sign off until next time....