This Weeks PCGS

I'm itching to knock on the door of this house and ask permission to photograph in detail all the statuary on display. One of my favourite examples by far of painted cement statuary is the working fountain. Photographing the rest of the garden from behind a fence really doesn't do it justice.

a little like Mother's day was extended

Mother's Day was a nice blend of special day and laid back normalcy, just the way I like it. I called my Grandma to wish her a nice day and even though I didn't get a hold of my own Mom ( I managed to leave a message and I had a great visit with my second Ma. I received a beautiful hand drawn card from my daughter and a special treat from my husband too.

Last week I mentioned that I'd won the Etsy Day give-away from Stacey Winter's Blog. My package came today and what a package! I'm so pleased to have won and even more so with what was in the envelope. I want to thank Stacey so much for taking the time to put everything together so nicely. Here's what I got.

I was going through a few old photographs when the mail came


I eagerly opened my package to find a charming handwritten note,
a stunning photographic pendant necklace, and a lovely card
featuring one of Stacey's vintage prints

I'm afraid that my daughter is coveting the gorgeous scrabble tile necklace. I'll have to keep an eye on her and see that she doesn't make off with it when I'm not looking.

If you like what I got in my package as much as I do; take a peek at Stacey's shop and don't forget to visit her blog, she has some of the most fantastic photographs there. I like to pop in on a regular basis to keep my shutter finger a little itchy.

5 Questions: for your delicious bundle

Last Monday Amanda of Afterthebump featured TMCPhoto and PeanutButterPie in the premier edition of her If I Had Money Monday on her blog. I was pretty excited to be the first feature in this series and I'm looking forward to see how it progresses.

Amanda is an avid crocheter and the adorable hats and bags in her shop are a testament to this statement. There is nothing more important to a Mommy on chilly outdoor walks than a good hat; and a cute hat that also keeps little ears and heads warm is an added bonus. In addition to hats Amanda also creates wall art and the most attractive newborn to toddler headbands I have ever seen. I'm not big on headbands on teeny little babies but these, I would dress any little one in no questions asked. I only wish I'd been an Etsian when my daughter was tiny so I could have photographed her in the Royal Gerbera Daisy headband. I may order one for my next baby portrait session.

After The Bump isn't just for baby, there are items from newborn to preteen and even a section for moms with useful and stylish totes bags and handbags. All the items in After The Bump are made using fresh and stylish colours; and here's the kicker for those of you in the US, this month Amanda is offering free shipping on all her items through may 2009.

Amanda and After the bump can be found on Etsy at afterthebump.etsy.com. You can read her Blog; After the Bump, send her tweets on Twitter, become a fan on Facebook or become her friend on MySpace.



What got you started?

I learned how to crochet at a very young age, but I really started doing something with it when my baby boy was born in October. I quit my full-time job a few weeks before he came, not thinking I would need to find work again. My delivery was a bit unconventional and my little man had to spend some time in the NICU, so he and I racked up quite the medical bill. In order to put a dent in things, I thought it time, once again, to go back to work. My main priority will always be to stay home with my baby, so creating my shop, After the Bump, made perfect sense. Of course, my three sales haven’t done much to curb the bill, but it’s a start. A very, very, very small start.



What is your favourite tool, material to work with and why?
My favorite tools are my K, N, and P crochet needles because they give my pieces that chunky textured look. My favorite material is 100% cotton Lily Sugar ‘n Cream yarn. I love the vibrant colors and the versatility it provides. I can use it to make beanies, dishrags, and everything in between.

Who has influenced your work the most?

I don’t think I could pick just one person. Of course, my own delicious bundle inspires me every day. I look at him and my mind is opened to all the possibilities for babies everywhere. My closest friends and family have been channeling their ideas my way since I opened shop. That has really helped me to come up with my own ideas. Theirs may not make a lot of sense, but then I think about them, tweak them a bit, and I’ve got a new creation. And of course my husband. I still believe he thinks my shop is just another one of my whims, which will eventually fade away into nothing. But he still supports me, bless his heart.



What has surprised you most about selling your creations online?

Wow. What hasn’t surprised me. Occasionally I’ll browse Etsy for shops like my own (gotta scope out the competition) to see which items they’ve been selling and why some shops are more successful than others. I think I am most surprised by the originality and talent that surrounds me. The most unlikely creations are those that seem to sell the best. Because of this, I am trying to think outside the box a bit more. Not really a strong point of mine, but something I am continually working on late into the night (or should I say morning).

Which Children's book character would you be and why?

After much thought and consideration, I would be Angelina the mouse in the Angelina Ballerina series by Katharine Holabird. I remember wanting to dance just like her when I read the books. I loved her tutus and her pretty ballerina shoes. I suppose I could come up with some inspiring analogy of how Angelina’s dreams to become a prima ballerina inspired me to take dance classes and now, at the age of 24, I am a prima ballerina. But really, I just enjoyed the books.

I'm determined

One of the things I missed out on living in a one bedroom apartment when my daughter came along was the nursery nesting experience. Other than setting up a crib in our bedroom, there was no painting the nursery, choosing just the right lamp and all that other fun stuff.

I'm not a fan of gender specific colours (one of the reasons I was so excited about the Etsy baby shower was the colour choices my Mom had in her son's room) when I was pregnant and puffy I chose the colours I would use in the nursery if we had one, I wanted the colours of lime and strawberry Popsicles. Bright green and rich pinky red, when the light shines off of them. When we moved into a two bedroom last year I went in search of just the right furniture and bedding to suit.

As with most of our home decor, we ended up in Ikea. It's inexpensive and looks clean on modern. We picked out a mini table and chair set, a shelf and bin unit for her toys and a rug and bedding that matched the paint chips I had painstakingly picked out at the neighborhood paint shop. In addition we found a beautiful wrought iron bed on Craigslist and one of the grandma's donated a refurbished antique armoire and bed table, both painted cream to match the bed.

The bulk of the room with the rug and bedding was red and I wanted more green and something that was a little more one of a kind and specific to Miranda's likes. We also needed window coverings to help block out the early morning light (a 5:30am wake up time is not well received by either me or the husband) . A trip the the fabric store yielded a piece of black denim (to use as a light block) and a pre-made curtain in the exact shade I was looking for. To personalize it I decided to hand stitch ladybugs (one of Miranda's enduring obsessions) across the bottom.

One year later and we're in a new place; and I'm still stitching. I'm getting close though. I can see the light at the end of the tunnel. I'm determined that I'll have that curtain up in her window b the end of this summer. I have plans to bring it with me on our road trip and sew as we drive though the mountains, in between keeping miss motion sickness occupied of course.

PCGS or in this case poured cement curb appeal

It's not really sculpture but it is poured cement. I'm still on the fence (no pun intended, Ok maybe a little) about whether I like this or not, it has potential to be really interesting but in the end I thin it just looks to contrived. What do you think?

A banner Week and a rocking weekend

Last week was pretty exciting, I mentioned last week that I won a blog give-away from Stacey Winters . It turns out that I've also won second give-away on another blog; Mod3rnart picked my comment from her blog a few weeks ago and I won an amazing print of shealeigh's painting Zoli, pictured to the left.

On Sunday, I finally had a date night with my husband. We are fortunate enough to have friends in high places and as a result we were able to get on the guest list for Ladytron at the Commodore in Vancouver. Other than a crick in my neck and aching feet from standing/ dancing for four+ hours. The set was excellent for both Ladytron and the support act The Faint. The music was rocking and very danceable and if I wasn't already a fan of both bands I'd have been hooked.

You can see the video for one of my favourite songs by Ladytron here, and one from The Faint here

In other news I've been featured in After the Bump's blog. She's started a weekly feature titled If I Had Money Monday. I'll be returing the favour for Amanda of After the Bump this Friday.

5 questions: Wind Chime Art

Tim Kline of tskDesign is a fellow West Coast Artist. His work is simply stunning and breathtaking. There is great natural beauty here on the Pacific Coast, and Tim strives to bring some of that beauty to his work and succeeds beyond measure.

Working with glass, copper, beach stone, and other materials, Tim works with a perfect melding of nature and fine art. One of my favourite pieces in his shop is the Suncatcher Kaleidoscope, a beach glass creation that reminds me of the glowing, tumbles of colour my daughters toy store version makes.

What make's Tim's creations so great is his philosophy regarding their use: a wind chime does not have to be just about sound ~ after all, the wind is not always blowing. A wind chime can be art (and even be hung indoors), and so can a bird feeder. Tim carefully selects his materials to build chimes that will look better and better over time. No paint to peal off, no strings to break. Many of his wind chimes are truly resistant to the elements; made from 100% glass and copper, others use beautifully weathered drift wood and tung nut oiled red cedar.

Visit Coast Chimes to see more of his brilliant work and you can read more about Tim on his Blog full of great details regarding his creative process, it's an excellent read and a perfect way to feel a little inspiration yourself.

What got you started?

It must be deep in my bones to create. For as far back as I can remember, I have always painted, drawn, made things. And I have also always appreciated the beautify in nature and art. One of my earliest memories is finding a piece of driftwood on a lakeshore in Wisconsin, and proudly bringing it home. It was smooth and lovely. Now, many decades later, what am I doing? Going down to the beach to find driftwood for my art! But I got started full time and business-like fourteen years ago, after moving to the Sunshine Coast, B.C., Canada, and facing the fact that I needed a job. This was about the same time that I discovered the Internet, and so all this came together. Since then, I have worked full time both on my skills as an artist, and on my knowledge of the Net, and marketing (for example, learning how to build a decent website).

Do you listen to music when you create?
Lots of what I do involves noisy, and somewhat dangerous, tools. That's not conducive to listening to music, not if I want to keep all nine and 9/10ths of my fingers (I cut the tip off my thumb a few years back, despite no music drawing on my concentration). That said, there are peaceful work times, too, and for years I listened mainly to talk radio. However, I just got an iPod Touch a few weeks ago, to use primarily as an e-book reader. While it is working great for that, I am also rediscovering (I used to listen non-stop as a kid) the joy of music. I've been enjoying NPR podcasts of 'All Songs Considered.'




What is your ultimate creator's block cure?

I have a deep dread of going into the red on my credit card. My monthly bills are considerable, for materials, tools, food and postage, and I can't rest until I know I have that covered. This gets me working hard, both making things and promoting. It also forces me (one of the more unorganized people you might encounter) to be somewhat organized, which really goes against my grain. Each night I actually make a short list in my head of the minimal I must accomplish the next day. If I don't cross everything off that mental list, I scold myself. I'm my own boss, but what an unpleasant slave driver I am! Also, if all else fails (and too often it does!), I grab my dog and we go for a long hike. After seven years with the pup, I am still surprised at how this refreshes.



What life or art lesson have you learned that has shaped your work?
If I can dream it, and make it, and put my heart into it, someone, sooner or later, will buy it. This shapes my work, as I no longer worry (much) about what others might think. I make what I dream, and let the materials speak to me, not the market. The few times I have made something to someone's specifications, I have not enjoyed the experience very much.

Rock, Paper or Scissors?
Rock, for sure. I love natural, smooth, rounded beach stones, and use them all the time in my work.