Off The List

As I have mentioned before I have many many unfinished projects.  

For a while I told myself to finish them before I moved on to new projects.  

BUT... that really doesn't work well, 

so I have given myself permission to work on creating whatever I feel like at the time.  

Because of that freedom, I worked on and finished this piece that has been sitting and waiting to be finished for so long. 

You know how it goes..... it is easier to do things when you don't HAVE to do them.

The base is made of a grid of plaster on a wooden cradle board (shallow box like structure)

Which I then painted, inked, scratched into and collaged onto, and finished with a thin layer of paste wax.

It is nice to check at least one thing off of my unfinished projects list! 

Constant State of Becoming

This piece is one that is presently on my desk.

I started it many months ago. It is a painting on a plaster covered cradle board.

and although it has had many different looks I forgot to take pictures along the way.

This is how it looks today. I am not sure if it is finished or not

as she, like me is in a constant state of becoming....

I did hang her on the wall to take a picture .... which usually means the piece is done, but I have taken an "on the wall picture" of her three times already, (which I deleted so I don't have them to share) and continued to add to her. I will leave her for a while and see what she becomes....

My New Little Chair

I have a "To Create" List.... There are so many things I want to create, and I don't know if I will ever have time to get to them all... I doubt it. Creating a chair out of plaster has been on my list for a number of months now.... and I am happy to say I now have created the chair.

I started with a framework made of wire and a bit of plaster to hold it together.

I then added a layer of plaster gauze....

and some more plain plaster that once dry I sanded down.

I then painted it, added a thin layer of wax, and wove the back with some aged twine.

I then had some fun taking pictures of my new little chair (sits about 5 inches tall).

We still have so much snow.... but I wanted to see some signs of spring, so took my dried flowers and my new chair outside in the snow and the sun and had some fun taking pictures.

Struggling with Plaster

I have been looking forward to having time to play and paint on plaster. I have time right now, but the pieces I have been working on have not been so much fun as I had anticipated. Rather they were a struggle.
Here is the final piece. It is quite small, measuring about 6 inches square.

I love how the pieces are on cradle boards (shallow wooden box), as they add dimension to a wall, and don't need framing.

My goal for now is to enjoy what I am working on. Rather then telling myself what to work on, I will listen to what I want to work on. I do have one more plaster piece in process, but I may leave it for now, and spend some time playing on something else... I will see where the creating muse takes me....

Playing with Paint and Plaster

"Though I do not believe a plant will spring up where no seed has been, I have great faith in a seed. Convince me that you have a seed there, and I am prepared to expect wonders."

Henry David Thoreau

I have been playing - painting on plaster this week, and the above quote has been circling through my head. Winter trees have also been on my mind, so that is perhaps where these bare trees with so many seeds circling came from. Sometimes I find there are so many seeds running through my mind, that I am not sure which ones I should plant and nurture. Some are easy to plant, and do not require much effort to grow, while others take great courage to plant, and may need more nurturing.


Some seeds take a long time to grow, while others ones sprout quickly. I am working at planting some of those seeds that take some time to grow, but in the long run will hopefully be well worth it. Sometimes seeds don't grow, or grow differently then you expected. But that is okay, I will continue to work at planting some seeds.

I enjoyed my play time with plaster, and am working on another piece.... with a few more in mind that I would like to try.

On The Wall

There is something so very satisfying about finishing a piece and being able to have a look at it hanging on your wall.

Below are some paintings on plaster, that I finally painted the backs, added something to hang them up with, and tried them out on my wall.

and now they are ready to go on my table for sale at this weekend's sale.

The Gift of Time

Today I gave myself a gift of time. I had other things I could have done, but when I woke up this morning, I decided I should give myself a gift of time and I decided this time was going to be spent working on a painting on plaster that has been sitting on my desk for some time.
This is how the piece looked this morning when I sat down at my desk.

And a few hours later - that went by in a blink of an eye - this is what emerged. I am not sure if it is finished yet, but I will leave it there for now and let time tell me if it is done or not.

Here are some close ups....

in which you can see a bit more of the detail.

I enjoyed my day... and wish for you all a chance to give yourself the gift of time.

Plaster Vessel

In the Plaster course I took in June/July, Stephanie Lee showed us how to make vessels out of plaster. I loved the look of them, but for some reason it took me a lot of time to build up enough courage to give it a try. I think it was because I wanted to ensure I had enough time to work on it, and having the past week off work, I decided to give it a try.

I made my vessel in a crude boat shape. It is made out of wire and covered with plaster. (Tricker than it sounds) Once this part was completed, it took about 3 days to dry.

I then painted the outside, coated the inside with a layer of encaustic wax, which I carved into, and then rubbed a thin layer of paint onto the wax.

I enjoyed making it, and one day when I once again have a big chunk of time, I will make another one.

But for now, it is time to finish up a few chores, and clean up the art supplies as it is back to work tomorrow. It has been a wonderfully creative week!

Yes More Botanicals!

I don't know what it is - perhaps it is because we are in the prime of flower season here in the Yukon - or perhaps it is just because I love plants - that my paintings on plaster seem to be of botanicals. But I guess when something just feels right that is what has to happen.
Here is the board with many layers of paint as the background.
At my messy painting desk.

I sketched on what I was thinking about painting

and did a bit of practice flowers on paper. And then I forgot to take anymore pictures until it was finished....

or maybe finished.... not sure yet, as these images were loading I walked over to my desk where this was sitting, and dapped on a bit more paint.

Time will tell.