Some Pics and Prices for you

Well here I am with a few minutes today to post some pictures of my work along with some prices (I hope). The first picture is of a nativity that I've made that I'm ever so proud of:

Price $65.00 + shipping

This picture was taken in the daytime and it really doesn't do the piece justice as to how it looks in the dark.

The next picture up is of a smaller filigree piece that is really pretty:

Price $40.00 + shipping

I took a really terrible picture of this next one but the lighting was bad. This piece has a lot of engraving all over it with blue in the engraved spots and green over the rest of the piece:

Price $45.00 + shipping

I hope someone loves this next piece 'cause it's a real beauty! It's topped with a deer antler with turquoise inset and beads in the front and a deer head woodburned on the back which is colored in waxes. There is leather coiled on the top and engraving on the sides. The background of the piece is colored with dye. The whole piece is coated with sealer to preserve it:

Price $55.00 + shipping

                                                           Price $20.00 + shipping
Looks just like the real apple doesn't it? Of course it's much larger and you can't eat it! This piece hasn't been opened up.

Once again this is not the best picture but it is a fantastic piece. When I first saw the gourd that makes up the body of this piece, all I could think of was.....pheasant. I do believe it turned out to be a quite beautiful pheasant if I do say so myself:

Price $100 + shipping



All of my pieces are cleaned thoroughly both inside and out. The inside of the gourd is finished off with a coat of paint and the outside of the gourd is sealed completely with a coat of polyurethane to keep it nice. All you have to do is dust it with a feather duster and keep it out of direct sunlight.

If there is a particular thing that you collect or have a perchance for you can let me know about what you're willing to spend on it and I can create something for you that's custom made. Just contact me and let me know what you like or you can certainly purchase one of the pieces that I've shown you today. I have only one of each of these so it's first come first served. Thanks for looking at my art and for being so supportive of me.



Catching Up

Well folks here I am again trying to catch everyone up on what's been going on in my life. All I have to say is I've been Very busy working on my Gourd Art. I now have pieces in six different places and they have been selling well. That of course makes me very happy. I have been trying to read up on what everyone else is doing and how you're all getting along though. It's just hard to read all the blogs I follow and reply to very many. My slow time will be the first three months of the year, and I say slow without really knowing that for sure, it's just what I've been told. I do plan on working on some competition pieces when I get the time and enter my first competition in April.

I haven't really done any decorating since we're not going to be home for Christmas and my hubby didn't want to drag out all the decorations if we weren't going to be home. :( I have however been listening to a lot of Christmas music, I just love it don't you? The gifts are all coming along nicely and I'm just about done with that. We'll be going to El Paso, TX for Christmas and spending a couple extra days with one of our sons and his family.

I shall try to write a little more soon and show some pictures of Gourd Art pieces that I've completed. I do want to show a nativity that I designed and made. I've made two as the first one sold in a day, I just put the other one in a shop day before yesterday so we'll see how this one goes.

I'm gonna run  for now and hope to talk to you more soon.

I'm Baaaack!!!

I'm so sorry that I've been gone so long but I've been SUPER busy for the last few weeks! I now have Gourd Art pieces in a gallery in Hardy, AR and in a gallery in Norfork, AR. I'm so excited and happy to say that I've sold not one, not two, but THREE of my pieces in the Hardy Gallery!! I want to thank all of my blogging friends who told me to go for it, 'cause I do believe you all helped give me the courage to give it a try. Right now I'm working on some pieces for a two-day juried craft/art show in November plus I have another gallery in Harrison, AR that I want to have pieces in by the first of November. I'm also pleased as punch to mention (if I haven't already) that I've gotten my first commissioned gourd art piece ordered and I have to have that one made by the middle of December. I want to show you some of the things that I put in the gallery in Norfork, AR.

I didn't get pictures of all of the pieces but I hope to get the rest of them soon. I made a pheasant that I'm particularly proud of, (kinda like I was proud of the penguin mother and chick). What do you think? All the ones with toppers on them are boxes and the lids lift off. I'm working on an open piece right now that has flowers and butterflies on it. I think it's gonna be a pretty one also. In addition to all the gallery pieces that I've made, my hubby and son helped me make some very inexpensive things to put in a craft shop at a pumpkin patch about an hour and a half from home. We just got those placed in the craft shop last Friday and there were several of the little pieces that sold already. If you would like to purchase a Gourd Art piece from me, just send me a message and I'll be happy to give you a price quote. These pieces would make awesome Christmas gifts! Plus they are all Ooak pieces. Gotta run for now my friends, but I would like to mention that I've been thinking about a giveaway, maybe when I hit 100 followers????

Hugs XX   Barbara



Sunday afternoon fun

The hubby and I took off yesterday afternoon to attend the 2010 Ozark Mountain Artists Studio Tour. The tour was spread out over a "Lot" of road in Boone and Newton Counties in Arkansas. The organizers of this studio tour went through a lot of effort to put this tour together. Anyway you pick up a map along with the names of the artists and their particular medium or mediums that they work in and off you go! There were artists who work in silver jewelry, egg tempura, acrylics, batik, woodturning, photography, ceramics, fabric, pen & ink, pencils, mixed media and mosaics. We started out in Harrison, AR and headed down Hwy. 7 to our first stop and after seeing the sign for the artists on the Hwy. we traveled down a dirt road for 3 miles until we came to the first studio. Some of the artists had their tours in their studios and some in their homes. We traveled approximately 180 miles round trip and had a wonderful time meeting a lot of artists and enjoying their art work. We didn't get to see and meet all the artists listed on the map but now we've got other places to visit next year. We'll have to see some of the ones we saw this year again. I'm such a bad person, as I didn't take any pictures. Everything was so much fun that I totally forgot to take any pictures anyway. It was such an amazing tour and we met some really nice people who were sooo hospitable. They were just as interested in my art as I was in theirs. It was a beautiful sunny day and a great thing to do on a Sunday afternoon. Wish you could all have been there!

Hugs XX
Barbara

Gourd Art and more Gourd Art!

Before I get started on this post, I first want to thank every one of my blogging friends and not blogging friends who come to this blogsite and read my posts and make comments. You've all been so uplifting and encouraging in your words. You really have given me the courage to take that first step out there in marketing my artwork. I really love creating with gourds and I'm so happy to have pieces already in one Gallery! I owe a good deal of that happening to my friends who have told me to "go for it", "your work is awesome" etc. I've prayed about this a great deal and I'm hoping that this is truly what the Lord has in mind for me to do. I've asked him to give me the talent and to help me express my talent thru my work in Gourd Art. Here are pictures of my latest work. If you see something that you would love to have just contact me and I'll get you a price list.

I've got to say, I'm terrible about uploading and posting pictures but here's seven of the newest pieces that I've made. I hope you like these also.

It looks like all prayers have been answered in regard to the weather around here. We got rain all day long yesterday and today it has been raining and sprinkling all day also. God does answer prayer, our ground has been so dry that it's cracking open all over, except for the places we've been watering. So far the gourds that we have planted are doing alright but the garden is a wreck. We're still getting just a few tomatoes and peppers but that's about all. Our Stevia plants are doing very well and we'll be harvesting them soon. Stevia is not hard to grow once you get the plant established but getting them established is another story. The root system is very close to the surface. They like to be kept damp but not wet and they definitely don't like to dry out. Once they're out in well fertilized ground though they do very well as long as they have water. The bugs leave them alone altogether. Yippee! We had a terrible time with bugs in the garden this year. We've tried organic methods of insect control but they didn't work very well and I'm not going to put insecticide on something that's going in my mouth! I hope everyone else has had better luck in gardening this year. We've got a very dear friend named John who let us come pick tomatoes from his garden (He's got a very green thumb) and we made 42 jars of Salsa from the tomatoes we picked! He's also growing some gourds for me and I can't wait to see how they turn out! I think I've done enough talking for one post. I know, I should post more often. I will try.

God Bless you all!

The latest Gourd Art!

Sorry it's been so long since the last post, but I've been extremely busy finishing some gourd art that I had already started. Did you guess what was in the picture? Well here it is.....

Yes, it's a lovely Vase to put your dried Fall flower arrangement in!

It is even more impressive in person. The interior is a bronze/suede looking color. The background is green and the leaves that are carved around the vase are multi fall colors.

I have taken the advice and encouragement from all my blogger friends and have entered my pieces into the "Gourd Fine Art Show" at the Ozark Classic Crafts Gallery in Hardy, AR for the month of September,  the "Gourd Fine Art Show" at the Riverview Emporium Gallery in Norfolk, AR for the month of October and I'll have my pieces at the "Craftsfest" at the Baxter County Fairgrounds in Mountain Home, AR on November 19th & 20th. Yes, all my art pieces will be for sale at each of the places that I just mentioned. I would like to show you a couple more pieces that I've completed along with prices. I will be happy to ship a piece out to you and add the postage to the final price if you decide you would like to have one of my pieces. The following is a piece that took considerable time to make and is three different gourds put together. I love this piece, and I think it is very special.
 

Price $125.00

What do you think of my lovely penguin mother and baby? I am very happy with it.

Price $35.00

This container is done in Fall colors, with leaves engraved on the top and engraving around the edge. I used dyes on all of the outside and paint on the inside.

Price $ 35.00

This container has dyes, waxes and paint on the outside and paint on the inside. It's done in lovely Fall colors.

I have been so happy with my Art and I feel that I've finally found my calling. The Gourd Art that I showed you in my last post is also for sale, just contact me at lmoore@flippinweb.com for prices. I hope you enjoy my Artwork as much as I enjoy creating it. I'll have more later on in the week I hope and your not gonna believe one of them. Let's just say that it represents something from the animal kingdom. I would love to hear from you all as I really value your opinions.

My Gourd Art

In case anyone has been wondering what I've been up to in the past few weeks besides fishing..... Oh yes, I've been fishing again! I'm the one that caught the only brown trout for the day also. hehe That is one hobby if you will, that is soooo relaxing and fun, especially on the White River where I live. The temp of the water doesn't get above 52 degrees so you can guess what that does for the air just above it, yep it's much cooler than the regular temp and if you do get hot just stick a hand or foot in and you'll cool off immediately.

But I digress from the point of this post...Several posts ago, I told everyone about a Gourd Festival that the hubby and I went to in Sedalia, MO. We both took classes there and I showed you the cute penquin and snow angel that I made in my class along with pics from the gourd art at the festival. Well about a month ago the second son was here with his family and I took the daughter-in-law and granddaughter to a craft show while the guys went fishing. The first thing I spotted when we entered the door was a wonderful gourd art booth! Needless to say I stopped and looked and oohed and aahed and talked to the women and was invited to come to some gourd art classes! It took me a couple of weeks but I did go to the class, which is taught by Joyce Campbell, who is an amazing gourd artist! I've been going to class for three weeks now and have a few things to show that I've made:

The picture above is a container which could be used for many things

How do you like my funky chickens? hehe And don't forget the beautiful swan!

Here's a glimpse of one of the projects I'm currently working on.......

Got any ideas on what this is going to be?

I really feel sooo honored to be taking classes with such an amazing artist and...she told me that my work is good enough to enter into a show with her in October!! Woo Hoo! I've never thought I was that talented but I'm happy for the opportunity to sell my wares, so to speak. I've got to get several pieces done in the next few weeks, 'cause I'm GOING FOR IT!

I would love to hear some input from all my blogerrette sisters and everyone else who reads my blog. Do you feel I'm a good enough artist to sell my wares or what?

Hugs XX

Barbara

Fishing

A little while back I mentioned that I was going to get to go fishing with my hubby and two of our sons. When I did there were a couple of people who said I needed to post pictures of the event. Well I'm happy to say that the guys did let me go along, but since we had all the trout we needed at home, we did a catch and release day. That was so much more fun because we could catch twice as much or more and boy did we ever! It was definitely not a slow fishing day at all but I only managed to get one picture of the sons, and Richard's Brown Trout. That was the only Brown caught that day and he was big but we didn't think quite big enough to keep.(A Brown has to be at least 18 inches long) The other son, David caught a nice big Cutthroat Trout but released it before I could snap a picture. Other than that we caught Rainbow Trout all day and a bunch of them. I think my hubby caught the largest. I know fishing isn't quite the thing for a  lot of people but I just love it, especially when the fish are biting. Oh I didn't mention that this fishing trip was on the Fourth of July did I? What a great way to spend the Fourth and then we caught the fireworks that evening. I was very sunburned, even though the sky was overcast but extremely happy at the end of the day. Here's the one picture that I got to take:

Good looking men aren't they? Richard,(the one with the fish) had stopped over on his way from El Paso, TX to Georgia where he was going to school. He's a Major in the Army and had just moved his family from  Monmouth, New Jersey to El Paso,TX the previous week and had  to leave them for four months to attend a school that the Army wanted him to go to in  Georgia.  Anyway, I love to fish and will probably go again this week as soon as the thunderstorms quit. I bet we've received six inches or more of rain in the last two days. We've really needed the rain but it would have been better if it were spread out. I hope that this week is a good one for all of you and that you get to do something that you love to do.

                                                  Barbara

Happy Fourth of July!!

Hello all fellow bloggers! I would like to wish everyone a very Happy 4th of July! I'm so very proud to be an American and to live in this great country of ours. I'm sure that there are many bloggers out there who live in other countries who think theirs is the greatest but I would have to argue with that. I hope that all your holiday preparations ended in a fantastic fireworks display!

I've got to also take the time right now give a big  "Thank you" to Cindy from Whimsical Musings! She has presented me with the Versatile Blogger Award! I am so happy and also humbled.

It came with these instructions:

1. Thank the person who gave you the Award.
2. Share 7 things about yourself.
3. Pass the award along to 15 Bloggers who you have recently discovered and who you think are fantastic!
4. Contact the bloggers you've picked and let them know about the award.

Here's my list:
1. I have several collections, teapots (over two hundred), ruby red glass, doilies, teddy bears, Mary Engelbreit everything!
2. I love crafting and crochet!
3. I love to go fishing and will be going tomorrow with my hubby and two of our sons. Do I have it made or what? They really help me.
4. I also love to garden even though there are some things I can't do now, and besides the veggies I have flowers blooming all Summer.
5. I'm disabled and wondering what happened, but I just put on my big girl panties and deal with it.
6. I started taking classes today in Gourd Art. I'm lovin it.
7. If you don't know it, I recently joined the Bloggerette Sorority Sisters and I'm lovin that too!
I will be notifying all of the bloggers I have chosen within the next couple of days. I love all the wonderful people I've met in blog land!


Barbara

The Blogerette Sorority

Wow folks, I've got to tell you that I've really had a time getting this picture into this post! I'm just as thrilled as can be at becoming a member of the "Blogerette Sorority". This has been rush week and I've been gone for the majority of it. Anyway as a condition of our "Rush" we were required to take the picture from "Some days are Diamonds blog" which is above this post and add our own picture to it. I didn't have time to do a whole lot so I used some Mary Engelbreit background and then put the Sorority picture and a picture of myself next to it. I'm no expert at messing with pictures and such that's for sure. I've also had the Sorority button on the right side of my blog for awhile now. So far this has been a really fun thing and I do believe it will bring a lot people closer here on the blogesfere. If you so feel inclined, please join us in the Sorority. There isn't any time limit to becoming a member.

Hugs XX
Barbara

Summertime

Summertime and the plants are growing and the flowers are blooming! I just had to take a picture of my favorite Hosta, Hydrangea and Astilbe. We also have Daylilies, Shasta Daisies,Clematis, Roses and Rose of Sharon blooming all around the yard. Our garden has finally started to take off. It seems like the vegetables are running close to a month behind. I know it has to do with the Spring we had. Right now it's not getting below 70 degrees at night though and in the 90's during the day. We could really use some rain here even though several people perished in the SW part of the state this past weekend because of flash flooding. I've been so sad over that and especially sad over the loss of several children.

This is a red and white hotpad that I made as part of the June 2010 CAL on Crochet Soiree. Hope I win a prize.  The Summer Sling Tote that's pictured above was made for my oldest Granddaughter. I hope she likes it. She picked out the yarn from some pics that her Dad emailed to her and the lining is from some vintage fabric that I picked up at an estate sale. Her twin sisters call her a hippy.LOL Personally, I like her style 'cause she's her own person. Our oldest son will be here late Thursday evening with his family on their move to their new home in El Paso, TX. He's a major in the Army and is being assigned to a new place. Counting the son who's staying with us for awhile and this son and family there will be 10 people in my house for three days. It should be fun though. Everyone is over 21 except for the youngest who is 13. I know there will be fishing and swimming going on. I'm gonna have to quit chatting away and get the house cleaned up and ready. Ick Hope you all have a fun filled week.

What's on the hooks?

I've looked at several other blogs to see what everyone is doing lately and I've seen some terrific stuff. "The Garden Bell" has some hookie goodness going on, not to mention "Pammy Sue's Place",  "Attic24", "Crocheting My Bestest with my Worsted", "Shropshire Suz",  and many many more. Lovely, colorful, hookie things that are so useful and beautiful at the same time. I just finished up a tote bag that will be given away as a prize at the end of the month to one lucky winner of the CAL for May at "Crochet Soiree".

Ta-Dah!

The colors in this photo really don't give the tote bag justice. The yarn is Vanna's Choice in the "Autumn" color for the body and the sides are Vanna's Choice in the "Brick" color. I love the colors and I also lined the bag and added a couple of pockets on the inside. If you are interested in winning this or winning a crocheted purse made by Molly of "Crocheting my bested with my Worsted" or a gorgeous doily made by Tamara Gonzales of "Tamara's Take" on Crochet Soiree. Just join the Crochet Soiree site (it's free ) and make at least one of two patterns which have been chosen for this contest. They are not hard to do and the names are chosen at random to pick the winners.

I've also never taken pictures of any of the granny squares that I've made so today I thought I would do just that.

I thought I'd give you two pictures of each. I'm sure that I've made well over one hundred granny squares of different types since I learned how to crochet a little over a year ago.

Well I've got to get other things made so that I can show them to you, so you all have a happy day!

Here I Am!

Hello Everyone! I hope this post finds everyone happy and content. I've been so busy recently that I think I may have met myself. Yes, we did go to the Gourd Festival held in Sedalia, MO and enjoyed ourselves immensely. The hubby and I both took classes and thought that they were great. We both enjoyed our instructors but I know that I got the funnest ones........."The Gourd Sisters, Lindy and Ann"! They live in Ballwin, MO and are very talented gourd artists. Here's an example of what I made in my class:

I really liked how my little gourd penguin and snowangel turned out. What about you?

Now here are some of the pictures of gourd items entered into the competition:

Yes my dears, these were all made out of gourds! Can you believe that motorcycle? There was even a tabletop working merry-go-round. I was amazed at all the beautiful things that I saw and yes I took TONS of pictures. We also bought a lot of gourds for working with and have since purchased a lot of the stuff we need to do some gourd crafting of our own! I'll show you more pictures when I get some things completed. It really was a great trip and I think I made some new friends while we were there.

This past week I made two baby bibs exactly like this first one that I made:

And mailed them off to Doug the IT guy over at Crochet Soiree 'cause he's expecting twin girls in the month of May. Now I've started working on a prize for the May CAL over on Crochet Soiree. I'm making a granny tote which will be lined as one of the prizes in Autumn colors. If you know how to crochet or want to learn how, you need to get on over to http://www.crochetsoiree.com/ right away and enter the CAL and contest. The details about it are in the Tamara's blog before last. Easy projects and nice prizes too~ Come on over and join us. Well dears I have a lot to do in a little time and I'm also going to the Farmer's Market as a seller tomorrow. I've got some lovely irises, daylilies, sweet basil, spearmint, oregano, tomato plants, zucchini plants etc. to sell. Wish me luck! More to come in the future.

HugsXX    Barbara