Put a little bling in your life!

As my first post on my blog about the wonders of Creative Paperclay I want to show you what I made. I like things that have a little bling or kick to them so I decided that I'd like to have a gourd brooch that was embellished with Paperclay. I used a book just out by Maria Dellos on ink and gourds for a little inspiration.

I started out with just a piece of gourd that I had carved out of a scrap of gourd and with a face that I had already formed in a mold and which was already dry. (It helped to get things moving along a bit faster. I then attached the face to the gourd with just a little E6000.)

Before attaching the face I woodburned some squiggles on the gourd piece. I then painted the face with some metallic acrylic paint in gold, blue, & copper touches. 

 Once the face was attached I used some more Paperclay to make a scarf to go around the face. I then painted the scarf with metallics. (Topaz, Sapphire, Copper, Gold, Green, & Purple) It really turned into a beautiful scarf. I added a little glue and some glitter on the bottom side to enhance the scarf.

But was that enough? Oh no my friends! I then took some multi-colored yarn, wire, and some beads and added a little bling to it. I then added a pin back to the piece so that I can wear it as a brooch. As you can see that end result wasn't bad, hmmmmm, no not bad at all!

Please pardon the pictures which were taken with a black background, but trust me the whites just wouldn't photograph very well sitting on white. I love my new brooch don't you? I also love Creative Paperclay and have used it for a long time, even before gourd art. It's very easy to work with and cleans up easily with just water.  It has stood out and become my favorite clay to work with on gourds. Also check out the Creative Paperclay blog for more tutorials and projects!

Barbara

While you're looking around blogland you must check out the Artsy Bloggers!

Beading Arts

Cyndi shares her method of making a charm necklace from a vintage button!

Eileen Bergen- The Artful Crafter
Believe it or not, a friend of a friend whom Eileen had never even met gave her everything she needed to explore the luscious art of silk painting.


Laura- Taz's Corner
A Recap of Found Poetry and Altered Text


Made by Nicole
Learn how to make easy paper flowers with this step by step tutorial.


Pinwheel Craft
A fun and easy summer project for kids

Creative Paperclay Design Team!!!

I'm sooooo excited to be able to announce today that I have been chosen to be on the "Creative Paperclay Design Team" !!! Oh my goodness I'm just beside myself!! Woooo Hooooo!!! Now you can expect to see some posts on using the paperclay on projects twice a month from me, and also posts from the other team designers! You can see my posts here on my blog but you can also see All the designers posts on the Creative Paperclay Blog. I hope you watch my posts and tutorials and I also hope that you start following the Creative Paperclay Blog 'cause who knows what's going to start happening with this new blog! I can tell you for sure that Creative Paperclay is my clay of choice and has been for years! It's really awesome to use on gourds too as you will be able to see in times to come.

So remember to follow the new Creative Paperclay Blog and myself and try this wonderful clay for yourself!


Barbara

Just got the opportunity to post the links for the Artsy Bloggers group as I've been out of town for a few days, sorry about that 'cause I know that you can't wait to check out these terrific links to the blogs .

Beading Arts

Home and Garden Cafe

How To Create a Memory Journal

Creative Dreamer

Winner of the 100 followers giveaway!

Just as I promised, there was a drawing for the 100 follower giveaway here at the house this morning! We did things the old-fashioned way, I put the numbers and names in a hat and my hubby drew out the winning name and number. And the winner is: The number two comment by Terri Sproul who said.....love your work, hope I win. Glad you got over 100. I will post on my facebook page for you....smiles. Now wasn't that sweet? Here's what the giveaway looks like........

I took two pictures of the goodies that I have for the winner! Yes the trinket box is going, along with bits and bobs and a couple of egg gourds and a small apple gourd (all of which have already been cleaned) and whatever else I can think of to fill the box.  I thought a couple of small gourds might be just the thing to get someone interested in gourds. lol Congratulations Terri on winning!! This tutorial thing has been quite fun and I hope to do much more in the future.

Barbara

And now to see what all the other Artsy Bloggers have been up to this week:

Taz's Corner- Exciting News, The Altered Book Nook is Open!

Cherie Blogs - Peeptastic Centerpiece!

Moore(Gourd)Whimsies-100th Follower Giveaway Winner!

Mixed Media Artist - A shared trip of a trip to Guatemala

Made by Nicole- How to make graffiti backgrounds using materials you have on hand.

Flowers and Art- This week Kim experiments with Monoprinting

Eileen - The Artful Crafter - Learn to dye Easter eggs naturally. Not everything has to come from a kit or a mix.

Creative Dreamer - All those Altered Books June has been doing has left her with lots of pages she needs to do something with. Here's her first project...a Frame!

Kids Fun Reviewed - Chocolate covered Peanut Butter Easter Eggs. It's fun to make, fun to give these delicious handmade Easter eggs.

Check out these super duper Creative Paperclay Projects and Tutorials with Gourds!!!

I hope that you all read these tutorials with a forgiving mind as this is the first time that I've EVER posted a tutorial!! But here we go:

In my first gourd and paperclay tutorial I will be making a mask. Indian mask?, Egyptian mask? African mask? lol You tell me, but I will say it was fun. To start with you have to get a gourd that you think will work for a mask. I picked this "Martin" gourd. See how moldy they are to start with?After you scrub all that moldy stuff off of them you also have to clean the insides out by scraping ( a lot ). You should really wear a mask anytime you are dealing with gourd dust as you can develop respiratory problems if you don't. It doesn't bother all people but it really does some. Better to be safe than sorry I say. Then I cut the gourd in half and used one half for the mask. See how clean the inside and outside are? .....................................................
The next step was to cut out my eyes and mouth and play with the paperclay until I came up with these neat embellishments. LOL How do you like the lips??

The paperclay was the fun part. In this case I fashioned the eyebrows, nose and lips freehand. I apply the paperclay to my gourds by simply making sure that my gourd is WET where I want the clay to go and make sure that the back of the paperclay is WET also. Easy Peasy, just stick one to the other!!!! I've never had any of the paperclay come loose because as the clay drys (let it dry for a day or two depending upon how thick the clay is) it bonds to the gourd. If a part should ever come loose, I recommend using E6000 or something similar to reattach it.  Once my lovely mask was dry, I used dye on the face and ink on the paperclay to give it color........................................

The eyes were pieces of gourd that I glued to the inside and used glitter glue on for color.

Doesn't he still look a little bare?? Well after the color dried, I sealed the mask with a water based polyurethane sealer and then drilled holes in which I put feathers and ....... yep, you guessed it an old pair of hoop earrings with some little feathers glued to it.                                       Now then isn't this guy good looking or what??????

 My next tutorial is on a very small gourd which I made into a trinket box. I know a lady who has been wanting Victorian so I thought I would try to come up with something.  The first process is the same as for the mask in that you clean the outside of your gourd, cut out your top and clean out the inside. I then started out with this........................................

Now this container was very "thin" so the gourd shell needed some reinforcing. Normally I would use a mixture of glue and paint on the inside but I wanted to try something different. Instead I decoupaged a piece of flowered scrapbook paper with
"Collage Pauge" instant decoupage which is a water-resistant glue, sealer and finish all in one! When that was finished and dry, I started to work on the outside and in this project I used clay molds to create some flowers, leaves, and a face which I attached to the gourd while they were still damp. I used the same technique to attach the paperclay, wet to wet and let it dry overnight. Here's what it looked like after the paperclay molds were applied..........................................

Starting to look good isn't it??? Once dry, I used paints to color the flowers, leaves and face that were made from Paperclay,  PLUS I used a paint on the outside of the gourd itself. Then I took that stem off that I had been using to hold while painting and added a little glass stone for a knob and some extra little something around the face and voila' it's done????? Oops not until I get a base for it to set on and here it is!!

Well now what do you think? I was very happy with the results of both projects and of course I love to work with Creative Paperclay!!! If you have any questions on the projects that I've just posted please don't hesitate to ask a question.

Barbara

To make things even more interesting and fun this weekend why don't you check out what all the other members of the Artsy Bloggers group have been up to:

Affirmations Page - Art Journal Background

Check out this easy journal background! Taz's Corner!

Beading Arts

The final chapter of Cyndi's e-book is now available! "Fibers, Fabrics, and Beads" challenges you to integrate all the fiber arts that you already love with your bead embroidery!

A Creative Dreamer
Just a reminder that the visual journal June created all through is going to given away to one lucky follower! But you have to hurry... the give away ends at midnight on Saturday!


Moore (Gourd) Whimsies
Last Day for the Giveaway!

Make a Fish Cake
If you have a fisherman in the family they'll love this fun cake idea!


Made by Nicole
Nicole shares a mixed-media art piece that is filled love for family and friends.


The Artful Crafter - Eileen Bergen
Make these darling lamb place card holders for Easter or any special spring dinner. So cute!

Homemade Mirrors with Poetry
It's National Poetry Month! In honor of that, Cherie is showing off a mirror she made using lines from one of her poems.


Kim = Flowers and Art
Kim loves dollhouses! Come see a miniature chandelier she altered to give it more style!

Last Day for Giveaway!!

Hello my wonderful followers! Please don't forget that today is the last day for you to leave a comment and get your name entered into the drawing for a giveaway I'm having because I reached 100 followers!! I'm so happy 'cause I didn't just reach 100 but went past that amount. I hope that you will also read my Creative Paperclay post! I had so much fun creating with it. The ladies in my Gourd Art class have told me that they want to try the Creative Paperclay on gourds at one of our Saturday classes. Gotta practice myself before I try to teach someone else right?



Barbara

Weekly Thoughts and Goings On

How has everyone been doing this week? I've got to say that I'm very proud that I hit 100 followers and not only that but went past the 100 mark! I have also gotten several more followers through Networked Blogs! I want you all to know that you've definitely each been noticed by me.  Please don't forget the giveaway that's going on here on my blog. All you have to do is leave a comment  on my March 30th post and be a follower of my blog.

I've been very busy working on gourds this week. I'm trying to get a few pieces done for competition at the end of this month. Next week I plan on having a special blog along with a tutorial on Friday about making some special things with Creative Paperclay. I hope you will tune in to check it out.

This past Monday the hubby and I had to go to Springfield, MO to his endocrinologist appointment. (Diabetes doctor) While we were up there we went to Marshfield, MO to visit with some good friends Evelyn and Larry Hampton of Hampton's Greenhouse and Nursery. They have an amazing corn maze every year and they grow some terrfic pumpkins! Right now they've got all of their garden plants ready and waiting in their greenhouses. If you live anywhere near them you need to get your garden plants and flowers from them. Evelyn can definitely let you know exactly how to take care of them. You'll end up with some great vegetables, I guarantee it.

Next Friday will also be the last day to leave me a comment if you are a follower so don't let the date slip by.

Barbara

Alrighty then folks! It's time to check up on all the wonderful things going on with the Artsy Bloggers group, so here's your list of terrific bloggers, go check them out:

Taz's Corner - Free-Mixed Media Tips and Techniques! Art Journals and More...
Laura shares tips from her secret stash of techniques and tricks!

Made by Nicole
If Nothing Ever Changed, There'd Be No Butterflies - this mixed-media art piece was made using the bits of paper trash acquired during the weekend.

Eileen Bergen-The Artful Crafter
Eileen made a necklace and earring set made from shells gathered on vacation and shares the directions.

Egg Carton Easter Bunny Crafts
A quick and easy Easter for the kids (and it uses up those extra egg cartons).

The Creative Dreamer
June is sharing a recipe for Spicy Thai Peanut Noodles...yum!

Barbara Moore(gourd)Whimsies
Weekly thoughts and goings on.

Beading Arts
Cyndi has a copy of a wonderful new book "Endless Sparkle" that she is just dying to give away!

Canvas Paper House- Part 2
Second part of the canvas paper house that Cherie is making for her Aunt.

Hello and 100th Follower Giveaway!

Hello there everyone! I want to clarify the giveaway rules and time sequence. The giveaway is going to run from April 1, 2011 thru April 15th at midnight. I will announce the winner on April 16th. There will be a really cool giveaway prize which I will post later. Here's the rules:
                               
                          1. You must be a follower of this blog.
                          2. You must leave a comment on this particular blog.

That's it folks! Easy Peasy! Love you all and I hope I get a lot of comments cause I love all of the folks that follow my blog and I do appreciate all of you. Don't forget to leave a way for me to contact you. Have a Happy Happy Day!

Barbara

You know you want to check out what's going on with all the rest of the Artsy Bloggers! Here's this week's linkups:

Beading Arts 
Do you like copper and turquoise together? Then you've got to check out this blog.

Creative Dreamer
 The March Creativity Invitation prompt is to create a journal page, and this month June has shared her techniques to create an entire journal... now she's giving that journal away. Come put your entry in!

Eileen- The Artful Crafter
Eileen shares directions for sewing a secret pockets hanger cover. This clever organizer can also be used to organize outfits.

Kim-Flowers and Art
Kim makes a bracelet out of wool roving. Come see how !!

Laura - Taz's Corner
Laura discusses the "art" of words

Made by Nicole
You'd never guess this pretty spring wreath is made quickly and simply with ordinary paper toweFun scrapbook idea for the pirate fan in the family.

The Kid's Fun Review
 Fun scrapbook ideas for the pirate fan in the family.

Cherie Burbach
Cherie talks about what to buy and what to skip at rummages this summer.

Look how close I'm getting!!!

Hey folks, look how close I'm getting to having 100 followers! I couldn't believe how close it was when I checked out my blog today. Sooooo, I'm thinking that I'm gonna have a giveaway! First off I've got to reach that 100 mark and hopefully go a few over. hint hint :-)  Then I'll have a two week period where people can comment on the blog, and then.......I'll have a drawing!!! As busy as it is right now in my life, I'm gonna have to give some real thought into what I'm giving away. I can guarantee that it will be a good thing. Any suggestions out there?  Looking forward to some feedback on this and more followers so this giveaway can start!!! March is Craft Month so I would love to get it started before the end of the month..

Barbara

Want to know what's going on with the Artsy Bloggers? Then link up here:
8 Fun Easter Cake and Cupcake Ideas


Easter's just around the corner, so here are some yummy treats to get you started.



Beading Arts

Cyndi posted a tutorial to show how she made her Bead Soup necklace!



Creative Dreamer

June shares a background technique for the visual journal journey going on!



Eileen - The Artful Crafter

Most silk scarf painting/dying is done with a stretcher frame. But if you don’t want to spend the money on a stretcher and are not planning a detailed design, this easy dye method can yield beautiful results as well.



Kim's Flowers & Art

Kim's goal: 30 journal pages in 30 days. Take a look at her progress.



Made by Nicole

What to do when paint smears ... troubleshooting mixed-media meltdowns.



Moore Gourd Whimsies

Barbara has some exciting news to share!



Yet More Ways to Use Up Rummage Sale Fabric

Cherie makes the third project from the fabric she bought for a quarter.

Such exciting new goings on!

I have had some major changes in my life lately! I must say they have been some really remarkable ones.  As many of you know, I've taken lessons from an extremely talently and nationally known gourd artist by the name of Joyce Campbell. Well we've become very good friends during this past year. I spoke to Joyce a few weeks ago and she let me know that she was going to be moving to California to be close to her mother who is 86 years old now. At that time she asked me if I would like to take over her business so to speak here in Arkansas where I live. I was soooo honored that she choose me to replace her in her classes here!! Of course I said yes and it's been a whirlwind ever since. I will be having classes every Saturday just as Joyce does at Hill Country Gallery in Mountain Home, AR. I'm also now an Associate at that Gallery and am trying to put many Gourd Art pieces in there. Therefore I've been very busy because I've got Gourd Art in several other places too! Here are a few of my current works:

Somehow I managed to cut off a little bit of most of the pictures but hopefully I will get better at doing this, and hopefully you can see enough of the picture to realize what I'm doing. I've been working on several other pieces lately plus I'm making a trip to purchase uncleaned gourds for me and also for my classes tomorrow. It's a 10 hour drive round trip plus some time to pick out gourds so it makes for a very busy day. ( at least 12-14 hours) I've been purchasing a lot of tools and mediums for the classes. Here's a pic of one of the classes and one of the ladies who made a couple of gourd art masks last week:

The classes are so enjoyable and you don't have to be an expert to take a class. The students just really have fun. I even have an 80 year old man who is really good. He and his wife spend the winters in the area and this will give them something to do. He also does stained glass and you should see what he's done with the glass and gourds! I will do my best to get more posts on my blog and do it more frequently. LOL Hope you enjoyed today's post.

Another very exciting and proud moment for me is the fact that I am now a part of the Artsy Bloggers group!! Every week we link you up to everyone in the group so that you can check out what's going on with everyone in the group. Here's my linkies for this week (there are three new bloggers in the group including myself):

8 Fun Easter Cake and Cupcake Ideas


Easter's just around the corner, so here are some yummy treats to get you started.



Beading Arts

Cyndi posted a tutorial to show how she made her Bead Soup necklace!



Creative Dreamer

June shares a background technique for the visual journal journey going on!



Eileen - The Artful Crafter

Most silk scarf painting/dying is done with a stretcher frame. But if you don’t want to spend the money on a stretcher and are not planning a detailed design, this easy dye method can yield beautiful results as well.



Kim's Flowers & Art

Kim's goal: 30 journal pages in 30 days. Take a look at her progress.



Made by Nicole

What to do when paint smears ... troubleshooting mixed-media meltdowns.



Moore Gourd Whimsies

Barbara has some exciting news to share!



Yet More Ways to Use Up Rummage Sale Fabric

Cherie makes the third project from the fabric she bought for a quarter.




Barbara

AND THE OWOH WINNERS ARE.........

Got your attention didn't I? Well after participating in the OWOH for the first time as a blogger, I've got to say it's been really challenging. I received 143 comments which is not too shabby for the first time. I did my winner choosing the old fashioned way by putting all the numbers in a hat and having my hubby pull out the winning numbers. In my original post I showed a picture of a gourd "apple" which I said the winner would get, but I had a little time to make another gourd project for this delightful adventure around the world! I made this small (the pics are taken kinda close) trinket box.

            

The pictures above don't really do any justice at all to this picture as it's much brighter. Anyway without anymore blabbering......The winner of the Apple Gourd is: #28 Tess at The Heart Of Words Congratulations Tess! And the winner of the Trinket Gourd is #40 Tere at Delightful Whimsy Congratulations to you also!

This has really been an amazingly fun time and I look forward to the new and improved version of OWOH  for next year! If you haven't already done so, you need to go over to Lisa Swiftka blog and read her announcement. Once again she outdid herself this year and has really got something grand planned for next year!! Thank you Lisa for all of this and for all that you do to promote the Arts!!

Barbara

One World One Heart OWOH

Hi there and welcome to my blog!! My name is Barbara Moore and I am a Gourd Artist living in Arkansas, USA. I love creating one of a kind Art pieces using the humble gourd. I love the fact that you can grow it, dry it, clean it, and then use several different techniques, everything from inks, dyes, and paints to decoupage, clay, wood burning and carving to create an Art piece that is truly unique, special and one of a kind. No two gourds are exactly alike and no two Artists work in exactly the same way.

Right now I want to show you the first prize that I will be giving away to some lucky blogger who comments on this post:

This is an apple gourd and is made into exactly what it represents. Doesn't it look like a nice shiny apple? I will post another prize later on if I receive enough comments. In order to be eligible to win the apple:
     1. You must be a blogger (from anywhere in the world)
     2. You must leave a comment on this post  (and a way to reach you if you win)
     3. The winner will be announced on February 17 and I will email the winner as well as post it.

This is my first year to participate in the OWOH event and the last year that Lisa plans on doing it. I hope there are many,many,many bloggers who join in. I can't wait to read you comments!

Snowy Day!

Woke up this morning to three inches of snow, more or less. It has been snowing all day so far and it really looks beautiful. I know that people back East are getting really tired of so much snow but this is the only snow accumulation that we've had so far this year. Wouldn't you know I had to get out in it today? Been at home all week and the one day I have to get out and accompany my husband to the doctor's office it snows.

I don't have any idea as to why the pictures above turned out two colors like they did but you all get the idea of the snow don't you? Unfortunately our temps tonight are supposed to dip down into the single digits. Can you say Brrrrr? I do not plan on going out anytime soon I can tell you! My prayers are with everyone who is dealing with disasterous weather right now, but I'm going to enjoy looking out at that snowy scene for a few days at least. lol

The Burial of a Nine year old and the 911 Flag

As many of you know, today is the memorial service and burial of Christina Green, the youngest victim of the Arizona Shooting a few days ago. Christina was born 9-11-01, a day that will always be remembered by the American people as a day when terrorists and their acts of senseless violence changed our country forever.

As a fitting tribute to Christina and also to the American people, the 911 Flag is being hoisted by two fire trucks over the door of the church where Christina's funeral will be held. Every person attending her funeral will pass beneath that flag.

I have seen that flag and touched that flag and placed a stitch in that flag as an act of repairing it and this great country of ours which has been ripped apart by the events that occured on 9-11. This past November, my husband (who's a veteran) and myself spent the majority of Veterans Week in Branson, MO. Every year that city puts on an extraordinary series of events which honor our nation's Veterans. The Veterans Coalition held a special service regarding the 911 Flag which has been touring the country asking people to be a part of repairing the Flag. The Flag is escourted by a member of the New York Fire Department.

A wonderful ceremony was held which included the history of the flag and how it came to be and was rescued from the ashes of 9-11-01. It was said that as that flag is mended so will our country be. Oh my how I wish that flag were completely mended! We gave a donation on that day to help with the cost of taking it across this country of ours and to help meet the needs of the wonderful people who have undertaken this project.

I hope that this flag and the little girl who was born on this day and tragically taken 9 1/2 years later will help to unite this country of ours and all of its citizens. I pray that the God who watches over us will lead us and guide us in all that we do and my sympathies and condolences are with the family of Christina today and always.

Barbara 

Hello My Blogger Friends

As you can see by the link on my sidebar to Cindy Adkins "I Owe It All To Him" featured blog artist button, yes my very kind friend has featured me on her blog. I feel so honored that she would think of me. Cindy is just that kind of wonderful person that anyone who has met her here in blogland knows is just the sort of special person that you really need in your life. She lifts her blogger friends up and genuinely cares for them. She has been such a great supporter of my gourd art that I would like to show you a few more of the pieces that I completed before Christmas:

Each gourd that I work with is grown here in the Ozarks. After growing for three months the gourd is left on the vine until the vine turns brown. Once the green gourd is harvested, it must dry over a period of another two - four months. After drying the gourd has to be cleaned by scrubbing all the mold off of it before it can be transformed. If a gourd is opened up up you must wear a mask while cleaning it or especially cutting and sanding it. I then do my thing so to speak to it. I use many different techniques on the gourds that I work with such as cutting, burning or carving and several different methods of applying color to the gourds. I've heard it said many times by artists who work with gourds that each particular gourd "speaks" to them and I have heard that call. Each one is unique and lets you know what it should become. Some gourds will set there for a long time before you figure out what they need to be, while others you know immediately. Working with gourds has really become a passion of mine and something that I truly love to create with. I thank you again Cindy for telling others about me and what I do with the humble gourd.

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!