entwined with the Word

John 1

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John 1

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I am spending many hours of devotional time memorizing John 1. I have incorporated that memorization into my journal.

John 1

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John 1

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2008-07-15T09:19:00.000-07:00

Psalm 5

2008-07-15T09:17:00.000-07:00

Psalm 5 - A Phrase Poem

2008-07-15T07:29:00.000-07:00

Psalm 5

Give ear to my words, O Lord,
consider my sighing.
Listen to my cry for help,
my King and my God,
for to you I pray.
In the morning, O Lord, you hear my voice;
in the morning I lay my requests before you
and wait in expectation.

You are not a God who takes pleasure in evil;
with you the wicked cannot dwell.
The arrogant cannot stand in your presence;
you hate all who do wrong.
You destroy those who tell lies;
bloodthirsty and deceitful men
the Lord abhors.

But I, by your great mercy,
will come into your house;
in reverence will I bow down
toward your holy temple.
Lead me, O Lord, in your righteousness
because of my enemies—
make straight your way before me.

Not a word from their mouth can be trusted;
their heart is filled with destruction.
Their throat is an open grave;
with their tongue they speak deceit.
Declare them guilty, O God!
Let their intrigues be their downfall.
Banish them for their many sins,
for they have rebelled against you.

But let all who take refuge in you be glad;
let them ever sing for joy.
Spread your protection over them,
that those who love your name may rejoice in you.
For surely, O Lord, you bless the righteous;
you surround them with your favor as with a shield.

I wrote Ps. 5 as a "Phrase Poem". "The phrase poem can be used to reinforce almost any type of phrase or clause while creating an image of a particular topic or scene. You can use almost any type of phrase or clause: Participle + adverb ( running quickly), Participle + prepositional phrase (running down the street), verb infinitive (to run), imperative statement (run for your life), conditional clause (If we run fast) (Writing Simple Poems by Holmes and Moulton). I chose to use a re-occurring idea in the Psalm and then to expand that idea as I worked my way through the Psalm, paraphrasing many of the important concepts.

Each and every day my groans and whispers come to your ears.

Each and every dawn my supplications are heard by the King of all creation.

Each and every morning my thoughts and desires are laid before your throne.

Each and every hour I expectantly wait for your answer.

Each and every sunrise you deal with my haughty and sinful ways.

Each and every passing day you judge evil.

You hate all who sin, all evildoers, all the arrogant,

all liars, all who shed blood, all who are filled with deceit.

Each and every generation stands condemned because

their mouths could not be trusted, their souls seek to destroy,

their opens mouths are a pit of death, their speech is a trap.

their evil plans will entrap them.

Each and every person stands condemned by their rebellion against you;

their guilt you have announced.

Each and every sunset may those who hide in the shadow of your wing

rejoice and sing in celebration.

Each and every moment you cover us with salvation

because we embrace the name of Jesus and exalt.

Each and every second you shower you chosen with blessings.

Each and every heartbeat we are encompassed by your acceptance and protection.

Thomas Kelly from: A Testament of Devotion

2008-07-14T08:20:00.001-07:00

Deep within us all there is an amazing inner sanctuary of the soul, a holy place, a Divine Center, a speaking Voice, to which we may continually return. Eternity is at our hearts, pressing upon our time-worn lives, warming us with intimations of an astounding destiny, calling us home unto Itself.
It is a light within which illuminates the face of God and casts new shadows and new glories upon our faces. It is a seed stirring to life if we do not choke it. It is the Shekinah of the soul, the Presence in the midst. Here is the slumbering Christ, stirring to be awakened, to become the soul we clothe in earthly form and action. And he is within us all.

2008-07-14T08:19:00.000-07:00

2008-07-14T08:14:00.000-07:00

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Psalm 4
Answer me when I call to you,
O my righteous God.
Give me relief from my distress;
be merciful to me and hear my prayer.

How long, O men, will you turn my glory into shame?
How long will you love delusions and seek false gods?
Selah
Know that the Lord has set apart the godly for himself;
the Lord will hear when I call to him.

In your anger do not sin;
when you are on your beds,
search your hearts and be silent.
Selah
Offer right sacrifices
and trust in the Lord.

Many are asking, “Who can show us any good?”
Let the light of your face shine upon us, O Lord.
You have filled my heart with greater joy
than when their grain and new wine abound.
I will lie down and sleep in peace,
for you alone, O Lord,
make me dwell in safety.

Working Poem - Ps. 4

2008-07-14T08:07:00.000-07:00

When I am working on a Psalm poem I usually use a large post-it and have my Bible open to the Psalm with my laptop available. Then I just get started and feel free to cross out, change, add or delete. I then transfer it to my journal.

Psalm 4 - Rhyming Wreath

2008-07-14T07:41:00.000-07:00

Calling, searching for your answer, crying out,
Crying out, listening for your response to my doubts.
My doubts assail me; anxious thoughts surround.
Surrounded by your mercy I stand on holy ground.
Holy ground has been forsaken for self and hollow illusions.
Men's illusions are fleeting , leading to foolish conclusions.
My conclusion is firm, in Christ I am my Father's beloved lamb.
This lamb's cry lovingly accepted by the glorious I AM.
I am silent before my Father as I search my darkened heart.
My heart is calmed by the assurance He imparts.
His imparted word, the radiance of His countenance melts my soul.
My soul rejoices; comfort and hope overflow.
The overflow of a full harvest, plentiful ripened fruit,
The fruit of rest and peace, secure in Godly pursuit.
Pursuing my beloved Father, my shelter and sanctuary.
Safe sanctuary from frightening adversaries.
Eternally defeated adversary, Abba has heard my call.
My call, heard and answered by Abba Father, no matter how feeble or small.
My cry, my call.

Journal Page - Ps. 3

2008-07-13T16:03:00.000-07:00

2008-07-12T08:24:00.000-07:00

The original ad in Victoria Magazine that inspired the design in my journal for Psalm 3.

Tools and Inspiration

2008-07-12T08:00:00.000-07:00

Psalm 3 was a rhyming couplet. The design was inspired by Gustav Klimt paintings and a page from a magazine advertising needlepoint pillows based on Klimt's painting. I am always looking at magazines, books, surfing the Internet for visual inspiration. The seeds of ideas are really everywhere you look. I have file folders filled with ideas to bounce off of. When I am writing the poems I use my laptop and go to the online thesaurus, and the online rhyming dictionary. With those 2 sites at my fingertips it makes it easy, fun and a wonderful learning experience to go through the Psalms and play with the concepts, words and ideas. I end up with new insights and a deeper understanding of each Psalm and it's personal application to my own life.
I am using Writing Simple Poems by Homes and Moulton and Favorite Poetry Lessons by Paul B. Janeczko to learn about the different forms of poetry. I was fearful of the whole idea of rhyming but once I started and had the help of the internet sites it was not nearly as difficult as I had thought it would be. From Janeczko book:

"I really do think of form as a safe place... The form of a poem delivers what it promises. there are boundaries, and consequently you're free. Writing free verse is much much more difficult. The decision making interferes with the flow of my art. -Molly Peacock"

"Working in rhyme, you don't absolutely control the direction your poem is heading in. At times, you yearn to say something, but the infernal rhymes won't let you. You're like someone crossing a river on stepping stones, obliged to walk where the stones permit. You struggle to keep your balance, while at the same time trying to go where you want to go. Often in writing a rhyming poem, you end up where you didn't expect. -X. J. Kennedy"

Both of these quotes help to capture the ideas why it is such a wonderful devotional tool to take a part of God's word and put it into your own words and craft it into a particular form of poetry. The point for me is not great poetry but the fact that as I struggle, play, think, meditate on the words, meaning and ideas I am constantly going deeper into what the Psalm is saying directly to me and how do I apply it to my own life.

Psalm 3 - Gustav Klimt Inspiration

2008-07-12T07:45:00.000-07:00

Psalm 3 - Gustav Klimt Inspiration

Ah, Sweet Jesus, my foes abound.

"God will not save!" their voices resound.

You are a defence about me.

My eyes look up; I bend my knees.

My cries of fear ascend;

From holy heaven you will attend.

Night comes giving way to rest.

The LORD sustains and I am blessed.

Enemies surround me round about;

I will not cower. I will not doubt.

come forth, O LORD, and rescue me.

My expectations await on thee.

My foes are struck down. God's victories surround.

Deliverance is God provided.

By His hand I am guided.

Ps. 3 New International Version

A psalm of David. When he fled from his son Absalom.
O Lord, how many are my foes!
How many rise up against me!
Many are saying of me,
“God will not deliver him.”
Selah

But you are a shield around me, O Lord;
you bestow glory on me and lift up my head.
To the Lord I cry aloud,
and he answers me from his holy hill.
Selah

I lie down and sleep;
I wake again, because the Lord sustains me.
I will not fear the tens of thousands
drawn up against me on every side.

Arise, O Lord!
Deliver me, O my God!
Strike all my enemies on the jaw;
break the teeth of the wicked.

From the Lord comes deliverance.
May your blessing be on your people.

From the Alphabet Series

2008-07-11T22:12:00.000-07:00

Hungarian Icons

2008-07-11T22:11:00.000-07:00

Psalm 2

2008-07-11T11:38:00.000-07:00

Psalm 2 - Rhyming Couplet

Plots and rage spew forth from kings.
Rulers will feel God's anger sting.
In a moment God's anger blazes to destroy
Rather serve the Lord with anticipation and joy.
Laughter and rebuke issue forth from the Lord.
Rulers of the earth are terrified by His powerful sword.
The Father gives the son His birthright.
To the ends of the earth people are blessed in God's sight.

Psalm 2 - Rhyming Wreath

All creation, nations, peoples rail at the LORD.

The LORD and His chosen hallowed son look down from heaven in disdain.

With disdain the Lord admonishes these rebellious hordes.

The defiant hordes who defy the LORD's reign.

The reign of the Lord is magnified and adored.

Adore the Son or face destruction you rulers and nations.

Rebellious kings and countries bring down the anger of the LORD.

Serve the LORD, kiss the Son, rejoice and find refuge among all God's creation.

Poems and Pages

2008-07-11T11:23:00.000-07:00

I have finally begun to review the poem formats that I have used in the last year or so as I have read through the Psalms. I am now trying to use some type of poem structure for each Psalm and have gotten through to Ps. 29. The journal pages that are posted are not necessarily the pages that have the particular poem. This is a wreath poem for Ps. 1:

The man who avoids sinful company is given blessings.
Blessings abound as he ponders God's commands.
His commands water the tree, rich in bountiful fruit.
The rotting fruit of evil doers is scattered.
Scattered as the LORD watches.
He watches over the paths of his children.
His children are given blessing.
The blessing given to God's children are then passed on to another man.

It has been a while...

2008-05-29T10:13:00.000-07:00

Paraphrase and Wreath Poems

2007-06-19T12:38:00.000-07:00

I started very simply putting God's Words into a paraphrase, my own words trying to capture the essence of the idea in scripture. Even doing that a challenge, and it makes you think more deeply about the real meaning and what it conveys to your heart. As you ponder and wrestle with the the words and ideas it brings you close to understanding and insight. I did this page last summer when we were in Romania. On the right is a paraphrase of Ps. 40: 1-3.
My paraphrase:
I was still and expectant before God.
He bent down and listened to my desperation,
put his loving arms around me
and drew me out of the muck and filth.
He placed me on the solid rock.
I had a firm footing; I was secure.
He taught me a new melody of worship to him.
He promised that many others
would come and put their faith in him.
New International Version:
I waited patiently for the LORD;
he turned to me and heard my cry.
He lifted me out of the slimy pit,
out of the mud and mire;
he set my feet on a rock
and gave me a firm place to stand.
He put a new song in my mouth,
a hymn of praise to our God.
Many will see and fear
and put their trust in the LORD.
On the left hand side of my journal I took Ps.40:4-5 and put it into a non-rhyming wreath poem. The first time I came across the idea of a wreath poem was in Luann Budd's book, Journal Keeping. She referred to an early seventeenth century poet, George Herbert, who wrote "A Wreath". Budd writes " This poem becomes a wreath; the end of each line becomes the beginning of the next. Wrestling your thoughts into poetry can be a challenge. But the wrestling is valuable in moving the truth into your soul." Herbert's wreath poem rhymed. When I first started I chose to do non-rhyming lines. Here is my example of a wreath poem based on:
Ps. 40:4-5.
I am blessed because I have put my trust in Jesus.
In Jesus I learn to turn aside from my pride and false pleasures.
Those empty pleasures are replaced by the wonders you perform inside my heart.
In my heart I know that your plans for me are beyond my imagining.
Beyond my understanding your wonders are too many to declare.
Too many to declare are your works and I am blessed.
I am blessed because my life is not written with ink
but with the Spirit of the living God.
By the Spirit of the living God I am blessed
New International Version:
Blessed is the man who makes the LORD his trust,
who does not look to the proud, to those who turn aside to false gods.
Many, O LORD my God, are the wonders you have done.
The things you planned for us no one can recount to you;
were I to speak and tell of them, they would be too many to declare.

Beads, Wire, and Dowels

2007-03-05T11:28:00.000-08:00

I took another great class at the Stamp Art Shoppe. We made the necklace you see to the left. You wrap colored wire around 20 gauge wire to make the colorful twisty wire + beads. I was immediately taken with the twisted wire look. The long beads with the music around it are small dowels cut in 2" pieces and then covered with paper. I am going to use some of my old papers to make my own beads of this type. Below the photo you can see my journal entry with a drawing of the necklace that I made. I plan to use the two ideas in other ways. I have already used them on pins and gift wrapping. I am sure I can come up with some other ideas.

Writing as part of the learning process

2007-02-12T14:45:00.000-08:00

Every semester i talk to my students about "writing" and "thinking" and the important connection between the two. Peter Elbow, a noted scholar on writing, "... meaning is not what you start out with but what you end up with." Following up that idea with John C. Bean in the book "Engaging Ideas", "Writing becomes an exterior sign of an interior thinking process. Writing is important because learning is improves when writing is part of the learning process. Writing forces the writer to become more careful and more engaged participants in the learning process." Writing is not just a communication skill but also a process and product of critical thought. I am fascinated by the connection between thinking and writing and how writing allows a much more thorough, richer, clearer and more systematic way of thinking. That is what I have been experiencing when I write the short, starkly simple and amateur poems based on my reading. It may not be great literature but it has helped me think more deeply and given me added insight into a passage. It is definitely a learning process which requires deeper thought and a much more engaged and interactive participation with the text.

Uphold Carry Sustain Rescue

2007-02-10T19:10:00.000-08:00

I am still memorizing and using Isaiah 46:3-4 in my morning quiet time. After using those words in synonym verses I changed over to use them in an antonym poem:
Make - Destroy
What is the opposite of "make"?
The opposite is fearsome to comtemplate.
To tear down, to take apart
It transmits despair unto my heart.
The true antithesis is destroy.
Have mercy, my Lord, to not employ.

Whether I craft a poem of some merit or not, each morning when I undertake this type of concentrated effort it takes me deeper into the concepts and allows me to wrestle with the meaning and emphasis. I find that I approach each morning with so much enthusiasm and anticipation working with these ideas in both word and image.

A Repitition Poem - What have you done?

2007-02-10T19:07:00.000-08:00

Based on Jeremiah 3:1-10
What have you done faithless Israel?
What have you done unfaithful Judah?
You have left me.
You have not returned.
You have defiled the land.
You have lived as a prostitute.
You have been ravished.
You have sat by the roadside waiting for lovers.
You have sat like a nomad in the desert.
You have the brazen look of a prostitute.
You have refused to blush with shame.
You have called me Father.
Yet you have wrath.
You have anger.
You have gone up on every high hill.
What have you done?
I have taken to entertaining myself with guilty pleasures.
I have run after other gods.
I have forsaken the will of God.
I have defiled the holy temple.
I have lived with rebellion.
I have chosen contamination.
I have sat in a cold and dreary desert.
What have you done?
What have I done?

2007-01-31T14:13:00.000-08:00

I found myself in the last few months becoming quite worrried about my "old age". As I have been reading through Isaiah these verses were particularly comforting, and I undertook to memorize them.

Isaiah 46:3-4

"You whom I have upheld since you were conceived,

and have carried since your birth.
Even to your old age and gray hairs

I am he, I am he who will sustain you.

I have made you and I will carry you;

I will sustain you and I will rescue you."

I wanted to go deeper into the passage and understand it more fully. Recently I have been reading a poetry writing book for young people with the intention of using some of the ideas in my journal classes. One suggestion was for a synonym poem. With that idea in mind I went to an online thesaurus and looked up "sustain". There were many synonyms (30+) and I wrote them all down in my journal. Then I went alphabetically through the list and made 2 line poems. The suggestion was to use 3 to 4 synonyms in the first line and then a rhyming line for the second verse. I used the aid of an online rhyming dictionary for the second verse. The poems are simple and I do not pretend in any way to be a master wordsmith but the process made it possible to continue to think about the idea of God sustaining me through "old age and grey hairs" and began to change a heart of anxiety to one of hope and trust in God's promise. Here is a sampling of the verses:

Aid, Assist, Abide

I will ever be by your side.

Bolster, Brace, Bear

My Word has promised that I will care.

Continue, Carry, Comfort, Confirm

My Word, my love, I have affirmed.

Keep alive, Keep up, Keep going

Your love for me is everflowing.

I found that the process of working through the words using poetry and then writing them in my journal with color and calligraphy allowed time to ponder and contemplate the ideas to a depth not possible when I just read over the text. It seeps into my life in a fuller and richer way.

Liam, Jack and Uncle Peter - 2

2007-01-31T14:03:00.000-08:00

Liam, Jack and Uncle Peter

2007-01-31T13:57:00.000-08:00

Twins - Twice the blessing

2007-01-31T13:44:00.000-08:00

I promised some pictures of the twins but then experienced a number of difficulties with getting photos to my blog. Google has upgraded and changed procedures and now it is certainly not working for me with the ease that it had previously. But here are 2 photos from 2 weeks ago. We had a wonderful four days taking care of Jack and Liam. You forget so quickly how extraordinary it is to be around little children. It is a real delight. And we are enjoying every moment.

A sweet prayer

2007-01-30T21:39:00.000-08:00

From the Moleskin web site:http://notebookism.com/
Prayer of a Writer
Lord of all things, whose wondrous gifts to man include the shining symbols known as words, grant that I may use their mighty power only for good.Help me to pass on small fragments of your wisdom, truth and love. Teach me to touch the unseen, lonely heart with laughter, or the quick release of tears.Let me portray the courage that endures, defiant in the face of pain or death; the kindness and gentleness of those who fight against the anger of the world; the beauty hidden in the smallest things; the mystery, the wonder of it all . . .Open my ears, my eyes; unlock my heart. Speak through me, Lord, if it be your will.Amen.

Crown King for Christmas

2007-01-09T21:58:00.000-08:00

The entire family braved the open road, snow storms in Denver, a race to make the plane in Lubbock, one day for Christmas shopping in Dallas, cross country travel from Delaware, and international travel from Mexico to join Mike, Lara and Liam and Jack in Crown King, Arizona for Christmas. There is no place like family for the holidays. We enjoyed immensely the chance to be together and celebrate the holidays with two incredibly engaging 18 month old little boys celebrating their second Christmas in this world. What a priviledge to be with children at Christmas. Pictures of the twins to follow next time.

2006 and family holiday portraits

2007-01-09T18:08:00.000-08:00

Last week I spent going through my calendar of 2006 and my journals of last year. I recorded the highlights on some new journal pages. Below are two of those pages. My calendar for last year featured William Morris art work, so I decided to incorporate some of my favorites in the background. I have always loved the art that came out of the Arts and Crafts Movement in England.
The last journal page is some sketches of a pastel painting that I am working on. I knew I wanted to have more practice working on faces and the painting of my family around the Thanksgiving table in 1938 afforded practice with 14 or 15 small portraits. I want to draw each of them in my journal to get some practice before I tackle them in the painting. It is facsinating when you do portraits of people because the smallest stroke of the pen can capture the person or completely make them into someone else, a stranger. Aunt Lucille and Uncle Stephen bear some very small spark of the people I knew in my childhood. Aunt Kay and Aunt Mary are definitely off the mark. Practice, Practice, Practice!!!!!!

"The palest ink is better than the best memories"

2007-01-09T17:39:00.000-08:00

I read this quote in Danny Gregory's web site, dannygregory.com, and it certainly captured my experience with drawing. Sketches have a way of capturing a moment that photos or memories just don't do in the same vivid way.
I took the first week of January 2007 to look back through my journals of 2006. I wanted to be reminded of all that had taken place last year, but I also desired to look with a critical eye toward the design and art of what I had produced on those pages. I kept a list of what I thought had "worked" and what had not. I hope to incorporate what was successful in the pages of 2007. Here are some of my favorite design elements from 2006:
1. Frames around my drawings or writing
2. I always like the pages that have drawings on them, usually the more time I spend on the drawing the more I like it.
3. Flowing, gyrating writing.
4. Writing around the frames
5. Columns of writing
6. Watercolor rather than the markers
7. Drawing with labeling
8. Distressed ink backgrounds
9. Letters connected to the lines above and below.
I also did better when I had a theme/design element that I continued to use for a number of weeks. I am thinking I might break the year into quarters and try to have a clear design thread, and a drawing challenge/image to work on in that quarter. I am thinking that this first quarter it may be faces and ovals. More on that in the next segment.
All three of the pages below are inspired by gifts given me by my friend, Kate. I love persimmons and one day she gave a number of wonderful bright orange globes of persimmons. I put them on the sink counter and enjoyed them for a number of days. then one early morning I brought them into the bedroom. I usually awake around 5 and have a quiet time reading my Bible, praying, and using part of the Bible reading to inspire my journal pages. The persimmons were a lovely accompaniment to God's word. The third page is a darling angelic ornament that Kate made. When we arrived home from a wonderfully adventurous Christmas in Crown King, Arizona this button angel was waiting in the mail.

2006-11-15T17:45:00.000-08:00

2006-11-10T15:34:00.000-08:00

This is phase 2 of the process of this page. I did some distressed ink backgrounds and rubber stamp letters. I have more to do coloring in the leaves and probably using some more text. "It hinders the creative work of the mind if the intellect examines too closely the ideas as they pour in." Friedrich von Schiller (1759-1805) or as Tim Holtz said in the class last weekend "Don't overthink it."

The page is never finished

2006-11-10T08:41:00.000-08:00

I posted this first page the other day but was not very satisfied with it visually. I went back to it yesterday and colored in the letter blocks and it became so much more appealing. It continues to reinforce two lessons that are important. The first is that any drawing that I do adds something to the page that is much more interesting than just design, or letters, or rubber stamps. The other lesson that continues to reoccur over and over is not to become discouraged with a page I have created because a design never has to be finished. If it doesn't look quite right come back to it, over and over if necessary, because it usually can be redeemed. That has definite application to my daily life. It is the story of process and journey not the destination or the finished product. I know I am a work in constant process. Sometimes the pages of my life are incredibly messy and ugly, but God is in the process of redeeming it and making it a design of beauty. He is the Creator and my days are just the pages in the process of His creation. I included the beginning of the next page and thought it would be interesting to watch the process as it evolves with color and words.

40 Days a second time

2006-11-08T08:29:00.000-08:00

We (Peter and I) have embarked on a 40 day journey with the rest of Arcade Church. Jake has chosen to call this "40 Days of Community". I so enjoyed the structure of the first 40 days and being more intentional about my journaling so that I was more than happy to commit to this 40 day journey. I wanted a design template before even starting out, but I am finding it is more a process of discovery and you can't have all the questions answered in the beginning. It really does have to be a voyage of discovery. In the first few days I have learned a number of lessons. I was inspired by stampersanonymous.com for the layouts; they have some wonderful stamp art in their gallery. Today I decided I liked the idea of small little boxes in some part of the design for my prayers of the day. I want to keep finding just a few words from the Bible passage I am reading that day to highlight in my journal entry. I decided I will pick up something from nature each day from my walk/run. I will bring that back to draw the following day on my page. The lesson I have been learning from that is that I always like my pages better when I have drawn something no matter what it is. I thought it would be best to only take something from the walk that is right "at hand". I love the phrase "at hand". I was pondering the idea on my walk this morning about having a get-together-craft night in the neighborhood and just invite anyone who is interested. That way I could share some of what I have learned in the classes I have taken. That is just an idea for the first of the year. I also want to use some of my stamps and inks more often in the layout of the pages. There are always so many ideas, some of which work and others that don't and get left by the wayside.
We are reading the New Testament in this 40 days. It is more reading than I usually do in the morning so Peter and I decided we will finish in the afternoon. Already we said to each other it was really nice to come back together and read God's word later in the day. Speaking of the wayside just now I was reminded of the seed that falls by the wayside that we were just reading in Matthew. The Word "entwined" with the dailiness of life. It is very good and warms the heart.

Classes by Tim Holtz 2

2006-11-05T13:32:00.000-08:00

Another project this weekend at the Stamp Art Shoppe was "Fireless Raku". The same clay used for the "clay fragments" was used for the Raku. We took the clay and pressed it into a mold. When it is removed from the mold it is baked in a little appliance called a melting pot. After baking it is then painted with "Perfect Pearls" interference colors and they come out looking like Raku pottery. The second picture looks like a typical rubber stamp image but we learned how to make our own customized ink pad to give they varied colors on the rubberstamp and be able to make multiple printings from the ink pad for that particular rubber stamp. It was very interesting but I was not completely satisfied with my color choices and I am not an avid rubber stamper. I don't know that I would use this technique. The third photo is a rubber stamp of the same Christmas image stamped in black but then going back into it with colored "distressed inks". Then it was placed in the "Memory Glass" frames amd some charms were attached. It has real potential for personalized Christmas ornaments with photos in the frame. It was a great creative weekend. I am not sure what I will do with all the ideas, but I enjoyed getting to learn some new techniques and now I get a chance to think about how to incorporate them into my own work.

Classes with Tim Holtz

2006-11-05T13:14:00.000-08:00

I spent the weekend in 3 classes at the Stamp Art Shoppe in Roseville. Tim Holtz, a designer for Ranger Products, was the teacher. He was entertaining and an excellent instructor. The first picture is what he calls "fragments from clay". They come out looking like metal but are really just clay stamped with rubber stamps and painted with "Perfect Pearls". Most of the products mentioned are from Ranger. In the second class we made a small 90 page book. The signatures (groups of pages) are hand stitched together to make the book and then the book had two canvas covers on the front and back. The canvas covers were colored with "Distressed" Ink and then covered with a thin coating of beeswax. Then some collage materials were placed on top. I chose part of a Van Gogh drawing, a torn piece of my grandparents Hungarian marriage certificate (both of which I had printed on rice paper) and a piece of rice paper napkin. Rice papers work well because they are thin and become transluscent when covered with the beeswax. The canvas covers are then glued to the front and back of the book and the antiqued door handle is glued down. A few other little trinkets are added and the book is finished. I haven't yet decided what I am going to use it for. 90 pages is rather intimidating.

2006-10-01T19:40:00.000-07:00

Lord, it is time. The summer was very big. Lay thy shadow on the sundails, and on the meadows let the winds go loose. Command the last fruits that they shall be full; give them another two more southerly days, press them on to fulfillment and drive the last sweetness in to the heavenly wine. Rainer Maria Rilke

40 Days continued once more...

2006-09-23T14:47:00.000-07:00

The 40 days ended yesterday. We serve an ever loving, ever amazing God. He moved in ways I would not have imagined. I am still processing what I learned. I do know this, I gave miniscule imperfect offerings of small sacrifice and God returned with blessings overflowing of his imcomparable love and care.

40 Days continued

2006-09-23T14:42:00.000-07:00

More pages from the 40 days.

40 Days

2006-09-23T14:29:00.000-07:00

42 days ago our new pastor, Jake, called on the church to fast for 40 days. That idea resonated in my heart and I asked the Lord to show me what I might offer to Him. Jake had suggested that we look at the spiritual discipline of "denying the flesh" and also think of fasting as "eliminating distractions". I prayed and felt called to relinquish some areas of my life to God for the next 40 days and embarked on the adventure with expectation. Jake had suggested keeping
a journal. Since I was already doing that I resolved to become more intentional during the 40 day time period. I journaled every day, and within a few days chose a design theme that I tried to carry through with variations during this spiritual journey.

Individual Tags from the Tag Book

2006-09-13T09:37:00.000-07:00

The first tag is a rainy Romanian street. I love the car headlights reflected on the rainy street. Because we traveled with a team from our church I had the added advantage of receiving all their photos, also. It ended up being over 3,000 pictures! I used Photoshop Elements to change the photo image, and there is part of a flyer I picked up at a museum we visited. The choices I use in Photoshop are in the "filter" section of the toolbar. From the "filter" I choose "artistic" and then use "cutout" and "poster edges". The image resembles a woodcut in a way. The second tag is a photo of a very old church down the street from where we stayed in Hateg, Romania. The background uses Distressed Inks with a rubber stamp on the background. In addition to the photo are the postage stamps and part of the post card that I brought back from the trip. The third tag has a stamp, part of a brochure, some small pictures from a map, and a stamp from a museum. On top is a photo I took in Arad, Romania. The Orthodox catherdral is being built in Arad and is nearing completion. The weekend we were there the four gold crosses, one about 10 feet tall, and three 6-7 feet tall were leaning against the staircase awaiting the crane to position them on the steeples of the church. I was so excited to have a chance to photograph the crosses still resting on the ground before being lifted into place. You can see the three gold crosses if you look for them.
The phot manager I mentioned in the last post "Picasa" can be downloaded for free at www.picasa.com. It is a terrific photo organizer. The store in Roseville where I took the class is: www.stampartshoppe.com. It is a wonderful store, great classes, and the store owner, Sandy, is terrific.

A Tag Book: Images from Romania and Vienna

2006-09-13T09:19:00.000-07:00

I always come back from a trip with hundreds of photos and bits and pieces of ephemera that I have gathered during the journey. The photos are filed on Picasa ( great photo manager). And the bits and pieces sit on the shelf for years. This trip's images finally found a creative home. I took an evening class from the Stamp Art Shoppe in Roseville, CA on making Tag Books.
It was the perfect small, yet lovely way to show off my photos and odd gatherings. I printed some of my photos on vellum and have manipulated them on Photoshop Elements. The tags have been colored using Distressed Inks and various rubber stamps. Some of my gatherings from the trip included old post cards and stamps from an antique dealer and some wonderful yarns and strings from a yarn shop in Vienna. Everything gets cut and pasted on the tags.

2006-09-09T20:03:00.000-07:00

These are pages I did in a series using each letter of the alphabet and some verses from the Psalms in Latin and English. The inspriration for this series came from a beautiful small book that is published by the Getty Museum, An Abecedarium:
Illuminated Alphabets from the Court of the Emperor Rudolf II. Getty also has The Art of the Pen and Nature Illuminated which I recommend. These are my designs for M and N.

So many options...

2006-09-09T19:48:00.000-07:00

On my trip to LA and San Diego, and then later in the week to Palo Alto and Stanford campus I had so many opportunities for drawing and journaling. The first pages are from SD and LA. My son's dog I haven't quite captured his real likeness. I am going to keep trying. Then on the other side of the page is a photo of my great nephew, Liam, at a very colorful indoor playground. I am still a little intimidated to draw children. The lower journal pages
are the drawings I did in the Cantor Art Museum at Stanford and the Memorial Chapel. I have been reading a book by Peter Steinhart, The Undressed Art: Why We Draw . It has some wonderful insights on drawing. Such as: "Drawing is a way of communicating with the world, of listening to what the world has to say and answering back."
"The visual mind can only partly be understood in words." I am understanding the urge to draw in a entirely new way. It is facsinating.

Cartoon format, thanks Danny Gregory

2006-09-09T19:30:00.000-07:00

One of my all time favorite web sites is: www.dannygregory.com. He has inspired my return to serious drawing and journaling in so many ways. Just recently I noticed his use of the comic book format and realized it would work well for the newletter I write for my husband's non-profit organization, Wheelchair Sports International. On further thought I saw the potential for other uses. I immediately did a thank you note for a friend that I had just visited in Santa Cruz. I had taken some digital photos while I was there. I used those pictures and worked in Photoshop Elements and Printmaster, a desktop publishing program that I really like. I was able to fairly quickly put the photos in a comic book format and I was very happy with the results. Above are some clips I pasted in my journal from Danny Gregory's web site and then the thank you that Iwrote to my friend.

A hymn to the Great Creator

2006-09-04T15:42:00.000-07:00

The service at Memorial Chapel on the campus of Stanford University in Palo Alto this weekend had a wonderful hymn: "God, who stretched the spangled heavens infinite in time and place,
flung the suns in burning radiance through the silent fields of space:
we your children in your likeness share inventive powers with you;
Great Creator, still creating, show us what we yet may do.
As each far horizon beckons, may it challenge us anew, sharing your creative purpose, serving others, honoring you.
May our dreams prove rich with promise, each endeavor well begun.
Great Creator, give us guidance till our goals and yours are one."

Going Deeper

2006-09-04T13:50:00.000-07:00

My journal has helped me to concentrate more on God's Word in prayer and meditation. I have then been able to explore drawing and journaling as a more daily activity. This page was inspired by Matyas Cathedral in Budapest, Hungary. We visited there 2 years ago and I took many pictures inside the cathedral. It is filled with richly painted walls of Hungarian folk designs. It also houses the crown of the royal family. This journal page was inspired by the crown.

Creative paths to entwine your heart with the Word of God

2006-09-04T13:25:00.000-07:00

I have rediscovered journaling and through my journals have become passionate abut drawing and painting. A friend and I have started to do some workshops exploring how to go deeper with God in journals. We present a number of techniques to use journals in more creative ways, both using them as visual journals (collage, calligraphy, drawings, watercolors, etc.) and also using them for more creative writing and interacting with God's Word through paraphrasing, simple poetry, personal application, summarizing, and memorizing using the journal as a great place to rewrite scripture using different types of hand lettering and simple calligraphy.