Happy Shark Week!

In his adolescence, we'd hoped Andrew would channel his fascination with the sea into marine biology. I bought him scientific guides and thought he might go study at Woods Hole; Alberta dreamed of having birthed another Winslow Homer; Mr. Alberta speculated whether Andrew could develop a patent for fiber optic underwater cables or some such that would link the world and lead us to a liberal democracy modeled on Atlantis.

No. Instead, Andrew just waits all year for the Discovery Channel's Shark Week with the same giddy fervor with which Dutch children set out their wooden shoes in December. I'm sure it's only a matter of time before he trades in his August birthday for Shark Week presents, delivered in bubbles and adorned with algae.

Oh, it could be worse; Andrew could be encrusted with salt. He could be the Dread Pirate Roberts. He could make us watch The Little Mermaid over and over like his little brother did; he could make us all go live in a biodome under the sea. He could make us all miserable by simply talking like a sailor, and with Alberta for a mother, it's a wonder he doesn't anyway. But we love Andrew and his obsessions. To kick off this week, Alberta made him the above collage, I wrote him a poem, and Magenta and Amaryllis watched Jaws I, II, and III. But I'm a little worried. If his obsession grows, we're gonna need a bigger blog.

Ava

Birdcage Buddha Blues

This was super-dooper challenge for me because I wasn't going to do ANY challenges at all today, since we're going tubing with my wild and crazy sister-in-law Mary Ann in north Georgia. But I woke up really early this morning and, while drinking my coffee, I sneaked a little peek at the new Arty Girlz challenge, which is "Blue." It also fits the This Thursday Challenge "Winged Things." So.... I made a sacred vow to myself to only spend ONE hour working on a journal page,(it often takes me anywhere from 4-6 hours to complete just one page). I was determined to use only images I already had and a photocopy of the watercolor background I painted yesterday. So, at warp speed, I rifled through my boxes of pre-cut bits, flinging the rejects to the floor and selecting only my favorite blue images and papers. I used one of Teesha Moore's recent collages as a layout model and started gluing. I slapped on the text even managing to use a pre-selected quote, the one from our blog, and finished in just over an hour! Everybody knows that scanning and editing do NOT count. (I just saw an eensy-weensy mistake that I will have to correct when I get home tomorrow). Also, Arty Girlz, below you'll see a journal page to fit your ongoing "Recycle Challenge." Whew! Who said collaging isn't aerobic activity!

Patient Magic

This collage is for the Mixed Media Monday "Generations Challenge" and for the My Time To Create "Red, Black, and White Challenge" AND for the Arty Girlz ongoing "Rycycling Challenge." Several years ago my father-in-law, Ira, who was my favorite person in the world, gave me a stack of magazines from 1905-1908. Ira was always inviting me to go up in the attic or dig through a jewelry box and find something pretty to take home. The art and ephemera in these vintage magazines is just gorgeous. I thought about framing each individual issue, but there's so much inside that would be wasted. Finally, when I started making collages, it occurred to me that I could copy and use the images and still leave the magazines intact. So, here's my first collage using the cover of The Burr McIntosh Monthly from July, 1908. I chose this lady because she's a natural Zetti model. I brightened her color a bit with Prismacolor pencils, and I used bits of leftover scrapbook papers from my scrap stash drawer. Many other pieces in the border were snipped from various design magazines. When Ira lived with us, we watched a lot of Gunsmoke and Andy Griffith, and often I'd sit cutting and pasting on the floor in front of his recliner. He always seemed to get a kick out of what I made, and one afternoon he said, You are such a girl!" I wish Ira were still here to see what he inspired. He would be so tickled.

For the Birds

This is the first Gothic arch I've ever made, and I'm going to use it for Andrew's birthday card in a few weeks. As usual, the images came from Vogue and English Garden. The ex-parrot came from a travel brochure I brought home from Belize, and the words came from Monty Python. "Beautiful plumage, innit?"

Brilliant Blog Award

Lavendar Loft's lovely and talented Janet has honored us with our second Brilliant Blog Award and we'd like to pass it on to some of our favorite artists (just click on the artist's name to visit their beautiful blogs):

Mandy at Mandy's Magical World of Art for her originality and talent
Susan at Thrifty Collage Artist for her art and enthusiasm
Debrina at Whimisical World of Fairies for her uniquely magical spirit
Heather at Creative Solace for her support and beautiful works
Teeshah at Teesha's Circus for HOURS of inspiration
Laura at Layers of Color for her generosity, talent, and encouragement
Francoise at Couleurs Et Mixed Media for her funky collages

Here are the rules for accepting this award:
1) Put the logo on your blog.
2) Add a link to the person who awarded you.
3) Nominate at least 7 other blogs
4) Add links to those blogs on yours.
5) Leave a message for your nominees on their blog/

Love,
Alberta & Ava

Zen Friends

Here's my entry for the new Saturday Workout challenge "Sponges." I had so much fun making this. I started with a red-violet watercolor wash. Because I was inspired by Shelly's collages to make a more intricate background, I sponged on red and orange acrylic and then added more layers with watercolor crayons and oil pastels. Next, I collaged images and inked around their edges to make them more a part of the design. I added golden orbs that were inspired by Violette and fit perfectly with my theme. I wanted to add a butterfly that I'd altered with ink, but then I needed some other images for balance. I was stuck until the mail came, and Laura from Layers of Color, sent me a beautiful set of ornate stamps, just to be sweet. I used these above the lower panel of Buddha . These stamps made me remember a stencil of Chinese characters for happiness and energy that I'd stashed in a drawer. The symbols gave me the balance I needed for the butterfly. This collage is called "Zen Friends" because it was inspired by so many of the kindred spirits I've found, since I started blogging. It's for Pattie with whom I start each new day and for Jean, my flower child friend and fellow music lover and for Lisa who always laughs at my titles AND who taught me to add links today. (Are you impressed, Lisa?) Thank you BFFF's (best Flickr friends) Lisa John, and Mandy for all encouragement and kindness, and energy you've taken the time to give.
XXXOOO,
Alberta

Wise Guy

I love this Layers of Color challenge so much that I'm going to post another example this afternoon. You can come back and see it later, if you want to. It's going to be a Monty Python-inspired birthday card for my #1 son Andrew. I can't believe it; he will be 27 on August 11!!! You should check out the owl that Violette posted yesterday; it's in almost exactly the same colors but in her own unmistakably funky style. Isn't it a little bit spooky that we both did owls in the same colors on the same day? Maybe I'll change the song playing to the one by The Zombies of that title...

Are You a Good Witch Or A Bad Witch?

This is my entry for the Theme Thursday Challenge "Flowers." It's part of the new project I'm working on which I'll tell you about another day, if it works out. This collage is on a watercolor background and is made up of images from Vogue and travel brochures. I used some 3-dimensional flowers and various scrapbook and hand-drawn papers. I'm not entirely pleased with it. Maybe it's just not quite finished. I was happy with the card until I saw it on the blog, but now I think I need something between the Toucan-Head and Flower-Hat Witches. Maybe another familiar? Or some doodles with oil pastels or gel pens? Please let me know what you think about either, if you have time. I think I've lost my perspective on this one!

P.S. With your kind help, I think I've finished this collage now. I tried, with no success, to find a frog or a toad that would fit. But, at Sharon's suggestion, I "auditioned" arms for the piece and added them (how did I make this obvious ommission???!!!). Three different models were sacrificed to complete the Black and White Witch, but only one had to sacrifice her appendages for Miss Toucan-Head. Then, as my faithful friend and new next-door neighbor, Jean, suggested, I added some doodles and dots, and she was right. It helped a lot. Here is my first on-line collaborative piece:

The Age of Aquarius

This is another double entry for this week's Arty Girlz Challenge "Eras" and the Crazy Amigos Challenge "Sun." It was originally a companion page for my July Fourth journal page. Since I came of age in the 60's and 70's, I was profoundly affected by the politics, art, music, and social awareness of that era. Although some of these are hand-drawn, most came from a Time magazine cover, and the background is watercolor.

Who Let These Dogs Out?

I know this might seem like a stretch, but some people do refer to their feet as "dogs," as in "these tired old dogs" or "I've got to get off my dogs." When I read the challenge for Sunday Postcard Art, all I could think of were dogs in hats or dogs with wings, and somebody's already done that better than I could. And I didn't have any good dog images anyway, but I DID have these fabulous shoes. So, I did a little different interpretation of dogs."I said, hey, I put some new shoes on and suddenly everything was alright!"

Mixed Media Monday: Rust

This is Alberta posting Ava's photograph because Ava is in school today. It's a photo if Mr. Alberta's ancient truck's wheelcover. Believe it or not, that truck is his pride and joy!

Love Transforms

This is a double-shot entry for Saturday Workout's "Spotlight" challenge and Step Outside Your Box's "Watercolor" challenge. Kind of ironic, since collage is definitely INSIDE the box for me right now. It was fun, though, especially since Ava and I have taken up yoga this summer. I hope you enjoy it too!

Friendship Is Always In Fashion

As you can see, I am unable to stop this collage mania. Last night Mr. Al "mentioned" all the bits and pieces of paper he keeps finding in the bed, but, in the words of an old roommate, " I can't help myself." In fact, I may even be approaching the level of a Creative Fit. You see, this morning I had an idea. I actually thought of a use for my collages, and Ava was nowhere to be found for me to tell about it. (She's taken Amarylis and Magenta and headed to the Magnolia State for her high school reunion. Hopefully, right about now, she and an old boyfriend are juning around eating moon pies and drinking R-O-C Cola with peanuts or whatever they do in Mississippi). But I digress... you may see a new dimension to Amusing Muses in the near future. I wondered why I had been creatively stuck for the last three weeks, but I think I now know why. One of my students, Darius, told me a thing or two about resistance this year. (It's amazing what a sixteen year old can teach you.) He said that resistance is productive; it's the struggle that pushes an artist to a different level. I had never thought of it from that perspective before, although you probably have. I think I can see what he meant. After experiencing this process several times since he imparted these words of wisdom, I believe that Darius was right. I've had a painting sitting on a easel since June, and I've hardly touched it. I have a rough sketch that I really want to do something with, but, no matter how many times I've thought it through, I have been unable to decide on a medium. One day it's going to be a watercolor; the next it's going to be mixed media. Since that Mixed Media Monday challenge to "try something new" I have, however, been churning out collages with great regularity. Enough about all this, though; I don't know if I'm going anywhere with my idea, but I think I am. If so, you'll be the first to know. Oops, I take that back. Ava will be the first because I always go to her for inspiration, but you will be second. Mr. Al thinks he knows what I'm up to , but there's a lot about me Mr. Smarty-Man doesn't know, even after 25 years!

When we returned from our vacation, we were so happy to discover that sweet Bella at Bella Sinclair Doodlespot (http://bellasinclair.blogspot.com/)nominated us for an award! Yay!!!!! Thank you, Bella! We love your art so much.



Here are the rules for accepting this award:
1) Put the logo on your blog.
2) Add a link to the person who awarded you.
3) Nominate at least 7 other blogs
4) Add links to those blogs on yours.
5) Leave a message for your nominees on their blog/

Here are the beautiful weblogs we'd like to pass this award on to:
Laura at http://www.flickr.com/photos/painteddesignsbylaura/
Lisa at http://www.groggyfroggy.blogspot.com/
Sophie at http://misskoolaid.blogspot.com/
Natalie at http://nats-ramblings.blogspot.com/
Roxanne at http://rivergardenstudio.typepad.com/
Lisa at http://awhimsicalbohemian.typepad.com/a_whimsical_bohemian/
Chrysti at http://chrysti.wordpress.com/

Are you my mother?

When I was tiny, Alberta used to read me that P.D. Eastman book over and over until I memorized it and our mother thought (mistakenly) I had learned to read and was some Mozart-like prodigy. Anyway, XLo05 (Mother) gets a look on her face exactly like this bird when she's about to say something that's not, well, exactly critical, but pointed.

We returned from Myrtle Beach last night and Alberta and Mr. Alberta are partying it up in Belize by now, but I felt obligated to reflect on our hiatus at my own blog, www.itmustbemice.blogspot.com

You're going to love Alberta's feet. FYI,she has a darling new yellow beach cover-up for Belize.
Ava

Road Trip!

Tomorrow Ava and I are heading to Myrtle Beach, South Carolina with Susan for our Third Annual Girls' Trip. (This journal page is about as girly as you can get, so I thought I'D use her today.) Actually, it's the third for Susan and me and the first for Ava. I don't think Ava's had a child-free vacation in years. While we're there we plan to act in a way that would most certainly embarrass our children, if only they knew. But they won't because no children will be there! See, that's the beauty of it, only the girls (and I use that term loosely) go on a a girls' trip. If you get my drift. We're going to stay until Wednesday, and, then, on Thursday, Mr. Alberta and I are off to Belize to celebrate our 25th anniversary! I have no idea if I will have internet access either place, but I do plan to take plenty of pictures and share them when I get home. See you when I get back!

Love,
Alberta

Letting My Freak Flag Fly

I can scan! I can scan! I can scan! Magenta left me very specific written instructions about scanning and e-mailing an image to myself, so I was able to post this new collage. What started as a journal page evolved into this self-portrait and entry for The Layers of Color Challenge. "Must be because I had the bluuuuuues for Christmas...." Thanks to Mr. Alberta for the use of his 70's Guy tube socks, to Michael Stipe for his body double, and, of course, to Obama for his words of inspiration. Happy Fourth of July!

Hope Is The Thing With Feathers

You might have already seen this little one on my photostream. My technical staff is on vacation, so I can't post any new art, but here is Miss Hope Floats. She is a portrait of Meghan who always inspires me with her courage and resilience. I drew her in Prismacolor and finished her in ink as a graduation card.

Somewhere Over the Rainbow

That's where I am this morning. Over the rainbow. Look what Pattie(http://www.pjmosca.blogspot.com/) sent. As if her support and inspiration weren't enough... It's the Arte y Pico Award, which was created "to be given to bloggers who inspire others with their creative energy and their talents, be it writing or artwork in all medias." I am, for once, without words,so I'll just sing...



Now to pass this award on to five kindred spirits who have inspired and supported so many others. Please take a moment to visit each of the five blogs listed and leave a comment letting them know you stopped by. (NOTE: I seem to be having technical difficulties, as my support staff is on vacation; Everything seems to be linked to the award image. If you have a suggestion, HELP!)

Jean (http://bluebirdslivinginthemeadow.blogspot.com)
Sharon (http://allnorahsart.blogspot.com)
Lisa (http://faerieenchantment.blogspot.com)
Courtney (http://oriart.blogspot.com)
Tammie Lee (http://miztlee.blogspot.com)

If you have been selected for the award, please pay it forward, following the steps below:
1) Choose 5 blogs that you consider deserving of this award based on creativity, design, interesting material, and overall contribution to the blogger community, regardless of the language.
2) Post the name of the author and a link to his or her blog so everyone can view it.
3) Each award-winner has to show the award and put the name and link to the blog that has given her or him the award.
4) The award-winner and the presenter should post the link of the "Arte y Pico" blog so everyone will know the origin of this award.
5) Please post these rules!

The Arte y Pico blog is in Spanish. To read it in English, click here. The translation is not perfect.

Love and Creativity to all,
Alberta