So yesterday I shared a little bit about the process of pochoir. Today I thought I'd share what I made. (Yay!) My first attempt resulted in these seven 5-color prints: It was soooooo much fun to do! And since I had done abstract, I wanted to try a more representational image. I also wanted to figure out an easier method of registering the prints so that the stencils lined up. And I figured both out. Yay! Here's the result: I love this technique so much that I've put together a step-by-step how-to -- from cutting the stencils to registering them... Continue reading

I have been experimenting with a printing technique known as "pochoir." In essentials, it's layered stenciling. In fact, pochoir is the French word for stencil. But pochoir as a technique usually involves multiple layers of stenciling. I have read that artists have used somewhere between 40 and 100 stencils to create a single image. Before digital printing, it was a method for creating a "print" of a work of art. Here are two pochoir prints by Matisse... ...two from Picasso... ...and two from Paul Klee... I did a little bit of research into the process and found some interesting videos.... Continue reading

Hey friends! I'm delighted to share that Jana, from the Artistically You Podcast, interviewed me and we chatted about finding your personal style. You can listen into our conversation HERE. Jana is a graduate of both Design Boot Camp Level 1 and 2, and we do end up chatting quite a bit about how that experience helped to shape her sense of personal style. I hope you enjoy the chat and find it useful in your own artistic journey! And now here's the round-up for June 2022: What's happening at home? The house is painted. Yay! You can see the... Continue reading

I've started a new series of short instructional videos that I'm calling, "Art Basics." In essentials, it's skills and techniques that every artist should know. The first skill is scoring paper: why and how? If you make a greeting card... ...a box... ...a book... ...a paper lamp... ...or any number of artful paper projects... ...you're going to want to score your paper, before you fold, for best results. In this video I take you through tools, methodologies, and even paper grain. Enjoy! Bone Folder: https://amzn.to/3O9tMyG Scor-It Score Board: https://amzn.to/3tqf9Px Let me know what basic techniques YOU think every artist should... Continue reading

I'm a sucker for a formula. It makes art making fast and fun! I used the same basic formula to make all six of these mixed media collages: Can you see it? It's amazing how you can use the same basic formula over and over again with very different results! It's all about the little details, but the basic underlying design remains the same. If you'd like to learn the method to my madness, I'm teaching a live online Zoom class all about it on Friday, July 22 at 7pm EST. Space is limited. I'll be sharing four design formulas... Continue reading

We're back and on schedule (amazingly) with another new podcast. Yay! You can watch the video HERE or listen below. I'm a little under the weather with a scratchy voice, but hopefully it won't bother you. We chat about a topic that has come up several times - particularly during Book Club: why having a broad range of inspiration matters. In other words, why you should look to fashion or architecture or quilting if what you do is collage. I share one of my favorite quotes during the podcast and I took some time to track down its origins. It... Continue reading

Yesterday we had another fantastic Book Club meeting! We discussed Irene Roderick's book, "Improv Quilting: Dancing with the Wall." If you didn't catch the livestream, you can watch the replay below: If you watch the video/"mini art class," you'll see that I put together a slide presentation for this Book Club meeting. My favorite slides are the ones looking at many of the artists who were inspirational to Irene. Several of them were new-to-me. In particular, I was struck by the paintings of Friedensreich Hundertwasser. Here are a few of my faves: You can also watch this short video about... Continue reading

Something I've become very interested in lately is contemporary still life. I have tried my hand at a few practice sketches in my studio notebook, with mixed results. I need to practice more and spend some time setting up some compelling still life images to draw. Like I've said before: art is a practice. As part of my interest in contemporary still life images, I've been collecting work that I like on a Pinterest board. Here's a peek at that board: The images I'm drawn to are busy and full of pattern and color and movement. I find that this... Continue reading