Mandalas…

One of the things I enjoy doing and can get totally lost in, is to go ‘blog wandering’…Leah, from Creative Every Day, makes it really easy for me to wander the blogs of others like me, who are exploring their creativity, with the widget she puts up each week…Leah hosts the Creative Every Day Challenge that I have joined this year…

As I was blog wandering around the other day, I came across Kathryn, from Collage Diva and her post called ‘Do you see mandalas everywhere?’ At the end of her post she issued a challenge…to photograph and blog about the mandalas that you see in your environment this week.

In her Soul Journal prompt #21 - Mandalas, Kathryn teamed up with Megan from the Four Ravens blog to talk about Mandalas, what they can represent and different ways of making them...there are some wonderfully inspiring ideas illustrated…

When I was doing “The Artist’s Way”, a few years back, in a group with my Cariño and 4 women, on one of the nights that I was to organize the group, I chose, as our activity, making mandalas…it was fun, although Oma may remember it as being a frustration!

Some time after taking The Artist’s Way journey, I took another course at the First Unitarian Congregation of Ottawa…it was led by Debra Faulk, who later performed Cariño and my wedding ceremony…Debra is now the minister at the Don Heights Unitarian Congregation (and we miss her!)…the course I took was called Evensong…it was another wonderful journey…here is the description for it:

“Listening is at the core of Evensong. The curriculum focuses on paying attention to people, "hearing them into a deeper sense of their own humanness and wholeness, and into community." Participants explore individual life journeys through sharing thoughts, experiences, doubts, and beliefs about religious concepts.”

One of the exercises was to create something that summarized your spiritual life experiences…I chose to do a mandala…


















I think it was in that same year that a group of Tibetan monks came to Ottawa...Cariño and I saw them chanting...what an amazing experience that was!...they also set up at the Ottawa School of Art, in their art gallery, and made a sand mandala...the whole process...the making and then the dismantleing of it took a week...every day there would be at least 2 of them working on it...they took turns and about 8 hours a day were spent making this creation...they had special pipets that they used to place the sand, seemingly a grain at a time into the pattern...it was a gorgeous creation and fascinating to watch them...at the end...they took it all apart again...













Kathryn and Megan demonstrate a number of ways to create mandalas and have listed links to many more inspiring ideas. I have loved and been interested in mandalas for years and this Soul Journal prompt has fired it all up again! I bought my first mandala years ago at a craft show…it is one of those things that has followed me and been hung everywhere I have lived…I call it my mandala tree…

















I also have a framed poster of an ‘Energy” mandala…it jumped right off the store shelf and into my possession a few years ago…it is a computer generated one and full of fantastic detail and rich colours…


















It is funny how things crop up in your life when you are being receptive…and I think being actively creative makes us more receptive…the book I bought for myself when on my road trip and have been reading – "The Artist’s Muse – Unlock the Door to your Creativity" has a chapter on mandalas and after I read it and was freshly thinking about them again, they start popping up everywhere! So I have pulled my “Mandala – Journey to the Center" off the shelf and with the addition of the Soul Journal prompt…I am surrounded and filled with mandala energy!

Further to the Soul Journal prompt #21 - Mandalas contest, I decided to create an affirmation mandala...












I went looking for a nice affirmation that spoke to me at Creative Affirmations, under the Happiness Affirmations...I chose: "I release all negativity and hold joy in my heart."...then I decided to make a 'wonder bubble' like in my "Sitting Under Mandara's Tree of Wonder" painting...they are happy, colourful spheres...I painted the background for the card...I love blue...wrote the affirmation in the ring around where the 'wonder bubble' would go and then I attached the 'wonder bubble' with gel medium...I also masked off the circle area and splattered the background of the card with inks...

Painted Quilt Blocks…

I am having a lot of fun doing these tiny quilt block paintings…it isn’t that I am getting wildly inspired by them – as in this leads to that, leads to next, leads to another...ideas flowing and growing…like some of these projects have done for me…but they are fun in a quiet, kind of meditative way…they are similar to Zentangles because they are ‘organized doodling’ - like Zentangling is. Also I am enjoying the extended play time with the watercolour pencils…a medium I have only just started to use…they are wonderful for this kind of thing…I have used them before to do the ‘wonder bubbles’ for “Sitting under Mandara’s Tree of Wonder”…for those circles I used normal coloured pencils (Prismacolor), watercolour pencils and then ink.

Here are the steps for making the quilt blocks…

Working from a picture…original painting by Gail de Marcken from the book ”The Quilt Maker’s Gift” – by Jeff Brumbeau…this is the Friendship Star quilt block...


















I drew the square masks on my stack of 25 little cards…


















I pencil in the pattern…ooops...I realized, after I scanned this and started with the watercolour pencils, that I missed penciling in 2 of the diagonal lines...


















Then, using the watercolour pencils, I decide on my colour scheme and colour it in…I am not trying to reproduce material patterns here like in the picture I am working from…


















Now comes the melting of the colour…using a wet paintbrush I work on each coloured section separately until I have ‘painted’ over the whole picture…


















Using ‘regular’ watercolours and a brush, I lay on the background colour…


















Finally, when it is all dry, I write the name of the quilt block with a black ink marker…


















If you notice a slight difference between the last 2 pictures...it is because, as I opened the black marker and told myself to be very careful in writing the name of the quilt block correctly...I very carefully left out the 'd' in 'Friendship'!!! I hate it when I do things like that!...so I cut out the quilt block and attached it to a different background with gel medium! You've got to love gel medium!!!

Getting back into the swing of things…

I spent most of this past week getting back into my ‘being home’ mode…I’m not sure what I was tired from…the road trip wasn’t overly strenuous…but I seem to have spent whatever ‘free time’ I had, since arriving home, napping…I have also been fairly busy with computer work …I had an almost fully booked week by the time I got home …which is good…because when I take time off, I don’t get paid!

There is a Toller Cranston show on at one of the Sussex Street galleries…the Terence Robert Gallery…his paintings are so colourful and full of life – happy and fanciful…it is only on until March 25 – so Cariño and I popped in to see it on Saturday…Cariño had liked the pictures of his paintings when he saw them on the computer, but not so much in real life…he didn’t like all the detail that you see when you are close up to them…he did like them from afar though…I liked them close up and far away! I love the fancifulness of them and the colours are so rich – deep reds, wonderful blues, great greens! I think they have an Eastern European or Russian folk arty feel to them…all the details and curly-cues, poofy pants and cuff detailing…the curly-toed shoes…there was one called ‘Night Kites’…very big (54 x 66) that I especially liked…and his mice are such fun! If you go to the Terence Robert Gallery web site and then click on Artists and then on Toller Cranston, you can see quite a number of his paintings.

I have been working again on my projects…I seem to be taking forever to get finished…I am still enjoying them, but I seem to have so many things that I want to do lately…different paintings…more ideas than time! I am not complaining…this is all a very good thing!

I have spent some painting time in the last few days working on the little card project…the cards are 2.5 inches x 3.5 inches…tiny!...I decided a while back to do each one as a different quilt block…I have 25 to do…when I was working at the bookstore before Christmas, I fell in love with this kids book…”The Quilt Maker’s Gift” – by Jeff Brumbeau…that is where the idea came from…the illustrations in the book are wonderful watercolours by Gail de Marcken and inside the covers both front and back are quilt block samples with names…I am using watercolour pencils for this and I love them…I get to start with full control…a nice sharp point and I can put colour precisely where I want it…then I get a wet paint brush and start wetting the pencil marks and they all melt into each other…then with a drier paint brush, I can take off a bit of colour in spots to add depth…I am getting the best of 2 different mediums in 1!

I meant to do a scan of one of them before I apply the water…next time! Here are the first 10 tiny quilt blocks…they are kind of cute all together as a group...I do find it a bit painful with these projects seeing all my little creations together and then having to split them up to send all over the place...but it also comes with a good feeling to be sending out little pieces of my art to people...and to be receiving them from all over the world too!...technically, I think we are supposed to send them out as we do them...but I always seem to do a bunch of them before sending...I like seeing them all together!...

Road Trip ~ Third Leg, Fourth Leg and Home…

There has been a lot of reminiscing on this trip! We arrived at Mom’s in Mount Hope just after lunch time on Tuesday…I was confused about the time because I hadn’t changed the clock in the van…we lost an hour last weekend…I don’t mind the time changing business when I get that hour back in the Fall…but I hate the losing of it!

Mom fed us lunch and then we all had a nap…I fell sound asleep for almost 2 hours…it was lovely! Later, Mom and her sweet baboo took us out for a delicious Thai dinner at one of their favourite haunts…I had my leftovers for breakfast the next morning!

Mom and I spent a relaxing Wednesday morning drinking coffee and talking…the girls slept and sweet baboo went for his weekly ‘coffee with the guys’…in the afternoon Mom had to go to the funeral of a dear friend's hubby; the girls slept on and I went for a drive…hoping to visit a friend in Dundas…but I guess most people are working on a Wednesday afternoon in early March!

Having grown up in and around Hamilton, it was a trip down memory lane as I meandered my way into Dundas…I drove along Scenic Drive, passing by some homes of friends and acquaintances from years ago…I drove past my old school, Hillfield-Strathallan College, and on down the Queen Street hill…a steep and winding 2-lane road that makes its way up the Hamilton Escarpment…one that I travelled almost every day for many years of my life…on my way to school or to my best friend’s house…

I stopped briefly to photograph the house that I lived in for the first 9 years of my life…2 Hillcrest Avenue…the last house on a dead-end street…there is still a huge park across the street from our old home…we called it ‘The Reservoir’…there were woods and areas of tall, wild grasses, the park stepped its way up the escarpment in a number of different levels that provided wonderful tobogganing hills in the winter and rolling-down hills in the summer…I spent many wonderful hours there as a child…playing and exploring…even sharing tea with the grounds keeper…there is some kind of construction going on now at the dead-end…not sure what…it was looking a bit ‘under construction’ all around the old place…

...2 Hillcrest Avenue...















The dead-end is a tad chewed up with construction...














As are the steps up to the Res down at the corner of Hillcrest and Mountain...














I had called my friend and left a message on her answering machine at home…it turns out that she had left work early and as she was driving down the main street of Dundas – she saw me! At this point she had no idea that I was in town (she hadn’t got the message yet)…so she figured that she was seeing someone that looked like me! Then she got home later and listened to my message saying that I was there! She said it was a very bizarre feeling! So we didn’t get to see each other, but did end up with a talk on the phone…next time…

When she saw me, I had been wandering down the main street taking pictures, looking into various stores…she said that I had looked carefree and happy…it is nice to hear that you look that way when you are wandering around unsuspecting that anyone is looking at you and thinking that you look like someone they know!…much better than looking sad or sour!

Here is one of our old watering holes...it looks much the same as it always did!
The Collins Brewhouse...























Our visit with Mom was too short; as was the next visit on the trip…after lunch on Thursday we packed up and headed off to Napanee to visit my Dad. We arrived just in time for a before dinner drink! On the Friday we took the van in to Dad’s mechanic for a check-up and servicing, then Dad took us for a drive around town and we met up with Dad’s Jean at a Timmies for coffee and breakfast.

The weather, throughout the trip, except for the one storm at LT’s, was beautiful…mostly sunny…and while we were at Dad’s, it was no exception…except for the trips into town to take in and then pick up the van, we stayed out at Dad’s house on Long Reach…about 20 minutes out of Napanee…a beautiful spot overlooking the water, surrounded by farmland, woods and quiet…

I have always had a thing about fence-lines like this...the aged wood and tangle of wire, weeds and grasses makes for a beautiful arrangement...


















I also love gazing up into trees...

































Looking from the water-side up to Dad and Jean's house...














Here's Dad calling us in for dinner...


















At one point, after having gone down to check on the dock, Dad came in with these big seed pods…from a locust tree and the girls and I went out to look at all of them…there were more pods on the ground than it seemed possible for the tree to have held…I had fun photographing them…they looked like snakey things on the grass…ok...I am easily amused!!!

They are coming...


















No...they are going...


















They are circling...














They are amassing...


















They are dancing...


















Individual pod sculptures created by nature...


































On Friday afternoon my younger daughter’s beau came to pick up both girls to take them back to Ottawa a day early…he was in a hockey tournament that my daughter wanted to see and my elder wanted to get home to find one of her cats who had gone walk-about…I stayed on for a quiet last day with Dad…Jean was away at a painting workshop in town, led by an artist friend of hers, so Dad and I were on our own…I never seem to get to see family very often, so it was nice having even a little bit of time for visiting…

Saturday after lunch, I once more loaded up the van and set off on the last leg of the road trip…the trip home…while nice to visit, it is always nice to get home again too!

Road Trip ~ Second Leg…

On Thursday March 5th we got all packed up and began the second leg of our trip…Toronto to Waverly - where we would have a few days visit with Little Tammy (LT)…on our way out of Toronto, we stopped at “All the Best” to pick up some cheese melt…it is absolutely delicious…we usually only get it when we see my sister at Christmas or up at the cottage, but we hadn’t had any this visit, so we decided to get some to take up to LT’s…we got 2!

The drive to LT’s was quiet and quick…the girls slept and I listened to CBC…it was only about an hour and a half drive…we were supposed to stay at LT’s from Thursday to Monday and head down to my Mom’s Monday…but on Sunday night there was a storm – it blew like mad and started with rain, which turned to sleet, hail and then finally to snow…I guess a cold wind got up the vans ‘skirt’ and froze there…after I had loaded up the van on Monday afternoon, she wouldn’t start…turn over, yes, but no way would she start…by the time we gave up, called CAA and got it towed to Canadian Tire in Midland, the mechanics were getting ready to head home…so we left the van and went and got stuff for a home-made spaghetti and garlic bread feast…we still had wine left to drink…

Tuesday morning, after a night in the shop warming up and drying out, the van started with no troubles…but I am getting ahead of myself…

We had a great visit with LT, her beau and 2 dogs (Teegan and Cloe)…lots of sitting around the kitchen table eating, drinking wine and talking...much laughter…we also put in a lot of miles…driving both to new places and to old haunts and reminiscing…we used to live in Warminster from the time my younger daughter was 3 until she was 8 and then we lived for a year in Orillia before we moved to Ottawa…so there were a lot of memories for all of us…

On Friday LT, the girls and I drove to Orillia and had lunch at Mariposa Market…I found it kind of funny, that after over 6 years, I had the same lunch that I used to have when we lived there…it was still yummy! I also found it kind of frustrating that the Mariposa Market food counter still operated in its haphazard, chaotic way which always left you wondering if you were ever going to get the food you had ordered! The store was pretty much the same in every way…a very quaint, small town, old fashion-styled emporium…baked goods, gourmet food stuff, pottery, cards, the best fudge and kitchen gadgets…

After lunch we wandered around the main street…I remember when I first moved to the area (Warminster was less than ten miles outside of Orillia), I had asked someone where a certain store was and I was told it was on “Main Street”…I couldn’t find it…”Main Street” is actually Mississagua Street…but the locals just call it Main Street…

Here is LT and my younger daughter...LT's lunch wasn't as agreeable as mine had been...so she isn't feeling all that well here...














I always loved Orillia's downtown...it has wonderful old architecture and many of the stores have done beautiful jobs fixing up thier store fronts...











Manticore Books was a favorite store of mine...I spent many an hour and dollar in here!






























I wanted this garden toad...


















Hudson's was another favorite store...I used to go in and look longingly at the Fiesta dishes...


















I worked for over 5 years at a picture framing shop and gallery on ‘the main street’…I loved working there…now the store stands empty and is for rent…that was sad to see…the vacant space holds so many happy memories for me…the 2 women I worked with and I had so much fun there and we went wild with creativity…I have a great number of fantastically framed pictures from my days as a picture framer there and many tears of happiness, silliness and sadness fell over the years we worked together…


















Even though the store I had worked in is empty, Orillia has a pretty vibrant downtown…there are quite a few neat little boutiques, kitchen stores, galleries and restaurants and we poked our noses into a bunch of them…a good number of them were ones that had been there when I used to live in Orillia and that was nice to see…it is nice when some things don’t change too much!

On Saturday we all headed to Barrie in the afternoon to go to Chapters…I got a neat book called The Artist’s Muse - Unlock the Door to your Creativity…...there is a book and 3 decks of creativity prompt cards…1 deck is called the 'Doors of Awareness', one the 'Cirlces of Growth' and the third is called the deck of 'Windows of Opportunity'...you can choose a card from 1, 2 or all 3 decks to be prompted...I am looking forward to having a chance, when I get home, to try it out...on first glance I really like some of the examples of art in the book...so, if nothing else, it will be inspirational eye candy!

On Sunday LT and I left everyone to sleep and we went out for a drive…LT took me all over on the back roads…it was a lovely, sunny day and it felt like spring was in the air…I loved this clump of trees at the intersection of 2 back roads...
































We ended up in Orillia again and got the fudge we had forgot to pick up before, but the stores were almost closing, so we ended up just having a walk up and down the main street again…then we drove over to the house I had rented the year before I moved with the kids to Ottawa…I had always liked the house…it was cute…it has been fixed up quite nicely, but the huge tree that had been in the front yard is gone and it looked bare to me…










































Monday was spent getting ready to leave and then figuring out what to do about the van…Tuesday morning we got on the road to my Mom’s and arrived here in Mount Hope in the early afternoon…

Oh...a couple last pictures...LT's dogs are so badly treated...the poor things...here is Teegan demonstrating the abuse she has to endure...