Christmas trees

I just made these new trees. Remember spending hours putting a fake tree together? All those branches are color coded and then you have to put them on the base in a certain order. These trees are made out of antique tin. The tin comes from the roof of an old family barn. The barn was built in 1912 by my Great-Great Grandfather and was struck by lightening in 2008. With almost 100 years of weathering the tin has a beautiful and unique appearance. The trees stand about 27 inches tall with a 10 inch base. They don't need watering and you don't have to put them together. A perfect little tree!! Check them out at http://www.mwestdesigns.etsy.com/

Antique tin from an old family barn

The barn was built around 1912 by my Great Great Grandfather. The lower level had cement walls and then it also had a wooden hay loft. When I was a kid we used to go up in the hay loft and there was a bunch or old harness for several teams of horses. It is located a few miles from my house so in the last 20 years or so it hasn't had a lot of use. Two summers ago we had a horrible storm. Lots of lightening and rain. The old barn was struck by the lightening and burned to the ground.
Left from this was the tin roof. With almost 100 years of weathering (and a little burning) the tin has such beautiful and unique patterns. I love to recycle and up cycle things and it seemed such a waste. That's when I got the idea to make hearts and stars. That has snowballed into snowmen and trees and letters. I'm sure there's a million other projects that can be done with the tin. I'm just glad I could turn a bad situation into something good. Check them all out in my store at http://www.mwestdesigns.etsy.com

Last day for FREE upgrade to 2day shipping on cloaks and capes

I had to change my sale just a bit because the 2day shipping sometimes turns into 3 days. Probably because of the rural area I live in. :) So to make sure your cloak makes it to you for Halloween, today will be the last day to purchase. I am upgrading every cloak purchase to 2 day shipping. I still have several fleece, faux suede, crushed panne velvet, and a few other cloaks and capes at http://www.mwestdesigns.etsy.com

FREE UPGRADE TO 2DAY SHIPPING ON CLOAKS AND CAPE

With Halloween just around the corner, I am running a special in my shop http://www.mwestdesigns.etsy.com ! Free upgrade to 2 day shipping on October 25-27. Get your cloak just in time for Halloween. Just go to my shop and purchase and I will ship it 2 day express mail. So if I ship on Tuesday it should be there on Thursday. I have lots of beautiful handmade cloaks on hand. Something for everyone.

The Winter Harvest

Onto my next project today. I am working on fixing up my greenhouse. I want to try to grow cold hardy vegetable this winter. It might be too late to plant for the winter, but I determined to try. The secret is to have the green house and then over the plants create a cold frame. That way there is two layers of protection. The book I'm reading is called The Winter Harvest and it has all sorts of amazing information. It talks about building green houses and even how to make them movable. Mine is not going to move, but the new windows on the South add so much light. Hopefully I will be eating lettuce come January!

Halloween!!

I'm looking at my calendar this morning and I see that Halloween is just two weeks away. I have not decided what I will be yet. I know that I will wear a cloak :) but the rest of the outfit is a mystery. I stated thinking about childhood costumes. I remember those plastic masks. I'm not sure they make them any more, but I'm sure they are now considered a hazard as I could never see very well out of them. I think I was Wonder Woman that year. I remember the year I was the Wicked Witch of the West. I put this green goop all over my face that was quite disgusting. Of course I had a hat and a cute little broom with a black flowy dress. I think I still have the broom somewhere. Well I guess that is enough time wandering haphazardly down memory lane. Hi Ho, Hi Ho it's off to work I go........wait that was the Seven Dwarfs.... did they wear capes...Hmmmmmmmm......

Don't forget to check out my shop if you still need a cloak for Halloween http://www.mwestdesigns.etsy.com

Free US shipping thru August 31st!!!

I've just gotten some wonderful news and I thought I would pass on this greatness to all my wonderful customers. So I decided to continue my free US shipping on all may handmade items thru August 31st!!! Yes I said free US shipping on all my Halloween cloaks, art, metal work, paintings and more. Everything in my shop now has free shipping! So instead of changing 121 listings, just wait for me to send you an adjusted invoice. I can also just refund your shipping price if you want to pay right away. So head on over to my shop for this great deal. http://www.mwestdesigns.etsy.com.

Attaching the hood on a cloak

Attaching a hood to a cloak is actually quite easy. After the two hood pieces have been sewn together and the body of the cloak has been sewn together, then you are ready to attach the hood. Take the body of the cloak and find the center and then pin the center of the hood to it. Pin each end and then you just have to take little tucks in the hood to align it with the body. After that has all been pinned together then you just sew a strait stitch. And VOILA your hood is attached. Check out the finished cloak at http://www.etsy.com/listing/54696085/dark-green-hooded-handmade-cloak-cape

Garnet Red Velveteen Cloak

I fell in love with this velveteen the second I saw it. It is a beautiful deep garnet red color. And it is a soft and heavy fabric, plus it's all cotton. I had some issues with this fabric because I needed to use the serger on the edges so they wouldn't fray. I had been putting off buying new blades for my Singer serger, but I ended up finding them on line. It was so much easier once I received the new blades. I had to use a size 16 needle because the fabric was so thick. I imagine someone wearing this cloak to be crowned for Homecoming or over their wedding dress for a winter wedding. Check it out at http://www.etsy.com/listing/54605484/garnet-red-hooded-velveteen-cloak-cape

I found this beautiful purple fabric the other day at the fabric store. It is a gorgeous shade of regal purple.

After cutting the whole thing out I started sewing. I used black thread on both the sewing machine and the serger. I folded both sides under on the tie to finish the edges. After sewing all the seams, I then serged everything to give it a nice finished look. Then I sewed the hem and put the tie on. After ironing everything, I have a beautiful purple cloak. Check it out at http://www.mwestdesigns.etsy.com

A dress a day

Ever since reading the book Julia & Julia, I have been fascinated by this concept of creating something new everyday. It seems like such a huge commitment. Well I have found another wonderful creative person who is taking on this and creating a dress a day. She takes old dresses and makes them into these cute new ones. Her budget for this whole thing is $365. Follow her here http://newdressaday.wordpress.com/.

Another form of "destashing"

Many people talk about destashing. Usually it has do deal with supplies. Everyone has a pile of cute whatever, or something neat that they found, and it has been taking up space for a long time. Sometimes it just feels good to purge all those items and sell them, or give them away. But I was pondering the act of destashing my art. Finding new homes for my personal art collection. I have been a professional artist for about 13 years. And I have many art pieces that have had an emotional connection that I have kept and displayed throughout my home. Why not destash some of these and start over. Doesn't a bare wall just get the creative juices flowing. What about a bare room or even the whole house? Wouldn't that just start a frenzy of creativity. Why not let the past go and move on to a new a bright future with new and exciting artwork.

A Monday and I'm in a Treasury!!!

It has been a great weekend with rain and bouts of sunshine in-between. And today the sun is hopefully going to shine all day. It will be a great Monday, plus picotee on Etsy put my painting in a treasury! The treasury is called Turquoise dream and it has some beautiful jewelry pieces, and photos, purses and lots of other neat things. My painting is called "Spring in the Sandhills" and it is turquoise and red. Check it all out here and have a great Monday! http://www.etsy.com/treasury/4bf0fe9f15706d91ff15bbc7/turquoise-dream#4bf146444d168eef6ecc02ea

How to make hair jell

I read this article a while back about how most women are exposed to 70 different chemicals in the time it takes to take a shower and get ready for work in the morning. It talked about the chemicals in your shampoo, soap, hair products, makeup, nail polish and everything else we use. So that really got me thinking and I have been doing a lot of reasearch on using more natural products. In that reasearch, I found a cool recipe for hair jell. Take 1 T flaxseeds and add that to 1 cup of water. Bring that to a boil and then simmer for 10 minutes. Strain the flaxseeds out with a strainer and you have a jell that you can use on your hair. I also added a couple of drops of lemongrass essential oil. This should be kept in the refrigerator and will last for a couple of weeks.

Art prints

After much experimenting with inks and paper, I am happy to say that I have started my line of prints. My goal is to create some happy and uplifting paintings and turn them into prints and eventually greeting cards. I had some issues with finding the right paper. I wanted a beautiful acid free archival paper, but it was hard to find the right one. I finally settle on a canson and an epson. So in my spring celebration I now have three to offer on my website at http://www.mwestdesigns.etsy.com.

Spring in the Sandhills

I am desperate for Spring. It seems like it's been an extra cold and snowy winter. I know it's only February, but I can't wait for spring. In the Sandhills, spring just kinda jumps up on you. One day there's a late spring blizzard and the next day the sun comes out and the hills are so green that it almost hurts you eyes. Then the wildflowers start to bloom and spring is officially here. That is the inspiration for this painting. Come on spring, I know your just around the corner. Check out this painting on my webpage at http://www.mwestdesigns.etsy.com

Should have been a cowgirl Painting a day

I have been wanting to try portraits. I had this picture of my niece wearing a friends cowboy hat. It was so cute, so that is my painting for the day. After drawing it out with charcoal, I started with the background. Then I worked on the hat, face and body. I wanted to do the outlines and tried those in oil crayon but I just didn't have enough control. So I ended up just using paint. I think it turned out okay for my first try. I will definitely work on some more.

Wiberg House painting

My painting for the day is for a show that the Ash Hollow Art Club is having the end of the month. It is the Centennial and we are having an historical show. I am working on the Wiberg house that was built by my Great-Grandfather in 1915. I really wanted something different so I chose a green house and yellow sky. I really wanted it to stand out.

Antique tin hearts from reclaimed barn roof

Continuing on my making art every day, I have been working on these tin hearts. The tin came from the barn that my Great Grandfather built almost 100 years ago. Sadly the barn is no more, but I wanted to create something out of the huge amount of beautiful tin. Each heart is different because the tin has been weathered in such unique ways. The colors are white, black, rust, browns, and greys. To see more check out my store on Etsy http:www.mwestdesigns.etsy.com

A Painting a day

I've been reading "The Sound of Paper" by Julia Cameron. It is a great book that talks about the everyday part of creating. She talks about how art should become as common as doing laundry. How it needs to be something that is done on a daily basis. I have toyed with the idea of doing a painting a day, or weaving a rug a day. If I was really ambitious then I would do both! :) A painting a day is basically an act of faith. You show up everyday to paint. You do not judge how it's going. If it's going at all then that is the point. It is a journey. Along the way you learn that there is something greater out there. You are just a small piece. You learn to trust that God is working through you. Your job is to show up every day, and trust that God will show you the way. So how have I been doing, you may ask. I have been painting a lot. I haven't mastered the everyday part. Sometimes things come up. But maybe that is the point. To find more room to make art where I didn't think there was any. So this is the first mixed media painting. It is paper glued onto canvas and then acrylics on top. You can find it here also http://www.etsy.com/view_listing.php?listing_id=39730068