Pointillism

I've been fascinated with pointillism ever since my sister brought home a pointillism clown face drawing she made in elementary school. She carefully explained that if I looked closely the entire picture was made up of itty bitty dots and not "drawn" in the traditional sense (at that age I think 'Traditional' meant bright orange color crayons). This past weekend I worked on this portrait for a little girl we sponsor. I hope she likes it. I've done portraits as far back as I can remember but have only recently been branching out to do portraits in pointillism. I like the feel of it, but am still a bit shaky. One of the drawbacks of using Ink was that I could not erase when I went to far up her cheek so she looks a little like she has the mumps, but I hope she will like it anyway. Her name is Kalkidan and she is the second child we have had the honor and joy to sponsor. We sponsor her through World Vision. SO, it's a bit rough around the edges, but do you think she will like it? Take care and wherever you are Have Fun!

Recycled Crayons

Yesterday with the help of three fabulous helpers, we made recycled crayons. Fun new shapes can be easy on little hands and less fragile. I used flexible silicon ice cube trays to make the long crayons, and chocolate molds to make the zoo animal faces pictured.

First sort your colors out, like colors with like colors.

Next peel off all of the paper and chop them up using a knife. My helpers also smashed them in a plastic bag with a hammer. That worked very well. The smaller the pieces the faster the crayons will melt.

There are many ways to melt crayons. I use the double boiler method because the crayons are less likely to burn or ignite. Crayons melt between 128-147 degrees Fahrenheit. Set the chopped/smashed color crayon pieces in a soup can and put it on the stove (I put it on high) in a pan of water.

Stir the pieces as they melt (I used old chopsticks). You can see some bumps in the yellow where the crayons are not completely melted yet. We poured the yellow crayons this way. There were bumps in the finished crayons, but I kind of like them that way. The other colors we waited till the wax was smooth like milk before pouring into the molds.

Next pour your wax into the molds. Careful, it is very hot. The crayons will harden quickly so you have to work a little fast.

Beautiful colors Thank you helpers, this was a lot of fun. I hope you enjoy your new crayons.
Have fun!

Leather Collar Artist

Hello, I have to share an amazing artist with you today. Geralyn of Design a Collar.com on Etsy makes the most amazing collars for your four legged friends. They are beautifully stamped and painted, yet rugged and fairly priced. Geralyn will work with you to make sure you get exactly what you are looking for. The green I requested was a tricky one. We wanted this collar to be a light feminine color because Muse is always being called Marley, Sport, or Buddy when we go out. This is the collar she made for Muse's birthday. The stamping, playfulness of the colors, and letter type she used are all beautiful. She sent us three collars in all to make sure that the collar was exactly what we wanted. The two that we don't want will be donated to the Humane Society. Another thing to note is that Muse played with her friend Mickey out in the yard with the hose yesterday. The colors did not run or stain her fur and the collar retained it's shape very well. It did not stretch or shrink even though it had a water hose typhoon blasted on it. Muse loves her new collar. It is more rugged than her cloth one yet it is also lighter. In just one day I've noticed that she has not been scratching around her new collar. Her old collar made her neck itch. Maybe using natural leather instead of the synthetic cloth is helping her. I don't know, but I do know that she seems to be more comfortable.
Thank you Geralyn for your beautiful work, attention to detail, open communication, and incredible patience.

If you want to spoil your pup or have an extra special one of a kind collar Please check out her store. Take care, get outside and Have Fun!