the weblog of artist athena workman

Well, Now That it's Really Wednesday....

2012-01-25T07:09:00.005-06:00

(Almost) Wordless Wednesday: Loser

2012-01-24T06:00:00.003-06:00

This is my ball. We'll call it a Purple Loser Ball. We'll call it that because apparently purple balls can't beat blue balls in miniature golf.

And no, that was in no way a sexual reference!

A Lovely Day

2012-01-20T09:40:00.001-06:00

I love Bill Withers. There aren't too many more soothing voices in music. While I tinker with things around here and do a bit of reworking, enjoy my favorite song by Mr. Withers, and all of you have a lovely day. :)

A Lovely Day

(Almost) Wordless Wednesday: Animal Behavior

2012-01-18T08:26:00.003-06:00

Something's going on between Ollie and Pippi, and I'm not sure I approve...

Happiness Is...

2012-01-13T06:17:00.005-06:00

Feeding ducks...

Taking your Disney pins out of storage and organizing them...

coffee...

Cheddar-garlic biscuits...

Enjoying the first snow of the season in a fun hat...

Meet My Office

2012-01-10T08:11:00.005-06:00

At the end of last year, I decided that I just could not stand my office anymore. It was "dirty" (not like a pig pen, but you understand), and the walls were this drab and depressing industrial blue. It was cluttered, the furniture too close together, and I had all these craft supplies that I didn't use anymore taking up too much space.

I finished the other day. First off was packing up everything I didn't use anymore and putting it away. Then it was pulling every piece of furniture away from the walls and heading off to Home Depot to choose a paint color. Since I am going to be using this as a photography "studio" as well as continuing to do my art, I needed something that wouldn't interfere with either... but I didn't want stark white, either. I finally chose "Mulberry White", which, of course, is white, but with a tiny tinge of lilac underneath. While I waited for the two coats to dry (and Mr. Calm to get on the ladder and paint where the walls met the ceiling), I took my Mr. Clean Miracle scrubbers (oh, they're WONDERFUL!) and cleaned nearly every single thing in here.

After that, it was just a matter of deciding where I wanted everything. And I am SO happy with my "new" room. The only thing left is to mop, but I have to wait another day on that-- I sort of put out my shoulder with all the painting and cleaning and moving. It's roomy, it's so clean and much brighter now.

Voila! I realize that the following pictures may not do the room justice, may not make it look as bright as it really is, but I forgot to open the curtains when I took pix. Here is my worktable, which I also painted the top of white so I could take pictures. Those ribbons are from the big contests I won at the state fair. And my little t.v. in the corner where ID TV ("Murder t.v.") generally plays.

Next to the door, I have a bookshelf that's mostly filled with my cameras, and odds and ends that don't "fit" anywhere. And oh, look-- that box contains my doll Evie the Creep. My favorite doll finally found a home, and will be on her way to Arizona today.

On the other side of the kitchen door are my other bookshelves, crammed to the hilt with my art and dollmaking supplies. The wooden bins are where I keep my fabrics, wool, and sewing sundries. That hoop is my exercise hoop-- it's fun, and you sure do feel it!

I decided to display my dollhouse food on a shelf. I want to get some of those triangle-shaped banners to hang on the shelf, sunny it up a bit.

And imagine me sitting here right now, because that's where I am. This is where the online magic happens, folks. I took out all my Disney pins and displayed them behind my desk. In the corner are my printers, neither of which have enough ink right now.

My big picture window. I like watching the rain or (occasional) snow that falls.

And just for fun, this is what my legs and feet generally look like while I'm sitting here. I call them my Dr. Seuss jammies.

Oh, yeah, please ignore the yucky garage floor beyond my feet.

I started thinking of this as my little meditation area. Mr. Calm got me the rock/candle/diffuser set for Christmas, and it has a wonderful "Amber Allure" fragrance: slightly fruity.

And that's it! Now you know where I sit, where I create, where I zone out.

Me, by the Numbers

2012-01-09T07:51:00.003-06:00

Totally stealing Edi's idea over at Memories for Life Scrapbooks, I thought it'd be fun for me, and my readers to get to know me a little better with a Numbers post. So, here we go!

1. Number of times I've been out of the country (Quebec, Canada; 1998)

2. Number of dogs I've had in my life (Pooky when I was a teenager, Pippi since 2009)

3. Number of years we've owned our house.

4. Number of gargoyles I have on my front porch (Mr. Calm does not like them, no matter how many times I tell them they "protect" us! ;))

5. Number of toes I've broken (both big toes, both 'pinky' toes, and one middle toe). Yes, I'm a klutz.

6. Number of Polaroid cameras I own (models from the 1960s until the most recent model)

7. Age I was when my family and I moved from Huntington, West Virginia to Tampa, Florida. Also the number of holes I have in my ears. :)

8. Number of years ago that Mr. Calm started his business (well, not really about me, but it affected us all!)

9. (1989) The year I met my husband, har. Stretching it, but add 1+8, it equals 9.. and there are two 9s in there! ;)

10. Number of fancy rats we've had as pets over the years.

And there's 10 for you! Let me know if you do your own, like I did and Edi, and I'll come visit. :)

New Year's Resolutions

2012-01-06T07:24:00.003-06:00

I didn't do the usual thing and think of any New Year's resolutions for 2012. Hell, I break most of them anyway, so I figure if I don't make any, guilt won't even have a chance to rear its ugly head. Right?

But now that we're onto January 6th, I guess I have some goals for this coming year. It's good to have goals, just as long as you don't overload yourself and feel like you have to start pulling your hair out (oh, I'm not talking about myself at ALL...). So, in no particular order:

*Learn more manual photography, lighting, and build a portfolio. This is important to me, to build on my photography skills so I can one day start my own business and have a "career". This is roughly a five-year plan, so no rush, but it's something very important and I have to keep up with it.

*Continue to be happy and sappy with my husband. I already told him that if his manly butt couldn't take my sappiness... too bad! I like being goofy and sappy in love, and it's not even a chore.

*Travel more. We already have plans to visit the old folks (har), but we'd also love to go to at least one place we haven't been yet. My H's dream his whole adult life has been to get to Greece, so we'll see if this is the year that we finally get there.

*Get back into the routine of daily visits to other blogs. Community's important here on the internet, and I need to show as much support as I'd like at my own blogs.

*Be happy with myself. Not push myself too hard. Be happy with what I'm doing in the moment, and if I'm not racing a million miles a minute and doing just as many things, that's okay. That's life.

*Keep up with my new blog. That's the little handy-dandy (hopefully) linkable banner below. I'll exploring the world of food, my little world, through photography, recipes, witty banter, and giveaways through "Athena Eats", and I'd love it if all of you could start following me as I start down the road of food blogging. This blog here will be kept up with personal life stuff and the occasional artwork I do. Athena Eats Blog

Not too lofty of goals, right? Just the other day, I finished "remodeling" my workroom, and now it's clean (oh, thank you, Mr. Clean Miracle scrubbers!), freshly-painted with two coats of Mulberry White, and spacious and uncluttered. So, now that I have a room that feels fresh and new and I like sitting in again, there's no reason not to do something with it.

What are your goals for the New Year?

See Ya Later, 2011!

2011-12-31T18:01:00.004-06:00

Fingernails painted. Lookin' good. Painting the fingernails is an event for me nowadays, heh.

Mr. Calm's planning a fantastic dinner of... whatever. He's a good cook, so I'm sure it'll be tasty.

I'll make myself a mojito, and Mr. Calm a pina colada. I will make that blender crush that ice.

We'll watch some eps of "The Big Bang Theory" on TBS, and the ball drop at midnight.

New Year's Eve: uneventful, but fun just for us.

Bye, 2011! I leave you with a picture of Mr. Calm and I from New Year's Eve, 2010.

Happy New Year!

My Secret Santa!

2011-12-27T06:47:00.011-06:00

The Blogging Business Artisans Etsy Team had a Secret Santa swap this holiday season, and yep, I signed up for it. What's more fun than giving a present secretly, and getting one, too? I had a lot of fun picking out the prezzies for my recipient, and loved getting her thank you message- you're so welcome! :) As for my presents, I've been sitting on these pictures for quite awhile-- because of my misreading of the 'rules', I almost posted these right after I got the presents! Thank goodness my Secret Santa understood them better than me, heh.

So, on with the surprises! Oh, and yeah, I should reveal my Secret Santa, huh? It was the lovely Margaret, aka Splendid Little Stars!

Instead of dry descriptions, let me paraphrase what came out of my mouth as I opened the small USPS Priority box.

"Oooo. Cool tie-dyed wrapping paper..."

"Mr. Calm! Mr. Calm! COME LOOK AT THIS!!!" (Mr. Calm comes racing down the stairs to the kitchen, afraid that I've done yet something else to accidentally hurt myself in that room- I've been sort of clumsy this year) "French Broad Chocolates!!!"

"That one sounds good, and that one sounds good, and oh, that one sounds good, too!"

(and to further elaborate, I shared with Mr. Calm that Margaret's daughter lives in Asheville, NC, where French Broad Chocolates is. Faithful readers will know that Asheville, NC, is a place we've visited four times, and is one of our favorites places on Earth. Too cool that my Secret Santa full well knew this, and picked me up treats from there!)

"Ha! 'Cranky Before Breakfast' coffee." (perhaps Mr. Calm rolled his eyes here and silently agreed it was the most appropriate coffee for me)

"Cool. I'm almost out of pencils!"

"Sugar skulls!" (another aside: I couldn't remember if I'd ever mentioned that I have a bunch of sugar skull molds, but don't know if I still have my recipe, so that recipe went straight into the storage box with them.)

Smile. :)

Thank you so much, Margaret. You made this swap super fun. And those chocolates were gone in a day. :)

Wordless Wednesday: Cooookies...

2011-12-21T10:02:00.001-06:00

A Week in Pictures

2011-12-20T05:57:00.005-06:00

Wrapping giant surprise presents for Mr. Calm...

Visiting with good artist friends...

Pretty faces...

Yawning cougar...

Playing around with photo apps...

Holiday dino...

Food in fun shapes...

Prepping for cookie baking...

Sleepy meerkat...

How was your week?

BBA Team Member Feature for December: randomcreative!

2011-12-19T05:00:00.003-06:00

December's featured Business Blogging Artisans Team Member is randomcreative! Her shop is chock-full of beautifully-designed beaded jewelry. From her profile at Etsy: "I chose the username that I did because I have always enjoyed making random creative projects using all different colors and materials. I enjoy beads and buttons of all kinds and am always finding new ways to work with them."

Here are a few of her lovely creations...

Beaded Dangle Earrings - Peyote Tetrahedrons - Color Explosion (red, lime turquoise, pink)

Beaded Pendant - Peyote Triangle - Ocean Stained Glass by randomcreative on Etsy

SALE Button Charm Bracelet - Christmas Trees (red, green) by randomcreative on Etsy

You can also find randomcreative elsewhere at her blog. :) Thank you for stopping by for December's feature, and check out the rest of randomcreative's creations!

Oh, a Shoppin' We Will Go!

2011-12-14T08:02:00.004-06:00

Yesterday I went to TJ Maxx to kill some time, and to see if there was possibly anything else that I wanted to get for Mr. Calm. TJ Maxx, Marshall's, Ross: all under the same umbrella and I'm always able to find a good deal. And then I started playing around with my camera (of course!).

I got stuck in the Christmas section for awhile. These bunnies are so adorable, but I don't particularly like just plain chocolate, even if it is Lindt.

Okay, Arctic Oreos?? Sound YUM.

Love me some flavored syrups for my coffee. I showed this one to Mr. Calm later (hint, hint.. who, me?).

Later, after I showed him my pictures, Mr. Calm wanted to go and look at things himself. I made him pose with this METER-LONG box of "domino" petit fours. METER LONG. They're actually called "1 Meter Dominos".

This is not the first picture I took. I won't show you how Mr. Calm originally posed with the box.

Back to my solo browsing: Score! TyNant water. Mr. Calm likes his spring water... and he loves the TyNant bottle. I ended up getting three different varieties of spring water for him.

I didn't get this, but the Sappy Woman I've become loved this. Marriages should definitely implement at least some of these! Mr. Calm especially liked the "Stay in bed all day" part, heh.

Lastly, isn't this cool? I have no use for it, but... isn't it cool?

I've bought a good mix of handmade and small store purchases, and big box purchases this year. Shoppin's fun! ;)

Scenes from Christmas...

2011-12-13T06:07:00.009-06:00

Hanging glass decorations outside...

Brightly-decorated presents...

Happy inflatables...

Goofing around with hot cocoa...

Happiness... (even in the midst of ridiculous crowds!)

Lights...

A husband who doesn't complain about the one MILLION snowmen that surround him for a month every year...

When You Began to Fly...

2011-12-04T08:30:00.001-06:00

16"x16", mixed media on canvas.

For Mr. Calm. :)

Happy Sunday, everyone. :)

New Artwork, Wheeee!

2011-11-30T07:16:00.002-06:00

I sat down with my Christmas-themed pencil (I'm easy when it comes to pencils) and Bristol board on Monday and started drawing. When it came time to coloring, I got out all my watercolors, dipped my tiny-tipped paintbrush in water, looked at my drawing... and decided that they'd look better with markers. Hey, what can I say? My brain works in funny ways.

The best thing is, for the first time in months, I am supremely happy with what I have done. I'm happy! Before I even began drawing, I decoupaged pages from a 1908 copy of Muncey's magazine onto these 6x6 canvasses that I'd gotten from the local art store on Black Friday, then painted a wash over them. And I'd decided I didn't want to draw the way I'd been for years. I'd like to thank OD for posing for multiple pictures so I would have a model to sketch from.

"I Need to Know" ("Tell me your secret... I must know...")

"No Other Choice" ("They did not mourn his passing... for they were the ones to help him pass...")

"Thou Shalt Not Covet" ("She coveted his wife's ring... so she took it...")

These will be going to the gallery this week in time to be hung for the holiday show opening night party. In the meantime, I'm going to be working on one other bigger piece. I know these things should be saved... but I'll be taking some pages out of a 1969 Life magazine for the background for that one.

Yay for productivity and happiness! Now let's get some hope up for some sales...

How Does Your Christmas Grow?

2011-11-28T06:26:00.004-06:00

Mine grows with white and silver, and old glass candleholders, and stars...

... and happy snowmen overlooking rooms and tucked into corners...

... a tree overflowing with memories of little girls and year by year, and stockings hung with care...

... and holiday greeters waving as everyone passes by...

How does your Christmas grow?

Happy Thanksgiving!

2011-11-26T06:07:00.010-06:00

How was your Thanksgiving? Ours was great, a terrific day, though I did feel some irritation when my carefully-timed food preparation was snafu-d by the turkey coming out of the oven early, and I rushed around making tarragon-cream gravy, mashing potatoes, cooking green beans, and heating up biscuits all at the last minute. Other than that, though, a fantastic day.

I put up the tree the night before for a little bit of festivity. I keep this ornament on the mantle all year long, so it was the first ornament hung on the tree. The wonderful artist Michelle Grayum made it and gave it to me last year.

I made my biscuits in the morning. I'm so proud of myself! After watching one of John Besh's shows on PBS, I learned how to get fluffy layers, and these biscuits came out SO tall.

Mr. Calm decided to make a triple chocolate cake to accompany my streusel-topped pumpkin pie, and YD's truffles. Unfortunately, he didn't realize that all-purpose flour (what we have) isn't the same as self-rising flour (what we don't have). Hence, he baked The Flattest Cake in the World. They accompany his Family-Famous Flattest Biscuits in the World, which he made four years ago for Thanksgiving.

Ah, a feast! We went shopping yesterday and didn't eat at home, so there's still a ton of leftovers. Anyone want to come over and help us make a dent in this?

Of course all our animals were around. Salem, who's been feeling under the weather lately, still has somewhat of an appetite, and he watched the culinary activity with great interest.

And here's the family, minus the Picture-Taker, waiting to start eating. It had to wait a minute or two more, because we went around the table and gave thanks. The theme was pretty common: we're all really thankful that we're together this year. T. added that he was thankful YD ate his French fries in high school.

And here's the birthday girl! Pippi was born in November, so we assigned T'giving as her birthday. She clicked constantly around the table, awaiting her plate, which she finished in about one minute flat. Because of the flash, I have no idea what's on YD's fork. Mashed potatoes, maybe?

I hope each and every one of you in the U.S. had a Happy Thanksgiving, too! :)

Bamboozled!

2011-11-23T10:47:00.003-06:00

So, I finished my mixed media piece... except I bamboozled myself. I dropped a piece, glue side DOWN, onto a piece that was already glued onto the canvas, ruining the watercolors. Now it will hang on my wall for infinity... or until I switch it out for yet another unsold piece and lock it in the attic.

Sigh...

Happy Thanksgiving, everyone! :)

Artistic Accomplishments

2011-11-22T06:30:00.006-06:00

A few posts back, I mentioned that I was off to my parents' house for a week for a visit, and also to find some inspiration for a new direction in my artwork. I did get inspired, though it took a few days after I got back to completely figure out what direction I wanted to go.

I'm not much of a plein air artist (I can just imagine something unwanted blowing on, or worse, dropping on my pad), so I walked around and drove around and took lots of pictures. Each day, I'd take my pictures back to my parents house and draw and paint in the evenings. This is my first picture: buildings down on 3rd Avenue, downtown.

Next up was Frost Top, where my dad proposed to my mom many, many years ago.

What did I discover? That eh, I don't really need any practice drawing. It may freak me out to start something "new", but I can do it. After drawing for about 39 years, it's pretty much a given. BUT, the painting is what holds me back.

The other things I discovered was: I like storytelling too much. And just drawing buildings doesn't really do it for me. AND, I like taking pictures of signs. Anyone who's seen my flickr sets knows that I would happily move to place called Sign Land and just walk around all day, snapping away.

Soooo.... draw and paint signs. Draw and paint and add something in there that tells a little story, even if the story's only apparent in my mind. Paint it so I can challenge myself.

Here's my WIP that I started yesterday:

All the color? I painted that! *I* painted that! I managed to do it! :)

Camden Park is the amusement park outside my hometown; I've been going since I was little. And that would be me in the "Special Bus"-- I drew that from a picture, though of course my glasses weren't THAT huge on my face. Today I have to work on the background and glue on the paintings without messing them up.

And as an aside: see the little scissors next to the canvas? During the multiple moves last autumn, I lost a few things. Some are gone forever. The other day, I *finally* finished finding things I thought were lost to the wind. A special framed photograph, and these scissors. These are the scissors that I've used for years to cut out my drawings: one dollar scissors that I got from the school supplies the girls ended up not needing. They're absolutely perfect for what I need them for, and I really lamented losing them.

They're back! Wheeeee!

Jimmy

2011-11-17T07:01:00.003-06:00

This is Jimmy. Jimmy pushes his cart up and down the brick street my parents live on, looking for cans. Many people who live there save cans for him, though it's been hard for him to save them for himself lately: a lot of "winos" have been stealing from him.

Jimmy used to repair televisions and electronics until his disabilities prevented him from working. He isn't homeless: he lives in a little apartment nearby, but can't keep any grains or his beloved butter beans open or the cockroaches will get into them. He has diabetes, has had open-heart surgery, and hip surgery. He showed me his scar. I was worried his pants would fall down right there on the street, but luckily he kept ahold of them. He's on over a dozen types of medication.

Jimmy and I talked for about fifteen minutes that day, after I took the three bags of cans my mom saved out to him. Well, he mostly talked and I mostly listened. I learned about his grandfather, practically smashed and then killed in the coal mines. His mother then told his father to quit the mines, and he did. His mother was burned when Jimmy was young, his sister died from cancer, and her moans of pain drove Jimmy from the house night after night, as he could not bear to hear them. His father died long ago. At times, Jimmy would choke up, talking about them. He definitely has different views on religion and church than I do. He said that women should not be heard in church; I told him I'd heard plenty of good female preachers. He laughed, not meanly.

Five minutes before I left, I told him I was a photographer and that I'd enjoyed talking to him, and asked if I could take his picture. He said, "You can do what you want as long as you don't hit me." I was taken aback; my mom told me later that Jimmy has been beaten up a lot. There was even a kid up the block who used to run out into the street and poke Jimmy in the back. He stopped when my mom yelled at him.

Jimmy can barely see. My mom has seen him crossing the street with one arm over his eyes, as if he doesn't want to know when he gets hit.

Mere seconds after I said goodbye and walked away, the police pulled up next to Jimmy. I heard him say, "Oh, I'm sorry!", something he'd said several times to cars that passed us during our conversation: we were in the middle of the street. I'm sure they know him, and they only talked to him for a few minutes before moving on, leaving Jimmy to continue on his quest for cans.

I told this to a friend, and she mentioned "The Contributor", a monthly newspaper that's sold by homeless and formerly homeless people in Nashville. You can find them on many street corners and public walkways. We agreed that ever since we began buying it-- and we buy it every month-- we can't just pass people like this anymore. They make you think and care.

I'm really glad I ran out to give Jimmy his cans.

BBA Team Member Feature for November: Little Andalucia!

2011-11-15T04:52:00.003-06:00

Recently, I was invited to join the Blogging Business Artisans Team on Etsy. To participate better on the team, I've decided to do a monthly post featuring a member of the team. First up is Little Andalucia! You can find her shop here at Etsy: http://www.etsy.com/shop/LittleAndalucia

In the "About" section of the shop, the description reads, "Patterns, DIY Kits, Fabric and Cool Kid Clothes and Accessories". What I noticed about her shop is that if my girls were still little, I'd be buying up some of these incredibly cute clothes, like this "Plain Jane Peasant Dress":

In the "Patterns" section, I'd get this Ruffle Skirt pattern, but I'd find someone else to make it for me. I mean, making doll clothes is one thing... making skirts that actually don't fall off your active daughters is another...

I found these gorgeous White Snowflake ornaments in the "Home Decor" section:

If you'd like to know more about Little Andalucia, visit her shop, and you can find her also at her Artful Rising blog. :)

Watercolors and Sketches and Memories

2011-11-05T07:39:00.006-05:00

Though it may seem like I'm crazy-creative and productive, I'm not really happy with much of what I'm doing nowadays. More than a little bit tired of drawing women/little girls with big, bulging eyes. Little bit tired of most everything I do, though I know I will continue working with paper clay and dolls. And I do think that, despite that things might pick up, I might have to permanently give up making minis. For the past three nights, the pain from my carpal tunnel has constantly woken me up, I've had a lot of tingling and pins and needles in my left hand, and I have to face the fact that my hands cannot work with polymer clay, just like my hands couldn't take a job as a cake decorator. It's sort of a slap in the face, and I have tons of supplies in here that I spent a lot of money on, but when you have no health insurance, and have to make a choice... there really is no choice.

Anyone have any idea on what I can do with all these jewelry/clay supplies, and over a hundred mini food jewelry pieces?

So, I started reevaluating. For a long time now, I've loved the look of watercolors. I did play with them earlier this year, doing drawings-- again-- of little girls with big eyes, with colored flowers in their hair. I am tinkering with the idea of doing mixed media with watercolors. As I've thought about it over the past few days, I've felt a little spark growing, and it feels good.

Yesterday I bought a watercolor pad, and a drawing pad, and sat down at my table to see what I could do. Mr. Calm loves the following picture; I think, "Aw, you're sweet", but it's not up to my snuff.

This is our apartment on Inman Street in Cambridge, MA. We lived there from 1991-1993; YD was born when we lived there. We lived on the third floor, and Mr. Calm told me that I could not get a C-section because he couldn't carry me up all those stairs, heh (and I didn't have one). Lots of good and bad memories there-- birth of a daughter, the discovery of OD's drawing talent like her momma (except that I never drew Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles all over the bedroom walls!)... and those lovely picture windows? Had lead paint embedded in the windowsills. I think it was two years before the levels in OD's blood were back to normal; two years of going to the doctor and testing. Massachusetts since has a law that prohibits any owner from renting older houses and apartments to families with young children.

Sitting on the back deck with our little inflatable pool. Watching out the girls' bedroom window, anxiously keeping our eyes peeled for a rare MA tornado. Being able to hear our babysitter one floor down croon to her toddler son (thin floors!). Mr. Calm and I coming out of the girls' bedroom after playing with YD and asking, "Did the cat pee?", and finding that no, OD had sprinkled Parmesan cheese all over the kitchen floor. YD's first steps. And both the girls got the chicken pox there.

"Inman Street in Autumn"

(why aren't the houses on either side painted? Because I don't remember what they looked like. Hell, I don't think that even our house looks like that.)

I moved onto perfecting my trees. This is the third one I painted, with a background.

Mr. Calm likes these tall, skinny Italian bushes... I know they're firs and they don't turn in autumn, but I went ahead and painted one.

After my trees, I sketched some. I have an idea for a line drawing and painting of Christmas shoppers, busily rushing past decorated Christmas windows. Look closely! You can even see a mannequin dressed up as Santa, doing their best John-Travolta-in-"Saturday-Night-Fever" pose!

Another idea. I'll save the title for if/when I get to doing the final piece.

My first and second trees (right to left). I like the pointillism look better, though I need to work on different sizes of dots. I added in the little bench later.

Monday through Friday, I'm heading up to my parents' house for a visit, and hopefully, some inspiration in my hometown. There are a lot of great old Art Deco-style buildings downtown that I want to photograph and sketch. Wish me luck!

Christmas Ornaments for Sale!

2011-11-03T07:39:00.005-05:00

Christmas in November? Say, no way! But yes, it was Christmasy around here yesterday when I drew, colored, and assembled six Christmas ornaments. From now until midnight on Saturday night, I'm offering these for sale through my blog. The drawings are original, not prints, and the ornaments are made from papier mache and come with gold ribbon for stringing on your tree. Each is backed with colorful patterned Christmas paper, and they're all covered with a glossy varnish.

Oval ornaments: 3x4; $10 plus $2 US shipping, $3 int'l shipping
Square ornament: 2.5x2.5; $8 plus $2 US shipping, $3 int'l shipping

Here they are! Any hairs or dust specks are the product of my scanner, and not on the ornaments! The backgrounds are also a much brighter white.

If you'd like to buy one, please convo me through my dolls Etsy shop (http://www.etsy.com/shop/MissMillificent) with the ornament you would like to buy and your PayPal address, and I will send you an invoice.

Thanks! :)

Dress Up Your Presents!

2011-11-01T06:41:00.003-05:00

I've been busy the last week with creating a new "product line" for Miss Millificent's Minis. I'm now offering gift tag charms: sets of charms and matching paper tags that you can use to dress up your gifts!
Tie-Dyed Cheesecakes:

Red Velvet Christmas Cupcakes:

Mint Chocolate Chip Ice Cream Cakes:

Chocolate Chip Cookies:

Pretty Pink Cakes:

After you use these to decorate birthday, Christmas, or any other occasion presents, you can repurpose them for earrings, charms, bracelets, and even use them as miniature ornaments. Thanks to my mom for this idea; occasionally she would attach little ornaments to our gifts.

Please check them out!

Happy Halloween!

2011-10-31T07:06:00.002-05:00

Aw, I messed up my photo challenge! I was doing so well, posting a picture a day, and then BAM!, my anniversary comes along and we were so busy that I forgot to post a picture. So, my challenge ends with 30 Days of Halloween/Autumn Photographs, not 31.

Here is one from the beginning of October of last year, outside Asheville, NC:

Happy Halloween, everyone! Boo to you!

Edgar Allan Scarecrow

2011-10-29T20:52:00.001-05:00

Thanks on an Anniversary...

2011-10-29T06:50:00.004-05:00

Tomorrow is my 20th wedding anniversary. Because of some advice I got last year, I don't generally get too personal on this blog, because it's primarily for business, but it's also about my life, so allow me this one post. :)

Many of you who faithfully read this blog know that October 13-December 24 of last year was the worst ten weeks of my life. Mr. Calm essentially, as much as he didn't like to admit it at first, had a midlife crisis and ran a thousand miles away-- from me, from his daughters, from his life. There was and never will be a rational explanation for it. Believe me, there are tons of articles out there analyzing this "phenom", trying to explain it, turning it this way and that, but none of them get to the real core of what happens when a normally mild-mannered, responsible, kind man suddenly goes berserk.

I hit rock bottom during our separation. I considered suicide more than once, and developed an anxiety disorder that left me shaking from morning until about six or seven at night, every night, and I was severely depressed. I lost about forty-five pounds in ten weeks. I even ended up in the ER a couple of days before Thanksgiving, after having a panic attack while driving. I'd been with the same man since I was eighteen years old, and being with him was all I knew. I'd been a stay-at-home mom, and when the girls didn't "need" me as much anymore, I worked at home as an artist that never made enough to support herself. With my husband off in his own depressed, confused, distracted world, we talked, but I was ignored more, and supported less. The worst, more than losing a husband or my house or my ability to be an artist, I'd lost my best friend. I also lost my creativity, and couldn't make a thing.

But it gets better. You all know we're back together, reunited on Christmas Day-- what my mom and a friend called a "Christmas miracle". We never filed for a hearing for a divorce. What happened is that we came back to our marriage the same, but different and better people. I can't even describe what a wonderful relationship I have now. Sure, it was a hard road afterward, sorting out everything that happened last fall, and it took me even longer to find myself again, but at the same time, we were more loving, more open, we listened to each other and came up with solutions, and when we weren't discussing what had happened and working through it, we were happy, happier than we'd ever been before. What we realized more than anything was that we'd taken our marriage for granted, taken each other for granted, but never again will we do that.

Mr. Calm wasn't as fortunate as I was during our separation. He hid what he was truly doing to me and the girls from his family and close friends, because frankly, he knew if they discovered the truth, they'd kick his ass from here to Sunday. Instead, he turned to an old friend for support and renewed friendship, and in turn, that person used him for personal and financial gain, and Mr. Calm didn't see it until he came back here and got better, though he did begin to get an inkling of what was going on at the end. This person used him in ways that could have destroyed our marriage, and the worst is, this person doesn't believe they did a thing wrong. This person is now banned from our lives, and I have my own little personal A-Team to ensure that it stays that way. I feel bad for my husband, I truly do, as much as he did wrong. How humiliating and sad it must be to find out that the person you were trying to return the support for, someone who claimed to be a true friend, was only hiding behind a facade and interested in getting as much money and time as they could before Mr. Calm came to his senses.

I, on the other hand, learned how many true friends I have, how many people really care about me, and some, many of those people have never even met me. The overwhelming support I got, once I opened up to what was going on and how desperate I was, was... well, just like I said: overwhelming. Surprising. Gratifying. I got daily emails from several friends here to make sure I was okay; listening to me, offering advice. My aunt made sure I had the money to give my daughters a Christmas. My middle sister came up with her brood so we could have Thanksgiving. Before I moved in with my parents, my parents drove here to ensure that my artwork could make it to my new home. Mid-December, I was surprised with and gifted enough money to move into an apartment with OD-- gifted from two artists in town who'd simply wanted to help me. My youngest sister added to that. People-- friends and acquaintances alike-- hired me to make a website for them when they probably didn't really need one, heh. I was able to live a frugal life, but I was able to live it, with their help. My mom and sisters listened to me on the phone nightly, and when I moved in with my parents for December, my parents listened then, too. And I got psychiatric help, too, mid-December; driving through heavy snow to get help at the county mental health center. My therapist was a godsend, and I was able to get medication to stop shaking.

And I learned the power of online friends. A wonderful woman in Germany, Duni, wrote an entire post about me, about my art, and my new business that touched me so much I burst into tears (not a surprising thing back then; every time someone did something nice for me, I burst into tears!). People on the old Etsybloggers team listened to me, encouraged me and offered kind, supportive words, and some of them privately messaged me to check on me. People came to this blog and offered words of support; a few of them knowing exactly what I was going through because they'd been through it themselves.

I give thanks for these people more than I could ever explain, and will always. I was at rock bottom, but they kept me from completely disintegrating. I never did see a happy ending during that time, but they were little lights in my day.

Duni at Duni's StudioErika at Artful Rising
Margaret at Splendid Little Stars
And various members of the Etsybloggers Team last year who listened to me in the weekly threads...
About fifty people on Facebook who privately messaged me
My sisters, my mom and dad, my aunt, everyone in my family who knew
Carla, my closest friend here, at Wednesday Wandered
Michelle, at Zoe Tops, who'd never even met me until the beginning of November, but was so touched that she felt she needed to reach out to me and help me
Stacy, my old friend

OD and YD, my Chelsea and Cady

Thanks to each and every one of you. I will never be able to repay you for what you did for me.

The same horrible person who is banished from our lives seems to also be obsessed with what makes a good marriage. "What's the secret to your long marriage?" is oft asked, and for good reason, as this person is now on their fourth marriage, so I guess they haven't gotten an answer they agree with yet. For sh*ts and giggles, here's my response, because I know it now.

*Listen. Think. Respond accordingly and rationally. If you're having a problem with your spouse, think about how to talk to them about it beforehand, instead of just letting it loose or spouting off the top of your head emotionally. Don't snap.
*Have respect for your spouse, the same kind of respect you'd like in return.
*Understand that you're at fault sometimes, and admit it.
*You're part of an equation. While you can be yourself, and do things on your own, you still have to think about how it would affect your spouse. You can't just live for yourself anymore.
*Love with abandon. You married this person-- show it! And make sure other people know you're in love, too.
*Take time every day, even if it's a few minutes, to be alone with your spouse.
*Find things to do with your spouse. Even if you're flat broke, find something to do together that breaks up the monotony.
*Let them do things they like to do. It's okay to have separate interests.
*Always be honest. Don't hide anything... unless it's a wonderful surprise you're planning for them. ;)
*Laugh.
*Give them as much support during the bad or dark times as you do the good.
*Before I met Mr. Calm, I was in an emotionally abusive relationship, and one of the things about this jerkwad was that he felt that there should never be a lull in conversations; that if you were together, there always needed to be something to talk about. On my first lunch date with Mr. Calm, I noticed that we had this comfortable silence that I'd rarely felt before. We still have that. Just sitting sometimes without saying a word is fine... it's great.

Mr. Calm will never read this; the man makes websites and promotes them for a living, but can barely be bothered to even get on Facebook much for himself. But on the eve of our 20th anniversary, I want to say...

Thank you. Not for putting me through hell so you could really find out what made you happy. Not for the way you acted. But I have loved you since I was eighteen years old, and you are my best friend. You have made me laugh harder than anyone else in my life at times. You entertain me, you listen to me, you have held my hand and supported me. You are one of the best fathers on the planet for the girls to have. Because we hit rock bottom, we now have a wonderful, loving, happy marriage. It could have been done in a different way, the separation, but the separation was the only way to find out and really realize that we are the loves of each other's lives, and we can't live without each other. I love you, you love me, and I'm looking forward to the next twenty years with you.

Thank you for calling me on Christmas Eve and telling me you were sorry; that you'd gotten my letters and they were wonderful; for telling me later that if I hadn't wanted to drive back here to Tennessee to surprise the girls for Christmas like you were going to do, that you were going to drive to West Virginia and get me yourself, sweep me off my feet like the end of "An Officer and a Gentleman" (yes, he really fantasized about doing that!). Thank you for being the same good man that you were before you went nuts, but better.

Thank you. And thank you to everyone who cared about me. Love you, too. :)

Scarecrows!

2011-10-28T18:36:00.003-05:00

Once upon a midnight dreary...

Actually, once upon a dreary day-- today-- my friend Carla and I went out to Cheekwood gardens and museum to see the scarecrow exhibit. We are so going to enter next year if we can. The grounds are showcasing scarecrows made by groups and individuals alike, and some of them, I never would have considered would be a good scarecrow, let alone a scarecrow at all. Here are some of my favorites...

These were part of a disco-themed scarecrow sculpture. Get it? Scare crows?

One funky skele-lady-pumpkin.

The staff favorite.

A monkey that really loves Jesus. Poor thing fell off Noah's ark.

This one was the best one, hands down. It's called, "Hot-Rodding Hob Goblin A-Go-Go." Imagine the work that went into this one.

And "Miss Kitty" was just adorable.

Gotta start thinking up some themes for next year!

Are You Wicked?

2011-10-27T18:27:00.000-05:00

One of the souvenirs I got from WDW is... :)

A Blast from the Past

2011-10-26T14:29:00.002-05:00

Twenty years- I can't believe it! Almost twenty years since this picture of OD was taken. It was October 31st, and the day after Mr. Calm and I got married. As I like to tell people (and hey, it's true), we got married during the "Perfect Storm" in Cambridge, Massachusetts. We went down to the courthouse as the rain began to fall; by Halloween night, it was torrential. I'd planned on taking OD down to the mall to trick-or-treat, but it would have taken an hour and a half just to get a cab out to our third floor walk-up.

Poor little pumpkin didn't get to trick-or-treat. But seeing as she was only nineteen months old at the time, I suppose she didn't really know what she was missing yet.

Question: any Halloween snafus in your life?

(Answer from me: the time I was seven and I dressed up like a ghost. But I had to wear my coat under my sheet, which I guess is probably the reason-- one of them-- that my sheet got turned around, I was "blinded", and lost my parents for a couple of minutes. Ack!)

Three Pumpkins...

2011-10-25T17:08:00.000-05:00

... sittin' on a bench...

A House of Pumpkin

2011-10-24T19:05:00.002-05:00

From the farmer's market, 2008.

The Nightmare Before Christmas...

2011-10-23T19:13:00.001-05:00

... on a pumpkin.

Homer Pumpkin

2011-10-22T21:58:00.001-05:00

D'oh!

Vacation, Day 2 Continued...

2011-10-22T05:46:00.006-05:00

After our early check-in at Pop Century, we got our parking pass (one of the perks of staying on-site is free parking; otherwise, you pay $14 a day) and headed over to Animal Kingdom in time for the Early Magic Hours (EMH). This day, Animal Kingdom opened one hour early to resort guests, and we wanted to ride Kilimanjari Safaris while the animals were still awake. Usually I find this park very muggy with all the flora, but this day, the high was in the low 80s and with low humidity, so it was pleasant.

Another thing I love about Animal Kingdom is all the details. That's in any Disney park, but they especially stick out to me here, and there are tons of things to photograph. Luckily for Mr. Calm, I already have tons of photographs from our previous trips, so I really just took pix of things I wanted interesting angles of, or to see how they'd look through my Hipstamatic app.

The entrance to Dinoland:

A view of a little blue house as you pass over the bridge into Dinoland:

Dino! And it is here that Mr. Calm "beat me" at Whack-A-Mole so he could win me a little colorful Pascal stuffie (I held back; I knew he wanted to win me a stuffie ;)):

On the way into the park, there is a long walkway with animals like giant anteaters, and lots of birds. Here are the flamingos:

Skipping around here: this is when we got our Fast Passes for Expedition Everest, and when I asked Mr. Calm to take a picture of how I felt getting on the ride. I am NOT a roller coaster fan; Big Thunder Mountain Railroad is about my speed. Mr. Calm and YD rode it the year it opened, and he said it wasn't any big deal. And I found that it wasn't... until it began hurtling backward. And afterward, Mr. Calm and I clutched our stomachs and managed to successfully keep from hurling in the exit gift shop. Mr. Calm said that he didn't remember the ride being quite so... nauseating.

And another sign from Dinoland. You should know by now, I like taking pictures of signs. Here we also rode Dinosaur!

The little details: a bench in Dinoland.

Truck in Asia:

Greetings from another era!

My favorite part of the day? I got a latte and croissant, Mr. Calm got his tea and muffin, and we found a quiet bench in the shade and had breakfast.

After a few hours' rest back at the hotel, we went to Disney Hollywood Studios, formerly MGM.

Whoops! I knew there was something off in the order of my pix (thanks, Blogger). We did ride Kilimanjari Safaris-- at that time in the morning, there was no wait. This is a really cool attraction, but I don't have any pictures because I took video. All the animals were pretty much awake, which means we saw: a warthog (how many of us on the truck were thinking, "Pumba"?), hippos, rhinos, cheetahs, a grand lioness laying atop her rock as we passed (and she watched), giraffes walking fifteen feet from the truck, twenty-foot tall termite mounds, and the high point of the safari: a two-month old baby elephant. All I can say as we watched him is that he was exhibiting pure joy. As we passed, he positively scampered away from his momma-- it reminded me of a toddler as they run. And then his momma swung around as if to say, "Child, where do you think you're going?"

Absolutely adorable.

Back to Hollywood Studios: Mr. Calm and I had dinner at the Sci-Fi Dine-In Theater. Standard food fare, but you really go for the ambience, and the old B-movie excerpts, old cartoons and advertisements, and other corny, fun stuff. You sit in cars, two to a seat with three rows, though there are some cars with tables in them for families of four. Our car was the celebration car, with birthdays up front, us in the middle with our anniversary, and newlyweds in the back.

Dessert that night for Mr. Calm was a chocolate-covered strawberry, and I got one of these fun chocolate covered marshmallows.

My favorite parts of this park, besides Star Tours in 3-D (ohmyGod FUN!!!!!), is the old Hollywood look and all the neon.

Earlier, I had my one and only "celebrity" sighting. We were waiting to be seated at the restaurant, and went over to Writer's Stop for Mr. Calm's tea. I was sitting by the window when I noticed a VIP guide. I don't remember his real name, but there in the middle of the picture, in the red shirt, is the Cake Boss. I've watched his show once, and seen him plenty on Food Network Challenge, and I don't care much for his t.v. personality. But there he was in Disney, with his family, so I took a picture.

And there is our day at Animal Kingdom and Hollywood Studios. Day Three will cover our day at Magic Kingdom-- see ya then!

Vacation, Day 2

2011-10-21T06:21:00.005-05:00

At around 7 a.m. on October 10, 2011, we checked into the hotel for our stay, Disney's Pop Century Resort. We always stay on-site, but this was our first stay at this particular hotel. It's a lot of fun, very bright and busy; we didn't need a lot of room as it was just me and Mr. Calm. Upon checking in, we got a nice surprise: they'd given us a free upgrade, which means that we got a room in the 60s section, close to the food court, checkin/out, and gift shop. You usually have to pay more for that, so: score!

The Pop Century is known for its larger-than-life icons around the resort. Here is a gigantic 8-track tape in the 70s section. To give you a perspective, these things are as tall as the four-story buildings.

This is a gigantic Big Wheel and foosball table, also in the 70s.

The Pop Century lobby. I read that the designers and builders scoured the country for a year, looking for memorabilia to fill the cases that line the walls.

There is a walkway behind the resort that follows the lake, and it's lined with signs like this. I had to take a picture of my birth year.

Back in the 70s section, remember those Mickey phones?

This is the view from our building. That's the Hippy Dippy pool. Apparently, that's the COLD pool. I got in for five minutes: that's all I could stand.

The Pop Century is also known for its tie-dyed cheesecake. It's okay. Watch out for the green food coloring if you ever get a chance to eat it.

Here's a big record from the 50s section.

The theming extends to even the baggage carts.

This was my favorite from the 60s: the gigantic Play-Doh can, with elephant and giraffe.

Okay, here's why I really think we got an upgrade, besides how they may have done it because we were celebrating our 20th anniversary. In the middle of this day, we returned to the room so we could rest. Mr. Calm puttered around on his laptop while I took a nap, facing the wall the whole time. When I awoke, I leaned over to check my phone, sat up... and found rose petals scattered on the floor. I turned to find this on the bed:

And these on the table and chair...

... and these in the box! Mr. Calm had surprised me with an in-room celebration of sorts. He later told me that it was all supposed to be already in the room when we got there, but the delivery was late. However, what a wonderful thing to wake up to, and so romantic and sweet.

I do feel a little bad for the housekeeper who had to clean up all the rose petals that were all over the floor, though, heh.

Back to the 60s:

The bowling pins are part of the 50s section, and lit up at night.

There is a ton of other stuff at the Pop Century resort, like gigantic cell phones and a t.v., but I was too exhausted from our trips to the parks to walk around the entire hotel.

And because it's October, here's my Halloween Pic O' the Day. Cannibal Pumpkin, from 2008:

My next vacation post will also feature Day Two: Animal Kingdom and Disney Hollywood Studios. Stay tuned!

More Monster Soda

2011-10-20T07:18:00.001-05:00

Monsters love themselves some 7-UP...

Vacation, Day 1

2011-10-19T05:27:00.005-05:00

We arrived on WDW property on Sunday, October 9th, 2011. I guess we lucked out on what day we arrived, weather-wise, because the day before, "torrential rains" had fallen over Lake Buena Vista. We stayed off-site the first night, and went to Downtown Disney Marketplace.

This is a favorite: the Lego Serpent in the lake next to the Lego store.

One of our favorite shops in the Marketplace is the Art of Animation store. This is a model of the entrance to Magic Kingdom.

I have a lot of Shag stationery, and was really happy to see that Shag had created some illustrations for Disney about the 1971 opening of WDW. After thinking about it, I finally settled on these coasters (he also had prints there, and plates).

These were also cool: I went back and forth between these and the Shag coasters.

And I also got this mug. Do I need another mug? Absolutely not. But this was too cool to pass up. Anybody who went to Disney in the 70s remembers the tickets you had to buy to get on the rides.

We walked around in the cool night air, had dinner at Earl of Sandwich (any yummy sandwich: $5.99!), watched kids play in the water jets next to the World of Disney store, and then wandered over to the pin store, where I picked up some souvenir pins. Donald greeted us.

And lastly, my Halloween/Autumn Picture O' the Day. Hey, almost all the characters in "The Nightmare Before Christmas" live in Halloweentown, right? So, here you go: a tiny lightbox with a scene from the movie. This thing was maybe five, six inches tall and very adorable. The Art of Animation store had a dozen of them with scenes from a lot of Disney movies.

Until tomorrow, with Day 2!

Monster Soda

2011-10-18T06:06:00.001-05:00

A Crow and a Pumpkin...

2011-10-17T06:33:00.002-05:00

...walked into a bar... oh, wait, you've heard this one?

Oops! Where Did Halloween Go?

2011-10-16T08:28:00.004-05:00

Hey, everyone- I'm back from vacation! It was a blast, a really great time, and in the coming days, I'll blog about it. First off, though, I did promise a Halloween picture a day, didn't I? Naturally, when I left, I had no idea that unless you set up a mobile blog, you can't post to Blogger. But that didn't stop me from meeting my challenge! I simply posted them to my tumblr and Facebook pages. But I couldn't even blog the links for all you Faithful Readers. So, here are all the pictures that I posted, in no particular order:

Leaving Magic Kingdom after Mickey's Not-So-Scary Halloween Party:

Here is today's picture, from outside the Haunted Mansion:

Magic Kingdom:

A cute Mickey wreath:

Popcorn buckets:

Inflatable!

Hats:

And... there seems to be a picture missing. It was of Mickey ghost cookies.

See you tomorrow! :) Or, "See ya real soon"!

Halloween Memories: 1996

2011-10-08T07:27:00.003-05:00

October, 1996: that was a good, fun Halloweentime. We lived in Salem, Massachusetts, on "No Pine" Street. OD was in first grade and YD was in preschool at the YMCA. We got a lot of use out of their costumes that year, with the parades/parties at school, the library storytime, and Halloween, of course.

Unfortunately, the last day of October in Massachusetts was always cold, so the girls had to either wear coats, or thermal underwear under their costumes (looks like we went the warm underwear and sweater route that year). But it was always a blast. Almost every house was open to trick or treaters in our neighborhood. A few blocks over, someone always grew a giant pumpkin (about eight hundred pounds), and carved it into a Jack O' Lantern for Halloween. In fact, that entire street-- a narrow, cobbled street lined with old Colonials-- was lit up like a party. And we lived two blocks away from the oldest street in Massachusetts, Chestnut Street, full of old captains' mansions. I think it was lost on the kids, but we certainly looked forward to going to the "rich houses" and seeing them get better candy.

Kids weren't the only ones to get into Halloween. Salem at that time was a town of forty thousand, but in October, we got 30,000 extra visitors. I called them "Halloweenies". Especially on October 31st, they would pour into the streets, along with the residents, many dressed in costume. The most memorable adult costume I saw, and it may have been that year, was Barney, and it was worn by one of the parents. Why was it memorable? Because the man got hot and took off his head. And nearby, a shocked child screamed.

Weren't my kiddos cute?

And writing of Disney costumes, I'm off! Mr. Calm and I are off to wild, wonderful Walt Disney World for a week to celebrate our 20th anniversary (October 30th). One of the nights, we'll be going to Mickey's Not-So-Scary Halloween Party at the Magic Kingdom. Mr. Calm will be wearing a white t-shirt with a ghost face on it. That's all I can get him to wear, costume-wise. I, on the other hand, will be decked out in a t-shirt with striped sleeves that has a cute face on it that reads, "I Bite", a Jack Skellington temporary tattoo, pumpkin earrings, dark purple glittery eyeshadow, and a gigantic dark purple velour witch's hat.

Yes, I will look silly. No, I do not care. :)

But don't wait a week to check back at the blog! I'm continuing my Halloween/Autumn Photo Challenge even through my vacation. So, be sure to stop by. Everyone have a great week! :)

Friday Flowers

2011-10-06T21:56:00.005-05:00

Fresh flowers in October? Yes... but not mums. These are my Maximillian sunflowers. They bloom in my yard in October. And I desperately need a better, stronger trellis.

New Dolls!

2011-10-06T06:43:00.004-05:00

New dolls are done and available for adoption at Miss Millificent's Mesdamoiselles!
The first doll is Beatrice the Creep. Creep dolls are right up my alley, but she was specifically created for the ADO team's October Mini-Monthly Challenge, "Tragic Endings". Faithful readers of my dolls' stories will know that all my creeps meet a tragic, untimely demise...

Beatrice the Creep is 21 inches long and made from my usual paper clay.

Here we have Christmas Eden, again made from paper clay. She's a much more "normal" size of 11 inches, and I must say, "prettier" than the dolls I usually create.

And because it's October, a Halloween picture for you!

(oops, here's a closeup of Beatrice the Creep. Blogger messed up my formatting.)

And onward into October we go...

Want to Embarrass Your Dog?

2011-10-05T09:18:00.003-05:00

Put her in a banana split costume for Halloween...

Mutant Mr. Potato Head!

2011-10-04T06:28:00.002-05:00

Spied at Kroger yesterday...

Why wasn't this around when the girls were younger???

Art and Jacks

2011-10-03T06:58:00.002-05:00

Not as much activity for us this past weekend. Someone... eh, I may as well admit it was moi, wasn't feeling very well yesterday and pretty much stuck it out at home. To borrow a great friend's words, "I forgot I was a grown woman." Actually, while I did not drink any more than I usually do during the art crawl, I did not eat very much that day, and paid the price after the art crawl, two minutes after Mr. Calm started the car. Suddenly it wasn't a car so much as it was a fishing boat rockin' and a-rollin' on the high seas. Needless to say, I was not so pretty until about eleven the next morning, but I have a wonderful husband who was willing to get up at seven-thirty on a Sunday morning and make his wife toast and go get her ginger ale. However, how wonderful he is didn't stop him from poking a little fun from time to time about how I couldn't walk a straight line.

But before I got in the car, we saw some pretty good art. This one was from a series of paintings about infertility and pregnancy.

One of the galleries had an exhibit of photographs by a Memphis photographer who managed to get some terrific shots of rockers. While I loved the one of Joan Jett and Debbie Harry backstage (the look on Debbie Harry's face was priceless-- sort of like an 'I'll cut a bitch' expression), this was my favorite photograph.

We'd seen these paintings before, which all take place at a polo match. I wish I could remember the title of it, which is incredibly apt. Click on it to view the larger image and look at the woman in the hat. Maneater Alert! I feel sorry for the guy she's behind.

And because it's October the 3rd, and I'm doing my photo challenge, you cannot escape a Halloween picture!

Pumpkinhead

2011-10-02T06:56:00.001-05:00

Solo Challenge: Picture a Day!

2011-10-01T06:00:00.002-05:00

Happy October! The air is crisp and wonderful this weekend. I've added my fluffy pink with cherries bathrobe and Happy Bunny slippers ("it's cute how you think I'm listening") to my morning repertoire to stay warm. As you know, my house is decorated for the season, and I made pumpkin bread yesterday, yum.

To keep up this blog, I'm challenging myself to posting at least one Halloween or Autumn picture a day throughout the month of October. I'll even manage it through our 20th anniversary vacation October 8th-15th, as I'm an early riser and usually need to do something while Mr. Calm is still sleeping.

For today, we'll jump in the wayback machine and visit October of 2008, when I was armed with a camera at the farmer's market. Eh, one of the many times I was armed with a camera. :)

I hope you'll visit every day to find a new picture!

Question: what's your favorite part of autumn?

(Almost) Wordless Wednesday: Roses

2011-09-28T07:35:00.002-05:00

Fifth or sixth bloom this year...

I got this rose bush for Mother's Day, 2009. I don't prune it, and now it's almost as tall as I am. The blooms smell like cinnamon when they're dying...

Yes, Mr. Calm and I stop and smell the roses when we pass by. :)

Fun with Halloween Decorating

2011-09-26T07:38:00.003-05:00

This weekend I got down to business... Halloween and Autumn business, that is! And as an aside, Mr. Calm got down to business, too, and not only mowed, but weeded, too! My yard is sooo pretty now. :)

I used to go all out for Halloween. Living in one of the U.S.'s Halloween towns (Salem, MA) for six years certainly contributed to my enthusiasm for the holiday (plus, my wedding anniversary is the day before, so it's a happy time of year). These days I don't even put out 1/4 of what I used to. I guess I like having a less-cluttered look to my house nowadays, and now that the girls are grown, it's not the same. But I still get into it some, and it's still my favorite time of year.

Mums on the porch, and in front of the steps...

Plastic Jack O' Lanterns on the steps, and three more on the porch...

Vintage-style glass cat to greet everyone who comes through the door...

Eyeball of a gigantic glass candy dish...

Vintage-style pumpkin candle holder...

Leaves decorate the handrails up to our porch (and you can see my year-round gargoyles on the steps!)...

Question: What do you do to make it feel more like Autumn or Halloween around your house?

Ooo, New Minis!

2011-09-22T17:30:00.004-05:00

I've been a busy bee this week, making new minis for my shop. I don't think I've been this productive all year for my shop, so, "Wheeee!" These are the mini food jewelries that you'll see at Miss Millificent's Miniatures soon:

Rainbow Sprinkle Cookies stud earrings:

Pancake Stack earrings:

Fudge Stripes Cookies earrings:

Rainbow Sprinkles Muffins earrings:

For your Halloween/Autumn needs, Pumpkin earrings, and...

Chocolate Cupcakes with Orange Icing and sprinkles earrings, and separate charm:

I'm not sure if I'm selling these yet, but to show: Ms. Pac-Man stud earrings:

Moving further away from food, here are some Dirty Piggy earrings:

Back to food: Chocolate Chip Muffins earrings, and separate charm:

Fun! Now down to the dirty business of listing and promoting them...

Also, I made it onto the ADO (Art Dolls Only) Team at Etsy. Yay! You can find my member profile here at this page.

See ya soon! :)

Wordless Wednesday: Old MacDonald Had a...

2011-09-21T11:06:00.000-05:00

Of the Weekend...

2011-09-18T18:57:00.004-05:00

With the cooler weather, the perfect start to a great weekend...

Friday night: good wine, food, and music at the Night Market at the farmer's market...

Saturday night: finding funny graffiti...

... seafood with my sexy husband...

Sunday: Fall Creek Falls. (not-so-much) fun with hanging bridges...

...and the kids...

...boys will be boys...

... and after two miles, a waterfall that we can sit nearby and feel the cool spray on our faces...

The Bride of Frankenstein

2011-09-17T07:56:00.002-05:00

Wish I could give you the story, but it's been soooo long since I've seen the movie, and I can't remember: did she love her big old hulking Frankenstein monster, or was she repulsed? Either way, I had a lot of fun with this custom order for the Bride of Frankenstein doll. Designed from Miss Millificent's World, of course.

I like these layered dresses, though they take more time to sew. This weekend, Mr. Calm and I are going to brave the shed to get out some of the Halloween/autumn yard decorations... I say "brave" because of the five (FIVE!!!) black widow spiders I found yesterday when I was moving a pile of heavy stone tiles that we've had in the backyard for a couple of months (left over from when Mr. Calm was working on the brick sidewalk he laid in the front yard). Yes, I ran away squealing like a little girl. Sorry to all you insect/arachnid lovers, but I had to get rid of them. My weapon of choice? Natural flea and tick spray. Anyway, we are braving the shed, and I hope to God I don't find any more black widows in that particular box.

Have a poisonous-spider-free weekend, everyone!

Of Birthdays...

2011-09-10T07:31:00.002-05:00

Waking up to a beautiful bouquet of flowers on my desk...

A birthday cookie before...

And after...

And goofiness...

And a great, loving family; the best family I could ask for...

Here's to a great birthday, and a coming autumn that will be 1000 times better than the last...

New, New, New! (And did I say... New?)

2011-09-07T10:46:00.003-05:00

I've been a busy bee this morning (helps to get a lot done when you snap awake at 5:25!). First off, I've updated the Odd Art Dolls and Miss Millificent's World sites. Significant changes for the first one.

Secondly, I did the dirty work and got some pictures taken. Now there are two shiny new dolls awaiting adoption at Miss Millificent's Mesdamoiselles:

Ofelia the Damaged (the spelling of the name is an homage to "Pan's Labryinth"):

And just in time for Christmas (er, plenty of time for Christmas!), the first of my Christmas ornies: Christmas Eva 1:
I also got a really great doll commission yesterday that I will be rolling out in a couple of weeks. Stay tuned for that coolness...

And now, lunchtime...

Sneak Preview: September Doll

2011-09-06T08:45:00.003-05:00

A sad, damaged doll coming this week to Miss Millificent's Mesdamoiselles...

Also, I am the MiniMonday feature at the Etsybloggers Street Team blog! Check it out here. :)

Behind the Scenes: How Does Your Etsy Business and Website Grow?

2011-09-05T06:36:00.003-05:00

For the last year, I've used Google Analytics, and for even longer than that, the control panel of my sites to keep track of visitors, see where they're coming from, search terms they use to find me, etc. On my sites, they're called "Cpanels" and "Awstats". If you have your own site, you should (hopefully) have something comparable.

Here's a screenshot of the awstats from Odd Art Dolls, from June of this year (click on it to enlarge):

This is a screenshot of the "Latest Visitors". While ip addresses are mostly unimportant to me, I can see what time they visited my site, and how many pages they visited. Take for instance, the entry on June 3rd. We'll use an example. The abbreviation shows that someone from Georgetown, Texas, visited me at around 7 p.m., and viewed six pages. They were more interested in Odd Art Dolls than say, someone who only peeked at one page and took off.

And you can tell from the side panel on the left that I can go on to view keywords, which pages were viewed the most or least, etc. It's a fun way to keep up with my site and hopefully improve on my stats.

Next up is a screenshot of a page from my Google Analytics account for Miss Millificent's Mesdamoiselles at Etsy, from May 28th and 29th of this year. This time, we're looking at viewed content:

Let's sample Georgetown, Texas again. I can see that Georgetown, Texas visited my entrance page 11 times, and spent over three minutes and four times total viewing Paigina the Ruthless. They also went on to view nearly every doll in my shop, though you cannot see that here. A fan!

What makes this analytics account more interesting than my cpanel is that there are multiple ways to narrow it down. I can go on to see just how Georgetown got to my site, whether directly or by referral (via Facebook), what browser and service provider they use (Chrome; Suddenlink Communications), and how many pages they visited, how long they spent at my shop, etc. You can change the "Content by Title" to "Top Content"; if you wish, you can see which page they exited your shop or site from.

Google Analytics can also be narrowed down by keyword and search terms. There are a multitude of variables that can show you what visitors and customers are looking at in your shop, and how they got there.

A little spooky, isn't it? You can tell quite a bit about your visitors with Analytics. But it's also a very helpful tool in determining what's successful in your shop, what's just "sitting there", and how people are finding you. Google Analytics is easy to set up and insert the code into your Etsy shop. Or your blog. Or any site that allows it.

***and as a bit of a humorous interjection, I did not understand "referrals" until recently. If I'd understood it from the beginning, I wouldn't have freaked a little when I saw that people were coming to my shop via Regretsy! "What the hell am I doing there?" So, to prevent any of you from freaking like I did, referrals simply mean that is the page/site they left to get to your shop/site. Or, maybe all of you catch on quicker than I do, heh.***

I use another helpful tool here at my blog. It's called "Feedjit", and you can find it on the left panel of my blog. I installed it a few months ago, to see what countries and states were coming here to my blog. Below is a screenshot from about a week ago:

Let's keep with the tradition, shall we, and use Georgetown, Texas as an example again (my, I seem to have a big fan there!). Georgetown visited my blog at just after midnight (gauging from when I took the screenshot), they use Google Chrome, Windows, and arrived via Facebook.

There aren't too many stats available for the free version of Feedjit, but it's a fun tool, and I understand that if you pay for the pro version, you get more stats on your visitors.

I do highly recommend all these things if you want to have more control over, and would like to know more about the visitors to your sites and shops.

We conclude this dryish post with the question: is there anything different you use to track your visitors and (potential) customers?

Me and Evie...

2011-09-02T11:08:00.002-05:00

Me and my favorite little Creep...

Happy Weekend, Everyone!

Zombie Crave Brides...

2011-09-01T05:16:00.002-05:00

End of August...

2011-08-31T05:30:00.003-05:00

Hey, Everybody: Athena's back to post. It's been an interesting month, full of changes. Mr. Calm and I continue to walk most days, Monday through Friday, taking Pippi down the path around part of the lake we live nearby. We've also just begun exploring waterfalls and trails. Heh, this is the first "waterfall" we visited, at Ozone Falls, near Knoxville, Tennessee:

That we probably should have gone earlier in the year, before the many days of no rain, was not lost on us or the other family hiking. At least the ten-story STEEP hike down was entertaining and thrilling (NOT).

I consider my solo show to be a success. Two photographs sold, and an ornie. "She Jumped Out of Her Body and Lost Her Head" and "All Dolled Up and Ready to Barf" are now hanging in others' homes. Here I am with one of my dolls at the end of opening night. I am NOT drunk, though I seem to look that way.

Aaaand one of the doll displays.

In other news, YD and her boyfriend moved into their own apartment August 12th. It was strange, a little sad, but to be honest, a little... freeing. Anyone who has grown children will understand. We'll miss them, but it's a-MAZ-ing how much cleaner things are and stay nowadays. ;) And the privacy's nice.

I am looking forward to autumn, and Halloween, and my and Mr. Calm's upcoming 20th anniversary trip (39 days and counting down!). This Saturday is the art crawl, and since we haven't gone since May (something always comes up), all the art will be fresh and new (fingers crossed). I've just tea-stained a bunch of fabrics, and have reconfigured my work schedule: no more than one doll, ornie, or Marmie a day. I will begin working on a new doll today, and plan to roll out a few Christmas ornies. And I plan to post a lot more photography here to get this blog back to the active status it used to have.

See ya soon, folks. Looking forward to sharing with all my friends and hopefully hearing from you!

Solo Show Preview: Part II

2011-08-02T05:32:00.004-05:00

tomorrow, ms. wednesday wandered and i will drive to clarksville, tennessee (about an hour and a half from here) to set up my solo show, "in and out with the old". the opening is thursday evening. since almost all my readers don't live around here, i thought i'd offer another peek at it.

here is the show description:

One day you wake up and find you‘ve reached a pivotal moment in your life where you‘re (stereo)typically considered “old“. Another day you may suddenly find yourself abandoned and alone. What happens when these things coincide: a woman turns forty, and just a few weeks later, her husband of nineteen years suddenly leaves her in the whirlwind of his midlife crisis? Besides the panic attacks, the severe depression, there is examination of the relationship, and exploration: am I too old? Am I too fat? Was that wrinkle in my cheek too deep? Was I just a horrible, awful woman? Will I ever be loved again?

The art dolls and photography of “In and Out with the Old” recreate some of the feelings and trauma of a separation of husband and wife, real and misguided ideas about beauty and age, a love of vintage, discarded things, and finally, renewal and revival of a long relationship. Almost all the photographs were taken and post-processed with an iPhone 4.

The new dolls in the show will be the previously-previewed Marmies...

...and Anxiety....

...and, of course, photography. each picture represents a certain moment or feeling during my and mr. calm's separation and reconciliation. the hardest thing about taking and compiling these photographs was an overwhelming rush of ideas at times, but not knowing how to capture them. it wasn't until i realized that i would *never* be able to fully convey exactly how i felt during this period that i calmed down.

there are thirteen photographs in the exhibit. here are four...

"see you later"...

"suicide"...

"fireworks after twenty-one years (and ten weeks)"...

"the pursuit of happiness"...

yes, that's my ugly-ass foot and leg and tattoo above. :) it was my mother's day present. all of the pictures above except for 'suicide' were taken with an i-phone.

there are more personal photos in the collection, and i'll open up the as-of-now private set on flickr after the show starts. since i'm a bundle of nerves about the show, the day of i plan on spending an hour or so in the water, and relaxing as much as i can before the drive to the gallery. and maybe there, treating myself to a little cham-PAGN-e. Heh.

Casino-ing and TIps

2011-07-31T06:53:00.006-05:00

this past week, mr. calm and i went to tunica, ms, for a short getaway. monday was a 'bad workday' for both of us, so tuesday morning, mr. calm (who didn't even want to open his emails) said that we should go early. after calling and modifying the reservations, we took off. my middle sister v. and her fiancee were already down there, staying the week, but we didn't call them until ten p.m., wanting a little time to ourselves.

tip #1: get your 'membership' to whatever player's club the casino has. you'll get special offers and deals. after signing up, i was able to get our room (king bed, nice and roomy room) for $24 a night. nothin' to sneeze at, huh?

here i am with mr. calm, waiting on the shuttle bus to take us to the casino. we were casino virgins before this trip!

here is our hotel, the terrace hotel at harrah's. it was about a mile from the casino. we were on the fifth floor.

contrasting with the bright, colorful lights of the casino, i wanted to take pix the first night in black and white. here is one of the slots i played. generally, i cashed out pretty quickly... i'm not the kind of person who just likes to hand off her money!

we went to the paula deen buffet, ahem, three times: once for every day we were there. it was very good, but i don't recommend the bland mac n cheese. i DO recommend the hoe cakes. i am heartily glad we don't live near it, or i'd balloon up to whale size.

mr. calm looooves paula deen...

i give it the thumbs up!

tip #2: i probably shouldn't be saying this- don't know if it's 'cheating' or not- but even if you walk in one minute before lunch starts (10:30), you only pay breakfast prices, four dollars cheaper per person. ahem.

we met up with v. and r. the first night, and went to the bar. tip #3 (probably not a tip to those seasoned casino-goers): who knew you got free drinks as long as you're playing? of course, you're spending money, so they're not really free, are they? (psst... casinos mess with your mind!) on the plus side, because we sat at the bar and played the computer card games, mr. calm taught me how to play poker.

we spent some time every day at the pool. wasn't easy to cool off in the tepid water-- with every day being 95 degrees and muggy, it's not so refreshing.

ah, butter. from the paula deen gift shop. if they'd had one with a v-neck and more a woman's style, i would have gotten one.

these turtles and carp were under one of the bridges that led to harrah's. see if you can find the giant granddaddy turtle!

ack! another pool picture.

we also went to hollywood casino for a little while. tip #4: most of the time, you can get freebies also for signing up as a new member. here, we got huge t-shirts that we gave to our girls as night shirts. at another casino, we each got $20 in free play, and won $49 total (which we recycled for most of the rest of the trip).

king kong inside hollywood casino.

the bar inside harrah's. this is where the bartender gave us four free tickets to thursday night's comedy show (very funny, too). you can get comped a lot just for sticking around and playing. r. got free buffet tickets just for playing a couple of hands of blackjack.

the red of the bar signifies how they're going to suck you dry. blood of the gamblers!

i just had to take a picture of this, from the high rollers area. mr. calm and i stuck to penny and quarter slots, and twice dollar slots. this is a $100 slot! i would have to win a hundred million dollars to throw away money like that.

we had a great time, and really needed the time away. and between all the freebies (including a comped meal at the 'grand' buffet at sam's town-- mr. calm complained because it SUCKED), we ended up not spending a lot. the only downside was that at the end of the trip, because of the way i whacked my right hand four days earlier, my right thumb swelled up to the size of a balloon, and was painful to the touch. yes, folks, the sculptor has a sprained thumb.

it's taken me over 20 minutes to write this, so i will say adieu for awhile. adieu!

Scenes from a Mall...

2011-07-25T22:35:00.007-05:00

Sometimes ya feel like gettin' on your fancy shoes and headin' over to the "rich mall" and walkin' around like you drink your tea with your little finger stickin' out and you sleep on pillows stuffed full o' money...

OR... you just get bored, and go to a mall with your husband, daughter, her boyfriend, and your iPhone...

You meet all kinds of interesting people at Macy's! Like this kid- golly, he's happy!

And her hair is just striking!

Oh, my GOD!

Hey, man, I don't care...

Ooo. Mr. Calm gets distracted by shiny lights, and I get distracted by pretty colors...

Look out, Mr. Calm! Zombie Teenager behind you!

Boys think Sephora is stinky...

Mad Scientist Mr. Calm...

And here we are, before we go crazy at the mall...

Featured!

2011-07-22T06:02:00.003-05:00

This week, I'm the Featured Artist on the Whimsically Dark Team at Etsy. You can see the post here, at BearyCreative's blog: Athena Workman.

In other cool news, sweet Lola Soddyberry has been adopted. She'll be on her way to a new home this weekend.

Have a good weekend, everyone- I am! :)

Tomatoes and Marmies, Oh, My!

2011-07-20T07:33:00.003-05:00

Well, I *finally* finished the Marmies that were sitting on my desk for about a month, waiting patiently to be painted and given hair (mostly). These will be in my solo show next month.

Introducing, left to right: Marmie White Bride, Marmie Bride of Frankenstein, and Marmie Zombie! And as far as Marmie Zombie goes, it's a plus that her arm fell off while I was sanding her, because that makes her all the more zombie-looking! ;)

Ever have an idea for a Marmie? Leave a comment here at my blog or drop me a line. The sky's the limit for these little beings.

I still have to add earrings (damn my distracted mind!), but here is my sculpture for this year's Tomato Art Fest. Title? "Papa was a Rolling Tomato". For those of you who know/remember the song, you'll get my play on it.

This morning will be partly spent cleaning up the big mess that I've left from my work over the past couple of weeks. Strands of dried hot glue, micro beads, scraps of fabric and thread, bits of paint, annoying threads of dyed sheep wool-- it's a crafting explosion in here.

Solo Show Preview

2011-07-19T08:14:00.003-05:00

My solo show, "In and Out with the Old", begins August 4th at The Framemaker Gallery in Clarksville, Tennessee. I have all but one of my photographs ready, though I don't have anything matted or framed yet. Thankfully, I'm done with the dolls! Here is Anxiety:

She has a stuffed body, and yes, she's wearing a straitjacket...

I have to apologize for my pictures. The dreamy lens is nice, but I think it really means that I desperately need to clean my lens:

I'll preview some photography next week, and when the show opens, I'll open up my private Flickr set so anyone who can't get to the show can see all the pictures, the show opening, and the dolls. :)

WIPs - New Dolls

2011-07-13T05:37:00.003-05:00

I've been working hard this week creating new dolls. One is going into my solo show beginning August 4th; the others are part of a doll sculpture for this year's Tomato Art Fest.

Doll bodies and little legs and arms...

... and here's one completed: my little tomato baby! Isn't he the cutest? It makes me wish I had more time to make a bunch more tomato babies.

Facebook Page: Come Like Me!

2011-07-11T07:29:00.003-05:00

Well, I now have a Facebook page to update everyone on upcoming shows, new dolls, and new minis (like I don't do that already here, right?). So, if you're so inclined, please join me over at Miss Millificent's World on Facebook. Or, like me, okay? Don't make me feel lonely. ;)

I just got back from West Virginia and visiting my family a week ago. During the visit, I kept dropping not-so-subtle hints to my dad, like, "You know, I'd be more than happy to take any plants off your hands that you don't want." Hee. So, my dad gave me a bunch of succulents to take home, and I just got them into pots yesterday.

Having more plants in the house just makes it feel more like a home. Question: What makes your house feel more like a home?

New Stuff from the Sick Bed

2011-07-09T06:30:00.003-05:00

This entire week has been spent with my stomach in upheaval. It's no fun when your body suddenly revolts. But I have managed to get a little work done. I've got three dolls drying (with more paper clay on the way to finish a bigger sculpture), and yesterday I worked on some new minis for Miss Millificent's Miniatures.

Birthday Cake and Ice Cream Ring:

Birthday Cake Earrings:

These are of the supermarket variety, covered with that sugary buttercream. :)

Have a good weekend, everyone! Send out good vibes for my tummy.

Giveaway Winner!

2011-07-08T07:46:00.003-05:00

Congrats- we have a winner! Thanks to everyone who entered my Grand Reopening Giveaway. There were 29 entries, and via the Random Number Generator at Random.org, the number "21" was picked. Number 21 was...

Jo!

Congratulations, Jo! I've already sent her an email, and the two pairs of earrings will be winging their way to her next week.

And remember, today is the LAST day for my 10% off sale at Miss Millificent's Miniatures!

Have a great weekend, everyone!

Grand Reopening Giveaway!

2011-07-01T04:30:00.000-05:00

Hey, everybody! It's that time of year again: giveaway time! In honor of the grand reopening of Miss Millificent's Miniatures, I am giving away two pairs of wearable food jewelry. Read on to find out what you can win, and how to enter!

Hot Fudge Pop Tart Earrings:

Strawberry and Kiwi Cupcake Earrings (with vintage findings):

Nice? Want to win these? Here's how:

1) You must become a follower of this blog, and leave a comment on this post (let me know you're now following me, and just say hi!). If you're already a follower of my blog, remind me in your post.
2) You must also leave a way for me to contact you- preferably email.

Now, for some extraneous rules:
1) The contest begins at 4:31 a.m. CST on July 1, 2011, and ends at 6:01 a.m. CST July 8, 2011.
2) It is open to anyone in the world. However, if the winner is from outside the United States, the winner is responsible for any customs fees that may be levied.
3) On July 8th, I will use a random number generator to pick the winner. The winner will be notified by email and announced here on my blog.
4) If for some reason I do not hear from the winner after three days (I'll need a physical address to send your prizes!), I will pick another winner via random number generator.

And that's it! Good luck, and be sure to visit Miss Millificent's Miniatures for the reopening of the shop, where until July 8th, you can also save 10% off all your purchases!

The Return of the Minis!

2011-06-29T06:29:00.007-05:00

The other day, I read an interesting post at The Mouse Market's blog: "What Are You Totally Awesome At?" I found it enlightening, and really relevant to my life right now. At the very most, I have been tossing ideas around for months now, trying to figure out long-term what I'd like to do that will be good for a "career", and of course something that will be beneficial financially to my and Mr. Calm's future. Most of these things, I've come to realize, will either: drive me crazy, or bore me to tears. And I wouldn't be as good at them as I think.

But after months of stagnation, I've found again that I love making minis. And I'm good at it. :)

These are a few of the things you'll find at my minis Etsy shop's grand re-opening!

Fortune Cookie earrings

Kawaii-style chocolate chip cookie dangle earrings

Confetti cupcake earrings and charm (sold separately)

And finally, finally, after getting them back six months ago, I've photographed and am ready to list the cakes that I was selling last year via the Curiously Curious Shoppe on ebay. Silver and Peach 1:12 Dollhouse Wedding Cake:

Chocolate and Vanilla Roses Wedding Cake

And I'm happy to report that I finally, finally have mastered crumbly-looking cake. I've tried technique after technique, and I've never been wholly happy with what's come out. Yesterday I sat down with a piece of unformed clay and just picked away at it until I came up with a realistic-looking texture. After each try (four times total), I would photograph it with my handy-dandy super macro feature, then download it onto my computer and study it at 100%.

Patience, Athena. That's how you get the good stuff. ;)

Little Studio

2011-06-28T10:15:00.003-05:00

Now that I'm relaunching my minis Etsy shop, it means that I have a lot of work to do: make new minis (duh), get ready for my giveaway... well, first of all, get out all the clay and tools that I put up months ago and make it all nice and organized in my bookshelf. And lastly, I have to take pictures so I can list everything I made.

I don't think I'm alone in saying that setting up backgrounds, taking pictures, fixing them in PSP, and listing them are some of my least favorite activities in this creative process. It's a drag to say the least, especially when you wait until you have dozens of products and you have to take a day just to work on photography.

I used to have a homemade light box. It was a pain, and when it fell apart, I just didn't feel like making a new one. I also didn't feel like spending some of my meager finances to buy one. Other times, I would take things outside in the shade or under cloudy skies, along with patterned paper for backgrounds, and take pictures. But hauling all that outside was a pain, too. One of my favorite backdrops was my OD's old American Girl minis box, but as it had a ceiling, it was often too dark to get good photographs.

Yesterday, I weighed all my options, and luckily my brain was in high gear, and I remembered my old Mary Engelbreit magnetic dollhouse... with removable roof!

I've had this since about 2001, gotten for me and the girls (mostly me, heh). I've saved it all these years; occasionally thought about selling it, or giving it to my nieces, but as I spent a lot of money on it and the dozens of pieces I bought for it, in the end, I just couldn't part with it.

Here it is, ready to be dusted, all the pieces I want to use laid out.

And here it is, all ready to go, the extra pieces put into my Mary Engelbreit lunchbox (okay, I was a nut for Mary Engelbreit stuff. I even cut out the paper dolls from the magazines, and YES, I still have those, too):

Kawaii-style chocolate chip earrings, ready for their closeup:

I'm so happy I have this. No more hauling jewelry outside, waiting for the weather to be good, too many shadows, etc.

Where do you like to take photographs of your products? Do you have a little "portrait studio"?

New Doll Preview: Saturday, June 25, 2011

2011-06-23T07:17:00.003-05:00

Greetings, everyone! Athena here, getting back into the swing of things. :) New Miss Millificent's Mesdamoiselles have reintroduced themselves to me, jumping down from the branches of Miss Millificent's family tree, and I am ready to introduce them to you. I've actually had increased interest in when new dolls will be available, so in this post I'll preview all the new dolls that I've made. They will go on sale Saturday, June 25, 2011, at 5 p.m. Eastern Standard Time at my Etsy shop.

Be on the lookout for increased posts, as well as a grand reopening of Miss Millificent's Miniatures on July 1st, with new goodies, a giveaway (!!), and a short sale to launch the shop again.

And remember: visit Miss Millificent's Mesdamoiselles on June 25th!

Announcement: Last Post... for awhile...

2011-05-25T07:20:00.004-05:00

Hey, everyone/Faithful Readers/Friends! I've decided to close down this blog for awhile. Well, it'll still be here, but I'll be posting elsewhere. This blog is too unwieldy and busy for me at this time, so you can find me at my tumblr blog: much simpler, sparse: Athena Workman in Pictures (http://athenaworkman.tumblr.com).

But I'll do a summation of things for a last post.

Mr. Calm and I just returned from a weekend in Asheville, North Carolina, one of our favorite places on Earth. Fun, food, and relaxation in an old (but well-kept) log cabin motor court from 1929. Ah, birds, the forest... and no cicadas! Here we are at an outdoor jazz concert. I had a fun time watching three young men dance with abandon while simultaneously try to drink from their beer cups and swing around a flag pole.

Next up, the "Incite" show on May 19th, assembled by RAW: natural born artists, was a success! All the artists sold multiple pieces, including me: I sold two Marmies and a doll head necklace. There was a fantastic singer and her band there, Morgan Myles, and Mr. Calm, OD, and a few friends, including Wednesday Wandered, showed up to support me.

These dolls made their debut at the show, and you can find them now at my Miss Millificent's Mesdamoiselles shop. Vainglory:

Paigina the Ruthless:

Marmie Orange:

What's next for me? In June, I'll be working non-stop to get ready for my solo show in August, entitled "In and Out with the Old". There will be a new doll and new Marmies, and the photography will be much more editorial than my pictures from the past. OD and I have purchased passes to the nearby water park, and now that I've spent the money, I'll be forced to drag myself out of my Hobbit hole and get some sunshine and Vitamin D. In June, I'll also be making Tomato Art.

So, after the work is done, I'll be stepping back and taking stock of everything. Mr. Calm and I have a big trip planned in October for our 20th wedding anniversary, and I'm looking forward to that. In the meantime, thanks for reading here, looking at all my photographs, following my links, and I hope that you'll join me over at Tumblr.

See ya! :)

New Photo Blog

2011-05-12T06:02:00.000-05:00

I have a new photo blog for my iPhone pictures, and you can find it here on Tumblr:

Athena Workman in Pictures

I figure it'd be nice to have a place solely to show off pictures taken with my new, favorite toy. :)

Come see me!

Update (with Pictures!)

2011-05-11T03:30:00.003-05:00

Wow, I had no idea it'd been so long since I posted! Happy (belated) Easter and Happy (belated) Mother's Day to all of you who celebrate those holidays. It's been a busy few weeks for me here.

*A week ago, I fell down three concrete stairs and bruised my tailbone. My coffee mug, I'm happy to report, is still intact, though it's the main reason I wasn't able to grab a shelf and keep from going down. Bruising your tailbone? A bitch, I'll tell you. I can be thankful that I can walk normally, and lay on my side, but sitting/getting up/sitting down is painful. I'm on a doughnut right now.

*The 13-year cicadas have arrived. One landed on YD's face two days ago. Want to hear your child scream bloody murder? Throw a cicada at her. I didn't, by the way.

*My parents visited, and it was a good visit.

*I am still playing with my iPhone. That data plan is getting full usage.

*I got a tattoo yesterday! I have been thinking about it for a looong time, and finally took the plunge. It's about two inches tall, above my right ankle, and it's the Chinese character for "the pursuit of happiness". I like it, though it's sore. And I was NOT expecting that kind of pain.

*Things have been very, very good the last few days. Emotionally, mentally. I have let go of some things that have been bothering me immensely, and frankly, holding me back. Because of this, I feel calmer, more back to my old self than I have in a long while.

*Lastly, I am going to be in a group show at Mercy Lounge here in Nashville, next week, and new dolls will be premiering. I worked my butt off to get them done way ahead of time. Here's the show poster:

I'll have a setup of tables, so I used my bed to lay out the dolls. I think if they're laid out with a little more space, it'll look terrific. I took the picture so I wouldn't forget how I wanted it all to look. Can you spot the new dolls?

I'll also have a booklet with all the dolls' stories and prices. I thought that would look better than price tags and story cards all over the place.

Wish me a good show!

Ikea, I Love You

2011-04-29T06:48:00.004-05:00

When it comes to decorating, I'm pretty eclectic. Most of the time it's "What I can afford", but as we got older and learned better to save money, heh, we saved and got some things we really liked. I lovelovelove antique and flea market finds, older stuff... and didn't think myself such a modern lover until...

My husband took me to Ikea in Round Rock, Texas.

Oh, what a wonderful world. A little piece of Swedish heaven tucked into a tiny Texas town. A place of clean lines and monochromes and furniture that you put together yourself and lingonberries.

Sing it along with me: "These are a few of my favorite things..."

This lamp was about two feet wide, made of some kind of plastic. I would hang it from the ceiling fan in our front entryway(ish), making sure it didn't spin like a whirling dervish. Everyone would walk into my home and go "Ooo, aaaah..."

Mr. Calm would put this in his office so I could come in, lounge around, and bug him... (by the way, those floating clothes? Mr. Calm has yet to replace most of his wardrobe after he lost a lot of weight)

We would put those chairs in our dining room. So comfy, so, er, white! And then they'd get covered with cat fur and I'd regret our decision, so perhaps we can find them in... red?

Drafting table, I covet thee. I don't have anything to trace, but I would find something. I would.

This would hang above our dining table and our cat-fur-covered dining chairs.

I would put one of these chairs in my workroom, so everyone who comes in to bug me while I'm working could have somewhere comfy to sit.

This would go on my back deck. I'd arrange tea lights and plants on it, and my coffee cup on nice mornings.

Oh, Kitchen, you're so lovely! Look at that deep porcelain double sink!

I would happily cook with these round stainless steel pots.

Thank you, Ikea! I loooove you.

One day, you will see a car with a U-Haul hitched to it pull into the parking lot of the Atlanta Ikea. The people you see getting out and happily walking hand-in-hand into the Swedish home furnishings superstore? Me and Mr. Calm.

Who, Me? Featured :)

2011-04-26T09:25:00.001-05:00

I am in the Indie Spotlight over at Margopage's Blog. Please check it out, and leave a comment saying how much you loooove me, heh.

Introducing Marmie and Lottie

2011-04-24T08:38:00.002-05:00

Introducing Marmie the Dreamer, and Lottie the Pin Queen. They'll be available at Odd Art Dolls and Miss Millificent's Mesdamoiselles this week.

Happy Easter!

Uncommon Objects

2011-04-22T06:25:00.003-05:00

There is a huge shop on South Congress in Austin called Uncommon Goods. I had a lot of fun in there with my camera phone. I used the Hipstamatic app to take these pictures.

Vacation in Austin, Part I

2011-04-21T12:28:00.006-05:00

Hey, everyone! Back from four full days in Austin, Texas. This is where Mr. Calm and I met back in March of 1989, and where his family (mom, brothers, stepdad) lives. So, first and foremost, it was visiting with family. Except for our rapid trip back in February to get Pippi and Mr. Calm's stuff, I hadn't really explored the city since I lived there... and not much then, since most of my exploring was limited to where I could get on the bus line.

These are my in-laws, Lolette and Charles. We actually surprised them and called them when we were outside Dallas to tell them we were visiting. We'd actually called and talked to Lolette at lunchtime, but didn't let on then. When we called at eight at night, Lolette said to Charles, "What? When I talked to them, they said they were going to lunch!" Well, we did, but it was in Arkansas, heh.

It was really lovely seeing them.

One of the things I'd never done was see the bats fly out from under the bridge on South Congress Avenue. We actually had a great view: they flew out right under my and Mr. Calm's feet. Below are some of the boats that lined up to watch. I think the bats' wings sound like tiny, soft raindrops.

I wandered around Lolette and Charles's yard and took pictures. My older brother-in-law Patrick does most of the decorating.

On our first full day, we went further down South Congress, our old neighborhood, which used to be crappy and is now funky and gentrified. There's a whole block devoted to food trucks. We chose Fry Baby. Foot-long corn dogs? Not a foot long. But the batter is extremely tasty.

Fran, atop a drive-in diner.

Me, sittin' somewhere. Cool colored wall! :)

This was one of my old hangouts before Mr. Calm and I met. I went there with an old boyfriend and his friend a lot. The coffee? Good. The ex-boyfriend? Not so much. Mr. Calm and I discovered that we lived very close to each other before we even met. This is all near the University of Texas.

The guy in the back is M., one of Mr. Calm's oldest friends- they've been friends since he was a teenager. The guy in front is J., M's "boyfriend". I discovered very quickly why Mr. Calm doesn't like J. much. I don't think I've ever met someone that drunk at two in the afternoon. And for all you faithful readers, you remember how hard my and Mr. Calm's separation was on/for me. So, therefore, I don't want to hear from some drunken man about my husband's "wailing" and "crying" while we were separated. And listened to George Strait (not true; I think Mr. Calm would rather beat himself about the head with a baseball bat). And danced (oh, so not true!). About ten times in half an hour. Jeez.

However, M's quite a lovely person, and he said seeing me again after twenty years was like a birthday and Christmas present all rolled up into one. How sweet. :)
That evening, we had a night out to ourselves, and went to Vivo in Cedar Park. If you're near there, go! It's got GREAT food. This is the best tortilla soup I've ever eaten. Mr. Calm enjoyed the half-naked lady art on the walls (not TOO much). Me, meh.

We also went to Mount Bonnall to watch the sunset. It's high atop cliffs that overlook the Colorado River and million-dollar homes.

One of our jaunts was to a toy store near UT, Toy Joy. A little pricey, but I had fun taking pictures.

Our last full day there, we went down to the lake. It was cloudy, not much for a day of sunning, and the beach is pretty rocky. After laying there for a few minutes, I turned over on my stomach and started sifting through the rocks and shells. Mr. Calm followed suit, and soon the hunt was on to find the most interesting shells. This is my favorite picture from the entire trip, because sometimes it's the littlest things that make you the happiest and are the most fulfilling.

On our way back home yesterday, we stopped at a rest stop and crossed the road. I hope we don't get in trouble for this, but Mr. Calm picked me some gen-u-ine Texas wildflowers.

Another of my favorite pictures, because I had no idea Mr. Calm had jokingly made that face:

Over the next few days, I'll share more pictures with you, of "uncommon goods", and one of my new favorite places on Earth...

IKEA.

WIPs and iPhones

2011-04-13T17:00:00.003-05:00

Good afternoon, everyone! It's been a week of productivity for me. First, I deep-cleaned the whole house again (barring my children's rooms and Mr. Calm's office-- they are wholly capable of cleaning those themselves). Then, I got started on two Marmie sculptures:

Next up... I finally got an iPhone! Man, I've been wanting one for over a year, and mainly just for the camera, although I am having fun with the apps I've downloaded. Mr. Calm likes to joke that the person in the house who uses their phone the LEAST now has the most technologically-advanced phone, but hey, it's a seriously cool camera.

Ms. Wednesday Wandered and I went over to Centennial Park this morning/afternoon, and I snapped quite a few pix with my new camera.

Mixed in is a picture of one of my old box cameras:

And then, here's me. Mwah!

Bright and early Friday morning, Mr. Calm and I are heading out on vacation for a week, to Austin, Texas, where we'll have a free room with his mom and stepdad. What camera will I be using on vacation? Why, my phone, of course! ;)

See ya'll next week. :) I'll be posting where I "check in" and pictures during the trip on my facebook page. If you're friends with me, you'll see plenty of fun stuff. :)

Meet Lola, Zahra, and Marmie

2011-04-07T15:23:00.003-05:00

Ever heard how some eyes "Swallow the face"? Well, that seems to have happened to my dolls...

I did mention before in this blog that I wanted to go in a new direction. I wasn't really sure it was working out until after painting the dolls, and really seeing how they looked. I can say that while my groove still ain't a'groovin' at 78 rpm, at least I'm happy with what I've begun doing.

Zahra Soddyberry:

Lola Soddyberry:

Marmie the Lost (paperclay sculpture):

It was Marmie I first fell in love with. She's a tiny little cutie.

Lola, Zahra and Marmie will be on sale at Miss Millificent's Mesdamoiselles and Odd Art Dolls beginning Friday, April 8, 2011. See you there!

Happy Birthday, YD!

2011-04-02T13:07:00.004-05:00

Happy Birthday to my YD! She turns nineteen today, technically at 5:02 p.m., but trying telling anyone to wait til evening to be told "Happy Birthday", heh. Every year, I'm thankful that she wasn't an April Fool's baby.

And now that she and OD are pretty much adults, I guess it's okay to reveal their names. You're going to see it on the cake, anyway. Her requested French Vanilla cake with chocolate frosting, and my attempt at tie-dyed flowers.

And of course, when you're done decorating the cake and need to clean up, one fun way to clean out your pastry bags is to get out a paper towel and write everyone else's names. I continued to write all the cats' names as well after this picture.

Have a great weekend, everyone!

www.oddartdolls.com

2011-03-24T06:06:00.003-05:00

My new shop, Odd Art Dolls, is now open! You can find the link in this post, and also at the top of the right sidebar. This gives my dolls a new venue off Etsy, which isn't doing well sales-wise. It also gives me a chance with potential customers who'd rather not sign up at Etsy.

Right now, there are no new dolls, but I do want to have some new ones within the next few weeks. There is a newsletter signup at the site, so if you want to be notified of new dolls and/or events, please sign up!

See ya!

Lots of Flowers...

2011-03-18T07:32:00.005-05:00

Another new print for my Dark Little Girls shop today... "I Sort of Like Lots of Flowers in My Hair":

I've been playing around with watercolor pencils with these drawings, and I absolutely love it. I have to give credit to my friend Carla over at Wednesday Wandered, who's been doing watercolors for months. I've been admiring her use of them, as well as the way Tim Burton does, too (I have his book, also thanks to Carla, and I'm not even done looking through his hundreds of sketches!). But see, being self-taught, and not much of a painter, I didn't know until I asked Carla that pencil doesn't bleed when you paint over them with watercolor.

Wait, what? You mean, pencil doesn't bleed? I can actually... paint a little???

Whee!! A whole new door has opened, and I'm having fun.

Enjoy, and go visit the little girl with lots of flowers!

2011-03-17T08:55:00.005-05:00

All the artwork in my "Dark Little Girls" Etsy shop...

I hope to have more up very soon... and frames and mats for the originals!

In other news, I've changed the links at the sides of my blogs. If you look to the left, you'll see the button for the "Macabre Doll Memoirs". Next month, I'll be taking part in a traveling group doll project within the Etsy Dark Side team. Should be fun-- I can't wait to see how my doll turns out!

Also, my minis shop, Miss Millificent's Miniatures, will be closing July 1st. If you use the coupon code, you an receive 25% off your entire order, before shipping! I hope you stop by and buy something. Momma needs a new pair of shorts, heh.

Lastly, I'll be building a site solely to sell my dolls. "Odd Art Dolls". This is to hopefully get more notice for them, and also attract customers who don't shop through Etsy. They'll still be sold there, but this is a new venue. I'll announce it when it's up and running.

Have a good rest of the week, everyone!

News, news, news

2011-03-10T07:32:00.005-06:00

Lots, and nothing, been going on around here, so I have to apologize again for my lack of posts. Like I've said before, it's been extremely difficult to get my groove back on. Since I last posted, I've done two drawings, and the minis at the bottom of this post. Whoo-hoo, productivity! What I've been doing a lot of is prioritizing my life. What do I want to do? What can I do? I plan on keeping the minis shop open until July 1st, when it will close, so everything in the shop is 25% off if you use the coupon code at checkout. I'm going to start making dolls again next week, although two of them won't be in my shop: one will be for a doll "round robin" for the Etsy Dark Side Team, and the other will hopefully go up for auction for the next Art Docs fundraiser. I'll also be doing my art. And the one other job I have right now is designing a logo for a college student's thesis film. Besides taking care of the house and my marriage, I think my plate is full right now. I've had to drop off a couple of teams; I think my main priority right now is not overwhelming myself.

Other news: the last weekend in February, we drove to Texas and got our Pippi puppy and the rest of Mr. Calm's stuff. We took a side trip to Hot Springs, Arkansas. Those hot springs are really hot!

Mr. Calm and his momma. We stayed one day in Austin, and the weather was perfect! It was great to go downtown and sit outside at eight at night with a sleeveless shirt on in February.

The other huge news is that OD turned 21 on March 6!! Gah, I have a fully-legal daughter now. Weird. I made "drink" cakes: cake rounds and icing stuffed into martini glasses. They were really supposed to be margarita cakes, but I liked the martini glasses better.

And here are the Pop Tart earrings that I made weeks ago, but just only managed to photograph yesterday (and twenty minutes before a huge storm blew through-- good timing!). Hot Fudge Sundae, Chocolate Fudge, Cookies & Creme, Cherry, and Strawberry Milkshake.

And these are SO cute! I saw these real bunny buns on Flickr a year or two ago, and finally made them in miniature.

Oh, my gosh, I forgot, also: I've opened a print shop on Etsy. It's called "Dark Little Girls", and you can find it at http://www.etsy.com/shop/darklittlegirls. Only one print there now, but I hope to have more soon, along with some original art.

Have a good rest of the week!

Brownies and Donuts!

2011-02-21T07:55:00.004-06:00

Two new goodies at Miss Millificent's Miniatures today!

Vanilla-Frosted Donuts with Red and Pink Sprinkles earrings:

1:12 Scale Dollhouse Miniature Brownies and Tray:

You can find them on the front page of my shop. Buy, and enjoy! :)

One World One Heart Giveway Winner!

2011-02-18T06:27:00.003-06:00

Drumroll, please... using the Random Number Generator, we have a winner of my OWOH Giveaway. And the winner is....

Dolly!

Dolly has been notified that she's the winner of the Strawberry Pop Tart earrings, and the S'mores earrings!

Thanks to everyone who entered- I hope you at least won something from one of the other blogs, and had a great time visiting my blog. :)