Texas

So I've been here for just over a month now. I don't have internet access at home yet, but I will try to keep up with my blog on my phone. I haven't really been doing much in the way of art, a little sketching and watercolor painting here and there, but my husband has been encouraging me to get back into it.

Life has been hectic, I am adjusting. I have been feeling the pull of my artistic side very strongly in the last couple of weeks...something I should give in to. Balance, people...it's all about balance.

Yes. Short and sweet today. Very random. But that's me :)

So...

I haven't posted since April?! Shame on me...shame... :) So I can't completely blame it on the fact that since then, I've become engaged to a wonderful man (John) that I've known since sixth grade, and that I'll be getting married in less than three weeks. I can only blame it on that from the middle of June until now :)

Oh, and I'm moving to Texas from South Carolina.

This all still sounds a little strange to me, although I'm getting used to it. Everything is falling into place, and my fiance will be here on Friday.

Packing means simplifying...getting rid of things I really don't need to take with me. REALLY. DON'T. NEED. This is where Lori, my sister, is really being helpful. She helps me to focus on the task at hand and getting it done NOW!  Because there really isn't much time to waste.

Which means all of my art stuff is packed up.  I'm not going to have any time to do any artwork until I get out to my new home anyway...as much as I'd like to...I've got too much to do.

Did I mention we're leaving for Texas two days after the wedding? Yeah...

P. S.

I PROMISE I'm going to begin posting some of my work on here. In fact...I'm going to share an entry from my visual journal with you right now. It was just something I did real quick last night. But it was fun :)

"The Incredible Hulk" has, ever since I can remember, been one of my favorite television shows--I own the whole series on DVD. So when I was little, if I got scared at bedtime, I would pretend that David Banner was sitting by my bedside, ready to "hulk out" if any bad dreams tried to scare me. The funny thing is...it usually worked :) This is my tribute to that memory, and one of the the best TV shows of all time. 

So It Didn't Work Out Like I Planned

The "thing" I was going to do was dye my hair bright red. Alas, my hair is too dark, and I am not about to bleach it, it's too damaging. It was only semi-permanent dye, and it's already washed out. Such is life.

But I can tell you this...I will find a way to individualize myself. I've been invisible for too long and I have wanted--for oh so long--to break out of my shell. Anybody who knows me, knows I've struggled all my life with shyness. I want to turn it all around but I'm not quite sure how to go about it. I suppose, after all is said and done, it's a matter of forcing myself. Oh, boy...

I have yet to find my individual style in my artwork.  I love painting, but I do get tired of landscapes...it seems like that is all I ever paint. I am dying to get into more abstract work, as well as get into projects that involve more than just painting...things that involve cutting and sewing and beads and gadgets and doodads......mixed media art...I LONG to be able to create like the wonderful artists I see in some of the magazines I read! I know, it will come to me, over time as I experiment and invent my own techniques. Still, it's so frustrating to be in the infancy of the pursuit of my passion!!!

Like David Bowie said...ch-ch-ch-ch-ch-Changes...

Oh, this blog is so awkward. I know I'm just starting out, that once I get into the rhythm of things, that it'll work out and the funny little lumps will get worked out. I'll look back this time next year and laugh at myself. I'm trying not to take myself too seriously, to have a little bit of fun. After all, isn't that part of being an artist, being creative? :)

On a personal note, a few things are about to change. Anyone who knows me, and has known me for some length of time, knows I've been shy and introverted all my life. Well whaddya know, folks?! I'm trying to break out of that shell!

Really, it's been a long time coming. It started when I started cutting my hair two years ago. It was long. I mean, to the middle of my back. I had been toying with the idea of a pixie cut, but anytime I said anything to my mom, she'd give me The Look (you know which one I'm talking about). So I had it cut short, into kind of a shag. It looked nice, and I kept it that way from, oh, say, March until October of that year. At some point--September, I think--I began dying it a deep auburn color. By October,  I couldn't fight it anymore, the urge to go to a pixie cut was too strong (and my mom would just have to deal with it. "It's my hair," I said, "If it doesn't look good, it'll grow back. Guess who absolutely loved it when I got home from the salon? That's right. My mom.)

Now...well...I'm not going to say what I'm going to do just yet. I'll show you when it happens :)

Stuck

I don't understand how it happens. Maybe it's because I put too much pressure on myself, or maybe I'm looking either too hard or not enough. But it happens to the best of us, right? We get..*gulp*..stuck. In a rut. Creative block. How very frustrating.

I remember in my 12th grade english class, how our teacher would have us write for a few minutes at the beginning of class. It was to get us to think, to get the creative juices flowing. So...why not doodle/draw/sketch to get things going? I bought a "visual art journal" last month; I made a couple of entries. I haven't touched the thing in weeks. Maybe that is the key to getting through this.

And I will get through this.

My First Piece of Steampunk Jewelry!!!

I'm quite excited!!!