FRIDAY FENCE POST #71

Time, once again, for a Friday Fence Post. Today's featured fence has been here before, but my Dear Husband suggested I do it again, because time and weather have worked on it. An update seemed appropriate.

Here's how the fence looked, back in September of 2008:

And here it is now:



This is the other side of that same fence, where the sage has pushed the boards away, and come through.



And this is also the same fence, but I took the shot to show off one of my latest projects--a garland, which I sent off to my Swap-bot partner, earlier this week. I loved making it, and loved the results.


In fact, I enjoyed this so much, I'm thinking of making them to sell:


What do you think? Opinions, anyone?

Your turn now. Got a fence you'd like to share? Drop the link to it in Mr Linky here, and I'll come visit! Mr Linky is here all week, so don't feel like you've missed your chance if you don't get yours in on a Friday. Stop by with it anytime!

SHOW SOMETHING SATURDAY #5

I have a video to show you! My friend, Christine Claringbold makes cool stuff from old phonograph records--

Clocks

Bowls

Cuff Bracelets

Suncatchers and Window Clings (which aren't from records, but are still cool.)

Spinners for the yard

I love everything Christine does, but most of all I love the spinners. They're so bright, and cheery, and they MOVE.

And today Christine's daughter, a young teen, created this video of them for her Mom. Isn't this just great?

(Hope this works--I borrowed the video from Christine's FaceBook page!)

FRIDAY FENCE POST #46

I spotted this fence just today, on a street I've driven dozens of times. It must be new, because I can't believe I'd have overlooked it all those times!


Isn't it wonderful? You know, I'm going to Have to do something like this! It appears the creator has used mirrors. Would cut or broken Cd's work? I wonder....

LITTLE TIMES 8--NEW TEA KETTLE CHARACTERS

The are new peeps on the block, eight new little Tea Kettle Characters, to be precise. Here they are, in order of size, smallest to largest.

Gidget fits in my hand quite comfortably--


Lily is perhaps a little shorter, but definitely plumper--


Royce and Kilroy are about seven inches tall. (Royce has removable arms; they're sugar cube tongs, so you can put sugar cubes in the top of his hollow crown, and use his arms to serve them!)


James, our Rockin' Rodeo fellow, and his friend Bartleby--


And this handsome couple, Hattie and Eugene--


They all wish you a happy weekend!

YARD, GARDEN & PATIO SHOW 2010

Well, the weekend was intense, and tiring, but a good time was had by all. Plus which, I managed not to buy out every nursery in the place, contenting myself with just eight bulbs, passing up even the yellow pine and the hellebores. Let me tell you, that was the hardest part of the entire show. (Well, except for the pieces of art I coveted, not least the creations of my booth mate!)

Here are photos of our booth:





What I want: The stained glass streamers, the bowling ball with the wire and bead "fountain" (which sold, but Megan Klepp, the artist, says I know where to find her), and that orange swirly bowling ball seen in the last photo. And yes, I did say bowling ball, although I don't think I'd score very high using it! But I smile just at the thought of its sparkling out in the yard.

I do wish I'd gotten a better picture of Megan's bird bath. It is the Taj Mahal of its kind, and 100% awesome and wonderful.

Going to Mama's in the morning, and to bed now!

A TEENSY TINY SIGHT GAG

I did something unusual today. For me, anyway. In a moment of self-indulgence, I went out to the swing in the yard, set between two trees, its frame half-covered with wisteria, and sat. Just sat. Bare feet swinging in gentle arcs, I enjoyed the shade, on this 93 degree Thursday.

When the guilt of just sitting was too much to squelch, I headed back inside, but not before noticing a tiny arm lying nearby. I had to smile at the contradiction it implied: I threw away the fairy figurine it used to be attached to, but kept the arm itself.

So I picked it up, and carried it to one of the big bowls of flowers, and gave it a new home:


Another sight that made me smile: our little Ceili finding her own way to stay cool, by lying on the grass in the shade, with her chin resting on a concrete step:

CRACKED POTS AT EDGEFIELD, PT 2

Here are more photos from the recycled garden art sale at the Edgefield McMennamins last week, out in Troutdale.

These mosaics from Sandra Carlson caught my eye, with their happy motifs and bright colors. It's funny. I have no dearth of creative juices myself, but I look admiringly at mosaics, and all I can think is, I could never in a hundred years do that. Maybe that's why I'm such of fan of them, and of the artists who do create them.





Then there were the creative garden containers, with their lovely contents, put together by Ann Munson:





Now, this next is becoming something of an unlooked for tradition. Every year I go a-wander with my camera, grabbing photos of what catches my eye and heart, and every year I find something to love in the display of a man I know only as, "that guy who has the hotel down in Mexico." He hasn't been in his space since I first met him three shows ago!

That first year, I traded a piece of my art for a piece of his, a funky, funny head-of-a-man made from a plastic milk jug and plastic bottle caps. It has a solar yard light for a hat and stake, and it stands in my front flower bed, smiling, absorbing the sunlight by day, and smiling a glowing, incandescent welcome by evening.

This year, I really wanted to snag and bag this:

It's made from a metal fence post topper, and I think it's perfectly wonderful.

The other item from "the man from Mexico" that I yearned for was this:
If you click on the picture (or any of the others), you'll see the full-size, full-resolution version, and in that one you can read the "sign" over the birdhouse entry: "Gnome Tweet Home." Sweet.

Okay. That's it for now. The Artists' Challenge will be tomorrow.

CRACKED POTS AT EDGEFIELD, PT 1

Well, I realized as I was going through my photos that one blog on the Cracked Pots at Edgefield was simply not going to be a good idea, so this will probably be a three-parter. Even at that, any show that easily takes a full day to see well could do with even more.

I got roughly fifteen minutes of time, zipping around with my camera, shooting one-handed, and chatting briefly with each artist, to get what I did before hurrying back to my own space. The flyers, posters, and website all say the show begins at 1pm each of the two days. Those of us who've done the show before know that's almost laughable. People come as early as 9am, or even earlier, for all I know, and this year I had folks ask if I'd sell to them if they showed up the day before, while I was setting up! What I'm saying is, even when I arrive early, it's never early enough!

Oh. It occurs to me it might be good to explain Cracked Pots. Cracked Pots is a non-profit here in Portland that encourages recycling. They do that by speaking in the schools, showing kids that they can create art by using things that would otherwise go into landfills, and once a year they host a juried art sale at Edgefield McMennamins. All art must be at made from mostly recycled materials (I think they've set the percentage at 70%) and must be for the garden. This year there were at least ninety artists participating. One of the really cool things about it is the lack of booths and tents. They encourage artists to blend their art with the grounds, which are beautifully landscaped, and extensive, as much as possible. It's a wanderer's dream.

I love the ideas people come up with for using discards in the garden!




The artist wasn't around when I snapped the pictures above, so I don't have info on him/her. I've tried to credit people, but it isn't always possible, for which I do apologize.

This whimsical art, painted on old boards, was done by Jean Hybskmann, of Troutdale:

I am absolutely in love with the mosaics Parris Foley does!



And isn't this garden furniture by Donna Mauch and Debra Shaffer, of 2nd Site, delightful? I can't decide which I like best--the potting benches, or the arbor made from a baby's crib.




And I think I'll stop here. More to come later!

PS Click on any image to see it full-sized, and at full resolution.

THE TALL ONE

Well, she's finally finished, my very tall Coffee Pot Person. I'll be honest, which they say is always the best policy. I go back and forth between thinking she's really cool, and thinking she's just too elongated. The DH (that's Dear Husband), on the other hand, walked out onto the deck, where I had stood her, and did a lovely jaw drop and exclamation. "She is great", he said.

"Really? Do you mean that?"

"Of course, I mean it. Why wouldn't I mean it?"

"I was so afraid you'd think she was too big, or stupid, or something." The DH has not been a big fan of big Coffee Pot People. It was truly a surprise that he liked Connie. Oh. Right. Her name is Connie. Forgot to mention that.

"Well, she's really cool," DH reiterated.

I'd definitely welcome other opinions, so here she is, on a friend's doorstep:

A close-up "teaser" followed by a full-length shot:

And another, in front of the neighbor's front arbor:

My new favorite tool when I was making Connie turned out to be my little Dremel tool. One of the attachments was a one-inch disk that purported to be able to slice through metal, including steel. If you've never tried to cut through steel, let me alert you to the fact that steel is HARD. Drilling through it is a time-consuming pain. I've never ever attempted to slice the stuff.

So I took the little disk out, reading that little label, and thinking, Yeah. Well, we'll see. Wow. A label that actually tells the truth! That buzzing, hand-held, toy-like tool let me take this:





and do this:



because I was planning to do this:


It took a little time, for sure, but it did work, and once some of the spines were gone, the bolt cutters could help.

Well, I wanted to put more stuff in this entry, but it's nearly eight in the evening, and I'm hungry. DH and I went out to lunch, so neither of us wants an actual dinner, but the cookies are calling, "Aniiiitra....oh, Aniiiiiitraaa...." Must. Answer. Voices. Coming. From. Kitchen...