Paws for Thought

Cathy, a very dear friend of mine and fellow painter who works in the television / film industry as a scenic artist, sent me this lovely photo of her hand. A testament to what painting can do to one by the  end of the day.

Living in a Cave

There is a site in Saumur, France where Troglodytes, which means cave dwellers, once lived. These abandoned lodgings are now a museum where visitors can tour the underground space. From the time of The Middle Ages onwards, caves in this region were formed entirely by human hands chipped out of the limestone with hammers, picks and chisels.
The last inhabitants moved out of this extended residence which included a workshop and henhouse in the 1970's. By the time they left, they had heat, hot water and electricity. As amazing as their construction is, as well as the charming hobbit house like appeal they hold, I can't imagine living in a hole in the wall like this.

You better get real close to that fire at night, I have a feeling it gets pretty cold.

Barking Mad for Color

On the subject of trees, I've just come across the Photography of Cedric Pollet who has traveled the world searching out and photographing trees. The colors and textures are inspirational.

The link to his book on Amazon is here:

http://www.amazon.com/Bark-Intimate-Look-Worlds-Trees/dp/0711231370/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1391794454&sr=8-1&keywords=cedric+Pollet

and a story with amazing examples of his work was run by The British Newspaper The Telegraph

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/gardening/gardeningpicturegalleries/8186236/The-beauty-of-tree-bark-captured-on-camera-by-Cedric-Pollet.html?image=3

Pleaching to the Eye

I would love to create a walkway made of trees on our property. The formal term is pleaching; the art of   weaving or interlacing branches to create a structure such as an arbor or tunnel. This example I found in  hiking in The North York Moors National Park, England.

Home is Where the Art is

Clients who are looking for art for their homes have commissioned me to paint murals and decorative motifs on every imaginable surface flat and curved, ceilings, walls, floors even the risers on stair treads.

For works they can take away with them when they move, I design images for stretched canvases. These are unique works that I paint with a stylus on a tablet and have the image printed on canvas.
One of the many benefits of this process is the possibility of creating suites with variations in color themes as I've done here;

                   

The original picture of "Clarisse" was taken with an iPhone

Using the base design from the abstract art made on those spinning wheels that you pour paint onto,  called "Spin Art". Popular in The States when I was a kid but I haven't seen it here in years. This one I made at Le Jardin d'acclimatation in Paris that I visited with my family a few months ago. The grounds are lovely and it's a great way to spend the days with kids in Paris. Here's the link: http://www.jardindacclimatation.fr

Make Your Mark

A lovely client of mine, Carol, for whom I've done color consultation for throughout her many renovation projects as well as site specific artwork for her home; approached me to create a stamp for creating personalized cards and gift tags. This was to be a gift for her friend, Jayne. I also happen to know Jayne really well too. Funny enough, she recommended me to Carol as a color consultant. The image was to be a portrait of Jayne's dog Stella.

She sent me a photo of Stella;

I did a drawing that could be translated into a one color rubber stamp:

Carol then sent the image off to a maker on Etsy. This lady has a shop where she sells her handmade rubber stamps either from designs that you send her or her own.

This is the link to her shop A Hue of Duck Egg Blue

https://www.etsy.com/shop/ahueofduckeggblue?ref=shop_sugg

This is how the stamp looks on card:

Five Things to Check Before You Write the Check

You've checked your referrals, gotten at least three different quotes for the job, agreed to a price with the specifics of exactly what is going to be done in writing. They've come in and done the job. Now, these are the things that you do before you hand over the money. 

1. Look High and Low

Check the work from all angles you don't normally see when you are walking through. Whether it's a paint job, installation of cabinets or new deck, if one day you're bending down sweeping something up and you notice something that's "off" or not finished, it may be difficult to get the person who has  done the work to come back.

2. Work It

If it opens and closes, open and close it. Later, after you've paid up if you find something that sticks, jams, drags instead of glides it may be too late.

3. Use It

If it's a toilet that's been repaired, flush it, if it's an appliance run it for a cycle. If it's a cooktop turn on all the burners on and off.

I once had a client that had a new professional grade extractor installed in their kitchen. The installer turned it on to show it worked, and it did, he left. Later, when the lady turned off the extractor, one off the grills came crashing down onto the cooktop, denting it. Reading over the manual; it became apparent that there was a brace that was installed in back of instead of in front of the grills, an easy fix, but silly mistake by the installer.

4. Promises, Promises

Have they done everything they said they would? Once during a remodeling project I was doing,  a company was supposed to remove all the old insulation in an attic that had been  infested with rats and disinfect the area, preparing it for the new insulation. When they were done, I said, "great, I'll have a look". The technician who had carried out the work looked a little shocked, which set off alarm bells in my head. When I got up into the attic and looked around with my flashlight and saw that only 70% of the insulation was removed. His excuse was that he disinfected what was still there it and it was "fine". My argument was that I could still see rat feces, it was old insulation and my quote (in writing) was for the removal of the insulation. All of it. He then complied, taking out the insulation that was left and disinfecting the area it had been in .

5. Finishing the Job. 

Are all the edges, seals, caulking and trim sound, even, clean and tight? If it's something like a repair to a leaky roof; get a hose out and try it out. You really don't want to find out something is wrong during the next thunderstorm.