breakfast and a movie

just can’t do a blog post without a photo

finally Alice in Wonderland time is here

we almost went to the 12:01 showing last night/this morning … but decided we could wait until 11:30 this morning

not usually one to need to rush out and see movies so soon after they are released … but … I could hardly wait to go down the rabbit hole and it did not disappoint

Tim Burton … Johnny Depp = Brilliant!!!  all of the actors were so well cast !

this is one I would like to see again on the big screen … there is so much to enjoy and take in!

“There is a place. Like no place on Earth. A land full of wonder, mystery, and danger! Some say to survive it: You need to be as mad as a hatter.” ~The Mad Hatter, Alice in Wonderland 2010

finally … it’s a wrap

just put the finishing touches on my 2009 December Art Journal cover

I knew I wanted to use a Paper Whimsy girl to hold the star on a wire that I recently found … Gel Medium was a great help in gluing the cheesecloth, lace (thank you so much Michelle … this is the most I have used at one time!!) and bits of this and that to the gessoed cover

Sue I finally dipped into the box of delights you sent me for my birthday and was brave enough to cut one Austrian crystal button from that perfect vintage card of buttons

… the gold specked netting was the perfect ingredient as well … many thanks!!!

when I thought my cover was finished and had already taken a few photos … it came to me to add one golden wing … symbolic of how I felt a lot of the time this December …  flying with just one wing …

“What has time done to me? Changed my very being” ~a quote from the gorgeous Indian film “Jodhaa Akbar“

a totally stunning film we will watch again … maybe the second time without English Subtitles as to not be distracted from the cinematography and actors for even an instant

rainy day of wonder

how could we resist this:  “Climb the 333 steps to the dizzying heights of the bell ringing chamber in the great central tower of Washington National Cathedral, 300 feet above the ground.”

the photo above is from the National Cathedral newsletter … there were no blue skies yesterday … we had welcome rain for the first time in a long time … cozy and dry in the hidden corridors and staircases of the Cathedral

… we began our climb …

some of the stairs were stone and some were open metal … winding up, up, up in a rigorous ascent … getting hearts of every age pumping

stepping out onto the ledge … looking down from the bell tower…

we were reminded of the differences between gargoyles and grotesques …

… gargoyles are spouts for rain water, like this one (double click for a close up)  and grotesques (like the famous Darth Vader at the cathedral) let the water run off their backs and heads

bell ringers demonstrated their art … one lady will celebrate her 40th year of bell ringing … she said just how much fun it is (with lots to learn over the years)

… so great to watch and SO beautiful to hear from inside (no picture of the six bell ringers I was so caught up in the moment) … not too loud like you might imagine being in the tower …

joyous happy bells that made me misty eyed … wondering if there was such a thing as ‘sad’ bells … well of course there are … a leather piece is strapped to half of the clapper and when the bell goes from ding to dong … the dong is muffled … turns out this is done every new year’s eve to ring out the old year …. then joyous bells peal to ring in the new …

fascinating to chat with one of the ringers describing how especially wonderful the bells sound on a cold crisp night … guess where we want to be for New Year’s Eve

the views we enjoyed from inside the Cathedral were breathtaking as well

a glimpse of the space window … from a high balcony …  containing a piece of lunar rock presented to the Cathedral by the Apollo XI astronauts

we stood underneath one of the two huge and glorious rose windows (10,500 pieces of stained glass make up the rose window)

from balconies and vantage points only open on tours

we hope to return another time for the stained glass and gargoyle tours … so much to learn and take in …

the stone carvers

and metalworkers are another story all onto themselves

not forgetting an example of 1,500 separate pieces of needlepoint … more one of a kind kneeling cushions than you can shake a stick at …

there are 150+ people interred in the Cathedral, including Woodrow Wilson and Helen Keller

this dusty homage to the stone carvers (all passed on now) was tucked away in the bell tower … each year from 1960 to 2000 they would share a bottle and sign it … the collection has its place behind the scenes now

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while we were in town we had a bite to eat

and then saw the new Jane Campion movie ... Bright Star … a visually stunning and beautifully acted period piece … sweet and tragic telling of John Keats young life

“A thing of beauty is a joy forever: its loveliness increases; it will never pass into nothingness.” ~John Keats, 1795-1821

Speak to me of the Sea

Here a 3″ x 5″ skinny I created for the Theme Thursday Beach/Nautical challenge this week.

Inspired by mollusks (that is such a fun word to say) and a recent trip to the gulf, I used parts of a beautiful free download collage sheet from Gaby.    Encore Metallic inks, Lumiere paints and chalk all went into this piece.  The stamps I used are from Stampers Anonymous and Art Impressions, they seemed to melt into the paper.  The lady is from my postcard collection.  The green frill is from a sushi takeout platter.  I notice one of our local grocery stores is cutting back and no longer adding the green plastic “seaweed”.  Don’t they know that’s part of the attraction of even eating sushi!!!

As Benjamin Button said,

“I was thinking how nothing lasts, and what a shame that is. “

Tip: When I use paints, especially something like Lumiere, instead of putting my brush in water to clean it right away, I  stroke the brush back and forth onto book text or cardstock,  pressing it with my fingers at the end; then it’s ready to be washed.  You’d be surprised how much paint comes out of the brush.  The turquoise back drop paper for my skinny is from a brush cleaned just that way.

believe

I was so moved by this Bill Griese song and video…it’s worth the time to pause…matters not your affiliation…Love one another and believe

Memoirs of a Geisha

…..grab the popcorn and soft drinks, it’s time for lights, camera and action as Ilonka has chosen ‘Movies’ for the Sunday Postcard Art theme this week.

Memoirs of a Geisha, by Arthur Golden, was one of my favorite books.  It was also made into a fantastic and beautiful movie back in 2005.

I played with the image by printing it out in color and in blue tones.  I did not have Japanese text, at least I think what I added must be Chinese, apologies for that.  I also added a few vintage flower blossoms to my postcard (4 x 6″).

even at our best……

…..it can be easy to forget……..here’s a sweet reminder for every day life, be sure and stay with it until the end.  Thank you Karen Mowrey, you continue to bee awesome and I DO beelieve you’ve done it again with your bee spotting!