More Splatters

I get e-mails from Hot in Little Rock most everyday. And guess what yesterday's topic was? Splatters! Here's what they had to say about it:

"Are you jealous of those kids’ parties going on at the paint-your-own-pottery stores? Whenever we take our kids to a birthday party at one, it’s hard to leave without pulling up a chair and grabbing some greenware ourselves. Well…here’s your chance to make your dreams come true, and the dreams of all your friends!

Every year, The Centers for Youth & Families puts on “Splatters: Another Fine Mess” in October. This fun event, coupled with an always sold-out golf tournament, features lots of art and platters painted by fabulous local artists. Well this year, they’re starting early. Not only will they have their big party in October, but they’ve created a new event called “Splatters Platters.”

These mini-events are coordinated by anyone who wants to throw a party for The Centers. You can have the party at Firefly Studios or at your home. Just invite at least ten of your friends to paint a platter and donate the cost to The Centers. The pieces painted are you and your guests to keep.

So throw a wine party and paint wine coolers, or a coffee party and paint coffee mugs, or a Razorback party and paint some party plates for tailgating season! Whatever you want, Firefly will work with you to throw the best painting party ever – and it’s all for a great cause: helping the kids and families in Arkansas who need it the most."

I'll let you know all the particulars when I hear back from Tiffany and maybe we can put together our own mini event!

Craft for a cause

I received information in the mail about Splatters this week. Splatters: Another fine mess is the annual fund raiser for the Center for Youth and Families. Artists can submit their own piece of art, a platter painted in their own medium, or a platter painted at The Firefly Studio in Little Rock to benefit the Centers. Many moons ago, I painted a platter for them. Here's a picture of the unfired piece.

Splatters will be held October 12 from 6:30 - 9:00 at the Pleasant Valley Country Club. This year, a juried art process will be added in addition to the non-juried platters. 50 pieces will be accepted for display and sale through this process. The top 10 will receive honorable mention and those 10 artists will get a return of 50% of the auction price. To submit your piece, e-mail splatters2008@thestroudgroup.com no later than August 15, 2008. Images should be no larger than 8x10 and 72DPI. Artists will be notified the status of their piece no later than September 15, 2008.

The platters will not be juried but are very popular at the auction. Platters can be picked up at The Firefly beginning July 1, 2008. You can paint it there or take it home. September 1 is the deadline for turning in all Splatters Platters to the Centers Foundation office.

For more information, call Tiffany at (501) 666-9436 or e-mail twarriner@cfyf.org. The Firefly Studio is located at the Village in Pleasant Valley (I 430 and Rodney Parham Road). They are right next to the Dixie Cafe and in the same shopping center as Wild Oats Market (formerly Beans and Grains) and Chili's. According to About.com, the store number is 501-225-1403 and their hours are M-S from 10:00-6:00.

Living on…

I was reading on The Frontal Cortex blog about the limits of technology to capture the world around us and early fears that photographs and cinema would make art and artists obsolete. I found the quote Lehrer posted from one early cinema critic really interesting.

“…but with movement, action, familiar gesture and the words out of their mouths, then death will not longer be absolute, final.”

How comforting I find the images of my Dad, who will be gone 7 years this month. It is strange to me that I find comfort in the still images; frozen bits of memories of those dear to me, yet seeing movies starring actors who have died makes me feel sort of sad and empty. As if somehow seeing their familiar gestures and hearing the words from their mouths emphasizes that they are now lost to us.

Ghostly images

Lately I’ve been using a technique in my shadow boxes that incorporates stamped transparencies "painted" with Pearl Ex powders. I stamped images on transparency film with Staz-on ink, then colored them with Pearl Ex using my Stampin-up aqua painter filled with acrylic floor wax. I really like how these layer in the boxes and I’ve found them much easier to incorporate than glass slides. The only thing I haven’t had much success with is using embossing powder on transparencies as it warps and shrinks when I heat the powder. As it cools, the embossing powder wants to chip of the slick surface.


And here's a box that incorporates Tweedle Dee and Tweedle Dum with scrolls stamped then embossed with gold embossing powder on transparency film.

This is a fun technique to use on cards with windows. Here’s one I made. If you try this technique, I’d love to see your results.

Finished at last!

I finally found my staple gun and attached my mini art quilt to its frame. What do you think? I'm not entirely pleased with it but I'm ignoring my inner critic since I actually finished it.

I'm donating this piece to Big Brothers, Big Sisters of North Central Arkansas for their auction at the annual Karaoke for a Cause fund-raiser on July 24. I hope it finds a loving home and also helps further a good cause. For more information on this event, call 888-393-9027 or visit their Web site.

If you haven’t heard the good news about Denise’s new endeavor, hop over to her blog to read about it. I owe Denise a big thanks for pointing me in the right direction on Google Reader last week. It makes reading all the blogs I love much easier--especially since I seem to have developed an aversion to sitting at my computer after work hours.

Bits and pieces

Well, I'm hopelessly behind reading Ya Ya posts but I am nearly done with my April card challenge. With help from Anne, Denise, and Scarlett I think my idea for the card is funny now. Then again, my sense of humor is so warped we'll see if I'm the only one laughing. : ) This has been a challenging month, so my sense of humor is not in top form. I'm planning to get my card posted by Friday. (See? It's in writing. Now I have to do it.)

Speaking of getting inspiration from that trio of talented ladies, I had a great time at the Drunkin' Bunkin' party working on fabric collage. I'm still working on my piece, which is also my first attempt at beading. So far, my "row" of beads is, well, not in a row. Not sure how the finished piece will look but it has been a fun learning experience. I thank each of them for sharing their goodies, ideas, and inspiration!



About a week or so ago, I received a pretty card from Debbie and a purple bracelet that reads "Cure CF." I haven't sent her a thank you note but I thought it was really sweet for her to share. I feel happy to wear it as a way to remember and honor sweet Jennifer.

I finished another shadow box. Look Kimberly! I used the rest of my crackle paint to refinish the frame. Thanks for sharing and letting me experiment. Now I'm wondering what I can add to regular acrylic paint to make it crackle. I'll let you know if I discover the answer.

Stormy weather

My sister's car was pummeled by her Bradford pear tree in the storms last week but I have no other damage to report for my crew. She lives about a mile from the NLR airport, which was hit pretty hard. I hope everyone else faired well during the foul weather.