Silverfish

I'm ashamed to admit that I've discovered the dreaded silverfish in my bathrooms and kitchen. In reading some info on the net I've discovered that they sneak in via the spaces and cracks around the pipes. But how did they get into the building in the first place? An unanswered question. The non-insecticide way of dealing with them is to fill in every single crack even if it's the living room or bedroom. Waaaaah! My whole place is cracked up. Then the addition of salt and cloves. I shall have to make some kind of effort before the eggs hatch - 100 every 2 m0nths. Can you imagine. Right now my cat is stationed in front of the dishwasher - fish patrol. Clearly she saw one skittle under the huge space between the dishwasher and the floor. The builders botched up this area. They didn't even lay tile underneath the dishwasher up to the wall. I should sue.

They are almost impossible to kill once you start chasing them around the room. They are so unbelievably fast and stepping on them doesn't do the trick. You have to swish back and forth with your shoe in order to make contact for the kill. I shall have to examine every article I pick up to make sure I don't touch one of them. I'm bug phobic especially in this case. They are so ugly so I won't post a picture.

Will keep you posted.

Art works

Saturday was a lovely day for some of our art club members to get together to socialize while working on some of our projects. Carmi has discovered a wonderful rental space - an historic church (Zion Church) which has been converted into a cultural centre. The workspace has a cathedral ceiling, tons of space and wonderful lighting. As usual, it poured rain - thunder, lightning - the whole business. This has been going on for weeks to the point of being a big annoyance. After reapedly getting caught in a downpour and having to buy umbrellas to take me home, I am determined to carry one at all times. I now have 7 umbrellas carefully chosen for their colours. One must have an umbrella that coordinates with one's wardrobe.

As for me, I didn't accomplish much. Hard to concentrate with all that gabbing!

Here are the pictures of my works in progress.....

This is the front of a fabric box.

And this is the beading for a cuff bracelet.

Now, if I can just keep going until they are finished instead of putting them back in a box for 6 months.

Sid Dickens

I finally got my Sid Dickens plaques and they are gorgeous. I had no idea that they were so sculptural and that the plaques themselves were so heavy. Each tile is about an inch thick with a circle cut out of the back to accommodate some sort of hanging device. I have no idea if you're supposed to drill into the wall, screw in a plug and then screw a screw into that. EEK. Could you imagine if they fell off the wall. Maybe I'll go to Canadian Tire or Rona with a tile for their advice. Heaven help me if I have to drill. Some of my friends know about my fiasco with the dremel. Almost burned the house down.

Art Group Night

Sadly, last night was the final meeting until September. We had donuts as a goodbye treat. But I'm proud to say I held back in honour of my stupid diet. How come the urge for junk food never goes away. Our next assignment to be done over the summer is the alteration of a wooden wind chime. It looks like bamboo. I hate to decorate the wooden tubes lest the beautiful hollow sounds be lost. Well, I shall have to figure it out,

Meanwhile, here is my altered reading glasses.

Art club night (EEMUMA)

I can't believe the month has flown by and here I sit, waiting for some kind of inspiration for tonight's art club meeting. For me it was uninspiring. I'm still not finished and the final push to complete it will be like staying up all night studying for the final exam.

These glasses are pretty nifty. The arms move in all kinds of directions. The arms on my glasses are fixed and narrow (from the paint I used).

Did I mention that we have to display them on our faces? I don't know if I can get them on without breaking something. I'll post the finished project in the next few days.

Needle Felting

Back in September of last year I saw some photos on Cute Overload of needle felted sculptures of dogs and cats. Some of the photos included the live inspiration beside the smaller version. I thought they were fabulous and placed an order for a likeness of my first cat, Jespah. He's been gone for about 7 years now. I can't believe it. It still seems like only yesterday. The artist, Amelia, has an etsy shop and this is how I contacted her . http://ameliamakesart.typepad.com/photos/felted_dogs/index.html I think she's done about 500 animals. . I received my sculpture of Jespah last week and I'm so pleased. It would be impossible to make a photographic reproduction but his essence is captured so well. And I think it's a much healthier way of remembering him than the idea of visiting a taxidermist. That would be too neurotic even for me although I did consider it. I know people do it having seen on tv some owners with their stuffed dogs placed beside the sofa.

Here's my little guy.

Mother's Day

Mother's Day always used to pose a kind of dilemma when I was younger. Chosing an appropriate gift was impossible. Firstly, I was told that I had no money and why should I waste it on something not wanted. I always felt like a loser. Then I found the perfect gift that all of us could enjoy together - tickets to the latest broadway musical, Cirque de Soleil, dance troupe. But those days are now long gone as my parents age and become frail. I suppose there is always enjoyment in a huge bouquet of flowers. My mother admires them while my father takes about 350 shots of them which he then subjects to photoshop antics. I think I will have to pick up the flowers tomorrow to avoid ending up with nothing when Sunday comes along. I will hit the 4 flower shops at Ave and Dav - the best selection in the city. And, of course, I will drop a bundle to make up for the indecision of chosing which flowers to leave behind.