100 Days!!

I can't believe the #100dayproject has finally come to an end and that I managed to blog every...single ...darned day for the past 100 days.  Phew!  It was so easy to do some days and so challenging on others. Believe me when I tell you, I wanted to just say "screw it!" several times.  However, I persevered and now it is done.

Don't worry, I intend to keep blogging. Just not every day.

Tonight, I'm off to the Art Gallery of Ontario to see their exhibit of Georgia O'Keeffe paintings.  Here is a photo of a photo of her I took when I visited the Georgia O'Keeffe museum in Sante Fe last year (apologies to the original photographer, whose name I did not record).  I didn't know much about her or her art before that visit and quite enjoyed seeing the photographs, paintings and personal items on display there.

I am looking forward to seeing what is included in the AGO exhibit.  No doubt I'll have something to blog about once I have! ;)

100/100!!! - #100dayproject

Trip Report - Day 6 - Headed Home

We have come to the end of my trip reports of the whirlwind trip to the West Coast my mom and I took in early June. I had a great time but I wish we had had more time along the route.  We seemed to be on the go all the time and there were a lot of places along the way I would have liked to have more time to explore, including the city of San Francisco and especially that Oregon Coast with those amazing looking beaches!  Oh well, I guess I'll just have to go back and do it again at a more leisurely pace!

At the Seattle airport, Mom and I took turns posing with this mural.  Just for fun! :)

Day 99/100 - #100dayproject

Trip Report - Day 5 - Another Seattle Game

Our second game at Safeco Field, on Saturday June 10th, was just as much fun as the night before. Once again, the crowd was loud and excited and predominantly Blue Jays' fans! Apparently Canadians come from several of the western provinces when the Jays are playing in Seattle.  Spotted this guy wearing flag pants (pretty sure those are pyjama bottoms, am I right?!)

This chandelier made out of mini baseball bats is hanging just inside one of the entrances to the stadium.

Our seats for this game were directly behind home plate, in the last couple of rows near the top. Great views of Russell Martin doing what he does as catcher.

Here's a view of the field as dusk was falling.

To get an idea of our experience at the game, I thought I'd share this blog post written by Erin Davis, who co-hosted a morning radio show in Toronto for many years.  It turns out she was at the same game as we were!

We didn't see Erin but we did spot Hazel Mae, a Canadian sportscaster for Sportsnet, who was filming an on air spot just before the game.

These ladies near us had a great time celebrating the bride-to-be's upcoming nuptials.

Afterwords, we saw this sign on a bus as we were walking to us.  Since the Jays had just won the game, we thought it was the perfect sign but the bus driver just told us to "move along"! ;)

Day 98/100 - #100dayproject

Sunday Art

I made this today using collage and one of Nathalie Kalbach's cling stamps. The name of the stamp is "Main Station" - you can buy it separately or as part of her "Stroll Through the Hood" stamp sets.  While I know it is a sketch of a building in Jersey City, NJ, it reminds me very much of buildings in Paris which is why I coloured it in gold tones (using watercolour on top of a dried gesso background, I just love the effect!).

I was making this to use as a card but I like how it turned out so much, I just might have to keep it! ;)

Day 97/100 - #100dayproject

Experimenting with Distress Oxide

I bought myself five colours of the new Ranger/Tim Holtz Distress Oxide inks about a month ago but didn't get around to trying them out until today.  I watched a video posted by Diana Trout last night (you can find it here) and ended up dreaming about the inks overnight. I think I even woke myself up as I was telling one of my cats she could try them too! :)

Over breakfast this morning, I watched this video by Jennifer McGuire and then got busy playing with the inks myself.

The three samples in the picture above are the ones I like best of what I made today.  I really love how the inks blend, they are very creamy and smooth and the colour is very rich on the page.  Not everything I made today turned out to be a masterpiece.  Perhaps because of the limited colour palette I have so far (Worn Lipstick, Broken China, Fossilized Amber, Vintage Photo and Walnut Stain).  I found myself wishing I had other colours to introduce to the pieces I made today to make them "pop" a little more with the two browns I had.  But that's okay, I'll add to my collection in time.  For now, I'm looking forward to playing more with these inks!

Day 96/100 - #100dayproject

Trip Report - Day 5 - Morning Tour of Seattle

On Saturday morning of June 10th, we had a mini tour of Seattle.  We saw the Space Needle from across the water.

Had a peek at the dock area where container ships loaded and unloaded their cargo.

Saw the ferries coming and going to the various nearby islands.

We drove past a giant ferris wheel but didn't get to ride it. :(

We got off the bus and had about an hour to explore the Pike Place Market.

Since I don't really care for fresh fish and couldn't take most of the items home in my suitcase, I walked about and took photos instead.

The live peonies were so beautiful!

Now this is the kind of fish I do enjoy!

Even the washroom area was photo-worthy!

After seeing this symbol on the corner of a building near the market, we got back on the bus and headed to see the Space Needle in person.

Mom and I took a selfie with the local icon behind us.

After a delicious lunch in a nearby sports bar and a quick walk around the area, we headed back to the hotel, where we had about an hour of free time before it was time to head back to the ball park for our last game of the trip.  

Day 95/100 - #100dayproject

Sorting Stamps

Last weekend, my sister gifted me with several bags of postage stamps she had won in an online auction (thanks, Janine!!!).  

Once all the bags were emptied into one container, it added up to be a shoe box full!

I have spent a couple of hours sorting through them while watching TV this week.  By far, the greatest number of them are from Germany and I would say Canada and Portugal are tied for second and third place.  There are also a handful of stamps from the U.S, England and France and one or two from various other countries around the world.

There are several Canadian stamps I have never even seen before, most of them dating from the late 1980's (I know this because I looked up Canadian postage rates and found this great source. I can still remember the outcry in late 1981 when the cost of a stamp almost doubled from 17 cents to 30 cents!!)  My favourite so far is this postage stamp of Toronto. Unfortunately the postmark is masking most of the stamp but you can still tell it is a view of the downtown skyline and a little bit of the lakefront.  The 43 cent denomination dates it between 1993 and 1995.

Not sure what I'll do with all these stamps once I get them sorted.  Each one is a small work of art and now I have dozens of certain ones and only one or two of others.  Some will definitely make it into my art journals.  Stay tuned!

Day 94/100 - #100dayproject