Process

proc·ess

/ˈprɒsɛs; especially British ˈproʊsɛs/ Show Spelled [pros-es; especially British proh-ses] Show IPA noun, plural proc·ess·es /ˈprɒsɛsɪz, ‐əsɪz, ‐əˌsiz or, esp. British, ˈproʊsɛs‐, ˈproʊsə‐/ Show Spelled [pros-es-iz, ‐uh-siz, ‐uh-seez or, esp. British, proh-ses‐, proh-suh‐] Show IPA , verb, adjective

noun

1.  a systematic series of actions directed to some end:

I tend to delve (as an artist) and look beneath.  I must scrape away at what is there, to find what's underneath....(in my view) the deeper truth.

I search for meaning in what I do....it's not just the act of painting - it's Why this?  Why now? And what is the message am I trying to convey?

 

This mirrors my (day job)  as a headhunter as well.  I interview most of my days away, asking question after question.  When I hit an area that needs more digging......I dig deeper. 

I usually do get to the bottom of things.

That's my "process".  

I'm not the slip-on-the-surface kind of girl. 

I do know that annoys some people and I am okay with that. 

It takes all kinds, right? 

 

 

These are  "grounding rods." 



That's what I call them.

I've been working on my "process" with this medium about 15 months now. 

Everything in the piece is recycled. 

I've taken clothing that has outlived their

usefulness and cut or torn into strips and wrapped them around a tube.   

As with any artist in perfecting a process, I've tried many different

techniques. 

 

This piece sold at the show within the first hour of the show. 

It was one of the first groupings I put together.

After receiving such a positive response,

I took the idea and process back into my studio and worked on it.

 

If you haven't noticed,

it's circles

(again).

The tubes are really just elongated circles and

I spend my time winding

around

and

around

connecting one end to the other.

Unifying.

 

This shot is the show I was in.....the woman in the photo is reading this:

 

“The Rag Trade” is a journey;

a process of unraveling, disassembling and redefining textiles into an ‘upcycled’ afterlife.

It is a global piece to which nature - plants, animals, and minerals - have contributed their beauty.

A comprehensive collaboration of countries and people have participated in the spinning, weaving, cutting, winding, and spooling of these fabrics, producing a creation as complex as the world around us.

 

This was my artist statement. 

 

The connection of one to all.

 

This has led me to believe that

my

process

is not only

bringing

me

full

circle

but it's

bringing

everyone

else along too.

 

Inspiration

I'm inspired!  I'm inspired by music, weather, good movies, good wine, playing with paint and clay and cooking.

I recently watched Eat, Pray, Love.......again. 

I love this movie. 

It combines so many of my favorites:

travel

spirituality

good food

love.

Plus the soundtrack is amazing.  Neil Young - Harvest Moon - classic!

 

It's Sunday morning and since cooking is my religion ;) I am going to cook several meals to be eaten during the week. 

I arose and was at the grocery store by 7:22 a.m.  The market I go to is an International market and by midday on Sunday it's packed.  So packed that last week I couldn't find a parking spot and had to leave.  I love this market because I can get my usual great fresh produce, but I can also get foods I would not find in my regular corner market. 

Plus.....English is hardly spoken (you hear everything else but!). 

When I arrived, the produce guys were still arranging fruits and veggies. 

 

The meat guys were packaging "fresh" for the day and the fish guys hadn't even begun. 

I needed several things:

• fresh ricotta cheese
• really good olive oil
• small vine ripened tomatos
• good, strong German coffee
• half and half

I took my time and snapped some pics along the way.  It was such an 'artsy' way to do my very regular grocery run. 

 

The first thing I did when I got back home was unpack my bag. 

Let's talk about that. 

I made some of these last year to sell at a Holiday Boutique. 

This bag is covered with cut up food boxes - there are some Uno game cards too. 

The bag was then covered with a laminate type film and wah-lah!  Recyled, sturdy and quite a little attention grabber. 

I have so many cashiers ask me - "where did you get that?"

There, I managed to fit in the "recycle"

part into the blog. 

The second thing I did was make a really good, strong cup of coffee then start to work.

First on the list is the Manicotti. 

 

 

I didn't go off of any one else's specific recipe.....it's that cooking by feeling thing I do. 

Here's my recipe (it turned out excellent). 

This is for 6 filled Manicotti

Serves 2 people

 

1/2 cup fresh Ricotta cheese

1 clove garlic - minced

3 small "orange" tomatoes

2 medium sized Campari tomatoes

3 Portobella mushrooms

6 big, fresh basil leaves

1/8 tsp. dried rosemary

1/4 cup fresh mozzarella cheese

1/8 cup fresh Parmesan

1/4 tsp. nutmeg

6 Manicotti shells (uncooked)

Salt and Pepper to taste

16 oz. tomato sauce - (I used a bottled sauce for this)

 

Cut the tomatoes, mushrooms and basil and mix in with the ricotta cheese, stirring everything together with a spoon. 

Add the cheeses and seasonings (salt, pepper and nutmeg).

 

 

Line a baking dish with about 8 oz. of your sauce. 

Take a Ziploc or sandwich bag and fill it with the cheese filling.  Snip off a small corner and squeeze the mixture into the uncooked Manicotti shells and place in the sauce. 

This fills approximately 6 shells and fits perfectly in a small glass baking  dish 9x11

Pour the rest of the sauce on top and add some mozzarella cheese.

 

Either cover with tin foil and refrigerate until meal time or preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Bake for about 45 - 50 minutes. 

Keep covered the first 30 minutes.

Serve hot. 



The secret is the nutmeg.  When you add nutmeg to a dish with ricotta, it's automatically "heaven". 

 I learned this from an Italian chef years ago. 

Recycling.....we do it more than we think!

I was pondering the whole recycling thing I do.  Of course, I toss in the green bucket just like everyone else, but I started thinking out-of-the-box a bit......where else do we recycle (on an unconscious level?)...well for one, think about remodeling.  Instead of "dumping" your house, what do you do?  You fix it!  Re-paint, re-carpet, re-plumb, re-roof.......re-whatever you can. 

I've been through a couple of remodels......goodness!  That will try your patience on a whole other level. 

 

Where else?  Zoey gets 3 or 4 new toys a day....they are called water bottles!  Here's a look inside her basket of toys.  Note:  the basket was purchased at a garage sale for 50 cents.  Good thing I didn't buy it new because she promptly chewed the sides of it!

Yes, that's right.....water bottles and a fabric softener bottle (almost chewed to death).  Of course, I washed it out thoroughly.  She seems to love that big bottle and it's soothing her need to chew. 

 

Do you know what this is? 

It's the local McDonalds in Lake Forest, Illinois.  Hard to believe, huh? 

I love that the city preserved this building and that McDonald's moved in.  When my children were little we called this the fancy or rich McDonalds.  They have a fireplace inside and play classical music!  Such a proper way to eat McNuggets. :)

 

Here's one.....Zoey on my estate sale find!  I love, love, love this chair.  It's velvet and such a pretty color! 

 

Technically, Zoey is recycled too!

These are going to Half Price Books - I love recycling there!  It's nice to find a new book or two or grab the cash and go!

 

 

Here's some random photography- it's garbage, but could well be art in some circles!

Don't forget to recycle!!!! 

Vintage.........

All of this time, I thought Betty Crocker was real. Didn’t you? She’s not – she’s a figment of our imagination! If you “google” her image you will get kind of a reverse (in the 50’s/right - she looks so much older than in the 80’s -left yet I don’t think she’s actually aged!). It also looks like the 80's BC decided to make her "brown eyes blue" (if you know what I mean ;).

She’s a conglomerate – a result of a corporate merger. In 1930, General Mills – which is really a consolidation of 24+ companies started publishing promotional pamphlets by Betty Crocker. “Betty” was chosen because it was a popular name at the time. She was probably one of the first “super models” of her day if you think about it. Her image wasn’t real, she looked “hot” (lots of stove time) and had a line of products to boot!!

The best part is that she was created by a woman (no offense if you are a guy…). Marjorie Husted was a home economist (housewife) and businesswoman (whodathunk?). Go Marjorie with your 1950’s self!

The whole Betty Crocker thing is prompted because I was on another little trip to Goodwill and I ran across this handy little cookbook for 89 cents. I thumbed through it and got really inspired in a “vintage-y” kind of way.

It’s a theme that started earlier in the week when my 15 year old-aka-Monica L. needed to make a “baby” book and we had to go through her memory boxes. I found this! Circa 1959+ish. “When pulled, the Bee's wings twirl, his antenna bounce, and he makes a realistic "Buzz-Buzz" sound. In 1956 the Bee was given a crown and introduced as the #314 Queen Buzzy Bee. The #444 Queen Bee came along in 1959 in a new color. After Easter 1962, the Bee was changed and given new colors again, but the new colors would be used for a whopping 23 years!

Notice, the bee was male until 1956, then he/she was given a crown and called “Queen” Buzzy Bee. That’s an interesting piece of factual info in itself! I want details! ;)

So….Vintage…..what is our obsession? I personally love to go to antique stores and scour the shelves for tiny pieces of my past. One of my favorites are these old aluminum glasses. We used these in the South for tea. It was the perfect solution to a hot Summer day – sweet tea and ice.

If you want a set – Vanessa on etsy can help you out! http://www.etsy.com/listing/76776807/hot-summer-colors-anodized-aluminum

Today I worked with my “vintage” pink ornaments with “vintage” silk flowers. I love working with the flowers because they are hand cut. Some were marked from Germany with a tiny, old, yellowed sliver of paper. The colors are different from what you see today at your local silk flower shop…..I think the best way to describe it is less obvious in your face color….they are subtle, delicate and mellowed.

Here is one of the ornaments. I will be making a collection to sell at the Holiday Bazaar and on etsy. The hanger is handmade in 18 gauge metal with a crystal bead.

Now, let’s check out a BC recipe for dinner!