still existing

i'm still here. school and death interrupt everything.

what's strange is when i graduated high school I'd experienced a grand total of 2 deaths; a grandfather, and my best friends father (which was terrible, he had als). Since high school, however, i've experienced a grand total of 7. 3 years and 5 deaths. When will it end? ... and not older people these last three years - well one of them, but the rest were people I grew up with. People my age. And the five I'm counting are only the ones I knew personally, and not all those on the peripheries of my life (which I don't even want to count all those..)

fuck

Lee
Julia

Major:
Bear Attacks
Minor:
Surviving the Apocalypse

Paper Cut Out ATCS

The tomatoes I made just for me, but the birds were inchies and then I thought to make them an ATC, and they will very very soon be mailed to my private atc swap partner, "cittylou"! Along with another ATC (or 2 ;)

I made both these from cutting shapes out of papers -- scrapbooking papers for the tomatoes and handmade papers, glued onto cardstock to back it. Then the birds are made from cardstocks and handmade papers for the birds and clouds. I used modge podge to glue everything down -- simply because it was easier. I'm not always a fan of it since it can leave brushstrokes and even the matt kind can be glossy. But it is so easy to use when collage-ing like this.

Caution....

After these zentangle images is an image of my OBSCENE ATC swap. so caution. it is "obscene" with a slight amount of cartoon-like nudity.

The rest of my zentangles, I mailed a while ago.



The group i mailed to partner #2. (image of partner #1's below is earlier entry.)



I also started a second series. These were just for fun with no partner in mind. If you'd be interested in swapping for them, leave a comment or message me at swapbot -- chimpieartist.



This image below is based on a 1964 black humor award winning series of illustrations, les belles manieres, by testu. i changed it a bit, added color, made it into my "obscene atc" which i'm mailing today. it's suppose to be funny. but it is also obscene, possibly lewd even... so caution.



This is the atc I am mailing to my partner, the 2nd one I am keeping in my own collection.


The next one is slightly more obscene.

artwork

thought I'd post some images of actual art pieces I've made (rather than swap, atcs etc) (not that atc's aren't art pieces, because they are but, well, you know what I mean).



This image i made when I was 18 for a client. Acrylic paint, 18x24"


The rest of the images are from a class I took at MICA freshman year (2 years ago)

Oil paints, 18x24"


Linoleum print, approx. 14"x8"


solar plate print, approx. 14"x8"

Zentangles

These are waiting for a partner.

"obscene" atc swap

The following image is for "obscene atc swap" It uses curse words and images that may not be appropriate or to your taste. Be warned.


This swap for "obscene" atc's is a challenge. Which is exactly why I signed up for it. I thought, how do i make an atc that is obscene, while still being a small piece of art and not be offensive or crude.... Well, I made my first one. I used Georgia O'Keefe as inspiration, drawing a flower that looks very yonic and coloring it very pink and red, and then just to go the extra obscene mile, I wrote small curse words in the background. I actually couldn't think of very many different ones. I think there's about 4, maybe 5, and they're all short words.





I drew with India ink pens, and then colored using Neocolor watersoluble wax pastels (or crayons). I did use water to blend them, but went over them again to make them darker. I scanned the images using my printer, so they look a little different. Scanners catch all the details the eye normally doesn't see.

I'm not sure I'll post the image of the 2nd atc I made. For it I'm using 1960's dark humor erotic illustrations for inspiration, by Tetsu. I found them in Taschen's Erotica book series.

I <3 pockets

Two inchies that go into 2 pockets on this ATC. I sent it to Annet. I love the idea of pockets on an ATC. It was one of those: woke up at midnight in a sweat searching desparately for a pen to write down this idea of POCKETS! Now I'm going pocket crazy, making all kinds of pocket-ATCs.

I hope it goes without saying, but I thought the other day that I probably should still say it.
All images are copyright 2009 Julia Lee.

I'm happy to share patterns and ideas. The whole point of my blog is to share ideas and share my artwork. I want my work to be seen ( but not stolen ).

The Monkey ATC I sent to Annet via Swapbot! I had so much fun making this ATC. I'm making a 2nd one for myself now!

I used felt pieces and hand stitched them on top of a piece of batik fabric. The batik was green with little marks on it that sort of gave it a leafy look. The monkey was a pattern out of FUN STUFF, an Aranzi Aronzo book (I think that's their name... I'd have to check tho). It was a pattern to go on a change purse or be a keychain. But I thought, what a great little ATC that could make! So I took their monkey pattern, and then found a background fabric, and then designed what I wanted it to look like. I cut out the leaves and little branches out of felt, using my own patterns. I kept tweaking it trying to make it perfect. And I'm very happy with the result. I'm happy to share the pattern too.

Sneak peak

Sneak peak at my fabric atc's I sent to Annet!
This is an inchie... I won't explain tho why Annet's getting an inchie in an ATC swap! But it wasn't just an "extra"! :)

Fabric

My fabrics that will be my Circus ATCs! I loooooove the fabric. It's the whole inspiration! I'm using beads, really small ones to give it detail and sparkle. Make it kinda like when you think of costumes being sparkly. The lionmaster will be sparkly red beads and gold ones. And then a few gold and yellow beads in the lions to make them stand out. And then a small amount of stitching to top it all off! It won't take as long as it sounds... then again, I am a perfectionist... I tend to take longer than I plan on taking. That's why I've stopped signing up for more than 3 or 4 swaps at a time. I tried to do 7, and I ended up mailing a couple a few days late, because I get so wrapped up in making it perfect and wanting to be proud of it.

Zentangles

SWAPS!

So busy with swaps!!!

Handmade card, using fabric, and then using my sewing machine stitched on top! Sent this to Annet, with a couple of ATCs I'm very proud of (finally!). I made so many different ones, because I wanted to be proud, like REALLY proud of them. I ended up sending them a little late. Not just because of my perfectionist-y ways but also I had them done and in the envelope when my kitten knocked over a glass of milk right on top of it, soaked it.... and they're fabric (i'll post pictures, I want to wait a little bit, til she gets them), so they had to dry and one of them had...ugh well, it was a mess. and the ink smudged icky like on the back...

Now I'm working on 2 circus atcs. and just finished my zentangle inchies, I'll post pictures as soon as I load them.
just wanted my blog to know I hadn't forgotten about it.

Swaps

Two swaps ready to go! The pear is for a "made with markers" atc swap. I started about 3 different ones and this is the only one I've finished.  So its the one they get by default! I'm putting it in the mail today. The postcard/ quotecard is for a postcard swap with a quote on it somewhere. I like to make my own postcards so I used prismacolor markers to make all three, and then found 'art' quotes and chose 3 different ones to use.  love 'em. I'm quite happy with how the quotecards turned out. the pear was a learning experience, but overall i'm happy with it... mostly... 

I've been so busy lately. these swaps are really startin to sneak up on me. I got another one I have to mail today too, photo-exchange thing. I gotta pick my pictures up at walgreens and drop 'em in an envelope. And then devote myself entirely to 2fabric atcs I've been working off and on for 2 weeks now. My partner sent me 2 beaaaaautiful atcs, I'll have to load pics. I want to make what I send her totalllly beautiful. 

And i'm working on my first matchbox. doing a blue and green theme. It's an Inchie Kit. So its got lots of little beads and buttons, and stamped images inside, with some inchie blanks.

I got tix to see SPRING AWAKENING! So excited. I love love love spring awakening. and it's coming to louisville, and since it's closed on broadway, I feel very strongly about seeing it one last time, while I can. And i'm going wiht my parents and stuey! My mom gave me the tix for my birthday. I couldn't believe she got an extra ticket for stu (she hates him) (no reason for hating him... she just hates that he wants to be wiht her daughter... she might like him if he had money or something. i dont' think she'd like any guy tho. I told her once that he loves me. what more could you ask for? and she said she knew that he loves me. but that he loves me more than i love him. .. i said i know.)  

Handmade quotecards

handmade postcards -- quote cards. for swap-bot swap

Linoleum block print of  walrus (what's the plural for walrus?). 12" x 8"

 A moleskin swap I did (not on swapbot). We took 3 moleskin notebooks, and decorated them. This one i covered the cover and collaged different papers and things. This is it when i mailed it, I wrapped the wide ribbon around it to keep it shut while in the envelope, and tied it with the yarn. I took a long time making this. I was really proud of it, it was beautiful, lots of detail. I'm looking for a pic of what it looked like before I wrapped it with the ribbon to mail.

Purple Inchies

I've been working on these alllll day. seriously like 8 hours of purple inchie making!

Handmade card

 Card I made a whle ago, and recently found. I love making these tag cards. So many options... They can be quirky or beautiful and dainty or loud.... :)

The line says, "Now I know what love is."

Used handmade papers, rubon words, yarns, watercolors, netting, acrylic medium, and modge podge.

Just for a better idea of what they looked like. i dyed the paper, using bubble solution that I had put food coloring in -- that made the pink bubbles. I used colored pencils to highlight and define the patterns the solution made. I collaged the striped paper, then put a silvery, thin dot-ed paper in places, but its hard to see in this image. and Then the shapes I cut out from another scrapbook paper I got at a hobby store. I used YES! paste to glue all the papers down. I used a textured paper, meant for like watercolors, because it absorbed the pattern of the bubble solution well.

:) I had fun with them. I made a couple extra, open to private swaps.

Pink and Orange ATCS

The 3 atc's I mailed today for a Pink & Orange ATC +something extra swap. I mailed 'em with some pretty ribbons and buttons and yarn. all light and dark pinks that matched the cards and light oranges. Very cute. I mailed them in a handmade card I forgot I had made years ago. I made these packs of 5 blank cards and was  selling them for awhile, and I found where I had put them.

The card I made by taking a giant sheet of paper, like 2x3 feet and scribbling in oil pastels, and then watercoloring over everything. Then i cut the sheet into rectangles that fit on white cards I bought at a hobby store. Just rubber cemented them on there, real simple, and works for any type of occasion, but looks nice and pretty and is different from the norm.

Purple inchie #1 out of 8. Hard to see... I gotta get better at taking pictures. It's made from ribbon and fabric. Tiny beads and one bigger glass bead there in the middle. Tiny blanket stitch around edges.

Kinda fuzzy picture of a Lizard. He is part of my Battalion of Lizards. He's made of leopard print felt, about 2 1/2" -3 " tall. very small. TINY blanket stitches all around him; arms, head, tail. He does have a mouth there too, sort of smiling. Big button eyes (double buttoned: yellow button and black button on top).

I will get better at taking pictures!! The atc's that are flat I just scan. But I'll get better at taking pic's of non-flat stuff.

Pink and Orange ATC

Been working on a Pink and Orange ATC swap. This is the first one I made, out of 4. Only 3 are being swapped. Since this was the first one, and not the best of the lot, I thought I'd keep it.

From a swap "Here Fishy Fishy" trading one ATC to a partner. Only a week to make it, but I had alot of fun drawing this one. 

I hadn't drawn on a card yet, only collage and fabric and mixed media. 

It was nice to do something new.

Been a while...

So I've been away. I've found a site, Swap-bot, for swappers of  handmade items and postcards. Well, I've been making tons of artist trading cards and finding new techniques in the process. I'm going to post some.

U ever want to be an Indian for a night? Try Wigwam village motels. They're around the country. They're cheap. And you stay in a teepee. Really.

birthday

For the last two weeks i've been waiting to see what's gonna happen for my birthday. Since it fell right smack dab between the two springs breaks my friends have, I figured we'd have a good time, twice. Here it is Sunday, a week past my date, and I have to go back to school tomorrow, most of my friends have left town... what have I done for my birthday? nothing. twice.  Friday my ex took me to steak and shake and then across the street to a real restaurant, where dinner would cost more than 12 bucks for both of us, and bought me a bahama mama. my first official legal alcoholic beverage. He also got me a piece of the 7 dollar super chocolate cake with ice cream, which was delicious except it didn't taste delicious mixed with a fruity pineappley rummy drink. it tastes delicious with milk. but i'm not complaining, he had no obligation to even see me after the way i broke his heart in november, after 3 and half years of serious dating. but i guess the "friends" line now means he expects to be able to take me out for my birthday. Or he's trying to get me back... either way I think i'm a cheap date. 

on my birthday my mom had won these free tickets to a premiere of that stupid looking movie 'knowing.' and she guilted me into going. so we met when she got off work at 4 and had dinner and waited around til they let us in the theatre. sat squeezed between gawky teenage girls and middle aged couple thinking this is their date night that will revamp their whole relationship. The guy thinking he's going to get laid because he laid out 20 bucks on theatre snacks and the woman giving me this up and down eye ball look that clearly says she disagrees with the length of my dress but god she wishes she still had legs that good.  So there I am hoping the husband doesn't look at me to much because her self esteem is already on a downward roller coaster, and i'm feeling more than a little self conscious as well as pissed that i can't go see the two friends i have that called wanting to hang out with me that night. Neither of which have called since monday... which tells me it was really not a big loss...but still. the movie was terrible and i hate feeling like a sardine in a movie theatre. 

oh and last saturday i got a birthday card in the mail from my aunt and two nephews. I think that's a new low for me, one card. I didn't even get a call from my brothers or other nephew or grandparents or... yadda yadda. one card.  and i bought myself one of those giant chocolate chip cookies at kroger. 

god turning 21 sucks ass.

First Attempt at Pictures

My first attempt at adding photos....

Old painting... me when I was 18. Oils. 4'x4'

This is an old sketch. Sort of a "stock image" you might say. It's a chipmunk. A fat one. Content, lazy, barely breathing. 

I love prismacolor markers, which is what I used in the sketch. I go through em so quick. Thank god they're easy to conceal. 

However I do not endorse concealment of any kind. I try to never conceal, however ... well. Yeah.

Chimpie out

First Entry

 This is my first blog, so I'm sorry if it takes me some time to get into this. Not that I expect anyone to be reading...

I turned 21 on Monday. I'm a student. I'm an artist and book artist. I make my own shoes and jewelry. I also sew and quilt, which I come by quite naturally as my mother and grandmother and so forth and so forth are all quilters and cross stitchers. I plan to use this blog as another opportunity to show my artwork to others and just a way to get my name out there. I plan to post pictures of artwork, of my jewelry, art quilts, prints, sketches, flip-flops, my handmade lizards, etc...

I also have two cats, that I call my kitlets, whom I love oh so much. Lily and Lulu, barely a year old. Found in the snow in Memphis, TN, a friend of mine took them in, only to find out she was allergic. So I agreed to adopt one, and then saw how perfectly adorable they are together; cleaning each others ears, sleeping with their heads together, chasing each other down the hall, playing hide and seek, and so on. So I took both. 

I live (currently, at least) in Waddy, Kentucky. Which is about 40 minutes east of Louisville, and ten minutes west of Frankfort. And three hours northeast of Memphis TN, which is where I was living a year ago. And a year before that I was living in Baltimore, Maryland. College has been a bitch. There's not much more reason for it. I hate packing my stuff up and unpacking, but I do love a new place. Where you're unknown. It's like starting over. A tabula rasa... that philosophy class this semester has been great. Easy too.

That's my little introduction speech.

So, for the first time,

Chimpie out.