Our Creative Minds

Digital Scrapbooking

2010-08-11T14:31:00.000-07:00

I have been a bit artsy lately and today I'm going to show you my newest endeaver; I created a digital scrapbook page! I recently purchased a Bamboo Pen & Touch tablet and with it came Photoshop Elements and Corel Painter. I was extremly excited but didn't have much of a clue on how to create advanced work, so I put the tutorial to work. It took me three days but the end result is wonderful!

The page features one of the newest additions to our family, Teddy, a 6 month old Siamese-mix kitten. He's a tough guy but also a big mama's boy. LOL So without further ado I present to you my digital scrapbook page!

Homemade Stationary

2010-01-28T14:24:00.001-08:00

I love Sumi ink. I was introduced to it in a Fashion Illustration a couple of years ago and just fell head over heels in love with it. Since I wanted to start creating my own handmade stationary I decided to put my creative mind to use and get busy.

First off, I searched out some Japanese and Chinese illustrations, took some cues from them and painted little scenes on the paper. At first I made two different ones, but then my creativity took hold later in the day and I sketched out a few more ideas.

For coloring them I had originally wanted to use watercolors, but this paper would ripple with a single drop of water so I thought, hey, how about chalk pastels? But no, I didn't want it to smudge when the letter was being held and read. So I chose colored pencils and the results were very satisfactory. My artwork wasn't limited to the paper but also put on the envelope as well.

(Not bad for being a couple years out of practice, huh?)

This type of artwork isn't very difficult at all, so I believe anyone can do it. You just have to believe in yourself and go for it!

Organizing IS an art form!

2010-01-28T14:00:00.001-08:00

Ok, so some people may argue that organizing your life and your possessions is not a form of art. I disagree. You have to use a lot of creativity to organize things properly. When I started this quest of all things creative and artistic and found myself in another definition of creativity.

In order to plan for new projects I must first know what supplies I will need. In order to that, I first have to see what supplies I have, so I set about gathering my arts and crafts stashes. You know, a simple day job.Turns out I'm now going into Day 9 in organzing everything. Yes, you read it right. 9 days!

I had no idea how many different things I had. This ranges from all my art books to fabric and down to several types of erasers. I have a lot of stuff! Seeing it all together was mind-blowing so I made myself a promise to try and keep everything together, you know, like-with-like. AND in plastic tubs I already possess. NO EXTRAS!

(Fabrics and trims...this pile was large, then raided by a friend and has grown again after another bout of purging)

So I am posting a picture of all the tubs that I have sitting in the living room. Some filled to the brim, others have some space left and others....bursting out of the box. But, it is all together now and a lot easier to find. Next up...SHOPPING!!

Beginning Cake Decorating

2010-01-19T15:21:00.001-08:00

For as long as I can recall, I have always wanted to learn how to decorate cakes. Sure, sure, I've done the standard frosting, sprinkles and even delved into some carving but I have always wanted to make roses, and stars and those little frilly borders.

Well for Christmas this year, my wonderful husband gave me a Wilton Cake Decorating class through Michael's. He even bought me the professional kit! Woohoo!

This post is actually about the 2nd class because that's when we taught to make the little stars and got a sample of rose making. My sister-in-law, Karen, joined in on the fun too. Let me tell you though, I followed Wilton's instructions on making a cake using their 8" diameter, 2" deep pans...oy.....took forever for the cakes to bake. And frosting the darn things?! LOL It was hilarious because we were only told to make the frosting in certain types of thickness without actually having seen samples of each. Nevertheless, through all the mistakes and laughter, I had my cake ready for class.

We first practiced making the little star, and I'm sorry, I was so caught up in it I forgot to take pictures! LOL But Karen and I took a few snaps of us decorating and so, I give you .....pictures!

The Beginnings of a Rose

If I had more hands, I could have taken pictures of the actual process.

Ta-Da! These are my first two roses. Pretty good even if I do say so myself.

Karen is mixing color into the icing mix so we can make our stars for the cake.

Karen was very quick in getting her rainbow done...I took a while but only because I tend to be too much of a perfectionist. LOL

This is me applying the stars onto the cake....

I wish I'd of taken a closer picture but you can see how it is starting to turn out.

And VIOLA! We have a rainbow cake! I put my youngest sons name on it because his birthday is this week. I do need to practice with actual writing because the letters were pretty squiggly.

Doodle Art

2010-01-05T15:52:00.000-08:00

Today's creative endeavor is just a simple project, Doodle Art. Nothing fancy or time consuming, just quick fun. The instructions are pretty straight forward:

Take a piece of paper, a pen or pencil, place the tip on the paper, close your eyes and swirl your drawing instrument up, down, around and sideways on that paper. Don't be afraid to turn the paper around at different angles and keep on squiggling until you just can't squiggle no more!

I actually did two different doodles on two separate pieces of paper.

Take a look at what you got then, start looking for familiar shapes. When you find them trace over them with another piece of paper to make for easier identification.

Next take a few of these images, transfer them to another piece of paper to make a complete picture and color them in!

As you can see...EASY artwork that ANYONE can do! Are you up to the challenge?! I'd love to see what types of doodle images you can create too!

" The Rented Christmas"

2009-12-16T12:25:00.001-08:00

It's almost Christmas and things have finally slowed down a bit for me. I spent the last few months sewing, designing, sewing some more and then building things for various clients. The biggest project was the CLC Christmas production, "The Rented Christmas".

This year was a complete challenge for me; very small budget, no time and little help, but thankfully my hubby and kids helped out when I was ready to pull my hair out. I also had help from Pam, who put up with my gripes and helped me laugh when I needed it.

The following pictures are from the journey in re-using, up-dating, and new construction of all things sets and costumes.

First Up: STAGE SETS

We reused all the canvas and tradtional flats from the play two years ago. But first we had to fire retard them. Yep, our favorite chore. NOT.

And amazingly enough, Jeremy decided to give mural painting a try and helped out with the sky and water. He did pretty good for his first time too!

The finished sets. Terry built the fireplace all by himself and man, it was beautiful! Great job Bud!

The Rental Shop was just a quickie, had a very short stage life during the play. And of course, the final products in midst of all the action.

Next: ANGEL COSTUMES

Although every year we'd like to design new costumes, we just up-dated the costumes from the previous years. Some trim here, some rhinestones and appliques there... they looked great in the blue lights during the production.

Angel Dancer Maggie

New Angel Costume

Last but Not Least: SANTA'S ELVES

This one is just for fun. Pam and I were goofing around and got Santa to join in the fun.

While the journey was often times stressfull, in the end we all had a blast!

Yes, the two backstage managers take their jobs VERY seriously.

MERRY CHRISTMAS!

When Theatrical Interests First Took Root

2009-09-10T10:18:00.000-07:00

When you're working your job or running your business, do you ever wonder to yourself when the starting point of your career or your favorite hobbies/interests began? I have. A lot. As an artist, I can recall many of the first drawings and paintings I did. I still have a few of them, though they are in storage at the moment. I'll post them at another date.

My family and friends always knew I'd be involved in the arts; but when did the interests of theatrical design enter the fray? Why costuming? Why set and prop design? Why drama?

Well, on reflection I remembered a few outstanding moments in my childhood, one of which was dressing my youngest brother up as Santa Claus with what little materials I had. I don't remember how old I was though...maybe 10 years old? I knew we had a picture of the outfit in my parents photo box, so I went on a hunt and began digging away. (BTW - Looking through old photos can cause you to post them on facebook, LOL)

So without further ado I give you my little brother, Adam, sporting his Santa Claus outfit. Adam is wearing a red courderouy jacket and pants, a red cotton t-shirt, a white and red knitted hat and a fluffy beard of cotton balls. His bag is of the always fashionable white cotton pillowcase. As you can tell by the smile on his face and the gleam in his eyes he was very pleased with this look!

When it comes to props, the first thing I recall was building a rolling horse for us and our next door neighbors to ride. My dad had a great collection of tools, wood and a multitude of miscellaneous knick-knacks in the garage, so I just helped myself and went to work!

What I came up with was a magnificent steed that would make McGyver proud! The body of the horse consisted of a saw horse on wheels, on of those stringy mops, a rope, a paper bag and a large old blanket.

Again, I may have been around the age of 10 - 12.

Scott Wilson, my brother Mark, and Chris Wilson going for a trail ride

As for drama, I fondly remember the times when my cousins would come down for a visit and Jacki and I would write and perform some short plays for us, and our siblings, to perform for our parents. Ahhh - Those were the good old days! No pictures though. So sad.

There were however, a multitude of times that my brothers and I would play army or cowboys and indians with the neighbors. Mostly it was army. My dad was the company commander for the National Guard unit in our town so we had a plethera of outfits and supplies to make the playtime more realistic.

I don't know who's thumb that is, but the back row is me, the middle row is Scott and my little bro, Adam and up front is Chris.

I bet if you take the time to reflect and look at old photos of your childhood, you'll find yourself saying "Ahah! So that's when it happened!" So the challenge for today is to give reflection a shot and let me know if you connect the dots.

Icicles

2009-08-24T10:10:00.000-07:00

For some strange reason I woke up this morning with snow and icicles on my mind. I don't know why---I just did. (Of course if anybody actually knows me they wouldn't really be surprised by this sudden interest.)

Perhaps its because of Christmas. Christmas is my favorite time of the year and is closing in fast. I have always envisioned having a white Christmas, complete with icicles hanging from the eaves of houses and snow covering trees and fences...

What ever the case, I decided to post these pictures I took in Yosemite back in April. There were plenty of icicles there, especially hanging off branches that bridged the creeks.

Artwork in Progess

2009-08-12T12:09:00.000-07:00

Although I've been having a fantastic time playing with race cars, I have been slowly working on a couple of art projects.

The first is of a Squirrel Monkey from the Phoenix Zoo. I really wanted to draw this little guy and thought it would be another quicky, but I have been painstakingly working on this for days and days but it is still a long way from being completed.

Why did I pick a critter with hair?! Because I like to do things the hard way, that's why. I'm so meticulous it seems I am drawing every single strand the little guy has on his body. And the leaves? sheesh. So much shading! Sometimes I can be too accurate for my own good. LOL But there is a good reason for it. I'm drawing this guy on smooth Bristol board, not just sketch paper (like my Iguana), so I want to make sure it gets done right.

Now the other artwork is mainly just practice, and it involves squirrels. Cartoony squirrels. I can draw realistic looking animals but cartoons? For some reason this now boggles my mind. When I was a kid, I could draw cartoons with no problem, but now? Problems. Luckily I kept an old animation drawing book by Preston Blair to help me out. Practice makes perfect, right?

These are my rough drawing exercises:

This next picture is of a quick sketch I did of a real squirrel and then a cartoon.

But why would I want to put myself through this torture? Because I plan on creating an animated movie involving said cartoony squirrels in the next couple of years. Of course, at the rate I'm going, it may take like 5 years. But it's good to have a goal, right?

Infineon Raceway

2009-08-06T10:11:00.001-07:00

Infineon Raceway at dawn

Back in June, Terry and I were invited to join the Golden Gate Racing Team's second car, the #31 Bay Biodiesel team, for the NASCAR Camping World West race at Infineon Raceway in Sonoma CA. Needless to say we were in 7th heaven the whole weekend!

The #31 car is owned and driven by Pat O'Keefe who is a really nice guy. While I was again unofficial picture taker, I also got to help out by pushing the stock car up and down pit road many times. And I mean many times. It was hot, it was tiring, but boy was it fun.

Terry was really enjoying himself and helped out with getting the car ready for inspection and also pushing the cars around to tech or to get gas.

I never imagined how much work actually went into getting the cars ready for inspections, practices and then for the race. When a race car didn't qualify or they crashed, I really felt bad for the teams because I now know how much time and effort went into each car. It was heart breaking.

The Camping World West race was held on Saturday, but Sunday was the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race, so while we were working on the CWW cars, the Sprint cars were going through their practices. We saw quite a few well-know drivers, and even had close encounters with a couple of them....

While were pushing the #31 car through pit road, Terry was like 12" from the window of the#24 car when Jeff Gordon waved at Terry. Of course I was so busy pushing the car I didn't get an opportunity to take a picture of that but I did get a nice shot of the #24 on pit road.

I had a very close encounter with Tony Stewart; while walking back up to the hauler there was a pole on my left side. Tony was walking down from the opposite direction and squeezed between me and the pole and brushed my left arm. OMG! It was very exciting. (And Tony is quite handsome.) Shhhh. ;-)

Luckily for Junior, and Terry, I did not see him in person. But we did come close to 'bumping' into each other at one point. We were, once again, pushing a car down pit road to tech when we were suddenly stopped by an official. And 'swoosh'! Junior drives right down in front of us and out of pit road. Darn it.

Now all of this was wonderful but I think the most important and even more exciting celebrity of all was....

Guy Fieri from the Food Network!

Terry really, really loves this guy. He watches all his shows over and over and over and over....

I guess you can call him a fan. LOL

Ok, so back to racing business....

I have some pictures of the #21 and #31 teams before the start of the race.

Keith and Terry talkin' racin'

Terry, Pat and Keith

Chris and Blake

Chris, Josh, Mark, Lee and Terry

Pit Stop for the #21

Pit Stop for the #31

The pit boxes for both cars were side-by-side so this made pit stops easier for the crew.

The bosses calling the shots...Steve

and Jim

Blake is a Richard Childress Development Driver so the #21 team had the pleasure of Mr. Childress' company during the race.

After the race.... I can't recall what positions Blake and Pat started and finished at, but if you really want to know, just look at the Camping World West website for the standings. The whole experience lasted three days but the memories are for a lifetime.

I'd like to give a very special thank you to Steve and Jim for the pleasure of a 'Beyond Front Row' experience in racing. Yep, we definately got the bug now!

How we spent our Memorial Weekend

2009-06-10T12:12:00.000-07:00

We had the fantastic opportunity to go to L.A. and visit the Crystal Cathedral with a NASCAR Camping World West race team! Needless to say, we Jeske's were in 7th heaven for that! Our friend, Keith Van Houten, who works for Golden Gate Racing, was able to get us invited to help out at this event.

One job of ours was to recon the church and the area where the hauler and car were to be setup for Keith, who was driving the hauler. The security staff was very friendly and helpful with information and suggestions.

(Mike, head of security at CC)

There were some tight areas for the hauler to snake through, both coming and going, but it made it!

Chris, Keith and Terry unloaded the car and pushed it into the grassy area before the services. No easy feat. Especially when I'm telling them where to put it; "There. No to the left some more. Make it diagonal with the building..."

Golden Gate Racing owns the #21 car sponsored by GodSpeaks.com and their driver is Blake Koch (pronounced Cook). This was a promo event at the church and Blake was interviewed by Rev. Schuller in both morning services. This service will be televised on Hour of Power's Independence Day broadcast.

We all attended the morning service and it was really great. The choir and organ music where fantastic!

After the service we all trekked over to the hauler where Blake signed autographs and took photos with members of the congregation. While the day started off overcast, the sun came out shining and everybody was in great spirits.

Terry served as Answer Man...it's a good thing we both are NASCAR nuts and stay up-t0-date with the latest info!

Me? Well, besides selling a few t-shirts, I made myself unofficial photographer of the Behind-The-Scenes Crew. It takes a lot of work to get things ready for any event and I wanted to make sure that these guys knew they were appreciated, especially Keith and Chris the official crew members of the #21 team.

(Keith and Chris)

From the early morning's light...

...till the end of the day, these guys give it their all!

Thank you Golden Gate Racing and Blake Koch for the great time and memories!

(Keith, Blake, Terry, Zach)

UNTIL NEXT TIME....

"Pirates!"

2009-05-21T12:24:00.000-07:00

Some friends of mine have a son, Christopher, that was in his school's honor choir featuring "Pirates" and I supplied his costume.

It was a great little musical, the kids were wonderful and sang beautifully!

24th Annual Black Heritage Celebration "It's A New Day"

2009-05-21T11:56:00.000-07:00

This past February, I had the pleasure of creating costumes for Merced College's 2009 Black Heritage Celebration Play, "A Long Time Commin, It's A New Day".

We just got a new camera the same morning of the play and were trying to figure out all the gizmos on it so the pictures aren't that wonderful. I will be taking new photos, sans actors, of the costumes and posting them on my new website www.mjstagecrafts.com within the next month.

Below is a picture of the entire cast.

Of all the characters, my favorite was Harriet Tubman. Since I love to make historical clothing I took great pride and joy in creating her look, from the making the costume to supplying her props. Harriet is wearing a head scarf, a light calico bodice, wool skirt and cotton twill coat and a pair of 1860's ladies boots. Her props are a haversack and rifle. Boy did she look great!

The actors below were in the scene where Harriet brings runaway slaves through the underground railroad and into the arms of freedom,a merciful Quaker gentlemen. I supplied the Quaker hat and made his coat out of black wool. I made one of the slaves outfits, a tan and blue striped oversized men's shirt and a navy cotton skirt.

Next up is Melba Patillo under armed guard. Her costume is a silhouette of the 1950's. It was made in a pretty yellow calico print.

The final scene was of the Obama's election night victory so I recreated the look of Michelle and Malia's red dresses. Of all the costumes, Michelle's dress was the one that drew the most raves. I think I did a pretty darn good job!

"One True King"

2009-05-21T11:42:00.000-07:00

The pictures below are of the stage sets for "One True King" at Christian Life Center

The next two photos show how the manger rotates around into King Herod's throne room.

This is Herod's throne room

Below are the Magi in their tower beholding the Star of Bethlehem.

The last photo is of Joseph's house where the Magi eventually meet Jesus.

2008 CLC Christmas Production, "One True King"

2009-05-21T11:38:00.000-07:00

The first couple of photos are of the dressing and cast staging area at the church. We had a live feed to help with coordinating actors with scenes.

The Angels

Jesus and the Angels

The Cast of "One True King" (con'td)

2009-05-21T11:33:00.000-07:00

The Magi and their servants.

King Herod and the Roman Guards

Gossiping Persian Women

Joseph, Mary and Baby Jesus

The student tourists

These are the post-production photos of the 2008 CLC play. Again, lousy camera and lighting, but I'm learning.

The Build Shop at CLC

2009-03-30T10:48:00.001-07:00

Once again, CLC was wonderful in providing us with a fairly large paint/build area in the church. This made transporting sets so much easier! For the new Magi Tower set, Greg pre-built the framework at his shop and then transported them over to the church for final texturizing and painting.

Below you can see the walls of the exisiting sets undergoing their flame-retardant coat. While I barely whimpered at the thought of having to repaint the sets back to their original state, many people that came in to visit practically cried at the thought. We also made sure to flame-retard the new stuff that was built.

So here is Joseph's house, now on rolling braces and undergoing the flame-retardant coat...

And here it is undergoing its transformation back to it's original paint scheme. You can see the original set and paint scheme in my very first blog entry.

There is definately a lot of different steps involved in making theatrical sets; research, sketches, plans, framing, texturing, paint, set-up and tear-down. Most people I talk to see the final product and exclaim how they would never be able to do something like that, but when you take a step back from the final product and look at the different layers/steps involved, I firmly believe that anybody can do it. And I have proof! While proclaiming that he was strictly a carpenter, Greg certainly learned that he could do all the artistic stuff too.

Building Costumes

2009-03-24T10:58:00.000-07:00

While we are searching for a larger studio space in town, our living room transforms into the costume department. The space is large enough to handle the numerous sewing projects and machines for large productions. I keep the iron hot and two machines threaded and ready to go at all times.

The cutting table fits perfectly and the couches make great holding areas for different costumes. In this photo one couch holds sheer fabric for the angel wings and the love seat holds the satin used in the angel costumes.

As sewn projects were completed, they were placed in the family room to await transportation to the church and final fittings. The red clothing is part of the Roman soldiers costumes. Since they were going to be doing a choreographed fight scene, they wore Braccae (knee pants), for modesty's sake. The photo shows the unfinished waistbands awaiting their soldiers final fit.

Fully completed costumes were labeled and hung together with like colors to prevent accidental color exchange. The majority pieces of the Magian costumes were white so they were hung together, as well as the Magian servants and Jesus' costumes.

Once the costumes had their final fittings and the dress rehearsals and performances began, the costumes were finally hung together in complete character sets.

Artistic H.Q.

2009-03-24T10:34:00.000-07:00

Welcome to Marlene's Artistic Headquarters!

This is basically the creative hub of my artistic endeavors. The space often expands or shrinks to fit whatever projects I am working on at the time. This picture shows most of the work being done for the 2008 CLC Christmas program. I have most everything I need here; my computer for the endless hours of research, my desk to hold all the research papers and historical and stagecraft books, the drawing table set up to create and hold sketches and architectural plans, and the inspiration boards from which I pull many ideas from.

You can see all the various visual aids I use when coming up with set and costume ideas. If you look closely you can see the original drawing I had for the Magi Tower, as well as costume ideas for the fighting Romans and angel costumes.

The photo below shows the different types of Persian religious towers I used as references for the Magi tower. You can also see that the sketchbook on the table holds ideas for royal and Magian headwear. While I ran out of time to create them for the 2008 play, I do have aspirations to create them in 2009 for my new stagecraft business, which then will be available for rent or purchase.

I tried to keep track of how many hours I spent each week on research and sketching, but lost count after 52 hours. However, I can say that research, sketches and plans were created over a 12 week period.

The Bad and the Good

2009-03-18T15:51:00.000-07:00

The bad news; Ok, I admit it. I'm a horrible blogger. Simply horrible. I had every great intention to try post regular blog entries but I failed.

The good news is that I have been keeping busy! The CLC Christmas play was wonderful! It had some stressful moments, but in the end it all came together. Boy, if it wasn't for that last minute, nothing would get done. LOL

The bad news is that I have some photos, that unfortunately, aren't that great. My camera decided to take a downward spiral and so the shots are disappointing to me.

The good news is my honey bought me a new camera for Valentines Day! Yippee!

...So on my last blog entry I was working on revamping the Egyptian columns. Well as time and budget grew short the executive decision was made to put the columns on the back burner and to focus on adding to the main sets and costumes.

The big time cruncher for us was that we had to take all the previously made sets and fire retard them. Then we had to re-paint them! That was not one of the most joyeous experiences but it was an extremely necessary one. Fortunately, God blessed me with some great help this year, people offered to help with costumes, painting and texturizing sets, moving sets in and out of the auditorium... I'm going to try and remember everyone that pitched in, if I forget a name, please forgive me. Thanks to Sandy and her vision, Pam, Nancy, Diane, Jerry, Joseph, Shawn, Cameron, Keith, Greg, Terry, Jeremy, Joshua, Jordan...

Now,I have to give a special standing ovation to Mr. Greg Vivieros for doing such a spectacular job on building the sets for us this Christmas!!! If it was not for him, I would still be making the sets as I type this. Stand up and take a bow Greg!

Mr. Greg is the happy guy on the right; does he look tired to you too? LOL Jerry, our strongman and Santa Claus,is on the left.

Yes, this is the Magi Tower. Not the finished product I had in mind, but time was of the essence; we had to hurry and so the faux stones for set aside this one and the tower was painted instead. Boy, what that ever and adventure. Nonetheless, it was a spectacular hit!

This was a very large and extremely heavy set. Once put together, this baby wouldn't move in an earthquake. Ok, maybe it would shake a bit. It took 5 guys to move the lower front arch itself. These are pic's of the guys moving it through the foyer and then through the auditorium doorway.

The tower was placed in the far right aisle of the church auditorium. The top floor was for the Magi actors and the audience could move around underneath to their seats. It was pretty darn cool.

(Persian Note: I tried to stay historically correct with Persian architecture and the Magi, taking into account that some people believe the Magi were connected to the Zoroastrian religion, so the tower symbol and clothing reflect this.)

Now Keith Van Houten once again put his creative mind and talents to work and made metal swords for two of our fighting Roman Soldiers. The play had an awesome choreographed fight scene where 4 Roman soldiers battle against each other. (Two fought with swords and two with spears. One soldier protected King Herod.) It was a spectacular! And my oldest son, Jeremy was one of the sword fighters. I don't have a close-up picture of the swords, however Keith has them in safe-keeping so I will get a picture soon. I do have a picture of King Herod with the soldiers below.

Back Row from Left: Jay, Jack, Joshua and Cameron

Front Row from left: Shawn and Jeremy

Well, that's all I have time for today. I will be sure to post more Christmas play photos ASAP.

Set Design and Construction

2008-10-17T09:54:00.000-07:00

I have again accepted the role of Set Designer for Christian Life Center's Christmas Play this year. I have done a crash course in Ancient Studies, mainly covering Roman and Egyptian influence in Israel, King Herod and Bethlehem. A lot of online research went into studying about the previous and also the Magi and Persian Empire. I bought few books that really help in studying the architecture of these areas:

Ancient Egypt, Art and Archaeology of the Land of the Pharoahs by Giorgio Agnese and Maurizio Re

Lost Cities from the Ancient World by Maria Teresa Buaitoli and Simone Rambaldi

Our plans are to reuse some of the sets from last time, like Joseph's House and the Inn, but will be repurposing the other sets to add to the stage.

The director, Sandy, and I are very excited as we plan on putting a Magi Tower over an aisle next to the seating area (if the Fire Marshal say's Okey Dokey) and turning the lobby into Bethlehem! We will be using market tents and a couple of other surpises.

A few years ago, I made a couple of Egyptian Columns that were used at a company event. I decided to repurpose them to use for the Christmas play this year. This picture is of one of the columns.

When I made them, I did a crash course in Heiroglyphics, so yes, the columns do say something! What does it say? LOL I can't remember all of it and which column said what, but my name was on one and it also said "Merced is very hot in the summer". LOL Seriously!

In this photo I have stripped the plaster strips off the base and top of the colums to reveal the wire framing, which I then removed.

I have now replastered the columns. I have created new bases and tops for the columns, which were plastered yesterday. I promise to post the completed pictures ASAP. I promise. Really, I promise.

These are painted pieces are to make a 4' x 4' x 2' wall. I forgot to take pictures of the framework. I have added foam, with some stone carving and have muddied the walls. I will be painting them today. Again, I promise to update with pictures soon!

I will also be helping out in the Costuming, making new patterns for new characters. I learned what type of clothing the Magi wore and it is very different from what is in the stock.

It's all very exciting, and because Sandy and I are so excited, I'm going to give you a little peek at the rendering for the Magi Tower. Enjoy!

Well, that's all for now. I have lot's of other plans to draw and an ancient wall to finish painting. Toodles!

How I Spent My Summer Vacation...

2008-10-17T09:02:00.000-07:00

Yes, I know, I'm behind on my postings again. I try to keep up but I get carried away with different projects and the time just seems to fly right by me! I had a great summer. It was quiet, yet busy.

The first and most important event of the summer was that our oldest son, Jeremy, graduated from High School!

We are very proud of our little Jay bird.

The other great thing about this summer is that I've been able to finally catch up on a lot of reading! I have acquired quite a number of art and costume books over the last year and a half and have been able to read most of them and browse through the rest for quick references.

The art books I have are:

Realistic Textures by Diane Cardaci - this is a great little reference book that covers everything, and a little more, that I learned in class.

How To Draw Dragons And Other Mythical Creatures by Emmett Elvin - This is a browser, I haven't really taken the time to apply my drawing skills, but I still love it because it has dragons! OH! And now Dick Blick is selling a dragon manikin! I gotta have one! http://www.dickblick.com/zz216/29/

Fairy Art, Artist and Inspirations by Iaian Zaczek - This book is just loaded with different pictures of beautiful fairy paintings through the years.

In the costume craftworks department I have:

Costume Craftwork on a Budget by Tan Huaixiang - This has some really cool directions for making headdresses, prosthetic pieces , crowns.... I can't wait to have the opportunity to make some the samples.

Now in costuming, I have:

Character Costume Figure Drawing by Tax Huaixiang - Now when I first got this book, almost a year and a half ago, the figure drawing threw me off. But then I took a fashion design class and the storyboard class and the little light bulb went on inside my head! It all makes more sense to me now, so I need to give it a second go around.

Costume Construction by Katherine Strand Evans - I like this book but I rarely refer to it for costuming tips. I use it more for tools and supply references.

Stage Costume by Mary T. Kidd - I like this also for figuring out how to transform basic shapes. Plus it has a lot of color photographs, which I love.

Costume Pattern books are:

Patterns for Theatrical Costumes by Katherine Strand Holkeboer - This is a great pattern book, it offers illustrations and patterns of garments, trims and accesssories from Ancient Egypt to 1915.

Patterns for Costume Accessories by Arnold S. Levine and Robin L. McGee - Great book for accessories! I especially love the mid-19th century accessories.

More Costumes for the Stage by Sheila Jackson - Good book for period garb reference, illustrations are a bit too close together though.

For more specific time periods in costume I have:

Everyday Dress of Rural America, 1783 - 1800 by Merideth Wright - I have only browsed through this book but it seems to fit into what I was looking for in 18th century clothing.

Patterns of Fashion 1, Englishwomen's dresses and their construction c. 1660 - 1860 by Janet Arnold- Again I browsed through this book. It is extremely detailed in pattern layout so I need to set aside some serious quiet time to read this to be sure I understand it. It looks very, very promising though!

18th Century Embroidery Techniques by Gail Marsh - Oh this book, I love all the photos and illustrations. I also love all the little history lessons and stories about certain pieces. I even whipped out my hand embroidery and practice a little stitching! Ok, the outcome wasn't great but it made me happy!

Costume Design 101 by Richard La Motte - When I ordered this books I thought it was going to be another step by step instructional on making costumes. WRONG! This is actually a costume business book. I love this book! Mr. La Motte really explains the ins and outs of the business and gives stories and examples of what to do. And what not to do. And most importantly, what to consider in making decisions to get into this type of business. Love this!

Now for sewing I bought:

Couture Sewing Techniques by Claire B. Shaeffer - All I can say is, WOW. I knew couture was hand sewing and very detailed, but geez, I really had absolutely no idea what it all entailed! I love this book and read sections periodically. Great book.

I have 3 more books that I loaned to a friend that I can't wait to read. One is on pattern drafting, one on fabric manipulation and the last is on chemicals and fabrics.

So now you're proably thinking, OK, she's read a lot about sewing and art but has she actually done anything? Well, the answer is yes. Nothing grandious, just some minor sewing projects, mainly alterations.

The photo's below are of a dress I altered for my mom. It was too long and the bodice needed to be taken in at the intersection of Princess Seam and Arm Hole. Plus the front shoulder straps needed to be taken up.

How I Spent My Summer Vacation... (cont'd)

2008-10-17T08:49:00.001-07:00

This is Princess Emma, my Great Niece.

She is wearing a lined velveteen cape, head piece and muff that I made her. Both the cape and muff are trimmed in a white twisty trim and accented with mini pearls. The Muff is simply velveteen.

Since the majority of my family consists of mainly nephews, it was quite a welcome change to finally make something pretty for a beautiful little girl.

Below are the trim details for the cape and headpiece.

Iguana In Pencil

2008-05-22T15:43:00.000-07:00

A few days ago I posted some pictures from the Phoenix Zoo which included a very handsome iguana. Since it's been a while since I've been able to draw something that I wanted (that wasn't homework) and feeling like a frustrated artist I finally decided to just draw something! LOL

The whole thing was a lot of fun and only took a few hours to complete. I thought I was pretty rusty so I was pretty surprised that the end result is so great. It was nice to be able to draw and apply a lot of the pointers I learned in school.

Phoenix Zoo Iguana

2008-05-19T10:42:00.000-07:00

I'm probably going to sound a bit like the late, great, Steve Irwin, but ...Crikey! Isn't he a beaut?
I am really into animal textures lately. I sketched a few dragon eyes, but decided I really wanted to see some thing in real life, so........I found while visiting my brother in AZ this iguana at the zoo had to satisfy my Ancient reptilian/dinosaur/dragon like cravings.

I think what I loved most about this guy is that he stayed still while Jeremy and I tried getting the best different angles from him while leaning over the short wall. I guess he's used to the papparzzi because he really stuck a pose!

(now all I need are some close-ups of snakes...........)

The next post will show some great Rhino close-ups.

Arizona Zoo Rhino

2008-05-19T10:01:00.000-07:00

Aren't these two gorgeous? Not to mention fierce! Ok, so maybe not right now. It's nappy-poo time.

Aren't you just loving the lines around his eyes? Better him then me!

The texture on his skin is fantastic. It's like diamond quilted ropes! I can't wait to start drawing these!

FINALS!!! Survey of Contemporary Interior Architecture

2008-05-15T17:57:00.000-07:00

This is the final project for this class; I still have a BIG test to take tonight. Anyhoo, the designer is John Saladino and this guy I really like. He's big into Mediterranian ruin designs mixed with contemporary designs. I hemmed and hawed about adding the essay I had to write too. I guess I'll go ahead and post it below. I'm still waiting on the grade.

“To me, the ultimate refining of a thing ends in its utter simple geometric form. That is what gives it its timeless quality”. Such is one of the design basics of John Saladino, one of the worlds most distinguished interior designers.

Born the son of a Kansas City Missouri doctor, John Saladino has risen to become known as “the designer’s designer”. Although he initially studied painting, he was educated at Notre Dame and the Yale School of Art and Architecture in the 1960’s. After graduating with a MFA degree, he went overseas to work at an architectural practice in Rome, Italy. In the two years he was there, Saladino fell in love with history and ancient ruins. This new love released his inhibitions and fed his natural romanticism. The teachings at Yale, steeped in minamilist philosophy, and the dramatic architecture of Italy gives Saladino the natural ability to blend the old with the new; modern with traditional. Saladino can seamlessly blends scratch-coat plastered walls, stone floors and sleek modern furniture together. In a 1988 interview he reaffirmed his unique design style, “Now I believe in always bringing something of the ancient world into the twentieth century.”

After his time in Italy, Saladino returned to American and in 1969 he opened his own design company, which is still going strong after forty years. In his designs, Saladino pulls from classical and traditional designs, simplifying them to their basic geometric form. “I want the basic shapes of all the furniture to come out of primary forms – drums, cubes, rectangles, spheres”. His furniture while simple in line, is luxurious in fabric in texture. He is not afraid to change the covers of his furniture to follow the different seasons. A couch or chair may be of cotton in the summer, then of quilted velvet in the winter.

The interiors he designs often displays his love of theatrics and grand architectural scale; he is a master of proportion, such as columns, corroded surfaces and color to create a feeling of a grand house or a cozy cottage. When it comes to the use of color, Saladino believes in using colors that can be easily changed by natural light, whether it is day or night. The use of layered lighting also comes into effect, creating dramatic realms of color in a whole room, from only one color source. As was noted by Adam Lewis, author of “Van Day Truex: The Man Who Defined Twentieth Century Taste and Style”, Van Truex believed that “John Saladino had a remarkable eye for color” which evoked “the aura of a Renaissance painting”. Saladino himself says that “I think of interiors as a walk-in still life…”

The color pencil rending I have chosen to portray is of an interior view of a dining room. The feeling of this room gives the impression of entering an ancient temple and glimpsing into the secret room where Gods may feast. The simple geometric shapes are unmistakably noticeable in the design layout. The initial entrance is an opening with scratch-coat plaster walls that are flanked by tall fluted columns. As with the rest of the interior colors, the actual base color is elusive. The exterior lighting reflects off the walls and pillars in shades of white, gray, tan and a warm light peach.

The inner entry features what seems to be tall, square and triangle, nail-studded shapes on the doors. These doors are open and allow you to glimpse into the dining room beyond. The dining room features four of Saladino’s own Highback Villa Chairs that surround a white linen covered, round table. The chairs seem to be covered in an off-white or tan cotton fabric that absorb the reflect color of the focus wall, seems to be in a shade of peach. The grand focal point on the wall is a large gold framed mirror; the white ceiling which features a curved triangular molding that seems to be the crown on this beautifully crafted masterpiece.

The sample board exhibits the original photo of the room, a photo of the Highback Villa chair, fabric swatches of linen and cotton, as well as paint swatches that seem to reflect the colors that Saladino used in this interior design.

Sources:
www.Saladinostyle.com
www.sfdesigncenter.com
www.fineliving.com
www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1P2-4027126.html
http://query.nytimes.com

FINALS!!! Sketching For Communication part 1

2008-05-15T17:51:00.000-07:00

This is a 6 frame storyboard I created for my final in this class. If you are interested in drawing, animation, movies, whatever, I highly recommend taking this class. It's offered at the Academy of Art in San Francisco (I am an online student).

I have always have problems drawing people, especially faces, but I have really improved a lot. I did get an A! I still need practice drawing emotions, but I know you will definately get this little story. Enjoy!

(Continued on next post)

FINALS!!!! Sketching for Communication - Part 2

2008-05-15T17:42:00.000-07:00

Light Fixture Concept Model

2008-05-15T17:35:00.000-07:00

These are pictures of one of the light fixtures I chose for my mid-term. It almost looks like the sketch; just remember....it is a 'concept model', but I am proud to report that I got an A! ;-)

2008-04-16T14:27:00.001-07:00

In my never ending search to find previous works, I have at last found an actual photo of the painted entry way in my first house!! Yippee!!

This was my first foray into faux painting, and while it's a bit rough, man, was it ever cool! I'm still looking to find the painting I did on the opposite side of the entry; it was an archway with a painted vine that had a snake and a lizard on it. So cool. Well, I shall persevere to find a really good picture of it. Nothing like a treasure hunt!

Happy Trails Everyone!

What I've been doing in school

2008-04-16T14:12:00.000-07:00

Ok, so you're probably saying to yourself " She finally updated her blog!". Yes, I know, I'm not very current but I do have a reason! I have been in school! I'm on week 11 now, only a few more to go until the end of the semester. I took three classes, all centered around drawing, and what a lot of work! I am constantly doing homework, homeschooling the boys or doing housework! I really need a nice long RV vacation. aaahhhh.

Ok, so what have I learned so far? Well, I have posted a few new posts to show some of the work I've done. I'm only posting the latest works because, well, the first assignments were relatively horrible compared to what I am doing now. LOL

My family says I am too critical of my work, but hey! That's me!

So without further ado....here are some of my assignments!

These two assignments are concept drawings for a dining room light fixture. They have an ocean theme to them, can you tell? In this class we learned about creating concept sketches (no rulers allowed) for different things; we had to create a plan (overhead view), side and front view and the axonometric. The axonometric was one of the hardest things for me to do; especially when it comes to curves, which of course, I just HAD to do all the time. LOL Live and Learn.

Architectural Design Renderings

2008-04-16T14:06:00.001-07:00

These renderings were created using pen, marker and color pencils. The above rendering features the works of Walter Gropius.
Don't you just love this chair design? It's called a Pelican Chair and was created by Finn Juhl.
The bed and lamps are the works of Ettore Sottsass. Can you tell I'm really diggin' the markers?

Beginning Illustration

2008-04-16T14:03:00.001-07:00

These two drawings are among my first attempts to do some emotional illustrations. The faces could use some adjustments but other then that, I think I did a pretty good job!

Perspective Drawings

2008-04-16T13:53:00.001-07:00

The drawing to the left is an exercise in atmospheric perspective. Before taking this class I had never done any value blending using markers, but as you can see, I have learned to use it quite well!

The picture of the Golden Gate Bridge is a homework assignment using the atmospheric perspective. It's really quite amazing how using value can change the outlook of a picture. An example would be the differences in comparing this drawing with the perspective drawing underneath.

This one-point perspective drawing was a lot of fun for me. I have a thing for the west...can you tell? LOL

I used hatch marks to add some depth to the drawing, but can you imagine would it would look like in a gray scale value? I'll have to give it a try when school is out.

2007-10-22T12:39:00.000-07:00

The gang at Nelder Grove.

Oh! Deer!
Exciting living at the campground
mmmmmmmmmmmm....................

Finally! -- Some fun stuff!

2007-10-22T12:18:00.000-07:00

Isn't Yosemite beautiful!!!!

These are my baby boys! Marcus and Ty Smith, our Florida friends (Misty and Max too!), with a Giant Redwood in Nelder Grove. Yes, a creek does run through it!

These last few months have been a trial for me. I was really sick in August, and ended up having my gallbladder removed. An expediate, pain-free recovery did not happen either. I had to postpone school too. But despite all that I was able to finally take some time off and just chill for a while. I am now refreshed, continue with school in a couple of months and I'm ready to tackle the world once again! Aha-ha-ha-ha!

During my time-out, I decided this blog was a bit too dry. I like pictures, but seriously, aren't blogs supposed to be outlet of yourself and funny too? Well, that's what I think at least. (and believe me...I do ALOT of that! LOL)

Anyhoo! The pictures I posted are from one of my favorite places on earth - Yosemite. Last week, our Florida friends came for a visit, and we went on an overnight camping trip to Bass Lake. We hiked the "Shadow of Giants" trail at Nelder Grove then, went off to Yosemite. If ya'll have never been... well, add it to your 'must-see' list.

I still haven't quite got down the order in which to post pictures and posts, so please just enjoy the inconsistancies that often occur in life. LOL

Custom Fit Gauchos for Jennifer H.

2007-07-04T07:14:00.000-07:00

Mauve ankle-length, black trimmed gauchos with front faux panel and left side zipper.

Grey ankle-length gauchos with left side zipper.

Aqua ankle-length gauchos with left side zipper.

Brown ankle-length faux skirt with left side zipper.

This skirt features a large inverted pleat at the front and back to create the look of a skirt.

These skirts were custom sized to fit Jennifer's specific proportions and equestrian riding needs. You can visit her blog at...

http://listenstohorses2000.blogspot.com/

Historical Clothing - Mid 1800's

2007-04-28T17:39:00.000-07:00

Ladies Wool Cloak with Hood, Fully Lined (100% Wool/ Lining 100% Cotton)

Ladies Girabaldi Blouse with Military Braid Trims(100% Cotton), Gathered Skirt (100% Wool)

Ladies Pagoda Sleeve Blouse (100% Cotton), Gathered Skirt (100% Wool)

Miscellaneous Paintings

2006-12-18T13:27:00.000-08:00

Painting for a private client.
Painting for the artist's whimsy!
Olema Ranch Campground, Olema CA
Olema Ranch Campground, OlemaCA.

Men's/Boy's Civil War Costuming

2006-12-18T13:08:00.000-08:00

Historical Costuming - Late 1800's

2006-12-18T13:00:00.000-08:00

Victorian Riding Jacket, Blouse and Riding Skirt

Coca Cola Christmas Display

2006-12-16T11:19:00.000-08:00

This is a foam carved display made for a contest between Coca-Cola Retail Account Representatives. The snowboarding polar boar is handmade of ultralight suede and has a leather nose. The snowboard, ramp, ice cave and iceberg are all handcarved and painted. All mini Coca-Cola product logos are from P.O.S. supplied to the RAR. The pictures actually do it no justice.......it looks very, very cool in person!

2006-12-06T13:20:00.000-08:00

Welcome to Our Creative Minds blog. We are new to blogging, so our pictures are a bit reversed in order. LOL Please accept our apologies. We have quite a few pictures of the work we do, so be sure to check the older posts too. Thank you for stopping by!

2006 CLC Christmas Program - Construction

2006-12-06T12:51:00.000-08:00

Wailing WallBackside of Traditional Flat Panels

Ok, I'm new to this uploading, so the pictures started in reverse. This is a foam carved wall, after it has been 'muddied' and textured.

This is Marlene, applying mud to the walls.

This is Marlene's Padawan, Joshua, carving out the foam blocks.

Padawan's Joshua and Jeremy constructing flat panels.

Padawan Terry, constructing flat panels.

Padaway Terry constructing platform.

2006 CLC Christmas Program - The Manger

2006-12-06T12:47:00.000-08:00

Act 2, Scene 6: Angels over Manger - not a very good picture, sorry.

(Hidden platform, behind manger; 2" x 4" construction of a 3' d x 8' w deck with 30" w stairs and landing.)

2006 CLC Christmas Program - The Inn

2006-12-06T12:42:00.000-08:00

Act 2, Scene 4: The Inn
(Foam covered Studio Panels; carved, textured and painted. 6 - 4' x 8', 2 - 4' x 6', 4 - 4' x 4'.

2006 CLC Christmas Program - Jesus' cradle

2006-12-06T12:37:00.000-08:00

Act 2, Scene 3: Joseph making Jesus a cradle fit for a King

(Initial design by Marlene Jeske, Construction and leg design modification by Keith Van Houten)

2006 CLC Christmas Program - Joseph's House

2006-12-06T12:33:00.000-08:00

Act 2, Scene 2: Mary at Joseph's House

(3 Traditional Foam Covered Flat Panels; carved, textured, painted, and swinging door)

2006 CLC Christmas Program - Wailing Wall

2006-12-06T12:30:00.000-08:00

Act 2, Scene 1: Rabbi's at Wailing Wall

(Traditional foam covered flat panels: carved, textured and painted.)

2006 CLC Christmas Program - Living Room

2006-12-06T12:28:00.000-08:00

Act 1, Scenes 2 -5: Modern day living room

(Traditional canvas covered flat panels, wood trims)

2006 CLC Christmas Program - Mail Room

2006-12-06T12:21:00.000-08:00

Act 1, Scene 1: UPS delivery

(3 Traditional Hardcover Flat Panels, rolling shelves and desk)