Jesus IS the Reason for the Season... we are excited about our Weekly Give-Away!

We are so blessed... as we enter this Advent Season!

Our way of sharing that JOY is to give away each week, 

over the next four weeks... one of the "Souls of Joy" art 

dolls that I made this past summer... AND one set of four

 handmade cards that Katie has designed.

Here's how it will work: During each of the four weeks 

in Advent, between now and Christmas on Wednesday

 evening (12/1, 12/8, 12/15, 12/22) Katie and I will 

choose the TWO posts that we feel best express 

the "Reason for the Season!"

Each week, one post will be selected to receive a 

"Soul of Joy" doll, and one post will be selected  

to receive a set of four handmade cards.**

(**the cards will be hand selected by Katie, this photo

 only represents the cards that may be selected) 

This coming Wednesday evening, December 1st"...

"Huppert" will find a new home! 

As will a selection of four cards.**

Have fun... and drop us a note, that inspires us all 

and touches at the very heart of Christmas!

Our Warmest Wishes... Daryle and Katie

P.S. Huppert's name means: "bright spirit"... 

(not "light" spirit) Tsk! Tsk!

Thanksgiving Blessings!

From our home and hearts... 

to yours!

Daryle and Katie

le gardien de memoire... that is to say: "The Memory Keeper"

I will cover the styrofoam ball with paper clay... I'm not planning on inserting eyes, but rather, painting them on the face.  The temporary "halo" is from a dismantled solar walkway light!  Tsk! Tsk!

The arms of my "keeper" are once again, wooden craft finials (for which I have this weird affinity it seems).  I base-coated the old black lacquered finish with Krylon outdoor/indoor primer... it works like a dream!  The game plan is to cover the entire box-body with vintage and scrap-booking papers.  I have three metal book plates (one for each drawer) that I will eventually add and then insert labels in.

Ahhh... the wings?  I'm trusting that at just the right moment; inspiration will come knocking at my door and I will know how to finish them (perhaps a bit of modeling paste to add some interesting texture?)  The wings are cut from 1/8 inch craft plywood and I have attached them to the box-body with small metal hinges and screws... for a bit of whimsical movement! 

A New Art Doll: "The Memory Keeper"

I came across this 14 inch high three drawer black lacquered jewelry box at the Glassboro Goodwill Store... it was marked $7.00.  

I knew in a moment that those three drawers were destined to hold keepsakes–– guarded by the Memory Keeper.

I envision an art doll that will hold treasured keepsakes, from the past.  For me, the inspiration came in part from a children’s bereavement workshop that I attended six years ago.  The instructor, Virginia Frey, introduced us to the concept of creating a “memory box.”  

A simple box filled with small objects that carry special significance and meaning!  Over the next several weeks... I will post photos of this work in progress!   Blessings... Daryle  

A Journey Within A Journey!

This was a personal journey;

 acknowledging the past and embracing the future.

 The long journey home:

• a childhood memory; where family still resides.

• a “distant country”–– where we raised our children.

• a promised land, where eternity will unfold. 

The Long Journey Home...

There are three parts to this assemblage...

and correspondingly; three parts to the journey!

• there is the doll...

• there is the boat ("phaeton" on wheels)...

• there is the mast with the bluebird in tow...

My father-in-law would often remind me:

"The journey is the best part of a trip!"

 

He was absolutely right!

A Sneak Peek... The Journey's End!

What an adventure this journey has been...

working on "Phaeton #2"

I finished him this evening  and hope to post 

a few more pictures in the next day or two!

More about the journey... later!

Blessings... Daryle

"Phaeton #2"... Is the Whole Greater Than the Sum of the Parts?

All of the "parts" seem to be falling in place,

for "Phaeton #2"

His boat is finished...

I made a paper clay black crow 

sitting on a perch, to hang from the mast.

He still needs a coat of gesso and some paint

on his head and hands...

and then I will add a crackle finish.

His arms and wings need to be wired on,

a few vintage buttons and trims

and he will be ready for that "Long Journey Home!"