Tag Archives: #junk4joy

the dutch door. finally.

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Well, I have good news and bad news.

First the good news.

I finally got around to painting the dutch door I made for french door into the courtyard. I made this door for a couple of reasons. I groom dogs and I do them out the back there. The courtyard is very safe and enclosed, but I would always have to close the french doors to keep them from escaping into the house, and greek french doors never have handles to open from the outside. The dutch doors allow me to keep the doors open with the flyscreen closed – and protected from little monsters running straight through it.

The other reason is that I was visited by a rat twice a few years ago.

Once was enough. Twice was beyond enough.

I like to keep the back door open all the time, flyscreen closed, to get fresh air. And rats chewed through the flyscreen. UGH.

Hence, a dutch door.

Here are the before and after pics. Before, boring old marine ply which didn’t improve with exposure to sun and rain.

And after… I gave it an undercoat of white, then an ombre blue background, finished by painting a mess of wildflowers on it and a coat of outdoor varnish. Both sides.

Pretty, ain’t it? I love it. Of course we’ll have to see how well it holds up to the weather and dogs scratching at it to escape being groomed…

For those curious about how it was done, I used brushes and house paint for the undercoat and background. Then I used acrylic paint for the flowers and grasses. For those I was very experimental. I collected various plants on my walk with Vincent that day and I used them to create the grass by dipping them in paint of various green shades and smashing them onto the wood.

I used leaves and flowers pressed into paint to create the leaves and flowers. That didn’t always work so well, so I used brushes, cardboard and anything I could think of to add more detail and shape.

In the end I think it came out very pretty. I’m sure the visiting dogs agree.

And now for the bad news.

Turns out my Australian Business Number (ABN) was cancelled due to the fact that I haven’t used it or filed any income tax since moving to Greece – since I work and pay tax in Greece. And now my junk4joy domain will be suspended till I can reinstate my ABN and upload it to my host again. Which I’m in the process of doing.

BUT… I have none of my information so its a long deep winding tunnel of frustration!

When I left Australia I left a box of documents (old tax returns etc) with my brother who put it in storage as he’s moved a couple of times so he’s unsure where it is. Plus he’s on his way Greece and had no time to go searching for it.

My old laptop corrupted a few years ago and I lost everything on it – including all that information.

So I’m kinda stuck. I’m working on it. But not in time to stop my junk4joy domain from being suspended for 30 days from May 25. I’ll be back once I have the info I need and re-link it all, but till then no more posts.

Not that you’ll miss them as I haven’t posted for over a month even with a working blog!

z

christmas is driving him to drink

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I started needle felting again about a year ago, and I have to confess I’m hooked. I love it. Its such a zen feeling to sit quietly at the kitchen table stabbing wool and shaping it into anything I want. Often with the clashing sounds of an audio book on my mobile phone and mom’s tv programs… sigh…

I especially love creating little creatures with personalities, giving them more character by adding accessories to tell a story. This little bunny, for instance, started his gift wrapping full of Christmas spirit, but found he needed a big glass of red wine to get through it.

This little guy is the first in a series I planned to make for my Etsy shop this Christmas… the idea is to make little critters who represent different parts of the season. Including the snowmen in my last post, but these critters are all needle felted by hand, not made based on felted dryer balls I’d bought as an experiment.

Of course, the whole tariff thing in the USA has not done my shop any good, cause I sold quite a few of my creations to people in the US. And right now, I have a box waiting to be shipped to Canada but can’t send it due to the postal strike… Its hard enough to sell online without all this.

I’m not very good at promoting my work…

Anyway, I figured that since I’ve been absent for so long, I may as well share some of the things I’m made over the last few months.

One thing that’s helped heaps in making these small creations, is the light I bought on Temu. This thing is amazing. Its made for nail professionals and has enough space under it for me to work my wool comfortably. Its USB powered, and since I don’t have easy access to a power point at the kitchen table (cords are not user friendly to old women (mom) who are unsteady on their feet) I use a fantastic strong and fast charger I also got on Temu.

Needless to say I’m addicted to Temu.

I’m not proud of myself… but I can get so many good and useful things there. And of course some totally useless things, but I won’t mention that here… Unless you’d like me to share the failures…

Anyway, later.

z

needle felting like crazy

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Lately it seems like all I want to do is curl up on the couch with my ‘work tray’ and coffee table and stab wool with sharp implements.

Maybe it’s because it’s been really cold and windy and not at all inviting out there…

Maybe its cause needle felting is a more immediate way to create sculptures – for instance, it’s so much quicker than papier mâché which needs to be done in stages with long periods of drying in between.

Plus, working with needle felting gives me the opportunity to make miniature stuff – something I’ve always had a passion for.

Whatever the reason, I’ve been working on these little figures most afternoons and evenings and listing them in my Etsy shop.

Here is baby boy mouse with his bunny and milk bottle.

And the baker mouse with her fresh loaves of bread and her baker’s cap.

A middle aged couple on the way to the beach with towels and soft drinks in hand.

A little gardening mouse in her ladybug boots.

A homeboy mouse with a hoodie, untied sneakers and snacks.

A ladylike mouse whipping up cream to top a pie.

And last but not least, the best Elvis impersonator of the mouse world, Elvis Mousely.

These little guys are so much fun to make. They’re done in a couple of days mostly, depending on the time I have to spend on them and the bits I need to make – like the shoes and any props I can’t buy. Sometimes I make my own clothes (like Elvis’ jacket and the aprons on the cook and gardener), or footwear which means I have to let the air dry clay I use in most cases dry. And any painting I need to do… But they’re quicker to make than the papier mâché dogs I had been making in the past. Not to say I won’t be making more of those!

My needle felting workshops are doing ok as well. Given this is a small island and a lot of people leave over winter and are too busy to do any crafts in summer, I never expected these workshops to take off, but they are great fun for those who do join in.

But I have to get back to painting and not spending all my time stabbing wool. I have 2 commissions and the series I’m working on waiting for me!

z

painting #3 in a series

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I finished the 3rd painting yesterday finally. It had only been sitting on my easel since before Christmas and I’d barely touched it.

Feels good to have it done finally.

Now a new canvas is sitting on my easel, in the living room (ie my studio) starting at me accusingly as I sit and felt, or do nothing.

I have some ideas of what will go on it, but so far all I’ve done is prepared the canvas. Better get my paints out again as I also have a cat commission to finish by next week.

For now the newest painting is hanging in my bedroom and I love it there.

I have no idea where I’ll hang the next paintings I plan on doing will do… I am fast running out of wall space. Not that I had a lot to start with…

I’ll have to think of something.

Meanwhile I continue to work on STUFF.

The felting workshop I did this week went great. We all had fun and got something to show for it at the end. It might only be a needle felted BALL, but hey, its the start of something great! You gotta learn the basic technique first and that’s what the first beginners session was about.

Next week we’ll add colours and attach parts to make the ball into something more interesting.

Then I have to plan my second beginners workshop series and add in an advanced one for those wanting to take it further.

Such fun.

z

busy with my etsy shop

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Etsy sale for the month of January 2025.

I have been absent but that seems to be the way I roll lately.

I roll out of bed, walk Vincent, have coffee, get online, do minimal housework, walk Vincent, do some errands, roll onto the couch…

However, despite my seemingly endless nothingness, I have been busy needle felting. The couch has become my new workstation. As you saw in my last post, I have been infected with the needle felting bug again.

I have been spending almost every single evening with a pointy weapon in hand, stabbing at innocent balls of wool with wild abandon.

And experimenting.

So far, here is the first lot which I have managed to put up for sale in my store:

They look so cute in a group.
Bird lover and bird watcher fox.
A fisherman Jack Russell terrier.
Shy, tea drinking hedgehog.
A rabbit with his morning coffee and newspaper.
Shy teddy bear with his bunny rabbit.
And of course you’ve already met the little rat with his heart in his hands.

You can see more pics and details of each of these guys in my store.

My store has been very quiet lately, so it was time to put selected items on sale and promote it more, so please visit and share it with friends. I offer commissioned work – paintings, remade dolls – wall art for a nursery, felted and papier mache sculptures… all kinds of things.

This is a hard but wonderful time of year. I have the time to create, but no regular income. I’m loving the time at home and being able to experiment and play, but having to juggle bills sucks. Luckily, I have tons of art and craft materials on hand thanks to my inability to stop buying it! I think I have enough to keep me busy for MONTHS.

z

christmas stones

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So, there I was, sitting at the kitchen table, a mess of art and craft stuff all around me, wondering what on earth I should do. I didn’t feel like putting the last strokes on the large painting… Afraid to finish it? Afraid to start a new one? No idea why, but there I was…

I had a pile of stones remaining from the project I made for a hotel this summer among the things I needed to sort, pack up or get rid of, and thought ‘why not make some Christmas stones?’… I had the gift bags, so why not?

I made two types – some with Christmas designs and colours, and some with silver and gold foil.

I’ve been going a little crazy with the foil lately. I’d never worked with it before so it’s been fun to experiment. Stones aren’t the ideal items to foil as they aren’t at all absorbent and the glue takes forever to dry… however, I’m really pleased with the way they look.

I even tried the foil on one of my little air-dry clay bowls and it came up nicely.

For the little bags, I created a stamp for the foil stone bags, stamped them and added a touch of gold foil which makes them really pop. For the more Christmas themed stones I used stencils to decorate the bags.

I think the presentation of these stones is really up there. I hope they sell as stocking fillers or small gifts this Christmas.

z

stitches and driftwood

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I have always loved stitches where you don’t expect them – in wood, on paper, etc. When I found this bit of wood on the beach, with the big crack down the middle, I thought it would make a great project to ‘stitch up’.

After giving it a thorough clean, I drilled tiny holes for the wire as well as using some of the old nail holes to create the stitches. I added some raffia, a rusty heart and some dried lavender. It might not be a statement piece, but its sweet and I love it.

I love making something out of things I find on my walks and using bits and pieces I collect, finally giving them a purpose.

This was one of those quick and easy, ‘don’t think, just do’ projects I love cause they come out of the blue and are finished in no time at all, yet still give me that feeling of having achieved something special.

z

painting #1

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I’ve begun working on a series of paintings for the exhibition I am planning next summer. I thought I’d share the first one to whet your appetite.

This is the painting which gave me the inspiration for the series. I love old buildings, the falling down, crumbling walls, the rotting wood, the paint chipped doors and windows. The whole abandoned feel of them. It’s something I photograph every time I walk the small streets of the islands (or Athens, to be honest).

I’ve always been drawn to the juxtaposition of the old and the new in its ugly forms – beautiful decaying buildings for instance, with modern day graffiti on them is one of my favourites.

Or, as in this case, the beautiful patina of the old door and cracked walls with the discarded cola can and cigarette butt.

In an experimental mood, I added a little silver foil to the tin can make it stand out a little more. Not the neatest job, but its rubbish anyway, right?

I love this piece and hope others do too. I’m excited about this series of paintings that show the beauty of days gone by against the ugliness of today – the effects of too many people and not enough care about the beautiful places we live in.

And, as usual, this is painted on a recycled canvas.

z

dizzy – a commissioned dog sculpture

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This is one dog I especially loved doing. He belongs to a friend of mine and he’s a beautiful boy with a lovely personality and serious ball addiction.

He’s some kind of terrier mix with huge ears and a crazy coat.

Here is a close up of his face and those massive ears.

And a little 3D visual.

So, how did I achieve that coat you ask? Well, I thought the best thing for it would be to use gauze. I raided my medicine cabinet and took out some gauze which I dyed by soaking in coloured water: the black was diluted acrylic paint, and the tan was… you guesed it! Black tea!

I then cut up the gauze strips into sections and laid them over the figure in a way that matched Dizzy’s colouring and the direction of the coat.

I then brushed the gauze to loosen it up and give it a more ‘hairy’ appearance.

It worked out pretty well even if do say so myself.

Mind you, the coat is not soft and flowing. I had to fix him with PVA glue to make sure he stayed intact, but he’s a sculpture, not a toy, so I figure that doesn’t matter.

The friend that commissioned him asked about his eyes. I don’t do eyes on my dogs. I’m not really sure why, they just seem better that way. Maybe its because I don’t feel I can do them justice this way, not like I can in my paintings. Maybe its cause without eyes you can project your own eyes onto them, your mind automatically fills in the blanks and imparts the emotions that you want to see in the figures.

Maybe I’m full of crap. But I’m the artist, so I have creative license. Ha.

z

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more on fridge magnets

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I think I mentioned working on half the kitchen table. Not much space, but enough to work on smaller projects like fridge magnets and rocks. Since I still had some wooden shapes, I’d gotten on Temu, I decided to go ahead and finish them all. I also found I still had some magnets, so I was able to finish them.

I used acrylic paint to do these, and a very very thin rigger brush to get the fine lines.

I love these little plant magnets, though I’m not thrilled with the mushroom ones…

I love the cats too and am thinking I need to do more of these. Maybe a little bigger. Maybe as coasters as well…

Remember these?

This is what they look like now. The evil eye, a very popular theme in Greece. Much better.

I had some more of these round flat pieces so I did some more simple colourful sea urchins.

Remember these?

Now they’re starfish. Or they could be urchins if that’s how you prefer to see them. But they’re not. They’re starfish.

I had a few more of these half rounds so I made more stylized urchins. I think I prefer these 3D ones, but both are nice.

Lastly, remember these fish – the top ones were made using the wood burning marker and the bottom ones were decoupaged.

This is what they look like now. Much more fun!

I’ve ordered more wooden shapes, some of the same and others in different sizes, not sure what I’ll make when I get them, but they’re fun to work with!

These little magnets are cute and make great little presents of the ‘stocking filler’ sort.

z