Archive for the ‘Top Ten Tuesday’ Category

Someday I’ll get to the Houston Festival again, but in the meantime, I can live vicariously through blogs! Here’s some great eye candy, plus a few other goodies….and Jack Nicholson……

From Frieda Anderson comes a look at some spectacular quilts from The International Quilt Festival in Houston.

Autumn Beauty by Barbara Shapel

Refracted Lily - Gloria Hansen

From the folks at C&T Publishing comes a wrap of market with some vendors that look so wonderful!

From Susan Brubaker Knapp comes another look at Houston Market.

A cool discovery on YouTube…I’m not one for music videos, but this reminds me of something the kids on Glee would have done. From Panic At The Disco comes “Ready to Go.”

From JPG Magazine comes pics from their latest – “Smokin'”. As usual, great stuff!!

Space Flower by Greg Byer

From Mad Magazine comes a very different offering – a look at a USO tour. From someone who ALWAYS watched Bob Hope, this article gives good insight to life overseas serving our country.

And also from Mad comes a send-up of the Family Circus….great cartoons by Bill Spleen…..

From The Best Article Every Day comes great ways to maintain your learning. As someone who will probably never stop taking classes, there’s some great stuff here to explore.

And now this….is really wrong – and oh so funny……suppose The Shining had been a romantic comedy…….someone with waaayyyy too much time on their hands……

This is shorter this week – because the last clip is an amazing video just out, on an untold story of September 11. To get you to the end, here’s a few goodies from the week.

A good article about being asked to donate work….which I don’t think many organizations really understand as it relates to artists’ efforts. Another great one from the ArtBizBlog.

From Cool Hunting comes the work of this clay artist. Look at this texture!!!!

Charles Simons

Jelly bean art, courtesy of Kathy Nida this week….

Here’s the “Making Of” video – very cool!

From Joan Beiriger’sBlog on art licensing comes this “Creative Process of Extremely Successful Licensed Artists,” complete with videos on these five people. Lots of good stuff here.

Now for an amazing clip. Narrated by Tom Hanks, this is the untold story of “Boatlift,” the largest sea evacuation in history – 500,000 people off of Manhattan in the hours after September 11. This is worth the rest of the Top Ten – worthy of it’s own. Be sure to have tissues at hand.

Busy week on the web this week. From The Best Article Every Day comes 106 Excuses That Prevent You From Ever Becoming Great. How can you not read an article with a title like that?

I particularly like this one, as this was my generation of breaking boundaries:

“YOUR GENDER WON’T LET YOU. Gender roles are increasingly less relevant. There have been women CEOs and male nurses for years. Men can start a daycare and women can start a design firm. Blaming your gender simultaneously speaks poorly for your gender, and empowers those who refuse to fit a mold.”

TED Talks now has a YouTube channel, Ads Worth Spreading. The TED talks are always wonderful, and now there’s a TED Blog, with great articles.

Light bulbs? Yup – evidently we artists might have some trouble coming with the phase-out of regular 100-watt bulbs. This from the Joanne Mattera Art blog.

From JPG Magazine comes a photo tribute to Steve Jobs….some interesting…and weird…photos here.

Apple Logo Autumn Spectrum by Devid LeClerc

Very reminiscent of Andy Goldsworthy.

I have a former student, Dr. Matt Lyon in Charlotte, NC,  who is doing some amazing work when it completes to complete health and wellness. I invite you to visit his blog and download his ebooks on wellness. There is some great information there, certainly worth researching.

Mary Edna Fraser does some simply amazing batik, and most of it in the name of climate change awareness. Check out this book signing for global climate change.

I love Vi Hart, who bills herself as a recreational mathematician. She does amazing stuff with doodles that makes mathematics seem so clear. She also has her own YouTube channel…yeah, I know…..doodler extraordinaire!

And now…candy buttons and mobius strips…

Phil Hanson – wow! I put in “amazing art” on YouTube…who knew I would find this?

And finally, is it art? Elvis in cheetos????

Have a great week!

Yeah, this week was not really motivational…..I keep reminding myself I am retired, and I don’t have to do anything I don’t want to….but I still feel the need to accomplish things…and I didn’t do much this week…….including getting caught up with Google Reader. So the above quote is taken from an article on Dumb Little Man about motivating yourself. Good way to start out the day!

From Alyson Stanfield’s blog Art Biz comes Ten Tips for Pricing Your Art. Pretty timely for me, as I am looking at some print venues. It was interesting, being told at one art show that I was in that I was WAY underpriced. This should be good food for thought – and planning.

Maybe I am so used to having a web presence that it seems like second nature to me. After all, we’ve been on line since 1998 – ancient, almost….So I have a hard time when I find a new artist (or an old one) and can’t find a web presence. Such is the case with some artists from our last weekend in Sedona/Cornville. Arlene Walsh is a “local” lady – Payson, AZ. I’ve seen her patterns for years, and actually bought a few to make “sometime in the future.” Scroll down on this site to see a selection – some fine Southwestern images.

From C&T Publishing comes a giveaway – Mickey Lawler’s Skyquilts. First of all, C&T books are class all the way. Secondly, this is a gorgeous book!!

Along the lines of “what were they thinking” comes the National Costumes for the Miss Universe Pageant…..Here’s Miss Ecuador….

Some very interesting ideas for wearables….check out Miss USA – a little ridiculous, if you ask me!

X-ray photography as art – some cool stuff here….be sure to get to all the sections.

If you’re a regular reader of this blog, then you know I am scanning and putting all my slides of China from 30 years ago to digital. The Best Article Every Day has a section on 21st Century China – you need to scroll to the article. Some amazing photos of a changing country. Be sure to check out the photo that comes after this one.

And I just love the juxtaposition of the bagpipes and china on this next one…..

“Women play the bagpipes as they stand on a beach in Hong Kong, on October 9, 2011. Finding practice areas in the densely populated city is notoriously difficult for practitioners of the instrument traditionally associated with Scotland and Ireland. However, the pipes enjoy a loyal following throughout much of Asia and are a regular feature of military and police bands across the region.(Ed Jones/AFP/Getty Images)” (From the website)

And one more….”The Miao ethnic minority dancers perform during the Opening Ceremony for the 9th National Traditional Games of Ethnic Minorities of the People’s Republic of China, on September 10, 2011 in Guiyang, China. (Feng Li/Getty Images)” (from the website)

Thieving penguins…..who knew….

Have a good week – let me know what you find online!

I wanted to look at something different this week, and I find I’ve been spending a lot of time looking at YouTube – it constantly amazes me what one can find there. I followed a link to an artist who creates creatures powered by the wind. This was my inspiration for everything else I’ve found this week. Theo Jansen’s Strandbeests.

Ao this video led me to check out a couple others from BBC. I admit to watching Graham Norton – he is so funny, and he has great guests. Well, I love Helen Mirren. Here’s a great bit about being naked in film.

Then I decided to go and check out one of my favorite artists, Andy Goldsworthy. This video starts with a look at some of his work, and then it movesto a sixth grade project – kids making similar work out of natural elements found in their own school yard. (Kids and art – so close to my heart.)

Then I went searching for some Broadway stuff, and I found this great parody of Chicago, “Glossy Fosse.”

And a little more from Forbidden Broadway: Chicago…..

If you’ve ever done auditions of any kind….or if you just know horror stories, this is a riot…

Now this one is just downright feel-good – especially if you’re of a certain age-bracket that used to jitterbug…or so I’ve heard (snort…).

Some very cool science and math in this water droplet…..

I LOVE Vi Hart and her math doodles……watch the cool patterns that happen in this doodle….

And to finish this post off:

Have a great week exploring the web!

It’s Tuesday, and that means our Top Ten….but I’m cheating this week – only seven – I think I’m kinda under the weather – not really sure. I do know that when I don’t eat properly or not drink enough water, I feel like a slug. I’m not sure that’s it or not, but anyways…here’s some cool stuff for this week.

From Artsy Shark comes an interview from the authors of Starting Your Career as an Artist. Both authors worked at Parsons School for Design and have a nice take on the role of your alma mater in helping you start your career.

From Catalog Living comes a smart, sarcastic, funny look at the “people” – Gary and Elaine – who live in the catalogs. Alert – you will spend a LOT of time looking at the “pages” from Gary and Elaine’s life….

Elaine didn’t buy enough flowers for the centerpieces, but Gary knew that this was where his extensive background in napkin arranging would finally pay off.

From Elizabeth Barton’s blog comes a look at an extraordinary woman and her patchwork “paintings.” Remarkable work, and one of the pioneers in fiber as art, I’m sure. Here’s just a snippet: “Edrica Huws is one of the most inspiring makers of fibre collage pieces, or patchwork or quilts (whatever you like to call the work). For people who feel that realism of any kind in this medium is to be avoided at all cost, Huws’ work should be an eye opener.” Be sure to watch the video of this remarkable woman.

From Cool Hunting comes this vacation spot on Maui (where I first started teaching…and I SURE couldn’t afford anything like this!): The Four Seasons Maui

From Marie Segal’s blog comes nail art – and I have to agree with her – it’s come a VERY long way!

On Etsy this week, I’m part of a Treasury! Don’t Be Square by Sally Manke, made up of items from the Textile and Fiber Arts List.

 From JPG Magazine comes images from a new photo shoot. I’m particularly drawn to the “yellow lines’ in the road…..

Hopefully more good stuff next week! Enjoy!

It’s Tuesday, and here’s the Top Ten.One advantage to being on trips is I get caught up all at once and get lots of things listed for the next Tuesday! Don’t forget the bonus at the bottom from MAD Magazine!

From Dumb Little Man comes another interesting idea for organization: Try the Tag-It Approach for Increased Daily Productivity. I particularly like the parameters for tagging the tasks…like “high on irritation/nagging.”

 30 Places to Buy and Sell Stock Photos, from Kate Harper’s blog of Greeting Card Design. Some great resources for photographers.

From JPG Magazine comes some great photos of  their challenge “Give Me A Sign.”If you’re a serious photographer, you probably already know this site. If you just love eye candy, then follow along with their blogs.

Trees at Work by Quin Hoxie

Linda Matthews has a guest blogger on the topic of our inner critic. Here’s the start of Chris Zydel’s essay:

“I came across a startling statistic recently, which is that more than 90% of all children consider themselves to be creative yet only 10% of adults see themselves as having any creative capacity.

So what happened? How do so many of us lose our connection with the basic truth that we are all born creative and that it’s not meant to just go away once we get our adult badge?”

Alyson Stanfield has an amazing, right-on post about exposure for artists and the pitches that are thrown our way: You Promise Exposure, We Want Results.  This really resonates with me, as we have had issues with folks from quilt guilds asking for donations. We no longer do that because 1) we were never thanked, 2) we never got a copy of the program or any publicity material mentioning us, and 3) our local quilt guild made assumptions about us always donating because they couldn’t afford to pay us. Sorry – I have bills to pay. So – if you’ve been in this position – and even if you haven’t – read this article!

Okay, here’s some of the coolest new fonts! Kate Harper Designs has a cool link to a blog post on typography. How can you not love a chocolate font?!?!? This is from DJ Designer Lab: 40 Beautiful Handmade Fonts.

From Lyric Kinard comes a bead tutorial that goes with her new DVD, Bead It Like You Mean It (on my wish list….). I do want to try these stacks.

From Cool Hunting comes a look at word play, “Word as Image,” much like the words we tried to decipher in class. Some interesting new revisions.

From Fine Art Views comes a blog post by Moshe  Mikanovsky about 10 Ways to Use Your Smart Phone when it comes to marketing and building your business. A couple of good ideas here, and I personally need to get over being phone-challenged by my Droid. Making lists – and checking them – is probably the biggest thing I could do….

Also from Fine Art Views is a piece that really resonates with me this week, as we just got some local gallery representation. “Forget New York City – Think About Your Own Art Community.” We finally made the break-trough locally – and in a good way!

So…what have you found on the web this week? Send along a couple of links in the comments section!

BONUS: From MAD Magazine…….new Super Heroes…….Just Us League of Stupid Heroes….

Oh my goodness. Today is the third amazing day in a row! It all started on May 1 when I began the first season of Cocreating Our Reality and practicing the Laws of Abundance and Attraction. I started with changing my thinking to always being positive. The first week was very tough, as I became aware of just how negative many of my thoughts were. Eyeopener, to say the least.

So when I retired the end of May, I knew I was going to become a full-time artist – something I have wanted to do for YEARS. Each time I wrote an abundance check with the New Moon, great things happened. So how does Monday Marketing and Top Ten come together? Well, if you’ve been following the blog, you know that on Mondays I have been looking seriously at marketing the business and our art. It’s been all about organization and learning and getting out there. At times it seemed like I was just doing more things and not having anything to show for them.

The rationale part of me knew that I was laying groundwork, and I would have to be patient. Now here’s the top ten for us since June 1 when I started the heavy work for marketing.

* I started with lynda.com and took some classes on Facebook and Twitter, making changes and setting up pages and addresses and plans.

* After getting them set up, I then started a class in Linked In, as I had an old profile from over a year ago. Again, I worked through a class on lynda.com to do all this. So the profile got set up.

* One of the things suggested in the Linked In course was to join some groups and become part of the conversations to develop our networks.

* I joined Art Business and Art Marketing, as well as a few others, and I heard about a call for work for a show in Tucson called Tikkun Olam. All work was 12 inches square and reflected on crises facing the earth.

* I offered to help and sent out information about the show throughout my various networks, plus I made a piece for the show.

* I attended the opening reception for Tikkun Olam (see the post here) and met and chatted with the organizers of the show, two artists from Tubac and Santa Fe, plus talked to a couple of people interested in the piece I created (you can see it here – it’s the yellow piece). What was so cool was to get the positive feedback from the organizers; they loved the piece and (as I found out today) the hanging system.

* I sent thank you notes with offers of additional work to the organizers the next day.

* I got an invitation as a result of the reception to join a group of artists planning a show in October in Tubac (a major arts mecca in southern Arizona) and attended the organizational meeting today.

* This show will be October 22 in Tubac, called Anza Energy. We’re putting about a dozen pieces in the show. And…..

*One of our marbled pieces, Ocean’s Bounty, may be the piece on the main poster for the show, and…..several of the pieces – if they don’t sell – will probably go into a spa resort as part of a water show in Tubac, and….one of the galleries whose owner is also participating, has a couple of our pieces now in his gallery as part of the publicity about the Anza Energy show.

So……get out there and do the work – your art and your marketing!!

Once again, great stuff on line this week. I actually lost a bunch of hours last weekend on YouTube. I found the video below, and that led to another, and then another…I stopped at “Slumdog Price is Right.” The amount of creativity out there – that people are willing to admit to – is staggering.

On to what I’ve found this week: Great photos from World War II – Lest we forget….images from World War II

Thinking about making a book? Contributing a book? Here’s really good advice from Joanne Mattera Art Blog. What about ne-time use of your images? There’s a lot of good information in here about points I hadn’t considered.

THE. BEST. PARODY. EVER. Especially if you know the music to West Side Story…..

Boy, have wedding invitations changed! Here are 50 Stunning Wedding Invitations – I love the “wheel”!

Via Alyson Stanfield’s Art Biz Blog comes this article of “speed dating for artists and retailers.” This is a really cool concept – check out the article – and successful.

Fine Fine Art Studios Online comes a timely article on doing your art inventory – something on my to-do list for the next month.

From Rayela Art comes a review of Hand/Eye Magazine. Wow – that is definitely on my subscribe list. I agree with Rachel’s comment about wanting to have something in your hands to admire, even though you can see some of the same things on line.

One of my favorite artists is Chris Jordan, who does a series called “By the Numbers: Portraits of Global Mass Culture,” which points out environmental facts in an “in your face” piece of artwork. This is his “Whale.”  Go to the site and zoom in – Depicts 50,000 plastic bags, equal to the estimated number of pieces of floating plastic in every square mile in the world’s oceans. It is an amazing piece of work. On the one hand, you are stunned by the statement, and then when you zoom in, you are horrified as each plastic bag becomes noticeable.

From Happy Place, Brilliantly Smart-ass Responses to Completely Well-meaning Signs.

And finally – the really critical stuff we should have learned in math – from The Oatmeal:

To start us off this week comes a post from Dumb Little Man on productivity – stating that multi-tasking is a myth. I tend to agree, now that I’m older and can’t do what I used to….Number 6? Exercising regularly…….

Tips for pricing your goods – a series of articles from Handmadeology.

Another “shoot-out” from JPG magazine – some really gorgeous eye candy.

Fairy Chimneys by Aileen G

A new blog I discovered – Delete Apathy – with photos of Hurricane Irene.

“Delete Apathy is a venue for creative people to change the political climate of environmental and social policy. We hope to form a pattern for activism in your backyard. Delete Apathy is our signature for various events and includes choreographed dances, musical compositions, and other fine arts, planned for major universities and institutions.”

I drove Highway 12 on the Outer Banks for many years. Just one of the places I’ve been or have friends.

Highway 12, The Outer Banks

For zentangle lovers, some of you may have struggled with Paradox. I did, until I started being slower, more deliberate, and turned my tile more often. Well, from CZT Margaret Bremner comes a wonderful tutorial on Paradox.

From Joan Beiriger’s blog comes a post on licensing for calendars…something that has been on my mind as I organize my various collections.

And along with this is Joan’s article with a list of over 50 US art licensing agencies. Some great info here.

A little bit of fun with this video – could you see the pranks you could play??

From the OMG file and Cool Hunting – they always spotlight really cool gadgets and new products. Can you find the one that prompted me to go OMG?

And from Kate Harper Designs comes a cool video on typography – extremely interesting, as is everything on her blog.

Send me your cool stuff – it’s amazing what’s out there, and let’s share what we find.

I’m getting caught up from a few days off, so I’m overwhelmed with all that I’m reading and seeing on line this week. The first article from Dumb Little Man has some great thoughts on productivity, perfect for me now as I try to be productive and at the same time not flit from one thing to another.  “Is Your Passion for Productivity Hurting Your Creativity?”

Also from Dumb Little Man, and in line with the last post, comes finding time for meditation. “Three Ways to Bring Meditation into the Chaos of Daily Life.” Sounds like my life on a regular basis…although not as much now that I’m not teaching. (Have I mentioned at all that I’m retired?!?!)

I enjoyed the one or two times I have dyed fabric. I played everything by ear, bot really sure what I would end up with. I discovered one very important lesson – I have a LONG way to go to get good at this. One person who already is there is Vicky Welsh of Field Trips in Fiber. Read about her process just in creating a monthly color palette, in this case reds. And many of us know just how difficult it is to achieve the right red.

Since I am actively marketing my Etsy store, I discovered a blog related to all things Etsy, called Handmadeology. Lots to explore and read about – I’ve already picked up an idea for promoting my holiday sales.

And…for those of us getting older….remember Wayne Newton as a young sensation? Check out Mad Magazine‘s send-up of a new album…..you have to go and look – won’t spoil the surprise here…..

And also from Mad – Dick Cheney’s resignation letter….you’ll laugh and cry at the same time for poor Dickey…..

I am really taken with the flash mob concept, and this one is pretty cool – Ravel’s Bolero at the Copenhagen Central Station. Imagine a full orchestra just appearing….loved the bassoon, and wondering about transporting the percussion section….

Anyone using Pinterest? I’m having trouble getting it to work – maybe it’s because I don’t understand it totally, or maybe…it’s because the IMac is over 5 years old and not happy these days….Anyway, I’m a sucker for post-it art. I’d like your feedback on using Pinterest.

In memory of September 11, here’s an update from The Best Article Every Day about the World Trade Center.

Finally, to end with a tie-in to the beginning: 20 Ways to Be Better at Life Today, fropm the folks at Nerd Fitness (how can you not love that?)

You may have noticed a new page on the blog – Art Blogs. I tried to go through the MANY blogs I follow through Google Reader to give you some added goodies to view. That said, I don’t always get to read everything every day, but there are some folks I read, regardless of how busy the day has been. So here they are:

Anne Huskey-Lockard – El Milagro Studio: Little Miracles of Art – photography that is absolutely magnificent, and tutorials that will have you itching to try new techniques.

Blue Moon River – Susan Brubaker Knapp – I wanna be Susan when I grow up…..

Art and Quilting in Camden – Sarah Ann Smith, author of Threadwork Unraveled; lots of process on how she finishes quilts.

Threadwork Unraveled

 Art and Quilts, Cogitations Thereon – Elizabeth Barton; explanations of processes plus some great philosophy

Elizabeth Barton

Art Biz Blog

Joen Wolfrom – the color lady – I have all her design books, and I love reading her blog – LOADS of great info on color.

Joen Wolfrom

Kathy Nida– I understand the workings of her mind…it takes another teacher to really understand! And her work is WONDEFUL!

Kathy Nida

The Free Motion Quilting Project – how can you not love a site that has a new free motion quilting video almost every day?

Mary Helen Fernandez Stewart – a wonderful lady who does art with children – you can see the absolute joy on the kids faces.

Mary Helen Fernandez Stewart

Enjoy these wonderful people!

This week has some really cool pictures and a few extra videos, including one that could become my latest obsession….Enjoy!

Writing the Artist Statement – some good thoughts about making the unexplainable explainable. From The Future Buzzcomes 50 Viral Images so far for this year – some GREAT stuff, plus you can surf to the other sites.

Coming September 14 – A Day of Reality on Climate Change.

If I were 20 years younger, I would be so behind the Khan Academy as a new way of teaching and presenting material in mathematics. This guy could revolutionize the teaching of math, and I love how it is coming more popular – I have a friend who’s son is just beginning the program as part of his homeschooling, and he will love it – and it’s free.

We are talking a new bad habit for me – I caught this video on “zenspirations” by Sakura, and I could become hooked….

From Alyson Stanfield and the Art Biz Blog comes “Collecting Your Collector’s Names.” Good ideas for keeping track of who is buying your art.

A new blog I’ve discovered – Write It Forward and the post “Thriving in the Choas of Publishing.” Interesting for those of us thinking of doing ebooks.

From The Best Article Every Day comes Top 100 Little Know Websites Everyone Should Know About……there’s stuff here that just amazes me….NerdBoyfriend and Fearthe GayChicken…..just sayin’.

I discovered this site by accident a couple of weeks ago, and I have been faithfully watching videos and slowly trying them – a new free motion quilting video for 365 days. The Free Motion Quilting Project is addicting.

And finally, a very clever video called Typolution, using nothing but type to tell a story.

Send me cool stuff you find on the web – I am entranced with this technology!

Welcome to another edition of Top Ten Tuesday….never know what you’re going to find! Plus I love reading about what people are doing. And blogs about history – but I’m staying away from current politics – makes me too angry and depressed, and I just don’t need that! So here’s just the cool stuff….

Speaking of politics (and this will be the last time, I promise), when I do look at headlines, I scan Al Jazeera in English. If you depended on just the US media, you wouldn’t know nearly 75% of what is actually going on around the world. Forget your previous conceptions of Al Jazeera – this is good all-round news.

From Cool Hunting – a really interesting take on working with crystal – including rings and weapons….

From Cool Hunting this week also comes where to play on Bora Bora. I REALLY want to go on vacation now!!

From the JPG Blog,  a new contest – photos are FABULOUS!!

Antelope Canyon, Abstract #1 by Linda Clifford

Also from Cool Hunting, a short video of an art show in Mexico:

Cool Hunting Capsule Video: Liquid Sculptures from Cool Hunting on Vimeo.

From MAD Magazine, a look at the class of 2015 (hey, it’s the teacher in me…..).

Seven Steps that May Dramatically Boost Your Happiness from Dumb Little Man – some good ideas here. One step? Follow your bliss.

If you have not discovered fractals yet (and forget about all the math involved – just go for the beauty), you need to look at Fractal World. Here’s their fractal of the week:

Shopping more at Farmer’s Markets more? If you follow Summer Tomato, you will be able to tour farmers’ markets around the world. Here’s Shanghai….

Mix zentangles, ATC’s and color, and you get Enthusiastic Artist‘s  gorgeous work!

Have a great week – send me cool stuff you find online!

I was a history major in college (and yes, despite it all I ended up as a high school algebra teacher…), and I read LOADS of books on WWII. Still do – finished The Rising Tide by Jeff Shaara on the North African campaign, which is a great read (for some reason I have always admired Erwin Rommel, and now I know why…). I almost always read newspaper and magazine articles on anything about WWII. From Facebook comes a link to The Smithsonian Magazine with a wrenching and incredibly sad story – Lt. Minter Dial’s Annapolis ring. When teaching American History, we don’t have the time to get into these stories, which is what hiSTORY should be about.

With the end of the space shuttle program and the decommissioning of Discovery comes a 360-degree virtual tour of the cockpit. If you have ever wondered about what the cockpit looks like, you can use your mouse to tour it. You can drag the cursor all over, but warning – you can very easily become disoriented….so many switches! Check out TheLastShuttle.com for great information.

For my gluten-free readers comes this from Cool Hunting (they have the BEST STUFF!). Four gluten-free indulgences that look wonderfully yummy.

Here’s an interesting Canadian artist who does a lot of embroidery and cross-stitch, Lindsay Joy. The link is to her “Anxiety Series,” and I can certainly relate to many of them!

Joen Wolfrom is a master at color. Her new blog is looking at colors one at a time, and oh my, the photos she finds are amazing. This post is on using blue-green analagous colors,  and there is a photo there you HAVE to see.

Here’s something I REALLY want to try – gelatin printing with Cynthia St. Charles from Montana. Her blog Living and Dyeing Under the Big Sky has some great ideas. Hey, I’m retired – I can try all sorts of things!

Goodness, how did MTV come to be 30? Seems like only yesterday we were saying it would never last…..so here’s Mad Magazine‘s take on it – blast from the past!

If you’re into zentangles, check out Rainbow Elephant – isn’t that a great name for a blog? Not only directions for new and interesting tangles, but videos to accompany each of them. This is on zendoodle metal plates.

Designer Ann has a page of great videos, which has a couple of TED talks, and nighttime sewing, just to name a few. I could easily spend an hour watching them.

And finally, for your laughing enjoyment, 10 bizarre and obscure university courses from The Best Article Every Day, like the Simpsons and philosophy….and that’s not the weirdest…..