Recycled Paper

A Friday dinner engagement delayed this week's art project until Saturday. I recycled used kaishi into 4" squares of handmade paper. My friend Judy, visiting from Mendocino, strung beaded necklaces while I made paper. Together we had a very pleasant artsy afternoon.

Kaishi is used when enjoying sweets during the Japanese tea ceremony.
We'll save used papers in the little pot until I have enough to make some more paper.

Little sheets of paper on a sushi mat 'drying rack'

Experiments with flowers and petals

Rainy Day Nikko, Linoleum Print

This print began as a photograph taken of Nikko Kitty as she looked out the window on a rainy day. I turned it into a high-contrast image in Photoshop, then traced it on to the linoleum block. Nikko frequently interrupted the process for ear scratching or to beg a dose of catnip. This final print was done with water-based ink on paper handmade from recycled cotton rag kaishi, paper used for handling sweets during the Japanese tea ceremony.

Final print on handmade paper

Photo with increased contrast, traced on linoleum and ready to carve

Nikko insisting it's time for a break

Finished block

Friday Night Art Project 2011

A year or so ago, I engaged in a weekly poetry project. I posted a poem or poetry related topic on most Fridays for the year. My weekly project is not so specific this year, just do art of some sort once a week. So far, so good.

Great Backyard Bird Count, Feb. 18-21, 2011

Fellow citizen scientists, it's time to stock up the feeders: The 14th Annual Great Backyard Bird Count is coming soon! GBBC is a joint project of Cornell Lab of Ornithology and the Audubon Society:

The Great Backyard Bird Count is an annual four-day event that engages bird watchers of all ages in counting birds to create a real-time snapshot of where the birds are across the continent. Anyone can participate, from beginning bird watchers to experts. It takes as little as 15 minutes on one day, or you can count for as long as you like each day of the event. It’s free, fun, and easy—and it helps the birds. We'll be adding updated GBBC materials for the next count as they become available. 

Visit the website http://www.birdsource.org/gbbc/ and download the easy-to-follow instructions. Then go wash the windows and get ready to watch some birds.