Category: distraction

Resistance, Distraction, Unbearable, Oh My

Resistance is in full swing here this winter. Coming out of this one is going to be like wrestling with spaghetti: messy. “Doing” was a good idea, but doesn’t look like one that’s going to get a lot of traction. 

Apples on Cloth, Watercolor,  9×10 @Dora Sislian Themelis

Goals? Resolutions? Doing? All a distraction from actually working on anything.

It’s the end of January already. Is this what the year ahead is going to look like? If so, it’s going to be a rough ride. Better buckle up.

Ground hogs, bears, and all manner of beast that hibernate through the winter have the right idea. Let’s just sleep through the whole thing, and wake up when the sun is high in the sky making the weather bearable. I have had enough of winter.

However, Mr. Resistance likes to visit in nice weather, too.

Like I said, better buckle up. Mr. Resistance is very chummy with his good friend Mr. Distraction, and they like to get together often, it seems.

I am going to need ammunition, tools, plans. 

Sunflowers and More

Six Sunflowers (c) 2011 Dora Sislian Themelis
12×16 Watercolor on Lanaquarelle
I decided to paint these sunflowers one more time and from life, before I had to throw them out. They were getting really dry and ugly. I think I’m finally done with sunflowers. I sketched out the composition and tried my best to keep the colors light before adding darks. They don’t excite me anymore. Not like when I first painted them. I guess it’s expected.
On the distraction front, I am doing well! Isn’t that how it is? 
I’ve become obsessed by the colors of beads and this knotting business. It’s become addictive. These red beads look striking against the black of the waxed cotton cord and make me want to play with them again. I’ll be putting these in my Etsy shop soon, along with the blues bracelet from last week. Yum.

The thing with this is that some beads have too small a hole to thread the cotton cord through and it becomes frustrating. I managed.

Now I’m on a mission to use leather instead of the cotton cord. I made myself dizzy searching the online shops for both leather cord and more beads. Yeah, more beads. Beads with some sparkle. Beads with a larger hole so I can play some more. Like I said, addictive.

Veggie Haul and Something Extra

The veggie haul last week was plentiful. I found a baby watermelon, 15 apricots, 3 peaches, peppers, purple basil, 2 onions, one green and one yellow zucchini, purslane, and cherry tomatoes. Very nice, and smelled great.

And another bunch of nice, big sunflowers. I have been busy with those sunflowers!
Another distraction from painting was happening too. I made this knotted bracelet of ceramic round beads, chalk turquoise, and a couple of metal beads. The knotting takes time, but it’s great to get my mind on something other than the waiting painting. And I knew it was waiting for me.

I like the colors of beads that I used. They are calming blues and greens that remind me of the ocean. Like I said, it was a distraction.

A Distraction for Friday

 A Distraction

Oh man, I had to get away from that last painting with something that didn’t need to make any sense!
I went out into the backyard garden with the watercolors determined to get away to a far away place. Planted out under the crabapple tree are these late blooming, salmon azaleas among other flowers and potted planters.

Twenty minutes was all I wanted and I did it. Done. I really didn’t care what I came away with as far as a finished product. Back in the saddle people! A little too washy in some spots, but who cares anyway? I mixed up some pleasing colors, threw them down on the paper with no objective other than the process of painting something, anything.

A little secret: on the other half of this paper was the dance party painting. It took all I had not to paint right over it. Would have been some kind of satisfying though.

Painting, and Knitting, and Beading, Oh My!

Some people have a hobby or two that they like to indulge in now and then.  Others do one thing very well and have fun doing just that.  When one enjoys their “thing”, whether a creative outlet or sports related, it’s a go-to activity that gives pleasure in the down time. 

Having too many enjoyable pursuits becomes a burden.  I am one of those people.  As an artist I really need to paint.  My favorite medium is oil paint and I paint BIG.  What am I painting right now?  Nothing.  I’m not oil painting, not right now anyway.  Right now I’m knitting!  And I’m knitting five items at once.  And I’m making bead/wire jewelry.  And I’m pastel drawing.  And I’m sketching with watercolors, which is painting, ok.  Did I say I’m knitting?

It’s all a distraction, you see.  No, not multi-tasking like people want to call it.  I’m working on one thing until I suddenly am very interested in another thing.  Then I stop doing the first activity and fluidly move on to the other.  No multi-tasking involved.  There’s a good excuse for this and it’s not ADD.  Since I haven’t used the oil paints in a while first I need to set them up on my palette.  This takes time.  This takes energy.  So I go to the next easy-to-get-to thing which is the pastels.  Just open the box of pastels, draw, and clean up the dust, and I’m done!  But I have to pull out the boxes from the shelf.  As I start for the shelf I see the half done knit socks I’m working on.  I head for the knitting.  I’m at a juncture in the knitting where I have to count rows and I spy another pair on other needles.  I pick them up and knit on them for a few rows.  Behind this project is the beading bag full of jewelry goodies.  I stop knitting and look through the bag for something I thought of.  Do you see where this is going?

Wouldn’t it be smart to get the oil paints out and just do that?  Yes, it would be a good thing unless the half knit sock is in the way.