February 6th - A Visit from a Friend, Sushi, & Origami

I didn't have much time to create today but inspiration was EVERYWHERE! My friend, Tawna, came to visit. She lives in Yellowknife, Northwest Territories. I met her in San Miguel de Allende, Mexico, when she was my student. I was teaching a digital photography workshop. We have kept in touch and she is in Banff now to attend a work conference at the Banff Centre. It is so good to see her. She lives in an amazing place that few people have a chance to visit. We would love to do a camper trip to see her one of these summers...

It was a beautiful sunny day and we spent it attending the 60th anniversary for the local library and finding treasures at the thrift store. We went out for dinner at the Sushi Train, where they put sushi on a train and you pick what you want, then they total your bill using your stack of colored plates (different colors represent different prices). Then, Tawna showed me an amazing photo/video slideshow of 3 weeks she spent in France and Italy. It was lovely and made me realize how much I miss traveling abroad...

All I had time to accomplish today was a bit or origami. A panda and a bird. Voila!

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Tsotchke Bowls

I have been wanting to make these for a very long time (is that how I start every post?). I have collected many tsotchkes, aka knick knacks, over the years and I am not really the sort to keep them on shelves. And after all, there are not a lot of other things to do with them. I can photograph them, but then what? I love old wooden bowls. I collect those, too. And I don't actually do anything with them... do you see where this is headed? Throw in a love for paper and you have my tsotchke bowls. They are the perfect jewelry holder bowls or odds and end holders... in which case they are useless items put together to house useless items, LOL! Now that I have started, I can't be stopped, so I will have to start listing them in my OTHER Etsy shop, which is now quite pitiful. And I need to refine my technique. I wish I could cut the paper so I can decoupage it into the bowl in just one or two pieces. The way I did this first one was totally expiremental and more like a metal steamer that has the leaves that fold down, but not at all symmetrical like a steamer. It is kind of a patchwork which is not that nice up close. The owl is cemented into the middle with gel medium. Time for bed, I can't write anymore... I am a night owl but it is time to hoot my final hoot. Nighty night all!