New shop on Etsy.com "Raecycled Art by Raette"

I have always been obsessed with garbage. What I mean is I don't like it. I think of all that garbage sitting in a landfill and it almost makes me nuts. I am not nuts enough to keep my garbage, and I am not a trash hoarder by any means. I do however get inspired to create things out of what some would call junk.
Some of it I sell, some I refurbish and keep. Either way, those I sell, I will list automatically on etsy, and those I keep I will post here on my blog, just because I love to share about my current projects.

My shop on etsy is called "Raecycled Art by Raette" I will not be posting paintings on Etsy unless it falls under the raecycled category. Here's a link:
http://www.etsy.com/shop/raette

Last night I got a wild hair to refurbish this old trunk that I found at a garage sale about 6 years ago. It's been sitting in my room storing blankets. I've been pondering how to raecycle it and finally it hit me. This is what I did to it last night

trunk before

I think I still want to do something with the hardware on the trunk. It's pretty tarnished. Perhaps a little polish will do it. When I do finish it completely I'll post it. If and when.

Supplies Ready

getting started

finished trunk

Trunk Close-Up

ZANITA

Zanita lives in the wild manzanita plants out here in Northern California. Every year, it is her job to curl the outer skin of the manzanita plant, revealing the vibrant red skin underneath. During the spring, she awaits as the blossoms bring their cheery pink tones. She finds the perfect one and makes clothes for the newborn manzanita faeries. You see, manzanitas are abundant up here, and many faeries are needed for peeling in the summer and late fall.

Zanita is #8/365 faeries in 365 days.

Actually, I am spending more time on these faeries than I had anticipated. I am working on polishing my skills. I may actually take 2-3 days per faerie and add another medium to the give them a more finished feeling. My goal here is not to whip them out like I have in the past, rather to tightening up my skills. I will still do 365 faeries but it may take more than a year.

ANNAPEAR

Annapear lives among the blossoms of the flowering pear tree here in Northern California. She is one of the first spring faeries, only visible when the pear trees are in full bloom. The blossoms popped early this year so we had the pleasure of finding Annapear earlier than usual. Spotting Annapear early means that you will have an abundant, fruitful year. It has been a long time since we have seen her this early.

Hello Spring!

Annapear is #7/365 faeries in 365 days.

DAFFNEY

DAFFNEY is the protector of the garden. It is her job to keep deer away from the rest of the flowers. She does this by using her burr-bombs. When the deer try to eat a daffodil, she throws the burr-bombs into the deer's mouth which is entirely unpleasant and makes the deer want to leave the garden alone. This does not hurt the deer, after all, Daffney loves animals just as much as the flowers she is protecting, but it is critical that bees and butterflies have plenty of nectar. If the deer were allowed to eat all of the flowers, well, you can see where this is going, this would not be a good thing now would it?

Today the first daffodils bloomed in my garden. Oh, early signs of spring how energizing it is!

Swine Flu and tomorrow

Okay, so no one is calling it swine flu anymore, but it feels like I have been wrestling with swines all day. I am completely lacking in any sort of energy and have had a low grade fever all day. I did manage to get the kids to school on time this morning, and I got through thier homework with them (okay the girls anyways - T doesn't need my help) this afternoon and fed them all and their dad too, a good dinner. Now I am too tired for anything else.
Looks like I'll be painting two faeries tomorrow.
Here's to recovery!
night for today