A Few Of My Fave Things.....

Already Tomorrow will bring us another new year!!
The holidays thus far have been very abundant in so many ways and i'm grateful.
Above are my planting boots i received to add to my container gardening aren't they kewl??? I love using odd objects as planters and these funky boots will add another touch and it makes my container gardening a pleasure to partake in.

I began my creative goal list for 2007 and will finish it tomorrow..

Wishing all a Happy New Year!!

Ode To Creativity!!

In Artistic Solidarity;
Rhonda

Winter Solstice

Longest Night of the Year

The winter solstice marks the shortest day and the longest night of the year. The sun appears at its lowest point in the sky, and its noontime elevation appears to be the same for several days before and after the solstice. Hence the origin of the word solstice, which comes from Latin solstitium, from sol, “sun” and -stitium, “a stoppage.” Following the winter solstice, the days begin to grow longer and the nights shorter.

The above pic is a card i created for Solstice.......Rhonda

Happy Winter Solstice!!!!

This is my Day of celebration and this is where i am going to finish posting for this year.

Dear Readers;

Six months ago i had a dream and so began a new creative journey called Outsider Art In A Box Art Vending. The project has strong meaning for me what i wanted to facilitate was that art can and is accessible and affordable to all classes of people.

The past six months has been full of insight,determination,surprises and loads of learning.Like any project there are the hills and valleys of growing creativity.I am pleased from the postive outcome that Outsider has received. Already 2007 is full of lots more branches for Outsider.I honestly couldn't have done it without each and everyone of you. Thank-You so much!!!

As Carol Burnett says " I am so glad we've had this time together to have a laugh and sing a song seems we just got started and before you really know it,its time to say so long"

I will be checking my email throughout the next little while but i won't be posting until January 2/2007

k maybe an odd pic might show up..

I wish each and everyone Bright Blessings!!!

Happy Winter Solstice and Abundant Holidays

In Artistic Solidarity;

Rhonda

To Be Or Not to Be The Grinch.............

Hey Hey Hey!
Its another day here at Outsider Central...Time is ticking and just checking are u done all the many shoulds,coulds on your lists.

Above the first pic is of the Grinch i just loveeeeeeeeeeee him and would love to pinch his cheeks and give him big hugs!! I saw this lovely green beauty at Stanley park and couldn't resist getting a pic. Its a mixed bag out there when ones goes out into the holiday fray,the grinch attitude pops up, well i chose not to sign on for the grumpy outlook. The Grinch is a reminder of whats it gonna be are ya miserable or do u have a gratitude attitude!!! I chose the gratitude as it takes less energy.

So ya never know when the Grinch is going to show itself...To Be Or Not To Be The Grinch That Is The Question!!!!!!!!!!!


The Gift Of Art Continues,stocking stuffers are abundant here at Outsider and above are just a few ideas,better yet get to a machine and put your four dollars in and receive a little boxed surprise and then tuck it into a stocking or how bout an office gift,hostess gift the ideas are endless.

Have u pondered the idea of giving a Outsider Art In A Box Subscription By Snail Mail...Look to your right and place an order or two talk it up.


Art On My People!

In Artistic Solidarity;
Rhonda

Receiving The Gift Of Art......

Good Morning and happy Sunny Day, Yahoo;

This will be brief this am as i am down to the wire in sending my daughters holiday goodies to her back east.

A couple of days ago trusty pepper(dog) was on alert and went crazy as something was happening outside,i went to the back door to see something hanging on door knob and the back of someone in take off mode...

And Surprise a present for "moi" isn't it awesome creatively fashioned i soooo love it...The holiday creative goddess who created this for me is Krystin Goodsell

I really enjoy Krystins work and now i have a unique piece!!!!

Well people have an awesome weekend...The Womens Craft Faire is happening this weekend at Heritage Hall on Main Street.

Chow For Now

In Artistic Solidarity;
Rhonda

Giving The Gift Of Art....Moving Right Aong

Merry Meet Creative Ones;
Time is flying so fast i am surprised that we are only what 12 days from the 25th
Outsider Central is most certainly in its own time warp here.

I have a full daytimer today so this will be brief .

The Outsider Gift Subscription has taken off big time ,believe it or not i have many American Subscribers and I Thank all for their support of the Arts!!!

Chalk It Up is a yours truly creation, a cute stocking stuffer for all ages, its a pin or a necklace that comes with a piece of chalk in which one can write a feeling,poem,quote or what have you.

Sushi Candles made by Cindy E. are certainly conversation pieces and give off a nice glow...if interested in these please contact me directly..

Krystin Goodsell is a regular contributor and supporter of Outsider, In previous posts Krystin has been featured. I find her to be a diverse artist and is comfy with playing with all mediums...her work is only a small example of her larger works and her work is worth investing in. Aren't the zines kewl

www.walkingwithkrystin.blogspot.com


MWAHCREATIONS.ETSY.COM

I love these gals creative expressions....it was a wonderful surprise unpacking their little gems.Check their website out you will be love their creative outcomes.
totally thumbs up for these gals.

Ok people time to sign off have an awesome day...

Keep Arting On!!!

In Artistic Solidarity;
Rhonda

Fa La La La....Gifts Of Creative Xpression

Yo Yo Yo!
Its beginning to look alot like the snow is gone............. Awomyn!
Life continues to move right along here at Outsider Headquarters, Did u know that Outsider Art In A Box is 6 months old,sometimes i wonder where the time has gone. I have been taking lots of mini breaks from the project as its been quite involved to get it on its feet... Behind the scenes which many of u never see there are lots of details one of the things that i have been slack on is finding spaces for the machines this will change in the New Year as i have been approached for new spaces to showcase the machines and i also will be having some helping in getting them out there.

Also Balancing doing my own art work has been interesting but i feel that its a priority in order to keep things moving forward. I make many gifts,cards throughout the year,however the last several months i have been on a roll creatively and take advantage of the flow. The first four pics above are some of my creative expression and yep that is a pic of the elusive me who is not into posting my pic normally. The oversized playing card is a collage and the envelope that goes with it will be enroute to Armstrong,BC

"I Am" is a mixed media lightbox piece.

"Uppity Womyn" mixed media on collage

The last two pieces are gifts from an Outsider Art In A Box Contributor,she does beaded keychains to put into the outsider boxes.During Holidays etc centerpieces and swags like above are created by this artist.

Well time to sign off as its a very full weekend!!!

Happy Arting.....

In Artistic Solidarity;
Rhonda

Giving the Gift of Art con't

Good Morning;
I thought i would try and get an earlier start posting this morning before my day takes off.

Above i have three artists that are also contributors to Outsider Art In A Box,in the small boxes you get a small sampling of the artists work and my hopes is you are curious enough to see more.

The Picture Pins are by Ann B,these and other great works of art can be purchased directly from Ann and its worth seeing her diversity of expression.
For those of you who may be interested in one of a kind beaded purses Ann is the artist to go see unfortunately i don't have a pic of her bags but i am here to tell ya they are faboo!!!

annblackwell@shaw. ca


Claudia S is a relatively new artist that has wandered to Outsider Art In A Box and is a very welcome addition. what i have seen of Claudias work makes me curious and exicted as to what is coming next..above are puppets that Claudia makes pretty cute eh.Claudia and her daughter have been featured here in previous posts. Great Gifts anytime of the year!!!!

www.purpleorangearts.com

Kathy B is a big supporter of Outsider Art In A Box and a very first contributor and continues to be a big fan......Thanx Kathy!!!! Ilove the coffee condoms and proudly i carry one with me everywhere i go,they are a great enviromental gift and they are truly funky!!! The coffee condoms can be purchased directly from Kathy. so go on try a coffee condom!!!

http://CaffeinatedCrafts.etsy.com

Art On!!!

In Artsitic Solidarity;
Rhonda

Giving The Gift Of Art...............

Well as far as i can tell the snow is almost behind us..Thank Goddess!!
Over the next couple of weeks i am going to offer some gift suggestions for the artist and art lovers in your life.

Gift Giving i feel is something that i celebrate all year round,this time of year for me is more about get togethers and food.

Handmade gifts are a delight to me cause i know that lots of love went into the beautiful outcome.

Ruby Dog's is a fave place of mine and is home to the first Outsider Art In A Box Vending Machine. I love this unique store and i gotta tell ya i never come home empty handed,for me i feel so overwhelmed cause there is so much to see and want to haves..Ruby Dog's has Gift Certificates ,i received one last year and spent every cent plus had to add some of my own dollars.

Take the time and go take a peek and tell Leanne that Outsider Art In A Box sent them.

Rachel Daws was one of the first contributors ( Thanx Rachel)to Outsider Art In A Box when it first began...Rachels work is breath taking,beautiful,insightful colorful..i love her work and her mini watercolors that reside in the Art Vending Machines are a true investment of this Artists Work.

I see how talented she is in her mini watercolors and its well worth seeing her larger works...Check out her upcoming Art Show December 16-17 @ 3008 West 32nd Ave 10-3 www.racheldaws.com

Well Folks please stay tuned for more suggestions in this series in Giving The Gift Of Art.


In Artisitic Solidarity;
Rhonda

The Crawl,Snow & Art

Hello Snow People;
Well the Culture Crawl was a blast and again i suggest it for those of u for next year that didn't have a chance to make it .
On Friday night i was at 1000 Parker Studios,the halls and studios were packed with people by 7:00pm,the highlight of Friday night was the whole building was without lights for a bit of time now if u have never been in this building it was a total trip i was very grateful to not have been in motion in one of the stairwells or trying to get around in the hallways.

The bright spot was though that Purple Orange Arts had lights so many packed in there... I saw some awesome art expression on Friday..that building normally i stay away from on the crawl but getting there early on Friday and watching setup and then people coming in was fun. Remember Triana that i spoke about as she is Outsider Art In A Box youngest contributor well she had a table outside of moms studio and i am so thrilled for her she sold all her art this weekend!! its great to see people supporting a young emerging artist.

Saturday was another crawl day,we started off at the ARC building 1701 Powell
i love this space in all its pure funkyness!!! they have monthly tours i believe and its well worth checking this building out... The spaces are live/work plus there are workshops studios in the basement and a cafe for the public as well as people who live in building. Again i was taken with the art i saw there. all in all i truly enjoyed my art-full weekend and its so inspiring i got a ton of ideas to experiment with..

And that brings us in conclusion to the snow out there,i must say i honestly thought it would have moved on by now...but i am chalking it up now as an artisitc study(yeah right)

Well snow people stay warm and don't forget a hat!!!

Have a faboo Day!!!

In Artistic Solidarity;
Rhonda

Art-Full Weekend

Its beginning to look alot like an Art-Full Weekend fa la la la!!! My old creativty cup runneth over. so this is quick folks as the next few days are full.

Womens Art And Craft Faire is in its 13th year and there is alot of diverstity of creative expression...Check out the site for info on where,when and more

www.soundsandfuries.com/faire.html

The Culture Crawl goes in full swing beginning at 5 pm today and carrying on throughout the weekend... Outsider Art In A Box will have a machine live at 1000 Parker studio of Purple Orange Arts Studio 430.

I love this art crawl as its so inspiring with loads of eye candy...So come on Down and check out Vancouvers Arts Scene

www.eastsideculturecrawl.com

The other pics above are a commission piece that is being picked up by a womin from Prince George...haven't posted on here much this week as i was into finishing this piece to hand it over.

The story of this piece began with the case which is an old jewelery display case,many of the items were given to me by the client as they held many memories of an Aunt who passed away. The client is interwoven throughout this piece which i still haven't named yet hmmmmmmmmmm

well all have an awesome weekend...Bright Blessings!!!

In Artistic Solidarity;
Rhonda

Peek-A-Boo

Going to the mailbox is always a surprise outside of the usual bills. Today a pkg arrived from Rochon Sands Alberta and artist Garry Gardiner in the pkg are mini prints of Garrys watercolors. They are awesome and very well put together... I am a tad bias here as Garry is an old friend of mine,he was very exicted about what i am doing here in BC and wanted to support Outsider Art In A Box.

These are defintely collector prints and will frame beautifully....Ten Years ago i went on an art vacation to Garrys Cottage which is his year round home and studio...I was learning some new techinques to apply to my own creative expressions,Garry is my Art Mentor i had the pleasure of a few years when the both of us resided in Edmonton Alberta for loads of quality art time,Today i go on working art holidays to continue to learn from Garry.

On that 10 yr ago Vacation Garry wanted to paint me and so here i am lounging on the sunporch at Garrys home cottage on the lake..The name of this piece is called "Rainbow Reverie",it was a surprise today when i opened the pkg and these particular prints were sent. I have a larger version of this piece and again my bias is showing i love all the diversity in this watercolor.

Ode to Working Artists!!!

Thanx Garry for your support and your wonderful watercolors...


In Artisitic Solidarity;
Rhonda

Sushi Anyone

The Above pic are Sushi candles made by Cindy Erskine of Maple Ridge I wasn't sure if in the past i had put these cuties in a Peek-A-Boo. It continues to amaze me what creativty can fit into the Outsider boxes. The Sushi Candles come with wasabi and ginger these sushi candles truly look good enough to eat.

Outsider Art In A Box Subscription is peeking the curiousity of some...Above certainly is a little gem you could receive in your monthly subscription.

Give the gift of art today and yes you are supporting a working artist.

The Petri Dish on Saturday November 18/o6 is holding a tea party/art sale. Suzanne who painted one of the Outsiders Vending Machines will be showcasing her painted tea bags they are very cute!!!

So stroll on down to 2406 Main St The Petri Dish and have a cup of tea


Have a Creative Day!!
Art On

In Artistic Solidarity;
Rhonda

Hopping Along..............

Yesterday i had the pleasure to attend a friends graduation at the University Of Victoria,my friend graduated with a Bachelor Of Social Work Degree.

I was quite taken with the Victoria BC outdoor campus as it was full of bunny rabbits all different colors and sizes hopping about.

At times i feel very much like these bunnies as i hop about on the creative path,taking little nibbles here and there. There is always something to keep me creatively focused...

At this time i am preparing for the upcoming Culture Crawl November 24-26 as two machines will be hosted at Purple Orange Arts Studio,yep u read right two machines more on the second machine coming in near future posts.

I received an email the other day and it was pointed out that i did not have the art vending locations posted on my site quite an oversight on my part but has now been attended to ,please note locations will be posted here on the blog on the right hand side.

well its a rainy day and i as i look at my to do u in list..its time to say so long farewell for now i shall return!!!

In Artistic Solidarity;
Rhonda

Incoming Snail Mail

Yesterday in my snail mail was this awesome surprise sent to me from a couple of supporters of my website alteredanything.com.

its quite delightful and fun i have it hanging right in my sight...One never knows how creativty affects people and its nice to know that they enjoy what they see.A simple gesture like the one above makes a big difference for us working artists.

As you all can see i have made some changes here on the blog. Its a rainy blustery day out there,which is a wonderful time to settle in and create.

Have a great long weekend one and all!!!

Ode to Creativity!!!

Rhonda

Peek-A-Boo's

Well its high time that i posted some peek-a-boos,yes creativity is still trickling in.
Thanx to the artists!!!

Above is the creative expression of

Krystin Goodsell....... Broken Heart Central mini Zine
....... Mini Assemblage 'Love' Series
....... Collaged fabric card 'Life'

Claudia Segovia (Purple Orange Arts)........Mini Art Stamps

Triana S. (Pretty Pets Arts)...........Art cards & jewelery

Triana is Outsiders first young artist with her own little biz,triana is 9 years old.

The flu has come to visit here at Outsider ugh!
Outsider Art In A Box can be a gift that can be given all year round....Give the gift of handmade....

Life is a Journey Not A Destination~Live It~Dream It~Be It

K All

In Artistic Solidarity;
Rhonda

Stepping Out.....

On Friday night we went to see Bruce Cockburn at the centre,my partner Bev won the tickets on clear Fm radio,it was quite a surprise and the concert was awesome we had excellant seats. I truly love the smaller venues and know that i am way past wanting to be with thousands of people to catch a glimpse for lots of dollars.

It was my first experience being at the centre,the acoustics were awesome!!! this smaller venue offered a whole lot and i gotta tell ya old Bruce still captures an audience.

The above machine will go through a big transformation this week...This is the orignal Outsider Art In A Box machine that had its debut way back in May,i remember the vision i had for this machine and it came into being,along the way it was suggested to have different looking machines i had to really work through that as i wanted to hold fast to my vision,however like all things visions change and today i am happy to say that the diversity in the machines creative outlook has been a bonus.

My posts have certainly been sparse these days and i want to say sorry bout that,i am feeling and being very creative now and taking full advantage of the high.

I also pursue other creative paths so Outsider is a part of the journey.. I always welcome your creative expression to put in a box..

Have A Creative Filled Day!!!

In Artistic Solidarity;
Rhonda