First Art Disaster of the New Year, and a Name Change

     One reason for this blog is to prod myself into producing more, and better, artwork. I am hoping it will help me to FOCUS on my art goals, and ignore all the opportunities for procrastination. As a furthur prod, I decided to make FOCUS my Word-of-the-Year, ala Christine Kane. There was a small UFO from an on-line class that I didn't finish last year (lack of , you know...), which I thought could make a good sign to remind myself of this word. This piece already had a hummingbird zeroing in on a flower. I added the word FOCUS in red chain stitch, very slowly, because my hand stitching skills are rusty.
     Next, to FOCUS attention on the bird reaching the flower, I decided to add a gold leaf frame. I applied a frame of fusible web, carefully positioned the gold leaf, and ironed it on. Due to my past lack of FOCUS on this UFO, I completely forgot that at some point I had coated this piece with Gel Medium. Gel Medium, which acts as a what? That's right. Glue. The gold leaf stuck to the entire piece, not just the fusible. In desperation, I frantically scraped at the surface, but couldn't save it.

     I almost pitched this right in the trash, but decide to color in part of the bird and flower with marker, and hang it directly in front of my work space. Do you think it will help my FOCUS in the future? Or at the very least, keep me from making the same mistake again? Have you ever done something like this?

     You may have noticed that the profile name on this blog changed from Top Doe to Karen. This is because Ginny had a little talk with me, and let me know that I am Top Doe in my dreams only. Sometime I will tell you more about the power of rabbit disapproval, but for now lets just say, could you tell this face "No"?