Bev's Baaaaack!

I have seen the devil and it's is called Malware! After a month of ups and down in trying to rid my computer of this accursed stuff, my computer guru finally had to reformat my hard drive. Being the queen of procrastination, I had not backed up since September, so I lost a lot of "stuff". Not to mention all my bookmarks! Curses, confound and drat! Thanks for all your kind wishes. I'm trying to get reorganized. I tried to catch up with my comments, but I'm having a bit of trouble there, so if I missed you I'm sorry. All the entries this week were stellar!

Three Muses - Postage Stamps

Stamps are so much fun to play with. The lady is really "into" her work! I hope you all enjoy creating your version of art with stamps. Can't wait to see! (I apologize for late post. We're in the midst of a ^%$#%$# snowstorm, and I was distracted).

The Three Muses Challenge - Birds of a feather

It's already Wednesday morning here in Western Australia so we are getting an early start. The theme this week is BIRDS OF A FEATHER. My cockatoos have been given a makeover and sent off to a honeymoon in Paris. I can't wait to see what you have done with YOUR birds.

For details of my picture, click HERE

Three Muses -Quote or Quip

This is one of my favorite quotes because it is so true! As women, we are so quick to accept blame for any number of things which are beyond our control. We're all loyal members of the congregation of Our Lady of Perpetual Guilt. (See my blog for origin of this, and for credits). I'm looking forward to all your favorite quotes and quips to add to my quote journal. And, most important of all, HAVE FUN!

The Three Muses - Something in the Air

I'm not sure I believe my own quote, cynic that I am, but the idea of floating in a cool, cloudy world appeals to an Aussie suffering the effects of one extreme heatwave after another! Global warming is alive and well in south-Western Australia where all sorts of records are being broken.

I can't wait to see what you have floating in your air space!!

Credits for my picture are HERE

Three Muses Challenge #33 - Water

My personal muse led me to underwater whimsy with this challenge. I'm anxious to see where the challenge takes you. I'm reminded of Walter Winchell's lead-in for an old radio show,--"Good evening, Mr. and Mrs. America and all the ships at sea!" Maybe we'll have some of those before the week is out! See my blog for credits to my piece. (It's inspired by the work of Angi Sullins and Silas Toball.) We had such a phenomenal response to last week's challenge, I hope this one is equally as inspirational. Have fun!

The Three Muses Challenge - Angels

Welcome to all our wonderful and talented artists for our first challenge of 2010. We hope you had a peaceful and enjoyable holiday season and we wish you a very Happy New Year.

Our theme this week is ANGELS. Anything goes! Conventional, classically beautiful, statuesque, whimsical, quirky, even (gasp) maybe a Zetti angel or two! Angels are an idea rather than an actuality so who is to say what they look like? Every week we are blown away by the variety of entries, every single one so unique and wonderful. I am sure that this week will bring a host of angels, each one different to the next.

Credits for my sample picture are HERE.

Three Muses Challenge 31 - Something Old, Something New

Well it's the last challenge for 2009 here at the Muses. Thank you so much for supporting us over the last seven months, it's been a fantastic experience for Marie, Bev and myself, making so many new friends and seeing our little community grow and prosper.

We hope you will continue to visit and post your lovely work here and may we take this opportunity to wish you all a happy, healthy and prosperous 2010.

So without further ado, here is a little inspiration for this week's theme of SOMETHING OLD, SOMETHING NEW. I can't wait to see what this theme will mean to you.

(Credits on my blog.)

Three Muses - Challenge #30 = Home Sweet Home

The aboriginals in Australia call the place of their birth their "belonging place". I've always liked that term. No matter how far we stray, there is a place in our hearts reserved for our belonging place...for home. I've tried to depict the excitement of a young couple, ready to establish a home of their own. (For more about their choice, see my blog). I hope you are all snug in your homes this holiday season, filled with the peace and content that is the spirit of Christmas. You have all enriched my life in many ways. Thank you.

The Three Muses Challenge - Mail Art

It's Wednesday morning here in Western Australia so it is time for our challenge.

This week's theme is MAIL ART which can be anything you make of it. Old letters, postcards and cards, and stamps from far off places are so full of nostalgia for us and it is a delicious exercise to use them in artwork. My problem was knowing when to stop so my collage is a wee bit busy!

We can't wait to see how you use your "stash" of mail ephemera.

The lovely Miss Beverly will be along soon to post her sneak peek for next week.

Credits for my collage are HERE

Three Muses Challenge #28 - Bottles & Jars

I learned the legend of the blue bottle tree from the venerated Storyteller, Kathryn Wyndham, of Selma, Alabama. The legend, originating with the African slaves, is that the blue bottles ward off evil spirits, who fly into the blue bottles at night and are trapped, then evaporated with the morning sun. If you're vigilant, you may still see blue bottle trees in the gardens of the south. I may have shared this story before in response to a challenge at Mixed Media Monday over a year ago, but I couldn't resist repeating it. I hope you've enjoyed hearing about it!

Three Muses Challenge 27 - Fun and Games

Hi it's me, Ann, and this week I have chosen FUN AND GAMES for my theme.

What does FUN AND GAMES mean to you, what will fire your imagination, will you be inspired by playing cards, bingo, a board game or games that people play, or something else entirely?

We can't wait to see what you will create, but just in case you need a little help to get you started, here is a sample I created for your inspiration.

Remember that any medium and any style goes here at the Muses, all we ask is that you have fun. So enjoy.

{For credits see my blog.)

The Three Muses Challenge - Time

The theme this week is “Time”. Time is a subject that can be approached from so many different directions – time flies, the passage of time, time waits for no man, etc. Time affects us all and is the most persistent constant in our lives. How will you illustrate time?

Credits for my collage are here

Three Muses Challenge #25 - KEYS

Success at last (after initial problems with upload). Here's my interpretation of this week's challenge - KEYS. I thought of any number of interpretations -- keys to the kingdom, key to my heart, key to knowledge, and key of C, and finally went with the key of C. I'm anxious to see what all our talented participants have to offer!

Three Muses Challenge 24 - IN YOUR DREAMS

It's Ann here and my theme for this week is IN YOUR DREAMS, which could be a dream of something you have always wanted to be or do, or a dream holiday destination, or a different way of life. For those amongst us who like surreal, it might be a dream person or fantastic landscape. Or you might like the idea of illustrating the darker side of dreaming, a nightmare landscape for example, or does IN YOUR DREAMS conjure up a different image for your entirely? I can't wait to see what you will choose.

But just in case you are stuck for a little inspiration here is my IN YOUR DREAMS sample.

As always, any style or any medium is welcomed, and indeed encouraged, so go ahead and enjoy yourself.

Credits for my sample are on my blog.

The Three Muses Challenge - Pairs

The theme this week is about “pairs” which could be couples, romantic or otherwise, adults or children, birds or beasts – or even plant life!! THINK TWO! The choices are endless and twice the fun!
Credits for the sample picture are on my blog

CHALLENGE 22 - FOWL PLAY

I'll start off this week's Cockadoodle Cluck challenge with this gloriously happy rooster and his "women". He really has something to crow about. .... and very little competition! I can't wait to see what shows up this week from our talented crew. Have fun!

Three Muses Challenge 21 - Long Ago And Far Away

Hi it's me Ann and this week's theme is LONG AGO AND FAR AWAY. I wonder what that will mean to you, will it be a strange and exotic land, a fairy tale, a famous person, part of your family history or something else entirely?

Just in case you need a little inspiration here is my sample, a tale from Mabel's childhood.

And remember at the Three Muses anything goes so whether you stamp, embroider, make it with fabric, paper or clay, paint it or do it digital we can't wait to see what you come up with. Most of all enjoy.

(Credits on my blog.)

The Three Muses Challenge - Hair

Our theme this week is HAIR. Remember, anything goes at the Muses. We want to see beautiful hair, ugly hair, big hair, sparse hair – and maybe an outrageous wig or two. The pathway to hair excellence is sometimes STRAIGHT and sometimes WAVY. Hair is a PERMANENT fixture, sometimes FINE and sometimes THICK. Hair is here to stay (except on bald men). Hair is a buzz (cut). Let’s hear it for hair!!

Credits for my sample picture are HERE.

CHALLENGE 19, NUMEROLOGY

Numbers have such a large part in our lives today - phone numbers, street numbers, bank numbers, charge card numbers and so on. I am anxious to see what you all have to offer when it comes to putting numbers into your art. Credits for this piece can be seen on my blog. HAVE FUN!