Score! Another Fun Time at the Auction! (11-16-11)

What can I say? I can't resist a great item, especially when I can visualize how perfect it will be for a future show...

I went to the auction yesterday, and in the heat of the excitement, I bought some pretty sizable items. After getting lucky with a darling little wicker loveseat and table, I started getting worried that I might have to just abandon them, for lack of space in my little trusted PT Cruiser... But there was no way I'd give up without trying to get as much as I could cram inside first!

I can't believe I got it all inside!

The "Personal Transport," a versatile little car...

And I gotta say, this car is something else when it comes to carry things! Once again, it did not disappoint. It took me a while, but I was able to fit the following inside:
- white wicker loveseat with cushion
- white wicker table
- pale yellow wooden chair
- wooden child-sized chair with plastic woven seat
- gorgeous designer-brand red vintage-print comforter
- box of vintage Christmas decorations
- box of miscellaneous books abandoned by someone
- damaged blue quilt
- red-colored round accent table
- wicker sewing basket
- box of dishes and sewing supplies
- vintage cream-colored suitcase abandoned by someone
- three-tiered white platter thingie
- grey Pyrex mug
- small wooden shelf
...Not counting my large-sized bag, a picnic blanket, two bath towels, one bottle of water (for radiator leaks), many shopping bags, and a folding stool (in case the urge to sketch were to strike me in a place where I might want to sit)...

Getting Ready for the Next Show (11-15-11)

There is so much to do to get ready for the next show! Once again, I am a vendor at the Plucky Maidens Junk Fest, this coming Saturday, at the McMenamins Grand Lodge in Forest Grove.

A few days ago, I made a trip to the generally excellent Stars Antique Malls in Sellwood. The rust and ragged look had spread like mold from booth to booth since my last visit. Most everywhere, it was the same fake shabby white stuff, with the same "Paris" plaques and other such decor accents. An innovative look can easily get cliché when everyone does it... I made the decision that my space would be replete with colors, especially reds, a cheerful touch since the weather starts getting really dreadful at this time of the year.

 At Gary's suggestion again, I set up in the studio, to get an idea of what items I could fit in my little 6' x6' space.

A great turkey platter for Thanksgiving

I love the red coffee pots!

Concert for Veterans (11-12-11)

A great concert by the Oregon Symphonic Band last night! As always, they were fantastic, and we are so glad our son Christopher found this excellent group to play with (he plays the contra-alto clarinet and the soprano clarinet).

Veterans' Day was just a couple of days ago, so there were a few older veterans in the audience at Milwaukie High School, who seemed to appreciate being asked to stand up at the end of the concert.

I am not necessarily into military-themed music, but I particularly enjoyed the Commando March by Samuel Barber, and the very engaging and danceable parts of the Medley from Miss Saigon by Claude-Michel Schoenberg (arr. Warren Barker).

From our standpoint, the most enjoyable moment was to see the high school band students sitting a couple of rows ahead of us, who, when the closing number (Stars and Stripes Forever by John Philip Sousa) was announced, all became very attentive (clearly a piece they were familiar with); they clearly were very impressed by the piccolo part (brilliantly played by Jesus Cruz)!

The Marriage of Figaro (11-10-11)

My friend Sian A. invited me to go to the Keller Auditorium to see The Marriage of Figaro with her. Although I like Mozart, I am not a fan of opera, but the costumes and set were fabulous! And it was nice to see this production after reading a review of it in the paper.

"He deserves not forgiveness, who does not forgive"

Washington Politician (11-04-11)

I'm constantly amazed by the crookedness of politicians. After seeing the gleeful look of this guy in the story in the paper, I decided to do a caricature of him that would expand on the expression on his face...

Bwahahaaah!

Finally! A resolution (11-02-11)

Hard to believe, but we had a meeting of the minds.

Papers were signed, this just one day before the official court date. My two ladies (previous owner and her agent) were quite chatty, -even friendly-, as we were signing rounds of documents, mine specifying that I would not hound them any further, and theirs that they would pay for french drains to be installed between the house and the studio, and for some work to be completed under the house.

After we were done, George (our buyer's agent) and I braved the frigid weather to celebrate with a cup of hot tea at Village Coffee. It had been an exhausting process, but we were both glad it was over.

The odds of winning in small claims court were rather good, we thought, but Gary and I felt better with a compromise where all parties could feel that they had come out with something... Big relief to be done with this and to be able to move on with other things.

Hat and Scarf (10-30-11)

While at church, I tried to draw my green hat and yellow scarf which were placed on the top edge of the bench in front of me.

Sushiland!!! (10-27-11)

This is one of my favorite sketches: the revolving food display display at Marinepolis Sushiland.
I carefully chose my food, took my time with the sketch, and had a generally very relaxing experience.

I love sushi!

Portrait: Lawrence H. (10-23-11)

I hesitate to put a name to this sketch because it looks so little like the person... Not all sketches are successful, and this definitely is not a good one from that standpoint, and yet, I still like the finished results.

Not a good resemblance

Get-together at the Watts' (10-22-11)

A sketch of Julie and Bill W. done during a get-together at some friends...

Just Married! (10-21-11)

Our daughter Valérie got married, and despite our limited resources, it was a beautiful wedding.

For the reception, I bought some dark brown tablecloths on Craigslist. Then, I bought some vintage china from varied places, such as auctions or the Goodwill outlet, and these plates were set mixed up on the tables, so that it looked classic yet informal. The flower bouquet centerpieces (yellows, reds and browns) came from the Costco in Hillsboro which has a large floral department. Simple decorations in the church's Cultural Hall: brown and gold ribbons attached to the wall sconces. To finish it off, we had potted trees and shrubs in various places around the room and on the stage, all wrapped in metallic gold gift wrap with red ribbons and bows. But best of all, Valérie's dress came from my personal collection of vintage wedding dresses, a $3.00 purchase.

The food served was cold cuts and sandwich makings, and delicious hot food from Café Yumm. The cake came from Beaverton Bakery, an old-fashioned 2-tiered beauty, which despite arriving damaged was delicious nevertheless; as the damage was discovered when the box was opened, a replacement cake with simpler decorating was dispatched immediately... but that one also arrived damaged... Well, this with the bride's bouquet accidentally scheduled for a day later, -quick recovery on the part of New Seasons in Lake Oswego-, were the unpredictable moments of the day. With the extra cake, and everyone at the reception fed to satiety, there was an entire sheet cake from Costco left... which I took downtown and gave away in the Homeless section of the Occupy Portland camp.

But what mattered was how much in love with each other Valérie and Patrick looked...

Patrick (with bandage!) and Valérie

Movie: Dracula (10-14-11)

We watched the Francis Ford Coppola 1992 version of Dracula. Aside from a being pretty bloody, with Keanu Reeves in one of the leading roles, it was altogether creepy.

A Night for Networking at OHSU (10-13-11)

I attended a networking event for disabled people with two oldest children.

This event, organized by OHSU, made it possible for the disabled community to meet with employers in the Portland area. But, as I found out, some of these employers seemed to be present just for the sake of it (such as the three people for U.S. Customs and Borders Protection who clearly looked out of place and referred us to USAJobs, a site notorious for elusive jobs out of this area).

While there, I did this sketch of a blind young woman and her dog. And, funny, I was photographed as I was drawing this sketch!

Documentary: Bill Cunningham's New York (10-04-11)

I watched a pretty interesting documentary, Bill Cunningham's New York. I was a feats of colors, of fashions, and it was about Bill Cunningham, an endearing character, a photographer who has been chronicling the New York fashion world for decades.

Gorgeous B&W photograph of a woman jumping with an umbrella

Anna Wintour of Vogue

Bill Cunningham at right

Self-Portrait (10-04-11)

It looks like I am working on self-portraits again... something I tend to do when I am getting more introspective.

Conflicted?

My Hand (10-04-11)

One of those things I will do to kill time is to try to draw my hand drawing; it's pretty difficult to do and it keeps me busy for a while...

Quick Caricatures (10-03-11)

I love doing sketches from television, because of the static nature of the poses. There's plenty of time to focus on facial expressions...

Portrait: D.Martinez (09-27-11)

This is a quick portrait I did of one of my students as I was explaining the things we were going to cover during the class I teach at the Milwaukie Center, such art materials, recording activities in our sketchbook, drawing in comics format, etc.

Wedding Dress Fashions (09-11-11)

I have a nice collection of wedding dresses, but the most outrageous one is a 1980s Jessica McClintock dress that fits no definite style category: a close-to-the-body tight-fitting knee-length sheath with a high neck, mixed lavish embroidery, and at the back, a cascade of fabric flares reminiscent of a Belle Époque bustle!

There is in fact no bow at the back...

The other dress in my sketchbook is the one that my daughter Valérie has chosen as her wedding dress: a classy, elegant, 1950s (I think) pleated polyester knit dress with an embroidered lace bust and collar.

Ten Year Tribute (09-11-11)

It's been ten years since the infamous date of September 11, 2001. A shocking day, and the world has not been the same since.

I'm not much for retrospectives, but I decided to go back to my sketchbook of the time and scan the artwork I had done then.

Horror

This is still a very powerful image; the flames from the underside of the plane represent a rip through the fabric of everyday life, bringing about horrible things.

Ruins

 This is a mournful image, a twisted castle of smoke...

Stop in Aberdeen (09-04-11)

On the way down the Washington State Coast, we stopped for food and gas in Aberdeen, a pretty ghastly place. We had a great meal at Billy's Bar and Grill, a charming, old-fashioned restaurant in the only old building I saw in town.

Beach in Washington State (09-04-11)

I am timid when it comes to watercolors, but I tried to put my impressions of the Washington Coast on paper.

A Fine Rat (09-02-11)

This drawing of a rat is from memory... (Thankfully, not from direct observation!)

Models (09-01-11)

Quick sketches of fashion models...

The Money Changer (09-03-11)

My son Chris and I went to one of those traveling coin merchant shows who take out fill-page ads in the paper "We Give Cash for Silver and Gold! Great Rates!" Of course, despite the lavish advertisement, it turns out that the rates offered are, in fact, pretty bad...

Caricatures (09-02-11)

Some made-for-TV faces, as seen...on TV.
 

Edward... Twilight... Arrrgh! (08-25-11)

I've watched two of the Twilight movies so far and I can only say one thing: they do nothing for me. The plots are terrible, and the acting (what acting?!) is dismal. As for me, I was snickering the entire time.

Tormented, probably from having to pretend to act

 Anyway, here is Edward, as drawn while watching the movie in the dark at one of the city parks (insert sound of swooning audience...)

Interpretation Job (08-22-11)

I worked on an conference interpretation project where the clients communicated by Skype; so during lulls, I drew the two French participants.

Barbecue at Patrick's Parents' House (08-20-11)

Our daughter Valérie and her boyfriend Patrick are planning to get married in October; we're very excited. We were invited to his parents' house in Springfield for a barbecue. I took the opportunity to do a small panorama sketch of some of the adults at the dining room table.

The Big Day at Edgefield (08-18-11)

 ...I have Gary to thank for the wise idea to set the entire booth up in the driveway, to see what fits and what doesn't. This saved a lot of time during my booth set up at Edgefield.

We were so busy, I barely had the time to walk the grounds to look at other vendors' booths (consequently, I still don't know what other people sold). My booth was next to Wendy and Ron Brown's Vintage Market. Wendy has beautiful items, and she also has a nice variety of furniture. As for me, haha!, I've been known to get interested in weird stuff, such as the electric fuse box or the headless doll that drew many comments from visitors...

I couldn't have done this without my four children, who all helped in one way or another. On the way there, we took Gary's truck and trailer and my PT Cruiser, and as soon as they were unloaded, Valérie and Christopher turned around to make another trip back to the house and load up again. Julia helped with setting up, she took care of signage, and worked as money changer. Monica helped her brother and sisters take everything down and pack up. Luckily, it took only one trip to get home...

It was an exhausting but fun experience. I must also thank the Plucky Maidens for the great planning, carried out down to the small details, -such as someone walking around passing water bottles to thirsty vendors-, and the lunch provided was perfect.

Preview: My Booth for the Junk Fest Vintage Sale (08-17-11)

At Gary's insistence, I set up a "trial" booth in the driveway, to see where everything will fit tomorrow.
Since all the outdoor stuff was spilling out of the gazebo perimeter, it quickly became obvious that I needed a full 10 x 20 space rather than the 10 x 10 I had planned for (luckily, I was able to secure a larger space at the last minute)...

What a huuuuge task! (But it looks so cool!)

Beautiful pictures

Memorial for Dr. Richards (08-13-11)

We wouldn't have missed the memorial for Dr. Richards for anything in the world. He was a beloved teacher among music circles, and we'll miss his gentle presence and his sense of humor.

A remarkable man

Inside the Chapel at Lewis & Clark College

The meeting inside the Chapel was emotional and underlined the range of people who were touched by this great teacher.

A great Dixieland Quintet was playing for the crowds exiting the Chapel

Art Class at the Milwaukie Center (07-27-11)

I drew this sketch of some of the students in the Sketching for Journaling class I teach at the Milwaukie Center. We worked on outdoor scenery elements in the lovely community garden at the back of the building.

The challenge I encountered in this exercise was to keep everything on a (mental) grid, with credible perspective reflecting my position on a higher plane. Pretty tough!

An Update... (07-26-11)

As many of my readers may know, for the last three years I have been sporadically posting on several different blogs...: sketches on The Hyphenate; drawings on Maxine on the run; comics on Maxine's BD; house-related misadventures on No Ducks and Bunnies; vintage resale endeavors on No Ducks and Bunnies Vintage...

As you can imagine, it's been an exhausting process, driven by a quasi OCD-like need to have everything in my life separate, organized, and under control.

A few days ago, I was looking at comments people had posted on one of the blogs and I came across one someone wrote, that it seemed pretty complicated to have all these different blogs, etc. Reading this simple statement made me realize that, yes, it's been pretty complicated and, actually, even a drag at times.

I decided to merge all the blogs into a new one called The Competent Eclectic, since that's what I seem to be, a (competent) person with many (eclectic) interests, and to see how long I can stand having everything gathered under one banner...

So, dear readers, this is why you may from now on read about another cultural event in Portland, followed by complaints about failing to get organized for the next vintage sale...

Feel free to comment and give suggestions...

I'm Gonna Be a Vendor Again! (07-11-11)

Exciting news! I've been selected to be a vendor at the Plucky Maidens Junk Fest at Mc Mennamin's Edgefield in August! Be sure to stop by my booth and say hello!

I've started going through what I can sell, and I got so many great items, it's hard to envision what exactly I have: antique trunks, paintings, framed chalk boards, dressers, chairs, small breakables, clothing... and more.