"My Rusty World"

"Rust and More Rust"

As I begin to collect and save odds and ends for an upcoming show one thing is certain, "Rust is

important"!  Everyone around here just laughs at me as I rummage through mounds of everyone else's cast-offs hoping to find that rusty treasure that will be the new beginning of a "Soft in the Head" character.  I

have no idea why I'm so drawn to anything rusty, maybe it's because it shows it had a life, some history.  I'm like a kid in a candy store when I go to flea markets or swap

meets.  The grungier the pile of junk the better I like it.  I slip on the ol' gloves and go to work.
If I can't find what I want already rusty and showing the signs of time then I do what I can to make it that way.  I

actually had a bunch of silver goblets sitting outside on my banister in the rain rusting nicely when a UPS man saw them he was intrigued and asked "why?"  When I told him the reason he just laughed and shook his head

saying "artists, strange bunch of folks!"  LOL yes we are! Junk stores are my sanctuary.  Having a bad day I look for the most cluttered and packed junk store I can find and I dive in and everything else becomes

My work space

non-existent, I'm in heaven.     My family and friends laugh at me because my house is just the opposite of my workroom/work space.  I can be a bit OCD when it comes to my house but my workroom is my stronghold

My Livingroom

 of ideas, it's where my imagination comes alive as do the characters that live in my head and heart.  There is an old saying that is so true about artists "Creativity is NOT a pretty sight" and this reigns true in my workroom but I wouldn't have it any other way.  One of my favorite things to collect

is old rusty clocks and gears.  My fascination with clocks, working or not, is evident as you look around my house.  There are

clocks everywhere and each one has a story attached.  There are cuckoo clocks, pendulum clocks, Halloween clocks, a Cinderella coach, wind-up alarm clocks and a plethora of old gears and faces everywhere.  I'm

just fascinated by clocks and often use them in my work.  The old alarm clock with the mouse is one of my all time favorites.  I actually have quite a large group of Halloween clock collectors that follow me to   collect my Halloween clocks that I

only have available at shows.  I'm a "clock geek" LOL there is just something so fascinating to me about old clocks and how they capture more than just time but magic!   This art journey that I have followed over the years has been one filled with smiles and lots of questionable looks by some that just don't understand my love for vintage and all things rusty.  I wouldn't change any of it, ever.  I have found my bliss/joy and even on the worse

days I can retreat to my comfort of clutter in my workroom and let my imagination fly.  My Halloween spirit is knocking on the door to my imagination and I see lots of rust in my future!