Mother Mary Comes To Me - John 3:16

"When I find myself in times of trouble, Mother Mary comes to me, Speaking words of wisdom: Let it be."

The lyrics to the Beatles song, "Let It Be" could go well with this assemblage, but I read somewhere that the Mary in those lyrics actually referred to Paul McCartney's mother, who died when he was 14, and he had a vision of her in a dream, which inspired the lyrics.

John 3:16 could also fit here..,"For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life."

The assemblage is composed of a statue of Mary holding the child, Jesus, and a picture which could be Mary and Jesus also. It is inside a mirrored-back shadow box, and behind the statue is a blue dish that is glued to the mirror. A blue glass globe of the world encircled by a blue and silver beaded rosary and attached on the side of the frame completes this assemblage.

I also think of the song, "Mary Did You Know?" when looking at this assemblage... wondering, what Mary really understood of the child she birthed and cherished as her son, God incarnate, Son of God.

Mary, did you know That your baby boy

Would someday walk on water?

Mary did you know That your baby boy

Will save our sons and daughters?

Did you know That your baby boy

Has come to make you new?

This child that you've delivered

Will soon deliver you.

Mary did you know That your baby boy

Will give sight to a blind man?

Mary did you know That your baby boy

Will calm the storm with his hand?

Did you know that your baby boy

Has walked where angels trod?

When you kiss your little baby

You've kissed the face of God.

The blind will see The deaf will hear

The dead will live again The lame will leap

The dumb will speak The praises of the Lamb

Mary did you know That your baby boy

Is Lord of all creation?

Mary did you know That your baby boy

Will one day rule the nations?

Did you know That your baby boy

Is heaven's perfect Lamb?

This sleeping child you're holding

Is the Great I Am.

Caged Grandson Assemblages..*G*

Here is a cool thing I found at Good Will too... one of my grandson's climbed in, and then the others had to get in there too. *L*
Perfect grandmother's break device eh? just kiddin'...just kiddin'!

Disclaimer: No grandson's were harmed or hurt in the taking of these photos.

Indulgences

Yes, it's LATE, ... seems I am inspired late at night when there are less distractions... although my husband doesn't especially like when I hammer, drill & saw things this late. *L*
So, this latest creation is all inspired by that little heart attached to the "paper" bag, which is actually made out of heavy brass. The heart says "indulge" on it... the bag reminded me of one that is usually wrapped around a wine bottle... perhaps an indulgence some partake in too much?... I added the cross inside of the bag instead of a wine bottle, because the things I hope I indulge in most would be good things.... God, Love, (which is spelled out in letters made from nails that is attached to a metal shingle). Indulging in good things for my mental health... behind the bag and the statue of Jesus with outstetched arms it says.."Read, Mark, Learn & Inwardly Digest" .
And indulging in right actions as well, ...on top of the box is a handle from something ...and some really cute little brass monkeys with red eyes that are doing the "Speak no evil, See no evil and Hear no evil" motions.
The other side of the box I'll have to take photos of later...still working on that.
And...since it's late....I'm off to INDULGE in a bit of sleep! *lol*

LIVING STONES

"We are the body of Christ, not just a pile of bones; we are the body of Christ, a house of living stones." ~ Lyrics by Steven Eulberg "The Body of Christ" ~

"... in the sight of God chosen & precious, you yourselves, like living stones are being built up as a spiritual house, to be a holy priesthood, to offer spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ." ~ I Peter 2:4-5 ~

This assemblage probably is more sentimental to me than it would be to others. The green "roof" material are parts of the old metal shingles from the original roof of the church we belong to. The people on the stones are actual members of our church too. The symbolism in this piece with the bones under the church could represent that they were dry bones, but they are now "living stones" as the scripture and the song above state.

But they could also represent the remains of those who have gone before us...the community of saints, who, having left their "mortal shell", now are with God in heaven. The piece sits on a framed mirror that I've glued additional stones on... showing the many who have yet to be built into that spiritual house, as living stones... to be a part of the household of God.

Funny how my mind works...... the line to the Bob Dylan song keeps running through my head.... "Everybody must get stoned!" ...*heh heh*

Odd Planters

A couple of years ago I found these old light fixtures, and used a stand I found at a rummage sale, turned the light fixture upside down, added a plant at the bottom, and an oddity is born!

It looks kinda flying saucer-ish doesn't it? *L*

Here are some others that I grouped together.

I liked them for awhile, but later grew bored of them, so I donated them to the "Garden of Eden" plant sale we had at church. Hopefully they have a loving home still. *G*

Like A Bird In A Gilded Cage

This assemblage is hard to photograph in order to see all the details in it. I thought this vintage photo of the girl (on photo paper, glued to a wood cutout - double sided) went well with this theme, she looks a bit disgusted at her circumstances.

I mirrored the floor of the birdcage, found a cool rock that once had a metal unicorn on it, I swapped that for the rosary, which is also strung around the inside of the cage. There is a heart-shaped mirror on the one side that I added beaded fringe to and backed with material and buttons. Above the girl (who I also added some "jewels" to and some netting for her veil) hangs a cross made from crystals from an old lamp, I also added crystals hanging from the hearts around the sides of the birdcage.

I beaded the stool she sits on and made the pillow to match the material on the back of the heart shaped mirror. On the outside of the door of the cage is a metal number 2 with a crystal attached. The number signifies, to me, a second chance perhaps?

I also copied and edited some of the words to the old song Bird in a Gilded Cage which hangs on the wooden tag I made for it.

Garden Pics & More Old Shingle Usage.

Today was a taste of what Spring SHOULD be... in another month or so, I'll be able to plant flowers again.. and my planters...like this one.. it's an old pedestal sink that had a crack in it and we had to replace it.. but it's perfect for a planter! Behind it are some of the shingles, mounted on plywood, (from the church roof - see one of my posts from April 16th showing other uses for the shingles) I used them to hide the junk my husband collects around the garage shop, which is behind this garden area.

The other planter is an old chair, that I took the seat off of, and replaced with the planter. I like the weathered look on this one.

Table Leg Planters

These are two old table legs, pretty massive ones, that I found, after Old English-ing them, I turned them upside down, added a container, and planted some ferns....tahh dahhh.. some pretty awesome planters! I have one of them in my dining room, and one in my upstairs bathroom.

Veggie Bouquet

Yes, these are REAL vegetables! This is an assemblage of veggies that I made for a pot-luck dinner at our church last year. Maybe because it was the first time I had made one of these, but it took me at LEAST TWO HOURS to put it all together... ughhh!

It did turn out looking pretty nice, and it got a lot of compliments too.

I used a basket I had, put a head of cabbage inside it for the base that I stuck all the wooden skewers with all kinds of veggies...cherry tomatoes, whole mushrooms, olives, cauliflower, broccoli, carrots, pieces of green, yellow and red peppers, baby dill pickles and more. I set it on a platter, then added extra veggies around the bottom. Pretty and delicious too!

My "Bling" Holder

This is a dress form I found....yes, at Good Will, that I use to hold my costume jewelry collection among other cool things.. the feather purse, and fox fur, and funny little hat, although, since taking this picture a few months ago, I now have an even cooler hat on it.
I switched out the base for a nicer one I found, and had a girlfriend sew another cover for it from some material I found for just $3. I think it turned out pretty cool, and it's fun to add jewelry I find or have been given... I should re-take another picture because I have more now than what shows here.

"JEZEBEL", Bad Girls of the Bible Series

This one is still a work in progress too. It's a fun one, and makes me laugh. I found "Jezebel" on the Internet and knew I had to use her somehow. She is on photo paper pasted to a wood cutout, double sided. The wire shoe and the spiked bracelet at the toe of the shoe fit her perfectly. I added some jeweled fringe on the heel too. I was thinking of calling this one, "The OTHER Woman in a Shoe"... get it?...as opposed to the original woman in a shoe, who had so many children she didn't know what to do...this one is the "other" woman...*L*

Anyway, I am still needing to anchor Jez in the shoe so she doesn't wobble around in there, and maybe find a base for it besides the mirror it is sitting on now.

Here is another view of it from the top down.

"My Portion, My Cup" Assemblage

"Lord you are my portion & my cup, You hold my future." Psalm 16:5.

In biblical times agreements & covenants were sealed with the mutual drinking from a cup. The night before Jesus was crucified He gave His disciples a cup..."..and when He had given thanks, He gave it, saying, "Drink this all of you; This is My blood of the new covenant, which is poured out for the forgiveness of sins."

This assemblage reminds me of that cup, His blood that was shed, the victory at the Cross, the key to our future, our salvation & the angels that are sent to minister to us and remind us of the promises of God found in Christ Jesus.

One of the cool things about this piece is the cup that is in it, is actually a sick call communion cup. It has a cross on the handle, and on the bottom is printed "sick call". That cup (a .99 cent find at Good Will), was the inspiration for this assemblage.

"Seek" Assemblage

This is my favorite assemblage I've made to date. I like the message "SEEK", the picture, (a vintage woman), and the found objects I've put together in it.

I am hoping to get more assemblages made and submit them to some juried gallery showings later this year.

Looking around at my dining room, which has become my "studio", along with my coffee table and the couch lately too, I see I need a BIGGER room. My daughter was home this weekend, and before leaving today for her apartment in Milwaukee, she took a stroll through the room to look for some little trinket gifts for her roommate and a friend. She told me that the dining room was just as good as going to Good Will or a really great rummage sale! (yeah, and besides that, she gets stuff for free from ME.. *L*)

I find myself dreaming of the day when my kids take back all their stuff from the basement...maybe then I can move my stash of found objects there!

I won't be holding my breath though.... *LOL*

....although, the daughter IS soon moving to Illinois...sooooooo..... who knows?

Here's a close up of the "Seek" assemblage.

"Eve's Boudoir" Assemblage

This was a fun one to make. I found an old fox fur at Good Will (where else?) similar to the kind my grandmother used to wear, with the face, and the legs still attached. It was in bad shape so I cut it apart and used part of it to wrap around this vintage photo of a woman I am calling Eve. I used photo paper and glued her onto a wooden cutout, double sided so can see her from all angles. The wire box I turned on end and used it for a "boudoir", decorating it with metal letters that spell out LOVE hung behind Eve. A crystal hangs from a beaded wire overhead, and a crystal-like drawer pull is on top. On the opposite side is her beloved "Adam" framed and hung over some material., with fringed beading above. It sits on a glass and silver tray, another Good Will find.

Reusing Metal Shingles

This is a screen I made a few years ago. Our church was having the roof redone, and they had to take off all the old layers of shingles, one layer was the original metal shingles in a kind of fish head design. They were painted green evidently, I liked the patina of the old paint and the way they had aged. So, I did some dumpster-diving, and saved a few hundred of them.

I cut them to fit into this photo frame screen that I bought on sale at a discount store. I sprayed clear polyurethane on them to prevent the paint from peeling further, inserted them in the spaces... and voila! This is now my daughter's screen, a gift to her.

I've done other things with the old metal shingles too. I've used them as backgrounds in frames and shadow boxes, like these.....One is pretty plain, it has a tin box I found at Good Will, and I hung a crystal from an old lamp inside it. I like the big frame and the depth of it (I found 3 of these frames at Good Will a year or so ago and had been waiting to use them for some project.)

The other one pictured here is of my baptism as a baby, at the church I now work at. It has pictures of one of the stain glass windows and of the church from the early 1900's.

My first blog posting.

Okay, here goes... my first blog entry. I wish I could think of something very inspirational to write, but I can't. I was however inspired today to finish one of my latest creations... this assemblage I am going to call "The Prayer Closet". I like to be able to convey a story, or inspire some thoughts in what I put together, I hope people "get" my creations, even if they don't see in them the same things I do, I hope it brings some inspiration to them.

The Prayer Closet is made from an old drawer turned on it's side, with a wooden ball knob added at the top and a wooden planter turned upside down as the base. Inside is a framed picture of a sky scene, depicting heaven, my thought was the idea that prayer opens the window to heaven and to God's heart. The heart is a wooden one sanded down and stained, with an old piece of jewelry over which is an eye (a doll's eye). My kids think I have become rather macabre lately as I cut apart dolls to use their limbs and features for art projects... heh, heh! Anyway, the idea of the eye on the heart was to denote God's love for us and that He is always looking out for us... I suppose you could also say God sees all ...everything we do ... Yikes!! ...but yet, thankfully, God STILL loves us despite some of those things!

The praying hands are ceramic, ones you see all the time at yard sales and such.. I thought they went well in the Prayer Closet.

The back of the Prayer Closet has a hole I put behind the picture of the sky, allowing the sun or light to come through more so it appeared that the sky was lit up a bit. Around the hole I decorated with beaded wire and a cross.