Here are a few things that will be auctioned off at the El Paso Community College fundraiser for their art department this Saturday. The shrines are my babies. I made one years ago after I had a dream of the idea. She's still around and sitting in my hallway alter. These are smaller than my original, but I hope they fetch a good price . If anyone is interested in ordering one, just let me know.

I was asked if I could make something small and affordable for the students to purchase, so I took out of retirement my little Muerto Guys. I made these right after I had graduated from college in '05. I was attempting to find my voice and just do something really fun just because. For those of you who have a degree in art, or anything else for that matter, you know how intense the work and hours can be. I know I drank many pots of coffee and smoked may packages of cigarettes in those days. Still love my coffee, but gave up the smokes a year ago.

Well, it's almost time for "Bones" and my work for today is finished, so off I go. Peace out.

New Doll

Well, here she is, my Steampunk baby. I'm not quite sure what steampunk is, but I sure do love the art form. I haven't come up with a name yet, but I just completed her and she has yet to tell me what she wants to be called, so I wait. I've made a tutorial of this doll for a group of wonderful artists who will be participating this June. Sadly, my class will be that last since many of the members have to leave the group due to other commitments and time contraints. This is my first time teaching an online class, so pray for me!!! LOL

I'm spending the next couple of days in the studio because I have a deadline coming up this Thurs. I'm making a couple of shrines for our local community college art dept. fundraiser. The "Lupita" paintings are done for the inside of the box, but have to paint and decorate the boxes before I put the little paintings in when all is done.

Well, me needs to run, so to all my blog buds, peace out.

Today's Project

So my mother bought this figurine for her "focal point" in the backyard. Meet Minnie-HaHa, as she calls her. Personally, I hate the name, but it's her statue, not mine...never!

She has asked me to retouch Ms. Minnie and so this is what I'll be doing today. After much inspection, I say spray paint her and just start over, but my mother wants her focal point outside a.s.a.p. During the summer, my mother's backyard is a wild display of gorgeous plants, bushes and little ceramic critters. Many years ago my daughter took her cousin outside and stood among the ceramic menagerie and told her, "Look Marisa, someday this will all be yours!" It's been a constant joke since then. In fact I sent my niece a pic of her new piece that will be her inheritance...I'm still waiting for a comment!! LOL My mother is such a "super beaner" and yet a woman of great intelligence, class and style but sometimes you just can't get away from the ol' heritage!!! LOL

Oh it gets better. She's been hunting for a blue toilet seat for a couple of years. She hadn't found it yet and I even ventured into the wondrous sites of toilet seats on the Internet; couldn't find the blue she wanted. Upon our visit to Phoenix, my sister took us to a home goods store and she found it, the toilet seat, with scallop edges...quite elegant. Was she happy with the it's lovely simplicity???? OH NO!!!!! She wanted me to paint something in the centre but I told her the paint would wear off after a while, even if it were sprayed with a heavy duty finish, the maid would scratch it all off with her brush. So what did she come up with, decals. So off to Hobby Lobby we went in search of the little sticky pieces of artful plastic. Oiy Vey! So guess what my next project is going to be?

Well, now that I've unloaded this story about the travesty of my time, I'm off to mix and match colours and doll up little Miss Focal Point. Peace out.

It's a Boy!

Just got a text from my daughter, mother of the Penis Posse. She just got the news that she's going to be adding another little penis to her family. She's very disappointed with the news because after 3 boys, she wanted a little girl, but I told her to look at it this way, she's going to still be the Queen Bee. I know that somewhere in this world, some woman was just told she's having another little girl, so the Universe is again balanced!

The above picture was taken in Austin in January, check out the short sleeves! My hubby's oldest son and his better half joined us for lunch at Shady Groves on their way back home to Houston. My daughter is to the very pregger one to my right in the pic and of course, the infamous Penis Posse! Yikes, I look like I'm ready to drop one too!!! Nah, just fluffy! Can't do babies anymore, Thank The Lord and menopause!!!

Working on shrines for an upcoming silent auction at our local community college fundraiser for the art department. So I'm busy with that. I'm also going to be doing a steampunck doll tutorial with Chaska Peacock on her site. For those of you who aren't familiar with her work, you've got to see it... http://mai-liispeacocknotes.blogspot.com. Anyway, she offers some great classes and I recommend you to go see what she's done and what she's offering. Ok Chaska, you got a freebie here!! LOL

Need to run. Going over for lunch to a friends new house and I know it's going to be awesome! Peace out.

New Dolls

Well, here are two more creations. Meet Mr. S. Pea-Body and Lilly a.k.a., Baby Cheeks. I had such a hard time trying to come up with something snappy for Lilly, but I just didn't know what to do with her, so I asked a wonderful Internet bud to give me some ideas. Long story short, she made that adorable hippie purse for her. If you'd like to see my friend's work, you'll find her at farmgirlrocks.etsy.com. For more information about my babies, you can see them at my Etsy site, barrobabe.etsy.com. All my dolls have their own stories, so if anything, check their bios out.

Well, been busy as always and this week was no exception...was so busy I didn't know whether to wind my watch or .......ok, won't finish that one. First of all, who winds their watches anymore???? This weekend is going to be a pretty big whirlwind, my daughter is arriving sometime tonight or tomorrow morning from Austin. She will have my 3 grandsons, her boyfriend and let's not forget the fetus. Hopefully in two weeks we'll have a gender and I'll stop calling her/him, the fetus. She's planning on surprising my mother tomorrow andn Andria is a bit anxious about how she's going to take the introduction of the "boyfriend." My mother thinks my daughter is immoral for doing this, but then she has no problem with my brother "living in sin." It's the old double standard and she's a total Mexican mother!! I'm just happy that I'm going to have another grandchild...I'm so pumped...can't wait...hope it's a girl! If not, oh well, I'll love him to bits like the other 3.

Speaking of the "penis posse" my youngest, Zachary, announced to his mother yesterday that he wanted to live with his Meema (God help me). She asked him if he'd miss her and his brothers and soon-to-be stepdad, he told her that they could visit!! He has the face of an angel but oh wow...what can I say!! This is a kid that decided one day to freak out his uncle, who was living with them for a while (my eldest child) and drink from the toilet with a staw...shall we say that the toilet water had company!!!!!! Ok, sorry if you gagged, but that's the Zach Man. I have many other stories but that one tops them all!!

Well, I was just informed that we're expecting company at high noon and I'm still in my nighty, so it's off to the showers for me. Need to get the bedroom ready for my gang's arrival this p.m./a.m. and get this show on the road. Have a wonderful Easter and make sure you have lots and lots of chocolate or for those of you that like Peeps, ugh, hope you get every colour offered this season!! Peace out.

She's Back!

Phoenix was lots of fun! My mother behaved and didn't get after me too much about my heavy foot on the petal!! So if you were waiting to here about an 86 year old woman left at the Texas Canyon rest stop in AZ by her frazzled daughter, you waited for nothing.

Would you believe I didn't take pictures of us while we were there. The only one I took of family was the one of my adorable, wonderful almost 21 year old niece, Marisa Kate...she loooves guacamole!! We ate at this great place called Z-Tejas. Food was wonderful and the Long Island Ice Teas were very refreshing!!!!! My mother thought it was a specialized tea and took a sip...hair is still growing on her chest!

Went to Old Chandler, a burb of Phoenix, and visited this really cool gallery called the Xico Inc. Had lots of Latino art and it looked like the sort of place I could display my Muerto Art. Have all the information to contact the exec. director, but procrastination has reared it's nasty little head and the card still just lies very lonely on my big desk. Haven't been to the website, but if anyone is interested it's www.xicoinc.com .

We also went to the Desert Botanical Gardens. Ok, so I live in the desert too and why would I want to see plants that we consider weeds, but it was well worth it. There was also a Dale Chihuly exhibition. His beautiful glass sculptures were displayed in the landscape...wonderful. I have lots more pics of the exhibition, but put that one up to entice you. If any of you have been to the Belagio Hotel in Las Vegas, you'll remember the gorgeous glass flowers suspended from the ceiling in the main foyer...that's Chihuly's work.

We did visit two of my mother's friends while on our way to and back. Tucson is very unusual in that it doesn't have any interstates going through the city, so you get off I-10 then travel on surface streets to get anywhere....aahhhhhhh! Well, let's just say, we saw more of Tucson that we really had planned on seeing. We got lost looking for the first friend, but we eventually found her and it was great seeing my mother and her talk and reminisce. My parents and this couple were golfing buds and went all over the western states to golf, they both admitted that those years were the best of all, sadly, they are both widows! She's a pretty amazing lady in that she's almost completely blind, has little peripheral vision and paints these gorgeous water colour florals. Now the other friend, on our way back, was easy to find, but it took 45 mins. from the interstate to get to her house. The good thing about this one, was that after crossing all of Tucson through the surface streets, it was easy and shorter to get to I-10.

We also had ordered some tamales de elote, made with green corn, a specfialty from the Mexican state of Sonora, where my maternal peoples come from, and waited in this dirt lot right off the road before we hit I-10. People were looking very suspiciously at us and I was waiting for the police to come and arrest us once we made the purchase. Wouldn't that have been a hoot!! "No officer, this is not a drug exchange, but a tamale raid!!!"

Well, I've rambled quite a bit and so now it's time for me to get my fat buttocks into the studio and start working again. Peace out.