Summer Side Project: Collage + Paper Scraps

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In early July I was looking through my box of paper scraps and off-cuts, saved from making paper sculptures, and decided to see if I could use them to make collage. I don’t always keep these types of leftover materials because it can easily get out of hand because I cut A LOT of paper. I mostly keep pieces I think are interesting or still have a lot of useful material left. I try to dip into this collection when I need smaller pieces of paper. for a sculpture. I was pleasantly surprised to realize I had a lot of interesting shapes to work with in the collages, tucked away in the box where I keep the scraps.

I made the first off-cut / scrap collage as a project at a social crafternoon organized by a friend, and I’ve continued making these two or three times a week since then. It’s become my at home creative project, or one I take with me on the go. I took the supplies with me on vacation last week, and made five of them. As of today, I have made a total of 24.

I started the series using only the leftover pieces of Canson Mi-Teintes paper, which have lots of bold solid colours. I eventually found pieces of patterned paper scraps and started incorporating those into the collages. I try to make them in as short of a time as possible, and not overthink things.

Here are some of my favourites:

I originally intended to create 30 of these, but I am so excited and energized by this little project that I will keep going indefinitely. My plan is to have the series available for sale during Culture Crawl in November.

Five Good Things From The Weekend

Oh how I long to return to regularly writing on my blog! I miss documenting and sharing my work, and the soc med accounts I have on various platforms are not really meeting my needs. Anyway, I will start with a favourite style of post, and do a Five Good Things From The Weekend list.

  1. Wandering the neighbourhood with my friend Simone, to check out the Great Grandview Garage Sale. It’s neighbourhood wide, so there was a lot to look at.
  2. Delicious slices of cake shared with Boris from Oh Sweet Day.
  3. A day trip to Chilliwack that included a stop at The Book Man. We both bought books.
  4. Sitting on a bench in the shade eating super ripe and juicy local nectarines from a farm stand.
  5. Eating first of the season local strawberries, and raspberries that were sweet with floral notes. So Good!

2025 Year End Review in Twelve Photos

I started 2025 feeling optimistic and hopeful, but it was another tough, draining year of many struggles. I had much less studio time through most of the year, but I focused on a new series of low-relief paper sculpture work that I absolutely love! The year ended on a devastatingly sad note with my mom’s decline in health and death at the end of December. The origami stars (at the end of this post) I made to brighten up her room in palliative care are the last things I made in 2025. I am glad I made them for her.

January

February

March

April

May

June

July

August

September

October

November

December

I Love You Mom

This is a portrait of my mom, Monica, taken many years ago possibly when she was the age I am now. It’s one of my favourites because of her beautiful smile.

Mom passed away on December 30th in London Ontario after a few short weeks in palliative care, and a diagnosis of stage 4 cervical cancer.

Mom was a loving, joyful, kind and generous person, who was goofy & silly, making hilarious faces, and blowing kisses. She really appreciated the simple things in life, that are also the most meaningful – spending time with family and friends, enjoying a shared meal of delicious food, and sitting outside in the garden or at the beach.

I think in the end she wasn’t ready to go, and we and our mom were taken by surprise by how ill she actually was. I’m deeply grateful to the kind nursing staff at Victoria Hospital, and Parkwood Institute in London (ON) for caring for our mother at the end of her life. They ensured her final few weeks were comfortable and pain-free.

I love you mom. You will be in our hearts and memories forever.

A Getaway to Union Bay

Boris and I had a vacation in Union Bay on Vancouver Island last week. We chose the location at random based upon accommodation we could find on AirBnB that was affordable, looked comfortable and was somewhere not to far from Nanaimo. We love taking the Hullo ferry over to the island from downtown Vancouver, and then renting a car to get around.

Union Bay is about an hour North of Nanaimo, and located close to the ferry to Denman Island and Hornby Island. We did a lot of exploring from there, but also took the time to relax because we were both pretty exhausted.

Highlights of the week:
– the beautiful salt marsh/estuary we visited on our first evening
– buying cheese and other tasty items from Old City Cheese & Market in Nanaimo. Also Matcha Milk jam!
– Visiting the small Cumberland Museum & Archives
– An evening trip to the night market in Nanaimo on a very rainy evening
– Naps every day, reading a good book, and relaxing
– Visiting Duncan to see the Current Threads exhibition at the Cowichan Valley Arts Centre
– wandering around Duncan before we drove back to catch the Hullo from Nanaimo
– many delicious meals made by Boris, and a terrific BLT from the Vault in Nanaimo

2024 Year End Review in Twelve Photos

I haven’t written anything on my blog since this day a year ago, and yet I still feel compelled to return here for another year end review post. I think this is because I would rather share these thoughts and images here, on a platform I own than one that seems to only want to harvest my data and ideas. I’m looking at you IG.

2024 was another challenging year as I continued to struggle with my mental health and sleep issues, but also felt very isolated and alone. I started last year feeling uncertain about my studio situation, and it’s the exact same thing I feel now. I made some wonderful pieces of art this year, and happily some of them found forever homes.

January
February
March
April
May
June
July
August
September
October
November
December

A few numbers for 2024:
– Participated in 4 groups exhibitions
– Participated in 8 First Saturday open studios
– Hosted 1 studio warming
– 1 Eastside Culture Crawl open studio
– Organized & hosted 9 Art & Craft Socials
– Worked on 3 commissions
– 1 talk for Typebrigade
– Taught 1 Paper-cutting workshop
– Finished 2 embroidery pieces

2023 Year End Review in Twelve Photos

I went back to see how many years I have been writing these year end review posts on the blog, and it’s been fourteen years!!! Wow.

2023 was another challenging year, this time because I was juggling WAY too many things and struggling with burn out. There is good in even the worst year, and making art is always one of the good things.

January

February

March

April

May

June

July

August

September

October

November

December

28 Days of Hearts Shop Update

Just in time for Valentine’s Day I am selling my series, 28 Days of Hearts, which was a daily project I did in February 2022. I used a mix of techniques to create the work, including cut paper, collage, embroidery, drawing, or paper weaving.

Each heart is one-of-a-kind made from paper, and affordably priced at $55 + shipping (or pickup in Vancouver). Visit the 28 Days of Hearts shop to view available work.

Select your favourite heart, and buy it for yourself or a loved one. Thank you for supporting my work.

 

Art & Craft Social – February 2023

Happy new year! For our first event of 2023 we will be gathering at nə́c̓aʔmat ct Library Branch in the Nellie Yip Quong meeting room, located in Strathcona. Tickets are available through eventbrite.

Art & Craft Social is a FREE community event bringing together a diverse group of artists, makers, designers, and craftspeople of all levels of experience to share and create in a social setting.

Bring a small creative project with you – drawing, painting, stitching, crocheting, collage, etc, – to work on at Art & Craft Social. The Social provides an opportunity to meet new people, get inspired, and learn something new through exposure to the creative work of each person’s project.

  • All are welcome. This is an inclusive space for women, women identifying, and LGBTQ2+ people to feel safe and welcome.
  • Face masks are encouraged, but optional. We will do our best to keep our space COVID-safe.
  • Sign up for our mailing list to be the first to hear about upcoming events: http://eepurl.com/gu6s-P

This event is organized by Barb Wong and Rachael Ashe.

Rachael Ashe is a multidisciplinary artist, photographer, and maker, with a background in administration and community event planning. She was a volunteer with Creative Mornings Vancouver for three years, and organized numerous community events at Hot Art Wet City gallery including the Hot Talks speaker series, and Art & Craft Social.

Barb Wong is a community dietitian by trade and an avid maker at heart. She is interested in all things food-related and dabbles in fibre arts such as knitting, weaving and sewing. She believes strongly in community development through capacity building and skills sharing.

 

Art & Craft Supply Giveaway 2023

It’s spring cleaning time in the artist studios of East Van, and that means we’re having a supply giveaway!

Think of this as a garage sale where everything is FREE. Drop by Oona Clothing located at 556 Clark Drive to browse a selection of unwanted (but still viable) supplies. This is the first time we are doing this event since pre-pandemic times.

Everything is free because we just want someone to make use of the materials. At this time we have no idea what supplies will be available from each artist so come see for yourself. There’s always something for everyone, including things like textiles, papers, found objects, books, and more.