Ropero Closers

What the heck?

It's a ropero closer, Mokito!

When a friend of mine moved away from Mérida, she gifted me the above ropero (armoire).  She gave me keys for it, but not the actual keys for THIS ropero.  One side is locked shut, and the other side doesn't close at all.  It swings open.  I thought I'd use my macrame skills to create a ropero closer.  The first one I made fell apart before I got the photo taken, and the dreamweaver replacement below might have been made after too long a day of macrame-ing..  I might have to change it again. 

Here is a photo of the second one I made.  Merida Mikey loved my prototype and said his ropero doors swing open all the time too. So I made one for him and gave it to him this morning.  He sent me this photo of it on its new home. 

The first macrame project I started recently was new window pulls for the tall windows in the front living rooms.  The beads are those we found at the elderly Lenca Indian woman's home in La Calma, Honduras, and later painted.  When I first moved in I made pulls using plastic beads and thin wire and they didn't pass the test of time.  That inspired me to make new solid pulls out of strong jute-like material.  Below is an up close shot of the simple swirl knot and the colorful beads. 

Here's a pic of  the window wearing it's new ornament.  After making two of these the ropero closer idea occurred to me.  There are still more beads, so I think I will replace the tall ceiling fan extender pulls....in the same style. 

Ginger and Bambu

This second piece has a story.  I first played with painting on canvas last summer. I painted that giant ginger flower.  I was practicing, because the only things I really think I can draw are flowers and bambu.  So when we framed the canvas, I used the same piece I played with last summer thinking I could just paint over it.  What I wanted to paint was bambu.  When I started the project though, it became apparent I experimented with dimension on that ginger and piled on layers of paint. What I am trying to say is that I couldn't get rid of the ginger. I had to fit it into the paiting. It's a bit odd I think, and not a coherent piece.  But give me a break, it is my second painting!

Artist: Lin Dorton
Ginger and Bambu
February, 2010
Acrylic on Canvas

Serenity is Celestún

Since Pablo has all kinds of paints and materials sitting about, I am automatically drawn to an open craft station.  I love to color, like in coloring books, more than draw, I don't feel I am very good at depth perception and shadowing and stuff.   I took a landscape photo of Celestún that I loved and decided to try a landscape.  This is my attempt at painting a photograph I took.  To me it represents the serenity which is Celestún.  I work best with small things, so I used a 9 1/2" square canvas. 

Artist: Lin Dorton
Serenity is Celestún
February, 2010
Acrylic on Canvas
9 1/2" square