25. Good Morning Starshine

...the earth says 'Hello'!

You twinkle above us,

we twinkle below...

This is a short but another special one:

Just before I'm about to leave for the German Discworld Convention (YES!) I've got a little time for one more little star project. I loaded a song onto my phone and set is as ringtone for my alarm (which I am going to need this weekend). Here's my currently favourite version of the late 60's song from 'Hair': 'Good Morning Starshine'

Note: Once again, I'm probably going to be offline for the weekend (til Monday night). And once again: Stars will be made, only posted later. :)

24. Pool Stars

I had a wonderful night out with old friends playing pool. Win some, lose some - and just have fun! Thank you guys! :)
And thanks to Rüdiger for lending a hand (plus cue) as sixth point for my star:

P.S.: Don't try this as an opening figure - not very effective. ;)

23. Lighting up the Night

It took a while for today's project to grow and take shape. Over the past few days several things came together which eventually gave me a very clear idea of how I wanted to do this. So, here they are: 151 candles - every one of them lit for somebody.

I thought of many different things I could say to explain this. In the end, I decided to let somebody else speak (or rather sing) for me - and for everyone else.

'May it be an evening star shines down upon you.

May it be when darkness falls your heart will be true.

You walk a lonely road.

Oh, how far you are from home.

Mornië utúlië. [Darkness has come.]

Believe and you will find your way.

Mornië alantië [Darkness has fallen.]

A promise lives within you now.

May it be the shadow's call will fly away.

May it be you journey on to light the day.

When the night is overcome,

You may rise to find the sun.

Mornië utúlië. [Darkness has come.]

Believe and you will find your way.

Mornië alantië [Darkness has fallen.]

A promise lives within you now.

A promise lives within you now.'

(enya)

 

I had a very special night, and I'm lacking words to describe it (in any language that I know).

But to you who are reading this: You may be sure there's a candle in there for you, too.

Love,

Lena

(P.S.: Just for me and for completeness:)

22. Free-Floating Pendant

Oh dear... Today was quite frustrating. Things didn't work out the way I'd planned and by the time I realised it, it was already getting late... It took about ten minutes for me to drift from rather high spirits into an awful mood. All of a sudden, this whole project felt quite stupid and useless and I felt like a fool (I think I was mostly annoyed with myself for being frustrated instead of having fun) for the first time since I had started.

Well, I suppose I had better get used to it. This won't have been the last time...

Luckily, I had acquired some beautiful beads yesterday and was really looking forward to making a star pendant out of them. So that's what I did.

For now, this really reconciled me with the project, with this evening in particular and with stars in general. :) I had been worried that working with beads would be awfully difficult but with this one I got an easy start. Thanks to Christiane for the instructions, and thanks to Catrin for the help with choosing the beads and colours!

Something else I'm quite happy with is the nylon thread that makes it look like the star is floating freely just beneath my collar bones. :)

P.S.: That other plan I had is not dead yet...!

21. Linocut Star

I am once again quite grateful for the simplicity of stars. Linocut is another technique I haven't tried in a really long time - and when I did it was never with a satisfactory result because I used to be far too ambitious. So, here I am now with a very simple cut and if I'm honest, I have to say I rather like it:

How wonderful it is to have all these different materials ready to use! By the time I get back to my place I'll have to make do with what little I've got.

P.S.: I think it's time to send a big THANK YOU over the wide ocean to Keri Smith who has been a great inspiration to me over the past one and a half year (and continues to be) when it comes to losing perfectionism - bit by bit. So many things can be so much more fun! :)

P.P.S.: Is this the first 7-pointed star? I think it is. Love it!

20. Stars on Canvas

Today, I decided to grab some paint and canvas, go outside into our garden and just start painting. That is something I don't usually do, since my perfectionism is particularly disturbing when it comes to painting on canvas: I'm hardly ever satisfied. This time, however, I desided not to care. The sun was shining, the air was unusually fresh and I felt lighthearted enough to try. I suppose the green all around me inspired me somewhat since it's not a typical colour for me to choose. But I really didn't think much about the whole thing until it was finished. By then, I felt rather comfortable with it.

In the flowers on the gras...

In the flying drops of rain...

In the roaring fire's sparks...

In the velvet sky of night...

...there are Stars.

P.S.: Taking a proper picture was well-nigh impossible... The colours simply wouldn't show. I had to strengthen them a little on the computer and it still looks nothing like the real thing. I'll try again tomorrow when there's still sunlight in the garden, maybe that'll help.

19. Unzipped

I can hardly believe it: My mother was the first to discover yesterday's star constellation! :D She got a real hug for that - since I'm currently staying at my parents' - and here's her big cheer:

And on top of that, her artwork was my inspiration for today's star: Blue zippers.

18. White Tiger of the West

Today's project is the first to not depict an actual star-shaped 'star'. But it's still very star-related.

At 11:04 this morning (that's 10:04 GMT), the sun crossed the celestial equator into the southern hemisphere. This moment is know as autumnal equinox and marks the beginning of the autumn season in astronomy. So I - being an almost hobby astronomer and currently taking a one year star challenge - decided to pay my tribute to this season in an astronomical kind of way.

In traditional Chinese astronomy, the sky is divided into 28 'lunar mansions' which are again grouped into four symbols: the Azure Dragon of the East, the Black Tortoise of the North, the White Tiger of the West, and the Vermillion Bird of the South. They are all associated with a season as well, and I was quite delighted to find that the one for the upcoming autumn season is the White Tiger! :D

The tiger is a simple aquarelle painting (DIN A3). For the stars I used acrylic paint. (I would have liked to use my Chinese calligraphy set, but I don't have it with me, so I had to make due with a not so very traditional way of painting. It was fun non the less!)

P.S.: The first one to find a well known western constellation among those stars will get a big cyber-hug and a cheer in the next post! ;)

17. Blueberry Pie

This is a dream come true! I made my very first, very own Blueberry Pie! :)

And, of course, I took the opportunity to make another star:

Of course, living in Germany, I don't have a proper pie pan (they're extremely rare here), but the tart pan didn't do a bad job either. This was the recipe I used.

It tasted sooo good! (Warm blueberries - almost as delicious as hot chocolate, and that's coming from a true chocoholic!) My mum and I already ate half of it - with vanilla ice cream... a dream!

16. Crochet Trivet

This must have been the first time after having left primary school that I actually tried to crochet again. I had a lot of help from this website (German), where there are still many more ideas (including lots of stars) so I might come back to that at some point - seeing that I still need some practice. I had to start over at least 5 times when I had entirely lost track of what I was doing. But it was a nice occupation on the train ride today.
This star is rather large. I might use it as a trivet should I ever need one...

I really like how this challenge makes me try out new techniques (or others that are so old they're practically new to me again ;)).

15. Dancing Chestnut

The next sign of autumn:

Cast in oder of appearence:

a Göttingen chestnust - lead role

my jacket pocket - transportation

my sister's kitchen knife and cutting board - costume

a fineliner pen - make-up

my sister's chair - set decoration

my camera - camera

14. Deep Ecology

I'm still filled with thoughts and emotions from the past weekend's workshop. It is not easy to summarise, but for all the people who are still in search of themselves, and for those who feel like there is something going wrong in this world: Take a look at Deep Ecology (Tiefenökologie), you may find it quite interesting.

A beautiful, appreciative way to learn not to forget the world's well-being over onself, and not to forget ones own well-being over the world - and to realise that there isn't much of a difference between the two.

This star is dedicated to all the people who work to reconnect:

Now I had better abandon this view and look at the world from the inside rather than from the outside, seeing that I am inevitably a part of it.

The world is a seamless coat.

"It is impossible to cut into this network, to isolate a portion of it without it becoming frayed and unravelled at all of its edges. All around us, as far as the eye can see, the universe holds together, and only one way of considering it is really possible, that is, to take it as a whole, in one piece." (Pierre Teilhard de Chardin)

P.S.: I am not the first to cut up the world into odd shapes. With this one I had help from a gentleman named Petermann (1865), though already Leonardo da Vinci may have created a star-shaped map in the 1500s. (Further reading: English / Deutsch)

13. Yet Another Dinner

Looks like the past week really challenged me, and though I got through everything better than I had expected and I enjoyed it all a lot, it's now taking its toll: I caught a really nasty cold, the kind where you're suddenly drained of all energy so quickly you barely have time to grab enough tissues and make your way to bed. This morning, I had still been optimistic but now I feel completely whacked - and I'm having trouble fallsing asleep because I can't seem to breathe whenever I lie down.

Okay, enough of that. What cheered me up was a star for dinner. (Food tends to have that effect on me, star or not...)

A very plain and simple Quesadilla. Not really special after the incredibly delicious food I've had over the past weekend, but I just love it! :)

12. Dinner is served!

This weekend was all about nature and everything that is a part of it - including myself. Those were wonderful days with wonderful people and impressive experiences - distressing and soothing all at the same time. Right next to where we were staying there was a beautiful forest which made it quite obvious that autumn is rapidly approaching. I don't know whether I've ever seen that many beechnuts! I spent almost 20 minutes collecting them and barely had to move from where I had first knelt down. I left them on a nearby stone as a star feast for birds and squirrels.

To the beeches!

11. Mercedes Star

No, I don't have a new car. I don't even have a car. I only made this because my eyes fell on the aluminium foil when packing for the weekend. So, now I've got my very own, very crude Mercedes star:

This is the first three-pointed star of the project. This is almost getting exciting... ;)

P.S.: Since there are apparently a few people reading this (O.O when did that happen??), here's a note so you won't get worried: I'll be away over the weekend - without any chance of getting internet access. So, stars will be made (promise!) but they won't be posted until Sunday night or Monday morning.

10. Two Cuts

OK, time is running out and I am really tired. (That's 'really, really, really, ... tired'.) So here's a very short one: two cuts and it was done. (The most difficult part was taking a picture that was neither blurry not white.)

 

What is rather sad though is that I don't really like the taste... Well, I'll try again tomorrow.

9. A Star at the Psychology Conference

Over the past few days, I met a lot of people I had not seen in a rather long time (or ever before). I'm really enjoying this first conference experience of mine! :) Every night I get home I'm quite exhausted - so much information, so many people, so many new impressions! - still, this turned out to be a really interessting week.
Here's a little star to document our get-together:

Thank you Tina, Natalie and Charlotte for lending me a hand - or two! ;D

8. Chartres Labyrinth Star

I had tried different ways of creating a labyrinth-shaped star over the past few days (labyrinth, mind you, not maze!), now it's finished. Eventually, I settled for a six-pointed star and the original Chartres concept of a labyrinth, and - wow! - does this look confusing!

Already the round version appears rather complex but this is just madness. It's barely recognisable as a labyrinth. But the path is correct. I went through it several times to make sure it works, and it does.

It was quite interesting how throughout the process of drawing this, the rhythm of the structure became more and more apparent - after it had felt like a complete mess at the beginning.

P.S.: This one is dedicated to my mum who made labyrinths a part of her art and gives people an understanding of how labyrinths can be more than just a kind of rhythmical, mathmatical structure that is interesting to look at...

7. Glowing in the Dark

Wow! What a long day! (Plus, my train back home had to take a detour and drop me off at the wrong station - my bike being on the other side of town - which is why it took me twice as long as planned to get home...)
Since I have to get up quite early tomorrow (my bike still being on the other side of town so that I'll have to take the tram to the station...) that leaves me only a little time for a really quick star, but that doesn't make it any less interesting. I have never tried the long time exposure function of my camera before - until now. And this is the result (2nd try):

Wonderful effect! I shall play around with it some more in the future. :)

6. Flourishes

What a beautiful way to start the day!
When I woke up far too early this morning - again - after having had trouble falling asleep last night - again - I set to work on a new design, in between preparations for a presentation next week. I had always liked the idea of an ornate star made of swirls and flourishes, but I didn't feel very comfortable creating a design that I would like.
Browsing the internet for a little inspiration and a rough idea what such patterns could look like, I tried out a few designs on the individual points of one star. In the end, my favourite was very clear, and I admit that I traced the chosen pattern onto a new star instead of trying to draw it five times over in the exact same way. :)
I also admit that I like the result very much:

P.S.: Did I mention that I really don't like not having a scanner?

P.P.S.:  18:30
This turned out to be a real star-day! I went on a hiking trip with two friends (hi, Romi & Feli!^^) and up in the mountains we came across a place called 'star' due to the six straight paths meeting there. So, basically, I walked on a star today! :D

Later, we discovered the observatory a short way away, which was open and offering visitors the opportunity to observe the one star that was visible at 3 in the afternoon: the sun. Ah! all the information and interesting stories we got to hear! I really need to start some research - I've forgotten so much over the years!

5. Walk of Creativity

Well, I suppose sooner or later a walk of fame-star just had to be made. I considered briefly unsing it as the final project - should I ever get there - but very quickly dropped the idea because: firstly, fame really isn't my thing, and secondly, instead of a reward this is actually quite nice as some sort of affirmation at the beginning, telling me: 'You don't need to do this to prove you are creative - 'cause you already are. This is not about great achievement but about having fun!'
And when I finally figured out what to do about the category symbol, I decided to set to work immediately - well, after having acquired some suitable paper.

This will now go on my door (from the outside) making a very clear statement that behind this door, creativity rules. Enter at your own risk!

4. "Rosen-Stern"

This one was a few hours early. Still, I'll let it count since I like it so much. I met a friend at a pub last night and we built a star and a flower (she's about to start on her own project!) out of beer mats:

Thanks to Tina for a lovely envening and the help in putting this one together! It only took 4 or 5 tries to complete. :)

3. Star-Eggie

Eggie in the basket is among my top three things to have for breakfast. If I'm not very much mistaken, the first time I came across this adorable idea of a fried egg was in 'V for Vendetta'. I couldn't wait until the 5th of November to try this out, so here it is: the special edition "Star Challenge" of eggie in the basket!

P.S.: Where can you buy a single egg? Well, I don't know. I've tried the farmer's market without having any luck. But you can meet some really nice people who offer to buy a whole box of 6 (even though they hadn't actually planned to buy eggs) and sell you one of them. Lots of thanks to an unknown elderly man for this one! :)

2. The Book of Stars

Number 2 is finished!

Wow, that was quite a bit of work. Preparations had already been made last night. (Amazing, the things you can do when sleep defies you! And this is way more fun than sorting socks or writing papers for university. ;D)

So, here is my little Book of Stars:

It's actually not quite that little: 20 cm in diameter. And this is what it looks like on the inside:

20 sheets of coloured paper + 2 white ones. Finally, I could put my large stack of coloured paper to some use!

My favourite piece about this book is the little red button. The idea occured to me only when the book was already finished, and the second I saw this button I knew it was the last missing detail. Love it!

So, now I've got a special place to try out some sketches and jot down ideas for this challenge. Always a good thing to have. Until it's filled up I might think of something else for the next one. :)

1. How To...

How to start a blog:

I never thought I would become a blogger… seriously. But sometimes, things just happen, an idea just happens, and things change.

This blog has a purpose - not the purpose to host my daily thoughts and feelings and struggles and triumphs: I have plenty of crazy journals for that. It serves the sole purpose to help me through this one year challenge.

Then again, it will most likely contain my daily thoughts and feelings and struggles and triumphs - only that they will all be connected to those stars…

How to make a five-pointed star:

A very first and very basic approach to stars and one method of construction. Yes, I do like structure. I now have one year to loosen that up. :)

The magic number is 72° - I'd do well to remember that.

P.S.: No, I'm not into pentagrams and the likes - only prefere asymmetric stars.

P.P.S.: To a year full of stars! Cheers!