Thanks to facebook and Elizabeth from also facebook, I learned how to make banana paper. 

 It is an incredibly simple process.  This came about because I could not find good water color paper to learn on and work with. 

 What I love about this is that the banana stalk is basically garbage or compost once the plant has produced the fruit after its short life span.  What makes me sad it that other farmers and their families could make this paper, make more money and help stop the chopping of trees down to make paper.  

We all know that the trees that are used to make paper take many years to reproduce and the whole process harms the environment greatly. Another thing that is sad for me is that I have to find a solid way to make the paper white, naturally..... if you have any ideas let me know.  I was trying to get a hold of more hydrogen peroxide but to get the paper white is difficult, it comes more blonde which is lovely but not for all painting.  It is also highly fibrous, but that is apart of the charm.  Australia and Africa are starting to create more paper from banana as they are interested in sustainability and the banana plant is a good answer.  You can youtube this!

Anyway this is the process summed up.  Chop up the banana stalk or leave into small pieces (this is so easy it is like cutting styrofoam), cook it up for a couple of hours to tenderize, put bits in the blender add whitening agent, or add torn up bits of soaked recycled paper and blend up with the banana.  Pour mash over screen in a water bath, make sure it is even by swishing it around.   Lift the screen with mash out of the water level, with a piece of material over top sponge out water, turn over,remove screen put piece of material over top, sponge out more water, you can use rolling pin to carefully remove more water and make the paper even.  Set over screen to dry.  Often when drying the paper would shift and warp, so I used my iron with material between to level it out and also put under 2 pieces of tile to dry level.  This process is not hard just time consuming.  

Love this paper!
Robin

Hey there.  
This was a Sunday event in Banos, the Carrera de los coches de madera.  The wee go-cart race.  This is no "wee" event just the size of the carts are "wee".  But then compared to me most things in Ecuador are "wee".

This event starts in the city, one up the road called Pelileo.  The participants, with their cart, boot it down the hill and a few up hills and as fast as they can get themselves, no small feat.  They get to the final hill in Banos where everyone is waiting for them and greeting them. This whole event requires tenacity and also bravado. 

The scary thing is that often the people who are in the audience want so much to show their enthusiasm, that they stand right in the middle of the street and don't move.  It is a policeman's nightmare.  Yikes!!! Yes in the past there have been injuries both the the participants and members of the crowd.... but I guess that is part of the fun.  The flirting with danger.  

I understand this year one of the participants was killed practicing for this event and he was fairly young.  Truely sad for the family. 

I went for coffee and drawing yet again to Amarello while waiting for the event to get to Banos.  Yes, in the second photo there are 2 policemen going to work the event.  They were everywhere and all over Banos, they really do have to work hard to try and control everything.  They really have to work against the crowd who are oblivious to their own safety.

I even showed my photos of the the crowd to some of the policemen who were stationed a bit away from the event and there was a lot of head shaking and cussing.

So Back to my drawing,  It was of a dog who is scratching that itch, you know the one that is so hard to reach but ecstasy when you get there.  I love dogs they so greatly show us the true joys of living.  

Talk with you all later
Robin 

Hi there all.
Sometimes the best place to create is in your own garden. Because I was at home,  I was close to the coffee pot, which means an endless supply of caffeinated inspiration.  I sat on a semi-sunny day on one of the yoga mats, close to a plant that I had replanted into a better place.  I have found that this is a survivor plant and one that I feel an affinity to.  If it can survive and blossom so can I.  

This day was a day where I just could not get myself to leave the house when it was just a beautiful here as anywhere else in Ecuador.  So here I refused to move from the house in beautiful Banos.  Where I could see Tungurahua rising in the sky.  She was also having a calm and quiet morning and I think she was just suntanning.

I had created kind of fish drawing before but it was with pen and ink as was a little too sketchy for what I was looking for.  So I did it similar but totally in the colored pencil.  I think it came out nice.

You can create art anywhere, you just have to do it.

Talk with you all later
Robin

Hey there: