emerge

YAY! I just finished watching American Idol, I am very happy :)
Is it wrong to like a tv show so much ?
Lila and Paul watched the first hour and Paul had fun deciding if the singers where "chumps" or "champs" (his terminology) I don't know where he picks this stuff up! But it is actually a good grading system. Lila seemed to enjoy it too, she laughed at all the right parts. Mike was here too and we were all lined up on the couch, sharing a blanket...good times.

On another note, I bought twelve new tubes of paint today. It was a brand I had never noticed before, but today, for some reason I did. They have the most gorgeous colors, I'll have to post a pic of the tubes tomorrow.

Finished!

This morning things were back to normal. I dropped the kiddos off, came home and went to the studio with my coffee and finished this painting. It felt really good to work in the empty house. I have another promising painting started that I can't wait to get to tomorrow. I'm feeling fresh energy after our extended holiday break where I didn't get much done. Back to work!

Any American Idol fans out there? I am a huge fan and can hardly wait till tomorrow night!!!

work in progress

oh dear, it doesn't look like much does it?
Painting is strange, it has to go through ugly stages, well at least mine do, and it seems the uglier I let it be in the beginning, the happier I am with it in the end.
I think it has to do with being free and loose with the painting and trusting the process. If I try to control it, I lose.

Tomorrow we go back to our schedules again. I loved the extra time with the kids on their snow days, but we all need our routines. Next week my class starts up too, psychology of the exceptional child. I'm hoping for a good professor, it makes all the difference.

white primer

the creative extent of my day was priming a cabinet door for painting, so i'm not going to bore you with a picture of that.

It seems very difficult to get things accomplished when I have the kiddos underfoot all day. Since they have been home since Thursday I am getting behind again.

I'm having flashbacks of this summer.

I love taking care of them and doing things with them. As they get older, the projects we can do together get more interesting too. I know they are my first and foremost so I don't feel too badly when my time is going to them, but it does make me wonder how other mom/artists balance it all...

snow dayS

We turned out to have a snow day after all! I think around 4 - 5 inches fell, and it was bitterly cold, so no school today AND no school tomorrow.
It's kind of nice to be 'trapped' inside with bad weather howling all around you.
I ate so much food today, but good food. Big salads, berries, turkey, pickles then a yummy dinner made from one of Annabel Karmel's cookbooks. She is one of my favorite cookbook authors. There are no dogs in her books, every recipe is a star.
I will have to leave the house tomorrow to get some scans done and to buy dishwasher detergent. I hope it's not to cold or dangerous out there! I'm safe and warm in here!

stupid weather people

it's 10 to 10, my children are still awake, because we played big band music all night and danced, because they told us all day

winter storm

winter storm

don't drive tomorrow if you don't ABSOLUTELY HAVE TO

so I figured, snow day

the WINTER STORM has come and gone. There is a pretty, light dusting of snow, no schools have been canceled, and my kids are going to be near impossible to get up tomorrow.

also, there is no completed painting to post, I danced instead

Baby it's cold outside

It warmed up to 16 degrees today.
Tomorrow a winter storm arrives around dinner time.
I guess I better go get my milk and bread, or whatever it is everyone rushes out to buy in the event of snow.
I like snow, I want snow, I have a tobaggon that will fit me and my kids and I can't wait to take them sledding, but I won't be sledding in 10 degree, frigid, windy weather.

I worked on a painting today, I thought to post a work in progress, then tomorrow the finished piece...


















You can see a sliver of my cluttered desk.
You will never see pictures of my studio gracing pages of a magazine. I always feel a little guilty, or ashamed, when I see a cute, color-coordinated, clean, cozy, workroom. I barely have time to floss my teeth, much less spend time decorating my studio. Perhaps someday, when my kids are older, or I'm finished with school, but right now if I can find time to paint, I am happy.

Day 4

I'm finally feeling better. My husband and daughter had work and school, while Paul had one more day off so we spent the morning running errands. I managed to fit in an eyebrow wax with Paul chatting away to the stylist...

Is that chocolate? (I guess the wax was brown)
That looks like chocolate
Can I smell it?
Why does it smell like chicken in here? (apparently the stylist brought a sausage biscuit into work)
Does that hurt mom?
Your eyes are red now
I don't need to wax my eyes

and on, and on

the stylist humored him and his running dialouge and I was happy to get my neglected brows in shape.

nothing like mother and son bonding

Happy Day!

I think it's safe to announce, as a few of you have emailed me already...
I am in this months issue of Cloth Paper Scissors!!!

I am over the moon about the whole experience. I love this magazine, and am honored to be a part of it. I remember when I first stumbled upon this magazine, I quickly ordered all the back issues I could. It's such a happy day when it arrives in my mailbox. It's a surefire way to get inspired.

Well imagine what I must have felt when the magazine in the mailbox had my art in it too!



















I have the originals listed in my etsy shop, as well as prints available.

Day two

The first two days of the new year haven't been that great. I'm fighting a new cold, on top of the old cold I was still recovering from. Last night I was so fed up with not being able to breath through my nose that I was actually taking medication. I started with a day time cold remedy, which did nothing.
Then I moved on to the hard stuff, Sudafed, which did nothing.
So I waited about two hours, trying not to combine drugs, and took some Musinex-D.
Which cleared up my sinuses, AND kept me awake till 5:00 in the morning.
I then awoke at 8, bright and chipper, (irony) and had a coughing spell, which ended with me pulling something in my back.

I am not complaining though, well maybe I am, but I am not letting it get me down. I am trying to remain positive, a cold isn't the end of the world, tonight I'll take some night time cold medicine, sleep like a baby and enjoy the last day of vacation with my family. I've gotten used to having my kids and husband home for the last 11 days. It's been wonderful in fact. We need times like this to reconnect.

January Blogging

on ebay here
starting bid $.99

Long time reader(s) may remember I did art everyday in the month of January last year. I was inspired my Misty Mawn's challenge, and I have to say, it was a great experience and I believe I will be doing my own version of it this year.

I am challenging myself to create everyday and to blog my efforts, everyday.

I find it too easy to put off posting new entries when I'm not holding myself accountable. I like posting, I like getting your comments and I like this form of virtual journaling.

So, starting today, January 1st, I will be posting something new, everyday for the rest of the month. There, I said it out loud, now I have to do it :)

I think I need to get my mail lady a present

New week

Thanksgiving was just right
the craft show exceed expectations
and my house isn't in 'too' bad of shape

I think I'll go to bed early and start my busy busy week rested and fresh

metal wings

I'm taking a metalsmithing class, and so I was inspired to add some metal embellishments into one of my paintings. I had some scrap brass already, and I bought a jewelery saw this week, so I cut out these delicate little wings. I didn't think glue, or gloss gel would adhere the wings well enough, so I 'stitched' them on with copper wire...























I'm so happy with the results and am thinking of ways to embellish my embellishments (stamped letters? etching?)
on ebay here

wings

Another cabinet door, with an egyptian inspired angel
on ebay

Did everyone have a good halloween? I had family over for chili, baked potatoes and hotdogs. The kids were cute in their costumes, Lila was a snow queen and Paul was a cowboy AND best of all it didn't rain.

In other news, I am taking a metalsmithing class for jewelry making. It is fun and fascinating and my mind keeps coming up with designs for necklaces and bracelets. Of course I have absolutely no time to do anything outside of class, but a girl can dream.

two birds

Another cabinet door painting, I love working bigger!

I almost didn't get this painting listed, there was a GIANT green cricket in my studio today camped out on this painting.
I waited,
I waved paper at him,
I made loud noises,
I left and came back later...
Nothing.
I finally get fed up, tilted the painting up, expecting him to jump off
NO
So then I had to push him off with a paintbrush
He's still in my studio somewhere :(

on ebay here

hand to hand

woo wee!!! I did a gigantic painting (well big for me)
It's 22" x 16" painted on a cabinet door, see the brass handle
It was different and fun and I absolutely love the result
I see more of these in my future
on ebay here

watch my daughters take on the painting...

three stories

Somehow I survived the last month.
For the last four weekends I had a major event...

1. My sister's camping wedding extravaganza
2. Lila and Paul's family birthday party
3. Archon (weekend away and art show)
4. Paul's birthday party, where I had ALL the boys from his kindergarten class at my house.

This weekend we have NOTHING planned and I am so excited. I want to clean my studio and relax and paint.
Hope your weekend is enjoyable!

Jasper

My poor kitty Jasper got in a fight with a chipmunk, and lost
He has a nasty, infected, wound on his neck.
Antibiotics have the swelling down, but I still feel sorry for him, so I did his painting of him, to show my love...























on ebay here

I'm Back

Had a wonderful weekend getaway at Archon, (a sci-fi convention)
I think I was 16 at the first one I attended.
I participated in the art show for the second year. Though my work is quite different from 'traditional' sci-fi art, think carefully rendered dragons, metal bikinis and planetary landscapes, I get a few people who delight in my more primitive takes on fairys and mermaids.
I sold several of my prints mounted on wood blocks, which made me feel good :)