Angelica

This is Angelica.
Angelica is the second in the series of "my girls"
9"x12" mixed media on canvas
Angelica reminds me that we are safe, that everything is right in the universe, that we are where we are supposed to be at all times and that we are never alone. We are free to enjoy life free of fear and anxiety.

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Hope

9"x12" mixed media on canvas

I recently read Kelly Rae Roberts book, Taking Flight inspiration and techniques to give your creative spirit wings - which is full of inspiring ideas and projects. In Taking Flight she shows how she paints faces. I am inspired by Kelly Rae's art, creativity and words.  You can learn all about her and her book here. http://kellyraeroberts.blogspot.com/ Thank you so much Kelly Rae for your inspiration and instruction - this was the first time I felt confident to try painting faces, other than snow people. More about that soon.
I decided that I wanted to paint my own inspired girls, they are like my companions in my creative space. This is the first in a series of 3 paintings I am calling my girls.

Her name is Hope, she is a gardener, she is planting seeds of hope.

It was a shock to me and everyone around me when I was diagnosed with bladder cancer last fall.
Cancer has so many challenges that come with it - both emotional and physical because first you deal with the task at hand of getting it out of your body and making sure that that part of your body is OK, but then there is this vulnerability that lingers where you wonder, do I have it somewhere else? Why did I get it? What's next?  You really get the opportunity to look at your own mortality and decide how you want to live your life. Whether you are living with cancer or living cancer free, you still get to choose how to spend that time. It can be a huge gift and a teacher if you let it.

The thing is we all have to live our lives fully today and everyday because each new day is a gift.
There are no promises about tomorrow.


We have to have HOPE!
Hope keeps alive our dreams and wishes. Hope plants seeds for the future
.
I like this poem by Emily Dickinson

Hope is the thing with feathers
That perches in the soul,
And sings the tune without the words,
And never stops at all,

And sweetest in the gale is heard;
And sore must be the storm
That could abash the little bird
That kept so many warm.

I've heard it in the chilliest land
And on the strangest sea;
Yet, never, in extremity,
It asked a crumb of me.

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old pump fountain

I made this pump fountain last weekend. Using a real well pump that belonged to my grandpa's brother, Buck. I love the sound it makes.

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Mondays with A.J.

This was so precious, we haven't put water in his pool yet this year, but I think he's ready. It looks like he might out grow it first. This year in Seattle summer has been slow to come but today the first day of summer it is warm and beautiful. Mondays with A.J. are just the best day of the week, he is such a sweet determined little boy, we have so much fun. It is really great to see the world brand new again like little babies do, everything is new and exciting!
Thank you A.J.

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For Syd

This is a small painting I did for a friend who was very sick in the hospital. She had sepsis and severe bronchial distress. Her friends and family were afraid she wouldn't come home. She was that ill. I didn't start out with a plan to paint a painting for her, it was one of those things that just happens when I go in the studio and just start creating. The painting became like a prayer to me that I worked on several nights in a row. Thank heaven, God and all the angels that helped her heal, she is now home with her husband and kitties and doing quite well!
The painting is a mixed media collage on canvas. 9"x12" acrylic, torn paper, found objects and a cute little poem I found that just had to be included.

         Small Moth
She's slicing ripe white peaches
into the Tony the Tiger bowl
& dropping slivers for the dog
poised vibrating by her foot to stop their fall
When she spots it camouflaged,
a glimmer & then full on-
happiness, plashing blunt soft wings
inside her as if it wants
to escape again.
By Sarah Lindsay

Syd, I am so happy you are feeling better and happily gardening again!
Watch your mail box, my prayers were answered!

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Oregon coast

This is a simple Watercolor painting of the Oregon coast.
I just love being at the ocean, the sea feels so fresh and alive to me and my spirit is happy and at home.
I am teaching beginning Watercolor, and last week we painted a simpler version of this painting.

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take time to smell the flowers

It seems like we are always in a hurry.
There is so much to do or get done that there is very little time left to stop and breathe.
When I spend the day with my grandson it is all about experiencing everything. I mean everything!
He is 21 months old and everything is new to him, I thought he was smelling this flower, but when he came up he had actually taken a big bite, yellow pollen all over his lips. I can't tell you if he liked it. His face was unremarkable, but somehow deep inside I think I have a memory of what a flower tastes like,
maybe you do too?
I have been trying to find time to meditate lately and find it a challenge to find time to just sit and close my eyes. I keep thinking well maybe if I wake up earlier-that works sometimes. But then I should go for a walk, make my lunch, clean up etc. In the evenings maybe there is time, no there is too much going on in the evenings, gardening, dinner, laundry, errands, phone calls to friends and loved ones, visiting with sweetie, maybe a walk? A yoga or dance class? I should make more time to paint, I love painting! There just isn't enough time to do all the shoulds!
So I am going to promise myself to do one thing everyday that makes my spirit happy, and if I have time for more, then it's just a bonus, because after all every moment everyday is a precious gift and that makes my spirit happy!
I challenge you to do the same!

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The end to another wonderful weekend

This is the view from the rear of the ferry from Vashon Island to West Seattle.
On summer evenings when we leave the island to come "home", (I wonder where we feel more at "home") the sun is often setting so beautifully. This was true last weekend, I was stuck by all the layers of beauty. You can see the Olympic mountains in the distance, Blake Island to the right, the Olympic Peninsula straight ahead and the very tip of Vashon island to the left.
It was the end to another wonderful weekend.

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Paradise on Vashon

This is a photo of the area I painted last weekend. It is in the exact same spot I painted in Plein Air.
Notice the first poppy to open, it wasn't in bloom when I painted it before. I also left the chairs out because when sweetie mowed the lawn he had moved them, they weren't there!
This past weekend I spent more time helping with pulling weeds, pruning, and keeping sweetie hydrated and fed than painting. It was the first time in a long time since I had spent much time in the garden, it felt so great!

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Vashon garden

This is a watercolor I did yesterday of our Vashon Island garden. It was finally sunny and warm enough to sit outside and paint, YAY!  Our garden has beds full of all kinds of flowers, annuals, perennials, shrubs and trees, all of which are waking up to another summer of growth and renewal! The birds were singing loudly, the hummingbirds were buzzing, even the butterflies were a flutter! I just love this time of year when all is new again.
Vashon Garden watercolor on Fabriano paper, 9"x 12"

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Cannon Beach

This is one of the most beautiful places on earth.

I could barely pull myself away to come home. I love the northwest, We live in a beautiful city and are surrounded by water and mountains, nature is everywhere and I am so inspired here but this ocean town and beach just take my breathe away,  no the opposite, I can breathe here! "i come to the sea to breathe"  is one of my favorite quotes by Mary Anne Radmacher. When she lived in Cannon beach, she must have been inspired to write it. I could have stayed forever! The sand on my feet fell away as the tide tried to pull me out to sea, the birds sang to me as I walked, the sun on my face kissed me so softly. The wind giving me fresh clean air to breathe and the sound of the ocean is such powerful music, I slept with the window open so I could hear it's lullaby.

I feel as though part of me is still there, waiting for my return. I always feel very drawn to the ocean, even the very first time as a young child I remember the roar of the waves and the soft sand on my toes and knew I was home.

I have so many pictures and am very inspired to paint my impression of the loveliness that surrounded me while we were in Cannon Beach I am excited to get started.

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I 5 Prof

We met a very talented photographer shooting on the beach, here you can see her giving Phil some tips. I just LOVE her pictures! You can see her work on www.flickr.com/I5prof

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Sweetie and the "rock"

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love, always and forever

I made this collage of photos of Sharon and I for my mom, Jan for mothers day. She really liked it a lot.
I'm so blessed to have all my family close by, by the end of the day today, I will have seen, my sister and most of her family, my mom, both of my kids, their spouses my dad, and my joy, AJ!
Happy mother's day to moms everywhere.
Xxoo

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Angel cloud

Do you believe in angels? I do.
I saw this cloud Angel when we were on the ferry to Vashon today. It was so beautiful. As it flew in the wind it went right over the Cottage garden and as I drove to town seemed to meet up with another winged cloud.
Very magical.

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Homeward Bound

This painting is called Homeward Bound. I painted it last summer inspired by the weekends Phil and I spend taking a ferry to our little cottage on Vashon Island. Vashon is a lovely 15 minute ferry ride across Puget Sound. It is one of my favorite parts of the weekend. I just love getting on that boat and leaving all our cares behind. I always get the feeling that we are going home on the way there. I keep my eyes open watching for whales. They do come down this far in Puget sound but it is somewhat rare. I have seen orca whales twice on the ferry from West Seattle to Vashon, what a thrill!

It seems that we are in a time when we can all use a getaway to escape from our fears, worries, and concerns. It seems that everyone has something we are dealing with and if we don't, all we have to do is look around and find things to worry about. Phil and I feel very blessed to have a place to remind us to stay in the moment, get grounded and be grateful for all of our blessings.

Being grateful is so important and it's easy to find things to be grateful for- like take a deep breath, ahhhh, I can breath, I am thankful that I have lungs and for that breath. I can see that beautiful flower or sunset.

Oh I am so thankful I have eyes to see with!

Homeward Bound started as a watercolor painting, I then painted a canvas as a background for it. I glued the watercolor painting to the painted canvas. Then I applied layers of specialty papers and more paint to create a collage like appearance. A technique I developed over time.

It is approximately 20"x20"x2"

Watercolor painting on paper, acrylic and specialty papers on canvas.

This is the lovely mini quilt I received from my swap partner in the creative color challenge in February.
I thought I had already posted it, but in looking back I see I have not.
It is such a beautiful piece of art! This small mini quilt is beautifully stitched and beaded in my favorite color! I just LOVE it! I hung it in my studio, but I know it will move around the house as it is a treasure.

The creative color challenge was really fun to participate in, and even better because I got to meet someone from Australia, Lisa my swap partner lives, in Australia.
After posting this, I realize, I didn't do a very good job shooting the photo for this, sorry Lisa it really doesn't show the details very well. I will try to get a better one up.

This falls under "love"

This falls under "love".

This is A.J. my 1 1/2 year old grandson.  My JOY!

I am very lucky to spend a few Mondays every month with him. Last week we learned how to color with color crayons and put stickers on paper, he really loves art. But he loves being outside even more! He doesn't mind the cold and doesn't tire of exploring all the wonders of nature! A.J. loves going for long walks, exploring the trails at the park, picking up sticks and stones just like the nursery rhyme. He makes Mondays my favorite days! My Grandma Mary made that hat for me when I was little.

This week I spent my creative energy sewing curtains for my daughter, her husband and A.J. for their new home. They were outgrowing the little house they were in and moved into a larger one.  We found some really nice curtains at Ikea, and then I was able to shorten them enough to make a whole other window curtain out of what was left. So I made 10 sets of curtains over the weekend. They look really nice and the kids love them, it makes me feel good to be able to do something creative for them that makes their new home feel welcoming.

I am anxious to get back to painting, but it was fun to have a completely different project.

Twinkling wings

I was inspired to paint Twinkling Wings by Luminarte's Twinkling H2O's.

The paints are perfect to capture the essence of butterfly wings and hummingbird feathers. I used the Radiant Rain mist to give the soft dreamy feel to the painting. 

Ginny

This is a close up of "Ginny" from "Looking Forward".
This is my first try at silver leaf and one of my first trys at painting faces.
I am really enjoying mixed media right now.
I have 4 more new paintings on my drawing table now that are almost finished.

The tree of life

This is a close up of part of the painting, "Looking forward"

It is my favorite part of the painting and reminds me that our children are a part of our family tree and the tree of life itself.
They are an extension of us and we live on through them for generations.

Donald "Darn" Colley at Northwest Art & Frame

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     Chicago based artist Donald "Darn" Colley came to Northwest Art and Frame today to do a demonstration to show us how he uses Pitt artist pens. What a gift it was to watch and listen to him show us how he uses these amazing pens! He was able to show us how to make marks and blend them to create soft lines. He uses everything as his sketch books even old ledger books. It was truly like a demo and drawing class all in one. I want to remember his terms light falls in the hills and valleys. cross hatch in the way the contours go and not necessarily the way your hand naturally wants to go. Sketch and draw quickly, start light, work towards dark, draw the part that will move first then get the rest. Start with one tone or color such as brown or grey then when the values are right you can go back later and add in layers of color. Fill in with white or opaque when the sketch book gets full of lines like a lost in found, highlight the found images.

It was truly a very special gift to see this demo today and "Darn" was a very genuine, warm and entertaining artist.

Thank You!

Looking Forward

I painted this for my son and his wife, they have been married almost 2 years. They fell in love in high school. lost track of each other for several years and reconnected on My Space.
Their love is very strong but they have had a tough go of it, this time of economic challenges has been a struggle for them. So I painted this to remind them to keep looking forward to abundance, happiness, love and wealth.  It is mixed media collage, acrylic painted over all sorts of paper, silver leaf, oil sticks, Pitt pens, luminarte H20's metal, even added the saint of hope necklace, that is removable and they can wear it if they want.
I hope this reminds them to look forward everyday with hope to the future and that they are loved very much.
I have to add, this is not a true to life portrait of them, but rather a simple likeness.
24"X36" on canvas

Quote of the day

I wrote this to someone today and I liked it so much I want to save it.

" I prefer to make my own lines to color in rather than use someone else's"

Blooming Inspiration

My head is full of blooming inspiration!















This is a sweet little painting I have been working on, working with complementary collors, fluid acrylics, oil sticks, and Luminarte paints. It is 8 X 10"

Complementary Blooms

A few weeks ago I signed up to take part in the Creative Color Challenge with Louise Gale. After we signed up we received the information about the challenge. The colors had to be complementary, and you could

include black and white. The theme was blooms and any part of blooms, leaves etc.  I also used actual complements in my composition. I used a small wooden frame with a mirror in it, and included the words you are beautiful, creative, amazing woman in the composition. It is truly a mixed medium piece with acrylic paint, found and re purposed paper and markers. I had so much fun making this and the best part is we got matched up with swap partners to send our creations to. Mine lives in Australia! YAY it's almost like I got to go! And I am looking forward to see what she has made! I would definitely do this again! It was so much fun. I was feeling a little un-creative, not sure where to start in the new year with my art but really wanting to be one with my muse again, this was just what I needed to be inspired and back to creating art. Now I can't wait to get into my studio almost everyday. Thank You Louise!

Now if I could just figure out how to add those little buttons I could add the Creative Color Challenge one here! Any suggestions?

Love where you live

I was invited to participate with a group of artists in a gallery show in Pioneer Square, downtown Seattle.
The theme of the show is Vashon Island Artists.
Although I only live on the island an average of one day a week, I have been active in the arts community, donating to the auction at VAA and having several art shows at cafes there.
I was inspired to paint "Love where you live" by this show. We are blessed to live in beautiful Puget sound and divide our time between West Seattle and Vashon island. We love the island, it's rural community and the people who live there and are fortunate it is only a 15 minute ferry ride away.

Another way of thinking about loving where you live presented itself to me as I was painting it-I added fish, birds and Orca whales and was reminded to love where we live, we must be mindful to take care of what we love. In this case our environment so that we all can thrive here.

I am honored to be involved in a group show with fellow artists from Vashon island.
The show will be at the Kevin D'Amelio Gallery, 619 Western Ave, Seattle Wa.
March first Thursday gallery walk. Until it comes down March 13th.

Experimenting with Luminarte paints

 I have been experimenting with Luminarte paints.

They are a water soluble paint that is very saturated with both color pigment and mica which gives them a color and a twinkly luminescence that is just beautiful.

On the above pictures I used the paints exclusively, the seascape one is a first draft, I will try that one again. The landscape is finished. It is hard to see the brilliance and sparkle in the photographs you will just have to believe me, the twinkle!

The watercolors come in 2 sizes in easy to use little pots as you can see above.

They also make little sprayers and daubers with the twinkly paint!

I used the red spray to create the effect of flowers in the background.

I really like the gold spray, I used it instead of water to create a splatter effect with a little sparkle, you can also spray it on dry watercolors for added effects.

I have not used the daubers yet but I think they would be great in crafts and stenciling, I will try that soon.

I am working on a mixed media using acrylics now, and can't wait to see how the Luminarte paints work on it!

It is snowing in Seattle now, I can't think of a better snow day project.

http://www.creativeimaginations.us/store/CI_Luminarte.php 

All my love

Happy Valentines day to my husband. In February I love to make my own Valentines. This year I painted this painting using acrylic paint, and an old repurposed garment pattern on canvas.

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Creative color challenge

On one of my new adventures in blog land, I found a creative blogger in New Jersey named Louise Gale. I love her blog, she has so much creative fun energy it's contagious. She has this creative challenge she calls the creative color challenge and I signed up! The challenge is to make a piece of art in two complementary colors, you can also use black and white. We have to stay in the theme of blooms.  Any medium is ok. We have 2 weeks to finish our piece, and at the end we swap it with another artist that we have been randomly matched with. I am very excited to be matched with an artist from Australia! As it is a surprise I will wait to post a picture of what I do until it arrives to her. I wonder how long it takes to mail from Washington to Australia?

My vision board for 2011

This is my vision board for 2011. I am creating love, great health, abundant creativity, nurturing relationships with family and friends,fun times, strength, exercise, good healthy food, gardening, flowers, connecting with nature and all the things I love for this year and beyond. It was really fun to do. I used old magazines, paint, glue stick, glitter and glued it all on a piece of illustration board size 15x20. I recommend trying this, it is very inspiring and insightful to see what you come up with. Just tear out pages that speak to you. Then cut and assemble the parts that mean something to you.

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The beginning of my vision board for 2011.

This is the start of my vision board for 2011. I have been cutting up old magazines with the thought in mind of what I want to create for myself this year. I bought an illustration board size 15x20 which I will glue all these little pieces to. But I am not limited to magazines, The sky is the limit where creativity is concerned! That is what is so fun about being involved in the creative process. I'm excited to see where this takes me.

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Wear your good stuff part 2.

I'm happy with the finished skirt and scarf. I wore the skirt to work today and had several complements.

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Wear your good stuff.

In September 2010 I was diagnosed with bladder cancer.
There was a month long wait after the tumors were removed before the next surgery to determine what the next step would be. That was a very long month of speculation, fear and soul searching. Thankfully The next biopsy was negative. During that time I adopted my motto "wear your good stuff".
I've been wearing more dresses, skirts, boots, and accessories and having a lot of fun doing it.
I found this skirt in my closet. I haven't worn it for years but I thought it would be really cute as a shorter version and had enough to make a matching scarf.

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ornament made using metal tape, hand made paper, beads, wire and metal embossing.

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Lavender field cutie

I was at a beautiful lavender field on Vashon Island when I saw this adorable little cutie walking through the fragrant field of flowers on a very sunny July day in 2009. I took a photo, and later painted her on a cold day in January 2010.

Lavender field cutie.

Watercolor painted January 2010

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inspiration

I find inspiration in nature. On a cold winter day in January I took this picture at the science.center. AJ wanted to catch the beautiful butterflies. I used my creativity to keep them safe.

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Inspiration