Happy Anniversary, Lovin' Man!

Happy Anniversary to the man who just "gets" me, and keeps me around anyway.

I am lucky to have you.  Love you, and looking forward to many more years of our crazy, unkempt life!

Art Rocks is back at it!

I'm a lucky gal!  I get to have THESE fabulous kids stop by and visit me in our studio, and make art with me!  We have started a new season of art making....and we are making some holiday goodies for an upcoming open house.  Seriously, these guys make my day!!! On this particular day, we worked on festive Christmas trees!   For info about our Art Rocks progam, click HERE. 

iHanna's postcard swap is back! Join me!

Hi again!  Just wanted to let you know that the lovely Hanna Andersson is hosting another postcard swap!!  I'm doing it!  C'mon and join me!!!  It's a great way to stretch your creative muscles and meet new creative peeps!  It's well organized and totally legit!  Hanna does a great job! 


Go HERE for info!!

Paint Mojo was so much fun!!!

Hi pals!  Holy Moly!  Where is October rushing off to?  Eeeek!  It's slipping between my fingers!  Today I'm snuggled up warm and cozy in the family room, getting caught up on paperwork and "computer stuff."  Took the doggies to the dog park to run...and it was COLD out there!  They are predicting snow here in Iowa tomorrow....ugh!  I'm so not ready for that.  Not before Halloween, please!!!  Well, I've been meaning to share some pics from a recent outing I had with my dear friend, Erin. 

In early October, we attended a Paint Mojo workshop with the wonderful, fabulous Tracy Verdugo!!

The class was held in the lovely countryside outside Spring Green, Wisconsin.  (not far from The House on the Rock)  Rolling hills, fresh air, and a REALLY fun group of ladies ready to get down and dirty with their paints! 

It was an amazing, eye opening experience for me, with several uncomfortable moments that I had to push through.  We worked a lot with symbols that were important to us, and learning to create how a "feeling" looks in paint.  It was very intuitive, and took some bravery!

These two sassy ladies were our table mates for the weekend, and we had SO much fun with them!  Vivacious Viv!  I found out I had a lot in common with her, as we both have creative businesses.  We are so used to producing things for other people....making things that sell....that we often forget to make for the sake of making.  Creating for our own enjoyment, without an end result in mind.

And Vanessa the art fairy joined us at our table too!  She was prolific!  She completed six paintings that weekend!  I marveled at how free and crazy she was with her painting.....and she let me borrow her Montana paint markers....now I need to buy THOSE!!!

 

We started by putting symbols on our canvas that had meaning for us...using paints, and various mark making tools...including this stamp that I carved out of foam.....oh, and I used my hand too! 

 

 

Lots and lots of layering....turning the canvas constantly, and not getting too attached to anything we've already placed there.

 

 

This is me, in my painting overalls (my favorite thing to paint in!) at the end of the first day!

It was so hard to stop!!!

 

 

The next day, we spent some time as a group, doing show and tell, and talking about what we saw in each others paintings.  That was a lot of fun!  I ended up working on something abstract, which is unusual for m.  I started covering different parts of the canvas up...revealing and adding value to the lovely layers I had created.

 

 

And here we are, at the end of the workshop, with our pretty much finished pieces.  I still want to tweak mine a little bit...but for now, am enjoying staring at it now and then.  I don't think I want to part with it....so will hang it in the living room.  This was such a GREAT weekend, and I was so happy to share it with Erin, a true blue friend whom I always enjoy spending time with...and it's fun to be with like minded individuals who get excited about the same things.

 

 

Tracy was a fabulous instructor, and I would gladly spend time with her in class again and again!  So inspiring, so warm, and so much FUN!!!

 

 

Tracy has a new book coming out!  You can pre-order it on Amazon HERE! 

Check it out!  You won't regret it!!!!

 

 

 

 

 

Magic Hand Journal Page, and I love October!

Hi again, friends!  We have a lot to catch up on, as I just returned from a fabulous art retreat this past weekend, with my friend Erin.....but I'm still getting caught up on my photos, emails, work, etc...so for now, I'm going to share another journal page in my Canson Mixed Media book.  I'm not entirely sure this one is complete...its doesn't feel like it is....but I'm letting it rest for now.

 

This one was made with acrylic paints (as always!) tissue papers, and washi tape.

 

The "eye" showed up in some hand painted paper I had in my stash.  And the scalloped edge is actually a cut scalloped edge, allowing the page behind it to peek through. 

 

And I love adding my little pencil markings here and there for good measure!

 

More to come soon!  How are you?  Are the leaves changing beautifully? 

It's getting gorgeous and chilly here.  Love it!

2013 Harvest Moon Chocolate Walk!

 

It's tomorrow night!  Don't miss it!!

 

True Heroes Journal Page

 

I swear, I haven't been shirking on my responsibilities!  These are pages I got done early last month, and I'm finally getting around to sharing them!  HA!  This page in my journal started out with some spray ink through a stencil, layered with bits of paper, and lots of acrylics.  The flower developed next, using papers and paint, and a bit of charcoal pencil which I am currently addicted to.  I've found it a quick easy way to add definition to my art, and give it a casual, smudgy look. 

 

 

The quote came later, after looking through my notebook of inspiring words/quotes.  I love the idea of dissecting my pages too...."chopping" it up and focusing on different parts of the page individually.  This will be fun to reprint and use on other pieces.

 

Lift On Up Journal Page

 

Hi friends!  When I can, I've been dabbling in my art journal again, and having a ball!  As I said previously, I'm using things up....and my journal is the perfect place for excess paint that I can't afford to waste, scraps of paper I can't bear to throw away, etc.  Just thought I'd pop in and share a recent page I completed in my Canson XL 9x12 Mixed Media book.  I love this book!!  I glue only two pages together at a time, and it's plenty sturdy for all the layers I like to throw in there!

 

 

 

 

I was feeling REALLY happy the day I made this. 

 

 

 

Do you ever feel like you could just lift right up off the ground?