A Wonderful Day

Beside the 70 plus messages and 7 videos I got on Facebook and Youtube I received some fun gifts. There were books a bracelet and an iou for flowers for my garden and then,

This birdie arrived, I think its the cutiest. I am going to have to name her. Esmerelda keeps popping up in my mind so that is who she will be.

This beautiful hand knit scarf was made by my sister Peggy.  I had dyed the roving and sent it to her as a gift.  She spun it into yarn and knit this beautiful scarf and then sent it back to me.   It is butter soft and has a zillion colors in it.  I have been wearing it since I received it.  What a wonderful gift.

My daughter bought me this bird pull. It has 30 birds in it and each one is different.  I just love it, but had trouble trying to photograph it.

So I will show just a couple of the birds close up.  I think this is one of the funnest gifts, I love looking at all the individual birds. She found it in Portland at the World Market.

My friend Kate surprised me with this wonderful gift.  Its a writing box, you can see the two grooves on top are made for pens or pencils.  The lid opens up so you can store stationery or paper and pens.  It is made out of oak by her husband Jim.  She has one and when I saw it I had told her that it was something that I always wanted.  She remembered the conversation and had Jim build it for me.  Don't you think she is just the best friend a girl could have.

Celebration Time

Today its my birthday and I want to celebrate with all of you. 

In honor it being my Birthday this month and the launching of my new business Safe Harbor Creativity Coaching. I am having a contest and giveaway.  What am I giving away, is it art supplies or is collage materials, no not the usual things I give away.  This time its a big prize.

 I am giving away a one month package of coaching with me.  The package called Sand Dollar  includes 4 sessions of coaching with me. These are completed over the phone or via Skype. This is a 375.00 value and it will be given away to one reader.

All you need to do to enter the contest is to:

* Sign up for my mailing list.
* Tell me in the comments or by email what you would like to be coached about, or what your creative dream is.

  I'll award the winner on March 6th, one week from today.

Now since not everyone can win, I have a second option for the rest of you. I am offering for the month of March 50% off the price of the Sand Dollar coaching package. That is 187.50 for four weeks of coaching. You will need to sign up by March 31 but you can schedule the coaching anytime in the next three months. Payment plans are also available. You can contact me by email to either set this up or ask any questions. To do that just click on the envelope in my sidebar.

Too Much Going On

This week has been just full of the non-normal as I would call it. My daughter came home to move all her belongings back to Portland. She used our truck so now need to bring it back. Lots of driving for her and the BF but way cheaper than renting a Uhaul. I was missing her when I did these pages. Then my husband had another stroke in his eye, the other one this time. It was not as severe but still worrisome he had an ultrasound done on his arteries and heart yesterday but we have not gotten the results yet. He still can see but not very well.  I have also been suffering from my first cold in several years.  I forgot how miserable they can be.

I have only a few pages left to do in this small altered book journal and I had several pages with backgrounds already done but no inspiration came when I looked at the colors. They were beautiful backgrounds and I would look at them and go blank so I just closed the book. So when I found myself feeling down I had to remind myself how healing art is. These simple collages and wrinting resulted.

I loved this picture of this woman and wanted her joy of life back, so I just slapped her on the page and wrote. Sometimes that is all you need do. The art doesn't have to be fantastic or any such thing but just fun, something to get you out of your situation and immersed in something else. It worked for me the morning I made these pages.

I am planning on spending my day reading this. It's the sequel to Across the Universe, a young adult Scifi novel that I really loved. I love it when authors are really consistent. The story takes off right where the original ended. The writing is good, the world building amazing and the story has me in its grips. Now what more would you want from a book. Beth Revis has done a fabulous job.

My Right Brain Business Plan

I made a couple videos today of things I want to share. They are not long so I hope you will check them out.





I finally finished my Right Brain Business Plan so I am excited to share it. I used jennifer Lee's book The Right Brain Business Plan, which I can not recommend highly enough. Speaking of Jennifer, she is having another Right Brainers in Business Video Summit. It is a virtual meeting of the minds to help you take your creative business to the next level. I attended last years summit which was solely based on the book. This years summits focus is different but I am sure its going to be awesome.

BIG Will Be Next

This is the last painting for Total alignment.  You may wonder, did I plan an angel, no I did not.  I had forgotten the neck so I had to paint over a section.  So when I painted over the dark blue with white the area looked like a wing. So the muse said it looks like you are supposed to paint an angel so I did.

So does this mean its the end of painting like this.  Well in fact no.  I signed up to take BIG next month.  Its a course I have wanted to take for some time now.  I think doing total alignment cemented this for me. I knew it was the next step in my artistic journey.  If you want to know more about BIG just check out the highlighted link above. I know that I will be painting more of these even before my next class starts, basically because they are fun and I think fun is really a good thing.

Postcard Challenge 2012 Wales

This week the postcard challenge takes us to Wales, a small country in the United Kingdom. I had intended on visiting Wales when I was in the UK a few years back but it did not work out. I have a strong desire to go back and visit Wales this time.

This is my rendition of a famous dolmen in Wales.  I would love to see it in person. I drew it first, then added ink and then used watercolor crayons to add the color.  This was very fun and easy to do.

Nicolai really cuts to the chase in his response to Louise's last postcard. One can only wonder what will happen next.  Maybe Louise is not a school teacher after all.

To see other entires in the postcard challenge, go here

Bubbles of Joy

 I took part in this a couple of weekends ago, see if you can find me. It really was a lot of fun. Although they let you embed this video it appears that you have to go to YouTube to watch it but its worth it so enjoy.

I did another Fearless painting for Total Alignment. This time I got the bird in but not what I intended. I guess I should just stop intending anything. I think it the silliness of these paintings that make them so fun to do. Have you had any silly fun lately, I think its the best kind to have.

I took my sketchbook and pencils to a cafe yesterday and this is what I drew,   It is definitely challenging when you can't erase. My little trick when I make a mistake is a little thinned out gesso. I think I need to find a tiny bottle to take along with me with my traveling kit.  This was sketched in a Canson mixed media journal. I have also discovered I really do like sketching on gesso. I have been using Liquitex brand for that and it works fabulously.

Go Paint Something

My latest fearless painting. The funny thing is that I intended to paint a woman and some birds.  You are right, no woman and no birds are hiding in this painting anywhere.  It sure is funny when you do painting this way, you really never know what is going to happen. I still want to paint birds so maybe the next one I do will have them or maybe not.




My friend Diane sent me this video.  All I could think was hey if an elephant can paint what is stopping  the rest of us.  Follow your inner elephant and go paint something.

Postcard Challenge 2012 - Belgium

This weeks postcard for the postcard challenge is all about Belgium.  I tried a few different  ideas and finally ended up just going with chocolate  It was drawn with ink and and colored in with colored pencil.

In her correspondence Louise comes clean with Nicolai and confesses that she had a friend drop the post card in Austria and that she has never traveled outside of her country. Only time will tell what Nicolai will think of this.

Sunday Sketches 2-12-12

This week I have been working with colored pencils so I figured I would tackle a Sunday Sketch with them. I am liking using the medium more and more.  To see what others are sketching check out Sophia's blog, Blue Chair Diary

Colored Pencil Faces

In my class this week we are drawing with colored pencil.  These are the faces I have tried. I am finding this very relaxing and challenging too.  I have been using Prismacolor colored pencils.  They are the ones that I have the most colors in.  I find the other sets I have a little limiting with only 24 colors.  I think I must have over 50 Prismacolor pencils I know I bought a set of 48 and then lots of singles too.  It would be amazing to have the full range of colors. We are drawing bodies too but I have not managed to do those yet.

I have been spending the last 2 mornings babysitting a friends 8 month old.  I am training for future grand parenting. I haven't watched a baby in twenty years so its been awhile.  Little Elise is a sweetheart so it was fun but tiring too.

I just had to share our new toaster.  My old toaster was only toasting one side of the bread, so it was time for a new one.  This time we looked on the internet and found a toaster that was rated very highly. I had never heard of the brand Breville before but they do make nice appliances.  This toaster does 4 slices at once, larger pieces of bread and bagels.  It has a setting called Lift and Look where the toast comes up and you can look at it and then it goes down again.  Another setting lets you toast just a little bit more. So yes we have been eating more toast lately. It does a wonderful job with sourdough bread which is what I eat most often.

Wish Casting Wednesday - What do you wish to attract?

When I saw what the topic for Wishcasting Wednesday was I knew I had to participate. Jamie asks us this question today. "What do you wish to attract?" The subject goes right along with the news I wanted to share today. So first I will share the news and then my wish for today.

On Monday I received my certification as a Kaizen-Muse Creativity Coach.  I started the program back in August so it been a long process but I am delighted that I have met all the requirements and can now hang up my coach sign and announce my new website. Plus I get this wonderful new badge.

Safe Harbor Creativity Coaching is the name I chose for my business.  I like to think that working with me is a sade place a place where you can work on your dreams, overcome procrastination, perfectionism and many of the other blocks to the creative process. You can check my site out here   I'd love to have you look at my new site and let me know what you think. I also have a Facebook page that you can find here.

Now to wishcasting and what I wish to attract, well with a new business starting up I want to attract customers.  I am looking for women who may be stuck in their art or writing or other creative dreams. Or women who have retired and thought they'd have all the time for there dreams and now they just don't know how to start. Or women who want to know what they are passionate about.  Or those who have started their dream and find themselves stuck, not knowing what to do next. I have a lot of skills to offer these women and I am so excited to be able to work with them. So I send out this wish today that they will find me.

To see what other wishcasters are doing today go here

Working In A New Journal

I got a new book to make into a journal for the Supplies Me Class with Jane Davenport. Its an old book on whaling. Its bigger than the other books I have altered and I think I am going to like the size.

After gessoing the page I put down strips of collage material from old books, music collections and some wallpaper.



Then came a layer of alcohol ink.

I added stamping to the background using a script stamp and then some of my hand carved stamps. I like hte texture it added to the background.

I drew a face which I have marked out in gesso.

Then I painted the face using Golden Fluid acrylics. She sort of looks like an old world portrait to me.




















At this point I lowered the neck on her dress and decided to make a dress from some gorgeous paper I have. I am not sure if the red dress goes with the purple hair but I went with it anyways.

For the opposite page I wrote a letter to accompany this portrait sent from one artist to another.  As you can see they both seem to know the model.  I used a simple piece of  beige paper that I added some brown edges to that got a little out of hand but I like the messy look.  I used a dip pen and ink to write the note and attached it with Tim Holtz tissue paper tape.

Here they are both together.  These pages didn't  not turn out as I had planned at the beginning. They reallyy evolved to become their own thing. I really had to follow the muse with this one.

Postcard Challenge 2012 - France

This weeks postcard challenge run by the lovely Darcy at Art-and-Sole is all about France. This was a real easy one for me.  I started with some scrapbook paper and then stamped the Eiffel Tower.  Then I thought oh what else can I add to this.  So next came the lady's face,  I then added som Tim Holtz tissue paper tape to unify the two elements.  I like it, there is old world look and feel about it.

I made not one but two mistakes on the address. First I thought he was writing and I started with her name and then thought no that is wrong he is supposed to write so I used white out on her name and put in his name address.  Then I started writing the postcard to her.  Half way through I realized my next mistake so I decided the postcard was going to be from him. I just had to cover up his address and add hers.  Hopefully next time I will pay more attention to what I am doing.

There Be Fairies Here

I have this book on drawing fairies and decided it was time I explored it a little bit.

This is pretty much a copy of a pose in the book. I used WC crayons, fluid acrylics and twinkling h2o's in  a moleskin WC sketchbook.  It was fun I want to do more now.

Then I played with some of the wings styles in the book.  These were drawn in pencil, then I lined it in Pitt artist pen, erased the pencils and colored it in with Twinkling H2O's which are little watercolors that have a shimmer effect to them,

Then I tried a another fairy, I modeled it after one the fairies in the book but with more of my style.  I am really enjoying doing these little drawings.  She was created with Derwent and Caran d' Ache watercolor pencils and Neocolor II watercolor crayons and Faber-Casteel Pitt Markers.

This moleskine water color journal I have been using is probably my least favorite journal.  The paper is really thin.  I have compensated by using it for collage and other layered techniques.  I can see now it is ideal for drawings like these. So now that the journal is almost used up I found a use for it.  I would have loved to fill this whole journal with these fairy experiments but alas I only have a couple pages left. Has that every happened to you?

If I didn't have enough irons in the fire I decided to add another class.  I have just become enamored with Jane Davenport.  I have seen her work before but it was not until I saw her interview with Tam as a part of Life Book that I really got to know her a little better. So I checked out her website and all the video's she has on her site. What a fun person she is.

Remember the other day when I was talking about using all my pencils, well Jane is teaching a course called Supplies Me, where she really takes you on a journey with your supplies.  There are weeks with colored pencils, watercolor, pastels and pens and markers and acrylics.  Since she is know as the Queen of Art supplies I know I'll be learning new techniques and really be able to feel like I am getting my moneys worth out of all the things I have bought. I have all these markers that I rarely use so it is going to be great to learn how to use them in new ways.  The class is just started but its ongoing so you can step in at any time.  To learn more about Supplies Me you can go here. And yes you can be certain I will be sharing all the fun work I'll be doing in this class.