hello!

I hope this holiday is season is 

finding you and your loved ones well.

Today I am sharing this quote by Thoreau

that I think is apropos. 

journal spread collage, acrylic, pens, stencil

Go confidently  in the direction of 

your dreams.   Live the life 

you've imagined. 

As you simplify your life, 

the laws of the universe

will be simpler.

Threau, 1854

I am preparing for a Christmas visit from my 

number one son and his new bride.  Of course I

am beyond excited.  I will resume my blog in the 

new year (unless I find a few minutes to sneak over 

to my computer).    Thank you for visiting  and especially 

thank you for taking the time to comment.  

Happy Holidays  to you and your families

and a healthy, happy, promising 2019!

posting today with friends who join in with 

paint party friday 

and our hostess Eva and Kristen 

hello!  

 I recently read that rather than focus on what we

 do not have, 

looking at the simple things in our life 

that may be easily overlooked or taken for granted 

is not only good for our mental health, it grows a pattern that

 if done regularly helps to stave away and counterbalance those  blue days.  

so here are a few of the things that brings thanks to my heart. 

a birthday celebration 

at a my friend joann's beautiful home.

where I brought surprise gifts 

and taught my lovely non artist friends 

(who are actually very artistic )

5 different ways to marble on paper and silk.

Some test samples of marbling can be 

seen on my last post. 

we had fun and decided that egg marbling was not for us, 

that marbling on silk was great and that next time

 we will marble longer pieces of silk to make scarves.

I continue to practice my stealth starbucks drawings daily.

my little black journal is almost full of faces and scenes!

now that's satisfying!

this is a start of a new triptych.  it is always so freeing

to start.  no critical eye, no direction, just applying paint,

selecting colors of the day.  many more layers of paint

and collage will be added so that most of this will 

not be seen in the end and the colors may be totally changed.

on a walk with my husband this scene drew me in.  

not only the beautiful afternoon light 

but the contrast of the arid cactus, tropical palms 

and right on the other side of the hill the pacific ocean can

be appreciated a few minutes away from my home. 

well that sure a lot to be thankful for!

 and I thank you for your visit today.

wishing you a lovely weekend.  

posting with friends at kristen and eva's paint party friday 

 hello and welcome to my weekly blog!

today I am sharing a mix up of my week.

here is a what fall looks like at my house.

along with a little silliness

and a wip layered painting.

and a few marbling samples that I have been testing

using different mediums.

my husband and I visited our favorite local museum,

norton simon in pasadena.  here are some pictures of 

the tranquil landscape complete with rodin and henry moore sculptures.

have a lovely week.  I so appreciate your visit today 

and enjoy reading your comments.

this post is linked to paint party friday,

a weekly creative online community hosted

by eva and kristin.

summer is a distant memory, fall is marching along,

soon to welcome winter.  although in southern 

california season changes are subtle,  it is evident.

looking back,  I am grateful for the fullness of life.

my number one son was married in september

in a beautiful chicago ceremony.  I couldn't be 

more thrilled nor will I forget the look of bliss

on his face all night.  

katelyn wanted some of my art on the table so we decided that

I paint the table numbers.  I decided on painting 4 x 6 canvases.

my friend did the calligraphy numbers.   I love how they turned out!

and I danced the night away.  so much so that 

my heels  disappeared!!

in my paint department, I am adding figures

to my faces.  what fun!!

and I had a birthday.  my friend took

me to one of my favorite places in town, the getty.  

here are some photos from the artist book exhibit.

I tried to capture the artist names but there are a few

that are missing.  I apologize for that.

these photos do not do justice for the spectacular 

dining room.  the light, the view, the sumptuous fabric

and whimsical art all create a festive mood.  

I have gotten out of the rhythm of my normal art routine

since the excitement and preparations for the wedding.

when I come back down to earth I will resume.  for now,

I enjoy each moment and savor the memories.

I hope all is well with you!  thank you for visiting today!

cheers!

posting with friends today at paint party friday

she's been missing/!

yes, it's true.  I have been in 

another world.  the world of 

alex and katelyn's wedding.

I have put aside my regular dailyart 

routine until after next the wedding

which is racing here, just one week from today.

but my hands have not been idle.  I have made

fun welcome bags for our out of town guests 

including this welcome note, 

love map of chicago

and painted the table numbers. 

I could not have done this without the

help of some dear friends including 

stephanie, who I call my martha stewart

friend.  she helped format the printed materials

and had endless creative ideas.  jean executed the

map with her expertise graphic art background,  

and dave drilled the holes in the back of the 4 x 6

canvases table numbers.  he drilled them on an angle,

cut pegs to fit, rounded the ends and made a stand to 

hold each peg for me to be able to paint them!  now that 

is quite a round up of generous, thoughtful and loving friends!!

my love to you all and wishes 

for a fun and relaxing weekend.

part of my push to finish all of these

projects was to be able to attend a 3 day

workshop which I signed up for months ago. 

I made my goal and that feels great!

X O X O

this post is linked with paint party friday friends hosted

by the eva and kristen, hostesses with the mostest

welcome! 

lucy in the sky, mixed media

I have been learning to draw using charcoal and pencil, 

sometimes afterwards filling in with watercolor.  It's a long 

process, this learning. As background, five years or so ago, I dived into 

painting without any drawing experience.   I  took me a long time

to realize that there are  huge gaps in my education.  I took a

 life drawing class.   Well, that's like jumping right into the fire when 

one does not have any basic drawing background.

I came out of the class with a few scars realizing that 

it was time to start with the basics.   I will continue but am taking 

a break from formal classes until after the end of September.  

I cleaned up my studio and found a started 18  x 24 cradle board with 

collage and paint that intrigued me.  I saw the start of a face and went 

from there.   Lucy in the Sky was the result. I almost forgot how much fun 

it is to apply paint and play with  adding collage!   So when I look at this piece, 

I feel the excitement and energy I had in creating it.   It is hanging at 

Organically at Your Best

in Old Downtown Torrance

1218 El Prado Ave. Suite 128, Torrance 90501

in a showing of art by members of the Experimental Artists of the South Bay.

The heat wave in Southern California is (hopefully) waning.  We are

not used to it.  I hear many complaints, mine included.  But the big picture

is that we are fortunate to live in a blissful climate most of the year.

A lovely weekend to you!!

linking with the lovely Eva and Kristen's Paint Party Friday