About The Artist

The Art Giveaway is still in session in my previous post! Check out the prior entry for details!

In the meantime I’ve been working on my own little project and this is where I am at this very moment.


I was able to take the pic in the sunlight a moment ago and that helps show the true (not exact but very close) color.

There’s still much to be done as nothing is complete so stand by for another update in the days to come.

Here’s a little background for those of you who don’t know me.

Not that long ago I was a potter who loved playing in the mud – Below is a picture of my booth at a show


This is an example of a decorative purse I made


This vase is in the above pic and here’s a close-up shot


This pot sat on my counter ~ I threw the pot part and handbuilt the spout part and attached the handle.


Since our moved to NY, my kiln, potters wheel, slab roller and all things essential for me to do my pottery have been locked away in storage (we have no room in our little apartment for a studio). I miss pottery, I’m missing the clay between my fingers, I miss the mess and mud, I miss playing dirty and all that goes into creating a piece of art.

Hubby and I are in the process of building a home which many of you know by now and hubby’s planning a studio for me so that one day I can play dirty again.

Back to drawing ~ it was this year that I picked up my pencils having not touched them in oh gees, I’d say at least 9 perhaps 10 years. These pencils have brought the passion of art back into my life and I’m overjoyed for that. The clean-up is a snap and I can just pick up and draw whenever I please.

I’m delighted to have a passion for art and the time to dedicate myself to see each drawing to completion. Passion no doubt has returned and I will be posting a lot more art now that our home plans are underway. More surprises are on the way, so stay tuned!

Free Art Giveaway – Everyone Welcome – The Sky’s The Limit

NOTE: The artist has ended the giveaway and has decided on the winning photo. Click The Winner to see the outcome.

Sometimes I run smack out of ides. So here’s the deal.

I’m an artist at your disposal with a catch –

  • You, my friends, are going to determine what I draw
  • The photo must be taken by you or someone you know allowing me the rights to draw if your photo is the one I select.
  • Post all photo’s on your blog (so that everyone can have a tour of the art). You may post as many photo entries as you would like – no limit here
  • Whoever’s photo I gravitate to the most – wins the drawing, that simple
  • You have through Sunday, August 3rd to have your photos posted
  • Or if you already have some you like, your homework’s done
  • Post away and give me a heads up when you’re ready.
  • I will announce the winner of the 9″ x 12″ colored drawing on Monday, August 4th
  • And no later than August 27th the art will be in the mail

Clues that will potentially help boost your photo higher on my list

Grass, furry things and people make me nervous – Can’t wrap my brain around them – however, you have as many entries as you would like and I’m keeping an open mind.

The pears below are a series I did earlier this year and this is how I would like to have them framed. I also have a work in progress in the post below.

The Contestants

Linda – Lime In The Coconut

Ali – Flibberty Gibbets

NancyPants – Life is Like A Lunchbox

Becca – Ramblings Of All Sorts

Chris – Cats On My Quilts

Allisone – Deserved Indulgence


Brooke – Jonah 2

Anita – Dorset Tales

Teresa – Plum Water Cottage

Penny – Lavender Hill Studio

Cherrie – Willy Wagtail

A Work In Progress

It’s a work in progress but truly a joy blending so many colors into one picture. I’ve been concentrating a lot of time on the bowl as there are so many colors woven into it. We have many greens, blues, yellows and browns swimming around this bowl. There’s still a lot of work to be done but I just wanted to take a little break this afternoon to post an update.

The foundation for the background has been applied but there’s so much more to be done there.

I’ve also concentrated just a little time on the grapes to the far right but nothing is finished yet.

No doubt I’m having a grand time on this and I’ll be adding many more strokes to this today.

P.S. I’m Planning a give away soon. So, if you are up for a piece of art from me, stay tuned for details this week.

A Fun Weekend

I had so much fun at the weekend shindig with Cindy over at My Romantic Home. It was such a joy to visit each person’s favorite thing and hear all the wonderful stories that made it special. She’s still holding the party through the rest of the day, so if you’re interested please see the info in the post below. Thanks for stopping by as I certainly enjoyed this more than I can express. Thank you Cindy!

I dug out my Scrapbook Factory Express program yesterday and had a total blast playing with some the options. I took this

“serious face” that I shot last Thursday and had a ball using options that I’ve never explored in the past. It was fun!

I’m in the artsy mood again and the plan is to dig out my pencils tomorrow and continue to whirl around on this picture I started weeks and weeks ago. That should be fun! I’ll be posting the finished product this week.


My Favorite Thing

Cindy over at My Romantic Home is hosting an Our Favorite Things Party ALL WEEKEND! You are all welcome to join in too! For the directions, visit her link at http://romantichome.blogspot.com/

My favorite thing would be the white porcelain lady as seen on the fireplace mantel. She was purchased while we were in China about 7 years ago. The artist who created her was quite talented and we also learned he passed away. I was provided with the original papers for her and I’m thrilled to have her in my safe keeping.

Sorry about the Christmas theme but this is the best shot I have of her. She’s tucked away in storage at the moment as we have recently moved from TX to NY.

You may click on the picture to enlarge if you wish.

P.S. – My darlin’ had a special crate built (out of wood) just for her to make the move and he watched over and protected her and kept a close eye on her while she was being packed. I sure hope she’s alright.

I’m Serious

It’s been down right serious business around here with house plans and whatnot and the picture above is ‘proof’ just so ya know.

Now that we’re on the heels of another weekend, this serious business has got ta go. I have big plans to trade it in for some dates and laughs with my dearest…

I’m Serious

In other news ~ I’m so in love with the Queen Ann’s Lace that graces our yard. Or shall I say the ‘back 40’ – we don’t ‘really’ have a back 40 but ya know, the part that doesn’t get mowed.

I took this picture after the rain yesterday. It’s so beautiful to me…

I’m serious

And now I can begin to feel myself relaxing and stepping out of that serious mold but now I’m concerned about this whacked state I’m in.

O never mind, I’m sure this too shall pass soon.

Plans

We finally received all 6 of the design books Bobby ordered (2 for the basement, 2 for the master bath and 2 for the Kitchen). I’m currently having a blast with the kitchen layout. I ran a few of my major ideas past Bobby and he’s just dandy with what I like. (yay!) He keeps saying “honey, you’re in charge of the kitchen”. Man I’m crawlin’ all over this and getting more ideas than I can shake a stick at.

I’ve been working on some of the features we want for our master bath layout but there’s a lot more work to be done in there. The architect is currently whirling around on the plans so I’m sure between all of us, we’ll come up with something.

We continue to make decisions and some at the moment seem pretty big. Some of our plans are still up in the air and we realize we don’t have to make all the decisions at once, but some of these decisions have to be made before the foundation is poured.

Bobby’s the man in charge of the basement and needs to figure out the layout he wants down there as all pluming decisions need to be made up front.

That said I plan to take a time-out on “house plans” next week and settle into some drawing. I’m a one thing at a time kinda juggler as I can’t fully concentrate on drawing while home plans are on the brain. There were a few days I tried getting my pencils out but my heart wasn’t in it. So I’m hoping to try again next week now that I have what needs to be accomplished for our next appointment with the builder. And I hope my heart is in it soon as I need that passion and undivided attention to be able to put my whole self into whatever it is that I’m doing.

The Joy Of Candles

Candles have a way of setting a warm atmosphere and I can’t help but burn them year round. I’m missing some of my favorite candle holders that are locked away in storage so in order to cope, I’ve continued to add to my candle holder collection.

This little holder was purchased last week at Yankee Candle along with a couple yummy smelling candles to go with it.

This little trio set was purchased on sale at my ever favorite Wal-Mart Store for just a few bucks. I keep these burning on the coffee table and try to have them lit before my dearest walks in the door at the end of his day.

I’m enjoying our peaceful evening with the soft glow of candles and wish the evening didn’t have to fade so quickly. We’ll just have to have another round of the same tomorrow night.

A Fun Filled Saturday With Hubby

We had so much fun with our friends this past weekend. They had us over for a BB-Q and fellowship. We started off with a nice spinach salad with almonds and craisins and a wonderful homemade blue cheese dressing. They made steak shish kabobs with corn on the cob and key lime pie for dessert. It was such a yummy meal and the visit with them was so nice.

They got out the wii and played the wii fit for the most part and we both fell head over heals with that. We’ve been looking to pick up the wii fit but the stores are always sold out when we look. I think we’ll have to make a more concentrated effort or wait ‘til they are readily available. I plan to call the store right down the road from us to see when their shipments come in. Hopefully we can score one soon.

Since we were spending Saturday evening with friends, Bobby still wanted to take me on a date so we went out for a nice lunch Saturday afternoon and then he took me to the movies. We saw Bat Man! We liked it but some things really disapointed us and I would not advise this movie for children. I’ll leave it at that as I don’t want to spoil anything for anyone who hasn’t seen it that plans to see it. But I will say we had such a wonderful date.

Awakenings

This day has brought such a wonderful feel of awakenings. The dark sky rolled in and the scent of a storm was in the air. Soon the rippling thunder and the soothing sound of rain brought music for the soul. The wind brushes each little leaf and the sounds from the leaves clapping; to the thunder and rain bring the best of nature’s song.

The windows were flung open so that I could drink in the sounds and with that the cool air rushed in filling my heart. I will delight in this summer storm today.

Summertime And The Livin’ Is Easy

I just love that song and thought it would be the perfect title. I could continue singing but I’ll spare you this time. For the record, I continue to embrace summer and am gradually admitting that I actually am enjoying these days. Did I kinda just admit I like summer? Think I did. Yesterday at 3:30 pm it was 76 degrees with the most beautiful blue skies and I’m finding the summer months to be quite enjoyable. It’s never been a steam bath when I open the door to go outside and the evenings are always nice and cool. Sure we’ve had a few warm days but nothing like the summers I’m used to. I still can’t believe that. As my Bobby states, this is like “winter” in Florida and that’s no joke.

As I was on my way out the door to run errands I spied this deer in the yard.

I made a little noise to get his attention and he just looked at me like this.

The weeds continue to grow.

Our wild flowers/weeds continue to grow and I’m still as mesmerized with them as ever. I’m not used to wild flowers lasting this long into the summer but they continue to flourish. The pictures above and below were taken from my yard yesterday afternoon.

I would like to get some shots of the beautiful butterflies that I constantly see but haven’t gotten around to it yet. Oh yea, I would love to capture the cute little chipmunks too. We keep seeing them all over and they are so much smaller in real life than I thought.

I know, I know-wwwa I’m still sounding like a rookie up here and that’s because I am. I’m still amazed at all the little differences in nature than I’m used to. And it seems each new season brings with it new and exciting things for the eye to behold.

I’m on a summer kick folks, look out!

Here Are A Few Of My Favorite Blogs

I have a lot of favorite blogs I like to read other than the ones most of my readers know about. So today I want to share with you just a few of my favorite places. So come along and nestle in for some great reads and beautiful pictures.

I love this one below; she is such a talented woman that shares some wonderful little nuggets. She recently posted her newest line of fabric which totally blows me away (It’s positively bright and charming – if fabric could sing, hers would) and then her next post is an adorable dress made from a pillowcase. You can’t miss this my friends! – http://annamariahorner.blogspot.com/

I never miss a beat with this amazing woman. My friend Jennifer got me hooked on her cooking site but I’m more in love with her, her family and her amazing photography! I feel like I know this woman and she tells her love story in novel form “Black Heals To Tractor Wheels”. She is such a hoot and she makes me laugh ALL the time. She came from the big city with big city dreams and moved out to the ranch to marry the man she couldn’t live one day without. (Her post the other day is what inspired me to think about my dreams and thus my post yesterday) She’s amazing and I know all of you would LOVE her too. This link is to her daily blog where she posts some of the most amazing photos of farm life, her husband, Pesky Tim (her brother-in-law) and her most adorable children – http://thepioneerwoman.com/confessions/

The link below – Black Heals To Tractor Wheels, it’s like a novel of her love story from the top – I’ve read it cover to cover and I’m waiting on the next chapter – http://thepioneerwoman.com/2007/09/black_heels_to_tractor_wheels_a_love_storythe_complete_saga_to_date.html

For those of you who love cooking, you do not want to miss this link and mind you, she is still hilarious over here at the cooking page. – http://thepioneerwoman.com/cooking/

The next little goody is from such a wonderful crafty lady, enjoy – http://gahangirls.blogspot.com/

Her blog title is Just Beachy and she’s all about decorating so if that’s up your alley come along and enjoy another favorite find at http://chriskauffman.blogspot.com/

This little cutie pie had me at hello, she lost her college weight gain of around 23 pounds and is a cute little newlywed. She posts pictures of all three meals every single day! Man she’s good and she’s currently working on a cookbook. She refers to her husband as “the husband” so cute. And then whenever he comes in to post something he always starts with – The Husband here so come have a little look if this interests you – http://www.katheats.com/

Be still oh my soul – I just LOVE Mabel’s House! Actually she found me and I can’t begin to thank her enough for commenting on my site as her little place is my “Happy Place” She is a wonderful writer and she’s trying to get her book published at the moment. So her posts reflect her wonderful writing abilities and her decorating is AMAZING! I think you’ll love her too! – http://mabelshouse.blogspot.com/

If you’re into decorating, you can’t pass this up as this is another one of my favorite little finds – http://restyledhome.blogspot.com/

She has such a way of making me smile when I enter, she’s such a crafty little thing and I just adore her – http://splendid-things.blogspot.com/

I just love this special young newlywed couple and would not want to miss a beat over at This Young House. They have done an amazing job on their home, they provide decorating advice, wedding advice complete with really cool mood boards and even if you’re not getting married I think you’ll want to check out that little corner too. – http://www.thisyounghouse.com/

What are your favorite finds?

My Dreams

I always had the dream (way back when I was a child) that I would get married by the age of 21 and have 4 – 6 kids. And no matter what, I would be married before either of my brothers and have my children first. Oh how I loved children and wanted to have that big family. That dream faded as my older brother married at 19 and my younger brother got married when he was 22. There was no way I would ever get married before them as they beat me to it.

As I grew older I still thought I would perhaps get married but my list of qualifications grew and grew. And my mom (one of my very best friends) thought I was getting too picky as I got older saying “you don’t give anyone a chance”. Bottom line, I wanted what I wanted and if he was not out there, I was perfectly content living alone the rest of my life period, end of conversation.

I also had a “BIG” dream of having my very own art gallery one day. I dreamed of my paintings covering the walls and the more galleries and museums I visited the more I dreamed. But that dream seemed to be a little far fetched and I never knew just how I would get there.

By the time I reached my mid to late 20’s I decided that my perfect mate didn’t exist. Many times I would go out on just one date and my tummy would turn sour over just one little tiny thing my date did. And that was it with them as they blew it. And mom thought I was being down right silly.

I started to dream about my life and how I planned to continue on by myself. And by the time I reached my late 20’s I completely scratched having children off my list. I told my mother “mom, if I were to get married tomorrow, I don’t plan on having children” I decided that if I were to ever get married that I wanted to at least have 5 years of honeymooning in before children. So in my mind I was already too old.

I had a savings and was preparing to purchase a condo and begin life alone. I was planning a trip to the Smokies for just me, myself and I and I was also planning a cruise too. I was happy with me and never minded doing things alone so I was quite content.

I was 28 when I met my husband. He seemed “perfect” in every way for me, he had the most wonderful smile and his beautiful blue eyes held my attention. He was gentle and was not into himself which was a total turn on for me. We slowly became friends, danced and I felt myself falling for him which totally frustrated me. I did not want to fall, I wanted to be more mature and make sure he was my perfect match before my heart was stolen.

Bobby became my dream, he filled my thoughts and I would try to push him away. One night while slow dancing my dreamboat asked me out on a date and I promptly turned him down. I still remember my answer “I can’t” (Bottom line, I was scared out of my wits) and I still remember that perplexed look on his face. We had known each other more than a year and everything was starting to feel right. His gentle smile melted my heart that night but I still said no.

I remember going to work the next day telling my girlfriend all about it saying “I just turned down the man of my dreams” Man I liked that guy a lot!

Bobby started filling my thoughts and dreams and that’s when I realized I had to give this perfect guy a chance. But it took several months for me to come around and finally when I came around he was willing to give me another chance. (My heart is going pitter pat, he still does that to me)

Dreams, dreams, dreams I had dreams and as Bobby and I began to date in I began to share with him my latest dreams. My latest dreams were to do something in art. I wanted to become a graphic design artist and as I began to spill my heart and soul he listened and told me that I could be anything I wanted to be. And the next thing I knew, I was in college taking night courses to fulfill my dream. And he was always right there to provide help when needed and to do whatever he could to make sure my dreams would come true. (My heart continued to melt)

I pursued my education but my dreams turned to becoming the wife of the man that made my heart throb – the man I knew I could not live without. And I’m ever so thankful I was too picky and so glad I waited for the very best and I truly know God made Bobby just for me. On Christmas morning 1998 that dream came true when he surprised me with a ring and asked “Will you be my wife”? And I said “Yes”! (Tear ~ joyful tears)

We planned a little wedding as that is all I ever wanted and what I remember most about our wedding day is how truly happy I was. That has to be the most exciting day of my life. I’m so happy he picked me (and I thank him on a regular basis for picking me to be his wife)

My dreams of become a graphic design artist died after moving to Korea but my dreams of being an artist never faded. A couple years after moving back to the states, I saw a show on HGTV that featured pottery. And I still remember telling hubby at the end of the day “I know what I want to be when I grow up”. That very day my dreams turned to pottery and he once again supported me in every way and I was taking pottery classes in Fort Worth the very next week. And just a month later my dearest purchased the Cadillac of pottery wheels for me and constructed a pottery studio for me in our spare bedroom and allowed me to have my very own huge kiln reside in his garage. (He’s amazing, and my heart continues to be one huge puddle as it has completely melted)

My dream from the time I married my husband to this very day is to be the wife of my husband, to care for him in every way, dote over him constantly, that’s just me and love it and I’m so happy he loves my attention! My dream is to kiss him every morning and bid him good bye, tell him how much I love him before he goes to work, race to the door every evening when he gets home to be ruptured in his arms for another hug and kiss, have dinner together, sit with him on the loveseat and visit. And this dream comes true every day, and my sappiness continues to ooze the older I get. And my heart feels full and running over with love for my most wonderful amazing husband that I didn’t think existed. I’m so blessed and thankful that God has blessed me with a man that is perfect for me in every way. He’s my perfect compliment and there is no one I would rather spend the rest of my days with than him. I’m so happy he picked me and he has made me the happiest woman in the whole wide world.

I’ve learned that at the ripe old age of 40 that dreams do come true and sometimes we’re given even more than we could ever ask or dream. And I thank God for these blessings.

One Of My Favorite Things

There’s nothing like my favorite mug to pour fresh coffee into each day. I love this mug, yup, everything about this mug I love. It has the perfect comfy handle such that all of my fingers can wrap comfortably around the whole handle. I like the fact that the handle doesn’t leave my little pinky finger out. My pinky tends to feel all left out when it doesn’t fit into the whole handle thingy. So now that we have all my fingers happily situated around the handle, I also like the magnitude of coffee that fits in here. It’s roomy enough such that a full 16 oz of coffee + plus cream pour into there comfortably without being brim full. And lastly I really think it’s such a pretty little thing too. So it all boils down to the fact that I’m thrilled to overflowing that function and beauty blends so well and I’ll continue to enjoy my cup of jo happily ever after.

Old Neighbors Back In TX

Alright People, this just makes me totally MISS our neighbors (Dave and Frannie) back in TX. My old neighbor Frannie just sent pics of their crawfish boil over the 4th weekend and man do they ever know how to do it up right! Wish we could have been there! We were there for their 4th party two years ago and we had so much fun!