all of a sudden....

it all wants to come out

i find little wooden candle lids to paint on

wander up the coast to sew with mary stanley

and then return to paint some more

trying to get my output like it used to be. i so want to begin selling again.

there is always  a sketch or two in the journal

i believe it be great practice

i tried my hand at a frida

in between setting up shelfies in my art studio

i am calmer, without that heavy feeling in my chest. 

the RETURN has really started to fill me up with "me-ness". i feel californian to the bone. we are, after all, creatures of habit. 

the house, the friends, the outings, the creativity seem more in tune with my inners.

i am also learning more about photography

and still preparing an album for tigo with all his funny faces and poses

love that darling snout

i've also been invited to teach at whimsy antiques in carpinteria come april so have been deep in creating templates for a mixed media storybook dress

and i finally finished my melodie stacey inspired embroidery.

all comes from the inspiration i find from other artists. it seems there are more and more popping up every day which is a good sign of battling the symptoms of a world a bit lost at times.

as alduous huxley well said:

"the secret of genius is to carry the spirit of the child into old age"

amen

the artist's way

lots of creativity going on at 846 & 1/2 which is what i call my art studio. 

this embroidery (in progress) was inspired by melodie stacey aka maidolls. i love both her embroidery and her paintings. 

this little darling is a flipped transfer from a teabag just rubbed on while still wet onto a puece if wrapping paper

just a groovy watercolor face in my art journal

more stitching

i've been finding old pieces and adding or subtracting and finally framing a few

as in this applique

mixed media handstitched necklaces

and a gabdstitched cuff

it's been fun re finding my art in boxes that had been in storage during the mexico sojourn. 

every day i stop for a little sketch or something or other. mopping the floor doesn't quite define me. 

there's always some stitching going on. the thing is to finish quite a few works in progress. then there's the what do i do with them? 

tiny

scribbles and dibbles

watercolor 

"WE ARE WHAT WE REPEATEDLY DO"

Aristotle

the potting shed and a birthday

philosophical thought as i turned sixty

in january we lost many greats and i could not help but embroider a little tribute to alan rickman.

and i finally closed the chapter in mexico

crossing the border three times to haul my belongings back to california. it was a revealing seven months. i grew just that little more.

and now i am home. the best journey always takes us home. 

even though i feel i'm suffering from burn out (there is so much a heart and soul can take without consequences), the responsibiity to keep things relatively together and functional remain. so i am finally half settled in the new house. kitchen, bedrooms, bathrooms and living room are all pretty much set up,

 so now onto a little bit of fun to see if i still have in me to take the trouble to write another chapter in my story with zest and gusto. and it all centers on the potting shed, one of my favorite bonuses of the house together with the front entrance lampost, the bird bath and the fireplace ofcourse. 

i love potting sheds. probably as much as art studios. and i love everything that goes in them and without: straw hats and watering cans, wellies, aprons and pockets for pinking shears and spades, buckets and seed packages, terra cotta pots and fresh smelling soil as well as gardening books and magazines, and wicker baskets for pickings. 

in between, i turned 60! yikes ! and got a surprise from tatiana who had bought tickets to the LA ART SHOW. 

and company arrived the following day: full house .it was a blast. jon and claire came from san francisco and most of my closest friends came as well as family. we set up the firepit, sat in a circle, sang songs to the guitar and lit candles for wishes come true. 

i danced in my pretty green flouncy dress

and now onto some creativity

it's about time