all over the map,creatively speaking

being homebound has pushed me into my art studio more often than usual

and i've been trying new substrates as well as trying to paint other subjects as well as portraits. at the moment, i am drawn to vessels of every sort and florals.

yes, vessels, especially kettles

painting like this takes more time since many layers are required for blending.

i use gesso, gel medium between coats, acrylics, stabilo pencil, colored pencils, lead pencil and thick bristled paint brushes for the background textures. i try to use what i have rather than buy more, although tempted to buy the watercolors lynne recommended and some doll turning tools nola recommended from canada. 

i continue to paint on little rocks and shell shards

 and experiment a more modern take with watercolors

ofcourse i still paint on teabags

and shipping tags, probably my favorite throughout the years

but at night i scribble and sew while i watch every imaginable english period drama on you tube, free and commercials free too. my favorites so far have been "the pallisers" and "south riding", both oldies but goodies. 

i received my "how to be a wildflower" book and am lettering a small sign for my friend katey in alabama

and i picked up my silk ribbons again and for two straight days embroidered this cuff bracelet which sold in an instant. 

this fella always with me

i even painted on a garden wood chip

i even made a carboard doll;

my inner child is always always whispering

and i knit 

and draw disproportionate bodies

and look for ways to display my little makings around the house

some, like this collage, remain in books

others get framed and hung in my studio

and in between

i cook

and garden

and it rains

and we sleep 'neath the vast sky dreaming of playful tomorrows listening to that pitter patter

and play house after short naps to recover that energy which has been so iffy lately. i've tried to eat well and rest and not stress, but something is amiss, i know my body. oh well

i have also discovered new art friends on instagram: susan hopkirk and olivia and very many from faraway lands with incomprehensible texts but beautiful photographs which spell creativity. 

it's been a good month in the art room, different, adventurous. i now have the urge to make a paper mache doll à la julie arkell so am gathering all the tools to get started.

and ofcourse my very own handmade pony. i used to love mine as a child. 

i do so miss the outdoors though, going on a hike. only once have i been to the beach since i returned from baja. tatiana just came back from the grand canyon and her photos blew me away and julie is up in yosemite right now and esther jyst got back from zion national park. 

i promise to write and share the art that has captured me over the past few months next time. 

and that about sums it up

hope your month has been creative too

downstairs, upstairs

i'd almost forgotten how to blog and almost entirely forgotten how to edit my photographs...it's been all about the move for the past two months. hopefully, our last ever since we bought this time.  my first ever own home.  it still seems like a dream.

we have focused most of our energy on the downstairs for now, three large rooms including the kitchen and the guest bathroom mainly because it is close to the garage where all the boxes are stashed. 

filled with light, i love coming downstairs in the morning to make breakfast and look out onto the garden from the kitchen window. that garden that awaits me come spring where i will spend most of my time.

  
putting it all together is still a work in progress.  i have always believed a home takes time to come alive and become imbued with the essence of its owners.  in the beginning everything looks static so adding flowers or a plant slowly starts to breath life into all the corners.

 one of my favorite flowers grows everywhere in the garden!

my favorite santo doll

i love mixing the old with the new.  some of these items have been in the family for three or four generations.

no time to garden yet other than watering

guest bathroom door

very very very old bread box

two small photographs from our trip to argentina

 displayed next to my folk art floral painting

natural collections everywhere, this one near the fireplace

WELCOME TO OUR NEW HOME