time does really fly when you are having fun. 

for a while there i did not leave the studio, painting, painting, painting as i delved deeper into all i had learned from full circle workshop and all the new roads it had led me down.

so in between more plantings in the garden and more hangings in the kitchen i just kept at it, surprised at what was coming forth from my subconscious.

paperclay included

and some collage after a long time not enjoying it

and a new discovery.... plain paper and pencil drawings

and a random postcard for a friend in england

I have used a lot of blue

and red

experimenting with a bit of storytelling in my paintings, gradually going bigger

and finally finished this piece on wood and selling it

recycling boxes to make another gift for yet another friend titled "love the giver"

a true reflexion of a mixed media artist

i keep running out of time for making all that i would like

but i am filled with gratefullness that i am able to paint at all.

all of a sudden, i'm burned out. a little bit tired, a little bit lost, a little bit frustrated.  

so time to stop and smell the roses or so i say to myself as i continue spinning my wheels. at least i stopped painting and sewing a bit to see where all this is going.  and while i'm finding the why...somebody on etsy purchases one of my paintings and another few buy out all the pinnies and i make EXPLORE on Flickr three times in less than a week. so, i must be doing something right.  

it's just that art is intense and alot like giving birth, so much energy goes into each piece, so much love. it drains you, takes the sap out of you.

so a break was in order to play at something else. and that something else has been the garden mainly and the house.

or should i say a house book? 

so you see, it does all come down to the house after all

so my next post will be all about the house. all about the tilling and the planting and the cooking and the hanging and a tad about the hoe down.

cabin fever.....severe. we were supposed to go on a road trip up the california coast but several things got in the way.  the pump at the ranch went kaput and, being that it is for sale, all attention had to be put on solving the water supply.  what bad timing.
ok, time to surrender.
so here we are, the last days of summer, anxious to GO GO GO.  i am not losing hope; the pump technicians are supposed to be here friday and by monday we should be able to make it happen.

 i am in desperate need of nature....our temporary condo as we continue our search for a house to buy, is beautiful and comfy but has a very small garden and an even tinier patio. so for an earthy woman like me, not having a garden has really begun to wear on my nerves. 

so, as is usual, i retreat to me art space and vent by creating something that will make it all right and turn the tide somewhat in the direction of the positive around me, or at least, within me. 

yes, being creative helps.  actually, it helps immensely, but there is an angst in my soul that needs healing.  what i miss the most are the breezes, the crackling sounds, the walks, the smell of eucalyptus and above all WATER.  ocean water, rivers, streams, putting my feet in it, splashing in it, seeing it glitter. and collecting little sticks and stones, leaves and anything in nature that will fit in my pocket.

so, as is usual, i retreat to me art space and vent by creating something that will make it all right and turn the tide somewhat in the direction of the positive around me, or at least, within me. 

"girl in black velvet dress"
i have continued my experimentation with faces and recently venturing into full 
size portraits although i am still having trouble with hands.
i swing between the whimsical and the formal acts of creating.

"mujeres"

 here is a corner of my bedroom where i have hung my latest mini painting 

midway down the wall in between a vintage needlepoint embroidery of a bird and a hook bird heart by mary stanley.

                                                  

this is the cover of the handmade book i am working on.  the flowers are real, from right outside our french doors, having been captured under a layer of beeswax.

for audrey

             b.    n.        

stitching between painting and reading a terrific biography of lytton strachey with lots and lots in it about dora carrington.  i love her paintings, especially the portrait of lytton holding a book with his long long finger.  carrington remains my favorite of the bloomsbury era painters above vannessa bell and augustus john.  what a group they were, how totally interesting and liberated.

recuerda mi corazón

we are all a gift to each other.....

inspiration has been slow in coming. nevertheless.......i managed to finish a madonna named "la virgen de huayalolen" named after my best friend's  love of gardening, especially gardening with roses. www.casadulcehogar.blogspot.com 

 i would like to share this post with "recuerda mi corazón" since i just discovered her blog through lynne hoppe

and lloved it.

the rest of the week has been spent mostly exploring the backroads near our home, bicycling, and experimenting with digital art with several neat apps.

i love how this santos cagedoll turned out with a frame from flickr's "playing with brushes".

with this one you can see i got a wee bit ambitious, using several layers and all sorts of editing.

what do you think of our backroads? we live in an area surrounded by farmland, mainly orange and avocado groves.

and this is my largest painting so far, 12x16 on wood panel.  it now hangs in my bedroom to remind me that if you really set your mind to it, you can do it; it just takes patience and perseverance. 

with no formal training, i have read and studied other peoples work, sifting through subjects and techniques that i like. then, i just went for it....trial and error, over and over and over until i got the hang of it.  but most importantly, i realized that it is the process that i enjoy even if some of the results are poor.  being in those creative moments are some of the best moments in my daily life.

when i paint, or sew, or knit, or collage.....i enter a zone, a deep spiritual zone where i find a great calm.

art is so therapeutic....so freeing and to create beauty such a reward in itself. i feel these faces coming alive, smiling at me, thanking me even, almost like i've given birth.