Oh The Wonder...

My favorite picture of this Christmas season.

I can't believe it's already a New Year!

Time really does fly when you're having fun!

A Big Shout Out & Thank you! goes to Anna's Adornments, Tirabaralla, Baby's Breath Homemade & The Acorn Owl for featuring my art in their fantastic Etsy Treasuries!

To stop by their shops just click on their names.

♦ Wishing you the Happiest New Year ♦

A Rare Glimpse of Me...

...there are no pictures of me that I know of on the internet. I hate my picture taken. I am never happy with any of them. ever. This is a rare occasion.

The reason I am posting this picture is because it's of me and one of the most important people & beloved friends in my life, Layne aka "Bobbi". We are more like sisters having been the best of friends for 25 years. I have my arms around her & she is the one with the big beautiful smile. She doesn't like her picture taken either so this is a few years old. Just last year we were talking about how we don't have many pictures together then started taking goofy pictures of ourselves with our cell phones. We were belly laughing. I wish I had saved them all even though they were hideous & ridiculous.

I am asking for your prayers as she is battling for her life today & in the next few days & months to come. Cancer attacked her this summer. She has been very brave. Keeping her chin up even though she is being bombarded with heavy radiation & chemo but it's beginning to get the best of her. She had emergency surgery in the middle of the night. I know God says I shouldn't worry but I am unable not to. I can hardly think of anything else & in constant prayer.

Thank you for your prayers, they are so appreciated.

Some Christmas Spice...

...My sweet hubby is doing some cleaning for me & our little JJ is down for a nap. Christmas music is turned up a notch louder than it should be, I'm going to light up that special spicy Christmas candle, grab the tape & scissors, and wrap away! We are starting our celebration tomorrow so I am trying to get everything finished today. Wrapping. ugh. Not my favorite thing. I'm too much of a perfectionist to enjoy it. So it's one thing that I'm not so good at. I just whack away. I'm famous or perhaps infamous for my gift wrapping. Those closest to me are laughing right now and giving a knowing nod.

However, I am enjoying every minute of this Christmas, even the wrapping.

Fa La La La!

I hope you are too!

God Bless & Merry Christmas and much love to all my Family, Friends & Faithful Followers!

Still Shopping!

I Can't Believe...

... or *be leave* this year is almost over! Coming home from our walk today I noticed how the last of the leaves of 2010 are hanging on, draping the trees like a red frilly skirt, and the mossy path to the front door has a lovely red carpet welcoming me home.

Clowing Around Again...

"La Dee Dottie"

Oh What A Night!...

...there I go with song lyrics again!

Last night was my Artist Reception/Opening for the Swell Sister's at The Coffee Garden in Sacramento. I had so much fun. There wasn't as many people at this show as in the past but lots of friends & family were there to support us all. It was a wonderful evening and we sold enough for a good donation to give to the Women's Wisdom Project. Coming home the fog was so bad it was like driving in pea soup. Spooky. Silly as it may sound it makes me think about vampires. No I haven't watched Twilight or any in the series and won't watch them even though some people tell me it's not scary. right. Thank you Sister & Stephen King.

"Disguised"

This piece is on paper. I won't be selling the original, but may sell prints. This one I plan to frame and keep. I have thought of putting it up for sale several times but haven't been able to part with it. I played with layers and layers of color on this one. Scraping, dabbing, rubbing, I was totally absorbed in it. In a strange way I almost feel as though it's a self portrait.

I can't help it. I'm a hopeless romantic. I even cry when watching a sitcom wedding, such as Erkle's. hahaha Don't tell, but my hubby may not cry as much as me but he is definitely verklempt sometimes! We're saps. I'm ok with that. So I can't help but to be so happy for Prince William and Kate Middleton. I remember staying up into the wee hours of the morning to watch his Prince Charles & Diana get married. I think Kate is just lovely. I love hats and admire her for proudly & boldly wearing the most intriguing head pieces. I love it! I can't wait to see the gown she chooses. They both look so happy. I must admit that I was a little shocked when I found out that they had been living together. I avoid the tabloids in the grocery isle so I didn't know. I know in this day & age living together without being married is not shocking in itself, just didn't think that the "Royals" would approve of it. Times have changed!

A Big Shout Out & Thank You goes to Kubercove, Trigo and MathesonGemWorks for including my art in their wonderful Etsy Treasuries!

What's New...

"Open Door Policy"

I'm taking this painting & another to the Coffee Garden in Sacramento today for the Swell Sister Show entitled "Doors". Then I'll be running a few errands and hopefully in the rain. I know, I know, I'm strange. I love driving in the rain, the swoosh of the tires on the wet freeway or saturated streets - it's as close as I can get to that ocean sound - with barely audiable jazz playing in the background, my blue & green polka dot umbrella laying in wait. ahhhhhhhh Love it!

Big Shout Out & Thank You goes to Whatshername & Shelostit for including my art in their wonderful Etsy Treasuries! Click on their names to check out their real Etsy Treasures!

Be Warned...

...

...pardon his french! This reindeer needs a bar of soap & a cookie!

Prepared To Be Stuffed...

Yesterday I made sausage for our turkey dressing and it came out really good if I say so myself! So in the spirit of the season I am sharing my recipe. You may not have a grinder but you can ask the butcher at the grocery counter to grind you some pork or buy it already ground. I used 4 large fatty country pork ribs. This time I made it I omitted 2 tsp of paprika and like it much better. I omitted it because I didn't want the red color of the paprika. I might add it back in if I was making breakfast sausage. I put all the spices together on a paper plate then added them to course ground pork, mixed it well, then ran the pork through again on smaller grind. There are 3 favorite dressings that we argue over every year. #1 San Francisco Sourdough Stuffing w/ artichoke, Parmesan cheese & mushrooms, *a family favorite from the early 90's or late 80's found in a Sunset Magazine* #2 Oyster Dressing w/ oysters from the Pacific Northwest or #3 Sausage & mushroom, either with wheat bread or cornbread. This year it's homemade sausage & mushroom. Our worse stuffing ever was a few years ago when I decided to add hazel nuts. I know it sounds like it might be good, but it was disappointing. A good portion of it ended up getting lost to decay in the back of the frig. E U. I'd love to hear what your favorite is and what's your worst!

I have all my onions, celery chopped & put into bags, I sauteed the sausage just until done & put in frig too, all ready to use. Today I made sweet potato pudding *it's like bars really* and got my pie shell baked, ready for pineapple filling. My son is making the pumpkin pie. The last few years I have had the privilege to be able to take my time, really enjoy cooking & the holiday. Doing the prep work ahead really helps, so that when Thanksgiving day comes I'm not too exhausted to enjoy the meal.

4 Cup ground pork

3/4 tsp salt

3/4 tsp ground sage

1 1/2 tsp garlic powder

1/4 tsp ground red pepper

1 tsp red pepper flakes

1/2 tsp fennel seed

1/2 tsp black pepper

Happy Thanksgiving!

I am Very Thankful to all my Faithful Followers & Visitors!

God Bless You this holiday season!

A Big Shout Out & Thank You goes to SassySashadoxie for including my Angel with a Pink Rose in her lovely Etsy Twitter Treasury! Check out her sweet Doxie art!

Clowing Around Again

"Petal Pusher"

"Wishy Washy"

Both come with the mats & are listed in my Etsy Shop. Mats measure 5x7 & can be plopped *circus talk* into any store bought frame. The original painting measures 3 x 5. I gave the last one the name "Wishy Washy" because the expression on it's face is hard to read. Smiling or not smiling? hum...

Oh Why Not?!

Thanksgiving make-up tips! LOL...

and a Thanksgiving outfit!

A Big Shout Out & Thank you! goes to Catsjammies, CashmereJellyBean, Valche, & She Lost It for featuring my art in their wonderful Etsy Treasury's. Click on their names to check out their special shops!

An Award & Lobster...

"High Five"

but not for dinner! I painted this little Norway Lobster that is actually headed for Norway to be in the Twitter Art Exhibit. The proceeds of this show will benefit the local library in the city of Moss so that they can get the children's books that they desperately need. You have 140 characters in which to post on Twitter so it was first intended to be a group of 140 Artist, however, by the comments on the thread there may end up being more! Each Artist is submitting a postcard piece that represents their style, that will be sold for $17(US). My husband's family & step-family were from Norway. I chose to paint the Norway lobster because it lives in Norway, is named after Norway, is cute for the children, but is really a shrimp & shrimp is one of my favorite things! (see below) This show is getting a lot of attention and I am proud to be a part of it.
I am also proud to be the recipient of "The Versatile Blog Award" from Sharkbytes! Thank you so much! You have to share 7 things about yourself, then pass the award to other bloggers who you think deserve it, making sure to let the bloggers know you chose them to receive the award.
My 7 Things

1. Shrimp is one of my favorite things but I feel a little guilty eating too many, because of the many lives I'm consuming, but I could eat a bucket of them.

2. I'm addicted to tomatoes.

3. Sometimes I pretend to know what's going on in a football game when I haven't got a clue, I'm just zoning out... thinking about art.

4. I am more in love with my grandson that I ever thought I would be.

5. I hoard jars. One kitchen cabinet is dedicated to jars. I never throw one out and there is always room for another one...hum....I may have a fairy that comes and steals them sometimes. *Hubby you're busted*

6. I like candy corn and still eat it like a kid would, one color layer at a time.

7. I'm a loud laugher. I belly laugh a lot.

Ok passing this on is hard. There are so many of you that deserve this award! If you aren't chosen it's not because I don't love you, I love all my Followers & those that I Follow! Here are a few very special people that have awesome blogs, always take the time to stop by, support me & make me feel special...

Ayala Art

Alterity Button

Gloria's Blog Viva La Vida

Namaste
Poetic Artist

Poetic Shutterbug

Sandy Petals

Big Shout Out & Thank You goes to Paradise Purls for featuring my Little Diver in her Etsy Treasury!

"A Shot In The DarK"

Was That Fun?!
Making this video kept me busy & my mind off of some bad news I received for a time today. I will as promised post my blog award from Sharkbytes & pass it on, as well as some Shout Outs to some lovely people that featured my art in their Etsy Treasuries in upcoming posts.

Happy Halloween!

May you be in the spirit and the Spirits be with you!

Boo!

Spooky Self Therapy...

...Did I cure myself?
A gray day, drizzly & dank, the chill of Halloween looming, left over paint on my palette from an acrylic & alcohol experiment gone awry. I grabbed some ACEO canvas paper and left the outcome up to destiny. I felt happy, I didn't care if I wasted the paper. I just layered and layered the paint letting fate bring these fellows to life. You can see my freedom in my brush strokes. I didn't care if they are perfect. They didn't scare me. They made me free & happy. Each side of their faces show a different emotion and in the spirit of a Fun House, their eyes will follow you too. Yes I got my freak on! Happy Halloween!

A Big Shout Out & Thank you goes to Sharkbytes for the "Versitile Blog Award" I will be posting it with my responses in the next day or so! And to FruitsofTheBloom & HulaHoopVintage for including my art in their wonderful Etsy Treasuries!

What's New...

... No I'm not folding paper but I'm painting on it!

I recently went to a Placerville Arts meeting with a friend of mine and I scored some Carson's Oil & Acrylic Canvas Paper. In the past I really had a problem painting on paper. Wood is still my favorite but I have grown to love paper. It's easily stored, easily mailed, easily framed in pre-made store bought frames or mounted on board and I love how layers and layers of paint seem to glow on it. I am painting with acrylics and didn't gesso the paper first, however, I believe it would be wise if I was painting with oils. This canvas paper is coated & doesn't absorb the paint. I am anxious to get into my little studio today and paint some more today. I have listed these on Etsy but plan to auction some on Ebay as well. Listing fees are free until Jan 7th!

Wii Origami ! ...

...Wii! is right! My son's friend left the Wii here and I watched "Between The Folds" on Netflix last night. I must have a Wii now. I was immediately smitten with Eric Joisel's work. His whimsical characters, their faces & figures. You know I love a wonky interesting face. I was mesmerized. One piece of paper folded. Amazing. I'm still pondering the comment made in the intro that "We all come from folds". That may be true, but I didn't like how that sounded or the imagery that popped into my head when they said it. Now it's stuck in there. hahaha

I fell in love with origami as a young girl while living in Japan. I would spend my yen on the beautiful packages of paper with eye-popping bright colors & patterns. Back in the day there was always a silver & gold paper at the bottom of the stack. Maybe there still is? I haven't bought any for a long time. The gold paper was like a treasure. The paper I savored the most and took the most time folding. My precious bone folder would have made things a lot easier back then. My mom still tells the story on occassion that she was finding little bits of paper in my bedroom months after I moved out. I have origami paper in my studio as I type this, serving no purpose other than it's comforting on some weird level to know that it's in there. And besides you never know when you might need a crane :)

Price of Pumpkins...

...We took our little pumpkin to "Daw Naws" (McDonald's) and to the Pumpkin Patch yesterday. $18 for 3 pumpkins! What?! Am I out of touch with reality? Do pumpkins normally cost that much? Well, having all the fun in the maze & around the patch was priceless, but I'm definitely transforming these pumpkins into pies in a week or so!

I hurt my Achilles tendon last weekend so I have been trying to stay off of it as much as possible. Yesterday walking around in the Pumpkin Patch's sandy gravel made it worse. I stayed off of it last night and made 2 little ponchos while sitting there with hubby & baseball game, using up all my bits & pieces. They are were suppose to be 12 month size but they turned out to be 2T or 3T. JJ screamed bloody murder when I tried them on him. Like he instinctively knew they were for a girl! Is that possible at 2 years old? He cried, they fit him, I cried. haha I plan to make more tonight. I am going to buy more yarn, make it smaller, maybe all the same color, and alter the pattern & maybe add a pretty lacy bottom edge. I'm going to send these to my other little niece, I'm sure these will be cute with a little pairs of jeans or jean skirt besides the blue & green will be so cute with her dark hair. I studied the picture they provided today, it shows only 8 rows with a border unlike the pattern. No worries though, these work up so fast and are fun to make plus I used my bits & pieces, so both of my nieces may end up with lots of them! I've got a huge space bag full of bits & pieces! I'll post a picture of the pattern I make.

A Big Shout Out & Thank You goes to Vital Temptation Designs for featuring my art in her great Etsy Treasury. Click on her name to visit her shop full of scrumptious crochet & needlework!

It's One of "Those" Days...

Last Night...

Round & Round I Go...

"A Full Life"

...Circles, spheres, round objects, balls.... If there is such a thing as a past life, I must have once been a dog. My sister & I had a good laugh not long ago about how I like balls. It's reflected in my jewelry pieces- consisting of balls of clay, my love of pearls - which find their way into my paintings sometimes, my round coffee & end tables, my love of plates, in the completely round patch of manicured grass in my front yard, which was created by my inability to speak Vietnamese...or was it? Subliminally did I really want a completely round circle of grass in my front yard? In my food choices, the love of tobiko, tapioca, and newly found quinoa. Even in the suit in the last post! I'd even consider myself to be round! I have a round face. Yes I am attracted most by round shapes & objects. Do I alone have this affliction, strange preference or are there some of you that have the same affinity to certain shapes? Does your favorite shape show up in your daily life or creative life?

"Trouble"

"Waiting For The Phone To Ring"

" No Foolin' "

These are a few of the linocuts I've been doing lately. I have a few more that I haven't printed yet. I finished a larger portrait today with sunglasses & a big bow. I hope she prints out well. I'm calling that piece "Mad For Miami". She was inspired by an old Marc Jacobs ad, to me the girl in the ad looks a lot like the amazing Grace Coddington in her modeling days. I was immediately drawn to the wild red hair, bow & sunglasses. She's not an Angel but I personally love the Angels in sunglasses that I'm doing. I imagine them in such brightness that they have to wear shades. I may do my Christmas cards this year with one and just say something like... I hope your Season is the Brightest. Too cheesy? or kind of clever? hum.... I'll have to think about that. I'm going to mount the linocut on wood and use it like a stamp, rather than hand rubbing all of them. I haven't tried that yet. Alas, I have lots more to do before I start that project. My 2doo list is super long. I have many things to list in both of my shops and I am going to be concentrating on getting that done this week. Please stop by later this week and see what's new!

Big Shout Outs & Thank You's go to Glass Etc , PhoFun & Oh For Cute for including my art in their wonderful Etsy Treasuries. Click on their names to visit their lovely Etsy shops.

Hip Ol' Grannies!

Winter Wonderful ...

... ♥ love ♥ love ♥ love ♥ smitten ♥ smitten ♥ smitten with Dolce & Gabbana's winter collection. I've watched this twice and may watch it again.

I drifted off here & there daydreaming that I was tall and thin! hahaha and then that I had a new knitting machine! I love the Scandinavian patterns which is also repeated in the men's collection, the light as a feather flowing fabrics, the fine knit, medival inspired square yoke sweaters with a slightly puffy sleeve, the leg warmers/shoe covers, and the goggles!?! Scrumptious BANANAS! :) I don't think there is a piece I don't like, with exception of a few purses. Winter wonderful! Brilliant! I'm ready to pull out the needles & then hit Lake Tahoe.

A Photo Journey...

...of my weekend.

2010 Artist Studio Tour; Haunted Hotel~ Cary House in Placerville, CA; Olive Hyde Gallery & Mission San Jose in Fremont, CA ; Bancheros~ our favorite restaurant in Hayward, CA & a road side stop for Pepsi with Alien crash landing :)