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Friday, December 23, 2011

Are You Having A Ball?

I am! Joyful Joyful! Finished shopping,
gifts all wrapped,
groceries in the frig,
and now I'm getting ready to
create something in the kitchen.
Wishing you & all my Angels (Followers)
the most wonderful Christmas
overflowing with God's best blessings! *going to use white chocolate Flips instead of plain pretzels
Cookie & Marshmallow treat were found here:

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Monday, December 5, 2011

On The Easel...

...some new pieces on wood.

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Saturday, December 3, 2011

What Day Is It ?!

...I can't believe I haven't posted in so long. So sorry faithful Followers! I hope everyone had a wonderful Thanksgiving and is enjoying the season so far. Mine was very nice and the Christmas spirit hasn't fully kicked in with me yet. So as usual I am behind in my shopping that has to be mailed. The year started with good intentions and I had acquired 1 gift by March, but that's as far as I got. *patting myself on the back anyway* The spirit will kick in though, I'm sure of it. Hubby decorated the tree & did a lovely job. I have to dig into the boxes before they dissappear back into the shed. I thought if the spirit really hit me I could do another Christmas Tour video until I realized that it would be pretty much the same as the last one. hahaha
This reminds me I have got to start thinking about what to bake for Christmas!



To See New work listed on Ebay: Click HERE

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Friday, November 11, 2011

Winter Wonderful ...

It's almost here. Last year my favorite winter collection was Dolce & Gabana. http://folkartbycampbelljane.blogspot.com/2010/10/winter-wonderful.html

This year I'm smitten ♥♥♥ with Christian Dior. Rachel says it best when she says "Bananas!"

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Friday, November 4, 2011

Bed Bugs...

... We don't have them here, but this one might have a few. Coffee in the morning or picnic in bed ?! You know I don't have that much of a green thumb this photo was found at inspirebohemian.blogspot.com


Upcycled Reuse Terrarium Project

These are 2 that I made using thrift store finds. I have 3 more made since I took this picture. They are addicting & look so pretty in my garden window! Add some ribbon, beads, knobs, etc... These are so fun and would make great gifts too.

If you make one I'd love to see it. Please send me your photo and I will post!


Mango plant update : It's still alive!!!!!! I haven't killed it yet! Hopefully I'll be able to grow these too!

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Tuesday, October 25, 2011

Sometimes?...


I find this hysterical but at the same time I feel the need to apologize for it. LOL

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Wednesday, October 12, 2011

This is Dedicated...

...to someone I love very much and YOU know who you are.

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Tuesday, October 4, 2011

Look Mom No Brushes!

Being a creative soul (sometimes more often than I should & occasionally to a fault), every once in a while I have to burst out of my bubble and experiment, do something that isn't expected of me. Sometimes these experiments go bad, I have a graveyard of canvas in my studio closet to prove it. A few made it out this summer to an "outdoor room" and are hanging on my fence in my backyard. Then there are times when things go right and I think this is one of those times!

A few weeks ago I was under the weather and I hate washing brushes anyway, a simple yet annoying task, kind of like your thread breaking while you're sewing, so instead of grabbing a brush I ripped off a little piece of used card stock and dove it right into my piles of acrylic paint. Globbing and scraping the paint on & off the previous "experiment" canvas that I had covered with thick gesso. I just want to do more & more so all my little zombies in my graveyard may be resurrected in the near future! I do love this technique and wish I had a better photo for ya. Perhaps a tutorial is in the future so stay tuned!


These 2 little birds were inspired by ESP at Paint My Photo. It's a wonderful site where Artists & Photographers share there photos free of copyrights. It's fun and there are lots of really nice people there & beautiful photographs for inspiration when your brain goes dead. You don't need to share a photo to belong either. When I look for inspiration I look to photos, magazines, books, more often than I look at art. It's so easy to be influenced by someone else's art and when I'm in create mode I want it all to be me. I've been doing needlework instead of painting. I have lots of things at a gallery here in town called Spoiled Rotten. I've got to get busy though because I have a show this weekend in El Dorado Hills. If you are in the area stop by and say hi!



Create a Great day!

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Thursday, September 22, 2011

The Crazy Ones...

Here’s to the Crazy Ones

Here’s to the crazy ones.
The misfits. The rebels.
The troublemakers. The round
pegs in the square holes – the
ones who see things differently.
They’re not fond of rules and
they have no respect for
the status quo. You can praise
them, disagree with them,
quote them, disbelieve them,
glorify or vilify them.
About the only thing that you
can’t do is ignore them.
Because they change things.

~ Jack Kerouac



Currently Listed on Ebay

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Saturday, September 17, 2011

A Love/Hate Relationship...

... that's what I have with granny squares. I love them, I don't mind making them, it's just the blocking and sewing together I hate. Just like with sewing, if you want something to look nice and go together well, your fabric has to be ironed, so does crochet & knit. I cut out a thin piece of card board or paper the size that your granny square is suppose to be to use as a template. I set my iron to the Acrylic setting with steam. I just secure the pin at each corner first just pushing it into my ironing board cover. I lightly press and steam careful not to scorch or flatten the stitches too much. My iron is great on this setting but if you have any doubts about your iron you should definitely cover with a thin cloth before pressing. If your square is springing back and not remaining blocked, steam again and leave it pinned on the template until it's completely cool and then remove.









See what a difference blocking makes! You can't tell in the pictures but the black yarn used in this project is Vanna White's Glamour yarn "for special occasions" and it has itty bitty sparkles in it. It's really much prettier in person.

I am going to crochet these together instead of sew. I will share the picture of my project when it's all completed! You can see all the squares I have to block! Maybe I'll put some cream on my face and put all this steam on double duty! LOL

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Sunday, September 11, 2011

Mango Madness!

photo and more info found HERE

I've gone crazy for mangos. It's a fruit that in the past I have rarely purchased. I like mango flavor and usually if I have something mango it is mango "flavored". Well I bought one and Hubby and I shared it, even though I didn't really want to share. I cleaned the pit, alright, I'll admit it, I sucked on it until it was clean. hahaha The pit has kind of a pine taste to me and I love it. Wish I could crush it up and use it as a seasoning. I wonder if anyone has ever done that. The next day the pit had opened and inside was a pod. I put it in an empty pot that I had previously killed something else in barely under the soil. Within days it was sprouting. You know I do NOT have a green thumb so this is thrilling.
Look! Today it's even bigger!
I bought 3 more mangos and I may have to paint a mango tree! AND I am going to try not to love it to death. Aren't they awesome looking?

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Monday, August 29, 2011

Wild Wild West


Random snap shots from our little road trip to Carson City & Virginia City, Nevada this week. I fell in love with the place and hope to get back to go through all those shops soon!













This makes a Campbell feel right at home :)








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Thursday, August 18, 2011

Impress My Friends?...

...Why yes I would like to impress my friends with these at my next dinner party! Those little rat bastards aren't too hard to make!hahaha LOL Rat Bastards is my favorite cuss to say. I'm not proud, it just slips out. Those who know me are laughing their butts off about now. I had to share because honestly who wouldn't like a cute little rat garnish instead of a tired radish standby, the rose? Keep playing with your food Chef Justin! I love it!

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Monday, August 1, 2011

Sweet Sunny Spicy Spanish Guitar kind of Day

Yes it's 100 outside but you know I like it hot! Red Pork Chili Colorado, Fry Bread & Yellow Lemon Buttercreams. Yum.

I had some beautiful chops but was craving something spicy & saucy even though it is hot. This is great though because it's simple and you don't have to stand in a hot kitchen fussing over it. This is just 4 large chops cut in big chunks, browned, 2 chicken boullion, just enough water to cover and 1/2c spaghetti sauce (I didn't have 1/2 can of tomato paste but this came out great), 1/2 large yellow onion slices really thinly, 4 cloves of grated garlic, 2 tbsp of chili powder, 1 tbsp of cumin. Stewed for about 2 hours or until pork is tender. Simple and so so good.

I'm experimenting with a fry bread recipe. I'm really trying to work that one out for my son who is thinking about getting a gourmet food truck. I started with a "biga" as though I were making a foccacia bread. I hope it turns out. It looks bubblalicious right now. I will repost a picture to this post if it comes out good so stay tuned. Is there "bad" bread? ...I don't think so!

Don't these lemon buttercreams look so sunny and summery? They will give you a sunny disposition for sure! I scored a bunch of great Mr. Candy molds for only $.50 each and they were unopened and brand new. (Thrift store, I donate then buy stuff. hahaha) I got this sunflower, a frog, pineapple, seashell, rose w/ leaf, turtle, leaf, and shamrock. When I got them I thought I would use them for clay but the recipe looked so easy, and my guys have sweet teeth, so I tried it. The guys loved them and I'm all for easy. If you come to visit you will get these on your pillow and I am now planning to make some for Christmas packages. Peppermint extract is now on my shopping list. Don't worry you don't need a mold to make these buttercreams! You can roll the dough into thin logs and cut into equal pieces or roll them into balls. This would be great for kids to do too! I hope you give this yummy recipe a try.


Buttercream Candies

1 box of powdered sugar

1/4 cup of melted butter

10 drops of food color

1/4 tsp of extract or flavoring - I used lemon extract

Work with hands to dough that sticks together, then roll into log or press into a candy mold. Place on wax paper or parchment paper. Dry for 1 hour then turn over and dry on other side.
Store in cool place. These can be frozen up to 3 months.

Thank You beautiful Charo for helping me have fun while cleaning my kitchen! So Caliente!

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Monday, July 25, 2011

A Day Late...

... I spent this weekend pulling everything out of my walk-in closet, there were mountain size piles of clothes in my living room. Pants, shirts, shorts, skirts & dresses. Then jeans, pants, tees and blouses, color coordinating everything as I put it all back. It looks amazing and it feels good to have that done. I've still got to go through all my shoes and underwear drawers. Hubby & I loaded big boxes of clothes that I don't wear, won't ever wear, never have worn or don't fit to the thrift store just this morning. Then I saw this video. Wah Wah I might have to go buy a few back now! hahaha

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Wednesday, July 20, 2011

A Little Word on Wednesday

Speechless. So beautiful.

Salvator Mundi (Savior of the World)
This Leonardo da Vinci painting was thought to be lost or destroyed but has been found and will be on exhibition at the National Gallery in London. To read more click here.
Leonardo da Vinci: Painter at the Court of Milan at the National Gallery in London (11/9/2011 to 2/5/2012).

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Thursday, July 14, 2011

Abstract Anxiety...

"Forgiving" 6 x 6

"Understanding" 16 x 20


These are the first abstracts that I am parting with. It's a little scary. They were painted w/ layers & layers of acrylic paint, scraped, scratched, brushed & rubbed.

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Wednesday, July 13, 2011

Surprise San Francisco!






Hubby woke up early. Made coffee and then woke me up. He was taking me on a surprise trip! He wouldn't tell me where we were going but it wasn't long before I figured out we were on our way to San Francisco. For what reason I had no idea. It wasn't until we were there that he told me his surprise. He had purchased tickets for the Picasso Exhibit at the De Young Museum. Such a sweet surprise! This was so special & sweet because walking through galleries & museums is not really his thing, however, sneaking a glimpse of him from across the gallery floor it was clear he was enjoying this exhibit too. Picasso, a surprise within a surprise really. The work smelled old, maybe it smelled like Paris. I loved the smell of it. Quite a few of the paintings appear unfinished. They are; but are they? Some appear somewhat sloppy. An unpainted portion of canvas just appears white in a print or photo so I until up close & personal I was unaware. What made him stop? Fear of ruining what he had already done? I've been there. Arrogance/Self importance? You get what you get & you don't throw a fit. Impatience? Indecisiveness? or total Freedom? I am still mentally digesting every piece I saw. It was inspirational. I can paint anything I want and in any color that I want and if it isn't pretty so what? I was really taken with his metal work, sculptures and collage pieces.


These are a few of the photos I snapped along the way.

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