Feeling the Spring?

 

Art is a collaboration between God and the artist, 

and the less the artist does

the better.

Andre Gide

It's that "springy" time of year again, and I am being inspired by

that newness, and freshness that Spring brings.

I've been stretching those wings and trying 

some "new" things in preparation for the 

P A T C H W O R K 

Indie Arts & Crafts Show coming up in May...

I'm finding myself experimenting with some wood substrates rather than the glass-

 Trying to find a nice balance between collage and whimsy.

And freaking out a little... knowing that I have a few events lined up 

that I need to produce some serious inventory for--

henceforth, why the quote above was speaking to me. 

(Well... maybe it was actually yelling at me.)

I'll post that heart piece again when I finish it-- I'm trying decide on the words 

and what area of the heart I may paint over with either a bird or flower thingy.

I was feeling a little empty, having missed writing last week.

I had my nephew here for a ten day visit, 

and a surprise visit from my daughter (for a day) as well.

Causing some changes to the work schedule a bit- in a good way. 

(I just love surprises from very special people). 

During that week, I was also surprised with a lovely package 

that came "f l y i n g   i n " from one of our Kelly Rae Roberts ecourse friends Makiko.

Aside from being a wonderful ceramic artist, 

Makiko, has a huge heart for the earthquake/ tsunami victims of her native Japan.

She has put together a wonderful fundraiser, that will 

directly help in the recovery efforts.

She has created 1000 adorable little ceramic birds- can you believe it? 

1000 little ceramic birds... 

(and I am worried about inventory for a show?)

I ordered a few, and couldn't believe how lovely they were.

all wrapped up in their colorful paper nests...

ready to find a new home...

while meeting new friends!

If you want to take a peek~ check out Makiko's blog.

What a wonderful way to help! 

h a p p y  e a s t e r ~ h a p p y  s p r i n g  d e a r  f r i e n d s!

By the way... linking up to Sneak Peek Friday at sweet Jennifer's Studio. 

As always, there are some fabulous art blogs to peek at. 

And for a special treat~ check out the Day Spring interview with Jennifer.

Leave a comment, to enter the very special giveaway!

A little of this... A little of that...

    

Where to begin... busy busy week. 

I came across this quote that was very encouraging, and had to share...

Act as if what you do 

makes a difference.

It does.  

~William James

The simplicity of knowing, 

that what we are doing as creatives really does matter...

adds a cherry on top of the sundae for me!

(As do the words I chose for my little birdie painting plate-

a pure expression of how I feel when I am "creating".

If you've been popping in now and then, 

you may have noticed that there are a group of creatives 

that have been linking on a regular basis to studiojru.

Jennifer has been hosting this lovely space  

 where creative gifts are being shared.

I am happy to mention that this week's link-up will be at the (in)courage site.

A wonderful place of inspiration, community, creativity, and fabulous product.

Grab a coffee, a tea, and take a look through-there's so much to see.

Here's what I had been up to...

launching... new moMMy pins 

(personalized pins with your favorite picture)

launching... new biRdie pins

...prepped for a MOPS boutique and happily sold many inspirational plates...

... more prepping

... and planning

... and completing.

There are a few smaller shows on the horizon, but I am so happy about the opportunity 

to be part of a larger show...

Patchwork- Indie Arts & Crafts Festival

This event will take place on May 15th in Long Beach. 

Want to know a secret....

With this venue,  I'll have to prepare a booth space.

A full 10 x 10 space of creativity to sell creativity- yikes!

(Something, I've always been a little freaked out about). 

I am sharing the space, with a friend that I met at a prior venue.

Zazu Faure

Between the both of us, I think we will be able to pull 

something together and make a nice showing. 

Her work is quite lovely- 

sweet plush animals out of reclaimed materials- so well made and stylized.

 I am on a path right now, to continue integrating 

more and more of my own paintings into the plates... 

and perhaps have a few mixed media pieces to bring.

For anyone in Los Angeles- check out the Patchwork website- 

perhaps we'll see you there... at a booth or stolling the show?

If anyone has any thoughts on a booth space they'd like to share- 

feel free to leave some seeds in the comment area.

Any creative ideas are welcome!

Time to check out the rest of the creativity from Sneak Peek Friday.

Thanks for stopping by, and know that 

"Y O U make a difference"!

California Art Club... and other stuff...

an most incredible piece by

Richard Schmid

I must say- I have been going through major blogging withdrawal this week.  

So much busyness and so much to share. After spending the necessary time prepping taxes, and completing a couple of custom order's, I am soooo ready to get back to "creating". 

(I need to cleanse my brain of numbers and see colors again!)

so... sharing....

F I R S T... 

A wonderful exhibit to check out- that is running at 
the Pasadena Museum of California Art.

I had the opportunity to spend a day, last weekend, with my dear friend 

and  a r t ~ g a l ~ p a l  Patty, soaking up 
the beauty of the California Art Club exhibit. 

It was an inspiring exhibit of contemporary-traditional fine art. 
Many of the artists are local peeps with classes at LAAFA,  California Art Institute, 
and private studio locations. 


Take a peek at the exhibition website~ inspiration abounds! 
Here's a sampling of some of the work on display.
So worth a visit, if you are in the area.  

100TH ANNUAL GOLD MEDAL JURIED EXHIBITION

April 3-24, 2011

Pasadena Museum of California Art, 490 East Union Street, Pasadena

Meredith Brooks Abbott

California Art Club

Aaron Westerberg

Nancy Seamons Crookston

Jove Wang

Ignat Ignatov

Calvin Liang

S E C O N D ... 

I'll be posting with In the Studio-Sneak Peek Friday again this weekend. 

Sweet Jennifer of studiojru has moved her weekly link to her incourage space.

It's such a lovely website, filled with encouragement, creativity and inspiration.

Grab a coffee, a tea, a latte... and stop by anytime throughout the week, 

to check out some inspiring creative link-ups. 

Feel free to leave a few seedlings behind....

T H I R D...

A little secret~ so very excited to have been accepted to 

Patchwork Indie Arts & Crafts Festival

~H A P P Y  D A N C E ~

more info on that with my next post. 

If you are looking for a cool show in the Los Angeles area~ 

this may be the show for you.

Stay tuned....

 More to come this weekend...

"Let your L I F E be a painting..."

F i r s t   t h i n g s   f i r s t....

I needed to share this inspirational goodie with everyone...

a simple beautiful arrangement of words~

" When I say B E creative,

I don't mean 

you should all go

and become great painters 

and great poets.

I simply mean

let your L I F E be a painting,

let your L I F E be a poem."

-ohso

I fell in love with this quote, while reading a book that has become 

one of the most profound finds, 

filling my art spirit at the moment.

Creative is a Verb

Patti Digh

(just a little teaser~ but I'm interested in throwing out some seeds  to see if anyone 

would want to take root in this book together. 

As a small tribe, I think it could be invaluable to share learning, through the words 

and creative challenges that Patti Digh has woven together in this incredibly insightful book. 

Let me know in the comments section or by email if there is any interest.)

Are you thinking...what up with all the photo's? 

I had a lot going on this week in the land of "creating". 

I was juggling between a couple of etsy orders for my personalized keychains

~new plate designs using my watercolors-stay tuned

~a new idea that's been brewing in my right brain for a artsy pin (above) 

using textural yarns & silk and...

~more little inspirational birdhouses.

personalized keychains in process.... 

one of the finished pieces.... 

 the little birdhouse line-up...

a few finished designs ... I'm liking the words... I'm liking the words!

So- the items for upcoming boutiques & refilling the etsy store are well under way, 

but I need to get back to my paint brushes!

 Maybe next week?

 Once again... linking up to studiojru ~ 

lots of inspiration & talented artist linkups to see!

Listening to the Inner Voice Chick...

 

It's been a couple of weeks since I've linked to StudioJRU~ Sneak Peek Fridays. 

There are so many talented artists there, that share their blogs 

throughout the weekend. 

It's always inspiring to see what everyone has been up to. 

I feel like I am missing  c o f f e e  with my friends 

when I haven't gotten a chance to link up and visit. 

So, today I'm sitting here with cappucino in hand, reading and sharing....

I'm getting excited about something that I have been planning for a while, 

and now am feeling like may come to fruition. 

I love to work in watercolor, and I love making my decoupage plates. 

I've been thinking about applying  m y  o w n  graphic watercolor art 

to the plates rather than the usual graphic patterned papers I find to create with. 

I have done this in the past, but with existing watercolor pieces that I'd already done. 

The difference here, is that I am actually creating the art for a specific plate, and words. 

It's coming together and feeling good.

And if it's  f e e l i n g  g o o d,  then I must 

be listening to that i n n e r   v o i c e!

(do you ever wonder what she looks like- that inner voice chick?

I wonder if she's cute- young- old- floating around or buzzing like a hummingbird- 

maybe even sporting red hair like me?)

So- this week, you get an unofficial peek at the process...

the "inner voice chick" is still giving direction, 

but I am happy with the path she's put me on.

~my graphic blooms~

~sweet little birdie~

~playing with placement~

~leaves:: one of my favorite things~

~another beginning~

All of the plates are in process- should be fun to see what develops through the week!

What does your i n n e r   v o i c e chick look like? 

I may have to paint mine- she's starting to reveal herself more and more.

p.s. a sneak peek at another "soon-to-be" listing on etsy at twig2neststudio

~link-up at studiojru for more inspiration!  

Calling all "Right-Brainers"...

In my Saturday post I mentioned the online video summit/webinar, 
by Jennifer Lee based on her creative new book The Right -Brain Business Plan.
I thought it would be helpful to post the info for tomorrow's session, as a few 
creatives were asking about it.

 http://www.rightbrainbusinessplan.com/courses Sign ups are still open... maybe see you there!  


Kicking off Week 2 tomorrow! This week she puts all the pieces together and shows you how to
keep the momentum going after the summit. There's a fantastic line-up of speakers this week including Chris Guillebeau, Lisa Sonora Beam, Danielle LaPorte and Leonie Allan. Plus a special bonus video interview with Todd Henry.

Join Jennifer Lee  and Pam Slim, seasoned business coach, author and professional speaker tomorrow, as we talk about Managing the Moola - Chapter 5. And meet Tori Deaux and 
her business plan named Emmit in our live Show and Tell Spotlight.



Date and Time: Monday, March 7, 2011 10:00 am PST / 11:00pm MST / Noon CST / 1:00pm 
Guest Speaker: Pam Slim, author of Escape from Cubicle Nation
Show and Tell Spotlight: Tori Deaux, founder of The Circus Serene

What we'll be covering:
             ~Why the numbers really are more of an art than a science
             ~ Simple ways to understand the moola coming in and going out
              ~How to use your intuition and imagination to increase your income
p.s. there are a lot of extra's  if  you decide to sign up for   
The Right Brain Business Plan complete ecourse