I called this painting “Chanel Red” but my inner lip syncer really wants to call it “I Wear My Sunglasses At Night” (so I can…so I can….). I am Canadian after all!! Corey Hart practically raised us. Whether you’ve got this song stuck in your head now or you’re in love with the other subject, […]
A Room of Your Own
I’ve written a fair bit about my funny fancy parlors. Are they real? Are they figments of my imagination? A combination? All of the above. I would like to jump into a room filled with leopard lounge chairs and a pink velvet settee. Art clustered on the wall, vintage charts mixed with contemporary treasures and […]
Nautical Parlour
“Write it on your heart that every day is the best day in the year.” Emerson I love this quote, this sentiment and this reminder to be present and appreciate life’s lovely moments as well as it’s ebb and flow. Especially this week. Thanksgiving week, a week by definition, a time to be even more […]
Fancy Envelopes
This afternoon in sweet Ashland, Oregon, it’s pouring icy fog rain, dark by 3pm, wind howling around the house and I am recovering from part one of some dental work. Before you turn green with envy, there is an upside. I’m home for the afternoon doing “nothing”. “Nothing” is a requirement when I’m supposed to […]
Table Setting
Table setting is an art. You can’t get it wrong, the only requirement is using your good stuff, your everyday stuff, whatever makes your heart sing stuff and group it together. There are berries to pick outside or your grandparents salt and pepper shakers or your tapered candles that you’re “saving”. Use them today. If […]
Creativity Takes Courage
“Creativity takes courage.” Henri Matisse. Yes it does. And if not courage in a lion roar kind of way, a gentle consistent showing up no matter what kind of way. Do some paintings feel slow or hard or above my learning curve? You bet. But when there is joy in the activity, the courage shows […]
Bonjour (and April in Paris)
What is it about Paris? Other than everything…for most everybody…? For me it represents history, architecture, culture, the arts, the dedication to a life lived in the small beautiful details. The people watching. The air, the color, the river, the romance, the food, the coffee, the fashion, the freedom. I’m not alone. It’s been many […]
Oil v. Acrylic Part II
Hello from Atlanta, GA! I’m in the swing of trade show season but wanted to follow up on my painting experiment. First and most satisfying result: I finished the 30 paintings! No small feat when life happens, days turn into a few days into a weekend into…oh shoot, it’s Christmas! But I stuck with it, […]
Paint Brushes
Let’s talk tools of the trade. I’m looking at my supplies more closely recently–oils v. acrylics, canvas v. masonite board or panels, “everyday” brushes v. investment brushes, spray varnish v. gloss medium…and on. I changed up my brushes a few months ago. The whole truth is that my aunt in Victoria was taking a painting […]
Oil v. Acrylic
Somewhere between now and March 3rd (which is when Madame Blog here tells me I last posted) I have been slowly, quietly, nervously experimenting with a new medium: oil paints. I decided to conduct a 30 day challenge for myself: 30 paintings in 30ish days. I didn’t quite make it, I think I got to […]
Pretty in Pink
This post if proof that role of artist-business-blogger-marketer-shipper-packer-traveler-sales is one role too many. If I had remembered and was organized enough, I would have posted this BEFORE the Pretty in Pink Art Reception…not a day and a half AFTER. Ooops. (Event on Friday night was lovely, it was pink, there was cake, wine, lots of […]
Treasure Hunt
I go slow out of the January gate. In a way. My work travel schedule for trade shows is demanding in January and rarely changes so I mentally prep for being on the road. Which is not slow at all. It’s taxis and airports and booths and people and running, literally and figuratively. Which means […]
Sailing into the New Year
Wait! It’s January and business as usual already! That peaceful dreamy holiday respite is long gone and it is work mode. (Ok, I have amnesia, holidays are rarely peaceful and dreamy.) Show season has officially started and I’m Atlanta bound to exhibit Carpe Diem Papers at Atlanta AmericasMart. This is the time of year I’m […]
Happy New Year! xo
Hello, 2019! xo I really love the first day of the new year. So brand new, fresh as clean sheets on a newly made bed. Usually I take time to write goals, lists, reflect on the good, the bad, the ugly, how to improve, how to audit and adjust the course of life or business […]
Asking for Help: Part 1 Our Pack
Hey, guess what took me 40+ years to learn? It’s ok to ask for help. Help comes in all varieties, the serious kind, life transitions, relationships, family, career and health. Those are the biggins and somehow it seems easier or more acceptable to reach out during those times. For me, it’s the not so dire […]
Bateau Parisien
It is October and I’m painting Christmas. It is Oregon and I am painting France. To be more specific, it is Ashland and I am painting Paris. I’m here and there, living in a quaint small town, dreaming of the beauty and bustle of the city of lights but honestly, very grateful to be right […]