Entries from: September 2008

Linking You Up

September 29th, 2008, Comments (18)

One thing I learned in Hawaii, I feel oh so much better when I live in the present moment. I'm more carefree, relaxed, and content. Have I carried this lovely way of being back home with me? Um, no. Not at all. I've been a pile of gloominess and exhaustion. No fun to be around. But I'm waking back up. Today, I danced to George Michael's "Freedom! '90" in my office and got some prints shipped off to new homes.

I'll share little bits from my trip to Hawaii in the coming weeks. One of the things that totally and unexpectedly sparked my interest was some prints I saw of the "secret" art of Dr. Seuss (Theodor Seuss Geisel). I felt a little weird about seeing them on display as they were never meant to be public, but I'm very glad to have the chance to see the reproductions, as the art is so fabulous! And of course I can't help but love all the cats in his paintings. I love the wacky, whimsical and weird quality to his work. When I got home I found a book, The Secret Art of Dr. Seuss, about this artwork on Amazon and ordered it straight away. You can purchase limited edition prints, like "Lion Stroll" above at an authorized print dealer through this company.

And how bout some quick links for ya? Why not.

  • Mark Bryan, co-author of the Artist's Way has a new blog up called The Artist's Way Daily. I believe it's being moved to a new address shortly, but he's posting there for now.
  • Cliodhna is offering a giveaway of one of her gorgeous oil cloth bags (that make me think of Hawaii). Enter by leaving a comment with a business tip or suggestion for her here.
  • Cameron sent a link to a story about an artist who lost and then found his inspiration again.
  • JoepoganbirdCarla, of Feathered Fibers posted a link to artist, Joe Pogan who sculpts animals (I love the birds!) out of found scrap metal parts. They're very cool. You can see the pieces he has available here on Flickr.

And that's all I've got in me for now. I'm slooowly, but surely catching up with email.

Creative Every Day: September 29th – October 5th, 2008

September 29th, 2008, Comments (14)

CED2008 participants! Feel free to leave a comment here with a link to post(s) about your creative activities during the week of 9/29/08 - 10/5/08.

Happy creating!

Leaving Hawaii

September 25th, 2008, Comments (12)

flower in Maui, Hawaii

When you are in that blessed retreat, you are safe from the turmoil of life; you drowse your days away in a long deep dream of peace; the past is a forgotten thing, the present is heaven, the future you leave to take care of itself. You are in the center of the Pacific Ocean; you are two thousand miles from any continent; you are millions of miles from the world; as far as you can see, on any hand, the crested billows wall the horizon, and beyond this barrier the wide universe is but a foreign land to you, and barren of interest. -Mark Twain, on Hawaii.

This gorgeous flower was in a state park on the road to Hana yesterday. Tonight, I did a little bit of checking up with email (still loads to catch up on, but that will have to wait til I return), did some packing, and I'm getting ready to head home (flying out Thursday, getting home Friday.) I expect I'll be jet-lagged and laying low this weekend, so I plan to be back into the swing of things sometime next week. The hubster and I had an *amazing* time in Hawaii. I'll be sharing some pictures and stories from my travels soon. In the meantime, I'm waving hello from the sunny paradise of Maui. I'm missing my kitties, but otherwise could easily stay longer here. It's so lovely. Something about island life, similar to our time in Greece, has a pace and energy about it that's so hard to maintain back in New England. I'll miss that and the weather, the water, the starry skies, and of course the fun of living in a hotel. Ah, but it's been so good for both of us, so relaxing and inspiring. Hope you are all happy and healthy. Ta ta for now.

Creative Every Day: September 22nd – September 28th, 2008

September 22nd, 2008, Comments (19)

CED2008 participants! Feel free to leave a comment here with a link to post(s) about your creative activities during the week of 9/22/08 - 9/28/08.

Happy creating!

Need I say more?

September 15th, 2008, Comments (20)

Yesterday, we arrived in Oahu. Waiting for our room we went out to the pool bar and I got this.

Best. drink. ever.

Having a blast. :-)

Creative Every Day: September 15th – September 21st, 2008

September 15th, 2008, Comments (13)

CED2008 participants! Feel free to leave a comment here with a link to post(s) about your creative activities during the week of 9/15/08 - 9/21/08.

Happy creating!

The Wandering Path

September 9th, 2008, Comments (17)

PathI saw this quote today on Pink Sky's blog and it resonated with me so much that I had to share it:

"I am one of the searchers. There are, I believe, millions of us. We are not unhappy, but neither are we really content. We continue to explore life, hoping to uncover its ultimate secret. We continue to explore ourselves, hoping to understand. We like to walk along the beach, we are drawn by the ocean, taken by its power, its unceasing motion, its mystery and unspeakable beauty. We like forests and mountains, deserts and hidden rivers, and the lonely cities as well. Our sadness is as much a part of our lives as is our laughter. To share our sadness with one we love is perhaps as great a joy as we can know - unless it be to share our laughter.

We searchers are ambitious only for life itself, for everything beautiful it can provide. Most of all we love and want to be loved. We want to live in a relationship that will not impede our wandering, nor prevent our search, nor lock us in prison walls; that will take us for what little we have to give. We do not want to prove ourselves to another or compete for love.

For wanderers, dreamers, and lovers, for lonely men and women who dare to ask of life everything good and beautiful. It is for those who are too gentle to live among wolves." ~James Kavanaugh

Oh so lovely.

A Little Travel Shopping

September 9th, 2008, Comments (5)

Swim_2 I don't know about you, but swimsuit shopping is not my most favorite activity. Nothing like a bathing suit to point out all your flaws and make you feel fantastic about your body. I put it off all summer under the guise that I'd get a better deal by waiting til the last minute to shop for them, but unfortunately I waited a tad too late and the department stores have sent their swimsuits away (just this morning in fact.) Poo! Well, I found a couple suits at a store that only sells swSwim2Swim3im-wear. Definitely more expensive, but also much easier to find a variety of suits in my size in every color of the rainbow. The trying on of suits was not as dreadful as I had feared and I found a couple cute swimming trunks to wear to the beach and pool. I may return one of them as they were pricey. This one on the left was sort of Marilyn Monroe-ish. It has a flattering cut that's sexy without being over the top. I've never really worn a tankini, but this one (on the right) was cute. I love the little art deco details around the edges. I got a colorful bikini too on clearance. Not all suits need to be black. I'm looking forward to being a living mermaid in the ocean and the pool and hopefully on a few waterslides too. Ha, that just reminded me that I dreamed about the most elaborate waterslides last night!

I also picked up a big straw hat (heh...I feel a little silly wearing it, I'm not a big hat wearer, but I like it) and a couple cute dresses for the wedding we'll be attending in San Fran and surrounding events. I saw this dress atOldnavy_2 Old Navy online and it's wonderfully cute in person. I'm liking the color blocking trend going on right now. It reminds me a bit of the early 90's, which means junior high, but it's not bringing back any horrid memories. I was keeping my eyes open for a pair of color blocked shoes, but couldn't find a pair I liked. This cute little dress is inexpensive, versatile, and it has pockets. Gotta love a dress with pockets I say.

I also found this fabulous dress (at a fabulous price) from Yoana Baraschi at T.J. Maxx. All this shopping cameYoanabaraschi about in a search for swimsuits. I'm really not a big shopper, but what can I say? I found some cute things today and I'm quite pleased about it. You'll just have to trust me when I say this dress is infinitely cuter in person. The grey part is a jersey knit and the shawl and bottom are this silky satin that feels so nice against the skin. Oh, and it has pockets.

Since I'm on this little fashion kick today, I couldn't help but share a link to this post from Bridget in which she uses her masterful sewing skills to recycle a sundress and transform it into a super cute shirt. I'm so impressed! I must learn how to do this sort of thing. 

There are loads of cool fashion finds on etsy to peruse such as:

Completely unrelated to shopping and fashion, I'm reading a fantastic book by Craig Ferguson right now. Yep, the same Craig Ferguson who hosts a late night talk show. I picked up the book, Between the Bridge and the River, randomly in the library and it's quite good! I really enjoy his sense of humor and the wacky web he's weaving with his story-telling. I also love that Carl Jung is a character in the book. It's in a similar irreverant style of Tom Robbins, one of my favorite authors. I was thinking it would be honeymoon reading, but I think I'll gobble the rest of the book up before we leave. I have a few books in the wings, but may opt for something light and beachy for well...the beach. We shall see. In the meantime, I'm taking my book and heading to bed. Sweet dreams!

Creative Every Day: September 8th – September 14th, 2008

September 8th, 2008, Comments (9)

CED2008 participants! Feel free to leave a comment here with a link to post(s) about your creative activities during the week of 9/8/08 - 9/14/08.

Happy creating!

Mermaids, Hope, and Other Tales (or Tails)

September 7th, 2008, Comments (9)

Mermaidwip

I worked on this all day Friday and it's already different from this picture. But it's fun to see work in progress pictures I think. I had the idea for this mermaid ages ago, but it kept developing in little sketches and doodles until I was ready to go. I incorporated a bit of collage. As soon as I received it, I knew that the vintage postcard that Tammy from Sunflower Studio sent me because she just felt it belonged to me would be going in this piece. I love it when that happens. As much as the image has been played around with in sketches and doodles, it's already entirely different than I thought it might be and I still don't know where it will end up. This process is definitely a metaphor for life.

I was feeling oh so tender around the edges yesterday. It was a lovely day, yoga in the morning, cleaning and movie watching in the afternoon. It was so incredibly muggy and I was dripping sweat and generally feeling sad and teary for no particular reason. The hubster was out of town and late at night we chatted on the phone lying in beds in different countries. The talk made me feel much better and then I slept like a baby, a baby surrounded by snuggly cats.

Today I'm feeling so much brighter, my ups and downs seem to be mirroring the wild weather. When I was feeling blah yesterday, I saw this meme on Elizabeth's blog and decided to do it. What is it about memes that are calming? Simple, a bit mindless, short answer, lightly creative. 

Song you love: The song the hubster wrote for our wedding.

Word you love: Lately i've really enjoyed saying Hawai'i (not just for the meaning behind it, it's just fun to say.) I also love the sound of the word "ciao." Go figure.

Academic subject you love: art history

Hobby you love: getting lost in a book

Type of baked good you love: warm chocolate chip cookies

Type of sky you love: fiery sunsets, starry nights, stark blue against tree branch silhouette, poofy clouds, so many skies.

Beverage you love: coke

Vacation you love: Exploring a new place

Restaurant you love: Blue Ginger

Way of getting around that you love:  walking

Person you love: the hubster

Room in your home (or ideal home) you love: studio/office

Movie you love: Clue

Book you love: The Artist's Way by Julia Cameron

City you love: Seattle

Future plan you love: owning our first home, starting a family

Form of communication you love: art

Junk food you love: m&m's

A huge good luck to Elizabeth (not that she needs it!) in her first year of the Squam Art Workshops! I wish I could be there, but I'll be on the opposite side of the country for a wedding.

I've been feeling the need for a short blogging break and the time I'm away on my honeymoon makes perfect sense for that. I'll still be checking my email of course and I'm sure I'll pop in on occasion, but for the two weeks from Friday the 12th through Friday the 26th, I'll be enjoying checking out San Fran for a wedding and then soaking up the rays in Hawai'i with the hubster. I'm SO excited! I will still have the weekly posts where you can share what you've been up to. And I know I'll be back with loads of inspiration. And I'll still be blogging this week too.

How bout some links? Yes? Yes.

  • Mother Henna has a great post over at JustBeConnected that is fabulously filled with great links.
  • One of the links Kara (Mother Henna) shared was to MIT's OpenCourseWare, a selection of classes posted for free online. One of the classes is called, "The Creative Spark"! Yeah! I loved this quote from the description of the course: Creativity - "the mastery of information and skills in the service of dreams" (Hirschberg).
  • The sweet and talented, Jes has an article about artist's studios on the wishstudio zine blog here. There's a little bit of my studio in the post! And Jes is looking for more info about artist's studios, so check out the article and get in touch with her if you have something to share about your space.
  • Hope The upcoming election has me partly excited, partly angry, partly scared, partly hopeful. Speaking of hopeful, I love this kind of news. The Maine artist who made the pop icon of the word LOVE has created a new piece for the word HOPE with proceeds going to Obama's campain.
  • Have you ever wanted to make a bowl out of an old record? My bff recently let me pick through some old records she was bringing to a thrift shop. I'd like to use the covers in some art and she mentioned she was going to keep a couple records to make some of those funky bowls. If you'd like to try it out, here are some instructions from P@perSeed.
  • I received two copies of Patti Digh's Life is a Verb: 37 days to Wake Up, Be Mindful, and Live Intentionally this week and I'm so thrilled with how gorgeous it is! Patti's writing is absolutely fabulous and inspirational. I've got some cool art in those pages too! It was so fun to do some illustrations for Patti's essays and I'm so pleased to be a part of the community of creative folks that brought artwork to her book.Here's one of the pieces that I created for the book:

    Writesomeblues1

Still behind in emails I'm afraid. Hope to be caught up soon. I hope you've all had a lovely and creative weekend!