Art Journal Project: Risk

It says: For the longest time she had wanted a little diamond freckle on her nose, but she thought the world was saying “That is a stupid idea”. She thought she heard: “You are neither pretty enough nor ugly enough to get away with one of those”, and, “Why would you want to draw attention to your nose?” and, “What would people think?” So... she didn’t do it. Somewhere in the back of her mind a little voice whispered things like “Who says you are not pretty enough?” and, “Why do you care what people will think?” and, “What is wrong with your nose, anyway?", and the little voice grew louder and louder until she couldn’t ignore it any more… and on that day… she got one.

Magic Tongue

It is pure joy for me to watch Luke draw or paint a picture or cut something out of paper these days as he is at that age where anything he does with his hands, especially if it requires extra concentration, is accompanied by a wild tongue dance. His tongue is enchanted with magic powers that help him create and do and be - it moves at lightning speed and travels many miles in even one simple drawing of a person or a jellyfish. I try not to laugh out loud, because he is so Serious and Intent on his work, but sometimes I can't help it - that tongue is just flittering and fluttering and swooping around - and then I just tell him it's his creation that makes me so happy, which is also the truth.

Here is the box Luke has been making while I've been making mine. I think it rocks.

Summer Sale at The Blue Between!

If you would like the voucher code for 20% off through August, join my mailing list (I hardly ever send out newsletters, so don't worry about me filling up your box) and then email me for the code. Thanks and happy shopping!

Wish Box

Have I mentioned I'm taking Sonia Choquette's Heart's Desire course? It's all about creating and manifesting what you want. Part of it says to make a box, she calls it an alchemy box, to put your dreams in for safe-keeping while you and the universe work on manifesting and creating them.

This is the outside of my wish box - I've been making it for days.



And this is the inside. It's simple and plain, but that is fine, because what I put IN it is going to be very interesting and exciting!

Poppies

Art Journal Project: Home

Still have not found mine... but am thinking a lot about it. Here is another entry in the Art Journal Project. Home is where you plant your heart. I am a transplant. There are little pieces of my heart all over the world...

New Beginnings: Week 1 of Art Journal Project

I started a new Art Journal Project. I don't know that I'll share each entry, but here is the first assignment. The prompt was "new beginnings" or "why are you starting this journal?". I would love to see my art progress through the 20 assignments - I think this entry looks childish... but the hand is mine with the energy symbol in it, the stars and splatters signify the Universe and endless possibilities... by the end, I hope I have the beginnings of a defined personal style going on. We will see. Go away inner critic - it's supposed to be fun and a new adventure. Crayon, watercolor, marker.

Caught Redhanded

Aging

Here is my entry for Illustration Friday - the topic this week is "Aging". Inspired by this photo, it's just a digital manipulation.

Andee's Tree

My friend Andee in Germany is an amazing photographer. Be sure to visit her site - it's wonderful. One of her shots inspired me to do a quick sketch. Here it is:

March of the Penguins

I took Luke to see a very powerful movie today. The March of the Penguins. Let me just say I hope never to return in a future life as an Emperor Penguin. What an amazingly hard life they live. The movie is a National Geographic documentary about a year in the life of a clan of penguins... how they travel by foot for over 70 miles and choose their mate for the year, the amazing love they seem to share for that short time and the pride and sorrow they go through as parents... how the father penguins share equally in the struggle to protect their offspring, the hardships they endure, the journeys they make for food and the survival of the chicks... and yet, in the end, it seems like it's all worth it. Really, a beautiful movie.

Tranquility

I have started painting again this week after oh... almost 20 years off. I'm really enjoying it. I was up until midnight last night painting these two and when I was done, I looked in the mirror and I can't tell you how happy I was to see my face covered in blue and green speckles. I think I am more excited about that than I am about the paintings. I've decided to put the first on in Illustration Friday.

My New Home

I painted this as a creative visualization tool to find my new home in Edmonds, Washington.



My house is an affordable and adorable older (early 1900's) home with charm and character, a front porch, fenced in yard, a fabulous fireplace, a cook's kitchen, is light and bright and has amazing happy energy. There are sidewalks and it is in walking distance to Luke's new school and to the coffee shop and art gallery too.

Everything is lined up and I'm just waiting for my home to go up for sale, waiting for the universe to guide me to it. It's out there just waiting for me to find it. It really is, I know it. (Soon, Universe, soon, ok?)

Two Angels

Today Luke and I had to go to Seattle and parking can be bad where we were going and so when we were almost there I asked Luke to ask his angels to help us find a parking spot - and he answered back "I already did, Mom". I had to laugh. So I asked mine too and as we pulled into the garage where there is rarely a spot mid-day... there were two spots, side by side, right by the door. One from his angel and one from mine!

Red Stars

Luke woke up this morning and told me he had a dream. A dream about red stars. That he went to see them and he touched one and he brought it back for me. But it was only a dream, Mom. So sad.

Painting, Kayaking, Safari

I painted a picture:



We went kayaking:



Our little friend came to visit again:





I made the biggest, heaviest charm bracelet:

More Secret Garden

Got more plants in the ground and released 1500 ladybugs last night.

Troll Mania

I've only got myself to blame... I put a story about a troll into my kid's head a few weeks ago while we were stuck in a 3-hour traffic jam and now it's troll, troll, troll... everywhere we go.

Here is Luke with our local Fremont Troll, the subject of most of my story. The finger up the troll's nose was completely his idea... I swear it. I don't know where he got that idea, but he wasn't leaving until he managed it.





And here is a side of Luke I've never seen in person before, but thanks to Frank's new camera phone, we get a glimps into the life and times of... this:

More New Jewelry

We Are Moving to Edmonds, WA

I've decided where we are moving to: Edmonds. Once my dream home goes on the market there anyway. It will be soon, and I can't wait. It's the closest thing to a little seaside village that I'll get where Frank still has a reasonable commute to work. It's the kind of town with art galleries, boutiques, coffee shops, sidewalk cafes, an old fashioned movie theater and flower baskets hanging from every light post. They have a beach and a bird marsh and a ferry and a train. There is a huge art festival there every year and lots of performing arts and nice restaurants. There is a great marine education program for Luke. It's going to be wonderful.


Here is Luke enjoying the ice cold water of the Puget Sound:

New Necklace

I just made this. Love it.

Ladybug Not So Lucky

We saw lady bugs today for sale at home depot and one was crawling outside the bag and Luke adopted it. And held it for a good 20 minutes before I realized it was smooshed and I told him to let it go... and he asked me why it didn't fly away and so I was honest and said I think it's going to die, it's all smooshed now... and then he cried for 10 minutes. Real tears streaming down his face crying. So I bought him a cactus to cheer him up. He won't be squishing that.

I Made Some New Beads

I finally got to get back out and make some more beads. I especially love the flowers...I'm having so much fun! I can't wait to get back out there...

Birthday Weekend

I don't know how Frank will ever top this birthday weekend... not that he has to. This one will last me awhile. It was the absolute best. Here I am with Corina in front of her Buddha with Luke and one of her many dogs. We had a fabulous class - Corina is a great teacher. I really really loved having a private class with her - I learned so much and now I can't wait to get out to my studio to practice and play. I'm also looking forward to the day when we can move to an island and live the island life!



This is Mona, Corina's so-sweet camel. She is really a wonderful animal - full of personality and very friendly. Luke became fast friends with her when he discovered she liked to eat these delicate little yellow flowers - he spent over an hour searching them out for her and feeding them to her. Luke loved their property, he ran around free and climbed trees, played with the dogs, the camel and the horse... went fishing on the lake and pretty much wore Frank out. They both had a great day too.





This is the wonderful bracelet and ring Corina gave me as my "birthday gift" - she is sooo generous. I love these! I also bought her tool to make these squished beads - they are so perfectly comfortable for bracelets - you can even wear them while typing on the computer!



Here we are kayaking. First time in a kayak since before Luke was born, which makes it Luke's first kayaking experience ever. He was a little uncomfortable at first and pretty much wanted to go back after the first five minutes, but after we discovered some floating kelp and brought it aboard - his "treasure" - things improved a lot. We saw one seal and one heron, a couple of bald eagles and many other water birds. I still need to look up what the black birds with the bright orange long beaks were and the black and white ones with the bright red feet...





Luke and Frank trying to catch crabs under the docks. They were too fast though.



Island flowers.



It seemed to me on this trip to San Juan island that every time I turned around I was seeing an angel or a mermaid. They were everywhere. It's really a magical island - full of energy with birds chirping and flying around constantly - the kind of place where you expect to find fairies or mermaids... or even a unicorn (maybe that was just because I looked up once to see a snow white horse outside Corina's studio).



Mount Baker from the Ferry (on the way home actually).



Seagulls from the Ferry.



Getting on the Ferry in the rain. It was no longer raining by the time we got off and the sun was out by the time we got to Roche Harbor for kayaking.