Still Snowing

I moved the rest of the baby items out of our main store and into the new Mom and baby store http://www.zazzle.com/baby_art*     so I was ready to take a break and thought I'd shoot pictures of how much more snow we've gotten while I was working.

Time for lunch and a bit of housework before I start clearing the worktable so that I can get some painting done. I'll start on that sewing themed dala horse first.

Fall garden clean up

There was a bit of gas left for the mower so I ran over a few more leaves to mulch them into the lawn.
It's kind of fun to do them that way and you save yourself a lot of lifting and bagging and don't have to worry about getting rid of bags of leaves.
I've got enough lawn furniture spread around the yard so I can sit down and rest whenever I need to.
As expected standing or walking aren't an option just now as I recover from my efforts but I'm headed back into my painting and won't really care.
We all have to find what works best for us and so far I can tackle most anything a bit at a time. It's just a bit embarrassing that I'm into the second week trying to get my kitchen clean. Thank goodness company yesterday stayed on the other end of the house! Oh, in case you're wondering-no one noticed that the mugs had been made from the painting on the wall.

Computer challenged

I found a great picture of one of my oil paintings from the 1980's that I wanted to share but I'm not quite sure where it went when I tried to upload it so I may just go back to sorting things out around here and do a bit of cleaning to get away from the computer a while.
Yesterday I was in love with the computer because I was redesigning some of my Christmas cards on Zazzle and finding ways of combining up to 5 images on the front of some of them.
Oh well cleaning off the dining room table has made enough space for me to get back to drawing and painting and I've got to say that I'm more interested in that than my old work.
As I was putting things away I went out to the studio space we started to build in the garage (before we ran out of money) There's so much I'd like to do here, with enough time and money this place could be amazing but as usual it's time to stop dreaming and get back to work.
I hope to have interesting pictures to post soon.

Magic and Messy Houses

My house is always a mess and that distresses a lot of people but that's because they're not seeing the fact that they're different messes each time resulting from scores of new projects in the works and letters to other lonely people.

I pity the folks that just drop in to pass judgement instead of staying for the fun. There's so much to be gained in what's created here-joy, fulfillment, 6 kinds of beauty you can't find on the surface.

Art is part of most of my days in one way or another.

A bit of everything

I picked up some downed branches from a recent storm and cut back a bit of brush but that's about all I got done in the garden today but I got so busy around the house (patching and priming walls in the bathroom, doing laundry and a bit of other cleaning) that I STILL haven't gotten back to reworking that Iris drawing. I'm hoping to get back to that tonight or tomorrow.
I had to stop and laugh that just after we finished watching a movie that started with a horse drawn carriage, a white one with a wedding here in town went past our house several times as it gave everyone in the party a ride. I think that was the best part of my day.

Attack of the creeping craft monster

I spent the morning and a bit of the afternoon doing floral arrangements over at the senior center. Yes, I forgot my camera...and my earrings as I made my escape from the mess that is my house these days.
I even designed a shirt for my Zazzle store that says "the creeping craft monster ate my house"

Inspiration can be found in some pretty funny places and I have to say it's about the only thing you can find in here these days.

The rain set in

We got enough rain on Monday to get the rain barrel (which we'd just set up for the season) 3/4 full so I was back working indoors (painting that box and the horse I'd sanded the day before).
Yesterday I did some new bows for the floral arrangements over at the senior center and was just getting ready to join the painting group when my sister came in to town and I headed home to visit with her.
The weather was overcast but we had coffee in the garden and watched the birds and the squirrels for a while anyway.
I often joke that I do all of my entertaining outdoors because it's cleaner than my house...at least I THINK I'm joking ;-)

Still deep in the mess-sew what?

There's just a bit of top stitching to do on the bag I made yesterday and I'm putting another one together today. The good thing about making bags is that it gives you somewhere else to put things as you're sorting things out.
I'm re arranging the storage bins and gotten down to just one that holds both fabric and patterns now. The other bins I have are small, semi clear boxes the next size up from shoe boxes. They're easy move and stack and are my favorite way to round up supplies for individual projects in progress. You can see what you've got and keep things going instead of just sitting around.

No Photos Today

There are no photos today which is probably a good thing because all I've been doing is cleaning house and kicking around ideas for my next painting. I'm thinking I should spend some time working on my last painting (the watercolor of the sailboat) but I'll save that until Tuesday. The nice thing about the painting group that I go to is that everyone there is working in watercolor so that's what I take along too. Walking away from the studio forces me to use supplies that I'm not as comfortable with and encourages me to try new things.

Dusting off the iron

As I mentioned in an earlier post, I've been sorting things out and cleaning things up around here in between other projects. Today it occurred to be that I'd better get that basket of ironing done before I'm forced to either re-wash everything or just toss it into a charity bag and let them deal with it.
This time I came to a compromise. I laundered the pillowcases on to of the basket and decided to iron the rest. The first step of course was to FIND the iron, clean it off and make sure it still worked. Clearly I can't remember the last time I used it for anything...

Project Updates

We're back to work carving and sanding wooden horses to paint. A friend is looking for some information for me on more traditional ways to paint Dala horses. It will be interesting to see how that influences me when I get ready to paint them.

I painted the edges of that dot painting so that it could be hung in the living room and be up out of the way around here.

I'm continuing to design products with my drawings and paintings on them and yes, I've even gone back to cleaning and organizing the house.

I'm considering doing portraits in colored pencil to see how that goes for me. Perhaps changing media and techniques will help change my perspective on the whole process.

Having that page on my lace vest turn up after all these years has made me consider dusting off my sewing machine and starting a few fabric projects.

As always "my hobbies have hobbies"

Exit the Knitting Machine, bring on the Holidays

 Don't worry, it's just been packed away a while so that I can focus on other things. It was impossible for company to stop by with that much equipment filling up the room and I was getting a bit lonesome.

 It was nice to have everything out long enough to get it all sorted out again. I sold a few pattern books I didn't need anymore so it helped with my plan for organizing and downsizing around here as well.

 Doesn't this look a bit better? We made some hot, spiced cider and settled in for some holiday movies. Yes, that sofa has seen better days but then again so have we...OK, you can stop laughing now...

Yes, I made the afghan. I'll be drawing and painting the flowers soon. You'll be seeing the new work as soon as I finish each piece.

Time Sure Flies

The day shot by fast but I did manage to finish this working off and on in between other projects. Sorting out the worktable seems to be the most important thing these days as I need more space to work on.

I made an interesting discovery as we went back to work making repairs on that back building. For some reason a couple of pieces of painted furniture I'd started years ago ended up in there so we rescued them and are in the process of cleaning them now. I've decided to sand and repaint at least one of them so it's a good thing I had cleared more work space. Isn't it great when things come together?

Nothing to show for it

It's been a busy couple of days but I haven't any pictures or scans to show you. All the artwork was on out going mail and all the yarn projects (pom poms and hat) have been given away.
I went back to painting the doors and trim in the house and spent time outdoors helping my husband repair one of the out buildings.
Time's gone by fast but there's not much to show for it. I'm also doing a lot of cleaning and sorting as we endeavor to make some more space around here before we're cooped up for the winter.
Life's like that sometimes but I can't wait to get back to my paints so keep checking in, things should get interesting soon!

So Many Hobbies , So Little Time

There aren't any pictures this time. I've been busy sorting through all the knitting machine supplies and making 2 more pair of slippers. I'm also sorting art supplies and re-organizing the studio. meanwhile the house is a mess so there's been a lot of general housework to do as well.
The good news is that I'm ready to start painting again so tomorrows post should be bright and interesting. I'm still considering starting a separate blog for the craft items but am waiting for a bit of feedback from you as to whether or not it's a good idea.

Hot Weather and High Hopes

Believe it or not as far north as we are they've been issuing heat warnings so that brings about a number of changes in my plans. Everything was really wet this morning from an early storm but I wanted to take advantage of the cool part of the day and went out early enough to get 3 hours of weeding and other work done in the front garden but I didn't take the camera along because of the weather.
I had planned to paint a few of the spots I missed in the dining room but I just didn't get to it as I was working on a few more designs for Zazzle and had some laundry to catch up on. I keep hoping to get back to drawing and painting the flowers I brought in too. There are always more projects to do than there are hours in the day but I keep trying. Each day I compete against the day before and try to improve. I can't wait to see what happens tomorrow!

Making it big

Well, as you can see this painting is taking up a good share of my living room and my table so I've had to set the painting aside at this point and move on to some other projects. Just now the painting stands in the doorway between the living room and dining room and I'm folding a load of laundry on the table which of course is a lot easier on the back than tossing it on the bed or the sofa.

People are a bit startled to find the dining room table in the living room but everyone agrees it's so much handier when we're working on things and we gain an extra window that way as well.
Thinking "outside the box" is a way of life for me and I can highly recommend it in these tough economic times when most everyone has got to find the best ways of using the things they've got to make life better, brighter and more pleasant for everyone.

Well, it looks like I'd better get some housework done before I jump back into this painting. Whatever your particular struggles are today I wish you the best and remind you to take a minute to play as well, it  changes everything.

 Don't put it off or wait till you have the perfect project or materials. Draw silly things on your paperwork, see how many ways you can fold that receipt. Make people wonder and smile. You may not be able to change the world but you can change how you feel about it.