mini ghost, abstract flowers and hope

hello folks.

I'm linking this to Illustration Friday... 

word of the week: HAUNT. 

I used cardboard from the Halloween chip box.

Yay!! free cardboard!! ;-)

I had fun making this little guy...

i'm a big chicken when it comes to scary stuff,

so i'll stick with the fun ghosts, thank you very much.

And then a bit of acrylic painting on paper...

It always seems to come alive for me when i add the dots... ;-)

and the black and white...

this photo (above) was taken last night, in my room...

and this one was taken this morning, 
by the window, with natural light...

What a difference, huh?
Colors are so much closer to the real thing.

For those of you who have sent such kind messages of concern
about my mother - thank you.

She is still in the hospital but in good spirits.
It's been an adjustment for everyone, 
so we're taking things one day at a time.

Just like the alcoholics do.  ;-)

It's hard not to worry all the time,
but then i'd be digging my own grave
if i spent every waking hour obsessing about mom
and cancer
and illness
and death...

So rather than go against the tide of what is our current reality,
i remind myself that she is in good hands
and that she is exactly where she needs to be right now.

She is doing well, despite everything,
thanks to her remarkable outlook on life and death.
The first thing she said when i went in to her room the other day was:

"aren't the leaves in the trees beautiful?"

We could all learn something from such a grateful heart,
don't you think?

xox

What happens when you don't bully art

hello friends.

Welcome to my imaginary world.

And in case you're wondering, no, i haven't even had any wine. ;-)

Just a few little fun doodles to get me in the mood.

...lines and watercolour

another good quote...

I haven't felt much like making art these days,
but i decided to play a bit with collage tonight.

The best decision i've made all week. :-)

It's funny how quickly i can go from a crappy mood
to a pretty good place, with nothing but art.

I began with a few pieces of collage from a magazine,
and as soon as i started adding the turquoise and white paint,
i could almost feel my mood lighten... soften... 
like burdens were being lifted.

Sometimes, we need space away from the art table.

I agree that art can help us through difficult times,
but I also believe that sometimes,
art must take a back seat to other things,
and patience is so important.

Trusting in the flow of things.

Art should not be forced.

Sometimes, what's needed is a walk in the woods,

or a good movie

or coffee with a friend

or a hot fudge chocolate sundae (yes, with peanuts, of course)

or a night on the couch with a good book,

or a good man,

depending on how lucky you are. ;-)

 Whenever i go through less creative periods,

i never feel like the well has run dry.

I always trust that when my heart is ready again,

i'll find my way to the drawing table,

and it'll happen,

naturally...

It always does.

And with each brush stroke, or line, or piece of paper glued...

i breathe a little easier

and know that i am home again.

 As i was cleaning up the scraps of paper i had used for the collage,
i found this one, 
on the opposite side of the turquoise colour i had cut up.
It struck me very strange that the letters were cut up exactly as they are here.
(When i was cutting, i was looking only at the turquoise side!)

I don't paint flowers very often,

so these few words made me smile.

A reminder perhaps that I have stories to share.

That we all have stories to share.

Yes. We do.

xox

painting a purple abstract on trust alone...

hello world.

It's abstract play time. :-)

I tend to over analyze,
so whenever i start these kinds of paintings,
i ask my heart to take the front seat
and tell my mind to shut up and sit quietly at the back. ;-)

It's hard to do sometimes - to let the heart lead...

There's almost always a point during the painting
where i hear myself say "i really don't like this"...

Which usually always means... 
I'm not painting with the heart and the mind wants to be
in the front seat again.

So i flip the painting on its side and continue.

  
I literally talk to myself through the process:

just keep going.

don't judge.

paint what feels right.

there's no right or wrong.

do what comes naturally.

it's a painting, not brain surgery...

if it sucks,

the sun will still rise tomorrow.

And that's usually when i get more comfortable and confident...
and a little more daring.

It still feels somewhat controlled to me,
but i am getting better at letting loose. 

I love adding the oil pastels...

And in the end, i do like it, even if it's no longer as abstract 
as i thought it would be at first.

Art is all about trusting.

Trusting that your opinion of the painting
really has nothing to do with the art itself. 

Trusting that the process always works itself out, in the end.

***

FYI - i won't be putting word verification on my blog.
I'll just keep trashing the Anonymous comments. 
Thank you all for letting me know you hate word verification 
as much as i do. :-)

Another FYI... i'll be gone for a few days of rest and relaxation.
I'll catch up to your blogs soon.
Wishing you all a great weekend! xox

Here's a beautiful song by Sarah Harmer,
to set you in the same relaxation mode as mine,
without even having to leave your chair. 
:-)

flower child...

Courage doesn’t always roar.

Sometimes courage is the quiet voice

at the end of the day saying,

“I will try again tomorrow”.

- Mary Anne Radmacher

Courage comes in all shapes and sizes,

doesn't it?

For some, getting out of bed in the morning

feels like an act of courage.

For others who face debilitating obstacles

 on a daily basis,

and who do so with a peaceful heart,

a strong determination

and without resentment -

courage is simply a way of being

in the world.

Their way of being.

Surely, they have dark days or moments,

but they choose to move ahead

and face the day as if it were their last.

I believe certain circumstances

give birth to courage.

My own mother has become

far more courageous 

through her journey with cancer.

We all know people who have faced

unsurmountable situations

and have surmounted them

with tremendous courage.

One of my favorite books is Viktor Frankl's

Man's search for meaning.

If you want to learn about courage,

read this book.

Sometimes, courage means

wearing flowers in your hair

when what you really want to do

is throw in the towel.

It's not about being in denial,

it's about choosing to create

 your own circumstances

whenever and however

you can.

I had fun doing this one last night...

Acrylic, collage, and oil pastels on paper.

I believe being an artist

takes courage.

Yes, I do. 

Sharing art takes courage.

Like being naked in front of a crowd.

Well, ok, some of us may be 

totally ok with this... ;-)

Go out and practice courage today.

Apply for that job.

Quit that job.

Tell someone how you really feel.

Take that walk.

Take that nap.

Express gratitude.

Move to the ocean.

Make a decision.

Volunteer.

Paint that masterpiece.

Wear flowers in your hair.

xoxo

Paint Party Friday and life's curve balls

This morning, as i went out for a little drive

(and picked up a coffee at the same time!)

i was thinking about what my life was like a few years ago

and how different it is today.

Based on all the cheerful, sparkly, yellow paintings

you've seen here on my blog,

some may think i live in la-la land.

That my life is always beautiful and peaceful

and pretty.

Well... it's not.

I face the same issues many of you face

on a daily basis

I just make a conscious choice

to focus on the good things.

I think this is the key to a happy life.

It may sound like denial to some

but it keeps me sane

so it's all good to me. :-)

In the past few years,

I've lost a job,

my mother was diagnosed with stage 4 cancer,

my father had a serious heart attack,

good friends of ours lived through the painful experience

of seeing their son paralyzed in a car accident

and a dear friend of mine left this planet

way too soon,

leaving 2 beautiful young boys

who miss her deeply.

It's not what happens that matters,

it's how we look at it.

Each of these experiences

forced me to face

the important questions

and as cliché as it sounds

made me a stronger person.

My issues are minor

compared to the issues of so many others

and yet

i allow myself the space to grieve when it is time.

 I do this mostly through art and writing

as many of you must do as well.

So there is truth for me in the words:

Art saves

And there is still so much goodness

in the world...

my son's smile,

a good book,

conversation with a friend,

a walk on the beach,

morning coffee,

...and the chance to win a new car!

:-)

Try to notice the good things

in your day today.

...and don't lose sight of them,

regardless of the chaos around you.

xoxo

hi everyone!

It's Friday - my favorite day of the week.

Some of you already know

I haven't had the most inspirational week.

Regardless of how much i love doing this

or how grateful i am for being part

of such a supportive, creative community,

I still have moments of doubt

where i question what i do

and why I bother doing it.

Sometimes I question

whether i blog too often, or not enough,

or whether i should just stop altogether.

But then, I'd miss you all too much.

Of course i could visit your blogs without having one myself

but that just wouldn't feel like sharing to me.

Have i failed to mention that i can be anal sometimes? ;-)

So for me, it boils down to this:

I make art because it makes me happy,

and because i love the connection it creates with others.

And in this life,

when you find something that makes you happy,

you do it as often as you can. 

So here we go...

from my quick little pen sketch

to the fun part of the process... spreading paint!

purple and a blob of lime green...

shaping the hair...

more shapes and filling in with more color...

I don't know what was happening with my brushes -

I figure they're starting to crack up

from the long winter too...

:-)

The girl with the hearts in her hair.

closeup of the little white hearts and dots.

I love dots. Just in case you didn't already know that. :-)

The soul sisters - done.

With dots. 

:-)

Wishing you all a wonderful weekend,

and check out all the other lovelies

on Paint Party Friday!

xoxo

When we remember we are all mad,

the mysteries disappear and life stands explained.

Mark Twain

Good morning peeps!

I hope you've been having a good week so far.

Mine has been weird for some reason.

I can't seem to get my mojo running. 

I'm usually optimistic

but this week feels like i've got a black cloud

over my head. 

Do you ever feel this way?

I can almost hear all of you yelling YES in unison!! :-)

It's full moon tonight

so the tide will change.

Hopefully.

As artists, it's always difficult to go through lulls in life,

because creation is stifled

and we feel like we've lost our voice.

At least I do.

So everything i attempted this week

seemed futile and wasted.

Nothing worked.

I bought these new watercolor pencils

and thought i'd give them a try.

This morning, i worked on this.

Still some detail to be added.

Soul Sisters.

Learning to fly together.

:-)

I think what i'll do to ease this malaise,

is go for a nice long walk in the trails.

The weather here is beautiful today

and spring is definitely in the air.

Carpe Diem

xoxo

Come forth into the light of things,

let nature be your teacher.

William Wordsworth

big dreams

Hey folks - it's Monday! 

I bought a few wonderful books lately

in the hopes of keeping myself inspired.

When i read the first few pages of this wonderful book,

I knew it was exactly what i was looking for.

So inspiring.

A few posts ago, I made a comment about dreaming BIG.

Over the weekend, I was at the Costco.

For those who aren't familiar with the Costco,

it's basically a place where you can buy things in bulk,

like a jar of peanut butter the size of a Buick,

or paper towels in packages of a million.

ok, that may be a bit of an exaggeration.

But as i stood in line at the cash register

and looked at all the other baskets full of stuff -

and the zombie-like faces staring into space,

I wondered about the dreams of those around me.

It made me think about how there is as much value

in a small dream

as a big one.

Maybe the woman next to me

wanted to become a published author,

or the man behind me

wanted a herb garden in his back yard.

Some people need a herb garden to give their life meaning,

others need the Taj Mahal.

Whatever your dream is...

however big or small

the important thing is to keep moving towards it.

To make little changes towards a more

fulfilling life for yourself.

To take baby steps.

The saddest thing would be

to take no step at all.

To decide that your dream isn't worth it.

It absolutely is worth it.

Trust me on this one. :-)

xoxo