bigger is NOT better. So there.

hi everyone.

First of all, i hope all of you who live on the east coast of the US stay safe these next few days... hurricane Sandy looks like it's packing a mean punch.

Here's to hoping things get back to normal quickly for all of you.

In the meantime, stay safe and warm and inside. 

a few little faces in my journal
and a wonderful Emerson quote.

and this little doodle... inspired by a Neil Young song i was listening to,

A man needs a maid. ;-)

I've always loved miniature things. Including paintings.

Bigger is not always better. ;-)

So this afternoon, i thought i'd do a mini painting,

and since i didn't have any small canvases on hand,

i did them on canvas paper.

3 x 3 inches. 

aren't they cute?

They were a lot of fun to do.

You'll find them for sale in my ETSY shop soon.

I have a few more ideas, so i'll be doing more tonight.

I hate that I've had so little time to visit your blogs lately...

I love being inspired by all the wonderful work out there,

so i look forward to a bit more down time.

I trust you're all still following your own hearts.

I've been working on my illustrated book.

I heard an author say the other day that her book took her 7 years to write

and it made me feel hopeful and less of a procrastinator. ;-)

I also heard this wonderful quote, and it reminded me of how important it is

to continue on our chosen paths, regardless of who approves or not.

It reminded me of the importance of surrounding ourselves

with people who believe in our dreams... 

Don't let anyone turn your sky into a ceiling.

Here's to always seeing sky.

Wishing you all a wonderful week ahead.

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

All you need is love, and ginger carrot soup.

I'm a few days later than promised,

but I'm here.

Bring out the balloons. ;-)

I've spent the past few days doing what i can for my mother

who is living with cancer.

There's been a lot of feeling helpless around here lately,

and i'm learning that sometimes in life,

the only thing one can really do is love.

So i show my love with homemade carrot and ginger soup for mom... 

Mom and i have been talking about a lot of things lately...

I was born in the USA, along with my 2 brothers.

We moved with my parents to Canada when i was about 6 years old.

My parents are both Acadians and french Canadians.

When i was younger, i was confused about who I was.

When we lived in the US, we spoke french in the house,

but english as soon as we stepped out the door.

Was I American?

My parents and grandparents and their parents were Acadians...

Because my ancestors were Acadian,

was i Acadian?

We moved to Canada when i was young

and I quickly identified with Canada as my home.

Was i Canadian?

I may have been all of these things, but more than anything,

I was a human being.

That was enough for me.

I now realize that these things are so unimportant in life...

I was raised with love.

Nothing else matters, really.
At least not to me.

I often wish the world would stop bickering
about land
and race
and culture
and money
and politics
and differences...

So unimportant, in the grand scheme of things...

The painting in progress...

You know there's gonna be dots and swirls...
and fragile hearts.

Wishing you all a peaceful, healthy, happy week...
xox