A Few More Drawings...

Dining Room Interior - detail

Moorish House in Provence (another version!)

Boulangerie Series III

Here some more drawings.... I have several to paint now and I'm eager to get to it. However... I'll be going away to the beach (a different beach) again for about 2 weeks, so I won't be posting -or painting- while I'm gone. For now I have tons of packing to do and many snacks to prepare for the car trip. Happy summer, be back soon!

More Drawings

Cafe-Boulangerie series II

I've done a few more drawings on Rives BFK paper (love it, it has such a great texture) and India ink. Now, I'll start painting them with gouache... I have a lot of 'em now. So, maybe in the morning when the house is still asleep I will delve into it.

My Christmas in July sale was fun but I did not sell much. :( I should have brought my room divider and displayed some prints on it... I just had them in baskets and a 'print holder' and I don't think many people took the time to look through them. Oh well.

Fresh Drawings

Yellow Umbrellas, Juan-Les-Pins, France

Swimming Lessons ( in progress)

Antique Chocolate Mold

I've started a few new series of India ink drawings on thick, printmaking papers and painted with gouache. The ink is a newer thing I'm working with (Pitt India ink brush pen) and I've noticed it gives my drawings a sort of humorous, quirky feel to them... that's my take anyway! (What do you think??) It's been really fun drawing in a loose, immediate way. There's lots more to come and they are a few in my Etsy shop now.

I was interviewed today by a new local magazine coming out next month... the article is about Spokane artists that have Etsy shops. I'll write more when it comes out in September. Last week I was featured in a few Etsy treasuries which is always a nice surprise, it always makes my day to hear that news!

Ripe Plums

Ripe Plums

Here is a print I colored (with Prismacolor and Lyra colored pencils) recently... I carved it a few years back, but it looks a lot different colored. Take a look!

Playmobil and David Sedaris

This cover painting is from the van Gogh museum in Amsterdam.... but doesn't say it's by Vincent... curious!

After a long day of futzing around, finishing painting wood boxes, signing, pricing and packaging prints... the kids and I had 'had it'. They were feeling my stress. What saved us? Creating a natural disaster in and outside of the Playmobil hospital that resides on the coffee table and listening to the hilarious David Sedaris. (I treated myself to his new book on CD when in Portland... 30% off at Powell's Books!) There is nothing like his writing and his delivery.. Love him.

Last Minute Painting

Well, I'll be dropping off my art tomorrow night for the show so I've made a last minute effort to try to finish a few boxes... I get obsessed when I'm hurrying to finish something. In reality, only 2-3 of them will be done in time... factoring in the Mama part of my life - it's just the way it is! Hopefully I will get a chunk of time tonight after the baby goes to bed. Wish me luck.

Train Box for Little Mr.

A project I've been meaning to make for a long time... a pencil box for my son! He loves trains, so when I was at Oblation in Portland, I found these fabulous letterpress papers with trains on them. I knew right then and there they had to be for Little Mr.'s box. So, this am, I put them down with some paper tracks and plan to paint around them... we'll see how it evolves.

Oblation is a magnificent letterpress business that also has a boutique filled with paper, ribbons and other 'stuff' of the highest quality. Visit Oblation here: www.oblationpapers.com

Sauvie Island Beach

Warm, sandy beaches in summer, what could be better??! Growing up near the beach with a water view... I really miss it, so coming back to the beach is like a pilgrimage in a way. Here we are on Sauvie Island, a farming community island on the outskirts of Portland, OR. It's a perfect place for bike riding since it's flat (I hate those hills!) But this time, we just drove around to admire the farm land and went to the beach :) Happy days.

Back from the Beach!

Here is Odette a hand colored woodblock print. She is one of my new prints that will be featured the Christmas in July show this weekend. (Whew, I've got a lot of work to do by Thurs afternoon !)

Ahhh what a great trip we had in Portland and then to Cannon Beach. It was warm, sunny and breezy... if only we could've stayed longer! The drive home was the only real rough part for the kids. I took a lot of great photos that I'm planning on using for new work, so excited to dive into that!!!

Christmas in July and Lavender Harvesting

(sorry about the fuzziness!)

A big bundle of lavender hung near my bed

A bundle in my son's room

I was hand coloring some of my prints with Lyra and Prismacolor pencils (love 'em) and realized my lavender was already flowering. So, I ran outside on a whim and cut all the lavender that was ready. Then, I tied them all and hung them around the house!

Martha Miller has some fabulous Christmas ornaments she made here: http://www.marthamillerart.blogspot.com/ . It got me thinking about Christmas in July... so here are some 'snow globe' ornaments (hence the shape) I made last year. They are all wool felt, needle felted on my matchine and embellished with brass letters, beads and other fluff.

On another note... I will be vacationing this coming week and will be back blogging on Bastille Day, July 14th. Happy 4th of July everyone!!!

New Shapes

Dreaming of the beach! Here's the start of a Jewel Box painting. (Maybe I should call them something else... any suggestions?) I'm going to the beach soon to soak up the ocean waves and smells. I hope to build some sand forts and castles with our kids and -my favorite- look for beach glass and shells. They are so excited and have their new pails and shovels in the car in anticipation of the trip.

Garden of Ovals

Here's a flower painting on wood .... I'm experimenting with new shapes and spontaneity. I already knew the colors I wanted to use but gave myself permission to just paint and not think too much. It was so exciting to do... now I want to do more but maybe something other than flowers? Not sure yet.

Petite Painted Boxes

Looking Down on Posies

Posies II

I had a great painting session yesterday! My husband came home early (! this never happens) and took our son swimming.... the baby went down for her nap and I disappeared to the painting studio!! With a little good music and a glass of wine well into the session, it was a great mix - I could have stayed there all day and night.