Ramblings of an Art School Dropout

Christmas is coming...

2011-12-07T07:16:00.001-08:00

The girls got together at C's for our annual CCC nite. That's Collage Christmas Card...It was a small group this time, just me C and A. But the smaller the group the juicier the gossip!!

Here are my results:


Cougar Christmas

It's hard to read the writing in this scan, but it says, "There's no better time than the Holidays to say "Thank You"


Snowflake Christmas

I love this one because when C. was cutting out a bunch of magazines whilst babysitting her nephews, one of them said, "This looks like Grandma!". It's true, C's mom is very glamorous!

Fruity Christmas

This guy, would be drinking that drink, and eating apps off that skewer...very festive! I'd party with him! :)

Obsession Christmas

This one is my fave. It reminds me of an Obsession commercial. Hence the title.

Last, but not least,


Too much Pinot Christmas

Last one made that evening...enough said!

Be good! Only 18 more days til Christmas!! --yikes!

Boysenberry

2011-12-02T08:21:00.001-08:00

My necklace was included in this yummy treasury on Etsy

Halloween

2011-11-30T11:38:00.000-08:00

Halloween was fun this year. For the second year in a row our girls creative night theme was "pumpkins and pinot." I'm happy to report that once again there were no knife/wine related injuries. *Plus* I hosted this year, therefore I got to keep all the tasty pumpkin seeds for myself!! H even cleaned the guts off them for me.

A bunch of us also went out to shake some tailfeathers at the Booty Vortex show at Johnny D's. (despite the Noreaster!) I got crafty and made my own costume this year. Took an old baseball cap, removed the brim, painted it black, and sewed a bunch of rubber snakes to it. Added a pair of star sunglasses and I was good to go.

Second place baby!!!

I just purchased another 50 snakes to improve my headdress. Just wait till next year!!

Hello again

2011-11-29T09:04:00.000-08:00

Yep, so once again I've abandoned you all to dead air. Sorry, but honestly you must be used to it by now.

So I'll now deluge you with a flurry of catch-up posts, not necessarily in any order....

Thanksgiving was last week, I'll start there. Tim fried another fantastic turkey, delicious as usual. I made some super-yummy pumpkin hummus. I also renewed my gym membership, and as luck would have it they were hosting the "Pie in the Sky" event, so I purchased a pie as well, fetching me a discount on my membership, $ for charity, and a Pumpkin pie. win-win-win!!

Now I have to give a shout-out to the maker of my pie....A whole slew of Boston restaurants donate pies to this charity, my pie happened to come from "Cakes to Remember". I had never heard of them, but both my Mom and I thought it was the best pumpkin pie we had ever tasted. I had to dig the box out to see who made it.

Just got tickets on TicketWeb for TREE , Honkeyball , Roadsaw , Space Humpin: $19.99 at Middle East - Downstairs on 09/17/11

2011-08-01T06:17:00.000-07:00

Just got tickets on TicketWeb for TREE , Honkeyball , Roadsaw , Space Humpin: $19.99 at Middle East - Downstairs on 09/17/11

The sweet variety

2011-07-07T09:00:00.000-07:00

New necklace up on Etsy.

Wood and Brass

2011-07-07T08:59:00.000-07:00

New necklace up on Etsy.

Raspberry Lime Sherbert

2011-07-05T12:08:00.000-07:00

New necklace up on Etsy. Click here to view listing.

Copycat

2011-07-05T10:03:00.000-07:00

Last Christmas my friend C's very fashionable sister handed her a picture cut out from a catalog, it was a picture of a necklace that she *loved* and wanted. A perfect gift for a mere $388.00.
After recovering from sticker shock, C handed it to me, "yeah right." I looked at it, "You know...I could totally make this...I could get all these beads." C looked at me... "DO it!"

Well, last Christmas season got a bit hectic for me...so it didn't happen. I found the picture again recently, and for kicks I found all of the supplies I would need to do this. Along with the shipping costs from the different places they came from it did come to $85.00. A lot more than I had thought, but, still a bargain compared to $388.00. C still wanted to go for it. (She is a good sister. :)

It came out pretty dern good, if I do say so myself. Of course I can see flaws, and if I had to do it again, blah blah blah...but I am my own worst critic.

Viola!

Happy Summer!

2011-06-21T11:42:00.000-07:00

Summer is finally here! It even *feels* like summer today! My garden has finally woken up out of sleep mode. I'm fighting the birds for my strawberries and eating tons of salad with my fresh lettuce and radishes. Peas are ready to pick at this very moment! I planted some of these babies the other day...can't wait to see if they really are gigantic as Burpee says!

Big Mama lima beans

What with the warm weather, the girls and I have been out and about in the city checking out some great art. We went one night to the ICA to see the vinyl show.

It was a fantastic show. All different kinds of media, the obvious, sound. Also sculpture with the physical records, photography, painting, instruments, film, etc. Plus we went on the free night. You can't beat free culture!

The girls and I also took a day from C's birthday week (I always take days off during her birthday week, this woman KNOWS how to celebrate a birthday week!!!) We went to the MFA to check out the Chihuly show. My brother is a HUGE fan of Chihuly so I already knew *quite a bit* about him....if you've heard my brother talk about something he is passionate about you know what I mean.

View Large!

Seeing his amazing work in person blew away everything I had read or heard. It is just amazing stuff, the COLOR is unreal. Please go if you can, you won't be sorry! It really made me want to go home and paint something colorful!!

I've also been checking out some live music at my local bars. I heard some great Americana/rockabilly/blues music by The Whiskey Boys , Coyote Kolb, and Mister Sister, and my good friends Adela and Jude from They Will Hate Us fresh from their tour down south. I was also able to catch some facemelting metal from Planetoid at their new record release show.

Kick Ass

I'm still working on jewelry, and some painting. I seem to have even less time in the summer, but hopefully will have something to show soon. Stay tuned!

Same bat time, same bat channel...

Wine Charms

2011-06-01T08:36:00.000-07:00

My latest project was a commission to make 70 wine charms for a wonderful woman's 70th birthday party. This was a super-fun assignment. Here are all 70...you might want to enlarge to see them in all their glory!

No two could be alike, so I was really able to dig around in my bead hoard. Since I was attending the party, the most fun was seeing who picked which charm. Many of the ladies chose to match their outfits, some their earrings. One woman who was wearing the earrings I had given her as a gift and found a charm that matched them.

It was a beautiful day in a beautiful location. A good time was had by all, and we were able to christen the brand-new fire pit!!

Now off to the next commission, do stay tuned!

Crocodile

2011-05-10T11:21:00.000-07:00

I promise I have some new stuff going on to show you soon, but meanwhile I created another etsy treasury, this one is called Crocodile.

Crocodile ring by Angidega

I was happy to learn that one of the items in my list sold within a half an hour, due to my creating the treasury. Take a gander! (click on crocodile above!)

I recently had another creative night with the girls, H. hosted, she had great snacks and made a super still life. We also found a new member! J didn't even KNOW any of us personally but was fixed up with us by a friend. She fit right in. I don't have a pic of my drawing handy, but I do have a nice shot of the still life.

I also went to see The Kills with C. at Royale a couple of weeks ago, they were Phenomenal!!! I currently have a girl-crush on Alison Mosshart, and channel her with my leopard-print cardigan. Although she *really* needs to quit smoking!!!

Something about seeing live music really triggers my creativity, I just want to go home and spawn something new. If only I could be granted more time.

ETSY treasuries

2011-04-12T07:54:00.000-07:00

I have occasionally posted here about some of my jewelry being chosen for an Etsy treasury. You've probably thought, "gee, that's great, what the heck is it?"

Treasuries are lists of sixteen items created by members of Etsy – shoppers and sellers. They’re often based on a theme or other commonality between the items. They could be inspired from a color, song lyric, place, movie, a holiday or season. The possibilities are endless, and it's fun to come up with new ideas. They are not intended for self-promotion, but instead to acknowledge and share the many cool things for sale on Etsy.

I like treasuries because they’re a fun way to browse on Etsy. It’s such a big place, and this is a great way to begin. I’ve discovered many shops that I wouldn’t have otherwise found. Also, especially unique or beautiful treasuries are chosen by Etsy staff to appear on the front page, so there are benefits for sellers like myself who create treasuries.

I'm so happy and flattered every time one of my items is chosen to be in someone's treasury. I'm now returning the favor, I have created my first treasury! If you're curious, take a look...it's called....

"A Fairy tale wardrobe"

Photo from etsy store Beadmask

Enjoy!

Spring Inspiration

2011-04-06T11:22:00.000-07:00

My new bracelet was chosen to be in an ETSY treasury called Spring Inspiration

...and it sold!

New Painting

2011-04-04T08:44:00.000-07:00

I finished a new painting, at long last. Well, it's not really finished-finished, but it's as close as it's going to get for now. At this point I will only ruin it if I continue to poke at it. Time to start something new.

Through the trees

detail

I'm eagerly awaiting gardening weather. I've planted my peas, and have many seedlings started. I hope to document my garden a little better this year, maybe make a gardening journal.

Peeptastic

2011-04-01T07:07:00.000-07:00

Last night was creative night. (Yep, we're still doing them!) I hosted this time, so I got to pick the project. I know Easter is a ways off this year, but the peeps are out and they are calling to me. After stuffing my self with their marshmallow yummyness at work, I decided they would be our muse for the evening.

There is a website called "Daily Paintworks" where artists put their work up for sale. They have a "weekly challenge" you can try, and post your results for free. These results are also for sale so you could make some money while you're at it. I chose the "10 minute challenge" for this weeks project. You have 10 minutes to paint in each 3x3" square, when the timer goes off you rearrange your still life and start again. It's a great challenge, it forces you to stay loose and not get too tight and meticulous about what goes on the paper.

Here are our results:

H's Peeps

C's Peeps

My Peeps

I love how they are all so different! T made us a healthy dinner, and we had peeps for dessert. Except for C, she hates peeps! :-O

Super-moon mural weekend

2011-03-29T07:12:00.000-07:00

I'm catching up here, only a couple of weeks behind now!

2 weekends ago I went home to paint a mural on my Mom's friend's kitchen wall. She *so* loved the birch mural that A and I painted for my brother and his wife that she wanted birch trees too. She re-painted her kitchen a lovely color, and I think they came out rather nice against it.

It was also the first weekend of Spring, and the Super moon. We went down the street to Peggoty beach to better view the moon. When we got there the moon was HUGE and RED, after much oo-ing and aah-ing I finally thought to snap a picture. It was now fully up so doesn't look as huge and red in the photo as it really was. It was amazing though!

I'm back...

2011-03-22T09:31:00.000-07:00

Wow, August??

I'm afraid writing just isn't my choice of creative expression, plus, I'm lazy. So if anyone still checks this blog to see if I've actually posted something new, I apologize for my extended absence. I'll try to be better, I promise.

SO, when I last left you all at the ends-of-your-seats waiting for my next post, it was mid-August. Let's pick up where we left off and catch up from there, shall we?

I was trying to keep up with the harvest from my garden, I had a very bountiful season. In addition to the huge pepper harvest (I've provided a picture of some of the types I had) I also successfully grew: Sugar Snap Peas, Collards, Kale, Garlic, Zucchini, cukes, 2 types of Eggplant, Lettuce, Strawberries, a few varieties of tomatoes, and a wide selection of herbs on the back porch.

Pepper Harvest 2010

Habanero, Anaheim, Big Jim, Jalapeno, Hungarian hot

As Summer led into Fall, I was judged and accepted into a Christmas Art Fair in Jamaica Plain. The date was the first Saturday in December so I began making jewelry non-stop. I ended up having a great day, not *as* great as last year's fair, but the other 2 connected art fairs that usually run the same day didn't happen this year, so I think as a result there were far less people. The place is usually jam-packed but this year not so much. Still, I was pleased with my results. I made some good connections which resulted in some etsy sales as well. Sadly, I did not take a picture of my beautiful table all set up, I'm so mad at myself for that!!

Etsy
HandofStone

With the fair over, I breathed a sigh of relief. I could now *finally* begin my Christmas shopping and preparations for the family Christmas we hold at my wee little apartment every year.

Then, a couple of weeks before Christmas I received a request from a former client, she wanted a toy chest and rocking chair for a Christmas present for her grand-kids. OY! I love this woman, she is so nice, which is probably why I said "yes".

Let the insanity begin.

It wouldn't have been so bad, but it was all raw wood so I had to sand, prime and paint before I even began the design work...
She wanted a "sports" trunk, with everything you see painted on it, plus a rocking chair with daisies and wording. I know they both would have been better, had I more time. Not to mention the rotten cold I acquired didn't help.

All in all, I was okay with the results, and my client was thrilled. Sent me a sweet thank-you saying how special I made Christmas for her family. *sniff* Made the stress all worth it!!

The rest of the Winter was pretty quiet. The girls and I continued our "Creative Wednesdays" I dabbled with some painting, and Tim and I took a really nice trip to Montreal with G and L. I've never been there, it was a beautiful city. It reminded me alot of Boston except larger, and I have to say I think in general they dress much more fashionably there. Even in winter! Here is a picture from our lovely suite of downtown Montreal.

February was a sad month, our little buddy Spot passed away. He outlived 3 dogs and 2 apartments. He is greatly missed! :(

So, to wrap things up, I also attended some live entertainment. Some local metal bands with C and J, also the more well known Clutch, Motorhead, and the most excellent "Dead Weather" I saw some Fantastic Burlesque shows courtesy of Rogue Burlesque, as well as The Bread and Puppet theater with A., a record release show for my friends in the band "They will hate us" and some other fun events and dinners.

That's pretty much it in a nutshell, more to come soon!!! I *promise*!

New Painting

2010-08-12T07:06:00.000-07:00

I've finally finished a new painting, please forgive the crappy photo. I'm happy with it, it was done from a photo I took years ago on Boston Common.

I have a new one started...do stay tuned!

Mossy Slope

2010-07-07T12:25:00.000-07:00

One of my necklaces was chosen to be in another Etsy Treasury called "Mossy Slope". It is a beautiful treasury, check it out!

Vermont Open Studios

2010-06-10T12:56:00.000-07:00

Over Memorial Day weekend, the girls and I went to Vermont to enjoy the clean air and check out some artist's studios. It was also the "at long-last" grand opening of my brother's studio.

He had a successful weekend, made lots of friends and connections, and some money as well! He did demonstrations on the pottery wheel, so I *finally* got to see him throw a pot after all these years!! I love his work, and he gets better all the time! If you are ever in the Rutland area, make sure you stop by and check out his stuff!

Pit-fired hand-burnished pots

Cups

On our journey we saw tons of pottery and jewelry, some painter/printmakers, a couple of galleries, a wonderful woodworker, and a lady who was as cute as a button named Nancy Benoit . She makes beautiful shoes by hand in a cute little tiny workshop.

There was also a woman who painted and sold Equine art, so you KNOW C and I had to check her out. Her name is Terry Lindsey . She not only paints and sculpts horses but its also a dealer for some wonderful Equine artists.

Racing Dreams - Oils

A new one I discovered was Katie Upton I couldn't afford one of her prints or paintings, but I bought a calendar you can use every year. Her art is great!

White Horse # 40

Our last visit was at the Torak Studios. They are the nicest couple, they both are very talented and successful painters, they make their own paint! I felt I could of sat down with a bottle of wine and talked to them all night. They were so enthusiastic, and very encouraging. It was the highlight of our trip.

Sunny Side up - Oil on linen Elizabeth Torak

Silent Symphony - Oil on linen Thomas Torak

We did manage to enjoy the gorgeous outdoors as well, we hiked "White Rocks" in Wallingford, quite the hike up, but what a view!

It was a great weekend, I've been inspired to pick up my brush again and start one of my "waiting list" paintings. Also, a big thanks to my friend C who drove us all over creation and back again!

ETSY

2010-05-21T09:54:00.000-07:00

One of my necklaces was chosen to be in an etsy treasury called Sunset Over Butterfly Gardens

Fruity Pebbles

Cool!

Citrus and Lilacs

2010-04-30T07:32:00.000-07:00

This past Wednesday night was the last one of the month, so no models at the MFA. Christine and I decided to continue with our own still lifes... Since C hosted the last one, I was up this week.

I don't have any cool skulls lying around the house, so it being lilac season I decided we'd start with some lilacs from my community garden sitting in a pot my brother made. I added the last bottle of limoncello Tim and I had brewed this past holiday season, some oranges, grapefruit, limes (also in a pot by D.) and a coconut. Also a pewter tray that was my grandmother's.

Not a bad little still life, although those lilacs are a bitch to draw! Didn't think of that ahead of time....

We also did a color sketch with some colored pencils

I'm not as happy with this one, I'd much rather paint it than use colored pencils, I'll add it to my long list of "to be painted".

For snacks I made a batch of Kale Chips. These things are so yummy, and good for you! I just love them. I'm going to try and make beet chips next.

While we were drawing, Tim was smoking up some BBQ ribs and chicken with the delicious Kentucky Bourbon bbq sauce I received as part of my swap gift from Katherine They came out SO good! We also had collards and cole slaw, and T's famous chocolate bread pudding with marshmallow sauce for dessert.

OH YUM!

Missing model at the MFA

2010-04-22T09:38:00.000-07:00

Another Wed. night live model drawing at the MFA. Arriving early once again, this time I perused the Chinese and Japanese areas. It's been awhile since I wandered in these areas of the museum, and I spent some time chillaxing (...I still haven't taken that meditation class yet) in the Bhudda room until a bunch of very noisy children came in. Damn vacation week.

Our model was running late, so naturally I started sketching some horse statues while I was waiting. Some of my fellow artists posed for 1 minute sketches, but it became apparent our model was pulling a no-show. The gallery we were in was dark and very crowded, with many children...
...Damn vacation week.
The guy sitting next to me had a rather pungent emanation, and he drew VERY LOUDLY. Even the woman in front of me was shooting him looks, it's not just me! He also was sitting way too close, bumping my arm.

We weren't feeling the love, so we decided to take our creativity in another direction. Instead of trivia night and beemos at the Squealing Pig, we headed downtown to the ladder district. A new restaurant named Stoddard's recently opened that I've been wanting to check out, and was glad when C's friend suggested it. It used to be a cutlery store dating back to the 1860's. The hardwood floors and walls are from the 1800s, the mezzanines (c. 1912) have been salvaged from the old Filene's Basement and the bartenders (dressed in era-correct attire) manned an old-timey handmade mahogany bar. With the old gas lamposts, tin ceiling, and upstairs platform, it has a wonderful ambiance. I didn't really get the corset art when you walk in, perhaps it was hailing from the burlesque days in Scollay Sq. which was down the street?

I wanted a cider, but alas, there was none. (but it is coming soon according to our super-friendly waiter). He did suggest a delicious beer called Ephemere, from the Unibroue brewery in Canada. It was sort of like a cross-breed beer and cider. Delicious!!! We enjoyed it very much with the fondue plate.

I'm looking forward to our next venture...

Sweet Spring Swap

2010-04-16T08:29:00.000-07:00

I just love reading creative people's blogs. Foodie blogs, crafty blogs, I love them all. This past winter I took part in my first 'swap'. Jen from The Gregarious Homebody hosted it. I had to spend exactly $25 on the "Winter Gastronomy Swap" no more, no less. Obviously, these crafty people create many of their gifts to stretch their dollars, plus it makes it all the more fun! I enjoyed it so much, when Laura from A dozen Eggs decided to host a "Sweet Spring Swap" I had to join in!

I was paired with Katherine, an amazing cook and baker. She owns and runs The Yellow House Cakery in Kentucky. If you're ever in Kentucky in need of a cake, she's the gal to go see!

For Katherine's package, I found some cute flower shaped silicone baking cups. (She makes amazing cupcakes!) and some cute pink polka-dot cupcake papers. Some spring cookie cutters, and candied pink and yellow grapefruit.

For the creative part, I made her one of my custom slates with her logo on it. I've made quite a few slates in the past, my brother used to work in a stone quarry and they had a bunch of slate shingles from an old church. Sadly, I'm almost out.

I packaged it all in springy tissue and some shredded purple paper.

Yesterday, I received her swap gift to me, enfolded in a mass of sparkly spring tissue, I found a whole bunch of spring booty! Very cute plates, napkins, and tissues with my initials on them. (I am oddly very excited about these tissues...) A very pretty journal with my beloved paisley, and some bath confetti. :)

Some cute springy ramekin bowls,

..and my favorite gift was some Kentucky Bourbon BBQ sauce, and some sweet pepper jelly from her own garden. I think, via her suggestion, I will slather this yummy jelly on a block of cream cheese and eat it with some crackers, yum!

We are both thrilled with our gifts, and I've made another friend.

Can't wait for Tim to stoke up the giant smoker and make me some ribs with my new sauce!!!

Model Wednesdays

2010-03-25T10:40:00.000-07:00

After our successful trip to the MFA to draw on Wednesday, Chrissy and I decided when there aren't models available we could create our own still lifes to draw... and, I must say, our first still life came out fantastic!!

We took a page from our man Melendez (see previous posts), and constructed a kickin' display with wet, lucious grapes, some nice, crusty bread (which went well with dinner later), some wine, and a really cool deer skull J had found in the woods a couple of weeks ago.

We were trying to work on our light and shadow..I only brought pencils, and my sketch is for now unfinished. But I plan to paint this too, its such a great display!

I just love the skull!!

Summer Rolls

2010-03-22T07:58:00.000-07:00

Sunday afternoon we attended our friend R's birthday party. I decided to make summer rolls. Whenever Tim and I have made these for a party in the past, they are always requested again and again. They are easy to make, but a bit time consuming! Tim does all the slicing and dicing of the ingredients, which in Sunday's rolls included: Thai basil, radishes, cabbage, carrots, scallions, and grilled seasoned chicken thigh.

Oh, and of course the rice noodles...

I, with my nimble little fingers, then roll all the yumminess up in a rice paper wrapper. We usually use the big ones, but for this fancy party we used the cute little size. Cute and little, but much more tedious to make.

Here are a couple of them finished, note how the pretty colors shine through.

I wish I had taken a picture of them on the platter with the dipping sauces, they looked so nice, but at that point the food was out, and I was all business. Trying one of everything. Or two.

I also make R a cute pair of earrings for her birthday, this was about the extent of my creativity this weekend since I spent most of Saturday trying to take decent pictures of earrings and bracelets for my etsy store. I'm afraid photography isn't my forte.

Hopefully some pics will make it up on the Etsy site today!

Etsy store is now open!!

2010-03-19T12:01:00.000-07:00

So, at long last, my Etsy store is now open for business. So far I have only managed to put up necklaces, I still have loads of earrings and bracelets to get up there as well, but I already made two sales so I figured I had better just go with it!

The photos put a kink in my timeline...I found it very hard to get the lighting just right. (Especially with my cheap little camera) Finally, I had to wait for the nice weather because the best light is the natural, outdoor kind.

So, next up is the earrings...no idea how I'm going to go about that...but we shall see.

Do stay tuned...

Live model drawing at the MFA

2010-03-15T07:37:00.000-07:00

I recently discovered through my good friend Christine that the Museum of Fine Arts has free live model drawing on Wednesday nights. How convenient, since Wednesdays are free (with a donation requested...)

It is held in different spots throughout the museum each week, which I think is great! I've added some of my sketches here...now, keep in mind I haven't sketched live models since probably art school, and that was AWHILE ago!

I arrived early so was also able to catch the Durer exhibit, fantastic prints! Also, I viewed the "Bharat Ratna" Jewels of Modern India exhibit, Toulouse Lautrec's "Cafe and Cabaret" and the Luis Melendez exhibit, which was *amazing*...although it made me hungry! I've added the Globe review of the Melendez show after this post. I also wandered around checking out all the new parts of the Museum, and some old favorites. We were evacuated at one point, so I was also able to experience the Babyheads out back. They are VERY cool! I wasn't able to snap a picture though, we had to BACK AWAY FROM THE BUILDING!
All in all it was a fun night, I will definitely go back, and cudos to the MFA for offering this as well as free supplies should people need them.

I love this city!

In the hands of Meléndez, food comes to life - The Boston Globe

2010-03-15T07:09:00.001-07:00

In the hands of Meléndez, food comes to life - The Boston Globe

Posted using ShareThis

If you can get over to the MFA, check out this exhibit, it really is worth the trip!!!

Spring is coming!!

2010-03-04T08:53:00.000-08:00

As you can tell from the few pitiful posts here, I have not been too creative lately. I blame the long winter, after the holiday season my creativity sort of fizzles out. I walk the dog in the cold, dark morning, and come home in the dark as well. The couch and a good book then claim me.

However, the other day on my walk to work down Commonwealth Ave. in the Back Bay I spied some Snowdrops and Crocuses in a front yard. I felt the first stirrings of creative energy in awhile! I went home that night and started the seeds for my garden.

I've started some Collards and Kale, San Marzanos, thai and jalapeno peppers, dill, basil and thyme, Morning Glories and Sunflowers. Right into the dirt will go my sugar snap peas, carrots, spinach and radishes. Hopefully my lavender, chives, and some Perennials come back again. I can't wait!

The garden is a little forlorn at the moment, but that will change soon enough!!

All of this Garden preparation and planting of seeds has jump-started my creative energy. I've registered my etsy store to start selling my jewelry, put away and organized my new beads, and have some new ideas for paintings to add to the list of paintings I still haven't started. I have grand plans to start those paintings as well, but maybe I shouldn't get too ahead of myself AS usual....

Carioca

2010-03-03T07:16:00.000-08:00

This past weekend was my Mom's 65th birthday and she had a great party to celebrate. The theme was tapas, my favorite! Tim says I'd eat anything if it was in appetizer form...I think he's probably right.

I made delicate little crepe cones, filled with smoked salmon, julienned carrots and celery, and a filling made up of cream cheese, sour cream, cream, chives, gerkin pickles, lemon, tobasco, and capers. There was high drama when I realized I forgot the smoked salmon back in Boston, and panic ensued when there was only 1 wee little package to be found in all of Scituate. D saved the day driving out to Cohasset, of COURSE they had it! Sadly, after all this, I forgot to take a picture, but they were very elegant and tasty. A success!!

Tim made my Mom a wonderful "Carioca" cake from Pierre Herme's dessert book she bought him a couple of years ago. It had 3 layers of genoise soaked in an espresso syrup, with alternating layers of dark chocolate mouse, finished with bittersweet ganach and glazed almonds. It turned out delicious! However, I do think next time we might add more of the espresso syrup, it was so strong we were worried it would overpower the the delicate genoise, but this was not the case.

While Tim made the whole cake himself, including his home-made cake rings, I commandeered all of the decorating. (after having my wrists slapped for testing too many glazed almonds...) I think it came out pretty nice, no?

Creative weekend

2010-02-16T08:42:00.000-08:00

So I just spent a very fun weekend with a bunch of creative friends and loved ones in VT, at the home of my brother and his wife. Being the potters Stone

Last year for my birthday they gave me some porcelain clay to try making my own beads with. Clay and I do not work and play well together, so I waited until I could be up at his studio for some expert help. Sadly, the clay had gotten too hard to work with due to my neglect, so while D makes it better I practiced with some other clay he had on hand.

I had my assistant, Sugar there to provide comic relief when the clay started making me crazy! She thought it might taste good...

I did end up having some success, I made a bunch of beads for D to practice some glazes on, and see how they fire up. Sadly, I couldn't hang around in VT for the final product...that real job thing dragged me back to reality.

I'm excited to see how they turn out...

Do stay tuned!!

Toy Chest

2010-02-03T08:26:00.000-08:00

One of my favorite things to paint are toy chests for kids!

Mural

2010-01-25T08:12:00.000-08:00

In the past few years I have done a number of wall murals, usually in children's rooms where I feel most comfortable painting on a wall. I feel confident the kids will like what I do! The thought of painting something on my Mom's friends designer kitchen wall (which probably equaled the down payment on a house) on the other hand, scared me to death.

My brother and his wife moved to Vermont a couple of years ago. He is a potter and trying his best to make a living at it. You can see his ongoing story at "The Potter's Stone" . Allison's sister and I were asked to paint a wall mural in their sunroom, we went up one weekend and after some cheese and wine, got to work. It came out pretty great, we work well together. We joked we'd start a wall-mural business called "The Sister's-in-law".

If I get around to scanning those kid's rooms shots, I'll throw those up for you all to see as well!

Back in bead world

2010-01-19T08:28:00.000-08:00

So I hauled all of my beads back out this weekend. They haven't seen the light of day since before Christmas. I then, of course, had to spend a couple of hours re-arranging them in their little compartments, because this is what I do when I make jewelry. This is why it is so time-consuming for me...when I first started, for months I only bought beads and hoarded them, re-arranging them, counting them, gazing at them...

However, I did learn this holiday season that I can part with my precious beads when offered cold-hard-cash money for the jewelry I make out of them. I had a very successful sales season, and now I have to re-stock my merchandise.

Here is some of the jewelry that sold this holiday season.

T and I bought a spiffy new rug on Saturday in a nice sage green color that will make the beads I drop on the floor much easier to find than that dark, dark red rug I had before. Rug in place, I started in on some jewelry, you will have to forgive the pictures, I obviously need to learn how to take better pictures of jewelry, these don't show them at their best.




                                      Tickled Pink Necklace

Starchild Necklace

Smokey Earrings

Lemon Leopard and Ultraviolet earrings

Variety Necklace

Hope to make some more soon!

Krypto Portraits

2010-01-19T08:14:00.000-08:00

...I now have the Krypto portraits my friend Chrisine did for me a couple of years back...

Don't you just love them?

My creative friend

2010-01-18T10:50:00.000-08:00

So I was very good this weekend and worked on my jewelry Friday night, Sat, and Sunday. I'll show some pics tomorrow.

Today I want to show you my favorite Christmas present I received this year from my super-talented, creative friend Christine. She is an amazing watercolor artist who specializes in pet portraits.

T and I adopted a little boxer girl last year from Boxer Rescue we named Sugar.

My favorite present was the amazing portrait Christine painted of her.

This picture doesn't even do the portrait justice, there is so much detail when you look at it close-up it looks like a photo.

Christine also painted my last boxer boy, Krypto. (I'm afraid I don't have a photo of the portrait handy) She always captures the dog's personality, check out her website!

www.christinewinship.com

SWAP SWAG

2010-01-13T07:06:00.000-08:00

I've been getting into reading blogs by creative people lately, to try and inspire my own self. One I really like, Cookie crumbs, linked me to another great blog, The Gregarious Homebody, who was having a Winter Gastronomy Swap. I, trying to be more creative, of course joined up. (Not to mention it was a FOODIE swap!) It was alot of fun, my swap partner Doreen is a very talented Cake maker from Arizona. After chatting to each other we found we both have a sweet tooth, and a penchant for candy. I received my package yesterday, it was full of goodies, including some delicious Arizona Cactus Bark candy! YUM!

Hopefully Doreen enjoyed my package full of Boston goodies as well!

Numero Uno

2010-01-12T11:39:00.000-08:00

So here goes...first post.

Hope I don't bore people to tears with this, but, hey, you don't have to read it, right? I want to have a place where I record whatever creative endeavors I manage to eke out day to day. I'm sure other stuff will make it's way in here...but I want to try and do at least one creative thing a day. Be it painting, jewelry-making, cooking or gardening. As you'll see, I'm not a very good writer, so I won't include that!

I'll start with some of the bigger things I've done in the recent past.

There was of course, THE COWS

Biography for the Sunflower Cow

Sunflowers and cows are a natural together, as everyone knows. Popularized by painters in the nineteenth century, sunflowers are prized for their seeds, which, like cows, are delicious when roasted in the oven.

Biography for Spot the Cow

Young Spot was a simple cow, black and white like the world she grew up in. Then, she got a sponser. Flagship press wanted to know if she could be red and blue for a good cause. Gladly! Because a leopard can't change its spots, but a cow can.

Boston Cow Parade was extremely fun! Painting life-sized cow statues in my tiny apartment living room was quite the experience...the first week or so the cow would scare us to death when we got up in the middle of the night.

I was also chosen to paint an electric box on a sidewalk in Roslindale for Boston Shines 2009 . Painting an electric box out on the street, in front of the RMV, by the big bus stop, was also quiet the experience! But I have to say, the fine people of Roslindale were very supportive and had nothing but kind words for me!

The box has been tagged since then, but c'est la vie, it is pulic art after all. I have a friend who told me "You may have the distinction of producing fine art for dogs to pee on and old people to lean on!"

I may have found my niche. ;p