Outfitted

It's a funny thing what happens to art when it's framed. When one of my pieces is bought or if I buy someone else's work, and the piece happens to be framed, well, it's like it just got a huge promotion. Like they went from being a high school graduate to completing their master's thesis. It never fails to amaze me what a difference an "outfit" makes for art.

Now do I generalize this fabulous information to my own life and my own outfits? Nope...or at least hardly ever. I like to think of my style as being always ready for a workout or for getting dirty.


This piece was an exercise for a class I'm taking. We're focusing on the artist Marie Laurencin. Loving her style and I cannot wait till we get to her watercolors!

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Grandson with Rainbrella

Note: I changed the title of this piece because I'd forgotten the cutest name for an umbrella that this child had come up with. Love!

Previous title was "Sun Shower"

...or, rather, grandson shower.

A dear friend sent me a photo of his adorable grandson standing in the yard holding an umbrella and asked if I'd be willing to paint it. What an honor it is to be trusted with friends' precious memories!

Painting this reminded me of standing in my own yard growing up (partly because this friend of mine happens to live in the house I grew up in, though this image is not at that particular house). I'd throw my umbrella to the roof, climb the loquat tree in the front corner of the house, get on the roof, open that umbrella, and jump off. Over and over and over again. I very clearly remember thinking that the umbrella in no way slowed my eight foot descent.

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Grandmother's Hat

Lately I've had wonderful friends give me inspiration for paintings. It's pure bliss for me. Particularly because everyone who has asked just wants me to do my own interpretation of whatever their idea is. So lucky, lucky me!

I love that this piece is about cherishing something that belonged to someone special. It's about how a thing can become precious merely by association. My mom recently gave me a small box of my grandmother's jewelry. And when I wear a piece I feel so close to both of them.

Links to the past...so wonderful!

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Three Times the Love

So here was the little guy's plan for tonight.


5:30 - Workout at the gym with mom.

6:30 - Go shopping a the thrift store.

7:00 - Go back to the gym for a second workout.

8:00 - Go to Target.

8:30 - Go back to the gym for, yes, a third workout.


Now while the kid gets major points for both working out with his mom (me) and for wanting to go thrifting, I'm choosing to be a total spoil sport and here is the plan that I say I'm willing to do.


6:30 - Go shopping at the thrift store.

7:30 - Workout at the gym with mom.


Little guy: "OK, I think a light workout is good tonight."


An hour workout is a "light" workout. Being 48 is so different than being 16.

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Love...

My dog...well, she's simply the best!

My family has this obsession with trying to scare me. They get great joy out of it and I've blogged about it many times. Well, the other day Hazel was sitting near me being all super cute and stuff. Unbeknownst to me, Dave was circling behind me deviously preparing to scare the daylights outa me. But Hazel, my hero, was totally on to his mischief and she let out a teeny tiny warning growl.

Ha! Foiled again, Dave!

Puppy love....


This was a commissioned piece and will be a wedding gift for someone. I'm beyond honored!

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Owl Love

The funniest thing happened the other day.


A friend stopped by after I'd told him the URL for my online gallery: "Who's there?"

Me: "I'm here."

Friend: "No, who's there?"

Me: "Um..." Seriously, I was thinking I was stuck in an Abbot and Costello routine.

Friend: "I want to buy your painting called "Hoooooo's There?"

Me: "Oh, great!"


And this is when my friend face palmed himself...in his imagination. He's too nice a guy to do it in front of me, ya know.

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Under the Night Sky

It's how it feels right now, sitting in my house looking outside. This Central Texas storm is so fully blocking the sunlight this mid-afternoon. When the clouds first crept in my inner voice whispered that it must be closing in on bedtime.

I've always loved a dramatic storm...full of thunder, lightning, and Noah-worthy rains. As a teenager I'd run out to my car during a storm, sit inside it listening to that Black Sabbath song, you know, the one that starts with the storm sounds, and I'd listen to it until the storm outside out-volumed the car speakers' capability.

Always in awe of Mother Nature....

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Divided

It's funny how people see things in different ways. But maybe it's just my Netflix binge watching that alters my view.

This piece I did with India ink is in a style reminiscent of the early work of artist Marie Laurencin. I think the idea is to have her look sweet, mild, and kind, but all I keep seeing is demon eyes a la "Supernatural". Ah, well, works for me. I like it.

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Glow

I did the big clear out today. Four bags of clothes and shoes, and a small bag of jewelry that I'm no longer in love with. It's odd how all that stuff manages to accumulate and even more odd how many of those things don't fit,  irritate me, or I just out and out don't like.

And now when I go in our bedroom there's a calm feeling, my bedside lamp glows, and my grandmother smiles from her framed portrait.

I have and early rainy afternoon urge to put on my PJs.

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Skyline

There's so much new construction in this city of ours. Dave will take a picture of downtown and it's littered with cranes here and there...and then he'll take another one a month later and the skyline has changed with the addition of buildings. And bringing it right close to home, a house was torn down two doors away and a new house is being constructed and then on the other side of us a house is about to be torn down and two are going to built where it now sits. 

About twelve years or so ago this would have thrilled my little guy to no end. He LOVED construction and everything about it. 

He even named us construction truck names! 

Yup, yours truly was "Mommy Dump Truck".

Dave was "Daddy Crane".

Big guy was "Backhoe".

And the little guy named himself "Bulldozer". It suited him perfectly.

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My Heart Swells

It was like old times today.

When my kids were little we'd all load up in my car, or on our bicycles, and head up to the neighborhood elementary school. I worked there as a teacher and they learned there as students. It was an awesome one-stop-shopping experience. And then my big guy moved on to middle and high school, and then my little guy did the same, and then I was left at the elementary school all alone (not counting all of the students and staff that remained, of course).

But today my big guy was subbing for the woman I work with and my little guy was there volunteering for track and field...there we all were under one big roof again!

My day was made!

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The Early Bird

Didn't get the worm...this time.

But the little guy and I got up super early today, at his insistence, and went to the gym before 6am. While I'm an early riser, I tend to poke about rather than get 'er goin'. And he's the kid who will sleep till noon given the chance. But up we got and off we went and we had such a great time in that big old almost empty gym. 

And by 5pm the kid and I were both taking a nap.

Me: "Do you want to do it again?"

Little guy: "I dunno."

Thinking we'll stick to our evening workouts and let the rest of you be the early birds.

Here's my third piece inspired by Joan Miró. 

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Happy

So I figure I've got a pretty darn happy marriage when pretty much the biggest thing we fight about is jelly. Yes, jelly.

You see, this past weekend I rediscovered peanut butter and jelly sandwiches. This is something that occurs about every five years or so. And, by golly, last weekend when I had folks here all day both days for WEST I was all in for a quick bite. But...I wound up eating the last bit of Dave's precious grape jelly.


Dave: "You ate all my jelly!"

Me: "Your jelly? I bought it."

Dave: "It's my jelly."

Me: "I'll buy more."


And now we have two jars of grape jelly. Perhaps I'll mark them "his" and "hers".


Here's my second piece inspired by Joan Miró. Tomorrow I'll create one inspired by him and less "just like" his. Today's and yesterday's pieces were warm-ups for tomorrow's.

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A Following

It's the most delightful thing. Every day I go outside with our chickens, and every day they tag along right behind me. Now I know they're ever so hopeful that I'm about to spread yummies all about. A good guess as I do do that sometimes. But I still like to pretend that it's just that they love me so and want to be wherever I am. Love my feathered ladies!

And this painting is inspired by Joan Miró. I'm taking another online painting class, one that I'd registered for before I was incredibly lucky enough to have won that last online class. I'm super excited to keep learning and being challenged.

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Hoooooo Knew?

Well, maybe you knew, but I didn't.

I've had my "studio" (my living room) open to the public two weekends in a row for WEST, and happily a lot of my art has been selling. You know what the most popular subject matter has been? Owls, that's what! I'm super happy because not only are they incredibly awesome animals, but they're one of my favorite things to paint.

So with my current shortage of these nocturnal wonders, of course I had to paint another!

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Meow

Painting is sometimes a challenge. A fun challenge, of course, but this particular painting was an entirely new kind of challenge I've not experienced before.

Here's how it went:

- I painted a base coat and let it dry for a few hours.
- Pug, our cat, lay on it after it dried.
- I painted a basic cat outline.
- Pug lay on it.
- I added more details.
- Pug lay on it.

- I added color to its eyes.

- Pug lay on it.

- I declared it "finished".

- Pug lay on it.

Hours passed and I decided I wanted to scan it. But "you know who" was laying on it so I waited till he got hungry and I snatched it away.

This painting is absolutely, positively 100% cat tested and approved.

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For the Love of Art

As most of you know I've been taking an online course from the amazing Pauline Agnew. Not only is she a fabulous artist, but she is also a truly gifted teacher. From the beginning she expected and knew that her students would "go for it". This was a perfect fit for me because while I was entering totally new territory I committed to myself that I'd not have any negative self talk throughout the entire process. And I did just that...and I went for it. Pauline's critiques of my works were honest, constructive, and encouraging and I've produced work that resides on an entirely different plane than that of my previous work (the painting with this blog post is not one of my new pieces, look to previous posts to see some, they are clearly identifiable).

Thank you, lovely Pauline, for your wisdom, caring, talent, patience, and love. And thank you, my fellow talented students, for your kind and loving support.

Click here to view my gallery.  Most of my paintings are for sale.

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Our Girl

It's been about a month-and-a-half since our girl, Scout, died. Dave has taken so many amazing photographs of this amazing furry friend of ours and I felt it was time to paint one of them. As is my practice, I always take my paintings to a full length mirror we have, stand while holding them in front of me, and look at them. You would not believe how many things I see in the reflection that I want to fix that I had not even noticed when I looked at it straight on.

Well, when I took this painting to the mirror today I gasped and had myself a bit of a cry. I think I got this one right. We love and miss you, Scout.

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She will Dance

I just completed this piece from the class I'm taking. It's based on a bronze statue of a Degas dancer. While I've always been a bit of a disaster as a dancer...be it ballet as a kid, bellydance as an adult (again, I apologize for the folks who paid admission to that one show I was in that actually cost money), to my uncoordinated efforts at Zumba...but this lady looks to me as though she totally owns the dance floor.

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PEACE

There's a certain lack of it at my house sometimes, and a lot of it seems to revolve around the one and only Archie Bunker chair in the house. It seems it's the favorite sittin' spot for the male types. It's not like there's a shortage of seats available...there's a perfectly comfortable large couch right by the Archie chair. But it always, always ranks second. And since Dave is the Archie Bunker of our house he pulls rank and claims his throne much to the disappointment of our boys.


Me: "I know what will solve everything!"

Dave: "What?"

Me: "We need to get two more Archie Bunker chairs!"


Eye roll...I tell ya, I'm a seriously underrated peacemaker.

Click here to view my gallery.  Most of my paintings are for sale.

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Love and Wisdom

My big guy turned twenty yesterday. It was a rather lovely pairing having my first born's birthday occur on Mother's Day. I'm usually not one to go in for celebrating that holiday, but celebrating the birth of my kid...well, that's the best way to celebrate being a mother.

And I celebrate all that he has been, all that he is, and all that he will be. Love you, kiddo!


This was a special request from my open studio tour over the weekend. Hoooooo knew that owls were so popular?

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Say "Hello" to my Little Friend

So a funny thing happened during WEST. One of my owl paintings was bought on Saturday...and the next morning this little fella hatched.

HUGE thanks to everyone that stopped by this weekend!!! Dave and I loved every second of it. If you missed it this weekend, please come see us next weekend. Click here for studio tour info.

Click here to view my gallery.  Most of my paintings are for sale.

I'd love for you to share my art and blog with the links below.  Thanks!

Comfortable in her Skin

This is my latest project for the fabulous art class I'm taking. I love how this class continues to push me out of my comfort zone, though this lovely lady is clearly comfortable in her skin. And just in case you're wondering, the hands and feet were left off intentionally. I figure that'll be part of a future lesson that will surely continue to push me in delightful directions.

And, speaking of being out of my comfort zone, today was the first of four days of an open studio tour that Dave and I are part of. I'm not a particularly social person so this was a bit nervous making, but it was so amazing and wonderful. I had at least a hundred pieces of art displayed or in files and Dave had a bunch of photos, and we had folks streaming in and out all day. What a lovely day of talking about and sharing our art. And some wonderful sales, too! Thank you to all of you who support our art!

Click here to view my gallery.  Most of my paintings are for sale.

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SHINE

Today was the 5th and last day of the annual Mother's Day jewelry sale that the special education department at the school where I work has each year to raise money for student supplies and training. And I can't even begin to tell you how amazing it all is. We collect donated jewelry that folks no longer love or use and then sell it for $1, $2, $3, and $4 to kids at the school so they can give it to their moms, themselves, friends or anyone they'd like. And there is nothing more precious than children making such important decisions. It's a beautiful thing...and I cannot wait to see all the moms sporting their awesome new bling come next week.

Click here to view my gallery.  Most of my paintings are for sale.

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Who Likes a Mime?

This is the most recent painting I've completed for a class I'm taking. We were supposed to paint a clownish someone. But like many of you, I'm not the biggest fan of clowns (in spite of, or maybe because of, the fact that they were a main decoration in my childhood room when I was into the color yellow). So, anyway, I steered away clowns and instead went in search of a mime someone. And then I found myself wondering, "Who likes a mime?" I'm not a big fan like many of you, I figure, so I found a mime that was totally saying, "I do!!" See? Just look at that raised hand of hers.

And now I find myself rather liking mimes again. Well, at least this one.

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Bliss

I've got that exhaustion, that blissful exhaustion that you get when you're doing something you love. I've been putting tons of time and energy into getting ready for my WEST show...figuring out which paintings to hang and how and where to do it, pricing pieces I hope to find new amazing homes for, deciding what cookies to buy for folks who stop by. You know stuff like that! And I'm so happily in the land of bliss. 

I hope you'll stop by!!!

Click here to view my gallery.  Most of my paintings are for sale.

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To the Side

Every night I tuck my chickens in. This entails going to their coop and doing a head count. And by head count I mean that I actually reach in and give all six girls a little love. And every night Fuzzy, our littlest one, refuses to face me. The trouble for her is that I still totally know she's looking right at me. Eyes-on-the-sides-of-your head problems.

Chicken love....

Click here to view my gallery.  Most of my paintings are for sale.

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Beauty Above

Several years ago Dave, the little guy, and I went to a wildlife preserve located just outside of Austin. They had all kinds of amazing critters there, but my favorite was a giraffe. This sweet giraffe came right up to the edge of its corral, leaned its very long neck down, down, down, and let me touch its nose. It was the most fabulously velvety moment ever and I felt super honored. What a beauty! I've always wanted to paint it but never had the courage. Today I gave it a go.

Click here to view my gallery.  Most of my paintings are for sale.

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Changed Along the Way

Sometimes things don't end up as you intended. They alter and morph along the way. This piece started as a loose interpretation of Billie Holiday and about halfway through it was clear that the subject of my painting had decided to go another direction entirely. I set aside my picture of Billie Holiday and let the portrait be my guide...and I ended up with a young lad. Glad he pushed himself to the front of the canvas!

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Lost in Thought

So I'm sitting here lost in thought at a coffee shop just wondering what I'll blog about today, when all of a sudden I notice that the amazing cinnamon roll thingie that Dave got us has the most crazy curly peaks at the tips at the top. It's kind of an odd cinnamon roll to explain, but suffice it to say that it would fit in in a mild version of a Dr. Seuss book. And then my mind wandered to the painting I did today and then all I could think about were the curly tips of the woman's hair. And the sugar and herbal tea must be getting to m because all I can think of is that my painting and the roll must have come from the same awesome alternative universe or something.

And now I know for sure that I'm not going to eat the last bite.

Click here to view my gallery.  Most of my paintings are for sale.

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Affected

I just finished this one tonight. I've been working on it for a few days, making change after change after change. It's inspired by a selfie blended with an abstract painting in Photoshop. While I don't think it looks very much like me, I'm super pleased that I've painted something that, once again, utterly and completely looks human. Baby steps and small victories. And, bonus, she reminds me of a cross between Pris in Bladerunner and Leeloo in The Fifth Element.

I'm a happy girl.

Click here to view my gallery.  Most of my paintings are for sale.

I'd love for you to share my art and blog with the links below.  Thanks!