Yesterday was a cold, gray and bleak day, one of many that we have had in the last several weeks.  It was the kind of day that you would love to be able to stay in, pull down the shades and forget about the world outside.  I don't like the winter months--Jan. and Feb. are real downers.  Gray, cold days--with very little sun. I am not a GRAY person.  I don't even like the color gray.  Not in paint, not in floors, not in furniture and definitely not in days.   Don't get me wrong--I am not a summer person either. In Maryland the summers were not so brutal and I reveled in the feeling of cool morning air and the sunny afternoons.  It was a different kind of summer than the summers that they have here.  The summer months in La. are long, hot and brutal.    I love the spring months and the fall months, all the way up to Christmas.  But January and February has a way of gettin' me down.  I spent the day in my Studio Sunday and it helped me tremendously.  It wasn't as fruitful as I would have liked it to have been but opening the door and inhaling the smell of paint and paste was like aromatherapy. It relaxes me and makes me forget about the deluge outside of my door.  I experimented with some of wash recipes that Michael DeMeng gave in his on-line class and was very happy with the results.  His use of colors and texture is incredible.  I am working on four pieces right now-all in different stages of progression. From mixed-media to Assemblage, I bounced from project to project while waiting for paint, glue or texturing to dry.  On the way home from work yesterday, Lewis suggested that we go and have Sushi for supper.  Sushi? Yessssssssss.  My all-time favorite, could eat every day food.  We went to this little place called the Avocado and got "The Love Boat".  It was AWESOME.  And, afterwards--Baskin Robbins for Chocolate Overload.  Did I mention that one of my goals this year was to lose weight?  Okay, well, the Chocolate Overload WAS reduced sugar (but the waffle cone was dipped in chocolate--maybe that was lowfat too :)

I am so excited.  There are so many ideas for pieces just waiting to be made.  I signed up for the Michael DeMeng online class.  He is the greatest at Salvage Art--his use of color and form are awesome.  This class is about color washes.  I have ordered the supplies that I need and am ready to paint.  I have 4 projects started at the moment.  Last Saturday I had a burst of creative energy.  Maybe because it has been so long since I have been able to get to the studio and really do anything substantial--but I didn't want to quit.  Not while I had the "MoJo" going.  Lewis got me a Cricut Cutter for Christmas and I have been having a blast with it.  It is the greatest little machine.  Don't know how I made it without one.

365 Days

The old year has closed out and new one has opened. Like a blank journal with 365 fresh, white pages--waiting to be written.  Fresh, linen paper, clean and new for us to begin our journey.  That is how I am going to look at this new year dawning.  It is mine to do with as I wish.  Sure, there are some things that I cannot change, but there are so many things that I can change.  So many dreams left to pursue, so many pieces left to paint.  I have decided, as my New Years Resolution--no, I am not going to call it a resolution because they always get broken--I am going to call it my Goal.  My goal for the new year is to develop a web site and really push getting my pieces out, call a few galleries, do a few shows and find an outlet for my Art.  What do I have to lose??  Sure, there is rejection, every chance that you take and every call that you make has a risk of rejection--but I am a big girl, I can take it.  When my son was little and I would talk to him about his future, I would tell him to pursue that one thing that he really loved.  As Michelle Wright sings "You only get one time around" --you can't go back and change the path that you have taken, but it is never too late to alter your course.  As you get older and looks start to fade, you dig for something deeper than looks to validate your existence and if you are lucky you find that "one thing" that you really love to do. Your priorities change with age also.  The children are grown and you find that you have a little time again.  Time to do the things that you gave up so many years ago because something had to give. A sacrifice had to be made so that you could squeeze every minute that you could out of 24 hours and take care of your job, your home and your family.  When the "crunch" begins to subside and you can breathe again--that is when you can really dig deep and find out what it is that you really WANT to do. What I really want to do is create--to take a thought and make it tangible, create art based on my life experiences, from places that I have been, things that I have seen and moments that I have lived. My wish to you for the New Year is that you find the ONE THING that you love and pursue it--whether it be art, travel, yoga or sky diving and GO FOR IT!!!

A New Start

When the fall/winter shows came to an end--and leading up to the final shows, I had an overwhelming feeling that I needed to gain control of the world around me.  In saying this I mean "my little world".  I had been putting off the deep cleaning and sorting, trying to get ready for the last shows of the year.  I kept telling myself "Soon, soon you will be able to dig into this stuff and declutter.  Declutter and dust and putaway.  It was becoming larger-than-life, bothering me more everyday--becoming foremost in my thoughts.  Well, the last show was Dec. 11 and with only one piece left to complete (Christmas Present for my brother-in-law-the armadillo pictured above).  I dug in.  Starting in my bathroom and working forward through the house with one thing on my mind. I had to get this mess under control.  So, after 3 weekends of working in the house I feel like I have finally seen the light at the end of the tunnel.  My painted pony collection gleams and all of the other nick nacks sparkle.  Makes me wonder why I collect all of this stuff.  Way too much baggage, especially when it's dusting time. The christmas tree has been taken down and packed away for another year.  It always makes me a little sad.  I love Christmas more than any other time of the year.  January and February are so blue and depressing.  But in saying this, I know that spring is on the way.  A new beginning.  A fresh start for a new year full of hope.  I have many new projects forming in my head-and a clean studio to begin them.  I hope all who reads this has a Safe and Happy New Year--  peace for today and hope for tomorrow. F.