Sunday musings

its been a tough week here in the states...
     so much conflict, confusion and chaos...
          how can we turn the tide...

Sunday musings

the noise of public discourse has become loud and destructive...
the sound of silence can speak volumes...

Sunday musings

Yesterday I was able to spend most of the day working in my studio...I was so happy...a place to call my own, where I could work in peace and be surrounded with the supplies/tools/objects that inspire me.  
Virginia Woolf had it right...a woman needs a room of one's own...

In another life of mine...many years ago...this would not have happened...I wouldn't have a room of my own...I put my key in someone else's pocket...luckily that was not for long...

I hope you have your key and hold on to it tight... 

Sunday musings

a gray quiet day after a sunny week devoted to much gardening...
not my favorite activity but I do enjoy the end results...
plenty of new art projects underway, plenty to keep me busy...

Sunday musings

the tools of the trade might be paper, paint and scissors...
but without direction and decision, the path is obscured...

Sunday musings

the first light of morning...the quiet hush of the house...the warmth of my coffee cup...
this is the simplicity of stillness...

Sunday musings

I seem to have a pattern here...been posting a creative art photo on Sunday for the last couple of weeks...
I guess I should make this a regular feature...so here is today's posting...

Cold, rain and gray today...but I am hopeful that spring will come...

because...

because I enjoy telling stories with pictures...because it's good to be reminded...

a thought to consider...

whatever it might be, wherever it may lead...however long you can...

Love to you...

Happy Valentine's Day! 
Thank you for the love you show my blog by stopping by...hoping you receive some love your way today...

a thought for today...

Rustic Luxe - a nature inspired table

With Thanksgiving fast approaching, preparations are underway for many of us...

The internet is awash with images of gloriously set tables...costing more time and effort than most of us have at this late date...I have a few suggestions here that will lend that feel of Rustic Luxe without too much sweat or strain...

The play of contrasts is the idea behind Rustic Luxe...the rough with the smooth, the shiny with the subdued,
the practical with the whimsical...

To start, I gathered up a well loved linen tablecloth and a vintage wool blanket...there's a sheen to worn linen that contrasts nicely with the woolen texture of the blanket...using the linen alone seems commonplace at the traditional T-day dinner...using the blanket alone would seem a little too picnic-like...layering one over the other is unexpected and gives a great rustic luxe vibe.

Given the time of year and the sense of the season, nature is a wonder of inspiration. I gathered up a slew of fallen leaves as well as dried stems from my garden...the large leaves were pressed and comprise the bottom layer of the centerpiece (if you don't have time to press leaves ahead of time, did you know that lightly ironing will also work to flatten and dry them) An eclectic trio of pitchers with similar tones displays a collection of bird feathers, an assortment of dried stems  and a large handful of poppy heads.

I also collected some smaller dried leaves from my photinia bush - I love how they look like leather. With a border of gold dots, the leaves are stuck into a small bottle for a little flourish at each place setting.

Candlelight always adds to the festive mood...the two candles on the table are made from a pair of worn out wool socks, two recycled glass jars, some linen string and two pearl buttons...the complete tutorial can be found in an earlier blog post - here...


The final touch to the centerpiece...one of the chestnut garlands which kicked off the Rustic Luxe series...the little gold beads mimic the gold dots on the leaves...repetition always helps in pulling a vignette together...










Though we use ironstone and silverplate everyday in our household, I do concur that this is one of the times that I bring out my grandmother's silver...that glint of shine plays off nicely with the simple ironstone...plain striped napkins (which you'll notice have not been ironed...just more texture!) echo the tones of the leaves and those willow branch napkin rings show up again...

In place of name cards, I've pulled together 4 words of inspiration, quickly stamped onto a piece of used manila folder...its a little wonky, I like that...calligraphy would be nice but time-consuming...
one word set at each place...a thought to contemplate for the day...perhaps to spark dinnertime conversation...
I used some sort of galvanized hose connectors that I recently picked up at a farm sale...I don't know what they were, but for now, they are card holders. 

I know what you are thinking...I don't have anything like old hose connectors around here...well, there are options...a tarnished fork, a flower frog, even an old hair clip...be creative...its not about what something is, its all about what it can become...

Well, now that the table's set, time to see if that turkey is thawing...and to take a minute to thank each and every one of you...I appreciate that you follow my adventures - whether here on the blog, my facebook page or on Instagram...I appreciate your support, your comments, your enthusiasm...at this time of thanksgiving, I'm grateful for this community...

better late than never...

While looking for something in my office the other day...which I can't even remember what it was at this point...
I came across a folder of collage materials...

I will often collect materials for a piece and put them all together in a folder so that the ideas and theme stay intact...

I started this folder eight years ago...for the first time I was exhibiting at Fresh Paint Art Festival...I had cut out the letters from an old Crate & Barrel shopping bag...and the flowers were cut from a wallpaper sample book...there's also a magazine ad of a Holstein cow...I guess it was the black & white idea tying it all together...

I prepped a canvas today to finish up this collage...minus the cow...
you can see the completed piece at Fresh Paint, August 15-16 at the Everett Marina...I hope you'll stop by...

the first signs

edited with kk texture scripted edges

It begins with the sprouts of green among the dead leaves and withered grass from last fall...and then those first pops of color...little beads of purple...the grape hyacinths are blooming...

and then the light of day changes...it becomes brighter...and lingers longer...

The assignment for this week's bestill52 class was to capture this lightness...using elements of white and glass...my collection of small glass bottles put to perfect use, complemented by a swath of white linen and lovely afternoon light...

both photos edited with kk texture hughes

This spring awakening inspired me to clear out the dust and the cobwebs and 
to brighten the dark corners of the house...

edited with kk texture rainyday

hope and dream...the promise of spring...

joining the group over at kim klassen's Texture Tuesday...

taking a little detour

I've been participating in Kim Klassen's BeStill52 course...its a combination of still photography with reflective moments...to actually practice being still...quieting your mind and body...to listen to your inner rhythms...

Last Wednesday's exercise had a prompt to use some bunting in your vignette...I didn't have any bunting...and with my crunch schedule, I didn't want to make any bunting (though it probably would have been a good still exercise) so wondered how I could adapt...

I recently pulled this old board out of a corner of the garden...I recollect it had metal casters on it at one point...which I removed and now are attached to the low cabinet in my front hallway.  Re-examining the board, with its long, thick jute rope hanging on one end, I decided to clean it up and bring it inside for a photographic background...

As I set up on my dining room table, I grabbed the old tape measure laying nearby...the idea of the prompt was to have something in the background which would add some visual interest...I improvised...taking a detour with the bunting idea...

My neighbor's camellia bush is blooming so I snagged a stray blossom...
which was already wilting...picks up the faded red ink stain on the board...

Looking for something else to play up the pink...a few vintage bingo cards...

Finally...just focusing on the wood, the measuring tape and the dressmaker's shears...

This for me, reflects a picture of stillness...weekly exercise complete...

Joining the group over at Kim's Texture Tuesday...
all of my photos were edited with kk texture carmel...

out of the box

Within this first month of the new year, I'm trying hard to stay true to my words for the year - dig deep

To look beyond the surface...to explore new avenues...follow a different path...

I've been pretty surprised by my efforts...
discovering a few skills and abilities that I didn't know I had...or had merely forgotten...

Taking a different approach...not relying on the tried and true...

In my year-long Photoshop artistry class, AWAKE, I have surprised myself by taking photos of images that normally would not interest me...and then editing them in new and different ways...leading to an end result that I liked more than I thought possible...and revealing an insight that broke free from my standard artistic view...

The assignment was to take several photos of an object, each from a different angle...I merged this assignment task with another assignment, which was to focus on how we saw our artistic life...as I took my morning walk, I was struck by the row upon row of boxes of this apartment building...and how I would hate to live in one of those boxes...as I combined two of the views of the building, I struggled with how to make each stand out yet blend together...exploring some of the blend modes in Photoshop that I never use (hard light for example) yielded the effect I wanted...masking, blending, and layering helped to bring the entire composition together.

going off in a different direction...sometimes the best way to go...

joining the group over at kim klassen's Friday Finds...where my find is the exhilaration of taking new trails and leaving the path behind...

and speaking of new trails...did you read about that I'm taking the Art Party on the road...to Portland, OR...
want to know more?  get all the details here...

Getting ahead of myself

The weather here the past couple of days has been very springlike...almost lulls one into thinking warmer weather is at hand...but I know better...its only a tease...

I'm so sorry for those of you who live on the East coast...stay safe and warm...

Since the weather was cooperating, thought I'd better get outside and clean up the garden...a task that didn't seem to happen this past fall...

My two large hydrangea bushes in the backyard garden are already budding...figured I could snatch one small branch...

Keeping it simple...edited with 2 layers of  kk texture unleashed

and one version edited with textures and overlays gleaned from my first session of AWAKE, 
a yearlong Photoshop artistry class...

Joining the group over at kim klassen's Texture Tuesday...camaraderie and photography at its best...

Welcome 2015

A new day...a new year...filled with promise and possibility...

I don't write out resolutions...it seems so rigid to me...

Years ago I heard about the practice of deciding on a word for the year...I liked this idea...
a touchstone...something to guide my actions during the year...lead a course of action...help to set me straight...

Last year's word was direction...which was apt...I didn't know where I was going - literally...we had talked about moving...but with no determinations, it made it difficult to make decisions in other areas.  A month of travel in June settled that question...no moving...a good, sound decision...and from there, other plans, actions and ideas took hold...

So my word for 2015 is actually two words...
dig deep

As I contemplated these words, an image emerged...and spurned me to create...
blending together five of my own photographs comprised the final composition...

pushing me to go below the surface...
      explore and examine...
      refine and reflect...

to know that there is more than meets the eye...and that a depth of understanding - in regard to my level of commitment as an artist, the refinement of the craft of my skills, the breath of my willingness to encourage creativity in my life and foster the same in others...will be the root of the path I follow in this year...


As it has been since the beginning, this blog will be the journal of that journey...I hope you will follow along... 
and the best to all as we start 2015...