City Lights

12" x 12" Acrylic on textured canvas

Last week, I recived my new copy of Somerset Studio.  In it, is a little article about using Purple, Turquoise, Mustard and Black.  I thought it was intriguing, so I tried a little painting with those colors.  The article was by Dina Wakley, by the way - and she also used a lot of white.  I'm still not satisfied with my abstracts yet - much more practice to do!

In other news, I'm starting a new class soon -  "Faces in Collage" by Sharon Tomlinson!  I'm kinda scared (I usually am!) cause faces are so new to me, but I'm gonna give it my best try!  Also this month, I'm taking another online course from Christy Tomlinson (no relation to Sharon) - this one on SheArt2 - doing more with the girls!   I think I'm starting to love taking online classes - they never end, they are forever on your computer - and you can do it at your own pace.  I'm sure that I'll be posting soon with new paintings from these classes!


Oh, and just so you know, I did receive the Birthday Flowers from my hubby, and they are gorgeous!

What a Birthday!

So, today is my birthday!  This plant arrived in the afternoon from my daughter (who lives in Kansas City) - I thought it was a little different, but I kinda like it.  The card on it said it is a Money Tree.  I called Serena and was describing the plant, and she asked me to send her a photo of it, so I did.  Later, I received an email from her saying "This isn't what I ordered!"  Later we spoke again, and she said she had called the florist here in Dunnellon, who told her that no, this isn't a money tree!  It's some kind of gardenia.  So, the florist will call me tomorrow to see what I want to do.


On top of that, my dear husband (who NEVER orders flowers) took it upon himself to order me flowers for my birthday this year.  Of course, the flowers never showed up -- and when he called them, (long story short) they discovered that the order was never put through!  So, after much huffing and puffing, he agreed to getting my flowers tomorrow - at a 30% discount, of course!


But, I did get a chocolate cake from my sister!  That's the good news!

Hannah

This week I finished and delivered my first "Girl" commission.  My friend, Becky, ordered a girl to give to her daughter, Hannah, for her birthday next month.  I first met Hannah when she was about 2 years old - she'll be turning 10 in November.  Here's a photo of her taken this summer at our Mystery Dinner Theater at church.  She's such a doll!  I hope I did her justice with my painting!

Perchance to Sell!

I showed some of my stuff to Nancy Meyers at Grumble's House on Monday - and she agreed to put my "Girls", these 2 paintings that are on 12" square wood, and my fabric bowls and coasters in her shop through the Christmas season.  I'm hoping that after the first of the year, she'll have some space that I can rent, and put all my stuff in there.  I'd love to have a place to show and sell my paintings and other crafting that I do.  Right now, I'd just love to be able to get all these things out of my studio!   And, Grumble's House is the busiest place in this little burg.  They have customers that come from all over the state.  Wish me luck!

A Tale of Two Torties

That's Penny on the left and Sheba (the new one) on the right.  As you can see, they really don't look a lot alike!  Except, at a distance you have to look at the size.  We're still having a lot of hissing from Sheba whenever Penny is in her sight.  And, Heaven forbid if Penny ever gets up close!  Then it goes to screaming like she's being killed!  And, I know that it's only been a week, but I'm getting a little fed up with it.  The good news is that Barney (the dog) can actually come up to her and touch her without so much as a sniff!  Praying for Peace!

Serena

This one is for my baby girl, Serena!  She always was a sweet little girl - and now that she's a woman with 3 kids, husband, dogs, cat, and trying to work 3 part-time jobs, she still finds time for her friends or anyone else that needs her.  She wears me out just thinking about all she does!  So, Serena, I salute you!

Now, this is a photo of my Studio!  How in the world did it get to be such a mess?  It seems like I clean it up and organize it several times a year, but still it manages to get to this state quickly!  Do any of you have this problem?  Yikes!  No wonder it's hard for me to get in there and try to create!

Trying to save a life

Caught her yawning!

It's so hard to be a SuperHero! My neighbor has been telling me about this little cat since before Ziggy disappeared. She has been living at the Rainbow Springs Private Beach by the Rainbow River. My neighbor and a lot of other ladies often go there in the mornings to float down the river, and they bring the kitty food. They all have been worried about her, with winter coming, not very many folks will be going to the river to feed her, and there are alligators there, also. And don't forget the coyotes, foxes and bears!
So, when Ziggy vanished, she felt it was my duty to save this little cat. I went there yesterday, and the kitty was so sweet and loving - so I took a chance and brought her home. And now, she has decided that I am the enemy! Lots of growling and hissing going on.
I've kept her out on the screened- in pool deck, but all she really wants to do is get outside! This morning, though, she came to me and rubbed up against me and wanted to be petted. Progress! Then I let my cat Penny out and it was kinda cool. They just ignored each other till Penny gave up and came inside. Unfortunately, my dog, Barney got out and scared her to death! Two steps back. Now, it looks like rain.
I think it's interesting that she is a tortious - just like Penny. Except Penny has long legs, tail and face while this one has short legs, tail and a kind of Persian shaped face! I'm still trying to figure out a name for her. Sure hope she warms up soon - I'd love to get her in the house and become one of the family!

Back to normal-- kind of....

Bill came home from the hospital on Tuesday - a day earlier than expected.  He is recovering nicely, but still in a lot of pain.  He is such a good patient!  He does everything he's supposed to do, and never complains.

So, today, I finally got back in the studio and started 2 more girl canvases.  These girls will be "S" and "T" - I'm almost to the end of the alphabet!  And, I've got 3 orders for some specific girls - those will be fun to do!

Mid-morning yesterday, I looked out my back window and saw a large coyote in my back yard!  I made a noise, and he just stopped and looked at the house - and stood there until I started yelling at him to go away!  I've never seen one during the light of day - which makes me think that he was the one that got my poor little Ziggy, and was coming back for more.  So, from now on, Penny will never be going outdoors.  She can go back to spending time on the screened in pool deck, and if that isn't good enough -- Tough!