it's still SUMMERTIME!

 just before leaving on my little excursion to be with my sisters...

 

 I took about 100 of these, just mesmerized by this beauty and the way she flitted around the plants and myself ;)

 

 

 

 

 and then i told you how we have hidden the beans,

climbing on the sunflowers, from the deer...

 well...it's been GRAND luck..we have harvest LOTS of these

LONG HEIRLOOM green beans and flash frozen them, yum!

 their flowers smell just like sweet peas...i never knew that!

 

 

 

 

 this is Candy...YES we LAUGHED...

 AND read menu's...this is Cookie...

 she barbequed for us on their back patio in Seal Beach,

many an evening ;)

 

 

 

 

 we were heading for a night of music where Candy's son, my nephew was playing...

we had to stay in a motel rather than camp...this is Diane our mutual SISTER/FRIEND...

 WE tried to keep the luggage cart LIGHT, ha, trading, hauling, figuring out...

what to take to the venue and what to leave behind...not so LIGHT...;)

 

 

 

 

 one morning, i found my toothbrush in hardened wax as a candle burned down through the evening...no harm done and yes, laughter once again!

 

 

 

 

 we swam here during the day and then after

MIDNIGHT on several evenings...

so magical to us, looking at the stars, floating on our backs,

hearing the ships come in and far away laughter...

perfect summer nights to remember FOREVER!

 

 

 

 

 welllll...lookie here...

 

 i began an abstract as soon as i returned home.

the real colors were in between these two...

 and then it morphed into this as i freely (oh yes, there were some struggles) and intuitively (mostly) painted and glued and scraped away...

 and away...finding depths...

 and fun subterfuge...

isn't it just absolutely MYSTERIOUS...

i am in love where it is headed and

promise to share when completed.

 

the next Art Walk will be in 10 days...

the pressure is on...the beautiful pressure that i tend to work well with!

 

HAPPY MORE SUMMER DAYS MY FRIENDS!!!

SERENDIPITY SUMMER...

 DECORATING IN OUR HOMES

this is one way;)

I use this window to display favorites;

photos of family and friends, words, quotes, thoughts...

And then I change it up as time goes by...

 

 

 

 

 we live in the country and have tricked the wild critters

this year, so far, fingers crossed!

Bambi, raccoons, and turkeys have ruled the roost

around here, eating ALL our vegetables, flowers, and fruit from our trees...

 

 

 

 

 until THIS SUMMER...

we hid our plantings in amongst bushes and such,

that we knew they don't normally peruse.

such as some beans and peas hidden in and around the sunflowers...

they are all climbing away and not a deer print in sight!

 

 

 

 

 we have renamed a few bushes and plants...

this is our Crape Myrtle Melon Bush...

there are 6 giant melons soon to be ripe for the picking...

hopefully ours and not the critters ;)

 

 

 

 

 and the birds have left us enough blackberries to hoard away and devour on our own!

 

 

 

 

 in FOUR more days, i'll be with two of my sisters

for our annual SISTER TRIP.

we interspersed our visit with our mutual friends.

we are only cunning because our family is GINORMOUS and

we have been making this time for US for 10 years now!

Carolyn died last summer and so you can guess/know that these

SISTER TRIPS are INVALUABLE!

I made 4 STORY HANGERS for all of those special loves...

 

 

 

I started this mixed media yesterday,
and felt a fire light beneath me!
 this is a close up of a first layer..

this is an embroidered section of fabric glued to the canvas and then painted...

 

 

 

 

 this close up is of "fine cardboard" and a natural type of fiber at the top...

 

 

 

 

 close up also, larger cardboard and paint...

 

 

 

 

 this shows the piece in it's entirety...12"x24"x1 1/2" gallery wrapped...

it's what many of us call the "ugly" stage, but I like it almost as is!

and yet...nary to become attached; next layers will be intuitive and different...

not even moi' knows how this will end...

Flora Bowley calls this "being brave"!

 

 

 

 

 

 

I repainted our palm mask,

a completely different face, fun stuff,

and freshens up our outdoor decorating;)

Richard says, this looks like it's attached to an elephant's leg...

LOVE that guy!

 

 

 



 

if we didn't DREAM and SCHEME...

we wouldn't be able to create so CREATIVELY, eh?

I've been doing a lot of that this summer...

feeling blessed, grateful and everything in between.

I normally paint like crazy knowing i'll need to return to the work force

before summer ends...

well no more, I am officially retired and am slowing down, yet revving up in different ways...

 

and I LOVE IT!

and you for visiting and taking the time, YOUR TIME!

XOXO

WONDERFUL RANDOM SUMMER DAYS!

 reminds me of a Chinese lantern ;)...but it's a flower

 

 

 

 such a wonderful quote...

 

 

 

 I needed to pick up my brushes today after many dry days...

a little card was in order!

I sewed the words on with shiny plastic threads.

 

 

 

 one thing lead to another...

 

 

 

 I decided to use this same beautiful quote on this piece today as well...

 

 

 

 

 up close textures...

 

 

 

 top is cheese cloth,

the bottom piece is a section of Great Nana's quilt piece...

 

 

 

 and when I began this one...after the card...

I remembered WHY the wait to paint...

yes...this is going somewhere, maybe a lot more,

maybe a little more...have to wait for "it" longer...

going slow on this one ;)

 

 

 

 SPECIAL PLATES...I used for a couple of shindigs we've had...

 

 

 

 then made more Caprese salad for a barbeque party we attended...

with more of these special plates ;)...she is 30 yrs. old now, that

darlin' daughter of ours...she and her husband chuckled dearly!

 

 

 

just about this time next year...we plan on going to Santa Catalina, Panama...

we will see what we shall see!

 

 

SAVORing summer at a slow simmer...

but it still goes fast, eh?

 

OXOX

"Message in a Bottle"...

 i started with spray paint for the bottom layer,

my favorite way to start.

there is probably one teensy portion of that left peeking through

 

 

 

 

 up close...butterfly wing

 

 

 

 

 sideways shot up close

 

 

 

 

 more up close...

this quote applies to so many of we women!

 

 

 

 

 dragonfly wings with script

 

 

 

 

 the colors above this photo are the very truest..

materials: fabric, tissue paper, finger painting,

palette knife painting, sponge brushes and regular ones ;)

computer generated script

24" X 36" X 1 1/2" Deep

 

 

 

 

 for a solid year, i had been working on my nephew's guitar...

 

 

 

 

 this was a daunting task for me, honestly...

it took such great patience drying and painting all sides...

 

 

 

 

 

 i will never attempt this again...

 

 

 

 

 there are little squares like this all over the front

(this is very up close)

 

 

 

 

 close up of the little skunk...

 

 

 

 

the back is by far my favorite, and joey's too...

and he said he loves it, i have to believe him...

this just about sent me over the edge at times.

 

Man, it is summer time...I've barely been here obviously and it will probably be another while till i return!

i hope you of you, my dear friends are enjoying your times together, when life seems so much freer and sunny smiles

(except for the friends in other parts of the country where it is not summer)

i wish you sunny smiles and time with friends and family as well!

 

CHEERS MY BUDDIES! 



JUNE ART WALK in Auburn, Northern California---oh SUMMER DAYS...

 the AUBURN ART WALK is coming up this Thursday...

 

 

 

 

 so i started a count down on face book yesterday...

 

 

 

 

 showing what will be available...

 

 

 

 

 taking great Giant Steps to join in more...

 

 

 

 

 i worked on finishing this last night...
i placed this FOR SALE on pinterest...

 

 

 

 

 ever so glad to find the words...

the substrate is a book cover,

made plaster to cover burlap.

then knitted some rustic fibers at the bottom, and

added the beads last night with chain to hang ;)

 

 

 

 

it's 105 here today but our miniature roses are not wilting,

they love it!

and I've been in the swimming hole almost the entire day...

HAPPY WEEKENDER FRIENDS!

 

 

XOXO