December 11, 2013

A Very Simple Christmas


It's beginning to look a little bit like Christmas at our house again this year! Our wreath is hung on the front door... just a simple green wreath with a red bow. It feels welcoming to me. I hope it will make others feel welcomed to our home this season as well. 


Our artificial tree is assembled & fluffed & strung with lights. I miss the smell of fresh pine from a real tree, but this is a season in our married life when holidays mean traveling away from home. The twinkling lights are bright & cheerful. They give our home a festive feel. Sometime soon I'll carry down our boxes of ornaments from upstairs & add to the tree's sparkle... But for now, the simple, un-embellished tree makes me feel happy.


On top of the old piano in our dining room, I've arranged the Nativity scene... just a replica of someone's skilled hand carving. I love the folk art feel of it & its' rustic simplicity. It's a reminder to me that Jesus was born in the humblest of circumstances & laid in a feeding trough used for the stable animals... Amazing Grace!! God sent His only Son to live & walk among us. Who would have thought He could love us so much?


I took this picture from our deck last night... It reminded me of the carol, "Silent Night". This year I have found myself longing for peacefulness, for time to meditate on the true meaning of the Christmas season. My husband & I have scaled our gift-giving & holiday shopping back. In truth, I'm relieved not to be bustling about looking for 'who knows what to give to Uncle Harry.' I'm content to miss out on the crowds & glitz & commercialism so often a part of the Christmas season. I'm feeling more centered, less stressed & more joyous. Yes, the Merry feels like it's returned to Christmas for me this year!

Last Sunday at church, we sang the well-known French carol, "Angels We Have Heard On High." I know I must have sung this song thousands of times over the years. But somehow, the words of the third verse jumped out at me this time... so much so that I scribbled them down on the bulletin so I wouldn't forget. They really sum up what I long to do this Christmas season (& always!)...

Come to Bethlehem and see
Him whose birth the angels sing;
Come adore on bended knee
Christ, the Lord, the Newborn King.

~ Wayne Wold

May YOU be blessed in knowing the love
of Jesus, our Savior and Lord
this Christmas!


November 14, 2013

Counting My Blessings

"Cozy Winter Home"

We had an unexpected early taste of Winter here in North Carolina, as the temps dipped down in the twenties overnight... No snow yet, but it sure has been cold enough for snow! First dog walk of the season, I bundled up in my scarf & hat & my winter coat, with a scarf I'd knit wrapped almost up to my nose.

Brrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr!!!!!

"Boy, I'm not ready for Wintertime yet!... I really don't like being cold!... Wasn't Halloween just a few days ago???" that little voice in my head begins to whine & complain...

And then I remember (something I'm prone to forget if I'm not very careful)...  

This is a very good day to count my blessings!

So, today I'm thankful for...

  • A warm house on a chilly day
  • A hot cup of Chai tea in my favorite mug
  • The space heater that's warming my toes-ies
  • The fleece blanket my sons gave me for Christmas... I'm cozier because of their love for me
  • A sunny 'Carolina Blue' sky with not a cloud in sight 
  • The sound of my dog snoozing right next to me while I type
  • A brand new book I can hardly wait to read
  • ... And a wide-open day to enjoy being creative!  :) 

Lord, I have so very much to be thankful for!... Please teach me to notice and count the big & small blessings in my everyday life... good gifts you have given to me!

November 11, 2013

Color Me Happy!


Just recently I decided to add some colored samples to the PholkartStudio shop on Etsy. I love color!... and I wanted to give my basically black & white shop a little more colorful friendliness!

What I didn't expect when I started my sample-making project... was rediscovering the joy I've always found in the process of coloring! With some music playing quietly in the background & a few stolen minutes to myself, there is something so peaceful & even prayerful for me about coloring! It takes me back to a time when my little girl self spent hour upon happy hour filling coloring books with hues like Blue, Green & Yellow-Orange, Purple & Red.


Now that I'm all grown up, my favorite coloring materials have changed from that wonderful new box of 64 Crayola crayons (my very own!) to my growing stash of Copics, Prismacolor markers & colored pencils. But that little-girl-love for coloring still remains!

 ...Yes, there's nothing like the blessing of simple pleasures!

October 22, 2013

The Trouble With Dust Bunnies


I love having my studio in our home!... There is nothing like blogging in my PJ's with a fresh, hot cup of coffee in my favorite mug. I love curling up in a comfy corner of the couch to sketch while listening to our lab, Winnie, snoozing happily on her bed. I love brainstorming new ideas & jotting them down while fixing dinner. I love having Aha! moments when I just drop everything & follow my latest creative intuition, playing with markers & colored pencils.

But there are some things I find hard about working & creating at home... and most often my biggest hurdle to overcome is ME!

Yes, I'm one of those bed-making, do-the-dishes, work-comes-before-play kinda people. I'm the kind of person who sees the spider webs, the dog hair, and all those dust bunnies. And it's hard (really hard!) for me to ignore them & go on with my next "great" creative idea. No... first I think I must banish the dust bunnies & all of their friends from my home, and then (only then!) do I feel OK about indulging myself in a little creative playtime.

As you can probably imagine, the playful side of me can get pretty exasperated with the dutiful side of me! 

So today (once again!) I want to remind myself that life is a balancing act... and there will always be dust bunnies! Sometimes the best thing for me to do is to ignore all the dust bunnies life holds & simply let the little girl in me come out to play.

October 5, 2013

So Very Thankful!


As so many of you know, October is Breast Cancer Awareness Month. To be honest, until recently that didn't have much meaning for me. At 57 years old, I had been blessed with good health & I was looking forward to enjoying middle age with my sweet husband, Joe. But all that suddenly changed for me...

The morning after my 'routine mammogram,' I got the phone call no woman ever wants to receive... "We want you to come back for a second screening. The radiologist found a problem on your X-ray."

So began several weeks of not knowing & waiting & trying not to think the worst. My husband & I prayed. We asked our family & friends for prayer. We believe the Lord wants us to bring our needs & our hearts before Him... and at the same time we believe, for better or for worse, God is in control.

I ended up needing to have a biopsy... and truthfully, I was afraid to go through that process almost as much as I feared learning about the test results. But the nurse & doctor who cared for me could not have been more compassionate. They listened to me & talked me through the entire procedure. I felt like I was treated as a person who mattered & not just another nameless patient... They helped put my heart at ease.

My story has a very HAPPY ending!... though now I know I could easily have received very different news.

And so today I am THANKFUL!...  Thankful for the love & support of my husband. Thankful for the prayerfulness of family & friends. Thankful for compassionate caregivers. And yes, thankful for the very good news I received... I don't take the gift of good health for granted any more.

Thank you Lord for caring for me in the midst of uncertainty & fear. Thank you for being my strength, my comfort, my rock. Thank you for your compassion & mercy on me. Please help me to remember that, no matter what I may face in this life, I can ALWAYS trust in You.

September 13, 2013

Autumn Days...

"Pumpkins4Sale"

Without a doubt, Autumn is my favorite time of year!  :)  ...Time once again for pumpkins & chrysanthemums, colorful leaves & cooler temperatures. Time for apple crisp & handknit scarves & my favorite blue jeans. Time to light the first fire of the season in the fireplace & cozy up with a favorite book & a cup of hot tea. Time for farmer's markets & apple cider & long walks with the dog while enjoying the crispy crunch-crunch-crunch of the leaves underfoot. Time to watch the squirrels busily collect acorns, diligently storing them up for the cold winter months...

When my youngest son was in preschool, the highlight of Autumn was always visiting a nearby farm with his class for a hayride & the chance to pick-your-own-pumpkin... Nothing like searching through rows of orange goodness with the little one you love to find the perfect pumpkin!  ;)

Autumn's not quite here yet in North Carolina... Indian Summer days still linger on into September. The walnut tree out back is unceremoniously letting loose its' leaves & the temperatures continue to creep up into the 80's by mid-afternoon. But I am watching for the first signs of Autumn!... 

I am ready to celebrate its SPLENDOR!!

"Folk Art Pumpkin"

August 24, 2013

Back To DigiStamps!!


It's Back to School time again already (really, where did the summertime go???). I seem to have done a lot of non-blogging over the summer... but heh, who's keeping count anyway? Not me... though I must admit it feels good to be tapping away at my keyboard again this morning. I do love to write!  :)

Over the last month or so, I have had a BIG change of heart... and I've decided to reopen the PholkartStudio Etsy Shop with my digital stamps for paper crafting. Yup, I know!... It surprised me too!!

After I realized that creating original art & offering it on Etsy was just NOT going to work with our current life stage (traveling often to care for an elderly parent in a rural setting), I put my shop on vacation so I could re-think my "Art Plan". And what I discovered was, when it came right down to it, I was enjoying learning new things on Zazzle, but I really missed the sense of community I feel on Etsy.

I had basically dismissed the idea of ever again offering digistamps (yes, a little extreme of me, but I tend to be a bit "all or nothing.") Since the last time I offered digistamps though, Etsy has added an instant digital download service... pretty nifty-neato!  :)  No more emailing digital files to customers by the seller... It's now instant & automatic! I know you're gonna LOVE it!!

So... I decided to put a few of my digistamps in the PholkartStudio Etsy Shop. And then I put a few more in there too...


...and in no time at all, I had filled up the 'shelves' in the PholkartStudio shop & was brainstorming what fun designs I'd create next!

July 24, 2013

Finding Creative New Ideas Every Day


So, where do new art ideas come from anyhow?... Well, everywhere really. I'm finding even life's ordinary everyday moments can inspire fun & creative ideas for art!  :)

On an average spring or summer Saturday morning around our house (after blueberry pancakes & coffee with my husband Joe!), it's time for Joe to head out into the yard. He puts on his straw gardening hat & I know he's about to be in his "Happy Place." I can almost see him start to relax as he mows the grass & pulls the weeds & moves plants from one location to another more suitable home. Watching him from our kitchen window, I feel like I'm watching him "paint" his own very beautiful picture.

Of course, our Lab, Winnie, is sure to make it known that she wants to be out in the yard with Joe too! She lies by the basement door & whimpers (loudly!) 'til Joe has finally finished mowing the grass. Then it's time for her to head out into the backyard & "supervise" the gardening. I'm convinced this is the highlight of Winnie's entire week!  ;)

A simple, every week scene at our house... Who'da thought that something so normal could inspire anything creative???

A little side-note here... Winnie is a black lab, so I cheated when I colored her brown! I'm still figuring out how to work with areas of black in art & not have them look like a great big black hole!  :)

July 8, 2013

Greetings From A Corn Field



While visiting our family farm this past June, I began to wonder whether it might be wisest for me to focus more of my attention on growing my Zazzle shop during this season in our family life. Now don't get me wrong, I LOVE Etsy! (I really do!)... and I plan to continue to list my art there as much as I'm able to. But my husband & I are finding we need to be at the farm more often these days. It's not as easy keeping in touch with buyers when I'm out in the middle of a corn field, away from the internet!... and mailing art while I'm on the road has proven to be a pretty big challenge too!

Now, admittedly, I am not the best at making changes. But, with all the back-and-forth we've been doing between our home in North Carolina & the family farm in Virginia, I finally decided that moving to "Plan B" just might be the best option for me right now.

And so, I've started to design t-shirts for infants, toddlers & elementary-aged kids. It's really been lots of fun!... something I've always wanted to do, in fact. Maybe I just needed a gentle nudge from the Lord to move out in a brand new arty direction. The t-shirts join my growing selection of prints, cards & stamps that I offer in my Zazzle shop, PholkartStudio.



I'd sure LOVE to have your help in brainstorming new design ideas for baby & kids' tees! My sons are all grown up now, so it feels like a lifetime ago since I needed to be "in tune" with what little guys like to wear! Leave me a comment!... I'd love to hear from you!! :)

June 8, 2013

Follow Me...


Back when I first starting creating art (with the hopes of other people liking & buying it!), I had absolutely NO idea that achieving my hoped-for goal of being a little art biz involved anything more than simply making art that I loved & "putting it out there" on the internet for others to love too!.... Really, what's so complicated about that?!

You see, I had a "If you build it, they will come" kinda mindset (thanks to the movie, Field of Dreams for the perfect phrase to describe my thinking!). I soon found out that I had a LOT of learning to do! It just wasn't as simple & easy as that!

Along with nurturing my art skills along (read here... mostly trial & error!), there was a whole GINORMOUS, always-changing world of Social Media to get a handle on. Sheesh!... Who'da thought??? Not me, that's for sure!

So... being a natural researcher & a great lover of learning new things, I happily dove into the process of coming up-to-speed on all things Social Media... blog writing, & facebook posting, & image sharing on flickr & Pinterest, & arty newsletters (Oh My!!). I have to admit, I never really got the "hang" of Twitter (...what do all those hashtags mean, anyway?).

But recently, I found myself "hitting the wall." I felt I just couldn't "push myself out there" anymore. Having an online presence had ended up feeling like a huge burden to me (especially as the BIG Introvert I am!). After all, what I really wanted to do was to authentically be myself & MAKE ART!! So, I backed away from my beloved computer & quietly hid myself in my studio to regroup for a while.

And I'm still in that regrouping process... Mostly, I've been trying to simplify (goodbye Twitter!). I'm trying to listen to my own heart. I'm trying to get in touch with what nurtures me & what drains me. And then, I'm trying to ignore what everyone else out there in cyberspace is doing.... and what all the current advice is saying... and simply show up with my art when I'm able to & be myself.

I know this may be "wrong thinking" to many art business owners' ears... but for me, I need to follow my own arty path. I need to feel free to be HAPPY both in making & promoting my artwork.

** ps ~ I would be DELIGHTED if you'd like to follow me anywhere my art is found! There are links to my Facebook Page here on my blog, as well as to my Shops &  Pinterest collections. I hope you LOVE what I create!... I certainly LOVE creating it for you to enjoy!  :)

May 18, 2013

Happy to be a Mom Of Boys :)


Somehow, it's May already!... and the neighborhood is starting to fill up with the sights & sounds I remember so well from my two sons' growing-up-days! I love seeing little boys out riding their bikes on the sidewalk... kids with dirty knees playing "trucks" in the front yard... hearing the sounds of skateboards down the street as "the big boys" practice their jumping skills. Pretty soon there will be kiddie pools & sprinklers & squirt gun fights... kids catching fireflies after dark... and best of all, the sounds of children laughing & playing!

I have to admit... I have a BIG soft spot in my heart for little boys! Our house was full of them!... our two sons with their whole gang of little buddies... playing legos by the hour on rainy days, eating drippy popsicles on the front porch when the weather was hot, making forts & playing with flashlights... a constant noisy parade of little guys in search of snacks & bandaids for scraped knees... and sometimes hugs & kisses too!...  

I loved every minute of it!! 

Sometimes now it's hard to believe that those "little boy days" went by so quickly!... I remember wondering back then (on my more "challenging" days!) if time had stood still! Now I know that I was especially blessed to be home with our boys & be there for all their growing-up minutes!... 

Such a gift from God to me!... and I am so very thankful!


Thank you so much, Lord, for the wonderful gift of being a mom of boys! Thanks for the good days & the not-so-good days of growing up together as a family. What a JOY & a PRIVILEGE to have been there to nurture them along!... Please help me to treasure these memories & to encourage them on as they continue to grow.

May 13, 2013

Daily Doodle: Today's Grocery List


Back when I first got interested in art, I had an arty friend who taught a mini-class on handlettering. Her advice to us... practice, practice, and keep on practicing! "Letter your grocery lists!" she told us... and that advice has stayed with me all these years!

So today, when I looked at the chicken scrawl on my hurriedly written list, I decided to have some fun & illustrate my list on a regular old 3x5 card. I had bought a bunch of 3x5's when I last got inspired to try some Daily Doodles (my little practice, "don't take yourself too seriously" sketches). I probably spent an hour this afternoon on this silly drawing... listening to music & just plain havin' fun!

Here's a close-up of my list... slightly wonky & totally spontaneous. Simply great art therapy for a normal Monday afternoon!


May 4, 2013

Back2Nature


My husband & two grown sons are in the process of preparing for a major hiking/camping adventure (I love that they want to spend time together this way!). The trip itself will hopefully be in the summer of 2014... but in the meantime, there is research to be done about the trail, camp-y things to plan, & lots of equipment to gather... My husband is savoring every bit of the process!

My family teases me, saying I love the IDEA of nature better than the REALITY of nature (read here... not a fan of snakes, spiders, mosquitoes & sleeping on the ground). Vacation-wise, I'm more of a cottage-lover. Give me indoor plumbing, a porch with a rocking chair and the sights & sounds of the great outdoors, a camera, my journal & sketchbook, a coffee maker, simple healthy foods, a good book, the company of family & our sweet dog Winnie, a nice clean bed at night... and I'm a happy camper!

April 30, 2013

My Recent Rx for Creative Block


There's a funny thing about my Creative Blocks... No matter how hard I try to push those big old blocks aside, they just won't budge! And that's just what I found this month as I sat down to update my blog... I was completely at a loss about what to write.

Now normally, my tendency would be to press on, hoping that inspiration would magically reappear. But this time was different...

This time I got busy!


I am NOT at all excited about house cleaning (or cooking either, for that matter!). But since I was getting nowhere with my writing efforts, I jumped into cleaning my studio & "This Old House." It felt good to chase some of the dust bunnies away that had multiplied during the winter months.


My wintertime reading had been James Herriot's book, All Creatures Great and Small. I enjoyed traveling around the English countryside "with him" so much as he cared for the animals & the farm people there, that I immersed myself in his second book All Things Bright and Beautiful ... Nothing like a trip to faraway places (even if only in book form!) to bring new inspiration to me.

And since it's been so pretty outside...


...I've spent extra time enjoying the newness of Spring in our neighborhood. I must say, though I'm not a photographer at all, I've had so much fun capturing pics with my new phone camera as I've walked our lab Winnie on the block each day!

Taking pics has really challenged me to see with fresh eyes... There are interesting things, inspiration & beauty around me everyday!

So... Yet another lesson learned for me about being a creative person... Sometimes it's best to put my project aside for a while & let my creative brain gain some fresh perspective.

Thank you so much Lord for "wiring" me to be a creative person. Please help me to honor You while I allow creativity to grow in me.

April 9, 2013

Hi, My Name Is Patti And I'm A Pur-fek-shun-ist!


I've been working away at my Zazzle shop for a while now... having lots of fun creating cards, prints, & more from my original artwork. Finally, I decided the time had come for me to order some of my designs so I could see the final products...

The day the mailman delivered my Zazzle Mail I was sooooo excited to see what was inside! And there it was!... a glossy postcard of my "Pumpkins For Sale" illustration. The printing was crisp & clear, the paper was top-notch... I was thrilled with my arty mail!

That is, 'til I realized one thing!... The colors were not an exact match to my original art.

Uh-Oh!!... Enter Patti's Perfectionism! 

For the next two days I plunged myself into research & study, trying my best to understand the language of sRGB & CMYK. Now, as a self-taught artist, most of what I've learned art-wise has been through research, plus LOTS of trial & error!... So at first, my quest for new art knowledge felt like another challenging adventure.

However, that feeling of adventure was soon replaced by the cross-eyed, head-throbbing feeling of bumping my head against something I just couldn't figure out or change, no matter how hard I tried!

Well, to make a very loooooong story short... I decided to "back away from the edge" of my "unreconcilable problem" & get a fresh perspective. I placed the postcard on a tiny easel & took this picture in my sunny kitchen... and then I walked away.

The next day, I felt like the Lord had given me a whole new outlook on my problem...

I realized (once again!) that some things are just plain out of my control. The printing process Zazzle uses allows me to offer my artwork on products in a print-on-demand way. Other printing methods might allow more exact color matching... but the process would be much slower & the products would need to be purchased in bulk at a higher cost.

... Basically, that just wouldn't work for me.

And as I looked with fresh eyes at the photo I'd taken the day before... and at the postcard still propped up on its' easel... I realized it was OK. I could like this version of my artwork just the way it was.

Perfectionists really don't like to settle for less than perfect... But today I'm feeling thankful for learning one more lesson on the road toward embracing "good enough."


March 24, 2013

Illustration Friday - IF: Swim


For years I've played with the idea of submitting some of my silly doodles for Illustration Friday's weekly topics... but yes, I've always been a bit too shy! Today though, when I saw that this week's topic is SWIM, I remembered an ACEO I made a while back that I thought would fit the challenge...

This art card is called "Here Fishy Fishy." It measures the standard 2.5"x3.5" and was created using Copic markers & Prismacolor pencils.

I have a special love for this tiny piece of art since the little boy with his tousled red hair reminds me so much of my youngest son when he was little!   :)

March 21, 2013

Welcome Spring!!

I don't know about you... but SPRING could not come quickly enough for me this year!!

Now, I know as a "North Carolina Gal" I really have no room to complain! While the Northeast was being covered repeatedly by snow this winter, we were mostly just cold & soggy, with day after day of gray skies... Nothing multiple layers of warm clothes & an extra pair of wooly socks couldn't cure! Oh!... and LOTS of hot coffee!!   ;)

Truth be told, Wintertime is always challenging for me. Like so many other artists, I struggle with depression... and there's nothing like soaking up some early spring sunshine to lift my spirits! My studio is on the south side of our home... definitely the best place to be year 'round to catch Mother Nature's warm glow when the sun does peek out!


Back one gray day this past winter, when I was especially yearning for spring, I asked my arty friends on facebook if they could suggest some SPRING Ideas that I could illustrate. I really needed some help in pulling my imagination out of winter's chill & back to warmer weather. And they gifted me with a loooong list of inspiration!... as well as the encouragement that YES!, there would be spring again!

...And that's how "Kite Flying Lessons" was "born"... An itty-bitty piece of artwork that reminded me again of my need for the encouragement of creative friends and the hope of SPRING! 

March 9, 2013

Unplugged

Recently, my husband & I took a very rainy trip up to see his mom, where she lives on the family farm. I took this picture of the light in our bedroom window... Somehow, the warm light seemed especially inviting on that cold, rainy evening!

In some ways, life at the farm is still untouched by time. Things are the way they always have been... well, not really! But the pace of life is definitely slower & it's not hard at all to feel closer to Mother Nature with all her moods & beauty.

One thing that is definitely missing there... The internet has not found its' way to the farm (nor do I expect it to get there for a very long time!). Even our cell phones struggle to keep from dropping their calls!  ;)

And so, I've come to find that the farm can be the perfect place to snuggle up with a cup of tea, enjoy the quietness, & doodle in my sketchbook without distraction.

Here are some recent "Farm Doodles"... Just having fun with some autumn themes. The "Peace Dove" sketch will no doubt become a Christmas card design in the months to come...

I'm looking forward to watching as these simple sketches become little pieces of colorful art!... It still feels like a magical process to me!  :)

Farm Doodles © Patti Moore


February 24, 2013

I {Heart} Handmade

One of the wonderful things about being an artist today is being able to easily access other artists & their inspiring work online! I'm a HUGE introvert... and though I longed for creative community for many years, it wasn't until I started offering my art on Etsy that I began to actually "meet" other artists. I have loved talking design & colors & techniques & arty tips with these generous & inspiring friends! Many have really taken me under their creative wings and helped me learn & grow as an artist!... I will always be grateful!  :)

I thought I'd share some of my current Etsy "favorites" with y'all!... The list just keeps growing as I make wonderful new discoveries on Etsy everyday. I hope you'll click on the thumbnails above & go exploring with me!... It's amazing to see all the beauty & creativity there is to enjoy in this handmade world we live in!

February 11, 2013

A Little Rainy Day Work-In-Progress


My sweet husband surprised me this past Christmas with an iPhone! (Thank you, hon!)  He knew I had wanted to take pics & share them more easily on the web. I'm still working on getting the focus right, but here goes with a little work-in-progress from my art desk!...

Since last fall, I've gone "back to basics" art-wise... which for me is creating small format original illustrations, especially ACEO's (artist trading cards which measure 2.5"x3.5"). I've learned that I love little projects... I get bored & restless when an art project takes too long. Seems I'm always eager to move on to the next fun idea!  ;)

I'm also back to my "first love" art materials... a mechanical pencil with a kneaded eraser, a fine-tipped Micron pen, my rainbow of Prismacolor pencils, and a wonderful mix of Copic & Prismacolor markers... Just love being surrounded by all those yummy colors!  :)

This ACEO ended up being a bit of a "Stop & Go Project" as I fit my art time in around the rest of life! I finally got it finished & listed in my Etsy shop yesterday...

Say hello to "Rainy Day Friends."

"Rainy Day Friends"

January 21, 2013

Inspired By Folk Art

"Cozy Winter Home" ACEO
One of the things I've been longing to do art-wise is to return to my folk art-style "roots." I don't have an art background... and much of my inspiration in starting to create came from folk art & outsider art.

I love...

...the colorfulness of folk art!

...the "use what you have" & "improvise as you go" ingenuity of folk art.
 
...the "nothing's perfect" and "somewhat wonky is OK" philosophy of art.

..."one of a kind" and "made entirely by hand" kinda art!

Back when my two sons were little & we spent many fun hours in our local library, I loved to hunt for books for myself filled with pictures of folk art, Amish quilts, cottage-style decorating & tales of flea marketing. As a budget-wise mom, I was drawn to the "design on a dime" philosophy I found within these books... Yes, this way of thinking really fit my lifestyle!

Well, many years later, I still love the same things!... rich colors, nubby & woven textures, repurposed materials, artful creations full of personality & originality, art made by hand that tells a unique story.

I hope that the art I create today reflects my love for the beauty of handmade!  

January 6, 2013

Celebrating Life's Simple Blessings

"Bedtime Story"
'Twas the first week of a brand New Year... As always a great time to make a fresh start & explore new directions! Or, maybe in my case, a chance to go back to old loves & pick up where I left off...

Long ago on another cold January day, I started my very first blog, Simple*Blessings. It became my place to write little stories about the everyday things of our family's life & to draw colorful pictures that illustrated my stories. A blog just for me! (& anyone else who happened to stop by.) A blog "just because"...  A blog that was fun & creative & made me happy!   :)

Well, somewhere along the way, I put my silly illustrated blog aside & moved on to other artful things. But recently I realized how much I missed it!... just noticing ordinary everyday things, telling silly stories, & doodling some pictures to make them pretty.

So, here I am again... Blogging "just because it's fun." Trying to look for the beauty in the ordinary. Playing with markers & colored pencils like a kid again. Happy to be...

Celebrating Life's Simple Blessings!