In Full Bloom

I played around with it a bit more last night after posting here and then decided on a name:

"In Full Bloom"

In Full Bloom - 24" x 24" on stretched gallery canvas
SOLD

Happy New Year Everyone!

2010 was pretty good...here's to a fabulous 2011

International Women Celebrate

Here's my submission for the International Women Celebrate Exhibition taking place in Ayr, Ontario in March/April 2011.

I decided to just have fun with it.

Now I'm just trying to decide what to call it...



24 x 24 (acrylic on stretched canvas)

 

Outfit #5: Lucy Claus

We decided not to wait until tomorrow to show off this festive little number.

Lucy's thrilled enough about the season for the both of us.

(Then again, maybe she's just excited about wearing a fluffy hat.)

 

Merry Christmas Everyone!

Outfit #4: My Little Rudolph

Lucy's far more excited than I am about all of this Christmas cr*p, so today she asked me to show you her Rudolph outift.  (I told her she'd have to wait until the 25th for the one that she REALLY wants me to post.)

Determined to make this outfit work, when her bell-bedazzled antler headband kept falling off her wee little noggin she decided instead to wear it as a belt .

I'm particularly fond of the way she's fashioned the red nose.

Jingle all the way Lucy!

Ugh

The past couple of days have been a little frustrating. 

My painting for the International Women Celebrate Exhibition is not coming along as well as I'd hoped.  I haven't given up on it yet, but am not ready to post it so thought I'd indulge myself for a moment here by posting a couple of paintings that I do feel good about...even though they are more than 20 years old.

Mala (16 x 20 acrylic on canvas board)

 


Ben (acrylic on canvas board)



My Favourite Things: Mom's Chewy Ginger Cookies

Welcome to the first official entry of the all-new "My Favourite Things" portion of this blog. 

Today I am highlighting my mother's recipe for the best Ginger Cookies I've ever tasted.  Listen up and make notes people (if there's actually anyone reading this)...this is good stuff.

Mix together in a large bowl:
3/4 cup shortening (can use regular or golden butter flavour Crisco)
3/4 cup white sugar
1/4 cup molasses
1 egg (beaten)
2 TBSP water

In a second bowl, combine:
2 cups flour
1 TBSP ginger
1/4 tsp. allspice (can substitute with nutmeg, if you prefer)
1 tsp. cinnamon
2 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. salt

Sift dry ingredients together before adding to wet mixture.

Combine and form into walnut-sized balls (I usually flatten them a bit before putting them into the oven)

The recipe calls for 10 minutes at 350F, but I find that makes them too dry/hard in my convection oven (yep - that would be the immaculate one), so I set the timer for 7 minutes...8 at the most.

NOTE: These freeze well, but they also disappear quickly, so you might want to do a double batch ;)

Emerging from My Creative Void

Sheridan's Illustration program was wonderful, but it took the love out of drawing and painting for me, so after graduating I just didn't do it anymore. 

Drawing/painting had been a great source of joy my entire life up to that point, but now I had no desire to do either.  I had no drive at all and no ideas...and I then grew afraid to even try.  I went full-time into an office job and didn't look back for many years.

It was at least 7 years after graduation when I did this for my sister:



Ginger Kitty (acrylic w. pencil crayon on wooden plate)


It was several years after the Ginger Kitty that I did this for my cousin's daughter:

Bunny for Abby (acrylic w. pencil crayon on wooden plate)

The next one (a couple of years later) I did for myself.  Whenever I've drawn or painted a face with an expression of any sort, I've found that I make the same expression myself pretty much the entire time I work on it.  (It turned out a little Joker-like, but painting it did make me smile):

(acrylic on canvas board)

I've done a few more paintings since then, but my aim is to do them more frequently.  I am still struggling with the ideas and fear, but the desire to paint is back and the drive to sit down and do it is, well, coming along. 

I am slowly...FINALLY...crawling out of the creative void that's had a hold on me for so long.

Oh joy!

Outfit #3: Longjohn Lucy

It's going to be a busy day today so I'm having Lucy fill in for me again.

These little red longjohns are an absolute favorite of Lucy's. 

She wears them to the office;

out on the town (paired up with her camo jacket);

 hanging out on the couch watching TV;

daydreaming;

and napping.

Having no thumbs (or fingers, for that matter) makes using a trap door difficult,

but no one ever said fashion was easy.

And now, the song that gets stuck in my head whenever Lucy dons her longjohns:

It's a little ditty that my sister Tracey and I used to love singing - over and over - in the car on road trips when we were kids.
(Note to self: apologize to parents)...

Bye Bye Longjohns

(sung to the tune of Bye Bye Blackbird)

I have lost my underwear;

I don't care, I'll go bare;

Bye bye longjohns

They were oh so good to me;

Tickled me (hee hee hee);

Bye bye longjohns

How I miss that little trap door behind me;

If you see them you know where to find me

I have lost my underwear;

I don't care, I'll go bare;

Longjohns, bye bye!

Funflowers

Yes, these daisy-like flower paintings are simple. 

They are not technically "correct" or structurally accurate

by any means,

but I don't care about that.

They were not done to meet anyone's standards but my own,

although I must admit it does make me happy

when someone likes them.

I'm even happier when people hang them up in their homes!

To me, the best thing about these flowers is the fact that

I had fun painting them.



Amanda's Flower



Blue Daisy for Mom

Red Flower
(acrylic on canvas board: 11x14)

Big Sunny Daisy
(acrylic on streteched canvas: 24x24)

Are You Having Fun?

A few months ago, my friend Dawn and I signed up for an "On-the-Spot Sketching" series of workshops instructed by John Wood; a brilliant artist who taught us during our first year in college more than a few years ago. 

We were very excited to have the opportunity to learn from John again, and with good reason.  We both loved the workshops and left each one of them smiling and feeling a renewed (and new) enthusiasm for drawing.  Not only did John aim to teach us about perspective in drawing, but also in attitude...and it was liberating.

John's classes in college were highly informative, but also rather intimidating.  If you weren't up to snuff you did not get off easy, and Dawn and I had both feared it could be the same way this time around. 

That wasn't the case at all.  Along with a great deal of encouragement and support, there were many times when John would ask us: "Are you having fun?"...and an honest "yes" was the answer he hoped to hear. 

That was the point of the whole thing and a big part of what he wanted to teach us.  Having fun.  Not worrying what others think or how well it turns out (if it turns out at all); just learning from the experience, enjoying the process and having fun.  How wonderful to hear this from a man who's talent we so admired.

It's a simple concept that makes a lot of sense, but not an easy thing to actually do.  I'm going to have to work against years of self doubt and anxiety, but this is a lesson that I really do want to learn so I'm going to give it my best.



Blind Contour Drawing - September 2010



This is a blind contour drawing that I did of Dawn during one of our workshops, and I'm happy with it for these three reasons:

When John saw it he said "Sh*t!  I LOVE it!!" (and then apologized for swearing);

Dawn and her husband (both talented artists/designers) have it hanging in their dining room; and most importantly...

I had fun doing it.

 

Binky and Daisy Mae Have Left the Building

Completed a little while ago, Binky and Daisy Mae have spent their time here watching over Lucy's dining area.

I have finally arranged for them to go to their rightful home, and so they will be saying goodbye to Lucy this week...with little regret, I'm sure, as Lucy tends to be a bit of a noisy gobbler and has probably been grossing them out with every meal that she's hoovered down.  Sweet little bunnies that they are, they've been pretty polite about the whole thing and never voiced a complaint.  Not even once.

Happy trails you two!

Outfit #2: Lucy Newton-John

Lucy feels pretty confident in this little "Let's Get Physical" number, and it shows.  When she goes out on the town in her fur-tight pink workout suit she doesn't walk, she struts.

Work it Lucy...work it...!
 


The Many Outfits of Lucy...Outfit #1

I really went overboard when I adopted Lucy two years ago.  There are just too many cute outfits available for dogs, and I'm guilty of buying a few of them.   More than a few of them.  To the point of being a bit of a joke from what I understand.  (Fair enough.  I guess not everyone buys a cabinet to house their dog's attire.)

 

I've decided that I want to challenge myself to post here more regularly.  A few times a week, if not daily.  The problem since I started this blog over a year ago has been not feeling that I had much of anything "worthy" (paintings, cooking attempts, rambling stories...) to post, so I'm going to have the Lovely Lucy stand in for me on my quiet days, sporting an assortment of her many little outfits.  Though I am proud to say that I am no longer a dog-outfit-shopaholic, thanks to my addiction in our first year together Lucy will still be able to fill in a LOT of quiet days for me here!

Today Lucy is sporting the first sweater that I bought for her.  A bit of a Charlie Brown meets Bert and Ernie throwback, this purple number is perfect to accentuate Lucy's petite sausage-like figure.  The jaunty pink harness, playfully worn off-centre (a favourite fashion statement of hers), won out over the purple one this time.  It usually does.



Balls of Fun



Ginger Cookies (pre-oven)

Oreo Balls (pre-chocolate coating)



Sweer and Sour Meatballs

A double batch of sweet and sour meatballs, double batch of ginger cookies, oreo balls, banana bread, walking and bathing the dog and four loads of laundry.  All of the things I did *instead* of working on any of the paintings I need to either begin or complete.  Funny how much I can accomplish when I'm procrastinating.

A Roxy in Progress

I'm at a standstill on this one and have been for a little while - not sure how to add the feathery fur on top without losing the looseness that I like about what's there now...

Part of the problem, perhaps, is that I hung it up on my wall and have grown to know and even like it as a "finished piece", even though it clearly isn't when compared to the photo. For myself I'd be fine to leave it as is, but since it's purpose is to end up with Roxy's Mom, I really do need to figure out how to add the fluffy stuff that is so unique to this sweet little dog. Wish me luck!

G-Lo Sports A Cool "Do"



George-Louis



This is George-Louis; an adorable Coton de Tulear who is very well loved by his daddy...who on occasion likes to give him some fun fur-do's, so that's how I opted to paint him. My challenge now is to paint my Dad's dog in time for Christmas. That, and a painting for the International Women Celebrate exhibition in Ayr this winter. 

Hmmm...I don't know which one frightens me most!

Mona Lucy Smile

Oh wow! I *DO* still remember how to log in to my blog...no more excuses I guess.

Nothing "new" to add at the moment, so for today I'm just posting a painting I did of my favourite fur-girl: Lucy.





Lucy poses with her portrait









All Paws on Deck



 I did it! :)
Nothing like the other painting. Now on to do some more...

Learning How to Fail Without Being a Failure

So much for everything I wrote in my first blog entry. My convection is still immaculate in every way.

I haven't done much cooking. (Well, not any at all if I can't count canned soup, peanut butter on toast and the like.)

Did I say that I was going to eat better and get more exercise? I certainly haven't.

I suppose I should be grateful that nothing disgusting has happened on the train for me to describe (lately), but still - I haven't been able to think of anything to write at all.

So what have I to show for the time since my last entry?

See the painting I've posted of the black dog? This poor fellow (Dhalgren: my boss' long-haired Whippet) has been waiting for me to fix/finish him since I started painting him last winter (early months of 2009). He's been staring at me day after day after day, daring me to figure out what it is I need to do for him to look right...for him to be good enough to give to my boss. Day after day after day I have failed to meet the challenge. Afraid to destroy the parts of him that I liked in the process of fixing what I didn't, I have left him alone for months; avoiding eye contact with him and letting the whole thing become an overwhelming obstacle to my ability (and desire) to paint him or anything else.

Last weekend I found myself in a local art gallery and was left feeling inspired to try my hand at my own painting again. Surely I could do this, and if I threw caution to the wind and "just did it" I could end up happy with the result, right? Wrong. The Dhalgren painting ceased to exist that afternoon. I couldn't make it work and so painted over the entire image with the background colour, and now only a shadow of him remains on the canvas. A ghost of what could have been a success but wasn't. So how do I keep this from haunting me?

The painting was a failure. *I* felt like a failure, but here's what I'm trying to learn from it: Failing at something does not a failure make. I will only be a failure if I give up and let it beat me; if I run away from it; if I keep avoiding the act of failing (something I've done all my life). And when I think about it, I realize all of that actually makes me worse than a failure - it makes me a loser.

So, using the painting as an example, here is how I am am going to try to see things from now on:

Avoiding the completion of that painting = failure. This is unacceptable. I don't want to do this anymore.

Trying to complete the painting and putting it out of its misery when it wouldn't work = successful failure. This is always acceptable, and something I'm actually proud of. Accepting my failure wasn't easy to do.

Painting again because I'm able to leave the "failure" label attached to the painting instead of wearing it around my neck = success.

Accepting failure as a necessary part of life and learning from it...AND moving on from it to try (and possibly fail) again = huge success!

Wow. It hits me as I write this: I am allowed to fail over and over again and still be a huge success!!! How amazing is that?!?!?

I should blog more often. The revelations can be incredible... :)

They Make it a Home

I'm between two anniversaries. One bad, one good.

A year ago last month, I lost my little friend Sophie. I adopted her as a kitten 14 years earlier, and she was with me through thick and thin, tears and laughter, marriage and divorce, move after move...until it was time to help her travel across the "Rainbow Bridge"; a place you learn about when you lose your pet and your friends are desperate to help you feel better.

There were some positive things I tried to focus on: There would be no more litter box to clean. No longer would I step on those gravelly bits that I swear she intentionally clutched between her little toes so she could scatter them throughout the apartment. Cat hair no longer collected on the furniture, on the floors, or on me. I could breathe better at night and my eyes weren't so itchy. I didn't have to rush home from work...or from anywhere, for that matter. And that was just it. I didn't have much reason to be home, period. She wasn't there to greet or to need me anymore. She was gone.

My house didn't feel like a home without her, but I couldn't replace Sophie with another cat. I didn't want a cat that wasn't her. I thought very briefly about getting a pet rat (company without being too tied down - the best of both worlds perhaps)...until I learned that they leave drops of pee wherever they go (ew!). I decided instead to swing in the opposite direction towards a larger commitment. I'd get a dog. Looking back, I can see that I was a little impulsive about it, but at the time I felt it was the right thing for me to do.

It was a year ago now that I met my little 8-year-old, 9 pound Chihuahua mix for the beginning of the adoption process. I fell for her immediately. By mid-October I passed a home inspection, and then brought Lucy home with me Oct. 30th.

And so now I have hair all over my floors, my furniture and my clothes. There is grit (of all kinds) tracked in from the great outdoors, I have itchy eyes, I don't sleep well for fear of rolling over and squashing her, I have to rush home after work to feed and take her out for her walks, however miserable the weather....and I couldn't be happier.

I have a wonderful reason to come home again. :)