Time for wine

Between work and family obligations my art making has taken a back seat. The latest event has been the opening of Thomas O'Neil Cellars! It is my brother-in-law's winery in Washington state. He has dreamed of opening a winery for years and his dream has come true. My husband and I went out to Washington last week for the grand opening. There was lots of last minute preparations-- bottle labeling, furniture moving, learning how to run the cash register-- that kept us plenty busy. The week-end of the opening was Spring Barrel Tasting in the region. The winery was open for tastings Friday, Saturday and Sunday and I poured plenty of wine. They had bands that played Friday and Saturday. Saturday night was Marcus Eaton. He played with a smaller group of musicians than normal but they were terrific! I am hoping to go back another time when I don't have to work as hard and I can kick back have some wine and relax!

Book Making

I took a class this year, from my friend Pat McGraw, in book making. She makes several types of books and adds poems or sayings and copies of or originals of her artwork. They are clever and creatively made. I made my first attempt at bookmaking by making books for my nieces wedding shower. I took copies of photos and put those on the covers of the books. I had to cut many sheets of paper to make them in the size I wanted. I had 6 pages per book. I used copies of my own paintings then cut pieces of blank paper so people could write a note to Lisa and Nat, the bride and groom, and give them some marriage advice. I thought they turned out terrific and Lisa thought they were very clever! If my iphoto will cooperate I will include a picture also.

Roses are blooming

Yes I have been painting just not posting! This is a painting I did using goache and black ink. I first drew my composition on watercolor paper. Then I painted with white goache or you can use tempera paint, in the areas I wanted to keep white. When this was completely dry I painted black ink over the entire painting. This I let dry overnight. Then I wet the paper and scrubbed what I could, of the ink off the white areas. I think it gave the painting a vintage look. I chose to paint the one rose red. I don't know if I am finished with this painting yet.

Merry Christmas

The photo above was from when my son played at a concert called Tuba Christmas. They played Christmas tunes with the tuba and euphonium. My son got cut out of the picture when I downloaded it onto my blog! It was freezing cold out but it was fun to hear him play since he plays at a college a few hours away we don't get to hear him play much. Happy Holiday!

Julie and Julia

I put the movie "Julie and Julia" on while I was drawing this afternoon. It reminded me that watching the character Julie write her blog is what inspired me to start mine. Julie worked full-time while she cooked her way through Julia Child's cookbook. OK she has a few meltdowns along the way but she stuck with it.

I am officially abandoning my card a day project. I just can't keep up with it. But I am planning on posting more photos of the paintings I am working on and posting finished pieces too. I can get a little overwhelmed with life and all of its details but I can't stop painting! I may not be the worlds greatest painter but I don't feel like me, if I don't paint. So stick with what you love and you will live a more fulfilled life.

Work Stoppage

I lost an Aunt last week and this week my mother-in-law passed away. All artwork has come to a stop for now. I will try to get back into the swing of things soon. Hope someone still reads this.

Our Town

I had a painting accepted into the "Our Town" show which is at the Community House in Birmingham Michigan. It is the first time I have had a piece accepted into that show so I thought it was very exciting! The opening, which tickets are $75 and up, is a fundraiser for the Community House. They served cocktails, very nice hors d'oeuvres and desserts. I included a photo of my painting, which is a watercolor named "Under the Table".