2009 Oklahoma Festival of the Arts

Yay! I am an accepted artist to the 2009 Oklahoma Festival of the Arts. This is a really great show that historically has good sales. I am busy working on pieces to have ready for this show next April.

I need to shift gears a bit in regards to time management. I have been doing a LOT of baking and experimenting in the kitchen, especially since Thanksgiving is very close now. This year my Husband's family will be coming to our house for the meal. There are a lot of them and we expect around the 20 number. Should be a lot of fun. We have some great food planned. Of course the obligatory turkey, ham and many sides - my Mother in law's Orange Jello Salad, green beans with onion topping, cranberry sauce, pies by the mile and this year I tested out some great cornbread muffins with garlic and sun dried tomato which are very tasty.

Have a great Holiday all and let's all get back to work!

Goodbye Sweaty Summer here comes Fabulous Fall!

After enduring another long Oklahoma Summer I am glad to see the beginning of Fall arrive. Having said that, I can't believe how quickly the Summer passed by. I'm sure Summer down under in Australia was longer, or was it that I had less to do and my days spent lying on the beach were just far more leisurely?

This past summer I enjoyed more than one road trip delivering paintings to galleries in far flung states. I saw the St. Louis Arch twice as I whizzed by in my groovy green mom van loaded up with art and stuff. Being on the road by myself is actually something I quite enjoy, so traveling to art shows has side benefits. There is no debating with myself what type of music will be played and sung along to at the top of my lungs, when we will make the obligatory roadside stops or even what's for dinner! It is also during these lengthy trips, my longest being 17 hours straight so far, that I get to enjoy the latest book on cd. It's a sad reflection when you want to keep driving just so you can hear how the book is going to end. You can imagine my husbands expression when after one of these long trips I remained in my vehicle for another 20 minutes just to wrap up the story of "The Memory Keeper's Daughter!"

Oh, before I forget. Talk about teenage flashbacks. When the summer movie Mamma Mia came out I rushed to see it the very first day. It was all I could do not to stand on my seat at the back of the theatre and sing. ABBA, (prounounced with a flat "a" as in apple people - there is no "r" in aaaarrrbbbaaa!!) was all the rage while I was in high school. The characters in this movie did a rip roaring job with the songs and oh how little it matters that Pierce Brosnan sings about as well as a someone with a mouth full of marbles when he looks so fine. Adding the soundtrack to my moving mom van music collection was a real boon. I sang so much on one return trip from Nebraska to Oklahoma City that I was hoarse for days. But hey, it was so much fun!

So what's next? This is one of my favourite times of the year. Actually I enjoyed it more when I lived in Nebraska as it got cooler and the leaves changed quicker but I'll take it anywhere. I've been on my first foray to the local pumpkin patch and tracked down my "Queensland Blue" or as it's known in these parts Jarandale pumpkin. My hubby was tortured recently by being forced to eat pumpkin scones for breakfast, which he secretly enjoyed I might add. The remainder of the pumpkin is going to become Aussie style pumpkin soup. I'll post the recipe here for you all to try soon.


I have a new painting on the easel featuring a large crystal vase of gorgeous orange colored roses and a cuppa tea. It's working title at this point is "Tea and Roses." It's a relatively large painting at 30 x 24 inches and will be completed in soft pastel. I'll post some progress pictures when I get them off the camera. It's also the time of year when we have to plan which shows to participate in next summer art season and to get busy in the studio turning out new pieces. Makes it really hard to sell paintings you have composed in your head if you don't get them down on paper or canvas. Ok, enough chatter for now, back to work here. Actually I'm off on a fact finding road trip to the south western parts of Oklahoma today. It's always good to find out more about the place you are living and I just know, with camera in one hand and sketch book in the other , there are great reference material opportunities awaiting me! Bye for now and have a good one!

Summer

I love Summer! It is the time of year I feel most creative. I think it has something to do with the sunshine for sure. At this time of year there is also an abundance of subject material. Gorgeous flowers are blooming, the birds are out and about, and all manner of fresh fruit is available, just waiting to take up star position in my next painting.

Just take a look at these fabulous pink peonies!! The color is so vivid and they are huge! The extra rain has wreaked havoc in many areas unfortunately, but it sure has been kind to the garden.

On a sadder note, this past weekend saw the loss of two beautiful souls. Lincoln Realtor Mary Brake lost her life while on a Colorado horse riding vacation with her family. Mary was a lovely lady who always made time to say hello or assist new agents. Personally, we spoke of making some Aussie food treats for one of her sons who had been to Australia. She also sent clients my way when I first started out working in real estate without expecting anything in return. I just can't believe she might be gone from this world and hope her family finds peace and comfort. Mary, I will miss you, you were such a beautiful person inside and out.

In Australia my girlfriend Kym, lost the eldest of her three sons. I know reconnecting with the son she had put up for adoption as a young girl was such a joyous part of her life. The details haven't been made public yet of how he passed but I want Kym and her family to know we love her and will be here for her when she needs us.

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Embrace your life's passions, be it painting, photography, cooking, riding motorcycles. Life is short and you never know when your time here on earth is over. Love your family and friends. Be kind to others. I recently read a quote from Randy Pausch's book that if it comes to a choice between being right and being kind... choose to be kind.

Busy in the Studio

Things have been busy lately. I reworked my website and then decided what I had chosen was wayyyyy too busy and clashed with my artwork. Putting Paint Shop Pro brushes with swirls in my hands was too much of a good thing, I went crazy with those and put them on everything! So it's gone now and I have toned things down a lot and returned to a white background to once again make the artwork the focus.

Speaking of artwork, I have been getting a few emails from impatient collectors wanting first look at my new pieces. I will be sending out my usual announcements and will share them with you then. They, like Christmas, are coming! My oil paintings take considerably longer than my pastel pieces due to drying time in between layers, brush cleaning taking longer than hand washing etc!!

Ok, back to the studio then!

Panels

In my ongoing search for the right booth setup for upcoming shows I have compared all manner of products and solutions. I already own an EZup canopy which I purchased from the Flourish company a few years back. It's still new in the bag AND it is supposed to be a heavier weight than the EZups that were available from SAMS. I've been told by several artists that most show "beginners" use these as they are less expensive BUT, I had better be prepared to purchase an upgrade as the EZups are not as stable as most in bad weather. I'll probably buy a Show Off canopy which ALSO have the option of purchasing their own set of mesh panels!!! Too many options I tell you.

Initially I thought I would just purchase the mesh panels that fit the EZup but since I do intend to do the suggested upgrade to a more sturdy booth in the coming year I decided against the mesh panels but for a couple of reasons. First off, I didn't want to be tied to my EZup booth because of the panels and I decided that the Pro Panels would be worth the 1200 or so dollars I needed to lay out since I could use them at both outdoor and indoor shows, thereby providing greater use of what I own instead of needing two differing setups.

Now I have to decide if it is really a savings on the shipping by driving down to Dallas to collect my panels once my order is ready. You do need to realize that should you decide to do this, you will be required to pay around 8.25% sales tax in Dallas. Still my minivan gets incredible mileage (the only upside to driving an ugly green MOM VAN!!!) so I should do the trip on one tank each way. The shipping was to be a couple of hundred dollars so the fuel savings should offset the shipping cost, despite the sales tax of around 99.00 or so. Anyway, will have to give this more thought. Perhaps it is time better spent at the easel!