Resolve

hey folks! I haven't forgotten about my blog, lol! but I have been a bit busy since the start of the year. I'm giving myself a short break from painting, but still creating my ACEOs.
Lots of artists choose a word for the year, something to focus on, rather than resolutions, which generally fail. As I was thinking about this, the word 'Resolve' came into my head, and it felt right at the time. For me, resolve means to be determined to do what needs to be done, to not quit, to be focused....Yes it's a boring word, lol! but it's the one that I first thought of, so I guess it stays.
Once my little art break is over, I plan to buy some of those wooden letters you can pick up in a craft store,  spell out my word, and put it somewhere in my art room as a reminder.

One big change that happened the first week of January was I finally decided to get off my butt, and take yoga classes at my gym. I 'resolved' to do 30 days of yoga, and I have kept up that commitment to myself. What took me so long?? I've been doing yoga from DVDs for probably 20 years, and my gym has always had classes in the evenings, but I felt intimidated to go alone. I wanted someone to come with me at the beginning, so I could feel comfortable...but life is not always comfortable, and that's not how you grow.
It was the 7th of January, Saturday, and I got so angry at myself for being such a wimp, I grabbed my yoga mat, drove to the gym, and walked  into my first real class.  Of course it was so packed, since this is  when most people go back to the gym, lol!  I didn't let that intimidate me, I just found a spot, and did my first class. I haven't missed a day since then :-)
This may seem like such a small thing to most of you, but I tend to be quite shy in new social situations, until I get to know people, or am more comfortable, so it was a big deal.

This has been a refreshing break, and I am so looking forward to working on a painting, perhaps this weekend. Yoga will not end, I will continue it daily for at least the 30 days I promised myself. But art is calling to me again, so it's a matter of planning my time so that everything can fit in.

Since there is no art to show you, I thought I'd leave you with this humorous/educational video on good foods and bad foods. I love me some good sarcasm, and this video has got that, lol!
If you are a parent who buys cereal for your kids, you may want to take a peak!

Enjoy!

Happy New Year!

Hello my dear blogging friends, I wanted to wish you all a Happy New Year. May 2012 bring you lots of joy, good health,  success, and may it be the happiest ever for you.

It's up to us, to make life the way we want it. A little at a time, day by day, we can make the choices that bring us our dream lives, the one we have always imagined. 

If not now, when?

sending you many blessings,

 betty

"I will seek elegance rather than luxury; refinement rather than fashion. I will seek to be worthy more than respectable; wealthy and not rich. I will study hard, think quietly, talk gently and act frankly. I will listen to stars and birds, and babes and sages with an open heart. I will bear all things cheerfully, do all things bravely, await occasions and hurry never. In a word I will let the spiritual, unbidden and unconscious grow up through the common." - William Ellery Channing

Merry Christmas

 I thought I'd take a moment to thank you all for your wonderful support and friendship throughout the year. We have a generous, and creative community here on Blogger, and I have met many delightful people.
I would like to wish you all a Merry Christmas, and Happy Holidays.  May you all have a magical season, and may you be blessed in the coming year.

Owls and Beagles

 hi friends, I couldn't think of a more creative title for this post, it's late, and I'm tired, lol!
After a busy few days, tonight was going to be a painting night (after I got my hair done), but instead watched a video that was sent to me....and then of course, had to click on another video and another....I love youtube, but it's easy to spend lots of time there.  Oh, and while watching videos, I had a plate full of the crappy  shortbread cookies I baked yesterday. I make these simple ones for the holidays, but for some reason, they were not coming out right.  Every cookie I removed from the baking sheet  cracked, so I guess that leaves them all for me, haha! They taste ok, they just don't look so pretty.
And as I was writing this post, I got up and had another...oh boy! they need to be removed from my house immediately!

Artwise, I am still creating my little owl ACEOs (see above ). I love doing them, especially the Christmas ones. So many ideas, but running out of time!
I've been wanting to try some  larger paintings and my recent trip to Montreal has really got me inspired. I'm just afraid that if I wait too long to begin,I will put it aside for another year.
There are so many ideas in my head I don't know where to start! so I don't. That's a big problem for me..I look through my sketchbook, and can't seem to settle on one thing. And because I can't decide, I go back to what's comfortable, which are my owl ACEOs, and my whimsical girls...not that there's anything wrong with that, lol! but it feels good to try something that might intimidate you at first.  We shall see....I have an idea in mind for a Christmas present, and if I ever get started on it, you will be the first to see (as the recipient doesn't read my blog).

So I will end this  post with the video that got me started tonight. It's about 9 beagles that were released from a research lab, and this is their first time outside in the sun. Having had beagles in my family for so many years, I am very partial to these beautiful creatures.
thanks for reading!

ps- please double click on the video to see the larger screen, I have no idea why it is cut off at the sides!

“Until one has loved an animal a part of one's soul remains unawakened.”

Anatole France

Two New Snow fairies

hi everyone. Did you all have a nice Thanksgiving (those of you in America)?Now the countdown to Christmas begins. Can you believe it's less than a month away?
This year I wanted to get some seasonal fairies done before the end of the year, and the one above is the first. She is on a wood panel, my favorite base, and this time I let lots of the wood show through. Maybe she will sprinkle some flurries my way, lol!
The original is listed in my Etsy shop (I'm also offering prints of her as well), and hopefully, will have some blank greeting cards as well. If I manage that, it will be the first time I've been this organized for the holidays!

For the second fairy, I think I went a bit crazy with the sparkle, but I think she will appeal to those who love fantasy, and sparkly things, lol!
Prints are offered in my Etsy shop, as well as the original.

Well, that's it for the night. I thought I'd give a quick update. Hopefully I can get some Christmas photos up next time. I was in some cute shops today, but  haven't checked  the camera yet to see if they turned out.
thanks for reading!

New Yule Witch

hi friends! still waiting for a bit of snow to come here...it's hard to feel like decorating for Christmas with green grass everywhere. At least I was smart and got my outdoor lights put up when it was mild.  Even though I don't feel like decorating, at least my muse is back, and I am anxious to fill my Etsy shop with some new art. I finished this Yuletide witch  last night, and right now finished woodburning a precocious go-go boot wearing snow fairy, lol! no traditional snow fairies for me :-)
Now let's see if I can make it work. I want glitz, and lots of sparkle! Once she is done- unless I ruin it, I will show it here on my blog.
Thanksgiving is coming up for my American friends, and from what I hear, the crazy holiday season starts right afterward.  Black Friday I think it's called? I'm excited for you, even though our Thanksgiving was over a month ago. It means countdown to Christmas, my favorite time of year.

Well, time to get back to my fairy, thanks for reading!

New Art

hi friends. Did you remember to turn back your clocks? This is so much better than in the spring when we lose an hour. However, be prepared, because it will now get dark a little after 5,  lol!

I've always loved painting shabby folk art girls, but never used beeswax as a finish. Normally I use a nice satin varnish, but for the next few, beeswax will be the way to go. It smells divine! and it really does give your paintings a glorious, dreamy finish.   I see these little canvases as experiments, where I get to play, and try out new things. 
The first one I did yesterday  looked great,  until I added the beeswax. I must have scraped off some paint, because there was dark smudges on her face, and there is no way to fix it. I should have known not to experiment on the more expensive wooden canvases,  she is now heading for the trash...oh well, live and learn.

 This angel painting is more my usual style. She was made  for an auction for charity. I can't seem to get away from putting little kittens in my angels' arms though, lol! She turned out pretty good, that I will be offering prints in my Etsy shop. With all the craziness of this world,  we can all use more angels.

I hope everything is good where you all are, thanks for reading!

Let's talk about Raw food.

hi everyone, so much for being more consistent in blogging, lol! Not much has been going on here, I've fallen behind on my Halloween art, but this autumn witch above is the last one I did.  I'm not sure if I can fit another one in before Halloween, I've got a commission due by the end of the month, which is coming quickly! And then of course, my favorite season of all!! oh my, I'm already excited, lol! and don't laugh, but I start decorating the first week of November :-D

The last few months I've been trying to get a bit more healthy. I found the scale started to creep up, without me doing anything different. I ate the same and exercised the same, but all of the sudden my clothes were getting tighter. Does this sound familiar? It should for those of you that hit your 40's...seems like no matter how carefully I ate, my waist kept expanding, and the scale was heading towards a number I could never imagine reaching when I was younger....well I did something about it, but not intentionally.

Let me explain: I was searching for kale recipes on Youtube, came across some very interesting ones, and was surprised they were raw. And of course if you've ever been on Youtube you know how easy it is to get sidetracked. I ended up finding so many raw food recipes that actually sounded great, and easy, as well as some 'experts' which I watched, and found myself intrigued.  I won't bore you with all the details, but let's just say when I discover something different, I usually do lots of homework

So I joined a website called Raw food Rehab, which is free to join, and was so pleased with the incredible amounts of information, recipes, and support. No I am not a raw foodist, although I have incorporated more fruits and vegetables in my life, and I would highly recommend anyone who is interested in increasing their health, and dropping some weight to check it out. After many years of struggling with the excess pounds, I am now very close to my perfect weight. I can't tell you how great it feels to see your jeans almost falling off because they are now too big.

It's not as hard as I thought. I used to think people who ate only raw foods were crazy, but I do understand that once food is cooked, it loses many of it's nutrients. So why not eat more fresh, organic foods? I'd sure love to hear your stories or your thoughts, especially anyone who has tried this.

I will leave you with my favorite  green smoothie:

1 banana ripe - or frozen
big handful of greens (dandelion, spinach, romaine, your choice).
2 mejool dates
1 spoon of peanut butter
1 1/2 cups water (it's up to you how much you'd like)
I also add coconut water and coconut milk/almond milk for extra creaminess.
Blend and enjoy. I usually blend the greens in water before adding the rest slowly.
There are many green smoothie recipes out there, and they are delicious! A great way of adding healthy fruits and vegetables to your day without too much trouble.

I guess that's it for now, I could seriously talk for hours about this, as I have watched many videos, and have found so many people who have changed their life by changing their diet.  I sincerely want to help people get healthy and feel good about life, so sometimes my blog will go off course, and talk about things other than art.  Hopefully no one minds too much :-)
thanks for reading,
betty

Here come the witches!

It's hard to think of Halloween when we are still in September (well not true, I think of Halloween year round, lol!), but I thought I'd better get a head start on my paintings, otherwise I find myself scrambling to get some art done. I finally finished this one, which I started 3 days ago. She is my first in a series of little Witchlings, and I named her Nina.In my initial sketch, she was supposed to be a red head, but she had other plans, lol! For my next one I will try to do red hair, but that is not a promise- my fellow artists know how a painting will tell you what it wants, and there is nothing you can do about it, lol!

I love doing these kinds of paintings where you use so many layers, and keep covering stuff, adding even more layers on top. It just makes it more interesting, rather than a plain background, which although is easier, there really is no mystery in it. I was lucky to find a book on the history of magic that was being discarded from my library, which I used for the tree. It is from 1854! How cool is that?
Nina can be found in my Etsy shop. (Sold)

hope you are all having a wonderful weekend. It's very chilly here, perfect weather to stay in and paint, and drink lots of coffee :-)
thanks for reading!

New folk art princess

hi friends. Hope your week has been going well. It was so nice to wake up to a sunny day, I even managed to get some color!  Thought I'd show my latest painting. After my last post, I sat down and finished this little princess. The girl was drawn out weeks ago,and since I wasn't too crazy about the drawing, I let it sit. Finally a couple of days ago, I thought I'd start painting and see what happens. So she is now a little blonde girl, and the teddy she was originally holding turned into a kitty, lol! She is  listed in my Etsy shop. (Sold)

Can I just say that bloggers are the nicest people? You are all so sweet and supportive. I'm always struck by how close the blogging community is. This is from reading the comments on my blog, as well as other blogs. People truly are ready to lend support when they can, and it helps us all grow.  Thank goodness for this wonderful forum for us to share our lives and our art.

thanks for reading!

Time is a flyin!

hi friends, it's September already, and it sure came fast!! We had a very late start to our summer, basically it was crappy until July, then we got record heat. August was so-so. The past month we had overseas guests, my aunt and uncle were here, so we did the usual tourist things, and we probably visited most of the malls in our area, which my aunt loved, lol!

 Yesterday we took them to the airport, so hopefully now, I can start working on my art again. 

  Looking back at the last few pages of my blog I am a bit disappointed in myself. I don't feel like this blog has been well maintained. I feel like I let my readers down, and know some of the posts have been forced. It's true I wanted my blog to be about more than art,  but I can't believe some of the stuff I tortured you with! I had a post about the location of a bird's nest!! Good grief, what was I thinking, lol! 

I just haven't felt all that creative the last few months, and I hope my muse is coming back. I did a little illustration last night of a fox and an inukshuk. That's a good thing for me, as I tend to procrastinate...still, after all this time, and after all I know.  How many times can I write myself little motivational notes? At some point, you have to just do it! 

Especially now, when time seems to be speeding up. 

Art is my refuge, I take comfort in it, and it never fails me, but I fail it.  By not creating, by spending more time than I should in front of the TV.  The excuses come way too easy : I'm tired, I was at work all day, it's too late to start, and on and on. There is no shortage in excuses when it comes to not doing what needs to be done. Art isn't a chore, and once I start, it feels so good, that I wonder why on earth did it take so long to start? I guess this is just the ebb and flow of creativity, and I'm sure I'm not alone. Sometimes we need a break to refresh ourselves, I just wish that break wouldn't take so many months, lol!

That's it for today...but I'd first like to say thanks to those of you who replied in my last post, letting me know my blog opens up quickly for you. I won't need to remove anything then.

I also said I was going to blog about my perfume obsession, it's coming soon, as well as new art, and maybe some sketch book pages.

thanks for bearing with me during my ups and downs, I look forward to the new fall season, and getting back into the groove :-D

thanks for reading!

betty

August update

hi friends! It's been a while since I blogged. I thought I could be more consistent, but apparently not, lol! Do you find that the longer it takes to update your blog, the harder it becomes? I feel like I need to post something interesting and witty, and I'm just not feeling like I have anything interesting to say.
Although I regularly check out my favorite blogs,  I haven't been commenting as much as usual. This is simply because I'm trying not to be on my computer too much. I can't stay away from reading blogs though, lol! I find it very relaxing, and I'm always interesting in finding out what my wonderful blogging friends are up to.

After a lousy spring, once July hit, we got lots of sunny and very hot weather. I couldn't be happier! so most days, after work, are spent in the garden, or reading a book. I finished a wonderful novel called 'Sarah's key' which was recommended to me, and just found out it is coming out as a movie.

My latest novel is a classic:  Jane Austen's 'Persuasion'. I've seen the BBC movie, and thought it was time to read the book. Boy, it sure is a difficult book.  I find I really have to concentrate to understand the language.

Not much is happening with art, maybe I just needed a bit of a break from it. I'm still painting little owl ACEOs, but not as many as during the cooler seasons.

I've been wanting to do a post about one of my other interests: perfume, but haven't sat down to write it out yet. I am a perfume addict, which is something none of you know about me, lol! It started when I was very young, and has continued on and off all these years. Hopefully in the next couple of weeks, I will do a fun post where I just 'chat' about perfume, and of course welcome all of your thoughts on it. Since this blog is not just about art, it's about other fun things, why not spice it up a bit?
I hope you are all having a wonderful summer (or winter for my friends in the Southern Hemisphere).

***a quick question, is anyone finding my blog takes too long to load? if so can you let me know, I may have to remove some things...I've noticed some blogs taking a while to load up and it can get frustrating waiting for it. xoxo

Mother's love

hi friends, this isn't really a post, but I wanted to share some photos with you. I noticed yesterday a blackbird built her nest in the neighbor's eaves trough! Right over their garage. I saw the tiny babies popping their heads out waiting for mom to come with dinner. Today it was a very hot sunny day, and I saw the mom covering them to keep them safe from the sun. I ran and got my camera, went on the porch and tried to zoom in. Even though my camera is a cheap crappy one, it did a reasonable job, lol!

In this photo you can see one of the babies with his mouth open. I told my dad I thought this was a strange place to build a nest as it has no protection against the elements. We may be getting rain tomorrow, and I really hope the babies are ok. It's a steep roof, and all the rain will be falling down and collecting in the eaves troughs.  Poor little babies :-(

Since this is the first nice weekend in a long time, I will be out enjoying it. I hope you all have a wonderful week end wherever you are.
thanks for reading

Short Sunday post

  hi friends. I thought I'd show those 2 lilies I mentioned in my last post. The white one is a more traditional one, but I've never seen a deep purple one! Are these called peace lilies? ( thank you Cameron, for correcting me, these are calla lilies, not peace lilies).
  I took the photos when the sun finally came out...however, just in time for the weekend, those damn thick grey clouds moved in. I don't think I have seen a decent weekend in quite a while. It's getting a bit depressing, and I haven't felt very creative lately. Do you ever feel just 'blah' about everything?

The only thing I am excited ( a wee bit at least) about is trying some new raw recipes I've been looking into on Youtube. Today I made a raw pasta with marinara sauce and it was so delicious!
For the pasta you use zuccini, which you use a potato peeler to make into thin strips.
For the marinara sauce you use tomatoes, red bell pepper, sun dried tomatoes, garlic, basil, oregano, olive oil, and a touch of cayenne.  I added avocado too. Since I don't have a processor, I just used my blender to blend all the ingredients. All you do is pour your sauce over top of the zuccini, and you have an easy dish. I also added nutritional yeast for extra flavor.  If you want to see details, check out the video on Youtube.  You will be surprised at how good this is.  I decided that it's time to eat healthier, so I've been searching for easy ideas.  One video led to another, and before I knew it, I have a notebook filled with very healthy and nutritious meals.
If any of you have raw food recipes, feel free to share. I may add some more a bit later, once I have a chance to try them and make them my own.

thanks for reading

Love Shy

hi friends, thanks to all of you who left comments on my last post letting me know that Blogger was acting up. I thought it was just me. I see the curser problem is still not fixed, you click enter and you never know where the curser will end up, lol!

Above is my latest small painting titled 'Love Shy'.  I thought her expression looked hopeful, and vulnerable at the same time....which I didn't plan, but you have to let the painting go where it wants.
She is now listed in my Etsy shop.

We had quite the exciting thunderstorm this morning. I was just making breakfast, when I looked outside and it was pitch black. A big storm rolled in, and luckily I made my first coffee, because we lost power for a bit.
Can you imagine not being able to make a nice big cup of coffee in the morning, lol!

If the sun ever comes out, I want to take some photos of this gorgeous lily my mom bought me.  After the storm ended I thought the sun would come out, but once again, all we saw is a totally white sky...those damn thick white clouds that block out the sun don't want to go away. Sounds like various parts of the US have the same crap weather.  At least the sun shone all of last week -- while I was at work- and surprise! clouds and rain, just in time for the weekend, lol!
Oh well, gave me a chance to get all my housework done :-)

hope you are all having a lovely weekend wherever you are,
thanks for reading!