thought for the day

I was helping My little Kaiella get ready for school earlier this week, lucky for me she is the one who still lets me pick her clothes which makes mornings go much smoother, and as I am guiding her little legs into the cutest pair of distressed skinny jeans she gives a big BIG sigh and says "Awww MAMA, you KNOW I hate skinny pants...they squeeze my legs!" Well, truth is she hadn't really told me that before so, surprised, I said "oh?" and she goes on to tell me "I don't care if my friends like them and my sisters like them, these are NOT their legs (pointing down to her little leggies),these are MY legs!!!" I burst out laughing and of course had to agree with her that these sweet little pudgy legs are indeed are all hers. We went off to find a pretty skirt and I got to thinking "wow, I wish we could all be a little bit more like Kaiella.

To just choose the path and make the choices that are best for our life no matter what the world is telling us we SHOULD be doing. I truly wish there were more of us who could pray about it,think about it, and make the BEST choice simply on what is right for our own life and our family...regardless of all of the expectations and "should dos" that come down on us.
Just my thought for today.
Thanks little Bella!

side note: photos are from a fun field trip I got to tag along on last spring. The rare photos like this one of her and I together are a total treasure to me.

The time has come...

There is far too much that comes along and threatens to steal away with all of my inspiration and mind/heart space. You feel me? Wether it be laundry or "stuff", or just time that gets eaten away all too quickly by this and that... I often find myself chasing the day and left with no space for the call of my heart, no space to hear it and no space to answer.

What I need is to simply clear it all away sometimes, set aside days or even just hours where I either remove myself all together or put on blinders to it all simply so that I can answer the beautiful callings of my heart, of my spirit. This time will not simply come knocking at your door and invite itself in, the space is yours for the taking but you MUST MUST claim it and then dive! This is what I am learning slowly but surely, And so that is thre story behind this little piece from this post

Prints are in and available in my shop, if you too need a reminder to simply sweep it all aside for a time and clear yourself some beautiful space for inspiration!

Workin' On it Wednesday

I am totally inspired by the responses I got from last weeks' "WOW", thank-you. Time for round 2 and this week and I am happy to say one of the things I am cooking up is a monthly newsletter since the vote was a resounding "YES". Thanks for that too! I'm excited to see how that unfolds as I gather content and learn how to put it all together. Me and my peeps are all miserably sick around here this week, and so what I am really working on right this moment is sleeping like crazy and getting us all better. Luckily though, I am also still in the midst of making these two new little art pieces that I started in my hotel room on the way home from San Francisco last week. It is amazing how much can spill from a heart overflowing after some time away with amazing ladies.

 WOW#2

This first piece is about how very much we have to offer everyone else when we first remember to take the time to nurture ourselves and our own spirit. It's a whole hubbub of stuff all dancing together; watercolor, pencil crayon, pastels, japanese patterned tape and acrylics, hand stitching... and all in a little plain page notebook that lives in my purse for these moments of burning inspiration that can't be denied

I had a blast playing with these Japanese acrylic paints that I got from the dollar store in San Fran's Japan Town...sigh, that store (Daiso) was a whole lotta fantastic! These ones are pearly and shimmery and not quite as thick and creamy as the ones I would buy at home. Just different and different keeps my attention and makes things extra fun!

This next piece below is taking shape on the same little purse notebook, for now, I will build it a nice home to stitch it onto soon. That one is just wonderful watercolors and a ton of pencil crayon, cuz I have missed both of them over the summer and am still warming up my hands and my heart to get back in the swing of things now that the girls are in school all day. This one is inspired by my own need to clear away the distractions when my heart is calling and be sure that I have space to let it pour out.

Possibly the simplest, yet most exciting to me; I am spending my next couple of evenings "arting" up my next round of shipping envelopes so I can march on down to the post office, with my  wee little puppy in tow, and send out a bunch of happy art prints. Mail is exciting to get and I figure if it has a little bit of extra love all over it then it is even MORE happy! I have been feeling like I am sending Christmas presents every time I send them off, and that makes me really happy! Thank-you, thank-you, thank-you to all of you who have supported me in this little Art sales adventure. It has been a long time coming and I am thourally, though a bit shyly, enjoying sharing all that I have been working on this year as it is ready and up in my store.

My last thought for today is this; Share joy.
Just go out and spread happines, cuz you can. Don't wait for the right time because the time will never be just right. Life keeps rollin' on. Simply make time. Even a few minutes to go above and beyond. I guarantee your heart will be filled even more than the one you are sharing with. Send mail (real actual mail), pay for the guys coffee behind you in line, Say something really nice to the next 5 people who pass by... you get the idea. It will not be expected but it will change the tone of someone's day, and YOURS!

watercolor yum

 Have I told you lately how I Love Paint?! All paint has it's own kind of yummy, but tonight it is watercolor, really it's always my first choice with paints. I just adore how it is not permanent, just like life isn't permanent and you simply have to roll with it. With watercolor you can add and you can remove, you can change the look by dripping water into it or using the corner of a tissue to suck some of it off the page....sigh. You can let it rest and come back a different day to toy around some more, it's drippy and sploooshy and can also be super precise. Oh watercolor how I adore thee.

I'm working on a small words only piece and doing it all tonight. a bit of spatter and some careful strokes...it is almost like a wee bit of my heart spilling over right onto the paper. Sigh...gooood stuff.

what's your favorite medium right now? do tell.

Finger Knit necklaces

 This week's Link Lovin' is finger knit necklaces.
Which will be funny to anyone who sat through knitting class with me at inspired 4 years ago, trying not to laugh while my face contorted and my arms cramped into some version of bird wings flapping as I tried with all of my might to create my little square. Yeah, it was a MAJOR no go. I managed to turn out a demented crooked triangle-ish shape that I decided to give my youngest as a "Barbie face cloth". Well, it IS possible that Barbie never received very good directions about doing laundry, right?
Look I even dug up some proof of the whole sad affair...

 For those of you who were NOT in my sadly failed knitting class, I was fine with my failure. I decided to keep the basket of wool and use it on a scrapbook page or something.

Back to our cool link lovin' ( sorry I get side tracked) My girls and I needed a birthday gift for Great Nana and of course something happy to do together to enjoy an afternoon of girl time. Sooooo we made these necklaces happily after finding this link. Turns out, this type of knitting is more my speed! We all LOVED them. My only disclaimer is that this project is probably best for about 9 years old and up, Bella's little fingers weren't quite ready for the co-ordination of even "knitting" (but we won't tell her that!) They were finished in under ten minutes (per necklace), we could still chat and giggle while our fingers worked away at it, and we found everything we needed in my random crafting stashes. I'd say that is an all around WIN! Wanna try?

Here's what you need:
- a roll of string ( just hardware store string, nothing special)
-some chain (can get this at a bead store for nicer stuff, but can also get it at the hardware store on a roll)
-some little pliers/snips to cut your chain ( I raid Cam's tool box, Great source!)
-a few wooden beads
-any old scissors

photos above  from "P.S. I made this"

And here is Emy's finished result!
Have fun and be sure to share your results with us.

Workin' on it Wednesday...

Something I thought might be fun, is to tackle hump day and head into the rest of the week feeling productive by sharing what I'm elbow deep in each week, even if it isn't finished projects ( mostly won't be, hence the "workin' on it" title)  just the behind the scenes works of it all...I totally enjoy taking a peek at others' inner workings and seeing the steps that build behind their cool art.

So here we go with 

WOW #1

Right now I am finishing up some backgrounds for a few canvas pieces that I have in the works; this blue one will be about having faith and spreading wings etc. the words and pictures are all well underway in my mind but of course need a place to land...

So far, lots of blendy acrylic, lots of drippy watercolors, some india ink for good measure, and now time to look at it across the room and decide if it is ready for the good parts!

 For this bigger canvas, I am illustrating the story of someone's life and all of the different chapters. 

I drew out this huge stack of books first, and then decided the texture needed here was to cover much of the rest in vintage book pages (of course backing up the theme of the piece). 

I find this page piecing done best, and with no loose edges, by using gel medium under and over the text pages. watery white glue is fine and so is mod podge, but this is just my fave. Oh, and as you can see, I also prefer fingers to paint brushes or palette knives...they are super washable ( no kidding!) and I have FULL control over what they do.

 

 And lastly for Right now, I am finishing up an art journal on Kraft. 

Not sure yet where all of these little pages will go, but they will be packaged up and sold as printable mini backgrounds in the next couple of weeks. And then I can get personal with my own and make it into a spilling over of heart. 

This one is definitely keeping ink on my fingers and fun in the air! I LOVE the carefree that happens when your "canvas" is something as disposable as a roll of kraft paper...there is a whole other kind of freedom that doesn't always take place on an expensive  big canvas, or GORGEOUS scrapbook paper that has been lovingly hoarded.

And last but not least, I need your help with something. I am trying to use my time better now that my girls are all settled in happily at school and I can work full time all day long ( or night)

So, I have a question for you; I am toying with the idea of finally doing a newsletter, it would include where I am scheduled to be teaching, newly released Art or products, and BEST of all there would be offers and a few tips or videos that won't appear anywhere else. Not sure if it is worth my time though, can you shoot me a note if you would like this? Or if you have any thoughts or opinions on what you would like to see content wise. I will do my best to bring you what you ask for!

Thanks and happy Wednesday!

Freedom and Faith

 

"she marched to the Rhythm of her very own heart as it "beat, beat, beat" with passion and praise and the incredible Freedom that comes from living in Faith"

Here she is " Freedom and Faith"-inspired by a beautiful lady that is dear to my heart and has shown me over and over again the beauty of living in faith and the joy of a truly free spirit, march on my friend!

And to all of you who pop by here; may you step out and trust the little whisper within. Stop questioning, Stop doubting your own abilities, STOP getting in the way and simply choose to experience the total freedom of living in faith, the amazing feeling of soaring on wings that are far greater than you can even comprehend!

Homemade Ice Cream!!!

YES, You read right this week's link Lovin' goes to seriously delish, homemade, 5 minute, SUPER easy, tastes like soft serve 

ICE CREAM!!!

 I would be lying if I said it is only fun for the kids, IT IS AWESOME FUN FOR MEEE!!!

We had done this as part of science waaaay back in Emy's preschool days, and I LOVED it then, but with a busy toddler at the time and then another baby filling my heart and food making mind, I went on to totally forget about ice cream in a bag until I found This Link.

Yayy internet, and yayy pinterest!

The girls and I got right to adding this to our "fun to-do" list, and it was as Rad as I remembered! 

We did a batch with cream, and a batch for Tiara with vanilla soy milk. both were super, I actually liked the soy version better, kids liked the cream.

Here's what you need:

- small snack baggies, and larger sandwich or medium baggies

-2 TBSP sugar ( I did only 1 to make it slightly healthier)
-1 cup of Soy milk for lactose free, or Cream (either half & half or light cream, mmmmm)
-1/2 tsp vanilla extract
-1/2 cup salt; any kind is fine (I used sea salt)
- plenty of ice; you may want to pick up a bag if you don't have an ice maker
-hungry tummies!

1. fill your larger zip-loc about half full with ice and sprinkle the salt over it

2. Mix the soy milk or cream, sugar, and vanilla in your wee snack bags and zip them up good and tight. ( we used sandwich bags the first time cuz we had no wee snack bags)

 3. Jump, dance and Shake what your mama gave ya

 

4. Check on your mixture and if it isn't frozen yet SHAKE some more!

( ours took about 4 or 5 minutes, bit longer for the cream)

 

 5. when it is thick and frozen you can grab a spoon and eat it right out of the bag! Tiara dumped hers into a cup cuz that's how she rolls

 

6. Grin like crazy with the amount of happiness in your tummy and the sillies you have worked up from dancing around with a chilly bag!!!

WHOOT

OK I have an assignment for you; if you try any of our our Link Lovin' ideas and love 'em, let me know! It will make the girls' day. seriously. They help me get the pics and always ask me, "mama can you show people on your blog?"

Last but not least, I am out of the country adventuring right now, will post more on that later, so if I owe you an email please be patient with me, life is calling!

Gentle Pace

 "She always felt that she couldn't keep up with everyone else's pace, what she didn't see was how her gentle way of moving through life made them all slow down and see the beauty of the day"

Oh how those Gentle hearted sweet ones bring peace to us all, and somehow beat themselves up over and over again for not being as efficient as "everyone else". 

Imagine if the world was made up of only the super efficient? Everything would always get done on time and probably nearly perfectly, but All of that soft peace would be missing and things would be all out of whack...not cool. We all fill the perfect place in the world even the slow and steady, If only we could see that we were made just the way we need to be, each with the specific gifts that we were created to share. Go out my friends and be bright and shiny in the way that only YOU can!

Here's to those with a gentle way, may they stop trying to keep up with the rat race and see the beauty in the way they Bless so many as they softly go through life.

Prints of this sweet story are up in my store and ready to go!

Words

This month has been a crazy one of here and away, family time, me time, travel time and a whole lot of getting into the glorious routine that is fall. I have oooodles of photos to upload, more prints to add to my store, I have a stack of happy art to finish up that I am pumped about ( always the result of me taking some time to nurture my own spirit). And steady through it all I have seriously been enjoying the power of words; their beauty, their ability to wrap you in a story, or find strength and sparkle within your own self.

Find words, write words, print words, and wrap yourself up in the ones that make you feel like leaping!

Link Lovin' - Loop scarves

 

The girls and I spent the summer checking off our "Fun to-do" list. Oh believe me, it went wayyy beyond silly putty!!! Some we came up with on our own, sure,  but mostly we found such great inspiration for so many of our projects online, that I am totally inspired to share some links and how it all worked out for us here on a regular basis. A little bit of Friday Link lovin' to wrap up the week just right. Are you in?!
If we found it, Loved it, and tried it.
You better believe I want to share it, it will be something good to bring the fabulous to your Friday!  And kickin' it off are these awesome loop scarves we made...
Doesn't Emy look lovely modeling one of our new creations?

 

The ones we made are a combo of a few different online tutorials 

For all of that great step-by-step inspiration you can check them out here , here, and here.

All you need are:

-some old t-shirts (or a trip to the thrift store and a quick round of laundry) note: we used the largest tees we could for nice long scarves 

-some good sharp scissors

-and about 20 minutes or so.

This project was a total 5 star for cost, time and end result! 

WHOOT!

As far as Link Lovin' Fridays go; Let me know if there is a cool link you have found that we totally should try, or if there is something you'd like me to hunt for and give it a whirl. The girls and I are having too much fun to stop now, even though school's back on :)

HAPPY FRIDAY

My Wonderful little Ladies

 

I think this might be my new favorite shot of my girls. 

The sun had almost set, the moon was already lighting our way, and the pinkish glow on the water was amazing . So what did we do as the mosquitoes came out and the air grew colder with each minute? the only logical thing one can do! Go down to the beach and run in the water, splash and giggle and get sandy and wet of course!!!

Who needs clean and dry and in bed on time anyways? Not US!

It is just one of so many favorite memories from our time away together as a family this past week ( yeah we pulled them from school cuz family time is too precious not too) It was simply amazing!

I am actually heading back to our friends' gorgeous cottage alone for a few days to get some uninterrupted "ARTing" done. With crisp air, quiet cups of tea, and nothing but creation all around me I have High hopes for awesome productivity!

note: Keep an eye on my Etsy shop it is filling up more each day

and the winner is...

Picked by my little Random finger pointer, Congrats Megan!

Please send me your info so I can pass it on to Kal, and ENJOY what is sure to be an incredible class!!!

God's Light shines in you...

 

This is my own very favorite card to give from my stash here at home. There isn't one person who can't benefit from knowing that you think they shine! This pack of cards is up in My shop, and I feel like sharing some joy today so tell me who shines in your life and why they totally need one of these mini prints, I will pick 2 winners at the end of the month to send out sets to!

For today; enjoy it, smile and shine, and dance through the day my friends, it's a total gift and it's yours for the making!

ETA: thanks for sharing your hearts with me, I was touched by each of your stories. Winners have been notified so check your inbox!

Finding my wings

 "Sometimes there was just too much noise and too much busy for her to find her voice. She raced and she ran until she knew she must stop to find the wings of her Spirit."

 I Finally finished the painting from This Post.

Have a quick read if you would like to know the story behind the piece.

This is one I need to keep around to remind myself to find the quiet moments that I need...sigh. They slip into the hubbub far too easily. truly.

Making sure of that this week; I am heading back to the lake alone with my basket of paint and brushes and a bag full of blank canvases for some quiet time to get myself back in the swing of things after a whirlwindy summer. Here's hoping that good things come pouring out from my heart and my hands! How are you finding your quiet this fall?

 

mated and ready to be framed at 11x14

 Printed packaged and up in my shiny new Etsy shop.

BIG HUGE thank-yous to everyone who has popped over there to support me in my new adventure so far

xo

an Amazing giveaway from Kal!

Let me tell you about my friend Kal. This beautiful lady is one of the most positive motivating people I have ever come across! She's an award-winning illustrator, author, and graphic designer. She fights for the rights of artists trying to share their work online, spreading awareness about the importance of respecting artist's work with her recent link with love initiative.  

 

She blogs daily sharing her love for life and art and small people. And on top of it all she is a wonderfully involved mama to three little girls and 2 doggies. But Kal doesn't stop there, she scoops up her Bullet-proof positive attitude and spreads it as far as she can out into the world!  She has this way of teaching that can inspire and empower, even the person who thought there was no way they could ever be called creative, to pick up a paint brush or a pencil crayon, and redifine what creative means to them. Lucky for all of us Kal has a new online class launching Monday and it looks AMAZING!

Script school is an introduction to BRUSH SCRIPT. You'll get to Try Kal's signature style as you go at your own pace without pressure, learn the ins & outs of creating script (handwriting) with a brush, and Try different techniques. Guaranteed you will Be motivated and inspired by the beauty.

Seriously friends, sign up and this class will change the way you "art" in some way, that's just how it rolls with Kal!

Here's the coolest part; leave a comment here on this post and she is giving away a FREE SCRIPT school registration to one of you awesome peeps!!!

 

For more eye candy check out Kal's paintings, and read more about her daily journey on her blog

All images courtesy of Kal Barteski