Etsy Sale!!!

You are Here I, 7 x 7" - Now for sale on Etsy.

For the month of January (and today also), all Etsy items are 25% off. If you wish to make a purchase, convo me through Etsy, or send me an email about which item(s) you wish to purchase. I will then mark down that piece and reserve it in your name. You can then continue to purchase the item through Etsy. I can also accept checks and money orders if you wish.

I need to make some room for new pieces. I've got lots of new ideas brewing in my brain and I'm anxious to get back to work.

Time to Regroup

I've only been out of town for three days and I feel so lost.

I'm not going to be able to catch up on everyone's blog and make the witty (snarly?) comments I would like to make.

I'm surrounded by boxes (empty and full), ribbons, bags (empty and full), cookie tins (empty, finally), tree needles, broken bits and things to glue, a kid's sewing machine I have to learn to use before I teach my daughter the proper way to sew over her finger, tissue paper, unknown things, cat yak, unanswered Christmas cards, lists of things I should have done, etc.

Bloggers, thanks for being out there. I'll visit you later and make comments on old posts.

I'm off now to heat up leftover pizza and then hope desperately that the milk for tomorrow morning has not gone bad.

p.s. Happy birthday Wiggy!

Christmas Dishes

Whew! I'm worn out.

Had a great Christmas with hubby's folks. Today Christmas #2 begins with my folks. I do know for a fact that there will be fewer dishes.

Hope everyone has a great weekend. Don't spend too much time in the stores returning gifts!

Christmas Gifts to Me

Well, looks like this is going to be a quick post.

Just here for a minute to wish all of my readers a wonderful winter holiday.

I want to thank all of you for your gifts to me throughout the year. Thanks to all who read this blog and comment frequently. Thanks to those who stop by every now and then. Thanks to those of you who have been supportive of my attempts at creativity.

All of your comments are gifts to me. It's great to know that you are out there.

Now, I am scuttling off to clean and tidy up before the in-laws get here. I have no idea what time they are due to arrive. We are all heading out this evening to gawk at lights and have dinner. Then tomorrow the hubby (with my assistance?) will whip up a brunch and Christmas Eve dinner. Then soon after that is another brunch and Christmas Day dinner will be next. And I just realized I have failed to conjure up a dessert for at least one of these meals.

Anybody have a quick and easy recipe that uses chocolate chips and 4 or fewer eggs? It's all I have on hand and darned if I'm going to the store again.

My Favorite Things, Part III

On the cooler side of the spectrum, my favorite colors are brown and blue. These colors are appropriate for those rare sunny, winter days in Central Pennsylvania.

Inception, 7.5 x 9"

City Park, 13 x 11"

Life Raft, 6 x 9"

Ripple Effect, 14 x 10"

All of these pieces are now available on Etsy.

Not a great deal to talk about today. I must spring into action now. Wrapping, baking, one more trip to one of those darn big box stores. I swore I was not going to shop anywhere until after Christmas. That just makes me a big fat liar. But one MUST have printer paper.

My Favorite Things, Part II

Back in 2000, my husband and I had been trying to have a child for a couple of years. We went through a few unpleasant and somewhat invasive procedures. We could have gone farther down the unpleasant procedures path, but decided against it.

Biological Clock, 14 x 11" framed

While adoption had always been in the backs (and sometimes fronts) of our minds, we weren't quite sure if we were doing the right thing by not going along with these procedures. Were we wrong to not exhaust all possibilities of having a biological child? Luckily, we came across a mean little specialist who really turned us off regarding additional procedures. Really. It was a fortunate thing.

Biological Clock II, 18 x 14" framed

We then gathered information about adopting from China. Two years of filling out forms, sending money here and there (and sometimes, it seems, down the toilet), and experiencing moments of extreme doubt spread out before us. Our referral came with a photo of our child and all of that bad stuff just went out of the window (or down the toilet, with some of that money). I no longer had to hear the ticking of that damn biological clock.

Biological Clock III, 14 x 11" framed

Our daughter will be eight in February. We know every second that we did the right thing.



These pieces now hang together in our home. Here they will stay. They will not show up on Etsy.

My daughter came upon a wishing tree at a local Christmas tree festival. Slips of paper and ties were provided to write down a wish and tie it to the tree. My daughter's wish was for a baby brother or sister. Santa's not bringing that gift, kiddo!

My Favorite Things

Since there's nothing new coming out of the studio this month, I'm going to post some of my favorite things from the past.

Spice Route I, 24 x 24"

This series, Spice Route, was inspired by a neighborhood walk a couple of years ago. The autumn leaves had mostly fallen. Mixed into these glorious colors were a few bright pink petals from a daisy that had escaped the frost.

Spice Route II, 20 x 20"

Unfortunately, at the time I did not have a small camera for carrying on walks. I would have to remember this color combination.

Spice Route III, 16 x 16"

It would be several months before I got around to putting that mental picture into fabric. Would the final result have been better if I had been able to exactly match the fabrics to a photo? I'm thinking probably not. I feel the colors matter less than the intensity and contrast.

Spice Route IV, 12 x 12"

I have since received a camera small enough to uncomfortably fit into my pocket. I rarely remember to carry it with me, however. Does forgetfulness make for good art? For me, its the memory that counts. I just wish my memory weren't getting so bad.

All of these pieces are available on Etsy.