AEDM - Day Thirty

It's the last day of our month long Art-a-paloosa at Creative Everyday. Leah has hosted this challenge to do one piece of art everyday in the month of November for years. Although this was my first year joining, I had so much fun and learned so much about my art and process that I'm certainly planning to do it again next year. It's so strange to think I've been doing so much art in such a short amount of time. I am usually slower at art, lamenting, worrying and thinking about what I want to do instead of actually doing it. AEDM has taught me to just get in there and DO it. :o)

I must admit though that I'm happy it's all over. I'm so totally looking forward to the month off to recharge my artistic motor. It took a lot of energy to do something creative every single day, no matter how you're feeling. I was also running out of creative ideas! I only missed a few days that I didn't pick up a paintbrush or pencil, although some days I didn't blog about what I did that day.

Most of the days I missed I was working on something special for a friend and couldn't show either my progress or the completed piece. On that note, I did finish that rose for my good friend in Pennsylvania. I'm just so happy that I can finally include it in her Christmas box. It'll be shipped and off to the USA tomorrow morning, along with all our Christmas cards that are NOT for family. That's what my art is about today.

I spent the day wrapping presents and doing Christmas cards so I decided to do a moleskine page about just that. It's actually a multi-media collage. I do so few collages but this one was fun!

Talk to you all on Saturday when I wrap up our last Artist's Play Room for this year.
Best,

Just click here to go to this week's Artist's Play Room. To read about this week's theme, scroll down to the end of the post where you can also add your artwork.
REMEMBER: this is the LAST APR for 2012 and you only have a little over a day to participate!!

AEDM - Day Twenty-Nine

Holy Cow, we only have one more day and Art Every Day Month hosted at Creative Everyday is over. Wow. I have to say, I seriously wasn't sure I would finish. It's been a chore at times but I've learned so much and enjoyed it imensely. In fact, I see why other artists do this year after year. I think every year you'd learn something about your art and improve on your skills in an exponential way.

For this, the second last day of AEDM, I have been thinking about TIME. I'm waiting for a bunch of Christmas presents to be delivered so they can be wrapped and go under our newly decorated tree. (I told you we wouldn't make it to Dec 1st before putting up the tree!) I'm also waiting for mid December to arrive so we can do all the baking. Time can be a real b*tch when you're waiting for the proverbial pot to boil. And, I've been feeling the creep of time getting away from me when it comes to finishing that Birthday Rose for my friend and getting her Christmas present + Birthday prezzie in the mail in time for it to actually arrive for Christmas. And don't forget all the Christmas cards I have to write so they can be in the mail in time to get there to all my friend's doorsteps NOT for New Years but actually for Christmas, lol.

Funny, I'm finding time is both going too fast and moving as slow as molasses. It must be a physics thing, how can it be doing both?? Well, since I don't own a magic wand and I didn't rub an old lamp and get three wishes from a fat genie, I guess I have to wait around just like everyone else. The good thing though is that I get to wait around in a purrrty house decorated to an inch of it's life with glittery bows, sparkly lights and scented pinecones. 

Christmas always makes me so happy. I walk around for more than a month of Sundays with a smile from ear to ear. I'm already wishing people Merry Christmas. The Christmas spirit bubbles forth, not to be denied. I hope you all are making your lists and checking them twice and being good girls and boys, no one wants coal in their stockings. 

SO... ♫  Have a holly, Jolly Christmas! It's the best time of the year. I don't know if there'll be snow but have a cup of cheer!!! ♫

Talk to you all soon. :o)
Best,

Just click here to go to this week's Artist's Play Room. To read about this week's theme, scroll down to the end of the post where you can also add your artwork. REMEMBER: this is the LAST APR for 2012!!

AEDM - Day Twenty-Eight

Just a quick post for today, the twenty-eighth day of Art Every Day Month at CreativeEveryDay. A piece of art that I did is going to be doing double duty today. I'm submitting this piece for AEDM and it also is being shown in Dion Dior's series "When Artists Cook".

I'll admit that this piece was not done today but I can't show the painting I'm working hard on at the moment. You see, it's going to be part of someone's present. It wouldn't be prudent (or very smart, lol) to show any piece of the unfinished painting because even though my friend is thousands of miles away, somewhere sailing around in the Caribbean on a cruise ship, she still may see this post and I wouldn't want to ruin the surprise.

Anyway, this piece is a zentangle take on being thankful, which was the theme for this month (November - Thanksgiving) at When Artists Cook. If you want to go read the entire post on Dion's site just click here. (there's a great recipe with the post too!!) 

1. Family - I've been reminded this year just how fragile family can be as I get older. Loyalty is always a good thing.
2. Friends - I'm incredibly lucky to have the extraordinary friends that I do. I just wish I lived closer to them. They're worth every effort to stay in touch, they are all beautiful people and I'm a lucky girl.
3. Health - I work on this daily. This year I've seen some real strides toward where I want to be. Yay!
4. Love - This is the most important thing. Love one another, it's good for you.
5. Peace - I try to be kind to everyone, hoping that in kindness, as it stretches from person to person, there is always a glimmer of a truly peaceful world.
6. Hope - With the bombardment of all the negative things I hear on television and the internet, I fight to remember to keep hope alive.
7. Joy - I try everyday to increase it. Even if only to remember to smell the proverbial roses. 
8. God - Although in a small bubble, not small in my life. Only something very personal, something I don't talk about in public. I feel no need to talk about my spirituality, it's between me and the Universe.
9. You - My blog friends. I feel lucky to know you all and to share with you, back and forth, our love of art. It adds immensely to my daily happiness.

I'll be back tomorrow with more art and I'm also guaranteed to be covered in glitter with a big new delerious Christmas smile on my tired face. We're putting up the tree and decorating the whole house tomorrow!! Yippee, here I come all you tangled Christmas lights and glitter covered bows! hehehe. Yes, I am a Christmas-a-holic. I'll seek help in the New Year. ;o)

Best,

Just click here to go to this week's Artist's Play Room. To read about this week's theme, scroll down to the end of the post where you can also add your artwork.

AEDM - Day Twenty Seven

I finally finished my pink coneflower. I started this painting at the beginning of the month when I first started Art Every Day Month (I think it was shown around or about day nine or ten). I did the background first (left) and thought I'd get back to do the flower etc. in a few days. Well, that plan didn't happen and now we're nearly at the end of the month and the challenge and I'm trying to finish all the art I started at the beginning!

Coneflowers are my favorite flower because of their awesome petals and I now have to add that I'm also in love with their buds. They're so unique, with all their little, curly leaves that turn into beautiful, expressive pink petals. The greens in the leaves and stem are different than most leaves and grasses. They're grayed out with a touch of blueing. This was a fun one because I haven't done a coneflower since I started being bolder with shadows. I'm liking how it turned out. 

It's freezing here in Western Canada as we impatiently wait for the Christmas season to begin. I'm thinking that since it's been so rainy and cold and because we've been bored here for a week, just waiting for November to be over, that the boxes of decorations and the artificial tree are gonna make their way (all by themselves, lol) to our apartment. Hehehe. I know mom's feeling anxious to decorate. The other day she came home with scented pine cones so now the house smells like cinnamon and cloves! I'll admit that the sparkling and glittery tree up in the corner would seriously cheer me up. 

I'm feeling slightly ill lately, all my fault, really, but that's neither here nor there. For the past few days I've been having smoothies for breakfast and they use protein power. Now, see, we switched to Almond milk because I'm lactose intolerant. But stuuuupid me, I KEEP forgetting that the protein powder is made from whey (milk protein)!! I have to take a lactose pill with the damn drink and I've forgotten for three days in a row. I'm now paying the price. UUhh! I know, I know, all my fault, but that doesn't help now that I've got all those icky tummy troubles. It's not like my tummy cares why it's upset, it's just making it clear that I'm going to suffer for my stupidity for the next 24-48 hours. UUhh again!

But don't worry, I'll be fine, it's not like I haven't been this stupid many times before. :o)  I'm hoping that if I announce on Wednesday that our tree is up that you all won't think me crazy. I need a little pick me up, so sue me if a sparkly lighted tree makes me feel better. What's a couple more days of tree gloriousness between friends, right?? Hey, it's not like I put it up in August when some stores start advertising their Christmas stock!! Hehehe.

Anyway, I'll be back tomorrow to add yet another piece of art to AEDM, I'm determined to finish strong. If you'd like to see all the piece I've done so far, just click here and all my Art Every Day Month posts will come up, starting with this one.

Best,

Just click here to go to this week's Artist's Play Room. To read about this week's theme, scroll down to the end of the post where you can also add your artwork.

AEDM - Day Twenty Six

It's another piece of art for Art Every Day Month at CreativeEveryDay. I missed several days last week but since this is the last four days of the challenge, I'm going to endeavor to do a piece a day again. That was supposed to be the challenge but half way though it just became overwhelming. I do feel like I want to push to the end though.

Again, I'm working in my Moleskine. I'm loving the freedom to create with abandon and I get that with the Moleskine, unlike separate pieces of paper. So this last weekend I've had my nose stuck in cookbooks, internet sites and my SousChef recipe holder on the computer, perusing recipes and trying to decide what we should make for Christmas. The list always starts out lengthy then gets winnowed down to something only big enough to feed a small Russian army. ;o) 

This year though, is different. All our old, tried and true recipes have to be tweaked and made gluten free. I'll admit, it's both a pain and a thrill. It means figuring out which GF flour etc. will work or finding that substitute GF ingredient, but the upside is we get to try recipe after recipe. And everyone knows that the only thing more fun that eating Christmas baking is actually baking it!! So far, our only real dilemma is Sugar Cookies. 

We have these very old type cookie cutters that I found for mom as a Christmas gift last year. They're the same kind of cutters that my grandmother used and they're both a cutter and a mold at the same time, pushing a santa face (for instance) into your sugar cookie. Mom was thrilled and we can't wait to use them for the first time. BUT we have to find a GF sugar cookie recipe that tastes good and actually holds it's shape while baking!

I think this one (sugar cookies) is going to be our most difficult recipe to get right. We've already figured out the Nanaimo Bars, lemon squares and quiche recipes and some of our recipes actually are gluten free at the outset. We only have to make sure we get the GF substitutions like GF rice crispies and GF graham crumbs to make many of the recipes.

I have to admit, I'm looking forward to getting started. As the recipe list of appies and goodies gets tweaked and all the Christmas tree decorations come up from storage this week, it's going to be a thrill to see the tree all glowing. All I can say is, "Hurry up December first!!". I want to get on with it! :o)

Best,

Just click here to go to this week's Artist's Play Room. To read about this week's theme, scroll down to the end of the post where you can also add your artwork.

Decisions, Decisions!! (AEDM &APR)

This week's APR is based on a really great idea that another blog friend came across on the web. The idea is to regularly collect ten things from around your house and draw them. I thought I'd do 5 things. I thought about what I wanted to draw. I could draw my pretty perfume bottles with a nail polish and a couple of makeup brushes added in. But then I realized that would be dealing with see-through bottles. I've never tackled that before, and I'll be honest, I just wanted to have fun and get this last piece of art done. I didn't want to have to take two days to figure out how to adequately paint this painting.

I figured it was permissible to just choose five easy to draw items that I could paint and shadow. But then I couldn't choose what to do!! I kept putting it off, feeling overwhelmed with choices. Then this evening I was admiring our mantel, it looks so wonderfully Christmas-y. I realized that I had my five things! Ok, four of the things are the same, but holy cow, the shadowing is so cool, I just had to ink it out. SO, here's my five things for this week's APR. I'll also be entering it into AEDM (Art Every Day Month), Day 25.

Title: My Christmas Mantel

Now that we've nearly finished all of 2012's Artist's Play Rooms, I just want to express my true gratitude to all who participate, whether it's every week or sporadically. I appreciate every darn one of you. Thank you for making APR a spectacular success, I'm humbled by the breadth of talent that shows up every week to participate. I sure hope you all come back on December 29th for the New Year's Artist's Play Room. I'm going to give you all a heads up, think of it as a tiny early Christmas present. On December 29th (Saturday) the theme will be "CELEBRATE". So, do marinate on that for a month and come back just before New Years Eve  to read the APR post and submit your artwork throughout that New Year week.

Have a wonderful holiday month, enjoy your loved ones, both the ones you've inherited through genetics and the ones you've carefully collected throughout your life. I'm sending each one of you much love and Season's Greetings. May all your wishes for the season come true.

Oh, and at the end of this week I will be doing a wrap up of the wonderful art that is submitted, there just won't be a theme. As I said above, you'll have to come back at the end of December to participate in that. If any of you want to send me a Christmas present, I'd LOVE suggestions for next year's APR. What would you like to see as themes? Which themes did you like the best this year? Have you seen a cool theme on another challenge blog that we should use here?? Inundate me with info, THanks so much my friends. Merry Christmas to you all.

Best,

Just click here to go to this week's Artist's Play Room. To read about this week's theme, scroll down to the end of the post where you can also add your artwork. Let me be the first to wish all of you an upcoming Merry Christmas!

Artist's Play Room #37

Holy COW, we're at the LAST APR for 2012, I can't believe this year has gone so darn quickly. This last week's theme was "Turkey Day USA", in celebration of Thanksgiving in America. I'm sure all our friends in the US had a great turkey dinner and felt thankful for all the blessings of the year. I'm hoping that you all are looking forward to a little break with less expectations on you, no more weekly theme for a month of days! I'll keep posting for AEDM until the end of November then I'm going to be taking a well deserved break. I may check in once a week to say hi, see how everyone is. Until then, we have a new week of art starting, lets look at last week's gorgeousness!

Cindy has painted the most
adorable owl and pumpkin.
I love how his eyes follow you
and match the pumpkin!

Tracey has painted a special
corner of her art studio, of
which she is so thankful to
be able to work in. I love
her studio, go look!

Molly has painted a terrific sign,
I absolutely LOVE her script,
how she does it, I don't know
but I do know I'm envious of
her talent!

TwinkleToes has done a
funny tongue-in-cheek card,
I'm sure all the turkeys
really appreciate it!

Gloria used this painting and
reworked is so successfully!
Go look at how it was before,
it's a great study in how color
affects a painting.

My painting is of a
cornucopia, it was actually
a really fun painting.
I thought it would be
arduous but it wasn't.

Gloria painted
another themed
piece, I love the
beauty  of this
piece.

Linda has done a cute
chicken for this
thanksgiving theme.

Vonny has painted the cutest
chicken, her name is
Noodles! She lives in
Von's backyard, not
uncommon in Australia.

Neesie has done just the
cutest little wren, dressed
in his red vest and boots.
Could he be cuter??

Rita has painted a beautiful
background and then added
leaves over top, a really
beautifully festive piece.

Darla sewed up this cute
little turkey. He comes out
every thanksgiving, isn't
he just adorable?

Currie has done some
very cool and colorful
turkeys. I think they're
just adorable.

Sandra has painted a
gorgeous chicken, being
an australian, she doesn't
celebrate Thanksgiving but
she remembers the chickens
they used to have.

If you haven't read the rules & guidelines, please go here. If you've landed here after this challenge has been completed but would like to participate in a current or future Artist's Play Room Challenge, just either click on the APR button in the sidebar or click here and you'll be taken to the latest APR Challenge!

Are you having trouble using the Mr. Linky to add your submissions to APR? Well here's some help! Just click on HELP and you'll be taken to my Linky Help Page. Cool, huh? I've got your back!

So we need a new challenge theme don't we? Hmmm... how about we go old school and do a still life?? There's an artist that I know of out in blogland who advocates a "ten things" challenge to keep your skills sharp. He says, go gather ten things from around your house, arrange them artistically and then draw, paint, sketch, whatever, make art about them! I thought we could do something similar. Go collect five or so things (ok, three is also acceptable, lol), arrange them artistically and do what you do! I can't wait to see what you find lurking in your cupboards! Hehehe.

Bunch of Art Supplies

Three glass bottles

Close up, tea & watercolor paints

Trash

Bacon & Eggs

Marbles

Ok, make sure you enjoy this last week of APR because we aren't back until December 29th with a New Year's Challenge, the first challenge for 2013. I can't believe we're at that time, adding a new year to the old. WOW. Now, go forth and enjoy this drawing challenge. The upcoming break will allow us all to start missing the painting challenges. ;o)

Best,

I'll be back soon with art for both this last APR challenge and also AEDM, which I haven't entered in several days. (bad Jenn!) See you all soon. If you'd like to see all my other entries into AEDM, just click here.

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