Flower Power

Flowers are big right now. I made a flower for my purse, (posted on Dec 19th). It was then that I remembered how I had covered my kitchen table with paper mache flowers back in late 1960s, or possibly early 1970s. I put pin backs on them, and had one in every color. I had saved a green one and a black one, and I wanted to reproduce these once again, so I have been up to my elbows in flour and water. It is not as easy this time, as I am having limited success. There must be one magic step I have forgotten about!! I have not decided on what to use for the centers yet, so they are not put together. I have to finish these soon because I have some other ideas simmering in my head.

Reflections

It is time to reflect on the past year; the good, the bad, and the ugly. Think about what worked, and what did not work. The goals that were made, and accomplished, and those goals that are still to be realized.
I like to write in my journal, those important things that I want to do, so that they won't be swept aside by the hub bub of life. Writing helps me stay focused. Of course the most important thing is to decide what it is I want to accomplish this year. I know that I have to get quiet, and listen to my heart's desire. I will spend this week in reflection until the light shines on the things I am supposed to do for myself and for others.

"It is the light of the mind which determines whether you see confusion and limitation or whether you see order and abundance."  Ervin Seale

Happy Holidays

Merry Christmas to all and to all a good night. Enjoy your family and friends, and may the Blessings of Christmas be with everyone. We get to enjoy this in our neighborhood.

Everything Old is New again !

This necklace is several years old, however I seldom wore it because it was too heavy.
With a new, "old" chain, I  put the charms back on, shortened it, and left off a few of the heavier items.
These charms are all keep sakes from life, going back to grade school, and on through life.Some of them have very special memories attached. The little clay face was given to me by my friend Lois. I love hearts, so have several of them. The round locket belonged to my mother-in-law, and on and on. It is a fun way to keep all of these memories current.

Illustration Friday "mail"

When I saw that the theme for Illustration Friday was "mail", I just had to make some of my fun envelopes.
This is a wonderful way to use those gorgeous magazine pages, and of course it is very "green".
I like to pick out something specific to the person I am sending it to.
Of course you can make any size you need. I used double stick tape for the sides. I hate to do it, but it must have a label put on for the name and address.One of the envelopes even has matching note paper !
Now back to those Christmas preparations !

That small touch !

I have been working on several small projects lately.
I bought this really cute, like new, purse at a resale shop, but I wanted to add
a little touch of my own, so I made an accent flower for it out of 2 old felt hats
and some fabric. The center is an old button cover; pretty cute I thought.
Now I can spruce up my black outfit, which I think gets pretty boring sometimes.
I am in the process of making some other type of flowers also.
I will post them in the next couple of days.

Christmas lunch

A few artist friends met for lunch in Round Rock at The Main Street Cafe.
The glazed salmon was wonderful! We hashed over our creative endeavors,
and tried to come up with that next big wonderful idea; something that will rock the art world ! :>)
It is good to share and brain storm, always happy about the outcome of our discussions.
Nan does beautiful watercolors, Sue paints abstract acrylics, and Char works a lot with Pastel.
Me, I like it all, and have trouble sticking to one thing, however New Year's resolutions are
in the making, and I just might decide on one medium......or not.

Missing me

I'm not quite myself yet. Two funerals in less than 2 weeks is toooo much; as well as some other bad things that happened.
We added several hundred more miles to our log, to be with family and friends
at a sad time.
 Times like this make me think about life, and how very short and fragile it really is; the importance of making each moment count for something, or someone. Also the importance of being the best that we can be.
With Christmas less than 2 weeks away, I'd like to wish family and friends, as well as all my blogger friends, a very Merry Christmas. The hand made card hasn't happened, but my wishes are sincere.

Lucky me !

I have been very fortunate to win 2 recent give-aways on-line.
Could I be so lucky with a lotto ticket!??
This beautiful necklace came from Lynn at Trash to Treasure Art.
She is such a versatile artist, as well as a nice lady, and really has some creative ideas.You can see many of them on her blog.
I will wear my pendant proudly. Thank you Lynn !

Hula Hoops

I feel like this lad who has 3 or 4 hula hoops on at once; trying to keep everything in motion.
Too much to do today, but  I'm getting there. Everyone on our block has their Christmas lights shining except us. Going to wait now until it warms up a bit.
I failed to write my 3 pages every  morning, ( as suggested by Julie Cameron in The Artist's Way ), while we were traveling, and it sure makes a difference. I believe that is why I feel so disorganized. Writing helps me get my thoughts and plans in order for the day. I have been writing 3 pages each morning for about 12 years. If you are feeling disorganized, just try writing random thoughts and see if this helps.
We have been getting Christmas cards each day.  Hopefully time will allow for me to make some cards this year.Sometimes I make a card that can be used as an ornament also..

Hanging on !

Yes, I'm hanging on, like this monkey, after going on a 3000 mile road trip.

Our Thanksgiving trip from Alabama got a detour at West Monroe, LA. We then headed North to Indiana for a funeral for my husband's high school buddy, and former basketball teammate.  I made another little trip to see my 95 year old Mother, for a 24 hour visit. We had a great time, even though the visit was short. We went from sunshine in AL. to snow flurries in Indiana, and saw both, when we got back to Texas. I went downtown to "The Christmas Stroll" this past Sat. They had a "snow hill" for the kids to enjoy. It was a fun day, but I have some catching up to do. I would like to get back to my art, as Christmas is a comin. I will get back in the groove, I will, I will.