More Blogs I Like

Squirkworld  Lots of knitting, crocheting, and general craftiness along with interesting musings on a number of things including migraines and music! (Squirky also happens to be my daughter.)


Crazy Aunt Purl  More knitting, cats, and general hilarity. This was the first blog I ever read. (I had googled roll- brim knit hat.)

The Pioneer Woman The second blog I ever read. I don't follow it as frequently as I used to, but do check in every once in awhile. Evidently there is a movie in the works based on this woman's blog/life. Ranch life, cooking, home decor, kids, and homeschooling. She's also very funny.

And artist's blogs I follow. Beautiful photos, artwork, lifestyles.

Misty Mawn 

Kelly Rae Roberts

Judy Wise   I'm taking a workshop with her in Portland this fall!


Teesha Moore  The artist that inspired me to start doing art journals several years ago. She's amazing!

Ornamental  Nina Bagley writes so eloquently about her life and her art.

Sanctuary Art  Love her decorating projects and general craftiness. Also her  music playlist.

Cathy Cullis  She makes tiny dolls, intricate embroidery pictures, little books and  interesting water colors

(Apologies for the formatting on this. There is something about using Blogger that I don't get...)

Linkies! Home Decor!

 I keep meaning to share my favorite blogs/websites. I have my blogroll that I go through everyday--usually in a certain order. A lot of women artists and crafty people, and a few other non-artist sites as well. But for today, here are a few of my favorite home decor sites.

                                                                   how not to decorate

Lonny Magazine
An online decorating lifestyle magazine. I especially like the current issue.


Decor 8 Blog
A blog that features gorgeous photos of everything decor inspired: magazines, shops, products, photography and photo stylists portfolios.


Apartment Therapy
I'm totally addicted to the home tours on this one.

Next time I'll share some of  my other favorite blogs.

Some Paintings in a Watercolor Booklet...

as if they were in my art journal. I need to make a new art journal, but in the meantime, I'm just grabbing whatever paper I can and drawing/painting/collaging away. The thing is, this "Acquerello" watercolor booklet is 9x4.5"  and  doesn't fit on the scanner to show the whole piece (as I painted it.) So here they are, slightly cropped.

Trying to do Real Art...(i.e. painting on a canvas)

For some reason, I don't consider my previous paintings in my art journal pages "real art." So I had to go out and buy some tiny canvasses to paint on.  That should make it real enough. And here they are! Yep, there is no difference except I can hang them on a wall.  And if I paint a bigger "stretched" canvas that will make it even morel like "real art." Or not. I just like to "do" art. Since I can't figure out how to had a caption to these pictures, I will put them here: upper left painting is acrylic on a 3x5 canvas " Purple Dress Girl." Upper right is a tiny stretched canvas, 2x3 "Grey Nude" watercolor.  The last is a  5x7 canvas painted with gouache (which I love)  called "Flowered Girl."   It's  so interesting and so much fun to try different arts/crafts/painting/knitting/crocheting/doll making/not to mention gardening/cooking/baking/sewing/. I guess I  really like the "art" of being a homemaker/artist/retired person.

Some Watercolor Paintings I've Been Doing Lately

They are all on watercolor "postcards" from a booklet that I have had for a very long time. Too bad the water causes the paper to wrinkle. I put them under a stack of heavy books because I want to straighten them out and maybe frame them.

Rain Storm and Sunflowers

It never fails...as soon as all the sunflowers are at their peak, a big storm comes along and smashes them to the ground. Yes, we badly needed the rain, so I guess I shouldn't complain.

Three Herbs that Smell So Good to Me

I love the smell of herbs, crushed between my  fingers or as I'm watering my garden, hit with water that releases their smell. I also love the smell of basil, but mostly the taste of it. And every other herb.

Rosemary in a pot on my deck.

 
Cilantro forming seed berries.

 

And a bonus guest appearance by sweet smelling lavender. And that is thyme in the picture above but I can't get blogger to let me add that text. grrrr.

A Look Into the Edge of the Flower Garden

So...you be the judge.  Zucchini leaves or rhubarb leaves? Which is which? Can you tell?  For the last two years I have planted three zucchini seeds at the flamingo corner of the garden, thinning it to one plant. And for the last two years I have tried to cut down, do away with the rhubarb plant. But it still springs up no matter what I do. So, obviously, the zucchini plant is the top photo. And of course the evil rhubarb plant is the photo on the bottom.  I like zucchini. I hate rhubarb.

Final Pages of Art Journal

I've been mostly trying out sketchy watercolor drawings...trying to work up to doing some actual paintings. Yes.

Sunflowers!

Sunflowers are a blooming everywhere in my garden. Off the back porch, along the fence, next to the garage. And the tallest sunflower I have ever seen finally bloomed--with a dinky flower on top. All of these came up from seed--for the third year in a row!

I Love My Garden

The yellow beans that were supposed to be "bush beans" are growing very tall and twining up on the chickenwire fence. I picked a whole big colander of them today.  I guess I should either blanche and freeze them or "pickle" them...as Byron suggested.

I don't understand why these pictures are getting cut off when I look at them in the preview of this. Oh well, click on them to see the whole picture.

Some Early July Flower Garden Pictures

             From top to bottom: Cone flowers and Cilantro   Daisies and Phlox  Back of the Garden

             Byron and Fourth of July Garden   Back Porch Sunflowers