The Children of an Artist

Okay, this is not a normal post for me. There is definitely a following of people who do not appreciate pictures of artist's children in their blogs, BUT the argument I have for that is this. These children affect my day to day life and how I see the world around me. They inspire me to be a better Mother and artist everyday. So I had to share some current pictures of what they excel at doing other than being the child of an artist. This is Mailey riding Charlie with her instructor Jonquil right along side. Jonquil ROCKS by the way! She's been taking riding lessons for about 3 months now out at Serenbe. This was her first ride on Charlie, a full sized Palomino horse that's 36 years old. Yes, that's right, I said 36. He is super sweet and amazingly soft! Mailey is dying to jump, but right now we are working on just the basics. Up..down..up...down.... I love to watch Jonquil teach her, so very patient!

Here she is riding up to the amazing barn at Serenbe with lesson buddy Kathryn. Do you see how much bigger Charlie is compared to Gabby?

This is my super star William. At least I think he is. This was our first year with tackle football, where he played quarterback and something on defense (it's on the end-tight end?). He's played baseball since age 3. I've found football to be much more exciting to watch, and much more noisy, if you catch my drift! It has been a challenging season, but a wonderful lesson in humility as we win and lose as a team with dignity.

So there they are, my little budding artists who amaze me with their other talents. They also have a wonderful knack of driving each other crazy! I hope you have a lovely fall evening. Look for more pictures of felted birdies and some fun enameling that I'm making with Valerie soon!

Sweet Mornings

I've not been painting much these days. Tisk...Tisk...We've been playing musical beds in our house, which for some reason led to major clean outs and clean ups. I try so hard to stay organized, but alas, I feel there is no hope. My constant need for change makes staying organized impossible. We've lived in our home for almost 13 years now. This is the longest I've ever lived in one home. Growing up, by the time I was in first grade I think we'd moved 4 times before landing in Homewood, Alabama. After that there were 4 houses in Homewood, an apartment during that time as well while building, a house in Vestavia, an apartment in Mtn. Brook, 2 fabulous townhouses in Southside of B'ham, and well, I should probably count the 4 years at Auburn, each year in a different apartment. So I always had change in my home growing up....so there goes the story behind my constant "nesting". I did however, paint this sweetie last week before the major clean up. The leaves are made from vintage check registry. I really like playing with collage in my canvases these days and have big plans for some fabric soon! "Sweet Mornings"

16" x 16" acrylic on canvas

Back to Etsy

I have a Etsy shop. I love having the Etsy shop. I have neglected this Etsy shop now for about 3 months though, and it shows. No sales. The trick to Etsy I have decided is to constantly add new items so you stay at the top of the lists. If you were to enter bird art for instance, most likely there would be 11 pages or so of items related to that tag. Because my listings are so old, I'd be at the last page. Bad place to be. So, here are a few items I'm going to start listing: The sweet earrings I have left from Norcoss.
Blue Bird resin rings.
Prints. So, this weeks goal is to have a fresh new look to my shop and get back to better sales!

Happy Weekend!

So, I've been asked by many of you, "How'd it go?" Let's just say it went better than I could ever have imagined! We woke Saturday around 6am, hurried to get ready and were in line to set up by 6:30. It was still dark at that hour! The volunteers were seriously like ants on candy at a picnic helping us unload and set up. I was super glad we did a mock set up in my driveway on Thursday. The way I laid out the booth I was a little worried people would not enter the tent to look around. But I was wrong. They saw my end-caps, and came right in! Inside I had so many little details and vignettes, that people stayed awhile and took it all in. My little felties were on Baby Animals Golden book-book shelves. Everyone loved that idea! The felties were the first items to sell out. The 4 caged, 4 on stands and the Tweet Nest all have new homes. Note to self: make more for Marist!
The other felted items I had were these cuffs, which all have happy wrists to keep warm now! They were displayed on one of my drawing dolls.
This was the left end-cap. The 2 paintings here got lots of attention and eventually found new homes. Tons of people asked if I'd be willing to sell my paper skirts, not this time around, sorry! Over the mannequin's left shoulder is my other cool shelf idea- a roll of blue tickets. Here's me...the prints were on the clothesline and in a great rack I borrowed from the Flea. My larger pieces were on the back grid which I covered in white burlap. Overall the feel was soft and inviting. Several others vendors said they could totally tell that it was; a. my first show, b. that I used to be in retail, c. that I would sell my items because of the variety. So, lessons were learned and new ideas found. I am now gearing up for the Marist show on Saturday, November 1st. If you couldn't make it to Norcross, maybe you can make it there!

Norcross Art Fest

So here are a few shots of my weekend. I'll post a couple more later. The weekend went wonderful! People were very receptive of my work. I had great neighbors too! I couldn't have done the weekend without my Dad, Sister Molly and buddy Ellie. Mom was super help back at the homefront with Billy, which also made the weekend run very smoothly. I've got more credit slips to call in and cash to deposit. Let's just say I will definately be back next year! The people of Norcross were amazing to work with and the customers, well I hope everyone enjoys their gifts to themselves and for others!

The Truth of the Matter

This is Mailey and I being silly wearing our book lights. Yes, I wear it on my head....I hate the book clip ons! Being silly with my children is something I plan to do more of these days. Read on.......

I guess you'd pretty much be living under a rock to not be aware of what was going on around us these days in the states. Although I never watch or listen to the news, I prefer my little bubble of naiveness, I can see the struggle as I pass gas station after gas station with no gasoline and notice the quite empty parking lot at the local mall. People are scared, and well we should be. We've lived well above our means for years now as a nation. I know our family has spent more money on useless "things" over the past few years. And what I really wish I had back was not necessarily the money, but some of that time I spent shopping. I'd have used that time in the backyard more, games with the kids, cooked more meals, etc. So maybe all this chaos will bring about an awareness that staying at home is not so bad, and that less is more.

Which brings me to the real point of this soapbox blog. This weekend is the Norcross Art Festival. An annual event that is usually visited by thousands. I have a really icky feeling in my belly that this may not be the case this year. And I am going to have to face up to the fact that this first event may not be my best. I have to not be discouraged, and keep my head high. I have worked for 2 months now getting everything ready. And it is-packed, labeled, inventoried. Ready to find a loving home. If you are lucky enough to fill your tank with gas, and can find your way to Norcross, Georgia please stop by and say hello. It'll make my day so much brighter! But for now, I think I'll do some playing in the backyard with my children. It costs nothing, but is quite priceless, don't you think?

End note: It's 9PM- Afterschool we went to get ice cream, then William went to Noah's while Mailey and I swang. We did her homework in the playhouse and ate pizza (that I made, not ordered) there too. Except Papa bear, he was too big (seriously, I think the floor would've caved in, we've got to get the sinking floor raised soon!) Mailey then put on a lovely cheer/gymnastics show. More homework followed the show and before you knew it, the babies were ready for bed. Amazing what no TV and tons of fresh air can do for a family. Now I can tackle a new painting before the wee hours like usual!

Mini Magnets and Prints

These sweet little magnets are great pick-up items for teachers, stockings or a treat for yourself. They are printed on blank poker chips....yep...poker chips. These birds are sure to bring good luck to your table! $2.00 each

Finally, I broke down and made prints of my art last week. After noticing how well other Etsy shops did selling prints, and a nudge from Valerie and others, I did it. They are either 5"x5" or 5"x7" mounted onto acid free 8"x10" card stock and placed in a clear sleeve. The 5" prints would look wonderful in the IKEA square frames in a grouping. So would the 5x7's actually! These prints will be $10 each. I've got about 16 different images printed at this point.

So that's about it for me for the show. I actually am more nervous about the weekend than I was to get married! My tummy has some crazy butterflies already. The what ifs always get me. I am so not a last minute girl. All my ducks are in a row with items to sell, but the unexpected and things I can not control are what will keep me a little edgy this week. Keep your fingers crossed for weather like this weekend and lots of happy shoppers!