Curtains, who needs them?

I wonder if this will be me by the end of summer?  I am thrilled that the empty lots are selling in our fabulous subdivision.  The lot beside our house and the lot behind our house have sold.  I can feel our property value increasing.

 

 

 

 

.However,  I must admit that I was a bit surprised to see this giant start to go up behind me.  The majority of houses on our street are for people with arthritic knees, just like me.  They are lovely single story homes.  There are a few two story houses mixed in, no problem.  All the houses are beautiful, just like this home will be.  It just feels odd to know that folks can look into my backyard.  However, they may be sorry for two simple reasons.  First, I don't care for blinds.  I like the sun to shine in.  As a result, I don't have curtains or blinds that cover the window.  All my curtains are for looks only.  I'm sure the neighbors have learned to look away.  Second, Gene takes the dogs out back in his skivvies late at night and early in the morning.  It makes me giggle just thinking about those poor people looking out their bedroom window in the morning, stretching, and enjoying the start of their day only to look down and BAM!  there's Gene on the back porch.  ha ha!!! I don't know, maybe he will start putting on a robe.

 

I have reminded myself that once spring arrives that I won't be able to see the house.  There is a beautiful mature tree already there and I planted apple trees in that corner.  Plus, it is a great excuse to continue to landscape - one of my favorite things to do.  Get the shovel ready Geno, I need some evergreens.

August has been guarding the yard.  He normally doesn't hang out in the yard but he is really enjoying being a guard pup.  Isn't he the cutest?  I wish I had a picture of him standing.  He is an Australian Shepherd and Basset Hound mix.  He has those adorable short turned in Basset legs.  It just makes me smile to look at him.

Lastly, I wish I had learned more in my Spanish classes.  The construction workers enjoy their day.  They are always joking and laughing... loudly.  I want to laugh with them.

Quality materials are a must - don't be cheap like me.

A big sigh...

I have a habit of being thrifty.  I always try to go the less expensive route and more than once, I have paid the price.  My lesson I have learned is to always use quality art material where it matters most - the foundation.


See the slightly messed up lower left corner?

I had a slightly warped and inexpensive canvas I had been saving.  I thought it would be good for an experiment in mixed media.  I mean, what would it matter?  If the painting was a total pile of yuck then I didn't lose much money on my canvas.  It never crossed my mind that I might love the painting.  I have learned my lesson.























I started painting on my wobbly warped canvas, ignoring that it was bouncing all over the table.  It was just a little warped.  I didn't know that the paint would eventually make it worse.  So, now I have this experiment that I love, that is hanging on my wall for everyone to see right when you enter my home, and it drives me crazy.






















Moral of the story... use quality material.  The canvas matters.  Oh, and be careful if you bump up against the painting that is meant to be touched.  It is hanging a bit precariously and may jump off the wall.

Christmas Mixed Media Paintings

Wow, it has been a long time since I posted.  We moved into our new house six months ago and I finally found my camera battery but I am still missing my SD cards.  I'm really wishing I had been more diligent about backing up my pictures.  boo hoo

Christmas is around the corner and I had a great time painting these mixed media paintings.  My husband has been in the Army for over 20 years.  This Christmas I was inspired by all my military friends who have endured and tried to enjoy Christmas during deployments.  It is an unbelievably emotional time.

I always try to add a ton of texture to my paintings.  I want the viewer to pick them up and touch them.  My favorite part of this group of paintings is the snow.  It is molding paste that is swirled, painted, and then sparkled.  That's how I imagine snow looks like when it is fresh and the sun makes it sparkle.  I normally add a saying to my paintings, which are normally inspired by scripture or a song, but this time I left two blank so they could be personalized.  The fireplace painting and the Christmas tree painting now have personal messages.

I hope you have a Merry Christmas!

... and the fire is so delightful

Goodwill towards men

Joy

Peace & Joy

Peace

Winter Cabin

Getting Settled

I has been a month since we have moved to our new house.  So far we love it.  I would post some pictures but for some unknown reason I haven't been able to load pictures since we moved.

The actual move was a little frustrating and Gene is still trying to catch up.  The mover/driver chose to not hire helpers and had his family help him unload our household goods.  He had a 13 year old son, and 10 year old son, and his wife (who didn't seem to embrace his decision).  Although I applaud him for teaching his children the lessons and benefits of hard work, they were too small to carry a lot of items and didn't seem to understand the process.  As a result, a lot of furniture was slightly damaged, things ended out in odd places, or things didn't get any farther than the garage.  I think the most frustrating part for Gene was that the mover took apart a lot of furniture that shouldn't have been taken apart and didn't put it back together.  As a result, we have had to order new parts, etc.  But like I said, I still like a family that works together.

We  have been spoiled by our military moves the past 20 years.  After we have unpacked, the moving company always came back to pick up our boxes and packing paper.  The sweet life is over.  The girls and I tackled that job.  We found a recycling area the next town away and filled up our little red car multiple times.  Even though it was hot and humid work, I thought it was fun.  It cracked me up to see the girls in the car with paper packed all around them.  They even talked one of the neighborhood kids into helping.  It was so satisfying to see the finished project... our garage floor.

We are still hanging curtains... a job Geno and I both despise, but for the most part, we are settled in.  The girls have enjoyed the neighborhood pool.  Gene has taken Gigi fishing at the river that runs beside our subdivision.  The absolute best part was that the first week there we were invited to a neighborhood barbecue.  The neighbors are so fun and friendly.

I know we are going to like it here.  Now, I just need to get Gene to dig more holes in the yard for my landscaping obsession.  ha ha

Mountains and Fireflies

Before my dear friend Jen moved to Utah she asked me to paint her a picture with mountains and fireflies, her two favorite things.  I had never painted a firefly picture before so I was excited about the challenge and wanted the picture to be extra special for her. 

Jen is so vibrant and fun that I decided to make the painting bright and colorful like her.  I normally age my paintings but this time I went for all the joy and wonder I could create.  Gosh, I'll miss this girl.

Late For Class

July is more than half way through and I still have some late June-early July posts yet to write.  I started this post before we moved in early July and have since lost the draft.  No surprise there.  I've lost multiple things in the past few weeks during our move. 

Some wonderful ladies came over for a mixed media painting class.  Their paintings turned out beautifully and we had such a great time laughing.

I am a messy free spirited painter and reminded them several times to PUT DOWN YOUR PAINTBRUSH (Gina).  I wanted them to feel their art... literally.  Paint washes off eventually.

Beautiful paintings ladies. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Painting Smalls - Mixed Media

We are in the middle of moving and can you guess what I am obsessed with?  All I want to do is paint 6x6 mixed media paintings.  This size of canvas is one of my favorite.  I can finish a simple painting in a day or two and since it is a "deep" canvas, the sides become part of the painting.

Maybe I am enjoying painting these so much because I packed up my sewing machine and already shipped it to our new home a few states away - or - maybe it is because I am avoiding the never ending cleaning that needs to be done to move from our rental house.  Either way, I am loving my time in my art studio. 

Believe The Best

Know In Your Heart

Breathe