I was quite shocked to see January 15th on the calendar already!!! Geez, Louise, could we slow down just a tiny bit, please?! As I sat pondering how we've already whizzed through 15 days of this scrumptious new year, it dawned on me that I have not painted, sketched or drawn since before Christmas, waaaaaaaay before Christmas! I know it's been 5 weeks and it may even be six! (No wonder I was getting cranky!!)

So it's time to "knock the rust off" and reteach myself which is the proper end of a paint brush, how much water to use, how to feather an edge and just in general, get moving in the art department. Again. I occasionally hear an artist talk about how much difficulty they've had getting back into art after a long period away. Almost without fail, if they're asked if they did any warming up BEFORE jumping back in, they'll shake their heads no.

Hello!! Would any professional athlete, chef, singer, or any other performer begin a game, new recipe, or performance without some practice and warm ups? Not likely! Why then, do we as artists expect to sit down to draw or paint without practice and warm ups?? That's crazymaking!! And yes, I'm guilty of doing this very thing so I'm qualified to speak. ;•)  I did this up until I started painting full time and was able to observe the effects of not warming up–can you say "ruined paintings?" I've finally learned.

The new Painted Thoughts Studio……



All because of a bad light! The work will be continuing in the background as there is still much to be done. Installing the crown molding, working on the fireplace, window treatments, painting the taboret (which is not in the photos) and recovering the chair, are just a few items still to be done. If you're interested in the old studio, you can click here as I haven't had time to update the photos.

Hope you enjoy and please share your thoughts and comments!

…strikes again!

Woohoo! It's almost time to leave for Paris again! I can hardly wait!! I'm packed, have my tickets and my passport. I double checked my art supplies. I went and had some money exchanged so I'll be able to get around while I'm there. I may even come back with a red beret! I'm feeling adventurous!

All those lovely cafés and those pastries and the gardens and architecture and pooches and sculptures and palaces and the cuisine and the…well, just about everything! Oh my, Paris is such a lovely city to explore and get lost in! I mean if you're gonna get lost, you might as well be in Paris, right?!!

We will be leaving on the 18th so there is still time to join us if you would like to come too! More information can be found at Imaginary Trips!

Still working on the studio and the progress is one step forward, two steps back, as I continue to purge and pack. Only to turn around and unpack. And then repack. My focus has been on getting like items with like. Once everything is grouped, I'll go through and systematically eliminate. Sounds easy, right?

We'll see.

I love boxes. Especially unusual boxes or if they're square. Or red. Now this is not a newsflash to me as I've known this for years. I have a thing about "square." And red, but that's another discussion. I have a lot of squares in my life. Knowing this, I've tried to be careful to "collect" only special, prime, unusual or pretty (square) boxes. It would also seem that Yoda was right - there is no try. You either do or you do not.

I did not. Be careful. Careful enough, anyway. What is a newsflash to me is that I've boxes coming out my ears! Some red, some with handles, some unusual, some pretty, some are even square, but for crying out loud - there's nothing in them! Except maybe another box or two. How many (empty) boxes does one soul need?? Egads, I do wonder about myself sometimes, but you knew that already.

Since you probably wonder about me too (I saw you nodding your head–stop that!), I'll go ahead and tell you the other hugely annoying behavior I've discovered. I have found dozens of these cryptic notes, usually on Post-It note paper all throughout the sh…stuff in the studio and most of the time I have NO idea what I was talking about!

It's my handwriting, which would suggest that I wrote them. Makes me wonder though. Occasionally, after much brain digging, I can figure it out. It helps if the note was attached to one of those unfinished pieces of art or project, but not much. I would suggest to anyone that is contemplating cleaning out, moving, rearranging or otherwise modifying their studio, to arm themselves with a dust rag, a heap of patience and a good dose of humor - you're gonna need it!

Now, if you'll excuse me, I have more "reading and cyphering" to be doing…


P.S. Pictures will be forthcoming, I promise!!!

I came across these two images as I was cleaning out the studio and organizing my finished work…

It's cold, y'all! Is it snowing with whiteout conditions and 18º below here in Florida? No! It's in the 30's up from the 20's and that's cold by Florida standards!! We never made it past the 40's (for our high) yesterday. As I sit typing this I have on two sweatshirts, LOL, I'm just not used to this!!
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I was tempted to title this post "Can I have another week, please?!" as I'm not really ready for the new year to start rolling! Whereas the studio is coming along nicely, it's not quite functioning - yet! I'm in the throes of purging, organizing, purging some more. This is the hardest part for me as I am packrat. My mantra for today is "I must let go to move forward" and this is making it much easier to let go of things I've held onto for years. The studio will be up and functioning by the end of the day. There will still be more work to do. The work that's left will be done in little bits and pieces as I go along.
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Donna, The Happy Painter, posted "Hi ho, hi ho, it's off to work I go! Bring it on, 2010!" on Facebook this morning - what an outstanding attitude to start the new year with!
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I had a sign in my studio that said "There is time enough." I created it back when I was in school, working in Corporate America, trying to be an artist, wife, daughter, employee, sister, and friend (and not necessarily in that order). I recently put it up in a new location in my studio - on my cork board. A couple of hours later, I found it on the floor. I set it aside, wondering why it didn't stay up. Later, I put a framed snowflake in it's place, a much heavier piece. It stayed without any issue.

This made me start thinking about that sign, and I came to the realization that it doesn't serve me well. It says there is time enough as if there is just enough time to get everything done. I am choosing to cultivate abundance in my life and so I will be throwing the sign away and creating one that says "There is more than enough time."
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Hope you're having a fabulous, first Monday in this new year!!

Wow, what a ride 2009 has been! It was a super fantastic year for me with so very much accomplished! I've thoroughly enjoyed going over my list of goals I set back in December/January last year and seeing all those items checked off and exceeded beyond some of my wildest dreams!

Of course, I had no idea that Imaginary Trips would come into existence, that I'd be getting a new MacDaddy computer, that I'd win Best of Show or that I would be blessed with so many wonderful new friendships when I wrote that list! It was certainly a year of transformation in many ways and despite the moments of sheer terror, I had a blast!

In reviewing 2009, I realize that the words BOLD and INTENT served me extraordinarily well. I knew that I had a lot to accomplish in the year (far beyond what was on my list in January) and boldness was going to be key to stepping out and seizing new opportunities, pursuing possibilities, trying new things, overcoming old mindsets and reaching for my dreams.

Setting my Intent made me think about how I was using my time, why I was doing what I was doing. It made me question just about everything and especially the usual "because I've always done this" mindset. It almost always turned out that the mindset wasn't serving me well. It had become a rut rather than a well thought out reason for doing something.

I've been pondering my new word-of-the-year for 2010 for a few weeks now, and I even thought I had selected my new word - wealth - back before Christmas, but it didn't quite fit. Don't get me wrong, there's nothing wrong with wealth! In fact, I quite like it and it will most certainly be part of the new year, but it wasn't quite right, and yesterday, as I ran around doing my errands, I spent the time thinking about why it didn't work for me.

I thought about all the things I wanted to cultivate in 2010 - health, wealth, fun, friendships, knowledge, skills, ideas, kindness, happiness, opportunities, joy, possibilities, maybe even a garden and wait a minute………cultivate? Cultivate. CULTIVATE! And that's when I knew I had my word! You see, I have so much I want to do, and be, and see, and accomplish in this new year and I realized I needed a bigger word! A word that would encompass all of this and more (as I have no idea what else might be in store for 2010!) WIth this new word in hand I also realized that wealth was a little too myopic. It focused on just one area of my life.

When I looked up the definition, I saw "break up, preparation, raise, grow, acquire, develop, win and improve" - all words that resonate with me for 2010. I also like that it's a verb, an action word, and I do believe this year will very much be about action. Taking action. Making it happen as opposed to waiting for it to happen. And so I begin 2010 with cultivate as my cornerstone, I'm looking forward to a new year full of things that have never been………

And what's your word-of-the-year???????? Please share in the comments or with a link to your post about your cornerstone!