Running, running, running.

whew!  Insane fun at our THIRDthursday client ppreciation open house.

so MUCH fun, in fact that I neglected to take photos of the event while it happened. 

*sigh* 

Suffice to say that our 40 party go-ers had a BLAST.  Our clients really enjoyed watching our artists demo their craft, chatted up  a storm and thoroughly enjoyed themselves.  

Do come see all of our new artisan goods and the aMAZing sales items in the Sunroom Saleroom!  Cigar boxes 3 to 5 bucks!

New Orleans Flashback - Day 2 Sept 22nd

As the Government furloughs are HEAVILY affecting sales at the shop I prefer to flashback to my 2nd honeymoon in New Orleans.  Day 2 visuals for your enjoyment. 

Bob did NOT test open the umbrella before we got on the plane.  (We picked him up another one along the way.)

Rain is dramatic in New Orleans. The sidewalks are VERY canted as are the streets.

Rain makes for dramatic pictures though...

We ventured out under umbrella to Frenchman's Lane not remembering that it doesn't get cranking until 10 o'clock at night!  We heard music and swung into Mojito's to hear this Blues trio playing tucked under the patio roof in the pouring rain.  Surprisingly we had the best bite of the whole trip there.  Cheese Jalapeno grits with seared shrimp.  Snappy, smoky HUGE shrimp. yum.

The rain stopped and we sauntered back to the hotel. Admiring street performers and shop windows along the way.

Awesome displays!  Made me jealous- our shop is an old house so we don't have big display windows. darn.

Add a comfy couch and I would move in here!  I really like the subtle colors and airiness of the display.

Love the "more is More" elements to this window!

A reminder of things past. Everywhere in New Orleans.

Back at home- Met some fantastic folks this weekend.  Visitors from out of town.  Folks that live right in the neighborhood that are venturing out after having babies.  Old clients with free time on their hands. A fun day.

New Orleans Revisited - Flashback to September 20th, Friday - day1

Have I mentioned I have the best sister in the world?  More evidence?  She took us to the airport for a flight at National Airport when she lives in the opposite direction in Fairfax.  My husband Bob & I were heading to New Orleans for a 2nd honeymoon.  Seemed unreal to be actually away from work and my kids for a week.

 After an blessedly uneventful week, we cabbed into town.  Our taxi driver only looked like President Obama from the back seat I swear.  My parents kindly swapped a week at their National Time Share and gave us a week on them as a anniversary gift.  How exciting.

 Blue Green Pension was not huge, but very nicely appointed with a mini kitchen, Luxurious linens and local art.

 This piece invited us to take a bite of the city.

 The swanky chandeliers, friendly and helpful staff and charming rooftop terrace were not as well appointed however, as our first stop.

 Bourbon House on (where else?) Bourbon Street.  Bob had himself a bourbon, we scarfed down a couple dozen oysters and then walked around the city.

 Enjoying the street performers, musicians and various pre wedding parties roaming past us.

 This guy was perched on the point of a trash can like a statue!

 Did I mention it was relaxing?

 Had a nice long walk.  Marveling at the alleys leading to gardens , the spooky shop windows and the fantastical architecture.

 I was reminded that New Orleans is one of the few non-homogenized cities seemingly left in this country.

 Not a Target or Chipoltle in sight!

 Bob DID however find a new place to sell his BBQ spice too!

Back to reality.  Today's chores: email, laundry. trying to clear a horizontal space in my studio so I can make SOME thing!

No saving "for good"

I promise I was NOT saving this pristine pile of Pan Pastels "for good". 

My beloved sister gave them to me for my birthday and frankly I m not quite sure WHAT to do with them.  I am not worried about ruining them per se, but so much of what I do is "wet work" I am concerned about turning them to mud.

The directions say "use as other".  Not very helpful.  We will see.  Any hints from you would be helpful!

Creativity on Demand

Nothing like a deadline to get me to finish something!  24 home from vacation I finished 2 collages, worked a full day at the shop and hung out with my neighbors at a fire pit party.  (NOT necessarily in that order!).

While I was working this evening, my lovely neighbor even offered to run my pieces down to our gallery.  Yippee!  On the agenda, a little family time: sleep in, church and clearing the post holiday debris field before we head to the shop.  Catch up time!

It's the little things.

One of the reasons I have been married to my husband for twenty years is we enjoy the same things.  Little things like yesterday
*exploring the ancient cemetery in new Orleans and marveling over the inscriptions and how Mother Nature is infiltrating through all the cracks and crevices 
*admiring the crisp service of a famed restaurant like Commander's Palace
*watching the crazy weather go by
*wandering around crusty antique stores, not just admiring the merchandise but how they display it
*sitting and watching a band let a passing tourist play a set with them
*being content just sitting together at the end of the day.

Art in life. New Orleans Chapter

Thanks to a ridiculously large army of friends, family and neighbors, my husband Bob and I were fortunate to be able to take a vacation to celebrate our 20th(!) Anniversary.  We are in New Orleans.  Why New Orleans?  Food, wine, music and shopping non-stop, all my favorite things.  In just 48 hours we have eaten oysters, danced in the street and chatted with of artists, musicians, and chefs galore.  SO much fun to be exposed to so much creativity.  Inspiring.

Upcycled Auntie Goods

It's fun when a project I came up with on my own can morph into something that makes someone else happy.  Client Diane was admiring a cute straw HatBag I had at the shop and I mentioned in passing that the mink ones always sell the fastest.

 I could see the light bulb go "ping" over her head and she realized I could transform some lovely fur pieces that she from her beloved late aunt.  Two collars, a hat and some gorgeous fabric later and

Ta da!  Three happy sisters with new fashion accessories that will be the talk of the town this fall and winter!
Thank you for trusting me with your family heirlooms ladies!

Tick, tick, tick...

Was thrown for a loop today.  Bad news about a friend's cancer diagnosis yesterday. Feeling like I am running in circles and Not Quite Accomplishing Things. 

Decided to take 10 minutes while I was waiting for laundry to dry I thought I would try to make SOMEthing.  So, while I didn't finish a piece I took a painted paper that I was not fond of and turned it into something that I can work with.  I wrote line after line from a hymn across my paint drabs, wishing well with my beloved "J".

Probably won't show in the finished piece but I will know.  

You gotta pay the --- Cellist??

Cellist's creator Eloa Jane's is S&C Featured September Artist

You know that old adage about "paying the piper"?  I feel like I have been paying EVERYONE in the last couple of weeks.  School fees, car expenses, government fess for my helium tank (REALLY?). Seems like every thing that rolls around periodically but is NOT factored into my budget is due at the same time.   But then I think that is how I work to.  I am not so good at budgeting, doing a little bit everyday of something,  I make 9 pieces of art or none.  Rearrange the entire shop or nothing.  Cook 4 meals at a time or eat cereal.  Read a 400 page novel in three days or pick up nothing heavier than a magazine.  Not sure WHAT that says about me except for maybe that I enjoy "the Zone". 

Have you signed up for Area's 718's Karen Mullarkey's mixed media classes yet? There is one this weekend!

You know the zone, that Zen, timeless place, where the world ceases to exist and you are in whatever is in front of you.  Bliss.  When I was a headhunter I used to drive my boss crazy because I would bill a month's worth of income in 4 days because I worked in "batches", seemingly incapable of doing a little bit of this, a little bit of that.  After I injured my neck a few years ago I got rudely tossed from the "Zone", because my arm and legs would go numb whenever I stayed in the same position longer than 20 minutes.  So I moved to "Timer Land" where I would literally set a timer to make me get up and move a different muscle group.  I have survived and still yet don't feel I am thriving to what I am capable of.
Maybe it is time to go back to the Zone with Middle Age Restrictions - like Eating Right, Exercising & Going To Bed At A Decent Hour SO I Am Not A Mess The Next Day.

Cindy, here's the gratuitous chair shot!

 Why does that sound so UNappealing?  Why do I get SUCH a thrill from the big move, the big start-up, the big project started, worked and finished?  Hard to understand why one is wired the way one is.  But I am learning to live with the fact that maybe at 51 I should take better care of myself so I DON'T have to fight my nature when it is most creative...

Sunny flower pastel sketch from my daughter to brighten my thoughts.

New (School) Year's Resolution

The buzzer went off at an alarming (!) 5:40 this morning but I was already sort of awake.  I must have opened my eyes 5 times between 3 and 5, anticipating the alarm.  First day of school.  My not so baby boy is a freshman this year. Astounding. My girl a senior, how can that BE???

Shaking off the cloud of disbelief, I staggered toward the coffee as they got up, showered , ate breakfast and actually brushed their teeth and put shoes on without so much as a nag from me.  Now I really know I am dreaming... 

The hardest thing about them walking out the door, (on time I might add)?  I was left with my New (School) Year's Resolutions.  You know the list that includes working out, making art, cleaning my house, writing, finishing something, THAT list?

In the spirit of new beginnings I decided to finish something.  On canvas, a thread sketching inspired by a vintage seaside photo I have. Nothing fancy, but she is DONE.  Oh am proud to report I DID go for a walk and row on the erg this morning while I am running laundry. Aaah the excitement of working from home this fine morning.

A sense of perspective

My favorite shot of the trip. Man contemplating John Singer Sargeant portrait while I contemplate scale and perspective.

We are home. After a crammed full week of visiting friends and colleges for our rising Senior daughter driving up and down the Eastern Seaboard I am tired.  Even with gracious hosts and tasty meals and comfy beds I was still grateful to get back to my own bed and work.  

I am also grateful for the time to take this trip while folks covered for us at the shop. (THANKS CINDY!)  It really gave us a sense of perspective to look at a college a day and see how even when they ostensibly have the same fine arts programs the coursework, the teaching, the emphasis, the campus, the goals and the student body could be so completely different.  Frankly, it was fascinating.

You are dead a lot longer than you are alive. Perspective from Boston's Museum of Fine Arts .

My poor kid was overwhelmed about her options.  But being her mother's daughter, she immediately started organizing her thoughts. She also quickly realized that she did, indeed, have opinions that I don't think she realized that she had. Yes, she did want to go to an urban school with larger collaborative classes.  That she preferred a large, diverse student body, that she liked the hopping, active  campus over the serene, contemplative one.  I must admit, I was a little jealous.  When I was her age, I didn't recognize that I did have options.  I was always the pragmatic one, taking what came in front of me and making the best of it. I ran my whole career that way, and frankly I have had a wonderful life but these visits really make me think about roads not taken.

 The reason Bob was nagging me about going into Fanuiel Hall was that in 50 years of going to Cape Cod he had NEVER been inside? Who knew?  The Docent loved the kid's Dr. Who shirt.

And for chucking my successful corporate career at a time when that income would be contributing a great deal to the options that are ahead over the next few years.  Would I trade this time?  This total  self-employed, make all your own decisions, fly or die by your own petard,alternative to the average Washingtonian lifestyle for cash flow and snappy shoes? For the ability to actually join my extended family on vacations and replace the crappy carpeting that slowly and surely becoming an embarrassment?  No, not really.  Standing back my perspective is that I have served my family.  My kids are kind, strong and smart (although they REALLY miss the cleaning lady), my husband hasn't stroked out from stress (although some days he does still have self-inflicted high blood pressure) and I still have more plans, goals and dreams then I have time and money.  It's a good place to be.

Thor waiting for his people to return.  All the time in the world.

It's weird to be in the backseat.

Driving to visit dear friends and taking turns driving. For all of you that are aware of my control freak tendencies, the sensation of sitting in the back seat watching my much beloved but ADD hubby guiding my daughter through lanes on Jersey highways with only ONE involuntary interjection from la madre feels like all my "Growing My Soul" work & coaching is finally kicking in!

Love ya all.

me & ...

 The interesting thing about meeting people that you have read about or seen on TV or whatever is that they are well, people.  The illustrious CeCe Caldwell came to a regional meeting for her Chalk and Clay paint and gamely came to our house and enjoyed a typical Stifel Happy Hour.  She was fun, easy to talk to and frank in her opinions about her business and philosophy.

 I admit it I am a groupie fan girl FREAK about Mary Englebriet.  I admire her, how she has persevered in her art career and re-invented herself numerous times over the years to keep herself and her family sane while not comprising her art and her style.  I was trying really hard to be cool when I posed for this picture so I would n't chase her off!  Her comment before this photo was taken? "Boy, I just love having my picture taken. " Really Mary?  Perhaps not. But she was so gracious and charming.  I was flabbergasted to find someone with international reach and influence was shy and somewhat nonplussed at all of the fuss being made over her.

 My husband, on the other hand, has never met a camera he didn't like!

 I need to take more photos with our FIRSTfriday artisans.  This is one of only THREE I found and we have been doing this event for almost 6 years (EEK!) - with the lovely Isabel Zito.

 Been throwing a Mardi Gras party for twenty years. How many shots of me & my guests. TWO - one with Bruce Mogensen.

 We've had SIX birthdays at S&C. ONE shot of cake - with Ashleigh Collens of My Two Monkeys.

 Hanging with the neighbors for 20 years. ONE shot with the lovely Howard Cincotta.

 Artist shot #2 - with poet & artist DJ Gaskin

 more beach pics than anything else. My happy place but I am not it the bulk of the shots.

 Did I ever mention we went to the White House at Christmas?  Bob was mad at me because I didn't linger longer.  Was worried about slowing other people down.  This I will ever go again? Probably not in the cards  as the hubs no longer has a clearance...

Did I mention we faced the paparazzi

 or sat in our jammies on Christmas Morning?  I REALLY need to document my own life.  It would be so much fun to have more of my Mardi Gras table mates (here with Ted Timberlake.) Why don't I have pictures dancing on his patio?

 But I have this very bad habit of thinking planning and pondering the future and not not actually living in the present.  And being self conscious about pulling out the camera and taking photos to capture moments. Mind you I do know I have other bad habits too.. No comments all.

 I owe my bestie & unflagging cheerleader Laurie O'Bryon a phone call.  I seem to be keeping up with her through her boyfriend's Facebook posts (sorry about the deer in the backyard, Laurie).

Bob may look surprised but I am increasingly aware that time is FLYING by.  I need to take not just more photos of the people I care about but more time with them too.  Tick, tick, tick...