California State Fair

I had a chance to visit the California State Fair this week.

Just wanted to share some of the beautiful colors that I experienced.

I only wish I could have stayed longer but it was so hot it really wiped me out in just a few hours.

Hope the colors and images give you some creative inspiration too.

Stepping Out of My Comfort Zone

Tomorrow I will be stepping out of my comfort zone and for the first time I will be participating in an open studio. A very nice fellow artist invited me last month but I wasn't able to go. She extended the invitation again to me this month and I said yes.

I am now feeling a little nervous, my art is pretty much all over the place. I paint, I draw, I sew, I create quilts and dolls but I do it for myself and what pleases me. My training has been a little fashion design, interior design, a few art classes here and there, but I'm mostly self taught and I always work alone. I kind of go into my own world. I'm hoping I will fit in with a community of other artists.

The materials I've chosen to work with are my textiles and fabric paints on plain white cotton broadcloth. Next to watercolor painting it's my favorite portable medium to work with. We will be working on a collaborative project to be put together and shown in October. I am equally excited and anxious at the same time.

TGIT Thank God It's Tuesday--A Finished Project

Again I've discovered that when I'm without my computer I tend to be so much more productive. During my computer down time I've found time to not only get some sewing done but to get some painting done too.

I've been wanting to create something using the same colors that are in my quilt. My quilt has an old fashioned kind of elegance but when I started to paint I wanted to keep it simple so I went back to basics. I remembered some of the thumbnail drawings we had to do in my last art class. We had to come up with a number of compositions using different sized spheres and show how light and shadow affected them.

The three paintings all have a look of planets in outer space and I am very happy with the way they turned out.

Happy Birthday To Maya

This month was my granddaughter Maya's 5th birthday. Birthday parties today are very different than when I was growing up and from when I was raising my sons. I experienced my first little girl's makeover party at a place in Los Gatos, California called Razzberry Lips. Maya's 13 little guests were given the choice to become princesses or rock stars. Surprisingly, the most popular choice was rock star.

I watched a team of the most creative, patient young women apply nail polish, glitter, eye shadow, lip gloss, hair extensions, tiaras or microphones to 13 excited kids. When everyone was finished, the team led them in a variety of games including a dance party, a pretend rock concert and a fashion show.

This is Maya's rock star look. She really got into character

This is my other beautiful granddaughter Relena who
who just turned 9 this month too.

I love both of my little rock stars. I am so blessed to have them in my life.

A Finished Project

The beginning of a beautiful quilt. My favorite colors, lots of satiny red ribbon and an exotic cotton print.

I am still nursing a sick computer. Hopefully, this month I will resolve my computer problems one way or another. Anyway, I have used my time wisely and have been able to finish a lot of my art and craft projects and have explored some new ones. I've also had the time to get out and followed my second love, taking photographs. I will try to get some posting done over the next few weeks by begging, borrowing and camping onto whatever computer I can get to.

Above is one of my ribbon quilts that I had time to finish. I have been in a decidedly "red mood" this month as you will see in some of the other finished projects I will be posting.

TGIW??? Thank God It's Wednesday???

I am having computer problems again, so I am once again cut off from the world. I'm using someone else's computer today to catch up on some work I needed to get done. I don't have access to my files and photos so this is a very boring post.

I have put it off long enough. It's time to get another computer. I could take mine in and get it serviced again but it would be the third time. I've been saving money so that I could take a small vacation in September but now I'm thinking, I'd rather have a new computer. I've been dreaming of getting away from Sacramento and getting somewhere close to the ocean or taking a train trip across country to take photos. But I use my computer everyday for so many things. It's like my key to the outside world. Big decision, big decision.

For now, I will be on limited access to my sites and other computer stuff for awhile until I get mine fixed or replaced. Will miss you all.

Happy 4th Of July!!!

Happy 4th Of July To Us All!!