tree of life painted belly cast

Remember this tree of life painting that I began back in January? I finished it yesterday! This painting was long overdue and it is so nice to have finished it on Mother's day. I made the pregnancy belly cast when I was expecting my now 7 year old son, Ethan. 

Tree of Life

Plaster and Acrylic Paint

Pregnancy belly cast created in 2004, Painted 2011

treasure hunt: green grass

And the green grass grew all around Treasury on Etsy

And the green grass grew all around, all around and the green grass grew all around - Happy Spring!

art masterpiece: hopper

August in the City by Edward Hopper

About the Artist Edward Hopper was born in 1882 in New York and is known as one of the best American painters of realism. At 17 he knew he wanted to be an artist. He studied art in New York and in Paris (Died 1967-85 years old)

What do you see in the painting? What is missing from this painting? People

Hopper used angles in many of his paintings. He often used geometric shapes. 

• What shapes has he used? What natural shapes to you see? 
• What is the focal point? How does the artist get you to look there?
• What type of building is this? Old or new? City or town? 
• What color do you see the most of?   

How does it make you feel? This is what he is known for. Feels like it is bright and cheery, however is nobody around so it’s also lonely and eerie. All of his paintings have this lonely, sad feeling.

What is the style of painting?  We have seen it before … when an artist paints things that are real …and ideas? Realism. This means he paints the real objects and places he sees.

How do you think the artist felt when he painted this picture? He was very skinny and tall as a kid. When he was 12 years old he was 6ft. He was made fun of by his classmates and felt lonely.

When I showed his other paintings a few students mentioned that they had his "Nighthawks" print shown above in their home. It's one of his most famous paintings. Edward Hopper painted everyday scenes in New York or Europe such as restaurants, movie theaters, storefronts, city streets.

If you wanted to paint an everyday scene what would it be?

alphabet bunting painting

Yesterday, I showed you the handmade baby gifts I mailed off to some dear friends. Today, I wanted to share my process for the alphabet bunting painting I made for my friends nursery. Here's how it unfolded one lovely Sunday ...

handmade gifts for baby

Spring babies are sprouting up all over. The precious little bundles remind me just how big my own children are getting. I recently sent a mailed some gifts to friends with these wonderful handmade goodies from local artisans.

I sent precious Isabella this adorable dress and hair bow handmade by Denise of Live Beautiful by Dee.

I sent adorable Ryder and his big brother Quinn matching tie t-shirts handmade by Amanda of Desert Baby.

I sent baby Henn a beautiful and functional car seat cover handmade by Amanda of Desert Baby and this adorable alphabet bunting nursery painting handmade by me.

zucchini orzo

This Meatless Monday post comes from a book I read two years ago. It is an awesome book about local and seasonal food called Animal, Vegetable, Miracle by Barabara Kingsolver. Novelist Kingsolver recounts a year spent eating home-grown food and, if not that, local. This is one the recipes featured in the book me and my family enjoy. The kids even like it!

Zucchini Orzo

1 lb. package orzo pasta
3 large zucchini
1 chopped onion
1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese

garlic to taste (I use 3 cloves minced)
olive oil for saute
thyme
oregano
vegetable or chicken stock (optional can just use water)

Bring 6 cups of water, vegetable or chicken stock to a boil and add pasta. Cook 10 minutes. Use cheese garter to shred zucchini; saute briefly with onion and garlic until lightly golden brown. Add spices to zucchini mixture, stir thoroughly and remove from heat. Combine zucchini mixture with cheese and cooked orzo.  Serve cool or room temperature. Add little extra Parmesan cheese to garnish.

Learn about the Meatless Mondays Campaign

may biz goals

Wowza, can you believe that it is May already?! Luckily we are still having really beautiful weather here in Arizona. Here's a look back on April ...

April Goals

• begin S&J wedding invitation design - not as far along as I would have hoped.
• complete commissioned baby nursery painting - have not begun yet
• print art and resin custom coasters - finto! these turned out great.
• list new bottle cap magnet set and create with resin art pendants - total slacker, in fact I didn't get any items added to my shop this month at all.
• add about page to creative stash blog - yes! the blog template I had didn't allow for pages to be added easily so, I installed a new template and worked on my about page. So excited to get the ball rolling on this. I plan to add a new page each month until I have it all complete.
• get involved with creative every day theme - small - rats, another month slipped by me on this.
  
• family art play time - we painted eggs for Easter and gave the kids playroom table an update.
• setup monthly meal plan - I am having a mental block on this
• movement - family walks, yoga and dance - took some walks this month with our dog

Here's what I was up to this month ...

 

We celebrated Ethan's 7th birthday! I cannot believe I have a 7 year old son. He is growing up so fast. He wants a pool party so, we are planning his party for this summer.

I had a custom order for art coasters. I was so nervous about setting these in resin and whether they would be level and able to hold a glass. They turned out great. I just have to ship these lovelies off to Brooklyn, NY!

I made personalized bottle cap magnet sets for mother's day. I didn't do a very good job of marketing for mother's day and need to make a mental note to pay a little more attention to the calendar ;) Personalized magnet sets are for sale in my Etsy shop.

 

We went boating and fishing for the first time with some friends. It was a beautiful time.

We painted eggs, made a scrumptious carrot cake and celebrated Easter. For those who don't already know, sadly, my grandmother passed away this month. She fought a long, difficult battle with Parkinson's. She was a generous women and loved to spoil my sisters and I when we were children. I traveled home to NY for a week to say my goodbyes and be comforted with the support of my family. We shared many stories together and celebrated her life.

For May, my hope is to act. To stop gathering inspiration and instead embrace what I already have inside and act. A new month means new challenges and I am really excited to create and see where it leads me!

May Goals

• S&J wedding invitation design
• baby nursery painting
• design jewelry with resin art pendants
• complete 1 new painting
• add artwork page to creative stash blog
• get involved with creative every day theme - big
  
• family art play time
• setup monthly meal plan
• movement - family walks, yoga and dance

Though no one can go back and make a brand new start, anyone can start from now and make a brand new ending.  ~Author Unknown

If you would like to join in the Meetup biz goals fun, head on over to Athena Dreams to read more about how we support one another and how to join in.

scrumptious carrot cake

I baked a super scrumptious carrot cake from scratch for Easter. Baking isn't my forte so, I'm super excited when a make a dessert that turns out this good. I found this carrot cake recipe on allrecipes.com, my "go to" place for recipe hunting. I changed a few things based on comments on the original and here is my version:

Cake Ingredients

• 4 eggs
• 3/4 cups vegetable oil
• 1/2 cup of applesauce
• 1 cups white sugar
• 1 cup brown sugar
• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 2 teaspoons baking soda
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
• 3 cups grated carrots
• 1 cup chopped pecans

Frosting Ingredients

• 1/2 cup butter, softened
• 8 ounces cream cheese, softened
• 3 1/2 cups confectioners' sugar (could even be reduced to 3 cups IMO)
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Grease and flour or line with parchment paper (2) 9 inch round pans.
2. In a large bowl, beat together eggs, oil, applesauce, white and brown sugars and 2 teaspoons vanilla. Mix in flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt and cinnamon. Stir in carrots. Fold in pecans. Pour into prepared pans.
3. Bake in the preheated oven for 35 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean. Let cool in pan for 10 minutes, then turn out onto a wire rack and cool completely.
4. To make frosting: In a medium bowl, combine butter, cream cheese, confectioners' sugar and 1 teaspoon vanilla. Beat until the mixture is smooth and creamy. Frost the first layer, then add the second layer and frost.

This cake turned out super moist and just the best carrot cake ever!  Of course, I am a little bias since I'm extremely happy it turned out okay but, really it was so good. Enjoy!

art masterpiece: whistler

At the Piano by James Whistler 1858-59

I have found that 1st graders are obsessed with death.  I think they are trying to make sense of it.  Each week I go in someone always asks if the artist is alive and if I say no (which I usually do) they want to know when, how old and how.  This picture was interesting because it touches on the subject of death and keeping someone alive in memory. 

About the Artist
James Whistler was born in Massachusetts and moved to Russia with his family when he was 9 years old. When James was 15 his father died and his family moved back to the United States. At 17, he worked for the government making maps. At 21 he went to Paris to become a painter and at 25 went to England where we stayed.  He never returned to the United States. He died at 1903 at the age of 69.

What do you see in the painting? Do you think he knew the people in the painting? Who are they? How old is the little girl? This is the artist’s half sister Deborah and her daughter Annie, 10 years old. The painting is showing his half sister playing the piano as her father once played for her.

Why do you think they are dressed this way? Deborah is mourning the death of her father 10 years earlier. Black is the color for adults to wear when mourning the death of someone.  White is the color for Victorian children to where while mourning.

This painting was created in 1859, 152 years ago. The name of this painting is At the Piano and is one of the artist’s first paintings. Deborah is playing the same piano that she used to play with her father.

What does this painting sound like? Both mother and child have a look of seriousness and concentration creating a mood of quiet music and memory.

How do you think the artist felt when he painted this picture? Why do you think he painted it? This is how he wished to keep his father’s memory alive.  This was painted 10 years after his father’s death. This is a mirror of his father and sister playing at the piano, now his sister and her daughter are at the piano. I don't know if Whistler's sister really played piano with her daughter like her father did, but I hope so. It is a nice thought that she cherished those special moments with her father and therefore had them with her daughter.

If you wanted to paint a favorite memory of your father or mother what would it be? The kids really love this kind of question. It allows them to talk about their life and I think it helps them relate to the artist on a more personal level.   

For me, a memory I would like to paint would be a picture of my parents laughing and dancing.  They always knew how to have fun (and still do)!

How about you, what memory would you want to paint?

treasure hunt: bunny trail

Bunny Trail Treasury on Etsy

Hopping down the bunny trail with sweet finds to fill your Easter basket!