Zoom, Zig-Zag, ZIP!

Ahhh, fickle February with your actual and virtual highs and lows:  new work, new opportunities, slight set backs, and a return to a familiar place.  ...and just like that *snap* February is taking her leave...  SO much news, time just flies right by.  Let us onward, shall we?  Lots o' loveliness in store, and I don't want you to miss a single bit.

New and lovely things are happening in the work realm.  Here are a trio of examples:

Melodies of the Sea

This series (and another:  From the Night Sky) was inspired by the exercise of finding a visual line connecting the random patterns afforded by this marbling process.  It happened quite organically during the #50for50 project, last spring.  It was then replicated purposely for the creation of some special gifts this past Christmas.  Working with a set color palette, and within an established theme is the latest twist.  I have to admit:  I am loving it!  The decision to incorporate different sizes of the mini canvases has opened whole new pathways in my mind.  More happening here -- be on the lookout.  This whole adventure came about as a result of discovering this medium and the company behind it at Art of the Carolinas in 2016.  While I have encountered many loves at that show over the past 10 years, this one has had an abiding effect like no other.  Which leads us to our next nugget o' news...

It's "official" and I am delighted to share with y'all:  I am now an Artist Educator for Marabu.  This means various and sundry things, not the least of which that I get to be an ambassador for a line of products that I genuinely enjoy working with.  While at present I seem to be consumed with ways to use their Easy Marble, I am actually getting my hands dirty with other items (!)  I look forward to sharing some of my experiments with you, here.  I also look forward to incorporating these new goodies in my workshops. 

Big News this week in the land of Your Creative Connection:  We are officially a TRIO!  Michelle and I had the opportunity to spend part of last weekend creating and planning with our fabulous Guest Artist, Jeanne Faith d'Orleans.  We are SO excited for all that this brings to our efforts to provide a unique, innovative experience in October.  We have some delicious magic hidden up our sleeves, and I am SUPER excited about being able to share that with you, soon!  *ironically, if you were a subscriber to our Newsletter you would already know what I am talking about!?  ...they get all the juicy stuff up to a week before anyone else*

...oh, the giggles that went into getting this photo!

I suppose, in the face of all of this metaphorical sunshine, I should have been ready for a spot of rain -- yet I was not...  With the virtuous plan of heading across town to meet a friend for a good walk on the Cape Fear River Trail, I hopped in the Cute Ute last weekend -- and after a confusing sound and the refusal of said vehicle to run, I hopped back out.  Following a rather entertaining exchange with the delightful Stephen of Mitchell's Towing (courtesy of my AAA membership), I watched my wheels roll away on the back of a large tow truck.  It's amazing how badly you want to go somewhere *anywhere* when you know that you can't (!)  After much less delightful exchanges with various and sundry parties, I was able *with a little help from my friends* to secure a back-up vehicle that in addition to getting me where I am obliged to be in the interim, will also be quite handy and helpful once this crisis has passed. 

"You say good-bye, and I say hello -- hello, hello!"

Finally (and one of the many reasons I could not be without transport for a couple of weeks), I wrapped up the month with a return to the Demo Table at Jerry's Artarama in Raleigh!  I spent a happy afternoon on the final Saturday in February demonstrating Nature Printing with the GELLI Plate.  Had some lovely conversations with folks who lingered a while, and *add drumroll, here* it looks like I will return to teaching at Jerry's in the summer!  This is a "homecoming" of sorts, for me; I am thrilled to be returning and will have all of the details for you, soon!

Whew!  ...and, without a moment to waste, March is knocking at the door!  A few more firsts, and some comfortable regularity -- readying for more new-ness on the horizon, and seeking out additions to the creative roster.  I'll see you back here shortly, with more to share and look forward to.

Onward and upward!

Words of wisdom for today:

No winter lasts forever;
no spring skips its turn.
                           ~ Hal Borland

New – Now – Neat-o

     Greetings folk of the online realm!  Am I the only one who has trouble believing that today is the last day of January?  *2018!?!*  I suppose that time flies whether you are having fun or not (?)  Luckily, I have been doing much work and having much fun – in spite of some wildly wacky weather for January, in these parts…

     After much planning, and putting off – hemming and hawing – pondering and dismissal, the time has finally come!  …yep, Yep, YEP!  Gentle readers of Blog-land-ia, I offer you *insert drumroll and/or maniacal laughter, here*:  ART PAPER LOVE (AKA my latest love-child OR a newly minted wonderland of visual merriments -- with more goodness arriving weekly, for the foreseeable future)!  I am immensely grateful to the eagle eyes of MDP and mi madre!  Lucky am I to have such vigilant editors in my corner.

     Over the course of the next few weeks, visitors will be treated to loads of new stuff including, but not limited to:  new Blog posts (to further highlight the joys of web-based wonderments), the addition of an interactive Events calendar, and the arrival of an actual purchasing portal (with work, by me, for sale)  *…hey:  Go BIG, or go home – right?*

     More big news is in store with regard to my latest collaborative creative endeavor:  Your Creative Connection.  If you haven’t yet, please do visit our nook on the ‘net for additional information about this unique, creative experience.  …and if you want to be among the very first to know the all of the latest news and developments, remember to sign up for our Newsletter!

     What else is New, Now, and Neat-O in my neck of the woods?  Well:  *thanks for asking!* I will be back at the Demo Table at Jerry’s Artarama Raleigh in the coming months, I have been invited to teach in a new *to me* venue this Summer/Fall (The Yadkin Valley Fiber Room), and I have scheduled what I hope to be the first of many Private Engagements this year *this one a Birthday Party for a CMMAG chum*  So…  as 2018 continues to un-spool before me, I look forward to having even more neat, new, and nifty creative happenings to share with you *some of which are so close I can taste them*!  What has kept you busy throughout the 1^st parcel of this most amazing New Year?  I’d love to know!  Drop me a line, or leave a comment.

     The worktable is calling, and so I must go!  Thanks for visiting with me here – I hope you enjoy the new website as much as I have enjoyed *at long last* making it happen. 

Onward & upward,

Words of wisdom for today:

Progress means getting

nearer to the place you want to be.

And if you have taken a wrong turning,

then to go forward does not get you any nearer.
If you are on the wrong road,

progress means doing an about-turn

and walking back to the right road;

and in that case the man who turns back soonest

is the most progressive man.
                           ~ C. S. Lewis