Is it October Already?

We are back among the living! Everyone is feeling a little better and we are trying to catch up with school and life.

September seemed to fly by....I can't believe October is here already. While I was recouping, I painted a few things for updates this month.



For Early Work Mercantile, I painted a scenic painting of a colonist and Native American. This painting was inspired by an emblematic painting by Charles S. Raleigh (1830-1925).



I also painted a watercolor silhouette of a woman holding her gathered wheat in a basket.


And my last offering for Early Work is another profile portrait inspired a painting by Joseph H. Davis (1811-1865).

Please see more of each here:

Me on Early Work Mercantile


And for TDIPT, I had my husband cut five wood tiles and I painted silhouettes on each for a Thanksgiving Silhouette Swag:



You can see more info here:

Me on TDIPT

Now I need to go blogging and catch up with everyone!

American Folk Art

Who says kids don't share? My husband teaches music at a local high school where someone was kind enough to share their flu-like germs. He came home on Friday feeling that "post-nasal drip" thing happening. Of course, the school year doesn't seem to start until he brings home some icky sickness! And this one was really icky! :) And it's ickiness is running it's course through all of us here at home.

Before we caught the bug, I painted a pumpkin silhouette on wood for American Folk Art's Fall update. The theme is "Pumpkin Patches", and I used my original pumpkin patch design that I painted for Fall last year for this plaque.


You can view the updated website at noon (EST) today here:

American Folk Art

~Happy Fall!~

A Weekend of Art

This weekend was Boise, Idaho's 55th Annual Art in the Park. We've lived in Boise for four years and have never made it downtown to stroll through the art fair. On Friday, my husband and I slipped away for about two hours to head downtown to the event. It was a beautiful weekend for the art show, but we are still in the 90's!

(I took a few photos, but not any close ups of booths.....I didn't see anyone else with a camera, and wasn't sure if they were allowed. Didn't want to get kicked out on our first visit!)


There were rows and rows of booths filled with fine art, pop art, wire sculptures, jewelry, yard art, leather goods, wood carvings....and lots more!

Oh, and of course, LOTS of food!

There was even some strolling entertainment. This musician was a one man band...he strummed the guitar and jumped up and down to make his cymbals clang. I snapped a photo from behind to show his feathered wings he had attached to his instrument!??

Next year, I think we will hope for cooler weather, and make plans to stay a little longer....and maybe I'll ask if cameras are allowed so I can take some close-ups! :)

I'm So Honored!

In July I found out that I was selected for Early American Life's 2009 Holiday Directory of Traditional American Crafts. I submitted original painted silhouettes with an Early American Christmas theme for consideration by the judges. So I was so pleased to be chosen for this honor and to be included among the names of so many extremely talented artisans.....I'm a little star struck reading through the artisan's list. There are so many artist listed that I've admired for years.

And this week a packet came from Early American Life and was filled with all sorts of goodies!
They sent complimentary copies of the issue, counter cards, and hang tags to add to artwork I send to customers.

If you aren't familiar with the publication, Early American Life, here is a link to their website. You can search for shops that sell the publication in your area, or subscribe online there too.

Early American Life

Thanks to my in-laws, I've been a subscriber for several years. They give me a subscription for Christmas each year, and now I'm thrilled to be in the Holiday Directory!

TDIPT's Funniest Pet Contest~

TDIPT is having a funniest pet contest,..... there are so many cute pets! You have to go peek, they are ALL sure to make you smile! :)
And, if you can decide on which critter cutey you think is the funniest, please vote!

If you've visited my blog before, you may recognize a photo of one of our family members, :)

Here is a link to all the fun:

TDIPT's Funniest Pet Contest

It's That Time Again.....

Update time, that is! Can you believe it is September already? As I was writing descriptions for my updates this month, I was having a difficult time typing "September" ....that means that the summer vacation is now over! :(

Oh well, after summer comes fall!, one of my favorite seasons! And this month of, uh...September,
I've updated on TDIPT and Early Work Mercantile.

For TDIPT I've painted some ancestral owls in period clothing with painted bronze funky frames:

Owliver and Owlivia

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a painted muslin pumpkin on a crackled box.......

~Harvest Box~

(You could hide your own Halloween treats in here! No one would know.....shhhhh!)

Just click on the photos or follow this link to see more:
Me on TDIPT
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And on Early Work Mercantile, I've painted a profile portrait:

~Miss Stanton~


Miss Stanton is sold.....thanks so much!

Me on Early Work Mercantile

Thanks for stopping by!

Back to School Supplies

The phrase "Back to School Supplies" takes on a new meaning when you home school. Yes, new clothes aren't needed...(unless the kids have outgrown the old ones!).
Backpacks, or a supply list from the teacher don't need to be filled. However, storage and organized space is always helpful!

The demolition begins!.....we took the plywood backing off.

After a good sanding, we start with a coat of black paint....this helps with the "aging"/distressing process when we apply the topcoat.

The past few days we've been "readying" the house for the start of school. My husband has been busy with start of his school (he is the choir director at a local high school), but he still worked on the "getting ready for school" projects here at home.Now the topcoat is painted.

The "Duh" moment came to us while we were considering more space for books. I don't know why we didn't think of it a few years ago when we moved into our home. But we didn't, and the bookcases we had in our other home just sat in our garage here for almost four years. So, we measured and rearranged some furniture and the old bookcases would fit! Perfect for all the books that were still in the garage AND books for school.

The shelves all painted and drying.

After the creamy topcoat, a little sanding to show the black paint, and then some antiquing (burnt umber oil) is applied.

Our bookcases were a purchase we made many years ago and they are only oak veneer, so we didn't mind painting them to match our existing furniture in the room.

There are two bookcases....I snapped a photo of this one before the shelves were placed.

And this is the smaller bookcase full of books, ETC! :)

A work space was next....one son works mostly on the kitchen table (gotta keep my eye on him!). The other one works in his room, but last year his desk was a little wobbly and needed refurbishing.

My husband took the old desk apart and saved the keyboard drawer and the desktop, but the rest went into the trash.

He built the bottom of the desk, adding a cubbie and some tapered legs with decorative insets on the sides and back.

(I'll have to hide those cords somehow!)

And we painted it to match most of the other furniture in the house...a creamy off-white with distressing.
That color seems to look best against the tan walls and makes our rooms and house look bigger! Lol!

So, school starts this week...and we now have more space for all sorts of things...and maybe a book or two! :)