Oh So RoHo!

Get'em while they're HOT! The new issue of Romantic Homes is on the newstands now! And the cover shot just blows me away, I want that antique cameo bracelet, picture it with a chic little black dress. So beautiful! Be sure to pick up a copy so you don't miss out on the included FREE art! You can also purchase back issues of the magazine. There are more free elements sheets and fun projects to go with them, royal queens for pillow transfer art (May 07 issue), Marie Antoinette style illustrations for a la mode wall prints (April 07), an english transferware pattern for a Valentine box (Feb 07), City Slicker journal cover (Sept. 06), sweet Mothers Day memory box papers (May 06),and more. Now, go forth and CREATE! Visit Romantic Homes

My Romance with Pop Art

Let me preface this post with a statement. "My artistic style is ALL OVER THE PLACE". That being said, I just love ALL styles of artistic expression. I'm a girlie girl to the core but yet there's a hard edge that's undeniable. My tastes in decorating are just as diverse, I simply adore fine laces and vintage tapestries paired with a hot pink patent leather chair! A few months back I decided our decor needed to be livened up and thought some pop art would do the trick. Now being a big fan of Roy Lichtenstein, Andy Warhol and Jackson Pollack ( just to name a few) and not willing to spend a small fortune, I thought I would try to create my own. First a crisp, clean, black and white piece to hang above the frolicing french cupids.

Then for my husbands office, his favorite comic book hero CAPTAIN AMERICA.

( I liked the red, white and blue color scheme).
And lastly for our bedroom, I wanted something very special, vibrant and colorful but not quite sure I could produce the desired effect. Then it came to me! First I will show you my two most highly prized possessions.


And now I will introduce to you the "ARTEEST", the one, the only, ROMEO!!

I painted the background colors, poured out a few puddles of paint and let him go to town, he was mildly interested for a while,the paint on his feet, the making of a MESS, he enjoyed that part, then bored with it all, just strolled off, leaving me to clean up the mess. I especially like the little scratch marks his nails made!
Disclaimer: No kitties were harmed in the making of this post.

OOOhhh,

It's coming, it's coming, it's coming...pointed toes and little black crows,
trix and treats and good to eats!
And did I mention I love HALLOWEEN?!
Art by Sandy Wood

G L A M O R O U S ...spells glamorous!

One of the main reasons I wanted to start a blog was that it gives me the opportunity to really personally share my art with you. I wish that I could respond to all of your wonderful comments, just know that I do appreciate them so very much! And this FREE ART is my way of saying MERCI!! My FREE ART will be an on going series, so stay tuned and HAVE FUN!
The design of this piece came out of sheer necessity. A while back I was trolling one of my favorite antique shops, let me back up a moment by saying at the previous shop (yes, it was one of those days) I had just spent a bundle and was really "just looking". Any way, there in a glass case stood what I thought was an unusual paper doll dressed in a dreamy, delicate vintage confection of a handkerchief. The shop attendant told me it was actually an old store display piece from the 1920's. A certain manufacturer created these cheeky little stand ups to show off their line of hankies. GENIUS! So let me just say I REALLY wanted it but decided to think about it a bit, BIG MISTAKE, you guessed it, a few hours later (when I came to my senses), it was GONE! My new motto, Buy it when you see it, like the sign says! I decided to create my own version, and here she is sultry, slinky and a bit on the naughty side! A gift I'd like to share with you. Simply download the image, decoupage to heavy cardstock, cut out and fold the right corner of the base back to create the stand. Embellish by gluing on fabrics, feathers and trims. Tell all your friends, and I'd love to see what you come up with, so please send me photos so I can do another post featuring a bevy of beauties!
*Permission is granted to use design for personal use only any other use is prohibited.

Treasures of the Future

From Somerset Workshop 2 (for details check out Stampington)

Everytime I browse the web (which is not nearly as often as I'd like) I am struck by the incredible amount of AMAZING art and artists that are out there. Everything from paper arts, to fabrics, photography and pottery, doll artists and illustrators, digital arts, decorators and designers, painters and WHEW! I could go on and on... How wonderful it all is to see! It feels like the air is simply exploding with creative energy, so invigorating and exciting! We are truly experiencing a second Renaissance - A FLOWERING OF THE ARTS! I know as I stand here today, that the pieces you all are making now will become the "found treasures" of the future, just as we are so elated when we discover a delicate crepe paper Easter basket that has been tenderly preserved, or a Christmas ornament that was put together with so much love, as we gingerly tote them home, dust them off, arrange and enshrine them under sparkling glass bell domes. I am so thrilled to be alive and in the midst of all of you! And lastly (a word from my flowers book) Thanks to those sensitive people in the past who had the forethought to save all the magical ephemera and passementerie we use to create our designs today!

SUPERCALIFRAGILLISTICEXPIALIDOCIOUS !!!

Today is a special day at our house, one year ago today, Puppy was born! Juliette the blue eyed chihuahua is 1 year old! No longer puppy, now doggie. She is our TINY DANCER, she loves to perform and show off! Such a little ham! When people come to visit she spends all her time dancing around and generally being cute, she's happy as long as she is the center of attention! If you sit still in one spot for too long your lap will be covered in toys and doggie bones, she will bring you EVERYTHING out of her toy box. So Happy Birthday you little pumpkin head!




Disclaimer: No puppies were harmed in the making of this post!

A page from my Sketch Book

I thought it might be interesting to show a design go from a scratchy scribble in my sketch book to the actual finished piece, ready for the production line. I have a good size collection of antique books filled with engravings and ever so delicate watercolor painted scenes, which serves as an endless supply of clip art. Once I get an idea, I start searching though stacks of books to find just the right bits of images I want to use. This is the most time consuming part for me! My husband ALWAYS says jokingly "What are you looking for?" when he knows good and well I won't know it till I see it! You know how that goes? Sometimes I'm thinking " I need this piece or that shape" and only this piece will do, when I suddenly find a funny little face, or silly bent smile, or a pair of roguish eyes and it just speaks to me! And sure enough that was the one to perfectly or better yet not so perfectly complete it. My images have a way of taking on a life all their own, they dictate to me how they shall look, I know that might sound funny, but at 3:00 am all things are possible.

Sketch Book Scribblings

The Color Collage

The Actual Rubber Stamp Image, "Chancellor"