WIP Wednesday - with studio kitteh

 Finally painting this holiday mailer
(which has been dragging on and on...)

 With studio kitteh keeping me company on the desk corner-which he is quickly outgrowing:

I'm going to have to get him a bigger cat bed soon. Maybe a desk of his own...

Music Monday - (vintage!) I'd Like to Teach the World to Sing...

Feeling nostalgic today for earlier times....

Loved this song as a kid (despite not liking nor drinking Coca Cola). Here is your holiday version.

If you prefer the original.... I still appreciate the sentiment.

And the song that grew out of the jingle:

Sunday Sketching...

In the teensy purse Moleskine, balanced upon my knee....

Happy Thanksgiving!

 Had a fabulous Thanksgiving  feast today with friends. We split the menu three ways, so there was a great deal of it - the food completely covers two tables!

 Happy pre-feast faces. :-)

 The husband carves the bird - a thing of scrumptous beauty...

 After eating ourselves rather into oblivion, we took a breather to rest and clean up, because -

 -there was still pie! (The one at the bottom here is the raw apple pie I made. Surprisingly delicious.)

Post-eating faces. Had to sit for awhile with the sleep-ies to deal with it all. But there were still games to be played and visiting to be done.  Fabulous day.

I'm grateful for so much! All these lovely people in my life, fabulous food, a warm hearth and home, freedom to spend a day just enjoying each others' company, and all else that God has blessed me with.

Hope your day was also lovely and blessed.

WIP Wednesday - Christmas mailer....

I started my Christmas mailer at our retreat in Sept...

(my first rough attempt. Cute, but not so interesting..)

Pushed the gesture and the design. I like this one better.

Now to clean it up and see if I can get it done and still have any hope of getting it printed and in the post in time for Christmas! (Wish me luck).

Music Monday - This Woman's Work

I heard a cover of this song on TV the other night. It was ok, but made me nostalgic for the much more moving original...

Sunday Sketching -

In the teensy purse Moleskine upon my knee...

Figure Friday -

 Long pose day... Model was lyrical - my gestures not so much (kept trying though...)

Hmph... anyway...

Music Monday - Snow White and the Huntsman

Not music exactly (although the backing music for the trailer from Tron makes for a very interesting counterpoint) - but a really good looking trailer!

Greg Manchess Workshop! - Day 3

It is sadly the *last* day of our workshop with the fabulous Greg...

 So.Much.Stuff! The day(s) flew by.

 Lecture, lecture -

 work, work -

 lecture, lecture -

 work, work (study, reference...)-

 lecture, lecture, critique, draw some *more*.

 Lots attempted. Lots done. Lots learned. Lots talked about. Lots to think about and keep applying. Lots of great people to get to know and work with. SO good overall.

-so much so, we continued to talk, share and deliberate even after coming home to decompress... (Part of the fun for me was having a third of the class staying at my house for the duration. :-)

At any rate, I came home with ideas for a number of new pieces to explore, and hopefully expanded skills with which to attempt them.

Thanks all you workshop folks - it was a weekend to remember.
And thanks so much Greg for sharing your fabulousness.

Greg Manchess Workshop! - Day 2

Day #2 - and we're slaving away!

(We are few in number, and therefore get good one-on-one attention from slave-driver, Greg...)

Plus, demos!

And lectures, punctuated by many examples of many peoples' praise-worthy art,

and art techniques...

(with a slight interruption by a relatively brief power-outage. Who says workshops aren't full of surprises and excitement?)

The most exciting part however, is seeing how ones' own compositions can be pushed and strengthened even *further* by such a keen and experienced eye. Really inspiring to see!

Sadly, last day is tomorrow...

Greg Manchess Workshop! - Day 1

Greg Manchess workshop started today!

Greg is his usual charming, self-depreciating, warm and approachable self (despite a lingering cold).

We're mostly covering preliminary work - lots of hammering on thumbnails and composition. He put us right to work - drawingdrawingdrawingdrawing (I nearly sharpened through two pencils)...

....interspersed with lectures and examples. I still maintain that Greg does the most beautiful thumbnails of anyone on the planet.

(frantic, scattered pages of compositional disarray!)

Greg - so wise, experienced and generous with sharing his knowledge...

(Tara - so befuddled and 'challenged'... Maybe someday I'll 'get' all this stuff. When I grow up..?)

Class ran over by an hour. Then a bunch of us went to dinner and talked yet *more* art for 3 more hours! (See us hanging on his every word!).

Class #2 tomorrow...

WIP Wednesday - Guest Room

Work on the fluffy, pink guest bedroom is nearing an end -

I have apparently decorated this with my mother in mind...

...and it has become *so* pink that my daughter refuses to sleep in it when she's visiting..

I don't know, I kinda like the sparkles...

There has to be a place for pink, I think....