Art-e-zine and Art Blocks....

One of my favorite places to visit is a fabulous website, Art-e-zine, run by a wonderful lady named Gillian Allen. The place is overflowing with creative ideas and amazing artwork from a wide range of mixed media artists. Gillian is such an encouragement and generously features artists with beautiful artist's pages that she designs and then displays on her site. You'll find inspiring tutorials on all kinds of altered art projects and more eye candy that you could eat in a day! She contacted me recently and asked about featuring my art blocks and I wanted to share the "Artist's Blocks" page she completed for me. Be sure to grab a cup of tea or coffee and sit back and stroll through the site! It really is a treat! Also wanted to share my latest set of collage art blocks that can be found on ebay!

Sweet Child of Promise......

"Sweet child of promise...God delights in all that you are...and are becoming"

Had a wonderful weekend celebrating my oldest son's 18th birthday! Filled the house with teenagers for a good old fashioned surprise party! What a milestone. What a transition for Mom! I still can't believe we are at this phase of parenting. It is such a cliche...but the time truly does fly. I really do feel like I was just rocking my 6 foot three boy in my arms yesterday. So begins the wild ride of senior year activities! I created this shadowbox as I was thinking on the hopes and dreams each child brings into this world. God so loves each of His precious children. What an honor to nurture their hearts and watch them grow! You can find this piece on Ebay!

Honoring the Sacred.....

"Mid all the traffic of the ways,

Turmoils without, within,

Make in my heart a quiet place,

And come and dwell therein!

A little shrine of quietness,

All sacred to thyself,

Where Thou shalt all my soul possess,

And I may find myself!

-(John Oxenhan)

There is a wonderful movement found here where sweet souls are taking the time to nurture the sacred in their lives. And oh there is much to be found sacred! I was reminded today the great need our spirits have for communion with God. To just take some time to let the quiet envelope our hearts and breathe slowly and deeply. To hear the soft whisper of the Creator. To pray, to ask searching questions and listen for the answers. We search in so many places for what can be found in the quietness of vulnerable and honest reflection. I spent too much time thinking it was to be found on-line today in all the places that beckon to the artist!. God gently asked me to shut off the computer, make a cup of tea and share some sacred moments.

Its easy to fill every waking moment with the searching. Although the internet can be a wonderful tool and way to reach out into the world it can also take you in as it's prisoner. As an artist whose work is sold mainly online its so tempting to feel the pressure and pull to be everywhere on-line. There are so many groups, communities, blogging and networking sites etc that one can be a part of. It can be really overwhelming. Its not surprising really... ours souls were designed with a deep longing for community...to be known..to be found. There are some wonderful people and places to be found. But the more time I spend time facing a computer screen, I am finding the less I feel the fresh air on my face. Maybe its just me... but it can be so time consuming. And I wonder...is it feeding our souls with what can truly nourish us? Are we finding what we are searching for? Are we avoiding anything that needs our attention more? Is it taking more than it is giving? I suppose it all comes back to balance...as does most things in this life. Moderation can bring great benefit. But maybe...once in awhile...it is good to step away from this other world in a box and walk out our front doors to see the sunshine and take in the expanse of our real surroundings...to take a walk with the Creator and nurture the sacred. What will we hear? What will we see? What might we discover if we are willing to listen?

Princess Dreams......

Playing with jewels and sparkling dangles is such a deeply feminine experience for me. I have always been a "girly-girl" at heart! As a little girl I remember the thrill of opening my grandmother's jewelry drawer and my sweet aunt's special box containing all her "dress up" jewels. The same emotion washed over me as I sat on my Aunt's antique sofa watching Cinderella for the first time! Pure magical delight! I suppose these treasures rekindle that innocent childhood fantasy of being all dressed up to dance at the ball! There was always a handsome prince to delicately place a strand of precious jewels around the princess's neck too (pardon me, my fantasy is getting away with me..heehee). You can see more of this original altered art necklace on Etsy.

Rainy Day Treasures....

Such a wonderfully relaxing day. Truly a rainy Northwest cozy kind of day! While I nestled in the studio today my sweet youngest boy caught his first fish (well the first one that was legal to haul home)! It was a fish worthy of some hoopla here at the Kent house...all 20 pounds of it! There is nothing better than fishing early Sunday morning with Dad in his book! So while the guys were away Mom did play! I created several new pieces that were all listed on ebay.

Feel like I am finding my artistic "mojo" again. I had a friend ask me recently what kind of art I do. That always feels like a bit of an intimidating question. Like you are just waiting for the art police to jump out and arrest you for falsely impersonating a real artist! I sometimes envy artists who have a real recognizable style. One glance and you would know their work anywhere. I seem to wander and stroll down any number of creative paths, artistic moods and palettes...a little of this...a little of that! I couldn't really narrow down an answer for my friend. But what I did say felt true for me..." I just fuss and play with whatever inspires me in the moment !". I guess it was a legal answer...the art police never did come after me!

Art Dangle Prism Ornaments......

Thanks to some wonderful inspiration from Sally Jean Alexander's book "Pretty Little Things" and my sweet friend Izabella, I was tickled to design some art dangle ornaments with beautiful crystal prisms. I have always loved anything that dangles with jeweled splender! If you haven't had a chance to see Sally Jean's book it is absolutely fabulous. I am so excited to be attending my first ever Art and Soul retreat the first week of October and will be taking Sally's class! I will also be taking a class by Claudine Hellmuth. My creative senses are already trembling with the anticipation! Sleep seemed to elude me last night but those wee hours were a sweet time to play with a few of these ornaments! Those pictured can be found on ebay and others on Etsy!

Creative Fun with Art Blocks

Remember playing with blocks as a child? I started designing and playing with art blocks a couple years ago and just can't get enough of them! I love to keep finding new ways to create with them and see what messages I can discover. Like each of our lives there is much that lay beneath the surface, unseen to those around us. I find it so intriqueing to arrange the blocks in a multitude of different ways. Each one so unique and carrying a different message to the outside. Its surprising what emerges that we didn't even realize was possible! It reminds me that there are still so many undiscovered paths our lives can take. Its all a matter of how things are arranged and placed. It may even require our willingness to rearrange parts of our life so that a new direction can make itself known! More pictures of other possibilities with these blocks can be found here! Another set can be found on etsy as well!

"Emerge Sweet Soul Into The Light"

In the quiet hours of the night I tried some experiment-ing with acrylic paints and textures. I have really been feeling its time to move outside my familiar work. I have been craving some new inspiration and waiting for it to emerge. It seemed to sneak up on me in the vast playground of paints, glazes, acrylic crayons, watercolors, trinkets and treasures. You can find more pictures of the piece on Ebay.

A little art each day.....

I seem to be having a slow start to heading back into the studio this fall! I keep thinking I will get an entire week to create and start filling up my Ebay and Etsy store ( and finally get the website off the ground) but life has other plans. Sometimes we need to lay our agenda aside and just let what is naturally pressing on our hearts take precedence. It might be a task you've been procrastinating on that just won't be ignored another day, a long overdue letter that needs writing, a book you've been meaning to read, the walks you keep promising your family you will take, getting together with friends that you have missed, helping a loved one who is having a difficult time or taking the time to nurture yourself spiritually. I find that if I try and force creating for creating sakes when other matters need my attention, the piece seems forced and doesn't feel authentically me. So I focused on what needed me today first and then found just a little moment in time this evening when creating was what it was suppose to me...a naturally flowing extention of my heart! This art card collage dangle is on Ebay !

Memories of Flight.....

New art squared collage on Etsy!

Morning Reflection

Been trying to get things settled as the kids are back in school. Always a transistion to slowly get back into a creative rhythm again. I find I always feel a bit melancholy and reflective as I usher each child back into a new year and another season of change and new discoveries about themselves and their own journey. Being a mother is about one slow and gentle letting go after another. Had a little time early this morning and put together this slide show. Hope you enjoy!

The Name Game....

Zinnia has tagged me for the name game! Here are the rules: Players, you must list one fact that is somehow relevant to your life for each letter of your middle name. If you don’t have a middle name, use the middle name you would have liked to have had. When you are tagged you need to write your own blog post containing your own middle name game facts. At the end of your blog post, you need to choose one person for each letter of your middle name to tag. Don’t forget to leave them a comment telling them they’re tagged!

Well I am a bit shy about my middle name so I'll offer some little tidbits for my first name! So here goes:

L....Laugh Attacks. Some things get me going and I get laughing so hard I can't stop!
A....Anniversary. Just celebrated my 22nd with my high school sweetheart!
N....Never Never Land. I love the whimsey of fairy tales of flight!
I....Ice Cream. I am known to have deep cravings for Coffee Hagendaz!

And I tag...Izabella, JoAnna, Susan and Ruth Rae!

Inner Journey......

Two new pieces on Etsy today!