FLASHBACK FRIDAY: DEJA VU ALL OVER AGAIN

I guess it's true. Some things never do change, as evidenced by this post I wrote about eight years ago! Same story, different names.

FLASHBACK

 

THE FINAL COUNTDOWN

Well, I've been up to my neck in paint and paper and gelli plates this past week, scrambling like crazy to get a sumptuous array of collage papers completed. It is not at all like me to work with such focus and determination. Then again, it's been a really long time since I had any sort of deadlines hanging over my head.

No, I haven't gone back to work! It's just that I'm bound and determined to finish up at least one or two more projects in that on-line class I've been taking my sweet time with since the first of October. There is no deadline for completion, but...

it's time to start packing for Lucky Star! My sister Kathy arrives here this Sunday, then on Wednesday she, daughter Lex and I will all head off to beautiful Hunt, Texas for five days of pure magic. And, I just know that, once we get back, I will be so obsessed with all the new stuff I learned there, I will forget all about these wonderful projects I've enjoyed so much, and the ones I've yet to explore. And that would just be so, so sad, don't you think?

THE PERFECT HALLOWEEN

This year we finally had an excuse to attend Wimberley's Boo!Hole Halloween Celebration at Blue Hole Park -- the perfect place to introduce a little kid to Halloween! 
 

They got a pretty good turnout but, because it is spread out and so kid-friendly, he never felt squished or overwhelmed.

The booths offered everything from a Creepy Critters Petting Zoo...

That's the Witch of Cypress Creek there in the background, a.k.a. Outdoor Woman.

to face-painting...

a maze...

S'mores...

and lots of great games and booths, handing out so many fun treats and prizes!

Books and candy are great, but nothing beats a tiny pumpkin that fits perfectly in your wee little hand!

Best thing of all, according to all the parents? Unlike Halloween, this event never falls on a school or work night!

Perfect Weather For Dinner On The Porch At The Leaning Pear

Does it get any better? 

FLASHBACK FRIDAY: THINGS THE TUSCANS TAUGHT ME

This one includes a simple recipe, perfect for this time of year!

FLASHBACK

THE PLAYHOUSE I NEVER HAD

The other day I was looking around the interior of my home, thinking about how much it had changed since Little Goober came along. Apparently, I no longer give a flip about impressing anyone other than him, for my rather small house seems to have morphed into one rather large playhouse.

That notion got me to thinkin' about the playhouse my two older sisters had when they were young. My dad was a home designer/builder, and when he did spec homes, we sometimes lived in them for a while, until they sold. My mom said her very favorite houses always got whisked out from under her as soon as she started to settle in, but that if she ever moved into one she hated -- one not built by Dad -- that would probably be the one she'd get stuck in for life. Turns out, she was right! Of course, since my parents loved nothing more than working on a remodeling/redecorating project together, that house gave them oodles of opportunities for collaboration, and ended up being one they had to be dragged out of, kicking and screaming, forty years later.

Anyhoo, back to the house Mom loved the most -- the one we left when I was still a toddler, and therefor have no memory of. The one she and my sisters went on and on about for the rest of their lives, just to torture me. You see, being a man ahead of the times, Dad apparently designed one of the first "open concept" houses way back in the early 50's -- one with a beautiful kitchen with an exposed brick wall and brick floors, that opened into a large family room. The piece-de-resistance? A fantastic playhouse in the backyard, custom built for my sisters. I've been pining for one of my own ever since.

Guess I finally made that dream come true, huh?

COLOR MAD MONDAY: UNDER THE SEA

Just now finishing up all the lessons with the first of six instructors, Lucy Brydon, in my monoprinting makeover class, and it only took me a month to do it! I have to say though, I've had more color-mad artsy fun in this one month than I've probably had in the last year.

This week we focused on using masks to make overlapping wavy layers like these...

then we selected our favorite, and turned it into a magical underwater scene, something like this.

Oh yeah! And remember those prints I made using dried foliage from my yard as masks? Well, my favorites from all of those ended up being backgrounds for all of these...

and these...

and this!

So thank you Lucy Brydon, for giving me one of the best months ever! Also, many thanks to Danielle Donaldson, one of my previous instructors, and author of the magnificent book The Art Of Creative Watercolor, which continuously inspires me to embrace the whimsical (such as dragons and mermaids and pirate ships) in my art. I love you both so much!