Featured Art

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My art was featured on Jodi Reeves 'the creative JAR' blog. Jodi has a nice blog featuring many artists and crafters - check it out.

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Quote

“Imagination is more important than knowledge.”

Albert Einstein

Winter Storm

We are headed for a Christmas winter storm. Over the next three days we are supposed to get from twelve to twenty inches of snow along with twenty to thirty-mile an hour winds. I love snowstorms! The sad thing is for everyone who is heading to grandmother's house for Christmas. I'm not a grandmother, but we were looking forward to my aunt and uncle coming for Christmas. They will be missed, but I sure don't want them traveling in bad winter conditions!!!

Christmas Pins

Wool Felt Pins

I took a couple quick photos of my felt pins before I sent them off to some galleries I'm in. The light was not good and they didn't turn out very focused, but I thought I'd put a couple of them on so you could see them anyway.

Thought you might like to see some of my Christmas Pins pins.

I will be adding more pins in the next few days.

It's a Wonderful Life

It's a Wonderful Life is my favorite Christmas movie - it makes me cry every time I watch it. This movie shows how precious George Bailey's life is to all those who are known, even casually, by him.  He thinks of himself as a failure and wants to die. God grants him the gift of seeing what the world would be like if he had never been born. He sees how his life touches so many others and the impact he had on their lives. To have the gift of seeing what life would have been like if we had never been born, I believe would impact our lives in such a way that we would never be the same again.

University Visit and Flying Lessons

What a week for our daughter Becca! She wants to go to UND Aerospace College for a commercial pilot degree. So we went to Grand Forks, ND on Friday to check out UND's Aerospace College. They have a wonderful facility, but it is verrrrrrrry cold!!! I'm not sure what the temp was, but it didn't get above zero and the windchil was around 30 below! We took an hour walking tour of the campus - sure was glad when that was over. We also toured the aerospace buildings and the airport. It was pretty impressive.

On Saturday she took her first flying lesson. The weather was quite a bit nicer with beautiful sunshine. She had a great lesson. Some day she may be flying your plane!!!

Clara

This is Clara's new warm, cozy spot next to the warm fireplace.
Looks like I need to get her a nice soft pillow.

Handmade Holiday

We had our Handmade Holiday mini art hop this past Saturday. The show was fun and a success.

Joann and Julie - ceramic artists.

Julie and her husband Glenn own the Pottery Workshop in downtown

New London, MN, which was one of the stops on our Handmade Holidays Show.

Some of my work.

There was plenty of mulled wine to be had by all - yum, it was good - thanks Joann!

Her recipe:

Mulled Wine

1 bottle 'cheap' sweet wine

1 gallon cranberry juice

mulling spices of your choice (cinnamon stick, nutmeg, cloves)

Winter Watercolor Paintings

Here are some of my winter paintings.
We're having very light snow today - I am ready for more!

Winter Barn - Watercolor - Sold

I took a photo of this barn during the summer, but painted it as a winter scene.

 

Sledding - Watercolor - 18x24

This is a painting of Anthony and Becca a few years ago returning from a day of sledding - I added the 'holding hands' for the effect, you can bet at that time of their lives the last thing they wanted to do is hold hands!!! Our dogs that are in the painting are Clara and Amy.

P.S. Now that Anthony has moved away to college they are treating each other nicer. Yea!!!

 

Winter Feast - Watercolor - 18x24

This is Anthony and Becca eating snow.

 

Winter Cabin - Watercolor - Sold

 

Heading Home - Watercolor - Not for Sale

This painting was chosen by The Emergency Foodshelf Network in New Hope, Minnesota as an 'Artwork for Tummies' Christmas Card. Purchases of any of their Christmas cards benefit Minnesota’s hungry children.

The Emergency Foodshelf Network uses 100% of the proceeds from Artwork For Tummies card sales to stock our foodshelves, on-site meal programs, and other hunger relief programs with nutritious children’s foods such as whole grain cereals, baby food, canned fruits and vegetables, peanut butter, fruit juices, pasta and much more. If you are interested in purchasing this card, or any of their Christmas cards, follow this link: Artwork for Tummies.  Cards are $2 each. Thanks for helping Minnesota's hungry children!!!

I Love Snow Pin - Handcrafted

Sure is a good thing I live in Minnesota cuz I love snow!!!

Handmade Holiday

We are having a mini-art crawl this weekend in New London. I am in with Glenn and Julie Joplin at the Pottery workshop. I have a number of winter paintings that will be for sale, along with prints, cards and jewelry. We are serving mulled wine and chocolate for our treats! Should be fun!

Happy Thanksgiving!

Hope everyone had a great day! We just have so many things to thank GOD for!!!

We had a great day. It was a two and half hour drive to get to our Thanksgiving celebration. David, the kids and I had a very nice time visiting on our drive there and home. Our kids are turning into nice adults. I enjoy them so much. I am blessed - Thank you GOD!

Becca - mostly Becca, and I made six pies. Two caramel pecan, one pumpkin, one peach, one chocolate french silk and one strawberry cheescake. They turned out great, if I do say so myself.

My buttery pie crust recipe is on my 'A Farmgirl Foodie' blog. Check it out.

Small Works Silent Acution

This is the postcard I created for our Annual Small Works Silent Auction. The auction ends tomorrow evening with a reception (The Final Bell) so the public can meet the artists and have a chance to get a final bid on the artwork.

Note: The reception turned out nice and the auction went well. I sold all three pieces of work - yea!

Kidnapped!

She's sooooo cute!!!

Oh yea, sorry, Beautiful, like Esther!

My Aunt Esther kidnapped me last Friday.

Now I'm not usually a spur-of-the-moment kind of a person, but we sure did have fun! I love how silly and fun my aunt is. We went to a craft fair in Odin, Minnesota. It was a pretty impressive show for a tiny town in the middle of nowhere.  She then taught me how to play train dominos and I beat her 10 out of 13 games - hmmm, I wonder if she'll ever play that with me again!!!!! I am so glad to have her living close enough that we can get together often. Looking forward to getting together the beginning of December
and also spending Christmas together. Last Christmas we had so much fun!

Luv U Aunt Esther!

One Day Frost the Next Snow

 

Our First Frost of the Season!

October 7, 2009

Our First Snow of the Season!

October 8, 2009

Friday's Quote

Oops - I guess it's Saturday - oh well!

The future belongs to those who believe in the beauty of their dreams.
Eleanor Roosevelt

Willmar Area Arts Council

As a new member of the Willmar Area Arts Council I am in charge of organizing and helping put up solo artist shows at the Willmar Education and Arts Center gallery located at 611 5th St SW in Willmar, Minnesota. I have enjoyed viewing the artists' work and also visiting with them and getting to know more about them and their work. I would encourage anyone interested in art to go these solo shows. You'll learn interesting stories about artists through their work.

This morning I went and helped take down our Celebrate Art! Celebrate Coffee! art show that featured artist, Sharon Schuetze. She works in watercolor, oil, acrylic, and pastels. I then helped Joanne Carmody Meierhofer set up her show for the month of October. Joanne works in pastel and watercolor.

We have a great website that features our local artists and events:  Willmar area Arts Council.

Friday Quotes

This is one of the views from my porch.
I love the fog this time of year.

We got a call from my aunt and uncle this morning - the roof was leaking. They rent my husband's parent's home. So he got in the car and drove down to fix it. They sent him home with squash, tomatoes and, for me, a wall plaque that had the following saying on it:

God put me here to accomplish
a certain number of things; right now
I'm so far behind I will never die!

I love it!!!

Celebrate Art! Celebrate Coffee!

Got an email with a link to a Picasa photo album of pictures taken at Celebrate Art! Celebrate Coffee! My booth, with the 'Hollyhocks on a Stick, Lunch at the Fair' painting was in the album. In the email he said to share and pass on the link.

Hollyhocks on a Stick, Lunch at the Fair

Watercolor - Original 18"x24"

Koi Fish Painting

'A Koi-ful Day' Painting

is at the
Minnesota Watercolor Society's

'Ripples and Reflections, Views from the River'

2009 Fall Art Show

at
Bloomington Art Center

September 24th - November 13th

Watercolor - Original -  9"x12"
Prints Available
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This year in conjunction with our Fall Exhibit, some of Minnesota Watercolor Society members' artwork was shown at the Bloomington Art Center's 'Water' presentation at the Black Box Theater. My 'A Koi-ful Day' painting was shown in that presentation.

Dragonfly Watercolor Painting Series

Eight years ago we moved a 1920's farmhouse fifty miles onto twenty acres outside of New London. That summer, we had millions of dragonflies. They would flit around, land and sun themselves - even on us when we were outside. Each summer since, we have had many, many dragonflies, but not as many as our first summer. I was amazed at how God created dragonflies in so many colors and styles. I love them. I have  painted a number of dragonfly paintings. Here are some of them.

Dragonfly - Yellow

Watercolor - Original - 11"x14"

Print available on my Etsy Store

Dragonfly - Purple

Watercolor - Original - 11"x14"

Print available on my Etsy Store

Dragonfly Bay

Watercolor - Original (Sold)

I was commissioned to paint this watercolor to be used as a wine label for Glacial Ridge Winery which is located between New London and Spicer, MN

Dragonfly at Home

Watercolor - Original - 18"x24" (Sold)

Prints available at my Etsy Store

 

Dragonfly Pond Ripples

Watercolor - Original - 18"x24" (Sold)

Prints available at my Etsy Store

Dragonfly - Pink

Watercolor - Original - 18"x25"

Prints available at my Etsy Store

Friday's Art Quote

All art requires courage.

~Anne Tucker~

Art Fairs

Well, I've been in two art fairs since August 29. I have two more to go by the 25th of September. Whew! I will defiantly need a break from art fairs for a while!!! This weekend is our Celebrate Art! Celebrate Coffee! event in Willmar, Minnesota. You can check out the web site at: Celebrate Art! This event is put on by the Willmar Area Arts Council, which I am a board member. We have a wonderful, new website. It has a page with examples of work form many of the local Willmar, New London, Spicer and surrounding area) artists. We have a great artist community in our area. Check us out!

These are some photos of the Art on the Lake Summer Art Fair
at Melvins in Spicer, MN. As you can see, it was a tad bit windy.

Here are some photos from the

Glacial Ridge Winery Grape Stomp Festival in Spicer, MN