overdue haiku

i was long overdue for a round of haiku! i just can't say enough about how much i love writing within the confines of 5/7/5 -- it keeps my mental raving to a minimum. as always, please don't call the poetry police on me, and feel free to deposit your own haiku in the commentary if you'd like to join in the fun. p.s. the next post is all about cans...

what i didn't expect this week

that our peonies would be so gorgeous this year -- and that i'd remember to pick them.



that i would find this little shop while tootling through topeka -- and that i'd be greeted by five old people welcoming me to "the nut house" when i walked through the door.



that the end of second grade would be upon us so soon -- and that my artsygirl would still be rocking her mismatched socks.



that a dove would stop by to say hello -- and that we'd be out of a front porch light for a while.

i also didn't expect to see a cat under my desk this week (we don't have a cat), but i was so shellshocked i didn't get a picture of that.

little surprises. the stuff of life.

you deserve a rip-roaring fiesta

peeps i'm celebrating today for reasons big and small:

* danielle and her family for their astonishing story of perseverance;
* leah for her newest addition, annabelle;
* jan for her newest addition, tilly;
* jane for her awesome picture of the pink-shirted cheese gazer;
* jennifer for her writing on mothering which always fills my cup;
* susie for wrestling with a mountain bike on the top of her car while nearly nine months pregnant;
* hanna for making the coolest hand-embroidered ball;
* dawn for the pre-release of her new book doodle sketchbook for boys;
* jill for the pre-release of her book personal geographies (and whee! i'm in this one);
* me for getting off my lazy ass and finally re-opening my shop;
* and to all of you for being who you are and what you do.

now leaving to do a bit of journaling with traci bunkers! have a great day!

the artist unique

This morning I was nursing a massive driving hangover, the kind that comes with driving 730 miles in one day, and the instant cure arrived in the mail! It was my copy of The Artist Unique by Carmen Torbus. This was over two years in the making, and when Carmen asked me to be involved with this book it was significant for so many reasons: it was my first opportunity to contribute to an art book (one I never dreamed of having when I first started this blog); the writing portion nudged me to think about how I created my art (and why); and most of all, I believed so strongly in the essence of the book: the importance of uncovering one's own artistic style. It is not a project-oriented book that teaches you how to create just like someone else; it gives you the techniques of different artists (including those of some of my favorites: Jessica Swift, Leah Piken Kolidas and Bridgette Guerzon Mills) and teaches you how to make them your own.For my section, Carmen picked two doodles that have been with me nearly from the beginning -- Secret Garden and Identity -- and I shrieked something fierce when I saw the book in person. It is SO beautifully designed, written, photographed, and arranged. I was so giddy that my tension headache dissolved right away and I almost forgot that I had spent 14 hours yesterday wheedling/begging/coercing my 4 year old to use those damn magic potties (the horrifyingly loud self-flushing ones) that seem to have overtaken every rest stop in the nation.

So it goes without saying that I am a very happy girl today. Thank you, Carmen, for your inspiration -- your friendship -- your creative spirit -- and your encouragement to keep myself in my own art. ♥

cut and paste wreaths

time for more cut and paste fun! ever since i saw dana barbieri's gorgeous flower wreaths, i've wanted to try my hand at the activity. and with may day upon us, i thought it would be nice to leave something more durable and lasting than fresh flowers on our neighbors' doorsteps when doing our ding dong ditching this year.

i already had all the materials on hand so these came together fairly quickly. for the wreath base i used papers that i painted earlier this week inspired by some of the other 21 Secrets workshops (in these papers i combined techniques from connie hozvicka's abstract adventures, jane davenport's draw happy, debra cooper's playing with patterns, and alma stoller's child's play). i was really happy with how they all came together. originally we were going to make journals from those papers this weekend (and still will, because there's plenty left) but when i got the urge to do the cut and paste wreaths, i realized they would make perfect bases because they were both thick and colorful. each one is about the size of a salad plate (because, surprise, i used a salad plate to trace it).

i cut the flower pieces freehand (i preferred the wonky look) from scraps of mi-teintes papers and other bits in my collage stash. i didn't plan it out, just took it flower by flower and let each one come together, then punched a little hole in the top and threaded each with a piece of colorful yarn. now watch out, neighbors. here we come!

**update 5/2 9:15 a.m. -- i saved one wreath to give away today on my artsyville FB page -- hop over there to put your name in the hat! happy monday!**