Homeless Artist

SOLD! Thanks:)

Hello Friends,

My poor little studio is still under construction and I have no where to work. I have been doing sketches and it's bursting with ideas but I need to make a little space somewhere! But where? I don't like to work in the kitchen because I hate having to clean up for dinner. I'm going to have to come up with something soon...I'm going nuts!



My sister and I went to a Edgar Allan Poe reading by Greg Oliver Bodine. He performed The Cask of Amontillado and The Black Cat and it was wonderful! The performance was held in a really old, tiny little church so it was the perfect setting. To make it a perfect night, we parked on the wrong side of the church and had to walk through an ancient cemetery, in the dark....and in the rain to get there. Creeeeeeepy!


Room Mom Idea:
I am in the process of preparing for Alex's class Halloween party. We are making Monster punch. I just use regular Hawaiian Punch because the little ones don't usually like it when you add other stuff like 7-Up. Then I have the kids help me in class. They all add a gummy worm (you can use gummy bugs too.) I took two rubber gloves ( rinse them well if they have powder), filled them with water, a few drops of food coloring, secured them with rubberbands and put them in the freezer. After they are completely frozen, you can peel away the gloves and you have two creepy ice hands to add to the punch! I will try to take some pictures.



One last thing...Poe is available on Ebay this week at a reduced price. Check him out here!

Have a great day!!!

A Fall Filled Weekend

Hello Friends,

I hope you all had a wonderful fall weekend! My weekend started with a Kindergarten class trip to a local farm for a hayride and pumpkin picking. My group consisted of three very excited boys and two very quiet and polite little girls...need I say more?


The boys took turns on the bus pretending to be dead, tongue hanging out, eyes rolling to the back of the head. I asked my son if all dead people have their tongues hanging out and I was informed that it's only when they drink poison. So now you know:)

Sunday we attempted the local corn maze but once again we never found the exit. This year we brought along my brother in-law and he stuck it out with the two older boys and they did eventually get close.


Then we trooped on over to Johnson's Farm. It should really be called Johnson's Circus because between the amount of things they have going on and the amount of people they have doing these things, it's just like a circus! But really, if you live close, it's truly a wonderful place to celebrate fall. We took another hayride and picked some pumpkins, looked at sheep and goats and got really, really dirty. My 16 month old nephew Cooper must have inhaled a pound of dust due to the amount of face plants he did. The weather was absolutely perfect, cool but not so cold that you couldn't move your fingers. It was a great day!


I'm so happy I decorated the living room for Halloween! I ended up having to move everything from my studio in there pending construction...which starts today!!! I'm so excited. Maybe he iwill let me do some demo work! I'd love to smash something.

I thought I would share a few pictures of my strange little house. Originally when we bought this house I was 9 months pregnant and desperate to get out of our tiny one bedroom apartment. So this was to be our 5 year home but over the years (9 years later)it has grown on me and I no longer see it as "The Brady Bunch" house I once did. It has an odd exterior but I have tried my best to make it ours with gardening and paint.

Here is our front porch that we decorate for almost every holiday. (click to get a closer look at my "Pimple Pumpkin") Notice the chalkboard on the wall? It's really an old cabinet door that I painted with chalkboard paint. It's great for Holiday messages or just a welcoming greeting. My favorite is "Welcome to the Nut House." Very appropriate for us.

Here is a sneak peek at some Christmas ornaments I am working on for Spooky Time Jingles.

Have a great week!!!

Forgive Me Artists For I Have Sinned......

At least I think I have....you see I have had this dilemma for several years and I finally did something about it but I am feeling a bit guilty now. Nine years ago my husbands great aunt Betty passed away. When we helped to clear out her house we found a bunch of old paintings she had done out in her garage. I brought a bunch home and shared them with my sister. None of them were really my style but I felt bad letting them go to thrift stores or the dump. So over the years I have had this one hanging in my family room. I always liked the houses and that they were "sort of" red but the modern style really wasn't my taste.




So last week I thought, you know what, it's either make it mine or it has to go. So instead of donating it to charity, I made some small changes. Here is the after. It's not completely finished due to my beloved Phillies making the playoffs and taking up my evening painting time but I'd say it's about 2/3's done.

So what do you think? Is Aunt Betty mad at me up there?

I also have good news that construction on my studio is going to begin on Monday!!! YAY! French doors so I can see my family but they won't be running through my work space and wood floors and the best part is I can paint it any color I want! I'm thinking "Paris Pink" by Martha. It's kind of a pale peachy pink. So I will be posting before and after photos in the next few days or so.

Here is the cutest little house I scored at Home Goods for only $10.00. I love the wire smoke and felt roof.



Look what I received in the mail last weekend! I was so excited I started ripping open the package before I even got in the house. Every year I buy a more pricey piece of art from another Etsy artist I admire as a Christmas gift to myself.There are soooo many it's very difficult to decide but this year I fell in LOVE with this hand painted Frida doll by Tascha. She is more beautiful in person, believe me. I need to sew a small loop on her back so I can hang her up because I want to show off her little boots. Tascha was also soooo kind to add the extra little goodies you see plus two other tiny prints that aren't in the picture. This is why I love to shop Etsy! Thanks Tascha!

Well, I'm off to make room in the garage for the construction...wish me luck! Have a great day!!!!

Come See Me!

Come see me on Spooky Time Jingles on the 13th!

This is my latest cigar box assemblage and it will be available here on October 13th. It's hard to believe Christmas is only two months away! Are you one of those people who has all of their shopping done already? Incase you didn't guess, I'm not. I 'm not one to still be shopping on Christmas Eve either but certainly the week before:)

I received this lovely award from the equally lovely Julie King. I'm so happy! What a wonderful way to start the weekend:) Thanks Julie!!!! Check out Julies blog and her wonderful art. I will pass on the award on Monday:)

My hubby has off on Monday and the kids don't so I think we are going to spend the 2 1/2 hours Alex is in school to have a grown up breakfast. YAY!

Speaking of Alex.....the bearded boy? Lucky boy, where did he get those eyes?

Have a great weekend!

GO PHILLIES!!!!!!

Take a Peek!

Hello Friends,
I forgot to tell you all that my sister and I spent a few hours scouring our local flea market on Sunday. So, her shop is fully stocked with all kinds of cool things, including this set of vintage 'Alice in Wonderland' hardcover books. I'm going to be closing my Sisters Mercantile shop and hand all of my stuff over to One Cozy Nest. Stop on by and see the goods!

It's Snowing...

Not really. Only in my studio:) I've been working on some things gearing up for the Christmas season. I did this little painting on a re-purposed cigar box lid. I use the boxes for my little assemblages and I always have lids left over. It's so fun to paint on something besides a canvas! This one will be available at Spooky Time Jingles on Oct. 13th. I also made up some Thanksgiving note cards from a painting I did last year. This just happens to be one of my first paintings to sell on Etsy and it's still a favorite! They are now available in my shop.

Thanks for all of your comments on my sister's birthday painting! She really did love it and we had a good time at the movies. We saw "Nights in Radanthe" which I don't really recommend. I'm sure the book was good, but the movie, not so much. We spent a good deal of the movie, the sad parts, cracking up because it was so ridiculously predictable. It also makes me mad that movies cost so much anymore! You almost can't afford to take a chance on a movie. You need to be absolutely sure it's going to be good to avoid feeling duped when you leave the theatre. Anyway...wait for the DVD:)

Sneeeeeek peeek!

I want to start by saying Happy Birthday to my sister Mandy! She's my best sister, my best friend, my best everything! I couldn't live without you:)

Here is a peek at her gift. She was doing some gardening today and cut through her cable wire so since I know she has no internet, it's safe to post this. We are going to the movies tonight so I plan on giving it to her later. My kids and I were laughing because when I first painted her I didn't give her glasses but as soon as I did we all said, "Now that's Aunt Mandy!" She's holding my cutest little nephew Cooper, of course.

Happy Birthday to you!!!

Next I want to give a little peek at what I will be offering over at Spooky Time Jingles on the 13th of this month. And don't forget, buy quick so you will have your goodies in time for the big day! Halloween!!!!! Yay! I can't wait. Halloween on a Friday! Does it get any better than that???? We are planning an outdoor movie, I'm thinking "The Legend of Sleepy Hollow" the Disney version. Maybe in the future when the kids are more grown up we can do the Tim Burton version:) So anyway, here they are....

Once again, I apologize for my sorry photography skills. I just have no patience!!!

Have a great weekend!!!!!

Note Cards are Finally Here!!!

Finally! I was so intimidated by my new printer that it sat in it's box for almost two weeks. I know that doesn't make much sense but this is my "Process". I get something that I have wanted for a really long time and then I don't touch it until the shock of actually getting it has worn off. I do it with clothes, shoes, you name it.

So anyway, here is my first set of note cards and they are available here in my shop!


Have a great day!