Valentine's Day Dinner

Hello Friends,

An early happy Valentine's Day to you!

For the last few years we have celebrated Valentine's Day with a special family dinner.

I decorate the table with our "fancy " dishes and silverware and we drink sparkling cider from champagne glasses. This was especially thrilling for Alex who, to my mortification, walked around telling everyone how he got drunk on champagne. 

It's a wonder CPS hasn't come knocking on our door.

The other day at a Dr.'s visit the Dr. asked him what kind of things he likes to do, to which he promptly answered, "Watch T.V."

Ugh!

Anyway....

Placecards with a special little message inside.

Last year I let everyone choose one thing they would like to have.

We had fried shrimp, baked macaroni and cheese, (this is the best recipe EVER!) and I think we had red velvet cupcakes for dessert. Alex doesn't like shrimp so I made him a heart shaped pizza.

My boys are creatures of habit so when I asked them what they wanted this year it was no surprise that they requested the exact same menu from last year. 

The only exception would be chocolate covered strawberries for Alex.  

What do you do for Valentine's Day?

In art news, I just finished a rather large painting.

18"x 24"

This isn't the best picture.

It's entirely too cold to be standing outside taking pictures today!!

The text says "A heart that loves is always young."

I will have matted prints of this piece available later this week.

Well, I'm off to have lunch with my sister.

Enjoy your day!!

What I'm Reading...

Hello Friends,

I'm a huge reader and this year I have decided to keep a log of how many books I read.

I bought my son a journal when he first started reading regularly to keep a list of all of the books he reads. I just thought it would be fun to keep a record, to look back five years and say, "Hey, I remember reading that" or "Oh gosh, I remember when I was into reading that." 

I can't tell you how many times I have come home with a book from the library only to remember (sometimes three chapters in) that I had read it before. 

He actually took it a bit further and adds his "book review" as well as the title.

I read really fast and although I enjoy the stories, I tend to forget a lot later on. 

That's NOT the case with my beloved Jane Austen. I have read and re-read all of her books many, many times. Like most Austen fans, my favorite is Pride & Prejudice with 

Sense and Sensibility as a close second. 

I do read "after Jane Austen" books but I still haven't found any that I really love.

I read Sense and Sensibility and Sea Monsters and didn't like it so I skipped Pride and Prejudice and Zombies (although I've been told that this one is much better.)  

My sister in law Lisa loaned me  Death Comes to Pemberly by P.D. James.

I'm about halfway through and I would say it's ok.

Not great but entertaining.

I think Lisa said it was, "Meh" which I thought was funny. 

While chatting on Facebook about this book,

one of my friends that has a baby said she got a Jane Austen counting book for her daughter. 

I HAD to find this book so I looked it up on Amazon.

Oh was that a mistake because look at what else I found!

  click on the pic's for the links to Amazon.

and

Now I think I need to have them all!

I have some Amazon gift cards I have been saving for a rainy day.

It's raining!!!

Now I need to find out more about this Jennifer Adams.

How cute is her art?? 

I'm going to be keeping track of my books in my sidebar soon so if you see something you would like to comment on, please do!

Enjoy your day.

New Fish

Hello Friends and happy Monday!!

Today my very first newsletter went out. It's definitely a work in progress and I'm not totally pleased with the design but it will have to do until I learn the system a little bit better. 

My sister helped me with my new banners and I'm loving them!

We're working on new buttons as well as little custom headings 

for the blog to make it more fun to look at.

Here is a link to read my newsletter but please sign up to the right so that you become a monthly subscriber. I'm going to be doing monthly give aways so you may win something:)

This is what I finished this week...

This guy is titled

"La Baleine Rose"

(the pink whale)

I found that resin frame in a thrift store. It was all busted up but I fell in love with it so

I brought it home and gave it some TLC in the way of glue and a sturdy cardboard backing.

Sweet!

I think my most favorite pieces have come from unusual finds that probably

 would have made their way into the dumpster if I had not rescued them.

I also reworked this piece a little bit...

As a theater performer I felt he needed a skill so he now swims through a flaming hoop.

Fun! and daring.....

He doesn't look impressed, does he?

I don't remember if I shared the octopus with his juggling balls...

(shame on you!)

I took a deep canvas and used the back instead of the front.

I covered the inside cavity with paper mache to make a solid surface to work on.  

The curtains were constructed out of recycled cardboard and then covered in paper mache too.

Paint, glue, thread...

Done!

I'm going to be selling 5"x7" prints in 8"x10" mats.

They will be professionally matted with backing board and the mats will be signed by me! 

That's my project for this week,

clean studio....it's REALLY REALLY bad!!

and then get the prints in the shop.

That's it for now.

Enjoy your week!!

Contentment and Fish.

Blurry "Stop taking my picture!" picture.

Good morning Friends,

My little buddy is home sick today.

I love having my kids home with me!

I'm sad he's not feeling well but I get an enormous feeling of contentment

knowing that while I'm buzzing around doing laundry and

cleaning up, he's safely snuggled on the couch.

I think I'm going to have a really hard time letting my kids go.

 When I see my older boy off to school in the morning

I get an ache in my heart. It's dark when he leaves and

it just feels wrong sending my child out alone.

I still tell him to look both ways and to be careful.

Thankfully I don't get the eye roll yet.

Most of my anxiety I keep to myself, I don't want to raise over protected freaks!

I know these are all things that all moms have to deal

with eventually. Hopefully I can do it gracefully

without scaring....or scarring my children.

Ok, off to arty news..

Juggling Octopus

I've been working on a new piece for my

"La Theatre de la Mer" (The Theatre of the Sea) series.

I'm loving these new pieces however I'm conflicted. 

Is this too far off of the path from what my work has been?

Will people look at this series and think I'm crazy and all over the place?

If they think it , they would be right.

I'm easily bored and "all over the place" is what I do.

Every time I start something new I say "Oh my gosh, I love this so much I want to do it forever!"

And then three days later I realize I don't want to do it forever.

 I have ADD. I am Artistically Directionally Disabled.

Friend me on Facebook and see the step by step photos of the above piece.

Tracy Nuskey Dodson and also The Vintage Sister Studio.

He's still not finished, he still needs his juggling balls.

Don't we all?

Don't forget to sign up for my newsletter for a chance to win an original mixed media painting (in the photo in my last post)!

Sign up is in the sidebar to the right.

Have a fantastic week!

Sign Up and Win!

Hello Friends,

Just popping in on this FREEZING cold day to let you know that if you sign up to receive my monthly newsletter, you automatically will be signed up for a chance to win this original 8x10 mixed media painting!

My first letter is set to go on January 30th and I will announce the random winner then.

Sign up in my sidebar, to the right!

Enjoy your day and stay warm!!

Shopping.

Hello Friends,

I've been working on "business" type stuff all this week and really have nothing good to share.
In my down time I've been browsing my favorite online shops,
making plans for decorating the nest for 2012.
We all need a change every once in a while, right?

Here are a few things I'm loving right now.

Ballard Designs is always a favorite for unusual pieces that are usually pretty affordable.

Look at this bed! If I didn't just buy a new bed this would definitely be coming home with me.

And at $399. for full/queen!

I LOVE upcycled furniture!

This fantastic piece is by metrosofa.

A little more pricey but definitely inspiring!

I'm definitely loving this super cute cabinet by PoorPitifulPetunia.

Sweet little plate form Anthropologie!

Well, that's enough shopping for now.
Back to work!

Don't forget to sign up for my monthly newsletter in my sidebar.
I will be giving away an original painting to one lucky subscriber!

Enjoy the weekend!

Better.

Hello Friends,

The new year started off a little rocky for me with a little bit of a cold and a lot of depression. Truth be told, I'm NOT a fan of the New Years holiday and it always seems to throw me into a deep funk.

Am I the only one who has a hard time starting the new year with hope and enthusiasm as much as I try?

But today I'm feeling a little bit better and I got into the studio to finish up my second

piece to the Fish Circus series I started last week.

 I did this one in a vintage gold frame I picked up on one of my junking trips last fall. It was nice and deep and perfect for the shadowbox treatment. I have one more frame that is exactly the same and another tacky gold frame that I LOVE that I will use for this series as well.

On this fish I used a tiny, tiny little hole punch to make most of the gills.

Click on the photo below for a closer look at the detail.

I need to figure out how to photograph these things!

This series will be on display at

Home Fine Art Gallery in the Mill Race Village in Mt. Holly

next month. If you are ever interested in anything I post for the gallery, please feel free to contact them...or me:)

I am SO EXCITED that the new season of Downton Abbey starts tonight on PBS!!!!

Look at those costumes!

Can't wait.

Enjoy your week my friends!