"A Zen Filled..."

...artist's palette...brimming with life.

(It's also another hint about that future art project of mine...

soon to blossom!)

Happy Blooming Tuesday!

"Summery Soft..."

...and somewhat sweet...

these two little succulent inspired rosettes

present themselves

today

to wish you all a happy Cactus Monday

and remind you to
savor each second of your day!

"Taking in a Late Summer View..."

...from a Northern Illinois road less travelled...

Ahhhh!

"Country roads...take me home...to the place where I belong..."

~John Denver

"Mirrored Forces..."

...Neither side willing to budge...Stubborn and Immovable!

Illustration Friday: Immovable

"All mankind is divided into three classes:

those who are immovable,

those that are movable...and those that move."

~Arabian Proverb

"Still Catching Up...2 Late Ripples"

"Cancelled Coral Reefs..."

and
"Oily Encroachment..."
These two ATCs were made in June
as part of the art community's Ripple blogspot fundraiser
focusing on relief efforts for the Gulf region...
following the disastrous oil spill.
This my first attempt at a mixed media presentation
incorporating US postage stamps
and watercolor...and
I most thoroughly enjoyed it.
Because of a family emergency and a backlog of things
taking higher priority
they are just now posted here today for the first time.

Illustration Friday: "Ripple"

"A Joyful Post..."

Thanks for a wonderful afternoon yesterday Jan...:)

You are pure sunshine!

(Have a Happy Blooming Tuesday all!)

"Every friend is to the other a sun, and a sunflower also.

(S)he attracts and follows.

~Jean Paul Richter

German Novelist and humorist, 1763-1825

"A Tangerine Sentinel..."

...keeping solitary vigil over an imaginary desert

both day and night...

blooms only in the virtual reality of my blog this

late summer day.

Happy Cactus Monday all...:)

"It is the marriage of the soul with Nature that

makes the intellect fruitful,

and gives birth to imagination."

~Henry David Thoreau

"An IF...On time...Oh! what a Feeling!!!!"

The succulent new branches curled, spiraled,

and played childlike and freely

nurtured by the magical aura surrounding the

wise ancient tree...

just like when our artistic Muses

like to dance with delight...into the wee hours of the morning

letting loose and becoming intoxicated

in the glory of a creatively aromatic atmosphere.

Oh! What a feeling!!!

Illustration Friday: "Atmosphere"

"Behave so the aroma of your actions may enhance the

general sweetness of the atmosphere."

~Henry David Thoreau

"Catching up With IF..."

...Illustration Friday prompts that is...:)

Here is my intertpretation of the "Paisley" prompt...

(the original version and the digitally flipped one, too!)

from about a month ago.

Better late than never...as "they" say...:)

ILLLUSTRATION FRIDAY: Paisley

"Thinking Green..."

"If I keep a green bough in my heart...

then the singing bird

will come."

~Chinese Proverb

"A Blooming Zentangle..."

...intertwined within the pages of my ever growing

Zen Journal...:)

Happy Blooming Tuesday!

"From the Vault..."

...comes the reappearance

of this funky and stylized color drenched aloe plant...
just in time
to soothe the away "OUCH!" from those
summer sunburned shoulders!
Ahhhh!
Happy Cactus Monday all...
may your day be filled with lots of feel good moments!
:)

"Even if you've been fishing for 3 hours
and haven't gotten anything except poison ivy
and sunburn...
you're still better off than the worm!"
~Author unknown

"Hmmmm..."

...Where's Waldo?...and Waterblossoms??...and Margaret???

"Toto...We're not in Kansas any longer!"

~Dorothy

Wizard of Oz

"Six Word Saturday..."

Purple shadowy fingers tickle

desert peaks.

See other Six Word Saturdays here...:)

"Ooooh...My Sore Toes...!!!"

“The toe of the star-gazer is often stubbed.”
~Russian Proverb

Illustration Friday: "Star Gazing"

"Light, Bright, and..."

...Summery!

(...just like a favorite cool, crisp cotton print sundress

and a tall glass of icy lemonade.)

Ahhhh! :)

Now, I ask you...

How can this almost be the middle of August...

already!!??

Have you noticed all the

Halloween "tricks & treats"... even some Christmas

decorations

that are now out on display in the stores!!!

...AND...get this...

Kids are already back in school here

in Arizona!!!

Why are we living our lives SO darn FAST??? Why???

Whew!!! I am exhausted!

I think I'll just sit back...cool off in the A/C'd house

and slowly...very slowly...sip in and savor

the flavors of this day.

Ahhhh! :)

Hey...Why not join me?...

and...why not bring your sketchbook along for fun! :)

“Deep summer is when laziness finds respectability”
~Sam Keen

"From My Heart...to Yours..."

"God didn't promise days without pain,

laughter without sorrow,

sun without rain,

but He did promise strength for the day,

comfort for the tears,

and

light for the way.”

~Author Unknown

Jack...Wishing you comfort and peace...♥

"A Bit of a Blossom..."

...dusted with dots.

I was inspired by the Oaxacan folk painting style

used to decorate

beautiful and intricate wood carvings.

Methods of painting

Oaxacan carvings are uniquely localized

to the particular village from which they originate.

As this art form evolved

these carvers

incorporated geometric rug patterns

and

mosaic floral designs into their work.

You can check out

some authentic art from Oaxaca, Mexico here

and

some of the various village painting patterns here.

Enjoy! :)

Happy Blooming Tuesday!

"In Memory..."

...of Judy Butler...

(1944-2010)

a fellow artist, cactus lover, and blogging friend...

an inspiration

to all who knew her.

You made me smile...a lot!

I will always treasure your upbeat emails...

your playful "Cactus Mundi"...

your enthusiasm for all things Arizona.

I love that you taught me what a "sussie" was! :)

I will always hold dear the

beautiful art cards

you so graciously traded with me-

the backs of each so wonderfully detailed with

descriptions and lovely comments-

(I just loved that!)

♥

Your joy of life...

your passion for art and nature...

your beautiful, loving, and generous heart...

your love of all things "family"...

These are among your many legacies.

I feel really privileged and honored to have "met" you.

You were one very special lady.

Rest now, Judy...

in blissful eternal peace.

A Hint Of What's To Come..."

Well...
...it's a HUGE art project. :)
I will be giving just a few tastes of what it is about
here and there...until
I am ready for its actual "big unveiling".

Right now I am waiting

for a few more pieces of the puzzle to fall into place.

Feel free to take guesses about

what I am up to if you like...LOL :)

I will be planning...and designing...and fiddling

and diddling throughout the days...

...and the night time hours ahead...but OOOOOH MY
what fun it will be.
Today I tried to loosen things up a bit...
working a bit larger than the smaller ATC size
pieces I have been

making so many of lately.

I also used up some really old pens and tried

some different color palettes with my Pitt Brush pens.

Gosh, those old pens surely were scratchy!

Hmmm...:)

Fresh pens and a fresh project are on the horizon!!!:)

“Our passions are the true phoenixes;

when an old one is burnt out,

a new one

rises from its ashes.”
~Johann Wolfgang von Goethe

"Catching Up...With Artistic Beauty..."

...from Lisa in Arkansas...

a really unique alcohol inked background and postage stamp.
...From Cathy in Vermont...
...two magical star constellations...specially embedded with
deep personal symbolism for me.
...From Caroline in Australia...
a gorgeous artist hang tag and embellished envelope.
... From Marva in Colorado...
my own personal painting of the Garden of the Gods
with Pikes Peak in the background!
(I want to go there and paint with Marva someday!)
...From Amy in Illinois...
A hauntingly beautiful silver hawk warrior card
drawn completely in colored pencil.
(Amy is a member of the
prestigious Colored Pencil Society of America...
her work is utterly brilliant!)
From Elaine in New Zealand...
a dramatic card made with inks called "Rainy Afternoon".
It arrived the day of a big monsoon storm in Arizona..
the sky for real looked just like this card!
Seriously!
...And, lastly, from Denise in Oregon...
An stunning oriental inspired quilted card with
absolutely meticulous beading.
Denise has won numerous awards for her
fine quilting techniques...:)
♥
Ahhh! Such fun!
As always, I encourage you to "meet" and take a peek
at the work of these fine artists...
Just click on their name and you will be directed
to their galleries.
(Click, also, on any photo to enlarge it.)
May you find some beautiful and special surprises
in your personal life this Thankful Thursday.
Thanks for the visit!

"Wordless Wednesday..."

"A Summertime Market..."

...bursting with cherries and blossoms

and a dazzling array

of all sorts of "good for you" zen veggies...:)

Happy Blooming Tuesday! :)

"Always do your best.

What you plant now, you will harvest later."
~Og Mandino

American Essayist and Psychologist,

1923-1996

A Summer Desert Dichotomy...of Sorts..."

It's either blazing hot,

(with high temps in excess of 114 degrees...

and overnight lows reaching record breaking highs...)

with cloudless cerulean blue skies,

and sun baked dry, firery air...
...or
it's claustrophobically "sticky humid"
(a record high 80 degree dew point three days ago...
um...75 degree dew points are Amazon jungle level...)
with heavy water laden cloud banks
bursting at the seams in torrential downpours
making desert washes run wildly.
Geesch!
It has been one heck of a week here in the desert.
Hope you enjoy
my stylized "cactus monsoon flower" above.
Hmmm...
Maybe I should send it in to the Weather Channel
to be used as a new forecasting symbol
for these here desert regions.
LOL :)
Have a non-dichotomous...smooth and agreeable
Cactus Monday All!
:)

"You know you're an Arizona native
when
you take rain dances seriously."
~Skip Boyer